Chesterfield brings you Dragnet.
Put a smile in your smoking.
By Chesterfield.
Smoother.
Cooler.
Best for you.
Ladies and gentlemen, the story you are about to hear is true.
The names have been changed to protect the innocent.
You're a detective sergeant.
You're assigned to robbery detail.
You get a telephone call from a woman who wants to see you.
She says it's about her husband.
She's afraid he's going to pull a hold up.
Your job, check it out.
Listen.
Listen to news of an electronic miracle.
The greatest improvement in cigarette making in 30 years.
It's the Accu-Ray.
And it's a Chesterfield exclusive.
To you it means cooler smoking.
Smoother smoking than was ever possible before.
The Accu-Ray electronically checks and controls the making of your Chesterfield.
So for the first time you get a perfect smoke column from end to end.
You'll marvel at the extra flavor that comes through.
Yet because this measurably better cigarette smokes more slowly,
you enjoy a cool mildness never possible before.
Yes, from the first puff to the last, your Chesterfield smokes smoother.
Your Chesterfield smokes cooler.
Chesterfield is best for you.
Today, discover what modern science can do to increase your cigarette enjoyment.
Change to Chesterfield and put a smile in your smoking.
Look for the new Chesterfield carton.
It tells you only Chesterfield is made the modern way with Accu-Ray.
Music
Dragnet, the documentary drama of an actual crime.
For the next 30 minutes in cooperation with the Los Angeles Police Department,
you will travel step by step on the side of the law through an actual case
transcribed from official police files.
From beginning to end, from crime to punishment,
Dragnet is the story of your police force in action.
It was Wednesday, May 18th. It was cool in Los Angeles.
We were working the day watch out of robbery detail.
My partner is Frank Smith, the boss is Chief of Detective Stad Brown.
My name is Friday. I was on my way into the office
and it was 7.49 a.m. when I got to room 27A. Robbery.
Morning, Joe. Hi, Bob.
Well? Well what?
Good morning, Frank. Oh, hi.
What's eating you? Nothing.
Are you mad about something? What would I be mad about?
I don't know, but you didn't say good morning.
I'm just not going over there anymore, that's all.
Over where? The Talbots. Who?
The Talbots, you know, live down the street, sells real estate.
We bought our house from it. I see.
We got to be friends. At least his wife and Fay are friends.
I never cared for him much myself.
What happened? Between you and him, do you have a fight?
I don't fight with people, Joe. You know that.
Oh, that's right. I just found him out, that's all.
Just found him out. The kind of a guy he really is.
Is that right? Yeah. They use signals.
What? Signals. Him and his wife. Can you imagine that? They use them.
What kind of signals?
Different ones for different words.
What do you mean? When they play charades.
Oh, I see. Well, that's too bad.
Had us over their place last night, some other couples too,
about eight or ten of us and all. Yeah, ten. Five on each side.
Each side? Yeah, for the charade games.
You played it, haven't you? Yeah, when I was about ten years old,
we used to play it. Well, now look, buddy, it's no kids' game.
Not the way they play. Is that right?
They give you stuff to act out. Titles and quotations,
you've never even heard a half of them.
On the top it off, they got signals. Yeah.
Noun, verb, little word, big word, person's name, letters, the alphabet.
They got signals for all of them. You can spell something out.
What's the point of the game?
Well, beat you pretty bad, didn't they?
Last night in the game, you lost. That hasn't got anything to do with it, Joe.
No, I don't mean... Doesn't matter who wins or loses,
it's the principle of the thing. That's all it is.
Signals. Yeah, I'll get it. And they use them.
Robbery Friday. Yes, ma'am.
Well, I don't know. What seems to be the trouble?
I see. Yes, I guess we could.
Where is that? Are they open this early?
All right. Yes, ma'am, we'll be there.
Goodbye.
Lady wants to talk to us. Says she'll meet us at a bar out on Melrose.
What's it all about? Her husband. Yeah.
He bought a gun.
Frank and I drove over to a small bar on the corner of Melrose and 8th.
It was 8.23 a.m. when we got there.
Morning, gents. Morning.
Hello.
What'll it be? A little eye-opener? Just coffee.
