By Mark McFadden
When your dog gets eaten, don’t get mad–get on the radio.
[INTERIOR. NIGHT.]
[ A trendy LA restaurant. Tables are well separated and arranged to create
privacy. Be assured the bill will be astronomical. The lighting is low and tables
are candlelit.]
The MAITRE D’ leads NORVILLE ROGERS through the restaurant to the secluded table
where ANDREA is already seated and a WAITER is at hand.
NORVILLE is tall and dressed in LA ‘arty’ style. Retro bellbottoms from a Melrose
antique clothing store, a V-neck sweater once worn by Kurt Cobain and a light
Armani jacket that costs more than your first car. His graying hairline is
starting to recede and he wears the rest in a short ponytail.
ANDREA is all business. Black and white, suit and blouse. She has a hand in her
purse as they approach. Her look is unreadable behind opaque Gargoyles. Her
pleasant features are offset by her sphinx-like manner.
NORVILLE: [sliding into booth, to WAITER]
Let’s, like, start with a Stoli martini, real cold man, with like 3 olives.
Shaken not stirred. And some more bread. Can we have the Balsamic vinegar and the
olive oil, too? Oh, and a Pellegrino, no ice, but cold with a slice of orange.
You want anything?
ANDREA:
Another Calistoga.
[WAITER leaves]
NORVILLE:
Oooo, water only. Are we healthy or 12 Stepping?
ANDREA:
We are avoiding the need for 12 Stepping by not going there. And we are drinking
good American water rather than some foreign foofoo juice in the manner of some
slackers who shall remain nameless. How are you, Norville?
NORVILLE:
I’m, you know. I don’t know. It’s complicated. I’m rich, and that’s good.
ANDREA:
I hear you on the radio all the time. All over. I think you’re syndicated
everywhere. I couldn’t believe the change in your voice. What was it, steroids?
Delayed puberty?
NORVILLE:
I screamed a lot once. It messed me up. I got surgery and this is what came out.
Me and Mel Torme, man, the Velvet Fog.
ANDREA:
Sorry. I didn’t mean to stir up any bad memories. We both have enough of those.
NORVILLE:
It’s all right. I was going to talk about it tonight anyway. It’s one of the
reasons I wanted to talk. Oh, food!
[WAITER brings bread and stuff, leaves menus after fussing]
NORVILLE: [dipping torn bread in oil and vinegar while reading menu]
So, uh, are you going to lose the shades or are we trying for that Sundance
thing? How do you see through those things in here?
ANDREA:
Heat signature, and fuck you Norville. I’m used to wearing glasses, that’s all.
But if it makes you feel better, here.
[She takes off Gargoyles.]
NORVILLE:
Why, Miss Dinkley, you’re beautiful.
ANDREA:
I never could get used to contacts, but that laser surgery is the best. And I
always was beautiful, dickhead. Not that anyone would notice next to Barbie and
Ken. Have you kept in touch?
NORVILLE:
Not much after the wedding. By now I think they have 2.5 kids and a, uh, dog. She
kept her name as a nom de plume and writes girl’s mysteries. Makes Martha Stewart
green with envy. I think he’s doing the governess and losing his hair, man.
ANDREA:
Never any surprises out of those two. Jicama and roasted chipotle flan!?
NORVILLE:
What is ‘dessert in hell’, Alex?
ANDREA:
It’s under appetizers.
NORVILLE:
I’m, like, going with the chicken, I hear it tastes like iguana.
ANDREA:
It was a fucked week, I want blood. Steak for me. Just gimme a Bowie knife and
step back.
NORVILLE:
What happened to that little girl we all knew and loved?
ANDREA:
She met up with bad guys that weren’t someone in a mask. There are bigger things
than real estate scams at stake. I spent our childhood running from the Boogie
Man, now I am the Boogie Man. Boogie Person. Whatever, it beats the hell out of
being afraid of a man in a monster suit. I didn’t quit, Norville. After school I
joined the Company. I met some cowboys who were after the real enemy, and I
joined them, too. I used to be afraid, but now I don’t take shit from anyone or
anything.
