Ellery Queen (1975) s01e23 Episode Script
43609 - The Adventure of the Disappearing Dagger
This aging detective has just named his last murderer.
Who killed him? Was it the munitions maker? If anybody killed Drew, it was that cowboy pilot.
The ex-con flyer? I didn't kill him, Inspector.
Now that's the blessed truth! The alert junior executive? He drugged the coffee.
The many-talented sculptress? He could have fallen asleep, and I'd have to commit the murder.
The master mechanic? If that's what you're driving at, you're on the wrong highway.
Or was it someone else? Match wits with Ellery Queen and see if you can guess who done it? TV: In North Africa, the tide turns for allied forces.
Heavily reinforced British troops led by Lieutenant General Bernard L.
Montgomery attack Rommel' Nazi-Italian army at El Alamein.
Suffering heavy losses, the enemy is defeated all the way to Tunisia.
The allied sweep continues in what some observers believe to be the beginning of the end of the war in North Africa.
Meanwhile, In New York' Westchester County, business leaders serve as pallbearers at the funeral of the designer of the Madison automatic rifle.
Friends and relatives mourn as Stuart Hendricks is carried to his final rest.
Alyssa Hendricks, widow of the murdered president of the Madison Munitions Company, is escorted by Brandon Childs, who is slated to be the new company president.
Other mourners include Gerald Hacker, former Hendricks aide, who will not comment on future plans, and Hamilton Drew, the private investigator whose solution of the case led to the arrest of Buck Nolan, pilot of the company-owned plane in which Hendricks was killed, over 10,000 feet in the air during a flight from Chicago to New York.
Nolan is seen here shortly after the grand jury brought an indictment of First Degree Murder.
In Atlantic City, it' swimsuit time as the gals compete for the title of 'Miss Boardwalk of 1942.
' These leggy lovelies are the cream of the crop Come in, please.
I've been expecting you.
Would you mind stepping into the light? I'm afraid my eyes aren't what they used to be.
Oh.
So it was you.
You killed Stuart Hendricks.
Yes, it was a trick.
I only had part of the solution.
Now, I have it all.
TV: Good luck, girls.
Bye, now.
Bye-bye.
The old place looks good after a week in Wrightsville.
Yeah, at least you finished your book.
All I did was find trout smarter than I am.
Well, you caught one, didn't you? Dad, you dropped something.
I don't think so.
Oh, you're right.
It's a telegram.
The boy must have put it under the door.
Here.
Who's it from? Oh, it's from Hamilton Drew.
He wanted me to come to his apartment last night at 9:00.
Does he say why? Only that it's urgent, and he couldn't reach me by phone.
Well, it's 8:30.
You think he might be up by now? Maybe.
He wasn't feeling too well lately.
Old age is creeping up on him.
He's unlisted.
Where's that address book? Address book? No, never mind.
Never mind.
You know, if it hadn't been for Hamilton, I never would have made Inspector, maybe not even detective.
He took me under his wing.
Left the force in when was it? 1938.
Wanted me to join him in a private detective agency.
I sure learned a lot from that old bird.
Strange him quitting after all these years.
Not so strange.
He was 65 years old.
They thought he was too old to do the job.
[Telephone rings.]
Hello? Oh, hi, Velie.
Yeah, Dad's here.
We just walked in the door.
What's up? Okay, thanks, Velie.
Be right there.
Well, what is it? There's been a murder, Dad.
[Sighs.]
It was Hamilton Drew.
[Sighs.]
That's it, Inspector.
Any clear prints, Kelly? Yeah, sure, that's the trouble prints all over the room and no way to isolate the killers.
If we just had the murder weapon Well, we don't have the murder weapon.
All we know he was stabbed.
So check on what you've got.
Yes, sir.
He must have known he was in danger.
That's why he was so anxious to get in touch with me, find time to go fishing.
Dad, you had no way of knowing.
Did you see this? A 1942 newsreel film.
"MacArthur Escapes from the Philippines, Rommel in North Africa, 'Miss Boardwalk contest', Hendricks Funeral.
" - What's that? - I said Hendricks's funeral.
Let me see that.
Why, sure.
That's it.
The Hendricks case! What? Stu Hendricks.
He was the president of Madison Munitions.
He was flying from Chicago to New York in a big private plane with his wife and two men from his company.
Sure! Sure, I remember that.
He was killed somewhere.
Yeah, over Pennsylvania.
He was stabbed to death.
The murder weapon was never found.
[Indistinct shouting.]
- Take it easy! - Come on.
Shut up.
Inspector, I found this guy hiding in the stairwell in the alley.
I wasn't hiding.
Somebody clipped me from behind and shoved me down there.
And he had this on him in a shoulder holster.
And if you'da checked my wallet, you woulda found the permit.
I'm a licensed P.
I.
Inspector, don't you remember me? Ray Vogel.
Vogel? Vogel.
Yeah, Harlem Division, before the war.
Yes, sir.
It's all right, Velie.
Sit down.
Here, here.
Take it easy.
Now, what are you doing here? A special assignment for the old man.
He had some people coming to see him last night.
He asked me to get a good look at them, then hang around after they left in case one of them came back.
You mean, he expected one of them to come back? Yeah.
I was supposed to let myself in with a passkey, get an earful, then put the nab on the suspect.
Only it didn't work out that way.
Did you see the people come in? Yeah, and I saw them go out.
I stood around for a while, then about midnight I heard a car pull up into the alley.
I didn't like the sound of it just a hunch.
I went out to take a look, and blam! Did you get a look at the car? Nope.
Can you put some names to those faces you saw? Yeah.
Oh, he gave me a list.
- Here.
- Oh.
Thank you.
"Mr.
And Mrs.
Brandon Childs, Gerald Hacker, Norma Lee Burke, Buck Nolan.
" Jumpin' Joehosophat! You know these people, Dad? Well, I know the last one.
But Nolan he was the pilot of the Hendricks murder plane.
When Hamilton Drew solved the case, he fingered Nolan.
Yeah, but wasn't he acquitted? Of murder, yeah, but he went to prison for stealing the plans of a new rifle.
He vowed to get even with Hamilton Drew.
- Hey, Velie! - Yes, sir.
Run a check on this list, especially this last name Buck Nolan.
- Find him.
Bring him in.
- Yes, sir.
BROADCASTER: On the local scene, the body of Hamilton Drew, former Deputy Chief of Detectives for the New York Police Department, was found in his West Side apartment early this morning.
Drew, the victim of a stabbing, was apparently alone at the time of his death, which occurred between midnight and 2:00 a.
m.
Inspector Richard Queen, in charge of the investigation, said several leads are being explored.
Stay tuned to this station for further details.
Well? Jerry's phone doesn't answer.
Well, maybe we ought to go back.
What for? Drew's death has nothing to do with us.
[Sighs.]
After last night? What about last night? Look, Alyssa, we were there.
We left.
If anybody killed Drew it was that cowboy pilot.
You remember five years ago, darling, the way it was? If we go back and tell the police what happened last night, it'll be like Stu's death all over again.
Questions.
Accusations.
Now we promised ourselves a day in the country.
Let's enjoy it.
[Engine turns over.]
Can't locate him? That's ridiculous! Traffic Division finds a station wagon registered in Nolan's name parked on the steps of Grant's Tomb.
Then this morning they let him pick it up right under our noses.
- Good morning, Grace.
- Dad, they didn't know.
Good morning.
Oh, Inspector.
Her name's Norma Lee Burke.
She wants to talk to you about Hamilton Drew's murder.
And you were the stewardess on the Hendricks murder flight? Five years ago.
And a few hours ago, you were in Hamilton Drew's apartment.
We were ordered to show up all the people who were on the plane.
I don't remember a Mrs.
Childs being on that flight.
Well, she was Mrs.
Hendricks then.
Maybe she came with the job.
Inspector, I know you must be looking for Buck.
After his threats to Mr.
Drew, it had occurred to us.
We wouldn't have gone, either one of us, if Mr.
Drew hadn't said he had new evidence.
Miss Burke, could you tell us exactly what did happen last night? Well, Buck and I went together.
We were a little late, and when we got there, everyone was there already.
I hadn't seen any of them in five years.
Good evening.
I'm so glad you all came.
And I want to thank you for humoring an old man.
Why the wheelchair? A minor inconvenience, Mr.
Hacker.
This had better be worthwhile, Drew.
Brandon, no one forced us to accept this invitation.
You were curious, and so am I.
Curiosity leads to discovery, they say.
Don't they also say something about it killing the cat? An interesting observation, Captain Nolan.
Under the circumstances, most interesting.
Look, Mr.
Drew, just why did you ask us to come here? To tell you all that I have solved the murder of Stuart Hendricks.
After all this time? My only excuse is that the killer meant to mislead me and succeeded until now.
The killer was arrested five years ago.
The jury just wasn't offered enough proof.
There wasn't any proof because I didn't do it.
Oh, come on.
You stole those automatic rifle plans.
The police found them in your apartment.
Another frame-up! I did five years on that lousy charge, Drew, and I won't forget it.
Please, Buck.
At least listen to what he has to say.
Maybe he can prove you were framed.
Yes.
Exactly what is this new evidence, Mr.
Drew? This will have a special meaning for one of you.
