Cannon (1971) s01e24 Episode Script

Hey, uh, Number 3 stop here? -Yeah, this is it.
Hey, what do you guys learn in this college anyway? Let's have a look.
What are you doing? I just wanna see what the boys are learning in college these days.
Sorry.
I'll miss my bus.
Well, now, we wouldn't wanna make you miss your bus.
Hey, what are you doing? It's mine.
Let's go, schoolboy.
Mr.
Flatel.
Hmm? A couple of guys at the bus stop, they tried to grab the book.
Couple of what guys.
Who? Two guys.
I don't know who.
They look inside the book? No.
I didn't let them.
Good.
Good? It wasn't too good for me.
Come on, Mr.
Flatel, what's going on? Well, what's going on is that you are a very fortunate young man.
You have the benefit of an enlightened penal system with a study-release program.
So a convict can go to college, get a degree, make something of himself.
Very fortunate for you, Mike.
Naturally, this program is only for the model prisoner.
You know what I mean? I don't get into trouble.
You could very easily.
Someone starts a hassle, and six witnesses frame you for it.
But I run this place, and I see it don't happen to you.
Okay.
Here we go.
Don't sweat it, kid.
I'll find out all about those bus stop twins.
Suppose you don't.
The next time those two hoods catch me, maybe they'll kill me.
Or some cop comes along and busts me out of the study program.
I'm telling you the truth that I don't care which.
What are you trying to say to me, kid? You could get yourself another mailman.
You don't know what happens to the old ones.
Let him go, Swede.
He's got no time to horse around.
You gotta study, right, kid? ANNOUNCER: Starring William Conrad.
With guest stars: Burr DeBenning, Julie Gregg, Lin McCarthy, Frank Marth, Lloyd Gough, and special guest starMitchell Ryan.
ANNOUNCER: There you are.
It would be an old story except the study-release program is brand new.
Takes a kid with a genuine hunger to straighten out his life.
But there's always some old vulture of a con that's gonna use him if he can.
Use him how? -As a courier.
Smuggle things in, or out.
Whatever can be picked up or dropped between the campus and prison.
From information to narcotics.
How do you know this, Mr.
Anders? -I've been a criminal lawyer for 20 years.
I know something about crime and criminals.
Yes, I'm aware of your reputation, counselor, but my question to you was how do you know your son is involved in this sort of thing? It's not what I know for a fact, it's what I'm afraid of.
Cannon, my son is no hard-core recidivist.
This is a kid who made one mistake.
Grand theft.
Auto.
Now he's so straight he's making straight A's at the university.
Do you have anything specific? Well, Mike has an apartment near the university.
Not in his own name, of course.
The leasee is one R.
J.
Smith.
But Mike is the only one who uses it.
Now, that takes money.
Where does it come from? -Not from you? He won't accept money from me.
Or anything else.
Offered him the use of my own apartment.
Offered him the use of a house on University Drive.
Belongs to a client of mine who's living in Europe.
I made these offers by mail.
Never got an answer.
-Do you know why? Divorce.
His mother talked.
Well, convinced him I was a monster.
She died.
He didn't he even keep my name, he took hers.
Par.
Michael Par.
Uh, can I have a burrito, please? William P.
Fenner.
He's a hard-core recidivist of the classic mold.
What have you got? I just saw the creep, that's all.
What have you got? -Just what you asked me for.
This girl you picked out.
-Marilyn Trent? What did she do? Two years for shoplifting.
Oh, my goodness.
Heh.
I just saw the no smoking sign.
I forgot you don't smoke on these things.
Guess you're not used to riding busses very often.
Yeah, that's a pretty sound deduction.
But then your father said you were bright.
Oh, that's all right.
Uh A bus is a very safe place to have a conversation off the record.
What are you supposed to be? Heh.
Well, I'm supposed to be a private investigator.
My name is Frank Cannon.
Sure, I'm I'm really gonna let my father's man investigate me, huh? Well, I've already done a little investigating, Mike.
Enough to find out that you could use some help.
And that's part of my job.
Keep it.
Tell my father he can keep his help.
