Turn Your Dial to Murder

***Turn Your Dial to Murder*** is a Halloween special that aired on WJMU on November 1, 2019. Written by Mat Jester and Frank Macaluso, the special follows two students, Emmy Terrell (played by Meghan Welfer) and Rosalind Reeves (played by Emily Brandt) as they investigate a series of murders plaguing the WJMU staff.

## Plot

After ending their broadcast for the night, student DJs Cathy Rubio and Sue Phelps get into an argument about Cathy's domineering behavior. Sue excuses herself to go to the bathroom before they go to dinner. While Cathy waits for her in the live studio, she is approached by a mysterious figure armed with a rubber chicken. The stranger then pummels her to death with it. Sue returns from the bathroom after the killer flees and discovers Cathy's body

While looking over the crime scene, Public Safety Officer Rigby assures station manager Sam Meister that he has secured the services of two brilliant detectives to solve the case. To Meister's shock and disappointment, the two "detectives" are actually students—theatre majors Emmy Terrell and Rosalind Reeves, who've both been cast in a murder mystery play being performed on campus. Terrell and Reeves reassure Meister that they intend to take the case seriously and begin inspecting the scene of the crime.

While investigating the crime scene, Emmy and Rosalind notice contusions on Cathy's face and, upon determining that Cathy was attacked with a rubber chicken, they hypothesize that the murderer must have been someone involved in the performing arts. They ask Meister to list any WJMU staff members who are also performers; he mentions Sam Laro and Alex Saviano of *Big Blue Broadway*, Avenue of *Devil's Advocate*, Caleb Kelch of *The Days That Music Died* and *The Indie Hour*, and three newer DJs⁠—Lou Jansen, Denny Crawford, and Tallulah Thomas. Emmy and Rosalind set up meetings with the aforementioned DJs.

Before meeting with any of the other suspects, Emmy and Rosalind first confront Sue just after a cabaret rehearsal. They learn from Sue that her relationship with Cathy had become strained before Cathy's death. In spite of this revelation, Sue insists she did not murder Cathy.

Next, Emmy and Rosalind speak with Tallulah Thomas. They learn that she and Cathy did not get along at all, especially after Cathy had taken a timeslot for her and Sue's show that Tallulah had wanted for her own show. Tallulah makes it no secret that she is glad to hear of Cathy's death, and suggests she may use the opportunity to claim Cathy's old timeslot.

Emmy and Rosalind then interrogate Caleb Kelch, who claims that he was in another building on campus at the time of the murder and that DJ Jaybird and Avenue can vouch for him. Later, when Emmy and Rosalind speak with DJ Jaybird and Avenue, they corroborate Kelch's claim, with DJ Jaybird even providing photographic evidence, much to Avenue's bafflement.

The next day, Emmy and Rosalind speak to Lou Jansen. Jansen, in addition to working for WJMU, also works on Millikin's on-campus student-run newspaper, *The Decaturian*. They reveal to Emmy and Rosalind that, while working on projects for *The Decautrian*, they would often hear Cathy and Sue argue in the live studio, and that they had once allowed Sue to hide in the *Decaturian* office after a particularly violent argument. Lou also denies killing Cathy, claiming to have been having dinner in the cafeteria at the time of the murder.

After the interrogation, Rosalind suggests to Emmy that Lou may have had a crush on Sue based on their answers, and suggests it as a possible motive. Emmy and Rosalind then encounter Tallulah again. Tallulah reveals that she has indeed put in a request to claim Cathy's old timeslot, even going as for as to produce new promotional spots announcing the time change, but that Meister has denied the request, feeling it to be too soon after Cathy's death.

Emmy and Rosalind then speak to Denny Crawford. Denny claims not to have known Cathy all that well, and that he was working on one of his several radio shows at the time of the murder.

After talking with Denny, Emmy and Rosalind meet with Sam Laro, who informs them that his co-host, Alex Saviano, is not currently available to talk them due to his obligations with a show being produced by Pipe Dreams Studio Theatre, the student-run theatrical organization on campus. Sam reveals that he had previously taken an Intro to Radio Industry class with Cathy, and that Cathy and Tallulah Thomas had once teamed up to produce a show together.

