Mobsters Page #21

HIS LEG HURT IN THE FALL - CHARLIE CRAWLS TOWARD THE GUN

as the Department store Manager and two Security Guards come

charging down the aisle. As Charlie reaches for the gun,

Coll snatches it up, and levels it at Charlie. The Store

manager calls out from behind.

STORE MANAGER:

MY GOOD SIR! WHAT DO YOU THINK...

Coll turns on his heel and plants a bullet deep into the

Manager's forehead, knocking him flat on his back. The

Security Guards dive for cover. Charlie crawls behind a

display case. Coll charges for the door.

OUTSIDE:

Coll shoves an older man away from the door of a cab and

climbs inside. He jams his gun into the back of the driver's

head.

MAD DOG COLL:

425 Park Avenue.

CUT TO:

EXT:
425 PARK AVENUE - DAY

A car pulls to the curb in front of the office building.

Lansky and his "accountants" get out, briefcases in hand.

CUT TO:

INT:
MARANZANO'S INNER OFFICE - DAY

Maranzano sits at his desk. Two Bodyguards hover by the door.

His intercom buzzes.

MARANZANO:

What is it, Grace?

GRACE:

(ON INTERCOM)

There are some men here from the

Internal Revenue. They say they need

to speak to you personally.

MARANZANO:

I'll be out.

IN THE OUTER OFFICE

Lansky stays to the back of the group as the "accountants"

open their briefcases. The Bodyguards emerge from the inner

office, followed by a jovial Maranzano.

MARANZANO:

You government people are never

satisfied to do something once.

The accountants pull their weapons from their briefcases and

aim them at the Boss and his Bodyguards. Lansky steps forward.

LANSKY:

Take him inside.

Lansky and the First Accountant shove Maranzano into his

office. The other Accountants push the Bodyguards against

the wall and pat them down.

IN THE INNER OFFICE

Lansky pulls out two knives and tosses one to the First

Accountant.

LANSKY:

We don't want to disturb your

neighbors.

As Lansky advances, Maranzano backs up, begging, "No. Please.

No." Lansky plunges his knife deep into Maranzano's chest.

IN THE OUTER OFFICE

The other two Accountants stand with their backs to the door,

their guns trained on the Bodyguards. Grace sits trembling

at her desk. She gasps as the door swings open.

MAD DOG COLL STEPS INSIDE

One of the Bodyguards turns toward the door, and Coll opens

fire. BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! BLAM! He blasts away both Accountants

and the Bodyguards. As an afterthought, he turns toward Grace,

whimpering behind her desk. Can't have a witness running

around. BLAM!

IN THE INNER OFFICE

Maranzano bellows like a dying elephant, swinging his arms

wildly, trying to ward off the knives as he crawls backwards

on the floor. Blood bubbles from his chest.

THE DOOR FLIES OPEN

The glass shattering as it slams against the wall. Mad Dog

Coll stands in the doorway. His gun trained on Lansky.

Maranzano gasps for air.

MAD DOG COLL:

What a cozy little scene.

MARANZANO:

Kill them! Kill them!

MAD DOG COLL:

What's it worth to ya, Boss?

MARANZANO:

Anything!

MAD DOG COLL:

Anything ain't a very hard number.

MARANZANO:

One hundred thousand. No... three

hundred thousand.

MAD DOG COLL:

Now that's a hard number.

Coll aims carefully at Lansky. Squeezes the trigger. BLAM!

COLL'S FOREHEAD EXPLODES.

CHARLIE STEPS INTO THE ROOM

A sawed-off shotgun smoking in his hands. He advances on

Maranzano, whose whole body shakes. He lowers the barrel to

Maranzano's head.

LANSKY:

No way, Charlie.

Charlie trembles, fighting his lust for revenge, as Lansky

moves to his side.

CLOSE - ON CHARLIE'S FACE

As Lansky takes the weapon from Charlie, and aims it at

Maranzano. BLAM!

