"Pull!" "Right face!" "Right forward, pull!" "Right forward, march!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Hey, Maggio!" "Hello!" "Hiya, Prew." "What are you doing over here?" "Transferred over from Fort Shafter." " You quit the Bugle Corps?" " Yep." " For here?" " I didn't pick it." "Oh, you made a very bad mistake." "This outfit, they can give back to General Custer." "Yeah?" "Captain ain't in yet." "I'll look around." "What do you think you're doin'?" " What's your name?" " Prewitt." "Transfer from Fort Shafter." "I heard about you." "I heard about you, too, Sergeant." "This here's a rifle outfit, Prewitt." "You ain't supposed to enjoy yourself before sundown." "Put up your cue and come along." "Grand went to the hospital yesterday." "Did you put him in the sick book?" " Did you make out the morning report?" " I didn't have time, Sergeant." "You're the company clerk, Mazzioli." "Those medics didn't bring back the sick book till late yesterday." " I'll tend to it right now." " Thanks." "I already done it for you." "You're the best bugler they got over at Shafter." "You're the best bugler they got on this whole island." "That's true." "I feel for you, pal." "But from my position, I can't quite reach you." "Ten-hut!" " At ease." " Morning, sir." "Morning, men." "Anything special for me this morning, Sergeant Warden?" " I've only a few minutes." " Yes, sir." "New man here." "Oh, yes." "Come in." "Sir, Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt." "Reporting to the company commander, as ordered." "At ease." "Where's that service record?" "Born in Kentucky, enlisted first at Fort Myer, Virginia." ""Bugle Corps, First Bugler."" "Prewitt, I always make it a policy to talk to my new men." "Now, I have a fine, smooth-running outfit." "If I like a soldier, he can get to be a noncommissioned officer quicker here than anywhere else." "But he has to show me that he's got it on the ball." "What kind of trouble were you in in the Bugle Corps?" " No trouble, sir." " What made you transfer out then?" "It was a personal matter." " Something you wanted to ask, Sergeant?" " Why, yes, sir." "Prewitt, you was a corporal in the Bugle Corps." "You took a bust to buck private to transfer to an infantry outfit." "Why?" "Because you like to hike?" "Or was it because you couldn't stand to bugle?" "It was a personal matter." "That's up to the company commander to decide." "Well?" "I was First Bugler for two years." "The topkick had a friend who transferred in from another outfit." "The next day, he was made First Bugler over me." "I was a better bugler." "And you asked out on account of that?" "Maybe it ain't sensible, but that's the reason." "His feelings were hurt." "Kids they send us now!" "Well, we'll get your stripes back for you, maybe an extra one for good measure." "Do you know why you were assigned to "G" Company?" "No, sir." "I pulled a few strings." "I'm the regimental boxing coach, you know." "Yes, sir." "I saw your fight with Connors in the Bowl year before last." " You should have won it." " Thank you, sir." "Our regiment got beaten in the finals last December, but I mean to win this year." "All I've needed was a top middleweight." "I'm sorry, sir." "I quit fighting." "Quit fighting?" "When?" "What for?" "Well, over a year ago." "Maybe you heard about what happened with Dixie Wells?" "You mean that fellow that got hurt?" " Yes, sir." " Yes, I heard about that." "It's too bad." "I can understand how you feel." "But those things happen." "That's why I decided I would quit, sir." "You might as well say stop war because one man got killed." "Our fighting program is the best morale builder we have." "I've got a mighty sour company bugler." " How'd you like the job?" " Not if it means fighting." "Looks to me as if you're trying to acquire a reputation as a lone wolf, Prewitt." "You should know that in the army it's not the individual that counts." "Well, you'll find that we won't put any pressure on you in my outfit." "Just don't make any mistakes in it, that's all." "I've got to go into town." "Anything else for me today, Sergeant?" "The company fund report has got to be made out, it's due tomorrow." " You make it out." "Is that all?" " No, sir." "Well, whatever it is, you fix it up." "If there's anything that has to go in this afternoon, sign my name." " I won't be back." " Yes, sir." "He'd strangle in his own spit if he didn't have me around here to swab his throat out for him." "Come on." "You been in the army what now, Prewitt?" "Five years?" "Five and a half?" "Yeah." "Don't you think it's about time you got smart?" "You know what you did just now when you turned down Dynamite Holmes?" "You put your head in a noose." "Things are softer for a boxer in this outfit." "Otherwise, you'd better know how to soldier." " I can soldier with any man." "This place is gettin' to be like the Royal Hawaiian Hotel." "Who is that?" "She's Captain Holmes' wife." "You'll fight, Prewitt." "You'll fight because Captain Holmes wants to be Major Holmes." "He's got an idea he'll make it if he gets a winning team." "And if you don't do it for him, you'll do it for me." "'Cause my job is to keep him happy, see?" "The more he's happy, the less he bothers me and the better I run this company." "So we know where we stand, don't we, kid?" "I know where I stand." "A man don't go his own way, he's nothing." "Maybe back in the days of the pioneers a man could go his own way, but today you've gotta play ball." "Leva!" "Can't I once walk up to the supply room and find you working with both hands?" "I can't do no better on what you people pay me!" "Draw this man some supplies." ""G" Company squad room's on the top floor." "Get rid of your bags and come back here." "Leva will help you lug your stuff upstairs." "Save you making four or five trips." " Thanks." " I just hate to see energy wasted." "Besides, you'll be needing yours." "Looks like a good man." "I know his type." "He's a hardhead." "Her and them sweaters." "I'll bet she's colder than an iceberg." "Not her, Top." "She knows the score like I been tellin' you." " Is that right?" " Listen, not around here." "But when I soldiered at Fort Bliss with Holmes," "I heard plenty about this lady, plenty." " You did, huh?" " Okay, not me." "But I know some of the guys she played around with, so don't tell me." "I ain't telling' you." "You're tellin' me." " Good morning, Sergeant." " Morning, ma'am." "I'm looking for my husband." "Captain Holmes just went into town, ma'am, on business." "He was to have left some things for me." "Do you know anything about them?" "No, I don't, ma'am." "Anything I can do for you?" "No, thanks." "I'd be glad to help, ma'am." "My husband's been telling me a lot about you, Sergeant." " He says you're very efficient." " Yes, ma'am." "What is it that makes you so efficient, Sergeant?" "I was born smart, ma'am." "I love that." "Well, goodbye, Sergeant." "Man, she sure is one, ain't she?" " One what?" " One woman." "I've seen better." "Karen?" "Karen?" " Sorry I'm late." " It doesn't matter." "I got tied up with General Slater." " I bumped into him in the Officer's Club." " Yeah?" " What did the General have to say?" " Success, he said." "Success in war, success in peace time." "And not a word about my promotion." "Sometimes I think the old man's just waiting to ship me down." "Well, if you'd spend less time buttering generals and more time with your company, you'd get that promotion." "The company takes care of itself." "I went over there today, looking for you." "I had some business to attend to at Kaneohe." "That was all right, wasn't it?" "Of course." "I have no right to inquire into your actions." " That was our agreement." " Then why bring it up?" "Because I wanted you to know I'm not as stupid as you maintain all women are." "Now, just what does that mean?" " What are you accusing me of now?" " Of nothing." "It's no longer any of my business how many women you go out with, is it?" "But I wish you could just be honest about it