It's time now for Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons. Ladies and gentlemen, Amason and Kalinos present Mr. Keen, Tracer of Lost Persons, one of the most famous characters of American fiction and one of radio's most thrilling drama. Tonight and every Thursday at the same time, the famous old investigator takes from his file and brings to us one of his most celebrated missing persons cases. Tonight's case is entitled, The Innocent Flirtation Murder Case. Many of you, I'm sure, have had Amason recommended to you for the quick relief of pain from headaches, neuritis or neuralgia. Everywhere people are switching to this fast, modern way to relief. Amason is like a doctor's prescription. That is, it contains not just one, but a combination of medically proven, active ingredients and easy to take tablet form. Many people have been given an envelope containing Amason tablets at some time or other by their dentist or physician. These people know how incredibly fast its action is. If you have not yet tried Amason, go to your drug counter now and pick up a box. Try Amason the next time you are in pain from neuralgia, neuritis or a headache. You'll be delighted with the results. For most effective relief, use only as directed, ask for Amason, spelled A-N-A-C-I-N. Now for Mr. Keene and the Innocent Flirtation Murder Case. Our scene opens in a large suburban home. It is late at night and a quarrel is in progress. A quarrel that is about to end in tragedy. I'm, I'm sorry about this whole thing. But when you come to your senses, you'll... What are you doing? No! No! Put that gun down! Don't kill me! Don't! The next morning in the office of Mr. Keene, the famous investigator. Mr. Keene, which of you gentlemen is Mr. Keene? I'm Mr. Keene and this is my partner, Mike Clancy. Sure, and what's all the excitement, mister? I didn't do it. I didn't kill him, I tell you. Science Preservers, what's he talking about, boss? Pull that chair over here, Mike, so he can sit down. Now, try to relax. What's your name? Wills, Arthur Wills. I'm a building contractor. Last night I did the most awful thing I've ever done in my life. Put myself under suspicion of murder. Exactly what happened, Mr. Wills? You, you may have heard of Kenneth Leighton. The architect? Yes, Mr. Keene. One of the most successful young architects in the country. I went to his home in the suburbs with a pair of dueling pistols and challenged him to a duel. A duel? In this day and age? I don't blame you for looking at me as if I was crazy, Mr. Clancy, and maybe I was for a little while. Crazy with jealousy. It happened just after midnight, Mr. Keene. I'd gone to Kenneth Leighton's home where I found him alone. Just a moment. I'll open the door. Arthur Wills? What are you doing here at this hour? You'll see what I'm doing in just a second. Here, take your choice, Leighton. What have you got inside that box? A pair of dueling pistols, one for you and the other for me. We're going to have this out once and for all. Dueling pistols? You can't be serious, Wills. You can't laugh your way out of this one, Leighton. I found out about you and my wife. You've been making love to her, and one of us is going to pay for it with his life. You must be out of your mind, Wills. Mary and I were never serious about each other. It was nothing but an innocent flirtation. Lies won't hurt you, Leighton. Are you going to accept my challenge to shoot it out with these pistols? Of course not. We're not living in the Middle Ages. Put those pistols away. You coward, I'll... You crazy fool! I'm sorry I had to knock you down, Wills. I'm sorry about this whole thing. But when you come to your senses... What are you doing? No! No, put that gun down! Don't kill me! Don't! I swear to you, Mr. Keen, that's what happened. You at first challenged Kenneth Leighton to a duel. Is that it, Mr. Wills? Yes. He laughed at me and wouldn't accept. Then he must have mistaken a move I made for an attack because he struck me and knocked me down. He's a young man and strong. The blow dazed me for a few seconds and while I was trying to come to my senses, I thought I heard two shots. A few moments later, when I came around, I saw Kenneth Leighton lying dead on the floor. Have the police been notified of a murder? Not yet, Mr. Keen. I was too frightened to do anything but run. I wandered through the streets all night and then thought of you. You have a reputation for helping a man when he's desperately in need of it, Mr. Keen. Please help me now before I'm arrested for a murder I didn't commit. Sit where you are, Mr. Wills. Hello? Is Mr. Keen there, please? This is Mr. Keen speaking. My name is Don Judson, sir. I'm an assistant to Kenneth Leighton, the architect. He was murdered last night, Mr. Keen. I