This is my boss, Jonathan Hart. A self-made millionaire.
He's quite a guy.
This is Mrs. H. She's gorgeous.
What a terrific lady!
By the way, my name is Max.
I take care of them, which ain't easy...
'cause their hobby is murder.
Look, Mommy! Look how high I'm going.
Higher than an eagle.
Do I have to stop now?
Five minutes, then I have to get back to work.
Connie?
What are you doing here?
Whatever happened to "welcome home"?
What do you want, Vince?
Just a little family reunion.
Nice-looking kid. Favours you.
Thank God.
Tell him about me?
No. He just knows his father went away before he was born.
- Well, then I'll be a big surprise, won't I? - Don't you go near him.
I don't want him to know anything about you.
Why?
It's not every kid that's got a two-time loser for a father, now, is it?
Okay. How much?
Only got a couple of hundreds saved.
Yeah, well, that's not nearly enough.
I was thinking more along the lines of a couple of $100,000.
Look, I don't know what you've got planned, but I'm not getting involved with you.
If you don't want to go to jail, you are.
What are you talking about?
Well, see, this morning, early, somebody broke into a liquor store.
They only got about $60.
But the cops are going to find this ID bracelet...
with your name and your fingerprints all over it.
Now, if you don't want the cops to get an anonymous tip...
Never hold up.
Well, maybe not.
But all they need is enough evidence to book you.
And then the kid becomes a ward of the court.
Do you want to take that chance?
God.
What do you want me to do?
Remember telling me about a guy named Jonathan Hart?
Jonathan.
I love it when you wake me up in the middle of the night.
No, not that. It's the intercom.
Someone's down at the gate.
Answer it, will you? Please.
- Hello. - Hello?
- Who is this? -It's me.
- Who are you? - Max, are you down at the gate?
No, I'm in the kitchen.
- Are you lost, son? - No.
- What do you want? - To come in.
Max, go down and take care of that, will you?
Sure, Mr. H.
What would a kid be doing out at this time of night?
I don't know.
It's too late to be selling Cub Scout cookies.
Maybe I better make some coffee.
Hopefully, we won't be up long enough to drink it.
Well.
- Hi. - Hi.
- I'm Jonathan Hart. -I know.
It's nice to finally meet you, sir.
I'm Jonathan Hart, Jr.
Maybe I better make that coffee after all.
You like chocolate chip cookies?
Yes, thank you.
Go ahead, dig in.
Before I forget, my mom told me to give this to you.
May I?
- Cookies good? - Delicious.
Jonathan.
"Dear Jonathan, this, at long last, is your son.
"I find I can't take care of him any more.
"You were always the responsible one in our relationship.
"Love, Connie."
- Connie? - My mom.
Who dropped you off here tonight?
- My mom. - Where is she now?
I don't know.
You know something.
It's well past 2:00 in the morning...
and I think we’re all a little tired. Don't you?
I am.
What do you think if Uncle Max takes you up to the guest room?
That'd be nice.
Uncle Max, would you do the honours?
Mrs. H, I don't have a whole lot of experience handling people that short.
- Just remember when you were a kid. -I was never a kid.
What did you and your father do before your bedtime?
Shot craps.
Good night.
Come on, kid. I'll sing you a lullaby.
Oh, boy.
I'll just tidy up here a minute and I'll be up.
All right.
Hi.
I love you. You know that.
And you would never ever leave a woman with a child.
I know you. So this little scheme is not gonna work.
I'm afraid it's going to have to for a little while longer.
Why?
Because that boy really believes...
really believes that I'm his father.
He's been lied to.
And until I find out the truth, I can't tell him what it's all about.
I just can't see him get hurt.
What do little kids like for breakfast these days?
Max, kids are people, too. Just give him what you're having.
A Bloody Mary?
- Good morning. - Good morning.
How'd you sleep last night?
All right.
- You go to school, right? - Yeah.
How far is your school from where you live?
Five-ten minutes.
It's near the zoo.
- You sure? - Positive.
Pretty sure.
We'll check that out.
You been shaving long?
Nope. My first time.
Well, you got them all, champ.
All right! The zoo! We're here at the zoo!
- Starting point number one. - This is almost like a scavenger hunt.
Could we go in?
Maybe. When we find out where you live.
Now, which way do you think it is to your school?
I think it's that way.
It's a four-to-one shot.
- Let's take it. - That's what we need, a bookmaker.
Mrs. Hart registered him in grade school last week.
They just moved here from Chicago.
Evidently, the father had deserted them.
Some people.
You wouldn’t happen to have their address?
Certainty.