once." "There's no reason I should try to hide anything, is there?" "The way things are between us now, what right have you to always be accusing me?" "What right?" "Are you going back to that again?" "How long will it be, I wonder, before I'm allowed to live that down?" "How many times do I have to tell you it was an accident?" "Please, Dana." "I'm going to bed." "Please get out of my bedroom." "Captain Holmes says you don't want to come out and fight for us." "That's right." "We thought we'd buy you a beer and talk it over." "We're the company boxers." "I figured." "Man, what I would not give to have this character in the corner pool room in my hometown." "Box as good as you used to, we'd be a cinch this year." "You ain't forget, division champs get 10-day furloughs, did you, son?" "I'm Ike Galovitch, platoon guide of your platoon." "And don't think you're a tough guy, Prewitt." "You no talk now, but out in the field with us you sing different song." "Listen, the guy don't have to fight if he don't want to without gettin' kicked around." "Now, we're playing pool." "Why don't you take off?" " You want busted head, Maggio?" " No." "Then keep your big nose out altogether." "Training season starts next week." "You can pick up your stuff..." "Look, I told Holmes and I'm telling you." "I ain't fighting'." "I quit fighting'." "You guys want to put the screws on, go right ahead!" " I can take anything you can dish out." " Okay, Prewitt." "Thanks." "I just hate to see a good guy get it in the gut." "You better get used to it, kid." "You'll probably see a lot of it before you die." "You don't scare easy, do you, Prewitt?" "Do you know anything in army regulations says I gotta box?" "Every boxer in this outfit's a noncom." "I guess you've never seen a bunch of 'em get together and give a man the treatment." "What do you mean "chick"?" "She's 45." "She's still too young for you." "Now, listen, Warden, I'm a better man than you any day, and don't forget it." "I won't forget it." "What's the deal with him, anyway?" "With Warden." "I don't figure him." "Warden?" "He ain't like the others." "He'll make it tough on you." "But he'll draw himself a line he thinks fair, and he won't come over it." "You don't see many topkicks like him no more." "He was with the 15th in Shanghai when they saw their action." "I heard about it down in the Philippines even." "All I know is, he's the best soldier I ever saw." "Hut!" "Hut!" "Hut, two, three, four!" "Hut!" "Hut!" "Count, keep count!" "One, two, three, four!" "One, two, three, four!" "Prewitt!" "Get in step, Prewitt!" "Hut!" "Hut!" "Prewitt, this is a drill, not a picnic." "Get in step!" "Hut!" "Hut!" "Hut!" "Platoon halt!" "Order arms!" "Left face!" "Prewitt, one step forward march." "Prewitt, you march like a drunken gooney bird." "I gotta teach you how to drill." "You stay here." "Platoon dismissed!" "Detail, right face!" "Trail forward, march!" "Half left, march!" "Half right, march!" "Right flank, march!" "Left flank, march!" "To the rear, march!" "One, two, three!" "To the rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Rear, march!" "Assemble your weapons." "All right, start." "A rifle's your best friend." "In case it jams in combat, it could mean life or death." "So you gotta learn to strip 'em down and put 'em back together again blindfolded." "Your rear sight's way off." "You'd be 50 feet off target at 300 yards." "Now, that's what happens when a soldier don't know how to assemble his rifle." "Seven laps around the track, double time, and keep this rifle at high port." "Forward thrust, hold!" "Draw and recover, hold!" "Arm thrust, hold!" "Draw and recover, hold!" "And rest!" "Wide open, huh, Prewitt?" "Maybe seven more laps will teach you to watch yourself." "Are you crazy?" "I saw what you did!" "I'm tellin' you, Top, she's nothin' but trouble." "You better keep your mind off what you're thinking." "What do you wanna do, wind up in Leavenworth?" "I won't be back in time to take retreat, Sergeant." " Or reveille, either." " Yes, sir." "All work and no play, Sergeant." "All you do is sit around sweating over papers." "There are other things in the world besides work." " You ought to get out more yourself, Warden." " I've been considering it." "Well, I'm going." "I'm leaving it in your care, Sergeant." "It'll be here when you get back, sir." "Well, if it isn't Sergeant Warden." "You'd better step inside, or you'll get wet." "I am wet." "If you're looking for the captain, he isn't here." "And if I'm not looking for him?" "He still isn't here." "Well, I'm looking for him." "Do you know where he is?" "I haven't the slightest idea." "Perhaps he's "in town on business."" "That's the way you put it the other day, isn't it?" "I got some papers it's important for him to sign." "I'll try phoning him at the club." "Maybe he's there." "Don't do that." "I never like to disturb a man when he's drinking." "I could use a drink myself." "Aren't you gonna ask me in?" "The liquor's there, Sergeant, in the cabinet." "You're taking an awful chance, you know." "My maid is liable to be home any time." "No, she won't." "Thursday's her day off." "You think of everything, don't you, Sergeant?" "I try." "In my position, you have to." "Are these really important?" "Yes." "But not important to get signed today." "Tomorrow's okay." "I got copies at the office, so it won't be much work to fix them up." "That's what I like about you, Sergeant." "You have confidence." "It's also what I dislike about you." "It's not confidence, ma'am." "It's honesty." "I just hate to see a beautiful woman going all to waste." ""Waste," did you say?" "There's a subject I might tell you something about." "I know several kinds of waste, Sergeant." "You're probably not even remotely aware of some of them." "Would you like to hear?" "For instance, what about the house without a child?" "There's one sort for you." "Then there's another." "You're doing fine, Sergeant." "My husband's off somewhere, and it's raining outside and we're both drinking now." "You've probably only got one thing wrong, the lady herself." "The lady's not what she seems." "She's a washout, if you know what I mean." "And I'm sure you know what I mean." "You gonna cry?" "Not if I can help it." "What are you doing?" "I'm leaving." "Isn't that what you want?" "I don't know, Sergeant." "I don't know." "Step on it, boy!" " Speed it up." " I'm speedin'." "Payday, payday" "All right, Maggio." "You wanna get paid?" "Knock it off." "Angelo, a dollar he's wrong, coming up." "Hey, paisan, come here!" "Sorry, gentlemen, I already won my bankroll in the latrine." "Besides, it's a penny-ante game." "All right, what are you covering here?" "Come on, buddy boy, we're goin' to town." "Look, don't let 'em get your goat." "We'll just dress up in civvies and we're as good as the rest of the world, ain't we?" "Here, wear this." "My sister sent it to me." "She buys everything too big." "Look, first we'll hit a few bars, see?" "Then we go to a place of which I'm a member, the New Congress Club." "Girls." "You got any prejudices against girls?" "That's what I thought." "Well, now, looks like you're all primed for a big night, Top." " Hello, Stark." " Want some company?" "No, thanks." "All tied up." "Leva tells me you've been eyeing the captain's wife like a hound dog at hunting' time." "He has, huh?" "What else did that character tell you?" "She took up with a lot of men back there at Fort Bliss." "Well, I wouldn't put stock in stories like that." "This ain't no story, 'cause I was one of them myself." "Not for long, though." "Sure is something strange about that woman." "Yeah." "Thanks for the tip." "See ya." "Hello." " I didn't think you were coming." " Why not?" "I ain't late." "No, I guess you're not." "But then I got here a little early." "I must have been overanxious." "You weren't, though, were you?" "I stopped along the way for a couple of drinks." "You certainly chose a lovely spot for our meeting." "I've had three chances to be picked