"Well?" "It's something, all right." "I'll give you that much." "The rent is almost nothing, the beach down there, it's no good for swimming, so the property is a turkey for residential use." "Expensive grounds to keep up." "But Laguna's coming up, Lucy." "It's not just summer trippers here anymore." "It's year-round residents." "I know." "I been doing a little checking up myself." "But, kid, are you really sure you can swing this?" "You just opened a second place in Beverly, not to mention who you plucked to run the joint." " What you see in that dicey..." " The luncheonette idea was" "Ida's from the start." "It was her idea to expand on the pastry business, it was her idea to bring in the movie crowd..." "I know, I heard it." "Save it for the jury." "But look at this place, Lucy!" "Tell me you don't see something." "Thirty dollars a week and 1% of the profits." "You and Ike can take the upper part of the house, light, heat, water, food, all furnished." "Oh, shut up, will you, for God's sake?" "Shut up?" "Is that a yes?" "Listen, baby, it's halfway between L.A. and San Diego, right on the main line, and Ike's still got his trucks." "It's the first honest-to-God chance we've had to get started again, in a legal way since, well, you know." "You want me bawling on your shoulder?" "Good." "It's settled." "But we're not doing chicken." "We're not?" "What do you mean?" "You think these loafs come all the way out to the ocean just to eat chicken?" "Not if I know folks." "No, what they want is a shore dinner." "Fish, lobster, crab." "So that's what we give them." "And that's where we make the dough, because fish is cheap." "But we also give 'em a little variety." "So we offer steak, right from our very own built-in charcoal broiler." "Oh!" "Well, that all sounds grand, but do you know anything about steaks?" "Or fish?" "I'll learn!" "You seeing Ida in Beverly today?" "I am." "Good." "Tell her she's got competition." "Mildred, I tell you, we're in." "In the first place, I got a lunch trade that's almost like the Brown Derby." "People that don't want planked whitefish, special hamburgers, they want the little sandwiches I've got, and the fruit salads." "You..." "You just gotta hear the comments." "Then after that I got a college trade, all these young, refined kids on their way home from Westwood." "Then I got my tea trade with the ladies, plus a dinner trade," "I even got a late crowd!" "From noon until midnight I got business." "And the take-out trade from those people, it's enough to take your breath away!" " So we did all right this week?" " I'll show you how good!" " I need the flour bags..." " It used to be the old fire department, but I had my eye on it from the day we opened." "Hey!" "Hey!" "Hey!" "Hurry up!" "Hurry up!" "This is not recreation here." "It's amazing, Wally." "Between Glendale, Laguna about to open, and Beverly on a roll, it's the pies that keep it all afloat." "I never would have known." "Well, you got a quality outfit." "Which brings me back to my point." "You think I should incorporate." "Well, let's put it this way." "With..." "With all you got juggling," "I'd say that old woman in Long Beach ought to have you pretty worried by now." "Remind me again about the old woman." "Well, she's the one that's crossing against the lights, who your driver, he barely grazes, so she's not hurt a bit." "But when she hears you've got three restaurants, you're in the soup, big time." "Sigrid!" "Pardon me a second, Wally." "Sigrid, I need you to set up that call with the zoning regulators about the annex." "We've got to get those plans cleared." "I just spoke with them, Mrs. Pierce, and they say it's all right, just as long as no external advertising." "Oh." "Fine." "Thank you." "Would you let the contractor know?" "Yes, Mrs. Pierce." "Mrs. Jaeckel, I'm sorry." "We'll have to go over those books tomorrow!" "Oh, yes, Mrs. Pierce." " Sigrid, huh?" " Oh, hands to yourself, Wally." "You were saying?" "Well, it works the other way around, too, after those five people get ptomaine poisoning from the fish they had at your new joint, or say they did." "Look, you incorporate, your personal property is safe." "From anyone." "Okay." "You sold me." "Insurance, too." "Call me tomorrow." "Will do." "Adios, boss." "Hello?" "Mrs. Hannen?" "Is..." "Is everything all right?" "Oh!" "No!" "No!" "Oh!" "Oh, Mrs. Hannen, you poor, poor dear!" "He was fine one minute, and the next..." "It was all so sudden." "Is there anything at all we can do?" "No, thank you, dear." "Well, do give him our very best." "Of course." "Yes." "And thank you so much for calling, Mrs. Hannen." "Thank you." "Goodbye." "What is it?" "Veda?" "Mr. Hannen." "He had a hemorrhage." "Walking home from his studio." "And somehow the ambulance doctor made a mess of it, had him lifted by the shoulders or something so it's much worse than it might have been." "Mrs. Hannen was just in hysterics about it." "Well, of course she was." "We must go there at once." "No." "He's already at the hospital, packed in ice, they gave him some kind of gas to inhale, it's just hell." "Oh, Veda." "I'm so sorry." "What am I supposed to do now, without that damned he-bear to knock me around?" "Moire." "We always thought it was pronounced "Mo-ray." Until we heard the priest say it." "Miss Hicks, the astrologist, brought it over with her chart, like she did with your name." "You were in Santa Barbara that day." "What day?" "Veda?" "Dear, I know you were very fond of him, and he was a fine man, but..." "But these things happen, after all, and..." "No, Mother." "It wasn't that I was fond of him." "Not that I didn't love the shaggy brute." "To me he'll always be the one-and-only..." "Never mind." " But he taught me music." " Well, there are other teachers." "Yes, there's about seven hundred fakes and advertisers in Los Angeles alone, and I don't know one from another." " Besides..." " Can't you make inquiries?" "No." "There is one man, just one, that Hannen had some respect for." "He's a conductor." "His name is Treviso." "Carlo Treviso." "He conducts a lot of operas and things out at the Hollywood Bowl, and on the radio." "I don't know if he takes piano pupils or not, but he might know of somebody." "Do you want me to call him up?" "Veda?" "Poor Charl." "I first know Charl, was in 1922." "We make tour of Italy together, just after Mussolini come in." "I play Respighi program with orchestra," "Charl play Tchaikovsky concerto." "Ah, the Hannen tone, so bright, so subtle." "You come?" "So, how many years you with Charl?" " Uh, four years." " Over four." "Any recital?" "Performance?" "No, no." "She's extremely gifted." "So, I hear you play." " Now?" " Yes, now." " Of course." " Here." "How could you?" "Dio mio." "Veda?" "Darling!" "My goodness, Veda." "Open the door!" "It was inexcusable how he behaved." "Why won't you talk to me?" " What's the matter?" " It's nothing." "Well, my goodness." "You don't have to scare everybody to death." "Mother, if you say "my goodness" one more time, I shall scream." "I shall simply scream!" "Veda, darling, he's only one instructor." "You can kill it, you can kill it right now." "You can drive a knife through its heart, and it'll dead." " You can forget you ever tried to play the piano." " Well, my..." "Well, for heaven's sake." "The piano is not the..." "Not the only thing on earth." "You could..." "You could write music." "Oh, you damned, ridiculous..." "Are you trying to drive me insane?" "Yes, I could write music." "I could write any goddamn piece of music you please!" "A waltz, a motet, a cornet solo with variation!" "You name it, I can write it." "But not one note of it would be worth the match it would take to burn it." "You think I'm hot stuff, don't you?" "You, lying there every day, dreaming about rainbows." "Well, I'm not." "I'm just a Glendale wunderkind." "And there is one like me in every Glendale on earth!" "Every one-horse conservatory, every tank town university, every park band!" "We can read anything, play anything, arrange anything..." "But we're no damned good." "Punks." "Just like you." "God, now I know where I get it from." "Isn't it funny?" "You start off a wunderkind, and you end up just a goddamn punk." "Well, if that's the case, it certainly does seem peculiar that he wouldn't have known it." "Mr. Hannen, I mean." "And told you so." "Instead of spending all that..." "You think..." "You think he didn't know it?" "And didn't tell me?" "He told me every time he saw me!" "My tunes stunk, my playing stunk, everything I did stunk!" "But me, he liked." "Because he saw how I felt about it." "Christ, that was something, after living with you all my life!" "So we went on with it." "And maybe, just maybe, Old Man Maturity might help out later." "Like hell he will!" "No." "No, in this racket you've either got it or you don't, and will you wipe that stupid look off your face and stop acting as if it was somebody's fault?" "Well, it certainly would seem..." "After all that work, your dedication..." "Don't you understand anything?" "They don't pay off on work, they pay off on talent!" "And I'm just no good!" "I'm no goddamn good, and there's nothing you can do about it!" "Oh, Bert, she was devastated." "I've never