The Streets of San Francisco (1972–1977): Season 1, Episode 17 - A Collection of Eagles - full transcript
A greed-consumed numismatist plots to switch a wealthy collector's gold double-eagle coins with counterfeits, using and abusing his trusting accomplices along the way.
( funky jazz theme playing )
ANNOUNCER: The
Streets of San Francisco.
A Quinn Martin production.
Starring Karl Malden.
Also starring Michael Douglas.
With guest stars John Saxon,
Belinda J. Montgomery,
Hari Rhodes.
Special guest
star Joseph Cotten.
Tonight's episode: "A
Collection of Eagles."
( dramatic jazz theme playing )
Okay.
( bell dings )
There we are. Forty units.
( phone ringing )
It's him?
Maybe.
Hagopian's.
Vince?
Ernie.
Ernie.
Good to hear your voice.
Listen, did you get them?
Yeah. A whole lot.
Beautiful.
Uh, where are you?
Uh, just off the Embarcadero.
207 Front Street.
Room 25.
Oh, there's a rear entrance.
Uh, did you have any trouble?
Heh. Not a hitch.
I smell like a ship's bilge,
and I gotta wash
off half of Mexico.
Well, look, uh,
uh, there's no rush.
Uh, take a good long bath
and get a good night's sleep.
You've earned it, and, uh...
We'll see each other tomorrow.
Sure.
Uh, maybe it's better anyway.
Um, I'm beat.
See you tomorrow, then.
Yeah.
He's got them, Tommy.
Enough to buy us the world.
Tommy, where are
you going? Your insulin.
This is no time to be
falling on your face.
Vince, I don't know
whether I can do it.
You'll do it, Tommy.
Just like we planned.
You'll do it for the
money and for me.
( dramatic theme playing )
( jazz theme playing )
( shower running )
( coins clatter )
( tense theme playing )
( shower stops )
( grunts )
( funky jazz theme playing )
Ashes to ashes.
Yeah.
What do you think, doc?
Another cigarette in bed?
Hard to say yet.
He was pretty well done.
Well, I'll get the
arson detail in here
and see what they can turn up.
How long for the autopsy report?
I'll get on it right away.
Hiya, doc. Steve.
Mike, we got a John Doe.
Manager said the night clerk
didn't register
anybody for this room.
A fin or a sawbuck
under the table,
that's one way to
beat the room tax.
Yeah.
Did you get the, uh,
clerk's name and address?
Radio unit's on his
way to pick him up.
Yeah.
Well, maybe we got something.
( chuckles )
Looks pretty black.
Numbers look gone.
Well, put your
young eyes on that.
Nothing.
Nothing, eh? No.
Look, poke around
down there some more.
Thanks.
Huh.
You know, a guy with a gun,
who doesn't register
in a fleabag like this...
You know something's fishy.
Mike.
Yeah.
Take a look at this.
Looks like one of those, uh,
gold luck charms or something.
Gold.
Maybe.
Luck charm, I don't think so.
( dramatic theme playing )
MAN: Well.
You did find them of
some interest, after all.
Mr. James, you startled me.
In this contraption?
I sometimes feel like a...
mechanical satyr.
Body of a man,
legs of a champion.
What is it?
What?
You're troubled.
No, uh, just tired I guess.
I worked late last night
typing up the notes.
The university should have
warned you I'm a slave driver.
( laughs )
Well, the last person
to leave the project
did say something
to that effect.
Oh, that was a big
mistake all around.
A man can't dictate
an autobiography
to an insensitive soul.
Uh... What about you?
Any complaints?
Oh, no.
The room you gave
me is just lovely.
Pay is fine and the
company is very stimulating.
Thank you. Tell me the truth.
Now...
When I came in a moment
ago, you were thinking
I'm an eccentric old man
who hoards his gold coins
like a modern-day
Midas, weren't you?
No. Not really.
I was just thinking
they must be very valuable.
Well, in round figures,
half-million dollars.
Oh, I had no idea.
Would you like to hear
how I came to collect them?
Uh... No, I think we should, um,
finish what we left
off with yesterday.
Um, what do you remember about
your 1927 trip to New Zealand?
You are a very odd young woman.
The first one I ever met who
was more interested in my memory
than my money.
Well, people already know
about the John R. James fortune.
And I want the book
to be about the man.
Thank you.
Let's go on the
terrace, shall we?
All right.
( suspenseful theme playing )
What's the coroner say?
Nothing yet.
Is that thing worth
anything, Charlie?
Mm, specific gravity: gold.
Slightly less than 22
karats 900-thousandths fine.
Weight: exactly 516 grains.
All of which means?
All of which means
it's a planchet.
A what?
A planchet. That...
KELLER: It's a metal disk
that's ready to be stamped
into a coin, right?
Right.
They use it in
crossword puzzles a lot.
You got time to do
crossword puzzles?
I don't give you enough
to do around here, huh?
Say, um...
What kind of a coin
does this thing make?
Well, I got some books over
here that'll tell you for sure.
That one to me looks
like a Double Eagle size.
Double Eagle. That's a
$20 gold piece, isn't it?
Hey, chalk one
up for the old folks.
You like words, huh? Yeah.
Read 'em to me.
See you, Charlie.
Well, there's 464 grains
of pure gold in the planchet.
Well, how many
grains in an ounce?
Uh, 450, isn't it?
No, I think there's 480.
No, 450.
Four-eighty.
Four-eighty? Yeah.
They must have changed it
since my high
school physics course.
They must have.
Yeah.
Look, uh... Look, let's
not read for a minute, huh?
Now, the night clerk...
said that the victim
came in with a satchel.
Right. We don't find a satchel.
But we do get this,
uh, little goodie here.
Which ye old book here
says is illegal in the U.S.
except as coins
held by collectors.
Which could've been
in that closet for years,
the way they clean out
those waterfront dives.
Possible, yeah.
Think we're spinning our wheels?
Close to an ounce of gold,
worth about, oh...
What, 65 or 70 bucks on
the international market?
I think it's about that, yeah.
( phone rings )
Stone.
Yeah.
Yeah. We'll be right there.
Looks like maybe
we got something.
What?
Coroner said murder.
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorbell rings )
Tommy.
May I help you?
Is Vince here?
He's busy right now.
Is there anything
I can do to help?
Karen. Hi.
You're early. I missed you.
Come, let's take a walk.
( door opens )
( door closes )
Who was that?
Just a guy I brought
in to help out a little.
He doesn't know anything
about what's going on, does he?
No. He barely knows
enough about coins
to answer the questions
that come in off the street.
Did you bring the diagram?
Yes.
You're sure you have each coin
in the exact place he keeps it?
Yes.
Vince, I'm frightened. Of what?
I don't know. Doing
anything like this.
Getting caught or...
Or hurting that old man.
We're just going to
trade one set of coins
for another set of coins,
and nobody's going to get hurt.
Want to see something?
What is it?
Our ticket to Spain,
angel. The Costa del Sol.
Vince, I just wish I could feel
the same way as you do about it.
It's how we feel about
each other that counts.
And having the money to do
whatever we want to do together
and go wherever we want to go.