up in the last five minutes." "Well, that's par for the course around here." "Well, I don't care for it." "I never went in much for back-alley loving." "Take it easy." "You probably think I'm a tramp." "Now, what makes you think I'd think a thing like that?" "Don't try to be gallant, Sergeant." "If you think this is a mistake, come right out and say so." "Well, I guess it's about time for me to be getting home, isn't it?" " Well, isn't it?" " What's the matter?" "What started all this anyway?" "Do you think I'd be here if I thought it was a mistake?" "Taking a chance on 20 years in Leavenworth for making dates with the company commander's wife?" "And her actin' like Lady Astor's horse." "And all because I got here on time!" "Well, on the other hand, I've got a bathing suit under my dress." "Me, too." "She's comin'." "Why, it's Angelo Maggio!" "Greetings, Mrs. Kipfer." "There you are, sweetie pie." "Dues all paid up." "Hey, who you got playing the piano there?" "A hippo?" "Oh, Angelo, I don't think I've met your friend." "Private Robert E. Lee Prewitt." "Oh, you know how I hate it when you boys are in this condition." "You see that, buddy boy?" "A woman sees a soldier, and, like that, she figures he's drunk." " Why?" "You know why?" " Because he is." "Well, heavy drinking simply doesn't mix with the entertainment business." "Every respectable place has to consider its future." "Mrs. Kipfer, ma'am, you have my solemn word your future will be safe with us!" "Angelo is one of my favorites." "Annette, dear, take care of this gentleman for me, will you, please?" "That'll be four bucks, baby face." "Two for initiation fee, two for this month's dues." "What do I get for it?" "Members are entitled to all privileges of the club, which includes dancing, snack bar, soft drink bar and gentlemanly relaxation with the opposite gender, so long as they are gentlemen and no liquor is permitted." " Got it?" " I got it." "Girls, here's some new poison." "This is Billie, Jean and Nancy." " Nice meeting you." " Hi, there." "Don't tell me the princess is your style." "This is Suzanne and Roxanne." " Hello, there." " Would you like to dance, honey?" "Hey!" "Much as I adore your company, I hope I may be allowed to tear myself away." "I just saw a few friends at the door, and I can also see that I will be of no further use to you." "Hi." "You busy?" "What's your name?" "I'm Lorene." "Lorene, huh?" "I haven't seen you in here before." "I haven't been in here before." "My friend brought me." "He and I, we're stationed out at Schofield." "Oh, I didn't think you were a soldier." " What do you mean?" " Well, I..." "I'm a 30-year man." "I'm in for the whole ride." "Well, I suppose it's different when a fella's gonna make a career of it." "Ain't nothin' the matter with a soldier that ain't the matter with everyone else." "I like you just the same." "I liked you the minute I saw Annette bringing you in." "You did?" "It's funny, I came in, I stood there and saw you sittin' over here." "Why don't you knock it off or put a mute in that thing!" "I'll play loud as I want, you little wop!" "Little wop?" "Mess with me, fat stuff, and I'll bust you up." "You must be in a hurry for trouble, wop." " Wait right here for me, will you?" " Yeah, sure." "Gentlemen, you know I will not..." "This little Mussolini here is tryin' to tell me how..." "Like to bust my eardrums with the stinkin' noise!" " Let's not be cruel." " Break it up, Angelo." "You men will just have to go if you can't behave yourselves." " Only my friends call me wop." " Do you know who that guy is?" " What do I care who he is?" " Who is he?" "Fatso Judson, Sergeant of the Guard in the stockade." "I'm tellin' you, let him alone." "I seen him nearly murder a guy once." "He likes it." "Okay, bully boy, now you won the war." "Let's dance, huh?" "Yeah, we'll dance, we'll dance." "First I gotta calm my nerves." "Let's go to a phone booth or something, huh?" "Where I will unveil a fifth of whiskey I have here under my loose-flowing sports shirt." "Don't get hurt, pal." "Your balance has got to be letter perfect." "I thought you were gonna wait." " Bill here was telling me about surfboarding." " Hello, friend." "Just sit down and listen." "He describes it thrillingly." "Do you know anything about surfboarding?" "No, nothing." "Not a thing." "You must be stationed inland, then." "I'm at DeRussy, so I get lots of chances." "Yeah, but then we got mountains." "Do you know anything about mountain climbing?" "A little bit." " You a mountain climber?" " No." "Do you know anything about flying an airplane?" "I've had a few lessons." "I can't fly, either." "What do you know about deep-sea diving?" "Bill, shall we move into another room?" "Sure." "The air in here seems to have gotten lousy, hasn't it?" " I noticed that." " Listen, fella..." "Come on, let's go." "How was the deep-sea diver?" "That was a terrible way you acted." "Maybe I was jealous." "You're a funny one." "What do you dames want?" "To tease a man to death?" "What do you think Mrs. Kipfer hires us for?" "She pays us to be nice to all the boys." "You're all alike." "Is it so important?" "It is important." "We may seem all alike." "We ain't all alike." "I'm sorry." "Look..." "Let's go up to Mrs. Kipfer's parlor and sit there." "She lets us use it sometimes for somebody special." "I'll go ask her." " Then you're not mad?" " No, I'm not mad." "Because if you're still mad, I'd just rather we called the whole thing off." "You certainly are a funny one." "I never knew it could be like this." "Nobody ever kissed me the way you do." "Nobody?" "No, nobody." "Not even one?" "Out of all the men you've been kissed by?" "Now, that'd take some figuring." " How many men do you think there've been?" " I wouldn't know." " Can't you give me a rough estimate?" " Not without an adding machine." " Do you have your adding machine with you?" " I forgot to bring it." "Then I guess you won't find out, will you?" "Maybe I already know." "What's the matter?" "What are you hinting at?" "Why?" "Is there something to hint at?" "Maybe there's been a long line of beach parties." " You must be crazy." " Am I?" "What about when you and Holmes were back at Fort Bliss?" "Did you ever hear of a soldier named Stark?" "Maylon Stark?" "Why, yes." ""Why, yes." You knew him, too, didn't you?" "Didn't you?" "I had to go and forget you were like all the rest of them." "Only it's true, ain't it?" "Well, ain't it?" "Why don't you tell me about it?" "Tell me the story." "There's always a story." "You don't leave a person anything, do you?" "Come back here, Sergeant." "I'll tell you the story." "You can take it back to the barracks with you." "I'd only been married to Dana two years when I found out he was cheating." "And by that time, I was pregnant." "I thought I had something to hope for." "I was almost happy the night the pains began." "I remember Dana was going to an officer's conference." "I told him to get home early, to bring the doctor with him." "And maybe he would have, if his conference hadn't been with a hat check girl." "He was drunk when he came in at 5:00 a.m." "I was lying on the floor." "I begged him to go for the doctor, but he fell on the couch and passed out." "The baby was born about an hour later." "Of course it was dead." "It was a boy." "But they worked over me at the hospital." "They fixed me up fine." "They even took my appendix out." "They threw that in free." " Karen?" " And one more thing." "No more children." "Sure, I went out with men after that, and if I'd ever found one that..." "Karen, listen to me." "Listen." "I know." "Until I met you, I didn't think it was possible either." "I enlisted, too." "I came out here on my own to get away from my hometown in Oregon." "How come?" "I had a boyfriend." "I was a waitress, and he was from the richest family in town." "He just married a girl suitable for his position." "After three years of going around with me." "It's a pretty story, isn't it?" "Maybe they could write a book about