From Hollywood by tape, Suspense.
Tonight marks two auspicious occasions on radio's outstanding theater of thrills.
Tonight, Suspense begins its 15th season on the air.
Tonight, Suspense welcomes as its producer director the distinguished master of mystery and adventure, William N. Robeson.
Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Robeson.
Good evening. On this first program of our new series, we are proud to bring you Miss Patty McCormick,
the young star of the Warner Brothers picture, The Bad Seed, in a play written especially for her by Peggy Chandler.
Other stars will follow her in a succession of chilling tales of Suspense.
Next week, read Hadley in Red Cloud Mesa based upon the recent Collier's Magazine story, Where the Warriors Crossed.
Then, Charles Dickens' immortal story of terror, The Signal Man, starring Miss Sarah Churchill.
This is the shape of things to come in the weeks to come.
We invite your apprehensive listening.
We promise never to relax our efforts to chill your blood and fill your sleeping hours with dreams of horror.
We shall begin now with Patty McCormick in The Doll, a play well calculated to keep you in Suspense.
Tomorrow is my birthday, but I don't think my father remembers.
He didn't ask me what I wanted for a present, like he always used to, before Paula came to live at our house.
When people forget your birthday, even if it's your father, I guess that means they don't like you so much anymore.
Valerie, it's your bedtime.
Just five minutes more, Paula. Daddy, may I please?
When it comes to bedtime, Val, Paula's the boss.
But on special nights, I'm always allowed.
Is this a special night?
Well, sort of. Tomorrow...
That'll be enough stalling.
I'm not stalling.
Val, you mustn't shout at Paula. I'll apologize.
Forget it, George. The child's tired.
I'm not!
Valerie...
I'm sorry, Paula. I apologized.
That's better.
Now tell me, what's so special about tonight?
Don't you know what? On her bright, don't you?
Well, let's see. It's not Christmas Eve or the Fourth of July or the first day of school or...
Oh, I know what she's talking about, George. Her birthday. It's tomorrow.
Oh, Val, I'm sorry, baby. I guess I forgot.
Oh, but I've had a lot of things on my mind lately. Things at the office.
Valerie, don't look at your father that way. He said he was sorry.
No, it's okay, Daddy. I guess I'm too big to care about birthdays anymore.
Well, then I guess you don't want the present I got for you.
Paula, you're wonderful. So they tell me.
See, Val, your birthday wasn't forgotten after all. Paula remembered.
Thank you very much, Paula.
Don't you want to see your present?
Not till tomorrow. We never open presents ahead of time, Daddy and me.
Good night, Paula. Good night, dear.
Good night, Daddy.
I know I don't deserve it, but I'd sure like a kiss.
Okay. Good night.
Thanks for remembering, darling. If you hadn't, we'd have had a family crisis on our hands.
The poor little kid.
Credit my little black book. Right after the wedding, I listed all dates,
the forgetting of which would cause crises.
You're either a witch or a wonder, and I don't care to find out which. And no pun intended.
Come on, darling. It's our bedtime, too.
It's not polite to listen when people are having a private conversation,
so I ran upstairs and crawled into bed quick and pulled the covers over my head.
It took me a long time to fall asleep.
What I kept thinking about was that maybe my father would figure out some way to get me his own present by morning.
Now it's tomorrow, and I've been waiting downstairs an awfully long time.
I always have to wait an awfully long time before they get up on Sundays.
Good morning, Val.
Happy birthday. Here's your present.
Thank you.
And seven kisses for seven years.
Well, aren't you going to open it?
All right.
What a beautiful doll.
And she has real blonde hair. See?
Same as my mother's. That's what color her hair was. Blonde.
Now, baby, let's not talk about that.
What are you going to name your new doll?
Henny, like my mother.
But Val, that makes two teddy bears, three dolls, and a jack-in-the-box all named Henny.
Wouldn't it be easier to keep them straight if you gave her a different name?
How about Patricia? That's a pretty name.
