In need of money to marry her boyfriend, Sam Loomis (John Gavin), Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) steals $40,000 from her employer and flees Phoenix, Arizona by car. While en route to Sam's California home, she parks along the road to sleep. A highway patrol officer awakens her and, suspicious of her agitation, follows her. When she trades her car for another at a dealership, he notes the new vehicle's details. Marion returns to the road but, rather than drive in a heavy storm, decides to spend the night at the Bates Motel. The proprietor, Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), tells Marion he rarely has customers because of the motel's disconnection from a new Interstate and mentions he lives with his mother in the house overlooking the motel. He invites Marion to supper. She overhears Norman arguing with his mother about letting Marion in the house, and during the meal, she angers him by suggesting he institutionalize his mother. He admits he would like this, but does not want to abandon her.