You really do
mean it, don't you?
What you said.
Baby!
The last thing in the
world I wanted to do
the day I found you
was to make a delivery
to that mausoleum.
Bang, there you were.
You're the best
trip I've ever had.
And Mr. James...
Will you stop worrying
about that old man?
He owns half of Nob Hill.
He's not gonna miss
what's in that case.
He told me this morning
it was worth about
half a million dollars.
Angel, you've seen it
sitting there yourself.
Now what good is
it doing anybody?
It's not like robbing a bank
or someone's business.
Hey, I've watched
people like that all my life.
I watched while my
father pandered to them.
I swept up a crummy
shop where they walked out
with more than he made all year,
sealed in one lousy
little bit of plastic.
What do they do with it?
Take it home and
put it in a glass case.
Well, fine.
Let John R. James sit
and stare at his eagles.
I wanna see the world.
( streetcar bell ringing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
It's homicide, no question.
There wasn't a trace of
smoke in the victim's lungs.
That means the victim was
dead before the fire started, huh?
Yeah.
Couldn't be a stroke
or a heart attack?
Not from my findings.
Considering there are no breaks,
welts or contusions on the body,
I'd make it suffocation.
Suffocation, huh?
This envelope shows
there was a struggle.
Bits of human flesh and hair
from under the
victim's fingernails.
Let's get it under
the microscope.
KELLER: There's, uh, no chance
of making an ID on the victim?
Sorry. Later, okay?
Yeah. Thanks, Harry.
Buddy boy.
What does a short-barrel .32
with the serial numbers
filed off say to you?
Pro. Heist artist, maybe.
And one planchet
out of a satchel full?
Ripped off by
whoever killed him?
Well, a couple of hundred
would be worth ten, maybe 15,000,
but you'd have to have the
right contacts to unload 'em.
Wouldn't be worth all that time
and trouble, though, would it?
No.
What about the night clerk?
Oh, no. Nickels and dimes.
This one's gotta be worth
more than nickels and dimes.
Here, Tommy. Here's $15,000.
If it were good. But it's not.
I blew that one.
See those scratches?
Those little things? ( scoffs )
Those little things
are called cast marks.
When they're that bad,
it could tell an expert
that it's a phony real fast.
Speaking of scratches, how
'bout those that Ernie laid on you?
They're okay.
I guess they found
him by now. Relax.
They'll never be able
to tell what they found.
That's a strand of
blond human hair.
Came from the same
place the coroner found
those flecks of skin
on slide number two.
Is it body hair or face?
Body. Probably his arms.
And he's between
the age of 20 and 40,
definitely male and Caucasian.
Well, that lets you
and me out, Charlie.
How 'bout you, buddy boy?
You willing to roll
up your sleeves?
Wanna try to raise
a few numbers?
Chicken, huh?
( laughs )
Charlie. Mm-hm?
What do you got
on this third slide?
Shards of rusted metal.
I found them embedded in
the soles of the victim's shoes.
Any guesses?
I'll have a better picture
when I finish
evaporating the solution.
We washed what was left of
the victim's clothing and shoes.
That's what we got.
And rust powder in
solution, an electromagnet.
You wanna know something? What?
I've been here for 25 years,
I've never seen this thing work.
A serial number stamped
in metal can be filed off,
but it can never be
completely destroyed.
Yeah, I know that.
The molecular
structure of the metal
retains a ghost of
the stamped number.
Let's see it work.
Right.
( machine buzzing )
Serial number H12987.
All P.D.'s. Urgent.
I'm on my way.
What do you know,
it really works, huh?
Mm-hm.
Now you see it.
Now you don't.
Magic, eh?
Well, maybe we'll
get something after all.
Say, where's that, um...?
Oh, the latent print kit?
Uh, right here. Oh.
You're gonna need
a ten-point match
for positive ID.
You really think
there's a chance?
Charlie,
I'm gonna let you
in on a little secret.
I always think there's a chance.
( dramatic theme playing )
Good.
Finished?
Ah, for a while.
My eyes get tired.
How much longer?
Few more tonight. Few
more in the morning.
Vince, who are you calling?
Karen.
Vince.
I told you, it was
just business.
I killed a man, Vince!
Now, look, that had to be done.
Just like my seeing Karen.
Now it won't be long now.
Go inside and get some glassine
cases and we'll seal these up.
Go ahead.
( phone rings )
Miss Pearson. Telephone.
Thank you.
Hello?
Working hard?
Oh, I was afraid you
weren't gonna call.
Oh, big call tonight.
I'll be finished in the morning.
Tomorrow?
I'll tell you what time.
I've got to go now.
Love you, baby.
I love you too.
I... ( line clicks )
Hm.
Well, well, well.
Well, well, well, what?
Sodium chloride, sodium
bromide, magnesium bromide.
Well, thank you, Dr. Einstein.
They're the primary
salts in seawater.
From the victim's clothes?
The residue evaporated
from the solution we got
when we washed them.
And this came from the shoes.
It's a lead compound
identical to what they
use in marine paint.
A ship.
Just off it too, if he hadn't
changed his clothes.
Everybody wants
to be a detective.
San Diego made the
serial numbers on the .32.
Stolen three weeks
ago in National City.
Prints taken at
the scene of theft
identified as Ernie Walker,
a.k.a. Ernie Willard.
Priors, all for robbery, huh?
I want Walker's jacket.
I want his mug
shots, I want his prints,
I want everything
on him right now.
I've already asked for it.
It's on its way.
Good.
Well, we may have our dead man,
now we gotta find the
man who killed him.
They're pretty, aren't they?
You see that one on the bottom,
the fourth from the right? Yeah.
What's the date?
1907. Uh-huh.
Does that look any
different from the rest?
They all look the same to me.
Well, that one's worth
$22,500, Tommy.
Real rare piece of change.
We're gonna be rich on this.
Yeah.
( suspenseful theme playing )
Vince?
The insulin.
How many units was that?
Um, how many units?
About 80, I think.
Maybe a little more.
No, it's supposed to be 40.
Right.
Vince, that's too much.
Vince.
Vince.
Sorry, Tommy.
Just business.
( peaceful theme playing )
Good morning. Morning.
Well, you're out early.
They're... They're most
beautiful in the morning.
Coming awake,
alive. Oh, they are...
Oh, don't do that.
It's taken nearly ten
years to perfect this hybrid.
I'm sorry. It's all right.
You couldn't have known.
I believe if...
I cross this with that
dark red over there,
I'll have the most
beautiful rose ever created.
A deep, deep red with just
a tinge of yellow in the throat.
The look of velvet.
A true queen.
Like no other on
earth ever before her.
( laughing ): I...
I must sound like a
jelly-minded old fool.
No, no, not at all.
They mean even more to
you than the eagles, don't they?
Well, the eagles belong
to someone else now.
These will always be mine.
What do you mean?
Nothing.
( funky jazz theme playing )
That food's so good, I
always eat too much.
Yeah. Oh... Yeah, how
much do I owe you?
Forget it.
What do you mean, forget it?
Somebody give
you a raise in salary
that I didn't
authorize. Forget it.
You don't owe me anything.
