[phone ringing]
Okay.
Pitch me on slate.
So, we are moving forward with Every Dame Needs a Fella,
a comedy where Gene Tierney, posing as a nun,
tricks William Holden into marrying her.
Gene Tierney. She's got an ass on her, right?
Then there's Tippecanoe.
Humphrey Bogart plays future president William Henry Harrison
as he slaughters the Shawnee.
[laughs]
[exhales]
What's with the long face?
These movies are embarrassing.
They are not up to the standards of this studio.
I run the studio.
Let me determine what or what is not beneath the standards.
These are good pictures. They're hits. I like them.
I don't mind making movies that are popular.
I do mind making movies that are idiotic.
These movies are idiotic, and you pay me to tell you that.
Richard has a picture that we are very excited about.
It's about Peg Entwistle,
the young actress who jumped off the Hollywoodland sign.
It's about fame and ambition and what Hollywood does to people.
Yeah, my daughter wants a test for that.
Oh, Ace, imagine what it would be like to see Claire win an Oscar?
It would be terrible! Can you imagine that girl running around town with an Oscar?
I mean, she'd take it everywhere.
She'll figure out a way to turn it into a dining utensil.
-No, no. I don't want it. -Ace,
you could win an Oscar with this picture.
Dick, I just won two Oscars.
Let me tell you something.
After you've won eight Oscars,
there's no thrill to winning another Oscar.
You know what the thrill is?
Money. That's the thrill.
This is what I want. Write it down.
Tits, sword-and-sandal,
and, uh, you can throw in, uh, a picture with a boy and a dog.
Uh, maybe the dog dies at the end. Maybe the kid has to kill the dog.
You figure it out.
Ace, I will make all of those pictures for you, but you got to give me Peg.
-What's the budget? -400,000, all in-house players.
You got 75.
Ace, we have to build a Hollywoodland sign!
So you have her jump off the Hollywood Bowl!
Seventy-five is all you get.
Now, get out of here. Let me finish my lunch.
Oh, Ace.
[Archie] Raymond, I don't understand.
All the studio agreed to was a screen test.
So you expect me to overhaul my script,
a script the studio was fine with buying as-is.
It wouldn't be a complete rewrite.
Really just the--
the main character's name, from Peg to Meg.
[Archie] Camille, I'm sure you're grand,
but with you as the star and me as the writer,
it becomes a message picture,
for colored folks, limited distribution.
Now y'all know that.
Now, I didn't come to Hollywood to make those kinds of pictures.
Just like I didn't set out to play domestics.
I wrote Peg to prove my writing was not limited by my race.
That I can write for anyone.
That I can write about a white girl from London who grew up in New York City--
I think we're getting a little ahead of ourselves. It's just a screen test.
Stop saying that, Raymond.
Even if no one outside the studio sees my screen test,
it's still proof that a woman of color could carry a picture.
Miss Stinson!
I'm off.
What are we telling Mrs. Amberg?
You'll be at a distributors conference in Fresno,
where they're testing out a new movie format.
Great, and, uh, you got the hacienda I like?
Yes, sir, and 100 roses in the bedroom, like you asked.
-You're a genius! -Thank you.
Have a great weekend, Mr. Amberg.
Who are you?
Uh, I'm-- I'm Raymond Ainsley, sir.
Uh, I'm directing Peg.
Camille Washington, I'm one of your contract players.
-[Ace] And who's he? -I wrote it.
Wrote what?
Peg.
I just don't get the impression this Rock Hudson is very good.
I think we should give the kid a shot.
If he's terrible, I'll talk to Henry.
A colored writer?
What the fuck kind of commie bullshit are you trying to pull on me?
And were you gonna clue me in on your plans to sink the fucking studio?
The script was a blind submission.
Have either of you fuckwits ever heard of the Hays Code?
Ace, there is no deviant sexual behavior in this picture.
There's no interracial relationships.
Repellent subject matter!
Anti-national feeling!
And then they're gonna throw us out of every movie theater in the South
for a generation!
Ace, he's the writer.
He isn't a face up on the screen.
Never, in the history of Hollywood,
has there ever been a motion picture
made by a motion picture studio for a mainstream audience
written by a colored person!
And I'm not gonna be the first!
All right, look. We're gonna tell this guy,
"Thank you very much for your services," and we go find a new writer.
