The Shadow - Murder in the Death House

Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The shadow knows. The shadow knows. The Shadow, mysterious character who aids the forces of law and order, is in reality Lamont Cranston, wealthy young man about town. The Shadow uses his hypnotic power to cloud men's minds so that they cannot see him. Cranston's friend and companion, the lovely Margot Lane, is the only person who knows to whom the unseen voice of the Shadow belongs. Today's story... Murder in the Death House. It is seven o'clock in the evening. Margot is in the office of Wilson M. Tuttle, head of the new. Reform party called the Citizens Committee. Miss Lane, I'm going to make you my aide in the women's division of the Citizens Committee. You've shown such zeal in recruiting people to our cause. Well, the cause of a clean estate is one that isn't hard to work for, Mr. Tuttle. You're right, Miss Lane. As you probably know, I'm an amateur at politics myself. But when I knew, when I understood what graft and corruption there was in our state, I decided it was time for me to take an active interest. Well, if we get Warden Cooper in the governor's chair, things in this state will change for the better. I hope so. But the machine that controls things in this state isn't going to give up without a fight. And I can promise you it won't be a fair one. You mean that they'll try to discredit Warden Cooper in the voters' eyes? Certainly. There's a ring of racketeers and mobsters in this state headed by one man. The underworld refers to him as the brain. That's all anybody seems to know about him. Well, I know one person who'd like to meet him. And who is that, Miss Lane? Why, a friend of mine. Oh, by the way, what time is it? 7.20. 7.20? Good heavens, and I was supposed to meet Lamont at 6.45. I've got to go, Mr. Thomas. But I haven't told you what your duties are. Well, I'll come and see you tomorrow. Lamont will be furious. All right, Miss Lane. I'll expect you at the People's Rally tonight, though. Margot, would you mind telling me where I'm going in. Such a hurry? To a meeting in the Citizens Committee, Lamont, and we're late now. Oh. Margot, just what is this Citizens Committee? What is it? Why, it's the most potent organization in this town. We're fighting crime and corruption, crooked politics and grabs. Oh, easy, Margo, easy. I'll have to get you a derby and a soapbox. But, Lamont, with Warden Cooper as our candidate for governor and Wilson Tuttle behind us, we ought to sweep the state. You take another corner like that and the state will be sweeping us out of a ditch. Say, who is this fellow Tuttle? A retired lawyer. He has scads of money. And with his support behind us. Here. We go, sweeping the state again. Too bad you won't be alive to enjoy it. Oh. Say, Margo, what does this Citizens Committee stand for? Law and order. And we're going to. Law and order, eh? Now, listen, Margo. I know Warden Cooper, and if he's elected, the first thing I'm going to have him clean up is reckless driving. And I do mean you. But, Lamont, I've simply got to hear the speeches. Has it ever occurred to you that you have a radio in this car of yours? A radio? Oh, please, Lamont, I... Oh, yes, of course I have. And the speeches are being broadcast? Oh, dear, so they are. Why didn't I think of that? That, Margo, might come under the heading of womanly intuition. It takes a second to warm up. A cause that every citizen of our great country should be proud to fight for. The cause of law and order. Isn't he wonderful? He's a powerful speaker, but I don't... Lamont. I want to hear this speech. We have. The governorship of our state. A man who, if elected, would. Make this state the clearest in the country. Warden Richard Cooper. Unfortunately. Warden Cooper cannot be with us tonight in person. He has his duties to perform at the state penitentiary, but he will speak to us from there by special wire. Ladies and gentlemen of the Citizens Committee and of our state, I give you Warden Richard Cooper, our next governor. Ladies and gentlemen... Mr. Tuttle spoke of the duties that keep me here at the penitentiary tonight. I believe you all know what those duties are. Tonight, Killer Goran is to pay his debt to society, and a large debt, that is. At this