Change of Heart (1934) Movie Script

For the young men and women
who are graduating today
this is the commencement of a life
rather than the end of a college course.
So we call it that: commencement.
For many years I have seen
the young men and women
of the graduating class
go out into a world
that I knew would welcome them.
That had a reward for them
in abundant proportion
to what they gave to the world.
Today, my young friends,
I am sending you into battle
upon a field
half lost unless you help win it.
You have the youth and the strength,
the courage and the faith,
the minds and the hearts.
Therefore, I send you
to find the trail.
Crooner, pa, not yodeler.
You wouldn't call Bing Crosby
or Rudy Vallee a yodeler, would you?
Why wouldn't I?
I'd be calling them more than that
if your ma and sisters
were out of earshot.
Nobody in California is out of earshot
when you raise your voice.
Come along, girls.
- But listen, Pa...
- Listen nothing. You're not going to N. Y.!
- You're going to Hawaii with us.
- But everybody in Hawaii are croons.
That's what's the matter with them.
- Hiya, Chris.
- Hi, Joe.
But, darling,
if you must go on the stage,
we have such a good
stock company in Azusa.
Oh, mother,
you've really got to understand.
I'm going to be an actress.
A real actress.
Not just a...
Well, Broadway's the only place.
Hello, Pete. How's Trish?
I've simply got
to get to Broadway, Mother.
Oh, here comes Freddy Whales.
Isn't he just beautiful?
I wouldn't exactly call a man beautiful.
- Hello, Madge.
- Hello, Freddy.
Madge, darling,
I'm afraid my piano lessons...
...aren't going to be enough...
Oh, money, money, money.
I'm not going to be poor,
I'll tell you that.
That's another reason
I'm going to New York.
- Well, I might ask your grandmother...
- Oh, you simply got to, because...
Oh, I wish this robe fitted
a little more.
Hi, Madge!
Gee, you look swell in that kimono.
Oh, do I, Terry?
And another reason, Mother.
Catherine's going, and Chris...
and Mack.
- Hello, Chris.
- Hello, redhead.
- What're you reading?
- A letter.
If it's personal, I'd like to see it.
- I wish they'd have come.
- So do I.
This is one day
when you want your parents.
I'm sorry, Fiery.
Oh, I never knew mine.
Too young.
So I can't miss them.
What you don't know doesn't hurt you.
- So they say.
- It's true, isn't it?
No... Hm?
Which is it?
No, hm, or yes?
No.
You know? This has been
more than college to me.
It's been the only home
I've really known.
Well, I still have children and dogs
and strangers to love.
Somehow I never think of you
as being lonely.
- Didn't know you thought of me at all.
- Go away, Miss Furness.
- Well, Mr. Thring, do you?
- Sure.
- Really?
- Lots.
Well, what do you think,
besides thinking you think I'm not lonely?
I think you're oak.
You're a great pal, Fiery.
I don't know what we'd all do
without you around.
That makes me a sort of mama.
But not exactly
what you'd call a hot mama.
- Chris.
- Hm?
I'm wondering what kind of girl
you call a hot mama.
Here she comes.
Oh, Catherine, Chris,
I'm going, I'm going, I'm going.
Mother promised to make grandmother
give me an allowance of $100 a month
maybe more.
My, when do we start?
I can hardly wait! Oh, Chris, darling!
Oh, Nick, I can go!
Isn't it swell?
Well, I can't go.
It's all off.
My father wants me to go
in the tractor factory.
Me in a tractor factory!
Rudy Vallee in a boiler factory
Oh, Mack. Where is your father?
Can't we talk to him?
Oh, it won't do any good.
We're sailing for Honolulu.
What are you going to do
with a man who says
a radio singer is nothing but a yodeler?
Which he says and which he is.
Oh, T.P., how can you?
Is John McCormack a yodeler?
Who said that?
Oh, the blathering radio noise.
How can anyone yodel a camogie?
But crooning, that's different.
The very best music lends itself
to crooning.
Crooning? Couldn't they call it
something else to save its face?
Now, take for instance,
er... let's see...
something sweet,
but really good music.
# Open the door softly #
# somebody wants ye, dear.
Give me a chink no wider
than you'd fill up with your ear.
And if you're hard of hearing,
why, your mouth will do as well.
So put your lips against the chink,
And hear what I've to tell.
Aw, it's a conspiracy.
What chance has a man got
with the lot of you all?
- What do you say now, Pa?
- But why go to New York...
-... to yodel...
- Ah, ah, ah!
To croon, hang it!
Why don't you croon in your own home...
where I can get me hands on you?
But everyone wants to go to New York.
New York! I can hardly wait.
Well, if you're going,
that's another ear to the pig.
Here, take your ticket to Honolulu...
and turn it in.
You'll get enough for it to pay
for the lot of you to New York.
And here's a little more for you.
If you're going to croon,
I imagine you'll be hungry
a good deal of the time.
Come on, Madge.
Shake a leg.
I'm shaking more than that.
I'm going by train.
Train? That takes four days.
I know what'll fix you up.
I've got a quart of it in my bag.
That's the trick. Before you come to
we'll be all the way across the U.S.
Sure! 3000 miles from the Pacific
to the Atlantic in 15 hours.
Step right in!
Hot and cold meals, radios. Tune in
if you want, sleep if you don't. ...
Land where you please,
jump out when you please...
- Oh, shut up, Mack.
- And before you know it...
they'll be having hot and cold showers.
Save the quart for me, will you?
I may need it.
I promise.
You feel all right now, Madge?
No... yes...