it." "They did." "Thousands of them." "So I left and went to Seattle." "I got there and I met a girl just back from Hawaii, and she said she'd made a lot of money working there." "So I caught the first boat." "I've been here a year and two months." "You don't like it very much, do you?" "Oh, I don't like it, but I don't mind it." "Anyway, I won't be here forever." "No." "Sure." "I mean, why should you?" "I got it all figured out." "In another year, I'll be home with a stocking full of money." "And I'll be all set for life." "Who is it?" "I didn't hear no sounds of combat, so I thought you might want a drink." " You've been hogging the whiskey, Angelo." " Not me, buddy." "It's that Sandra." "She's a nice girl, but she drinks like a fish." "I hope there's a cop under that." "Keep pouring'." "Keep pouring'." "No, thanks." "I don't drink." "I think it's a weakness." "I grant you that." "I don't like weakness." "Do you?" "No, I don't like weakness, but I like to drink." "Hey, what are you gonna do, marry this guy?" "You're grinning' at him like you're his wife." "Get out of here." "Okay, okay." "I'm goin'." "Back to old long-legged Sandra." "I love 'em tall." "Acres and acres." "Enjoy yourself, paisan." "You need this more than I do." "Tomorrow, you'll be back with the treatment." "What does he mean?" "Hey, that was nice before, the way you snuggled up in front of him." "What's a "treatment"?" "Oh, some of the guys putting' me over the jumps 'cause I don't want to fight." "Fight?" "Yeah, on a boxing team." "I don't want to box." "I don't even want to think about it." "Well, why should you have to box?" "Well, see, I used to fight." "Middleweight." "And I was pretty good." "They know it." "Well, anyway..." "Well, come on, tell me." "I want to hear." "Well, the thing is, see..." "I used to work out with this guy Dixie Wells." "He was a real good friend of mine." "Loved to box." "People on the outside had their eye on him." "He was gonna come out of the army and go right up to the top." "Well, one afternoon, he and I were sparring around in the gym, you know, kind of friendly-like, and he must have been set pretty flat on his feet, because I caught him with a..." "No more than ordinary right cross..." "And he didn't get up, he didn't move." "He was in a coma for a week, and finally he did pull out of it." "Only the thing was that he was blind." "Well, I went to see him at the hospital a couple of times, then, finally, I just couldn't go back." "The last time, he and I started talking about fighting, and..." "He started to cry." "And seeing tears coming out of those eyes that couldn't see anything." "I thought I oughta tell you." "Holmes spoke to his boxers last night." "From now on, it's no holds barred." "They aim to run you right into the stockade if they got to." "Let 'em." "I'll help you as much as I can, but I can't get too far out on a limb." "I ain't risking' losing my stripes." "I like this outfit." "So do I. That's funny, ain't it?" "Yeah." "Yeah, that is funny." "Keep goin' in a straight line, Prewitt." "Keep goin'!" "All right, that's enough." "Okay, Prewitt, bury it." "My hitch was up Monday" "Not a dog soldier no more" "I ain't a soldier no more" "They gave me all that money" "So much my pockets is sore" "Oh, my pockets is sore" "Yeah, that a boy!" "More dough than I can use" "Reenlistment blues" "Sing it, boys!" "Time!" "Clean up the mess, Prewitt!" "Hurry it up!" "You're on fatigue detail, not a vacation!" " Come on!" "Clean it up!" " Clean it up yourself!" "What?" "You heard me." "Rub your own nose in it a while." "Prewitt, you know better than to talk back to a noncommissioned officer?" "Yes, sir." "But I've never liked being spit on, sir, not even by a noncommissioned officer." "You owe Sergeant Galovitch an apology." "I don't think so, sir." "I think Sergeant Galovitch owes me an apology." " Corporal Peluso?" " Yes, sir?" "Have this man roll a full field pack, extra shoes and helmet, take a bicycle and hike him up to Kolekole Pass and back, then bring him to me." " Yes, sir." " All right, Prewitt, let's go." "Time!" "Hold it a minute." "Go ahead, Prewitt, and have a cigarette." "I don't like this any more than you do." "Thanks." "I take it you're ready to apologize to Sergeant Galovitch now?" "No, sir, I'm not." "Peluso, take him up there again." "Yes, sir." "All right, Prewitt, let's go." "You can't be decent to a man like that." "You have to treat him like an animal." "Sergeant, prepare court-martial papers." "Insubordination to a noncommissioned officer." "Yes, sir." " Only it's a shame." " What is?" "Well, I was just thinking, sir, It's too bad you've gotta lose a good middleweight." "I don't care." "I don't have to stand for that kind of insolence." "No, sir, you sure don't." "I'll prepare the papers, then." "The only trouble is that even if he gets just three months, he'll still be in the stockade when the boxing finals come up." "Do you see any other way of breaking him?" "Well, you could double up on company punishment, sir." "All right." "I'll throw the book at him." "Yes, sir, if you think that's the way to do it." "Nice goin', Sarge." "Keep lookin', Mazzioli, you'll find yourself scrubbing' this orderly room floor!" "Comin' through!" "Watch it!" "Me and my waiters are working our tails off." "Hot!" "Hot!" "H-O-T!" "How you doing, buddy boy?" "Better than being thrown in the stockade, ain't it?" "How am I doing, Sarge?" "I'm a rough man, man." "Slow up a little there, Angelo, so you can stop sweating in the food." "Don't hold me back, Sarge." "Don't hold me back." "I'm putting in for corporal tomorrow." "Well, you'll never make it." " Hiya, Sarge." " Hiya, Top." "Life in a rifle company." "You look awful tired, kid." "How do you like straight duty?" " What makes you think I mind it, Warden?" " I didn't say you minded it." "I just said you looked tired." "You know, drawn to a fine edge." "Oh, I like this life." "It's a great life." "If I find a pearl, I'll cut you in." "Fifty-fifty." "You know what I mean?" "If you didn't put me here, I'd have no chance to find it, right?" "Now, there's a man for you." "What do you know?" "Since you like it so much, I'll see if I can find some more for you." "How about garbage detail?" "Thanks." "I had that on Wednesday." "So you did." "What about street cleaning?" " Yesterday." " You got a better memory than me." "Of course, if you were smart..." "Yeah, but I ain't smart." "I know, but if you were, you wouldn't have to pull K.P., or any other fatigue duty, for that matter." "If you think you can bribe me into boxing, Warden, you're wrong." "You're wrong." "Not you and Dynamite Holmes and the treatment." "How long are you guys gonna keep breaking it off on that kid Prewitt?" "You've had him on that extra duty roster a month already." " I can't see why you..." " Can't you, Pete?" "What's the matter, you getting soft in your old age?" "Maybe I want to teach the kid a lesson." " Maybe you like it." " Maybe I do." "I'm getting sick and tired watching you being a stooge for Holmes." "Yeah, well, you ain't gonna see it much longer." "I'm getting sick and tired of it myself." "I'm through, Pete." "Any day now, and I mean it!" "Listen, if Holmes would let me, I'd transfer out of here tomorrow." "There's half a dozen companies in this regiment that'd grab me." " And in grade, too." " Oh, sure." "I could be chief of staff, too, only I just can't think of leaving my old buddies." "Where are you going, Little Sir Echo?" "To take my shower, if the stinking First Sergeant has no objections." "Where'd you think?" "To the movies in this towel?" "Hurry up." "We'll get some beer." "I wouldn't drink with you if it was the last beer in the world." "I'm buying." "That's different." "Wow!" "Rose." "You know why I like to have you serve me beer?" "So's I can watch you when you walk away." "It's in regulations." "You got a right to complain." "You got a right to take your case to the inspector general." "Any soldier has, even a plain dogface." "No." "I