Hercules in New York Page #5

Let him stay where he is.

But Earth is where

Hercules wishes to be.

Yes. . .

but as Hercules.

- I don't understand.

- With all his great strength,

it sets him apart

from other mortals.

They might even make

him king because of it.

They have no kings

where Hercules is.

They're called ''presidents.''

A king by any other name,

in his heart still thinks

of himself as king.

J uno delays me.

I must leave.

What does she have in mind?

Hercules' divinity.

His divinity?

Since he seems to like it so well

where he presently is,

I shall give him a taste

of what it truly means.

He shall become one of

those wretched mortals

he finds it so fascinating

to be among.

But Hercules is a demigod.

Thanks to my husband's

philanderings.

I can't take away Hercules'

divinity permanently. . .

but I can make him

as other men for a while. . .

as long as the effects from

the powder in this ring last.

Hope for the best.

Open the face of this ring.

Pour the powder within

into Hercules' drink.

Then he will become

as other men,

no better,

and as vulnerable

as any of them.

It could mean that

Hercules could. . .

- Yes.

- He could get killed.

It might.

J uno, I dare not.

I cannot take part

in undermining. . .

the will of the gods.

Do my bidding. . .

or when I have Zeus

here in private

I might tell him

a few things about you.

And one more thing. . .

on your way back,

make a little detour.

Go see Pluto.

I have a message for him.

Pluto:
Forgive the barking.

It's only Cerberus.

Nemesis:
Seems to have

quite an argument.

He does that sometimes

when he's angry at himself.

It's those three heads,

you know.

How have you been,

Pluto?

Pretty nifty, except it's been

a hell of a day.

A new shipload.

Ha! Look who's here.

I'd ask you in,

but it's a mess.

Thanks, but I wouldn't

have time for just a visit.

You say that Hercules

is the same as

all those foolish mortals

he finds himself among?

Temporarily.

Zeus has decreed

that Hercules should spend

the next hundred years

down here.

There has been an argument

between the two of them.

And so J uno, um. . .

wants you to have the opportunity

to make the most of this.

What a triumph! What a coup!

What a feather in my cap!

To snatch the soul

of a demigod!

- When can I expect Hercules?

- That's the problem.

He refuses to obey Zeus.

Then he won't come.

Drat!

Not voluntarily.

He must bring him

involuntarily.

And J uno has. . .

facilitated matters.

Surely J uno realizes

that I am no murderer.

- I only punish.

- She understands that,

of course.

But she also knows

that you are ingenious.

And what she can't

accomplish by one means,

she is sure that you are

likely to achieve by another.

You know, that is true.

I always thought of myself

as a god of ideas.

Then I'll leave the matter

in your hands.

Goodbye.

Goodbye.

Pluto:
I didn't mind climbing

all those stairs to get here,

but heights make me dizzy.

I'm not accustomed

to the altitude.

( chuckles )

Have you decided?

I don't care what Zeus

has decreed.

I'm not coming with you.

- Some other century, perhaps?

- It'll be safer for you.

Safer? Hercules is a god,

and safe wherever he goes.

Things can change.

You're being ridiculous.

J ust listen to me for a minute.

You'll enjoy yourself.

You'll have a hell of a time.

I don't know what the occasion was

that prompted this influx of. . .

beautiful women. . .

- Go away.

- You bother me.

- J ust listen.

I n this briefcase

I happen to have a contract

that was drawn up by the best

legal minds in the world,

who at the moment are involuntarily

the recipients of my hospitality.

What is it to me?

I mean if you play

your cards right

I can see that you can get

any one of those dames, women,

who might tickle your,

eh, fancy.

So just sign

on the dotted line,

and I'll take care of

everything else.

Why don't you

go back to hell!

You've been away

too long already.

Who is taking care of things?

Who is feeding Cerberus?

How did you get here?

You always shun the light.

Nosy parker.

Did you notice how dark it was?

- So this is your doing?

- Um-hmm.

How about signing

on the dotted line?

No. If you don't stop

annoying me, I . . .

Listen, I'm not. . .

I'm not afraid of you.

Hey, that's terrific,

but I'm also a god.

- I can try.

- You can try? Listen.

I'll see you later.

We'll be in touch.

You're gonna. . .

hear from me.

I'll see you again sometime. . .

when you're run down.

Said on the phone

he'd meet us here.

Said we'd recognize him

by the briefcase he'd be carrying.

Here he comes.

You weren't kidding about what

you said on the phone, were ya?

Certainly not.

Sure you'll be able

to handle it?

Man:
Twenty thousand dollars?

Okay, pal, it's a bet.

You're laying 20 grand

at 5 to 1

on Hercules to lose?

The money.

What's your name?

Where do you hang out?

Where can I reach you?

Don't worry about that.

All in good time.

We shall meet again.

Mmmmm. . .

Be assured of that.

Well, goodbye. . .

for the present.

Till next time.

I don't like

that guy's looks.

He gives me the creeps.

He's dangerous.

I wouldn't welsh on him

if I was you.

What's to welsh?

Hercules is a cinch to win,

right?

If you say so.

He'll walk into a room

he won't walk out of

if he don't come through

for me.

Twenty grand, huh?

That's a lot of dough.

Figure this guy knows

something we don't know?

What could he know?

He's a long shot plunger!

( laughing )

- Disturbing you?

- No, dear, come in.

Did you see

today's newspaper?

Not yet.

Anything of special interest?

An item

in Wesley Watkins' column.

Listen. . .

''New Yorkers are talking

about the claim

of champion wrestling contender,

Hercules the Great

that he's the strongest man

in the world.''

I wouldn't be inclined

to dispute that.

Someone does. Listen.

''Foremost among those

to dispute this statement

is circus strongman,

Monstro the Magnificent.

He declares himself

as willing to put up

$1 0,000 on the outcome

of a weightlifting contest.''

There's a man with

his work cut out for him.

''Broadway scuttlebutt has it

that the matter

may be settled

on a national variety

television program.''

I personally have no doubt

as to the outcome.

Hi!

Came to wish you luck.

Thank you.

Father's out front

rooting for you, too.

I'm glad for it.

Man:
How's it going, pal?

- Greetings.

- All set for the big match?

- It doesn't bother me.

- You'll take him, all right.

- What can stop me?

- Glad to hear you say that.

I got a lot of dough spread out

on those muscles of yours.

- Don't worry.

- I'm not worrying.

J ust reminding you that if

anything goes wrong,

I'm not gonna like losing

all that money,

and you won't like it,

either.

I understand. It is not pleasant

to lose money

once one becomes

accustomed to its use.

Yeah. I don't back losers. . .

ever!

Very practical.

So don't lose.

Who was that?

I believe

he was threatening you.

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