Undercurrent (1946) Movie Script

Morning, Professor Hamilton. Telegram.
- Thanks, Luke.
- Thought I'd bring it to the house...
...and not wait till you get to the college.
- Good idea. Nice day.
- Nippy. More snow in the air.
- Yes.
- Morning, professor.
- Good morning, Luke.
Morning.
- Fruit's on.
- Oh, Lucy.
Mr. Garroway's coming to see me
this afternoon.
- When he comes, please ask him to wait.
- He an eligible?
- Eligible what?
- You know what.
Is he between 25 and 40,
sound of wind and limb?
Oh, I should think Garroway's about 30.
- Well...?
- Well, what?
Can he support a wife?
After a fashion.
I should judge he has a rough
Ask a foolish question, get a fool...
Do you want your daughter
to be an old maid?
Nothing wrong with being an old maid.
"Nothing wrong with being an old maid."
Nothing right.
I'm afraid we'll have to leave that
up to Ann.
Now, don't go leaving it
up to her too long.
Men'll get tired asking her someday.
Even Professor Bangs'll get tired.
- If that ain't him now, I'll eat the doorbell.
- You're vicious this morning, Lucy.
- Fruit's...
- On.
Good morning, Lucy.
- Fruit's on.
- Good.
Rummy, get out of that lab.
Haven't I told you a thousand times
to keep out of there?
You come here, you old rapscallion.
You bunch of trouble.
Come here, Rummy.
- Hello, Lucy.
- Good morning.
Hello, Rummy.
- Hi, Ann.
- Rummy.
I thought I'd drop by
to walk your father to the college.
Stop lying, Joe.
You smelled Lucy's breakfast.
If you want the truth...
...I came to see if you looked as good
this morning as you did last night.
Oh, Joseph, not on an empty stomach.
Door's open, professor.
Cooling off the house.
Sorry. Didn't notice.
Always a little chilly
when I'm around Ann.
- Hello, Bangs.
- Morning, sir.
- Just gonna have breakfast. Join us?
- I don't mind if I do.
What are you gonna do some morning
when he says no?
- Faint.
- Well, a man in love...
...and being constantly frustrated has a
drain on his strength. Needs nourishment.
- Ann turn you down again?
- Resoundingly.
- Last night, 8:00, Eastern Standard Time.
- Shut up, Joe. You do run on so.
- Sit there, Bangs.
- Thanks.
Can I reach Ann from here...
...in case I suddenly ask her again
and she says yes?
Don't fumble at me, Joe.
I wonder what Rummy wants in the lab.
Speaking of angels.
All right. Come on in,
you old spoiled thing.
Come on, Rummy. Come on.
Get up in your place. Get up there.
Get up there. Come on.
That's a good boy.
No, but, Dink, it's very mysterious.
Rummy used to hate the lab, and now...
Hey, Rummy.
What do you want in that lab?
You know, tetradite has a smell
in its earlier stages like fresh hamburger.
You mean, Rummy
might be eating tetradite?
But he might blow up.
He might blow us all up.
Go ahead, Rummy, I don't care.
Life has lost its savor.
In the meantime, I haven't got classes,
Ann. How about taking a walk?
No, you take a walk, Joe.
I gotta clean the lab.
Maybe you ought to give Bangs
a chance, Ann.
Hey, you. Lucy on my neck is enough.
Where I'm concerned, I guess
there just isn't any spark.
Well, Joe, if you must be banal,
that's right, no spark.
And where there's no spark,
there's no fire.
- No eggs, Lucy, dear.
- Eggs are ready.
Oh, not poached.
- Oh, please, not poached.
- Today, Friday.
Then they are poached.
Rummy, be ready and be quick.
I'm depending on you.
If you can eat tetradite,
you can eat poach...
Oh, poached eggs. That's different.
If you've got a guest,
you'll want a special dinner.
- He won't stay for dinner.
- What guest?
- A man.
- Alan Garroway.
Not Garroway.
I bet he comes in riding piggyback
on Henry Kaiser.
Not Kaiser. Just Garroway,
flying in from San Francisco.
Dink, you're joking. Not Garroway.
Why does everyone say, "Not Garroway"?
What's wrong with him?
You mean you don't know?
The young captain of industry.
The inventor of the famous
distance controller?
Ask a foolish question, get a foolish...
Is he married?
For full details on Mr. Garroway,
read practically any issue...
...of practically any magazine.
"Read your monograph on tetradite.
Taking this liberty.
Stopping by.
See you early this afternoon."
If I didn't know it before, I know it now:
I've got a famous father.
People come from all over the world
just to see you.
Garroway,
he's strictly big business, you know.
Smooth as patent leather.
Met him in Washington. Didn't like him.
You won't either.
Don't be too sure. Eggs are getting cold.
Sorry.
Pray for me.
Go to it, Rummy. Get going,
get going fast. Get go... And then...
...believe it or not,
he scooped up that fumble...
...and he ran 29 yards with it
before he was called back.
Lucy, I bet you wonder what I'm doing.
It's 6:30.
Good gosh.
- Where does the time go?
- Oh, don't worry. He's still here.
He must be long-winded.
What does he look like?
There's nothing wrong with him.
Dinner's been ready for half an hour.
I've got to rescue Dink.
His stomach always begins to growl
before 6 and your lovely dinner.
I'm not worrying about my dinner
or your father's stomach.
Why hasn't your father
had you in there to meet him?
- What do I know about tetradite?
- Quit talking silly.
That's got nothing to do with it.
It certainly is taking Dink a long time
to brush him off.
- Okay.
- That's all you're gonna do to yourself?
- You're a mess.
- Lucy...
...he didn't come to see me.
Honestly, he didn't.
Well, he sure won't stay to see you
in that condition.
Come on, boy.
And that way, tetradite can be
in general use all over the world...
...in a matter of months
instead of years.
I'll go still further.
I guarantee to manufacture it at a price
that'll stop it from being unfairly sold...
...or exploited to the public
by anyone else.
Oh, Ann, dear. Mr. Garroway.
- My daughter.
- Miss Hamilton.
How do you do?
How do you do?
I'm sorry. I've been cleaning.
- I hope you'll forgive me for barging in.
- I'm the one who's barged...
You're going after
the Regent Chemical Plant?
- I understand it's the best.
- It should be all set by now.
My manager, Mr. Warmsley,
is in Washington now.
- He came on for the negotiations.
- What is this? What's it all about?
Oh, I'm sorry, Ann. Here, take a look.
You know I can't read those blueprints.
What's going on here?
I'm turning tetradite over
to Mr. Garroway, Ann.
It's all here. Quick, practical, cheap.
We'll be underway in a month, you say?
I guarantee it, sir.
You were very confident, Mr. Garroway.
I think "presumptuous" is the word
you'd like to use, isn't it?
Well, maybe.
- Dinner will be ready in 10 minutes.
- Dinner?
- Yes. You know, dinner.
- It's nearly 7:00. I'm terribly sorry.
I'm not. You will join us, of course.
- Of course.
- You gentlemen have some sherry...
...while Miss Hamilton
changes for dinner.
Oh, but I...
Yes, naturally. I won't be a minute.
Sure you wouldn't prefer a cocktail?
No. No, thank you very much.
- Your mother?
- Yes.
She died three years ago.
What a sweet-Iooking face.
She was sweet, all right.
She was a scientist too...
...as good a one as dad, and a dynamo.
Mine was just the opposite.
Mother was an invalid for years.
Whenever it snowed, she always said
that's what she missed:
Walking in the snow.
Why am I talking like this?
I hate being sentimental.
- I like it.
- I think I knew you would.
Is that why, Ann?
Am I trying to please you?
Whether you're trying or not, you are.
Mr. Garroway, I was wondering...
...were you surprised when I...?
When we...?
- Met?
- Yes. Did I remind you of someone?
No. Whatever put that idea in your head?
Quite the opposite.
You look like no one
I'd ever seen before.
That would be it. Someone you'd never
seen before and given up trying to find.
It's quite a shock.
Rummy, mind your manners.
One of the tragedies of my life.
Dogs don't seem to care for me.
- It's a sign of bad character.
- Oh, Rummy's a fine one to talk.
He has no character at all, lazy little...
Eats tetradite. Steals it and eats it.
I've got a dog in Virginia, boy,
that'd make two bites out of you.
But I like you better,
even if you don't like me.
Well, you'll have to forgive him.
If he could read, he'd know
that he was snubbing a celebrity.
- Every magazine you pick up...
- Spare me, please.
No, seriously.
As an American, I'm very proud to be
sitting here with you in my own house.
- As an American?
- Yes.
How do you feel about it as a girl?
As a girl?
Tickled pink.
But that, Mr. Garroway, is my business.
And catching that last plane
is my business. I wish it weren't.
I'm sorry Dink didn't get back.
It's all right. Anyway, tell him
how grateful I am for his cooperation.
- I certainly shall.
- Goodbye.
- Good...
- I'm sorry.
- Electricity from your feet.
- Yes. Did you see the spark?
Spark?
How fresh this always is, and new.
It always takes me into another world.
Whatever world it was you were in,
my dear, you were not alone.
Of that I'm certain.
- What do you mean, Dink?
- Garroway.