ELLERY: What was this thing that he showed you? NORMA: I don't know.
To tell you the truth, I was afraid to ask.
But it was metal sort of dull-Iooking, like lead.
And it was tear-shaped, with a ring at the small end.
Tear-shaped with a ring at the small end? That sounds familiar.
I think I know what it is.
What, Dad? Look like that? Oh, yes! That's it! Only his was a lot bigger.
It's sinker used by fishermen to weigh down the line.
Hamilton Drew showed his guests a sinker and said it had a special meaning for one of them? That's right.
Then Mr.
Drew said that he would turn over his proof in the morning and that this time there wouldn't be any mistake.
Oh.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I I do have to catch a cab to the airport.
How long will you be out of town? Until late tomorrow evening.
One more thing, Miss Burke.
Did you and Mr.
Nolan, by any chance, visit President Grant last night? Oh, well, Buck was pretty upset.
We went to a bar, then we drove around I mean, as long as Buck could drive.
I got him into a cab, took him home.
I put him to bed and left.
What time was that? Around midnight.
Look, Inspector, I know how it looks to you, but you're wrong.
For all of his faults, down deep Buck is one of the kindest, gentlest men I know.
Come out of there! I know you're in there, Childs! Now you're gonna have to talk to me sooner or later! I got something to say to you! Are you Brandon Childs? Not me, pal.
The skunk's either lit out or he's hidin' in there, and I'm stickin' around till I find out which.
What's your name? Who's asking? Name's Nolan, Sergeant.
- Buck Nolan? - Right.
I have orders to pick you up, Mr.
Nolan.
Pick me up? [Laughs.]
Now that's real funny.
Ain't no one picks up Buck Nolan, friend.
Nobody! That's why Hamilton wanted me there to help catch a killer.
Dad, I'm sure Vogel did his best.
Yeah.
Well, I wouldn't have been found in an alley with a goose egg on my head.
Inspector, I was checking out an address on Brandon Childs, and I ran into that pilot, Buck Nolan.
I got a couple of boys bringing him up now.
Velie, what happened to your eye? Well, he didn't want to come.
Hamilton Drew was alive the last time I saw him.
I didn't kill him, Inspector.
Now, that's the blessed truth.
Drew said he was going to turn up new evidence regarding the Hendricks murder, and this time there wouldn't be any mistakes.
Now, could you tell me what he meant by that? Sure.
He meant that somebody framed me last time, and he had the goods on them at last, so they killed him.
- Now who's "they"? - "They" is someone who isn't me! Sit down.
Buck, forgive me, but I haven't had a chance to read those files yet.
Could you refresh my memory about the airplane murder? Why, specifically, did Hamilton suspect you? Because of the window and the drugged coffee, I guess.
What? The missing dagger, son.
As soon as the plane landed, they searched it for the murder weapon.
They couldn't find it.
Now, the only way to get rid of it was to drop it out the sliding window next to the pilot's seat.
And I never left that seat.
Believe it or not, it's the God's honest truth.
What about the coffee? They found some kind of drug in the coffee thermos.
Chloral hydrate, as I recall.
Anyway, I never touched the stuff, and neither did Stu Hendricks.
Drew figured we were the only ones awake on the plane.
Then later, when they found the copies of the plans for the rifle in my apartment Copies? I never saw 'em before.
Someone put 'em there.
The jury didn't agree.
Well, they were wrong.
Look, I didn't kill Hendricks, and I sure didn't kill Drew.
Why should I? He couldn't hurt me with any new evidence couldn't hurt me a bit.
You know, Dad, Buck's right.
He was tried once for the Hendricks murder.
He can't be tried again.
Well, he can be tried for Hamilton Drew's murder, and in my book, revenge is still spelled with a capital "R".
Then why didn't you hold him? Where's the evidence? Yeah.
Yeah, Velie? They are, huh? And what about Hacker? All right, keep somebody posted.
Fill me in first thing in the morning.
Mr.
And Mrs.
Brandon Childs are out of town somewhere, nobody knows where.
And Mr.
Hacker is likewise unavailable.
All right.
One suit jacket with a hole through the breast pocket.
Through the heart? Dead center, just like Hamilton Drew.
Dad, this picture.
White powder all over the floor.
Thermos jug the glass liner is broken.
So? So what's in that survival kit? The usual thing for an emergency landing flares, canned goods, butane stove, water, maybe a few chocolate bars.
- It was wartime, you know.
- Dad? What about this? The dagger, or whatever it was, went straight through.
It was probably in his inside coat pocket.
"Hendricks, if you want the Madison Automatic Rifle back, follow previous instructions without delay.
Every day past deadline will cost you an additional $10,000.
" That must have been some rifle.
Oh, it was.
The MAR helped win the war.
It was issued in '43.
Apparently, Hendricks paid the price.
If it led to his murder, he paid extra.
Dad, I may have a clue.
- To Hamilton's killer? - No, to Stuart Hendricks' killer.
Oh, Ellery, that case is a five-year-old dead end.
Dad, the ransom note is in the pocket this side up with the stamp showing just like in the photo, see? Okay.
Problem.
The holes don't match.
What holes? The stab wound.
It went through the jacket, through the letter, into Hendricks' heart.
But that's not possible with the letter in this position.
That's right.
But with the letter upside down, like that, the holes match perfectly.
So? So, whoever killed Hendricks stabbed him, took the letter out, maybe read it, and put it back.
What's your point? We're assuming that whoever killed Hendricks killed Hamilton Drew.
That's logical.
So maybe we can solve Hamilton's death by solving this one.
You're sure you got all the props? Yes, I think so.
I looked like a fool in the last show when I couldn't find the chicken.
- Did you remember the chicken? - Oh, I'm pretty sure.
You've got to check these things.
Chicken, chicken.
Who's got the chicken? Eureka! Hi, Marvin.
Well, if it isn't the chicken inspector's son? Yeah, been a long time, How've you been? Oh, as straight as a pin ever since I came out on parole.
Well, I haven't gone near a pocket or glanced through a purse.
- Marvin.
- Excuse me, Queen.
Breaking in the assistant.
Yes, my dear? Marvin, when should I use the blindfold while you're collecting watches from the audience? Lxnay, ixnay, you'll give away the whole show.
Vamoose! Watches, Marvin? Well, I give 'em all back.
What do you take me for, a cheap thief? My parole officer send you? No, no, no.
Marvin, I got a problem, and I hope you can help me solve it.
If I wanted to make something disappear, what would be the best way to do it? Well, that all depends.
If it's a coin you simply blow on it thusly.
Well, well.
No, it's not a coin.
Not a coin.
A handkerchief? - That's a little harder.
- Yeah.
It takes of diligent practice and self-denial.
Oh, boy, that's good.
It's not a handkerchief either.
Deck of cards.
No, not cards.
Well, then, it has to be a chicken.
It's the only prop I have left.
Marvin, it's a dagger.
A dagger? That's a new one.
The great Gilhouie used to make a goat disappear, but a dagger, I don't know that one.
What's skimmin'? Well, this dagger disappeared right after it was used to kill somebody.
Don't look at me.
I was in Philadelphia on Thursday.
And I can prove it.
That was five years ago.
I've got an alibi.
I know exactly what I was doing five years ago.
- What? - Seven years.
Marvin, how would you make a dagger disappear? There are only three basic ways.
You conceal it, you get rid of it, or you change it into something else.
Sorry, pal, but I gonna go on now.
If you wanna find that dagger, you're looking at the wrong place.
You're right, Marvin.
Thank you.
Good luck! I can do that, too, I'll bet.
That's why he's Marvin.
Come on.
That's her, Lady A.
Lady A.
"A" for Alyssa? Yeah.
Hadn't been up in the air in five years not since the killing.
It's a real shame.
According to the police report, Hendricks was killed with a dagger blade maybe seven, eight inches long.
And they never found it.
Screwy, huh? The plane lands, nobody gets off, and yet, everything is turned upside down and inside out and no dagger.
But yet, there he was cold dead with a knife wound in his heart.
Could anybody have opened a window or a door? No.
It was all locked from the outside.
It was in the cargo compartment, in the rear.
All except that door.
You couldn't open that door in mid-flight without everybody knowing about it.
No, sir.
I gotta go along with the cops on this one.
There ain't but one way that knife could get off that plane, and that's through the little vent window near the pilot's seat in the cockpit.
Come on, I'll show you.
Mr.
Buffo, I understand there was no co-pilot the night of the flight.
Well, didn't need one.
Stu was an ace flyer.
Anything happened to Buck, Stu could have flown her.
As a matter of fact, he did many times.
Also got an automatic pilot up there.
Ah-ha.
And the passengers, four of them, were in here.
- And the stewardess? - Yeah, Norma Burke.
Great little gal.
And the thermos where was that? Uh, back there.
Norma brought it on.
I see.
So anybody could have gone back there with the passengers facing away.
They could have drugged the coffee.
Yeah, even Buck.
Like I say, he sometimes put her on automatic pilot and came back here to well, you know, nature calls, even at 10,000 feet.
Yeah, well, Buck says he never left the pilot's cabin.
Maybe he didn't.
I just said he could have.
And Hendricks was killed back here? Right.
You can see there police marked where he fell.