seen her so crushed." "She can still barely look me in the eye." "Gotta be rough." "After all the time she put in on that thing." "Boy, oh boy." "I just wish there was something I could do." "She'll snap out of it." "Veda's no patsy." "I do believe there's something inside her, I do." "I don't care what anybody says." "Veda!" "Veda!" " I'm sorry, Bert." "Can..." "Can I?" " Sure." "Go ahead." "Honestly, Veda." "You're perfectly capable of going on with your music, whether the great masters like it or not." "Battles aren't won by quitting, after all." "And you are talented." "Whether it's concert piano or not, you certainly have talent." "And looks, my goodness!" "Well, you've always had a lovely figure." "Or you could still enter one of the local schools, like Marlborough, and prepare for college." "I'm a little old for rolling a hoop, Mother." "Well, at least call some friends and have a little party." "Gloria Sedgewick or Kitty?" "You could..." "You could have it at Laguna if you didn't want to do it here." "I can tell Lucy to set up a room with a special table." "And there's an orchestra we can get and you can dance or do whatever you want." "No, Mother." "I don't want an orchestra." "Thanks, just the same." "She doesn't want to see them people." " What people?" " Them Pasadena people." "What do you mean?" "Why not?" "After she's been Mr. Hannen's candy kid?" "The one that was going to New York and play the piano so they'd all be hollering for her?" "You think she wants to see them people now and just be Veda?" "Well why not?" "They're her friends." "They're who she should be seeing." "I can't just sit by and allow her to cut herself off" " from the people that..." " Why?" "Why can't you leave her alone?" "Hello?" "Elaine!" "He didn't!" "No!" "It looks wonderful." "It really does." "Lucy, the flowers, they're beautiful!" "We're running a high-class dump, baby." "For some reason I don't understand, a guy with an old-fashioned on the table likes to listen to the bumblebees." "And how's Ike?" "He's on call, day and night." "All he needed was a chance." "Next week he's getting a new truck." "Streamlined." "Oh, Lucy." ""Service with a gardenia." He's thinking about having it lettered on the side." " Oh, we're living again, that's all." " I'm so glad." "And Archie's working out?" "Best steak man in town, bar none." "Any bum can cook fish and make money on it, but with steaks, you can't go wrong with Archie." " Mr. Chris never knew what he had." " Not until we snatched him up!" "Hi, Archie." "So nice to see you again." "Denver, originally." "Well, eighteen years back, if you want to be precise." "And my wife, Fort Worth." "Forth Worth, originally." "But San Diego ever since." "Yep, San Diego." "And we like it just fine." "Well, we surely hope you'll stop by again next time you're headed our way." " Oh, we sure will!" " Thank you!" "Hello!" "Welcome to Mildred's." "May I offer you a cigar or cigarette?" "Okay, smarty, suppose you tell us what's hot." "Yeah, I didn't get all gussied up for nothing." " I say we hit Ciro's or the Troc." " I say we let the gals decide." "Well shake a leg, whatever you do." "Thanks, puss." "Here you go, gentlemen." "Mother!" "Veda, darling!" "I'm so pleased you came." "And with all your friends." "Ace job, Mother, really." "And that ocean view!" "Quite a stunner." "Thank you, dear." "Is this new?" "You know, you really ought to consult me first on a purchase like that." "Mother, I just knew you wouldn't object." "And I was so desperate for something new." "Isn't it too divine?" "Please, Mother, please can I keep it?" "All right." "Just this once." "Oh, you wonderful dear!" "You're such a treasure." "Oh!" "You must meet Elaine." "Elaine!" "Mother, Elaine." "Elaine, Mother." "Lovely to meet you, Elaine." "Likewise." "Real nice place you've got." "Elaine lives in Beverly." " Ah." "And what do you do, Elaine?" " Actress." "Oh." "What pictures have you acted in?" "Just character parts." "I see." " Say, let's get out of here." " Yeah, you said it!" "Anyone decide where it is we're going?" "Details, details." "Well, Mother, we're off." "Have a wonderful time." "Ladies." " Lovely to meet you, Elaine!" " Yeah." "You, too!" "I know it's none of my business..." "What?" "I just think you ought to know what's been going on." "What?" "With Veda?" "I'd say it's been about half a dozen times now." "And always with that same awful girl." "And not just here." "Ida's, too, and other places." "But with men, Mildred." "All sorts of men." "Oh, Lucy." " Hold on tight!" " Yeah!" "They're just young." "Not too young." "The night is young!" "Good night." " Oh, Veda." " Shh!" "Oh, say, don't be bashful!" "Come on, Veda." "Just one!" "No!" "Why won't you even..." "I told you, not in this condition!" "Stop it." "Stop it!" "Don't be such a pill!" "Ugh!" "Look at you, you can barely stand." "You're going to wake the entire street!" "Come on." "You really are a dolt, Sammy." " Veda!" " Shh!" "Good night!" "Hello?" "Hello, Mother." "You're having a lovely day, I see." "I feel like hell." "Mmm." " Were you out late again?" " I suppose I was." "Well." "You know, I was talking to Mrs. Gessler not long ago, and she said you and your friends have been..." "Mrs. Gessler?" "She said you've been in the restaurant quite a lot with your friends." "That's all." "I don't really see how that's any business of hers." "She's concerned about you." "She loves you like her own daughter." "And she and I..." "We..." "We only want what's best for you." "Mother, it was you who said I shouldn't lie around moping all day, wasn't it?" "And just because nosy Mrs. Gessler has something to..." "There's no use getting on to that subject." "The point is there's nothing to be alarmed about." "Nothing at all." "There's not?" "Of course not." "Mmm." "The fact of the matter is I may go into pictures." "And Elaine, she may be a bum." "There's no use being silly about it." "I grant at once she's nothing but a tramp." "But she knows directors." "Lots of them." "All of them." "And you have to know directors to get a test." "Pictures?" "You never said anything about pictures before." "It's just an idea." "Well, I think it's wonderful." "I think it's a wonderful idea." "Oh Veda, with..." "With your looks and your talent..." "Darling, if there's anything I can do, anything at all..." "There's nothing for you to do, Mother." "Thanks just the same." "Well you let me know if there is." "Pictures." "That's marvelous news!" "A Mrs. Lenhardt is here to see you." " Who?" " Mrs. Lenhardt." "That's the one that called yesterday." "Like John Lenhardt, the director?" "I don't know any Lenhardt." "Thank you, Mrs. Kramer." "And check with Beverly and Laguna before making the order." "Yes, Mrs. Pierce." "I hear Barbara Stanwyck was in Beverly last week, sipping coffee." "Go on!" "Mrs. Pierce." "I've been looking forward so much to meeting you." "I'm Mrs. Lenhardt, Mrs. John Lenhardt, and I'm sure we're going to work out our little problem splendidly." "Now why do I feel certain we have met before?" "Possibly in one of my restaurants?" "Doubtful." "We just so rarely go." "Well, I do have a branch in Beverly." "Perhaps you dropped in for a cup of chocolate." "Ha!" "No doubt that's it." "Can I offer you anything, Mrs. Lenhardt?" "No, thank you ever so." "Well, as I'm sure you've guessed, I've come to discuss our children, Mrs. Pierce." "Our babies." "Our babies?" "Well your little Veda, of course, and my Sammy." "Sammy Forrester, I should say." "I'm terribly sorry, but I'm afraid I haven't any idea what you're talking about." "You mean Veda hasn't told you anything?" "About what?" "Well, I see." "Well, in that case, I'll try and begin at the beginning." "Please." "Well, they met..." "It seems only yesterday." "Actually it was a few months ago now, at my house." "My husband, of course, is a director, and he was considering Veda for a part." "And, as he so often does with these kids, when we have a little party going on, he asked her over." "Veda and her little friend Elaine, another lovely child who my husband's..." "Yes, I've met Elaine." "Well." "Veda met Sam and it was simply love at first sight." "It must have been, because that boy of mine is so..." "He's so smitten, so serious." "You don't mean to tell me they're engaged?" "No." "No, I wouldn't say they were engaged." "In fact, I know for certain that my Sammy had nothing of the sort in mind." "But, Veda..." "Veda has somehow got the idea that..." "Well, I understand it, of course." "Any girl wants to get married." "But I want to assure you, Mrs. Pierce, that Sammy had no such intention." "So I'm sure you'll quite agree with me that any talk of marriage would be most undesirable." "And why, precisely?" "Because they're nothing but children, of course." " And from entirely different worlds." " What different worlds?" "Well, different communities, let's say." "They have different backgrounds, different ideals, different friends." "Sam, for one, has always been accustomed to a great deal..." "And you think Veda hasn't?" "I'm not exactly on relief, Mrs. Forrest..." "Mrs. Lenhardt." "Then let me make myself perfectly clear." "If Sammy gets married, he will be completely on his own." "And