"one of the most thrilling and surely one of the most dangerous rodeo events-- cowboys riding the wild brahma bulls." "unlike the bucking horse used in rodeos who will try to prevent stepping on or kicking a rider, the brahma bull will purposely stomp a contestant with his sharp hoofs or rip the rider with his horns, oftentimes causing fatal injuries." "the brahma bulls you see here are well-known for their mean dispositions and are particularly treacherous because they're the only type bull that will charge a man with their eyes open." "that's why you'll never see a brahma bull in the ring with a matador." "the first bull rider today, one of the all-time greats," "Jeff McCloud, Bandera, Texas." "Jeff's coming out on a bull called razor, 'cause he's given a lot of cowboys a close shave." "contestants ride the bull holding onto a loose rope, sometimes called a bullrope, the other hand free in the air." "should the cowboy touch the bull with his free hand anytime during his eight-second ride, he will be disqualified." "keep your eyes on chute number 1." "take him out!" "thanks to the alertness of our rodeo clowns." "he may be shaken up a bit, but he's walked away from tougher spills than this." "now take a look over at chute number 2." "shorty west from blackton, idaho, on a bull called round trip." "shorty must have bought a one-way ticket." "all right, you under there, back out nice and slow." "what are you doing crawling around under my house?" "I didn't think nobody lived here." "somebody lives here." "what are you doing crawling under there?" "I was looking for something I thought I'd lost." "I used to save my money in this tobacco can when I was a kid and my folks lived here." "with my 2 nickels in it after 20 years." "2 nickels was a load of money to me then." "you connie mccloud's boy?" "I'm Jeff mccloud." "I'm jeremiah watrus." "howdy." "there's some coffee in the house." "come on in and sit." " did you know my old man?" " not personal." "well, the place ain't changed much." "I bought it at a tax auction." "got it at my own price." "now I know why." "could have had more fun throwing my money out the window." "it ain't changed much in here, either." " wash up if you've a mind to." " I washed this morning." "I was born in this room." "that ain't much to brag about." "where you from these days?" "oh, I move around a lot." "I can't get over it." "in 20 years, you'd think it'd change." "some things never do." "but there's been changes." "sun's got a little hotter, a little more earth's blowed away, a little less water." "that's about all the changes." "what made you come back?" "I don't know." "I always thought someday I'd make enough money to settle down on the old place, run a few head." " you got the money?" " I had it...once." " what happened?" " I got kind of sidetracked." "women?" "no. no, women don't sidetrack me." "something else." "I'll be 62 come march." "maybe if I was married, I might fix the place, or if I had kids." "it is kind of lonely." "I like a place that's lonely, private." "you been married?" "I figure it this way... marriage, it's lonely, but it ain't private." "you got anything you own?" "what I started out with, a strong back and a weak mind." "a shack, some rocky ground, a spavined horse, and a busted windmill... that's all I got." "that's still more than me." "yeah, but you ain't 62 yet." "you a thinking man?" "oh, I can get in out of the rain, that's about all." "me, I'm a thinking man." "this is what I think." "one of the things that's wrong is that all the books and rules on success is written by successful men." "that's wrong. fellas like you and me'd get a lot more help if those books was written by failures." "that would make sense." "that cowhand from the jackhammer ranch, him and his wife play games." "is that bad?" "reckon today they'll want to remodel this kitchen." "about the only thing around here they ain't fixed over." "in their mind's eye, of course." "do it regular every sunday... come prowling around with calf eyes, saying how much they'd like to buy the place." "you don't need no urging to sell, do you?" "moon talk." "where's a ranch hand going to get $5,000?" "well, I'll be getting on." "figure to make abilene by sundown." "set still." "sometimes they're right amusing." "no." "I better hit the road." "kind of disappointing, I guess." "man coming back to his home place, find it like this." "kind of like visiting a graveyard." "yeah, something like that." "well, good luck." "I hope we didn't interrupt nothing." "fella was born here." "wanted to see how the place looked after 20-odd years." "scared us. thought maybe he was a buyer." "him?" "them mcclouds is the most shiftless family ever hit these parts." "he couldn't buy nothing." "mccloud!" "that's who that is!" "Jeff mccloud!" "you know him?" "leave him alone, Wes." "he's the world saddle bronc champ, the first man ever to ride zombie." "I was at the cheyenne rodeo the year you won the all-around." "how big is this ranch you ride for?" "oh, big enough." "that's the year you rode zombie, right?" "think they can use another hand?" "I'm sure rig will take you on." "I wouldn't get my hopes up too high, mr. mccloud." "why not?" "lots of foremen on the big spreads won't give rodeo cowboys jobs." "figures they're all saddle tramps." "don't they have rodeos around here?" "I ride in one every year at the county fair." "won $40 last year." "$40?" "must be a big show." "40 or 100, I don't like to see him rodeo." "you know, the year I was champ," "I won over $25,000." "easy come, easy go." "I'll take Jeff over to see rig." "you think you can roust up another lamb chop?" "I think so." "we usually eat early on sunday, but can you hold out until 5:00, 5:30?" "for lamb chops?" "sure, I can." "we'll have a lab report in the morning, rig." "in the meantime, keep the calf in quarantine until we find out about this." "put him in that middle stall, boys." "picked this fella up at jeremiah's place." "he's hunting for a job." "name's Jeff mccloud." "what outfit did you work for last, and why'd you quit?" "I been rodeoing the last few years." "had a brahma bull set on me." "sorry." "I can't use you." "look, if you're thinking I'm a rodeo tramp, you got me wrong." "I've hired rodeo cowboys before." "they're always practicing their tricks and roughing up the stock." "when you need them most, they're taking off for fort worth or cheyenne." "if you want some recommendations, I can get them for you." "what ranches you work for?" "I worked the lazy w and vern jackson's place up in the panhandle." "managers of both places will vouch for me." "how are you with horses?" "can you break colts without making broncs out of them?" "I got a special calling for horses, like some get the call to be a preacher." "I can make them do anything but talk mexican." "one of my best cowboys is sick with arthritis." "what'll you work for?" "oh, 140." "120's the best I can do." "you got yourself a hand." "I might as well tell you we got some strict rules on this place." "we don't run our cattle 'cause it takes the fat off." "we don't rope them unless we have to." "we got