[Music]
good evening television consumers
you will be very much interested in
these latest
products of the scientific mind
they will be placed on street corners
drug stores
hotel lobbies etc these are not
telephone booths television booths
no matter where you are you can slip
into one of these
and by depositing a dime can view three
minutes
of this wondrous art form how often have
you had to go to the corner drugstore
on an errand and then never learned how
a play ended
now you need no longer be chained to
your home set
in one city where the television booth
was introduced
a gentleman ventured from his home for
the first time
since . his wife reports that he
walked out of the house
with fifty dollars worth of dimes and
has not been seen since
because so many people are used to
seeing television
from a horizontal position either
slumped down
feet on the coffee table or while lying
in bed
every other booth is constructed with a
tv screen in the floor
so you can look at the picture through
your feet but we must begin our show
if you have paid a dime and one of your
three minutes
turns out to be this next one
you have my sympathy but we shall keep
the dime
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
oh darling that will be enough for that
dear
good morning it is mrs mallon isn't it
i'm afraid you don't know me i'm the
reverend george locke i wonder if i
might speak your husband
well i'm expecting back any moment won't
you come in thank you
dear that will be enough now please
won't you sit down reverend this uh
this isn't ann is it no
this is our younger daughter barbara
barbie this is
reverend locke pleased to meet you
reverend delighted
now why don't you go upstairs and put
your dress on dear because daddy's gonna
be home anymore hurry up
yes mommy no no how stupid of me ann
ann would be almost by now wouldn't
she
is that why you're here reverend is it
about anne as a matter of fact it is
is there some problem no no it's purely
a personal matter which
if you don't mind i should prefer to
discuss with your husband
yes of course you see i was chaplain at
the seabrook state
prison in the smokies many years ago and
i had occasion to know your adopted
daughter's real father
before that wretched man's unhappy death
[Music]
[Applause]
and you're late
you know the stores close early on
saturday dear i'm sorry your dress is on
your bed
oh why can't i go like this ann all
right mother don't shout your father has
a visitor in his office who is it
no one you know go in hurry up
what block my office your visitor is a
reverent lock
[Applause]
i cannot tell you how pleased i am both
to meet you
and to find out that the daughter of
that uh unfortunate man is in such
loving hands
all right sh**t him
she's upstairs right now and she's going
out a few minutes i think my wife
explains why yes yes yes and uh
since the child remembers nothing of the
past i uh
i can see how important it is to both of
you that she continue to believe your
your little fabrication that she was
adopted by you at the age of three after
the uh peaceful and entirely normal
demise of her
mother and her father i tell you it's
remarkable that a
child of such a tragedy should be so
happy and so
normal why well your wife did mention a
few visits to a dr holt
well that had to do with her school work
like my wife explained that too yes but
psychiatrist
just because of some minor anxiety or a
future scholarship
or perhaps there was something more look
reverend this is a kind of a personal
matter was it mine
no anne is a perfectly normal child she
has a brilliant mind very brilliant
she has a desire to excel in everything
she does
uh but she she blames herself that she's
not perfect in everything
yeah she demands too much of herself but
dr holt says that
that these are symptoms of things that
are essentially good
your vehemence in her defense is very
touchy mr mallory
still it must be a source of great worry
to you
the thought that this child might turn
out to be like her father
well it's a stupid thing to say
perhaps but then you see i happen to
know a good deal about psychiatry it's
very useful in my work and i'm sure dr
holt
must have warned you the extreme danger
to a child especially such an emotional
child
if she were to learn the truth about her
real parents
and how they d*ed look
reverend i i don't like your your
manner of her clergyman you ah but then
you see
i am not really a clergyman
no actually i am a businessman
and i am here on a matter of business
what business
blackmail
i don't know what stupid idea you've got
in your head
i think the state police will know what
to do with you please don't make the
mistake of thinking i am stupid mr
mallory
blackmail is my profession you surely
don't think i would have come here like
this unless i've
taken some precautions first i think
perhaps i'd better introduce you to my
associate before you do anything
rash you're so [ __ ] there is as you know
a telephone booth in the picnic area at
lookout point which is visible from this
window
i shall now dial that booth when it
rings
and my associate mr parker will emerge
from the
signal trace toward us and then
disappear into the fast
there you see
you having the faintest idea what he
looks like know where to find him
and he has his instructions now if
