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"A Dream of Death" is a suspenseful 1974 episode of the classic radio drama series CBS Radio Mystery Theater. Written by Sam Dann and starring Michael Tolan, the story follows a college professor on trial for murdering his fiancée, who claims her deadly intent was driven by a 200-year-old vendetta.
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00:16Welcome, I'm E.G. Marshall, welcome to the sound of suspense, to the fear you can hear
00:30to the world of terrifying imagination. They say, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.
00:39And perhaps it's true. But the question is, how long can that fury endure? How long can
00:48the passions burn? Well, Miss Charity Youngblood was left waiting at the church some 200 years
00:56ago, and she still isn't over it. Sheriff's Office, Deputy Palmer speaking. Sheriff, I,
01:05uh, there's someone who wants to murder me. Yes, sir. Your name, sir? Well, is, is that
01:12important? Yes, sir, it is. Well, I, I hesitate to give you my name because, because you might
01:18think I'm, I'm unbalanced. Now, why would I think that? Because of the peculiar circumstances
01:25involved. Why don't you let me be the judge of that? Well, this young lady wants to kill
01:32me, and, and she's armed. What's her name? Well, I, I, I wouldn't want her to get into
01:37trouble. What? She, she doesn't look like a killer, and besides, I can't prove it. It's
01:45just that I know it. Now, sir, calm yourself and tell me why does she want to kill you? Because
01:52I broke our engagement. All right, it's possible. Now, when did you break that engagement? Oh,
02:00about 200 years ago.
02:14Our mystery drama, A Dream of Death, was written especially for the Mystery Theater by Sam
02:21Dan and stars Michael Tolan. It is sponsored in part by new sugar-free Diet 7-Up and by the
02:29Kellogg Company, makers of Kellogg's Special K cereal. I'll be back shortly with Act One.
02:47Sometimes, a few notes of an incomplete melody may steal through your head. It isn't like any
02:54tune you know, and yet you've heard it before. For no reason, a name, a noise, an aroma, may
03:03evoke a dim and distant memory. A memory of a place you cannot clearly remember, but it's
03:11a place you cannot completely forget. A great poet said, life is a dream, and even dreams are
03:20dreams. Perhaps. But sooner or later, there must be an awakening for every dream. And for
03:30Rexford Patterson, there was a rudest awakening of all. Hey, Patterson, wake up. Your lawyer's
03:38here. Huh? What? Your lawyer's here. Lawyer? Why? What? What do I want a lawyer for? Where
03:49am I? You're in a jailhouse. Jailhouse? How did I get... I demand to see a lawyer. Mister,
03:57no sooner said than done. He's all yours, Counselor. All right, Sheriff, if you would leave us.
04:03Bang on the door when you want out, Counselor. Who are you? Why am I in here? My name is
04:11Peter
04:12Evans. I'm an attorney. I was retained by the university on your behalf. Why do I need
04:18a lawyer? Why? Well, you're going to be tried for murder. Who is? You are. But... but that's
04:27impossible. You don't remember? Murder? Murder. No. According to the sheriff, you were found
04:37unconscious on the floor of your study, and she'd been shot. Who? Your fiancé. Charity?
04:46I... I killed Charity? No, no, no, no. Madeline Betty. Your fiancé, Madeline Betty Powers.
04:53Who's Charity? Charity. Charity Youngblood. She was my fiancé. You had two of them?
05:02Look, we know you were engaged to Madeline Betty Powers. Now you say you were also engaged
05:08to a Miss Charity Youngblood? Yes. Well, what happened to that engagement? I broke it. Was
05:18the parting amicable? No. How did Miss Youngblood take it? She was... she was hurt, angry.
05:26She was violent. What do you mean, uh, violent? She swore she would make me regret it. She swore
05:33she would have a revenge. Can you prove any of this? Oh, yes. How? I have it in writing.
