Here's another flash
on that highway bus accident.
"Dan McCormick, the lone survivor,
"has been taken to the receiving hospital
for observation.
"Attending physicians
are astounded at his condition
"because he shows no effects
of the electrocution
"that killed the driver of the bus
and all of his fellow passengers. "
You say the man
is conscious?
Yes. It's the most amazing thing
I've ever heard of, Doctor.
After a good night's rest,
he'll be ready to leave the hospital.
Come on, come on, give me those pants.
I want to get out of here.
Here, here!
What's going on?
I can't make him
stay in bed, Doctor.
Well, I guess I ain't as tough
as I thought I was.
Tough? You're lucky to be alive
after a shock like that.
Now, get back into bed
and take it easy.
Okay, okay.
You're the doctor.
This is Dr. Lawrence.
Doctor, Dan McCormick.
How do you do?
Dr. Lawrence wants
to ask you a few questions.
Sure. Glad to have
somebody to talk to.
You know, for a minute I thought
you was one of those reporters.
No. No, there are
several of them downstairs.
You won't lack for publicity.
Oh, say, that's great.
I can use a couple of good
write-ups in my business.
What is your business, Dan?
Oh, didn't you know?
I run a high pitch down
on the midway. It's an act.
I'm Dynamo Dan,
the Electrical Man.
Fool around with storage batteries
and stick my fingers into light sockets
and make sparks jump between my hands.
You know, yokel shockers.
Yokel shockers?
Sure.
Stuff to fool the peasants.
It's all for effect.
Most of it's phony.
Yes, I see.
Hey, Doc,
get a load of this.
Supper in bed
and I ain't even sick.
Yes, we're gonna make sure
they take good care of you.
Well, I must run along now.
Here's my card.
When you get out of here,
just drop in and see me sometime.
Sure, sure, Doctor.
Goodbye.
So long, Doc.
Nice guy, the doc.
Dr. Lawrence is one of
America's foremost scientists.
No kidding!
"Dr. John Lawrence, 515
Forrest Drive. The Moors. "
Thank you, Henry.
That's all tonight.
Thank you, sir.
Good evening, Dr. Lawrence.
Wong.
Hello, Uncle John.
Hello, dear.
Oh, look at you.
What's the matter,
no date tonight?
Yes, and a very nice one.
I waited to tell you
about your tickets.
Tickets? Tickets?
What tickets?
For the convention.
Oh, yes! Yes.
When do I leave?
First thing
Wednesday morning.
Well, that gives me
a couple of days.
I've listed the references
that you wanted.
Oh, can't we get out of that?
I detest speeches.
It's probably because
I've had to listen to so many in my time.
Well, here's your chance to get even,
not that yours will be boring.
I wish I could be sure of that,
but electro-biology sounds terrifying.
Except to electro-biologists,
and that's who you'll be talking to.
Well, good night.
We'll hope for the best.
See you in the morning.
Oh, and don't forget your medicine.
I left it on your desk.
I said good night.
Good night.
Paul, why don't you
give this up?
It will work.
I know it.
With all the constructive things to be done,
why do you concentrate on destruction?
You call my work destructive?
Must we go over that
all again?
This theory of yours isn't science.
It's... It's black magic.
I believe that electricity is life,
that men can be motivated and controlled
by electrical impulse
supplied by the radio activities
of the electron.
That eventually a race of superior men
can be developed,
men whose only wants
are electricity.
But, man, you're challenging
the forces of creation.
The forces of creation? Bah!
You know as well as I do
that half the people in the world
are doomed to a life
of mediocrity,
born to be non-entities,
millstones around the neck of progress,
men who have to be fed,
watched, looked over,
and taken care of
by a superior intelligence.
My theory is to make these people
of more use to the world.
By successive treatments,
their bodies can be so electrolyzed
that they are no longer subject to the pains
and frailties of ordinary mankind.
Sometimes I think you're mad.
I am.
So was Archimedes, Galileo,
Newton, Pasteur, Liszt,
and all the others who dared to dream.
