Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar - The Laird Douglas Douglas of Heatherscote Matter - Ep 4

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Speaker 1: From Hollywood, it's time now for.

Speaker 2: Johnny Dollar. Lieutenant Howard, Homicide. Oh, hi, Steve. Hi. As

you know, I've given orders for you to be confined

to your suite out there at the Maples until I

can get some of the lap crew out there. You

don't think I murdered Warren Staley? Now look here, I'm

the one who's kept even the family out of here.

What's more important, you're the only one in the whole

estate who might be trusted to keep things intact, any

possible evidence. So please don't leave your room. Okay, diplomat,

I'll sit tight.

Speaker 1: Tonight, and every weekday night, Bob Bailey and the transcribed

adventures of the man with the action-packed expense account, America's

fabulous freelance insurance investigator.

Speaker 2: Yours truly, Johnny Dollar. Expense account, or rather report, submitted

by Special Investigator Johnny Dollar to the Philadelphia Mutual Liability

and Casualty Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in connection with my investigation

of the Laird Douglas Douglas of Hetherscote matter. No need

to itemize expenses at this point because there are none.

The magnificent suite in which I'm parked out at the

sumptuous mansion of Mrs. Peter Malcolm Kelly Van Pyton is fine,

except for the body of young Warren Staley, Mrs. Van

Pyton's nephew, draped over the arm of the easy chair

in which he died a few minutes ago. I'd called

Lieutenant Howard at homicide on the phone in my room immediately,

and within minutes, the nearest patrolman was stationed outside my door,

refusing admittance even to the lady of the house. After all,

this was the third murder that tied up with the

Scottish terrier who started all this, Laird Douglas Douglas of Hethiscote.

While waiting for Lieutenant Howard and his crew, I shaved, showered,

and changed my clothes. Then, about ten minutes later... Well, darling? Yeah, Lieutenant.

Speaker 3: Ah.

Speaker 2: I see what you mean.

Speaker 3: Yeah.

Speaker 2: And he seemed like a nice kid, too. He's all yours, Doctor.

Go right ahead. Very well, Lieutenant. Here, Paul, just sit... Okay,

for pictures, let's go. Yeah, yeah, go right ahead, Sergeant. Okay,

excuse me, Doc. Okay, Dollar, let's have it. What happened? Well,

Warren brought me up here himself, and I sat him

down to ask him some questions. You suspected him, didn't you,

in spite of what I told you? Sure. As sole

beneficiary of the Van Pytens State Empire, as he called it. Yeah, well,

what do you think now? That you were right. That

he was clean. Anyhow... My boy, my poor darling Warren.

Where is he?

Speaker 3: No, take your hands off me.

Speaker 2: My boy is dead. No, you can't keep me out.

This is my own house and this is my own nephew.

I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait until we can

get everything clear. Oh, this is a terrible, terrible thing.

Just a minute, Lieutenant. Hey, whoa, young fellow. Hold on

a minute.

Speaker 4: Who are you?

Speaker 2: Johnny Dollar. Who are you?

Speaker 4: Ronald Kenworthy, his best friend.

Speaker 2: What happened to him? He was poisoned.

Speaker 1: Poisoned?

Speaker 4: And where were you?

Speaker 2: How could a thing like this happen if you were doing... Oh, Ronnie,

just calm down a minute. How long have you been

here in the house?

Speaker 4: Why, a half, three quarters of an hour, something like that.

Speaker 2: But I don't see... Where? Where were you?

Speaker 4: I was down in the reading room with Mrs. Van Pyton.

Speaker 2: All the time?

Speaker 4: When out in the garden.

Speaker 2: Alone?

Speaker 4: Yes, except for a few minutes while I talked to Hastings,

the butler out there.

Speaker 2: What were you doing in the garden?

Speaker 4: I was on my way up here by the back

way to see Warren. I've always used the back staircase

from the garden, ever since we.

Speaker 3: Were kids together.

Speaker 4: This suite of rooms used to be our playroom, ever

since I can remember.

Speaker 2: All right, all right. Go on with what you were saying.

Speaker 4: Well, then, about that time, or a few minutes later,

I don't know exactly, I heard the police car come

screaming up the driveway. That was the first that any

of us, Mrs. Van Pyton or Hastings or I, that

any of us knew that something was wrong, that something

had happened to Warren. But now look here, Mr.

Speaker 2: Dollar, I don't... What? You'll have to leave with Mrs.

Van Puyton until we're through in here.

Speaker 3: Oh, please, Ronald, help me.

Speaker 2: Help me. Well, but I... Go ahead, Ronnie, go ahead.

Speaker 1: All right.

Speaker 4: Oh, come on, you poor old dear.

Speaker 3: Oh, my poor.