610 North Garwood. And what did you say your name was?
- Come along, Uncle Max. - Thank you.
594, 596.
- Is it starting to look familiar to you? - Not really. We move around an awful lot.
606.
608.
- Hold it. - Hey, there's 608.
Plenty of room for a pool.
So much for that address.
Now can we go to the zoo?
Now we go to the zoo. Come on, Max.
Go get him. Don't let him get away with that.
The dromedary camel.
Didn't think I knew that.
Come on, I want to see the bears. Come on, let’s go.
I want to see the bears. The bears. Come on.
I think I once dated that one's sister.
Uncle Max, will you ride with me on the merry-go-round?
- I get sick on those. - Okay, so you can watch.
Watching makes me sick.
Cute kid. it's real easy to get attached to him.
Too easy, I'm afraid.
Maybe we better take the Sundance Kid home and review the situation.
Let him have another ride. He's having such a good time.
Where's he gone to?
Jonathan!
Jonathan, where are you?
No luck so far. Let's run this down again.
The kid claimed to be Jonathan Hart, Jr.?
His mother, or someone claimed that he was.
Any resemblance?
The chin, almost. And the nose. Sort of.
Thanks, sweetheart.
Harry, if you do happen to pick him up...
I don't want you to tell him that I'm not his father.
- I want him to hear that from me. - Sure.
Now, some witnesses saw a car speed away...
around the time that the kid disappeared.
We're trying to trace it, but that's all we got.
Now don't worry. The mother probably took him back, is all.
- I don't think so. I think we're being set up. - For what?
- I don't know. - Suppose it really is a kidnapping?
Sweetheart, why would they pick him?
Who else was driving around the park today in a Bentley?
Look, go home, will you? Maybe you'll get a ransom call.
That's a great idea. We got an unlisted number.
Not any more. I wrote it on the men's room wall down at the station.
Go home.
- Yeah? - Jonathan?
This is Jonathan, Jr.'s mother. May I come up?
Certainty.
What is this? Act 2?
Sounds like it.
- You got a plan? - No, but she obviously does.
Well, I always liked improvisation.
Hi.
- You don't remember me, do you? - To be honest, no.
Can I come in?
You must be Mrs. Hart.
Yes, I am.
And you are?
You really don't remember me, do you?
I'm sorry, I'm afraid I really don't.
Nine years ago, during the summer?
Nine years ago, during the summer...
I was in the South of France.
Yes. We both were.
- Sit down. - Thank you.
You have a wonderful son.
Yes, he is. He really is.
That's why I finally decided to bring him to you.
He just deserves more than I can give him.
He deserves something like this.
- Your name is? - Connie.
I guess you'd like some kind of proof that I am who I say I am.
Something kind of personal.
How about that scar that's shaped like a half-moon?
That's personal, all right.
- I have more proof if-- - No. That's fine.
Well, you see, the thing is, is that I've changed my mind.
About what?
Well, I know he'd be better here with you.
But I love him and I miss him so much.
If you could just give him back to me...
I promise you, we won't bother you any more.
We don't have him.
You what?
What do you mean you don't have him?
Hello?
Hello, Jonathan?
Harry, the mother, she's here.
She says that she doesn't have the boy.
We found a car. it was stolen earlier today.
The prints have been wiped clean, strictly a pro job.
Well, then the kidnapping's legitimate.
Oh, God.
I'm coming by to tap your phone in case you get a call.
"In case"? You mean "when."
What's the matter with you, Son?
You said I was going to see my mommy!
Yeah, well, you will in a little while.
Once my dad finds out where I am, he's going to beat you up like crazy.
Well, I hope it doesn't happen that way.
I really do.
Hello?
Jonathan, this is Frank. I have the information on the Klamen deal.
Frank, let me call you back, will you? I'm expecting an important call. Thanks.
- Was it him? - Not yet.
I just pray he's all right.
So do we.
I've got the kid.
Brig $200,000 to the warehouse basement...
at 8th and Spring, 11:30 tonight.
Be on time. No tricks, no cops...
or you'll never see that kid again.
That guy's no dummy. No time to trace the call.
We'll set up at the warehouse.
No, don't you send the police. He'll get hurt.
Don't worry. There won't be any police involved.
- No, now, that's not part of the deal. - Not until we get the boy back, Harry.
Help me.
I want to thank you all for everything you're doing.
I'll bet you do.
Jennifer.
I'll just bet you know a lot more than you're telling us.
- Would you like to tell us what you know? - Darting.
No, damn it! I want to tell her exactly what I think about her.
I hated to interrupt that marvellous acting of yours.
