All language subtitles for The Bingo Long Traveling All Stars and Motor Kings (1976).eng

Reporter: Adolf Hitler,

in a move of stunning swiftness,
seizes and occupies czechoslovakia.

Czech president, Emil hacha,
is summoned to Munich

and is forced to sign a communiqué
calling for peace and order

and placing the fate
of the Czech people

into the hands of the flihrer
of the German reich.

And deep shadows of another
world war spread over the universe.

Reporter ♪2: What do you do

with your old razor blades?

Harold b. Funston finds
these double-edged snacks

really cut those hunger pangs.

My, my! Mother never
fixed them like this.

Now it's time for a little nap
after lunch.

Incidentally, you innerspring lovers
shouldn't watch

if you can't stand the pressure.

Here's Charlie joining Harold.

Let's hope Harold
knows not to disagree with him.

After this, he may only be able to
get work as a mould for Swiss cheese.

Oh, my aching back!

Now Harold's asked to show us
his new method for quitting smoking.

This sure-fire method is not advised
for everyone though,

unless you really happen to like
smoked tongue. Your own, that is.

Reporter ♪3:
Yankee stadium plays host

to a stunning pre-season
exhibition game

between the Kansas City monarchs
of the negro American league

and the Philadelphia stars
of the negro national league.

Leagues formed because
of the unwritten law

that bars negroes from playing
on white teams.

With this Jim crowism
on the diamond,

the white leagues deprive
themselves of much amazing talent.

Hurling for the monarchs
is satchel Paige,

one of the most famous
of the negro pitchers,

along with bingo long
of the st Louis ebony aces.

Here, Paige's amazing hesitation
pitch continues to baffle hitters.

The stars go down
with a score of five to nothing,

giving Paige another
in a long string of no-hitters.

The monarchs' win
puts them up next week

against the negro world champion
homestead grays,

whose slugger, Josh Gibson,
averages 55 home runs a season,

a record matched only
by Leon Carter

of the Baltimore elite giants.

Gibson is the only player,
black or white,

who has hit a home run
over the third tier of yankee stadium,

beating even
the great babe Ruth.

Though white fans don't often
see these teams play,

they should spend an afternoon
watching these amazing athletes,

who often showboat and clown,
but never fail to play great baseball!

Furry:
Hurry, hurry, hurry, folks.

Y'all gonna get
your money's worth today.

Y'all watch bingo long
throw his world-famous invite pitch.

Not a man on the field
to back him up.

You'll never see a game like this
as long as you live.

How am I doin', folks?

How ya doin'?

Peanuts, popcorn, cracker Jacks.

Get your peanuts and popcorn,
cracker Jacks right here.

Only twenty-five cents.

Get your peanuts, popcorn
and cracker Jacks.

Peanuts, popcorn, cracker Jacks
right here, right here.

I'll betcha I'll get it.
“Wanna bet a dollar?

Sure, fine. This is mine.
Put your money where your mouth is.

Play ball!

Crowd chanting:
Invite pitch. Invite pitch.

Invite pitch. Invite pitch.

- Who...
- Crowd: Who...

- Gonna hit...
- Gonna hit...

- My...
- My...

Invite pitch?

Invite pitch?

Vendor:
Peanuts, popcorn, cracker Jacks.

You put it over the plate,
I put it over the fence.

Okay, c'mon, baby. C'mon, baby.

He couldn't hit the floor
if he fell out the bed.

Come on and hunk it to me.

C'mon, give it up.
I told ya I'd get it.

Whoa!

Hey, bingo.

I do believe you slowin' down.

Ain't nice to be throwin' hard
to old men.

Yeah. Don't be makin' any excuses
for your arthritis now.

Awww.

Okay, monkey face.

Just for that, you gonna get
a taste of my vanish ball!

Catcher:
Why you're show it to 'im?

He can't see it. I can't see it.

Umpire: Strike two!

Come on, sucker.
Empty them pockets.

- Leon: Bingo?
- Bingo: Yeah?

I heard you done taken up
with a hot number name of Violet.

You heard right.
Where'd you lay eyes on her?

Well, if that's Violet grandy
you're talkin' about,

I laid more than eyes
on her already.

Oh, Leon, you tryin'
to get my dander up,

but I is... un-ruffable!

Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, mm-hmm!

That sucker rolled one out.

I was gettin' tired
of Violet anyhow.

Furry:
How 'bout a little somethin'

for the kitty for ol' furry?
How am I doin'?