I don't know.
How about a sip out of that quart, hm?
Well, I will if...
Mack, will you have a drink?
Oh, boy, look at that beautiful blonde.
Hiya, sugar!
Subtle, that's me.
There you are.
There.
Come along, now.
Your time is my time...
Would you like me to turn
the radio on for you?
What, with me on in person?
What's the matter?
You know who it is.
Chris?
No, Mack.
Oh.
Oh, I'm crazy about Chris,
but it's Mack I love.
I'm afraid you're going to have
to make up your mind sometime, dear.
I can't help it if that's
the way I feel, can I?
- Can't you sleep either?
- No, too wide awake.
There's the silver lining
we hear so much about.
Just to be able to see it.
Just to have the sight and the feeling.
We're ahead of the game already,
aren't we, Chris?
That's what I was thinking.
But you know how to say it.
You'll make a writer, Catherine.
I'm gonna try.
You'll get on, too, Chris.
You've got a letter to a big
law firm in your pocket right now.
Yeah. A letter.
That's a lot.
Shows that someone has faith in you.
I can't help feeling worried, though.
I wonder what New York will do to us.
I wonder what will become of us
when we get there.
I wonder. Would you like
to have me read your palm?
They say a long lifeline
can beat almost anything.
Chris.
Hm?
I like the way your hair's cut
in the back.
That ought to be a great help
with the jury.
That's New York.
My mate.
Catherine, it's a monster.
I'm scared.
So am I. A little.
Arrival at Newark airport
in 10 minutes.
- Fasten your belt, please.
- Supposing you wear suspenders?
That was a subtle one.
- What, no fans?
- They're home practicing.
Come on.
Thank you, sir.
Well, we're here.
- You're getting fiery?
- No, excited.
Did you ever see so many people?
Where did they all come from?
It's a reception committee.
They've heard I'm in town.
Hey, taxi?
- Why not?
- Hop in!
Some town.
I always knew it was big,
but I didn't think it was this big.
Listen, kids.
This is just like Walla-Walla.
Only there's a lot more of it.
Well, a lot of Walla-Walla
is something to worry about.
Gee, we'll have to stick together.
Poor little Indian.
Sink or swim.
Well, I'm not gonna sink.
I'm a large enough fish
to swim the biggest ocean.
Fish don't sink, sap.
No, they just get hooked,
cut up and fried.
Or stewed.
See, you can't lose.
Well, excuse me, folks, eh?
I wonder how I'm ever going to find
Phyllis Carmichael.
Try looking under "C".
- Say, who is this Phyllis Carmichael?
- Class of '27.
She knows everyone
in New York worth knowing.
Tony Stark, George Gershwin,
O.O. MacIntyre...
Yes, and she's going to know
the Mc Gowans.
Oh, look!
Vanderbilt. Cornelius Vanderbilt.
Right in the telephone book, too.
- Don't forget the Morgans and the Astors.
- And the Mc Gowans.
Yes, and the Mc Gow...
Oh, hush.
Oh, here it is.
Carmichael, Mrs. Phyllis.
1, number 1, Perry Street.
Give me another nickel.
Phyllis says we're gonna meet
the very best people.
Are you sure we're all expected?
- She said bring the crowd.
- I didn't know she knew I was in town.
Looks like an alley.
It is an alley.
Go on in.
Go ahead, we're invited.
# Health is everything,
wealth don't mean a thing #
# You can still be in style #
# Just give the best that you've got #
# If that ain't good enough,
so what? #
# Money is the route of all evil #
# That's what the wise guys say #
# Don't get your nerves
in a state of upheaval #
# If lucky breaks
don't come your way #
# just take it on the chin.
look right up and grin #
# Life is really worthwhile #
# Even when things ain't so hot #
# Just laugh it off and say
"So what?" #
# So what? #
That old guy hasn't a bad cold.
Too, too divine.
- Darling!
- Hello, Phyllis.
How are you?
This is Miss Furness...
- This is Phyllis and...
- How do you do?
Howard, I want you
to meet Miss Rountree.
- This is Miss Furness, Mr. Jackson.
- And Mr. McGowan...
Oh, darling, come on.
Tell me all about it.
I want to know everything
that's happened.
- Furness?
- Yes, they call me Fiery.
Fiery? Well, are you?
- It's the hair, not the disposition.
- Oh.
Subtle chap.
- This is Mc Gowen.
Gowan.
- Mr. Gowan.
- Hello.
- And Mr. Twing.
- Thring.
- Yes.
- Hello.
Will you take them around
and introduce them?
My name is Smith.
Come.
Come on, come on!
You know, Miss Furness,
for purely selfish reasons
I'm glad you like New York.
New York. The very name
sends shivers up and down my spine.
- I envy you.
- It's so big, so immense, so...
Cruel, too, they say.
The lights, the people, the rush.
The very noise, a symphony.
- Whose theme is...
- Living. Being part of it all.
Oh, Madge, darling,
it's so good to have you here.
Phyllis...
Pardon me, Phyllis...
do you think Mr. Star
will pay attention to poor little me?
If you're interested in puppet shows,
puppets are his line, you know.
Oh.
Oh, Mr. Jackson, I hear
you're interested in the theater.
I'm going on the stage, you know.
Do you think I'll be any good
as an actress?
I want your honest opinion.
And don't flatter me.
Well, I'll be at all your first nights.
Is that a promise?
Isn't this fun?
Maybe.
But it isn't what I came
to New York for.
Chris.
Hm?
Well, I'm glad you're here.
And I'm glad you're here, Kay.
