CBS Radio Mystery Theater (Episodes 51-100)
Overview | Episodes 1-50 | Episodes 101-150
51. A Long Time to Die
Alfred Stewart Ainsley is a handwriting expert who is giving testimony to a political hearing about whether a congressman has forged a signature. Returning from an overnight break, he is unable to answer a simple question. Being given a recess, his counsel Karl finds that Alfred claims that he is actually a native Indian American and named Running Beaver. Running Beaver recalls his final memories of his life, thought to be hundreds of years ago, where he was hit over the head before awaking in the present time and situation. Karl sets about finding if Running Beaver has any background or interest in Indians as well as keeping the heat off while he figures out what is happening. Meanwhile, Alfred has to contend with a strange world of his own when he finds himself with a tribe of Indians.
52. The Sending
In a large, rambling house near a mid-western university, Professor Lansing returns home late after a busy day at work. His wife Mia is irritated as she believes she only has a couple of weeks of life left in her, which is leaving her feeling weak, though her husband promises to find her more time. After a lecture the following day, two female students, Beth and Debbie, approach Lansing to take on additional work in the form of special reports. Returning home, Lansing tells Mia that he has volunteers to help resolve their issue. However, his volunteers are unwittingly dragged into dealings with the occult when their professor sells the soul of Beth and Debbie to the devil, in exchange for another year of life for his wife.
53. The Creature from the Swamp
Returning to his lonely cabin in a thunderstorm at night, Larry Drake is a game and fish warden. As he comes to a part of a swamp known as Devil's Cauldron where he encounters a woman sinking into the swamp. He sets about rescuing her despite her pleas for him to save himself, and that someone has got a hold of her. Larry manages to pull her out of the mud and the pair return to his hut. She introduces herself as Udinay and claims she is running away from the Swampman, and that by saving her, Larry is also in trouble. Larry also reveals some of his background, which began when he was preparing to be married but in a car accident with his wife-to-be being burned to death, and himself badly injured. However, the pair soon encounter the Swampman who only comes out by night.
54. The Thing in the Cave
A couple, David and Eve, who are due to be married investigate a remote cave with friends Barbara and Hank, though the weather soon turns on them once they enter. Eve recalls visiting the cave as a child, where they used to make up stories about 'The Thing' that lives in the waterfall which passes through. Preparing to leave as a thunderstorm begins, the four become stuck as the entrance is blocked by a landslide, while Eve has to be rescued from the water after falling in the darkness. Stuck with no other ideas, Eve recalls some children once climbing onto the ledge behind the waterfall, when the monster rose up from the water. Setting about attempting to climb it as their only option, the four make it into a rear chamber of the cave where they discover the childhood rumours may not have been a myth.
55. A Sacrifice in Blood
Archaeologist couple Steven and Amelia head to their last dig in Central America. Meeting guide Miguel, they are to work on an area believed to once be inhabited by an Aztec civilisation. However, prior to arriving at the site, they are delayed when a native is found to have been murdered which will leave it difficult to assemble a crew. At the excavation, the team break through to a new chamber. Open a further set of doors to enter the main area, they find they are in the sacrificial chamber in which a baby is found alive. Amelia takes to adopting the child which they have named Michael while his parents are traced, though the three return home to America. However, in the years to come, they discover their decision to adopt leads them to regret when every time he returns, bad luck strikes the town.
56. A Little Night Murder
Mary Margaret is working a cleaning job late at night, and becomes jumpy due to other women being killed in the area. A security guard enters the floor and when she doesn't recognise the man who isn't the regular guard, she finds that he knows more about her than she does about him. He announces that he is keeping his promise, and recalls the events about him walking into a store when he was younger. She begins to panic, though he soon shoots her before setting his sights on woman number five. With the police stuck with their investigation, Alice Maitland enters the stations and reveals that she knows the name of the next victim - herself. Finding some resistance to the idea that she is about to be killed, one of the police officers takes pity and sets about investigating motives and people.
57. The Fall of the House of Usher
At the house of Usher, Gabriel Mannering is writing in his diary. Visiting the house, he remarks about the horrible feeling in the vast house which is bleak and unnerving and is greeted at the house by Roderick Usher. Mannering remarks that he came due to Roderick's previous letter suggesting he was unwell, and Roderick goes on to describe that the house leaves him feel entombed. His sister, Madeline, is also dying which is manifesting as death-like trances which her doctor has never encountered in his years of practice. Roderick takes to blaming this on the cursed house, proclaiming her dead but the house not letting her die. Gabriel attempts to improve Roderick's mental mind by opening the curtains, which he discovers the window overlooks a graveyard which Madeline is walking in and greatest fear is being buried alive.
