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Series: Dragnet
Show: The Big TV
Date: Mar 04 1954

CAST:
FENNEMAN, announcer
GIBNEY, announcer
TOM HARMON (1 line)
ELYSE KNOX (1 line)
ANNCR (1 line)
NBC ANNCR (1 line)


SGT. JOE FRIDAY, Los Angeles Police Department
OFFICER FRANK SMITH, Joe's partner
BARBARA FLEISCHER, weary apartment manager
ERNEST LASNIK, dance hall proprietor
PAULINE LAVIN, working class
GLADYS SHIPLEY, upper class


NOTE: This transcript is based on an original script and includes some material omitted from the broadcast in brackets.

MUSIC:

DRAGNET SIGNATURE ... THEN BEHIND FENN--

FENN:

(EASILY) Ladies and gentlemen, the story you are about to hear is true. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.

MUSIC:

DRUM ROLL UNDER

GIBNEY:

Dragnet -- is brought to you by Chesterfield, made by Liggett & Myers, first major tobacco company to bring you a complete line of quality cigarettes.

MUSIC:

UP AND FADE FOR--

FENN:

(EASILY) You're a detective sergeant. You're assigned to Missing Persons detail. You get a call that a young mother and a nine-month-old baby have disappeared. Routine investigation turns up the possibility of foul play. Your job -- find them.

MUSIC:

DRAGNET SIGNATURE ... THEN OUT

FENN:

Today, friends, you hear these three words everywhere -- "Chesterfields for me." The Chesterfield you smoke today is the best cigarette ever made -- best for you, because Chesterfield gives you proof of highest quality -- low nicotine. The taste you want, the mildness you want. Chesterfield is best for you, because it's tested and approved by thirty years of scientific tobacco research. Chesterfield is best for you, because it has an established good record with smokers. Proven by test after test. Yes, friends - the Chesterfield you smoke today is the best cigarette ever made -- for the taste you want, the mildness you want. Join the thousands now changing to Chesterfield. Always say, "Chesterfields for me."

MUSIC:

THEME ... THEN BEHIND GIBNEY--

GIBNEY:

Dragnet, the documented drama of an actual crime. For the next thirty minutes, in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department, you will travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case transcribed from official police files. From beginning to end, from crime to punishment, Dragnet is the story of your police force in action.

MUSIC:

UP TO SEMI BUTTON AND FADE ON SUSTAINED CHORD

SOUND:

JOE'S AND FRANK'S STEPS IN APARTMENT CORRIDOR . NO ECHO

JOE:

It was Tuesday, August twelfth. It was warm in Los Angeles. We were working the day watch out of Homicide Division, Missing Persons Detail. My partner's Frank Smith. The boss is Captain Lohrman. My name's Friday. We were on our way out from the office and it was ten-fourteen A.M. when we got to 1865 Malabar Street - (SOUND: DOOR KNOCK) - the manager's apartment.

SOUND:

OFF MIKE, IN THE MANAGER'S APARTMENT WE HEAR THE SOUND OF A BABY CRYING.

FRANK:

Better try it again, huh?

JOE:

Yeah.

SOUND:

DOOR KNOCK

BARBARA:

(BEHIND DOOR) Just a minute. I'm movin' as fast as I can.

FRANK:

Sounds like she's got trouble.

JOE:

Yeah.

SOUND:

DOOR OPENS ... BABY CRYING LOUDER

BARBARA:

Yeah?

JOE:

Miss Fleischer?

BARBARA:

Yeah. What d'ya want?

JOE:

Police officers, ma'am. We'd like to talk to you.

BARBARA:

Come in. I gotta take care of that kid.

JOE:

Thank you very much.

FRANK:

Thanks, ma'am.

SOUND:

JOE AND FRANK ENTER THE ROOM ... DOOR CLOSES

BARBARA:

Sit down. I'll be right back.

JOE:

All right, thank you.

SOUND:

BARBARA WALKS INTO NEXT ROOM . BABY CONTINUES TO CRY.

FRANK:

Sounds like colic to me.

JOE:

That right?

FRANK:

Yeah. Sounds like colic. Wonder if she's got a hot water bottle.

JOE:

What?

FRANK:

Hot water bottle. Put it on the kid's stomach. Makes him feel better.

JOE:

Oh, yeah.

FRANK:

Both of ours had the colic. Wore out three hot water bottles.

JOE:

On two kids?

FRANK:

No, Joe. We lost the stopper on one of them.

SOUND:

UNDER THE ABOVE THE BABY STOPS CRYING . DOOR CLOSES . BARBARA WALKS BACK INTO THE ROOM.

BARBARA:

Baby's teething. Having a rough time.

FRANK:

Oh.

JOE:

This is my partner, Frank Smith. My name's Friday. We'd like to ask you some questions about one of your tenants.

