WEBVTT

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Stay tuned for X minus one on NBC. Countdown

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for blast off. X minus five. Four. Three. Two.

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X minus one. Fire. From the far horizons of the

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unknown come transcribed tales of new dimensions

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in time and space. These are stories of the future.

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Adventures in which you'll live in a million

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could be years on a thousand maybe worlds. The

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National Broadcasting Company in cooperation

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with Galaxy Science Fiction Magazine presents...

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Tonight, The Old Die Rich by H .L. Gold. The

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uniformed cop at the door told me to get lost,

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but Lou Pape spotted me and told the man to let

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me in. It was a shabby room, they always are.

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There was a woman on the bed, an old woman with

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white hair, thin enough to show the tide -drawn

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scalp. The medical examiner was going over her

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as if she were a side of beef that you had to

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put a federal -grade stamp on. When are you going

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to stop taking this ham friend of yours around

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to these cases, Sergeant, just to gratify his

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morbid curiosity? Forget about Weldon, Doc. What

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did she die of? Not eating, malnutrition. Oh,

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now look, Doc, in the top bureau drawer, she

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had bank books showing $32 ,000 from five different

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banks. Now, she had the price of a meal. Malnutrition

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induced by senile psychosis. They starve because

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they're less afraid of death than digging into

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their savings. I don't know, Doc. It doesn't

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feel right to me. Listen, Weldon, just because

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you get up on a stage or on some half -baked

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television show and make believe you're 70 years

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old doesn't qualify you as an expert on gerontology.

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Maybe not, Doc, but I went bald at 25 and I've

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been playing old men ever since. There's a lot

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more to it than just shuffling around and talking

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in a high -crack voice. Yeah, there hasn't been

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an actor since Oda Skinner. Maybe. But the way

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I work, I have to get inside the character. I

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have to decide when he was born, how he got along

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with his father, where he went to school, what

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he thinks of women, everything about a character.

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There isn't a one of them these days can make

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themselves heard past the fifth row. Look, I'm

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serious. Now, I've tried imagining myself growing

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weak from hunger. I've tried to think of not

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even spending a nickel to keep me from dying.

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Well, I just don't believe it. It isn't right.

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I don't feel it. Well, lucky for me, I don't

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have to feel these things inside of me because

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I'm a doctor and not an actor. Sergeant, malnutrition

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induced by senile psychosis. I'll order the wicker

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basket from Bellevue. So long, Barrymore. Well,

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he's right, Mark. We get a couple of these cases

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every year. Some old bat starving to death with

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$17 ,000 in old bills pinned on his union suit.

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Turns up all the time. Al, it doesn't feel right.

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Well, he knows his business. But he doesn't know

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old people. I do. It isn't easy to starve to

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death. Not when you can buy day -old bread at

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the bakery or wilted vegetables the grocer's

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ready to throw out. Anyone who's willing to eat

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that stuff can stay alive from day to day. Hunger

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is a... Well, it's a pretty potent instinct.

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Maybe they get too sick to go out after old bread

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or wilted vegetables. It takes weeks to die of

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starvation. Did you ever try starving for weeks,

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Lou? No, did you? Well, the point is somebody

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would find out, a janitor, a landlord, somebody,

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and they'd get him to a hospital. Ah, forget

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about it, Mark. Can't argue with it. Here there

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were five bank books, $32 ,000. Yeah, she took

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good care of them. They look almost new. Sure

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she did. Most important thing in the world, huh?

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April 23rd, 1907, $150. The ink's pretty dark.

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Shouldn't it be faded? She probably never took

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it out in the light. Anyone ever think of testing

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the ink? What for? Banks records always check.

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These aren't forgeries, if that's what you're

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thinking. Well, uh, I'd like to get a chemist

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working on this ink. Ah, now, Mark. Look, this

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is strictly against regulations. I gotta take

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these books down to the squad room and sign them

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in. Pretty dark ink for 1907. Well, it's about

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five o 'clock in the afternoon. I guess I could

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hold them over tonight and bring them down to

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the property clerk in the morning. Good. I know

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where I can find a chemist. Mr. Weldon, there's

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no doubt of it. The ink sample is typical of

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inks used 50 years ago. Uh, 1907 would be about

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right. There, you see, Weldon? I was supposed

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to go to the Trotters tonight. But according

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to the amount of oxidation, it's fresh enough

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to be only a few months old. There, I was right.