Like I say, the plane hasn't been up since that day.
Mm-hmm.
I guess they looked for the dagger in this survival kit, huh? Like I told you, they searched the whole plane nose to tail.
Mr.
Buffo, is there any reason why there would be plaster of Paris all over the floor? Plaster of Paris? I wouldn't know.
There's some traces of it right there.
You know, it's probably none of my business, but don't you think it's strange Mrs.
Hendricks marrying Mr.
Childs so soon after the killing? That's right, Mr.
Queen, it's none of your business.
Oh, Mr.
Childs? Jerry Hacker.
- And you've got no business here.
- I'm sorry, Mr.
Hacker It's all right, Buffo.
I'll take care of it.
All right.
Look, Mr.
Queen, we have a company rule here.
This plane is off-limits.
Oh? Whose rule is that? Straight from the top.
Oh, Brandon Childs.
Mr.
Queen, you are not the police.
You don't have a warrant.
You are trespassing.
Please leave.
You know, of course, that somebody killed Hamilton Drew.
That's right.
Buck Nolan.
Oh? Do you know something I don't know? [Sighs.]
I know it in here.
I know he killed him just like I knew he killed Stu five years ago.
You know something? I really loved that man, I really did.
And for him to be killed by that freak Nolan I'll want to tell you something, Mr.
Queen.
This time they're going to put that cowboy away for good, and there's nothing that you can do to stop it.
- A sinker? - That's right, Dad.
- I don't get it.
- Neither do I yet.
I found it in the survival gear on the Hendricks' murder plane.
It's hangared out at the Floyd Bennett Field.
Now, remember, Dad Hamilton showed his suspects a lead sinker.
The clue his solution of Hendricks murder.
Well, Dad, I don't think he'd really solved it not completely.
If he had, he wouldn't have had Ray Vogel around to help him trap the killer.
Well, this sinker has to mean something.
I'll tell you one thing.
Jerry Hacker was sure upset to see me come off that airplane.
Something to hide? Oh, I don't know about that, but, boy, is he a liar.
His bosom pal Stu Hendricks? From what I was able to learn, Hendricks was about to fire him for incompetency, and that was before the murder.
Well, you have to eliminate him as a suspect.
He left Hamilton's, went straight to a party on Sutton Place didn't leave till 5:00 in the morning.
Well, what about the Childs? Did you talk to them? They went straight home, got up at 6:00 in the morning, drove up to Connecticut to see some friends, didn't even hear about the murder till they got home late that evening.
So they alibi each other.
You know, maybe I ought to talk to them.
Sure, sure, if you want to.
I'll be finished in a moment, Mr.
Queen, then we can chat.
Huh? Oh, uh, don't hurry on my account.
Have you ever worked in clay? Have you ever worked in clay? Hm? No.
No, my medium is paper and typewriter ribbon.
This is very nice.
Oh, I'll tell Brandon you liked it.
It's one of his early ones.
- Your husband? - Yes, turn it over.
"B.
C.
March 1940.
" You know, Brandon introduced me to all this after we were married.
He made two of them? He made dozens of them.
He gave them as gifts.
They're plaster, Mr.
Queen, made from a mold.
I think that's it, Wanda.
Thank you, you may get dressed.
Are you going to question me about Stuart's death or Mr.
Drew's? Your father couldn't seem to make up his mind which killing he was investigating.
Will you want me at the same time tomorrow, Mrs.
Childs? No, thank you.
No.
I'll call you when I'm ready to begin something new.
Well, you know my number Bowling Green Yes.
Thank you, Wanda.
Bye.
Bye.
I think that was for your benefit, Mr.
Queen.
I already know her telephone number.
Would you like a pencil? No, thank you.
I have a good memory for some things.
Look, Mr.
Queen.
Strange as it seems, I liked Mr.
Drew.
And I'm sorry he's dead, but neither Brandon nor I had anything to do with it.
I know that.
You were both here asleep.
Mm-hmm.
Dog tired with the alarm set for 6:00 so we could get an early start to Connecticut.
So you went straight to sleep.
Yes.
Oh, meaning that my husband pretended to fall asleep, left the house, committed the murder, then returned without my knowing about it.
I didn't suggest that.
But the reverse is also possible.
He could have fallen asleep, and I left to commit the murder.
Look, Mrs.
Childs Oh, come on.
Let's not fence, Mr.
Queen.
Six months after Stuart died, I married Brandon Childs out of the bed of one president, into another one.
I know what people think.
Could I ask you one thing? Why were you on that flight that night? Why was I anywhere with Stuart Hendricks? He was a beautiful dreamer with absolutely no business sense whatsoever.
[Sighs.]
When the plans for the rifle were stolen, and the ransom note came, his first reaction was to contact the authorities.
Well, that was a noble gesture, but it did absolutely nothing for us.
Oh, it preserved our integrity, but we would have been out of business.
So you're saying that you ran Madison Munitions? I'm saying Stu needed help certainly more than Brandon has ever needed.
Maybe that's why I gravitated towards him, even before Stu died.
That's right, Mr.
Queen, even before.
So you told him to pay off the ransom? Yes, which he did, but he wouldn't leave it at that.
He kept looking around, trying to find out who was behind it.
And you know that I think that he was also almost on to Buck Nolan before Buck killed him first.
So you think Buck did it, too? Doesn't everyone? Is this plaster of Paris? Yes.
It's used for making molds for casting plaster models, you know, like the one you admired.
Yeah.
What is it, Mr.
Queen? Is something wrong? NOLAN: Didn't have time to see me, huh? Well, you'll see me now, Childs.
CHILDS: Get off my property before I call in the police.
Not until you and me settle a few things.
I don't have to answer to you.
Yeah, well, you have to answer to somebody, Mister, about Hendricks, about that gun, about the old man.
Somebody is framing me.
We've all heard that before.
Yeah, well, you're gonna hear it again.
Now you stay put and listen to me, or I'm gonna You're gonna what, Nolan? Kill me, too? - Buck, hold on! - Stay out of this, Mr.
Queen.
- Brandon! - It's all right, darling.
No, it's not all right.
I've been framed twice.
Once for murder, only that didn't take, and once for stealing those rifle plans, and that did.
And now it looks like someone's fixing to frame me for killing Drew.
- No one's accusing you.
- Oh, just a matter of time.
When I was the company pilot, my flight plans came out of his office.
And he ordered to ship those rifle models, and the plans came out of his office.
Jerry Hacker handled all that.
Same difference.
He was working for you.
And I'm telling you, I aim to do something about it.
I take it that's a threat.
Buster, you take it anyway you want to.
Ellery, I don't understand you.
Buck Nolan publicly threatens to get even with Hamilton.
A week after he gets out of prison, Hamilton is murdered, and you say it doesn't add up? - What does the sinker mean? - How should I know? How about the plaster of Paris in the cargo compartment? Can't help you.
Sinker, plaster of Paris, a broken thermos bottle there must be a connection somewhere! Sounds like a short circuit to me.
- Ah-ha.
- Huh? What happened? - I just saw something.
- Where? Where? Down here.
At the bottom of the page in the small print.
Oh, yeah.
Let's go, Dad.
Let's go? It's almost Inner Sanctum time.
Gotta see a man about a gun.
Ellery, don't you ever get inspired while the sun is shining? [Brakes screech.]
Mr.
Buffo? Your wife said we'd find you here still working.
How'd you get past security? - I showed him my badge.
- This is my dad.
Inspector Richard Queen.
Homicide.
How do you do? You come to take another look at that plane? I got my orders about that.
Nice work, Mr.
Buffo.
Well, thanks.
My son tells me you've done little gun designing.
I was looking through the police files on the Hendricks murder.
The designer of the MAR is listed as Stuart Hendricks assisted by S.
Buffo.
Yeah, I helped out.
Go right on working, if you like, Mr.
Buffo.
Uh, wouldn't call it "work".
I was just putting a new gunsight mount on this.
30-.
30 barrel.
I'd like to finish it before the alloy sets.
Alloy? Oh, yeah.
Eutectic fusible alloy.
Fancy name, ain't it? But it does the job low melting point, easy to handle, and, well, it fuses the mount to the barrel.
What can I tell you, Mr.
Queen? Well, for one thing, why you let Stu Hendricks take all the credit when you did the work.
There's nothing in his background that suggests he knew anything about gun design.
But there sure is in yours.
And that pretty much proves my son's point.
Look, when you work for a man and he wants to take credit for something well, he's paid you for the privilege.
We never got any credit.
We? Uh, me or Brandon Childs.
Well, he's the one who figured the design, but I did most of the work.
Hmm.
You know what that means, son? It means that Brandon Childs wouldn't have much reason to steal the plans for the gun.
He could drawn 'em up again in his sleep.
If that's what you're drivin' at, you're on the wrong highway.
Well, him and me, we worked here five or six weeks every night.
No, he wouldn't steal them plans.
- The possibilities are dwindling.
- What about Jerry Hacker? [Gunshots.]
Who knew we were coming here? No one.
We were being followed.
Keep your head down.
Dad, that car! What happened? You fellas okay? Ellery, what about that car? It's Buck Nolan's car.
- Have you got a phone? - Yes, sir.
Call Police Headquarters.
Oh, I can't.
