Come in. Welcome. I'm E .G. Marshall. Welcome
to the vivid world of your own imagination. To
the miracle of your own mind's eye. We have all
of us found ourselves at times in one predicament
or another and wondered how in the world we got
there. Like Fran and Martin Halliday, for instance.
Is he going to kill us? Why doesn't he get it
over with? Ever see a cat play with a mouse,
Fran? He's... he's... He's the cat, Van Deer.
Where's the mice? Our mystery drama, Hurricane,
was written especially for the Mystery Theater
by George Loper and stars Joseph Julian and E
.V. Juster. I'll be back shortly with Act One.
Imagine yourself now in a beach house on the
eastern shore of Florida. It's a wild and isolated
part of the shore. And right now, the savage
wind and rain of a hurricane are bludgeoning
the house. In the living room, two men are playing
Scrabble by the light of a kerosene lamp. One
of them is quite young. He's 20. His left eye
is badly bruised. The other man was older. In
his mid -30s, perhaps. He is wearing a shoulder
holster with a .38 caliber revolver in it. Turn
the radio on, Ronnie. Let's get the latest on
the hurricane. Ronnie? Yeah? Don't get any fancy
ideas. Don't make any sudden moves. What ideas?
What moves? You could put a bullet in me before
I got halfway to the door. I don't think I would.
I told you, no sudden moves. Get away from that
window. What? I heard a car. Hey, Dick! Joe,
they're crowing the track. Two people, a man
and a woman, getting up. They're coming in. Damn.
Shut that thing off. Let me handle this. Don't
give me any trouble, understand? Whatever you
say, Joe. Yeah? We sorry to trouble you, but
will you let us in, please? I'm sorry, lady,
but... We have to be over on the highway under
one left ahead. We can't go on. We can't go back.
You've got to take it in. There's a beach house
about a half a mile up there alive. It's been
washed away. Look, you can't turn us away. Not
in there. All right, come in. Thank you. Thank
you. I'm Martin Halliday. This is my wife, Fran.
And you? Joe. Joe Carrington. And I'm Ronnie
Prentiss. You may have heard of my father. All
right, then I want you to write history. Pleasure
meeting you. See, that's quite a black eye you've
got. Yeah, I got it. We went down to the dock
to secure our boat. Ronnie slipped. Oh, that's
too bad. Can't help noticing, Mr. Harrington,
your gun. What about? A little unusual, isn't
it? I mean, wearing a shoulder holster and a
gun in the house. Makes me feel as if I'd walked
into a Humphrey boat and I'd move me. Maybe you
have. Oh? What do you mean, Mr. Prince? He didn't
mean anything. Making a joke, is all. Where are
you from, you two? Fiesta Key. Yes, we have a
little beach house there. Shack, really. Kind
of. Get away from it, old place. Get away from
all what? We're school teachers. Jacksonville.
Fran teaches English. I'm what you call a student
counselor. Oh, you give advice to kids? Well,
they're not exactly kids. Not at 17 and 18. High
school, yes. But at that age, adolescents have
lots of problems, believe me. And you straighten
them out. Well, let's say I try. My husband has
a degree in clinical psychology. Oh, very interesting.
Oh, I'll be back in a moment. Where are you going?
Well, to heat up the coffee, Joe. They look like
they could use some hot. Well, what they need
is a drink. Forget the coffee. Well, I don't
need a drink. I'd rather have the coffee, thank
you. Me too. Well, I'll get it. No, wait. Hey.
Excuse me, I'll give him a hand in the kitchen.
Martin, there's something funny going on here.
Yeah, I noticed the way Carrington, the one with
the gun, kept watching the younger one, like,
well, a cat watching a mouse. I noticed that
too, but what I mean, the younger one, Ronnie.
He seemed to be trying to warn me about something.
What do you mean, warn you? I don't know. I could
be wrong, but... There was something, came to
me, something in his eyes. It's as if he were
trying to warn me. What's his eyes? And speaking
of eyes, I don't think he got that shiner in
a fall. Neither do I. Well, come and get it.
Hot and steaming. Oh, I can use a cup of that.
Thank you. Thank you very much. Here we are.