I doubt either one of them would be terribly accustomed to that reality." "Well, why should Veda feel this way about it and your boy not?" "I'm not a mind reader, Mrs. Pierce." "But let me tell you one thing." "If you, or that girl, or anybody, employ any more tricks," " trying to blackmail my boy..." " Blackmail?" "You may as well understand here and now, Mrs. Pierce, that I shall prevent this marriage." "I shall prevent it in any way that I can, and by legal means, if necessary." " Arline, there's a spill under six." " A spill?" "You were saying?" "I'm saying if there are any more threats, any more officers at my door, any more of these tricks she's been playing," "I shall not only have her arrested, I shall have her prosecuted for blackmail." "I shall not hesitate for one moment, for I have quite reached the limit of my patience!" "Did you get that, Arline?" " I..." "I was looking for the spill." " What did she say?" "She said Veda was trying to blackmail her boy into marrying her and if she kept it up she'd have the law on her." "You remember that, Arline, in case I need you." "Well." "Veda?" "Where are you?" "Mother!" "You startled me!" "Well, I'm sorry, darling." "Um..." "Veda, something's happened." "I..." "I have to talk to you." "Well, at least let me take off my hat." "Personally, I find pictures a bore." "Don't you?" "Especially Nelson Eddy pictures." "Although I suppose it's not entirely his fault." "Veda, a Mrs. Lenhardt was in to see me today." " A Mrs. John Lenhardt." " Really?" "She says you're engaged to marry her son, or have some idea about marrying him or something." "She's quite talkative." "Veda, darling, what was she talking about?" "Why haven't I heard anything about any of this?" "Well," "I think it's a bit of a stretch, saying that it was my idea that Sammy and I get married." "Well after the big rush they gave me, with Pa breaking his neck to get me a screen test, and Ma having me over morning, noon, and night, and Sonny boy phoning me and writing me, saying if I didn't marry him" "he'd end his young life." "So personally I think it was more of an ambush." "Certainly I said nothing about it or even thought about it until it seemed advisable." "What do you mean, advisable?" "Well, Mother, he was certainly very sweet, or seemed so at any rate." "And they were all so encouraging." "And I certainly was most indiscreet." "But then, after the big whoop-de-do, their entire attitude changed." "And here I am, holding the bag." "One might just say I was a bit of a sap." "Oh, Veda." "I only wish you felt..." "Holding the bag?" "What do you..." "What do you mean?" "Oh God." "You don't mean to tell me you're..." "You're not..." "Veda?" "I didn't want to believe it myself." "Oh!" "But how do you know?" "How can you be sure?" "It's true, it's only been a couple of months, but so far, it seems to be the only explanation." "Oh!" "Oh, Veda!" "Oh, my baby." " Why didn't you tell me sooner?" " Mother, I was afraid." "Of me?" "Of Mother?" "No, of course not." "But of making you suffer." "Just knowing you'd be disappointed." "I can't bear it." "I can't bear seeing you unhappy with me." "Shh." "But what did she mean about officers?" "Officers at her door?" "You mean police?" "I don't know." "I suppose police." "Well that is funny." "What is?" "Well, from what I've been learning about little Sammy, it seems that any girl from Central Casting could have sent officers to his door." "Apparently he has very democratic tastes." "Oh, my darling." "My poor darling." "We'll see to it they do what's right and proper." "First thing tomorrow, I'm calling Wally Burgan." "Mother, I absolutely agree." "But I meant to tell you." "I hope it's all right." " I've already spoken to Wally." " You what?" "Please don't worry, Mother." "He's coming here tomorrow and he'll be able to explain everything." "You've spoken with Wally Burgan?" "Well, I tell you, I did a little inquiring myself and the situation's about what I figured." "He comes into his dough on his twenty-first birthday." "How much exactly I don't know, but well up in to six figures." "And when he dies, whoever he's married to, she gets her fair share of the goods." "And that's what this is all about." "It's got nothing to do with their being too young or whatever else that mother's been dishing out." "It's nothing but the do-re-mi." "The old army game." "And that's why they're so hot to settle." "Wally, we're not interested in whether he inherits or how much he inherits." "And a settlement simply ignores the fact that a situation has been created." "It's a terrible situation for Veda!" "Now the only thing that boy can do, the only proper thing, is to marry her." "I'll have him arrested if it's the only way." "Well, arresting him might not be so easy." "Aren't there laws?" "Go ahead and tell her." "Well, as it turns out, I took Veda over to the Sheriff's office just the other week to swear out a warrant for Sam." "Nothing big, just a little morals charge." "That same afternoon, couple of the boys went over to serve it." "Well, it turns out he skipped town." "And so far we haven't been able..." "That's what she meant by officers!" "You said you had no idea what she meant..." "All I said, Mother, was that I didn't know at the time that any officers had actually been sent." "The very idea..." "The very idea of legal steps being taken without my knowing anything at all, whatsoever," " is simply..." " Now hold your horses just one minute there, Mildred!" "Of course I'd been willing to talk to you." "But when I got a client says she wants to keep things to herself..." "Mother, it's about time you got it through your head, that after all, I, and not you, am the main figure in this little situation, as you call it." "I'm not proud of it." "I readily admit it's my own fault and that I've been very foolish." "But when I act on that assumption to try and protect you from unhappiness, it does seem that you could give me some credit for decent motives." " Young lady..." " Instead of flying off the handle" " in this idiotic way!" " You have kept me entirely in the dark on this matter and I refuse to take any more!" "Wally, I am terribly sorry." "You were discussing a settlement?" "Well, they're up against a morals charge and you're seventeen years old, so that's all a jury needs to know." "So we're going to meet at six o'clock to settle on a number." "If that's the way you want to go, I suggest you be there, too." "That is not the way we want to go!" "They'll not be allowed to simply buy her off!" "Not in her condition." "I want that boy arrested." "Look, Mildred, I understand your point of view." "But I've got to consider..." "I've made my decision, Mother." "Thanks just the same." "I'll see you there at six." "Thank you for stopping by." "Over my dead body are you meeting with them." "I'm phoning the Sheriff's office this instant, and if that doesn't work, I'll hire a private detective." "You'll do nothing of the kind!" "Stop that!" "You listen to me, young lady!" "I am still your mother whether you like it or not!" "Mother!" "If you call the Sheriff's office, they're only going to bring him back!" "And if they bring him back, he's only going to want to marry me, which isn't quite what I had in mind!" "You see, he's quite crazy about me." "He's even rather sweet at times, in a Buster Brown sort of way." "But as for matrimony, I beg to be excused." "I'd much rather have the money." "You..." "Now I know what that woman meant when she..." "You really are just trying to shake her down, shake the whole family down, for money!" "Are you even pregnant?" "Really, Mother." "At this stage, it's rather more a matter of opinion." "Oh!" "Oh, God." "Veda, how could you?" "If you had loved this boy..." "But to pretend you loved him, to lead him on to get money out of him!" "How could you?" "Merely following in my mother's footsteps." "What?" "Stop being so tiresome!" "Do I have to spell it out for you?" "There's the date of your wedding and there's the date of my birth." "Figure it out for yourself." "I suppose it runs in families." "Why do you think I married your father?" "I rather imagine he married you." "If you mean why you got yourself knocked up, well I suppose you did it for the same reason I did." "For the money." "What money?" "Mother, in another minute I'm going to be getting annoyed." "Of course he has no money now!" "But at the time, he was quite rich." "And your father, he ran a garage." "But why, Veda?" "Haven't I given you everything you've ever wanted?" "If there was something you needed, couldn't you have come to me first instead of resorting to this?" "To blackmail?" "You want to know why?" "I'll tell you why." "With enough money, I can get away from you!" "You..." "And your pie-wagons, and chickens, and everything that smells of grease!" "I can get away from Glendale, and its dollar days, and furniture factories, and women that wear uniforms and men that wear smocks!" "From every rotten, stinking thing that even reminds me of this place." "Or you." "I see." "Well, it's a good thing I found out about your little scheme when I did." "Because had you gone through with it or even tried to, you'd have been out of here a lot sooner than