Perry Mason (1957–1966): Season 3, Episode 13 - The Case of the Wayward Wife - full transcript
Walking down the street, Korean War veteran Arthur Poe is shocked to see a book about the war displayed, 'written' by Ben Sutton who was with him in the war. The book is a bestseller but is actually based on a diary Poe kept in the war.
Help you, sir?
Oh, Ordeal. It's
phenomenal, isn't it?
Phenomenal?
Yes. Staying number one
on the bestseller
list for so long now.
I understand they've
sold it for pictures,
and they're going
to adapt it for a play.
It's a story about three
American prisoners
in a Korean prison camp.
Yeah, yeah. Here.
Yes, sir. Four ninety-five,
plus tax, out of 10.
Sir, your change.
Ahead, Freedom Bells
ahead of Down 'n' Out.
It's Freedom Bells a half
length, then Down 'n' Out.
It's Freedom Bells
and Down 'n' Out.
Across the finish
line, it's Freedom Bells,
the winner by a
length and a half.
Hello, Harry.
Artie.
Artie Poe.
That's right, Harry.
Artie Poe, back from the dead.
We thought you were dead, Artie.
We thought they got you.
"We?"
Ben Sutton and me.
I know Ben Sutton
must have thought so.
What do you know about this?
Heh. Yeah, I heard.
How about Ben writing a book.
He didn't.
What? I did.
That diary I kept
all those months.
Oh, yeah.
You mean, this is yours.
But Ben's name.
He took the diary when
he thought I was dead.
He published it
under his own name.
You haven't heard
about it, Harry?
I never read the book.
I haven't seen Ben since
before he was married,
couple of years ago.
Artie, where you going?
I found you.
Now, I'm going
to find Ben Sutton.
No. You got it all wrong, Art.
I... I heard the
shot, saw you fall.
You've got to believe me.
I came back to help.
You came back for my diary.
Oh, I took it, sure.
Why not? I thought
you were dead.
No. You thought I was dying.
Fair game.
Well, I was.
The doctors tell me we all are.
Some of us fast and some slow.
Now, look, I... I want
to do the right thing.
But right now... It's
easy to do the right thing.
All you have to do
is call your publisher,
your theatrical agent,
your picture agent.
Tell them you stole my property,
and then turn over all the
money you stole from me.
I can't.
I'll have to find a way
to make it up to you.
And I haven't any
money. I'm flat.
But I'll try to get you some.
I'll try to get you 5 or 10,000
to carry you along.
I swear I thought you were dead.
I took the diary...
All right, Ben.
You figure out how to handle it.
And I'll take that 10,000...
on account.
Oh.
Sorry, Ben. I didn't
know you had company.
It's all right.
Uh... this is Arthur Poe,
Sylvia.
One of the men.
My wife.
One of "the men"?
In the book.
Arthur has an appointment.
Oh.
Well, I hope we see
you soon, Mr. Poe.
Well, thank you, Mrs. Sutton.
You're very gracious.
Shall we say tomorrow
evening, 10:00?
Excuse me.
Sylvia, I need $10,000.
I haven't got it.
All right. Then I'll have
to ask your brother for it.
No.
One or the other.
Ben, you leave Gil alone.
I don't want you making
any more demands on him.
Where are you going?
To visit an old friend... first.
Here you are.
Thanks.
Come back again.
Looks like he found you.
Of course he did.
I wasn't hiding.
Like a ghost, he was.
Putting that book down.
You told me he was dead.
I thought he was.
I wouldn't have left him
there if I thought he was alive.
Wouldn't you?
I've got to give him $10,000.
That's why you're here.
That's right.
Just give it to you.
Just give it back to me.
Oh, I can't, Ben.
The ponies have been
treating me real bad.
Now, you get it.
And get it before the
banks close tomorrow.
You don't want this
whole thing coming out
any more than I do.
Do you, partner?
Running away won't help.
Sylvia!
Why haven't you spoken
to Gilbert about the 10,000?
As a matter of fact,
we did talk it over, Ben.
And weighed all sides
of the question, I trust?
There are just so many
trips you can make to the well,
old fellow, before it goes dry.
I am in a most
precarious position.
I don't even know if
the money will help me,
but I've got to have it.
Too bad, but
that's the way it is.
Everything I have...
everything my
wife had, is in hock.
The whole world's in hock.
You know why?
You, old fellow.
I promise you...
if my world's in ruins...
I'll crash it down
around all our heads.
Sylvia. Sylvia.
Gil, I can't.
I can't go on living with him.
I can't.
I tried to stop him
from coming here, Gil...
It's all right. It's all right.
My brother,
Gilbert... Gilbert Ames
u-used to be pretty wild.
He's married now
and settled down,
but... about a year
and a half ago,
he was involved in an
automobile accident.
The victim was...
badly injured.
Automobile accident?
Yes. Gil hit a pedestrian.
A woman.
Was the accident reported?
No.
And your husband's
been using this knowledge
to get money from you.
Yes. How much
have you given him?
Fourteen thousand
dollars in all.
Gil's given him a
considerably larger sum.
Now he wants $10,000 more.
Otherwise, he'll
tell the police.
It wasn't Gil's
fault, Mr. Mason.
The woman dashed out
from between two cars.
There was no way
to avoid hitting her.
And we've been
more than generous.
W-we paid all of her
hospital bills, surgery.
Money every month.
All right.
What can I do for you now?
How can I stop my husband?
By refusing to pay
him any more blackmail.
Then what?
You don't know him.
All he can do is
to go to the police.
My advice is for
you to see them first.
Or for your brother
to see them first.
I see.
Mr. Mason, I...
I... I think I'll go to Palm
Springs for a day or two.
Get away from the city, Ben,
and... try to get this thing
straightened out in my own mind.
I think that's a good idea.
When you've made your decision,
why, get in touch with me.
I've read her husband's book.
It's a grim book,
but told with humor.
A gentle book filled with
humanity and warmth...
tragedies all around.
Funny how you can't
tell what a man is like
by the way he writes.
Hm.
I'd like to read it.
I'll see that you get a copy.
Good evening.
Hello.
Yes, speaking.
Hello, Marian. What...?
What?
Gil did what?
Killed Ben with
the fireplace poker.
He just called from your house.
He said he wasn't coming home,
and that we shouldn't
try to find him.
And that he wasn't going
to tell the police anything.
D... Don't you tell the
police anything either.
I'll think of something.
Nobody knows about
this yet, do they?
No.
M-Marian, if Gil calls,
tell him not to say
anything to anybody.
Now do you
understand that, Marian?
Yes. Yes.
Bless you, Sylvia.
Goodbye.
Tsk.
Hello?
Hey, I want a cab.
Yeah, Seward and Eleanor.
Hm. Make it fast, huh?
Here.
Hey, I can't change this.
Just hang on to it.
I'll be right back as soon as
I take care of what I have to.
Oh! Oh.
What...?
Why don't you look
where you're going?
Take me back to Seward Avenue.
Open up.
Mrs. Sylvia Sutton? Yes?
You'll have to come with us.
Where? W-w... What for?
Sheriff's office.
We're holding you
for Lieutenant Tragg,
L.A. Homicide.
Cleaning maid saw you take
her dress and her bandanna.
She reported it to the clerk.
When Lieutenant Tragg started
to check on your whereabouts,
why, it was easy
enough to pin you down.
I see.
I'm not very adept
at contriving, am I?
You made a pretty good effort.
Were you just trying
to confuse the police?
I hoped I could throw suspicion
on a woman who
didn't really exist.
Trying to protect
your brother again.
Where is he?
I don't know.
Your sister-in-law did
say that Gilbert killed him?
Yes.
Mr. Mason, she
called me at 7:30.
Now, I didn't even get to
my house till after 10:00.
Can't...? Can't they
tell when Ben died?
Yes.
Well, then they can't
believe I killed him.
Mrs. Sutton...
your husband died just
about the time you arrived.
You're sure?
The police crime
laboratory is sure.