There's cream and sugar. You can help yourself.
Oh, thank you. How do you take yours, Mr. Prendis?
Uh, black. And it's runny. Oh, well. Friend,
then. Okay. There you are. Mr. Carrington? None
for me. Ah, you play Scrabble, friend? Love it.
Well, how about a game with me? Of course. You
know, come to think of it, maybe I'm fighting
off more than I can chew, taking on an English
teacher. What do you want, a handicap? This is
a nice place you've got here, Mr. Carrington.
I've been admiring some of the paintings on the
wall. Who's the artist? A friend of mine. And
distinctive technique. He's got talent. And problems.
You think so? Oh, no offense. No, no offense.
I'm interested. What makes you think he's got
problems? Well, there's something curious about
the way... the way... Yeah? It's hard to put
into words. See, here in this landscape, that
distant farmhouse is only partially finished.
And here, here again, these trees are only half
painted in. As if... well, there's something
wrong. As if the artist for some reason went
just so far and no further. As if something stopped
him. You shrieks are all alike. I beg your pardon?
Your wife said you were a psychologist. So? So
right away you gotta read something into this
painting. Like the artist has problems because
he didn't finish painting this or painting that.
Maybe he ran out of paint. Did he? What? He's
a friend of yours, you said. You know him. Did
he run out of paint? Or did he just not finish
what he started? Take it easy, Joe. Why pull
the gun on us? I just accidentally upset the
Scrabble game, that's all. I thought you were
going to shoot me. You're pretty edgy, Carrington.
Sorry. You're practically a nervous wreck. All
that happened was Ronnie has hit the Scrabble
game. I said I was sorry. Let me help you pick
up the pieces. And maybe we could all sit down
and play. How about it, Mr. Halliday? Sure. Sure,
help pass the time. Yeah, you count me out. I'm
gonna lie down for a while. A few minutes ago
you wanted to play. Well, I don't now. Nonsense.
You like Scrabble. Not when I'm up against an
English teacher. She was picking her socks off
me. We'll all play. Sit down, Ronnie. Uh -uh.
I'm sleepy, Joe. I'm gonna catch a nap. Looks
like we'll have to play three -handed. Yeah,
yeah. As soon as I get back, I won't be a minute.
Martin, that boy's in trouble. Where'd you get
that idea? He didn't upset the Scrabble game
acts of destiny. He did it deliberately. After
he spelled out the words, help me. Help me? Yes.
I looked at the words, then at him, and he looked
in Carrington's direction. Martin, that boy's
in danger. Maybe we are too. Joe, no, please
don't handcuff me to the bed. You're up to something
out there, Ronnie. I'm not taking any chances.
I swear, I wasn't up to anything at all. I think
I haven't noticed the looks between you and her.
I think I haven't seen you trying to tell her
something with your eyes. And why did you upset
that Scrabble gate? It was an accident. Yeah,
some accident. And all of a sudden you're sleeping
and you want to take a nap. You think you're
kidding. Next thing I know you'd be out that
window trying to escape. With a hurricane raging
out there, how far do you think I'd get? I don't
think, I know. You're not getting beyond this
bit. I put these handcuffs on, you're not. We've
got to do something. Fran, I warn you again,
don't rush into something you'll be sorry for.
But we've got to help that boy. For all we know,
we've got to help ourselves. Martin, he's got
a gun, and he's... More coffee before we start
playing? No, thank you. Change your mind about
a drink, Helen? Why, uh, yes. Yes, I think I
will. Uh, and on second thought, I... I'll change
mine about coffee yourself scotch bourbon rye
will it be what Oh Bourbon coffee cold mind if
I heat it up mr. Carrington of course not there's
a gas stove in the kitchen Lucky we don't cook
with electricity at all went off hours ago kitchens
through that door. I'll just be a few minutes
The money is on the way, but What worries me
is I'm sure Carrington's going to kill me once
he gets it. What if he gets the ransom money?
I don't think it'll make any difference. He knows
I can identify him, so he hasn't much choice.
He has to kill me. You and your husband, too.
Yes. We could identify him. You've got to do
something. We've got to do something. But what?
That's the question, honey. What? She's taking
her own sweet time about heating that coffee.
