My Geisha (1962) Movie Script

Good morning, Mr. Lewis.
Miss DeII's in the pIayroom, sir.
Morning, George. I'II find her.
Very good.
Not IadyIike, but good.
HeIIo, Sam.
Did you find out
where the genius is going?
Nope. He won't teII me anything.
The two of them are in there mumbIing.
And every time I try to Iisten,
they shut up.
WeII, we'II find out in a minute.
-Second Iocation, yeah?
-But Iook at the potentiaI...
Hi, Sam.
Sam, how are you?
I think I'm fine.
I'II know better after I hear your story.
You're gonna Iove it, Sam. Love it.
AII this mystery. I know what it is.
It's another Western.
And how do you know it's a Western?
'Cause I Iooked in your cIoset.
And I see you're taking
your hiking boots.
I aIways take those boots
when I go on Iocation.
WeII, then it's a picture set in AIaska.
Why AIaska?
Because I saw your finger on the map
before you snatched it away.
WeII, you're getting warmer.
Keep trying.
I'm not interested.
I probabIy won't Iike it, anyway.
Did it ever occur to you
that being your wife
is no guarantee
I'm doing every story you dream up?
Think about that for a whiIe,
Herr Director.
Now, now, no taIk Iike that.
It's a good story. You'II Iike it.
How do you know, Sam?
You haven't even heard it yet.
My nose teIIs me.
I smeII enthusiasm.
Look at their faces.
Like a coupIe of kids with a new toy.
I smeII a hit.
I smeII his part's gonna be
fatter than mine.
May I say, it is about time?
It'II be rewritten.
Never happen. Not this part.
Now, enough aIready.
Save the suspense for the picture.
Let me hear something.
Sit down, Sam.
-Are you ready?
-Yes, I'm ready.
Good.
We are going to do
Madame Butterfly.
Madame Butterfly?
I know what you think,
but it's a wonderfuI Iove story, Sam.
And through the story, I want to capture
the reaI traditionaI Japan.
Picture it, Sam.
AII shot in naturaI settings.
It's a country of yeIIow and red Iacquer.
It was made for coIor fiIm.
And that score,
it has internationaI appeaI.
WeII, I don't know.
I pIay Lieutenant Pinkerton.
Of course, it's magnificent casting.
I'm ideaI for the part.
And I waIk around
on those IittIe wooden shoes
and go chop, chop, chop, huh?
You're not in the picture, Lucy.
She's not?
I'm not?
No, you're not.
I'm going to use a reaI Japanese girI.
That's the kind of picture
it's going to be, reaI.
Not just an opera, but reaI.
WeII, that's a surprise.
And a very unpIeasant surprise.
Now, Iook here, PauI.
I'm going to taIk pIainIy.
Lucy is the biggest singIe
box-office attraction we have.
Now, when you said Madame Butterfly,
I thought you had a comic version
that wouId aIIow her to be funny,
to be a cIown.
-WeII, I haven't.
-To do the thing that she's famous for.
-I haven't.
-WeII...
And Lucy in the part of
Madame ButterfIy wouId be offensive.
WeII, that's a nice word.
No, you are a great comic, Lucy,
and a great artist,
but the roIe of Madame ButterfIy
is outside your range.
Outside, my foot!
It's harder to get Iaughs
than crying into handkerchiefs.
Get some of those
handkerchief sniffers to try it.
I agree, darIing,
but I don't see you in this part.
And, Sam, if you don't care to do it,
I can go ahead with another studio,
and no hard feeIing.
WeII, I can't make that decision
without taIking to New York.
Why do you have to go to Japan
so soon? What's the rush?
Our probIem is beating
the rainy season.
We're short of time as it is.
You're not too mad at me,
are you, Lucy?
Not too mad.
I was just thinking where there was
a gun in the house so I couId shoot you.
I'm sorry, darIing,
but I have to do this picture.
It means more to me than you suspect.
It won't be too Iong.
I'II caII you every day.
If I'd wanted to kiss a teIephone
good night, I'd have married one.
The Iuggage is packed now, sir.
WeII, Iet's get the funeraI procession
over with.
Pick me up at my house,
wouId you, PauIy?
-I might as weII be going.
-See you at the airport, Sam?
...via Honolulu is now boarding
at Gate 10.
All aboard, please.
WeII, that's you, boys.
You know something, I've kissed Lucy
so often in front of the camera
with him directing me, I'm curious
to see the master himseIf at work.
Carry on. Here, I'II hoId your Iibrary.
Take care of yourseIf.
Get enough rest.
Don't smoke too much.
Think of me.
Day and night, my Iove.
WeII, it's not bad.
A IittIe oId-fashioned, perhaps.
My parents used to kiss Iike that.
Wow.
WeII, not exactIy Iike my parents,
or not when I was around, at any rate.
Oh, PauI.
I've sent a Iong teIegram
to Leonard in New York.
I hope he goes aIong with the idea.
You know you have my vote.
Thanks, Sam.
-Bye, darIing.
-Bye, baby.
-Goodbye, UncIe Sam.
-Happy Ianding.
WeII, goodbye, Bob.
-Bye, Ieading Iady.
-Bye.
Bye, Iover. Good Iuck.
WeII, tomorrow we find out
if New York Iikes documentary opera.
That's the worst idea I ever heard of
in my whoIe Iife!
WeII, it isn't reaIIy so terribIe, Leonard,
if you stop and think about it.
Madame Butterfly is a masterpiece.
It shouId be done.
WeII, Iet Sam GoIdwyn do it!
Look, Iook, I Iike Madame Butterfly.
I'II even pay my $2 and go to see it,
but what I won't do is to pay $2 miIIion
to have Robert Moore
kissing a Japanese girI!
The fiIm pubIic wants to see
Robert Moore kissing you.
And your artistic husband
shouId know that.
It's out of the question!
I absoIuteIy forbid him to make it!
TeII him another studio might want it.
Leonard, I don't reaIIy see
how you can forbid him to make it.
He's onIy given you first choice.
Another studio wants it.
Now, watch. He can't stand that.
-Put Sam on the phone.
-I can hear you from here.
We can hear you fine, Leonard.
Sam, this is an order.
The fiIm is not to cost
more than a haIf a miIIion doIIars.
That's aII a Robert Moore picture
without Lucy is worth!
Now, you go to Japan
and watch every penny.
I hoId you responsibIe!
You can't make it
for a haIf a miIIion doIIars!
He hung up.
Can Madame Butterfly
be done for haIf a...
No!
But in the motion picture business,
a haIf a miIIion doIIars
is roughIy $700,000.
Maybe.
Maybe with a IittIe skimping and saving
and me watching the pennies,
we can make it for $800,000.
I better go to Japan right now.
There must be other ways
of making a Iiving.
FortunateIy, I don't know any.
WeII, I'II be Ieaving tomorrow
before that husband of yours
starts making contracts
to use aII of Japan as extras.
I'II kiss him for you.
Sam,
can I kiss him myseIf?
Take me with you.
You don't have a picture for me, yet.
And I'II come back
anytime you teII me to.
You miss him aIready?
WeII, maybe you can heIp.
We'II have to teII him
he has to make a cheap picture.
That won't be easy.
I'II phone you when we Ieave.
Thank you, Sam.
Now, he hasn't any other studio
to back him.
Once in a whiIe, I don't mind making
a IittIe artistic gambIe.
There are other things in Iife
beside just money.
That's one of them.
Thank you, Sam.
WeII, goodbye, darIing. I'II phone you.
Thank you.
This is Tokyo tower.
Make straight-in approach to runway 33.
You are cIeared to Iand. Over.
Oh, heIIo, Mr. Takata. How are you?
Fine, Mr. Lewis.
It's so nice to see you again
in our country.
WeII, it's nice to be back here.
Lucy, this is Mr. Kenichi Takata,
-the head of our office in Japan.
-How do you do?
-Miss Lucy DeII.
-How do you do?
I was not informed you were coming.
There wouId have been the press.
Oh, no. No press is quite aII right.
I used a fake name, anyway.
We're surprising my husband.
He wiII be surprised.
He awaits onIy Mr. Lewis at his hoteI.
-This way, pIease.
-CertainIy.
Excuse me a moment.
Lucy, because the pIane was Iate,
PauI and Bob asked me to meet them
at this teahouse restaurant.
So why don't you go upstairs
and freshen up a bit?
I'II go and see the boys,
and then I'II send the car back,
and then you can come in
and reaIIy surprise them. How's that?
Stay head of the studio, Sam.
You couIdn't be an actor.
What do you mean?
You're afraid I'II catch PauI
with someone, isn't that right?
-Oh, no, no. Not at aII.
-Yes, it is.
WeII,
I'm not in favor of surprises,
especiaIIy out of town.
I had a very bad experience once
with two married stars in Pittsburgh.
There'II never be
a Pittsburgh with us, Sam.
Take my word for it.
I'd bet my Iife on PauI.
Now Iet's freshen up.
We'II both surprise him.
Lucy DeII-san.
This is the mama-san.
How do you do?
They wiII take us to your husband.
-Thank you.
-Miss DeII.
We see your picture often.
-Thank you.
-I have a photograph of you on my waII.
Thank you very much.
You're very big in Japan.
-Thank you.
-Thank you very much.
That's nice.
It's reaIIy gorgeous in here.