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Well, could not, uh... Could not be the result

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of unusually careful handling them? Oh, yes,

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yes, I suppose it could. An airtight compartment,

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perhaps, sealed with one of the inert gases or

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a vacuum. That might account for the lack of

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normal aging. Lou, you can't keep inert gases

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in a top bureau drawer in a fourth -floor walk

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-up? Yeah. Well, it's probably some simple explanation.

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For fresh ink, half a century old. I've been

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going out on these cases for about a year. It's

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my specialty playing old people and when I'm

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not working television or something on Broadway,

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I go down to the homes for the aged or the parks

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or just watch. Lou Pape's an old friend of mine

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and he put me on these malnutrition cases. But

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there was more to it than just picking up color

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and tricks of the trade. There had to be a better

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reason for it. You can't just starve to death

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with upwards of $30 ,000 right at your fingertips.

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Not without at least buying a bowl of soup. I

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had a run of television that kept me busy for

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about a month. Then Lou Pape called me up and

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asked me to come down to Bellevue. I'll autopsy

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if you want it, Sergeant, but I can give you

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the cause of death right now. Malnutrition due

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to senile psychosis. What's up, Lou? Well, Mark,

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an old guy was found wandering around down on

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Hester Street. Suffering from malnutrition, he

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had $17 ,000 in cash inside the lining of his

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jacket. Is he alive? No, not now he isn't. Doc's

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got him in the room there, but he was stumbling

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around when the cop on the beat picked him up.

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Did he say anything? Well, he talked to the cop.

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Pretty smart young kid. Seems the old man kept

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talking about money and about his wife. She must

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have been dead 20 years. And then just before

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he went out completely, he did say something.

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Maybe three or four times. What was it? El Greco.

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You mean the artist? Well, that's what Stankiewicz

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said. He's the officer who picked him up. Said

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he remembered he'd heard the name on that television

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quiz program. You know, the jockey who's the

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art expert. El Greco? Probably some Greek restaurant

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where he was bumming his meals. Now, you sure

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you want no top seed, Sergeant? It's late. I

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won't get to do it till tomorrow. All right,

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take your time, Duck. There's something else,

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isn't there, Lou? Maybe, Mark. Found the old

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guy's room and there was an ad thumb -tacked

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over the sink. Nothing too unusual. Yeah. Here

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it is. Men and women wanted light work suitable

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for old people. No references required. Well,

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I checked it with the lieutenant. He says to

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forget it. Says it figures for an old guy to

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be interested in an ad like that. An old guy

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with $17 ,000 in cash? Yeah. Well, I didn't figure

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I'd argue with the lieutenant. You mind if I

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keep it? No. Go ahead. It was an old brown stone

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house in the East 80s. I got in line with the

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rest of the applicants. My face was lined with

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collodion wrinkles and I wore an antique shiny

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suit and rundown shoes. It was a good makeup

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job. I looked more authentic than the rest of

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the old -timers who were waiting for the interview.

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I finally came up to where a woman was asking

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the questions. Name? Kernit. Louis Kernet. Kernet.

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Mm -hmm. A dress? Well, I don't exactly have

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a place. I've been staying with a fellow down

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on 12th Street, a friend of mine. I met him in

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the cafeteria. A previous occupation. Well, I

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worked at a lot of things. Used to be a printer

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way back. I could handset... Do you have any

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references? Well... Family? No, no, no, ma 'am.

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I haven't got any family. I had a cousin in Salt

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Lake City, but haven't seen him in 30 years or

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more. The ad said you didn't need no references.

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Well, that's right. Now, will you wait in the

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other room? Yes, ma 'am. Do I get the job, ma

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'am? Just wait in the other room. I shuffled

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into the other room and sat down to wait. I concentrated

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on building a character for Louie Kernet. If

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I was going to carry this through, I was going

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to have to play a better performance than I'd

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ever given before. About half an hour, a young

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woman came into the room. I planned to be dozing

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the way an old man would, so my eyes were closed

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when I heard the door close. When I opened them,

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I was looking into the barrel of a .38 revolver.

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Are you awake now, Mr. Weldon? I don't think

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you need to carry on anymore. If you need any

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further convincing, you are Mark Weldon. You're

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about 40 years old, and you played this same

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character on television about six weeks ago.