good blooded stuff here." "we can't sell them with broken legs." "I'll show you the bunkhouse." "I'll meet you at the corral and help you pick out a string of ponies." "hey, Jeff, you've been around a lot." "you figure your old place is worth $5,000?" "I'm a bad one to ask about money matters." "the only way I could tell how much a thing was worth was by how bad I wanted it." "this is a nice little layout." "what did you have to do to get it?" "get married." "louise and me waited six months until a married cowboy quit." "we got $1,100 saved up." "we're going to buy jeremiah's place and stock it." "call it the w-l, right?" "that's the general idea." "as soon as we get the money." "$1,100 is pretty good for 2 years of marriage." "yeah. who does the saving?" "oh, she's the banker." "I just hand her my pay." "ain't it surprising how romantic women can get about money?" "Wes tells me you once made $3,000 in one day rodeoing." "and threw it all away." "I didn't throw it away." "it just sort of floated." "that's pretty stupid..." "breaking all your bones, then letting the money go." "some things you don't do for the cash, there is in it." "some things you do for the buzz." "one minute on a crazy horse." "a minute?" "10 seconds can make it feel like a lifetime." "and wind up with a snapped neck." "or a dislocated collarbone or have your brains shook loose by a bronc." "I've come out of those chutes a lot of times, heard the crowd hollering, a horse or a bull jumping and twisting underneath you." "I always felt the same thing." "for a little bit, you're a lot more than you are just walking down the street or eating or sleeping." "maybe it's something you can't explain to a woman." "'cause it's a different kind of buzz." "thanks again for the supper." "it's been a long time since I had a supper that good." "that's one of the reasons they were standing in line to marry her." "I guess a lot of people ask what's the best horse you ever rode." "yeah, a lot of people." "was it zombie?" "I draw two-step one time and got bucked off." "she was good, but I mark zombie better." "was you ever scared?" "rodeoing?" "yeah, of getting hurt." "well, I've been scared, and I've been not scared." "why did you quit?" "well, I busted the last three ribs I had." "I still wouldn't have quit if I hadn't caved in." "you been rodeoing a long time." "yeah, 18 years." "won the national when I was 17." "I started cutting wild horses when I was 13." "I wasn't but 14." "they paid me 10 cents a head." "that's what I got." "a fella's bankroll could get fat in a hurry rodeoing." "chicken today, feathers tomorrow." "not if he played it smart when he had the chicken." "you stay with those lamp chops, man." "she cooks them good." "I hate to mention this, but you're a working man." "you are, too, now." "about time to hit the sack." "we just ate." "we ate late." "4:30 comes early." "4:30?" "I forgot people get up at 4:30." "well, good night." "good night." "sure enjoyed that supper." "chow time!" "come and get it!" "you got a lot of horse in chico." "yeah. working off of him's no work." "came out of king ranch quarter horse stock." "raised him from a colt." "know any better?" "oh, I used to a long time ago." "horse like him's worth $2,000-3,000." "you could sell him and help pay for that ranch you want." "aim to have both." "show you something else." ""calf roping, $50." "bareback, 25." "bronc riding"... your wife know about you spending all this money on the rodeo?" "I'll tell her if I make out all right next month at san angelo." "you couldn't win hamburger money against top professionals." "not right away." "I know that." "but I learn fast." "you're a pretty sharp article." "you are for a fact." "you've had one thing in the back of your mind." "I don't figure I've done anything wrong." "I thought if I could get you hired, maybe you'd help me some." "at the rate louise and me are going, it'll take us 15 more years to get jeremiah's place." "my wife's got more patience than I have." "don't figure we'll ever own a place of our own, less'n we find some shortcut." "I know what I want, and it won't take no 15 years." "you take $125 out of the bank last week?" "that's right." "I... forgot to mention it." "well, I sort of been trying to get around to it." "what was it for?" "oh, I sent it to san angelo." "entry fees in the rodeo." "that's something else you forgot to mention." "oh, I was going to tell you when it was over." "I wanted to surprise you." "surprise me with what...a broken leg, a broken neck?" "look, I'm good." "Jeff knows." "he's been teaching me." "Jeff mccloud, that great has-been." "what's rig going to think about one of his hands taking a vacation?" "he knows I'm going to san angelo." "if he hears you've been in a rodeo, he'll fire you." "the minute it looks like a guy's losing his job, his wife gets panicky." "that's why I didn't tell you about the money." "look, buster, nobody's getting panicky." "I'm just trying to keep us straight." "and stop kidding yourself." "you ain't the only guy who tried to take me from behind that counter and set me up in business." "you ain't the biggest, you ain't the strongest, you ain't the richest, and you ain't the prettiest, but you're the only one who wanted what I wanted... a decent steady life." "I love you more than anything in the world, but I want to get my place." "I want to toss a rope over my own cow just once." "you're a grown man, Wes." "you do what you like." "I aim to." "I'm going to san angelo." ""joe burgess, petey mendoza, jim barney, red logan, jack nemo."" "that's a pretty good lineup." "hey, you draw high voltage in the saddle bronc." "I know that horse." ""bald eagle, blackout, raw deal, billy the kid."" "that's al dawson's stock." "ain't that al dawson's stock?" "something wrong with the stock?" "no." "I just never knew him to work this far south." "I know your horse, though." "I won the day money on him at st. joe and denver." "hey, nemo!" "well, what do you know?" "who's the dude?" "what are you, a lightning rod salesman?" "hear you been dirt farming lately." "pretty near." "Wes Merritt, meet red logan and jack nemo." "didn't see your name on the entry list." "I'm just here with Wes." "Wes getting his feet wet today." "welcome to san angelo's annual rodeo." "starting this great western celebration, we proudly present our very colorful grand entry of riders and horses in the serpentine ride." "next will be saddle bronc riding." "our first rider this afternoon is slim avery, who hails from reno, nevada." "I'd like to call your attention to the two men on horseback." "they are our pickup men who, immediately after the whistle sounds, take the rider off the bucking horse and transfer him safely to the ground." "we draw your attention to chute number 1, where Wes Merritt of big springs, texas, is coming out on high voltage." "I can't tell you much about Wes Merritt, folks." "he's a newcomer to the circuit." "an old friend of ours, Jeff mccloud, is traveling with Wes Merritt, teaching him the tricks of the trade." "so let's watch this boy Merritt closely." "that's too much rein." "shut up, will