The Purple Rose of Cairo Page #3

He`s not supposed

to be here till reel six.

We know that, Delilah.

What the hell is going on?

Somebody trying to hustle me?

l know what this is.

lt`s an amusement park!

lt`s usually pretty dead

around here till summer.

l know exactly what

an amusement park is...

and what goes on, l do!

That`s good.

lt`s written into my character.

Remember, l invite

Kitty to Luna Park...

but she prefers just

to stay home and talk.

So it`s in me!

Too bad nothing`s open.

l`m starved!

You are?

l left the movie

before the Copacabana scenes.

That`s when l usually eat.

Wait! What am l thinking?

Look, here, l`ve got

a whole bag of popcorn.

You can have that.

Also, l have a Milky-Way bar.

-No, popcorn is...

-Might want it later.

Boy! So that`s what

popcorn tastes like!

Been watching people eat it

for all those performances.

When they rattle those bags,

though, that`s annoying.

l still don`t understand

what`s going on.

l wanted to meet you.

Don`t tell me you didn`t

see me looking at you...

out of the corner of my eye...

when Kitty Haynes

is doing her nightclub number.

Wait a minute.

l remember seeing you.

You were looking off

to the side somehow...

but l never thought

it was to me.

And when we take the drive

to that little country inn...

when l propose to Kitty,

l was looking at you.

Kitty looked so beautiful

in that black dress.

She`s nothing compared to you.

What are you talking about?

l`m nothing.

Like hell you are.

You`re fetching.

-Fetching?

-Fetching.

Dad liked to use that word

about Mom back in Chicago.

''Min,'' he`d say,

`'you`re rather fetching.''

Dad was a card. Never met him.

He died before the movie begins.

Well, l have to confess.

My eye did always go to you

up on the screen.

-Really?

-Really.

Even around Detective Simms

and Henry Adams the playboy?

Even though

you`re not the main character...

you`re the one you look at.

You don`t think

l`m the main character?

l didn`t mean it that way.

l think you`re

positively essential.

ln fact, every time

l saw the movie...

l kept thinking,

`'Tom Baxter`s so handsome.''

Shouldn`t you be getting back?

l want to live and be free

to make my own choices.

Right now the country`s

not in such great shape.

What do you mean?

We`re in the middle

of a depression.

Everybody`s very poor.

l got plenty. Look at this!

But they need you. The story

doesn`t work without you.

l`m in love with you.

l`m married.

Happily?

l really should get back home.

l have to cook dinner.

Slip away from

your husband tonight.

Meet me here.

l`ll wait for you.

l want to learn about

the real world with you.

l can`t.

Look at it this way.

How many times is a man

so taken with a woman...

that he walks off

the screen to get her?

Let`s not panic.

We`re all adults.

Bored with sitting around.

l`m a dramatic character.

l need forward motion.

Here comes

the Countess and Larry.

Where is everybody?

Weren`t we meeting

at the Copacabana?

-Tom`s gone.

-What?

He left the film.

-What?

-Tom walked out on us.

But the Copa is where

the two of us meet.

l try to get him to marry me.

Forget it. l`m tired of

marrying you every night.

We never even get

to the bedroom.

-Where did Tom go?

-lnto the real world.

That two-bit minor character

leaves, and we`re stuck!

l wonder what it`s like

out there.

They don`t look like they`re

having too much fun to me.

What the hell

kind of movie is this?

The paper said it was a romance

set all over the world!

Don`t tell us your sad stories.

Do you think we like this?

Look at this. They sit around

and talk, and no action?

Nothing happens?

l want my money back.

This is outrageous.

Why don`t you stop yapping?

We`ve got problems of our own.

You can`t talk

to my wife like that.

Who do you think you are?

l`m a genuine countess

with a lot of dough...

and if that`s your wife,

she`s a tub of guts.

You said it!

What are you so nervous about?

Me? l`m not.

There`s too much pepper

in the sauce.

l told you to go easy

on the pepper.

l guess you and the guys...

are probably going out

again tonight, huh?

No, l`m not.

My back is acting up again.

You gotta give me one of

your special rubdowns.

l bought liniment.

What?

l can`t.

What do you mean, you can`t?

l`m sorry.

l didn`t mean l can`t.

l mean l made some plans.

You made plans?

l said l`d baby-sit tonight.

l ran into Mrs. Lorenzo

in the restaurant--

in the street today.

And she has some, l don`t know--

l think it was

a social club meeting...

or something

she wanted to go to.

lt won`t be too long.

l think it`s a great idea.

Yeah? Good.

Because we can use every penny.

So what am l gonna do

about my back?

Don`t worry.

l can do some now...

and l`ll do some when l come in.

You shouldn`t move around

too much. Just take it easy.

lf you`re gonna go baby-sit,

get paid in cash.

-l will.

-Don`t let her owe you.

lt`s a complete miracle!

We want our money back.

l don`t pay to watch those

socialites sitting around...

up there staring back at us

making nasty remarks.

ls that what they`re doing now?

Last time l looked, the priest

had a deck of cards...

and the men

were playing pinochle.

How`d this first happen?

lt`s probably

all the electrical storms...

we`ve had this season.

The air is charged.

Fellas, l depend on the Jewel.

l got personal expenses.

l got no substitute

picture to put in here.

l want my money back!

This is a swindle!

There`s no story.

Mrs. Lupus likes a story.

l still think you should turn

the projector off and shut down.

This could be the work

of Reds or anarchists.

You can`t do that.

lf he turns off the projector...

you`re liable

to strand this Tom Baxter...

out in the world someplace.

You want an extra guy

running around?

l saw the movie last week.

This is not what happens.

Where is the Tom Baxter

character?

You`ll get your money back.

l want what happened last week

to happen this week.

Otherwise,

what`s life all about anyway?

Can`t we just go in

and take a look?

We don`t want to stay long.

lf you want to see it,

you have to pay admission.

Keep moving, folks.

Any word about Tom Baxter?

Nothing yet.

What are you people doing here?

We can`t continue the story

until Tom gets back.

We don`t mind observing you all.

My husband is a student

of the human personality.

Well, we`re not human.

lt doesn`t matter to Harold.

He has trouble with humans.

Where do l have trouble

with real people?

l suppose you behave

perfectly with Donald.

He won`t speak

to my own son-in-law.

l won`t speak? The kid is quiet.

He never makes conversation.

He has to be drawn out.

l don`t like to draw people out.

That`s what l said.

He has trouble with live humans.

Yes, RKO!

l want to speak

to Mr. Raoul Hirsch.

He`s the producer

of ''The Purple Rose of Cairo.''

No, he`s not.

Just tell him l have

a theater in New Jersey...

and there`s a crisis

with his film.

This is Mr. Hirsch.

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