anything should happen to me
then he will do very quietly and
anonymously
he will do what i shall be forced to do
unless you and i can come to an
understanding now
should we have our little chat
[Applause]
do you want six thousand dollars
by monday night
six thousand rub away realize you're a
little shocked but
it's really not so terrible as all that
see i happen to know that you have a
savings account for the children and any
small difference in the amount can be
made up for the bank loan
using this house as security
what can you do you can either call the
police
or you could k*ll me but either way
you will utterly destroy your precious
little anne
because there's always mr parker
he's unhappy young man he's almost
vicious
afraid he might take a certain pleasure
in telling the child that
her real father bludgeoned her mother to
death in a drunken rage
and then hanged himself
i can hear him now little girl
your father was a m*rder*r and a su1c1de
to maybe there's some of him in you
all her life she'll wonder am i insane
like my real daddy one
shut up will i commit su1c1de like my
real
shock daddy
can i come in honey
what do you want i'm sorry daddy
i thought no i'm still here my dear but
i very much wanted to meet you now
this is anne isn't it yes your father
and i have been having a little chat
about uh
old times
i didn't mean to barge in daddy
but i'm i'm looking for my tray of test
tubes you didn't see them all around any
i haven't seen them
uh and we're go laid baby your mother's
waiting
hurry next time when you're not in such
a hurry perhaps we can have a little
talk about uh
what about science i hear you're a very
brilliant student
goodbye daddy bye baby
goodbye reverend goodbye my dear
[Applause]
charming she adores you
and you quite obviously adore her you'd
move heaven and earth to save her from
pain
surely six thousand dollars is a very
small amount to pay for her future
happiness
surely but it wouldn't stop there would
it
you'd be this again year after year no
no no that kind
of blackmailer invariably winds up in
prison
it's against my principles mr mallory
once i receive the money mr parker and i
will move on to fresher fields
out of your life forever see
i take your word for that huh
unfortunately
well i'm not going to
[Applause]
i'm not going to take your word for
anything and i'm going to see she's
protected from you
and you're associate forever don't be
naive mr mallory what about her school
friends of playmates and neighbors
you know it doesn't take very much just
one or two anonymous telephone calls or
letters
you know what gossips these small town
people are
how long do you think it'd be before the
poor child knew the whole
morbid story now
monday night eight o'clock you will walk
slowly
from this house to the picnic ground you
will wait there by the telephone booth
when it rings
a voice will tell you exactly where in
the forest to meet me
now you'll have the money in and
bills wrapped in brown paper
now no marked bills and no futile
efforts to contact the police
i work this out very carefully mr
mallory and if you deviate from my
instructions in any way
i shall know it immediately
i'll be there you'll be there
with the money good day mr mallory
oh dear darling
oh a great dinner we're gonna have daddy
let the chickens burn
mother if you'd let me fix the timer on
the oven it never would have happened
yes no at all where's my tray of test
tubes you little thief
jim you let the chickens burn what
happened did you fall asleep
no but went off you didn't even hear it
i'm sorry daddy
guess this just isn't my day
listen oh well i'll take some steaks out
of the freezer that'll solve it
hey hey something you tell me where they
are
mommy mommy she twisted my arm
she hid my test tubes and you i told you
not to touch her
if you think she's done something wrong
to you you're supposed to come to me or
your father you
understand yes mother
barbie did you take her test tubes she
can't take a joke
what did you do with them barbie
they're in the freezer the freezer
oh it's ruined now the whole experiment
is ruined
you dumb little anne don't talk to your
sister like that
now i want you to apologize to her right
now
i'm sorry my aunt still hurts
will you stop it all of you please just
stop it
now you see you've upset your father
with your fighting
i want you to apologize to each other
i'm sorry barbie
i'm sorry mother
i'm sorry daddy i'm sorry
i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry
and baby barbie go put some baked
potatoes in the oven for mommy please
yes mommy go to a gym
you're the only one she'll talk to when
she gets like this all right
linda yes i have to talk to you when we
can
oh i'll tell you when dinners ready
hydrogen plus water react to yield
sodium hydroxide plus hydrogen gas
i looked at it for the first time just
now
and i already know it
just like that
aren't you proud of me
i know all that
and i don't know anything
i don't know how to be good or kind
or how to make people happy
i don't want to hurt barbie ever i love
her and mother but
but something inside of me just
i don't know and
and i made you angry too daddy yes yes
yes this afternoon when you were talking
to the reverend
i didn't mean to but i did
it just seems that nothing i do or
i don't know it's just not simple like
