"What do you want to hack for, Bickle?" "I can't sleep nights." " There's porno theaters for that." " I know." "I tried that." "What do you do now?" "Ride around nights mostly." "Subways, busses." "Figure if I'm gonna do that, I might as well get paid for it." "Wanna work uptown nights, South Bronx, Harlem?" " I'll work anytime, anywhere." " Will you work Jewish holidays?" "Anytime, anywhere." "Let me see your chauffeur's license." " How's your drivin' record?" " It's real clean, like my conscience." "You gonna break my chops?" "Trouble with guys like you breaking my chops." "If you're gonna break my chops, you can take it on the arches." "Understand?" "Sorry, sir." "I didn't mean that." " Physical?" " Clean." " Age?" " Twenty-six." "Education?" "Some." "Here, there." "You know." "Military record?" "Honorable discharge, May 1973." " Were you in the army?" " Marines." "I was in the Marines, too." "So what is it?" "You need an extra job?" "Are you moonlighting?" "Well, I just want to work long hours." "What's moonlighting?" "Fill out these forms and check back tomorrow when the shift breaks." "O'Brien, please step up." "Take the car to 58th street, please, 'cause it's crowded on 57th." "All right, I'm comin' down there." "Let's go." "May 10." "Thank God for the rain... which has helped wash away the garbage and trash off the sidewalks." "I'm working long hours now." "6:00 in the afternoon to 6:00, sometimes 8:00 in the morning." "Six days a week, sometimes seven days a week." "It's a long hustle, but if keeps me real busy." "I can take in 300, 350 a week, sometimes more when I do if off the meter." "All the animals come out at night." "Whores, skunk pussies, buggers, queens, fairies, dopers, junkies." "Sick, venal." "Someday a real rain will come and wash this scum off the streets." "I go all over." "I take people to the Bronx, Brooklyn, to Harlem." "I don't care." "Don't make no difference to me." "If does to some." "Some won't even take spooks." "Don't make no difference to me." "Driver, 48th and 6th, please." "Man, you're a gorgeous, brown, beautiful little girl!" " I can't afford to get stopped." " No, we wouldn't want that to happen." "Be a big tip for you, you do the right things." "You got a way." "You got a way." "Now you're talkin'." "Driver, hurry up, will ya?" "Yeah, it's gonna be fine." "Each night when I return the cab, I have to clean the come off the backseat." "Some nights I clean off the blood." "Can I help you?" "Yeah, what's your name?" "My name is Travis." "That's nice." "What can I do for you?" "I'd like to know what your name is." "What's your name?" "Gimme a break." "You can tell me your name." "I'm not gonna do anything." " Want me to call the manager?" " You don't have to call the manager." " Troy!" " All right, okay." "Okay." "Can I have a Chuckles there?" "You have any Jujus?" "They last longer." "I'd like to get some." "What you see is what we got." "I'll take these." "Coca-Cola." "We don't have Coca-Cola." "Royal Crown Cola is all we got." "$1.85." "Twelve hours of work, and I still can't sleep." "Damn!" "The days go on and on." "They don't end." "All my life needed was a sense of someplace to go." "I don't believe that one should devote his life to morbid self-attention." "I believe that someone should become a person like other people." "I first saw her at Palantine Campaign Headquarters at 63rd and Broadway." "She was wearing a white dress." "She appeared like an angel." "Out of this filthy mass... she is alone." "They cannot... touch her." "Yes." "Well, you delivered two boxes." "I think it's a total of 5,000 campaign buttons." "Now, all the ones we had before... our slogan is "We are the people," and "are" is underlined." "These new buttons have "we" underlined." "That reads "We are the people."" "There's a difference." ""We are the people" is not the same as "We are the people."" "Let's not fight." "Look, we'll make it real simple." "We don't pay for the buttons." "We throw the buttons away, all right?" "Come here a minute." "What?" "This canvas report is ready." "If Andy okays it, send copies to headquarters." "I gotta get that New York Times article Xeroxed." " Don't forget the new photos." " I didn't forget." "We have to emphasize the mandatory welfare program." "That's the issue that should be pushed." "First push the man, then the issue." "Senator Palantine is a dynamic man." "An intelligent, interesting, fresh" " You forgot sexy." " I did not forget sexy." "Listen." "You sound like you're selling mouthwash." " We are selling mouthwash." " Are we authorized to do that?" "Very funny." "We can get in trouble for selling pharmaceuticals in a campaign office." "My uncle's in jail because of that." "It's not really jail. 'Course living with his wife, anything would be jail." " Look over there." " I love you." " Notice anything?" " No." " Put your glasses on." " Okay." "Just a minute." "All right." "That taxi driver's been staring at us." "What taxi driver?" "The one that's sitting there." " How long has he been there?" " It feels like a long time." "Does he bother you?" "You really mean yes, and you're being sarcastic." "You're really quick." "I try to be real quick." "Tell you what." "I'll play the male in this relationship" "Good luck." "I'll tell him to move." "I don't need good luck." "Thank you." "Yes, you do." "You just think you don't." "You're blocking our doorway." "Think you might wanna move the cab?" "Eye shadow, mascara..." "Lipstick, rouge." "Not rouge. "Blush-on" they call it." " The kind with the brush." " Yeah." "It's blush-on." " Travis!" " Hey, Wizard." "That's blush-on." "My wife uses it." "Ask Travis." "He's a ladies' man." "Yeah." "Cup of coffee, please." "Whatever the fuck it is, she uses a lot of it." "Then perfume, the spray kind." "Get this." "In the middle of the Triborough Bridge" "This woman