the seal o'clock The sealed book. Once again the keeper of the book has opened the ponderous door to the secret vault wherein is kept the great sealed book in which is recorded all the secrets and mysteries of mankind through the ages. Here are tales of every kind, tales of murder, of madness, of dark deeds strange and terrible beyond all belief. Keeper of the book, I would know what tale we tell this time. Open the great book and let us read. Slowly the great book opens. One by one the keeper of the book turns the pages and stops. Ah, the strange and terrible story of a man who returned to his birthplace and found himself treated as though he were truly a ghost. A tale called Welcome Home. The story of a man who returned to his birthplace and found himself treated as though he were truly a ghost. The story of a man who returned to his birthplace and found himself treated as though he were truly a ghost. Here is the tale Welcome Home as it is written on the pages of the sealed book. The story begins deep in the heart and vast eerie spompland of Louisiana. It is late in the evening and the moon is bright but an automobile containing a man and a woman stops in a weed grown driveway before a great lonely old mansion crumbling now into ruins. Well Florence my dear, here we are at our destination. Let me introduce you to Pirates Rest, my boyhood home. Leonard, no. This isn't your home, this lonely old place here in the heart of the swamps. Well you must be joking. Of course I'm not joking. This is Pirates Rest where my family has lived for a hundred years. I'm the last living male lejean so Pirates Rest belongs to me now. Leonard it frightens me. That little white building over there through the trees down by the water looks like something in a cemetery. As a matter of fact it is. That white building is the family mausoleum. Most of my ancestors are buried there including my notorious great grandfather Paul. He was a pirate you see. Hence the name Pirates Rest. You never told me this before Leonard. Well the truth is my dear I left home under a cloud and was forbidden by my father ever to return again alive. Oh you'd have enjoyed dear father. He had the odd notion that someday he would be buried alive. You mean he was crazy? Not at all. You see his father, my grandfather was, was buried alive. Oh Leonard you're just making this up. Oh it's quite true. Grandfather died or at least everybody thought so of acute alcoholism. So the family buried him down there in our private burial vault. Next day my father became worried and opened the coffin. He found that grandfather had changed his position in it. Oh no. Consequently my father had an extension telephone installed in the burial vault. Just in case the same thing happened again. A telephone in the burial vault? Yes. So he could call for help if necessary. You see he wasn't crazy at all. Just logical. Leonard you've got to take me away from here at once. But that's impossible my dear. Besides you won't have to meet any of the family except Aunt Emily. Is she all right? Oh yes. Except she thinks she can talk to ghosts. All the others are dead so come on now. It's time we made our presence known. Well all right Leonard but I'm not staying one minute longer than necessary. You understand? Of course not. As soon as I've sold the place and raised a little money we'll be leaving. Well here we are. I should warn you in advance. Dear Aunt Emily hates me. Hates you? Why? Oh it's a long story. I... Who there? What you want? Why it's old Martha. Open the door wider Martha. That's it and we'll come in. Why it's Mr. Leonard. Miss Emily. Mr. Leonard he's come back. Leonard? Oh it can't be. Leonard's dead. Last year Tom said he'd heard Leonard was killed in a hold up. I'm happy to say he was wrong. Aunt Emily let me present Florence my wife. How do you do? Birds of a feather I see. What do you mean by that? Be quiet Florence. Oh Leonard if you are alive as you claim to be why have you come back to Pirates Rest? I've come back to get my inheritance of course. So you know your brother Tom is dead then? Yes I know. Every time a legion has died I've known it. And now they're all dead you dare show your face again. But you'll get nothing here you understand? Everything was left to me. Everything. Indeed? Well we can discuss that tomorrow. Flo and I have come quite a ways and we're tired. Will you have Martha show us to a room and at least make us think we're welcome home? Coffee Leonard? Here you are. You know Flo I'm a little disappointed. The house is badly run down. I doubt if I can sell it. But there must be cash around some place. Plenty of it. Leonard why does your