Well, anyway, we're still eating,
aren't we?
As long as I can keep on eating,
I don't want to work.
I'm not worried.
We'll all get jobs soon.
Sure, when that bigshot from Wall Street
who wants to meet me gets back
from Europe...
I'll be all set.
Provided he doesn't take
a trip to Africa.
- Meet him at the boat.
- Well, I start rehearsals tomorrow.
- Oh, swell.
- Yeah? How much?
Nothing.
It's just for the experience.
It's a little theater movement
Phyllis is starting.
Why little movement?
- How about you, Fiery?
- I'm tired of office boys.
So am I. I know every office boy
at the IBC personally.
Tomorrow I'm going through them like...
Well, I'm going through them.
Me too. I'm going to start
at the top and work down.
- Meaning what?
- Arthur Brisbane in person.
- Just mention my name.
- I didn't know you knew him.
I don't.
I'm killing you.
- Did you show Mr. Brisbane the poem?
- He ain't in.
Please, St. Joseph,
help me to find work.
Any kind of work.
He's just startled, doctor.
Doctor, there's a young lady here
without an appointment.
Could you see her now?
Come in, please.
This is the young lady, doctor.
Would you like to adopt a baby?
I'd love to. Only I can't even
support myself right now.
Well, then, what can I do for you?
I saw your add in the paper.
I'm an orphan too.
- And I thought...
- You want me to adopt you?
Not exactly.
You see, I came to New York
to be a writer.
Oh, I see.
Well, none of our babies write,
so this would be a change.
I've been to all the newspapers,
then the money ran out...
I even went to see Mr. Brisbane.
Oh. What did he say?
He wasn't in, unfortunately.
That is unfortunate.
Are you alone in the city?
No, I have friends,
but they have no jobs either.
I thought that some rich woman
who was adopting one of your babies
might want a nurse.
Have you had any experience?
No, but Chris said...
Well, I mean,
they all said at college...
Well, you see...
I'm awfully fond of people,
especially babies.
All right.
- No, thank you.
- Just to tie you over.
But I don't want money,
I want a job.
I need someone.
Can you live on $10 a week, dearie?
Oh, can I.
How would you like to help me out
in the Salvage Shop?
It's just me here.
Whatever the salvage shop is,
I'd love it.
Well then, this is one week's wages
in advance.
Now, then.
- Thank you.
- Come here.
I'll take you.
Come on, lovee.
Oh, he's a fine fellow.
A deep breather, this one.
- Are you adopting him?
-Me? No, dearie.
But I'm going to find somebody as will.
You see, it's this way.
The rich folks
gives me the old clothes.
I cleans them, and mends them,
and sells them.
Then I give the money
to the doctor's nursery.
The Salvage Shop we calls it.
- But how about the...
- The babies?
Oh, the rich folk
come in with the clothes...
and I try to make them go out
with the baby.
Chris.
Mack.
I hope that's not uncooked victuals
you got in that bag, Miss Furness.
How do you do, Mrs. Boggs?
Oh, dear, no.
Well, I hope I won't have to speak to you
again about cooking in your room.
I don't like your house
and I don't like you.
Listen, Madge...
- Well, she is.
Don't worry. We won't have
to stay here much longer.
You can certainly bank on that.
- I've got a job.
- Really?
And truly. Let me tell you
what happened.
I got a hunch and went to see
a Dr. Kurtzman who gets jobs for babies.
- What?
- I mean, homes for orphans.
So I asked him for a home,
I mean, a job...
and he couldn't give me one,
but there was a little old lady there,
Harriet Hawkins,
who owns a salvage shop,
so she gave me a job for $10 a week
and we can move from here
as soon as the rent's up.
Look. Dinner.
Furness is treating for once.
Swell!
- Who is it?
- It's me.
Chris, I thought it was Mrs. Boggs.
- What do you think?
- About what? I don't know.
I've got a job!
Oh, I'm so happy for you.
- A job at last!
- And Chris, I've got a job...
- Where's Madge?
- In the alcove.
Madge! Madge!
- I've got a job.
- Really? Well, that's nice.
- Think of it. It's only $18 a week...
- Isn't that great?
It certainly is.
It isn't much, but it's a start.
Mack!
What's the matter?
I wonder what it is I have
that other people haven't.
What do you mean?
Kay, sometimes I'm actually
fighting myself.
I wonder how many people
could do what I did today
and do it as easily as I did.
What did you do?
Come here. Sit down.
Now, you're the president of the IBC.
I come in to you and I say,
"I'm working for you."
And he says, "Who are you?",
and I say, "Who am I?"...
The upshot of the whole thing is
I'm on the Abraham Lincoln
Kosher Meats Hour.
I will star it.
- What?
- On $40 a weeks, every seven days.
That's wonderful.
- Say it again.
- You are wonderful.
We could teach the kid to think it.
What do you say, Fiery?
I'm sorry, Chris. I'm leaving.
You're leaving?
Well, yes, Kay, I...
I'm going to stay with Phyllis.
But you can't do this.
We promised to stick together.
Well, I can't, can't I?
If you think I came to New York
to waste my life in a dump like this,
you're crazy.
I've got to be with the best people.
People who can help me along.
You understand, don't you, Kay?
Oh, of course, Madge.
Why not stay for dinner
and let's talk it over?
Oh, yes, do.
Look, I have everything you like.
I'm sorry, Kay,
but I have another engagement.
I wonder if that fellow Jackson
is any relation to Stonewall Jackson.
Yes, it is Jackson.
And what have you got to say to that?
What's anybody got to say
to a couple of million dollars?