BARBARA:

Oh? Which one?

FRANK:

A Mrs. Shipley. We understand she had apartment Two-Oh-Seven.

BARBARA:

Yeah, she did. What about her?

JOE:

You know where we can get in touch with her?

BARBARA:

Ain't got any idea.

FRANK:

When'd you see her last?

BARBARA:

Guess it must have been a month ago.

JOE:

Possible you might be able to give us an exact date on that?

BARBARA:

If I could have done that, I'd've told you right out. I got nothin' to hide.

JOE:

Well, we didn't mean to say that you had, ma'am.

BARBARA:

Well, it sounded like it. Sounded an awful lot like it. I'm gonna be honest with you.

JOE:

Yes, ma'am?

BARBARA:

When Harriet first moved in here, we got along fine. She was all the time wantin' me to tell her how to take care of the baby when it came.

FRANK:

Yes, ma'am, go ahead.

BARBARA:

Got along just fine. Used to have our little cup o' coffee in the afternoon. Chummy. Then all of a sudden it all got different.

JOE:

Well, how was that?

BARBARA:

(SHRUGS) Mm, it just did. Her husband was overseas. In the Army. I guess Harriet missed him pretty much; anyway she was always sayin' how she did. Wished he could be here when the baby was born. Got terrible depressed.

JOE:

I see.

BARBARA:

Moody, you know?

JOE:

Yes, ma'am.

BARBARA:

I did what I could to cheer her up. Used to go up there and we'd sit and talk. Taught her how to knit. Gave her some needles and yarn as a little present. I thought maybe it'd give her something to think about. Kinda take her mind off her and her husband. (BEAT) Didn't do no good.

JOE:

Well, how long had her husband been away, do you know?

BARBARA:

Four months this time. He's over in Japan I think. Army.

JOE:

Mm-hmm.

BARBARA:

Harriet used to go out once in a while. Go down to the show. Seemed like just about every picture she saw made her sadder. I guess that's why she did it. Just got so sad she couldn't take it any more.

JOE:

Oh? What's that?

BARBARA:

Tried to kill herself.

FRANK:

Mrs. Shipley?

BARBARA:

Yeah. I got the kids in bed one night and went up there. I hadn't heard nothin' from her that day, so I went up to see how she was. Good thing I did, too. Found her right there in the living room. She'd cut her wrists. Right away I called for the doctor, and all the ambulances and police came runnin' around. Took her to the hospital. Big deal. Guess I found her in time, though. They pulled her through.

JOE:

Mm-hmm.

BARBARA:

I walk up there and find her dyin'. (INDICATES) That far from death's door. And when she comes home from the hospital what thanks do you think I get?

JOE:

I wouldn't know, go ahead.

BARBARA:

Nothin'. Not a single solitary word do I get. She's mad. Says I should have left her alone and let her done it. Come in here when she got back and read me off in words that I ain't used to hearin'.

JOE:

Uh-huh.

BARBARA:

I got five kids, mister. They take a lot of time and I ain't got enough to go runnin' around after nobody who don't thank a person for savin' their life like that. I called it quits right then; right at that minute we were no longer friends.

JOE:

Mm-hmm. When did she make the attempt on her life?

BARBARA:

Last September. I don't remember the date. I think it was the second, maybe the third week. I'm not sure about what day it was. Anyway, after I save her life, she's mad at me.

JOE:

She have any people here in Los Angeles, would you know?

BARBARA:

I never heard her talk of none. She's got a sister. I don't know, but I don't know where she is. Don't think Harriet ever said.

JOE:

Well, what did she say to you when she left? She give ya any idea where she was going?

BARBARA:

I didn't even see her. She didn't even come by and say so long, goodbye, take a jump, nothin'. She just left. One night she's here, next morning she's gone.

JOE:

She get any mail while she was here?

BARBARA:

Yeah. Once in a while she'd get a letter from her husband. Then there was a couple of letters from San Francisco; I don't know who they was from.

JOE:

She take everything with her? All of her personal things?

BARBARA:

Nothin'. Left it all here. Of course it's not much, but it's all here.

JOE:

I see. Where are the things, ma'am?

BARBARA:

Downstairs in the basement. I got it all put away in case she ever comes back. Gonna cost her, too. Storage and for me to pack it. I told you it isn't much. Some dresses, few clothes for the baby, phonograph, couple of records. That's about it. You can see 'em if you want to.

FRANK:

We'd like to take a look at 'em before we leave.

BARBARA:

Yeah, sure thing. Can't let you take 'em, though. I gotta collect for the storage.

FRANK:

Yes, ma'am.

JOE:

Mrs. Shipley have any close friends that you know of?

BARBARA:

Not that I know of. Course she might have had some down at the Dream Palace.

JOE:

Where's that?

BARBARA:

Where she worked. Dance hall downtown. She was a kinda hostess there.

