Magnum, P.I. (1980) s02e21 Episode Script
The Elmo Ziller Story
Name's Elmo Ziller, and I poke from Hondo, Texas.
I got it.
It's the heat.
You making fun? Elmo is my half brother.
What the hell are you trying to pull? I wanna pull your mustache.
You wanna what? Are you both joining the band? Higgins, we're undercover.
How many times do we have to kill a guy? Till you get it right! Let her rip.
Here, time to earn your bones, kid.
Huh? You slow in the head? This is your initiation.
I thought you were gonna do You thought wrong.
Hurry up.
Now.
Well, give me that.
Here.
Come on.
Check him.
You can do that, can't you? I think he's dead.
You sure? He looks dead.
Well, you will be, too, if you don't come on.
Every day in the tropics is part illusion.
Rain clouds are actually rainbows, the perfect wave breaks into a riptide.
A conviction of immortality grows out of the endless summer.
What I should have remembered is that illusion is always dangerous.
But on a perfect morning on the beach, who could remember fate? Where seldom is heard a discouraging word And the skies are not cloudy all day What the Home, home on the range Where the deer and the antelope play Where seldom is heard a discouraging word Hey! Hey! Hey, sorry to bust in like this but your door was unlocked and I saw your guitar here, so Higgins, what is this? It's too early for Halloween.
Name's Elmo Ziller, and I poke from Hondo, Texas.
Just 'cause I busted your place, young fella, that ain't no cause for you to Oh, no.
No, no, thank you.
But you go right ahead.
I got it.
I got it.
It's the heat.
Too much time in the garden without a hat.
You makin' fun? 'Cause where I come from, that ain't funny.
Right.
Right.
I got it now.
Howdy No, I can do it.
I can do it.
Here we go.
Howdy, pardner.
You just ride into town? Somebody told me you was a pretty good old detective.
Terrific.
I ain't had a rustlin' case all year.
I guess I been steered wrong.
No! So if you'll excuse me No, don't mosey.
You just make yourself to home.
Pour yourself some rotgut.
Chew some tobacco.
See, I'm headin' up to the ranch house to see Higgins.
So you just be still and stay right there.
I love the mustache.
Higgins! You aren't here, are you, Higgins? You're down in my guesthouse acting like Magnum, please.
Hoot Gibson.
I can't imagine that all this racket is absolutely necessary.
I gotta hand it to you, Higgins, you changed pretty fast.
I beg your pardon.
Come on, how'd you do it? I say, Magnum, are you quite all right? Oh, don't get regimental on me, buckaroo.
You "poke from Hondo, Texas," remember? I see.
In your own crude way, you've explained yourself.
Explained? Nothing's explained.
You have met, as it were, Elmo.
Elmo? Oh, be a good chap and help me out with my gear.
Higgins.
Higgins! What is going on? It is a melancholy but inevitable fact that all great families are burdened with what can be most delicately described as Right in there will do nicely.
Higgins, who is Elmo? Lmpossible though it may be for someone of your limited imagination to absorb, Elmo is my half brother.
Now, for the next two weeks, I'll be taking my vacation, staying on the other side of the island at a lovely residential hotel.
I've written down all the mundane details including some rather specific instructions regarding the lads' diet.
Hold it.
Hold it right there.
No one is going anyplace until I get a thorough explanation.
Coexistence in even remotely the same environs with Elmo is aesthetically corrupting and intellectually life-threatening.
You, however, are a perfect match, which is why I recommended that he hire you when he came to me with his appalling story.
Now, driver, out the gate.
Higgins.
Elmo! And the best part is, when he comes out as Higgins in his house, I was sure I could see this little line of glue where he'd put on the big mustache.
What'd you say this guy's name was? There is no "this guy," Rick.
Don't you know Elmo.
"Elmo Ziller-l-poke- from-Hondo, Texas.
" Hey, man, why would Higgins go through all the trouble to dress up like a cowboy and then wear a fake Guys, listen to me.
It's some kind of practical joke.
Some kind of trick to get even, you know, for some kind of imagined insult or something.
Yeah.
Well, it's a pretty expensive joke.
Listen to this: "Opening Tuesday.
"Starring for three days only.
Bronco Elmo's Authentic Death-defying Texas Rodeo and" "Authentic Texas Rodeo and Old West Roundup.
$25,000 first prize.
" Maybe Elmo wants you to wrestle a bull.
That would be death-defying enough for me to pay $25,000.
Guys, I'm telling you.
This is some kind of a Hi.
Hi.
Excuse me, I'm looking for Thomas Magnum, the investigator.
This is the place.
See what I mean? He doesn't give up.
Hi.
Hi.
I'm Rick.
Hi, Rick.
This is T.
C.
Hello, T.
C.
Howdy.
And this guy with the grin on his face is the investigator Thomas Magnum.
Hi.
Can I get you something cold to drink? Oh, great.
I had a roundup breakfast, but that was at Oh, listen, you know, your accent is really very good.
Are you in drama at the university? Come on, you can tell us.
The joke's over.
I guess the joke's on me.
Oh, no, don't look at me.
I'm still trying to get over "roundup breakfast.
" Don't pay any attention to him.
Too much time watching helicopter blades going around, Miss Lexi.
Lexi Ziller.
And even though I come from a town with two gas stations and one house, I don't want you to think I'm a hick.
I've been to lots of cities with the rodeo, and I know I gotta pay cash money for a private investigator.
Good grief.
That's more money than this investigator's ever seen.
T.
C.
Look, Lexi, or whatever your name is, why don't you cut this out now before anybody gets their feelings hurt.
Why don't you just go to Higgins and tell him you did your part but it didn't work out.
It's $750 from my barrel racing money from this spring.
And look, if you're not gonna help me, you say so now so I can find somebody else, 'cause my daddy needs help real bad.
Okay.
Why don't you just tell us what the problem is? Marcella, my stepmother, the meanest woman to ever draw breath in Nevada.
She tried to kill Elmo? How'd you know? Oh, come on, guys.
Cut it out.
Man, it don't hurt to listen to the story.
Just be cool.
Because if you're volunteering to help, I know it's a joke.
An elaborate, vicious practical joke, and I'm not buying it, thank you very much.
Well, Thomas.
Hey, hey! Come on.
Give this kid a break.
I can spot a con a mile away just like this, and she's legit.
I saw Mr.
Magnum today.
I think he's gonna take the case.
It bothers me, though.
He seems like such a decent man.