ain't gonna complain." "They ain't gonna get that satisfaction." "Believe it or not, this is one soldier that's got a real big family." "Fifteen of 'em, 'course this is only half of them." "You see the gentleman with the handlebars?" "That's Mr. Maggio." "Mr. Maggio is my father." "Never saw anybody so stubborn." "How long is it since they let you go into town?" " Six weeks." " It's liable to be six years." "How'd you like it, six years before you see a dame?" "Look, why don't you just mind your own business, huh?" "And where did you learn to play the bugle?" "That's my buddy boy!" "Who's the broad?" "My sister." "Maggio, what are you doin'?" " You hit me!" " Yeah, and I'm about to do it again, too." " Why, you dirty wop!" " If you want to fight, take it outside!" "I'm gonna cut this wop's heart out." "Anybody steps in here, I give it to him first." "One step further, Fatso, and I'm gonna de-brain you." "I'll kill..." "Nobody's gonna do nothin'!" "Anybody does any killing around here, I'll do it!" " This is a private affair, Warden." " No, it ain't!" "This man's in my company!" "You ain't making two extra weeks' paperwork for me for nothing." "Out for blood, huh?" "You'd puke your guts out at the sight of a dead man." "Put down that stool." "Put it down!" "Drop that knife." "Okay, Fatso, if it's killing you want, come on." "Well, come on." "On the floor!" "Killers, huh?" "I'd trade the pair of you for a good Camp Fire girl." "Tough monkey." "Guys like you end up in the stockade sooner or later." "Someday you'll walk in, I'll be waiting." "I'll show you a couple of things." "I'm gonna get a breath of air." "I'm glad he stopped it." "He's a good man." "You keep it." "Keep it for a souvenir." "Okay, I'll keep it." "You ain't enjoying life much, are you, kid?" "Prewitt." "Could you stand a weekend pass?" "Could I..." "What about Holmes?" "Don't worry about Holmes." "He signs anything I put in front of him without reading it." "Sure could use it." "I hear you gone dippy over some dame down at the New Congress Club." " What'd you say her name was?" " Lorene." "Beautiful name." "Hey, paisan!" "What's holding you up?" "Let's get going?" "What's the matter, buddy boy?" "Don't you like it here?" "You got something better to do in town?" "Look, the bus is leaving right away." "I'm taking the bus, right?" "Take off." "You're talking to a rich man." "I'll hop a taxi." "I'll meet you at the Kalakaua, later." "Maggio, get ready for guard." "Campaign hat, cartridge belt and weapon." "Report to the orderly room in 10 minutes." "What?" "I got a pass!" "Not anymore." "Anderson's sick." "You're on guard." "I just had guard yesterday." "Why me?" "I'll tell you why you." "You should've gotten dressed faster." "I sure never figured in your giving me the runaround." " They didn't even want to let me in this place." " We're mobbed, that's why." "There's a big crowd from Hickam Field, and they got in here first." "Anyway, what'd you expect, a brass band to meet you?" " No." "I did think you'd want to see me." " I'm busy, can't you see?" " Yes, I can see." "It's crowded." " Well, I am." "Look, Maggio's gonna be at the Kalakaua Inn later." "Ain't there no way you can get out of here?" "What's the matter with you?" "I work here, you know, after all." "Can't you understand?" "Yes, I do." "I understand." "I understand very well." "You haven't been around here in weeks, and now you turn up all of a sudden and..." "Watch it, Mack!" "Watch where you're going!" "Come on out of here." "Don't you think Mrs. Kipfer has rules?" "I can't just walk out." "And even if I could, she doesn't like us to see the boys on the outside." "Look, if you feel that way, just forget about it, okay?" "You haven't any claims on me, Mister." " You're not my husband, you know." " There you are, Lorene." "I vastly admire your taste, my dear, but we really need Lorene now." "So many of the gentlemen are unattended." "It is such a rush, isn't it?" " Yeah." " One might almost mistake us..." "For one of those big political conventions in Philadelphia." " You are coming, Lorene?" " In a minute." " I'm sorry." " How do you think I feel?" "I may not get another pass for months." "I've been counting on this like a kid counts on Christmas." "But forget it." "Forget it." "Lorene's busy." "Lorene has got work to do." "Lorene's sorry." "Oh, stop calling me Lorene!" "My name's Alma!" " Alma?" " Yes, Alma Burke!" "Alma?" "Mrs. Kipfer picked "Lorene" out of a perfume ad." "She thought it sounded French." "Hey, how'd you get away?" "I told Mrs. Kipfer I was sick." " But I bet she doesn't believe it." " I bet she doesn't." " What'll you have?" " A coke, please." "Yeah, give her a Coke." "Big Coke." "It's great you meeting me here, you know?" "See, I'm just lucky getting in town." " Topkick gave me a break." " They still pouring it on?" "Holmes and those others, they really got me on the edge." " Gee, you must hate the army." " No, I don't hate the army." "But look what it's doing to you." "I love the army." "But it sure doesn't love you." "A man loves a thing, that don't mean it's gotta love him back." "Yeah, but a person can stand just so much." "You love a thing, you've got to be grateful." "See, I left home when I was 17." "Both my folks is dead, and I didn't belong no place till I entered the army." "If it weren't for the army, I wouldn't have learned how to bugle." " To bugle?" " Yeah." "That's the mouthpiece that I used when I played a Taps at Arlington." "They picked me to play a Taps at Arlington cemetery on Armistice Day." "The president was there." "I play the bugle well." "Hello, citizens!" " Hey, where you been?" " Hi, pals." "I've been in three bars, and I put a dent in all three of them." " Yeah, you look it." " Give me a nail, Prew." "I'm hungry for a nail." "What you doing in uniform?" "I'm thinking of joining the army." "Or maybe I'll go to Mexico and become a cowboy." "You want to go with me?" "You keep on drinking, you'll be as much use as a melted candle." "You're absolutely right." "Bartender, whiskey!" "Large whiskey." "Excuse me." "Hey, buddy." "Sam!" "Hey, comin' out, fellas." "The terror of Gimbel's basement." "Stand back there, now." "Here we go." "A seven for daddy." "Five, deuce." "Hey, seven." "Snake eyes." "That's the story of my life." "Hey, Prew, that's the Royal Hawaiian Hotel around the corner." "That's where all those movie stars stay." "Listen, paisan, you'd better simmer down." "You got a whole weekend ahead of you." " That's what you say, buddy." " What do you mean?" " They only gave you an overnight pass?" " No pass." "No pass at all." "They put me on guard duty, but old Angelo, he foxed 'em." "You walked off guard?" "I checked in, and I checked right out again." "You get your tail right back to the post." "You're in trouble." "You know that." "Hey, hey, Prew, Prew, I got a good idea." "Let's go swimmin'!" "We'll go swimming with a movie star." "That's what I'm gonna do, go swim with a movie star!" "Listen, Angelo..." "Twenty feet tall!" "I'm going swimming' with a movie star." "You'd better go." "Hey, Angelo." "Jerk, get up." "Wake up." "I'm awake, I'm awake." "What are you hollering?" "Yeah, you're awake." "Put your clothes on, all right?" "Give them back to the Indians." "The Indians need the clothes." "All they wear is G-strings." "You ain't drunk." "Come on, get up." "Hey, I am waiting here for a movie star to come out of the hotel, and I am not going until she shows up." "Put your clothes on." "Let's get out of here before we get in trouble, okay?" "What's the matter with you?" "Can't a man get drunk?" "Can't a man do nothin'?" "Can't he put his lousy hands in his lousy pockets on a lousy street?" "A man gotta be hounded all his life?" "Well, I'm tired." "I ain't no criminal." " I ain't no coward!" " Buddy boy, look." "You get dressed, you put your clothes on." " Will you wait for me?" "I'll get a cab." " Yeah, yeah, sure." " Will you wait?" " Yeah, you get a cab." "Hey, M.P.s!" "Come and get me, you