"Laughter is a sin around here." "You know why?" "Because laughter can mean happiness and I want you boys to always know happiness don't exist for you." "It exists for the privileged, for the loved." "The world outside don't care about you!" "So laughing is just pretending." "And if they make believe over here, uh-uh." "This here is a home for the wayward, for the orphaned, for the discarded." "I am setting you up to succeed." "Because y'all too stupid to know the truth." "And you'll thank me for this when you get old enough, okay?" "Believe me, you'll thank me for telling you the truth." "My hates have a tendency to move around, you know?" "I hate that I'm losing this game of cards." "I hate you asking me questions." "Frank Stone?" "I neither hate him nor like him." "I'm a professional headmaster." "I'm objective." "I'm not a homosexual." "I'm a pedophile." "It's different, okay?" "I teach them boys who they are." "So society wants to kill it." "These boys up here, who do they got?" "Ain't nobody, just each other, just boys." "They gotta learn how to love each other." "So I teach 'em how." "I don't mess with old men." "I'm married." "It's degenerate." "Outside the bounds." "He's on the other side of the street." "I'm walking down the street, right?" "Right street." "He's across the street." "Always has been." "Working for the mob." "Who does he think he is, Al Capone?" "No, no!" "No, no!" "Knock it off." "I said knock it off." "I got it open." "Get the merchandise." "Slow down." "You can get the cops on a day off." "Listen to me, you stupid jerk-off." "You're not my boss, so don't talk to me like that." "If I want to get some action off some broad, I will, okay?" "That's my business." "I thought you acted inappropriately." "Were you tryin' to get us popped for rape?" " Next time, I'll just fuckin' kill..." " Whoa!" "You should have kept a better class of friend." "I see the frustration of sin!" "I feel the frustration of sin." "Let me tell you, if you don't already know." "Sin is the apple that's put in front of the horse." "It was the apple presented to Eve in the garden of Eden." "And it's the apple of my eye when I see that nice little rump on all of you." "It's mine to take!" "I'm headmaster." "That's, like, God." "That's, like, the final say, okay?" "I take, I give, my surrender." "But make no mistake!" "It's still me and not you." "None of you have a claim or say." "I am the last word." "Okay?" " Hey, Frank?" " Yeah." "The boss wants to see you tomorrow." "Understand?" " Let's not talk about it." " Hooked on that shit?" " It's in their veins." " That's like that energy drink, right?" "It's their methedrine, their methedrine." " The first energy drink ever." " Their first guy's talking shit all the time." " Hey, bud, are you in?" " Hey, Frank, how're you doing?" "Sit down, sit down." "What do you have for me?" "A pretty nice haul." "Whoa!" "Nice." "Real nice." "Clean job as always?" "A couple of bumps on the road, but I paved them over, as always." "Yeah, I heard." "You know, you're one coldhearted son of a bitch, Frank." "Took out his own guy." "You know, you remind me of this... this bedtime story that my father, God bless his soul, that he used to read to me as a kid." "It was about an evil bastard, just like Frank." "I'm tellin' ya." "Frank, did your father ever used to read you bedtime stories?" "I never knew my ol' man, Tony." "Oh, I'm sorry, Frank, I didn't know." "I didn't know, Frank." "Give him his money." "The money!" "Okay, Frank, here's your money." "Thanks, Tony." "Hey, Frank, I got a question for you." "Now that you got all those fazool's in your pocket, which one of your broad's you gonna take out?" "Maybe take a shower..." "Take her to Paris, some place more high end, romantic like Coney Island for a hot date." "Did you need anything else, Tony?" "No, that's it." "Thanks, Frank." "Good work, good work." " Have a nice day, fellas." " Yeah, take it easy, handsome." "What you guys break his balls for?" "He's a fern." "Alright, come on, let's play cards." "Come on, come on, come on." "Long, long time ago..." "Long time ago!" "You know, man figured out..." "Animal skin, beneficial to 'em." "Good thing." "Now, like this here, keep ya warm in the winter." "Dry in the summer." "My happy thing." "Animal skin." "Like this belt here, see?" "It's leather, animal skin." "But there's many different functions." "There's holding my pants, you know?" "Tie a woman down and shoot." "Be a good thing, too, sometimes." "Depends on the girl." "Those women are hard to... hard to figure them out sometimes, you know?" "It's romantic." "Hit 'em for the punishment and..." "You know, wrap it around your hand like this or on your fist like this." "Bam!" "No more problem." "That man go down." "It's going down!" "Turn around, now." "Turn around!" "Grab your ankles." "But you don't listen." "Now I'm gonna fix your radio, I'll teach ya." "I'm using this belt as... alright?" "And this is a romantic use for it." "Some place this was." "It's a good thing they closed it." "It was horribly run." "Those poor boys, they use them like punching bags." "That's what... that's what I heard." "It's a good thing we didn't go there, huh?" "Hey, you better hurry up." "Class starts in a few minutes." "What?" "Oh, I thought you were in my creative writing class." "Sorry." "Dominic was loaded, as usual." "He loved to drink, which was a good thing because at this point, he had to drink." "If he didn't start his day by rolling out of bed and crawling to the freezer for a few shots of