Look at ol' furry.
How 'bout a little somethin' for the kitty?

Thank you very much, sir.
Thank you, thank you. Thank y'all.

Megaphone:
The sallison Potter funeral association.

Premiums as low
as ten cents a week.

Don't let your family
be embarrassed.

On that final day,
let us put you away.

I thought I told you
to stay away from here.

- Has-beens is bad for my business.
- Hmm.

I done made your business,
sallie Potter.

How many games I win for you
back when you first took over this team?

I don't care what you did, furry.
You ain't worth doodly-squat to me now.

I see your face around here
one more time,

I ain't gonna be the only one
ridin' in a hearse. Now git!

Umpire: Batter up!

- Give me a touch for luck.
- Okay, rainbow. Go ahead, go ahead.

Now I'm gonna show you boys
how to get yourselves a free ticket.

Hey, Leon!

Oh, my god, how old are you, boy?
Twelve?

Come on, boy.

Strike!

That ain't nothin'.
You got lucky.

You oughta open your eyes
and shut your mouth.

Come on! Come on, rookie.
Pass it right down here.

Oh, my lord! Oh, my lord!

Goddamn it, rookie!
A brushback ain't no beanball!

Bingo: Get back.

Give him some air, goddamn it!
Move it!

Damn.

- How is rainbow doin'?
- Come on, let's play ball.

All right, gather "round here.

I just been talkin' to Henry dunbar
of the elite giants.

Said he's sorry for what happened
out on that field.

Doctor say rainbow
gonna pull through okay.

As for baseball,
he's all washed up.

He done inflicted a head concussion.
Lucky it was rainbow.

Losing him don't affect our chances
for the pennant much.

Now, seein' as how his family live all
the way down in Raleigh, north Carolina,

I'm docking each of you a day's pay
to cover his fare.

Five dollars each?

Sallie, er...

I mean, you know, we ain't the owner
of the team. You are.

I mean, it ain't right for you
to be comin' to the players

to take care of somethin'
you supposed to be takin' care of.

Docking you double, long. “What?

Five dollars to cover his fare,

five dollars for fomentin' dissension
on my team.

I ain't fomentin' nothin'.
I'm just voicing my opinion.

Around me,
you ain't got no opinion.

I built this team, from nothin'.

When everybody else
couldn't even get nigger work.

I'll still be runnin' it when you're
a feeble old bum like furry Taylor.

You know what I mean, boy?

Now, anybody else here
worried about what's right,

I hear there's plenty of nigger work
just across the river with wages to match.

Player:
Hey, rainbow, what's happenin'?

All: Hey, rainbow!

Rainbow, how you doin', man?
You caught yourself a mean one, didn't you?

And lost the power of speakin'.
Can't even say his own name.

Player ♪1:
Hell, rainbow, you don't look too good.

Player ♪2:
He look the same to me.

Hey, boss, how 'bout givin' rainbow a job
as an Usher down at the funeral parlour?

Sallie: Price here is my Usher.

How 'bout he push a broom
or dig a grave or two, man?

All I got's an opening
in the choir.

Rainbow's voice
ain't what it used to be.

- Player ♪3: Give him somethin' to do.
- Player ♪4: Anythin'.

You want some social security,
jawbone,

you go have yourself a nice,
long talk with mr Roosevelt.

Preacher:
This here is for everybody.

We have to protect
our brothers and sisters.

Why? Because we love 'em!
We don't need no government!

Boy: Hey, bingo! Bingo!

Let me get your autograph.
Great game!

Bingo!
Let me watch your car for you.

Preacher:
And if we do what's right,

there won't be no more stealin' and
killin'. No more stealin' and killin...

- Hi, bingo.
- How you doin', darlin'? You lookin' pretty.

If we teach 'em what's right.

Hey, Bobby.

- Bingo! Hey, bingo!
- Hey, Willie!

You know, that was a hell of a game
you pitched today.

- Every day.
- How do you like this here?

I love it, love it. Love it!

Lookin' for me, bingo?

Er... no, Violet.
You done disappointed me.

I'm gonna give pearline the chance
she's been beggin' for.

Well, pearline ain't beggin'
no more, honey.

Don't I, though?

Hey! King farouk,
come on over here.

You know pearline, bingo?

Er... I believe we've met.

I was just askin' Leon
for his autograph, bingo.

Why don't you and Violet
drag up a chair here?

Hey, er... garcon!

Bring mr long and his betrothed
what you done brung me.