05:41Well, now, this may throw a new light on the case. When did you break your engagement to Miss
05:47Youngblood? When? Uh... about 200 years ago. Good. See, if we can produce written
05:55evidence... when did you say you broke this engagement? I... I was killed at the Battle
06:04of Monmouth in 78. And three years before that would be, uh, the early spring of 1775.
06:13Allow me to suggest the only plea that will save you. Insanity. No, I will insist that we
06:19plead the truth. Well, what is the truth? Self-defense. I killed Charity Youngblood in self-defense.
06:26All right. Look. Now, you may have killed Miss Youngblood in self-defense 200 years ago,
06:33but that's... it's over. It's gone. It's done with. Nobody wants you for that. You're going
06:39to be tried for the murder of Madeline Betty Powers. Exactly. Charity Youngblood is Madeline
06:47Betty Powers. Professor Patterson... You're my attorney. I have to tell you the truth.
06:53But I can't believe it. But I can prove it. Look, go... go to my apartment. In the middle
06:59drawer of my desk, there's a book. An old book. An old leather notebook. Bring it here.
07:05Here. You'll see. You'll see. You'll see for yourself. Proof.
07:18You read the book?
07:19Yes. It's a diary kept by a girl named Charity Youngblood, daughter of a Connecticut gunsmith
07:26during the Revolutionary War. She was jilted by a young officer named Eli Wallington. Naturally,
07:32she was quite upset about it. But where is the proof you promised me? I was that young
07:39officer. I was Eli Wallington. Look, Professor Patterson, if I'm to represent you, you'll simply
07:44have to tell... The truth. The truth. I know the truth. But I tell you the truth and you refuse
07:49to believe me. It's impossible to believe you. Impossible. That's the key word. Well, today's
07:55commonplace was yesterday's impossibility. People said it was impossible to transplant a heart,
08:00impossible to walk on the moon. You're talking about reincarnation.
08:06Last summer, I stopped at an antique shop in central Connecticut. Heaped high on a counter was
08:12a pile of old pictures, letters, books. I picked up that little notebook, the one you're now holding.
08:20I read that name. That hand-lettered name. Charity Youngblood. And suddenly, I felt as if I'd been stabbed
08:31through the heart. I knew that name. I knew that name. Please, Professor Patterson. No, don't tell me to be
08:37calm. Don't humor me. Just listen to me. I knew that name. I knew the girl. I knew the time.
08:44I knew the place.
08:46Turn to the page where she describes how he proposed to her. Just don't see how all of...
08:51Just do it. All right. Is this what you want? Monday. Eli proposed marriage to me this morning.
09:03I read the name Eli. An electric shock ran through my system. I knew I was Eli. And the entire
09:14scene
09:15ran through my mind. Exactly as she wrote it in her diary. Exactly.
09:28Good morning, Charity. Oh, it's the high and mighty Lieutenant Eli Wallington. Come to see my
09:35father? Well, that pistol of yours isn't ready. I've come to see you, Charity. I've been foolish.
09:41It doesn't interest me. Charity, I love you. Oh, yes. You love me. Believe me. Oh, I believe you.
09:48You love me here. You love me now. But tomorrow you'll be somewhere else. You'll see someone else.
09:55You'll love someone else. Men are fools. We don't realize at first how important it is to have a
10:00woman who really loves us. And you love me. Please go. Marry me, Charity. Eli. We'll have the
10:07bands on Sunday and marry the week after. Now come, close the shop. We'll go riding this morning. But I
10:13promised father. Let's be together this morning. Come with me. Oh, Eli. You're a scoundrel. Yes,
10:20Charity. But I'm your scoundrel. You must never forget that, Eli. Never forget that.
10:34What are you trying to tell me, Professor Peterson? Don't you see? As Eli Wallington, I had lived through
10:39that scene. I knew how I felt. I loved her. How do you know you were Eli Wallington? How do
10:45we know
10:45you're Peter Evans? You know. You just know. That's all. None of this is proof in a court of law.
