Mannix (1967–1975): Season 1, Episode 22 - Delayed Action - full transcript
A man named Spinelli shows up severely injured at a hospital emergency room, asking for Mannix. The detective arrives. He's never seen Spinelli before in his life. From this odd beginning, ...
Yeah, Pete.
Yeah, all right.
Give me what you've
got on relatives,
business connections, anything.
Look, that was no hit-and-run.
That guy was wracked
up deliberately.
He may conk out and we've
got murder one on our hands.
What do you mean, no background?
MAN:
But the good fairy didn't
just dump him on that
corner out of nowhere.
All right, check some more.
All right, I'll hold.
That's two L's, right?
Spinelli, Anthony R.
Spinelli?
NURSE:
Anthony R.
Mannix!
INTERN:
Sure, Mr. Spinelli.
Don't you worry about a thing.
Is he conscious?
No.
Well, he said something.
Same thing
over... "Mannix."
Let's get him to surgery.
Yes, Doctor.
Listen, this fellow,
Mannix will be right over.
He'll, he'll be here any minute.
Any chance he could wait?
No chance.
Sergeant Wylie?
Mannix?
That's right.
Come on.
Excuse me, this
is Mr. Mannix.
He can identify him.
He's been calling
for you, Mr. Mannix.
That's Anthony
Spinelli, isn't it?
Now, who is he?
What do you know about him,
and who'd try to kill him?
Never saw the man
before in my life.
(theme music playing)
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
(projector clicks)
Who is she?
I don't know.
Lou, uh...
how long ago would you say
this photograph was taken?
Oh, I'd say about 20 years ago,
25 at the outside.
Corey, Mannix here.
Listen, I'd like a check on a
Greenbriar Photography shop.
Yeah, start with your 1940
files, and come forward.
Thanks.
I don't know what that's about,
but let's talk business.
Union Electronics wants
a complete overhaul
of their internal
security system.
I'm on a case, Lou.
What case?
Oh, but you said
he was in a coma.
We didn't even
agree to be hired.
How can I tell him I'm busy?
I'll put McMahon on it.
But he called for me.
He called my name.
Joe, you don't
even know who he is.
I've got a lead.
This picture.
And what if you find her?
You can't say Spinelli hired you
because that would be violating
the client's confidence.
You can't even mention his name.
(phone buzzing)
Mannix here.
Thanks, Corey.
Well, we found the photographer.
Joe, this is none
of our business!
Lou, I'm a detective.
Somebody paid us
$250 to help him.
I'd like to try and earn it.
Yeah?
Uh...
Mr. Watkins?
You want to leave
something here,
or are you picking something up?
Well, I'm not sure that you
handle this kind of a job.
Suppose I decide
what kind of job
I'm capable of doing.
You see, I have this very old
print, a picture you took
of a friend of mine about
20 years ago, and I
don't suppose
you'd keep a record
of the negative
after all these years.
Listen, mister,
my records go back 25 years.
Good.
There you are.
Not one of mine.
It's got your imprint
on the back...
Greenbriar Photography.
That's a long time ago.
You telling me I got to worry
about a picture I took
20 years ago?
Look, you just told me you've
got all your old records.
Listen, mister, don't
tell me what I said.
Operator, get me
the Central Police Station.
What are you doing?!
Sorry, pal. This
is a criminal case,
so I'll just have to
subpoena that negative.
I'd like to speak to,
uh, Detective Morrison.
Joe Mannix.
Put the phone down.
I'll get it for you.
I'll keep you company.
Come on, I'm getting old.
What's that?
None of your business.
The same girl
that's in the negative?
No.
What's her name?
Where can I find her?
I don't know.
(dialing)
This is Watkins.
A guy came in here...
a private cop,
He had a photo of Danielle.
An old photo.
Do you understand
what I'm saying?
In 1917, my whole
village, 260 families
was scattered to the wind.
Bolsheviks,
Mensheviks, Cossacks...
People of every race,
religion and national origin.
I escaped. Why?
To make lumber jackets
for pushcart peddlers?
And, uh, who, sir, are you?
I'm a private investigator.
I have a client who's very ill
and I'm trying to trace someone
who might be a relative.
I found these pictures.
They look like the kind of
photos that a fashion model
might use for a presentation.
Yes, I know her.
Her name is Danielle Michaels.
The girl
with a deep sadness.
Any idea where I might find her?
Perhaps at Synanon.
Synanon?
Was she a drug addict?
Oh, no, no. What are
you talking about?
Mr. Herbanoff, Synanon is a
rehabilitation center
for drug addicts.
Ah, Synanon is a great
many things these days.
People go there looking
for, uh... what?
Truth?
Drama?
Emotional experience?
I, myself, donate clothing.
Well, uh...
thanks, Mr. Herbanoff.
A warning,
Mr. Mannix.
You may go there
looking for Danielle,
but you may be forced
to confront yourself.
When I was your age,
I was cutting wood
in the Khovseka forest.
Can you say the same?
What do you think
you're doing, here, Nutty?
Well, I, uh, I was told, uh,
this is a place a guy could
come if he was in trouble.
You never heard of a front door?
Oh, well, uh, if I
came in the front door,
people would see me.
So?
You ashamed to be seen
coming into Synanon, huh?
Oh, one of those.
(phone ringing)
What's this?
A new guy.
Oh, I heard Joe Harper say
we're expecting
a guy at 1:00.
This must be him.
Joe says he's a real
hard-core addict.
Who sent you?
Uh, Mr. Herbanoff.
Oh... wait a minute.
Isn't that the guy that Danielle
Michaels used to work for?
Yeah, the dress designer.
Wh... See if you
can go find her.
And let's take it
to 502. Come on.
Right over there.
Just empty your pockets.
Empty your pockets on the table.
Come on, come on.
Just put everything down there.
Is that all of it?
(chuckling):
Oh, boy, a shtarker.
Sit down,
make yourself comfortable.
Okay if I smoke?
BRIAN: No.
Danielle.
You know what the trouble is?
