Law & Order: Criminal Intent (2001) s03e12 Episode Script
Unrequited
The following story is fictional and does not depict any actual person or event.
In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the Major Case Squad.
These are their stories.
Saints do not move, though grant for prayer's sake.
Then move not while my prayer's effect I take.
Uh, time.
Problem, Romeo? It's like kissing my grandmother.
I can't.
Try acting.
Let's continue.
Thus from my lips, by thine my sin is purged.
Then have my lips the sin that they have took? Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urged.
Give me back my sin again.
Good choice, Marion.
A round of applause for our brilliant Juliet.
He's all yours.
Okay, Marion.
Chin down, no smile.
You're sultry.
You eat men for lunch.
Nice.
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Take a breather, sweetheart.
I brought the final list.
Uh, Marty Chapman agreed to emcee.
I thought he wasn't available.
No doesn't always mean no.
I just need you to sign off on the budget.
I'm bad with figures.
You know that.
Harvey, all these famous people! You're a magician! It's only the beginning.
I want full tox screens on every sample.
Okay, folks.
It's time to pick your pockets.
So out with the checkbooks.
That's right.
I want you to give till it hurts.
Which for some of you shouldn't take that long.
She promised 35.
We got 25.
What's she trying to pull? Nothing, Stan.
Just a misunderstanding.
Now let's take a moment to say thank you to our gorgeous hostess for the evening, Marion Whitney.
Isn't she lovely? And she opened her beautiful home for this worthy cause.
But I would sincerely ask you all - I need to see you in the library.
- Daniel, I'm in the middle of There are two detectives here about your husband.
James? Tell them he passed away.
That's why they're here.
They're saying he was murdered.
Law & Order CI James wasn't poisoned.
He had emphysema.
Everyone knows that's what killed him.
Everyone except the medical examiner who did the autopsy.
You exhumed the body? On what authority? A court order based on information in a letter from an anonymous source.
I would have thought the police knew better than to put stock in an anonymous letter.
I assume that since you didn't bother to notify Mrs.
Whitney of the exhumation that this letter also names her as a suspect.
Like you said, we know better than to put stock in anonymous letters.
"New York Gives A Damn.
" This is one of your late husband's causes? No.
One of mine.
You're interrupting a very important evening.
We can come back tomorrow.
That would be so much better.
Yeah.
But since we're here The death certificate says your husband died in his sleep in the early evening.
Who was here that day? The staff, my husband's nurse, Daniel There were lots of visitors.
We'll need their names.
Your husband was taking medications? For his blood pressure.
And oxygen for his emphysema.
That's, uh, Marty Chapman? My mom and I used to watch him every Sunday night.
If you behave, you can come and listen to his monologue.
We'd like that.
The oxygen It came through a tube into his nose from a tank? Yes, from a tank, Detective.
Please, are we done? You haven't asked what kind of poison killed your husband.
I mean, that's just what people usually ask.
What? Are you accusing me? You're just distracted with the party.
An organophosphate toxin.
The poison.
They've started dancing.
Daniel will give you the names.
I'm sure this is all just an awful mistake.
You must love dancing.
You're just so light on your feet.
I'm a student of the dance.
Dance of the merry widow.
Office Of Medical Examiner Thursday, December 4 And the tanks are sealed.
So the trick was introducing the toxin into the old guy's oxygen stream.
Uh, the toxin it vaporizes easily? Yeah.
It's designed to.
It's an industrial pesticide.
Well, if you mix it with a base, like, uh, petroleum jelly? It would vaporize at a slower rate.
Death would take longer.
You could coat the inside of the connector with the toxin and petroleum jelly.
Toxin would be released into the oxygen as it passed into the breathing tube.
Hmm.
And you hook him up for his nap, and it would be like he died in his sleep.
Maybe you should talk to the kindly person who tucked him in.
Poisoned? How's that possible? It was something he inhaled through his nose.
Then it must have come from the oxygen tanks or the cannula.
That's what we thought.
We also thought that it was standard procedure for the company that rents the equipment to pick it up.
But you returned it yourself the very next morning way up in Yonkers.
The invoice says so.
That was Mr.
Whitney's idea.
Since the rental place was on my way home, he'd have me do it to save on delivery.
Sounds like Mr.
Whitney never met a nickel he didn't like.
/ He was stingy.
But his wife seems anything but.
She was hosting a big-time fund-raiser at her house the other night.
She was? Good for her.
She's having fun.
She wasn't having fun when Mr.
Whitney was around? Hardly.
She belonged to this little singing group at the "Y," something called Bound for Broadway.
She'd have to sneak out to perform at senior centers around the city.
I have to get these meds upstairs.
Excuse me.
Maybe singing wasn't the only thing she was sneaking out for.
The photo.
That's her, uh, cochair from her fund-raisers.
Lawrence Bradley.
They look very cozy in that chair.
/ Hmm.
Lawrence Bradley Acting Studio Friday, December 5 What the hell are you imagining? I'm interested in her acting.
I signed her on as a student four weeks ago.
Do you have a lot of students in their 60s? / No.
Fifties? Forties? I'm guessing 25's the cutoff for actresses.
Twenty-six if they're pretty.
You have no idea.
I hold auditions.
Students have to show commitment and talent and - A big bank account? - I have no interest in that at all.
Lincoln Center Awards, 1999 to 2003.
- You have any former students on here? - No.
Just wishful thinking? Yes.
Very good.
That's That's what it is.
I'm thinking you're mentoring students.
You're cochairing fund-raisers.
These are things that would impress the Lincoln Center nominating committee for service awards.
And that's how Marion Whitney got in your class.
She's using her influence to wrangle you up big-time recognition.
I have no time for this, and I certainly have no time for you.
Marty showed such generosity taking time away from his busy schedule.
I really believe I made a dear friend that night.
Many dear friends.
It was electric.
All thanks to you, Harvey.
This son of yours, Esther.
You are the luckiest woman alive.
Oh, who can that be? I have to take this.
Please excuse me.
"You are the luckiest woman alive.
" Ma, please! I thought you would like her.
Why should I? - You getting married? - Of course not.
Don't worry.
I have a pretty good idea who We'll have our own autopsy.
Daniel, this is my moment now.
I will not tolerate obstacles.
Money's just been flying out of her pocket dance lessons, voice coaches.
She's servicing a long-suppressed ambition.
To star in the uptown Y's production of Mame? Pretty slim motive to kill your husband of 40 years.
So far the only person who thinks she did it is our anonymous letter writer.
We getting any closer to giving him a name? No prints, no saliva for D.
N.
A.
The letter is just simply declaratory sentences printed on a dot-matrix printer.
You know, I've checked a dozen databases.
Until the fund-raiser last week, the Whitneys never came up in connection with any charity works, or the arts, not even a mention in the society pages.
But all of a sudden, Marion Whitney's hosting charity events, arranging awards This check for 10 grand Marion signed it, somebody else wrote in the amount, and a third person wrote in the payee.
Waste Management, Inc.
Dated two weeks after her husband died.
They gave you this address because I'm Marty Chapman's business manager.
Waste Management is what Marty named his personal corporation.
Because of all the crap he's had to put up with.
Oh, it's a joke.
So why did Mrs.
Whitney pay Mr.
Chapman $10,000? Actually, she paid him 35.
This was the last payment.
We got it at the fund-raiser.
- Apayment for what? - To emcee the fund-raiser.
You know, that check you got last week It's dated six weeks ago.
All I know is, Harvey pulled it out of his pocket, filled in the amount and gave it to me.
Who's Harvey? Harvey Gruenwald.
He produces charity events.
And carries around blank checks signed by Marion Whitney.
"The Lincoln Center Awards.
" I see you have tapes here.
Dates all the way back to 1966.
Every year, I have a few clients on the nominating committee.
You have some tapes missing.
You lend them to someone? Harvey borrowed them.