But in a couple of days, if our plan works, this will be all be over, won't it? Yup.
I know what you're thinking, but this time you're wrong.
Higgins was up to something, but as long as I knew he was trying to trick me, I was ok, right? It's only when you don't know you're involved in a practical joke that you're in danger.
Excuse me, I'm I'm looking for Elmo Ziller.
Bronco's just sitting down for breakfast.
Thank you.
Of course, if I'd remembered about the danger of illusion maybe I wouldn't have been quite so confident.
Mornin', Elmo.
Mind if I join you? You gonna talk smart? Your daughter tried to hire me yesterday to protect you.
I just couldn't take the job without talking to you first.
Had your breakfast? No.
What are you eating? Chili and scrambled eggs on sourdough pancakes.
Needs more hot sauce, though.
What the hell are you trying to pull? I wanna pull your mustache.
You wanna what? Daddy, what's going on here? This Hawaiian detective tried to pull my mustache.
I just wanna see if it's real.
You look so much like Who? Jonathan? Well, I see you ain't gonna take me serious till you got some proof.
Tell them to put Lightning in the chute.
Daddy, not Lightning.
You heard me.
Higgins.
Elmo, could you just tell me who's trying to kill you? You workin' for me? Yes.
Yes.
I'm on the case! Now can you tell me? Your daughter mentioned something about your wife, Marcella.
Come on.
Hey, Dan, stick my guns in the trailer, will you? Three or four months ago, a couple varmints bushwhacked me outside El Paso.
You mean they tried to kill you? Well, three shots through the windshield before the truck turned over, caught fire.
What happened? You mean, after they left me for dead? Damn fools.
All I had was a busted leg.
You got picked up? I walked back to town, of course.
You walked back to town on a How far? Five miles by road, but I cut across the desert 'cause I didn't want them to spot me, so come closer to ten.
Higgins.
Higgins, listen to me.
However you're doing this, why ever you're playing this game with me, stop it right now.
Don't ride this.
Are you ready, boys? Look, I know your pride, but you can quit right now and Let her rip.
I'm sorry.
It makes me really nervous.
I mean, it's it's crazy at his age doin' something like that.
Oh.
Marcella.
Lexi, honey.
How are you? Mmm.
I have been looking for you for months.
Well, two seconds earlier and you could have seen Daddy ride.
He's still a champ.
That's not Elmo.
Lexi, why are you doing this to me? Doing what, Marcella? Tormenting me like this.
Honey, everybody knows that your daddy is dead.
Now, denying it is not gonna to help.
Now I've spoken to a very good doctor about you.
He says that if you'll just admit that that wonderful man is gone That wonderful man is gone to the stables.
Why don't you go see for yourself? He is dead.
Nobody could have lived through that burning truck.
God bless his soul.
Elmo did.
And there aren't gonna be any more accidents.
This here's Thomas Magnum, the famous investigator.
Howdy.
He's protecting Daddy while we're here.
As a matter of fact, Marcella, why don't you buy a ticket? You can see him any night you want.
The show's not folding? No.
We're a big success.
The new equipment's payin' off.
We even have a TV deal.
Miss Lexi, your pa said he was going down to the newspaper office for an interview.
He'll be back in time for the show.
Well, I don't believe any of this.
Well, why don't you go down to the newspaper office and find out for yourself? And I don't believe private investigators.
Now, this is a trick.
You're trying to cheat me like that damn Elmo did.
But it's not gonna work.
You see, there are lawyers and there are courts, and I am gonna get what is coming to me.
Oh, Marcella, you don't know how much I hope you get exactly what's coming to you.
Elmo used to talk like that.
Look what happened to him.
She's married to Elmo? About ten years ago, the rodeo was in Reno.
Daddy and some buddies picked up some chorus giris.
Oh.
So when he woke up in the morning, Marcella was Mrs.
Elmo.
We didn't hear from her for a long time.
Then, about a year ago, the rodeo was in trouble and we thought we might have to sell out.
She shows up yelling for half.
You said something about new equipment? Daddy wouldn't sell the rodeo.
So he borrowed some money to fix things up like old again.
What about the TV Deal? Well, that was my idea, you know how they have those special programs where those stars play tug of war and circus? That sounds like a nice piece of change.
Enough to pay off the loans.
So we've got to keep Elmo safe.
Besides, he's my daddy.
You going to the newspaper to tell him Marcella's here? No.
I've got one other thing to check out first.
I know what you're thinking.
Just because I couldn't pull off the moustache, even though I'd seen a bronc ride that would've killed a normal man, somehow I knew it was Higgins hiding under that 10-gallon hat.
And I knew one way for sure to prove it.
Excuse me.
Ma'am, excuse me.
I'm terribly sorry.
We are a private club.
Oh.
That's okay.
I don't want to check in.
Could you tell me if you have a Jonathan Higgins registered here? I'm not allowed to divulge that information.
Of course.
Maybe I could leave him a message, or else I could wait for him.
That's not possible, I'm afraid.
The bell captain will show you out.
He isn't here, is he? He left you a big tip not to give out any information, but after he checked in, he left, didn't he? Certainly not.
That's fine.
Oh, no, that's fine.
I won't tell him how helpful you've really been.
Higgins? Magnum.
You gave me quite a start.
Nothing wrong at the estate, I trust.
Not one of the lads.
No.
No, everything's just fine.
Magnum, may I presume to say you look simply dreadful.
Why don't you sit down before you attract attention by fainting? Uh, some food, perhaps? The eggs Benedict are simply No.
No, everything's just Fine.
Yes.
I believe you've already relayed that information with all the vividness usually associated with a telegram.
I came here to tell you that I went to work for your brother.
Half brother.
I suppose I shall have to reveal the whole degrading, sordid story.
Higgins, I do not want to Please.
Keep your voice down.
I'm relying on your sacred word as a gentleman not to That is, I'm going to ask you to keep this in the strictest confidence.
Believe me, all I want is a few questions answered.
First It all began in the summer of 1919 when my father was part of the military section attached to the British delegation to the Versailles Peace Conference.
The old boy was stricken with influenza, and not to make excuses, but it was a ghastly business with tens of thousands dying.
Higgins.
There was this American Red Cross nurse.
From Texas.
Loud, coarse, vulgar.
A tart, actually.
Elmo's mother? And your father told you this? Well, of course not.
But one can apply deductive reasoning.
In his weakened, wretched state, my father was grateful.