- Who's acting? - That's what I thought.
I don't know what makes me madder; her thinking we're that stupid...
or the fact that she'd use her own child that way.
Well, remember one thing.
We have to get the kid back safely, okay? So don't forget about that.
I won't forget.
Do you remember when we got married, how we promised...
that life would be one adventure after the next?
That's what we said.
Well, I have a confession to make.
I could do very well without this particular excitement.
It's all there, every penny.
You have no idea how difficult it was to get this amount in the middle of the night.
Well, thanks a lot, Mr. Friesen.
What's the matter?
I'll need some proof of identification.
- You what? -I need some identification, sir.
Didn't Marcus Wheeler give you the address?
Yes. All that it proves is that this is the Hart residence.
It doesn't mean you're Jonathan Hart.
Mr. Friesen, if you don't hand that over--
Sweetheart.
You're Stanley Friesen.
You've been with the company two years and seven months.
You're married. You have two daughters, Marilee and Ann.
You were in the textile division.
You’ve just been moved up to the parent company. is that correct?
Correct.
- You're Jonathan Hart. - He certainly is.
I'm really very sorry, Mr. Hart. I've never seen you before--
-I understand. - This a lot of money. I didn't wanna give it...
-to just anybody. - You don't have to worry about it.
- Thank you. - Are you sure he has the whole $200,000?
Excuse me, sir, but I was given to understand--
We'll walk you out. Darling.
I'm his mother. He's my responsibility.
Why don't you give me the money?
I wouldn't have it any other way.
Aren't you gonna open it?
$20,000.
That's exactly 10% of $200,000.
That's what an agent usually gets.
Agent?
I didn't get my scar in the South of France.
I got it from an operation that I had right here when I returned.
You were working in the hospital.
You assisted at my operation.
You looked down at this unconscious patient lying on the operating table.
He's single, wealthy...
and I just returned from the South of France.
Now, you didn't do anything about it at the time...
but nine or ten years later, when you needed the money...
you suddenly got an idea.
How am I doing so far?
Not me.
- What do you mean, "not you"? - Not me.
It was him.
His name's Vince, and he left me when I told him I was pregnant.
And what about the boy? Does he know that Vince is his father?
No. And I don't want him to.
Well, it's the truth, whether you believe me or not.
We'd like to believe it.
Yeah. Sure.
Please let me go!
Vince!
No!
Come on, get up here, Connie.
Come on, open that door.
Just open the door.
Please don't hurt him, he gave us the money.
Would you open that door?
Now, you stay right there and everything's gonna be just fine.
Where's the boy?
Goodbye, Mr. Hart.
Jonathan?
Dad!
I'm not crying, Dad.
- Jonathan! - Down here.
Now, let me get this straight.
You got the kid back. Now, that's good.
But you lost the mother. Now, that's bad.
You shouldn’t drink on the job, Harry.
I haven't been on the job since this whole thing started. That's the trouble.
I'd better talk to that kid.
No, please, Harry.
He's frightened and tired. Max just took him upstairs.
Please let him sleep.
So Robin Hood said:
"Stick them up, you guys.
"And hand over your watches and wallets, or else..."
But wasn't it wrong for Robin Hood to steal?
Well, he wasn't really stealing...
because these guys he was knocking over were nothing but...
a bunch of creeps to begin with. See?
- You get it now? -I think so, Uncle Max.
It's just a little different from the way I heard it before.
This is the (?), believe me.
Would I give you a bum steer, kid?
What happened next?
So next he took the loot and gave it back to the people it really belonged to.
- Didn't he keep any for himself? - No.
He was a real straight shooter, this Robin Hood.
Not the kind of a guy who’d ever get caught with his hand in the till...
if you know what I mean.
- He's honest. - As the day is long.
Just like my dad.
I'm getting a little tired.
You mean my story's putting you to sleep?
Ain't that what bedtime stories are for?
You know, you're a really smart kid, you know that?
- Good night, Uncle Max. - Good night, kid.
If that's who I think it is...
I'm gonna make myself a little bet.
Hello?
You blew it, Hart. So now I've got the mother.
I'm gonna give you one more chance.
Oh, really? Well that's about one more chance than I'm gonna give you.
- Listen, Hart. - You listen.
We've about had it with you two.
Now, we've got the boy over here and that's all that counts as far as we're concerned.
You can take that $20,000. You can put it on a horse...
or you can flush it down the toilet. I don't care.
And you can tell Connie that if she wants to see her boy again...
she knows where the doorbell is.
And when you're found, you creep...
you better hope it's by the cops and not by me.
Is that understood?
Bingo.
