Mr. Deeds Goes to Town Page #4

MRS. MEREDITH

You gentlemen going to stay for

lunch?

CEDAR:

(right to the point;

ignoring her)

I'd like to ask you a few questions.

LONGFELLOW:

All right.

Longfellow looks at them strangely and sits down beside

his tuba.

CEDAR:

Mr. Deeds, are you the son of Dr.

Joseph and Mary Deeds?

LONGFELLOW:

Yes.

CEDAR:

Are your parents living?

LONGFELLOW:

Why, no.

CEDAR:

Mr. Deeds, does the name of Martin

W. Semple mean anything to you?

LONGFELLOW:

Not much. He's an uncle of mine, I

think. I never saw him, but my

mother's name was Semple, you know.

CEDAR:

Well, he passed on. He was killed

in a motor accident in Italy.

LONGFELLOW:

He was? Gee, that's too bad. If

there's anything I can do to—

While he speaks, he has been adjusting the tuba between

his legs and now sucks on the mouthpiece, preparatory to

playing.

CEDAR:

I have good news for you, sir. Mr.

Semple left a large fortune when

he died. He left it all to you,

Mr. Deeds. Deducting the taxes, it

amounts to something in the

neighborhood of $20,000,000.

CLOSEUP - LONGFELLOW

His lips are over the mouthpiece of the tuba. His only

reaction to the startling news is to lift his eyes in

Cedar's direction.

16. GROUP SHOT

MRS. MEREDITH

How about lunch? Are the gentlemen

going to stay - or not?

LONGFELLOW:

Of course they're going to stay.

(to the gentlemen)

She's got some fresh orange layer

cake. You know, with the thick

stuff on the top?

(to Mrs. Meredith)

Sure, they don't want to go to the

hotel.

Mrs. Meredith leaves. Cobb and Cedar have watched this by-

play, open-mouthed, and are now even more astounded to see

Longfellow blow into his tuba.

CLOSER SHOT - THE THREE

CEDAR:

(over the noise of

the tuba)

Perhaps you didn't hear what I

said, Mr. Deeds! The whole Semple

fortune goes to you! $20,000,000!

LONGFELLOW:

Oh, yes, I heard you all right.

$20,000,000. That's quite a lot,

isn't it?

COBB:

Oh, it'll do in a pinch.

LONGFELLOW:

(impressed)

Yes, indeed. I wonder why he left

me all that money? I don't need

it.

He resumes his 'Oom-pahs.'

18. CLOSE SHOT - CEDAR AND COBB

Staring, unbelievingly.

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. AN ALCOVE

19. FULL SHOT

The three men sit around a table, having lunch. By

Longfellow's side is, as expected, the tuba.

CEDAR:

Mr. Cobb here is an ex-newspaperman

associated with your uncle for

many years - as a sort of buffer.

LONGFELLOW:

Buffer?

COBB:

Yeah. A glorified doormat.

CEDAR:

Yes. You see, rich people need

someone to keep the crowds away.

The world's full of pests. Then

there's the newspapers to handle.

One must know when to seek publicity -

and when to avoid it.

During Cedar's speech, Longfellow seems to have been lost

in his own thoughts.

20. CLOSE SHOT - LONGFELLOW AND COBB

Favoring Longfellow.

LONGFELLOW:

Cedar, Cedar, Cedar and Budington.

Funny, I can't think of a rhyme

for Budington.

COBB:

Why should you?

LONGFELLOW:

Well, whenever I run across a funny

name, I always like to poke around

for a rhyme. Don't you?

COBB:

Nah.

LONGFELLOW:

I've got one for Cobb—

CLOSE SHOT - THE GROUP

LONGFELLOW:

"There once was a man named Cobb,

Who kept Semple away from the mob.

Came the turn of the tide

And Semple - he died -

And now poor Cobb's out of a job!"

COBB:

Sounds like a two weeks' notice to

me.

LONGFELLOW:

Huh?

COBB:

I've gotten the 'sackaroo' in many

ways - but never in rhyme.

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