Okay, thanks, big
shot. You're welcome.
( laughs )
Feel like talking
or you still thinking?
( sighs )
Oh, I'm sorry, buddy boy.
You know, that partial
that we lifted from the .32.
That proves... that
this Walker is the guy
that we pried from
that hotel room, right?
Right.
He did two years in
Nevada for grand theft,
completed his parole
right here in this city.
His last address was
San Diego. San Diego.
Right.
Well, is that all supposed
to add up to something?
Just that he's a
thief who lived here.
The last time he was known
to be alive was in San Diego,
which is as close to
Mexico as you can get.
Mexico? Mm-hm.
And that's a big, big
gold producer, right?
Skipped across the border,
picked up a
satchel full of these,
surfaced here.
He was on a ship, but
he didn't buy a ticket.
Stowed away on a freighter.
Or bribed a nice
cozy berth in steerage.
( laughs )
You know, it's true. What is?
What you always say.
You work long enough as a
cop, you start thinking like a crook.
Then you must know what else
I'm thinking, huh, buddy boy?
A counterfeit operation.
That's right.
But if you're dealing
in counterfeit coins,
especially gold coins,
it's a very special market.
A collector's market. Right.
And those guys can tell a phony.
Or buy from a dealer who can.
Yeah.
We're gonna need an expert.
I'll tell you what, I'll call
the Numismatic Society
and get us one. The what?
The Numismatic Society.
Numis... I know.
I know.
Coin collectors.
Very good.
I worked a few crossword puzzles
myself, you know, buddy boy.
MAN ( over radio ): Unit 8-1.
Unit 8-1.9-0-2 to crime lab.
Unit 8-1. Ten-four.
( funky jazz theme playing )
( engine starts )
STONE: What have you got?
CHARLIE: Thought you
might want to look at these.
Who is it?
Harris and I are
working on it now.
Body washed up by
Hunter's Point this morning.
Probably in the bay all night.
Johnson saw the
pictures, thought it might tie.
Blond.
Oh, age is what,
between 20 and 30?
This our killer?
I've got a workup
in progress now.
You got any ID? Negative.
Even the labels were
stripped from the clothing.
What killed him?
The coroner says an insulin OD.
Did you get a set of prints?
In the works.
Let me know when you get a make.
Right.
Thanks, Charlie.
Hey, uh,
maybe you're in the
wrong department after all.
( dramatic theme playing )
( phone ringing )
Hagopian's.
Vince?
Yes?
I've got to talk to you.
Karen, angel. Now, listen to me.
I know how you feel,
but there's nothing
to worry about.
Nothing can go wrong
and no one will be hurt
if you do as I told you.
Vince, please. Do
you have to do it?
Yes, we have to do it.
You and I together.
And then we can
be together always,
in style, the way we planned.
Look, I don't care about
the money, all right?
All I want is...
Well, I do care
about money, Karen.
I care very much.
I care enough to have this
whole thing set up right now.
And I'm counting on you.
Now, you have that case open.
I'll be there at 9.
( line clicks )
( phone ringing )
Yes?
Yes, yes, this is Hagopian's.
Well, I suppose so,
but can I ask
what this is about?
Okay, um... Okay,
I'll be there shortly.
STONE: The basic design
was changed twice after 1849.
These changes were made...
Mike, slow down.
In 1866 and 1907.
Between 1907... All right.
And 1933...
57 issues were minted.
Terrific. Wonderful.
Only 206 possibilities.
Two hundred and six, huh?
You know, if I was
gonna counterfeit coins,
I'd go for the rarest issues.
Now, here's one,
1907. Check that out.
Twenty-two thousand dollars?
Twenty-two five and
that was 11 years ago.
For one coin? I
gotta get into this.
It's another world. Yeah.
( knocking )
Yes, come in.
Lieutenant Stone?
Yeah, what can we do for you?
I believe it's the
other way around.
You telephoned me.
For some kind of assistance.
I'm Vincent Hagopian.
Oh, excuse me. I called you.
I'm Keller. How do you do?
This is Lieutenant Stone.
Lieutenant. Yes, how do you do?
Uh, I hope I haven't
kept you waiting too long.
Not at all. We
appreciate your coming.
Why don't you sit down?
You want some coffee?
Uh, no, thank you. Ah.
I was told your shop deals with
a lot of collectors
of the Double Eagle.
Well, yes, we dealt quite
a lot with them in the past,
but not so much anymore.
They've got too expensive.
Yeah, we we're just looking
at some of these prices.
Incredible.
There's one coin here, 22,500.
May I see it?
Sure.
Oh, yes. St. Gaudens type.
It's extra high relief.
It sold for 22,500 in
Chicago, 1963, I believe.
But I take it you gentlemen have
some special interest in eagles.
Well, we have reason to believe
that we're looking
for a counterfeiter.
Counterfeit eagles?
That sounds like a very
complicated operation
for a very limited market.
I mean, I don't see how
anyone could expect
to pass them through a
dealer without being discovered.
Well, that's why we
wanted to talk to you.
You see, we'd, uh, like
to have a list of names
of all the collectors
in the city.
Yes. It'll take a little while.
KELLER: Well, we think
the counterfeiter has about
a hundred of those planchets,
and he's had them
for about, uh, 36 hours.
Now, would it be
possible for him
to have stamped
all the coins by now?
Yes, I suppose so,
provided he had the, uh, die
and the press already available.
Well, that could mean he's
ready to make his move.
HAGOPIAN: Uh,
excuse me, lieutenant.
What exactly did you
mean by his move?
Well, you just said that it
would be almost impossible
to pass them through a
dealer without being discovered.
Yes. But how many collectors
stop to look for
minor imperfections
once they've owned that
rare coin for several years?
I see. You mean, a switch.
Transferring the, uh...
The counterfeit coins for
the authenticated ones,
and then selling
those somewhere else
where there's no
risk of detection.
Sounds possible to
me. How about you?
Sounds ingenious.
And terribly important
for someone in my field
to help you to stop.
Uh, but, lieutenant,
you'd want more than
the names of collectors.
You'd want a list
of all the issues
that would be
most likely passed.
You see, they'd have to be
either proof or uncirculated
to command any kind of price.
Well, what about this, uh,
1907 coin, for example?
Oh, no. I'd rule that
out. That's too rare.
Well, can you give us
issues that you can't rule out?
Yes. Be quite a lot.
And about the, uh, collectors,
I'd have to check my records
in my shop to compile that list.
Well, we'd appreciate anything
you gave us, Mr. Hagopian.
It would be my pleasure.
Thank you. Thank you.
Good day. Good day.
Good day.
( suspenseful theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
I don't know, Mike.
This could take us two
days just to put the right coins
with the collectors
Hagopian gave us.
Yeah, he helped a lot.
Yeah. Huh.
What do you know?
What?
Remember that coin
Hagopian said was too rare?
The one that went for 22 G's?
Yup.
Take a look who bought it.
"John R. James, San Francisco."
Mm-hm. Huh.
And if he owns that
one, he owns others.
I don't remember
his name on that list.
That's because
it's not on there.
Well, how'd he forget
a name like that?
