Matlock (1986–1995): Season 4, Episode 13 - The Scrooge - full transcript
A crusty old toy store owner is accused of killing his partner, whom he denigrated as too generous and soft-hearted to manage their business.
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I have had it up
to here with you.
I'm not blaming
you. At least I know
that a lot of this is my fault.
You bet it's your fault.
Just... If you
weren't such a wuss.
It's embarrassing to me.
I'm embarrassed.
I'll see you at home.
Sherry...
♪ God and sinners reconciled ♪
♪ Joyful all ye nations rise ♪
♪ Join the triumph
of the skies ♪
♪ With angelic hosts proclaim ♪
♪ Christ is born
in Bethlehem... ♪
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Merry Christmas.
Thank you. Thank you
from the orphanage.
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Excuse me, mister, do you
have any quarter or anything
that you can...
spare for anything?
Christmas Eve and...
Yeah, I-I really need that.
Thanks a whole lot.
Thanks a whole lot.
Carl. Carl, listen. Eldon...
I just need another five. That's
all I need. Oh, Eldon, please.
All I need. Eldon, please.
No, listen... It's
a very bad time.
It's a very bad day.
All right, you're gonna
be the tough guy.
You gonna be tough. All right.
Thank you.
Merry Christmas.
Hi, Mr. Lister.
Did you find your wife, okay?
She called just after you
left to say she'd be late.
Yeah, I found her. Thanks.
I don't know.
Santa's all out of
stealth bombers this year.
My elf will give you
something nice to play with.
Steve?
How was your trip?
I'm glad you're back.
Explain this, Carl.
Well, I hired a
Santa, a couple elves,
an extra sales person.
Well, they're bringing
in business, Steve.
Merry Christmas. No, no.
They are costing us more
than they are bringing in.
You show me the profits.
They just started.
It takes a little while
for word of mouth.
Word of mouth?!
Johnny, don't. Come
back. Wait. Hold it!
Ah, is that brat yours?
Word of mouth?
You know, if you'd pay
more attention to business...
Your sister's husband
was just in here.
Yeah. I saw him on the way in.
Tried to hit me up
for some money.
Tried? You mean,
you actually said no?
Well, I made up my mind.
Eldon will never learn to
stand on his own two feet
unless I stop
supporting him, huh?
You happy?
No. No, I'm not happy.
Your deadbeat brother called me,
begging for a job.
I told him to forget it,
so he's coming over here tonight
to ask you for one.
And you are going to tell
him no way, aren't you, Carl?
I guess.
Excuse me, Mr. Lister?
Sister Marie is here.
She wants to talk to
you about some toys?
Right. Carl, come
here, come here.
Let me talk to you
in board games.
Get over here.
What?
This year, we are sending
our damaged toys straight back
to the manufacturer,
who pays for breakage.
No more orphanages.
But, Steve,
we're talking about kids!
I mean, orphans
who have nothing!
When are you gonna
learn the difference
between a business
and a charity?
What is that god-awful noise?
It's Christmas music.
I bought some tapes for the
new P.A. system I had put in.
You put in a P.A. system?!
Yes.
Bah!
Get out!
No more pictures.
This isn't a camera store.
Chubs, you're fired.
What are you doing?!
Take a hike, and take
your harem with you.
You can't do this.
Half this store is mine.
And the other half is mine,
and my half says profits.
And I'm not gonna stand around
while you give
away jingle bells!
You got that?!
Good night.
Merry Christmas.
Good night. Happy holidays.
Thanks. You, too.
Good night.
Want me to stay and help?
Oh.
My, uh, brother's coming by.
Wants a little job anyway.
He'll help me.
Want me to call your wife
and tell her you'll be late?
Thanks, but, uh...
she isn't exactly
waiting to hear from me.
Good night, Mr. Lister.
Good night, Donna.
Stewart?
Carl?
Carl, you here?
Carl.
Wow.
Look at all that stuff.
Mom!
Okay.
Whoa. Hey.
Ooh. Here. Here. Ooh...
For us? No. Don't you wish.
It's for Manny O.
Got to get them
to the post office.
You mean you already
bought 'em and wrapped 'em?
Yeah. What? Christmas
shopping's great.
Walking into crowded stores
as people are pushing at you
and shoving and
grabbing at stuff,
and they're telling
their kids to shut up.
You like that?
No. No. It's-It's...
It's like when I
go to the dentist.
I hate it when I'm there,
but I love it when I'm done.
And folks... the kid is done.
Ah. So am I.
Well, good on the both of you.
Thank you.
Hi. Hey, look at you. Hey.
Whoa.
Hey. Well, 'tis the
season to be jolly.
I just wanted to give you this.
Oh. And
since the gang's
all here, Michelle,
here's yours. Thank
you. Thank you.
Conrad, here's yours.
Christmas cards?
No, I mailed those.
Ah. All right, it's a party.
Yeah, Christmas day every year.
You cooking?
Absolutely.
Invitations so early?
Christmas is only a
couple of weeks away. Bye.
Hey, are you going
to the courthouse?
Yeah. Oh, I'll go with you.
Yeah. Bye, Ben.
Bye. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
See you guys later.
Going to a party. Yeah.
Have a little fun.
Oh, man. Tired?
Yeah, but it's a good tired.
You know...
every Christmas,
it's the same thing.
I wait till the last minute,
nothing gets done.
I don't have any fun.
I don't do anything people are
supposed to do at Christmas.
Well, by dog, not this year.
I'm gonna shop,
I'm gonna decorate,
I'm gonna go to church.
Hell, I might even make
some gingerbread cookies.
You can cook?
Can a goose fly?
Hey, hey, hey.
Les that-that he might go
to Ray Templin's about now.
Let's-let's go over there,
let's go over there and
wish him a merry Christmas
and have a little cheer.
All right.
♪ To kids from one to 92 ♪
♪ And though it's been said
many times, many ways ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ To you. ♪
I was just entertaining
the folks a little,
spreading a little
Christmas cheer.
You seem a little down, Conrad.
Where's Ben?
Ben's why I'm down.
What happened?
We were gonna come over here.
We were gonna
have a little cheer.
Then we were going to
go and do some shopping.
Now, he's over at the jail,
and he's talking to that guy.
Who's he at the jail talking to?
That guy who owns the toy store.
Steven Abbot?
So what did he do?
He's accused of
killing his partner.
Well, he did it, all right.
No question about it.
He did it.
You know, his dog
dug up my azalea.
Yeah?
He said it was his wife's dog,
and he wasn't responsible.
But then his wife died,
and then his dog died.
Yeah. No, he killed
the man, all right.
No question about
it, he killed him.
It's in his genes.
Dug up Ben's
azaleas, too.
And his mountain laurel.
Ben was madder than hell.
You had a very loud argument
with your partner the
day before the murder.
It was not an argument;
it was a discussion.
Business.
Mr. Abbott went berserk.
He started screaming
at poor Mr. Lister.
He even fired Santa in front
of a nun and some orphans.
What kind of a
monster does that?
He was stabbed
with a letter opener.
Your letter opener.
That letter opener
sat in plain sight
on my desk in the back
room day in and day out.
Anybody could have
used it to stab Carl.
Anybody!
We found Abbott's fingerprints
all over the letter opener.
Just his.
Nobody else's.
I am a respectable
businessman who once in a while
happened to have a minor
disagreement with his partner.
But his family... all bums.
Yesterday, his
brother-in-law, Elden Williams,
comes into the store
begging Carl for money.
For the first time,
Carl turns him down.