- Why, Mack, you...
- Take that back!
Chris, Mack!
It's a good thing that guy's
a friend of mine.
Why, I'd be afraid to hit a man.
It'd be murder.
I'll send for the rest
of my things tomorrow.
The rent's paid up until next week.
and I'll arrange for you
to come and live with us.
That's all right, Madge.
I have another place all picked out.
Think it over for a day or two.
Suspend Jackson, will you?
I'm sorry, Chris.
I have thought it over.
Good-bye, everybody.
There she goes.
Unspoiled, unselfish.
Always thinking of others.
Never thinking of herself...
much!
Mrs. Boggs got on her nerves,
I guess.
Yeah, just like she'll get on Jackson's.
What are you going to do, Fiery?
Oh, I'll get a room at Mrs. Hawkins.
Where?
I didn't tell you, Mack.
I got a job there today.
That's fine.
But you don't have
to do that, Fiery.
What do you mean, Mack?
Look. Strong, healthy,
not too bad to look at...
and forty smackers each
and every week.
And that's only a start.
Come on. Make T.P. happy
and say you'll be his daughter-in-law.
Sorry, Mack. Awfully sorry.
Anything wrong with me?
Not a thing.
Well, the best of women
make mistakes.
Chris, isn't it?
Hm-hmm.
That poor fathead doesn't know
what's good for him.
Oh, I'm the fathead.
Well, Mack, here we are.
Four little Indians,
three little Indians...
two little Indians.
Tough all around, isn't it?
Come on,
you stay and have a bite.
Two tomatoes.
I can't, baby.
I'm due at the broadcasting station.
Well...
as T.P. would say,
keep a good heart in you.
Good-bye.
Good-bye.
It would knock anybody's eye out
to see what you can do
with a few rags and a needle.
Oh, I always make my own clothes.
I say, what's become of them
friends of yours?
I ain't seen them in a month.
Oh, they're busy, I guess.
He's a nice lad, that gabby one.
- What's his name?
- Mc Gowan.
Heaps of fun.
Meaning no offense...
I wouldn't mind if I never saw
your lady friend again.
She's become so toffeelike
and dainty all of a sudden.
Oh, Madge is all right.
Now... that quiet one.
Chris I think you called him.
Is he still eating
his heart out about her?
Oh!
It's you as has the style, dearie.
It's pretty, isn't it?
Pretty to walk a duke about.
You should be going out to dinner
with the prince himself.
At the automat!
Mack, darling!
- How are you?
- I'm fine.
And as T.P. would say,
'it's a joy to see you'.
Come on in.
Mrs. Hawkins, let me shake your hand.
You look fit enough
to be your own daughter.
Ain't he a scream?
We were just talking about you.
What brings the radio bigshot popping home?
How'd you like to go to Coney Island
with the voice of the IBC?
- May-me-mi-mo...
- Hush, hush, but I'd love to go.
Swell, I'll have the magic carpet
here at eight.
Put them here, Henry.
- How do you do?
- How do you do?
I'm Mrs. Mockby,
this is my daughter-in-law.
I was told to see Mrs. Hawkins.
Yes, I'll call her.
Will you wait?
Two ladies to see you.
Both Mrs. Mockbys. Very charming.
Quick, get the baby.
And remember, when I says,
'What, no baby?'...
- in you come with his nib.
- I know.
What's the big idea?
A little scheme Mrs. Hawkins has
to get the babies adopted.
- Is there a part in it for me?
- Maybe. If you see an opening, dive in.
- The kid's as good as...
- Shhh!
Sold.
We appreciate the work you're doing
for the nursery, Mrs. Hawkins.
Oh, but these is lovely,
Mrs. Mockby.
But did I hear you say
you had no baby clothes?
- Well, we did have, but...
- What? No baby?
- He got a bit restless, Mrs. Hawkins.
- Oh, did he now.
The poor little homeless lamb.
Did you ever see a finer, fatter,
healthier little lad than he is?
He takes after his parents,
Heaven rest them.
- He is sweet, isn't he?
- Oh, he's a darling.
- Wouldn't you like to hold him?
- May I?
He could do with an home,
he could.
- Oh, mother, couldn't we adopt him?
- He is a darling, but...
Come, dear. We must go.
It's late.
I wonder if Mr. Mc Gowan
can really give him a good home.
Stop!
I heard that.
Miss Furness, this ain't the first kid
I've taken and made a home for.
I use them in my act.
Mc Gowan's the name.
Abraham Lincoln Kosher Meats Hour, IBC.
You must know the voice.
But Mr. Mc Gowan, you're on the road
so much of the time.
What would you do with the baby?
What do I do with the props
and the trunk?
- He is really a dear, isn't he?
- Are you speaking to me?
Oh, uh... sorry.
Mr. Mc Gowan,
Didn't I hear you led
your last baby's mother to death?
One! Just one!
And you tried to make me out
an assassin.
And it ain't as though I was
turning it over
to the Abraham Lincoln Kosher
Meats Company.
What legal steps are necessary
for adoption?
- My husband's a lawyer.
- Oh, go on. Go ahead.
Just go to law.
Just go to the court.
I want to tell the people
what type you really are.
Why, you're willing to let a little foundling
lie around in a salvage shop,
a salvage shop, of all places.
And you don't want anybody
to give him a decent trunk...
I mean, a home.
My son will attend to all
the necessary legal formalities.
In the meantime...
You won't let anybody else
have him, will you?
I promise you I won't let
Mr. Mc Gowan come near him.
Oh, I wish we could take him
along now.
