White Heat (1949) Movie Script
Conductor didn't want to play.
How's this guy?
Nice and willing.
Stop the train and let us off.
When we tell you.
Ed, Cotton, when we get the train
on the spur, start hopping. Go.
Zuckie, you know what to do?
Sure. I throw the switch,
and then I beat it back...
All right, just do it. Stop the gabbing.
All right. This is where we want off.
Stop it right here.
Get away from those controls.
What's this? A holdup?
No. You're seven minutes late.
We're just changing engineers.
A lot fancier than my old coal burner
on the C&O.
Shut up.
Open up and you won't get hurt.
Sounds bad, Cody.
Why don't you give my address, too?
Only the treasury stuff!
Hurry up.
You won't get away with it, Cody.
Cody, huh?
Go get the car started.
You've got a good memory for names.
Too good.
Zuckie got scalded.
Come on, let's get out of here.
A week has passed since bandits jumped
a mail train...
coming out of the High Sierra Tunnel...
and fled with $300,000 in federal currency,
leaving four dead.
Treasury authorities now believe
the gang has escaped to Arizona...
where today a bank was raided
and two tellers killed...
with the same cold-bloodedness
that characterized...
Now we're supposed to be in Arizona.
Any place would be better than this.
We got to blow out of here.
Cody calls
charging roadblocks unscientific.
It ain't safe having a crackpot
giving orders.
- It's about time somebody took over.
- Who?
A very good friend of mine: Me.
Where do you want the body sent?
Been golfing, Ed?
We got a sack full of dough and
we're holed up like a bunch of gophers.
When we moving out?
Maybe tomorrow. Maybe in the spring.
I'll give it a lot of thought. All right?
It smells good, Ma.
If you're getting hungry,
I could do with some help, son.
Verna. Help Ma with the groceries.
Well, if it ain't the sleeping beauty.
What else does a girl do
around this bear trap?
There's plenty you can do
without wearing out the mattress.
It's the only place I don't freeze.
I've been cold for a week. Not even a fire.
Who's gonna see a little bit of smoke
Help Ma with the grub.
He's getting worse. He needs a doc.
When the time comes.
- Want some coffee, Ed?
- Thanks, Verna.
Let him get it himself.
My wife don't wait on nobody.
You know something, Verna...
if I turn my back long enough
for Big Ed to put a hole in it...
there'd be a hole in it.
Big Ed. Great Big Ed.
You know why they call him that?
Because his ideas are big.
Someday he's gonna get a really big one
about me.
It'll be his last.
That's the second one he's had in a month.
He's nuts, just like his old man.
It's these mountains, Cody.
It's not good for you, cold all the time.
Can't breathe the air.
Let's get out, son.
It's going.
- It's going?
- Yeah.
- Are you sure?
- Yeah.
It's like having a red-hot buzz saw
inside my head.
No, not yet, son.
Don't let them see you like that.
Might give some of them ideas.
Always thinking about your Cody,
aren't you?
That's right.
Top of the world, son.
Don't know what I'd do without you, Ma.
- Better?
- Yeah.
Now go on out.
Show them you're all right.
What are you all gaping at?
And I thought I told you
to help Ma with the groceries.
Cody, there's a storm coming.
Every road's gonna be blocked,
the guy said.
- What guy?
- On the radio.
- How long did he give it?
- Tonight.
That's just what I've been waiting for.
Is everything packed?
We been packed for a week.
You sure it's safe, Cody?
A storm keeps everybody busy.
Clean up this place, and clean it up right.
And don't leave any calling cards.
I told you to keep away from that radio.
If that battery is dead, it'll have company.
It's your suitcase, Cody.
Why don't you keep it all?
You're cute. Come here.
Why don't you?
We could travel, buy things.
That's what money's for.
I look good in a mink coat, honey.
You'd look good in a shower curtain.
We're pals, Cotton.
You'll see that I get away all right,
see that I get to a doc?
Sure, Zuckie.
We're all set.
Cody, I was pretty good
back there on the train, huh?
- Pretty good for my first job, huh?
- Yeah, you were great.
You won't leave me here.
You'll take me with you.
We can't take chances
of being picked up with you in the car.
We'll send a doc back right away.
You're gonna let me die.
Cotton, don't leave me.
Suppose they find him?
You know how Zuckie talks.
He won't talk. Cotton.
You meant what you said
about sending a doc?
Yeah, sure. A specialist. You.
Here. If you're such a pal of his,
go back and make it easy for him.
Rest easy, Ma. We're 300 miles
from the tunnel. What have they got?
A corpse without a record.
Nothing to tie him in
with the tunnel job or us.
Don't make a sound. It's me, Cotton.
Look, I'll try to come back.
Here's some cigarettes.
Thanks, Cotton.
Ed, we'll separate.
Go east until you hit the highway,
and double back over the bridge.
Stay on dirt roads all the way. You hear?
Hope I didn't get you up here
on a wild goose chase, Mr. Evans.
Geese we're looking for are pretty wild.
A couple of hunters found him frozen
up in the mountains.
We started wondering: Stranger,
bullet hole in the roof of the cabin...
particularly the condition of his face.
Tell him, Doc.
Despite the third-degree burn...
the eyebrows and hairline
weren't even singed.
That means either boiling water or steam.
So, we thought of a steam engine.
Good hunch. Get me his clothes.
Ernie, get his fingerprints.
Take a mask of his face.
Here you are, Mr. Evans. Nothing in the
pockets but this pack of cigarettes.
So like you told me, Mr. Evans,
I made the rounds for a month.
Drifting, kind of. Not too eager.
You know, just dropping a word
in the right ear...
that I'm interested in picking up
a few hot dollars.
Not a buck from the tunnel job showed up.
They haven't buried it in tin cans, Willie.
Keep looking.
Okay.
I'll go out the back way, if you don't mind.
Any of the boys spotted me
coming up here, I'd be in a real jam.
- Did you get anything out of Willie?
- A blank.
This will cheer you up, Phil.
Spectrograph of dirt from the tunnel.
Spectrograph of dust deposits
taken from the dead man's clothes.
There's no doubt about it.
They're identical. It all adds up...
and places our friend in the morgue
right smack at the scene of the crime.
Looks like we're in business.
From Washington.
"Have no fingerprint record dead man. "
That's one I never expected.
Dead man, dead end.
"But prints on cellophane
of cigarette package...
"belong Giovanni 'Cotton' Valletti...
"known member, Jarrett gang. "
And I thought
you were never gonna talk, baby.
- Where's Ma?
- She went to the market.
- Which one?
- She don't tell me those details.
What difference does it make?
I'll tell you what difference it makes.
They've got Zuckie in a morgue upstate.
The T-men tied him in with us
on the tunnel job.
- What?
- Yeah. We're all as hot as pistols.
I don't know how they did it.
Somebody must have tipped them.
It's always "somebody tipped them,"
never "the cops are smart. "
We had enough food for the week.
Why did she go out?
You like strawberries, don't you?
Well, she just had to get some for her boy.
Evans speaking.
Her car is parked outside pointing west.
Good. I'll be down there right away.
There'll be a marker on the rear bumper.
That's what I thought, Mr. Evans.
Where Ma goes, Cody goes.
We'll use the A-B-C method.
I'm B.
I'll keep first position behind suspect
on Arango Blvd.
You drive parallel on Lattimer.
Okay.
- Got that?
- Okay.
Suspect proceeding dead ahead
on Arango Blvd.
Approaching Bakeman.
Suspect turned north on Bakeman.
C, pick her up at Fairchild.
A will take your position.
Got her.
Traveling dead ahead on Bakeman,
Suspect turning west on Calhoun.
C, proceed dead ahead.
Take position on the right.
Right.
A, pick her up on Calhoun.
Roger.
Got her.
Going due west about 30 miles per hour.
Hold the phone.
She's turning left on Cling.
Let her go.
C, cut over fast to Arango.
- Cover her on the left.
- Okay.
A, proceed dead ahead.
I'll pick her up when she crosses Fairchild.
Get around it.
A, C, cut into Fairchild. I've lost her.
Down there.
- Come in, C.
- That's a dead spot.
It would be. Turn around. We'll go back.
Hold it.
Come in, A.
Come in, C.
- Beat it up the hill and call the others.
- You're not tackling him alone.
I'll just keep an eye on him. Hurry.
What's the use of having money
if you gotta run...
every time somebody sees a shadow?
It's just a feeling I had.
I could have been wrong.
Your hunches are never wrong, Ma.
We'll leave the sedan,
the car they're looking for.
You bring the bags and I'll get the coupe.
You're not going anywhere, Jarrett.
Put your hands up where I can see them.
Get those bags in, and get in fast!
Down the highway, Ernie.
Happens every night. Ruins the movie.
Peanuts. Popcorn.
Kill that.
This is great.
Where do we go after the second feature?
You're staying put.
I'm the only one going anyplace.
- Where, Cody?
- Gonna give myself up.
What are you talking about?
You haven't a chance.
Four dead. It's the gas chamber for sure.
You think I'm dumb enough
to give myself up to the T-men?
What's the difference? You walk into
the cops and they turn you over.
Remember a guy named Scratch Morton?
Yeah. The guy on the lam from Illinois.
You had a talk with him one night.
- That's the one.
- I remember.
Knocked over a hotel payroll
in Springfield?
The night we pulled the tunnel job. Handy.
Talk plain, son.
I pulled that Springfield heist,
not Scratch Morton.
I'm going to Illinois and take a state rap.
I'll get two years at the most.
They'll still be waiting for you
for the tunnel job.
What tunnel job?
While those hoodlums were killing
innocent people on the train...
I was pushing in a hotel in Springfield.
Couldn't be in both places at once, could I?
Little thing I cooked up
before the tunnel job.
You're the smartest there is.
Sure, it's smart, but what about me?
What do I do for the next two years?
The same as you did
before he married you.
You better not, baby. I'll be back.
I'll be waiting for you, honey.
You can trust me.
If the T-men pick you up,
you don't know a thing.
You haven't seen me in months.
Ma, you do all the talking.
- I can handle them.
- Verna, you cry a little, like you're sad.
How are you going to make it to Illinois?
Private plane. Don't worry.
Goodbye.
Be kind of a break to get rid
of me for a while, won't it?
I'll be around, Cody.
I told you,
I was just trying to cheer up Verna.
She's been lonesome all this time,
missing Cody so much.
So I went to the market
to buy her things for a real spread.
Thought it'd make her feel better.
That so, Verna?
Yet as soon as you returned
to the auto court, you left again. Why?
'Cause we decided to go
to a movie instead.
- What theater?
- San Val Drive In.
- What picture?
- Task Force.
Exciting. Verna liked it a lot.
- Cody like it?
- How could he?
I told you.
Cody hasn't been in California for months.
I suppose he shot me
all the way from another state.
What makes you think he shot you?
Lots of people have guns.
I was as close to him as I am to you.
Anybody else see him?
Just you. And his wife.
Of course, being an old woman,
I wouldn't know much about the law...
but I hear you got to have witnesses
to make anything stand up in court.
You see Cody last night, Verna?
Makes you the only one,
Mr. Evans, doesn't it?
Seems to. If Cody's
been out of California for months...
I suppose he couldn't have engineered
that train robbery six weeks ago.
I'm not going to sit here and hear you
accuse my boy without proof.
Besides, I know my rights.
You can't keep us here.
You got nothing on us.
All right, Mrs. Jarrett, that'll be all now.
That's better. Come on, Verna.
Stop crying. Nobody's going to hurt you.
Mr. Fallon just arrived from the airport.
Send him right in.
Hello, Phil. How's the arm?
I'll live. Hey, you're looking good.
It's that prison diet.
Great chef in San Quentin.
I hated to leave.
You did a whale of a job.
Most talkative con
I ever shared a cell with.
That whole syndicate comes up for trial
in a few weeks. Now, what's that?
You put it on a pole,
wind a spool of silk thread around it...
and you hold the pole over the water.
Then you sit under a nice, shady tree
and relax.
After a while, a hungry fish comes along,
nips at your hook, and you've got dinner.
For the next two weeks,
I won't think about anything...
except the eternal struggle
between man and the fish.
I've been promised a vacation.
You remember?
Sorry, Hank, that's out.
Phil, look at me. College degree,
lovable personality...
and I spend most of my time in prison.
An undercover specialist.
Eight sentences in five years.
Dannemora, Sing Sing, Leavenworth...
I joined the department
to put criminals behind bars...
and here I am, stir crazy.
Read this.
Who checks confessions in Springfield?
