Homicide: Life on the Street (1993–1999): Season 5, Episode 17 - Kaddish - full transcript

God, it's cold!

It's the dead of winter. A call comes
in. What's the first thing you ask?

- I don't know.
- Indoors or out?

If they tell you the body's in
anything rustic, you take a pass.

If it's something in
between, then it's a toss-up,

but always in weather like
this, you've gotta wear a hat.

- Right, Doc?
- Oh, yeah. And a scarf.

What we got?

Strangulation. Abrasions, contusions,
ligature marks and a possible rape.

- Getting this, Brodie?
- I got frost on my lens.

The marks on her neck?



Possibly from a chain
necklace digging into her skin.

I found the victim's purse.

$32 in the wallet, full set of credit
cards. Her name is Helen Rosenthal.

Looks like nothing's
missing. She wasn't robbed.

Except for the chain.

Helen Rosenthal lives
at 2560 Ozark Court.

So Pikesville?

I know where it is. I used
to deliver the paper there.

♪ Shimmy, shimmy, coco
bop Shimmy, shimmy bop

♪ Shimmy, shimmy, coco
bop Shimmy, shimmy bop

♪ Sittin' in a native
hut All alone and blue

♪ Sittin' in a native
hut Wonderin' what to do

♪ Along came a native
girl Did a native dance

♪ It was like in paradise
Put me in a trance



♪ Goin' shimmy, shimmy,
coco bop Shimmy shimmy bop

♪ Shimmy, shimmy coco
bop Shimmy, shimmy bop

♪ Joined her in her dancin'
spree Felt my spine a tingle

♪ Held her tight and close
to me Man, I'm glad I'm single

♪ Then she showed me
what to do First I was amazed

♪ Soon I learned a step
or two Put me in a daze

♪ Goin' shimmy, shimmy
coco bop Shimmy, shimmy bop

♪ Shimmy, shimmy, coco
bop Shimmy, shimmy bop

♪ Shimmy shimmy coco bop... ♪

You grew up in
this neighbourhood?

Helen and I went to
high school together.

Next of kin is the daughter.

- Her name's Sally Langdon.
- Langdon?

Yeah. Why?

Yes?

- Sarah Langdon?
- That's me.

I'm Detective Mike Kellerman.

This is Detective Munch.
We're with Baltimore Homicide.

Is your father Joe Langdon?

Has something
happened to my dad?

No. This isn't about your father.
It's your mother, Miss Langdon.

I'm sorry.

My mother's upstairs asleep.

Mom!

Mom!

Think about it,
Dreyfuss! Think about it!

For once in your life,
put yourself in his shoes!

You are Johnny Abernagi.

You've been working
behind the counter all day.

You wanna go home and eat.

See your wife, Gita, who
is six months pregnant.

Your little son
Arie just turned two,

Then I walk in with my
gun... and I point it at you.

How does that feel,
huh? You feel that fear?

You feel the terror?
You feel a sweat, huh?

It's cos you're gonna die.

You'll never see your wife's
face again or play with your son.

- It wasn't me!
- Yes, it was! It was you!

You walked in the drugstore! You
looked Johnny Abernagi in the eye,

and you decided he had to die!

You aimed the gun,
pulled the trigger,

splattered his brains against
the back wall of the drugstore.

You did that. Blood and
brains. A man's life gone.

Before he died, he was
afraid. Just like you are now.

Boom! Boom! How
does that feel, Dreyfuss?

Man, come on! Please, man!

I got witnesses who can
place you in the drugstore!

Well, OK, OK, OK. I was there.

You see how easy
that was to tell the truth?

No, I was in the store,
but I didn't shoot anybody!

You shot him in the forehead,
like that. Boom! Boom!

Frank!

- Can I see you?
- I'm workin' here.

I need to talk to you now, hmm?

- What?
- See that guy over there?

Came in 10 minutes ago.

Confessed to holding up the
drugstore on Eastern Avenue.

- Says he shot Abernagi by accident.
- No. Dreyfuss shot Abernagi.

The kid brought in the
cash from the register.

- What?
- And the murder weapon.

You were wrong, Frank.

Want me to tell him?

Er...