like this
i love you daddy
i love you too
all right now i'm starving to death too
let's go help your mother huh come on
[Applause]
yeah
six thousand dollars
[Music]
that's the most ridiculous thing i ever
heard
you mean he actually sat there and said
this to you
what did you do i didn't do anything
that's the horrible part of it it seemed
so
weirdly just sat there calm and smiling
jim jim you don't you don't really think
he'd tell him do you
i think he would i'm sure
[Music]
did you call the police how could i have
to worry it to do a hand
but jim we have to we can't cope with
this ourselves
i've been hammering at this thing in my
mind for hours of course i want to go to
the police but we can't
they can help us they can they can tell
us what to do
jim they handle hundreds of these
blackmail cases every week like this one
jim i know how you feel about anne but
i've never handled anybody like lucky's
thought of everything
can at least advise us that it can't do
any harm can it
once we tell anybody about ann who knows
where to land
please gossip a tip to the newspapers
but we wouldn't have to tell them about
ann's father we could just say that
some stranger named black is
blackmailing a sin
and leave it at that well you can't just
i don't know maybe you're right maybe
that's all we can do not right now
tomorrow in the morning but jimmy he
said monday night we don't have that
much time
i know that i've gotta think
look jim don't take it out on me
i'm sorry you're right
about the police i don't want to be
right or wrong jim
i i just want us to
find some way out of this nightmare
[Music]
[Music]
now um as close as i can come to lock's
appearance but
it's he's got a long thin face
i'm sorry to bore you with all this
identification here team jim
at least you know our man has no
previous arrests for blackmail in this
area
you have no idea what his accomplice
parker looks like
you know there's a chance if we pick
lockup that parker will give up as a bad
job and hightail it out of the state
chance hank i can't take any chances
[Applause]
well then we'll have to pick them both
up together
pretty kind of tough this guy's smart
he's clever
jen money's involved they'll have a
rendezvous set up somewhere for tomorrow
night or soon afterwards
now if you're willing to keep that
appointment give him a packet of
counterfeit bills
i'm sure that we can zero in on lock
follow him until he joins parker and
pick them both up together
sure i'm willing to do anything but
well what if he suspects he's being
followed we're not exactly amateurs at
this job
i know that hank but have you ever tried
to track anybody in a forest
we have quite an effective field
communication system similar to your
walkie-talkie but less conspicuous
environment will move into your forest
area early in the afternoon except for
one of your fire crews
they'll fade off into the brush one at a
time wait for night
when one of them spots lock radio the
others each one will pick him up and
turn
buy radio without moving until he leaves
the force then he'll put a normal tail
on him
it's also complicated it'd be so easy
for something to go wrong
oh jim we've taken your story and faith
you won't even tell us why you're being
blackmailed we've accepted that up until
now
now the least you can do in return is
let us handle our job our way
but how can you be sure
[Applause]
we can't be sure about anything we'll do
our best that's all i
promise
keep looking back toward the phone booth
are you sure you didn't make a mistake
in the time eight o'clock sharp hank i
couldn't forget that
say now any other outdoor phone booth
in this area
no mile and a half from here long creek
camping area
this is the one he meant you're sure
yeah i'm sure look how much of men maybe
you could have spotted one of them
take it easy jim give him a few more
minutes
you're a hello get rid of your state
police friend
go home wait there you'll hear from me
this is your last chance mr mallory wait
a minute
was it him
he hung up
i'm happy to
[Music]
he didn't go he saw her right through
the police trap mommy
oh barbie has an earache i'll be right
down dear where's that
she's reading to barbie
[Applause]
[Applause]
uh
i'm gonna pay him off police can't
protect us
jim the six thousand dollars won't be
the end of it
there isn't any other way
without even consulting me i don't get
selling you now
i'm so confused you you make me feel so
guilty
i'm sorry if there was just some other
way
jim why don't we tell her ourselves no
then it wouldn't matter what locke did
and we destroy her can't you see that
look jim i love anne too but will
destroy us as a family if we pay that
terrible man
jim why don't we try the police just
once more and tell him about anne's
father it will at least give them a
lead on parker and lock we've been all
through
that we can protect her how
block her in her room she has to live
doesn't she go to school see the other
kids
you know cruel children can be i know i
know jim remember what dr holt said this
is a particularly vulnerable time for
now maybe if she was a little bit older
we could risk it but not now
stop hammering at me can't you
understand what a thing like this would
do to her why do you always put her
first
hello mallory did you enjoy your little
wait
