Suspense. End the producer of radio's outstanding theater of thrills, the master of mystery and adventure, William N. Robeson.
It is now 50 years since the first motion picture was made amidst the orange groves of a sleepy little California village called Hollywood.
And a latter-day gold rush began. Hollywood quickly became a sprawling, brawling boom town.
True to the tradition of the Western frontier, a tradition it helped to create and has fondly fostered,
Hollywood lived violently. And not a few of its citizens died violently, with and sometimes without their boots on.
The stakes were high. Worldwide fame and undreamt of fortune.
And the passions that poured onto the silver screen sometimes spilled over into private lives with lethal results.
Of such passions and such results you are about to hear. And who better to tell this story than a man who was there?
A man who has starred in more motion pictures than any other actor living or dead, Francis X. Bushman.
Listen, listen then, as Mr. Bushman tells about the city that was in exactly one minute.
Memo on medals. Interesting information about our military awards and decorations.
Campaign medals were authorized by Congress in 1905 for all officers and men engaged in specified wars and military action,
including such widely divergent battles as the Civil War in the United States and the Boxer Rebellion in China.
The Navy and Marine Corps have a special Manila Bay Medal for members of the United States Asiatic Squadron
under command of Commodore George Dewey in May of 1898.
The Haitian Campaign of 1915 is commemorated with a medal as is the Santo Domingo Expedition,
which suppressed a revolt in that country and preserved order during elections in 1916.
The Army has its Mexican Service Medal for those involved in any of several expeditions or engagements
from April 12, 1911 through June 16, 1919.
There is also the Army of Cuban Pacification Medal for United States troops,
who from October of 1906 to April of 1909 helped establish a stable government in that island nation.
The Victory Medal was initially awarded to all United States Service personnel in World War I expeditionary forces,
including for the first time women serving in the military units.
There is a story behind every American Medal, a proud story of devotion to country and unselfish service to keep it strong and free.
And now, Francis X. Bushman starring in The City That Was, a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense.
Remember? Yes, I remember the Hollywood of 35 years ago.
There was a town for you. It flamed with color, it bubbled with intrigue, and it frequently simmered with sin.
Gods and goddesses stole the boulevard in those days and rode to the studio their $20,000 custom-built Rolls Royces.
It was the era of Valentino and Mabel Norman and Wallace Reed, of Barbara Lamar and William Desmond Taylor and William S. Hart,
and the great Vamps, Nita Nolde, Paula Negri and Theodore Barra.
It was the era, too, of Anthony Kendall, matinee idol, turned movie king, and his leading lady, Rena Chalfant, who used to be called,
the Golden Flame of the Silver Screen. You must remember them and how they were tied up with that Corsicauff killing.
Well, all the facts of that cause, celebrity, were not told at the time, but they can be told now.
And this is what really happened that rainy night in November 35 years ago.
Tony and Rena had finished long day shooting.
It was nearly 7 o'clock when Tony tooled his big white Cunningham Roadster into the driveway of his Whitley Heights estate.
He stopped the car under the arch of the entrance gate and was reaching for the electric control button when a mass figure with a gun stepped out from the darkness.
All right, hold it right there. What is this?
It's the end of the line for you, big shot.
Oh, no.
Oh, yes. This is where your boyfriend gets what's coming to him.
Tony, it's Bart Malloy.
Oh, it wasn't very smart to recognize me, Rena. Now you go with him.
All right, Bart, cut the melodrama. You're drunk. Go on home and sleep it off. I'll see you at the studio tomorrow.
There isn't going to be any tomorrow for you two. I'm going to blast you.
Look, I'm behind you, son.
Oh, Tony, be careful.
Let go of that gun, Bart. Let go or I'll...
Let go, I say.
There. That's better.
Now, I'll just unload it so that nobody can get hurt.
Here. You can have it back now.
Now, go home and get some shut-eye. I'll see you in the morning.
So you can fire me in front of the whole crew, eh?
How did you know that we...
Oh, not we. You. I heard all about it an hour ago.
Alec Benson didn't want to let me out. You're the one who cut my throat.
Why don't you call the cops and do a complete job on me?
I have no intention of calling the cops.
Why not? That'll make your day perfect.
Bart, look, now, suppose we forget all about this, all three of us.
Right, Rena?
Of course.
Gee, that's big of you. Both of you.
Maybe someday I can pay you back.
Now, go on home, Bart. You need sleep.
Sure, sure. That's all I need. Just a little sleep.
Thanks, Tony. Thanks for everything.
Tony.
Yes, darling?
Would you mind driving me straight on home?
Well, what about dinner?
I don't feel much like eating now. I just want to go home.
All right, honey.
Tony, why did you ever put Bart on the picture in the first place?
Well, he was on the skids. There wasn't a casting director in town that would hide.
Oh, you and your big heart.
