Auto Light and its 96,000 dealers present a story taken from the front pages of your
newspaper.
Tonight's production on Suspense.
Tonight, Auto Light presents Black Jack to Kill, a dramatic report on a man who made
his living by being an assassin, starring Mr. Victor Matur.
Hey, hey, hey, Two Gun, why are you shooting those pistols off at your car?
Because I'm tired of just shouting at my cars, wasting gas, and hard to start.
That's why Wilcox.
Well, Two Gun, why not go straight to your nearest Auto Light spark plug dealer and have
him check your spark plugs?
You mean spark plugs could be the trouble of Wilcox?
Well, they sure could, Two Gun, because spark plugs are the heart of a car's ignition system,
and they've got to be right.
That's where your Auto Light spark plug dealer comes in.
He's the only one who has the exclusive Auto Light plug check indicator to quickly tell
whether your spark plugs are right for your style of driving.
He'll do that for me?
He sure will, and more too, because if replacements are needed, he'll recommend ignition-engineered,
standard or resistor-type Auto Light spark plugs to give you smoother performance, quick
starts, and gas savings.
So friends, take a tip from me and see your nearest Auto Light spark plug dealer soon.
And remember, from bumper to tail light, you're always right with Auto Light.
And now, with Black Jack to kill and the performance of Mr. Victor Mature, Auto Light hopes once
again to keep you in suspense.
Here he is, Mr. Moyer.
That chair right in front of you, Johnny.
Sure.
I'm going to give you a card, Johnny.
I'm going to give everybody here at the table one, all five of you.
What is this, anyhow?
One of us is going to kill a man, Johnny.
Who?
That makes a lot of difference to you, Johnny.
You didn't hear me say that, did you?
No.
Once around the table, face up, high card.
High card makes one of you employed with a job to do.
You got anything to say, Raddick, before I deal?
Just deal, Ann.
Thank you, Mr. Raddick.
So polite.
That Cleo killed me.
Ace is high card.
Winner to kill a man.
Let's go.
Cut him, Cleo.
Thanks.
Now, stand at the door and don't let anyone in.
Yes, sir.
What's the matter?
Doesn't Cleo get a card?
You five, just you five, Raddick.
Nine of clubs for you, Raddick.
Six of diamonds for you, talker.
Nine of hearts for Barney.
Jack of clubs for Johnny.
Goodbye, Johnny.
Seven of hearts for Mackle.
You Johnny.
I'm a lucky fellow.
I tell people that when they ask me about you, how lucky you are.
Not a scratch and you've knocked over three hoodlums.
Four.
I operated before I met you, Moyer.
Four, my, my.
Good looking boy like you.
It's the talk how hired killers don't come as pretty as you.
Good night, Mr. Moyer.
Good night, Cleo.
You like it here in Miami, Johnny?
Sure I like it.
Why shouldn't I like it?
Oh, why shouldn't you like it?
Miami, pretty palm trees, pretty ladies, pretty ponies.
And no Penny Cullen.
You're doing it again, Moyer.
Every chance you get, you say Penny Cullen to me.
Why?
Because you're lucky.
A big man like Penny and you say the right word to the wrong guy and Penny's gone, kicked
out, deported, run out of the country and nothing happens to you.
You're sure the one, Johnny.
All right, I'm the one.
Now what did I get the high card for?
For this.
Ten grand to do a job.
Fifteen more when you come back and it's all over.
When I come back?
Where am I going?
Havana, Havana in Cuba.
All right, I go to Havana.
I kill somebody.
Who?
You get a plane ticket and a name and an address.
The address for a man you'll see.
He'll tell you who.
He wants the job done.
I'm just the contractor, Johnny.
Have fun, Johnny.
Try not to get scratched.
The lawyer said it and it let loose a squad of happy butterflies that finally landed in
the wad somewhere inside me.
Ten grand.
Ten grand to stain a little part of Havana with a man's blood.
Throw a handful of sand in his face and for that another 15 grand when I got back so I
can enjoy Miami all over again.
At the airport, hire a car, lean back, spread out, breathe deep and slow while you drive
through dreamland and where the predo kisses the neon goodbye.