very moment, Goran sits in the death house of this prison. He boasted that he couldn't be captured and convicted. When he was captured and convicted, he boasted that we couldn't execute him, that the leader of his ring of racketeers and mobsters would rescue him. Well, ladies and. Gentlemen, tonight is the night when Killer Goran will pay for his crimes against society. I stand on my record. Killer Goran will die in the chair tonight. The warden says I'm going to croak in the chair tonight, eh? That's a good laugh. You ain't got very long, Gordon. I ain't got long? I got my whole life in front of me. They're not going to fry me tonight. I got connections. Pipe down, Gordon. I don't have to pipe down for you. Screw up for anybody else. You can tell that to your warden. Gordon, I've never seen a man as hard as you. You asked for a radio to hear the warden's speech when you knew he was going to talk. About you going to the chair. I'd just like to hear my name mentioned coast to coast. Gorin, if you weren't going to. Well, you get yours. See, Gorin, you oughtn't to act like that tonight. What about tonight? Well, look, we're all in this place together. You're going tonight. Smokey over there goes next week, and then I follow. So what? Well, I try not to think about it. But you don't give me a chance to forget. Now, look, Shem, I don't have to worry. I'm getting out. But if it'll make you feel any better, I'll quit talking. Hey, Smokey. Yeah, Killer? Give us a song. No, I don't get him to sing it again. It's too sad. You heard me, Smokey. Give us a song. What do you all want me to sing, Killer? Something good and unhappy. We've got to keep Chum here cheered up. Okay. Nobody knows the trouble I see. Shut up, Smokey. Shut up. Keep it up, Smokey. You're terrific. Nobody knows the trouble I see. Michael, stop this song. It's driving me out of my head. I like it. Save it up, Smoky. I'm going to cut it out. Save it up. Save it up. Stop this racket. What's the meaning of all this? Speak up. It's Smoky singing, Warden. It's driving me nuts. All right. All right. Quiet, you men. Go on. I've come to tell you that the time has come. So what? The chaplain is with me. Wouldn't you like to say something to him? No. Please, my son, let me speak with you for a few minutes. I'm sure you'll feel much better. You're all acting like I was really going. To fry tonight. Well, I ain't. You understand, Warden? I ain't going to fry in a chair. And you ain't going to be governor. Because you're going to look pretty silly when people find out you can't run this prison right. What are you talking about? The brain don't like you, Warden. And he'd like you even less if you got to be governor. So, he's going to stop you. The brain? My boss. Only one guy in this state knows who he really is. And that's me. And your boss, the brain, as you call him, is out to get me? Out to get you? He'll get you now. We'll see about that. Guard, unlock Goran's cell. Yes, sir. Goran, since you've refused the comfort that the chaplain has offered you. Please, son, for the last time. That chaplain saved your breath. I ain't gonna die. All right, let's start. Guards on either side. Chaplain, you and I will walk behind. Come on, Goran. This is your last mile. That's what you think. Our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Ah, this feels good. I need an exercise. So long, Goran. My white boy. It won't hurt much, killer. They tell me it's over quick. I'll be back in a few minutes, fellas. Open the door, guard. Just a minute, warden. Yes? Now that you got me where you want me, can I have a last request? Anything within reason, Goran? Well, when they strap me in the chair and they put the clamp on my head, that's what they do, ain't it? Yes, Goran. And then when they turn on the juice... Would you hold my hand? Ha, ha, ha. the warden ready, God? Yeah. He said to wait for his signal to throw the switch. Good. I'm glad we're getting this over with in a hurry tonight. I want to get home. My wife isn't feeling so well. Yeah? Is that so? Yeah, she's been ailing now for... Say, what's the matter with you? I. I don't know. Oh, I get it. You're new here at the prison, aren't you? Yeah. Well, it's sort of tough to watch him get it the first couple of times. Yeah, I guess you're