Well, that proves
that Gil didn't kill him.
No.
It only proves that Gilbert
didn't kill him at 7:30.
Mr. Mason, will you help us?
The, uh, man you bumped
into outside the house.
Arthur Poe.
Did he recognize you?
I don't know.
The woman victim
of the accident?
Her name is Kirby.
She lives in Bellflower.
I'll try to help
you, Mrs. Sutton.
We'll need to find out all
we can about the Kirbys
and the Ames.
All right.
Della, will you come in, please?
Paul, use all the men you
need to find Mr. Gilbert Ames.
I also want you
to look up a chap
by the name of Arthur Poe.
Can't tell you where to start,
except he does have a limp.
Yeah. A decided limp.
He's waiting in the
reception room now.
Oh, um, tell him to come in.
You got everything?
Mm-hm. Enough to get started.
Check with you later.
Good.
Uh, come in, Mr. Poe.
Mr. Poe, Mr. Mason. Mason.
Uh, check these
over for me, will you?
Eh, won't you sit down?
Right over here.
Now, what can I do for you?
I understand that you
represent Sylvia Sutton.
I...
Oh, um... have you read Ordeal?
Oh, yes. Why?
It's my book. I wrote it.
You wrote it?
Yes. It was my ordeal.
Ordeal, Mr. Poe?
An ordeal not of dying...
but of being afraid.
The, um... book ends
just as all three men
begin their escape.
We, um... We don't know
what happens to them.
You are testing me, Mr. Mason.
All right.
If the characters are true...
then what happens
to them is inevitable.
The book... my diary...
was written in a Communist
prison camp in North Korea.
On the night of the escape,
we'd gotten about
a mile from camp.
Uh, you say "we."
Who were the other two?
Ben Sutton and Harry Wilson.
He runs a cigar store downtown.
Go on, Mr. Poe.
Well, Harry had gotten
a little ahead of us.
Patrol caught up with
Ben and me, and I was hit.
You were recaptured?
Yes. I was in solitary
confinement for three years
and imprisoned in
China for several more.
And what about the diary?
Well, I, uh...
I thought the Communists
had destroyed it.
It was a pretty big
shock, Mr. Mason, to...
see that book in a
bookstore window.
So then you went
looking for Ben Sutton.
Yes.
Mrs. Sutton said she
met you at their house
night before last.
Yes, that's right.
She said you promised to
return to the house last night
about 10:00.
I did return. Only it
was a little after 10.
Uh, what were you returning
to the Sutton house for?
Oh, Ben was to have
figured out the best way
to, um... handle the situation.
I see.
And without his confession
that Ordeal was stolen from you,
you may have some difficulty
in proving authorship.
Yes.
Oh, uh, what about
this, uh, third party?
I talked with
Harry this morning.
In return for remembering
that I wrote Ordeal,
he wants one-third of my
future and $25,000 in advance.
What is your object
in coming to see me?
To ask you to help me
establish ownership of Ordeal.
My, uh...
sympathies are with you...
but there's a possibility
of a conflict of interest.
Yes, yes, I understand.
But let me explain.
There's one indisputable
way I can prove authorship.
And that is?
The diary, in my
handwriting. If Ben kept it.
Now, I realize that Mrs. Sutton
might be loath to
admit its existence,
if she has possession of it,
since I would have a claim
against her husband's estate.
Most people are honest, Mr. Poe.
Forgive me...
but I have found that
most people can resist
anything except temptation.
So will you assure
Mrs. Sutton...
that I will relinquish
any pecuniary claim
in return for the recognition
to which I'm entitled.
Thank you.
Tassel, and the
morning line will read:
Demagogue, ten. Saint Jo, eight.
Black Bart, three and a half.
Princelet, two and a half...
Be with you in a second.
Six. Playbill, 20.
Decatur, five...
My name is Mason, Mr. Wilson.
I'd like to ask you
a few questions.
Well, I know very few
answers, Mr. Mason.
When was the last time
you saw Ben Sutton?
Couple of years ago.
I understand he
played the horses too.
Did he? I wouldn't know.
Who wrote Ordeal, Mr. Wilson?
Ben Sutton or Arthur Poe?
Oh, I see you talked to Artie.
He's been after me to make
some kind of a statement about that.
Fine. If it'll help him...
and me.
Fine. I'd be glad to.
But you wouldn't if
it wouldn't help you.
If you see Artie, tell him he
had me pegged in the book.
I'm the realist,
out for the buck.
He did write it then.
Oh, sure.
Just between us, of course.
No.
No, I haven't heard from him.
You do want to help
your sister-in-law,
don't you, Mrs. Ames?
Yes, of course, if I can.
You know, it just doesn't
seem likely to me that Gilbert
would have disappeared
without calling on you
from time to time.
Without trying to get in
touch with you in some way.
He called me just that one time.
Tell me exactly what he said.
I can't really remember.
Didn't he say that he
had killed Ben Sutton
with a fireplace poker?
I don't remember, Mr. Mason.
He was very excited.
He could have said that Ben
was killed with the fireplace poker,
not that he had killed him.
Anyway, Ben didn't die
from the fireplace poker.
He died from a
blow with a bottle.
When you phoned to Palm Springs,
precisely what did you
tell your sister-in-law?
I don't remember, Mr. Mason.
I might have said something
that Sylvia misunderstood.
What did you do
after the call to Sylvia?
Nothing.
I stayed right here.
Why?
Didn't you go to
the Sutton home?
No.
Mrs. Ames...
exactly what was your
relationship with Ben Sutton?
No relationship. I hated him.
Why are you asking me all
these questions, Mr. Mason?
What are you getting at?
Are you trying to make it
seem as though I killed Ben?
Or that Gil did?
I'm trying to get at the truth.
Now, why is Gilbert in hiding?
You must know. He's
trying to protect his sister.
What else could it be?
It could be that he's trying
to protect you, Mrs. Ames.
The closest estimate I
can make on the amount
of Benjamin Sutton's earnings
during the past two years
is $225,000.
That seems ample.
You're so right.
However, it gets
whittled down some
with taxes, agents'
fees and living expenses.
But still leave a
substantial amount.
It's almost inconceivable
that he would be
hard-pressed for $10,000.
And, of course,
that is not counting
the money he took from his wife
and his brother-in-law,
Gilbert Ames.
That was blackmail.
What have you
got on the accident?
Was it hit-and-run?
Mm-hm. Technically.
Only because
they didn't report it.
However, Mrs. Kirby
has been receiving
this $500 money
order every month.
What did the accident do to her?
Paralyzed her.
And incidentally, there
won't be any more operations.
Celia Kirby is never
going to get any better.
She's permanently
paralyzed from the waist down.
And I guess that's why Mr. Kirby
decided to unburden himself.
About what, Paul?
He said he wasn't gonna
take any more money
from either Mrs.
Sutton or Mr. Ames.
He said he never wanted
the money anyway,
except that his wife
needed it for the operations.
And now that there aren't
gonna be any more operations,
he doesn't care if the
whole world knows:
It was not Gilbert Ames
who struck his wife.
It wasn't?
Who was it then?
Your client struck her, Perry.
Then Sylvia Sutton wasn't
protecting her brother.
Her brother, Gil,
was protecting her.
So it would seem.
And Ben Sutton was
blackmailing Sylvia.
Paul...
I'm not sure we want
Gilbert Ames found now.
You better call off your men.
All right.
Hello.
Speaking.
Oh, I see.
Okay. Thanks a lot.
It's too late, Perry.
Gilbert Ames has been found...
by Lieutenant Tragg.
Upon examination of
the body of the deceased,
w-we found bits of crystal
embedded in the skull.
Uh, these came from
the shattered decanter.
Unconsciousness
was, uh, instantaneous.
Death within, uh,
five to ten minutes.
And what was the
time of death, doctor?
Between 9:30 and 10:30
on the evening of
Wednesday, October 14th.
Thank you, doctor. Your witness.
