Now, the Roma Wine Company of Fresno, California presents...
Suspense!
Tonight, Roma wines bring you the suspenseful play called Fear Paints a Picture, starring
Miss Lana Turner.
Suspense is presented for your enjoyment by Roma Wines.
That's R-O-M-A, Roma Wines.
Those excellent California wines that can add so much pleasantness to the way you live,
to your happiness and entertaining guests, to your enjoyment of everyday meals.
Yes, right now a glass full would be very pleasant, as Roma Wines bring you a remarkable
tale of suspense.
And with Fear Paints a Picture, and with the performance of Hollywood's most glamorous
young star, Miss Lana Turner, Roma Wines hope indeed to keep you in suspense.
There is a picture hanging on a wall.
You look at it casually, an extraordinary picture.
You'll say, skillfully done.
Look at those fine brush strokes.
Look at those superb colors.
Isn't the subject matter a little bizarre?
It's something more than just bizarre.
You see, it was that picture that first convinced me that I was insane.
But let me begin from the beginning.
In his last will and testament, my father made me heir to all his considerable fortune,
except that, well, here, you read the will.
I, Benjamin Powell, hereby request that after my death my daughter Julia live in my old
San Francisco house with Mr. Harvey Lyons, my lifelong friend, until her twenty-third
birthday, at which date all my worldly belongings will come into her possession, provided that
nothing untoward happens to her by that time, but in the event that she is incapable of
taking over my estate upon her twenty-third birthday, I hereby appoint Harvey and Laura
Lyons as my final heirs, there being no other living blood relatives, and trust to their
judgment that they will take care of Julia adequately and with kindness.
Signed, Benjamin Powell.
Three months later, seated around the huge ornate fireplace of that dark, musty living
room, we were three silent people.
Harvey was reading his newspaper, Laura was knitting with nibble fingers, and I stared
with unseen eyes at an open book.
You're not reading, Julia?
I, uh, I'm not concentrating.
Are you feeling all right, dear?
Oh, yes, yes, I'm all right.
You do look a little tired, Julia.
Perhaps you'd better get some rest.
I'm not tired, Harvey.
I, I've been wanting to ask you...
In a week, Julia will be twenty-three.
Isn't that wonderful, Harvey?
Next Tuesday is her birthday, and I think...
Oh, yes, we'll have a party.
I'll get old Tom and his fiddle, and we'll have a real old-fashioned party.
Harvey, what did father mean by the will?
The will?
Perhaps you'd better go to bed.
You look a little pale, Julia.
The will said that I might not be able to take over the estate by my twenty-third birthday.
What does it mean?
I don't remember that.
I didn't read the will very carefully.
Oh, yes, you did, Harvey.
You know what I'm talking about.
Perhaps we'd better discuss it in the morning.
You're tired.
It's no use, Laura.
I've got to know.
Now, you're a very high-strung girl, Julia, and I'd rather not upset you before bedtime.
Upset me?
You, well, you sort of get moody very often.
Now, Harvey...
Laura, I'm not going to bed until I find out what all this means.
I've got to find out.
You don't like your room, do you?
No, no, I don't.
It's big.
The wallpaper...
I don't like the pictures on the wall.
There's nothing wrong with a big room.
Everyone prefers a large room.
Everyone likes pictures in the wall.
Well, maybe it's the kind of pictures.
Yes, it's the pictures.
They rub me the wrong way.
You see?
Your feelings about things are different, different from the feelings of normal people.
Oh.
Normal people?
I can't stand this torturous way of telling her.
I'll tell you, Julia.
Your mother died in an asylum.
She went mad after her 23rd year.
It's been in the family for generations.
But I never saw my mother.
We didn't want to tell you this.
I wish you hadn't, but you forced us.
What do you mean, I'm liable to become insane?
Well, you see, any one of us can become insane.
There's nothing wrong with me.
I'm perfectly all right.
I'm as sane as anyone.
Being high-strung doesn't make me mad.
I don't like it here.
I don't like this house.
I'm sane.
I'm sane.
Of course you are, Julia.
There's nothing the matter with you.
You'll be all right.
Your father wasn't sure, that's all.
You're as sane as any one of us.
Come along.
I'll take you to your room.
We'll have a cup of tea together.
How is she, Laura?
She's calmed down.
Is she asleep?
No, Harvey, she's reading.
That must be Dr. Barrow.
I'll open the door.
How do you do, Mr. Lyons?
Is it Dr. Barrow?
That's right.
