"But I've come to the end of my rope." " How are you, Bill?" " Hi, Tommy." "What's with you and Betsy?" "Couldn't be better." "Uh, look." "Did you say something to me the other day about wanting to make a change?" "Oh, well, not exactly." "What I said was that I like it at the Foundation okay... but I'm having a little trouble making both ends meet." "The reason I ask- I hear there's a spot opening up... in Public Relations where I work- United Broadcasting." "What would it pay?" "Oh, I don't know." "Eight, 10,000, I guess." "Something like that." "Well, I could certainly do with eight or 10,000... but I don't know anything about public relations." "Who does?" "You got a clean shirt." "You bathe every day." "That's all there is to it." "Oh, I guess not." "Thanks just the same." "You're probably right." "I don't think you'd be very happy in that chromium jungle anyway." "Tommy!" "Well, how was your day?" " Not too good, I'm afraid." " No?" "For one thing, the washing machine finally conked out." "Well, can't you have it fixed?" "Not anymore." "It's really gone this time." "How much does a new one cost?" " About 250." " Wow." "And Barbara's got the chicken pox." "Oh, my." "Better stop at the drugstore." "I'll pick up a present for her." "How's she feeling?" "Happiest little polka-dotted girl in the State of Connecticut." "Hey, Daddy." " Hi, Pete." " You know what, Daddy?" " What?" " Barbara's got the chicken pox, and we're all gonna get it." " Oh, maybe not." " But Mama promised!" "Didn't you, Mama?" " That's what the doctor says." " Here we go." "We're all gonna get it and stay in bed all day." "Huh." "I can just see you staying in bed all day." "Janey says she's gonna take her rock collection to bed with her." "You come with me and help Mommy fix Daddy's dinner." "I'm gonna take Millie to bed with me." " Well." " I've got the smallpox." "Chicken pox, honey." "Don't make it worse than it is." "Are you sure you didn't paint those on there yourself?" "Honest I didn't, Daddy." "Look." "I've got 'em all over." " Well, if you say you didn't" " Thank you, Daddy." " How are you, sweetheart?" " Is she going to die?" "Of course not." "People don't die from chicken pox." "Did you ever have chicken pox?" " I've had everything." "How about you?" " I've been trying to remember." "You won't have to try long." "You'll know in a day or two." "That's what's worrying me." "You can go on down." "I'll be down in a minute." " I think she's going to die." " Will you stop talking like that!" "And you can mix one for me too... because I can certainly use it tonight." "I think she's dying now." "What do you think you're gonna do with him?" " I'm gonna take him in bed with me." " But he's filthy, Petey." "I'm gonna wash him in the bathtub first." "Oh, Janey gets everything!" "You never let me have one little thing!" "All you do is take things away from me!" "I'm gonna run away from here, and you're never gonna see me again!" "I'm gonna run a million miles away!" "And I don't care if you die!" "I don't care if you die a hundred million times!" "I don't care!" " Now listen, Petey." " I don't care if you die too." "I'm gonna run away from here this very minute!" "Petey boy, have you forgotten that you and I are buddies?" "I am not your buddy!" "I want you to die too." " I want everybody to die!" " Shut up!" "What have we got around here- a bunch of necrophiles?" "Oh, they're all right." "Just a little fretful." "Skoal." "Hello." "Oh, hello, Alfred." "I tried to get you on the phone at the office, but you had just left." "It's about the estate." "I've just heard from the auditors... and the news is a little disappointing." "I'll look it over again of course." " Is that final?" " That's all there is to it." " I see." " Nothing left but that old house." "Well, thanks very much anyway." "Good night, Alfred." "You're gonna have to brace yourself for this one, honey." "Okay, let's have it." "That was Alfred." "He says there's nothing left in Grandma's estate." " Nothing?" " Nothing but that old barn of a house." "And there's a $ 10,000 mortgage on it." "What about the money Grandpa left?" "Apparently she lost it." "Well, that's certainly one on the button." "What about the house?" "What do you think we can get for it?" " I've already had one offer: 20,000." " Twenty thousand?" "That house must have cost 150,000 to build." "That was 50 years ago." "Nobody wants an old rookery like that today." "Get the butter, will you?" "It's one of the few houses in Connecticut that hasn't grown old gracefully." " You're gonna let them have it for that?" " What do you think we oughta do?" "Well, if that's the best offer we can get" " Good-bye." " Good-bye, dear." "Send us a card when you get there." "I forgot my mittens." "I think we ought to hang on to it for a year or two anyway." "Till we can figure out something better than that." "Do you know what it would cost to keep up a place like that?" "Something like 6,000 a year." "On a $7,000 salary." "But you're not going to always be making 7,000." "That's what I mean." "I could be making less." "But you can't look at things like that, Tommy." "You've got to believe that things are gonna get better." "Promotions, opportunities, some good breaks." "That's what life is, hope and, and the breaks." "You can't just accept the way things are now." "I think we ought to sell it, put the money in the bank for some insurance." "Did you ever stop to think what might happen to you... if I should drop dead some morning?" " I'll drop dead right there by you." " What about the children?" "I don't even want to think about that." "What I want to know is, you don't expect to be with the Foundation forever, do you?" "Well, of course not." "But you've got to admit it's an absolutely safe spot." "All right then." "What about this?" "We sell Grandma's house and this house too... and we get us a nice house in a nice neighborhood." " So here we go on that again." " But why not?" "If we can make maybe 15,000 on this one and with what we clear on Grandma's" " Look, honey, don't you understand?" " I'm sorry, Tommy." "You know how I hate this house, but you don't know how much I hate it!" "Its ugliness, its depression, but most of all its defeat." " Don't you feel that at all?" " Well, it's not exactly a palace." "It's a graveyard, Tommy." "A graveyard of everything we used to talk about- happiness, fun, ambition- and I want to get out of it." "But if we put it all in the bank" " And go on living here for the rest of our lives?" " Maybe you don't know it... but there are a lot of people who are doing a lot worse than we are." "Oh, no, they're not." "They may look like it, but they're not." "There are things about this house." "It's not a happy house, Tommy." " I don't think that's true." " Ever since the war." "Will you stop harping on the war." "It's been over for 10 years." "It's gone and forgotten." "I don't believe it." "Not for you anyway." "Whether you know it or not" "All I know is that I don't think this is any time to be taking chances." "Then if it wasn't the war, what has happened to you?" "What do you mean, what's happened to me?" "I don't know." "Except that you've lost your guts, and all of a sudden I'm ashamed of you." "Do you want another?" "No, thank you." " How's that, pal?" " Thanks, old Pop." " Good night, pal." " Good night, old Pop." "Is she dead?" "Go to sleep." "Say, about that spot at U.B.C." "If you're interested, I can set up an appointment for you." " You wouldn't mind?" " No, not in the least." " Just let me know when." " I'll call you." "Anytime you say." "Do you see those coats?" "We'd better get back in the woods and cross the road further south." "We gotta get those coats, Hank." "Are you nuts?" "They got people all over this place." "Come on." "Let's go." "I'm freezing to death." " Danke schön, Fräulein." " Danke schön." "How many do you see?" "Two." "Well, if I don't get that coat, I'm dead anyway." "Okay, let's get 'em." "Ahh." "Fritz?" "Where is your gun?" "Behind the wall." "I'll get it." "Come on." "There's more of them coming." "He's not dead." "He made some kind of a noise." "Finish him off then." "Use your knife." "We gotta get out of here." "Come on, Tom." "We gotta get out of here." "All right." "Get out of the way." "All right." "Get out of the way." "It's no use trying." "I just can't get used to it." "Used to what?" "The idea of the Brooklyn Dodgers as world champions." "My guys'll kill me." "I wonder how we could not tell 'em." "When do we take off, Captain?" "It's all yours, El Capitán." "We take off any day, starting one week from today." "We're all packed, Captain." "But it's not for home." "Are you kidding, sir?" "It seems we got another little war out in the Pacific... and that's where we're goin' next." "Pacific?" "So what's the navy been doin' all this time?" "They can't do that!" "Look, I don't know anything more about it than you do." "You know what us soldiers need at a time like this, Captain?" "A tiny little blast of vino." "Un momento." "Wait a minute, honey." "Now you come right back here." "You understand?" "We don't want to have to start tearing this whole thing apart." "I will come back to you, baby." "Is this the post already?" "Oh, now look, Captain." "You don't want to go back to the post feeling like that." "I got a little somethin' comin' down here's gonna take your mind off all that." " I, uh" " I hope, anyway." " I wanna go back to the post." "Look, Captain, we came out here to have a celebration." "You remember?" "Now, we don't wanna go back to the post feelin' worse off than when we came out, do we?" "Hey, Captain." "Not bad, huh?" "Shake hands with Maria, Captain." "I wonder if I could interest you in a proposition to be my widow?" "Would you do something very nice for me?" "You have only to name it, my dear." "Will you not talk like that anymore tonight?" "You're unwilling to face facts." "After such a good dinner, with wine and music... and we are riding together in the moonlight... is that what we should be talking about- death?" "You would prefer, perhaps, the subject of love?" "Anything but death." "Very well then." "I love you." "You mean you like me very much?" "No, I said I loved you." "No, not love." "Not so quickly." "Why not?" "Is there some sort of timetable on love in Italy?" "No, but I only want something I can believe tonight." "Like if you said you liked me very much... or that you thought I was pretty... something I can believe for tonight anyway." "But not love." "Not in just one dinner." "I like you very much, Maria." "You're more than pretty." "You're beautiful." "That's what's so wonderful about night." "The later it gets, the more beautiful I become." " Cuanto costa?" " Mille lire." "Mille lire?" "Wait a minute." "Arrivederci." " Take