we are very silent tonight is that
because you finally learned the state
police can't help you
all right tell me where and when to meet
you
the money
you're late where's the package
the bank won't let me out of my until
tomorrow
you're lying i'm not lying i just don't
hand you six thousand dollars
i've got more time i want the money now
i'll have it for you in the morning i'll
pr i promise you know it's the best i
can do
every extra second means more danger for
me
i ought to tell that stupid gorky little
brat if you was just out of spite
no no no one more chance for our phone
instructions so mallory
we got an agreement tomorrow morning
then i'll be out of your life forever
you say one word to her i'll k*ll you
yeah
i'll k*ll you
[Applause]
[Applause]
where you jump boys like somebody's
fixing to k*ll you
oh you're drinking again you fool i told
you to stay at the motel
what if the police were to find out you
know something boy i don't give a soft
yawn about no pulleys you're my man
and i ain't about to let you skip out of
me now where is it
can't get the money out of the bank
tomorrow morning boy you ain't very good
liar now where you hadn't it
i'm not hiding it all right just for
that
old odie's liable to keep all the money
i mean after all i'm the one to stick
you onto mallory and that little anna
girl
you i tell you he didn't bring the money
you know something boy i'm getting
mighty tired of you called me that
[Applause]
where is it boy car where is it
i'm waiting boy i'm waiting
huh bar where is it
wake up
[Music]
hmm
[Applause]
[Music]
our story will continue in a few moments
just now we must observe the quasi-folk
ritual of the station break
actually the station break was designed
for a very useful purpose
it keeps the two halves of a show from
bumping into one another
i hate to break this to you but the
opinions expressed during the past
two minutes do not represent those of
our sponsor we have yet to hear from him
however following that we shall have the
second half of
night of the owl
[Music]
we'll need the smoke jumpers you better
leave kevin's up there
b*mb that crown fire south of the tower
look on the gym now i'll get back to you
ben gotta
well we got a line hacked out southwest
of the cliff she got a holder
air control's got the whole first slope
the windshields were in trouble
now when we went down the south break
huh i'm going back in with these fellas
as soon as i get their breath
i'll be right with you
well this is where she started there's
the poor devil that started
b*rned himself up most likely lord
preserve us from careless people
what's the matter jim you know him
yeah i know
you must be dog tired with no sleep on
it
then i guess you fellows are used to it
there's fire weather yeah
have a tough time getting this one under
control nah
[Applause]
mind if we ask you a few more questions
uh mallory was nice enough to come down
here and give his complete statement
right away
i don't think we should keep him from
his bed anymore all right
i just talked to the coroner captain
you're right and assuming it was m*rder
jim locke was strangled
the concussions evidence of a struggle
all point to an act born of great anger
must've been quite a shock to you and a
relief when you saw that body
what makes you think that parker k*lled
lock who else
too bad you don't know more about it
i told you all i could
not much to go on is it
you say that you saw him on saturday
you say the lock talked about him this
seems to be about all we know about the
man
so far he's just a name sort of will of
the wisp
it might help if you told us now why
you're being blackmailed hank
i told you i can't i'm sorry
jim a man's been m*rder*d you're
withholding relevant information
i think we've had enough for one night
lieutenant now look
let's just get it over with now huh
this eight o'clock meeting you had how
long were you with luck
a couple of minutes that saw no more
where'd you go after leaving him
straight
home no i was
i was upset i wanted to think
where'd you go set up my hill and back
of the house
and after that i went inside and on the
phone rang about the fire
what time was that well you know what
time that was it was around nine
what were you so upset about look what
do you want me to say i was upset
because i k*lled locke
huh did you k*ll him yes in my mind
a hundred times i wanted to
but i didn't are you trying to tell me
this is what disturbs you
the thought that you might have been a
m*rder*r
that's all memory sorry we've tried your
patience you've been very cooperative
still after we've done a little looking
around we may want to talk to you again
sinus
[Music]
i don't
[Music]
why aren't you in school i'm home
already
you slept all day
want me to rub your foot witch hazel no
you take care of me when i have a bad
dream now i can take care of you
i'm fine now
you're worried
it has something to do with me hasn't it
oh it doesn't have anything to do with
you
and did you wake your father up i was
awake already
darling why don't you go finish your
homework i'm finished
hello yes but daddy wants some privacy
go on dear
oh sorry
[Applause]
who it's od parker boy that's who
now listen boy and listen good i need a
thousand quick
that's all it's gonna cost you now one
thousand green ones and i'm gonna keep
my big mouth shut