This is my wife, Laura.
How do you do?
I'm glad to meet you, Doctor.
Let me take your things.
We'll have your room ready in a few minutes.
Thank you.
It's very good of you.
Here, sit down.
Sit down.
Make yourself comfortable.
Thank you.
I will.
Well, how's Julia?
Oh, she's been very moody lately.
Very moody.
I've heard her talking to herself very often.
Well, that's nothing.
All of us talk to ourselves once in a while.
I don't know, Doctor.
I don't think she's very stable.
Mr. Powell described Julia's case to me just before he died.
I had occasion to observe her just once.
You knew Mr. Powell well?
Oh, yes.
For quite a number of years, I treated his wife.
Poor Mrs. Powell.
She went mad.
And now poor Julia.
I wouldn't make that comparison, Mr. Lyons.
So far, there's no basis for any such theory.
Well then, Julia just has strong dislikes.
Took a hate to the pictures in her room.
Oh, pictures, eh?
I'd like to go up and see her if she's not asleep.
Well, I guess it's all right.
She's not asleep yet.
The room's the second from the right, as you reach the top of the stairs.
Thank you.
I'll just stop in for a few minutes.
Come in.
Hello, Julia.
You remember me, don't you?
No.
No, not exactly.
I guess maybe I do.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I'm not sure.
I guess maybe I've seen your face.
I don't know.
I'm Dr. Barrow, a friend of your father's.
I treated your mother.
My mother?
No, no.
Don't be alarmed.
I'm staying with your guardians for a few weeks.
I'm sure you're going to be all right.
Do you mind if I come in for a few minutes?
No.
No, I guess not.
Well, this is a fine room, Julia.
A very comfortable one.
I don't like it.
It's too big.
It makes me lonely.
Oh, nonsense.
You're just imaginative.
You think someone might be hiding in here while you're asleep, don't you now, huh?
It isn't that.
Don't you like that picture, Julia?
What picture?
The one you're staring at.
Oh, it's an unpleasant picture.
It gives me nightmares.
Look at it.
That frightful-looking man about to come through the doorway,
and the unsuspecting girl sitting in a chair with her back towards him.
He's not frightful-looking at all.
It's just a black scarf around his neck.
He's about to kill her.
You certainly have a vivid imagination.
I'm sure the artist had no such idea in mind.
That picture has a horrible fascination for me.
I just can't take my eyes away from it.
Why, last night, I dreamed that the man in the picture came through the door
with a knife in his hands and killed the girl.
It was an awful dream.
It was only a dream.
But if I take that painting off the wall, Julia,
you'll find other things to be afraid of, dear.
You've got to conquer your fears, or they'll conquer you, Julia.
Now, now, you do as I say.
Forget about this picture. Get a good night's sleep.
There's nothing like a good night's sleep to lift the spirits.
If the picture fascinates you, well, keep on looking at it,
but don't be afraid of it, Julia.
Will you do that now?
Well, yes, Dr. Barrow, if you say so.
Ah, that's fine. I'll see you in the morning.
Good night, Julia.
Good night.
For Suspense, Roma Wines are bringing you as star Miss Lana Turner,
whom you have heard in the first act of Fear Paints a Picture
by Sigmund Miller, which is Roma Wines presentation tonight of Suspense.
Between the acts of Suspense, this is Truman Bradley for Roma Wines.
Elsa Maxwell is recognized internationally as an authority on gracious living.
The other day, she said this about wine and wartime food rationing.
Listen.
I find that people who know one simple secret of delicious meals
aren't bothered much by food rationing.
That secret is to enjoy good Roma wine with food.
For instance, I recently had dinner where the main dish was kidney bean casserole.
And to give this simple food a delightful party flavor,
my hostess served cool Roma California Burgundy.
Everyone remarked about its wonderful bouquet and aroma,
and about the way that good Roma Burgundy added enjoyment to our plain meal.
Such added enjoyment is one of the reasons why more and more people
serve delightful Roma wine.
That's a grand suggestion from Elsa Maxwell.
So why not try Roma California Burgundy with your dinner tomorrow night?
You'll enjoy its tart piquancy, its fruity, robust taste,
the happy result of selecting luscious wine grapes from California's choicest vineyards,
guiding them to perfection by the ancient wine skill of Roma's famed wineries.
Good Roma wines never vary.
They are always enjoyable, yet cost only pennies a glass.
Remember, more Americans enjoy Roma than any other wine.
R-O-M-A, Roma wines.