NORVILLE:
Hold that thought.
[to WAITER]
I’ll have the Mexican Caesar salad but could I have, like, yellowtail sashimi
instead of anchovies? And extra tortilla chips. Oh, and the Vegan minestrone and
some more bread? And I’ll have the Thai peanut chicken and shitake mushroom on
fresh basil pesto whole grain stone fired pizza, no dairy please and no MSG. I’ll
swell up like Marlon Brando. Oh, and another martini.
ANDREA:
Your largest steak. Rare. Whatever comes with it. Then coffee.
[WAITER leaves]
NORVILLE:
When you went off to school, I got a job with the Customs Service. K-9 team.
ANDREA:
You and that dog.
NORVILLE:
Don’t laugh, we were good. Turns out he, like, went after drugs and explosives
like Scoobie-snacks.
ANDREA:
You’re kidding.
NORVILLE:
No, really. He never got to like, shine, when he was in a scary old house or a
scary old castle or a scary old amusement park, but put that dog at an airport
and he was Chairman of the Board.
ANDREA:
I wish I had seen that.
NORVILLE:
The thing is… if he would have ran like he always used to, they wouldn’t… that
damn dog.
[beat]
We went through K-9 training and he was born-again hard. Gung ho, ya know? He was
a juggernaut of justice rooting out cocaine shipments and arms smuggling. That’s
where things got weird. The guns ‘n’ ammo gigs were always hinky, you never knew
when you were going to bust Uncle Sam and maybe get suicided or like disappeared
or something.
ANDREA:
Your taxes at work.
NORVILLE:
Drugs were clean compared to that stuff. Usually you would get an informal sort
of warning to lay off certain flights, just be sure to let your superiors know
what you are up to so you can be warned in time. What are you going to do? We
were all on the same payroll. So we have been like consistently warned away from
these jokers called Tiger Transit. Heard of them?
ANDREA:
Maybe.
NORVILLE:
Right. So Scoobs has his pecker up and won’t let it go, he’s always like,
sniffing around the charter terminals for a smoking gun or something. Always
giving the Tiger Transit planes the evil eye. I guess he was hoping for probable
cause when he was around to catch it. Well, he caught it. We were doing some
unpaid overtime, he was going over the place and I was getting a snack from the
vending machine and there were screams. He’s on it and what could I do? It was a
scream. I could have talked myself into looking the other way if he smelled a ton
of C-4, but you know, scream. We’re good guys, right?
(he stops to collect himself)
I can’t really remember what happened. There were a lot of little people with
pointy teeth and they were all over us, and, um, I remember some little people
with pointy teeth and no lips or ears. And they tied us up, and, uh… they ate my
dog. That’s when I did a lot of that screaming I mentioned. I think they were
going to eat me next. Then there was shooting and people rappelling down on
ropes and explosions and all through it was this sound like ping-pong paddles
slapping naugahyde. Whap! WhapwhapWHAPwhap! People screaming something like “Hi
yaw”! It was like, intense. Some guy in tactical gear cut me loose. Since no
one seemed to want to take my testimony, I went home.
(beat)
You know, he was only three days away from retirement. He was going to move to a
farm in the country, with lots of kids to play with.
ANDREA:
[spit take] Phhhhfffffttttt! Really?
NORVILLE:
Yeah. Well, I didn’t have any reason to stick around. It wouldn’t be any fun
without him.
ANDREA:
So how did you get into radio?
NORVILLE:
After I recuperated from surgery everyone told me I should be on the radio. It
sounded like something easy on the nerves, indoors. No lifting. I remembered some
names from some cargoes intercepted and sort of followed up on a few connections
until I talked to a few people who talked to some other people to get me some
introductions. You would not believe what it pays to count down from Forty.
ANDREA:
With a great voice.
NORVILLE:
Yeah.