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You played it fairly well. Thank you. Would you

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mind putting down that gun? Yes. Why did you

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apply for this position, Mr. Weldon? You're not

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old. Not really. Well, uh... As a matter of fact,

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it was a bet. I... was having an argument about

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the method with an actor who trained at the old

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Vic. I... I bet him that I could, uh... Well,

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I could get by off the stage... No, well, don't

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bother. You've been very busy recently trying

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to find out why senile psychotics starve themselves

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to death. How did you know that? Well, I happen

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to know that you've been present at several police

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investigations into these cases, and you're a

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good friend of Sergeant Lou Pape. Well, you know

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a great deal more about me than I do about you.

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Well, I would be glad to enlighten you. My name

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is May Roberts. I'm the daughter of the late

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Dr. Anthony Roberts, the physicist, who was dismissed

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from the Brookhaven Atomic Energy Laboratory

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five years ago. I assume you're connected with

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these starvation cases, or you wouldn't have

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known I was investigating them. Well, that's

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obvious, isn't it? I'm not afraid of professional

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detectives, Mr. Weldon. They deal only with facts.

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But I don't like amateurs. They guess too much.

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They don't stick to reality. Consequently, they're

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likely to get too close to the truth. Unfortunately,

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Miss Roberts, I'm nowhere near the truth. I haven't

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the slightest idea how you're tied in with those

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starvation deaths. Well, I intend to show you,

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Mr. Weldon. I'm happy to announce that you have

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the job. Now, look... Don't move, Mr. Weldon.

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Oh, incidentally. About 15 minutes ago, I called

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Sergeant Pape and told him I was your sister

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just in from Pittsburgh. I wanted to get in touch

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with you very badly, and Sergeant Pape was very

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sorry. He wished he could help me, but he didn't

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have the slightest idea where you were. All right,

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Mr. Weldon. Right ahead of you, please. Through

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that door. She didn't look like the kind of girl

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who would forget to hold the gun on me as I went

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down the hall. So that's all I did, just go down

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the hall. I climbed up to the fourth floor to

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a large room. There was a maze of electrical

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equipment bolted down, tubes and wires and dials.

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In the middle of the room was a wire mesh cage.

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She kept that gun on me steady as a rock. She

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began to set readings on the dials and flip switches

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on the control panel. It'll take about five minutes

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for the field to build up, Mr. Weldon. Please

00:12:44.549 --> 00:12:48.429
get in the cathode area. You mean that wire cage?

00:12:48.450 --> 00:12:53.370
Go ahead. All right, all right. Now, I wouldn't

00:12:53.370 --> 00:12:55.789
advise moving now, Mr. Weldon, the wire carries

00:12:55.789 --> 00:12:57.429
some 10 ,000 volts. Now look, Ms. Roberts...

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Mr. Weldon, you're curious. And you could turn

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out to be a great nuisance to me. As long as

00:13:03.419 --> 00:13:05.679
you come this far, we might as well both benefit

00:13:05.679 --> 00:13:07.899
by it. Benefit? You'll find a suit of clothes

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on the floor there. Put it on. But after all...

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Put it on! I didn't know whether she was bluffing

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about the electric charge, but the revolver looked

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real enough so I stripped and changed into the

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other clothes. The shoes were a little too tight

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and pointed. The collar of the shirt was too

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stiffly starched and too high under my chin.

00:13:30.509 --> 00:13:32.269
The suit was too narrow at the shoulders and

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at the ankles. I remember my father had a suit

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like that. The same shiny blue surge. All right.

00:13:40.710 --> 00:13:42.690
In your pocket you'll find a set of envelopes.

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You'll find a set of instructions on each. Follow

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them carefully. I don't get it. You will. Use

00:13:48.389 --> 00:13:50.509
the envelopes in the order they are arranged.

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What's this all about? Mr. Weldon, I meant it

00:13:52.950 --> 00:13:55.090
when I said this could be a benefit to both of

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us. There's no use explaining anything. You'll

00:13:57.820 --> 00:14:00.159
find out. And don't try to escape. It can't be

00:14:00.159 --> 00:14:03.980
done. All right. Now the field generators are

00:14:03.980 --> 00:14:05.399
ready. Look, Miss Roberts, this is absolutely...

00:14:05.399 --> 00:14:25.600
Just follow instructions, Mr. Weldon. I blinked.