And now Roma wines bring back to our Hollywood soundstage Lana Turner,
as Julia Powell in Fear Paints a Picture,
a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense.
About midnight in my room, the large room with its many pictures,
I was dreaming, dreaming again of the man in the picture,
and the figure with the flowing black scarf was alive.
And his hands grew longer and longer.
And there were footsteps, footsteps over my head.
And then, then I was awake, wide awake, with my eyes staring at it.
And on the wall, oh, oh!
Oh! Ah!
Julia, what's happened?
What are you doing out here in the hall?
We're together, Julia.
Oh, that man, that man.
What man?
The man in the picture, he's moved.
What do you mean?
The picture, the man at the door.
He's not at the door. He's inside the room.
Oh, you must have been dreaming.
The man screams.
Julia, what's happened to you?
He moved. I saw it. He's not outside the door anymore.
He's inside.
Now, now, now, Julia, let's...
It wasn't a dream. The thunder woke me.
And I heard footsteps coming from the ceiling.
And then I looked at the picture.
The picture I told you I didn't like, Doctor.
The man was inside the room.
That's highly possible, Julia.
Figures in pictures can't move.
Of course not. It was just a bad dream.
No, it's true. I saw it.
All right, come along, Julia.
We'll all take a look at the picture.
Oh, no. No, I don't want to go back into the room.
Now, there's nothing to be afraid of.
We'll all go with you, dear.
Yes, come on, Julia. Don't be frightened.
You've got to fight off these delusions.
Here, give me your hand. Come along.
Now, which picture is it?
The one... the one near the bed.
Oh, yes, the picture by Ralph Powell.
Your family was always very proud of it.
Well, there it is.
It's the same as I saw it a few hours ago.
Look at it, Julia.
Why, I... I can't believe it.
The man with the black scarf is still outside the door.
And we'll stay there, Julia, until the picture crumbles to dust.
Oh, but I... I was so sure.
I... I saw him inside the room,
approaching the girl, and then the footsteps...
Dreams can be very vivid,
and there are no footsteps coming from the storeroom.
Oh, I must be out of my mind.
I could have sworn...
If Julia wants to, I'll take the picture out of her room.
No, no, I don't think it's wise.
Julia, you will have to fight these unreasonable fears.
Never give in to them.
I'll go crazy if I keep looking at that picture.
It might be the other way around, Julia.
If you run away from it,
the mental disease prevalent in your family
will take a firm hold in you.
You'll get worse and worse, as Dr. Barrow says.
You tend to be afraid of your own shadow.
No.
You'll be afraid of everything, of everyone you meet.
No.
Afraid to be alone, afraid to be with people,
afraid of yourself, afraid of your own clutching fingers.
Oh, no, don't tell me anymore.
Please, Mr. Lyons, please.
There's no need for this kind of talk.
Look at the picture, Julia.
It's nothing but some paint on a canvas
with a frame around it.
There's nothing about it that can harm you.
The danger lies in yourself.
You've got to keep staring at it as often as you can
by candlelight in the dark
until you've learned to laugh at it.
It won't be easy.
Well, I... I'll try.
That's fine. I knew you had courage.
I thought you were sedative so that you'll be able to sleep.
Oh, but I'll be all right in the morning.
I'm sure I'll be all right.
And I was all right for a few days.
The figure in the picture remained motionless,
and I heard no more footsteps until one evening...
Well, Julia, it's 11 o'clock,
and you know what Dr. Barrow says.
I'm not at all sleepy, Laura.
I'd much rather stay up for a while.
You see, I'm in the middle of a fascinating story...
Is everything wrong, Julia?
No, no, of course not.
Everything's fine, Laura.
You're afraid to go to sleep, aren't you, Julia dear?
No, no, it isn't that.
Is that picture bothering you again?
Oh, yes.
Last night, I heard footsteps again.
The sound woke me and the figure in the picture.
It moved.
It moved closer to the girl.
Oh, how terrible.
We thought you were over it.
Well, I took some sleeping tablets,
and I fell asleep again.
And in the morning, well,
the picture was the same as ever.
I see.
Oh, Laura, do you think I'm crazy?
Oh, of course not.
You're as sane as I am.
Tell me the truth. I must know.
Well, you're just nervous and high strung,
and you have a vivid imagination, and that's all.
Oh, you're trying to soothe me.
Why didn't you tell the doctor that you thought the picture moved again?
Well, I... I was ashamed.
You shouldn't be ashamed.
Dr. Barry was here to help you get well, and I'm sure that...