you might have expected." "You don't make those decisions anymore." "There's nothing you can say about what I do or when I do it!" "Then get out!" "Now!" "This is unacceptable!" "Unacceptable?" "Coming from you!" "I have no idea what you're talking about." "Oh, jeepers, let's see!" "Father, Monty, Wally." "You take what you need!" "That's it." "That's it!" "You get your things out of this house this instant, or you'll find them in the middle of Pierce Drive when you come back!" "Mother, you needn't be so over-dramatic." "I said now!" "You witch." "You shrew!" "You hideous cow!" "I am never coming back to this hovel as long as I live!" "Oh!" "See this place in a thousand years is too soon!" "Veda." "Where do you think you're going?" "Veda!" "Well, the Victor Hugo, that's news." "That's what she said." "Having the toniest restaurant downtown wasn't enough, apparently." "They need one here in Laguna now, too." "And where, exactly?" "A mile down, she said." "Near the Texaco." "Funny Ida called you." "Wanted to be sure and give me the good news." "The Victor Hugo, that's competition, all right." "Hmm." "I guess we must be doing something right." "Yeah." "We should charge a commission." "Don't worry, baby." "The shine'll wear off that place real fast." "You watch." " Oh, I'm not worried about that." " No?" "No." "No word?" "Not in months." "What about Bert?" "Does he see her?" "He says she's living in Hollywood." "Somewhere on Franklin." "That's all." "Look, baby." "Maybe it'll do her some good fending for herself for a while." "Kids learn fast it ain't all it's cracked up to be." "No." "It certainly isn't." "And coming up next, my little chickadees, right here on the Buzz Winston Family Hour, is the swellest of talents to grace the waves this season, a sweet little gal with a voice like an angel." "You're not gonna believe the notes this local girl can hit!" "♪ When I'm awfully low and the world is cold, ♪" "♪ I will feel a glow just thinking of you ♪" "♪ and the way you look tonight. ♪" "♪ Oh, but you're lovely with your smile so warm ♪" "♪ and your cheeks so soft. ♪" "♪ There is nothing for me but to love you. ♪" "♪ Just the way you look tonight. ♪" "♪ With each word your tenderness grows, ♪" "♪ tearing my fear apart. ♪" "♪ And that laugh that wrinkles your nose ♪" "♪ touches my foolish heart. ♪" "♪ Lovely... ♪" "♪ Never never change. ♪" "♪ Keep that breathless charm. ♪" "♪ Won't you please arrange it, ♪" "♪ cause I love you. ♪" "♪ Just the way you look tonight. ♪" "Great job tonight." "Hello?" "Bert?" "Oh, Bert." "I'm so glad you called." "No, I was..." "I was going through the hall closet the other night and I... found some things of Veda's that I thought she might want." " Of Veda's?" " Mmm-hmm." "Just some winter clothes." "Sure, sure." "I didn't..." "I didn't know if you had any plans to be seeing her," " but if you did..." " No." "I thought perhaps..." "No, I haven't seen her in quite some time, in fact." "Could you call her?" "Bert?" "Well, sure, I can call." "I know she'll want her winter coat." "Her piano." "Mildred, listen." "Of course I can call her." "I know you see her, Bert." "I know you talk." "It's just..." "I can't stand it..." "I have to know what's going on with my baby." "Listen to me." "There's something I gotta show you." "What?" " Can I come over there?" " What are you..." "What, you..." "You mean now?" "Bert..." "Take a look." "But..." "I don't understand." "Singing?" "That's what it says." "Soprano!" ""Hank Somerville program conducted by Carlo Treviso?"" "That's the..." "That's the one who threw her out on her ear!" "I remember." "How long has this been going on?" "Couldn't prove it by me." "But the way I get it, Veda's been on the air a lot already." "On the little afternoon programs nobody pays attention to." "That's how she got this chance with a big national hookup." "I'm reeling." "Well, it just goes to show the kid had the stuff all along, to get a spot like that with a big jazz band, and nobody giving her any help but herself!" " She does look lovely." " She sure does." "She'll be going out live, nationwide, from the NBC studio in Hollywood." "How did you find out?" "She called you?" "She called me up and told me the good news!" "And she'll call you up, too." "Of course she will." "Oh, no." " She won't call me." " Sure she will." "Look, I know how you feel, but this is the kid's first big chance." "And it's a chance, all right." "If these torch singers have the right hot licks on their first night out, they can hit the big time overnight." "Oh, don't be like that." "Why don't we listen in together?" "Make a night of it." "What do you say, Mildred?" "I still haven't seen your place at Laguna." "Oh, I suppose you're right." "Thanks, Bert." "You come out to Laguna and we'll make a night of it." "That's what I like to hear." "What's all this?" "Veda's singing on the radio?" "That's it, all right." "Turns out she's been making quite a splash on the local channels." "One of the girls said she heard Veda was on the radio but I didn't pay it any mind!" "Though I can't say I'm surprised." "You must be bursting!" " I certainly wish her well." " That's charitable." "Come on, I set you up outside." "All right, fellas, just put it in the corner where I told you, over there." "Careful, careful!" "That was some dinner, Mildred." "Perfect steak." "You hear that, Lucy?" "You got a fan." "Any more of him where he came from?" " You saw the dinner trade." " I'm afraid I did." "Is it already time?" "Any minute now." "Coming up next on RCA Radio," "The Hank Somerville Music Hour!" " I hear she's got quite a style, your little girl." " Oh you bet!" "If hot licks are what it takes, this kid's got 'em." "Hear, hear." "Ahoy!" "Ahoy!" "Land ho!" "Thar she blows!" "Ahoy!" "Is this it?" "Is that the program?" "Oh, sure." "It always starts like that." "The Hank Somerville Music Hour, sponsored by Snack-O-Ham, the snacking' ham that smacks of goodness." "I'm Hank Somerville, and tonight, our guest is Los Angeles' own Veda Pierce!" "Now is that your real name, Miss Pierce?" "Yes it is." "I want to know." "Is your voice unduly piercing?" "No, but my scream is, as you'll find out if you make any more such remarks." "She put that one across, all right!" "And what will you be singing tonight, Miss Pierce?" "The Bell Song, from Delibes' Lakme." " The..." " Oh, my!" "Which?" "He's down, boys!" "What do we do?" "Quick!" "Grab the smelling salts!" " Say, what's the big idea?" " What's it about?" "It's a big, operatic aria." "The idea is it's a little over the Kaydets' heads." " Shh!" " Look, she's about to begin..." "Oh, now I get it." "Oh, don't worry." "She'll knock it over all right." "Oh, hey, hey, hey!" "♪ Ou va la jeune Indoue... ♪" "♪ Filles des Parias... ♪" "♪ Quand la lune se joue... ♪" "♪ Dans le grand mimosas... ♪" "♪ Elle court sur la mousse... ♪" "♪ Et ne se souvient pas... ♪" "♪ Que partout on repousse... ♪" "Will you get a load of that?" "Holy smokes!" "Mildred?" "♪ L'enfant des parias... ♪" "♪ Le long de lauriers roses... ♪" "♪ Revant de douce choses... ♪" "♪ Elle passe sans bruit... ♪" "♪ Et riant a la nuit. ♪" "appointment at eleven this morning..." "You book a studio at nine o'clock." " What do you mean, nine?" " Not nine-thirty," "Don't forget." " Not at ten..." " What do you mean, no?" " I don't understand." " Ah..." "Okay, nine o'clock." " Mr. Treviso?" " Yes?" "Do I know you?" "I'm terribly sorry to startle you." "I'm Mrs. Pierce." "We met once before." "My daughter, Veda, I believe is now studying with you, singing." "Uh-huh." "Okay..." "Well, um... for reasons best known to herself, Mr. Treviso," "Veda prefers her independence from me at the moment." "Just the same, it was I who supported her studies from the beginning and..." "Even though she elects to live apart from me now," "I still feel her music is my responsibility." "So..." "In the future, Mr. Treviso," "I'd like you to forward your bills directly to me." "I'm very sorry, Madame, but this is a subject which I cannot discuss with you." "You excuse me." "I have important engagement." "Well, Mr. Treviso, I'm very sorry too, but I'm afraid..." "Veda is my daughter, after all, and I feel" " that I have every right..." " Why do you want this girl back?" " Tell me that?" " What..." "Ugh..." "You're mistaking my motives." "No mistake." "No mistake at all." "I tell Veda, "Hey, you pretty lucky, kid, somebody else pay a bill now."" "And she..." "She got no idea who to call up, say thanks." ""Sure is swell, how you like to see me again, huh?"" "Vincenzo, come to get me with the car!" "That wasn't my intention, but" " certainly, if Veda did feel..." " Yes, Sir, right away." "Listen, you." "You seem like a sensible lady, no?" "You go to a zoo, huh?" "See little snake?" "Is from India, is all red, yellow, black." "Very pretty little snake." "You take home, huh?" "Make little pet, like puppy dog?" "No, you got more sense." "I tell you, it is the same with this Veda." "You buy ticket, you look at the little snake, but you no take home." "No." "What are you insinuating, that my daughter is a snake?" "No, is coloratura soprano..." "Is much worse." " Uh, what is a coloratura..." " Madame, is special fancy breed, like