found his body and I'm requesting that you investigate the case on his behalf. When did you find the body, Mr. Judson? Early this morning when I came to Mr. Leighton's home for a business conference. Then the police have been called? Yes, sir. I called them. They've already made a preliminary investigation and they're looking for a man named Arthur Wills. Two dueling pistols belonging to Wills were found on the floor and both of them had been fired. I see. All right, Mr. Judson, I'll do everything I can. Where are you calling from? Mr. Leighton's home, sir. I'll be there inside of an hour. Thank you, Mr. Keen. Goodbye. Mr. Wills, do you know who Don Judson is? Yes, Mr. Keen. He's a young architect, a protege of Kenneth Leighton's. Well, he's found Leighton's body and the police are looking for you. Then they know. Your dueling pistols were found on the floor beside the body. Yes. In my fright, I left them there. They were family heirlooms. The family name is inscribed on them. Mr. Wills, are you willing to give yourself up to the police while my partner, Mike Clancy, and I investigate your claim of innocence? My claim of innocence? You mean you don't believe me? So far, the circumstances are against you. Your word is all I have for your innocence. If you can't help me, Mr. Keen, I'm lost. The police will find out that I was insanely jealous of my wife and hated Leighton for seeing her. I won't have a chance. Well, Mr. Wills, if I find you guilty of murdering Kenneth Leighton, I assure you I'll make certain you won't have a chance. Mr. Keen, would I have come here to your office begging for help if I were guilty? Sure, and many a man's come to Mr. Keen saying that he was innocent when all he was trying to do was to pull the wool over the boss's eyes. But none of them ever got away with it. Mr. Keen, I'm willing to put all my trust in you and pay the penalty if you find out that I haven't been honest with you. Very well, Mr. Wills, we'll drive you to police headquarters where you'll surrender yourself for questioning. After that, Mike and I will begin investigating this remarkable case at the scene of the crime. Kenneth Leighton must have been a wealthy fellow, Mr. Keen. This house of his is fit for a king. He was one of the youngest and most successful architects in his profession, Mike. I must ask Don Judson to wait here for me. Well, Judson is Leighton's assistant. Is that it, boss? Yes, he found Leighton's body. I wanted to. Yes? My name is Keen. Oh, yes, Don Judson is expecting you. Please come in. Thank you. I'm Mary Wills. Mary Wills? Arthur Wills' wife. I see. Is that Miss Keen? Yes. Well, I'm happy to know you, sir. I'm Don Judson. And this is my partner, Mike Clancy. Glad to know you. Mrs. Wills arrived a few minutes ago. I phoned and told her that the police were looking for her husband. This is Mr. Keen, the famous investigator, Mrs. Wills. Mr. Keen, I just can't believe that my husband has anything to do with Kenneth Leighton's death. And when he's found... He's already given himself up to the police, Mrs. Wills. He has? And confessed to the murder? No, Mr. Judson. Arthur Wills claims he's innocent. Oh, you've got to help him, Mr. Keen. I intend to, Mrs. Wills, providing I find he is innocent. Now Mr. Judson, just where did you find Mr. Leighton's body when you came in this morning? Over there at the end of the foyer, Mr. Keen. The two dueling pistols were lying nearby. The police took the pistols as evidence. I know. I talked to them about it. They found no fingerprints and neither gun, however. Apparently both guns were wiped off by the killer. Oh, Mike. Yes, boss? Well, I suppose you'll look through the rest of the house. Okay, sir. I'll show them around, Mr. Keen. Mrs. Wills, if you'll take a seat in the living room inside, I'll talk to you in just a few minutes. Well, very well, Mr. Keen. And meet me back here after you're through, Mike. Right, sir. This way, Mr. Clancy. What rooms would you like to examine first? Did Mr. Leighton have a private study, Mr. Judson? Why, yes, through this door. This is as good a place as any to start with. After you, Mr. Clancy. This study leads to a terrace outside, through those two French doors. If you'd like to see it, I can... Mr. Judson, just keep right on talking. I just saw a shadow out there and a terrace behind the doors. Someone must be out there. Act like you've still shown me around. And move over toward the terrace. Mr. Leighton owned a gun, I believe. He never had a chance to use it, I guess, before he would... I'd like to see if he can open a terrace door. Are you looking for somebody, young lady? Why, I just... Mr. Clancy, it's Dorothy Grafton. Get out of my way! Just a second, miss. Come in here. Let go of me! Let go of you here! Mr. Clancy won't