He storms out breathing fire.
His brother-in-law
owed him money?
His brother-in-law
owed him money, yeah.
And then there's his
wife, grade A bimbo.
Carl finally wises up to
what everyone else knew
and confronts her
yesterday at lunch.
She doesn't love him.
He picks up the check.
His wife was seeing another man?
Yeah. Yeah.
And then there's
his brother, Stewart.
Another loser.
Calls me yesterday
begging for a job.
I turn him down, he says
he's gonna come to the store
after hours and con
Carl into giving him one.
Are you saying that
Carl's brother killed him?
I'm only saying I didn't!
I saw him; I saw everything.
Okay.
Now, I want to repeat
just what you told me.
Now, you saw a man
come up behind the man
who was decorating the tree
and stabbed him.
Then the man who
was stabbed fell down
and the other man
bent down over him?
Yeah.
Then I started
yelling for my mom.
Well, that's very good, Matthew.
Now, I want you to
do one more thing.
Can you show me the
man who did the stabbing?
That's him.
Well, I'll try to
get you arraigned
by this afternoon and
maybe out on bail by tonight.
Well, hurry up, I
got a store to run.
There is more to Christmas
than running a store
and doing business.
The only reason for
any holiday is to sell.
That's why the government
created most of them.
Now, I-I'm gonna
represent you on this.
I don't know why.
I guess it's because I
know you're too smart
to have committed
a murder this sloppy.
I don't mean that you
wouldn't commit a murder.
I think you would,
but not this one.
I'll tell you something else.
You're the worst
neighbor I've ever had.
And the absolute hatefulest man
I've ever known and the meanest.
Firing Santa Claus
in front of children!
You may not ever know
that this is the season
for giving and being jolly,
but by damn, once in
your life, you're gonna do it.
I don't know
about the jolly part,
but you're gonna give
and I'm talking about give.
Plus my fee.
And an extra 25%
because your dog
dug up my azaleas.
What do you think of that?!
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Merry Christmas!
I need money, sir.
Merry Christmas!
I need-I need money.
Get away from my store!
This street's as much
ours as it is yours.
Yeah? Yeah!
Yeah, that's right,
they are. Yeah!
Excuse me, sir...
Thank you. Thank
you very much, sir.
Hey, there, sir.
Merry Christmas.
Geez, there's hardly
anybody in here.
It's like a morgue, isn't it?
Yeah. You want something?
You know, I should
buy something.
I should buy that train.
I never had a train before.
You're too old.
Mr. Abbott, I'm
Conrad McMasters.
I work for Ben Matlock.
Two of you, huh?
I thought this was
gonna cost me.
Oh, yeah, there's
a lot in our crowd.
And while it's expensive,
it'll be worth it in the
long run, don't you think?
Why'd you come
back here that night?
I wanted to pick up
the damaged toys
before Carl had a chance to
fix them up and give them away.
Did you come in the
front door or the back?
The back.
So, the front door was locked?
So was the back; I
had to use my key.
So, how did the killer get in?
Maybe he knocked
and Carl let him in.
How should I know?
Who has keys?
Just me and Carl.
So, Carl's wife could've
had a duplicate made.
Yeah.
Carl's sister, Elden
William's wife,
she worked here a while back.
So did Stewart.
Carl's brother.
Yeah, the flake.
Carl used to let them open up.
Both of them could've had keys.
Morning, Mr. Abbott.
How dare you
show your face in here
after what you told
the police about me?
All I did was answer
their questions.
You're fired. Get out, get out!
Get out!
Mr. Abbott, how
could you do that?
It's Christmastime.
She's about as loyal as a snake.
I, for one, say good riddance.
Steve, uh...
I'm so sorry.
Spare me.
I'm Conrad McMasters.
I work for Ben Matlock.
Oh, good, good. And you are?
I'm Carl's brother, Stewart.
Oh, you work here?
Yes. No!
Steve, you need me.
You don't have Carl,
you just fired Donna.
He's not thinking too clearly.
My brother's death
came as a terrible shock.
He and Carl were very close.
I'm staying whether
you pay me or not.
It's the least I can
do for my brother.
Now, where do you want the box?
All right, open it up.
Start stacking those shelves.
$5.50 an hour, you work
only through New Year's.
Those kids are
panhandling out front again.
What? What?
Hey, get away from this store!
Go on, get out!
Um...
I know how upset you must be
losing your brother and all.
Yeah. Yeah.
I hear you were
gonna drop by the store
the night of the murder,
talk to Carl about a job?
Yeah, I was, but
I never got here.
How come?
Well, I... I started over
here and then I thought,
uh, why beg for a job?
I mean, it's the holidays,
party season, so I
figured, you know,
I'd just wait for the weekend,
hit Carl up for a loan.
But Carl's gone,
the cupboard's bare
and $5.50 an hour
looks pretty good.
Where did you go that night?
Uh, movies.
With a girlfriend?
I'm between girlfriends.
Am I a suspect?
Well, it depends.
Now that Carl's dead, who
gets his half of the store, his wife?
No. Sherry, no.
She hates this place
and Carl knew it.
So, he left it to
Kathy, our sister,
and um... me.
You're a suspect.
Those damn kids are
always blocking my doorway,
pestering my customers,
cops never do a thing...
You leaving?
Yeah, I got to talk to Stewart.
Did you buy anything?
No.
Oh. Okay, wait, wait, wait.
How much is the train?
Just the engine is $300.
Here's a ten spot.
Hold it for me, all right?
Did you...
find out anything?
Yeah.
You think you know who did it?
Oh, yeah.
All of them.
Say, do you have
any spare change?
You got a quarter?
A quarter, anything?
Hey, do you have some money?
Hey, thanks.
Oh, man.
Can I have a quarter, sir?
Oh, I've got something
worth a lot more than that.
Do you, uh, oh, do you kids
hang around in front of the
toy store at night sometimes?
You a cop?
No. I'm a lawyer.
What I want to know is,
did you see anybody go in
or come out of the toy store
around say, 7:30
last Tuesday night?
That's when that guy
got offed. That's right.
Well, how much
is it worth to you?
It's worth...
that.
A crummy business card?
No!
That's an I.O.U.
You tell me what you
saw last Tuesday night,
next time you get...
get in trouble with the law,
I'll help you out.
Forget it. We're losing light.
Wait, wait, wait,
wait, wait, wait.
Chill out.
Well, all I have to do
is tell you what
I saw that night,
and I got me a
big-time lawyer? Yeah.
Well, we were out
here all day and all night,
right up till they
carried the body out,
and we didn't see
nothing or nobody.
Still gonna be my lawyer?
Deal's a deal.
How about this?
You keep your
eye on the toy store,
you see anything unusual,
you call me. Huh?
Okay? Okay.
Ah, I love it when Ray
plays those Christmas songs.
Oh, I do, too.
But I gotta eat and go
Christmas shopping.
Stores close in an hour.
I finished my Christmas
shopping in October.
In October?
Yeah.
My mother was like that.
She always finished her
Christmas shopping in October.
Hmm.
All us Calhouns
were like that.
Always finished their
Christmas shopping in October.
In fact, in some places,
we are still known as
the October Calhouns.
October Calhouns.
So, uh, how many presents
you still have to buy?
Oh...
all of them.
All...
You haven't bought any?
No, well, I've got this case,
and I haven't had the time.
Well, I've got time.
Let me do your shopping.
Oh, no, no, no.
What are friends for?
I'm here, I love to shop,
I've got great taste,
and I've already been
an October Calhoun.
