Tired of the everyday routine? Ever dream of a life of romantic adventure? Want to get away from it all? We offer you... Escape! Escape! Designed to free you from the four walls of today for a half hour of high adventure! Escape! Brought to you by your Richfield Gasoline Dealer and the Richfield Oil Corporation of New York. Marketers of Richfield Gasolines, Motor Oils and other petroleum products. Look for the Richfield Eagle on the Cream and Blue Pumps. Tonight, we escape to the headhunter back country on the island of New Guinea. And the story of two men trapped there with a beautiful, but treacherous woman. As Jules Archer tells it in, two came back. And the story of two men trapped there with a beautiful, but treacherous woman. As Jules Archer tells it in, two came back. Suppose this big guy, six foot five, grabs your hand and says, You're my pal, Johnny. There's a million dollar jackpot and I'm cutting you in. And suppose this blonde number, all curves and green eyes, leans up soft and murmurs. Johnny, you're bad, like me. I like you bad, like me. And suppose this blonde number, all curves and green eyes, waits until his big back is turned and then leans up again. It can get to be a problem, you know what I mean? A problem. By the time we'd passed over the Golden Gate and were headed out over the Pacific to the West, I could see this business of Gabe and Lily and me was strictly for the squirrels and I wanted no part of it. There was no backing out now. I'd tried that for a week before takeoff and it hadn't worked. Johnny, don't talk crazy. You're my friend, aren't you? Aren't you? Sure, Gabe, sure I'm your friend, but I don't want to go, that's all. Oh, you gotta go, Johnny. It's a million dollar strike, I tell you. Oh, and after what you've done for me, I gotta let you in. I gotta. You really ought to come, Johnny. Well, I don't know. But I did know. I knew that million dollar strike or no million dollar strike, this was the time for me, John Walker, to stay home. You see, it was all because this pal, this Gabe, had been my sergeant on New Guinea. We were doing guerrilla mop-up work, rugged duty, what with the Japs scattered all over thousands of miles of interior and all, when Gabe disappeared, just plain vanished. We all figured the guy had caught one and was dead. Lieutenant reported him missing in action, we forgot about him. Then one morning, about three weeks later, he shows. Not a scratch, not a word about where he's been or why or what. Well, they were off of shipping him back to Guam for a desertion trial, but Gabe being a real rough soldier and all, being the kind of guy we needed bad right then, they decided to chuck the book for the time being and keep him on. It was, like I say, guerrilla mop-up work. And a couple of nights later, we were heading down this trail when a machine gun nest went off right in our face. We all hit the ground excepting Gabe. He dropped the one knee and sprayed the trees with his browning. A big guy, he stood out like a pinwheel on the Fourth of July. Yep, Gabe caught one. I saw the BAR fall out of his hands and down he went. I wriggled through the kunai grass and onto the jungle trail and got him by his collar and... Why go into it? I was a hero, I guess. I saved his life. And what did it get me? Baby. Trouble. It was in the spring of 47 that Gabe's letters finally caught up with me. I was in New York then, he was in Frisco. At first I thought it was, well, just the old hoorah, but I was his buddy for keeps because I'd saved his life. But one of the letters had a plane ticket and a C-note along with a line about I'm gonna let you in on something big if you'll just come out to the coast. So I thought, well, maybe the guy's got something. I caught the plane and the next day I found myself walking down this empty street in Frisco with an address in my hand and I had a real funny feeling in my head that I ought to turn around and go back home. Well, hello. Hello. Looking for somebody? Yeah. Who? Doesn't matter, I can see I got the wrong address. Uh-huh. Hey, that's a real slick house coat you got on. This? Oh no, it's just an old thing, you know. Well, on you it looks like a million bucks. Yeah? Yeah. What address was it you were looking for? Oh, 403. This is 403. Yeah? Yeah. Does Gabor Krulovich live here? My husband. Oh. Uh-huh. Gabe! Huh? For you, a man. Yeah? What does he want? I can't imagine. Well, why did