Welcome to the Great Detectives of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho. This
is your host, Adam Graham. If you have a comment, email up
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this week's episode of Mister Chameleon. The original air date October twentieth, nineteen
forty eight, and this is the case of Voices from the Dad. Next
Mister Chameleon, the Man of Many Faces. To night, we again present
the famous mister Chameleon of Central Headquarters in his most famous cases of crime and
murder, brought to you by the makers of Bayer Aspirin. As all of
you know, mister Chamileon is known in the police as Chameleon, the man
of many faces, who appears in various disguises to track down his prey.
The audience always knows who mister Chameleon is, but the criminal he is tracking
seldom does. Tonight we give you mister Chameleon and the Case of the Voices
from the Dead. It is late at night and silence has fallen over the
charming old house where Rose Martinson and her widowed sister Susan Black lead a lonely
existence. And in the midnight quiet of Susan Black's bedroom, the sisters are
sleeping in adjoining beds. Susan is tossing restlessly, and suddenly she sits upright,
staring into the darkness did somebody call? I thought I heard a voice.
Mother, it's me Roddy. Oh, Roddy, Roddy. I knew
you'd come to me. Who do you want, Darling? What can I
do? Mother? If you love me, if you love Susan, Susan,
what's the matter. It's Roddy. Oh. I know you won't believe
me, Rose, But he's here in this room. Are you out of
your mind? Roddy was killed nearly two years ago with John, your husband.
The dead don't come back to life. They do, Rose, They
do come back, they do come Rose. Did you hear that? Didn't
you hear my Roddy's voice? Oh, Susan, it breaks my heart to
see you like this, Ever since that fake who pretended to be a spiritualist
got his hands on you don't see that he's not a fake. I'm going
to prove that he's a fake here tonight. Don't listen to her, Mother.
I'll have to leave you and never come back. Roddy. No,
Rose, you're driving him away. I won't let you drive the spirit of
my child with I'm going to turn on that light, Susan and see who's
here. See what unspeakable deception this is, and then I intend to send
for the police. Rose, Please, please, I beg If you don't,
where's that light switch? S he's the man of Rose. Put on
the light. Oh she's been stabbed with a paper knife. Rose, Oh
kill Rose. Less than an hour later, in the same room stands the
famous detective mister Chamillion, the man of many faces, the underworld's most feared
man. He has just finished examining the body of Rose Martinson and her sister,
Susan Black, overcome with grief and horror, as saying to him,
half hysterically, mister Chamillion, this dreadful thing. How could it have happened?
If I'm going mad? Missus Blake, Your sister Rose was found in
this room, stabbed to death with a paper knife. You were the only
person in the room with her, and you admit the paper knife is yours.
Yes, But if I killed Rose, I didn't know I was doing
it. I've done in a dream, in a nightmare. That might be
very difficult to prove, mister Blake. Mister Chamillion, you must help me.
I intend to if you're innocent, But my job is to find the
murderer, whoever it is. And if I'm guilty. If I killed my
own sister, I want to be convicted. Tell me something. Did you
and your sister live alone in this house except for Tompkins, your mudlan.
Yes, we lived here alone. That is after my husband and my son,
Roddy, they were killed in an automobile accident. Yes, two years
ago. But as I told you, Roddy has come back to me lately,
back from the dead. I heard his voice right here in this room.
Did your sister hear it too? If she did, she wouldn't have
told me, mister Chamillion, Rose didn't usually sleep in this room with me,
but she she was worried about me, and that's why she was here
tonight. She had reason to be worried. What is the name of the
man that you've been consulting? What this man who makes you think that you're
hearing your son's voice? What's his name? I can't remember. I only
went there once. I can't remember his name, sir, mister Chamillion.
Yes, Dave, come in, missus Black is a detective Sergeant Donald.
How are you? What's on your mind? Dave? It's Tompkins, the
butler here. He's got something pretty interesting to tell you. Good, good,
What is the Tompkins. It's about to night, sir. Before the
murder. About ten o'clock the door bell rang and a very odd looking woman
practically pushed her way in. And there was a man with her too,
but he wasted outside. And this woman ordered me to go upstairs and tell
missus Black she was here. What was the strange woman's name? She didn't
give any name, mister mccamillion. She simply said to tell Missus Black that
madam was here. Only I met miss Rose on the upper landing and she
told me to put the woman out of the house, did your Tompkins?
