Original subtitles

Gotta get my old tuxedo pressed. Gotta sew a button on my vest. Tonight I

gotta look my best.

Lulu's back in town.

Gotta find a half a buck somewhere. Gotta shine my shoes and slick my hair.

Buy myself a boutonniere.

Lulu's back in town. Now you can tell all my pets. All my uptown coquettes.

Otis regrets that he ain't gonna be around.

Better tell the mailman not to call. I won't be coming home until the fall.

again, I might not be coming home at all.

Lulu's back in town.

Tell the mailman not to call.

I won't be coming home until the fall. Then again, I might not be coming home

all. Lulu's back in town.

Lulu's back in town.

Thank you.

You guys are being paid to work, not stand around and talk.

What's happening down there?

We're at the Fulton County Courthouse where Ben Matlock is about to defend

Gerald O 'Hara, president of the American Brotherhood of Builders,

the first -degree murder of Dan Keaton.

Keaton was the reform candidate who was challenging O 'Hara in the current

election, charging the union boss with fraud and corruption.

There's Ben Matlock. There's Matlock.

Matlock. Any chance of a plea bargain, Matlock?

You don't think for one second I'm going to reveal my strategy, do you? Give me

a break.

You know the DA's office.

I'm up against the toughest, wildest, most ruthless prosecutor they've got.

Thank you, Your Honor.

Now, Mr. Franklin, you have testified.

That the bullet found in the back of this chair was fired from the gun

discovered in my client's office. That's correct.

Did the trajectory of the bullet into the chair tell you any... Objection.

The chair isn't on trial here.

Let me ask that question again.

Did the chair... Objection. The chair isn't in the witness stand, though I'm

sure if it were, Mr. Matlock would be piercing in his examination.

Rephrase, Mr. Matlock.

I'd be pleased, Your Honor, if I could get a gnat -sized worth of space to get

my question out.

Now, Mr. Frankel, when you followed the path of the bullet into the chair,

did that tell you anything about the identity of the killer?

No, it did not. Or who might have transported the body from the chair

believe Dan Keaton was shot to the Delroy construction site?

No, I can't say that it did.

Thank you. Nothing further.

Court will adjourn until 1 .30.

What the hell was that all about?

I beg your pardon?

Don't give me that innocent look of all the unreasonable, nettlesome objections

I ever heard of. Oh, high praise.

And before lunch? Chair on the witness stand. I suppose you thought that was

cute. Oh, come on, Ben. The jury was falling asleep. I did you a favor.

Besides, your client is so guilty, the only suspense is when you're going to

to plea bargain him. Excuse me.

Miss March, Mr. Matlock, the judge would like to see you both in chambers.

The record should reflect that both counsel are present in chambers.

What's happened, Your Honor?

One of our jurors has made an accusation against counsel.

Jury tampering.

Well, that's ridiculous.

I know Miss March is new to Atlanta, but I'll vouch for her integrity without

hesitation. It's not Miss March whose integrity is in question. You're the one

who's been accused.

What?

One of the jurors says you paid him a sum of money.

Oh, come on!

Mr. Matlock, your indignation is noted. Who is this juror, Your Honor?

Juror number seven, Harry Craven.

Mailman?

Well, let's bring him in here so we can clear this up before lunch. I'm afraid

it's not that simple.

Your Honor, the prosecution has no belief in these charges.

Charges which so far haven't even been substantiated. Miss Marge, the court

can't ignore these charges.

Mr. Matlock is a celebrated lawyer.

His reputation has never been called into question.

Miss March, Mr. Matlock... Your Honor, I think there's a principle involved

here, one that's just as important as the sanctity of the jury system, and

is the individual's right against unfounded charges.

Miss March, we have a charge of jury tampering here, and that charge has to

dealt with.

As of this moment, this current trial is continued, pending the outcome of the

court's investigation of tampering charges, which I assure you will be both

expeditious and thorough. Your Honor... Miss Marks? Your Honor.

We accept that.

I am innocent of these charges, and they will be dismissed summarily.