is beautiful." "She changes her pantyhose." "No." "What did you do?" "I threw the meter, I jump in the backseat, whip it out... and I said, "You know what this is?"" "She says, "It's love." I fuck her brains out." "She goes wild." "She said, "It's the greatest single experience of my life."" "She gave me a $200 tip and her phone number in Acapulco." "Travis, you know Doughboy, Charlie T. ?" "Got change for a nickel?" "We call him Doughboy 'cause he'll do anything for a buck." "So, how's it hangin'?" "What's happenin'?" "I heard on the radio some fleet driver from Bell just got all cut up." "Stickup?" "No, he got cut up by some crazy fucker." " Cut half his ear off." " Where?" "They said 122nd Street." "Fuckin' mau-mau land." "You run all over town, don't you?" "Travis?" " You run all over town, don't you?" " Yeah." "You handle some pretty rough customers, huh?" "Yeah, I have." "You carry a piece?" "You need one?" "If you ever need one, I know a fellow that can get you a real nice deal." "Lots of shit around." "I never use mine." "I'm conservative." "But it's a good thing to have just as a threat." "Well, I'm gonna go do my dirt." "Look." "A piece of Errol Flynn's bathtub." "Dig the symbols." ""F-4-0-5-4-3-4."" "The watermark." "There's one person." "There's two persons, and there's three persons." "I got this at his estate, The Pines." "Why don't you take it?" "If you can sell it, you give me half of what you got." "I don't want it." "Well." "I'm gonna get in my cab and boogie." "I'm terribly sorry." " Nothing!" " That's very cute." "Thank you." "Want to see something?" "Wait." "I just typed, "You want to see something?" What?" "If you had these three fingers missing on this hand... and that hand missing on that hand... how would you light a match?" " I wouldn't light a match." " Go ahead, give it a try." "I don't think I could do it." "No?" "It's gonna be difficult." "I'll give it a try." "I got my thumb back for a second." "Thank God." "Just a minute." "I can't do it." "The guy at the newsstand can do it." "I don't work at a newsstand." " He's probably Italian." "You sure?" " He's black." "If he had been Italian, he might have been a thief." "The mob does that." "If a thief screws up on the job, they'll blow his fingers off." "I'll tell you something else." "This sounds like a joke, but it's true." "If they kill a stool pigeon, they leave a canary on the body." "It's symbolic." "Why not a pigeon instead of a canary?" "I don't know why not a pigeon." "Wait a minute." "You gotta catch a pigeon." "A canary, you can walk into a pet store." "As long as you pay for it, boom." "Kill it right there." "Put it on anyone." " Hi." "I'd like to volunteer." " Great." "I'll take you over here." "I'd rather volunteer to her, if you don't mind." "Why do you feel you have to volunteer to me?" "Because I think you are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen." "Thanks." "But what do you think of Palantine?" "Well, l" "Charles Palantine, the man you're volunteering to help elect president." "I'm sure he'll make a good president." "I don't know his policies... but I'm sure he'll make a good one." " You want to canvas?" " I'll canvas." "How do you feel about the senator's stand on welfare?" "I don't know the senator's stand, but I'm sure it's a good stand." " Are you sure of that?" " Yeah." "We all work together here full-time, day and night." "If you would step over there, I'm sure the gentleman will sign you up." "I drive a taxi at night, so it's hard for me to work in the day." " Then what exactly do you want?" " Would you have coffee and pie with me?" "Why?" "Why?" "I'll tell you why." "I think you're a lonely person." "I drive by this place, I see you here." "I see a lot of people around you... and I see all these phones and this stuff on your desk." "That means nothing." "When I came inside and met you..." "I saw in your eyes and in the way you carried yourself... that you're not a happy person." "I think you need something." "If you want to call it a friend, you can call it a friend." "You gonna be my friend?" "Yeah." "What do you say?" "It's hard standing here and asking you, so" "Five minutes." "That's all." "Just outside, right around here." "I'm there to protect you." "Come on." "Just take a little break." "I have a break at 4:00, and if you're here-  4:00 today?" " Yes." " I'll be here." " I'm sure you will." " All right. 4:00 p.m.?" " Right." " Outside in the front?" " Yes." "Okay." "My name is Travis." "Betsy?" " Travis." " Yeah." "I appreciate this, Betsy." "May 26, 4:00 p.m." "I took Betsy to Child's Coffee Shop on Columbus Circle." "I had black coffee and apple pie with a slice of melted cheese." "I think that was a good selection." "Betsy had coffee and a fruit salad... but she could've had anything she wanted." "Fifteen thousand volunteers is not bad, but the organizational problems!" "I know what you mean." "I got the same problems." "I gotta get organized." "Little things like my apartment, possessions." "I should get a sign : "One of these days I should get 'organezized."'" " You mean organized?" " "Organezized."" "Organezized." "It's a joke." "O-R-G-A-N-E-Z-l-Z-E-D." "Oh, you mean organezized like those office signs that say "Thimk."" "Do you like the place you work in?" "We've got some good people, and I think Palantine's got a good chance." "You have beautiful eyes." "Do you like the guy you work with?" "He's okay." "Yeah, but do you like him?" "He's funny and he's very good at his job." "He's okay." "He does have a few problems." "He has quite a few problems." "His energy seems to go in the wrong places." "When I walked in and saw you two sitting there..." "I could tell by the way you related there was no connection whatsoever." "I felt when I walked in that there was something between us." "There was an impulse that we were both