How about you? I'll have a cup, too, please.
I'm afraid it isn't ready yet. I just finished putting it on.
That's all right. We're in no hurry.
There's a cafe right around the corner. They're open now.
Well, we'll wait. Suit yourself.
I guess you guys aren't like me. How's that?
When I want my morning to be, I'll be there.
I don't even know if I'm awake until after I've had a couple of cups.
Is it all right if we take a booth? Sure.
First one's all cleaned up. I haven't had time to get to the others yet.
All right. Thank you.
Looks like we got here first. Did she give you a name?
Did she tell you her name? No.
No, she said she didn't want to talk over the phone.
Joe. Yeah.
Hi, Sally. Hi.
Give me a shot, will you? Sure. Scotch?
Yeah. I'll be right back. Okay.
Go ahead, mister. Take a good look.
I was waiting for somebody. I guess I made a mistake.
Yeah, you sure did. I'm sorry.
A little later on, I might be interested, but not at 8.30 a.m.
Getting worse all the time, innit?
They all can't even have a morning pick-me-up.
Without some guy starting to move in on her.
Well, he's looking at your mic.
Don't a-hatch.
Put on a tab. Yeah, sure.
See you around.
Hey, your coffee's about ready. All right. Thank you.
Want cream and sugar? No, black.
How about you? Same. Coming up.
Don't pay no attention to Sally.
Yeah, I know.
You must have got out on the wrong side of the bed today.
Usually she's real friendly, you know what I mean?
Yeah. So just don't take it personal, huh?
That's all right. Forget it.
Too bad you guys came in so early.
Long toward evening, we got a lot of action here.
We're meeting somebody. Okay.
Just telling you, that's all.
Phew. Gosh.
Yeah, boy, that's hot all right.
I think I burnt my tongue.
That's too bad. Tomcat Bar, mic speaker.
Who?
Well, I don't know.
Yeah? Yeah? Okay, sure.
Hey, one of you guys got a name. Sounds something like Friday.
That's right. Why, you're being stood up.
Huh? She said to tell you not to wait.
Frank and I left the Tomcat Bar and we went back to the office.
1017 A.A.
An informant called with a tip about a grocery store holdup
that had taken place the previous Monday.
We interrogated a possible suspect, but his alibi checked out.
The next day, Thursday, May 18th, 943 A.M.
Now again.
Robert Smith.
Who? Oh, yeah, Smith.
John, it's for you.
Okay.
Friday. Yeah?
Yeah, I remember.
Well, we were there.
Well, why don't you give me your name this time?
No, I'm sorry. We'll have to have your name.
Flint, F-L-I-N-T.
All right, now look, Miss Flint, if this is some kind of a gag...
All right, if you're sure this time.
Right. All right.
Goodbye.
The woman again.
The woman who called yesterday morning?
Oh, yeah, what she want now? Same thing. Meet us at the bar.
You think she's on the level?
I don't know. It sounds like it this time.
Why didn't she show up yesterday, then?
Says she tried, but she just couldn't.
Why not?
Said something about loving her husband.
When the chips were down, she couldn't bring herself to turn him into us.
Yeah, but she will now.
Says she has to, that she can't wait any longer.
Why? Says it might be too late.
10.16 A.M.
Frank and I left the office and drove out to the bar.
When we got there, there was only one customer in the place.
A small, dark-haired woman sitting in the corner booth.
Hi.
How are you today?
Well, a beak. Coffee again?
Yeah.
Okay, what do you want?
Well, we'll let you know.
Hmm?
That woman over there in the corner?
Yeah.
Do you know who she is?
Uh-uh. I don't think she's been in before.
All right, thank you.
Say, that reminds me.
Yeah?
Sally was around last night, asked about you.
Yeah.
Guess she had a change of heart. She's a pretty good kid.
Yeah.
Miss Flint?
Are you Miss Flint?
Yes.
Well, my name's Friday.
This is my partner, Frank Smith.
Can we sit down, man?
I guess so.
You guys want your coffee over there?
Yeah, that'll be fine.
How about the lady?
Would you like something, ma'am?
I'd like a drink.
All right.
I'm gonna need it.