A mansion with flamingos strutting in the front yard like they were on stilts and their
wings a color of red I never saw before flashing against the white columns of the house.
Taste it for a minute then walk into it.
And a butler in knee britches tells you to wait.
You are who, senor?
Damon.
Johnny Damon.
Oh?
I have been waiting for you, senor Johnny Damon.
I am Deontay.
We have business to discuss.
You want some dead?
What's to discuss?
Just tell me who.
In my study I think it's more appropriate for these matters.
Venga, senor.
Come.
Aquí.
Here.
You are the assassin I have hired, see?
I want to look at you.
Assassin.
I walk around you.
Observe you.
And this is what an assassin looks like?
Look, how long do I have to wait?
You have impatience and you are assassin.
This is an admirable quality in a man who kills for a fee.
Penny Cullen.
What?
The man I want dead.
Penny Cullen.
Well, well.
Penny is here, huh?
Since three months.
The criminal your country deported to Europe has fled from there.
Came here to Cuba.
This killer, this gangster, this filth.
You have rid yourselves of in your country.
I want this also, to me.
But rid me of him dead.
It's going to be a pleasure.
Penny bothers you, huh?
I have flourishing enterprises in Cuba, senor.
Your Penny Cullen wants to share in them.
This he has whispered to me.
He asked for an answer quickly.
You are my answer.
You came up with the right answer, Chico.
Where do I find Penny?
He has a house in the Plaza Batista.
Number 23.
Four days, Chico.
That's how long I need.
Then the weepers for Penny Cullen can start crying over his dead body.
Four days?
Three days to watch him.
The fourth, the kill.
My assassin.
You know, that's something Penny taught me.
If the man has a schedule that lasts for three days, he'll do the same on the fourth.
I see.
This is very interesting to me.
Sure.
You see, you can't be sloppy in this kind of work.
Know a man's habits.
Know where he's going to be at such and such a time.
Know when to kill.
That way you can walk away from it.
I had not known assassination was such a delicate art, senor.
It's a delicate art, huh?
Si.
A suggestion, if I may.
Go right ahead.
A thing I know about Senor Cullen.
Each day at six, at twilight, he sits on a bench.
The same bench always, and looks over the Embarcadero.
The Embarcadero?
The waterfront.
He sits there and looks out upon the ocean.
Where's the bench?
There is a statue, senor, of a dying hero.
Miguel Perez.
To the left of the statue.
Next d'ante.
That's all I need.
Senor.
Si.
When you kill senor, say him my name.
Say Jose D'ante.
Adios.
Penny Cullen in Havana.
Penny Cullen set up to be knocked over by me.
A boy who could appreciate a nice thing like that.
There was nothing complicated about it.
Penny Cullen was a man I hated.
A man I put the finger on.
A man I had deported.
And now I was going to get close enough to killing.
And he'd never even know I was in Havana.
Now to work.
First an investment.
Ten ninety-five for a pair of binoculars.
Nothing fancy, but good enough.
Magnification three and a half times.
Very fine for seeing Penny Cullen sitting on a bench, watching the ocean.
That evening, get to the waterfront sometime before six.
Find a spot that overlooks a bench to the left of a statue of a dying man.
And wait.
A quarter of six, a vendor pedals by the bench on a bike.
He's selling ice cream.
And wait.
And far away a bell tolls six o'clock.
And in the middle of it a man.
A man who walks over to the bench.
Sits on it.
A man named Penny Cullen.
And Penny looks pretty good.
A little heavier, but just a little bit.
Yeah, Penny looks pretty good.
He's carrying something with him.
A paper bag.
At five minutes after six he opens the bag and throws breadcrumbs to the pigeons.
Penny Cullen throwing breadcrumbs to the pigeons.
At twelve minutes after six a cop walks past the bench.
Touches his cap to Cullen.
Cullen nods back.
The cop goes away.
Penny sits.
Many after another vendor.
An old woman, she's selling flowers.
Penny buys one.
The old woman puts it in his lapel.
Goes away.
A quarter to seven, Penny goes away.