off, Mac." " Yeah, take off-a, Mac." "It's not a very pretty place, I'm afraid." "And nothing works anymore." "I have a candle here." "Are you feeling all right?" "Just thinking." "I may instruct my attorneys to draw up a new will... and leave my entire estate to you." "That's no good." "It's too far away." " Oh, no." " Please." "Please." "You promised." "I'm sorry." "What I would like" "What?" "Something to eat." "Again?" "No, not tonight." "But if you could, perhaps, give me some Spam." " Spam?" " If you could." "You mean you want Spam?" "I would like something to eat tomorrow." "Who do you live with here in this place?" "Gina and Gina's mother." " No men?" " They're all dead." " What about your family?" " They're dead too." "Just you three women?" "And Gina's little brother." "And they all like Spam?" "Any kind of food in tins or boxes." "Okay, let's go get some right now." "Oh, no, not now." "But in the morning, if you will." "How was it, Captain?" " He said the party is over, gentlemen." " When?" "Well, the plane's in already." "We're pulling out of here tomorrow." " For home?" " You know where for." "Well, I guess we got no beef coming, Captain." "I never heard of nobody else gettin' six weeks of freedom, especially in Rome." " You gonna tell Maria, sir?" " Of course." "But alone, if you don't mind." "Captain, please!" "You think I got no delicacy at all?" "No offense intended." "It's just that Miss Montagne and I wish to spend our last day together by ourselves." "Well, where do you think I was gonna tell Gina good-bye?" "In the Coliseum?" "Sir!" "Come on." "Get out of there." "I've finally got that jeep." "A jeep?" "But it's going to rain, isn't it?" "Who cares?" "There's no law against a picnic in the rain." " Where's my sweater?" " Look behind the screen." "Oh, Tommy!" "All right, boys." "Put it right down here." "But you brought so much only last week." "Hurry back down and get the rest." "Will you get in there and get your clothes on?" "You oughta see what Gardella got for Gina." "I don't want to sound stuffy... but I think it's wrong to liberate that much." "Where are we going?" "Well, I can't tell you because I don't know myself." "Let's make it a mystery picnic, shall we?" "We'll let the jeep decide where we're gonna wind up." "Now, really, who could ask for anything better than this?" "Rain on the roof and a beautiful girl to keep me warm." "Does this bother you?" "It probably will, but I don't object to that." "Nor that either." " Can you sing?" " No, I'm sorry." " You can drive, can't you?" " Yes, I can drive." "All right." "You drive, and I'll sing." " Whoop." " All right?" "Did I step on your toe?" "There's nothing like a little singing in the rain." "Now, which would you prefer- "Boola Boola"  "Boola Boola"?" " Or "I'm a Ramblin' Wreck From Georgia Tech"?" "I'm a ramblin' wreck from Georgia Tech" "And a hell of an engineer" "A hell of a, hell of a hell of a, hell of a hell of an engineer" "Like all jolly good fellows" "I drink my whiskey clear" "I'm a ramblin' wreck from Georgia Tech and a hell of an engineer" "This the last day, yes?" "Yes." "We're leaving tomorrow." "I knew it." "Everybody I know dies or leaves me." "I was going to tell you tonight." "The last night." "And then I'll never see you again." "And you won't remember for long." " You know better than that." " How long?" "If you're asking that seriously, you still don't know how much you mean to me." "But say it." "How long?" "As long as I live." "Even when you're back with your wife?" "I wish I could forget you." "It would be better." "But I know I'll never be able to." "You don't still believe that..." "when you get out to the Pacific" " About being killed?" " You don't believe that anymore, do you?" "No." "I don't think like that anymore." "I don't think anything at all about the future." "Or the past either." "Just what's now, this minute." "And this minute, what?" "It's a minute I wouldn't take anything in the world for." "A warm fire, the wind and the rain outside... a good bottle of wine, and I'm with you." "I don't think I could stand it if you went away and I thought you hadn't loved me really." "It would be like taking the light out of the room." "I wouldn't be able to see anything anymore." "What will you remember really?" "This minute first." " What else?" " You." "No, I mean what other minutes?" "The first minute I ever saw you." "Not too clearly..." "but enough." "Then the night... when all of a sudden I knew you meant it too." "And every minute with you since then." "I was so lonely then." "You have no idea." "You couldn't know what it was to be as lonely as I was." "But now I think I'll never be lonely again." "I think I'm going to have someone of my own." "My child." "You're going to have a child?" "Yes, I think so." "If you handle it carefully and honestly, yes." "Do you want it?" "I pray for it morning and night." " Even though" " There is no "even though" about it." "I want my baby." "I want my baby to hold and love... and love me, I hope, until I die." "Want me to set up that appointment today?" " Why not?" " What time?" "Well, noon would be best for me." "Okay." "I'll call Gordon Walker." "He's head of Public Relations." "I'll let you know as soon as I find out." "Thanks very much." "I'll be in my office all morning." "U.B.C. Legal department, please." " Express to 25." " Thank you." " U.B.C. Public Relations." " Express to 36." "Thank you." " How are you, Mr. Rath?" " Very well." "Thank you." " Sit here." " Thank you." "Your friend Bill Hawthorne gave you quite a buildup." "I remember when Bill first came with us, about 10 years ago." "Bill started in the radio department." "Then he moved up to the 19th floor." "Then he went in to Copy." "Crazy, isn't it?" "Looks very comfortable." "My doctor tells me I need plenty of rest... and this is one of the ways I have of doing it." "Why do you want to work for U.B.C.?" "Well, for one thing, I'd like to make more money." "Well, that's a wholesome, refreshing approach." "Also I'd like to work in a place... where there's more opportunity for advancement than there is at the Foundation." " Can you write?" " Well, I do most of the writing at the Foundation- reports to the trustees, things of that sort." "Well, I tell you what I want you to do then." "I want you to go in that room there... shut the door after you... and write me your autobiography in one hour- everything you can think about yourself in one hour." "Along any particular line?" "Explain yourself for us." "Examine your life and tell us just what kind of person you are... and why we should hire you." "I'll try." "And at the end, I want you to finish this sentence for me:" "The most significant thing about me is" "The most significant thing about me is" "That's right." "It's now five minutes of 12:00." "Try to have it finished by 1:00." "The results, of course, will be entirely confidential." "All right, men... we go on the green light." "Remember your assembly area- northwest corner of the drop zone." "Your objective is the pass." "You take it and hold it till the ground troops come up from the beach." "The light's on, sir." "Get ready!" "Stand up!" "Hook up!" "Let's go!" "Come on, you guys!" "Let's go, men!" "Let's go!" "Hurry up!" "Let's go!" "If we don't get those mortar positions, we're dead ducks." "All right." "Let's go." "All right, you guys!" "Spread out!" "Right up there on the left." "Pillbox." "Dive behind that tree and let go." "Now!" "Two of you, take that pillbox and hold it!" "Those guys are First Platoon men." "I wonder where Hank is." "Give me some smoke." "All right, cover us!" "Could be among those rocks somewhere." "Cover me." " Look out, Hank!" " Huh?" "In front of you!" "Go get him." "I'll cover you." "Hank!" " Medic!" " Medic!" "It's all right, boy." "I'll get you some help." "We'll be there soon, boy." "Somebody get a medic!" "How do ya like that?" "Medic." "I want you to take a look at this man." "Quick!" "Put him over there." "This man's dead, Captain." "He's not dead!" "Take another look at him!" "I'll put him over there, Captain." "Don't you touch him!" "I'll find a real doctor!" "Hey, fellas, come here a minute." "You'd better take a rest, Captain." "That man is dead." "Not till the doctor says so." "I'm gonna have a real doctor take a look at him." "You better let him go, Doc." "Try to stop him, and somebody's gonna get hurt." "Can I help you, Captain?" "I want a medic." "Well, there's a hospital boat coming in now." "Maybe you better let me carry him a little piece." "You look kind of beat to me." "Oh, that's all right." "I'll take him." "No, you better let me, Captain." "Say, this man's dead, Captain." "He's not dead!" "You're right, Captain." "We ain't gonna take nobody's word for it... till the doctor says so." "We're not gonna put him with the dead." "No, sirree, we ain't." "We're gonna lay him right down here by your side... so you can look after him your own self... till we can find out what's the best thing to do about it." "Will you watch over him while I go get somebody?" "Will you do that for me, Captain?" "That's a good captain." "Now, you sit right here and look after your friend like he'd want you to... and I'll go get us the best doctor they got down there... just so as we'll be good and sure." "Thank you, Sergeant." "And, uh, get yourself a little rest too, all right, Captain?" "Okay, Bill." "I'll send you a memo on it." "Already?" " Is this all?" " That's all." "But you've still got 12 minutes." "I've written all I think is necessary." ""The most significant thing about me..." ""so far as the United Broadcasting Corporation is concerned..." ""is that I am applying for a position in its public relations department..." ""and after a reasonable period of learning..." ""I believe I could do a good job." ""I will be glad to answer any other questions..." ""relevant to this application for employment..." ""but after giving it serious thought..." ""I am unable to convince myself..." ""that any further speculation on my importance..." ""could be of any legitimate interest or value... to the United Broadcasting Corporation."" "Anything else?" "No." "We'll call you when we decide anything." "Good-bye." "Thank you." "Good-bye." "Bill Hawthorne told me about an opening at U.B.C. Yesterday." "I went over to see them about it this afternoon." "I'm awfully sorry about last night, darling." "Maybe I had it coming to me." "What's the matter with us, Tommy?" "Is it me?" "There's nothing the matter with us." "We don't want to make too much out of a little blow-off do we?" "We ought to be pretty happy really." "Your job's plenty good enough." "We've got three nice kids, and we love each other." " Must be the house." " Yeah." "How much will that new job pay?" "I don't know." "Maybe eight or 