58. Sea of Troubles
In Paris, Owen Leighton meets up with his brother Gerald who he hasn't seen for some time. Gerald enquires about how his wife is doing, which Owen remarks on her being wealthier and meaner than ever. Cooking up a scheme with his brother, Owen describes his plan, though uses his funding of his brothers life as an artist as leverage. He is also concerned that Harriet will eventually leave him for a younger man. The plot involves Gerald taking a trans-Atlantic voyage on his brothers passport, while Owen returns to New York via plane where he intends to kill his wife. Arriving home, he surprises his wife who returns after a night on the town, before promptly hitting her over the head with a vase. With Owen's plan going more than perfectly when a lover is the prime suspect, a tenacious lieutenant investigates the case, and Gerald's activities aboard the ship cause problems.
59. Frankenstein Revisited
With the upcoming four hundredth anniversary of Baron Von Frankenstein's death, a television director discusses coming up with a plot for a television show. They arrange a meeting with an expert in the story who discusses the baron and his legend, which involves a murder one hundred years prior, leading to a deep superstition about the castle and its grounds where the baron lived. However, when actor Flip Johnson heads into the woods as part of the filming process, he encounters more than he bargains for, when he is discovered unconscious after seeing a mysterious pair of eyes in the dark, and surrounded by frozen ground in the immediate area. Questions are raised as to what the rational explanation is, or if Flip is a victim of his own imagination.
60. The Ghost at the Gate
Charles has died, but continues to be with his wife Alice in an unconventional way. He is only permitted to visit his wife as long as she continues to love and need him. Alice is feeling lonely without her husband, all the while ambling around a large, old house. Charles is able to convince her to ask friend Constance to move in with her. Connie contemplates the situation, and confers herself with Charles who encourages her to move in, allowing him to continue his relationship in death with both women. After living together for one month, the pair are delighted with their arrangement. It isn't long however before Connie finds that Charles is also haunting his wife and Alice finds out about the pairs prior relationship. However, their friendship remains unharmed as long as both can agree to forget about their need for Charles.
61. Ordeal by Fire
Ava speaks with fiance Bob after some time away in China, and remarks that her father Verne has become scared in the time he was away. Previously running a company, Verne has taken to fortifying his study which has left Ava anxious about what has happened. He reveals that he joined the "Promethean society" and is required to pay the group a million dollars which they will use to "improve" the morality of the world. However, if he doesn't pay his contribution, he will suffer third degree burns due to their mysterious ability to control fire, and uses a friend and fellow society member, Timmy, as proof when he has suffered severe burns to his legs. Bob sets about finding out for himself what the society is about, and whether their threats are real.
62. The Diary of a Madman
A woman, Darlene, encounters a man, Frank Wallace, while she is hiding in a darkened door way, and is initially scared, but soon calms when she remarks how well dressed he is. Believing he is safe, she intends on walking with him to a safer area of the neighbourhood. Questioning why such a well-dressed man is in such a bad area, he remarks that he is looking for a woman just like her - becoming going on to stab her to death. Back home, he takes to writing in his diary that he has killed again as per the laws of nature which he is required to obey. At breakfast with his wife Estelle the following morning, the newspaper is reporting the murder and her boyfriend has been arrested. Heading to trial, Wallace happens to be the judge who presided over the trials and things become tricky when Estelle takes to thinking that the boy is not guilty of Darlene's murder, and that her husband is the guilty one.
63. Death by Whose Hands
It is 1804, and prodigious piano player Rudy has successfully finished a concert to rapturous applause. Doctor Herschel, Rudy's future father-in-law is insistent that he look after his hands, to ensure that everything he has worked for in his life is accomplished. However, Rudy's talent also comes alongside a big ego who mocks his classmate Franz for not having his ability, while he is being transported to his next concert by horse-and-carriage. Franz makes the horses speed up in an attempt to get him to the concert and get rid of him, but the icy roads result in an accident which leaves Rudy brain-dead and Franz with severely injured hands. Revealing the situation to Franz, Doctor Herschel announces his plan - to transplant Rudy's hands onto Franz's arms. Herschel believes that it is a no-loss proposition and if it works, promises to allow Franz to play like Rudy did. However, as things are starting to look up, Rudy's ghost begins to question where his hands have gone.