right. You'd better stay in here with me. The warden asked why. You didn't come back into the desk chamber. I'll tell him that you were helping me. Thanks. And it won't be so bad in here. You don't have to watch anything. When I get the signal, I just throw this big switch here and it's all over in a few minutes. That's it, huh? Yep. That's it. My hand has got. Legault, you'll be killed. Warden. Warden. Warden. The executioner, he's... Shut off the main switch. No, don't touch that. The main switch. All right. He's dead. The executioner is dead. I told you they couldn't kill me. Ha, ha, ha. I don't know what to make of it, Commissioner Weston. Here I thought we had the strongest man in the state as our candidate for governor and to have this happen. It wasn't the warden's fault, Mr. Tuttle. The electric chair was rewired to kill the man who touched the switch. But Gorin is going to be executed tonight for sure. A warden has found a new executioner, and there'll be no slip-up this time. I hope not. I hope that Warden Cooper's reputation for efficiency hasn't suffered too much already. Well, I'm... Hi, Commissioner. Remember me? What? How did you get past the man at the desk? Well, that's a fine way to greet old friends. I'll have that man McGuire fired. I'll have him broken. Oh, hello, Mr. Tuttle. I didn't know you were here. Yes, Miss Lane. I came to speak with Commissioner Weston about the happenings at the prison. You two know each other? Yes, Miss Lane is one of my assistants on the committee. Oh, Mr. Tuttle, this is Mr. Cranston. How do you do, Mr. Tuttle? Cranston, you're an awful nuisance. Why do you bother me all the time? Coming in here like... Commissioner, I'm writing a book. What did I tell you, Mr. Tuttle? This man haunts me, never leaves me alone. What kind of a book, Mr. Cranston? Well, it's not much of a book at present. It's mostly notes. But I'm going to call it Crime and Its Causes. Oh, sounds very interesting. Interesting. What can an amateur Sherlock Holmes know about crime and its causes? You're right, Commissioner. Absolutely right. I'm just an amateur. No experience. That's why you're going to get me into the death house of the state prison tonight as a guard. What? So I can get some local color for my book, some authentic realism. You think I'm crazy? No, but you better watch your blood pressure, Commissioner. Now, look, Weston, tonight Goran is going to the chair. Don't you see what drama there is there? There may be drama there, but you're not going to be there as a guard or anything else. But my literary future depends on it. No. Please. No. If I promised not to bother you for a month. Absolutely no, I wouldn't... What? One whole month. Just for one night as a prison guard. Now you're talking. Cranston, if I get you into the prison tonight, you'll stay away from me for a month. Word of honor. Cranston, you've made a bargain. But to insure me from you for at least a week, you're going to stay in the death house not just one night. You're going to stay there for seven whole days. I'll show you. The End. Are you Kenzie? Yeah. You're the new guard, ain't you? Warden said you'd be on tonight with me. Yeah. Well, things are pretty quiet right now. But you never. Hey, Kenzie. Who's the new screw? Shut up, Goran. Hey, just a minute, Kenzie. I'd like to talk to Mr. Goran. Sure. Let the gent speak with me, Kenzie. So, you're the notorious killer Goran, huh? Well, I ain't the warden. What's your moniker? I, uh. My name's Jones. John Jones. I'm pleased to meet you. Now, look, screw. Just to get things straight around here, I run this place. What I say goes. Get it? I understand what you said, if that's what you mean. Oh, a smart guy, huh? You know, it ain't everyone that can talk back to me. And get away with it. So everyone's afraid of you, huh? Sure. I'm the guy they can't kill. Say, how did you work that Goran? I get connections. You've got to know the right people, Screw. It certainly was an amazing escape from the chair. All right. Yeah, it sure was. Did you see the spread I got in all the papers? Yeah. Listen, you'll pardon me for saying it, but I don't think the pictures did you justice. You know, that's just what I think. I'm a better looking mug than those newspaper pictures showed me up to be. Why, sure. You