00:14:25.679 --> 00:14:28.120
I was standing outside a bank on a sunny day

00:14:28.120 --> 00:14:31.340
in spring. I stared at the people passing by.

00:14:32.000 --> 00:14:34.340
They were dressed like the characters in a 1930

00:14:34.340 --> 00:14:37.240
movie. The women wore long dresses and flower

00:14:37.240 --> 00:14:40.460
pot hats. Men had hard straw hats. Suits with

00:14:40.460 --> 00:14:43.840
narrow shoulders. Cars were square with flat

00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:46.399
radiators in the front. There was a trolley car

00:14:46.399 --> 00:14:49.279
passing by. Suddenly I realized that the last

00:14:49.279 --> 00:14:50.940
trolley car stopped running in Manhattan years

00:14:50.940 --> 00:14:53.820
ago. I tried to figure it out. It was New York,

00:14:53.820 --> 00:14:56.000
all right? I recognized some of the buildings.

00:14:56.759 --> 00:14:59.500
First I figured it must have been hypnosis. And

00:14:59.500 --> 00:15:01.299
then I looked at the first of the envelopes in

00:15:01.299 --> 00:15:04.799
my pocket. I read it and walked into the bank.

00:15:05.580 --> 00:15:08.019
Yes, sir. Our Mr. Golden tells me that you wish

00:15:08.019 --> 00:15:11.139
to open an account. Yes, that's right. Uh -huh.

00:15:11.399 --> 00:15:13.179
Well, we're very happy to have a new depository.

00:15:13.179 --> 00:15:15.419
Very happy indeed. Of course, you realize the

00:15:15.419 --> 00:15:17.679
institution is in sound condition. Very sound.

00:15:18.100 --> 00:15:20.039
You didn't worry about all those rumors in this

00:15:20.039 --> 00:15:22.779
bank. No, sir. Solid. Solid. Well, that's good.

00:15:23.100 --> 00:15:27.580
All right, now then, name? Mark Weldon. You have

00:15:27.580 --> 00:15:30.700
no address in the city at present? No, no. And

00:15:30.700 --> 00:15:34.340
you're depositing $150? That's right. All righty.

00:15:34.600 --> 00:15:39.659
I'll just check the slip here. $150, right. And

00:15:39.659 --> 00:15:45.360
the date? May 15th, of course, 1931. 31? Depression

00:15:45.360 --> 00:15:48.059
oh now mr. Weldon. This is a very good year for

00:15:48.059 --> 00:15:50.559
business this temporary recession is bound to

00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:53.159
abate Sound banking policies will see us through.

00:15:53.419 --> 00:15:56.379
It's just around the corner. You know what what

00:15:56.379 --> 00:15:59.559
is prosperity? All right, mr. Weldon. We're very

00:15:59.559 --> 00:16:07.600
happy to have your account I Went outside the

00:16:07.600 --> 00:16:09.480
bank and I stood there in the spring sunlight

00:16:09.480 --> 00:16:14.100
and let the terror soak into me The possibility

00:16:14.100 --> 00:16:16.639
of the entire situation was gnawing at the edges

00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:19.500
of my mind and then suddenly I wasn't there.

00:16:21.779 --> 00:16:24.120
It was as fast as blinking. I was outside another

00:16:24.120 --> 00:16:27.039
bank in the same city. The date on the next envelope

00:16:27.039 --> 00:16:31.700
was May 29th and it was still 1931. I made a

00:16:31.700 --> 00:16:34.840
$75 deposit there and then $100 at another place

00:16:34.840 --> 00:16:37.440
a few days later, spending a few minutes each

00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:39.440
time and going ahead anywhere from a couple of

00:16:39.440 --> 00:16:44.529
days to almost a month. In 1934, I found myself

00:16:44.529 --> 00:16:49.090
inside a broker's office. Very well, Mr. Weldon.

00:16:49.950 --> 00:16:52.389
As I understand it, you are buying the stock

00:16:52.389 --> 00:16:56.889
for a Dr. Anthony Roberts. That's right. I assume

00:16:56.889 --> 00:16:58.990
the stock will be in his name? That's right.

00:16:59.169 --> 00:17:02.100
I'm just acting as agent. I follow instructions.

00:17:02.340 --> 00:17:04.480
Of course, of course. Well, are you sure I can't

00:17:04.480 --> 00:17:06.140
convince you that you're making a big mistake?