Don't you know the surest way to make a man hate you is to do him a kindness?
Perhaps, but he promised me he'd go on the wagon.
So the first day he showed up pink-eyed as a rabbit and chewing cloves to camouflage the smell of whiskey.
He's always chewed cloves as long as I've known him.
Well, sure he has. It's the trademark of an alcoholic. Tony, he scares me.
Oh, now don't be silly, honey. Bart may be a lush, but he is not a murderer.
In a moment, we continue with the second act of...
Suspense.
Another visit with Joe and Daphne Forsythe.
Ooh, ow, ouch, ooh.
What's wrong, Joe?
Daphne, have you been using my razor again?
Just a little. I was peeling peaches.
Oh, fine. Why didn't you change the blade? It feels like you've been sharpening pencils with this thing.
Now, just a minute, buddy. It was you who said we could use more economy around here.
And I've been saving wherever I can. And by shaving the skin off the peaches...
Look at my face. Think how the Red Cross could have used all this blood.
It's your own fault. You and your economy.
Well, being penny-conscious isn't such a bad idea. Not if you use common sense.
Take savings bonds, for instance.
Uh-uh. Here it comes.
Go right ahead and scoff. But I've got eight million Americans who agree with me.
We all buy savings bonds on the payroll saving plan, because we know that investing in bonds is the best way to use our money.
We could use some of that money around here.
Well, maybe. Or maybe we just think we can.
When we buy bonds, we guarantee we'll have the money in the future, when we'll certainly need it more.
Stop waving that razor. You're splattering me with soap.
Well, I don't mean to get excited, but who wouldn't?
Where else can a man make an investment that's guaranteed to pay off four dollars for every three?
And guaranteed by the credit of the whole U.S. of A. So there.
Bravo! Bravo!
All right, all right. Now let me change the blade and get back to shaving.
I think I'll stay and watch.
Why?
Because you're so cute when you cut yourself.
Oh, fine.
And now...
Act Two Well, The City That Was, starring Francis X. Bushman.
A tale well calculated to keep you in...
suspense.
Of course, Bart Molloy didn't take Tony's advice and go home.
The evening was still young, and in his misery he needed company.
So he headed for Henry's on Hollywood Boulevard.
Everybody went to Henry's in those days.
It was packed every night with actors, directors, writers, producers.
Come to see and be seen.
And to partake of Henry's wonderful turkey sandwiches, his fabulous German pancakes, and his fragrant coffee.
Molloy is downing cup after cup of it now.
Each one generously laced with whiskey from his hip flask.
Also is airing his grievances to Fritz, the friendly waiter who knows him well.
So I take a drink. One measly drink and he tosses me off a picture.
Ha, he's a louse. That's why he is his star-spangled louse.
No, no, Mr. Molloy, that's not so. Mr. Kendall is a fine gentleman, a real fine gentleman.
Yeah, well, I'll tell you something, Fritz.
I'm gonna fix your fine gentleman's wagon for him if it's the last thing I ever do.
Oh, you shouldn't say such things, Mr. Molloy, especially at such a time as this.
Just as soon as he's finished his picture, he and Michelle Fond will be married.
Yeah, yeah, I know.
Say, maybe I ought to figure out a nice present for him, huh?
Oh, that sounds better, Mr. Molloy.
You know something?
Always I think that Michelle Fond would marry that Russian director.
What was his name?
Kosciakow.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Sergey Kosciakow.
Yeah.
Yeah. They sure are crazy about each other, until Tony come along.
Fritz.
You may not know it, but you have just given me a terrific idea.
Bart Molloy lost no time in putting his terrific idea into action.
First, he telephoned the director, Sergey Kosciakow, made a date to drop by his apartment later that evening.
Then he called Rena Shalfont and employed his not inconsiderable talent as a mimic.
Hello.
This is Hollywood 2749?
Yes, it is.
May I speak, please, with Michelle Fond?
I am Dr. von Kesseling, Dr. Frederich von Kesseling.
This is Ms. Shalfont, doctor.
Oh, I am Mr. Kosciakow's physician, Ms. Shalfont.
I have, I get to say some unhappy news for you.
Is something the matter with Sergey?
He has suffered a coronary occlusion.
Oh, no.
Is there anything I can do, doctor?
Anything at all?
Yes, Ms. Shalfont, there is.
Mr. Kosciakow wished to see you before he goes to the hospital.
I think it would make him very happy.
Of course.
I'll come right over.
Molloy counted on the rainy streets and the fact that Rena had to come all the way in from Beverly Hills to give him the time he needed with Kosciakow.
Five minutes later, he pulled up in front of the Russian director's house, high in the Hollywood Hills.
Well, not exactly in front of the house, for it perched 60 feet above the street and was reached by a private elevator which opened on the sidewalk.
Very futuristic, a Hollywood showplace of the time, this hideaway of the mad Russian.