Every rookie knows Scratch Morton
went underground after that hotel job.
You won't let Jarrett get away
with a two-bit prison stretch?
- Maybe.
- Maybe?
A hoodlum turns himself in
on a phony rap...
and beats the gas chamber.
I'll bet you he's thumbing his nose
at Uncle Sam now and loving it.
Jarrett outsmarted you.
That's just what we want him to think.
We're working with the Springfield police.
We arranged for the confession to check.
So, what happens?
Jarrett does a stretch in the penitentiary.
In case he's lonely,
wants to talk to someone...
we'll let one of our boys do a stretch
right in the same cell.
Still going fishing, Hank?
Yeah. In what prison?
You'll enjoy the food there.
Wonderful chef.
- Arrested him myself.
- Okay, what's the pitch?
You'll be committed
to the penitentiary in Illinois.
You'll be one of Jarrett's cellmates.
Stick with him until you find out...
where he unloaded $300,000
in federal currency...
without a single bill showing up.
Also, try to learn the identity
of the very special fence...
that engineered this deal.
How does he operate?
Buys stolen money here,
Peddles it on the European black market
for who knows how much.
No questions asked. Sweet racket.
In step with the times.
That's your assignment.
I wouldn't ask you to do
another undercover job...
if we weren't up against it.
Hello, Hank. Prison records from Illinois.
Your new buddies.
- Busy little place, isn't it?
- 2,700 of the roughest and toughest.
A few who might recognize you.
Let's go to work.
- Find another old client?
- Yeah. Red Draper.
Questioned him in '46
about a warehouse job.
That makes two for transfer.
Better run through the arrest once more.
I'll be picked up at a joint
known as Tom's Hideaway.
Bill's Hideaway.
On what seems
like an ordinary hood roundup.
I'm spotted as a lamister.
I make a break for it.
When I pick myself off the floor,
I'm meek as a baby.
- How do I get information out to you?
- Visiting days.
Mother again?
Wife this time.
One thing though. This time,
get me somebody with a good memory.
I had a lot of trouble with my "mother"
in San Quentin.
This time, we'll get you a girl in the bureau
who's a memory expert.
I'm partial to blondes.
Well, who isn't? As soon as I pick her,
I'll send you a picture.
- We move this guy.
- Who is he?
Bo Creel. Arrested him two years ago.
Wait a minute.
We don't have to worry about him.
Finishes his stretch Saturday.
He'll be out before you're sentenced.
Good. Bo Creel would know me
in the dark.
This job isn't going to be
like any of the others, Hank.
You see, there's insanity in the Jarretts.
Some of it rubbed off on Cody.
His father died in an institution.
I've had a few strange cellmates
in my time...
but this sounds like the jackpot.
When he was a kid,
he used to fake headaches...
to get his mother's attention away
from the rest of the family. It worked.
As he grew up,
the fancied headaches became real...
until now they tear him to pieces.
Any minute, he's apt to crack open
at the seams.
There goes our case.
So you'll be working against time.
Suits me. Quicker the better.
Except that Cody's not easy
to get close to in a hurry.
The only person he's ever cared about
or trusted is his mother.
No one else has ever made a dent,
not even his wife.
His mother's been the prop
that's held him up.
He's got a fierce psychopathic devotion
for her.
All his life, whenever he got in a spot...
he just put out his hand,
and there was Ma Jarrett.
Without her, maybe Cody'd...
Just like his old man.
You mean I'm supposed to take
mama's place?
Never can tell. He might need someone.
I'll practice up on my lullabies.
Nothing else here.
Good. Let's run through
your background again.
Born Detroit, March 23, 1919.
State reform school, 1934, vandalism.
Arrested: Suspicion, grand larceny,
Portland, 1939.
Good.
The State of Illinois v. Arthur Cody Jarrett.
Arthur Cody Jarrett,
on your own admission...
you have been convicted of the robbery
of the Palace Hotel on October 12.
It is now my duty to pronounce sentence.
For the crime of grand larceny,
you are hereby sentenced to serve...
not less than one
and not more than three years...
in the state penitentiary.
The State of Illinois v. Victor Pardo.
How is he? Tough?
With Big Ed giving the orders now,
there'll be all kinds of fireworks.
He's got plans that'll make
the old Jarrett mob look like a...
Can you read him?
Yeah.
Parker moves his lips pretty good.
It's about Big Ed.
What'd he say?
He's the number one boy now,
Parker says.
In more ways than one.
- What was that crack?
- I couldn't read him, Cody.
- Was that about my wife?
- Honest, he had his mouth covered.
Maybe a kick in his skull
would do him some good.
They got rules in this chicken coop. You
start anything, you'll wind up in a hole.
Did I ask you for any advice?
Look, Pardo, I've been watching you...
and up till now, you haven't done
anything I can put my finger on.
Maybe that's what bothers me.
I don't know you,
and what I don't know, I don't trust.
To me, you're a face and a number,
and let's keep it that way.
When I want your help, I'll ask for it.
Have it your way, Cody.
Attention, men.
The following new men report
to the dispensary for shots:
Abbott, Jordan, Bacon, Pardo, Butler...
Jenkins, Jarrett, Williams, Phillips.
Hughes, Russell.
Keep it moving, boys. No talking.
Well, if it ain't Bo Creel.
Boys in L.A. Had a coming-out party.
It was planned for you a month ago.
I'm packing, and bang,
flat on my back with pneumonia.
The doc's checking me out today.
See you in eight years.
Hyde, Frank.
- Keep moving, boys. No talking.
- Jacoby, George.
All right, move up.
Jarrett, Arthur Cody.
I'm leaving tomorrow, Cody.
- Anything I can do for you on the Coast?
- Yeah, look up Big Ed.
- Tell him I was asking for him.
- Johnson, Bate.
Holden, John.
Get the lead out.
Coon, Fred.
Scared, sonny?
Break it up over there.
Who's that reindeer?
I didn't do nothing. He's nuts.
A couple months in solitary
will cool you off, bugger.
Fisher.
Maddox. Pardo.
I'm awfully sorry, my good man.
But Mr. Pardo is still on vacation.
His month's up today.
It is, huh? That's cozy.
Look at what they left out of this one.
It must have been a lulu
before the warden got it.
- Hey, Herbert.
- Yeah.
Any chance you get, read Pardo, will you?
- Why?
- Read him.
Maybe on visiting days.
That's when they loosen up.
What do you have against him, Cody?
Pardo's all right.
Didn't I check his record
up at the dispensary?
That's only a record.
What else do we know about him?
Maybe that envelope
will tell us something.
Think you ought to? That's U.S. Mail.
I'm a U.S. Citizen, ain't I?
Not lately.
Wife. Kid don't talk much.
When you're married,
you don't get a chance to. Nice.
We'll put it right over here
where we can see it.
He'll know we've been in his mail.
All right. So he'll know.
Be a nice surprise
when he gets out of solitary.
Hi, kid.
Let me shake the hand
that slugged Roy Parker.
Why did you do it, Pardo?
You know they got rules in this joint,
don't you?
Yeah. Maybe I didn't want
to get my shots.
I guess his eyes ain't so good
after solitary.
All right, what's the gag?
What's she done to herself?
Had the best-looking blonde I ever saw.
When my back's turned, she's a brunette.
Don't even look like her anymore.
Maybe she's hot.
Whenever I changed my hair,
so did my misses.
She better be a blonde
when I get out of here.
Yeah. Too bad your little trick
didn't work, Pardo.
Doc says you got
to take your shots anyway.
Yeah, Benny.
Mob pulled a caper.
Parker's shooting his mouth off again.
Told Benny your boys pulled a caper.
- How much did they get?
- $57,000.
- Are you in for any of it?
- Full share.
No kidding?
What's being in here got to do with it?
They're his boys. What they get, he gets.
Yeah. Ma sees to that.
Get one thing clear, all of you.
Anything we get...
Cody's in for his full share.
That's how it is.
Anyone thinks different...
say so now...
or would you rather wait
till Cody gets out?
Well, any argument?
Het? Cotton? Happy? Ed?
How come, Big Ed?
You're the one I expected to give trouble.
Fair is fair.
We aren't gonna forget Cody
after all he did for us.
Cody'll be real grateful to you.
Where do you think you're going?
To pick strawberries.
All right, boys, beat it. It's getting late.
Het, tell Verna I want her back in here.
- What's eating you, sugar?
- You and your big ideas.
That's all they are. Ideas.
"You and me belong together, sugar.
Just leave it to Big Ed. "
I'm sick of waiting
for you to make your move.
You're as scared of Cody as any of them.
He's still Mr. Big, in prison or out.
- What makes you think so?
- You. Fair is fair, is it?
That's quite a beef you put up
about Cody being in on the cut.
See, a guy who thinks his pals
are taking care of him...
he gets kind of careless.
What does that mean?
Alive, Cody gets out
in one, two years, maybe.
Dead, he gets out sooner.
Dead?
Right now, he's a sitting duck
up there in that pen.
He's rubbing elbows with a guy
that does anything I say.
When, Ed?
When I say so.
Where's Pardo?
You know all about radios.
Maybe you can fix the warden's.
- I'll fix it so it blows up in his face.
- Suits me.
Come on. Back to your places.
Go ahead. Get on back there.
Are you hurt, Jarrett?
No. Things were getting
kind of dull around here, anyway.
Back to your work. You, too, Pardo.
- The lever slipped.
- You can tell that to the warden later.
I saw that just in time.
What do you want? A medal?
You would have looked like that barrel.
You almost walked into it yourself.
Why should you care
if a guy named Cody Jarrett gets his...
if you don't want something?
Okay. Keep your medal.
Come on, break it up. Get going, Jarrett.
Sorry, Cody.
Forget it, Parker.
Accidents will happen.
Attention. The following men
have visitors.
Reynolds, Allen, Jarrett, Kaminsky...
Williams, Phillips, Jordan.
Hello, Ma.
Cody. You been hurt.
- Oh, it's nothing. Just an accident.
- You sure?
What kind of question is that?
Why are you nervous? Anything wrong?
- Plenty.
- Like what?
That's why I come.
I'm the one to tell you.
It's Big Ed and Verna. They run out.
It's my fault, Cody. I let you down.
I said I'd take care of things
and I let you down.
I saw it coming,
but I didn't think he'd have the guts.
Forget it, Ma.
It was in the cards
for Big Ed to make his try.
Don't you care?
Sure. What's mine is mine,
but I ain't gonna let it make me sick.
I'll take care of them when I get out.
That's what I told myself.
I'll help you, Cody, like always.
You'll be out soon,
back on top of the world.
When you're around, Ma,
nothing can stop me.
That's right.
Only you got to be careful about Big Ed.
If I know Big Ed, right now he's doing
enough worrying for the both of us.
Maybe not.
Can't expect me to come looking for him.
That's what I'm getting at.
When you get out...
he knows his life
isn't worth a plugged nickel.
When a tinhorn like that thinks
he's big enough to take your place...
he's got to feel pretty safe.
Now, all of a sudden, he makes his move...
like he was sure
you'd never get out of here...
except in a box.
I see what you mean.
You said it was an accident?
For a minute, I thought it was.
How'd it happen?
A pal of Big Ed's dropped something.
You see, Cody? I was right.
He was figuring you'd be dead.
Relax, Ma. I'm still here, ain't I?
If he tried it once, he'll try it again.
I'll still walk out of this joint,
and then I'll take care of Big Ed.
And let him live that long? No, Cody.
I'll take care of Big Ed.
No, Ma. You won't have a chance.
Any time I can't handle his kind,
I'll know I'm getting old.
No one does what he's done to you, son,
and gets away with it.
No, Ma. Look, listen to me.
You won't have a chance.
I'm going after him to keep him
from having you knocked off here.
- I'm telling you, don't do it.
- Goodbye, Cody.
Ma!
Keep your hands off that wire.
What's the matter, Parker?
I ain't going to do anything.
Not now.
I'm going to let you stay awake nights...
sweat it out.
Then when I get ready, good and ready...
I'll pay you back.
I'll take care of Big Ed.
I'll take care of him, Cody.
What's the matter, Cody?
My head.
Cover for me.
Watch it.
Fingers are kind of thick today.
No doctors.
It's all right now. He's gone.
- Where's the pain?
- It's right here.
Don't let it beat you.
You are a top man, aren't you?
Since I was a kid,
I've been reading about you.
Always hoping I could join up with you.
You don't want to let those two-bit mugs
see Cody Jarrett on his knees.
Come on.
- You all right, Cody?
