In the year 1871 the great fire nearly destroyed Chicago
but out of the ashes of that catastrophe rose. A new Chicago, a
city of brick and bronze,
concrete and guts
with a short history of violence beating in its pulse.
That history is on record
and the record is kept by the newspaper men who have made Chicago's papers. Great.
No period in Chicago's history
was more violent than the years of prohibition.
The rise and fall of the bootlegging empires was written in blood and bullets.
In 1932 there were 365 murders committed in Chicago.
One for each day of the year
eight policemen
were shot down the line of duty.
One of the most ruthless of these murders occurred on December 9th,
1932 on South Ashland Avenue
in a place operated by a woman named Wanda Skutnik.
Wander
next door in the Polish District
was the front for a speakeasy.
You got change for 20.
That's all right. Pay me next time,
Wanda, you're looking at a guy that's coming down with a cold,
sit down.
Oh,
thanks.
Right.
That
for a cold. This is good.
Thanks, Wanda.
The police found that. Get the police quick.
Hello. Hello, Central. Get me the police. Yeah, quick please.
This cornered frightened bootlegger gave information that pointed
suspicion towards a man named Tomic Zales.
Thomas Zesa
couldn't be found.
But two weeks later, a tip from another source
revealed that Zesa
had spent the night of the murder with his friend Frank Wei.
The police closed in on the home of Helen and Frank Wee.
Helen and Frank were taken into custody for questioning.
Frank Wee
admitted that Tomic Zesa
had spent the night of the murder at his home
but insisted he knew nothing about the crime.
Why did Tom
want to sleep at your house?
He was having trouble with his own man and
he was afraid to go home.
When is your last report to your probation officer?
Last Friday? Your shower
wasn't Thursday?
No,
I I know it was Friday because that was the day
my wife told me she was going to have a baby.
Went to the probation officer on Thursday, not Friday.
There's your report card.
You're confused, son.
Try to be a little more accurate.
Where were you at? 330 on December 9th.
I was with my wife.
I remember because I was helping her. She
walnut for a cake. She was making.
You were wrong about the day you saw the probation officer.
Maybe you're wrong about being at home shelling
walnuts for your wife on December 9th.
I know I made a mistake about the probation officer,
but I know I'm right about the other thing,
this statement was signed by your wife an hour ago.
My husband was home with me on the ninth of December.
I remember this because he was helping me pick dates
for a cake.
You sure it was walnuts.
I don't know.
I'm sure she must be mistaken.
His wife Helen was released
but because of Frank's confused testimony on insignificant points
and his minor police record,
he was held as a suspect.
Eventually after hiding out for six weeks,
Thomas Zesa
protesting his innocence, surrendered to the police.
You know, we're looking for you.
You know, we pick up your good friends, Helen and Frank, we checked
and why did you give yourself up? You were innocent as you claim.
I, I was scared
sometimes I used to hang around Wanda's place
when I heard they were picking up everybody she knew.
Well, I figured nobody would miss me. So I just beat it.
I know now I made a mistake
but I came in on my own hook, didn't I?
When you went to Wee's
house that night?
What reason did you give for wanting to sleep there?
I didn't give any wreath.
I, I used to spend the night there once in a while.
You didn't give them any reason.
No,
I just asked them to let me stay there and they did
and you're sure you gave them no reason
no.
After identification by an eyewitness,
Frank Wei
and Tomic Zales
were indicted for the murder of officer Bundy
and swiftly brought to trial.
I will ask you Mrs Skutnik if you see in this courtroom,
the two men that murdered policeman John Bundy.
Yes, sir.
Them
and him.
Had you ever seen either of these men prior to the time of the shooting?
Oh, sure.
Tomic used to come around my place all the time.
The other fella I never saw before
and the first time you saw Frank Wee
was on the day of the murder.
Yes, sir.
And the next time you saw him was the day you picked him out of the police lineup.
Yes, sir.
Thank you. Your honor. People rest.
Both men received a sentence of 99 years to be served in Stateville penitentiary.
This happened in November 1933
Frank and Tomic went to prison.
The case was forgotten for 11 years
forgotten until October 10th 1944
when a small advertisement appeared in the
classified section of the Chicago Times.
Mine.
Yes, sir.
Give me the file on John W Bundy cop killed in 32.
You got mcneil,
tell me what,
check this,
what do you make of it?
But I want to know why it's worth 5000 bucks to someone to find out who killed a cop.
11 years ago,
1932 was open season for cops
over on the north side. They were shooting them in pairs like a brace of ducks.
This is all I could find on that cop killed in 1932. That Bundy guy, Mr Kelly.
You see what I mean?
He didn't write much
thought. It wouldn't hurt to check it.
I might get your name in the paper.
There's a sucker bait.
Every grifter and mooch and town
after that five grand, they'll frame their brothers together
and maybe this is a frame. There's a lot of angles. I see.
You see what I mean?
This takes you longer to catch on. That's all.
And just thinking about it,
I'm looking for Tilly. We,
what do you want?
I called North Side 777 and they said I'd find her here
until
you run this ad.
Yes,
that's for me.
You know, something. No, no, no,
no, I'm a reporter from the Chicago Times.
We'd like to know why you're so interested in finding the killer of this cop.
Frank V
is my son.
I, his mother,
my son is in prison for killing him.
He didn't do it.
My friends, they tell me if I offer big money,
maybe somebody will tell who killed the policeman.
Now, you mean your son is in prison for killing the cop? Is that right?
Yes.
But he don't do it.
My friend's a good boy. He don't do this thing. I
bought this $5000.
What did you get it?
Is that important? Oh, yeah. Yeah, it's very important
where he got it, where you got, it might have a lot to do with the case.
He might have it hidden away someplace.
Maybe you got it from some mob that's trying to spray him. No,
no,
I work, I scrub floors 11 years.
I never miss a day's work.
I earned it
every penny.
11 years.
That's a long time.
Yes.
You just say it.
My boy, he lived it.
Believe me, Mr,
you don't know my friend
but me, I, his mother, you mean you got some new evidence.
Something that wasn't brought up at the trial? No.
Uh, no,
that's why I tried to buy new evidence. No.
No, you're just, you're just wasting your money. You get cheated out of it.
No,
not look lady
he's in for 99 years.
If you want to make good use of the money, send him out to cigarettes and candy.
Try and keep him happy.
You're very kind.
But I not use my money for candy or cigarettes.
If you're not able to help,
I get my friend out someday
somehow.
I dream of this day.
$5000 a lot for a dream.
Yes.
11 years.
I dream and I work
first. I tried $3000.
Nothing.
