Beware the Hot-Box! (Detective 361)

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Are you ready? [00:00:00] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:00:01] Speaker A: Are you with it? Yeah. Okay, let's go. You know what to do. The whole world's watching and counting on you. And all you people listening out there. Everybody everywhere. Hang on, Hang on, hang on. Welcome to Checkered Past, a loving postmodern examination of the. Go. [00:00:21] Speaker B: Go. [00:00:21] Speaker A: Check branded comic magazines published by DC Comics between February 1966 and August 1967. I'm Dr. Bob, and each week I'll be your guide on this trippy tour through 535 mid century masterpieces of graphic noveldom. This week, Detective Comics 361 cover date March 1967 cover price $0.12. Cover artists Carmine Infantineau and Joe Giella. Edited by Julius Schwartz. Featuring the Dynamic Duo's Double Death Trap, written by Gardner Fox, art by Carmine Infantineau and Sid Green. And the curious clue of the Circus Crook, written by Gardner Fox, art by Sid Green. Are you ready? Are you with it? Then away we go. Go. [00:01:08] Speaker C: If you're walking in the shadows then it's time that you get wild? Just forget about your troubles? And open up your eyes? When you wear a smile the world will sh. Hooray. You gotta turn on the sunshine? You're gonna push the blues away. [00:01:35] Speaker A: Trap designer Elval Ekdahl sells a new trap to gangsters to use against Batman and Robin. Robin is caught in the trap as planned. But instead of rescuing his partner, Batman lets Robin escape on his own. Meanwhile, Elongated man returns to the Magnum Circus where he got his start as an Indian rubberman. He learns that the circus is going out of business because a string of robberies have followed the circus around the country. Ralph offers to investigate and joins the circus temporarily to keep it running. Confused? Don't worry. I'll be right back with doctor Husband to explain everything. [00:02:13] Speaker C: The circus is a wacky world. How I love it. Hocus pocus ballyhoo. Ain't it great with the clown that always breaks you up? The elephant that shakes you up? The overture that wakes you? [00:02:27] Speaker B: Because. [00:02:30] Speaker C: The circus is a wacky world. It's a riot harassmentazz and hoochie cooch. Ain't it grand? What a jazzy world? You find the scene until you are behind the scene. And once you are behind the scene you'll see. The circus is a wacky world. Take it from me but it ain't at all what it's supposed to be. It ain't what it's supposed to be. [00:03:00] Speaker A: My goodness. I didn't know high tea was being served. I would have dressed. [00:03:03] Speaker B: Oh, my goodness. You didn't well, I'm sorry I didn't send you the invitation. [00:03:06] Speaker A: Well, listener, he's got a little tray here with a tea and a little pitcher for milk and. Well, that's pretty much it. [00:03:14] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:03:15] Speaker A: Well, no scones or anything? Or biscuits? No. [00:03:18] Speaker B: I just finished taking Captain Butler for a walk and it's cold outside and I wanted to warm up and I thought, why not make myself a nice cup of tea? [00:03:25] Speaker A: Well, I've got some news for you. It's cold inside, too. [00:03:28] Speaker B: It's not. It's warm in here. It's nice. Oh, well, shut up, everybody. [00:03:31] Speaker A: It's nice. [00:03:32] Speaker B: Oh, I'm glad I left the shades drawn. [00:03:34] Speaker A: Why? [00:03:34] Speaker B: Well, you'll see here in a second. [00:03:36] Speaker A: We have the shades drawn in the guest bedroom so that Captain Butler doesn't. [00:03:40] Speaker B: Sit on the bed and look outside and bark. [00:03:42] Speaker A: Yeah. Is it the walkers? [00:03:43] Speaker B: Yes, it is. [00:03:44] Speaker A: It's the walking couple. If you're new here, we have a couple from another neighborhood and they walk through our street. [00:03:50] Speaker B: They're very nice. We like them. [00:03:51] Speaker A: They're very nice. But the woman has bouncy hair and Captain Butler does not like her. [00:03:56] Speaker B: No, he doesn't. He barks at her in. With. With. With a rage. [00:04:00] Speaker A: Rage. [00:04:01] Speaker B: Yeah. Yeah. Hi. [00:04:03] Speaker A: Hi. [00:04:04] Speaker B: How are you? [00:04:05] Speaker A: I'm terrific. Had a fantastic Christmas. Went to New York City, saw a couple of shows. [00:04:14] Speaker B: We did, didn't we? Yeah. We didn't tell our listeners what we were going to see. [00:04:18] Speaker A: That's right. Well, are you ready to tell? [00:04:24] Speaker B: I'm going to cough a little bit. [00:04:25] Speaker A: Oh, doctor. Husband's got a terrible cough. Probably from walking around the bitter cold of New York City. [00:04:31] Speaker B: I got it. Started getting sick on Christmas Day. It was Christmas Eve. Yeah. [00:04:35] Speaker A: We saw the hit top play of New York City, Broadway. Oh, Mary. [00:04:43] Speaker B: Oh, Mary who? [00:04:44] Speaker A: He's barking. Anyway, how is he seeing anything? [00:04:46] Speaker B: He even might be on the landing. [00:04:47] Speaker A: Yeah, we saw. Oh, Mary. Fantastic. [00:04:51] Speaker B: Oh, my gosh. [00:04:52] Speaker A: Jane Prakowski. [00:04:54] Speaker B: It was hilarious. It's hilarious. If you don't know what we're talking about, it's coming to London. For those of you who are listening across the pond. Yes, I just heard. Okay. And so it is a very, very funny comedy. I'm sorry. Obviously it's a comedy. Sorry, let me back up. It is a farcical comedy, the premise of which is what if Mary Todd Lincoln, Abraham Lincoln's wife. [00:05:18] Speaker A: Wife. [00:05:19] Speaker B: Was an alcoholic aspiring cabaret singer who was frustrated by her life. And that's all you need to know. [00:05:25] Speaker A: Yes. [00:05:26] Speaker B: And it's hilarious. Yeah. [00:05:29] Speaker A: And then we saw Chess. Yes, the smash Broadway musical by the writers. [00:05:36] Speaker B: The writers. Benny Anderson, Bjorn Oveis from ABBA did the music to it, and of course, Tim Rice did the lyrics. It premiered in 1984 as a concept album, like Jesus Christ Superstar did. And I'm sure other musicals as well premiered as a concept album that was released. And the popularity of the music from the album launched the stage production. And it came to New York in 1988, I think it was. Didn't do well. Did well in London, but not so well in New York because of its Cold War theme. And then shortly after the Iron Curtain fell and the ussr, you know, disbanded, if you will, sort of collapsed. [00:06:16] Speaker A: Collapsed, yes. [00:06:18] Speaker B: And so the Cold War quickly became something of a topic that people just didn't want to explore anymore. So this, though, if you. If you love the music, Pity the Child is a song from it. One Night in Bangkok is another song. And of course, I know him so well. The duet, those were all radio hits in the late 80s during this time. And I mean, huge radio hits, especially. I think Murray Head recorded one. [00:06:44] Speaker A: You keep saying that, but the only one I