Oh, here she is now. Where have you been? Your
clothes are soaking wet. How did it happen, Fran?
While the coffee was heating, I went to the kitchen
door and opened it. What for? To see what it
was like out there. The wind caught the door
and it hit open. I went out to try to close it
and... You're lying. What have you been up to?
I haven't been up to anything. You went out the
kitchen door and around back, didn't you? You
made your way to the bedroom. No, I swear I didn't.
Well, I'll soon find out. I'll go see. Have you
gone crazy? You hit him with that candlestick.
You knocked him whole. Get his gun and the key
to the handcuffs out of his pocket. Handcuffs?
Ronnie's handcuffs are in the bed in there. Come
on. Here, take the gun while I hunt for the key.
Not this pocket. Here. Keep him covered, friend.
I'll release Ronnie. Mr. Halliday. It's okay,
Ronnie. I don't know what this is all about yet.
I'll soon have these cuffs off you. Carrington's
out cold. There. Oh, good. Where's the gun? My
wife's got it. Keeping Carrington covered. Come
on. He's still out, huh? Yes. All right, I'll
take the gun, friend. Yes. Here, I don't want
it. I don't even like the feel of it. Where's
my husband? Well, still in the bedroom, I guess.
What in the world is he doing in... Martin? Martin,
what are you doing in there? Coming. I thought
to have a closer look at this. But what is it?
It was hanging on the wall. In his bedroom. But
what is it? A straitjacket, Fran. A straitjacket?
Fran, what would a straitjacket be doing in your...
Oh my God. That's right, Fran. You see, I'm insane.
Joe used that straitjacket to keep me quiet when
I got violent. Really violent. But he won't be
using it on me anymore not anymore As I said
we sometimes find ourselves in predicaments and
wonder how we got there Well Fran and Martin
Halliday needn't wonder how they got into theirs.
They know I'll be back shortly with act two.
There are those who say we cannot escape what
the fates have ordained shall be our future.
Others contend that we create our own destinies,
masters of our fate. captains of our soul and
all that. I don't know. Seems to me there's such
a thing as luck, good and bad. And as Fran and
Martin Halliday stare into the barrel of a gun
held by Ronnie Prentice, I'd say they're just
victims of circumstance. Wouldn't you? He'll
use his straight jacket on you when you become
violent. He did. But as I just told you, he won't
anymore. Thanks to you, dear, impulsive friend,
Halliday. Harrington's coming around. Let's see
if I can help him. Leave him. He could be seriously
hurt. Let's hope so. I hope so. Sonny, how did
you get that gun? She gave it to me after she
took it away from you. Oh, maybe you made a big
mistake. He told me you kidnapped him. We're
holding him for ransom. Did you swallow that?
I'm afraid I did. Well, don't blame yourself
too much. Ronnie's conned smarter people than
you. Thank you. Thank you very much. Oh, no,
you shouldn't have said that, Joe. You've offended
her. She's an obvious narcissist type. You should
have realized that. As you did. Of course. That's
why I went after her sympathy instead of his.
I knew she'd be a pushover. Well, quite the amateur
psychologist. Amateur? I'll have a lot better
psychologist than you are, Halliday. I'm not
wasting my life as a kid counselor. And what's
that supposed to mean? Ronnie, give me the gun.
Oh, you gotta be kidding. Oh, Ronnie. One more
step, Joe, and I'll kill you. No. Not me. Not
after all these years. How many, Joe? I've lost
count. Nineteen. In four months and 27 days.
Oh, that's a long time. But never know how long.
Annoying truth of time. Well, it's over now,
Joe. End of the line and no transfer. No transfer
for you either if you kill me. I'll put you in
asylum, Ron. Not me. Too clever. Wow, would y
'all like a drink, or is the situation sufficiently
intoxicating? Your friend? No, thank you. How
about that? Not me. How about you, dear brother
Joe? Dear dedicated, generous, self -sacrificing,
moderish brother. Dear gentle, understanding,
all -suffering... She's back! hit me just once
again ron and and what skip it i'm going over
the bar to make myself a drink now while you
stay right where you are don't move not an inch
i said not an inch i was only going to sit down
in this chair and oh my god i'll do more than
tell you with this gun if you disobey me again
now don't move not an inch martin oh martin i'm
sorry it's not your fault Are you sure you don't
want to drink? Anyone? It's your last chance,
you know. Well, I'll shoot yourself. And now
who's first? You, Halliday? Yeah, why not you?