guys!" "Here I am!" "Is that the best you can do?" "I bet you guys eat Wheaties!" "Any word on Maggio's court-martial yet?" " It's on right now." " He'll get the stockade sure." "Maybe he won't get it." "All he did was to get drunk." "It's a soldier's nature." "It's almost his sacred duty once in a while." "But he walked off guard." "He went A.W.O.L." " What're you hanging around here for?" " Can't a man rest?" "What man?" "You got no work?" "Maybe I can scare you up some." "Go on and shoot some pool." "Any word comes through, I'll let you know." "Company "G." First Sergeant Warden speaking." "Yes, sir." "Yes, sir, I'll have his things in order." "He got it." "Six months." "I'm gonna escape from this dump." "Gimbel's basement couldn't hold me, neither can no lousy stockade." " Shut up." " Whatever you say, Brownie." "Prisoner, halt!" "Hello, tough monkey." "This other girl and I were lucky to rent it." "This is a very fashionable district." "I have another key made for you." "You can use it any time you want to, even when I'm not here." " Hi." " Hi." "This is Prew, the soldier I told you about." " This is Georgette, my roommate." " Well, welcome, friend." "There hasn't been a man around the house since the cat died." "I belong to the Book Guild Club." "I always take every book." "That's the way I get all the dividends." "She'll be great for your friend Maggio when he gets out of the stockade." "Yes, he'll be crazy about her." "Just sit down and get comfortable." "I'll make you a martini and see what's to cook for dinner." "Hey, this is like being married, ain't it?" "It's better." "You okay?" "Glad you came?" "Let's get out of here." "Don't look around." "It can't go on like this much longer." "Even when we sneaked clear across the island tonight, we had to run out like jailbirds." "If there was only some way we..." "Holmes would probably give you a divorce, but he'd never let me transfer out of his outfit." "There is a way." "I've been thinking about it." "You've got to become an officer." "You can take the new extension course, the one they passed last May." "When you get your commission, they'd ship you back to the States." "An officer?" "Yes." "Then I could divorce Dana and marry you." "I hate officers!" "I've always hated officers!" "Well, that's a fine, intelligent point of view." "Suppose I said I always hated sergeants?" "That'd make a lot of sense, wouldn't it?" "You sure made a complete study of it." "Okay, suppose I did it." "And don't think it's a cinch." "Then you'd be getting your divorce here while I was in the States." "We'd be apart maybe six months." "We're sure to be into a war by then." "Why don't you tell the truth?" "You just don't want the responsibility." "You're probably not even in love with me." "You're crazy!" "I wish I didn't love you!" "Maybe I could enjoy life again." "So they were married and lived unhappily ever after." "I've never been so miserable in my life as I have since I met you." "Neither have I." "I wouldn't trade a minute of it." "Neither would I." "I'll probably make the lousiest officer in this man's army you ever saw." "You'll make a fine officer." "A remarkable officer." "Thank you." "Come here." "Can't you wait until we finish dinner?" " Honey?" " What?" "I want to marry you." "You're a funny one." "Why?" "Why is it funny if a guy wants to marry you?" "Because I'm a girl you met at the New Congress Club." "That's about two steps up from the pavement." "Well, what am I?" "I'm a private no-class dogface." "The way most civilians look at that, that's two steps up from nothing." "Prew, I thought we were happy." "Why do you want to spoil things?" "Look, I've got a year to go before I reenlist." "If I can swing sergeant's stripes by then, they'll let me go back to the States." "Then you and I can go back there together, if you'll wait." "How do you expect to become a sergeant under that Captain Holmes of yours?" "It's all you can do to keep out of the stockade." "I'll fight." " No, you're not gonna fight." " It'd be worth it." "Prew, it's true we love each other now, we need each other," "but back in the States, it might be different." "That ain't the real reason." " All right, it's not." " What is the real reason?" "I won't marry you, because I don't want to be the wife of a soldier." "Well, that would be about the best I could ever do for you." "Because nobody's gonna stop me from my plan." "Nobody." "Nothing." "Because I want to be proper." " Proper?" " Yes, proper." "In another year, I'll have enough money saved, and then I'm gonna go back to my hometown in Oregon, and I'm gonna build a house for my mother and myself, and join the country club and take up golf." "And I'll meet the proper man with the proper position, and make a proper wife who can run a proper home and raise proper children." "And I'll be happy because when you're proper, you're safe." "You got guts, honey." "I hope you can pull it off." "I do mean it when I say I need you, 'cause I'm lonely." "You think I'm lying, don't you?" "Nobody ever lies about being lonely." "And don't talk to me about a divorce." "Why?" "Because the scandal would spoil your chances for a promotion?" "I ask you once more." "I want to know who he is and where you met him." "I'm not going to tell you." "One thing I know." "I know he's a civilian." "You'd be too discreet to pick an army man." "I wonder which is hurt more, your pride or your curiosity?" "You can't expect to know how I feel about a thing like this." "I wonder why men feel so differently about it than women." "It's just not the same." "It's a lovely day." "I think I'll go for a walk." "Hey." "I hear you just got out of the stockade." "It was rugged." "I kept my mouth shut, and I didn't get in no trouble." "Did you see Maggio?" "Fatso's really got it in for Maggio." "He's using a billy, too." "Places where it won't show, in the back, in the chest." "He's got it down to a system." "He kicks him a lot, too." "You know how Maggio's taking it?" "He just keeps spitting' in Fatso's eye." "Ain't he a hot one?" "He's a good man." "Well, Fatso can't make a dent in him." "But that Fatso, he's smart." "He makes sure the O.D. never sees nothing." "Why doesn't Maggio go to the O.D. himself?" "We tried to get him to, but he won't peep." "That boy's about the toughest nut in the woods." "You think he's gonna be all right, huh?" " Well, maybe he's cracking, at that." " What do you mean?" "After Fatso threw him in the hole, that's solitary, he started talking a couple of times about how he's gonna escape." "He said to tell you he'll look you up one of these nights." "Still on your knees, huh, Prewitt?" "Well, boxing finals next month." "December 15th." "You've still got time to help us win the championship." "Are you proud to be in this company or not?" "I ain't gonna move around you again." "Something tells me you need a lesson, Prewitt." "Maybe I'll give it to you myself." "Come on, leave him alone, Ike." "He's in my detail now." "You're gonna get in trouble if you fight around here." " Get back to work, Prew." " Get out of the way!" "I'll be glad to put my recommendation on that, Warden." "You've got service, experience, grade." " You'll make an excellent officer." " Thank you, sir." "It'd be a feather in my cap, too." "A man from my company." "At ease." "What's the trouble, Sergeant?" "They're fighting outside, sir." "Galovitch and Prewitt." "Prewitt?" "Galovitch looks like he's gonna murder him, sir." "I'll take care of it." " Don't you want to see?" " No!" "Nor you, either!" "Get out of here!" "Why don't Prew go for his head?" "He blinded a guy once." "Must be scared of the same thing." "The face, Prew!" "Hit him in the face!" " Come on, Galovitch, fight fair!" " I'll fight any way I want!" "Come on, Prew!" "Get him!" "Why doesn't that officer stop that fight?" " What's his name, Major?" " Captain Holmes, sir." "Ten-hut!" "At ease." "What started this?" "Prewitt refused order I gave him, talked back and started a fight." "I taught him a lesson." "You