Don't shuffle around this table, hear?

- How rainbow doin'?
- Bad news, Leon.

Bad news.
Sallie done put him on the bus.

- Damn!
- And that ain't all.

He done hit the team for the ticket.
Just don't seem fair.

What owner you ever heard of
bein' fair?

You see, they wringing the best years
of our lives out of our manly selves.

See what happen? Good man get hurt,
become another spare part.

Ship him on back to the cotton field
and let the other slaves pay the fare.

Yeah. Maybe you wind up shinin" shoes
or peddlin' pencils.

Hey, honey, watch your mouth there.
You're spottin' my satin.

I guess we need pensions
just like president Roosevelt was saying.

When you ever hear
of a master givin' a slave pension?

Ain't nothin' gonna change
till the workers,

what you call,
"seize the means of production".

No. The ballplayers
gotta overthrow their owners

and run the teams
their own selves.

- But that a revolution.
- That the Democratic ideal, yeah.

"Be your own man."

W.e .b. Du bois said that.

One of our great coloured thinkers.
Try readin' a book sometime.

- Hey, hey. How 'bout that bourbon?
- Comin' up.

You think we can do that?

- Do what?
- Overthrow the owners.

Sure! Same day we turn white.

Mr Carter, you sure got sex appeal
when you get mad. Mm!

Leon: Don't I though?

Little bit later on, I'm gonna fly
off the handle altogether.

Announcer on pa:
Greyhound bus now departing

for flora, vincennes, louisville,
asheville, Charlotte and Raleigh.

Hey, rainbow. C'mon, man.
You ain't goin' nowhere. Big things is up.

I got a great idea.

Hey, Leon. C'mon, open the door.

Hey, Leon, there's a fire!

If there ain't a bigger fire
goin' on out there

than the one we got kindlin' in here,
you in a lot of trouble.

Come on, man, put your pants on.
We got things to talk over.

Look who I just done grabbed
off the bus. Rainbow!

Don't bother to say hello to him,
cos he can't talk.

Oh, no, you didn't say nothin'
about no threesies.

Stay where you are.
These gentlemen just hit the wrong door.

I got a generous soul,
but I ain't no Santa claus.

Let her go, man.

You keep givin' autographs to pearline,
you gonna run outta ink.

Besides, big things is up!

Yeah, big things was up
when you come barge in here.

- Pearline, come on out, honey.
- You was right, Leon.

And so was that Cadillac
of negro knowledge, mr Rolls-Royce.

Du bois! W.E.B. Du bois!

"Be your own man," he said.

"That's the Democratic ideal.
Seize the means of production."

- And that's just what we gonna do!
- Sure, we are!

- Pearline!
- Pearline: Pearline, my ass!

My sweetness. My love.

Hey, bitch, you better get out here.

Stand back and get ready, Leon,
cos I'm hereby announcin'

the formation and foundation
of the one and only

bingo long traveling all-stars
& motor kings!

Bingo, you're talkin' in your sleep.

Don't you touch me, Leon Carter,
with your "preverted" self!

And that goes the same thing
for you too, Turkey.

Good night, bingo.

- Didn't you hear my announcement, Leon?
- Yeah, I heard you.

Now get on outta here
and let me sleep!

Whatever you're talkin' about,
I don't wanna hear it.

You wanna play on your own team,
be your own owner?

Listen, ever since I was ten years old
and pickin' turnips,

I wanted to be my own man.

Every job I had since then, from totin'
milk pails to swattin' baseballs,

I wanted the same thing. But you come
in here with some half-baked scheme.

It's full-baked, man!

We goin' barnstormin'
with our own all-star team.

Oh, yeah! Who we gonna play?

We gonna play the... the... the...
The firehouse clubs and the local talent.

I mean, there's good money
out there, Leon!

Iowa, Illinois, California.

Oh, no, there ain't nobody
gonna want to play us in California.

Well, if that don't work, then we play
the emperor trujillo down in 'em islands.

Them spics is crazy for baseball.

You ever see a peso, bingo?
It got a hole in it.

So does your big head
if you passes up this chance

and keeps on slavin'
for Henry dunbar.

Say... no, no, no.

Just sayin' now that I do choose
to throw in with you.

We ain't much of a team,
just you and me and rainbow.

Teammate, you just leave
that problem to me.

Hello. Am I speakin' to Emory "champ"
chambers of the Atlanta black crackers?

- Yeah, this is me.
- This is bingo long here with Leon Carter.