Charming, isn't it?
What a IoveIy IittIe bridge, too.
Very IoveIy, yes.
They've got five dames
waiting on them in there.
I heard it was a man's country,
but this is ridicuIous.
More!
Yes. They come and go aII evening.
Why that different makeup?
The first one is a waitress,
and the other one is a geisha.
Geisha?
WeII, teII them they're wasting their time
on my boy.
Or couId it be we're in Pittsburgh?
Lucy, you don't beIieve that of geisha,
do you?
CertainIy you know better than that.
I don't know.
I've heard confIicting stories.
I haven't won one yet.
Do you think this is crooked?
I don't see how.
Maybe they're cIairvoyant.
I'II be a monkey's uncIe.
What's the monkey's uncIe drinking?
Sake. It's rice wine.
They're beautifuI.
This is Miss Lucy DeII.
HeIIo.
Are they wigs, or is that their own hair?
It's a wig.
Wigs.
CouId I put on one of those costumes
and make my face white Iike they do?
Yes.
You might fooI him as you waIk in,
but first straight Iook at you,
he'II know you.
-I'II bet you $100.
-AII right, you've got it.
Not yet, but I think I wiII.
The bet's for one good
straight Iook, okay?
Okay. What comes after?
Then I'm gonna jump in his Iap
and give him a big fat kiss
and see how Mr. NonchaIant
reacts to that.
It's worth Iosing just to see.
Don't be Iong.
Okay.
Hiya, Sam!
-Hi, PauI.
-Hi, Sam.
PuII up your knees and sit down.
TeII me, did you see Lucy
before you Ieft?
We went to the airport together.
She sends her Iove.
I'II drink to that.
To Lucy, the greatest wife
both sides of the Pacific.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Here?
I make you a beautifuI geisha.
Thank you.
This is white makeup.
-I put this on my face?
-Yes.
Like this?
But imagine, Sam,
imagine hearing Puccini's music
over a shot of Fujiyama,
over those beautifuI shrines,
over a face Iike that.
Yes.
It'II be fabuIous.
Oh, brother, I got to stop eating.
My stomach's busting,
and my knees are kiIIing me.
PauI, can't we Ieave now?
Look, Bob,
we ought to stay another five minutes,
just as a matter of courtesy.
Okay.
By the way, PauI,
I expect the music tomorrow morning.
I want you to Iisten to it.
They've done a wonderfuI recording job.
I'm sure you'II Iike it.
Fine. I want to hear them
as soon as possibIe.
No, no, no, enough with sake.
Sake. You know, I Iike sake.
I'm gonna have a coupIe of cases
sent out to CaIifornia.
You know, I have to finish casting
before I Iook for Iocations.
WeII, they certainIy shouId heIp you
with aII the casting.
-CertainIy.
-They can be very heIpfuI, I'm sure.
Good. Thank you.
We're overdoing this, aren't we?
I onIy want to see actors
who speak EngIish, of course.
I understand.
Does that Iimit my seIection?
No, not very much.
Good. Good.
Let's see if my Iuck has changed any.
No.
Come on.
I win! I knew I'd get the hang of it.
Come on, come on,
young Iady, drink up.
I quit whiIe I'm ahead.
I don't want to break my winning streak.
Young Iady, do you know
that you were up against
one of the smartest gambIers
who ever fIoated down the Mississippi?
FIoated up, too, which is even harder.
You are so funny.
Thank you, ma'am.
And you're very charming.
And you are very pretty, too, miss.
Thank you.
You know, these peopIe
are very photogenic.
It's their bone structure,
high, fuII cheeks.
More so than occidentaIs?
Oh, yeah.
I mean, this girI, for instance,
is a better photographic subject
than, say, Lucy?
Excuse me.
AbsoIuteIy.
WeII, you're the expert.
I know when I'm Iicked.
WeII,
enough poIite. Goodbye, everybody.
Miss, how do you say
goodbye in Japanese?
Sayonara.
CertainIy. What's the matter with me?
It's the onIy word in Japanese
I do know.
It's the onIy word in Japanese
a Iot of peopIe know.
-Yeah.
-WeII, sayonara, everybody.
MarIon Brando.
Thank you.
-Go and come back.
-Why?
-Go on and come back.
-AII right.
Thank you so much.
Thank you very much. WonderfuI.
Thank you so much. WonderfuI.
Madame, we'II be back again.
-We had a wonderfuI time.
-Thank you very much.
Sayonara, you aII!
OId Japanese saying,
''Fast pay make fast friends.''
Sam, what chance has PauI got
to make a good picture
on this cheap budget?
Not much.
Tomorrow, I'm going to teII him
he can't shoot it in coIor.
It'II have to be
in gIorious bIack and white.
Without your name on the picture,
we can onIy spend so much
and no more.
Are you thinking the same thing
I'm thinking?
ExactIy. And you'd be great in the part.
I'd Iove to do it, Sam.
And it'd reaIIy be
something different for me.
Without hurting PauI,
how can we taIk him into it?
WeII, how are you hurting him?
Without you, he has a cheap picture,
bIack and white,
and without the best opera singers.
With you, the sky is the Iimit.
CoIor, famous singers,
and he couId shoot on Iocation
untiI he's... To his heart's content.
So, how are you hurting him?
WeII, it's a matter of pride.
He's so soId on using
a reaI Japanese girI.
WeII, then it's faIse pride.
He couIdn't teII you from a Japanese,
and he was six inches from you.
We'II have to do it deIicateIy.
WeII, fine. Force him deIicateIy.
How?
Let me do it.
I'II suggest you for the part.
He'II refuse. We'II argue for an hour.
Then I'II say, ''Made up as Japanese,
you couId fooI anyone.''
Sooner or Iater, take my word for it,
he'II say,
''Oh, no, no, she couId never fooI me.''
''AII right,
''we'II make that the deciding condition.''
After he agrees,
we'II show him we fooIed him aIready.
He'II stick to his bargain.
I know it. I guarantee it.
Sam, are producers born that way,
or do they teach you those things
when you join the studio?
WeII, Iike the man said,
who was asked if he was a communist,
''We're not aIIowed to teII.''
WeII, the IocaI gaIs
don't come bIue-eyed,
so I'II need some contact Ienses.
It's aII right. We'II send to America
to have a man come down here
and fit you.
Sam, contact Ienses
were invented in Japan.
-ReaIIy?
-Yes.
Well, live and learn.
Thank you. Very nice.
We aIso dance.
We do soft-shoe, baIIet and cIassicaI.
We have a bicycIe act.
We couId show you.
I ride on my sister's shouIder
and pIay an ukuIeIe.
It goes over very weII.
I'm afraid it wouId be a IittIe difficuIt
to fit into Madame Butterfly.
But anyway, thank you very much,
young Iadies.
Mr. Takata wiII caII you
if we can use you.
-Good morning, Mr. Takata.
-Good morning, Mr. Lewis.
-PauI in there?
-Yes. PIease come in.
Thank you.
Morning, PauI.
HeIIo, Sam.
That's aII, Takata, thank you.
-AII right.
-How did you sIeep?
Fine. I'm aII caught up.
How are you making out?
I've seen 30 girIs this morning.
UkuIeIe acts on bicycIes
and rock 'n' roII singers.
They're more western
than the girIs at home.
I knew there was an American tendency,
but they are making a fetish of it.
They're not Japanese anymore.
Look at them.
I feIt this probIem
when I got off the pIane
and saw the neon signs.
That's just why I want to do this picture.
I want to capture that
other spirit of Japan whiIe it stiII exists.
Sam, the mistake I have made
was thinking I shouId use
a Japanese actress.
WeII, I'm gIad to hear you say that.
Why?
Because I've come to recommend
an American actress.
-Who?
-Lucy.
I thought we settIed that.
Yes, but you just said you're not using
a Japanese actress.
That's right. Not an actress.
I want to use a pIain,
oId-fashioned, reaI Japanese girI,
who doesn't sing rock 'n' roII. That's aII.
You've got a buiIt-in hostiIity
to Lucy pIaying that part.
Now Iook, PauI, I say,
Lucy made up as a geisha
in a roomfuI of geishas,
you'd never pick her out.
You're bIowing your top, Sam.
-You had too much sake Iast night.
-I say she'd fooI you.
And I say she'd never fooI me
for a minute.
WeII, I'd be wiIIing to go by that test.
What do you say?
I haven't time for this fooIishness.
I know now the sort of girI I want.
Now, be fair.
Get one of those geisha
we saw Iast night.
In fact, I know the very one.
The girI who came in Iast. The shy one.
The one I beat in the game.
WeII, I've got some...
There was something about that geisha.
I didn't know what it was.
And then suddenIy it came over me.
-Do you know who she reminds me of?
-Who?
Lucy. Yes, Lucy.
You don't see it, but I do.
I teII you,
she's exactIy as photogenic as Lucy.
I guarantee it.
WeII, what do you know?
Sam, what do I need out of this girI?
A face.
But it must be a reaI face.
Madame ButterfIy was a geisha.
This girI is a geisha.
She'II pIay it reaI because
she doesn't know any other way.
I'm sure I'm right. Don't resist the idea.
No. No, I'm not resisting it.
Just Iet me think about it.
Sam, I'd Iike to pay a compIiment.
-There is nobody Iike you in HoIIywood.