We'll investigate the parentage
and let you know later.
- Thank you.
- Sure, dear.
- Call them back, call them back!
- What's the matter?
I could make it stronger
if I had a chance.
Oh, Mack, you were wonderful.
Hello?
Chris!
Oh, how nice to hear your voice.
Coney Island? When?
Tonight?
Chris, darling, I'd love to.
Good-bye.
# My time is your time... #
# Your time is my time... #
Look, here's how Rudy Vallee'd do it.
Mi-mi-mi-mi...
My time is your time...
Your time is my time...
- Dearie, you're wonderful.
- Say it again.
Oh, Mack...
Did you see what I just did
to Rudy Vallee?
Would you mind if I didn't go
to Coney with you tonight?
What's the matter,
the dog's sore?
No, it's just something...
Oh, would you mind awfully?
Okay, baby, some other time.
- Mack, you're a darling.
- Say it again.
We aren't afraid of it anymore,
are we, Chris?
- Of what?
- New York.
Don't you love it?
It's too hard, it's too high,
it's too crowded.
Doesn't know you're alive.
- Do you want to give it up?
- I can't.
I'm too sore at it to let go.
Atta boy!
That's my Chris.
That's my Catherine.
They don't do any better pals
than you've been, Fiery.
And nothing's gonna change that.
New York or...
or anything.
Peanuts, popcorn, peanuts?
Peanuts, Madge?
Yes, but my name isn't Madge.
Shoot if you must
this old gray head.
Thanks.
I'm sorry, Fiery.
Where is Madge tonight?
She couldn't come.
Oh.
I mean, she had a date
with the crowd.
Phyllis and Jackson.
She's with Jackson now?
I don't know.
I don't think so.
And I wish I didn't hear.
I wish...
Oh, you know what I mean,
don't you, Kay?
How about you and Mack?
Oh, Mack's swell.
But he'll never die of love.
I guess I'm a rotten matchmaker.
I thought it might be you and Mack...
and if I ever got anywhere,
Madge and me.
Well, which way will we go?
Let's go down that way.
Coney Island hots.
- How about a hot dog?
- Hot dogs it is.
Two hot dogs!
Two, he shouts!
Two hot dogs!
All hots, folks.
Get'em out all hot.
Good for old or young, rich or poor.
All hot.
Which would you rather be?
Old and rich or young and poor?
- Old and poor.
- Why?
Not much to worry about
and not long to do it in.
Hot ones!
Two hots!
All hot, folks!
Eat them while they're hot.
- How about a cup of coffee?
- Hm-hmm.
Aha! Caught!
Thought you could sneak down here
without anyone seeing you, huh?
Well, well...
Oh, so this is the reason
you broke the date with me, huh?
- Hiya, Chris.
- Hello, Mack. Hello everybody.
Well, this is a surprise.
Oh, look here, Mack.
Well, where have you been hiding?
In jail.
Why didn't you let me know?
I'd have bailed you out.
I like jail.
I hoped I'd find you here.
That's why I made him bring me down.
Why didn't you ask me first?
- But I did.
- I know, but not in time, dear.
I want to ride on the rollercoaster.
Come along, everybody.
Don't blame me
if your wig falls off.
See you on the rollercoaster, Fiery.
Come on, darling.
Let's ride.
Oh, do come, won't you?
All right.
Please don't stand up in the cars
and hold your hats.
Better put your arm around me.
You know those curves.
You better hold on.
Now that you're taking him
to Mrs. Mockby's
I just hate to let him go.
You've been 3 months
trying to get rid of him.
But that was a matter of business,
dearie.
Come on, darling.
Oh, I hate to let him go myself.
It's harder for me
than it is for you, dearie.
You can afford to having
one of your own.
And don't drop him.
Remember, he's a particularly tender
kind of a baby.
Good-bye, Harriet.
He's sleepy. You'd better give him
to the nurse now, Louise.
I'm going to put him
to bed myself.
She loves him, doesn't she?
You don't know
what you've done for us.
For all of us.
When her baby died,
we thought she'd go too.
You have nothing to thank me for,
Mrs. Mockby.
You should really thank Mr. Mc Gowan.
That conceited creature?
Have any legal steps ever been taken
about that baby he smuggled in a trunk?
Oh, it was quite an accident,
Mrs. Mockby.
Well, it was a perfectly dreadful thing.
Mrs. Hawkins!
Mrs. Hawkins, I got a job!
A job in a newspaper.
- You mean you're selling them?
- No, I mean I'm gonna write them.
Oh, I'm glad.
But I'll be sorry to lose you, dear.
Very sorry.
Mack!
- Mack, I've got a job.
- Swell, what kind of a job?
Walk around the block with me
and I'll tell you all about it.
I'm so excited.
I've got some news for you
that'll hit the front page.
I'm going home for Christmas.
Hometown goes wild with joy
as Mc Gowan gets off the train
accompanied by his bride.
- The fiery Catherine Furness.
- Oh...
All right, don't answer,
don't answer.
Gee, wiz...
Let's sit down here.
- I suppose you've heard.
- Heard of what?
About Madge and Jackson.
They've gone to California
to be married.
- Are you kidding me?
- No, that's true.
They've gone to California
to be married.
Well... how is Chris taking it?
Oh, he's all broken up.
He either lost his job or quit it,
I don't know which.
I tried to snap him out of it,
but it was no use.
- Where is he now?
- I don't know.
I've just been down there
and he's moved and left no address.
I hear he's sick too.
I have to get on a train
to California tonight.
I hate to leave without finding him.