remember is One Night in Bangkok. [00:06:47] Speaker B: And then I remember Pity the Child. I know him so well. So pity the Child. So anyway, well, you and I kind of listened to a little bit different music. A little bit different music. [00:06:58] Speaker A: No, I listened to the top 40. Anyway. [00:07:03] Speaker B: Where am I going with this? Oh, I'm gonna wrap it up like this. So those of us who love the music have been waiting and hoping that sometime in a lifetime a revival of the show would make it to Broadway. And indeed it did. And so we saw it. And so we had a wonderful trip, didn't we? We went up on the train from bwi. We caught the train. The longest and difficult, most difficult part of the trip was just driving to the train station, really. I mean, which is nothing at all. [00:07:28] Speaker A: We're out in the country and we. [00:07:31] Speaker B: Got on the train and three hours later we were in New York City and went to our hotel right across the street from the station and walked to the theater, saw one show at five, caught a drink after that and saw the next show at 7:30. I chatted up the girl next to me and she was a delightful young lady from South Carolina. And we had a lovely time. And she loves the show. She comes to New York quite often because her uncle is an actor and director. I didn't ask his name, but that's impolite. Yes, it is impolite. So anyway, we had a lovely time and she Loved the show. And of course, I knew the show and I was telling her all about it and everything, and she was just, like, gobsmacked at the intermission. She couldn't believe how amazing it was. [00:08:16] Speaker A: Good. [00:08:16] Speaker B: Yeah, amazing. So then the next day we met a dear, dear, dear friend of ours who's a former student as well, for breakfast. And then we got on the train. [00:08:25] Speaker A: Then I left the Pennsylvania Station about a quarter to four. I read a magazine, and then I was in Baltimore. See what I did there. [00:08:34] Speaker B: Got home and it was great. Train was delightfully relaxing. [00:08:37] Speaker A: Yes. [00:08:38] Speaker B: If you ever do that, if you're a listener, if you ever do that, I would recommend bringing a neck pillow because the train is relaxing and it's very easy to fall asleep. And if you're not used to sleep. I mean, if I'd had a neck pill, I would have just been in heaven. Yeah, sure. Yeah. Anyway. Lovely, wasn't it? [00:08:54] Speaker A: I'll say. [00:08:55] Speaker B: Yep. [00:08:55] Speaker A: Then we had Christmas, and now here we are. Yes. [00:08:58] Speaker B: And we watched the Lord of the. [00:08:59] Speaker A: Rings movies, of course, as is our custom. [00:09:01] Speaker B: How many days did it take us? [00:09:02] Speaker A: Three. Three? Yeah. Well, yes, three. [00:09:05] Speaker B: But we had events and friends to see and stuff like that. [00:09:08] Speaker A: Yes. And now we're ready to start the work week again. Or you're not. But I am. [00:09:15] Speaker B: Well, I have to take your car in tomorrow, don't I? [00:09:17] Speaker A: Yes, you do. [00:09:18] Speaker B: Yes. While you're working, I will take care of your vehicle. [00:09:23] Speaker A: That disfiguring cough. [00:09:26] Speaker B: I know it doesn't hurt. [00:09:28] Speaker A: Good. [00:09:28] Speaker B: But it's not good for my voice. [00:09:30] Speaker A: It's. Well, I hope you can get through the podcast. [00:09:34] Speaker B: Me too. I'm sorry, listener. [00:09:36] Speaker A: Robin's being hotboxed and I know the feeling. Yeah, usually it's me doing it to myself. It's Detective Comics number 361. Robin is in a sealed glass box which is radiating heat. He's stripping his costume off, dripping with sweat. And Batman's just gonna leave him to his own devices. [00:10:02] Speaker B: Yep. Bye. [00:10:03] Speaker A: Gotta go. Sorry. Bye. Holy steam bath. Why is Batman hotfooting it away from Robin? The sizzling answer is inside. [00:10:13] Speaker B: Let's go to the splash page. [00:10:14] Speaker A: Let's do. [00:10:15] Speaker B: Is it Evol Ekdal? Evil Ekdal. [00:10:19] Speaker A: Evil Ekdal. E I, V, O, L, E, K, D, D, A, L. It is an anagram for Olive Dalek, so I imagine he is actually a Dalek from wherever the Daleks come from. He could also be Olive Laked. Or Voila, Dalek. I tried really hard to figure out an anagram. [00:10:51] Speaker B: It could be Levy Latke it could be lovey. [00:10:58] Speaker A: Lovey Latke. [00:10:59] Speaker B: Lovi Lodke. [00:11:02] Speaker A: I don't know. Anyway, it's his second appearance fighting Batman in second of two. He's never to be seen again. [00:11:09] Speaker B: No. [00:11:09] Speaker A: He dies, it seems like. [00:11:10] Speaker B: Oh, I gave it away, didn't I? [00:11:11] Speaker A: Yeah, you did. Well, we'll see you next week. [00:11:15] Speaker B: He so funny. If you ended the podcast right there. [00:11:19] Speaker A: Did the doctor. Don't tempt me. [00:11:20] Speaker B: Oh, my God, that would be so funny. [00:11:23] Speaker A: It seems like an odd name to come up with as a new villain that's going to appear twice, doesn't it? [00:11:28] Speaker B: It does. [00:11:28] Speaker A: Like, why didn't they call him Trapmaster? Because he's a master maker of tricky traps. [00:11:33] Speaker B: Well, he thinks he is. [00:11:34] Speaker A: He's devised the most diabolical trap of all. A double burial doozy. For it was designed to destroy not only the bird Robin it captured, but the masked Manhunter who attempted to rescue him in the Dynamic Duo's double death trap. Trap. During the first 40 years of the 20th century, that would be technically 1901 through 1941, a specialty shop in East Berlin manufactured stage props for magicians and escape artists. Then the Berlin Wall was built as the Iron Curtain fell with a clang. Now the deft fingers that had made stage gimmicks turned to more serious escape devices. They are building furniture with trapdoors and such to smuggle people out of East Berlin. Which is a worthy pursuit. Sure. I have to wonder why there's such a big. They're so anti commie in this issue. This seems way past the Red Scare era. Well, not way, but significantly past. Yes. [00:12:51] Speaker B: Okay. Yes. [00:12:55] Speaker A: And once used, these pieces of escape furniture were discarded, but not ignored. They've been noticed by the Red Secret Police who are prowling West Berlin. They've got to learn who makes them and liquidate that person. This spy is making photographic clues, and then he's going to contact the only man who can identify them, who happens. [00:13:23] Speaker B: To be in Gotham City, usa. [00:13:25] Speaker A: Yes. What a quinky dink. One week later, three men march in military precision up to a house in Gotham City, usa, where they break down the door and seconds afterward, meet Evil Ekdal. [00:13:38] Speaker B: Evil Ekdal? What's the meaning of this? What right have you to. [00:13:42] Speaker A: I have come a long way to see you, Evil Ekdal. You are familiar with my face? [00:13:48] Speaker B: No, I'm subjected to your awful German accent. [00:13:52] Speaker A: Be quiet. Okay, for an instant, livid fear etches its acid