So now I'll be a
December Calhoun.
How about you all,
you want another?
No, no, I'm fine.
22,000? That's what I said.
Now, wait a minute,
wait a minute.
Wait, that's too much.
Look...
15 grand
at 20% a week for eight days...
$22,000 today,
$23,000 tomorrow,
$24,000 the next day.
You get the picture?
Yeah.
Good.
Oh.
Oh, hi.
Hi.
Huh.
Hey.
Hey, Mr. Williams.
Your wife told me I
might find you here.
Ben Matlock.
Too bad about
your brother-in-law.
I know how close you were.
Yeah.
Yeah, he was always
loaning you money
and paying off your
gambling debts.
Abbot tell you that?
He told me that
Carl cut you off.
That make you mad?
Abbot killed Carl.
Uh, now that Carl is gone,
who inherits his, uh...
his half of the store,
his wife?
She'll get part of it, yeah.
What about you?
Oh.
You-you're wife told me
that you weren't at home
around 7:30 last Tuesday night.
I was at a friend's watching
the Longo-Robertson fight.
Till when?
Till it was over.
I've got to see somebody.
Another bookie?
How did you do? Pretty good.
Wait, wait, wait,
wait. Count it.
26...
27, 83.
What'll it be, burgers or pizza?
Both.
Couple orders of fries?
Yeah.
And some pop, right?
Yeah, soda pop.
Oh, w-w-w-wait a minute.
That's the door
to the toy store.
Yeah.
Shh. Come on.
Shh.
Come on, come on!
Gone, man.
♪ Away in a manger ♪
♪ No crib for his bed ♪
♪ The little Lord Jesus ♪
♪ Asleep on the hay ♪
♪ He... ♪
So, you think all
of them did it, huh?
Well, they all could have,
and one of them did.
Now, was there a Robertson-Longo
fight on TV that night?
Well, that's easy
enough to find out.
You know, this,
uh, Eldon Williams
is a compulsive gambler,
and I bet he was
just madder than hell
when Carl cut him off
and wouldn't pay his
gambling debts anymore.
You're putting all the red ones
in one place, Conrad.
Well, you can help.
I'm helping.
Hand him that moose.
It's a reindeer.
Thank you.
Stewart Lister is a
real piece of work, too.
He's been hired and
fired so many times,
it's amazing the IRS
hasn't run out of forms.
Oh, that's right.
Carl was taking
care of him, too.
See, now, if Carl
was supporting
both of those guys,
why would either one
of them try to kill him?
Well, they both stood to
inherit part of the toy store.
Okay.
Well, what about his wife?
Grief-stricken.
She hasn't seen anybody
or been out of
the house for days,
but according to her
maid, all that's over.
Why? What happened?
Her roots started to show.
Oh, it's so much better.
Mucho, mucho, mucho better.
Suzanne, you're
a genius. I love it.
Sherry Lister?
Yeah. Michelle Thomas.
I work with Ben Matlock,
Steven Abbot's attorney.
I'm in mourning.
Steven Abbot is the reason why.
You can just keep
on going, Suzanne.
I can appreciate your feelings.
Your husband was a good man.
Generous.
I hear he left his
share of the toy store
to his brother and sister.
He left everything else to me.
I'm not going to be rich,
but I'll be comfortable.
He spend a lot of
time at the toy store?
Every minute he could.
You must have been pretty bored.
I have my own interests.
Steven Abbot says you
were having an affair.
Steven Abbot is a liar.
He says your husband
found out about it,
confronted you,
and eight hours later,
he was dead.
That jerk said
that I killed him?
Maybe Carl was so
mad about your affair
that he threatened to cut
you out of his will completely.
And maybe you killed
him before he could do that.
That's it, blondie.
Where were you that night?
I was out with friends.
What are their names?
Dennis Johnson.
Hey, someone tried to break
into the toy store last
night! Yeah, we chased him,
but he got away.
Did you get a look at him?
It was too dark.
Why didn't you call me?
So, maybe we
didn't have a quarter.
Keep up the good work.
All right, you take this.
Okay.
Get out of here. The
store is not yours to sell.
It belongs to your wife.
What's going on?
Oh.
Eldon here is trying
to sell his wife's share
of the store for half
of what it's worth.
You can't do that.
I, uh... I just wanted
to give you first crack.
I figured I owed it to Carl
to make you a good deal.
Well, you-you can't do that.
He's only asking $2,000 over
what he owes the loan sharks.
Okay. Okay.
Wind up with a total stranger.
Bound to be an
improvement over you.
He... he can't do that.
Hey, wait a minute...
Um...
Uh, guess what?
That, uh... that fight
you said you were
watching that night...
It only went two rounds.
It was over at 7:10.
Say, Steve, uh, seeing...
seeing as business
is kind of slow,
you mind if I...
mind if I take off?
You're off even when you're on.
Have a nice afternoon.
So, business is slow.
Try stinks.
Going to be my worst
Christmas in history.
Well, there's more to
Christmas than just business.
Like what?
Oh, like love,
worship and giving.
But, uh, to get back to
your, uh, original complaint,
your business... I
believe you said... stinks
because of your lousy attitude.
Who do you think
you're talking to? You.
See, if there's two
toy stores in town
and, uh, one of them's
run by a nice guy
and the other
one's run by a jerk,
well, people are naturally
going to go see the nice guy.
See?
Now, you're going to trial
before a jury of
people... just...
just people... And
whether you like it or not,
most of those people
believe that Christmas
is a time of giving,
not just business.
So, unless you want
to alienate these people
and go to prison for
the rest of your life,
you're going to have to hide
your true feelings of Christmas
and make those people
think that you really believe
it is more blessed to
give than to receive.
Now, did you get that,
or do you want me to
run over it one more time?
He snuck up behind him
and stabbed the guy who
was decorating the tree.
Then, the guy fell down.
You know, with
the thing in his back.
Then, the first guy
bent down over him,
like he was going to
stab him again, maybe.
When I started to yell,
the guy looked up and saw me,
then he stopped.
So, you got a real
clear look at his face.
Yeah.
This man that you saw...
Is he in the courtroom now?
Yeah, he's right there.
This is the man that
stabbed Mr. Lister?
You sure?
I'm real sure.
Let the record show the witness
has identified the
defendant, Steven Abbot.
One word, and you'll never hear
the sound of a
cash register again.
Uh, thank you, Matthew.
No further questions,
Your Honor.
Does the defense
wish to cross-examine?
We do, Your Honor.
How you doing, Matthew?
Okay.
Whew-ee, a lot of
people here today.
Is it kind of scary knowing
they're listening to
everything you say?
Kind of.
I'm going to ask you
a couple questions,
and you just answer them
the best you can, okay?
Okay.
Now, you said that man
over there, Mr. Abbot,
came up behind the man
who was decorating the tree,
Mr. Lister, and stabbed him.
Uh-huh.
Who was taller...
The man who decorated the
tree of the man who stabbed him?
I-I-I don't know.
Well, Mr. Abbot had
to have been standing
right behind Mr. Lister
if he stabbed him,
so just think back real hard.
Who was taller...
Mr. Abbot or Mr. Lister?
Mr. Lister?
Hmm.
Maybe this question
will be easier.
Who was heavier?
You know, fatter.
The man who was
stabbed, Mr. Lister,
or the man who
stabbed him, Mr. Abbot?
Um... Mr. Lister?
Hmm.
Well, as it happens,
Matthew...
Mr. Lister was...
only about five foot,
seven inches tall.
Mr. Abbot's...
almost six feet tall,
so he's the taller man.