10:51You can read
10:51in her diary. Sunday. This morning, the bands were read in the church. But Eli never married
11:01her. Do you know why? Because Charity was right. The very next week, Eli was somewhere else. He saw
11:11someone else. He loved someone else. He never saw Charity again. And three years later, he was dead
11:20at Monmouth. Turned to Charity's diary. See what she wrote when she heard the news of Eli's death.
11:26Here's the evidence you need to defend me in court. Read it. All right. Now, Friday. This morning,
11:38the Reverend Fallowfield came into the shop with news.
11:46Charity, I am told that Eli Wallington has fallen at Monmouth. I thought you might wish
11:56to know. Thank you, Reverend. He died bravely for his country. And I hope you can find it
12:05in your heart to forgive him. I will not forgive him. Charity. On that Sunday, that awful Sunday,
12:14I swore I'd kill him. But the boy is already dead. He'll live again. I'll live again. I'll find him
12:23and kill him. Give up this frightful hatred before it destroys you. He won't escape. If only I could
12:30help you, Charity, help you, Charity. No one can help me. And no one can help Eli. Somewhere,
12:39somehow, someday, I'll have my revenge.
12:49And when I picked up that diary in the antique shop, Mr. Evans, I was almost frozen with terror.
12:57I knew I had come back. Why shouldn't she? But you know something? After a while, I began to laugh
13:06at myself. Why? Well, for the same reason you're probably laughing at me. After all, we live in the
13:12modern, rational 20th century. Every night, I'd sit alone at home and wait, wait for Charity to come
13:20and kill me. And nothing happened. She didn't show up. No. And you can't maintain an emotional
13:26pitch forever. And so soon, I stopped thinking about it. And then one afternoon, I was sitting
13:35in my study. Come in. It's not locked. Good afternoon, Professor Patterson. Uh, yes. Let me see.
13:46You're Miss, uh... Powers. Madeline Betty Powers. I'm scheduled for a conference at exactly
13:511500 hours. 1500 hours? 3 p.m. We use this terminology at the engineering school. Oh, I, uh,
13:58I see. You're an engineering major, Miss Powers. Have you any objections? Oh, no, certainly not.
14:05Professor, I require three credits in the humanities for my degree. I chose your American history
14:12course. I am flattered. It was the only one open.
14:15You shouldn't have said that. Oh, I have no interest in the dead past, only in the dynamic
14:20present. How can I survive your course? First, uh, show up for class, occasionally. Second,
14:28don't snore too loudly at my lectures. Third, write me a term paper. On what subject? Oh,
14:33any subject related to the Revolutionary War. I know what I'll do. I'll write a novel. Miss Powers,
14:40what are you saying? Yes, a novel. A novel about a girl. But, Miss Powers, you ask for
14:45an easy way out. A novel is the most difficult project. You know what gave me the idea for
14:50it, Professor? This antique pistol on your desk. What? Broken down, rusty old relic. It just
14:57came to me by just looking at it. I'll write about a girl whose father was a gunsmith. What? What
15:07did
15:07you say? In, in one of the 13 colonies, um, Connecticut. But, Miss Powers, do you, do you know anything
15:14about Connecticut during the Revolution? No, no, I'll, I'll make it up. After all, it's a novel. Have
15:20you ever been to Connecticut? No, never in my life. Now, the girl, the heroine of my novel
15:28will be beautiful, sexy. I can see her. I can just see what she looks like. And her name,
15:37I even know her name. What is it? I think I have a good one. Her name is... No, no,
15:41don't,
15:42don't tell me. Write it down on a piece of paper. But don't let me see what you're writing.
15:46But, why? Please do as I ask, Miss Powers. All right. You've written her name? Yes, Professor.
15:57Her name is... Charity. Charity Youngblood. Professor Patterson, how did you know?