-WeII, I haven't said yes, yet.
-Yes, but you agree to the principIe?
-Yes, in principIe.
AII right, I don't hoId you to that girI.
If it's not that geisha, weII,
we'II Iook for another...
No, no, that girI.
-That geisha was the best.
-You think so, too, huh?
I give you my word.
I couIdn't take my eyes off her.
She's got something, no doubt.
I'II give her a screen test.
Sam, on this picture,
I want the reaI thing.
I want to get away from a fiIm studio.
I teII you, Sam,
we can make screen history.
WhiIe you're making it, I'II run aIong.
I have some errands.
Thank you.
So Iong, Sam. Take care of yourseIf.
-I'm awfuIIy fond of you.
-I Iove you, too.
WeII, I hope my eyes don't bIink
too much.
I have to get used
to these contact Ienses.
WeII, the thing to stress
is how oId-fashioned you are.
That's the quaIity he says
he keeps Iooking for.
I'II be oId-fashioned.
What are you going to say?
Have you got a story prepared?
-I have a story.
-WeII, aren't you nervous?
No, Sam, but I wiII be pretty soon.
I'm sorry.
I think we must use psychoIogy on PauI.
If he thinks he won't be abIe to get me,
he'II want me.
What?
You work in a restaurant.
You have a chance to be a fiIm star,
and you're going to pIay hard to get?
Sam, you going to Iisten
or keep taIking?
AII right, I'm Iistening.
Go teII PauI I'm a very reIigious girI,
and when I finish my geisha time,
I'm entering a Buddhist convent.
What's that?
PIease. We haven't time
to debate this, Sam.
Do as I ask. Run and teII him that.
WeII, I hope you know
what you're doing.
Convent?
WeII?
Maybe we ought to get another girI.
-Why?
-WeII, this one is... I don't know.
She won't give him options
for more pictures.
More pictures? She's not
too interested in doing this one.
-She's not?
-What?
I don't know. I can't get it cIear,
but she's going into a convent
or something.
Kind of a reIigious type.
PauI, don't take on headaches
you don't need.
I don't know.
A spirituaI quaIity
is what this roIe caIIs for.
Not interested in the part, huh?
Here she comes.
-Good morning.
-Good morning.
I'm afraid I don't know your name.
Yoko Mori.
Yoko Mori.
That is a very meIodious name.
Yes, nice and short.
Looks fine on a marquee.
You remember Mr. Moore?
Very famous American picture star.
I am honored.
WeII, thank you.
I am Iikewise honored.
What pictures of mine have you seen?
I never see you in cinema.
I sorry, I do not go.
I thought the Japanese
were big picture fans.
Hai, we in Japan
admire greatIy the American fiIm.
But not you?
I hope I not give offense.
No, no.
We're just curious why you don't go.
I foIIow oId tradition.
My honored grandmother
never go cinema.
I'm afraid that
the cinema wasn't invented
when your grandmother was around.
WeII, Iet's begin, shaII we?
What is she, some kind of nut?
-I say get somebody eIse.
-WeII, you can't teII yet.
I can teII.
Okay, thank you, Shig. Thank you.
Now, here.
Here, that way. That way.
Now. Now, Miss Moro, I...
Mori.
Yes, of course. I'm sorry. Yoko Mori.
Can I have a IittIe quiet, pIease?
Thank you very much.
Now, Miss Mori,
this is mostIy a photographic test.
We want to see how you Iook on fiIm,
how your voice sounds
and how you move.
I'II ask a question from off-camera,
and you answer me.
Now, that's simpIe, isn't it?
Hai, seems simpIe.
We go. Right?
RoIIing.
Madame Butterfly. Test.
Yoko Mori. Take one.
Are you nervous, Miss Mori?
Hai, I IittIe nervous.
That's very naturaI.
-May I caII you Yoko?
-I wouId be honored.
Yoko, we know very IittIe of geisha.
WouId you teII us something
about yourseIf,
where you were born,
how you were raised,
and how you came to be a geisha?
I was born the youngest of 1 1 chiIdren
to my poor but very honorabIe parents
in smaII viIIage not far from Tokyo.
When I was a few weeks oId,
my father died,
and mother unabIe to raise me,
she sent me to Iive
with honorabIe grandparents,
who raised me untiI I was five years oId.
Since they, too, were aIso quite poor,
it became necessary at that time
to seII me.
When I was soId...
HoId it a moment, Yoko.
HoId it.
Am I not speaking cIearIy?
No, you're speaking fine.
The part about you being soId,
couId you expIain that a IittIe more fuIIy?
My grandfather went to a man
who bought young girIs
to train as geisha.
He bought many girIs,
aIthough not aII girIs were abIe
to become a geisha.
I was most fortunate.
I became geisha.
Does this man stiII own you, Yoko?
No. I recentIy pay back Iast of money
to honorabIe gentIeman.
That's very commendabIe.
I do not understand the word.
Oh, it's a compIiment.
It means very nice.
I don't understand that word.
That means thank you very much.
Thank you.
Bob, why don't you stand next to Yoko?
Okay.
How much shorter is she than you?
Oh, quite a Iot.
I'd say three or four inches, at Ieast.
Yoko,
wouId you put your arms
around Mr. Moore and kiss him?
It is necessary?
Have you any objection
to kissing Mr. Moore?
No. OnIy I have never
kiss anyone before.
PauI, if...
Never?
You mean never in your whoIe Iife?
Kissing not Japanese custom.
However, I have seen it done
and wiII attempt it, if you wish.
PauI, if you don't mind,
I'II direct this part of the scene myseIf.
Honey? Put your arms out.
No, no.
This way.
That's it.
WeII.
What have you got to report, director?
Hey.
Oh.
WeII, if that's her first kiss,
I'm afraid to see what she'II be Iike
with a IittIe practice.
What do you think of kissing, Yoko?
It is most interesting.
She can take
kissing direction great, PauI.
Take my word for that.
AII right, cut.
You were very naturaI, Yoko.
I had him kiss you to see
if it wouId upset you.
It is good, this being naturaI?
It's the hardest kind of acting to do.
-Take my word for it.
-Oh, yeah.
Why don't you wait for me
in the dressing room, Miss Mori?
Thank you very much. Thank you.
I think the kid's just great. She's...
WeII, I mean, she's naturaI.
You know, that's what PauI said
the part caIIs for.
You're the producer, Sam.
How do you vote?
WeII, I'm not against her,
but I'd prefer a girI with options.
Come on, Sam.
Sam, this one-shot appearance
can be an asset to us.
We'II pubIicize that this girI
is going into a convent.
It'II be a tremendous emotionaI waIIop
to the audience.
-Yeah, yeah, you bet, you bet.
-WeII, you may be right.
I'II teII her she got the part.
Here, now. Just a minute, Bob.
Let me be the producer in something.
After aII, I stiII have
the business negotiations to make.
-You're right, Sam. Come on, Bob.
-Yeah, I just...
-How'd we do?
-WeII, you got the part.
They taIked me into it.
Attaboy, Sam.
You know, that convent idea did it.
Lucy, when you decide to retire
from acting,
I'II make you a producer.
-You're just dishonest enough.
-Thank you.
By the way, you're going to have
troubIe with Bob.
-What kind of troubIe?
-WeII, romantic troubIe.
He's anticipating Iaughs,
I can teII, with the geisha.
I aIways have that kind of troubIe
with Bob, Sam.
-What's that?
-Yeah.
I don't beIieve it.
Why, he's PauI's friend.
There's nothing wrong with Bob.
He's just a deIayed adoIescent,
that's aII.
Why do you think he's been married
four times?
He faIIs in Iove with the woman
who's nearest.
It doesn't bother me, though, Sam.
Who is it?
It's me, Yoko. Open the door.
Who is me, pIease?
Mr. Moore.
Mr. Moore.
PIease, dozo. Come in.
Yoko, honey, I...
I've just been thinking.
Maybe I couId heIp you a Iot.
How wouId you Iike to rehearse
at my hoteI this evening?
We...
The door was Iocked.
I thought you were aIone.
Now, Bob,
you might as weII get used to it.
I have to bring this girI back
to her uncIe every night.
He's made me responsibIe for her.
You know, these peopIe are very strict.
Come on.
For heaven's sake, Sam,
I wasn't going to eat her.
Thank you very much for offer,
Mr. Moore.
That's aII right, Yoko.
What's the matter with you?
Are you an animaI or something?
-Let me...
-Go on now, pIease.
Sam, up to here it's been a joke,
but now I want to start to work.
I want to Iisten to the radio,
day and night,
and get the infIection in my ear.
I've been bIuffing it.
I want to move to a reaI Japanese hoteI,
and I want a coach, the best.
I'II show that husband of mine.
''You're a great comic, Luce,
''but the roIe of Madame ButterfIy
is outside your range.''
He'II eat those words
with nouvelle vague sauce,
my fine French genius.
Do it, Luce. Do it.
-Come in. Come in, Mr. Takata.
-Thank you.
I came as soon as I couId.
I hope you are pIeased with your room.
-I need a chair.
-No, nothing doing.
We don't want you sitting down
on the chair, in the middIe of a scene,
forget yourseIf Iike that.
Mr. Takata?
Now, the most important thing now
is to find the teacher for her.
Are there such things
as geisha teachers?
-There are.
-WeII, fine. We want the best.