you?" "hey, red." "what are we hung on here?" "pass Wes Merritt!" "we move along now to Pete mendoza from santa fe, new mexico, who's riding a horse called april fool out of chute number 18." "he's giving him a ride, folks!" "now, like I said, right here." "forget about the crowd now. just relax." "don't fight him." "work with him." "it's like dancing with a girl, only you let him lead." "we move now to chute number 1..." "Wes Merritt coming out on high voltage." "ok, let me have him!" "get after him, Wes!" "stay with him, Wes!" "good timing." "you know, he can rope a little, too." "this boy will be a familiar face on the circuit from now on." "I rode him!" "you might have rode him right into some day money, too." "next on our program is calf roping, an event against time." "Wes Merritt of big springs, texas, who you just saw make a fine saddle bronc ride, is going to try his skill in calf roping." "Wes Merritt's time is 14.2... which is good time in any man's rodeo." "our next calf roper is craig dunlap of logan, utah." "sing hallelujah, honey!" "I won two day moneys!" "I could have gone for the average, too, but I got bucked off." "did you get hurt?" "no, I bounced." "smell it, honey." "don't it smell sweeter than all the roses?" "$410. that's more than 2 months' wages." "and I made it in two minutes." "there's more where that come from." "as long as you didn't get hurt." "I wasn't even scratched." "I told you, I bounced." "I told rig we're moving out tomorrow." "moving out?" "I'm going to rodeo." "let me get this straight." "you quit?" "we're leaving here?" "Jeff and me figured it out on the way back." "everything he knows about rodeoing, he'll teach me." "he'll help us get someplace." "how did mr. mccloud become an expert on getting someplace?" "he took the same shortcut you're planning to take." "where did he wind up 18 years later?" "you got him all wrong, honey." "he's doing me a big favor." "we'll split the money we win." "what's he going to win?" "split what you win, you mean." "big-hearted mccloud." "if he could still ride, would he share it with you?" "that ain't the point." "$400 for 2 minutes' work, that's the... if it was that easy, every rodeo hand would be rich." "I want that ranch." "so do I, but what good's the ranch going to be if you're crippled?" "you got to have as much guts as me." "how much money can we save on what I make?" "I'll be bent over double before we save $5,000." "my old man spent his whole life working for somebody else." "all he left behind was a big grocery bill and a worn-out saddle." "well, that ain't for me." "I know what I want, and I know how to get it." "Jeff mccloud's our big chance to do it!" "you think mccloud's a pretty great guy, don't you?" "I want you to do something for me." "if I can, sure." "get this rodeoing idea out of my husband's head." "well, that's a pretty large order." "you put the idea into his head, you can get it out." "can I?" "that 400 bucks he won really touched him off." "he thinks he can do that good every day." "you know he can't." "you know he was lucky." "he's got his mind made up." "we've been doing good, real good." "don't let him throw it all away." "he'll listen to you." "look, this rodeoing's his idea, not mine." "then don't go with him." "if you don't go, he won't go." "he's only trying to get something he wants." "I want it, too, but not that way, not rodeoing." "how else is a cowhand going to get it?" "the only way a cowhand can make real dough is rodeoing." "Wes is good. he'll make a potful of money." "of which you'll take half." "it'll still leave him more than he'll make here if he works all his life." "I just want to see one guy in this world get what he wants, that's all." "a pretty good deal for you, wasn't it, latching on to Wes?" "latching on?" "they tell me Wes found you in a tamale joint." "they tell me anything's better than working in a tamale joint, even marriage." "I'm going to explain something to you." "my folks were fruit pickers." "my pa was a drifter." "I grew up in tents and camps." "I never knew what a pair of silk stockings was like until I was 19." "we never had a house." "got so I was always jealous of people who lived in houses and stayed in one place and had somebody to love." "that's all I could ever think about." "I picked Wes out to marry, and I picked him real slow and real careful." "and I didn't pick him for the wild horses he could ride or gold belt buckles he might win." "but if he still wants to go in the morning," "I'm going with him, because there's one thing" "I'm not going to let you do, and that's turn him into a saddle tramp like yourself." "redheads... what gives a guy the idea that redheads are any different?" "all they got is bad tempers." "Wes?" "like I said, as soon as we get the ranch money together," "I quit." "is it a deal?" "it's a deal." "well, what are we waiting for?" "come on, chico." "the barns are over that way." "and 20." "10 more." "let's go ahead." "10 bucks." "that's a bet." "10 more for me." "craps." "that cleans me out." "how about loaning me 50 bucks?" "sorry. not today, burgess." "what's the matter, you scared you won't get it back?" "gracie said nobody should loan you no more money." "who you shooting craps with, me or my wife?" "I got to get some shut-eye." "I'm roping this afternoon." "one thing I hate is a tightwad." "I'm quitting." "that's the last thing you're about to do." "I'll cut that money loose!" "hey, hey, take it easy." "hey, you're kicking up a lot of dust, cowboy." "today just ain't your lucky day." "you try the dice tomorrow." "it ain't the dice." "thanks. he's been hitting the bottle pretty hard." "a man shouldn't shoot crap if he can't stand to lose." "ain't that. he got gored with a brahma in cheyenne." "a horn caught him in the cheek." "I wasn't going to use it unless I had to." "think I'll lay down a while before the show." "you're mccloud, ain't you?" "glad to see you." "well, come on, Wes." "we better grain chico." "you hungry?" "no. that's a terrible scar he had." "yeah. brahmas are pretty spooky." "a bronco will shake you loose and then leave you, but a bull will keep right after you." "they're mean, keep on getting meaner, but the bulls that fight, that's what people pay to see." "a cup of coffee and a half-pound of raw hamburger!" "coffee don't float a hammer, I ain't drinking it!" "rusty!" "either you're getting heavier, or I'm getting weaker." "once on the other side, like in the good book." "figured they ground you up for dog food long ago." "no. the dogs took one bite and quit." "hiya, book." "I knowed you couldn't stay away." "he says in cheyenne, "that's all." "I'm washed up."" "this old crow bait's going to be washed up when he's holding flowers on that fancy shirt and the rodeo band's playing soft and sweet." "my name's booker davis." "this here filly here is my daughter rusty." "hello, rusty." "I'm Wes Merritt, Jeff's partner." "partner?" "man, sew up your pockets." "you're new, ain't you?" "got 2 bits?" "ok, let him have a look." "you ever see anything like that before?" "sure is the worst-looking leg I've ever seen." "20 years rodeoing done