- Yeah.
- Just can't sleep, that's all.
- That headache gone?
- Yeah.
- Then why can't you sleep?
It's Ma. She's walking into trouble.
- Anything I can do?
- No.
Yeah. Maybe there is, kid.
For a while, I figured out
that sitting out this penny-ante stretch...
would be a kind of vacation...
take the heat off me for another job.
Sometimes you make plans,
sometimes they don't work out.
Then you got to get doing and fast,
you understand?
- I got business on the outside.
- Going to crash out?
Yeah. Want to come along?
Maybe I do. Did you tell anybody else?
Figured on cutting in Tommy Ryley.
Then you'll have to cut in 10 more.
Why do you want Ryley?
He's got a gun stashed.
Don't need a gun.
They're not gonna open the gates for us.
You think you're the only guy
in this paw that wants out?
What do you think
I've been dreaming about nights?
I got a way to get a mile from here
before anybody knows what hit them.
Without artillery, it can't be done.
No? Listen, I'm a pretty handy fella
with electricity, you remember?
Well, I figured a way to fix the generators.
You know what that means?
I have a slight idea.
The generators control everything:
Searchlights, gun turret, main gate.
Who needs artillery?
Only we got to do it alone.
We're going to need a car.
My wife's coming tomorrow.
We'll set it all up.
All right, kid. It's a deal...
and if it works, I'll pay you back.
Maybe you'll give me that medal.
Solid gold.
Good news for you, Herbert.
You've had good news
for the last 12 years.
I'm working on a plan
to get your case reviewed.
- Hello, Margaret.
- You're looking well, Vic.
We're being watched.
Say anything you like and make it good.
Listen to me carefully.
Divorce? Vic, you can't mean that.
Why? What have I done?
That's fine.
Jarrett's getting out of here
and I'm going with him.
I know how you feel, but don't ask me
to do anything that'll break my heart.
It might be better for you.
It's my life.
Let me decide what to do with it.
Just the two of us.
Tell Evans we'll break out Thursday night.
Tell him to plant a getaway car
with an oscillator.
Can you remember that?
With an oscillator.
I'll remember, darling.
- Everything clear?
- Perfectly clear.
You won't be sorry, Vic. When you get out,
we'll be happy. I'll see to that.
Nice. Where'd you learn all that?
Soap opera?
How did you know?
This time I'm going right
to the top to get you out.
- Herbert, are you listening?
- Sure, Jerry.
But if that fails,
you'll have to serve the rest of your term.
Jerry, you couldn't get me out of here
if I was pardoned.
All right, this is the prison.
We place the getaway car in these trees...
with the oscillator under its rear axle
and hooked up to the battery.
Our cars will be parked here, a mile or so
away, one here and the other here.
We assume that Jarrett and Hank
come out here somewhere.
They pile into the getaway car,
and they're off.
- You ready, Ernie?
- Ready.
The transmitter wavelength is 47.1.
All right. Switch it on.
Our receivers pick up that sound
from the oscillator...
which enables us to cross-plot
their exact position.
For example...
suppose the impulse received here...
has a bearing of 210 degrees.
This one here reads 45 degrees.
We plot them like so.
Where the lines cross,
that's where they are.
It doesn't matter how far they travel.
As long as our cars
are within receiving distance...
we can tell where they are.
Switch it off.
How far is receiving distance?
We had a dry run on a car yesterday.
Kept tabs on him for 20 miles.
That little thing?
You can make one out
of your bedside radio. I'll show you how.
When you've got a week to spare,
Ernie'll tell you all about electronics.
We'll meet at the airport in 40 minutes.
Be in Springfield late this afternoon.
Tonight.
Isn't that Lefeld down there? Nat Lefeld?
From the Coast mob. Came in today.
They checked him in today?
Ask him how my mother is.
Ask about Cody's mother.
She's dead.
Dead?
I want to get out of here!
Get me out!
Special for Jarrett.
- Hiya, Doc.
- Hi, Ryley.
Hi, Cody. Brought you some grub.
Hot soup made special.
How are you, Vic? Glad to see you, kid.
You're a good boy, Vic.
It's me, Tommy Ryley.
That's right, Vic. Play it smart.
Play it smart.
That's the only way it'll work.
Here, get some of this into you.
Next time you come, bring the gun.
I like the way you go about it, Vic.
Bring the gun.
You sure you won't try
some of this delicious soup?
I'll get it if you take me along, Cody.
I don't want any of that slop.
Try it on the warden. It's a deal.
If you don't want it,
I guess you don't want it.
But you gotta keep up your strength, fella.
If the warden don't want it,
try it on the governor.
Guess he ain't hungry.
Dr. Simpson speaking.
Yes, Warden.
I've just finished my report on Jarrett.
Violent, homicidal.
He'll probably have recurrent periods
of normal behavior, but...
Yes, sir. Our psychiatrists
are coming tonight.
They'll commit him to the institution.
Yes, Warden. I suggest
you prepare the release for him.
Thank you, Warden.
- Oscillator all ready?
- Ready to sing, Phil.
Put the car in the trees.
We'll pick you up and take our positions.
- Telephone, Mr. Evans.
- All right. Hold it, boys.
Evans speaking. Hello, Warden.
That is bad news.
Not altogether a surprise.
Thanks for your cooperation anyway,
Warden.
Say, by the way, tomorrow
there'll be a pardon coming through...
for one of your inmates, Vic Pardo.
Rush it through, will you? Thanks.
No dice, boys. The party's off.
Jarrett's a raving maniac.
They've got him in a straitjacket.
It's a good thing for Hank
it happened inside instead of out.
It's the only good thing about it.
Take the oscillator off the car.
I'll get the plane tickets for 10:00 tonight.
You have a car
to take us to the Springfield airport?
Itll be there, Mr. Evans.
Sorry, boys. They can't all work out.
How would you like
a little change of scenery, Cody?
Someplace where we might be able
to cure your headaches?
You wouldn't mind a little trip, would you?
No. Might do me some good.
- Doctor.
- Not now, Ryley.
I want something to eat.
- You've sent away two meals already.
- That's why I'm hungry now.
Hunger's always a hopeful sign.
Nobody feeds Cody Jarrett.
What am I, a kid?
Is it all right to remove the straitjacket,
Doctor?
I'll do it.
They got you tied up good.
The examination's over.
All right, turn around.
Now, keep them quiet.
Doctor, you're with me.
I want you to make
a little phone call for me.
And no slip-ups,
or you're gonna need a doctor.
You're taking a little walk, boys.
Doc wants you in the dispensary.
Wait here.
- Come on, Parker.
- Where to?
Dispensary. Special invitation
to the doctor.
Here. Tie and gag him.
Drop that stick. Now.
Get in the cell.
All right. Now you two come along
and bring the tuxedo with you.
Reader, cover the outside door.
We'll not make it this way.
We'll never get to the gate.
- Who says so?
- Why me? What do you want with me?
You're my pal. I'm taking you with me.
Come on.
- Look...
- Get.
You got me wrong.
I got nothing against you.
It was Big Ed. He told me to do it.
You wouldn't kill me in cold blood,
would you?
I'll let you warm up a little.
There's the fingerprint that nailed me.
Psycho, put that zoot suit on him.
- Me?
- Yeah, you.
Cody, my way,
there wouldn't be no shooting.
Ain't gonna be any my way either.
We're going out of here in a car
like gentlemen on a picnic.
They want me to take a little trip.
We're gonna take a trip.
Only it better be a quiet one.
Come on, now. Get.
Pick up those hats.
Everybody down. Ryley, get those keys.
You get in the trunk. Come on, get it open.
Get in.
Ryley, you get in the front.
Reader, get in the back
and make like you're loony.
And you, you drive.
You know how jittery I am.
Any minute I'm liable to explode.
Now if we don't make it,
I've got six slugs in this gun.
One for each of us.
- Dr. Harris.
- Good night, Doc.
Hello. Yeah, speaking.
What? All right. Right away.
Turn back. Jarrett's busted out.
Black sedan. Probably headed southwest.
Following are the names of the men
who escaped with Cody Jarrett.
Thomas Ryley, Roy Parker,
Michael Curtin, Vic Pardo.
Do not shoot unless absolutely necessary.
Hostages in car.
Do not shoot...
- One break for our boy.
- What's Hank's procedure now?
He'll stay with Jarrett
till he gets what he's after.
I like your tailor. How do you like mine?
Tommy, rustle up some grub.
You, in there.
Vic, what's taking you so long?
Trying to find some more artillery.
- Let it ring.
- Someone might get suspicious.
Come on.
How you doing, Parker?
It's stuffy in here. I need some air.
Stuffy, huh? I'll give you a little air.
No clue to their movements
has been reported...
since their assault last night
on a service station...
north of Gallup, New Mexico.
It is assumed now
by federal law enforcement agencies...
that Jarrett and the other escaped
convicts are heading for California.
This concludes the nightly news summary
from KFKL, San Bernardino.
Did you check the windows?
- I said, "Did you check the windows?"
- Ed, let's get out of here.
Take it easy, baby.
We're ready for him when he comes.
I can't stand another night, Ed.
Listening, going crazy.
It ain't like waiting for some human being
who wants to kill you.
Cody ain't human.
Fill him full of lead,
and he'll still come at you.
Plug him and he drops,
same as anybody else.
The boys didn't think so.
Why did they beat it down to San Berdoo?
'Cause they know this is
between me and Cody.
- They'll be back when it's over.
- You'll be dead.
Maybe so.
But the time comes when a man's
gotta stop running away and face things.
Or else go on running for good.
All right, throw your life away.
Stay here and shoot it out.
Me? I'm going. I want to live.
Cody might have ideas about that.
I'll go someplace he'll never find me.
The world ain't big enough, sugar.
Not when he finds out
what you did to his ma.
- You'd tell him?
- Lf you run out on me.
- Why not?
- But I only did it for you, Ed.
She had you covered.
Cody still ain't going to like to hear
that she got it in the back.
Feel more like staying now?
I said I'd be back.
Now tell me you're glad to see me.
Only say it low, so nobody can hear.
Cody, I'm so glad to see you.
I've been praying you'd come back.
I couldn't stand it any longer.
I was running away.
- From Big Ed?
- Yeah.
- What's the matter? Don't you like him?
- No.
Maybe you shouldn't have teamed up
with him.
I couldn't help it, Cody.
He said if I didn't go away with him,
he'd have you killed.
All I wanted was for you to come back.
That's the truth. I love you, Cody.
- You let Ma die?
- No.
You didn't even raise a finger to help her.
You just stood there
and watched Big Ed kill her.
I tell you, you got it wrong, Cody.
Maybe you thought it was funny,
an old woman taking on a guy like that.
No. I tried to warn her...
but he caught me and beat me.
Then when Ma came,
he was waiting for her, and he...
- I can't tell you.
- Tell me.
He got her in the back.
- Is he in there now?
- Yeah.
But you gotta be careful, Cody.
He's got the house rigged up like a trap.
You can't get in unless I tell you how.
- Ed.
- Stay where you are.
- What was that bell downstairs?
- It was me, Ed.
What were you doing down there?
I couldn't go through with it.
I tried, but I couldn't.
Talk sense.
I was going to take the car and beat it.
I was scared.
But I don't want to go anymore.
You're my honey.
Still got nerves?
Please, Ed. I feel like a drink.
- Fix me one, too.
- Here.
Catch.
Listen, Cody. Ed said this joint is a cinch.
- Good for $50,000.
- Who?
- Big Ed.
- Never heard of him. Go on.
The way we had it figured, Cody,
we pile out of the cars here...
we slug the guards,
and we grab the payroll here.
Blast our way out. It'll all take 50 seconds.
They got cars. They'd follow you.
That's where we use the gas truck.
I'll stall it right in the gates.
And when we beat it in the getaway cars,
I got the truck keys in my pocket.
And where do you get the gas truck?
We got one stashed behind a barn.
Bought it with our own dough. $12,000.
- You bought a gas truck?
- Yeah.
What's the matter?
You forget how to steal one?
Maybe it ain't so bad, Cody.
$12,000 gets you $50,000.
Fence $50,000, and you get $20,000.
Then what are you going to do with that?
Buy two more gas trucks?
That joint has got the serial number
of every bill.
Any guy who says he can fence
$50,000 is crazy.
- The Trader ain't crazy.
- The Trader?
- Who's he?
- My manager, kid.
Come on. Let's get a look
at that $12,000 doll.
Cody. My radio ain't working again.
Oh, no.
What do you want it for,
unemployment insurance?
