WEBVTT 00:00:17.519 --> 00:00:24.899 Come in. Welcome. I'm E .G. Marshall. Welcome 00:00:24.899 --> 00:00:29.440 to the sounds of suspense. To the fear you can 00:00:29.440 --> 00:00:34.640 hear. Relax and listen to the strange tale of 00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:38.539 a strange man. You're no more strange than anyone 00:00:38.539 --> 00:00:41.780 who has suffered what you might call a mutilation 00:00:41.780 --> 00:00:45.679 of the soul. And who of us is not at one time 00:00:45.679 --> 00:00:50.500 or another? Suffered such a mutilation What means 00:00:50.500 --> 00:00:54.939 did we use to restore ourselves? How quickly 00:00:54.939 --> 00:01:00.100 did we recover? How well did we heal? The answers 00:01:00.100 --> 00:01:05.000 vary even as we vary One man's answers are revealed. 00:01:05.019 --> 00:01:09.900 Do we trust in the story which follows? I'm cold. 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:15.260 Oh my The darkness I mind the most not to be 00:01:15.260 --> 00:01:18.379 able to see you Oh God Watch me. Let me help. 00:01:19.599 --> 00:01:22.780 My God, where are you? Right here. Right here. 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:26.099 I can't find you. Keep talking. Keep talking. 00:01:26.579 --> 00:01:30.180 Right here. Right here. I can't. Huh? Here you 00:01:30.180 --> 00:01:50.530 are. Ridley Hour was written especially for the 00:01:50.530 --> 00:01:54.650 Mystery Theatre by Elspeth Erick and stars Norman 00:01:54.650 --> 00:02:11.469 Rose. I'll be back shortly with Act One. A person 00:02:11.469 --> 00:02:18.629 who seems strange we call Grotesque, Incredible not to be believed. 00:02:19.629 --> 00:02:22.430 We make a feeble effort to deny that he could 00:02:22.430 --> 00:02:27.090 exist. But he does exist. There he is before 00:02:27.090 --> 00:02:31.590 our eyes in all his strangeness. We do not believe 00:02:31.590 --> 00:02:34.370 in him because we do not know him. Because once 00:02:34.370 --> 00:02:39.169 we know, we will have to believe. And this can 00:02:39.169 --> 00:02:43.710 be a long and painful process. Listen now to 00:02:43.710 --> 00:02:47.810 the story of Martin Jerome. See if you can believe 00:02:47.810 --> 00:02:51.509 it. Mr. Jerome, I only consented to see you because 00:02:51.509 --> 00:02:55.590 your letter sounded quite desperate. As a rule, 00:02:55.610 --> 00:02:59.250 I only see patients on referral. But your letter, 00:03:00.150 --> 00:03:03.069 may I read it to you? Perhaps it will help us 00:03:03.069 --> 00:03:07.409 to get started. Last night I heard you being 00:03:07.409 --> 00:03:10.409 interviewed on a radio program. In the dark of 00:03:10.409 --> 00:03:12.750 my room, in the darkest hour of the night, I 00:03:12.750 --> 00:03:15.580 thought... Here is a man who can help me to solve 00:03:15.580 --> 00:03:17.939 the awful predicament in which I find myself. 00:03:19.039 --> 00:03:21.259 I enclose a stamped addressed envelope for your 00:03:21.259 --> 00:03:24.680 reply since I have no phone. I am counting on 00:03:24.680 --> 00:03:31.099 you. Sincerely, Martin C. Jerome. Well, Mr. Jerome, 00:03:32.020 --> 00:03:35.039 the hour is passing and I don't want you to waste 00:03:35.039 --> 00:03:40.280 your money. Take your time. Take your time if 00:03:40.280 --> 00:03:46.110 you have difficulty in talking. I'll wait. Doctor. 00:03:48.330 --> 00:03:53.830 Did you say something, Mr. Jerome? Doctor, you... 00:03:53.830 --> 00:04:01.050 Yes. You are the first person I have spoken to 00:04:01.050 --> 00:04:13.520 in 25 years. You said 25 years? understand your 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:18.259 silence can you tell me what drove you into this 00:04:18.259 --> 00:04:27.680 silence I I married a woman yes the most desirable 00:04:27.680 --> 00:04:33.860 woman in the world my Helen my adored one I never 00:04:33.860 --> 00:04:36.240 thought that an insignificant man like myself 00:04:36.240 --> 00:04:39.980 could even aspire to possess such a woman and 00:04:39.980 --> 00:04:43.620 the day she said those words to me I could scarcely 00:04:43.620 --> 00:04:46.480 believe my ears. You're a dear, Martin, and I'd 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:49.379 love to marry you. Helen, I can't think why you'd 00:04:49.379 --> 00:04:52.620 want a man like me. Because you're sweet. Let's 00:04:52.620 --> 00:04:56.519 get married right away. What about next week? 00:04:59.079 --> 00:05:02.959 The world changed completely for me. Everything 00:05:02.959 --> 00:05:08.000 became important, immediate. The sun shone just 00:05:08.000 --> 00:05:10.759 to keep me warm, and the breeze blew to make 00:05:10.759 --> 00:05:17.319 me cool. Me Martin Jerome me I had been so so 00:05:17.319 --> 00:05:22.699 blessed