Twentieth Century Page #2

"Yes, sir."

"No, Daddy. You all don't..."

Just a minute. Where are you going?

This is like a scrimmage.

Get me some chalk, Mr. Jacobs.

- Mr. Jaffe, I'm right, this is the...

- I'm sorry.

All right, Brother.

I'm terribly sorry.

It' s all right, Mary Jo. Where's the chalk?

Get to your respective places.

Now, Mary Jo, I'm going to lay down

tracks for you. Here's the door.

Now, when you come on, you stop here

and say, "Daddy."

Then over to here.

I'll mark it "two."

Then when you hear your brother

coming downstairs...

you come over to here, three...

then quickly back to here, four.

Then, when your father rushes out...

you won't be knocked down like a ninepin.

Come, we'll start afresh. Entrance.

You're off the track.

Let' s get her a trolley.

Quiet, please.

It' s very distracting, that muttering.

Now, Mary Jo, remember what I told you.

- Mr. Jaffe.

- Who's that?

- Excuse me, Mr. Jaffe.

- What?

This is the combination of the safe.

It' s the only copy.

Why do you bother me with details like that?

What do I hire you for?

But you...

You hothead.

Go over there, sit somewhere

and sit down. Keep out of my way.

Now, come on, Mary Jo, remember...

shy but vital. Give it essence.

Give me the chalk, please.

Brother's all right.

Did you get some more chalk?

Where are you going to get chalk

in New York at midnight?

Try the public schools.

Borrow some from a teacher.

School has been out

for some time now, sire.

No cooperation from anybody.

Never mind. I'll carry through alone.

Come on, Mary Jo.

Mr. Jaffe, I'm afraid I'm all in.

Nonsense, child.

You'll get your second wind in a minute.

Where's Uncle Remus?

- Yes, sir.

- Father?

- Where's your little chum Emmy Lou?

- Right here.

Come on, child, get to your place.

We're in the sitting room now.

Mary Jo, this time when you hear

of Michael's death...

remember what I told you about the scream.

It comes from here.

Your insides turn to jelly

when you hear the news.

And a good long pause after the shot.

Let' s proceed.

"Where are you all, Mary Jo?"

"What is it, Emmy Lou?"

"Your father just met Michael.

He's out there on the lawn."

"Emmy Lou, what are we all going to do?"

One, two, sway. Stand there swaying.

Come on, Uncle Remus.

"Oh, Lordy, Miss Mary Jo.

Your daddy's just killed Mr. Michael."

What was that?

What?

That squeak.

Why, Mr. Jaffe...

We're going to stay in this theater

till Miss Garland learns how to scream.

Dismiss the cast.

All right, everybody. 11:00 tomorrow.

I can't stand it.

I've done it a thousand times.

You can't hammer at me this way

any longer.

Making a fool out of me

in front of everybody.

You squalling little amateur.

On your feet. Get up.

Take that hump out of your back.

You're not demonstrating underwear

anymore.

I've taken all the bullying from you

I'm going to.

No man living can kick me around

for eight hours until I can't see straight.

I'm a human being, do you hear?

A human being.

Now, Miss Garland...

My name is Plotka.

It' s a good name, too, just as good as Jaffe.

I wanted to be an actress, but I won't

crawl on my stomach for any man.

You find somebody else.

She's marvelous, just as I thought.

Fire, passion, everything.

The gold is all there, but we must mine it.

Lily Garland, I only heard one thing:

that you want to be an actress.

That' s all I want, too.

Look at me.

Duse had that modeling.

Now we're going to teach little Mary Jo

how to scream.

Do you trust me, child?

Yes.

I'm going to find the soul that' s there

and release it...

so it' ll fly, soar up to the top gallery.

- Oliver.

- Yes, O.J.

Go up there. I want you to listen.

- Now, listen, O.J.

- Go on.

Now, you're going to lift Mr. Webb

out of his seat with that scream.

Come on, child. I'll take all the other parts.

Do you want the manuscript?

I slept with that manuscript for six months.

Come on now, dear. Take off your coat.

We're going into action.

There are 2,000 people out there.

All the way up, I said, Oliver.

Go on.

We'll go back, so that when we come

to the scream, you'll be in the mood.

Now, Emmy Lou comes on.

"Mary Jo, where are you, Mary Jo?"

"What is it, Emmy Lou?"

"Mary Jo, your daddy just met Michael.

They're on the lawn."

"Emmy Lou, what are we all going to do?"

Remember the pause. Sway.

Keep swaying. Come on, Uncle Remus.

"Oh, Lordy, Miss Mary Jo, your daddy's

just gone and shot Mr. Michael."

Perfect! Marvelous! How was it, Oliver?

Okay from here.

Splendid. Excellent. Brava. Magnifico.

Great, Lily. I always knew you'd do it.

It' s a smash. The people are waiting

to draw your carriage through the streets.

- Where's Mr. Jaffe?

- Never mind. Come on.

Make way for Miss Garland there.

- But, Owen...

- I'll get him. Go on in.

Say, Mr. Jaffe, it looks like a knockout.

I want to see Mr. Jaffe.

You can't see Mr. Jaffe now. He's busy.

Was I all right? Was I what you wanted?

I came to pay my respects to a great actress.

Go outside, Sadie.

I came to apologize and be forgiven...

for all those mean things

I said during rehearsals, Lily.

Forgive you? Don't talk like that.

Everything they applauded was yours,

everything they liked.

I felt it was you out there

going through the performance.

That' s very generous of you,

but the diamond was there.

I merely supplied a little polish.

I'm so happy.

And the scream, was it all right?

I saved the pin as a souvenir.

The sorrows of life are the joys of art.

I suppose you have a lot of engagements

this evening?

I was going home and dream

about everything that happened tonight.

Tonight' s merely the beginning.

You're at the foot of the golden stair.

Lily Garland...

I'm going to take you by this little hand...

higher and further than any woman

of the theater has ever gone before.

The beauty and glamour that were mine

for a little while during those rehearsals...

when you thought I was so cruel...

now belong to the world...

forever and evermore.

- Are you there, Mulligan?

- Yes, Mr. Jaffe.

It once hung on Bernhard' s door.

I almost wish it weren't there.

Why?

It' s the golden mark that henceforth

sets you apart from the world...

beyond the reach of any one man

to have and to hold.

Don't say that. It frightens me.

Would you let me kiss you goodbye?

Yes.

Oscar, don't leave me now.

I'm nothing without you. I never will be.

Where are you going?

It' s been ringing 10 minutes.

Let it ring. Is Mr. Jaffe.

He can stand there pushing that bell

till he rots.

Remember the last time

we tried to keep him out? He had fits.

Fits.

I'll give him fits. Plenty of them.

Oscar, I'm going to...

Playing possum?

- So Oscar sent you up?

- Nothing of the kind.

I wouldn't answer the telephone,

so he gets you to carry his messages.

You got it all wrong.

I was passing by

and saw your light in the window.

I'll make your dirty work easy.

I'm going out tonight to the Ritz.

You can tell Mr. Jaffe.

The first good time I've had in three years.

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