08x13 - A Word Called Courage

Episode transcripts for the TV show, "Mannix". Aired: September 16, 1967 – April 13, 1975.*
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Joe Mannix works for a large Los Angeles detective agency called Intertect, using computers to help solve crimes.
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08x13 - A Word Called Courage

Post by bunniefuu »

Mr. Lassiter, it's Joe Mannix.

Are you here, Mr. Lassiter?

Present and accounted for,
Lieutenant.

Take a good look.

It's been a long time.

Elliott.

Harry Elliott?

Sergeant Harry Elliott
to you, Lieutenant.

Korea's a w*r
nobody remembers, Harry.

I remember.

Why the, uh, Lassiter pitch
on the phone?

Why set up a date
out here in the dark?

Would you have shown up

if I said
it was Harry Elliott calling?

No.

Mannix!

You remember what a booby trap
looks like, don't you?

I mean,
Korea isn't that long ago.

What's the gag, Harry?

No gag. This dock is wired.

Don't you remember?

The little old
demolition man-- me.

I turn the switch-- boom!

Okay, Harry.

I'm listening.

What do you want?

Al right.

I did a lot of years
in Leavenworth

because of you, Mannix.

I didn't court-martial you,
Harry. The Army did.

On your testimony.

Passing intelligence
to the enemy

in a POW camp
is a m*llitary crime.

What intelligence?

You mean that phony information
you fed me... deliberately?

You knew the rules, Harry--
name, rank, serial number.

You don't talk.

Everybody talks.
Wrong.

I said, everybody talks.

When you can't sleep,

and the interrogation goes on...

and on, day after day.

You talk.

No, Harry.

There's a word called courage.

And you think I was born
without guts, right, Lieutenant?

That's how you had me pegged.

That's why you, uh... set me up.

What the hell
are you talking about?

You know what I'm talking about.

It was a plant.

You sent me out on that mission

because you knew
I'd be captured.

You wanted the North Koreans

to squeeze that information
out of me.

The phony position,

the hardware
where it was supposed to be.

All of it counterfeit, Mannix.

You filled me up with it,
and then you sent me out,

'cause you figured
I was the guy in the outfit

who was sure to cr*ck.

Who fed you that line?

A broad.

In a bar.

Who was she?

General McCutcheon's
private secretary.

Marjorie Ellis.

How about that, Mannix?

Small world, huh?

Marjorie Ellis.

A broad in a bar.

And she's got all the secrets
in the general's files.

Marjorie Ellis told you
I set you up?

That's right.

She lied, Harry, believe me.
Check it out.

Check what out? With who?

The general's dead.

A lot of us are dead.

Not you, not me.
We're alive.

Maybe.

Well, I'm losing sleep, Harry.

You pay attention!

My fingers are getting
very itchy, Mannix.

I've been thinking about you
for a long time, Mannix.

Ever since
I got out on the street.

I said to myself,

"I wonder how long
the Lieutenant would last

"if somebody worked on him
the way the gooks worked on me?

I wonder
how good a soldier he would be?"

So I'm going to send you out
on a mission, Lieutenant,

like you sent me.

With some information
that the enemy wants.

What sort of information?

Name. That's all. Just a name.

And who's this enemy

I'm supposed
to keep this information from?

People... in a certain business

who want the name
that I'm going to give you.

It's worth...

a life, Mannix.

But you'll spill it.
They'll see to that.

Sure, Harry.

You'll break like I broke.

Turn around.

I said, turn around!

All right, Lieutenant,
the name is Rusty.

You got it, Lieutenant?

Rusty.

Now you give it to them,
and you survive.

But if you do...

somebody buys a b*llet.

Life for a life.

Now, that's the choice I had.

Now it's yours.

Don't forget.
The name is Rusty.

Good morning, Joe.

Morning? Huh.

Now, listen, Peggy, uh,
I want a rundown

on a Marjorie Ellis,
and her address.

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
Wait a minute.

Okay.

Marjorie Ellis.

She was a Wac, secretary
for General McCutcheon in Korea.

Check with the w*r Records
Office in St. Louis.

I'll get right on it, Joe.

Oh, and, uh, see what you can
come up with on an ex-G.|.