following." "So that gave me the right to come in and talk to you." "Otherwise, I never would have felt I had the right to talk to you." "I never would have had the courage to talk to you." "With him, I felt there was nothing, and I could sense it." "When I walked in, I knew I was right." "Did you feel that way?" "I wouldn't be here if I didn't." " Where are you from?" " Upstate." "That fellow you work with, I don't like." "Not that I don't like him." "I just think he's silly." "I don't think he respects you." "I don't believe I've ever met anyone quite like you." "You wanna go to a movie with me?" " I have to go back to work." " I don't mean now." "Another time?" "Sure." "You know what you remind me of?" " What?" " That song." "By Kris Kristofferson." " Who's that?" " The songwriter." ""He's a prophet-- He's a prophet and a pusher." "Partly truth, partly fiction." "A walking contradiction."" " You saying that about me?" " Who else would I be talking about?" "I'm no pusher." "I never have pushed." "No, just the part about the contradictions." "You are that." "I called Betsy again and she said... maybe we'd go to a movie after she gets off work tomorrow." "That's my day off." "At first she hesitated." "But I called her again and then she agreed." "Betsy, Betsy." "Oh, no, Betsy what?" "I forgot to ask her last name again." "Damn!" "I gotta remember stuff like that." "I don't think we have to worry about anybody here committing themselves... until things start coming in from California." "This is just making me nervous." "We should have waited for the limo." "I don't mind taking a cab, but I mind going to California without preparation." "That's gonna get us in trouble." "Are you Charles Palantine, the candidate?" "Yes, I am." "I'm a big supporter." "I tell everybody they have to vote for you." "Why, thank you..." "Travis." "I'm sure you're gonna win." "Everybody I know is gonna vote for you." "I was gonna put one of your stickers in my taxi." "But the company said it was against their policy, but they don't know." " They're jerks." " Let me tell you." "I have learned more about America from riding in cabs... than in all the limos in the country." " Yeah?" " That's true." " Can I ask you something?" " Sure." "What is the one thing about this country that bugs you the most?" "I don't know." "I don't follow political issues that closely." "There must be something." "Well, whatever it is, he should clean up this city here... because this city is like an open sewer, it's full of filth and scum." "Sometimes I can hardly take it." "Whoever becomes the president should just... really clean it up, know what I mean?" "Sometimes I go out and I smell it." "I get headaches, it's so bad." "It's like-- They never go away." "It's like the president should clean up this whole mess here." "He should flush it down the fucking toilet." "Well, I think I know what you mean, Travis." "But it's not gonna be easy." " We have to make some radical changes." " Damn straight." " Here you go." "Keep the change." " Thank you." " Nice talking to you." " Nice talking to you." "You're a good man." "You're gonna win." "I thank you." "Come on, man." "Get me outta here, all right?" "Come on !" "Come on, baby." "This is a real drag." "Don't make no scene." "You wanna get busted?" "Bitch, be cool!" "Don't start no trouble." "Cabbie, forget about this." "It's nothing." "Be cool." "Get your ass outta here!" " Hi, there." " Hi." " Did you have a nice day today?" " Not particularly." "Got a present for you." "Now back to Gene Krupa's syncopated style shortly." "Why'd you do that?" "What else am I gonna do with my money?" "I wish you would've listened to this." "I would've, except my record player doesn't work now." "Your stereo's broken?" "How can you stand it." "I couldn't live without music." "I don't follow music too much." "But I would really like to." "You haven't heard this record yet." "But I was thinking, maybe we could listen to it on your record player." "Now going back to 40 years of Chick Webb." " You've got to be kidding." " Why?" "This is a dirty movie." "No, this is a movie... a lot of couples come to, all kinds of couples go here." " You sure about that?" " Yeah, I see them all the time." "Come on." "Excuse me!" "Shut the fuck up." " Where are you going?" " I have to leave now." "Why?" "I don't know why I came in here." "I don't like these movies." "I didn't know you'd feel that way about these movies." " I don't know much about movies" " This the only kind you go to?" "Yeah, I come-- This is not so bad." "Taking me to this place is about as exciting to me as saying, "Let's fuck."" "There are other places, other movies I can take you." " I don't know much about them." " We're just different." " Wait a second." " I have to go." " I've got to go now." " Wait a second." "I wanna talk to you." "Taxi !" "Can't I talk to you at least?" "Won't you talk to me?" "I didn't know" " Won't you take the record?" " I've already got it." "But, please." "I bought it for you." "Thanks." "Now I've got two." "Let's go." "Can I call you?" "Jesus Christ!" "I got a taxi !" "Hello, Betsy." "Hi, it's Travis." "How you doin'?" "Listen, I'm sorry about the other night." "I didn't know that was the way you felt about it." "I didn't know that was the way you felt." "I would've taken you somewhere else." "Are you feeling better or" "Maybe you had a virus or something, 24-hour virus, you know." "It can happen." "Yeah." "You been working hard, huh?" "Would you like to have some dinner with me in the next few days?" "How about a cup of coffee?" "I could come by headquarters." "We could" "Did you get my flowers in the" "You didn't get them?" "I sent some flowers." "Yeah, well, okay, okay." "Can I call you again tomorrow or the next day?" "Okay." "No, I'm gonna-- Yeah, sure, okay." "So long." "I tried several times