Stand up, Mr Dreyfuss.

Go home.

When was the last time
you saw your mother?

I came home from class last
night and Mom was on her way out.

Do you know where she was going?

To dinner with her
friend, Debbie Strauss.

- Did she say which restaurant?
- No.

- OK. Did your mom have any enemies?
- Enemies?

Someone she had a problem
with, or might wanna hurt her?

- Everybody loved my mom.
- That's true.

I used to live on
Cherokee Drive.

- You knew my mom?
- And dad.

Pikesville High's
perfect couple.

I should've known they'd get
married and live happily ever after.

They didn't. They were
divorced 15 years ago.

Mom and I moved in
here with my grandmother.

- Where's your father now?
- In an apartment on Sewell Avenue.

He may have moved.

- You don't see much of each other?
- We're not close.

I guess I should
call and tell him.

We can do that, if
it'll make it easier.

- He works over at the high school.
- OK.

Did your mother wear a necklace?

She wore a chain with
my brother's class ring on it.

- Your brother?
- Mitchell.

He died a long time ago.

You have your mother's eyes.

♪ This is dedicated
To the one I love... ♪

♪ While I'm far away
from you, my baby

- ♪ I know it's hard
for you, my baby - Ssh!

♪ Because it's
hard for me, my baby

♪ This is dedicated
To the one I love ♪

How much longer does
she need to stay here?

We have to bury her by morning.

Jewish law says...

Within 24 hours. Except
for the Sabbath. I know.

We're done,

so if you arrange a time with your
funeral home, we'll release the body.

The cause of death was
asphyxiation due to strangulation.

Her hyoid bone was fractured,
whoever did this hung on for a while.

Also, she was sodomised.

- You got a semen sample?
- Yeah. It's at the lab.

What about time of death?

There was minimal
rigor. It was cold outside.

It was freezing. Hat or no hat.

Time of death was between
midnight and 2:00am.

If they bury her by morning,
it should be permissible.

Dr Cox, how is it that you know
more about Judaism than I do?

What can I say? I'm
no ordinary shiksa.

Ready to go?

No.

I just want her to wake up.

I'm telling you soon, very soon
there's gonna be, like, 500 channels.

You'll see and hear whatever
you need to see and here,

without ever having to rise
from your Sealy Posturepedic.

It's never gonna happen.

Here's Joe Langdon
and Helen Rosenthal.

Pikesville High's
perfect couple.

Why do guys like him
have to get girls like her?

High school hasn't changed
much since I graduated.

- When was that? About two years ago?
- It was 1984.

Come on. That's him.

- Joe Langdon?
- Yeah.

- John Munch, Baltimore Police.
- Helen's dead, I heard.

- Really? How did you hear that?
- Pikesville's a small town.

- Munch, don't I know you?
- We were in history class together.

Boston Tea Party, the Emancipation
Proclamation, Mother Jones.

Oh, yeah. I remember
you. A little geek.

When's the last time
you saw your ex-wife?

I don't remember.

What do you mean,
you don't remember?

- We didn't speak.
- She lived six blocks from here.

Let's say we did a good
job avoiding each other.

- How long you been working here?
- About 13 years.

Used to be the football coach over
at Westview High before the accident.

- What accident?
- It was in '79. I was drunk.

Mitchell, our son,
was in the front seat.

Went through the
windshield. He was 15.

Now you understand why
Helen and I didn't speak?

She never forgave me.

Hey! Good work, Frank.

- Good work on what?
- Abernagi. You put the case down.

You heard, what, I
put the case down?

The name is in black on the
Board, so it's not still open, is it?

- No.
- OK. Good work.

What are you doin' tonight?

Tonight, I'm gonna pay some bills,
maybe catch some must-see TV.

You wanna come over for dinner?

You... You want me to what?

Have dinner with
me. Pasta, salad...

- Dinner. Dinner!
- At your house?

You want me to
have dinner with you?

- That's what you're askin'?
- Never mind.

Frank, listen to me. I'd love
to come over and have dinner.

- I would.
- OK. 8:30.

Good. Great. You want
me to bring something?

- Hmm...
- I'll bring some wine maybe.

Maybe Mary would like to have
wine. Does she like red or white wine?