He ever ask your help in getting someone nominated? Say, Lawrence Bradley? He asked me to find out what the committee was looking for.
- He asked when? - Maybe three months ago.
Hello.
/ Hmm.
Before James Whitney died, Marion Whitney already had Harvey plotting her new life.
Yeah.
/ And maybe her husband's death.
Murdered? No.
Marion didn't tell me.
That's just please so unexpected.
Uh, who do you think did it? We're keeping an open mind.
Did you speak to Mrs.
Whitney that day? What, talk to her? I was at the house.
Right.
Your name was on the list she gave us.
And the purpose of your visit? Uh, to ask, um, Marion about sponsoring a benefit.
- How did you meet Mrs.
Whitney? - At a benefit.
Don't ask me which one.
I'm always meeting new people.
- Like all these people? - Yes.
Yes.
That's me with Al, with Dusty, Hill and Bill, with Liza.
That's you and the governor and the two mayors.
Yes.
That was at a benefit for First Responders.
Six months ago? That was one of yours? - I was there.
- I hope you made a donation.
Well, it was hard not to.
So with all these close friends in the acting profession, did it make it easier for you to get Marion into Lawrence Bradley's acting class? All I did was get her an audition, as a friend.
Marion's wonderful talent did the rest.
And as a friend, I'm sure you dangled a Lincoln Center Award in front of Mr.
Bradley.
Where did you get that idea? From Marty Chapman's business manager.
You asked him about the nominating procedures.
I don't remember.
But everything I do, it's always as a friend.
Look, I Hel Hi, Ma.
Yes, I have your prescriptions.
I'll bring them with me when I pick you up at the center.
You having fun? Uh, yeah Listen, Ma, I'm gonna have to call you back.
Love you.
I like how you're so nice to your mother.
She lives alone in Astoria.
I like her to check in.
I have a meeting downtown.
If you have any more questions, my secretary can schedule an appointment.
Harvey Gruenwald's put on 11 major benefits in the last two years, all for well-known charities.
So far, everyone I've talked to says the same thing: He's irritating, but he gets the job done.
Can't be easy getting people to part with their time and money.
I'm starting to see how he does it.
Hubris and flattery big part of it.
And the facial tic It's, uh, disarming.
The more anxious he gets, the worse it gets.
/ Oh, thanks.
If it's like most simple motor tics, it's developed in early childhood.
See what you missed? This is the check from the First Responders benefit, front and back.
Five hundred bucks? Who's Terry? My date.
What was I supposed to do while I was pregnant? Sit home and knit? Check the endorsement.
It was signed over to a men's clothing store.
We applied that check to this invoice.
There's still a balance due.
Five thousand dollars worth of ties? They were party favors for celebrities at one of his benefits.
What's this notation here: "Animal patterns only"? Oh, the theme of the benefit was endangered Asian wildlife.
No, see, the theme of this benefit was endangered rescue workers.
Last July? Well, the wildlife benefit was in May.
We stopped working with him.
We've heard he's been stiffing people left and right since last spring.
- Can we get a copy of this invoice? - Sure.
So Harvey's having to rob Peter to pay the pandas.
How lucky for him Marion Whitney dropped into his lap.
Lucky? He told us that he met her at a benefit.
She didn't attend benefits before her husband died.
Maybe her singing group from the "Y" performed at a senior center in Astoria.
Oh, yes.
Bound for Broadway.
They come here regularly.
Our seniors enjoy it.
Of course, it helps they're a little hard of hearing.
And Marion Whitney's always a part of the show? Oh, sure.
We all get a big kick out of her.
She rolls up in her chauffeur-driven Bentley, and the whole singing group on board.
Um, is there a Mrs.
Gruenwald that comes here? Gruenwald.
Oh, Esther.
Yes.
- She has a son? Harvey? - Mm-hmm.
Now, does he ever accompany her to Mrs.
Whitney's shows? Once or twice, yes.
He's a wonderful young man.
You ever see him chat up Mrs.
Whitney? Yes.
The last time she was here.
Oh, that must have been three months ago.
Harvey came alone.
He said his mother was under the weather.
And after the show, I saw him ask Mrs.
Whitney for her autograph.
Uh, these were, um, done on a computer here? Yes.
We have donated equipment that our seniors can use.
- Including a dot-matrix printer.
- Yes.
Home Of Esther Gruenwald Queens, New York Tuesday, December 9 I have to take my nap.
I don't have time for you now.
Anyway, Harvey doesn't live here anymore.
He has a hideaway bed in his office.
But he sleeps over sometimes.
Uh, there's a quilt and a pillow on that couch.
You can see it just fine from right here.
Yes, he sleeps over.
It's easy for him.
No wife, no kids, no life.
You don't think much of his charity work? It's not like he's out in the jungle healing the lepers.
He plans parties, for God's sakes.
A grown man.
But important people support what he does um, Marty Chapman, Marion Whitney.
He thinks they care about him.
They don't care.
How could they? I mean, he sweats, and that thing with his face.
Well, they take advantage ofhis good nature.
- It wouldn't surprise me.
- Marion Whitney, for example.
We hear she's got him on a short leash.
He's not here five minutes, she's calling him.
Her husband died not too long ago.
He was poisoned.
You know how we found out? A good citizen sent us a letter with valuable information.
Valuable up-up to a point.
We need this good citizen to tell us what they know.
- That smell Is that coffee? - Mmm.
Yeah, I only made enough for one cup.
You are tough, Mrs.
Gruenwald, 'cause normally Detective Eames and I, we'd be in the living room by now.
I told you I don't have time for you.
I don't say things just to hear myself talk.
We'll leave our card, just in case.
Your hands sweat.
No, IYou wiped your hands.
I don't mean to embarrass you.
It's just, um It's a side effect of medications that you take? Same thing happened to my mother when she took her medications.
It's the pills I take for my headaches.
Headaches? Butalbital? My mom used to take that.
Yeah, well, I'm still takin' it.
If she wrote the letter, she blamed Marion Whitney for the murder.
- Isn't Harvey your suspect? - Maybe.
But the mother is jealous of the attention that he lavishes on Marion.
She might've written the letter to get rid of Marion.
Whatever cards this old gal's holding, you need to get her to show 'em to you.
And a dot-matrix printer isn't gonna do it.
Well, maybe this will.
The lab found traces of Butalbital in the letter.
It's secreted through the sweat on Mrs.
Gruenwald's hands.
Call Carver.
Get a subpoena.
Thank you so much for coming.
Thank you.
Harvey, what are you doing in there? Ma, I'm busy.
I have to tell you something.
What do you wanna tell me? The police came by this morning.
They asked me about that Whitney woman.
They think she killed her husband.
That's ridiculous.
Why would they want to ask you? I don't know.
You be careful around her.
You're so impressed with her, you'd do anything she tells you.
She's not your friend.
Come on.
Don't be like that.
Not one of them, Harvey.
You go ahead, have your picture taken with them all you want.
That doesn't mean they respect you.
How would you know? You never once I'll see you in the morning, Ma.
Mrs.
Gruenwald? This is Detectives Eames and Goren.
This is Unit 229.
We have a 10-54.
Female down.
Central, put a rush on that, "K.
" Bed sheets are turned down.
Box of crackers on the nightstand.
She was probably in bed when she heard an intruder.
She's got a chipped tooth.
Got it.
- Well, let's mark that.
- Yes, sir.
All right.
There's a nick.
Well, the perp didn't want to break in unless he was sure where she was.
He opened the lock, rang the doorbell.
When she got to the door Smash in her face.
The rest was easy.
Here we go.
- There's a chipped tooth there.
- Yeah.
Victim's here.
/ Okay.
What are you doing here? Where's my mother? You can't go in there.
It's a crime scene.
What kind of a crime? What are you talking about? Your mother was murdered last night.
We're very sorry.
Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Ma! Ma! I should have stayed with her last night after the burglary downstairs.