Named Harry Elliott, sentenced
to years in Leavenworth.

I'd like a Photostat
of his court-martial.

Where can I reach you?

Art Malcolm's.

We ran what you gave us through
the computer

on the Q.T., Joe,
and came up with nothing.

Rusty could be the tag
for a couple of hundred hoods.

Is that the only lead
this Elliott character gave you?

Yup.

What about the detonator?

I told you, Art-- phony.

It went nowhere.

That's where I'm at, too.

All we've got on Elliott
is the fact

he's been back on the street
for four or five years,

and if you ask me, he's flipped.

Yeah? Well, flipped or not, Art,
he set something in motion,

and those two guys tailing me
could be the start of it.

The start of what?

Elliott's test.

There's nothing to connect them
with what happened on the dock.

Art, would you please
go along with me, huh?

Pull Elliott in.

Joe, we can't even find him.

Look, this whole thing
has got to be a hoax.

You probably won't even hear
from Elliott again.

From your mouth to God's ear.

Hello, Joe.

Hi, Peggy.
Any luck with Marjorie Ellis?

Well, yes and no.

Yes for us, but no for her.

She got discharged
from the Army two years ago.

Why?

She had a breakdown, Joe.

She's in a veteran's hospital
in Minneapolis.

And Harry Elliott?

Not even a parking ticket.

Hold on a second.
The other phone's ringing.

Mr. Mannix's office.

Well, yes. Just a second.

Joe... it's Harry Elliott.

Put him on.

Yeah, Harry?

Lieutenant, how's the mission?

I got some news for you, Harry.

About what?

Marjorie Ellis.

I want to talk to you,
but not on the phone.

All right. Tonight.

Same time, same place.

And alone, Lieutenant.

No cops.
Is that clear?

I'll be there.

Hello, Mannix.

You don't need a w*apon.

I don't like being tailgated.

I have something
in this briefcase

I think will be
of interest to you.

And that g*n
really isn't necessary.

How'd you know I'd be here?

Phone call.

Harry Elliott?

The man on the phone didn't say.

What's in the briefcase?

$ , .

For what?

The name
the phone call said you have.

Well, I don't have a name.
Somebody conned you.

Please, Mannix.

I could be home by the fire.

Don't waste my time.

I've got nothing to sell.

If we're forced to the wall,

we can get it out
of you for nothing.

But we hate
to do business that way.

It's untidy, and we're trying
to improve our image.

What do you say?

Like I told you,
I've got nothing to sell.

I'm disappointed
with you, Mannix.

Life isn't perfect.

That'll do.

Right there.

Turn around.

, in the bank...

or a funeral with no flowers.

Think about it...

overnight.

Mr. Mannix.

Hey, mister!

Hey, my wife's pregnant.

Her contractions
are four minutes apart.

And my van broke down and I got
to get her to the hospital.

Say, can you give me a hand?
Sure. We can, uh,

take her in my car.
Oh, terrific.

Come on, ma'am, we'll get you
to the hospital in my car.

You hear that, honey?
You're gonna be okay.

Oh, wait, wait, my hospital bag.
It's in the side door.

You get her to the car.
I'll get the bag.

Just keep coming in, Mannix.

Do as the gentleman says.

You set the Good Samaritan
business

back years.

On the floor,
face down.

♪♪

Forgive me for not introducing
myself, Mr. Mannix.

The young lady
is my daughter-in-law.

Unhappily...

she became a widow
when my son was involved

in a misunderstanding

at the Mexican border.

Look at this room, Mr. Mannix.

It doesn't look like a...

laboratory, does it?

Nevertheless, that's what it is.

A laboratory for what?

For extracting information.

In our business,
information is important.

You know,
the human nervous system

is very interesting,
Mr. Mannix.

It operates on two
simple principles:

pain and pleasure.

Prolonging either...

can destroy a man.

I don't have
any information you need.

You have a name.

A name that's necessary to me,

and my organization.

Why?

Because it is the name
of an informer,

a spy in my employ.

You see, Mr. Mannix,

I deal in a commodity,
the use of which

is frowned upon by
the law enforcement agencies.

And recently this informer
has aborted

several of my import operations

at a cost to me
of millions of dollars.

Now, I know...

you know the informer's name.