10,000." " You know what I think would be nice?" " Now, just a minute there..." " I haven't got this job yet." " I know, but when you get it." "A trip somewhere together." "Wouldn't you like that?" "If it works out that way." "Maybe that little shack in Vermont I was telling you about." "I think I'll call the agency tomorrow about that day woman to take care of the kids." "Now look, honey." "Let's not pack our bags yet." "Not until it's a little more than a possibility anyway." "But forgetting the money for the moment... you know what I'd like really?" " What?" " All I'd like really... is to do something- I don't care what- that would make you, well... a little proud of me, that's all." "Well, I don't know what U.B.C. Wanted, but that's significant enough for me." "If you told them that..." "Can you beat that?" "All right, upstairs." "Oh, Petey, you know better than this." " Turn that thing off, will you?" " Fire!" "Didn't you hear what your mother said?" "They ever have but that one picture?" "Tommy." "Just a minute." "What I don't understand is why he doesn't let you handle the job as usual." "Or why he insists on going outside the organization for somebody." "Is it possible he doesn't trust us anymore?" " Yeah?" " Mr. Thomas Rath." "Send him in." " How are you, Tom?" " Good morning." "Bill Ogden, Mr. Hopkins's assistant." " How do you do, Mr. Ogden." " Very well, thanks." "Mr. Hopkins was quite impressed by the tone of your application." " Ralph Hopkins?" " That's right." "Ever meet him?" "No." "I never have, but I've heard a lot about him, of course." "To put you in the picture here, I'll let Ralph fill it in for you... this is a personal project of his." "Something he's giving his own personal attention to:" "Mental health." "Yes?" "Some kind of a national campaign, but he'll tell you about it himself." " Hmm." "Ralph?" " Good morning, Gordon." "We have Thomas Rath here with us, Ralph... and we were wondering when it would be convenient for you to see us." "Come on up, now." "I'll be through with this in just a minute or two." "It's up a little." "Not much." "Nothing to worry about." "And your heart sounds pretty good." "I'm certainly glad to hear that." "But you've had a warning, and, if only to satisfy my own conscience..." "I've got to tell you again, you've got to slow down." "I've been getting plenty of rest." "You oughta cut way down on your schedule." "Sleep a little later." "Come into the office around 10:30, 11:00 in the morning." "Get away around 3:00 or 4:00." "And cut out these outside activities of yours." "Not, of course, that I expect you to pay the slightest attention to what I say." "But I will." "I promise you." "Thanks so much for coming right in the middle of your day." " Not at all, sir." "Good-bye." " Good-bye, Doctor." "Yes, sir." "Will you ask Mr. Rath, Mr. Walker and Mr. Ogden to come in, please?" "Yes, sir." " Good morning, fellas." " Ralph." " Mr. Rath." " Mr. Hopkins." "This is awfully good of you." "I know how busy you must be." " How are you, Gordon?" " Fine." "Thank you, Ralph." " How about that cold, Bill?" " It's better now, thanks." "Oh, that's good." "I was worried about you." "Really sounded quite bad." " Could you have lunch with us, Mr. Rath?" " I'd be happy to." "That's wonderful." "I have so many engagements this afternoon." " Haysey?" " Yes, sir." " We're going in for lunch." " Can you take a call from Mrs. Hopkins first?" " Hold it for just a moment will you?" " Yes, sir." "Will you fellas go on in?" "I'll join you in five minutes." "Of course, sir." "I'm terribly sorry, Mr. Rath." "It's just one of those things, you know?" "It's quite all right, sir." "I'm sorry, dear." "How are you?" "Can you come out today?" "I've got to talk to you right away about Susan." " What about her?" " Many things really." "But she's just informed me that she has no intention of going to college... and l-I just don't know what to do about her anymore." "I'll be there this evening, if that'll be convenient for you." " Don't fail me, Ralph." "Please." " I won't, dear." "Don't worry too much." "I'm sure we can straighten it out." "I'll be looking for you." "Did you know that more hospital beds are occupied by the mentally ill... than all the cancer, heart and polio cases put together?" "No." "I didn't know it was that bad." "I never dreamed it was that bad until I talked to those doctors." "That's a very good idea about the research endowment." "What else?" "Well, what about backing legislation... to get more state and federal funds for mental hospitals?" " Yes, that could be done too." " And then on the local level... you might look into the organization of community clinics... psychiatric clinics, sort of preventive measures." " How?" " "How" what?" "How could we organize community clinics?" "I can't answer that this minute." "You've got to remember I just heard about this thing an hour ago." "But I'd certainly look into the possibility of local clinics." " I think we should too." " Very good idea." "It's a little too early, actually, to spell out any of these ideas in detail." "Oh, dear." "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you gentlemen to excuse me." "I have a very important engagement." "Mr. Rath, I can't tell you how much I appreciate your coming." "It's been a genuine pleasure, as well as very useful indeed." "I hope we'll be able to see each other again soon." "Good-bye." " Good-bye, sir." " Wait here, please." "This wouldn't be a very high-paying job, you understand?" "Well, what kind would it be?" "The figure we had in mind was something around 7,000." "Well, that's no good." "That's what I'm getting now." "I know." "What did you have in mind?" "The job, as I see it, should be worth at least $10,000." "I'm afraid that's out of the question." "So is 7,000, as far as I'm concerned." "We don't like to quibble over things like this." "We feel that if a man really wants to work for U.B. C... it shouldn't be necessary." "Well, that's strictly up to you, of course... but you can hardly expect me to switch jobs purely for the pleasure of working for U.B.C." "Well, not that anything can be decided now anyhow." "We just wanted to get a line on the way you were thinking." "That's all right." "I'm in no hurry." "We'll call you then." "Thank you very much." "I wouldn't count too heavily on anything, you understand?" "There's nothing very definite about any part of this idea." "I understand." "Thanks for the lunch." "What do you figure, eight?" "Nine, I imagine." "Strictly a split-the-difference man." " Yes?" " I'm Mr. Hopkins." "Oh." "Excuse me, sir." " How long have you been here?" " About two months, sir." " Will you tell Mrs. Hopkins I'm here?" " Yes, sir." "Hello, dear." "You are really a wonder." "I'm terribly worried." " Will you have a drink?" " No, thank you." "When did you last see Susan?" "About a month ago." "She's becoming a real beauty, isn't she?" "Have you any idea of the kind of life that she's leading these days at 18?" " No." "But I'm sure" " She lives in nightclubs." "Well, at 18, don't all rather well-to-do girls go through that stage?" "She's not rather well-to-do, she's very rich." "And she's your daughter with your name." "She's a celebrity in that filthy crowd." "I can't tell you how- how unattractive it is in her." " A celebrity." " And the men she goes with." "Never a boy of her own age or of-of what should be her crowd." "The man she spends most of her time with now, he's-he's older than I am." " Who is he?" " Byron Holgate his name is." "He's an old leftover from the Scott Fitzgerald era... still marrying and divorcing women." " A pure horror." " He's notorious." "He's a public fool." "Even the gossip columnists know that." "What can she be thinking of, running around with a clown like that?" "I hate to say this... but I think that what she's thinking of with him is marriage." "I couldn't believe that for one second." "It's just unthinkable." "The other one is a writer... 45 years old, three children and a wife he doesn't live with." "He took her to the opening of one of his plays on Broadway last week... and an all-night party afterwards, waiting for the reviews to come out." " At 18." " What's his name?" " Patterson." "Michael Patterson." " I know him too." "That can't have been a very merry party when they read those reviews." " Why do you let her go out with such people?" " How can I stop her?" " I can't lock her in her room." " Have you had a really serious talk with her?" "Well, of course. "Mother," she says, "don't be medieval."" " And that- - "And that" what?" "And that who am I to offer advice when my own marriage has been a failure." " Well, that's hardly the whole truth." " That's not the point now." "The point is that I can't do anything with her anymore." "Apparently, we'll have to get a little tough with her." "I'll have a talk with her right away." "Not just a little talk, Ralph, and then forget the whole thing." "You've got to do something." "This is the time for you to make up for all the things you've never done before." "She was such a darling little girl." "Both she and Bobby were so good, so sweet." "They were wonderful kids." "You never really knew Bobby, not really." "He had genuine character." "Always held high grades in college." "Never got himself into trouble." "He could've had a commission, but he turned it down... enlisted, because he thought that was the right thing to do." " Did you ever know that?" " Well, of course, darling." "He wasn't a complete stranger to me." "I just had lunch with a young man who reminded me of him." "Same eyes and mouth." "Same kind of smile." "Oh, but Susan has me licked, and I'm asking you to help me." "I haven't done that in..." "many years." "I just don't know what else to do." "You don't have to succeed." "I can't insist on that." "But you've got to make the effort." "She's your daughter too... and you've got to give her at least the same time and thought and attention... that you give to a business proposition, a new station or... or one of your Sunday night programs." "I'll do everything I can, dear." "I'll call her this evening, and I'll talk to you tomorrow." "If you don't, Ralph..." "If you don't make this effort..." "I'll never want to see you again." "I will, darling." "I promise you." "It's pretty close to a hundred." "Haven't you any spots?" "I've got one here, a couple on my left leg." "Why couldn't I have had it when I was a child... like any reasonably intelligent person?" "Speaking of which, what about our child?" "I haven't heard a peep out of him this evening." "That's that day woman from the agency, Mrs. Manter." "I had to get her for a day or two anyway." "And does she make him jump." "You should've seen it." "Sit here for a minute, dear." "I think I've got it all worked