vodka, his hands would shake and he'd start to feel sick." "And he'd become as manic as a mental patient." "But what are you gonna do?" "Everybody's got their cross..." "Dominic was a drunk and would always be a drunk, but he was okay with that." "He was the heartbreakingly tragic figure he always wanted to be, but with an abdominal sense of human that made him borderline heroic in his own mind." "He was destined to crash and burn." "But it was gonna be epic, if not entertaining." "He had already come close to cashing in once." "Couple of winters back, he was found passed out in his boxer shorts in the boulevard during a failed attempt to get to a liquor store." "He spent the next five weeks in the hospital." "Initially, the doctors didn't give him much of a chance." "Dominic's liver was shot." "He was completely yellow with jaundice." "His skin was yellow." "The whites of his eyes were yellow, if he had been wearing a top hat and a monocle, he could've passed for Mr. Peanut, but somehow he survived." "Supposedly, the liver is a highly regenerative organ, or so they told him." "The doctors lectured Dominic about how he was being given a second chance to live and how he needed to make some serious lifestyle changes..." "Alright, thank you, thank you, Bradford." "Anybody have any questions for Bradford, class?" " Yes, Ackley?" " It didn't do anything for me." " Okay, okay..." " I'm sorry, I'm sorry." " If that's what you felt, that's okay." " Didn't do, yeah, I'm sorry." " Okay, no, if that's how you felt..." " Just..." "Yeah, I just feel like it just lacked emotion." " Yes, Jackie?" " I have something, Mr. Benson." " Okay, Jackie, go ahead." " Okay." "Alright." " Alright, Jackie, go ahead." " Okay, okay." "Sorry, okay." "He never stayed long." "Never." "He liked Rosemary's company, but always seemed to be in a hurry, like if he had a duel life or something." "But Rosemary didn't mind." "She was lonely." "And lonely women cry at night." "Rosemary got sick of it." "That's why she wore her fancy bottle of perfume and best dress." "She wanted him to caress her like a mink coat." "But it didn't happen this time." "Rosemary wept after he left." "She thought about swallowing that whole bottle of pills, but decided not to." "She didn't want any man thinking someone killed themselves for him." "Rosemary, instead, painted a horizon on a canvas." "It seemed brighter than her future." " You alright, Jackie?" " Yeah, no, I just get nervous sometimes." "Okay, what do you call this story?" "Oh, God." "I guess I would call it..." ""The girl in apartment 3J"." "Alright, does anybody have any questions for Jackie?" " Yes, Ackley?" " Yes, I was wondering how long we're gonna have to hear about these desperate characters of yours." "The same characters from the last story that you brought in." "I mean, when are we gonna hear something good for a change, something..." " What?" " ...with more levels." "More..." "I want more..." "I want more." "I'm so sorry, Mr. Herman Melville." "I wouldn't be caught dead reading Melville." "Excuse me, Ackley?" "Ackley, we could do without that." "Well, the whole function of this creative writing class is to learn and experience and to grow." "I... yeah, I..." "We do not need to criticize to the extent that you take it to." " Oh..." " Jackie?" "What do you..." "What were you feeling when you wrote this particular passage to your story?" ""The lonely girl in apartment 3F."" "No, it was "The girl in apartment 3J"." "But I like that." ""The lonely girl in apartment 3F."" "But, she's afraid of being an old maid and all her friends are wondering..." "Okay, Jackie, thank you, thank you." "Does anybody else have anything they'd like to read?" "No?" " I would like to read..." " Yes, Ackley?" "I would like to read my piece for the class." " Can you make it quick?" " Yeah, yeah, yeah, sure, sure." "So, this is an ongoing..." "this is part of a trilogy." "I'm... you speak of one and..." "Okay, alright, class dismissed!" "Frank!" "Frank!" "Frank!" "You listening to me?" "I know you hear me." "I know you hear me." "There are certain things in life." "There are certain things that are passed down in life, you know?" "Like father and son." "In our case... headmaster to a..." "Orphan." "Like..." "Like... the love of hunting'." "Yeah, killin'!" "That was a good one." "That was a good one." "Fishin'?" "Fishin'?" "Yeah, fishin' will work." "Yep, today, though, I'm gonna do some new tradition." "From a long line of traditions between a headmaster and orphan." "That's called sharing a bottle of bourbon." "It's good." "Good for ya." "It's good, you know, I mean..." "Take your mind off of things that..." "You know, get your mind off of things that... bother ya." "About yourself and stuff." "Purify your soul!" "Got one." "What do you think them priests be doing in church with their wine?" "Drunk." "Want a taste?" "Here, here, have a taste." "I said to... to have a taste." "Here... go on." "There you go." "Not too strong, huh?" "Too strong?" "Whoa, hey, that's enough there." "Come on, give it back." "Give it back, it's mine." "It's mine, give it back!" "It's a gift." "It's a gift to you, it's mine." "Take your pants off." "Yes, may I help you?" "I would like to take your creative writing class." "Great." "Have a seat." "Thanks." "Is there any particular reason you'd like to join my creative writing class?" "No." " Have you ever written anything before?" " No." "Nothing?" "No poetry or news articles?" "Okay, name?" "Oscar." "Oscar." " Kissel." " Okay." "Oscar." "A lot of people