Pat Novak for Hire: Jack of Clubs 02/20/1949

Summary

Podcast Summary: Choice Classic Radio Detectives | Pat Novak for Hire: "Jack of Clubs" (Aired 02/20/1949)

Episode Overview

In this classic episode of Pat Novak for Hire, the quick-witted and hard-boiled detective Pat Novak finds himself entangled in a complex web of murder, mistaken identity, smuggled microfilm, and femme fatale duplicity, all centering around a mysterious Jack of Clubs playing card. Taking place on the gritty San Francisco waterfront, this episode exemplifies the razor-sharp banter, sardonic narration, and suspenseful plotting that defined post-war radio noir.

---

Key Discussion Points and Plot Developments

1. An Unexpected Deposit and FBI Interest

• Pat Novak starts his day with a simple banking errand, only to discover an unexplained $1,000 deposit made in his name on Friday—one he knows nothing about.
• The teller mentions the FBI has shown interest in his account, foreshadowing deeper trouble.

  “A mysterious grand tossed into the till. I didn't wake up to trouble, but I'm a smart boy who'd be the village idiot in a town the size of New York.” (04:03 - Pat Novak)

• This seemingly fortunate event is the catalyst for the entire plot.

2. The Entrance of Connie Riley

• At Novak’s apartment, he’s confronted by the enigmatic and flirtatious Connie Riley, who is after the “Jack of Clubs”—a card allegedly linked to a passenger named Kirk Toomey on the Monterey Rose.
• Connie offers Novak a grand for the card, suggesting he was set up as part of a much bigger plan.

  "You didn't get that thousand bucks with a sweat of your brow. Somebody patted your account so you'd be a nice boy." (05:37 - Connie Riley) “You're like Adam when he first spotted the Garden of Eden.” (06:42 - Connie Riley)

3. Inspector Hellman and the First Murder

• Inspector Hellman barges in, suspecting Novak due to his connection with Max Coleman—an alleged foreign agent who supposedly left the $1,000 deposit.
• A body, soon identified as Kirk Toomey, is discovered strangled and stuffed in Novak’s kitchen closet.

  “He rolled out onto the linoleum, a dapper little guy, except for a piece of cord around his throat tied in a funny knot. He was deader than a broken drum.” (09:39 - Pat Novak)

• Hellman intensifies his suspicions of Novak, especially when evidence ties him to the microfilm believed hidden in a Jack of Clubs card.

4. Jocko Madigan and Deductions

• Novak turns to his inebriated yet insightful friend, Jocko Madigan, for help piecing together the puzzle of Toomey’s death and Connie’s motivations.
• Jocko provides comic relief and philosophical musings even as he assists:

  “You say you're short on time, but you have all the time there is... It gives you as much time as Napoleon or Alexander had.” (12:52 - Jocko Madigan)

5. Double-Crosses and Red Herrings

• Clues send Novak searching through Connie’s apartment, where he easily finds the Jack of Clubs—raising suspicion about whether it’s real or a plant. He is promptly waylaid and knocked out by Chris, another player in the hunt for the card (17:00).
• Jocko later wakes Novak, revealing that Max Coleman has turned up dead in Oakland from gunshot wounds, suggesting the noose is tightening for everyone involved.

6. The Morbid Tour and Final Confrontation

• Novak’s investigation at the morgue confirms the body’s identity as Coleman, solidifying that both key suspects (Toomey and Coleman) are dead (21:44).
• Jocko identifies Chris as "Christopher Downs," whose Taylor Street address becomes the focus of the next search.
• Novak and Jocko find Downs, who tries to force them into a getaway at gunpoint. Hellman’s timely arrival prevents Novak’s murder, and Chris is implicated in Coleman’s killing (24:44).

7. Resolution and Clever Twist

• Back at Novak’s place with Connie, revelations fly: Novak realizes Connie was the only one who could have tied the specific knot that killed Toomey, matching it to her elastic garter (27:00).
• The central “Jack of Clubs” is revealed as a decoy—the actual microfilm was hidden in Toomey’s toothpaste tube, a detail cleverly deduced from his false teeth.

  “Word must have gotten around that the microfilm was inside that Jack of Clubs. So Kirk crossed them up and put it in the tube of toothpaste.” (28:09 - Pat Novak)

• Connie confesses her role before being taken away by Hellman. Novak escapes charges but loses the bogus $1,000 windfall.