People still think
there's something special
about being a drug addict.
They think they're gonna make
this big announcement, you know,
uh... "Here I am, I'm ready
to rehabilitate myself,"
and we're gonna fall
all over ourselves
begging the guy
to save his life.
LOUIE:
Hey, maybe
he's not ready
to be rehabilitated yet...
Maybe he needs to go out
and shoot a little more dope,
do a little more time...
hit bottom.
No.
I think he's already there.
Look at him...
He's all strung out.
You want to know something?
You're not even smart enough
to become a dope addict.
Dummy!
I'm talking to you.
You. Not even smart enough.
The very fact you're alive
is proof of your insanity.
DANIELLE:
It's obvious
what his disease is.
Stupidity.
Terminal stupidity.
Right.
(chuckles)
(others chuckle)
(clears throat):
Well, uh, can
I say something?
(laughs):
Sure.
HARRY:
Are you kidding?
What do you have to say?
You don't even have
enough brains
to walk in the front door.
(laughter)
Look, shooting dope
isn't the problem.
BARBARA:
Shooting dope
is a symptom.
The problem is learning
to live like a human being.
Okay...
why did you come here?
Well, I'm, uh,
not sure of that, either.
I, uh... Well,
why does anybody
come here?
Why do you come here?
'Cause a man named Sam Bailey
cared enough to save my life.
Yeah? Who's Sam Bailey?
Look... what
difference does it make?
I'm trying
to tell you something.
Oh, well, I can't buy that...
I mean,
a beautiful gal like you,
great figure,
everything to live... why?
I had nothing...
like you.
Oh, come on, somebody cared,
a family, somebody
who cares about you.
I had nobody.
All right, everybody,
downstairs.
Out. Please.
Benny, we're in the
middle of an interview.
You know what?
There's a real straight shooter
waiting in the lobby...
Interview him.
All right, Benny.
You stay.
Mannix.
(sighs):
Benny.
How could you be such a jerk?
I needed information...
That girl who was here,
uh, Danielle Michaels.
You couldn't come in
the front door like a mensch?
I was chasing a man
with a spear gun.
Chasing a man with a spear gun?
Yeah, I, uh, I've got
to talk to her, Benny.
Tell me why.
Well, there's a guy in a coma
in the county hospital.
He's my client.
I never met him; I don't know
who he is or why he hired me.
That's a good one.
What's the punch line?
I don't know.
I was hoping Danielle
could tell me.
Now, look, Mannix, all
kinds of people come here.
Lawyers and tailors,
dope addicts, thieves,
some troubled people,
some not so troubled,
saints and sinners... people.
Now, some live here
and some don't,
some go and some come back.
And some die.
Danielle is one of our family.
And this family is
responsible for her;
therefore, I am
responsible for her.
Well, I've got
responsibilities,
too, Benny.
To your client...
and not to her.
We're not here
to solve cases, Mannix.
We're here to help people build
better lives for themselves.
Look, I-I don't intend
to bite her head off.
All I want to do is talk to her.
(phone rings)
All right. Fine.
Fill out an application,
join the club,
play the Synanon game,
and you can talk
to anybody you like.
Yeah, but time is
of the essence.
Not here, Mannix.
Trust is of the essence.
That's why people come here.
Are you willing to tell Danielle
everything you know
about your client?
His name, whatever
you know about him?
Now, look, you were
a private cop...
You know I can't do that, Benny.
Exactly.
(door opens)
(computers clacking)
Mannix.
Lou!
Lou, I'm gonna do what you've
always wanted me to do...
I'm gonna use a computer.
Lou, I'm gonna use a computer.
For what?
Well, I want a rundown
on the background of a girl
named Danielle Michaels.
I'll take care of that.
Oh, Lou, you're
just what I needed.
There's a three-inch
briefing file on your desk
concerning your appointment
tomorrow morning at
Union Electronics.
Thanks, Lou.
At 9:00 a.m.
Run this through the 360.
Mr. Mannix?
I'm Sam Bailey.
I heard you were
asking about me.
Uh, sit down.
You're a friend of Danielle's.
Well, that's why I'm here.
Mr. Mannix...
stay out of Danielle's life.
Is there some reason
why I should?
Yes.
Her real name is Mary Higgins.
Now, I didn't want
to tell you this,
but I've got
to make you understand.
I'm afraid
I still don't understand.
Do you remember the bombing
of the Daily Clarion
about 20 years ago?
Joe Higgins?
The saint
of the radical labor movement.
Only he wasn't a saint anymore
after the bombing.
There were 14 working men
in the basement
of that building
when the bomb went off.
Danielle is his daughter?
A daughter of a murderer.
Joe Higgins died in prison
six months after the trial.
Did you know Joe Higgins?
Yes.
I was in the movement.
But I was out of town
at the time of the bombing.
Uh, what happened to Danielle?
Well, she...
drifted from this home to that.
Later she changed her name,
but she couldn't change
the memories that went with it.
She tried to kill herself,
twice.
I found her
and brought her to Synanon.
Uh, was she a drug addict?
Oh, no.
Just a person trying
to find a little happiness.
She has that now.
She has a home with us.
She just started a job outside.
She's found a life again.
What can you do for her?
(sighs)
Maybe nothing, Bailey.
(sighs)
I don't know.
Thank you.
Here's the information
you wanted, Joe.
From request
to printout:
32 seconds.
Danielle Michaels
is an assumed name.
Real name:
Mary Higgins.
Father: Joe Higgins.
Well, this is a waste,
but here it is anyway.
The whole thing... the bombing,
Higgins' friends,
the photographer.
(door opens)
Photographer?
Photographer, Watkins,
friend of Higgins.
Lou, my hat's off to you,
the 360,
its brothers and sisters
and all the off-spring
computers.
(rapping on glass)
Watkins?
Watkins?
(siren wailing in distance)
(siren continues wailing)
(siren drawing nearer)
(tires screech)
(siren stops)
Halt!
(gunshot)
(dolphin squeaking)
(squeaking)
Come on.