have come in here like yourself that... they have a lot to express and they don't know how." "Creative writing will help you with all of that." "I'm gonna give you an assignment." "I want you to go home... and write about something you know or like, but make it fictitious." "If you like flying on planes, write a story about an airline pilot." "Or if you like walking in the park on Sundays, write a story about a softball player that does well in that park on Sundays." "Whatever it is, do it thoroughly." "Get into details." "I want you to make our class believe in your character, that it's real." "And then we'll feel for them in their problems, okay?" "Softball player?" "Goddammit, Frank!" "Didn't that sweet ass you got for a creative writing teacher tell you to write about stuff you know?" "Well, you know about the darker things in life, don't ya?" "So write about that!" "Now get back on that typewriter." "And write about that, you mangy looking bastard." "Come on, I learned you better than that!" "Go." "The night never knew a shade darker than his soul." "That's what everybody used to say about Frank Stone." "Like a clap of thunder, he was brought into the world, and like a flash of lightning, he lived." "And that was pulling off jewelry jobs." "It was his vice." "It gave him comfort, control." "And he would stop at nothing to get it done." "Nothing." "He was as serious as a heart attack." "But how can one live when laughter can't sooth their soul?" "Frank knew he was dead inside, born dead." "Didn't understand why." "Only certain things made sense to him." "Like being found in a dumpster on Christmas Eve, with the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck." "No." "That can't be good." "That was clear." "That's exactly what the syndicate looks for, too." "Men with rage." "Frank was the most comfortable in this kind of environment." "So was his boss, Tough Tony Forte." "A local punk gangster with a long arm..." "Who always gave Frank work..." "whenever the need would arise." "And fortunately for Frank, that need came about on a regular basis." "He couldn't wait to get that call." "It's the only time Frank seemed to come alive." "That was just the way things were in his world." "Hard, cold." "That was Frank Stone." "That's all I got so far." "Thank you, Oscar, that was interesting." "Does anybody here have any questions for Oscar?" "Yes, Ackley?" "I'm sorry, but that sounded like a... gangster movie from the 1940's or something." "You know, it was like just so totally fake." "And, like, no one in real life sounds like Frank Stone." "Except, since World War II or something." "Philip..." "Ackley, once again, we are not here to judge." "We're here to analyze and interpret." "Does anybody else have any questions for Oscar?" "Yes, Jackie." "Well, I thought it was good." "I really liked it." "It reminded me of one of those crime novels." "You know what I'm talking about?" "Like they sell in the bus depots." "You know, those things that they're supposed to take your mind off the journey you're about to go on... you know." "I love those things." "I was once on this bus trip from Virginia to New Mexico..." "Yes, yeah, thank you." "Thank you, Jackie." "Does anybody else have any questions for Oscar?" "Okay, if... well, class dismissed." " Hey, Frank?" " Yeah?" "You can go ahead with that operation." "The Grobe brothers." "Vic and Ronnie, I presume." "We're here." "Start talking." "I like your manners." "Sit down." "This job we're gonna pull is in the diamond district." "This place is an upstairs distribution." "The way it works, you guys got to "go-between"." "He carries the diamonds down in a little briefcase." "He doesn't take the elevator, he uses the stairs." "It's Bonafide, I checked it out." "That's what will make it happen." " How many stones will he be carrying?" " 150K, minimum." " What's our cut?" " It's a flat rate." "Twenty-five grand each." "Twenty-five?" "What are you, crazy or something?" "We split it three ways or we ain't interested." "Look, these diamonds, they're rare." "No fence in New York is gonna deal with them." "All you need to know is it's gonna take time and money." "And that's the rate, 25k." "Nah." "Split it three ways or nothing." "Nothing it is." "You know, I was told you guys were professionals." "I guess I was told wrong." "Sit." " Does that mean you're in?" " Yeah." " Alright, you got any other questions?" " Yeah, I got one question." "Me and my brother, we heard a couple of things about you." "We need you to clear it up for us." " You heard some things like what?" " That whoever works these jobs of yours... they never get seen again." "Let me tell you something, fellas." "People talk all the time, they talk for a lot of reasons." "Envy, jealousy, greed." "All you need to know is if you're square with me, I'll be square with you." "I'll be in touch." " Hi!" " How you doing?" "You're new here." "I'm Jackie." "Well, actually, we met the other day, kind of." "Yeah, what's yours again?" " What?" " Your name, dumb-dumb." "Oscar." "Oscar Kissell." "So, like, what are you hoping to be?" "A mystery writer or something?" "I don't know." "Oh, my God, is that typed?" "Do you..." "You used the typewriter." "I didn't even know they were around anymore." " I like typewriters." "I mean, I like things..." " Hey, what's that?" "Oh!" "Gotcha." "Okay, class, everybody take their seats." "We're gonna start." "Monday, late afternoon." "Diamond district." "And Frank Stone gets ready." "A large Romanian man... comes out of an office... with a