on the face of this master craftsman, builder of escape gadgets and tantalizing traps for the criminal underworld of America to witness. See Detective Comics number 346. Batman's inescapable doom Trap. [00:14:09] Speaker B: So Eval, Ekdal says to the man, the Baldman. Yes, I recognize you. In the old country you are known as the Berlin Butcher. [00:14:17] Speaker A: And proud of it too. Now I have a job for you. Suddenly, a hard voice raps with fury as another gentleman busts through. [00:14:29] Speaker B: Balding. Where did he get off interrupting us? [00:14:32] Speaker A: I was here first. See? [00:14:34] Speaker B: Wait your turn like everybody else. [00:14:36] Speaker A: Shall feed the sports of him. Sir, there's a henchman there also. [00:14:42] Speaker B: You want us to give him lead poisoning, boss? [00:14:44] Speaker A: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. There is no need for violence. [00:14:49] Speaker B: Oh, you're getting better. Okay, there you go. [00:14:51] Speaker A: Neither of us funds the police rushing here. You tell me when to return, Ekdal. [00:14:57] Speaker B: Shall we say tomorrow night at 9? And of course, I charge a fee for my service. [00:15:01] Speaker A: I am well aware of that. I shall be back tomorrow with the $100,000. [00:15:08] Speaker B: Who was that creep, Hector? [00:15:11] Speaker A: Nevermind, never mind, never mind. [00:15:13] Speaker B: Let us go on with our business and my deadly trap for Batman, which I worked out after escaping the prison he put me in. I've decided that Ekdal's voice sounds like Lauren Bacall because I've been coughing. [00:15:23] Speaker A: Yes. Now, how this gentleman would like to know how could prison hold the greatest trap maker of all time? I hope your newest trap is all you say it is. Where is it? I don't see anything. [00:15:35] Speaker B: On the floor in front of you. [00:15:36] Speaker A: On the floor. I'm in no mood for jokes at all. I don't see a thing. Ah. [00:15:40] Speaker B: And neither were Batman and Robin. Now let's pretend. Now I'm going forlorn, Bacall. And neither will Batman and Robin. Now let's pretend. I am Batman and you are Robin. [00:15:54] Speaker A: Now I can see the trap. I don't know what this guy's story is. [00:15:59] Speaker B: I can see the trap. [00:16:00] Speaker A: I can see a trap. [00:16:01] Speaker B: Yes. [00:16:02] Speaker A: So he steps into the middle of the floor, these glass walls and roofs. [00:16:06] Speaker B: A transparent safe instantly snaps shut on you. There is no way out. Its walls are getting hotter and hotter. Now, what would I, as Batman, do? [00:16:17] Speaker A: I don't know. Open the safe by turning that attached dial? [00:16:21] Speaker B: Exactly. That isn't a safe maid that the world's greatest detective can't open. [00:16:26] Speaker A: Okay, so you got Robin out before he, quote unquote, was fried alive. What kind of trap is that? I shelled out 100 grand to kill the Dynamic Duo, remember? [00:16:37] Speaker B: Oh, I neglected to mention one important detail. I Disconnected the certain apparatus. When Batman turns the safe dial, it will be connected so that at the final click, the safe will explode and blow Batman and Robin to bits. [00:16:51] Speaker A: A double death trap. My apologies, Ekdahl, you are a genius. [00:16:57] Speaker B: That's gonna be Ekdal's voice for the remainder of his life. [00:16:59] Speaker A: Fine, fine, fine. On the same evening in the Wayne mansion as Bruce, Batman, Wayne and Dick, Robin, grace and finish dinner. Alpha. Jesus. Give me a heads up before you do that. Right in the microphone. [00:17:14] Speaker B: Well, no, I covered my eye. [00:17:15] Speaker A: I know you're. [00:17:16] Speaker B: But that was. [00:17:17] Speaker A: I know, I know. It's in the dialogue, okay. [00:17:20] Speaker B: Beg your pardon, sir and master Dick, but it's time for your patrol of Gotham city. And master Dick, A schoolmate phoned about the homework. [00:17:30] Speaker A: A holy dial phone. I promise to call Eddie about the next assignment. Hmm. What's his phone number? There are so many numerals, I never can remember them all, really. [00:17:42] Speaker B: Remember, Dick, remember recalling phone numbers? [00:17:44] Speaker A: Yes. I could still recall my childhood number, my grandmother's number, my best friend's number. [00:17:50] Speaker B: Yeah. I can remember the phone number of our first. First. My first voice teacher. [00:17:54] Speaker A: Still, I don't think he's going to be a very good crime fighter when he grows up if he can't remember seven digits in a row. [00:18:02] Speaker B: Right. And that Batman needs to give him some elementary method of remembering phone numbers. Because as we know, if I recall correctly, I say as we know as if it's a fact, but the rotary phone dials had letters assigned to them because originally phone numbers were the street and the number. Like Asbury397. [00:18:31] Speaker A: Yeah, I don't know if it was necessarily the street because I know that ours was, see, four, eight. So it was like Greenwood 31345, something like that. [00:18:47] Speaker B: Okay, okay. [00:18:48] Speaker A: I think, like, there were different exchange names, but they weren't necessarily your street. [00:18:52] Speaker B: Oh, okay, okay. But that's how it used to be. That's why for those. I can't imagine there's any listener who doesn't know what rotary phone is. [00:19:01] Speaker A: I'm surprised. [00:19:03] Speaker B: That's why rotary phones used to have letters on them. Yes, yes. And it used to be way back before cell phones that advertisements for certain services would have. They would say, you know, like 1-800-539-FINE. You know, if you wanted to. [00:19:20] Speaker A: Well, I've got some news for you. [00:19:21] Speaker B: What? [00:19:22] Speaker A: My iPhone also has letters on the numbers. [00:19:25] Speaker B: Oh, does it? Of course it does. No, it doesn't. [00:19:28] Speaker A: Yes, it does. [00:19:29] Speaker B: Oh, I see that. Oh, isn't that funny? They're still There. [00:19:31] Speaker A: Sure. Well, what if you have to call 1-800-Unclogmy Drain or something? [00:19:36] Speaker B: Right, Right, right, Right. [00:19:38] Speaker A: Can't be expected to remember numbers. [00:19:40] Speaker B: Of course not. [00:19:41] Speaker A: You're not a crime fighter. Well, Batman gives him a helpful mnemonic device to aid his memory. What's eddie's number? It's 328-3663. Well, look at that. We can spell out eat food. Neato. Bruce, it's easier to remember two words than seven numbers. Yes, if you always associate Eddie with eating food. Robin. Sure. Easy squeezy. Soon after, Batman and Robin are cruising the streets of Gotham City when the seismicon starts hopping around like mad. [00:20:21] Speaker B: My goodness. It's picked up a sound. And an explosion in the vicinity. The Batmobile is as delicately tuned to crime as it is to its two owners. Hmm. [00:20:31] Speaker A: Quickly, the radar antenna spins and zeroes in on the site of the disturbance. [00:20:35] Speaker B: The Fortune Importing Company. [00:20:37] Speaker A: Those crooks don't know