Doctor, was the fatal
wound the only blow?
No. The skin had been
broken at the hairline
above the left eye
by, uh, some hard,
blunt instrument.
A fireplace poker, perhaps?
It could have been a poker.
Was this wound serious?
Probably caused unconsciousness,
but it, uh, wasn't fatal.
Do you have any idea what time
the blow could
have been inflicted?
Two or three hours
prior to death, I'd say.
Thank you,
doctor. That'll be all.
I call Miss Croft to
the stand, please.
And will you tell
us what you saw
on the night of October 14th?
Well, I saw her...
That one. Uh, the defendant.
Making off with
my dress and scarf.
Uh, of course, I only got
a glimpse of the dress,
but, uh, I really saw the scarf.
There's no mistaking it.
And she was
shoving it in her pocket
as she hurried down the stairs.
And then what did
you do, Miss Croft?
Well, I reported
it. That's what.
And I must say, it gave me
a great deal of pleasure too.
After 33 years at
this kind of work,
it's the first time that
a cleaning woman
ever accused a
guest of stealing.
Ah. Yes, I see what you mean.
Now, I show you this
dress and this scarf.
I ask if you can
identify them for us.
Sure.
That's them.
Mine.
I had an appointment
with Ben Sutton.
I arrived a little late.
A taxi was idling at the curb,
and as I started up the walk,
why, a woman ran from the
house and bumped into me.
And how was this woman dressed?
Well, she was wearing
a, um, green print dress
and a scarf, or, um, bandanna.
I show you now...
this scarf and this dress,
marked Exhibits G and H,
and I ask if you recognize them.
Yes. They look
like the articles worn
by the woman who bumped into me.
I see.
Go on, Mr. Poe.
What happened next?
Well, I went up to the
door and rang the bell,
but received no response.
She'd left the door unlocked,
so I went in, found Ben Sutton,
and then called the police.
And what time was that?
About a quarter after 10.
Thank you, sir.
Your witness.
Now, Mr. Poe...
what was the purpose of
your visit with Ben Sutton?
We were to discuss
how Ben would handle
the rather, um,
delicate question
of acknowledging
that the book Ordeal
had been written not by him...
but by me.
What was the
condition of the room
in which the body was found?
The living room?
It was a shambles.
As though there had
been a fight of some kind?
Well, yes, but,
uh, not entirely.
As though someone had
been searching for something?
Well, I'm not a
detective, Mr. Mason,
but it would appear
that way to me.
Cabinet drawers
were pulled open,
the contents scattered.
Uh, pillows thrown
around the room.
That sort of thing.
Thank you, Mr. Poe.
That'll be all.
Stand down, Mr. Poe.
Now, lieutenant, I
call your attention
to the hem of this
dress, Exhibit G,
and to the stain thereon.
I ask you if this stain
was subjected to
laboratory analysis.
Yes it was. It's a bloodstain.
Oh, was it determined
whether or not it's a bloodstain
of the same type as
that of the defendant?
No.
Is it the same blood
type as that of Miss Croft,
who owned this
dress? No. No, sir.
Well, what is then
the significance of this
bloodstain, lieutenant?
It's the same blood
type as the deceased's.
Thank you, lieutenant.
Your witness.
Lieutenant...
the murder weapon
introduced earlier
is this cut-glass
liquor decanter,
is it not? Yes.
Lieutenant, if you were
going to swing this decanter
at someone, how
would you hold it?
Well, by the neck.
You mean here?
Of course.
But there were no fingerprints
found at this point, however,
were there?
No. Defendant's
prints were found
on some of the large
pieces from the lower part.
What else was found
in the murder room?
An unfired .38-caliber
revolver on the floor.
Did you have an examination
made of the carpet near the body?
Yes. What did you find?
Well, we found, uh, bloodstains
and, uh, traces of liquor.
Then apparently this
decanter was full of liquor
when it struck the deceased.
Yes.
Now, lieutenant...
I ask whether Exhibit G,
the, uh, green print
dress, was tested for liquor.
Yes, it was. And we
found no trace of it.
Uh, don't you think it a
strange circumstance,
lieutenant... that, uh...
if the defendant did break
a full decanter of liquor,
that not one drop of it
would have splashed on her?
Well, it is improbable.
But it could happen that way.
Thank you, lieutenant.
That will be all.
Stand down, lieutenant.
I call Mr. Alan Kirby, please.
And while it was her own fault
that the accident happened...
it was against the
law not reporting it.
In that brief second
before the car hit...
Object, Your Honor.
On the basis that this
is not best evidence.
Is Mrs. Kirby available?
Your Honor, Mrs. Kirby is
paralyzed from the waist down.
It would work a
severe hardship on her
to have to bring her to court.
However, the
prosecution does have
an affidavit from
Mrs. Kirby, if...
Mr. Mason?
For the purposes
of this hearing,
defense will
accept an affidavit.
Very well.
Clerk will read the affidavit.
Dated "Friday,
October the 16th."
"On the day of March
the 14th of this year,
"I was struck by a
green convertible car
"on Mill Drive, near
Wilshire Boulevard.
"The driver of the car
was a woman whose name
I subsequently learned
was Sylvia Sutton."
Now, Mr. Ames. By your
continued reluctance to testify,
you are being considered
a hostile witness.
The prosecutor may ask
you leading questions.
You will answer to
the best of your ability
on pain of contempt of court.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Mr. Ames...
in subsequent conversations
with Ben Sutton, the deceased,
didn't he mention your
sister, the defendant?
Yes, of course he mentioned her.
As a matter of fact,
didn't Ben Sutton tell you
that if your sister
asked him for a divorce,
he would reveal the details
of her hit-and-run accident?
Yes.
All right.
Now, Mr. Ames...
at approximately 7:30 on
the night of October 14th,
didn't you phone your wife
and tell her that Ben
Sutton was dead, murdered?
Yes.
Why did you find it necessary
to leave town, Mr. Ames?
I...
I was afraid I'd be blamed.
Isn't it a fact that you
were afraid your sister
had killed Ben Sutton,
and you left town to avoid
being questioned about it?
Object.
Incompetent, irrelevant
and immaterial.
Your witness.
Um, before I
proceed, Your Honor,
among the spectators
there's a prospective witness.
I ask that this person be
removed from the courtroom
during my cross-examination
of Gilbert Ames.
Uh, to whom do
you refer, counselor?
Uh, Mrs. Marian Ames.
Bailiff will escort Mrs.
Ames out of the courtroom.
Uh, Mr. Ames...
you testified that
you called your wife
at approximately 7:30.
Yes.
You had examined Benjamin Sutton
and mistaken him for dead.
You told your wife
that you had killed him,
that you were not
going to the police,
that you were going into hiding.
It wasn't exactly like that.
Well, how was it?
I was very excited.
I-I did think Ben was dead.
The poker was close by, and
he didn't seem to be breathing.
So I... I called my wife
and said Ben had been killed.
Then your wife
misunderstood you.
Well, as I said, I might
not have been coherent.
It was a shock to me.
Now, uh...
how did you get into
your sister's house?
Was the door open?
No. I... I have a key.
And what was your
purpose in going there?
I...
I wanted to have
a talk with Ben.
About what?
He was...
He was threatening Sylvia
and me with exposure...
about the accident
with Mrs. Kirby.
All right.
Now you were inside the house.
Was the murder room disturbed?
Was there any
evidence of a search?
No.
Now, we've heard
testimony here today
that you left the
murder room at 7:30,
and it bore no
evidence of a search.
Yet a few minutes after 10:00...
Arthur Poe entered the room,
and it did bear
evidence of a search.
Now, how do you
account for that?
Well, it would seem
someone was there
in between those times.
Could it have been your wife?
No. How could you be so sure?
What about before you arrived?
Couldn't she have
gone...? Your Honor.
I object to this
line of questioning.
It's argumentative.
It calls for a conclusion
of the witness.
Sustained.
I, um...
I'm finished with this witness.
I call Mrs. Marian Ames.