And, she, realizing she had the flower of British manhood in her care, took advantage of him in a primitive, physical way.
This is not an easy story to tell.
You're handling it like a man.
What did your mother do? After she had welcomed him home, into her arms, my father, being a gentleman, confessed all.
My mother, being a great lady filled with Christian compassion, forgave him.
And, of course, never allowed the beast to touch her again.
Elmo and I were born almost at the same time.
I'm sorry, madam.
This club is for members only.
Don't worry 'bout it.
I'm just gonna be a few minutes.
The symbolism is almost too perfect, don't you think? The child of the weakness of the flesh in contrast with the child of perfect.
Have you ever met Elmo's current wife? Really, Magnum, what do you take me for? We're about to find out.
Well, that's got to be him, with that slimy detective.
I beg your pardon? Right here.
Right here.
Elmo Ziller? I most certainly am not.
Oh, well, that is exactly who he has been saying that he is! Except that he is a fraud, trying to cheat an innocent widow by impersonating her dead husband.
Officer, do your duty.
This is a subpoena for you to appear in court.
Failure to appear will result in your arrest.
Do you understand, sir? I assure you I am quite conversant with the English language.
I demand to know the meaning of this.
The meaning of this is, buster, I am going to prove you a fake.
There are fingerprints, you know.
And when I prove that Elmo is definitely dead, I am going to get what is rightfully mine.
See you in court, Elmo.
Ever notice how life enjoys pulling the rug out? Just when I'd decided Higgins wasn't Elmo, Elmo's wife shows up and illusion and reality start getting scrambled.
All I knew for sure was Marcella looked tough enough to pull the trigger on anybody.
Elmo, alive or dead, had my sympathies.
Magnum! Higgins, you're back.
Your keen perception never fails to astonish me.
Nor your proclivity for petty theft.
Nor your wanton disregard for the dietary requirements of the lads.
Why are you back? Because I knew.
I just instinctively knew that you would take advantage of my absence to cavalierly destroy the entire moral and social fiber of this estate.
Higgins.
Actually, after that sordid scene at the hotel, I thought it best to return.
So they threw you out, huh? Magnum, it is my considered conclusion that the only way I can remove this blot from my name is by showing myself at the rodeo grounds while Elmo's there.
As Elmo's hired detective, I thought, perhaps you'd like to lend some assistance to this endeavor.
Me? How? By finding that disgusting woman under whatever rock she happens to have slithered under and bring her to the arena so the truth will finally become evident to her overly made-up eyes.
Gee, Higgins.
Doesn't that seem like a lot of trouble to go through? Why don't you just show up in court next week? Because I want to prove it today! There are still those of us for whom a good name is held dear.
Gee, I don't know, Higgins.
I gotta protect Elmo.
I'll protect him.
You are Elmo.
Magnum.
Okay.
Okay.
I was just fishing.
There's just one thing, though, Higgins.
If somebody is trying to kill Elmo, well, you know, the two of you do look a little bit alike.
A lamentable fact of which I am lately constantly being reminded.
Magnum, what's your point? What I'm trying to say is, they might kill you by mistake.
Your solicitude is very touching, but unnecessary.
Just bring me the head of Marcella Ziller.
You told me he was dead.
You promised me he was dead! He is, ma'am.
Ain't nobody could've lived through that fire.
Nobody.
Oh, really? Really? And I suppose that that guy riding around that ring is all imaginary, huh? Okay.
Okay.
Maybe it is that brother that I found at that hotel.
I mean, he does look a lot like Elmo, you know.
Only wimpy.
Miss Ziller, just tell us what you want.
I want what is mine.
And you two boys are supposed to help me get that.
We did.
Leastways, I think we did.
Miss Ziller, how many times do we have to kill a guy? Till you get it right! I say, are you both joining the band? Higgins, we're undercover.
Not me.
I just always wanted to see what it was like to be a cowboy.
Magnum put you up to this, admit it.
Well, he did kind of want us to keep an eye out for your brother.
Half brother.
While he went looking for that Marcella lady.
I assure you, she's no lady.
Have, uh, have either of you seen Bronco Elmo? He's right over there, Higgins.
He just rode in.
If you'll excuse me.
Um, we're gonna go with you.
Um, private moment, I think.
Until the other afternoon at Robin's Nest, I'd only met my half brother once before.
Briefly, during the war.
The conversation was short and rather one-sided, as I recall.
It occurred at 1500 hours on the afternoon of June 6, 1944, on Gold Beach in Normandy.
D- day? You ran into your brother on D-day? I spotted him standing like an idiot amidst the firing and I shouted: "Get your ruddy posterior down before it's shot off.
" It was rather charitable, I've always thought, given his unseemly background.
What kind of jobs do you think Lexi will give us? I don't know.
But she said it was something we could both do real easy.
Clowns! You gotta be kidding! Clowns? Me a clown? Hey, I think you guys look real cute.
Oh, yeah, real cute.
I'm gonna kill him this time.
And nobody's gonna stop me.
Hey, I'll have you know this is very important work.
Rodeo clowns save lives every day.
They do? Sure.
Now Val and Billy are gonna be working closest to the bulls, but if one of them should try to charge you Charge us? Yeah.
Well, just keep sideways of them, otherwise they get their horns underneath you.
And they toss and trample you.
Toss and trample us? Don't worry, you're gonna do just fine.
Let me finish up your makeup before I send you out to Elmo.
There weren't very many Zillers registered at any of the major hotels.
Not any named Marcella, anyway.
I was headed downtown to the courthouse to check on her Hawaii residence, but at the same time, my little voice was also telling me I was headed on a wild goose chase.
Lookout Elmo! The bull's loose! Come on! Come here, bull! Come here! Save yourself, pardner.
Hang in there, Elmo.
Over here! Help! Come here! Welcome to Bronco Elmo's Authentic Rodeo and Wild West Show.
Elmo won't be with us tonight, but carrying the spirit is his daughter, Miss Lexi Ziller.
Let's hear a big Hawaiian welcome for Barbara Grey, worid-famous trick rider out of Texas.
Three years state champ, riding Big Willy.
Nice riding, Babs.
He's a tough one.
He should be, uh, he should be fine in a day or so.
I been stomped worse than this and I ain't boot-heeled up yet.
Thank you, Doctor.
And now ladies and gentlemen Thank you, Doctor.
welcome this year's rodeo queen And thank you, both of you.
I'm beholden to you.
Oh, it's okay, ma'am.
No.