Can't I go down to San Berdoo
and get it fixed?
Nobody leaves unless I say so. Now, you...
What's the matter, baby?
I'm not gonna hurt you.
Go and read your comic books. Good girl.
This fellow you call the Trader...
can you trust him?
Why?
I wouldn't like to see my share of a caper
handed to a guy who might disappear.
- Suspicious, ain't you?
- Just careful.
You don't have to worry about the Trader.
He pays off on the spot in nice, clean bills.
Where does he get rid of this stuff?
- Ships to Europe. Collects both ends.
- Smart operator.
Didn't see any of that dope from
that tunnel job pop up, did you?
I like him better now.
Not bad.
Maybe the $12,000
don't go down the drain after all.
- Hey, Het.
- Yeah.
You're pretty good with a blowtorch.
You suppose you could cut a hole
in here into the tank?
Yeah, sure.
We're back in business, boys.
We're back in business. And not
Big Ed's way either, and not for $50,000.
But first, a question.
Supposing you want to push
in a place like Fort Knox...
and grab yourselves
a couple of tons of gold...
what's the toughest thing
about a job like that?
Getting inside the joint.
A silver dollar
for the gentleman on the balcony.
Right on the button.
Getting in.
Which brings me to a story Ma
used to tell me when I was a kid.
A story about a horse.
Way back, there was a whole army
trying to knock over a place called Troy...
and getting nowhere fast.
Couldn't even put a dent in the walls.
One morning, the people of Troy wake up,
look over the walls...
and the attacking army disappeared.
Men, boats, the works. Taking a powder.
But they left one thing after them...
a great, big wooden horse.
And according to Ma...
Hello, there.
I was wondering
if I could use your telephone?
There ain't a phone here for five miles.
I'm sorry to hear that.
- Good morning.
- Hello. Lost your way, mister?
No. I wanted to call my office...
but these gentlemen say
you don't have a phone here.
They wouldn't know. There's one
in the house. I'll show you where it is.
Thank you very much.
There's a call that's gonna cost
more than a nickel.
Looks like Big Ed's gonna have company.
And we got a new station wagon.
- How's fishing?
- Fine, Cody.
- Good catch.
- You like the truck idea?
It's admirable.
We might all profit by a closer study
of classical literature.
Chemical plant.
I guess that's Long Beach way.
That's close enough for now.
You know the way I work.
I must ask that you don't insist
on knowing the exact location...
until you've reached the rendezvous.
That's all right.
The only thing that matters is...
how much dough
this joint has in the kitty.
$426,000 will be placed in their safe
before closing time tomorrow...
to be distributed to deserving
employees the following morning...
provided there's no unforeseen accident,
of course.
- Like me and my boys?
- Exactly.
What are they doing, dancing?
Maybe they found
they went to school together.
Maybe they're buddies after all.
Something funny's going on there.
I've had my eye on this place
for several months.
Now, these checking gates,
that means a pass for the driver...
identity cards and stuff. We're all hot.
Your truck will be driven
past these checkers...
by an ex-convict of my acquaintance.
He's now leading
a scrupulously honest life...
as a truck driver for this very firm.
Smooth.
Sorry to bust in. We're finished out there.
Wanna check?
I'll be right out.
- You having much luck, mister?
- I haven't started yet...
I'm just on my way.
- Done much fishing up here?
- Every year.
- What are you trying for?
- Bass.
- This guy's a phony, Cody.
- I beg your pardon?
This is trout country.
There ain't bass for 100 miles.
What's so funny?
You're right on your toes, kid. Bass.
He got you, didn't he?
Trader, this is the kid I've been telling
you about. Meet Vic Pardo.
- Hello.
- Glad to know you, Mr...
Forgive me, I...
You can forget that.
Vic's my partner, 50-50.
Cody Jarrett going 50-50?
- I split even with Ma, didn't I?
- I see.
My name's Daniel Winston.
San Diego. Securities.
Glad to know you, Mr. Winston.
Sit down.
Hold it. Where you going, Pardo?
- What's doing, kid?
- I don't like being pushed around.
My orders was nobody was to leave.
That might go for hoods like him.
When I got a reason to leave, I leave.
Nobody has any reasons
I don't know about.
- He jumped me, Cody.
- Get back on the job.
That was pretty fancy wrestling, kid.
Where'd you learn it?
- In the army.
- You're a liar.
They don't take cons in the army.
When the war broke out,
I didn't have any record except kid stuff.
What were you doing just now, soldier?
Going over the hill?
No. I figured maybe I'd run in to L.A.
Be back before anyone knew.
- What's doing in L.A.?
- My wife. She don't know where I am.
When we crashed out,
I didn't leave no forwarding address.
- It's the truth, Cody.
- Why didn't you ask me?
I figured you might get sore.
So you took off on your own.
I haven't seen her in a long time.
I'm human, you know, like everyone else.
All right, kid.
You're just lonesome.
Lonesome like me.
You?
- What about...
- You mean Verna?
All I ever had was Ma. Now...
Your mother alive?
No, she died before I even knew her.
I was just walking around out there
talking to mine.
- That sounds funny to you?
- No.
Some might think so.
My old lady never had anything.
Always on the run, always on the move.
Some life.
First, it was my old man, died kicking
and screaming in a nut house...
then my brother,
and after that, it was taking care of me.
Always trying to put me on top.
"Top of the world," she used to say.
And then,
times when I'd be losing my grip...
there she'd be, right behind me...
pushing me back up again. And now...
Anyway, she quit running, Cody.
Yeah. Quit running.
That was a good feeling out there,
talking to her.
Just me and Ma.
A good feeling. I liked it.
Maybe I am nuts.
Let's go in and have a drink.
Tell you what, Vic. I've got an idea.
We'll pick up your wife
after the job tomorrow.
We'll all take a little trip.
Just the four of us.
No kidding, Cody. That sounds great.
You mean that, honey?
We could have fun. Live big.
Money's just paper if you don't spend it.
- That's an idea.
- It's a good idea.
Europe, maybe. Paris.
Rubbing shoulders with the best of them.
How do you do, Countess?
Sable coats,
jewels just dripping from my fingers.
I'd knock their eyes out, Cody.
You'd be real proud of me.
Don't go flipping your lid.
He ain't thought of a vacation
in years, Vic. Don't let him forget it.
Here's to us, top of the world.
How's the radio coming, Verna?
- A crystal set would play better.
- Yeah?
Maybe I could fix it for you.
I wish you would, Vic.
I'm dead without music.
We'll get a new one.
I don't mind fixing it, Cody.
Keep me busy. I can't sleep anyhow.
Anything you say, kid.
- I was just gonna throw it away.
- I'm not making any promises.
We better hit the hay, Duchess.
We got a heavy day tomorrow.
- See you in the morning.
- Right.
Grab the brass ring.
What are you doing? We're on our way.
You've got to have a chain on the ground,
get rid of electricity.
That's only when you got
gasoline or chemicals inside.
You want to have some traffic cop
think you got a load of something else?
That's using your head, kid.
All right, snap it up.
You all know what you're to do...
and you know where the rendezvous is.
We're to pick up our driver there at 5:00...
and we'll be at the plant
right after the day shift has checked off.
Now, Vic and Tommy, we go in the truck.
The rest of you go
with Verna in the sedan.
Baby, don't get picked up for speeding.
But get them there.
Don't worry, honey. I'll get them there.
$12,000 and she's getting ready
to blow up in your face.
Might be a cracked radiator.
We'd better stop somewhere.
There's a gas station down the hill, Cody.
Pull in and watch yourself.
Fill her up?
- With water, bub. Check that radiator.
- Okay.
- You got a washroom, mister?
- Yeah. Cleanest in the West.
Dry as a bone.
Go get Vic. Hurry up.
- Cody says to hurry up.
- All right.
I thought you said cleanest in the West.
You ever see a cleaner one, mister?
- The mirror's so dirty you can see double.
- What?
Wise guys. Didn't even buy gas.
Into the wooden horse, boys.
Where do we go, Trader?
You should be back in about three hours.
- I'll wait.
- We'll be here. Where's the driver?
He's having a cup of coffee.
He'll be right out.
Bo. I heard you wanted to straighten out.
Driving a truck for a living.
- Tonight, I hand in my resignation.
- You better get going, Cody. Good luck.
Got it?
When you get to the plant,
park across the street.
If there's any trouble,
give us the horn hard.
How is it in there?
Can't breathe good. Otherwise, fine.
Stop breathing.
There's a button up in the cab.
Press it once if trouble shows,
and three times for all clear.
Okay.
Somebody's ribbing you, Russ.
Take a slant
at the mirror in your washroom.
"Radio Signal Fallon. "
You know what that means, sir?
You bet I know what it means. It's Hank.
Call the FCC.
Get every direction-finder car they've got.
Ask them to clear the air. Now listen...
Got him.
This is Car A at La Canada Verdugo.
Receiving signal, 105 degrees. Will repeat.
105 degrees.
Check.
- Come in, Car B.
- Car B bearing 284 degrees.
Maine and Atlantic, Alhambra.
General direction, southwest.
Check.
Source of signal,
Maine and Atlantic in Alhambra.
- General direction, southwest.
- Head southwest.
Have Car B head southeast.
Car A at Western and Slauson,
bearing 158 degrees.
Car B, Atlantic and Telegraph Road...
bearing 235 degrees.
Imperial and Figueroa.
Source of signal, Imperial and Figueroa.
That looks like the Long Beach area.
Car A at Rosecrans and Western,
bearing 156 degrees.
Car B at Atlantic and Compton,
bearing 244 degrees.
Source of signal, 198th and Figueroa.
Cover the back.
Car A at 166th and Western,
bearing 138 degrees.
Car B Alameda and Artesia,
bearing 256 degrees.
Same as before. 198th and Figueroa.
They must have stopped.
- Check. 198th and Figueroa.
- That's it.
Send out a call.
All cars proceed to 198th and Figueroa.
Drop the gun.
Now turn around.
- Cody, that guy's a copper.
- What?
He's a T-man. I know him.
His name is Fallon.
He pinched me four years ago.
Don't go for your guns.
A copper.
A copper. How do you like that, boys?
A copper and his name is Fallon.
And we went for it. I went for it.
Treated him like a kid brother.
And I was going to split 50-50
with a copper.
Maybe they're waiting
to pin a medal on him.
Solid gold.
Come on. Get up. Get your hands up.
Yeah, that's it.
A nice gold medal for the copper.
Only maybe he's gonna get it
sooner than he thinks.
Cody, the joint's crawling with cops.
- Let him have it.
- Oh, no. And lose our ace in the hole?
He's going to walk us out of here.
Ain't you, copper? Get up.
It won't work. They'll shoot just the same.
- They won't shoot one of their own.
- They won't make any deals.
You better pray that they do.
Jarrett, you and your men
might as well give up.
Come out with your hands up.
We've got your boy Fallon in here,
and he'll be all right if you do as I say.
She says she can get Jarrett to come out.
If I can, mister, will you go easy on me?
I'll tell him you'll let him get away
because you don't want your guy hurt.
He'll believe me. Then, when he comes
out, you can do what you want with him.
No deal. Lock her up.
Cheap copper!
Jarrett, you haven't got a chance.
Come out with your hands up.
"Come out with your hands up,"
the man says.
How do you like that, Ma?
Here's my answer, you dirty...
Fan out! Give them
tear gas from both sides.
That was Cody Jarrett talking!
Out this way, Cody. Through that door.
Here's yours, copper.
Wait a minute. It's Fallon.
- You all right, Hank?
- Yeah, sure. Quick...
get a car out to Charlie's Roadhouse,
Highway 60, near Colton.
Pick up Daniel Winston.
He's the fence you're looking for.
- What's out here, Bo?
- An alley.
Het, Happy, try it.
Come on. Get going.
We've got Bo Creel. They're heading up.
Got them on the ground
heading for the Horton Sphere area.
Send men out to that section.
Pass the word along. Don't fire
unless you've got a perfect target.
That place is a stack of dynamite.
Have that area surrounded.
Get some searchlights.
They think they've got Cody Jarrett.
They haven't got Cody Jarrett, you hear?
They haven't got him.
And I'm gonna show you
they haven't got him.
Come on. Come with me.
Don't shoot.
It's me, Ryley. I'm coming out.
You might as well come down, Jarrett.
There's no one left but you.
Come and get me.
Get the gun, Hank.
What's holding him up?
Made it, Ma!
Top of the world!
Cody Jarrett.
He finally got to the top of the world.