This script does not need a rewrite.
Fine,
then we slap somebody else's name on it,
we pay him to sit on the set and nod approvingly
while the actors don't fuck up the lines.
And last time I looked, it doesn't say the "Dick and Ellen Studios."
It's Ace Pictures!
Now get this the fuck done, okay?
[big band music playing]
[bell dings]
["Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall" by the Ink Spots playing]
♪ Into each life ♪
♪ Some rain must fall ♪
♪ But too much is falling in mine ♪
-[Jack] Hey Arch, need a hand? -Hey.
-Uh, no, I'm just replacing the fuel pump. -Oh, well, let me do that.
Listen, I've been meaning to talk to you.
Uh, I know you're just the writer, and the director and producer,
they call the shots, but...
I got an audition for Peg.
The boyfriend, Sam Harrington.
-Great role by the way. -Yeah. Uh-huh.
And-- and I was wondering if, uh...
If maybe you'd feel comfortable
putting in a good word for me. I know Rock Hudson's also auditioning
and I don't want to come between you and him, but...
I just got a feeling, you know? I got a feeling I'm better for the role.
Why you think you're better than him?
You seen him act?
Well, no... [chuckles]
-But-- -And I haven't seen you act, so...
how can I put in a good word?
[Jack] All I'm saying is Rock's taken care of, you know?
He's gonna be fine. He's got that big-time agent, you know?
I got nobody. I'm just...
I'm alone in this town, so...
-All I got is a dream. -Jack.
[voice shaking] What about my dream?
You think you're alone?
Ain't nobody more alone in this town than me.
I barely got my foot in the door, you asking me to help you!
Choose you!
[dramatic music playing]
[crying]
Well, ain't nobody ever chosen me, Jack.
I just...
I got a wife at home.
I got twins on the way, and...
I'm out here turning tricks.
If Henrietta ever finds out about this, she's gone.
I wanna provide for my family. I wanna do it the right way.
I don't wanna do this anymore.
You can help me do it the right way, Arch.
I hear you, okay?
But what you need to do is go into that audition
and be so good, they can't help but give you that part.
[crying]
You hear me?
Now, that's not in my hands.
That's just gonna be up to you.
["Slap That Bass" playing]
♪ Slap that bass ♪
♪ Slap it till it's dizzy ♪
♪ Slap that bass ♪
♪ Keep the rhythm busy ♪
♪ Zoom, zoom, zoom ♪
♪ Misery has got to go ♪
♪ Slap that bass ♪
♪ Use it like a tonic ♪
♪ Slap that bass ♪
♪ Keep your Philharmonic ♪
♪ Zoom, zoom, zoom ♪
♪ And the milk and honey will flow ♪
♪ Slap that bass Slap away your trouble ♪
♪ Learn to zoom, zoom, zoom Slap that bass ♪
Hey, what are you doing?
I told 'em to do that.
Yeah, nothing says romance like...
fishing rose petals outta your kitty cat.
And why do you still have all your clothes on?
[Jeanne laughs]
-Well, always such a gentleman. -Yeah.
-Missed you. -I missed you.
How's work?
Dick Samuels, he wants me to do some colored picture.
Sounds interesting.
It doesn't sound interesting at all!
I want you...
to talk to Len Schlossen.
-Who? -The director, silly!
-Mr. Cooper's Widow, my picture. -Oh, yeah.
He keeps smearing more and more Vaseline on the lens.
Well, babe...
you're not exactly a spring chicken.
[gasps] How dare you!
Does that make you my big cock?
Boy, I hope so.
[giggling]
[Ace] Here we go. Yes.
But the thing is, you know, I...
I am getting to a certain age, and I don't really like having to,
you know, just--
-just fight it. -Yeah.
-Yeah, there we go. -[moans and chuckles]
[both moaning]
[groans]
Ace! Oh, my God! Ace!
[siren wailing]
[Claire] Daddy!
Daddy!
Oh, look, there's a tube down his throat.
What's going on? What happened?
Avis...
I'm so sorry.
He had a heart attack, but he seems stable now.
Was he eating a pastrami sandwich that went straight into an artery
like I told him it would a million fucking times?
What?
Maybe it would be best if Claire...
-uh, stepped-- -No, I want to hear it.
Ace was, um...
He was in Palm Springs for the weekend engaging in some, um...