The switchboard's shut down.
Dad, we're not going anywhere, at least not for awhile.
- Is he in there, Velie? - Near as we can figure, Inspector.
I've got three men on the back.
- Did you feel the hood? - It was still warm.
It was driven.
Let's go.
- Wait in the car.
- Oh, no, Dad.
Wait.
Take him down and book him attempted murder.
I'm telling you, I never did it! I swear to you, I didn't! I've been at home all evening! It's another frame-up! - He's guilty.
- He's not guilty.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
He was reading, he says.
Somebody stole his car, he says.
Every time I turn around in this case, I fall over Buck Nolan, and you say he's innocent.
Dad, I know how it looks.
- Want a glass of milk? - No.
Oh, come on, have a glass of milk.
It's good for you.
Dad, he didn't drive that car.
The mirrors are wrong.
- What? - The mirrors.
They're set for somebody - Buck is my height, right? - So? Well, I sat behind the wheel.
He didn't drive that car.
- Have a cookie.
- I don't want a cookie.
Why are you being so stubborn? Why does Buck Nolan have to be guilty? 'Cause Hamilton Drew said he was? That's not the reason.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Listen, the old man made a lot of mistakes, but he was the first to admit it.
Now, I'm no different I just have to be shown where I'm wrong.
I can't.
Not yet.
Have a cookie.
I don't All right, I'll have a cookie.
And a glass of milk, and we'll go to bed.
- Oops.
- What happened? Oh, it's Can Edison.
They're digging up the streets again.
- Ow.
- What's the matter? I'm looking for a candle, and I've found it.
Here.
That isn't going to put any light on the subject.
Wait a minute.
There we go.
There we are.
Now what are you doing? I'm looking for an ashtray to put the candle in.
Well, you're dripping all over the tablecloth! I'm sorry! Now look.
Look at the mess.
I see.
I'll wipe it up.
No, no, no.
Let it harden, then you can peel it off.
All right.
- Let's go to bed.
- Okay.
Well, that's it.
Now I know how Stu Hendricks was killed and who must have killed him.
You have all the clues, but do you know which ones point to the murderer? The melted wax helped me put it together.
Remember the white powder on the floor of the airplane.
And don't forget the ransom note that was put back the wrong way.
And don't forget the sinker.
Well, that's it.
You got it? Let's find out.
Hello.
Hi, Dad.
Thank you all for coming.
You know, Mr.
Childs, we don't have to be here.
It's all right, Jerry.
We all know why we've been summoned, Mr.
Queen.
Let's get on with it.
Where do we start? On the plane.
Watch your step.
Will you all take the seats that you had the night that Stuart Hendricks was killed, please? Mrs.
Childs.
Mr.
Childs.
Mr.
Hacker.
Velie, you be Stuart Hendricks, the victim.
He sat in the front seat on the right side.
Buck, would you stand up there by the door so you can see what's going on? Thank you.
Norma, would you take your seat, please? - Where do you want me, Ellery? - Right back here, Dad.
Now, obviously, we're not going to recreate the entire flight.
Everything we're concerned with happened after the coffee was drugged.
Norma, who drank the coffee? All of us, except for Buck and Mr.
Hendricks.
If I had, I would've gone dead to sleep, and none of us would be here now.
Oh, right, we get it.
He didn't drink the coffee because it would have put him to sleep.
He drugged the coffee.
I didn't drink the coffee because I didn't drink the coffee.
Hold it, hold it, please.
Please.
The fact is, I think, the coffee wasn't drugged till after the plane was in the air.
Now, the coffee was back there.
Anybody could have slipped the chloral hydrate in the top of the thermos while everybody's back was facing away.
- You're guessing.
- Am I? My dad's been standing back by that thermos jug for the past several minutes.
Did he put anything in the coffee, or didn't he? Cup of coffee, Hacker? Okay, so maybe somebody could have spiked the coffee.
But who? Well, the killer, of course.
Obviously he didn't drink any of it.
Oh, might have pretended to, but didn't really.
Now, after everybody was asleep, the killer and Mr.
Hendricks went back into the cargo compartment.
They had something to talk about.
ALYSSA: The ransom for the stolen rifle plans.
Well, let's just say it was a private matter.
- Velie.
- Yeah.
You're Stu Hendricks, the victim.
I'll be the killer.
Let's all go back in the cargo compartment and see what happened, okay? Come on.
Watch your step.
Now, this is where Stu Hendricks was killed.
And this is how.
The killer had already planted this dagger in the survival kit.
Is that the murder weapon, Maestro? No, but it's a lot like it.
I made this to match the dimensions of the wound.
You made it? Yeah, Dad.
It's not hard, once you know how and what with.
Now, the killer stabbed the victim in the heart through the jacket and the envelope in the inside pocket.
Really, Mr.
Queen.
Is it necessary to put my wife through this a second time? Yes, Mr.
Childs, I believe it is.
Now, let's talk about that envelope for a moment.
Dad, can you hold that? Thank you.
Yeah.
- The other side.
- What? - The other side.
- Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
This envelope Well, let's go back in the compartment where we can talk about it.
This envelope with a letter containing a demand for $100,000 for the return of the stolen automatic rifle model and the plans.
Why, sure.
It was the thief Stu went back to talk to.
They had an argument, and the thief used the blade on him.
Wrong, Buck.
If the thief was a killer, he would have taken the ransom note.
The fact is, the killer took the envelope out of the pocket, looked at it, but put it back.
But why? Because it didn't implicate the killer.
But it did fit in with the killer's plans to frame Buck Nolan.
You believe he was framed, Mr.
Queen? Yes, just as I believe that Mr.
Hendricks knew that the real thief was on the plane and planned to turn him over to the FBI when they landed.
Now, I know Brandon Childs didn't steal the rifle plans he designed them.
Buck Nolan stole those plans.
Ah, Hamilton Drew didn't believe that, and neither do I.
Now, you had access to the shipping orders, Mr.
Hacker.
You stole the rifle and tried to frame Buck.
Now, you wait just a minute.
You took a shot at my father and me last night because you thought we're getting close to the truth.
That must have been Mr.
Nolan.
Nolan is 6'2".
The driver of that car was more your size.
Would you care to tell me where you were last night around 10:30? At another party? Think about that very carefully before you answer.
All right.
So I tried to provide myself with a little cushion.
So what? We were at war.
Our troops needed that rifle.
Well, they got it, didn't they? Why is everyone looking at me like that? ALYSSA: Oh, Jerry.
Why are you so surprised? What do you care? You think I don't know what you thought about me, you and Hendricks? "Stay with the company, Jerry.
You've got a great future here.
" And I believed it, too, till one day I discovered I was just one of his stooges, and that's all I ever could be.
So you killed him and framed Buck! No, I did not! You heard what he said! The thief is not the murderer! ALYSSA: Well, if it wasn't Jerry It was someone who had a good reason for wanting Hendricks dead, someone who wanted to frame Buck, and someone who knew how to make a dagger disappear.
Dad, may I have that thermos, please? Thank you.
Mrs.
Childs, would you hold this? A spoon.
Look, Mr.
Queen, I really don't have much interest in watching you drink a cup of coffee.
Oh, I'm not going to drink it.
I'm just going to stir it.
Thank you.
I bought this spoon in a novelty shop.
It has some very, very interesting properties.
Like this.
- What happened? - Where did it go? It must be made of soap or something.
Not soap, Buck.
Metal.
But a special kind of metal eutectic fusible alloy.
The same kind of material used to make the murder weapon.
Now, the killer melted the dagger in the pan over the stove in the survival kit.
Then he poured the hot liquid into a plaster mold that he'd already concealed in the survival kit.
It cooled very rapidly and changed into this form.
The whatchamacallit! A sinker.
After the dagger changed form, the killer smashed the mold with the thermos bottle, breaking glass liner inside, leaving just a few traces of plaster of Paris on the compartment floor.
Get to it, Mr.
Queen.
Who killed him? Someone familiar with eutectic fusible alloy.
Someone also familiar with mold-making in order to, first of all, cast a dagger itself, then to recast it into a sinker that would go unnoticed in the survival box.
Brandon.
You already knew that Jerry Hacker planned to frame Buck Nolan for the theft of the rifle plans.
It made it more convenient to frame him for murder, too.
What about it, Hacker? - Brandon - You stay out of this, Jerry.
Look, I always thought it was Nolan who killed him.
Then he did know you were the thief.
Of course he did.
He cut himself in for half the money.
That's ridiculous.
Why do you think he kept me around all these years? He got got everything Stu's wife, his job! You should have let me keep that money, Brandon! You should have treated me better! Velie, put the cuffs on.
Which one? Both of them.
Dad, why does the coffee always taste better in your office than it does at home? Because my secretary doesn't make coffee at home you do.
- Excuse me, Inspector.
- Oh, Grace.
If you have a chance, Ellery would like to jot down your recipe for coffee.
Uh, it's only coffee and water.
Which one of those ingredients is it that you're leaving out at home? Dad, Grace has a matter that she wants to talk to you about.
It's the Hendricks Case.
I'm closing the file, and I'd like to know who gets credit for solving it the department or who? It was Ellery.
Who made use of an investigation brought to a successful conclusion by the late private detective, Hamilton Drew.
