The Price of Fear, brought to you by Vincent Price.

Hello there, do you like fish to eat?

I mean, not to look at or catch what I do.

I am, in fact one of the world's most compulsive episcopores.

I find there is an almost ritual purity about fish.

The Japanese, you know, eat their fish raw, shredding and flaking the flesh and dipping it into peco sauces.

So yeah, horseradish, that sort of thing.

The effect can be delicious, a delicate point and counterpoint, air and descant plucking at the palette.

The taste can be exquisite.

And yet if you should think too hard about those raw, gelatinous strips of fish, you may find the feel of them, the sight of them even is somehow obscene.

But in my attitude in these matters is colored by a most unnerving experience I underwent in Australia.

I'll call this story simply fish, because as each stage of the episode unfolded, it was impressed on my memory by some episcatorial piece of gastronomic delight.

It started in a Sydney restaurant about five years ago, with a dozen of the celebrated rock oysters, with lemon and cayenne pepper and all the usual trimmings.

I was lunching with Greg Rossmark, an aspiring actor who wanted to come to work in London.

We were just debating whether another half dozen would be sheer bliss or pure greed, when suddenly Vincent It.

Is Vincent, isn't it Vincent Price?

Well, yes, Jane Williamsy.

I don't suppose you remember, but we did once actually work on a film together.

Well, yes, I believe I do remember.

It was a long time ago.

At Elstreet, wasn't it.

That's right?

I strangled you?

What a charming fun But I only strangled the nicest people.

Sorry, Jane, let me introduce you to Greg greg Rossmark.

He's also an.

Act, an eminently unsuccessful one.

Hello, how do you do?

Won't you join us?

No?

No, thank you very much.

I must be going.

Are you working over here?

And no, missus Williamsy in the theater, I mean.

No, no, the theatre gave me out for dead right after Vincent strangled Well.

I can't believe that I was that realistic.

It was probably symbolic of something.

Or other, don't you miss it?

The theater maybe, but.

You can't have everything.

Can you sure you won't join us?

Now?

This seems so much we might talk.

About No, No, really, I can't.

Richard's already waiting at the table, and he's due to start glowering any moment.

Now, Oh that's a shame.

Look how long are you here for?

Oh?

Just a week or so.

I started filming in Hong Kong at the end of the month.

Why don't you come over to lunch with us on Sunday.

We're only over at Manly and I'm a much better cook than I ever was an actress.

I'd love to come.

Oh well, very well, then we'll both come.

Oh well, fine, Well it's number six Sandy Avenues.

It's right on the beach.

You can't miss this right till Sandy Then, anytime after twelve.

We'll be there.

Bye bye, good bye, Lovely one.

I do apologize, Ben, since whatever before falling in on your invitation like that, it obviously through you.

While I suppose it did, I just wasn't expecting it summer.

Neither was she.

I was.

I was trying to stampede you into accepting that.

You succeeded admirably.

I don't see why that.

And I thought that you were going to refuse.

Well, would that have been so disastrous?

Not to you, maybe, but it it might have been to her.

I didn't see how it could have been.

I hadn't seen her for years, and I barely knew her even theirs.

I know, I know, but there's just something about her.

It's well, it's sort of difficult to put your finger on.

But the eyes were out of phase with the voice all the while she was talking.

The eyes looked, well, they looked.

Oh, come on, Greg, don't let your imagination run away with your imagination?

Be damned imagination?

What is imagination?

A mental trick?

A simple piece of sleight of mind that projects facts into fantasy or fantasies into fact.

Anyway, the following Sunday, Greg picked me up at my hotel and drove us out across the Sydney Harbor Bridge towards the North Shore and Manly.

The other day in the restaurant Vincent, when Jane Williamsey introduced herself, did you really remember her right off?

Just like that?

Yes?

Yes, she wasn't the sort of woman you'd forget easily, especially after her performance in that film.

Was she good in it?

Very good on it?

Positively scandalous, Yes, quite literally.

So she brought the picture to a grinding halt about halfway through the schedule, or how she managed.

She ran off with the director.

Oh yeah, she took off just like that, left us, her husband, everybody flattened, just a cough.

Believe me, it was no laughing matter.

It couldn't have been, and at least it wasn't.

At that time.

We had to get a new director in and a new lady for me to strangle, and we reshot every scene that Jane had been in.