it, but they're doing some importing too us. All right. The crooks are inside. They're trapped inside. Here comes Batman and Robin. The crooks think to themselves they're the ones who are really gonna be trapped. The massive fist of the masked Manhunter explodes with unerring power into the face of one of the crooks. The other crook lures Robin into the middle of the floor. [00:21:07] Speaker B: Two of the gangsters flee with cunning swiftness past the almost invisible trap laid on the floor. [00:21:12] Speaker A: It's not. I can see it. [00:21:13] Speaker B: I can see it. [00:21:14] Speaker A: It's not invisible at all. And guess what else I can remember? Phone numbers. So, Robin, maybe I should take your place. I've got a jerkin that looks almost like your costume. [00:21:24] Speaker B: You're right. [00:21:25] Speaker A: I could do it. And I can not run fast or do anything. Do a leap out of a. [00:21:33] Speaker B: Or kick. [00:21:34] Speaker A: Yeah, you'd have to put a door in the Batmobile so I can get out of it like a normal person and not leap in and out like a Olga Corbett. [00:21:43] Speaker B: He'd probably shut the seatbelt on the door all the time too. [00:21:46] Speaker A: Oh, for sure. But it's the 60s. They didn't have seat belts then. [00:21:49] Speaker B: You're right. [00:21:51] Speaker A: I'd be in good shape. I don't like convertibles because I don't like wind blowing in my hair. So we'd have to put a T top or something on the Batmobile. We have to make some modifications for me to be a crime fighter. Okay. Also, I don't like exertion or work. Really? [00:22:08] Speaker B: I don't think you like short pants. Like that little bikini briefs. [00:22:11] Speaker A: I wouldn't. Oh, I wouldn't mind that. I've got nice legs. They wouldn't ride up on you, for all my faults. Well, you'd wear underwear also. You wouldn't just put those chainmail shorts on. Chafe all over town. All right. Robin, however, does not take the fatal step. Instead, he rises upward and grabs onto an overhead chandelier so that he can do a swing and a kick, which he of course correctly figured he could get them both with the chandelier maneuver. I can't do pull ups, so I probably, I probably wouldn't do a chandelier move like that, but I could do like a duck and roll and like roll into them like a bowling ball. [00:22:57] Speaker B: Yeah. If you knelt down slowly and, and, and like. [00:23:02] Speaker A: Yeah, for sure. [00:23:02] Speaker B: Like you know, at a full run. Well, I would definitely hurt yourself. [00:23:06] Speaker A: I wouldn't be at a full run. That's the point. I would, I would also be slowly. [00:23:11] Speaker B: Walking like a lumbering kind of. [00:23:12] Speaker A: Yeah, well that's going to throw them off. Cause they'll think they're safe. And then all of a sudden, here I come, rolling at them like a log rolling downhill. Hopefully it's a sloped floor so that I could roll down hill without having to propel myself. [00:23:29] Speaker B: Right. [00:23:32] Speaker A: I think I've got it all worked out. [00:23:34] Speaker B: I love how your mind works. I really do. [00:23:36] Speaker A: Do ya? Okay. Meanwhile, Batman's having the fight of his life against his burly foe, who's a tough one to put away. [00:23:45] Speaker B: We read he's an uggabug. [00:23:49] Speaker A: Robin is eager to lend a hand to his crime fighting companion. So he races forward, right back into that trap. [00:23:57] Speaker B: Oof. What's this? The walls, ceiling and floors of the transparent snap shut trap snap shut instantly they begin to glow with increasing heat. [00:24:05] Speaker A: And none of the devices in Robin's utility about work against this safe trap. [00:24:10] Speaker B: He's trying to use his gun. His. I don't know what it is. Melt gun. [00:24:13] Speaker A: Little melty gun. Yes. Batman, lend a hand. I'm trapped inside this hot box. [00:24:20] Speaker B: How many times have I yelled that? [00:24:21] Speaker A: Robin's anguished cry provides the extra something Batman needs to belt his foe across the room. [00:24:28] Speaker B: That's a hell of a punch. Look at that. [00:24:30] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:24:30] Speaker B: He sends the man flat across in midair across the room. [00:24:36] Speaker A: Um, it's lucky you weren't trapped into your Batman. 2. Because the trap can only be opened from the outside. Please work out the combination. [00:24:43] Speaker B: He says. I'm playing it by ear. Three to the left. Five to the Right. Back to three. [00:24:48] Speaker A: Hurry it up, Batman, before I'm a roasted Robin. [00:24:50] Speaker B: Uh, chum, you'll have to save yourself. Besides, I've got to go after those crooks. Byee. [00:24:57] Speaker A: Bad men going to abandon me. But no. There must be a reason. But wait. [00:25:02] Speaker B: What? [00:25:02] Speaker A: Those numbers. 3, 5, 3, 2. Something about them. [00:25:06] Speaker B: Jeez, he's taking a long time. He's not going to open up the safe, but he's going to stick around for this. He says you're catching wise Robin. Substitute letters for those telephone numbers and you get. And you get Ekta. Almost Ekdal. If this is a diabolical, evil Ekdal trap, it's a lot trickier than it appears to the eye. [00:25:26] Speaker A: Now, see, this is where I would show my metal because I'm always cold. I would love to be in a. [00:25:33] Speaker B: Glass cage radiating you like you're sweating. And then Batman would say. Robin, are you okay? [00:25:38] Speaker A: I'm fine. Leave me alone, please. Go after the crooks. I'll be warm. I'll come back later. I'm just. [00:25:44] Speaker B: I'm so warm. I'm so happy. [00:25:45] Speaker A: Warm at last. Especially in these shorts. All right, Robin's got the mnemonic device worked out now. And he suddenly remembered about Batman's conviction that there is no inescapable trap. This one's weak point is it's intense heat. It feels hot enough to melt whatever adhesive is holding the sides of the safe together. [00:26:12] Speaker B: Well, you know, I have to say something. [00:26:13] Speaker A: What? [00:26:14] Speaker B: I knew that right away, even before the thing that snapped shut. [00:26:18] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:26:18] Speaker B: And the fact that I saw no braces on the side. They were holding it together. [00:26:21] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:26:22] Speaker B: I knew right away that the sides are held together with adhesive, and it takes a while for the adhesive to actually set. It's like all Robin has to do is lift off the lid. [00:26:30] Speaker A: Well, you're a regular Dark Knight detective. Mm. All right, so Robin gets some suction cup, hand grips out and clings to the ceiling and kicks his way out. Moments later, out on the street, the crooks have escaped. But Batman has a hunch. [00:26:48] Speaker B: Mm. [00:26:49] Speaker A: That if he'd opened that safe, it had been the end of both of us. [00:26:52] Speaker B: Right, right, right, right. [00:26:54] Speaker A: I actually thought of that. Batman says, I thought of that earlier. That it would be a trap for both