Originally Aired: June 20, 1950
Philo Vance #102, "Prize Ring Murder Case,"
When lightweight fighter Joey Martin refuses gambler Phil Terrace's cryptic proposition in his dressing room, Terrace's thug Clumpy knocks him out with a blackjack. The next night, with his manager Pop Manning and girlfriend Honey Collins cheering him on, Joey enters the ring with thirty-five grand riding on his victory. But between rounds, chaos erupts when a coordinated attack involving a gunshot and a knife leaves Pop Manning stabbed to death at ringside. District Attorney Markham and Philo Vance witness the confusion firsthand from their seats in the packed arena.
Honey Collins arrives at Markham's office convinced that Pop was killed by mistake, insisting that gambler Phil Terrace intended to murder Joey instead. She explains that Pop took Joey's place for a split second when Joey jumped up early at the bell, making him the accidental victim of a perfectly timed attack. While Vance agrees Pop's death was likely an error, he puzzles over why anyone would risk killing a manager in front of fifteen thousand witnesses, suggesting there's more to this case than a simple mistaken identity.