What do you want?
Mr. Thring. Christopher Thring.
- Does he...
- No, he moved two weeks ago.
Well... didn't he buy things
in the neighborhood?
Who did his laundry?
- The Star Laundry, corner of 3rd and 8th.
- Thanks.
Ma and me have been taking turns
looking after him.
I guess he's pretty sick by now.
- Are you his...
- I'm an old friend.
- I only heard today he was ill.
- Oh, yeah?
That's his room in there
but we put him in here
because it's warmer.
Chris.
Chris.
Mother... Mother...
I shouldn't...
- I sh...
- Chris, darling, it's Catherine.
There, you're gonna be all right.
There, Chris.
Tony! Tony!
Shut up, will ya?
All right.
That's my boyfriend.
He's a truck driver
but he wants to sing in the Opera.
I need ice, a hot water bottle,
some clean bed linen...
and some milk...
- Have you a phone in the house?
- Yeah, this way.
Oh, sure, dearie.
I'll be right up with everything.
I see... hm-hmm...
Well, of course I'll come up.
Right away.
- You've got a pretty sick man here.
- Shouldn't he be in a hospital?
It wouldn't do to move him now.
And he must not be left alone
here overnight.
- Oh, I wouldn't leave him.
- Good.
You understand what to do?
- Yes.
I'll be in later.
Thank you, Doctor.
Madge.
Madge!
- Don't go!
- I'm right here, dear.
Madge.
Oh, think it over.
Lie down.
Think it over.
Water...
Here's the water bottle...
and the medicine.
I think I'll have
to be going now, dear.
I'll be over first thing
in the morning.
Oh, Harriet, I don't know what
I would have done without you.
That's all right, dear.
If you should need me
in the night, you call me.
- I will.
- Good night, dear.
Good night.
Hello, Doctor.
Hello.
Well, let's have a look at him.
How is he?
Better.
Thanks to you.
Cry if you like.
Do anything you like.
You saved that man's life.
Keep him warm.
Good night.
Good night.
Move that chair over here
as you did last night.
And hold my hand.
He has to have his mama's hand.
You're getting stronger all the time.
Tonight you lose your night nurse.
I feel like a baby letting you go.
Must you?
I can't go on forever rooming
with Christopher Thring.
Wouldn't we have laughed
a few months ago
to see ourselves as we are now?
...pushing through football crowds
to shake hands with you.
College finals.
Weren't we kids?
And now?
And now you've saved the life
of the worthless
and forgotten Christopher Thring.
- Says you.
- Says me...
says the doctor, says Mrs. Hawkins,
and Carmen and Tony and Mack...
Oh, dear, they'll all be streaming
in here soon.
Look at yourself, Captain Thring.
You haven't been shaved
and lunch is almost ready.
Smells awfully good.
Chin up.
I can do it myself.
And let you cut your own head off?
No, sir.
After all the trouble I've had
keeping it where it is.
How much do I owe you, nurse?
Hm, let's see.
Two weeks and two days.
And all the rest of my life.
Oh, some time, honey...
- If I live.
- You won't live if you talk.
- I'll sing it then.
- Silence.
Just because you're the barber
you want to do all the talking.
Sure.
I see by the papers.
You're the only barber in the world
I ever wanted to kiss.
Turn that way.
You know, Fiery,
It was days before I got
on to the fact that...
I wasn't delirious anymore.
That it was actually you,
Catherine Furness,
in the flesh in this room.
You mustn't talk so much.
Against that window.
You wore a blue apron.
- Fiery.
- What?
How did you track me down?
A laundryman and three collars.
Bless them.
I'll have then framed.
Please, shut up.
Hum... way up.
You know what I'm gonna do?
I'm going to buy
three brand new collars
and I'm going to put them on
all at once.
Then I'm gonna call on you
all dressed up
and say a few things to you.
Please, shut up
and hold up your head.
I'm going to say to you...
there isn't another woman
in the world fit to black your shoes
How do you mean another woman?
Oh, you know what I mean.
The simplest way to say it is...
I love you.
Do you think...
Do you suppose you could ever...
Oh, I do, you great goop.
I have all along.
You imbecile.
Put your head up.
I didn't deserve to get well.
But I'll make it up to you,
believe me.
As soon as I get a job.
Well... the way I feel about you, I...
I could lick the world.
That is, if you really feel...
the way you do when you said
that I was a big goop.
Why waste all this wonderful time?
I can't leave you now.
I'd only worry about you.
I can still get that newspaper job.
We'll manage.
But it seems so unfair to you.
It would be more unfair to me
to lose you.
I've loved this room with you in it.
It has been wonderful, hasn't it?
Your living here cooking breakfast,
sleeping nights.
Sometimes I've lain here
and stared at you for hours
sleeping on that little cot
in the moonlight.
Chris, darling.
Do you really want me, honey?
- I'd give anything...
- It was always you, Chris.
You used to talk about the four of us.
And you'd say Mack loves Catherine,
and Madge loves Mack...
and you loved Madge.
And you never asked,
and who's there for Catherine to love?
It was always that way.
You're my first love and my only love.
And will be till I die.
Oh, darling.
Wipe your face.
- Hello, Carmen.
- How is he today?
Much better, thanks.
- Hello, Carmen.
- Hello.
I'll get a job.
We'll take a little house.
In the country.
Nothing else will matter.
Just the two of us.
Alone.
Are you sure you love me?
I am.
Are you?
Oh, Catherine.
What about Madge?
Kid stuff.
That was on the other side
of the sickness, a long time ago.
Fiery!