that." "leg busted nine times, kneecap, five, and the ankle, four." "booker's got the most busted leg in the world." "nobody'll ever beat it, 'less they jump off a new york skyscraper." "last time booker broke it, doctors wanted to cut it off." "it was up in denver." "he got some crutches and headed for new mexico." "a big blizzard come up." "had to pull into a motel." "had no sooner got in bed than my leg started hurting pretty bad." "finally, I pushed my bed over to the window and stuck my leg out." "soon the leg froze up, and the pain went away." "next morning, I thawed it out and drove on to santa fe." "I won four firsts that day." "get the griddle hot." "put some coffee on." "we got to feed these fellers." "old book used to be one of the best bronc riders." "what happened?" "punchy. bronc shook his brains loose." "he's head wrangler for dawson now." "who pulled in?" "I don't know, but they've been through a lot of mud." "sure have." "nice-looking filly." "yeah. well quartered up." "looks fast." "depends on the track." "it depends on the jockey, too." "get lost." "howdy." "morning, ma'am." "is there a ladies' room around?" "honey, there ain't no ladies' room around here." "in fact, there ain't no ladies." "if you want to wash up, right there." "all the comforts." "how much did you lose?" "ain't none of your business." "last time out, you won $45 and lost 52 that night playing poker." "now look at you..." "drunk, dirty, and scared." "scared?" "scared of what?" "nothing." "don't you ever tell me I'm scared." "come on back to the trailer and get me some coffee." "your husband going to rodeo?" "bull riding?" "well, don't let him." "don't let him ever start." "if he rides one, he'll keep on riding." "the day will come when a bull will stomp and gore him." "then he'll have to show he ain't scared, but he is." "he'll start drinking to hide it... a pint of whiskey, two pints, play cards, craps, anything... to hide how frightened he is." "every time you hear that loudspeaker announcing they're coming out, you know he's going to be there drunk and scared." "your heart will stop inside you." "so don't let him." "you just get in?" "yeah. drove all night." "husband's bedding down his horse, I guess." "this spigot's closest I've been to water for 24 hours." "come to my trailer." "have a hot cup of coffee." "I'm rosemary maddox." "I do trick riding." "louise Merritt." "coffee sounds like a good idea." "Merritt...don't think I know any rider named Merritt." "this is our first time up." "oh. know any rodeo people?" "just one..." "Jeff mccloud." "mccloud?" "you don't look like somebody who'd know Jeff mccloud." "thanks for the compliment." "he's my husband's partner." "we're traveling together." "hey, is this yours?" "the man said so when he signed the receipt." "do you like it?" "looks like a hotel." "it is a hotel." "where'd you pick up Jeff?" "texas. only you might say he picked us up." "married long?" "two years." "recommend it?" "it's what I always wanted." "don't you get bored stiff keeping house?" "no." "I like keeping house." "cooking's all right, if you got to cook." "me, I like fried shrimp somebody else fried." "the shower's working... real hot water." "have one while the coffee perks." "thanks a lot." "I sure could use one." "there's a robe hanging up there somewhere." "do you like Jeff?" "no more than any other sidewinder." "anybody up?" "I didn't know you had company." "louise Merritt, ginny logan." "hi. you drove in with Jeff mccloud, didn't you?" "he's darling, isn't he, rosemary?" "red thinks the sun rises and sets on Jeff mccloud." "red's my husband." "he's the craziest man I know." "my husband." "ain't he the craziest man you ever met?" "I wanted something, but what?" "sugar." "sugar?" "ain't it crazy the way I forget things?" "are you going to sit with us in the grandstand?" "us wives always sit together." "I suppose so." "why, when red's on a bull or bronc," "I get so excited, I scream." "I just scream." "I'm three trailers down toward the stables." "uh, just follow the horses." "well, see y'all later." "Jeff ever make a pass at you?" "don't get mad, honey." "I only asked." "you're pretty." "that's enough to make him try." "for three years, all Jeff mccloud had to do was whistle, and I'd come running." "what happened?" "he stopped whistling, and I stopped running." "well, make yourself at home." "I'll be back." "thanks a lot." "if you're looking for rosemary, she's gone out." "I wasn't looking for rosemary." "I was looking for al dawson." "he's the stock contractor on this show." "booker tells me he takes his morning coffee here." "must be an expensive brand." "maybe it works in reverse." "how do you want it, hot or cold?" "as long as it's clean." "hot this way, cold that way." "anytime your plumbing don't work, just call mccloud." "is Wes all right?" "he's over at booker's, resting." "got a big day coming up." "hey, you're real little with your shoes off." "you're real little with your shoes on." "rosemary's tall." "she's more your type." "rosemary's nice, but little's nice, too." "outside." "hasta luego." "that's spanish for" ""if the shower don't work, call mccloud."" "you need any help?" "this ain't the first time" "I've been away from home." "I haven't been run over yet." "well, if you need me, I'm here." "I'll whistle." "good morning." "well, good morning." "howdy, al." "hi, Jeff." "what you doing here?" "oh, just having a little coffee." "thought you quit rodeoing." "no." "I changed my mind." "coffee, al?" "no." "I had mine." "I understand, uh, rosemary's trick riding with you." "I plan to follow your circuit myself this season, al." "I'm hazing for Wes Merritt." "oh, yeah. he rode for me down in san angelo." "I'll need a horse." "I'll sell you one." "who's in the shower?" "lady." "mccloud!" "yeah?" "throw me a towel." "I'll get it." "over there." "what on..." "hey!" "hey!" "that ain't rosemary!" "no, that ain't rosemary." "not a good horse in the bunch." "they wouldn't do to cut a steer." "that's what I mean." "bunch of hammerheads and stiff-legs, but they pay off with a crowd." "how about these brahmas?" "they're monsters." "they sure look mean." "how about something to eat?" "I ain't hungry." "no, neither was I on my first big-time rodeo." "I ain't scared." "I don't know what it is." "you've seen people, you've seen horses, and you've seen a calf." "maybe it's just you're scared of making like a fool in front of the crowd, even though you know you'll never see them again." "what you signing up for?" "saddle broncs, bareback, calf roping, and bulldogging." "the toughest broncs is always them you rode some other place." "cowboys ain't tough like they used to be." "two years ago in phoenix, a steer kicked me in the eye." "I covered my face with my hands." "old john anderson says, "are you hurt, book?"" "I says, "I believe so."" "took my hands off my face." "old john fainted plumb away." "another cowboy come running up to me." "I said, "something's dangling." "I believe it's my eye."" "he said, "well, it sure is."" "so he got me a doctor." "took 17 stitches around my eye." "next day I won first prize