- Dink.
- Yes?
You mustn't say that.
Mustn't speak the truth?
Well, that's not the truth.
- I'm nobody, he's...
- A man. Chemically speaking, a man.
All life isn't chemistry.
More than you think.
But that isn't bad, it's nature.
Oh, dear. Professor Joseph Bangs.
- Hello, Joe.
- Hello, Ann. Saw the lights.
Thought I'd take a chance on finding you.
It was just the sheerest impulse.
- Flowers for you, Miss Hamilton.
- Well, thank you very much.
Come on in, Joe.
Now, why didn't I think of that?
Good heavens. Hello, Bangs.
- Good evening, sir.
- I can't imagine...
- I can.
- Did anybody answer the...? Well.
Dozens of them.
What a nice way for him
to show his respect for you, Dink.
Roses don't show respect,
roses show intentions.
And we haven't got a vase big enough
to hold them.
Garroway?
Typical ostentation.
I felt the same way when I met him.
Too much personality for a scientist.
He's not a scientist.
He doesn't claim to be.
He invented
the Garroway Distance Controller.
Won the war with it, single-handed.
It was... It is very important.
Not only in war, in peace.
However, in talking to him...
...I felt I knew more
about his invention than he did.
I don't see why Alan Garroway has to be
attacked because he has a personality.
It's no crime, you know. Not yet.
Excuse me.
Oh, Dink, that was silly of me.
- Joe go away mad?
- No.
Bangs is all right.
He doesn't mean any harm.
- I imagine he's a little jealous.
- Oh, it's ridiculous.
- Alan Garroway isn't thinking of me.
- Now, before you say it...
...another telegram came from him today.
- It did?
- He'll be back Thursday.
- He will?
Well, of course.
- He has to.
- Oh, no, he doesn't have to.
I know what you're thinking,
and it's nonsense.
- I'm nobody, and he's...
- Don't you ever go to the movies?
- It happens all the time.
- Dink, look at me.
You're my father. You love me.
I probably seem fine to you.
But Alan Garroway...
Look at me.
Take the scales off your eyes and look.
You look.
Ann.
- Ann, look here.
- What?
Nothing yet.
A little alcohol, caustic acid.
Now change the formula.
A little, just a drop.
There.
- No nonsense now. That's tetradite.
- What's that got to do with me?
Well, love is a chemical formula,
like anything else.
I recognize the formula.
That's a very romantic conception, Dink,
for a scientist.
You're as bad as Joe Bangs
with his spark.
Don't fight, my dear.
Don't fight feeling the way you must.
But don't think I like the idea, I don't.
I'm a jealous father, selfish.
- I like our life together.
- Me too.
But it's happening.
Nothing can stop it now.
You're foaming, my dear.
- I'm not foaming.
- More than you think.
Now, pour you into a tube.
Let's call it a church.
Now change the formula.
Just a drop.
Just a drop of religious ceremony.
- The world changes.
- Nonsense.
Is that what you'll say
a few weeks from now?
When the chemist of heaven
in a long, black robe asks you...
To have and to hold
from this day forward.
For better or worse,
for richer or poorer...
...in sickness and in health,
to love and to cherish...
...till death do you part.
I will.
I now pronounce you man and wife.
All right?
I've been higher than this
the last few weeks, much higher.
- Will you fasten your safety belt, please?
- Yes, thank you.
This is it. Washington.
I'm impressed.
The nearest I've ever been
is a letter to my congressman.
I wired Warmsley to meet us.
He's the manager
of the San Francisco plant.
- Oh, I can't...
- Just relax, Mrs. Garroway.
- What did you say?
- What, Warmsley?
No, no. Who? Mrs. Who? Who?
You're very sweet.
Mrs. Garroway. Mrs. Alan Garroway.
Judas.
- Hello, Mr. Garroway.
- Warmsley.
This is my wife, Ann. Mr. Warmsley.
The daughter
of Professor David Hamilton.
- How do you do? Let me.
- How do you do? Oh, no.
That's all right. I can take this.
I have a car.
- What was the matter?
- Nothing. Why?
Well, he looked surprised. Why?
- Didn't you tell him?
- Surprised?
He knew I went to see your father
about tetradite.
You don't look at all like tetradite.
He's a good manager, Warmsley is.
- How's the conference going?
- All right, Mr. Garroway.
- I can leave for San Francisco tomorrow.
- Fine.
There's the Jefferson Memorial, darling.
Oh, Alan, this is an exciting town.
We'll have dinner and then
friends are coming to meet you.
- People?
- Yes.
Some of my friends are people,
nice people.
- Don't worry, darling.
- Oh, I'm a coward. I'm scared to death.
They'll probably take one look
and say, "Where did he dig her up?"
You'll be the most beautiful woman there.
You wait and see. Huh, Warmsley?
Oh, yes, I should say that
Mrs. Garroway has nothing to fear.
Nothing and no one.
- And the food was dreadful.
- You're mad!
- It's the best in town.
- Very nice to see you again.
- Alan. A few people?
- There aren't more than 30 or 40.
Thirty or 40? They're all wearing black
and jewelry. My hair.
Don't be silly, darling. You're stunning.
Alan, I'm not stunning.
I'm just plain dowdy.
Why didn't you tell me? This is awful.
You're not gonna be thrown
by black dresses and diamond clips.
I'll get you all you want of those.
Come on, Mrs. Garroway.
Chin up, chest out, let's go.
A condemned man
ate a hearty breakfast.
- No, you're joking.
- Not at all.
It happened right in the Senate chamber.
- No. No.
- You don't believe me?
This is General and Mrs. Rand.
- How do you do?
- How do you do?
- It was simply fraud.
- Ellen, this is my wife, Ann.
- How do you do?
- Senator Pelley.
Mrs. Garroway!
An honor and a pleasure, ma'am.
- Thank you very much.
- Alan, you sly dog. She's a treasure.
- Laura, this is Ann. Miss Webb, darling.
- Hello, my dear.
- You're looking very handsome.
- Thank you.
- That's a good dress.
- Like it?
Just a little old thing
I found in the ragbag.
It could be the way you wear it.
- Mrs. Garroway.
- How do you do?
Come on, Ann. Let's go over here.
Side boys, a relic of the past.
Oh, hello, Alan.
Henry's away on his seahorse again.
- We were talking about...
- Don't tell me it's side boys.
Mrs. Donegan, Captain Donegan,
Captain Rich, my wife, Ann.
For what purpose do they serve, I ask?
- Side boys.
- Tradition, captain.
- Come here for a moment.
- Excuse me, darling.
Even civilians talk about tradition
nowadays.
Let me tell you how ridiculous this is.
Don't let us frighten you, my dear.
We're quite harmless.
I'm not frightened, really.
I'm just frightened.
He sent the records to this bureau.
Before he knew it...
...he'd been transferred.
- They are talking English, aren't they?
- I've hardly understood a word.
- Oh, you're a lucky girl.
- Julia, darling.
- Yes, Mary.
The governess has a perfect plum
for you.
- You mean the thing we...?
- Absolutely.
Oh, wonderful. Excuse me, my dear.
I'm sorry. Pardon me.
Mary.
See you Tuesday, then?
All its resources, hospitality...
Here we are.
Ann, this is Sir Frederick Wilmuth.
Mrs. Garroway. There's Basil.
You'll forgive me. Alan.
It's going beautifully, darling.
They adore you.
Only 300 words,
but the cables absolutely melt.
Let's see. Who you don't know?
Miss Madson.
Mr. Edley, Mr. Hollister
and Mr. Badger.
Tony was just opening
the top drawer for us.
Tony's the only man
who really knows the answers.
Excuse me, darling.
- Oh, please go on.
- Well, to cut it short...
...before Ourasanoff could
get back to the embassy...
...Svenska and Sir Gerald
had cornered Binky.
That's wonderful.
That's Binky Alisbesque, you know.
As a result, Archie never even
saw Svenska's communiqu.
- Archie is Lady Melling's cousin.
- When he got to the State Department...
I know about that. Binky deliberately
told Svenska about Sir Gerald.
- And then...
- That isn't what happened.
Sir Gerald was in the House chamber
at the time.
He was trying to line up Steven Jones!
Poor Archie.
Wait till he comes up against Tony.
- And Peters.
- And Peters.
What is it, Ann?
- Oh, stop it. I don't know...
- You shouldn't... You shouldn't...
- What?
- Shouldn't have married me.
- They know it was a mistake.
- Mistake?
Should've married one of those women.
They all have husbands or sweethearts.
Didn't you see
how they were looking at me?
They were thinking,
"She doesn't even know how to dress."
- Is that all that's...?
- Alan, they tried to be nice...
...but they thought I was pathetic.
I'm gonna take this off
and never see it again.
- It's a perfectly nice dress.
- It's not. It's hideous.
- I never want to see it again. I'll burn it.
- There's nothing wrong with this dress.
- I might as well dress in a potato sack.
- Let me help you.
You're stuck with a wife
who doesn't know how to dress.
- She doesn't know how to behave.
- You seem to be stuck in this zipper.
- Alan, get it off, please...
- There. Look, look.
We'll go shopping. We'll get everything.
By tomorrow night, you'll be
the best-dressed woman in Washington.