won't disobey any more orders in my company, Prewitt." "Sir, I'm sorry, sir, but Private Prewitt's not to blame, Sergeant Galovitch started it." " Thornhill." " Yes, sir." "You're in charge of this detail." "What about it?" "He's right, sir." "Prewitt done nothing." "Yes, sir." "Galovitch started it." "That's all." "Let's forget it." "Let's get back to our jobs." "All right, back to work." "Let's go." "Break it up." "If you guys think this means I'm stepping into a ring, you're wrong." "You'd better put some iodine on them cuts." "Took my dough to town Tuesday" "Found me a big feather bed" "Oh, a big feather bed A big double bed" "I'll find a job tomorrow" "Tonight I'll sleep like I'm dead" "I'm gonna sleep like I'm dead" "And get up when I choose" "Reenlistment blues" "Hey, Friday." " Why are you called Friday?" " I don't know." "But I was born on a Wednesday." "I hit the bars Wednesday" "Made me some friends on my own" "Lotta friends on my own" "Found a pretty baby" "She couldn't leave me alone" "Oh, leave me alone" "She kept me buyin' booze" "Reenlistment blues" "Reenlistment blues" "I had the misery Thursday" "The walls was movin' I swear" "Oh, they was movin' I swear" "I reached down in my trousers" "And all my pockets was bare" "That gal was sure bad news" "Reenlistment blues" "Hey, Prewitt, where you going?" "What do you mean, where am I going?" "I'm going to Choy's." "I'm gonna get me another beer." "My hitch was up Monday" "Not a dog soldier no more" "I ain't a soldier no more" "Halt!" " Who goes there?" " A friend." "Advance, friend, and be recognized!" "Ten-hut!" "Right face!" "Rear face!" "On your knees!" "Scrub the floor!" "At ease." "Hello, kid." "What are you doing out here all by yourself?" " I'm gonna get a little drink." " Sit down." "I got a bottle." "Thanks, Top." "I gotta hand it to you, kid, the way you beat up old Galovitch this afternoon." "Too bad they gotta get you sooner or later." "Life's crummy, you know it?" "Yes, sir, it's miserable." "Perfectly miserable." "What do you suppose would happen, if a truck was to come along and run us over?" " We'd be dead." " You'd better not sit here anymore." "You'd better get up and sit over on the side of the road." "What?" "What do you mean, I better?" "You've got more to live for than I do." "You got your whole company to take care of." "You move over, move over to the other side of the road." " Go on." " I'm older!" "It don't matter if I die." "But you got your whole life ahead of you." "Now, don't argue." " Go on, get up." " No, sir, not Prewitt." "Prewitt stays right here to the bitter end." "Okay, we'll stay together." "I don't..." "I couldn't have got up anyway." "I got the biggest troubles in the whole world." "In the whole world, huh?" "Take love." "Did you personally ever see any of this love?" "You'll understand what I mean." "This girl, see, she wants me to become..." " Become what?" " An officer." "Can you see me as an officer?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I can see you as an officer." " You'd be a good officer." " Well, you both can see more than I can see." "I don't wanna be an officer." "I'm happy where I am." "I might turn out to be a guy like Holmes." "You wouldn't want me to be a guy like Holmes, would you?" "Well, would you?" "A man should be what he can do." "How's your girl?" "What's her name again?" " Lorene." " Oh, yeah, Lorene." "I remember now." "A beautiful name." "Beautiful." "You two dumb, crazy screwballs!" "What are you trying to do, get yourself killed?" "What are you doing in the middle of the road?" "My friend Prew and I, sittin' here discussing' the weather." " Your friend, huh?" " You heard me." "Don't you know you gotta take care of this man?" "Holmes is bound to get him sooner or later." "And he's the best stinkin' soldier in the whole army." "You both got rocks in your head." "Angelo, Angelo." "I figured you'd be here at Choy's." "I done it, Prew." "I escaped, just like I said." "Just like I figured." "In the back of a truck, under a tarp." "They rode me right out, just like I figured." "Only the tailgate opened up, Prew, about a mile back, and I fell out in the road." "You should've seen me bounce." "I must've broke something." "Prew." "Prew, listen." "Fatso done it, Prew." "He likes to whack me in the gut." "He asks me if it hurts, and I spit at him like always." "Only yesterday, it was bad." "He hit me, he hit me, he hit me." "I had to get out, Prew." "I had to get out." "Buddy, buddy." "They gonna send you to the stockade, Prew?" "No, they ain't gonna send me to the stockade." "Watch out for Fatso." "Watch out for Fatso." "He'll try to crack you." "And if they put you in the hole, don't yell." "Don't make a sound." "You'll still be yelling when they come to take you out." "Just lay there." "Just lay there and be quiet, Prew." "He's dead." "I'll betcha that's Prewitt." "Sergeant Judson?" "You want me?" "Yeah, Fatso." "I don't like that nickname." "You want to see me about something?" "Let's step around the corner where we can talk." "Okay." " Are you sore about something?" " I don't like the way you play the piano." " Remember Maggio?" " Oh, the wop?" "Yeah, a real tough monkey." " You killed him." " Did I?" "Well, if I did, he asked for it." "The army's gonna get you sooner or later, Fatso." "But before they do, I want a piece of you myself." "I figured that." "See this knife?" "It's the one you pulled on Maggio." "Prew!" "What's..." "Prew!" "It's all right." "Don't worry, don't worry." "I ain't gonna die." "First platoon all present and accounted for!" "Second platoon all present and accounted for!" "First platoon all present and accounted for!" "Second platoon all present and accounted for!" "Third platoon all present and accounted for!" "First platoon all present and accounted for!" "Company dismissed!" "Prewitt's still absent." "Makes three days now." "How long are you gonna carry him present, Top?" " I just mention it." " Well, don't mention it." ""Upon observing these incidents," ""an investigation was made by the Inspector General's department" ""over a period of several months." ""It was found that Captain Holmes has been guilty of indefensible cruelty" ""to the aforesaid Private Prewitt." ""As mentioned, this included the instigation of wholly unauthorized tactics" ""to force the soldier to join the inter-regiment boxing team."" "I'm waiting for your reply." "I haven't any, sir." "Holmes, the first thing I learned in the army was that an officer takes care of his men." "It seems to be the first thing that you forgot." "My only regret is that we have to keep you in uniform until a court-martial is concluded." "If there were any way to avoid a court-martial, sir." "There is one alternative, General, if you are so disposed." "A resignation for the good of the service, under army regulations." "Write a letter of resignation." "Have it on my desk this afternoon." "As far as I'm concerned, the quicker you're out of the army, the better for everybody, especially the army." "That's all, Holmes." "I know what's been going on in this outfit." "I know how far some of you have been out of line." "If you want to remain noncoms, you'd better snap into it." "And another thing, from now on, no man's gonna earn his stripes by boxing." " Get rid of those." " Yes, sir." "Dismissed." " About Sergeant Galovitch." " Yes, sir." "Bust him." "Sergeant Galovitch is now Private Galovitch." "Put him in charge of the latrine." "What are you grinning at?" "I think the company commander made a wise decision, sir." "Company "G," Captain Ross." " Just a minute." "It's for you, Sergeant." " Thank you, sir." "Yes, sir?" "Yes, the parcel has already arrived." "What?" "I've got to see you, Milt." "It's important." "Okay, I'll get away somehow." "Sure, that'd be fine." "Yeah." "I'll be there in about an hour." "Right." "He's being sent back to the States." "He's sailing next week." "He wants me to go with him." "What'll we do?" "When do you think you'll get your commission?" "I