You know, I think that's worth
asking Mr. Hagopian himself.
( suspenseful theme playing )
JAMES: Go ahead.
You've done it before.
As distasteful a duty as
I have burdened you with
over the months, it seems.
Go ahead.
You said this morning that, um,
these don't belong
to you anymore.
Have you agreed to
sell them to someone?
What I said this morning
is not for publication.
What I'm going
to tell you now is.
This coin was minted in 1907.
It's the most expensive Double
Eagle ever on the market.
I paid an exorbitant
price, I know,
but it had a sentimental value.
You see, my Uncle Henry
actually started this collection for me
with an identical coin
on my 7th birthday.
You began collecting these
when you were 7 years old?
( laughing ): No,
no, not exactly.
I sold it, to buy
a train ticket.
This was my start,
you might say, and...
when I made it in the world,
I determined to buy it
back again someday.
Why the rest?
I became enamored of
these in my search for this.
For instance... Mr. James,
I'd much rather think
of you with the roses
than with all of these.
( chuckles )
Lock it out.
This may become a
mellow evening, after all.
All set?
Yes.
Let's break out the brandy.
You know, whether or
not we ever finish that book
I brought you here to write,
I've enjoyed your
company, Karen.
Thank you. No, thank you.
Thank you for being more
than just somebody an
old man can babble on to
about his yesterdays.
And for being someone
who understands
just why and how he
spent them the way he did.
I think you probably
understand everything about me
except my eagles,
even after hearing how
I came to collect them.
Well, it isn't important
that I understand that.
Well, it isn't important I keep
their future from you either,
provided it remains
off the record.
Of course.
I've said they already
belong to someone else.
That's true.
A trust owns them all.
Has for several years.
When I die, they'll
be sold at auction,
the proceeds will go to
the English Department
at the university.
That's how we met, actually.
Dean Robertson told me I
wouldn't be disappointed in you
in any respect.
That's proved to be true too.
I'm glad you feel that way.
Remember this morning,
when I told you the
roses were different,
they'd always belong to me?
Yes.
Well, that was some sort of a...
fantasy, I suppose.
An old man's
idea of immortality.
I could see my
creation, my queen rose,
carrying on my name
long after I was gone.
Hm.
They deserve
something much better.
They deserve to be named
after a beautiful woman.
I'd like very much to
name that rose after you.
With your permission.
What do you say?
Shall it be Queen Karen?
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorbell rings )
Good evening.
Police?
Sorry to be intruding,
but we'd like to speak
to Mr. James, please.
Mr. James isn't to be disturbed.
JAMES: Isabel.
What is it?
Lieutenant Stone,
Inspector Keller.
We're with homicide.
We'd like to talk to you
about your collection
of Double Eagles.
JAMES: I fail to make
any connection between
my eagles and homicide.
STONE: Well, if you
gave us a few moments,
I'm sure we could make
that connection for you.
Very well.
This way, gentlemen.
There they are.
Now, that's all of them, right?
Yes, inspector,
that is all of them.
Forty to be exact.
With an average
value of over $12,000.
Mr. James, did you
know a dealer in this city
by the name of Vincent Hagopian?
Very well. I used to deal with
him exclusively before he died.
Died? About a
year and a half ago.
Well, we just talked
to him this afternoon.
His son. Had to be his son.
Would be.
He took over the business.
But he's not the
expert his father was.
He hasn't the same love for it.
He didn't mention that either.
Maybe we ought to find out
what else he forgot to mention.
Say, may I use your phone?
Certainly. Thank you.
You still haven't
explained why you're here.
We're looking for
counterfeits, Mr. James.
( chuckles )
Counterfeit eagles, here?
Impossible.
Who has access to your case?
There's only one key. I
keep it with me at all times.
May I?
Stone, let me talk to Lessing.
Lessing? Stone.
I want a make on
Vincent Hagopian Jr.
He owns a coin
shop on Maiden Lane.
His name and
address is on my desk.
Go over there and pick it up.
Do you have any
gloves? I'll hold.
Desk. Left drawer.
You got it?
Well, go over to R and I
and find out if by any chance
there's a tie between this
Hagopian and our other body.
Ernie Walker.
Body? What's he talking about?
We've had two killings we
believe are connected with
this counterfeiting.
Did you get a make
on that insulin OD yet?
All right. Check
Hagopian's neighborhood
and find out if the two of
them were ever seen together.
Anywhere. Now, you
know where to look!
The bars, his coin
shop, apartment.
Let me know what turns up.
When was the last time
you opened this, sir?
Less than a half an hour ago.
Were you alone?
No, I was with a
friend, a young lady.
She's my houseguest.
May we speak to her, please?
Certainly. Thank you.
Got anything?
I don't know.
Mr. James.
( bell rings )
This coin.
It's an '83 proof, uh...
Only, uh, 40 in the world.
Could you look at
it through the glass?
We've taken sort of a
two-day crash course
because of this case,
but those, uh,
hairline scratches,
I believe the experts
call them cast marks.
They wouldn't be on a coin
in proof condition would they?
No.
They weren't here
when I bought this coin.
You didn't buy that
coin, Mr. James.
Somebody just gave it to you.
Hagopian?
I don't know. ISABEL: Yes, sir?
Will you ask Miss
Pearson to join us please?
Miss Pearson just left, sir.
I heard her car on the driveway.
Say, this girl, does
she know Hagopian?
Not well.
But she did know him?
Yes, as a matter of fact,
I introduced them myself
several months ago when
he came here one day
to make a delivery.
Have they seen
each other since then?
I wouldn't know.
Certainly she couldn't be
involved in anything like this.
She's a very simple young woman.
And if I read this
Hagopian right,
he's no simple young man.
We'll need a description
of Miss Pearson, sir.
What's her first name?
Karen.
( dramatic theme playing )
( knocking on door )
KAREN: Vince.
Vince, open the door.
( knocking on door )
Vince.
What are you doing here?
I told you to wait for me.
The police came. The police?
Yeah, we were wrong.
Look, we've got to take it back.
Never mind. What did they
want? What did they say?
I don't know. I left as
soon as they came.
Help me.
We'll get these mailed.
Vince, stop.
Look, we have to
take it back. All of it.
It doesn't belong
to him anymore.
I know it doesn't belong
to him. It belongs to me.
And they'll be waiting
for me in Spain.
Oh, please. I'll
make it up to you.
We don't need this.
I'll tell you what I don't
need. I don't need you.
Your whining mouth or
your pawing me anymore.
Vince.
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorknob rattling )
( knocking on door )
( action theme playing )
( grunts )
I'll call an ambulance.
Good.
( funky jazz theme playing )
How long you think she'll get?
Who? "Who?"
Karen.
What, I'm a DA?
She turned evidence.
Identified Tom from
Hagopian's shop.
That'll help her a little.
What's this? Got
your names on 'em.
"In appreciation.
John R. James."
A silver dollar.
Where's that book?
Where's the book?
Yeah.
What year is that?
1882.1882.
Looks pretty shiny, doesn't it?
Yes, it does.
Think they're uncirculated?
Oh, I'd say they're
uncirculated.