Hello, Mary.
You've got the wrong name.
Not according to the machine.
Is that supposed
to be funny or something?
No, it isn't.
My name is Mary Higgins.
My father was a murderer.
He killed 14 men,
but he made up for it.
He died before they could
execute him in prison.
Is that what you want?
So you found a picture of me.
They needed a private
detective for that?
Do you remember who took it?
A man who was a friend
of your father.
He was murdered last night.
And somebody tried
to kill the man
who was carrying his
picture in his wallet.
They may have well succeeded.
Who is he, Dani?
The man who was
carrying this picture?
Who would want to kill him?
What's going on here?
Where do you come off
barging into my office?
I thought it was
the walrus tank.
Security.
(squeaking)
POLICEMAN:
Joe Mannix?
That's right.
Something wrong?
Hands in the air.
This a no-parking zone?
Just keep laughing, Mannix.
You're under arrest,
in case it hadn't dawned on you.
Mind telling me the charges?
Murder and trespassing?
Oh, that's a lovely combination.
No, it could only happen
to Mannix.
Yes, of course.
I'll go down and get him out.
(Mannix sighing)
Well, thanks for
getting me out
before lunch, Lou.
Those jailhouse
tortillas really
give me heartburn.
I'm glad you're taking
this lightly, Joe.
I'm glad that facing a rap
that could lead
to the gas chamber
hasn't altered
your fundamental self.
Oh, now, would a jury believe
I knocked off a photographer?
Besides, it's your fault.
My fault? Well, now,
how do you figure that?
Well, if your computers hadn't
connected Watkins with Higgins,
I never would
have gone back
to the photo shop.
Very funny.
I bailed you out
to take on the
Electronics security case.
No, I can't, Lou.
I'm still on the Spinelli case.
Not on Intertect's time.
You're off salary, Joe.
Hello.
I'm sorry you got into trouble.
I came to bail you out,
but I see you didn't need me.
Oh, I need you plenty.
Come on.
No. I...
We'll, uh, have
a pastrami sandwich.
Hi, Mannix.
Ernie.
Uh... two pastramis on rye.
Yeah. Make mine
with Swiss cheese,
chili, dill pickles,
potato salad,
coleslaw, Russian dressing.
Where am I going
to put the pastrami?
On the floor?
Put it in the sandwich, Ernie.
Let's sit over here.
Cigarette?
The man you wanted
to know about...
His name is Spinelli.
He took me in after
my father died.
He tried to protect me.
He must have loved you
very much.
He was a poor, sad,
bumbling man,
and I was the daughter
of the great Joe Higgins.
Dani, Spinelli was trying
to tell me something.
I think it might have
been about your father.
That he was a saint?
That he murdered 14 men
on behalf of a cause?
I... I don't even
hate him anymore.
I don't care.
Then, uh, why the bitterness?
Because I'm a liar.
Because I... I want somebody
to make my father a saint again.
Here. Hope
you like it.
I only blew
a half a week's
gross making it.
Oh, you're an artist, Ernie.
You say, um... you don't know
what he was trying to tell me.
Can you think
of anyone who might?
Close friends?
Friends he might
have confided in?
He had a cabin at the beach,
and... and he and some men
used to go there and... and talk
and play cards.
There should be a key.
October 14, 1945.
That's the day of the bombing.
MANNIX:
Who does that look like to you?
Spinelli.
Right.
But he had nothing
to do with the bombing.
He was in San Francisco.
According to this,
he was right there.
License number HNK272.
The car your father was
supposed to be driving.
SPINELLI:
I planted
the bomb.
Joe never even knew about it.
When I found out there
were men in the building,
I got scared. I ran.
All of us ran.
Why did he confess?
Somebody had to take the blame
to protect the rest of us.
I was afraid.
He was never afraid.
I'm sorry.
Tell me, uh...
Why did you hire me?
'Cause I couldn't live
with myself anymore.
I wanted you to find her
so I could make things right
for her.
Spinelli, you're a liar.
You didn't need me to find her.
You could have found her in
a phone book. Danielle Michaels,
173 Greenview Terrace.
You know, you'd
be a great storyteller
if it weren't for the parts
you leave out.
Mannix, you're fired!
You can't fire me.
I'm already suspended.
(door slams)
What are you trying to do?
Protect my client's
interest the best
way I know how...
By finding the truth.
He told you the truth.
He told you what
you wanted to hear.
My father was innocent.
I've got what I wanted.
Well, good for you.
I've been lied to,
shot at, thrown in jail,
suspended and fired
from this case.
But you've got
everything you want,
so it's all right, huh?
Well, it's not, Dani!
There's a murderer
still running around
free out there!
I don't care!
Joe, do you know how
I began this organization?
I think so, Lou.
WICKERSHAM:
I began with a subleased
ten-by-12 office, a desk
and a box of stationery
donated by my mother,
and an idea. An idea, Joe.
Yeah, I know.
It was an idea both old and new.
Now, some people
call it cybernetics,
but that's such
a cold word, Joe.
Mm.
No. I prefer
to think of it
in terms of mathematical
precision, where all is order,
and nothing is left to
man's irrational temperament.
Yeah, I know.
You know, you know, yes.
But do you listen?
You've been suspended, Joe.
In the orderly scheme of things,
a man who is suspended
sits home and waits.
Do you know what that word
"suspended" means?
Yeah, I've heard of it.
Then why...
why, Mannix, are you here?
Why are you here?
It's these pictures, Lou.
I, uh, just got a feeling.
You've got a feeling.
A million and a half dollars
worth of the finest computers
devised by man
and there they sit,
silent, mute, meaningless...
because you've got a feeling.
(telephone rings)
Mannix here.
You were right.
The guy in the driver's seat
is a fake,
a lab superimposure.
No question about it.
No, it's impossible to tell
who was driving the car.
Yeah, thanks, Corey.
Where are you going now?
Join Synanon.
Of course.
Where else?
Supposed to be
back by 7:30.