We don't think this was a burglary.
We think someone came in to kill her.
Are you all right? Do you need a drink of water? No.
It's this suit.
I rented it at the last minute.
This is the only size that they had.
You had a benefit last night? No.
It was the opening night of the Sinatra thing at Radio City.
I went with Mrs.
Whitney.
We think your mother sent us a letter accusing Marion Whitney of poisoning her husband.
No.
No.
Ma liked Marion.
That's not the impression she gave us.
Well, Ma has her own way of showing affection.
You don't know her.
I have to, uh, make some calls to relatives.
I'll be at my office.
Thank you so much for coming.
Harvey nearly swallowed his face when we told him it wasn't a burglary.
You confirm his alibi for last night? Two ushers at Radio City saw him sitting next to Marion Whitney.
Harvey was genuinely shaken about his mother's death.
And afraid.
Now something's inspiring that fear.
Maybe it's the fact that he owes money everywhere.
What's he doing with these funds he collects at these benefits? The charities say he turns over about 10 percent to them.
The rest he claims for expenses.
But he's not spending it on himself.
He bunks in his office or on his mother's couch.
- He even rents his tux.
- Then where's the money going? Maybe the question to ask is, where did Harvey get the money from in the first place? These benefits, they cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to put on.
What was he doing before he started hitting up socialites? Driving them.
Three years ago, Harvey worked for a limousine company.
Viceroy Limousine 81 10th Avenue Thursday, December 11 Harvey was a driver.
He had terrific people skills.
- People skills? What kind? - It's the damnedest thing.
Whenever he drove famous people around, he'd come home with an autograph, or even a picture with them, without pissing them off.
Which isn't easy, let me tell you.
Well, maybe it's his tic.
You know, people feel they can't say no to him.
You gotta use what God gave you.
God didn't give Harvey the seed money for his fund-raising business, did he? No.
I did.
The kid discovered a secret.
You offer a celebrity enough money, they'll show up pretty much wherever you want 'em to.
- We've heard that.
- It's true.
Let me show you.
That's my daughter's wedding.
See who I'm standing next to? Looks a lot like Charleton Heston.
Well, Harvey was driving him.
He knew I was a big fan.
The next thing you know, I got Moses doing the invocation at my daughter's wedding.
And it only cost me 10 grand.
/ Oh.
- Do you mind if I get a drink of water? - Be my guest.
So how does it work? Harvey takes a cut from the fund-raising to cover his overhead, and you take a cut of that? It's notjust the money.
I'm thinking about getting into the music business.
And thanks to Harvey, I've made some great contacts.
Cut crystal.
And there's a lot of them.
They're for the limos.
Apal of mine owns a glassware company.
Crystal Needs.
That's where Harvey rents his glasses for his fund-raisers.
Harvey rent from any other pals of yours? Pal of mine's in the linen business.
Another pal of mine rents tables and chairs.
Harvey keeps a lot of your "pals" in business.
The start-up money, Mr.
Weaver It was a loan.
A high-interest loan.
We have a legal binding contract.
Secured by these pals of yours in the wedding photo? Besides Moses, I see Carmine Masucci, Tony Virgini, Mike Tobis.
You guys are bleeding Harvey dry, aren't you? How much does he owe you? We're up to date.
Harvey cut me a nice check last month.
Last month? Then this little angel floated down from heaven to save Harvey.
"To Nicholas, with warm regards.
Marion.
" Another pal of yours? Now she is.
It's her money.
She's free to do with it what she wants, even if it means helping Mr.
Gruenwald repay a business debt.
A $500,000 debt? Did he tell you who he owed it to? His partner, Mr.
Weaver.
Uh, Nicholas "Nickie Boy" Weaver.
He's a loan shark with ties to various crime organizations.
Harvey was desperate to meet his obligation to him.
That's why he made a point of running into you at the senior center.
That's why he killed your husband.
I don't believe that for a minute.
And it's why his mother's dead.
She wrote letters to the police.
She posed a threat to Mr.
Weaver's investment.
What do you expect my client to do about all this? We need her help making a case against Mr.
Gruenwald.
You're wrong about Harvey.
Well, we're not wrong about Nick Weaver.
Once he's wrung every last dime out of Harvey, it'll be your turn.
You hear that, Daniel? He's trying to scare me.
You really are a poor judge of character, Detective.
Well, if you'll excuse me.
Well, you're a hard character to pin down, Mrs.
Whitney.
You know, I was surprised finding your autographed photo hanging in a mobster's office.
That wasn't the face of a friendly witness.
Gruenwald's got her hook, line and sinker.
She refuses to see who she's dealing with.
We should've showed her Esther's autopsy.
Her killer practically ripped her arm off dragging her to the couch.
I think that Marion sees very clearly who she's dealing with.
But she seems to be pursuing her own agenda.
This says that Harvey's mother had scarring on her lungs.
Right.
Consistent with a case of bronchial asthma four years ago.
Well, I wonder what kind of inhalation therapy they gave her.
Yeah, that's right.
That's very nice.
Harvey Harvey, you cannot dwell.
I keep seeing her.
It's It's all my fault.
That isn't true.
You know, we can give a benefit in her memory.
- What was her favorite charity? - I don't know.
We'll think of something appropriate.
That's how you deal with loss.
You fling yourself back into life.
This'll knock 'em back on their heels.
What do you say? This is how she treated her asthma.
- The medication goes in here? - Yeah.
And then it's, uh, vaporized and inhaled through here.
Somebody took it apart to see how it worked.
Petroleum jelly.
There are specks.
Cinnamon? Well, Harvey mixed 'em together to test to see if the The smell would be released when the vapor passed through it.
That's how he got the idea to kill James Whitney.
Well, let's go give him a science prize.
- Then I can count on you? - Okay, Harvey.
We can't do this without you.
- Thank you so much.
- Yeah.
Bye-bye.
/ Harvey Gruenwald.
Mr.
Gruenwald, you're under arrest for the murder of James Whitney.
Please.
No.
Not in front of all these people.
Believe me, Harvey, they've seen worse.
Harvey, this way.
Done? I told you.
I never touched Ma's medical stuff.
So you can't tell us how your greasy little fingerprints got all over the inside of this gizmo? Uh, Ma might've asked me to fix it.
With petroleum jelly? Why? The little motor was squeaking? It was an experiment, wasn't it, Harvey? Before you Well, before you moved on to James Whitney, oxygen tank, the poison.
I didn't have anything to do with that.
I didn't kill him.
No, see, this proves that you did, and we know why you did.
Your partner, Nickie Boy, was squeezing you.
He's the big fish, Harvey.
That's who we want.
What are you people trying to do? Get a mob loan shark off the street.
He put you up to killing Mr.
Whitney.
And then he killed your mother.
He knew you'd be out.
Tha-That's not true.
I never told him I was going out.
Well, the tux It was tight, right? That's because you rented it last minute, because that's how you got the tickets to Radio City last minute.
Yes.
I had to rush around.
I didn't have time to call Nick or anybody.
I'm George Salinas.
I've been retained to represent Mr.
Gruenwald.
My client's invoking.
The person who invited you That was Marion? Yes.
/ That's enough.
Harvey's not taking us seriously.
He will when the judge denies him bail.
- I'm asking for remand.
- Based on a nebulizer? Based on his misappropriation of charitable donations and on two murder counts.
I'm charging him for his mother's death.
Send him over for arraignment when you're ready.
You know, opening night tickets for Radio City couldn't be easy to get.
I'd like to find out how Marion snagged 'em.
Arraignment Court Tuesday, December 16 Not guilty.
Your Honor, the People ask for remand.
Your Honor, Mr.
Gruenwald's prepared to post a million dollars to guarantee his appearance at trial.
Your Honor, we have two elderly victims callously murdered.
Your Honor, we're prepared to post two million dollars.
Mr.
