Batman Page #4

JACK lashes out and BACKHANDS ECKHARDT across the face. The

fat cop, stunned, turns bright red and CHARGES JACK.

JACK claps a hand on ECKHARDT's face and shoves him back

full-force. The cop sprawls on his ass in the doorway of an

all-night Cuban-Chinese restaurant.

By now PATRONS are staring out of the restaurant windows.

ECKHARDT is livid. His hand goes instinctively to his gun.

JACK:

Here. Use mine.

JACK pulls an automatic from his pocket and tosses it in

ECKHARDT's lap. He looks down and laughs, daring ECKHARDT

to pick it up -- just as the two enormous GOONS from the

stretch limo appear behind him for reinforcement.

ECKHARDT wipes blood from his mouth as JACK -- an A-one

crazy-boy grin on his face -- reaches down for the gun.

JACK (cont.)

It's all right, boys. Lt. Eckhardt

here is a good cop. A real good cop.

(pause; smiling)

Inexpensive.

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. GOTHAM GLOBE - CITY ROOM - DAY

Gotham city's leading tabloid daily. COPY BOYS rush to and

fro; REPORTERS pound out articles on computer terminals.

ALEXANDER KNOX saunters in, a sheath of typed pages in his

hand, and pauses at a CARTOONIST's drawing table.

KNOX:

What have you got for me, Jerry?

JERRY holds up a cartoon: a HUMAN BAT, with an awful,

fanged rodent's face, wearing a business suit. The caption

at the top reads: "HAVE YOU SEEN THIS MAN?" KNOX nods in

approval.

KNOX (cont.)

Nice, but... maybe a little more gore

on the fangs, huh?

He pats JERRY on the shoulder, moves on. A BESPECTACLED

COLLEAGUE spots him and calls out:

COLLEAGUE:

Hey Knox, you got a visitor.

KNOX:

I'm real busy, Clark. Be a pal and

dust him, okay?

COLLEAGUE:

This one you might want to dust

yourself.

Curiosity piqued, KNOX moves toward his desk... and stops

in his tracks. Propped up on the desk are a PAIR OF LEGS.

The legs -- exceptionally nice ones -- are attached to a

WOMAN leaning back in KNOX's swivel chair, taking a nap,

her face obscured by a big outrageous hat.

KNOX:

... Vicki Vale.

The hat tips back. VICKI VALE, her face framed by a shock

of bright red hair, flashes a dazzling smile. She pulls

KNOX over for a quick smooch and laughs.

VICKI:

How'd you know it was me?

KNOX:

Honey -- I would know any randomly

selected square inch of Vicki

Vale.

(grinning)

If I had a good enough hint.

He points at the oversized CAMERA BAG on his desk. It bears

the monogram "V.V." VICKI catches on, makes a face at him.

KNOX (cont.)

Where the hell have you been?

VICKI:

A nice, restful vacation.

She reaches into the camera bag and pulls out a stack of

glossy 8x10's:
COMBAT PHOTOS from some unspecified war-torn

corner of the world. KNOX leafs though them, impressed.

KNOX:

God, a girl could get hurt doing

this.

VICKI:

I do get hurt.

She unbuttons her sleeve, rolls it back to show KNOX a long

fresh scar on the inside of her arm. He winces -- then

points to the scar and adds, slyly:

KNOX:

Got any more of those?

VICKI:

Nothing I'm at liberty to reveal

here. What's new and hot in Gotham

City?

KNOX:

It's too good, Vick. We got a six-

foot bat that swoops out of the

night and preys on evildoers.

VICKI:

(laughing)

Evildoers, huh? Big or small?

KNOX:

Small so far. I mean -- they don't

allow bats in boardrooms, do they.

VICKI:

Speaking of which... I hear the

notorious Bruce Wayne is throwing a

big do for the Harvey Dent campaign.

KNOX:

Yeah. Hottest ticket in town. Every

law'n'order freak in the city's

gonna be there.

KNOX suddenly freezes. It's just occurred to him that VICKI

may have a purpose in all this.

KNOX (cont.)

Wa-a-it. Vicki. You're not saying --

She reaches back into her camera bag and hands over an

INVITATION. KNOX is all but panting with excitement.

KNOX (cont.)

Aw, Vicki. Vicki!

(apprehensively)

Got a date?

She flutters her great big eyelashes, shakes her head no.

KNOX grabs her face and plants a kiss on her forehead,

nearly knocking her out of the swivel chair.

KNOX (cont.)

Vicki, baby, I love you, I've always

loved you. Will you marry me?

VICKI:

(straightening her clothes)

No.

KNOX:

Well, I'm starving. Will you at

least buy me a hamburger?

VICKI:

Yes, but please -- be gentle.

Overwhelmed with glee, he offers her his arm.

CUT TO:

INT. PENTHOUSE - DAY

A HUGE PLATE GLASS WINDOW opens on the best view in Gotham.

This spectacular penthouse suite is just one of the power

perks available to CARL GRISSOM, kingpin of the Gotham City

rackets, fat, fifty, and utterly without charm.

GRISSOM, behind a big broad desk, addresses his LIEUTENANTS

-- a fearsome assemblage of bloodless white-collar types

and few outright goons, sprawled in chairs throughout this

makeshift 'boardroom.' The big boss waves a copy of the

Gotham Globe -- with HARVEY DENT's face on the cover.

GRISSOM:

Nine points ahead in the new poll. I

don't like the way this is shaping

up.

JACK NAPIER slouches in an easy chair off to GRISSOM's

right, doing his trademark one-handed shuffle.

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