you... Oh, Johnny! Hey, Gabe! Oh, Johnny, boys. So you got here, huh? Sure. Oh, gee, am I glad to see you. Gabe, you're looking good. Hey, so are you. So are you. Look at that guy. Is this the Johnny you've been talking so much about? Yeah, Lily, this is Johnny. Johnny, meet Lily. Lily, Johnny. Hey, didn't know I got married, did you, guy? No, no, Gabe. No, I didn't know you got married. Yeah. Not a bad little dish for a big slob like me, huh? Congratulations. Shall we come in out of this doorway? Yeah, let's do that. Oh, Johnny, Johnny, Johnny, you're a guy. You know, Johnny saved my life, honey. Did I tell you? A million times. And that's how I met Lily. That night we sat up talking until the sun came up. I was wondering just what she was trying to pull. Marrying this bohunkus with his big feet and dirty undershirt and all when he hauled out the little leather bag and dumped the contents all over the table. Hey, what do you think of this, Johnny? Gabe. Gabe, that gold? That's just samples. Where that came from, there's enough more to make us all millionaires, Johnny. You're kidding. No, no. Remember in New Guinea when I went AWOL? Yeah, yeah. That was just before Johnny saved my life, honey. Did I ever tell you about Johnny saving my life? Yeah, you told me. Gabe, Gabe, I bought the gold, huh? Oh, oh, yeah, yeah. Well, when I went AWOL, I thought I'd just do a little fishing or something. You know, I was kind of tired of the war. You understand? Yeah, I understand, Gabe. So I took off into the hills. Oh, Johnny, that is some country, believe me. Wild but pretty, real pretty. And what sunsets? You never saw such sunsets, huh? Gabe, Gabe, the gold. Oh, yeah. Well, I, uh, I seen this quartz stuff up there in the hills there, and some of it was glittering. And, well, this is it. I made me a map. When I came back down, I can find it again without any trouble. That is, I mean, we can find it. You and me? And Lily, the three of us. Lily wouldn't want to miss all that adventure, would you, baby? I should say not. See, ain't she cute? Ain't she? You know, every time I look at her, Johnny, I wonder, now, why would a cute little dish like that marry a big slob like me? Because you're so manly, sweetmeats. Sweetmeats! Did you hear that, Johnny? Ain't she the limit? Sweetmeats! Me! Well, it didn't take any great genius to figure that she had smelled money when she married him. It also didn't take any great genius to figure that Lily was going to disrupt some harmony. Now, I've never seen myself as a wife stealer, you know? So by the time that Gabe had bought all the stuff for the trip, I was ready to duck out, money or no. But Gabe, Gabe wouldn't hear of it. And, well, you know how it is when you put things off. All of a sudden I wake up to realize that we're flying over the Golden Gate and on out west over the Pacific. And I thought, oh, this is no good. And you know something? I was right. San Francisco to Honolulu. From Honolulu to Guam. From Guam to Moresby. And all the time she's leaning up against me with perfume and all and those big green eyes. Moresby to Salamawah. Salamawah to Wewack. And Gabe has given me the happy stuff about how glad he is his best friend and his wife like each other so much. Then down, down over the Palm Groves, the native Lakatoys, Sago-Thatched Hutts, down and there we were. No Guinea. Gold. Trouble. There, going up the Serpik River, eh, mates? Yeah. Oh, you better give us a couple of pounds of that powdered milk there. Serpik River. That's a rum country that another patrol officer got done in up there last week. Done in? Oh, hey, how about some.45 ammunition? What you are? Yes, Duny. Aid hunters. Gabe, you didn't tell me there were head hunters. Huh? Oh, don't you worry, honey. You got me and Johnny to look out for you. Well, it's no bloody business of mine, mate. Here, this the ammo you want? Yeah, yeah, that's it. No bloody business of mine, but I wouldn't take a woman up into that country. Might make it worse. Worse? What's worse than getting your head hung up on a pole? Gabe, I want to go home. Oh, now don't you worry, honey. Of course, a woman would be a prize up there, lady. I mean, they wouldn't kill her. Odds are they'd make a queen out of her. Wouldn't touch her, just worship her like. That's good. Well, that's up to you. Well, I don't like it. An hour later, Pax bulging with supplies, we were off on the trail that wound up over the Purple Mountains. The Prince