64. It's Simply Murder
Henry Green, a banker who has a meek demeanour. His wife, Florence, has a despotic nature and demands that he returns home from work immediately after he finishes work. He turns his thoughts away from his problems at home by thinking about colleague Sherry who is keen to start an affair with him, and lures him with the promise of riches they could have which would allow them to travel the world. Meeting for lunch, Sherry set about devising a plan which will allow him to get rid of Florence and robbing the bank where they work while their manager is out of town. The pair have an encounter with a fellow colleague which potentially poses issues. Back at home, Henry set about murdering his wife with a plan believed to be perfect, though it proves to be anything but.
65. The Unearthly Gift
At a lumberjack camp, worker Jason is killed. After his death, camp cook Ruth-Anne contemplates whether she should have stepped in to stop him dying, as she had a dream which indicated something was to happen to Jason. On a drive to get Jason's body off the mountain where they work, she talks with "Frenchie" about her vision. A new lumberjack, Tim, arrives while they are in town, to be transported to the camp with Roseanne, though it isn't long before she has another vision about him being killed. Ruth-Anne also has to deal with the affections of another lumberjack Big Red, though when she rejects him, Tim steps in to warn him off. Talking with her granny about the situations, she is determined to step in this time and prevent death. However, doing so, has repercussions.
66. The Black Cat
Phil, a ruthless man marries a woman, Sylvia, for the money she stands to eventually inherit from her father. Along with not particularly finding Sylvia attractive or likeable, he also dislikes her cat - Pluto - who she says she can communicate with. Phil takes a job in the family business as a road-worker, but is unable to stand the work. Back home complaining about a bad back, Sylvia tries to encourage her husband by getting him to communicate with the cat. From there, Phil gets a vision from the cat which indicates that he will be responsible for murder. Heading to see a doctor about his premonition, the doctor suggests that murder is in his subconscious and emanates from his bad reasons from getting married to Sylvia. Phil however is insistent he can wait out his father-in-laws death in an attempt to get his hands on millions.
67. The Pharaoh's Curse
Sir Geoffrey Lanscombe is in Cairo where he meets singer Diane Elliot. Intending on doing some sightseeing in her final week in the city, Lanscombe invites her to visit a tomb they have been excavating which may hold the body of Haseeba; the wife of a pharaoh. However, the remarkable thing is that Diane looks exactly like Haseeba. Planning on attending the digging with Geoffrey, Diane is visited by Inspector Hasid who is investigating an accident at the site which resulted in a man being killed in strange circumstances while also holding a rare diamond, and requires her help to get on to the site without press attention. Arriving at the site, Diane gets to see the large statue where the man was killed where she has to deal with a dynamite explosion believed to be set off by Sargon, who is keen to prevent the tomb from being opened for fear of an ancient curse being released.
68. Die! You're on Magic Camera
Johnny picks up a new camera which is able to self-develop pictures. Taking a picture of girlfriend Lisa outside a bank, they quickly discover that the camera actually shows the inside of the bank during a robbery. When the newspaper reports a bank robbery the following day, they discover that the camera can produce pictures which show the future. Planning on going to the police with their evidence, a man, Mr. Scarlett, appears at the house claiming to work for the camera manufacturer, and hoping Johnny will return it. Testing the camera again, Johnny takes a picture of an elevator and discovers that a girl is being threatened by a man with a knife, while Lisa insists he get rid of the device and she finds his suggestion that they can make a lot of money off-putting. Scarlett, who reveals himself to be the devil, ups the ante in his attempts to get the camera back as Johnny sets up a crime-solving agency with the device.
69. The Thing Inside
In New England, failing artist John and wife Sarah Ferrar walk into an antique shop where John discovers what is believed to be a glass paperweight for sale. Back home, friend Paul points out that it may actually be a witch ball, and John remarks that it appears to have something inside it. Becoming more obsessed with the ball, John hears a woman's voice that requests he break it to free her in return for her doing wonderful things for him. Breaking it with fire and water, John has a renewed spirit for his artwork. However, he soon becomes angry when disagreeable neighbour Ezra agrees to sell land next to his house on which hundreds of houses will be built leading to a confrontation. Returning home, John wishes Ezra dead, and is paid a visit the following day by the police with news that Ezra has in fact been killed. When another person is killed, John begins to contemplate the effect of breaking the glass ball.