ANDREA:
So you put it all behind you. Good for you.
NORVILLE:
I thought so. There were years there when I didn’t think about it at all. I mean
not at all. There was this blank place that I kept skipping over. We were working
that night – and – I’m waking up from surgery.
ANDREA:
Maybe that’s best…
NORVILLE:
Maybe some of that gung-ho rubbed off, because I started remembering my dreams,
and then I started to get mad.
ANDREA:
You had suffered a great loss, you have to go through these stages before
acceptance.
NORVILLE:
No, I pretty much stayed mad. Those little fuckers killed my partner. Well, they
couldn’t pay, they were all burned up in a hazmat explosion, it said so on TV.
No, what I wanted to know was who were the commandos who let us walk into that?
And they did, I know it.
ANDREA:
How could you know something like that?
NORVILLE:
I did research. When I was arranging my radio career I used the services of a
hacker to get some of the names and later an engineer set me up with some others
and I, like, studied. You know, I was online before any of the rest of you.
ANDREA:
You were not.
NORVILLE:
Was too. You remember what I looked like back then. The sweater, the hair, that
pathetic growth on my chin. I was there from the start. I was a goddamn icon.
ANDREA:
What did you find out?
NORVILLE:
Have you ever heard of Delta Green?
ANDREA:
Maybe.
NORVILLE:
Right. First, I tried to find out who was on record with an opinion about what
happened, then I looked into them. Then I tried to figure out who the commandos
might be. I found some people in the hazmat crew that weren’t locals. I found
some interesting memos from, get this man, a Deputy Director of the FBI. I
started cross-referencing some of the names he was making explanations and
excuses for and it’s all these senior guys. I think some of them were at like Iwo
Jima or something. I backtracked some of them to service records and that’s
where I started getting hints of this Delta Green. It was some special security
clearance from like before the OSS, if you can believe that.
ANDREA:
What would that have to do with smugglers at LAX?
NORVILLE:
I don’t think they were smuggling. Or they weren’t smuggling the usual things.
Something happened in Vietnam and Delta Green got disbanded in 1970. But here
were these old codgers with a Delta Green background, playing games a decade
later? Did they go black budget like those MK-ULTRA projects? So I’m keeping an
eye on them the best I can and they keep getting handed off and gathered together
by all these task forces that are all set up by the same Deputy Director from the
LAX hit. By then I was sure that’s what it was. Some sort of vigilante hit.
ANDREA:
That’s a little out there, Norville.
NORVILLE:
Sometimes I thought so, too. Believe me. But then they all got gathered together
for a dogpile on this commune in Waco. Apparently they are big believers in fire
for cleanup.
ANDREA:
You’ve been talking to militias, haven’t you?
NORVILLE:
Actually, yeah, I have. Look at this…
(He pulls a few sheets of wrinkled paper from his jacket pocket)
It’s a Xerox of an email that some militiamen got their hands on. Look at it,
it’s like some wandering manifesto from Apocalypse Now. Some General holed-up in
his bunker, telling all. The government is coming to get him, the government has
sold out the human race, the fools in the government don’t know what evil forces
they are dealing with. The body count was climbing. I owed them for my partner,
but now I could add any innocent bystanders at Waco. And a year later all the
victims in Oklahoma.
ANDREA:
Norville, why don’t you drop this? This could get you dead in a single car
accident. If the history books say Oswald, then let it be Oswald. You said they
were old – outlive them. It’s the only revenge worth having.
NORVILLE:
When someone kills your partner you’re supposed to do something about it. Do you
know how many places I’m syndicated? Some broadcast live direct from the feed.
Others record for playback later. Everyone keeps a DAT. I’m simulcast on the
Internet. Fans record the broadcasts as MP3s and archive them.
ANDREA:
Oh Norville, no.
(beat)
(softly) They said you wouldn’t remember the dreams.