of us. [00:26:59] Speaker B: Who is the one. Is it Batman that takes credit for Superman? Superman takes credit for Batman. Yes. So Batman has to say it out loud. I actually thought of this. [00:27:09] Speaker A: Now he realizes now that evil Ekdal is back in business. They know that he's Escaped from prison. And it was a whim of his colossal arrogance to sign our death warrant with his name even as he destroyed us. It was a trap within a trap. [00:27:27] Speaker B: Sure, it was designed to blast not only the trapped prisoner, but his would be rescuer as well. Gosh, if you hadn't taught me that trick about associating telephone numbers with letters, I'd have thought you'd abandoned me. [00:27:41] Speaker A: So let's go back one page or two. Batman says he's abandoning him, but then he turns around and tells him about the numbers. He has time to tell him about the numbers. That's what I said, Ekdal. Why wouldn't he just say, I'm not abandoning you. I'll be right back? [00:28:03] Speaker B: That's what I said. That's what I said when we turned the page. I said, good lord, he's got to go after these criminals. But he's got a lot of time to hear Robin say this and then say this dialogue back to him. [00:28:13] Speaker A: And then Robin, out loud outlines his plan to escape from the cage. And Batman is still there. [00:28:19] Speaker B: Two panels of them talking back and forth to each other. [00:28:26] Speaker A: Anyway, Batman has one more clue that eluded Robin. The dial he was turning was cold, not hot. As was the rest of the trap. Why should that be? Unless Evil Ekdal wanted someone to turn the dial so as to destroy us. Yes, Dr. Husband, you have a question? [00:28:46] Speaker B: My hand is up. Why is that a clue that eluded Robin? Who the hell cares? The dial was cold. Who cares? Clearly, they've already worked out that that trap was meant to kill both the person inside and the the dial. What does it matter that it was cold? Let's think about this again. Okay? They already know. You go back one page. They already know that it's a trap that's rigged to kill them both. Right? [00:29:12] Speaker A: Yes. [00:29:13] Speaker B: The dial I was turning was cold, not hot. As was the rest of the trap. Why should that be? Unless Evil Ekdal wanted someone to turn the dial so as to destroy us. You already knew that he wanted to destroy you. The dial was the only thing on that glass case. [00:29:33] Speaker A: Yes. [00:29:35] Speaker B: That one panel makes no sense. [00:29:39] Speaker A: Also, it's not really fair to say that the clue eluded Robin, since Robin was inside, the case. Would have no way of knowing by. [00:29:48] Speaker B: The way Robin got himself out. [00:29:51] Speaker A: Yes. [00:29:52] Speaker B: Yes. [00:29:53] Speaker A: After being coached by Batman, who was still in the room within earshot, the. [00:30:00] Speaker B: Dynamic Duo gets the answer sooner than expected. For the next night when the hotline rings. Oh, the next night, 24 hours later. [00:30:07] Speaker A: 24 hours later, police Commissioner Gordon Here, Batman. [00:30:10] Speaker B: Get over to the police headquarters as fast as possible. We have a hot tip about Evil Arc doll's whereabouts. [00:30:15] Speaker A: So they head over to police headquarters where they meet Ms. Thea Albrecht. She's been arrested this evening trying to rob a man. [00:30:23] Speaker B: Not just any man. He was Yuri Melikov, a member of the Red Secret police. I am a freedom fighter for the oppressed people behind the iron curtain. She's not German. [00:30:34] Speaker A: No, she's Russian, isn't she? I held him up. Yes. I can't do Russian. [00:30:38] Speaker B: I can. I held him up. Yes. Oh, that's not right. Oh, now I'm self conscious. [00:30:44] Speaker A: You have to do the l held. [00:30:46] Speaker B: I held him up. Yes. [00:30:47] Speaker A: I held. [00:30:48] Speaker B: He's about to enter the certain house of. And he was about to enter a certain house on the other side of town. Don't make any move, any of you, or I shall shoot. As I grabbed his case containing photographs which would betray the escape gadget makers. I'm sorry, hold on a second. As I grabbed his case containing photographs which would betray the escape gadget makers who help our people escape to the west and to freedom. [00:31:14] Speaker A: Now, now, young lady, none of that. Just let go the gun. [00:31:19] Speaker B: Thank you, officer. Oh, wait, I'm sorry. [00:31:20] Speaker A: That's the man she's holding up. [00:31:23] Speaker B: Thank you, officer. I demand you arrest her. Make her pay the full penalty of the law. [00:31:28] Speaker A: Malikov would have killed me if he guessed I was a freedom fighter. No, no, she's Russian. You do it. [00:31:35] Speaker B: Melakov would have killed me if he had guessed I was a freedom fighter. If he should ever find out. [00:31:41] Speaker A: You're in police custody, Ms. Albrecht. So don't worry about Melakoff. We'll take care of him as soon as we recapture evil act all in. [00:31:50] Speaker B: The master trapmaker's home at the next moment. [00:31:52] Speaker A: Wait. [00:31:52] Speaker B: Is this a trapmaker? [00:31:53] Speaker A: This is the. [00:31:54] Speaker B: Well, I'll do evil Ekdal's voice. [00:31:56] Speaker A: Okay. Well, Ekdal, you've studied these photographs long enough to identify the workmanship of these escape devices. [00:32:04] Speaker B: Yes, I have. But at the usual price. Melakov. [00:32:07] Speaker A: Here it is. $100,000. Eh? What are you doing with that hand grenade, Ekdal? You're an escape gadget builder, not a munitions expert. [00:32:18] Speaker B: Is a special invention of mine that I expect to sell for the bargain of $1 million. [00:32:24] Speaker A: That's only what he wants, Malakov, I believe, in case he should get the notion to double cross him. Oh, well, good for you. But now, what about those photos? [00:32:34] Speaker B: Only one family in the world is clever enough to make such escape Things outside of me, of course. Hans and Adolf Brauner of Berlin built them gut. [00:32:45] Speaker A: Inside a week, they will have been executed. [00:32:48] Speaker B: As Melakov closes the workshop door behind him and rejoins his waiting men. [00:32:53] Speaker A: Kill Ekdal and be sure to bring me the money I gave him. One more thing. You will find a hand grenade on his worktable top. Bring that to me too. Dead men have no need for a million dollars. [00:33:06] Speaker B: And you know what? [00:33:07] Speaker A: What? [00:33:09] Speaker B: That's the last we see of Ekdal. [00:33:11] Speaker A: That's the last we see of Ekdal. A brief cry, and then a heavy silence is broken by Batman and Robin breaking into the room. Evil Ekdal has been eliminated. [00:33:21] Speaker B: We read Right. [00:33:23] Speaker A: And here's the goon with the grenade. Batman and Robin start punching and are successful. But Melakov grabs the grenade, thinking to throw it at Batman and Robin. [00:33:39] Speaker B: But it goes off in his hands. [00:33:41] Speaker A: Goes off in his hand and he dies. [00:33:42] Speaker B: He said, now we have two deaths. [00:33:44] Speaker