"¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Say there, stop that yawning ¶" "¶ A brand-new day is dawning ¶" "¶ Pull up the shade, and let the sun come through ¶" "¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Spend about an hour ¶" "¶ Underneath the shower ¶" "¶ And keep on singin' like the birdies do ¶" "¶ Ho-hum, ho-hum ¶" "¶ While you're waiting for your toast ¶" "¶ Call the one you love the most ¶" "¶ Pick up the phone and start in saying ¶" "¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Were you dreaming of me ¶" "¶ And do you still love me ¶" "¶ Well, baby, here's a kiss for you ¶" "¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Say there, stop that yawning ¶" "¶ A brand-new day is dawning ¶" "¶ Pull up the shade, and let the sun come through ¶" "¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Spend about an hour ¶" "¶ Underneath the shower ¶" "¶ And keep on singin' like the birdies do ¶" "¶ Ho-hum, ho-hum ¶" "¶ While you're waiting for your toast ¶" "¶ Call the one you love the most ¶" "¶ Pick up the phone and start in saying ¶" "¶ Good morning, glory ¶" "¶ Were you dreaming of me ¶" "¶ And do you still love me ¶" "¶ Well, baby, here's a kiss for you ¶¶" "Plie... and 2... 3... 4..." "Elbows up." "And 2... 3... open, 4." "And pile... 2... 3... open, and..." "The crowd is hushed at Yankee Stadium..." "The House that Ruth Built..." "As the early autumn shadows... cast itself over the right field fence." "The flags flap wildly in the breeze." "As we move into the top of the seventh inning, with one strike on JoJo Moore," "Red Ruffing pitches." "I thought it was a gunshot." "Yeah, I'll give him a gunshot." "One out, a man on second, top of the seventh, two strikes on JoJo Moore." "What did I tell you about banging the ball?" "Aunt Blanche has a headache." "I can't stop." "It's a crucial moment in World Series history." "The Yanks are playing the Giants." "I'm not gonna tell you again!" "Do you hear me?" "I don't want him to stop playing." "It's just the banging." "He always does it when I'm studying." "One more pitch." "I can get him to pop up." "I've got my stuff today." "Your father will give you his stuff when he gets home." "Get in here and put out the water glasses!" "Now!" "I'll put out the glasses." "Why, is his arm broken?" "I've told him 109 times about making noises." "[Bang]" "Don't yell on my account." "I'm through." "I got him out." "I knew I had my stuff." "Wash your hands." "They're clean." "I'm wearing a glove." "Don't talk back to me!" "I wasn't talking back, I was answering." "Who asked you anything?" "And don't answer under your breath when I walk away." "Oh, sh..." "What?" "I hear you!" "If they cut my ears off," "I would still hear her through my nose." "That's enough sewing for today." "All I need is for you to go blind." "[Cough]" "Is your throat sore again?" "No." "It's the same one from before." "What are you doing in there, Eugene?" ""What... are... you..." ""doing... in... there..." ""Eugene?" "She bellowed in her loud voice."" "Eugene!" "Eugene!" "I'm coming!" "I'm coming." "I hate my name." "Eugene Morris Jerome." "How will I ever play for the Yankees... with a name like that?" " [Boys Chattering]" " Yeah!" "Hey, catch the ball!" "[Eugene Narrating] You have to beJoe, Tony, or Frankie." "All the best Yankees are Italian." "My mother makes spaghetti with ketchup." "What chance do I have?" "[Sighs]" "Actually..." "I think I'm going to be a writer." "I want to write books or plays or movies." "[Narrating] That is, if things don't work out with the Yanks." "Yeah." "I'll definitely be a writer." "[Woman] Eugene?" "Eugene?" "Hello!" "Eugene!" "Oh, hello, Mrs. Laski." "I thought you promised... to help me clean out my basement." "Oh, I am, I am." "Not for nothing." "I'll give you something." "[Thinking] Is she thinking what I'm thinking?" "You have better color today, sweetheart." "Did you get a little sun?" "I walked down to the beach." "Very slowly, I hope." "Yes, Ma." "She always does what she's told, that one." "Eugene!" "Pick up those magazines." "[Narrating] She gets special treatment... because the doctors say she has a flutter in her heart." "So I have to do all her work." "She'd better have a bad heart, or I'm going to kill her one day." "What's this?" "Isn't it a roller skate?" "On the kitchen floor?" "I didn't leave it there." "No?" "Who skates in the kitchen, Laurie?" "Blanche?" "How many times have I told you... not to leave your things around the house?" "109." "What?" "You said yesterday," ""I told you 109 times, not to leave your things around the house. "" "Don't be fresh, Eugene." "Go upstairs." "Put it in the closet." "[Thinking] I'm putting all this down in my memoirs... so if I grow up twisted and warped, the world will know why." "Hi, Mr. Farber!" "Where you runnin'?" "I got the new Silver Screen." "I have to get home." "I've got the most incredible news." "I'll tell you tomorrow!" "What's this?" "My hockey puck." "On the kitchen floor." "I almost killed myself." "Suppose father came home, and I was dead on the kitchen floor?" "I'd say, "Don't go in the kitchen, Pa."" "Ooh!" "Hey, shoes on the bed." "That's bad luck in a Jewish house." "It's notJewish." "Italians built it." "You're looking to get it." "I need Swiss cheese." "Go to Greenblatt's." "Now?" "No." "Next year when I'm dead." "Tell him four thin slices." "You hear?" "Very thin!" "The kind you see through." "Don't forget the deposit on the empty milk bottle." "Don't climb so fast, sweetheart." "You'll get overheated." "Sid Luckman of Columbia awaits the snap from center." "The snow falls in a near blizzard." "He fades back." "He passes... and Luckman's got it!" "Luckman catches his own pass!" "Hey, watch it!" "He's on the 50..." "[Car Horn Honking]" "The 40..." "[Horn Honks]" "The 35... the 30... the 25..." "Oh, my God!" "Sorry, Eugene." "My mother will kill me." "It wasn't your fault." "She'll charge me for dessert tonight." "How much is the deposit?" "Three cents." "Here." "Here." "Here's a dime." "A dime?" "That was a great run." "Gee, thanks, Mr. Murphy." "Oh, uh... say hello to your Aunt Blanche for me, huh?" "I will." "He'll do anything to get in good with Aunt Blanche." "That's why I purposely dropped the bottle." "What am I gonna do about him, Blanche?" "I found lima beans in his closet." "They would've grown into a tree." "He'll grow out of it." "Think Nora's any better, the way she leaves her clothes around?" "Girls are different." "The day Mama left the house in Russia, she cleaned from top to bottom." "She said, when the Cossacks broke into her house," "[Together] "They would have respect for thejews."" "Who were the Cossacks?" "The same filthy bunch that lives across the street." "You mean the Murphys?" "All of them." "The mother is nice." "She's been very sweet to me." "Her windows are so filthy," "I thought she had black curtains." "I think Frank Murphy's sweet on Mom." "You mean that drunken son ofhers?" "Kate, stop it." "Listen, he knows your situation." "I know their kind." "Remember what Mama used to say." ""Stay on your own side of the street." "That's what they have gutters for."" "Is that thin enough?" "A little thinner." "Ma likes it when it floats." "That's better." "Who died?" "Mr. Nunzio." "The shoemaker?" "Wow, what happened?" "He had [Whispers] cancer." "Why do old people always whisper... what someone dies from?" "Like my Uncle Dave, Aunt Blanche's husband." "He died from a [Whispers] coronary." "People from the old country... think it's bad luck to say a disease out loud." "Like if God hears you, he'll give it to you." "My grandfather died from [Whispers] diphtheria." "Anyway, after Uncle Dave died, he left Aunt Blanche with no money..." "not even insurance." "She couldn't support herself because she has [Whispers] asthma." "[Eugene Narrating] Mother took her in with her two daughters." "My