Yes, it was a beautiful wedding Helen 00:05:22.699 --> 00:05:25.019 had a great deal of money, and I was fairly well 00:05:25.019 --> 00:05:28.379 off Many people came to the church and even more 00:05:28.379 --> 00:05:31.339 to the reception people promise. I knew them 00:05:31.339 --> 00:05:39.920 all all but one He was tall unusually tall as 00:05:39.920 --> 00:05:45.100 I am unusually short. He was handsome, as I am 00:05:45.100 --> 00:05:48.560 not. He was charming, self -assured, very much 00:05:48.560 --> 00:05:51.660 at his ease, all of which I have never been. 00:05:52.480 --> 00:05:57.160 You couldn't help noticing him. Helen, who's 00:05:57.160 --> 00:05:59.439 that very tall man talking to your mother, the 00:05:59.439 --> 00:06:01.939 pale man with the black mustache? I have no notion, 00:06:02.120 --> 00:06:05.240 love. It's probably someone mother invited. Good 00:06:05.240 --> 00:06:09.079 -looking, isn't he? Sort of. Come on, time to 00:06:09.079 --> 00:06:16.670 cut the cake. We sailed for Europe. My head was 00:06:16.670 --> 00:06:18.790 swimming with visions of the life I had embarked 00:06:18.790 --> 00:06:22.810 on. The good life, the beautiful life. One night, 00:06:22.889 --> 00:06:28.750 on the ship, we were at dinner. Helen, look over 00:06:28.750 --> 00:06:31.170 there. To your right, against the wall, sitting 00:06:31.170 --> 00:06:33.610 by himself. Isn't that the man who was at our 00:06:33.610 --> 00:06:37.129 wedding? 500 people at our wedding, love. He's 00:06:37.129 --> 00:06:40.379 getting up from the table. The tall man. mustache 00:06:40.379 --> 00:06:43.740 your mother must have invited him you said well 00:06:43.740 --> 00:06:48.639 then I guess she did after dinner we danced for 00:06:48.639 --> 00:06:52.199 a while then headache but I should stay and enjoy 00:06:52.199 --> 00:06:56.480 myself well I I tried but I couldn't enjoy myself 00:06:56.480 --> 00:07:00.439 without her I was too much in love for that I 00:07:00.439 --> 00:07:03.439 watched the dancers for a while drank a brandy 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:06.019 I managed to kill an hour and then I went down 00:07:06.019 --> 00:07:11.319 to our stateroom When I stepped back out into 00:07:11.319 --> 00:07:15.579 the corridor, there she was, coming out of another 00:07:15.579 --> 00:07:18.920 stateroom about six doors from ours. Darling. 00:07:19.500 --> 00:07:22.300 You weren't in our room. I didn't know what to 00:07:22.300 --> 00:07:24.360 think. You said that you had a headache. I've 00:07:24.360 --> 00:07:27.100 been doing a little detective work. You were 00:07:27.100 --> 00:07:29.060 so anxious to know who the tall man was while 00:07:29.060 --> 00:07:33.259 I found out. He's not precisely a friend. His 00:07:33.259 --> 00:07:35.560 mother came to the wedding and dragged him along. 00:07:35.879 --> 00:07:39.040 Helen. You were in his stateroom. Oh, I ran into 00:07:39.040 --> 00:07:40.560 him in the corridor, and he said to come in for 00:07:40.560 --> 00:07:46.180 a nightcap. Let's go to bed. Our stateroom is 00:07:46.180 --> 00:07:51.100 much nicer than his, by the way. We went to Paris. 00:07:52.000 --> 00:07:53.939 And then because she loved to ski, we went to 00:07:53.939 --> 00:07:57.540 St. Moritz. She was very good on skis. Effortless 00:07:57.540 --> 00:08:01.480 as a bird flying. I watched and watched and never 00:08:01.480 --> 00:08:06.399 got tired of watching. And then one day... He 00:08:06.399 --> 00:08:09.300 was again, the tall man. I've got to catch the 00:08:09.300 --> 00:08:12.459 ski -tow. Wait for me. Helen, Helen, he's here. 00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:14.980 Who's here? The man from the wedding, the man 00:08:14.980 --> 00:08:19.079 from the ship. Oh, is he here? Oh, so he is. 00:08:19.620 --> 00:08:24.279 Well, I'm off. Wait for me. After St. Moritz, 00:08:24.459 --> 00:08:26.740 we came back to the city and moved into an apartment. 00:08:27.579 --> 00:08:31.839 I went to work. We made friends. Helen grew lovelier 00:08:31.839 --> 00:08:34.679 every day, and she was her loveliest the day 00:08:34.679 --> 00:08:38.669 she told me that. We would have a child. Tell 00:08:38.669 --> 00:08:43.110 me about that. Well, Helen was very, very light 00:08:43.110 --> 00:08:46.149 -hearted, very casual about the prospect, but 00:08:46.149 --> 00:08:51.830 I, I, yes. How did you feel? Well, it's hard 00:08:51.830 --> 00:08:54.830 to tell you, Doctor. Oh, I know every man is, 00:08:54.830 --> 00:08:58.490 is what, excited, happy, I don't know, but I 00:08:58.490 --> 00:09:01.669 felt bowed down, Doctor, actually crushed by 00:09:01.669 --> 00:09:07.279 my own good fortune. Like myself, so petty, so 00:09:07.279 --> 00:09:10.720 pitiable. Should be given a child by a woman 