Now I tried $5000.
Nothing happened.
Then I worked 11 more years.
I get $10,000.
But my boy
someday get out.
I got to hand it to you, Mr. We check, you've got a lot of courage.
You helped me.
I'm afraid I couldn't do that.
I'm only a reporter. I just write the story.
I was reluctant.
Ok,
great job, Max.
Thanks,
darling
back.
Hey, this story on the scrub woman.
Pretty good.
How'd you like to follow it up by going out to state, interviewing her son?
Oh,
now, wait a minute. I didn't write the story to glorify the son. He's a cop killer.
You got any proof? He's a cop killer.
Well, they didn't give him 99 years for playing hockey.
He had a record.
He was on probation when he shot the cop. Yeah, I know. I read the record too.
He's public enemy number one,
he and a couple of other kids broke into a grocery store. He got two bucks and a record.
But in this case, an eyewitness identified him as one of the killers.
The Supreme court reviewed the trial.
The conviction was upheld.
So what, it wouldn't hurt anything to hear what the guy has to say, would it?
Well, why if you go out there? Well, look, let's put it this way.
Maybe I'm interested for personal reasons.
Maybe I'm interested because my mother did the same thing.
She scrubbed flaws in her hands and knees for more than 11 years.
Send me through school.
Ok. I'll go out to the pan tomorrow
and see
it.
How about expenses?
Is a voucher to take to the cashier,
Kelly?
I happen to know that your mother had a small annuity.
She never scrubbed the floor in her life. You never got past the fifth grade.
But I figure if you pull such a corny gag as this, you must want me to go pretty bad.
So, I'm going,
I want you to know that you didn't get away with it.
Jim.
Yeah,
early tonight. What happened?
I gotta get up at 830 in the morning and
go out to Stateville and see that scrub woman's boy
got something to eat for me.
It's all ready.
Hey,
all right. Hi.
Hey, you got a new one,?
Isn't it a beauty? 500 pieces.
Yeah, I can't see how a smart girl, like you can spend so much time on these things.
I noticed you worked on the last one.
Mm.
You know, that was a marvelous yarn. You wrote about that Polish woman.
Had a lot of feeling.
What a magnificent thing that old lady did.
Yeah, everybody's touched.
Especially Kelly.
I was two.
Makes you feel warm. Well, I hit it pretty hard
but don't start believing it.
I read the files on the case. That kid killed the cop. He got what was coming to him?
I need a branch of a tree right in there.
See
what?
Uh,
oh, that's sky, that's sky.
I, I wasn't thinking about the boy,
I was thinking about his mother.
I hammer out a sob story and everybody's blubbering all over me.
You know what it is?
It catches your imagination.
Nobody knows whether she's right or not. But
she's worked so hard. She's had such faith that
all I wanted of your eyes.
Honey. I love you.
Wouldn't you scrub for it for me if I shot old Kelly in the head?
I don't know.
You know,
Jim? Oh, here's one, here's one
for flying
Jim.
Look, I'm going out to see him tomorrow.
Well, you, you women are suckers for sentimentality, aren't you?
I guess that's how I got you.
All I had to do was dangle an orange blossom in front of it.
Oh, it took a little more than that Mr mcneil.
What kind of a guy is he warn? I like him.
Uh
Frank,
this is mcneil of the Chicago Times.
He wants to interview you.
Now you don't have to consent to this interview
or answer any questions if you don't want to,
but I do want to.
Sure I want to. Ok.
That's fine.
He's yours. Sit down Frank.
The time has taken an interest in your case. I came out to ask you some questions.
Yes, sir.
I'd like more of your story, your side of it.
I need an angle. Something to hit the public with, you, understand?
Yes, sir.
Now
you knew about the ads your mother ran in the papers and the $5000 reward.
Did you know she was scrubbing floors to earn that money?
Yes, I did.
I
thought you live for us
to get me up.
I guess that's all I've got to live for too.
Well, that's a very good angle to play out
your faith in your mother, her faith in you.
You know,
if you're guilty
you're just letting her slave her life away for nothing.
She knows. I'm not guilty.
I read the
news clips, transcript of the trial.
I don't whitewash you the way I said.
but you only ever convicted me.
Well, the true facts didn't come out.
Even Judge Moulton said I was innocent.
The judge that gave you 99 years while the jury said we were guilty. He had to.
But in his chambers he said he knew we were innocent.
When was that
after he sentenced us after,
well, maybe we better duck that.
What else?
My lawyer was a drunk.
He wouldn't even let me take the stand. He was afraid I'd get the chair,
go on
when they question you hour after hour you,
you're bound to get mixed up on a lot of little things the way I did.
That's not good angle. Railroad. Huh?
And they took me from one police station to another
every few hours, taking me around the horn. They call it.
So my lawyer couldn't get me out.
And there's one, the Skutnik
the first two times she saw me, she said I wasn't the man.
And all of a sudden she said I was finger woman.
All right. We'll play that up too.
I was home with my wife the night the policeman was killed.
Does your wife visit you regularly?
My wife. Yeah,
we're divorced
while we
better duck that ankle too. You duck so many things you don't believe me. Do you?
I talked to your mother. She's a very fine old woman.
She believes you. I need proof.
I got no proof. Yeah. Yeah, I know.
All right.
Now, what we'll do with this thing is this,
we'll play up this mother angle and the finger woman
and maybe a little police and political corruption too.
I didn't say that. Well, what difference does that make? It's a good angle.
Probably true. Anyway,
so you don't want a wishy
washy story.
This thing's got to have so
mass appeal.
It's the only way we'll be able to help you get sympathy
public support
and you leave it to me.
OK? One.
Thank you.
That's all right.
Are there any yoli men out here?
Not if you hear them, tell it.
Sure. Make a hard pitch, don't they?
99 years is a long time.
Maybe he'd been better off and got the chair.
Mr mcneil is busy,
but I'll tell him you like the story.
You're welcome.
Yes. The time is going to continue with the retake case.
You're welcome.
Yeah.
Yes.
Uh Well, thank you very much for calling.
That's right lady. I guess the time's gonna follow up the cake.
Fine.
So what are you going to use for a follow up? What? Follow up?
Well,
the thing is snowballing a lot more of it.
Oh, you want to give me a raise or do I just get the 5000 from Wee's
mother?
Look, me, my job is to print the news that's fit to print.
Did it ever occur to you that we might be selling this dead cop short?
Maybe he had a mother that scrubbed floors too.
And another thing you remember what we
said about that judge that promised him a new trial.
Well, the judge died three weeks after the case was closed.