NORVILLE:
Tomorrow there will be a slight change in the program. I’m going to spill my guts
to the satellite feed and tell the press where to find copies of my files, I’m
going to read this paranoid manifesto out loud, I’m going to get a snack and then
I’m driving out to talk to Art Bell. Whatever happens after that happens.
ANDREA:
(sadly) Goddamn you, Norville, you should have dropped it. (As she says this she
is pulling a gun from her purse.)
[SLO MO.]
As ANDREA brings the gun up to aim at NORVILLE’S face we see a red laser dot
dancing up her arm. ANDREA instantly reacts by throwing herself backwards from
the booth. As she falls backward in a controlled roll she sweeps her gaze
clockwise.
[SLO MO, ANDREA’S POV]
We see that all of the staff and several diners are dropping towels or napkins
and beginning to clear weapons. As the sweep ends we see that their waiter is
close to the table and almost has his weapon clear.
[FULL SPEED, MEDIUM SHOT]
ANDREA does a forward snap roll towards the WAITER and completes the maneuver
directly in front of him. She springs up in a chicken kick, knocking his gun
aside with a forward snap kick and while in the air kicking him in the chest with
a right thrust kick.
She lands wobbly as she broke a heel off in the WAITER’S chest. She kicks off
both shoes while sweeping the room in a counterclockwise circle as she assumes a
two-handed combat stance, looking for the next target.
[SLO MO, ANDREA’S POV]
It doesn’t look good, laser beams are criss-crossing the room and getting closer
to her.
[FULL SPEED, TRACKING SHOT]
As ANDREA completes her circle she lunges forward into a tight roll, rolling
several times and coming out of the final roll stepping into a barefoot sprint
around the first corner she comes to. Throughout this maneuver bullets are
spraying all around her.
[CUT TO]
[FULL SHOT, restaurant kitchen]
ANDREA comes in at full speed, leaping up and running across counters, dodging
hanging pots.
ANDREA:
Fire! Fire! Everyone get outside, now!
COOKS and HELPERS scatter and run for doors.
[CUT TO]
[RESTAURANT, by NORVILLE’S table]
The fake waiters and diners are all armed and looking sheepish.
MAITRE D’:
Hiya kids! Hiya hiya! You keep making messes like this and we won’t be invited
back.
BUSBOY:
Sorry, Froggy.
MAITRE D’:
Correct me if I’m wrong, people, but isn’t the kitchen a little, oh I don’t know,
sort of the exact opposite direction from where we wanted her to go? Right? It
isn’t just me being a perfectionist and difficult to work with?
BUSBOY:
We weren’t in position, Froggy. What can I say? None of us thought the hippy
would drop the bomb before the entrée.
MAITRE D’:
Well, she isn’t going anywhere. That’s also the problem, but at least we’ve got a
breather. How’s our fallen hero?
BUSBOY:
Kevlar stopped most of it, but he’s still got a cracked rib.
MAITRE D’:
He was lucky. He was too close to be threatening someone with her skill set. He
should have played waiter and waited for a better position.
BUSBOY:
Gotcha, Froggy, I’ll debrief him later. What about Andrea?
MAITRE D’:
I figure I can still salvage the rest of the plan from the point where she clears
the building. All we have to do is get her to clear the building. Have someone
fetch a blooker from the van and get me some tear gas.
BUSBOY:
Rick’s going to love that. Whoops, speaking of which, uh, I’ll go get the
blooker. (Exits hastily)
RICK:
Quite a mess you made here, Froggy.
MAITRE D’:
Rick! Thank God you’re here. Would you just look at this mess?
RICK:
Funny you should mention that.
MAITRE D’:
Would you believe that evil bitch? We had a perfect plan, everything was under
control and then she goes berserk.
RICK:
I notice that all of the bullet holes are over there rather than over here.
MAITRE D’:
And a good thing too or she would have moved the carnage out into the main room,
and you wouldn’t want that, would you? No, you wouldn’t. With a focused,
carefully placed defilade we were able to corral her into the kitchen. A classic
open field half-pincer into a fortified position. Textbook stuff. Now we’ve got
her right where we want her. No more Mister Niceguy. This time it’s personal.