We have a game scheduled
for around quarter to 8:00...
Benny, I've got to
talk to Sam Bailey.
Sam's in a game.
Can't you break it up?
Wait a minute.
Mannix, it's not a poker game.
It's a Synanon game.
Learning people how
to talk to each other,
not just throwing chairs
around a table.
Yeah, fine.
What room, Benny?
You're still playing
the private detective bit.
Now look, when I
first came here,
you said I didn't
care about Danielle,
that all I was concerned
about was my client.
And now?
I want to help Danielle.
How?
By finding the truth.
All right.
Go ahead.
Room 502.
And, remember...
if Sam tells you
anything in this game,
it's like a priest hearing
it in a confessional.
Are you willing to take
that responsibility?
Thanks, Benny.
(imitates trumpet fanfare)
LOUIE:
Well... well, now,
look who's here.
The muscleman.
Yeah.
So...
you finally decided to
turn yourself in, huh?
Well, you know, uh,
even a private detective
can use a little help.
You're telling me.
Whoo!
BRIAN:
What you mean is
that you realize now
that you're a human being.
I mean, is that what
you're trying to tell us?
Huh?
Sort of, yeah.
I guess.
Glad to hear that.
'Cause I wasn't
too sure about you.
(chuckling)
Hey, what's your
problem, Mannix?
Well, uh...
I don't think anybody likes me.
Look, why don't you start off
being honest with people, huh?
Maybe I don't know how.
I mean...
seems everybody's lying to me.
And, uh...
well, after a while it becomes
a method of
communication,
right, Sam?
Who's been lying to you?
Sam's been lying to you?
Wait a second, what do you
want Sam to tell you?
Well, I want Sam to
tell me something,
something that happened
October 14, 1945.
1945?
That was before my time.
Hey, what are you
so upset about, huh?
'Cause there's nothing
to talk about, that's why.
It's an old story and
it was in all the papers.
Yeah, but Sam here can
tell us about that firsthand.
I told you, I was out
of town when it happened.
MANNIX:
Sure, he came right up
to my office to tell me.
Why did you come
to my office, Sam?
To tell you to leave
Danielle alone.
Yeah, well, let me tell
you something, Sam.
An old friend of yours,
Anthony Spinelli,
he confessed to a crime
he didn't commit...
The bombing of the Clarion,
the crime that Joe Higgins
was punished for.
Except I found a photograph
taken at the time
of the bombing.
It showed Spinelli
sitting behind the wheel
of a car, license plate
HNK272,
only it was a fake.
I had the lab print up
the latent image.
It showed old Sam sitting
behind that wheel.
No kidding.
Sam?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
I think you do!
What's going on here, Sam?
You look like you're
about to go up in smoke.
BARBARA:
That's right.
I'm not talking to no cops.
Listen, Sam, you've been
carrying a load of guilt
ever since you came in here
and you've copped to none of us.
You know, that's why
you're more messed up
than anybody here.
Come on, tell it to us.
I can't.
You can!
Of course you can!
Tell it to me, Sam, will ya?
Come on, Sam, let's have it.
Tell us, that's what
we're here for.
Come on, Sam!
That's what we're here for, Sam.
(yelling)
Tell it to us, Sam.
(yelling)
Sam, tell us.
(all yelling at once)
I was in that car.
(Sam crying)
I planted the bomb.
(crying)
I didn't know there were men
in the shop.
I thought it was empty.
You let Danielle's father
take the rap.
No.
Yes, you did, Sam.
No.
(door opening)
SAM:
He was the one who told me
the building was empty.
That's why I did it.
If he had told any of us
that the earth was flat,
we would have believed him.
Maybe he didn't know
there were people there.
I don't know.
But he went ahead,
took the rap for me.
For all of us.
All he asked from us
was that we take care
of Dani.
From the beginning?
From the beginning.
Each of us did what we could.
But it wasn't enough.
Do you care to tell me
the rest of it, Sam?
It wouldn't help you, Mannix.
All right, game's over.
Hey, it was a good game.
Great game.
Oh, that was a gas.
Oh, man, he came off...
Wild.
Haven't had that for a few days.
Oh, man.
Anything he said,
you couldn't use.
Sam will have to
make his own peace.
Yeah, I know, Benny.
But right now, it's Danielle
I'm worried about.
Danielle, get your
things together.
I want you to come with me.
I'm not going any place
with you, ever.
Dani...
will you listen to me?
Your life is in danger.
Now, let's get out of here.
My life is in danger from what?
I just left Sam Bailey.
He's probably on the way
to the jail now.
Why would Danielle
be affected by
Bailey's going to prison?
And keep your hands away
from your pockets, please.
Richard, what is this?
Last time I saw that spear gun,
you were wearing a rubber suit.
Go on, Mr. Mannix.
You were about to tell us
what makes you think
Danielle is in danger.
Oh, nothing sensational,
just a few little things.
Such as why would you hire
an ex-model to do a job
that would normally require
a marine biologist?
Everyone is entitled
to a second start in life.
You all made a pact, didn't you,
to take care
of Joe Higgins' daughter?
That fool, Bailey.
No, he didn't mention your name,
not to me, anyway.
That gun in your hand tells me
all that I need to know.
That, and this whole place.
It's pretty fancy.
Bought it in 1946, didn't you,
just a year after the
bombing of the Clarion.
A poor working man like you.
You never told me
you knew my father.
He was your father's
intelligence officer, Dani.
Your father was a good man.
He was kind of an
absent-minded idealist
who believed Sefton when he told
him the building was empty.
A bold jump into nowhere,
Mr. Mannix.
Tell me, who stood to gain
by the bombing of the Clarion?
The radical labor movement?
Or the people
who wanted it destroyed?
Richard...
(groans)
(screaming)
(screaming)
I didn't know about Sefton.
I thought your father
was guilty.
I was afraid
you wouldn't believe me
if I came right out
and confessed,
so I left a trail
for Mannix to follow.
Why?
Because I loved you.
And you would have
taken the blame.
It was the least I could do.