Molloy pushed the bell, the elevator door clicked open, and a moment later, he stepped out of the cage into Sergey Kosciakow's living room.
Hello, Sergey.
How are you, my friend? It's good to see you.
Good to see you. Why is this a lousy night?
For me, it's perfect. I sit before fire and try to solve chess problems.
You'll have tea? Over there's some of ours.
Tea?
Also brandy, whiskey, vodka. Choose for yourself.
Well, maybe just a little one, you know, just cut the fog.
Good.
Now, sit down and tell me why you called me.
Well, I need some advice.
I'll be glad to give you any kind of advice that you would like.
It's like this, see, I'm going to come out of this picture with a great deal of dough.
And you told me you've been buying real estate, remember?
Da, I have bought quite a bit of property in Santa Monica.
Santa Monica? Oh, that's too far out, like the San Fernando Valley.
Now, you can't tell me people are ever going all the way out there.
Hey, I thought you said you were going to be alone tonight.
I expect no one.
Maybe your luck's changing, huh, boy?
Don't get up. I'll send the elevator back down and then I'll slip out the servant's entrance.
But I assure you that...
Yes, I know, I know. It's probably a maiden ant just in from Vladivostok.
Just the same, I'll go out the back way so as not to embarrass the lady.
You have a dirty mind, my friend. I would suggest that you...
Bart, what does it mean, the gun?
I guess you might say it means goodbye, Sergei.
Goodbye, my friend.
Malloy moved fast now.
He wiped his fingerprints from the smoking gun and from the whiskey glass.
Then he dropped the gun to the floor and headed for the service entrance.
He was gone when the elevator stopped and Rena walked into the living room
to discover Sergei's bullet-riddled body sprawled on the floor.
When the police arrived, summoned by a neighbor who heard the shooting,
they found their gun in hand, kneeling over the bodies, sobbing over and over.
Oh, Sergei, oh, dear, oh, dear.
In just a moment, we continue with the third act of...
Suspense.
We have together ample capacity in freedom to defend freedom.
This is NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
While the Soviets seek to weaken and disrupt the free world
through worldwide military, political and economic activities,
the free world has organized its resources, moral, military, political and economic,
and is ready to deploy them wherever the situation demands.
This is the basic reasoning behind the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
The United States of America is a part of NATO.
You should be aware of and alert to the objectives and programs
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
And now...
Act Three of The City That Was, starring Francis X. Bushman,
a tale well calculated to keep you in suspense.
They allowed Rena Chalfont one phone call.
Naturally, she called Tony Kendall.
But there wasn't much here his attorney could do for her
since there's no bail on a murder charge.
So Tony went to the scene of the crime, and there he found that an old friend of his
was in charge of the investigation, Sergeant Kay of Homicide.
I'm sorry, Tony, but it just don't look good for your girlfriend.
But Rena's no killer.
That's not for me to say. I can only go by the evidence I find, and it all points to her.
But where's the motive? Rena had no motive.
She might have.
What do you mean?
This is just a theory, of course.
Well, let's have it.
You mean I'd like it, Tony.
I told you, go ahead.
Well, she and Korsakov were pretty good friends before you came along, right?
Yes.
So maybe he's still in love with her.
Maybe he doesn't want her to marry you.
Maybe he threatens to do something to stop the wedding.
And maybe she shoots him?
Right.
Wrong. Rena is not a killer, Marty.
Maybe. But it looks like she did it.
You've been all over the place, I suppose.
Stem to sten, everything strictly copacetic,
except for a whiskey glass with no fingerprints on it.
A what?
This one right here.
Somebody had a shot of bourbon out of it, then wiped off the prints.
Sergey didn't drink.
No? Then maybe your girlfriend must have.
Here we go with that maybe routine again. No.
For your information, Marty, Rena isn't a drinker either.
That samovar over there is more in her line.
So that's what you call that thing. What's it for?
Making tea, Russian style.
What's all this stuff in these little saucers?
Lemon peel, cinnamon, rose petals, cloves.
They put it in the tea.
All at once?
No, no, one at a time.
Then Korsakov must have been a clove boy.
We found a lot of them on the floor.
Cloves, eh? And a whiskey glass.
You got a theory?
Maybe I have.
What is it?
I'll let you know when I've proved it.
Tony Kendall was in make-up and on the set at eight o'clock the next morning.
The cameras were in place and the lights were all set up for the climax scene
of Passion Lost, the big fight scene.
Alec Benson, the director, greeted Tony with the long face usual
that he would serve for a funeral.
Tony, I just heard about Rena. What a terrible...
God save your sympathy. She's innocent.
Of course. But what's it going to do to our shooting schedule?
You're just chock full of compassion, aren't you?
Well, I mean...
How's the great man this morning?
Good morning, Bart.