Speaker 2: Ah, poor old Dame. Sorry for her. You finding anything, Doc? Yes,

I think so. I certainly think so.

Speaker 5: Be with you in a minute.

Speaker 2: All right. You'd better go on with what you were saying, Dollar. Well,

not much more to say, Lieutenant. Warren felt the same

way you do. that Branson at the insurance company does.

If anything happened to the dog, Laird Douglas said it'd

be the end of Mrs. Van Pyton. That the murders

of the dog's handlers, caretakers, were purely incidental to attempts

on the dog's life.

Speaker 1: But.

Speaker 2: But what? Well, he apparently was as concerned over this

whole thing as we've been. Said he had a very

strong theory about who might be back of all this. Oh,

did he tell you? He was about to when this,

whatever it was, hit him. Well, I'll tell you what

it was, Lieutenant. Yeah, Doc. Oh, this is Mr. Dollar. Oh, Mr. Dollar.

Speaker 4: Oh, Mr.

Speaker 2: Dollar. Penorphic acid.

Speaker 5: Same thing that killed the two dog handlers and was

used on the dog itself. I can tell without further examination...

Wait a minute, Doc.

Speaker 2: Wait a minute. If the dog got the same thing

that killed a couple of grown men.

Speaker 5: A dog with a much more sensitive stomach, unused to

all the strong food and drinks the human stomach is

constantly abused with, a dog would immediately regurgitate and retain

only a minute amount of the penorphic acid.

Speaker 2: I see.

Speaker 5: In the case of Warren Staley here, it was added

to the Scotch whiskey he drank. Traces of it in

his glass and in a full glass beside your chair.

Speaker 2: Well, Doc, have you checked those bottles in the cellar yet?

Just about to. Which bottle did he pour that out of, darling?

The one right next to that bottle of E.O. there.

Wait a minute. This isn't the same bottle. What? The

one he poured from was half empty. This is nearly full. Hey, now,

what's the matter with you boys? You let somebody switch

bottles a minute ago? Oh, wait a minute, wait a minute.

Nobody else came in here besides Mrs. Van Patten and

young Kenworthy? Hastings the butler, but he just stood in

the doorway. That's right, Lieutenant. Yet somehow, between the time

Warren Staley poured those drinks and now, somebody switched bottles.

Unless you're wrong about this, Dollar. No sign of the

poison in this one, Lieutenant.

Speaker 3: It's the only scotch bottle.

Speaker 2: You been here in the room all this time, Dollar? Yeah, sure.

And in the bath, I shaved and showered and dressed

while waiting for you to get here. But only after

one of your men came and parked outside the door... Well,

where does this door lead to? It's the dog's quarters.

Two rooms. Oh, I see. Come on, darling. You might

wait for us. What about that door beyond? Oh, that.

Mademoiselle Poirot, the dog's governess. Oh, where was she? How

should I know? I didn't even meet her. Ah, the

Follies Bajor. I guess I should have knocked.

Speaker 6: Who are you?

Speaker 3: Why you come in this way while I'm dressed myself?

Speaker 2: Sorry, mademoiselle, we're the police.

Speaker 3: Police? What have I done that you should see me

this way?

Speaker 2: Nothing, ma'am, nothing. But how long have you been there

in your room?

Speaker 3: Only two minutes.

Speaker 6: I came in the back way to change my clothes.

Speaker 2: Yeah, that was obvious.

Speaker 1: It's my day off.

Speaker 4: I have big day.

Speaker 2: Not now you haven't. Get dressed and I'll send an

officer in to escort you downstairs. Come on, darling.

Speaker 3: No, you cannot do this to me.

Speaker 2: I've done nothing wrong.

Speaker 3: You cannot make me stay here.

Speaker 1: Say, Pete.

Speaker 2: Send somebody around the back way to cover the governess

and take her downstairs for questioning. Yes, sir. And Johnny,

looks like you goofed. Hmm? While you were showering, somebody

came in through her room, through the dog's quarters, and

did the bottle switch on us. Oh, well, then we're even. Yeah, we're... What?

You have very carefully mussed up any fingerprints that might

have been on those doorknobs.

Speaker 3: Oh.

Speaker 2: Uh, Jerry, see if you can get any prints off

those doorknobs back there. Right. If I haven't wrecked them. But, Johnny,

if I didn't know about you and your reputation, I'd

peg this on you so fast, you'd... You haven't been

holding out on me, have you? I assured him that

I hadn't, then went downstairs to the monstrous living room

and sat in while we went through a routine questioning

of everyone in the household. I even went through the

motions of bodyguarding the dog that had started all this

and tried to console Mrs. Van Pyton. Results of the questioning? Nothing, darling. Nothing.

No leads. Yeah, so I noticed. The two previous murders

of the dog's caretakers or bodyguards, whatever you want to

call them. Yeah, well, same poison was used then. In

their food as well as the dog's. But why? Why, Steve? Why?