70. The Locked Room
Bonnie and Davey are a young, newly-married couple who arrive at the mansion she will eventually inherit, with a stark difference in background between the two as Davey is relatively poor and from the country. Deciding on what room they are going to take, Davey comes across a room which has always been locked, and Bonnie says that her parents always warned her away from it. Bonnie's controlling mother soon arrives and disapproves of the marriage arguing that Davey has only married for her money, and pledges to have the marriage annulled. Bonnie threatens in response to kill herself and Davey sets about a scheme to get her mother to drop the annulment scheme. Taking a small number of sleeping pills, Davey and Bonnie's mother soon find her dead due to a pre-existing weak heart brought on by rheumatic fever when she was a child. Davey however finds Bonnie's mother still has unfinished business with him, and is handed the mansion which has him set about finding the content of the locked room.
71. The Museum Murder
In Professor Galinari's Murder Museum which showcases wax figures of murderers and their victims, a woman, Lisa, is insistent that she be able to see the 'Raymond Exhibition' which is currently under renovation. She reveals to the curator a story that he, Raymond Vincent, was a poor artist who painted dark and dismal work. His misery comes from his childhood when he observed his father murder his mother with an axe after she is caught having an affair. Raymond carries the burden through his life, and his artwork struggles to earn him the money he requires. Eventually giving up art and taking a menial job, he is approached by Galinari who wishes to commission waxwork figures of Vincent's mother and father. However, Galinari fails to tell Raymond all the facts about the sculptures once they are finished, and leads to a confrontation when he discovers he has created such a horror which Raymond insists he can not allow to stand.
72. Out of Focus
Skyler "Sky" Harris is an family man and account executive who has become bored with his life. Taking to fantasising about taking a beautiful woman as his mistress while on his commute, he comes to believe that she is real. On the train, she soon appears by his side and reveals her named to be Deirdre. Disappearing again not long after, Sky returns home to his unhappy wife, Isobel, who is angered at him being late home. Sky however is pinning his hopes on being able to use Deirdre as a model for a client's advertising account, and takes her to bed in their apartment. However, he is awoken by the news of one of his children being in a car accident leaving Sky having to return home. With pressures mounting at work, he has Deirdre model for him and takes her picture. On developing the pictures, all of them turn out blurred and with no sign of Deirdre. Trying again to take her photograph, Sky discovers the reality of Deirdre and sets about protecting Isobel and the children.
73. Strange Company
An elderly woman, Belle, is moved along with her sister, Julia, to a remote apartment by their nephew Charles when their neighbourhood becomes unsafe. Julia dies after a fall, which leaves Belle distraught at the loss of her sister. Now alone, Charles discovers that Belle keeps a large amount of money in the house, which he advises against. She is also soon visited by a mysterious person who refuses to talk, though when Charles returns the man has vanished. Belle refuses to leave her apartment and takes to checking her money which hasn't been touched. Back at home, Charles is under pressure to put Belle in a nursing home by his partner Linda, who is tired of sharing him. Charles however has his sights on the money in the hope of inheriting it. Belle meanwhile is quickly visited again by the same man alongside a woman, and on contacting Charles, insists that the pair are upsetting Julia as well.
74. Only the Dead Remember
Eddie Benson, a piano player roams the United States in search of a man from his past. While playing at a bar, he encounters the wealthy local man RJ Jackson, before walking out of the bar but not before sending a message that "mother Henessy's chickens are coming home to roost", which leads to RJ quickly collapsing at the words. The words are repeated to another man, Bill, who soon encounters Eddie in his apartment playing the piano. Another man, Tom, also shows up, to the news that Eddie has found RJ Jackson, or as he used to be known - Robert Joseph Myers. Eddie sets about convincing the settled in life Bill and Tom to enact a plan on killing Myers, after he was believed to be the rat who lead to another man, Henessy, being killed in the prisoner of war camp when an escape attempt is foiled.