briefcase full of bling." "But, today, that large Romanian... gonna be in for a surprise." "You two midgets think you can rob me?" "Try it." " Jesus Christ, there's a fortune in here!" " Nice!" "Grab the bag, let's get out of here." "I think there's only enough for me and my brother." " What?" " You heard me, you dirty double..." "It's called the double-cross." "Or the dirty double-cross." "Someone turning on you is one of the unfortunate hazards in this line of work." "Luckily for Frank, he's always expecting it." "Wow, that's interesting." "It really is getting more and more cohesive, Oscar." "Keep it up." "Hey!" "Hey, Oscar!" "Hey!" "Well, I was just wondering if you wanted to get a coffee?" "So, I just wanted to know what goes on in that head of yours." "What do you mean?" "Well, how do you get your stuff to sound so real?" "Like..." "I don't know, I just..." "I feel like I'm in the same world as your characters." "Like..." "It's..." "I don't know." "I just write whatever comes into my head." "Wow, I mean, Frank Stone is so cold." "Well, I mean..." "He has a lot of demons in his past." "They're gonna stay there until he gets rid of 'em." "He doesn't trust anyone." "That's how he survives." "Have you always had this kind of imagination?" "Did you read those recommended books the teacher told us about?" "I didn't read anything." "You're so serious!" "But you're modest, too." "Can you pass me the sugar?" "Boo!" "Oh, sorry." "Thanks for giving me a ride home, Oscar." "That was nice." "Well..." "When did you start dressing like a little tugboat captain?" "You know, do you like the open sea?" "Hello?" "Yeah, you... you don't give that much." "You really don't talk that much." "Are you hungry?" "Why don't you come upstairs and let me make you a fluffernutter sandwich." "Have you ever had one?" "I can tell you haven't had one, cause your eyes didn't light up when I said it." "You're missing out." "Do you want a beer?" "No thanks." "I don't drink." "You don't drink?" "What are you, a boy scout or something?" "How about a glass of milk?" "That sounds good." "Here you go." "What's the matter, Oscar?" "I don't know." "Something strange just happened." "What?" "The horse on the glass here... reminded me of something that happened to me when I was a kid." "You know, I was raised in an orphanage." "And one day, me and all the other boys we were all taken on a field trip." "But when the bus got there... the first thing that I saw... was this beautiful gray horse." "So I approached the horse really slowly and I was talking to him softly, the way a kid would." "And all of a sudden, the horse, he went nuts." "I mean, he went totally haywire." "Started jumping up on his hind legs... kicking." "He broke free from the chain and he started to scare the other horses." "Well, horses do weird things like that sometimes." "Yeah, well, the headmaster, he got so angry... that he grabbed me and he started to beat me publicly, right in front of the other boys." "That headmaster sounds like such a jerk!" "And after that, all the kids, they laughed at me." "They humiliated me, mocked me." "And I'll tell you that headmaster... after that, he never missed an opportunity..." "Let's change the subject, talk about something else." "Hey, Oscar?" " Isn't it funny?" " I'm leaving." "Oh, come on." "What's the matter with you?" "Listen, you may think everything is a joke." "But me, I take everything seriously." " And I don't appreciate you mocking me." " I wasn't mocking you." "What's the matter with you?" "I..." "Oh, look who it is!" "It's Mr. Personality!" "He came here to brighten up everybody's day, now didn't ya?" "I got a question for you, scumbag." "How come you make everybody sick at the very sight of you?" "You got the personality of a cobra and I've had it up to here with that." "Come on, Vinny, knock it off." "Sit down!" "You have to excuse Vinny, Frank." "Anyway, how are you doing today, Frank?" " Doing good, Tony." " Can I get you anything to eat?" "You don't have to be shy, we have plenty of food." "More coming out." "No thanks, I'm not hungry." "No?" "Give him his freakin' money, let him get out of here." " Thanks." " Frankie, Frankie." "You know, not for nothing, but we offer you food all the time." "And never once... once, do you ever sit down and eat with us." "What's the matter?" "My gesture of friendship doesn't agree with you?" "Look at me when I'm talking to you, Frankie." "Now I want to know why you think you're too good for us." "It's not that, Tony." "It's just, you know, I got some place I got to be in a hurry." "Hurry?" "Where you got to be, Frankie?" " Somewhere." " Frank... the only place you should ever be in a hurry to get to is home." "Cause home is where the family is." "Here, look, let me show this." "This is my family, alright?" "This is my wife, my kids when they were younger, my grandkids." "And this... this is the most cherished picture I have of my father," "God rest his soul." "You know, I loved him more than any son ever loved a father." "What about you, Frankie?" "Do you have any pictures of loved ones you'd like to show us?" "No?" "Why not?" "You're always in such a hurry, I would think that you had hundreds, hundreds of pictures to show us." "Now the next time that I ask you to sit down and eat with us... make sure you have the time." "Alright, now get the hell out of here." " Thanks, Tony." " What did you say?" "What did you just mumble?" "I said thanks, Tony." "So, anyway, about this weekend..." "There's nothing more frustrating than a man who just