[Wind Whistling]
[Knocking]
[Man On Phone] The admiral just arrived at Dr. Melton's house.
I see. Then there is no longer any doubt.
Nelson will now talk Dr. Melton into going with him on the Gulf Stream expedition.
This must be stopped at all costs.
Phone me the moment the admiral leaves Dr. Melton's house.
Yes, sir.
[Engine Starts]
- He just left. - Very well.
Put the telephone plan into effect.
- I'll join you in about two hours. - Yes, sir.
There it is.
Don't interrupt your work, dear. It's the telephone repairman.
At this time of night? Something wrong with the phones?
No, sir. It's the blizzard. We're checking out the whole neighborhood.
All right, go ahead.
If you've got an extension phone, lady, I'd like to check that out.
Yes. Right this way.
There it is.
[Rings]
[Ringing Continues]
- [Moans] - [Ringing Continues]
[Coughing]
[Ringing Continues]
[Coughs] Hello?
Hello?
[Coughs]
She won't stir for at least 10 hours.
Take him away.
[Man] Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
Starring Richard Basehart...
David Hedison.
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
[Wind Howling]
Captain, I've checked Navigation five times in the last hour.
They swear up and down we're right on course.
Looks more like the Bering Strait than the Gulf Stream to me.
- How far are we from the naval base? - ETA is 0100.
That's less than two hours.
Hope the admiral's still up when we dock.
If I know the admiral, he'll be waiting right there on the pier.
- You see anything, Kowalski? - No, sir.
But if I spot an iceberg, don't be surprised.
Carry on!
In short, Lee, I'm flying to Washington in the morning.
With luck, I'll have approval and be back tomorrow night.
Can you be ready to put to sea first thing the following morning?
No problem, sir.
How about this Washington business? Do you expect any hitch on that end?
Well, I've learned never to take anything for granted.
We have a pretty good chance, now that Dr. Melton has agreed to come along.
Well, we should have.
If one of the world's leading climatologists agrees with your theory...
why shouldn't Washington?
Yes, Lee. Melton is the key to the entire project.
With his help, we'll find the answer.
The right frontal lobe has been circumvented...
and the patient has now been completely programmed...
with information and behavior patterns.
We'll see. How soon can he be revived?
- At once, if you like. - Then do it. Do it!
Oh!
Your scalp will be tender for an hour or so. Don't worry about it.
Dr. Melton?
- Do you know me? - Frederick Cregar.
That's good. Very good.
Let me show you something.
You see this, Doctor?
Do you know what it is?
This is a man named Admiral Harriman Nelson.
There's the admiral. What are you going to do, Doctor?
That was very good, Doctor. I must compliment you.
Now for the real test. How do I change or give new instructions?
Just record it.
Dr. Melton, I order you to kill yourself.
Well, well, well. I really must compliment you, Doctor.
You've exceeded my best hopes.
I'd always been told the more intelligent the person, the better the subject.
You know, I never really believed that until now.
Now, Doctor, you've done very well.
But let's not be too obvious. Ingenuity... that's what we must strive for.
You see, Doctor...
Admiral Nelson believes that the climate change...
is caused by a shift in the Gulf Stream.
He's right, by the way.
But we mustn't let him discover the cause of that shift, must we?
Now, uh, what do you suggest we do about that?
Chemicals?
Take all you want.
My notes and slides, please.
The stuff that was brought from the house.
Impregnated with this mixture...
the material becomes more and more unstable...
as atmospheric pressure decreases.
Ah. I begin to understand.
In higher altitudes, this becomes somewhat dangerous.
About 500 feet, it will explode with great force.
Good.
You know, Doctor, you truly have a remarkable mind.
The greater the amount of material we treat...
naturally, the greater the force when it explodes.
I see. You better hurry now.
You must finish in time so I can get you back home and into bed before your wife wakes up.
[Car Door Shuts]
- Charles? - Yes, dear?
Oh, I... I don't know what's the matter with me.
I slept like I was drugged.
I have to go out.
[Yawns] Now?
Oh, I haven't even fixed your breakfast.
I'm not hungry. Go back to sleep.
Oh, no.
I have to... I have a hair appointment this morning.