in the saddle bronc riding." "now ain't that a windy?" "hoot Martin told me that same story." "that's where I heard it." "could I talk to you in private, Jeff?" "yeah." "couldn't borrow a couple of bucks, could I?" "I know I ain't paid back what I got in cheyenne." "don't worry about it, as long as you're keeping books." "I'm keeping books, right up to the penny." "I'll settle with you one day." "chico's faster than these horses." "judging a horse is like judging a woman." "you can't tell by their head or their mane." "I knowed a girl, had a pretty face, but she was so bowlegged, a hog could run between her legs and never graze neither one of them." "if it ain't my wandering cowboy." "how you been?" "I can't complain." "I want you to meet Wes Merritt, my partner." "jim-bob tyler." "if you don't pay your association dues, he headlocks you." "he's a director." "I hear you cooled off high voltage in san angelo." "he'll cool off a lot before he's through." "ain't you doing any riding?" "no." "I'm just along to see that Wes don't get on a horse backwards." "might do a little hazing later." "saddle bronc, bareback, bulldogging, and calf roping?" "sounds like a full day's work." "no bull riding?" "I got to get him home in one piece." "I can ride anything anybody else can." "just like all rookies." "he's too big for his britches." "once again, it's la fiesta de los vaqueros time in tucson, arizona, and our flag bearers are leading this very colorful grand entry parade." "starting the action this afternoon is one of the oldest of our contest events... the saddle bronc riding." "let's go to chute 5, where mickey clayborne from peekskill, new york, is getting ready to come out on double-cross." "is that bob in a sling?" "sure looks like it." "he's promised not to ride if his arm hurt." "that's the second time sky high's refused." "can't understand why dawson keeps him in the string." "having trouble with sky high, so we'll move to our next contestant..." "Wes Merritt of big springs, texas, riding devil dancer out of chute number 3." "now you can see how a man can stand and sit at the same time while riding a bronc." "an event requiring skill and teamwork between horse and rider is next on our program... calf roping." "see you later, honey." "calf roping is an everyday part of a cowboy's life." "when a cowboy sees a sick calf or an unbranded calf, he relies on two things to catch the little fella... his rope and his horse." "our first roper this afternoon will be buster burgess of butte, montana." "buster tied his calf in the excellent time of 14 seconds flat." "that's second-best so far." "he ought to wind up in the day money, grace." "the next man to rope is Wes Merritt of big springs, texas." "he's going to try again." "the rules say that Wes is allowed two loops." "time for Wes Merritt is 21.4 seconds." "cheer up, louise." "it happens to the best of them." "our next event is bulldogging, a favorite among rodeo fans because of its spectacular and dangerous action." "burgess' time, 11.2." "30 feet's a pretty long score, ain't it?" "yeah. the steer's got a big head start." "when chico overtakes him, you'll be going 30 miles an hour." "I thought you'd like to know, this steer set up on me last go around." "thanks, slim." "get down early." "you might override and miss him." "our next bulldogger is Wes Merritt of big springs, texas." "let's get the job done." "hazing for Wes Merritt is a familiar name and face to rodeo fans," "Jeff mccloud." "let's make it good." "reckon he's in mexico by now." "now you can see how dangerous this contest really is." "it's quite a jolt to the dogger when he grabs dirt instead of a steer's horns." "action moves once again to the bucking chutes." "our first event..." "wild brahma bull riding." "in the interest of public safety, we ask all spectators seated in the front rows and folks standing along the fence not to wave anything at these bulls to attract their attention." "brahma bulls have been known to jump an 8-foot fence from a standing start." "these four-legged packages of dynamite are not exactly household pets." "ready?" "you were smart not to sign up for these bangs." "I did sign up." "did you ever ride a brahma?" "a lot of horses." "no bulls." "who'd you draw?" "yo-yo." "hey, boys, this fella drawed yo-yo." "he's never rode a bull before." "bad bull, huh?" "only been rode once in his life." "red, tell him what yo-yo done to stubby johnson." "he threw stubby halfway across new mexico." "then he run him down and near gored and stomped him to death." "he's kind of mean." "arnold barry on spitfire." "look, when you get throwed, let the clowns take care of him." "just lay still." "that bull's liable to eat you up alive." "maybe I won't get throwed." "that's one thing you don't have to worry about." "you'll get throwed, all right." "next rider in this action-packed event is chuck peterson from calgary, canada, riding a bull called night life." "let's give our rodeo clowns a big hand for their daring and skill." "buster burgess of butte, montana, is coming out of chute 5 on a bull named time bomb." "burgess can go anytime now." "first aid to the arena immediately." "don't touch him, boys." "wait till the doc gets here." "cliff roberts of alexander, louisiana, will ride spring fever." "that was a rough one, bull wetting his horn like that." "good thing you're not riding any bulls." "I am." "you what?" "I went back and signed up." "why?" "I ain't wearing diapers." "you take things the wrong way, Wes." "I'm in this business to make money." "the more events I enter, the more I make." "if an accident scares me," "I'll find out right now." "you're substituting guts for good judgment." "am I?" "he is riding a bull called yo-yo." "yo-yo's a very famous bull." "he's never been rode to the limit." "you draw yo-yo?" "you know about him?" "sometimes he spins, sometimes he doesn't." "if he unloads you, don't do like burgess did." "you just freeze." "let the clowns handle the bull." "good luck." "remember what I told you." "take a dive." "ain't no disgrace." "are you kidding?" "never was a bull that couldn't be rode." "never was a cowboy that couldn't be throwed." "eat a little dirt if you have to." "here's a flash, folks." "Wes Merritt's riding the first bull of his career." "I'm not going to let him." "sorry, lady." "he's not going to ride that bull." "let me have him!" "give it to him, Wes!" "come on, let's go." "you've just seen history made." "Wes Merritt rode yo-yo to the finish." "I should have listened to you and booker." "how'd I get out here?" "you rode him, man." "that's the way to make money... while you're asleep." "you rode yo-yo to a standstill." "first day on the circuit, and you're a big man." " who, me?" " sure, you." "nice going, Wes." "I rode him, honey." "I rode him." "what's the matter?" "you're shaking like a leaf." "I never want to go through that again." "a new world's record... 