can't express himself." "You know, tell you how he feels." "That makes him no different than a... lamp." "Or a clay pigeon." "Yeah, clay pigeon, waiting to get blown up into pieces." "Maybe that's why." "Maybe that's the root behind Frank Stone's... rage." "He just lives, second to second." "Minute to minute." "Murder to murder." "Like an alcoholic." "Just one day at a time." "That's my boy." "Bright eyes and colors" "Are blind again" "Haven't seen my love in" "God knows when" "He went away" "Now I'm all by myself" "All of this heart aching" "Is affecting my head" "Oh, no" "I've been so alone" "Waiting for you to get back home" "No more good mornings" "Or I love you" "Never thought my nightmares" "Would be so true..." "All this seems to fight for me" "But all I ever wanted" "Was for us to be alone" "I've been so alone, yeah, waiting for you" "I waited for you to come back home" "Yeah, I'm so alone" "I waited for you" "But now you're gone" "Wasn't she great?" "Chelsea, let's give it up for Chelsea." "Great girl, nice act." "And now, next, he's your favorite ventriloquist, Mr. John Peasy." "Hey, folks, my name is John Peasy, this is my friend Smokey." "Holy shit, they're all white!" "Okay, we have a great crowd of people here." "Yeah, they look good, this look good, I like it." "Yeah, we got a good crowd." "I'm the only black guy here." "It looks like my trial." "Looking good, looking good, looking good, looking good!" "I like this crowd, yeah, yeah." "If you like white people, yeah." "Hate them white men shit." "Oh, yeah, now..." "Hold up, where you going, brother?" "Sit the hell down, where the hell you going?" "I hate when a white guy gets up in the middle of a show like that." "Sit the hell down, cracker ass." "Sit the hell down." "I'm in the middle of my working here." "Don't sit there and get up in the middle." "I'm working here." "Don't pick on the guy." "He's a mean-looking guy." " What do you mean?" " He looks like a killer." "Yeah, killer, I'll kick his ass." "Homo, sit the hell down." " Don't pick on the guy." " I don't give a shit!" "I see you staring." "Let's have a staring contest, go." "This is comedy." "You don't just get up and walk out in the middle of a show." "Alright, that's enough, that's enough." "Why don't you say something to the guy that would make him feel good?" "The way he looks, attention K-Mart shopper." "He's a loser, I can't stand his white cracker ass." "That's right, folks, you can laugh all you want." "I'll kick his ass right now." "Loser, loser, loser." "And you're white, cracker ass." "Hey!" "This was just a joke, man, I was only kiddin' ya!" "No, no!" "This week, Olivia's mailbox wasn't empty as usual." "This week, it contained one of those lovely pink slips that indicated she had a package at the front desk." "The clerk was so excited for her." "Olivia, you have mail today!" "Politely, she smiled and took the package." "It was a five dollar flat rate box." "Olivia was reminded of how much her mother loved sending flat rate boxes." "Each week in college, Olivia would receive one of these packages, a veritable treavure..." "treasure trove of candy, costume, jewelry, school supplies, anything a college girl could desire." "The package that she was handed today was considerately different." "On the outside, it looked like a standard five dollar flat rate box." "But the contents had a macabre difference." "This package contained her mother's ashes." "You really have tapped into something very personal." "Now, class, what we can take from Mario's story is don't be afraid to be deeply personal." "Oscar, please come on time!" "Okay, Jackie, you had something you wanted to read?" "Yeah." "Alright." "Rosemary thought she was different." "She was always told that." "By her father, by her mother, by her classmates." "She grew up thinking bad about herself." "That's why she tried to slit her wrists many times." "But she always managed to find a way to get through it." "She thought she had met someone who could relate to her." "Another tortured soul." "But this person was more than a tortured soul." "He also felt the need to be hateful and cruel." "He didn't want to change himself or discover who he really was." "He didn't want to move on from a dark past." "He wanted to relive it every day." "He was pure nasty." "I hate him, I hate him." "I..." "Jackie, I must say you've really tapped into something very personal to get this latest work." "Anybody have any questions?" "Ackley?" "I have to say, I thought..." "Oscar!" "Oscar, please wait outside." "Alright." "Okay." "That was weird." "Alright, go to Jimmy's on 10th street." "You know the way." "What the hell is that banana head doing over there?" "Pull over, pull over." "Stop." "What the hell is Frank Stone doing in this neighborhood?" "Wait up a second, I want to talk to you." "Look, I'm sorry that I spoke to you that way." "Alright, I made a mistake." "I thought you were making fun of me." "What do you want, Oscar?" "There's something I gotta tell you." "Alright, my name isn't Oscar." "It's Frank Stone." "Your character?" "And I work for Anthony Forte." "Tough Tony is real?" "It's all for real, alright?" "That's what I am, I'm a hood." " Why are you telling me this?" " I don't know." "I just feel like my head's gonna explode if I don't tell you." "Just please, just leave me alone." "Please, I'm sorry." " I'm sorry." " Please just stay away from me." "What the hell was that all about?" "Wait here, I want to go see what's going on." "Did I almost get a smile out of you?" "Almost." "Frank, how