Gruenwald is a flight risk with no residential address in the city.
We'll post three million dollars and agree to an ankle bracelet.
He'll go to work.
He'll go home.
Nothing else.
He can have crossed five states before anyone notices he's missing.
Your Honor, if bail is granted today, we won't object if Mr.
Carver wants to revisit the issue in a week.
I don't see how I can say no.
Bail is three million.
Defendant will be fitted with a monitoring device, and I want him back here next week.
Next case.
Now I know what a cattle auction feels like.
Harvey's lawyer was taking his bidding cues from Marion Whitney.
She wants him out for this week.
She needs him for something.
You have full access to Mr.
Gruenwald's records.
See what he's up to.
The Kathleen Karr Project is a program we run for underprivileged kids.
Mr.
Gruenwald made a generous contribution.
We saw the check.
We also saw your address on an invoice from a florist.
Mr.
Gruenwald's having a boatload of roses delivered here next Monday.
I'm letting him use the theater for a little show he's producing.
A little show starring Marion Whitney.
The audience Do you know who's coming? Gruenwald faxed me the list last week.
I recognize some of the names on the first page.
They're a little creaky.
I recognize some of these names too.
I heard Gruenwald tell her all the guests were A-list people.
You've met Mrs.
Whitney? She came in for a lighting rehearsal.
I bet she was excited.
I couldn't figure her out.
One minute she seemed out of her depth, the next she sounded like she had greasepaint in her veins.
Uh, for example? She asked for side shin lighting.
I told her that's mostly for dancers to highlight their legs, but, uh, no dancing in her show.
Uh, you said "mostly.
" What else are they used for? For children.
- Where on earth did you find this? - Actors Equity.
They had it under her maiden name.
This photo must be from the '50s.
Actors Equity keep them that long? As long as you pay your dues.
She was 12 years old when she played her last bit part.
Long time to hold on to a dream.
Come Monday, she's hoping to prove it was worth it.
And this is why she needs Mr.
Gruenwald out of jail till then.
I'd prefer we had all three of them.
You might get your wish, once Harvey and Marion see how they fail to live up to each other's expectations.
Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts.
Unsex me here and fill me From the crown to the toe.
Harvey.
Harvey, who's in the front row? I'm still juggling.
There are people coming from London.
I want to keep the center seats for them.
London? Harvey, you're my rock.
Larry, I think I should be nearer to the edge of the stage.
I want to fix them with my eyes.
I want to frighten them.
Take my word for it, Marion.
If they're here tonight, they'll be frightened.
Come / There he is.
My partner thought you skipped.
I'm sorry.
This is a closed rehearsal.
Sorry, but we need to make sure Mr.
Gruenwald is complying with his bail.
Still wearing your ankle monitor, aren't you? / Yeah, I am.
There it is.
Still ticking.
Harvey and I have important work to do.
You know You know, you guys are lucky to have found each other.
I know.
Thank you.
It's hard to say who's luckier you or Harvey.
I'd say Harvey.
Before he met you, Mrs.
Whitney, he was being skinned alive by Nick Weaver.
You know, your arrangement with Nick Weaver Even on a good month, it's hand-to-mouth.
Oh, I don't do this to get rich.
Well, you're not doing it to get poor though, either, are ya? It's the celebrities.
Getting your picture taken with them.
Being on a first-name basis.
Well, it makes you important.
No.
No.
/ Come on.
It shows that you have value.
It proved it to your mother.
Oh, sure it did.
/ No.
We found the autographed photos that you gave your mother.
"A terrific kid.
" "What a great kid.
" I mean, if Dino and Jack say so, then Mom has to believe it's true.
I didn't tell them to write this.
Harvey, this need, this pathological need It's what got you into deep trouble with Nick Weaver.
You didn't want to believe he killed your husband, but now we have proof.
We found this in his mother's apartment.
He practiced on it before tampering with your husband's oxygen tank.
- Oh, that's-that's not true, Marion.
- I know.
Don't worry, Harvey.
Marion doesn't care if you killed James.
It gave her an opportunity of a lifetime.
- Fifty years, to be exact.
- That's exactly how long little Marion Lester's been waiting by the stage door.
My God! Where did you get this old thing? You see, Harvey, you need the approval of one special person.
But Marion here Well, she wants, you know, the whole world to love her.
And tonight, thanks to you, she's gonna feel the love.
That's why she kept you out of jail.
But after tonight, she's done with you.
Wha What are you talking about? You have your bail hearing tomorrow.
Well, your lawyer the one Marion hired for you he should've filed papers in support of that bail, but he hasn't done any of those things.
He knows what he's doing.
He's going to jail tomorrow.
Harvey another casualty of little Marion's ambition.
Harvey, we'll talk about this later.
Now stop listening to them.
After the show tonight, that's when you'll talk.
You don't wanna spoil her big night.
I mean, she's worked so hard for it.
Isn't that right, Mr.
Bradley? Keep me out of this.
Her talent That's not why you took her on as a student.
Harvey has a connection with the Lincoln Center Awards Nominating Committee.
Have you heard anything from them yet, Mr.
Bradley? He's been promised an award.
A Purple Heart for being your acting coach.
But, you know, none of this should matter to your audience tonight.
By the way, have you seen the guest list? It's at my office.
/ We asked the theater manager for a copy.
- H-He doesn't have the final list.
- There are nearly 200 people here.
A full house.
Do you know any of them? They're all behind-the-scenes people, agents.
- She wouldn't recognize any of them.
- Well, we looked them up.
Um, well, there's this guy here.
He represents child actors.
He was so disappointed when we told him that you were, you know, all grown up.
And that one He books talent for cruises up the Hudson River.
Now the rest Well, for example, there's this page.
Uh, these are all people from your mother's senior center.
Right? He's busing them in.
And the next page Those are Nick Weaver's buddies and their wives.
They're mostly in the food and beverage business.
/ Stop it! Stop it! You gave Harvey all this money, and this is the pay off.
You cheat.
You fraud.
You charlatan.
It's not the final list, Marion.
There are people from London coming.
All my work.
All those years.
All this for those nobodies? No.
He took your money, your husband.
Yeah, yeah, he did.
No.
No.
That morning, I saw him in the pantry next to the tanks.
- No, Marion.
Please.
- And when I told him that James was taking a nap, he said to let him sleep.
Well, II didn't tell anyone 'cause I couldn't believe it, but now it's clear.
So, you're you're both even.
He killed your husband, and she helped kill your mother.
Your mother was gonna put a wrench into Marion's big night, so she got together with her new pal, Nick Weaver.
That's an absurd lie.
Ask her how she got those last-minute tickets to Radio City.
- Come on, ask her! - They were rush tickets! I think what she means is a messenger service rushed them from the agent's office to Nick Weaver's.
We even have the receipt.
/ And then Nick Weaver rushed them to Marion.
And then Marion rushed to call you to get you out of the house so one of Nick Weaver's pals could.
.
kill your mother.
You You helped him.
You You helped.
You begged me to go with you.
You wouldn't let me call my mother after the show.
- Harvey.
Harvey.
- You begged me to go with you.
You-You-You wouldn't let me call my mother.
She made me help her with her lines all night long while my mother was being murdered.
Mrs.
Whitney.
Don't touch me.
I haven't done anything.
It was Nick Weaver.
He threatened me.
I had no idea what he had in mind.
Well, I was gonna just ask you to step aside, but now I'm gonna have to put you under arrest.
You can't do this to me.
This can't be happening to me.
Sorry.
Looks like you forgot your ruby slippers.
Let's go, ma'am.
You too, Harvey.
/ No.
- You're under arrest.
- Please, no.
Oh, God.
Oh, God.
And they thought they were the answer to each other's prayers.
Well, they were.
I mean, she's gonna have another shot at fame at her trial.
And Harvey I think Harvey will like jail.
Well, it's where all the famous people are these days.