CUT TO:

INT:
CONFERENCE ROOM - NIGHT

Thirty top mobsters are arrayed around a conference table.

Mangano. Profaci. Bonnano. Anastasia. Gagliano. Dalitz. Hoff.

Costello. Siegel. Lansky. A single chair, at the head of the

table, remains empty. Al Capone sits to the right of it.

LUCIANO ENTERS THE ROOM

Looks around the table for a place to sit. Capone calls him

to the head of the table.

CAPONE:

Up here, Boss.

LUCIANO:

That ain't exactly been the lucky

spot lately.

CAPONE:

But from now on it's Lucky's spot.

The men applaud and call out in agreement as Charlie makes

his way to the head of the table and settles in.

LUCIANO:

Maybe you better hear what I got to

say first.

CAPONE:

Whatever you say, Boss.

LUCIANO:

No, Al. Whatever we say. We're all

Bosses here. We don' need another.

JOE PROFACI:

Come on, Charlie. We gotta have a

top guy. Otherwise these wars ain't

never gonna stop.

LUCIANO:

As long as ya got one top Boss,

somebody else's always gonna be

looking to knock him off. And that's

war on top of war.

JOE PROFACI:

Who'll make the rules?

LUCIANO:

We'll make 'em, and we'll enforce

'em. All of us. Together. We all get

one vote. Includin' me.

JOE PROFACI:

Charlie, I'm from the old country,

and these American ways get me

sometimes confused. You tellin' us

you refuse the title of Boss of All

the Bosses?

LUCIANO:

I don't care what anybody calls me,

Joe. Long as it ain't to dirty. And

if you fellas get together every

year and say, "Charlie, we still

want you to run things for us", I

ain't gonna insult ya by sayin' no.

Costello stands up at his chair.

FRANK:

I propose we make Charlie Luciano

head of our National Commission for

the next year. All in favor?

Several hands shot up quickly, others respond more slowly,

uncomfortable with this new-fangled democracy. Finally, only

Profaci's hand remains down.

LUCIANO:

You wanna be Boss, Joe?

Profaci lifts his hand up.

JOE PROFACI:

Julius Caesar never took no vote.

LUCIANO:

And maybe that's why he ended up

dead in the streets of Rome.

The men LAUGH and Profaci joins in.

CUT TO:

INT:
GRAND CONCOURSE HALL - NIGHT

With the same set of three hundred mobsters gathered together

to hail a new leader for the second time in two weeks.

IN THE LOBBY OUTSIDE THE HALL

Charlie makes his way through a throng of well-wishers. Al

Capone catches Charlie in a bear hug and slips a fat envelope

into his hand. Charlie shakes his head and gives it back.

LUCIANO:

Why should you be payin' me when

we're all equals?

CAPONE:

You scare me, Charlie.

LUCIANO:

Maybe that's why I'm the Boss.

INSIDE THE HALL:

As Charlie makes his way up the center aisle with Lansky,

Siegel, and Costello, accepting the cheers and handshakes of

the crowd.

CUT TO:

INT:
CHARLIE'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Still dressed from the banquet, Charlie comes through the

front door. He removes his coat, and tosses it across the

sofa.

CHARLIE WALKS DOWN THE HALLWAY

rubbing the exhaustion from his face. At the bedroom door,

he flips the light switch.

THE SCALLOP-SHELL LAMP

casts it's mournful glow across the empty bed. Charlie stares

wistfully for a moment, then flips the light back off.

IN THE DIMLY LIT MARBLE BATH

Charlie lays back in the foamy bubbles in the tub. Lifting a

cigar to his mouth, he strikes a match and lights it. He

inhales deeply, holds the smoke for a moment, then expels it

suddenly. He tosses the cigar into the toilet, where it

sizzles and dies. He reaches over and flushes the toilet,

then lays back into the bubbles, deep in thought.

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