here what do you want me to do
put the money in a envelope as soon as
it gets dark
bring it around to the picnic ground big
old trash can chained to a tree
and stash the cash under the trash huh
and then get
all right and no hijinks boy i'm picking
it up in my own
sweet time if i smell a cop that's it i
mean your little anna girl's gonna wish
she'd never been born
yeah yes
[Applause]
you've cut the price to a thousand he
wants it tonight oh
well all we'll have to do is tell the
police and and they'll set a trap for
him he's not that much of a fool there's
no telling money to pick up the money
might be days
well they they can wait him out they
don't even think there is a parker
i've got to prove him wrong in the guard
on thinking i k*lled locke
i'll have to do it myself go it alone
i'll wait him out and bring him in
but jim you can't he's desperate he's
k*lled a man already
oh there isn't any other way
[Applause]
[Music]
um
[Music]
me
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
hey
i'll move mallory drop that
come on drop it i'm pointing a right
at
i'll you down here come on
hey what you gonna do if i don't come
down huh
you gonna sh**t me out of this tree
uh-huh might just call that
m*rder boy hey i know you're gonna come
up here
after me huh yeah just me and you
all by our own selves in this big bad
forest
you better get along home ranger by far
it's too late
all right down make me ranger boy just
try and make me
gonna be a long wait hey
how long you figure that flashlight's
gonna hold here
daddy stay back y'all honey stay there
don't move daddy i tried to follow you
but i got lost
don't move you honey you run home tell
your mother to call the state police
ever say i'm up here with parker you
understand
yes daddy here we go you make one little
move
i'm gonna k*ll your daddy don't believe
him honey i'm putting a g*n right at him
now run
she don't want to see your little old
daddy laying dead on the ground do
yanagura shut up
go on annie don't you see she came over
she's too scared of what our old cousin
odie might do that's right
i'm your second cousin twice removed
anna girl
daddy what's he honey will you get out
of here please yeah
i was just little old teenager and the
smokers when a terrible thing happened
to your real pawn mom
shut up shut up you will k*ll you you
ain't gonna k*ll me in front of her boy
i mean that
four old gal's got enough to live down
daddy what's he talking about
danny i told you to get out of here now
go on daddy your real papa k*lled your
real mama
he k*lled her dead with a kindling axe
then he hug yourself in prison
[Music]
yes
[Music]
[Applause]
oh
jim i couldn't get lieutenant names but
i did speak to the sergeant
jim what happened i k*lled him
i think i k*lled both of them now lock
aunt parker
jim what are we going to do
but wait or zan
she's upstairs she knows doesn't she
i tried to explain to about the black
male and those
two awful men she didn't even cry
and she finally told me about calling
the state police
you go up to her i can't talk to her now
please
she needs you more now than she ever
needed you before
if i were and this had happened to me
i'd want you to be with me
because you're the gentlest man in the
world
daddy
oh daddy you're all right oh daddy i was
so afraid
oh daddy listen
what happened out there i don't want to
talk about it
you got away from that terrible man and
that's all that matters
honey what he said about
your real mother and father
that i'm sorry daddy
i i just feel
so sad for them
i wish they could have had a happy life
like us
and i've been thinking daddy
about how much you and mother must love
me
and how much you loved me then i mean
to want to take into your home
a little girl whose
parents d*ed like he said
[Music]
when you first told me i was adopted
you said how special i was
because you and mother chose me
i never felt special
until now daddy
jim lieutenant ames is downstairs
i found parker where you left him jim
had a man watching your house i thought
us to phone in for help rather than
falling into the forest
got there as soon as we could but i'm
afraid we're a little bit late
yeah i k*lled him hank and i k*lled him
man like parker takes a lot of k*lling
jim
it's a little worse for wow when he
found him right now he's alive and
kicking
he knows he's going to have to stand
trial for m*rder
it wasn't too hard to get a confession
once he found a locked cigarette case on
him
so about all we need from you is a
statement about what went on out there
tonight
stop by the office someday
hey
thanks i knew it would have been easier
for you if i thought you're away from
the start
linda i i gotta tell my wife
[Music]
you remember my mentioning the gentleman
who disappeared with fifty dollars in
dimes it saddens me to relate that he
became
stuck in a television booth where he
eventually
succumbed fortunately he had deposited
all his money so that the set will be on
for the next
hours i know he would have wanted it
that way
next week i shall return with another
story scenes of which will be visible
after the following
foreign
[Music]
you
08x03 - Night of the Owl
Watch or Buy on Amazon Merchandise
American anthology series featuring dramas, thrillers and mysteries.
American anthology series featuring dramas, thrillers and mysteries.