What'll it be?
I don't care. Bourbon, I guess.
Bourbon and ginger ale.
Lady wants a bourbon and ginger ale.
All right.
I'll have a little bit of that.
Lady wants a bourbon and ginger ale.
Does he know?
Ma'am?
The bartender, does he know you're cops?
No, I don't think so. We haven't told him.
If anybody finds out, I talk to you.
If Rod ever finds out, I guess that just about washes us up.
Rod's your husband, is that right?
Yeah.
Rodney Flint.
Well, is that his name?
Not really, not his real name.
What is it, then?
I don't know if I'm doing the right thing.
I just don't know.
Mm-hmm.
He'd never understand. He'd say I was double-crossing him.
Maybe I am, maybe I...
Here you are. Two coffees and bourbon and ginger.
Where are we owe you?
That's a buck even.
There you go.
Okay, thank you.
Four years I've been thinking about it, living with it.
Four years I've been trying to make up my mind
whether I should go to the police or not.
Yes, ma'am.
But things seemed to be working out.
He was doing so well, making good money.
He's changed, too, honest he has.
Well, now, I suppose you give us the whole story.
You married, Sergeant?
No, ma'am.
What about you?
Yeah, I'm married.
Well, tell me something, mister, and you tell me the truth.
What's that?
Suppose your wife got you in trouble.
Suppose she squealed on you.
What would you think of her?
Well, I guess it would depend on why she did it.
Oh, I've got a reason.
Best reason in the world.
I'm in love with him.
Yes, ma'am.
If I wasn't, I'd just walk out.
If I didn't love him, I'd have walked out years ago.
Now, when you called us yesterday,
you said your husband had bought a gun.
Yeah, that's right.
Do you know what he wants with it?
No, not for sure.
You got a pretty good idea, though, haven't you?
Has your husband ever done any time, Miss Flynn?
Yes.
What for?
He stole a car.
Anything else?
Robbery.
Supermarket back east.
Whereabouts?
Michigan.
He used to live in Detroit.
How much time did he do?
Seven years.
Did he come out free?
I don't know what you mean.
I'm sorry.
Afterwards, was he on parole?
Did he have to report to a parole officer?
Oh, yes.
For how long?
It was supposed to be ten years.
When did he get out of prison?
Five years ago.
When did you come to California?
About a year later.
Did he have permission to leave the state of Michigan?
No.
What made him leave, then?
He just came home one day
and said he couldn't take it any longer.
Said he was going to L.A.
and that it was up to me whether I came with him or not.
Do you know if he's wanted for anything else
besides violation of parole?
I don't think so.
You know, you still haven't told us his real name.
Frazee.
Ralph Frazee.
All right, then it's Mrs. Frazee, huh?
What about the gun?
Well, like I said, everything was going along pretty well.
He's got a good job and he's had three or four raises.
Where does he work?
Oil refinery. Pacific Crest Oil Company.
I see.
He likes the work and they like him,
but the longer we live out here, the better things are.
Well, that just makes him more scared.
What's he scared of?
Well, that somebody will find out who he really is
and then he'll have to go back to prison.
Hmm.
If he just sees a cop, he goes all to pieces,
he's sure they've finally caught up with him.
Just a traffic cop, even.
He gets worse all the time.
Jumpy and nervous and, well, scared.
That's the only word for it.
He's been drinking a lot more, too, nearly every night.
Mm-hmm.
Then just last week he ran into a guy
that used to be a friend of his.
Back in Detroit?
Yeah.
This fellow knows all about him,
that he's been in prison and Rod's afraid...
I mean, Ralph.
I've called him Rod so long,
I keep forgetting that it isn't his real name.
Sure.
Anyway, he's afraid this guy will say something to somebody
that'll all come out.
It's just driving him crazy.
So he bought a gun.
Do you say why?
He was pretty drunk the night before last.
That's when he brought it home.
He mumbled something.
If he was gonna go back to prison anyway,
he might as well make it worth their while.
Hmm.
Mm-hmm.
Maybe he's planning another robbery. I don't know.
I don't really think he would.
But with all this drinking and being so darned upset,
I don't know what he might do.