- Mary won't be there.
- She won't?

- No.
- Why not?

Mary... Mary left me.

I spoke to Debbie Strauss.

She said goodbye to Helen
at the restaurant around 11:00.

They took separate cars?

Yeah. Strauss parked on the
street. Helen's was in the garage.

- Detective Munch?
- Present.

Detective Kate
McClendon, Violent Crimes.

- You are the primary on the case?
- What can I do for you?

In the Mount Washington area,

we've had three women
attacked in the last six months.

- Your victims sodomised?
- Yep.

- Did the victims identify the rapist?
- Nobody could make a positive ID.

He would come up while
they're getting in or out of their car.

Got a semen sample?

We're waiting for the results.
What's your guy's blood type?

AB positive. We may be
lookin' at the same man.

- You got the file upstairs?
- Yeah. On my desk.

- Think we should check it out?
- You two go ahead.

Sure.

I found this yearbook
of Mom's. See that?

You filled up the whole page.

I didn't realise you
and Mom were so close.

Yeah.

Pikesville High.

- I was there today. I saw your dad.
- Oh.

- He told me about the accident.
- What does that have to do with this?

Seeing as what they went through,
do you think your father would've?

I don't think he could have.

My father's an
alcoholic, Detective.

Half the time he's too
drunk to stand up, let alone...

Sorry. I just had to ask.

Sorry. What time is
the burial tomorrow?

- 9:00am at Beth Torah.
- I'll try to be there.

Was your mother seeing anyone
lately? Did she have a boyfriend?

George Young. They
weren't serious, though.

They'd only been seen each
other the past few months.

George Young?

- This George Young?
- That's him.

Thanks. I'll see ya.

Why don't you stop and
talk to me for a second?

- Hey! Hey, Young!
- Stop it!

- Get outta here, Munch!
- Leave her alone.

This ain't none of your
business. We're just talking.

I said leave Helen alone.

What are you gonna do, Johnny
Munch? Gonna do somethin' to me?

- George, leave him alone!
- Huh?

- George, stop it. Johnny?
- Wanna take a punch? Go ahead!

- George! Johnny, are you all right?
- Get a load of the hero, Helen.

Maybe you should
go out with this clown...

since you think
you're too good for me.

See ya around, tough guy.

That was so neat! You were just
like Rowdy Yates on "Rawhide".

What would I have done if
you hadn't come? You all right?

I'm fine.

- What did George mean about Joe?
- Oh, me and Joe, we broke up.

He wanted to do things,
so... Listen, I gotta go home.

- Are you sure you're OK?
- I'm fine.

- All right. I'll see you later.
- Bye.

- Come on, Bernie.
- That was neat, man!

You stay in for seven days?
It's called sitting shivah.

- You can't go out?
- No.

- There's no wake?
- No. No wake.

- The shivah is the wake.
- There's something I don't get.

What's that?

Why did Cox say that she
was no ordinary shivah?

She didn't say shivah.
She said shiksa.

- Shiska?
- Shiksa, shiksa. Sheesh!

George Young. Check this out.

This guy got inducted into the
army in 1964 in the infantry, right?

Now he does two tours in Vietnam.
He gets charged with assault in 1968.

They send him to Leavenworth,

where he gets a
dishonourable discharge in 1978.

He currently works as a
plumber, and he lives in Pikesville.

Am I the only one to
move out of that area?

Let's go talk to him.

Wait, but, Johnny,
what's a shiksa?

Boy, you really do live in a
big Irish cocoon, don't you?

Do it for me just one more time.

- Would you give it a rest?
- Once more.

"Oy vey zmir", I'm so
"meshugginah", I could "plotz".

- Do it again.
- No.

- Hey, pal.
- Your name George Young?

- Yeah.
- John Munch.

- Why does that name ring a bell?
- We went to high school together.

Oh, yeah. Now I remember. Johnny.
What do you want? An alumni donation?

I'm a homicide detective now. I want
to talk to you about Helen Rosenthal.

Make it quick. I'm
on my way to a job.

Where were you last night?

Sleeping, like every guy who
gets up at 5:00am to go to work.

Can you prove that?

What do you mean?
Do I have witnesses?