---

Notable Quotes

• Pat Novak:

  “Sometimes in a good week you conduct trouble three or four days in a row. Then it creeps up on you like an old charge account.” (02:00)

• Connie Riley:

  “You're turning a momentary advantage into a crowbar.” (06:02)

• Inspector Hellman:

  “You're in a jam, lover, and I'm here to push it farther in.” (08:37)

• Jocko Madigan:

  “That's why I like you, Patsy. You're like a piece of blank verse. A bad piece of blank verse.” (13:53)

• Pat Novak:

  “Things didn't look any better. It's like trying to weave a rug with a spinning wheel and a bucket of sand.” (22:04)

• Connie Riley (confession):

  “You're a funny guy, Novak. Yeah, you're nice but you're hard to handle. I should have killed you or married you.” (27:15)

---

Important Segments and Timestamps

• Banking Mystery & FBI appearance: 02:00 – 04:10
• Connie Riley confronts Novak: 04:44 – 07:13
• Discovery of Kirk Toomey’s body: 09:37 – 10:19
• Jocko Madigan at Lupo’s (comic relief and theories): 12:36 – 14:24
• Novak investigates and is attacked by Chris: 16:29 – 17:53
• Identification of Max Coleman's body in Oakland: 21:02 – 22:04
• Showdown at Christopher Downs’ apartment: 23:21 – 24:59
• Final confrontation and Connie’s confession: 26:21 – 27:15
• Novak reveals the real location of the microfilm: 28:09

---

Conclusion

This episode of Pat Novak for Hire delivered pitch-perfect noir atmosphere, witty cynical narration, and rapid-fire plot turns. The clever misdirection with the Jack of Clubs and the toothpaste microfilm capped the story with a satisfying reveal. Ultimately, Novak walks away battered but unbowed, smirking against the city’s fog and criminal folly—a classic detective adventure from the Golden Age of Radio.

Transcript

[A]

Time is precious and so are our pets. So time with our pets is extra precious. That's why we started Dutch. Dutch provides 24,7 access to licensed vets with unlimited virtual visits and follow ups for up to five pets. You can message a vet at any time and schedule a video visit the same day. Our vets can even prescribe medication for many ailments and shipping is always free. With Dutch, you'll get more time with your pets and year round peace of mind when it comes to their vet care.

[B]

Welcome to Choice Classic Radio where we bring to you the greatest old time radio shows like us on Facebook, subscribe to us on YouTube and thank you for [e-mail].

[C]

The American Broadcasting Company brings to its entire network one of radio's most unusual programs. Pat Novak for hire.

[D]

Sir, I'm pat novak. Hire?

[E]

That's what the sign out in front of my shop says.

[D]

Pat Novak for hire.

[E]

Down here on the San Francisco waterfront, it's got to be that way. You gotta rob a few graves if you want cigarette money. You need lots of work and roomy sleeves if you're gonna play a pat hand.

[D]

Sometimes in a good week you conduct trouble three or four days in a row. Then it creeps up on you like an old charge account. Well, I should have known that when I went to the bank I was up to my knees in mud and didn't even know it was rainy season. It was Tuesday. I went by the bank to drop a hundred bucks. It was about time because they were beginning to play handball with my checks. Must have been about 11 o' clock when I got to the window.

[F]

Hello, Mr. Novak. Isn't it a grand morning?

[D]

If it's your choice, stay with it.

[F]

Ah, yes.

[D]

Deposit 100 bucks. Yes.

[F]

Let me get your card.

[G]

It right here, I think.

[F]

Yes, here we are.

[D]

All right.

[E]

Hundred bucks.

[D]

Give me a duplicate, will you?

[F]

Certainly. My, this isn't as big as the last deposit.

[D]

Look, bloomer girl, just mark the slip, huh?

[F]

Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Novak. I guess I'm not used to thousand dollar deposits.

[D]

What thousand dollars?

[F]

Your Friday deposit.

[D]

I wasn't in here Friday.

[F]

You must have been. The card says you put in $1,000 on Friday.

[D]

Give me that card. What did Santa look like?

[F]

What?

[D]

Who put the dough in?

[E]

What'd the guy look like?

[F]

Oh, didn't you?

[D]

No.