I should get up, but I'm so tired.
Go back to sleep.
- [Knocking] - Come in.
Good morning. You have a visitor.
Dr. Melton. This is quite a surprise.
I'm sorry to bother you this way, Admiral...
but I wanted to catch you before you flew to Washington.
- I brought you something I thought you could use. - Oh. What's this?
Some notes and slides from my various Gulf Stream projects.
I didn't think of it until after you left yesterday...
but it struck me they could come in handy when you tried to sell the project to Washington.
I'm quite sure they will be.
It was very thoughtful of you.
It's just about time. You should get started for the air base.
- Right. I hate to run off this way, Doctor. - Let me drive you over.
- My car is at the pier. - Fine. We can talk on the way.
- I'll get a crewman for this. - No, thanks, Lee. I can manage. Come along, Doctor.
Admiral Nelson. Good morning, sir.
You can leave with me if you don't mind flying in a T-33.
- I'm ferrying one to Washington. - Good. What's the weather like between here and there?
It's clear and cold. Never remember seeing snow this far south.
Neither does anyone else, Lieutenant.
- Sir, could I get you to sign this release, please? - Yes, of course.
Well, I'll say good-bye now, Doctor.
- Thanks for the lift. - My pleasure.
- Have a good flight. - I'll see you this evening.
Excuse me, sir. There's a telephone call for you... Washington.
- Thank you, Corporal. - You can take it at the ready room desk, sir.
I'll take care of your bag and see that it's stowed aboard, sir.
I'll try not to be too long, Lieutenant.
You wanted to see me, Captain?
Read this.
The admiral?
The jet took off, climbed to 500 feet and blew up.
Has confirmation come from the field yet?
I'm waiting for confirmation now. Nobody could survive that.
- I just don't believe it. - No, Chip, neither can I.
I've been waiting for you, Doctor.
No, your wife is not here.
She had an appointment with a hairdresser.
I took the liberty of letting myself in.
- I've just come from the airstrip. - Yes, I know.
I heard the first news flash over the radio.
You did a beautiful job, Doctor. Beautiful.
Thank you.
And now...
for the final touch.
You know what to do with this?
I'm waiting.
- [Doorbell Rings] - Stop!
It's these unexpected little interruptions that give life its flavor.
Don't you agree, Doctor?
I'll be waiting in the bedroom.
[Doorbell Rings]
- [Door Closes] - [Nelson] I know you weren't expecting this visit, Doctor.
- I'll only be a minute or two. - But...
But... But the airport... the accident...
That was a terrible thing.
It was a close call for me too.
The last minute before takeoff, I received a message from Washington...
approving the project...
so I left word for the plane to leave without me.
That young pilot never had a chance.
O-Oh, you must be badly shaken. Please sit down.
Thank you. I...
I'm afraid I forgot my bag. Your notes are destroyed completely.
[Melton] Oh-Oh-Oh, that doesn't matter.
Admiral, tell me, what are your plans now?
Why...
Why, to leave on our project at once.
You are going, aren't you?
Yes. Yes, of course I'll go.
Good. We'll make all preparations at once.
[Door Closes]
Forgive me, gentlemen, if I tell you things you already know...
but even the best-informed people...
tend to think of the Gulf Stream...
as an oceanic river of warm water coursing up the Atlantic Coast.
In reality, though, it's a rather narrow ribbon of fast-moving current...
which acts as a kind of wall...
keeping the warm equatorial waters here...
from mixing with the cold Arctic waters along here.
So, naturally, the farther east this dividing wall moves...
the colder the Atlantic Coast of North America becomes.
Which is exactly what I believe happened.
Something in this area here has caused a slight diversion...
of the direction of the currents.
The diversion increases as it moves northward, producing the freak weather.
Then our mission is to locate the cause of this diversion and correct it, if possible.
Exactly. We're entering the critical area now.
I propose we run submerged for the night to take readings at lower depths.
- Aye, sir. Chip, dive the boat. - Aye, aye, sir.
Make your depth 200 feet and keep 'er steady.
Rig for deep submergence.
- Navigation reports for the log, sir. - Ah, thanks, Chief.