He also weighs over 200 pounds,
so Mr. Abbot's the
heavier man, too.
Look, here's a
picture of them. See?
See, that's Mr. Abbot,
and that's Mr. Lister.
Guess I made a mistake, huh?
Yeah.
And I think I know why.
It's because you
never saw Mr. Abbot
and Mr. Lister standing up.
All you saw was
Mr. Lister lying on the floor,
and Mr. Abbot bending
over him, isn't that right?
Nobody's gonna be
disappointed in you,
nobody's gonna
be angry with you...
as long as you tell the truth.
What did you see
when you looked in the
window that night, Matthew?
I saw a man lying on the floor.
And I saw that man over
there leaning over him.
So, you never saw
that man over there,
Mr. Abbot, stab anyone?
No.
Nothing further.
♪ ♪
You ain't gettin'
away from us this time,
sucker.
Caught him breaking in!
No, I wasn't...
I wasn't breaking in!
I wasn't breaking in!
Boys, boys, boys. No, I was...
I was trying to get my wallet.
Your wallet?
Yes, my wallet.
I-I didn't realize
I'd left it here
until about an hour ago.
Did you leave it here
a couple of nights ago?
Hey!
All right.
All right, I was gonna use my
key to get in the cash register
and then I'd make it
look like a break-in.
Well, if you wanted
to steal, why didn't
you steal in the daytime
while you were working?
He was afraid I might catch him.
Ah.
Let's see.
You have a key, you need money.
Maybe you killed Carl. No.
I-I was in jail
that night. Jail?
Yeah, on-on my way to see
Carl, I got pulled over for speeding.
I had eight tickets for
parking and speeding.
So a bondsman had to
bail me in the morning.
Now you owe him.
Yes. Give me your
key to the store.
Now get out of
here. How about if...
Get out.
Boys, uh, you might
as well go home, too.
Uh, I appreciate your help.
I looked like we
had a live one there.
Yeah.
Well, keep working and
next time we'll get one,
I'll string 'em up
like that. Yeah.
Okay, thanks again
for your help, boys.
Oh, hey, wait-wait a minute.
You know, I-I left...
I left home in such a
hurry, I-I left everything,
I didn't bring anything
with me, but I...
Oh, yeah, I... I did find this.
It's a... it's a...
five spot.
Go ahead.
Okay.
Okay. All right, thanks.
Yeah. Good night.
Bye. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.
Here they are.
Took a while to
find them all. Oh.
Right. Great. Okay, thanks,
Sarge. Yeah, I owe you one.
Well? Stewart Lister was in
prison the night of the murder.
Hmm. Sherry Lister
was with her friend.
Yeah, with Dennis
what's-his-face?
Johnson, at the Emerald Lounge.
The bartender and two
waitresses saw them.
Okay, so it's gotta
be Eldon Williams
or this bird we're defending.
Yeah.
Well...
let's hope Santa Claus
will give us a little present.
What's going on?
Well, I think I can
prove you didn't kill Carl.
Well, finally.
First sign this.
What?
That's an amendment
to our contract.
Sign it.
Uh,
Mr. Williams,
are you in debt?
Aren't we all?
$30,000 in under a
week, cash plus interest.
I don't owe anybody $30,000.
Tony Costa says you do.
You know Tony.
Yeah.
You borrow money from Tony
to pay your bookie, don't you?
Yes.
You're a compulsive
gambler, aren't you?
No, I wouldn't say that.
Your wife would,
and she'd just love
to come up here
and tell us all about it.
Shall we call her?
My wife and I
are having some problems.
I know.
She filed for divorce.
Objection.
Relevancy.
Lloyd!
How can you object to that?
I say the man's a
compulsive gambler,
he says he's not, his
wife wants to testify,
he says they're having problems,
she says she wants
to file for divorce.
How can that not be relevant?
Mr. Matlock,
your blood pressure.
Objection is sustained.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Um, Mr. Williams,
Carl Lister was
your wife's brother.
Is that right?
Yes.
And in his will, he stipulated
that upon his death
she would receive half
of his half of L And A Toys,
right? Yes.
Now, you owe Tony Costa money.
And you were trying
to sell your wife's
share of the store.
That's against the law.
You can't sell a person's
inherited possession
with-without their permission.
They'll put you
in prison for that.
But I guess you were desperate.
I suppose, yeah.
You knew that if
she divorced you
before she got her inheritance,
you'd never see a dime of it.
Now, wait a minute...
And-and when you got wind
of the divorce,
you didn't waste any time.
You took her keys,
put on some kind of gloves,
slipped in the toy store,
took-took Steven
Abbot's letter opener,
slipped up behind
your brother-in-law
and stabbed him to death.
That is not true! Objection!
Assumes facts not in evidence.
It's argumentative.
I have proof, Your Honor.
Overruled.
Proof, Mr. Matlock?
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir, right here.
These pictures, which I'd
like entered into evidence
as defense exhibits "C" and "D."
Now, this first picture,
as you can see,
is a picture of Santa Claus.
See? See? Can you
see it? Can you see it?
Picture of Santa Claus.
Taken about four hours
before the murder.
Now, the second one
is a blowup of the same.
What I wanted you to see
was what was in
that display case
behind Santa Claus.
It's one of those
tiny calculators
that's also a date book.
It, you know, it-it keeps
dates, phone numbers,
appointments, stuff like that.
But, anyway, the
day after the murder...
it was gone.
It hadn't been sold or anything.
It was just gone.
Now, uh, Mr. Williams,
uh, you have a calculator
like that, don't you?
No.
Uh-uh.
Didn't I see it
when I ran into you at the bar?
You're mistaken.
I asked your wife this morning,
and she says that you have
a calculator just like this one.
Said you take it
with you everywhere.
Said you just got it.
Said you never
said where you got it.
But I bet I know
where you got it.
You got it out of
that display case
when you killed your
brother-in-law, didn't you?
That is not true.
Empty your pockets.
No! Objection!
Your Honor,
I-I believe that this witness
possess that piece of evidence
which is critical
to my client's defense.
Empty your
pockets, Mr. Williams.
Just...
just the inside
left pocket there.
Well...
It's just a coincidence.
No.
No.
And a comparison
of the serial numbers
will prove it.
Bet on it.
We're gonna bring a man out here
that I know you
all want to meet.
Now, who is that man?
Santa Claus!
Now, now, let me explain.
The main Santa...
the main Santa is
real busy tonight.
I'm talking real busy.
So he couldn't come.
Well, what he did
was, what he did was
he picked out a friend of his
from our very own
town to be him.
Who? Who is it? Who is it?
Who is it? Who is it?
You want to know who?
Santa Claus!
Now, now, let me explain
about our Santa Claus.
You see, he's new.
He's new and he's inexperienced.
Now, he-he may...
he may act like
he doesn't like what he's doing,
but don't let that bother you.
Don't let that bother you.
When he gives you a
present, give him a kiss.
Yeah. Okay?
Maybe someday he'll
like it, too, what say?
All right.
Here he is,
the man of the hour...
a little elf himself...
Santa Claus!
♪ Dashing through the snow ♪
♪ In a one-horse open sleigh ♪
♪ O're the fields we go ♪
♪ Laughing all the
way, ha, ha, ha ♪
♪ Bells on bobtail ring ♪
♪ Making spirits bright ♪
♪ What fun it is
to ride and sing ♪
♪ A sleighing song tonight ♪
♪ Oh, jingle
bells, jingle bells ♪
♪ Jingle all the way ♪
♪ Oh, what fun... ♪
How you like it so far?