JOE:

Mm-hm. That's the name of the place, is it? Dream Palace?

BARBARA:

Yeah. She might have had some friends down there. None of 'em ever came here, though. Least if they did, I never saw 'em.

JOE:

Do you know of any reason that she might have left in such a hurry?

BARBARA:

Not right off, I can't think of one. There was something wrong with her, though, when she came back from the hospital -- you know, when she had the baby. She was worried about something.

JOE:

Would you know what it was?

BARBARA:

No. All I know is that when she'd been home a couple of days, she came down here and asked me to do some work on the apartment. I told her if she wanted anything done, she could do it herself [after] the way she talked to me.

JOE:

Well, what'd she want done?

BARBARA:

Silliest thing I ever heard of. She didn't have anything to steal.

JOE:

Ma'am?

BARBARA:

She wanted all the locks on the doors changed.

MUSIC:

BRIDGE ... THEN BEHIND JOE--

JOE:

Ten forty-six A.M. In the company of the apartment manager, Barbara Fleischer, Frank and I went down to the basement and looked through the missing woman's effects. Other than the phonograph, several cardboard boxes of used baby clothes and cheap woman's dresses, we found nothing. There were no snapshots or letters to aid us in ascertaining where she might have gone. We asked Mrs. Fleischer to notify us in the event that she heard from the Shipley woman. We put in a call to Georgia Street Receiving Hospital and verified the story about the attempted suicide. Eleven-fifteen A.M. We checked the phone book for the address of the Dream Palace dance hall. It was on the second floor of a large building at the corner of Seventh and Margo streets. On the front of the building were several faded photographs of contest winners with the cups that they'd won, and the name of the proprietor, Ernest Lasnik. We went upstairs. It was a large barn-like room with crepe paper birds hanging over the lights. In the rear of the place at one of the tables we found Lasnik. He was just eating his lunch.

SOUND:

JOE AND FRANK'S STEPS APPROACH ... SLIGHT ECHO ON ALL SOUNDS IN THIS SCENE

FRANK:

Mr. Lasnik?

ERNEST:

(MOUTH FULL OF FOOD) Yeah? What do you want?

FRANK:

Like to ask you some questions. We're police officers. My name's Smith. This is my partner, Sergeant Friday.

ERNEST:

Hi.

JOE:

How are you?

ERNEST:

Won't shake hands. Got butter all over 'em. Sit down.

JOE:

Thank you.

SOUND:

CHAIRS SCRAPE AS JOE AND FRANK SIT

ERNEST:

Care for a sandwich?

JOE:

No, thank you.

ERNEST:

If you do, go right ahead. There's all the makin's -- bread, butter, salami, pickles. Help yourself.

JOE:

No thanks, Mr. Lasnik.

ERNEST:

Don't mind if I go ahead, huh? Bunch of kids comin' in at 3:30. Like to get the place cleaned up before they get here.

JOE:

No, sir, you go right ahead.

ERNEST:

All right. (EATS AND DRINKS, MOUTH FULL OF FOOD) What'd you want to see me about?

JOE:

It's about one of your employees, sir.

ERNEST:

Yeah? Which one?

JOE:

Girl named Harriet Shipley.

ERNEST:

Oh, yeah, I remember her. She don't work here no more.

FRANK:

Doesn't work here any more?

ERNEST:

No.

FRANK:

Got any idea where she is?

ERNEST:

No, ain't got the slightest. Ain't seen Nadine in about maybe, uh, six months.

FRANK:

No, sir, you don't understand. We're inquiring about a Harriet Shipley.

ERNEST:

Yeah, I know. I told you. (SWALLOWS) Ain't seen her in six months.

FRANK:

What's this about Nadine?

ERNEST:

That's her club name.

JOE:

Oh.

ERNEST:

See, lotsa girls don't like to use their real names. Case a fella wants to get chummy away from here, it's easier if he don't know the girl's real name. Harriet used Nadine.

JOE:

I understand.

ERNEST:

We got a bunch of 'em. When one of the girls leaves, we put the name back in the hat. New girl picks it. Had fourteen Nadines since we opened.

JOE:

Uh-huh.

ERNEST:

Twenty-seven Althea's.

JOE:

Yes, sir. Do you have any idea where the Shipley girl is?

ERNEST:

No. Might check her husband; he might know.

JOE:

We understand he was in the army.

ERNEST:

Yeah, that's right. He is. Overseas. He should know where his wife is though. Ask him.

JOE:

Well, we'll probably do that, sir. We thought maybe we could turn her up ourselves. There's been a missing report filed on her.

ERNEST:

Missin', huh? Who told it?

JOE:

Sir?

ERNEST:

Who told about her being missing?

FRANK:

Report was filed by her mother-in-law.

ERNEST:

Hmm. Well, I wish I could help you fellas out.