to call her, but after the first call... she wouldn't come to the phone any longer." "I also sent flowers, but with no luck." "The smell of the flowers only made me sicker." "The headaches got worse." "I think I got stomach cancer." "I shouldn't complain, though." "You're only as healthy" "You're only as healthy as you feel." "You're only... as healthy... as... you... feel." "Hey, let's not have any trouble." "What?" "Why won't you talk to me, answer my calls when I call?" " You think I don't know you're here?" " Let's not have any trouble." " Please leave." " Get your hands off me." "Then leave." "Let's not have any trouble." "This is no place to do this." " Get your hands off me!" "Take 'em off!" " Okay, just leave!" "Come on." "You're in a hell, and you're gonna die in a hell like the rest of them!" " There's a cop across the street." " You're like the rest of them." "I'm calling the cop." "Officer!" "Officer!" "Don't come around here because I'll call the police!" "I realize now how much she's just like the others." "Cold and distant." "And many people are like that." "Women for sure." "They're like a union." "Yo, cab!" "Pull over to the curb." "Right over to the curb over there." "No, don't" "The fucking meter!" "What are you doing?" "What are you doing with the meter?" "Did I tell you to do that with the meter?" "Put the meter back, let the numbers go on." "I don't care what I have to pay." "I'm not getting out." "Put the meter back on." "Put it down." "Put it" " That's right." "Put it down!" "That's right." "Why are you writing?" "Don't write!" "Put the thing down." "Just sit." "I didn't tell you to write." "I said, "Pull over to the curb."" "We're gonna sit here." "We're gonna sit." "Cabbie, you see that light up there?" "The window?" "The light, the window up there on the second floor." "The one that's closest to the edge of the building." "The light up in the window, second story." " Are you blind?" "Do you see the light?" " Yeah." "Yeah, you see it." "Good." "See the woman in the window?" "Do you see the woman in the window?" "Yeah." "You see the woman." "Good." "I want you to see that woman 'cause that's my wife." "But that's not my apartment." "It's not my apartment." "You know who lives there?" "You wouldn't know." "I'm just saying, "But you know who lives there?"" "A nigger lives there." "How do you like that?" "I'm gonna kill her." "There's nothing else." "I'm gonna kill her." "What do you think of that?" "I said, what do you think of that?" "Don't answer." "You don't have to answer everything." "I'm gonna kill her with a .44" "Magnum pistol." "I have a .44" "Magnum pistol." "I'm gonna kill her with that gun." "Did you ever see what a .44" "Magnum would do to a woman's face?" "It'll fucking destroy it." "Just blow it right apart." "That's what it can do to her face." "Did you ever see what it can do to a woman's pussy?" "That you should see." "You should see what a .44" "Magnum's gonna do to a woman's pussy." "What's that?" "I know you must think I'm, you know" "You must think I'm pretty sick or something." "Right?" "You must think I'm pretty sick?" "Right?" "I bet you really think I'm sick, right?" "You think I'm sick?" "You think I'm sick?" "You don't have to answer that." "I'm paying for the ride." "I picked up this midget." "He's very well dressed." "Italian suit." "Good-looking." "Had a beautiful tall blonde." "A lady midget?" "No, the guy was a midget." "The blonde was the lady." " I got it." " Those midgets are funny." " Sometimes I like to hold a midget." " Yeah?" "They're funny." "They always want to sit in the front seat." "Then I pick up these two fags." "They're going downtown." "They're wearing rhinestone T-shirts." "They start arguing, yelling." "The other says, "You bitch!" Starts beating him on the head." "I say, "l don't care what you do in the privacy of your own home." "This is an American free country." "We've got a pursuit of happiness thing." "You're consenting." "You're adult." "But in my fucking cab, don't go busting heads." "You know?" "God loves you." "Do what you want."" "Tell them to go to California." "In California, when two fags split up, one's gotta pay the other alimony." "Not bad." "They're way ahead out there." "You know what I mean?" "California." "I tell them to get out of the fucking cab." "One time I saw a cop chasing this guy with one leg." "He was on crutches." "The cop?" "No, the dude he was chasing." "Fucking cops, they chase anything." "You got that five you owe me?" "The man is loaded." "I'd be broke tonight if I hadn't caught me some people from Ohio at Kennedy." "I took them into Manhattan by way of Long Beach." "Tipped me $5." "Where's the action around?" "It's pretty slow." "I'm shoving on." "Wiz, wait." "Can I talk to you for a second?" "Bye, Killer." "You can have all you want." "Don't be hittin' on me!" "Don't be hittin'!" "You better take your ass out, boy!" " Yeah?" " I know you and I ain't talked much." "But I figured you've been around a lot so you could" "Shoot, that's why they call me the "Wizard."" "I got" " It's just that I got" " I got" " Things got you down?" " Yeah." " It happens to the best of us." "Yeah, it got me real down." "I just want to go out and really, really do something." "Taxi life, you mean?" "Yeah, well" "No, it's" "I don't know." "I just wanna go out... and really" "I really wanna" "I got some bad ideas in my head." "I just" "Look at it this way." "A man takes a job, you know?" "And that job-- I mean, like that" "That becomes what he is." "You know, like" "You do a thing and that's what you are." "Like I've been a cabbie for 17 years." "Ten years at night." "I still don't own my own cab." "You know why?" "Because I don't want to." "That must be what I want." "To be on the night shift driving' somebody else's cab." "You understand?" "I mean, you become-- You