The Trial of the Chicago 7 Page #2

SONDRA:

Let Fred give the speech.

BOBBY:

Between Hayden and Hoffman there

could be five-thousand people. It’d

be nice to talk to five-thousand

people.

SONDRA:

Not while you’re in trouble in

Connecticut.

BOBBY:

Yes while I’m in trouble in--I’m

the head of the Black Panthers,

Sondra, when the hell am I not

gonna be in trouble?!

SONDRA:

You’re gonna be in a lot more of it

if you stand up and say “Fry the

pigs”!

BOBBY:

“If they attack you”, you’re taking

it out of context.

SONDRA:

So will every white person in

America, cops won’t give a sh*t

about context and you don’t have

enough protection in Chicago!

BOBBY:

There’s no place to be right now

but in it.

SONDRA:

But fry the pigs?

8.

BOBBY:

“IF THEY-

SONDRA:

Dr. King-

BOBBY:

--is dead! He has a dream? Well now

he has a f***in’ bullet in his

head. Martin’s dead. Malcolm’s

dead. Medgar’s dead. Bobby’s dead.

Jesus is dead. They tried it

peaceful. We’re gonna try something

else.

(pause)

Sondra, I’ll be there for four

hours, that’s it.

SONDRA takes a pistol from a rack-

SONDRA:

You at least gonna take one of

these?

BOBBY:

If I knew how to use that I

wouldn’t need to make speeches.

14 CLOSE ON A TYPEWRITER 14

We see shards of an FBI confidential memo being banged out-

--Bureau letter of 5/10/68 instructed all offices to submit

detailed analysis of potential counter-intelligence action

against New Left organizations and Key Activists-

15 INT. COLLEGE CLASSROOM -DAY 15

JERRY’s demonstrating to the students-

JERRY:

It’s named after the Russian

Commissar Vyacheslav Mikhailovich

Molotov. You start with a glass

bottle.

16 CLOSE ON TYPEWRITER 16

--believe that the non-conformism in dress and speech,

neglect of personal cleanliness-

9.

17 COLLEGE CLASSROOM 17

JERRY:

You pack the styrofoam, and now

your cherry bomb...

18 CLOSE ON TYPEWRITER 18

--use of obscenities, drugs, sexual promiscuity-

19 COLLEGE CLASSROOM 19

JERRY:

Some chewing gum around the top.

20 CLOSE ON TYPEWRITER 20

--these individuals are apparently getting strength and more

brazen in their attempts to destroy American society-

21 COLLEGE CLASSROOM 21

JERRY lights a cigarette and fixes it to the top of the

bottle with the chewing gum.

JERRY (CONT'D)

And a fuse.

22 EXT. STREET -NIGHT 22

It’s almost completely dark as we hear a student shout-

STUDENT:

Now!

And a small group of students throw Molotov cocktails which

crash against the facade of a campus building. The explosions

light up the building and reveal that it’s a U.S. ARMED

FORCES RECRUITMENT CENTER.

23 INT. SDS OFFICE -NIGHT 23

TOM HAYDEN’s looking at a homemade map on the wall of the

route from Grant Park to the convention center as volunteers

roll out leaflets on a printing press. RENNIE DAVIS is on the

phone.

TOM:

(calling)

Is that Jerry?

10.

RENNIE:

Yeah.

TOM:

Tell him to tell Abbie that we’re

going to Chicago to end the war and

not to f*** around.

RENNIE:

(into phone)

Tom says to tell Abbie that we’re

going to Chicago to end the war and

not to f*** around.

INTERCUT WITH:

24 INT. CRASH PAD -SAME TIME 24

JERRY’s on the phone and ABBIE’s getting high with some

friends.

JERRY:

Hayden says we’re going to Chicago

to end the war and not to f***

around.

ABBIE:

Tell Hayden I went to Brandeis and

I can do both.

25 INT. UNDERGROUND CLUB -NIGHT 25

It’s the same place and the same night we first saw ABBIE and

JERRY.