Her name's Henny.
Well, I guess that settles that. Let me have her a minute, Valerie. I want to show you her gadget.
I don't want her to have a gadget.
Oh, you'll have fun with this one.
Give Paula the doll, Val.
Now, let's see. Oh, here it is. Right in the middle of her back under her dress.
Now you just wind the key up like this.
Does it hurt her?
Of course not.
Just remember to wind her up carefully so you won't break the spring.
Here. Now listen.
What is it?
It's her heart beating. Isn't that fun?
She's like a real live person.
Here, Val, hold her.
What happens if it stops?
Nothing. You just wind her up again.
Oh.
Daddy?
Yes?
Why didn't you wind my mother up again?
Well, Valerie, it's not quite the same with people as it is with dolls.
If you wound her up, her heart wouldn't have stopped, and she wouldn't be dead.
But, but Val...
Did you want her to get dead so you and Paula could get...
That's enough.
You can't wind people up again, and that's all there is to it.
You could if you really wanted to.
No, Val. Not even if you wanted to very, very much.
I don't believe you.
Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm starving.
How about some breakfast?
I'm for that. Come on, Val, you can help flip the pancakes.
I don't want to.
Well, I'll call you when everything's ready, Val. Come on, George.
I'll take care of you, honey.
I won't ever let you get dead, I promise.
What's the matter with the hotcakes, Val? Don't you like them?
Yes.
Then why aren't you eating them?
I'm not hungry.
Val, that racket makes me nervous.
It's not a racket, it's Henny's heart.
All right, all right. But why don't you put the doll in the other room?
Her name's Henny.
All right, why don't you take Henny into the living room until we finish breakfast?
Because I promised her I'd never leave her alone. Not ever, ever.
Oh, this is going to be jolly.
I don't care. And I'm not going to leave her alone.
Then her heart will stop, and then she'll be dead, just like my...
That's enough, Valerie. Now take the doll into the living room.
No.
Very well, then go to your room.
George, what's the point in making a scene? Now let her stay.
There's a whole pile of hotcakes going begging here.
Daddy.
Thank you.
May I please be excused?
Not until you've finished your breakfast.
I can't. I'm not hungry.
Then go. And take that... that thing with you.
I took Henny to my secret place, down at the end of the garden,
where the big, cool vines make a little house that's all hidden from everyone.
No one knows about it except me, and now Henny.
Every time her heart starts to slow down, I wind her up again,
but very carefully so I won't break the spring.
It's funny how I feel about Henny and my mother, and about Henny and me.
It's sort of like, if she stops, I'll stop too.
It's funny to feel this way.
Scary.
Believe me, darling, I can appreciate how you feel.
And here comes Paul and my father.
I have to be very quiet now so they won't find out about my secret place.
Why not wait till tonight?
She'll have to go to sleep sooner or later.
When she wakes up, the doll can be just one more ash in the incinerator.
I'll never let them do that to you, Henny.
Never, I promise.
We'll run away, and I'll never go to sleep.
We'll run away and hide in the woods.
Who's there?
Don't be scared, Henny. He's just fishing. He won't hurt us.
I don't think he will.
I said, who's there?
It's only us, Henny and me.
Well, come on out and let me take a look at you.
See, we were just out for a walk and...
And you decided to come around and scare all the fish, huh?
We didn't mean to.
What's making that noise?
Henny, it's her heart.
I have to keep her wound up all the time, forever, so she won't get dead.
You're a funny kid, aren't you?
I don't know.
Well, I like funny kids. I was one myself.
Big ears, pigeon toes, freckles, you know, the words.
I have braces on my teeth, too. See?
Hey, that's mighty important looking.
Do you really think so?
You bet.
I never thought of them as being important.
Can we watch you fish?
Sure, if you're quiet.
Okay.
Sleepy?
A little bit, I guess.
Well, why don't you stretch out there and catch 40 wings?
Oh, I couldn't do that.
Why not?
Well, I told you I have to keep Henny wound up.