- Hey, champ!
- Hey, you hear "m?

Hey, champ, how would you like

to shake the slave master you work for
once and for all...

- Yeah.
- And come be on the all-star team?

- Count me in, bingo.
- All right!

Yes, this is Willie shively.

Bingo:
This is bingo long here with Leon Carter.

- Bingo?
- Leon and me want you boys

to make the double play
for the bingo long all-stars.

- What do you say?
- We're on our way.

Hey, what's this "all" mean on you?

Well, I do it all.
You know, I do it all.

What's this song note
doin' on me?

A song note!
I don't know what that is.

- Hello, fat Sam popper?
- Yeah, this is fat Sam.

Sam, I know you got
a lot of mouths to feed.

Hold on, bingo.
Get that mangy dog out of this house!

Woman: What you child doin"?

Go ahead, bingo.
Hey, I'll be right there!

Fat Sam popper,
better known as "traveling".

Amen.
I'm sayin' that most of us here

- have given up the desires of our heart.
- Psst! Psst!

Walter murchman?
That man is bad news.

Maybe so, but he hit a ball in Chicago,
they got to duck in Detroit.

- Walter murchman speaking.
- Hello, brother Walter.

You're the greatest hitter
on god's green earth.

- Shit.
- Right up there with Leon Carter!

Isaac:
But, baby, I got to go to battin' practice.

I know. Battin' practice
is right here and right now.

- But, baby... Bertha, I gotta...
- Play ball.

I'll get it, baby.

- Hello.
- Bingo: Hello, Isaac.

- Bingo!
- Listen. Hey, listen.

We hear your owner's been workin' you
overtime, but not on the baseball field.

Listen... well, your fellow all-stars want
you to play centre field for 'em, okay?

- I'll be right there.
- Bertha: Isaac? Isaac!

- Who ya gonna get for right field?
- I'm callin' Charlie snow.

Leon:
That jukebox? What you want him for?

Bingo: He got what we need.

The best-lookin' Franklin
you ever saw.

- Leon: Damn thing air-cooled.
- Bingo: I can't fit 'em all in my car.

Honey:
I thought you'd like to see this.

Charlie:
Hey, man, look at the sport page there.

- I wanna see what the white sox is doin'.
- The what sox?

The white sox!

You know, Chicago franchise
in the American league, white baseball.

I guess you all ain't heard, but I'm
goin' be playin' in the white leagues.

Hey, Charlie snow gonna be playin'
in the white leagues.

- You're crazy, Charlie.
- No, I ain't.

It's all right here in this little book,
if you take the time to learn.

A Spanish phrase book?

Jseguro!
Quiero El desayuno en mi habitacion.

¢ donde puedo cambiar
cheques de viajero?

What's all this spic talk,
Charlie snow?

Hey, that's another thing, man.
No more of this Charlie snow stuff.

From now on, I'm gonna be known
as Carlos Nevada.

Iel Rey atlético del mundo!

I'm gonna break into the majors
as a Cuban.

You been burnin' in the sun
too long for that thing!

What you mean, burnin' in the sun
too long, man?

They got Cubans down in Cuba
blacker than you.

- Make you look like a goddamn albino.
- Who, me?

Yeah, you, man.
And they still ain't no negros.

That's right.
Yo soy El "baseballito" supremo.

That's me! Carlos Nevada!

Willie:
I wonder where he came up

with an idea like that from.

Lookin' for a Mr... Holland.

Holland:
That's me. What can I do for you?

Spoke to you on the phone.
You booked us a game here this afternoon.

- You're the bingo long all-stars?
- Bingo: In person.

I thought you boys
was a barnstormin' outfit.

You just show us the ballpark
and we be down there in a minute.

Oh, you plannin'
on sneakin' in on tiptoe?

You scared somebody might see
what you is doin' there, huh?

What's eatin' you, buster?

Now, you look here. You wanna make
a little money on the game, right?

Well, so do I!

Now, you take them cars
and you turn 'em around,

and you come back into town
on main street!

And when you do,
I want you to come through struttin'!

You mean parade 'n' show?
We can do that!

We're a ball club.
We ain't no circus.

Holland:
Huh, that's what you think!

You're barnstormin'. You in show biz!
Lemme see you kick that mule!

You mean, er... like this?

Holland: No! No!

You... you... you...
You gotta cakewalk.

It goes like this.
One, two, three, back.

One, two, three, back.

You know, I was in show biz.