Mr. Matlock, I sincerely hope you're right.

I'll see both of you back here in two hours.

Thank you for standing up for me, ma 'am.

Well, I have my reputation to consider. Oh, yes.

Yes, I don't want you losing this case for the wrong reasons.

Oh.

You want some lunch?

Well, yeah, I'd like to, but I'd better go see my client.

He may not take this too well.

A bowl of stupid, boneheaded screw -ups. Gerald, there's no foundation for this

accusation against me. Doesn't matter if you are clean. Gerald, you've got no

choice. You've got to fire him right now. Put as much distance between the

of you as you possibly can.

Now, wait a minute. Mr. Matlock.

Have you ever worked for a union?

Have you ever had the Justice Department and congressional committees watching

your every step?

I've spent my whole life in this union, gotten to be vice president, and I'm

telling you, they're gunning for him. This whole mess will be gone in an hour.

Not for him.

This jury tampering's gonna stick to him. Did you ever hear of the

of innocence?

Men in our position are presumed guilty.

Gerald!

If you want to get through this thing clean enough to win another union

election, you're going to have to ask for a mistrial.

Let me get you another lawyer.

Ben believed in me at the start of this.

I guess the least I can do is stick with him now.

Thanks, Joe.

You won't regret it.

And Mr. Matlock said that if I would vote not guilty and get some of the

jurors to vote with me, well, I'd make it worth my while.

Worth your while?

$50 ,000.

$50 ,000?

You work for the post office?

Yes. What are your assets, Mr. Craven?

Well, I have a little house about...

15 ,000 in savings, plus my pension benefits.

Continue.

I... I said yes. And as soon as I said it, I felt terrible. I wanted to back

out, but Mr. Matlock wouldn't let me.

Your Honor, I object to all of this. It's scurrilous and completely without

foundation. Mr. Craven has no corroboration of any kind. Let him

piece of evidence to back up his story. Just one.

Mr. Craven?

Where'd you get that envelope?

In the pending O 'Hara case, I'm declaring a mistrial.

Mr. Matlock, I'm sorry.

It's my duty to refer this matter to the Atlanta Police Department and the

District Attorney's Office for further action.

There's a

lot I don't know.

I don't know who paid off this Harry Craven, but whoever did, I'll bet killed

Dan Keaton.

Whoever that person was had a lot of money to throw around.

What about this fellow, Abe Delroy?

He's got a construction company. Now, he must have a whole lot of money.

We'll see what you can find out about this Harry Craven.

I'll stay in touch.

Hi.

Hi.

What are you doing here? I came back as soon as I heard.

What about your case in Miami?

Get a continuance, and if not, I'll find myself a substitute.

I'm sorry to interrupt, but there was no one out front and I heard voices, so I

just walked in, but I've got good news. Hi, Shirley. Hi. I could sure use some.

I've arranged for one of the best legal minds in the whole South to defend you.

Who? Me.

You?

Excuse me.

I've taken a leave of absence from the DA's office for the duration.

A leave of absence?

Now, I won't have any arguments. You can't represent yourself. So, as I've

heard you say, you've got yourself a mouthpiece.

Julie... Now, don't worry about a thing.

You're in safe hands.

Let me have a minute with Charlene in her office.

You're going to let her defend you, aren't you?

Please don't say it's because of my big case in Miami.

You don't think I'm good enough, do you?

Charlene, it's true that you're

inexperienced.

Of course.

I was, too, when I got my first big case.

And why can't I... Charlene, with lawyers and cases,

it's horses for courses.

And this one's just not for you.

You're thinking that if I lose, what it would do to me?

I'm thinking I want you to win your case in Miami and do what

no one else can do.

Be my daughter who cares.

Call you every day?

Who knows?

Maybe twice.

You know, sometime we should go somewhere else for coffee and a

There's more to life than just the courthouse.

Oh, this is beautiful.

Sort of a fine open -air restaurant.

Now,

what is your theory?

Well, Tyler's looking into Harry Craven.