Chris! What are you doing
here so early?
Mockby gave me the job.
What do you think he said?
You're engaged. In fact,
my mother and wife engaged you
the moment Catherine
spoke to them about you.
He said, I hope you make good, Thring,
because I see no way of firing you
as long as my family is lined up
against me.
- Oh, darling.
- He's gonna pay me $30 a week.
- Just think of it, $30 a week.
- You're a millionaire.
Isn't it great?
Now we can get married.
Right away.
Well?
- What is it?
- Read it.
Fiery...
Will you marry me today?
Now?
Sure you won't be sorry
when you see Madge again?
Silly.
You'll see.
- I'll give you $3.
- $5.
It's only half a block away.
Right down there.
You gotta have 'em moved,
ain't you, lady?
- Yes.
- Well, I'm as cheap as they come.
$5 is more than the furniture's worth.
- It ain't my fault.
- What's the matter?
He wants $5 to take these things
over to our new apartment.
- Well?
- That's a cheap as you can get it done.
I won't pay it.
Suit yourself, lady.
I took the other things
in a taxi for 30c.
But you can't take these in a taxi.
If you could just sort of
push the chair, I'll take the table.
What do you mean push?
Well, you know, just kind of shove it.
Through the streets?
Well, I thought you could kind of uh...
ease it along, quite casually.
You mean, make believe
they're not with us.
Yes.
Catherine Thring, you have no shame.
Come on.
It's not so bad, is it?
Paper, mister, paper?
Oh, go away.
He can't read.
Wait a minute...
- Well, for heaven's sake!
- Can I help?
No thanks.
Who was that?
A couple of smart alecks.
Sounded kind of familiar.
Should I have tipped my chair
to the lady?
If you must know,
it was Phyllis and Jackson.
Oh.
Do you think she's so attractive?
- Who, Phyllis?
- You know who I mean.
Here we are. Come on.
Up!
Why, I can see it as clearly
as if it were in this room.
That's a funny river.
Somebody hung the wash on it.
It's a clothes line.
It's right between the red flannels
and the torn towel.
It's only about an inch
and a half long.
What do you expect for $40 a month?
I'd hate to be paying
for a couple of yards of it.
We can see the moon though,
can't we?
Look at it.
Don't you love it?
You're the one I love.
But I wouldn't be jealous
of the moon, darling.
Isn't it funny?
The best things in life are free.
You don't have to pay
for the moon and the stars.
That sparrow that comes around,
it chirps for nothing.
And I only pay $30 a week for you.
- Am I expensive, darling?
- Oh, you would have been.
If you hadn't thrown in hope
and everything that makes life
worth living.
I wonder if that's Mack.
Hello?
Come on up.
Oh, it's Mack and I'm not
nearly ready.
Don't hurry, he's still got
four flights to climb.
Turn on the lights, darling.
Madge!
- Surprise!
- Swell!
- Hello.
- Hello, Phyllis.
Those stairs, I'm all in.
I'm sorry, Chris, but I had to bring
these two fans with me.
I told them where I was going
and here they are, wrap them up.
- That's swell.
- Well, is this all I get?
Kiss me.
Hello, Kay.
- I'm sorry, but I had to bring them.
- I'm glad you did.
- Hello, Phyllis.
- Hello, Kay.
How are you? You look marvelous.
- Are you really married?
- There it is.
She married four flights of stairs.
That can't last.
I could have set you up
on the ground floor.
Well, if you should ever
change your mind.
- I won't.
- Am I up for auction?
Oh, Chris, I've so much to tell you.
You're my lawyer now, you know.
Tell all the guys.
Oh, I'm starving.
Don't do anything without
a retainer, Chris.
Well, here it is.
Well, how about dinner?
I think I'd better go in and...
No, I'll go.
My fault you have a crowd.
- We'll all go.
- Go where?
I know a swell place. Italian.
The food is fine.
We'll take you all out to dinner.
I'd like a nice subtle speakeasy
where a man looks through the door
and he says...
Mr. Mc Gowan, sir.
Like the good old days.
I'll go and get my things.
Chris, what will you use
for money?
Shhh!
I'll fill it up again.
Don't worry.
It's not the money
I'm worried about.
Miss Rountree to see you, sir.
- Uh, show her in.
- Yes, sir.
Hello, Madge.
This is a surprise.
- A nice one, I hope.
- Very. Won't you sit down.
Hm, nice office.
My, you do look important
sitting there.
But I don't feel important.
Aw, don't be so businesslike,
Mr. Thring.
This is a business office.
But I'm not just business, am I?
That's too deep a legal problem
for me. I'll have to look it up.
Seriously, Madge,
what are you doing down here?
Well, if you're going to be such a brute,
you may as well take me to lunch.
All right,
Let's go.
When you hear the chime
it will be exactly 12:55 a.m., EST.
Oh, Chris, it's really you.
Why? What's the matter?
I was so worried.
I thought something had happened
to you.
That's silly. I told you
I was working late.
I know, but I called your office
and nobody answered...
and I wanted to call all the hospitals
and the police.
They close our switchboard at six.
I didn't know that.
I can't help worrying when you're late.
Oh, but you're here now.
And you haven't had any dinner.
I'll go and make you an omelet.
I'm not hungry, honey.
I had a late lunch.
With Madge, on business, of course.
Aren't you seeing Madge
a lot lately?
It's all business.
- See here, Fiery, you're not getting...
- Jealous?
Maybe I am. But I know
how Madge feels about you.
-And I can't help...
- Catherine, please, this is all just rubbish.
I know, but...