00:09:10.720 --> 00:09:13.480 like Helen. Have you always thought of yourself 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:17.120 as petty and pitiable? I have. Why? Because I 00:09:17.120 --> 00:09:21.860 am. Go on, please. I could scarcely concentrate 00:09:21.860 --> 00:09:24.440 on my work once I'd heard the good news. Helen 00:09:24.440 --> 00:09:28.320 was on my mind all the time. And one day, I certainly 00:09:28.320 --> 00:09:30.460 couldn't bear being in the office. Couldn't bear 00:09:30.460 --> 00:09:33.360 being anywhere except where she was. And I rushed 00:09:33.360 --> 00:09:39.740 home. I suppose you know what I found. I think 00:09:39.740 --> 00:09:42.960 you'd best tell me. I hurried to the bedroom, 00:09:43.080 --> 00:09:46.419 looking for her. I burst through the door, and 00:09:46.419 --> 00:09:51.700 in the bed, our bed, there he was. The man from 00:09:51.700 --> 00:09:54.419 the wedding, from the ship, from the ski tow. 00:09:56.120 --> 00:09:59.440 He looked at me, standing in the doorway. He 00:09:59.440 --> 00:10:23.909 said not a word, but his red lips smiled. And 00:10:23.909 --> 00:10:58.870 then she said... to Helen had built up a sort 00:10:58.870 --> 00:11:02.610 of pride. I thought if she loves me, then I must 00:11:02.610 --> 00:11:06.730 be something. Oh, it is not a good thing, Doctor, 00:11:06.830 --> 00:11:08.990 to build your pride on what other people think 00:11:08.990 --> 00:11:14.149 of you, or seem to think. No. No, it isn't. So 00:11:14.149 --> 00:11:37.590 I cleared out. That was 25 years ago. I took 00:11:37.590 --> 00:11:40.429 a one room flat with a little kitchen, a bed, 00:11:40.649 --> 00:11:43.149 a chest of drawers, an easy chair with an ottoman. 00:11:43.870 --> 00:11:47.350 And to one side of the chair, my hi -fi stereo 00:11:47.350 --> 00:11:50.889 set and my records. To the other side, my books. 00:11:53.870 --> 00:11:56.850 After my work, I'd sit in my easy chair with 00:11:56.850 --> 00:11:59.330 my feet on the ottoman, listen to my records 00:11:59.330 --> 00:12:02.789 and read. Only writers who were dead, however. 00:12:03.610 --> 00:12:18.220 I'd read till about... in the summer. I shut 00:12:18.220 --> 00:12:20.740 down the office for two weeks and take my vacation. 00:12:21.840 --> 00:12:26.720 Where do you go? I take a train, two trains actually, 00:12:26.720 --> 00:12:29.860 and a bus to a little town on the coast called 00:12:29.860 --> 00:12:32.019 Marsh Hills. You've probably never heard of it. 00:12:32.080 --> 00:12:34.840 I'm afraid I haven't. No one has. There's no 00:12:34.840 --> 00:12:38.500 reason why anyone should. And you spend your 00:12:38.500 --> 00:12:41.820 two weeks in Marsh Hills? Oh no. No, I merely 00:12:41.820 --> 00:12:45.340 stable my horse there. You have a horse about 00:12:45.340 --> 00:12:48.210 15 miles from... marsh hills doctor close to 00:12:48.210 --> 00:12:52.590 the sea there is a cave hollowed out of the rock 00:12:52.590 --> 00:12:56.210 by the waves and when I get to marsh hills I 00:12:56.210 --> 00:12:59.129 arrive every year on the same day they they have 00:12:59.129 --> 00:13:02.570 my horse ready for me and I ride the 15 miles 00:13:02.570 --> 00:13:06.850 to the cave and there I spend my vacation in 00:13:06.850 --> 00:13:11.529 a cave for two weeks I walk I canter my horse 00:13:11.529 --> 00:13:14.330 on the beach I gather what edible herbs there 00:13:14.330 --> 00:13:18.379 are growing in the rocks I boil them. They're 00:13:18.379 --> 00:13:20.779 very tasty, really. And at the end of two weeks, 00:13:20.820 --> 00:13:23.700 I return my horse to the stable and take my bus 00:13:23.700 --> 00:13:27.419 and the two trains back to the city. And you've 00:13:27.419 --> 00:13:33.679 lived this way for 25 years. Oh, yes. But, Doctor, 00:13:34.100 --> 00:13:37.860 last summer, last summer, something happened. 00:13:38.440 --> 00:13:41.460 I arrived in Marsh Hills, as always. My horse 00:13:41.460 --> 00:13:44.879 was waiting for me, as always. And we started 00:13:44.879 --> 00:13:48.870 off at a walk. for the cave by the sea there 00:13:48.870 --> 00:13:51.710 is always a certain excitement when i begin to 00:13:51.710 --> 00:13:55.169 smell the sea and i know that soon i shall be 00:13:55.169 --> 00:13:58.450 out of sight and sound of any human being there 00:13:58.450 --> 00:14:04.389 will be only the sea sun the wind and my cave 00:14:04.389 --> 00:14:08.789 it is the most thrilling moment of the year for 00:14:08.789 --> 00:14:12.429 me i suppose it's the only one soon i will have 00:14:12.429 --> 00:14:17.429 my solitude at last I'm on the sand. My horse 00:14:17.429 --> 00:14:20.090 feels the excitement as I do. I feel him extend 00:14:20.090 --> 00:14:23.090 himself. And as we round the last bend in the 00:14:23.090 --> 00:14:28.570 shoreline, I see it. I see it, my cave, my refuge. 