He's been dead for 11 years now. Wee's
a pretty smart cookie. You know, he gives me a lead and those I can't check up on.
Well, why don't you take a different lead?
Look, Mac, you know,
we're getting on the average of more than 20 phone calls per hour from our readers
and every time that phone rings, you see those great big juicy headlines.
I know Chicago times clears innocent man. Well, why not? Why not? It's impossible.
Kelly, you can't do a thing like that
if you don't like the story, if you think he's guilty
end it,
write a finish piece and kill it. I'll take that deal.
I'll interview his wife. She believed in him so much. She divorced him.
I ought to kill it for good.
Yeah.
Yeah,
I'm looking for Helen Reisa.
Yes, I'm mcneil. Of the times I'm doing a series on the Wechat
case.
Oh, yes, I read them. Please. Come in
this week, please.
Oh, excuse me.
Just a minute.
I got your address from your former mother-in-law Tilly Weak.
I haven't seen her since the divorce.
I guess she doesn't feel very kindly towards me.
Will you sit down, please?
Do you think there's a chance that Frank will get free?
Do you want him to?
Sure I want him to.
Would you be waiting for him?
No.
No, I wouldn't.
I'm married again. Oh,
but I'd be glad for Frank because he's a fine man
and because he's innocent,
he was at home with me when the policeman was killed. Yeah.
Yeah, I know you were baking a cake.
You loved him there? I mean,
I did
very much
but the lonely eyes were too much for you. You couldn't go on that way. No, no,
no. That's what Tilly might think.
I loved him.
I would have stuck to him,
but Frank wanted me to get the divorce.
Did he pick out your new husband for you too?
It's the truth.
Did you contribute to the reward money or did Tilly earn all that by herself?
Oh, I couldn't help.
I haven't anything.
My husband, Mr Reisa
takes care of me and my boy,
Frank's boy.
I can't ask more than that.
He is a good man
and he loves me and he loves the boy.
We're lucky.
Yeah. You seem to get out of it. All right,
Mr mcneil,
I told you the truth about the divorce. Frank wanted it.
Well, it's going to be very hard to make people believe it.
Frank's wife says he's innocent and shows her faith by divorcing him. You know,
that's just the way it was.
I went up to see him that day.
One thing to make him keep up hope
one thing to cheer him up.
He looked depressed
the way you do when you're terribly worried.
Have you been
crying?
How have you been fine?
How's ma
fine?
And the boy?
How's the boy?
Oh, he is fine.
Always fine.
Everything's fine.
We have nothing to say anymore.
Oh, Frank, darling, please. I know. I know so many things you don't say.
You don't want to talk about the outside because I'm in here.
You don't want to remind me.
But I remind myself,
I think of lots of things
Evan
tell me how, how's the boy doing in school?
He's doing very well. Frank.
What about the other boys?
Kids can hurt them bad.
They're only kids, Frank.
They do not know what they're saying.
I know the son of a jail bur
cop killer's son. Oh,
it's nothing Frank.
I was thinking about moving to a new neighborhood anyway.
He'll go to a new school. It's no good. A new school is no good Helen.
A new name.
That would be good,
Frank.
I, I'm just like dead Helen
in 30 years. Maybe I can get a parole if I'm lucky.
30 years,
Alan,
you,
you've got to divorce me, Ellen.
You can't mean that Frank.
Yes,
love's not for us anymore.
It's finished
now. We must think of the boy,
only the boy,
my boy must live for me,
but I couldn't do it, Frank.
I just couldn't.
And for over a year I wouldn't do it, Mr mcneil.
But Frank kept begging me and begging me.
Then I met Mr Reis.
He loved me
and he was fond of little Frank.
He understood everything about us.
Well, what about the boy? Does he know?
Yes,
he knows.
But now everyone calls his father,
Uncle Frank.
You've made a point of that.
What my friend.
No.
You know, what's the other one?
This is Mr mcneil of the newspaper
and that's my husband, Mr Reisa
Reisa.
And that's my boyfriend. Are you
say I'd like to get a couple of shots of you and the boy?
If it's all right, it's all right.
Come over here, Frank.
You are.
But
do you mind if I ask you a couple of questions? Certainly not.
Were you in Chicago? In December 1932?
Yes. Why
did you know Helen? Then
what do you mean asking such a question?
Any objections to answer?
No,
no objections.
He's got to ask everything dear. I know that
I didn't meet Helen until after she was divorced. This can be proved by our friends.
I say, I say, you understand. I have to ask a lot of questions.
Sorry.
What's he asking all the questions for anyway, what's the big idea?
Well, it's about your uncle Frank. He's not my uncle, he's my father.
Well, thank you folks.
Good bye,
darling.
Wake up.
What's the matter?
A
hungry?
What a nice sandwich? Oh, no, no,
you've been gnashing your teeth and
making an awful noise.
I've never known you to be like this, Jim.
I don't know. Maybe it's something I eat.
I ate the same things
or maybe it's something I wrote down.
You look nice.
Will you marry me?
I did. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that's fine.
Thanks.
You're welcome.
Just remember I'm here.
Well, come on over here. Maybe we can work this out together.
What's the matter? Won? The pieces fit together
some of them. But they make the wrong picture
pieces never make the wrong picture.
Maybe you're looking at them from the right angle.
Sometimes it's mighty hard to figure.
Why don't you let go?
You want him to be innocent?
You want him to be free?
It matters.
Oh, maybe you're right.
Maybe I do want him to be free. But that doesn't make me believe he's innocent.
If you want to believe that's enough.
Believe it.
Will you marry me? Well, that's right. You did.
Will you fix me that sandwich then?
Hey, hey, hey,
ah,
hey, Kelly. Have you seen this item on the warehouse fire
might be a firebug arson ring.
Do you think there's anything to it?
There might be.
I follow it up.
Is that an assignment?
Sure.
Oh, man. Um,
I know there's nothing more to the, we check case it's all washed up.
But before you tackle this warehouse, Jan,
the warden called me this morning.
Wei
wants to see you again.
But for what,
I don't know, maybe he wants to confess.
Well, I was just up there. Don't I get time off for good behavior.
Weed Chick's been up there for 11 years. Max,
the cops been very longer than that.
Hold on. We check
Mr mcneil.
I sent for you to tell you that I don't want you to write anymore
about me or my family.
I've read what you've written.
I've seen the pictures of my mother,
my wife and my boy.
You poured our hearts out to you. Want a shame what you wanted help, didn't you?
That's the only way you can get people interested in the case.
Nobody's going to read a little two line ad like your mother ran in the paper.
I have a million people have been following this story or
somebody might know the killers and get in touch with us.