father had to take anotherjob... to support us all." "Besides cutting raincoats, he sells party favors to nightclubs." "I think it's getting to him because I heard Mom say..." "Pop was developing [Whispers] high blood pressure." "Eugene!" "Eugene!" "My sweet, adorable, handsome cousin." "Wait till you hear what's happened to me!" "You won't believe this, Mama." "You just won't believe it." "[Laurie] Well, tell us already." "The suspense is killing me." "Don't say things like that." "What is it, Nora?" "What happened?" "Shh!" "[Laurie] She takes so long." "I'm going to be in a Broadway show." "It's a musical called Abracadabra." "This man, Mr. Beckman..." "He's a producer..." "Came into our dancing class this afternoon, and he picked out three girls." "We start rehearsing a week from Monday." "Then it goes to Philadelphia," "Wilmington, Washington." "Then it comes to New York... the second week in December." "There are nine big musical numbers." "There's going to be a glass tank... you can see through, and the big finale all takes place... with the entire cast all underwater." "I mean, can you believe it?" "I'm going to be in a Broadway show, Mama!" "What's she talking about?" "Do I know?" "Am I her mother?" "How can you be in a show?" "Don't you have to sing and act?" "I can sing." "No, you can't." "A little." "No, you can't." "I can carry a tune." "No, you can't." "I probably won't have to." "They're just looking for dancers." "[Blanche] Did you tell him how old you were?" "He didn't ask me." "He didn't ask if you were 16?" "He just asked me to audition." "My God, isn't anybody excited?" "I am." "It's the most fantastic thing I ever heard." "Thanks, Eugene." "I'm glad somebody's excited." "How can you go to Philadelphia?" "What about school?" "It's a Broadway show." "It's what I want to do." "Algebra and English isn't going to help me on the stage." "[Laurie] Aren't." "You stay out of this!" "[Blanche] Forget about school." "Do you know how hard it is... for a girl to get a good job... without a high school diploma?" "Tell her, Kate." "It's very hard." "Then I'm asking something else." "Let me do something for you now." "I could be making almost $60 a week, maybe more." "I wouldn't make that much today... with a college diploma." "[Narrating] It was a tense moment for everybody." "I love tense moments, especially when I'm not the one they're tense about." "UncleJack will be home soon." "We'll discuss it at dinner." "Can you believe it?" "16 years old." "I have to call Mr. Beckman now... about the audition on Monday." "Please don't say no until Monday." "We'll leave it up to UncleJack." "We'll let him make the decision." "Why, Mama?" "I love him, but he's not my father." "Because I need help." "I don't always know what the right thing to do is." "Because..." "I say so!" "That's why." "You have nothing better to do?" "I need bread." "What?" "Run over to Greenblatt's and get fresh rye bread." "I just came back from Greenblatt's." "So you'll go again." "I'm always going to the store!" "When I grow up, that's all I'll know." "Never mind." "I'll go." "Don't do that." "Don't make me feel guilty." "And get a quarter pound of butter." "I bought a quarter pound this morning." "You should buy half pounds." "Suppose the house burned down this afternoon." "Why do I need an extra quarter pound of butter?" "If mother taught logic in high school, this would be some weird country." "[Thinking] If I had my choice... between a tryout with the Yankees... and actually seeing Nora's bare breasts... for 21/2 seconds," "I would have some serious thinking to do." "[Man] Hey, Eugene." "Did Pop get home yet?" "No." "You look terrible." "What's wrong?" "I'm in trouble, really big trouble." "What kind of trouble?" "Not here." "Pop could pass by." "Down at the beach." "I got fired today." "Fired?" "You mean for good?" "You don't get fired temporarily." "It's a permanent lifetime firing." "It was on account of Andrew, the colored guy who sweeps up." "Well, he lays his broom against the table." "The broom slips, knocks a can of linseed oil over, and ruins three brand-new hats," "$9.00 Stetsons." "It wasn't his fault." "He didn't put the linseed oil there." "Mr. Stroheim gets crazy." "He tells Andrew the hats come out of his salary... $27." "Andrew starts to cry." "He cried?" "42 years old, he's bawling all over." "I said to Mr. Stroheim that it wasn't fair." "It wasn't Andrew's fault." "So Mr. Stroheim screams at me..." "When I tell you something, you listen to me!" "Want to pay for the hats, bigmouth?" "No, I don't want to pay for the hats." "Then mind your own business, bigmouth." "Bring the hats back to the factory." "Know where it is?" "The f-f-factory?" "That's my job." "Am I speaking to you, bigmouth?" "Ask Mrs. Ludvig." "She will tell you where the factory is." "They'll give you three new hats." "If I see a finger mark on them, you'll pay for them, too." "Understand?" "Hmm?" "Y-Y-Yes, sir." "Don't stand around." "You've wasted enough time." "Back to work." "This is not the lunch hour." "You." "Take the broom." "You'll sweep up this week." "You are the cleaning man." "Again this account." "Enid, Enid, Enid." "I told you 50 million hundred thousand times..." "Mr. Stroheim!" "I don't think you're being fair." "You sweep that up, or today is your last day here." "You want me to sweep it up?" "I'll sweep it up." "Inside." "You hear me?" "Inside!" "Tonight you will go home, and you will write me a letter of apology... which I will put on the wall... for everyone to see." "On my desk... 9:00 tomorrow morning." "Otherwise, don't bother coming in." "Understood?" "I understand, Mr. Stroheim." "That's something I'll just have to think about tonight." "I'll finish sweeping up the floor." "[Waves Breaking]" "I don't know why I did it, but I got so mad." "If you give in when you're 181/2, you'll give in for the rest of your life, don't you think?" "I suppose so." "Are you going to write the letter?" "No." "Positively?" "Positively." "Except I'll have to discuss it with Pop." "I know we need the money, but he told me once, you have to do what you think is right... and stand up for your principles." "Come on." "He'll be home soon." "Stanley's home." "[Whispers] Shh!" "I have a cake in the oven." "[Whispering] I never understand why we have to whisper." "Is the cake afraid of people?" "Go wash your face." "Give me the bread." "Hi, Mom!" "[Whispering] Shh!" "The cake is sleeping." "Eugene!" "He purposely does this to aggravate me!" "Shh!" "I don't get a kiss hello?" "That's what I wait for all day." "Oh, a hug, too." "When do I ever get a hug?" "You must have done something wrong." "You're just a cute lady, Mom." "I can't help myself." "Think I'll wash up." "Don't forget to ask your boss to get paid tomorrow." "Saturday's a holiday." "I won't." "Eugene!" "I hear the train." "Go meet your father." "Laurie!" "It's time for your medicine!" "Oh!" "I'm so tired suddenly." "Mmm!" "Oh!" "Oh!" "If you drink my medicine, I'll eat your liver." "What liver?" "We're having liver and cabbage for dinner." "Oh, my God!" "Liver and cabbage..." "AJewish medieval torture." "My friend Marty Gregorio, an "A" student in science, told me that cooked cabbage can be smelled... farther than sound traveling for seven minutes." "[Gasping]" "Didn't I tell you to get out of that hot kitchen?" "I'm all right." "Come here." "[Gasping] Let me sit." "You sit down." "I can't breathe in there, and I don't have asthma." "I'm sick about your pitcher." "Your good crystal, Kate." "Stop it." "I'll replace it." "Please don't worry about it." "I can always get pitchers." "Sisters, I can't always find." "I'll clean it up." "You sit right there!" "Eugene will clean it up when he gets back." "Let me help you, Pop." "Be careful." "You'll hurt yourself." "No." "No trouble." "How you doing, Pop?" "Good." "I don't know how you do it, Pop, carrying these