You're already the loveliest.
Oh, Alan, I'm sorry to be such a boob...
...but I do wanna be good for you.
- I wanna be right for you.
- Will you shut up?
I'll learn.
I studied chemical formulas to help Dink.
I'll learn to talk like your friends.
I'll learn to be like them.
I don't know how the heck I'll do it,
but I'll do it.
If you do, I'll kill you.
- Who do you belong to?
- You.
That's all that matters to me.
Is it, Alan? Is it?
If you ever forget that,
you'll be very, very sorry.
Will you please take that away
before I buy it...
...and make a figure of fun of myself.
- No, Gwen. That's for Booth 3.
Hello, Mrs. Foster. How are you?
Of course, I don't believe any of this.
It's a lie.
- You just relax.
- If I relaxed, I'd drop dead.
Doing very well, aren't we, darling?
Now, this... This is my pet.
I've been absolutely hiding it
until that special customer came along.
This suit is Mrs. Garroway, that's all.
You like it, Ann?
All I can say is, if that suit is me,
I've certainly improved.
All right, we'll take it.
You can wear it tonight.
Tonight? Oh, I am sorry, but you see,
this is the original model.
- Okay, we'll take the model.
- But we never sell our models.
- It isn't even in the works.
- Please ask Cora.
- Tell her that special customer appeared.
- Well...
Alan, you know so much about clothes.
How could you have let me wear
that brown horror last night?
- I'm in love with you. I didn't notice.
- You must have. I think you did notice.
But you couldn't do anything about it,
so you just didn't tell me.
Darling, you must... Oh, my feet are tired.
You must tell me from now on.
Don't be afraid of hurting me.
I don't know much about these things.
Is that Alan Garroway?
- Hello, Mrs. Foster.
- I might've known.
The cash and the figure.
Nice you got together.
This is a neighbor from Virginia.
A friend of my mother's.
- Mrs. Foster, my wife.
- Delighted.
Read you were married.
- When are you coming to Middleburg?
- Soon.
Remember that strip of woods
you were after, Alan?
- Decided to sell.
- I'll certainly have another look at it.
Well, you made a good choice, Alan.
- She looks like a fine, honest girl.
- Thank you.
You...? You ride, of course?
I'm afraid I'm not good at it.
We're born on horses in Middleburg,
aren't we, Alan?
- Yes.
- You're not bad...
...but his brother Michael
is the boy with the light hands.
He's a horseman.
How well I remember them both.
Michael sailing over my fence like a bird,
with Alan straggling behind.
By the way, Alan, how is Michael?
What's this about wanting
to buy my original?
Are you trying
to put me out of business?
When she wears that dress tonight,
you'll be in business.
- It's impossible.
- That's just why I want it.
You might as well let him have it.
He'll get it somehow.
How well I know.
All right, let him have the model.
Goodbye. I look forward
to seeing you in Middleburg.
- Goodbye.
- Goodbye, Alan.
And make Ann practice her riding.
She's nice. You didn't tell me
you had a brother, Alan.
We've been busy, Ann.
I haven't had a chance.
We're a little late.
I'll wait outside while you dress.
Something's troubling you, Alan.
You haven't been yourself all evening.
Is it something I've done?
You're surprised that I hadn't told you
about Michael.
- Your brother? No, we haven't...
- Spoiled my first day alone with you.
It's perfect. It's typical.
Good old Mike.
I'm sorry it had to come like this, Ann.
I meant to tell you.
Please don't tell me anything
if it's painful to you.
I want you to know.
You'll have to some time.
You'll meet people in San Francisco
who knew Mike, who love him.
Adore him.
He does that to people.
Mother adored him.
He was her favorite. I also ran.
Mike's bright. Very bright.
Knew how to handle people,
make them eat out of his hand.
When my father died, we took over
the San Francisco plant...
...began to experiment. Mike ran
the business, I was the engineer.
That's when I started working
on my flight control.
I hardly ever saw Mike.
He didn't have any time for me.
We were making money
hand over first...
...on automobile gadgets
and airplane stuff...
...when suddenly,
we began to run out of money.
I couldn't figure out why.
Mike had bought a ranch
about 30 miles outside the city.
He gave big parties,
collected horses and girls.
I decided to call in my own auditor.
Mike must've thought I was an imbecile
to do it the way he did.
It's like putting your hand
in a cash register. Just like that.
He was stealing from you?
Your own brother?
Yes, my own brother.
I drove out to see him.
I don't think I'll forget that night.
Mike had a big party
going on at the ranch.
He was pretty drunk.
When I told him,
he didn't bother to argue with me.
He told me to get out...
...go back to playing
with my little flight control.
He said I'd never do anything about him,
not while Mother was alive.
And I didn't.
The next year was something.
I guess he knew
it was just a matter of time, so he...
He really let me have it
every way he could.
I suppose I hated Mike then
as much as I've ever hated anyone.
Anyway, Mother died. Mike disappeared.
I don't know where he went.
Last I heard, he was in the Army.
I hope so. I hope it did something for him.
He disappeared because he was afraid
of what you might do to him.
Maybe, but Mike's not afraid of me.
I remember his face
the last time I saw him.
I keep thinking he's alive somewhere
and hating me the way he must.
I even felt I didn't have
the right to marry you.
- Don't say that, Alan.
- I'm sorry, Ann. I shouldn't have said it.
He can't hurt us
if we hold each other...
...never let him come between us.
Why should he?
What's Mike got to do with us?
Oh, nothing, except,
while you were speaking...
...it was as though a shadow...
I'm sorry. We'll never think
or speak about it again.
All right.
But if anything ever does come up
about him to upset you, you'll tell me.
- You'll let me know.
- Nothing ever will.
I've nothing left for Mike but
an overwhelming desire...
...never to see him again.
Hope we don't. I do so hope we don't.
Darling, I'm so deeply sorry for you.
And yet, in a way, I'm glad you told me.
Because it means you're not as sure
of yourself as I thought you were.
You need me, even if
it's only to help you forget.
Yes, I do need you, Ann.
You may have a no-good brother,
but you're going to have a good wife.
Best wife you'll ever have.
I'll make it up to you, Alan.
I'm so grateful to you
for so many things.
It's as though you'd led me by the hand
into a strange and wonderful world.
- A world to dream of.
- Why dream?
You're here, you're mine, and I love you.
Nora.
- Where is 3 Cambridge Street?
- Three blocks east, Mrs. Garroway.
Three blocks east.
Madam, the news just telephoned.
They want to know, is this dinner party
your fifth or sixth of the month?
- Why do they wanna know that?
- It's customary.
I see. Well, I really don't know.
The fifth or the sixth?
I haven't the vaguest idea.
- The sixth, I believe, madam.
- I see. Thank you.
I think you'll find the seating
in proper order.
I put Justice Putnam
on your right, of course.
Of course.
Who is Mr. Henry Gilson?
A new congressman
from the Midwest, madam.
Wondered why you placed him
in the doorway.
He's no one important, madam.
That explains it. Thank you.
Sorry, Henry.
You're not important, poor guy.
There are only four or five of these,
as far as I know.
And they're all in private collections.
- Hello.
- How do you do?
I'm looking for a print. Sort of a...
- A hunting print?
- No. Not exactly.
- Audubon?
- Well, like that.
That's lovely. What is it?
- That's a Dickens scene.
- Oh, Pickwick.
- Yes, Pickwick Papers.
- I like that.
- May I have it?
- Why, certainly.
Could you send it right away...
...to Professor David Hamilton
of that address?
- It's a birthday present.
- Tomorrow morning?
That'll be fine.
I'll pay you for it now.
Oh, no, I haven't any money with me.
Would you charge it to me?
I'm Mrs. Alan Garroway.
- Of course.
- I'm at the Vendome.
Oh, Mrs. Garroway,
I'm glad you came in.
Only last night I was looking at a book
that your husband left to be bound.
It's been here for some time.
Oh, here we are.
My house, I say.
But hark to the sunny doves
That make my roof
The arena of their loves
And fill the chimneys
With their murmurous song:
Our house, they say.
Are you sure that this
is Mr. Garroway's book?
Why, yes, from Middleburg, Virginia?
Yes, that's right.
It's a fine old book, isn't it?
And very much used.
I had to be quite careful.
- Do you like the binding?
- Yes, it's a beautiful binding.
I'll just take it with me, then.
That all right? Thank you very much.
- Goodbye, Mrs. Garroway.
- Goodbye.
Excuse me, madam.
Would you look at the table again,
please?
- Why? Is it different?
- The flowers.
Oh, they're very pretty.
I always feel so sorry for flowers
at a dinner party, don't you?
- They die so quickly.
- Yes, madam. Will that be all?
Yes, thank you.
Nobody important. Poor guy.
Mr. Justice Putnam, do you mind?
Don't you fret, Henry.
You're just as important
as anybody here.
More so. Now...
And what part of the Midwest
do you come from, Mr. Gilson?
- Iowa.
- Oh, I love Iowa.
- So big and full of corn, isn't it?
- Yes, ma'am. Yes. Yes, it is.
- Judge Putnam.
- Yes?
The Supreme Court decided
the Tideland's case in '42, wasn't it?
Yes, '42.
Shall we go into the other room?
