Hardcore Page #3

Jake nods.

Kristen, wearing a light blue sweater and skirt, emerges

from the bedroom. She smiles demurely.

Her suitcase is in her hand. Jake, for a moment, feels a

sharp twinge of loss. A foreboding of the day when Kristen,

fully grown, will leave his house for good.

CUT TO:

EXT. TWELFTH ST. CHURCH - DAY

Parents watch their children board a snow-covered bus outside

Twelfth St. Church. A banner across the side of the bus reads:

YOUNG CALVINIST CONVENTION

GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. -- BELLFLOWER, CALIF.

Most of the parents, working folk long accustomed to the

brutal Michigan winters, wear heavy overcoats, bearskin caps,

fur-lined gloves and galoshes.

Jake, bare-headed and wearing a thin topcoat over his suit,

waits with Kristen, Marsha, Wes and Anne. Harold Jay pelts

the side of the bus with a snowball.

MRS. STEENSMA, one of the trip counselors, reads off the

youngsters' names as they board the bus:

MRS. STEENSMA

...Daverman, DeBeer, DeBoer, DeJong,

DeVries...

Marsha kisses her parents goodbye and heads toward the bus.

MRS. STEENSMA

(continuing)

...Vander Ark, Vander Hoven, Vander

Keen, Van Dorn, Van Dyke, E., Van

Dyke, S...

When Kristen hears her name she starts toward the bus, then

stops, comes back and gives her father a farewell kiss.

JAKE:

Take care of yourself, Kristen. I

love you.

KRISTEN:

I will, Daddy.

JAKE:

If you need anything, just call.

Later, amid horn-honking and farewells, the bus pulls away

from the curb and heads down the snowy street.

INT. BUS - DAY

A sigh of relief goes up from the adolescent conventioneers:

wheew! There are a few isolated cries of "We're on our way!"

A teenager instantly flips on his transistor RADIO to metal

ROCK. Once away from home, these kids, like all kids, are

the children of 1976. The old family glue doesn't hold. They

live in the world of rock and television.

CUT TO:

INT. FACTORY - DAY

Workmen fashion table legs on a wood lathe. In another part

of the factory, laborers assemble chair frames.

Jake walks along the assembly line with MARY, a well-dressed,

attractive employee about twenty-five. They turn a corner

and step into a display area where a set features the Van

Dorn Co.'s new modular office designs.

Mary shows Jake the set for his approval.

JAKE:

Is this all the display space we can

get?

MARY:

I tried to get more, but this is the

limit. The De Vries line has the

same area.

Mary is a cool, efficient display designer. Jake studies a

patch of bright blue on the right wall.

JAKE:

What do you think of this... ah,

shade of blue, Mary.

MARY:

I like it, Mr. Van Dorn.

JAKE:

Don't you think it's a little too...

bright?

MARY:

Not really. But if you want me to

tone it down...

JAKE:

No, no. I wouldn't hire a display

designer if I didn't trust her taste.

Maybe we should bring in more of

that shade. Perhaps a stripe across

the back wall.

He gestures.

Gently, relentlessly, Jake manipulates Mary. He does not

wish to impose his taste on her but, through calculated

argument, will get her to accept his views. It's only a matter

of time before he wears her down.

MARY:

No, that would be much too

overpowering.

JAKE:

Yeah, overpowering. That was the

word I was looking for.

MARY:

(sensing his ploy)

Mr. Van Dorn, I've worked on the

color scheme for weeks. I think it's

just right.

JAKE:

What's that shade of blue called?

MARY:

Pavonine. It's the same tint as the

stripe in the fabric.

Jake bends down and examines the chair.

JAKE:

Are you still going with that fella

that teaches at Grand Valley?

MARY:

Sam?

JAKE:

Yeah. He's a nice guy. Don't lose

him. Maybe we could tone down this

stripe a bit. It's a little...

MARY:

(catching on)

Overpowering?

JAKE:

Yeah.

MARY:

(gives in)

Okay, Mr. Van Dorn, I think we could

knock that Pavonine blue a bit.

JAKE:

Are you sure it's all right?

MARY:

Yes. I think it'll look better.

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