I don't want that kind of help.
I'll stay here 1000 years,
but you must not write anymore
about my wife and my mother
and my boy,
my mother is doing this for me.
Not to sell your papers. Oh, now, wait a minute, I made my wife divorce me.
So my boy has a new name.
Now you put his picture in the paper.
You spoiled everything for him.
I don't know. I thought I was doing a good job.
This is writing without heart,
without truth
before I thought maybe some crook lawyer would try to get the $5000 from my mother.
But this, I never figured.
Yes, I say it,
I'll stay here,
I'll stay here 1000 years.
Never write any more about my family.
Leave them alone.
Leave below my wife and my boy.
What do you make of that?
I guess he figured you pitched him some pretty low curves.
It was a story I wrote what I saw,
you know, up here, every man claims to be innocent
but the prisoners are the harshest judges of themselves
and they believe we have only two men who don't belong here.
Tomic Zaleski
and Frank Wee.
Alright. One.
So I I wonder if you'd let me try something else.
I like to talk to Tomic
Zaleski.
Ok.
I'd like to talk to Zales
Comic
Mrs mcneil of the times he'd like to talk to you
as
or
would it be stretching the rules too much if I had talked to him alone?
No,
no, go right ahead,
I guess.
Are you familiar with the work that time is doing for? We check.
Yes, sir.
Oh, look Tomic.
We want to clear up this Bundy case one way or the other.
We don't think Frank was in it with you.
If you confess and name the man that was really with you that night,
the times will do everything in its power to
get you a parole for turning state's evidence.
The chances are you'll be out of this place in a few years.
What have you got to lose you're in for a life now.
Come on, tell us the truth.
Sure.
I could say I did it
then maybe have a chance of getting out like you say.
But if I confessed,
who would I name as my partner? Joe Doakes?
I couldn't make it stick for one minute.
That's the trouble with being innocent.
You don't know what really happened.
I didn't do it.
Me and Frank had nothing to do with it.
Ok, Tommy?
No,
you must run a nice jail. This guy doesn't want to get out either
and I'm going to get this out of my system if I never write another line
warden. Do you think we
could talk to me again?
Yeah.
Yeah, I imagine he would.
I'll take you over to the hospital. He works there.
Mr mcneil would like to talk to you again if it's all right with you.
The Frank,
I decided to go on with this case.
I'll slant the story your way.
I also want you to know that I'm still not convinced you're innocent.
But I'm willing to date,
get the facts.
But remember this,
if I ever catch a lion, I'll blast you so hard.
You won't even get a parole when you're 33 years.
Is it a deal?
I have nothing to be afraid of.
It's a deal.
Ok, Frank,
I want you to give me some information.
This,
this judge you told me about, you know, the one that died?
Were there any witnesses when he told you he'd try and get you a new trial?
Yeah, there was a bailiff.
What was his name?
I don't know.
Well, I'll find out
what was the name of your lawyer?
His name was Underwood. Underwood.
Where does he practice?
He's the spot now,
that's great disbarred lawyer and a dead judge.
All right. What else
there? Wonder Skutnik.
It was she alone who put me where I am?
She identified me. But the other two witnesses, Gruska and the mailman
said no.
Then there was a police captain.
He was the one who got Skutnik to say I was the man.
He stood right alongside of her when she picked me up.
She was afraid of him.
What was his name?
I never found out he wasn't at the trial.
But where can I find the Skutnik thing?
I don't know.
It's nice material.
It's all like God, but it's the truth.
Would you be willing to take a lie detector test?
Mr mcneil for 11 years. I've been waiting for a chance to get at that box.
You know what you're up against.
If it turns out bad, you're cooked.
If it turns out good, it's only Leonard Keeler's professional opinion
doesn't count legally.
I'll take the test.
Ok, I'll fix it up for you.
Listen, kid,
take it from me.
Keep away from Keeler and that lie detector.
I'm not afraid of it.
That's what I said, why I had the cops, the state's attorney,
even my own lawyer believing in me,
I was a cinch.
Then they talked me into going up against that box. What happened?
What do you mean why it happened?
I'm doing life, ain't I?
Well,
the only thing the machine is for is
to record the emotional reactions of an individual.
Uh We place a blood pressure cuff about the upper arm of the subject
and
then through the impulses to the Timr system record
the variations in blood pressure and pulse and this
status.
Then the pneumo
grad is fastened about the subject's chest
and we record the changes in the respiration
and the electrodes fasten on the palm and the back of the
hand to record the changes in electrical conductivity of the skin.
It's a very sensitive criteria for emotional reaction, emotionality.
Oh
Mr Keeler's all ready for you, Frank
sounds like
just take it easy relax. I'll do the best I can as to heal in
like
what are you doing here?
I was driving out to Decatur to see my brother and thought I'd stop by.
I'd never seen a light test before.
Decatur's out the other way.
Yeah. Well, I, I took the detour the long way around. Yeah.
Yeah.
These are a pair of electrodes,
clip them,
the palm on the back of your hand and
pick up the electrical changes in the nervous system.
I'm going to try an experimental test. Now,
I want you to take one of these cards.
Look at it.
Remember the car that you chose and then place it back in the group.
I'm going to ask you
one card at a time
and I want you to say no to each car that I asked,
including the chosen card.
You understand.
Yes, sir.
I just face forward. Don't watch the machine.
He said as quietly as you can.
Hey, what's he doing that for?
Oh, he's forcing him to lie. So to show on the graph gives good basis for judging wee's
reactions.
Did you choose the seven pubs?
Did you take the three of spades?
No.
Did you take the queen of hearts?
No,
you take the ace of hearts.
No,
you take the five of diamonds.
No.
Did you take the six o'clock?
No,
you took the five diamonds, right?
Yes, sir.
Now I have a prepared list of questions
I'll ask you.
I want you to answer all of these questions now by yes or no.
And if you have anything to explain to that after I ask you all the questions,
just turn around and face forward,
sit as
loud as you can all the way through the desk
and don't forget. Just yes or no. All the way through
is your name Frank. We
check.
Yes.
Did you have breakfast this morning?
Yes.
Do you know Tomic Saska?
Yes,
you are 6 ft tall, aren't you 5 ft nine? Just a minute.
Just yes or no. All the way through
size and sit.
Yes.
I'll have to begin again. Now
I just ask you some of these questions. Here.
Is your name? Frank. We
check.
Yes.
Were you and Wanda cut next door on December 9th? No.
Were you home at the time of the robbery?
Yes.
That's all I'm going to ask. You. Just sit quietly now for a few moments.
No, I'll take it off
myself.
Why? I am a public
leader.