You know.
He's very hurt because you won't accept anything from him, even the use of the house on University Drive.
But then maybe you didn't get the letter.
I got it.
I don't need a house.
-Oh.
Then why do you need the apartment? Yeah, the apartment.
Uh, it says R.
J.
Smith on the nameplate.
I use it.
I use it to study between classes.
-Oh.
What does Marilyn use it for? It is Marilyn, isn't it? That's the girl who comes to your apartment when you're not there and stays for about five minutes.
Marilyn Trent, isn't it? Listen, you tell my father, if he doesn't let her alone, I'll get to him.
Whatever he's trying to do to me, that's all right.
But you let Marilyn alone.
You look like a bad embalming job.
You get hit again? No.
But What? What, what, what? Come on.
A guy on the bus put the arm on me.
He's a private detective.
-Who hired him? -My father.
My father thinks I'm in some kind of trouble.
I'm scared.
To tell you the truth, Mr.
Flatel, I'm scared he'll find out something's going on.
This, uh, guy on the bus have a name? Cannon.
He knows all about the apartment.
Oh, yeah? What else does he know about? Nothing else, I guess.
Well, uh, you better go study.
We don't want you getting kicked out of school, right? It's a hijack.
Someone's setting us up for a hijack.
First time, I wasn't sure.
But twice? He's telling the truth.
Well, do you want me to lean on him and see? You stupid bum.
You're getting out in a couple of days.
They catch you leaning on somebody, they slap you back in maximum.
When you get out, I'll tell you who to lean on.
Well, you think this, uh, Cannon guy's in on the hijack? Who knows? What's a private detective do for a living nowadays? There's no more divorce business.
Don't worry about Cannon, kid.
I'll see he doesn't bother you anymore.
I said in my report to the police that I have a lot of enemies, that they came with the territory.
And in a way, that's true.
But I must say to you that I believe your son is in deep trouble.
What do you advise? I don't know.
The girl, Marilyn Trent, is working for an organization called Stonehurst Enterprises.
That name mean anything to you? Stonehurst.
Yes, they're registered as a Nevada land development company, but they're believed to be the front for a group of eastern gamblers who have their fingers in the Las Vegas skin.
How did you know that? Oh, I have a source.
In the Attorney General's office.
What's your source? Twenty years in criminal law.
Gamblers are entitled to be defended too.
Do you have any idea who's behind the Stonehurst Enterprises, any specific name? No, I'm sorry, I don't.
Why don't you try to find out from your sources? All right.
Okay, counselor.
I'll try it my way, and you try it your way.
All right? They said it was my lawyer.
I said, "Possibly, your new lawyer.
" Not your lawyer of record.
That was the quickest way I could get to see you.
Henry Anders could be my lawyer anytime.
Glad to meet you, Mr.
Anders.
I understand you've already met my son, Mike Par.
I didn't know.
That's understandable.
But it's also beside the point.
I know what you've got my son into.
I want you to let him off the hook.
I've got no statement to make to you.
Right.
If I were your lawyer, I'd sure advise you.
But I'd also advise you to shut up and listen.
I understand your position.
I know you're afraid to let anybody off the hook.
You're afraid that someday they'll turn up as witnesses against you.
Now, let me explain to you what will happen if you don't let my son off the hook.
I'm listening.
I'll hang you, Flatel.
I know that Stonehurst Enterprises is you.
I know the gambling skim goes to you.
And know that who they murder from time to time is ordered by you.
I know you're still running the operation from here.
Bringing your skim out regularly and salting it away.
Directing the whole thing by couriers.
Like my son.
I'll pin it on you, Flatel.
Counselor, even if I had any idea what you were talking about, I wouldn't believe that a lawyer would break the whole confidential thing that lawyers have with clients.
Confidentiality won't stop me.
Or thoughts about those clients, or even about myself.
I don't give a damn.
This is for my son.
What's up? Now, wait a minute.
Did, uh, Mr.
Flatel send you? Let me talk to him.
Hey, what's that? What's going on here? -He's sick.
Yeah.
He's, uh, studying too much.
