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OPENING BILLBOARD
Harry Kramer:Theee Edgggge of Night.
TEASER
Max, a reporter, is on the phone in a phone booth in Criminal Court, Number 4. He appears tense as he tells the person on the other end that Mike Karr is getting ready to call Phillip Capice to the stand, no double or twin brother, the real Phil Capice. He slams the receiver onto the hook and flings out of the phone booth just in time to collide with Kilborn, who is running down the corridor. Kilborn is carrying a small leather case and the impact sends it flying out of his hand. Max angrily tells Kilborn to watch where he's going as he races off in the direction from which Kilborn has just come. Kilborn stoops to retrieve the dropped case and stuffs it into his pocket as he takes off down the corridor.
At the same time in an office, Sylvia, a secretary, sits with earphones on, typing a letter from a Dictaphone. She finishes, takes off the earphones, and reads the letter to herself, places it on top of a small sheaf of papers and takes them into an inner office. While she's away from her desk, Kilborn enters her office. He's moving as if in a dream - quickly but with a glazed look in his eyes. He cases the empty office swiftly but hazily and locks the door. He starts to take the leather case out of his pocket as Sylvia re-enters from the inner office. Seeing Kilborn surprises her and she asks him if she can help him. He lets the case slip back into his pocket and in what he thinks is a warm, charming tone says, "Why yes! Yes, perhaps you can." His smile has a touch of strangeness - of the bizarre - about it, and Sylvia looks worried.
COMMERCIAL
ACT ONE
Scene 1A
A few moments later in the courthouse corridor, Bill Marceau is on the phone ordering every available man to the courthouse on the double. He hangs up and exits the booth as Phil appears, tense, weak and in a hurry! He tells Phil to go back but Phil stubbornly shakes his head. Mike appears and tells them he spoke to the head security officer. Every entrance and exit is being covered. Mike tells Phil to go back to the courtroom, he's weak and will only get in the way. Not to mention Louise doesn't need to be put through anything more. Phil reluctantly turns and starts back as Max, the reporter, follows, asking him for a statement. Mike and Bill, taking a gun from his shoulder holster, exit. Max reappears and races for the phone booth. He drops a coin in the slot and dials madly. He shouts into the phone, "Give me a re-write! This is Max! Get this! A man - name of Kilborn - suspected of being the real murderer in the Capice case, bolted out of the courtroom trying to escape when Mike Karr produced Phillip Capice alive! When Karr called the supposed murder victim himself to the witness stand, the whole courtroom went wild... ...huh? Karr's partner produced a fingerprint kit and Karr fingerprinted and proved Capice was Capice right there on the stand. . ."
Scene 1B
At the same time Kilborn and Sylvia are standing in her office. She asks Kilborn if he wished to see Mr. Rockwell and apologizes because he's in court. Kilborn asks when she expects him and Sylvia says she couldn't say. Kilborn says he'll wait and Sylvia tells him he might not be back for hours. She's wary of Kilborn, there's obviously something peculiar about him. She asks him to come back later and he snaps harshly at her saying he prefers to wait! Realizing drugs have betrayed him, Kilborn covers saying, "Excuse me. I'm a little nervous - on edge." Sylvia sits at her desk and checks over some papers. Kilborn remains near the door, ear cocked for sounds of anyone coming. Her wariness deepening into fear, Sylvia asks Kilborn for his name. When he doesn't respond she asks again. He snaps at her as the drugs again betray him, seeing the fear in her eyes. Tension now begins to build inside Sylvia. She's scared of this strange man. Kilborn senses it and keeps a covert eye on her. Pretending not to notice her, to be simply waiting, he moves a little way from the door and examines a picture on the wall. Sylvia, being extremely casual, pretends to finish checking the papers, picks them up, and goes to the door. She turns the knob. The door is locked. She knows she's trapped - that she could never unlock it before Kilborn grabbed her. He knows it too. Slowly she turns to meet his gaze - a bird looking into the eyes of a snake. Trying desperately to pretend she has noticed nothing wrong, she slowly returns to her desk. Putting the papers down, she sits and very casually picks up the telephone - only to find herself looking into the barrel of a gun which Kilborn has produced. . .smiling Kilborn shakes his head, "Uh, uh." She replaces the phone and, frozen, stares at him. The sound of hurrying footsteps approaching is heard and Kilborn cocks an ear toward the door. Mike and Bill are in the corridor outside checking the door - it's locked. Mike says that Rockwell is in court, but his secretary should be in there. Inside the office Sylvia can hear them as Bill suggests they try the other offices on this floor and return to this one later. Desperate, she grabs a vase from her desk and flings it at the door screaming, "Help! Help me!" Kilborn, on the verge of shooting her then and there, changes his mind, grabs her instead, and forces her into the inner office. Mike and Bill rush the door with their shoulders and it bursts open. They fling themselves into the office!