Hello, Laura.
Well, I've arranged to have old Tom and his fiddle here tomorrow night
for Julia's birthday, and I've invited the Grovers,
and they'll be delighted to come.
That is, if Julia's feeling well.
Julia, you should be in bed. It's after 11.
She's afraid to go to sleep.
Oh, please, Laura.
It's the picture again, isn't it?
It moved again.
At least I thought it moved.
Oh, but I went back to sleep.
Well, well, that's an improvement.
You didn't get hysterical and tried to run away like the last time.
Come, Julia. I'll go with you to your room.
Perhaps Laura couldn't sleep in my room tonight.
Oh, just tonight.
You see, I'll feel a lot more comfortable,
and tomorrow night, well, I'll be able to face it alone much better.
Well, Julia, that would be an admission of defeat, you know,
but if you...
Oh, well, all right, if you think it's best.
Good night.
Good night, Julia.
Keep up your courage.
Whew.
It doesn't look so good, does it, Doctor?
Well, not too good, but it's not hopeless.
She has an unstable imaginative mind
subject to delusions which become very real to her.
Oh, her obsession about the picture's not so bad.
We all suffer occasionally from optical illusions,
but hearing footsteps coming from the storeroom above her...
The storeroom?
How did you know there's a storeroom above her?
Why, your wife told me about it.
Oh, of course.
Well, that storeroom hasn't been open in years.
I guess there's no point in investigating it, is there?
No, I don't think so.
Those footsteps, like the moving figure in the painting, are all in her mind.
Oh, her mother behaved just like that before she went mad, didn't she?
Well, there's some similarity in...
Say, you haven't been to the storeroom recently, have you?
No, no, I just mentioned to you that it hasn't been open in years.
Oh, yes, yes, so you did, so you did.
Oh, I just hope that Julia will be all well for her party tomorrow.
Well, I had no idea she was having a birthday.
How old will she be?
She'll be 23.
Really? Well, I must remember to get her a gift.
Well, I guess I'll go to bed.
So will I. See you in the morning.
But I wasn't thinking about my birthday.
When I stood alone inside my own room, panic, black, unreasoning panic, began to take hold of me.
In wild haste, I began to undress, never looking at the picture and...
and talking to myself, yes, talking to myself all the while.
Now, now, I won't look at it.
I'll take some pills and fall asleep.
All I have to do is keep from looking at the picture.
It can't do me any harm.
If I don't see it, I mustn't even think of it.
I know, I'll think about the trip I made to South America.
Oh, it was a wonderful trip.
The sunsets and...what was that?
Footsteps. Those footsteps again.
But I mustn't hear it. I mustn't hear it.
It was a wonderful trip.
The blue caribbean and...you know, Rio is a beautiful city.
Sugarloaf Mountain and the music and the dancing.
Why, it's not the footsteps.
It's just my heart beating.
I know, I'll close my eyes.
Oh, please, please let me sleep.
I don't want to look at the picture. I won't.
I know what I'll see.
He'll be closer to her.
And maybe he'll have killed her.
Oh, but I mustn't open my eyes.
I mustn't. I won't. I...I...
Oh, but I've got to look at it.
Oh!
He has moved. He's closer to the girl.
I'm not dreaming.
It's real. The girl...
Why, it's me. That girl is me.
Me, I...I can't stand it. I...I can't, I can't!
Julia! Oh, you poor, poor dear girl.
Oh, well, it's the same thing, Laura, again and again.
I tried not to look at the picture, Laura. I tried so very hard.
But it was hopeless. I had to.
And the figure with the black scarf was inside the room.
A knife in his hands, very close to the girl.
But this time the girl had turned around and...
And it was my face. My face!
My face! Did you hear any footsteps?
Yes. Yes, I heard them as soon as I got into the room,
but...but the picture, it's...it's the same.
It hasn't changed. Look at it.
Yes, the picture doesn't seem to have...
What's the matter, Laura?
Nothing. Nothing at all.
There. There, did you hear it? Footsteps.
It was probably a board creaking. Now you go to sleep.
I think everything will be all right in the morning.
Oh, and you won't leave me?
No, Julia. I'll stay here till you fall asleep.
Oh, thank you, Laura. Thank you very much.
Laura? Laura? Is that you?
Laura? Why, she's gone.
She's left me alone. But I...I'm not alone.
Something woke me. The picture.
I...it's the picture. I must look at it again.
If he's moved again. Oh, but I must look straight at it.