75. Men Without Mouths
Aged, former gangster, Joe, heads to see his adoptive daughter, Kitty, who he took in after the death of a good friend. He discovers that she is engaged to a young doctor, Ira, who has been told about a previous event in which Joe passed out after seeing a man without a mouth in his apartment elevator. Ira's first meeting is an encounter with Joe having collapsed again when a man without a mouth knocks on his door, which leads him to confront Joe alone with knowledge about his past life. Talking about a conversation with a psychiatrist, Ira suggests Joe's hallucinations are a result of his feeling guilty about his life choices. Finding a forgotten tape recorder in his apartment, Joe sets about recording a confession of his life of crime to rid himself of his tormentors. After attending the couples engagement party, Joe has his first encounter with a mouthless person in some time which ends with him in hospital, and Kitty discovering the truth about Joe's past, and her own father's death.
76. The Horror Within
Joseph, an orphan, waits in a diner where his girlfriend Effie works for a ride to a city where his uncle lives. It isn't long however before Joseph is thrown out of the truck when he begins to evangelise his religion to the driver, which he believes has given him certain powers. Eventually making it to stay with his uncle Pete who offers him a place to stay and job to do. However, the venue is a gambling club with difficult patrons who believe that Joseph has mental issues. Despite this, with things going well, Pete arranges for Effie to come and stay and soon gets them to perform using their powers which they have learned. However, Joseph and Effie discover that she is not long for the world and she soon disappears, believed to be dead. However, Joseph learns that he is responsible for Effie's death.
77. A Portrait of Death
Otis Manley Carter spots a painting in an art gallery, and realises he wants to be able to paint in the same way. He attends art school, but proves to be a failure. However, shortly after he achieves the power to become a great painter despite the disbelief of his former professor who questions whether he has sold his soul to the devil. Otis takes to doing portraits, though police officer and brother of Otis' fiancée, Lucy, Burt Dennison realises that of all the people that Otis has painted, not one of them is alive as they died soon after the completion of the work. Burt also demands that Otis never paint a picture of his sister for fear of what may happen as he believes that Otis' painting drains the life from the subject.
78. The Wishing Stone
Sixteen-year-old Jenny finds the aftermath of an argument between her parents in which her mother falls down the stairs and appears to be dead. However, awaking in the early hours of the night, Jenny finds her mother is fine and the incident is put down to a bad dream. Jenny's brother, Judd, believes the incident was more than it is made out to be, and remains angry at his father, who has a history of being abusive and addicting to gambling. A visit from the family doctor, Dr. Luther, also has him warning about her father, and him being unable to be treated. Jenny meanwhile becomes excited when she believes she has been handed a "wishing stone" by an angel, which promises to get her out of trouble if she needs. However, taking to using it, her wishes don't turn out quite turn out the way she intends them to.
79. The Ghost Driver
In New England at Gormley Lodge, new owners are couple Liz and Mel Stout who await their first guests. Mrs Jessica Gormley, the previous owner who had to sell up after she was left bankrupt when her husband died, also arrives offering a warning to the Stout's. Jessica says that a couple, the Putnam's, were killed by her husband after he had died, who returned as a skeleton driving a car and forcing theirs off a bridge. She reveals that she is trying to save the couple, as her husband has returned, stating that Jessica will live in the lodge once again. The "Ghost Driver" strikes again when Jessica's brother Rory is killed along with Jill, wife of lodge guest Tim Duncan who survives, when the car comes off the bridge trying to avoid another. Mrs Gormley soon returns demanding they leave the house to save themselves, and takes to advising Tim to leave as well. The situation has Mel trying to find out the real circumstances behind the so-called "Ghost Driver".
80. The Hand
A French police magistrate from Corsica, Monsieur Donet, becomes friendly with reclusive neighbour Sir John Rowell who is a renowned big game hunter. While Rowell deals with a security issue in the grounds, Donet encounters John's ailing wife who asks him to post a letter for her without alerting her husband. Donet sets about posting the letter which is addressed to America, and returns to the Rowell estate a couple of months later with a package. John suggests that he knows what the package contains without opening it, and believes that Donet may have consigned him to death by sending the letter. Opening the parcel, Donet observes that it contains a desicated hand, before John asks him to bear witness to his will. John reveals the hand has been sent by his twin brother, who despises him, due to John being the first born, and the sole inheriter of his parents wealth. John sets about displaying the hand in his trophy cabinet, before being brutally murdered and his wife disappearing.