May he rest in peace.
I'm sure he will.
Who killed him? Was it the munitions maker? If anybody killed Drew, it was that cowboy pilot.
The ex-con flyer? I didn't kill him, Inspector.
Now that's the blessed truth! The alert junior executive? He drugged the coffee.
The many-talented sculptress? He could have fallen asleep, and I'd have to commit the murder.
The master mechanic? If that's what you're driving at, you're on the wrong highway.
Or was it someone else? Match wits with Ellery Queen and see if you can guess who done it? TV: In North Africa, the tide turns for allied forces.
Heavily reinforced British troops led by Lieutenant General Bernard L.
Montgomery attack Rommel' Nazi-Italian army at El Alamein.
Suffering heavy losses, the enemy is defeated all the way to Tunisia.
The allied sweep continues in what some observers believe to be the beginning of the end of the war in North Africa.
Meanwhile, In New York' Westchester County, business leaders serve as pallbearers at the funeral of the designer of the Madison automatic rifle.
Friends and relatives mourn as Stuart Hendricks is carried to his final rest.
Alyssa Hendricks, widow of the murdered president of the Madison Munitions Company, is escorted by Brandon Childs, who is slated to be the new company president.
Other mourners include Gerald Hacker, former Hendricks aide, who will not comment on future plans, and Hamilton Drew, the private investigator whose solution of the case led to the arrest of Buck Nolan, pilot of the company-owned plane in which Hendricks was killed, over 10,000 feet in the air during a flight from Chicago to New York.
Nolan is seen here shortly after the grand jury brought an indictment of First Degree Murder.
In Atlantic City, it' swimsuit time as the gals compete for the title of 'Miss Boardwalk of 1942.
' These leggy lovelies are the cream of the crop Come in, please.
I've been expecting you.
Would you mind stepping into the light? I'm afraid my eyes aren't what they used to be.
Oh.
So it was you.
You killed Stuart Hendricks.
Yes, it was a trick.
I only had part of the solution.
Now, I have it all.
TV: Good luck, girls.
Bye, now.
Bye-bye.
The old place looks good after a week in Wrightsville.
Yeah, at least you finished your book.
All I did was find trout smarter than I am.
Well, you caught one, didn't you? Dad, you dropped something.
I don't think so.
Oh, you're right.
It's a telegram.
The boy must have put it under the door.
Here.
Who's it from? Oh, it's from Hamilton Drew.
He wanted me to come to his apartment last night at 9:00.
Does he say why? Only that it's urgent, and he couldn't reach me by phone.
Well, it's 8:30.
You think he might be up by now? Maybe.
He wasn't feeling too well lately.
Old age is creeping up on him.
He's unlisted.
Where's that address book? Address book? No, never mind.
Never mind.
You know, if it hadn't been for Hamilton, I never would have made Inspector, maybe not even detective.
He took me under his wing.
Left the force in when was it? 1938.
Wanted me to join him in a private detective agency.
I sure learned a lot from that old bird.
Strange him quitting after all these years.
Not so strange.
He was 65 years old.
They thought he was too old to do the job.
[Telephone rings.]
Hello? Oh, hi, Velie.
Yeah, Dad's here.
We just walked in the door.
What's up? Okay, thanks, Velie.
Be right there.
Well, what is it? There's been a murder, Dad.
[Sighs.]
It was Hamilton Drew.
[Sighs.]
That's it, Inspector.
Any clear prints, Kelly? Yeah, sure, that's the trouble prints all over the room and no way to isolate the killers.
If we just had the murder weapon Well, we don't have the murder weapon.
All we know he was stabbed.
So check on what you've got.
Yes, sir.
He must have known he was in danger.
That's why he was so anxious to get in touch with me, find time to go fishing.
Dad, you had no way of knowing.
Did you see this? A 1942 newsreel film.
"MacArthur Escapes from the Philippines, Rommel in North Africa, 'Miss Boardwalk contest', Hendricks Funeral.
" - What's that? - I said Hendricks's funeral.
Let me see that.
Why, sure.
That's it.
The Hendricks case! What? Stu Hendricks.
He was the president of Madison Munitions.
He was flying from Chicago to New York in a big private plane with his wife and two men from his company.
Sure! Sure, I remember that.
He was killed somewhere.
Yeah, over Pennsylvania.
He was stabbed to death.
The murder weapon was never found.
[Indistinct shouting.]
- Take it easy! - Come on.
Shut up.
Inspector, I found this guy hiding in the stairwell in the alley.
I wasn't hiding.
Somebody clipped me from behind and shoved me down there.
And he had this on him in a shoulder holster.
And if you'da checked my wallet, you woulda found the permit.
I'm a licensed P.
I.
Inspector, don't you remember me? Ray Vogel.
Vogel? Vogel.
Yeah, Harlem Division, before the war.
Yes, sir.
It's all right, Velie.
Sit down.
Here, here.
Take it easy.
Now, what are you doing here? A special assignment for the old man.
He had some people coming to see him last night.
He asked me to get a good look at them, then hang around after they left in case one of them came back.
You mean, he expected one of them to come back? Yeah.
I was supposed to let myself in with a passkey, get an earful, then put the nab on the suspect.
Only it didn't work out that way.
Did you see the people come in? Yeah, and I saw them go out.
I stood around for a while, then about midnight I heard a car pull up into the alley.
I didn't like the sound of it just a hunch.
I went out to take a look, and blam! Did you get a look at the car? Nope.
Can you put some names to those faces you saw? Yeah.
Oh, he gave me a list.
- Here.
- Oh.
Thank you.
"Mr.
And Mrs.
Brandon Childs, Gerald Hacker, Norma Lee Burke, Buck Nolan.
" Jumpin' Joehosophat! You know these people, Dad? Well, I know the last one.
But Nolan he was the pilot of the Hendricks murder plane.
When Hamilton Drew solved the case, he fingered Nolan.
Yeah, but wasn't he acquitted? Of murder, yeah, but he went to prison for stealing the plans of a new rifle.
He vowed to get even with Hamilton Drew.
- Hey, Velie! - Yes, sir.
Run a check on this list, especially this last name Buck Nolan.
- Find him.
Bring him in.
- Yes, sir.
BROADCASTER: On the local scene, the body of Hamilton Drew, former Deputy Chief of Detectives for the New York Police Department, was found in his West Side apartment early this morning.
Drew, the victim of a stabbing, was apparently alone at the time of his death, which occurred between midnight and 2:00 a.
m.
Inspector Richard Queen, in charge of the investigation, said several leads are being explored.
Stay tuned to this station for further details.
Well? Jerry's phone doesn't answer.
Well, maybe we ought to go back.
What for? Drew's death has nothing to do with us.
[Sighs.]
After last night? What about last night? Look, Alyssa, we were there.
We left.
If anybody killed Drew it was that cowboy pilot.
You remember five years ago, darling, the way it was? If we go back and tell the police what happened last night, it'll be like Stu's death all over again.
Questions.
Accusations.
Now we promised ourselves a day in the country.
Let's enjoy it.
[Engine turns over.]
Can't locate him? That's ridiculous! Traffic Division finds a station wagon registered in Nolan's name parked on the steps of Grant's Tomb.
Then this morning they let him pick it up right under our noses.
- Good morning, Grace.
- Dad, they didn't know.
Good morning.
Oh, Inspector.
Her name's Norma Lee Burke.
She wants to talk to you about Hamilton Drew's murder.
And you were the stewardess on the Hendricks murder flight? Five years ago.
And a few hours ago, you were in Hamilton Drew's apartment.
We were ordered to show up all the people who were on the plane.
I don't remember a Mrs.
Childs being on that flight.
Well, she was Mrs.
Hendricks then.
Maybe she came with the job.
Inspector, I know you must be looking for Buck.
After his threats to Mr.
Drew, it had occurred to us.
We wouldn't have gone, either one of us, if Mr.
Drew hadn't said he had new evidence.
Miss Burke, could you tell us exactly what did happen last night? Well, Buck and I went together.
We were a little late, and when we got there, everyone was there already.
I hadn't seen any of them in five years.
Good evening.
I'm so glad you all came.
And I want to thank you for humoring an old man.
Why the wheelchair? A minor inconvenience, Mr.
Hacker.
This had better be worthwhile, Drew.
Brandon, no one forced us to accept this invitation.
You were curious, and so am I.
Curiosity leads to discovery, they say.
Don't they also say something about it killing the cat? An interesting observation, Captain Nolan.
Under the circumstances, most interesting.
Look, Mr.
Drew, just why did you ask us to come here? To tell you all that I have solved the murder of Stuart Hendricks.
After all this time? My only excuse is that the killer meant to mislead me and succeeded until now.
The killer was arrested five years ago.
The jury just wasn't offered enough proof.
There wasn't any proof because I didn't do it.
Oh, come on.
You stole those automatic rifle plans.
The police found them in your apartment.
Another frame-up! I did five years on that lousy charge, Drew, and I won't forget it.
Please, Buck.
At least listen to what he has to say.
Maybe he can prove you were framed.
Yes.
Exactly what is this new evidence, Mr.
Drew? This will have a special meaning for one of you.
ELLERY: What was this thing that he showed you? NORMA: I don't know.
To tell you the truth, I was afraid to ask.