Just one bullet through the head. Painless. So
don't be afraid. Don't do it. Are you afraid,
Halliday? I... I don't think so. No. Not afraid
of death? How come? I don't know. I guess if
you believe in God, and I do, I guess you...
Well, you can't be very much afraid of anything,
really. Well, many people who believe in God
are afraid to die, wouldn't you say? No. I don't
see how they could be afraid if they did. Oh,
provocative speculation. Give me the gun, Ron.
Oh, you're afraid, aren't you? I point the gun
at you like this, and you don't know whether
I'm going to pull the trigger or not. You are
afraid, aren't you Joe? I certainly don't want
to die. Yet you believe in God. Maybe I do, and
maybe I don't. You do? You do? You told me you
did! I remember a long time ago, you told me
that you did! You did! Okay, I did. Now you're
trying to confuse me! He - He - He - He just
- He does it all the time! He keeps making me
think I got things twisted, all mixed up, that
I'm - that I'm not thinking straight, that I'm
crazy! Don't start that with me Jonah. I'm warning
you don't start right right and then don't take
that tone either You know, I can't stand that
Tom Ron. I will not be treated like a child and
it can't come I will not Joe I will not and why
don't you stop behaving like one how they don't
cross it? Go ahead. How are they? Say anything
you like to me anything You won't Well, then
how about your friend? You say something, you
cross me. Would you please let us go? Please.
We have nothing to do with all of this. We just
happened to come in here... Save it. You can't
reason with a homicidal maniac. He... He really
is? Yes, Mrs. Halliday, he really is. Liar! Liar!
Oh, clever. Oh, yeah, clever. But not as clever
as I am. You see, he wants my father's money
all for himself. There's enough for both, more
than enough. When my father goes to that great
hunt club in the sky, you have marvelous huntsmen,
my father. Redcoats, breeches, toptats, they're
all in the whole bed. Ta -ta -ta -ta -ta -ta
-ta, hunting we will go. We all fall down and
go smash. Smash! I'll never smash them. I'll
never smash them. For me? For me? What do you
mean, smash for you? Would you... Would you like
to know? Would you... Would you really be interested?
I would, yes. No, we... We never tell about it
until we go. Never have, never will. Oh, but
fondest friends say. Garrett Plenders' father,
the maniac. That's what they'd say. Garrett Plenders
would shrivel up with shame. Who exactly is Garrett
Plenders? Who is he? Oh, here's a man who never
heard of father. Oh, a wonderment. Oh, well,
an abyss. Why, dear man, where have you been?
Everyone has heard of father. I'm afraid I'm
not in that category. Oh, then let me tell you
about him, all about him. And about Joe and me...
Ron, no, don't, please, no. But alas, stop, Joe.
Final destination, why not open the luggage?
He won't be taking it with him. You see, Joe's
mama married my dear Papa after his Papa died.
Now, in, as you might say, the ordinary course
of biological eventuality, I appeared on the
scene. And alas, poor Joe's mama left it. Joe
hated me for killing his mom. No, Ron, I never...
You did. You did. If you didn't, why didn't you
hit me and knock me down and make me hurt my
head? I didn't mean to. You were two years old,
almost two. You always wanted whatever I had,
a toy, a game, whatever. That day, I wouldn't
give up what you wanted and I pushed you away.
You knocked me down. You knocked me down and
you hurt my head, Joe. I did injure him. I am
responsible when I pushed him and he fell. Knocked
down? All right, Ron, when I knocked him down,
he struck his head on the metal corner of a bed.
He was unconscious for more than an hour. He
went, went... Go on. When the doctor brought
him around, he seemed all right, except for headaches
that blotted him from time to time, but otherwise
all right. Then when he was about four, he tried
to kill his governess. At four? Yes. He wanted
her to give him something. I don't remember what,
and she wouldn't, and he... He flew into a rage.