Fifty years ago,
a man was mad to think of anesthesia.
Forty years ago, the idea
of operating on the brain was madness.
Today, we hold a human heart in our hands
and watch it beat.
Who can tell
what tomorrow's madness may be?
No one, Paul,
least of all I,
since I, too, believe that we've only
scratched the surface of electro-biology.
But science, through the ages, has
been used for the betterment of mankind,
to give some faint ray of hope
to these non-entities, as you call them.
But...
Now, now, now.
Together, we've been very successful.
Let's drop it for tonight.
You hurry and clean up.
There's some cheese and beer
in the kitchen.
I'll make a Welsh rabbit
and we'll celebrate.
What do you say?
All right, John.
Good.
I won't be a moment.
Do you like it?
It's terrible.
Say, who are you?
Mark Adams.
Oh!
So, you're Mark Adams,
the big newspaperman.
Well, I have something
to say to you.
You ought to be
ashamed of yourself.
Five people killed and the best thing
you can do is write bad jokes.
"Under his own power. "
Well, look, lady, five people were killed
and we treated it with the proper respect,
but that was yesterday.
Now, the Globe-Dispatch has a circulation
of 300,000, say a million readers,
and they don't want to read any more
about the five that died.
They want to read about the
one that lived, Dan McCormick.
Where is he?
I don't know what you're talking about.
Oh, come, come!
By the way,
what makes you think he's here?
Well, I bought the fourth-floor nurse
a dollar dinner
and found the taxi cab
that brought him here.
Now, come on, give with the news item.
What's Dr. Lawrence's angle?
I still don't know
what you're talking about.
Okay, I'll wait.
You're wasting your time.
There's nobody here.
Nobody but us dogs.
Hey, you must be all right.
He doesn't usually make friends so easily.
Sure, me and dogs
always get along.
What are your plans?
I don't know.
I was headed for the county fair
when that accident happened.
I was gonna open up my act.
Guess I'm too late now.
Suppose I'll have to do something else.
In the meantime?
Well, in the meantime, there's always
that good old 18 bucks a week
from the unemployment insurance.
Of course, that doesn't start
for a couple of weeks.
Well, why don't you come
and work with me?
What?
I say, why don't you come
and work with me?
What doing?
Well, I've been thinking about
that electrical act you used to do.
Oh, I already told you
that was a phony.
Nevertheless, you survived an electrical
shock that killed five other people.
Maybe it wasn't
such a fake after all.
Maybe you've built up an immunity
to electricity.
What's that?
Immunity?
Ordinarily fatal doses of electricity
can't hurt you.
Oh, you mean kind of like
I was vaccinated against it?
Something like that.
Some cellular or glandular change
has taken place, which renders you immune.
I'd like to find out what that is.
Hey, wait a minute.
You don't mean you want to cut me open?
No, no, no.
Just take your blood count,
examine your muscular coordination
and study your reflexes.
If we can find out what it is that produces
this immunity against electricity,
we might be the means of saving
the hundreds of lives
that are lost every year
through accidental electrocution.
And you can live right here, too.
You mean, I get to eat here, too?
Surely.
Take it easy
until you're well and strong again.
That's good enough for me.
Dr. Rigas,
come here a minute.
He's my associate.
Dr. Rigas, I want you to meet
Dan McCormick.
Good morning, sir.
Hiya, Doc.
I've been trying to persuade Mr. McCormick
to come work with us
while we study his apparent immunity
to high-voltage electrical shock.
Oh, yes! Yes, of course!
Forgive me, I didn't recall
the name for a moment.
You're the one...
Yes, I'm the one that lived.
And I have assured him
that we will do nothing
to injure his health
in the slightest degree.
Yes, yes, of course.
Well, then,
let's get to work.
What say you, pup?
You ready, Corky?
Go get it!
Good morning, Miss June.
Good morning, Dan.
Lovely day, isn't it?
Oh, it sure is.
Well, are you beginning to feel
at home around here?
Yeah. You know, every day around
here is like Sunday on the farm.
