 Mystery House. That strange publishing firm owned by Dan and Barbara Glenn, where each new novel is acted out by the Mystery House staff before it is accepted for publication. Mystery House. Hey, Barbie, I like tonight's story. These mystery writers certainly get around, don't they? What do you mean, Dan? Well, you know, one week we act out a manuscript about a circus side show and a western rodeo story and then something up in the north woods, and tonight a story that takes place in a busy factory. Now, that's variety for you. It certainly is, Mr. Glenn, while there's even variety in the commercial announcements. I bet you never heard one exactly like this before. Listen. Places, everybody. That seems a nice story. A Case of Homicide. Tonight's story opens in the office of Walter Chalmers, busy president of the Chalmers Manufacturing Company. It's 9.15 and Mr. Chalmers comes bustling in ready for the day's work. Good morning, Miss Marsh. Well, what's the devil's that packing case during the middle of my private office? I don't know, Mr. Chalmers. Don't know? I pay you to... You pay me to be your private secretary, Mr. Chalmers, and that doesn't include knowing what packing cases are doing in the middle of your office. Well, what the devil is it doing here? Who let them in with a thing like that? Don't people around here know that a thing like that goes to the receiving room? I don't know, Mr. Chalmers. Well, it is right. Never mind. Get it out of here. Uh, it was here when I came in this morning. Well, didn't you hear me? Get it out! I, uh, doubt that I could list it, Mr. Chalmers. You... oh, hang it out. Get it out myself. It is food things heavy. Yes, I know. If I find out who's responsible for this, I'll... I'll... I'd like to address to you, and maybe that's why it was left here. Hmm. Walter Chalmers, President Chalmers Manufacturing Company room 404, Chalmers Building. This is room 404. You think I don't know my own office number? Well... Well, what, Mr. Chalmers? Call somebody and have the food thing taken out of here, right away. Well, you mean you're not going to open it? No, I'm not going to... Why? Why should I open it? If anyone sent me anything that large and that heavy, I'd want to see what it was. You think maybe it's a, uh, present for me? I haven't the faintest idea what it is. Is there a hammer around here? What? A hammer. A hammer. Oh. We run a factory, don't we? There ought to be a simple tool like a hammer somewhere around this place. Oh, there's one in the cabinet in the reception room. I'll go get it for you. Hmm. Of all the food packages. Hmm. Fine thing when a man can't come into his office without stumbling over... Well, did you get the hammer? Yes, Mr. Chalmers. Here you are. Uh, if you'd like to have the janitor help, you are... I'm perfectly capable of knocking the lid off a packing case without help from a janitor. There. Well, it seems we all wrapped up in paper. I wonder what the devil could be. Well, we'll see. Ah! Miss March! What? This? It's a human body. Yes. Not only is it a human body, but a very special body. Oh, what do you mean? You mean you don't know who it is? No. Do you? It's Jeffrey Warren. The head of the Warren Manufacturing Company? Yes. The head of the Warren Manufacturing Company. Our bitterest rivals. Why, I've feared it was Jeff Warren for ten years. The newspapers have sped our fight all over the... Great Scott, Miss March. Hmm. He's been murdered, hasn't he? Hi. Hi, I don't know. Well, those bullet holes in his stomach don't look like he died of old age. It's a frame-up. Somebody who knows the amity but his... Ah, that doesn't eliminate many people. Somebody else who hated Warren killed him? And I've been picked as a goat. Hey, there's a note in with him. A note addressed to you. Here, let me see it. You know I... Mr. Chalmers, I'm not your secretary at the moment. I think it's much better if I see the note before you do. I... Well, maybe you're right. Dear Chalmers, this is all for you. Okay, Miss March, sit down. There's a hat-rack on the outer office, Detective Craig. One of them smart-efficient names, eh? I have a deep respect for the law, Mr. Craig. But if there's one part of it I don't like, it's the gun-chewing head on his head type of detective one sees in the movie. I'm not a movie cop, sister. Then I'd suggest that you refrain from asking like one. Say listen, you... Okay, sister, skip it. Your trick almost worked. What trick? Trying to put me on the defense. I've checked your record, sister. Well? You worked for Jeff Warren before you come here. That isn't much of a secret. If you're going to come up with revelations like that... And you quit working for Warren to come here. Why? A matter of economics. $60 a week is 15 better than 45. 