-extracurricular activities. -We're keeping it under wraps.
-Who are you? -Red Tettemer.
Head of Publicity.
No one can know about this.
My reputation is at stake.
-[Claire crying] -So is my family's.
[sighs]
[crying quietly]
There, there, darling.
Is Daddy going to die?
My screen test is on Friday.
This is what I was worried about.
Your father's on his death bed...
and the thing that upsets you is a screen test.
This is what I wanted to spare you from.
[Avis sighs]
So what are we looking at here?
Is he going to wake up?
[Dick] We don't know yet.
[sighs]
Hello, Mrs. Amberg.
Mr. Samuels.
I'm Lon Silver, Ace's attorney.
You're what?
How have I never met you before?
Well, you're meeting me now.
Ace made for some very specific arrangements
in case of incapacitation,
to ensure that everything would remain business as usual.
Mrs. Amberg, Ace has given you durable power of attorney
over all of his financial assets, savings, real estate, and the studio.
I, on the other hand, am in charge of all decisions related to Ace's healthcare.
[chuckles] I'm sorry, but I think you have that backwards.
Mmm. No, no, no. It's all right here.
So, let me get this straight,
Avis is now running the studio?
Well, you'll still handle the day-to-day, Dick, as you do now.
Mrs. Amberg will oversee the finances,
uh, payroll, budgets,
giving the green light, that sort of thing.
Why would he do that?
I don't know anything about running a studio.
I imagine Mr. Amberg felt that moving Dick to the top spot
would be seen as a kind of changing of the guard.
Your taking over as interim caretaker, Mrs. Amberg,
will better protect Ace's return to the studio.
So I'm expected to keep Ace Studios running,
produce a slate of films, but I can't green-light a picture.
That's right.
Mrs. Amberg will have sole green-light authority.
Here's to a speedy recovery.
[Dick] You're very talented,
and you've written a wonderful script.
-Thank you. -But, unfortunately,
Ace Amberg has recently
become incapacitated.
Oh.
-[scoffs] I'm sorry to hear that. -Well...
before he became ill, he became aware of your, um...
race,
and...
now we need to replace you.
Peg is still your movie.
It's your...
script.
It's your voice.
You're gonna get all your fees. You'll be on set.
But another writer's name will be appearing in the credits.
I'm sorry. This is simply the way that it has to be.
I appreciate you, Mr. Samuels, just coming out and telling me all this.
I'm guessing you didn't enjoy having to do that.
[Dick] Absolutely not.
But...
this is the world that we live in.
Right.
If Ace Amberg wants to take my name off this picture...
he can do it himself.
Fair enough.
As long as you're prepared for the inevitable.
Ain't nothing inevitable, Mr. Samuels.
♪ When Madam Pompadour Was on a ballroom floor ♪
-♪ Said all the gentlemen, "Obviously ♪ -[electricity zapping]
♪ The madam has the cutest ♪
♪ Personality" ♪
[Jack panting]
♪ What did Romeo see in Juliet? ♪
♪ Or Figaro in Figarette? ♪
♪ Or Jupiter in Juno? ♪
♪ You know ♪
♪ And when Salome danced ♪
♪ And had the boys entranced No doubt, it must have been... ♪
Tighter.
Cinch it tighter.
Tighter.
♪ Personality ♪
Hey, Rock.
Yeah?
I know we both want the part, but good luck.
Thank you. Thanks, Jack, you're a class act.
Guess it's out of our hands now, right?
Yeah, all we can do is show up, do our best, and pray, right?
Now remember, this is the big climactic scene, all right?
You are the boyfriend of a woman on the verge.
She's about to end it all, but you don't want that.
Got it.
Okay. "Sam!
What are you doing here? Leave me alone.
This is my destiny. Mine and mine alone."
"Peg, I won't let you do it.
You-- you know you love you, and I know you love you."
Sorry.
Oh, "You know I-- I love you."
You know what? Let's just try it again. But remember...
Urgent.
[shouting] "Peg! I won't let you know I love you!"
Sorry, that's... Hold on. That's not it.
-I... -[clears throat]
All right, what is going on here?
Did you go out drinking last night? Were you out sucking dick?
Because we talked about that.
No, it's just... There's a lot of you's and I's.
The words are real similar. They--
Well, frankly, you should have this memorized by now.
I'm sorry, I'm just really scared.