boxes around every day." "King Kong couldn't lift these." "You do what you have to do." "[Honking]" "Why you walking funny?" "Oh, it's my sneakers." "The soles wore off." "I have to clench my toes when I walk." "Can't you wear Stanley's old pair?" "Stanley's wearing Stanley's old pair." "I walk on my heels... because there's no skin left on my toes." "Feeling better, Mom?" "Much better, dear." "Feeling better, Mom?" "Much better, dear." "[Kate]Jack, what's the matter?" "What's wrong?" "Eugene said you were holding your chest." "I wasn't holding my chest." "Carrying those boxes back and forth every day." "You're getting older, Jack." "Don't you work hard enough?" "You want the boxes?" "They're yours." "I don't need them anymore." "What do you mean?" "Del Mar Party Favors went out of business." "They closed him out." "The man's bankrupt." "Never even warned me it was coming." "You told me he lived up on Riverside Drive." "A $300-a-month apartment, he had." "Who do you think goes bankrupt?" "You live in a cold-water flat, bankruptcy is the one thing God spares you." "What are you doing?" "Astronomy." "I have to bring in a report tomorrow." "[Stanley] Let me know when she gets to the Milky Way." "[Eugene] Damn." "That dirty little pig." "He's watching Nora getting undressed." "I wonder ifhe'd let me come over." "I can't get by without that extra $25 a week." "Stop it, Jack." "You'll make yourself sick." "He didn't even pay me for the week." "The bastard." "Five salesmen are laid off, he's going to a Broadway show tonight." "I stuffed every hat and noisemaker I could carry into those boxes..." "walked out of there." "At his funeral, I'll put on a pointy hat and blow a horn." "Something will come up." "Go to Temple and pray all day Saturday." "Men have been praying there for 40 years." "Know how many prayers before my turn comes up?" "Your turn will come up." "God has time for everybody." "Stanley!" "Eugene!" "Time to eat!" "If you see a chance to help me with Pop, will you do it?" "I was waiting to get in the game." "Just give me the ball, coach." "Don't say anything about the Broadway show to UncleJack." "Let me introduce the subject." "I'm not allowed to talk while I'm eating anyway." "Please don't think about this during dinner." "You'll give yourself heartburn." "[Blanche]Jack, Kate!" "Everything's hot!" "We're coming!" "Do you think she'll ever get married?" "Blanche?" "She's not unattractive." "I see men look at her on the beach." "What does she want to waste her life in this house for?" "Blanche isn't the type to get married." "She was married once." "Those are the type." "It was different." "She isn't interested in other men." "[Car Horn Honking]" "What about that Murphy fellow across the street?" "He's plenty interested." "That drunk?" "He can't find his way into the house at night." "He slept in the doorway once in the rain." "Shh." "He's got a good-paying job." "Lives with his mother." "So he takes a drink on a Saturday night?" "Maybe what he needs is a good woman." "Not my sister." "[Blanche]Jack!" "Kate!" "Let him meet someone lying in the next doorway." "Chapter seven:" ""The Infamous Dinner."" "[Narrating] It started out like a murder mystery." "No one said a word, but everyone looked suspicious." "Everyone had one eye on their plate... and the other eye on Pop." "Pickles!" "Except me." "I sat opposite Nora." "Relish." "I kept dropping my napkin a lot, so I could bend down... and look at those virginy, creamy white legs." "Ketchup." "She was really deep in thought... because she left herself unguarded a few times, and I got to see halfway up her thighs... that led to the golden palace of the Himalayas." "Eugene." "Keep your napkin on your lap." "Stanley knew what I was doing... because he's the one who taught it to me." "You could hear the clock ticking in the kitchen." "The tension in the air was so thick... you could cut it with a knife... which is more than I could say for the liver." "I'll help with the dessert." "Finish your liver." "I finished." "Do you see any liver?" "You buried it under your potatoes." "Look how Laurie ate hers." "One more bite, and I would have thrown up on the table, a sight Nora would have remembered forever." "A diversion was my only escape from humiliation." "So how are things down at Stroheim's, Stanley?" "Yech." "I felt bad about that." "But for the moment, attention had shifted away from my liver." "How long you been working there now?" "Where?" "At Stroheim's." "At Stroheim's?" "Ayear and a half." "And he likes you?" "Who?" "Stroheim." "Yeah." "Usually he likes me." "Come in on time?" "Always." "You do your work?" "Get along with people?" "Why shouldn't he like you?" " Tomorrow ask him for a raise." " [Stanley] A raise?" "I wanted to cut my wrists, but the liver had worn down the knives." "Your father wouldn't ask you if it wasn't the right thing." "Now is the time to ask." "[Choking]" "I think I have a bone in my throat." "There are no bones in liver!" "[Eugene Gagging]" "So, what's new at dancing school, Nora?" "Nothing's new." "Mind your own business." "Just trying to introduce the subject." "What happened at dancing school?" "Nora received a very nice compliment from Mr. Beckman." "He, uh... said that she had, uh... professional talent." "Mr. Beckman is your teacher?" "No." "Mr. Beckman is one of the most widely known... and respected producers on Broadway." "[Jack] Broadway?" "Imagine that." "Isn't that the same Mr. Beckman... who's producing the great Broadway extravaganza," "Abracadabra?" "I hear if a girl gets a part... for the chorus of a show like that, not only is her career practically guaranteed, but the experience she gains is equal to a four-year college education." "Eugene, that's enough." "[Kate] Boys, let your father finish his dinner." "It's all right." "This is the time... to discuss things." "This is the family hour." "What a great idea for a radio show." "The Family Hour." "Every Wednesday you hear a different family... discussing their problems, and you get to hear different recipes." "WEAF presents Dinner at Brighton Beach, starring theJacobJerome family... and featuring tonight's specialty, liver and cabbage." "Brought to you by Ex-Lax, the mild laxative." "Eugene, sit down!" "Nothing more to discuss, anybody?" "Otherwise, I'll turn on the news." "Finish your liver, I said." "I can't swallow it." "Eat half." "Which half?" "They're both terrible." "Just one bite." "If I take one bite, you'll make me take two bites." "I'll take it to my room." "I'll eat it tonight." "If nobody likes liver, why do you make it?" "Because we can't afford roast beef for seven people." "[Jack] These aren't times to waste food, Eugene." "If you didn't want it, you shouldn't have taken it." "I didn't take it." "They gave it to me." "It comes attached to the plate." "Could we talk a minute, Pop?" "It's something really important." "More important than what's going on in Europe?" "Who's been playing around with this radio?" "Eugene, he's talking about Poland, damn it." "I don't want anyone touching this radio, understand?" "Guess who's going to get blamed... for the war in Europe." "Why should anything be wrong with this radio?" "Which of you has been fooling around with it?" "I have to know tonight, Mother." "I have to tell Mr. Beckman... if I can do the show." "It's not the time." "It's never the time." "You won't make a decision." "I can't talk to anyone else." "I'll make my own decisions... if no one else is interested." "Nora!" "[Static]" "Damn it!" "You really think there will be a war, Pop?" "I mean, America, too?" "We're already in it." "Not us, maybe, but our relations in Europe." "Doesn't Mom have aunts and nephews there?" "Yes." "My cousin Sholem's in Poland." "With six children, right?" "With six children, right." "God knows what will happen to them." "Jack, talk to Nora." "You're the only one she'll listen