He bit, he clawed, he kicked her. Small as he
was, she was no match for him. He'd have killed
her if other servants hadn't come in time and
dragged him off. Then, a year or so later, he
attacked a playmate. Boy, his age. And he would
have killed him if there hadn't been other boys
who pulled him away. From then on, he couldn't
be sent to school. He had to be tutored at home.
He'd fly into these sudden unexpected rages,
attack his tutors. He nearly murdered one with
a pair of scissors. The psychiatrist to examine
him, did they have any... I've never been to
a psychiatrist. Well, you can't mean that. That's
true. But that... it's senseless. Our apprentice
senseless? Wealthy financier, handsome playboy,
beloved darling of the jet set, senseless? Oh,
no. Atlas, yes. Oh, God, yes, Atlas. He couldn't
bear the shame and the notoriety of others knowing,
but... Carrington. Joe, you can't mean that all
these years you've taken care of him, alone.
It was my fault. So you took on the burden of...
Wouldn't you? You've dedicated your entire life
to him. Oh, it isn't as bad as you make it sound.
Most of the time he's rational enough. Our lives
are quite ordinary, except... I have to keep
watching for the signs, the symptoms that warn
me that another attack is coming on. I try to
give him as much freedom as I can. Still I do
have to keep an eye on it. You know, I hate being
watched You only know how it feels to have someone's
eyes glued on you all the... Why are you looking
at me like that, Holliday? Like what? As if...
As if you're studying me. I... I don't know what
you mean. Yes, you do. Answer me. Answer me or
I'll put a hole in your head. No! Make that turn
away from these people! Easy, easy. All right?
I have been studying you. Why? There's something...
I can't put my finger on it, but something...
I've known kids. Well, young men and women, really.
High school seniors who... who seem rational
at times. It's only the calm before the storm,
Halliday. It's one of those symptoms that I mentioned.
The silence before the volcano erupts, say Joe.
Something like that. And then... BOOM! I erupt!
Well, better to do that than to hold it in and
let it eat you alive inside like most people.
Like you, Halliday. Me? Nothing's eating me.
Liar! You're all but eaten up with bitterness,
frustration. You, you, you couldn't be more off
base, believe me. Am I? Ask her. Ask Fran. She
knows. My right friend. Well, answer him, Fran.
He's right. Haha, you see? Aw, come on, Fran.
He is right, Martin. You know it. I know it.
We just never talk about it, that's all. Talk
about what? Nothing. Forget it. No. You just
said that he's right. I am, eaten alive inside
with frustrations, regrets. You are. Darling,
you know you are. You never mentioned it because...
Well, because you're you. Good Lord, Fran. Are
you... are you talking about what happened at
State College? Is there anything else we don't
talk about? Since it happened? What in heaven's
name, Fran? That was 12 years ago. It makes no
sense. Doesn't it? Oh, Martin. Dear, darling
Martin. Doesn't it? You know... Maybe it does.
Maybe it does it back. If all these years you've
been thinking that I... Because I never talked.
Thinking you ruined my life. I did. You know
I did. Ruined it? Randiris, you made it. How
could you have lived with me all these years
and not know that I... What a fool I've been.
You. Yes, me. A so -called psychologist. Not
knowing you'd feel guilty. That you've been...
Martin, do you get silent about it all these
years? Get silent? Nothing. I haven't got silent.
I just haven't talked to you about it because
I scarcely ever think about it. And when I do,
I'm glad it happened. You're just saying that.
I'm not saying anything. I'm telling you the
truth. Too late. Too late. Just too late. Because
I'm sick of all this talk. The time has come
to get rocked. To strike. And I think... Now
I'm sure. I'll strike at you first, dear friend.
Oh yes. I'll kill you first. an ironic twist.
When in the very instant Martin Halliday discovers
that all unknowingly he and his wife have misunderstood
each other over the years, the homicidal maniac
Ron Prentiss kills Fran Halliday. I'll return
in a moment with Act 3. Remarkable, isn't it?