00:17:06.299 --> 00:17:08.319
No, no. These are my instructions. Well, now,

00:17:08.380 --> 00:17:10.940
Mr. Weldon, we are a reputable brokerage house

00:17:10.940 --> 00:17:13.660
and, well, frankly, I feel quite shaky about

00:17:13.660 --> 00:17:15.519
putting our client's money into this kind of

00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:18.500
security. There's no future in it. It's a rare

00:17:18.500 --> 00:17:20.279
metal for which there is very little use for

00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:23.440
industrial purposes and... Well, however, if

00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:25.559
your client is adamant... I have my instructions.

00:17:25.819 --> 00:17:29.500
Very well, then. In the name of Dr. Anthony Roberts,

00:17:29.859 --> 00:17:36.619
100 shares of Montana uranium. Most unwise, most

00:17:36.619 --> 00:17:44.640
unwise. It went that way about 50 -50. I'd deposit

00:17:44.640 --> 00:17:47.220
money in my own name in various banks at other

00:17:47.220 --> 00:17:50.019
times. Then I'd buy a stock or make a bet for

00:17:50.019 --> 00:17:54.200
Mayor Roberts. On June 21st, 1932... I bet Jack

00:17:54.200 --> 00:17:56.160
Sharkey to take the heavyweight title away from

00:17:56.160 --> 00:17:59.200
Max Schmeling. There was singing wood in 1933

00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.980
at Belmont Park and Max Bayer over Primo Connera.

00:18:02.660 --> 00:18:04.460
I went on skipping through the years, touching

00:18:04.460 --> 00:18:06.460
here and there for a few minutes to an hour at

00:18:06.460 --> 00:18:10.519
a time. It was in early October 1938, about five

00:18:10.519 --> 00:18:13.559
hours after I'd left May Roberts' house, before

00:18:13.559 --> 00:18:16.779
I realized what she had me doing. I was making

00:18:16.779 --> 00:18:19.859
deposits and winning sure bets, just as those

00:18:19.859 --> 00:18:22.779
senile psychotics had done. The ink on their

00:18:22.779 --> 00:18:25.440
bank books seemed fresh because it was fresh.

00:18:26.099 --> 00:18:28.759
Wasn't given a chance to oxidize. The rate I

00:18:28.759 --> 00:18:30.960
was going, I'd be back at my own time in a few

00:18:30.960 --> 00:18:34.059
hours with $15 ,000 compound interest in cash.

00:18:34.779 --> 00:18:36.880
But those old people had died of starvation somehow

00:18:36.880 --> 00:18:39.940
with all that, that cash in banks. I didn't know

00:18:39.940 --> 00:18:42.859
how it happened or why. But suddenly it occurred

00:18:42.859 --> 00:18:44.759
to me that I didn't want to be found dead in

00:18:44.759 --> 00:18:47.799
my hotel room. So rather than make the deposit

00:18:47.799 --> 00:18:50.019
in 1938, I grabbed a cab and told the driver

00:18:50.019 --> 00:18:53.259
to step on it. I got a mile away from the bank

00:18:53.259 --> 00:18:56.460
and then the cab suddenly disappeared. I found

00:18:56.460 --> 00:18:59.839
myself in front of a counter at a lunchroom.

00:19:00.359 --> 00:19:02.599
The envelope instructed me to make a bet on the

00:19:02.599 --> 00:19:05.660
World Series. There wasn't any way to get out

00:19:05.660 --> 00:19:07.619
of the range of the machine. It picked me up

00:19:07.619 --> 00:19:09.680
at least five miles away from where I was supposed

00:19:09.680 --> 00:19:14.059
to be. I came back a week later to get my winnings.

00:19:14.059 --> 00:19:16.259
I was hungry so I got myself a hamburger and

00:19:16.259 --> 00:19:19.579
went out the door. When I hit the sidewalk it

00:19:19.579 --> 00:19:30.369
happened again. Don't touch the cage yet, Mr.

00:19:30.490 --> 00:19:34.349
Weldon. I'll have to clear the charge. Hey, what

00:19:34.349 --> 00:19:36.250
happened to my hamburger? What? The hamburger.