FRANK:

The last time you saw the Shipley girl, she say anything about leavin' town?

ERNEST:

No. Wouldn't be surprised, though.

JOE:

Why do you say that?

ERNEST:

Well, the poor kid was scared to death. Told me she wanted to get away.

JOE:

Mm hm. Do you know what she was frightened about?

ERNEST:

Yeah. Cliff Bender. That's what she was afraid of. Cliff.

JOE:

Well, who's he?

ERNEST:

Well-- (PAUSE FOR CHEWING) Look, I'll tell you the whole thing. Be easier that way. One favor I gotta ask though.

JOE:

Yes, sir?

ERNEST:

You won't tell Cliff I told you. He'd come up here, he could tear the place apart easy. You gotta promise me you won't tell him.

JOE:

All right, sir. You go ahead.

ERNEST:

Yeah. Well, um, Nadine-- Uh, Harriet-- Well, she came to work for me about a year and a half ago. Came in, told me she'd had some experience in a dance place in the midwest. I don't remember the name right off. Probably come to me.

JOE:

Yes, sir.

ERNEST:

Well, I told her I'd try her. You know, sort of probation?

JOE:

Yes, sir.

ERNEST:

Well, worked out fine. End of the week, I put her on permanent. She did real well. Lotta guys got to comin' in just to dance with her. Wouldn't have nobody else. Just Nadine. Er, Harriet.

JOE:

Mm-hmm.

ERNEST:

That's how she met Cliff. He come in one night, fell for her, and they started to go together. I told 'em I didn't like the idea of girls goin' out with the customers. Not good business. Didn't make any difference to them though. They kept right on seein' each other.

JOE:

That's this Bender fellow?

ERNEST:

Yeah. Well, anyway, one night this soldier come in. He was took right away with Nadine. Asked her for a dance. Kept buyin' tickets all night so's he could dance with her. Come back the next night. Same thing. All night long he danced with Nadine.

JOE:

That's Harriet.

ERNEST:

Yeah, that's right. Called her Nadine. You know, I told you about that.

JOE:

Yes, sir.

ERNEST:

Made Cliff plenty sore, but there wasn't anything he could do about it. She wanted to be with the soldier. Wasn't too long before she told me she was gonna get married. Well, word got around about that; really made Cliff hacked. Real hacked.

JOE:

Yes, sir.

ERNEST:

Yeah. Well, him and the soldier, Shipley -- they had a fight downstairs one night after we closed. Guess Cliff waited for him and Nadine to come down. Anyway, it was a real brawl. Cops 'n' everything. Cliff really cleaned up on the soldier. Didn't do any good though.

JOE:

What do you mean?

ERNEST:

Nadine told Cliff to stay away from her. Keep far away. Told him that her and the soldier was gonna get married and that they were through. She meant Cliff and her.

JOE:

Uh huh.

ERNEST:

Well, the soldier and Nadine got married couple days later and she quit her job. Right after that I heard he went overseas and Cliff was around trying to break things up. Didn't do no good though. Nadine loved the soldier and she planned to stay with him.

JOE:

Yes, sir.

ERNEST:

Well, I tried to talk to Cliff. Tell him to stay out of it. (MOUTH FULL, INDECIPHERABLE) Leave the girl alone.

JOE:

What was that?

ERNEST:

(SWALLOWS FOOD) I told him, leave the girl alone, see?

JOE:

I see, mm-hmm.

ERNEST:

Didn't do any good. He was sure hacked. He said that she was his girl. Might take some time, but he'd get her for runnin' out on him. I figure he told her that, too. That's what she was afraid of. Don't blame her. If Cliff told me that, I'd believe him.

JOE:

What's that, sir?

ERNEST:

That he was gonna kill her.

MUSIC:

BRIDGE ... THEN BEHIND JOE--

JOE:

Twelve twenty-six P.M. After we'd gotten the names and addresses of the employees of the Dream Palace who knew the missing girl, Frank and I went back to the office. We had the names checked through the record bureau, but we found that only one of the fourteen people on the list had arrest records. That one was a Cliff Bender who'd been picked up on a charge of suspicion of burglary. However, according to the information on the report, he'd been released because of lack of evidence. We checked the log about the fight Lasnik had mentioned. We found that an F.I. card had been filed, but that no arrest had been made. We went over to Room Forty-Five and we talked with Sergeant Eggenweiler and Sergeant Roubles, the officers who handled the burglary case. They told us that in their contacts with Bender he was sullen and uncooperative. They told us that he'd been seen in the company of known criminals. They also told us that, in their opinion, they considered the man dangerous. We checked his last known address, but we found that he'd moved in July, leaving no forwarding address. While Frank and I checked out the rest of the missing girl's friends and acquaintances, Sergeant Graham and Cliff Bailey tried to check on Bender. We talked to everybody on the list we'd gotten from Ernest Lasnik, but none of them could give us any idea where we might find the Shipley girl. Most of them however told us about the threat that Bender had made against her life and expressed the opinion that he was responsible for her disappearance. The next day, Wednesday, August thirteenth, Frank and I went by Communications. Then we checked back into the office.