16:19Charity Youngblood. Professor Patterson, a quiet teacher of history, is in jail, accused of killing
16:29his fiancée. He doesn't deny it. What he's desperately trying to prove is that he killed
16:37the one he had 200 years ago. Where, where, Miss Powers, have you heard that name, Charity
16:44Youngblood, before? Nowhere. I made it up. You made it up? Well, Charity sounds like a
16:52name a girl might have had 200 years ago. And Youngblood has a kind of colonial quality
16:59to it. Charity Youngblood. It just sort of popped into my head. And it all... Everything
17:04just came to you? The whole idea for the novel? The heroine? Her name? It all occurred to you
17:11just now? Yes, that's right, Professor Patterson. I simply can't account for it. It has no scientific
17:17basis. But suddenly, I have feelings that I've never experienced before. What sort of feelings?
17:27I can't describe them. Vague ideas, hazy pictures. Of what?
17:34But this woman, this girl, this Charity Youngblood, she... she's a creature of my own imagination.
17:43I only conjured her up a few moments ago, and yet she seems to be alive. Give it up, Miss
17:50Powers. You know, sometimes when you write fiction, the character takes over. And unless
17:54you're a skilled professional author, this can be dangerous. Just attend class, look intelligent,
18:01and you'll pass the course. Well, Professor, that wouldn't be ethical. Miss Powers, we'll just
18:06let that be our secret.
18:20All right. All right. All right. Uh, hello. Professor Patterson, this is Miss Powers. What? Miss
18:31Powers? Madeline Betty Powers. Did I wake you up? I'm sorry. I know it's midnight, but I'm
18:38must see you at once. Please. Well, I... It's important. Where? Well, I'm calling from
18:46the all-night cafeteria at the Student Union Building. I'll... I'll be there. Oh, thank
18:53you, Professor. I had to see you. And I didn't think it would be proper for me to go to
19:05your
19:05apartment at this hour. Well, what... What seems to be the problem, Miss Powers? The
19:09story. The story? The story of Charity Youngblood. Well, I thought we decided to drop it. But
19:17that's the problem. I... I can't seem to get it out of my mind. Well, I'm sure you... It's
19:22taken over. I can't think of anything else. I... Well, I'm obsessed by it. This girl, Charity
19:32Youngblood. I know her so well. I sometimes think... No, you'll laugh. No, tell me. I...
19:43sometimes think she's me. Well, of course she's you. What are you saying? Well, when you
19:51write fiction, every character has to be yourself in one form or another. No, no, it's more than
19:56that. It's... It's a feeling in my bones. I... I seem to have an urge to do something.
20:04What? I don't know. But I keep writing. Now, I've written 20 pages so far, and most of the
20:13time it doesn't even seem that I'm the one who's doing the writing. I get the feeling that
20:17I'm just holding the pen, and my hand is being guided. I'd like you to read what I've
20:26written so far. Please. Miss Powers, you... you've been working too hard. No, no. I just...
20:32I just feel that something is happening to me. I seem to feel I have some sort of mission.
20:41What kind of mission? Well, I don't know. But every day I feel it's becoming clearer. But
20:48I still have no idea what it is. And every day, Mr. Evans, she would hand me a chapter of
21:02her novel. And that novel will win me acquittal in court. Why? Because each chapter is word for
21:09word, a day in Charity Youngblood's original diary. In Madeline Betty's own handwriting.
21:15Where's that novel now? In my desk. I... I did everything I could to get her to stop writing,
21:23hoping that somehow I could get her mind off it. But of course, that was useless. After
21:29all, if she really was Charity Youngblood, and there was no doubt in my mind about it, nothing
21:34would stop her from finding it out. And every day she was getting closer. Not just to Charity,
21:41but to me.
21:46Professor, I decided to give Charity a love interest. We're about to have the war, and I've created
21:53a young cavalry officer of the Connecticut Brigade. I have a name for him. Eli Wallington.
22:01Eli Wallington? Yes. Miss Powers, you've already written more than enough to earn a good grade.
22:06It's already longer than the average term paper. Oh, but I have to finish. Why? This whole
22:10thing started as a term project, and as far... Yes, it may have started that way, but now
22:14it's... it's something that belongs to me, and I can't help it. I have to keep writing until...
