Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1955–1962): Season 7, Episode 5 - Keep Me Company - full transcript

Good evening ladies and gentlemen,

and welcome to,

please,

I’m quite busy would
you wait a moment,

welcome to Alfred
Hitchcock Presents,

this evening we are
presenting a drama entitled,

Keep Me Company,

and now so, what is it you want?

if you insist,

do you realize
you're on television?

that you're in full
view of millions,



he says business is bad
and he needs the publicity,

some people have no shame
I say this in reference,

not to the gentleman
you have just seen,

but to the one you
are about to see.

KEEP ME COMPANY

Hey what do you call
this? come on put some meat,

on the table huh
this stuff's rabbit food.

It's salad, you dope, it's good, Julia
makes her own dressing, right honey?

I don't mind that stupid brother of
mine, Julia, he eats out of a pail.

How you know? look I didn't drive
a truck three years for nothing,

now if there's one thing a truck driver
learns it's a way to get good eats.

Well the main course is coming
up I’m broiling some steaks.

Hey now you're talking,

hey Marco you know maybe you did
the smart thing getting married,



-look, steak every day and...
-Watch it.

Hey this is pretty good Marco
it's all right you know.

Say, what did I tell you.

All right, give me the
bread I’m starving.

You ought to taste
the fried chicken,

do you think mama made
good fried chicken?

I got news for you guys, mama could
have taken lessons from Julia.

Now you're living
pretty high Marco,

what are you doing taking
money out of the business?

Don't get smart junior.

Look who's talking we've
been in business together,

two months and who's the
first one who buys a new car,

little Kenny here,
the Flatbush Romeo.

Look I’ll do what I
want with my share,

I don't tell you guys
what to do with yours.

Yeah yeah all the girls go for that
fancy convertible huh Kenny boy?

-I think the steaks are ready.
-Well I want mine three inches thick and raw.

Hey what's the matter let
me help you sweetheart.

I’ll clean it up just go
on back to your brothers.

Well what's wrong honey? say
they're getting on your nerves.

Look just take the plates
inside for me, huh?

Look they don't mean any arm
sweetheart you know that.

Darn it now look what happened
I burned the potatoes.

Hey look Julia I’m gonna have to go
out with them tonight after dinner.

Your what?

Hey Marco, where's that
wine you promised us.

Yeah, how about a little
service around here huh?

I better bring in the wine, huh?

Hey that's what I like to say.

Hey, remember what
papa used to say:

a meal without wine is like
a day without sunshine.

boy the sun shone on
pops all the time, huh?

Oh watch what you say
junior little respect, huh?

Steaks are on the way fellas,

look, Julia burn the potatoes a little
bit don't say nothing about it, huh?

-Thank you.
-Hey looks great.

Boy I could eat a horse tonight,

only I hope it's a cow.

Thank you.

-Look fellas, about tonight...
-Yeah what about it?

well we've been working every night this week,
uh maybe we ought to relax for a change, huh?

You kidding Marco?

you know we got things to do.

Now listen if you want to have a
successful business you got to work at it,

at this wholesaling racket it ain't
no cinch, we got plenty of competition.

Potatoes are burned I can make
some rice, if you want to wait.

No they look fine, I
like them that way.

Boy the steak's just right.

Look, uh I know how you feel Julia,

I mean, what the heck, married
a few months and everything,

uh, I know what it's like.

Do you say? Do you know how
boring you can be sitting,

around this crummy apartment
without anybody to talk to?

Julia...

All right.

We won't be out late,

tell you what, I’ll be home
before 11 o'clock, right Sam?

Yeah sure, sure.

Good morning sweetheart.

What time did you finally
decide to come in last night?

Well I guess it was
a little after two.

we just got so busy we
forgot what time it was.

Played 50 games of solitaire.

-I didn't win one game.
-Sweetheart you've got to understand how it is.

Sam and Kenny and me were trying
to build something for the future,

I mean you don't want to live in three-room
flats for the rest of your life, do you?

I wouldn't mind, if
I had some company,

if your brothers were married,

they decent hours.

I might as well tell you now sweetheart
we're going out again tonight.

-Again?
-I’ve got to Julia.

But this is the third
night this week,

don't I have something
to say about this,

if you only knew how lonely it is around
this apartment when you're not here,

it isn't as if I knew
anybody in the neighborhood.

Look Julia I just can't help it,

it wouldn't be fair to Sam and Kenny
to let him do all the work alone,

after all we're equal
partners, aren't we?

so don't nag me, huh?

I’m not nagging I’m
just talking to you,

if you don't let me have a dog or something,
just some company, that's all I want.

You know about me and dogs
Julia, sneeze sneeze sneeze,

-why don't you watch TV?
-You can't talk to a box.

Tell you what, I promise I’ll be
home around 8:30 no matter what.

-Heard that before?
-Oh this time I swear, it 8:30 Julia,

maybe even earlier than that,
that's not so bad, is it?

You really mean it Marco?

I go crazy for
company around here.

I mean it.

Okay.

How about a kiss?

Call that a kiss?

At the tone the time
will be 9:52 exactly.

-Operator.
-Operator I want the police.

-Third precinct, sergeant Russell speaking.
-I think there's a prowler on my fire escape.