That was the strange part, sir. When I reached the lower hall,
the front door stood open, and the woman and the and we're both gone.
I see, Missus Black. Do you know who the woman was?
Must have been Madame Lola. She tells fortunes with cards. I was only
there at once, and you remember her name. She must have made quite
an impression. Are you sure, Missus Black, that you can't remember the
name of that man who says that he's a spiritualist. No, no,
I can't remember. I take it you're pretty well convinced, Kamilian that Missus
Black is lying. Why of course she's lying, Commissioners. She's protecting that
man, whoever he is. Now she's one of those highly nervous women.
It's quite possible that she killed her sister Rose in a fit of madness.
But I'm not entirely convinced. I think there's something horrible behind it all.
What about this fortune teller, Madame Lola and the man was with her?
Could they have hidden themselves in the house? Oh? Yes, very easily,
huge oel plays while Tompkins, the butler, was upstairs. They might
have gotten in. Certainly is a weird case. It is that Commissioner,
two sisters, perfectly respectable women, alone in their bedroom. One thinks she
hears the voice of a dead child, and a moment later, the other
sister stabbed to death in the dark. So far, no clue to the
murderer and no apparent motive. No, no, come in, did you
want to see me, Commissioner? Yes, come in, Madeline. Mister
Camillion wants you to work with him on the Rose Martins and murder kid.
Madeline, you'll have to move out of your very comfortable apartment and into the
Crown Hotel. Yes, and make yourself inconspicuous. No one must suspect you
of being a detective. But mister Camillion, why the Crown Hotel, Missus
Susan Black, the murdered woman's sisters moving them. She's out on heavy bail
and she's closing her house though she's keeping Tompkins's chauffeur. I want you to
watch her discreetly, Madeline, I see is that all? NO want you
to do something else too. I want you to go and question a fortune
teller named Madame Lola. My guess is that she's affront for this pseudo spiritualist
whom Missus Black has been consulting. Madame Lola looks the victims over and then
passes them along to him. She and her kind are the vultures of the
world. When do you want me to go to this Madame Lola's, mister
Camillion, this afternoon. Oh and Madeleine, while you're there, you may
meet an old gentleman, Henry Lowry by name, wealthy, the soul of
gallantry, and well over sixty years old. You, mister Chamillion, in
disguise. That's right, Madeleine, I shall be disguised as mister Lowry,
poor nervous old soul. He was made to order for Madame Lola and her
pals. I consider it an outrage the police questioning me, Madame Lola.
I'm a hard working woman trying to make an honest living by telling fortunes.
I have a client waiting for me right this minute. He can wait,
No, he can't. It's Henry Lawry of Larry Industry. I'll apologize to
him on my way out. Good day, Madame Lola, and you'll probably
hear from us again. I don't doubt it, mister Lorry. Will you
go in please. Madame Lola is ready for you. Thank you, madam,
thank you very much. She's a tough customer, Mister Camelian. I
couldn't get a thing out of her. All right, Madelin, I see
what I can do as old mister Laura. Mister Lorry, Yes, Madam
Lola. What was that young woman saying to you? Why? Nothing fascinating
place you have here, Madame Lola. All those stars in the ceiling in
this dim lighting, Hm, how different from the outer world. I feel
that I'm about to be in communion with the unknown. Mister Lorry. I
am highly honored that you should come to me. How did you hear about
me? You're more famous than you think, Madame Lola. I've been to
all of them, palmists, crystal gazers, but they haven't brought me in
contact yet, in contact with my little grandson who was dead and who was
so dear to me. Perhaps, mister Lorry, you're asking too much of
fortune tellers to put you in contact with the spirit world. Do you mean
I should see a spiritualist, Madame Lola. Suppose I read the cards.
They may tell us the proper step for you to take. Would you do
that for me? Madam Here, Now, let us see what the cards
can tell us. I always take them off the top of the packet.
The Ase of Spades, Yes, the Ace of Spades. The card mains
death does man, Yes it does. I I'm going to shuffle the cards
again, Madame Lola. I am not the least bit afraid of death.
Well I am, mister Lorry. Let us try again the Asa Spades,
Oh, Asa Spade a second time, Madame Lola. Something something is wrong
somewhere, mister Lorry. I I don't know whether it means your death or
that someone is calling to you from the dead. Vibrations there they're confused.
I why I can't continue. You will have to excuse me, Madame Lola.
Perhaps I ought to consult a spiritualist. Can you tell me the name?