45? That's what you want to do. 60, eh? Yeah, yeah. But you're sure you quit Warren, huh? What do you mean? I mean, you're sure you wasn't still drawn to go from Warren for tipping him off what was going on in Chalmers' place? That's been done before. How dare you even suggest such a thing? I'm no spy. I haven't even spoken to Jeffrey Warren. Oh, so you wasn't speaking to him, huh? Had a fight with him, did you? No, I didn't have any fight with him. It was just, well, he seemed to think it was unreasonable and I'm scared for me to leave. I didn't think so. If anyone was mad, it was Mr. Warren. Oh, he threatened you, huh? You're impossible. No, he didn't threaten me. Yeah, kind of got yourself tripped up, baby. Why? You told Chalmers you didn't know who was in that packing case. Well, didn't you? I... well, yes. I was afraid that if Mr. Chalmers knew I'd ever work for the Warren organization, he'd fire me. You mean you got on here without Chalmers knowing you were his enemy's secretary? Yes, of course. That's what I mean. Why, Mrs. Warren, were you... Hello, Rosalie. Just been viewing the remains. Just a minute. I don't know who the... This is Mrs. Warren, uh, Betty. This is Detective Craig. Uh, how nice. Any clues, Detective? Listen, Mrs. Warren, you act awful cool for a woman whose husband's just been murdered. Do I? You tell him, Rosalie. And Mrs. Warren and her husband hadn't lived together for some time, Mr. Craig. Betty wanted a divorce and Mr. Warren wouldn't give it to her. Is that so? Hmm. You know anything about packing cases, Mrs. Warren? What are you driving at? That you got a first-class motive for killing the guy. You're quite mistaken, officer. He provided for me very handsomely. I had no complaints on that score. But you wanted a divorce. What happened? Well, the way things turned out, you get the same results as a divorce without the publicity and with more money. I wouldn't work on that theory, if I were you, Mr. Craig. No. No. Because you'll find I had nothing to do with it. You got any suggestions? A few. Mr. Thomas, for one. Oh, sure, sure, sure. He'd be up to murder a guy and then ship the body to himself at his office, wouldn't he? I had more motives to murder Jeff than any other person alive. But, if you'd like another suspect, I can help you out there, too. Yeah? How? Among my late husband's friends, you'll find one who was working for both him and Thomas. You mean there's March Dame? Oh, no, no, I don't mean Rosalette. Her opinion of Jeffery is no higher than mine. I mean the night watchman at the tent. We ever got that packing case into Thomas' office. You mean old Duncan? But petty when he's the most harmless old thing in the world. As harmless as a bull, constrictor. If you think he's so harmless, just ask him a few questions. That ain't a bad idea, Mrs. Warren. Yeah, I'm mighty shocked when I heard about it, Mr. Craig. Say, I'm mighty shocked. Hey, uh, Mrs. Warren, she says you were a friend of her husband. Yeah, I always liked Jeff Warren. Mighty fine. Say, mighty fine. Good thing I didn't know about Duncan. Well, never interfered with my work none, did it? I said never interfered with my work. Not so sure of that. She says you were working for Warren, too, while you were taking money from me. Well, work days for him, nights for you. Didn't interfere at all, none. What kind of work were you doing days for Warren? Well, I don't know what I ought to say. If not with her here, say, I don't know what I ought to. You better. Well, of course you put it that way. I, uh, I was watching her. You were what? Watching Mrs. Warren. Old Jeff had an idea that she was plotting to kill him to get his money. I say, she's plotting to kill him. That's a lie. You, you were tipping him off to everything Chalmers did. Mm-hmm. And kind of hard working as a night watchman. Didn't know myself what Chalmers was doing. I say, I didn't know myself. Okay. You're on a spot, fella. That pecking case had to come by you to get up here. Unless it come in the daytime. Yeah. I can see anybody lugging it in here in the daytime. You better start talking, mister. Okay. What about? I say, I mean, well, I'll tell you anything again. I mean, I aimed to oblige. I always aimed to oblige. You can oblige me by telling me just one thing. Who brought that pecking case in here? Couldn't tell you. I suppose you didn't see a thing, huh? Not a thing. You're lying. Or else you brought it in