And it blew right up in his face.
SkyFury
How's this guy?
Nice and willing.
Stop the train and let us off.
When we tell you.
Ed, Cotton, when we get the train
on the spur, start hopping. Go.
Zuckie, you know what to do?
Sure. I throw the switch,
and then I beat it back...
All right, just do it. Stop the gabbing.
All right. This is where we want off.
Stop it right here.
Get away from those controls.
What's this? A holdup?
No. You're seven minutes late.
We're just changing engineers.
A lot fancier than my old coal burner
on the C&O.
Shut up.
Open up and you won't get hurt.
Sounds bad, Cody.
Why don't you give my address, too?
Only the treasury stuff!
Hurry up.
You won't get away with it, Cody.
Cody, huh?
Go get the car started.
You've got a good memory for names.
Too good.
Zuckie got scalded.
Come on, let's get out of here.
A week has passed since bandits jumped
a mail train...
coming out of the High Sierra Tunnel...
and fled with $300,000 in federal currency,
leaving four dead.
Treasury authorities now believe
the gang has escaped to Arizona...
where today a bank was raided
and two tellers killed...
with the same cold-bloodedness
that characterized...
Now we're supposed to be in Arizona.
Any place would be better than this.
We got to blow out of here.
Cody calls
charging roadblocks unscientific.
It ain't safe having a crackpot
giving orders.
- It's about time somebody took over.
- Who?
A very good friend of mine: Me.
Where do you want the body sent?
Been golfing, Ed?
We got a sack full of dough and
we're holed up like a bunch of gophers.
When we moving out?
Maybe tomorrow. Maybe in the spring.
I'll give it a lot of thought. All right?
It smells good, Ma.
If you're getting hungry,
I could do with some help, son.
Verna. Help Ma with the groceries.
Well, if it ain't the sleeping beauty.
What else does a girl do
around this bear trap?
There's plenty you can do
without wearing out the mattress.
It's the only place I don't freeze.
I've been cold for a week. Not even a fire.
Who's gonna see a little bit of smoke
Help Ma with the grub.
He's getting worse. He needs a doc.
When the time comes.
- Want some coffee, Ed?
- Thanks, Verna.
Let him get it himself.
My wife don't wait on nobody.
You know something, Verna...
if I turn my back long enough
for Big Ed to put a hole in it...
there'd be a hole in it.
Big Ed. Great Big Ed.
You know why they call him that?
Because his ideas are big.
Someday he's gonna get a really big one
about me.
It'll be his last.
That's the second one he's had in a month.
He's nuts, just like his old man.
It's these mountains, Cody.
It's not good for you, cold all the time.
Can't breathe the air.
Let's get out, son.
It's going.
- It's going?
- Yeah.
- Are you sure?
- Yeah.
It's like having a red-hot buzz saw
inside my head.
No, not yet, son.
Don't let them see you like that.
Might give some of them ideas.
Always thinking about your Cody,
aren't you?
That's right.
Top of the world, son.
Don't know what I'd do without you, Ma.
- Better?
- Yeah.
Now go on out.
Show them you're all right.
What are you all gaping at?
And I thought I told you
to help Ma with the groceries.
Cody, there's a storm coming.
Every road's gonna be blocked,
the guy said.
- What guy?
- On the radio.
- How long did he give it?
- Tonight.
That's just what I've been waiting for.
Is everything packed?
We been packed for a week.
You sure it's safe, Cody?
A storm keeps everybody busy.
Clean up this place, and clean it up right.
And don't leave any calling cards.
I told you to keep away from that radio.
If that battery is dead, it'll have company.
It's your suitcase, Cody.
Why don't you keep it all?
You're cute. Come here.
Why don't you?
We could travel, buy things.
That's what money's for.
I look good in a mink coat, honey.
You'd look good in a shower curtain.
We're pals, Cotton.
You'll see that I get away all right,
see that I get to a doc?
Sure, Zuckie.
We're all set.
Cody, I was pretty good
back there on the train, huh?
- Pretty good for my first job, huh?
- Yeah, you were great.
You won't leave me here.
You'll take me with you.
We can't take chances
of being picked up with you in the car.
We'll send a doc back right away.
You're gonna let me die.
Cotton, don't leave me.
Suppose they find him?
You know how Zuckie talks.
He won't talk. Cotton.
You meant what you said
about sending a doc?
Yeah, sure. A specialist. You.
Here. If you're such a pal of his,
go back and make it easy for him.
Rest easy, Ma. We're 300 miles
from the tunnel. What have they got?
A corpse without a record.
Nothing to tie him in
with the tunnel job or us.
Don't make a sound. It's me, Cotton.
Look, I'll try to come back.
Here's some cigarettes.
Thanks, Cotton.
Ed, we'll separate.
Go east until you hit the highway,
and double back over the bridge.
Stay on dirt roads all the way. You hear?
Hope I didn't get you up here
on a wild goose chase, Mr. Evans.
Geese we're looking for are pretty wild.
A couple of hunters found him frozen
up in the mountains.
We started wondering: Stranger,
bullet hole in the roof of the cabin...
particularly the condition of his face.
Tell him, Doc.
Despite the third-degree burn...
the eyebrows and hairline
weren't even singed.
That means either boiling water or steam.
So, we thought of a steam engine.
Good hunch. Get me his clothes.
Ernie, get his fingerprints.
Take a mask of his face.
Here you are, Mr. Evans. Nothing in the
pockets but this pack of cigarettes.
So like you told me, Mr. Evans,
I made the rounds for a month.
Drifting, kind of. Not too eager.
You know, just dropping a word
in the right ear...
that I'm interested in picking up
a few hot dollars.
Not a buck from the tunnel job showed up.
They haven't buried it in tin cans, Willie.
Keep looking.
Okay.
I'll go out the back way, if you don't mind.
Any of the boys spotted me
coming up here, I'd be in a real jam.
- Did you get anything out of Willie?
- A blank.
This will cheer you up, Phil.
Spectrograph of dirt from the tunnel.
Spectrograph of dust deposits
taken from the dead man's clothes.
There's no doubt about it.
They're identical. It all adds up...
and places our friend in the morgue
right smack at the scene of the crime.
Looks like we're in business.
From Washington.
"Have no fingerprint record dead man. "
That's one I never expected.
Dead man, dead end.
"But prints on cellophane
of cigarette package...
"belong Giovanni 'Cotton' Valletti...
"known member, Jarrett gang. "
And I thought
you were never gonna talk, baby.
- Where's Ma?
- She went to the market.
- Which one?
- She don't tell me those details.
What difference does it make?
I'll tell you what difference it makes.
They've got Zuckie in a morgue upstate.
The T-men tied him in with us
on the tunnel job.
- What?
- Yeah. We're all as hot as pistols.
I don't know how they did it.
Somebody must have tipped them.
It's always "somebody tipped them,"
never "the cops are smart. "
We had enough food for the week.
Why did she go out?
You like strawberries, don't you?
Well, she just had to get some for her boy.
Evans speaking.
Her car is parked outside pointing west.
Good. I'll be down there right away.
There'll be a marker on the rear bumper.
That's what I thought, Mr. Evans.
Where Ma goes, Cody goes.
We'll use the A-B-C method.
I'm B.
I'll keep first position behind suspect
on Arango Blvd.
You drive parallel on Lattimer.
Okay.
- Got that?
- Okay.
Suspect proceeding dead ahead
on Arango Blvd.
Approaching Bakeman.
Suspect turned north on Bakeman.
C, pick her up at Fairchild.
A will take your position.
Got her.
Traveling dead ahead on Bakeman,
Suspect turning west on Calhoun.
C, proceed dead ahead.
Take position on the right.
Right.
A, pick her up on Calhoun.
Roger.
Got her.
Going due west about 30 miles per hour.
Hold the phone.
She's turning left on Cling.
Let her go.
C, cut over fast to Arango.
- Cover her on the left.
- Okay.
A, proceed dead ahead.
I'll pick her up when she crosses Fairchild.
Get around it.
A, C, cut into Fairchild. I've lost her.
Down there.
- Come in, C.
- That's a dead spot.
It would be. Turn around. We'll go back.
Hold it.
Come in, A.
Come in, C.
- Beat it up the hill and call the others.
- You're not tackling him alone.
I'll just keep an eye on him. Hurry.
What's the use of having money
if you gotta run...
every time somebody sees a shadow?
It's just a feeling I had.
I could have been wrong.
Your hunches are never wrong, Ma.
We'll leave the sedan,
the car they're looking for.
You bring the bags and I'll get the coupe.
You're not going anywhere, Jarrett.
Put your hands up where I can see them.
Get those bags in, and get in fast!
Down the highway, Ernie.
Happens every night. Ruins the movie.
Peanuts. Popcorn.
Kill that.
This is great.
Where do we go after the second feature?
You're staying put.
I'm the only one going anyplace.
- Where, Cody?
- Gonna give myself up.
What are you talking about?
You haven't a chance.
Four dead. It's the gas chamber for sure.
You think I'm dumb enough
to give myself up to the T-men?
What's the difference? You walk into
the cops and they turn you over.
Remember a guy named Scratch Morton?
Yeah. The guy on the lam from Illinois.
You had a talk with him one night.
- That's the one.
- I remember.
Knocked over a hotel payroll
in Springfield?
The night we pulled the tunnel job. Handy.
Talk plain, son.
I pulled that Springfield heist,
not Scratch Morton.
I'm going to Illinois and take a state rap.
I'll get two years at the most.
They'll still be waiting for you
for the tunnel job.
What tunnel job?
While those hoodlums were killing
innocent people on the train...
I was pushing in a hotel in Springfield.
Couldn't be in both places at once, could I?
Little thing I cooked up
before the tunnel job.
You're the smartest there is.
Sure, it's smart, but what about me?
What do I do for the next two years?
The same as you did
before he married you.
You better not, baby. I'll be back.
I'll be waiting for you, honey.
You can trust me.
If the T-men pick you up,
you don't know a thing.
You haven't seen me in months.
Ma, you do all the talking.
- I can handle them.
- Verna, you cry a little, like you're sad.
How are you going to make it to Illinois?
Private plane. Don't worry.
Goodbye.
Be kind of a break to get rid
of me for a while, won't it?
I'll be around, Cody.
I told you,
I was just trying to cheer up Verna.
She's been lonesome all this time,
missing Cody so much.
So I went to the market
to buy her things for a real spread.
Thought it'd make her feel better.
That so, Verna?
Yet as soon as you returned
to the auto court, you left again. Why?
'Cause we decided to go
to a movie instead.
- What theater?
- San Val Drive In.
- What picture?
- Task Force.
Exciting. Verna liked it a lot.
- Cody like it?
- How could he?
I told you.
Cody hasn't been in California for months.
I suppose he shot me
all the way from another state.
What makes you think he shot you?
Lots of people have guns.
I was as close to him as I am to you.
Anybody else see him?
Just you. And his wife.
Of course, being an old woman,
I wouldn't know much about the law...
but I hear you got to have witnesses
to make anything stand up in court.
You see Cody last night, Verna?
Makes you the only one,
Mr. Evans, doesn't it?
Seems to. If Cody's
been out of California for months...
I suppose he couldn't have engineered
that train robbery six weeks ago.
I'm not going to sit here and hear you
accuse my boy without proof.
Besides, I know my rights.
You can't keep us here.
You got nothing on us.
All right, Mrs. Jarrett, that'll be all now.
That's better. Come on, Verna.
Stop crying. Nobody's going to hurt you.
Mr. Fallon just arrived from the airport.
Send him right in.
Hello, Phil. How's the arm?
I'll live. Hey, you're looking good.
It's that prison diet.
Great chef in San Quentin.
I hated to leave.
You did a whale of a job.
Most talkative con
I ever shared a cell with.
That whole syndicate comes up for trial
in a few weeks. Now, what's that?
You put it on a pole,
wind a spool of silk thread around it...
and you hold the pole over the water.
Then you sit under a nice, shady tree
and relax.
After a while, a hungry fish comes along,
nips at your hook, and you've got dinner.
For the next two weeks,
I won't think about anything...
except the eternal struggle
between man and the fish.
I've been promised a vacation.
You remember?
Sorry, Hank, that's out.
Phil, look at me. College degree,
lovable personality...
and I spend most of my time in prison.
An undercover specialist.
Eight sentences in five years.
Dannemora, Sing Sing, Leavenworth...
I joined the department
to put criminals behind bars...
and here I am, stir crazy.
Read this.
Who checks confessions in Springfield?