Oh, it was an absolute nightmare.

And h and what happened to her, Jane.

Was she just disapeated.

They both did off the set, out of the business, off the face of the earth, for all I knew.

Her husband hired some inkury agents to find them, and for a few weeks we were all up to our ears in private eyes.

I sometimes wonder why he bothered.

It could hardly have come as a surprise to him, not with a woman like that, A woman like what, well, she was younger then, of course a lot more arrogant.

She seemed to generate a sort of sexual electricity.

She had an almost animal magnetism that could devastate a man.

I'll tell you something, Vincent, she still got it.

I wonder what a husband's lying.

Were more important.

I wonder if he's a film director, or even an ex film director.

I guess we'll soon find out.

We did and he wasn't a film director.

Jane's husband turned out to be a broker on the Sydney Stock Exchange, but even that turned out to be more of a sideline.

His real occupation was swimming, surfing, yachting, all the classic activities of the professional outdoor type.

Richard was a good outdoor cook too, and what he could do with an open fire was beyond belief.

It's going on nicely, won't belong Benson?

You always eat our fresco like this, Richard.

We only make a think of it at the weekend, and I can.

Think of worse ways of passing the right.

Nice to see Jen enjoying yourself so much, and I'm surprised takes it out of you, especially when you're not used to it.

Greg was.

He was teaching me to ride the sun?

Sure, Greg, what's that mark?

But they're on your leg?

Oh?

Oh that that's a birthmak all right.

It's almost a family crest.

It occurs at least once in every generation in our family.

Always the same place.

No, but it's.

Usually on an arm or a leg somewhere, and it's always but always the same shape.

You see an open rose.

Oh, yes, how you pointed out it.

Is like a rose my uncle, my grandfather.

There's more identical.

What's extraordinary?

How far does that go back?

Well, you see, my family's name is ros Mark, and I suppose originally it was a rosemark.

But well, god knows when that starts.

Oh, that really does smell delicious, Richard, it's coming on.

What is it inside the tinfoil?

I mean, it's a whole big time.

It really is very good eating.

Richard carves it off in great chunks, and you dip it in.

The showy sauce.

Well, I can hardly wait.

Tell me where on earth did you learn to cook food?

Japanese star Richid I found any style of cooking absolutely fascinating.

We were taught this by a party of Japanese stockbrokers.

That we took fishing.

But what sort of fishing?

Tuna?

Barrakuda?

Marlon, if you're lucky, oh, the big game bit huh.

Richard has his own boat down the coast at Burmagooey.

We charted it out most of the time, but we reserve a few odd weeks for ourselves.

You go fishing, Jane, No, he prefers to stay here.

Hmm.

I can imagine.

It must be a far cry from el Street to burmagoy.

Don't drag all that up rosmuck, for peepsake, drag all water, the theater, the bright lights and all that crap.

It's much better up where she is.

Anti Jane, Yes, did did you two know each other before before?

What?

Well, before before Jane gave up the theater?

My yes, of course I married her when she was still a drama student, and in the end it was me that made her give it all up, wasn't it done?

Could hardly believe it.

This was the husband that she had left on her runaway romance.

What could have happened had he found her or had she come back to him?

And what about the flyaway film director?

What had happened to him?

Well?

When I got back to London, I mentioned his name around a few times to see if I had got any response.

I didn't.

People remembered him, but no one had seen or heard of him since he had run off with that actress.

As they put it, they'd both run off, of course, but only Jane had come back.

I wondered, so dark a thought, So dark a thought, It lodged unnoticed in the shadows of my memory until last year when I went back to Australia, back to Sydney.

Perhaps it was the same unnoticed thought that made me phone the one time Jane Willielmsy and her husband to invite them both to dinner.

I remember the occasion.

Well, we had a quite extraordinary Australian Hawk with a quite excellent lobster, a lamorica.

How long will you be in Australia this time?

It's only a few more days than I go to Japan for eight weeks of filming.

Might come back here after that, though, just for a short vacation trip.

Oh well, then you must come up to stay with us in Brisbane.

It'd be lovely to see you.

Yes, I didn't, Richard, tell you, But tell.

Me what, Richard, we're moving has Well, what would you do in Brisbane?

Fish?

I've sold much this interest here in Sydney and invested in a couple of boats, awful engines properly fitted out.

You know, chair rods, harpooned, rotation barrels, a lot.