J can't you feel that feelin'?

J can't you hear that sound?

J struttin' like this, boys

j I make the world go round

j and kick that mule,
kick him, kick him

j kick that mule,
kick him, kick him j

now, that's what you got to do!

Champ:
Man must be crazy. What he want us to do?

Willie:
Kick a mule or somethin'.

Bingo:
Mr Holland told us to do it this way.

Yeah, you got it. Yeah, march.
One, two, one.

Charlie: I got bad feet, bingo.

Bingo:
You ain't got bad knees! Kick your knees.

Fat Sam:
Hey, bingo, I'm hungry, man.

Bingo: Sam, you always hungry.

You need to lose a little weight.

What we doin' this for?

You wanna make some money,
don't you?

- Man ♪1: What the hell is that anyway?
- Bingo: You gotta get in the spirit,

- if you wanna make some money.
- Man ♪2: Is that a parade or what?

Man ♪3:
No kind of parade I ever seen before.

Man ♪4:
Little early for Halloween.

Champ: Hey, bingo,

I feel like a fool out here
doin' this, man.

You gonna feel like a bigger fool
if you don't make no money.

Champ: They ain't got ten
dollars in this whole town.

Mm-mm. Pitiful!

You boys are pitiful. You lettin' these
people down. Gimme that bat, Louis.

- There you go, bingo.
- Let's see some colour! Step out!

These here is our folks now.
Let's look good for 'em.

J strut your stuff

j and if they tell ya
you ain't good enough

j don'tcha get the blues

j you've tried to follow the golden rule

j but sometimes
you gotta kick that mule

j with that there kinda stuff
you just can't ever lose

j you gotta take a chance

j make your own music
when you do your dance

j and sing it strong

j and when you're on third
and need to win

j and no-one's there
to bring you in

j just listen to bingo
and steal on home

j sweet home

j listen to bingo
and steal on home

j where is your players pride?

J move your ass
and make that slide

j then stand up
while the crowd is cheering you

j and I know it's written
in the book

j that when they say
they gave ya what ya took

j just give 'em a smile

j I know ya spent your life
just singing the blues

j and we all know
we ain't got nothin' to lose

j so just listen to bingo
and steal on home

j steal on home

j listen to bingo
and steal on home

j one more time

j listen to bingo
and steal on home j

Umpire: Out!

Bingo: Okey-doke.

It ain't like robbin' a bank,
but it's a start.

Exactly eight and a quarter for each
and every man including rainbow! Yeah!

Now, don't we got citizens' rights to that
handful of fins you're still holdin'?

I knew that question
was comin' up.

Er... mr Holland.

Excuse me.
Can I have that box, please?

- Sure.
- Thank you, sir.

This box is gonna be
the company box.

I am hereby droppin' in forty dollars.
You are my witnesses.

That's for broken bats, flat tyres,
and any other emergency purposes.

Now, rainbow, you gonna be treasurer.

Now, you guard this with your life.
You understand? Good man.

Fat Sam:
Why not share it all out?

I might meet a beautiful woman.
I got my own emergency purposes.

Sam, you already got six emergency
purposes back in Cleveland.

Look here, you boys don't have to worry
about no spending money.

We can get you
all the games you want.

I personally can guarantee you $200
at the gate for each and every appearance.

Now, what you say?

It's all right with me!
I'll take that.

Hell, yeah!

- Yeah, we'll take it.
- Leon: No, we won't.

No, no. I done heard
this one before. No deal.

Leon.

What, have I done it wrong?
I mean, the man is guaranteeing us $200.

You slice that eleven ways,
that comes out to about, er...

A lot of money each!

No, see, my friend here done pitched
a whale of a game, and he tired,

and he done misspoke hisself.
No, no.

We don't...
We don't want no guarantee.

- We wants 50% of the gate.
- You see, I... I don't know about that.

You see, I got to consult
with the other parties, you know?

No, you don't, either.
You can say yes or no right here.

Now, do we do business or do we get
somebody else to book these games?

Well, I guess ol' j.C. Holland
don't have to show you boys everything.

You got yourself a deal!

Charlie: All right.

Sallie: All right, gentlemen.

I hereby call to order
this emergency meeting

of the affiliated owners and directors
of the negro national league.

Now, what are we gonna do
about this mess?

That's what I'd like to know. What you
gonna do about this mess, sallie Potter?

It's your pitcher what's leadin'
this band of "detergents".

- I was hopin' you'd miss the train.
- Huh.