aunt Emily hate you so? Oh I incurred Emily's hatred when I was 12. That was the day of my grandfather's funeral. The one who was later found with turned over in his coffin. Oh Leonard please. Emily was the last to leave the vault. For a prank I closed the door on her. And it was next day before the family found her. Oh Leonard how could you? During the night she heard grandfather calling to her asking her to let him out. But of course she didn't since she knew perfectly well he was dead. Her belief that she could talk to ghosts is dated from that night. Oh Leonard. But never mind the past. Suppose we look around the house. It'll give you a chance to see pirates rest by daylight and we might stumble on the money. And this is the ballroom. Those chandeliers were imported by my great grandfather from Italy. So dusty now. Cub ribs. Carpet stained. And these are the ancestral portraits. Here is father. The one who so logically had a telephone installed. I asked you not to talk about it anymore. That reminds me. Father's safe used to be behind his picture. Hmm. I wonder if the combination has been changed. If it hasn't. Three. Seventeen. Twenty one. It's open. So it is. Let's see what's in here. Hmm. Lots of papers. But I don't see any cash. Leonard. Leonard why have you opened the safe? To see what's inside of course Aunt Emily. You won't find anything in it to steal this time Leonard. Steal? I hardly think taking one's own property would be stealing. You have no property. Not according to your brother Tom's will. Oh yes. His will. I've been meaning to speak about that. Aunt Emily. Where have you been all morning? I've been down to the graveyard. Talking to your brother Tom. Talking to Tom? Tom's dead and you know it. Yes Leonard. But I can still talk to him. You know they don't leave right away. And until they go. Oh Leonard make her stop. Don't pay any attention to her. I talked to your grandfather while he was waiting. And I talked to your father too. And today I was talking to Tom. Maybe someday I'll talk to you Leonard. Then you'll see. Oh make her stop. Aunt Emily you've talked enough nonsense. I want some straight answers. Here's a very interesting document that says Tom received three hundred thousand in cash for some property only six months ago. Three hundred thousand dollars. That money is some place around the house isn't it Aunt Emily? If there's money in this house Leonard why don't you look for it. I'm sure if it's here you're clever enough to smell it out. You always have been. All right I will. But if I don't find it Aunt Emily then you and I are going to have a little heart to heart talk. And now to continue the story as it is written in the sealed book. It is evening now. For many hours Leonard and Florence have been searching the old house. With an axe Leonard has even ripped open the walls of several rooms but he has found nothing. During their search a thunderstorm has sprung up with pouring rain and crashing thunder which is making Florence even more nervous. Oh Leonard. Stop jumping every time it thunders. It's just a storm. They come up suddenly down here. But look out the window. The water in the bayou is rising so fast we'll be flooded. The bayou overflows a couple of times a year regularly. It's nothing to worry about. The water may cover the low ground where the burial vault is but that's as far as it ever comes. Find anything Leonard? No. I suppose there's no use chopping any more holes in these walls. They're all too solid to have any hidden openings in them. We've searched all the other rooms. Maybe there really isn't any money. There is and I know it. Hmm. We haven't tried the kitchen yet. Nobody would hide money in a kitchen. Aunt Emily might. Come on we'll take a look there. Then if we don't find it we'll have our little talk with Aunt Emily. What is it Leonard? Why are you stopping out here in the hall? Martha's in the kitchen. She's up to some mischief. What? What is playing with a little doll? Putting it into a box? She's up to one of her conjure tricks. But I'll put a stop to them. Martha! What do you think you're doing? Mr. Leonard! Give me that box. No you stay away from me. Give it to me I say! There. Now let's see what you're up to. It's a doll. Dressed just like you are. And it's got adhesive tape over its nose and mouth. It's supposed to be dead. And the box is supposed to be a coffin. Well we'll fix that. There. That takes care of the box and the doll. You too late Mr. Leonard. You'd you already start to work. Can't stop it now. Doll go into coffin. Man into me life. Oh be quiet Martha. Doll go into coffin. Man ensure to die. Stop it I say! You can't try