22:20Until? Until something happens. What? What is supposed to happen?
22:25I don't know. But I'm afraid. I'm very much afraid. I was afraid too, Mr. Evans. Afraid
22:39that at any time she would suddenly realize that she wanted to kill me. But surely you realized...
22:44Surely what? You mean I had nothing to be afraid of? Suppose someone's determined to kill
22:48you, and you know it. You tell me. You know what I think. Although it's academic now. I
22:56think you should have gone to a psychiatrist. I did. I went to the top. I went to the head
23:02of the Department of Psychiatry at the University Hospital. All right. Now, let us see if we can
23:15delve into the core of these hallucinations. No, let's not, Dr. Laufer. You see, these
23:20are not hallucinations. No. No. These are matters of fact. I know them to be true.
23:26You're talking about reincarnation. Yes. And you obviously don't believe in it. That's
23:33hardly the point. It may exist, for all I know. However, if it does, then we have no way
23:41of knowing who we were in a past lifetime. Perhaps we had no way of knowing. Perhaps
23:46today, with heightened powers of communication, perhaps our modern scientific technology has
23:52upset certain natural balances. Whatever. The fact is, I know. If you know, you know. What
24:01do you want me to do? Suggest a way I can live with it. I'm afraid I don't understand. Look,
24:07if a man was an alcoholic, or a drug addict, or a gambler, and he said to you, this is
24:12what's
24:12wrong with me. How do I live with it? What would you tell him? You are oversimplifying. I
24:18am a... I'll coin the word. Reincarnate. How do I live with it? Especially since my life
24:27is in danger. Very well. Why is your life in danger? I told you. Charity Youngblood wants
24:37her revenge. And she's here in the person of Madeline Betty Powers to exact it. Don't
24:42you see what you must do? No. This is all within the framework you yourself have created.
24:50If you remove the motive, you can prevent the crime. I still don't know what you mean.
24:55If she wants to kill you because you jilted her. Well, all you have to do is give her
25:00satisfaction. How? Marry her. Marry her? Marry Madeline Betty? She's hardly my type. You're
25:1132 years old. You're not married. Are you going with anyone? No. But marry her? How do I
25:22know she'll have me? Were you once Eli Wallington? Yes. Was she once Charity Youngblood? Yes.
25:33She'll have you.
25:42Oh, Professor Patterson, you really didn't have to take me to dinner. Well, our conference
25:47ran late. We have to eat. Well, I mean, to a place like this. Well, this is a very nice
25:52place. Or so I thought. Would you, uh, would you care to dance? Oh, no, thank you. I, I dance
26:01rather poorly. Oh, I can't believe that. Why can't you believe it? Because you're so charming.
26:07I don't think so. At least no one ever told me that. But I think so. Do you? Why? Well,
26:15it's, it's a subjective thing. I lied to you just now. I said I dance poorly. The truth
26:21is I, I don't dance at all. How is that possible? Girls who don't get asked usually don't bother
26:30to learn. I don't know why I'm telling you all this. It's just that since the day I met
26:36you, I, I started thinking. I don't know how to describe it. Well, what were you thinking?
26:43Oh, crazy things. That is for me. I suddenly wanted to write a book. Why? I'll never know.
26:51And I began thinking of a girl who lived hundreds of years ago in a place I've never heard of.
26:58I, I, I can't understand it. Madeline, Betty, maybe I can help you. Would you, Professor
27:03Patterson? Rex. Go on, say it. Call me Rex. Rex.
27:10I've also felt something since the time you walked into my study for conference. And, and
27:15I've been trying to analyze it. And I finally discovered what it is. It's love.
27:24Professor Patterson. Rex. And so I, I'm asking you, I hope that you will marry me.