ought to have your own photographer take them. Then you could be sure. Say, that's a swell idea, Joan. I'll do that. You know, I like you. Maybe I can help you. Yeah? How? By having you meet up with the real bunch that's running this state. You're a smart guy, Goran. Yeah. There's only one guy in this state who's smarter. Yeah? Yeah, the brain. He's the one who had the chair rewired and bumped off the executioner last night. Oh, I wondered how that was done. He runs everything in the state. Every racket, every mob. You, uh... You think the warden runs this prison? Oh, who does? Brain. We've got men planted all over this place. Gee. How would a guy get in with him? You, uh... You mean you'd like to get in? Yeah. Maybe you are in. If I say so. Now, listen... Tonight when the break comes. The break? You don't think I'm going to stick around and give him another chance to put me in the chair, do you? I did last night. Because the brain ordered it. It was to make the warden look bad so he wouldn't have a chance of being governor. Say, that's pretty smart. Yeah, yeah, we thought so. But you ain't very smart, Cranston. What did you call me? Cranston. I know why you're here, stool. I see. How did you know my name? I got ways of finding out. Then you knew all the time. Then all that talk about the jail break was just... There's gonna be a break, all right. But it ain't gonna do you any good to know about it. I'm gonna bump you off myself. Just before. Well, maybe you are, and maybe you're not. Nice work, Kenzie. Gosh, Gordon. Suppose he seen me coming up behind him. Suppose he'd been able to get to the warden. Well, he didn't, so don't worry, Kenzie. Now go on, drag that guy Cranston over in the corner. They're out of sight. When the break comes, I'll fix him so he'll never talk again. Come in, Mr. Hartnett. Sit down. Thanks, warden. Now, Mr. Hartnett, as our new executioner, you realize what your job is, don't you? Yes, warden, I. I realize. It's not a pleasant task, but it's one that must be done. You must realize that when you throw the switch, that you're not the one who is executing the man. It's the state and the people of the state. And the man is merely paying for his crimes. Please, Warden, I'd rather not talk about that part of it. All right. Well, I've had electrical experts in from town. They've been going over everything all day, but just to make sure, you'd better go over the equipment again. Yes, sir. And that's all for now. Can you be ready in about 45 minutes for the execution? Yes, sir. And thank you, Warden. That's all. Poor fellow. Scared stiff. I can't say I blame him. Huh? Who's that? Who just came in? That must be my imagination. This business has got me pretty jumpy. No, Warden Cooper. It's not your imagination. Who's there? I can hear your voice, but I can't see you. Men call me the Shadow. The Shadow? You've heard of me? Yes, I've heard of you, Shadow. You fight crime and injustice. You're the fellow nobody can see. Yes, and that's why I'm here. What do you want of me? What do you know of the murder of the executioner Nothing, Shadow. Strange it should happen after Goran had boasted that he couldn't be killed in the chair. Shadow, I'm fighting for law and order. Killer Goran will definitely die tonight. At this very moment, a new executioner is testing the equipment. What? There'll be no slip-ups this time. When did he go to test the equipment? Just a few minutes ago. Why? Warden, I've just examined the wiring. Those men you hired to go over it have fixed it so that the whole west wall of the prison will be blown off at the first touch. It was planned for a prison break. Quick, we must stop him before he touches anything. Come on. It's too late, warden. Stop. Stand where you are or I'll fire. Get out of my way, screw. Go back to your cells or I'll fire. There's only one guard and 20 of us. The rest of the guards on this side must have been knocked off in the explosion. Get out of my way, guard. I won't let you have it. Shoot. him if you don't want to do it. Shoot him. I've got him. Come on, man. Stop where you are. All of you, stop. Hey, look. That gun's hanging in the air by itself. Yeah. The shadow is holding that gun. Go back to yourselves. Go back, I say. It's the right mountain there. How can it stop