- Yeah.
- Only my Mickey Mouse alarm clock.

- You haven't found who killed Helen?
- No. Not yet.

Look, Detective. I get to
work early, I go to bed early.

I was at work on time.
Ask my supervisor.

- We did.
- Good.

When you find out who
murdered her, let me know,

cos I'm gonna kill the bastard.

Oy.

Oh, man, Frank, this
sauce is delicious.

- Make it yourself?
- No. Mary made it. I defrosted it.

- Oh.
- It is good, isn't it?

Well, like I said
before, it is delicious.

Mary's such a good
cook. I can't boil water.

- You made this pasta, didn't you?
- You cook for yourself?

Well, you know, sometimes.

What I usually do is I order takeout,
or heat up soup, frozen dinners.

- Boy, I hate frozen dinners.
- There's some good frozen dinners.

This is the last
sauce in the freezer.

- She'll come back.
- No, I don't think so.

Sure she will. She just needs
some time to think things through.

- What do I do in the meantime?
- Learn to like frozen dinners.

She loves you, Frank.

You're telling me about my wife?

Mary's gone. Livvy's gone.

I'm... I'm alone here
in this empty house.

Should I spend the rest of my life
waiting for my family to come back?

- Come on, Frank.
- "Frank"...

Who is that? Who exactly
is this Frank Pembleton?

I used to be so sure.

I used to be your partner.

I used to be Mary's
husband, Livvy's father.

I'm still Livvy's father, but sittin'
here now, I'm none of those things.

You've got your job.

Being a homicide detective,
that's who you are, Frank.

You take some peace in that.

I used to believe
in my instincts.

That as a detective
I was infallible.

I don't even believe
that any more.

Hey, Frank. That was a
good dinner last night. Thanks.

I can't even count on one hand

the amount of times we've
broken bread together.

Want to come to my
place tonight for dinner?

No.

- What do you mean, no?
- No.

- Where you going?
- Church.

- Really? You're going to church?
- Church. Morning Mass. Church.

OK.

You don't want to have dinner
with me, that's all right. That's fine.

It is.

You don't wanna tell me where
you're going, that's fine, too,

because I don't wanna know.

Have a nice life.

Know what they're saying?

It's the Kaddish. A
prayer for the dead.

- You made it.
- We made it.

So did your mother go to
synagogue often? Yeah?

She didn't always.
My dad was Protestant.

The closest we came to religion
was watching Rudolph on television,

and then the accident
happened, and the divorce.

My mom, my grandmother and
I all went to synagogue together.

Yom Kippur. Passover.

Then Mom started
going on her own.

She said she liked
the routine, the ritual.

I never understood it until now.

You're not religious, are you?

The only thing I have
in common with Judaism

is we both don't like
to work on Saturdays.

Are you ready, Sarah? We
should head for the house.

- Debbie, this is Detective Munch.
- Johnny Munch.

I'd recognise you
anywhere. Come.

- Helen, can I ask you something?
- Uh-huh.

You're not dating
George Young, are you?

I'd never go out
with George Young.

I could go to the prom with you.

We could go together.

I know it's a couple
of months away.

What I mean is... would you
like to go to the prom with me?

- Johnny...
- I'm talking too much, aren't I?

I just don't know what to say.

- That means no.
- No.

I mean, I can't.

Joe and me, we
got back together.

He came over last night,
and he was crying and...

Joe's the only
boy I've ever dated.

I've never even kissed
anyone else. Not even at camp.

Sometimes things are just
supposed to be, you know.

Me and Joe are supposed to be
together for the rest of our lives.

- How do you know that for sure?
- I just know.

- Johnny, you're not mad, are you?
- No, no. I'm not mad.

Well, thank you for asking me.

It's one of the sweetest
things anyone's ever done.

Yeah, sure.

Helen, come on.
We'll be late for class.

See you later, Johnny.

See you later.

♪ This is dedicated
to the one I love

♪ This is dedicated
To the one I love... ♪

- Hey, Mikey! Don't eat that!
- Why not?

You have to wait
until after the minyan.

What's a minyan? It's like
an appetiser or something?

- Don't sit there!
- People are sitting down.