I made you a reasonable offer,

you refused.

Now...

you give me no choice...

except for my laboratory.

Unless, of course you...

change your mind.

The , is still
there for you to accept.

No, thanks.

Take off your tie.

And your jacket.

We'll see how stubborn
you are under pressure.

Wheel me out.

, , , , ,

, .

, , , ,

, , , ,

, ,

They always pace.

Or count.

To a hundred, a thousand

as if they were trying
arithmetically to stay sane.

But after a while...

the numbers become meaningless.

That's when the mind...

begins to break down.

, .

♪♪

Science is all right
in its place,

but I prefer faster results.

The old man's gone, Mannix.

Now it's only us.

Who's the stool pigeon?

We'll try it just once more.

Who is the stool pigeon?

Don't know.

Stubborn, isn't he?

Real hardhead.

Soften it.

That's Edie.

The old man's back.

Let's get out of here.

Mannix.

Here, let me help you.

Yeah, like you helped me before?

Where's your father-in-law?

He's in the study.

Leggett wasn't supposed
to hurt you.

I tried to stop him.

Yeah, which one's Leggett--
the r*fle?

No, that's Marina.

They'll k*ll you if you don't
give them what they want.

Well, they k*ll me and they've
lost their information bank.

But you can't resist
much longer.

It'll just go on and on
until you break.

He won't stop.

Who, your father-in-law?

Yes.

What's his name?

Maybe you'd feel better if you
put some water on your face.

You, uh, mind
turning it on for me?

Do you mind?

Why, uh, does
their k*lling me...

bother you?

I've got my reasons.

What do you suggest I do--
give them the name?

Not them.

Me.

Why should I trust you?

I can't explain,

but please believe me,
I had to decoy you at the van.

If I talk, somebody dies.

If you don't you'll die.

And you don't want that?

No.

Why don't you help me get
out of here?

I can't.

Mannix, please trust me.

Tell me what you know.

I've got nothing to tell you.

Well?

I told you it would be useless.

What do we do now?

Break him completely.

Ever had thiopental, Mr. Mannix?

In our business we find it
invaluable for curing liars.

I'm going to cure you now.

Will it work?

It always has before.

He looks ready.

What is your name?

Joe Mannix.

We've got a little problem here,
don't we, Joe?

Yes.

You'd like to help us solve it,
wouldn't you, Joe?

Yes.

I'd be grateful.

You know that, don't you, Joe,

how grateful I'd be?

Yes.

A large organization has
to feel secure.

We have a security problem
and we need your help.

All we need is the name
of the man

who is threatening
that security.

And you know that name,
don't you, Joe?

You know his name.

No.

Now what?

Oh, ma'am.

Mr. Mannix, can you hear me?

I've failed.

Do you understand?

I'm turning off the machines.

A man who'd go through
what you've gone through

for a stranger has
to be dealt with differently.

I recognized that this morning.

I've quite obviously been
pushing all the wrong buttons,

but I think I've found
the right one now.

Bring the girl in.

Peggy.

Joe.

Why, you miserable...

Strap him down.

Seems she has a young son
she's worried about.

I assure you, you'll see, uh--

Oh, what's his name-- oh, Toby

the minute
Mr. Mannix stops resisting

and begins to cooperate.

You've proven you can take

an extraordinary amount
of punishment,

both mental and physical.

But how much do you think
you can endure

if your secretary has
to take it?

Well... we'll see, won't we?

Edie, wheel me out.

Rusty.

The lady's all yours.

Joe.

Relax and enjoy it.

Hey, Rusty, |, I stalled him
as long as I could.

Come again?

The old man-- he'll be watching.

Just make it look good.

Your eggs are scrambled, pal.

Aah!

You hit her again and I'll give
him the name he wants, Rusty.

You'll do what?

Your head,
I'll hand him your head.

What are you trying to pull?

I mean it, stoolie.

You are going to try
and set me up?

Man, you're dead.

♪♪

Okay, okay.

Undo his feet.

I told you to work on the girl,
not Mannix.

He tried to make me
the fall guy.

Is Rusty the name
you've been holding back?

Yeah, that's right.

That isn't even amusing.

Rusty is the only employee
I have no reason to suspect,

the only one that's covered.

