The Great Man's Lady

Every day for 35 years

she's been

sitting down there

in that

infernal rocking chair

right under my nose.

Hannah Hoyt, Hannah Sempler,

whatever her right name is.

Rocking and smiling

and keeping the truth about

Ethan Hoyt all to herself.

And now,

today of all days,

Ethan Hoyt Day.

The day they are

dedicating his statue

in the city square.

She has to hide inside

the house somewhere

and pretend she doesn't know

it's any different

from 10,000 other days.

What is it?

Eastern reporters, huh?

On the square, huh?

Call off

my bloodhounds.

Who's watching

the back of the house?

Burns.

Tell him to hop over

to the square.

Eastern reporters, hmm?

They're up to something.

Hello?

Yes.

No.

No. Not a sign of life.

You bet.

Yeah, right away.

Who's watching

the front of the house?

Pierce.

Tell him not to let

those Eastern reporters

out of his sight.

I bet the old lady's

going to talk.

Hello?

Depth bomb.

Yeah, this is Pierce.

Yeah, I've been

watching all morning.

No, just a few

glasses of beer.

I'm practically there.

All clear.

And so, my friends,

it is only fitting and proper

that we celebrate

the anniversary

of the birth

of a great American.

A man who founded

this great city of ours.

Who served unselfishly

in our country's

halls of Congress.

A man who died here

with the shining armor

of his ideals untarnished.

That's Froman of the AP

over there near Forbes.

That's Paula Wales

from Washington.

The other guy's Quentin

of The New York Times.

united in peace...

You know, they're

not here for buttons.

The chief was right.

I'll bet she's gonna talk.

to a man

who devoted the last 30 years

of his colorful life

to an unselfish fight

for the weak

against the powerful.

Even at the expense

of his own personal fortune.

My friends,

I give you a great man,

a great American,

Senator Ethan Hoyt.

Hannah Sempler's.

Miss Sempler's, please.

The Sempler woman's home.

Miss Hannah Sempler's house.

Follow them.

Hey, wait for me.

This is my cab.

Be a sport,

share it.

Where are you going?

Miss Hannah Sempler's.

Shake. The whole world's

going there.

All right, Forbes.

Bring up the artillery.

Well, that's one way.

I say, old boy,

that's a little unsporting.

If you want a story,

you get it.

She's not just news

anymore, she's history.

Tell the old lady

she's got guests.

Impatient guests.

Oh, the old boy himself.

To what do I owe

this peculiar honor

may I ask?

That's fine.

Hold it, Mrs. Hoyt.

My name is

Hannah Sempler.

May I ask

why you intrude here?

Well?

Miss Sempler,

I'd like to apologize

for all of us

for our rudeness

in breaking in

like this.

Very well, you may go.

The fact is, Miss Sempler,

forget our rudeness.

It's the public

who's broken in.

The public who has

the right to know.

The public, in who's eyes

Ethan Hoyt has grown

to the size

of a national hero.

The public, sir?

You are the public?

Miss Sempler,

you misunderstand.

We come here

humbly as it were,

seeking the answer

to a great human enigma.

A matter of history.

Were you married

to Ethan Hoyt?

Why did he die

in your home?

Was his real wife there?

You and he had any children?

Where are they?

Your claims, if true,

would make him a bigamist.

We ask you

to prove these claims

in the public interest.

The public, sir?

You aren't the public.

The public is made up of

millions of private homes

like mine.

In our homes,

we draw inspiration

from the memory

of our great men.

Like Senator Hoyt.

You seek to destroy

that memory.

You break in here

with cameras

and threats...

If that thing

goes off again...

You seek nothing

but scandal.

You'll find none here.

I bid you good day.

She can't prove a thing.

Because her story is nothing

but a pack of lies.

She's just an old windbag

trying to crash the limelight.

Stop it! Stop it.

Leave her alone.

You should be ashamed

of yourselves.

Whether her story

is true or not,

what right have you got

to persecute her like this?

Can't you see

she's helpless

and all alone?

She's a very old lady.

Yes, it's true.

I am old. Very old.

But I've made no claims,

I've told no lies.

Whatever I know is a matter

of my own private history.

I am content to remain silent

the rest of

my few days on Earth.

That is all.

Well, you came

with the rest of them.

What are you

waiting for?

Because...

Because I...

Yes, I know.

Got a public, too?

Not yet.

Of course not.

You're just a child.

But I will have.

I'm a biographer.

A what?

I'm writing on the life

of Senator Ethan Hoyt.

Ah!

Nice job.

You like your work?

I think

he was one of the most...

Well, the most wonderful...

So do I.

Guess I ought to

know about that.

Then you have to help me.

Please, Miss Sempler.

I've spent three years

writing my book.

All the money I could raise.

I've got to know

what part you played,

were you married to him...

All sorts of things.

My book is worthless

without your help.

That's why

I had to see you.

Look away, girl.

Look all you like.

There's nothing much to see.

Just a hundred years

of memories.

Some good, some bad.

I ought to have been

buried years ago.

But you know, I...

I can't really say that.

I'd like to live

to be 200 years old.

Then you and I'd

both be old ladies

and we could

compare notes.

That is, if you had

any to compare.

Now, you run along

and leave me alone.

You come back

in a hundred years

and I'll talk to you.

You go along now.

Hmm.

One of the meanest things

about growing old.

You forget how important

everything seems

to young people.

Hey, girl.

Scat. Go on.

I'm all right.

I'll go now.

Nothing of the sort.

Listen, I have something

very special upstairs.

Twenty-year-old stuff.

Now, come on.

We'll have our own drink

to Senator Hoyt.

Over here.

Now you give me a hand.

That's a girl.

I'm as wiry

as the devil,

mind you,

but a climb

gets me down.

That's a girl.

You know, girl,

you need more gumption

and spirit.

Yes, that's what

you need.

Oh!

Where'd you say

you learned about

Ethan Hoyt?

Books.

You'll never learn

a man out of books.

Or a woman either.

Books.

Psst.

Ah, yes, girl.

Men were different

in those days.

Men like Ethan.

A drink in one hand,

and luck in the other.

Open the door, girl.

There was a band

playing in his heart

and the devil

in his eyes.

And I...

I was a very young lady

in a stuffy

Philadelphia house.

In the year 1848.

Well, I must say.

What's the matter?

Making a public spectacle

of yourself.

Mama says...

Oh, don't be stuffy.

Did you see

how he smiled?

A gentleman

would never

have dared.

You mean, like

my Mr. Cadwallader?

Mama says...

Because I dare say

he's never smiled

in his whole life.

But I almost died laughing

when he proposed to me.

"Miss Sempler, I...

"I have the great honor

to address myself

to your favor.

"I am quite willing

to overlook the fact

"that you have grown up

without a mother

"to instruct you

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