May I have your name
and address please.

Yes it's Julia Reddy and I live
at 46 martin avenue apartment 4A.

-We'll send somebody right over there.
-Please hurry.

Miss Reddy, we're from
the third precinct.

I heard him outside on the fire escape
right outside my bedroom, it's this way.

I’ll open it madame.

you better wait right here ma'am.

-I'm going out.
-Right.

Cover me.

-Anything?
-Not a thing.

The next floor is a roof,
there's nobody up there,

there's a couple of cats loose
so in a broken milk bottle.

I think that's what it was.

-You sure? -I’m sure,
you'll be okay ma'am just take it easy.

I’m sorry to put you
to so much farther,

-will you have something? -No thank you
ma'am. -A cup of coffee maybe?

-I just made a fresh pot.
-Don't bother ma'am, thank you very much.

-Good night.
-Well, it's no bother.

Good bye.

I wish I did have a prowler.

-Operator. -Operator I want
the police department, the third precinct.

Third precinct, sergeant Russell.

This is true, all ready. I called you
before about a prowler on my fire escape...

Yes ma'am, we got the report.

Well there's two men you
sent were absolutely no help at all,

he's still
out there I just saw him.

-You saw him?
-Yes I saw him I want a detective this time.

-Look madame...
-I tell you I’m all alone here I want a detective.

All right then, I’ll
see what I can do.

-Mrs Reddy? -Yes. -Detective Joe parker
3th precinct.

-Let me take your hat.
-Thank you.

-Any sign of the prowler?
-Uh no not since I talked to your sergeant.

-Where did you see him last?
-Uh well I’m not exactly sure I saw anything,

oh well it was sort of a blur out
there but I did hear something outside,

through here.

I'll have a look.

there doesn't seem to
be anyone out there now,

the patrolman said he saw a
couple of cats on your fire escape,

-miss Reddy, and I really think that's all it was.
-I'm so frightened,

you see I’m all alone here,

couldn't you keep me
company for a while?

-Well...
-Please...

just for a little while.

Well all right, just
for a little while.

-Maybe you'd like some coffee.
-No thanks,

I um,

just had some.

Some wine maybe?

I was just having some,

it's Chianti, do you like Chianti?
oh please sit down mr Parks.

Thanks.

I think I better skip the
line, I’m still on duty.

Oh a little wine won't hurt you.

Well you know what they say, a day without
wine is like a day without sunshine,

or something like that, here.

Thanks I better not.

All right.

I don't know why I’m
so nervous tonight,

I haven't lived here very long,

I’m originally from
Cincinnati Ohio.

-nice town Cincinnati.
-Yes it is,

my mother's still there,

-do you play gin rummy by any chance?
-What?

Wouldn't you like
to play some cards?

Oh no, no thanks.

I used to play all the
time back home with mother,

she always beat me, she was
a real gin rummy expert,

we wouldn't have to play
for money or anything,

like that we could
play for matchsticks.

As a matter of fact miss Reddy,

since there doesn't seem
to be any real danger I,

I think I’d better go.

Oh please don't go,

look we don't have to play cards,

maybe you'd like to watch
a late show on television,

the set's broken,

I know,

do you like to dance?

Dancing?

-all right guess so.
-Good.

I haven't dance in ages,

I used to be
pretty good too,

here's a roomba,

come on.

I really can't miss Raedy.

How can you resist that rhythm?

This isn't exactly in the line
of duty, now what would you think?

One detective has to relax
now and then doesn't he?

I’ll bet you're a good dancer,

I can see you not bad yourself.

Know something that's ready,

I don't think you
had a prowler at all,

I think all you really wanted was,

some company.

He's here.

-Who?
-My husband.

You didn't tell me
you had a husband.

-Hi Julia, I forgot my key.
-Well I’ve listened to wandering gypsy.

I’m sorry we got
extra busy tonight.

While you were extra busy I could
have been murdered in my sleep.

-What? -There was a
prowler on the fire escape.

I was all alone here and this prowler
came I could have had my throat cut.

-What are you talking about?

Marco, this is detective
Park of the police,

if it hadn't been for him who knows
what would have happened to me.

Police...?

Are you crazy? I just told
you this is my husband, Marco.

Yeah well it's too
bad that he is, lady,

because your husband Marco’s picture's
all over the department these days,

turn around up against
the wall on your toes,

only the name is Milan, Harry
Milan, warehouse robbery,

we've been looking for him and those
two accomplices for almost five weeks,

all right turn around to madame.

Marco,

tell him it's a mistake.

-Now move over.
- Marco...

Let's go.

Marco...

Thanks for the invitation,

it was
worthwhile.

I think this should
teach you men a lesson,

Marco should have taken
his wife with him,

in that way, he would not
only have avoided arrest,

but he and Julia would
have had a shared,

experience to talk over
in their declining years,

and now appropriately enough,

in the declining
minutes of this program,

a commercial, after
which I shall return.

The police apprehended the gentleman
who held me up earlier in the program,

I’m very pleased of course, I
didn't mind losing the wallet,

but the money once belonged
to a beloved aunt of mine,

next week I shall return
with another story,

and possibly another on-screen
hold up, until then, good night.