Why they? To keep them from helping Laird Douglas when

it hit him? Well. More likely because those handlers had

got wind of the attempt to poison the dog and

suspected who was trying to do it. Yeah, yeah, that

makes sense. Yeah. Say, there's one thing you're overlooking, darling.

What's that? The intended victim of this last poisoning was

not Warren Staley, but you. Oh, brother, I'm not overlooking

that for one second. Yeah, and that's why I asked

you if you were holding out anything on me. Because

it would indicate that you have a lead, or at

least suspicion about someone. Sure, sure, I got a lot

of suspicions. Ronald Kenworthy, his old man, the butler, heaven

help us, even Mrs. Van Pyton. Maybe even you, Steve.

But when it comes to evidence... Yeah, I know what

you mean. Well, I've got work to do. Looking for

the proverbial needle in a haystack was nothing compared to

hunting for the poison bottle of scotch that was no

doubt stashed away somewhere. Far, far into the night, a

regular army of policemen probed and dug and poked around.

They opened drawers and closets and cabinets, pounded on walls

looking for sliding panels and secret compartments, went through the trash,

sifted a trash heap, dug up any freshly turned earth

they could find on the grounds, even climbed trees. Yeah,

they prowled through attics and basements, looked everywhere. Result? Nothing. Meanwhile,

I stayed close to Mrs. Van Pyton, and I'll say

this for her. In spite of her almost silly infatuation

with that dog, she showed real strength of character. We

sat alone together in the reading room. I know, Mr.

Speaker 6: Dollar. There's nothing I can do to bring Warren back. Therefore,

there's no point in simply sitting.

Speaker 2: Here weeping over him. Yeah, yeah, that's true.

Speaker 6: But it isn't easy because it meant more.

Speaker 2: I'm sorry. I, um... I want to ask you some things, Mrs.

Van Pyden. I suppose this is the wrong time, but I... No.

Speaker 4: No.

Speaker 6: Ask me, Mr.

Speaker 1: Dollar.

Speaker 6: I think I know what you want to ask. And now,

now that this last terrible thing has happened, I hope,

I pray that I can help you.

Speaker 2: Well, I had quite a talk with Warren before he died.

Speaker 6: Oh, oh, I'm glad.

Speaker 2: Warren would have been the sole heir to the Van

Pyton estate.

Speaker 6: Yes, he alone would have carried the honor, the prestige

of the family after my passing. Oh, no.

Speaker 2: Oh, no.

Speaker 6: Surely, who didn't think that he could have been behind

those other terrible murders?

Speaker 2: Quite frankly, at first I did. But he told me

something else, and it's bothered me. About Mr. Kenworthy and

his son.

Speaker 1: Ronald?

Speaker 6: No, Mr. Dollar. He was supposed to be Warren's best friend.

Speaker 2: You said supposed to be.

Speaker 1: Well, I.

Speaker 2: Warren made it very clear that if the Kenworthys could

somehow acquire the Van Pyton holdings, either by Mr. Kenworthy

marrying you... I have told Harrison R. Kenworthy... Yes, I know.

If Laird Douglas wins the show from his Kerry Blue Terrier,

you'll marry him.

Speaker 6: Yes.

Speaker 2: And I still think it's a screwy idea. But the

fact remains it's apparently true.

Speaker 6: It's quite true.

Speaker 2: Neither you nor Mr. Kenworthy has too many years ahead,

if you'll forgive me.

Speaker 5: Mr.

Speaker 6: Dollar, what.

Speaker 2: So there's now only one person left to benefit by

the death of Laird Douglas, of Warren, of you, and

ultimately of Mr. Kenworthy.

Speaker 6: Good heavens, Mr. Dollar.

Speaker 2: That's right. Ronald Kenworthy. Well? I know.

Speaker 6: I know it.

Speaker 2: I think you've said enough, Mr. Dollar.

Speaker 3: Ronald! Yes, I heard it all.

Speaker 4: Mr.

Speaker 2: Dollar, I think you've said too much for... Shall we

say your health?

Speaker 1: Now, here's our star to tell you about the final intriguing.

Speaker 2: Episode of this week's story. Tomorrow, all cards are laid

on the table. And believe me, the deck proves to

have been stacked right from the beginning. Tomorrow, they'll wind up.

Join us, won't you? Yours truly, Johnny Dollar.

Speaker 1: Yours truly, Johnny Dollar starring Bob Bailey is transcribed in Hollywood.

It is produced and directed by Jack Johnstone who also

wrote tonight's story. Be sure to join us tomorrow night,

same time and station, for the next exciting episode of

Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar.

Speaker 2: Roy Rowan speaking.

Speaker 3: ¶ ¶ I'm sorry. I'm sorry.