Next day, practically the same.
Five forty-five, ice cream vendor.
Six, Penny Cullen.
Five after, pigeon feeding time.
At six twelve the cop.
Six twenty, flower in the button hole.
Six forty-five, Penny gets up and walks away.
The next day, the same.
Next day, the fourth day.
Day for killing.
Mr. Cuba Libre, senor.
Thanks.
Put it on the table.
Yes, senor.
Will there be anything else?
Take a buck from the bundle.
Oh, a kid.
Si, senor.
I'm liable to nap.
Have the desk call me at five.
Si, senor.
Four hours away from killing time.
Time enough to have your drink, then lie down in that soft bed and relax.
Think about it.
And he didn't even know I was here.
Penny Cullen, pigeon feeder.
Tomorrow the pigeons would have to find a new boy.
Between six twenty and six forty-five I was going to walk up in back of him and let him
have it.
And he wouldn't even know where it came from.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Johnny.
Do whatever you are doing, Johnny.
I'm not going to be at the bench today.
Penny?
Yeah.
Penny Cullen, boy.
Welcome to Havana.
Auto Light is bringing you Mr. Victor Matur in black and white.
Auto Light is bringing you Mr. Victor Matur in Black Jack to Kill.
Tonight's production in radio's outstanding theater of thrills, Souse Friends.
Say, Wilcox, you said Auto Light spark plugs are ignition engineered?
I sure did, Two-Gun, because they're designed by the same Auto Light engineers who designed
the coil, distributor, and all the other important parts of the complete ignition systems used
as original factory equipment on many leading makes of our finest cars, trucks, and tractors.
You mean Auto Light spark plugs are tops in quality and performance, eh, Wilcox?
Exactly, Two-Gun, and that's why so many millions of wise motorists replace worn out spark plugs
with Auto Light standard or resistor type spark plugs for smoother performance, quick
starts, and gas savings.
You just can't buy better spark plugs than world famous ignition engineered Auto Light
spark plugs.
I'm going to see my Auto Light spark plug dealer right now.
Just to quickly learn the location of your nearest Auto Light spark plug dealer, just
call Western Union by number and ask for operator 25.
She'll gladly tell you the location of your nearest Auto Light spark plug dealer who is
equipped to give you the best spark plug service in town.
And remember, from bumper to tail light, you're always right with Auto Light.
And now, Auto Light brings back to our Hollywood sound stage, Mr. Victor Matur in Elliot Lewis's
production of Black Jack to Kill, a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense.
So now it was different.
Penny Cullen knew I was in Havana and he knew why.
But only a little different, only a little tougher.
A matter now of killing a man who knew he was going to be killed.
Look at it this way.
It was a job and it was going to get done.
Only now it was more even up, more interesting.
Penny Cullen and me, two good boys each holding a good hand and the winner that was going
to be me.
Yes, I was the good boy who was going to stay alive.
New plans.
Penny knew where I was.
So get out of this hotel and find another one.
Pack, carry your own suitcase, walk down five flights of stairs, leave through the service
entrance, down an alley, down a side street.
Keep walking, keep alive.
Que quiere, senor?
What?
I ask you what you want.
Rum.
Rum.
Hey boy, tender.
Another room?
No.
Que quiere, senor?
That sign outside says you have rooms upstairs.
Si.
Do you wish a room?
Yeah, for four days.
It can be arranged?
I want something else arranged.
Que?
Look what I got, chico.
See it, money?
Who?
American dollar.
I want to see it, senor.
I want a boat for a boat trip.
Cuando?
When?
In four days.
Look at it again, chico.
Money.
Mucho, mucho, mucho money.
For a boat?
You said it, chico.
Conmigo.
With me.
Mario.
Si?
This man has taken a room.
He also wants to arrange for a boat.
I want a boat in four days.
I need something to take me over to Key West.
Quite to me, senor, there are fine steamships, airplanes.
I can't wait for schedules.
I want something that'll get me out of here when I'm ready to move.
What about it?
In four days.
Well, what about it?
In four days, senor.
On the fourth day from today, we'll be ready for you.