But it was metal sort of dull-Iooking, like lead.
And it was tear-shaped, with a ring at the small end.
Tear-shaped with a ring at the small end? That sounds familiar.
I think I know what it is.
What, Dad? Look like that? Oh, yes! That's it! Only his was a lot bigger.
It's sinker used by fishermen to weigh down the line.
Hamilton Drew showed his guests a sinker and said it had a special meaning for one of them? That's right.
Then Mr.
Drew said that he would turn over his proof in the morning and that this time there wouldn't be any mistake.
Oh.
And now, if you'll excuse me, I I do have to catch a cab to the airport.
How long will you be out of town? Until late tomorrow evening.
One more thing, Miss Burke.
Did you and Mr.
Nolan, by any chance, visit President Grant last night? Oh, well, Buck was pretty upset.
We went to a bar, then we drove around I mean, as long as Buck could drive.
I got him into a cab, took him home.
I put him to bed and left.
What time was that? Around midnight.
Look, Inspector, I know how it looks to you, but you're wrong.
For all of his faults, down deep Buck is one of the kindest, gentlest men I know.
Come out of there! I know you're in there, Childs! Now you're gonna have to talk to me sooner or later! I got something to say to you! Are you Brandon Childs? Not me, pal.
The skunk's either lit out or he's hidin' in there, and I'm stickin' around till I find out which.
What's your name? Who's asking? Name's Nolan, Sergeant.
- Buck Nolan? - Right.
I have orders to pick you up, Mr.
Nolan.
Pick me up? [Laughs.]
Now that's real funny.
Ain't no one picks up Buck Nolan, friend.
Nobody! That's why Hamilton wanted me there to help catch a killer.
Dad, I'm sure Vogel did his best.
Yeah.
Well, I wouldn't have been found in an alley with a goose egg on my head.
Inspector, I was checking out an address on Brandon Childs, and I ran into that pilot, Buck Nolan.
I got a couple of boys bringing him up now.
Velie, what happened to your eye? Well, he didn't want to come.
Hamilton Drew was alive the last time I saw him.
I didn't kill him, Inspector.
Now, that's the blessed truth.
Drew said he was going to turn up new evidence regarding the Hendricks murder, and this time there wouldn't be any mistakes.
Now, could you tell me what he meant by that? Sure.
He meant that somebody framed me last time, and he had the goods on them at last, so they killed him.
- Now who's "they"? - "They" is someone who isn't me! Sit down.
Buck, forgive me, but I haven't had a chance to read those files yet.
Could you refresh my memory about the airplane murder? Why, specifically, did Hamilton suspect you? Because of the window and the drugged coffee, I guess.
What? The missing dagger, son.
As soon as the plane landed, they searched it for the murder weapon.
They couldn't find it.
Now, the only way to get rid of it was to drop it out the sliding window next to the pilot's seat.
And I never left that seat.
Believe it or not, it's the God's honest truth.
What about the coffee? They found some kind of drug in the coffee thermos.
Chloral hydrate, as I recall.
Anyway, I never touched the stuff, and neither did Stu Hendricks.
Drew figured we were the only ones awake on the plane.
Then later, when they found the copies of the plans for the rifle in my apartment Copies? I never saw 'em before.
Someone put 'em there.
The jury didn't agree.
Well, they were wrong.
Look, I didn't kill Hendricks, and I sure didn't kill Drew.
Why should I? He couldn't hurt me with any new evidence couldn't hurt me a bit.
You know, Dad, Buck's right.
He was tried once for the Hendricks murder.
He can't be tried again.
Well, he can be tried for Hamilton Drew's murder, and in my book, revenge is still spelled with a capital "R".
Then why didn't you hold him? Where's the evidence? Yeah.
Yeah, Velie? They are, huh? And what about Hacker? All right, keep somebody posted.
Fill me in first thing in the morning.
Mr.
And Mrs.
Brandon Childs are out of town somewhere, nobody knows where.
And Mr.
Hacker is likewise unavailable.
All right.
One suit jacket with a hole through the breast pocket.
Through the heart? Dead center, just like Hamilton Drew.
Dad, this picture.
White powder all over the floor.
Thermos jug the glass liner is broken.
So? So what's in that survival kit? The usual thing for an emergency landing flares, canned goods, butane stove, water, maybe a few chocolate bars.
- It was wartime, you know.
- Dad? What about this? The dagger, or whatever it was, went straight through.
It was probably in his inside coat pocket.
"Hendricks, if you want the Madison Automatic Rifle back, follow previous instructions without delay.
Every day past deadline will cost you an additional $10,000.
" That must have been some rifle.
Oh, it was.
The MAR helped win the war.
It was issued in '43.
Apparently, Hendricks paid the price.
If it led to his murder, he paid extra.
Dad, I may have a clue.
- To Hamilton's killer? - No, to Stuart Hendricks' killer.
Oh, Ellery, that case is a five-year-old dead end.
Dad, the ransom note is in the pocket this side up with the stamp showing just like in the photo, see? Okay.
Problem.
The holes don't match.
What holes? The stab wound.
It went through the jacket, through the letter, into Hendricks' heart.
But that's not possible with the letter in this position.
That's right.
But with the letter upside down, like that, the holes match perfectly.
So? So, whoever killed Hendricks stabbed him, took the letter out, maybe read it, and put it back.
What's your point? We're assuming that whoever killed Hendricks killed Hamilton Drew.
That's logical.
So maybe we can solve Hamilton's death by solving this one.
You're sure you got all the props? Yes, I think so.
I looked like a fool in the last show when I couldn't find the chicken.
- Did you remember the chicken? - Oh, I'm pretty sure.
You've got to check these things.
Chicken, chicken.
Who's got the chicken? Eureka! Hi, Marvin.
Well, if it isn't the chicken inspector's son? Yeah, been a long time, How've you been? Oh, as straight as a pin ever since I came out on parole.
Well, I haven't gone near a pocket or glanced through a purse.
- Marvin.
- Excuse me, Queen.
Breaking in the assistant.
Yes, my dear? Marvin, when should I use the blindfold while you're collecting watches from the audience? Lxnay, ixnay, you'll give away the whole show.
Vamoose! Watches, Marvin? Well, I give 'em all back.
What do you take me for, a cheap thief? My parole officer send you? No, no, no.
Marvin, I got a problem, and I hope you can help me solve it.
If I wanted to make something disappear, what would be the best way to do it? Well, that all depends.
If it's a coin you simply blow on it thusly.
Well, well.
No, it's not a coin.
Not a coin.
A handkerchief? - That's a little harder.
- Yeah.
It takes of diligent practice and self-denial.
Oh, boy, that's good.
It's not a handkerchief either.
Deck of cards.
No, not cards.
Well, then, it has to be a chicken.
It's the only prop I have left.
Marvin, it's a dagger.
A dagger? That's a new one.
The great Gilhouie used to make a goat disappear, but a dagger, I don't know that one.
What's skimmin'? Well, this dagger disappeared right after it was used to kill somebody.
Don't look at me.
I was in Philadelphia on Thursday.
And I can prove it.
That was five years ago.
I've got an alibi.
I know exactly what I was doing five years ago.
- What? - Seven years.
Marvin, how would you make a dagger disappear? There are only three basic ways.
You conceal it, you get rid of it, or you change it into something else.
Sorry, pal, but I gonna go on now.
If you wanna find that dagger, you're looking at the wrong place.
You're right, Marvin.
Thank you.
Good luck! I can do that, too, I'll bet.
That's why he's Marvin.
Come on.
That's her, Lady A.
Lady A.
"A" for Alyssa? Yeah.
Hadn't been up in the air in five years not since the killing.
It's a real shame.
According to the police report, Hendricks was killed with a dagger blade maybe seven, eight inches long.
And they never found it.
Screwy, huh? The plane lands, nobody gets off, and yet, everything is turned upside down and inside out and no dagger.
But yet, there he was cold dead with a knife wound in his heart.
Could anybody have opened a window or a door? No.
It was all locked from the outside.
It was in the cargo compartment, in the rear.
All except that door.
You couldn't open that door in mid-flight without everybody knowing about it.
No, sir.
I gotta go along with the cops on this one.
There ain't but one way that knife could get off that plane, and that's through the little vent window near the pilot's seat in the cockpit.
Come on, I'll show you.
Mr.
Buffo, I understand there was no co-pilot the night of the flight.
Well, didn't need one.
Stu was an ace flyer.
Anything happened to Buck, Stu could have flown her.
As a matter of fact, he did many times.
Also got an automatic pilot up there.
Ah-ha.
And the passengers, four of them, were in here.
- And the stewardess? - Yeah, Norma Burke.
Great little gal.
And the thermos where was that? Uh, back there.
Norma brought it on.
I see.
So anybody could have gone back there with the passengers facing away.
They could have drugged the coffee.
Yeah, even Buck.
Like I say, he sometimes put her on automatic pilot and came back here to well, you know, nature calls, even at 10,000 feet.
Yeah, well, Buck says he never left the pilot's cabin.
Maybe he didn't.
I just said he could have.
And Hendricks was killed back here? Right.
You can see there police marked where he fell.
Like I say, the plane hasn't been up since that day.
Mm-hmm.