Sit down, woman.
We usin' parliamentary procedure.

That means, 'less you's recognised,
shut your double-breasted lips!

I recognise Horace quigley,

esteemed owner
of the Atlanta black crackers.

Fellow owners, every one of those boys
done broke a binding contract.

Now, I say we get 'em in the court!

Worse than that,
the cash customers

ain't gonna pay to see no team
what done lost their best stars.

- Reverend.
- Sallie Potter!

The ladies' room is outside
and to the left. Reverend.

I demands to be recognised!

I recognise you as a female what ain't got
no business bein' here nohow!

Now, listen here, grave digger.

I own a team in this league too.

And if my late husband schyler was alive,
you know what he'd say?

Keep the fans happy and book some "extradition"
games with the all-stars. Right?

As an owner, schyler DeWitt
was weak and he was dumb.

As a man, he was even dumber.

He proved that when he married
a plate of pork!

Which is a better meal
than you ever ate, sallie Potter.

Sallie, there's something to what
Bertha's sayin' about 'em games.

- She's got a point.
- We got to go along.

Come on. You men gonna be double-talked
by this ol' mama bear?

We play them renegades
and every dumb monkey in the league

is gonna join the revolution.

Now, we got to ruin that team
before they gonna ruin us!

Just cos you can't talk,
don't mean you can't count.

I mean, you been doin'
a good job as treasurer.

Ain't no reason you can't be
the team statistician.

I mean, if you do good,
I'll tell bingo.

We'll start with somethin' easy
like battin' averages.

See, you take the number of times
a man been at bat

and you divide that by the number of times
a man got a hit.

Like me, I been at bat 100 times.
I got twenty-five hits.

That's simple, right?
Twenty-five go in 100 four times.

Gives me a batting average of four.
That's wrong.

That ain't no way to do that.

What you gotta do is the number of times
a man's been at bat and got a hit.

Divide that by the number of times
he swung.

See, I been at bat a lot,
and I swung a lot.

Let me see.
Seventy-five into 100.

No. That would give me
a battin' average of two.

I couldn't have
a battin' average of two!

Nobody could have a battin' average
that bad. Could they?

Excuse me. Which one of y'all
is mr bingo long?

Autographs after the game, son.

Don't want no autographs.
I's a baseball player too.

You don't say!
What position? Quarterback?

No, sir. Centre field.

I want to be an all-star,
so I figured I'd come talk to you.

We ain't runnin' no orphanage, now.
What do ya want to talk about?

Well, I'm a pretty good
centre fielder.

I mean, I can hit and I can run,
and I got a good glove.

I just wanna join up and play for you,
more than anything.

I bet you're real good, son,
but I already got myself a centre fielder.

Now, if you wanna see a little action,

why don't you join up
with pollard's sternville huskers?

Well, see, mr long,
that there's just the point.

- I done already did last year.
- Umpire: Play ball!

Leon: Hey, bingo, looky here!

Quarterback.
Good to see you, son.

Hey, bingo!
Step right over here, young man.

- Joe: Take your time, sir.
- Leon: He said take your time.

Bingo, how do you like this here?

How do you like this here?

Like this over here? All right.
Come on, all right.

Player:
Joe, Joe. Get a hit, Joe.

Leon:
Let it go, bingo. Quarterback.

Umpire: Safel

Player:
Watch it. Watch that bat.

Home plate, home plate,
home plate!

Safe!

Say, kid,
does you do this constantly?

No, sir. I does it all the time.

Bingo: It's a shame. Ninth
inning, two runs behind.

- Come on, murch, let's hit one.
- Don't worry.

It's goin' all the way
to baseball heaven.

Umpire: Batter up!

Kid: Where's the bat?

Get a hit!
That bat ain't got no hole in it.

C'mon! C'mon!

Player: Go! Go! Go! Go!

Go back!

Joel

umpire: You're out!

Out? Whatcha mean, out?
What're you talkin' about, man?

- Bingo: Say, kid, this is your lucky day.
- Mr long!

Turns out my centre fielder's
gonna do back-up pitching.

That bein' the case, we find ourselves
ready to take on the services

of a promisin' young rookie
such as yourself.

You shuckin' me or what?

Now, we want you to understand straight off
that the big time is a hard row to hoe.

We on the road day and night.
We hustles games where we can find 'em.

- Yeah, we barnstormers.
- That's okay by me.

And you gotta bring
your own glove and your own shoes.