In chairs. The crates are to
remind the family of their discomfort.

Oh, there's a lot of
rules in this religion.

John, is this
Detective Kellerman?

- Yeah, I'm Kellerman.
- Debbie Strauss.

Hi. We talked on the phone.

Let me know if I can
be of any more help.

Did you know that Helen
was seeing George Young?

Did I know? I told her to.

- You set them up?
- I tried.

Helen went along
with it for a while.

She wasn't interested in
dating, let alone marriage.

Whoa, whoa, whoa.
George proposed to Helen?

Several times. But she
always turned him down.

- Sarah, are we starting?
- Yes.

We need ten men for the minyan.
Detective Munch, do you mind?

- Oh, no. Not me.
- Why not?

- We gotta get back to work.
- It won't take long.

Yeah. Go ahead.

For Mom.

Listen, Sarah, I don't
remember the Kaddish.

You will once you try.
It's like riding a bike.

Exactly. I haven't
ridden a bike since 1965.

I'll ask Dr Weinblatt.

We believe in one
lord, Jesus Christ,

the only son of Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,

God from God, light from light,

true God from true God.

We believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy Catholic Church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the
body, and life everlasting.

Amen.

I don't pray any more. God
and I are not on speaking terms.

I used to pray for answers,

a clue, a sign of
what I should do.

How to find something
precious in this life.

- I'm surprised to see you here.
- Me, too.

I don't go into
churches any more.

I don't think I'll ever be back.

The body of Christ.

The body of Christ.

The body of Christ.

You told me to look for
God in the love of my wife.

Do you love your wife?

Yes. Very much.

Is she precious to you?

Yes.

Now my wife is gone.
There's no God for me there.

The body of Christ.

The body of Christ.

My job, working murders,
all I see down there is death.

There... is no God there.

Are you sure?

Open your eyes a little wider.

What's sacred? What's holy?

You'll recognise God
when you see Him.

The body of Christ.

The body of Christ.

Why didn't you want
to do the prayer?

- I don't remember it.
- Get outta here!

I've heard it twice, and
I've almost got it down.

- "Yitgadal, yitgadoo."
- "Yitkadash."

So you obviously know
it. Why didn't you say it?

What are you, the
village rabbi now?

George. Where are you?

His supervisor said he
had a job on this street.

You think George Young
killed Helen Rosenthal?

She refused his marriage
proposal. He has a history of violence.

Maybe he figured if he can't
have Helen, no one else can.

That's him!

Hey, Johnny Munch, ace
detective. You find Helen's killer?

- Maybe. Step out of the vehicle.
- Why?

- Step out of the vehicle now.
- Tryin' to get me fired?

Give it a rest, George. We
talked to your supervisor.

- Harassing is against the law.
- So is murder.

- You're arresting me?
- No. We just wanna talk to you.

Well, why would I kill
Helen? I loved Helen.

- But she didn't love you.
- All right, Munch! That's it!

That's Detective Munch, Mr
Young. You have two choices.

You either come with us peacefully,
or you come with us in cuffs.

Yeah. All right? Come on.
We don't want any trouble.

- Helen never really cared about you.
- Yes, she did.

How come she turned
down your marriage proposal?

- You know about that?
- Everyone knows she turned you down.

- More than once.
- She laughed it off.

- She didn't laugh it off.
- She did say no.

She said no. She didn't
laugh at me for asking.

What? She didn't think that
she was too good for you?

You're a screwed-up ex-GI.
You did ten years in Leavenworth.

You got a
dishonourable discharge.

You're gonna tell me that a classy
lady like that didn't laugh at you?

Helen would never act like that.

How would she act, Mr Tough
Guy, Mr Push People Around?

Is this about high school?

You're gettin' back at me
cos I knocked you around?

You wanna think about those
days? Think about Helen instead.

You followed her
around for four years.

- I didn't follow her around.
- You were a lost puppy dog!

Not that I'm judging.

All I'm sayin' is,

if you felt about Helen a fraction
the way I felt my whole life,

then you'd know... I
could never hurt her.

On our way.

- What have you got, Frank?
- A body in Highland Town. Old lady.

- No one around, huh?
- You can take Bayliss.