[E]

Look, we'll double back and try to hang on this time, will you? I wasn't in here Friday. I don't know anything about an extra grand.

[D]

What did the Guy look like I.

[F]

Wasn'T on duty Friday.

[D]

Yeah.

[F]

I'm not even sure about the fellow today.

[D]

What fella?

[F]

There was a man in here to ask about the account.

[E]

Did this good fairy have a name?

[F]

No, just credentials. He was from the FBI.

[D]

I see.

[F]

Is there anything wrong, mister? No.

[E]

Don't mind that complexion. I forgot my foundation cream.

[D]

Oh, I should have known right then.

[E]

A mysterious grand tossed into the till.

[D]

I didn't wake up to trouble, but I'm a smart boy who'd be the.

[E]

Village idiot in a town the size of New York?

[D]

Well, I left the bank and went up to my apartment. That thousand bucks was already drawing interest.

[E]

When I came in, she was sitting.

[D]

On the couch drinking my whiskey. She could have all she wanted. A 1949 Panther model.

[E]

Just the right amount of size 12.

[D]

In a dress that looked like a well tailored fig leaf. When she was through looking you over.

[E]

You felt like the Sunday supplement.

[G]

Hello, Mr. Novak. I like your apartment.

[D]

That's good.

[G]

The view is wonderful.

[D]

So is yours. What's on your mind?

[G]

How about a drink?

[D]

How poor you talk.

[G]

My name is Connie Riley. Make me one, too.

[D]

Sure.

[G]

As you were saying, my name is Connie Riley.

[E]

Yeah, well, I've memorized that much.

[D]

Go on. Here's your drink.

[G]

Thanks. Let's sit down.

[D]

All right.

[G]

Over next to me. I won't buy it.

[D]

That's too bad. Go on.

[G]

Well, here's to your new bank account, Patsy.

[E]

Look, sis, if you're here just for the field trials, all right. But if you got a bill of goods, trot it out.

[H]

I will.

[G]

I want that card, too, Patsy. I want it ahead of Chris.

[D]

I'll catch up with another drink. In the meantime, you fill in and help me.

[G]

Will you stop sitting on your hands, angel? You didn't get that thousand bucks with a sweat of your bra.

[D]

No, not yet.

[G]

Somebody patted your account so you'd be a nice boy. I want you to be a nice boy for me. At the same rates the Monterey Rose docks today. A passenger named Kurt Tooney is carrying a jack of clubs and it means a lot to me.

[D]

That doesn't mean a thing to me.

[E]

Except the FBI is on my tail.

[G]

Mr. Novak, you're turning a momentary advantage into a crowbar.

[D]

You take your deal to some other broker.

[G]

You're in business whether you like it or not. Patsy, you're gonna stub your toe either way. Only to me, it'll be more fun.

[D]

How about the FBI?

[G]

You're being frightened by a group of bureaucrats.

[D]

That's what trotsky thought.

[G]

How much, Patsy? How much for that card?

[D]

When you get it, the price is a grand.

[G]

You're an amusing guy, Patsy.

[D]

Yeah, and a grand I can afford to be.

[G]

You don't even know what the Jack of clubs is all about. You never heard of Kirk Toomey till five minutes ago. But you take things in stride as.

[D]

If the whole world belonged to you.

[H]

Yeah.

[G]

You're like Adam when he first spotted the Garden of Eden.

[E]

All right, little Eve. It's a thousand bucks. Remember, you're sitting on my doorstep. Now, either go on home or come in the house.

[G]

Good. I'll take the card. It's your price. Now I can relax.

[D]

I bet you can.

[G]

Pour me another drink, Patsy.

[D]

Yeah, sure, in a minute.

[G]

What comes next? Do I get three guesses?

[D]

You got time to take them?

[G]

I won't need them all.

[D]

It's up to you. Come here, angel. You ever hear of the early bird?

[G]

Do I make a nice worm?

[D]

A wriggle like one.

[G]

Aren'T you? A razor straight.

[D]

18%, darling. That's too bad.

[G]

I wasn't even gonna scream.

[E]

The next place I live is going.

[D]

To be a cave. Just a minute, will you?

[I]

Hello, Novak.

[D]

Oh, Hellman.

[I]

Well, well. Am I interrupting anything?