When I think about the director
sitting there watching,
I keep picturing my stepdad
telling me I'm nobody. Saying he's...
gonna beat the shit out of me.
I'm no psychologist or whatever they call it,
but if you came to this town
so that your stepdad would finally love you...
The director ain't your daddy.
He ain't your mommy.
He is a friend.
And he's there to guide you.
Okay?
-[Roy] Yeah. -Okay.
-Let's try it again. -Yeah.
[Roy breathing heavily]
"Sam, what are you doing here?
Leave me alone.
This is my destiny. Mine and mine alone."
Sorry, it's my line then?
Hello, Jeanne.
Avis, there's something I need to talk to you about.
I was with Ace...
in Palm Springs.
We've been having an affair.
For how long?
Ten years.
Ace always told me that he loved me and that he was going to leave you,
and he said that you were having an affair with some guy
who ran a gas station, so it was all okay.
Do you love him?
In the beginning, I believed I did.
But after a while, I realized that that was just a fantasy.
If I tried to break it off, then it would be over for me.
So, I...
I just...
stayed.
Avis, I know how you must feel.
I know you hate me,
but I am truly sorry.
And I will be resigning from my contract.
I'll be cleared out of here by Monday morning.
[Avis] Where will you go?
I don't know.
Television, probably.
The Kraft Television Theatre has expressed an interest in me.
No.
You're not going anywhere.
And I can't be angry with you, Jeanne.
If I were,
I'd be a hypocrite.
[voice tightening] Avis, thank you.
[sighs]
[Raymond] In this scene, she's been drinking, right?
But don't play it drunk,
she has to drink at this point just to feel normal, remember.
"Oh, Sam, Sam, Thirteen Women, isn't it wonderful?"
[rapid knocking on door]
Were you expecting somebody?
Archie.
They're taking my name off the script.
-What? -Yeah.
Dick just told me.
This film won't get made if they find out a nigger wrote it.
And I just sat there,
taking it nice and civil 'cause that's how we supposed to act.
Well, you know what?
I am finished with patience and civility!
-Nobody's taking your name off anything. -Fuck this studio head.
Fuck these white people in charge!
They don't play fair, so why should we?
I felt like an Uncle Tom even writing this goddamn script
about this dumb-ass white girl. That ain't my life!
That ain't my story! That's their story!
And then, still...
it ain't good enough.
Archie, listen to me.
I'm not gonna let any of that happen to you.
You hear me?
Camille...
I want you to get this part.
Go on and get it.
Go on and get it. I'm sorry I fought you.
I was fighting their fight.
But now it's time to fight ours.
-Okay? -[Camille] Yeah.
-Y'all was in the middle of something. -[chuckles]
[Archie] "Why, there you are.
We were meant to meet for lunch at RKO."
"Sam, Sam, Thirteen Women, isn't it wonderful?"
"But you finished filming it months ago."
"Yes, I know, silly.
But, the thought that it'll be in the cinema soon...
Me up there, on the silver screen.
Well, I just had to read the script again."
I'm gonna stop you. Remember, she's been drinking. She's loose.
I thought you told me not to play it like that.
Yes, but I-- I mean she's...
She's roiling with anxiety.
The next scene, she's going to finish a bottle of Scotch,
race to the Hollywood sign and jump off of it,
so she has that inside of her. Try it again.
"I just had to read the script again,
and this time, Hazel Cousins simply jumped off the page.
Wait, she's not a supporting role at all really, she's in...
I-- I counted 'em, 20-- 20 scenes.
This film will really be the start of something, Sam.
At long last, I'm going to be a movie star."
-"Peg, have you been drinking?" -"What?
Well, just a little to take the edge off because I got so excited."
More emotion.
"What? Well, just a little to take the edge off because I got so excited."
"Peg, I have some sorry news.
I saw Mr. Selznick today. He told me you've been cut from the film.
You'll still be in two scenes, sure, but it's a cameo now, Peg.
You're barely in it at all."
"And suddenly...
everything goes dark again.
All of my hopes and dreams
lay in a heap of cut-up celluloid
on the floor of an editing room to be tossed into the trash bin.
Lost.
That's me, Sam.
Lost and soon to be forgotten."
I'll cry on the day. I'm just not going to do it right now.
That's not gonna work.
If you can't bring the emotion to the rehearsal,
you're not gonna be able to in front of the cameras.