A: Two deaths. [00:33:45] Speaker B: Evil Ekdal and Melakov. [00:33:47] Speaker A: Yes. Next moment. As if a snickering fate is toying with human lives, here comes that American goon that came echo. [00:33:56] Speaker B: Your trap was a flop. I want my money. [00:33:58] Speaker A: Gulp. He's the one that paid for the trap. To hotbox Robin. [00:34:04] Speaker B: Hotboxing. [00:34:05] Speaker A: And they continue pushing. What? [00:34:07] Speaker B: Do our listeners overseas know what hotboxing is? [00:34:12] Speaker A: I'm not sure. [00:34:13] Speaker B: It's an American slang term for when you pass gas underneath covers and you are trapped. You trap your spouse or yourself underneath those covers to smell the horribleness of your own gas. Yeah, now they'll send us a message if they've never heard it before. That's why we keep laughing at the word hot box. The words hot box. [00:34:34] Speaker A: Now you know, listeners. All right, we don't need to dwell here. Batman and Rob are making quick work of these thugs later in Commissioner Gordon's office. [00:34:50] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, okay. So you go ahead and do commissioner Gordon voice. [00:34:54] Speaker A: You rounded out that case very neatly, Batman and Robin Melakov, who was the only one to whom the late evil Ekdal revealed the identity of the gadget makers, is dead. Those three gangsters and the Melakov muscle men are in jail. [00:35:08] Speaker B: What about me, commissioner? [00:35:10] Speaker A: Well, the commissioner tells me that with Melakov unable to testify against you, miss, all charges will be dropped. [00:35:18] Speaker B: You are good freedom fighters, all of you. [00:35:22] Speaker A: Sometime later in the Wayne Mansion. I'd like to think we played a. [00:35:25] Speaker B: Part in the making of this headline, Bruce. [00:35:27] Speaker A: That's right, Dick. We helped people escape. The largest trap in the world, the one behind the iron curtain. [00:35:34] Speaker B: The headline is 20 more people escape from Easter Germany. [00:35:37] Speaker A: I guess when I was growing up, there was a lot of headlines about people escaping over the Berlin Wall and hot air balloons and whatnot. [00:35:45] Speaker B: Oh, yeah, yeah. Because the Berlin wall fell in 89. [00:35:50] Speaker A: Nine or 90. Yeah, yeah. When H.W. was president. [00:35:56] Speaker B: Write those two things, right? That one of those two years. [00:35:59] Speaker A: Yes. [00:36:00] Speaker B: A lot of stuff happened that year. That was the Tiananmen Square. [00:36:03] Speaker A: Yes. My sixth grade teacher, Mr. Burkle was as anti commie as they come. [00:36:12] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, yeah. [00:36:14] Speaker A: We had to write. Our big project for the year was to write a Russia report. Write a five chapter report all about Russia. [00:36:21] Speaker B: Wow. [00:36:22] Speaker A: Well, of course I wrote about wonderful things like Faberge eggs and. [00:36:27] Speaker B: You did not. [00:36:28] Speaker A: Yes, I certainly did. Wow. [00:36:30] Speaker B: Did you get in trouble? [00:36:31] Speaker A: No. You could write it. He didn't say what you had to write about. He just said he preached about how terrible the Soviet Union was. Which it was. [00:36:39] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:36:40] Speaker A: And then he said, well, just write five chapters about something about Russia. And so I wrote about Peter the Great and Catherine the Great. I don't remember. [00:36:52] Speaker B: Okay, that's all right. [00:36:52] Speaker A: I'm sure it was loved. I do remember I dug out the fact that the Soviet Union had 15 time zones. [00:37:01] Speaker B: Wow. [00:37:01] Speaker A: Yeah. So see, I did learn something. [00:37:05] Speaker B: 15 time. [00:37:06] Speaker A: Yes, of course. [00:37:07] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:37:08] Speaker A: All right. Do you think that's the end? Because it's not. Because it's detective comics. So we have our favorite feature. Elongated Man. [00:37:14] Speaker B: Yay. [00:37:17] Speaker A: Elongated Man. Universally beloved, not hated man his heroic destiny was fated man he's the Elongated Man Ralph Dibney was a circus fan, Especially of the India Rubber Man. When he drank in gold like they all did, he became Elongated. Elongated Man Universally beloved, not hated man his heroic destiny was fated man he's the Elongated man he's the ductile detective the stretchable sleuth Got a nose for trouble and that's the truth Goes all over the world with his wife Sue. They solve mysteries and have fun too. Elongated Man Universally beloved, not hated man his heroic destiny is fated man he's the Elongated man he's the Elongated man he's the Elongated man he's the Elongated man he's the Elongated Man Everyone knows, except maybe you, Rob, that in the days before he became a solver of strange mysteries and long before he married Sue Ralph Dibney, the Elongated man worked at a circus. Now his travels bring him back to his old stamping ground and a big top puzzle that could be unraveled only by solving the curious clue of the circus crook. Gardner Fox misses a good Bet here, did he? Because he's got that alliterative title. He could have said the Curious Clue of the Carnival Crook. Oh, yeah. That word circus just messes it all up. And I don't think anybody. [00:39:29] Speaker B: Well, it's not a carnival, is it? [00:39:31] Speaker A: Well, isn't it? Because the Rubber man would have been, like, a sideshow attraction. [00:39:36] Speaker B: Well, carnivals usually have, like, rides or something, don't they? [00:39:41] Speaker A: I don't know. As you know, my father worked at the Ohio State Fair, and I was not allowed to ride any rides because he saw them being put together. Yes, the smell of sawdust and grease paint brings back happy memories to Ralph Dippney, who, with his wife, sue, is touring the Midlands by car. One would assume this is the Midwest of the United States, not the. The Midlands of the United Kingdom. All right. They've come upon Magnum's Mammoth Circus. Burt Magnum's circus, Where I first got my start as an Indian rubberman. Come on, let's go in. Sue's delighted, of course, she grew up rich. I don't imagine she'd seen many circuses in her life. [00:40:30] Speaker B: No. [00:40:30] Speaker A: You know who had? [00:40:31] Speaker B: Would you go to a circus now? [00:40:33] Speaker A: M. I'd go to, like, Cirque du Soleil. [00:40:37] Speaker B: Yeah, but you wouldn't go see animals. [00:40:38] Speaker A: No. [00:40:39] Speaker B: No. I wouldn't either. [00:40:42] Speaker A: You know who hated a circus? [00:40:44] Speaker B: Your mother. [00:40:44] Speaker A: My mother and zoos. Because when she was a little girl, the circus train would unload right down at the bottom of the hill in the town where they lived, which I've seen. And her fo. [00:40:57] Speaker B: You know, I've seen where that. [00:40:59] Speaker A: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And her father would drag everybody down. They had to all go watch the circus train unload. Well, I wouldn't