Alexander Range. And on toward Mai Mai, Gabe carried the heavy float boat bag topped with a thick duffel of provisions. I followed carrying two packs, one on top of the other. Lily brought up the rear carrying a light pack of clothing, mostly her own. It was rough going that first day. Gabe didn't seem to mind. But me, my feet started to cave in after the first 10 miles. It was all right with me when Lily squawked. Gabe! What? Let's stop. It's only 3.30, honey. Let's stop, Gabe. Another couple of hours, we can be over the first mountain. Manana, Gabe. My back is breaking. Okay, honey. He lowered his big pack and then took off into the jungle. Hey, where are you going? We'll need some firewood. Oh. Oh, Johnny. I'm tired. Yeah, me too. Oh, it feels good to get those up. Oh, whoever heard of carrying two packs at once? Good old Gabe. Yeah. Yeah. Come here, Johnny. Huh? What do you want? I know what you think about me, Johnny. You think I'm bad. It's only because I'm bored and happy and bored. I could be a one-man woman, Johnny. Oh, I'm glad to hear about it. For the right man, Johnny. Sure. For you, Johnny. Nothing Gabe would think is such a hot idea. Maybe he wouldn't have to, Johnny. Meaning? Maybe after we get the gold, he'll fall off a cliff. Or he gets eaten up by a tiger or is stepped on by an elephant. There's no elephants in New Guinea. Don't be dull, Johnny. I gotta be, Lily. I gotta be. You're real poison. Oh, Johnny. You're real bad poison. I'm bad. So are you, Johnny. Yeah. You know, that looks real funny. Lipstick in a jungle. You think so? Looks even funnier on you. The doodle, baby. Here comes Gabe. I forgot my gun. Always like to carry a gun in the jungle. Never know when you're gonna run into a snake. Huh, Johnny? Yeah. Yeah, that's right, Gabe. Yeah. You never, never know. Music For years, scientists have been improving your car's performance by making gasoline better and better. But there's one discovery scientists have made that's different from all the rest. It's a gasoline component called xylene. Xylene is one of the highest antonaut gasoline components ever discovered. And today, every gallon of rich-field gasoline contains this super component xylene. Xylene in rich-field gasoline gives higher than ever antonaut performance. You got that eager pickup in traffic. That surging power that puts you out in front every time. What's more, you have a choice of two great rich-field gasolines with xylene. Your rich-field dealer offers rich-field high octane at regular price for the average motor. Or rich-field ethyl. Ethyl at its best for knockless performance in the highest compression motors. Test rich-field gasoline with xylene in your car for just one week. We know what your choice will be. Tomorrow, stop where you see the rich-field eagle on the cream and blue pumps. And now we return you to... Escape. Well, there it was. The lady wanted me to kill her husband and live a life of pleasure on our old-gotten gains. Very dramatic situation, except for a minor point. She had figured that I shouldn't kill him until after he had found the gold mine. And another minor point being that I was his best friend. But you know how it is. Life. Best friends always kill best friends. Oh, sure. But while this sordid drama unrealed, we had to hike through that lousy jungle. Hike and hike and hike and my feet were killing me. The sixth day was the worst one of the trip. We were wading through mangrove swamps thick with huge, thirsty leeches. There were giant mosquitoes that swarmed around us in clouds, and every time I slapped one, I killed ten. Oh, sure, we had mosquito lotion. They loved it. Gabe? What? When are we going to get to the river? Gabe? After a while, honey. After a while. After a while turned out to be nine days more. Then we reached the sepik, a sluggish muddy river winding like a serpent through huge green-furred mountain ranges. And now we ride. We blew up the collapsible boat, loaded all of our stuff aboard and shoved off. I took the bow, gave the stern, Lily set a midships on a pile of sacks. Easy, Gabe, will you? This baby was designed for two people, not three. We're drawing a lot of water. Don't worry, Johnny. This is flood season. And with flood season, the water's high. We can carry three, but later it won't work. Then it'll be only two. Yeah, but we'll be back before then. Sure, Johnny. From time to time when we camped, Lily would give me the