You two are truly heroes.
Oh, shucks.
Could I impose on you gentlemen just one more favor? Could I, I mean Could I ask you to stay here tonight, to protect Elmo? That's Leland.
Two horns of pure TNT.
He's gotta beat 6.
8 seconds.
What a ride! There's Matthew Snyder bulldogging his third calf of the night.
He's gonna have to go real fast, folks, to catch up with the champ.
He just might make it.
Here's last year's Yes, sir, this man's hands are faster than your eye.
What are you doing? What are you doing sneaking up on me? Ahhh! Where is Higgins? I don't know.
I think he went back to the estate.
Said he got tired of waiting on you and this Marcella lady.
What've you been doing, man? You missed all the excitement.
What excitement? I can't see anything.
Get out of the way.
Here's Danny.
Oops, he's having a little trouble with that calf.
Doesn't wanna go down.
Show them who's boss, Danny! There you go.
Eight seconds flat.
Not bad for a bad start.
Now let's hear it for Danny.
Look at old Billy Simpson riding that bronco.
Stay on there, Billy.
Another couple of seconds and you could have yourself a new record.
There's Slimy Doggett trying to stay on like Elmo Ziller's pride and joy.
Ride on, Slimy! What about Lexi? What about her? Where is she? I guess she's in her trailer.
Man, what have you been doing all this time? Do you smell something? Well, of course I smell something.
We're at a rodeo.
Sittin' in this dumb horse stall.
Propane.
The trailer.
I'll turn off the tanks.
Elmo! Elmo, wake up.
Elmo, wake up.
Sgt.
Maj.
Higgins! Snap to! What the bloody blazes is going on? Come on.
I knew it! You are Higgins.
I'm Elmo Ziller and I poke from Hondo, Texas.
Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you just tell me the truth? I didn't think you'd approve of what I'm doing.
You're right! What are you doing? Look here, Magnum, I'm the one who should be angry.
But as you can see, I'm perfectly calm.
You? Why should you be angry? Because you failed, damn it.
You had the fiends within your grasp and allowed them to slip away.
A wretched display of tactics and command.
Not to mention an abysmal failure to perform even rudimentary detective procedures, like finding one loud coarse woman.
That's funny, and all the time I thought I was saving your life.
Stop it! Please, Uncle Jonathan, Thomas.
I'm sorry, child.
We do seem to be losing sight of the point.
Now that you Now that you've brought it up, what exactly is the point, or is that a secret, too? Elmo's dead, isn't he? Yes.
No! Texas state troopers found his pickup burned and gutted just outside Hondo.
But there was no body.
It seems Elmo dragged himself into the desert with a broken leg.
Extraordinary.
Of course I suppose Father's blood would win out in a situation like that.
So he disappeared in the desert? They tracked him as far as the Mexican border.
Then it was up to the Federales.
They didn't find him, but they really didn't look, either.
He's alive.
I know it.
Holed up somewhere south of the border till he can heal.
I suppose he could be alive.
He's got enough meanness in him.
It's called grit in Texas.
He's alive.
So until he shows up I gotta keep Marcella's grubby little hands off the rodeo.
I figure the best way to do that is to prove she tried to kill him.
The rodeo means that much to you? It does to Daddy.
He means everything to me.
Well, there's only one way to force Marcella's hand.
So we just try again, that's all.
Oh, goody.
I can't wait to see how you're gonna screw it up this time.
Well, ma'am, you gave us round-trip tickets and that's all.
We could just go on home and take the loss.
I have given you $10,000.
On paper.
When I sell the show.
Well, it seems to me you don't got the show yet.
Thanks to you bozos.
$20,000.
What? We want $20,000, or we go home.
I don't even like this place.
You heard the man.
Just get it right this time, okay? Hey, there might just be hope for you yet, son.
Just tell me one thing, will you? How did you get on that bucking horse? Oh, dear fellow.
Those polo games in India were bloody hell compared to this.
Hey, Bud, when and how we gonna pull this thing off? We ain't.
Huh? Not now, anyways.
Not here.
Too many people.
When are we gonna do it? We're gonna grab him before the show.
This time, I got a plan.
Oh, this I gotta hear.
Oh, yeah? You know that little cowgirl you been sparking? What about her? Higg I mean, Bronco.
Come on.
You're gonna be late for the show.
Dear fellow, your protective instinct is touching, but this strategy won't work.
What's the matter? All I'm supposed to do is walk you to the arena.
Thomas and T.
C My point is that those blackguards won't try to kill me with you hovering about.
You must be invisible.
In other words, keep your distance, Rick.
Okay.
Done.
Now, buckaroo, let Bronco ride! Hey.
You're new here, ain't you? Yep.
I just love a man in a uniform.
No kidding.
How'd you know I was in the service? No.
I mean this uniform.
Where's Higgins? I thought he was with you.
L They must've grabbed him in the stalls.
Check the chutes.
T.
C.
, watch the ring.
Give me a hand.
He's following us on a horse.
Darn it.
This is all quite ridiculous, you know.
I am obviously not Bronco Elmo.
Aw, shut up! The police know everything.
Even now, they're in hot pursuit.
Immediate surrender is your only rational alternative.
What is that thing? Get that thing out of the way! We're going over the curb.
Hold on! Hey, what are you what are you doing? Hold it right there! Really, Magnum, when will you learn? It's, "Reach for the sky, hombre.
" It was just like the Saturday double features I used to spend my allowance on.
The bad guys confessed.
The evil stepmother went to jail with them and the ranch, or the rodeo, was saved.
The only thing left was goodbye.
Only this time, it was the girl riding into the sunset.
Where's the rodeo off to now? Texas.
Season's over till spring.
And you? Mexico.
Daddy's down there somewhere and I'm gonna find him.
That's the old Higgins spirit.
Oh, Uncle Jonathan, I love you dearly and I'll always be grateful for what you did for Daddy and me.
Thanks doesn't really say it, does it? It says a whole lot.
And this, too.
I don't suppose you ever get to Texas, do you? But the rodeo always comes back to town, doesn't it? Next season, cowboy.
That's a promise.
And look after Uncle Jonathan.
He really put his life in your hands, counting on you to trap the killer.
You bet.
Take care.
A brave and resourceful girl.
I shall miss her.
You know, Higgins, I want to thank you, too.
Whatever for? For trusting me with your life that way.
Putting your faith in my skill and ability as a private investigator.
It's very important to me, knowing you think I'm really a professional.