SOUND:

SQUAD ROOM BACKGROUND

FRANK:

I tell you the mother-in-law of that missing girl called again this morning?

JOE:

No. No, you didn't.

FRANK:

She wanted to know how we were doin'. What progress we've been able to make.

JOE:

What'd you tell her?

FRANK:

Well, I filled her in on what we found. I didn't tell her about Bender though. Just said we thought we'd be able to find the girl.

JOE:

Mm hmm.

FRANK:

You talked to her when she made the original report, didn't you, Joe?

JOE:

Yeah.

FRANK:

What'd you think?

JOE:

Well, how do you mean?

FRANK:

Well, isn't there something there that's a little off-base to you?

JOE:

I don't know what you're tryin' to get at.

FRANK:

Well, it just seems to me that she doesn't care if we find her daughter-in-law or not. All she cares about's the kid.

JOE:

Well, yeah, I kind of got that idea myself. The way she talked, it doesn't seem that she and the girl got along too well, does it?

FRANK:

No. Just seems like there's something she isn't tellin' us. I don't know what it is. I asked her this morning if she'd heard from her son. If he knew anything about where his wife might be.

JOE:

What'd she say to that?

FRANK:

Well, she told me she didn't want to bother him, make him worry. Wouldn't even tell me his mailing address. Said she didn't want him alarmed unless there was a reason.

JOE:

The way I see it, his wife being gone is reason enough.

FRANK:

Yeah, that's the way it seems to me and I told her that. She said our job was just to find the girl and the baby, and that's all.

JOE:

Cooperation like that isn't gonna make it any easier, is it? We can only do so much if she isn't gonna help us.

FRANK:

Doesn't make a lot of sense. Her filin' the report and then holdin' out information on ya.

JOE:

Maybe we better get over and talk to her again. See if we can get the whole story. How 'bout Graham and Bailey? Ya heard from them?

FRANK:

There's a note in the book. They got a lead on Bender. Graham said they were gonna run it down for us this morning.

JOE:

Uh huh. What time you got?

FRANK:

(LOOKS AT WATCH) Er, uh, nine forty-three.

JOE:

I want to talk to the skipper. Make arrangements to put a picture of the Shipley girl on "Suspects Wanted" this afternoon. Might be able to turn something, huh?

FRANK:

(MUSES) Sure a lot of loose ends.

SOUND:

PHONE RINGS

JOE:

I'll get it.

SOUND:

JOE WALKS TO PHONE, PUNCHES BUTTON ... RECEIVER UP

JOE:

Missing persons, Friday. -- Yeah, Graham. -- Mm hmm. Where? -- What'd she say? -- Mm hmm. Well, that's about the same. -- Hmm, what? -- Yeah. -- Well, you wanna call the crime lab? -- Right. No, we'll meet you out there right away. All right, bye.

SOUND:

RECEIVER DOWN

JOE:

Well, they found where Bender was living.

FRANK:

What you mean "was"?

JOE:

Checked out last June about the same time the Shipley girl disappeared. Landlady hasn't seen him since. Guys came up with somethin' else.

FRANK:

Yeah?

JOE:

Couple of shirts for a baby.

FRANK:

Uh huh.

JOE:

Bloodstains all over 'em.

MUSIC:

BRIDGE ... THEN BEHIND JOE--

JOE:

Ten-oh-two A.M. We got to the apartment where Bender had been living. The crew from the crime lab were there and they were photographing the room and the clothing that had been found. Sergeant Jay Allen told us that he'd have to run a precipitate test on the stains before he could tell whether or not they were of human origin.

Ten forty-five A.M. They finished their investigation on the scene and they went back to Central Station to compile the results. Frank called the office and a local and an A.P.B. were put out on Cliff Bender asking that he be picked up as a possible suspect. We also had his card flagged in the record bureau. We talked to the landlady of the apartment building and she told us that Bender had left his apartment hurriedly one night about the middle of June. She was unable to tell us the exact date, but she did go on to say that she'd been getting a check for the rent each month. We asked her if she could show us either one of the checks or an envelope that it had come in. She explained that she had thrown the envelopes away and had cashed the checks. She was unable to tell us where they'd been mailed from. She said that as far as she knew she'd never seen the Shipley girl in Bender's apartment. We asked her to notify us immediately in the event that the suspect returned. We put in a call to the bank where the rent checks were cashed and we asked that they give us the information on 'em.