to." "What if they all got to America, Pop?" "Where would they live?" "Would we take them in?" "What God gives us to deal with, we deal with." "Where would we put them if they got off the boat?" "How would we feed them?" "The boat didn't get here yet." "I can't deal with boats that haven't landed yet." "[Stanley] I'll talk to you later, okay, Pop?" "Before bed." "Where are you going?" "To the drugstore." "I'm getting my asthma medicine." "I'll get it." "You shouldn't be out at night." "Kate, you have got to stop thinking... everybody is your responsibility." "Stan, who has the best boobs in the neighborhood?" "Is sex the only thing you ever think about?" "I think Mrs. Laski has." "Boy, would I love to wrap my hands around them." "She's jumbo-size." "Your hands aren't big enough." "If I wore two baseball gloves, they would be." "Can I give you a lift home, Mrs. Morton?" "Oh, hello, Mr. Murphy." "It's only two blocks." "It's not the distance." "It's the company." "All right." "Thank you." "Ooh." "Is this your car?" "Mine?" "No." "Cars are luxuries." "I have no aspirations for luxuries." "I do, however, have a weakness... for friends who have aspirations for luxuries." "Well..." "You've an Irish smile, you know." "[Laughs] I..." "Uh..." "Oh, I don't at all." "Is that what they call blarney, Mr. Murphy?" "Yes, it is, definitely." "But it's a handy way of getting attention... from someone you want to take notice of you." "I've taken notice of you, Mrs. Morton, for many months now." "Yes, Mr. Murphy, I've taken notice." "I had a dream last night." "It was about a girl." "I can't tell you her name, but she was gorgeous." "We were really kissing hard... and rubbing up against each other." "And I felt this tremendous build-up coming." "And suddenly... there was this explosion... like a dam broke." "And suddenly, everything rushed... and flowed out to sea." "It was the greatest feeling..." "I ever had in my life." "And when I woke up, I was..." "All wet?" "It was a wet dream." "I have them all the time." "You do?" "You mean, there's nothing wrong with you... if it happens?" "You never had one?" "Yeah, but I slept through it." "Didn't you ever try to do it by yourself?" "What do you mean?" "Didn't you ever diddle with yourself?" "No!" "Never!" "Baloney." "I've heard you." "You diddle three, four times a week." "You're crazy!" "You've gone five blocks out of your way." "Eight." "I know a short cut that can add six." "[Blanche] Oh, my God." "[Murphy] What's wrong?" "Uh, it's my sister." "Please stop the car." "I have to get out." "Because you'd rather not be seen with me?" "No, honestly." "She doesn't care for me." "I know that." "She's never said that." "Some people think I'm too carefree, but I'm an honest man and I would never show you any disrespect." "I'm sure of that." "Then will you have dinner with me Wednesday at Chardhov's?" "It's a very respectable family establishment." "Yes, I will." "Uh, thank you for the ride." "Kate, what are you doing out?" "I told Laurie I'd get her some licorice." "She woke up drenched in perspiration." "Come on." "I'm dying for something sweet." "There's nothing wrong with it." "Everybody does it, especially at our age." "It's natural." "I can't believe I'm having this conversation." "You can't grow up without doing it." "Your voice won't change." "Where do you get this stuff from?" "Is it in a medical book or something?" "It's puberty." "It's what?" "Puberty." "You never heard that word before?" "Don't you read books?" "Yeah." "The Count of Monte Cristo." "It never mentioned puberty." "Even Pop did it." "Pop?" "Our Pop?" "You know, Stanley, I think you're full of shit." "Don't use that language." "You're just a kid." "Never let me hear you say that word again." "It's okay for you to say puberty, but I can't say shit?" ""Puberty" is a scientific word." ""Shit" is for guys who hang around the beach." "Well, what do you expect me to say... when you tell me that Pop whacks off?" "I don't mean he still does, because he's married now." "But when he was a kid, 14, 15..." "The whole world whacks off." "President Roosevelt, too?" "Sometimes I forget his birthday, but the day he died I'll never forget." "You talk like life is over." "You're still attractive, if you'd only stop squinting." "You got to get out of the house." "I'll get out." "Jack's company's having their annual affair... next Wednesday at the Commodore Hotel." "Jack wants you to come with us." "He told me to ask you." "Me?" "Who do I know in Jack's company?" "You'll be with us." "You'll meet people." "Max Green will be at our table." "He's their number one salesman." "He's a riot." "You'll love him." "He's a widower." "His wife died last year." "[Whispers] Tuberculosis." "I appreciate it, Kate, but I've, um..." "I've made plans for next Wednesday night." "More important than this?" "They have this once a year." "I'm having dinner with... someone." "You're having dinner with a man?" "That's wonderful." "Why didn't you tell me?" "With Mr. Murphy." "Who is Mr. Mur..." "Oh, my God." "You're having dinner with that man?" "He'll take you to a bar and grill." "We are going to Chardhov's, the Hungarian restaurant." "You've never met him." "How can you dislike him so?" "I don't have to meet that kind." "I just have to smell his breath... when he opens the window." "Do girls whack off, too?" "Five times as much as boys." "Five times as much." "Is that an actual figure?" "Where do you know all this from?" "You pick it up." "You learn it." "It's handed down from generation to generation." "That's how our culture spreads." "Five times as much as boys." "Some don't even say hello, and they're home all night whacking off." "They're human like we are." "They have the same needs and desires." "¶ Two arms that held me ¶" "¶ Two lips that thrilled me ¶" "¶ Two eyes met mine ¶¶" "How do girls do it?" "I can't explain it." "I'll buy you an ice cream." "Please, I'll be your slave for a month." "Tell me how they do it." "Eugene, I have a major problem in my life." "I haven't got time... to describe girls masturbating." "Draw me a picture." "I brought a pencil." "Ooh!" "You want crayons?" "Maybe you should do it in color." "Hey, I'll race you." "Hey!" "What do you think he's looking for, hmm?" "We grew up with their kind on Avenue A." "How many times have Stanley and Eugene come home black and blue... from the beatings from those Irish hooligans?" "You're not being fair." "We walked along the beach Thursday." "He was extremely polite." "He told me where his parents came from in Ireland." "Their life wasn't easier than Mama's and Papa's." "Nobody had it like they did in Russia." "He has a decent job." "He didn't smell of liquor." "He behaved like a perfect gentleman." "That was on the beach." "They're different when the sun goes down." "Do what you want." "I'll bet Nora doesn't do it." "Could I win money from you." "Think she's in the bathroom... seven times a day taking showers?" "I don't believe it." "She the one you dreamed about?" "No." "It was somebody else... a beach girl." "It was Nora." "I see what's going on." "That's why you dropped your napkin at dinner." "She drives me crazy." "I think I'm in love with her." "Well, forget it." "She's your cousin." "What's wrong with being in love with her?" "It's against the laws of nature." "You can't marry your first cousin." "You get babies with nine heads." "One dinner with Frank Murphy at Chardhov's... isn't the end of the world." "I just don't want to see you hurt." "I never mean you harm." "I can take anything, except when someone in the family is mad at me." "Oh, I could never be mad at you, Kate." "That I promise you to my dying day." "Don't expect me to be too friendly." "I'll put out nuts, but not beer." "Can I see Mr. Beckman tomorrow?" "Yes or no?" "Did you talk to your UncleJack?" "It doesn't matter." "It's your decision or mine." "Who's going to make