00:19:36.289 --> 00:19:38.450
I had it here. It's gone. I'm hungry. I'll get

00:19:38.450 --> 00:19:39.869
you something to eat, Mr. Weldon, before your

00:19:39.869 --> 00:19:44.789
next trip. Well, you've done pretty well for

00:19:44.789 --> 00:19:46.930
yourself, haven't you? Yes. Yes, I have. About

00:19:46.930 --> 00:19:51.750
15 ,000. I had ketchup on my sleeve. It's gone.

00:19:51.970 --> 00:19:54.690
Mr. Weldon, I want to talk seriously with you.

00:19:55.029 --> 00:19:58.089
Now you've seen part of what I'm doing. Part?

00:19:58.240 --> 00:20:01.240
My father was discharged from all his research

00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:03.220
and university connections because he insisted

00:20:03.220 --> 00:20:05.400
in publishing his findings on the temporal field

00:20:05.400 --> 00:20:08.259
research. All the conventional physicists explained

00:20:08.259 --> 00:20:10.619
that it was overwork and recommended everything

00:20:10.619 --> 00:20:13.880
from hot bullion before retiring to psychoanalysis.

00:20:14.180 --> 00:20:15.579
Well, possibly both of these might have been

00:20:15.579 --> 00:20:18.920
beneficial. But the fact of the matter is that

00:20:18.920 --> 00:20:21.740
temporal field activities are quite true, and

00:20:21.740 --> 00:20:24.500
you've seen proof. Well, I suppose I have. So

00:20:24.500 --> 00:20:26.019
it seemed just a question of money, although

00:20:26.019 --> 00:20:28.890
obviously I can get all I need now. But sending

00:20:28.890 --> 00:20:31.450
people back through time to better ensure things

00:20:31.450 --> 00:20:33.930
like uranium... It's a fair exchange. I pay well

00:20:33.930 --> 00:20:36.450
for service, don't I? I suppose so. But that

00:20:36.450 --> 00:20:39.150
isn't the most important thing. I've been able

00:20:39.150 --> 00:20:41.190
to save things that would have been lost otherwise.

00:20:41.529 --> 00:20:43.710
I've sent people back to find precious treasures

00:20:43.710 --> 00:20:45.470
that would have been destroyed or would have

00:20:45.470 --> 00:20:47.990
disappeared. Like an El Greco painting? Yes.

00:20:48.299 --> 00:20:51.160
and the original score of Mozart's magic flute

00:20:51.160 --> 00:20:53.900
that would have been burned in 1942, and a Picasso

00:20:53.900 --> 00:20:55.900
miniature that would have been lost at sea in

00:20:55.900 --> 00:21:00.359
52. I have them all here. Stolen? No. Bought

00:21:00.359 --> 00:21:02.599
with money from the year itself at a fair price.

00:21:03.680 --> 00:21:07.000
Well, Mr. Weldon, I sent you back because I've

00:21:07.000 --> 00:21:09.119
needed someone to work with me on a regular basis.

00:21:09.460 --> 00:21:11.279
Someone who's faster and more alert than the

00:21:11.279 --> 00:21:13.809
old people I've hired till now. Why old people?

00:21:13.829 --> 00:21:15.430
It's a function of the field. You can't send

00:21:15.430 --> 00:21:17.210
somebody back to a year in which they didn't

00:21:17.210 --> 00:21:21.069
exist at all. I'm hungry. Please, Mr. Weldon,

00:21:21.130 --> 00:21:25.130
this is very important. My father died trying

00:21:25.130 --> 00:21:27.170
to prove the validity of his field theory to

00:21:27.170 --> 00:21:29.710
conventional scientists. And I don't intend to

00:21:29.710 --> 00:21:32.450
bother. We can become the most powerful people

00:21:32.450 --> 00:21:34.609
in the world. I don't feel very powerful now.

00:21:34.769 --> 00:21:36.509
You haven't got a sandwich hanging around, have

00:21:36.509 --> 00:21:38.170
you? I want to make you an offer, Mr. Weldon.

00:21:38.829 --> 00:21:41.509
I need someone to help me expand the operation.

00:21:41.759 --> 00:21:45.140
plan the projects and research. I chose you because

00:21:45.140 --> 00:21:47.119
I was afraid that you might hit on the truth

00:21:47.119 --> 00:21:49.420
by yourself. Can I come out of this cage now?