Professional? Really, Magnum? I did it because you have more dumb luck than anyone I know.
I got it.
It's the heat.
You making fun? Elmo is my half brother.
What the hell are you trying to pull? I wanna pull your mustache.
You wanna what? Are you both joining the band? Higgins, we're undercover.
How many times do we have to kill a guy? Till you get it right! Let her rip.
Here, time to earn your bones, kid.
Huh? You slow in the head? This is your initiation.
I thought you were gonna do You thought wrong.
Hurry up.
Now.
Well, give me that.
Here.
Come on.
Check him.
You can do that, can't you? I think he's dead.
You sure? He looks dead.
Well, you will be, too, if you don't come on.
Every day in the tropics is part illusion.
Rain clouds are actually rainbows, the perfect wave breaks into a riptide.
A conviction of immortality grows out of the endless summer.
What I should have remembered is that illusion is always dangerous.
But on a perfect morning on the beach, who could remember fate? Where seldom is heard a discouraging word And the skies are not cloudy all day What the Home, home on the range Where the deer and the antelope play Where seldom is heard a discouraging word Hey! Hey! Hey, sorry to bust in like this but your door was unlocked and I saw your guitar here, so Higgins, what is this? It's too early for Halloween.
Name's Elmo Ziller, and I poke from Hondo, Texas.
Just 'cause I busted your place, young fella, that ain't no cause for you to Oh, no.
No, no, thank you.
But you go right ahead.
I got it.
I got it.
It's the heat.
Too much time in the garden without a hat.
You makin' fun? 'Cause where I come from, that ain't funny.
Right.
Right.
I got it now.
Howdy No, I can do it.
I can do it.
Here we go.
Howdy, pardner.
You just ride into town? Somebody told me you was a pretty good old detective.
Terrific.
I ain't had a rustlin' case all year.
I guess I been steered wrong.
No! So if you'll excuse me No, don't mosey.
You just make yourself to home.
Pour yourself some rotgut.
Chew some tobacco.
See, I'm headin' up to the ranch house to see Higgins.
So you just be still and stay right there.
I love the mustache.
Higgins! You aren't here, are you, Higgins? You're down in my guesthouse acting like Magnum, please.
Hoot Gibson.
I can't imagine that all this racket is absolutely necessary.
I gotta hand it to you, Higgins, you changed pretty fast.
I beg your pardon.
Come on, how'd you do it? I say, Magnum, are you quite all right? Oh, don't get regimental on me, buckaroo.
You "poke from Hondo, Texas," remember? I see.
In your own crude way, you've explained yourself.
Explained? Nothing's explained.
You have met, as it were, Elmo.
Elmo? Oh, be a good chap and help me out with my gear.
Higgins.
Higgins! What is going on? It is a melancholy but inevitable fact that all great families are burdened with what can be most delicately described as Right in there will do nicely.
Higgins, who is Elmo? Lmpossible though it may be for someone of your limited imagination to absorb, Elmo is my half brother.
Now, for the next two weeks, I'll be taking my vacation, staying on the other side of the island at a lovely residential hotel.
I've written down all the mundane details including some rather specific instructions regarding the lads' diet.
Hold it.
Hold it right there.
No one is going anyplace until I get a thorough explanation.
Coexistence in even remotely the same environs with Elmo is aesthetically corrupting and intellectually life-threatening.
You, however, are a perfect match, which is why I recommended that he hire you when he came to me with his appalling story.
Now, driver, out the gate.
Higgins.
Elmo! And the best part is, when he comes out as Higgins in his house, I was sure I could see this little line of glue where he'd put on the big mustache.
What'd you say this guy's name was? There is no "this guy," Rick.
Don't you know Elmo.
"Elmo Ziller-l-poke- from-Hondo, Texas.
" Hey, man, why would Higgins go through all the trouble to dress up like a cowboy and then wear a fake Guys, listen to me.
It's some kind of practical joke.
Some kind of trick to get even, you know, for some kind of imagined insult or something.
Yeah.
Well, it's a pretty expensive joke.
Listen to this: "Opening Tuesday.
"Starring for three days only.
Bronco Elmo's Authentic Death-defying Texas Rodeo and" "Authentic Texas Rodeo and Old West Roundup.
$25,000 first prize.
" Maybe Elmo wants you to wrestle a bull.
That would be death-defying enough for me to pay $25,000.
Guys, I'm telling you.
This is some kind of a Hi.
Hi.
Excuse me, I'm looking for Thomas Magnum, the investigator.
This is the place.
See what I mean? He doesn't give up.
Hi.
Hi.
I'm Rick.
Hi, Rick.
This is T.
C.
Hello, T.
C.
Howdy.
And this guy with the grin on his face is the investigator Thomas Magnum.
Hi.
Can I get you something cold to drink? Oh, great.
I had a roundup breakfast, but that was at Oh, listen, you know, your accent is really very good.
Are you in drama at the university? Come on, you can tell us.
The joke's over.
I guess the joke's on me.
Oh, no, don't look at me.
I'm still trying to get over "roundup breakfast.
" Don't pay any attention to him.
Too much time watching helicopter blades going around, Miss Lexi.
Lexi Ziller.
And even though I come from a town with two gas stations and one house, I don't want you to think I'm a hick.
I've been to lots of cities with the rodeo, and I know I gotta pay cash money for a private investigator.
Good grief.
That's more money than this investigator's ever seen.
T.
C.
Look, Lexi, or whatever your name is, why don't you cut this out now before anybody gets their feelings hurt.
Why don't you just go to Higgins and tell him you did your part but it didn't work out.
It's $750 from my barrel racing money from this spring.
And look, if you're not gonna help me, you say so now so I can find somebody else, 'cause my daddy needs help real bad.
Okay.
Why don't you just tell us what the problem is? Marcella, my stepmother, the meanest woman to ever draw breath in Nevada.
She tried to kill Elmo? How'd you know? Oh, come on, guys.
Cut it out.
Man, it don't hurt to listen to the story.
Just be cool.
Because if you're volunteering to help, I know it's a joke.
An elaborate, vicious practical joke, and I'm not buying it, thank you very much.
Well, Thomas.
Hey, hey! Come on.
Give this kid a break.
I can spot a con a mile away just like this, and she's legit.
I saw Mr.
Magnum today.
I think he's gonna take the case.
It bothers me, though.
He seems like such a decent man.
But in a couple of days, if our plan works, this will be all be over, won't it? Yup.