That no matter how intimately our lives are bound
up with another's, we never really know what
he's like underneath. What he truly thinks, truly
feels. It's almost inconceivable that Fran Holliday
would believe that her husband Martin has been
eaten up with bitterness and frustration over
something she did 12 years ago. When actually,
the reverse is true. But no matter now, it seems,
because Ron Prentice has just fired point blank
at Fran. Fran! Fran! I'm alright. I think. He
missed. Lucky you, Fran. If you'd jerk your head
at the right moment, you'd be dead with a bullet
between your eyes right now. Fool, you crazy
fool! Yeah, my dear brother. You won't think
so when I finally decide to kill you, too. If
you kill any one of us, it'll be the end for
you, Ron. Oh, no. Not an end. A beginning. I
put you away, behind bars, in an asylum for the
criminally insane. You could never bear that,
Ron. I've grown this for nearly 20 years. 19
years, 4 months, 27 days, as you said. What are
you talking about? You've lived an almost normal
life. I've seen to that. And never a day out
of your sight. The feel of your eyes, always
on me. Waking, sleeping. You were always there.
Never alone, never. Handcuffs, straight jacketed,
chain. Chained to you! Chained! You think I have
never wanted to be alone? To live my life? To
fall in love? Marry? Have kids? Even to go for
a walk by myself? You think it's been any easier
for me? Chained to you? You made the chain, not
me. You! Now I'm gonna break it, Joe. Once and
for all. Great! Don't shoot! Run! Please, I beg
you, don't shoot! I thought we were finished.
You are. Well, that's the house can't last. They
said on the radio these winds would hit 110,
120 miles an hour. That's what they're starting
to do. And we damn well better ought to get out
of here. Where can we go? To the beach. There
are caves down there. We could make it. No, dear
brother, not you. Me. What do you mean, you?
Fran, go into the bedroom and get those handcuffs
my brother used on me. What are you up to? You'll
find a second set in the top bureau drawer. Joe
always kept a spare. Bring the straight jacket,
too. I... I... I don't... I always tell you,
don't get any fancy ideas or it'll be the end
of these two. Do as he says, Mrs. Halliday. All
right. What rotten scheme have you dreamed up
now, Ron? Well, not me. The hurricane. The hurricane
dreams it up. What the hell are you talking about?
Those winds are getting worse. The house can't
last. Call on the sun to smash the kindling.
All three of you will be smashed to kindling,
human kindling, with it. Ah, here's Infosupran
with the handcuffs and the straitjacket. You,
Colivace, put that straitjacket on Brother Joe.
Run. Ronnie, you can't do this. I'm not. You
are. Get that jacket on him. Now! That's what
he said, Halliday. He'll kill you if you don't
obey him. Come on now. Get this jacket on me.
Halliday! If I could only be sure... Of what,
Martin? Sure of what? That he's late, that he
can't shoot to kill. Sorry me, Halliday. I'm
gonna count five. If you haven't got that straitjacket
in the jaw, I'll put a bullet through your head.
And he can do it! He's a cross shot! Then how
come he missed Fran? I missed because... Don't
give me that! Fran couldn't have dirt her head
fast enough to avoid the bullet! You missed!
Deliberately missed! Why? Halliday, you're pushing
your luck! Maybe. I'm not saying I couldn't be
wrong. No one ever really knows what's in another
man's head. But if I'm right... Aladdin! Give
me the gun, Ron. I warn you, put that straight
jacket on, Joe, or I'll kill you here and now!
I don't think so. If you were going to shoot
us, you'd have done it instead of talking about
it. How would I do? I've been sizing you up,
Ron. The way I size up high school kids sent
to me when they're in trouble. They do a lot
of talking, too. A lot of bluster, a lot of bluff.
Half the time not knowing it is nothing but bluff
because nobody's called them on it. Well... I'm
calling you. Here and now. Calling you, Ron.
One more step. Now, in heaven's name, you're
not dealing with a high school kid. You're dealing
with a maniac. That's the chance I'm taking,
Joe. That your brother is no more insane than
I am. Well, you are insane if you think he isn't.
I've been with him night and day all his life.
I tell you, he's mad. I don't believe it. He
believes it. Oh, yes, he believes it, all right.