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
♪ ♪
I have had it up
to here with you.
I'm not blaming
you. At least I know
that a lot of this is my fault.
You bet it's your fault.
Just... If you
weren't such a wuss.
It's embarrassing to me.
I'm embarrassed.
I'll see you at home.
Sherry...
♪ God and sinners reconciled ♪
♪ Joyful all ye nations rise ♪
♪ Join the triumph
of the skies ♪
♪ With angelic hosts proclaim ♪
♪ Christ is born
in Bethlehem... ♪
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Merry Christmas.
Thank you. Thank you
from the orphanage.
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Excuse me, mister, do you
have any quarter or anything
that you can...
spare for anything?
Christmas Eve and...
Yeah, I-I really need that.
Thanks a whole lot.
Thanks a whole lot.
Carl. Carl, listen. Eldon...
I just need another five. That's
all I need. Oh, Eldon, please.
All I need. Eldon, please.
No, listen... It's
a very bad time.
It's a very bad day.
All right, you're gonna
be the tough guy.
You gonna be tough. All right.
Thank you.
Merry Christmas.
Hi, Mr. Lister.
Did you find your wife, okay?
She called just after you
left to say she'd be late.
Yeah, I found her. Thanks.
I don't know.
Santa's all out of
stealth bombers this year.
My elf will give you
something nice to play with.
Steve?
How was your trip?
I'm glad you're back.
Explain this, Carl.
Well, I hired a
Santa, a couple elves,
an extra sales person.
Well, they're bringing
in business, Steve.
Merry Christmas. No, no.
They are costing us more
than they are bringing in.
You show me the profits.
They just started.
It takes a little while
for word of mouth.
Word of mouth?!
Johnny, don't. Come
back. Wait. Hold it!
Ah, is that brat yours?
Word of mouth?
You know, if you'd pay
more attention to business...
Your sister's husband
was just in here.
Yeah. I saw him on the way in.
Tried to hit me up
for some money.
Tried? You mean,
you actually said no?
Well, I made up my mind.
Eldon will never learn to
stand on his own two feet
unless I stop
supporting him, huh?
You happy?
No. No, I'm not happy.
Your deadbeat brother called me,
begging for a job.
I told him to forget it,
so he's coming over here tonight
to ask you for one.
And you are going to tell
him no way, aren't you, Carl?
I guess.
Excuse me, Mr. Lister?
Sister Marie is here.
She wants to talk to
you about some toys?
Right. Carl, come
here, come here.
Let me talk to you
in board games.
Get over here.
What?
This year, we are sending
our damaged toys straight back
to the manufacturer,
who pays for breakage.
No more orphanages.
But, Steve,
we're talking about kids!
I mean, orphans
who have nothing!
When are you gonna
learn the difference
between a business
and a charity?
What is that god-awful noise?
It's Christmas music.
I bought some tapes for the
new P.A. system I had put in.
You put in a P.A. system?!
Yes.
Bah!
Get out!
No more pictures.
This isn't a camera store.
Chubs, you're fired.
What are you doing?!
Take a hike, and take
your harem with you.
You can't do this.
Half this store is mine.
And the other half is mine,
and my half says profits.
And I'm not gonna stand around
while you give
away jingle bells!
You got that?!
Good night.
Merry Christmas.
Good night. Happy holidays.
Thanks. You, too.
Good night.
Want me to stay and help?
Oh.
My, uh, brother's coming by.
Wants a little job anyway.
He'll help me.
Want me to call your wife
and tell her you'll be late?
Thanks, but, uh...
she isn't exactly
waiting to hear from me.
Good night, Mr. Lister.
Good night, Donna.
Stewart?
Carl?
Carl, you here?
Carl.
Wow.
Look at all that stuff.
Mom!
Okay.
Whoa. Hey.
Ooh. Here. Here. Ooh...
For us? No. Don't you wish.
It's for Manny O.
Got to get them
to the post office.
You mean you already
bought 'em and wrapped 'em?
Yeah. What? Christmas
shopping's great.
Walking into crowded stores
as people are pushing at you
and shoving and
grabbing at stuff,
and they're telling
their kids to shut up.
You like that?
No. No. It's-It's...
It's like when I
go to the dentist.
I hate it when I'm there,
but I love it when I'm done.
And folks... the kid is done.
Ah. So am I.
Well, good on the both of you.
Thank you.
Hi. Hey, look at you. Hey.
Whoa.
Hey. Well, 'tis the
season to be jolly.
I just wanted to give you this.
Oh. And
since the gang's
all here, Michelle,
here's yours. Thank
you. Thank you.
Conrad, here's yours.
Christmas cards?
No, I mailed those.
Ah. All right, it's a party.
Yeah, Christmas day every year.
You cooking?
Absolutely.
Invitations so early?
Christmas is only a
couple of weeks away. Bye.
Hey, are you going
to the courthouse?
Yeah. Oh, I'll go with you.
Yeah. Bye, Ben.
Bye. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas.
See you guys later.
Going to a party. Yeah.
Have a little fun.
Oh, man. Tired?
Yeah, but it's a good tired.
You know...
every Christmas,
it's the same thing.
I wait till the last minute,
nothing gets done.
I don't have any fun.
I don't do anything people are
supposed to do at Christmas.
Well, by dog, not this year.
I'm gonna shop,
I'm gonna decorate,
I'm gonna go to church.
Hell, I might even make
some gingerbread cookies.
You can cook?
Can a goose fly?
Hey, hey, hey.
Les that-that he might go
to Ray Templin's about now.
Let's-let's go over there,
let's go over there and
wish him a merry Christmas
and have a little cheer.
All right.
♪ To kids from one to 92 ♪
♪ And though it's been said
many times, many ways ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ Merry Christmas ♪
♪ To you. ♪
I was just entertaining
the folks a little,
spreading a little
Christmas cheer.
You seem a little down, Conrad.
Where's Ben?
Ben's why I'm down.
What happened?
We were gonna come over here.
We were gonna
have a little cheer.
Then we were going to
go and do some shopping.
Now, he's over at the jail,
and he's talking to that guy.
Who's he at the jail talking to?
That guy who owns the toy store.
Steven Abbot?
So what did he do?
He's accused of
killing his partner.
Well, he did it, all right.
No question about it.
He did it.
You know, his dog
dug up my azalea.
Yeah?
He said it was his wife's dog,
and he wasn't responsible.
But then his wife died,
and then his dog died.
Yeah. No, he killed
the man, all right.
No question about
it, he killed him.
It's in his genes.
Dug up Ben's
azaleas, too.
And his mountain laurel.
Ben was madder than hell.
You had a very loud argument
with your partner the
day before the murder.
It was not an argument;
it was a discussion.
Business.
Mr. Abbott went berserk.
He started screaming
at poor Mr. Lister.
He even fired Santa in front
of a nun and some orphans.
What kind of a
monster does that?
He was stabbed
with a letter opener.
Your letter opener.
That letter opener
sat in plain sight
on my desk in the back
room day in and day out.
Anybody could have
used it to stab Carl.
Anybody!
We found Abbott's fingerprints
all over the letter opener.
Just his.
Nobody else's.
I am a respectable
businessman who once in a while
happened to have a minor
disagreement with his partner.
But his family... all bums.
Yesterday, his
brother-in-law, Elden Williams,
comes into the store
begging Carl for money.
For the first time,
Carl turns him down.
He storms out breathing fire.
His brother-in-law
owed him money?
His brother-in-law
owed him money, yeah.