00:14:52.139 --> 00:14:56.840 never heard before in that deserted spot. And 00:14:56.840 --> 00:15:00.799 the sound doctor was coming from inside my cave. 00:15:02.240 --> 00:15:06.820 Never, never had I felt such anger. I was faint 00:15:06.820 --> 00:15:09.980 with hatred. I dismounted and I crept to the 00:15:09.980 --> 00:15:11.860 side of the cave where I knew it sloped to the 00:15:11.860 --> 00:15:17.200 ground. Quietly climbed the roof. I found a tiny 00:15:17.200 --> 00:15:21.559 chink in the stone, no more than an inch. I put 00:15:21.559 --> 00:15:26.879 my ear to it. Beneath me I heard laughter. Laughter 00:15:26.879 --> 00:15:30.419 and tender words and all the sticky, silly sounds 00:15:30.419 --> 00:15:35.720 that lovers make. Are you my girl? Oh, so much, 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:40.120 you girl. Ah, how much? This much. I can't hardly 00:15:40.120 --> 00:15:43.179 see how much is this much. It's too dark in this 00:15:43.179 --> 00:15:47.679 place. Then come here. Oh, darling, darling, 00:15:48.039 --> 00:15:54.080 love. We're using my sacred sanctuary for love 00:15:54.080 --> 00:15:57.159 making. I almost fell from the roof of the cave. 00:15:57.500 --> 00:16:00.179 I struggled to stay where I was, and my feet 00:16:00.179 --> 00:16:05.720 dislodged a shower of stones. What was that? 00:16:06.080 --> 00:16:09.620 Sounds like a rock slide. Yes, some rocks in 00:16:09.620 --> 00:16:12.600 front of the entrance. Lots of them. Hey, maybe 00:16:12.600 --> 00:16:15.759 we'd better move them. Oh, we can still get out. 00:16:16.019 --> 00:16:19.320 Let's stay a little longer. I love this place. 00:16:25.549 --> 00:17:41.990 John! much. Light and life. I'll be back shortly 00:17:41.990 --> 00:18:01.109 with act two Marvin Jerome 50 years old has not 00:18:01.109 --> 00:18:05.390 uttered a single word to a living soul in 25 00:18:05.390 --> 00:18:09.670 years But now in the office of an attentive psychiatrist, 00:18:09.670 --> 00:18:13.289 it seems the dear man can't stop talking after 00:18:13.289 --> 00:18:15.690 I had pushed and shoved the big rock into the 00:18:15.690 --> 00:18:19.410 entrance to the cave doctor I Stood for a few 00:18:19.410 --> 00:18:22.410 seconds panting from the exertion and oppressed 00:18:22.410 --> 00:18:26.789 by the silence There was only the sound of the 00:18:26.789 --> 00:18:37.490 wind and the water I thought of the lovers I 00:18:37.490 --> 00:18:40.490 felt that I must hear their voices again, as 00:18:40.490 --> 00:18:42.529 though their words which had driven me near to 00:18:42.529 --> 00:18:45.890 madness were essential now to keep me sane. I 00:18:45.890 --> 00:18:48.630 scrambled back to the roof of the cave and put 00:18:48.630 --> 00:18:51.769 my ear once again to the narrow crack through 00:18:51.769 --> 00:18:54.910 which I could hear them. George, there was a 00:18:54.910 --> 00:18:58.170 little light before, now there's none. More rocks 00:18:58.170 --> 00:19:01.910 must have fallen. I didn't hear them. I had something 00:19:01.910 --> 00:19:04.930 that didn't sound like rocks falling. Come on, 00:19:05.009 --> 00:19:07.490 we've got to clear the entrance. Come where? 00:19:07.650 --> 00:19:10.150 I don't know where the entrance is anymore. It's 00:19:10.150 --> 00:19:14.589 so dark. Take my hand. I think I know which direction. 00:19:14.869 --> 00:19:18.789 I can't even see your hand. Don't you have a 00:19:18.789 --> 00:19:22.950 match? I may have one. Yeah, I have a few. Well, 00:19:23.190 --> 00:19:41.950 light one. I will, I will. the one that went 00:19:41.950 --> 00:19:45.309 out was right by my foot. Let me light it from 00:19:45.309 --> 00:19:48.069 yours. Good girl, good girl. All right, George, 00:19:48.269 --> 00:19:50.609 there's the entrance. Don't let your match go 00:19:50.609 --> 00:19:54.430 out. Don't you let yours? Hey, look, see, just 00:19:54.430 --> 00:19:56.950 a whole bunch of stealth. Come on, let's start 00:19:56.950 --> 00:20:02.630 clearing them away. Oh, both matches. No. That's 00:20:02.630 --> 00:20:04.849 all right. We know where we are. We're right 00:20:04.849 --> 00:20:06.650 by the entrance. Come on, let's get started. 00:20:37.289 --> 00:20:41.809 hear every word. George, it isn't getting any 00:20:41.809 --> 00:20:44.670 lighter. Shouldn't it start to get lighter? Yes, 00:20:44.750 --> 00:20:47.990 it should. Oh, why doesn't it? How should I know 00:20:47.990 --> 00:20:52.130 why? I'm sorry darling. Oh, that's all right. 