Every rookie knows Scratch Morton
went underground after that hotel job.
You won't let Jarrett get away
with a two-bit prison stretch?
- Maybe.
- Maybe?
A hoodlum turns himself in
on a phony rap...
and beats the gas chamber.
I'll bet you he's thumbing his nose
at Uncle Sam now and loving it.
Jarrett outsmarted you.
That's just what we want him to think.
We're working with the Springfield police.
We arranged for the confession to check.
So, what happens?
Jarrett does a stretch in the penitentiary.
In case he's lonely,
wants to talk to someone...
we'll let one of our boys do a stretch
right in the same cell.
Still going fishing, Hank?
Yeah. In what prison?
You'll enjoy the food there.
Wonderful chef.
- Arrested him myself.
- Okay, what's the pitch?
You'll be committed
to the penitentiary in Illinois.
You'll be one of Jarrett's cellmates.
Stick with him until you find out...
where he unloaded $300,000
in federal currency...
without a single bill showing up.
Also, try to learn the identity
of the very special fence...
that engineered this deal.
How does he operate?
Buys stolen money here,
Peddles it on the European black market
for who knows how much.
No questions asked. Sweet racket.
In step with the times.
That's your assignment.
I wouldn't ask you to do
another undercover job...
if we weren't up against it.
Hello, Hank. Prison records from Illinois.
Your new buddies.
- Busy little place, isn't it?
- 2,700 of the roughest and toughest.
A few who might recognize you.
Let's go to work.
- Find another old client?
- Yeah. Red Draper.
Questioned him in '46
about a warehouse job.
That makes two for transfer.
Better run through the arrest once more.
I'll be picked up at a joint
known as Tom's Hideaway.
Bill's Hideaway.
On what seems
like an ordinary hood roundup.
I'm spotted as a lamister.
I make a break for it.
When I pick myself off the floor,
I'm meek as a baby.
- How do I get information out to you?
- Visiting days.
Mother again?
Wife this time.
One thing though. This time,
get me somebody with a good memory.
I had a lot of trouble with my "mother"
in San Quentin.
This time, we'll get you a girl in the bureau
who's a memory expert.
I'm partial to blondes.
Well, who isn't? As soon as I pick her,
I'll send you a picture.
- We move this guy.
- Who is he?
Bo Creel. Arrested him two years ago.
Wait a minute.
We don't have to worry about him.
Finishes his stretch Saturday.
He'll be out before you're sentenced.
Good. Bo Creel would know me
in the dark.
This job isn't going to be
like any of the others, Hank.
You see, there's insanity in the Jarretts.
Some of it rubbed off on Cody.
His father died in an institution.
I've had a few strange cellmates
in my time...
but this sounds like the jackpot.
When he was a kid,
he used to fake headaches...
to get his mother's attention away
from the rest of the family. It worked.
As he grew up,
the fancied headaches became real...
until now they tear him to pieces.
Any minute, he's apt to crack open
at the seams.
There goes our case.
So you'll be working against time.
Suits me. Quicker the better.
Except that Cody's not easy
to get close to in a hurry.
The only person he's ever cared about
or trusted is his mother.
No one else has ever made a dent,
not even his wife.
His mother's been the prop
that's held him up.
He's got a fierce psychopathic devotion
for her.
All his life, whenever he got in a spot...
he just put out his hand,
and there was Ma Jarrett.
Without her, maybe Cody'd...
Just like his old man.
You mean I'm supposed to take
mama's place?
Never can tell. He might need someone.
I'll practice up on my lullabies.
Nothing else here.
Good. Let's run through
your background again.
Born Detroit, March 23, 1919.
State reform school, 1934, vandalism.
Arrested: Suspicion, grand larceny,
Portland, 1939.
Good.
The State of Illinois v. Arthur Cody Jarrett.
Arthur Cody Jarrett,
on your own admission...
you have been convicted of the robbery
of the Palace Hotel on October 12.
It is now my duty to pronounce sentence.
For the crime of grand larceny,
you are hereby sentenced to serve...
not less than one
and not more than three years...
in the state penitentiary.
The State of Illinois v. Victor Pardo.
How is he? Tough?
With Big Ed giving the orders now,
there'll be all kinds of fireworks.
He's got plans that'll make
the old Jarrett mob look like a...
Can you read him?
Yeah.
Parker moves his lips pretty good.
It's about Big Ed.
What'd he say?
He's the number one boy now,
Parker says.
In more ways than one.
- What was that crack?
- I couldn't read him, Cody.
- Was that about my wife?
- Honest, he had his mouth covered.
Maybe a kick in his skull
would do him some good.
They got rules in this chicken coop. You
start anything, you'll wind up in a hole.
Did I ask you for any advice?
Look, Pardo, I've been watching you...
and up till now, you haven't done
anything I can put my finger on.
Maybe that's what bothers me.
I don't know you,
and what I don't know, I don't trust.
To me, you're a face and a number,
and let's keep it that way.
When I want your help, I'll ask for it.
Have it your way, Cody.
Attention, men.
The following new men report
to the dispensary for shots:
Abbott, Jordan, Bacon, Pardo, Butler...
Jenkins, Jarrett, Williams, Phillips.
Hughes, Russell.
Keep it moving, boys. No talking.
Well, if it ain't Bo Creel.
Boys in L.A. Had a coming-out party.
It was planned for you a month ago.
I'm packing, and bang,
flat on my back with pneumonia.
The doc's checking me out today.
See you in eight years.
Hyde, Frank.
- Keep moving, boys. No talking.
- Jacoby, George.
All right, move up.
Jarrett, Arthur Cody.
I'm leaving tomorrow, Cody.
- Anything I can do for you on the Coast?
- Yeah, look up Big Ed.
- Tell him I was asking for him.
- Johnson, Bate.
Holden, John.
Get the lead out.
Coon, Fred.
Scared, sonny?
Break it up over there.
Who's that reindeer?
I didn't do nothing. He's nuts.
A couple months in solitary
will cool you off, bugger.
Fisher.
Maddox. Pardo.
I'm awfully sorry, my good man.
But Mr. Pardo is still on vacation.
His month's up today.
It is, huh? That's cozy.
Look at what they left out of this one.
It must have been a lulu
before the warden got it.
- Hey, Herbert.
- Yeah.
Any chance you get, read Pardo, will you?
- Why?
- Read him.
Maybe on visiting days.
That's when they loosen up.
What do you have against him, Cody?
Pardo's all right.
Didn't I check his record
up at the dispensary?
That's only a record.
What else do we know about him?
Maybe that envelope
will tell us something.
Think you ought to? That's U.S. Mail.
I'm a U.S. Citizen, ain't I?
Not lately.
Wife. Kid don't talk much.
When you're married,
you don't get a chance to. Nice.
We'll put it right over here
where we can see it.
He'll know we've been in his mail.
All right. So he'll know.
Be a nice surprise
when he gets out of solitary.
Hi, kid.
Let me shake the hand
that slugged Roy Parker.
Why did you do it, Pardo?
You know they got rules in this joint,
don't you?
Yeah. Maybe I didn't want
to get my shots.
I guess his eyes ain't so good
after solitary.
All right, what's the gag?
What's she done to herself?
Had the best-looking blonde I ever saw.
When my back's turned, she's a brunette.
Don't even look like her anymore.
Maybe she's hot.
Whenever I changed my hair,
so did my misses.
She better be a blonde
when I get out of here.
Yeah. Too bad your little trick
didn't work, Pardo.
Doc says you got
to take your shots anyway.
Yeah, Benny.
Mob pulled a caper.
Parker's shooting his mouth off again.
Told Benny your boys pulled a caper.
- How much did they get?
- $57,000.
- Are you in for any of it?
- Full share.
No kidding?
What's being in here got to do with it?
They're his boys. What they get, he gets.
Yeah. Ma sees to that.
Get one thing clear, all of you.
Anything we get...
Cody's in for his full share.
That's how it is.
Anyone thinks different...
say so now...
or would you rather wait
till Cody gets out?
Well, any argument?
Het? Cotton? Happy? Ed?
How come, Big Ed?
You're the one I expected to give trouble.
Fair is fair.
We aren't gonna forget Cody
after all he did for us.
Cody'll be real grateful to you.
Where do you think you're going?
To pick strawberries.
All right, boys, beat it. It's getting late.
Het, tell Verna I want her back in here.
- What's eating you, sugar?
- You and your big ideas.
That's all they are. Ideas.
"You and me belong together, sugar.
Just leave it to Big Ed. "
I'm sick of waiting
for you to make your move.
You're as scared of Cody as any of them.
He's still Mr. Big, in prison or out.
- What makes you think so?
- You. Fair is fair, is it?
That's quite a beef you put up
about Cody being in on the cut.
See, a guy who thinks his pals
are taking care of him...
he gets kind of careless.
What does that mean?
Alive, Cody gets out
in one, two years, maybe.
Dead, he gets out sooner.
Dead?
Right now, he's a sitting duck
up there in that pen.
He's rubbing elbows with a guy
that does anything I say.
When, Ed?
When I say so.
Where's Pardo?
You know all about radios.
Maybe you can fix the warden's.
- I'll fix it so it blows up in his face.
- Suits me.
Come on. Back to your places.
Go ahead. Get on back there.
Are you hurt, Jarrett?
No. Things were getting
kind of dull around here, anyway.
Back to your work. You, too, Pardo.
- The lever slipped.
- You can tell that to the warden later.
I saw that just in time.
What do you want? A medal?
You would have looked like that barrel.
You almost walked into it yourself.
Why should you care
if a guy named Cody Jarrett gets his...
if you don't want something?
Okay. Keep your medal.
Come on, break it up. Get going, Jarrett.
Sorry, Cody.
Forget it, Parker.
Accidents will happen.
Attention. The following men
have visitors.
Reynolds, Allen, Jarrett, Kaminsky...
Williams, Phillips, Jordan.
Hello, Ma.
Cody. You been hurt.
- Oh, it's nothing. Just an accident.
- You sure?
What kind of question is that?
Why are you nervous? Anything wrong?
- Plenty.
- Like what?
That's why I come.
I'm the one to tell you.
It's Big Ed and Verna. They run out.
It's my fault, Cody. I let you down.
I said I'd take care of things
and I let you down.
I saw it coming,
but I didn't think he'd have the guts.
Forget it, Ma.
It was in the cards
for Big Ed to make his try.
Don't you care?
Sure. What's mine is mine,
but I ain't gonna let it make me sick.
I'll take care of them when I get out.
That's what I told myself.
I'll help you, Cody, like always.
You'll be out soon,
back on top of the world.
When you're around, Ma,
nothing can stop me.
That's right.
Only you got to be careful about Big Ed.
If I know Big Ed, right now he's doing
enough worrying for the both of us.
Maybe not.
Can't expect me to come looking for him.
That's what I'm getting at.
When you get out...
he knows his life
isn't worth a plugged nickel.
When a tinhorn like that thinks
he's big enough to take your place...
he's got to feel pretty safe.
Now, all of a sudden, he makes his move...
like he was sure
you'd never get out of here...
except in a box.
I see what you mean.
You said it was an accident?
For a minute, I thought it was.
How'd it happen?
A pal of Big Ed's dropped something.
You see, Cody? I was right.
He was figuring you'd be dead.
Relax, Ma. I'm still here, ain't I?
If he tried it once, he'll try it again.
I'll still walk out of this joint,
and then I'll take care of Big Ed.
And let him live that long? No, Cody.
I'll take care of Big Ed.
No, Ma. You won't have a chance.
Any time I can't handle his kind,
I'll know I'm getting old.
No one does what he's done to you, son,
and gets away with it.
No, Ma. Look, listen to me.
You won't have a chance.
I'm going after him to keep him
from having you knocked off here.
- I'm telling you, don't do it.
- Goodbye, Cody.
Ma!
Keep your hands off that wire.
What's the matter, Parker?
I ain't going to do anything.
Not now.
I'm going to let you stay awake nights...
sweat it out.
Then when I get ready, good and ready...
I'll pay you back.
I'll take care of Big Ed.
I'll take care of him, Cody.
What's the matter, Cody?
My head.
Cover for me.
Watch it.
Fingers are kind of thick today.
No doctors.
It's all right now. He's gone.
- Where's the pain?
- It's right here.
Don't let it beat you.
You are a top man, aren't you?
Since I was a kid,
I've been reading about you.
Always hoping I could join up with you.
You don't want to let those two-bit mugs
see Cody Jarrett on his knees.
Come on.
- You all right, Cody?
- Yeah.