See you. Bye.
What's the word?
Now where
the record?
What's that jump there?
Well, he reacted in all three curves, uh, very specifically.
He lied to that question.
Is that where he asked him if he killed Bundy? No.
Are you married?
Well, it,
but he, he didn't lie. He isn't married. He's divorced.
Yes, but he's a, he's a Catholic
and he still thinks he's married
and he feels within himself that he's married.
And so he reacted in deception.
But do you think he lied about anything else? But
we run so many records today? Four or five of them.
I like to take a little time to go over them and compare one record with another
and the reactions
and, well, I'll call you later on this afternoon.
Hi mcneil. What can I do for you?
Hey, Larson,
I'd like to check on the date of arrest of a fellow by the name of Frank Wee.
You mean the cop killer?
Oh, I'm just trying to do a job. I'm afraid I can't help you. Mcneil.
Our arrest books for 1932 are in the warehouse.
They're not available.
What do you want me to do? Go to the commissioner?
You know where you can go as far as I'm concerned
here, it is
booked for murder, December 23rd
that make you happy. One of the things I was looking for
he was booked on the 23rd.
Now, if I can just find out whether he was arrested before then,
what difference would that make?
Well, if he was arrested before the 23rd,
it had proved that the Skutnik Dame could have seen
him a couple of times before she identified him.
Captain Norris of the new city precinct handled the Skutnik identification.
He never operated that way.
Captain Norris. Huh?
Say, let me see the arrest books for December 1932. Will you? I can't help you on that.
All I'm trying to do is to find out whether this fellow we
check
is a cop killer or not.
You know, back during prohibition,
the police department got pretty tough when a cop got killed.
Now you're talking, like the guy on the street
always thinks we're running around with rubber hoses, beating up innocent people.
Look,
you seem to think the cops framed. We check,
you're the one that's doing the framing.
You're framing the best police department in the country.
Bundy was a good cop and a good man. Why don't you write about his wife and son
and about the other 357 cops killed in the last 20 years back in 1932.
They did a lot of, maybe they did, but they weren't always wrong. How do you know?
Were you in the division at the time?
No,
all I can say is it's awfully hard for a man like me to
be fair to a cop killer and supposing he isn't a cop killer.
Maybe I ought to help you. But I just can't,
you've helped me plenty. Don't worry,
Captain Norris. Huh?
Had charge of the Skutnik identification, huh?
Well, it looks like he is sort of mixed up in this himself.
Maybe I better go over and talk to him.
You better take a shovel with you.
You'll have to dig him up. He died in 38.
All right.
Perfect.
All right. Transplant.
Yeah.
Hi. Hi, Mag
off your beat, ain't you? Yeah. Yeah. Sort of.
I need some help. Lay off for me, mate.
The word's gone out to keep away from you.
I've done you a lot of favors, Matt.
Is there any place I can find some records of people
that come in here and look at the police show ups,
material witnesses.
Somebody might have been subpoenaed to come in here and identify.
We check if we kept that kind of stuff, the books would fill soldiers' fields.
Would there be any photographs?
You don't take no pictures in station houses.
Press boys might get a shot of the witnesses on the steps, but never inside.
Oh, look Mike.
If I'm seen talking to you, I'm gonna be back walking my old bead.
I, why not be a good guy? Don't be here when I get back. Can I use your phone? Yeah,
use that line. Don't touch those.
Uh, this is mcneil.
Give me Kelly,
say, check through our files and see if any of our boys took pictures of the,
we check arrest in 1932
get someone to check the Tribune and the rest of the papers. Now, listen, Kelly, a
photographer takes maybe 10 shots, prints one of them. I want to see the other nine.
Now listen,
the Herald Examiner. They were still in business then, weren't they?
And this is just their kind of picture.
I'll check on that myself.
Hey, uh,
just thought of something. See you later,
your city precinct
and this is mcneil over headquarters.
You got the book on the we check arrest in 1932.
Yeah, we've been told to pull it out of the files.
I'll drop over and sit.
Ok, we're right over.
Right.
Let me find you
back.
How
many
minutes?
I guess you did?
45.
Ok, I'm mcneil. I just phoned you from headquarters.
You got that book on the, we check arrest.
Come
in.
Hi.
What'd you find?
We check was arrested in the morning of the 22nd.
He wasn't booked until the afternoon of the 23rd.
Norris took his time, didn't he?
What did you say your name was mcneil? What division?
I'm mcneil of the Chicago Times.
This is confidential information.
This is public information and I'm entitled to use it. We've got our orders.
You got a beef, you talk to the State's Attorney's office. That's a good idea.
I think I will.
In the meantime, I wouldn't let anything happen to that book if I were you?
Hey, this is hitting him pretty hard, isn't it? I haven't even started on him yet.
I think this whole thing stinks
Kerry speaking.
Yeah.
Yes,
right away.
That's the boss. He wants us both.
Let's go. Let's go
go right here. Mr Kelly. Mr Palmer is waiting,
Mr Kelly Mr mcneil. I believe, you know, the Commissioner
Mr Faction from the State's Attorney's office and
this is Robert Winston representing the governor.
Of course, you know, Mr Burns,
Mr Kelly, these gentlemen object to our handling of the we check story,
Mr Kelly,
we feel at the times through you and Mr mcneil is slinging
mud on one of the finest police departments in the United States.
And specifically,
we object to your efforts to arouse sympathy for a man who killed a police officer.
We just like to point out gentlemen, that Frank Wee
was convicted by a jury.
His case was reviewed by the Supreme Court
and the conviction was upheld.
All these legal authorities believed in Frank
Wee's gift.
Well, a long time ago, a lot of people believed the world was flat
this late date. Do you wish to impugn the integrity of the jury and the court
if they were wrong? Yes.
Back in 1932 a steady stream of convictions made good publicity.
Remember
Frank Wee
was found guilty and he belongs where he is.
Were you in the State's Attorney's office in 1932? Well,
yes, I was, but I didn't have anything to do with the wee
case.
I have no ax to grind Mr mcneil.
But I believe you're unnecessarily discrediting this regime.
Furthermore, your stories may be holding out false hope of a pardon.
To both Frank, we check and his mother. I'm not so sure it's false.
We are look up until now what we've
printed was based on interview and investigation.
We've invented nothing
and we don't intend to a great deal of emotion and color can be linked to simple facts.
The Governor feels this entire matter is undermining law and order,
but we check is innocent.
It would be criminal for us to stop.
Now,
you must remember Mr mcneil that another political party was in power at that time.
We're not to blame but the public tires us with your brush.