it?" "I said if I were her father," "I'd have her finish high school." "There will be other shows." "Be patient." "Don't shut me in." "Don't shut me in for life." "You promised you'd do what UncleJack said." "He doesn't make decisions." "He offers advice." "I want a decision, Mama, from you." "Please?" "You finish high school." "You tell Mr. Beckman you're too young." "You tell him your mother said... no." "That's my decision." "I see." "Thank you, UncleJack, for your advice." "I'll let you know in the morning... what my decision is." "I would love to see Nora naked just once, wouldn't you?" "I have." "Plenty of times." "[Honking]" "You've seen Nora naked?" "Sure." "I fixed the lock on the bathroom door, then opened it, pretending I didn't know anyone was there." "What a disgusting pig!" "Will you show me how to work it?" "Hello, boys!" "Oh, hello, Mr. Murphy." "Lovely night, hmm?" "Lovely night, indeed." "Yes, indeedy." "Yes, indeedy." "[Stanley] I think that guy thinks he's in a Shakespeare play." "[Eugene] He had a couple in there, I bet." "You think he and Aunt Blanche do it?" "Nah." "She's a widow." "Widows don't do those things." "Don't hate me for what I'm going to say." "What is it?" "I think Aunt Blanche has a great ass." "They'll lock you up in a sex asylum." "If I was your sister," "I wouldn't sleep on the same block with you." "What if they showered together?" "If I could see that," "I would thank God and become a rabbi." "Come on." "When does it get easier, Kate?" "When you get seven good hours sleep a night." "That's the easiest it ever gets." "He's home." "You going to talk to him now?" "It's now or never." "Good luck." "Hi, Pop." "You think we could have that talk now?" "You fixed the radio?" "Works better than new." "It's almost 10:00." "I can get the late news." "I'm going to finish my homework." "Good night." "[Kate] Put the cookie on the table." "What cookie?" "The oatmeal cookie in your pocket." "Put it on the table." "You can smell an oatmeal cookie from 10 feet away?" "I heard the jar moving in the kitchen." "Suddenly, everybody is doing what they want." "Your father's upset, Aunt Blanche is upset," "Nora is upset." "Put the cookie on the table!" "Could we sit outside?" "Everyone's always coming through here." "But the news is coming on." "Talk wherever you want." "I'm going to bed." "Five minutes." "That's all." "Eugene!" "What?" "Give me that cookie." "Why don't you sit down, Pop?" "Some build-up this is." "[Sighs]" "Pop, I have a problem." "If you didn't, you wouldn't live in this house." "Close the door!" "Close the door!" "I'm sorry!" "Something must be wrong with the lock." "It must be tough being a father." "Everybody comes to you with their problems." "You have to have all the answers." "Stop trying to win me over." "Just tell me the problem." "I got fired today." "What?" "Don't get excited." "I'll explain what happened." "What did you do?" "You came in late?" "You were fresh to somebody?" "Were you fresh?" "I could still get my job back." "Just help me make a decision." "Take the job back." "I don't care what it is." "This isn't the time... for anybody in this family to be out of work." "She saw me on the crapper." "Nora saw me on the crapper." "I might as well be dead!" "Be careful when you go into the bathroom." "The lock's broken." "Who cares?" "Nobody wants to see me showering." "What do you mean?" "I mean, some people in this house... are very handy with screwdrivers." "[Stanley] When I was 12 years old, you talked to me about principles." "Remember?" "[Jack] Principles are one thing, losing yourjob is another." "Can't I explain what happened?" "Tell me any story, as long as it has a happy ending." "It was all on account of Andrew... the colored guy who sweeps up." "[Eugene Narrating] So Stanley told the whole story." "He delivered it like the Gettysburg Address." "Pop must have been bleary-eyed, because not only did he have to deal... with Stanley's principles," "Nora's career, the loss of his noisemaker business, how to get Aunt Blanche married off, and Laurie's fluttering heart, but at any minute, 37 relatives from Poland... could show up looking for a place to live." "Either I bring in a letter of apology in the morning, or I don't bother coming in." "Oh, Stanley." "Stanley." "Stanley." "I'm sorry, Pop." "You shouldn't have swept the dirt on his shoe, I know." "Especially in front of other people." "He's your boss." "He pays your salary." "His money helps put food... on our dining table." "I know, Pop." "I see what you're getting at." "On the other hand, you did a courageous thing." "You defended a fellow worker." "Nobody else stood up for him, did they?" "I was the only one." "That's something to be proud of." "It's what you believed in." "That's standing up for your principles." "That's why I didn't want to write the letter." "I knew you'd understand." "But can this family afford principles right now?" "It would make it hard, I know." "On everyone." "Eugene would have to quit school." "He wants to go to college to be a writer." "I wish I could've sent you." "I've always been sick about that." "I like working, Pop." "I made up my mind." "I'm writing the letter." "How will your principles feel in the morning?" "My principles feel better already." "You told me you were proud of what I did." "That's all I really care about." "Think about it, Stanley." "You do what you think is best." "So, what's the decision?" "I'm writing the letter." "I knew he'd make you do it." "I'm doing it on my own." "Will you help me write it?" "Thing is, people used to get paid for that." "Professional letter writers." "I'm not paying you money." "I don't want money." "Then what?" "Tell me what Nora looked like naked." "Jesus." "How horny can you get?" "I don't know." "What's the highest score?" "[Sobs Lightly]" "[Eugene Narrating] The next day we went to the cemetery... because it was three years ago today... that Uncle Dave [Whispers] died." "I asked my mother why everyone put a stone on the grave... and she explained to me because it was custom." "I wanted to say it's a lucky thing the custom wasn't to put orange peels on the grave, but I didn't think she'd appreciate it." "Nora." "Come on." "[Eugene] I liked Uncle Dave, but I just didn't feel like crying." "I hope he's not watching." "Nobody but Mom knew... that Pop was working nights as a cab driver... to make up what he lost... from the noisemaker business." "Hejust plain wore out, and he had a minor heart attack." "The doctors said it was just a warning, but he had to stop working for a while." "[Door Unlocks]" "What happened?" "What's the matter?" "Everything's okay." "He just wasn't feeling well." "We just drove him home." "Good night." "[Eugene Narrating] For the first time in my life," "I was really scared, scared of maybe one day going out to the cemetery... and putting a stone on the grave of my father." "[Eugene] Hey!" "I'm open!" "Pass it over here." "[Eugene] Louie, I'm free!" "I'm free!" "Yeah!" "[Cheering]" "[Kate] Eugene." "Come here." "What did I tell you about making noise in front of the house?" "Go get your father's papers." "Now?" "No." "Next year." "And skate on the sidewalk." "If you get hit by a truck, don't come running to me." "If I told her I just lost both my hands in an accident, she'd say, "Go upstairs and wash your face with your feet."" "Come here, you!" "What are you doing?" "I paid for the papers." "Your father's sick." "What are you trying to do, kill 'em?" "What are you talking about?" "You think your father's going to get better... if he finds out his son's gambling in a pool hall?" "Stanley?" "Is he there now?" "Get him out of there, and you stay out of those places!" "This used to be a nice neighborhood." "That's game." "¶¶ [Whistling]" "You want to pay up or you want to go again?" "Sure." "Why not?" "Rack 'em up, Gootch." "[Rolling, Clattering]" "Hi, Stan." "What