hurt you, Dorothy. There's nothing to be afraid of. What's going on here, Mike? Well, Mr. Keen, I just caught this young lady out on the terrace. She's trying to get away. Who are you? My name is Dorothy Grafton. She was engaged to Kenneth Leighton at one time, Mr. Keen. What are you doing here, Miss Grafton? I wanted to speak to Kenneth. Kenneth is dead. What did you say? Kenneth Leighton was murdered last night, Miss Grafton. No! Oh, no! Oh, Don, you didn't! I didn't do what? What were you going to say, Miss Grafton? Suppose I tell you, Mr. Keen. Dorothy Grafton seemed to feel that I was in love with her. She's apparently suggesting that... I might have had something to do with Mr. Leighton's murder because of her. No, I didn't mean to... Suppose we let the facts speak for themselves. Kenneth Leighton threw you over long before I ever met you. Isn't that true, Dorothy? I guess so, Don. Miss Keen, it stands to reason I couldn't have been jealous of Mr. Leighton because of Dorothy. And another thing, I happened to pin a great deal on my future career. What do you mean, Mr. Judson? Well, I haven't been making very much money up to now. As an architects apprentice, my salary wasn't high. But if Kenneth Leighton had lived, one day he might have helped me to become as successful as he was. Grafton, is it true that you were in love with a murdered man, Kenneth Leighton, and he threw you over? Mr. Keen, I loved him. I swear I wouldn't have hurt him for anything in the world. Sit down for a moment. I want you to remain here for questioning. Mike. Yes, boss. Did you find anything in this room worth examining? Well, I didn't have a chance to look, sir. But Mr. Judson here said that Mr. Leighton had a gun. Well, Judson, where did you usually keep his gun? Right here in the lower desk drawer. He had a license for it, of course. He... The gun is gone. Boss, look. Dorothy Grafton's running for the terrace. Go after her, Mike. No. No, you'll never take me. Come back here. Come back. Grafton dropped her bag. I'll get it for you, Mr. Keen. This handbag feels rather heavy. Yes. Let's see what's inside. What? Why, it's a gun. Evidently, Miss Grafton came prepared for trouble. Do you recognize this weapon by any chance, Mr. Judson? It looks like the one Mr. Leighton owned. Yes, Mr. Keen, this is the gun he kept in his desk. Well, it doesn't seem to have been fired. Inside, young lady, and no more tricks. Here comes Mike with Dorothy Grafton. Now we'll see if she has anything further to say about a murder that was started by merely an innocent flirtation. In just a moment, we'll return to Mr. Keen and the innocent flirtation murder case. Meanwhile, stop tooth decay and unpleasing breath. Yes, stop tooth decay and unpleasing breath that breathes between the teeth. Use colonose toothpaste with dental floss action. Your dentist will tell you, brush your teeth after meals to stop decay. Clean those cracks and crevices deep between your teeth to guard against unpleasing breath. Now, colonose gives you dental floss action. That is, sends thousands of active cleansing bubbles to help dislodge bits of food that can cause unpleasing breath. What's more, for me, refreshing colonose brightens teeth by removing ordinary yellow surface stains, helps stop tooth decay. Get colonose toothpaste with dental floss action today. Now back to Mr. Keen and the innocent flirtation murder case. Mr. Keen, the great investigator and his partner, Mike Clancy, are investigating the murder of Kenneth Layton, a well-known young architect. Arthur Wills, a building contractor, is under suspicion for the murder. Wills was violently jealous of his wife, Mary, who was supposed to have had a flirtation with a murdered man. Now a new suspect has entered the case, attractive Dorothy Grafton, who had been jilted by the victim. She has just been brought into the study of Kenneth Layton's house after trying to escape. And as she faces Mr. Keen and young Don Judson, the protege of the murdered architect. Why did you try to run away, Miss Grafton? Because I'm innocent, Mr. Keen. And I know you'll try to pin Kenneth's murder on me. Mr. Keen just found a gun in your handbag, Dorothy. A gun, did you say, Don? Don tells me it belonged to the murdered man, Kenneth Layton. Running away like that puts you in line for a murder charge, young lady. Oh, no. My partner Mike Clancy is right, Miss Grafton. You'll either tell the entire truth or I'll have to turn you over to the police immediately. Mr. Keen, will anyone believe the truth? I will, if you play fair with me. I stole that gun two days ago from Kenneth's desk. Why? I wanted him to take me back. I loved him so. I was going to threaten to use it on the two of us if he didn't. But it was only going to be a threat, Mr. Keen. I