00:21:43.849 --> 00:21:47.630 I'm sorry. Forgive me. All right, let's try together 00:21:47.630 --> 00:22:14.960 now. One... just took our strength. You haven't 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:17.900 had anything to eat since this morning. We need 00:22:17.900 --> 00:22:20.339 to rest for a little while. Then we'll be able 00:22:20.339 --> 00:22:25.539 to move it. You're probably right. Tell us. Let's 00:22:25.539 --> 00:22:27.799 lie down right here by the entrance so we know 00:22:27.799 --> 00:22:30.579 where we are. First I want to light a match. 00:22:31.519 --> 00:22:57.019 Why do you want to do that? When we wake up, 00:22:57.220 --> 00:23:02.200 we'll find our way into the light. Sleep now, 00:23:02.259 --> 00:23:06.500 my darling. The thought of them, lying there. 00:23:06.779 --> 00:23:08.720 No, the vision of them, for I could see them. 00:23:09.220 --> 00:23:12.619 The image was so strong. The two of them pressed 00:23:12.619 --> 00:23:16.859 close. Their arms entwined, their hands clasped. 00:23:17.460 --> 00:23:20.200 The two young bodies fitted so tightly together 00:23:20.200 --> 00:24:34.180 against the dark. it was I remember. in my flat 00:24:34.180 --> 00:24:40.039 and I resumed my old routine. Didn't you, didn't 00:24:40.039 --> 00:24:43.480 you ever think of them? I'd shut them out of 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:46.900 my mind just as I'd shut them in the cave. You 00:24:46.900 --> 00:24:49.759 didn't worry about them or anything? Oh, they 00:24:49.759 --> 00:24:54.019 had each other. Mr. Jerome, I have to tell you, 00:24:54.319 --> 00:25:12.220 I'm, I can't help being shocked. It may sound 00:25:12.220 --> 00:25:15.539 strange. Indeed it does. I began imagining what 00:25:15.539 --> 00:25:18.460 they might be saying to each other. I couldn't 00:25:18.460 --> 00:25:23.420 know for sure, of course, but I imagined. I'm 00:25:23.420 --> 00:25:28.259 cold. So am I. I'm hungry. I can't find you. 00:25:28.359 --> 00:25:57.529 Keep talking. Keep talking. I'm here. I was suddenly 00:25:57.529 --> 00:26:00.250 seized with the desire to hear their voices once 00:26:00.250 --> 00:26:04.250 more before, well, before they were silent forever. 00:26:05.210 --> 00:26:08.730 I closed the office, closed the flat, took the 00:26:08.730 --> 00:26:12.529 two trains and the bus to Marsh Hills. They were 00:26:12.529 --> 00:26:14.450 surprised if the state were to see me back again 00:26:14.450 --> 00:26:17.910 so soon, of course, but they saddled my horse 00:26:17.910 --> 00:27:56.359 and I set off. If we only had something to eat, 00:27:56.960 --> 00:28:01.500 anything. Don't think about it. You think there's 00:28:01.500 --> 00:28:05.420 any use trying to move that big rock again? No. 00:28:07.059 --> 00:28:10.539 I guess you're right. Well, we've got about a 00:28:10.539 --> 00:28:12.700 third of the energy we had to start with, we... 00:28:26.789 --> 00:28:30.990 finds us. It's possible, isn't it, for somebody 00:28:30.990 --> 00:28:41.130 to find us? Of course. I'm thirsty. Can you find 00:28:41.130 --> 00:28:42.990 the place where that trickle of water runs down 00:28:42.990 --> 00:28:46.549 the side? I think so. Feel along the cave wall 00:28:46.549 --> 00:28:52.890 to your right. It's so black in here. You should 00:28:52.890 --> 00:28:56.420 be there by now. Light the match. It's the only 00:28:56.420 --> 00:29:02.160 one we have. George, on there is sort of a ridge, 00:29:02.539 --> 00:29:05.240 an indentation where the water trickled down 00:29:05.240 --> 00:29:09.359 in some moss. That's right. And I... I think 00:29:09.359 --> 00:29:14.799 I've found it. Oh, good. There's no water. There 00:29:14.799 --> 00:29:17.180 must be. There isn't. Then you're in the wrong 00:29:17.180 --> 00:29:20.299 place. Then you find it. You're so smart. I know 00:29:20.299 --> 00:29:24.099 exactly where. It's about here. I remember this. 00:29:25.519 --> 00:30:19.220 I'm gonna be right here They probably slept a 00:30:19.220 --> 00:30:22.319 lot. I know that I didn't hear anything more 00:30:22.319 --> 00:30:28.619 after that until much later. I wonder what day 00:30:28.619 --> 00:30:35.019 it is. It was Saturday when we came down here, 00:30:35.019 --> 00:30:43.920 wasn't it? Yes. Well, it must be... I don't know. 00:30:44.759 --> 00:30:53.920 We've been here a week, I think. Much more? About 00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:59.059 a week and a half. Oh. You think it's Wednesday? 00:31:01.240 --> 00:31:05.819 I... Yeah, I think so. If it's Wednesday, then 00:31:05.819 --> 00:31:12.440 we've been here 11 days. Something like that. 00:31:14.519 --> 00:31:17.619 What difference does it make? I'd just like to 00:31:17.619 --> 00:31:21.980 know that's all. Oh, don't be angry, darling. 