are you doing here?" "Go on home." "I'll see you later." "Are you winning?" "I'm creaming these guys." "Two more games, I can make up Pop's weekly salary." "Let me watch." "I'll bring you good luck." "I don't need luck against these guys." "You shouldn't be in a place like this." "Get out of here." "One game." "I'm not gonna turn into a bum in one game." "Get out, I said!" "I'm sorry." "You should do what I tell you." "It's your break." "You should see your mother's new dress." "She looks gorgeous." "I'm waiting for her grand entrance." "If Mama married Mr. Murphy, would we have to live in that dark house across the street... with that creepy old woman?" "We're not up to that yet." "Let's get through Chardhov's restaurant first." "Have a cashew." "Just one." "It's for the company." "How'd you do?" "I told you to go home." "How much did you win?" "Don't keep me in suspense." "It was a setup." "They clobbered me." "How much did you lose?" "They were hustlers." "How much did you lose?" "Everything." "My whole salary... $17." "Why did you bet your whole salary?" "I thought I could beat them." "Jesus, I think I'm going to throw up." "[Coughs]" "Well!" "You must've been hungry." "That's a good sign." "I was bored." "I had nothing else to do." "Blanche will come into see you before she goes." "Tell her she looks beautiful." "You know she's got no confidence." "When did I last tell you you were beautiful?" "Why do you bring that up now?" "I realize sometimes I forget to tell people how I feel." "Get better." "Take me to the affair next year." "Then I'll be beautiful." "If he wasn't so sick, I'd tell him the truth." "If he dies, I'll hang myself." "Just say you lost the money." "I already used that one." "When?" "November, when I lost $5.00." "He said, "Check your pockets every morning."" "Did you gamble the $5.00, too?" "No, I gave it to a girl, a pro." "A pro what?" "A prostitute?" "You went to one of those places?" "Holy shit!" "Don't say that word again." "It costs $5.00?" "$2.50." "This guy still owes me." "What was she like?" "Was she pretty?" "How old was she?" "Don't start in with me." "Did she get completely naked?" "Every time I get in trouble, I have to tell you what a naked girl looks like?" "Do me a favor." "Go in the bathroom, whack off, and grow up by yourself." "I'm going out." "I'll be home late." "Good night." "Going where?" "I have a date with Larry Clurman." "Don't you want to see how your mother looks?" "I'm sure she looks beautiful." "She doesn't need me to tell her." "I think your mother would be very hurt... if you didn't wait to say good-bye." "I know exactly how my mother feels, UncleJack." "I'm not sure she knows how I feel." "Nora!" "Nora!" "Do you want to come help me?" "Nora!" "Will you cut it out?" "I'm trying to think." "Don't get sore." "It's not my fault what happened." "I never had an older brother... to help me with problems." "You're lucky to be the younger one." "You don't have my responsibilities." "You're still in school looking up girls' dresses." "I work plenty hard in school." "Yeah?" "Yeah." "Well, let me see your report card." "Yesterday was the first of the month." "I know you got it." "I don't have to show you." "You're not my father." "As long as Pop is sick, I am." "I'm the only one in the family working." "Really?" "Well, where's your salary this week, Pop?" "I hate you sometimes." "I always help you, and you never help me without wanting something for it." "I hate your disgusting guts!" "Not as much as I hate yours." "You snore at night, you pick your toenails, you smell up the bathroom." "Give me your report card." "I'll beat your face." "You want it?" "Yeah." "Here's my lousy report card!" "You fuck!" "Four A's and a "B"?" "Jack?" "Jack?" "What are you doing down here?" "I want to meet Murphy." "A stranger comes in, he likes meeting another man." "It makes him feel comfortable." "I got so scared when I didn't see you in your room." "You don't look it." "You look beautiful." "Here." "Wear these." "Don't say no to me." "Just let me put them on." "Kate, your pearls." "Your good pearls." "What would they do, sit in a drawer all year?" "Pearls are like people." "They like to go out and be seen occasionally." "Oh, you were going to wear these to tonight's affair." "I got so wrapped up in myself," "I forgot you were missing the affair." "I'm afraid I'll lose them." "Let's see how they look, Mom." "Laurie, go up and get Nora." "I want to show them to Nora." "[Laurie] She's not here." "She left." "What do you mean, she left?" "Without saying good-bye?" "She had to meet somebody, so you'll see her when she comes home." "She could've come to my room." "She knew I wanted to see her." "You're going out to have a good time." "You'll deal with this later." "She's making me pay for it, isn't she?" "She knows how she can get to me so easily." "That's what I get for trying to make decisions." "[Sobbing]" "[Sniffling]" "[Sobbing]" "I feel like ice cream for dessert." "Laurie, do you feel like ice cream?" "Butter pecan?" "Butter pecan for you, maple walnut for me." "Go up and tell Eugene..." "I want him to go to the store." "[Eugene] She's doing it." "She's taking everything off." "Today's the day." "Please, God, don't let it get foggy." "[Knock On Door]" "[Laurie] Eugene, your father wants us... to go to the store." "Damn." "Tell him I'm sick." "Tell him I have diarrhea." "You don't want any ice cream?" "Ice cream?" "Wait a minute." "You want some ice cream, Stan?" "No." "I have no will power." "How will I be a writer unless I suffer?" "Actually, I'd give up writing... if I could see a naked girl... while eating ice cream." "[Laurie] He wants maple walnut and butter pecan." "Eugene." "Go to Hansen's." "Laurie will tell you what to get." "I need money." "I just paid the doctor $15." "Stanley got paid today." "Ask him for his salary." "Here's a dollar." "Hurry back so Laurie can meet Mr. Murphy." "I'll race you." "I'll hop on one leg." "I'm not allowed to run." "I'll hop on one leg and hold my breath." "[Tapping]" "Is she calling us?" "[Eugene] I think she's calling you." "What does she want?" "She wants you to taste her spider soup." "Stop that!" "You think I should go?" "Sure." "She's okay." "I'll get the ice cream." "Don't stay in there too long, or else you'll become Irish." "[Sniffling]" "Maybe she's not coming back." "Maybe she's..." "she's run off to Boston... and then, uh, Washington... or God knows where." "Is that what you'll talk about on your date?" "He'll start drinking in five minutes." "Oh, you think so?" "What will I do if he gets drunk?" "You come right home." "Do you have money for carfare?" "No, I didn't take anything." "Wait." "Wait here." "I'll get $5.00 from Stanley." "Now I have something else to worry about." "Stanley, are you in there?" "Open the window." "You never get air in this room." "I need $5.00 for Aunt Blanche." "Stanley." "Did you get paid today?" "Yeah, I got paid." "Well, take out the money for the week." "Give me the envelope." "I don't have it." "You don't have the envelope?" "I don't have the money." "You don't have the money?" "I don't have the money." "It's gone." "It's gone." "Gone where?" "It's just gone." "I don't have it." "I can't get it back." "There's nothing I can do about it." "Just don't ask me any more questions?" "Don't ask you any more questions?" "What happened to $17, Stanley?" "If I tell you, you'll tell Pop." "Why shouldn't I tell your fa..." "Stanley, I want to know... what happened to that money." "I gambled it." "I lost it playing pool." "All right?" "You happy?" "You satisfied now?" "I won't think about this now." "I'll have your Aunt Blanche... get out of the house first." "I have your father's health to worry about." "You'll sit here and think up a story." "You were robbed." "Tell your father somebody stole the money." "Because if you tell him the truth, you'll kill