a blue Persian cat." "Come once in a lifetime." "sing all in the trill, staccato, ha, ha, ha, cadenza, a tough stuff." "Cost like hell." "If is real coloratura, brings more dough to grand opera house than big wop tenor." "And this girl is coloratura." "Even her bones is coloratura." "You see the high nose, the deep antrum sinus?" " You see Snack-O-Ham program?" " I did." "So." "She is not good singer." "Is great singer." "She's a wonderful girl." "No, is wonderful singer." "The girl is something else." "Well, that's your surmise, Mr. Treviso." "Is no surmise." "For last two weeks, ever since Snack-O-Ham program, this little empress have told me that her poor, dumb mother will try to get her back." "And first thing she do is come in here offer pay for singing lessons." " She..." " Yes!" "I tell you, is snake, is bitch, is coloratura." "And me, I no enjoy a snake bite." "You want to try and keep her under mama's wing her whole life?" "That is your business." "Me, I have nothing to do with this intrigue." "Now, if you'll excuse me..." " Avanti." " Si, Maestro." " Tommy, pull over the car." " Yes, ma'am." "Monty?" "Is that you?" "Mildred?" "What are you doing here?" "Uh, hot date with my creditors." "Sort of between cars these days." "Well, hop in." "I'll give you a lift." "No, no, no." "I've actually come to enjoy the public pageantry, but you're very kind." "Don't be silly, I insist." "I can't stand to argue with a lady." "What a surprise." "Would you fill up table thirteen's coffee?" "Would you look who's here?" "Well, you look wonderful." "Can't complain." "Rather, I could but I won't." "And you?" "How's our dear Veda?" "Oh..." "Busy, very busy." "She, um," " took an apartment by herself a few months ago." " Mmm-hmm." "It bothered her to have the neighbors listening while she vocalized." "She's singing, you know." "I heard." "I heard." "She quite bowled me over, in fact." "You have quite a talented daughter, Mrs. Pierce." "Please pass on my regards." "Thank you." "I shall." "Oh, who am I fooling, Monty?" "I haven't talked to her in months." "She won't answer my calls." "She won't answer my letters." "I'm honestly at my wits' end." "Well, I'm sure it's just a phase she's going through." "She'll be coming back sooner or later." "They always do." "How would you know?" "No, I hope you're right." "I'm right." "I'm always right." "Well, there is something you may have been right about all along." "Oh?" "It's Glendale." "I've simply gotta find a place more centrally located." "I'm in the car all day." "Well, hallelujah." " And I've been thinking Pasadena." " Mmm-hmm." "Between the three restaurants, it would really be the most convenient." "Actually, I've been meaning to call you to coerce you into showing me around a little." "Just to help me get my bearings." "Nobody knows it better than you." "Sounds like what you need is a real estate agent." "No, that's exactly what I want to avoid." "Well, perhaps something could be arranged..." "I'd have to check my schedule, of course." "Would you?" "On one condition." "I get this." "This side of Sierra Madre is..." "It's less desirable, though the price tag drops considerably." "Oh." "All right." " Eaton Drive is charming." " Mmm-hmm." "McDonald Park, that's a laugh." "Went to school with Duncan, when his father was busy buying up the block and renaming it." "This one off Lomora looks promising." "I don't know about the condition." "Oh, and this place, the old Cunningham estate, is top-drawer." " I like that." " This you can skip, and this one." "I wouldn't even look at that." "And this old Tudor knockoff, it's..." "It's a bit of a farce." "Oh, I don't like that at all." "You're better off in Oak Knolls or Gwinn Park, I think." "Uh-huh." " Here's 5441, not sure about the condition, but..." " Oh!" "Might as well have a look." "Stop that!" "Not quite what I had in mind." "Do we get the dog too?" "Stop that!" "Well..." "Beautiful." "This?" "Could be." "With a little money spent on it." "Come in, if you want." "I don't have much to offer." "Just for a peep." "Beautiful." "Just beautiful." "What do they want for it?" "Oh, uh, year before last, seventy-five flat." "Last year, fifty thousand." "Now it's more like thirty..." "When was it built?" "Uh, ground broke in '09." "So I can offer you tea, or something stronger." "I'd love something stronger." "I'm out of ice and seltzer." "I prefer it straight." "Ha." "Since when?" "I do think that Oak Knoll property is something to look into..." "I'll see what I can dig up on the owners." "Cheers." "You haven't changed so much." "On liquor, I'd say you were about the same." "Well, I prefer rye these days..." "Oh, gosh, Monty." "It's such a wonderful place." "I'm tempted to stop looking right now." "It does have its charms." "You haven't even seen the gardens." "You don't have to sell me." "And you don't have to stand there yelling from across the room, either." "So how are you?" "Honestly." " I'm fine." " I'm glad." "How are you?" " I'm fine." " Well, I'm glad too." "You know, gentlemen in my circumstances don't..." "Don't have a great deal of romance in their lives." "If you keep this up, you might find yourself the victim of some ravening brute." "Oh..." "Being ravened isn't so bad." "Just the same, we should try and stick to the house." " One thing bothers me." " What's that?" "Well..." "If I were to actually buy the place, what would happen to you?" "I mean, would there be a brute ravening around somewhere, or would I have it all to myself?" "All yours." "Lock, stock and barrel." "I see." "And I made a slight mistake before, about the price." "To you, it's $29,580." "That'll square up a little debt I owe you that's been bothering me for quite some time." "You owe me a debt?" "If you try, I think you can recall it." "Boo!" "Oh damn it, your legs are still immoral." " You think they're bowed?" " Stop waving them around." "I asked you." "No." "No." "Ohhh." "Oh, Monty." "How could I ever live here without you?" "I couldn't do it." "Well, I always said you'd make some guy a fine wife." "If you didn't live in Glendale." "Is that a proposal?" "If you move to Pasadena, it is." " You mean if I buy this house." " No." "No, it's about three times as much house as you need and there are plenty of other likely wiser choices." "But I won't live in Glendale." "Then all right." "Yes." "Yes!" "Mmm..." "What do you say we ride to Laguna to celebrate under the stars?" "Mmm." "Not unless I can go in a dinner coat." "That mockery of elegance is about all I have left." "Then we'll skip Laguna." "I love you in a dinner jacket." "We'll step out properly and pop champagne!" "If it's true." "If we really are engaged..." "♪ O luce di quest'anima... ♪" "♪ Delizia, amore e vita... ♪" "That's it." "K-E-C-A, "The Aristocrat of the Air." ♪ Unita nostra sorte... ♪" " Told you she'd be on it." " Mm-hmm." "You know who that is, don't you, on the radio?" "That's Veda Pierce, Mrs. Pierce's daughter." " You don't say." " I do say." "Give my regards to Mr. Eckstein." "Yes, ma'am." "Thank you, ma'am." " She's a comer, too." "You watch!" " I sure will." "♪ O luce di quest'anima... ♪" "Here." "And the receipt." "Also, Mrs. Jaeckel, it appears I might be looking at some extra expenses this month and may need to adjust my compensation." "What is it right now, exactly?" "Seventy-five a week from each of the corporation's parts:" "The three restaurants and the pie factory." "That's..." "Three hundred total." "Starting next week, increase that to four." "Four hundred?" "Yes." "We'll have to transfer funds from the corporate reserve, ma'am." "Into current cash." "To cover the balance." "Whatever you think best, Mrs. Jaeckel." " It's just for the time being." " Certainly, Mrs. Pierce." "Mrs. Pierce?" "It's Mr. Beragon on the line." "Thank you, Sigrid." "Monty?" "Get over here." "Something to show you at the plantation." " What, you mean, right now?" " Yes, right now." "Hello?" "When the furniture came, I couldn't resist any longer." "Oh, Monty!" "It's wonderful." "I have a simple theory." "Whatever pertains to comfort, shoot the works." "But with whatever pertains to show, be a little modest." "People like you better if you aren't so damned rich." "You're very wise." "Oh, you framed it." "The dining room set arrives Thursday, but have a look in here." "Oh!" "Oh well," "I don't know about this." "You don't think it's..." "Well, I don't know what to think!" "Sit down a minute, and take a lesson in interior decorating." "I love lessons in decorating." "Do you know the best room I was ever in?" "No." "Tell me." "That den of yours, or Bert's rather, over in Glendale." "Everything in that room meant something to that guy." "Those banquets, those foolish-looking blueprints of houses that'll never be built." "They do things to you." "Because it's all part of him." "And that's why the room is good." "And do you know the worst room I was ever in?" "Go on, I'm learning." "It's that living room of yours in the same house." "Not one thing in it, until that piano came, ever meant a thing to you, or him, or anybody else." "You see, a home isn't meant to be a museum." "Filled with Picasso paintings, or Oriental rugs, like this place used to be." "It's meant to be