An ex-con, just out of prison, and his wife meet a screen writer on the train and decide that, since he's writing about crime without knowing much about it, collaborating with him would be better than starting a duck farm. Things get a bit sticky when the real gangsters show up and want to know how Hollywood knows so much about them.—Arlene K. Witt <[email protected]>

While traveling by train, screenwriter Michael 'Mike' Winslow makes three acquaintances: a just-out-of-prison ex-convict, Herman Tibbets; the convict's wife, Goldie Tibbets; and aspiring actress, Barbara Lang. The train arrives in Hollywood, and Mike collaborates with Herman on a screenplay about a gangster for Wonder Studios. The film, "The Trail of the Hawk", starring matinée idol Thomas Darcy, is a smash hit, but soon a real gangster whom Tibbets had known in the slammer (also called 'The Hawk') comes poking around the studio. He's not happy to be portrayed on the screen - and he intends to make Mike and Herman pay for it!—ToryL