Secretariat Page #6

- Mr. Hunt? Penny Chenery.

- Mr. Keck, Seth Hancock.

I was calling about

a select opportunity on Secretariat.

[Laughs] No, sir, he's not for sale.

No, we are moving

to syndicate his breeding rights.

It's a select opportunity.

We have 32 shares...

Yes, sir. It's a great opportunity.

I will head that way. I'll see you

in a bit. All right, bye-bye.

[Mr. Keck] Look, Seth, I've been

a part of lots of these deals,

but I've never been asked to pay

Nobody has.

Tell Mr. Chenery's little girl

that she's priced this colt

like he's already won the Triple Crown.

I'm calling on behalf of Penny Chenery.

We will call him back later. Thank you.

[Growls] Dr. Todd, please.

It's Elizabeth Ham.

[Penny] No disrespect, sir,

but if he gets any better,

you're going to want to be in on this.

All due respect, but I got a pretty good

handle on where I want to be.

[Penny] You could have her give me

a call me later this afternoon.

[Seth] Yes, Mr. Cleaver, it's lots of

money. But my father used to tell me

you got to spend money to make it.

[Mr. Cleaver] I'll put some thought

into it, all righty.

[Seth] Thank you, sir.

Jock Whitney's a "no."

And Mr. Mellon's on line two.

Mr. Mellon, thank you

for getting back to me.

Of course, I understand, Mr. Mellon.

I'll hold a share for you

in case you reconsider. Thank you.

[Gospel music plays]

[Lucien] Have you ever seen that?

[Eddie] No, not me. That boy a whopper.

I don't care how many times they say no.

I don't care how many times they tell us

we can't do it. I am not giving up!

I will not live

the rest of my life in regret!

We are going to

see that horse run and win!

And we are going to live rejoicing!

Every day!

Amen.

[Indistinct chatter]

- Ronnie! Going to have some lunch?

- Mrs. Tweedy.

Yes, ma'am. Just getting a bite to eat

before I go to the ring. What about you?

I'm meeting somebody.

Hello, Mr. Phipps,

- Thank you for coming.

- Miss Tweedy. My pleasure.

- You know Ronnie Turcotte, my rider?

- Ronnie.

So, they call you "Tiny"?

- What?

- [Laughs] Mr. Phipps...

- Thank you for coming.

- Sure.

Are we ready yet?

We're still thinking about it.

If I smell the air correctly,

Mrs. Tweedy,

you're about to ask me

to spend a small fortune

to buy a share in a horse

I could've owned for nothing.

That's true, I am.

Nobody's buying yet, are they?

That's right. They need

someone to lead them.

You know that horse I chose

the day we flipped the coin?

She's the prettiest,

best-tempered horse in my whole stable.

And she couldn't outrun my accountants.

So now you've got the Horse of the Year,

and I look foolish.

It's not foolish

to be unlucky, Mr. Phipps.

Most men, if they had chosen wrong

and lost this horse

wouldn't think of investing in him

again, but you're bigger than that.

And if you do invest in him

instead of being the man who lost

Secretariat in the past,

you'll be the one who had the vision

to lead investors in his future.

His future is uncertain. And I don't buy

shares in untested three-year-olds.

But my accountants,

they may be slow afoot,

but they are quick to calculate

and they tell me

that you're in a rough spot.

So I'll buy

that horse of yours right now.

Seven million dollars. All cash.

I can't do that.

If he does what I think he'll do,

his value will double, if not triple.

You do know what you're saying.

You're guaranteeing that this horse

is going to win the Triple Crown.

The Derby, the Preakness

and the Belmont.

Three races, three states

in just five weeks.

Hasn't been done in 25 years.

There are a lot of good horsemen

think it can't be done anymore.

Just understand,

this is what you're saying.

That is exactly what I'm saying.

Eight million.

No.

You're that stubborn?

I'm that right.

Have we made up our mind yet?

Yes, I think we have.

All this talk about Secretariat.

He hasn't faced a horse as good as Sham.

My horse is faster and stronger. We're

not waiting for the Derby to prove it.

We're going to the Wood Memorial.

And when Secretariat has to run as far

as my horse did today

he's going to fade like the sunset.

- I guarantee it.

- [Miss Ham] He is ridiculous.

- [Penny groans]

- [Both chuckle]

Well, Seth, what do you make of that?

I think that fellow is going to make

Lucien say things in French

my mama would spank him for.

This guy will not shut his face!

"Lucien Laurin cannot

train a winning horse."

OK, so he's saying that I'm incompetent.

He never shuts up.

This guy, he couldn't

train a flea to jump.

He couldn't train a monkey

to pick at his own butt.

- Step out here with me.

- He could not train...

The guy couldn't train

his own bowel movements.

The Wood is in New York.

You're going to need a new dress.

They say, "Secretariat's owner

is striking and charismatic."

[Phone ringing]

- Penny Tweedy.

- [Jack] I saw the paper.

- Yes. Didn't Seth do a greatjob?

- I'd like to say congratulations,

but I am a lawyer, and I know

what performance guarantees mean.

[Sighs] Jack, I don't know how to

earn a reward without taking a risk.

Is it really true Ogden Phipps

offered you eight million dollars?

It's true. He wouldn't

have made that offer

unless he thought Secretariat

would be worth twice that.

The richest man in the world

can take a risk like that, Penny.

- But I can't.

- You?

I just mean, do what you want

with your money.

But I can't spend

my money on a risk like that.

Don't worry. I understand.

Not a cent of your money.

I didn't mean it like that.

I just meant...

I understood how you meant it, Jack.

Let's talk later.

There are words ofwisdom

that have sustained me

throughout my darkest times.

If you don't mind,

I'd like to share them with you.

I'm all ears, Miss Ham.

They are:

"Good evening, Kmart shoppers."

[Laughing]

[Male announcer] Fifteen minutes

to post. Fifteen minutes.

- [Indistinct chatter]

- [Announcer continues indistinctly]

[Miss Ham] There he is.

[Lucien] Edward, it's big enough

for a Clydesdale!

It ain't big enough for Red. Maybe

he's still hiding fat from the winter.

Does he look fat to you? [speaks French]

What are you doing?

The same thing I've done

with every belt I ever owned.

[Fanfare plays]

[Eddie] Come on, Red.

[Man] Miss Penny, look this way, please.

You OK, Miss Ham?

I hate what she's having to go through,

and there's so little I can do to help.

Someday I'd like to be able to do

for that horse

half ofwhat you do for its owner.

Lucien, those are the grandest words

anyone's ever said to me.

[Announcer speaks indistinctly]

- Lucien.

- Mr. Phipps. How are you?

- Good morning.

- Best to you.

- Good luck today.

- Thank you.

[Male announcer] The horses now being

loaded in for the big race ofthe day,

the match-up between

Secretariat and Sham.

You're going to eat dirt today, Ronnie.

The final test before the campaign

for the Triple Crown,

the first test ofwhether the big horse

from Virginia can cover the distance.

Rate this script:5.0 / 2 votes