Well, tell you what, I'll take care of her while you're asleep.
Well, it would be good to take a nap.
I've got a hard day ahead of me, but...
Well, you go ahead. I'll watch her.
On her bright?
On her bright.
All right.
See, the key's right here in the middle of her back.
And you have to be sure to wind her up before she stops.
And you have to do it very carefully,
so as not to break the spring.
There's an awful lot of instructions,
but I think I can manage.
Thank you. Thank you very much.
Oh, this is nice, soft grass.
It feels good.
Shh, the fish.
Go to sleep.
Okay.
You are listening to Miss Patty McCormick in The Doll.
Tonight's presentation on radio's outstanding theater of thrills...
Suspense.
Henny! Henny!
Oh, don't worry, Henny.
Everything's going to be all right.
I won't let you get dead.
Hey, look what I just caught.
Big Mouse Bass.
I bet it weighs five pounds, easy.
You broke your promise.
What's the matter?
She almost died, and you set on her bright.
Gee, I'm sorry.
I didn't think she'd run down so soon.
I got this bike, see?
Hey, where are you going?
I didn't know where I was going.
I didn't know where to go.
I didn't know any place that would be safe for Henny and me,
where I could keep her from dying.
So I just held her and caught her.
I kept winding her up and walking around for an awfully long time.
And now it's starting to rain.
And that makes everything worse.
Because when it rains, it thunders and lightnings.
Wouldn't be so bad to be home in bed with Henny
and pull all the covers up over our heads.
And I wish I'd eaten breakfast, because now I wouldn't be so hungry.
Popcorn! Hot butter popcorn!
Maybe I can get some popcorn from that popcorn man.
Want some popcorn, Henny?
Popcorn!
The only thing is, I don't like this monkey.
He looks kind of mean.
He jumps around so quick.
Hot butter popcorn!
Want some popcorn, little girl?
How much does it cost?
Ten cents. One thing die.
I only have a nickel.
Oh, too bad.
But we're awfully hungry.
So is the monkey. So it costs ten cents a bag to popcorn.
Can I buy a half a bag?
What kind of noise is that?
It's my doll's heart.
Her name's Henny.
What's your monkey's name?
He got no name.
Doesn't he get lonely without a name?
I'll tell you what.
I'll swap your bag of popcorn for your baby doll with a heart.
Have you had enough, eh?
No, you can't have it.
Monkey like her.
He like her yellow hair. You see, he was there.
No, make him stop.
You better give her to him. He like her hair.
He watch out, he bites you.
Don't make him go away. Please make him let go.
The monkey's a baby doll.
Please make him let go.
I guess the thunder scared the monkey too.
Because he let go of Henny's hair.
And we got away and started running through the rain.
I didn't know where to go or what to do.
And then I remembered, Chris, he'll help me.
He's my best friend.
Chris, Chris, open the window.
Hi, Valerie. What's the matter?
Come on out and I'll tell you.
I'm not allowed.
My mother said it's going to rain again.
Oh, please, Chris, please.
I can't.
But you have to.
It's the most important thing in the whole world.
And you have to help me.
Your father's looking for you.
Oh, Chris, then I really have to run away.
Where to?
I don't know yet.
Come with me, please.
What for?
To help with Henny.
This is Henny.
She's pretty.
Like my mother.
You could take care of her when I go to sleep.
Then you could go to sleep and I'd watch her.
It would be like playing house.
And then she'll never die.
Please.
I can't.
Your father called the police from our house.
He did?
I guess they're out looking for you
with sirens and badges and everything.
But I didn't do anything wrong, Chris.
Why did he have to call the police?
I don't know.
I have to go now, Valerie.
Oh, no, Chris, please, no.
Your father told me you were missing
and all about how you look and what you're wearing.
What do they do to us if they catch us?
Will they send us to jail?
Will they, Chris?
No, they'll just make you go home, that's all.
But I can't go home.
They'll put Henny in the incinerator.
