Sunset Boulevard Page #9

GILLIS:

I sure turned into an interesting

driveway.

MAX:

You did, sir.

GILLIS' VOICE

He goes out. Gillis I pegged him as slightly

looks after him, hangs cuckoo, too. A stroke maybe.

his coat over a chair, Come to think of it, the

walks over to the win- whole place seemed to have

dow, pulls down the been stricken with a kind of

rickety Venetian blind. creeping paralysis, out of

As he does so, he looks beat with the rest of the

down at:
world, crumbling apart in

slow motion ...

A-38 THE TENNIS COURT OF GILLIS' VOICE

THE DESMOND HOUSE There was a tennis court, or

(MOONLIGHT) rather the ghost of a tennis

court, with faded markings

The cement surface is and sagging net ...

cracked in many places,

and weeds are growing

high.

A-39 GILLIS - IN THE WINDOW

He looks away from the court to:

A-40 THE DESMOND SWIMMING

POOL:

GILLIS' VOICE

There is no water in And of course she had a pool.

it, and hunks of Who didn't then? Mabel Norm-

mosaic which lines its and and John Gilbert must

enormous basin are have swum in it ten thousand

broken away. midnights ago, and Vilma Banky

and Rod La Roque. It was

empty now....or was it?

A-41 GILLIS - IN THE WINDOW

He stares down, his stomach slowly turning.

A-42 THE SWIMMING POOL

At the bottom of the basin a great rat is eating a

decaying or,ange. From the inlet pipe crawl two

other rats, who join battle with the first rat over

the orange.

A-43 GILLIS -IN THE WINDOW

He starts away, but some- GILLIS' VOICE

thing attracts his atten- There was something

tion. He turns back and else going on below:

looks down again. the last rites for

that hairy old chimp,

performed with the

A-44 THE LAWN BELOW utmost seriousness --

as if she were laying

Norma Desmond and Max are to rest an only child.

carrying the white coffin Was her life really

towards a small grave as as empty as that?

which has been dug in the

dead turf. Norma carries

one of the candelabra, all

of its candles flickering

in the wind. They reach

the grave and lower the

coffin into it. Then,

Norma lighting his task

with the candelabrum, Max

takes a spade from the

loose earth and starts

filling in the grave.

A-45 GILLIS - IN THE WINDOW

He watches the scene be- GILLIS' VOICE

low, then turns into the It was all very queer,

room, goes to the door but queerer things

to lock it. There is no were yet to come.

key, and only a hole

where the lock has been

gouged out. Gillis moves

a heavy overstuffed chair

in front of the door, then

walks towards the bed,

throws himself on it,

picking up some of the

manuscript pages to read.

DISSOLVE:

END OF SEQUENCE "A"

SEQUENCE "B"

DISSOLVE IN ON:

B-1 LONG SHOT THE DESMOND

HOUSE - (MORNING)

The day is overcast. The SOUND: (Distant organ

house is shrouded in low music - improvisations

fog. on an odd, mournful

theme - not too loud,

continuing throughout

B-2 THE TENNIS COURT, blurred the scene.)

over with fog.

B-3 THE EMPTY SWIMMING POOL

Its dark outline even more

melancholy under the misty

blanket.

B-4 THE ROOM OVER THE GARAGE

Muted daylight seeps GILLIS' VOICE

through the blinds. Gillis That night I'd had a

lies on the bed, under a mixed-up dream. In it

shabby quilt. The manu- was an organ grinder.

script is beside him, some I couldn't see his

of the pages scattered on face, but the organ

the floor. He is just was all draped in

opening his eyes. It takes black, and a chimp was

him a moment to adjust him- dancing for pennies.

self to the strange sur- When I opened my eyes,

roundings. His eyes, wander- the music was still

ing about the room. suddenly there... Where was

stop, startled. He lifts I?

himself on one elbow and

stares at -

B-5 THE DOOR

The heavy chair he had set Oh yes, in that empty

against it the night before room over her garage.

has been pushed back. The Only it wasn't empty

door is wide ajar. any more. Somebody

had brought in all my

belongings - my

B-6 GILLIS books, my typewriter,

my clothes...

He jumps out of bed. He

wears, shirt, trousers

and socks. Suddenly he

realizes that all his

possessions have GILLIS' VOICE

been brought in. In What was going on?

the closet hang his

shirts. His books and

typewriter are neatly

arranged on the table.

His phonograph-radio

combination is all

installed. Gillis looks

around startled, then

sits down and starts

putting on his moccasins

hastily.

DISSOLVE TO:

B-7 A PAIR OF HANDS IN WHITE GLOVES, PLAYING THE ORGAN

PULL BACK:
They belong to Max von Mayerling. He

is sitting erect, his bull neck taut as a wrestler's

as he rights out somber chord after somber chord.

He sits in a shaft of gray light coming from an open

French window.

Through the far archway, Gillis storms into the big

room.

GILLIS:

Hey, you -- Max -- whatever -your-

name-is -- what are my things doing

here?

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