[E]

No, we were just going over an old seed catalog. Ms. Riley, this is Inspector Hellman, San Francisco Police.

[G]

Good morning, inspector. Don't bother to arrest me now. I'm just leaving.

[I]

So soon?

[G]

My sentiment exactly, inspector.

[D]

Bye.

[G]

Bye, Patsy. You can get me at the Concord on push speed. Be around sure.

[I]

Well, you're slipping, Novak.

[F]

Hm?

[I]

No rain check.

[E]

All right, funny man, what's your problem?

[I]

You ever see this guy before?

[D]

Let me see. He's an awful looking thug.

[H]

Yeah?

[D]

Who is he? Your father?

[I]

A guy by the name of Max Coleman. The FBI trailed him to your bank Friday. They think he gave you a thousand bucks.

[D]

Yeah?

[I]

Where'd you get the thousand bucks, Novak?

[E]

What do you care, Hellman?

[I]

Maybe a relative.

[E]

Maybe I made an aunt.

[I]

Nobody's related to you, Novak. You're in a jam, lover. And I'm here to push a farther in. Max Coleman buys his groceries with foreign dough.

[E]

What are you weeping about? Arrest the guy if you don't like him.

[I]

There's government microfilm coming in on the Monterey Rose. That thousand bucks makes you a contact man for Coleman.

[D]

Send the FBI over, then.

[E]

Where do you fit in? Waiting for somebody to drop some loose change?

[I]

You're my project, Novak. When they asked us for help, I stuffed the ballot box to get you. Yeah, so relax. I'm gonna spend the rest of the day here. You're not gonna leave the living room?

[D]

I gotta spend the day with you. I'll take knockout drops.

[I]

Suit yourself. What's this stuff?

[E]

That's good scotch. You wouldn't know. The cheap liquor's out in the kitchen closet.

[D]

That's for you.

[F]

All right.

[I]

Over by the stove here?

[D]

That's right.

[I]

What do you keep in here, Novak, mops and brooms? Where'd you buy this one?

[D]

What are you talking about?

[I]

Where'd you buy this one?

[H]

Smart man.

[E]

Hellman was right.

[D]

I could tell right away it wasn't a mop when Hellman pushed him out. He rolled out onto the linoleum a dapper little guy, except for a piece of cord around his throat tied in a funny knot. It was deader than a broken drum Somebody pulled too hard on that piece of cord. The veins were standing out in his forehead.

[E]

His face looked like a road map.

[D]

Lying there on the floor. He wasn't pretty. Hellman thought so too.

[I]

Who is he, Novak? Your father.

[E]

I've never seen him in my closet before.

[I]

Who is he, Novak?

[F]

I don't know.

[E]

Hellman, finders keepers.

[F]

You roll him.

[I]

Give me a hand. There's nothing there. There's his wallet.

[D]

You'll get there by instinct.

[F]

Yeah. Yeah.

[I]

Here it is.

[B]

Tired of juggling sales tools or spending hours on prospecting just to book a few meetings? Meet Apollo. The go to market platform for finding leads, connecting with buyers and closing deals all in one place. Apollo gives you access to over 210 million contacts and AI that handles all your busywork. Finding leads, drafting emails and even prioritizing your day. So stop paying for five different sales tools when one does it all. Visit Apollo I.O. and sign up free today.

[I]

Name is Kirk Toomey.

[D]

That helped.

[I]

Who is he?

[D]

The guy on the Monterey road.

[I]

The one with the microfilm?

[D]

I guess so.

[I]

I thought you didn't know anything about it. How'd you know he came from the Monterey road?

[E]

My dream book. Hellman.

[D]

What happens now?

[F]

Nothing.

[I]

Except I'm on the case now and you got trouble in a major key.

[D]

You don't think I killed this guy?

[I]

I don't know.

[H]

Did you?

[E]

You better hop out and tail that girl. She was making herself at home when I got here.

[I]

Yeah? How do I know you're not in it together?

[E]

Don't cop her. Maybe she's low, but I'm. Leopold, when you're through with her, you might hit the Monterey and start looking for a Jack of Clubs some more.

[I]

Dream book, Novak.

[D]

Everybody's looking for a Jack of clubs.

[E]

Hellman, it must be the end of the rainbow. That's where you're gonna find that microfilm.