yourself. Oh, now, that's kind of strong accuser, mister. I ain't lying. I didn't see anybody bring it in. Now listen, that had to get past you. You were on the job you had to say it. Now you take your choice. Either you tell who you saw lug that thing in here, or admit that you did it yourself. Well, I don't like the choice you're giving me, mister. Looks to me like there's been some trickery. Some skull-duggery. I say, skull-duggery. There certainly has been some skull-duggery. Duggery, yeah. What's that man on the rest rig? Well, that wouldn't be too fast about that if I drew, Mr. Chalmers. You might live to regret it. Why, you old go... Just a minute. Let's take a look at that pecking case again. Listen, I said there wasn't anybody to go in your office. I get it locked and it's gonna stay that way. But I have an idea. If that case is from our stock room, we can trace it. If Duncan stole it... Say, maybe you got something there at that. Come on. I won't forget about you trying to put me on a spot, Mrs. Warren. I didn't... Yes, you did too. But what I know about you, I can make you trouble. See, I can make you trouble. Listen, if you're in trouble, it's your own fault. You know the old goatee. Fine on me. Where's the key to my office, Craig? It isn't asking too much. I'll unlock the door. I'll unlock it, Mr. Chalmers. Oh, we'll examine the... What? That is another pecking case. It... It wasn't here this morning. What the pay? Listen. What kind of a gag is this, anyway? If you think you're being funny, Chalmers... There's nothing funny about it. And don't be a fool. You think I could lug a thing like this and hear it past all the people in the outer office? Well, this one ain't addressed to you, Chalmers. But... No, no, it isn't. It's Rosalie Marks room 404 Chalmers building. Listen, this isn't funny. Where's the hammer? Oh, yeah. Here. Stand back. You... I don't want to look. You couldn't do anything, Rosalie. The matter's just trying to show you can have as much as possible. Oh, yeah? Great Scott! Another body! Ah, young guy. You know her, Miss Mark? I... Yes. Yes, I know her. Do something. You fool. Can't you see she's fainted? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, talk about lousy grace. Now I gotta wait till she comes to before I can find who the guy is. No, you don't, Craig. I can tell you it. Johnny Belman. Johnny Belman, huh? Who's he? Oh, nobody in particular. Except the man Rosalie Marks was engaged to Mary. Who killed Johnny Belman and Jetley Warren? And how did the bodies complete with their packing cases get into Walter Chalmers' office? We'll find out in the second act of the case of homicide. Meanwhile, here's a brief message from our sponsor of the case of homicide. The soonest Walter Chalmers' office in the Chalmers' manufacturing company. Dan Quig has taken it over his headquarters for the murder investigations, and he's talking to Mrs. Warren as Old Duncan sits nearby. Now come down off your high horse, Mrs. Warren. I know you're kind. You can't talk to me like that. Like a common old man. I don't need to explain what you are, Mrs. Warren. I've been talking to Duncan, and he told me you were sweet on his journey from us. You're a charming old fellow, Duncan. Yeah, well, names won't hurt me, Miss Warren. I was doing the job for your husband, and I know what I saw. I said, I know what I saw. How do you know who? You were seeing this Johnny Belman regular. It was on account of him that you wanted Jeff to divorce you. Listen here, you're... Quit that grand thing, stuff, sister. You were stepping out on Old Jeffrey and... That's a lie. Jeff and I weren't living together. We had nothing in common. I asked him for a divorce. Which he wouldn't give you. All right, which he wouldn't give me. But that didn't make us any more compatible. He didn't need to hire a filthy snooper to know I was seeing Johnny Belman. I told him that Johnny and I were in love with each other. He knew all about it. There's nothing to speak for about it. That makes a good story. With Gipri out of the way. It's true, there's no story to it. You think I'd kill the man I love? If he busted you up with your husband, and you thought you was gonna marry him, and then he got engaged to another girl? Yeah, yeah, I think you would. But his engagement to Rosalie March didn't mean a thing. From the way she keeled over when she saw his body, I think different, sister. Funny. A nice kid like her being sweet on a heel like that. Don't you call Johnny a heel. He's a fine person. Hey, why don't you knock before you... Oh, hello, Miss March. They said you