Well, maybe I'm not a crier, Raymond!
Maybe I just can't manufacture other people's emotions.
This is your shot, Camille!
This scene. You need to bring every ounce of pain you've ever felt.
Every rock that's been thrown at you,
every word that has been spat in your face, I need you to take that rage,
that sadness, and put it into the scene!
This is your chance to really act, to be an actress!
You know all about pain, don't you?
Passing, every day of your life.
Fucking jerk!
How about you and I, we rehearse the kissing scene?
I'm sorry, I really want to, but, um...
I'm trying to be a good person.
Jack...
You are a good person.
Why do you have so many doubts about that?
I'll see you at the screen test.
[Jeanne] Thank you, dear.
Miss Crandall, thank you so much for agreeing to read for these tests.
My pleasure.
If I were 10 years younger, I could be testing for the lead myself.
It could have been the picture that made me a star.
You're not a star because you didn't sign with me.
That's right, Henry, because you're awful and you treat your clients like dog shit.
-[stage bell rings] -[crewman] On the bell.
Ready when you are, Mr. Ainsley.
Rock.
Right this way.
So, Miss Crandall will be reading this scene with you.
This is the climactic scene right before she jumps off.
Should do it to her, not right into the camera?
That's right.
This is the Hollywood sign.
I'm sort of hanging off of it. It's very, very high.
Oh, boy.
I see it.
I haven't been this nervous since Junior Durkin's first screen test.
And you know what?
He got the part.
And so will you, kid. Just breathe.
[both sighing heavily]
[crewman] Roll camera.
And... action.
Sam, what are you doing here?
Leave me alone.
This is my destiny and mine alone.
Peg, I won't let you do it!
You know you love you, and you know I won't let me throw it all away!
And...
Sorry, I screwed it up, can I try it again?
Cut. That's very good, Rock. Just relax.
Peg, you won't let me do it!
You know I love you, and you know I won't let me throw--
That's not right. Damn it, that...
Right?
Peg, I won't let you do it.
You know I know you'll throw you away.
Damn-- That's not right. I, uh--
[Raymond] Rock, it's, um...
[clears throat] "Peg, I won't let you do it.
You know I love you, and you know I won't let you throw it all away."
Yeah, I got it.
[feigning distress]
Sorry. I-- My-- my throat... My throat's a little sore.
I need some water.
We need water. Get him water. Now.
-[man] Water. -Just a little bit.
A glass of water for a tall drink of water.
[chuckles] You too.
[Jeanne laughs]
Peg, I won't let you do it! Shit!
Sorry, one more time.
-That was right. -That was it.
-Oh, are you serious? -Yeah, you got this.
[feigning distress]
Peg, I won't let you do it.
You know I love you and you know I won't let you throw it all away.
I can't, Sam. I can't! I can't do it anymore!
That was my line, darling.
[stage door opens]
-[stage door slams] -[Raymond groans]
[Raymond] All right, one more, Rock.
I can't, Sam.
[crying] I don't want any part of this life anymore.
And that includes you, Sam.
Well, what did you tell me about killing yourself?
When all those Wall Street so-and-so's lost their fortunes and ended it all,
you told me, "Sam, they picked a long-term solution to a short-term problem."
-And that's what you're doing now, Peg! -[screaming]
No!
[groans]
[Raymond] And cut.
-That's uh... That's all we need. -[stage bell rings]
Well, thank you so much for the opportunity.
Thank you.
[stuttering] I'm real sorry, Miss Crandall.
Oh, no. Don't worry about it.
Please, we've all been there.
Come on.
You got it right in the end, and that's what really matters.
How do you feel?
Like I want to run away and never come back.
At the end, he wants us to really cry, and...
I've tried, I just can't.
Here, uh...
rub a little...
VapoRub under your eyes.
It's not a prank. It works. But just use a tiny bit.
We're ready for you, Miss Wood.
Really, it, uh, gets the waterworks going.
-[slate clacks] -[Raymond] Action.
This film will really be the start of something, Sam.
At long last, I'm going to be a movie star.
"Have you been drinking, Peg?"
[chuckling] Just to take the edge off because I got so excited.
[reader] "I saw Mr. Selznick.
He told me you've been cut from the film.
You'll appear in two scenes, sure, but it's a cameo now, Peg.
You're barely in it at all."