I know what you're thinking, but this time you're wrong.
Higgins was up to something, but as long as I knew he was trying to trick me, I was ok, right? It's only when you don't know you're involved in a practical joke that you're in danger.
Excuse me, I'm I'm looking for Elmo Ziller.
Bronco's just sitting down for breakfast.
Thank you.
Of course, if I'd remembered about the danger of illusion maybe I wouldn't have been quite so confident.
Mornin', Elmo.
Mind if I join you? You gonna talk smart? Your daughter tried to hire me yesterday to protect you.
I just couldn't take the job without talking to you first.
Had your breakfast? No.
What are you eating? Chili and scrambled eggs on sourdough pancakes.
Needs more hot sauce, though.
What the hell are you trying to pull? I wanna pull your mustache.
You wanna what? Daddy, what's going on here? This Hawaiian detective tried to pull my mustache.
I just wanna see if it's real.
You look so much like Who? Jonathan? Well, I see you ain't gonna take me serious till you got some proof.
Tell them to put Lightning in the chute.
Daddy, not Lightning.
You heard me.
Higgins.
Elmo, could you just tell me who's trying to kill you? You workin' for me? Yes.
Yes.
I'm on the case! Now can you tell me? Your daughter mentioned something about your wife, Marcella.
Come on.
Hey, Dan, stick my guns in the trailer, will you? Three or four months ago, a couple varmints bushwhacked me outside El Paso.
You mean they tried to kill you? Well, three shots through the windshield before the truck turned over, caught fire.
What happened? You mean, after they left me for dead? Damn fools.
All I had was a busted leg.
You got picked up? I walked back to town, of course.
You walked back to town on a How far? Five miles by road, but I cut across the desert 'cause I didn't want them to spot me, so come closer to ten.
Higgins.
Higgins, listen to me.
However you're doing this, why ever you're playing this game with me, stop it right now.
Don't ride this.
Are you ready, boys? Look, I know your pride, but you can quit right now and Let her rip.
I'm sorry.
It makes me really nervous.
I mean, it's it's crazy at his age doin' something like that.
Oh.
Marcella.
Lexi, honey.
How are you? Mmm.
I have been looking for you for months.
Well, two seconds earlier and you could have seen Daddy ride.
He's still a champ.
That's not Elmo.
Lexi, why are you doing this to me? Doing what, Marcella? Tormenting me like this.
Honey, everybody knows that your daddy is dead.
Now, denying it is not gonna to help.
Now I've spoken to a very good doctor about you.
He says that if you'll just admit that that wonderful man is gone That wonderful man is gone to the stables.
Why don't you go see for yourself? He is dead.
Nobody could have lived through that burning truck.
God bless his soul.
Elmo did.
And there aren't gonna be any more accidents.
This here's Thomas Magnum, the famous investigator.
Howdy.
He's protecting Daddy while we're here.
As a matter of fact, Marcella, why don't you buy a ticket? You can see him any night you want.
The show's not folding? No.
We're a big success.
The new equipment's payin' off.
We even have a TV deal.
Miss Lexi, your pa said he was going down to the newspaper office for an interview.
He'll be back in time for the show.
Well, I don't believe any of this.
Well, why don't you go down to the newspaper office and find out for yourself? And I don't believe private investigators.
Now, this is a trick.
You're trying to cheat me like that damn Elmo did.
But it's not gonna work.
You see, there are lawyers and there are courts, and I am gonna get what is coming to me.
Oh, Marcella, you don't know how much I hope you get exactly what's coming to you.
Elmo used to talk like that.
Look what happened to him.
She's married to Elmo? About ten years ago, the rodeo was in Reno.
Daddy and some buddies picked up some chorus giris.
Oh.
So when he woke up in the morning, Marcella was Mrs.
Elmo.
We didn't hear from her for a long time.
Then, about a year ago, the rodeo was in trouble and we thought we might have to sell out.
She shows up yelling for half.
You said something about new equipment? Daddy wouldn't sell the rodeo.
So he borrowed some money to fix things up like old again.
What about the TV Deal? Well, that was my idea, you know how they have those special programs where those stars play tug of war and circus? That sounds like a nice piece of change.
Enough to pay off the loans.
So we've got to keep Elmo safe.
Besides, he's my daddy.
You going to the newspaper to tell him Marcella's here? No.
I've got one other thing to check out first.
I know what you're thinking.
Just because I couldn't pull off the moustache, even though I'd seen a bronc ride that would've killed a normal man, somehow I knew it was Higgins hiding under that 10-gallon hat.
And I knew one way for sure to prove it.
Excuse me.
Ma'am, excuse me.
I'm terribly sorry.
We are a private club.
Oh.
That's okay.
I don't want to check in.
Could you tell me if you have a Jonathan Higgins registered here? I'm not allowed to divulge that information.
Of course.
Maybe I could leave him a message, or else I could wait for him.
That's not possible, I'm afraid.
The bell captain will show you out.
He isn't here, is he? He left you a big tip not to give out any information, but after he checked in, he left, didn't he? Certainly not.
That's fine.
Oh, no, that's fine.
I won't tell him how helpful you've really been.
Higgins? Magnum.
You gave me quite a start.
Nothing wrong at the estate, I trust.
Not one of the lads.
No.
No, everything's just fine.
Magnum, may I presume to say you look simply dreadful.
Why don't you sit down before you attract attention by fainting? Uh, some food, perhaps? The eggs Benedict are simply No.
No, everything's just Fine.
Yes.
I believe you've already relayed that information with all the vividness usually associated with a telegram.
I came here to tell you that I went to work for your brother.
Half brother.
I suppose I shall have to reveal the whole degrading, sordid story.
Higgins, I do not want to Please.
Keep your voice down.
I'm relying on your sacred word as a gentleman not to That is, I'm going to ask you to keep this in the strictest confidence.
Believe me, all I want is a few questions answered.
First It all began in the summer of 1919 when my father was part of the military section attached to the British delegation to the Versailles Peace Conference.
The old boy was stricken with influenza, and not to make excuses, but it was a ghastly business with tens of thousands dying.
Higgins.
There was this American Red Cross nurse.
From Texas.
Loud, coarse, vulgar.
A tart, actually.
Elmo's mother? And your father told you this? Well, of course not.
But one can apply deductive reasoning.
In his weakened, wretched state, my father was grateful.
And, she, realizing she had the flower of British manhood in her care, took advantage of him in a primitive, physical way.