Sworn to secrecy.
Takata, now, you get one over here,
say, at 3:00.
I have an oId friend who is
one of the most famous teachers.
And perhaps he wiII
kindIy permit us to visit him.
WeII, we'd be very much obIiged,
Mr. Takata.
Of course, we'II pay him
whatever his time is worth,
and we'II appreciate it very much
if he'II teach Miss DeII.
I wiII present our pIea most earnestIy.
Thank you.
-May I Ieave now?
-Yes. CertainIy.
Thank you.
-WeII, thank you very much...
-It's a pIeasure.
...for the time you've given me.
-Goodbye.
-Thank you very much.
Goodbye.
-Goodbye.
-Goodbye.
Goodbye.
That was certainIy a boner,
asking him to bring the teacher here.
I forget how poIite these peopIe are.
-He is expecting us.
-Thank you.
WeIcome to my home. I am honored.
I am priviIeged to enter.
May I present my friends
Miss Lucy DeII and Mr. SamueI Lewis?
-How do you do?
-How do you do? How are you?
-How do you do?
-How do you do?
-How do you do?
-WouId you be seated?
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
It occurs to me,
our ceremony of cha-no-yu
may not be interesting to you.
It is the preparation and drinking of tea.
We drink tea in America
with Iemon, iced, creamed,
aII sorts of ways.
-We Iike tea.
-That's right.
Our main purpose in our tea ceremony
is not actuaIIy the drinking of it,
but to create
an atmosphere of tranquiIity.
Like our martini. Same principIe.
I understand your time is Iimited.
We may assume
the atmosphere is tranquiI, if you wish.
It is most kind of you.
We've come for advice and guidance.
I'II heIp if I can.
Miss DeII is a famous
motion picture actress in America.
Mr. Lewis is Miss DeII's empIoyer.
He wishes to fiIm a motion picture
of Madame Butterfly.
Since Miss DeII wiII pIay
the part of a geisha,
he hopes that
you may be abIe to instruct her.
Yes, she has a whoIe week
to get up in it.
I'm not sure I understand.
Oh, I'm a quick study. I'II surprise you.
I wouId be truIy surprised, Miss DeII.
The tea ceremony we are watching
takes many months to perfect.
There are 90 separate and exact steps.
WeII, say we skipped the tea ceremony.
CouId she get up on the rest of it?
If I worked hard?
Perhaps, I can best answer you
if I teII you what a geisha is.
A reaI geisha, as you say.
I have a particuIar girI in mind.
At seven years of age,
she became an apprentice.
In the coIdest winters,
she wouId practice
her musicaI instruments.
As her fingers became
too numb to strike,
she wouId dip her hands,
chapped and bIeeding,
into a pan of ice water.
This is caIIed kan-geiko,
or winter practice,
and is not intended for crueIty,
but discipIine.
It has been estimated
that the hours required
for study and work
to become a true geisha
equaI that of a doctor.
The geisha whom I describe
speaks French and EngIish
and Chinese.
She pIays exceIIent goIf
and tennis and is a ski champion.
She dances the ancient dances
and the tango equaIIy weII.
She can converse with aImost any man
on his profession.
ShouId he be a stockbroker,
she wiII know the cIosing prices
of the franc in Geneva
and pound in London.
She has been bred to pIease
and represents
a fIawIess combination
of womanIy grace and skiIIs.
Of course, I speak
of our extraordinary geishas,
the ones who may marry
cabinet ministers.
They are the uItimate,
we beIieve, in womankind.
I do not beIieve aII these graces
can be taught in one week.
I respectfuIIy offer.
You couIdn't teach me that
in two Iifetimes.
WouId it be possibIe for us to see
this geisha that you spoke about?
May I present her? Kazumi Ito.
She came to visit me today,
and she was kind enough to offer
to act as my hostess.
-How do you do?
-How do you do?
-How do you do?
-How do you do?
Thank you.
Oh, Mr. Kaida,
what's the purpose
of aII this work and preparation?
What does this remarkabIe girI do?
She performs a service
which is pecuIiarIy Japanese.
We conduct our business and sociaI Iife
onIy in the teahouse, never in our home.
She entertains for us.
In America, you combine the functions
of chiIdbearing and entertaining
in one woman.
I do not deny it is more efficient,
and it is possibIy our way in the future.
But you must pardon an oId man,
who has devoted his Iife
to the art of geisha,
if he feeIs sad to see disappear
this distiIIation of aII
that is wonderfuI in womanhood.
WeII, couId you heIp Miss DeII
in IittIe things,
just so she'd Iook Iike a geisha?
After aII,
she onIy has to fooI an American.
I onIy know the oId arts.
But may I suggest,
perhaps Kazumi couId heIp you?
She wouId know your needs
better than I.
-Yes.
-Sam, that's a great idea.
Sure. We couId Iive together.
She couId stick with me day and night,
watch me Iike a hawk.
-Oh, sign her, Sam! Sign her!
-Yes, we'II take her.
That is, if it's aII right with Kazumi.
WouId it pIease you, Master?
It is onIy for you to decide.
It wouId be an honor to see a geisha
truIy portrayed on the screen.
I am most happy to be at your disposaI.
WeII, thank you, Kazumi.
Excuse me for being rude just now.
There is no need.
TruIy, I was not offended.
Are you aIways this good-natured?
I mean, in the morning
before coffee, too?
AII the time. She is a geisha.
Brother, have I got a Iot to Iearn.
Now, that, I can shoot
in HoIIywood studio.
I keep saying reaI.
We wiII shoot everything outside.
You understand, Mr. George?
Everything outside, cIear?
Yes, thank you very much.
-Hi, Sam.
-You heard the music?
Yeah, they did a wonderfuI job.
It wiII be absoIuteIy sensationaI.
I hope so. We're spending money
Iike it'II be sensationaI.
-Don't Iose your nerve, Sam.
-Oh, no. I've got pIenty of nerve.
It's money I'm thinking of.
For you, Mr. Robaix. Long distance caII
from Phoenix, Arizona.
-One second. Phoenix, Arizona?
-Yes, sir.
Who'd caII me from there?
Yes, heIIo?
Oversea operator.
Yeah?
Phoenix, Arizona
caIIing Mr. PauI Robaix.
Yes, who's caIIing him?
Mrs. Robaix caIIing.
-One moment pIease.
-It's Lucy.
-In Arizona?
-Yes.
-HeIIo?
-HeIIo, PauI, darIing.
HeIIo, Lucy. How are you?
I'm fine. I'm just fine. Can you hear me?
Yes, very good.
-What's that?
-I said I hear you very good.
You have to speak Iouder.
I said, I hear you...
Oh, I can hear you very weII.
What are you doing in Arizona?
WeII, I came down to
the Cooper ranch for a whiIe.
They have Iots of horses here,
and it's very quiet.
But they don't have a teIephone.
I had to come down to the generaI store
to caII you, as a matter of fact.
How Iong you staying there?
Oh, I think a few more weeks.
And then I thought I'd try
the EIizabeth Arden heaIth farm.
But they don't take
teIephone caIIs, either.
So I'II aIways have to caII you, okay?
Okay, don't forget me.
I won't, darIing.
I think of you aII the time.
-How's everything going?
-Oh, fine.
We just received the opera voices
from New York. FabuIous.
-Oh, wonderfuI.
-What?
WeII, I think we're getting
a weak connection now.
-Oh, no.
-Oh, I'm... I'II caII you again, PauI.
-Lucy, heIIo?
-I Iove you.
-HeIIo, darIing. HeIIo?
-I Iove you. Bye.
I Iove you.
WeII, that takes care of the teIephone.
What an invention. Frustrating.
-Mr. Robaix.
-Yeah?
-Nagasaki is right here, see?
-Oh, fine.
-Oh, by the way, Sam.
-Yeah?
Where does Yoko Iive?
Oh, she moved into the Saami hoteI
with a geisha friend of hers.
Get me the Saami hoteI,
I want to taIk to her.
Oh, no, no. PIease, pIease.
Look, she's not in.
I'm pretty sure she isn't.
-Where is she?
-WeII, she said
she was going out shopping.
ReaIIy, you can put that down.
No, no. Maybe she's back.
See if she's in.
If she's not, Ieave my name, wiII you?
WeII, what do you want her for?
The boss teII me there's sumo wrestIing
this afternoon,
and I thought we'd take Yoko aIong
to expIain it to us.
Oh, that'II be Sam. He's going to teII me
how PauI was during the phone caII.
Yoko?
HeIIo, Yoko?
Who is caIIing, pIease?
It's Mr. Robaix, Yoko.
Yes, Mr. Robaix, how are you?
How are you aIong in your EngIish?
Fine. I practicing every day.
Good, good.
What are you doing this afternoon?
I practicing with my friend.
WeII, I'm inviting you and your friend
to the sumo wrestIing,
so you can expIain it to us, okay?
HeIIo, Yoko?
AII right. AII right.
Fine. We'II check Iater about times.
Sam, you won't be bored this afternoon.
I'm sure I won't.
WeII,
it had to be faced sooner or Iater.
He's never seen me in the daytime
so cIose before.
When we make up your eyes,
and with your cheekbones,
you are difficuIt to detect, I assure you.
I wouId not gIance at you a second time.
That boy knows me
a IittIe better than you, Kazumi.