You were all I ever had,
but I never could
give you anything.
DANIELLE:
But you have.
You've given me everything.
(theme music plays)
Yeah, all right.
Give me what you've
got on relatives,
business connections, anything.
Look, that was no hit-and-run.
That guy was wracked
up deliberately.
He may conk out and we've
got murder one on our hands.
What do you mean, no background?
MAN:
But the good fairy didn't
just dump him on that
corner out of nowhere.
All right, check some more.
All right, I'll hold.
That's two L's, right?
Spinelli, Anthony R.
Spinelli?
NURSE:
Anthony R.
Mannix!
INTERN:
Sure, Mr. Spinelli.
Don't you worry about a thing.
Is he conscious?
No.
Well, he said something.
Same thing
over... "Mannix."
Let's get him to surgery.
Yes, Doctor.
Listen, this fellow,
Mannix will be right over.
He'll, he'll be here any minute.
Any chance he could wait?
No chance.
Sergeant Wylie?
Mannix?
That's right.
Come on.
Excuse me, this
is Mr. Mannix.
He can identify him.
He's been calling
for you, Mr. Mannix.
That's Anthony
Spinelli, isn't it?
Now, who is he?
What do you know about him,
and who'd try to kill him?
Never saw the man
before in my life.
(theme music playing)
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
(projector clicks)
Who is she?
I don't know.
Lou, uh...
how long ago would you say
this photograph was taken?
Oh, I'd say about 20 years ago,
25 at the outside.
Corey, Mannix here.
Listen, I'd like a check on a
Greenbriar Photography shop.
Yeah, start with your 1940
files, and come forward.
Thanks.
I don't know what that's about,
but let's talk business.
Union Electronics wants
a complete overhaul
of their internal
security system.
I'm on a case, Lou.
What case?
Oh, but you said
he was in a coma.
We didn't even
agree to be hired.
How can I tell him I'm busy?
I'll put McMahon on it.
But he called for me.
He called my name.
Joe, you don't
even know who he is.
I've got a lead.
This picture.
And what if you find her?
You can't say Spinelli hired you
because that would be violating
the client's confidence.
You can't even mention his name.
(phone buzzing)
Mannix here.
Thanks, Corey.
Well, we found the photographer.
Joe, this is none
of our business!
Lou, I'm a detective.
Somebody paid us
$250 to help him.
I'd like to try and earn it.
Yeah?
Uh...
Mr. Watkins?
You want to leave
something here,
or are you picking something up?
Well, I'm not sure that you
handle this kind of a job.
Suppose I decide
what kind of job
I'm capable of doing.
You see, I have this very old
print, a picture you took
of a friend of mine about
20 years ago, and I
don't suppose
you'd keep a record
of the negative
after all these years.
Listen, mister,
my records go back 25 years.
Good.
There you are.
Not one of mine.
It's got your imprint
on the back...
Greenbriar Photography.
That's a long time ago.
You telling me I got to worry
about a picture I took
20 years ago?
Look, you just told me you've
got all your old records.
Listen, mister, don't
tell me what I said.
Operator, get me
the Central Police Station.
What are you doing?!
Sorry, pal. This
is a criminal case,
so I'll just have to
subpoena that negative.
I'd like to speak to,
uh, Detective Morrison.
Joe Mannix.
Put the phone down.
I'll get it for you.
I'll keep you company.
Come on, I'm getting old.
What's that?
None of your business.
The same girl
that's in the negative?
No.
What's her name?
Where can I find her?
I don't know.
(dialing)
This is Watkins.
A guy came in here...
a private cop,
He had a photo of Danielle.
An old photo.
Do you understand
what I'm saying?
In 1917, my whole
village, 260 families
was scattered to the wind.
Bolsheviks,
Mensheviks, Cossacks...
People of every race,
religion and national origin.
I escaped. Why?
To make lumber jackets
for pushcart peddlers?
And, uh, who, sir, are you?
I'm a private investigator.
I have a client who's very ill
and I'm trying to trace someone
who might be a relative.
I found these pictures.
They look like the kind of
photos that a fashion model
might use for a presentation.
Yes, I know her.
Her name is Danielle Michaels.
The girl
with a deep sadness.
Any idea where I might find her?
Perhaps at Synanon.
Synanon?
Was she a drug addict?
Oh, no, no. What are
you talking about?
Mr. Herbanoff, Synanon is a
rehabilitation center
for drug addicts.
Ah, Synanon is a great
many things these days.
People go there looking
for, uh... what?
Truth?
Drama?
Emotional experience?
I, myself, donate clothing.
Well, uh...
thanks, Mr. Herbanoff.
A warning,
Mr. Mannix.
You may go there
looking for Danielle,
but you may be forced
to confront yourself.
When I was your age,
I was cutting wood
in the Khovseka forest.
Can you say the same?
What do you think
you're doing, here, Nutty?
Well, I, uh, I was told, uh,
this is a place a guy could
come if he was in trouble.
You never heard of a front door?
Oh, well, uh, if I
came in the front door,
people would see me.
So?
You ashamed to be seen
coming into Synanon, huh?
Oh, one of those.
(phone ringing)
What's this?
A new guy.
Oh, I heard Joe Harper say
we're expecting
a guy at 1:00.
This must be him.
Joe says he's a real
hard-core addict.
Who sent you?
Uh, Mr. Herbanoff.
Oh... wait a minute.
Isn't that the guy that Danielle
Michaels used to work for?
Yeah, the dress designer.
Wh... See if you
can go find her.
And let's take it
to 502. Come on.
Right over there.
Just empty your pockets.
Empty your pockets on the table.
Come on, come on.
Just put everything down there.
Is that all of it?
(chuckling):
Oh, boy, a shtarker.
Sit down,
make yourself comfortable.
Okay if I smoke?
BRIAN: No.
Danielle.
You know what the trouble is?
People still think
there's something special
about being a drug addict.
They think they're gonna make
this big announcement, you know,
uh... "Here I am, I'm ready
to rehabilitate myself,"
and we're gonna fall
all over ourselves
begging the guy
to save his life.