No? No, no, no, I am sorry. There's there's
no one I care to recommend. My dear young lady. How nice to
see you here at the Crown Hotel. Oh, mister chameleon, it's you.
No, no, my name is now Henry Lowry. I just moved
into the Crown Hotel this afternoon, mister Chamillion, I got nowhere when i'd
fortune tell her, Madame Lola, she's badly frightened. Either she knows who
I am, penetrated my disguise, or else She couldn't make up a mind
whether to give me the name of that fake spiritualist. What's she afraid of?
The mysterious mister X whom Missus Black was consulting before her sister Rose was
murdered. But I oh, here she comes, So let's see if there's
a way to make her remember that name, Missus Black, Missus Black whose
sister Rose, believe it or not, Henry Lowry was once very much in
love will But mister Lorry, I'm sure I never heard my sister mention you,
Missus Black. I worshiped Rose from the distance. I danced with her
at one of the Debutante cotillions when she was twenty and I was fought.
Ah. Yes, those days of joy are gone forever from my life.
Will you have had your sorrows, my dear, Your sister's death was a
horrible shocks, horrible well, I shan't speak of it, Missus Black.
Won't you have dinner with me? Give me so much pleasure, I'd be
delighted. Mister Lorry, I feel as if I'd known you always, and
yet this is only the second time we've done together. I feel the same
way, Susan. I hope I haven't bored you with all my talk about
my little dead grandson. Oh no, your Jamie was just the age of
my son Roddy. F Only I could get in touch with my grandson and
the spirit world. I'd give anything I have to hear his voice again.
Yes, to hear his voice again, My dear Susan. We both know
what sorrow is, how deep the yearning to commune with one that death is
taken from us. Mister Lorry, I'm going to tell you something that I
wouldn't even tell the police, not even the great detective mister Camillia. I
wouldn't tell him because I wouldn't have them persecuting Saint. Saint. Oh.
Yes, he brought my son Roddy back to me, back from the dead,
and I know that he can put you in touch with your grandson.
He's a very great man, mister Lorry. I'll give you his address.
His name is Professor Astrol, mister Chamillion. And the case of the Voices
from the Dead continues in just a moment. Next time you want relief from
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less than a penny apiece. And now back to mister Chamillion and the case
of the Voices from the Dead. It is the following afternoon, and we
find mister Chamillion disguised as old mister Lowry, the wealthy believer in the spirit
world, with his partner, Detective Sergeant Dave Arnold, on his way to
see the mysterious Professor Astro. So you've finally got the name of the fawny
spiritual, a stout of Susan black game, mister Chamillion, Yes, Dave,
his name is Professor Astrol, a guy who brings voices back from the
dead, and disguised as old mister Lowry. I'm gonna have a seance with
him in just a couple of minutes all. Isn't that kind of dangerous for
you? Mister Chamillion, looks like a long chance. It is dangerous.
It is a long chance. If they know that I'm not Lowry but Chameleon,
the cop man Astral Dave is connected in some way with the murder of
Susan Black sister, You'd better leave me from here on. I am old,
mister Lowry. Yes, I am Henry Lowry. I'm here to seek
Professor Astrol. Missus Susan Black sent me come in. I am Professor Astall.
You were exactly as Missus Black described jo your eyes and hypnotic. She
told me you were very particular about who you accepted. I am mister Lowry.
I feel my phenomenal powers are too precious to be used indiscriminately. They
were bestood on me by supernatural forces. I am sure they were, Professor
Astral. Missus Black tells me you had a dearly beloved grandson. Yes,
his name was Jamie. He was seven years old at the time he was
drowned, the same age as Missus black son. Ruddy. Jamie was the
dearest little boy, always singing and laughing. Used to whistle that tune I
got sixpence. Can't hear it now without I know, my dear mister Lowry,
did you want me to put you in touch with your grandson in the
spirit world? If you could, Professor Restro, I would give you anything
you asked for. I want nothing for myself, mister Lowry. Suppose you
come to me at nine o'clock tonight. I think I'll be able to bring
your Jamie back to you, back from the grave. Bless you, bless
you. I'm a rich man, Professor Restro, and I assure your rest
I'm sorry to interrupt you with Missus Black, mister Lorry and I'm Lola.