You may serve the coffee inside.
- Delightful dinner, wasn't it?
- Oh, yes.
- Oh, Ann.
- Yeah?
Just a minute, sorry.
Are you trying to be rude
to Judge Putnam?
Why did you have to seat him
in the doorway?
The draft might do him good.
He seemed stuffy.
- I invited him here for a reason.
- I'm sorry, darling.
I don't know what got into me.
I'll make it up to him.
I haven't talked about myself
so much in years.
You're learning diplomacy fast,
young lady.
If you keep it up,
Washington is going to love you.
I hope so, because I love Washington,
especially now.
The spring is thrilling.
It creeps up on you. You almost feel it.
You should be in South Carolina
in the spring.
It's like nothing I've ever seen
anywhere in the world.
I'm sure of it.
What part of South Carolina,
Judge Putnam?
Charleston. I have a house on the bay,
just across from Fort Sumter.
The blues and the whites
in April are, well...
- Get down there very often, sir?
- No, not often. I miss it.
I feel it belongs to the people
who take care of it...
...whose families have lived on the place
for 100 years...
...more than it belongs to me.
- That's very generous of you.
- Not only generous, I think, but wise.
My father once told me,
when we were discussing possessions...
...how foolish we are to think
that we ever possess anything in life.
- What do you mean, Ann?
- Well, Judge Putnam understands.
No one ever really owns anything.
All we have is a temporary use of it.
It just isn't true to say
"my this" and "my that."
- Not even "my wife"?
- That's different.
No, but, I read something today...
...which says what I mean
better than anything I've ever heard.
- I'm ashamed to say I memorized it.
- I'd love to hear it, my dear.
Well, I found it in an old book of poems.
This one was marked.
And I thought to myself,
the man who marked this poem...
...is someone I understand
and who understands me.
We speak the same language.
Remember it, darling?
My house, I say.
But hark to the sunny doves
That make my roof
The arena of their loves.
Our house, they say.
And mine, the cat declares
And spreads his golden fleece
Upon the chairs.
And mine, the dog,
And rises stiff with wrath
If any alien foot profane the pa... Path.
Charming, Mrs. Garroway.
Well, I may have left out a line or two,
but that's the general idea.
I remember it now.
It's by Stevenson, isn't it?
Yes, it is.
He has a trick of voicing things
we'd all like to say.
I hope everything went all right,
Mr. Garroway.
Yes, thank you, Mrs. Delwin.
Everything was fine. Good night.
- It was a nice party, wasn't it, Alan?
- Yes, it went very well.
How about driving
to Middleburg tomorrow?
Oh, Alan, could we?
I'd like to look at that property again.
It's good protection for us.
Oh, that'll be exciting, the house
where you were born and grew up.
It'll be beautiful at this time of year,
won't it?
Yes, beautiful.
Alan, here's the book.
- Book? What book's that?
- The book the poem come from.
That's not my book.
Yes, it is. You remember. You sent it
in some time ago to be rebound.
I'm afraid it's a mistake.
- But they had the name and Middleburg.
- It's a mistake, Ann.
We'll leave early. You don't need
to take much stuff.
- All right. But I'm positive.
- It may be a little isolated for you.
- There's no telephone.
- No telephone, so they can't get at you.
Sounds like heaven.
You won't be bored?
- Bored? Will you?
- No.
No, tell me seriously, Alan. Will you hate
being cooped up with me for days?
- Why do you ask that?
- Because I love you...
...and I can't help noticing
when we're alone, how...
How a lot of the glow you have
with people sort of goes out of you.
- What's the matter, Ann?
- I don't know. Nothing.
I just want to be reassured, I guess.
Consider yourself reassured.
You'd better get some sleep if we're
going to drive to Middleburg tomorrow.
Well, if it's a mistake,
I suppose I'll have to return this.
But I hate to.
I'm tempted to keep it.
Alan, what's the penalty
for stealing books?
Stop shoving that book at me.
I don't wanna discuss it.
Don't you know whose book it is?
- What?
- Keep throwing it at me.
Even memorized the poem.
It's not my book.
- I told you that.
- I didn't know...
He got you. The gentle boy
who loved poetry.
You speak the same language.
He understands you, you understand him.
Isn't that what you said?
I only memorized it
because I thought it was yours.
Yes, of course you did.
That was very unfair of me.
I shouldn't take it out on you,
the way I feel about Mike.
Forgive me, Ann.
I forgive you, Alan.
What beautiful country.
How much farther?
We're almost there.
We haven't even passed anything
that looked like a house for ages.
- No, we're pretty isolated.
- Where does Mrs. Foster live?
On down the road, quite a ways.
Those woods we were talking about
lie between our place and hers.
Alan, look through those trees there.
That beautiful field.
Yeah, this is the beginning of our place.
Our place.
Ours. I take it all back.
The possessive case is wonderful.
Oh, Alan, it's a dream.
Might be a cold dream, except for George.
Been closed for over a year.
Those are the stables
and the garage there.
The orchard's on the other side.
- Who's that?
- That's Bate.
Hello, Bate.
Hey, now, don't you back away from me.
You're supposed to be glad to see me.
He's shy, isn't he? Come on, old fellow.
- Come here.
- Now, Bate, don't carry on like that.
What you carrying on for,
when people wanna be nice to you?
Now, you be nice to them.
Come here. Come here. Come back here!
He's all right, ma'am.
Just ain't used to seeing strangers here.
We'll get acquainted.
- Thought you were gonna give him away.
- I tried, but he keeps coming back.
- How you been?
- Fine, thanks.
- This is George, our caretaker.
- Hello.
- Glad to know you.
- Looks all right.
Oh, it's beautifully kept. So neat.
- Thank you, ma'am.
- How are the horses?
They're all right, Mr. Alan.
- I'll get the bags.
- Thank you.
Come on, darling.
Alan, if you try to carry me
over the threshold, I'll scream.
Don't worry, I won't.
You weigh too much.
Alan, how charming.
- I'm afraid it's a little grim.
- Not grim, darling, it's beautiful.
A little Ionely, perhaps, a little unused.
It needs some light and air.
Open your shutter.
Now. See?
That makes a difference, doesn't it?
What's it like upstairs?
Well, let's take a look.
This was my mother's room.
Yes, I can tell that. It's sweet.
George, put the bags over there, please.
Wish I knew what she looked like.
Isn't there a picture of her somewhere?
- Used to be, but Mr. Alan...
- I took them down.
You know how that junk accumulates.
Stored the personal stuff.
It does rather smother you after a while.
Wanna ride to Mrs. Foster's?
You don't have to.
- George can fix you something.
- No.
- I'll wait for dinner. I'll stay and change.
- I won't be long.
- Care for a cup of tea, ma'am?
- Maybe later, thank you, George.
I hope I haven't picked
any of your favorites.
No, ma'am. I'll have your tea ready
for you in just a moment.
Don't rush. I'm going out for a walk.
- Oh, George?
- Yes, ma'am?
Could we have dinner
in front of the fire?
Yes, ma'am. I'll put a table right here.
That'll be nice.
And if Mr. Alan comes home early,
why, tell him I'm out by the stables.
Come on, Bate. Come on.
All right, have it your own way.
Snob.
Hello.
You've got a sweet face.
What's your name?
Maggie, I'll bring you a carrot
the next time I come down.
Hello, old fella.
Better get away from that stallion.
You better get away.
He's dangerous, isn't he?
He's a devil horse, that's what.
Nothing but a devil can ride him.
I saw him break that horse.
I saw that animal trying to throw him.
I saw him beat him with his whip...
...until he was black in the face as
that critter's hide. And he was swearing!
"I'll ride you or kill you!"
There ain't no horse he can't ride,
so he said.
I seen him. Yes, ma'am!
I'm waiting. I'm watching.
He's coming back some night.
And the moon am dark,
and get on that horse...
...and lay the whip to him! And that
black thing is gonna rear up like:
- There'll be nothing...
- Hey, Ben.
They'll be going down. You better get...
I told you to keep away.
You're not supposed to be in here.
Now, get out and stay out.
Now, come on. Go ahead. Go on!
I hope he didn't scare you, ma'am.
But he's plumb out his head.
Oh, no. He didn't scare me, George.
That's Mr. Michael's horse, isn't it?
He was a great horseman, wasn't he?
Mrs. Foster told me.
Yes, ma'am, he was.
I think we better go home, George.
Oh, and I think I will have
that cup of tea now, George.
- Yes, ma'am.
- Hi!
- Who are you?
- Telegram for Garroway.
Oh, you startled me.
I'm Mrs. Garroway. Thanks.
Hi, George.
- George?
- Yes, ma'am?
- I like my tea very strong.
- Yes, ma'am.
All right, George, you take it.
Hello, darling.
Alan, what is it? What's the matter?
- Who was playing that? Who was it?
- Well, I was playing the piano.
You? Why did you play that piece?
Answer me. What made you play it?
I don't know. I play it often.
Dink taught me.
Why? What's the matter?
Your father.
- Your father taught you that piece?
- Yes. Alan, what is it?
Yeah. Yes, he... He plays. I'd forgotten.
That's a... That's a piece that
anyone might play, mightn't they?
Of course they might.