Hey, we're rich.
Yeah? Yeah.
Four dollars a piece.
( laughs )
( funky jazz theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
ANNOUNCER: The
Streets of San Francisco.
A Quinn Martin production.
Starring Karl Malden.
Also starring Michael Douglas.
With guest stars John Saxon,
Belinda J. Montgomery,
Hari Rhodes.
Special guest
star Joseph Cotten.
Tonight's episode: "A
Collection of Eagles."
( dramatic jazz theme playing )
Okay.
( bell dings )
There we are. Forty units.
( phone ringing )
It's him?
Maybe.
Hagopian's.
Vince?
Ernie.
Ernie.
Good to hear your voice.
Listen, did you get them?
Yeah. A whole lot.
Beautiful.
Uh, where are you?
Uh, just off the Embarcadero.
207 Front Street.
Room 25.
Oh, there's a rear entrance.
Uh, did you have any trouble?
Heh. Not a hitch.
I smell like a ship's bilge,
and I gotta wash
off half of Mexico.
Well, look, uh,
uh, there's no rush.
Uh, take a good long bath
and get a good night's sleep.
You've earned it, and, uh...
We'll see each other tomorrow.
Sure.
Uh, maybe it's better anyway.
Um, I'm beat.
See you tomorrow, then.
Yeah.
He's got them, Tommy.
Enough to buy us the world.
Tommy, where are
you going? Your insulin.
This is no time to be
falling on your face.
Vince, I don't know
whether I can do it.
You'll do it, Tommy.
Just like we planned.
You'll do it for the
money and for me.
( dramatic theme playing )
( jazz theme playing )
( shower running )
( coins clatter )
( tense theme playing )
( shower stops )
( grunts )
( funky jazz theme playing )
Ashes to ashes.
Yeah.
What do you think, doc?
Another cigarette in bed?
Hard to say yet.
He was pretty well done.
Well, I'll get the
arson detail in here
and see what they can turn up.
How long for the autopsy report?
I'll get on it right away.
Hiya, doc. Steve.
Mike, we got a John Doe.
Manager said the night clerk
didn't register
anybody for this room.
A fin or a sawbuck
under the table,
that's one way to
beat the room tax.
Yeah.
Did you get the, uh,
clerk's name and address?
Radio unit's on his
way to pick him up.
Yeah.
Well, maybe we got something.
( chuckles )
Looks pretty black.
Numbers look gone.
Well, put your
young eyes on that.
Nothing.
Nothing, eh? No.
Look, poke around
down there some more.
Thanks.
Huh.
You know, a guy with a gun,
who doesn't register
in a fleabag like this...
You know something's fishy.
Mike.
Yeah.
Take a look at this.
Looks like one of those, uh,
gold luck charms or something.
Gold.
Maybe.
Luck charm, I don't think so.
( dramatic theme playing )
MAN: Well.
You did find them of
some interest, after all.
Mr. James, you startled me.
In this contraption?
I sometimes feel like a...
mechanical satyr.
Body of a man,
legs of a champion.
What is it?
What?
You're troubled.
No, uh, just tired I guess.
I worked late last night
typing up the notes.
The university should have
warned you I'm a slave driver.
( laughs )
Well, the last person
to leave the project
did say something
to that effect.
Oh, that was a big
mistake all around.
A man can't dictate
an autobiography
to an insensitive soul.
Uh... What about you?
Any complaints?
Oh, no.
The room you gave
me is just lovely.
Pay is fine and the
company is very stimulating.
Thank you. Tell me the truth.
Now...
When I came in a moment
ago, you were thinking
I'm an eccentric old man
who hoards his gold coins
like a modern-day
Midas, weren't you?
No. Not really.
I was just thinking
they must be very valuable.
Well, in round figures,
half-million dollars.
Oh, I had no idea.
Would you like to hear
how I came to collect them?
Uh... No, I think we should, um,
finish what we left
off with yesterday.
Um, what do you remember about
your 1927 trip to New Zealand?
You are a very odd young woman.
The first one I ever met who
was more interested in my memory
than my money.
Well, people already know
about the John R. James fortune.
And I want the book
to be about the man.
Thank you.
Let's go on the
terrace, shall we?
All right.
( suspenseful theme playing )
What's the coroner say?
Nothing yet.
Is that thing worth
anything, Charlie?
Mm, specific gravity: gold.
Slightly less than 22
karats 900-thousandths fine.
Weight: exactly 516 grains.
All of which means?
All of which means
it's a planchet.
A what?
A planchet. That...
KELLER: It's a metal disk
that's ready to be stamped
into a coin, right?
Right.
They use it in
crossword puzzles a lot.
You got time to do
crossword puzzles?
I don't give you enough
to do around here, huh?
Say, um...
What kind of a coin
does this thing make?
Well, I got some books over
here that'll tell you for sure.
That one to me looks
like a Double Eagle size.
Double Eagle. That's a
$20 gold piece, isn't it?
Hey, chalk one
up for the old folks.
You like words, huh? Yeah.
Read 'em to me.
See you, Charlie.
Well, there's 464 grains
of pure gold in the planchet.
Well, how many
grains in an ounce?
Uh, 450, isn't it?
No, I think there's 480.
No, 450.
Four-eighty.
Four-eighty? Yeah.
They must have changed it
since my high
school physics course.
They must have.
Yeah.
Look, uh... Look, let's
not read for a minute, huh?
Now, the night clerk...
said that the victim
came in with a satchel.
Right. We don't find a satchel.
But we do get this,
uh, little goodie here.
Which ye old book here
says is illegal in the U.S.
except as coins
held by collectors.
Which could've been
in that closet for years,
the way they clean out
those waterfront dives.
Possible, yeah.
Think we're spinning our wheels?
Close to an ounce of gold,
worth about, oh...
What, 65 or 70 bucks on
the international market?
I think it's about that, yeah.
( phone rings )
Stone.
Yeah.
Yeah. We'll be right there.
Looks like maybe
we got something.
What?
Coroner said murder.
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorbell rings )
Tommy.
May I help you?
Is Vince here?
He's busy right now.
Is there anything
I can do to help?
Karen. Hi.
You're early. I missed you.
Come, let's take a walk.
( door opens )
( door closes )
Who was that?
Just a guy I brought
in to help out a little.
He doesn't know anything
about what's going on, does he?
No. He barely knows
enough about coins
to answer the questions
that come in off the street.
Did you bring the diagram?
Yes.
You're sure you have each coin
in the exact place he keeps it?
Yes.
Vince, I'm frightened. Of what?
I don't know. Doing
anything like this.
Getting caught or...
Or hurting that old man.
We're just going to
trade one set of coins
for another set of coins,
and nobody's going to get hurt.
Want to see something?
What is it?
Our ticket to Spain,
angel. The Costa del Sol.
Vince, I just wish I could feel
the same way as you do about it.
It's how we feel about
each other that counts.
And having the money to do
whatever we want to do together
and go wherever we want to go.
You really do
mean it, don't you?
What you said.
Baby!
The last thing in the
world I wanted to do
the day I found you
was to make a delivery
to that mausoleum.
Bang, there you were.
