RKO 281 Page #18

We float into the castle itself and through the stripped- down

Screening Room and the Assembly Room and the Great Dining Hall.

All are mere shadows of their past glory.

BUNNY BERIGAN:

"Cause you're so supreme, Lyrics I write of you, I

dream, dream day and night of you And I scheme just

for the sight of you, Baby, what good does it do...?

We finally float into the ballroom

A record of "I CAN'T GET STARTED" spins forlornly on a turntable.

And Marion and Hearst are having a quiet, poignant dance together in

the middle of the empty ballroom.

BUNNY BERIGAN:

"I've been consulted by Franklin D. Greta Garbo has

had me to tea, Still I'm broken hearted Cause I

can't get started with you.

They finally stop dancing and stand swaying gently. Then they stop

swaying.

HEARST:

(gently)

Ah, Miss Davies, the times we have seen

She holds him closely as "I CAN'T GET STARTED" concludes

INT. CHASEN'S RESTAURANT. PRIVATE ROOM_DAY

Welles has booked a private room at Chasen's. A long banquet table

contains cans of sterno heating various dishes.

Large photographs of the American West and renderings from THE LIFE OF

CHRIST are scattered around other tables.

Welles wanders around the renderings with Gregg Toland and Mank. Welles

carries a plate of food and consumes as:

TOLAND:

See, this is the Great Salt Lake -- we do the

baptism here.

MANK:

Great scene where John the Baptist pulls your head

out of the water and says, "Look up, and behold your

destiny"

WELLES:

Is that from one of the Gospels?

MANK:

Kinda.

Schaefer enters.

WELLES:

George! Enter And Behold

Schaefer blinks at the massive photos and renderings.

WELLES:

You're not still mad at me, I hope

SCHAEFER:

No, we're jake. But listen-

WELLES:

Look, not a single scene shot in the studio! We've

found natural locations for the whole story--

SCHAEFER:

Hold on a sec. I got news. We finally found

somewhere to premiere KANE but--

WELLES:

I told you! Where? Grauman's? El Capitan? Or did

Radio City come crawling back?

SCHAEFER:

The Palace in New York. But Orson there's something

else.

Welles stops eating

SCHAEFER:

I think you better sit down

WELLES:

(evenly)

I don't want to sit

Beat.

SCHAEFER:

The bosses -- the other studios -- they want to buy

the film and destroy it.

Absolute silence

Pause

SCHAEFER:

They came to me with an offer. 800,000 for the

negative and all the prints.

SCHAEFER:

And they went to the stockholders in New York.

MANK:

(quietly)

Oh God.

SCHAEFER:

I been talking to Swanbeck in New York and...

Orson, I think they're gonna take it A long pause as

Welles looks at Schaefer

Welles suddenly FLINGS his plate of food in Schaefer's direction as he

ROARS:

WELLES:

YOU STUPID, LITTLE MAN! HOW COULD YOU HAVE LET THIS

HAPPEN?! I GAVE YOU MY SOUL AND NOW YOU'RE GOING TO

SELL IT!?

MANK:

This ain't George's doing--!

Welles- rampages around the room

WELLES:

I PUT MY LIFE INTO THAT PICTURE -- EVERYTHING I'VE

BEEN -- EVERYTHING I COULD BE---IT'S CITIZEN KANE! -

- IT'S ALL CITIZEN KANE!

And in a screaming, bellowing fury, Welles tears apart the room.

In a scene sharply reminiscent of Kane destroying Susan's bedroom,

Welles rampages around the room, upsetting tables and smashing

everything in reach.

Welles finally grabs a flaming can of sterno and flings it at Schaefer,

Schaefer knocks it away.

Then Welles stands in spent exhaustion, panting. One of his hands is

bleeding.

He looks at Schaefer. A pause. Then:

WELLES:

Let . . . me . . . talk to them. . .

New York ... The stockholders

Give me one chance. And then you will never have to see me again.

INT. _GIMBELS NEW YORK _DAY

The entire two-acre fifth floor of Gimbels is in chaos

A large banner is suspended at one end of the floor; "The Hearst

Collection." It is the first day of the sale and it is mobbed.

Hearst and Marion, alone in a crowd, walk wordlessly through the

mayhem.

Everywhere around them hundreds of eager customers strike like hawks,

snatching up useless junk and treasured antiques.

We see bits and pieces of San Simeon in the jumble

They pass a man and his wife, holding up Marion's -BLESS THIS CASTLE"

sampler:

MAN:

Old man Hearst owned this and I'm getting it for

two bits I

Hearst and Marion continue to walk, finally arriving at the section

containing the true, expensive treasures.

Hearst watches as customers pick up and fondle his life.

He glances at a framed front page of the San Francisco Examiner. The

date is March 4, 1887. In a large box on the page is: "IT IS THE ROLE

OF THE PRESS TO COMFORT THE AFFLICTED AND AFFLICT THE

COMFORTABLE.

WILLIAM RANDOLPH HEARST. PUBLISHER."

HEARST:

I can't sell this. How much are they asking?

MARION:

(gently)

Pops ... let it go. Just ... let it go

He looks at her. A long moment. He tenderly touches her face.

Then:

HEARST:

Yes, I think I shall.

He takes her hand and leads her away as we pull up and take in the

entire fifth floor.

It is a stunning KANE-like image of rows and rows of merchandise piled

high. Of junk and jewels. Of Charles Foster Kane and William Randolph

Hearst.

INT. HOTEL ROOM. NEW YORK_NIGHT

Welles sits brooding in his hotel room. His invincible energy appears

gone.

He is deep in thought, listlessly shuffling and reshuffling a deck of

cards in one hand.

He aimlessly shuffles through the cards and plucks one out.

WELLES:

Six of spades

He glances at the card. It is the nine of hearts.

He shuffles through the cards again and pulls out another card.

WELLES:

Six of spades

He looks at the card. It is the two of clubs.

His attention is now fully on the cards. He shuffles them dramatically

and snatches out a card. He looks at it and then tosses it away. He

shuffles again, working the trick, again it fails. He tosses another

card away. He continues, ;' more quickly, to attempt the trick. It

fails again. And ' again.

With a frightened moan Welles flings the entire deck away from him and

bolts out of the room...

EXT. HOTEL ROOFTOP_NIGHT

Welles emerges from a stairway on the roof of his hotel.

He marches to the edge of the roof and leans against a railing, gasping

for air.

Everywhere below him the shimmering lights of Manhattan twinkle and

flash; cabs and neon and noise. The night sky above him is filled with

stars.

He looks away from the city and up to the stars -- they captivate him

fully. He stares and stares at the impossible chaos of beautiful

lights.

A long moment as Welles gazes at the stars. The city below and the

noise seem to disappear and Welles stands, safe and at peace under the

silent dome of stars.

The stars are reflected in his huge, dark eyes

Magically, the stars in his eyes give way to the vague shapes of men

sitting around a table.

Welles looks at the men.

WELLES:

Today.

We pull back to see we are at

INT. RKO BOARD ROOM. NEW YORK_DAY

Welles stands at the head of a long conference table. Title: APRIL 6,

1941

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