Well, they're not working you
too hard, then?
No.
Why, they just give me
a little shot of electricity,
feel my pulse and look in my eyes
and tap me on the knee.
You know how doctors do.
Well, doesn't the electricity hurt?
No.
Why, I used to take more than this
six times a day when I had my carnival act.
You know, Miss June,
you look mighty pretty
with those flowers in your arms.
Thank you, Dan.
You remind me of a girl
I used to be kind of sweet on.
She had a high wire act
in one of the Big Mac shows.
What happened to her?
She ran away
with the fire-eater.
Well, don't worry, Dan,
I won't do that.
Hi, Corky! Come here, kid!
Give me that ball!
Give me that ball. Come here.
Good morning,
Miss Lawrence.
Well, you do get around,
don't you?
How goes the great experiment?
Nicely, thanks.
How long does
a thing like this take?
Oh, weeks, months,
a year perhaps.
You see, when a scientific discovery
is announced to the world,
it must be proved beyond chance.
Well, you've had a week now.
What progress have you to report?
I think we can safely say that
the preliminaries have been completed.
Well, that's fine.
Now we can get to the main bout.
What are you doing tonight?
Why, Mr. Adams,
I thought you were here professionally.
Well, if you think there's
anything amateur...
Look, June,
you're making it awful tough on me.
I'm trying to romance with you
and what do I get?
Biology.
By the greatest authority in the world.
Well, maybe he is.
But if you're interested in the subject,
I, too, have a few ideas along these lines.
Hi!
Oh, I hope I didn't interrupt.
No, it's all right.
I wasn't getting anywhere.
Come on, Corky. Come on, Corky.
Come on, Corky.
Hey, you and Corky
seem to be getting along all right.
Sure, him and me
gets along swell.
Say, you want to
see something?
Get a load of this.
All right, Corky. Lay down.
Down.
That's it.
Now, turn over on your side.
Over.
Hold it. Hold it.
Now, clear up on your back.
Turn over on your back.
Hold it. Hold it.
Now back on your side.
No, no, the other side.
Hold it.
That's a boy!
He learned that one quick.
I think maybe when I go back to the
carnival, I'll get myself an animal act.
Dan, will you
come in here, please?
Sure.
No, not you.
No, no, no.
I don't like that guy.
You don't know
anything about him.
Do you?
I know that much of the success
of this laboratory is due to him.
He's a genius in his line.
Maybe.
But I'll bet he spent his childhood
sticking pins in butterflies.
What do you think, Corky?
Hey, Doc?
Yes?
Where's Pete?
Pete?
Yeah. Pete, the rabbit
in the end case there.
He worked yesterday.
Now, would you
step on this, please?
Sure.
Hey, ain't we gonna
wait for Dr. Lawrence?
Dr. Lawrence is away for a few days
attending a scientists' convention.
He left full instructions
about the experiment.
Now, just relax.
Now, please.
Thank you.
Now, just relax.
You're perfectly all right.
You can get up now.
Hey, Doc,
what happened?
You must have dozed off
for a minute.
Feels like my hands are asleep.
Well, that's strange.
Just the usual voltage,
enough to maintain your immunity.
Oh, I wouldn't know
from that scientific talk.
You all through with me now?
Yes, that's all for today.
Okay. So long.
Goodbye.
Hiya, Corky.
Come on, kid! Let's go.
What's the matter?
Come on, Corky.
Come on, kid.
Come on, I won't hurt you.
It's good to be home.
Conventions are all right,
in their way,
but I'm for holding them all
in my own living room.
Yes, I always thought them
pretty much a waste of time.
Same old fogies
with the same old theories.
This wasn't so bad.
Our Latin American friends
are really doing some worthwhile things.
By the way, where is Dan?
He was sitting out in the garden
just a few minutes ago.
Maybe he doesn't know
what time it is.
Wong,
call Mr. McCormick.
Yes, Doctor.
I'm worried about Dan.
Well, what's the matter?
Isn't he happy here?