COMMERCIAL
ACT TWO
Scene 2A
Phil and Louise are together in the courtroom. Louise is trying to soothe Phil, who wants to get his hands on Kilborn. She tells him what matters is that they're together. She strokes his face, kissing him. He holds her in his arms and for the moment they are in a private little world of their own. . .eyes only for each other. Phil tells her that even when they kept him drugged it didn't stop him from dreaming about her - he had wonderful dreams. Louise tells him that she had dreams too - she shivers and holds him tight.
Scene 2B
Mike and Bill are at the door of the inner office. Mike is trying the knob but the door is locked. Kilborn is inside holding Sylvia hostage at gunpoint. He strides to the window and throws it open - the sounds of traffic far below - and the sirens of police cars are heard. There's no escape that way! Mike and Bill are shouting from the other side of the door for Kilborn to give himself up. Kilborn tells them he's holding a girl in there and warns them not to break through the door.
COMMERCIAL
STATION BREAK
ACT THREE
Scene 3A
Max hurries into the phone booth and drops a coin into the slot. He shouts into the phone, "Give me re-write! Ready? Scofield Kilborn, that's his name, believed to be the killer of the man Louise Capice has been on trial for murdering, has been trapped in an office on the fourth floor of the Criminal Courts Building! Chief of Police Marceau and Mike Karr cornered Kilborn, but he's locked himself in an inner office with a stenographer he's holding at gunpoint! He threatens to kill the girl if Karr and Marceau attempt to take him! The whole building is crawling with cops. Kilborn can't escape but they can't go in after him without risking the girl's life. No - sorry - I can't give you much background on this guy. But I can tell you this: he was mixed up with Dr. Ursula Bauer of the Bauer Convalescent Sanitarium in some way, and there's a rumor - I'll have to confirm it - that he's a big wheel in the narcotics syndicate! Bauer? She was picked up earlier. . .yeah. . .yeah. . .okay, get back to you when I've got more of the story." Max slams down the receiver and exits the booth. His eye catches something on the floor and he stoops to pick up a small packet. He opens it and sees that it contains small glassine envelopes filled with a white sugary powder. He frowns, opens one of the packets, and tastes the contents with his forefinger. It's heroin! He closes the envelope, replaces it and hurries off.
Scene 3B
Still holed up in the office Kilborn paces tensely. He crosses to the window again and looks out. Sylvia takes the opportunity to try to reach the door, but Kilborn is too fast for her and blocks her path. He doesn't have to warn her again, she can read death in his face. Mike and Bill are outside the office discussing how to get Kilborn out but there doesn't seem to be an answer. Kilborn calls through the door, telling Mike he wants his word that the police will not try to stop him from leaving. If they do, he'll kill the girl. Inside the office Kilborn holds the barrel of his gun to Sylvia's head. Max, the reporter, arrives on the scene and hands the packet to Bill. He explains that he bumped into Kilborn when he (Kilborn) was running away and he dropped a leather case - that stuff fell out of it. Mike surmises that if it belongs to Kilborn - if he's a user - then they may be able to bargain with him. When Kilborn says he's "holding all the cards," Mike tells him he dropped one and to check his pockets. Puzzled, Kilborn searches his pockets and takes out the leather case. Then he starts to look for the packet he dropped. In mounting concern he begins to slap his pockets, feverishly looking for the lost packet…panic flames in his face as he realizes he doesn't have it!
COMMERCIAL
ACT FOUR
Scene 4
Kilborn is rocked by the knowledge that his drug supply is cut off. He knows what's going to happen to him if he doesn't get it. Now he's stymied. He doesn't know what to say or do. Mike, through the door, asks him if he searched his pockets. When Kilborn says yes, Mike asks him if he's missing something. Kilborn says no, but Mike teases him by telling him that if he didn't lose the little envelopes with a white powder, then he can't bargain with him. Kilborn, becoming increasingly nervous, knows he can't waste time, he's going to need a supply fast. Sylvia frantically yells, "Let him go - please let him go. He'll kill me if you don't!" Mike and Bill think fast, but not fast enough as Kilborn says, "You out there! I want to make a deal with you." Mike hears something and steps aside quickly motioning Bill back at the same time. The sound of two quick gunshots is heard and two holes appear in the door, chest high. From inside the office, Sylvia screams.
COMMERCIAL
ACT FIVE
Scene 5
CLOSING TITLES
HARRY KRAMER: This is Harry Kramer, inviting you to join us again Monday for THE EEEDDDGGGEE OF NIGHT.