[Hissing]
- Sound the fire alarm! On the double! - Yes, sir.!
- [Klaxon Sounding] - [Alarm Bell Ringing]
[Grunting]
Kowalski, get him to sick bay.
And break out an inhalator! Fast!
This is the captain. Surface the boat.
And instruct Engineering to clear all ventilators of smoke.
[Alarm Bell Continues Ringing]
Chip, all clear?
What do you make of this, Captain?
Doesn't make things very pleasant up there, does it?
Down scope.
- Crack the deck hatch as soon as we approach the surface. - Aye, aye, sir.
[Coughs] Any explanation for...
[Coughs] how that fire started, Lee?
It was probably some kind of chemical reaction.
You must have gotten something from the lab in your clothes...
which ignited by spontaneous combustion.
That doesn't sound very likely. I don't know how to explain it.
- I don't think you should go up on deck, Admiral. - Doc says I need fresh air.
I don't know a better way to get it.
[Sighs] Excuse me, sir. Did you say fresh air?
- We've got tons of dead fish up there. - Dead fish?
Yeah. They were on the deck when we surfaced. I saw them through the scope.
They're floating all over the water.
- Curley, get one and bring it down here. - Down here, Admiral?
- One dead fish. - Aye, aye, sir.
- Bring it to the lab. I'll be there. - Aye, aye, sir.
[Clicking]
- Radiation? - Enough to kill every fish in the area.
I'm beginning to see what our great underwater upheaval must have been.
You don't mean a nuclear explosion.
I'm not sure yet.
- Where are your water samples? - Right here.
[Clicking]
I see nothing in your report about radioactivity, Doctor.
Well, uh, I didn't test for it.
The idea never occurred to me.
Never occurred to you?
What kind of scientist are you? How could you make such an idiotic blunder?
It's inexcusable.
May I remind you, Admiral, I'm a guest and a colleague...
not an employee.
Sorry, Doctor. Of course you're right.
The main thing now is to trace this radiation to its source. I'll get started right away.
Doctor, are you all right?
Submarine duty doesn't agree with some people.
No. No, I'm fine. I'm just a little tired.
Well, don't work too long.
[Clicking On Speaker]
- The count's slowing down again. - [Clicking Continues]
Try her this way.
Two degrees left rudder.
Come to course 1-5-4, absolute.
[Clicking Speeds Up]
- Steady as she goes. - Steady as she goes, sir.
[Man On Speaker] Captain, this is Lookout.
Small object bearing 0-7-1, relative. Range: 1,500 yards.
Radar's been reading the same thing.
- Can you make it out? - Yes, sir.
Small marker buoy. Seems to have a whip antenna on top.
No identification number.
Very well. Keep it under observation.
Up scope.
Whip antenna.
Let's have a closer look.
You know what to do. Under no circumstances are you to stay in the water more than 10 minutes.
If the counter goes past the red line, return at once.
- Just follow the chain down and report what you find. - Aye, aye, sir.
[Geiger Counter Clicking]
- It doesn't make sense. - Well, it's true, sir.
That cable goes right straight down into the ocean floor.
And the radiation seems to come from that spot?
It sure does, Captain. I checked with the counter.
[Morton On Speaker] Captain, Sparks is picking up a signal...an electronic beam.
Of course!
That explains the antenna.
- Has he got a fix on it? - The directional finder's working on it right now, sir.
I want a report the instant you locate it.
There's the source of the signal.
Coincides exactly with Radar's report.
There's an island located there. There's no name though.
There are plenty of uninhabited islands in this area, Lee.
Let's get under way. I want to take a look at this place.
What about the marker buoy? We can't leave it.
We'll just go close enough to put a party ashore, then lay back here again.
Admiral Nelson, I protest. We're wasting time. This has nothing to do with our project.
- I don't agree. Lee, get your men ready. - Aye, sir.
Nobody's home, Captain.
I don't know. The signal comes from here.
There must be some sort of installation.
There's something over there, Skipper.
[Crane] Looks like a shot tower.
There are no buildings around.
What about in there?
- Come on, let's see. - No, now, wait a minute.
Seagull to Albatross. Seagull to Albatross.