I'm going back all over the stuff on the O 'Hara case.

And if I can come up with one good clue as to who the killer is, then I'll know

who bribed Harry Craven.

Don't you think somewhere in your bone marrow that your client, Mr. O 'Hara,

killed Dan Keaton?

No, I don't.

But there is something bothering me.

You are probably the best prosecutor in the DA's office.

Well, one of the best. Yeah.

And you say they've given you leave of absence to represent me. I never heard

such a thing.

Accumulated vacation time, actually.

Accumulated vacation? Ben, I think it's obvious.

O 'Hara was afraid he was going to be convicted. Julie, for you to represent

is a serious conflict of interest. How did they let you do that? Ben, please

wait before you get upset.

O 'Hara panicked. He got one of his union pals to offer Harry Craven the

and he used your name.

They, uh... They actually gave you a leave of absence.

How else could I be doing this?

Now drink your coffee before it gets cold.

We will go someplace else.

Someplace fine.

Mr.

Harry Craven?

Yes? This is your unlucky day.

You see, I am not selling encyclopedias or passing out religious tracts. I am a

professional investigator in the employ of one Ben Matlock.

Get out of here.

I don't blame you for being anxious. I'd be a little nervous if my conscience

was as guilty as yours.

Beat it.

You listen to me, friend.

I know you're lying about Matlock, and I intend to prove it. No matter what they

paid you, you will never be able to spend it. No matter what they promised

you will never be able to enjoy it. Because you see, not only am I in the

of Ben Matlock, I am his friend.

An interesting theory, but what you're suggesting would be impossible, Mr.

Matlock. Well, that $50 ,000 that fell out of Harry Craven's envelope had to

come from somewhere.

You people have a lot of ready cash. Somebody around here could have been

misguided and wanted to help Mr. O 'Hara.

Do you know much about computers, Mr. Matlock? I try to avoid machines to talk

back.

Well, what we have here is state -of -the -art.

All union funds go directly to trustee accounts at the bank. After that,

on computer.

You never see real money?

Not a cent.

Double safeguards to remove money from an account. There's absolutely no way

anyone, not even O 'Hara as president, could get money out.

Hmm. Sorry about your theory.

Well, thanks anyway. I appreciate it.

Better keep an eye on these things. One of them could turn on you someday.

Damn union is putting me under. I can barely make payroll. We're getting

dropped. This O 'Hara's a tough negotiator, is he?

He and his demands are pushing me right into bankruptcy.

No love lost, huh?

Oh, if I had the cash, I might bribe a juror to convict him.

You know, that's interesting.

I think that's what happened.

How's that?

I think whoever got to Harry Craven wants Gerald O 'Hara convicted. Kind of

double reverse bank shot.

Waste of money, then. Everybody knows O 'Hara killed that kid.

He was about to lose the softest job in Georgia, and believe me, O 'Hare doesn't

give anything away.

Hey, hey, hey, you guys.

What are you doing? This isn't a break.

Get to work.

And you.

Hi. Hi. I guess you got a hot dog.

Well, I got tuna or I got tuna?

Fine.

And a half pint of milk.

That'll be four and a quarter.

Four and a quarter? That's highway robbery. I can get a whole meal for

Nearest diner's ten minutes away. Take your choice.

Who owns this truck?

Mister, I just drive and collect the cash.

Well, if you ever meet the owner, tell him I didn't want to buy his truck. I

just wanted a sandwich and a half pint of milk.

Lulu's back in town. Yes!

Lulu's back in town.

Lulu's back in town.

Ray, it's good to have you back. I've always liked it here, but it's so much

better with you. Yeah, it's good to be here. I am thick of the road. Oh, Fort

Lauderdale. Biloxi. Panama City.

Pascagoula. Ray, this is Julie March.

Hi. Hi.

She's a looker, isn't she? All right.

There. Ray Templer. Hi, Ray.

Ray, when does Shelly get in? Any minute.

Oh, Mr. Matlock. Oh, hi, Shelly.

Meet Julie Marsh.