I am Rusty's alibi,

Mr. Mannix.

Try again.

That's all I had--
just the name Rusty.

Meaning?

If he's not your stool pigeon,
we've both been had.

By whom?

Harry Elliott.

Why would your Mr. Elliott
feed you a false name?

Ask a psychiatrist.

Al right.

It looks like we've arrived
at a dead end.

What do you propose I do?

For the young lady's sake,
it had better be reasonable.

Turn me loose.

Give me hours,
I'll find Harry Elliott,

and I'll get you what you want.

And then?

A trade--

Your stoolie...
for my secretary.

Al right.

You have hours, Mr. Mannix.

This time tomorrow-- let's say
: -- I'll contact you.

If you have what I want and
it checks out, you get the girl.

If it doesn't
or you call the police...

...find a new secretary.

Wow.

Roll up your window.

What is it about kids?

You got less
than hours, friend.

You got it?

I was going to bake a cake,
Lieutenant.

Yeah, well...

cake I don't need, Harry...

...but if it's okay
with you, |, uh, I...

Uh, uh, uh.

I could use a cigarette.

I kicked the habit, Joe,

in Leavenworth.

Ah,

Well, there's a...

There's a carton
in that bottom drawer there.

Now, what kind of cake

do you have in mind,
Harry, an upside-downer?

You wouldn't sh**t me, Joe?

Oh. It'd be a pleasure, Harry.

You see,
Quint's got my secretary.

And I like her.

Now, you I don't.

Not even the least bit.

Now, it's too bad
when you quit smoking, Harry,

you didn't go on the wagon,

because you wouldn't have been
in that bar that night

and met the General's secretary,
Marjorie Ellis.

Now you remember her, don't you?

She's the one that fed you
that phony line

about me setting you up
for the North Koreans.

That was no line, Joe.
That was no line.

She had it chapter and verse!
She's a Section !

Pathological liar.
She's a sick girl.

She's in a vet's hospital,
Harry.

Now, who's the real pigeon?

I'm going to ask you once more.

Who's the pigeon?

She pushes Quint's chair around.

Edie?

That's why all those shipments
of dope have been nailed.

Who turned her against him?

Her husband.

Quint's son... who got sh*t.

She blames Quint.

Ah,

Where'd you get this?

What's the difference?!

Some guy I know
who was her information drop.

Okay, Harry,

now I want the exact location
of Quint's place.

I don't know.

It's up the coast, Harry.

On the water.
But I don't know.

About an hour's drive.

I don't know.

Where is it, Harry?

I swear, I don't know!

Topanga? Malibu?
Point Dume? Trancas?

I swear. I swear I don't know.

Go on.

You going to turn me
over to the cops, Joe?

Why waste the taxpayer's money,
Harry?

What do you mean?

I'm going to let you run.

Quint isn't stupid.

Sooner or later, he's going to
nail down who Harry Elliott is,

and when he does,
he'll do a better job

on you than the police could.

If I were you, Harry,
I'd move fast. Walk!

And, Harry, I'd look over
my shoulder frequently.

Harry?

The word is still... courage.

Get me police headquarters.

♪♪

♪♪

♪♪

How do we get out?

We don't. We try and keep them
from getting in.

This is the police.

The grounds
are completely surrounded.

You have no avenues of escape.

Why'd they stop?

I wonder why.

Art Malcolm, I hope.

Come out with your hands
over your heads. Repeat.

This is the police.

The house is completely
surrounded.

You have no avenues of escape.

Come out with your hands
over your heads.

Hold it!

Get on the table!
On the table!

Legs back. Spread out!

Where's Mannix?
End of the hall.

Come on, Charlie!

All right, wrap it up.

Okay, let's go.

I underestimated you,
Mr. Mannix.

I still owe you the name
of your informer.

You know it?

Edie and I both know it.

Why should she know?

Because I was the informer.

You blamed me for Larry's death.

A man...

doesn't k*ll his own son.

I wanted him to lead.

To succeed me.

To have what I'd built.

Larry didn't want the thing
that you built.

And you... sold me out.

Yes.

Don't!

k*lling her won't help.

Perhaps, Mr. Mannix.

You know, he could have
taken you with him.

Yes.

All right, Miss.
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