furnished with things that actually matter." "Let's have this place the way we want it." "And if you don't like the Pie Wagon corner, I do." "I love it." "Then it stays." "I love it." " Oh, look at you two!" " To the newlyweds!" "To the happy couple!" " Congratulations, pumpkin." " Sweetie." " Congratulations, Mr. Beragon." " Tommy." "Thanks." " He's a real thoroughbred, Mildred." " Oh..." "I couldn't be happier for you." "Oh thank you, Bert." "That means a great deal to me." "Hi." "Where's Mrs. Beiderhof?" "I'd love to say hello." "Well, funny story." "Maggie's husband struck oil in Texas not long ago, and Maggie decided to go join him there." "These days I'm living with Mom and Pop." "But what husband?" "I thought she was a widow!" "Well, there's the thing of it." "So did I." "It's enough to take your breath away." " Oh, Bert..." " Feels just like Ginger Rogers coming down the stairs, don't it?" "Best wishes, Mrs. Beragon." " Thank you." "Thank you so much." " Honestly, Mildred, it just looks like heaven." "It's the lap of luxury, all right." "I tell you, it's all Monty." "Oh, thank you." "Ya know, Mildred," "I've had a heck of a time getting you on the phone this week." "Last month's books..." "I can't make heads or tails of the balances." "If you've got just a minute tonight, maybe you could clear something up for me?" "Oh, please, Ida, can't we leave business just for one day?" "First thing tomorrow, I promise." "Well, I suppose it can wait one more day..." "Still no sign of Mr. Beragon?" "Oh, yes, ma'am, he just arrived." "With a young lady." "Oh, there she is." "Hello, darling." "Back with the olives, catastrophe averted." "Thank you, Arline." "They said you arrived with a young lady and I..." "I just..." "Oh..." " I thought I was doing so well." " Oh, you're doing brilliantly." "I sent her that invitation myself." "And I know she saw the notices in the paper." "And I just..." "I just hoped, that's all." " I'm sure she got the message." " Then that's even worse." "Don't be so sure." "♪ Duftender Raum... ♪" "♪ Zur Liebe geschmuckt... ♪" "♪ Nahm euch nun auf, ♪" "♪ dem Glanze entruckt... ♪" "♪ Treulich bewacht... ♪" "♪ Bleibet zuruck... ♪" "♪ Wo euch der Segen der Liebe bewahr'!" "♪" "♪ Siegreicher Mut... ♪" "♪ Minne und Gluck... ♪" "♪ Eint euch in Treue... ♪" "♪ Zum seligsten Paar... ♪" "♪ Zum seligsten... ♪" "♪ Paar. ♪" "Encore." " Thank you." " You're welcome." "Well, God damn it, how did you get to be a singer?" "Hmm?" "When I discovered you, practically..." "Pulled you out of the gutter, you were strictly keyboard." "Darling." "I turn my back for one second and you..." "You turn into some kind of yodeler!" "Well, God damn it," " it was an accident." " Well, then report." " I was at the Philharmonic." " Oh, yes, I've been there." "And it was the Schubert Unfinished." "And afterwards, I was walking across the park to my car, and I was humming it." "And that's when I saw him walking ahead of me..." " Who?" " Treviso." "Now, I had plenty of reason for not wanting to meet" " the honorable signor." " Why so?" "I'd played for him once before and he wasn't at all appreciative." "But he stopped and turned around and said "Was that you just now, singing?"" "And I wasn't so proud of my singing just about then because I was singing full chest and sounded exactly like a man." "Hannen used to call me the Glendale baritone." "So I said it really wasn't any of his concern whether I was singing or not." "And he grabbed me by the arm and said it concerned him very much." "And insisted that I meet him the very next day." " And?" " Thanks." "And I went." "How could I refuse?" "And then for a solid week," " he worked on me." " Here you go." "Trying to get me to sing like a woman." "And then finally, finally!" "It just began to come." "And that's when I got my revenge." "Do tell." "Well, he said I had the voice, but if I wanted to be a real musician," " I would have to master music, too." " Mmm-hmm." "So I asked him if there was any sight reading he wanted done." "Oh, touche." "And he handed me the Inflamatus from Rossini's Stabat Mater." "Well, I went through that like a hot knife through butter." "And then I showed him my arranging, and all the theory that Hannen hammered into me." "If the wop hit gold in Death Valley, he couldn't have acted more like a goof." "He started going over me with these little wooden hammers, and gadgets with lights that went down my throat and..." " He even went digging up my, uh..." " He went for the dairy?" "Now, Monty..." " What?" " Believe it or not, yes!" "Turns out it wasn't love he was looking for." "Just meat!" "He said it enriches the tone!" "♪ Casta Diva... ♪" "♪ Casta Diva che, ♪" "♪ inargenti... ♪" "♪ Queste sacre... ♪" "♪ Queste sacre... ♪" "♪ Queste sacre... ♪" "♪ Antiche piante... ♪" "♪ Spargi in terra ah... ♪" "♪ Quella pace... ♪" "♪ Spargi in terra... ♪" "♪ Spargi in terra quella... ♪" "♪ Pace... ♪" "♪ Spargi in terra quella pace... ♪" "♪ Che regnar...♪" "♪ Regnar tu fai... ♪" "♪ Tu fai nel cell... ♪" "♪ Tu... ♪" "♪ Fai... ♪" "♪ Regnar tu fai... ♪" "♪ Nel... ♪" "♪ Ciel. ♪" "You just heard the Casta Diva aria from Bellini's Norma, performed by Miss Veda Pierce." "In Milano?" "Or Cannes?" " When she lifted up her arm just so..." " Was it not?" "I tell you, if I ever saw one right out of the can, Mrs. Pierce, she's it, your daughter." "There she is, there's Veda." "Thank you." " Well, you never know." " Congratulations!" "Now I'm not usually one to make rash decisions, Miss Pierce." "But we're about to start a promotion" " on a new vitamin bread." "It's called "Sunbake."" " I handle Miss Pierce." "Moe Levinson." "Ted Hobey, president, Consolidated Foods." "I'll cut right to the chase, Mr. Levinson." "I'm prepared to offer your client a two-year contract," "$2500 a week, plus a guaranteed mention in 25% of Consol's national advertising, if you come to New York and sing for Sunbake Bread." "How does that strike you?" "Sorry, pal, it strikes me fine, but, uh, she's sewed." "She sings for "Pleasant," the mentholated cigarettes, so, uh, it's out of the question." "But..." "New York!" "Certainly there must be something we could..." "Sorry, kid, a contract's a contract." "You signed on the dotted line." "Nothing to do about that." " But..." " Well, I'm sorry to hear it." "But if anything changes, the offer stands." "You keep us in mind." "Thank you, Mr. Hobey, we certainly shall." " I'm sorry, Ted." " That's all right." "Sewed?" "To Pleasant Cigarettes?" "For an entire year?" "Five hundred a week is nothing to sneeze at." "It's true, dear." "That..." "That's still a great deal of money." "Mother, that's not the point!" "There are levels in this business, and we just had the chance to move up, and we missed it." "Do you have any idea what New York means to a classical singer?" "If Levinson had looked ahead two minutes, and not... jumped on the first boat that came along..." " If he hadn't been so greedy..." " Hey, hey." "Now suppose ya take it back." "Suppose ya say you're sorry." "Why should I?" "It's the truth, isn't it?" "'Cause I got an offer for ya, and this you're gonna want to hear." "What offer?" "The Philharmonic." "Headliner." "The Philharmonic Auditorium?" " Why, that's marvelous!" " Big time." "Then accept." "If the terms are suitable." "Not so fast, baby." "It's kind of a double offer." "They'll take Pierce or they'll take Opie Lucas." "They leave it to me." "I handle ya both, and Opie, she don't cuss me out." "She's nice." "A contralto's no draw." "Contralto gets it if you don't apologize." "Okay..." "Levy, I apologize." "Don't go starting' nothing with Moe Levinson." "Maybe ya don't know where you're comin' out..." "Monty, go find Tommy, will you?" "Tell him we'll be ready very soon." " Yes dear." " Say, Levy, how 'bout those snaps?" " Congratulations, kiddo!" " Thanks, Monty." "Oh, Veda." "The Philharmonic." "Do you remember the first concert I took you to at the Philharmonic?" " It was a Young People's Concert..." " Picture time, doll." "Mustn't keep the boys waitin'." " Excuse me, Mother." " You go on." "Here she is, fellas." "She's all yours." "Miss Pierce!" "Over here, Miss Pierce." "Yeah, Miss Pierce, here." "One for the Radio Times." "That's it, that's it." "Let's go." " And Qui La Voce would be the perfect finish." " Mmm-hmm." "It'll be no Opie Lucas repertoire, I promise you that." "Mmm..." "Then there's the dress to consider..." "The color, the fabric." "Not to mention, the little matter of a publicity agent." "Thank you, Monty." "I saw a lovely pale peach gown at Bullock's in satin." "This isn't the kind of dress you shop for, Mother." "It's not?" "This dress gets made." "And the hat." "The hat?" "For the Philharmonic?" "Just for the first interval." "To give a sense of progression, a gain in intimacy." "The consummate showman." "We'll need to reserve seats." "A dozen at least." " I'll talk to Levinson in the morning." " Yes, do." "And some sort of supper following." "That needs planning as well." "Well, I'm done in." "You ladies are obviously up for hours, scheming." "Don't go, Monty." "You might have heard I have chores in the morning." "I think I'll stay in the tack room tonight." "Oh, I don't want to turn you out." "That's