wanted me. I've been hearing an interesting story, Miss March. Mrs. Warren here says Johnny Belman was in love with her and not with you. It doesn't make much difference what anybody says. Now that he's dead, does it? Ah, good point you got there, Miss March. That's a good point. What's a good point? What Mrs. Warren says her husband said. Nobody can prove it one way or the other now. Neither way. I guess that's right. But there's something else nobody can prove. Well? Nobody can prove I came in here with two packing cases on my back. Since that went over, genius. What are you doing here? I just thought you might like to talk to me, Mrs. Warren. I've nothing to say to you. Mm-hmm. Suppose those that I was to get a flash of memory. What are you talking about? Suppose I was to remember that I saw you taking a big box in the Mr. Chalmers office saying you had a present for Rosalie March and wanted a surprise. I didn't. You wouldn't say that. Look, Miss Warren, I've had tough luck all my life. Here I am getting along in years. No nest egg. Say no nest egg. I got a right to something, ain't I? Get out of here before I throw you out. You and me, we've got to get along with each other the way I look at it. I'll show you how we're going to get along. Put down that gun now, Miss Warren. You could have an accident with it. You just said I could have an accident. And I'm going to have one if you don't clear out of here. No, no. You couldn't get away with it. Oh, yes, I could. I could say that you came here threatening me, trying to blackmail me. And when I refused to stand for it, you got mad. Yes. You was too smart for Jeffrey Warren, always. I can see that now. You outsmarted him at every turn, didn't you? Get out of here. I'd put down that gun if I knew, Miss Warren. I didn't come here to be bluffed. See, I didn't come here to be bluffed. Give it here. No. No, you got to wait for me. You. I'm warning you, you won't. Stand back or I'll shoot. Yeah. Are you hurt? No. No, I'm sound as a dollar. But you're hurt. I say you're hurt after you're firing that gun. There's going to be quite a stir. And I got you right where I want you. You deliberately tricked me into getting my revolver. But I was you. I'd make a deal fast, Mrs. Warren, before the folks who heard that shot get here. You. You killed Jeff and Johnny Berner. You did it. You killed them in order to blackmail me. You had to kill Jeff, so I'd have money. And then you had to kill Johnny, so there'd be nobody to protect me. I didn't have to kill anybody. But once in my life, I just kind of took advantage of things as they happened. I say, I took advantage. I hope you'll get this over in a hurry, sir. The chips are down this time, Mrs. Warren. This is going to be it. They're all going to be here, and nobody's going to leave till I get the killer. Did it ever occur to you that it might be two killers? Yeah. Yeah, it occurred to me, and I threw it away. These deals are too much a life. Well, for heaven's sake, hurry up and get it finished. There's three days' correspondence piled up. Look, Mr. Chalmers, I'm doing the best I can. Ain't very good. What's that, Duncan? I say your best ain't very good. No, no. Maybe you'll think differently before I throw it, Duncan. I'm going at this thing scientific. I'll bet that's just wonderful. If I want any common smith march, I'll ask for them. Oh, I forgot. The majesty of the law. Pardon me. Look, you... Oh, forget it. Forget it. All right. I fixed myself up a list of motives and theories. Always disregarding the packing cases. Uh, they're a little on the important side, though, aren't they? I said, oh, never mind. We've been assuming that Mrs. Warren had a motive for killing Johnny Belman because he got himself engaged to you and she was in love with him. There was never any doubt about her having a motive to kill Jeffry Warren. I can't believe Mrs. Warren could get those packing cases into my office. I said we're disregarding those for a while. The little packing cases that weren't there. Now, listen, you, that theory about march stands up pretty good. But we're overlooking something. Yes? What? How do we know which came first in Belman's life? Mrs. Warren or Rosalie March? I... I don't get it. Suppose Belman was engaged to Rosalie before he fell for Mrs. Warren. That had kind of changed the motives around a little, wouldn't it? Now, what do you mean by that? I mean that you might have been sorry at Belman because he was giving you the go-by after promised him to marry you. But that's not true. It could be. How about it, Mrs. Warren? Johnny didn't care about