In New York City's war on crime, the worst criminal offenders are pursued by the detectives of the Major Case Squad.
These are their stories.
Saints do not move, though grant for prayer's sake.
Then move not while my prayer's effect I take.
Uh, time.
Problem, Romeo? It's like kissing my grandmother.
I can't.
Try acting.
Let's continue.
Thus from my lips, by thine my sin is purged.
Then have my lips the sin that they have took? Sin from my lips? O trespass sweetly urged.
Give me back my sin again.
Good choice, Marion.
A round of applause for our brilliant Juliet.
He's all yours.
Okay, Marion.
Chin down, no smile.
You're sultry.
You eat men for lunch.
Nice.
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Take a breather, sweetheart.
I brought the final list.
Uh, Marty Chapman agreed to emcee.
I thought he wasn't available.
No doesn't always mean no.
I just need you to sign off on the budget.
I'm bad with figures.
You know that.
Harvey, all these famous people! You're a magician! It's only the beginning.
I want full tox screens on every sample.
Okay, folks.
It's time to pick your pockets.
So out with the checkbooks.
That's right.
I want you to give till it hurts.
Which for some of you shouldn't take that long.
She promised 35.
We got 25.
What's she trying to pull? Nothing, Stan.
Just a misunderstanding.
Now let's take a moment to say thank you to our gorgeous hostess for the evening, Marion Whitney.
Isn't she lovely? And she opened her beautiful home for this worthy cause.
But I would sincerely ask you all - I need to see you in the library.
- Daniel, I'm in the middle of There are two detectives here about your husband.
James? Tell them he passed away.
That's why they're here.
They're saying he was murdered.
Law & Order CI James wasn't poisoned.
He had emphysema.
Everyone knows that's what killed him.
Everyone except the medical examiner who did the autopsy.
You exhumed the body? On what authority? A court order based on information in a letter from an anonymous source.
I would have thought the police knew better than to put stock in an anonymous letter.
I assume that since you didn't bother to notify Mrs.
Whitney of the exhumation that this letter also names her as a suspect.
Like you said, we know better than to put stock in anonymous letters.
"New York Gives A Damn.
" This is one of your late husband's causes? No.
One of mine.
You're interrupting a very important evening.
We can come back tomorrow.
That would be so much better.
Yeah.
But since we're here The death certificate says your husband died in his sleep in the early evening.
Who was here that day? The staff, my husband's nurse, Daniel There were lots of visitors.
We'll need their names.
Your husband was taking medications? For his blood pressure.
And oxygen for his emphysema.
That's, uh, Marty Chapman? My mom and I used to watch him every Sunday night.
If you behave, you can come and listen to his monologue.
We'd like that.
The oxygen It came through a tube into his nose from a tank? Yes, from a tank, Detective.
Please, are we done? You haven't asked what kind of poison killed your husband.
I mean, that's just what people usually ask.
What? Are you accusing me? You're just distracted with the party.
An organophosphate toxin.
The poison.
They've started dancing.
Daniel will give you the names.
I'm sure this is all just an awful mistake.
You must love dancing.
You're just so light on your feet.
I'm a student of the dance.
Dance of the merry widow.
Office Of Medical Examiner Thursday, December 4 And the tanks are sealed.
So the trick was introducing the toxin into the old guy's oxygen stream.
Uh, the toxin it vaporizes easily? Yeah.
It's designed to.
It's an industrial pesticide.
Well, if you mix it with a base, like, uh, petroleum jelly? It would vaporize at a slower rate.
Death would take longer.
You could coat the inside of the connector with the toxin and petroleum jelly.
Toxin would be released into the oxygen as it passed into the breathing tube.
Hmm.
And you hook him up for his nap, and it would be like he died in his sleep.
Maybe you should talk to the kindly person who tucked him in.
Poisoned? How's that possible? It was something he inhaled through his nose.
Then it must have come from the oxygen tanks or the cannula.
That's what we thought.
We also thought that it was standard procedure for the company that rents the equipment to pick it up.
But you returned it yourself the very next morning way up in Yonkers.
The invoice says so.
That was Mr.
Whitney's idea.
Since the rental place was on my way home, he'd have me do it to save on delivery.
Sounds like Mr.
Whitney never met a nickel he didn't like.
/ He was stingy.
But his wife seems anything but.
She was hosting a big-time fund-raiser at her house the other night.
She was? Good for her.
She's having fun.
She wasn't having fun when Mr.
Whitney was around? Hardly.
She belonged to this little singing group at the "Y," something called Bound for Broadway.
She'd have to sneak out to perform at senior centers around the city.
I have to get these meds upstairs.
Excuse me.
Maybe singing wasn't the only thing she was sneaking out for.
The photo.
That's her, uh, cochair from her fund-raisers.
Lawrence Bradley.
They look very cozy in that chair.
/ Hmm.
Lawrence Bradley Acting Studio Friday, December 5 What the hell are you imagining? I'm interested in her acting.
I signed her on as a student four weeks ago.
Do you have a lot of students in their 60s? / No.
Fifties? Forties? I'm guessing 25's the cutoff for actresses.
Twenty-six if they're pretty.
You have no idea.
I hold auditions.
Students have to show commitment and talent and - A big bank account? - I have no interest in that at all.
Lincoln Center Awards, 1999 to 2003.
- You have any former students on here? - No.
Just wishful thinking? Yes.
Very good.
That's That's what it is.
I'm thinking you're mentoring students.
You're cochairing fund-raisers.
These are things that would impress the Lincoln Center nominating committee for service awards.
And that's how Marion Whitney got in your class.
She's using her influence to wrangle you up big-time recognition.
I have no time for this, and I certainly have no time for you.
Marty showed such generosity taking time away from his busy schedule.
I really believe I made a dear friend that night.
Many dear friends.
It was electric.
All thanks to you, Harvey.
This son of yours, Esther.
You are the luckiest woman alive.
Oh, who can that be? I have to take this.
Please excuse me.
"You are the luckiest woman alive.
" Ma, please! I thought you would like her.
Why should I? - You getting married? - Of course not.
Don't worry.
I have a pretty good idea who We'll have our own autopsy.
Daniel, this is my moment now.
I will not tolerate obstacles.
Money's just been flying out of her pocket dance lessons, voice coaches.
She's servicing a long-suppressed ambition.
To star in the uptown Y's production of Mame? Pretty slim motive to kill your husband of 40 years.
So far the only person who thinks she did it is our anonymous letter writer.
We getting any closer to giving him a name? No prints, no saliva for D.
N.
A.
The letter is just simply declaratory sentences printed on a dot-matrix printer.
You know, I've checked a dozen databases.
Until the fund-raiser last week, the Whitneys never came up in connection with any charity works, or the arts, not even a mention in the society pages.
But all of a sudden, Marion Whitney's hosting charity events, arranging awards This check for 10 grand Marion signed it, somebody else wrote in the amount, and a third person wrote in the payee.
Waste Management, Inc.
Dated two weeks after her husband died.
They gave you this address because I'm Marty Chapman's business manager.
Waste Management is what Marty named his personal corporation.
Because of all the crap he's had to put up with.
Oh, it's a joke.
So why did Mrs.
Whitney pay Mr.
Chapman $10,000? Actually, she paid him 35.
This was the last payment.
We got it at the fund-raiser.
- Apayment for what? - To emcee the fund-raiser.
You know, that check you got last week It's dated six weeks ago.
All I know is, Harvey pulled it out of his pocket, filled in the amount and gave it to me.
Who's Harvey? Harvey Gruenwald.
He produces charity events.
And carries around blank checks signed by Marion Whitney.
"The Lincoln Center Awards.
" I see you have tapes here.
Dates all the way back to 1966.
Every year, I have a few clients on the nominating committee.
You have some tapes missing.
You lend them to someone? Harvey borrowed them.
He ever ask your help in getting someone nominated? Say, Lawrence Bradley? He asked me to find out what the committee was looking for.