ABBIE:

People say, you know, Abbie, are

you concerned about an overreaction

from the cops?

26 INT. PRESS ROOM -DAY (FILE FOOTAGE) 26

MAYOR RICHARD DALEY at the podium-

DALEY:

I have issued by an order to shoot

to kill any arsonist or anyone with

a Molotov cocktail in his hand.

11.

27 INT. UNDERGROUND CLUB 27

ABBIE:

We’re not concerned about it.

28 EXT. TARMAC -DAY (FILE FOOTAGE) 28

Rows and rows of National Guardsmen are coming off a

transport plane-

REPORTER #5

Four units of the Illinois National

Guard, totaling 5000 troops, have

been deployed to Chicago-

29 INT. UNDERGROUND CLUB 29

ABBIE:

We’re counting on it.

30 INT. PRESS CONFERENCE -DAY 30

TOM is at the podium-

TOM:

We want to underscore again that

we’re coming to Chicago peacefully,

but whether we’re given permits or

not, we’re coming.

31 EXT. TRAINING GROUND -DAY (FILE FOOTAGE) 31

A REPORTER is delivering his stand-up as riot police practice

technique with tear gas canisters.

REPORTER #6

An additional 10,000 Chicago police

officers, including riot squads-

32 INT. A DIFFERENT PRESS CONFERENCE -DAY 32

DAVE DELLINGER is at the podium.

DAVE:

We are not going to storm the

Convention with tanks or mace, but

we are going to storm the hearts

and minds of the American people.

12.

33 INT. CITY HALL PRESS CONFERENCE -DAY (FILE FOOTAGE) 33

GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL

These people are revolutionaries

bent on the destruction of the

United States of America.

34 INT. CONVENTION CENTER -NIGHT (FILE FOOTAGE) 34

The huge arena is empty but we see the familiar signs for

each state’s delegation. WALTER CRONKITE speaks into the

camera very simply...

WALTER CRONKITE:

A Democratic Convention is about to

begin...in a police state. There

just doesn’t seem to be any other

way to say it.

FADE TO BLACK:

TITLE:

The Trial of the Chicago 7

35 EXT./EST. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT -DAY 35

It’s a grey, rainy morning.

TITLE:

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of the Newly Appointed Attorney General, John Mitchell

36 INT. MITCHELL’S OUTER OFFICE -DAY 36

RICHARD SCHULTZ and THOMAS FORAN are waiting on the couch.

SCHULTZ, 33, is a bright lawyer with a pleasant if serious

manner. FORAN is his boss. From their body language we can

tell they’ve been called to the principal’s office.

We ID the two men with a chyron-

Richard Schultz Thomas Foran

Federal Prosecutors

SECRETARY:

You’ve arrived at a moment in

history.

13.

SCHULTZ wasn’t sure what she just said or if she was even

talking to him...

SCHULTZ:

(pause)

Pardon me?

SECRETARY:

(pointing)

They’re changing the picture.

Sure enough, when SCHULTZ looks at what the secretary is

talking about he sees a workman swapping out a large framed

photo on the wall of Lyndon Johnson with one of Richard

Nixon.

SCHULTZ nods.

The office door opens and HOWARD, a high-level Justice

Department deputy steps out.

HOWARD:

Tom.

FORAN:

Howard.

HOWARD:

You flew in alright?

FORAN:

Sure.

HOWARD:

Richard Schultz?

SCHULTZ:

Yes sir.

HOWARD:

Howard Ackerman, Special Advisor to

the Attorney General.

SCHULTZ:

Pleased to meet you.

HOWARD:

Were you told what this is about?

SCHULTZ:

No sir. Just to meet Mr. Foran at

O’Hare this morning, that we were

flying to Washington and that we

were meeting Mr. Mitchell.

14.

HOWARD:

Good.

(noticing)

They’re finally changing the

goddamn picture. C’mon in.

They follow HOWARD into-

37 INT. JOHN MITCHELL’S OFFICE -CONTINUOUS 37

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