Alan, you're shaking.
You're ice-cold. Tell me what's wrong.
My mother died sitting at this piano,
playing that piece.
You see, Middleburg
isn't all happy memories for me.
I wish I could've known your mother.
She must've been a wonderful person.
She had to be to be your mother.
Finding out that she loved that piece
makes me know her.
It was my father's favorite too.
Funny.
Your mother played it, and you heard it
when you were little, so did I.
That's a bond between us.
One we didn't know about, isn't it?
Yes.
- Having dinner in here?
- Poor darling.
I'll go clean up a bit.
I fixed the cocktails.
You want me to shake them?
Oh, no, let me do it, George. I'd like to.
Mrs. Garroway must've been
a wonderful woman, George.
Yes, ma'am. She was.
She was an invalid for a great number
of years, wasn't she?
Yes, ma'am. She laid up in her bed...
...never complaining, always smiling.
This piano must've been a great comfort
to her when she did get up.
- Piano?
- I know what it means to an invalid...
...to be able to play.
My mother did a little.
Mrs. Garroway never played no piano.
She always said
she only knew two things:
Her flowers and her boys.
Mrs. Garroway never played the piano?
No, ma'am. Mrs. Garroway
never played no piano, no time.
But she died sitting at that piano,
didn't she?
No, ma'am. She died upstairs in bed.
- Bring dinner anytime it's ready, George.
- Yes, sir.
Cocktails. We can use these,
huh, darling?
George's cocktails are the best.
Almost good enough for you.
To us, darling.
To us.
You're awfully quiet tonight. Too quiet.
Are you tired of Middleburg already?
I am kind of quiet, aren't I?
Well, I'm tired, but not of Middleburg.
I did an awful lot of rambling around
this afternoon.
- A wire came for you.
- Yes, I saw it. It's from Warmsley.
It looks as though we might have to go
to San Francisco on Thursday.
You don't seem
very enthusiastic.
No, I was thinking.
I was thinking they can get at you
if they want to.
Yes, if they want to.
I'd better get to a telephone
and send Warmsley an answer.
Want to ride along, darling?
- Oh, I'm so tired.
- All right. You stay here and rest.
I'll hurry.
- What is it, George?
- Nothing, ma'am.
What were you afraid of?
You knew I was here.
No. I heard the front door,
and I thought you went out.
Then who did you think it was?
Who did you think it was?
Who could it be?
Who used to sit at that piano?
- Oh, please, ma'am.
- Yes.
- Nobody.
- That's not true. You were frightened.
- Who did you think it was?
- Please...
- Michael?
- No, ma'am.
You did think it was Michael.
- I ain't seen him in years.
- He did play that piece, didn't he?
Oh, Miss Garroway, please don't tell
Mr. Alan I was talking about him.
About Michael?
Don't worry, George.
You weren't talking about him, I was.
I won't tell Mr. Alan.
How he must hate him.
He's tried to take every sign of him
out of this house.
Erase him completely.
No pictures, nothing.
Won't even talk about him.
That's why he didn't tell me the truth.
George?
- Yes, ma'am?
- George, we...
We must help him.
Mr. Alan has been terribly hurt.
We've got to find a way to help him.
Yes, Miss Garroway.
- Mr. Garroway. How do you do, sir?
- Jean.
This way, please.
I feel guilty.
Do you always get what you want?
What a wonderful-Iooking girl.
Do you know her?
Yes.
- Alan.
- Sylvia. This is my wife, Ann.
Sylvia Burton.
An old San Francisco friend of mine.
You make it sound like old Frisco Sal
or something.
So nice to meet you.
Isn't this a mob scene?
- It certainly is.
- Here I go, it seems.
So nice to have run into you.
Goodbye.
- Goodbye.
- Excuse me.
- Well, who is she?
- Who?
- That girl, Miss Burton.
- Sylvia? Old friend.
Just an old friend?
Well, sort of.
- Jealous?
- You bet. She's lovely.
Far too lovely for an old friend.
You've got it all over her in every way.
Sylvia's... Sylvia's changed a lot.
She's got a look of having been around.
Since you learned how to dress,
she can't touch you.
People wouldn't notice her
with you in the room.
You're wonderful.
You're the perfect husband.
Catty about every other woman.
- Good evening.
- Hello, Warmsley.
- Mrs. Garroway.
- Mr. Warmsley.
Pull up a chair.
- May I?
- Certainly.
Sorry to intrude,
but my plane just got in.
Things are really popping in Seattle.
The best thing would be
for you to get there soon.
- What's wrong with Henderson?
- He does what he can.
- But without real authority, there...
- He has as much authority as you have.
Not quite.
I really think it would be best for you
to have a look. I've brought some papers.
I'll be back in a minute.
- Excuse me, please.
- All right, darling.
I just saw Miss Burton.
Has Mrs. Garroway met her yet?
Let's see those papers.
- Oh, hello.
- Hello again.
Sorry I was pushed off like that.
It's really crowded, isn't it?
- Staying at the hotel?
- Yes, I am.
- How do you like San Francisco?
- Wonderful.
- So many bridges. I've never...
- Yes.
- So many to cross.
- I beg your pardon?
What do you hear from Michael?
Oh, nothing much.
- Where is he, anyway?
- We're not sure, quite.
He hasn't written to anyone here
that I know.
Did you ever meet him?
No, I haven't.
I'm looking forward to it.
- What's he like?
- Well, he isn't handsome.
I thought not.
I imagine he and Alan are quite different.
Quite.
You know, there've been some pretty
unpleasant rumors about Michael.
Well, whatever they are,
I'm sure they're not true.
Are you?
Yes, I am.
Sorry.
What I really wanted to know...
...I was beginning to have a funny feeling
that he might be dead.
No, I'm sure Alan would know.
Yes.
You know, Miss Burton, this is funny.
When I first met you, I wondered
who it was you reminded me of. It's me.
Not our features.
Nothing you can put your finger on.
Just something intangible.
Have you noticed it?
No. Oh, is that your glove?
Oh, thanks.
Maybe it's the way we dress or walk
or something.
Flight 57.
Flight 57,
leaving for Seattle in five minutes.
Flight 57,
leaving for Seattle in five minutes.
Here. They're all there.
- You arrange a car for Mrs. Garroway?
- The one we drove out in.
- Bye. Have a good time.
- I will. Come back soon.
Two or three days at the most.
- Bye.
- Bye, Mr. Garroway.
- Bye, darling.
- Bye.
Thank you very much. If there's
anything you want, please call me.
I will. Thank you.
Mr. Warmsley?
Would you wait a minute, please?
I wonder if it would be possible
for me to see my husband's office.
- Certainly.
- You know, I never have...
...and I've always been curious
as to what it was like.
Well, it's important, isn't it?
My, that's an impressive mural.
What are they...?
Awards.
And awards.
Don't you ever get a sharp note
from the government...
...saying your last batch was miserable?
I'm afraid not.
It's not a very personal place, is it?
What were they like when it all started?
The plant, I mean.
Aren't there any pictures?
You know, the kind they usually take
of people who were in at the beginning.
There are some in my office,
Mrs. Garroway.
May I see them?
Please.
Thank you.
Like this. What's this?
The original building,
and some of the first men.
- How interesting. Are they still here?
- Three of them are.
- Where's the other one?
- He's dead.
- Which one is he?
- This one.
Oh, Carl Steuer?
Oh, I see my husband.
- And that's you, isn't it?
- Yes.
You're the only one
dressed in city clothes.
Well, I was a bookkeeper.
Which one is my husband's brother?
- I've never seen...
- He's not there.
He took the picture.
We were having a barbecue at his ranch.
His ranch? Oh, yes, I remember.
Mr. Garroway told me.
- What happened to it?
- Mr. Garroway took it over.
Oh, my husband owns it?
- Where is it? How far?
- About 30 miles.
That would be a nice ride someday.
- Did you know Michael very well, Mr...?
- No.
Is there anything else you'd like
to know, Mrs. Garroway?
No, I just... Thank you.
I'll be very happy to show you
the plant whenever you like.
You know, Mr. Warmsley...
...I think I'd like to drive out
to the ranch.
- I'm afraid that's not practical.
- Why?
For one, the ranch is isolated.
The fog is bad this time of year.
- There's a caretaker...
- That sounds wonderful.
You know, I've seen Nob Hill,
Chinatown...
...the Embarcadero, Gumpel's,
everything in the city.
I'd love to spend a day in the country.
- Would you give me the keys, please?
- Very well.
I'll get the keys
and send them in the morning.
And I wonder if it would be possible
to draw me a kind of a map of the road.
- Certainly.
- Thank you. It's very kind of you.
- Goodbye, Mr. Warmsley.
- Goodbye.
Oh, how do you do?
- Are you the caretaker?
- Yes.
I'm Mrs. Alan Garroway.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
- No, no.
Go ahead with what you're doing.
I'm just going to look around the house.
Pardon me, have you the keys
to this door?
I don't think it's locked.
It's probably just stuck.
Hasn't been opened. There.
Thank you.
I'll be leaving in a few minutes.
- Is there anything else I can do for you?
- No. Thank you very much.
- Mister...?
- Gordon.
Mr. Gordon, would you mind telling me,
did you know Michael Garroway?