27:38If you're going along with what Rex believes, they're playing the scene again. Rex and Madeline
27:46Betty have now reached the point where Eli proposed to Charity. Charity said yes, but will
27:53Madeline Betty? Yes or no will be the first word you will hear when we return shortly with
28:01act three. Eliminate the motive and you prevent the crime. Excellent advice. And Rexford Patterson
28:19has taken it. He has just proposed to Madeline Betty Powers because it's the only way he can
28:24think of to keep her from killing him. And now she looks at him and says, yes, Professor
28:33Patterson. Yes. You can't agree to marry a man and call him Professor Patterson. Rex.
28:41I know, I know it's sudden, Madeline Betty. We can get married after you graduate. Oh, I'll
28:46marry you anytime you say. Rex. I love you. I love you too. I fell in love with you. Must
28:57have been at first sight. Why? Why? Because you're handsome. I was hoping I had other qualities.
29:06Oh, you do. You do. But being handsome is part of it. Why did you fall in love with me?
29:13Because you're beautiful. Oh. No, you don't believe it. No, I don't. Well, I feel beautiful.
29:20You make me feel beautiful. Oh, Rex. I can't believe this is happening to me. It's happening.
29:30It's happening to both of us. And I'll be such a good wife for you. What? What is it?
29:37Oh, my head. What's the matter? Suddenly feels so light, so clear. Well, that's good. And
29:47different. Different? Yes, different. How? The book. You know the novel that I'm writing for
29:56the course? Yes. All of a sudden, I don't want to write it anymore. Why not? I don't know
30:05how it came into my head in the first place. Just as suddenly as it came, it's gone out.
30:11Gone out? That girl, Charity. Oh, yes. Charity, the heroine of your book. Yes, that's her name.
30:19Yes, I seem to remember. Well, she's gone from my mind, too. I simply can't understand how
30:25it happened. Well, why bother? Yes, that's right. Why bother about anything except us? Except
30:34you and me. So you proposed to her professor and you were accepted. She seemed happy. Apparently
30:51you were reconciled. What was the problem? The problem was, Mr. Evans, I didn't really love
30:58her. Just as Eli didn't really love Charity. But within the theory you'd set up... Don't call
31:04it a theory. It's a fact. Oh, whatever. But this is what you had to do. You had to
31:08marry the girl. And I tried hard. But she made it impossible. She was... What did she
31:14do? Nothing, really. She was just so grateful to me. You pay attention to a wallflower and
31:22what you create for yourself is a... is a clinging vine. A vine that can strangle and suffocate
31:27you. And besides... Yes? Besides, there was Susan Miller. Come in, Madeline Betty. I'm not
31:45Madeline Betty. But I came in anyhow. Well, how do you do? Professor Patterson? Yes? I'm Susan
31:53Miller. Of the English department. You're new here. Oh, I received my teaching appointment
31:59last week. Early American lit. A favorite field of mine. Well, that's the scoop on campus.
32:05Anything early American. See Rex Patterson. I, uh, I just thought we'd chat. Uh, fix you a
32:12drink? A soft one. Naturally. Diet, if you have it. I'm watching my weight. Why? I think it's
32:19most attractive the way it is. Well, if you think so, I'll keep it that way. Uh, did you
32:27know that General Burgoyne wrote a play? Yes. It was called Maid of the Oaks. And it was
32:33produced in New York during the Revolution. Yes. And I'll tell you who was in the cast.
32:43And that's how it all started, Mr. Evans. Easy, relaxed, delightful. There is such a thing
32:50as love at first sight. And it was there for both of us. But Madeline Betty. Madeline Betty.
32:57Well, I knew I had to do something about her. Yeah, exactly. So you killed her. No. No, that's
33:02not the reason. You wanted to marry Susan Miller. It never reached that point. I mean, we didn't
33:07get that far. But the prosecution will know about Susan Miller. No. They don't have to.
33:13No one really knew. No one? No one. Except Susan, myself, and Madeline Betty.
33:26I'll get it. Hello? Hello. Is Rex, um, Professor Patterson there? Oh, who's calling?