I guess so, but...
He seems to have slowed down.
Perhaps it's a reaction
to our experiments.
Well, maybe we're crowding him
too much.
I'll check the reports
after luncheon.
He's coming now, sir.
How are you, Dan?
Did they take good care of you
while I was away?
Oh, I'm okay, Doc.
Special for you, Mr. Dan.
No, thanks.
I ain't hungry.
Finish your lunch, Doctor.
I'll take care of him.
Take his plate back to the kitchen, Wong.
He may eat it later.
Yes, Doctor.
Uncle John,
there's something the matter with Dan.
Something strange
is happening to him.
Oh, nonsense, child.
I admit he looks rather badly,
but as Dr. Rigas says,
that might be the result
of our experiments.
Well, I wish
you would make sure.
I will, now that we've got
that scientific congress out of the way.
Have you any idea
what might be wrong?
Well, nothing definite, but...
Well, you remember the goldfish?
Goldfish?
Diggs and Betty,
in your office.
Oh, yes, yes, of course.
They died.
Well, that's too bad.
Something in the water, eh?
Yes, sir.
Electricity.
Paul, look here.
June asked me to
give you this.
Oh, yes. Yes, thanks.
What do you make
of Dan's condition?
As I suspected, he's nervously upset.
I've ordered a few days' rest.
Take a look
at this blood specimen.
Seems to be way below normal
in corpuscle count.
That was taken from his arm
this morning.
Nothing much like the specimen we took
from him when he first arrived, is it?
No, it isn't.
I don't know
what to make of it.
Have you kept a record
of the treatments?
Of course. I'll get it.
Here it is, Doctor.
I think you'll find everything
according to your instructions.
Oh, I...
I don't know what's the matter with me.
I'm...
I'm weak as a kitten.
Oh, you've overtaxed yourself
at that convention.
Probably.
Why don't you go upstairs
and lie down for a while?
You watch Dan carefully.
We mustn't let anything happen to him.
But of course.
I'll take care of him.
You go to bed.
It's been a good many years
since I've been tucked in.
It's very pleasant
being waited on.
Are you sure
you'll be all right?
I hate to run out on you like this,
but it's Mark's night off and we planned...
Now, I understand perfectly
and please don't worry about me.
Well, here are your reference books
and your paper and your pencil.
But if you take my advice,
you'll go to sleep.
Thanks. There's just a few
things I want to look up.
Promise?
Yes, I promise.
Now, run along.
Good night.
Good night.
Dan, I have here
a nationally advertised cigarette.
Now, if you'll watch closely,
I'll put the cigarette
in the palm of my left hand
and make it disappear.
Now, watch me.
Right out through the elbow!
Pretty good, huh?
How about a little card trick?
Here you are.
You like card tricks?
I have a standard deck
of playing cards here.
Now, if you'll just pick any card
out of the deck, any card at all.
Don't let me force
the ace of spades on you.
Any card.
That's it,
take one of those right there.
That's fine. Now, you look at
the card, remember what it is,
and put it back in the deck.
Okay, put it back in the deck there
anywhere at all.
Just slide it in there.
That's it. Put it in the...
Hey, Dan...
What goes on in here?
I don't know.
I was showing Dan some card tricks
and I guess I didn't go over so big.
How's Dr. Lawrence?
Oh, he's much better.
I made him promise to
go to sleep early.
What seems to be
the matter with him?
Well, overwork, I guess.
He was pretty nauseated and awfully weak.
Sounds like somebody's been
dishing out mickeys around here.
"Mickey"?
Yeah, that's a little thing they give you
when your presence is no longer required.
Now, where would Uncle John
get a thing like that?
Dan, I'm ready for you.
Mark, I'm not going.
There's something wrong around here.
Well, it certainly isn't
with Dr. Rigas.
Dan seemed anxious enough
to go in there with him.
Yes, that's just it.
Dr. Rigas seems to have some sort of hold
on him that the rest of us don't know about.
Oh, June,
don't go Edgar Allan Poe on me.