And suddenly it's...
dark again.
All my hopes and dreams...
to be tossed into the trash bin. Lost.
That's me, Sam. Lost.
Lost and soon to be forgotten.
Thank you so much, Mr. Ainsley.
[Raymond] Cut.
-[stage bell rings] -Camille Washington.
[crewman] All right, you heard him. Set up.
[Raymond] No.
No, Camille. Camille, no.
I'm not gonna let you cheat.
[Camille sighs]
Baby, I know you can do this.
This is your shot to make this role your own.
But it's you who has to make that happen.
Go get 'em.
Okay, let's slate.
Avis, I am so sorry.
You have my deepest sympathies.
-How did you find out? -Through the grapevine.
Don't worry, it's still very hush-hush.
But, I am so excited about this Peg movie.
You know, my client, Rock Hudson, would be perfect for it.
His acting is just...
Honestly, he's like a Barrymore.
Anyway, I cannot imagine the strain you must be under right now,
which is why I was very glad to be able to take a little something off your plate.
What, Henry?
You don't know?
Oh, dear.
Tattletale Magazine is in possession of some photographs
of you leaving that gas station
with various gentlemen.
Now I, of course, bought back the photos.
I would never want that to get out.
What do you want?
My client in the picture.
I want you to cast Rock.
You're a real snake, Henry.
But you already know that.
[Claire] ...to be tossed into the trash bin. Lost.
That's me, Sam. Lost.
Lost and soon to be forgotten.
Thank you so much, Mr. Ainsley.
-That's odd. -[Dick] Nerves. It happens.
Next.
-[man] Camille Washington, take one. -[slate clacks]
And suddenly, everything goes dark again.
All of my hopes,
and dreams,
lay in a heap of cut-up celluloid on the floor of an editing room...
to be tossed into the trash.
Lost.
That's me, Sam. Lost.
Soon to be forgotten.
Next one.
Who are these, the Sams?
-[man] Rock Hudson, take one. -[slate clacks]
[Raymond] And action.
Peg, I won't let you do it.
You know you love you, and you know I won't let me throw it all away.
[stutters]
-Sorry, I-- I screwed up, can I-- -[Raymond] Cut!
-[slate clacks] -[Roy] Peg, you won't let me do it.
You know I love you, and I know I won't let you throw it all away.
[slate clacks]
Peg, I won't let you do it.
You know I know you'll throw you away.
Pig, I won't let you do it." Sorry, I just called her "Pig."
You're not.
[chuckling] Oh. Good God!
-How many takes did he do? -[Raymond] Sixty-seven.
I've seen enough.
I like him.
Let's cast him.
Sixty-seven takes, Avis.
I think he's right for the part.
We tested other actors. Can we at least watch one of them?
Fine.
-[man] Jack Castello, take one. -[slate clacks]
What did you tell me about killing yourself?
When all those Wall Street so-and-so's lost their fortunes and ended it all,
you said, "Sam, they picked a long-term solution to a short-term problem."
Well, that's what you're doing now, Peg.
No!
He's good.
Yes.
Let's give it to him.
What did I say?
I have to go. I'm late for a luncheon with Eleanor Roosevelt.
Avis, what about Peg? Who are we going to cast?
Well, it's obvious, we have to give it to Claire.
She wasn't as good.
Believe me, casting her pains me more than anyone.
She's my daughter. I can't stand her.
Uh, Mrs. Amberg.
Please tell your girlfriend...
she was stunning.
She gave an amazing screen test, but she's not right for the part.
Well, with a slight rewrite, she... she might be right.
She's a movie star.
Don't make me into the bad guy here.
What do you want me to say? What's Ace going to say?
Ace isn't here.
This is your decision to make right now, Avis.
Exactly.
And my decision is to not bankrupt this studio, Dick.
We will reap the whirlwind if we cast that girl,
and everyone in this room knows it.
I am not about to take that risk when we have a perfectly fine alternative,
who's going to become so goddamn unbearable
-you have no idea. -Avis...
You don't keep Eleanor Roosevelt waiting, Dick!
[door slams]
Josephine, call Jack Castello into my office, please.
[Josephine] Yes, sir.
Well, Jack, you got the part.
-Yes! Yes! -[Ellen chuckling]
Uh, sorry, thank you.
Congratulations, kid, you've proven me wrong.
Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Samuels. I will not disappoint you.
Thank you.
I got the part.
I got the part!
So that's it.
No notice?
That's how you thank your old pal Ernie?
Listen, Ern, you've been a big help, you know that.
But I have been having moral reservations.
Oh, you have, have you?
No prude like an old whore.
You're just like the rest of them, Jack.
Suddenly, you're all squeaky clean, huh?
You know damn well deep down you're just as seedy as the rest of us.
So you can shove that halo all the way up your ass as far as I'm concerned.
[coughing] You're full of shit.
[coughing heavily]
I'm sorry. I'm sorry, Jack.
I'm happy for you. It's just that...
I thought I found my way out of the game, too, you know?
It was all bullshit!
-What are you talking about, Ernie? -Vivien Leigh.
I was reading lines with her all night at Cukor's.
I try to give that to people. Don't turn the light on!
I was fool enough to believe you were straight!
Oh, Ernie. You are fantastic.
So honest and unveneered.
You should be acting.
-What are you talking about? -No, I'm serious.
You should be in this production.
She said I should be in the play.
She was gonna set a meeting with Tennessee Williams.
He never called me.
I had dreams too, you know.
[chuckling] What am I talking--
Congratulations, Jack. Here's--
-Ernie... -No, no, no.
Here's 50 bucks to tide you over until you start shooting, okay?
Come back when you're a big star and say hello, okay?
Okay. Thanks, Ern.
[Ernie coughs]
I knew it when I saw you in that bar. You were going places, kid.
I knew it before they did.
And so...
it has very much lifted my spirits
to see that over $3,000
has been raised in a single afternoon.
Thank you so much for your support, and please enjoy your lunch.
These fucking shoes.
-Those heels are one inch. -Well, that one inch is killing me.
[Avis chuckles]
How's Ace?
He's out of commission for a little while, actually.
Probably just a virus.
-He's at home resting comfortably. -Who's running the studio?
I am. Very much in name only.
Oh, Avis,
that is positively divine.
What's it like?
What movies are you working on?
Well...
we just did some screen tests on a film about Peg Entwistle.
Oh, yes, I remember when that happened.
-Oh, that sounds gripping. -Yes.
But, well, I feel guilty.
The girl we're going to give the lead to wasn't the best.
There was a girl that was far better, but she's colored.
What?
[phone ringing]
Office of Dick Samuels.
Wait, who?
She's coming now?
[crowd chattering]
-Eleanor, this is Dick Samuels. -How do you do, Mrs. Roosevelt?
-Ellen Kincaid. -So wonderful to meet you.
It's a pleasure.
-Right this way. -Thank you.
[applause]
These past few years I have been traveling all over the country,
and what I have seen going on in the South
has positively shaken my faith in this country.
Here I thought we fought a war
for freedom,
for...
basic decency.
Then, to see Jim Crow up close, those...
the beatings and the lynchings.
I have begun to realize that this country is actually moving backwards.
Now...
I understand that...
you have the opportunity
to cast a girl of color as the lead in one of your pictures.
I am here to encourage you to do it.
Mrs. Roosevelt...
I couldn't agree more.
Miss Kincaid?
I wholeheartedly agree with Richard, Mrs. Roosevelt.
Okay, I'm sorry.
While I greatly admire the bleeding hearts of my dear colleagues here,
if we cast this girl in the lead role,
the picture will not run in the South.
-Run it in the North. -The picture will face a boycott.
Production on our slate of films will grind to a halt.
This studio, as well as everyone who works here,
will become a target of the Ku Klux Klan.
That's the long and short of it.
That's why we just...
We can't do it.
Yes, it will be...
a big to-do.
Think about it, what it might mean to a...
to a dirt poor
little black girl living
in a shanty in some...
cotton town where she's told she's free,
but really her life is no better
than that of her grandparents,
who were the owned property of another human being.
Think about her, what it would mean to... to see herself up there on that screen.
Vaunted, dignified...
valued.
My time in Washington taught me...
[scoffs]
...a lot of things.
I used to believe that good government could change the world.
Well, I don't know that I believe that anymore.
However, what you do,
the three of you,
can change the world.
[sniffles] Now, if you will excuse me,
I'm meeting Hick for dinner at 5:00.
[door opens]
[Eleanor whispering] Thank you.
So, what are you going to do?
[big band music playing]