One-thirty P.M. Frank and I went over to the crime lab and we talked to Jay Allen. He told us that the stains on the baby clothes were human blood. He showed us the photographs taken, but there was nothing in them that would give us any lead as to either the girl's or Bender's whereabouts. That afternoon the picture of Harriet Shipley was telecast over the police program. We got several calls from citizens who said that they'd seen the girl. We checked them all out. One of the callers, a bus driver, told us that he'd seen the girl and the baby on his bus during the month of June and that she'd gotten off in San Diego. We alerted the police in that city to look for her. Thursday morning Frank and I checked into the office.

SOUND:

SQUAD ROOM BACKGROUND

JOE:

Wanna check the book, Frank? See if there's anything from San Diego?

FRANK:

Right.

SOUND:

FRANK'S STEPS AWAY ... PHONE RINGS

JOE:

I got it.

SOUND:

PHONE BUTTON PUNCHED ... RECEIVER UP

JOE:

Missing Persons, Friday. -- Yes, that's right. -- Yes, we did. -- Uh-huh. Where? -- You sure about that? -- Right away. Mm hm.

SOUND:

RECEIVER DOWN

JOE:

Frank, get your coat.

FRANK:

What do you got?

JOE:

Shipley girl. They found her.

MUSIC:

FIRST ACT CURTAIN

GIBNEY:

You are listening to Dragnet, the authentic story of your police force in action.

FENN:

Meet the Tom Harmons. You know Tom as an All-American -- and now a top sports announcer. Mrs. Harmon is the motion picture and television star Elyse Knox. They're typical of people everywhere who are saying, "Chesterfields for me."

ELYSE:

I like regular size Chesterfields. Have for years. They're best for me -- at least, I think so -- because of that Chesterfield quality.

TOM:

That's the way I feel about 'em, too. I've always smoked Chesterfields. Now I go for the king-size. Guess I like a longer smoke.

FENN:

So whether you smoke regular size, like Elyse Knox -- or king-size, like Tom Harmon -- enjoy America's most popular two-way cigarette. "Chesterfields for me" -- you hear it everywhere. The Chesterfield you smoke today is the best cigarette ever made. For the taste you want, the mildness you want, join the thousands now changing to Chesterfield.

MUSIC:

THEME ... THEN BEHIND JOE--

JOE:

The call had come from a nurse at the state mental hospital in Camarillo. She told me that they had a patient who resembled the photograph of the missing girl as televised on our police program. Frank and I left the office and drove out to the hospital. We talked to the nurse and to the doctor who was taking care of the sick girl. From personal effects and the scars on her wrists, we were reasonably sure of the identification. The doctor told us that the girl had been committed on July seventeenth by her sister under the name Harriet Lavin. He told us that the girl was undergoing treatment, but that there was little hope for a complete recovery and that it would be some time before she could be permitted to leave the violent ward. We tried to talk to her, but we were unable to get any coherent answers. We asked about the baby, but the authorities were unable to give us any information. We got the name and address of the sister who'd committed the Shipley girl and we drove down to San Diego to talk to her. It was a small place in a wartime housing development. The paint was peeling off the plyboard walls and the front yard was overgrown with weeds. The woman who answered the door identified herself as Pauline Lavin.

PAULINE:

Sure. What do you want to know? Don't make no difference now. You can go back and tell her it's too late. Way too late.

JOE:

Tell who, ma'am?

PAULINE:

Mrs. Shipley. Harriet's mother-in-law. You go back and tell her she done it good. Ain't nothin' left to do to Harriet. It's all been done. You can tell her that.

JOE:

We don't work for Mrs. Shipley, ma'am. We're trying to find out what happened to your sister and the baby.

PAULINE:

Who asked you to find out in the first place? It was her, wasn't it? Wasn't she the one?

FRANK:

She filed the report.

PAULINE:

That's what I mean. Well, you go back and tell her there's nothin' more she can do to Harriet or the baby or Big Jerry. (TEARFUL) Nothin' at all she can do.

JOE:

Where is the baby, ma'am?

PAULINE:

He's not here.

JOE:

Do you know where he is?

PAULINE:

Yes, but I'm not gonna tell you. I'm not gonna tell anybody. I promised Harriet I wouldn't tell and I'm gonna keep the promise.

JOE:

Mrs. Lavin, we don't want to hurt your sister. We're just trying to get to the truth. Now, maybe you better tell us what you know.

PAULINE:

Are you doing this for old Mrs. Shipley?

JOE:

No, ma'am.

PAULINE:

All right then. I'll tell you, but not for her. I wouldn't give her the right time of day. She's the one that did it. The whole thing. You can lay it right at her feet.

JOE:

All right, you want to tell us about it?

PAULINE:

Since they got married she's given the kids trouble. Right from the first she heard about it. Said that Harriet wasn't good enough for her son. Said Harriet was cheap. Didn't make any difference to the kids. They got married anyway. They were in love so they got married.