- Just can't sleep, that's all.
- That headache gone?
- Yeah.
- Then why can't you sleep?
It's Ma. She's walking into trouble.
- Anything I can do?
- No.
Yeah. Maybe there is, kid.
For a while, I figured out
that sitting out this penny-ante stretch...
would be a kind of vacation...
take the heat off me for another job.
Sometimes you make plans,
sometimes they don't work out.
Then you got to get doing and fast,
you understand?
- I got business on the outside.
- Going to crash out?
Yeah. Want to come along?
Maybe I do. Did you tell anybody else?
Figured on cutting in Tommy Ryley.
Then you'll have to cut in 10 more.
Why do you want Ryley?
He's got a gun stashed.
Don't need a gun.
They're not gonna open the gates for us.
You think you're the only guy
in this paw that wants out?
What do you think
I've been dreaming about nights?
I got a way to get a mile from here
before anybody knows what hit them.
Without artillery, it can't be done.
No? Listen, I'm a pretty handy fella
with electricity, you remember?
Well, I figured a way to fix the generators.
You know what that means?
I have a slight idea.
The generators control everything:
Searchlights, gun turret, main gate.
Who needs artillery?
Only we got to do it alone.
We're going to need a car.
My wife's coming tomorrow.
We'll set it all up.
All right, kid. It's a deal...
and if it works, I'll pay you back.
Maybe you'll give me that medal.
Solid gold.
Good news for you, Herbert.
You've had good news
for the last 12 years.
I'm working on a plan
to get your case reviewed.
- Hello, Margaret.
- You're looking well, Vic.
We're being watched.
Say anything you like and make it good.
Listen to me carefully.
Divorce? Vic, you can't mean that.
Why? What have I done?
That's fine.
Jarrett's getting out of here
and I'm going with him.
I know how you feel, but don't ask me
to do anything that'll break my heart.
It might be better for you.
It's my life.
Let me decide what to do with it.
Just the two of us.
Tell Evans we'll break out Thursday night.
Tell him to plant a getaway car
with an oscillator.
Can you remember that?
With an oscillator.
I'll remember, darling.
- Everything clear?
- Perfectly clear.
You won't be sorry, Vic. When you get out,
we'll be happy. I'll see to that.
Nice. Where'd you learn all that?
Soap opera?
How did you know?
This time I'm going right
to the top to get you out.
- Herbert, are you listening?
- Sure, Jerry.
But if that fails,
you'll have to serve the rest of your term.
Jerry, you couldn't get me out of here
if I was pardoned.
All right, this is the prison.
We place the getaway car in these trees...
with the oscillator under its rear axle
and hooked up to the battery.
Our cars will be parked here, a mile or so
away, one here and the other here.
We assume that Jarrett and Hank
come out here somewhere.
They pile into the getaway car,
and they're off.
- You ready, Ernie?
- Ready.
The transmitter wavelength is 47.1.
All right. Switch it on.
Our receivers pick up that sound
from the oscillator...
which enables us to cross-plot
their exact position.
For example...
suppose the impulse received here...
has a bearing of 210 degrees.
This one here reads 45 degrees.
We plot them like so.
Where the lines cross,
that's where they are.
It doesn't matter how far they travel.
As long as our cars
are within receiving distance...
we can tell where they are.
Switch it off.
How far is receiving distance?
We had a dry run on a car yesterday.
Kept tabs on him for 20 miles.
That little thing?
You can make one out
of your bedside radio. I'll show you how.
When you've got a week to spare,
Ernie'll tell you all about electronics.
We'll meet at the airport in 40 minutes.
Be in Springfield late this afternoon.
Tonight.
Isn't that Lefeld down there? Nat Lefeld?
From the Coast mob. Came in today.
They checked him in today?
Ask him how my mother is.
Ask about Cody's mother.
She's dead.
Dead?
I want to get out of here!
Get me out!
Special for Jarrett.
- Hiya, Doc.
- Hi, Ryley.
Hi, Cody. Brought you some grub.
Hot soup made special.
How are you, Vic? Glad to see you, kid.
You're a good boy, Vic.
It's me, Tommy Ryley.
That's right, Vic. Play it smart.
Play it smart.
That's the only way it'll work.
Here, get some of this into you.
Next time you come, bring the gun.
I like the way you go about it, Vic.
Bring the gun.
You sure you won't try
some of this delicious soup?
I'll get it if you take me along, Cody.
I don't want any of that slop.
Try it on the warden. It's a deal.
If you don't want it,
I guess you don't want it.
But you gotta keep up your strength, fella.
If the warden don't want it,
try it on the governor.
Guess he ain't hungry.
Dr. Simpson speaking.
Yes, Warden.
I've just finished my report on Jarrett.
Violent, homicidal.
He'll probably have recurrent periods
of normal behavior, but...
Yes, sir. Our psychiatrists
are coming tonight.
They'll commit him to the institution.
Yes, Warden. I suggest
you prepare the release for him.
Thank you, Warden.
- Oscillator all ready?
- Ready to sing, Phil.
Put the car in the trees.
We'll pick you up and take our positions.
- Telephone, Mr. Evans.
- All right. Hold it, boys.
Evans speaking. Hello, Warden.
That is bad news.
Not altogether a surprise.
Thanks for your cooperation anyway,
Warden.
Say, by the way, tomorrow
there'll be a pardon coming through...
for one of your inmates, Vic Pardo.
Rush it through, will you? Thanks.
No dice, boys. The party's off.
Jarrett's a raving maniac.
They've got him in a straitjacket.
It's a good thing for Hank
it happened inside instead of out.
It's the only good thing about it.
Take the oscillator off the car.
I'll get the plane tickets for 10:00 tonight.
You have a car
to take us to the Springfield airport?
Itll be there, Mr. Evans.
Sorry, boys. They can't all work out.
How would you like
a little change of scenery, Cody?
Someplace where we might be able
to cure your headaches?
You wouldn't mind a little trip, would you?
No. Might do me some good.
- Doctor.
- Not now, Ryley.
I want something to eat.
- You've sent away two meals already.
- That's why I'm hungry now.
Hunger's always a hopeful sign.
Nobody feeds Cody Jarrett.
What am I, a kid?
Is it all right to remove the straitjacket,
Doctor?
I'll do it.
They got you tied up good.
The examination's over.
All right, turn around.
Now, keep them quiet.
Doctor, you're with me.
I want you to make
a little phone call for me.
And no slip-ups,
or you're gonna need a doctor.
You're taking a little walk, boys.
Doc wants you in the dispensary.
Wait here.
- Come on, Parker.
- Where to?
Dispensary. Special invitation
to the doctor.
Here. Tie and gag him.
Drop that stick. Now.
Get in the cell.
All right. Now you two come along
and bring the tuxedo with you.
Reader, cover the outside door.
We'll not make it this way.
We'll never get to the gate.
- Who says so?
- Why me? What do you want with me?
You're my pal. I'm taking you with me.
Come on.
- Look...
- Get.
You got me wrong.
I got nothing against you.
It was Big Ed. He told me to do it.
You wouldn't kill me in cold blood,
would you?
I'll let you warm up a little.
There's the fingerprint that nailed me.
Psycho, put that zoot suit on him.
- Me?
- Yeah, you.
Cody, my way,
there wouldn't be no shooting.
Ain't gonna be any my way either.
We're going out of here in a car
like gentlemen on a picnic.
They want me to take a little trip.
We're gonna take a trip.
Only it better be a quiet one.
Come on, now. Get.
Pick up those hats.
Everybody down. Ryley, get those keys.
You get in the trunk. Come on, get it open.
Get in.
Ryley, you get in the front.
Reader, get in the back
and make like you're loony.
And you, you drive.
You know how jittery I am.
Any minute I'm liable to explode.
Now if we don't make it,
I've got six slugs in this gun.
One for each of us.
- Dr. Harris.
- Good night, Doc.
Hello. Yeah, speaking.
What? All right. Right away.
Turn back. Jarrett's busted out.
Black sedan. Probably headed southwest.
Following are the names of the men
who escaped with Cody Jarrett.
Thomas Ryley, Roy Parker,
Michael Curtin, Vic Pardo.
Do not shoot unless absolutely necessary.
Hostages in car.
Do not shoot...
- One break for our boy.
- What's Hank's procedure now?
He'll stay with Jarrett
till he gets what he's after.
I like your tailor. How do you like mine?
Tommy, rustle up some grub.
You, in there.
Vic, what's taking you so long?
Trying to find some more artillery.
- Let it ring.
- Someone might get suspicious.
Come on.
How you doing, Parker?
It's stuffy in here. I need some air.
Stuffy, huh? I'll give you a little air.
No clue to their movements
has been reported...
since their assault last night
on a service station...
north of Gallup, New Mexico.
It is assumed now
by federal law enforcement agencies...
that Jarrett and the other escaped
convicts are heading for California.
This concludes the nightly news summary
from KFKL, San Bernardino.
Did you check the windows?
- I said, "Did you check the windows?"
- Ed, let's get out of here.
Take it easy, baby.
We're ready for him when he comes.
I can't stand another night, Ed.
Listening, going crazy.
It ain't like waiting for some human being
who wants to kill you.
Cody ain't human.
Fill him full of lead,
and he'll still come at you.
Plug him and he drops,
same as anybody else.
The boys didn't think so.
Why did they beat it down to San Berdoo?
'Cause they know this is
between me and Cody.
- They'll be back when it's over.
- You'll be dead.
Maybe so.
But the time comes when a man's
gotta stop running away and face things.
Or else go on running for good.
All right, throw your life away.
Stay here and shoot it out.
Me? I'm going. I want to live.
Cody might have ideas about that.
I'll go someplace he'll never find me.
The world ain't big enough, sugar.
Not when he finds out
what you did to his ma.
- You'd tell him?
- Lf you run out on me.
- Why not?
- But I only did it for you, Ed.
She had you covered.
Cody still ain't going to like to hear
that she got it in the back.
Feel more like staying now?
I said I'd be back.
Now tell me you're glad to see me.
Only say it low, so nobody can hear.
Cody, I'm so glad to see you.
I've been praying you'd come back.
I couldn't stand it any longer.
I was running away.
- From Big Ed?
- Yeah.
- What's the matter? Don't you like him?
- No.
Maybe you shouldn't have teamed up
with him.
I couldn't help it, Cody.
He said if I didn't go away with him,
he'd have you killed.
All I wanted was for you to come back.
That's the truth. I love you, Cody.
- You let Ma die?
- No.
You didn't even raise a finger to help her.
You just stood there
and watched Big Ed kill her.
I tell you, you got it wrong, Cody.
Maybe you thought it was funny,
an old woman taking on a guy like that.
No. I tried to warn her...
but he caught me and beat me.
Then when Ma came,
he was waiting for her, and he...
- I can't tell you.
- Tell me.
He got her in the back.
- Is he in there now?
- Yeah.
But you gotta be careful, Cody.
He's got the house rigged up like a trap.
You can't get in unless I tell you how.
- Ed.
- Stay where you are.
- What was that bell downstairs?
- It was me, Ed.
What were you doing down there?
I couldn't go through with it.
I tried, but I couldn't.
Talk sense.
I was going to take the car and beat it.
I was scared.
But I don't want to go anymore.
You're my honey.
Still got nerves?
Please, Ed. I feel like a drink.
- Fix me one, too.
- Here.
Catch.
Listen, Cody. Ed said this joint is a cinch.
- Good for $50,000.
- Who?
- Big Ed.
- Never heard of him. Go on.
The way we had it figured, Cody,
we pile out of the cars here...
we slug the guards,
and we grab the payroll here.
Blast our way out. It'll all take 50 seconds.
They got cars. They'd follow you.
That's where we use the gas truck.
I'll stall it right in the gates.
And when we beat it in the getaway cars,
I got the truck keys in my pocket.
And where do you get the gas truck?
We got one stashed behind a barn.
Bought it with our own dough. $12,000.
- You bought a gas truck?
- Yeah.
What's the matter?
You forget how to steal one?
Maybe it ain't so bad, Cody.
$12,000 gets you $50,000.
Fence $50,000, and you get $20,000.
Then what are you going to do with that?
Buy two more gas trucks?
That joint has got the serial number
of every bill.
Any guy who says he can fence
$50,000 is crazy.
- The Trader ain't crazy.
- The Trader?
- Who's he?
- My manager, kid.
Come on. Let's get a look
at that $12,000 doll.
Cody. My radio ain't working again.
Oh, no.
What do you want it for,
unemployment insurance?