Where's the gun now, Miss Frazee?
At home.
He hid it in the stove in the pan under the broiler.
At least that's where he put it last night after...
After what?
Well, you see, he was carrying on doing a lot of talking,
and he was holding the gun at the same time,
waving it around, telling me how easy it'd be
to go out and rob somebody.
Said that way he could get enough money for us
to leave the country and go to Mexico,
where they'd never find us.
Right in the middle of everything, the pistol went off.
I see.
It was just an accident. He wasn't pointing at anything.
The bullet only went into the ceiling.
I'm sure he didn't mean to pull the trigger.
Yes, ma'am.
But when he heard the shot,
he acted like he was going out of his mind.
He was sure the neighbors had heard it too
and that they'd report it to the police.
What'd he do then?
Well, he dug the bullet out of the ceiling, got rid of it.
Mm-hmm.
After that, he just waited.
Well, that proves he's changed, doesn't it?
That he really isn't a criminal anymore.
How do you mean that?
Well, he didn't run away.
He stayed there all night long, waiting.
And he didn't keep the gun. He put it in the oven.
He didn't have it on him.
So there wouldn't have been any trouble
even if the police did come.
Gee, I kept praying that they would.
Over and over, I prayed you'd come
and find out who he is.
He's got to go back to prison
and he's sentenced, I'm sure of that now.
If he doesn't, I just don't know what'll happen to him.
What about you, Miss Frazee?
Me?
While he's in prison, what'll you do?
Oh, I can work. I did before. I'll manage.
Mm-hmm.
Miss Frazee, what time does your husband come home from work?
It's later and later since he started drinking.
Nine o'clock, maybe even ten.
He's never there for supper anymore.
Is there someplace else you can go this evening?
Over to a neighbor's, maybe?
I suppose so. Why?
Well, it might be better if you weren't there when we pick him up.
But you can't. I mean...
Well, not so soon, not tonight.
Does it have to be tonight?
Yes, ma'am, it does.
You'll know it was me that had something to do with it.
He's bound to know.
We'll keep you out of it if we can.
What are you gonna tell him? What kind of an excuse will you use?
Let's see what kind he has.
When you shop, stop, remember, vacation time is carton time.
The cigarette to take with you is Chesterfield, made the modern way, with Accuray.
Take along a couple of cartons and put a smile in your smoking.
Chesterfield, smoother, cooler, best for you.
Remember, in the whole wide world, no cigarette satisfies like Chesterfield.
Put a smile in your smoking, just give them a try.
Chesterfield's best for you.
They satisfy.
Frank and I continued to talk to Mrs. Frazee.
She agreed to be out of the house during the evening.
She also gave us a description of her husband.
She said he was WMA, 38 years old, 5'11".
He weighed about 170.
She told us he had black hair, brown eyes, and a dark complexion.
11.27 a.m., we went back to the office.
We ran the names Rodney Flint and Ralph Frazee through RNI.
They had nothing on Flint.
Under Frazee, we found a want from the state of Michigan for a violation of parole.
The dates given on the want checked with what Mrs. Frazee had told us.
We contacted the Pacific Crest Oil Refinery,
and without stating that we were from the police department,
we learned that a man named Rodney Flint had been employed there for the last three years.
They said he was a steady, dependable worker.
6.32 p.m., we drove out to the address Mrs. Frazee had given us.
It was a modest one-story home just off Santa Monica Boulevard.
We parked across the street and waited for Frazee to return from work.
7.05 p.m., we saw Mrs. Frazee go into a neighbor's home three doors west.
Frank and I continued to wait.
8.46 p.m.
Yeah, across the street.
Yeah, he's turned into the driveway.
Let's give him a minute, let him get inside.
All right.
The lights are on now, let's go.
All right.
I see the bell.
Over there. Oh, yeah.
He's coming.
Yeah?
We'd like to talk to you for a minute.
What about? We're police officers.
Police. This is Frank Smith, my name's Friday.
I didn't send for no cops.
Is it all right if we come in? What do you want?
Just want to talk to you, that's all.
You're talking out here. Be easier if we were inside.
I ain't got all night. Neither have we.
This won't take very long.