Look at this mess. I am shocked – shocked and appalled.
BUSBOY:
Here’s the grenade launcher, Froggy.
MAITRE D’:
Uh, thanks.
BUSBOY:
I brought tear gas, HE and Willy Pete. You want shrapnel too? I could go back to
the van.
MAITRE D’:
No, this should be fine. Uh Rick? Mr. Rogers is looking a little shell-shocked.
Could you play host? Maybe make sure he doesn’t go into shock? You’re a pal, I
owe you.
(RICK goes to NORVILLE, smiling and shaking his head.)
BUSBOY:
So what now?
MAITRE D’:
Check out the situation, regroup. Find out what she’s up to. Prep the doors. Bask
in the warm secure glow of knowing I took care of the problem a couple minutes
ago with a phone call.
BUSBOY:
What did you do, call in an airstrike?
MAITRE D’:
Better. I called The Wolf.
BUSBOY:
Shit, Froggy, why didn’t you just say you called The Wolf?
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN, MEDIUM SHOT]
Silently, ANDREA is giving the kitchen an inspection. She spots both doors, the
overhead vents, bags and boxes, a laundry chute for soiled linen. She takes a
strategic position where she can cover both doorways. She collects a lot of
cutlery and puts knives in several locations. She makes sandbag walls of sacks of
rice and flour and potatos.
[CUT TO]
[CITY STREET OUTSIDE RESTAURANT. GROUND LEVEL POV]
[SUBTITLE: 23 seconds later]
A Ferrari roars up and comes to a solid perfect stop directly before the POV. The
license plate says REMUS.
[CUT TO]
[INTERIOR RESTAURANT]
RICK, FROGGY, and MR. WOLF are standing and drinking coffee.
THE WOLF:
This is great coffee.
RICK:
Of course it’s great coffee, this used to be a restaurant before Froggy recreated
the end of Butch and Sundance.
FROGGY:
It was a classic maneuver, goes all the way back to Carthage.
THE WOLF:
All right, we’ll go over that later. Right now I need to know how many exits
there are from the kitchen.
RICK:
Two doors.
THE WOLF:
And?
RICK:
Oh, right. There’s a laundry chute big enough, and maybe she could get through
the vents.
THE WOLF:
How about in the drop ceiling?
RICK:
No, it’s unbroken firewall all around. Insurance.
THE WOLF:
Then it’s the laundry chute. Do you have anyone in the basement?
FROGGY:
No.
THE WOLF:
Keep it that way. Rick, is there a lot of linen under the chute? Enough to break
a fall?
RICK:
Yeah, all the lunch linen should still be there.
THE WOLF:
Good, she might have checked already. Now we have to reassure her that there are
no troops in the basement and find some incentive to make her decide that that is
the way to go. Then it’s Happy Hour.
FROGGY:
I’ll get the bullhorn.
THE WOLF:
No, Froggy, you turn a walkie-talkie’s volume all the way up and get it up by one
of the kitchen doors without getting seen or shot while I edit the script.
[CUT TO]
[NORVILLE’S TABLE]
NORVILLE is sitting, stunned.
MR. WOLF arrives with a laptop and a portable printer.
THE WOLF:
I understand you’re the guest of honor. Do you mind if I work here? (sets up
laptop and printer.)
NORVILLE:
(dully) I don’t mind.
(Laptop comes up immediately: it was in sleep mode.)
THE WOLF: (typing)
How you holding up?
NORVILLE:
Not so good.
THE WOLF: (typing)
Base-ment. It isn’t always like this you know.
NORVILLE:
What isn’t always like this?
THE WOLF: (typing)
Frog-gy. (typing) Rick. The Show.
NORVILLE:
The show?
THE WOLF:
Four copies. Yeah. Welcome to the Show, Rookie. (gets up an waits for last
printout) And lighten up. We came from nothing, we’ll end up nothing, so what are
we out? Nothing! What have we got to lose?