Bailiff, Mrs. Ames.
You may stand down.
I called her in Palm Springs.
I said Gilbert had
called me and told me
that Ben Sutton
had been murdered.
And what did she say?
She said not to say
anything to anybody,
and... that she'd
take care of it.
Now, Mrs. Ames...
between 7:30 and 10:00
on the night of the murder,
were you in the
Sutton home at all?
No.
Thank you, Mrs.
Ames. That'll be all.
Cross-examine.
Mrs. Ames... I'm going to
ask you a few questions,
uh, pertaining to the
telephone conversation
you had with your husband
on the night of the murder.
Now...
did he say that he had
murdered Ben Sutton?
No. I-I misunderstood him.
I was terribly upset. I'm sorry.
Did he say that he was
going to remain in hiding
because he was
worried over the questions
the police might ask you?
About me?
Did he say that?
Gil.
Answer the question, please.
Yes.
I told him I didn't do anything,
but he didn't take the
time to listen. He hung up.
Then you deliberately
lied to the defendant
when you called her
that night in Palm Springs.
Yes. I... I wanted her home.
I was afraid.
Why did your husband think
that you had struck Ben Sutton
with that fireplace poker?
Why, Mrs. Ames?
Because I had been
to the house earlier.
For what reason?
To talk to Ben.
Earlier when?
About 5:00.
Well, what happened?
Nothing. He didn't
even know I was there.
I-I mean there was some
talk going on in the study.
I... heard voices and looked in.
I realized he was busy, and...
Besides, my courage
was just about gone,
so I turned around
and went away.
What were you going to
talk to Mr. Sutton about?
Must I?
No, Mrs. Ames.
Thank you. That will be all.
Uh, just a moment, Mrs. Ames.
I have a few
questions on redirect.
If it please the court.
Mrs. Ames...
this conversation that
you overheard in the study?
What was it about?
Well, I only heard a few words.
Something about
royalties and plays and...
And what?
And that he wouldn't
have to put up with...
With Sylvia anymore.
Uh, who was talking,
uh, Mrs. Ames?
Ben Sutton.
And to whom was he talking?
Well, I don't know him by name,
but...
that's him sitting
right over there.
Thank you, Mrs. Ames.
I think that will be all.
I have no other questions.
Then I call Harry Wilson
to the stand, please.
Step down, please, Mrs. Ames.
Mr. Wilson, what specifically
did Ben Sutton tell you
on the afternoon of the murder?
He said his wife was
trying to get rid of him,
and he wouldn't let her go.
Because she had an
income from a trust.
What else?
Well, the reason
he had a hold on her
was because she'd
been in an accident
and hadn't reported
it to the police.
Go on, Mr. Wilson.
Well, Ben wasn't above
using anybody he could
to get what he wanted.
Put pressure on
the whole family:
his wife's brother,
sister-in-law.
He was begging for a
faceful of glass, you ask me.
I don't blame his wife a
bit... That's all. That's all.
Thank you very much,
Mr. Wilson. Your witness.
Now, Mr. Wilson...
what was the purpose
of your visit to
Mr. Sutton that afternoon?
Just to have a chat.
But surely not about his wife?
Something about
books and royalties,
wasn't it?
We mentioned the book.
Didn't you and Ben Sutton
talk about its adaptation
into a Broadway play...
and the ensuing royalties,
which would have made him
independent of his wife forever?
Yeah, he did mention
something like that.
Wasn't he making you
an offer, Mr. Wilson?
Yeah.
What was it?
He wanted me to back him up.
He was gonna bull it through
that he was the
author of Ordeal.
If I said so too, then Artie
Poe couldn't prove otherwise.
And you accepted his offer?
Yeah. MASON: And
went directly home.
That's it.
And why did you return later on?
What?
I didn't.
You play the horses, Mr. Wilson?
It's my only vice.
How much would you
estimate that you have lost
in the last two years?
At least $5,000.
I think it only fair to
tell you, Mr. Wilson,
that I have information
concerning your losses
in excess of $100,000...
in cash.
Now, where did you
get all that money?
I gambled.
I won it gambling.
You were gambling
with the law, Mr. Wilson.
Not with money.
I'm afraid you lost.
You've got it wrong.
Ben Sutton's income from that
book was more than $200,000.
Yet he was continually broke.
Uh, someone was draining him.
Was that someone you?
No.
Wasn't that the reason
you returned to his house
between 8:00 and 10:00
on the night of the murder?
No. Why should I go back there?
There's some little mystery
about the...
murder room being
ransacked, Mr. Wilson.
What's that got to do with me?
I believe there was something
in that room that you wanted.
Something that you found.
What?
The diary.
What diary?
The diary that proved
who wrote Ordeal.
Could have been
anybody going back for that.
Anybody who knew
about the diary.
That means only three people:
Ben Sutton, Arthur Poe and you.
Wasn't Sutton because
he already had it.
It wasn't Arthur Poe,
because he came to my office
the next morning, and
wanted me to find it for him.
Well it wasn't me.
Wasn't it?
When Poe talked to you the
morning after the murder...
didn't you ask him
for a third of his future.
Meaning, a third of his income
from then on?
Now you're getting
into something else.
And didn't you demand
a $25,000 advance?
Pretty stiff terms for
your support, Mr. Wilson.
Unless you had the
diary in your possession
to back your demands.
Okay.
I did go back.
You did.
I saw Ben lying out
there cold on the floor.
I, uh, figured this was
a pretty good chance
to get my hands on that diary.
What time was that?
I don't know.
Nine, 9:30.
The coroner set
the time of death
as between 9:30 and 10:30.
Now, why don't you make it 9:30?
Oh, no.
Oh, no, I didn't kill him.
But you're a realist,
just out for a buck.
And you didn't kill him?
No, I didn't.
Sure, I was there,
and I took the diary.
And I took all that
money from him.
And I was
blackmailing him, and...
Your Honor, the
district attorney's office
would be interested
in looking into this.
Oh, now, wait.
Now, wait a minute.
Look... I'll go
over it all again.
I'll tell you the whole thing
again, so you'll understand.
I didn't kill him.
He was lying there.
I didn't kill him.
I didn't kill him!
I didn't kill him!
I didn't! I didn't!
Bailiff.
Come in.
Hello, Mr. Mason.
Mr. Poe.
You're writing?
Yes.
It must be difficult to
find the right phrase
to tell the publisher
that you were the
author of Ordeal.
Yes, I guess so.
Of course, uh...
you were the one that
hit Sutton with that poker.
How do you know that?
Well, if Sutton and Harry
Wilson had cooked up a scheme...
and Sutton had told you flatly
that he would not
acknowledge you
as the author of Ordeal...
That's very astute.
There was a fight.
I'm ashamed to
say I lost my temper.
I'm... somewhat handicapped.
I guess training makes you
seize the nearest weapon.
The poker, of course.
And, um... then you left him
and, uh...
went away.
Yes.
Why did you go back?
I wasn't sure whether the
poker had killed him or not.
And you couldn't
leave him there dying...
as he left you to die in Korea.
He had regained consciousness?
Yes.
And he attacked you.
I guess he realized that
no amount of collusion
could hide the truth.
He was intent on
murder, Mr. Mason.
What happened?
He pulled a gun out of a drawer.
I managed to knock it out
of his hand with my cane.
As he lunged for the gun...
not being as agile
as I used to be...
there was only one thing to do.
I grabbed the whisky
decanter and threw it at him.
That explains the unfired gun.
Then I heard Mrs.
Sutton's taxi drive up,
so I went out the back,
circled around to the front,
as if to keep my
10:00 appointment.
And as if you had
no conscience at all,
you sat there in that courtroom
while that same Mrs. Sutton
was being tried for a
crime you'd committed.
So your ordeal
isn't over, is it?
Yes, it's over.
I would never have
allowed her to be convicted.
You see, Mr. Mason, I've
come to terms with fear.
I'm living here at the hospital
because I only
have a short time left.