- He asked when? - Maybe three months ago.
Hello.
/ Hmm.
Before James Whitney died, Marion Whitney already had Harvey plotting her new life.
Yeah.
/ And maybe her husband's death.
Murdered? No.
Marion didn't tell me.
That's just please so unexpected.
Uh, who do you think did it? We're keeping an open mind.
Did you speak to Mrs.
Whitney that day? What, talk to her? I was at the house.
Right.
Your name was on the list she gave us.
And the purpose of your visit? Uh, to ask, um, Marion about sponsoring a benefit.
- How did you meet Mrs.
Whitney? - At a benefit.
Don't ask me which one.
I'm always meeting new people.
- Like all these people? - Yes.
Yes.
That's me with Al, with Dusty, Hill and Bill, with Liza.
That's you and the governor and the two mayors.
Yes.
That was at a benefit for First Responders.
Six months ago? That was one of yours? - I was there.
- I hope you made a donation.
Well, it was hard not to.
So with all these close friends in the acting profession, did it make it easier for you to get Marion into Lawrence Bradley's acting class? All I did was get her an audition, as a friend.
Marion's wonderful talent did the rest.
And as a friend, I'm sure you dangled a Lincoln Center Award in front of Mr.
Bradley.
Where did you get that idea? From Marty Chapman's business manager.
You asked him about the nominating procedures.
I don't remember.
But everything I do, it's always as a friend.
Look, I Hel Hi, Ma.
Yes, I have your prescriptions.
I'll bring them with me when I pick you up at the center.
You having fun? Uh, yeah Listen, Ma, I'm gonna have to call you back.
Love you.
I like how you're so nice to your mother.
She lives alone in Astoria.
I like her to check in.
I have a meeting downtown.
If you have any more questions, my secretary can schedule an appointment.
Harvey Gruenwald's put on 11 major benefits in the last two years, all for well-known charities.
So far, everyone I've talked to says the same thing: He's irritating, but he gets the job done.
Can't be easy getting people to part with their time and money.
I'm starting to see how he does it.
Hubris and flattery big part of it.
And the facial tic It's, uh, disarming.
The more anxious he gets, the worse it gets.
/ Oh, thanks.
If it's like most simple motor tics, it's developed in early childhood.
See what you missed? This is the check from the First Responders benefit, front and back.
Five hundred bucks? Who's Terry? My date.
What was I supposed to do while I was pregnant? Sit home and knit? Check the endorsement.
It was signed over to a men's clothing store.
We applied that check to this invoice.
There's still a balance due.
Five thousand dollars worth of ties? They were party favors for celebrities at one of his benefits.
What's this notation here: "Animal patterns only"? Oh, the theme of the benefit was endangered Asian wildlife.
No, see, the theme of this benefit was endangered rescue workers.
Last July? Well, the wildlife benefit was in May.
We stopped working with him.
We've heard he's been stiffing people left and right since last spring.
- Can we get a copy of this invoice? - Sure.
So Harvey's having to rob Peter to pay the pandas.
How lucky for him Marion Whitney dropped into his lap.
Lucky? He told us that he met her at a benefit.
She didn't attend benefits before her husband died.
Maybe her singing group from the "Y" performed at a senior center in Astoria.
Oh, yes.
Bound for Broadway.
They come here regularly.
Our seniors enjoy it.
Of course, it helps they're a little hard of hearing.
And Marion Whitney's always a part of the show? Oh, sure.
We all get a big kick out of her.
She rolls up in her chauffeur-driven Bentley, and the whole singing group on board.
Um, is there a Mrs.
Gruenwald that comes here? Gruenwald.
Oh, Esther.
Yes.
- She has a son? Harvey? - Mm-hmm.
Now, does he ever accompany her to Mrs.
Whitney's shows? Once or twice, yes.
He's a wonderful young man.
You ever see him chat up Mrs.
Whitney? Yes.
The last time she was here.
Oh, that must have been three months ago.
Harvey came alone.
He said his mother was under the weather.
And after the show, I saw him ask Mrs.
Whitney for her autograph.
Uh, these were, um, done on a computer here? Yes.
We have donated equipment that our seniors can use.
- Including a dot-matrix printer.
- Yes.
Home Of Esther Gruenwald Queens, New York Tuesday, December 9 I have to take my nap.
I don't have time for you now.
Anyway, Harvey doesn't live here anymore.
He has a hideaway bed in his office.
But he sleeps over sometimes.
Uh, there's a quilt and a pillow on that couch.
You can see it just fine from right here.
Yes, he sleeps over.
It's easy for him.
No wife, no kids, no life.
You don't think much of his charity work? It's not like he's out in the jungle healing the lepers.
He plans parties, for God's sakes.
A grown man.
But important people support what he does um, Marty Chapman, Marion Whitney.
He thinks they care about him.
They don't care.
How could they? I mean, he sweats, and that thing with his face.
Well, they take advantage ofhis good nature.
- It wouldn't surprise me.
- Marion Whitney, for example.
We hear she's got him on a short leash.
He's not here five minutes, she's calling him.
Her husband died not too long ago.
He was poisoned.
You know how we found out? A good citizen sent us a letter with valuable information.
Valuable up-up to a point.
We need this good citizen to tell us what they know.
- That smell Is that coffee? - Mmm.
Yeah, I only made enough for one cup.
You are tough, Mrs.
Gruenwald, 'cause normally Detective Eames and I, we'd be in the living room by now.
I told you I don't have time for you.
I don't say things just to hear myself talk.
We'll leave our card, just in case.
Your hands sweat.
No, IYou wiped your hands.
I don't mean to embarrass you.
It's just, um It's a side effect of medications that you take? Same thing happened to my mother when she took her medications.
It's the pills I take for my headaches.
Headaches? Butalbital? My mom used to take that.
Yeah, well, I'm still takin' it.
If she wrote the letter, she blamed Marion Whitney for the murder.
- Isn't Harvey your suspect? - Maybe.
But the mother is jealous of the attention that he lavishes on Marion.
She might've written the letter to get rid of Marion.
Whatever cards this old gal's holding, you need to get her to show 'em to you.
And a dot-matrix printer isn't gonna do it.
Well, maybe this will.
The lab found traces of Butalbital in the letter.
It's secreted through the sweat on Mrs.
Gruenwald's hands.
Call Carver.
Get a subpoena.
Thank you so much for coming.
Thank you.
Harvey, what are you doing in there? Ma, I'm busy.
I have to tell you something.
What do you wanna tell me? The police came by this morning.
They asked me about that Whitney woman.
They think she killed her husband.
That's ridiculous.
Why would they want to ask you? I don't know.
You be careful around her.
You're so impressed with her, you'd do anything she tells you.
She's not your friend.
Come on.
Don't be like that.
Not one of them, Harvey.
You go ahead, have your picture taken with them all you want.
That doesn't mean they respect you.
How would you know? You never once I'll see you in the morning, Ma.
Mrs.
Gruenwald? This is Detectives Eames and Goren.
This is Unit 229.
We have a 10-54.
Female down.
Central, put a rush on that, "K.
" Bed sheets are turned down.
Box of crackers on the nightstand.
She was probably in bed when she heard an intruder.
She's got a chipped tooth.
Got it.
- Well, let's mark that.
- Yes, sir.
All right.
There's a nick.
Well, the perp didn't want to break in unless he was sure where she was.
He opened the lock, rang the doorbell.
When she got to the door Smash in her face.
The rest was easy.
Here we go.
- There's a chipped tooth there.
- Yeah.
Victim's here.
/ Okay.
What are you doing here? Where's my mother? You can't go in there.
It's a crime scene.
What kind of a crime? What are you talking about? Your mother was murdered last night.
We're very sorry.
Oh, my God! Oh, my God! Ma! Ma! I should have stayed with her last night after the burglary downstairs.