[I]

In the meantime, you stay handy, Novak. I want to split you with the FBI.

[D]

You don't think I'm going to take the rap for Junior here, do you?

[I]

It says that in my book. Just relax until I'm ready to pick you up. I only have to find a couple of things.

[E]

That'll be a long time, Hellman.

[D]

You can't find your hip pocket with Radar.

[I]

Yeah, I'll be around soon, Novak. Don't bother to pack your bags. You'll be traveling lightly.

[D]

Well, when Hellman left, I knew I.

[E]

Was a second division club.

[D]

That phony plant in the bank, the tie up with Max Coleman and that stiff in the kitchen made me look real bad. I had to do something in a hurry because the way things stood, I.

[E]

Had about as much chance as a lawn party in a monsoon.

[D]

There were a lot of faces to tag, so I looked up Jocko Madigan. An ex doctor who invented the hangover, but a good guy. I finally found him over in north beach at a little joint called Lupo's.

[E]

He was eating pizza with one hand and strangling a bottle of wine with the other.

[H]

Hello, Patsy. Oh, Frank. Bottle of wine for Mr. Nowak.

[E]

No, I'm short on time, Jocko.

[H]

That's where you're wrong, Patsy. People always say it, but it's a lie.

[D]

Will you calm down a minute?

[H]

You say you're short on time, but you have all the time there is. It's the one thing that keeps you from being a beggar. There are only 24 hours in a day, and that gives you as much time as Napoleon or Alexander had.

[E]

Would you shut up a minute and.

[D]

Put on that wine?

[H]

I'm celebrating, Patsy. I'm celebrating Mission Day.

[E]

Mission Day's over.

[H]

I'm a native son. We celebrate longer.

[D]

Now. Look, I'm behind the eight ball again.

[H]

Isn't it getting kind of crowded back there? What's the matter?

[E]

Somebody strangled a guy and put him.

[D]

In my broom closet.

[F]

When did you find him?

[D]

I didn't. Hellman did. There's a girl named Connie Riley. Looks good for the job.

[H]

Why doesn't Hellman Booker, then?

[D]

He's still picking up the pieces. The dead guy is Kurt Toomey.

[E]

He was set to smuggling some microfilm. It says here I'm contact.

[D]

You gotta help me, Jocko.

[H]

You've got me confused with the travel agency.

[E]

I want you to hop down to.

[D]

Headquarters, get all the Dope you can.

[E]

On this guy to me.

[D]

I'm gonna look up Connie Riley.

[H]

How did she get in the picture?

[E]

What difference does it make? She's a wrestler I met this morning. Now, get onto headquarters, will you?

[H]

That's why I like you, Patch. You're like a piece of blank verse. A bad piece of blank verse.

[D]

All right, Jocko, I'm gonna make like.

[E]

A strip of bacon if I don't get going. Now, stay close to headquarters. If anything looks good, contact me at Connie Riley's here at this address.

[F]

All right.

[H]

How many times shall I knock, lover?

[D]

I left Jocko and dropped by the apartment. I was smart, full of courage, like a field mouse at bay. The police had already been there with fingerprint powder all over. And the two bottles of whiskey were gone. They'd moved laughing boy out of the kitchen. I sat down, trying to add things up. I had a short list of friends to see Connie. Max Coleman and whoever this guy Chris was. I had to show up with one of them or prove that Kirk Toomey hung himself in my closet. I was getting ready to borrow a piece of cord myself when the phone rang.

[F]

Yeah?

[I]

Hello, Novak. This is Hellman.

[E]

I'm thrilled. What's on your mind?

[I]

I just called on your girlfriend.

[E]

What she say?

[F]

Nothing.

[I]

She wasn't there. Hasn't been there since 10 o' clock this morning.

[D]

That's funny.

[I]

Yeah. You know where she is?

[D]

How would I know?

[I]

Just thought she might be in your closet. I picked up Toomey stuff on the Monterey road.

[E]

Yeah?

[D]

What'd you find?

[I]

Unusual stuff. A few clothes or shaving equipment to me. Razor blades, toothpaste and a pack of playing cards. Pack of cards.

[E]

Well, you know where to go from there, Hellman. I thought I did grab that jack of clubs.

[I]

Will a 10 of hearts do, huh? That's right, Novak. A nice fat deck. But the jack of clubs is missing.