10 seconds flat." "you busted me." "that's against the rules." "come on, cowboy." "show us how you rode yo-yo." "I'm pretty beat... don't be like that, Wes. come on." "in such cases, the thing to do is this." "get a beer and cool that loud mouth off." "one little ride, Wes." "beat it." "he's got a horse." "come here." "right here." "Wes Merritt." "sure, Wes." "nice going today." "Wes Merritt." "$879.14." "check or cash?" "cash!" "hi, everybody." "I hope you saved a little for me." "I've got gasoline money coming." "man, where's this rodeoing been all my life?" "there'll be a lot of days when you come up empty." "I've got $439.57 coming." "I don't know much about reading and writing, but I've got an aptness for figures." "he gets half, remember?" "I won't let him forget." "I owe you the change." "I'll owe you." "come on, champ." "winner has to buy the drinks." "we'll bring him back in great shape." "hey, you a pretty good drinker?" "how's that?" "I never saw you drink." "just asking." "he's got to work in the morning." "there are a few things he can do by himself." "if you want a drink, take it." "if he can't, ring the bell." "cut it out." "people will think you don't like each other." "tell them about the wild horse stampede." "I couldn't count them." "part-wild horse myself." "never been curried below the knees." "never been curried above the neck, either." "you said it, but I come by my wildness natural." "once, my ma was loping across the great plains on a paint horse." "kiowas was after her." "she was about ready to foal." "suddenly, she got a pain in her stomach." "she got off the horse, and I was born." "while I was being born, the paint horse had a colt." "the kiowas was closing in." "she jumped on the horse, I jumped on the colt, and I've been riding horses ever since." "you been riding a lot of bulls, too." "how about a little drop for me, sugar?" "you just pour it till it runs over." "I'm going to put my brand on you, sugar." "that's my brand, sugar." "you catch on fast." "hi. al, I'd like you to meet louise Merritt." "oh. we sort of met before." "somebody got a lid?" "looks like this place is going to boil over." "hey, grace." "burgess all right?" "you poor dumb fools." "kidding yourselves." "calling this a sport!" "a bunch of crazy men paying for the privilege of getting yourselves killed." "my husband did it with $25 of borrowed money." "relax, baby." "we'll take care of the hitching-up." "oh, my aching head." "we'll take care of that, too." "right here." "this way." "he don't drink too good." "he's going to have a balloon head." "maybe he won't be able to rodeo." "I don't care if he never rodeos again." "still want that ranch, don't you?" "I had what I wanted." "that little 2 x 4 cabin?" " happiness." " for you, maybe." " how about him?" "maybe he wasn't happy." " he was until you came." "if he'd stuck to the jackhammer... lady, the world's full of prizes." "every fella likes to take a shot at them." "if he misses, fine." "but at least he tried." "you tried." "what did you win?" "I made a thousand bartenders rich in my time." "I've thrown away the down payment for a dozen spreads over a crap table." "I had 18 great years all by myself." "Wes has got you." "if I'd had somebody like you, it might have been a different." "what would it have changed?" "maybe nothing. maybe everything." "you don't believe me a little bit, do you?" "I never met a man who didn't do a little lying." "you can believe what you want to about me, but you're keeping the books." "they ain't lying." "Wes is doing real good." "getting his brains kicked out, that's how good he's doing." "he's trying to do it all in one season." "the big ones are coming up now... livermore, salinas, cheyenne, pendleton." "we ought to get together on this." "we could be friends." "I haven't got so many friends." "I could do with one more." "let me give you some advice." "when you sit down to a big dinner, just loosen your belt." "more fun that way." "thanks for the hitch-up." "ok, Jeff." "see you in livermore." "he minds you well." "horses are a lot like women." "they mind you a little bit for love, but a lot more from fear." "it's easier to get a horse afraid of you than a woman." "where's Wes?" "no telling." "hey, anybody in there?" "come on in." "are you all right?" "grace gave me a cup of coffee." "sure needed it." "I'm sorry about how I acted at the hotel." "all these years, waiting for something to happen to buster, telling myself I wouldn't blow my top, training myself not to." "then it does happen, and... well, it was like" "I never told myself nothing or never practiced at all." "couldn't help it." "this is all I got to show for 15 years of married life." "it's not much." "get out of this while the getting's good." "rodeoing will make an old woman of you before your time." "well, let me get my things together, and you can have the trailer." "I bought this rig." "you what?" "we have to have a place to sleep, honey." "besides, grace needed the money." "you send the entry fees to pendleton?" "yes, I did." "why ain't you dressed yet?" "it's almost showtime." "I'm tired, Wes." "I'll stay here." "what's the matter, honey?" "nothing's the matter." "it's just that after cheyenne... aw, cheyenne." "that bull was spooky, that's all." "I can't sit in that grandstand and watch anymore." "I'll be here when you come back." "look how excited ginny gets when red's coming out of the chute." "she don't worry him." "ginny ain't the worrying type." "now, honey, nothing's going to happen to me." "I'm dumb, and I'm lucky." "come out to the show tonight, and afterwards we'll celebrate." "you been spending an awful lot of money." "we've got the money to spend for the first time in our lives." "all week long, you been yapping about money." "don't make me sound like a nag." "well, then stop worrying." "you get me riled up." "I'm all in one piece." "that's how I want you to stay." "you better go." "you'll be late." "if you still want to go out afterwards, all right, we'll go." "that's more like it." "starting off with red clauson from kearney, nebraska, on a horse called politician." "they've got this one named right." "he don't seem able to figure where he's going." "now out of chute number 2," "Wes Merritt, from big springs, texas, on a horse called acey-deucy." "he's already won more prize money in his first year of competition than any other newcomer to rodeo that I can remember." "outside!" "Wes is in trouble!" "watch it!" "somebody give that cowboy a hand!" "that was a rough one." "he's a lucky cowboy to be walking away from a spill like that." "and now, ladies and gentlemen, we go to chute number 7 for walt matthews coming out on ride away." "that's a pretty sky." "leg giving you trouble, book?" "either my boot's too little, or my leg's too big." "seen Wes?" "no." "how long you think he'll last?" "he'll be around long enough to buy some cows." "cows. wind pudding and air sauce." "he won't buy no cows." "he won't?" "town shoes, a fancy car, and bourbon... that's all he'll ever buy." "all right, booker, quit grandstanding." "what do you got to say?" "the boys been saying you've changed." "yeah. my whiskers got longer." "you're waiting around for something to happen." "you're reading the tea leaves." "what's going to happen?" "I don't know, but I'll tell you, there's only two