He just keeled over.
You.
What happened? I don't know.
Just sick.
Coming.
Just a moment.
Coming.
Oh, hello.
Nice to meet you, Miss Trent.
Mike told me that you know all about me.
Well, not all.
Not all by a long way.
Won't you come in, please? Won't you sit down? Now, what can I do for you? Do you know where Mike is? Why? Because he isn't where he's supposed to be.
We had a lunch date.
He didn't show up.
So I went to his 2:00 class.
He wasn't there.
And his 3:00 class.
Maybe he's sick.
But I can't call the prison and ask them.
Because what if he isn't? So I thought of you.
And what if I do tell you where Mike is? Will you run and tell John J.
Flatel? No, I wouldn't tell anybody.
I'd just go to Mike if I could.
What would you do for Mike? Anything you say.
Well, you can start by telling me the truth.
Now, the Attorney General's office tells me that they believe that John J.
Flatel is Stonehurst Enterprises.
All right.
I work for John Flatel.
Maybe you would too if you were out on parole "Do the job or get framed with some violation and go back to the joint.
" And your job is delivering messages from Mike's apartment to Stonehurst office, is that right? Yes.
Does Mike know? -No.
That was the reason to use the apartment as a drop, so Mike's information would stop there.
You have to understand how it is with us.
I met Mike when I left the apartment a little late and he got back a little early, and we almost bumped into each other outside.
So I did a lot of smiling to cover up.
And then after awhile, when we could see something was really happening between us Mike is very honest.
He told me he was on this prison study program.
So birds of the feather, I told him I was out on parole.
Why should I tell him I work for Flatel? It wouldn't do any good, and it might get us both killed.
Tell me about Willy Fenner.
-Who? You talked to two men in the Stonehurst office.
Oh, those two hoods.
They said they'd pay me for any information I could tell them on Flatel's operation.
I told them to get lost.
Even if I knew anything, I wouldn't dare.
Mr.
Cannon, do you believe one word I'm saying? So you wanna see Michael Par? Well, if it can be arranged.
I know it's after-hours, warden, but his father is very concerned about him.
Well, it can't be arranged.
The hour has nothing to do with it.
He left this morning as usual to attend the university but he didn't attend any of his classes.
It's well past his check-in time and no sign of him.
And I'm standing and talking with you and I should be notifying the police to pick him up.
Look, uh, warden.
Do you? Do you have to make that call right now? Do you think I want to? I put my career on the line to back this study-release program.
I believe in it.
Because it's the only kind of program that can genuinely rehabilitate a criminal.
Gets inside the man's mind, it changes his personality.
But you've got to pick the kind of men who really want to change.
Surely warden, you have some discretionary power about a matter like this.
Maybe just enough to let me hold off until morning.
Mike.
Mike.
Let's get out of the light.
Oh, Mike.
Where have you been? Running.
Now, listen.
Last night, they tried to kill me.
And if I go back to the joint, they're going to finish the job.
Who? There's a big man inside.
Flatel.
He made me work for him.
I didn't tell you.
You didn't have to tell me.
Who do you think gets into your apartment and picks up the messages? Don't run away from me, Mike.
I'm not.
I'm not.
You're on parole.
He got to you the same as he got to me.
The same as he gets to everybody.
Mike.
Call Cannon, that detective.
Call him.
-I'm calling nobody.
I'm getting out of L.
A.
just as fast as I can.
But he said he'd try to help you.
Nobody can help me.
He can't.
The minute I go back there, there's a hundred cons ready to kill me just so they can tell Flatel they did it.
Now, you've been inside.
Don't you know that? Yes, I do know.
What do you wanna do now? I got no money.
I got no car.
Will you let me have yours? Is that all you want of me? We got a statement from one of the neighbors.
Mike Par was seen entering the apartment around the middle of the afternoon.
Anything on the time Henry Anders died? Well, the preliminary estimate is for 3 p.
m.
, which means that father and son were both in the same place at around the same time.
And the son's fingerprints are all over the murder weapon, and the son has disappeared.
And then you tell me that he had a big hate on for the old man.