81. Sunset to Sunrise
A daughter recalls how her mother turned into a vampire, and the killing of her. She begins with the events at the funeral, standing by her fathers side, to bury his only love. On the walk home, she returns to her fathers house with him, and remembers her mothers difficult nature and also discovers that her sister-in-law Marie had sewn a sprig of Blackthorn into her fathers coat. Her father goes on to describe her mothers family and their belief in vampires. Heading over to see Marie and confront her strangeness, she finds her brother Peter has been unwell since their mothers death. Marie also believes that her daughter is a damfire - the offspring of a vampire - and is expected to be able to see her mother soon enough. The family lives in fear of the vampires return, and set about asking her daughter to deal with her when she does return.
82. All Living Things Must Die
Barbara is a lonely woman in her thirties who is left with the company of just her houseplants while living under the rule of her tyrannic husband Frank, who she hates. With the situation having left her somewhat odd, she is visited by Detective Sergeant Johnson who is investigating obscene phone calls to her. He also takes a report from her about a strange man she has seen in the area. Frank arrives home leading the sergeant to leave, though her husband is somwhat jealous of her discussion about the plants with the man. Barbara brings up the topic of them having a child or dog to combat her loneliness, though Frank brushes off the suggestion and demands she be happy to just have her plants. When she states to Frank that she wishes he were dead, the plants attack and kill him. Her relationship with DS Johnson blossoms and leads them to become married a year later, though the plants also have a say in the direction of the family when Barbara is about to have a baby.
83. The Venus d'Ile
Claude, an unlucky gambler has lost a large sum of money at a casino, to the tune of one million Francs, and has run out of credit having been cut off by the manager. He is also informed that the casino is now owned by a syndicate, and enforcers are insistent that they will get any money owed back. He eventually manages to persuade the casino owner to extend his credit by producing a letter which indicates he will be married to a member of aristocracy. Taking off the family heirloom wedding ring his future wife doesn't like, which he believes is affecting his tennis game, he places it on the finger of nearby statue - the goddess Venus. However, in doing so, he unwittingly sets a marriage proposal for her in motion - and things get worse when Venus is brought to life in a thunderstorm.
84. The Death Bell
In Ireland, during the civil war, Bryan is stood at the window and hears a distant bell that nobody else can hear. Staying with cousin Denny and his wife Sheila, Bryan is visiting from America to research his family genealogy which centers on a location known as Carrig Claynor in the north of Ireland. Sheila however regards Bryan with suspicion after reading his palm, and believes she sees something horrifying. It is not long before Bryan is heading north alone to discover his family history, with Sheila worried about death being in his future when Denny describes the ringing bell Bryan had heard. Bryan meanwhile happens upon Lady Claynor who he rescues from an out of control horse and promptly advises him to stay away from her. Encountering some locals to ask about Carrig Claynor and the Lady he saw, Bryan is soon put under suspicion by the IRA.
85. Dracula
A young girl, Lucy, is visited at the large, old family estate by her friend Mina who realises that she is in a bad way medically due to a constant loss of blood. Talking with her doctor John, the pair note that a strange bat is also in the house, as John discusses having called in his mentor Doctor Van Helsing. Mina also questions wolves which have been howling in the area, though sightings remain elusive. A knock at the door brings John to introduce a neighbour - Count Dracula - who proves friendly enough. When Mina drops a bottle and cuts her hand, the sight of blood has the Count running for the door, as Mina realises that she could not see him reflected in the nearby mirror.
86. Murder with Malice
A man, Mark, hypnotises his suggestable sister Marge with the help of his friend and Marge's partner Jeff. He dreams of using his hypnotised sister to murder his father after growing up fearing the man and believing he killed his mother in a drink-driving accident. Bringing Marge out of the trance, Mark leaves the pair together. Jeff discusses headaches that Marge and suggesting she seek medical attention, and the possibility of getting her away from her father, though she suggests Mark should be the one to see a doctor due to his hatred of their dad. Mark meanwhile talks with his father in the morning about his gambling debts and attempts to persuade him to release money he is due to inherit when turning thirty years old, though he refuses. With pressure mounting to repay his debt and feeling stuck, Mark decides to proceed with his plan of committing murder.
87. The Suicide Club
Mr. Harris is invited for a drink by Mr. Smith after the pair partake in a game of poker. Smith states that he admires Harris' attitude to losing a hand, which cost him a large amount of money. In return, he suggests that being a multi-millionaire means that losing large sums of money means nothing to him and has become bored, though Harris offers him the chance of taking the "supreme gamble". The following evening, Harris attends an address provided to him by Smith, and discovers a gambling club with a number of other high society types who are excitedly awaiting eight o'clock. Smith goes on to reveal that the club is known as The Suicide Club, and the members gamble with their lives, with the drawing of cards determining who will kill, and who will be killed.