quite all right." "I guess we're truly middle-aged, aren't we, Monty?" "I guess that's it." "Good night, dear." "Sleep tight." "That's four pounds shrimp, four pounds lobster," " two pounds crab..." " Crab?" " Yes." " And the caviar?" "And one pound caviar, that's correct." "Is this the restaurant account?" "No, the second account." " And it's July 20th." " Ah, yes." " Yes, the big night." " Very big night indeed." "Yes." "Thank you, Mr. Peters." "A pleasure, Mrs. Beragon." "Yes, Sigrid?" "I have a pile of messages." "Mr. Eckstein called, says he still hasn't received his May payment." " I'll have to call him back." " Also, your florist called." " Plus Ida again..." " Oh, Ida!" "Shoot!" " Um, is that the florist's number?" " Yes." " Oh, and Mr. Burgan called." " Wally?" "What did he want?" "He didn't say." "Just that it was important you call him back." "Take messages." "I'll get back to them as soon as I can." "Yes, Mrs. Pierce..." "Yes, Mrs. Beragon." "Tell Miriam not to worry about restocking tonight." "There'll be plenty of time after the rush." " Huntington Florist." " Hello, this is Mrs. Beragon." "Ah, Mrs. Beragon, how are you today?" "Very good, thank you." "Now do you have any white orchids?" " Take these two down to the cellar." " All right." "Ah, swell." "The delivery we've all been waiting for." "Yes, sir." "Nothing broken, I trust?" "All looks fine." " I would put those on the top." " Yes, sir." "Hello, dear." "I thought you were seeing to the garden today." "Well, I was." "But the liquor showed up, so Frederick and I are stocking the galley." "Just checked the Chateau Lascombes, 1929." "A perfect year." "Taste?" "Honestly, Monty." "At this hour." " No!" " Veda." " This is all wrong." " Veda." "Levy, no." "None of this "Pasadena Starlet" business..." "It's got to be Glendale!" "And radio!" "And studied right here in Los Angeles!" "What do ya mean?" "This is fantastic!" "You couldn't have written it better yourself!" "There are 2,000 seats in that place, and they've all got to feel like I'm one of them!" " Don't you see?" " Well..." "Okay, I guess you got a point." "Afternoon, Mrs. Beragon." "Never thought I'd hear you rooting for Glendale." "There's a first time for everything." "Are you ready, Mrs. Temple?" "Voila!" "Oh, Veda!" "I think it's enchanting." "It's first class." "We added the bodice." " You don't think it's too Vaudeville?" " Vaudeville?" "I can't come out looking like both Gish sisters." "Oh, don't be silly." "I'd skip the bodice." "All right, without the bodice." "But, with a matching parasol!" "A parasol?" "By Saturday?" "It'll have to be a rush." "Whatever she needs, Mrs. Temple." "This is a very special occasion." "Oh, Mother, the time!" "I have rehearsal at three." "Come..." "I'll take ya." "I'm heading that way now." "Mrs. Beragon, Mr. Beragon." "You two run along." "There's still so much to do here." "The silver." "The linens..." "Look at you." "You'd think nothing was happening around here in four days time!" "You'd think everything just happens by itself!" "The crowds." " Tommy, I had no idea." " It's a scene all right." " I'm going to get out here." " Sure thing, Mrs. Beragon." "And tell Veda break a leg!" "Thank you, Tommy, I shall!" "Mildred!" "It's right down here." " Have you seen her?" " Not yet." "I was waiting out front." "Monty drove her to rehearsal hours ago." "But the traffic was awful!" "All right, boys, that's enough." "Big smile, right here." " Come on, we got a show to do tonight." " All right, all right." "Let's go." "Come on." "I'll let you get back in here later, I promise, all right?" " Veda!" " Sorry, lady." "That's my daughter." "Oh, that's very nice, but there just isn't time." "I'll make sure that she gets your flowers, all right?" "Veda!" "Orchestra to places!" "Clear the backstage area, please." " Suppose we ought to go find our seats." " Yes." "I'm telling you, Mildred, this thing is a sellout." "Oh, just look at the place." "Mrs. Beragon." "Mr. Levinson." "You must be so proud." "And nervous." "I'm nervous." "Hi." " Dear." " Mother." "Pop." "How is she?" "Was she nervous?" "Yeah." "Like steel." "♪ Caro nome che il mio cor... ♪" "♪ Festi primo palpitar... ♪" "♪ Le delizie... ♪" "♪ Dell'amor... ♪" "♪ Mi dei sempre rammentar... ♪" "♪ Col pensiero il mio desir... ♪" "♪ A te ognora volera... ♪" "♪ E pur I'ultimo sospir, ♪" "♪ caro nome tuo sara. ♪" "♪ Alle Bande der Natur... ♪" "♪ Wenn nicht durch dich... ♪" "♪ Sarastro wird erblassen... ♪" "♪ Hort... ♪" "♪ Rachegotter... ♪" "♪ Hort der Mutter Schwur. ♪" " Fantastic!" " Brava!" "Brava!" "Well it's none of my business, but in my opinion, after an applause like that, Treviso should have let her sing an encore." "Absolutely divine, didn't you think?" "I'm not much of an authority in this field, myself, Bert, but it's my impression that encores are rarely sung in the first half of a program." "It's..." "It's all reserved for the end." "I'm sure that's the case." "My mistake then." "All I know is they're eating it up." " Oh, they're eating it up all right." " Oh, yes." "Brava!" "Bravo!" "Brava!" "Even if..." "Even if it's not a song that's supposed to be sung on a symphony program, may I sing a song just because I want to sing it?" "This one's just for you." "♪ Some fellas look and find the sunshine. ♪" "♪ I always look and find the rain. ♪" "♪ Some fellas make a winning some time. ♪" "♪ I never even make a gain. ♪" "♪ Believe me, ♪" "♪ I'm always ♪" "♪ chasing rainbows, ♪" "♪ waiting to find a little bluebird ♪" "♪ in vain. ♪" "Brava!" "Brava!" "Eckstein, Rossi, your market man and your two grocers." "Listen, all they want is some reassurance." "I spoke to Mr. Eckstein, and I know for a fact that payments went out on Monday." "The payments did not all go out on Monday, or the Monday before." "Listen, Mildred, nobody here wants any trouble." "Believe me, as council to your creditors, it's in the interest of everybody at that table that you get yourself back on your feet, and become the A-number-one customer you've been in the past." "Well the bakery must be doing all right." "I see your pies all over town!" "No, the bakery is doing just fine." "Thank you, Mr. Rossi." "As are the restaurants in Glendale and Beverly." "But here in Laguna, since the opening of the Victor Hugo down the street, we..." "We have seen a dip in business." "Must be quite a dip." " It's not as bad as all that." " So where's the problem?" "It's true this year I've had personal expenses and household debt that have been a little more than anticipated." "And I've had to increase my salary for several months to compensate." "Though I certainly think it's fair, considering my investment, that uh," " should the occasion arise that I would..." " Hold on, hold on." "Hold, hold, hold on." "So what you're telling us is you'd be showing a profit if it wasn't for your mansion in Pasadena?" "To be honest, Mr. Eckstein, it really isn't anyone's business." "None of it's anyone's business, Mildred." "If we just went by what our business was, we'd have gone to court already and kept our questions to ourselves." "But we didn't do that." "We wanted to give you a break and hear what you had to say." "So what do you want to know?" "I want to know what Veda pays in." "She's the big expense, isn't she?" "I don't keep books on my own daughter." "Mildred, Veda is making plenty." "Five hundred a week from Pleasant, plus what I got her in the settlement." "I mean, why wouldn't you be justified in asking her for an amount that could ease the pressure all around?" "Wally, neither you nor anybody else has a right to take what belongs to me, or what belongs to my child, to pay the bills of this business!" "Maybe you've forgotten, Mr. Wally Burgan, that it was you who told me to incorporate for precisely this reason, to keep my personal property safe from any kind of creditor." "Maybe you've forgotten, but I haven't!" "No, I haven't forgotten it." "And you're right, no one here can take a dime of your money or Veda's." "All they can do is go to court, have you declared bankrupt, take over." "The court will appoint receivers." "You'll be out." "Fine!" "Then I'm out." "You'll be out, and Ida'll be in." "Who?" "Ida?" "That's a lie." " She would never do it, never..." " Oh yeah, she would." "Sure, she cried at first, said she wouldn't listen to such a thing because she was such a good friend of yours." "But she couldn't get to you for weeks just for a little talk." "You were too busy with the concert." "Maybe that hurt her feelings, maybe it made her wonder." "Anyway, now..." "She'll listen to reason." "And we figure she can run this business just as good as anybody can run it." "Maybe not as good as you, when you had your mind on it, but better than a stage-struck dame who'd rather go to concerts than pay what she owes!" "I'm telling you, Mildred, you gotta do three things." "You gotta cut down on your overhead so you can live off of what you make." "You gotta raise some money from some place, the place in Glendale, Veda, so you can square these bills and start over." "And you gotta cut out all this running around and get down to work." "You show us some action by a week from tonight and you can forget about what's been said