And then there's his
wife, grade A bimbo.
Carl finally wises up to
what everyone else knew
and confronts her
yesterday at lunch.
She doesn't love him.
He picks up the check.
His wife was seeing another man?
Yeah. Yeah.
And then there's
his brother, Stewart.
Another loser.
Calls me yesterday
begging for a job.
I turn him down, he says
he's gonna come to the store
after hours and con
Carl into giving him one.
Are you saying that
Carl's brother killed him?
I'm only saying I didn't!
I saw him; I saw everything.
Okay.
Now, I want to repeat
just what you told me.
Now, you saw a man
come up behind the man
who was decorating the tree
and stabbed him.
Then the man who
was stabbed fell down
and the other man
bent down over him?
Yeah.
Then I started
yelling for my mom.
Well, that's very good, Matthew.
Now, I want you to
do one more thing.
Can you show me the
man who did the stabbing?
That's him.
Well, I'll try to
get you arraigned
by this afternoon and
maybe out on bail by tonight.
Well, hurry up, I
got a store to run.
There is more to Christmas
than running a store
and doing business.
The only reason for
any holiday is to sell.
That's why the government
created most of them.
Now, I-I'm gonna
represent you on this.
I don't know why.
I guess it's because I
know you're too smart
to have committed
a murder this sloppy.
I don't mean that you
wouldn't commit a murder.
I think you would,
but not this one.
I'll tell you something else.
You're the worst
neighbor I've ever had.
And the absolute hatefulest man
I've ever known and the meanest.
Firing Santa Claus
in front of children!
You may not ever know
that this is the season
for giving and being jolly,
but by damn, once in
your life, you're gonna do it.
I don't know
about the jolly part,
but you're gonna give
and I'm talking about give.
Plus my fee.
And an extra 25%
because your dog
dug up my azaleas.
What do you think of that?!
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Ho! Ho! Ho!
Merry Christmas!
I need money, sir.
Merry Christmas!
I need-I need money.
Get away from my store!
This street's as much
ours as it is yours.
Yeah? Yeah!
Yeah, that's right,
they are. Yeah!
Excuse me, sir...
Thank you. Thank
you very much, sir.
Hey, there, sir.
Merry Christmas.
Geez, there's hardly
anybody in here.
It's like a morgue, isn't it?
Yeah. You want something?
You know, I should
buy something.
I should buy that train.
I never had a train before.
You're too old.
Mr. Abbott, I'm
Conrad McMasters.
I work for Ben Matlock.
Two of you, huh?
I thought this was
gonna cost me.
Oh, yeah, there's
a lot in our crowd.
And while it's expensive,
it'll be worth it in the
long run, don't you think?
Why'd you come
back here that night?
I wanted to pick up
the damaged toys
before Carl had a chance to
fix them up and give them away.
Did you come in the
front door or the back?
The back.
So, the front door was locked?
So was the back; I
had to use my key.
So, how did the killer get in?
Maybe he knocked
and Carl let him in.
How should I know?
Who has keys?
Just me and Carl.
So, Carl's wife could've
had a duplicate made.
Yeah.
Carl's sister, Elden
William's wife,
she worked here a while back.
So did Stewart.
Carl's brother.
Yeah, the flake.
Carl used to let them open up.
Both of them could've had keys.
Morning, Mr. Abbott.
How dare you
show your face in here
after what you told
the police about me?
All I did was answer
their questions.
You're fired. Get out, get out!
Get out!
Mr. Abbott, how
could you do that?
It's Christmastime.
She's about as loyal as a snake.
I, for one, say good riddance.
Steve, uh...
I'm so sorry.
Spare me.
I'm Conrad McMasters.
I work for Ben Matlock.
Oh, good, good. And you are?
I'm Carl's brother, Stewart.
Oh, you work here?
Yes. No!
Steve, you need me.
You don't have Carl,
you just fired Donna.
He's not thinking too clearly.
My brother's death
came as a terrible shock.
He and Carl were very close.
I'm staying whether
you pay me or not.
It's the least I can
do for my brother.
Now, where do you want the box?
All right, open it up.
Start stacking those shelves.
$5.50 an hour, you work
only through New Year's.
Those kids are
panhandling out front again.
What? What?
Hey, get away from this store!
Go on, get out!
Um...
I know how upset you must be
losing your brother and all.
Yeah. Yeah.
I hear you were
gonna drop by the store
the night of the murder,
talk to Carl about a job?
Yeah, I was, but
I never got here.
How come?
Well, I... I started over
here and then I thought,
uh, why beg for a job?
I mean, it's the holidays,
party season, so I
figured, you know,
I'd just wait for the weekend,
hit Carl up for a loan.
But Carl's gone,
the cupboard's bare
and $5.50 an hour
looks pretty good.
Where did you go that night?
Uh, movies.
With a girlfriend?
I'm between girlfriends.
Am I a suspect?
Well, it depends.
Now that Carl's dead, who
gets his half of the store, his wife?
No. Sherry, no.
She hates this place
and Carl knew it.
So, he left it to
Kathy, our sister,
and um... me.
You're a suspect.
Those damn kids are
always blocking my doorway,
pestering my customers,
cops never do a thing...
You leaving?
Yeah, I got to talk to Stewart.
Did you buy anything?
No.
Oh. Okay, wait, wait, wait.
How much is the train?
Just the engine is $300.
Here's a ten spot.
Hold it for me, all right?
Did you...
find out anything?
Yeah.
You think you know who did it?
Oh, yeah.
All of them.
Say, do you have
any spare change?
You got a quarter?
A quarter, anything?
Hey, do you have some money?
Hey, thanks.
Oh, man.
Can I have a quarter, sir?
Oh, I've got something
worth a lot more than that.
Do you, uh, oh, do you kids
hang around in front of the
toy store at night sometimes?
You a cop?
No. I'm a lawyer.
What I want to know is,
did you see anybody go in
or come out of the toy store
around say, 7:30
last Tuesday night?
That's when that guy
got offed. That's right.
Well, how much
is it worth to you?
It's worth...
that.
A crummy business card?
No!
That's an I.O.U.
You tell me what you
saw last Tuesday night,
next time you get...
get in trouble with the law,
I'll help you out.
Forget it. We're losing light.
Wait, wait, wait,
wait, wait, wait.
Chill out.
Well, all I have to do
is tell you what
I saw that night,
and I got me a
big-time lawyer? Yeah.
Well, we were out
here all day and all night,
right up till they
carried the body out,
and we didn't see
nothing or nobody.
Still gonna be my lawyer?
Deal's a deal.
How about this?
You keep your
eye on the toy store,
you see anything unusual,
you call me. Huh?
Okay? Okay.
Ah, I love it when Ray
plays those Christmas songs.
Oh, I do, too.
But I gotta eat and go
Christmas shopping.
Stores close in an hour.
I finished my Christmas
shopping in October.
In October?
Yeah.
My mother was like that.
She always finished her
Christmas shopping in October.
Hmm.
All us Calhouns
were like that.
Always finished their
Christmas shopping in October.
In fact, in some places,
we are still known as
the October Calhouns.
October Calhouns.
So, uh, how many presents
you still have to buy?
Oh...
all of them.
All...
You haven't bought any?
No, well, I've got this case,
and I haven't had the time.
Well, I've got time.
Let me do your shopping.
Oh, no, no, no.
What are friends for?
I'm here, I love to shop,
I've got great taste,
and I've already been
an October Calhoun.
So now I'll be a
December Calhoun.
How about you all,
you want another?