Can't I go down to San Berdoo
and get it fixed?
Nobody leaves unless I say so. Now, you...
What's the matter, baby?
I'm not gonna hurt you.
Go and read your comic books. Good girl.
This fellow you call the Trader...
can you trust him?
Why?
I wouldn't like to see my share of a caper
handed to a guy who might disappear.
- Suspicious, ain't you?
- Just careful.
You don't have to worry about the Trader.
He pays off on the spot in nice, clean bills.
Where does he get rid of this stuff?
- Ships to Europe. Collects both ends.
- Smart operator.
Didn't see any of that dope from
that tunnel job pop up, did you?
I like him better now.
Not bad.
Maybe the $12,000
don't go down the drain after all.
- Hey, Het.
- Yeah.
You're pretty good with a blowtorch.
You suppose you could cut a hole
in here into the tank?
Yeah, sure.
We're back in business, boys.
We're back in business. And not
Big Ed's way either, and not for $50,000.
But first, a question.
Supposing you want to push
in a place like Fort Knox...
and grab yourselves
a couple of tons of gold...
what's the toughest thing
about a job like that?
Getting inside the joint.
A silver dollar
for the gentleman on the balcony.
Right on the button.
Getting in.
Which brings me to a story Ma
used to tell me when I was a kid.
A story about a horse.
Way back, there was a whole army
trying to knock over a place called Troy...
and getting nowhere fast.
Couldn't even put a dent in the walls.
One morning, the people of Troy wake up,
look over the walls...
and the attacking army disappeared.
Men, boats, the works. Taking a powder.
But they left one thing after them...
a great, big wooden horse.
And according to Ma...
Hello, there.
I was wondering
if I could use your telephone?
There ain't a phone here for five miles.
I'm sorry to hear that.
- Good morning.
- Hello. Lost your way, mister?
No. I wanted to call my office...
but these gentlemen say
you don't have a phone here.
They wouldn't know. There's one
in the house. I'll show you where it is.
Thank you very much.
There's a call that's gonna cost
more than a nickel.
Looks like Big Ed's gonna have company.
And we got a new station wagon.
- How's fishing?
- Fine, Cody.
- Good catch.
- You like the truck idea?
It's admirable.
We might all profit by a closer study
of classical literature.
Chemical plant.
I guess that's Long Beach way.
That's close enough for now.
You know the way I work.
I must ask that you don't insist
on knowing the exact location...
until you've reached the rendezvous.
That's all right.
The only thing that matters is...
how much dough
this joint has in the kitty.
$426,000 will be placed in their safe
before closing time tomorrow...
to be distributed to deserving
employees the following morning...
provided there's no unforeseen accident,
of course.
- Like me and my boys?
- Exactly.
What are they doing, dancing?
Maybe they found
they went to school together.
Maybe they're buddies after all.
Something funny's going on there.
I've had my eye on this place
for several months.
Now, these checking gates,
that means a pass for the driver...
identity cards and stuff. We're all hot.
Your truck will be driven
past these checkers...
by an ex-convict of my acquaintance.
He's now leading
a scrupulously honest life...
as a truck driver for this very firm.
Smooth.
Sorry to bust in. We're finished out there.
Wanna check?
I'll be right out.
- You having much luck, mister?
- I haven't started yet...
I'm just on my way.
- Done much fishing up here?
- Every year.
- What are you trying for?
- Bass.
- This guy's a phony, Cody.
- I beg your pardon?
This is trout country.
There ain't bass for 100 miles.
What's so funny?
You're right on your toes, kid. Bass.
He got you, didn't he?
Trader, this is the kid I've been telling
you about. Meet Vic Pardo.
- Hello.
- Glad to know you, Mr...
Forgive me, I...
You can forget that.
Vic's my partner, 50-50.
Cody Jarrett going 50-50?
- I split even with Ma, didn't I?
- I see.
My name's Daniel Winston.
San Diego. Securities.
Glad to know you, Mr. Winston.
Sit down.
Hold it. Where you going, Pardo?
- What's doing, kid?
- I don't like being pushed around.
My orders was nobody was to leave.
That might go for hoods like him.
When I got a reason to leave, I leave.
Nobody has any reasons
I don't know about.
- He jumped me, Cody.
- Get back on the job.
That was pretty fancy wrestling, kid.
Where'd you learn it?
- In the army.
- You're a liar.
They don't take cons in the army.
When the war broke out,
I didn't have any record except kid stuff.
What were you doing just now, soldier?
Going over the hill?
No. I figured maybe I'd run in to L.A.
Be back before anyone knew.
- What's doing in L.A.?
- My wife. She don't know where I am.
When we crashed out,
I didn't leave no forwarding address.
- It's the truth, Cody.
- Why didn't you ask me?
I figured you might get sore.
So you took off on your own.
I haven't seen her in a long time.
I'm human, you know, like everyone else.
All right, kid.
You're just lonesome.
Lonesome like me.
You?
- What about...
- You mean Verna?
All I ever had was Ma. Now...
Your mother alive?
No, she died before I even knew her.
I was just walking around out there
talking to mine.
- That sounds funny to you?
- No.
Some might think so.
My old lady never had anything.
Always on the run, always on the move.
Some life.
First, it was my old man, died kicking
and screaming in a nut house...
then my brother,
and after that, it was taking care of me.
Always trying to put me on top.
"Top of the world," she used to say.
And then,
times when I'd be losing my grip...
there she'd be, right behind me...
pushing me back up again. And now...
Anyway, she quit running, Cody.
Yeah. Quit running.
That was a good feeling out there,
talking to her.
Just me and Ma.
A good feeling. I liked it.
Maybe I am nuts.
Let's go in and have a drink.
Tell you what, Vic. I've got an idea.
We'll pick up your wife
after the job tomorrow.
We'll all take a little trip.
Just the four of us.
No kidding, Cody. That sounds great.
You mean that, honey?
We could have fun. Live big.
Money's just paper if you don't spend it.
- That's an idea.
- It's a good idea.
Europe, maybe. Paris.
Rubbing shoulders with the best of them.
How do you do, Countess?
Sable coats,
jewels just dripping from my fingers.
I'd knock their eyes out, Cody.
You'd be real proud of me.
Don't go flipping your lid.
He ain't thought of a vacation
in years, Vic. Don't let him forget it.
Here's to us, top of the world.
How's the radio coming, Verna?
- A crystal set would play better.
- Yeah?
Maybe I could fix it for you.
I wish you would, Vic.
I'm dead without music.
We'll get a new one.
I don't mind fixing it, Cody.
Keep me busy. I can't sleep anyhow.
Anything you say, kid.
- I was just gonna throw it away.
- I'm not making any promises.
We better hit the hay, Duchess.
We got a heavy day tomorrow.
- See you in the morning.
- Right.
Grab the brass ring.
What are you doing? We're on our way.
You've got to have a chain on the ground,
get rid of electricity.
That's only when you got
gasoline or chemicals inside.
You want to have some traffic cop
think you got a load of something else?
That's using your head, kid.
All right, snap it up.
You all know what you're to do...
and you know where the rendezvous is.
We're to pick up our driver there at 5:00...
and we'll be at the plant
right after the day shift has checked off.
Now, Vic and Tommy, we go in the truck.
The rest of you go
with Verna in the sedan.
Baby, don't get picked up for speeding.
But get them there.
Don't worry, honey. I'll get them there.
$12,000 and she's getting ready
to blow up in your face.
Might be a cracked radiator.
We'd better stop somewhere.
There's a gas station down the hill, Cody.
Pull in and watch yourself.
Fill her up?
- With water, bub. Check that radiator.
- Okay.
- You got a washroom, mister?
- Yeah. Cleanest in the West.
Dry as a bone.
Go get Vic. Hurry up.
- Cody says to hurry up.
- All right.
I thought you said cleanest in the West.
You ever see a cleaner one, mister?
- The mirror's so dirty you can see double.
- What?
Wise guys. Didn't even buy gas.
Into the wooden horse, boys.
Where do we go, Trader?
You should be back in about three hours.
- I'll wait.
- We'll be here. Where's the driver?
He's having a cup of coffee.
He'll be right out.
Bo. I heard you wanted to straighten out.
Driving a truck for a living.
- Tonight, I hand in my resignation.
- You better get going, Cody. Good luck.
Got it?
When you get to the plant,
park across the street.
If there's any trouble,
give us the horn hard.
How is it in there?
Can't breathe good. Otherwise, fine.
Stop breathing.
There's a button up in the cab.
Press it once if trouble shows,
and three times for all clear.
Okay.
Somebody's ribbing you, Russ.
Take a slant
at the mirror in your washroom.
"Radio Signal Fallon. "
You know what that means, sir?
You bet I know what it means. It's Hank.
Call the FCC.
Get every direction-finder car they've got.
Ask them to clear the air. Now listen...
Got him.
This is Car A at La Canada Verdugo.
Receiving signal, 105 degrees. Will repeat.
105 degrees.
Check.
- Come in, Car B.
- Car B bearing 284 degrees.
Maine and Atlantic, Alhambra.
General direction, southwest.
Check.
Source of signal,
Maine and Atlantic in Alhambra.
- General direction, southwest.
- Head southwest.
Have Car B head southeast.
Car A at Western and Slauson,
bearing 158 degrees.
Car B, Atlantic and Telegraph Road...
bearing 235 degrees.
Imperial and Figueroa.
Source of signal, Imperial and Figueroa.
That looks like the Long Beach area.
Car A at Rosecrans and Western,
bearing 156 degrees.
Car B at Atlantic and Compton,
bearing 244 degrees.
Source of signal, 198th and Figueroa.
Cover the back.
Car A at 166th and Western,
bearing 138 degrees.
Car B Alameda and Artesia,
bearing 256 degrees.
Same as before. 198th and Figueroa.
They must have stopped.
- Check. 198th and Figueroa.
- That's it.
Send out a call.
All cars proceed to 198th and Figueroa.
Drop the gun.
Now turn around.
- Cody, that guy's a copper.
- What?
He's a T-man. I know him.
His name is Fallon.
He pinched me four years ago.
Don't go for your guns.
A copper.
A copper. How do you like that, boys?
A copper and his name is Fallon.
And we went for it. I went for it.
Treated him like a kid brother.
And I was going to split 50-50
with a copper.
Maybe they're waiting
to pin a medal on him.
Solid gold.
Come on. Get up. Get your hands up.
Yeah, that's it.
A nice gold medal for the copper.
Only maybe he's gonna get it
sooner than he thinks.
Cody, the joint's crawling with cops.
- Let him have it.
- Oh, no. And lose our ace in the hole?
He's going to walk us out of here.
Ain't you, copper? Get up.
It won't work. They'll shoot just the same.
- They won't shoot one of their own.
- They won't make any deals.
You better pray that they do.
Jarrett, you and your men
might as well give up.
Come out with your hands up.
We've got your boy Fallon in here,
and he'll be all right if you do as I say.
She says she can get Jarrett to come out.
If I can, mister, will you go easy on me?
I'll tell him you'll let him get away
because you don't want your guy hurt.
He'll believe me. Then, when he comes
out, you can do what you want with him.
No deal. Lock her up.
Cheap copper!
Jarrett, you haven't got a chance.
Come out with your hands up.
"Come out with your hands up,"
the man says.
How do you like that, Ma?
Here's my answer, you dirty...
Fan out! Give them
tear gas from both sides.
That was Cody Jarrett talking!
Out this way, Cody. Through that door.
Here's yours, copper.
Wait a minute. It's Fallon.
- You all right, Hank?
- Yeah, sure. Quick...
get a car out to Charlie's Roadhouse,
Highway 60, near Colton.
Pick up Daniel Winston.
He's the fence you're looking for.
- What's out here, Bo?
- An alley.
Het, Happy, try it.
Come on. Get going.
We've got Bo Creel. They're heading up.
Got them on the ground
heading for the Horton Sphere area.
Send men out to that section.
Pass the word along. Don't fire
unless you've got a perfect target.
That place is a stack of dynamite.
Have that area surrounded.
Get some searchlights.
They think they've got Cody Jarrett.
They haven't got Cody Jarrett, you hear?
They haven't got him.
And I'm gonna show you
they haven't got him.
Come on. Come with me.
Don't shoot.
It's me, Ryley. I'm coming out.
You might as well come down, Jarrett.
There's no one left but you.
Come and get me.
Get the gun, Hank.
What's holding him up?
Made it, Ma!
Top of the world!
Cody Jarrett.
He finally got to the top of the world.
And it blew right up in his face.
SkyFury