Maybe... six months.
That's why money
meant nothing to you.
You just wanted recognition.
I guess a man's vanity
goes with him right to the end.
It was self-defense.
Oh, Ordeal. It's
phenomenal, isn't it?
Phenomenal?
Yes. Staying number one
on the bestseller
list for so long now.
I understand they've
sold it for pictures,
and they're going
to adapt it for a play.
It's a story about three
American prisoners
in a Korean prison camp.
Yeah, yeah. Here.
Yes, sir. Four ninety-five,
plus tax, out of 10.
Sir, your change.
Ahead, Freedom Bells
ahead of Down 'n' Out.
It's Freedom Bells a half
length, then Down 'n' Out.
It's Freedom Bells
and Down 'n' Out.
Across the finish
line, it's Freedom Bells,
the winner by a
length and a half.
Hello, Harry.
Artie.
Artie Poe.
That's right, Harry.
Artie Poe, back from the dead.
We thought you were dead, Artie.
We thought they got you.
"We?"
Ben Sutton and me.
I know Ben Sutton
must have thought so.
What do you know about this?
Heh. Yeah, I heard.
How about Ben writing a book.
He didn't.
What? I did.
That diary I kept
all those months.
Oh, yeah.
You mean, this is yours.
But Ben's name.
He took the diary when
he thought I was dead.
He published it
under his own name.
You haven't heard
about it, Harry?
I never read the book.
I haven't seen Ben since
before he was married,
couple of years ago.
Artie, where you going?
I found you.
Now, I'm going
to find Ben Sutton.
No. You got it all wrong, Art.
I... I heard the
shot, saw you fall.
You've got to believe me.
I came back to help.
You came back for my diary.
Oh, I took it, sure.
Why not? I thought
you were dead.
No. You thought I was dying.
Fair game.
Well, I was.
The doctors tell me we all are.
Some of us fast and some slow.
Now, look, I... I want
to do the right thing.
But right now... It's
easy to do the right thing.
All you have to do
is call your publisher,
your theatrical agent,
your picture agent.
Tell them you stole my property,
and then turn over all the
money you stole from me.
I can't.
I'll have to find a way
to make it up to you.
And I haven't any
money. I'm flat.
But I'll try to get you some.
I'll try to get you 5 or 10,000
to carry you along.
I swear I thought you were dead.
I took the diary...
All right, Ben.
You figure out how to handle it.
And I'll take that 10,000...
on account.
Oh.
Sorry, Ben. I didn't
know you had company.
It's all right.
Uh... this is Arthur Poe,
Sylvia.
One of the men.
My wife.
One of "the men"?
In the book.
Arthur has an appointment.
Oh.
Well, I hope we see
you soon, Mr. Poe.
Well, thank you, Mrs. Sutton.
You're very gracious.
Shall we say tomorrow
evening, 10:00?
Excuse me.
Sylvia, I need $10,000.
I haven't got it.
All right. Then I'll have
to ask your brother for it.
No.
One or the other.
Ben, you leave Gil alone.
I don't want you making
any more demands on him.
Where are you going?
To visit an old friend... first.
Here you are.
Thanks.
Come back again.
Looks like he found you.
Of course he did.
I wasn't hiding.
Like a ghost, he was.
Putting that book down.
You told me he was dead.
I thought he was.
I wouldn't have left him
there if I thought he was alive.
Wouldn't you?
I've got to give him $10,000.
That's why you're here.
That's right.
Just give it to you.
Just give it back to me.
Oh, I can't, Ben.
The ponies have been
treating me real bad.
Now, you get it.
And get it before the
banks close tomorrow.
You don't want this
whole thing coming out
any more than I do.
Do you, partner?
Running away won't help.
Sylvia!
Why haven't you spoken
to Gilbert about the 10,000?
As a matter of fact,
we did talk it over, Ben.
And weighed all sides
of the question, I trust?
There are just so many
trips you can make to the well,
old fellow, before it goes dry.
I am in a most
precarious position.
I don't even know if
the money will help me,
but I've got to have it.
Too bad, but
that's the way it is.
Everything I have...
everything my
wife had, is in hock.
The whole world's in hock.
You know why?
You, old fellow.
I promise you...
if my world's in ruins...
I'll crash it down
around all our heads.
Sylvia. Sylvia.
Gil, I can't.
I can't go on living with him.
I can't.
I tried to stop him
from coming here, Gil...
It's all right. It's all right.
My brother,
Gilbert... Gilbert Ames
u-used to be pretty wild.
He's married now
and settled down,
but... about a year
and a half ago,
he was involved in an
automobile accident.
The victim was...
badly injured.
Automobile accident?
Yes. Gil hit a pedestrian.
A woman.
Was the accident reported?
No.
And your husband's
been using this knowledge
to get money from you.
Yes. How much
have you given him?
Fourteen thousand
dollars in all.
Gil's given him a
considerably larger sum.
Now he wants $10,000 more.
Otherwise, he'll
tell the police.
It wasn't Gil's
fault, Mr. Mason.
The woman dashed out
from between two cars.
There was no way
to avoid hitting her.
And we've been
more than generous.
W-we paid all of her
hospital bills, surgery.
Money every month.
All right.
What can I do for you now?
How can I stop my husband?
By refusing to pay
him any more blackmail.
Then what?
You don't know him.
All he can do is
to go to the police.
My advice is for
you to see them first.
Or for your brother
to see them first.
I see.
Mr. Mason, I...
I... I think I'll go to Palm
Springs for a day or two.
Get away from the city, Ben,
and... try to get this thing
straightened out in my own mind.
I think that's a good idea.
When you've made your decision,
why, get in touch with me.
I've read her husband's book.
It's a grim book,
but told with humor.
A gentle book filled with
humanity and warmth...
tragedies all around.
Funny how you can't
tell what a man is like
by the way he writes.
Hm.
I'd like to read it.
I'll see that you get a copy.
Good evening.
Hello.
Yes, speaking.
Hello, Marian. What...?
What?
Gil did what?
Killed Ben with
the fireplace poker.
He just called from your house.
He said he wasn't coming home,
and that we shouldn't
try to find him.
And that he wasn't going
to tell the police anything.
D... Don't you tell the
police anything either.
I'll think of something.
Nobody knows about
this yet, do they?
No.
M-Marian, if Gil calls,
tell him not to say
anything to anybody.
Now do you
understand that, Marian?
Yes. Yes.
Bless you, Sylvia.
Goodbye.
Tsk.
Hello?
Hey, I want a cab.
Yeah, Seward and Eleanor.
Hm. Make it fast, huh?
Here.
Hey, I can't change this.
Just hang on to it.
I'll be right back as soon as
I take care of what I have to.
Oh! Oh.
What...?
Why don't you look
where you're going?
Take me back to Seward Avenue.
Open up.
Mrs. Sylvia Sutton? Yes?
You'll have to come with us.
Where? W-w... What for?
Sheriff's office.
We're holding you
for Lieutenant Tragg,
L.A. Homicide.
Cleaning maid saw you take
her dress and her bandanna.
She reported it to the clerk.
When Lieutenant Tragg started
to check on your whereabouts,
why, it was easy
enough to pin you down.
I see.
I'm not very adept
at contriving, am I?
You made a pretty good effort.
Were you just trying
to confuse the police?
I hoped I could throw suspicion
on a woman who
didn't really exist.
Trying to protect
your brother again.
Where is he?
I don't know.
Your sister-in-law did
say that Gilbert killed him?
Yes.
Mr. Mason, she
called me at 7:30.
Now, I didn't even get to
my house till after 10:00.
Can't...? Can't they
tell when Ben died?
Yes.
Well, then they can't
believe I killed him.
Mrs. Sutton...
your husband died just
about the time you arrived.
You're sure?
The police crime
laboratory is sure.
Well, that proves
that Gil didn't kill him.
No.
It only proves that Gilbert
didn't kill him at 7:30.
Mr. Mason, will you help us?