NORVILLE:
Our lives?
THE WOLF:
Are you enjoying the one you are living now? If all there is is nothing and your
life, and you aren’t enjoying that life, why not trade it in for a new one?
NORVILLE:
I don’t see much difference between you and them.
THE WOLF:
Other than the fact that we aren’t trying to kill you? I’ll tell you one
difference. We would have attacked before those cannibals could start messing
with the dog. (gathers the printouts) Well, the Show must go on. Nice meeting
you.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
RICK, FROGGY, BUSBOY and TWO WAITERS are gathered
THE WOLF:
OK, everyone keep your voices down and try not to talk at all. (hands out
scripts) Froggy, Rick, (to BUSBOY) Voice One, (to 2ND WAITER) Voice Two. Is the
radio turned up? Good. Froggy, go to Code Five.
(FROGGY squelches ditditdit DAH on his radio, which we can see and hear echoed on
the radio taped by the kitchen door next to wired explosive charges on the
hinges., and then switches to the backup channel. RICK begins to change his
channel but THE WOLF shakes his head and holds his hand out for the radio. RICK
gives it to him.)
THE WOLF: (to radio, everything he says is heard coming from the radio by the
door)
Froggy, we’re going to need more men on the north door. (click)
(He holds radio out for FROGGY to speak into.)
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA is seated on the floor in a leggy pose with her gun held ready in a
two-hand grip. She turns her head to listen.
ANDREA:
Jinkies!
FROGGY: (on radio)
Roger that, Andy. Vito! Scotty! (click)
BUSBOY: (on radio)
Vito here, Froggy. (click)
2ND WAITER: (on radio)
(In Scots accent) Scott, here sir. (click)
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
(THE WOLF rolls eyes at 2ND WAITER)
THE WOLF: (low)
Actors.
(THE WOLF holds radio for FROGGY)
FROGGY: (reading script)
We don’t need anyone in the basement. Both of you come up here and join up with
Andy by the north kitchen door.
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA is checking the laundry chute while keeping an eye on the two doors.
FROGGY: (on radio)
We need every swingin’ dick for the move into the kitchen. Bring a grenade
launcher and some tear gas from the van. (click)
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
THE WOLF: (to radio)
This is Andy. I need more people over here, Froggy. (click)
(THE WOLF holds radio for FROGGY)
FROGGY: (reading script)
Everyone on perimeter get in here and join up with Andy on the north kitchen
door. (click)
(THE WOLF holds radio for RICK)
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA is pouring cooking oil and liquid soap across floor in path of doorway.
There are already huge tubs of lard opened and dumped in the doorways.
RICK: (on radio)
Roger that, Froggy. We’re coming in.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
THE WOLF:
Don’t give her time to think. Get the blookers in position and be ready to lob
smoke, I tell you three times smoke smoke smoke, when I give the word. I want
lasers swinging around but do not fire unless it’s at the ceiling. I don’t want
any heroes, is that understood? Stick to the script. Rick, you get over on the
north door and get everyone copacetic. I’ll keep Froggy on a short leash
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA has a towel in a pair of tongs held over a flame on the range. It bursts
into vigorous flames. She tosses the flaming towel into a pool of cooking oil
which catches fire and sends tracks of flame to the pooled oil and soap at the
doorways, which we now see are sprinkled with cans of oven cleaner and Pam.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
We see orange light coming through the kitchen door frame.
THE WOLF:
It’s started. Blow the doors Froggy. (into radio) Go go go! Get some smoke in
there ASAP Froggy.
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA is poised on a counter wearing a wet towel across her face like a
bandanna, another flaming towel held up to the ceiling fire sprinkler. Just as
the sprinklers go off accompanied by a cacophonous alarm the kitchen doors blow
in through the walls of flame and tear gas grenades bounce off the ceiling
trailing billowing clouds of smoke.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
FROGGY: (firing the blooker as fast as he can load and fire)
Banzai! Woo woo woo! Yeeeeeeeee haaawwww! Esperance!
