Smart Blonde

Torchy Blane witnesses Tiny Torgenson being shot as they leave Union Station after their train encounter. She immediately phones in the Morning Herald with the scoop. The murder thrusts Tiny's gambling empire into the spotlight and triggers a high-stakes investigation.

Torchy and detective Steve McBride deliver the murder news to Fitz Mularkey at the Million Club. Fitz decides to quit the business in light of his upcoming marriage to Marcia Friel. The case now centers on whether the sale of Tiny's enterprises will go forward.

Dolly Ireland is revealed to have loved Fitz, while Chuck Cannon resents losing his job. Dixie the hatcheck girl hints at these tensions, expanding the field of suspects. Steve begins widening the inquiry beyond the obvious bidders.

Torchy persuades Steve to track down Chuck Cannon. They confront Chuck at his apartment, and Fitz arrives during the scene to press for information about the police investigation. The encounter deepens the question of Fitz's innocence.

Steve learns that Chuck and Dolly were seen at Union Station just before Tiny's murder. The cross-connection tightens the timeline and suggests a conspiracy among the club's insiders. Investigators start focusing on those closest to Tiny's ventures.

Torchy has afternoon tea with Marcia Friel, Fitz's fiancée. Marcia asks Torchy to persuade Fitz to sell the business to any willing buyer. The conversation hints at Marcia's ambitions and potential leverage over Fitz.

Chuck Cannon is discovered dead in his hotel room, shifting the case away from a simple club murder. Steve immediately suspects Fitz, given the possible weapon connection. Fitz is confronted but escapes, keeping his status uncertain.

The forensic report shows Chuck's gun did not kill Tiny, forcing a reevaluation of suspects. Steve questions Marcia about her relationship with Chuck, and she claims he threatened her and that Fitz may have killed him to protect her. The case grows murky as personal entanglements blur the evidence.

Torchy, Steve, and Gahagan go to Marcia's apartment to confront Fitz and uncover the truth. Torchy exposes inconsistencies in Marcia and Lewis's stories, suggesting they are not truly related to Fitz. The tension escalates as the real culprit's identity starts to surface.

Torchy uncovers that Lewis Friel is the mastermind behind the murders. He killed Tiny to prevent recognition of Marcia as an impostor and murdered Chuck to keep their scheme hidden. The revelation rewrites the case as a calculated con rather than a purely personal crime.

Lewis pulls a gun on Fitz, but Fitz shoots him, ending the immediate danger. Marcia is arrested as the truth about her ruse comes to light. The club's dangerous scam is exposed and dismantled.

Fitz decides to keep the Million Club and its associated businesses, now tempered by Dolly's presence. Steve proposes to Torchy, and she accepts, signaling a personal and professional new chapter after the ordeal.