Yes, I did. I'm a neighbor up the road.
What was he like to the people here?
I mean, did they like him?
Well, I guess so.
He left very suddenly, didn't he?
I guess he was a rather
unpredictable person.
Well, anyway, I think this is one of
the most charming houses I've ever seen.
It has dignity.
Doesn't look as though it had been
shut up at all, does it?
No.
- No, it doesn't.
- It looks...
...well, as though it were waiting
for someone.
I had a feeling, coming in,
that time was standing still.
Yeah, but time doesn't
stand still anywhere, does it?
Yes, it does.
Haven't you ever had a feeling
of complete peace and contentment?
That's what I felt when I came in here.
There's nothing to fear, think about.
This was, well, peaceful.
And time stood still.
You probably think that's foolish.
I suppose it is.
I don't think so. I agree with you
about the house. It is peaceful.
It's more. It's a home.
It's someone's home.
Was this his?
What kind of songs did he play?
Oh, I suppose he played almost anything.
That was silly of me.
What kind of songs do you play
on a guitar?
Are we on a hill?
I had the feeling, driving out,
that I was climbing for miles.
You came out of a valley. This is a hill.
That's the peak right there.
How could that be a peak? It's flat.
Yes, it is, isn't it?
The view must be heavenly.
That's where I would've built my house.
Mike fixed himself a place there.
He called it his oak-paneled office.
- Really? I'd love to see it.
- I'll show you the way.
You're very kind.
I said I came out here today because
I wanted a drive in the country.
That's not strictly true.
What I really wanna do is to try
to find out more about Michael Garroway.
Everyone seems to be so vague
about him...
...except my husband, of course.
But I saw a look in a girl's eye the other
day, when she was talking about him...
...and an insane look of fear
in the eyes of a horse he owned.
I know the kind of music and poetry
he liked. It's curious.
I wish you knew more about him.
I'd like to find out...
I don't know why I'm bothering you
with this.
I think it's very interesting,
Mrs. Garroway.
Well, here we are.
Golly.
Golly.
It's beautiful, isn't it?
It really is an oak-paneled office.
It's amazing.
He had so much.
Why do people do the things
they do to themselves?
Why doesn't someone step in
and stop them, help them?
Yes, but what about those people
who refuse to be helped?
It's useless to even try.
Oh, no. It's never useless.
Not if your chance of helping
is one in a million. It's wrong not to try.
I know that from my father.
So many things exist only
because people of goodwill...
...want to ease pain and suffering.
You feel quite deeply about it,
don't you, Mrs. Garroway?
You bet I do.
My, that sea is near.
Looks like a wonderful beach.
Is there good swimming?
- No. Rip tide.
- Looks very calm.
You can't always see that undercurrent,
but it's there.
- Like life.
- That's right.
What's that dark haze over there,
between the hills?
It's the fog starting to roll in.
It'll be getting dark very soon.
Can I take you back to the house?
No, no. You go ahead.
I'll stay here for a while.
Thanks a lot for taking me around,
and forgive my philosophical outburst.
I shouldn't apologize for that.
I think it was very well said, very true.
Well, anyway, goodbye.
- Bye.
- Thanks a lot.
- What are you doing here, Ann?
- Alan, you frightened me.
Well, I... It was such a beautiful day,
I thought I'd take a ride...
- What were you looking for?
- Well, I wasn't really looking.
- When did you get here?
- Just now.
I came down from Seattle
to meet you here.
- Here? Why here?
- I think you know why, Ann.
- No, I don't.
- I asked you not to pry.
- I asked you to forget about Mike.
- You couldn't have...
Warmsley mentioned
you asked for the keys.
I thought it was important
that I come, Ann.
If we don't understand each other now,
we'd better, before something happens.
- Was it wrong to come?
- You're my wife. You've never seen Mike.
He's managed to get a hold on you
and make trouble.
He had a diabolical cleverness
about pushing people around.
He always knew how to get his way.
You keep saying "had" and "knew."
- Alan, is he dead?
- How should I know?
I don't know anything about him.
I hope he is.
- Alan, how can you?
- How much do you think I can stand?
He's got you sneaking around corners
trying to find out things about him.
Well, what have you discovered?
I'm here to help.
Let's find out everything we can
about him.
A man who likes music and books,
wouldn't you say?
Pipes. These are his pipes.
Props for the strong,
silent philosopher role.
Pipe and a book of verse.
You'd have fallen for that, wouldn't you?
He'd have read you poetry and told you
whimsical stories about his neighbors.
And his guitar.
He played cowboy songs.
It made him popular...
...and got him a lot of free help.
Knew other songs too.
Sentimental, romantic ones.
He'd have been glad to play them
for another man's girl.
- I'm sorry...
- I know you're sorry. That doesn't help.
Why couldn't you figure
that I'd had enough, and do as I ask?
If there's anything else you wanna know,
ask me now.
Don't ask Warmsley or the natives
or the bellboys, ask me.
I'll tell you anything if you'll only stop.
I was wrong to come here
if you didn't want me to.
But for you to come and shout at me and
treat me as though I were a criminal...
Whatever I did, I did for us. To find out
what comes between us because of him.
You want me to close my eyes
to all this, and I've tried.
But, Alan, it's our life together
that he's hurting, our marriage.
And I want our marriage.
We'd better start back.
Mr. Garroway.
- Mr. Alan Garroway.
- Garroway?
It seems to me I heard Garroway
being paged yesterday in Seattle.
Mr. Alan Garroway.
Mr. Garroway?
Thank you, sir.
It's from Warmsley. He's got me
on a plane back to Seattle at 9.
Alan, couldn't I go with you?
There's only one seat. I'll try and arrange
for you to follow me tomorrow.
Everything that man touches just zooms.
He's lucky, that's all.
Well, he's shrewd too.
Very few big firms were ready
for reconversion, but Garroway was.
Garroway knows all about reconversion.
Look at his wife.
I've never met her.
I saw her in Washington
the day they were married.
- Oh, you know her?
- Yes, he had a huge party.
She couldn't have looked dowdier.
Of course, the poor girl had on
her Sunday best, but really...
- He's very attractive.
- Yes, but he doesn't wear well.
- Good evening, Miss Wilcox.
- Good evening, Alfred.
Five, please.
Well, Ann.
Going to be thrown
by a bunch of cheap gossip?
- Alan, I'm thrown by the truth.
- Meaning what?
I was rather dowdy that first night
in Washington.
- You expected me to be, didn't you?
- I what?
You're so very observing
of women's clothes.
- You knew I wouldn't look smart.
- Oh, Ann...
You could've waited to have me
meet your friends, until I looked right.
I thought you were trying
to spare my feelings.
But the truth is...
...if no one saw the before...
...you wouldn't get the credit
for the after, would you?
That's ridiculous, Ann.
Why should I do that?
So that you could exhibit me
as your very own invention.
Like the Garroway Flight Control.
What do you mean by that?
You know, Alan...
...I think I have a glimmering now
of why you married me.
I wanna know what you meant
about the flight control.
Nothing. What the woman said.
All right, what else do you think?
Why did I marry you?
You wanted another girl,
but she fell in love with someone else.
I happen to remind you of her.
Only, I was so terribly admiring of you.
You had the illusion
of having her there yet...
...Iooking at you as she never had.
And then you thought...
...if you could make me outshine her...
You're mad, Ann.
Yes, Alan.
I think sometimes I am.
I feel as though I were living in a dream,
haunted by your obsession...
...your hatred for your brother,
all around...
...all around us.
Ann, things between us
look pretty black right now.
It's hard to talk.
But I wanna tell you that...
That I love you.
The way I acted tonight was unforgivable.
I'll never speak that way to you again.
I'll go on to Seattle alone, and you'll
have a couple of days to think.
And when you do, try to keep
a little old-fashioned trust...
...and blind faith in our marriage.
I want our marriage too, Ann.
It's very important to me.
It's going to last and grow.
Please try, Ann.
- Hello, Miss Burton.
- Come in.
- It's awfully nice of you to be...
- Let's save the formalities.
You wanted to ask me something?
All right.
I don't want to ask you anything
you don't want to answer.
Mrs. Garroway.
If I agreed to see you, it's because
I'm curious about a few things myself.
- I'm sorry. It isn't easy.
- I bet. Want a drink?
No, thank you.
You're a funny girl to be mixed up
with Alan Garroway.
- Really?
- I don't like him, you know.
In fact, I despise him.
- Does that answer one of your questions?
- Not quite.
- I love him.
- All right. You love him.
What do you want me
to tell you about him?
It's Michael that
I don't know anything about...
...and for certain reasons,
I think I should.
I can imagine.
All I know is that he and Alan
had a frightful fight.
He left. Disappeared.
But it's not easy to forget him.
In fact,
he seems to be coming up...
...more and more in our lives,
wherever we go.
Whatever we do.
I've got to know more about him,
understand him.
My marriage, my happiness,
my future, seem to depend on it.
- That's about it.
- That quarrel.
- What was that about? Money, wasn't it?
- I believe it was.
Bunk. Everyone who knew Mike
knew that was bunk.
Mike never thought about money.
He never even cared about it.
I thought he'd really be happy...