The, uh, man you bumped
into outside the house.
Arthur Poe.
Did he recognize you?
I don't know.
The woman victim
of the accident?
Her name is Kirby.
She lives in Bellflower.
I'll try to help
you, Mrs. Sutton.
We'll need to find out all
we can about the Kirbys
and the Ames.
All right.
Della, will you come in, please?
Paul, use all the men you
need to find Mr. Gilbert Ames.
I also want you
to look up a chap
by the name of Arthur Poe.
Can't tell you where to start,
except he does have a limp.
Yeah. A decided limp.
He's waiting in the
reception room now.
Oh, um, tell him to come in.
You got everything?
Mm-hm. Enough to get started.
Check with you later.
Good.
Uh, come in, Mr. Poe.
Mr. Poe, Mr. Mason. Mason.
Uh, check these
over for me, will you?
Eh, won't you sit down?
Right over here.
Now, what can I do for you?
I understand that you
represent Sylvia Sutton.
I...
Oh, um... have you read Ordeal?
Oh, yes. Why?
It's my book. I wrote it.
You wrote it?
Yes. It was my ordeal.
Ordeal, Mr. Poe?
An ordeal not of dying...
but of being afraid.
The, um... book ends
just as all three men
begin their escape.
We, um... We don't know
what happens to them.
You are testing me, Mr. Mason.
All right.
If the characters are true...
then what happens
to them is inevitable.
The book... my diary...
was written in a Communist
prison camp in North Korea.
On the night of the escape,
we'd gotten about
a mile from camp.
Uh, you say "we."
Who were the other two?
Ben Sutton and Harry Wilson.
He runs a cigar store downtown.
Go on, Mr. Poe.
Well, Harry had gotten
a little ahead of us.
Patrol caught up with
Ben and me, and I was hit.
You were recaptured?
Yes. I was in solitary
confinement for three years
and imprisoned in
China for several more.
And what about the diary?
Well, I, uh...
I thought the Communists
had destroyed it.
It was a pretty big
shock, Mr. Mason, to...
see that book in a
bookstore window.
So then you went
looking for Ben Sutton.
Yes.
Mrs. Sutton said she
met you at their house
night before last.
Yes, that's right.
She said you promised to
return to the house last night
about 10:00.
I did return. Only it
was a little after 10.
Uh, what were you returning
to the Sutton house for?
Oh, Ben was to have
figured out the best way
to, um... handle the situation.
I see.
And without his confession
that Ordeal was stolen from you,
you may have some difficulty
in proving authorship.
Yes.
Oh, uh, what about
this, uh, third party?
I talked with
Harry this morning.
In return for remembering
that I wrote Ordeal,
he wants one-third of my
future and $25,000 in advance.
What is your object
in coming to see me?
To ask you to help me
establish ownership of Ordeal.
My, uh...
sympathies are with you...
but there's a possibility
of a conflict of interest.
Yes, yes, I understand.
But let me explain.
There's one indisputable
way I can prove authorship.
And that is?
The diary, in my
handwriting. If Ben kept it.
Now, I realize that Mrs. Sutton
might be loath to
admit its existence,
if she has possession of it,
since I would have a claim
against her husband's estate.
Most people are honest, Mr. Poe.
Forgive me...
but I have found that
most people can resist
anything except temptation.
So will you assure
Mrs. Sutton...
that I will relinquish
any pecuniary claim
in return for the recognition
to which I'm entitled.
Thank you.
Tassel, and the
morning line will read:
Demagogue, ten. Saint Jo, eight.
Black Bart, three and a half.
Princelet, two and a half...
Be with you in a second.
Six. Playbill, 20.
Decatur, five...
My name is Mason, Mr. Wilson.
I'd like to ask you
a few questions.
Well, I know very few
answers, Mr. Mason.
When was the last time
you saw Ben Sutton?
Couple of years ago.
I understand he
played the horses too.
Did he? I wouldn't know.
Who wrote Ordeal, Mr. Wilson?
Ben Sutton or Arthur Poe?
Oh, I see you talked to Artie.
He's been after me to make
some kind of a statement about that.
Fine. If it'll help him...
and me.
Fine. I'd be glad to.
But you wouldn't if
it wouldn't help you.
If you see Artie, tell him he
had me pegged in the book.
I'm the realist,
out for the buck.
He did write it then.
Oh, sure.
Just between us, of course.
No.
No, I haven't heard from him.
You do want to help
your sister-in-law,
don't you, Mrs. Ames?
Yes, of course, if I can.
You know, it just doesn't
seem likely to me that Gilbert
would have disappeared
without calling on you
from time to time.
Without trying to get in
touch with you in some way.
He called me just that one time.
Tell me exactly what he said.
I can't really remember.
Didn't he say that he
had killed Ben Sutton
with a fireplace poker?
I don't remember, Mr. Mason.
He was very excited.
He could have said that Ben
was killed with the fireplace poker,
not that he had killed him.
Anyway, Ben didn't die
from the fireplace poker.
He died from a
blow with a bottle.
When you phoned to Palm Springs,
precisely what did you
tell your sister-in-law?
I don't remember, Mr. Mason.
I might have said something
that Sylvia misunderstood.
What did you do
after the call to Sylvia?
Nothing.
I stayed right here.
Why?
Didn't you go to
the Sutton home?
No.
Mrs. Ames...
exactly what was your
relationship with Ben Sutton?
No relationship. I hated him.
Why are you asking me all
these questions, Mr. Mason?
What are you getting at?
Are you trying to make it
seem as though I killed Ben?
Or that Gil did?
I'm trying to get at the truth.
Now, why is Gilbert in hiding?
You must know. He's
trying to protect his sister.
What else could it be?
It could be that he's trying
to protect you, Mrs. Ames.
The closest estimate I
can make on the amount
of Benjamin Sutton's earnings
during the past two years
is $225,000.
That seems ample.
You're so right.
However, it gets
whittled down some
with taxes, agents'
fees and living expenses.
But still leave a
substantial amount.
It's almost inconceivable
that he would be
hard-pressed for $10,000.
And, of course,
that is not counting
the money he took from his wife
and his brother-in-law,
Gilbert Ames.
That was blackmail.
What have you
got on the accident?
Was it hit-and-run?
Mm-hm. Technically.
Only because
they didn't report it.
However, Mrs. Kirby
has been receiving
this $500 money
order every month.
What did the accident do to her?
Paralyzed her.
And incidentally, there
won't be any more operations.
Celia Kirby is never
going to get any better.
She's permanently
paralyzed from the waist down.
And I guess that's why Mr. Kirby
decided to unburden himself.
About what, Paul?
He said he wasn't gonna
take any more money
from either Mrs.
Sutton or Mr. Ames.
He said he never wanted
the money anyway,
except that his wife
needed it for the operations.
And now that there aren't
gonna be any more operations,
he doesn't care if the
whole world knows:
It was not Gilbert Ames
who struck his wife.
It wasn't?
Who was it then?
Your client struck her, Perry.
Then Sylvia Sutton wasn't
protecting her brother.
Her brother, Gil,
was protecting her.
So it would seem.
And Ben Sutton was
blackmailing Sylvia.
Paul...
I'm not sure we want
Gilbert Ames found now.
You better call off your men.
All right.
Hello.
Speaking.
Oh, I see.
Okay. Thanks a lot.
It's too late, Perry.
Gilbert Ames has been found...
by Lieutenant Tragg.
Upon examination of
the body of the deceased,
w-we found bits of crystal
embedded in the skull.
Uh, these came from
the shattered decanter.
Unconsciousness
was, uh, instantaneous.
Death within, uh,
five to ten minutes.
And what was the
time of death, doctor?
Between 9:30 and 10:30
on the evening of
Wednesday, October 14th.
Thank you, doctor. Your witness.
Doctor, was the fatal
wound the only blow?
No. The skin had been
broken at the hairline
above the left eye
by, uh, some hard,
blunt instrument.
A fireplace poker, perhaps?
It could have been a poker.