out." "You've got what all worked out?" " We sell this house and move into Grandma's." " Now look, honey..." "But..." "No, Tommy, you've gotta listen first." " You can't say no until you've heard it." " All right." "I'm sorry." "Go on." "We move into Grandma's, but only for a little while." " Just until I can figure out something else." " What else?" "There are 23 beautiful acres in Grandma's place." "Do you know what they're getting for just one-acre lots around there?" " Five thousand dollars apiece." " You can't do it, Betsy." "You can't slice it up." "There's a zoning law in South Bay." "But zoning laws can be changed, Tommy." "They're being changed every day now." "But we can't do anything about that one unless we're residents of South Bay." " I see." " If we can get that zoning law changed... we can chop the whole place up into lots, borrow money from the banks and build houses on them." "And the very least we can make is $100,000." "And just to think, only a week ago we were facing the poorhouse." "I'm not kidding, Tommy." " Well, may I ask you just one question?" " Go ahead." "While we're living in that barn with all that money going out... while we're waiting for that hundred grand... would you mind telling me what we're gonna eat on?" "On your salary from U.B.C." "But I haven't got a job with U.B.C., and I'm not gonna get one." "I told you that." "I have no intention of switching jobs without a raise, and that's what would have to be." "The man told me so in so many words." "But you can get a raise if you want it." "What do you mean if I want it?" "You can get it because those two fellows wouldn't have been... talking to you about salary if Mr. Hopkins hadn't said he wanted you." "And if Mr. Hopkins said he wanted you, Mr. Hopkins is going to get you- and for $ 10,000 if you've got the" "the nerve to hold out for it." "I'm going downstairs to get a glass of milk." "Aren't you kids supposed to be in bed?" " Just a minute, Daddy." " Turn that thing off, Barbara." "He's gonna kill this fellow in just a minute." "Did you hear what I said, Barbara?" "Are you kids out of bed again?" "If I catch you down here once more" " Mr. Rath." " Mrs. Manter." "I'll have 'em straightened out in a day or two." "I've had eight kids of my own, so I know how to handle 'em." "Once, every last one of mine were down with the measles." "Know what I did?" " What?" " Broke my leg." " And my husband was away too." " What did you do?" "What are you hollerin' for?" "I can hear all right." " Oh." "I'm sorry." " Never stopped me for a minute." "I just put my knee on a chair, tied it that way... and breezed along like a breeze." " I never did a better day's work in my life." " Wonderful." " Good night." " Good night." "Nothing ever scares you, does it?" "Only you." "Me?" "Remember now, I'm very sick." "Pretty close to a hundred." "Go on." "I won't hit you." "You have changed since the war." "I suppose I have in a way." "I was what we have to have in our country- what they call a citizen-soldier." "One day a man's catching the 8:26, then suddenly he's killing people." "Then a few weeks later, he's catching the 8:26 again." "It'd be a miracle if it didn't change him in some way." "The way I mean is you- sometimes now... you-you seem so far away from me." "I'm not though... ever." "The way I think about marriage... it-it ought to be a kind of secret between two people." "Just between them and nobody else in the world." "Sometimes now, l-I get the feeling that I'm not sharing all of ours." "That's not true, sweetheart." "When that happens, it's like the music stopped." "It scares me, Tommy." "Don't you know that I love you more than I've ever loved anybody in the world?" "I do hope you do, because I love you more than I know how to tell you." "Even when I'm a little..." "on the cautious side?" "Don't you ever say a thing like that again." "I know what kind of husband I've got, and I wouldn't change you for anyone else in the world." "If I ever say anything to make you feel like that again... you hit me right across the head, you hear me?" "Are you sure this is all right, with the chicken pox?" "What do you care?" "You've had it." "We'll have your name here sometime this afternoon." "Miss Lawrence, this is Mr. Rath." " Miss Lawrence will be your secretary." " How do you do, Miss Lawrence?" "Very glad to meet you, Mr. Rath." "We always give a new man the prettiest secretary." "Keeps 'im happy during the breaking-in period." "Well, how do you like it?" "It's not very much like the old Foundation." " Glad to have you aboard, Tom." " Thank you, Gordon." "He's all yours, Bill." "We're going to list you as special assistant to the president." "But that won't apply in any way to company business... only to this special project, nothing else." " I see." "It'll be a trial period of six months at least, and you'll be directly responsible to me." " That's all right." " Now, the pitch is this." "There's a big convention of doctors at Atlantic City on the 15th of next month... and Mr. Hopkins has been asked to speak." "That's when we're gonna try to get this thing off the ground-with this speech." "This is some stuff to get you into the picture." "You-You mean you want me to write this speech for him?" "Nobody writes Mr. Hopkins's speeches but Mr. Hopkins." "We simply do the research, kick around ideas with him..." " and block out a rough preliminary form." " I see." "And if the speech is right... it will not even mention a national mental health campaign." "But at the end of it, the entire audience will rise as one man and demand... not only that such a campaign be launched at once, but that Mr. Hopkins should head it." " Is that all?" " And I shouldn't be facetious about it if I were you." "All right." "Start right from the beginning." "I want to hear everything that happened from the minute you all said hello, hello, hello." "Well, my first assignment, I'm writing a speech" "No, no, no." "That's not it." "I might as well get used to this double-talk from the beginning." "I'm not writing a speech for Mr. Hopkins." "I'm providing the rough material, so that he can write his own speech." " May I interrupt for a moment?" " Of course." "That is not the way to start a new job." " What isn't?" " Being so bright and cynical about it." "I wasn't being so bright and cynical." "That's the way it sounded, and I'm tired of being bright and brittle and broke." "There's no way to tackle a new job or anything else, but honestly." "Well, I'm going to tackle it honestly... but I have an idea that things are gonna be a little more complicated in Madison Avenue." "Where are you going?" "I thought we ought to run by Grandma's house to have a little talk with Edward... because we're moving in there on Thursday." " What did you say?" " A man came up this morning... with an offer of 14,000 cash for our house if he could move in at once." "So I threw him down and took his money, and now we've got to move in to Dragonwyck." " Rath's folly." " You just wait." " Poor old fella." " How long was he with her?" "Ever since I can remember." "We're going to have to find some way to look after him." "Here he is." " Hello, Edward." " Hi, Edward." "Good evening, sir." " How's your knee?" " All right, thank you." "I'd like to have a little talk with you, Mr. Rath." "Well, just so happens that that's what I want with you." " I'll go up and have a look at the bedrooms." " Let's go right in here." "What's on your mind?" "I wanna know why I haven't been permitted to see Mrs. Rath's will." "Well, why should you?" "You're not in it." "I don't believe that." "Very well." "Go and take a look for yourself." "It's on file right here in South Bay with the probate judge, what's his name?" " Bernstein." " Then the will's no good, because she told me I was in it." "Now look, Edward, I don't know what's come over you... but Mrs. Rath was pretty confused toward the end, and you know it." "She didn't even know what she had to leave." "But I can tell you that it wasn't much, and I can show you figures to prove that too." "But I promised her that I'd look after you, and I'm going to try to keep that promise." "I mean, for one thing, you'll always have a home in this house." "Wha... what do I want with your charity?" "I've probably got more money than you have." "What I want is what she promised to me, and that's what I'm gonna get too." "You mean, she promised you some sort of pension?" " She promised me this house." " This house?" "That's pure nonsense and you know it." "Well, why else do you think I've stayed on here?" "Taking her crazy orders, cleaning dirt up after her." "You think I loved that old woman?" "Don't speak like that about Mrs. Rath again, Edward." "I'll sue you, you know." "I've got money." "I can get a lawyer." "I can get the best lawyer in New York." "Nobody's gonna swindle me out of my rights." "The will leaves the house to me." "The only question now is whether you're gonna be sensible about this and take what you can get... or whether you're going to keep shooting your mouth off and get thrown out of here tonight." "I'll get out, all right." "Don't you worry about that." "But I'll be back, and don't you forget that either." "Either you're trying to cheat me or she did." "That crazy, old woman." "She was filthy." "She never bathed." "She never" "Now get out of here." "Go pack your bags and" " If you're not out of here in an hour" " You're gonna be sorry." "Call a taxi, but don't come out of your room until it gets here." "All I've got to do is to show my proof, and that's what I'm gonna do." "Proof of what?" "Oh, that he owns this place." " He says Grandma left it to him." " Is that possible?" "Of course not." "He's just trying to get away with something." "Hello, Judge Bernstein, please." " This is Judge Bernstein." " This is Thomas Rath, Judge." "You remember my grandmother's will, Mrs. Walter Rath?" "Yes, I remember." "I'm very happy to meet you, Mr. Rath." " What can I do for you?" " That will has been finally probated, hasn't it?" "Yes." " Then is there any legal reason why I shouldn't move into this house?" "None that I know of." "Has anybody questioned it?" "A man who used to work for my grandmother claims she left it to him." "Well, has he any kind of evidence to support such a claim?" " I don't believe so." " What's the name of the man?" "Edward Schultz." "Oh, yes." "I know him." " He was with her for quite a long time." " That's the one." "Well, if he has any such evidence, he should bring it to me." "Until he does so, I know of no reason why you shouldn't occupy the house." "Thank you, Judge." "Thank you very much." "Not at all, Mr. Rath." " That was the young heir to the Rath estate." " Trouble?" "I'm afraid so." "First, the old man who took care of the old lady will be in