We can take anything, salefish, black marlin, the big sharks, the tigers and the great whites.

Why do you go all the way up to Brisbane?

I mean, why not stay in BRIMAGOUI.

That was Richard's decision.

The charter rates are much higher up in Queensland, better fishing all the year round.

Two Richard's going to skip a one of the boats himself.

Well what will you do, jays.

I'm sure there'll be a great deal to keep me occupied.

You're probably enjoyed.

Once she gets settled in.

We'll see.

Have you seen Greg greg?

Oh?

Greg Rossmark?

You mean now, have you seen anything of him recently?

No?

Yes, not recently.

How is he?

Why it's it working?

No?

No?

He gave up the theater.

After dinner.

I saw them to their car with a promise that I would visit them in Brisbane on my return from Japan.

I watched them out of sight and turned to walk down to my hotel and the cool night air.

Suddenly I became quite chillingly aware that someone was walking almost at my shoulder, following me.

I stopped.

Suddenly, I had to turn and face him.

Out it been surprised.

Yes, do you remember me, Greg Greg with the rosemark on his leg?

Greg Greg ross mark.

Of course I hardly recognized you.

Are you all right?

Let's just say that I'm sort of sick.

You were with her, weren't you?

You mean Jane?

Yes, I've just had dinner with her and Richie.

Ye I saw it.

Did you mention me?

She said, you hadn't seen you recently?

No, No, he won't let her, not since he found out found out her.

Well, is that why you never went to England?

Yes, it happened again.

You see we are.

Ah, you wouldn't understand you.

Mean you ran away together?

No?

Everything, But that's funnily enough.

She wouldn't come with me.

She she was frightened, frightened of what of him?

Of course.

She's terrified of him.

Then when he found out about us, she refused to see me again.

She sends my letters unopened.

Every time I phone, she bursts into tears and keeps saying, well, moaning, stay away, for God's sake, stay away from me.

Oh the way she.

Says, it tears the heart out of you.

And I know it's it's not what she wants to say.

I can tell Greg maybe she's right.

No, otherwise he wouldn't be taking her away from here, far away where he thinks I won't follow.

Well, he's wrong.

You can tell him from me that he's wrong.

I'll follow wherever he takes her.

I'll follow to the ends of the earth if need be.

You tell her that, will you, to the ends of the earth, To the ends of the Earth's.

Shuffled off backwards into the night until the shadows seemed to engulf him completely, leaving me with only the recollection of the desperation in his eyes and the strained emotion of his voice.

As I turned into my hotel, I knew that I would need a vacation after my work in Japan had finished.

Knew that I wanted to try my hand at big game fishing, and so nine weeks later I found myself on the open patio of Jane and Richard's new house, eating a homemade croiss on and drinking fresh ground coffee in the pale sunshine of an early morning in Queensland.

Oh please, and by the way, I congratulate you on your Crossah, they're delicious.

Not all even face today was just that inside of you.

It's a woman's records.

Well, I certainly couldn't face the day at sea with a stubbach for of bacon, sausage, eggs, tomato.

Don't get the tomato.

It keeps the corpuscles coming the right color.

At least, that's what my old Grannie used to say.

But mine said, they gave you a pen deciple before Vincent.

Now, I never seem to have had the time, and I've never been convinced that I had the patience.

I know what you mean, but this is nothing like ordinary angling.

You see, you don't just sit around and wait for the fish to come.

You have to go out and look for them.

Well, you have to know where to look.

Presumably, well, I seem to know where to look for shark.

Richard's landed more sharks in the past fortnight than anyone can remember.

He's making quite a name for himself.

What kind of sharks do you get in these waters?

All the worst sorts or best sorts, according to your point of view.

Tigers, mako, hammerheads.

I've even taken a couple of whites, small, of course, but even the small ones a man eaters.

What happens if you meet a big one.

I beg you've got a fight on your hand.

That could be real sport.

Yes, well i'll just go and learn if.

I'll give you a hand, Rich, see to it.

You've finished your coffee in peace?

Yeah, you stay put.

I know where everything goes.

Vincent, have you seen anything of Greg?

I saw him that night that I had dinner with you both in Sydney.

Not since then?

No, Why did he say anything about me?

Well?

He did say he'd follow you, follow me here anywhere to the end severe earth.

That's what he said.