You're the best
trip I've ever had.
And Mr. James...
Will you stop worrying
about that old man?
He owns half of Nob Hill.
He's not gonna miss
what's in that case.
He told me this morning
it was worth about
half a million dollars.
Angel, you've seen it
sitting there yourself.
Now what good is
it doing anybody?
It's not like robbing a bank
or someone's business.
Hey, I've watched
people like that all my life.
I watched while my
father pandered to them.
I swept up a crummy
shop where they walked out
with more than he made all year,
sealed in one lousy
little bit of plastic.
What do they do with it?
Take it home and
put it in a glass case.
Well, fine.
Let John R. James sit
and stare at his eagles.
I wanna see the world.
( streetcar bell ringing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
It's homicide, no question.
There wasn't a trace of
smoke in the victim's lungs.
That means the victim was
dead before the fire started, huh?
Yeah.
Couldn't be a stroke
or a heart attack?
Not from my findings.
Considering there are no breaks,
welts or contusions on the body,
I'd make it suffocation.
Suffocation, huh?
This envelope shows
there was a struggle.
Bits of human flesh and hair
from under the
victim's fingernails.
Let's get it under
the microscope.
KELLER: There's, uh, no chance
of making an ID on the victim?
Sorry. Later, okay?
Yeah. Thanks, Harry.
Buddy boy.
What does a short-barrel .32
with the serial numbers
filed off say to you?
Pro. Heist artist, maybe.
And one planchet
out of a satchel full?
Ripped off by
whoever killed him?
Well, a couple of hundred
would be worth ten, maybe 15,000,
but you'd have to have the
right contacts to unload 'em.
Wouldn't be worth all that time
and trouble, though, would it?
No.
What about the night clerk?
Oh, no. Nickels and dimes.
This one's gotta be worth
more than nickels and dimes.
Here, Tommy. Here's $15,000.
If it were good. But it's not.
I blew that one.
See those scratches?
Those little things? ( scoffs )
Those little things
are called cast marks.
When they're that bad,
it could tell an expert
that it's a phony real fast.
Speaking of scratches, how
'bout those that Ernie laid on you?
They're okay.
I guess they found
him by now. Relax.
They'll never be able
to tell what they found.
That's a strand of
blond human hair.
Came from the same
place the coroner found
those flecks of skin
on slide number two.
Is it body hair or face?
Body. Probably his arms.
And he's between
the age of 20 and 40,
definitely male and Caucasian.
Well, that lets you
and me out, Charlie.
How 'bout you, buddy boy?
You willing to roll
up your sleeves?
Wanna try to raise
a few numbers?
Chicken, huh?
( laughs )
Charlie. Mm-hm?
What do you got
on this third slide?
Shards of rusted metal.
I found them embedded in
the soles of the victim's shoes.
Any guesses?
I'll have a better picture
when I finish
evaporating the solution.
We washed what was left of
the victim's clothing and shoes.
That's what we got.
And rust powder in
solution, an electromagnet.
You wanna know something? What?
I've been here for 25 years,
I've never seen this thing work.
A serial number stamped
in metal can be filed off,
but it can never be
completely destroyed.
Yeah, I know that.
The molecular
structure of the metal
retains a ghost of
the stamped number.
Let's see it work.
Right.
( machine buzzing )
Serial number H12987.
All P.D.'s. Urgent.
I'm on my way.
What do you know,
it really works, huh?
Mm-hm.
Now you see it.
Now you don't.
Magic, eh?
Well, maybe we'll
get something after all.
Say, where's that, um...?
Oh, the latent print kit?
Uh, right here. Oh.
You're gonna need
a ten-point match
for positive ID.
You really think
there's a chance?
Charlie,
I'm gonna let you
in on a little secret.
I always think there's a chance.
( dramatic theme playing )
Good.
Finished?
Ah, for a while.
My eyes get tired.
How much longer?
Few more tonight. Few
more in the morning.
Vince, who are you calling?
Karen.
Vince.
I told you, it was
just business.
I killed a man, Vince!
Now, look, that had to be done.
Just like my seeing Karen.
Now it won't be long now.
Go inside and get some glassine
cases and we'll seal these up.
Go ahead.
( phone rings )
Miss Pearson. Telephone.
Thank you.
Hello?
Working hard?
Oh, I was afraid you
weren't gonna call.
Oh, big call tonight.
I'll be finished in the morning.
Tomorrow?
I'll tell you what time.
I've got to go now.
Love you, baby.
I love you too.
I... ( line clicks )
Hm.
Well, well, well.
Well, well, well, what?
Sodium chloride, sodium
bromide, magnesium bromide.
Well, thank you, Dr. Einstein.
They're the primary
salts in seawater.
From the victim's clothes?
The residue evaporated
from the solution we got
when we washed them.
And this came from the shoes.
It's a lead compound
identical to what they
use in marine paint.
A ship.
Just off it too, if he hadn't
changed his clothes.
Everybody wants
to be a detective.
San Diego made the
serial numbers on the .32.
Stolen three weeks
ago in National City.
Prints taken at
the scene of theft
identified as Ernie Walker,
a.k.a. Ernie Willard.
Priors, all for robbery, huh?
I want Walker's jacket.
I want his mug
shots, I want his prints,
I want everything
on him right now.
I've already asked for it.
It's on its way.
Good.
Well, we may have our dead man,
now we gotta find the
man who killed him.
They're pretty, aren't they?
You see that one on the bottom,
the fourth from the right? Yeah.
What's the date?
1907. Uh-huh.
Does that look any
different from the rest?
They all look the same to me.
Well, that one's worth
$22,500, Tommy.
Real rare piece of change.
We're gonna be rich on this.
Yeah.
( suspenseful theme playing )
Vince?
The insulin.
How many units was that?
Um, how many units?
About 80, I think.
Maybe a little more.
No, it's supposed to be 40.
Right.
Vince, that's too much.
Vince.
Vince.
Sorry, Tommy.
Just business.
( peaceful theme playing )
Good morning. Morning.
Well, you're out early.
They're... They're most
beautiful in the morning.
Coming awake,
alive. Oh, they are...
Oh, don't do that.
It's taken nearly ten
years to perfect this hybrid.
I'm sorry. It's all right.
You couldn't have known.
I believe if...
I cross this with that
dark red over there,
I'll have the most
beautiful rose ever created.
A deep, deep red with just
a tinge of yellow in the throat.
The look of velvet.
A true queen.
Like no other on
earth ever before her.
( laughing ): I...
I must sound like a
jelly-minded old fool.
No, no, not at all.
They mean even more to
you than the eagles, don't they?
Well, the eagles belong
to someone else now.
These will always be mine.
What do you mean?
Nothing.
( funky jazz theme playing )
That food's so good, I
always eat too much.
Yeah. Oh... Yeah, how
much do I owe you?
Forget it.
What do you mean, forget it?
Somebody give
you a raise in salary
that I didn't
authorize. Forget it.
You don't owe me anything.
Okay, thanks, big
shot. You're welcome.
( laughs )
Feel like talking
or you still thinking?
( sighs )
Oh, I'm sorry, buddy boy.