JOE:

Mm hm.

PAULINE:

Soon as Big Jerry went overseas, she started on Harriet to get an annulment. All the time writin' her letters tellin' her how cheap she was. That if she really loved Jerry she'd get an annulment. Then she found out about the baby, so she started sayin' how they should get a divorce.

JOE:

Does Harriet's husband know about this, would you know?

PAULINE:

Sure. All along he knew it. He didn't like it. Told his mother to stay out of their lives. Kept tellin' her, but it didn't do any good. None. Then Harriet got the wire. The one that told about Big Jerry bein' dead. Almost killed her. I thought it was goin' to. They was really in love. Isn't often you see something like them two. Real love -- the kind you live, not the kind you talk about.

JOE:

Mm hm.

PAULINE:

One night, right after she got the wire, she got a phone call from San Francisco. From old Mrs. Shipley. She told Harriet that she was goin' to court to take the baby away from her. Said she could prove Harriet wasn't a good mother and she didn't deserve to have the baby.

JOE:

Was Harriet living here at the time?

PAULINE:

No. No, she'd come down every weekend, but she wasn't livin' here. There was a guy up in L.A. that was givin' her trouble. Feller named Bender, I think. He was with her when she tried to kill herself. He ran out so he wouldn't get mixed up in it. He was always giving Harriet trouble so she left one night to get away from him and old Mrs. Shipley. She came down here and said that she just wanted to be left alone with her baby. It's not a lot to ask, is it? Just to be left alone?

JOE:

No, ma'am.

PAULINE:

It was for old Mrs. Shipley. She just wouldn't let Harriet alone. Kept after her sayin' how she was gonna take away the baby. How Harriet was an unfit mother. [That's why she came down here. To try and hide. Get away from the old woman. Didn't do any good. She maybe got away from her but she kept thinking that any day the doorbell was gonna ring and there'd be the old bag with the papers to take the baby away from her.] Kind of got on her mind. Finally there wasn't much else she was thinkin' about but how to keep her baby. She went out walkin' one night. Took the baby with her. Rained. Rained real hard. I guess the baby took cold. Anyway, the next day he came down with a bad fever. Couple days later he was dead. (BROKENLY) Not even a year old and he was dead.

JOE:

(PAUSE) You want to go on?

PAULINE:

(SOBS) Harriet sat around for a week. Didn't say anything. Didn't do nothin', just stare at the wall. Didn't even cry. Just sat and looked at the wall. Then all of a sudden she just fell apart. I called the doctor. Said it was a breakdown and said I should have her committed. I signed the papers and that's where she is. I went up to see her. She didn't even know me. I'm her sister and she didn't even know me. (ANGRY) So you just tell old Mrs. Shipley how she did good. You just tell her what she did to my sister. Tell her how the baby's dead and she's finally got what she wanted 'cause now Harriet hasn't got the baby. Nobody's got him. Nobody's got him. Nobody. (BREAKS DOWN AND WEEPS ... THEN IN BG)

JOE:

(BEAT) C'mon, Frank.

FRANK:

Yeah.

SOUND:

JOE AND FRANK WALK TO DOOR AND OPEN IT ... THEIR STEPS THROUGH DOOR, WHICH CLOSES, CUTTING OFF THE WEEPING

FRANK:

Where to?

JOE:

Well, we better get back to town.

FRANK:

Guess so.

JOE:

See Mrs. Shipley.

MUSIC:

BRIDGE ... THEN BEHIND JOE--

JOE:

We got back to Los Angeles at nine-thirty P.M. We went directly to the hotel where Mrs. Shipley was staying. The desk clerk told us that she'd left word that she was not to be disturbed, [but we told him it was a matter of importance]. He called the room and she asked that we come up. We took the elevator to the seventh floor and we walked down the hall.

SOUND:

JOE AND FRANK'S STEPS ON CARPET TO DOOR ... JOE KNOCKS ON DOOR ... BEAT, THE DOOR OPENS

GLADYS:

Good evening, Sergeant Friday; Officer Smith. Come in.

JOE:

Thank you.

FRANK:

Thank you, ma'am.

SOUND:

JOE AND FRANK WALK INTO ROOM, DOOR CLOSES BEHIND THEM

GLADYS:

I'm just having a drink. May I fix you one?

JOE:

No, thank you.

GLADYS:

How about you, Mr. Smith?

FRANK:

No, thank you.

GLADYS:

You don't mind if I go ahead?

JOE:

No, ma'am. Not at all.

GLADYS:

(MOVING OFF) Just sit down and I'll be right with you.

JOE:

Thank you.

SOUND:

GLADYS WALKS OFF MIKE AND FIXES A DRINK ... ICE IN GLASS, BOOZE, SODA

GLADYS:

(OFF) Desk clerk said it was important.