00:21:49.440 --> 00:21:51.519
Be careful. Don't touch the contacts. The field

00:21:51.519 --> 00:21:53.559
reacts on a random factor for at least an hour

00:21:53.559 --> 00:21:56.940
after it's cut off. I'll be careful. Tell me,

00:21:56.980 --> 00:21:59.839
Miss Roberts, why haven't you been able to go

00:21:59.839 --> 00:22:02.200
back to the time that your father was alive and

00:22:02.200 --> 00:22:05.539
bring him back before he died? Dead tissue can't

00:22:05.539 --> 00:22:08.079
be transported. We tried it with mice and rabbits

00:22:08.079 --> 00:22:10.799
from a laboratory in 1941 and they just disappeared.

00:22:10.960 --> 00:22:16.160
Like my hamburger. Mr. Weldon, I assume that

00:22:16.160 --> 00:22:19.059
you're interested and that we can make our plans

00:22:19.059 --> 00:22:23.220
without using this revolver. I hope so. Fifteen

00:22:23.220 --> 00:22:26.380
thousand dollars is a lot of money. Of course

00:22:26.380 --> 00:22:28.420
you were able to send those old people back a

00:22:28.420 --> 00:22:32.660
lot further. Some of them as far back as 1880.

00:22:33.099 --> 00:22:35.680
How long would they be gone? I mean in subjective

00:22:35.680 --> 00:22:38.960
time. Several weeks. Perhaps a month though more.

00:22:39.200 --> 00:22:41.819
There's only one problem, Miss Roberts. Well,

00:22:41.819 --> 00:22:45.000
I'm sure we can work out any details. Well, this

00:22:45.000 --> 00:22:47.259
one is a little hard to work out. You see, I'm

00:22:47.259 --> 00:22:49.480
hungry. I haven't been this hungry since I got

00:22:49.480 --> 00:22:51.140
lost on a hunting trip and went without food

00:22:51.140 --> 00:22:54.000
for three days. You see, you forget I've got

00:22:54.000 --> 00:22:56.380
an interest in this business because they found

00:22:56.380 --> 00:22:58.839
some old people dead of malnutrition and $30

00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:01.579
,000 or so tucked away in their pockets. They

00:23:01.579 --> 00:23:03.160
had been gone a month or more and they had to

00:23:03.160 --> 00:23:05.380
eat during that time, didn't they? When they

00:23:05.380 --> 00:23:07.420
came back, the food disappeared like my hamburger.

00:23:07.630 --> 00:23:09.130
They disappeared all at once, all over their

00:23:09.130 --> 00:23:11.589
body. In one fast jolt, they starved to death.

00:23:11.910 --> 00:23:14.009
No, no, you don't understand. They just couldn't

00:23:14.009 --> 00:23:16.329
take the field transition. They were too old,

00:23:16.390 --> 00:23:18.130
some of them. And they lied to me about their

00:23:18.130 --> 00:23:20.049
age to get the job. Oh, no, you can't tell me

00:23:20.049 --> 00:23:22.250
that because I know how hungry I am. And I was

00:23:22.250 --> 00:23:24.289
only gone about 12 hours. They were murdered.

00:23:24.329 --> 00:23:26.930
Get back. You know, they say a hungry man gets

00:23:26.930 --> 00:23:29.569
mighty desperate. He'll do almost anything. Let

00:23:29.569 --> 00:23:34.109
go. Let go. Let go of it. My arm. Look out. Look

00:23:34.109 --> 00:23:48.779
out. The cage. The contact. She fell into that

00:23:48.779 --> 00:23:50.599
cage and disappeared before she hit the ground.

00:23:51.019 --> 00:23:53.339
I didn't know what happened. I know she said

00:23:53.339 --> 00:23:55.539
the field worked in a random factor, whatever

00:23:55.539 --> 00:23:58.720
that meant. I called Lou Payton. He came to the

00:23:58.720 --> 00:24:01.500
house just after the fire started. Something

00:24:01.500 --> 00:24:03.380
went in the control panel, and it turned out

00:24:03.380 --> 00:24:05.339
to be a four -alarm fire before they got it under

00:24:05.339 --> 00:24:08.019
control. There was nothing left of the machine.

00:24:08.539 --> 00:24:10.359
There wasn't much left of the brownstone house.