...if he retired to his ranch
and grew tomatoes.
Have you ever seen it, the ranch?
- No, have you?
- Yes.
Then why did you ask?
- I don't know.
- Wondering how close we were?
We weren't. I tried,
but Mike wouldn't have it.
I used to think that he had
some sort of funny sense of loyalty...
...because I'd met him through Alan.
He was that thing that
you have to look for with a microscope.
A gentleman.
That's the man that your husband
spread those lies about stealing money.
Miss Burton...
...you'll have to remember,
I believe my husband.
You don't believe Alan,
or you wouldn't be here.
You wouldn't have called me.
You think he's lying, and I know he is.
Why?
Because I went through this myself,
several years ago.
When Mike disappeared, I nearly
went crazy trying to find what happened.
Did you find out?
Only that it was a complete mystery,
and only one man had the answer.
When I tried to find Mike,
I discovered he'd gone to the ranch...
...and stayed until he disappeared.
That was the last that anyone saw of him,
except your husband...
...who was seen out there one night
by a rancher.
Alan told me, if that was the same night,
there was a party.
Party?
Mike never gave parties.
No, they were alone,
just the two of them.
What do you mean, Miss Burton?
I discovered
your husband was probably...
...the last person
who ever saw him alive.
Because I think he's dead.
Knowing the man Mike was,
I can't believe...
...he'd cut himself off from everyone and
everything unless something happened.
You mean he was killed in the war?
No. I don't mean that he was killed
in the war.
Before you went to war,
you went to camp, didn't you?
Where was Mike all that time?
What kept him from writing?
Not to me, I couldn't expect that...
...but his friends
or his neighbors...
...or a thousand people he knew
in San Francisco?
Ask your husband, will you?
Lots of us would like to know
what happened at that meeting.
What kind of a fight was it?
And what happened to Mike Garroway?
How dare you speak to me this way,
Miss Burton.
Forgive me for coming here. I'm sorry.
It isn't...
It isn't such a shocking idea...
...when you've lived with it for a while.
- Hello?
- Ann?
Ann, I miss you, darling.
I miss you very much.
I haven't been able to think
or concentrate on anything but you.
I'm so glad you said that, Alan.
I'm... I'm so confused.
I'm so...
Don't, darling. Don't.
No more of that, ever.
I have to leave for Baltimore in the
morning. I can 't very well get out of it.
All right, Alan.
But I think it'll work out well for us
if you like it.
You could go to Middleburg. I'll call
Warmsley, have him get you on a train.
By the time you get there,
I'll be through in Baltimore...
... and can join you. Would you like that?
Well, yes. Yes, Alan.
I'm going to devote
the next few weeks to us, Ann.
Middleburg'll be beautiful now.
We're going to have a real honeymoon.
You wait and see.
Goodbye.
I love you, Ann.
I love you, Ann.
I love you.
Trust and faith.
It isn 't such a shocking idea
when you've lived with it for a while.
- Faith.
- When you've lived with it.
- Faith.
- Lived with it.
Blind faith.
And what happened at the finish?
What happened to Mike Garroway?
- Hello, George. How are you?
- Mrs. Garroway.
Mighty sorry, ma'am.
Didn't know you was coming
till about an hour ago.
Miss Foster sent her boy over.
I wished you'd give me a little time
to kind of fix things up.
That's all right.
- He'll be along soon?
- Mr. Alan? Yes, I think so.
I wished you had told me.
- Told you what?
- Nothing, ma'am.
It is beautiful, isn't it?
While you take the bags upstairs,
I'll stretch my legs a little.
- Three days on a train.
- Ground's awful damp.
- Looks dry enough.
- It's been damp, and...
George, I don't think
you're very glad to see me.
Oh, yes, ma'am. Real pleased.
Before you take your walk,
don't you wanna get settled first?
All right, George. Maybe you're right.
George, here are the keys
to the suitcases.
- George.
- Yes, ma'am?
There's somebody down by the stables.
Who could it be?
- Nobody, Miss Garroway.
- Bate was very excited.
- Ain't nobody there.
- How do you know?
Maybe it's old Ben.
Would Bate act as though
he'd gone crazy just for old Ben?
Oh, let it pass.
Please, Miss Garroway, let it pass.
Where is he, Bate?
Did you see him?
Did you see Michael?
He's alive. He's alive, isn't he, Bate?
I thought that Sylvia Burton was right,
that Alan had killed him.
But I was wrong. Michael's alive.
He's here, and everything
that Alan said about him is true.
He's here and he's hiding.
He doesn't dare show his face.
Oh, Alan, how could I have thought...?
Hello, Alan.
Take it easy, Al. I don't wanna see you
any more than you wanna see me.
Why did you come back?
Wouldn't you rather know
why I went away?
Of course, I heard
the reason you gave, Alan.
That was a lie.
You've been a long time denying it.
Be kind of tough to prove.
You had the books pretty well rigged.
But that's not what sent me away
and kept me away.
It was Carl Steuer, Alan.
Carl Steuer and what happened to him.
- Steuer's dead.
- That's right.
Dead and buried.
He's almost forgotten now.
Not that anyone
paid much attention to him.
He was just an old German refugee
who worked for us.
Nice old guy.
Didn't hate anybody except the Nazis.
Lived for one thing: To get back at them.
He was senile.
I kept him on at the plant out of pity.
He wasn't senile.
The best engineer we had.
You remember that invention
he was working on...
...in the cellar of his house
in San Francisco?
Never talked about it too much.
Just a little bit to me, and a lot to you.
He liked you, Al.
Every man at the plant was working on
an invention of some kind or other.
That's right. But only Steuer died.
The coroner said it was an accident.
Fell down the cellar steps.
- What's that got to do with me?
- Afraid it's got a lot to do with you.
Steuer had a pet name
for that invention of his.
His "Fern," he used to call it...
...as though it were alive,
like a child or something.
"My Fern'll fix the Nazis," he'd say.
"Your brother and me know.
Some day, my Fern'll pay them back."
Fern. Fern. Had me winging for a while.
And then it made sense.
Steuer was German.
Fern is a German word. Means distant.
Fernsteuerung, long-distance control.
That's Fern.
That's why Steuer died.
He was murdered...
...by somebody who wanted those plans.
Somebody who got them...
...because they were never found.
Then later, the Garroway
Distance Controller came out.
The Garroway Distance Controller
was mine.
It was Carl Steuer's.
But it made millions for you.
It gave you money, power...
...all the things that you thought
would bury forever...
...that feeling of insecurity
that's driven you all your life.
Well, has it released you, Alan?
Has it made you what you wanna be?
Has it been worth killing for?
You can't prove any of this.
Maybe not in a court,
but there'd be enough to ruin you.
Is Warmsley the only other one
who's guessed?
Because you're paying him off,
aren't you, Al?
Anyhow, when I finally found out,
I walked out of the whole mess.
Then the war came along.
You know, I spent most of my time
in the Army hoping I'd get mine...
...so I'd never have to face this moment.
But it seems it has to be faced after all.
You see, Alan, I met your wife.
- You met Ann?
- At the ranch.
Sheer accident.
She didn't know who I was.
She didn't guess, I didn't tell her.
She's a fine person, Alan.
She's much too fine
for what I see ahead of her with you.
Does she know about it, Al?
She doesn't, does she?
I'm here to make sure
that she finds out.
You think I killed Steuer.
What makes you think
I wouldn't kill you?
I believe you're capable of trying.
Once I could've killed you, Mike.
Killed you as you sit there.
I thought about it enough,
even planned it, how you'd die.
But now I can't kill you
any more than I can give Ann up.
I could've done that once,
without a backward look...
...given her up and kept all the rest.
Not anymore.
I'm gonna keep her, Mike,
for as long as I can.
A minute, an hour.
- As long as I can.
- How can you think you've a right to her?
What gives a man a right?
Does love? Because I love her.
If I lose her, Mike, I'm through.
You can take all the rest.
I don't want it. I'll give it back.
But not her, Mike. Not her.
I never thought I would,
but I'm crawling to you.
I've got a chance now.
She loves me. She's helping me.
For the first time, I've found something
to straighten me out.
I can be... I can be all right.
I never... Never could before.
But what about your wife, Al?
What chance does she have?
She doesn't know what she's in.
I'll tell her, Mike.
Only I'Il... I'll have to do it
in my own time.
Just a little time, that's all I'm asking.
Until I'm sure of her.
She said she loved me,
but I don't know how much...
...and I've got to know
it's as much as I love her...
...above everything else.
I think you can be sure of her, Al.
I felt that, even when I tried
to make myself believe...
...that she'd be better off without you.
Maybe she wouldn't, at that.
I guess there's nothing left for me to do.
If she'll go along with you, well...
...I'll stay out of it.
But tell her, Al.
Tell her. There's no other way for you.
Because if you don't,
I won't be able to stay out of it.
I'm gonna see
that she gets her chance too.
Oh, Alan.
Alan, I'm so glad to see you.
I'm so happy you're here.
Forgive me, darling. Forgive me.
Forgive you?
I've been so wrong.
- So wrong.
- How, Ann?
Alan, I've got to tell you something.
And I'm deeply ashamed.
I thought such crazy things about you.
I thought...
I thought you'd killed your brother.
