Inherent Vice Page #17

DOC:

I met a friend of yours...

SHASTA:

Who's that?

DOC:

Coy Harlingen. And he's clean.

SHASTA:

Glad to hear it. Long may he

wave.

DOC:

He's been working as a snitch for

the LAPD, and I also saw him on

the tube working undercover for

this outfit called Vigilant

California... and you don't look

surprised enough, Shasta, he's

meant to be dead...

SHASTA:

Then I guess that one's on my

ticket because it was me who

introduced him to Burke Stodger

and Burke who set him up with the

Viggies...

DOC:

Help me out here, how do you know

Burke Stodger?

101.

SHASTA:

We were neighbors in Hancock Park.

DOC:

Didn't think you liked those

kindsa movies...

SHASTA:

I saw him on a ‘Brady Bunch’

episode once. We walked our dogs

at the same time each morning...

DOC:

Which one?

SHASTA:

Which one what?

DOC:

Which episode?

SHASTA:

Jan gets a wig. Gets tired of

being a blonde.

DOC:

Not the same thing as changing

your politics, I guess.

SHASTA:

I told him I had a friend who

needed to kick drugs -- and he

told me he knew a program that

really worked... and then Coy just

disappeared.

DOC:

... and were you seeing Mickey

then?

SHASTA:

... god, you're a nosy f***,

aren't you?

DOC:

Put it this way... how did you and

Coy's wife get along?

SHASTA:

Was I running around on Mickey?

What a thing to ask.

DOC:

When did I -

SHASTA:

In case you haven't figured it

out, I was never the sweetest girl

in the business...

(MORE)

102.

SHASTA (CONT'D)

...but there was no reason for me

to waste a minute on a sick junkie

like Coy... he wasn't my charity

project and if you stop to think

about some of the girls you've

hung out with...

DOC:

Alright -- whatever you meant to

do, Shasta, you ended up saving

Coy's life... now he's a snitch

for the LAPD and an undercover

agent for the Viggies and maybe

the Golden Fang -- the outfit,

not the boat -- and there's a few

stiffs so far that may or may not

be on his karmic ticket.

SHASTA:

I should be saying ‘Coy's a big

boy and he can take care of

himself,’ but the only thing is I

don't think he can...

DOC:

But whatever these people are

into, it ain't helping junkies get

back on the straight and narrow...

What did he think was gonna

happen? That cover story about

him being dead fell apart from the

second he started using it? What

the hell was he thinking?

SHASTA:

... what do you think was gonna

happen when you got into your

whole P.I. trip?

DOC:

Different situation.

SHASTA:

Oh? Far as I can see, you and

Coy, you're peas in a pod.

DOC:

How's that? I'm not working for

them.

SHASTA:

Cops who never wanted to be cops.

DOC:

Yeah, but I'm not working for any

of those folks...

103.

SHASTA:

Rather be surfing or smoking orfucking or anything else but whatyou're doing.

DOC:

Yeah, but I'm not working foranyone, Shasta, I'm a force forthe good.

SHASTA:

You guys must've thought you'd bechasing criminals, and insteadhere you are both working for

them.

Ouch.

DOC:

SHASTA:

Courage, Camile. You're still a

long way from LAPD material...

(Sorry... I'm just being actressy,

Doc. I love those zingers, Ican't resist ‘em...)

CUT TO:

93 BEACH 93

(NOTE:
see pg. 314. Shasta and Doc walking, etc...)

SORTILEGE (V.O.)

Could that be true? All this

time, Doc assumed he'd been outbusting his balls for folks who,

if they paid him anything it'd behalf a lid or a small favor down

the line or maybe only just aquick smile, long as it was real.

He began to run through the cashcustomers he could remember,

starting with Crocker Fenway andgoing on through studioexecutives, stock market heroes ofthe go-go years, remittance menfrom far away who needed new pussyor dope connections, rich old guyswith cute young wives and viceversa... It was sure a piss-poorrecord, not too different, afterall, he guessed, from interestsCoy had been working for. Forgetwho --what was he working foranymore?

(NOTE:
Poss. actressy line here on beach, post-narr.)

104.

94

EXT. WASTE A PERP SHOOTING RANGE - DAY (OR INT. PHONE 94

CALL)

Doc comes to see Bigfoot who's in the

Chicano/Negro/Hippie section.

BIGFOOT:

Mrs. Bjornsen sends her regards.

DOC:

Can I say something out loud, is

anybody listening?

BIGFOOT:

Everybody. Nobody. Does it

matter?

DOC:

Alright, then:
Correct me if I'm

mistaken, Bigfoot, but it's clear

to me that you're desperate to

have a word with Adrian Prussia

but can't let on, because

otherwise you're in deep sh*t with

powers unnamed -- so you're using

me instead -- have I got that more

or less right?

BIGFOOT:

We're in sensitive territory here,

Sportello.

DOC:

Well, somebody's gonna have to be

less sensitive for a minute and

just wipe off their chin and stand

up and deal with it. If there's

something you need, just come

on out and say it, how hard can

that be?

BIGFOOT:

Pretty hard. Internal Affairs has

it all locked down.

DOC:

Internal Affairs, what does

Internal Affairs have to do with

this?

BIGFOOT:

Figure it out. Use what's left of

your brain. The trouble with you

people is that you never know when

somebody's doing you a favor --

you think you're entitled because

you're cute or something. Go look

in the mirror sometime.

(MORE)

105.

BIGFOOT (CONT'D)

‘Dig’ yourself, ‘man,’ till you

understand nobody owes you

anything. Then get back to me.

CUT TO:

95 INT. HALL OF JUSTICE - DAY 95

DOC comes into see current girlfriend: PENNY KIMBALL.

Her cubicle mate is a straight-looking DA RHUS

FROTHINGHAM.

RHUS:

Are you all right? Should I call

security?

PENNY:

(to Doc)

Am I?

DOC:

Only wondering when you'd be free

for dinner. Didn't mean to freak

you out. I'll even spring for it.

PENNY:

I'm fine, Rhus, thank you.

(as he leaves)

Listen, would you mind if we just

went back to my place?

DOC:

Wait... what?

PENNY:

And we can pick up a pizza on the

way.

DOC:

A pizza?

PENNY:

I can hear you getting a hard-on.

DOC:

Well, okay, I'll see you back

at your place -- no, no, no, wait

a minute, I came here for a

reason -

PENNY:

What is it?

DOC:

I need to look at somebody's

jacket. Ancient history, but it's

probably under lock and key...

106.

PENNY:

That's it? No big deal, we do

that all the time.

DOC:

What, break into officially sealed

records? And here I had all this

faith in the system.

PENNY:

Oh, Doc. Grow up. What's the

name?

DOC:

Adrian Prussia.

PENNY:

Ewwwwwwww. Really?... that'd be

an Internal Affairs file.

DOC:

Internal Affairs? What does

Internal Affairs have to do with

this?

PENNY:

Adrian Prussia has been booked

on murder one charges more times

than I can remember... and each

time, he's walked...

DOC:

So what are you guys doing wrong?

PENNY:

Last time was called a justifiable

homicide of one of the LAPD's

very own...

DOC:

Who?

PENNY:

Your friend’s partner...

DOC:

What's that? Which friend? Hang

on.

PENNY:

Bigfoot.

DOC:

What what now?

PENNY:

Adrian's like the LAPD'S own

personal hitman, doing deeds

for them that they won't do

themselves...

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