And you can't go runnin' to your mama
when you've been up all night now.

Don't you worry about me.
I ain't no baby.

And, er... the money ain't all that great.

- That's right. Rookies get half share.
- Say what?

Of course, you bein' a husker and all,
you ain't exactly a rookie.

So share and share alike.
That's the all-star motto.

- Ain't that right, Leon?
- Yeah, that's right.

- That sounds real good.
- I wanna warn you now.

This ain't no measly
paper contract.

One touch, and you made yourself
a handshake deal

with the bingo long traveling
all-stars & motor kings.

And there ain't nothin' more solemn
and bindin' under the law

than an agreement of this kind.

- You count me in!
- Look out now.

Restrain yourself.
That's my pitching hand!

- Sorry.
- What's your name, son?

Joseph Vanderbilt Calloway.
Esquire.

Esquire!
Did you hear that, Leon?

- You shakin' hands with esquire Joe!
- My pleasure.

J you gotta take a chance

j make your own music
when you do your dance

j and sing it strong

j and if you're off pitch
now and then

j you will find that key again

j and pretty soon the world... &

Charlie: Whose heap is that?

Champ:
Looks mighty deserted, mr long, sir.

Fat Sam: All right, yeah.

Charlie:
Hey, bingo, find out what's happenin'.

Walter:
What kind of town is this?

This ain't no ballpark, is it?

Joe: Hey, mr long, is it locked?

- Walter: Where the other team at?
- Bingo: Let's break in.

Hey! Hey!

- What the hell's goin' on around here?
- There's no game today.

What you talkin' about, no game?

This is Sunday the 24th.
This is the town of jeffersonville.

We the all-stars.
So where are the Roman gladiolus?

They ain't here.

The game been cancelled,
on... on account of rain.

Bingo:
Rain? What rain? It ain't even moist.

I can tell you fellas,
you ain't from around these parts

because we got some
fickle weather around here.

Oh, just any minute
could be a rip snorter.

Yeah, I heard this was
Tor... tornado country.

Yeah, yeah.

- The hell with the gladiolus.
- Fat Sam: Yeah...

There's a game in every town.
C'mon.

Isaac:
I don't know, bingo. I don't know.

- You smell a rat, huh?
- Isaac: Damn right.

Leon:
We better send a couple of telegrams.

Okay. Well... well, I guess...
I guess that's that.

Just, er... just like I said.
It wasn't no problem.

I'm always glad to help...
Help when I can.

Yeah, we seen
you gone through a little trouble,

so here's a little somethin'
to help cover your expenses.

Will that be satisfactory?

Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
Yes, sir. Oh, my. Oh, yeah.

- Thank you. H-h-h-hurry back.
- Be seein' ya.

Fat Sam:
Bring me a whole watermelon

- without the seeds.
- Charlie: I can't bring all that.

Champ: What you want, rainbow?

Leon:
The only bookers that bothered to answer

said, "no, thank you".

Oh, we too good, Leon.
They just scared to take us on, that's all.

Leon: Only one thing gonna scare a booker
away from makin' money, and it ain't us.

The masters is fightin' back.

If the lord done decided
to end this team, his will be done.

Oh, sallie Potter ain't the lord!

I'm a thousand miles from st Louis
and that man still tellin' me what to do.

Charlie:
Okay, amigos. It's quitting time.

Champ: Can't argue with that.

I keep tellin' you boys,
the white leagues is the only answer.

- Charlie, you're right!
- I'm right?

What, are you gonna pass for white?
King Kong got a better chance.

Looky here. Us coloured folks
is a minority in this country, right?

Well, then it seem to me
that we barnstormers in a volume business.

Ain't that clear?
“Ain't what clear?

Look, Tarzan.

Over what don't sallie Potter
have no control?

What do we never run out of
in this country?

White folks!

Umpire: Play ball!

- C'mon, now. Let's go, guys.
- Let's play ball.

Let's go now, let's play.

Man in crowd:
Oh, lucky shot. Lucky shot!

Umpire: Safel

Get in there. Sit down.

We're here to play ball.
We don't have to take this.

- That's all right, go sit down. Take it easy.
- They's supposed to treat us nice.

- Them niggers think they're hot stuff.
- Yeah, right.

Okay, let's go.
Oh, here comes fat boy now.

Hey, watch it there, batter.

Look at them knees knockin'.

Let's go. Come on.

Make your turn. Make your turn.

Wait now.

No! No!

Get back. It's just a ball game.