Look, you see these tickets?
They cost $1.10 apiece.
And when a newspaper man lays out
cash for tickets, that is true love.
Hurry up, will you, Doc?
You like these treatments,
don't you, Dan?
Yeah.
They make me feel strong
like I used to.
They wear off too quick.
Oh, well, we'll fix that.
Now, stretch out, please.
That's right.
This is our final experiment.
If we're successful,
we shall have proven a theory
that will revolutionize the world,
a theory that will silence completely
those scoffers who babble of trivialities.
And we shan't be disturbed.
I've taken care of that.
Yeah, that's what
I thought you said.
Oh, I'm sorry.
Better?
Look, June,
this is a big night.
I've got a lot of important things
to do and say.
But I can't get started if you're
not gonna pay any attention to me.
Oh, Mark, I'm...
Now, wait a minute. Let me finish.
I had this whole routine
all worked out,
the show, supper,
a little music,
you know, sort of work up
to it gradual like,
and now you dust me off
with the first pitch.
What's the matter?
Don't you want to go?
Well, of course I want to go.
And I want the dancing
and I want the supper,
and most of all
I want to hear what you have to say.
But, Mark, I'm worried.
Take me back to the laboratory
and let me check on Uncle John and Dan
and make sure they're all right,
and then wind yourself up
for some enthusiastic cooperation.
Well,
now you've made a deal.
Now you'll do exactly as I say.
Step down from there.
Success.
Even more than I hoped.
Come.
Now, point your finger
at that condenser.
Stop. That's the power,
the energy in you.
We must conserve it.
I have prepared for that.
Come over here.
Now...
Get into this rubber suit.
It will insulate you.
That will save the electricity
that's giving you your strength.
With these rubber gauntlets,
your power is safe.
Without them, it will run from you
into everything you touch.
There you are!
Not Dan McCormick,
but something I created.
Obey my will.
I can give you life
or take it from you.
Paul, what are you doing?
Finishing the experiment!
That proves once and for all that my
theory of electro-biology is correct.
Look! There he stands,
the shell of a man.
Electrically alive,
every impulse controlled by me.
Come here.
You must be mad.
Of course, I'm mad!
But while you were fooling
with the conventions,
I have conquered destiny!
Think of an army
of such creatures,
doing the work of the world,
fighting its battles.
Look at him.
The worker of the future,
controlled by a superior intelligence.
We must assemble all the great scientists
and show them this creature. We must...
Where are you going?
To call the police.
You've destroyed a human being.
That's murder.
Oh, please, don't.
You're a brother scientist,
you must understand.
What is one life
compared to this discovery?
Oh, he'll live, a beautiful
existence. No pain, no sorrow.
John, don't!
Stop him!
Dan! Dan, don't you know me?
That's enough.
Let him go.
He's dead.
You killed him.
Remember that,
you killed him.
When they ask you,
you tell them.
You killed him!
Now come,
I must get that power out of you.
Come.
Take that.
You'll remember nothing of what
happened except what I told you.
You killed him.
I killed him.
All right, sugar, take your
look and let's get going.
Uncle John!
What happened?
Dr. Lawrence came into the laboratory to
check the treatment I was giving our patient.
I left the room for a moment.
There was a crash.
When I came back, our patient
was choking Dr. Lawrence.
I was too late to help.
Do you mean to say
Dan killed him?
I don't believe it.
Ask him.
Dan, it's a lie,
isn't it?
You didn't kill Dr. Lawrence,
did you?
Come on, Dan,
we're your friends.
Did you kill him?
I killed him.
Is Mr. Stanley
in his office?
I'll see.
What is your name, please?
June Lawrence.
Yeah?
- Miss Lawrence to see you.
Have her come in.
Dr. Lawrence's secretary.
You go ahead with the preliminaries.
Yes, sir.
Come in, Miss Lawrence.
Mr. Stanley, I want to talk to you
about Dan McCormick.
Of course, sit down.
Now, what about Dan McCormick?
Dan didn't kill Dr. Lawrence.