[E]

Oh, you're always too little too late, Hellman.

[I]

I just thought I'd let you know, friend, in case you start a bridge game with 53 cards in the deck. Good night.

[E]

Oh, I was losing money fast, like.

[D]

A street carnival in Death Valley.

[E]

Well, one or two things happened. Somebody got on that boat and took.

[D]

The jack of clubs while Toomey was at my apartment. Or maybe he brought it with him.

[E]

If he brought it with him, Connie was a possibility.

[D]

Or somebody that got there ahead of Connie. Well, anyway, I had to work fast.

[E]

Now because whoever had that card wasn't going to put it on a market street float. About 10 minutes later, I Cut across.

[D]

Union Square and up Bush Street.

[E]

When I got to Connie's apartment, It.

[D]

Was about 10 o'. Clock. I got in the back door and started through. She wasn't there. So I went to work looking for that Jack of Clubs.

[E]

It was real easy.

[D]

I tied the desk and her bureau drawer. You know that black chiffon's coming back in style because that's where I found the card. It looked nice ness on there. I put it in my pocket and.

[E]

That'S as far as I got.

[F]

You run the lingerie counter here?

[D]

Novak, you sound like a guy named Chris.

[F]

If it makes you feel better.

[E]

Should we put on the light?

[F]

No, no. Let's stump it on the light. This gun might upset you.

[E]

The police are looking for you, Chris.

[D]

You need more than the dark.

[F]

I understand they're looking for you, Novak. That Riley girl kind of put you on the spot.

[D]

Tell you what I'll do, though. Yeah?

[E]

You'll give me a thousand dollars for.

[D]

The Jack of Clubs.

[F]

I started to say 500.

[E]

Around here that's a whisper and even grand.

[F]

Mister, you're trying to collect too many places. Want the 500?

[D]

No, I don't.

[F]

All right, but I think you're a bum. Business.

[E]

Jocko found me catnapping on Connie's bare rug. Must have been right after the sapping. When I woke up, Jocko was thumbing.

[D]

My head like a housewife with a bowl of margarine. I fell around and waited for him to put the floor in again. I reached in my pocket. The Jack of Clubs was gone. Then I started to talk.

[H]

Jocko, did you expect someone better?

[D]

Help me out, will you?

[H]

I've helped you get up so much I feel like one of the Wright brothers.

[D]

I just lost round three.

[H]

Yeah, I saw him getting into the car. Did you get a number like Hellman's got yours? Here it is.

[D]

Let me see.

[E]

Anything break down at Homicide?

[H]

They got all the dope on to me. They had to piece it together. He had no fingerprint record and they finally confirmed things with a set of false teeth.

[D]

What does it prove?

[H]

Nothing much, except you probably killed him. He was a foreign agent who picked up microfilm at Shanghai. Your girlfriend is pretty.

[D]

Did they find her?

[F]

Yeah.

[D]

Dead?

[F]

No.

[H]

Patsy, you've got to stop thinking of people as being dead all the time. It's demoralizing.

[E]

What'd she say?

[H]

She denied knowing anything about to me.

[D]

Jocko, I'm sure she killed that guy up in my apartment.

[E]

I'd stake my life on it.

[H]

Expertly put. Patsy, I think Hellman believes her. After all, she's the only lead.

[E]

What about Max Coleman, the guy that rigged my bank account?

[D]

Are they letting him die on the vine?

[H]

I was getting to that. Your friend Max Coleman has disappeared.

[E]

I thought he was being tailed.

[F]

The kite got away.

[D]

Here.

[H]

Used my aspirin.

[E]

Well, I took a boat out to the Monterey Rose, but that was a waste of time.

[D]

Hellman had it covered like a tarpaulin.

[E]

I still had the license number to Chris's car, but that didn't do any good.

[D]

Even if I found him, all I could do was point my finger. There were still a lot of things that didn't fall into place. One of them was how come that.

[E]

Jack of clubs was so easy to.

[D]

Find in Connie's apartment? She hadn't hid it very well, but after all, maybe that was a habit with her. Things didn't look any better. The next morning I went into a restaurant next to the Press Club for some breakfast. The Chronicle was lying on the counter.

[E]

We were in second place because it.

[D]

Was a torso murder all over page one.