I guess they looked for the dagger in this survival kit, huh? Like I told you, they searched the whole plane nose to tail.
Mr.
Buffo, is there any reason why there would be plaster of Paris all over the floor? Plaster of Paris? I wouldn't know.
There's some traces of it right there.
You know, it's probably none of my business, but don't you think it's strange Mrs.
Hendricks marrying Mr.
Childs so soon after the killing? That's right, Mr.
Queen, it's none of your business.
Oh, Mr.
Childs? Jerry Hacker.
- And you've got no business here.
- I'm sorry, Mr.
Hacker It's all right, Buffo.
I'll take care of it.
All right.
Look, Mr.
Queen, we have a company rule here.
This plane is off-limits.
Oh? Whose rule is that? Straight from the top.
Oh, Brandon Childs.
Mr.
Queen, you are not the police.
You don't have a warrant.
You are trespassing.
Please leave.
You know, of course, that somebody killed Hamilton Drew.
That's right.
Buck Nolan.
Oh? Do you know something I don't know? [Sighs.]
I know it in here.
I know he killed him just like I knew he killed Stu five years ago.
You know something? I really loved that man, I really did.
And for him to be killed by that freak Nolan I'll want to tell you something, Mr.
Queen.
This time they're going to put that cowboy away for good, and there's nothing that you can do to stop it.
- A sinker? - That's right, Dad.
- I don't get it.
- Neither do I yet.
I found it in the survival gear on the Hendricks' murder plane.
It's hangared out at the Floyd Bennett Field.
Now, remember, Dad Hamilton showed his suspects a lead sinker.
The clue his solution of Hendricks murder.
Well, Dad, I don't think he'd really solved it not completely.
If he had, he wouldn't have had Ray Vogel around to help him trap the killer.
Well, this sinker has to mean something.
I'll tell you one thing.
Jerry Hacker was sure upset to see me come off that airplane.
Something to hide? Oh, I don't know about that, but, boy, is he a liar.
His bosom pal Stu Hendricks? From what I was able to learn, Hendricks was about to fire him for incompetency, and that was before the murder.
Well, you have to eliminate him as a suspect.
He left Hamilton's, went straight to a party on Sutton Place didn't leave till 5:00 in the morning.
Well, what about the Childs? Did you talk to them? They went straight home, got up at 6:00 in the morning, drove up to Connecticut to see some friends, didn't even hear about the murder till they got home late that evening.
So they alibi each other.
You know, maybe I ought to talk to them.
Sure, sure, if you want to.
I'll be finished in a moment, Mr.
Queen, then we can chat.
Huh? Oh, uh, don't hurry on my account.
Have you ever worked in clay? Have you ever worked in clay? Hm? No.
No, my medium is paper and typewriter ribbon.
This is very nice.
Oh, I'll tell Brandon you liked it.
It's one of his early ones.
- Your husband? - Yes, turn it over.
"B.
C.
March 1940.
" You know, Brandon introduced me to all this after we were married.
He made two of them? He made dozens of them.
He gave them as gifts.
They're plaster, Mr.
Queen, made from a mold.
I think that's it, Wanda.
Thank you, you may get dressed.
Are you going to question me about Stuart's death or Mr.
Drew's? Your father couldn't seem to make up his mind which killing he was investigating.
Will you want me at the same time tomorrow, Mrs.
Childs? No, thank you.
No.
I'll call you when I'm ready to begin something new.
Well, you know my number Bowling Green Yes.
Thank you, Wanda.
Bye.
Bye.
I think that was for your benefit, Mr.
Queen.
I already know her telephone number.
Would you like a pencil? No, thank you.
I have a good memory for some things.
Look, Mr.
Queen.
Strange as it seems, I liked Mr.
Drew.
And I'm sorry he's dead, but neither Brandon nor I had anything to do with it.
I know that.
You were both here asleep.
Mm-hmm.
Dog tired with the alarm set for 6:00 so we could get an early start to Connecticut.
So you went straight to sleep.
Yes.
Oh, meaning that my husband pretended to fall asleep, left the house, committed the murder, then returned without my knowing about it.
I didn't suggest that.
But the reverse is also possible.
He could have fallen asleep, and I left to commit the murder.
Look, Mrs.
Childs Oh, come on.
Let's not fence, Mr.
Queen.
Six months after Stuart died, I married Brandon Childs out of the bed of one president, into another one.
I know what people think.
Could I ask you one thing? Why were you on that flight that night? Why was I anywhere with Stuart Hendricks? He was a beautiful dreamer with absolutely no business sense whatsoever.
[Sighs.]
When the plans for the rifle were stolen, and the ransom note came, his first reaction was to contact the authorities.
Well, that was a noble gesture, but it did absolutely nothing for us.
Oh, it preserved our integrity, but we would have been out of business.
So you're saying that you ran Madison Munitions? I'm saying Stu needed help certainly more than Brandon has ever needed.
Maybe that's why I gravitated towards him, even before Stu died.
That's right, Mr.
Queen, even before.
So you told him to pay off the ransom? Yes, which he did, but he wouldn't leave it at that.
He kept looking around, trying to find out who was behind it.
And you know that I think that he was also almost on to Buck Nolan before Buck killed him first.
So you think Buck did it, too? Doesn't everyone? Is this plaster of Paris? Yes.
It's used for making molds for casting plaster models, you know, like the one you admired.
Yeah.
What is it, Mr.
Queen? Is something wrong? NOLAN: Didn't have time to see me, huh? Well, you'll see me now, Childs.
CHILDS: Get off my property before I call in the police.
Not until you and me settle a few things.
I don't have to answer to you.
Yeah, well, you have to answer to somebody, Mister, about Hendricks, about that gun, about the old man.
Somebody is framing me.
We've all heard that before.
Yeah, well, you're gonna hear it again.
Now you stay put and listen to me, or I'm gonna You're gonna what, Nolan? Kill me, too? - Buck, hold on! - Stay out of this, Mr.
Queen.
- Brandon! - It's all right, darling.
No, it's not all right.
I've been framed twice.
Once for murder, only that didn't take, and once for stealing those rifle plans, and that did.
And now it looks like someone's fixing to frame me for killing Drew.
- No one's accusing you.
- Oh, just a matter of time.
When I was the company pilot, my flight plans came out of his office.
And he ordered to ship those rifle models, and the plans came out of his office.
Jerry Hacker handled all that.
Same difference.
He was working for you.
And I'm telling you, I aim to do something about it.
I take it that's a threat.
Buster, you take it anyway you want to.
Ellery, I don't understand you.
Buck Nolan publicly threatens to get even with Hamilton.
A week after he gets out of prison, Hamilton is murdered, and you say it doesn't add up? - What does the sinker mean? - How should I know? How about the plaster of Paris in the cargo compartment? Can't help you.
Sinker, plaster of Paris, a broken thermos bottle there must be a connection somewhere! Sounds like a short circuit to me.
- Ah-ha.
- Huh? What happened? - I just saw something.
- Where? Where? Down here.
At the bottom of the page in the small print.
Oh, yeah.
Let's go, Dad.
Let's go? It's almost Inner Sanctum time.
Gotta see a man about a gun.
Ellery, don't you ever get inspired while the sun is shining? [Brakes screech.]
Mr.
Buffo? Your wife said we'd find you here still working.
How'd you get past security? - I showed him my badge.
- This is my dad.
Inspector Richard Queen.
Homicide.
How do you do? You come to take another look at that plane? I got my orders about that.
Nice work, Mr.
Buffo.
Well, thanks.
My son tells me you've done little gun designing.
I was looking through the police files on the Hendricks murder.
The designer of the MAR is listed as Stuart Hendricks assisted by S.
Buffo.
Yeah, I helped out.
Go right on working, if you like, Mr.
Buffo.
Uh, wouldn't call it "work".
I was just putting a new gunsight mount on this.
30-.
30 barrel.
I'd like to finish it before the alloy sets.
Alloy? Oh, yeah.
Eutectic fusible alloy.
Fancy name, ain't it? But it does the job low melting point, easy to handle, and, well, it fuses the mount to the barrel.
What can I tell you, Mr.
Queen? Well, for one thing, why you let Stu Hendricks take all the credit when you did the work.
There's nothing in his background that suggests he knew anything about gun design.
But there sure is in yours.
And that pretty much proves my son's point.
Look, when you work for a man and he wants to take credit for something well, he's paid you for the privilege.
We never got any credit.
We? Uh, me or Brandon Childs.
Well, he's the one who figured the design, but I did most of the work.
Hmm.
You know what that means, son? It means that Brandon Childs wouldn't have much reason to steal the plans for the gun.
He could drawn 'em up again in his sleep.
If that's what you're drivin' at, you're on the wrong highway.
Well, him and me, we worked here five or six weeks every night.
No, he wouldn't steal them plans.
- The possibilities are dwindling.
- What about Jerry Hacker? [Gunshots.]
Who knew we were coming here? No one.
We were being followed.
Keep your head down.
Dad, that car! What happened? You fellas okay? Ellery, what about that car? It's Buck Nolan's car.
- Have you got a phone? - Yes, sir.
Call Police Headquarters.
Oh, I can't.
The switchboard's shut down.
Dad, we're not going anywhere, at least not for awhile.