00:31:24.980 --> 00:31:28.859 Doctor, I had the craziest impulse to whisper 00:31:28.859 --> 00:31:34.640 to them. It's Tuesday. I almost laughed. Why 00:31:34.640 --> 00:31:37.920 do these ludicrous ideas come into our heads 00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:40.920 at the weirdest moments of our lives? Perhaps 00:31:40.920 --> 00:31:43.279 it wasn't as ludicrous as you thought. Of course 00:31:43.279 --> 00:31:46.859 it was. I was there to watch these people die. 00:31:47.430 --> 00:31:50.730 listen to them die is more like it. And I still 00:31:50.730 --> 00:31:53.109 wanted to tell them what day of the week it was. 00:31:53.650 --> 00:31:55.630 If that's not ludicrous, I don't know what is. 00:31:56.490 --> 00:32:00.130 Tell me, what happened next? I went to sleep 00:32:00.130 --> 00:32:03.250 on the roof of the cave. After the sun came up 00:32:03.250 --> 00:32:06.190 in the morning, I got a sandwich out of my saddlebag 00:32:06.190 --> 00:32:09.490 and a flask of brandy, and sat on the sand for 00:32:09.490 --> 00:32:13.190 a while, watching the ocean. And then, I went 00:32:13.190 --> 00:32:16.950 back to my listening post. George? Yes? I'm going 00:32:16.950 --> 00:32:24.150 to try walking around a little. Oh, Lord. This 00:32:24.150 --> 00:32:28.410 darkness is driving me mad. No, it's not. No, 00:32:28.470 --> 00:32:31.089 it's not. Let me have a match. No. Oh, give it 00:32:31.089 --> 00:32:37.549 to me. I won't. What was that? I heard something. 00:32:37.549 --> 00:32:39.950 A stumble over something. Well, look, look, look 00:32:39.950 --> 00:32:41.730 for it. The fish are on. Look what I'm doing. 00:32:46.960 --> 00:32:51.339 It's like a little sort of a pan. Pan? Well, 00:32:51.579 --> 00:32:55.579 about four, five inches wide. Enamel, I think. 00:32:55.680 --> 00:32:59.519 Feels like enamel. It's a little pan to cook 00:32:59.519 --> 00:33:01.960 things in, the sort of thing campers might use. 00:33:02.079 --> 00:33:04.660 Wait, wait, that means somebody's been here before. 00:33:04.740 --> 00:33:09.259 And that means whoever was here could come back. 00:33:09.420 --> 00:33:12.140 Or somebody else could. I mean, this cave is 00:33:12.140 --> 00:33:14.680 a place people come to. We're not the only ones. 00:33:15.380 --> 00:33:19.079 We're not the first. Other people have... They'd 00:33:19.079 --> 00:33:21.519 stumbled across the little enamel pan I had used 00:33:21.519 --> 00:33:25.119 to boil my herbs. I couldn't bring myself to 00:33:25.119 --> 00:33:28.059 speak to them, but I took a packet of matches, 00:33:28.519 --> 00:33:36.700 a cardboard kind, and I wrote on it, I am here. 00:33:37.579 --> 00:34:02.549 Just that. The most cherished trio of words in 00:34:02.549 --> 00:34:07.130 our language consists of I love you. But surely 00:34:07.130 --> 00:34:10.829 there are times of trouble when I am here is 00:34:10.829 --> 00:34:15.070 even more welcome. I'll be back shortly with 00:34:15.070 --> 00:34:33.050 Act 3. of not listening the melody of not marking 00:34:33.050 --> 00:34:37.989 that I am troubled with all so said Henry the 00:34:37.989 --> 00:34:42.170 fourth according to William Shakespeare but the 00:34:42.170 --> 00:34:45.469 disease that troubles Martin Jerome is listening 00:34:45.469 --> 00:34:52.170 too closely and his malady is marking too well 00:34:52.170 --> 00:34:57.659 I pushed the packet of matches absurd message 00:34:57.659 --> 00:34:59.800 down through the crack in the cave with a little 00:34:59.800 --> 00:35:04.400 stick. I heard it drop. I knew it had reached 00:35:04.400 --> 00:35:07.559 them, even before I heard Marion speak. George, 00:35:08.659 --> 00:35:11.719 something just dropped onto my shoulder. George, 00:35:11.719 --> 00:35:14.820 light the match. Marion, it's our last match. 00:35:15.019 --> 00:35:17.519 I can't light it. I have to know what fell on 00:35:17.519 --> 00:35:19.659 my shoulder. I don't like to use up our last... 00:35:19.659 --> 00:35:21.840 George, please, if you don't... All right, all 00:35:21.840 --> 00:35:26.789 right. Take it easy. Did you see anything? It 00:35:26.789 --> 00:35:29.969 hit my shoulder, and then it... There it is! 00:35:31.050 --> 00:35:35.650 Joyful! It's matches! It's a whole fold of matches! 00:35:35.650 --> 00:35:38.829 You're kidding! I'm not! There's something written 00:35:38.829 --> 00:35:43.349 on it here, Joe. Wait a minute. It says, I am 00:35:43.349 --> 00:35:49.289 here. Who? Who's here? I don't know. I... Oh 00:35:49.289 --> 00:35:51.130 my God, that's the end of the match. I held it 00:35:51.130 --> 00:35:53.070 till I burned my fingers. I'm sorry, I couldn't 00:35:53.070 --> 00:35:58.750 help it. All right, we have matches now. Can 00:35:58.750 --> 00:36:03.750 you see? It isn't signed at all. It just says, 00:36:05.269 --> 00:36:12.789 I am here. That's all. But who? Who's here? Doesn't 00:36:12.789 --> 00:36:16.690 matter, does it? Somebody's here. That's what 00:36:16.690 --> 00:36:20.289 counts. Why doesn't he say something? Call out 00:36:20.289 --> 00:36:22.670 to us as something. Tell us that everything will 00:36:22.670 --> 00:36:26.829 be alright. Maybe he's going for help. Oh yes, 00:36:26.829 --> 00:36:30.429 that must be it. Yes, that is it. It's alright 00:36:30.429 --> 00:36:33.230 now. It's alright as long as somebody's here. 00:36:36.349 --> 00:36:39.409 I couldn't stand their joy over my simple -minded 00:36:39.409 --> 00:36:43.510 message. They seemed like silly children, as 00:36:43.510 --> 00:37:13.599 silly as I felt myself. George, I can't stand... 