things ever kept you in one place for long... a crap game or a woman." "I ain't seen you with a pair of dice for weeks." "is Wes here?" "not yet." "probably looking at chico." "something wrong with chico?" "he's got a little colic." "what's cooking?" "what'll you have?" "what are you offering?" "to you?" "pot roast." "I like pot roast." "and potato pancakes?" "I like potato pancakes." "you brought good cooking to the trailer camps." "be fine with me when I take it out, too." "well, we got enough money for the ranch." "4,100." "4,100?" "you need 5,000." "you don't know that jeremiah." "you don't know jeremiah." "you really want him off the circuit, don't you?" "don't you?" "I want whatever you want." "hey, look who's back in pendleton." "she's having a big party tonight." "we're all invited." "what do you want, doll, some more branding?" "hey, babs!" "hey!" "well, I'll square things with her later." "I got a surprise for you." "whose idea was this, yours?" "I thought you'd be pleased." "with what?" "I ain't in no hurry to go back scratching a living dirt farming." "what's wrong with this life?" "steak for dinner, money in the bank." "you got what you wanted." "somebody ask you to stick your nose in this?" "fella always said I had a big nose." "I thought that's what we were rodeoing for." "let's go back where we can breathe clean air." "there's nothing wrong with this air." "all I smell's the money I win." "you like how it smells." "you don't?" "it stinks!" "when I found you, you couldn't put 4 quarters together to make a dollar." "who had the ambition, you or me?" "that's right, me." "I'm sick of this yap, yap, yap." "and one thing more..." "I'm getting fed up with you freeloading on the money I win." "sounds like a declaration of war." "well, it leaves us that much more of the pot roast to eat." "he'll go to that party and get drunk, won't he?" "he's not just going there to count the bottles." "why don't you just take it easy, and I'll wait table?" "I'm supposed to sit here, waiting for him to come staggering through that door." "then I'm supposed to put my arms around him, make him black coffee, stick an ice bag on his head, take off his boots, and put him to bed." "the pot roast is real good." "I'm no fun." "that blond dame with her dress cut down to her kneecaps... she's fun." "yeah." "well, she's something." "well, I'm through saving his pennies for him." "I'm through washing his socks and his shirts." "I'm through worrying about him and cleaning up after him." "he ain't 2 years old, and I ain't his mother." "ever think you might, uh, fall in love with somebody else?" "just asked." "it happens every day of the week." "men!" "I'd like to fry 'em all in deep fat!" "what you looking for?" "my one decent pair of silk stockings to go with my one decent dress." "say, you don't happen to own any of that black lingerie, do you?" "no." "by the way, where are we going?" "I'm going to the party." "Wes is kind of mean." "well, so am I." "why don't you just eat this nice supper and wait it out?" "I'm tired of being a good little wife who waits things out." "oh, he'll be back." "he might be drunk, but he'll be back." "last time, I booted that blonde." "this time, she's going to... sure must be nice to have a wife that gets that mad about you." "you make a good pot roast." "wow!" "you may not need that black lingerie after all." "who'll stir the gravy when I'm gone, darlin' baby who'll stir the gravy when I'm gone when I'm gone to my long, lonesome home" "I'm so thirsty, I could drink water." "don't you ever pass out?" "oh, liquor don't bother me." "I'm going to where the climate he's going to teach her how to sing." "I bet she could learn real good, too." "when I'm gone to my long, lonesome home hi, Jeff. jump in." "hi, louise." "hi, ginny." "hi. hello, alice." "howdy, booker." "who'll hoe the corn when I'm gone, darlin' baby who'll hoe the corn glad you showed up." "ain't you going to kiss the bride?" "who's the lucky girl?" "me." "rosemary and al got hitched about an hour ago." "really, al?" "I got the papers and everything." "how about a real kiss now?" "better talk to your husband about that." "go ahead. you kiss a man's bride, it means goodbye." "goodbye, honey." "hi, louise." "I'm goin' to where the chilly winds don't blow, darlin' baby... come on." "have a drink with us." "any gin left?" "sure, Wes." "don't save it, man." "pour it." "who's going to be champion bull rider this year?" "why, you, honey." "who can bronc-ride longer, bulldog better, calf-rope quicker than any man here?" "you, honey." "thanks." "hey, you drinking?" "why, sure." "it's a party, isn't it?" "here, honey." "wipe it off." "what?" "you got something on your face." "let me, honey." "that's some dress she's wearing, ain't it, louise?" "yeah." "I can't tell whether she's outside trying to get in or inside trying to get out." "I'll finish the repair work." "you hold this." "I'll bet babs thinks you're pretty cute, don't you, honey?" "well, he is." "yeah, that's what he is, all right. cute." "I got a real cute husband." "I'll bet babs is crazy about other people's husbands." "who, babs?" "oh, she's been married twice." "legally?" "there we are." "that's better." "now you look almost like the man I married." "thank you, sugar, but I can't let every little blonde kiss him just because he's cute." "why not lock him up?" "I wish I could, but he's grown-up, and he's making a lot of money." "but I ought to do something, sugar." "that's your problem, honey." "of course it is." "do you think this is a good idea?" "look at me!" "you look just like a faucet. doesn't she, Wes?" "why did you come, to start a fight?" "to stop you from making a bigger fool out of yourself than you are." "thanks for telling me." "get going!" "go on, get out!" "this is my party!" "I'll call the manager!" "aah!" "well, it's been a lovely party, and I've had a lovely time." "this lady just kicked us out." "all right, cowboy." "claim second money." "come on." "I told you once before." "stop sticking your nose in my business." "well, I picked him real slow and real careful." "I got married for a home." "I got one." "I wanted to get away from working... he just kissed a little blonde." "it don't mean anything." "it won't look so terrible tomorrow morning." "I wouldn't see him tomorrow morning or any morning." "when he sobers up, he'll say, "honey, I'm sorry,"" "and you'll forgive him." "I won't." "sure, you will." "that's a wife's profession..." "forgiving her husband." "please help me." "get him away from here." "it's his only chance." "it's my only chance." "he puts on his own pants." "he buttons his own shirt." "if he does that, he can run his own life." "but he doesn't." "either you beat the money, or the money beats you." "that's all you care about... the money." "when you're finished with Wes, you'll get yourself another cowhand." "you're only thinking of the money." "just a minute." "let me tell you something." "when Wes asked me to come into this, maybe I told myself that the money was making up my mind, but it wasn't." "I was lying to myself." "the only thing that kept me stringing