Bayliss is not around.

He's sitting on his ass in the
coffee room, reading a paper.

Take Bayliss.

- Nobody's around, huh?
- Not in here. What's up?

- We've got a call.
- Oh, yeah?

- Old lady.
- Uh-huh. And?

And nothing.

- You busy?
- Want me to go out with you?

- Not if you're busy.
- I'm not.

- All right, then.
- All right what?

If you're not that busy, you can
give me a hand with the old lady.

If you want me to go on a call
with you, why don't you just ask?

I thought I just did.

Hey, Jim. Do me a favour, will
you? Give this guy a ride to his truck.

Young didn't do it.

I know. I got a call from Cox.
Semen sample was AB positive.

- What's Young's?
- He's O positive.

Is it true they used to
beat up on you in school?

Munch, we may have our guy.
I got this looney tune in holding.

He attacked a woman in
Mount Washington this morning.

Had her skirt torn off. We
found this in his pocket.

- Catonsville High.
- Read the engraving.

"Mitchell Joseph Langdon".

It's Helen Rosenthal's son.

This is the ring she
wore round her neck.

- What's this guy's blood type?
- AB positive.

Karl Klung? Karl?

Detective John Munch. I'd like
to know where you got this ring.

Were you at the garage
Wednesday night?

Where did you get this ring?

Did you kill Helen
Rosenthal? Huh?

Why did you kill Helen
Rosenthal? Why?

- John, come on.
- Why?

Hold on!

- The son found her dead in bed.
- Forced entry? Robbery? What?

- No signs of either.
- Huh.

Hey, Detectives. There's
really no reason to go up there.

Are you saying there's no
need for us to look at the body?

Yeah. That's what I'm saying.

I wanna take a look at the
body. Got a problem with that?

You can save
yourselves the trouble.

Is it a mess up there? Is her
body all decomped or what?

- Go on. Be my guest.
- Great.

- I got the son in the kitchen...
- Ssh.

You know what that
is playing on the radio?

- What?
- Ravel.

"Pavane For A Dead Princess".

That's the way it's
supposed to be, huh?

Hmm?

Dying at home in
bed, under the covers.

You see her face?

The smile on her face, like
she knew where she was going.

Like she had led a good life...

and now she's at rest.

- Cox was right.
- What do you mean?

We shouldn't have been in
there. We were intruders, yeah.

Alone and dead,
she was peaceful.

Sort of... beautiful.

Sort of...

sacred?

Mmm. Yeah.

You had a thing
for her, didn't you?

- Helen?
- Yeah, Helen.

- What makes you think that?
- Well, that's what George said.

Besides, you know,
I could just tell.

I had a few Helens of my own.

Remember when the most exciting
thing was that girl in your French class?

You'd hope she'd let you walk her
home. Maybe let you hold her hand.

You looked at her
and got embarrassed.

You didn't imagine
sleeping with her.

All you could think about was
reaching down for her hand.

Weaving your fingers together.
Feeling her palm touch your palm.

We forget what that
was like, you know.

We have sex, get married,

fight, get divorced.

We forget how wonderful it is to
hold another human being's hand.

What happens to us that
we take that for granted?

- I dunno. We get older.
- We get older.

We forget who we used to
be. What we used to believe in.

Love. Peace. That the Colts
would always be in Baltimore.

Here's to all the Helen
Rosenthals of the world.

Bang! Wanna see my new badge?

- With all my heart.
- What are you watchin'?

- "Johnny Staccato".
- Can't we watch "Rawhide"?

No. "Rawhide" isn't
on tonight, goofball.

Johnny, do you like
girls now, or what?

- Or what?
- I think you like Helen Rosenthal.

- Get outta town!
- You like her, don't you?

Shut up and go to bed!
It's past your bedtime!

I'm never gonna like
girls. Only horses.

- You really are a moron.
- I'll be a cowboy when I grow up.

What are you gonna be
when you grow up, Johnny?

- A detective.
- Like Johnny Staccato?

Yeah, wearing a black suit.

Hanging out in a jazz
bar when I'm not working.

Getting all the girls.
Except I'm not walking. No.

I'll have a real cool car.
My '49 Mercury Coupe.