The Meyerowitz Stories (New and Selected) Page #4

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It's Larry Darrell's drink.

I find maugham to be skillful

without being an artist,

but I'll sip a red wine, if you have.

It's the museum of modern art, damn it,

they have everything.

Hey, old man, what happened to your face?

Oh, it's nothing. We got a dog.

You got to be careful at our age.

Okay.

Loretta.

Loretta?

Danny?

Holy sh*t! Stay there, I'll come to you.

- Oh, you got my hair.

- Oh, I did.

- I didn't know you were coming.

- I came with my dad.

- Are you going somewhere after this?

- No. No.

- Why are you so dressed up?

- I don't know.

I don't f***ing know.

- I don't know.

- [Laughs]

The work looks good. I don't know

that the presentation is helping.

- Been a pleasure. Thank you.

- You think? Yeah, I think...

Some of the bears are not well served,

in a sense.

The work is more intimate than the space.

But, hey, you're on a streak.

Oh, no. Don't say that. Streaks end.

- Hello.

- Oh, sigourney!

- Congratulations.

- Thank you.

- You're not even dead.

- Wait till the end of this.

Sigourney Weaver,

this is Harold meyerowitz.

- Hi, I'm sigourney.

- I'm Harold.

Nice to meet you.

So, I mean, just to see everything

in the same room is awesome.

I'm so glad you came.

- Well, we'll go off and see the bears now.

- Treat them well.

Hey, how are you, old man?

How's Maureen?

- Bard has come to me about a show.

- Are you still teaching there?

No, I'm retired, but my granddaughter

just started as a freshman,

she's making movies.

Oh, they're all doing that now.

I say don't teach them what we do,

there's no damn money in that.

Well, you seem to have found a way.

I hope it's okay. I invited sigourney

to the dinner afterwards.

Yeah, of course. I've known sigourney

for 20 years. Glenn, you remem...

I hear a rave tomorrow from Michael,

and Twitter is almost entirely glowing.

- Good.

- We're gonna have a good day.

Glenn twitchell,

this is Harold meyerowitz.

- Glenn's the curator here now.

- Nice to meet you.

- We've act... nice to meet you.

- Wait.

Harold meyerowitz, sh*t, of course.

We've met.

- In the '70s.

- It's been a long time.

What have you been doing?

Forgive me, I don't know.

- Are you making art? Are you in the city?

- I'm not talking to you.

Would you excuse me?

Come here.

Hold on a second, old man. Go.

- I remember you like that.

- Yeah.

I used to have mixed feelings

about being part of dad's art,

but now I kind of love it.

You know,

he dedicated the catalog to me?

It's definitely a cool thing.

This whole thing's really cool.

It's special to me,

I don't get out like this generally.

How's the family and everything?

Well, Karen and I are... splitting up...

Split up.

Oh, sh*t. I'm sorry.

I'm doing the same thing.

- Really?

- Yeah, but it's good.

My girls are handling it so great.

How are you doing?

Oh, fine. Karen and I stayed together

until Eliza went to school,

but also, I just didn't want to do

what my dad did, you know?

Failed marriages and...

Ever worry we're doing

the same thing as them?

- But we're so different, Danny.

- You think so?

So different. We were raised like animals.

My worry is that we're too different.

We're too close to our kids,

don't you think?

Parents shouldn't be best friends

with their kids.

I mean, I don't think my girls

are ever gonna move out.

I secretly hope that with Eliza,

but, unfortunately,

she seems pretty healthy in that area.

Oh, Danny meyerowitz.

- I want to go.

- Oh, my god.

- Dad.

- Harold? Loretta.

Loretta, I didn't recognize you at first.

I'm going.

There's that little girl I keep seeing

running down bond street.

- I want to go.

- Just a few more minutes, roomie?

I'm leaving.

- Was that a great show of your father's?

- It's a great show.

- We just figured it out.

- You figured it out.

- Also, our apartment was on the...

- Loretta.

- I have to go.

- Oh, no.

Are you not staying for the dinner?

- I don't think we were invited.

- Excuse me, please.

I'd better. He's old.

Oh, okay.

- It was great to see you.

- It was so great.

I got your hair again.

Well... bye, Danny.

Bye.

Dad!

Dad!

Dad!

Dad!

Dad!

Dad.

Did you hear me?

Sh*t.

Ultimately, l.J. Is a popular,

but minor, artist.

There's a superficial bravura,

but there's no unconscious, no discovery.

I know you like the bears, but it's

the reshuffling of obnoxious clichs,

like listening to music

played slightly off-key.

- I didn't get to see it.

- And the video work is embarrassing.

I've never forgiven l.J.

For using Loretta in those pieces.

You don't do that to a child.

And it's a disturbing commentary

on the culture

that truly ordinary work,

made mostly by his assistants,

gets reverent reviews from the critics,

who ought to know better.

He's a talented, pretentious enigma.

Let me see if there's a cab.

It's nice to see Loretta.

She was very happy to see me.

She gave me quite a kiss.

I did well.

I was pretty funny, I think.

I didn't get her number or anything.

Maybe you can give me l.J.'S email.

I don't feel comfortable giving it out,

maybe there's a work one.

Okay.

I met sigourney Weaver...

Who was very friendly.

She said, "hi, I'm sigourney."

I said, "hi, I'm Harold."

Have you thought about getting a job?

You've essentially never worked

in your life.

I think you'd feel better about yourself.

Have you thought

about playing music again?

Maureen will be back next Thursday.

You should think

about where you're going to live.

I mean, you could stay with us

for a while but...

Maureen wanted me to remind you

to go through the boxes

and things upstairs,

because we're going to start

throwing things away.

You might want these sunglasses.

- Those are Matthew's.

- I'm letting him know, too.

- [Eliza] hello? Sorry, hello?

- Yo, how you doing?

Sorry, Elvis is making me laugh.

Who's Elvis?

What? Sorry, Joaquin's roommate.

Oh, okay. Who's Joaquin?

He's a friend. What's up, dad?

Well, I'm at Harold's.

We went

to l.J. Shapiro's opening at moma.

Was it fun?

Yeah, for a little while.

You having fun with grandpa?

I might go stay at Jean's in Rochester

for a while.

I'll be closer to you, but don't worry.

Okay.

We're gonna see this band, and then

there's a party. Call you tomorrow?

Yeah, I'll be up early.

- What's wrong?

- Nothing.

- I can hear it in your voice.

- Nothing.

Tell me.

Hold on, I'm gonna step outside

so we can talk.

No. Go to your concert,

I promise I'm fine.

- You promise?

- Yes.

Okay. I'm gonna keep my phone on

in case you want to call, okay?

There's no need, don't worry.

Otherwise, let's talk in the morning?

- Okay, have fun.

- But call if you need to.

- I won't.

- Bye, dad.

Bye.

["Alligator woman" playing on radio]

Ooh. Nice.

Hey, lady, what you say?

How about some fun today?

Is it yes? Is it no?

Whatever it is, just let me know

Don't fake me out

Oh, you make me shout

- Alligator...

- [horn honks]

- Go f*** yourself!

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