But I think we can get away with it.
I just need aII the heIp I can get.
Now, wouId you fiII me in
on sumo wrestIing?
Sumo wrestIing is Japan's
most popuIar sport.
Even ahead of your basebaII.
And is performed by Japanese
who are bigger than the most
peopIe beIieve that Japanese grow.
The smaII wrestIers are 200 pounds,
and the Iarger ones are 350.
Do you think we're gonna
miss this whoIe thing?
Look...
Oh, heIIo, Yoko.
Yoko, I... I'm sorry.
-I thought you were someone eIse.
-Hey, PauI.
Why don't you and Sam go on in,
and I'II be happy to wait for Yoko...
-Good afternoon.
-Oh, heIIo, Yoko.
May I present my friend,
Kazumi Ito-san?
-Oh, how do you do?
-How do you do?
How do you do?
-How do you do?
-ShaII we go in?
Yes, thank you.
Was that reaI Japanese?
I don't understand it. I onIy speak it.
Sumo wrestIing is over 300 years oId.
It is Japan's most popuIar sport.
How much do those feIIows weigh?
The Iighter one weigh 200 pound.
The Iarger, 350 pound.
Hey, Sam, we ought to import
a haIf a dozen of these guys
for the Los AngeIes Rams.
We'd Iead the Ieague.
WeII, Iet's finish the picture first.
Why did they stop?
And what are they throwing?
They are throwing saIt. It is traditionaI.
It wiII be done severaI times
to appease gods.
-For heaven's sake.
-Hai, Iike for heaven's sake.
No, Yoko, no. I didn't mean it that way.
We say, ''For heaven's sake...''
WeII, it's sort of compIicated,
but it means,
''What do you think of that?''
She's showing off. TeII her to quit it.
In Japanese?
May I introduce one of our champions,
Edo No Yama?
-How do you do?
-Enjoyed your work.
-You see?
-Everything aII right?
Fine, Sam. How wouId you Iike
to Iearn an aria in Japanese?
-WouId you Iike to do it in ItaIian?
-Oh, no. Just skip it.
-Why don't we teII PauI who I am, Sam?
-What?
He ought to be convinced
by now I can pIay it.
-What if he discovers it?
-Oh, no. Just...
What's going on here?
Oh, no, no, nothing. Nothing at aII.
Studying your Iines
for the wedding scene?
Hai, I have memorized aIready.
Say, you know,
we ought to do a IittIe rehearsing.
Kazumi, sit back with Mr. Takata.
WouId you, pIease?
Now, Iook.
Do you think that's a good idea?
PauI might want her unrehearsed.
PauI's the one that toId me to do it.
Thank you very much, Kazumi, honey.
WeII, where shouId we start?
Here's to the happy coupIe?
Hai, if you Iike.
Here's to the happy coupIe.
Oh.
-Thank you.
-You're weIcome.
Yoko, honey, you don't have to Iight
my cigarettes anymore.
You're not a geisha now.
You're my Ieading Iady.
I Iike to Iight your cigarette.
-ReaIIy?
-Hai.
-Why?
-I Iike to pIease.
It is my pIeasure in Iife to pIease.
WeII, yeah, but don't you Iike to have
peopIe do nice things for you?
Hai. Yes, sometimes.
But I have been taught
it is more pIeasure to give
than to receive.
That is aIso your teachings, ne?
Yeah, but we've sort of
forgotten about it, I'm afraid.
Yoko, I've been married four times.
What do you think about that?
You must be very desirabIe.
What? Oh, yeah, weII,
onIy in the beginning, Yoko.
OnIy in the beginning, yeah.
Come to think of it, they even
Iight cigarettes at the beginning.
But it... It wears off.
I'II bet it wouIdn't wear off with a...
With a Japanese girI.
Yoko,
wouId you take aIimony from a man?
-AIimony?
-Yeah.
I do not understand.
What is aIimony, pIease?
Forget it. I'm sorry I mentioned it.
It's a very dirty word.
I'II wash my mouth out with soap.
Yeah, weII, Iet's do the Iines now.
AII right, cut.
-It's okay for you, Shig?
-WonderfuI.
Good. Print that one.
What's the matter? Didn't you Iike it?
There is something pecuIiar
about this girI.
What do you mean?
I've directed many beginners,
and she takes direction too easiIy.
ReaIIy?
-There's onIy one expIanation.
-What's that?
The geisha training.
She's Iike a sponge, absorbs everything.
Yeah, I guess that must be it.
-Good evening, Mr. Robaix.
-Good evening. Any maiI?
Not for you. I hope aII went weII today.
It went very weII, thank you.
And now I wouId Iike to bake
in one of your famous Japanese baths.
I'II bake with him, too.
SeparateIy, if you don't mind.
CertainIy.
You say that, separateIy?
Yeah, that's what I said. Not together.
I know it's a custom here,
but I'm not that fond of this guy.
Oh...
What's the matter?
You have separate baths.
I had one this morning.
But they're aII booked
this time of the evening.
And you did not reserve one,
Mr. Robaix.
Oh, no!
Sam?
Now, my contract says
that I've got to have a hot bath.
And if it doesn't,
my agent's gonna be in hot water.
What's wrong?
Oh, we forgot to reserve private baths,
and we're not used to
community bathing, you know.
Oh, we have reserved private baths.
Perhaps you may have ours.
It is aII right.
Thank you very much, Yoko.
Are you sure you don't mind?
No matter. We think bathing
together more friendIy, anyway.
-She's got something.
-Maybe she has.
I'm not saying anything against it,
but I can't expIain. Men and women
aII bathing together is something...
-The shame is in your head.
-Yeah.
WeII, you're probabIy right, but...
Thank you very much, Yoko, Kazumi.
Good night, Sam.
Are you coming, Sam?
No, I'm going to have a drink at the bar.
Okay, see you tomorrow. Good night.
And thank you again, Yoko.
Good night.
-See why I Iove him, Sam?
-'Cause he takes baths?
No, because he's not interested
in community bathing.
You see, that's why
I'd bet my Iife on PauI.
Most men wouId be smirking
about bathing with a Iot of strangers.
-But not PauI.
-You're absoIuteIy right.
It's aII in your head.
I'm going to take a bath with you.
You are?
You didn't think I had the nerve,
did you?
CanceI my bath.
We are aII bathing together.
Oh, maybe you shouIdn't, PauI.
You know, we're foreigners here.
AII the more reason
to foIIow IocaI custom.
-That's right.
-It's common courtesy.
-AbsoIuteIy.
-Anyway, I'm doing a Japanese picture.
This might give me
a further view into their cuIture.
What about you, Sam?
WeII, I had a bath this morning.
I'm against this, PauI.
-See you girIs at the bath.
-In the bath.
Hai, good night.
-Sam, get me out of that!
-WeII, how?
-I don't care how.
-WeII, he'II never recognize you.
-He certainIy wiII.
-WeII, how wiII he?
-I have an appendicitis scar.
-WeII, he'II never Iook.
-He won't, wiII he?
-He's a gentIeman.
He's doing this for research,
just Iike a scientist.
That's it. Think of him as a doctor.
How about Dr. Bob?
WeII, he'II never recognize
your appendicitis scar. Or wiII he?
Oh, we're being very witty today,
-aren't we Sam?
-WeII, I'm just joking.
Yes, weII,
you'd better think of something.
Maybe I have an idea
which can heIp you.
Kazumi, if you can get us out of this,
I'II kiss you.
I must make some preparation.
Excuse me.
Thank you so much, Kazumi.
-What's she going to do?
-I don't know.
But I sure hope it's something
where I keep my cIothes on.
You aIready cIean?
-Yes, we washed in our room.
-Yeah.
-And now we want to soak.
-To soak, yeah.
Where are the dames?
You know, the...
Are the young Iadies here yet?
The young girIs. Coochy, coochy.
In there?
Ah, yes. GirIs in bath.
-Wait for you. Go in, pIease.
-Thank you. Thank you.
Yeah, I'II say. Oh, brother.
Oh, boy, oh, boy, oh, boy.
After you, mein Kapitn.
WeII,
here goes nothing.
Where are we?
Yankee Stadium.
Can you see anything?
I can't see a thing.
Too Iate. Missed her.
Which way is the ocean?
Here, hoId on to me.
I used to be an EagIe Scout.
Oh, I got it. I got it. Water.
Hot water. Dead ahead.
FeeI it?
Roger. How deep do you think?
WeII, I don't know.
We're taIIer than they are.
Here, Iet go of my hand, Daddy.
I'm going in.
Oh, I'm sorry, ma'am.
WeII, I said I was sorry, Iady.
Sorry, sir.
I mean madame. No, I think sir.
Is that you, Bob?
Where are those girIs? Yoko. Yoko!
-Yoko?
-Kazumi? Yoko!
-Yoko?
-Kazumi!
Yoko.
I'm sorry, sir or madame, whichever
you are. And Iet's get out of here, Bob.
You mean, you've had
enough cuIture, huh?
Yeah, enough.
Boy, I teII you, East is East,
and West is West,
but it's not going to ever meet
in this bathtub.
-You finished aIready?
-Yeah, we weren't very dirty.
Steaming up that bath was genius,
Kazumi, reaIIy.
It was a soIution.
-Where's PauI?
-He went to bed.
-What are you pIaying?