business. She didn't seem to care whether Gabe caught on or not. I cared. I cared a whole lot. And Gabe, I didn't know yet what it was that he was feeling. You saved my life, Johnny. I owe you a lot. Maybe that's what it was. But one afternoon we camped early and went for a swim. I was paddling around. The water felt good. Gabe and Lily got out and were drying off when all of a sudden... I looked up. It was Gabe. He was standing on the bank, not 20 feet away with his.45 pointed right at me. I dove. I dove as deep as I could. I could still hear him shaving. I stayed down until I thought my lungs were going to pop. I surfaced. Gabe was waving at me and yelling. Come on, Johnny. Come on. You're crazy, Gabe. Don't shoot anymore. I'm not shooting at you. Come on. So I came out. And I looked around. And there, a few feet beyond where I'd been, was a tremendous crocodile with blood streaming out of him. When you dove, I thought sure he had you. Yeah. Why'd you die? I don't know. I must've lost my head. Gabe saved your life, Johnny. Yeah. I guess that evens us up, huh? Yeah, I guess so, Gabe. No, I don't owe you a thing. That's right. But you're still my pal, huh, Johnny? Well, you figure that one. We kept on going until we came to a place where a narrow, rocky tributary came boiling down a big mountain and into the civic. This was where we started walking again. The gold was up that fast little creek, and we could never paddle against that current. So we folded the boat, shouldered it under the pikes, and started climbing. For a day and a half, we scrambled up that mountain by the fast little string. Then we came to a wall of gray and white rock. Gabe said, this is where the gold is. And he was right. Holy schmigoli, that gold. Sure, we had to work to get it out of the rock. Well, in six days, we took out nearly half a million bucks worth. We could have taken more, but the stuff was heavy, you know. No, you don't know. You've never seen that much pure gold. Just take my word for it. Six days later, we started down the mountain. Then when we made camp by the river that night, Lily went to the river. Lily waited until Gabe was sound asleep. Johnny. Yeah? Now, Johnny. Now what? Now you can kill him. Oh, go away, will you? I want my sleep. Do it now, Johnny. Look, baby, I don't want to kill anybody. I'm a rich man. Will you get smart? Smart? You get smart, Johnny. What do you mean by that? Three ways isn't good enough on the split. I wanted two ways. No, you're nuts. And if you will kill him, I'll get him to kill you. After all, Johnny, you're the serpent in our happy marriage. Shut up, will you, and listen. I don't hear anything except the water. Yeah. Well, a minute ago, you couldn't hear that for Gabe snoring. They came in the morning while we were loading up. They came out of nowhere. Get down! What's that? Arrows! Let us through! We couldn't see them, but we could tell from the arrows where they were. We laid low and tried to make every shot count. It wasn't long before we saw they really meant business. They weren't going to go away. Johnny. Yeah? We haven't got enough ammunition. It'll last more than ten minutes at this rate. Oh, that's just great. Can you keep them off that long? Why? Why? What are you going to do? I'm going to get down to the stream and load up the boat. You're crazy, Gabe! You can't make it down that stream! Sure we can. It's better to end up with your head on a pole. Okay, Gabe. All right. Now cover me. If you hear a shot, you and Lily come fast. All right! The longest ten minutes of my life, Lily lay there beside me. She was plenty scared, and she had every right to be. Those arrows were ugly, big and jagged and sharp. Johnny, Johnny, those arrows are getting closer. Will you stop jiggling my arm? I can't help it. Look, how am I going to shoot if you jiggle my arm? Suppose they get Gabe. That'll be tough. Yeah. How come you worry about Gabe at a time like this? Gabe, Shmaab, I'm worried about the gold. Oh, you dear, sweet girl, will you stop jiggling my arm? So sorry. Three, two, one, four, five. I kept firing. Have you any idea what you're shooting at? Shut up, will you? I mean it! You just point it at the grass and go bang. Will you shut up? Oh, I should have stood in Frisco. You should have stood in Frisco. Oh, don't talk. Just keep shooting. How can I keep shooting when you keep jiggling my arm? A nasty little thought crawled into my mind. Here I was up