Well, that's hearsay.
Not admissible as evidence.
Now, now, come on, Frank.
We have a strong case.
Now, admit it.
I'll admit it may be a strong case, but it also may be a wrong case.
Well, now, what's your interest at this point? Your client is dead.
I got paid in advance.
The body of Henry Anders,prominent criminal lawyer, was found last night in the Westwood apartment of his estranged son, an escaped convict.
A police search is underwayfor the son, Michael Par, believed to be traveling with his girlfriend, Marilyn Trent.
And now,on the international scene I didn't know.
I didn't know and I didn't do it.
I swear to you, I didn't do it.
I haven't seen my father since my trial.
Mike, did you hear that they know about me? I know.
It means that every cop in a four-state area is gonna have your license number in his little book.
It's like we're sitting in a time bomb.
Yes.
Thank you.
You were right.
Henry Anders was here the day before he was killed.
Visiting John J.
Flatel.
Are you asking me or telling me? But you're correct.
He did see Flatel.
Look, warden.
Don't you see? Maybe that means that Mike didn't kill his father.
Maybe it means that there was somebody else that was sufficiently motivated.
Not Flatel.
Well, why not Flatel? He had a pretty good alibi, sitting in prison.
Well, that hasn't kept him from doing a lot of other things.
For example, he is the head of a thing called Stonehurst Enterprises, which is a front for a gambling combine.
Well, what's this got to do with Anders? Maybe Anders got a step ahead of me.
I told him about Stonehurst Enterprises.
You know, with his vast experience in criminal law, he had to have know that Flatel was the boss.
Now, look, why else would Anders come here if not to threaten Flatel? And how would Flatel respond to that threat? If not with murder? But Anders was killed the next day.
How could Flatel arrange it so fast? Oh, warden, you run a big prison here.
I'd be willing to bet you release men every day of the year.
Check the day book, please.
Who was released yesterday or the day before? Yes.
Yes.
Anybody else? Thank you.
Three went out yesterday.
One was Swede Baston, a Flatel man.
Yeah.
If you don't like it, neither do I.
I never liked anything that came from my father.
Well, maybe you were wrong.
This is good.
The place your father was always offering you.
Nobody's gonna look for us here.
So why are you shivering? -I'm cold.
Look, this is only good for a little while.
We've gotta get out.
We've gotta get some money, get a car, so we can get out right now.
Come on love, hold on.
Wait a minute.
Uh, I think I know a way.
There's a man.
His name is Willy.
He gave me the name of a bar and grill where I could reach him.
These are the guys that tried to grab me at the bus stop.
So what? So that time we had to act like a couple of hoods.
This time, you're ready to do business, so we're ready to pay, huh? How much? Fifteen hundred dollars for a current message, but it's got to be current.
You bring your notebook with you? I brought a page from the notebook.
It's the page with the message on it.
I tore it out just the day before yesterday, so it's gotta be the current one, okay? You've gotta pay 2.
000.
All right.
Tell us what it means, maybe we will.
You mean, decode it? I can't do that.
Well, what about her, huh? I can't do it either.
We don't know the code.
Hey, look, the deal was for the message, not the code, so let's don't have any funny stu Oh! I see we still gotta act like a couple of hoods, huh? Now you get busy on that message.
I'm telling you that I can't do it.
I'm not interested in what you're telling me.
I just wanna know if you're gonna translate that message before or after she gets it, huh? Oh, Frank.
Art Digs.
We just got word from Gaviota.
The girl's car was found off 101, abandoned.
Now, a couple fitting their description reportedly got on a bus headed south.
South? Back into town? That's right.
Do you know where they might try to hide out here? Well, not offhand.
I'll think about it.
Okay.
Stop it, please! Please, he can't do it.
He doesn't know how.
Stop it.
Stop it! Here.
Go after him.
See if you can catch a license number.
Ah.
Never mind.
I can smell the rubber burning from here.
Well I guess we better go report this to the police.
Mr.
Cannon.
Now, you really don't think I'm going anywhere near the police, do you? Well, I thought that's why you came back home, to give yourself up.
