Sorry, Wrong Number

Originally Aired: November 18, 1948

Suspense #315, "Sorry, Wrong Number," presents Agnes Moorhead as Mrs. Stevenson, an invalid woman alone in her home who becomes inadvertently entangled in a terrifying situation. While attempting to reach her husband's office at Murray Hill 4-0098, where he's supposedly working late, the operator accidentally connects her to a crossed line. Mrs. Stevenson overhears two men coldly discussing plans for a murder: a woman will be killed at 11:15 PM when a train crosses a nearby bridge to mask any screams. The killers mention specific details—a private patrolman's routine, lights in a house, jewelry to be stolen to make it look like a robbery.

Desperate and increasingly frantic, Mrs. Stevenson attempts to trace the call and alert authorities, but she encounters frustrating bureaucratic obstacles at every turn. The operators insist they cannot trace a disconnected call without official authorization, and she's shuffled between the chief operator and various departments. As precious minutes tick away and Mrs. Stevenson's anxiety mounts, she realizes the authorities may not act in time to prevent the murder she's accidentally discovered.