Who's going to lower the boom? You or Alec?
Well, Bart, you see...
I told you last night we'd forget all about it, Bart.
Yeah, but I thought you meant...
You're still on the picture, Bart.
But Tony, I've already hired...
You had me, Alec.
Well, Tony, I don't know what to say.
Well, then save it and let's get on with this fight scene.
Okay. Now, this has got to top any fight scene that's ever been photographed.
Sam, I can't hear myself think.
All right, you guys. Come on, hold the hammers, hold the talk. Come on.
Now, we've got to make the brawl and the spoilers look like a chorus boys' picnic.
I want...
Look where you're going with your knucklehead.
Don't trip over those cages.
Will you please knock it off, Sam? You make more noise than the hammers.
Oh, sorry, Mr. Benson.
Now, let's get the suspense of the fight in Tolable David,
the brutality of Norbury and the sea wolf, the cruelty...
Hey, look, Alec, why don't you let Bart and me sort of work it out by ourselves?
Then we'll tell you how we see it, and then if it's okay with you, we'll try a take, hmm?
Well, all right. Just call me when you're ready.
All right. Now, come on, Bart, let's block out the action.
Let's see, we begin here on the balcony when I find you coming out of Helena's room.
You go for your gun, but before you can get it from...
Tony, I want to thank you for keeping me on the picture.
Well, that's all right, Bart. Now, as I was saying, when you...
And I want you to know how sorry I am about Rena.
Are you really?
Are you really sorry?
Oh, I sure am. Rena's one of the nice...
Well, then you'll be happy to know that she didn't kill Korsakov.
No? Well, then, who did?
You, my lord.
What?
You killed him.
Well, you must be out of your mind.
What would I want to do a thing like that for?
You killed him and then you framed Rena. You did it for revenge to get back at me.
Well, you're talking like a maniac.
Am I? What about the clove that dropped out of your pocket onto the floor?
Korsakov had cloves, too. They were right there by that samophon.
That's because you were there, my lord, and you killed him.
Well, you try and prove it.
I won't have to prove it. You're going to admit it.
Oh, yeah, man.
That's right. I'm going to beat the truth out of you, right?
Get away from me, Kettle. You can't...
Oh, I'm going to fix that pretty face of yours.
Hey, Mr. Benson, hey, look. Over there on the set.
Well, I love him.
Hey, wait a minute, Tony. Hold it, boys, until we can...
It ain't holding, Mr. Benson. Wow, what a water.
Oh, boy, that sure looked real, didn't it?
What are we standing there for? Let's get it on film.
Lights, Larry, Paul, start clanking those cameras.
All right, you guys, you heard Mr. Benson. Come on, lights.
Camera.
That's fine. That's fine, Bart. Slam his head against the pillar.
Good. Now bring one up, Tony. Bring it up from your heels.
That's the idea. Real haymaker.
You didn't do it, Malloy. You killed him.
Oh, get your...
I can't hear you. My throat. I can't breathe.
You tell me the truth, Malloy. You give it to me straight, or I'll kill you here and now.
Go and release you on that strangle, Tony.
The senses and I always squawk about it.
Come on, Malloy. This is your last chance.
Yes, yes, I did it. I did it. I did it.
Cut.
All right, save the lights.
Now look, Tony, I realize I'm only the director around here,
but even so, would you mind letting me in on...
You tell him, Malloy. You tell him or I'll...
I killed Korshikov.
Call Marty Kaye, will you? Tell him we've got his killer for him, and you...
You'd better have a couple of the boys keep an eye on Malloy until he gets here.
What are you going to do?
Me? I'm going over and get my girl out of the jail house.
And there you have it, ladies and gentlemen,
a story out of the Hollywood of the 20s, the city that was.
As you know, Rena and Tony Kendall are still one of the film capital's happiest couples.
As a matter of fact, I had tea with them last week.
Rena served from a great brass samovar.
I had my choice of sugar and cream and rum, of course,
and then there were small china bowls filled with slivers of rum.
And then there were small china bowls filled with slivers of lemon peel
and dried rose petals and sticks of cinnamon.
But do you know something strange?
There weren't any clothes.
Suspense.
In which Francis X. Bushman starred in William M. Robeson's production of
The City That Was by Richard Wheel.
Supporting Mr. Bushman in The City That Was were
Norma Eberhardt, Chester
and John H. W. Bushman.
And the film was called The City That Was.
Supporting Mr. Bushman in The City That Was were Norma Eberhardt, Chester
Stratton, Ben Wright, Jack Crouchon, Joe DeSantis, and Norm Alden.
Listen. Listen again next week when we return with
The Star of Thessaly starring Ray Noble.
Another tale well calculated to keep you in...
suspense.
Suspense has been brought to you through the worldwide facilities of the United States Armed Forces Radio and Television Service.
The Star of Thessaly.