here to demand justice." "Then the young heir to the estate will come in to demand as much justice as the old man." "If there's anything I hate it's two demands for justice." "Will you get me the bicarb, please?" " Hey, did you see that fellow who just went out?" " Which one?" "He was my C.O. In the army." "I wonder if he's working here now." "I didn't see 'im." "If he is working here, I'd sure like to see him about something." "The greatest hurdle we've got in this situation, you know... is to sell these doctors on the idea in the first place." "You know how some people think of our people in our business." "Hucksters, and all that sort of thing." "Always some kind of gimmick behind everything we do." "I can handle this campaign 15-times better than any banker or businessman ever born." "But I've got to fight 15-times harder than any banker or businessman ever born... just to get the chance to do it." " See what I mean?" " Of course." "And that's why this speech has got to be exactly right, Tom." "The opportunity simply doesn't come along every day... for a man to be able to do something of such tremendous good." "But now, by the grace of God, one has come to me." "A chance to be of great help in a truly holy cause." "If only I could make these people believe me." "Oh, dear." "I had no idea it was that late." " Excuse me, please." " Certainly, sir." " How are you, darling?" " Just fine." "I hope this isn't interfering with something important this evening." "Oh, no." "I just wanna have a little talk with my beautiful, young daughter." "This is my daughter, Susan, Tom." "This is Tom Rath, darling, one of our bright young men from the office." " How do you do, Miss Hopkins." " How are you?" " Would you mind very much" " Not at all, sir." "You know how busy young ladies are these days." "Good night, Miss Hopkins, I'm very pleased to have met you." " Thank you." "Good night." " I really have to catch her on the fly, as it were." "I'll see you tomorrow, Tom, and I do want you to know... how much I appreciate you coming up here tonight." "I know I shouldn't impose on your evenings, but I'm just so anxious about this project..." "I suppose I get a little frantic about it at times." " I think it's worth getting frantic about." " Thank you for saying that." "Makes me feel a little better about taking you away from your family." " It's perfectly all right." "Good night, sir." " Good night, Tom." "Does that fellow remind you of somebody?" "No." "Who?" "Doesn't matter." "I'm very happy about this, darling." "I suppose you're old enough, but would you rather have a Coke?" "I'll have bourbon on the rocks." "Well, that clears up that point." "I suppose Mother told you I don't wanna go to college... now you're going to try to persuade me to go." "No." "I don't want you to go to college if you don't want to." "Then what is it?" "Well, I'd like to know what you're thinking of doing..." " if you're not going to school any longer." " I'm not sure." " I'd like to get married." " Right away?" " Soon, maybe." " Who's the fella?" "I'm not sure yet." "Just kind of like the idea, huh?" " You think I'm too young?" " Not at all." "I married your mother at 19." "And then after you're married, what?" " I'd like to travel, I think." " Sounds like a very pleasant life." "But before you get launched on it, we have something of a problem we ought to discuss." "What kind of problem?" "Well, you know, of course, that the world has treated me very well." "Over the years, I've managed to accumulate something of a treasure... and the responsibilities that go with it." "Luckily, this treasure came to me gradually... so I had time to find out how to handle the responsibilities." "That's what I wanted to talk to you about." " How you'll be able to handle them." " You mean the money?" " Well, that's the basis of it, of course." " I'm not interested in money." "I think money's a bore." "No sane person is interested in money simply as money." "That's what I thought you were." "Everybody says so." "Yeah, I'm sure they do." "What is a million dollars, Suzy?" "Define it for me as you see it." " A million dollars is a lot of money." " You'd be surprised how little." "And, actually, it's things, darling, different things." "About half of a small hospital." "It's the life earnings of six average men- every nickel they make during their entire lives." "A college education for about a hundred boys." "A home of their own for, perhaps, 75 people." "One fighter plane for the army." "But one thing it is not... it is not something that any intelligent person could consider a bore." "If you mean it's power, I'm not interested in power either." "I have a bad heart, darling." "Not very bad... but it is conceivable that I could die at any time." "And, frankly, darling... leaving a lot of money to you would be like giving a gun to a baby." "I'm sorry about your heart, Dad, and I do hope nothing happens to you." "But I'm not gonna worry about the money." "I'm not gonna let money ruin my life the way it's ruined yours and mother's." "Well, let's at least be accurate about that." "Whatever our lives have been- your mother's and mine- it was not because of money." "It's really stupid the way you live- working all the time, ever since I can remember." "You must have a guilt complex, or you're a masochist." "Which one of your friends is an amateur psychoanalyst, the playwright?" "What did you ask me up here for anyway if it's not about college?" "I told you, it's about the responsibility" "I can get lawyers to look out for that." "Is that all?" "Look, darling..." "I'm quite prepared to admit that I've made mistakes... and that there are a great many things that are the matter with me." "Now, I can't undo the past... but I would like to be of more help to you in the future." "How?" " Well, that's what I hoped we'd be able to work out together." " What did you have in mind?" " Well, for one thing..." "I thought it might be nice if you'd move into this apartment with me for a while... and we could get to see each other, get to know each other better." "I could arrange a job for you, something that would interest you... so we'd be working together in a way." " Would you give a little thought to that?" " I don't wanna work with you." "Then, some other kind of a job, whatever you'd like." "I don't wanna work at all." "Well, I'm only thinking of ways of our getting to know each other better." "Why don't you leave me alone?" "Why this all of a sudden?" "You've never paid any attention to me before." "Because you're- you're still my little girl, and I love you." "Oh, what a hypocritical thing to say." "You've hardly bothered to see me since I was born." " People love in different ways, darling." " Why can't you be honest about this?" "You don't love me, and you don't love Mother." "To tell you the truth, I don't think you love anybody..." " and I don't wanna be like that." " That's not true, Suzy." "Suzy." "Suzy, please." "Come back, darling." "Let's try to be reasonable about it." "I don't wanna be reasonable." "I don't wanna have anything to do with you." "That's the way you and Mother have been all your lives:" "Reasonable." "I don't want anything like that." "I'm going to try something else." "Down." "This is awful." "Worse than the others." "Aren't you interested in this project?" " Are you asking that seriously?" " This doesn't do it at all." " Why doesn't it?" " It just misses, that's all." "If you don't mind my saying so, that's not a very helpful form of criticism." " Can't you tell me what's wrong with it?" " It's got no oomph." " "No oomph"?" " You know what I mean." "Why don't you let Mr. Hopkins take a look at it and decide whether it's got oomph or not?" "What are you trying to do, be funny?" "No." "I'm only trying to get a little intelligible help on this assignment." " You mean you can't handle it by yourself?" " I haven't been asked to do that." "I was told to work with you." "But this is the fifth time I've been in here now... and the best I've been able to get out of you so far is "no oomph."" "A meaningless piece of crud out of a movie ad 15 years ago." "I could get better than that out of my six-year-old son." "If you're not careful, Mr. Rath, you may find yourself thinking about it out on Madison Avenue." "That's all right with me, but first I'd like to see you break that word down into English." "I think you'd better drop the whole matter." "I'll do it myself." "Get me Charlie Merrick." "I'll hold on." "You mean I'm fired?" "Charlie, what happened after I left?" "Uh-huh." "He did?" " Didn't he?" " He didn't." "I think he's crazy." "I think it's awfully good." "Thank you, Polly." "There was a call from a Judge Bernstein." "Wants you to call him back." " In South Bay?" " Judge Bernstein?" "That's what I understood." "All right." "Call him back." "Hello, Judge Bernstein?" "Tom Rath." " Well, if you're not too busy, Mr. Rath." " Far from it, Judge." "About your grandmother's will." "Mr. Edward Schultz was in to see me this morning." "Oh, yes." "That's the man I was telling you about." "Well, I have here a photostat of a letter on Mrs. Walter Rath's stationery." ""To Whom it May Concern, In exchange for his services for the rest of my life..." ""and in place of paying him a regular salary for same from this day forward..." ""I hereby bequeath my entire possessions..." ""including my house and land to Edward F. Schultz... who has served me faithfully for more than 30 years."" "It's typewritten, dated January 18, 1953." "Bears what purports to be Mrs. Rath's signature, which appears to be genuine." " You know anything about this document?" " No." "And I can hardly believe it." "Well, that's something the court will have to decide." "Well, all I can say, Judge... is that I hope nobody else ever dies and leaves me anything." "Well, I shouldn't say that, Mr. Rath." "But, um, look, I have an idea." "I wonder if you could stop in to see me tomorrow morning before going into town?" " About 9:00, say?" " I suppose so." " That's fine." "Thank you very much, sir." " Thank you, Judge." "Says he hopes nobody else ever dies and leaves him anything." "He must be quite a character." "Both of 'em, in fact." "Real characters." "I'm gonna have to take another look into these two fellas." "Come in." "I'm sorry about the other night, Tom." "There's nothing to be sorry about." "I understood." "She's in such a-Well, you know how young girls are." "Now, about the speech." "How are you coming along with it?" " I'm not on it anymore." " Why not?" "You'll have to ask Mr. Ogden about that." "I don't understand that." "But, anyway, this is a kind of tentative outline the boys and I have cooked up." "My contribution, I can assure you, being very minor." "I was wondering if you'd be good enough to