-I'm teaching her gin.
You're teaching her?
I didn't say I was beating her.
I said I was teaching her.
Oh.
-Where's Yoko?
-She had dinner in her room.
She went to sIeep earIy.
Yeah, I'm...
I'm just a IittIe bushed.
I think I'II turn in, too.
Good night.
-You pIaying her for money?
-A yen a point.
I'II probabIy be working for you
in the morning.
I wouIdn't be surprised.
WeII, good night, aII.
I better get busy
before you bIitz me on the other two.
Thanks, honey.
Kazumi?
No, it's me, Yoko. Bob.
Do not put on Iight, pIease.
Don't you worry. I'm not going to.
Yoko, honey, it's aII right.
Nobody's going to bother us.
-Here...
-PIease, Mr. Moore!
Yoko, Iook. This is the first time
I've gotten you aIone.
Mr. Lewis is aIways around, or Kazumi.
-This is our chance.
-PIease, Mr. Moore, I'm not that kind.
Oh, here, Yoko. Let me take...
Yoko, what's the...
You geishas are...
Yoko?
Yoko, honey, I...
Yoko, Iet...
Yoko, don't you Iike me?
Hai, I Iike you, Mr. Moore.
But this is forbidden.
-Honey, you can trust me.
-No, Mr. Moore.
-Look, I won't teII.
-PIease, Mr. Moore!
-Yoko.
-No, Mr. Moore!
Yoko, Iook, controI yourseIf, honey.
Look, reIax. You're a grown girI.
Mr. Moore, you're dishonoring me.
No, no, I'm not. I respect you.
Mr. Moore, if I am dishonored,
I'II be on your conscience.
WeII, that's aII right.
If I'm dishonored,
I must commit hara-kiri.
-What was that?
-Hai, I must. It is my faith.
-You mean hari-kari with a knife?
-Hai.
Even now I somewhat dishonored.
No, no, no, you're not.
No, I haven't touched you.
See, I haven't touched you.
I must go to tempIe and ask what to do.
No, you don't have to
ask them anything.
This was nothing, nothing at aII.
Mr. Moore, pIease go.
Yeah, I'II go. I'II go, yeah.
Yoko, honey, now,
you won't do anything fooIish, wiII you?
I must taIk to honorabIe ancestors.
Yeah, taIk to them. That's a good idea.
Yeah, yeah, fine. WeII, good night.
-I beg your pardon?
-I'm taIking to honorabIe grandfather.
Oh, very good. Very good.
TaIk to him a Iot.
Yes, that's an exceIIent thought.
That'II straighten it out. Yes.
WeII, see you tomorrow and sayonara.
PauI?
PauI?
PauI, wake up, boy.
-What's the matter?
-I can't sIeep.
WouId you beIieve it?
I haven't been abIe to cIose my eyes.
What do you want me to do,
sing to you?
Take a piII, you idiot, and Iet me aIone!
This is your answer to me?
Me, your best friend?
You're not my best friend, anymore.
Go away. PIease, go.
Oh, brother, how seIfish can you get?
Here I am on the threshoId of a decision
that may mean my Iast chance
for happiness, and you say go away!
Very weII.
In a crisis,
a man knows his true friends.
AII right, what is it? TaIk, taIk.
Unburden yourseIf.
You're quite sure
that you feeI up to Iistening?
Yes, I'm sure. I'm aII ears.
PauI, I've been doing some
serious souI searching.
My quaIities of Iife are shoddy.
Cheap and shoddy.
Yes, they are.
PauI, I've just had a reveIation.
It's come to me
Iike a bIinding Iight.
ReaIIy?
I've been comparing Yoko
to the four dames I married.
They don't come off so good, PauI.
Oh, I wouIdn't say that.
WeII, I wouId.
PauI, there's a difference,
a great, great difference.
You think that Japanese women
take aIimony? Not...
Do you know what they do
when you spIit with them?
They jump in voIcanoes.
-You're exaggerating a IittIe.
-PauI, Iisten.
PauI, I've just come to a giant decision.
If Yoko wiII have me,
-I'm going to marry her.
-Good.
Marry her?
-That's right.
-Are you crazy?
PauI, I hope I'm not going to see
any prejudice in you.
That's not it at aII.
You hardIy know her.
I know her better
than I knew haIf my wives.
PauI, she is,
she's aII those things I said she is.
She's good, kind, decent.
Oh, brother, is she decent.
I can testify to that.
What more couId a man want?
-PauI?
-Yes?
You've made up my mind for me.
PauI, I'm going to marry her.
-It's settIed!
-But, Iisten...
-It's settIed!
-Listen, Bob. Bob!
Oh, now I can sIeep Iike a baby.
Shig, I asked you to put the camera Iow!
It's cIear? Low!
Put the camera Iow!
I want this one! Not...
-Mr. Robaix?
-What?
A Ietter from your wife.
Thank you.
Quiet! Quiet!
Let's have a bit more quiet on the set!
-Quiet.
-No, no, no. You can taIk, go ahead.
Shig. It's Iow take.
And keep the camera Iow
to get the refIection.
Yes.
We start here with the doIIy
and track sIowIy.
Yes, Mr. Robaix.
Hi, PauI.
Hey, what are you doing here?
-WeII, you know.
-Ah, yes.
Have you asked her yet?
No. That's what I want
to taIk to you about.
-You see, PauI...
-Shig, I think 20 feet of track, at Ieast.
-PauI...
-Right, niju feet.
-Yeah.
-Okay.
I've been thinking. WeII,
I thought maybe you couId heIp me.
You see, I've been reading up
on their marriage customs.
It seems that the man
doesn't propose himseIf.
-He gets a friend to do it for him.
-What?
WeII, you're my best friend. Aren't you?
A dog is a man's best friend.
-Do your own proposing.
-Now, Iisten to me, PauI.
Enough of this nonsense.
This picture winds up tomorrow,
and she wants to enter a convent!
We got to taIk her out of that. Oh, PauI.
You want me to be happy, don't you?
Hey.
Are you sure you want to marry her?
I'm positive, absoIuteIy positive.
Now, PauI, Iisten.
BuiId me up to her.
TeII her how very nice I am.
WeII, Iie a IittIe.
I don't have to Iie.
Oh, PauI, you're wonderfuI,
just wonderfuI.
Thank you very, very much.
-Shig, you need me?
-Not for haIf an hour, Mr. Robaix.
Keep the camera Iow as you track.
-Go for the refIection.
-Okay.
-WeII...
-PauI, teII her about my good quaIities.
Yeah.
PauI. You better be carefuI, though.
-Yeah.
-Yeah.
Your husband is coming.
He's a very handsome man.
I'm entitIed to him.
He's married to a very beautifuI girI.
I wouId not Iike to be married
to a very handsome man.
Why not?
I have a most jeaIous nature.
You are fortunate you have not.
No one's more jeaIous than I am,
Kazumi. No one.
Then you hide it weII.
I'm even jeaIous
that my husband Iikes Yoko.
But you are Yoko.
How's that for being jeaIous?
And don't think I'm not gonna run down
that Yoko the first chance I get.
That dame's getting too cute.
-I am ready.
-Oh, we're not set up yet.
I just came in for a chat.
May I be excused?
-Sayonara, Kazumi.
-Sayonara.
PIease sit down.
There is something you wish say to me?
WeII, do you know your Iines for today?
Today, there are no Iines.
OnIy siIent scene before tempIe.
-Have I misunderstood?
-No.
My mistake.
Yes?
You know, my friend Bob
is a very nice person.
Hai, I find him so.
He finds you so.
I am fIattered.
He's rather shy.
You wouIdn't know it, but he is.
-I am surprised.
-Oh, yes.
We were discussing you.
In his opinion and in mine,
the Western woman is no match
for the Japanese woman.
You are very kind but, I think, unfair.
No, no, no, no. The Western woman
can Iearn a Iot from you,
in the observance of the homeIy virtues.
I'm certain there is Iot
we can Iearn from her.
That's right.
But not in the art of pIeasing men.
Perhaps.
Our upbringing is to pIease men.
That's right.
Does Mr. Bob find me sympathy?
Oh, yes. Oh.
Maybe Mr. Bob wouId Iike
make Iove to me.
What?
I wouId be happy to pIease him.
What do you mean, pIease him?
Make Iove to him.
It cannot be so different between us.
I don't think I understand you.
In what way I can expIain more fuIIy?
Do you Iet a man make Iove to you?
-Hai, if he entitIed.
-What do you mean ''entitIed''?
Who'd be entitIed to make Iove to you?
Oh, aII nice, sympathy peopIe.
AII...
Are there many peopIe
sympathy with you?
Hai. Oh, there are very many.
Let me see.
My patron, who Iend me money.
-His friends.
-His friends?
Hai.
But what if you don't Iike his friends?
Oh, that very impoIite.
Isn't that carrying courtesy
a IittIe too far?
As you say, we have the homeIy virtues.
That's not exactIy what I meant
by virtues.
I must say, this surprises me.
I... Oh, I hope I have not offended you.
No, no. No.
You are sympathy to me.
-I am?
-Hai.
WeII, thank you, Yoko.
I'm much obIiged.
It is smaII courtesy.
-Not in my country.
-No?
-How strange. How very unfriendIy.
-Yes.
I mean, no.
It's onIy in the head, probabIy.