00:37:16.969 --> 00:37:19.550 How should I know? Stop asking me. He wouldn't 00:37:19.550 --> 00:37:21.929 give us a message like that. He wouldn't write. 00:37:22.349 --> 00:37:25.289 I am here on a package of matches and then just 00:37:25.289 --> 00:37:28.329 go away, would he? How do I know? You keep asking 00:37:28.329 --> 00:37:33.170 me as though I had an answer. I'm not hungry 00:37:33.170 --> 00:37:37.769 anymore. I haven't been hungry for a long time. 00:37:37.849 --> 00:37:44.130 I just feel terribly weak. Dammit, I know. I 00:37:44.130 --> 00:37:47.300 know. Now will you shut up? Just shut up. Shut 00:37:47.300 --> 00:37:53.920 up! We'll die here, George. Be quiet. No water. 00:37:55.400 --> 00:38:00.519 No food. But we'll die here. I said shut up! 00:38:00.880 --> 00:38:03.960 Whoever wrote that note must have been a mad 00:38:03.960 --> 00:38:06.579 man. Wherever he was, wherever he was, he's gone 00:38:06.579 --> 00:38:14.480 away. Yes. And we'll die in this cave. I don't 00:38:14.480 --> 00:38:18.969 intend to die in this cave. No. Just what do 00:38:18.969 --> 00:38:23.349 you think you'll do about it? Something. Nothing 00:38:23.349 --> 00:38:28.789 you can do. I'm just not gonna die. Yes. Not 00:38:28.789 --> 00:38:34.550 yet. Yes. You are. Make up your mind to it. What 00:38:34.550 --> 00:38:37.190 are you doing now? I'm going to light a match. 00:38:53.480 --> 00:39:24.110 Not gonna die. Not yet. Not me. Not me. I knew 00:39:24.110 --> 00:39:26.829 even before I tried that I wouldn't be able to 00:39:26.829 --> 00:39:30.769 do it. But my mind was working brilliantly. I 00:39:30.769 --> 00:39:32.969 ran to where my horse's saddle and bridle lay 00:39:32.969 --> 00:39:36.329 on the sand. And after taking it all apart, I 00:39:36.329 --> 00:39:39.150 began working to put it together again for a 00:39:39.150 --> 00:39:42.769 new purpose. Oh, I used everything. The girth, 00:39:42.949 --> 00:39:46.130 the reins, the stirrup leathers. And in an hour, 00:39:46.190 --> 00:39:50.349 I fashioned a crude device. I led my horse to 00:39:50.349 --> 00:39:53.269 the cave entrance. Somehow I wrapped the girth 00:39:53.269 --> 00:39:56.250 around the boulder and made it firm. The reins 00:39:56.250 --> 00:39:59.610 circled my horse's shoulders. And then I stood 00:39:59.610 --> 00:40:04.150 back and gave him a sharp rap on the flank. He 00:40:04.150 --> 00:40:09.449 moved. And the boulder moved. The boulder moved 00:40:09.449 --> 00:40:11.989 away from the entrance to the cave. There was 00:40:11.989 --> 00:40:18.909 room for me to squeeze through. Just inside. 00:40:20.650 --> 00:40:27.230 I found them. She lay there in a faint. He lay 00:40:27.230 --> 00:40:50.400 across her. And his teeth. His teeth. Would you 00:40:50.400 --> 00:40:53.780 like to wait till another time to tell me? No, 00:40:54.199 --> 00:40:58.500 no, I must tell it to you now. I carried their 00:40:58.500 --> 00:41:01.199 bodies out and I put them on the back of my horse. 00:41:01.980 --> 00:41:05.360 I threw a halter over his head and led him the 00:41:05.360 --> 00:41:09.119 15 miles to Marsh Hills. It took all day because 00:41:09.119 --> 00:41:10.920 I stopped every hour to be sure that they were 00:41:10.920 --> 00:41:14.659 both breathing. There's a doctor in Marsh Hills 00:41:14.659 --> 00:41:18.099 and I left them on his doorstep. I rang his bell 00:41:18.099 --> 00:41:22.480 and fled. The next day I waited outside the doctor's 00:41:22.480 --> 00:41:25.800 house until I saw an ambulance drive up and take 00:41:25.800 --> 00:41:28.539 the young couple away. They were able to walk, 00:41:28.539 --> 00:41:31.400 so I knew they were all right, or soon would 00:41:31.400 --> 00:41:35.440 be. I went back to the city, but not before I 00:41:35.440 --> 00:41:37.579 had memorized the name of the hospital, which 00:41:37.579 --> 00:41:40.440 was printed on the ambulance. And from the city 00:41:40.440 --> 00:41:43.280 I wrote to the hospital. I pretended to be a 00:41:43.280 --> 00:41:46.849 concerned relative. They answered me. They said 00:41:46.849 --> 00:41:49.610 that the girl, Marion, had already been discharged, 00:41:49.650 --> 00:41:51.690 but that they were keeping the young man for 00:41:51.690 --> 00:41:54.230 