Hi, nice to meet you. What looks good today?

A meatloaf.

Both of us. Good time. Now you stick around.

I'm sticking like flypaper. How about a little Sweet Georgia? Sweet Georgia's

walking in.

Oh, yeah.

Sweet Georgia Brown.

Sherry, we know that Dan Keaton and Mr. O 'Hara had an argument in here, and we

know that this is the last place that Dan Keaton was seen alive.

I'd like you to put your thinking cap on and see if you can remember anything

they were arguing about.

Oh, I couldn't hear anything.

Because Ray's playing piano?

Right. Well, Ray's playing piano today.

They were sitting at this table. You were waiting on them. You had to have

something.

Mr. Matlock, please.

I know you're fond of Mr. O 'Hara, but the truth won't hurt you.

Mr.

Keaton said that Mr. O 'Hara was taking bribes from Mr. Delroy.

Anything else?

It's all I heard. Honest.

Thank you, Charlotte.

Me too.

I'm sorry, but O 'Hara's as big a crook as I thought he was.

And he killed Dan Keaton to cover his tracks.

Hello? Harry!

How's it going, old pal?

Who... who is this?

If you don't leave me alone, I'm going to go to the police.

Oh, smart move, Harry.

Very smart move. And you just let me know when because I want to be right

with you.

I just want to take a look at it. I just want to take a look at it.

Ma 'am, I'm telling you, my life, my entire future depends on you.

Hey, sir, could you slow down for a second? I've been waiting for you for

hours. Make it fast.

Last night, my girlfriend, Cynthia Lee, and I, we had a little falling out.

Actually, we had an enormous fight. And I wrote her this furious letter ending

it all.

And now you want it back.

Ah, see a man who's been in love. You can recognize that right away.

And you can also recognize the package. There it is. It's got red masking tape

on it.

Some love letter.

Yeah, well, I got a lot to apologize for. Well, you want it, you got to fill

a form with the postmaster.

Well, couldn't I just write a little note on the front of it telling her how

it's all a mistake?

Ninth Street Station, just fill out a form and it's yours.

There's a witness.

Says Dan Keaton accused you of taking money from Abe Delroy.

So? Did you do it?

Get her out of here.

Possibly Mr.

O 'Hara has done something illegal.

You don't have to worry, Mr. O 'Hara. I'm not a DA anymore. I resigned, so

us. You resigned?

I knew you couldn't just take a leave of absence. I knew it. Julie, how could

you do such a thing? Would you let Mr.

O 'Hara tell us why he and Dan Keaton were fighting?

Okay.

You know those lunch trucks at all the construction sites around town?

Yeah, I know them. I know their prices, too, damn thieves.

That's because there's no competition.

Are you saying Abe Delroy owns those lunch trucks and has a monopoly, thanks

you?

She's very smart.

How much did he pay you?

In a good year, 200K.

$200 ,000.

And Keaton knew.

That's what you were fighting about, wasn't it?

Yes. And if he went public, he'd probably become president of the union

you went to jail.

Now look, I took some money under the table. That doesn't make me a killer.

Ben, you gotta believe me.

I didn't shoot Keaton.

I'll talk to you later.

What do you think?

I think you shouldn't have quit your job without talking it over.

Ben, this is a matter of principle for me.

Besides, what would you have said?

I would have said no, absolutely not.

I rest my case.

What

are

you doing?

Oh, just a second, please.

Don't let me interfere with your work.

Pretend I'm not even here.

Go ahead, Ben. Look away.

Okay, buddy.

What do you want?

A supervisor would do.

And did Mr. Matlock say anything else before he gave you the $50 ,000?

Yes. He told me if I had second thoughts about voting to acquit, I should

remember that Mr. O 'Hara had some very tough friends who'd be very upset.

Thank you, Mr. Craven.

Your witness.

Well, Mr.

Craven, you've told us a fascinating story.

Unfortunately, I find it lacking in detail.

Perhaps you can fill us in. Now, you say Mr.

Matlock talked to you several times before he offered you money.

That's right.