No, no, I'm fine.
22,000? That's what I said.
Now, wait a minute,
wait a minute.
Wait, that's too much.
Look...
15 grand
at 20% a week for eight days...
$22,000 today,
$23,000 tomorrow,
$24,000 the next day.
You get the picture?
Yeah.
Good.
Oh.
Oh, hi.
Hi.
Huh.
Hey.
Hey, Mr. Williams.
Your wife told me I
might find you here.
Ben Matlock.
Too bad about
your brother-in-law.
I know how close you were.
Yeah.
Yeah, he was always
loaning you money
and paying off your
gambling debts.
Abbot tell you that?
He told me that
Carl cut you off.
That make you mad?
Abbot killed Carl.
Uh, now that Carl is gone,
who inherits his, uh...
his half of the store,
his wife?
She'll get part of it, yeah.
What about you?
Oh.
You-you're wife told me
that you weren't at home
around 7:30 last Tuesday night.
I was at a friend's watching
the Longo-Robertson fight.
Till when?
Till it was over.
I've got to see somebody.
Another bookie?
How did you do? Pretty good.
Wait, wait, wait,
wait. Count it.
26...
27, 83.
What'll it be, burgers or pizza?
Both.
Couple orders of fries?
Yeah.
And some pop, right?
Yeah, soda pop.
Oh, w-w-w-wait a minute.
That's the door
to the toy store.
Yeah.
Shh. Come on.
Shh.
Come on, come on!
Gone, man.
♪ Away in a manger ♪
♪ No crib for his bed ♪
♪ The little Lord Jesus ♪
♪ Asleep on the hay ♪
♪ He... ♪
So, you think all
of them did it, huh?
Well, they all could have,
and one of them did.
Now, was there a Robertson-Longo
fight on TV that night?
Well, that's easy
enough to find out.
You know, this,
uh, Eldon Williams
is a compulsive gambler,
and I bet he was
just madder than hell
when Carl cut him off
and wouldn't pay his
gambling debts anymore.
You're putting all the red ones
in one place, Conrad.
Well, you can help.
I'm helping.
Hand him that moose.
It's a reindeer.
Thank you.
Stewart Lister is a
real piece of work, too.
He's been hired and
fired so many times,
it's amazing the IRS
hasn't run out of forms.
Oh, that's right.
Carl was taking
care of him, too.
See, now, if Carl
was supporting
both of those guys,
why would either one
of them try to kill him?
Well, they both stood to
inherit part of the toy store.
Okay.
Well, what about his wife?
Grief-stricken.
She hasn't seen anybody
or been out of
the house for days,
but according to her
maid, all that's over.
Why? What happened?
Her roots started to show.
Oh, it's so much better.
Mucho, mucho, mucho better.
Suzanne, you're
a genius. I love it.
Sherry Lister?
Yeah. Michelle Thomas.
I work with Ben Matlock,
Steven Abbot's attorney.
I'm in mourning.
Steven Abbot is the reason why.
You can just keep
on going, Suzanne.
I can appreciate your feelings.
Your husband was a good man.
Generous.
I hear he left his
share of the toy store
to his brother and sister.
He left everything else to me.
I'm not going to be rich,
but I'll be comfortable.
He spend a lot of
time at the toy store?
Every minute he could.
You must have been pretty bored.
I have my own interests.
Steven Abbot says you
were having an affair.
Steven Abbot is a liar.
He says your husband
found out about it,
confronted you,
and eight hours later,
he was dead.
That jerk said
that I killed him?
Maybe Carl was so
mad about your affair
that he threatened to cut
you out of his will completely.
And maybe you killed
him before he could do that.
That's it, blondie.
Where were you that night?
I was out with friends.
What are their names?
Dennis Johnson.
Hey, someone tried to break
into the toy store last
night! Yeah, we chased him,
but he got away.
Did you get a look at him?
It was too dark.
Why didn't you call me?
So, maybe we
didn't have a quarter.
Keep up the good work.
All right, you take this.
Okay.
Get out of here. The
store is not yours to sell.
It belongs to your wife.
What's going on?
Oh.
Eldon here is trying
to sell his wife's share
of the store for half
of what it's worth.
You can't do that.
I, uh... I just wanted
to give you first crack.
I figured I owed it to Carl
to make you a good deal.
Well, you-you can't do that.
He's only asking $2,000 over
what he owes the loan sharks.
Okay. Okay.
Wind up with a total stranger.
Bound to be an
improvement over you.
He... he can't do that.
Hey, wait a minute...
Um...
Uh, guess what?
That, uh... that fight
you said you were
watching that night...
It only went two rounds.
It was over at 7:10.
Say, Steve, uh, seeing...
seeing as business
is kind of slow,
you mind if I...
mind if I take off?
You're off even when you're on.
Have a nice afternoon.
So, business is slow.
Try stinks.
Going to be my worst
Christmas in history.
Well, there's more to
Christmas than just business.
Like what?
Oh, like love,
worship and giving.
But, uh, to get back to
your, uh, original complaint,
your business... I
believe you said... stinks
because of your lousy attitude.
Who do you think
you're talking to? You.
See, if there's two
toy stores in town
and, uh, one of them's
run by a nice guy
and the other
one's run by a jerk,
well, people are naturally
going to go see the nice guy.
See?
Now, you're going to trial
before a jury of
people... just...
just people... And
whether you like it or not,
most of those people
believe that Christmas
is a time of giving,
not just business.
So, unless you want
to alienate these people
and go to prison for
the rest of your life,
you're going to have to hide
your true feelings of Christmas
and make those people
think that you really believe
it is more blessed to
give than to receive.
Now, did you get that,
or do you want me to
run over it one more time?
He snuck up behind him
and stabbed the guy who
was decorating the tree.
Then, the guy fell down.
You know, with
the thing in his back.
Then, the first guy
bent down over him,
like he was going to
stab him again, maybe.
When I started to yell,
the guy looked up and saw me,
then he stopped.
So, you got a real
clear look at his face.
Yeah.
This man that you saw...
Is he in the courtroom now?
Yeah, he's right there.
This is the man that
stabbed Mr. Lister?
You sure?
I'm real sure.
Let the record show the witness
has identified the
defendant, Steven Abbot.
One word, and you'll never hear
the sound of a
cash register again.
Uh, thank you, Matthew.
No further questions,
Your Honor.
Does the defense
wish to cross-examine?
We do, Your Honor.
How you doing, Matthew?
Okay.
Whew-ee, a lot of
people here today.
Is it kind of scary knowing
they're listening to
everything you say?
Kind of.
I'm going to ask you
a couple questions,
and you just answer them
the best you can, okay?
Okay.
Now, you said that man
over there, Mr. Abbot,
came up behind the man
who was decorating the tree,
Mr. Lister, and stabbed him.
Uh-huh.
Who was taller...
The man who decorated the
tree of the man who stabbed him?
I-I-I don't know.
Well, Mr. Abbot had
to have been standing
right behind Mr. Lister
if he stabbed him,
so just think back real hard.
Who was taller...
Mr. Abbot or Mr. Lister?
Mr. Lister?
Hmm.
Maybe this question
will be easier.
Who was heavier?
You know, fatter.
The man who was
stabbed, Mr. Lister,
or the man who
stabbed him, Mr. Abbot?
Um... Mr. Lister?
Hmm.
Well, as it happens,
Matthew...
Mr. Lister was...
only about five foot,
seven inches tall.
Mr. Abbot's...
almost six feet tall,
so he's the taller man.