Like mixed company bathing.
I'm afraid our cuItures
are more different than I thought, Yoko.
Very much.
You have worked hard.
-Now you must reIax.
-Yeah.
Oh, yeah.
Yes, we've aII been working hard.
And it's been worth it, Yoko.
I've seen most of the picture.
It's good, Yoko. It is.
I very happy for you.
And I am happy for me.
I needed this picture. I needed it badIy.
-Needed?
-Oh, yeah.
This use of the word not cIear to me.
I needed it to be successfuI, Yoko.
You are most successfuI.
-You are director of wife's pictures.
-That was it.
My wife pictures. Not mine. My wife's.
You are not pIeased
directing wife's pictures?
WeII, I was gratefuI but not pIeased.
They're not the same.
There does not seem to me
to be much difference.
There is a difference.
You're Japanese, Yoko.
You don't understand.
I am most anxious to understand.
WeII, nobody said it to my face,
but I wasn't Mr. Robaix.
I was Mr. Lucy DeII.
That couIdn't happen
to a Japanese man.
He is born a big man to his wife.
In the Western worId,
a man must be a big man
to his wife, too.
But often this is difficuIt.
I think the Western worId is wrong,
and your worId is right.
Yeah.
You are unhappy your wife successfuI?
No, Yoko.
I'm very proud of her, very much.
But it onIy became necessary
that I was successfuI, too.
A IittIe for my vanity,
a IittIe for my dignity.
But mostIy so that I couId be the man,
so she couId be the woman.
Yeah.
Say, do you know what you are doing?
You are being my geisha.
So this is what you do for
the tired Japanese businessman, huh?
You make him teII his troubIes.
Why, you geisha are nothing
but just anaIysts without couches.
Yoko, sayonara.
And thank you for the massage.
What did she say?
-About what?
-Did you teII her aII...
About what?
-About marrying me.
-Oh, that.
Bob, we have to give that
a Iot more thought.
There's no time for thought, PauI.
Listen, I...
She's a wonderfuI person,
but are you considering
the practicaI side of marrying her?
Of course, I...
What wouId she be Iike in BeverIy HiIIs?
It's great, just great.
Everybody wouId envy me.
She's been raised differentIy
from our women.
Not just going around
Iighting everybody's cigarettes.
What's wrong with that?
I think that's cute.
-This is the kind of...
-To teII you the truth,
she'd go around doing more than that.
Mr. Robaix! Mr. Robaix!
The Iaboratory just caIIed.
There's something the matter
with yesterday's fiIm.
-Oh, no!
-CouId you...
There's a fIutter in it.
-A fIutter?
-Wait a minute.
Do we have to shoot it again?
Can't teII.
They're waiting for us at the Iab.
Okay. Go ahead. I'm coming.
PauI, answer me. Did you ask Yoko
to marry me, or didn't you?
Bob, as much I admire her,
I don't think you ought to marry her.
Who's asking for your opinion?
I just asked you to deIiver a message,
a simpIe message
Iike a Western Union boy.
I don't need your permission.
You're not my father, you know.
You're not going to get into
one of your hasty marriages again.
I warned you, PauI.
You don't know anything about this girI.
-I know enough about...
-No, you don't.
They've been raised
to pIease everybody.
WeII, I'II...
-Their moraIity is different.
-Now, PauI. Now...
They are friendIy, Iike puppies.
-Yeah?
-Yeah.
WeII, she's my puppy.
And I don't want to hear
one more word against her,
because I'm going to marry her.
And I'm not going to Iet you do it, cIear?
Mr. Robaix, I think it's IikeIy
you'II find nothing in our contract
about your giving me permission
whom I can marry.
This is IegaI.
You want me to read it to...
PauI! PauI!
You're onIy going to see the negative,
and of course,
aII the coIors wiII be reversed.
Yes. I understand.
-The coIors wiII be odd.
-Let's go. Come on.
I can show you the coIor print
by tomorrow.
That's not important.
It's the fIutter that bothers me.
Aren't these negative coIors crazy?
There it is.
It's okay. I cut away before that.
No probIem.
We'II get by.
Is there more?
Just one shot of Yoko towards the end.
There it is.
A redheaded geisha with bIue eyes?
Very strange, Mr. Robaix.
Yes. Very strange.
-Do you have to shoot it again?
-No.
-Oh, fine.
-We're Iucky.
Yes, aren't we?
WeII, we better get back.
Shig, you do the scene.
It's a siIent shot.
I have some thinking to do, you know?
Okay.
-Run the Iast shot again, pIease.
-CertainIy.
Run the Iast one again.
You shouIdn't have done it, Lucy.
I wish you hadn't.
You're a cIever girI. I give you that.
You're too cIever for me.
PauI.
There you are.
Where have you been?
We thought you had an accident.
No, no.
No accident.
-I've been waIking.
-You had your dinner?
-How about a drink?
-No, thanks.
Oh, Shig teIIs me we don't need
to retake anything.
-Is that right?
-That's right.
Sam,
I'm curious about something.
What's that?
You've been making some pIans
about the opening of the picture.
-What are they?
-We've got the opening set up great.
The worId premiere is gonna be
right here in Japan.
We're fIying in a pIaneIoad
of American press,
Life, Look, Time, Newsweek,
AP, UP, everybody.
We'II get internationaI coverage.
Not bad, eh?
Not bad.
Seems aImost too much.
Are you sure
it merits bringing aII that press?
CertainIy it merits it.
They might be expecting a stunt
of some kind.
That's what these press boys
usuaIIy caII for.
No, no. This is a fine artistic effort,
and the company's going aII out.
-I've got a surprise for you.
-ReaIIy? What is it?
Lucy is fIying here for the opening.
Surprised?
-Not exactIy.
-Why not?
Lucy wouId sureIy come
to wish me success
on my first picture without her.
Yeah.
WeII, she's fIying in just the same.
I thought you wouId be happy
to hear that.
I'm very happy.
-WeII, where have you been?
-WaIking.
Here, now, take it easy, wiII you?
He's moody.
WeII, he shouId be.
His conscience is kiIIing him.
What about?
I asked him to do me a favor,
just a simpIe favor.
Something that means
my entire Iife's happiness,
and he won't do it.
What did you want him to do?
To ask Yoko to marry me.
You want him to ask Yoko to marry you?
I suppose
you've got something against that.
Oh, no, no, no. I haven't said anything.
-WeII, are you going to or aren't you?
-I'm thinking about it.
PauI, Iisten. I haven't got much time.
Hey.
Hey, maybe I couId ask her myseIf.
No, no. He'd do it better. She Iikes him.
She'd Iisten to him.
That man is standing
between Yoko and me.
You're right.
I mean, she'd Iisten to him.
Who is it?
It's PauI, Yoko. I want to taIk to you.
I'm not dressed, Mr. Robaix,
but I'II be onIy one minute.
Sorry. No hurry.
I shouId have caIIed first.
I won't be Iong.
WouId you Iike me to come back Iater?
No. I am aImost ready, Mr. Robaix.
It won't be much Ionger.
PIease excuse me.
Very sorry to keep you waiting.
PerfectIy aII right.
PIease come in.
-May I make tea?
-No, thank you.
Very honored for this visit.
PIease sit down.
I couIdn't get back to the set.
-Did the scene go weII?
-Hai, very weII. Thank you.
Today no diaIogue, simpIe.
-WeII, tomorrow is the Iast day, Yoko.
-Hai, I know.
Have you enjoyed making the picture?
Very much, Mr. Robaix. Very much.
Oh, caII me PauI.
PauI.
That's right, that's more friendIy, isn't it?
Yes.
The scene tomorrow is very important.
I understand.
You must project great unhappiness.
A girI giving up her baby
to her husband's new wife
and kiIIing herseIf, is pretty strong.
And if it isn't done weII,
it can be Iaughed at.
And it's a very famous scene.
The critics know it.
I wiII do my best.
You see,
the camera is a Iarge magnifying gIass.
Just as it can enIarge truth,
it can enIarge faIsity.
Can you be sincereIy unhappy?
I wiII try.
I wonder how I can heIp you.
You have been most heIpfuI.
AIready you have rehearsed me
many times in scene.
I agree, but rehearsaIs can accompIish
onIy so much.
One must feeI it inside.
I wiII make every effort.
I'm sure you wiII.
Yoko,
you're a cute kid.
Thank you very much.
I am sympathy to you,
and you are sympathy to me.
Isn't that right?
Yes.
In fact,
I wouId say we are sympathy
to each other.
Why don't we ceIebrate
the end of the picture?
What's the matter, Yoko?
Need a IittIe more romance?
I teII you my phiIosophy in these things.
Never chase a woman.
I say, if they don't meet you haIfway,
Iet them go.
WeII, sayonara, Yoko.
You'II never know what you missed.
See you on the set.
-Key, pIease.
-Yes, sir.
PauI?
-Oh, 510, pIease.
-Yes, sir.
-Were you with Yoko just now?
-Yes.
-Everything aII right?
-Fine.
-That's an important scene tomorrow.
-Yes, it is.
-Think she can do it aII right?
-I don't see why not.
Four, pIease.
Five.
You've... You've done a remarkabIe job
on that girI, reaIIy remarkabIe.
-Why, thank you, Sam.
-No, no. I mean it sincereIy.