Right now, this minute, he believes he'll shoot
to kill me. But I'm gambling that when the chips
are down, he'll throw in his hand. Oh, you seem
very sure of yourself, Halliday. And anything
but sure, Ron. But what have I got to lose? If
I don't take that gun from you, we'll all die
when the hurricane destroys the house. And even
if you do shoot to kill, and do kill me, it'll
give Joe a chance to get that gun away from you.
Joe? Yeah? Get ready. If he shoots me, you have
a split second to jump in. Okay? Okay One more
step and you're dead not if I'm right about you
Ronnie I'm willing to take a calculated risk
Based on what I've learned about you in the past
hours learned About me you nearly killed your
governess Joe said when you were a child But
didn't I was stopped before I could were you
or could you have killed her before anyone came
to save her? But held off until they came. What
about the playmaker who tried to murder? Somehow
you didn't succeed there either. Or the tutor
you nearly killed with a scissor. Or my wife's
friend. Those pictures on the walls. You painted
them, didn't you? What of it? None of them. Not
one is finished. That's what of it. Why? Because
you don't finish anything you start. You want
to know the truth as I see it, Ronnie? I don't
give a damn what I see. As I see it... When you
were a child and Joe knocked you down, yes, you
were knocked unconscious. But when you came to,
you felt a warmth, a security you'd never felt
before. Because for the first time in your life,
you were the center of attention. Especially
your father's attention. You felt it, loved it,
wanted more of it. Wanted to shoot. You, did
you? Time went on and you got no more attention.
You missed it, yearned for it. Then one day,
if I see it, when your governess refused to give
you something you wanted, you flew at her in
a childish tantrum. Not tantrum, Ronnie, that's
all it was. But again, you got attention. And
again, you found it pleasurable and wanted more.
And had found a way to get more. Am I right?
You can't be. Ron, if I'm right, for nearly 20
years you've been playing at being insane. without
knowing you were playing. You told yourself a
lie, the same lie so often, you came to believe
it. But the fact is, you're not insane at all.
John, for the last time, give me that gun. Alright
then, I'll take it from you. I knew he would.
I was right. Your husband was wrong. We won't
need the straitjacket now. All right, Joe, handcuff
her to the water pipe. Move! Let's run. Yes.
All right, now handcuff yourself to her. Run.
She'll come after you. She'll put you away. Do
as I say! All right. All right. And now... Goodbye,
children. In a little while, the house will be
gone, and you're with it. I'll be free of you!
Free of you! At last! At last! Is holiday? What?
The hurricane's getting worse. We can't last
long. I just want to say, I'm sorry you got caught
up in all this. It's my fault. No, no, no. If
I hadn't for me, just rather... Martin! That
was Martin! He just moved! He isn't dead. a chance
to look at him close up. That bullet could have
only creased his skull. Oh, thank God, thank
God. Martin, here. Look over here. We're handcuffed
together. Here. What? Ben. Oh, my God. Ben. What
happened? Ron shot you. Oh, yeah. Here, my...
Oh, my head. He went to the caves on the beach.
He left us handcuffed to this pipe. Gotta get
out of here. There's no way, Halliday. We're
handcuffed to this water pipe. He got the keys?
Yes. We're cooked. Not if I was right. What about
Rod? You were wrong. He shot you, didn't he?
No, he didn't. He didn't kill me. He could have.
There isn't much. This could be it. We can't
last much longer. I can't move. I can't move
you. I can't let you die. Moving on to each other,
dragging Martin who couldn't stand, they fought
their way to the caves on the beach, even as
the house exploded into flying wreckage. I'll
be back shortly. So, curiously, out of possible
death, came new life for Joe Carrington and his
half -brother Ron, and for Fran and Martin Holliday.
It's trite to say, I suppose, but God does work
in mysterious ways. Consider, if 12 years ago,
Fran had not sounded off impetuously to the Dean's
wife, Joe and Ron would still be bound to each
other in misery. And Martin... would never have
found the life he finds so rich and rewarding.
Consider that. Our cast included Joe Julian,
Evie Juster, Jack Grimes, and Gordon Gould. The
entire production was under the direction of
Hyman Brown. This is E .G. Marshall inviting
you to return to our Mystery Theater for another
adventure in the macabre. Until next time, pleasant
dreams.