Oh god, no, not again.

That's rare.

He's here.

He's in Brisbane.

You've seen When was that to?

No?

Nearly three weeks ago.

And you haven't heard from him since.

No.

I told him to keep, to go back to Sydney and forget me.

Do you really think so?

Do you?

No?

Go on?

Listen, kind to get moving.

Why did you come, Jane, there's only us two fishing.

You could try your hand?

No thanks anyway.

I want to go into town today.

Yeah, okay, drive carefully.

I will have a good day you too, Vincent.

Have a good day, have a good week, have a good year, have a good life.

What does it mean as if you can wish anything on anyone, or induce even the most mird no change in patterns of events that have been irrevocably pre cast in the unyielding concrete of too many yesterdays.

A good day it was, then, in the sense that the sky was blue and the sun was warm, and the swell of the ocean was at its most pacific.

Good boat and a good crew in the shape of Jack, a laconic x swagman from the northern territories.

All it needed was good fish.

I wish that had been all we've got.

Patience, mister Price, that's what's laid out here.

But they're not biting to day.

Jack.

I will I always do.

Give a bag another bank.

Yeck, right up?

What is that thing?

Yeah?

Just hang it over the side of the boat, and leaves a trail behind you for miles.

As soon as anything finds it, it turns and follows it right onto the hook.

At least that's the theory.

But have you got inside it?

That's what we call chum.

That's a sort of a polite way of saying smelly bits of fish and meat and awful, especially awful anything that'll lose blood and oil into the water.

But I wonder what it'll turn up today.

Shark, that's all.

He seems to be interesting.

They'll have to take what comes, though, won't he.

I mean he can't pick and choose.

He does, at least he seems to.

Well, how can he?

It's just not possible.

You can't just whistle up which fish you want.

No, but you can't take all the baked fish out of the dobby bag and just leave bloody meat in there.

Then what you put into the water is not so much an oil slick as a blood trial that'll bring the sharks running.

But kin Jack, I don't understand this obsession of his with sharks.

I really, don't, you.

Say, I do.

Yeah, they're not as good as milin a sailfish.

I don't have the heart the skippers said on fighting a big great white.

But I only hope that's not a death witch.

We got a visit a jack.

What is it?

Tiger?

About ten foot of him?

Better get into the chair, mister.

Pass, sir, There we go right, Aw, he's curtaining for the strike, steady.

Yeah, here he comes.

Let him run and don't holding onto him yet.

Don't strike until he stops and starts to bite on him and strike hard, and don't stop to pick the daisies.

I'll tell you when.

Okay, he slow wait for it.

Huh he's turning.

Here he.

Turn Oh what happened?

The line broke?

Is the breaking strain on that line?

Around one thousand pounds?

I had some fish, had there vincent til I rig another hook?

Yeah, Jack might as well.

Do you think he's still around?

It depends if he's still got the hook in him.

Hey, there he is where right under the sun?

Oh?

What's he doing that for?

He's circling what we would got nothing else?

Here he comes, he's going to attack the boat.

Hold on, hoss, he's crizy.

It's madness of bloody maters.

I I got it to get off, your prizy bastard.

Get off.

What the hell was all that about?

I've never known that happened before.

Whatever it was, I'd prefer it not to happen again.

Truth, he was after the dubby bank.

What see for yourself?

We looked over the stern of the boat.

The shark had indeed attacked the doubby bag.

He torn over half of it away from its rope.

The gristly gory bait or chum as Jack called.

It was already dispersing through the water.

And then I saw the canvas, a shredded piece of the bag that had been torn away from the rest.

It was floating precariously just below the surface of the water.

On it was a piece of meat, a small piece of meat with a yellowish bloodied skin.

And on the skin was a mark, a distinctive mark in the shape of an open rose.

Then the movement of the sea washed it off its canvas raft and committed it forever to the deep.

Well, next time you eat fish, you may care to remember this little episode, But I hope it doesn't quit you off.

I'm still a committed episcopore, with the single exception that I will never never eat fish and chips In Australia, flake and chips as they call it.

It's a great favorite out there.

But flake, of course is shark.

Meet goodbye, bona petite.

That was Vincent Price bringing you The Price of Fear with Bruce bebe Lewis, vander Amanda Mari and Bill Kerr.

The story Fish was first recounted and dramatized by Rainny Basilico and produced by John Dash