come you never smile?" "Can I ask you something?" "You never once told me anything about yourself." "Well, you know everything about me, but I don't know anything about you." "I'm just not that open about myself." " My private self, that is." " Yeah?" "Is that why you joke around so much?" "To hide that private self?" "No, that's not why." "You know, if you don't want to talk about it, it's okay." "Well, I..." "I married this really rich guy that I didn't even love." "But I figured I'd have everything." "But... it wasn't really enough." "But then we had a beautiful daughter." "Beautiful, beautiful daughter." "And... my husband left me and..." "He got full custody of her... and I can't even visit her." "So you see, all I want to do is just call her." "Tell her I'm sorry and that I love her." " But I can't." " You listen to me." "I got to go right now." " Where are you going?" " I got to go." "But when I get back... you and me, I'm gonna take you to see your daughter." "But she doesn't even know me." " She doesn't know me at all anymore." " She knows who you are." "And believe me, there's no time like the present to get reacquainted." "Everything's gonna be all right, Jackie." "You'll see." "I'll be back in a few hours." "Hey, there he is!" " Frankie!" " Frank!" " Hey, Frank, have a seat." " How you doing, Frank?" "How you doing, fellas?" "Today is your lucky day, Frank." "We got a call from our boys out in Vegas and they need someone from back east to run the security at the casino and to oversee all the used jewelry business they got out there." "And I couldn't think of anybody but you, Frank." " Me?" " Yeah." "Well, for how long?" "How long?" "For as long as it takes, Frank." "You're gonna be making a cool 200 grand there." " 200 thousand dollars?" " Yeah." " That's a lot of money, Tony." " Yeah, you go out there, you work hard, you find one of those show girls, you know... settle down with her a little bit and be happy for once in your life, you miserable bastard!" "You know, I mean 200 grand make anybody happy, right?" "When am I supposed to leave?" "First flight tomorrow." "Hey, what's the matter?" "You seem disinterested, Frank." "No, that's not it." "It's just that... you know, I got a little something I gotta take care of with someone." "You know, I'll definitely make the flight, Tony." " Okay." " Is there anything else?" "Yeah, just one more little thing." "When you get out there, I was just wondering... if you're gonna write any more stories about me and my operation." "Kill that rat bastard!" "No, no, no, Vinny, wait a minute, wait a minute." "Maybe we shouldn't do it here." "You know what?" "Just take him down to the warehouse and chop him up." "Come on, let's go chop him up." "Pop the trunk." " Who's this?" " Who's that?" "Hey, fellas." "Can you tell me how to get to the 59 street bridge?" "You keep going straight." "If you hit the water, it means you missed the bridge." "Hey, man, your humor flows like molasses." "And if you keep going straight and you hit water, it means you missed the bridge." "Call for backup." "Tell him in Italian." "Hey, why don't you keep smoking?" "Or burn out." "Central B5 requesting an additional unit." " Alright, call it in." " 20 boy central, requesting one addition." "5 boy 4 by on there?" "Paging Dr. Bender." "Paging Dr. Bender, please." "Dr. Bender to the mental ward, please." "How you doing, Frank?" "Mind if we talk to you for a minute?" "I don't think he heard us." "Hey, Frank, can you hear us?" "How you feeling, Frank?" "Been in a coma for a few weeks." "I'm Detective Manteiga, this Detective Maas." "We're from the organized crime unit." "We'd like to ask you a couple of questions." "Would you mind explaining to us how you ended up in the trunk of Vinny Gallino's car?" "Yeah, Vinny Gallino." "He works for Tony Forte." "Did you owe him and his boss some money?" "Come on, you know who we're talking about." "Tony Forte, aka "Tough Tony"." "Did you owe them money?" "Come on, Frank." "Don't play dumb shit with us, alright?" "We're not rookies, we've been around a long time." "You obviously must have done something to piss them off." "What was it?" "Did you get caught skimming off the top, or what?" "You mind telling us what's so funny?" "This guy's bananas." "Paging Dr. Statement, Dr. Statement please." "So he's not crazy?" "Well, his head has no structural damage." "But it's hard to say at this point without doing any further tests." "You think maybe you're trying to put one over on us?" "I don't think so." "Unbelievable." "The one guy we find and he's nuts." "Anything he says is not gonna hold up in court." "You know that?" "Yeah." "But I'm not buying it." "Thanks, doc." "You know, I came into this world full of piss and vinegar." "You know, I started making my bones by running numbers for Hunchback Charlie and the 9th Avenue boys?" "And I was still in junior high school when I did that." "I ran porn theater, strip clubs, I had a stable, 20 girls working for me." "I started putting some money out into the street, charging a vague that no one could compete with." "I made a lot of money for those fellas." "I made some serious scratch." "You know, but then..." "The Babania... shooting up four times a day." "Lost everything I had." "Wound up doing ten years in jail for armed robbery." "Ten years." "You know, when I got out, I was clean." "And I wanted to get back into the business, you know?" "So I had a... an uncle vouch for me." "And I went back into action." "And, now, it's taken me 30 years, 30 years to get