You can't destroy the confidence we build up in this regime just to sell newspapers.
It may have started like that, but it isn't that way anymore.
Now, look, gentlemen, believe me, this man is not guilty.
I don't know if he's guilty or not,
but we don't want this police force persecuted anymore.
What's the difference?
Just a minute. Gentlemen, the governor wants this thing cleared up.
We're not asking you to forget the man if he's innocent,
but we don't want this dragged on and on just to promote circulation.
Now, we have a proposition to offer you to settle this thing once and for all,
I can suggest to the governor that he set up a hearing of the pardon board.
If we check he's exonerated, he will get a pardon.
But if you can't tell him, you're to drop this matter once and for all. Is that a deal?
What do you say? Mate?
It's a deal that Mr Palmer says. So,
ok,
it's a deal.
I'll ask the governor to set up a special hearing next week.
Are you ready to accept that?
Yes, I am.
There's just one thing Mr mcneil.
If you go before a pardon board and they turn him down,
it'll go on wee's
record.
Then when he's eligible for parole,
that record may hurt his chances.
Now, mind you, there's no regulation,
there's no law
but the very fact that he was investigated by the pardon board and turned down
may have a prejudicial effect upon his application.
What you're doing is gambling with, we checks parole.
Now, that's a chance we'll have to take.
Well, gentlemen, let's settle then
we're agreed.
Thank you very much. Gentlemen.
We'll live up to our end of the bargain. Goodbye.
Bye
bye.
Well, you two seem to be satisfied, but Mr Burns doesn't seem to be.
I'm not
as your attorney. I think you've made a bad deal
while I have read the transcript of this case and I
am familiar with some of the things Mr mcneil found.
I am not at all certain that we have sufficient evidence to obtain a pardon,
but you haven't seen all of the evidence yet. Mr Burns. What? For instance?
Well, in the first place, I've talked to the bailiff of the court.
He cooperated Frank's statement that the judge promised him a new trial.
What basis did the judge have for making that?
I don't know if he made it, he made it. All right.
Here's an affidavit from the bailiff. That's not proof. It's inconclusive.
All right. All right. Forget about that.
I have a lie detector test and Keillor's
sworn statement that the fellow is innocent inadmissible
Grusin
and Decker. The other two witnesses in the crime maintain that we
check is not the man.
And they also testified that this Wanda scut,
he couldn't possibly have recognized anybody.
What have you found her? What did she say?
Gruska
and Decker contradicted. But it's inconclusive evidence.
Now, what new admissible evidence have you? Well, there's a whole lot of new stuff.
The State's Attorney's office tried to keep me out of the record books.
That's the reason they had that fellow faction up here.
And another thing,
why is this Wanda Skutnik Dame keeping undercover a
couple of mobsters might have killed that cop and
threatened her for not playing ball or maybe she's
trying to keep in good with the law.
I don't know, she ran a speakeasy. Now, look here mcneil, I'm an attorney.
I know what it is to go up before the pardon board. They go on facts, facts. Ok?
I'll give you something better than facts. I'll give you a picture.
Take a look at that.
Now, Wanda Skutnik testified that she didn't see Wei
from the time of the murder
until the time she identified him on the 23rd of December.
Now,
Frank maintains that she did see him several times on the 22nd of
December when the cops were taking him around from station to station.
All right. That, that bears out Frank's story right there.
There's a picture of Frank and Wanda going into one of the stations.
Where'd you get this? Me?
I got it out of the files of the old Herald Examiner.
Kind of figured they'd go for a picture like that.
When was this taken?
Well, obviously on the 22nd? Oh, now look here mcneil.
You can't just say that obviously it was taken. Then
you have to prove it.
Well, I have the photo when you go before the pardon board,
the burden of proof is with you.
But the picture after all,
it could very well have been taken after she identified him
mcneil.
You've done a wonderful job in assembling all this evidence.
But the law of the State of Illinois
requires only one eyewitness for an identification and conviction
so far that witness has not altered her statement
and that fact still stands
Mr Palmer
in view of this.
I'm afraid I must recommend that you permit me to get in
touch with those gentlemen who are just here and ask for more time
or until I've had an opportunity to go over the case.
Then your advice is to call the whole thing off. That's right.
Now, Mr Palmer, I realize that Mr Burns knows more about the law than I do.
But I want to tell you some things about this case. You don't know.
I went into this thing believing nothing. I was skeptical.
I figured we check is using his mother to spray him.
But I've changed my mind
this man is innocent Mr Palmer. I know that without any doubt.
Now
it's true. I haven't found Wanda Skutnik, but I want a chance to find her.
I want a chance to get this guy out of jail.
Now, if you call off this hearing, I'll never get that chance again.
The bargain stands.
Thank you, sir.
Just a minute. Mcneil.
Let me give you one last piece of advice.
Even if you do find this one that cut.
I don't believe she will ever change her testimony.
There's only one thing for you to do.
Discredit her,
prove she's a liar.
Otherwise you're wasting your time.
Yeah, that's great. Great speech.
Now, you've really got to find Wanda
Skutnik. Listen, Kelly. I haven't been wasting my time. I know a lot about Wanda
Skutnik.
She used to run a speakeasy. All right. She's probably still in the liquor business.
She's Polish and she used to run around with a guy that works in the stockyards.
So don't let your enthusiasm get you into trouble. Back of the stockyards.
A tough neighborhood. Wait a minute. Don't scare me. Kelly. Can you speak Polish?
No, I can't speak Polish.
But if I have to learn to speak Polish to find her, I'm starting right now.
Oh,
not like,
yeah.
Oh God,
no.
Oh,
what do you have
say? Did you ever see that woman before?
Her name is Wanda Skutnik.
You cover.
No, no, no, no. Her uncle died and left her a little money.
I hear she's remarried, having a hard time finding her
one.
I don't know. I'll see if the boys in the back room know about it.
Nik,
hello
there.
Yeah,
they are a good p
turn
on.
Ok.
Right.
You
mcneil divided the district back of the yards into blocks and sections
and for days and nights systematically combed every beer parlor and saloon.
That's all for me.
That's
really
fun.
I
know.
Come on. Very, she
got
too much.
You
just gonna look
it out.
The.
Yeah.
Yes.
Give
me a apartment.
Well, you have
this Maria.
Did you ever see that woman around here?
No, I don't think I have
my name's Skutnik. Wanda Skutnik.
A lot of women come in here but I don't know him by name.
Your name mcneil? Yeah. Boy,
I've been wondering when you hit this neighborhood.
I've been reading your stories in the paper
about Wanda Skutnik.
Yeah.
