Turn to the Right

About the show

Prologue (In Isadore's Pawn Shop. July morning, 6 am.) Joe Bascomb, just released after a year in Sing-Sing, stops by the pawn shop to meet up with his pals Muggs and Gilly, and to exchange his prison-provided suit for a more fashionable second-hand one. While Moses works on altering the suit, Isadore rouses his two overnight guests and cooks some breakfast for them. Muggs and Gilly, who have been out longer, try to get Joe to come in with them on a caper, to get some working capital before going straight. But Joe, though he thinks the world of his pals, is adamant about staying clean. He is walking home to southwest Connecticut from Ossining, a long day's hike. (Curtain) Act I (In Mrs. Bascomb's Kitchen. Same day, 5:45 pm.) Jessie Strong helps Betty Bascomb wash dishes; the Bascombs are losing the farm to the Deacon. Mrs. Bascomb stills their anxiety with her sweet charm. She tells Sam Martin to leave the preserve jars on the porch as she tends the woodshed stove. The girls ignore Sam, until he mentions Lester Morgan is in the village courting Elsie Tillinger, with Deacon Tillinger's approval. Mrs. Bascomb brings some filled preserve jars for Sam to take back to the Deacon. Sam shocks them by implying the Deacon is cheating Mrs. Bascomb on the preserves selling price. Persuaded by Betty, Mrs. Bascomb agrees Sam may sell her preserves, but not in the village, to avoid offending the Deacon. Elated, Sam says he's quitting the Deacon's employ, while Mrs. Bascomb directs the girls in stewing up another batch. Mrs. Bascomb visits a sick neighbor. Deacon Tillinger comes in, sends off Jessie, and has Betty fetch her mother. Alone now, he invites Lester Morgan in to sample the preserves. The Deacon offers Lester a half share in the orchard, but Lester is broke and on the outs with his wealthy father. Lester wants to marry Elsie, but Deacon says he must reconcile with his father first. Later, Betty and Mrs. Bascomb are surprised at Joe's reappearance, after a year of no letters and no money sent home. Without his remittances, Mrs. Bascomb has fallen in debt to the Deacon for $125. Now Muggs and Gilly surprise Joe by showing up, having arrived by boxcar. Mrs. Bascomb feeds the three men from their meager supplies, impressing Muggs and Gilly with her sweet nature, while Betty and Muggs show mutual interest. Joe explains the family situation to his pals. Jessie is introduced; she and Gilly hit it off. Joe awaits Deacon Tillinger, while Betty and Jessie point out his store to Gilly and Muggs. When the Deacon arrives, he and Joe argue over the debt, but the Deacon is stymied when Joe presents him with the money for his mother's debt. Gilly had cracked Deacon's safe, withdrawn $125 and then passed it to Joe. As the flustered Deacon leaves, his pocket is picked by Muggs, who explains Gilly will restore the money to Deacon's safe. They then join the ladies for the evening's Chapel. (Curtain) Act II (Outside Mrs. Bascomb's Kitchen. Next morning.) Exposition between Betty and Mrs. Bascomb reveals the Deacon has missed the money paid him. Muggs and Gilley are picking the peach crop, since they have offered to buy it the previous evening. Joe has borrowed a wagon from a neighbor and gone off. Jessie comes for two baskets of peaches, but runs to the orchard when Gilly falls out of a tree. Jessie and Betty take the peach baskets back to her house, while Mrs. Bascomb tends to a large bruise on Gilly's back. It is an epiphany for him, who was an orphan. He and Muggs are getting worried about disappointing the Bascombs, and hope Joe has found a buyer for the peaches. Betty returns, bringing Elsie, who is introduced to the boys then goes in to see Mrs. Bascomb. Joe returns, and is told by Betty that Elsie loves him. Mrs. Bascomb visits the butcher, and Elsie is alone with Joe at last. He tells her the truth, how he spent a year in Sing-Sing for a robbery he does not remember, and the shenanigans with the Deacon's $125. Elsie is dismayed at first, but rallies and rushes off with an idea to forestall her father's calling in the sheriff. Joe and the boys huddle, and figure out the only solution is to make peach preserves out of the crop, as no one wants the fruit itself. Their scheme is given a boost when Sam Martin reveals he has a buyer lined up in New York. Sam gives the trio $250 in exchange for a commission on sales of the jam then catches the train back to New York. Muggs and Gilly are nervous when Callahan shows up, but he is not looking for them. When Deacon Tillinger shows up with Lester Morgan, he is presented with the missing $125. Lester Morgan recognizes Joe as Peter Turner, who did time for robbing his father's steward, but Joe also remembers now it was Lester who got him drunk just before the robbery. Callahan surprises everyone by clapping handcuffs on Lester, whose own father has sworn a warrant out on him for theft and embezzlement. (Curtain) Act III (Same as Act II. Ten months later, around 8:30 pm.) Katie serves coffee to everyone, the men dressed in evening clothes. There has been a dinner to celebrate Joe and Elsie returning from their honeymoon, with Sam Martin presiding over it. Muggs and Betty pair off, while Gilly and Jessie do likewise. The peach jam has been a success and they are all now comparatively well off. Joe, Muggs, and Gilly give credit to Mrs. Bascomb for the turnaround in all their fortunes. (Curtain)