[E]

That second cup of coffee saved me because right after that I spotted it on one of the back pages. A picture and a small story about some unidentified guy who'd been killed over in Oakland.

[D]

I couldn't match the picture too well.

[E]

With Hellman snapshot of Max Coleman, but it looked like my best break so far.

[D]

I got over to Oakland and I went straight to the morgue. The guy in the morgue was chatty.

[F]

Which fella you want to see?

[D]

The unidentified guy.

[E]

He must have come in last night.

[F]

Sure. Down this way.

[D]

Okay.

[F]

How do you like our morgue?

[D]

One of my favorites.

[F]

It's bigger than San Francisco.

[D]

Yeah, I figured that.

[F]

Sure, most people don't know that, but it's true. Viva and San Francisco. Here we are, right here. Help me smite it out.

[D]

Sure.

[F]

Roller bearings makes it a lot easier.

[D]

Yeah.

[F]

Here, let me get that sheet.

[D]

Well, well.

[F]

Recognize him?

[H]

Yeah.

[D]

What time did he die?

[F]

Corona's report here on the toe tag. About 11 o' clock last night. Two gunshots.38 caliber pistol.

[D]

That's good.

[F]

Don't look good to me. Was he a friend of yours? Relative?

[D]

Son? Yeah, a relative.

[E]

He's my maiden aunt. It was Max Coleman, all right. But that was only half the problem. I had some of the answers, but not enough. It's like trying to weave a rug with a spinning wheel and a bucket of sand.

[D]

Well, anyway, I got to a payphone and I called Jocko. I told him to run down that.

[E]

License number Then I headed back across the bridge. When I found Jocko, he said the.

[D]

Car was registered in the name of Christopher Downs who lived up on Taylor Street.

[E]

Well, that was enough of a lead, so I telephoned Hellman.

[D]

Took about a half a minute to draw a map.

[I]

Hello? Hellman talking.

[E]

This is Novak. You still got Connie Riley down there?

[I]

No, I saved matchboxes. Why?

[D]

When did she leave last night?

[I]

About 9:30.

[E]

That was smart, Hellman.

[I]

Why?

[D]

You better put a guard on her.

[E]

Front door and get up to 720 Taylor St. The apartment of Christopher Downs.

[I]

Who's he?

[E]

A late entry. Now climb out of that coma and get going. I'll meet you up there in 10 minutes.

[I]

720 Taylor Street.

[E]

Yeah, it's up on the hill.

[I]

That's good, Novak. I can roll you all the way down.

[E]

When Jocko and I got up to Down's apartment, there was nobody home.

[D]

I said a fast prayer for Connie. And I began going through down stuff for a.38 caliber revolver. Jocko was looking, too, over in the liquor cabinet. That's as far as we got cabins.

[F]

You're hunting, Mr. Novak?

[E]

Hello, Chris. You haven't seen a.38 around?

[F]

Just one that's in my pocket.

[E]

The same one that killed Max Coleman.

[F]

You're gonna run out of breath, Novak. Slow down.

[E]

I'm in second already, Mister. I can't stop.

[F]

Then you won't mind a short ride out the door and down the back stairs.

[E]

Should we bring the lap robe?

[D]

There's nothing to worry about.

[F]

It's a short trip. You won't even have to worry the folks.

[E]

We went down the back way and into the garage next door.

[D]

We started for a big car in the corner.

[F]

All right, get in. Out the airport road, Joan.

[H]

Sure.

[F]

Now, relax, Novak. From here you look like a duck in the pond. All right, Joan.

[I]

Watch out, Joe.

[E]

Joe, watch out.

[F]

There's another car coming in.

[E]

You're right, Chris. It was a short ride.

[C]

You all right, Novak?

[E]

Stop acting like the mother hen. Helm and take this guy's gun.

[I]

All right, mister, get out. Who is he?

[E]

Christopher Downs. He killed Max Coleman last night.

[I]

Does he convince you, mister?

[F]

Not entirely.

[E]

Well, at.38, will the Oakland police have two slugs that fit that gun?

[D]

You need more?

[F]

Now, I'm afraid you've got all the trumps and all that.

[I]

All right, let's go. You.

[H]

Let's see.

[F]

Earn it, copper.

[G]

Stop him.

[E]

No, he ain't going far.