Paula said so.
I heard her.
So what?
She's just a doll.
No, she's not.
She's Henny.
And if she dies, something will happen to me.
I know it.
What are you talking about, Valerie?
Oh, Chris, help me, please.
I can't.
Anyway, I don't want to run away.
Chris, get me a big box, big enough to put Henny in,
and lend me a pair of your jeans and a jacket.
I'll put them on in the garage, and they won't recognize me,
and we'll be safe.
Sounds like a cuckoo-head idea to me, but we're all OK.
Just get them and throw them out the window,
and you won't tell anybody you saw me, will you, Chris?
No, not unless they make me.
I sneaked into the garage and put on Chris's clothes
and fixed Henny up in the box as fast as I could.
Then we started running away.
It wasn't raining anymore, but it was getting pretty dark,
and I was scared.
And all of a sudden, I bumped right into somebody.
Hey.
It was a policeman.
What's the big idea?
I was going to get a big box, and I was going to get a big jacket,
and I was going to get a big jacket,
but it was a policeman.
What's the big idea?
Well, I'm very sorry about bumping into you.
You'll look where you're going.
I know I'm sorry.
Shouldn't you be home having your supper?
Well, no. I mean...
What's your name?
Henrietta.
Henrietta what?
Christopher.
Henrietta Christopher.
That's a pretty name.
Thank you.
What have you got in that box?
Well, see, that's why I'm not supposed to be home having my supper.
and I'm taking it over to my friend's house.
And we're going to eat it there.
How about a sample?
Oh, I don't think you'd care for it.
It's just plain old peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches
on whole wheat bread.
You must have an awful lot of them in there.
Pretty big box.
Oh, my friend and I, we just love them.
Well, run along now.
Have yourselves a bowl.
It got darker and darker,
and I didn't know where to go or what to do.
I couldn't keep walking around
because maybe the next policeman might look into the box
and see Henny.
And it was very hard finding hiding places
to stop and wind her up.
I had to go someplace that somebody in the whole world
didn't know about except me.
Then I could sit down and hold Henny in my lap
and take care of her,
and we'd be together forever and ever.
So I decided my secret place
down at the end of the garden would be the best place.
That's where we are now, just Henny and me alone.
The light in my father's room just went out.
It's awfully dark
because there isn't even any moonlight,
and all the noises of the night sound funny and close,
not like when you're asleep in bed
and you can hear the clock on the dresser.
Ticking, ticking,
tock, tick, tock,
tick, tock, tock, tick,
tick, tock.
Ticking, ticking,
tock, tock, tock,
tock, tock, tock.
Henny!
No, no, you're not dead. You're not.
Oh, I'm winding you up just as fast as I can, Henny dear.
Then you'll be alive again. Oh, please, please.
I broke it.
I broke your heart, Henny.
Oh, I didn't mean to.
Please, oh please, don't stay dead.
Don't stay dead like my mother did.
Oh, Henny!
I'm afraid it is a heart attack.
A fatal one, Doctor. It's too soon to tell.
Of course, Doctor, we've had to be prepared for something like this,
knowing that she inherited the condition from her mother.
Yes, of course, but the doll brought it on.
What do you mean?
Surely you must realize it was an ill-chosen gift.
Why, it never occurred to me, Doctor.
It didn't, George.
Really, it didn't.
I had no idea. It was just a silly little doll with a gadget.
A different gadget from most dolls.
George.
Suspense.
In which Miss Patty McCormick starred in The Doll by Peggy Chandler.
Listen. Listen again next week when we return with another play
well calculated to keep you in...
Suspense.
Suspense is produced, directed, and taped in Hollywood by William N. Robeson.
The special score for tonight's play was composed and conducted by Lin Murray.
Featured in the cast were Richard Beals, Mary Jane Croft,
Shepherd Menken, Dick LaGrand, and Louis Van Routen.
Music
Brought to you by RadioClassics.com. All copyrights are the property of their respective owners.