This is not an easy story to tell.
You're handling it like a man.
What did your mother do? After she had welcomed him home, into her arms, my father, being a gentleman, confessed all.
My mother, being a great lady filled with Christian compassion, forgave him.
And, of course, never allowed the beast to touch her again.
Elmo and I were born almost at the same time.
I'm sorry, madam.
This club is for members only.
Don't worry 'bout it.
I'm just gonna be a few minutes.
The symbolism is almost too perfect, don't you think? The child of the weakness of the flesh in contrast with the child of perfect.
Have you ever met Elmo's current wife? Really, Magnum, what do you take me for? We're about to find out.
Well, that's got to be him, with that slimy detective.
I beg your pardon? Right here.
Right here.
Elmo Ziller? I most certainly am not.
Oh, well, that is exactly who he has been saying that he is! Except that he is a fraud, trying to cheat an innocent widow by impersonating her dead husband.
Officer, do your duty.
This is a subpoena for you to appear in court.
Failure to appear will result in your arrest.
Do you understand, sir? I assure you I am quite conversant with the English language.
I demand to know the meaning of this.
The meaning of this is, buster, I am going to prove you a fake.
There are fingerprints, you know.
And when I prove that Elmo is definitely dead, I am going to get what is rightfully mine.
See you in court, Elmo.
Ever notice how life enjoys pulling the rug out? Just when I'd decided Higgins wasn't Elmo, Elmo's wife shows up and illusion and reality start getting scrambled.
All I knew for sure was Marcella looked tough enough to pull the trigger on anybody.
Elmo, alive or dead, had my sympathies.
Magnum! Higgins, you're back.
Your keen perception never fails to astonish me.
Nor your proclivity for petty theft.
Nor your wanton disregard for the dietary requirements of the lads.
Why are you back? Because I knew.
I just instinctively knew that you would take advantage of my absence to cavalierly destroy the entire moral and social fiber of this estate.
Higgins.
Actually, after that sordid scene at the hotel, I thought it best to return.
So they threw you out, huh? Magnum, it is my considered conclusion that the only way I can remove this blot from my name is by showing myself at the rodeo grounds while Elmo's there.
As Elmo's hired detective, I thought, perhaps you'd like to lend some assistance to this endeavor.
Me? How? By finding that disgusting woman under whatever rock she happens to have slithered under and bring her to the arena so the truth will finally become evident to her overly made-up eyes.
Gee, Higgins.
Doesn't that seem like a lot of trouble to go through? Why don't you just show up in court next week? Because I want to prove it today! There are still those of us for whom a good name is held dear.
Gee, I don't know, Higgins.
I gotta protect Elmo.
I'll protect him.
You are Elmo.
Magnum.
Okay.
Okay.
I was just fishing.
There's just one thing, though, Higgins.
If somebody is trying to kill Elmo, well, you know, the two of you do look a little bit alike.
A lamentable fact of which I am lately constantly being reminded.
Magnum, what's your point? What I'm trying to say is, they might kill you by mistake.
Your solicitude is very touching, but unnecessary.
Just bring me the head of Marcella Ziller.
You told me he was dead.
You promised me he was dead! He is, ma'am.
Ain't nobody could've lived through that fire.
Nobody.
Oh, really? Really? And I suppose that that guy riding around that ring is all imaginary, huh? Okay.
Okay.
Maybe it is that brother that I found at that hotel.
I mean, he does look a lot like Elmo, you know.
Only wimpy.
Miss Ziller, just tell us what you want.
I want what is mine.
And you two boys are supposed to help me get that.
We did.
Leastways, I think we did.
Miss Ziller, how many times do we have to kill a guy? Till you get it right! I say, are you both joining the band? Higgins, we're undercover.
Not me.
I just always wanted to see what it was like to be a cowboy.
Magnum put you up to this, admit it.
Well, he did kind of want us to keep an eye out for your brother.
Half brother.
While he went looking for that Marcella lady.
I assure you, she's no lady.
Have, uh, have either of you seen Bronco Elmo? He's right over there, Higgins.
He just rode in.
If you'll excuse me.
Um, we're gonna go with you.
Um, private moment, I think.
Until the other afternoon at Robin's Nest, I'd only met my half brother once before.
Briefly, during the war.
The conversation was short and rather one-sided, as I recall.
It occurred at 1500 hours on the afternoon of June 6, 1944, on Gold Beach in Normandy.
D- day? You ran into your brother on D-day? I spotted him standing like an idiot amidst the firing and I shouted: "Get your ruddy posterior down before it's shot off.
" It was rather charitable, I've always thought, given his unseemly background.
What kind of jobs do you think Lexi will give us? I don't know.
But she said it was something we could both do real easy.
Clowns! You gotta be kidding! Clowns? Me a clown? Hey, I think you guys look real cute.
Oh, yeah, real cute.
I'm gonna kill him this time.
And nobody's gonna stop me.
Hey, I'll have you know this is very important work.
Rodeo clowns save lives every day.
They do? Sure.
Now Val and Billy are gonna be working closest to the bulls, but if one of them should try to charge you Charge us? Yeah.
Well, just keep sideways of them, otherwise they get their horns underneath you.
And they toss and trample you.
Toss and trample us? Don't worry, you're gonna do just fine.
Let me finish up your makeup before I send you out to Elmo.
There weren't very many Zillers registered at any of the major hotels.
Not any named Marcella, anyway.
I was headed downtown to the courthouse to check on her Hawaii residence, but at the same time, my little voice was also telling me I was headed on a wild goose chase.
Lookout Elmo! The bull's loose! Come on! Come here, bull! Come here! Save yourself, pardner.
Hang in there, Elmo.
Over here! Help! Come here! Welcome to Bronco Elmo's Authentic Rodeo and Wild West Show.
Elmo won't be with us tonight, but carrying the spirit is his daughter, Miss Lexi Ziller.
Let's hear a big Hawaiian welcome for Barbara Grey, worid-famous trick rider out of Texas.
Three years state champ, riding Big Willy.
Nice riding, Babs.
He's a tough one.
He should be, uh, he should be fine in a day or so.
I been stomped worse than this and I ain't boot-heeled up yet.
Thank you, Doctor.
And now ladies and gentlemen Thank you, Doctor.
welcome this year's rodeo queen And thank you, both of you.
I'm beholden to you.
Oh, it's okay, ma'am.
No.
You two are truly heroes.
Oh, shucks.