88. The Breaking Point
In San Francisco, retired scientist Professor William Baker is being taken to hospital as he fights for his life. He realises that he is dying, and recalls the events leading him to influence his wife Helen's subconscious mind and persuade her to shoot and kill him. Beginning with meeting fellow scientist Philip Simpson and being introduced to ChiChi, a capuchin monkey, who is to be part of experiments in psychic studies. Helen also joins William and Philip in the scientific work, though William ponders the relationship between Philip and Helen who haven't seen each other in some time and were previously believed to be in love. Philip meanwhile becomes concerned about the experiments that William is performing using Helen, and his worries are confirmed when she does shoot him.
89. A Tiny Drop of Poison
Charming young politician Eleanor Hartley is running for congress, and is warned by her campaign manager Tom that her rival is now taking her seriously, and will be trying to dig up dirt. He brings up the fact that he is unable to find out where she was or what she did when she was twenty-two. When the name Paul Grover resurfaces - a dead spy who was murdered five years ago - the news spooks Eleanor who also has to contend with the fact that her police officer husband is in charge of investigating the case and is determined to find the killer. Eleanor begins to wonder whether her hidden past as which involving killing in self-defence will come back to haunt her, particularly when another person is also implicated.
90. The Lodger
Lodging house landlady Nell Pearson discovers the news headlines which reports that "The Ripper" has struck again in the area, with another woman killed on Thursday evening, with widows seemingly being targetted and a message left written in lipstick. Reporter Tony Adams appears at the door requesting a room, though also takes a keen interest in Nell, who immediately clocks as a widow though she heads off any potential interest. While Nell hangs up Tony's coat after he leaves, a lipstick drops out and has her believing that he is involved in the recent murders. When a lodging house resident is killed in her room, Nell believes that she was the intended target and calls for help from the police who promise to send over a detective to stay at the lodging house.
91. Voices of Death
Actor Jason Phillips turns on his television to discover the face of Peter Truro; a producer who has been dead for ten days and has returned to convince Jason to murder his wife, actress Claire, for her infidelity which breaches their marriage vows, leading him to plot revenge from beyond the grave. Initially believing his imagination is running away with itself, Jason takes to seeing a medium who reveals that deep down he also wants Claire dead for her part in his losing an acting part. He soon gives way to believing in the apparition as the ghost suggests that if he follows the plan, Jason can get away with murder. However, he continues to utilise all his abilities to save Claire as Peter attempts to frame her death as a suicide.
92. The Forever Man
Small time criminal Jack Hanley is bailed out of jail by a mysterious benefactor who he meets out on the street immediately after his release. The strange man introduces himself as LeRoy Frazier who introduces him to his new apartment and fancy sports car, much to the concern of Jack's girlfriend Bella who questions his decision to remain rather than run with what he has been offered. Later in the day, Frazier reveals the reason for his earlier gifts - he promises him a fortune in exchange for one thing money can't typically buy - Jack's youthful body - in exchange for his own sickly and ailing frame. Believing that LeRoy is mentally unwell, Jack sets about agreeing to the terms of the deal, and finds out that the deal can not be broken.
93. The Trouble with Ruth
Ruth Moody, a kleptomanic is caught stealing a scarf and taken to see head of the department store Mr. Hutchins. He also discovers she has stolen a cheap pin, which leads the manager to call her husband Ralph, a city government bureaucrat, to come and collect her. Ralph insists she speak to a doctor, with her suggesting he is only concerned for his job, though is eventually persuaded to attend an appointment. Eventually being helped, despite initial resistance, she gains the help she needs. However, some time later, a caller to the door brings up her past issues with theft and is forced to resort to stealing again when she is blackmailed with the suggestion that failure to steal what they request - an expensive piece of jewellery - will lead to her history being made public to her husbands bosses.
94. The Crack in the Wall
A house fire results in the death of the Sanford's sixteen year-old daughter Ruth, and her bereft parents, Paul and Nora, make a move into a new house. Some time later, Nora decides to start attending church again despite having questioned her religion due to the death of Ruth. The pair also discuss a crack in the basement wall which resists all attempts to repair it, along with a cold breeze which eminates from it which the builder compares to that coming from a tomb. Paul discusses the crack in the wall with friend Dr. Fowler and ponders whether Nora is having mental issues, when she suggests the wall is preventing its own repair, until he sees it happen himself. Things take a turn for the worse when cries of a voice which sound startlingly like their daughter begin to come through the hole.