Madge has such beautiful clothes...
and lives in comfort and luxury...
and then you come back to this.
If you call it a dump, I'll spank you.
Fiery, you little imp,
I just love coming back to this...
beautiful dump and... you
You sweet little...
Hello, Catherine.
Now, first, I've got an important
luncheon engagement.
But Chris, it's Saturday.
You always come home for lunch Saturday.
I'm sorry, darling, but this is business.
Now here's where you come in.
Are you listening?
We're invited up to the boss's house
at Scarsdale for the weekend.
It's about the Gillespie case
I've been working on.
But Chris, what'll I wear?
Sack cloth and ashes
if you make any mistakes.
Now listen.
In the top drawer of the desk
there's a legal envelope
with some papers.
It's a brief I've made on the case.
Pack that and the law book
on top of the desk.
We're taking the 2:10.
I'll meet you at the information desk
at Grand Central Station.
Bye!
Well, why can't I see
Chris occasionally?
Because he's my husband
and I love him.
So do I. I wrote you that
before you married him.
I showed him your letter.
You could have had him once.
Why didn't you have him then?
Crazy, I guess.
So I'm to step aside
because you've changed your mind.
I could have had him.
You nursed him and he turned to you.
He was sick because
he'd lost me.
So that's the way
you think I got him.
Please, Catherine,
don't take that tone.
I can't help it if I love him,
can I?
I want to do things for him.
With all the money I have now
I could help him in his profession.
He oughtn't to be living
in that slum.
We're leaving this afternoon
for the weekend.
But I'm gonna tell you we'll
miss that 'slum'...
and be glad to be back to it.
So you get him away from me
if you can.
- Is that a challenge?
- Yes.
Well, Chris is coming here to lunch.
So, if he goes on that weekend,
you win.
- Hello, Madge.
- Chris!
Darling, is it really you?
It isn't very businesslike, is it?
Oh... you're silly.
I've got a cocktail all fixed.
I mixed it myself.
I hope it's good.
You made enough for a party.
You're all the party I want, Chris.
I'd better go easy on this.
I've got to catch a train
at 2 o'clock.
Well, come on, then.
Lunch is all ready.
I've got everything you like.
Cold chicken and fried beans...
and salad.
And I fixed it all myself.
Do you love me a little, Chris?
You used to.
Say, uh... What was this business
you wanted to see me about?
You haven't forgotten, have you?
Well, you said it had something to do
with your grandmother's estate.
No, I don't mean that.
I mean, you haven't forgotten that I...
that we...
Oh, Chris, you still do a little,
don't you?
What are you thinking about?
Nothing.
It's Catherine, isn't it?
Yes.
I'm late, I'll miss my train.
Oh, please, Chris.
Listen...
No! You can't go!
I won't let you!
She took you when you were
sick and miserable.
- Madge, I've got to go.
- Oh, Chris...
What's a silly old train, after all...
Oh, Chris, I love you, I love you...
Now, Madge, look here.
- Listen to me, please...
- It doesn't mean anything to you.
Ticket, please.
- Okay.
- Are you going in, lady?
Yes.
Yes, that's fine. Thanks
for bringing it, Mrs. Thring.
I'm so sorry about Thrings toothache.
Perhaps he'll be able
to make the next train.
Yes, I hope so.
Will you come in to my study
and we'll go over these.
Certainly.
- I'm so glad you could come, Catherine.
- So am I.
And you're going to live out here.
I've a little house all picked out
in the country for you.
Why, I don't think we can afford it.
Oh, don't worry.
When Mother makes up her mind
she does a lot of thinking for you.
Come on upstairs and see the baby.
I'd love to.
- Oh, Mack...
- Oh, Mack, oh, Chris!
Oh, Jackson, oh, George Washington,
oh, Henry VIII...
- Oh, Mack, please listen...
- Come on inside and think of a good one.
I've got a cocktail all fixed.
I mixed it myself.
Hope you like it.
Now why did you send for me for?
I'm through with Chris.
He said the most awful things to me.
What do you want me to do?
Say them all over again?
Oh, Mack, I...
- Listen, just what do you want,
a man or a husband?
You can't have them both.
- Oh, can't I?
- No!
Then I want you.
Listen. You're on probation.
One more peep out of you and I'll...
Oh, Mack...
Well...
I might as well tell you now.
Peggy Joyce is after me.
And that's only one.
Mack, darling...
Subtle, that's me.
- Hello, Thring.
- Hello, Gerald.
I'm awfully sorry I'm late.
- Did Catherine get here with the papers?
- Yes, indeed.
- Sorry about the tooth.
- Tooth?
- Yes.
- Oh, yes...
How do you do, Mrs. Mockby?
How do you do?
I'm so glad you could come.
- How do you do?
- How do you do, glad to see you.
Oh, by the way.
Catherine has some news for you.
- News?
- Yes.
She's in there.
Excuse me.
- What's the news, Catherine?
- Don't speak to me. Let me go!
Shhh!
I may be foolish, but I'm not
gonna be that foolish.
Now listen, Catherine.
I don't blame you for being sore.
I did go and see Madge.
But that's finished.
- Shhh!
- I told her that.
You don't have to lie to me.
If you want her,
I won't stand in your way...
- Shhh!
You're the one I want.
Now, tomorrow and all the other days.
I'm yours for keeps
whether you want me or not.
Did you tell that to Madge?
Sure, that's one of the things
she kicked me out for.
Shhh!
What's the news Mockby said
you wanted to tell me?
You're the junior partner.
- Who, me?
- Yes... you.