But you and all the jurors were sequestered at the Alexander Hotel,

Yes, we were.

Under strict court order not to speak to anyone about the trial.

Yes.

Then how could Mr. Matlock reach you?

He phoned me.

What if I told you the hotel has no records of any calls at all to your

There's a payphone at the end of the hall on my floor. He slipped me a note

told me he'd call me there.

So, despite the court order, you say you took this call?

Yes.

Did anyone see you take this call?

No. Did anyone see Mr.

Matlock give you the $50 ,000?

No, it was in my room one day when I came home from court.

So aside from your accusations, there's absolutely no evidence against Mr.

Matlock, is there, Mr. Craven? Objection.

Argumentative.

Withdraw the question.

No further questions at this time?

Recross. Just one question.

Mr. Craven, is there a reason why nobody saw you talking to Mr. Matlock?

Yes. He told me not to answer the phone if there was anyone in the hall.

That's all. Thank you, Your Honor.

Order. It is, Your Honor. It's a damn lock. Mr. Matlock. This jackass got a

of $50 ,000 somewhere, and somebody's trying to railroad me in on it, and it's

damn lock.

Mr. Matlock, you will sit down immediately, or I'll cite you for

I can't believe it.

I can't believe it, losing control like that. If I was my lawyer, I'd fire me. I

would, too.

But I can't fire you.

You're the only client I have.

I'll see you in court after lunch.

Hey, Ben.

Ben. What are you doing here? Hank Craven just left. You're supposed to be

following him. Ben, I think by the end of the day, I can have some very good

news for us. But in order for me to get it, I'm going to need your influence.

Thank you, Jack.

Well, we've got Mr. Linford for paying off Craven. Great.

Great.

Now how are we going to get him to murder?

Computer room.

Mr. O 'Hara's office.

I'll be right back.

Maybe.

Maybe.

Okay?

We may be getting there.

I think we got him.

Ben, I've been thinking.

About what?

About the case.

Me too.

And what I've been thinking is, well, maybe you should represent yourself in

there. Why?

Because you figured it out.

How Linford murdered Keaton.

And nobody can present that to the jury more clearly than you can.

You can.

And there's another reason why you should take over the case.

Because you're an honest man and you're passionate about your defense.

The jury's entitled to see that.

Last time I got up in there, they saw a damn fool.

You haven't forgotten that little display, have you?

Now, I've got the toughest, wildest lawyer in Atlanta.

I'm in good hands.

Are you sure? You betcha. Mr. Linford, these photographs were taken by Tyler

Hudson, a private investigator.

They were taken at the post office on 9th Street the day before yesterday.

Now, would you tell the court who the man in the pictures is?

I'm the man in the pictures.

And what are you doing there?

Picking up my mail.

But just one piece of mail. Isn't that right, Mr. Linford? A large envelope

sealed with red masking tape.

Appears to be.

And what was in the envelope?

I don't remember.

Junk mail, possibly.

Junk mail.

Well, I sure wish I got junk mail like that every day.

Because it was $50 ,000 cash in that envelope, wasn't it?

No, it wasn't.

Is there a Mr. Mark Carter here today, and would you please stand, sir?

Mr. Carter is a postal inspector.

Pursuant to federal search warrant procedures, he opened that envelope

was delivered to you.

And these pictures were taken.

Now, Mr. Linford, does that help to refresh your recollection?

All right.

I opened the envelope.

The money was there.

I don't know who it came from.

But I can help you with that.

It came from Harry Craven sitting right over there.

And I wouldn't be a bit surprised if Mr. Craven will admit the whole thing.

How you bribed him to lie and accuse Ben Matlock of jury tampering.

That's not true.

Oh, yes, it is. You framed your friend for murder, Mr. Linford. And then when

hired a lawyer you couldn't control, you bribed a juror to knock him off the

case. You wanted to bring in your own man.

You wanted to make sure Gerald O 'Hara went to jail so that you could take over

the union.

Your Honor, this is pure speculation and irrelevant to the case at hand.