You know, that partial
that we lifted from the .32.
That proves... that
this Walker is the guy
that we pried from
that hotel room, right?
Right.
He did two years in
Nevada for grand theft,
completed his parole
right here in this city.
His last address was
San Diego. San Diego.
Right.
Well, is that all supposed
to add up to something?
Just that he's a
thief who lived here.
The last time he was known
to be alive was in San Diego,
which is as close to
Mexico as you can get.
Mexico? Mm-hm.
And that's a big, big
gold producer, right?
Skipped across the border,
picked up a
satchel full of these,
surfaced here.
He was on a ship, but
he didn't buy a ticket.
Stowed away on a freighter.
Or bribed a nice
cozy berth in steerage.
( laughs )
You know, it's true. What is?
What you always say.
You work long enough as a
cop, you start thinking like a crook.
Then you must know what else
I'm thinking, huh, buddy boy?
A counterfeit operation.
That's right.
But if you're dealing
in counterfeit coins,
especially gold coins,
it's a very special market.
A collector's market. Right.
And those guys can tell a phony.
Or buy from a dealer who can.
Yeah.
We're gonna need an expert.
I'll tell you what, I'll call
the Numismatic Society
and get us one. The what?
The Numismatic Society.
Numis... I know.
I know.
Coin collectors.
Very good.
I worked a few crossword puzzles
myself, you know, buddy boy.
MAN ( over radio ): Unit 8-1.
Unit 8-1.9-0-2 to crime lab.
Unit 8-1. Ten-four.
( funky jazz theme playing )
( engine starts )
STONE: What have you got?
CHARLIE: Thought you
might want to look at these.
Who is it?
Harris and I are
working on it now.
Body washed up by
Hunter's Point this morning.
Probably in the bay all night.
Johnson saw the
pictures, thought it might tie.
Blond.
Oh, age is what,
between 20 and 30?
This our killer?
I've got a workup
in progress now.
You got any ID? Negative.
Even the labels were
stripped from the clothing.
What killed him?
The coroner says an insulin OD.
Did you get a set of prints?
In the works.
Let me know when you get a make.
Right.
Thanks, Charlie.
Hey, uh,
maybe you're in the
wrong department after all.
( dramatic theme playing )
( phone ringing )
Hagopian's.
Vince?
Yes?
I've got to talk to you.
Karen, angel. Now, listen to me.
I know how you feel,
but there's nothing
to worry about.
Nothing can go wrong
and no one will be hurt
if you do as I told you.
Vince, please. Do
you have to do it?
Yes, we have to do it.
You and I together.
And then we can
be together always,
in style, the way we planned.
Look, I don't care about
the money, all right?
All I want is...
Well, I do care
about money, Karen.
I care very much.
I care enough to have this
whole thing set up right now.
And I'm counting on you.
Now, you have that case open.
I'll be there at 9.
( line clicks )
( phone ringing )
Yes?
Yes, yes, this is Hagopian's.
Well, I suppose so,
but can I ask
what this is about?
Okay, um... Okay,
I'll be there shortly.
STONE: The basic design
was changed twice after 1849.
These changes were made...
Mike, slow down.
In 1866 and 1907.
Between 1907... All right.
And 1933...
57 issues were minted.
Terrific. Wonderful.
Only 206 possibilities.
Two hundred and six, huh?
You know, if I was
gonna counterfeit coins,
I'd go for the rarest issues.
Now, here's one,
1907. Check that out.
Twenty-two thousand dollars?
Twenty-two five and
that was 11 years ago.
For one coin? I
gotta get into this.
It's another world. Yeah.
( knocking )
Yes, come in.
Lieutenant Stone?
Yeah, what can we do for you?
I believe it's the
other way around.
You telephoned me.
For some kind of assistance.
I'm Vincent Hagopian.
Oh, excuse me. I called you.
I'm Keller. How do you do?
This is Lieutenant Stone.
Lieutenant. Yes, how do you do?
Uh, I hope I haven't
kept you waiting too long.
Not at all. We
appreciate your coming.
Why don't you sit down?
You want some coffee?
Uh, no, thank you. Ah.
I was told your shop deals with
a lot of collectors
of the Double Eagle.
Well, yes, we dealt quite
a lot with them in the past,
but not so much anymore.
They've got too expensive.
Yeah, we we're just looking
at some of these prices.
Incredible.
There's one coin here, 22,500.
May I see it?
Sure.
Oh, yes. St. Gaudens type.
It's extra high relief.
It sold for 22,500 in
Chicago, 1963, I believe.
But I take it you gentlemen have
some special interest in eagles.
Well, we have reason to believe
that we're looking
for a counterfeiter.
Counterfeit eagles?
That sounds like a very
complicated operation
for a very limited market.
I mean, I don't see how
anyone could expect
to pass them through a
dealer without being discovered.
Well, that's why we
wanted to talk to you.
You see, we'd, uh, like
to have a list of names
of all the collectors
in the city.
Yes. It'll take a little while.
KELLER: Well, we think
the counterfeiter has about
a hundred of those planchets,
and he's had them
for about, uh, 36 hours.
Now, would it be
possible for him
to have stamped
all the coins by now?
Yes, I suppose so,
provided he had the, uh, die
and the press already available.
Well, that could mean he's
ready to make his move.
HAGOPIAN: Uh,
excuse me, lieutenant.
What exactly did you
mean by his move?
Well, you just said that it
would be almost impossible
to pass them through a
dealer without being discovered.
Yes. But how many collectors
stop to look for
minor imperfections
once they've owned that
rare coin for several years?
I see. You mean, a switch.
Transferring the, uh...
The counterfeit coins for
the authenticated ones,
and then selling
those somewhere else
where there's no
risk of detection.
Sounds possible to
me. How about you?
Sounds ingenious.
And terribly important
for someone in my field
to help you to stop.
Uh, but, lieutenant,
you'd want more than
the names of collectors.
You'd want a list
of all the issues
that would be
most likely passed.
You see, they'd have to be
either proof or uncirculated
to command any kind of price.
Well, what about this, uh,
1907 coin, for example?
Oh, no. I'd rule that
out. That's too rare.
Well, can you give us
issues that you can't rule out?
Yes. Be quite a lot.
And about the, uh, collectors,
I'd have to check my records
in my shop to compile that list.
Well, we'd appreciate anything
you gave us, Mr. Hagopian.
It would be my pleasure.
Thank you. Thank you.
Good day. Good day.
Good day.
( suspenseful theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )
I don't know, Mike.
This could take us two
days just to put the right coins
with the collectors
Hagopian gave us.
Yeah, he helped a lot.
Yeah. Huh.
What do you know?
What?
Remember that coin
Hagopian said was too rare?
The one that went for 22 G's?
Yup.
Take a look who bought it.
"John R. James, San Francisco."
Mm-hm. Huh.
And if he owns that
one, he owns others.
I don't remember
his name on that list.
That's because
it's not on there.
Well, how'd he forget
a name like that?
You know, I think that's worth
asking Mr. Hagopian himself.
( suspenseful theme playing )
JAMES: Go ahead.
You've done it before.