00:24:11.519 --> 00:24:13.859
Lou didn't believe the story I told him. You

00:24:13.859 --> 00:24:16.500
mean there won't be any more of them? No more

00:24:16.500 --> 00:24:19.400
senile psychotics starving to death with a bankroll

00:24:19.400 --> 00:24:21.799
in their hip pocket. No, I told you, Lou. Come

00:24:21.799 --> 00:24:24.700
on now, Mark. We get plenty more. We always have.

00:24:25.339 --> 00:24:27.519
No, I'll bet you won't. I'll bet you a dollar

00:24:27.519 --> 00:24:30.640
there won't be another case like that. I'll take

00:24:30.640 --> 00:24:41.759
that bet. I lost the bet. There was one more

00:24:41.759 --> 00:24:45.759
case. And perhaps it was the strangest one. A

00:24:45.759 --> 00:24:48.099
woman was found wandering in Bryant Park just

00:24:48.099 --> 00:24:51.359
before she died of acute starvation. One strange

00:24:51.359 --> 00:24:54.599
thing was she was young, not more than 30. And

00:24:54.599 --> 00:24:57.900
the other was she had $17 ,000 stuffed in her

00:24:57.900 --> 00:25:00.700
pocketbook and a bullet wound in her arm, the

00:25:00.700 --> 00:25:02.900
medical examiner said was at least two months

00:25:02.900 --> 00:25:08.400
old. I guess that's what she meant by the random

00:25:08.400 --> 00:25:25.220
factor. You have just heard X minus one presented

00:25:25.220 --> 00:25:27.799
by the National Broadcasting Company in cooperation

00:25:27.799 --> 00:25:30.940
with galaxy science fiction magazine Which this

00:25:30.940 --> 00:25:34.400
month features this way to the regress by Damon

00:25:34.400 --> 00:25:37.180
Knight the story of a man named Sullivan who

00:25:37.180 --> 00:25:39.099
strangely enough did not have a great future

00:25:39.099 --> 00:25:44.140
behind him But rather a great past ahead Galaxy

00:25:44.140 --> 00:25:47.660
magazine on your newsstand today in a moment

00:25:47.660 --> 00:25:50.579
tonight's cast and a preview of next week's exciting

00:25:50.579 --> 00:25:54.690
drama Farmers know they can't stop storms, floods,

00:25:54.930 --> 00:25:57.589
or droughts from ruining a crop. But they can

00:25:57.589 --> 00:26:00.549
make sure things like that can't ruin them by

00:26:00.549 --> 00:26:03.349
investing in United States savings bonds. Not

00:26:03.349 --> 00:26:06.289
only farmers, but over 40 million Americans in

00:26:06.289 --> 00:26:09.369
all sorts of jobs own 40 billions of savings

00:26:09.369 --> 00:26:13.049
bonds. And why? Because savings bonds are the

00:26:13.049 --> 00:26:15.329
easy way to start saving and to keep saving.

00:26:15.910 --> 00:26:17.970
And the money you invest in savings bonds mean

00:26:17.970 --> 00:26:20.769
protection now and ready cash when you need it

00:26:20.769 --> 00:26:23.779
in the future. improving the farm, sending the

00:26:23.779 --> 00:26:26.299
youngsters to college, or planning your own retirement.

00:26:26.880 --> 00:26:29.240
These are the big things you can be ready for

00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:32.180
with Savings Bonds. And besides offering you

00:26:32.180 --> 00:26:34.500
a safe investment, each Series E Savings Bond

00:26:34.500 --> 00:26:37.200
pays you back $4 at maturity for every three

00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:40.400
you invest. Yes, you earn extra dollars while

00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:43.740
you save, so start saving now. For the big things

00:26:43.740 --> 00:26:48.400
in your life, be ready with United States Savings

00:26:48.400 --> 00:26:52.170
Bonds. Tonight by transcription x -1 has brought

00:26:52.170 --> 00:26:55.009
to you the old die rich a story from the pages

00:26:55.009 --> 00:26:57.890
of galaxy written by HL gold and adapted for

00:26:57.890 --> 00:27:00.789
radio by Ernest Kenoy Featured in the cast were

00:27:00.789 --> 00:27:05.410
Jim Bowles Jan minor Bill Zuckert guy rep Wendell

00:27:05.410 --> 00:27:08.690
Holmes Ralph Camargo and Ivor Francis your announcer

00:27:08.690 --> 00:27:12.150
Fred Collins x -1 was directed by Bob Mauer and

00:27:12.150 --> 00:27:14.329
is an NBC radio network production