Whenever you want it.
So it started all over again.
The killing of Penny Cullen.
This time it had to be played another way.
Before I set him up, I had to think of myself.
About a getaway.
No commercial transportation.
After I killed Penny, who knows how many of his people would be asking around for me
at airports and at steamship docks.
A private boat.
All my own.
The way to do it.
The way to assassinate.
Number 23 Plaza, Batista.
That was the address Deontay had given me.
That's where Penny was.
I already had the jump on him.
I knew exactly where he'd be.
So started all over again.
Find a spot nearby.
Park your car.
Get out.
Hide.
Watch.
And it went like this.
At a few minutes past midnight, a sedan drove up at number 23.
Two men got out of the front.
Looked up and down the street.
Then one of them opened the door for another man.
Penny.
Penny and a blonde.
The two of them walk up the steps.
Go into the house.
The lights go on.
And so there's some music from inside.
And the two men out front.
They stay there.
Talk a little while.
Tell a joke.
But they stay there.
That way for two hours.
Then one of them looks at the other.
Shrugs.
They walk over to the sedan.
Get in.
And in a little while, they're dozing.
And there are silhouettes of Penny and the blonde behind the windows.
That's all you need to know.
That night, the next, and the night after that, the same thing.
Penny, Cullen, and the blonde, and the music, and the two men who got tired after a couple
of hours and went to sleep.
Then it was the fourth night.
The time for killing had come around again.
Penny and the blonde.
So wait.
And the two men.
So wait.
An hour.
Wait.
Two.
Wait.
And then the two men dozing.
Let them sleep.
The time for killing.
Assassination.
A delicate art.
And it was done.
Senor.
Let's go, bartender.
Let's tell your boss I'm ready for that boat.
Your business here in Havana is completed?
Four days and it's all done.
Let's go.
Mario, he is here.
He says his business is completed in Havana and he wants a boat today.
Look bartender, what did you tell him?
He has a big hurry for the boat, Mario.
Is everything ready?
I ask you something.
What did you tell him?
Take your hands off me, senor.
Mario knows what you want.
Talk to him.
What about it, Mario?
You got the boat for me.
He said you have a lot of money.
Show me.
Sure.
You hear it?
Whispers to you.
Foolish, senor.
So much money to wave it at such a stranger as me.
You know what else I got?
A gun.
Right under the gabardine.
You have money, you have a gun.
It takes now only the boat to Key West to make you happy, see?
Yeah.
Two thousand dollars.
Two thousand, huh?
For you.
Just for you.
All right.
When you put me on the boat.
Bueno.
El hombre está aquí.
Como dijo usted, un americano con pelo hueso.
Él tiene mucho dinero.
Who are you talking to?
Look when you talk to an American so I can understand what you're saying.
An American, Mario.
My friend speaks only Spanish.
You do not believe me?
You talk to him, senor.
You tell him what you need.
Talk to him.
Está reglado?
Muy bien.
Se le diré.
Sit down, senor.
Make yourself at home.
What did your friend say?
One hour.
He will call when he's ready.
I told you it had to be ready when I wanted it.
Try someplace else, senor.
You sure your friend's got the boat?
One hour.
I already said it.
Sit down.
You play cards, senor?
Look, call him back and tell him I haven't got an hour.
Everybody has an hour, senor.
Except the dying.
Dealer cards.
Poker?
Deal.
Except the dying.
And that didn't include me.
Penny Cullen dead.
Johnny Damon healthy and wealthy.
But how long does an hour take?
How many poker hands?
And how many times did the door open like that?
And a man standing in the doorway looking at you.
Just standing and looking.
Then goes away.
A man.
And a woman.
And another man.
And Mario across the table, not looking at his cards, looking at you and laughing like
that.
And...
It was not about you, senor.
It was of another matter.
Things like that.
The people who stood in open doorways staring.
A phone call that was not about you.
Things that only eat up half an hour.
Things and Mario.
What's funny?
What are you laughing at?
At you, senor.
You're such a bad poker player.
Sure.
Maybe you're not getting a boat.
Maybe your friend's not getting me a boat either.