[D]

Well, Hellman, now you can arrest him for jaywalking. Yeah, too bad. He could have told you a lot about that stuff stiff in my closet. Well, go pick him up, Hellman. Don't forget that jack of clubs in his pocket.

[E]

Well, it worked out all right. I left Hellman dropped by headquarters to.

[D]

Leave a note and I went home to my apartment. Connie was there. Whiskey was out again. She looked real good. Sitting there in a white crepe dress. Was one of those tight fitting babies that make a bathing suit look like a toga. I told her all about Chris and Max Coleman and we forgot about everything but the Olympics. When she put her arms around you, it was a real squeeze. It felt like an old tube of shaving cream. I was pouring a drink when the doorbell rang. Hello, Hellman.

[C]

You ready?

[I]

Now back.

[D]

Sure. Well, don't stand there gaping. Arrested for murder.

[G]

Wait a minute. Slow down, Pat.

[E]

Sorry, chum, it's you or me.

[G]

Be a nice boy.

[E]

I am. That's why you go to Hellman.

[I]

Come on, let him.

[E]

You dig up an answer for that guy that you left in my closet?

[G]

I didn't leave any guy in your closet.

[E]

You'll have to say it louder, baby. They found the story about the cord.

[G]

That cord came out of your kitchen.

[D]

You're a big mouth cop.

[G]

Yeah, you can put that in bold face. How did you know?

[D]

You're the only one could have taken that jack of clubs here in the apartment. That and one other thing.

[G]

Yeah?

[D]

That knot in the cord was a funny knot. You got an elastic garter there. Too big, so you tied a knot in it. The same funny knot that choked Kirk. Tony.

[G]

You're a funny guy, Novak. Yeah, you're nice, but you're hard to handle. I should have killed you or married you. Ready, Hellman?

[D]

Well, jack of clubs was a phony right from the start. Somebody told Kirk Toomey to deal with me when he came to my apartment. Connie was waiting. She got jumpy and filled him. I got there too soon, so she.

[E]

Had to stall me off.

[D]

When she got home, she found out that the Jack of clubs was a phony. She left it in plain sight and Chris gobbled up the bait. When he discovered there was no microfilm, he went gunning for Max Coleman. Max was an innocent thief lying low, waiting to buy it from me. So all three of them were after a phony card. I began to suspect it was phony because everybody hung around. If it was the McCoy, Connie would have cleared out. Same for Chris. The microphone. It was in Hellman's desk, but he didn't know it. Jocko finally tumbled. The report said that Kirk Toomey had false teeth. When Hellman picked up his stuff on the ship was a tube of toothpaste. We don't clean false teeth with toothpaste. Word must have gotten around that the microfilm was inside that jack of clubs. So Kirk crossed them up and put it in the tube of toothpaste. Well, that's all, except they canceled my thousand dollar deposit.

[E]

Hellman said it was lucky I noticed.

[D]

Her guide her walking. Well, she had to straighten her seams, didn't she?

[C]

The American Broadcasting Company has just brought you the second of a new series Pat Novak for Hire, starring Jack Webb. Jocko Madigan is played by Tudor Owen. Inspector Hellman is played by Raymond Burr. Music was composed and conducted by radio and television Life award winner Basil Adlam. In our cast were Betty Lou Gerson, Victor Perrin, Ted De Courcia and Herb Butterfield. Today we're happy to welcome a new member of the ABC family as stationed K A R M in Fresno, California joins our network. And now this is George Feniman reminding you to be with us again next week when over most of these same ABC stations we'll bring you Pat Novak or higher. This program came to you from Hollywood. This is abc, the American Broadcasting Company.

[J]

There are parts and then there are B Pro Auto parts. Parts built for every vehicle. Parts built to fit and function. Parts that are refining how we drive and redefining the category because every vehicle is a sum of its parts. So do yourself a Favor and put BPro Auto Parts on the vehicles you service. Parts now, parts into the future. Welcome to the new aftermarket.

[A]

Time is precious and so are our pets. So time with our pets is extra precious. That's why we started Dutch. Dutch provides 24,7 access to licensed vets with unlimited virtual visits and follow ups for up to five pets. You can message a vet at any time and schedule a video visit the same day. Our vets can even prescribe medication for many ailments and shipping is always free. With Dutch. You'll get more time with your pets and year round peace of mind when it comes to their vet care.