Let's get some sleep.
You know, you're really beautiful when you're angry.
Help yourself, Harry.
So, that's it.
Yeah.
Hart's not gonna bite for another nickel.
I'd like to split this with you...
but since it's so much less than we banked on--
Hey, you're the one who wanted the money. I just want you out of my life.
Well, in that case we both win, don't we?
And I want you never to see him again.
Well, I didn't plan to.
And I don't think you ought to plan on it, either.
What do you mean?
Well, you think Hart and his old lady are gonna give you visiting privileges?
I'll explain everything to them.
They'll understand. They're decent people.
You know, you don't look stupid.
- But you know what you did? - You did.
With your help. As an accessory.
You show up for that kid and Hart's gonna have you in the slammer...
on a dozen charges that I can think of.
And I don't have one of his million-dollar lawyers.
You think any courtroom filled with your decent people...
are gonna let you keep that kid?
All right. Hey, Connie, not to worry.
Kid's probably better off with them anyway.
See you.
- Hi. - Hi.
Couldn’t get to sleep, champ?
Maybe I could...
if you told me a story.
Uncle Max already tried to tell me a story.
Sure.
Let's see.
Actually, I do know a story.
About a little prince.
This little prince got lost in the middle of the night.
And he couldn’t find his way home.
So some people took him in, and he stayed.
They liked him a lot.
They loved him.
So he decided to stay.
Would you like that, Jonathan?
Yeah.
But I'd miss my mommy a lot.
Well, well, well.
What have we here?
It's one of those new swing sets. Teeter-totter, the whole works.
Some of the parts were missing, but we finally managed to put it together.
Of course, we had to force a couple of pieces.
I never would have guessed. Well, what do you think?
- It's okay. -It's okay?
What do you mean, "it's okay"?
Well, all you really need for a swing...
is a tree, some rope, and a fiat piece of wood.
You know, you got a real point there.
Max, don't you think we could scare up something like that around here?
Possibly. Come on, kid.
We got plenty of trees. Maybe we can find some wood.
He really is having the time of his life, isn't he?
I wish there was something we could do.
There is. We could find his mother.
What makes you so sure she hasn't skipped town by now?
Would you leave him if he was your child?
She's a nurse, isn't she?
What are you thinking?
Well, there are lots of hospitals in the area. What if I just go nosing around?
If I find her, I'll have a little talk with her, woman to woman.
I like your style.
Connie.
Look, I'm alone. I have to talk to you.
- How's my son? - He's fine.
He eats three meals a day, plays with the dog...
he loves Max, Max loves him.
But, most of all, he misses you so much it makes my heart break.
- Misses me? - That's right.
What happens now? What am I supposed to do?
- Turn myself in? - No.
You let us help you. We can.
We just explain all the circumstances.
But the most important thing is for you to see that boy.
Let him know that you're alive, that you care about him.
But Vince said I'm an accessory.
Listen to me.
I said we'd help you and we will.
Where can I see him?
Well, his favourite place is the zoo.
How about the giraffes at 3:00?
Yeah, okay.
You be there.
Feeding the giraffes is a pain in the neck.
Get it? it's a joke.
How long before Mom comes?
She'll be here in a minute.
Go on, look at the giraffes.
- Hi. Made it. - You made it.
Congratulations. Well, there he is. Doesn't he look great?
Yeah.
Jonathan?
- Mommy! - Hi, darling.
How's my boy?
Say, why don't the two of you take a nice long walk?
Just one minute. I have to talk to you for just a minute now.
Go scoot. One minute, we'll go.
All right. Here?
Vince.
I didn't think someone like you could hang up and move on.
That's why you left the boy at the warehouse.
That little kid is just a little kid when he's standing next to Connie.
But kidnapped from my house?
You gotta figure he's worth a fortune.
Dad.
Stay with him. Don't let him out of your sight.
Are you all right?
Hold him.
- What's happening, Mom? -It's okay.
Hey!
Does that mean he loses his chance for Father of the Year?
- Hi. - Hi.
- Did you get all your packing done? - Yep.
There's something we'd like to talk to you about.
Sure.
You remember why your mother told you to come here?
Yes, to be with my dad.
There's something I'd like to explain to you about that.
About you and me.
You mean, that you're not really my father.
How did you know that?
Well, because if you were my father...
you never would have waited so long to see me.
Not you.
But I wish you were.
Because next to my mom, I think you’re the neatest people in the whole world.
Come on, time to go home.
Can I come back if I want?
If you want.
Whenever you want.
See you, kid.
Didn't do so good today. Here, feel.
Son of a gun, you got them all, champ.