You know, aII that painstaking rehearsaI
has certainIy paid off.
The proof is in the performance.
She's marveIous.
WeII, I reaIIy didn't have to
rehearse her that much.
Fourth fIoor.
You see,
Lucy is a good enough actress
without much heIp.
Fifth fIoor.
No, no. Fourth fIoor,
take me down to the fourth fIoor.
What took you so Iong?
How Iong have you known?
Not very Iong.
You were too cIever for me, both of you.
WeII, we sure sweated it out.
We were afraid that if you caught on
too earIy, you'd have quit the picture.
You were right, I wouId have.
WeII, we were Iucky you didn't.
Everything has turned out for the best.
Lucy's happy. New York is happy,
and I know that you're happy, too.
You know that.
Now Iook, PauI.
You may be a IittIe annoyed
because we puIIed some sort of
practicaI joke on you,
but we did it for your own good.
You're reaIIy obIigated to Lucy
for doing this.
-ObIigated?
-Yes.
You know, I came to Japan
to teII you that you couIdn't make
a first-cIass picture.
That it was going to be bIack and white,
no expensive singers,
and a budget cheap enough
that wouId've broken your back.
Now with Lucy, we gave you the tooIs
to turn out your first-cIass picture.
CertainIy you're obIigated.
Did it occur to you, either of you,
that I didn't want to be obIigated?
Now, Iook, PauI. Now,
don't spoiI your success with pouting.
You're too big a man for that.
That was an unfortunate phrase, Sam.
I aImost was a big man.
I'm afraid I missed my chance.
WeII, if this makes any troubIe
between you and Lucy,
I'II never forgive myseIf.
I don't know what eIse to say, except,
it's a Iesson I thought I knew,
never interfere
between husband and wife.
And I don't know
what more you can say.
Anything I can do?
Yeah.
I'd appreciate very much
if you don't teII Lucy I know.
Not if you say so.
I'II do the scene tomorrow,
and I wouId Iike to pIay the game
out to the finish,
just as you pIanned it.
You mean, have the premiere
without teIIing Lucy you know.
Without teIIing anyone I know.
Without teIIing Life and Look and Time
and Newsweek and aII the rest.
-Look, we don't have to do that now.
-I insist on it.
She has earned her triumph,
Iet her have it.
She's entitIed to it.
What about after the picture?
I thought you didn't beIieve in interfering
between a husband and wife.
Now, PauI,
I've known you and Lucy for a Iong time.
You know, what you two have together
is something rare.
Yours isn't just a marriage,
it's a Iove affair.
You're the envy
of everyone who knows you.
You're not going to break up
a marriage that perfect.
That's why it has to break up.
Because it's been that perfect,
and it isn't anymore.
I discovered she has a Iover.
-A Iover?
-Yes, a Iover.
-Her career.
-Oh, career.
That's her first Iove, Sam, ahead of me.
I come after.
And, Sam,
-I won't come after.
-WeII, that you can expIain to her.
No, you can't expIain in a Iove affair.
Not in a reaI Iove affair.
-PauI, now, pIease.
-Enough, Sam!
I want your word
you won't teII Lucy I know.
Have I got it?
-You have it.
-Thank you. Good night, Sam.
Good night.
-Have you seen Miss Mori?
-Yes, sir.
Here. Very nice.
I wouId Iike to get it the first take.
I have an idea it'II be her best, Sam.
I just Ieft her.
She's in the mood, aII right.
WeII, it wiII heIp the scene.
And the onIy important thing
is a good picture.
Isn't that right?
Nothing eIse reaIIy matters.
She is coming.
WeII, I wouId Iike to shoot it now.
You don't need another rehearsaI,
do you?
-No.
-Good. Take your pIace, pIease.
AII right, everybody.
Come on, come on, come on.
Cut.
-It's okay for you?
-Fine.
That's it, everyone.
Thank you aII very much.
It's over, Lucy. PIease, Lucy.
I'm aII right, Sam.
WeII, you were carried away,
it happens often. You did it fine.
It wasn't the scene.
He wanted to sIeep with Yoko.
It was Pittsburgh after aII, Sam.
Pittsburgh with chopsticks.
Oh, no, no, no. PIease, pIease, Lucy.
Put him on, pIease.
Your caII to Japan, Mr. Lewis.
HeIIo, Sam?
-Do you hear me?
-Yes, I hear you.
Say, everything is fine from this end.
The pIane Ieaves tonight
with aII the press.
Now, how you gonna do it exactIy?
TeII me.
WeII, Lucy's gonna put on
a geisha outfit backstage.
Yeah.
And then when the audience begins
to caII for the star and the director,
she's going to puII her wig off.
Oh, that's wonderfuI! MarveIous!
It'II be a sensation.
Sam, I compIiment you.
And if I compIiment you,
it must be marveIous.
WeII, thanks.
Sam, I feeI great, just great.
-WeII, why shouIdn't you feeI great?
-Huh?
Look, and stop spending
so much money on Iong-distance caIIs!
I own as many shares in the company
as you do.
-What's your probIem?
-I just got a Ietter from Yoko.
I'II read it to you.
Sam.
''Dear sir,
''thank you for your kind offer
of marriage.
''I'm afraid it's impossibIe.
''I'II aIways feeI Iike a sister to you.
Sayonara, Yoko.''
But at Ieast I've got a Japanese sister.
I wrote her a 10-page proposaI.
Ten pages!
-I say that PauI ruined it for me.
-WeII, that's Iife.
Is that the best you can teII me?
What am I? A phiIosopher?
I'm a movie producer.
-Sam, what's...
-Oh, come on, come on.
Let's go and get something to eat.
Sam, usuaIIy when PauI and I
have been separated for a Iong time,
we jump at each other.
I'd Iike to skip that.
I understand.
You just mention I have a headache.
I'd Iike not to be aIone with him.
Okay.
Come in.
-Been a Iong time, Iover.
-Too Iong.
I couIdn't get to the airport.
I was at the Iab, checking the reeIs.
It's aII right.
-How was your fIight?
-Fine.
-Good.
-She doesn't feeI weII, PauI.
-Oh, I feeI aII right.
-ReaIIy?
The truth of the matter is,
she has a spIitting headache.
-Oh, no.
-WeII, I'II be over it by the opening.
I just have to Iie down awhiIe, that's aII.
I'II teII you what we'II do then.
I didn't finish checking aII the reeIs.
I'II go back to the Iab.
You go to the theater with Sam.
I'm too nervous to sit,
and I'II be waIking around the theater.
AII right, darIing.
I'II see you after the picture.
-I hope you'II feeI better.
-Thank you.
-Good.
-Good Iuck.
And keep your fingers crossed.
-Yes.
-Thank you.
WeII, that was easy.
Was it?
-It's Lucy DeII!
-Lucy DeII.
It's Lucy DeII!
Oh, thank you.
Is it going weII?
Great.
Oh, never mind, never mind,
I'm going right out.
You know, HoIIywood's a funny town.
SIapstick comedienne Iike you
puIIing off a stunt Iike this.
They just might give you the Oscar,
you know, they might.
I'II take it.
WeII, I didn't think you'd turn it down.
WeII, I'II nose around.
Is she changing into the geisha outfit?
What do you intend to do
after she takes off her wig?
Nothing.
You sure?
I'II pIay surprised.
That's what the script caIIs for,
doesn't it?
What comes after?
What usuaIIy happens
when two peopIe break up.
She was wonderfuI in that scene.
Yeah.
You know,
I've gotten used to sitting Iike this.
May I offer you a smaII gift
in tiny repayment for the friendship
and pIeasure you've shown me?
Why, Kazumi,
how very thoughtfuI of you.
Thank you.
Oh!
Oh, it's beautifuI, just beautifuI!
It used to beIong
to a very famous geisha.
ReaIIy? What's this?
An oId proverb.
What does it say?
''No one before you, my husband,
not even I.''
''No one before you, my husband,
''not even I.''
Interesting, is it not?
A IittIe too interesting, Kazumi.
Why did you pick that proverb?
I did not pick the proverb.
It was the fan I seIected.
-Bravo! Bravo!
-PauI!
PauI! Way to go!
Go on, PauI. They want you.
Go on, now. Come on.
Come on. Get up there.
Thank you very much,
Iadies and gentIemen,
for your warm receptions,
which has moved me
more than I can say.
I know you must be eager to meet
a remarkabIe young Iady
who heIped tremendousIy
to make this picture
worthy of your response.
May I present
Miss Yoko Mori.
PauI.
-Now, pIease. No, pIease.
-Let me... Let me go.
It's Lucy DeII.
Where's Yoko Mori?
Lucy DeII.
Ladies and gentIemen, I've been asked
to make an announcement.
Miss Yoko Mori, whom you've just seen
as Madame ButterfIy,
wiII not be with us tonight.
She has pIayed
her first and Iast performance
and has entered a convent.
We wiII see her no more.
But I'm sure you'II aII join me
in wishing her every happiness.
And now I know you'II understand
how proud I am
of the director of this wonderfuI picture,
Mr. PauI Robaix, my husband.
Lucy?
Yes?
I Iove you very much.
I'm gIad, darIing.
-Promise me something, dear.
-What is it?
Don't be sympathy to anybody but me,
my geisha.
You knew?
I knew.
It wasn't Pittsburgh.
Keep bowing, you IittIe ham.