You too know each other. This is a friend of missus Blake, a
friend of Missus Black, very dear friend. But Professor Estell, do you
know that Madame Lola wouldn't tell my fortune? She kept turning up the ace
of spades, the death card. Mister Lowry, I reach my greatest power
at nine o'clock at night, So could you come back then at nine to
night? And now, mister Chameleon, the famous detective, still disguised as
old mister Lorry, is with Susan Black. But mister Lorry, why is
it so important? That I do as you ask. My dear Susan Black
is frightfully important. Yet I can't explain why you've been wonderful for me.
Mister Lorry. You know it's possible that I killed my sister Rose. I
may have had some dreadful nightmare. Would you like to prove it otherwise?
Oh? Yes, yes, it may be dangerous. But if you find
your sister's murdering, if you cleared yourself, wouldn't it be worth it?
Mister Lorry? Oh are you concerned in it? I can't tell you that
either. I can only keep on asking you to trust me. I trust
you, bless you. Now. I have a nine o'clock appointment with Professor
Astrom. Sure you've come, mister Lowry. I was beginning to worry,
Professor Astro. You know I'm so anxious to establish contact with my little dead
friends and Jamie than many people who terrified at their first encounter with the spirit
world. It is a terrifying experience, Professor Astroll. I want to contact
my dead grandson. If you succeed in doing that for me, I shan't
be able to do enough for you. Mister Lorry. Sit down, I
will sit down across from you now, please, you'll be silent. Place
your hands on this table, your finger tips touching mine. That's an interesting
screen you have over there. Looks like something from India. PRIs mister Laurry,
sorry, Professor Astroll. Is there anyone else in the spirit world you
might like to contact first, anyone who might act as conductor to your dead
grandson, Jamie, perhaps your late wife. No, no, let her
rest? Is it perfectly quiet? Relax, relax, Let the spirit flow
into you as it is flowing into me, Professor Astro. Professor Astro,
yes, who speaks? It's completely dark. I can't see you at all.
Side, Jamie, Jamie, your grandfather is here. He wishes to
speak to you. Give us a sign, Jamie, if you were near,
give us a sign. It's jam mis tune is the tune who always
used to whistle, Jamie. Jamie's at you really speak to us? Speak
to your grandfather, Jamie, grandfather. Are you happy, Jamie? I
can't believe it. Speak to me again, grandfather. If you want to
be truly happy, give everything you can to Professor asked, I will,
I will, indeed, let me hear your voice again, little Jamie.
Grandfather if you help, Professor asked, would I throw these boys? Let
my son's boys? I know it's the same voice. I'd recognize it anywhere.
Thank you. Like that's all I want to know, Madeline, turn
on the light. The devil is this? Missus Black? How did you
get in here? She came with Madeline Evans. Miss Evans is a police
detective. Professor Astroll's day. Where you are, Professor Astrol? I have
you covered? This is an outrage, Missus Black. Why do you still
at me like that? Because the head voice was Roddy's, my son's,
There's no mistake about it. And yet you told poor mister Lorry that it
was his grandson's voice. It was, it was. It couldn't have been,
Professor Astroll, since I have no grandson. In fact, I am
a bachelor. My name isn't even lower its chameleon. You're mister comedion here
in disguise? Yes, and I place you under arrest. Keep them covered,
Madeline dave Way. Well, mister Chamillion, what are you arresting me
for? Surely you don't think I murdered Missus Black's sister Rose Martinson. No,
Rose Martinson's murderer is behind the door in that closet, Open that door
and come out. Who is it? Who is it, mister comedian,
It is the voice of Roddy, Missus Black, Roddy and Jamie and probably
dozens of others. Come that closet. Or I'll shoot, don't shoot,
don't shoot. I haven't got a gun. Tompkins, Tompkins, my butler.
Yes, Missus Blank, dependable Tompkins, your butler and chauffeur, and
also the silent partner of Madame Lola and Professor Astrol, only not so silent.
His specialty, my dear, was imitating the voices of children. He
used to be on the vaudeville stage as of ventriloquist. How did you find
that out? Detective Sergeant Dave Arnold found it out. You alone were in
the house with Missus Black and a sister the night of the murder you killed
Miss Rose, and she threatened to turn on the light. She surprised her.