Okay, come on.
All right, stand right there. Hey, what...
Stand still.
What is all this? He's clean, Joe.
What's your name?
Come on, give us your name. Flint.
First name, too. Rod. Rodney.
You alone? Yeah.
You live alone?
Our wife, Saatchi, left me a note, said she was going over to the neighbor's babysit for him.
Were you home last night? Yeah, I was home.
All night? From about 10 o'clock on.
Did you hear a gun go off?
What? A gun. Did you hear one go off?
Of course not. Well, somebody did, and they reported it.
Said it sounded like it came from this house.
Last night, you said? That's right, Flint.
Boy, what a police force.
You cops ought to be real proud of yourself.
Yeah. Is this all you got to do?
Check up on some character who's been hearing things?
There wasn't any shot, huh?
I didn't hear. I see.
Kind of late to be asking, innit?
We just got around to it. Took a whole day, huh?
Or you need a cop. What are you supposed to do?
Make an appointment ahead of time?
Are you sure about this, huh, Flint? About what?
You didn't hear any gunfire. I didn't hear nothing.
There's a lot of traffic down the boulevard.
Maybe a car was backfiring. Maybe that's where it was.
Mm-hmm. Do you own a gun?
Uh-uh. Are you sure about that?
Well, I'd know if I had a gun, wouldn't I?
Zardy, would we look around?
What for? Want to give your place the once-over?
No, it's not okay. Oh?
I ain't gonna have you busting in here.
Now, come on, go on, beat it, huh?
I'll get you a search warrant and come back.
You listen to me and you listen good, huh?
This isn't Skid Row, mister. This is my home. I own it.
Now, you're not messing around a Main Street bum, either.
I got a good job for a big company.
They pay a lot of taxes in this town.
They pay a lot of your salary. Yeah.
My boss is a pretty important guy. He's got friends.
So now you just take your little badges and move on.
All right, Flint, if that's the way you want it.
That's the way I want it.
Just give us one more thing. What are you afraid of?
I'm not afraid of anything, you guys especially.
You're sure not very anxious for us to look around.
There must be a reason for that.
Well?
Okay, okay. Go ahead and search.
It's no skin off of my nose. All right, thanks.
Bad chance you'd ever find something even if it was here.
Dumb cops.
It took you a whole day to get here,
a whole day to answer one lousy crackpot call.
Well, don't forget. Yeah? It got answered.
Frank and I began a routine search of the house.
While Frank went through the two bedrooms,
I took the living room and dining area.
We found nothing suspicious.
9.42 p.m.
We'd finished with the front part of the home
and we went into the kitchen.
The suspect followed us.
Okay, if I fix myself a drink while you're messing the joint up?
It's up to you.
You guys want one? What?
A blast. You want one? No, thanks.
What about you? No, thanks.
You don't drink, huh?
Not hurting my feelings.
I'll check the service for you, Joe.
All right.
I'll be right back.
You know, my wife's gonna raise Kane
when she sees what you guys have done to the house.
Well, being as careful as we can, Flint.
Yeah, sure. Well, now, come on. How about winding it up, huh?
Just a couple of minutes.
Well, you boys really believe in wasting time, don't you?
What do they do, pay you by the hour?
There's nothing out there, Joe.
No.
I guess that takes care of it. Yeah.
All right, come on. I'll be glad to show you to the door.
We'll find our way.
Just a minute.
Did you check the stove?
Huh? The stove.
No, I thought you did. All right.
All right. Now what? We forgot something.
Yeah.
Well, it looks empty.
What's with you? You think I'm cooking a gun?
Yeah, it's okay, Joe.
All right. As soon as I get this pan back...
Hey, watch it there.
Grab him, Joe. Wait a minute, Flint.
You're not going anywhere. Look, I don't know
what this is all about. I never saw that gun before
in my whole life. Yeah.
I don't even know how it got. Well, let's talk about it downtown.
Huh? Come on. Look, wait a minute now.
You can't haul me in like this. What have I done?
You gotta have a charge. I know the law.
You gotta charge me with something. You won't find it.
We found a gun.
We drove this aspect down to the city hall,
rolled his prints, and booked him in on suspicion of robbery.