Your Honor, the defense has always contended that whoever framed Mr.

Matlock also murdered Daniel Keaton, and we ask the opportunity to prove that.

The court would be most interested in this theory if it can be substantiated.

Can it?

With Your Honor's permission.

The defense requests that the court and the jury be permitted to view the scene

of the crime at the offices of the American Brotherhood of Builders, and we

ask that Gerald O 'Hara be present at that time.

Mr. Linford, I remind you, you are still under oath.

Proceed, Miss March.

Mr. Linford.

Um...

May I have a moment, Your Honor, to confer with my client?

Of course. Thank you.

What are you talking about?

You know what I mean.

He did it. We know he did it. We know how he did it. So go get him.

Just remember, you're not 12 years old.

Your Honor.

With the court's permission, Mr. Matlock will be representing himself for the

duration of the trial.

Do you agree to this substitution, Mr. Matlock?

Oh, yes, sir, Your Honor.

I'll remain as co -counsel, Your Honor.

So ordered.

Proceed, Mr. Matlock.

Mr.

Ledford.

You remember the other day when...

I was over here.

You explained in careful detail how union money goes right to the bank

and how that money can't be taken out of those accounts except by committed

decisions. Is that correct?

That's correct.

Well, I think there's another step.

You know what I think?

I think if you could get your hands on $50 ,000 for this bribe, and say another

$50 ,000 for Harry Craven, you could get your hands on a lot more.

I did no such thing.

Remember we were talking about your computers?

Well, I had a computer expert in here, and he went through your system. You

what he discovered?

That it's foolproof. That's right.

Once the money's in the bank, but before it gets there, a person could take that

money and put it in an interest -bearing account.

Just overnight.

Imagine, millions of dollars in union funds, earning interest for just one

night.

A lot of money.

Adds up, doesn't it?

I wouldn't know. Yes, you would.

Because you're the one who designed the system.

Dan Keaton found out about it. And what was at stake wasn't some little penny

-ante bribe on lunch wagons. It was millions and millions of dollars.

Talking about major finance here.

And it was all slipping away from you, wasn't it? So you killed him.

There is no evidence that I killed Keaton.

Tell that to the judge.

Your Honor, prosecution agrees this is all circumstantial. Where's the link

between Mr. Linford and the murder?

Here it comes.

The chair.

Remember the executive chair?

This chair will straighten this whole thing out right now.

You remember this chair?

Where Dan Keaton was sitting when you shot him?

Mr. O 'Hara?

Would you please sit in the chair?

It's okay.

It's been in police custody since the murder. Nobody's touched it. It should

exactly the way it was the last time you sat in it, so...

A little low, isn't it?

It's not my chair. That's right.

His chair was set for somebody a lot taller.

Thank you, Mr. Mayer.

You see, what we couldn't figure out is if

Dan Keaton was trying to get evidence against John Lidford,

would he be going through your desk, Gerald? And then it came.

Dan Keaton was in John Linford's office going through his desk.

And John Linford caught him and shot him in his office in that chair.

Then wheeled the body down to this office and took your chair, Gerald, and

it in his office. And all of that was to frame Gerald O 'Hara.

Then he took the body to the construction site.

As if Mr. O 'Hara were covering up for himself.

The one thing he forgot to do was change the height of the chair.

He didn't adjust the chair.

So, Mr. Lenford, have a seat.

Looks like a perfect fit.

Has the jury reached a verdict?

We have, Your Honor.

Will the defendant please stand?

May we have the verdict?

We find the defendant, Benjamin Matlock, not guilty.

This court is adjourned.

They got good taste in dance.

You know, for a lawyer and a lady and everything, you're in.

So are you. Oh, well, I am sometimes.

But you're in all the time.

Thank you for getting my job back at the DA's office.

Well, I'm glad I'm not totally without influence.

Well, you know...

We're going to be on opposite sides again.

You know what?

You're still it. Go get them, Lulu.

Lulu's back in town.

Yeah. Lulu's back in town. Yeah.

Lulu's back in town.