get a job, you become the job." "One guy lives in Brooklyn." "One guy lives in Sutton Place." "You got a lawyer." "Another guy's a doctor." "Another guy dies." "Another guy gets well." "People are born." "I envy you your youth." "Go on, get laid, get drunk." "Do anything." "You got no choice, anyway." "I mean, we're all fucked." "More or less, ya know." "I don't know." "That's about the dumbest thing I ever heard." "It's not Bertrand Russell." "But what do you want?" "I'm a cabbie." "What do I know?" "I don't even know what the fuck you're talking about." "Maybe I don't know either." "Don't worry so much." "Relax, Killer." "You're gonna be all right." "I know." "I've seen a lot of people, and" " I know." "Okay?" " Yeah." "Thanks, man." "I guess" "Yeah, you know." "You're all right." "What do you think of your opponent's, Goodwin's, chances in the primary?" "Mr. Goodwin is a fine man." "I would, if it came to it, prefer him... to our opponent in the other party." "I think my programs are better defined than his." "They're more imaginative, and I have a better chance of winning." "I think it's academic, because he's not gonna win the primary." "I am." "Well, one more thing I'd like to ask, and that's about your campaign." "How do you feel your campaign's going?" "When we came up with our slogan, "We are the people"... what I said, "Let the people rule. "" "I felt I was being somewhat overly optimistic." "I must fell you that I'm more optimistic now than ever before." "The people are rising to the demands that I have made on them." "The people are beginning to rule." "I feel it as the crowds swell." "I know if will continue through the primary, if will continue in Miami... and I know it will rise to an unprecedented swell in November." "Bitch, goddamn !" "I'll blow her face off!" "I'll kill her, goddamn it!" "If I get my hands on her, I'll kill her!" "Goddamn motherfucker!" "I swear I'll kill that fucking bitch !" "I get my hands on her, I'll kill her!" "Hey, Sport." "I'll kill her!" "Damn it!" " Taxi cab's following." " Don't look at him." "Hey, guys." "What's happening?" "You wanna take a walk?" "Yeah." "Loneliness has followed me my whole life, everywhere." "In bars, in cars... sidewalks, stores, everywhere." "There's no escape." "I'm God's lonely man." "June 8." "My life has taken another turn again." "The days move along with regularity, over and over." "One day indistinguishable from the next." "A long continuous chain." "Then suddenly, there is a change." "Travis, this here's Easy Andy." "He's a traveling salesman." "How you doin', Travis?" " You got a .44" "Magnum?" " It's an expensive weapon." "That's all right." "I got money." "It's a real monster." "It'll stop a car at 100 yards." "Put a round through the engine block." "Here you go." "It's a premium, high-resale weapon." "Look at that." "That's a beauty." "I could sell this gun to some jungle bunny in Harlem for $500." "But I just deal high quality goods to the right people." "How 'bout that?" "This might be a little too big for practical purposes." "In which case for you, I'd recommend a .38 snub-nose." "Look at this." "Look at that." "That's a beautiful little gun." "It's nickel-plated, snub-nose." "Otherwise the same as a service revolver." "That'll stop anything that moves." "A Magnum, they use that in Africa for killing elephants." "That .38, that's a fine gun." "Some of these guns are like toys." "That .38, you go out and hammer nails with it all day... come back and it'll cut dead center on target every time." "It's got a really nice action to it and a heck of a wallop." "You interested in an automatic?" "It's a Colt .25 automatic." "It's a nice little gun." "It's a beautiful little gun." "Holds six shots in the clip, one shot in the chamber." "That's if you're dumb enough to put a round in the chamber." "Here, look at this." "A .380" "Walther." "Holds eight shots in the clip." "That's a nice gun." "That's a beautiful little gun." "Look at that." "During World War II, they used this gun to replace the P-38." "Just given out to officers." "Isn't that a little honey?" " How much for everything?" " All together." "Only a jackass would carry that cannon in the streets like that." "Here." "Here's a beautiful handmade holster I had made in Mexico." "Forty dollars." "Three-fifty for the Magnum, two-fifty for the .38... one and a quarter for the .25, one-fifty for the .380." "You take this and wait here." "I'll walk down with you." "How 'bout dope?" "Grass, hash, coke... mescaline, downers, Nembutal, toluol, chloral hydrates?" " How 'bout uppers, amphetamines?" " I'm not interested in that stuff." "I can get you crystal meth." "Nitrous oxide." "How 'bout that?" "I can get you a brand-new Cadillac with the pink slip for two grand." "June 29." "I gotta get in shape now." "Too much sitting has ruined my body." "Too much abuse has gone on for too long." "From now on it'll be 50 pushups each morning." "Fifty pull-ups." "There will be no more pills, no more bad food... no more destroyers of my body." "From now on it'll be total organization." "Every muscle must be fight." "Wow!" "Look at the size of that." "Oh, yeah." "Oh, yeah." "Oh, if looks so good." "It's getting harder and harder." "It's throbbing now." "The idea had been growing in my brain for some time." "True force." "All the king's men... cannot put it back together again." "Go all the way back there to get" " Come on." " All right." "It'll work." " Maybe it's the speakers." " It's not." "I've done this 100 times." " You've done this before?" " I've done this before." "Don't worry." " When was the last time you did this?" " I've never done this before." "What's the point of having something like this?" " Betsy?" " What?" "Betsy, come here." "Come here." "Hi." "You're a secret service man, aren't you?" "Huh?" "Just waiting for the