- Come in, Albatross. - This is Albatross. Go ahead, Seagull.
We're on shore. No sign of life. No patrols.
We spotted what could be a nuclear shot tower, but I'm not sure.
There are some caves around here too.
I'm still investigating. I'll make a report again. Seagull out.
- Follow me. - Yes, sir.
[Man On Speaker] Stop right where you are.! You're covered.
Drop your weapons to the ground.
Drop it.!
[Gunshot]
He's been shot! He needs help!
[Man On Speaker] He needs nothing.
Stop.!
You and your party will walk straight ahead, hands in the air.
Move.!
Report any further change in your reading at once.
There must be no hold in this countdown.
[Man Shouts, Indistinct]
Commander Lee Crane, captain of the submarine Seaview?
And who are you?
The name is Frederick Cregar. Unfortunately, you dropped in at an awkward moment.
Awkward? For you or for me?
[Man On Radio] One hour and 40 minutes to zero.
I see you're curious about the countdown.
Good. Good. I like a man with a healthy curiosity.
What kind of a countdown is this?
It's part of a series of nuclear tests...
designed to produce a weapons system of unequaled power.
The stronger nations... yours, for one...
frown on such activities among their lesser sister states.
Fortunately, they won't know until too late.
I wouldn't count on that.
Oh. Are you thinking of the Seaview and what Admiral Nelson knows?
If they don't hear from us, they'll come looking...
and they'll blast you right off the map, Cregar.
My dear Commander, it so happens that at this moment your submarine is poised...
directly above the next bomb we re about to detonate.
In exactly one hour and 37 minutes...
Admiral Nelson and the Seaview will simply cease to exist.
Skipper, we gotta get a warning to the admiral.
How? They took our shortwave.
And I don't see much chance of busting out of here.
- Do you, Captain? - I'm afraid not.
All we can do is stick it out and wait.
After all, we're not in such bad shape.
Except this cave is full ofbugs.
Hope you guys don't mind.
Not me, Captain. Nothing wrong with bugs if you leave 'em alone.
Yeah, that's my motto. Stay as far away from them as possible.
You and me both, Kowalski.
Well, we might as well make ourselves comfortable. Could be here a long, long time.
Yeah. I just hope they don't forget to feed us.
[Whistling]
[Continues]
- Knock off the whistling, Curley. I wanna get some sleep. - Yes, sir.
[Whispering] Come on!
Sector four clear. Proceeding to sector five. Out.
[Groans]
Seagull to Albatross. Come in.
Yes, this is Albatross. Where have you been?
- Sparks, get me the admiral. - He's waiting right here.
Admiral, listen very carefully.
You've got less than an hour. Get away from that marker buoy.
That hole in the ocean floor contains a nuclear bomb...
and you're sitting right on it.
We'll get under way at once. What are the chances of stopping it?
Very good, if you make straight for the island...
with several missiles prepared to fire.
They'll stop the countdown when they see they're covered.
- Report this to Washington. I'll get us moving. - I think not, Admiral.
Someone was careless enough to leave a small arms locker unattended.
I appreciate the favor.
That should take care of any radio messages.
The Seaview will go nowhere, Admiral...
until the bomb goes off.
Admiral, out of my way.
Move. Move!
Move.
Get out. Get out!
It's no use now.
Before you repair the helm, it'll be too late for all of you.
- But you'll go with us, Melton. - It doesn't matter in the least.
You're insane.
That doesn't matter either.
[Gunshot]
- [Choking, Groaning] - He's been hit!
Get him to sick bay!
[Groaning Continues]
- Engineering, get a repair party on that helm mechanism. - We gotta get out of here.
- Can the men aft handle the auxiliary steering? - Yes, sir, no problem.
Get a detail on the auxiliary steering and stand by to get under way.
Let's get moving!
No, no! Let me go!
[Grunting]
- How is he? - It's just a crease, sir. But he's out of his head.
- No! No. - What's this?
I don't know, sir. We noticed this bandage when we ripped off his shirt.
No!
- [Exhales] - Adrenaline.
[Beeping]
- [Beeping Continues] - So that's it.
We're at flank speed, sir. What's that?