him." "Oh." "I don't..." "Why am I so nervous?" "I guarantee you he's twice as nervous." "[Doorbell Rings]" "Ooh. [Laughs] He's at the door." "Stay here." "Stay here." "I'll..." "Don't..." "Don't get up." "Oh, I thought I heard someone." "Kate!" "What is it?" "What's wrong?" "Oh, it's nothing." "I'm just all nerves today." "You're worried aboutJack." "He shouldn't have come down those stairs." "He knows he's not supposed to get out of bed." "I shouldn't have asked Mr. Murphy to come over." "That's why Jack came down." "It's not just Mr. Murphy." "It's Stanley, Eugene, everybody." "Everybody has a problem here." "Did Nora say something to hurt you, Kate?" "Get your purse." "He'll be here any minute." "I know she's been difficult... these last few days." "Why is it always Nora?" "It's always your problems." "You're not the only one who has troubles." "We all have troubles." "Well... forgive me." "I'm sorry, Kate." "I..." "I understand." "Yes?" "What?" "I have just been in the creepiest place... in the whole world." "Not now, Laurie." "Aunt Kate and I are talking." "I was in Mrs. Murphy's house." "She asked if you could come over now." "She said it was important." "What is it?" "She didn't tell me." "I just wanted to get out of there." "Then she gave me a green cookie." "Yech." "Maybe he has to work late." "I'll be right back." "We'll finish talking." "I would have come over myself, but I have trouble crossing streets these days." "Too many motorcars now." "Of course." "I'm sorry to say..." "I have regrets from my son Frank." "He'll not be able to keep his dinner engagement with you." "Frank's in the hospital." "Dear God, is he all right?" "His injuries, thank the Lord, are not serious... but the consequences are." "He was driving a friend's motorcar... while intoxicated." "He'll have to face police charges." "I'm sure of that." "As soon as Frank can get out... ofhis difficulties here, we've decided to move upstate New York... where there's a clinic that can help him... and where we have relatives... with whom we can stay." "Uh, Mrs. Murphy..." "I'm so, uh, terribly sorry." "Please tell Frank that I wish him only the best." "It could've been you in that car with him." "I warned you the first day about those people." "Stop calling them "those people."" "She's a mother like you and me." "And what is he?" "He's someone in trouble." "He's someone who needs help." "For God's sake, you don't even know the man." "I know him." "I know what they're all like." "Who are you to talk?" "Are we any better?" "Are we something so special?" "We're all poor around here." "At least we can be charitable." "Why?" "What can I afford to give away?" "Did I get you all dressed up for nothing?" "Did I get your hopes up?" "I just tried to help you." "Nobody cares for their family more than you do, but at least be sympathetic... to someone else in trouble." "Who should I care about?" "Who's watching over me?" "I did enough in my life for people." "Ooh." "You know what I'm talking about." "No, I don't." "Say what's on your mind." "What people?" "You!" "Celia!" "Papa!" "How many beatings did I get... for things that you did?" "How many dresses did I go without... so you could look like somebody?" "I was the workhorse, you, the pretty one." "You have no right to talk to me like that." "This is aboutJack." "You're blaming me for what happened toJack." "Why do you think he's sick today?" "Why did a policeman have to carry him home at 3 A. M?" "So Nora could have dancing lessons?" "So Laurie could see a doctor?" "You worry about your friend across the street, not those being dragged home... to keep a roof over your head." "[Blanche] Why didn't you tell me... how you felt about this?" "[Kate] I was too busy taking care of everybody." "[Door Opens, Closes]" "[Blanche] My God..." "[Laurie] Shh." "Your mother and my mother are fighting." "About what?" "Your mother was the workhorse, mine was the pretty one." "What?" "[Blanche] I'd pack Nora and Laurie... out of the house tonight if I could, but I have no place to take them." "If they could stay here another few weeks," "I would appreciate it." "Until I find a place." "Then I'll send for them." "Blanche, don't talk like that." "The ice cream." "Not now!" "I know a woman in Manhattan Beach... who I can stay with." "Then I'll find a job." "I'll do anything anybody asks me, but I will never be a burden to anyone... as long as I live." "Blanche, stop this!" "[Sighs]" "What the hell is going on here, for God's sakes?" "Two sisters having a fight... they should've had 25 years ago." "Tell her, Kate, what it is... to be an older sister." "Call her names, Blanche." "Tell her to go to hell... for the first time in your life." "When you both get it out of your system, hug each other and go have dinner." "My lousy ice cream is melting, for God sakes." "No matter what Kate says to me," "I will never stop loving her, but I have to get out." "If I don't do it now," "I'll lose what little self-respect I have left." "And when I grow old," "I wish I have as much self-respect... as Mrs. Matthew Murphy." "Something happened for you to behave like this." "It wasn't Blanche." "It was something else." "What?" "Tell the kids we're eating in the kitchen tonight." "[Whispers] Hey, Stan." "[Whispering] Hey, Stan, did you..." "Stan!" "Stanley, wait!" "Why are you doing this?" "You always told me never to run away." "I'm leaving." "Only kids run away." "Does Pop know about my salary?" "You told Mom that." "Why?" "I had 12 terrific lies." "I have $1.12 for you." "It's my life's savings." "I'll make it okay." "Please, Stan." "Take the money." "I'll pay you back." "If there's a war, I'll become a sergeant." "They make good dough." "If it lasts long enough, I could join." "Don't go in the army unless they come get you." "Promise me you'll go to college." "Don't leave, Stan." "They'll get over it." "They won't stay mad at you forever." "I got over being mad at you." "I'm nothing but trouble." "Don't turn out to be like me." "I don't see what's so bad about you." "Take care of yourself, Euge." "Hey, Euge." "If you ever write a story about me, call me Hank." "I always liked the name Hank." "[Eugene Narrating] I guess there comes a time in everyone's life... when you say," ""This very moment is the end of my childhood. "" "When Stanley got on that train," "I knew that moment had come to me, and I was scared." "I was lonely... and I hated my mother and father... for making him so unhappy." "I even hated Stanley a little... because he left me there to grow up by myself." "I tried to hold out as long as I could, but I knew they'd find out sometime." "So I just said it." "I said that Stanley had left tojoin the army." "What army?" "The U.S. Army." "How many armies are there?" "Never." "Not without talking to me first." "Ketchup." "I saw him leave on the train." "He won't be back tonight." "He's walking around in New York." "He's upset because we had a fight." "A fight about what?" "A fight about what?" "He lost his salary." "He gambled in a pool hall." "He lost the $17." "He just tried to make back the money..." "Pop lost by not working." "That's why he joined the army." "He should've talked to me." "I'm his father!" "What, is he afraid to talk to me?" "[Kate] He loves you so much he didn't want to tell you." "[Eugene Narrating] From the sound of it," "I figured Stanley should forget about the army... andjoin the Foreign Legion." "[Door Opens]" "I wanted to talk to you." "How was your dinner?" "I didn't go." "Mr. Murphy was in an accident." "I'm sorry." "Is he all right?" "He has his problems, like the rest of us." "I was very upset that you left tonight... without saying good-bye." "You have never done that before." "Could we talk about this in the morning?" "I'm leaving, Nora." "I'm moving out in the morning." "What are you talking about?" "Aunt Kate and I had a fight." "We said some terrible