How come it takes an hour to get a boat?
You had four days.
How come it takes another hour, Mario?
Hello, Johnny.
I said hello.
Hi, Penny.
Yeah, you better get on your feet, Johnny.
Get out of here, Mario.
I couldn't have missed you, Penny.
Not you, boy.
You never miss.
You killed a man.
Uh-huh.
Yeah.
Man I was saving up to be killed.
And a bilt like me.
You're a tricky boy, Penny.
But not you.
That thing I taught you.
A man has a schedule for three days.
He'll do the same on the fourth.
Oh, Johnny.
You should have known I was figuring right with you.
Yeah, I should have done that.
Do you like Havana?
It was all right.
I'm still in favor of Miami.
It's not even worth an opinion anymore, Johnny.
Oh?
Yeah.
Moir wrote me and said you're being replaced.
He's got a kid named Cleo he likes.
Moir wrote you?
Moir?
Uh-huh.
You're kidding, Penny.
Moir was contracted for what I was supposed to do to you.
Oh, Johnny.
You really lost touch.
Mm-hmm.
Not Johnny.
Johnny.
He didn't hire you to kill me.
I hired him to send you to me.
Tricky.
I thought so.
What'd you expect, boy, getting me heaved out of the States and all?
Yeah, I thought that was very patriotic.
It was.
It was.
I'm going to tell you something, Penny.
Uh-huh.
I'm going back to Miami.
First, John's going to drop when he sees me.
Then he's going to pay me the 15 grand he owes me for killing you.
Then he's going to run.
Say hey, Johnny.
You're not getting back to Miami.
Oh, you think you can...
Oh!
Kill me.
You die hard, Johnny.
Yeah!
Go ahead!
Go ahead!
Oh!
You think you can kill me?
You think you can kill me?
Oh!
Oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
Oh, oh, oh!
You think you can kill me?
No!
Suspense! Presented by Auto Light, tonight's star, Mr. Victor Mature.
And here once again is our star, Victor Mature. Victor, it was great having you on Suspense again.
Thanks, Horlo. And thanks to Auto Light for giving me such an exciting story. You know, Horlo, the play's the thing.
Agreed, Victor, but all elements, both the play and the actor, must be right to ensure the best show possible. Now, take your car, for example.
To ensure its best performance, it needs Auto Light Ignition Engineered Spark Flugs, either standard or resistor type.
I say Auto Light Spark Flugs because they're designed by the same engineers who design complete electrical systems.
Auto Light actually makes over 400 products for cars, trucks, tractors, planes, and boats. These include the world-famous Auto Light Stay Full Battery,
automotive wire and cable, bumpers and hubcaps, and many more. No wonder, from bumper to tail light, you're always right with Auto Light.
Music
Next week on Suspense, our star will be Mr. John Hodiac in another story taken from life, a dramatic report we call The Case History of a Gambler.
In weeks to come, we shall also present Mr. Herbert Marshall, Mr. Jeff Chandler, and Mr. Charles Boyer, all on Suspense.
Suspense is produced and directed by Elliot Lewis, with music composed by Lucian Morrowick and conducted by Lud Bluskin.
Black Jack to Kill was written for Suspense by Morton Fine and David Friedkin.
Featured in tonight's story were Herb Butterfield, Clayton Post, Harry Bartel, Jack Crouchon, Eddie Firestone, Joseph Kearns, and Steve Roberts.
Tonight's appearance of Mr. Victor Mature was made possible through the permission of 20th Century Fox Studios, whose current release is Fixed Bayonets, starring Richard Baszhard.
And remember, next week on Suspense, Mr. John Hodiac in The Case History of a Gambler.
For the location of your nearest auto light spark plug or battery dealer, or your nearest authorized auto light service station, phone Western Union by number and ask for Operator 25.
Switch to auto light. Good night.
The Christmas season is also the Christmas Seals season.
By using and buying Christmas Seals, you directly aid in the fight to conquer tuberculosis, which kills more people than all infectious diseases combined.
Your Christmas will be more worthwhile if you buy Christmas Seals. This is the CBS Radio Network.