11.06 p.m. We brought him into the squad room
and he was questioning.
All right. Sit down over there.
What kind of a frame is this?
Come on, how about letting me in on it, huh?
Who'd I rob?
You forget about our robbery charge. I guess we made a mistake.
Well, that's what I've been telling you, ain't I?
If we had to check the gun, we had to be sure.
All right, so now you know. Yeah.
Okay, no hard feelings. Sit down, Frazee.
What? You heard me. Sit down.
Maybe we were wrong about the robbery charge,
but we came up with something else.
A warrant from Michigan, violation of parole.
What about it, Frazee?
Well?
Well, what do you want to know? You've got it, the whole story.
Why'd you leave Michigan? Why'd you jump parole?
Oh, what difference does it make?
Suppose you tell us about it.
I didn't have no choice. Yeah?
I used to play around with some pretty rough boys.
I got out of the joint there, still in Detroit.
Looked me up.
Ah, you guys will think I'm conning you, but...
Well, look, I wanted to go straight.
They had different ideas. Yeah.
So we came out here, Dorothy and me.
She's my wife. I see.
You can check on me. I've been clean ever since.
Ask the company. Talk to anybody about me.
They'll tell you I'm clean. Yeah.
That gonna help back in Michigan?
No, that's not up to us.
Sure.
I thought that was why they sent you to jail,
so you'd learn something.
So when you come out, you won't do it again.
That's part of it.
Well, I learned. What good did it do me?
Maybe you didn't learn enough. Huh?
There's a law against an ex-convict having a gun.
Are you gonna stick me with that one, too?
That's not up to us, either.
If it hadn't been for that gun, you'd never have found me.
Might have taken a little longer, that's all.
Sure, that's what did it.
I don't know why it went off the other night.
I thought the safety was on. Just my luck.
I never had a decent break in my whole life.
Not one. Mm-hmm.
Why is there any more you guys want?
No, I guess not. Not now, anyway.
It's all right if I call my wife.
Yeah, we'll fix it for you.
Wonder how she's gonna take it.
I don't know.
I guess she'll stick by me. She always has.
Through all the rotten breaks, no matter what.
Yeah, she'll stick.
Well, you must have had one good break, then, huh?
Huh?
When you married her.
The story you've just heard is true.
The names were changed to protect the innocent.
On Thursday, May 25th, the meeting was held in the district attorney's office
in and for the county of Los Angeles, state of California.
In a moment, the results of that meeting.
Now, here is our star, Jack Webb.
Thank you, George Veneman.
Friends, discover for yourself what modern science can do to protect the innocent.
And what modern science can do to increase your cigarette enjoyment.
Remember, accu-ray puts a smile on your smoking.
Enjoy a smoothness and coolness never possible before.
Chesterfield, best for you.
In the interest of justice, and because of the suspect's good behavior record in Los Angeles,
it was decided not to press charges against him for possessing a gun.
Ralph Putnam Frazee, alias Rodney Flint, was turned over to Michigan authorities
to serve out his previous sentence.
He has since been released and has returned to his former employment in Los Angeles.
You have just heard Dragnet, a series of authentic cases from official files.
Technical advice comes from the Office of Chief of Police, W.H. Parker, Los Angeles Police Department.
Technical advisors, Captain Jack Donahoe, Sergeant Marty Wynn, Sergeant Vance Frasier.
Heard tonight were Ben Alexander, Stacy Harris, Herb Ellis, Vivi Janis.
Script by Frank Burt, music by Walter Schuman, Hal Gibney speaking.
Watch an entirely different Dragnet case history each week on your local NBC television station.
Please check your newspapers for the day and time.
Chesterfield has brought you Dragnet, transcribed from Los Angeles.
This is it, L&M filters. It stands out from all the rest.
Miracle tip, much more flavor. L&M's got everything. It's the best.
Yes, L&M's got everything. Superior taste, superior tobacco, superior filter.
It's the miracle tip, pure and white. Buy L&M, America's best filter tip cigarette.
Hear Dragnet next week, same time, same station.
Tonight, hear a special broadcast, The Atom, Menace and Promise, on most NBC radio stations.