Was this wound serious?
Probably caused unconsciousness,
but it, uh, wasn't fatal.
Do you have any idea what time
the blow could
have been inflicted?
Two or three hours
prior to death, I'd say.
Thank you,
doctor. That'll be all.
I call Miss Croft to
the stand, please.
And will you tell
us what you saw
on the night of October 14th?
Well, I saw her...
That one. Uh, the defendant.
Making off with
my dress and scarf.
Uh, of course, I only got
a glimpse of the dress,
but, uh, I really saw the scarf.
There's no mistaking it.
And she was
shoving it in her pocket
as she hurried down the stairs.
And then what did
you do, Miss Croft?
Well, I reported
it. That's what.
And I must say, it gave me
a great deal of pleasure too.
After 33 years at
this kind of work,
it's the first time that
a cleaning woman
ever accused a
guest of stealing.
Ah. Yes, I see what you mean.
Now, I show you this
dress and this scarf.
I ask if you can
identify them for us.
Sure.
That's them.
Mine.
I had an appointment
with Ben Sutton.
I arrived a little late.
A taxi was idling at the curb,
and as I started up the walk,
why, a woman ran from the
house and bumped into me.
And how was this woman dressed?
Well, she was wearing
a, um, green print dress
and a scarf, or, um, bandanna.
I show you now...
this scarf and this dress,
marked Exhibits G and H,
and I ask if you recognize them.
Yes. They look
like the articles worn
by the woman who bumped into me.
I see.
Go on, Mr. Poe.
What happened next?
Well, I went up to the
door and rang the bell,
but received no response.
She'd left the door unlocked,
so I went in, found Ben Sutton,
and then called the police.
And what time was that?
About a quarter after 10.
Thank you, sir.
Your witness.
Now, Mr. Poe...
what was the purpose of
your visit with Ben Sutton?
We were to discuss
how Ben would handle
the rather, um,
delicate question
of acknowledging
that the book Ordeal
had been written not by him...
but by me.
What was the
condition of the room
in which the body was found?
The living room?
It was a shambles.
As though there had
been a fight of some kind?
Well, yes, but,
uh, not entirely.
As though someone had
been searching for something?
Well, I'm not a
detective, Mr. Mason,
but it would appear
that way to me.
Cabinet drawers
were pulled open,
the contents scattered.
Uh, pillows thrown
around the room.
That sort of thing.
Thank you, Mr. Poe.
That'll be all.
Stand down, Mr. Poe.
Now, lieutenant, I
call your attention
to the hem of this
dress, Exhibit G,
and to the stain thereon.
I ask you if this stain
was subjected to
laboratory analysis.
Yes it was. It's a bloodstain.
Oh, was it determined
whether or not it's a bloodstain
of the same type as
that of the defendant?
No.
Is it the same blood
type as that of Miss Croft,
who owned this
dress? No. No, sir.
Well, what is then
the significance of this
bloodstain, lieutenant?
It's the same blood
type as the deceased's.
Thank you, lieutenant.
Your witness.
Lieutenant...
the murder weapon
introduced earlier
is this cut-glass
liquor decanter,
is it not? Yes.
Lieutenant, if you were
going to swing this decanter
at someone, how
would you hold it?
Well, by the neck.
You mean here?
Of course.
But there were no fingerprints
found at this point, however,
were there?
No. Defendant's
prints were found
on some of the large
pieces from the lower part.
What else was found
in the murder room?
An unfired .38-caliber
revolver on the floor.
Did you have an examination
made of the carpet near the body?
Yes. What did you find?
Well, we found, uh, bloodstains
and, uh, traces of liquor.
Then apparently this
decanter was full of liquor
when it struck the deceased.
Yes.
Now, lieutenant...
I ask whether Exhibit G,
the, uh, green print
dress, was tested for liquor.
Yes, it was. And we
found no trace of it.
Uh, don't you think it a
strange circumstance,
lieutenant... that, uh...
if the defendant did break
a full decanter of liquor,
that not one drop of it
would have splashed on her?
Well, it is improbable.
But it could happen that way.
Thank you, lieutenant.
That will be all.
Stand down, lieutenant.
I call Mr. Alan Kirby, please.
And while it was her own fault
that the accident happened...
it was against the
law not reporting it.
In that brief second
before the car hit...
Object, Your Honor.
On the basis that this
is not best evidence.
Is Mrs. Kirby available?
Your Honor, Mrs. Kirby is
paralyzed from the waist down.
It would work a
severe hardship on her
to have to bring her to court.
However, the
prosecution does have
an affidavit from
Mrs. Kirby, if...
Mr. Mason?
For the purposes
of this hearing,
defense will
accept an affidavit.
Very well.
Clerk will read the affidavit.
Dated "Friday,
October the 16th."
"On the day of March
the 14th of this year,
"I was struck by a
green convertible car
"on Mill Drive, near
Wilshire Boulevard.
"The driver of the car
was a woman whose name
I subsequently learned
was Sylvia Sutton."
Now, Mr. Ames. By your
continued reluctance to testify,
you are being considered
a hostile witness.
The prosecutor may ask
you leading questions.
You will answer to
the best of your ability
on pain of contempt of court.
Thank you, Your Honor.
Mr. Ames...
in subsequent conversations
with Ben Sutton, the deceased,
didn't he mention your
sister, the defendant?
Yes, of course he mentioned her.
As a matter of fact,
didn't Ben Sutton tell you
that if your sister
asked him for a divorce,
he would reveal the details
of her hit-and-run accident?
Yes.
All right.
Now, Mr. Ames...
at approximately 7:30 on
the night of October 14th,
didn't you phone your wife
and tell her that Ben
Sutton was dead, murdered?
Yes.
Why did you find it necessary
to leave town, Mr. Ames?
I...
I was afraid I'd be blamed.
Isn't it a fact that you
were afraid your sister
had killed Ben Sutton,
and you left town to avoid
being questioned about it?
Object.
Incompetent, irrelevant
and immaterial.
Your witness.
Um, before I
proceed, Your Honor,
among the spectators
there's a prospective witness.
I ask that this person be
removed from the courtroom
during my cross-examination
of Gilbert Ames.
Uh, to whom do
you refer, counselor?
Uh, Mrs. Marian Ames.
Bailiff will escort Mrs.
Ames out of the courtroom.
Uh, Mr. Ames...
you testified that
you called your wife
at approximately 7:30.
Yes.
You had examined Benjamin Sutton
and mistaken him for dead.
You told your wife
that you had killed him,
that you were not
going to the police,
that you were going into hiding.
It wasn't exactly like that.
Well, how was it?
I was very excited.
I-I did think Ben was dead.
The poker was close by, and
he didn't seem to be breathing.
So I... I called my wife
and said Ben had been killed.
Then your wife
misunderstood you.
Well, as I said, I might
not have been coherent.
It was a shock to me.
Now, uh...
how did you get into
your sister's house?
Was the door open?
No. I... I have a key.
And what was your
purpose in going there?
I...
I wanted to have
a talk with Ben.
About what?
He was...
He was threatening Sylvia
and me with exposure...
about the accident
with Mrs. Kirby.
All right.
Now you were inside the house.
Was the murder room disturbed?
Was there any
evidence of a search?
No.
Now, we've heard
testimony here today
that you left the
murder room at 7:30,
and it bore no
evidence of a search.
Yet a few minutes after 10:00...
Arthur Poe entered the room,
and it did bear
evidence of a search.
Now, how do you
account for that?
Well, it would seem
someone was there
in between those times.
Could it have been your wife?
No. How could you be so sure?
What about before you arrived?
Couldn't she have
gone...? Your Honor.
I object to this
line of questioning.
It's argumentative.
It calls for a conclusion
of the witness.
Sustained.
I, um...
I'm finished with this witness.
I call Mrs. Marian Ames.
Bailiff, Mrs. Ames.
You may stand down.
I called her in Palm Springs.
I said Gilbert had
called me and told me
that Ben Sutton
had been murdered.