33:36This is Susan. Miss Susan Miller. Rex, it's for you. Miss Susan Miller. Oh. Oh, thank you, Madeline.
33:45Uh, yes, Susan? Rex, how about a drive in the country? I, um, I have considerable work
33:53to do. But I thought you had nothing to do all weekend. So did I, but, uh, I have this
33:59research project. I see. Did your project answer the phone? No. No, it's nothing like that.
34:08Well, maybe we can get together tomorrow. Sure thing. Goodbye. Bye.
34:15And who is Susan Miller? She teaches here. I'll bet. What does she teach? English. You
34:22could look it up in the catalog. I'm sorry. I'm so jealous. Forgive me. You're forgiven.
34:29I just, I just can't believe my good luck, that's all. Rex, you said you'd marry me any
34:36time I chose. Well, yes. Well, I choose now. Now? Well, next month. I want my
34:44mother and dad and my sisters, and I have some cousins. I'd like to see their looks on
34:49their faces. The first Sunday next month. That's almost four weeks from now. Is that
34:55all right? Well, uh... You haven't changed your mind, have you?
35:05But I had changed my mind, doctor. I see. I wish I knew what doctors meant when they say
35:10I see. Patterson, you are the one who set up the ground rules. You said she was Charity
35:18Youngblood, reincarnated to have her revenge. I know. I, I know. And using that, I suggested
35:25marriage. It was your only chance. I, I realize that, but you see, I, I really don't believe
35:32that anymore. You don't? I should have listened to you when you, when you called it an hallucination.
35:39You agree with that now? I think I do. What caused this radical change? I'm in love. With
35:48whom? A woman. A woman? Yes, a woman. Not a girl, not an immature, neurotic girl, but
35:55a woman. A woman who is beautiful, intelligent, who has everything in common with me, who has
36:02something to offer me, just as I have something to offer her. And what of Madeline Betty and,
36:10or, uh, Charity Youngblood? Charity Youngblood was an adolescent delusion. You're hardly
36:18an adolescent. In many respects, I was. I fell in love with the idea of Charity Youngblood,
36:25this voluptuous creature, but... Yes. You grow up when you meet a real woman.
36:33As I said before, you're hardly a boy. It takes some of us longer than others. And Madeline
36:40Betty? What of her? She'll have to grow up, too. Somehow, all this, it doesn't seem fair
36:49to her. Life itself is unfair, Doctor. You make everything seem very neat. Somehow, I don't
36:59think you'll be able to unwrap the package as easily as you think.
37:08But, why? Why? I told you, Madeline Betty, I told you. But you said you loved me. I, I
37:15thought I did. No. Please, Madeline Betty, don't make this difficult for both of us. Oh, Rex,
37:22please, marry me. No, it, it wouldn't be right. I told everyone, my parents, my sister, my friends.
37:29Oh, Rex, what can I tell them now? Would you want us to live a lie? I don't care. Rex,
37:36why did you do this to me? These things happen. You loved because I was here. You went somewhere
37:42else. You saw someone else. Now you love someone else. What are you saying? I don't know what
37:49I'm saying. Look, you'll find someone else, too.
37:54I'm sorry, Rex. I've been speaking to you like a fool. You want to break our engagement?
38:01Only because it would be best for both of us. For whatever reason. I won't stand in your
38:08way. Excuse me. Hello? Rex. Uh, could you... She doesn't have to call back. I'm leaving.
38:18But before I go, Rex, I'd like to have a memento of us. I'll leave you what I wrote about
38:26charity, Youngblood, and, um, could I have... Anything, Madeline Betty. That...
38:32Anything. Pistol, that old, broken, antique pistol. Well, certainly, of course.