read and give me any ideas you have about it." "You mean, the same speech I've been working on?" "The Atlantic City speech." "We're all working on it." " I see." " What's the matter?" "I just didn't understand it that way." "That's all." " Could you read it for me tonight?" " I'd be glad to." " I'd appreciate it very much." " I'll read it." "Thank you very much, Tom." "I'll see you tomorrow." "Anytime you say, sir." " Yes, Ralph?" " Did Tom Rath turn in anything on that speech?" "Yes, but it was nothing." "I didn't want to waste your time with it." "Thank you, Bill." " Did you write this?" " Never mind who wrote it." "What do you think of it?" "Well, I don't know very much about the subject, Tommy... so my opinion wouldn't mean much one way or the other." " Stop stalling, will you." " You didn't write it, did you?" "You answer my question first." "All right then." "I'm afraid I think it's kind of boring." "But then maybe that's me." "Is that all, just boring?" "I hate to say it, darling, but I think some of it's a little silly too." "I didn't write it." "Hopkins had a hand in it, but most of it I think is Ogden's." "I think he junked mine and came up with one of his own." "But the point is, Hopkins wants me to tell him what I think of it." " Well?" " I think it's dreadful." "That's what I meant." "You tell him so too." " Well, aren't you?" " I don't know." "What do you mean you don't know?" "This has turned out to be a very tricky business, honey... with a lot of tricky angles to it." "What's that got to do with your telling them what you think about this speech?" "One thing I've learned already is that you've got to protect yourself in the clinches." "The thing to do is sort of feel your way along." "I mean, when they call you in to give a report like this... you begin with a lot of highly qualified, contradictory statements... and watch your man's face to see which one pleases him." "For instance, you can begin..." ""I think there are some wonderful things in this speech."" "Then you pause for a second or two." "If that seems to make him happy, then you go on." ""And I have only a few minor alterations to suggest."" "But if he looks a little startled on the word "wonderful"... then you switch and say..." ""But on the whole, I don't think it quite comes off."" "If you've been smart enough about it... you can wind up by telling him exactly what he wants to hear." "But that's not what you're going to do, is it?" " I don't know." " You don't know?" "Well, I've got to protect myself, haven't I?" "Well, I'll tell you what I think about it." "I think the whole idea is sickening." "Now, just a minute." " What's the matter with you?" " It's not what's the matter with me." "It's what's the matter with you, even thinking of such a slimy trick." "Do you think I oughta tell the man his speech is a farce and get thrown out on my ear?" "How do you know you'd get thrown out on your ear?" " Is he that much of against honesty?" " Look, Betsy... you don't know this business." "Is he dishonest himself?" "How do I know whether he's dishonest?" "That's exactly the point- I haven't the faintest idea... who's honest in there and who's not." "All I know is that he helped write this speech, and it's his own personal baby." "I don't care whose baby it is." "This is a speech that can make or break... a very important health campaign for this country, isn't it?" " It could." "Then are you going to tell him the truth about it or not?" "But how do you know that that's the truth?" "How do you know... that this isn't precisely the way to appeal to those people?" "Oh, Tommy, you don't even believe that yourself." "It's exactly the sort of appeal that sells... a billion dollars' worth of cars in this country every year." "That's entirely different." "That's some kind of mass nonsense." "These are very intelligent men you'll be talking to." "They'll throw up at that muck." "Oh, you don't know anything about it one way or the other." "All I know is that he's asked you for an honest opinion in a very important matter... and I'd like awfully to know if he's going to get it or not." "Well, I could have told you that at the beginning." " He is." " You mean, you're going to tell him?" "I'm going to tell him exactly what I've told you- that I honestly don't know... but that this sort of approach has been successful in other sales campaigns... and I see no reason why it can't work in this one." " Are you trying to kid me?" " But that is the truth... the exact truth, as a matter of fact." "I've got to go finish the dishes." "Now, just a minute, Betsy." "I've told you that this is a loaded situation... with all kinds of angles to it... but there's another side to it which I think you must have overlooked." "It just so happens that I've landed in one of... the neatest positions in the whole organization- right next to Hopkins himself." "It's a spot that three-quarters of the people at U.B. C... would give their right arms for." "And he likes me." "I know it." "Now, will you try to remember what that could mean to us if I handle it carefully?" "If you handle it carefully and honestly, yes." "Weren't you the one that wanted more money... a new house, no more worries every week?" "I still do, but that wasn't the real idea." "The real idea was that I wanted you to go out... and fight for something again... like the fellow I married... not to turn into a cheap, slippery yes-man." "That's wonderful... but would you think about this for a minute or two?" "When a man's got plenty of security, money in the bank... other jobs waiting for him... it's a cinch to be fearless and full of integrity." "But when he's got a wife and three children to support... and his job's all he's got... what do you think he ought to do about it then?" "I know what I'd do." "And while we're about it, there's another little thing..." "I think you oughta think about  we may not even own this house." " What do you mean?" "Edward's come up with some kind of a letter from Grandma..." " leaving it to him." " Do you think that's possible?" "It's not what I think." "It's what the court will decide." "Meanwhile, I think you oughta keep that little situation in mind... while you're giving me this lecture on nobility." "All right, you can try it... but I don't think it'll work." "Well, you just leave that to me." "I never wanted to get into this rat race, but now that I'm in it..." "I think I'd be an idiot not to play it the way everybody else plays it." "No, I mean with you." "Because for a decent man, there's never any peace of mind without honesty." "I've always thought of you as a decent man." "Right now it just makes me wonder how long it'll be... before you decide it'll be simpler and safer... not to tell me the truth." " Morning, Mr. Rath." " Morning." " Mr. Rath." " Good morning, sir." "You know Mr. Schultz, of course." " I do." " I, uh" "I apologize for this way of going about things... but..." "I'd like to see if we can't solve this little problem... without bringing it to the strain and bitterness of a trial." "I don't think any of us want anything like that." "Now, here are the two documents in the case- the probated will... the photostated contract between Mrs. Rath and Mr. Schultz... bearing Mrs. Rath's signature." "Doesn't a document like that need to be witnessed?" "Not necessarily." "Not if the court decides it represents the intention of the deceased." "That's quite true, Mr. Rath." "Mr. Schultz seems to have been doing a little research." "My lawyers told me." "You did more or less everything for Mrs. Rath, I believe, hmm?" "Everything." "I was the only one she had in the world to take care of her." " Shopping, cooking." " Everything." "You also paid the monthly bills?" "I made out the checks according to the bills, and she signed them." "He had to." "Her sight was just about gone." "Oh, she could sign her name, all right." "Look at the checks if you don't believe it." "I didn't say she couldn't." "Well, w-what did you do?" "Did you type them or write them?" "I typed them." "Well, now we come to the most distressing part of this case." "This is the part I'm sure none of us would like to see come out in open court." "I, uh" "I regret to have to say this to you, Mr. Schultz, but... you're a dishonest man." " I'm dishonest?" " I'm afraid you are... and the reason I say that is I have here a list of six South Bay tradesmen... who are prepared to swear that you asked them... to pay Mrs. Rath's monthly bills so that you could get a kickback." "Oh, I know that crowd." "They're sore because I wouldn't give them her trade." "Then you wouldn't mind if we subpoenaed these people?" "Why should I?" "Also I was astonished to learn... at what an enormous bank balance you have on your salary." "I don't know what kind of monkey business you're up to... but you can't get that information from a bank." "It's against the law." "$78,462.09." "Mr. Rath's account is just under $9,000 in one deposit." "Did the bank tell you that?" "Oh, you can't get that information from a bank." "You told me that yourself." "If the bank told you that, they told you a lie." "I haven't got anywhere near that much money... and I'm going to find out from the bank just what they did tell you too." "You wouldn't mind having your accounts examined by the income tax people?" "Anytime they want to." "Uh, I realize very well... that I'm exceeding the prerogatives of my office, Mr. Schultz... but I assure you, my only intention... is to save you from making a serious mistake." "If these particulars were brought out in a trial... as undoubtedly they would be... and it was then suggested that Mrs. Rath was so old... so nearsighted that she would sign anything you put in front of her... don't you see what that could lead to?" "But if you have a perfectly clear conscience about this matter... and are prepared to explain these circumstances satisfactorily" "Never mind telling me what I can do." "I've got lawyers that can handle that sort of thing... and believe you me, they will handle it too." "You wait and see." "Won't he be back?" "I don't know." "If he's on the level, he will." "If not" "But that's what's so interesting about a small town" "You ask around about somebody who's lived there for a while... and you'd be surprised what all the people have found out about him." "If you're going to be slick, the smart thing is to be slick in the city." "They're dumber there." "Good-bye, sir." "Good-bye, Judge, and thank you." "Thank you very much indeed." " Miriam?" " Yes, sir?" "Bring the bicarb." "Ah, this is awfully good of you, Tom." "I know how busy you must be." " Not really." " I just can't get any work done at the office." "Too many interruptions." "Did you get a chance to read that outline?" "Yes." "I read it over a couple of