Here Comes Mr. Jordan Page #7

Oh, yeah, but how am I going to fix it

with the Boxing Commission?

- You're a ghost.

- I'm no ghost. I got 50 years to go yet.

It'll be Farnsworth who's doing the fighting.

Can't you get that through your thick head?

Okay, but Farnsworth, a banker.

They'll throw me right out on my ear.

Look, you go and see Lefty, K.O.'s manager.

Offer him some money, any amount.

- Like what?

- What'll it take?

- I don't know. $25,000 at least.

- That's a lot of money.

Why, just have your secretary

write him a check, Joe.

Yeah, that's right.

Wait a minute. Watch this.

Hey, Abbott.

Excuse me.

Say, Mr. Jordan, I'd like to have a few words

with you, if you don't mind.

It's about Joe.

Maybe you and me

could get together on something.

Say, you're here, ain't you?

Look, if this really is Joe,

why, he's sitting pretty with millions.

Now, why should he go and get himself

punched silly trying to be a champ?

What'll it get him?

Certainly not millions.

The way things stand now,

I've got 40% of him. You heard him say that.

With what he's worth,

40% is okay right now.

Suppose he goes and takes

a couple of hard ones on the chin...

and goes goofy on me.

Then suppose he forgets who I am,

Mr. Jordan. Then where will I stand?

Now, here's what I want you

to do for me, Mr. Jordan.

I want you to help me get this fight notion

out of Joe's head.

Let him stay Farnsworth, like he is.

I'll make it well worth your while.

- Talking to yourself, Max?

- Don't do that.

I was just having a little conversation

with your friend Mr. Jordan.

- A little one-sided, of course.

- He's in the other room.

You're cracking up, Max.

Here. Here's the money.

Go on, do your stuff.

Get down and see Lefty.

- Is this good?

- Yeah, it's perfect.

What was that you were saying about my

getting the fight notion out of my head?

- What was that all about?

- Well, I'll tell you, Joe.

I was thinking here.

You know this fight game is a bad racket.

Course, if you needed the dough,

I'd say all right...

- but when a guy's got millions...

- Listen, you dope.

I don't want any of that Farnsworth money.

I'll make plenty of my own.

You just get me the fights.

I'm going to be champ.

- Now, wait a minute, Joe.

- Just run along and do as I tell you.

Now, listen, Joe or Farnsworth...

I got 40% of you,

and that ought to give me some say.

You quit arguing.

Get down there and set this fight

with that Murdock crowd...

and after you get it fixed, give me a call.

I'll wait to hear from you

if I have to stay up all night.

Okay.

- Is your friend here?

- Yeah. He's right over there.

Well, pleased to have met you, Mr. Jordan.

Could I drop you somewhere?

No, come to think of it,

I ain't going your way, am I?

Thanks very much, Mr. Jordan.

That about takes care of everything.

- Then you're quite happy?

- Oh, yeah, everything's swell.

I'm getting hard as nails,

and then there's Miss Logan.

She's going to stop in here

for a few minutes tonight...

on her way to the theater.

She got some papers of her father's

she wants me to attend to.

- She likes me a lot, Mr. Jordan.

- Well, that's nice.

Yeah, it's a little gummed up.

I can't even see her.

Here I am, supposed to be married...

and she can't visit me, and I can't

take her out for the same reason.

- People might talk.

- You'll work that out, Joe.

Yeah.

Yeah, I gotta make some changes

around here.

I gotta make them quick.

Well, I got to get a bath and some rest.

I'm in training, you know. You don't mind?

Of course not. I have to be leaving myself.

Hey, this is something new.

Me walking out on you.

- You're not sore, are you?

- Good luck.

Thanks for everything, Mr. Jordan.

A fight manager?

You're sure?

Car's still here.

She's been down there with him

over an hour.

- What's the meaning of it?

- That doesn't matter.

Do you know who this Mr. Corkle is?

A fight manager.

- What?

- $25,000 to arrange a fight.

- He intends to enter the ring.

- Oh, no, he's not that mad.

What else could it be?

His gymnasium downstairs,

training schedules...

He's throwing money away

in every direction.

Where will it stop, Julia?

If this keeps up,

you'll be a pauper within a month.

Oh, I don't know. I can't figure it out.

I'll have Abbott take care of these

in the morning.

I'll get them all signed and everything,

just like your father says.

- Don't you worry about it.

- Thank you.

- You got to go now, huh?

- Well, the car's waiting outside.

- I'm a little late.

- I wish you didn't.

I could stand here and look at you all night.

I mean, I never saw you done up

like that before.

- Looks wonderful.

- Thank you.

I wish I could stay a little.

- Well, couldn't you stay just for a minute?

- I'd like to.

Anyplace but here.

I know how you feel about that,

and you're right.

But just for a minute.

So many things I want to ask you

and so many things I want to tell you.

Please.

- We could have him declared insane.

- By the time they brought it to trial...

he'd have tossed away every last cent.

- Then how are we going to stop him?

- As we tried to before.

Only this time, there'll be no mistake.

I'll see to that tonight.

Look me over.

You see anything?

- Any difference?

- Now, let's see.

- Healthier, maybe?

- You look very well.

- Sort of in the pink?

- Yes, almost pink.

- There you are. I've been exercising.

- Really?

Yeah, and I mean exercising.

Sparring around, punching the bag,

plenty of roadwork, lots of sleep.

You might even call it training.

Well, a certain amount of exercise is fine...

- but why on earth should you be training?

- No, but that's the point.

Did you ever box? No, of course you didn't.

But I used to and I liked it a lot.

I thought I'd like to get back in shape again.

- What for?

- Well, I...

I thought I might get an idea.

You know how you get ideas.

I might get a notion that

I'd like to do some fighting.

- Some real fighting. Right in the ring.

- You're joking.

Well, I'm not bad, you know.

Bruce, you must stop this exercising.

It's gone to your head.

- But, listen, I...

- Good night, Bruce.

- No, I'm serious about this.

- You're not.

- Yeah, honest I am.

- Bruce Farnsworth, the banker, in the ring?

Well, I know people would talk,

but if I wanted to do it, why couldn't I?

Except for you,

except if you didn't like prizefighting.

- Well, I don't know anything about it.

- It wouldn't make any difference, would it?

I mean, you told me the important thing

was how people were inside...

no matter what they did.

- That's still true, isn't it?

- Yes, of course.

What's the matter, Bruce?

Nothing, I... Excuse me a minute.

- I really must go.

- No, you stay right where you are.

I forgot something. Don't move now.

You stay there.

What's the idea of popping up like this?

I thought I saw the last of you.

I had thought so, too.

As you know, I went through Hades

to make good my error.

- I hoped I'd had the last of it.

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