All the King's Men Page #7

WILLIE:

Listen to me and lift up your eyes

and look at God's blessed and

unflyblown truth... And this is the

truth. You're a hick. And nobody

ever helped a hick but a hick himself.

Loud cheers and yells.

WILLIE:

All right, listen to me... listen to

me. I was the hick they were going

to use to split the hick vote. But

I'm standing right here now on my

hind legs... even a dog can learn to

do that. Are you standing on your

hind legs? Have you learned to do

that much yet? Here it is, here it

is, you hicks. Nail up anybody who

stands in your way! Nail up Joe

Harrison! Nail up McMurphy! And if

they don't deliver, give me a hammer

and I'll do it myself.

DISSOLVE TO:

NEWSPAPER HEADLINE

There is a photograph of Willie and a headline that reads

STARK CHANCES BOOMING

Superimposed over the newspaper is a shot of a crowd

applauding and yelling for Willie.

Interior:
Joe Harrison's Campaign Headquarters, Night

Duffy, Pillsbury, and other aides stand looking at a poster

of Willie.

POLITICIAN:

I want his throat cut, from ear to

ear.

Exterior:
Willie's Campaign Montage

Rock crashes through a window, knocking down a poster of

Willie.

Poster being torn off the side of a building.

A man is attacked as he tries to distribute leaflets.

DISSOLVE TO:

Exterior:
Jack Burden's Desk, The Chronicle, Night

Jack is working on a story when Madison comes to his desk.

MADISON:

No use going any further, Jack. We

aren't printing them any more.

JACK:

I thought the Chronicle line was --

MADISON:

Divide and conquer? Stark is getting

too big for his britches and the

hicks are getting too smart. We're

now supporting Harrison.

JACK:

(stands up)

How do you square that?

MADISON:

I work here.

JACK:

(putting on his coat)

Well, I don't... not any more.

MADISON:

Jack, you fool.

JACK:

If you had any guts you'd print

this...

MADISON:

I work here. I take orders.

JACK:

I know. You've got a wife and three

kids and your boy goes to Princeton.

MADISON:

You won't find it easy to get another

job.

JACK:

I'm too rich to work.

DISSOLVE TO:

Exterior:
Street Outside State Capitol, Day

NEWSPAPER HEADLINE READS

HARRISON WINS CLOSE RACE

STARK SWEEPS RURAL AREAS

CITY VOTE DECIDES ELECTION

Superimposed over newspaper is a crowd cheering at Harrison's

victory parade. Willie, raincoat thrown over his shoulders,

looking grim, and Sadie and Sugar Boy are part of that crowd.

They turn away and walk toward a bar.

Interior:
Bar, Day

Jack is already at the bar. Willie, Sadie, and Sugar Boy

join him there.

JACK:

We didn't do so good.

WILLIE:

Double bourbon.

SADIE:

(sitting next to Jack)

Same for me.

WILLIE:

And a beer.

(to Jack)

I hear you got fired from the paper.

JACK:

You heard wrong, Willie. I quit.

WILLIE:

(passing the beer

back to Sugar Boy)

You're smart. 'Cause before I'm

through with that mob they're not

going to have enough money left to

pay the boy that cleans the spittoons.

JACK:

How do you feel, Willie?

WILLIE:

I feel fine, fine. You see, Jack, I

learned something.

Willie and Sadie exchange looks.

JACK:

Yeah... what?

Close shot of Willie.

WILLIE:

How to win.

FADE OUT:

FADE IN:

Exterior:
Road, Day

Jack stands on the side of the road, thumbing a ride.

JACK:

(voice over)

I didn't see Willie again until his

second campaign... four years later.

Interior:
Office, Night

Jack turns in some copy to a man at a desk.

JACK:

(voice over)

I drifted from job to job...

Exterior:
Street, Day

Jack and others in front of an employment agency.

JACK:

(voice over)

...That is, whenever I could find

one.