didn't actually mean it. Is that why you tried to sneak into this house? Yes. I had no idea that Kenneth was dead, murdered. I've been a fool. And now I'm in trouble for it. I should have known he wouldn't fall in love with me all over again. There were others in his life. Or instance? Don Judson here can tell you. Kenneth has been seeing Mrs. Wills, Mary Wills. Mr. Keen already knows that, Dorothy. Well, maybe Mary Wills had something to do with Kenneth's desk. Or maybe your husband may have killed him. Her husband's been taken into custody by the police. Then why pick on me, Mr. Keen? Because it's not been proven yet that he murdered Kenneth Leighton. Mike, you stay here with Dorothy Grafton and Mr. Judson. While I talk to Mrs. Wills who's waiting in the hall. OK, Mr. Keen. I warn you, Miss Grafton. Don't make another attempt to escape. I'll keep an eye on her, boss. Boss, that sounds like the front door opened. Wait here with the others, Mike. Mrs. Wills. Yes, Mr. Keen. Were you just about to leave the house? I was worried about my husband. You said he was being held by the police. I wanted to see him if I could. You'll get a chance to see him very shortly, Mrs. Wills. Dorothy Grafton is inside. Dorothy Grafton. You know her? Yes. We found her trying to sneak into the house with a gun in her purse. Mr. Keen, she used to be Kenneth's sweetheart. Really? Then he broke off with her. Before that, she was Don Judson's girl. She took expensive presents from Don, jewelry and purrs. But she must have thought she could get even more out of Kenneth. Don Judson told me he'd broken off with Dorothy Grafton of his own accord. Yes, and it infuriated her. Then she tried to win Kenneth Layton over. How do you know all that, Mrs. Wills? Kenneth told me. She was making a pest of herself and he wanted to break it up in some way. Oh, don't you see, Mr. Keen? Dorothy Grafton could have killed Kenneth because she imagined she was jilted. Mrs. Wills, it appears that you're very anxious to place Dorothy Grafton in a suspicious light. I only want to tell you the truth. Mr. Keen, one thing you must believe, and I swear it's true. Kenneth and I were only friends. Perhaps it might have been mistaken for more than an innocent flirtation. But I remain faithful to my husband. Very well, Mrs. Wills. I have no more questions right now. You may go to police headquarters and see your husband if you like. Thank you, Mr. Keen. Oh, just a moment. I'm going to send someone with you. You mean you don't trust me to go along? Under the circumstances, I am forced to take every precaution. I'll send Don Judson with you. Very well, Mr. Keen. And tell your husband to have a little faith and patience. He may be a free man again even sooner than he thinks. Well, Mr. Keen, I just got a cab outside from Mrs. Wills and Don Judson. Now, what will we do about this young lady here? We'll send Dorothy Grafton home, Mike. You mean you're setting me free? Temporarily, Miss Grafton. But stay at home until I call you. I won't try to run away again, sir. Very well. You can leave now, Miss Grafton. Thank you, Mr. Keen. Plus, I don't get it. Sure, she's one of our biggest suspects, isn't she? Well, I had to get her out of the house, Mike, because I want complete secrecy. If she tries to get away, we can find her easily enough. Well, I guess you're right, boss, but where do we go from here? Well, Mike, I've just discovered one important clue concerning this case, a clue that may solve it completely. We're going to spend the next few hours going over every one of Kenneth Leighton's business records until we find the proof I need. Well, here's another set of bills, Mr. Keen. Let's see them, Mike. Only about half of them are marked paid in full. The other half are unpaid. Well, let's keep looking, Mike. Here's a checkbook, boss. Good. Let's look it over. Yes, it's Kenneth Leighton's, all right. And he had a balance of over $200,000 when he died. Let's look at those bills again. Well, sure, here's one that was sent to Leighton four months ago for $1,000. Isn't it odd, Mike, that a man as wealthy as Kenneth Leighton seemed to be couldn't pay his bills on time? Boss, here's another set of papers. More bills, I guess. Yes, these were sent out by Kenneth Leighton for his services as an architect, not sent to him. And they're all paid up. They're stamped paid, boss. The stamp marks are initialed. Mike, where's your small magnifying glass? Right here in my pocket, sir. I'm never without it. Let me have it. I wanted to see if I could make out these initials. Here you are, sir. Can you read the initials, sir? Yes, and I think we've solved the mystery of Kenneth Leighton's murder. Mr. Keen, someone just come into the house. I heard the front door close. It's undoubtedly our