You know her
used to,
used to be good friends. You know where I could find her. Now,
I might
wear
what's in it for me.
What do you want?
I owe him a buck 75.
Ok.
Where is she?
I ought to have one to talk on.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Hey,
a
couple of drinks here, huh?
What happens to Wanda if you find her? Oh, not a thing.
I'm just gonna ask her some questions.
There ain't no warrant out after nothing like that. No, nothing like that.
Leave the bottle here
too.
She had not have thrown them bricks at me,
you know HOA
street. Yeah. Yeah, sure.
You go down there.
725.
Uh
What's your name now?
Ciso
bitch,
Wanda Sisko
bitch.
But don't tell her I said so
she's got a bad temper.
I don't want her throwing no more bricks at me. I won't tell her a word.
There you are.
Thanks.
No,
no,
come in.
Ok.
Who are you?
I'm from the time
here.
So you're one of scut
making?
Yeah,
I've been wondering when you'd show up.
Look, lady, I'm not going to give you any trouble.
I'd just like to ask you a few questions.
You want to cry in my beer?
All I wanna know is this,
is there any possibility that you might have been mistaken when you identified?
We check?
No.
Well, if you're so positive we can prove it. Will you take a lie test
to lie test?
You think I'm crazy?
Look, will you give me a sworn statement?
I did my swearing in court. How many times did you see Frank before?
You identified him? Never. You didn't see him before the police show up?
No, only when he killed the cop. Look, I said all I got to say that's all there is.
See, what do you mean? That's all there is. There's a lot more than that.
This kid's been up in the pen for 11 years. Look,
I've got to go before the pardon? Board day after tomorrow.
Now, Frank's got a good chance to get off if you help. I got no reason to help.
We check and I got no reason to help you neither.
You're the one that wrote them lies about me.
I've been thinking of suing you for libel. That's the reason I wrote them.
I called you a liar and a bootlegger and a finger woman.
I insulted you every way I could think of. And I'm gonna keep on doing it.
See, go ahead and sue us for a libel.
I'd just like to get you up on a witness stand under oath.
You still wouldn't get nothing out of me.
Why you bother
put that down?
You want to go to jail
now, you get out of here
now, listen, maybe there's something you didn't think of.
There's a $5000 reward, you know,
$5000 and what's more you don't have to do anything about it.
Just tell me enough to clear things up. Get, we check out and you get the 5000.
So what do I gotta do? Just tell the truth. Who got you to identify him?
Who are you afraid of? Nobody? Not nobody.
I ain't afraid of nobody and I ain't got nothing to say
w it's $5000. Shut up.
Now you get out of here.
You ain't gonna get nowhere.
I identified him. I told the truth it's him
I ain't never gonna change my mind. It's him. Now. Get out of here,
Boris.
Well, Mr Burns has given us a clear picture of the situation of Wonder
Knick can defy the pardon board,
but the board has no authority to subpoena her
the power to make a talk and we're helpless.
What do we do? Now,
the thing for us to do now is for me to appear before the pardon
board of Springfield this afternoon present our apologies
and ask that the case be withdrawn.
Will that appear on Frank's record?
Will it spoil his chances when he becomes eligible for a parole?
No, his name simply will not come before the board. All right,
that's it. Then.
I'm sorry, Mr Palmer.
I want to apologize to you too. Mr Burns.
I thought if I found this woman, I can make her talk but I missed her. I'm sorry.
Ok, Mike
Kelly, you write a finished story on this wonder Skutnik and end the whole thing.
Get the paper off the hook.
Ok.
Then I can get a train for Springfield in about a half hour. Good
big day for the wee checks.
Write a funny story.
Get the paper off the hook.
How did he end it?
Well, first you better go out and see. We check's mother.
I couldn't do that,
Alex,
I just couldn't do that. Kelly, what you wanted to do. Read it in the paper.
Yeah.
Ok.
What
instead of me
come in?
Oh,
I got to excuse myself. I was not expecting company. You must regard me as company.
Tell him
I was baking a pie for Frank.
Please sit down, I'll get you some coffee.
I, I really can't stay kelly. I just came out to talk to you about something
about the pardon board. Yes.
Oh, I pray for this day. I want to tell you about it
and now now it has come with this kid
tell you, I must tell you this.
We're going to call off the hearings.
We don't have a chance in the world of getting Frank his pardon.
No chance.
But you work so hard.
You do everything, everything I could.
You got lawyers.
He tell pardon board
we have the best.
But don't you see Tilly,
if we go before the pardon board, now
it will just be hurting Frank's chances for a parole later on.
We can't get a thing out of Wanda Skutnik. And
without her, we have nothing.
I saw her at the trial.
She will never tell
like a rock.
She will never tell
what she knows.
Yes. She's afraid
she will not talk never.
And without her, we have no evidence,
evidence.
They got no evidence. When they sent my friend to prison for 99 years,
I got no evidence when I scrub clothes every night,
go without supper, walk to work. So I say the Nichol of Frank
Africans,
what is the evidence?
I can't tell you how sorry I am. Tilly.
You try to help.
You're a good man.
But if this thing happened,
then we fight some more.
We fight more and more.
Yes.
No, telly.
We're calling off the hearing.
The times is dropping the case.
No,
but if you go,
I got no friend left.
I'm sorry.
No friends left.
No friends. No more.
Mhm.
Big fool. Me.
Sure. I got a friend.
Yeah.
Mm.
Where? Two?
Oh The Chicago Times
the other fellows write those stories, don't you
seen in the paper?
Hey, change that. Will you get me down to police headquarters? Fast you can
right away
mcneil of the Chicago Times.
First door on the left system with
me
say uh
did you make the enlargement of the photograph of this forged check here?
Yes. Why
I got a picture here?
I just wanted,
could you blow that section of the picture up right there?
Sure.
Would all the details come out on it?
Well, that depends. You got the negative. No, that's all I got right there.
Well, then I'd have to make a dupe.
How long would that take?
Oh, a couple of hours.
What do you think? Could, could you get started on it right away?
Yes.
But you're mcneil at the times, aren't you
been working on that? We check case
I tried on mcneil
at first I thought this guy was guilty.
No, I don't know.
You take a look at it.
Hey, can I use your phone?
Sure. Right over there.
I want to put in a person to person called Mr Martin J Burns.
He's up at the State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois.
That's right.
Yeah,
sorry, gentlemen.
The pardon board is in special session.
The case of
Frank. We
gentlemen,
I feel somewhat at a loss
because I came here to ask that the petition of Frank Wee
be withdrawn.
However, about an hour ago,
I received a telephone call from James mcneil of the Chicago Times
who informs me that he has uncovered the evidence we have been seeking.