And what did she say?
She said not to say
anything to anybody,
and... that she'd
take care of it.
Now, Mrs. Ames...
between 7:30 and 10:00
on the night of the murder,
were you in the
Sutton home at all?
No.
Thank you, Mrs.
Ames. That'll be all.
Cross-examine.
Mrs. Ames... I'm going to
ask you a few questions,
uh, pertaining to the
telephone conversation
you had with your husband
on the night of the murder.
Now...
did he say that he had
murdered Ben Sutton?
No. I-I misunderstood him.
I was terribly upset. I'm sorry.
Did he say that he was
going to remain in hiding
because he was
worried over the questions
the police might ask you?
About me?
Did he say that?
Gil.
Answer the question, please.
Yes.
I told him I didn't do anything,
but he didn't take the
time to listen. He hung up.
Then you deliberately
lied to the defendant
when you called her
that night in Palm Springs.
Yes. I... I wanted her home.
I was afraid.
Why did your husband think
that you had struck Ben Sutton
with that fireplace poker?
Why, Mrs. Ames?
Because I had been
to the house earlier.
For what reason?
To talk to Ben.
Earlier when?
About 5:00.
Well, what happened?
Nothing. He didn't
even know I was there.
I-I mean there was some
talk going on in the study.
I... heard voices and looked in.
I realized he was busy, and...
Besides, my courage
was just about gone,
so I turned around
and went away.
What were you going to
talk to Mr. Sutton about?
Must I?
No, Mrs. Ames.
Thank you. That will be all.
Uh, just a moment, Mrs. Ames.
I have a few
questions on redirect.
If it please the court.
Mrs. Ames...
this conversation that
you overheard in the study?
What was it about?
Well, I only heard a few words.
Something about
royalties and plays and...
And what?
And that he wouldn't
have to put up with...
With Sylvia anymore.
Uh, who was talking,
uh, Mrs. Ames?
Ben Sutton.
And to whom was he talking?
Well, I don't know him by name,
but...
that's him sitting
right over there.
Thank you, Mrs. Ames.
I think that will be all.
I have no other questions.
Then I call Harry Wilson
to the stand, please.
Step down, please, Mrs. Ames.
Mr. Wilson, what specifically
did Ben Sutton tell you
on the afternoon of the murder?
He said his wife was
trying to get rid of him,
and he wouldn't let her go.
Because she had an
income from a trust.
What else?
Well, the reason
he had a hold on her
was because she'd
been in an accident
and hadn't reported
it to the police.
Go on, Mr. Wilson.
Well, Ben wasn't above
using anybody he could
to get what he wanted.
Put pressure on
the whole family:
his wife's brother,
sister-in-law.
He was begging for a
faceful of glass, you ask me.
I don't blame his wife a
bit... That's all. That's all.
Thank you very much,
Mr. Wilson. Your witness.
Now, Mr. Wilson...
what was the purpose
of your visit to
Mr. Sutton that afternoon?
Just to have a chat.
But surely not about his wife?
Something about
books and royalties,
wasn't it?
We mentioned the book.
Didn't you and Ben Sutton
talk about its adaptation
into a Broadway play...
and the ensuing royalties,
which would have made him
independent of his wife forever?
Yeah, he did mention
something like that.
Wasn't he making you
an offer, Mr. Wilson?
Yeah.
What was it?
He wanted me to back him up.
He was gonna bull it through
that he was the
author of Ordeal.
If I said so too, then Artie
Poe couldn't prove otherwise.
And you accepted his offer?
Yeah. MASON: And
went directly home.
That's it.
And why did you return later on?
What?
I didn't.
You play the horses, Mr. Wilson?
It's my only vice.
How much would you
estimate that you have lost
in the last two years?
At least $5,000.
I think it only fair to
tell you, Mr. Wilson,
that I have information
concerning your losses
in excess of $100,000...
in cash.
Now, where did you
get all that money?
I gambled.
I won it gambling.
You were gambling
with the law, Mr. Wilson.
Not with money.
I'm afraid you lost.
You've got it wrong.
Ben Sutton's income from that
book was more than $200,000.
Yet he was continually broke.
Uh, someone was draining him.
Was that someone you?
No.
Wasn't that the reason
you returned to his house
between 8:00 and 10:00
on the night of the murder?
No. Why should I go back there?
There's some little mystery
about the...
murder room being
ransacked, Mr. Wilson.
What's that got to do with me?
I believe there was something
in that room that you wanted.
Something that you found.
What?
The diary.
What diary?
The diary that proved
who wrote Ordeal.
Could have been
anybody going back for that.
Anybody who knew
about the diary.
That means only three people:
Ben Sutton, Arthur Poe and you.
Wasn't Sutton because
he already had it.
It wasn't Arthur Poe,
because he came to my office
the next morning, and
wanted me to find it for him.
Well it wasn't me.
Wasn't it?
When Poe talked to you the
morning after the murder...
didn't you ask him
for a third of his future.
Meaning, a third of his income
from then on?
Now you're getting
into something else.
And didn't you demand
a $25,000 advance?
Pretty stiff terms for
your support, Mr. Wilson.
Unless you had the
diary in your possession
to back your demands.
Okay.
I did go back.
You did.
I saw Ben lying out
there cold on the floor.
I, uh, figured this was
a pretty good chance
to get my hands on that diary.
What time was that?
I don't know.
Nine, 9:30.
The coroner set
the time of death
as between 9:30 and 10:30.
Now, why don't you make it 9:30?
Oh, no.
Oh, no, I didn't kill him.
But you're a realist,
just out for a buck.
And you didn't kill him?
No, I didn't.
Sure, I was there,
and I took the diary.
And I took all that
money from him.
And I was
blackmailing him, and...
Your Honor, the
district attorney's office
would be interested
in looking into this.
Oh, now, wait.
Now, wait a minute.
Look... I'll go
over it all again.
I'll tell you the whole thing
again, so you'll understand.
I didn't kill him.
He was lying there.
I didn't kill him.
I didn't kill him!
I didn't kill him!
I didn't! I didn't!
Bailiff.
Come in.
Hello, Mr. Mason.
Mr. Poe.
You're writing?
Yes.
It must be difficult to
find the right phrase
to tell the publisher
that you were the
author of Ordeal.
Yes, I guess so.
Of course, uh...
you were the one that
hit Sutton with that poker.
How do you know that?
Well, if Sutton and Harry
Wilson had cooked up a scheme...
and Sutton had told you flatly
that he would not
acknowledge you
as the author of Ordeal...
That's very astute.
There was a fight.
I'm ashamed to
say I lost my temper.
I'm... somewhat handicapped.
I guess training makes you
seize the nearest weapon.
The poker, of course.
And, um... then you left him
and, uh...
went away.
Yes.
Why did you go back?
I wasn't sure whether the
poker had killed him or not.
And you couldn't
leave him there dying...
as he left you to die in Korea.
He had regained consciousness?
Yes.
And he attacked you.
I guess he realized that
no amount of collusion
could hide the truth.
He was intent on
murder, Mr. Mason.
What happened?
He pulled a gun out of a drawer.
I managed to knock it out
of his hand with my cane.
As he lunged for the gun...
not being as agile
as I used to be...
there was only one thing to do.
I grabbed the whisky
decanter and threw it at him.
That explains the unfired gun.
Then I heard Mrs.
Sutton's taxi drive up,
so I went out the back,
circled around to the front,
as if to keep my
10:00 appointment.
And as if you had
no conscience at all,
you sat there in that courtroom
while that same Mrs. Sutton
was being tried for a
crime you'd committed.
So your ordeal
isn't over, is it?
Yes, it's over.
I would never have
allowed her to be convicted.
You see, Mr. Mason, I've
come to terms with fear.
I'm living here at the hospital
because I only
have a short time left.
Maybe... six months.
That's why money
meant nothing to you.
You just wanted recognition.
I guess a man's vanity
goes with him right to the end.
It was self-defense.