like that much either. [00:41:11] Speaker B: No. [00:41:12] Speaker A: Drag me out of my warm house, my hot box, down the railroad tracks. All right. Under the big top. Following the afternoon performance, Ralph goes to congratulate Bert Magnum. [00:41:26] Speaker B: Magnum? Mangum, not Magnum. [00:41:32] Speaker A: Well, I'll be dipped. You're correct. [00:41:35] Speaker B: Yep. [00:41:35] Speaker A: Mangum. Sue is introduced to the circus owner, slash, ringmaster. And? [00:41:46] Speaker B: And Bert informs him that this is their last performance. [00:41:49] Speaker A: Gulp. Why? [00:41:50] Speaker B: They had a slew of cancellations for the rest of the tour. Because lately, in every town the circus visits, a big robbery occurs every night. The towns were scheduled to go. Sorry? Towns were scheduled to go, but they're afraid they'll be robbed and they've canceled out. [00:42:07] Speaker A: Sounds as if someone connected with the circus is the robber. [00:42:11] Speaker B: Bert had thought of that. [00:42:12] Speaker A: Yes. [00:42:13] Speaker B: He secretly had tested his employees by putting a fluorescent chemical in the water, they had washed their hands. Now, I thought about this for a second. I thought, okay, it's. If you're traveling in a circus, you might have a different water supply for washing than you would for drinking, right? [00:42:27] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:42:28] Speaker B: So, Because. Because I was like, what? Fluorescent chemical? But so put it. [00:42:33] Speaker A: These are circus folk. What if they don't wash their hands? All over. [00:42:36] Speaker B: There's that. [00:42:36] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:42:37] Speaker B: The solution would have left a visible mark only. Rather. I'm sorry, left a mark only visible. Infrared light. He told the town police about it because he was trying to figure out who it was that was in the circus that was committing these robberies. Yeah, but Ralph says, well, they could have worn gloves. He goes, no, but this particular chemical would have caused fingerprints to be left through the gloves. [00:42:57] Speaker A: But they could have just not washed their hands. What if. Why didn't Ralph think of that? He's not such a great detective, is he, if he doesn't think of that. Obvious. First thing that popped into my head. [00:43:06] Speaker B: Well, this is assuming we live in a world where everyone washes their hands regularly. [00:43:10] Speaker A: Well, that world is not the circus. I've got news for you. [00:43:13] Speaker B: So is it Bert? [00:43:16] Speaker A: Yes. Burt's Mangum. [00:43:18] Speaker B: Burt Mangum's theory is that some outsider is following them who has a grudge against him or his circus, and he can't imagine who. And there's no way of checking up on anyone like that. [00:43:27] Speaker A: Well, here goes Ralph's schnoz, wiggling and jiggling like it does when there's a mystery. [00:43:32] Speaker B: Sue's telling us she knows what's gonna happen next. [00:43:36] Speaker A: Yes. Ralph's got an idea. You're going to announce a special performance with a sensational big star attraction. Everybody will come to see it, including our mysterious crook, I hope. [00:43:48] Speaker B: I wonder who the star attraction's going to be. [00:43:50] Speaker A: She's breaking the fourth wall, isn't she? Every ticket will be coated with the fluorescent solution. So, assuming the unknown thief purchases a ticket while he's a thief. So he's gonna not buy a ticket, he's gonna sneak in. His hand will be tainted, and he'll leave his prince behind at the scene of the next crime. [00:44:09] Speaker B: My husband, the crook catcher, hard at work. [00:44:11] Speaker A: That's a terrific idea, Ralph. But who can I get to be the star attraction at this late date? [00:44:17] Speaker B: Hey, the celebrated Elongated Man. [00:44:19] Speaker A: Who else? So, what else is new? [00:44:22] Speaker B: Within the hour, the Valley Hoo begins as the sound truck tours the town of Grassy Corners. [00:44:28] Speaker A: I for sure thought that said Gassy Corners the first time I read it. [00:44:31] Speaker B: You Were stuck on the hot box. [00:44:32] Speaker A: Yeah. Come one, come all to Mangum's Mammoth circus. The one, the only, Elongated Man. That incomparable Ymir of Alaska, the ductile detective. The malleable mystery solver will make a sensational thrill packed appearance. Whoa. [00:44:50] Speaker B: I wouldn't miss that for the world. Says a bystander. [00:44:53] Speaker A: Oh, that was Ralph doing his own announcing. [00:44:55] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, he's inside the soundtrack. [00:44:58] Speaker A: That was great. Good for him. That's not what his voice really sounds like. That evening, as the entire population of gassy corners and the surrounding countryside jam the big top. Why, Ralph's turning himself into a Ferris wheel. [00:45:14] Speaker B: That's bizarre. [00:45:15] Speaker A: Safer than any carnival ride I've ever seen. Now he turns himself into an animated shoot the shoot. By rippling his body, he makes the little carts go. And now for the most tree Mendes and daring feat of all. The Sultan of Stretch races against himself as he drives not one, but two chariots at the same time. [00:45:38] Speaker B: Excellent, Excellent drawing there by Sid Green. [00:45:41] Speaker A: Later, as the show ends and the crowd files out. There they go. But was the. Wait, who's Bert? There they go. But was the thief among them? [00:45:53] Speaker B: If he was here, he has the fluorescent paint on his fingers. All we can do is wait. [00:45:58] Speaker A: Silence is a blanket on the sleeping circus performers. Three hours later when cop comes by. [00:46:04] Speaker B: And says, Elongated man, your trick paid off. Someone just robbed the home of the richest man in town. Hop in, both of yous. [00:46:10] Speaker A: B, B, B, B, B. Did he leave the telltale clue? [00:46:13] Speaker B: Soon in the robbed home, the thief. [00:46:16] Speaker A: Got away with some priceless first edition books, but left behind that fluorescent fingerprint. Now, if we can identify it. Good gosh, Bert, show me your right hand. [00:46:27] Speaker B: By infrared light and by ordinary light, the robber's fingerprint and Burton Mangum's right forefinger print prove a perfect match. [00:46:35] Speaker A: I remember when you originally hurt that finger, Burt, which left a scar tissue ridge across your fingertip. There's no doubt about it, this criminal fingerprint is yours. [00:46:46] Speaker B: But this is ridiculous. I wouldn't ruin my own circus by these robberies. [00:46:49] Speaker A: It doesn't make sense. [00:46:50] Speaker B: The fingerprint must be a forgery. [00:46:52] Speaker A: It's true that fingerprints can be forged which police can spot if no poor marks are visible. But that doesn't apply in this case because the fluorescent print could have been made through a glove which wouldn't leave any pore marks. I'm sorry, Bert, but you must be arrested for robbery. [00:47:10] Speaker B: No, no, I'm innocent. Innocent? [00:47:14] Speaker