You didn't know she was there in the room. They're in it too,
Madame Loler and Professor Astro, Oh, yes, yes, the three
of you had this ragget for years. You made a practice of getting jobs
with lonely bereaved women and led them to Madame Lola, who stared them to
Professor Astrol. But you, and you alone, committed the murder, Tompkins,
mister Chameleon, I can't believe that I'm actually free. I mean free
in my mind as well as literally free. The evidence looked very black against
you in the beginning, but you see that motto on the wall of my
desk. The innocent must be protected, the guilty must be punished. And
I wish I could tell you how glad I am, Susan, that you
were proven innocent. And mister Laurie was such a charming old gentleman. I'm
sorry I've lost him. Well, now don't forget. You've acquired a younger
friend in this place, Susan Chameleon the cup, and with these words,
mister Chameleon concludes to Night's murder case. The way that millions get amazingly fast
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next Wednesday night at the same time for mister Chameleon, the man of many
faces in the case of Murder from Across the Seas. The part of mister
Chamillion is played by Carl Swenson, with dialog by Marie Baumber from the original
story by Frank and Anne Hummert music directed by Victor Arden. Your announcer is
Howard Claining. Friends. There's a new toothpaste in the market that you'll want
to try. It's called Lion's Toothpaste, and it's not just another old toothpaste
with an added ingredient, but is completely new and radically different in formula.
For this reason, new Lion's toothpaste does what no other toothpaste can do.
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Lion's tooth Paste. Listen for mister Chameleon in the case of Murder from
Across the Seas next Wednesday night. At this time, this is CBS,
the Columbia Broadcasting System. Welcome back him and that sign. Okay, I've
talked about that before, but overall I thought this was a really good episode
and Chameleon, because of course Chameleon's played by Carl Sweatson, had a very
good character here that was quite believable, and you could believe that scummy khn
man falling for Chameleon's act. This episode also features Madeleine and it's a welcomed
return. Now for those who were with us when we had our first run
through previously uncirculated episodes of Mister Chameleon. We had ten of the first eleven
episode from nineteen forty eight, and then there was one episode in January nineteen
forty nine in which Madeleine didn't appear, and then by the time we got
back to larger groups of Mister Chameleon episodes, Madeleine wasn't in there. So
it was a mystery what had happened to hers. So I'm curious to see
if we will find out what happened to the character. We're not guaranteed to,
because one, there are still some lost episodes, and two, even
if her fate isn't in a lost episode, it could be that she just
disappears from the show without explanation, which has been known to happen. Still,
it's nice to have her back. Although it is weird to describe a
policewoman's apartment as very comfortable, I have a feeling that there were very few
real life policewomen who could relate to that in the nineteen forties and probably today.
Also, I don't think I recall a chameleon trying to get a date
with an ex suspect, so that's a bit different. Listener comments and feedback
now and Thank you so much to Frank, who left a comment on Spotify
saying the first episode of Mister Chameleon was great. Now it's time to thank
our Patreon supporter of the day, and I want to go ahead and thank
Christine. Christine has been one of our Patreon supporters since August of twenty twenty,
currently supporting the show at the Shamus level of four dollars or more per
month. Thank you so much for your support, Christine, and that will
do it for today. If you are enjoying this podcast, please follow us
using your favorite podcast software and be sure to rate and review the podcast wherever
you download it from. We'll be back next Thursday with another episode of Mister
Chameleon. But join us back here tomorrow for the conclusion of this week's Yours
Truly, Johnny Dollar. Where it's no use, mister Dollar. I've gone
through the whole place twice now and I'm certain that nothing's been taken. But
they had to have some reason to break in here, go through anything this
way sober well, I'm positive there's nothing missing, all right, there is
the reason. Well they suppose that coffee's right now? Oh, I think
so. Come on in the kitchen. I guess you'll believe me now.
Somebody was hanging around here earlier today. I just wish I could figure out
what they're after. Looks plenty strong. There's sugar there on the table.
I'll get some cream from the refrigerator. Don't bother on my account. I
don't get black, Well, not me. I use plenty of boats,
lots of cream, two heaping spoons of sugar. They must have had a
reason of breaking here. There wasn't a steel something, then, what was
the reason? Sugar looked funny? Doesn't make sense at all. I guess
I how to keep it covered the sugar I was saying it looked funny.
Well, wait a minute, maybe they broke into leaves something leaves something.
Yeah, here me that cut on the spoon. I hope you'll be with
us then. In the meantime, do send your comments to Box thirteen at
Great Detectives dot net, follow us on Twitter at Radio Detectives, and check
us out on Instagram, Instagram, dot com, slash Great Detectives from Boise,
Idaho. This is your host, Adam Graham signing off.