Based on this new information, Emmy and Rosalind rush to Tallulah's apartment to confront her once again. However, just before they can get to her, she is attacked with a rubber chicken, similarly to how Cathy was. When they reach her, she asks them to apologize to Sue on her behalf before succumbing to her injuries.

Emmy and Rosalind meet with Sue once again to inform her of Tallulah's murder and to deliver Tallulah's apology. Sue reveals that Cathy and Tallulah had actually been very close friends once, before they partnered up to work at the station. Sue supposes that Tallulah had felt guilty for not warning her about Cathy before she went on to team up with her, and states that she will miss Tallulah.

Frustrated with how little progress she and Rosalind seem to be making in the investigation, Emmy decides to call it a night and goes home to her apartment. There, she is comforted by her girlfriend Sandy, who suggests that whoever committed the murders likely borrowed the rubber chicken they used from the Prop Shop, since very few people actually own rubber chickens. Inspired, Emmy texts Rosalind to meet her at the Prop Shop after class the next day.

At the Prop Shop, Emmy and Rosalind discover that Denny is working there this semester to fulfill his practicum requirement. Amanda, another student working at the Prop Shop, looks through the rental records and finds that a rubber chicken has indeed been rented out by someone⁠—Lou Jansen. Emmy and Rosalind then rush to confront Lou. Lou admits to having a crush on Sue but continues to deny killing Cathy, claiming that the signature in the rental records is not their handwriting. Just then, Katie, the student producing the cabaret that Sue has been cast in, arrives and reveals that Lou had been with her at the time of Tallulah's murder, setting up a time for the two of them to record an interview about the cabaret.

As they leave Lou to conduct their interview, Rosalind suggests to Emmy that the rental records may have been tampered with. Just as Emmy is about to deduce who it was that could have done so, she is attacked with a rubber chicken. Thanks to Rosalind's quick warning, she is able to subdue her attacker, revealed to be Denny Crawford. Crawford had wanted to become WJMU's "star", and murdered Cathy and Tallulah because he saw them as competition. Emmy has Rosalind call the police and Denny is apprehended.

As Denny is being arrested, Officer Rigby congratulates Emmy and Rosalind, then reveals that he intends to take full credit for their detective work. Rosalind laments that their hard work will go unrecognized, but Emmy comforts her with the promise of Thai food, which she intends to purchase with Rigby's money, revealing that she has stolen his wallet. Rosalind chides her, and she defends her act, claiming it to be research for a role she intends to audition for in the summer.

## Cast

### Main Storyline

* Meghan Welfer as Emmy Terrell
* Emily Brandt as Rosalind Reeves
* Austin Tipton as Denny Crawford
* Bryn Sentnor as Tallulah Thomas
* AJ Lyons as Lou Jansen
* Michellina McNaughton as Sue Phelps (billed as Micky McNaughton)
* Jason Messina as DJ Jaybird
* Lane Caspar as Avenue
* Sam Laro as himself
* Caleb Kelch as himself
* Sam Meister as himself
* Emily Boes as Sandy
* Ariya Hawkins as Amanda
* Benny Zielke as Cathy Rubio
* Logan Hanson as Officer Rigby
* Cecilia Antonelle as Katie
* Emily Long as Julia
* Araceli Hughes as a police officer
* Frank Macaluso as a reporter (uncredited)
* Jordan Comish as the announcer

### Stuff Beat Commercial

* Frank Macaluso as Steve Cronenberg (uncredited)
* Wil Barden, John DeAngelo, and Michael Santos as the Stuff Beat Jingle Singers (archive audio; uncredited)

### Dating Service Commercial

* Araceli Hughes as Dr. Nancy Lovejoy
* Logan Hanson as Harvey Needleman
* Ariya Hawkins as Frieda Needleman

### Lady Nadine's Psychic Readings Commercial

* Benny Zielke as Lady Nadine
* Emily Long as Linda
* Araceli Hughes as Tammi
* Logan Hanson as Kevin
* AJ Lyons as the announcer

## Notes

* Originally, it was planned that Alex Saviano, Sam Laro's co-host on *Big Blue Broadway*, would also make a cameo alongside Laro. However, his busy schedule prevented this, and his scene with Laro and cast members Meghan Welfer and Emily Brandt was rewritten, with most of his lines being reassigned to Brandt.