didn't put it in." "I filled it out, but I didn't sign it." "I took it out of my desk a dozen times, but I couldn't sign it." "Why?" "But it was the plan." " I know, I know." " It's been weeks." "You can't just say you'll do a thing and then not do it." "Karen, listen to me." "But why didn't you do it?" "Why didn't you tell me?" "Be back in a minute." "I'm sorry." "I thought you were somebody else." "I thought it was a guy from our company, Prewitt, the kid I was telling you about." "The one that got mixed up with one of the girls at the New Congress Club." "He's A.W.O.L. Probably in lots of trouble." "Robert E. Lee Prewitt, a crazy, no good..." "Karen, I'm no officer." "I'm an enlisted man." "I can't be anything else." "If I try to be an officer, I'll be putting on an act." "I just can't do it." "Please don't ask me why." "I know why." "You don't have to become an officer now, Milt, now that Dana's out of the army." "You just don't want to marry me." "You're already married to the army." "I love you, Karen." "I know." "I know." "I don't want you to go back to Holmes." "I don't want to either, but I am." "There's nothing else for me to do." "It's no good with us, Milt." "It could never have been any good." "Hiding and sneaking." "It had to wear out." "Goodbye, Sergeant." " Thanks." " It ain't goodbye." "It's..." "We'll see each other again somewhere." "Of course we will." "Somewhere." "Here it is." "Got it on an inside page already." ""Still no clue in the fatal stabbing of Staff Sergeant James R. Judson."" "Did you hear me?" " Trying to set a new world's record?" " Yeah." "Yeah, as a matter of fact, I am." "To the memory of Robert E. Lee Prewitt, holder of the new world's record." " Everything all right, Top?" " Great." "This is a beautiful meal to put in front of a guy on a Sunday morning." "Congratulations." " Sure look pretty over them mountains." " Don't they, though?" "Sounds like they're dynamiting down at Wheeler Field." "Mighty ambitious, huh?" "Sunday morning before 8:00?" "The Japs are bombing Wheeler Field!" "I seen the red circles on the..." "Come on, get inside!" "Hurry up!" "Go!" "This is a real attack, not a maneuver." "The Japanese are bombing Pearl Harbor." "Please keep in your homes." "Do not go on the streets." "This is a real attack." "Japanese planes are bombing our naval and army installations." "All right, all right, you guys, quiet down." "Quiet!" "Quiet down!" "Noncoms, get B.A.R.s and ammunition from the supply room." " Get up on the roof." "Henderson." " Right here, Sarge." "You're in charge of the loading detail." "Get moving." "Wilson, Dole, let's go." "The rest of you men, listen to me." "I want every man to get his rifle, go to his bunk and stay there." "And I mean stay there!" "Shut up!" "You'll get your ears shot off if you go outside." "You wanna be heroes, you'll get plenty of chances." "There'll probably be Japs in your lap before night." "Now get moving." "We're wasting time." "Hey, come on." "Hurry up." "Wait." "Into the kitchen and make a pot of coffee." " Wait a minute." "A barrel of coffee!" " Right, Sarge!" "I don't care." "I can't issue any live ammunitions without a signed order from an officer." " But the captain ain't here, you jerk!" " I'm sorry." " No order, no ammo." " What's the matter, Leva?" "I got my orders!" "Army regulations say that I can't give out..." "What's the matter, are you blind?" "Give me them keys!" "I obey my orders, Top." "Okay, I'll see you get a medal!" "Bust it down, boys!" "I warned ya!" "Don't go out there, Warden!" "You'll get killed!" "Put your pants on." "You'll catch cold!" "Give him a hand with this ammo." "Put that stuff over there." "Watch your fire, boys, and lead those planes!" "Friday's gone crazy!" "He's blowing the cavalry charge!" "Here they come, boys!" "You got him, Pete!" "You got him!" "I got him?" "The danger of an invasion continues to exist." "Infantry units from Schofield Barracks moved out within a few hours and have manned beach positions." "This is no maneuver." "This is the real McCoy." "Look out for falling shrapnel." "Keep under cover." "Blackout and curfew restrictions will be rigidly enforced." "Stay in your homes." "Don't use the telephone." "Rest assured that immediate relay to you..." "Prew!" "We've been to Queen's Hospital giving blood." "The town's a madhouse." "There's a big house bombed out on Kuhio Street." "And the drugstore down on McCully and King is smashed flat." " Man and his wife were killed." " Your attention, please." "Listen to this carefully and keep calm." "The danger of an invasion continues to exist, and the planes have been identified as Japanese." "Who do they think they're fighting?" "They're picking trouble with the best army in the world." "Where are you going?" "I gotta get back." "I gotta get back to the company." " The company?" "But why?" " Why?" "But you can't." "You're not well yet." "Besides, you're A.W.O.L. They'll throw you in the stockade." "They'll be throwing them out of the stockade." " They need every guy they can get." " But your side'll open up." "They'll find out it was you who killed that soldier." "Once I report in to the company, they'll take care of me." "I'll be all right once I get back." "But you'll never make it!" "There's patrols all over!" "I'll make it." "I know a shortcut." "Prew, stay till morning." "Maybe if you stay till morning, you'll change your mind." "Oh, Prew, don't go!" "I'll do anything you want." "We can go back to the States together." "We can even get married." "If you go now, I'll never see you again, I know it." "I'm sorry." "What do you want to go back to the army for?" "What did the army ever do for you besides treat you like dirt and give you one awful going-over and get your friend killed?" "What do you want to go back to the army for?" "What do I want to go back to the army for?" "I'm a soldier." "A soldier?" "A soldier?" "A regular!" "From the regular army!" "A 30-year man!" "I gotta turn off the lights 'cause of the blackout outside." "They say they've seen parachutists land up in the hills." "I ain't worried about them." "Saboteurs is what worries me." "Yeah." "I bet they're operating all over these islands." "Halt!" "Halt!" "Halt!" "My hitch was up Monday" "Not a dog soldier no more" "Soldier no more" "They give me all that money" "So much my pockets is sore" "Do you know this man, Sergeant?" "Yes, sir." "He didn't have any regular identification." "They found a card on him with his name." "Seems to be a membership in a club." " The New Congress Club." " Yes, sir." "You'd better take care of these, Sergeant." " Was this man a friend of yours?" " Yes, sir." "He must've been trying to reach our company position up the beach here." "Then why didn't he halt?" "He was always a hardhead, sir, but he was a good soldier." "He loved the army more than any soldier I ever knew." "I see." "I'm sorry, Sergeant." "You just couldn't play it smart, could you?" "All you had to do was box." "But no, not you, you hardhead." "Funny thing is, there ain't gonna be any boxing championships this year." "What's the matter with you?" "Ain't you ever seen a dead man?" "Let's get this body outta here!" "We ain't got all night!" "It's very beautiful, isn't it?" "I think it's the most beautiful place I ever saw in my life." "I can almost see where I worked from here." "There's a legend." "If they float in toward shore, you'll come back someday." "If they float out to sea, you won't." "I won't come back." "You see, my fiancé was killed on December 7th." "Oh, I'm sorry." "He was a bomber pilot." "He tried to taxi his plane to the edge of the apron, and the Japs made a direct hit on it." "Maybe you read about it in the papers." "He was awarded the silver star." "They sent it to his mother." "She wrote me she wanted me to have it." "That's very fine of her." "They're very fine people." "Southern people." "He was named after a general." "Robert E. Lee Prewitt." "Who?" "Robert E. Lee Prewitt." "Isn't that a silly old name?"