Could I impose on you gentlemen just one more favor? Could I, I mean Could I ask you to stay here tonight, to protect Elmo? That's Leland.
Two horns of pure TNT.
He's gotta beat 6.
8 seconds.
What a ride! There's Matthew Snyder bulldogging his third calf of the night.
He's gonna have to go real fast, folks, to catch up with the champ.
He just might make it.
Here's last year's Yes, sir, this man's hands are faster than your eye.
What are you doing? What are you doing sneaking up on me? Ahhh! Where is Higgins? I don't know.
I think he went back to the estate.
Said he got tired of waiting on you and this Marcella lady.
What've you been doing, man? You missed all the excitement.
What excitement? I can't see anything.
Get out of the way.
Here's Danny.
Oops, he's having a little trouble with that calf.
Doesn't wanna go down.
Show them who's boss, Danny! There you go.
Eight seconds flat.
Not bad for a bad start.
Now let's hear it for Danny.
Look at old Billy Simpson riding that bronco.
Stay on there, Billy.
Another couple of seconds and you could have yourself a new record.
There's Slimy Doggett trying to stay on like Elmo Ziller's pride and joy.
Ride on, Slimy! What about Lexi? What about her? Where is she? I guess she's in her trailer.
Man, what have you been doing all this time? Do you smell something? Well, of course I smell something.
We're at a rodeo.
Sittin' in this dumb horse stall.
Propane.
The trailer.
I'll turn off the tanks.
Elmo! Elmo, wake up.
Elmo, wake up.
Sgt.
Maj.
Higgins! Snap to! What the bloody blazes is going on? Come on.
I knew it! You are Higgins.
I'm Elmo Ziller and I poke from Hondo, Texas.
Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you just tell me the truth? I didn't think you'd approve of what I'm doing.
You're right! What are you doing? Look here, Magnum, I'm the one who should be angry.
But as you can see, I'm perfectly calm.
You? Why should you be angry? Because you failed, damn it.
You had the fiends within your grasp and allowed them to slip away.
A wretched display of tactics and command.
Not to mention an abysmal failure to perform even rudimentary detective procedures, like finding one loud coarse woman.
That's funny, and all the time I thought I was saving your life.
Stop it! Please, Uncle Jonathan, Thomas.
I'm sorry, child.
We do seem to be losing sight of the point.
Now that you Now that you've brought it up, what exactly is the point, or is that a secret, too? Elmo's dead, isn't he? Yes.
No! Texas state troopers found his pickup burned and gutted just outside Hondo.
But there was no body.
It seems Elmo dragged himself into the desert with a broken leg.
Extraordinary.
Of course I suppose Father's blood would win out in a situation like that.
So he disappeared in the desert? They tracked him as far as the Mexican border.
Then it was up to the Federales.
They didn't find him, but they really didn't look, either.
He's alive.
I know it.
Holed up somewhere south of the border till he can heal.
I suppose he could be alive.
He's got enough meanness in him.
It's called grit in Texas.
He's alive.
So until he shows up I gotta keep Marcella's grubby little hands off the rodeo.
I figure the best way to do that is to prove she tried to kill him.
The rodeo means that much to you? It does to Daddy.
He means everything to me.
Well, there's only one way to force Marcella's hand.
So we just try again, that's all.
Oh, goody.
I can't wait to see how you're gonna screw it up this time.
Well, ma'am, you gave us round-trip tickets and that's all.
We could just go on home and take the loss.
I have given you $10,000.
On paper.
When I sell the show.
Well, it seems to me you don't got the show yet.
Thanks to you bozos.
$20,000.
What? We want $20,000, or we go home.
I don't even like this place.
You heard the man.
Just get it right this time, okay? Hey, there might just be hope for you yet, son.
Just tell me one thing, will you? How did you get on that bucking horse? Oh, dear fellow.
Those polo games in India were bloody hell compared to this.
Hey, Bud, when and how we gonna pull this thing off? We ain't.
Huh? Not now, anyways.
Not here.
Too many people.
When are we gonna do it? We're gonna grab him before the show.
This time, I got a plan.
Oh, this I gotta hear.
Oh, yeah? You know that little cowgirl you been sparking? What about her? Higg I mean, Bronco.
Come on.
You're gonna be late for the show.
Dear fellow, your protective instinct is touching, but this strategy won't work.
What's the matter? All I'm supposed to do is walk you to the arena.
Thomas and T.
C My point is that those blackguards won't try to kill me with you hovering about.
You must be invisible.
In other words, keep your distance, Rick.
Okay.
Done.
Now, buckaroo, let Bronco ride! Hey.
You're new here, ain't you? Yep.
I just love a man in a uniform.
No kidding.
How'd you know I was in the service? No.
I mean this uniform.
Where's Higgins? I thought he was with you.
L They must've grabbed him in the stalls.
Check the chutes.
T.
C.
, watch the ring.
Give me a hand.
He's following us on a horse.
Darn it.
This is all quite ridiculous, you know.
I am obviously not Bronco Elmo.
Aw, shut up! The police know everything.
Even now, they're in hot pursuit.
Immediate surrender is your only rational alternative.
What is that thing? Get that thing out of the way! We're going over the curb.
Hold on! Hey, what are you what are you doing? Hold it right there! Really, Magnum, when will you learn? It's, "Reach for the sky, hombre.
" It was just like the Saturday double features I used to spend my allowance on.
The bad guys confessed.
The evil stepmother went to jail with them and the ranch, or the rodeo, was saved.
The only thing left was goodbye.
Only this time, it was the girl riding into the sunset.
Where's the rodeo off to now? Texas.
Season's over till spring.
And you? Mexico.
Daddy's down there somewhere and I'm gonna find him.
That's the old Higgins spirit.
Oh, Uncle Jonathan, I love you dearly and I'll always be grateful for what you did for Daddy and me.
Thanks doesn't really say it, does it? It says a whole lot.
And this, too.
I don't suppose you ever get to Texas, do you? But the rodeo always comes back to town, doesn't it? Next season, cowboy.
That's a promise.
And look after Uncle Jonathan.
He really put his life in your hands, counting on you to trap the killer.
You bet.
Take care.
A brave and resourceful girl.
I shall miss her.
You know, Higgins, I want to thank you, too.
Whatever for? For trusting me with your life that way.
Putting your faith in my skill and ability as a private investigator.
It's very important to me, knowing you think I'm really a professional.
Professional? Really, Magnum? I did it because you have more dumb luck than anyone I know.