It is conclusive evidence
that supports the petition of Frank. We,
you may present the evidence, Mr Bones.
Unfortunately, gentlemen,
my telephone conversation with Mr mcneil was necessarily brief.
He is flying down to Springfield. He should be here at any moment.
What evidence does he have?
I'm afraid, I don't know
Mr Chair. Mr
Fact,
I object
the State's Attorney's office has the right to demand orthodox
conduct of this hearing if you have conclusive evidence presented.
Otherwise, we ask that the petition be denied here. And now,
Mr
fact,
we certainly intend to follow orthodox procedure in this board of pardons,
Callie
Kelly sending it over the A P wire. You got anything at all don't have a thing.
We just have to stall them.
Let me talk to them.
All right,
Mr Chairman,
gentlemen,
I'd like to ask your permission to have Mr mcneil of the Chicago times.
Address the board
Grand
Mr Chairman.
Gentlemen, I'd like to apologize for being late,
but it was just impossible for me to get here sooner.
I, uh, I
don't know how much Mr Burns has told you
strictly from a reporter's point of view. Understand
I've assembled what I feel is a very solid case. And what does this case consist?
Well, it consists of such debatable items as a lie detector test.
Now, I realize that you're unable to accept that
you want evidence,
but sometimes the weight of evidence just because it's in
the record is heavy enough to crush the truth.
We'll discuss the shortcomings of our judicial system some other time, Mr
mcneil.
Yes, sir. I'm sorry. I, I realize that at the present time you want facts.
We have a notarized affidavit from the bailiff of Judge Moulton's court
that the judge felt that we
did not receive a fair trial.
We have those documents before us, Mr mcneil,
they could hardly be called conclusive.
Yes, sir.
But as you probably know from those documents,
Gruska and Decker contradicted Wanda Skutnik testimony
and those affidavits bear them out.
The board is aware of that too, Mr mcneil,
but Wanda Skutnik has not altered her testimony. Has she?
Wanda Skutnik lied from beginning to end. She lied about everything.
You know, it's a very funny thing about the Statue of Justice up there.
She has a sword in her hand.
It's a double edged sword cuts both ways.
It keeps cutting the ground out from under everything in favor of Frank Wee.
But the other side of it, that, that isn't so sharp,
it doesn't cut the ground out from under Wanda Skutnik.
And she's the only one responsible for wee's
conviction.
I have a police record here
that proves that we check was arrested on the 22nd of December.
I have another one here
that proves he wasn't booked until the 23rd of December 1 day later. Ok.
Wanda Skutnik testified that she didn't see him from the time of
the murder until the time she identified him in the police lineup.
Here's a photograph of Frank Wee
and Wanda Skutnik together
going into a police station.
I'll take a look at that gentlemen,
that's new and that's the basis of my conclusive evidence.
The two photos
of the police records
merely indicate that some time elapsed between we
checks arrest and the time he was booked
as a reporter, you know,
very well that this is a common occurrence at police stations.
Yes. But what about that photograph?
It must be perfectly obvious to you, Mr mcneil,
that we have no way of knowing when this picture was taken.
Was it on the 22nd or the 23rd or was it during or after the trial?
Yes, sir. I know gentlemen, that's what delayed me.
Now, if I do prove
that that photograph was taken on the 22nd of
December 1 day before Wanda Skutnik identified Frank.
We
check on the police lineup.
How about that?
What that
in that event, Mr mcneil,
we might be obliged to render a favorable decision,
but can you prove it?
Yes, sir. I think I can,
I just need a little time,
time.
Do you mean to say Mr mcneil that you still have no corroborating evidence?
No, I'm not sure. The police laboratory down in Chicago
is enlarging this section of the photograph
off the enlarging process. Yes,
I know. But how long will this take
as soon as the enlargement is developed?
They're going to send it over the wire photo system
from the Chicago Times to the Illinois State Journal,
which is just a few blocks down here.
Now, all I ask gentlemen is that you go down there and see that thing with me,
the methods of publicity previously used in
behalf of the plaintiff indicate that this
may rightly be regarded as an attempt to make journalistic capital of this hearing.
I am authorized by the State's Attorney's office to state categorically
that in the opinion of our office, the facts set forth in we's
behalf, do not indicate that he was a victim of a miscarriage of justice.
We are here to protect the interests of the people of this state
not to sell newspapers. Mr Chairman
John,
the governor ordered this hearing for the purpose of arriving at the truth.
If you fail to consider every item of evidence, no matter how improperly presented,
you have defeated the very purpose of this hearing.
What is your decision, Mr Chairman?
Gentlemen,
we go.
Are you clear to Springfield? Yes, sir. The wire is open. Hold it open.
I have the picture in a minute.
Which one is the
male? Yeah, right here
came in a while ago from Kelly of the Chicago Times.
This was blown up 100 times.
This 1, 140.
He said you would understand. Ok. Thanks very much.
Ask them if they're ready. Springfield, are you ready for this picture?
We're ready?
Ok. Here's the final line up.
Ok.
Alright, Mr mcneil.
Gentlemen, let me explain to you what's happening here
as you remember,
this is the picture I showed you before,
you know, and this is the area we're working on right here. The news boy.
All right. Now this print
is that area enlarged 100 times
and this print is that same area enlarged 100 and 40 times.
Now, the picture coming in now
is this area right in here blown up as big as possible.
Well, what do you expect to find in the enlightment?
The date on the newspaper held on the newsboy's hand. Is that possible?
Frankly, I don't know.
It depends on a whole lot of things, the condition of the Duke negative,
the density of the print.
I've been doing a little praying too.
That's it Mr mcneil.
Excuse me. Please.
How long will this take?
Or? It's a positive, but it shouldn't take long.
You can come along with me if you want.
Let's work out.
I remember this is the area I showed you
e it's beginning to come through.
Now. What's the date?
Watch the Date
December?
There it is
December 22nd, 22nd of December. There it is.
Good luck.
Good luck Frank.
No suit and 10 bucks.
Almost a dollar a year.
Frank.
It's a big thing when a sovereign state admits an error.
Remember this?
There aren't many governments in the world that would do it.
That's my daddy
b
through
an
anus.
Ellen
Blank
Frank. Be,
yeah, I know.
I want to thank you for everything you've done for Helen and the boy
and I want you to know you can have the boy with you whenever you want him
for as long as you like. Thanks.
It's a good world
outside.
Yes.
It's a good world outside.
And Frank we
check is free,
free because of a mother's faith,
the courage of a newspaper
and one reporter's refusal to accept defeat.