He also weighs over 200 pounds,
so Mr. Abbot's the
heavier man, too.
Look, here's a
picture of them. See?
See, that's Mr. Abbot,
and that's Mr. Lister.
Guess I made a mistake, huh?
Yeah.
And I think I know why.
It's because you
never saw Mr. Abbot
and Mr. Lister standing up.
All you saw was
Mr. Lister lying on the floor,
and Mr. Abbot bending
over him, isn't that right?
Nobody's gonna be
disappointed in you,
nobody's gonna
be angry with you...
as long as you tell the truth.
What did you see
when you looked in the
window that night, Matthew?
I saw a man lying on the floor.
And I saw that man over
there leaning over him.
So, you never saw
that man over there,
Mr. Abbot, stab anyone?
No.
Nothing further.
♪ ♪
You ain't gettin'
away from us this time,
sucker.
Caught him breaking in!
No, I wasn't...
I wasn't breaking in!
I wasn't breaking in!
Boys, boys, boys. No, I was...
I was trying to get my wallet.
Your wallet?
Yes, my wallet.
I-I didn't realize
I'd left it here
until about an hour ago.
Did you leave it here
a couple of nights ago?
Hey!
All right.
All right, I was gonna use my
key to get in the cash register
and then I'd make it
look like a break-in.
Well, if you wanted
to steal, why didn't
you steal in the daytime
while you were working?
He was afraid I might catch him.
Ah.
Let's see.
You have a key, you need money.
Maybe you killed Carl. No.
I-I was in jail
that night. Jail?
Yeah, on-on my way to see
Carl, I got pulled over for speeding.
I had eight tickets for
parking and speeding.
So a bondsman had to
bail me in the morning.
Now you owe him.
Yes. Give me your
key to the store.
Now get out of
here. How about if...
Get out.
Boys, uh, you might
as well go home, too.
Uh, I appreciate your help.
I looked like we
had a live one there.
Yeah.
Well, keep working and
next time we'll get one,
I'll string 'em up
like that. Yeah.
Okay, thanks again
for your help, boys.
Oh, hey, wait-wait a minute.
You know, I-I left...
I left home in such a
hurry, I-I left everything,
I didn't bring anything
with me, but I...
Oh, yeah, I... I did find this.
It's a... it's a...
five spot.
Go ahead.
Okay.
Okay. All right, thanks.
Yeah. Good night.
Bye. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.
Here they are.
Took a while to
find them all. Oh.
Right. Great. Okay, thanks,
Sarge. Yeah, I owe you one.
Well? Stewart Lister was in
prison the night of the murder.
Hmm. Sherry Lister
was with her friend.
Yeah, with Dennis
what's-his-face?
Johnson, at the Emerald Lounge.
The bartender and two
waitresses saw them.
Okay, so it's gotta
be Eldon Williams
or this bird we're defending.
Yeah.
Well...
let's hope Santa Claus
will give us a little present.
What's going on?
Well, I think I can
prove you didn't kill Carl.
Well, finally.
First sign this.
What?
That's an amendment
to our contract.
Sign it.
Uh,
Mr. Williams,
are you in debt?
Aren't we all?
$30,000 in under a
week, cash plus interest.
I don't owe anybody $30,000.
Tony Costa says you do.
You know Tony.
Yeah.
You borrow money from Tony
to pay your bookie, don't you?
Yes.
You're a compulsive
gambler, aren't you?
No, I wouldn't say that.
Your wife would,
and she'd just love
to come up here
and tell us all about it.
Shall we call her?
My wife and I
are having some problems.
I know.
She filed for divorce.
Objection.
Relevancy.
Lloyd!
How can you object to that?
I say the man's a
compulsive gambler,
he says he's not, his
wife wants to testify,
he says they're having problems,
she says she wants
to file for divorce.
How can that not be relevant?
Mr. Matlock,
your blood pressure.
Objection is sustained.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Um, Mr. Williams,
Carl Lister was
your wife's brother.
Is that right?
Yes.
And in his will, he stipulated
that upon his death
she would receive half
of his half of L And A Toys,
right? Yes.
Now, you owe Tony Costa money.
And you were trying
to sell your wife's
share of the store.
That's against the law.
You can't sell a person's
inherited possession
with-without their permission.
They'll put you
in prison for that.
But I guess you were desperate.
I suppose, yeah.
You knew that if
she divorced you
before she got her inheritance,
you'd never see a dime of it.
Now, wait a minute...
And-and when you got wind
of the divorce,
you didn't waste any time.
You took her keys,
put on some kind of gloves,
slipped in the toy store,
took-took Steven
Abbot's letter opener,
slipped up behind
your brother-in-law
and stabbed him to death.
That is not true! Objection!
Assumes facts not in evidence.
It's argumentative.
I have proof, Your Honor.
Overruled.
Proof, Mr. Matlock?
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir, right here.
These pictures, which I'd
like entered into evidence
as defense exhibits "C" and "D."
Now, this first picture,
as you can see,
is a picture of Santa Claus.
See? See? Can you
see it? Can you see it?
Picture of Santa Claus.
Taken about four hours
before the murder.
Now, the second one
is a blowup of the same.
What I wanted you to see
was what was in
that display case
behind Santa Claus.
It's one of those
tiny calculators
that's also a date book.
It, you know, it-it keeps
dates, phone numbers,
appointments, stuff like that.
But, anyway, the
day after the murder...
it was gone.
It hadn't been sold or anything.
It was just gone.
Now, uh, Mr. Williams,
uh, you have a calculator
like that, don't you?
No.
Uh-uh.
Didn't I see it
when I ran into you at the bar?
You're mistaken.
I asked your wife this morning,
and she says that you have
a calculator just like this one.
Said you take it
with you everywhere.
Said you just got it.
Said you never
said where you got it.
But I bet I know
where you got it.
You got it out of
that display case
when you killed your
brother-in-law, didn't you?
That is not true.
Empty your pockets.
No! Objection!
Your Honor,
I-I believe that this witness
possess that piece of evidence
which is critical
to my client's defense.
Empty your
pockets, Mr. Williams.
Just...
just the inside
left pocket there.
Well...
It's just a coincidence.
No.
No.
And a comparison
of the serial numbers
will prove it.
Bet on it.
We're gonna bring a man out here
that I know you
all want to meet.
Now, who is that man?
Santa Claus!
Now, now, let me explain.
The main Santa...
the main Santa is
real busy tonight.
I'm talking real busy.
So he couldn't come.
Well, what he did
was, what he did was
he picked out a friend of his
from our very own
town to be him.
Who? Who is it? Who is it?
Who is it? Who is it?
You want to know who?
Santa Claus!
Now, now, let me explain
about our Santa Claus.
You see, he's new.
He's new and he's inexperienced.
Now, he-he may...
he may act like
he doesn't like what he's doing,
but don't let that bother you.
Don't let that bother you.
When he gives you a
present, give him a kiss.
Yeah. Okay?
Maybe someday he'll
like it, too, what say?
All right.
Here he is,
the man of the hour...
a little elf himself...
Santa Claus!
♪ Dashing through the snow ♪
♪ In a one-horse open sleigh ♪
♪ O're the fields we go ♪
♪ Laughing all the
way, ha, ha, ha ♪
♪ Bells on bobtail ring ♪
♪ Making spirits bright ♪
♪ What fun it is
to ride and sing ♪
♪ A sleighing song tonight ♪
♪ Oh, jingle
bells, jingle bells ♪
♪ Jingle all the way ♪
♪ Oh, what fun... ♪
How you like it so far?