things to each other." "I'm going to stay with my friend Louise... in Manhattan Beach... until I find work." "Then I'll send for you and Laurie." "I can't believe it." "You mean it's okay for you to leave us, but not for me to leave you?" "I wasn't concerned about your leaving." "It's your future I was worrying about." "So I have to give up the one chance..." "I may never get again." "I have to pay for what you couldn't do... with your own life?" "What right do you have to judge me like that?" "Judge you?" "I can't even talk to you." "I don't exist to you." "I've tried to get close to you, but there was never room." "Whatever you had to give was Daddy's." "When he died, whatever was left you gave to..." "Finish what you were going to say." "I've been jealous my whole life of Laurie." "She was lucky enough to be born sick!" "I prayed I'd get some terrible disease... or get hit by a car... so I'd have a leg all twisted and crippled." "Then once, just once," "I could crawl into bed with you... on a cold, rainy night... and talk to you, hold you, until I fell asleep in your arms." "Just once." "My God, Nora." "Is that what you think of me?" "Is it any worse than what you think of me?" "I am not going to let you hurt me!" "I'm not going to be a doormat... for all the frustrations and unhappiness... that you or Aunt Kate or anyone else... wants to lay at my feet." "I did not create this universe." "I do not decide who lives or dies, or who's rich or poor, or who feels loved and who feels deprived." "If you feel cheated that Laurie gets more," "I feel cheated that my husband died at 36!" "I'm sorry that you feel unloved, Nora, and I'll do everything I can to change it, but I will not go back to being... that frightened, helpless woman... that I created." "I already buried someone I love." "Now it's time to bury someone I hate." "You belong to Uncle Sam now." "You'll hear from us in three weeks." "Don't look so worried, son." "We'll make you into a man." "I'll carry my load." "Okay, soldier." "Sign here." "Something wrong?" "What?" "Well, I'm going." "I didn't want to leave without saying good-bye." "Blanche." "Don't go." "I feel bad enough for what I said." "Don't make me feel any worse." "As God is in heaven, there will never be an angry word... between you and me again, Kate, but I'm afraid of being comfortable here." "If I don't go now, when will I?" "The door is open." "Go whenever you want." "Get a job first." "Get your apartment first." "I'll find out about the Murphy place." "Couldn't be very expensive." "She never cleaned it." "How independent can I become... if I live right across the street from you?" "Far enough away for you to close your own door." "Close enough for me not to feel so lonely." "[Eugene] Okay. 29 to 7." "Let's go!" "Come on!" "Come on, Tony!" "Make him hit it!" "Do better in there." "[Boy] I got it!" "I got it!" "Stan!" "Hi." "Well, what happened?" "Did you join up?" "I came pretty close." "I passed the physical, one-two-three." "I knew you would." "As I was about to sign," "I stopped cold and walked out." "How come?" "Couldn't do it to Pop." "Right now he needs me more than the army does." "I thought you'd be at training camp by now, but I'm real glad you're home, Stan." "Hi, Ma." "Stanley's home." "Go back to Greenblatt's." "I need sweet cream and some more sugar." "Get a 2-pound bag." "I want to make a chocolate cake." "A 2-pound bag from Greenblatt's?" "I'll need identification." "How are you, Ma?" "Are you staying for dinner?" "I'm staying as long as you'll let me." "Why shouldn't I let you?" "This is your home." "Your father's been very worried." "I think you owe him an explanation." "[Announcer] Acrid, yellowish smoke billowed yesterday... around the Hindenburg Palace." "Bombing planes, chased by pursuit ships, streaked across the sky... as Adolf Hitler prepared for a visit... by Benito Mussolini." "Their fascist-Nazi mission, they proclaim..." "Hi, Pop." "How you feeling?" "[Announcer Continues] ... Communism indications were... that neither Mussolini nor Hitler wanted to..." "I'm sorry about not coming home last night." "I just didn't know how... to tell you about the money." "[Sighs]" "Don't you know, Stanley, there's nothing you could ever do... that was so terrible I couldn't forgive you?" "I know why you gambled." "I know how miserable you feel." "I lost money gambling." "I know what it's like." "You did?" "You're so surprised?" "You think your father's a perfect human being?" "You go through life thinking I was perfect, you'll hate yourself for every mistake you make." "Don't be so hard on yourself." "You're a good son, Stanley." "I gambled away $17, and you're telling me how terrific I am." "Hey, wait a minute." "Don't get the wrong idea." "If you were home last night," "I would've thrown you and your clothes out the window." "Today I'm calmer." "Today I heard the radio." "Today I'm afraid for all of us." "I understand." "All right." "After lunch, apologize to your mother, and apologize to Aunt Blanche... because she was worried, too." "[Stanley] I will." "Thank your brother, too." "He came into my bedroom and explained how you felt." "The way he pleaded your case," "I thought I had Clarence Darrow in the room." "[Kate] Are you coming to eat?" "Lunch is getting cold." "I want to wash up." "Can I talk to you after lunch, Mom?" "Where am I going, to a nightclub?" "It's all right!" "Everything is all right!" "Who said it wasn't?" "Didn't I say he'd be home?" "4 minutes, 22 seconds." "An Olympic record for going to Greenblatt's." "Where's Stanley?" "Upstairs." "Here's some mail for you, Pop." "My God!" "He ate 11/2 pounds of sugar!" "Hear you're back in the family." "Everything's great." "Pop told me you stuck up for me." "Yeah." "I was brilliant." "To show my appreciation..." "I brought you a present." "What kind of present?" "Promise you'll keep it someplace safe." "I will." "I will!" "What's my present?" "Here." "Use it in good health." "What is it?" "Close your eyes!" "Now look." "Oh, my God!" "She's naked." "You can see everything." "Don't get caught with a thing like that." "Who is she?" "She's French." "That's how all the women are in Paris." "You mean some girl actually posed for this?" "She just laid there and let some guy take a picture?" "It belongs to the guy who owes me $2.50." "It's mine until he pays me." "Don't take the money." "Let him owe you." "Put it in a safe spot." "Come on." "It's lunch." "In a minute." "I'll be down in a minute." "[Kate] I got more for who wants it." "Ta-da!" "Oh!" "I'm so glad to see you home, Stanley!" "I was so worried about you." "I'm glad to see you here, too, Aunt Blanche." "Oh!" "Hi, Stan!" "Hey, squirt!" "Got your nose!" "You're so funny." "Oh, God!" "Oh, my God!" "What is it?" "What's wrong, Jack?" "It's a letter from London." "My cousin Sholem got out." "They got out of Poland." "They're free, Kate." "Oh, thank God!" "His wife, his mother, all six children." "They're sailing for New York tomorrow." "They'll be here in a week." "Do they speak English?" "I don't think so." "A few words, maybe." "Somebody wrote this for him." "They had to sell everything." "They took what they could carry." "Where will they stay?" "Well, I'll have to discuss it with the family." "Some with Uncle Sol." "Uncle Eddie." "With us." "We'll put beds in the dining room." "I like eating in the kitchen." "The kids could stay with Laurie." "Nora can sleep with me, right?" "Of course!" "Don't worry about money, Pa." "I'll hit Mr. Stroheim for that raise." "They got out!" "That's all that's important." "They got out!" "Where's that boy again?" "Eugene!" "We're all waiting for you!" "Be right there!" "I'm doing something!" "[Eugene Thinking] October the 2nd, 1937, an historic moment... in the life of Eugene Morris Jerome." "I havejust seen... the golden palace of the Himalayas!" "Puberty is over!" "Onwards and upwards!"