LOUIE:
Hey, maybe
he's not ready
to be rehabilitated yet...
Maybe he needs to go out
and shoot a little more dope,
do a little more time...
hit bottom.
No.
I think he's already there.
Look at him...
He's all strung out.
You want to know something?
You're not even smart enough
to become a dope addict.
Dummy!
I'm talking to you.
You. Not even smart enough.
The very fact you're alive
is proof of your insanity.
DANIELLE:
It's obvious
what his disease is.
Stupidity.
Terminal stupidity.
Right.
(chuckles)
(others chuckle)
(clears throat):
Well, uh, can
I say something?
(laughs):
Sure.
HARRY:
Are you kidding?
What do you have to say?
You don't even have
enough brains
to walk in the front door.
(laughter)
Look, shooting dope
isn't the problem.
BARBARA:
Shooting dope
is a symptom.
The problem is learning
to live like a human being.
Okay...
why did you come here?
Well, I'm, uh,
not sure of that, either.
I, uh... Well,
why does anybody
come here?
Why do you come here?
'Cause a man named Sam Bailey
cared enough to save my life.
Yeah? Who's Sam Bailey?
Look... what
difference does it make?
I'm trying
to tell you something.
Oh, well, I can't buy that...
I mean,
a beautiful gal like you,
great figure,
everything to live... why?
I had nothing...
like you.
Oh, come on, somebody cared,
a family, somebody
who cares about you.
I had nobody.
All right, everybody,
downstairs.
Out. Please.
Benny, we're in the
middle of an interview.
You know what?
There's a real straight shooter
waiting in the lobby...
Interview him.
All right, Benny.
You stay.
Mannix.
(sighs):
Benny.
How could you be such a jerk?
I needed information...
That girl who was here,
uh, Danielle Michaels.
You couldn't come in
the front door like a mensch?
I was chasing a man
with a spear gun.
Chasing a man with a spear gun?
Yeah, I, uh, I've got
to talk to her, Benny.
Tell me why.
Well, there's a guy in a coma
in the county hospital.
He's my client.
I never met him; I don't know
who he is or why he hired me.
That's a good one.
What's the punch line?
I don't know.
I was hoping Danielle
could tell me.
Now, look, Mannix, all
kinds of people come here.
Lawyers and tailors,
dope addicts, thieves,
some troubled people,
some not so troubled,
saints and sinners... people.
Now, some live here
and some don't,
some go and some come back.
And some die.
Danielle is one of our family.
And this family is
responsible for her;
therefore, I am
responsible for her.
Well, I've got
responsibilities,
too, Benny.
To your client...
and not to her.
We're not here
to solve cases, Mannix.
We're here to help people build
better lives for themselves.
Look, I-I don't intend
to bite her head off.
All I want to do is talk to her.
(phone rings)
All right. Fine.
Fill out an application,
join the club,
play the Synanon game,
and you can talk
to anybody you like.
Yeah, but time is
of the essence.
Not here, Mannix.
Trust is of the essence.
That's why people come here.
Are you willing to tell Danielle
everything you know
about your client?
His name, whatever
you know about him?
Now, look, you were
a private cop...
You know I can't do that, Benny.
Exactly.
(door opens)
(computers clacking)
Mannix.
Lou!
Lou, I'm gonna do what you've
always wanted me to do...
I'm gonna use a computer.
Lou, I'm gonna use a computer.
For what?
Well, I want a rundown
on the background of a girl
named Danielle Michaels.
I'll take care of that.
Oh, Lou, you're
just what I needed.
There's a three-inch
briefing file on your desk
concerning your appointment
tomorrow morning at
Union Electronics.
Thanks, Lou.
At 9:00 a.m.
Run this through the 360.
Mr. Mannix?
I'm Sam Bailey.
I heard you were
asking about me.
Uh, sit down.
You're a friend of Danielle's.
Well, that's why I'm here.
Mr. Mannix...
stay out of Danielle's life.
Is there some reason
why I should?
Yes.
Her real name is Mary Higgins.
Now, I didn't want
to tell you this,
but I've got
to make you understand.
I'm afraid
I still don't understand.
Do you remember the bombing
of the Daily Clarion
about 20 years ago?
Joe Higgins?
The saint
of the radical labor movement.
Only he wasn't a saint anymore
after the bombing.
There were 14 working men
in the basement
of that building
when the bomb went off.
Danielle is his daughter?
A daughter of a murderer.
Joe Higgins died in prison
six months after the trial.
Did you know Joe Higgins?
Yes.
I was in the movement.
But I was out of town
at the time of the bombing.
Uh, what happened to Danielle?
Well, she...
drifted from this home to that.
Later she changed her name,
but she couldn't change
the memories that went with it.
She tried to kill herself,
twice.
I found her
and brought her to Synanon.
Uh, was she a drug addict?
Oh, no.
Just a person trying
to find a little happiness.
She has that now.
She has a home with us.
She just started a job outside.
She's found a life again.
What can you do for her?
(sighs)
Maybe nothing, Bailey.
(sighs)
I don't know.
Thank you.
Here's the information
you wanted, Joe.
From request
to printout:
32 seconds.
Danielle Michaels
is an assumed name.
Real name:
Mary Higgins.
Father: Joe Higgins.
Well, this is a waste,
but here it is anyway.
The whole thing... the bombing,
Higgins' friends,
the photographer.
(door opens)
Photographer?
Photographer, Watkins,
friend of Higgins.
Lou, my hat's off to you,
the 360,
its brothers and sisters
and all the off-spring
computers.
(rapping on glass)
Watkins?
Watkins?
(siren wailing in distance)
(siren continues wailing)
(siren drawing nearer)
(tires screech)
(siren stops)
Halt!
(gunshot)
(dolphin squeaking)
(squeaking)
Come on.
Hello, Mary.
You've got the wrong name.
Not according to the machine.
Is that supposed
to be funny or something?
No, it isn't.