my reputation back and I'll be damned... if I let some muck like Frank Stone bring me down." "Now I want that son of a bitch taken care of." "I want him put on ice." "And I want that done, now." "Hate to be the one who told you so, Tony, but I told you so." "Dr. Forest, dial 118, please." "Dr. Forest, please dial 1-1-8." "No matter where you roam" "They call it the blues" "I have to sit next to you now." "I gotta sit next to you!" "What's so funny, man?" "What's so goddamn funny?" "Come on, white boy, share with me the joke." "See, last week this time, I had a job, I had a car." "I had a woman." "A woman!" "I had a woman, white boy." "I was making good money, Arizona." "The place to be to work for the right to make a living." "I used to play in the band, a band like rock 'n' roll." "Stupid camisoles in the 80's, that's where I met my girl." "Well, my ex girl." "She left me, white boy." "She left me for..." "You're laughing!" "She left me for a short order cook... and goddamn Mexican!" "A goddamn Mexican!" "Dude... dude, that's just wrong, man." " My life sucks, white boy." " What's your name, brother?" "John." "But you can call me Cricket." "Everybody calls me Cricket." "Cricket, Cricket, Cricket, like a cricket." " Cricket." " That jumps around." " I jump around like a cricket." " Oh, Cricket, baby." "I love you, white boy, you're the best, man." " I have a tattoo." " Yeah?" "Tattoo of a cricket." "Look, look, look." " Look at that!" " It's a cricket." "Listen, you know, brother?" "I really appreciate you opening up to me like this, brother." "I mean, really, I do, you know?" " I mean, from the heart." " The heart?" "You know what I'm saying?" "From the heart, brother." "Holy shit, man!" "Oh, man!" "Dammit!" "Goddammit!" "Alright, guys, finish your drink and get out." "Wait a minute." "Wait, you throwing me out of here for laughing?" "Is that..." "I mean, what is wrong with this place?" "Hey!" "This place sucks!" "Hit the door, pal." "I want you out of here, now." "Alright, alright, alright." "Look, no hard feelings." "Alright, I'm going, okay?" "I'm going." "Hey, what's that on your nose?" "Crazy, man!" " Goddammit!" " Hey, Cricket." "Goddammit, man!" "Hi." "Hello?" "Hey, listen, I've had a hell of a day." "I just broke out of a hospital." "What the hell you laughing at, it's true!" "These fuckin' guys tried to kill me." "They did!" "They took guns, they were shooting at me, they shot up the place, they shot up my pillow." "Well, I needed something to wear, so I borrowed these." "The guy next to me was dying of TB, I figured he didn't need 'em." "You're kind of a fun audience." "You, you, I love you." "Oh, my God, you!" "I had eight dollars stashed in my socks." "And I dug it out and stuck it in my pocket as I walked up Broadway towards 137 Street." "I saw Flockle standing in front of the subway entrance." ""What's happening", I said." "Not much." "Yo, what are you doing?" "No!" "No!" "What are you doing?" "Dear Jackie, it's your friend, Frank." "I've been meaning to call you for some time now, but thought this note would do." "Something happened that changed my life." "I'm still not sure what exactly, but all I know is that I'm happy." "Truly happy for the first time." "And I want you to be happy." "So I suggest we see your daughter together as originally planned so you can tell her that you love her." "Meet me at the coffee shop tomorrow at three o'clock." "And we'll leave together." "I can't wait to look at your inspiring presence and your beautiful face once again." "Thank you very, very much for taking the time to understand me." "Your friend, always, Frank." "Frank?" "How the hell did you get in here?" "That letter you wrote me was so beautiful, I cried like a baby." "Like a baby, huh?" "Look at me." "I want to ask you one question." "One question." "If I don't like the answer, we're gonna bash your face in." "Frank take you to Coney Island, huh?" "Did he do this to you, huh?" "Did he do this to you?" "I'm gonna ask you one question." "Where is Frank Stone?" " I swear I don't know." " Answer him." "One more time... where is Frank Stone?" "I swear I don't know!" "Where is Frank Stone?" "I swear I don't know." "I'd tell you if I did, I swear, but I don't know." "Finish her off." "Oh, if it isn't Cocky and Snowwinkle?" "What's up, Frank?" "Paper time's over, pajama boy." "Enough of the clown routine." "Catch any bad guys lately, coppers?" "Cut the bullshit, Frank, alright?" "We want you to testify against Tough Tony." "I don't wanna, you know?" "I'm having so much fun, just hanging out and being happy." "Why are you protecting this piece of garbage?" "He tried to have you killed." "So did my mother, but I don't hold that against her, huh?" "Yeah, well, I can understand why your mother hated you." "I know you five seconds and I can't stand you." "Detective, you should really try a more refreshing breath mint." "You think you're crazy, huh, Frank?" "Look at that." "But I'm the one who's crazy around here." "I'm from east New York." "Brooklyn, kid." "We used to throw people off rooftops." "Stick up gangsters." "Rob drug dealers, then we'd sell it back to them." "So don't sit here and think you're the only one that's crazy." "Let me tell you something." "If I didn't have this badge, I'd forget that I'm a cop." "I'd really listen to that, Frank." "What are you gonna do?" "You gonna throw me off a rooftop?" "Then keep laughing." "Aren't you supposed to meet that girl that you like?" "Jackie, right?" "I got something for you." "You're gonna like this." "She's waiting for you at this address." "Now that's funny." "Is Jackie Mott here?" "Oh, no." "Where'd you take us?" "I told you, this is the best rub and tub joint in the city, bar none." " See, this is what I'm talking about." " She's nice." " Hello." "Follow me, please." " Sure, anywhere." "Come on, I want to win tonight." "Yeah, it's me." "I have a problem that needs fixing." "I found this rat in my kitchen and it needs to be exterminated right away." "I want you to get the best exterminator that money can buy, that's what I want." "He's the best?" "Alright, set up a meeting." "Now I want to hire you... 