I'll look straight at it.
Oh. Why, he...he's killed the girl.
He stabbed her. He stabbed me.
I'm the girl. And I've got to get out. Out!
Oh. Oh, and now you're here.
Why, you...you've come to life.
In my room. The man in the black scarf.
You...what do you want me to do?
No. No, I won't run away.
And I won't scream. What are you asking me?
Do I want to spend the rest of my life in an asylum like my mother?
No. No, I don't. I don't.
You...you want me to open the window?
Why, yes. Yes, I'll open it.
There. You say...you say it would be best for everybody if I jump?
Oh, yes. It's the only way out.
The only way and I'll do it.
I'll do it now without even thinking.
It will only take a moment.
Julia! Stop! Stop, Julia!
Harvey! Clara, what are you doing?
We came just in time. I've got her, Harvey. She's safe.
I...I'm safe? You can come out from behind that chair, my friend.
Friend? Come out or I'll shoot.
I don't understand. My head's going around in a circle.
I can explain everything. I was merely observing, Julia.
The procedure was a little unusual. I'll admit...
I'll do the explaining, Dr. Barrow. You tried to drive Julia crazy.
He...he tried to drive me crazy. That's right.
He tried to do it with the picture. You're all making a serious mistake.
A mistake? Look at the picture.
The figure is inside the room stabbing the girl.
No, it wasn't your imagination, Julia.
He painted several pictures. Each one of them the figure closer to the girl.
He used the storeroom upstairs. That's why you heard footsteps.
I got suspicious when I found a black scarf in his room.
And when I looked at the picture a little while ago, it was full of dust.
I had dusted it off myself a few hours just before.
Yes, and Dr. Barrow seemed to know there was a storeroom above you.
I couldn't understand how he knew that.
Because this old house of your father's had been closed for years.
Oh, but why? Why should he want to drive me crazy?
Because he's not Dr. Barrow.
What?
He's Ralph...Ralph Powell, your cousin who disappeared many years ago.
Everyone thought he was dead.
He painted the picture originally so it was easy for him.
His plan was to drive you insane.
Then contest the will since he's the nearest blood relative.
I had no intention of killing Julia. I swear I didn't. I just wanted to frighten her.
Why...I almost...I almost jumped out of the window.
I might have been dead right now.
Lying dead outside.
Don't think about it, Julia dear. It's all over now. You're all right.
You mean I...I'm not insane?
Why, of course not, Julia.
Oh, I almost forgot. Why, it's Thursday.
Why, yes. Happy birthday, Julia.
How does it feel to be 23 years old?
It...it feels wonderful.
MUSIC
And so closes Fear Paints a Picture in which Roma wines have brought you Lana Turner,
a star of tonight's study in...
Suspense.
Suspense is produced, edited and directed by William Spear.
Before our star returns to the microphone, Roma Wines, the sponsor of Suspense,
bring you a brief message from that noted authority on smart entertaining, Elsa Maxwell.
A truly versatile wine for entertaining is Roma California Toque.
Serve with coffee or dessert as a delightful finishing touch to your meals.
Or set out Roma Toque with cheese and crackers when friends drop in.
Everyone enjoys this velvety flame-colored wine.
Yet, good as they are, Roma wines cost only pennies a glass.
So enjoy them often. Serve Roma with your everyday meals.
Roma wine is delicious and Roma quality never varies.
Remember, more Americans enjoy Roma than any other wine.
R-O-M-A, Roma wines.
A Roma wine company with sales headquarters in San Francisco joins with that city in welcoming the Men of Peace,
the delegates to the United Nations Conference now in session.
When their good work is completed, may the Men of Peace take back to their homes the memories of a friendly San Francisco.
A city where live in harmony many people of many origins.
A typically American city that speaks for all America when it says,
May God bless you, Men of Peace, and speed you in your noble work.
This is Lana Turner, and it was certainly a great pleasure and privilege to appear here tonight on this distinguished suspense stage,
for you are accustomed to hearing the very best in dramatic radio entertainment.
I appreciate very greatly the opportunity of playing a role somewhat different from the ones I usually do in pictures.
Next week, my friend, that very excellent actor, John Garfield, will be your star of suspense.
I know you will be listening, as I will.
Lana Turner appeared through the courtesy of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and is currently starred in their production, Keep Your Powder Dry.
Next Thursday, you will hear John Garfield as star of suspense.
Presented by Roma Wines, R-O-M-A, made in California for enjoyment throughout the world.
This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System.