My name is Mary Higgins.
My father was a murderer.
He killed 14 men,
but he made up for it.
He died before they could
execute him in prison.
Is that what you want?
So you found a picture of me.
They needed a private
detective for that?
Do you remember who took it?
A man who was a friend
of your father.
He was murdered last night.
And somebody tried
to kill the man
who was carrying his
picture in his wallet.
They may have well succeeded.
Who is he, Dani?
The man who was
carrying this picture?
Who would want to kill him?
What's going on here?
Where do you come off
barging into my office?
I thought it was
the walrus tank.
Security.
(squeaking)
POLICEMAN:
Joe Mannix?
That's right.
Something wrong?
Hands in the air.
This a no-parking zone?
Just keep laughing, Mannix.
You're under arrest,
in case it hadn't dawned on you.
Mind telling me the charges?
Murder and trespassing?
Oh, that's a lovely combination.
No, it could only happen
to Mannix.
Yes, of course.
I'll go down and get him out.
(Mannix sighing)
Well, thanks for
getting me out
before lunch, Lou.
Those jailhouse
tortillas really
give me heartburn.
I'm glad you're taking
this lightly, Joe.
I'm glad that facing a rap
that could lead
to the gas chamber
hasn't altered
your fundamental self.
Oh, now, would a jury believe
I knocked off a photographer?
Besides, it's your fault.
My fault? Well, now,
how do you figure that?
Well, if your computers hadn't
connected Watkins with Higgins,
I never would
have gone back
to the photo shop.
Very funny.
I bailed you out
to take on the
Electronics security case.
No, I can't, Lou.
I'm still on the Spinelli case.
Not on Intertect's time.
You're off salary, Joe.
Hello.
I'm sorry you got into trouble.
I came to bail you out,
but I see you didn't need me.
Oh, I need you plenty.
Come on.
No. I...
We'll, uh, have
a pastrami sandwich.
Hi, Mannix.
Ernie.
Uh... two pastramis on rye.
Yeah. Make mine
with Swiss cheese,
chili, dill pickles,
potato salad,
coleslaw, Russian dressing.
Where am I going
to put the pastrami?
On the floor?
Put it in the sandwich, Ernie.
Let's sit over here.
Cigarette?
The man you wanted
to know about...
His name is Spinelli.
He took me in after
my father died.
He tried to protect me.
He must have loved you
very much.
He was a poor, sad,
bumbling man,
and I was the daughter
of the great Joe Higgins.
Dani, Spinelli was trying
to tell me something.
I think it might have
been about your father.
That he was a saint?
That he murdered 14 men
on behalf of a cause?
I... I don't even
hate him anymore.
I don't care.
Then, uh, why the bitterness?
Because I'm a liar.
Because I... I want somebody
to make my father a saint again.
Here. Hope
you like it.
I only blew
a half a week's
gross making it.
Oh, you're an artist, Ernie.
You say, um... you don't know
what he was trying to tell me.
Can you think
of anyone who might?
Close friends?
Friends he might
have confided in?
He had a cabin at the beach,
and... and he and some men
used to go there and... and talk
and play cards.
There should be a key.
October 14, 1945.
That's the day of the bombing.
MANNIX:
Who does that look like to you?
Spinelli.
Right.
But he had nothing
to do with the bombing.
He was in San Francisco.
According to this,
he was right there.
License number HNK272.
The car your father was
supposed to be driving.
SPINELLI:
I planted
the bomb.
Joe never even knew about it.
When I found out there
were men in the building,
I got scared. I ran.
All of us ran.
Why did he confess?
Somebody had to take the blame
to protect the rest of us.
I was afraid.
He was never afraid.
I'm sorry.
Tell me, uh...
Why did you hire me?
'Cause I couldn't live
with myself anymore.
I wanted you to find her
so I could make things right
for her.
Spinelli, you're a liar.
You didn't need me to find her.
You could have found her in
a phone book. Danielle Michaels,
173 Greenview Terrace.
You know, you'd
be a great storyteller
if it weren't for the parts
you leave out.
Mannix, you're fired!
You can't fire me.
I'm already suspended.
(door slams)
What are you trying to do?
Protect my client's
interest the best
way I know how...
By finding the truth.
He told you the truth.
He told you what
you wanted to hear.
My father was innocent.
I've got what I wanted.
Well, good for you.
I've been lied to,
shot at, thrown in jail,
suspended and fired
from this case.
But you've got
everything you want,
so it's all right, huh?
Well, it's not, Dani!
There's a murderer
still running around
free out there!
I don't care!
Joe, do you know how
I began this organization?
I think so, Lou.
WICKERSHAM:
I began with a subleased
ten-by-12 office, a desk
and a box of stationery
donated by my mother,
and an idea. An idea, Joe.
Yeah, I know.
It was an idea both old and new.
Now, some people
call it cybernetics,
but that's such
a cold word, Joe.
Mm.
No. I prefer
to think of it
in terms of mathematical
precision, where all is order,
and nothing is left to
man's irrational temperament.
Yeah, I know.
You know, you know, yes.
But do you listen?
You've been suspended, Joe.
In the orderly scheme of things,
a man who is suspended
sits home and waits.
Do you know what that word
"suspended" means?
Yeah, I've heard of it.
Then why...
why, Mannix, are you here?
Why are you here?
It's these pictures, Lou.
I, uh, just got a feeling.
You've got a feeling.
A million and a half dollars
worth of the finest computers
devised by man
and there they sit,
silent, mute, meaningless...
because you've got a feeling.
(telephone rings)
Mannix here.
You were right.
The guy in the driver's seat
is a fake,
a lab superimposure.
No question about it.
No, it's impossible to tell
who was driving the car.
Yeah, thanks, Corey.
Where are you going now?
Join Synanon.
Of course.
Where else?
Supposed to be
back by 7:30.
We have a game scheduled
for around quarter to 8:00...
Benny, I've got to
talk to Sam Bailey.
Sam's in a game.
Can't you break it up?
Wait a minute.
