The Bad and the Beautiful Page #9

It'll take me that long to pack.

Sebastian sounds like some character.

You'll have trouble casting him.

- This is a book, not a movie.

- You'll sell it to pictures.

Gaucho could have done that part.

He was Sebastian.

The guy with the world on a string.

The big happy baboon.

I begged him, "Don't take that plane,

Gaucho." But no, not him. He...

Today is my day for mistakes.

Jim...

...I didn't kill Rosemary.

Gaucho didn't kill her.

She killed herself.

Whether you like it or not,

you're better off.

She was a fool. She got in your way.

She interfered with your work.

She wasted your time.

She wasted you.

You're better off without her!

"A sensitive, unforgettable portrait

of a present-day Southern belle.

Gay and foolish, naive, shrewd,

and heartbreaking all at once."

Yes, Jim,

Jonathan sure destroyed you.

You came out of it with nothing.

Nothing but a Pulitzer Prize novel...

...and the highest salary

of any writer in Hollywood.

Look, folks,

you've got to give the devil his due.

We all owe him something,

and you've had years to think it over.

- What do you owe him, Harry?

- Plenty.

All the times he told me

to shut my penny-pinching mouth.

To Jonathan I was always

just an overpaid bookkeeper.

But without him I probably would still

be putting costumes on cat men.

You know, when they list

the 10 best pictures ever made...

...there are always

two or three of his on the list.

And I was with him when he made them.

Excuse me.

- Yes?

- Your call from Paris is ready.

Hello!

Hello. Yes, Jonathan.

I can hear perfectly.

Yes, they're here, all three of them.

All right, I'll ask them.

Jonathan wants to know:

Will you help him get started again?

Will you work with him just this once?

Will you do this picture with him?

Georgia?

Sorry, Jonathan.

No, I can't.

I'm sorry, Jonathan.

They're gone.

I'm sure it's a great idea, but, Jonathan...

...this costs $4.80 a minute.

Don't tell me your idea,

write me. Jonathan, please...

Yeah. Yeah...

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