We don't think this was a burglary.
We think someone came in to kill her.
Are you all right? Do you need a drink of water? No.
It's this suit.
I rented it at the last minute.
This is the only size that they had.
You had a benefit last night? No.
It was the opening night of the Sinatra thing at Radio City.
I went with Mrs.
Whitney.
We think your mother sent us a letter accusing Marion Whitney of poisoning her husband.
No.
No.
Ma liked Marion.
That's not the impression she gave us.
Well, Ma has her own way of showing affection.
You don't know her.
I have to, uh, make some calls to relatives.
I'll be at my office.
Thank you so much for coming.
Harvey nearly swallowed his face when we told him it wasn't a burglary.
You confirm his alibi for last night? Two ushers at Radio City saw him sitting next to Marion Whitney.
Harvey was genuinely shaken about his mother's death.
And afraid.
Now something's inspiring that fear.
Maybe it's the fact that he owes money everywhere.
What's he doing with these funds he collects at these benefits? The charities say he turns over about 10 percent to them.
The rest he claims for expenses.
But he's not spending it on himself.
He bunks in his office or on his mother's couch.
- He even rents his tux.
- Then where's the money going? Maybe the question to ask is, where did Harvey get the money from in the first place? These benefits, they cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to put on.
What was he doing before he started hitting up socialites? Driving them.
Three years ago, Harvey worked for a limousine company.
Viceroy Limousine 81 10th Avenue Thursday, December 11 Harvey was a driver.
He had terrific people skills.
- People skills? What kind? - It's the damnedest thing.
Whenever he drove famous people around, he'd come home with an autograph, or even a picture with them, without pissing them off.
Which isn't easy, let me tell you.
Well, maybe it's his tic.
You know, people feel they can't say no to him.
You gotta use what God gave you.
God didn't give Harvey the seed money for his fund-raising business, did he? No.
I did.
The kid discovered a secret.
You offer a celebrity enough money, they'll show up pretty much wherever you want 'em to.
- We've heard that.
- It's true.
Let me show you.
That's my daughter's wedding.
See who I'm standing next to? Looks a lot like Charleton Heston.
Well, Harvey was driving him.
He knew I was a big fan.
The next thing you know, I got Moses doing the invocation at my daughter's wedding.
And it only cost me 10 grand.
/ Oh.
- Do you mind if I get a drink of water? - Be my guest.
So how does it work? Harvey takes a cut from the fund-raising to cover his overhead, and you take a cut of that? It's notjust the money.
I'm thinking about getting into the music business.
And thanks to Harvey, I've made some great contacts.
Cut crystal.
And there's a lot of them.
They're for the limos.
Apal of mine owns a glassware company.
Crystal Needs.
That's where Harvey rents his glasses for his fund-raisers.
Harvey rent from any other pals of yours? Pal of mine's in the linen business.
Another pal of mine rents tables and chairs.
Harvey keeps a lot of your "pals" in business.
The start-up money, Mr.
Weaver It was a loan.
A high-interest loan.
We have a legal binding contract.
Secured by these pals of yours in the wedding photo? Besides Moses, I see Carmine Masucci, Tony Virgini, Mike Tobis.
You guys are bleeding Harvey dry, aren't you? How much does he owe you? We're up to date.
Harvey cut me a nice check last month.
Last month? Then this little angel floated down from heaven to save Harvey.
"To Nicholas, with warm regards.
Marion.
" Another pal of yours? Now she is.
It's her money.
She's free to do with it what she wants, even if it means helping Mr.
Gruenwald repay a business debt.
A $500,000 debt? Did he tell you who he owed it to? His partner, Mr.
Weaver.
Uh, Nicholas "Nickie Boy" Weaver.
He's a loan shark with ties to various crime organizations.
Harvey was desperate to meet his obligation to him.
That's why he made a point of running into you at the senior center.
That's why he killed your husband.
I don't believe that for a minute.
And it's why his mother's dead.
She wrote letters to the police.
She posed a threat to Mr.
Weaver's investment.
What do you expect my client to do about all this? We need her help making a case against Mr.
Gruenwald.
You're wrong about Harvey.
Well, we're not wrong about Nick Weaver.
Once he's wrung every last dime out of Harvey, it'll be your turn.
You hear that, Daniel? He's trying to scare me.
You really are a poor judge of character, Detective.
Well, if you'll excuse me.
Well, you're a hard character to pin down, Mrs.
Whitney.
You know, I was surprised finding your autographed photo hanging in a mobster's office.
That wasn't the face of a friendly witness.
Gruenwald's got her hook, line and sinker.
She refuses to see who she's dealing with.
We should've showed her Esther's autopsy.
Her killer practically ripped her arm off dragging her to the couch.
I think that Marion sees very clearly who she's dealing with.
But she seems to be pursuing her own agenda.
This says that Harvey's mother had scarring on her lungs.
Right.
Consistent with a case of bronchial asthma four years ago.
Well, I wonder what kind of inhalation therapy they gave her.
Yeah, that's right.
That's very nice.
Harvey Harvey, you cannot dwell.
I keep seeing her.
It's It's all my fault.
That isn't true.
You know, we can give a benefit in her memory.
- What was her favorite charity? - I don't know.
We'll think of something appropriate.
That's how you deal with loss.
You fling yourself back into life.
This'll knock 'em back on their heels.
What do you say? This is how she treated her asthma.
- The medication goes in here? - Yeah.
And then it's, uh, vaporized and inhaled through here.
Somebody took it apart to see how it worked.
Petroleum jelly.
There are specks.
Cinnamon? Well, Harvey mixed 'em together to test to see if the The smell would be released when the vapor passed through it.
That's how he got the idea to kill James Whitney.
Well, let's go give him a science prize.
- Then I can count on you? - Okay, Harvey.
We can't do this without you.
- Thank you so much.
- Yeah.
Bye-bye.
/ Harvey Gruenwald.
Mr.
Gruenwald, you're under arrest for the murder of James Whitney.
Please.
No.
Not in front of all these people.
Believe me, Harvey, they've seen worse.
Harvey, this way.
Done? I told you.
I never touched Ma's medical stuff.
So you can't tell us how your greasy little fingerprints got all over the inside of this gizmo? Uh, Ma might've asked me to fix it.
With petroleum jelly? Why? The little motor was squeaking? It was an experiment, wasn't it, Harvey? Before you Well, before you moved on to James Whitney, oxygen tank, the poison.
I didn't have anything to do with that.
I didn't kill him.
No, see, this proves that you did, and we know why you did.
Your partner, Nickie Boy, was squeezing you.
He's the big fish, Harvey.
That's who we want.
What are you people trying to do? Get a mob loan shark off the street.
He put you up to killing Mr.
Whitney.
And then he killed your mother.
He knew you'd be out.
Tha-That's not true.
I never told him I was going out.
Well, the tux It was tight, right? That's because you rented it last minute, because that's how you got the tickets to Radio City last minute.
Yes.
I had to rush around.
I didn't have time to call Nick or anybody.
I'm George Salinas.
I've been retained to represent Mr.
Gruenwald.
My client's invoking.
The person who invited you That was Marion? Yes.
/ That's enough.
Harvey's not taking us seriously.
He will when the judge denies him bail.
- I'm asking for remand.
- Based on a nebulizer? Based on his misappropriation of charitable donations and on two murder counts.
I'm charging him for his mother's death.
Send him over for arraignment when you're ready.
You know, opening night tickets for Radio City couldn't be easy to get.
I'd like to find out how Marion snagged 'em.
Arraignment Court Tuesday, December 16 Not guilty.
Your Honor, the People ask for remand.
Your Honor, Mr.
Gruenwald's prepared to post a million dollars to guarantee his appearance at trial.
Your Honor, we have two elderly victims callously murdered.
Your Honor, we're prepared to post two million dollars.
Mr.
Gruenwald is a flight risk with no residential address in the city.