[CUT TO]
[KITCHEN]
ANDREA runs full tilt boogie to the laundry chute and dives in headfirst.
[FLASH CUT TO]
[FLAMES IN DOORWAY. CLOSEUP]
We see aerosol cans engulfed in flames, SFX of cans expanding.
[FLASH CUT TO]
[SLO MO, POV follows ANDREA]
ANDREA dives down chute
[FLASH CUT TO]
[FULL SPEED. KITCHEN]
Aerosol cans explode like fuel air bombs engulfing the entire kitchen in
billowing flame.
[FLASH CUT TO]
[SLO MO, POV follows ANDREA]
ANDREA finishes the dive lit in yellow from above to land in a controlled tuck in
piles of dirty linen.
[FULL SPEED]
She springs to her feet and dashes to stairs leading outside.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE KITCHEN DOOR]
FROGGY: (still loading and firing as fast as he can)
Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more! Kreegah! Tarzan kill!
THE WOLF:
Cease fire. (to radio) Cease fire! She’s clear. Someone turn off the alarm. Rick,
get on the phone and tell everyone concerned that it’s a false alarm. (click)
Froggy, how many of those fucking things did you lob in there?
FROGGY:
I dunno, I was in my idiom. Why?
(All is quickly obscured by rolling clouds of smoke)
THE WOLF:
Just curious.
[CUT TO]
[STREET OUTSIDE RESTAURANT]
ANDREA is in shadows, scanning rooflines and the street.
[CUT TO]
[INSIDE RESTAURANT]
FROGGY and THE WOLF and the BUSBOY emerge from a smoke cloud which is continuing
to gain on them.
FROGGY:
It’s Miller time!
THE WOLF:
Let’s not pluck each other’s Magic Twanger just yet. (to radio) Perimeter! What’s
the situation? (click)
[CUT TO]
[STREET OUTSIDE RESTAURANT]
CLOSEUP on SENTRY dressed as a street person faced away from ANDREA and
apparently watching a TV in a store window. We see that the TV is showing a night
vision view of the street behind him as ANDREA breaks for her car.
SENTRY: (low)
Subject just made it to her car. (click)
[CUT TO]
[INSIDE RESTAURANT]
THE WOLF:
My job here is through. (hands radio to FROGGY) If I hurry I can still get back
in time for dessert. Froggy, as always it’s been…interesting. I’ll send you a
bill. Good luck with Rick. (exits, checking his watch)
FROGGY: (to BUSBOY)
I think Rick needs some quiet time to calm down before we debrief, don’t you?
(to radio) Midnight! How are things? (click)
MIDNIGHT: (on radio)
Nice! (click)
FROGGY: (to radio)
Well, round up the usual suspects and clean up the mess. (click) Great minds
shouldn’t be bothered with details. (to BUSBOY) You hold down the fort, I’ll see
to the guest of honor.
[CUT TO]
[INTERIOR RESTAURANT. BY NORVILLE’S TABLE]
NORVILLE is on his feet and peering towards the smoke and shouting.
FROGGY emerges from the smoke and scoops up NORVILLE on his way out of the
restaurant.
FROGGY:
You don’t want to go in there. Hey, you never did get your dinner. The kitchen is
a little out of commission, so why don’t we go to Barney’s Beanery? Sound good?
You bet! I’m buying.
[CUT TO]
[OUTSIDE ENTRANCE OF RESTAURANT]
We see the neon sign that says “Rick’s Café Merkin” as FROGGY and NORVILLE pass.
As they exit onto the street the smoke billows out of the doorway enshrouding the
scene in fog.
FROGGY:
It’s not always as much fun as tonight was, but it’s got it’s compensations.
You’re going to love it. I know I do.
FROGGY puts his arm around NORVILLE and says…
FROGGY:
Norville, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
And they walk away into the concealing mist.
[FADE OUT]