JOE:

Yes, ma'am.

GLADYS:

You found my daughter-in-law?

JOE:

Yes, ma'am.

GLADYS:

And the baby? Where is he? Is he still with her?

JOE:

No, ma'am, he's not.

GLADYS:

Where is he?

JOE:

Your daughter-in-law is pretty sick, Mrs. Shipley.

GLADYS:

Oh?

JOE:

Yes, ma'am. She's in the State Hospital up at Camarillo.

GLADYS:

Camarillo?

JOE:

Yes, ma'am.

GLADYS:

(ALMOST PLEASED) That's a mental hospital, isn't it?

JOE:

That's right.

GLADYS:

Well, I'm sorry to hear about Harriet, but I knew she wasn't very stable.

FRANK:

Why didn't you tell us your son was dead, Mrs. Shipley?

GLADYS:

(DISMISSIVE) I didn't think it had any bearing on the thing. What difference does it make?

JOE:

You don't seem to be very interested in his wife.

GLADYS:

(ICY) I'm going to be honest with you, sergeant. I'm not. Not in the least interested -- in what she does or where she is. I never did feel she was the right girl for my son. Never. When the baby was born, I tried to go along with it. I tried to be nice to her and she wouldn't have it. She wouldn't even be friendly. She poisoned my son. Turned him against me. She's a terrible woman. Just terrible. Whatever's happened to her is just exactly what she's got coming. Naturally I'm sorry it's the way it is, but there's nothing I can do. All I'm interested in right now is my grandchild. I want him. And if I have to go to court to get him, then I'll do it that way.

SOUND:

ICE TINKLES IN GLASS AS GLADYS DRINKS

GLADYS:

(DRINKS, EXHALES)

JOE:

That won't be necessary, ma'am.

GLADYS:

(ALMOST TRIUMPHANT) Where is he? I'd like to go and get him now that Jerry's wife can't take care of him.

JOE:

(BEAT, QUIETLY) He's dead, ma'am.

GLADYS:

(BEAT, UNHAPPY) If this is some kind of a joke that you're making up to help my daughter-in-law keep him, it won't work.

JOE:

It's no joke. It's the truth. He died in a hospital in San Diego.

SOUND:

ICE TINKLES IN GLASS AS GLADYS SETS IT DOWN

GLADYS:

(BEGINS TO BREAK) It's not right. It's not right that he's dead. (VINDICTIVE PARANOIA) She did this. Harriet. She did it to get even with me. I know she did.

JOE:

We're sorry, Mrs. Shipley.

GLADYS:

(NOT HEARING) First my husband, then Jerry. [Now the baby.] I haven't got anybody. I'm all by myself. There isn't anybody in the world who cares. Nobody!

JOE:

Well, we're sorry, Mrs. Shipley. I wish there was something we could do.

GLADYS:

No, you're not. You're like the rest of them. It's Harriet. She's the one. Nobody else to consider in this mess. Just her.

JOE:

What about the baby?

MUSIC:

DRAGNET SIGNATURE ... THEN BEHIND FENN--

FENN:

The story you've just heard is true. The names were changed to protect the innocent.

GIBNEY:

On Thursday, August fourteenth, a meeting was held in the office of the Captain of Homicide, Los Angeles Police Department. In a moment, the results of that meeting.

FENN:

Now here is our star, Jack Webb.

WEBB:

Thank you, George Fenneman. You know, the Chesterfield you smoked today is the best cigarette ever made, and best for you. Now, that's a fact. And to my way of thinking, it's the very reason for you to change to Chesterfield. Try 'em either way -- regular or king-size. If you try 'em, I think you'll say with all of us - "Chesterfields for me."

MUSIC:

TAG

GIBNEY:

At the meeting held in Captain Lohrman's office, it was decided that no criminal act had taken place and the case was officially marked closed.

MUSIC:

CLOSING THEME ... THEN IN BG

GIBNEY:

You have just heard Dragnet, a series of authentic cases from official files. Technical advice comes from the office of Chief of Police W. H. Parker, Los Angeles Police Department. Technical advisors: Captain Jack Donohoe, Sgt. Marty Wynn, Sgt. Vance Brasher. Heard tonight were: Ben Alexander, Herb Vigran, Carolyn Jones. Script by John Robinson. Music by Walter Schumann. Hal Gibney speaking.

FENN:

Watch an entirely different Dragnet case history each week on your local NBC television station. Please check your newspapers for the day and time. (BEAT) Chesterfield has brought you Dragnet, transcribed, from Los Angeles.

MUSIC:

FADES OUT

ANNCR:

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MUSIC:

CLOSING THEME ... THEN FADES OUT

NBC ANNCR:

Hear "Rocky Fortune" following "John Cameron Swayze and the News" on the NBC Radio Network.

MUSIC:

NBC CHIMES