along was you." "hope's a funny thing." "you can have it even though there ain't no reason for it." "you can tell me to shut up and move on, like anybody at your door trying to sell you something you don't want." "I'm just waiting to hear what the lady of the house has to say." "don't let Wes end up the way you did." "you mean a washed-up, beat-up bronc rider." "I didn't mean that." "all I meant was... don't let him wind up crippled." "that's all you really care about is Wes, isn't it?" "it's funny how the people you never figure ought to be together always are." "all right, mrs." "Merritt, I'll go back and tell him." "I made my pitch." "the lady just didn't buy." "we'll come back here after we close the joint." "I do think I ought to kiss you just once for all the times I won't." "ain't that pretty, out here in the corridor playing post office?" "somebody's going to get real fed up with you and beat your head in with a rake handle." "your friend?" "be the first thing you've done on your own since I knew you." "you've just been dragging your foot in my stirrup." "you got anything to say, say it at the stables." "playing me for a sucker." "taking half my dough." "why?" "because you ain't got guts to ride yourself." "all that fancy talk about being through with rodeoeoing." "you'll never be through as long as you ride somebody else's shoulders." "you're yellow!" "you ain't got guts enough to ride a dead mule." "you bounce real good." "bronc riders." "I never met a bronc rider yet that wasn't a wild man." "but if they weren't wild men, they wouldn't be bronc riders." "you still sure?" "ginny, you keep an eye on mrs." "Merritt." "she'll need a place to sleep tonight." "remember once a party in butte, montana." "big hotel." "fella's wife kissed another fella, and this fella... once again, it's my pleasure to describe to you an outstanding event in the world of sports... the annual pendleton roundup." "passing before us now, an exciting display of old glory, followed by our friends the yumatella indians." "adding more color to this review, the serpentine ride by the cowboy contestants in the center of the arena." "what do you say, bobby?" "you sweetening up the kitty?" "get off his back." "you might ride for second." "well, I'm just kidding." "what do you think you're doing?" "what's it look like?" "signing up, huh?" "calf roping, steer tying, bulldogging, bareback, and saddle bronc." "everything but ladies' trick riding." "I owe you $350 entry fee." "just a minute, Jeff." "you letting this ruckus with Wes get under your skin." "that's my business, gentlemen." "let's talk this over." "take that money and hand me one of those numbers." "you out of your head?" "you ain't rodeoed all season." "you're in no condition to compete." "the only thing you've got to worry about is keeping those chutes loaded." "wouldn't let nobody use them but you." "won the average four years at calgary with them." "set a record they been shooting at for 20 years...9.3." "I'll be satisfied with 14 flat." "I hear you've signed up for four events." "quit yapping." "ain't nobody in your class." "now we're going to see some records broke." "but you ain't competed all year." "honey, I got told two things yesterday." "one was to keep my nose out of other people's business." "that's pretty good advice all around." "our first contestant in calf roping will be Jeff mccloud of bandera, texas." "Jeff's making his first appearance after a year's layoff because of a leg injury." "I'm sure rodeo contestants and rodeo fans alike are happy to welcome Jeff back to competition." "guess he's a little overanxious, but he's going to try for a second throw." "you're going away." "because of Wes?" "no, honey, because of me." "did you hear about Jeff?" "no. did he leave?" "I wish he had." "he's going to rodeo today." "he signed up for four events." "no matter what booker says, he ain't in shape." "everybody knows it but Jeff." "they say he's just doing it to show Wes." "no, that isn't it." "maybe it's because he needs the day money." "that isn't it, either." "where is he?" "over at the chutes." "Wes Merritt of big springs, texas." "the time for Wes Merritt is 21.4 seconds." "it looks like Jeff mccloud is going all the way." "he's next up in bulldogging, and he's chosen for his hazer a lifelong friend and old-time rodeo great of past years, booker davis." "man be in trouble if he front-holds a steer this big." "I reckon I'll throw him with a half nelson." "have him in shape to throw him right." "if I have to, I'll bump him in your lap." "Jeff's time..." "11.6 seconds." "sure bedded him down in a hurry." "that's good enough for day money." "you had him in there all the way for me." "to the chutes now for the saddle bronc riding." "our first contestant, bob elliott of newhall, california." "next out, Wes Merritt." "Wes will try his hand on one of al dawson's top broncs...black widow." "over to chute 8, where Pete fox from rapid city, south dakota, is coming out on war paint." "looks like war paint is really on the warpath today." "tough break, Pete." "I think red just stayed out too late last night." "oh, he did pretty good." "hear you entered in the saddle bronc riding." "well, you heard right." "picked a tough horse." "I remember saying the same thing to Wes." "I can handle anything he can." "everybody knows Wes ain't in your class." "everybody but me." "now to chute number 6, where Jeff mccloud of bandera, texas, the former saddle bronc champion of the world, will come out on a horse called lightning rod." "all right. let me out." "look at that cowboy stick!" "a great ride." "he's the best." "he's much of a man." "our pickup men seem to be having trouble getting to Jeff." "Jeff mccloud is in trouble." "and he's got his foot caught in the stirrup." "at chute 2, craig bentley of salinas, california, is coming out on the drifter." "in here, boys." "out of chute number 2," "Wes Merritt, big springs, texas." "come on, Wes." "you're next out." "what were you trying to prove?" "I used to make my own money." "I used buy my own whiskey, take my own falls." "a fella just likes to know if he can still do it." "isn't one man enough for you to worry about?" "he ain't bad hurt." "he's showing how tough he is." "broken rib. that's nothing." "I remember..." "I told you to lay still." "that rib's sticking through his lung." "you're nothing but a no-good, washed-out, beat-up bronc rider." "all you know is how to bust a gut." "the more bones you break, the bigger man you think you are." "broken bones, broken bottles, broken everything." "there never was a bronc that couldn't be rode." "there never was a cowboy that couldn't be throwed." "guys like me last forever." "where's Jeff?" "he's dead." "Wes Merritt of big springs, texas, coming out of chute number 3 on a horse called meditation." "pass Wes Merritt!" "you couldn't use two extra hands, could you?" "sure, booker." "rusty, me and you is going back to texas." "now our next rider, rocky davis from austin, nevada, coming out on quicksand." "this is rocky davis' first time on the circuit, so let's give him a warm welcome with a big hand."