Well, he's signing a statement
that says he did.
I know, but Dan couldn't kill anything.
He was kind
and gentle and...
Well, something has happened
to change Dan completely,
something terrible.
Must have, to make him confess
a murder he didn't commit.
Now, Miss Lawrence,
your uncle died of a broken neck
caused by a brutal choking.
A powerful man did that.
Now, you yourself admit
that Dan and Dr. Rigas were alone
in the laboratory at the time.
Have you any reason to
suspect Dr. Rigas?
I'm all mixed up.
Maybe Dan did kill him,
but he wasn't himself.
Now, now, wait a minute.
Take it easy.
How long have you
known Dan McCormick?
Ever since he came to
work for my uncle.
Get along all right together?
Been out to dances and parties
and so forth?
Oh.
I see what you mean.
No, we've never been out together.
I'm engaged to Mark Adams
of the Globe-Dispatch.
I'm sorry I'm not more coherent
in telling my suspicions,
but don't treat this
like an ordinary killing.
There's something tragic behind this.
And now with this confession...
Of course, you must realize
that a confession
cannot be accepted by the court
as conclusive evidence
when the charge is first-degree murder.
I still have to prove my case.
I know, but you'll introduce the confession,
and it's bound to influence the jury.
Miss Lawrence,
I give you my word
that I will do everything I can possibly
to help Dan McCormick.
Then find out if Dr. Rigas
has actually been following
my uncle's instructions in the laboratory.
"The District Attorney,
moving swiftly through the preliminaries,
"promises a speedy trial
in the case of Dan McCormick,
"the so-called Electrical Man,
"accused of murdering Dr. John Lawrence,
noted scientist.
"To expedite matters, he has requested
the appointment of a commission
"to determine McCormick's sanity. "
Dr. Rigas, the District Attorney
would like to see you.
Of course, show him in.
How do you do, Dr. Rigas?
We're sorry to disturb you, sir.
I wasn't doing anything
of importance.
We'd like to have you explain
just what treatments
Dan McCormick was undergoing,
and what bearing, if any,
they might have on his condition.
Of course. Won't you sit down?
No, thank you.
Well, here is the case history.
A complete record
of the experiments and treatment
given in accordance
with Dr. Lawrence's instructions.
I see.
Just what was the purpose
of these experiments?
Dr. Lawrence was trying to determine
what furnished the immunity
that enabled Dan to escape
electrocution in that accident.
That called for quantities of electricity
to be given, did it not?
No, no, no,
just small amounts.
Enough to maintain immunity,
as that chart shows.
I see.
Did this application
effect any change in him?
Well, he did become
moody and irritable,
but I can't see what connection
there is between that
and the mild treatment
he received here.
What's this, Doc?
Looks like an operating table.
Oh, that's an electro-thermostatic table.
We've succeeded in curing many
malignant diseases with electrical heat.
Would you care to try it?
No thanks, Doc.
I'll take your word for it.
I wish he could
tell us what he thinks.
Oh, well, all dogs respond
to certain vibrations.
I remember
at my Aunt Hattie's house,
that's Aunt Hattie on my father's
side, she had a little dog...
Oh, it's no use, Mark.
I'm worried and I'm scared.
I feel sure that Dr. Rigas
did something to Dan.
And I'm worried about what it is,
and I'm scared that
we won't find out in time.
Yeah, so am I, sugar.
How about your paper? Won't they
help? Don't they want to know...
Yes, if we could go to them
with something definite.
I tried to tell the Chief
what we suspected,
and he started to
call a man in a white coat.
Of course, of course.
Anyone who commits murder
must be momentarily insane.
Otherwise,
they wouldn't do it.
Well, Dr. Rigas,
thank you for your courtesy.
Don't hesitate to call on me
anytime I can be of help.
Good day.
Good day.
Dr. Rigas?
Yes.
Dan was insane,
wasn't he?
They can't hold him legally responsible,
can they?
That will be determined tomorrow.
Yes, but those doctors, they...
