Where the Truth Lies 2005

As the curtains closed on the 1957 Miami polio telethon, where entertainers Lanny Morris (played by) and Vince Collins had co-hosted a marathon event alongside mobster Sally Sanmarco’s hotel ownership, the unlikely duo embarked on a journey to New Jersey. Their mission: to christen the new showroom of Sanmarco’s latest hospitality venture, a move orchestrated by the shrewd businesswoman to boost her own reputation. Little did they know, their arrival would coincide with a gruesome discovery - the nude body of Maureen O’Flaherty, a Miami college student and aspiring journalist, lay lifeless in the bathtub.

Maureen’s investigation into Morris and Collins for her school newspaper had only just begun before her sudden disappearance, leaving behind a trail of unanswered questions. Officially attributed to a drug overdose, Maureen’s death would remain a mystery, with no apparent connection between her demise and the two comedians. The partnership that had once brought them success and harmony would soon dissolve, a casualty of their own unresolved emotions.

Fifteen years later, journalist Karen O’Connor, a polio survivor who had first met Morris and Collins at the telethon, accepted an assignment to ghostwrite Vince Collins’ autobiography, a lucrative deal worth $1 million. Karen’s promise to Maureen’s mother was simple: she would uncover the truth behind her daughter’s tragic death. But as she delved deeper into the project, strange chapters began arriving anonymously from Lanny Morris, fueling speculation and tension.

Karen’s serendipitous encounter with Morris on a flight led to an impromptu dinner table conversation, where she introduced herself as “Bonnie Trout,” trading on her friend’s identity. The two hit it off, sharing a night of passion in his hotel room, only for Morris to vanish the next morning without so much as a farewell note.

As Karen delves into the autobiography of the enigmatic Collins under her own name, she finds herself entangled in a web of deceit when he invites her to an impromptu writing session at his Los Angeles abode. The unexpected twist comes when Morris, another key player in this tangled narrative, is revealed to be attending the gathering as well. With her true identity now compromised, Karen must think fast and concoct a convincing excuse to extricate herself from the situation, but fate has other plans. In the driveway, she encounters Morris once more, and the mask of secrecy is torn away, exposing the fact that the woman entrusted with penning Collins’ memoirs has a clandestine connection to his ex-partner.

As Karen navigates this precarious terrain, Collins proves himself a master manipulator, exploiting her vulnerabilities to blackmail her into keeping quiet about the truth surrounding Maureen O’Flaherty’s demise. Under the influence of wine and drugs, he coerces Karen into engaging in an intimate encounter with Alice, a young aspiring singer, and captures their compromising positions on film. The threat is clear: unless Karen agrees to downplay any controversy surrounding Maureen’s passing, Collins will unleash the incriminating photographs upon the world.

As Karen begins to unravel the mysteries of the past, she discovers that Maureen had secretly recorded her interactions with Morris and Collins. Gradually, the truth starts to emerge about the fateful night 15 years prior, when the three individuals embarked on a tumultuous ménage à trois fueled by drugs and liquor. The evening’s climax was marked by Collins’ failed attempt to initiate a sexual encounter with Morris, who resisted violently. Retreating to his room, Collins ultimately succumbed to exhaustion, while Maureen attempted to blackmail Morris into paying her to keep the secrets buried. Little did she know that Morris was willing to offer more than just money to silence her.

In the end, it was Maureen’s untimely demise that led to a cover-up of epic proportions. The trio had smuggled her lifeless body inside a crate filled with lobsters (a gift from Sanmarco) and shipped it ahead to their destination in New Jersey with Reuben’s clandestine assistance. The tape recorder, which had captured the entire night’s events, remained missing for years, its existence a constant reminder of the dark secrets buried beneath the surface.

As Reuben extends a proposition to Karen, he requests a substantial sum from her publishing company in exchange for the incriminating footage. A million dollars, he suggests, would be a fair price to keep his lips sealed about Collins’ (alleged) secrets: his bisexuality, which was unequivocally demonstrated on tape, and possibly even his alleged involvement in Maureen’s demise. Karen, however, is no stranger to the game of power and manipulation. She pieces together the puzzle, recognizing that Reuben’s demands were not only a blackmail attempt but also an attempt to conceal his own culpability in Maureen’s murder.

It becomes apparent that Collins’ hazy recollections of the fateful night are a result of his intoxication and substance use, making it likely that he has no memory of the event. Reuben’s true intentions are revealed: he is leveraging the tape to extort a hefty sum from Karen’s publishing company, all while concealing his own role in Maureen’s tragic passing.

In the aftermath, Collins’ fate takes a devastating turn as he succumbs to despair and takes his own life. Morris, fueled by outrage and betrayal, confronts Karen about the chaos she has unleashed. Meanwhile, Karen finally unravels the mystery that had been plaguing her, but at what cost? She approaches Mrs. O’Flaherty with an ultimatum: she will reveal the truth only after a innocent bystander meets their demise – a reference to Maureen’s grief-stricken mother, who would be crushed by the revelation of her daughter’s involvement in the tragic events that transpired.