What happens
Sam, a young hitchhiker, accepts a ride from Jay Stewart Belden, a well-dressed man driving a fancy convertible. The two pass the time playing license plate poker, and Belden gives Sam his camel-hair coat. Then Belden turns hostile, forces Sam out of the car and shoots at him, after which Sam walks to a town and reports the incident to the police. Starring Elliot Reed in the Suspense series, first broadcast January 25, 1959.
Rural highways and back roads, a roadside service station called Max and Al's, a small town police station, and a canyon road.
Characters: Sam, Jay Stewart Belden, Virginia, Al, Mac
Listen for: Pay attention to the license plate poker game and the plate numbers Sam notices, which become important as the story goes on.
Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.