any voodoo tricks on me. You hear? Doll go into coffin. I said to stop it! Man no one can save. Stop it! Stop it! Hell this will stop you! She's dead. The axe. Oh you killed her. I told her to stop. She asked for it. Leonard what are we going to do? Nothing. I'm master here. Nobody's going to tell the police. If Emily tries to... If Emily tries to what Leonard? Emily. What are you doing here in the kitchen Leonard? Where's Martha? Stay away from her. She's dead isn't she? Yes of course she's dead. So you killed her Leonard. Yes Aunt Emily I killed her. Leonard what are you doing? Just gathering up these towels Flo my dear. Now you and I and Aunt Emily are going into the living room. I'm going to tie Aunt Emily to a chair. Then I'm going to persuade her to tell us where that money is hidden. Well Aunt Emily I think those towels will hold you nicely. Now I'll give you one more minute to tell me what I want to know. I'll tell you where the money is. It's in your coffin. My coffin? Out in the burial vault where no thief could ever find it. In the burial vault? Of course of course I should have guessed it. Not in the upper vault Leonard. Down in the secret lower one where there still is one empty coffin left for you. Oh no. Three hundred thousand dollars in my own coffin. If you're going to get it now you'd better hurry. The bayou's rising fast. It's already flooding the cemetery. Yes she's right. By morning all the ground down there will be under three feet of water. Oh no Leonard please. Please let's wait. The lower vault isn't waterproof either anymore. But we can't go out there tonight in this storm. Let's go now or wait for a week. That's how we're going now. There's a lantern in the kitchen. Come on Flo. Or would you rather stay here in the house? Oh no no. I'm coming with you Leonard. I'm coming with you. I'm coming with you. A few minutes later Leonard and Florence with the lantern to show the way stumbled through the darkness toward the old mausoleum wading through water a foot deep to reach it. Then Leonard unlocked the heavy iron door and they entered a dim cold room heavy with the musty atmosphere of death. As Florence held the lantern high Leonard found a great iron ring in the floor and pulled on it so that a heavy marble slab slowly rose revealing a narrow flight of steps leading down into the burial vault beneath. Leonard sent Florence ahead of him down these steps with the lantern and followed pausing to lower the marble slab back into place. Oh Leonard there's water down here. It's over my ankles. It won't hurt you. Leonard I'm frightened. Aren't you coming down? Just as soon as I let the slab down. There. There now. Let's find that money. Leonard the water's rising. I can feel it. Wet feet won't hurt us. Just make sure the lantern doesn't get wet. Oh please Leonard hurry. All right all right. Hold the lantern over here so I can see. All right. Here we are. Here's great grandfather Paul's coffin in his niche. And grandfathers. And fathers. And Toms. And here's and here's mine. With my name on the name plate. Leonard Léjean born May 17th 1890. Died March 12th 1930. Leonard that's today. Yes the last part has been scratched in with a knife. Oh that's some of Aunt Emily's nonsense. Oh but it doesn't matter. This is the coffin she said the money was hidden in. I have a screwdriver here. I'll get this lid off. It doesn't screw it on. And look it's here. The money. She was telling the truth. Three hundred thousand dollars. At least maybe more. There's a dozen big packages of bills here. And now do you feel better? Yes but please let's take it and go. The water's still rising. All right all right I know. Hold the gunny sack open. What's the matter now? I think I heard somebody up above us. Oh nonsense. You're just imagining things. No no I heard footsteps and a sliding noise. Maybe it was your Aunt Emily. She's safely tied up in the house. Oh but those towels she wasn't tied very tight. Hold that sack open I tell you. All right Leonard. Six. Eight. Ten. Twelve. That's all of it. Now we can get out of here. You hold the lantern. I'll carry the money and go up first. I'll get the marble slab up. Then you can follow me. Leonard. Leonard what is it? The slab is stuck. Oh no. No it can't be. I'll get it open in a minute. I've got to get my shoulder under it. That's all. Now. It won't open. Leonard we're trapped down here. We're trapped. We're never going to get out. Music. And now to continue the story as it is written in the sealed book. Having descended into the underground mausoleum in which the water is rising due to the storm, Flo and Leonard found the old ants hidden treasure. But as they