it? Come on. Get out of here. Does that convince you? I fired above your heads that time, but the next time I'll aim lower. I guess he ain't kidding. Let's go back. All right, Warden. We've got to stop for a minute. Lock him in. Shadow, are you still here? Yes, Warden. I want to thank you for what you've done. I don't know how I could have stopped that prison break without you. I've failed, and so have you. But the prison break is stopped. The prison break is stopped, but Killer Gorin has escaped. But was it necessary for you to bring these reports over to me tonight, Miss Lane? Well, I suppose they could have waited until tomorrow for your signature, Mr. Tuttle, but. Well, I had nothing to do, so I thought I'd bring them over tonight. Now you can have more time to look them over. Well, thank you very much. I'll do that. My, you have a lovely home here, Mr. Tuttle. Yes, I... Well, Miss Lane, it won't be necessary for you to remain. I can go over these reports from the Citizens Committee myself. Oh, I don't mind waiting. I've got nothing else to do since Lamont got locked up in prison as a guard. Yes, yes. Well, I'll just sign these papers then, and you can take them back. To town with you. What, without reading them first? Oh, no, that's very bad business, Mr. Tuttle. But my eyes are bad. I think it would be better for. Oh, I'll be glad to read them to you. Please, Miss Lane, I think you'd better go now. But I have no place to go, and I love to read aloud. I think you'd better go, Miss Lane. Oh, there's your doorbell, Mr. Tuttle. Do you want me to answer it for you? No, I'll get it. Why, it's Killer Gorin. Yes, my little busybody, Killer Gorin. What's the dame doing here, boss? He came to see me about the Citizens Committee report. She wouldn't go. Oh. I'll go now, Mr. Tuttle. Oh, no, my dear Miss Lane. Now you're going to stay here permanently. What? Mr. Tuttle, you want to. Yes, Miss Lane, Wilson Tuttle, known to the world as a prominent citizen on the side. Of law and order. But my associates know me as the brain. Then you're the one who's been trying to ruin Warden Cooper. Spoilers' chances of being governed. Yes, my dear Miss Lane, now you know. But your knowledge will do neither you nor the police any good. Because, you see, you're going to die here. Oh, no. No, you couldn't. I won't say anything. Too late, Miss Lane. You wouldn't insist on staying. Doran, give me the gun. Sure. Here, boss. Turn your head, Miss Lane. I should like very much to get a nice, clean profile shot. Honey, you can't do this thing. You can't. Goodbye, Miss Lane. It was so nice knowing... Hey, what is this? What's happened to you, boss? The same thing that's going to happen to you, Goran. Oh, Lamont, you're here. Yes, Margo, and just in time, too. Are they unconscious? For about five minutes, I should say. Oh, you know, Shadow, if I could see you, I'd say I was very happy to see you. Stick around, will you? I'll stay until the police. Come to put these men away. But I've got to get back to the prison. Prison? But your work is done there. The Shadow's work is done, Margot. But Lamont Cranston promised Commissioner Weston that he would stay in prison for a week. I've got to help him keep that promise. Well, Miss Lane, I just sent for Mr. Cranston. He ought to be here in my office any minute. Do you think prison has changed him much, Warden? I bet it's knocked some of the crazy notions out of his head. Oh, Lamont, darling, it's so nice to see you. Hello, Margo. And Commissioner. Hello, Cranston. We're here to let you know that you're being pardoned for good behavior. Thank you. How about the crime book, Lamont? Did you get any worthwhile material? Oh, we must have. Yes, what with the prison break and escapes. I'll bet you got some exciting data, Cranston. Well, I did write one chapter when I was here. About the perils of a guard in the death house? Worse than that, Commissioner. The perils of riding with a woman driver. Oh, Lamont. Today's program is based on a story copyrighted by the Shadow Magazine. The characters, names, places, and plot are fictitious. Any similarity to persons living or dead is purely coincidental. The Shadow Magazine is on sale at your local newsstand. The weed of crime bears bitter fruit. Crime does not pay. The Shadow knows.