killer, Mike, and well-armed, I'm sure. Open that closet door quickly. I'm going to let myself be surprised, Mike. It may help us get a confession more easily. You remain inside this closet with your gun handy. Right, boss. Mr. Judson. I returned because I'd forgotten something, Mr. Keen. I didn't expect to find that you'd remained here. There were some facts I wanted to uncover, Mr. Judson, concerning Kenneth Leighton's murderer. Oh, have you uncovered them? Very thoroughly. And you know who killed him? Yes. I suppose you sent your partner, Mr. Clancy, after the murderer. I sent my partner out in regard to something else. There's no need to send anyone for the murderer, Mr. Judson. He's already walked in here. Really? Well, Mr. Keen, you sound as if I'm your man. You are, Judson. You killed Kenneth Leighton, and I have proof. You make a move, Keen, I'll kill you. That gun in your hand certainly bears out my theory, although it can be easily proved in any case. But Kenneth Leighton's assistant, you seem to have handled all his bookkeeping. Yes. I'm an architect, too, but he wouldn't let me design one of his precious buildings. We only found out you didn't have the necessary talent. That made you bitter and murderous as well. That wasn't the main reason you took Kenneth Leighton's life. No. You took care of all his accounts. I know that because I have found your initials on certain bills. Did you? You doctored his account books and kept half the money he gave you to pay his bills. I first suspected you, Judson, when Mrs. Wills mentioned your buying expensive presents for Dorothy Grafton. I told you I threw her over myself. True. But you did spend a great deal of money on her to satisfy your own vanity, I presume. You told me yourself that as an architect's assistant, you didn't make very much. That's very clever, Keith. But you weren't clever. Sooner or later, Kenneth Leighton's creditors would have sued him for unpaid bills. And then he would have discovered your thefts. He did discover them. And he was about to turn me over to the police. That's when you decided to murder him. You saw your chance when you sneaked into this house during the quarrel that Leighton had with Arthur Wills. When Wills laid on the floor temporarily dazed, you came out of hiding, grabbed his dueling pistols and murdered Kenneth Leighton. All right, Keane. I'll let me tell you something. I had a feeling you were up to something when you sent me out with Mary Wills. So I made it a point to come back. However, Mrs. Wills thinks I've gone home. And she'll have no way of proving anything against me when they find your dead body, Keane. You really believe you cover every angle, don't you, Judson? I covered one that had you guessing even before you entered the case. You trailed Arthur Wills after the shooting and saw him enter my office building. Then you called and asked me to enter the case as an added cover for yourself. Right. Now for my final piece of strategy. Here's a bullet for your trouble. See? Drop that gun, what? Drop it! Mr. Keane, if I hadn't beaten to the door, he'd have put a bullet in your heart. You shot the gun out of my hand. Sure. And it looks like your murdering days are over, Judson. Yes, Mike, you're right. Judson started with deception, then theft, and finished with murder. A logical sequence of events that a criminal follows. Now he'll end that series of events as it always ends, by being fully punished for his crimes. And so Mr. Keane finds the solution to the innocent flirtation murder case. The next time you're suffering from the pains of headache, neuritis, or neuralgia, try Anderson. You'll bless the day you heard of this incredibly fast way to relieve these pains. Now the reason Anderson is so wonderfully fast acting and effective is this. Anderson is like a doctor's prescription. That is, Anderson contains not just one, but a combination of medically proven, active ingredients in easy to take tablet form. Thousands of people have received envelopes containing Anderson tablets from their own dentist or physician. And in this way have discovered the incredibly fast relief Anderson brings from pain of headache, neuritis, or neuralgia. So next time such pain strikes, take Anderson. For most effective relief, use only as directed. Your druggist has Anderson in handy boxes of 12 and 30, and economical family-sized bottles of 50 and 100. The name is Anderson, A-N-A-C-I-N. Mr. Keane, Tracer of Lost Persons, is based on the novel Mr. Keane. The radio sequel is originated and produced by Frank and Ann Hummert, dialogue by Lawrence Klee. Then at Kilpac plays Mr. Keane. It is on the air every Thursday at this time. Don't miss Mr. Keane next Thursday when the kindly old Tracer turns to the Yellow Parrot Murder Case. This is a