times." " That's wonderful." "How about a drink?" " No, I don't think so." "Thank you." "How far did you get with your version, Tom?" " I did five all together." " And Bill didn't like any of them, hmm?" "He said he didn't." "Well, I suppose they're all bending over backwards to get this thing right." "It's just got to be, you know?" "But about this one, all I did, actually, was to set the keynote... the overall approach, as it were." "No writing, of course." "What I wanted was a modest approach... because of this broadcasting business, you understand?" " I understand." " The way I suggested it...." "I am simply a layman addressing an assemblage of scientists... and I make no pretense of being anything else." "That's where I think the boys have caught the note perfectly, don't you?" " Perfectly." " That's wonderful." "Excuse me, please." "I simply won't have maids around while I'm working." " Hello." " Mr. Hopkins?" " Yeah?" " I'm from the Associated Press." " Associated Press?" " Did you hear about your daughter's marriage?" "No, I" " I didn't." "But I couldn't be more delighted about it." "Both Mrs. Hopkins and myself." " Uh, where were they married?" " Greenwich, Connecticut, this morning." " I see." " Were you surprised?" "No, no, no, not at all surprised." "A little, uh, disappointed that they eloped, of course." "We'd hoped that we could give them a nice church wedding... but I suppose they decided that that would  be too fussy and formal." " Have you known Mr. Holgate long?" "Oh, yes." "Yes, for a great many years." "Mr. Holgate's an old family friend." "Thank you very much, Mr. Hopkins." "You're quite welcome... and I thank you so much for calling." " Good-bye." " Good-bye." "Long distance." "This is Ralph Hopkins, Butterfield 8-5598." "I want South Bay, Connecticut, 327, Mrs. Hopkins." "Hello." "This is Mr. Hopkins." "Let me speak to Mrs. Hopkins, please." "Hello, Helen?" " Helen?" " I know." " One of the newspapers just called me." " I'll be right out." "No, don't." "L- I don't want to see anybody." "I just-just want to go to bed." "Well, I" "I mean to stay, darling." "No." "I don't want you to, Ralph." "I know you mean well... but I don't want to see you now." " Well, may I call you tonight?" " No." "Not tonight." "I'll call you in the morning." "I don't want you to call me at all, Ralph." "Please." "That was the A.P." " My daughter just got married." " Well, congratulations." "Thanks." "Little rascal eloped." "Well, that's the romantic way, I guess." "Didn't even phone me." "Too excited probably." "Yeah, I suppose so." "So you liked that approach, hmm?" " No, I didn't." " You didn't?" " No, sir." " But I thought" "I didn't get a chance to finish what I was going to say." "I don't think that's the right approach at all." "You surprise me." "You're the sixth man I've asked about it... and the first that wasn't actually enthusiastic about it." "Well, I could be a hundred percent wrong, of course... but... you asked me what I thought about it... and that's it." "Why don't you think it's right?" "Well, for one thing... more than half of it is an argument that... mental health is an important problem in this country... which will hardly be news to an audience of doctors." "But the worst part of it to me is- is a statement made over and over again... that would only make me sore if I were one of those doctors... because it's so obviously untrue." "Which statement is that?" "That you're a very simple, uninformed man... who, in effect, doesn't really know what he's talking about." "Because if they believe that, why should they ask you to be head of this campaign?" "But they'll know better." "They're educated, intelligent men." "And they'll know who and what you are... and that whole part of it will have a completely phony ring... at the very moment when sincerity is- is the thing you're aiming at above everything else." "That doesn't leave very much that you do like then, does it?" "No, sir." "How would you do it?" "Well... if I were you..." "I'd tackle these people on very practical grounds." "I would tell them what I was equipped to do... better than anybody else in this country." "I would tell them that I have the machinery... to reach nearly every human being in the United States." "And that with their advice and support..." "I was prepared to give a reasonable amount of this machinery... to a national campaign for better mental health in this country." "You mean take it or leave it?" "In somewhat more courteous terms, yes." "You don't think that's a little arbitrary?" "I don't know... but where else are they going to get a deal like that?" "Is that the way you wrote it?" "Just about." "That's a very interesting idea." "I appreciate it... very much." " I'm sorry if" " No, not at all." "It's very helpful." "What are you doing?" "If that's all, I'll be getting on back to the office." "Tom" "Yes, sir." "Would you mind having a drink with me before you go?" "I'd be very happy to, sir." "I won't tell the boss." " What'll you have?" " Oh, I'll fix it." "What'll you have?" "I'll have scotch on the rocks." "Where do you live, Tom?" "South Bay, Connecticut." " That's where I live." " I know." "At least I have a house there... though I don't get up there as often as I'd like." " Have any children?" " Oh, yes." "Three" " Two girls and a boy." " Oh, that's wonderful." "How old are they?" " Ten, seven and six." " Mmm." " I had a boy too, you know." " I know." "Bobby." "He was killed in the war." "Yes, I've heard." "One thing about him, though" "He left me with nothing but good memories, wonderful memories." "For example, he could have got a commission." "I could have arranged it." "But he enlisted." "You know why?" "He just decided that that was the right thing to do." "That may not seem very important to some people... but it pleases me just to think about it." " That's a very unusual decision." " That's what I mean." "He was a very unusual boy." "Oh, he'd cut a little corner now and then on little things." "Who doesn't?" "But when it came to the big ones... there was only one way to play it for him-straight." "Spend a lot of time with your kids?" "Oh, yes." "We're on pretty good terms with each other." "Whenever we can take 'em away from that television." "Kick that television in if it takes up too much of their time." "Kick it in and stomp on it." "Don't let anything keep you away from your family." "Did you forget that that was my idea in that outline?" "No, I didn't forget." "Odd sort of a way to be celebrating your daughter's marriage, isn't it?" "I suppose I'll be going through the same thing someday." "You know where I made my mistake?" "Yep." "Somebody's got to do it." "Somebody's got to dedicate himself to it." "Big, successful businesses just aren't built by men like you- 9:00 to 5:00 and home and family." "You live on them, but you never build one." "Big, successful businesses are built by men like me... who give everything they've got to it... who live it, body and soul... lift it up regardless of anybody or anything else." "Without men like me, there wouldn't be any big, successful businesses." "My mistake was in being one of those men." "I'm terribly sorry, but" "Would you mind if we took this up some other time?" "Not at all." "Aren't you feeling well?" "I'm all right." "It's been rather a long day, and I" "I've got some other engagements this evening." "I think I'd better lie down and get a little rest first." "Is there anything that I can do for you?" "Thank you very much, Tom." "I'm all right." "Thank you so much for coming up here." " Good-bye, sir." " Good-bye, Tom." "I'll talk to you tomorrow." "First stop- 36th floor." "Hi, Captain." "Well, Sergeant." "How ya doing?" "Okay, I guess." "I, uh, gave you a ring yesterday." " Did you get it?" " I did, but I didn't know where to call you back." "Well, what I wanted-I was wondering if I could see you about something." " Anytime you say." " How about when I get off work tonight, 5:30?" " 5:30?" " It's kind of important, Captain, if you know what I mean." "5:30's okay with me." "Where shall I meet you?" "How about the bar downstairs?" "Okay, it's a deal." "Bar downstairs at 5:30." " You won't forget, will you?" " No, I won't forget." "Hi, Captain." "Well, we're working for the same management again, huh?" "That's right." "You know, I seen you the first day you come to work two or three weeks ago." "I thought may be you was trying to high-hat me." "Must have been that brush." "When'd you get that?" "Oh, that- that's Gina's idea." "Gina?" "You still hear from her?" "Hear from her?" "I married her." "Well, congratulations." "She's a wonderful girl." "That's wonderful." "Give her my best, will you?" "Oh, waiter" "Uh, scotch and soda." "Make it a double, please." "How you like married life?" "Oh, with Gina, I got no complaints whatsoever." "You ever hear anything from Maria?" "Well, that's what I want to talk to you about, Captain." "Yeah?" "Well, Maria's Gina's cousin, you know." "Yeah, I remember." "Well, you knew she got married, didn't you?" "No." "I wrote to her, but she didn't answer." "I haven't heard a word from her since the day we left there." "Well, you remember the lame fellow, Louis Lapa?" " Yeah?" " Well, she married him... a couple of months after we left." "And then she had a little boy... a little while after that." " I guess you didn't know that either." " No." "Well, you see, things are still pretty tough over there." "You know, not easy like here." "So... we send Gina's old lady money all the time, you know." "I guess there's just some people who can't make it on their own... without a little help." "Anyway, I seen how you was doing okay, you know... and..." "Gina wrote her old lady and told her all about it." "Not to cause any trouble, Captain, you understand... but just remembering how we was all together in Rome, you know." " I understand." " Because..." "Maria moved in with Gina's old lady." "Maria and the boy, see?" "So, now we're supporting them too, me and Gina." "What about her husband?" "Oh, he got killed a couple of years ago in... some kind of a riot." "But the point is, you see, we don't mind sending Gina's old lady money... but, well..." "Maria and the kid aren't really part of our family." " You see what I mean?" " Yes, I see." "Well, yesterday this letter come from her for you." "It's still sealed, you see?" "Dear Tom, I do not like this... but I don't know what else to do." "For myself, I do not need help... but anything you could do for the boy would be from heaven." "I'm ashamed to ask you... but we were never proud with each other, so perhaps you will understand." "The boy needs help." "He's a good boy." "He studies well." "I'm sending you this picture that Luigi took last year." "Now, we are not trying to make trouble for