tried to get out they found the great slab that covered the entrance was stuck. It won't open. We're trapped down here. Oh Leonard we're never going to get out. Be quiet. Put the lantern on the steps and come up here beside me. All right. Between us we can get it open. All right. Come on. There that's it. Now stand here. Yeah. I got your shoulder here beside mine. That's right. Now. Help me lift. It won't open. It won't open. It's stuck fast. What are we going to do? What are we going to do? Oh be quiet and let me think. Oh she did it Leonard. Your aunt. She's put something over the slab so we can't get it out. She couldn't. She was tied up I tell you. Oh she got loose. It's just what she would do. She hates you Leonard. The devil. The old she devil. But I'll beat her. I'll beat her yet. There must be some way out. There must be some way. There must. Yes. Yes that's it. That's it. She didn't think of that. What Leonard what? My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. My father. I told you he had a mortal fear of being buried alive. So he had a telephone installed here in the burial vault. Leonard. A telephone. I'll connect it up and ready to work in case he was buried alive. Now we're buried alive and we'll use it. We'll use it. Leonard we'll. Of course it'll work. Hello. Now where is it? Where is it? Let's see. Let's see. Oh yes. Here. Here's a snitch in the corner. Oh yes. Here's a snitch in the corner. Must be in this watertight box. Come on now. Hold the lantern while I open it. Oh yes. Yes Leonard. There. Look I was right. I was right. A telephone all in working order. Father never thought when he drove me out of the house that someday he'd save my life. Use it Leonard. Use it. Get us out of here. I'll have to call the sheriff in the village. Have him come rescue us. I'll tell him a story. Some kind of a story. It won't matter. Hello. Hello. Operator. Operator. Hello. Operator. Operator. Hello. Operator. Give me the sheriff quickly. Oh thank heaven it worked. The sheriff? Why do you want the sheriff? That telephone you're using only connects with the house Leonard. Oh damn it. Oh damn it. Of course. How does it feel to be dead? Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. I'll never be dead. I'll never be dead. Emily, listen to me. I'm not dead. You're here. And you've got to come let us out of here. Of course you're dead Leonard. That's why I had to fix it so you couldn't get out again. Because the dead have to stay where they belong. Oh no, oh no. Aunt Emily. Listen to me. Come let us out of here and I'll let you keep the money. I won't bother you again. I'll go away. You'll never see me again, only come let us out. I know it's hard to get used to the idea of being dead, Leonard. Tom found it hard too, and so did your father. But you'll get used to it, and your wife will get used to it. No, no. And I'll come talk to you, Leonard, every day. Just as I talk to them. No, no, no. Because now that you're dead, you're both welcome back. And the family's all together again. So welcome home, Leonard. Welcome home. No, no, no. Anne Emily. Anne Emily. Anne Emily. That is the tale of Leonard and Florence Lejean's homecoming, as it is written in the sealed book. The next day, old Emily was found unconscious by neighbors who had no knowledge of Leonard's arrival with his wife. They took Emily to the hospital, where it was several weeks before she could speak coherently. Then they decided to keep her there, to look after her. But the doctors observed that Emily carried on long conversations with a nephew named Leonard and his wife, Florence, whom no one else could see. Since that day, the old Lejean mansion has crumbled into ruin, and no living soul has ever entered the old mausoleum again. Its secrets are forever hidden from the world, and they live only here, where they are written down in the sealed book. And now, keeper of the book, before you close the great volume, show us the tale we tell next time. This one. Ah, yes. The story of a strange plot by which a man and a woman scheme to kill each other. The story of a strange plot by which a man and a woman scheme to kill each other. The story of a strange plot by which a man and a woman scheme to be rid of an individual who stood in the way of their happiness, and of the terrible fate to which their scheme brought them. A tale titled, I'll Die Laughing. I'll Die Laughing. I'll Die Laughing. Be sure to be with us again next time, when the sound of the great gong heralds another strange and exciting tale from... The Sealed Book. The Sealed Book, written by Bob Arthur and David Cogan, is produced and directed by Jock McGregor.