Am I right, dear? No, you're wrong.
I'm not going, and you're not taking me.
Well, I know I'm not taking you.
Not with you standing there holding my gun in your hand.
It was a mistake giving it to me.
Yeah.
I think maybe I was a little anxious in trying to get that license number, huh? Let me tell you something, Mike.
I know who both of those men were.
Willy Fenner and Eddie Grack.
And I'll have them broken on a felonious assault charge when I get around to it.
But why would I want their license number, huh? Well, what do you want? -I'll tell you what I want.
I wanna be able to say under oath that Mike surrendered voluntarily, with no coercion whatsoever.
And you better want that too, Marilyn, because it's the only chance you two have for any kind of a life together.
What chance do we have anyway? He's up for murder.
Do you think Mike would kill his father? -No.
Neither do I.
I think Flatel had it done and Swede set up the contract.
And you can prove that, I suppose? -No.
Not yet.
I'm gonna need some help.
-Nobody can help! Nobody heard what Flatel said to Swede in the joint.
Nobody can testify what Swede set up with some professional killer.
How could you ever bust a case like this? May I? Were there any other messages like this in your notebook? No, Flatel tore those pages out.
Do you have any copies of the messages? -No.
But I can remember a lot of the number groups, if that's any good.
Good.
The more samples of the code we have, the easier it is to crack it.
And the more you two can tell the police about Flatel's operation, the better the chances of making the case.
Yet you admit it's only a chance.
Yes.
And you're gonna take it.
Because you're not just one person.
You're a whole program that's gonna help an awful lot of people.
Study, release.
It's something new, something risky.
Now, they say that it gets into a man's mind and it changes him.
If it's changed you, Mike, this is your one chance to prove it.
You know, once upon a time, we had simple ciphers to deal with.
A stood for, uh, G.
B stood for W, and so forth.
But now we have number ciphers.
Ten digits standing for So obviously Crooks are getting harder to catch.
Precisely.
There are so many possible permutations and combinations that it would take a team of cryptographers a year to try them all.
A computer does it in an hour.
"Delivering one mil plus on 12, 1700, Mercer.
" That's a million dollars.
That's a pretty heavy skim.
Hmm.
Twelve, 1700.
Well, that's gotta mean, uh, 5 p.
m.
on the 12th.
That's today, isn't it? -That's right.
But who's Mercer? There's a vehicle approaching.
Moving southwest.
All right, keep me informed.
Vehicle is an ambulance.
Okay.
Ambulance gone past.
Uh, there's a single-engine airplane approaching.
Could be headed for the strip.
Automobile approaching.
Coming your way.
Police officers.
Drop your guns and do not move.
All right.
Come on back here.
You get out.
Hold it right there.
All right, take him.
Are you all right? I don't know.
First time I've ever been hit by a million dollars plus.
You better take it easy, Swede, you're gonna rub the skin right off your wrists.
Hey, Frank.
How about that for getting caught red-handed, huh? Hey, who do you think you are? I'm Frank Cannon.
I got special permission to see you.
Because I don't have a badge, I can tell you certain things.
-Like? Like, you're wiped out, Flatel.
They've already grabbed your skim money and they grabbed your man Swede too.
And he's scared.
He's already put the finger on you for the murder of Anders.
And he's already named your hit men.
He's lying.
Oh, I think Swede's testimony will be corroborated by a witness, like Mike.
So let's face it.
You're wiped out.
Flatel.
I'm gonna put you in isolation over night.
In the morning, you'll be taken to court to be arraigned.
You'll be advised of your rights at that time.
Let's go.
You haven't got time for that, Mr.
Flatel.
No horsing around, you said so yourself.
I've gotta spend my time studying.
Mr.
Cannon, do you think that there's any chance they'll let Mike go on with study-release? Oh, why not? He came back voluntarily, didn't he? And I think the parole board is gonna look very favorably on his application next month.
Oh, wouldn't that be something? To see Mike step up and receive his diploma and not have to go back to prison that night.
Well, I don't know.
He may start to go back from force of habit.
Or do you think there's somebody around that might stop him?