Interior:
Bar, Night

Jack, at the bar, looking haggard and disheveled, picks up a

newspaper and turns to find a photograph of Anne. The caption

reads STANTONS ARRIVE HOME.

JACK:

(voice over)

But always further and further away

from Anne, and the life at Burden's

Landing.

Exterior:
Street, Day

Camera pans with Jack as he trudges along the street.

JACK:

(voice over)

But Willie wasn't drifting. He knew

where he was going.

We see an insert of a newspaper. It has a caricature of

Willie, swinging a sledge hammer. The caption reads

STARK ATTACKS ADMINISTRATION

CHARGES OLD MACHINE STILL CORRUPT

JACK:

(voice over)

He had his foot in the door and he

kept right on pushing to get in. He

had lost the election but he had won

the state... and he knew it... and

the people knew it.

MONTAGE:
WILLIE'S LIFE

Writing on a fence: THE PEOPLE'S WILL SHOULD BE THE LAW OF

THE STATE... WILLIE STARK Painted on a rock: KNOWLEDGE BELONGS

TO THE PEOPLE... WILLIE STARK

Lettering on a barn: FREE MEDICINE FOR ALL PEOPLE -- NOT AS

A CHARITY BUT AS A RIGHT... WILLIE STARK

Poster on a building: MY STUDY IS THE HEART OF THE PEOPLE...

WILLIE STARK:

JACK:

(voice over)

They were all hopping on his

bandwagon... even Tiny Duffy.

Newspaper caricature: it shows Willie on a bandwagon headed

for the state capitol. Everyone is trying to climb aboard.

Caption is THEY'RE ALL FOR WILLIE NOW. Huge poster on the

side of a building: MY STUDY IS THE HEART OF THE PEOPLE.

Camera pans up to photograph of Willie on the poster.

JACK:

(voice over)

Yep, Willie came back like he said

he would.

Interior:
Willie's Office, Day

Willie is being interviewed by a group of reporters. Sugar

Boy lounges nearby, leaning against the wall.

WILLIE:

Do you want to know what my platform

is? Here it is:
I'm going to soak

the fat boys and I'm going to spread

it thin.

DISSOLVE TO:

Exterior:
Circus Grounds, Day

We see balloons with inscriptions reading "I'm for Willie,"

and a large banner stretching overhead, saying FREE CIRCUS

TODAY -- COMPLIMENTS OF WILLIE STARK. The crowd moves about,

gazing at the clowns, animals, the trapeze act.

JACK:

(voice over)

Willie was right -- he'd learned how

to win...

Exterior:
Park, Day

A truck loaded with beer kegs pulls into the park. On the

back of the truck is a sign: BIG STARK RALLY TODAY -- FREE

BEER -- FREE FOOD -- EVERYBODY INVITED. Superimposed over

this is the image of dollar bills floating through the air.

JACK:

(voice over)

He spent a lot of money doing it...

an awful lot of money... I was

beginning to wonder where he got it

from.

Montage:
Willie's Second Campaign

Hand holding check made payable to Willie Stark Campaign

Fund... $7000. Willie's hand reaches out and takes it.

Hand holding check payable to cash for $5000. Superimposed

is Willie, looking on, and his hand endorsing the back of

the check.

Another check to the Stark Campaign Fund for $3500. Poster

of Willie is superimposed.

JACK:

(voice over)

There were rumors throughout the

state that Willie was making deals

with all kinds of people... strange

deals... for Willie Stark.

Crowd milling about circus grounds, with Willie's poster

superimposed.

Fireworks exploding. Crowd cheers.

JACK:

(voice over)

The second time out, it wasn't a

campaign... it was a slaughter. It

was Saturday night in a mining town.

Huge poster is affixed to the side of a building. It bears

Willie's face, and his slogans.

DISSOLVE TO:

Exterior:
Hotel (State Capital), Day

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