Good Night, and Good Luck. Page #9

Not much of an obit.

But, at least we got our facts

straight, and it was brief.

And that's all Don Hollenbeck

would have asked.

Good night, and good luck.

Got to be in Philadelphia

this morning.

What time is your train?

- Charlie going with you?

- Uh-huh.

Here's a thought.

What if we're wrong?

We're not wrong.

We're not going to look back...

...and say we protected

the wrong side?

Protected them from what? In the name

of what? What would we be preserving?

Argument could be made,

"for the greater good".

Not once you give it all away.

It's no good then.

It's just a thought.

Senator, may we not drop this? We know

he belonged to the Lawyer's Guild.

And Mr. Cohn nods his head at me.

- I did you, I think, no personal

injury, Mr. Cohn. - No, sir.

- I meant to do you

no personal injury. - No.

And if I did, I beg your pardon.

Let us not assassinate this lad

further, Senator. You've done enough.

- Let's... let's...

- Have you no sense of decency, sir?

At long last, have you left

no sense of decency?

- I know this hurts you, Mr. Welch.

- Senator, I think it hurts you, too.

- I'd like to finish this.

- Have you some private reservation...

...when you take the oath

that you will tell the whole truth...

...that lets you be the judge

of what you will testify to?

The answer is there's no reservation

about telling the whole truth.

Thank you, sir. Then tell us

who delivered the documents to you!

I don't want to mean that

this new fashion is not chic.

- I think it's just no good for me.

- Uh, not for you.

Milko, anything you care to say

on that subject?

I think no comment.

It's got to be there. If you can't

find it, I can't write about it.

- Check again.

- Charlie said he dropped it off.

- Charlie said he dropped...

- Shirley, can I see you a minute?

- I got to call you back.

- Joe!

You, too.

Close the door.

Have a seat.

- How are you?

- Fine, thank you. - Swell. Yeah.

Uh, you both are aware

that there's a policy at CBS...

...that no two employees

can be married.

I want to ask you a question,

but I don't want you to answer it.

I want you to consider it.

I know you two are married.

Everyone knows.

That's not my question.

In the next few weeks

I have to lay off a couple of people.

We're making some significant cuts

across the board.

I wanted you to know that...

...because you could save

someone else being fired.

I'm asking you to consider

making this decision a little easier.

I don't need an answer now.

Just think about it.

Good.

- Well, Joe...

- Well?

- Sure we're gonna miss you

around here. - I'll pack my things.

- I think it's for the best.

- We'll find out!

Mrs. Wershba...

Everybody knew.

Natalie, did he say

what it was about?

No. Just that he wanted to talk

to you in his office.

Uh-oh!

The problem isn't simply

that you've lost your sponsor.

With Alcoa, "See It Now"

still loses money.

The fee is 50,000 dollars.

Last week's episode we did

for less than 50,000 dollars.

Fred, you're speaking

beyond your competence.

We'll certainly find another sponsor.

"64,000 Dollar Question" brings in

over 80,000 in sponsors...

...and it costs one-third

of what you do.

Ed, I've got Tuesday night

programming that's number one.

People want to enjoy themselves.

They don't want a civics lesson.

- What do you want, Bill?

- I don't want to get a stomachache...

...every time you take on

a controversial subject.

I'm afraid that's the price

you have to be willing to pay.

Let's walk very carefully

through these next few moments.

The content of what we're doing

is more important...

...than what some guy in Cincinnati...

- It's what you're doing, Ed. Not me.

Not Frank Stanton. You.

"CBS News", "See It Now"

all belong to you, Bill.

You wouldn't know it.

- What is it you want? Credit?

- I never censored a single program.

I hold on to affiliates

who wanted entertainment from us.

I fight to keep the license...

...with the very same politicians

that you are bringing down...

...and I never,

never said no to you. Never.

I would argue that we have done

very well by one another.

I would argue that this network...

...is defined by what the news

department has accomplished.

And I would also argue that never saying

no is not the same as not censoring.

Really? You should teach journalism.

You and Mr. Friendly.

Let me ask you this:

...why didn't you correct McCarthy...

...when he said that Alger Hiss

was convicted of treason?

He was only convicted of perjury.

You corrected everything else.

Did you not want the appearance

of defending a known Communist?

I would argue that everyone censors,

including you.

What do you want to do, Bill?

I'm taking your program

from a half an hour to an hour.

And it won't be a weekly program

and it won't be Tuesday nights.

- When would it be?

- Sunday afternoons.

- How many episodes?

- 5.

Why don't you just fire me, Bill?

I don't think

it's what either of us wants.

You owe me 5 shows.

- You won't like the subject matter.

- Probably not.

Fred, I'll need you for a moment.

- Thank you, Mary.

- Goodbye, Mr. Friendly.

- He wants me to lay a few people off.

- I'm sure he does.

Let's do our first show

about the downfall of television.

- Senate's gonna vote to censure

McCarthy tomorrow. - Probably.

- And then what happens?

- He sits in the back row. - Right.

- They keep him in the Senate.

They don't kick him out. - No, he stays.

Well, we might as well

go down swinging.

Did you know the most trusted man

in America is Milton Berle?

See, you should have worn a dress!

- How does a Scotch sound?

- Scotch sounds good.

- Did you know Joe and Shirley

were married? - Sure.

- Did everyone know?

- Pretty much.

We are proud because

from the beginning of this nation...

...man can walk upright.

No matter who he is

or who she is.

He can walk upright

and meet his friend or his enemy.

And he does not fear

that because that enemy...

...may be in a position

of great power...

...that he can be suddenly

thrown in jail...

...to rot there without charges

and with no recourse to justice.

We have the Habeas Corpus Act

and we respect it.

I began by saying that our history

will be what we make it.

If we go on as we are...

...then history will take its revenge,

and retribution will not limp...

...in catching up with us.

Just once in a while, let us exalt the

importance of ideas and information.

Let us dream to the extent of saying

that on a given Sunday night...

...the time normally

occupied by Ed Sullivan...

...is given over to a clinical survey

on the state of American education.

And a week or two later, the time

normally used by Steve Allen...

...is devoted to a thorough-going study

of American policy in the Middle East.

Would the corporate image of their

respective sponsors be damaged?

Would the shareholders rise up

in their wrath and complain?

Would anything happen...

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