here." "You don't..." "Maybe we take a little action ourselves." "Two sets of books..." "And they..." "I'll be." " And the accountants, did they..." " It's all my doing, Bert." "All my fault..." "The different ledgers were my idea." "But how'd you ever think you'd pay it all back?" "Uh..." "Well..." "If everything you tell me is accurate..." "Oh, it is." "It is, Bert." "I've told you everything." "You're the only one I've told." "Well... as far as I can tell, there's been no actual violation of the law." "Not saying it wasn't pretty damn foolish." "But the fact is Veda is the one who's costing you money, and she's the one that's making it." "She's got to kick in." "That's all there is to it." "I never wanted her to know." "I never wanted her to know either, but she found out just the same when I hit the deck." "If she'd had a little dough when Pierce Homes began to wobble and I'd taken it and Pierce Homes was ours right now, she'd be better off, right?" "And who the hell put that girl where she is today?" "Who paid for all the music?" "And..." "That piano, and the car and the clothes and..." "Oh, you did your share." "Mighty little." "You did a lot, Bert." "You did plenty." "We lived very well before the Depression, as well as any family ever lived in this country." "And for a long time." "Veda was eleven when we broke up." "She's only twenty now." "I've carried on nine years, but it was eleven for you." "Eleven years and eight months." "Oh!" "All right." "Eleven years and eight months." "But you know what?" "I'm glad." "I'm glad it was eight months." "We didn't know I was pregnant when we got married." "That proves I loved you, doesn't it?" "Me too, Mildred." "Me too." "Bert, would you talk to her?" "I can't ask her for money." "I'm not Wally, I wouldn't know how to begin." "Sure." "Thank you." "So, tomorrow sometime?" "At the house?" "Mildred, we can't wait till tomorrow." "Why?" "What do you mean?" "You've got to talk to her tonight." "Tonight?" "It's too late, she'll be asleep." "I can't help how late it is, we've got to see her tonight." "Because you forgot and I forgot and we both forgot who we're dealing with here." "Mildred, you can't trust Wally Burgan, not even till the sun comes up!" "He was my pal, and he crossed me!" "He was your pal, and he crossed you!" "But he was Veda's pal too, Mildred." "And maybe he's getting ready to cross her too and somehow get his hands on her dough!" "He can't, not for corporate debts." "How do you know?" "I know because..." "He..." "He told me so!" " He helped me set up the corporation..." " That's it." "He told you!" "Wally Burgan told you!" "How can we believe anything that guy says?" "Maybe that meeting today was just a phony." "Maybe he's getting ready to compel you to take her money, as her guardian, so he can attack it!" "She's still a minor, you know." "Mildred, you're seeing her tonight and you're getting her out of that house before any process server can find you." " You understand me?" " Yes." "You're meeting me at the Brown Derby in Hollywood for breakfast and by that time I'll be busy." "There'll be four of us at that table:" "You, me, Veda..." "And a lawyer." "Veda?" "Veda?" "Veda?" "Monty!" "Monty!" "What?" "It's me." "I have to see you." "Let me in." "Why don't you go back to bed and let me sleep?" "It's about Veda!" "Ugh, now what?" "I need to find Veda and she's not in her room." "She hasn't been there all evening." "Oh, for God's sake, is she an infant?" "Maybe she went somewhere." "It's a free country." "She didn't go anywhere." " How do you know?" " Her dress is there." "Well couldn't she have changed it?" "Her car is there." "Couldn't she have gone with somebody else?" "Why..." "Why are you?" "Oh..." "Oh..." "Oh, God..." "Mother." "Look, dear." "You have a caller." "She looks a bit confounded, doesn't she?" "For the life of me, I don't know why." "How could you?" "How could I?" "How could I!" "That's quite rich, coming from you." "After so many years of using me for all your..." "Your special purposes..." "Expecting me to jump every time you drop a bill and begrudging me every cent." "You know, I..." "I thought it might be different this time around." "I thought..." "But you can barely even stand to look at me." "You don't think much of me, do you, Mildred?" "Does it make a difference what she thinks?" "Or what she pays for?" "You thought you held the strings on everybody, didn't you?" "You thought you could come around and dress me up and use me as bait to lure your famous daughter back to the teat!" "No." "But it was live bait, Mildred." "It was live bait!" "And guess what?" "This time the quarry and the bait fell in love!" "No kidding!" "And for the first time in your life, there's nothing, you hear me, nothing you can do about it!" "Darling, please." "All this screaming." "Get dressed now and we'll clear out." "Mildred!" "Mildred!" "Mildred!" "Mildred!" "Mildred!" "Let go!" "Stop it!" "Mildred!" "Mildred, Let go!" " Ahhh!" " Mildred!" "Mildred, leave her alone!" "Mildred!" "Mildred, stop it!" "Stop this nonsense, right now!" "Ugh!" "Oh!" "Mildred!" "Mildred!" "Ahhh!" "Ahhh!" "Ahhh..." "Came the dawn." "God, what a dawn." "Surprise!" "Congratulations!" "To the newlyweds!" " Cheers to that!" " Oh!" "I know this was you." "Ma." "Oh, Mildred, let's get that out of your hair." "I can't believe it!" "I thought it seemed too quiet in here." "I never would have thought." "Look at you." "You look terrific." "So you liked Reno all right?" " Oh, we liked it." "We liked it just fine." " I hear it's something." "It wasn't here anyway, that's the main thing." "Once the divorce came through and Bert arrived, that's all I wanted." "Well, we're sure glad to have you back." "You know, I couldn't find the server." " Oh, I'll get it." " I'll come with you." "I mean..." " Pop." "You said you were watering the lawn." " I was." " How's Laguna?" " Picking up." "Strange, though, working for Mildred Pierce, Incorporated without you, baby." "Oh..." " And the new boss?" " Ida?" "I tell you, Mildred, I give her hell." "But we're still standing." "I thought she'd be here by now." " Anyone else you're expecting?" " Nope." "And if it's Veda you're hinting at, I did try calling." "Didn't hear back." "Well." "I wouldn't have thought..." "We did get a wonderful letter though, congratulating us." "And her voice is nearly healed, she said, which is..." "Well, that's a load off." "It would be if Pleasant Cigarettes hadn't canceled her contract." "I meant for you." "Mildred?" "Ida!" "I'm so pleased you came." " Thank you, they're beautiful." " Oh, Mildred," "I just..." "I can't tell you how sorry I am." "Ida, you did what you had to do." "I just wish it could of gone in a different way." "It's water under the bridge." "Well." "You know, Mildred, Mr. Chris came in the other day." "I tell ya, he's just furious about the quality of pies that he's been getting, you know, ever since we've been cutting back." " Can't blame him." " Ah..." "So I told him what happened, you know." "I explained to him they ain't your pies no more." "And he says to me, "Why not, she still got hands, doesn't she?"" "Now, I know, I shouldn't be drumming' up more competition but..." "There ya go!" "Right?" "Oh." "Bert?" "What is it?" "It's, uh..." "Veda's outside." "Veda?" "Well, let her in." "She wants to talk out there." "But why?" "I don't know." "Veda!" "Come inside." "There's food." "I can't, Mother." "Hello, Father." "Veda." "But you've come all this way." "I'm actually on my way out." "I'm..." "I'm flying to New York this afternoon." "New York?" "Oh, we had no idea." "Well, we all know that L.A. is hopeless for a classical singer and..." "Now that my voice is better, uh, New York is the only real option." "But I heard you two were back, so I thought I'd stop by on my way." "So you're moving?" " To New York?" " That's the idea." "Alone?" "No." "Uh, Monty's there now." "Ah." "And you're..." "I presume you have some sort of job lined up?" "As a matter of fact, I do." "Um..." "I've been speaking with Mr. Hobey, Father, at Consolidated Foods." "And..." "He's been very patient." "Very generous, and, uh," "I think everything's gonna work out just fine." "They do a fine job." "I've said so myself." "I'm very pleased with how it's all turned out." "How difficult it must have been..." "Playing your cards just so." "I have no idea what you mean, Mother." "Consolidated Foods." "What was it?" "Twenty-five hundred a week?" "Not to mention, your ticket out of here, once and for all." "From everything you hate and despise." "That's the idea, isn't it?" "Now you're going to make me miss my flight." "Goodbye, Father." "Then go." "Go!" "Was it even damaged, your voice?" "Was it?" "Don't make a scene, Mother." "Go!" "Get out of my sight!" "I don't need you, either!" "Go to New York, for all I care!" "And don't you ever come back!" "Do you hear me?" "Never again!" "I won't have it!" "I won't have it!" "Mildred." "Thought I might find you here." "Mildred?" "What?" "To hell with her." "I say to hell with her!" "All right, Bert." "To hell with her!" "God damn it." "That's what I wanna hear!" "Come on..." "We've got each other." "Haven't we?" "Let's get stinko." "Yes." "Let's get stinko."