Mannix, it's not a poker game.
It's a Synanon game.
Learning people how
to talk to each other,
not just throwing chairs
around a table.
Yeah, fine.
What room, Benny?
You're still playing
the private detective bit.
Now look, when I
first came here,
you said I didn't
care about Danielle,
that all I was concerned
about was my client.
And now?
I want to help Danielle.
How?
By finding the truth.
All right.
Go ahead.
Room 502.
And, remember...
if Sam tells you
anything in this game,
it's like a priest hearing
it in a confessional.
Are you willing to take
that responsibility?
Thanks, Benny.
(imitates trumpet fanfare)
LOUIE:
Well... well, now,
look who's here.
The muscleman.
Yeah.
So...
you finally decided to
turn yourself in, huh?
Well, you know, uh,
even a private detective
can use a little help.
You're telling me.
Whoo!
BRIAN:
What you mean is
that you realize now
that you're a human being.
I mean, is that what
you're trying to tell us?
Huh?
Sort of, yeah.
I guess.
Glad to hear that.
'Cause I wasn't
too sure about you.
(chuckling)
Hey, what's your
problem, Mannix?
Well, uh...
I don't think anybody likes me.
Look, why don't you start off
being honest with people, huh?
Maybe I don't know how.
I mean...
seems everybody's lying to me.
And, uh...
well, after a while it becomes
a method of
communication,
right, Sam?
Who's been lying to you?
Sam's been lying to you?
Wait a second, what do you
want Sam to tell you?
Well, I want Sam to
tell me something,
something that happened
October 14, 1945.
1945?
That was before my time.
Hey, what are you
so upset about, huh?
'Cause there's nothing
to talk about, that's why.
It's an old story and
it was in all the papers.
Yeah, but Sam here can
tell us about that firsthand.
I told you, I was out
of town when it happened.
MANNIX:
Sure, he came right up
to my office to tell me.
Why did you come
to my office, Sam?
To tell you to leave
Danielle alone.
Yeah, well, let me tell
you something, Sam.
An old friend of yours,
Anthony Spinelli,
he confessed to a crime
he didn't commit...
The bombing of the Clarion,
the crime that Joe Higgins
was punished for.
Except I found a photograph
taken at the time
of the bombing.
It showed Spinelli
sitting behind the wheel
of a car, license plate
HNK272,
only it was a fake.
I had the lab print up
the latent image.
It showed old Sam sitting
behind that wheel.
No kidding.
Sam?
I don't know what
you're talking about.
I think you do!
What's going on here, Sam?
You look like you're
about to go up in smoke.
BARBARA:
That's right.
I'm not talking to no cops.
Listen, Sam, you've been
carrying a load of guilt
ever since you came in here
and you've copped to none of us.
You know, that's why
you're more messed up
than anybody here.
Come on, tell it to us.
I can't.
You can!
Of course you can!
Tell it to me, Sam, will ya?
Come on, Sam, let's have it.
Tell us, that's what
we're here for.
Come on, Sam!
That's what we're here for, Sam.
(yelling)
Tell it to us, Sam.
(yelling)
Sam, tell us.
(all yelling at once)
I was in that car.
(Sam crying)
I planted the bomb.
(crying)
I didn't know there were men
in the shop.
I thought it was empty.
You let Danielle's father
take the rap.
No.
Yes, you did, Sam.
No.
(door opening)
SAM:
He was the one who told me
the building was empty.
That's why I did it.
If he had told any of us
that the earth was flat,
we would have believed him.
Maybe he didn't know
there were people there.
I don't know.
But he went ahead,
took the rap for me.
For all of us.
All he asked from us
was that we take care
of Dani.
From the beginning?
From the beginning.
Each of us did what we could.
But it wasn't enough.
Do you care to tell me
the rest of it, Sam?
It wouldn't help you, Mannix.
All right, game's over.
Hey, it was a good game.
Great game.
Oh, that was a gas.
Oh, man, he came off...
Wild.
Haven't had that for a few days.
Oh, man.
Anything he said,
you couldn't use.
Sam will have to
make his own peace.
Yeah, I know, Benny.
But right now, it's Danielle
I'm worried about.
Danielle, get your
things together.
I want you to come with me.
I'm not going any place
with you, ever.
Dani...
will you listen to me?
Your life is in danger.
Now, let's get out of here.
My life is in danger from what?
I just left Sam Bailey.
He's probably on the way
to the jail now.
Why would Danielle
be affected by
Bailey's going to prison?
And keep your hands away
from your pockets, please.
Richard, what is this?
Last time I saw that spear gun,
you were wearing a rubber suit.
Go on, Mr. Mannix.
You were about to tell us
what makes you think
Danielle is in danger.
Oh, nothing sensational,
just a few little things.
Such as why would you hire
an ex-model to do a job
that would normally require
a marine biologist?
Everyone is entitled
to a second start in life.
You all made a pact, didn't you,
to take care
of Joe Higgins' daughter?
That fool, Bailey.
No, he didn't mention your name,
not to me, anyway.
That gun in your hand tells me
all that I need to know.
That, and this whole place.
It's pretty fancy.
Bought it in 1946, didn't you,
just a year after the
bombing of the Clarion.
A poor working man like you.
You never told me
you knew my father.
He was your father's
intelligence officer, Dani.
Your father was a good man.
He was kind of an
absent-minded idealist
who believed Sefton when he told
him the building was empty.
A bold jump into nowhere,
Mr. Mannix.
Tell me, who stood to gain
by the bombing of the Clarion?
The radical labor movement?
Or the people
who wanted it destroyed?
Richard...
(groans)
(screaming)
(screaming)
I didn't know about Sefton.
I thought your father
was guilty.
I was afraid
you wouldn't believe me
if I came right out
and confessed,
so I left a trail
for Mannix to follow.
Why?
Because I loved you.
And you would have
taken the blame.
It was the least I could do.
You were all I ever had,
but I never could
give you anything.
DANIELLE:
But you have.
You've given me everything.
(theme music plays)