No, darling, listen to me. I thought that.
And then this afternoon,
I found out that he was alive.
I didn't see him, but I know he was here.
And then I knew that everything
I'd ever imagined was wrong.
All at once, I was able to breathe again.
I've been so shaken.
I was going to go away
and never see you again.
You were going to leave me?
I couldn't have stayed.
I couldn't have endured...
You couldn't have endured
living with a murderer.
Just think that I almost destroyed
our happiness...
...by doubting you.
But it's over now.
It's like a horrible dream.
It's over now.
Yes, Ann, it's over.
I'm going to see that you never
have a chance to doubt me again.
I'll never let anything come between us.
Anything...
...or anybody.
- Ann.
- Alan.
I'm glad you're awake.
What is it, Ann?
Alan, I want you to listen to me.
I'm going to tell you something
which will distress you.
I know it distresses me terribly.
But I want you to try to understand
what I'm going to say, Alan.
You remember I once told you
that Michael was your obsession?
Yes.
I think I was wrong, Alan.
I think he's my obsession.
- In what way, Ann?
- You see...
...wherever I go, there he is.
I wanna forget him...
...but there's something
unfinished somehow.
I think if I could see him,
hear him speak, I'd be free of him.
I'd know him the way you do,
as a man, not a shadow.
Someone who is cruel and wrong
and has hurt you.
Then I could forget him forever.
I want to drive him away, Alan. I must.
I was so wrong about him.
Everyone was.
Who is everyone?
Who did you speak to about Mike?
Sylvia Burton.
Sylvia? What did she say?
She said...
...she thought you'd killed him.
And you believed her.
- Are you glad she was wrong?
- Glad?
Oh, yes, Alan. Yes.
- Then why are you unhappy?
- Well, that's what I'm trying to tell you.
You've got to help me, Alan.
I don't understand it.
Do you understand?
Yes, I think so.
- You're in love with him, Ann.
- No.
- You're in love with him, aren't you?
- No.
How could I be in love
with someone I've never seen?
Why not? You've seen a lot of Mike.
A book, a poem, his house,
a girl who once loved him.
Aren't you jealous, Ann,
of Sylvia Burton?
What did you really wanna know?
- Please.
- You went to Sylvia to talk about Mike.
You'd go to anyone who could
tell you about him.
You were falling in love with him.
You wanted to believe them.
You never believed me.
You don't believe me now.
- Stop it, Alan. Stop it.
- Why do you lie to yourself?
It wasn't our happiness
you were trying to find, it was him.
That's not true.
You were happy last night...
...not because I hadn't killed him,
but because he was alive.
It's the truth, isn't it?
Why don't you deny it?
So you'd go on looking for him,
wouldn't you, Ann?
After you found him, what then?
What then? What would you do?
Leave me?
I told you you never would.
I warned you. I said I'd never let you go.
Don't you see, you idiot?
Don't you see what you've done?
Why couldn't you keep out of it?
You'll never leave me, Ann.
George.
Come on, Ann.
George fixed breakfast for us
before he left.
- Where did he go?
- Into town.
He won't be back until this evening.
Don't be afraid, Ann.
Fear is no good.
I know. I lived with it a long time.
And now I'm finally free, at last.
I know how good it is to be without it.
To have no fear.
To be rid of it forever.
That gives me a sense of great power.
Drink your coffee, Ann.
But you're still afraid, aren't you?
You're not going on being afraid
the rest of your life, are you, Ann?
Are you, Ann?
Hi there. Anyone up?
Hello, Mrs. Foster.
- Morning. Your wife up yet?
- I think so. Shall I call her?
No. Don't disturb her.
Just rode over to say hello.
Fine morning for a ride.
No trouble at all, Mrs. Foster.
Ann'd never forgive me
if I didn't call her.
- I'm sure she'd love to come to breakfast.
- There you are, my dear. Welcome home.
I've accepted an invitation
to Mrs. Foster's for breakfast.
- I thought you'd like that.
- Beaten biscuits.
- I'd like it very much.
- Fine. Why not ride over?
- Expect you in half an hour.
- Wait. Why don't we all ride together?
Won't take Ann but a minute
to change, will it, Ann?
- No, Alan, no. You'll wait?
- Of course.
- You have your riding clothes?
- Yes. I'll hurry.
Good girl.
She's a charming girl,
that bride of yours.
Yes, she certainly is.
I'd better get the horses.
Well, you look a good ride
anyhow, my dear.
Thank you, Mrs. Foster.
- That's Maggie, isn't it?
- Yes.
She's very gentle.
Fast little thing, when she wants to go.
- You all right, Ann?
- Yes, I'm all right.
Well, my dear, you mount like a feather.
- Feel comfortable?
- Yes. I'm all right.
But I'll keep close to you
so that I can follow.
Good idea.
Come here. Come on, here. Come on.
Is Alan still risking his neck
on that beast?
Don't get too close to him.
He's all devil, that one.
- How about going through the woods?
- Might save time at that.
Better take it easy.
That rain didn't do it any good.
All right. You lead the way.
Alan, you idiot!
Are you trying to kill yourself?
I can't hold him down.
I'll go on ahead.
What's the matter with you two?
Quarrel?
- Not a quarrel, exactly.
- Don't want to butt in.
It's natural the first year,
getting adjusted.
Mrs. Foster, I'll tell you.
I've got to tell you. Alan...
- What's that?
- I don't know.
Come on.
Alan. Alan!
Alan! Alan!
Ann. Ann, over here.
He is breathing.
Looks like his collarbone
might be broken, the way his head lies.
You stay here, but don't move him.
- I'll go and call Dr. Hill in Middleburg.
- No, but...
Mrs. Foster, don't leave me here.
- Back in 15 minutes.
- Mrs. Foster!
Alan. Alan, you've been hurt.
Don't move.
- Mrs. Foster's gone for the doctor.
- No, no, no, Ann.
I'm all right, Ann. Just my wind,
I think, knocked out of me.
- Must've hit a branch.
- I think you better stay.
There's no use waiting around here
for a doctor.
- We'll be at Mrs. Foster's in a minute.
- But Mrs. Foster...
- I'll help you on your horse.
- No, I can get on.
- Alan, please, don't...
- I'm all right, Ann.
Certainly didn't see that branch,
if that's what it was.
Came around the bend...
...and something hit me.
Alan, you're pushing.
Alan! Alan! Please don't.
Please, please don't.
Please don't.
Alan, don't! Don't, Alan!
Please, Alan, don't.
Please stop. No.
Wanna leave me, Ann, don't you?
Wanna go to Michael.
- I'll take you to him now.
- Don't.
Help! Help!
Someone!
Help!
Ann?
Michael. Michael.
No!
That's beautiful. Who's playing?
My father.
Dink always does well by Brahms.
- I like your father.
- So do I.
He's like you, got a stout heart.
Horses have it sometimes,
not so many people.
Takes a man of parts
to play music like that.
Dink's a man of many parts,
all slightly marvelous.
You know, since I've met him,
I can understand you.
You're all right, Ann Garroway.
You've stayed here,
done your getting well here, faced it out.
Took courage.
Most people would've run away.
I wanted to run. Couldn't.
- You know that's not what I mean.
- No. Thank you.
That's not what I mean either.
No, I feel that I have something to do,
and that I must do it here.
That's really why I stayed,
not because I have courage. I haven't.
- My dear.
- Dink, darling.
- Dink, who's playing the piano?
- You have a visitor.
Oh, no. No. I can't see him.
- I'm not ready to yet. I can't.
- You sent for him.
I can do it alone.
- Sure?
- Yeah.
- You're Michael, aren't you?
- Yes, Ann. I'm sorry.
- Why?
- That I didn't tell you at the ranch.
This must be a shock.
I have no right to put you through it.
No, it's not a shock to me.
I think I knew.
Not at the ranch, but afterwards.
I think I knew.
- You sent for me, Ann.
- Yes.
I think I'd have come in any case
if you hadn't.
I was just waiting until you were well.
I wanted to see you.
- It seems I'm a very rich woman.
- Yes.
It's wrong for me to have it.
It belongs to you. It's yours.
No, it's not mine.
It was never really Alan's.
It belongs to someone who's dead now.
- His heirs, possibly.
- They must have it, then.
You can arrange that,
can't you, Michael?
If we can find them,
it might help to pay them back.
Some of it. The ranch belongs to you.
- No, Alan took that over.
- No, it's yours. It belongs to you.
I don't think that it could ever
belong to anyone else.
It seemed to belong to you
that day, Ann.
- Michael.
- Yes?
I'm a bad liar. I didn't send for you
because of the money.
There was that, of course,
but lawyers could've handled it.
I wanted to know you.
And now that you do?
- I'm happy to know you, Michael.
- And I you.
There are other things
that I must tell you the truth about.
Your brother, I won't forget him.
I loved him very much.
Not at the end. It was gone then,
but I did love him.
I know, Ann.
I almost got you killed.
I was here the night before.
I saw Alan, talked to him.
I left. I shouldn't have done that.
I looked for you, Michael.
I went away that night...
...because I was full of guilt
about my feeling for you.
I had no business
to feel the way I did about you.
My brother's wife.
I won't talk about it now,
but someday...