- Is he in there, Velie? - Near as we can figure, Inspector.
I've got three men on the back.
- Did you feel the hood? - It was still warm.
It was driven.
Let's go.
- Wait in the car.
- Oh, no, Dad.
Wait.
Take him down and book him attempted murder.
I'm telling you, I never did it! I swear to you, I didn't! I've been at home all evening! It's another frame-up! - He's guilty.
- He's not guilty.
Oh, yeah, yeah.
He was reading, he says.
Somebody stole his car, he says.
Every time I turn around in this case, I fall over Buck Nolan, and you say he's innocent.
Dad, I know how it looks.
- Want a glass of milk? - No.
Oh, come on, have a glass of milk.
It's good for you.
Dad, he didn't drive that car.
The mirrors are wrong.
- What? - The mirrors.
They're set for somebody - Buck is my height, right? - So? Well, I sat behind the wheel.
He didn't drive that car.
- Have a cookie.
- I don't want a cookie.
Why are you being so stubborn? Why does Buck Nolan have to be guilty? 'Cause Hamilton Drew said he was? That's not the reason.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Listen, the old man made a lot of mistakes, but he was the first to admit it.
Now, I'm no different I just have to be shown where I'm wrong.
I can't.
Not yet.
Have a cookie.
I don't All right, I'll have a cookie.
And a glass of milk, and we'll go to bed.
- Oops.
- What happened? Oh, it's Can Edison.
They're digging up the streets again.
- Ow.
- What's the matter? I'm looking for a candle, and I've found it.
Here.
That isn't going to put any light on the subject.
Wait a minute.
There we go.
There we are.
Now what are you doing? I'm looking for an ashtray to put the candle in.
Well, you're dripping all over the tablecloth! I'm sorry! Now look.
Look at the mess.
I see.
I'll wipe it up.
No, no, no.
Let it harden, then you can peel it off.
All right.
- Let's go to bed.
- Okay.
Well, that's it.
Now I know how Stu Hendricks was killed and who must have killed him.
You have all the clues, but do you know which ones point to the murderer? The melted wax helped me put it together.
Remember the white powder on the floor of the airplane.
And don't forget the ransom note that was put back the wrong way.
And don't forget the sinker.
Well, that's it.
You got it? Let's find out.
Hello.
Hi, Dad.
Thank you all for coming.
You know, Mr.
Childs, we don't have to be here.
It's all right, Jerry.
We all know why we've been summoned, Mr.
Queen.
Let's get on with it.
Where do we start? On the plane.
Watch your step.
Will you all take the seats that you had the night that Stuart Hendricks was killed, please? Mrs.
Childs.
Mr.
Childs.
Mr.
Hacker.
Velie, you be Stuart Hendricks, the victim.
He sat in the front seat on the right side.
Buck, would you stand up there by the door so you can see what's going on? Thank you.
Norma, would you take your seat, please? - Where do you want me, Ellery? - Right back here, Dad.
Now, obviously, we're not going to recreate the entire flight.
Everything we're concerned with happened after the coffee was drugged.
Norma, who drank the coffee? All of us, except for Buck and Mr.
Hendricks.
If I had, I would've gone dead to sleep, and none of us would be here now.
Oh, right, we get it.
He didn't drink the coffee because it would have put him to sleep.
He drugged the coffee.
I didn't drink the coffee because I didn't drink the coffee.
Hold it, hold it, please.
Please.
The fact is, I think, the coffee wasn't drugged till after the plane was in the air.
Now, the coffee was back there.
Anybody could have slipped the chloral hydrate in the top of the thermos while everybody's back was facing away.
- You're guessing.
- Am I? My dad's been standing back by that thermos jug for the past several minutes.
Did he put anything in the coffee, or didn't he? Cup of coffee, Hacker? Okay, so maybe somebody could have spiked the coffee.
But who? Well, the killer, of course.
Obviously he didn't drink any of it.
Oh, might have pretended to, but didn't really.
Now, after everybody was asleep, the killer and Mr.
Hendricks went back into the cargo compartment.
They had something to talk about.
ALYSSA: The ransom for the stolen rifle plans.
Well, let's just say it was a private matter.
- Velie.
- Yeah.
You're Stu Hendricks, the victim.
I'll be the killer.
Let's all go back in the cargo compartment and see what happened, okay? Come on.
Watch your step.
Now, this is where Stu Hendricks was killed.
And this is how.
The killer had already planted this dagger in the survival kit.
Is that the murder weapon, Maestro? No, but it's a lot like it.
I made this to match the dimensions of the wound.
You made it? Yeah, Dad.
It's not hard, once you know how and what with.
Now, the killer stabbed the victim in the heart through the jacket and the envelope in the inside pocket.
Really, Mr.
Queen.
Is it necessary to put my wife through this a second time? Yes, Mr.
Childs, I believe it is.
Now, let's talk about that envelope for a moment.
Dad, can you hold that? Thank you.
Yeah.
- The other side.
- What? - The other side.
- Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
This envelope Well, let's go back in the compartment where we can talk about it.
This envelope with a letter containing a demand for $100,000 for the return of the stolen automatic rifle model and the plans.
Why, sure.
It was the thief Stu went back to talk to.
They had an argument, and the thief used the blade on him.
Wrong, Buck.
If the thief was a killer, he would have taken the ransom note.
The fact is, the killer took the envelope out of the pocket, looked at it, but put it back.
But why? Because it didn't implicate the killer.
But it did fit in with the killer's plans to frame Buck Nolan.
You believe he was framed, Mr.
Queen? Yes, just as I believe that Mr.
Hendricks knew that the real thief was on the plane and planned to turn him over to the FBI when they landed.
Now, I know Brandon Childs didn't steal the rifle plans he designed them.
Buck Nolan stole those plans.
Ah, Hamilton Drew didn't believe that, and neither do I.
Now, you had access to the shipping orders, Mr.
Hacker.
You stole the rifle and tried to frame Buck.
Now, you wait just a minute.
You took a shot at my father and me last night because you thought we're getting close to the truth.
That must have been Mr.
Nolan.
Nolan is 6'2".
The driver of that car was more your size.
Would you care to tell me where you were last night around 10:30? At another party? Think about that very carefully before you answer.
All right.
So I tried to provide myself with a little cushion.
So what? We were at war.
Our troops needed that rifle.
Well, they got it, didn't they? Why is everyone looking at me like that? ALYSSA: Oh, Jerry.
Why are you so surprised? What do you care? You think I don't know what you thought about me, you and Hendricks? "Stay with the company, Jerry.
You've got a great future here.
" And I believed it, too, till one day I discovered I was just one of his stooges, and that's all I ever could be.
So you killed him and framed Buck! No, I did not! You heard what he said! The thief is not the murderer! ALYSSA: Well, if it wasn't Jerry It was someone who had a good reason for wanting Hendricks dead, someone who wanted to frame Buck, and someone who knew how to make a dagger disappear.
Dad, may I have that thermos, please? Thank you.
Mrs.
Childs, would you hold this? A spoon.
Look, Mr.
Queen, I really don't have much interest in watching you drink a cup of coffee.
Oh, I'm not going to drink it.
I'm just going to stir it.
Thank you.
I bought this spoon in a novelty shop.
It has some very, very interesting properties.
Like this.
- What happened? - Where did it go? It must be made of soap or something.
Not soap, Buck.
Metal.
But a special kind of metal eutectic fusible alloy.
The same kind of material used to make the murder weapon.
Now, the killer melted the dagger in the pan over the stove in the survival kit.
Then he poured the hot liquid into a plaster mold that he'd already concealed in the survival kit.
It cooled very rapidly and changed into this form.
The whatchamacallit! A sinker.
After the dagger changed form, the killer smashed the mold with the thermos bottle, breaking glass liner inside, leaving just a few traces of plaster of Paris on the compartment floor.
Get to it, Mr.
Queen.
Who killed him? Someone familiar with eutectic fusible alloy.
Someone also familiar with mold-making in order to, first of all, cast a dagger itself, then to recast it into a sinker that would go unnoticed in the survival box.
Brandon.
You already knew that Jerry Hacker planned to frame Buck Nolan for the theft of the rifle plans.
It made it more convenient to frame him for murder, too.
What about it, Hacker? - Brandon - You stay out of this, Jerry.
Look, I always thought it was Nolan who killed him.
Then he did know you were the thief.
Of course he did.
He cut himself in for half the money.
That's ridiculous.
Why do you think he kept me around all these years? He got got everything Stu's wife, his job! You should have let me keep that money, Brandon! You should have treated me better! Velie, put the cuffs on.
Which one? Both of them.
Dad, why does the coffee always taste better in your office than it does at home? Because my secretary doesn't make coffee at home you do.
- Excuse me, Inspector.
- Oh, Grace.
If you have a chance, Ellery would like to jot down your recipe for coffee.
Uh, it's only coffee and water.
Which one of those ingredients is it that you're leaving out at home? Dad, Grace has a matter that she wants to talk to you about.
It's the Hendricks Case.
I'm closing the file, and I'd like to know who gets credit for solving it the department or who? It was Ellery.
Who made use of an investigation brought to a successful conclusion by the late private detective, Hamilton Drew.
May he rest in peace.
I'm sure he will.