senator." "You're waiting for the senator?" "That's a very good answer." "Shit, man!" "I'm waiting for the sun to shine." "Yeah." "No." "The reason I asked if you were a secret service man" "I won't say anything, because l" "I saw some suspicious-looking people over there." " You did?" " They were right over there." "They were just here." "I" "They were very, very, uh" " Suspicious?" " Yeah." "Is it hard to get to be in the secret service?" "Why?" "I was just curious, 'cause I think I'd be good at it." "I'm very observant." "I was in the Marine Corps, you know." "I'm good with crowds." "I notice there's a little pin there." "That's like a signal, isn't it?" " Sort of." " Signal." "A secret signal for the secret service." "What kind of guns you guys carry?" ".38s?" ".45s?" ".357 Magnums?" "Something bigger maybe?" "Look, if you're really interested, if you give me your name and address... we'll send you the information on how to apply." "How's that?" " You will?" " Sure." "Why not?" "My name is Henry Krinkle." "K-R-l-N-K-L-E." "154 Hopper Avenue." " Hopper." " Yeah." "You know, like a rabbit." "Hip, hop." "Fairlawn, New Jersey." " Is there a zip code with that, Henry?" " Yeah. 610452." "That's six digits." "Well, 61045." "I was thinking of my telephone number." "Well, I've got it all." "Henry, we'll get all the stuff out to you." "Thanks a lot." "Great." "Thanks a lot." "Hell." "Jesus." " Be careful today." " Right." "Will do." "You have to be careful living' around a place like this." "Bye." "Faster than you, you fuckin' son of a" "I saw you comin', you fuckin' shit-heel." "I'm standin' here." "You make the move." "You make the move." "It's your move." "Don't try it, you fuck." "You talkin' to me?" "You talkin' to me?" "You talkin' to me?" "Then who the hell else are you talking-- You talking to me?" "Well, I'm the only one here." "Who the fuck do you think you're talking to?" "Oh, yeah?" "Listen, you fuckers, you screw-heads." "Here is a man who would not take it anymore." "Who would not let" "Listen, you fuckers, you screw-heads." "Here is a man who would not take if anymore." "A man who stood up against the scum... the cunts, the dogs, the fifth, the shit." "Here is someone who stood up." "Here is" "You're dead." "Hey, Travis, El Titere." "¿Que pasa?" "Hi, Melio." "¿Que pasa?" "Yeah, man?" "Shut your fuckin' mouth and give me the cash out of the drawer." "Come on." "Let's go." "Gimme the goddamn cash." " Don't shoot." "I'm gettin' it." " Stop taking' so long." "Come on!" "Let me have it." "Gimme the bread." "This all you got?" "Reach in your sock and get the rest." " I don't have any more money, man." " Gimme the rest of the cash." " That's all I got." " You got more." "Give me more." " I ain't got no money!" " Reach in your sock." "You got more." " That's it, man." " Gimme the rest of the fuckin' bread." " Did you get him?" " Yeah, I got him." "Shit, man." "Shit." " Is he dead?" " I don't know." "His eyes are moving." "I ain't got a permit for this thing." "I don't know what I'm gonna do." "Don't worry about it, man." "I'll take care of it." " Can I give you some money?" " No, man." "Just get out of here." "No, man." "I'll take care of it." "Go ahead." "That's the fifth motherfucker this year." "You wanna buy that dope?" "Walt Whitman, that great American poet... spoke for all of us when he said..." ""l am the man." "I suffered." "I was there. " Today I say to you... we are the people." "We suffered." "We were there." "We the people suffered in Vietnam." "We the people suffered, we still suffer... from unemployment, inflation... crime and corruption." "Dear Father and Mother." "July is the month I remember which brings... not only your wedding anniversary... but also Father's Day and Mother's birthday." "I'm sorry I can't remember the exact dates... but I hope this card will take care of them all." "I'm sorry again I cannot send you my address..." "Like I promised to last year." "But the sensitive nature of my work for the government... demands utmost secrecy." "I know you will understand." "I am healthy and well, and making lots of money." "I have been going with a girl for several months... and I know you would be proud if you could see her." "Here name is Betsy, but I can tell you no more than that." "Cabbie, you can't park here." "Come on, let's go." "Move it." "No more will we the people... bear the burden of suffering for the few." "No more will we fight the wars of the few... to the harm of the many." "I hope this card finds you all well as if does me." "I hope no one has died." "Don't worry about me." "One day there'll be a knock on the door, and it'll be me." "Love, Travis." " Don't you have some idea?" " I'm not the one who wants to talk." "But you must know that the reason I didn't marry him... is because I couldn't stand to be a cause of divorce." "Now, he's getting a divorce anyway, and" "Philip wants to marry me." "I do love him." "What about us, June?" "Our marriage?" "You've got to know that our marriage wasn't legal." "In the eyes of God we are married." "Brock, please don't do this to me." "I love him" "Damn!" "Goddamn!" "Are you trying to get rid of me?" " You looking for some action?" " Yeah." " You see that guy over there?" " Yeah." "All right." "You go talk to him." "His name is Matthew." "I'll be over there waiting for you." "I went to Chinatown To buy some egg too yung" "Is your name Matthew?" "I want some action." "Officer" "I swear I'm clean." "I'm just waiting here for a friend." "You gonna bust me for nothin', man?" "I'm not a cop." "I ain't no cop." "They why ask me for action?" "Because she sent me over." "I suppose that ain't a .38" "you got in your sock." ".38?" "No." "I'm clean, man." " Shit." "You're a real cowboy?" " Yeah." "That's nice." "It's all right. $15, 15 minutes, $25, half an hour." "Ah, shit." "Cowboy, huh?" "I once had a horse in Coney Island." "She got hit by a car." "Well, take it or leave it." "If you want to save yourself some money, don't fuck her... 