95. The Longest Knife
Set in a Latin American country, married couple Pete and Marge are enjoying a meal in a small restaurant with Pete visiting to the country to make a development pitch to the dictator on behalf of the company he works for. Marge quickly falls foul of the restaurant owner, Mama Pilar, when she disparages the dictator and his suggestion of making the country rich, while also comparing him to a pig. By coincidence, Mama Pilar receives a letter from her son Ramon, who fought for the dictator against the previous government who reveals that he has discovered that their now leader has betrayed them. He also states that by the time she reads the letter, he will have been killed. Mama Pilar sets about exacting revenge on their leader in her own special way, before she can weep for her son.
96. The Bleeding Statue
Magician, The Wizard, dies leaving his adoring daughter Sarah, a step-son Pierce and daughter-in-law Rose as his survivors. At the reading of the will, given by a tape recording of The Wizard, Sarah is left everything while Pierce and Rose are only offered a yearly payment in exchange for their agreement that they waive any rights to the estate. The Wizard also leaves Sarah with the advice of staying on the estate where she will be protected by the powers of a bronze statue he used frequently in his acts. Pierce and Rose ponder are also informed that they must stay on the estate until the probate process is complete, with both wondering how they will break the terms of the will, with the suggestion of killing the heir their best option.
97. Mirror for Murder
A bored housewife, Helen, is tired of her chores and her husband Fred who has job priorities which have him spend more time talking to senators rather than his wife. She tells him that she feels like she is fading out of life and despite his suggestion to talk in the morning, she thinks she will be "gone" by then. Standing in front of the mirror, Helen asks him to look at her reflection which she believes is changing her appearance, though Fred remains too busy talking on the phone. Her last words are to him that she is heading out to find herself. Heading to a local cafe, she is met by a man who states that he has been waiting for her, before encountering Jerry who believes she is someone else named Rose Temple who is involved with a diamond smuggling operation. Speaking with a doctor, Helen comes to the conclusion that she is a double agent, though with little memory of much else.
98. The Phantom Lullaby
Couple Howard and Emily await the arrival of their daughter Ellen to return, with her father heading out of their new penthouse apartment which they have purchased in part for themselves and for her. The situation has arisen since the break up of her relationship with boyfriend John and an abortion she had. However, while Emily is getting help with moving of furniture, the maintenance man reveals that he believes the place is haunted due to a number of previous families quickly moving out. Ellen arrives back at the apartment with her father, but has a strange trance-like appearance and new ability to speak French. Her parents are left confused and lament the lack of knowledge about John, who they have never met, while becoming particularly worried when Ellen says she has to take care of a little boy.
99. Dressed to Kill
Peter Vincent is a cash-strapped actor and con-artist approaching middle-age and being reminded by his landlady his rent is late. He arrives back to his apartment to find friend Murray has let himself, with Murray intending to stay for a short while. Peter meanwhile reveals his own plan - he intends to kill himself without committing suicide and to allow his wife to collect on fifty thousand dollars in life insurance, despite being unmarried. The two discuss it, with Peter stating that he made up a wife - Tina - when signing the policy years ago and has a voice and outfit prepared to introduce Tina into his life. Managing to get the Tina act to be convincing, Peter and Murray set about finding a murder victim that they can use as the body for the insurance claim which Peter intends on throwing in front of a subway train. However, an insurance agents investigation begins with cracks in the case soon forming.
100. To Kill with Confidence
Leo and Ruth Rennard are a newlywed couple who pull into a small town, and head to a garage to have a strange noise inspected. Ruth decides to go shopping at a local mall, while Leo remains at the garage with the car where the repairs are expected to take some time. After an hour and a half, Ruth gets into a taxi and asks the driver to take her to the garage. However, he informs her that the garage has been shut for a while with owner Frank having been dead for three years. On arriving at the site of the garage, Ruth discovers that the building is up for sale and deserted. Insistent that Leo is in the building, she tries the locked door before breaking into a panic before fainting. Ruth ends up in the care of a doctor and police officer who want to discuss her condition and the events surrounding her belief that they pulled into a service station which has been closed for a long time with a now disappeared husband.