We'll post three million dollars and agree to an ankle bracelet.
He'll go to work.
He'll go home.
Nothing else.
He can have crossed five states before anyone notices he's missing.
Your Honor, if bail is granted today, we won't object if Mr.
Carver wants to revisit the issue in a week.
I don't see how I can say no.
Bail is three million.
Defendant will be fitted with a monitoring device, and I want him back here next week.
Next case.
Now I know what a cattle auction feels like.
Harvey's lawyer was taking his bidding cues from Marion Whitney.
She wants him out for this week.
She needs him for something.
You have full access to Mr.
Gruenwald's records.
See what he's up to.
The Kathleen Karr Project is a program we run for underprivileged kids.
Mr.
Gruenwald made a generous contribution.
We saw the check.
We also saw your address on an invoice from a florist.
Mr.
Gruenwald's having a boatload of roses delivered here next Monday.
I'm letting him use the theater for a little show he's producing.
A little show starring Marion Whitney.
The audience Do you know who's coming? Gruenwald faxed me the list last week.
I recognize some of the names on the first page.
They're a little creaky.
I recognize some of these names too.
I heard Gruenwald tell her all the guests were A-list people.
You've met Mrs.
Whitney? She came in for a lighting rehearsal.
I bet she was excited.
I couldn't figure her out.
One minute she seemed out of her depth, the next she sounded like she had greasepaint in her veins.
Uh, for example? She asked for side shin lighting.
I told her that's mostly for dancers to highlight their legs, but, uh, no dancing in her show.
Uh, you said "mostly.
" What else are they used for? For children.
- Where on earth did you find this? - Actors Equity.
They had it under her maiden name.
This photo must be from the '50s.
Actors Equity keep them that long? As long as you pay your dues.
She was 12 years old when she played her last bit part.
Long time to hold on to a dream.
Come Monday, she's hoping to prove it was worth it.
And this is why she needs Mr.
Gruenwald out of jail till then.
I'd prefer we had all three of them.
You might get your wish, once Harvey and Marion see how they fail to live up to each other's expectations.
Come, you spirits that tend on mortal thoughts.
Unsex me here and fill me From the crown to the toe.
Harvey.
Harvey, who's in the front row? I'm still juggling.
There are people coming from London.
I want to keep the center seats for them.
London? Harvey, you're my rock.
Larry, I think I should be nearer to the edge of the stage.
I want to fix them with my eyes.
I want to frighten them.
Take my word for it, Marion.
If they're here tonight, they'll be frightened.
Come / There he is.
My partner thought you skipped.
I'm sorry.
This is a closed rehearsal.
Sorry, but we need to make sure Mr.
Gruenwald is complying with his bail.
Still wearing your ankle monitor, aren't you? / Yeah, I am.
There it is.
Still ticking.
Harvey and I have important work to do.
You know You know, you guys are lucky to have found each other.
I know.
Thank you.
It's hard to say who's luckier you or Harvey.
I'd say Harvey.
Before he met you, Mrs.
Whitney, he was being skinned alive by Nick Weaver.
You know, your arrangement with Nick Weaver Even on a good month, it's hand-to-mouth.
Oh, I don't do this to get rich.
Well, you're not doing it to get poor though, either, are ya? It's the celebrities.
Getting your picture taken with them.
Being on a first-name basis.
Well, it makes you important.
No.
No.
/ Come on.
It shows that you have value.
It proved it to your mother.
Oh, sure it did.
/ No.
We found the autographed photos that you gave your mother.
"A terrific kid.
" "What a great kid.
" I mean, if Dino and Jack say so, then Mom has to believe it's true.
I didn't tell them to write this.
Harvey, this need, this pathological need It's what got you into deep trouble with Nick Weaver.
You didn't want to believe he killed your husband, but now we have proof.
We found this in his mother's apartment.
He practiced on it before tampering with your husband's oxygen tank.
- Oh, that's-that's not true, Marion.
- I know.
Don't worry, Harvey.
Marion doesn't care if you killed James.
It gave her an opportunity of a lifetime.
- Fifty years, to be exact.
- That's exactly how long little Marion Lester's been waiting by the stage door.
My God! Where did you get this old thing? You see, Harvey, you need the approval of one special person.
But Marion here Well, she wants, you know, the whole world to love her.
And tonight, thanks to you, she's gonna feel the love.
That's why she kept you out of jail.
But after tonight, she's done with you.
Wha What are you talking about? You have your bail hearing tomorrow.
Well, your lawyer the one Marion hired for you he should've filed papers in support of that bail, but he hasn't done any of those things.
He knows what he's doing.
He's going to jail tomorrow.
Harvey another casualty of little Marion's ambition.
Harvey, we'll talk about this later.
Now stop listening to them.
After the show tonight, that's when you'll talk.
You don't wanna spoil her big night.
I mean, she's worked so hard for it.
Isn't that right, Mr.
Bradley? Keep me out of this.
Her talent That's not why you took her on as a student.
Harvey has a connection with the Lincoln Center Awards Nominating Committee.
Have you heard anything from them yet, Mr.
Bradley? He's been promised an award.
A Purple Heart for being your acting coach.
But, you know, none of this should matter to your audience tonight.
By the way, have you seen the guest list? It's at my office.
/ We asked the theater manager for a copy.
- H-He doesn't have the final list.
- There are nearly 200 people here.
A full house.
Do you know any of them? They're all behind-the-scenes people, agents.
- She wouldn't recognize any of them.
- Well, we looked them up.
Um, well, there's this guy here.
He represents child actors.
He was so disappointed when we told him that you were, you know, all grown up.
And that one He books talent for cruises up the Hudson River.
Now the rest Well, for example, there's this page.
Uh, these are all people from your mother's senior center.
Right? He's busing them in.
And the next page Those are Nick Weaver's buddies and their wives.
They're mostly in the food and beverage business.
/ Stop it! Stop it! You gave Harvey all this money, and this is the pay off.
You cheat.
You fraud.
You charlatan.
It's not the final list, Marion.
There are people from London coming.
All my work.
All those years.
All this for those nobodies? No.
He took your money, your husband.
Yeah, yeah, he did.
No.
No.
That morning, I saw him in the pantry next to the tanks.
- No, Marion.
Please.
- And when I told him that James was taking a nap, he said to let him sleep.
Well, II didn't tell anyone 'cause I couldn't believe it, but now it's clear.
So, you're you're both even.
He killed your husband, and she helped kill your mother.
Your mother was gonna put a wrench into Marion's big night, so she got together with her new pal, Nick Weaver.
That's an absurd lie.
Ask her how she got those last-minute tickets to Radio City.
- Come on, ask her! - They were rush tickets! I think what she means is a messenger service rushed them from the agent's office to Nick Weaver's.
We even have the receipt.
/ And then Nick Weaver rushed them to Marion.
And then Marion rushed to call you to get you out of the house so one of Nick Weaver's pals could.
.
kill your mother.
You You helped him.
You You helped.
You begged me to go with you.
You wouldn't let me call my mother after the show.
- Harvey.
Harvey.
- You begged me to go with you.
You-You-You wouldn't let me call my mother.
She made me help her with her lines all night long while my mother was being murdered.
Mrs.
Whitney.
Don't touch me.
I haven't done anything.
It was Nick Weaver.
He threatened me.
I had no idea what he had in mind.
Well, I was gonna just ask you to step aside, but now I'm gonna have to put you under arrest.
You can't do this to me.
This can't be happening to me.
Sorry.
Looks like you forgot your ruby slippers.
Let's go, ma'am.
You too, Harvey.
/ No.
- You're under arrest.
- Please, no.
Oh, God.
Oh, God.
And they thought they were the answer to each other's prayers.
Well, they were.
I mean, she's gonna have another shot at fame at her trial.
And Harvey I think Harvey will like jail.
Well, it's where all the famous people are these days.