'cause word got around to me that you're the best." "I know what people call you by reputation." "What should I call you?" "What do you call yourself?" "Lucifer." "Lucifer." "I'm gonna give you a chance to live up to that name." "Because this isn't business... this is personal." "I want you to cause Frank Stone... more pain and suffering than humanly possible." "I want you to cause him more pain and suffering than you ever caused anybody, ever." "Do... do we understand each other?" "Frank, open up." "We have a search warrant." "Frank, open up." "You think he's in there?" "Come on, Frank, or we're gonna bust down the door." "Frank, open up." "Well?" "Did you get him?" "I asked you a question." "Did you kill him?" "Did you kill Frank Stone?" "What's the matter with you?" "Bye, Dad." "You're Sarah, right?" "My name is Frank." "I was a friend of your mom's." "She wanted me to tell you something." "She wanted me to tell you that she loved ya." "That she always loved you." "How you doin', Tony?" "Alright." "Alright, Frank." "You got me." "So just do what you got to do." "Alright, I just made peace with my maker." "I don't care about dying." "Go ahead, do what you got to do." "Do you really think a one minute prayer... is going to straighten things out with the big guy upstairs, Tony?" "Yeah, I do." "He knows what I did was out of necessity." "Necessity?" "Frank!" "You feel it, Tony?" "That's the feeling of pain and agony that you cause people out of necessity." "I'm an avenging angel, Tony." "This time you hurt the wrong person." "Yeah, I feel better." "I used to be a bit of a partier." "I used to drink too much." "A lot of people say to me" ""Art, what's a wild night of drinking to you?" "You look like you've had a few." And I have." "A wild night of drinking to me is when you drink too much and eventually you pass out." "And when you wake up, you're naked in a police car with two cops." "But the weird part is, you're driving." "That'll be a wild night of drinking!" "Not for you, man." "That's like a Tuesday night for you." "I did a lot of drugs, as well." "The reason I did drugs was, I think, the anti-drug slogans when I was a kid were bad." "Like, remember "hugs are better than drugs"." "That didn't work for me." "My mother used to scream that at me as I left the house." ""Remember, hugs are better than drugs." And I believed her." "I believed everything my mother said until the first time I got high at a party." "I leaned back and I was like "wow."" ""This is way better than when my mother hugs me."" ""What else has she been lying to me about?"" "Do I not have great bone structure?" "Am I not the best looking boy in New Jersey?" "Hugs are great, but better than drugs?" "Come on, let's not lie to the kids." "Let me put it to you this way." "I never drove to Harlem at 4 am to get somebody to hug me." "Hey, Carlos, here's 20 bucks, just put your arms around me." "I grew up with a domineering mother." "She would say stuff at the top of her lungs, screaming at me." "Some bad, some good, it was confusing." "I didn't know what to do." "She would say stuff like "I hate you!" "I never want to see you again."" ""Are you hungry?"" ""Get out of this house and never come back."" ""There are chicken goblets in the refrigerator."" "And since then, I gained some weight." "I'm not gonna lie, I've had weight issues." "I try to lose weight." "Someone said "You wanna lose weight?" "You should go swimming."" "I've never been swimming before in my life." "And that's because it has never been more than a half an hour since I last ate." "You know what I'm talking about?" "Any questions?" "No?" "Alright then, well, let's move on." "From nothingness came I, and it is where I shall go." "Well, at least that's what I used to think." "During those lonely days and sleepless nights, to pacify my soul, I would say these words." "They made me, somehow, understand my existence until I had to live another day of coldness." "And I lived those days and wept." "Like all men who contemplate their agony." "Then, like a ray of sun peaking through the clouds, you came shining on to me." "With a radiance only the birds of paradise could understand." "Bringing forth wisdom and beauty, compassion and understanding." "Mercy." "Then, without warning, you left this world." "But not without teaching me who I am and what I should be." "And where I should go." "And it is that which I am most grateful for." "That you taught me to see the light." "Have a good night, Tony, I'll see you tomorrow." "Hey, Tony?" "I changed my mind." "I'm a person who knew Frank Stone, okay?" "When he was a little, little boy." "Before he had a chance to turn his rage on the world." "Okay?" "Who are you?" "And if you know, you'd be the first person I ever met that did." "Okay?" "I got nothing else to say to you." "Now many men don't mean this when they say it, but I do." "If you don't leave here right now, I'm gonna kill you." "Okay?"