Now, don't worry. Dan's
interests will be taken care of.
The District Attorney has invited me
to be present at the examination.
You have been reluctant to
discuss the night of the crime.
But I assure you that your reticence
will not prejudice us against you.
We want you
to feel perfectly at your ease.
You did kill Dr. Lawrence.
I killed him.
Perhaps if we go back
over your boyhood again,
we can find
some mental meeting ground.
As I remember your story,
you were brought up in an orphanage.
There was a man there.
He hit you, often.
He hit you hard.
He hurt you.
You cried,
nobody would help you.
All your life, you've been
anxious to get even with him.
In your mind,
Dr. Lawrence was that man
because he ordered the treatments
that hurt you.
You did get even with him,
didn't you?
You feel better. You keep
telling yourself you got even.
No!
I killed him.
And in conclusion,
I say without hesitation
that the accused, Dan McCormick,
suffers from acute melancholia,
induced by a persecution complex...
In your opinion, then, does that
make him mentally irresponsible?
In other words,
is he legally insane?
On the contrary,
he is decidedly sane.
And definitely responsible.
Thank you, Doctor.
You've already testified
that you're a newspaperman.
That's right.
A feature writer?
Well, my stuff carries a byline.
Then you'd do almost anything to
get a good story, wouldn't you?
I'd do anything I could to save an
innocent man, if that's what you mean.
Thank you, that's all.
And when I returned
to the laboratory,
the accused was standing
over the body of Dr. Lawrence.
What did he say?
He kept repeating,
"I killed him. "
The cause of death was a severe
dislocation and partial fracture
of the third and fourth
cervical vertebrae.
In other words,
a broken neck.
That is correct.
Thank you.
We find the defendant
guilty as charged.
...to be put to death
before midnight of the 29th of May,
in the manner prescribed by law.
Good evening,
ladies and gentlemen.
This is your local reporter bringing you
interesting highlights on the day's news.
First, let's consider the case
of Dan McCormick,
the man who used to do an electrical
act at fairs and sideshows.
Well, ironically enough,
the last act of his little drama
will find him dying in the electric chair,
where all the immunity in the world
won't help him.
All right, Dan.
Well, looks like he's on his way.
Be careful.
What's the matter,
getting jumpy?
I guess so.
These things always get my goat.
Yeah.
Hello, Joe?
Well, they just went into
the execution chamber.
Mark's inside to watch him go.
What? Sure, I can speak up.
No, there's nothing the matter
with my voice.
Did you ever cover an execution?
Well, that's what I mean.
Well, that's that.
I could do with a drink.
Me, too.
Hey, Charlie.
What's going on up there?
I don't know.
Joe, they gave him three shots
and he's still alive.
Yeah, yeah, I know.
Say, Mike, did you hear that?
Must be something wrong
in there.
He's taking
all they can give him.
Listen to this,
they can't kill him!
He just killed two guards
in the execution chamber.
He just broke through,
he's headed for the yard!
Hey, did you hear that?
Don't touch him,
he's full of electricity.
He just broke through,
he'd headed for the gate!
He's got the warden with him.
No, they can't shoot.
Poor guy's walking dead.
No, the warden can't run!
If he starts, Dan will grab him
and he'll shrivel up like a potato chip.
Has anybody seen him?
What did the Governor
say about it?
Take it easy, boys.
Have you had any trace of him
since he walked out of the prison?
Boys, I'll be absolutely frank with you.
I haven't heard a word.
The experts say that
he can't live more than three hours.
He broke out of prison at 11:15,
and right now he may be dying
in some out-of-the-way spot.
It may be hours before we find
what's left of him.
Here's a late bulletin
on the McCormick escape.
"The body of Warden Harris has been found
in the woods near State Prison.
"Apparently, the warden tried to get away
from McCormick and was electrocuted.
"McCormick is still at large,
a menace to everything and everybody.
"Three men died during his escape,
and countless others are in danger.
"Stay indoors,
refuse him admittance to your home,
"And notify the police if you see him.