38:38Yes. Well, goodbye, Eli. What did you say? Nothing. What did you call me? I called you
38:48by your name. Goodbye. That night, Mr. Evans, she left the college. Her roommate called me
39:00and said, Madeline Betty had disappeared. Well, didn't you feel that perhaps you should
39:06investigate? No. I... Well, to tell you the truth, I felt relieved. I thought she was embarrassed
39:14and had decided to go somewhere, and I... Well, I forgot all about her. You forgot? How could
39:20you forget? Maybe I wanted to forget. Anyway, about a week later, I came home. It was late
39:28at night. Good evening. What... What are you doing here? I have a key, remember? Look, I... What
39:45can I do for you? Nothing. Ask me what I can do for you. Well, what? I can kill you.
39:54What
39:55do you say? Yes. I can kill you very easily, and I'm going to. Madeline Betty, uh... Who
40:03are you talking to? My name is Charity. Charity? Yes, Eli. Charity. Remember Charity? No, you're
40:12Madeline Betty. It's taken me such a long time to find you, Eli. Such a long time. Listen
40:17to me. I'm not Eli. I'm Rex Patterson, and you're not Charity. You're Madeline Betty Powers.
40:22Always. Talk, Eli. You always could do it, but it doesn't go with me anymore. Look, Madeline
40:27Betty, I have to ask you to leave. Oh, I will. After I kill you. No, you can't kill me.
40:33I
40:33can. With this. What are you talking about? With that rusty old antique pistol? No, not
40:38anymore. I brought it home to Father. To Isaiah Youngblood's gun shop, and I said, Father, fix
40:45this pistol. And he did. You see how he cleaned it and oiled it? See how it shines now. Madeline
40:53Betty... Don't move any closer. Not one step closer. See how it sparkles? He gave it a new
40:58flammer and a fresh flint, fitted a new flash pan, and then primed it, poured in the powder,
41:05rammed home the ball, and now it's ready to fire. Charity, no. No. Get away from me. Take
41:10your hands off. No. Get away from me. Drop it. Get go of me. Charity, drop it. We struggled
41:24for the gun, and at the last second, the barrel must have turned toward her, and she pulled
41:30the trigger. And that's your defense? That's my defense. You want me to plead that defense?
41:38I want you to tell the jury exactly what happened, why it happened, and the way it happened. Show
41:45them the written proof. You're sure that's what you want me to do? Yes, I'm sure. I'm sure
41:52because it's the truth. Well, I hope the jury buys it. Would you have bought Professor Patterson's
42:04story? You would. A pity you weren't on the jury, because 12 good men and true, actually
42:12six of them were women, deliberated for a full week and decided that Rex would have to pay
42:19the price. Not just the price for Madeline Betty, but also, as it turned out, the price
42:25for charity. I'll be back shortly. Can a desire for revenge span the centuries? Not a comforting
42:45thought, exactly. It's all most of us can do to hew to the straight and narrow during one
42:50lifetime. If we're going to have to pay for the sins of other incarnations and existences,
42:56well, who has the price? But there is no price for our next meeting, when we shall enjoy another
43:04suspenseful experience. Our cast included Michael Tolan, Marion Seldes, E.V. Juster, Ira Lewis,
43:12and Robert Dryden. The entire production was under the direction of Hyman Brown. And now,
43:19a preview of our next tale.
43:24The answer's still the same. No dog, no baby. Just be happy with these dumb plants. They're
43:31bad enough. They have the whole bloody windows. I hate you. You're lucky I'll let you keep
43:36them. I hate you. I wish you were dead. What did you say? I said, I hate you.
43:43I wish you were dead. Did you really say? Hey. Hey, what? Hey, what's this? The bloody
43:52plants are on my neck. Hey, Barbara, they're all around me. They're choking me. I can't get
43:58them off. Hey, Barbara. Barbara, they're too strong. Barbara, don't stand. Get them off.
44:06No. Get the scissors. Barbara, it's the scissors. I hate you. I hate you. I want you dead.
44:18Radio Mystery Theater was sponsored in part by Anheuser-Busch Incorporated, brewers of Budweiser.
44:25This is E.G. Marshall inviting you to return to our mystery theater for another adventure in
44:31the macabre. Until next time, pleasant dreams.
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