This man has been a walking receiving set.
- I saw an experiment like this once before. Listen. - [Beeping Continues]
It works like a heart pacemaker, only it transmits information directly to the brain.
With this on him, Melton was little more than a robot.
- What's that signal mean? - Take this to the recorder.
Take the next beep and slow it down. It's a burst transmission.
Wait, wait, wait.
- Wait. - No, let him alone.
Admiral Nelson.
Where am I?
- What happened? - You'll be all right.
All right? No.
Not all right. Never all right.
I'm beginning to remember.
There was a plane... a jet pilot.
I killed him. And I tried to kill you.
No. No, you didn't.
You're no more guilty of murder than a gun is.
The guilt belongs to the man who pulled the trigger.
[Sighs]
Admiral, listen to this.
[Cregar] You have failed me, Doctor.
Radar indicates the submarine has not been completely disabled.
Now yourjob is even more difficult.
Deliver Nelson to my central control. This is imperative.
Deliver Nelson to me at once.
The man who pulled the trigger.
- Oh, if we could only reach him. - We can.
Those instructions were meant for your brain.
We'll carry them out.
[Radio: Man #1] No sign of the escaped prisoners in sectors one through six.
[Radio: Man #2] Retrace and keep searching.
[Kowalski] Captain.!
That's Dr. Melton with him.
Just a few more steps and I'll pick him off.
- No. - No?
You gonna let him take the admiral?
He's not taking the admiral. Think about it.
What chance would Melton have...
taking the admiral off the Seaview past the whole crew...
if he didn't wanna go?
Come on. Be quiet.
I really must apologize, Admiral.
This meeting would not have been necessary if your captain hadn't escaped.
Ah. Crane got away, did he? Good.
Well, he won't get off the island, of course.
- Neither will you now. - [Man On Radio] Thirty minutes to zero and counting.
You see, I am reluctant to put a hold on our countdown.
You have, uh, very sophisticated equipment.
Thank you. We use it well.
However, there is one more shot after this one, the climax to our series.
One more. Where's the bomb?
On a platform right here on this island, ready for immediate activation.
This spectacular burst is designed to show the world...
that we have joined the nuclear club.
Are there any more questions, sir?
No, I think not.
Well, Mr. Cregar?
Doctor, shoot him.
Dr. Melton, you have orders.
I said for you to shoot Nelson.
The bullets in this gun belong to you, Mr. Cregar.
All right, up! Up!
I'll take that, Doctor.
Lee, clear these men out of here.
All right, back from there.
Come on.! Move it.!
Admiral, you're wasting your time.
The countdown will continue unless a proper code sequence interrupts it.
Get him out. Doctor, you stay with me.
Is he telling the truth?
I'm afraid so.
We can't stop it.
But look here.
- You see the way it's set up? - The same system we use.
Exactly. Conventional telemetry.
A series of relays activating the firing mechanism.
Then we can't abort it without the code.
No.
But we can activate the tower bomb to go off at the same time.
The whole system was designed to handle both devices.
One at a time, normally.
They'd discover it, stop the countdown.
Let them. But I doubt it.
You see this? The same controls serve both circuits.
They'd get no signal from their servomechanisms...
if we patch this second group in right along with the first.
- I hope you're right. - We only have a little while to wonder.
Guards coming down the passage.
Soon you'll be surrounded. You have no hope of getting off this island.
- I advise you to stop the countdown immediately. - Not a chance, Admiral.
- Get out of here! - Curley, take off!
Yes, sir.
Follow them! Follow them!
Chip, take her down and get out of here at flank speed.
Aye, sir.
Clear the decks. Prepare to dive.
All ahead flank.
Thank heavens they adapted most of their instrumentation from ours.
Will Cregar stop that countdown?
We'll know in a matter of seconds.
- We're far enough from the island now to... - [Explosion]
It checks out. Water temperature, density and salinity constant.
The Gulf Stream is just where it should be.
Could that last nuclear explosion possibly have done it?
Why not? I'm convinced it was the illegal test series that altered it in the first place.
- [Knocking] - Come.
Good news, Admiral. We arrive in Pensacola in two hours.
I just got the weather report... fair and warmer.