Originally Aired: September 28, 1948
Philo Vance #12, "The Argus Murder Case," opens with Philo Vance returning home in the early morning hours after an evening out with District Attorney Markham. Upon arriving at his apartment, Vance encounters Edgar Walters, a desperate man who has been waiting for hours outside his building. Walters explains that his wife, a compulsive gambler, went to an offshore gambling ship owned by Lucky Saunders earlier in the evening but never returned home. With gambling operations shutting down at 2 a.m. and Mrs. Walters still missing at nearly 4 a.m., her worried husband fears something terrible has happened.
Despite the late hour, Vance agrees to investigate and heads to the gambling ship to discover what became of the missing woman. What begins as a simple missing person case promises to evolve into something far more sinister as Vance prepares to board Lucky Saunders' vessel and uncover the truth behind Mrs. Walters' mysterious disappearance.