As distasteful a duty as
I have burdened you with
over the months, it seems.
Go ahead.
You said this morning that, um,
these don't belong
to you anymore.
Have you agreed to
sell them to someone?
What I said this morning
is not for publication.
What I'm going
to tell you now is.
This coin was minted in 1907.
It's the most expensive Double
Eagle ever on the market.
I paid an exorbitant
price, I know,
but it had a sentimental value.
You see, my Uncle Henry
actually started this collection for me
with an identical coin
on my 7th birthday.
You began collecting these
when you were 7 years old?
( laughing ): No,
no, not exactly.
I sold it, to buy
a train ticket.
This was my start,
you might say, and...
when I made it in the world,
I determined to buy it
back again someday.
Why the rest?
I became enamored of
these in my search for this.
For instance... Mr. James,
I'd much rather think
of you with the roses
than with all of these.
( chuckles )
Lock it out.
This may become a
mellow evening, after all.
All set?
Yes.
Let's break out the brandy.
You know, whether or
not we ever finish that book
I brought you here to write,
I've enjoyed your
company, Karen.
Thank you. No, thank you.
Thank you for being more
than just somebody an
old man can babble on to
about his yesterdays.
And for being someone
who understands
just why and how he
spent them the way he did.
I think you probably
understand everything about me
except my eagles,
even after hearing how
I came to collect them.
Well, it isn't important
that I understand that.
Well, it isn't important I keep
their future from you either,
provided it remains
off the record.
Of course.
I've said they already
belong to someone else.
That's true.
A trust owns them all.
Has for several years.
When I die, they'll
be sold at auction,
the proceeds will go to
the English Department
at the university.
That's how we met, actually.
Dean Robertson told me I
wouldn't be disappointed in you
in any respect.
That's proved to be true too.
I'm glad you feel that way.
Remember this morning,
when I told you the
roses were different,
they'd always belong to me?
Yes.
Well, that was some sort of a...
fantasy, I suppose.
An old man's
idea of immortality.
I could see my
creation, my queen rose,
carrying on my name
long after I was gone.
Hm.
They deserve
something much better.
They deserve to be named
after a beautiful woman.
I'd like very much to
name that rose after you.
With your permission.
What do you say?
Shall it be Queen Karen?
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorbell rings )
Good evening.
Police?
Sorry to be intruding,
but we'd like to speak
to Mr. James, please.
Mr. James isn't to be disturbed.
JAMES: Isabel.
What is it?
Lieutenant Stone,
Inspector Keller.
We're with homicide.
We'd like to talk to you
about your collection
of Double Eagles.
JAMES: I fail to make
any connection between
my eagles and homicide.
STONE: Well, if you
gave us a few moments,
I'm sure we could make
that connection for you.
Very well.
This way, gentlemen.
There they are.
Now, that's all of them, right?
Yes, inspector,
that is all of them.
Forty to be exact.
With an average
value of over $12,000.
Mr. James, did you
know a dealer in this city
by the name of Vincent Hagopian?
Very well. I used to deal with
him exclusively before he died.
Died? About a
year and a half ago.
Well, we just talked
to him this afternoon.
His son. Had to be his son.
Would be.
He took over the business.
But he's not the
expert his father was.
He hasn't the same love for it.
He didn't mention that either.
Maybe we ought to find out
what else he forgot to mention.
Say, may I use your phone?
Certainly. Thank you.
You still haven't
explained why you're here.
We're looking for
counterfeits, Mr. James.
( chuckles )
Counterfeit eagles, here?
Impossible.
Who has access to your case?
There's only one key. I
keep it with me at all times.
May I?
Stone, let me talk to Lessing.
Lessing? Stone.
I want a make on
Vincent Hagopian Jr.
He owns a coin
shop on Maiden Lane.
His name and
address is on my desk.
Go over there and pick it up.
Do you have any
gloves? I'll hold.
Desk. Left drawer.
You got it?
Well, go over to R and I
and find out if by any chance
there's a tie between this
Hagopian and our other body.
Ernie Walker.
Body? What's he talking about?
We've had two killings we
believe are connected with
this counterfeiting.
Did you get a make
on that insulin OD yet?
All right. Check
Hagopian's neighborhood
and find out if the two of
them were ever seen together.
Anywhere. Now, you
know where to look!
The bars, his coin
shop, apartment.
Let me know what turns up.
When was the last time
you opened this, sir?
Less than a half an hour ago.
Were you alone?
No, I was with a
friend, a young lady.
She's my houseguest.
May we speak to her, please?
Certainly. Thank you.
Got anything?
I don't know.
Mr. James.
( bell rings )
This coin.
It's an '83 proof, uh...
Only, uh, 40 in the world.
Could you look at
it through the glass?
We've taken sort of a
two-day crash course
because of this case,
but those, uh,
hairline scratches,
I believe the experts
call them cast marks.
They wouldn't be on a coin
in proof condition would they?
No.
They weren't here
when I bought this coin.
You didn't buy that
coin, Mr. James.
Somebody just gave it to you.
Hagopian?
I don't know. ISABEL: Yes, sir?
Will you ask Miss
Pearson to join us please?
Miss Pearson just left, sir.
I heard her car on the driveway.
Say, this girl, does
she know Hagopian?
Not well.
But she did know him?
Yes, as a matter of fact,
I introduced them myself
several months ago when
he came here one day
to make a delivery.
Have they seen
each other since then?
I wouldn't know.
Certainly she couldn't be
involved in anything like this.
She's a very simple young woman.
And if I read this
Hagopian right,
he's no simple young man.
We'll need a description
of Miss Pearson, sir.
What's her first name?
Karen.
( dramatic theme playing )
( knocking on door )
KAREN: Vince.
Vince, open the door.
( knocking on door )
Vince.
What are you doing here?
I told you to wait for me.
The police came. The police?
Yeah, we were wrong.
Look, we've got to take it back.
Never mind. What did they
want? What did they say?
I don't know. I left as
soon as they came.
Help me.
We'll get these mailed.
Vince, stop.
Look, we have to
take it back. All of it.
It doesn't belong
to him anymore.
I know it doesn't belong
to him. It belongs to me.
And they'll be waiting
for me in Spain.
Oh, please. I'll
make it up to you.
We don't need this.
I'll tell you what I don't
need. I don't need you.
Your whining mouth or
your pawing me anymore.
Vince.
( dramatic theme playing )
( doorknob rattling )
( knocking on door )
( action theme playing )
( grunts )
I'll call an ambulance.
Good.
( funky jazz theme playing )
How long you think she'll get?
Who? "Who?"
Karen.
What, I'm a DA?
She turned evidence.
Identified Tom from
Hagopian's shop.
That'll help her a little.
What's this? Got
your names on 'em.
"In appreciation.
John R. James."
A silver dollar.
Where's that book?
Where's the book?
Yeah.
What year is that?
1882.1882.
Looks pretty shiny, doesn't it?
Yes, it does.
Think they're uncirculated?
Oh, I'd say they're
uncirculated.
Hey, we're rich.
Yeah? Yeah.
Four dollars a piece.
( laughs )
( funky jazz theme playing )
( funky jazz theme playing )