A: Well, booked for robbery. Mangum's personal effects are turned over to the Police department, where Elongated man knows he's innocent. [00:47:22] Speaker B: He's so clever. [00:47:23] Speaker A: He was with him the whole time. But this is the only way I could get to examine this flower he wore in his buttonhole without anyone knowing what I was up to. And as I suspected, the flower is cleverly bugged with a listening device. The real crook has now accomplished his purpose. He's put the circus out of business and had Mangum arrested for his crimes. Now he'll probably take his loot and leave town, never to be discovered. [00:47:51] Speaker B: Unless he's sinking this right. [00:47:53] Speaker A: Unless he pulls the cop over to. [00:47:55] Speaker B: Him, he taps him on the shoulder and says listen. [00:47:57] Speaker A: And gives him a big wink. [00:47:58] Speaker B: Uh huh. [00:48:00] Speaker A: Captain Burt Mangum is innocent. And I'll prove it by bringing in the loot of all those robberies within the hour. Plus, of course, the real culprit. [00:48:10] Speaker B: Excuse me. [00:48:11] Speaker A: He's saying all this directly into the bugging device. [00:48:14] Speaker B: And the cop says, if you can do that, Elongated Man, I'll personally discharge Burt Mangum. [00:48:21] Speaker A: Meanwhile, in a boarding house on the outskirts of Gassy Corners. What's this? The Elongated man boasting he's gonna bring in the loot of all my robberies? Impossible. He can't possibly know I'm the thief. Just the same, I'd better keep listening to the bugging device I always plant in the carnations delivered to Burt Mangum. [00:48:41] Speaker B: That's a lot of work. [00:48:42] Speaker A: Knowing Mangum's custom of ordering a carnation delivered to his tent every day, I simply followed the delivery truck and substituted a bugged flower for the real one. I wanted to eavesdrop on him, listen to him groan as a circus was being put out of business. I even had a special rubber fingerprint stamp made with his prints for the final crushing blow that would have Mangum arrested for my robberies. Now he's finished. The only thing that worries me now is how much does the Elongated man really know? [00:49:13] Speaker B: Plenty. Go well, he reaches through the window and grabs the man by the shoulder. [00:49:19] Speaker A: Yes, Ralph reaches and grabs him. Well, it turns out this fella used to be an India rubberman in a circus, too. It's no trouble for me to squirm out of my jacket, leaving your knuckles to take the wrap on the table. [00:49:30] Speaker B: And for your information, I was also a weightlifter, and I'm still in good shape, as you can see and feel. He picks up a table and smacks Ralph in the face and then kicks. [00:49:38] Speaker A: Him in the draw. I used to be pretty good at acrobatics, too. [00:49:42] Speaker B: I Can't stretch as far as you, but I can pack more power in my fists. [00:49:45] Speaker A: Now, Rob, are you aware that all circus India rubber men drink a special soft drink called Gingold? [00:49:53] Speaker B: No. You making this up? [00:49:55] Speaker A: No. That's how Ralph got his powers, okay? He noticed he was fascinated by India Rubberman as we all are. And he noticed as he was visiting different circuses to learn their secrets, he noticed they all drank this certain flavor of. I guess gingold is the flavoring agent. [00:50:17] Speaker B: Okay? [00:50:20] Speaker A: And so he distilled it and drank it, and that's how he got his super stretchy powers. Also how Jimmy Olsen gets his Elastic Lad powers. [00:50:30] Speaker B: Oh. Mm. [00:50:31] Speaker A: Okay. Mm. All right. He punches Ralph out the window, but. [00:50:38] Speaker B: Slams the window down on his arms, keeping his arms inside. [00:50:41] Speaker A: Yes, well, that's no barrier to Ralph, because then he just expands his hands to giant and starts smacking this guy around and bouncing him around like a bouncing boy. [00:50:51] Speaker B: Yeah, he bounces him from hand to hand, then bounces him up and down on the floor like a basketball. Then throws him against the wall like a handball. [00:50:57] Speaker A: Yeah. Slap, whap, thump, thump, thump. [00:50:59] Speaker B: Knocks him out. [00:51:00] Speaker A: And when all the fight and bounce have been knocked out of the thief, Ralph figured his boast back at police headquarters would keep him listening into his bugging device. As I attached an electronic tracking device to it with his end of the circuit open, the bugging trail led me straight to him. Well, here comes Mr. Willoughby, the cat who's been over at Ms. Dashwood's all day. Yes, Mr. Willoughby. Our cat has a girlfriend in a farm across the road, and he spends all day there. [00:51:32] Speaker B: She a tuxedo cat just like he. [00:51:35] Speaker A: Well, he a commoner and she a princess. Well, we don't know her name, but we call her Ms. Dashwood. Cause our cat's name is Mr. Willoughby. If you know, you know. [00:51:46] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:51:47] Speaker A: Now, Ralph grabs this guy, takes him off to the hoose gal, and later, in the Dibney Hotel room. Okay, Sue's ready for bed. She's a little racy nightie. But why did that crook Rollins pull off these robberies wherever the circus was playing, and make Burt Mangum his victim? [00:52:06] Speaker B: For the oldest reason in the world, honey. Revenge. Years ago, Mangum had fired Rollins because he was a troublemaker. So Rollins worked out this sneaky scheme. [00:52:15] Speaker A: Of getting even with him, along with my detective work of asking to make sure that everyone was washing their hands. My second question would have been, have you fired anyone? [00:52:28] Speaker B: Fired anyone? And were they angry about being fired? [00:52:31] Speaker A: They could have saved a lot of hubbubs this time around. [00:52:33] Speaker B: Well, the next day, as Ralph and Sue drop in at the big top to say their farewells to their friend. [00:52:38] Speaker A: Here you are, Ralph, for saving the circus and me. Oh, a lifetime golden pass to your circus. For both of us, the best news, the best news of all is that your circus tour is set to roll again. The towns that had canceled your visit are clamoring for Mangum's mammoth circus. Hooray. Thanks. [00:53:05] Speaker B: Well, I don't care what the story's about. I enjoy an elongated band. I do, too, you know. [00:53:11] Speaker A: So charming. You can find us on social media, ogocheckpod. You can rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts from. You can find us on our sister podcast, nerd Orchestra. And you can find us right back here next week. In a new year and a new month, we finally reach April 1967. Amazing, right? Right? Okay, Byee. [00:53:39] Speaker C: You don't have to be a politician? You can change it all with a sin and disposition? So be heavy and spread it all around? If you find yourself a frowning? Just turn it upside down? When you wear a smile the world will shout hooray. You gotta turn on the sunshine? You gotta give in one time? You gotta turn on the sunshine? Push those blues away, Man, this dialectic's too much.