Rosalie March, really. He was using her to keep Jeffrey from having any grounds for divorce from me. Johnny could always say he was engaged to Rosalie. That's a lie, and you know it. Johnny was going to marry me in spite of all your tricks, throwing yourself at him, promising him money. Go right ahead, dear. Your theory isn't so bad, Craig. Except that there's no truth in it. You work here, Miss March. You know what time Walter Chalmers got into his office every morning. You know how long you would have. You had access to every department in this building through his keys. And that includes the room where they make the packing cases. What are you trying to say? I'm saying that those bodies weren't brought in here in packing cases. Those men came in here alive, both of them. The packing cases were supposed to make it look as if they'd been sent in as strike work against you and Chalmers. They were supposed to convince me that an outsider did the job and was trying to pit it onto you or Chalmers. The shipping department's at the other end of the plant. I couldn't possibly lug one of those things that distance, particularly not without being seen. And besides, well, you couldn't possibly give me a motor for killing Jeffrey Warren? Oh, no. Why not? Why, don't you see? His death freed the worst rival I had. It made it possible for Betty Warren to marry Johnny. Ha-ha. Guess that'll hold you, Craig. You keep out of this. I don't think I will. I say I don't think I will. What is a packing case made of? See, what's it made of? Why, boards, of course. Boards and nails. Yeah, a packing case is a big thing. But a bunch of little boards, one at a time, they don't amount to much. Okay, they don't amount to much. What are you driving at, Duncan? I've seen you one day last week walking around the plant with a board in your hand. Boards. I often did that. I don't see that that... Not until last week, you didn't. I noticed the same thing. I saw you carrying that board, too. But I still don't see what that... Don't see. Every time I see him, you have that board. Only it wasn't the same board. He brought them packing cases in here a board at a time. Little flat boards. There was plenty of places he could hide them, too. Not like a big packing case. Oh, fool, you don't know what you're talking about. I'm afraid I do, Mr. Chalmers. You could have had them boards hidden in your office. And nails, too. Nothing to keep you from throwing together a packing box right in here. You know he was carrying a board around all last week. I thought it was just an absent-minded mannerism. And that second packing box. Put in his office while Craig had the keys and the place was locked. He's got more than one set of keys, of course. But he couldn't have shot the guy without our hearing it. With soft pine and sharp nails and a towel wrapped around the hammer working on this thick rug, he might be able to build a packing case. But he couldn't have shot Belman. Belman and Mr. Warren was probably shot at the same time. He hid Belman's body in the clothes closet along with the boards for Belman's packing case. And the excitement of finding one body, nobody was looking for another. Hmm. I think I'll check the ship in Rome and see if Chalmers had a yen for lumber last week. I... No. All right, I built the packing cases. I thought I'd be the last person in the world to be suspected where the body's apparently delivered to me. You see, the logical thought would be that no murderer would ever send the bodies to himself. He would try to get rid of them. I guess we got reasons for your killing Warren, all right. But I don't get the angle on Johnny Belman. I wanted to confuse the issue. And he was really the perfect victim. His connections with this march and you and Duncan. And I didn't feel bad about killing him because he'd have been murdered some time anyway. He had it coming. For that matter, so did Warren. And now, if you'll excuse me... Hey, hey, come back here! Come back! Come back or I'll shoot! He's coming to run! All right! You killed him! Yeah. Well, he asked for it, didn't he? Maybe it's better this way. See? Maybe it's better this way. Oh, you rogue, rep or bake. Either you give me back my money or I'll have you arrested for blackmail. Huh? What's this, anyway? Nothing. Nothing, nothing at all. I say nothing at all. I just, well... I tried a little experiment and it didn't work. You got no cause to be suspicious of me. I solved the case for you, didn't I? I say, I say, I solved the case, didn't I? Oh, sure. Looks like I lost money by doing it, too. Thank you for watching.