'cause you'll be back every night for more." "She's 12 and a half years old." "You ain't never had no pussy like that." "You can do anything with her." "You can come on her, fuck her in the mouth... fuck her in the ass, come on her face, man." "She'll get your cock so hard, she'll make it explode." "But no rough stuff." "All right?" "All right, I'll take it." "Hey, man!" "Take out no money over here." "You wanna fuck me?" "You ain't gonna fuck me." "You're gonna fuck her." "Give her the money." "Go ahead." "Catch you later, copper." " What'd you say?" " See you later, copper." "I'm no cop." "If you are, it's entrapment already." "I'm hip." "Buddy, you don't look hip." "Go ahead, have yourself a good time." "You're a funny guy." "But looks aren't everything." "Go ahead, have a good time." "You're a funny guy." "The room'll cost you ten bucks." "I'm timing you, too." "Come on." "Are you really 12 and a half?" "Mister, it's your time." "Fifteen minutes ain't long." "When that cigarette burns out, your time is up." "How old are you?" "You don't want to tell me?" "What's your name?" "Easy." " That's not any kind of name." " It's easy to remember." " But what's your real name?" " I don't like my real name." "What's your real name?" "Iris." "What's wrong with that?" "That's a nice name." "That's what you think." "No, don't do that." "Don't do that." "Don't you remember me?" "Remember when you got into a taxi?" "It was a Checker taxi." "You got in and that guy Matthew came by and said he wanted to take you away." "He pulled you away." "I don't remember." " You don't remember any of that?" " No." "I'll get you out of here." "We better make it or Sport'll get mad." "How do you wanna make it?" "I don't want to make it." "Who's Sport?" "That's Matthew." "I call him Sport." "Want to make it like this?" "Listen, l-- Can't you understand something?" "You're the one who came into my cab." "You wanted to get out of here." "I must've been stoned." "What do you mean?" "They drug you?" "Come off it, man." "What are you doing?" "Don't you want to make it?" "No, I don't wanna make it." "I want to help you." "I can help you." "Damn, man!" "Goddamn it!" "Shit, man." "What the hell's the matter with you?" "You don't have to make it." "Goddamn it!" "Don't you want to get out of here?" "Can't you understand why I came here?" "I think I understand." "I tried to get into your cab one night, and now you want to take me away." "Is that it?" "Don't you want to go?" "I can leave anytime I want." "Then what about that one night?" "I was stoned." "That's why they stopped me." "When I'm not stoned, I got no place else to go." "So they just... protect me from myself." "No." "I don't know." "I don't know." "Okay, I tried." "Look, I understand." "And it means something." "Really." "Look, can I see you again?" " That's not hard to do." " I don't mean like that." "I mean, you know, regularly." "This is nothing for a person to do." "All right." "How about breakfast tomorrow?" " Tomorrow when?" " I get up at about 1:00." "Well, I got a thing" "Come on." "Do you want to or not?" "Okay, all right." "Okay, 1:00." "See you tomorrow." "Oh, Iris, my name is Travis." "Thanks a lot, Travis." "So long, Iris." "See you tomorrow." "Sweet Iris." "This is yours." "Spend it right." "Come back anytime, cowboy." "I will." "Why do you want me to go back to my parents?" "I mean, they hate me." "Why do you think I split in the first place?" " There ain't nothin' there." " But you can't live like this." "It's a hell." "A girl should live at home." "Didn't you ever hear of women's lib?" "What do you mean, women's lib?" "You're a young girl." "You should be home now." "You should be dressed up, going out with boys, going to school." " You know, that kind of stuff." " God, are you square." "I'm not square." "You're the one who's square." "You're full of shit." "What are you talking about?" "You walk out with those fucking creeps..." "Lowlifes and degenerates out on the street... and you sell your little pussy for nothing, man?" "For some lowlife pimp who stands in a hole?" "I'm square?" "You're the one that's square, man." "I don't screw and fuck with a bunch of killers and junkies the way you do." "You call that being hip?" "What world you from?" " Who's a killer?" " Sport's a killer, that's who." " Sport never killed nobody." " He killed somebody." " He's a Libra." " He's a what?" "I'm a Libra, too." "That's why we get along so well." "He looks like a killer to me." "I think that Cancers make the best lovers... but, God, my whole family are earth signs." "He's also a dope shooter." "What makes you so high and mighty?" "Will you tell me that?" "Didn't you ever try looking at your own eyeballs in the mirror?" "So what are you gonna do about Sport and that old bastard?" " When?" " When you leave." " I don't know." "Just leave them." " You're just gonna leave?" " They've got plenty of other girls." " But you just can't do that." "What are you gonna do?" " Do you want me to call the cops?" " Cops don't do nothing." "You know that." "Sport never treated me bad." "He didn't beat me up once." "You can't allow him to do the same to other girls." "You can't allow him to do that." "He's the lowest kind of person in the world." "Somebody's got to do something to him." "He's the scum of the earth." "He's the worst... sucking scum I have ever seen." "You know what he told me about you?" "He's calling you names." "He called you a little piece of chicken." "He doesn't mean that." "I'm gonna go up to one of them communes in Vermont." "I never seen a commune before, but I don't know, you know?" "I saw... some pictures once in a magazine, it didn't look very clean." "Why don't you