a few days more. They would let me know when 00:41:54.230 --> 00:41:57.010 he could go home. And they did let me know. I 00:41:57.010 --> 00:42:00.869 remember it was on a Sunday. And as he walked 00:42:00.869 --> 00:42:04.050 out of the hospital, I was waiting for him. He 00:42:04.050 --> 00:42:07.989 didn't seem at all surprised to see me. I took 00:42:07.989 --> 00:42:11.610 his hand. He came with me quietly. We boarded 00:42:11.610 --> 00:42:14.090 the bus. We took the two trains, no trouble at 00:42:14.090 --> 00:42:20.469 all. When we got to the city, we went to my flat. 00:42:21.210 --> 00:42:28.090 He undressed, bathed, and got into my bed, and 00:42:28.090 --> 00:42:35.789 he went to sleep. That was six months ago, Doctor, 00:42:36.409 --> 00:42:41.349 and he's been there with me ever since. He's 00:42:41.349 --> 00:42:45.579 all right? Oh, he's very well. I sleep on the 00:42:45.579 --> 00:42:49.559 floor now. He sleeps in the bed. I cook his breakfast, 00:42:49.820 --> 00:42:52.079 come home from the office and cook his lunch. 00:42:52.559 --> 00:42:55.079 And of course, I make dinner for us both at night. 00:42:55.739 --> 00:43:01.300 And, uh, we listen to music. I read a book, but 00:43:01.300 --> 00:43:07.500 he... Well, he just listens to the music. Oh, 00:43:07.539 --> 00:43:13.260 yes, yes, he's in good health. Mr. Jerome, the... 00:43:13.210 --> 00:43:16.389 Hours up. You want me to leave? Not quite yet. 00:43:17.550 --> 00:43:21.190 You've told me an amazing story. As amazing a 00:43:21.190 --> 00:43:25.889 story as I've ever heard. But tell me, just what 00:43:25.889 --> 00:43:29.409 is it you expect of me? What do you want me to 00:43:29.409 --> 00:43:33.710 do for you? What? Oh, why, why nothing, Doctor. 00:43:34.670 --> 00:43:38.949 Nothing. Nothing at all. I, I don't want help 00:43:38.949 --> 00:43:43.619 from myself, Doctor. I want help for the young 00:43:43.619 --> 00:43:48.400 man. You see, in the six months he's been staying 00:43:48.400 --> 00:43:56.320 with me, he hasn't uttered a word. Not one word. 00:44:03.739 --> 00:44:07.639 Go see the doctor, young man. Yes, George. He 00:44:07.639 --> 00:44:10.739 can help you to unburden yourself. He will make 00:44:10.739 --> 00:44:13.739 the words pour out in full confession and you 00:44:13.739 --> 00:44:17.039 will feel the better for it. Why, look! Look 00:44:17.039 --> 00:44:20.780 what he has just done for Martin Jerome! As the 00:44:20.780 --> 00:44:36.679 deadly hour passed. I'll be back shortly. You 00:44:36.679 --> 00:44:40.079 heard of the seven wonders of the world? the 00:44:40.079 --> 00:44:46.940 Grand Canyon, the Taj Mahal, Niagara Falls, and 00:44:46.940 --> 00:44:50.179 I forget the other four. No matter. Because they 00:44:50.179 --> 00:44:53.019 are simple things compared to the human mind. 00:44:53.260 --> 00:44:57.659 In all its deviousness, all its twists and drifts, 00:44:58.659 --> 00:45:02.039 I could sit in wonder at the human mind for the 00:45:02.039 --> 00:45:07.360 rest of my life. Our cast included Norman Rose, 00:45:07.639 --> 00:45:12.000 Marion Seldes, John Barragray and Jack Grimes. 00:45:12.239 --> 00:45:14.159 The entire production was under the direction 00:45:14.159 --> 00:45:19.139 of Hyman Brown. And now, a preview of our next 00:45:19.139 --> 00:45:25.239 tale. That's impossible. Why is it impossible? 00:45:25.869 --> 00:45:28.449 It's alright for the simple -minded hicks up 00:45:28.449 --> 00:45:30.710 here to swallow that superstitious nonsense, 00:45:30.750 --> 00:45:34.429 but me, I'm a doctor. There has to be a reasonable, 00:45:34.650 --> 00:45:37.630 logical, rational explanation for what happened 00:45:37.630 --> 00:45:39.969 to George Morrissey. Oh, there is, there is. 00:45:40.349 --> 00:45:43.469 He offended the spirit of the mountain. Oh, you 00:45:43.469 --> 00:45:45.670 consider that reasonable, logical, rational? 00:45:45.670 --> 00:45:47.829 Would you feel better if I said there's something 00:45:47.829 --> 00:45:50.809 up in that mountain of virus, of bacillus, of 00:45:50.809 --> 00:45:53.610 fungus, which somehow causes immediate aging? 00:45:53.920 --> 00:45:58.699 It would be a more rational explanation. You 00:45:58.699 --> 00:46:02.380 mean more acceptable. I want to know what you 00:46:02.380 --> 00:46:06.940 believe. I believe the evidence. If you go up 00:46:06.940 --> 00:46:10.500 there, you can die. Radio Mystery Theater was 00:46:10.500 --> 00:46:13.500 sponsored in part by the Kellogg Company, makers 00:46:13.500 --> 00:46:16.820 of Kellogg's Special K Cereal. This is E .G. 00:46:17.059 --> 00:46:19.599 Marshall inviting you to return to our Mystery 00:46:19.599 --> 00:46:22.739 Theater for another adventure in the macabre. 00:46:23.440 --> 00:46:28.260 Until next time, pleasant dreams.