"He can only live a few hours
because the electricity which gives him life
"is running out of his body
with every step he takes. "
Frank!
Hey!
Frank!
But you can absolutely quote me as saying
that the danger has passed,
that the public has nothing...
Yeah?
Urgent on one.
Stanley speaking.
My name is Frank Davis.
I'm at the Lakeside Rod and Gun Club.
A man just came out of the bushes
and scared my wife.
It must be that escaped convict, McCormick.
Yeah?
All right. Thanks, Mr. Davis.
I'll take care of it.
Sergeant, I want you to
have 10 men
and two squad cars
downstairs in five minutes.
Yes, sir.
McCormick just scared the life
out of some people out at Lakeside,
and he's stolen a pair of rubber boots.
Rubber boots?
Well, then he won't die!
Let me get to that phone.
Gangway!
Did you say Lakeside?
Yes.
Well, that's out at The Moors!
Yes!
Hey, get back!
Hey, look out!
Get away from them.
Get away!
Attention all police and sheriff details,
Dan McCormick, convicted murderer
who escaped from State Prison tonight,
is somewhere in the neighborhood of
Oak Road and Crescent Drive, The Moors.
He's headed
for the laboratory!
Step on it, Regan.
May I help you?
I was just
tidying up a bit.
How nice.
Yes, well,
I think I'll be going.
Is this what you wanted?
Go on, take it, read it.
It contains the most
amazing record
of the extraordinary experiment
that was only completed tonight
when Dan McCormick walked away
the electric chair.
I knew you'd done
something terrible to him.
Terrible?
Was it terrible that I gave him life?
I have made a great discovery,
and I present it
with a spectacular demonstration.
Tonight the whole world
will be talking about Dan McCormick.
Not a handful of musty scientists,
but the whole world!
You mean you deliberately
let Dan go to the chair
when you might have saved him?
At first I intended to, but...
Oh, no, no, no, no, no,
he really killed your uncle.
True, he was under my control at the time
and didn't know what he was doing,
but he killed him.
My efforts at controlling him,
in fact, were so successful
that the temptation of putting him
to the supreme test grew too strong.
And they give him
a sanity test.
Yes.
Ironical, isn't it?
Dan McCormick, as you knew him,
was doomed from the first day
he came into this laboratory.
For years I'd hoped to
find a subject with an immunity
that would enable me
to test my theories.
You mean you deliberately
destroyed him!
I killed one human life in order
to prove one great scientific truth.
You know, it's a curious fact
that ever since my earliest experiments
with rabbits and guinea pigs,
I've always found
the female of the species
was more sensitive to electrical
impulse than was the male.
It's fortunate
that we met here.
Shall I show you
how it was done?
Dan!
Stop!
Stop!
Dan, stop!
Stop, I tell you!
Dan, stop, I tell you!
Stop! Can't you hear me? Stop!
I'll take your power
from you!
Dan, it's the police!
Dan, don't run away.
We know what they did to you.
Here's the book. There must
be some way to cure you.
Dan, please.
Gordon, Logan and Mac, come with me.
Sergeant, cover the grounds.
Blake, Murphy, around that way.
The rest of you fellows, come with me.
Rigas!
Electrocuted.
Dan!
Look.
He's just started
across the field!
He's carrying something.
It's a body.
June!
June!
Dan!
Dan, where are you going?
Dan!
He's gonna hit the fence!
Dan!
Listen, put me down!
He's caught
on the barbed wire.
If it cuts through that
rubber suit, he's finished!
Dan!
Dan, get away from that fence!
The electricity's
running out.
And when Dan carried me out of
the laboratory, I held on to it.
Well, has anyone else seen it?
No one alive.
We can have photographs
of the notebook,
and photostats of the pages
in Rigas' own handwriting!
Do you think
you ought to print it?
Do I think I ought to print it?
Why, this story will get me
the Pulitzer Prize!
Do you want to
make it possible
for someone else to do
what's been done to Dan?
Well, no, but...
Yeah, I see what you mean.