come to the commune with me?" "What, come to the commune with you?" "Oh, no." "Why not?" "I don't go to places like that." " Why not?" " I don't get along with those people." " Are you a Scorpion?" " What?" "That's it, you're a Scorpion." "I can tell every time." "Besides, I gotta stay here." " Come on." "Why?" " I got something important to do." "What's so important?" "Doing something for the government." "The cab thing is just part-time." "Are you a narc?" " Do I look like a narc?" " Yeah." "I am a narc." "God!" "I don't know who's weirder, you or me." "Sure you don't want to come with me?" "Tell you what." "I'll give you the money to go." " No." "You don't have to do that." " No, I want you to take it." "I don't want you to take anything from them." "I want to do it." "I don't have anything better to do with my money." "I might be going away for a while." "Just a little test, that's all." "I don't like what I'm doing, Sport." "Baby, I never wanted you to like what you're doing." "If you ever liked what you were doing, you wouldn't be my woman." "You never spend any time with me anymore." "I've got to attend to business, baby." "You miss your man, don't you?" "I don't like to be away from you, either." "You know how I feel about you." "I depend on you." "I'd be lost without you." "Don't you ever forget that." "How much I need you." "Come to me, baby." "Let me hold you." "When you're close to me like this, I feel so good." "I only wish every man could know what it's like to be loved by you." "That every woman everywhere... had a man that loves her like I love you." "God, it's good so close." "You know, at times like this..." "I know I'm a lucky man." "Touching a woman who wants me and needs me." "Yeah, it's only you that keeps me together." "Now I see if clearly." "My whole life is pointed in one direction." "I see that now." "There never has been any choice for me." "Ladies and gentlemen, the next president of the United States..." "Senator Charles Palantine." "Thank you, Tom." "Ladies and gentlemen... we are met today at a crossroads:" "Columbus Circle." "This is no ordinary place." "It is a place where many roads and many lives intersect." "It is appropriate that we meet here today... because these are not ordinary times." "We meet at a crossroads in history." "For far too long, the wrong roads have been taken." "The wrong roads have led us info war... into poverty, into unemployment... and inflation." "Today I say to you, we have reached the turning point." "No longer will we the people suffer for the few." "Now, I would lie to you if I told you the new roads would be easy." "They will not be easy." "Nothing that is right and good has ever been easy." "We the people know that!" "And we the people know the right roads and the good." "Today I say to you, we are the people, you and I." "And it is time to let the people rule." "Thank you." "All right, men, pull back." "Watch your step." " You've got my vote!" " Thank you." "Thank you." "Over there." "Get that man." "Give us some air!" "Give him some air, will you?" " I never saw him." " I saw him run." "I saw him run." " What's happening?" " How you doin'?" "Got the money?" " Iris in her room?" " Yeah." "Hey, Sport, how you doing?" "Okay, my man." "How are you?" " Where do I know you from?" " I don't know." "How's everything in the pimp business?" " Do I know you?" " No." "Do I know you?" "Get out of here." "Come on, get lost." "Do I know you?" "How's Iris?" "You know Iris?" "I don't know nobody named Iris." "Iris." "Come on, get out of here, man." "You don't know anybody by the name of Iris?" "I don't know nobody named Iris." "Get back to your fuckin' tribe before you get hurt." "Do me a favor." "I don't want no trouble." "Okay?" "You got a gun?" "Get the fuck out of here, man." "Get outta here!" "Suck on this." "You crazy son of a bitch!" "Fuckin' son of a bitch, you!" "I'll kill you!" "I'll kill you!" "I'll fucking kill you." "Crazy son of a bitch!" "I'll kill you." "You fuckin' bastard!" "I'll kill you." "You crazy son of a bitch!" "I'll kill you!" "Stop!" "No!" "Don't shoot him!" "Dear Mr. Bickle, I can't say how happy Mrs. Steensma and I were... to hear that you are well and recuperating." "We tried to visit you at the hospital... when we were in New York to pick up Iris." "But you were still in a coma." "There is no way we can repay you for returning our Iris to us." "We thought we had lost her... and now our lives are full again." "Needless to say... you are something of a hero around this household." "I'm sure you want to know about Iris." "She's back in school and working hard." "The transition has been very hard for her, as you can well imagine." "We have taken steps to see... she has never cause to run away again." "In conclusion, Mrs. Steensma and I... would like to again thank you from the bottom of our hearts." "Unfortunately, we cannot afford to come to New York again... to thank you in person, or we surely would." "But if you should ever come to Pittsburgh... you would find yourself a most welcome guest in our home." "Our deepest thanks." "Burt and Ivy Steensma." "This guy Eddie, the owner-operator, comes up and says..." ""l wanna swap tires." I said, "These are new tires." "Why don't you throw in something else, like your wife?"" "His wife was Miss New Jersey of 1957." "That's why the fleet has no spares." "Doughboy, Wizard, Killer." " Charlie T." " What's happenin'?" "Travis, you got a fare." "Ah, shit." " See you later." " See you, Travis." "Hello, Travis." "Hello." "I hear Palantine got the nomination." "Yeah." "Won't be long now." "Seventeen days." "I hope he wins." "I read about you in the papers." "How are you?" "It was nothing, really." "I got over that." "Papers always blow these things up." "Just a little stiffness, that's all." "Travis..." "I'm" "How much was it?" "So long."