to my ankles in arrows, and there was Gabe with a boat, half a million bucks, and a downhill ride to freedom. Just suppose, just suppose Lily must have gotten the same idea. I'm going to go help Gabe, Johnny. He may need help. Stay here! No, goodbye, Johnny. Why did I stay? I don't know. I laid there and kept shooting and kept thinking, oh, you sucker, they'll go off without you. But I stayed. Came ten minutes, I heard it. Gabe signaled. The boat was already in the water, all loaded to go. Gabe faced the jungle, he's automatic ready. Lily was crouching on the sand. Good boy, Johnny. Thanks. You all set? Yeah. Just one thing I didn't count on. What's that? With all this gold in the boat, it'll only carry two people now. Okay, Gabe, okay, I get it. Only one thing, leave me your gun and ammo, will you? I want to die hard. Wait a minute, Johnny, wait a minute. Maybe we ought to ask Lily who she thinks ought to stay. Maybe she'd rather I stay. No, Gabe. How about it, Lily? Who do you want to stay? That's a tough question. I know. You both got guns, why don't you fight a duel for it? It'll only take a second, and the winner gets me and the gold. The one who stays behind will be dead, so he won't have to be tortured by headhunters. Oh, she's pretty cute, huh, Johnny? Oh, yes, indeed. Get in the boat, Johnny. No, Gabe, look, go. You go. Look, now's your chance for a clean start with it. Get in the boat, Johnny, or I'll kill you. You sure this is how you want it, Gabe? This is how I want it. Yeah, yeah, that's it, Johnny. Now, you all set? Yeah, Gabe, I'm all set. I hope he can get us down, Johnny. It's an awful fast stream. Don't you worry about it, Lily. Why not? Because it works this way. If either Johnny or me stays here, he gets tortured and then gets his head cut off. If you stay here, you can be a queen. You can live. They won't even touch you. You'll rule a whole tribe all by yourself. Gabe! What are you talking about? Stay away from the boat, Lily. No, Gabe, let her get in, will you? I'll get out. I'll stay. Sit down, Johnny, or I'll stand. Come on! Sit down, I said. Gabe! Johnny saved my life once. And you, all you did was try to get him to kill me. Anyhow, I'm the only man who can get this boat down the rapids. And for that, I need Johnny. All right. Go. Get out, both of you. I'll be a queen. And I'll love it. And I'll be worth millions. Millions! Yeah! Yeah, I knew you'd say it, love. I knew you'd say it, Lily. I knew you'd understand. Ha ha ha ha ha! Here's an amazing fact for every motorist. The film of oil in your motor is often no thicker than a spider's web. But that thin film is all that saves your motor from destruction. That's why it's important for you to use the best of the best. The best of the best. The best of the best. The best of the best. The best of the best. That's why it's important for you to use the best motor oil you can get. We suggest Rich Lube, all-weather motor oil. Rich Lube is refined 100% from the finest Pennsylvania crude obtainable. Rich Lube protects your motor with a tough elastic oil film that holds its body even under the terrific heat of summer driving. At the same time, it draws excess heat away from moving engine parts. Moreover, Rich Lube, the Pennsylvania premium motor oil, contains special chemicals that clean your motor of harmful deposits as you drive. Yes, it cleans as it lubricates. So keep your motor clean. Keep your motor young. See your Richfield gasoline dealer tomorrow. Ask him to change your oil to Rich Lube all-weather motor oil. Escape is produced and directed by William N. Robeson. And tonight has presented Two Came Back by Jules Archer, adapted for radio by Savage Dollar. Featured in tonight's cast were Joan Banks as Lily, Stacy Harris as Johnny, Paul Fries as Gabe, and Ben Wright as the Trader. Special music arranged and played by Ivan Dittmars. Next week. You are lost in the wildest mountains of Idaho, surrounded by a raging forest fire which is swiftly bringing a horrible death closer and closer to you. A death from which there is no escape. Next week at this time, the Richfield Oil Corporation of New York invites you to escape with an exciting story of love and murder in the wilds of Idaho. As Anthony Ellis tells it in The Red Forest. Be listening. Goodbye then. We'll be back at the same time next week when once again we offer you Escape. Tom Hanlon speaking. This is CBS, the Columbia Broadcasting System. Music.