you..." "I leave this in the hands of God." "She says he's a real good kid." "Boy makes a buck or two extra a week shining shoes after school." "Can I have a little time to think this over?" "Oh, sure, Captain." "Nobody's pushing you." "I'm going to do something about it, but... right this minute, I..." "I just don't know how." "I'll have to keep my wife from knowing, of course." "How much do you think they'd need to live decently?" "A hundred a month." "Well, I'll send them something right away... but I'll..." "I'll have to figure out what else I can do." "Anything you can do, Captain, it'll be like a godsend to 'em." "Good evening, children." "That's seven dead already." " Did you get your dinner?" " Yes, I ate at the station." "I told him I didn't think his speech was right." "Oh, darling, I'm very glad." " And are we on relief now?" " No." "Not yet anyway." "But there's something else that isn't going to be easy either." "Another little touch of honesty." "Okay." "Let's have it." "It's something that I have to tell you... because I know now that this is the only way... we're going to get our lives straightened out." "What is it, Tommy?" "Something did happen to me in the war... something I've never told you about." "I have another child, Betsy- a son in Rome." " Your child?" " That's it." "I was never sure of it." "I've never heard from his mother since we left there... but now she's written to me about it." "Where's the picture?" "Who was she?" "Somebody you picked up on the street?" "No, if that's of any importance." "Were you in love with her?" "I was then, the way things were." "I'm not now, and I never have been since." "It's simply the way things were at the time." "And what do you want to do about this now?" "I want to do something to help the boy." "I don't know yet just how I can do this... but that's what I want to do." "But more than anything else..." "I want some kind of understanding from you." "My blessings, you mean." "I don't know how to make you realize the way things were then." "Nobody knows who wasn't in the war." "I killed 17 men I was actually looking at... looking right straight at them." "Not enemies at a distance that I couldn't see, but persons." "Persons like you see in the train, in the elevator." "I cut a German boy's throat to get his coat." "I killed my best friend with a grenade." "It was an accident, but he was blown open down the front just the same." "Was having a child worse than things like that?" "I don't know." "Only the child has happened to me." "And when I met this girl..." "I was sure that I'd never see you again." "I was certain that I'd be killed in the next action... and I was scared- more than you can imagine." "I can't tell you the terror and the hopelessness I felt." " When was this?" " In '45." "When in '45?" "What part?" "In June and part of July." "That was it." "I nearly went crazy that summer." "Not one letter, not one word from you for months." "I got so I jumped every time the phone rang... or the doorbell, because it might be the war department." "Now, there's nothing that she can do about this... and there's nothing that I have to do for her either." "She has no legal hold on me... and if she should sue..." "I could probably make out a pretty good case that she was a prostitute." "Or I could write to her and say that I don't believe that the child is mine." "But how can I add another act of brutality... to the miserable life she's already lived?" "I can remember trying to write to you that summer." "I remember trying to be cheerful... so that you wouldn't know how worried I was." "All about the jolly little bridge parties... little jokes... how much I missed you." "But it isn't easy to write when you're not getting any letters, and I" "I never wrote once that I didn't cry because you might already be dead." "What did you do with my letters?" " Read them to her and laugh?" " You know better than that." " Was she prettier than I am?" " No." " Did she have a better figure?" " Betsy, please!" "Did she love you more than I do?" "Were you happier when you loved her?" "Why do you torture yourself with questions like that?" "Because I want to know!" "Do you think of her now when you're kissing me?" "It was 10 years ago, I tell you." "It lasted while it lasted, and then it was over." "And to think that for four years..." "I sat here and waited... and believed that love meant faithfulness... that you loved me the way I loved you... that whatever it might be for others... it could never be anybody else for you or- or for me." "Do you know what?" "I believed that so deeply... that I never even thought about it." "Did you ever hear of such a fool?" "And always thinking about how wonderful... it was going to be when it was all over and you were home again." "But it hasn't been, and now I know why." "But that's not true." "It's not her I'm thinking of." "It's the child." "Can't you understand that?" "All the time getting worse and worse." "Living without fun." "Arguing without really caring." "Making love without emotion." "It wasn't that way with her, was it?" "Betsy, will you please stop?" "You weren't always worrying about money with her, were you?" "I've worried about money because I love my wife and my children... and I don't want them to be without it." "If I've worried too much, it's because I love you too much." "You told me to be honest, and I'm being honest." "I've never loved you as much in my life... as I love you at this minute." "And I've never wanted anything so much in my whole life... as I want your understanding." " Don't touch me!" " Can't you believe..." "I don't want you to touch me!" "I don't want to have anything to do with you!" "Betsy" "Betsy!" "Let me go, please." "You go on in the house." "Leave me alone for a little while." "Come back in the house." "I will." "But leave me alone now, please." "If you'll come back in the house." "Maybe you ought to go back to Italy and see her... and make up your mind then." "I don't need to do that." "I've made up my mind." "I made it up the first minute I ever saw you." "You go on in the house." "Betsy!" "I want the police, please." "Police headquarters." "Sergeant Miles speaking." "Have you had any report of any kind of accident... any automobile accident with a woman in it?" "No." "No accidents tonight." "Who's this speaking, please?" " Bang!" "Bang!" "Bang!" " Oh, help!" "Help!" "I'm dying!" "Help!" "Eat!" "Now listen to me, kids" " Hello." " Mr. Rath?" " Yes?" " This is South Bay police headquarters." "Sergeant Haggerty speaking." "We have Mrs. Rath here." "We picked her up walking on the Merrick Parkway." " Is she all right?" " Yes, she's all right." "A little tired, maybe." "But" " Has she got an operator's license?" "Yes, of course." "I'll bring it right over." "Can I speak to her, please?" "Hold it." "He wants to speak to you." " Hello." " Are you all right, honey?" "Yes, I'm all right." "I just ran out of gas." "That's wonderful." "Please don't laugh." "I don't feel like it." "I drove so long." "I just don't feel like laughing." " How are the children?" " Oh, they're all right." "I've got Mrs. Manter here with them." "Is there any charge against you?" "Just tell him to bring the license." "No, there's no charge." "Come quick, would you?" "I want to talk to you." "I'll be there in five minutes, darling." "What did I tell you?" "It happens in every family I ever worked for." "Eat!" " Yes?" " Did I wake you?" "No, no." "I've been up for hours." "I can understand that, all right." "I'm a pretty early riser myself." "What I called you about, I'm leaving for the coast tomorrow night... and I'd like very much to have you with me." "If you can be here at the apartment about 10:00 this evening..." "I'll explain the situation to you... and we can go over some of the details together without being rushed." "Can you make it?" "I'm afraid not, sir." "Oh, you won't have to bother about a train." "I'll send you home in my car." "Oh, no." "That's not it." "It's just that" "Well, I... have to be home with my family this evening." "I wanted you to go in place of Bill Ogden." "I understand." "I'd like very much to have you with me, Tom." "Well, I'd like it too." "It's a wonderful opportunity." "Don't think I don't appreciate it." "But" "Well, you remember those 9:00 to 5:00 fellas you were talking about?" " Yes." " I'm afraid I'm one of them." " I see." " I'm sorry." "No." "No need to be sorry." "No need for anything like that at all." "We have to have both kinds, you know." "One can't do anything without the other." "And if I had my choice again, I have an idea that's what I'd be- 9:00 to 5:00 and home and... family." "Well, that's my plan anyway." "I'm sure you're right, Tom." "I'm disappointed, but I'm sure you're right." "Anyway, will you drop in and see me when you come in?" "I'll do that, and thank you very much, sir." "And bring along your version of the speech." "We'll go over it together, and you can work on it while I'm away." "Thank you, sir." "Good morning, sir." "Good morning." "Come right in, Mr. Rath." "Thank you, Judge." "This is Mrs. Rath." "Judge Bernstein." " How do you do, Mrs. Rath?" " How do you do, Judge?" "Won't you sit down, please?" "May I close this door?" "By all means." "This is a rather personal matter." "And I'm hoping that you'll be able to help us with it." "Well, I'll try to." "The situation is this" "I have a child in Italy." "The mother is a girl I met in Rome during the war." "We were never married... and it was only a few days ago that I" "I learned for sure about the boy." "What I want to do now is to send them some money... $100 a month regularly and directly... without any personal correspondence." "The question is... must I go to a bank for an arrangement like that... or could you handle it for me yourself?" "You want this to be a permanent arrangement?" "In the course of time, when we can afford it... we would like to set up some kind of trust fund for the child." "Meanwhile, it will be permanent as long as we have an income." "I'd be very happy indeed to handle such a matter myself." "I was hoping that you could." "I'll send you a check tonight for the first three months and the name and address." "And I'll have it in the airmail to Rome by noon tomorrow." "Thank you very much, Judge." "Now, what will the charges be for that?" "No charge." " We appreciate that." " Thanks just the same." "This is very good of you, Judge." "Not at all, Mrs. Rath." "It's a privilege to have met you." "Thank you, sir." "Good-bye." "We're both very grateful to you, Judge." "Mr. Rath, it must have been on such a day as this... that the poet was moved to sing..." ""God's in his heaven- all's right with the world."" " Good-bye, sir." " Good-bye." "Would you mind if I tell you..." "I worship you."