What's you talkin' about, man?
That ain't right.

Umpire: Batter up. Play ball.

What the hell you lookin' at, nigger?

Better than limpin' back
to sallie Potter though, eh?

I don't know.
Sallie might be mean and cheap,

but as far as I know,
he ain't never got nobody lynched.

You're a bunch of bums!
Kill 'em! Kill 'em!

Umpire: Get a batter up here.

Hey, let's get this batter now.
Let's go, let's go.

Don't let him hit one out there.

Watch me now.
I might steal somethin'.

- Catcher: We got this guy.
- Umpire: Ball one.

You gotta slide. Slide!

Umpire: Safel

out! Out!

Umpire: Time!

The guy on second's got a razor!

Hit a home run,
I'll buy ya some popcorn.

Catcher: Here it comes.

Whoa!

Oh, no, bingo.
Not me. It ain't manly.

What difference does it make, Leon?
We gonna win anyway.

Now, you pokes another homer out here,

them okies are liable
to get the tar and feathers.

I ain't gonna shine for no white folks
and that's that.

You only gotta pretend. They won't know
we pretendin', so we's one up on 'em.

Umpire:
C'mon. Get a batter up here.

Umpire: Strike hard!

Boys, how 'bout selling me
one of those torpedoes?

All right, hold it, everybody.
Relief pitcher comin' in.

Get the hell outta there, bingo.
I told you I ain't playin' along.

You just afraid I'm gonna whiff you
in front of all these folks.

What the hell you think you're doin'?

I just wanna play a little gag
on my friend over there.

You just give me the ball, and I'll be your
boy for the rest of your life, all right?

- What do you niggers think this is?
- You know how niggers is.

Boy, I'm gonna whack that ball so far
they gotta hop on a train to catch it.

Oh, I warn you, Leon.
This one gonna be a smoker!

Happy fourth of July!

From the bingo long traveling
all-stars & motor kings!

Charlie:
It's the humber of times

you been at bat and been pitched at
divided by the number of times you swing.

See, I swung at the ball
more than I hit.

That wouldn't give me
a good battin' average either.

There's gotta be a way
to do this.

J give 'em a razzle-dazzle smile

j then you can dazzle along with style

j it's a fact there ain't nothin' duller

j than a man who just ain't got colour

j every time the clown comes on,
he steals the show

j if you spend life inside a cage

j I think it's time you found a stage

j just put a joke in the stroke
when you row your boat

j grind your behind
and you'll stay afloat

j if your life has been out of focus

j just give it some hocus pocus

j give 'em a razzle-dazzle spiel

j they're gonna love
the way they feel

j hearts are warm
and the smiles are wider

j anywhere that the lights are brighter

j get razzle dazzle in your...
Razzle, dazzle

j get razzle dazzle in your... &

I got it! I got it!

Bingo:
You know, someday I'll be so old,

my arm will be gone

and that's the day I'm gonna look back
on the old days of barnstormin' and smile.

This is the best thing that could happen
to a ballplayer.

That's right.
Better than being on sallie's plantation.

- Yeah, and the slaves done run off all right.
- Yeah.

You know, in st Louis,
you can't even see the stars at night.

So much for the lockout, sallie.
The all-stars still rollin' along.

The lockout worked perfect.
And the proof is, they playin' white teams.

I call that desperation.

Sallie, you don't know
the meanin' of the word.

No-one wants to see my team play
without champ chambers.

We starvin' down in Atlanta.

And we starvin' in Chicago too!

- But, lady...
- Dumbbell!

You could use a little starvation,
you behemoth!

Fool. That embalmin' fluid
done gone to your brain.

Now, gentlemen,
sallie Potter's plan's failed.

And we better book us
some "extradition" games,

- or we all go broke. That's right.
- That's a good idea.

With these night games
they got started...

Looky here! The all-stars ain't got
no owner, and they pay no salaries.

Share the money out equal,
one and all.

We don't wanna book no games
with an operation like that. Huh?

I already got a couple of agents
in the field.

I give 'em the word, they're prepared to
take stronger action against them rebels.

Horace: That's a good idea.

Fat Sam:
Attaboy, bingo. Give 'im that gorilla ball.

He can't hit it.

Fat Sam: Go get it, Joe!

All right, all right,
all right, all right.

Yeah, well, I'm tryin' it, you know?
I gotta run that ball down once in a while.

Hey, fat Sam, wait just a minute.
All right.

- How'd y'all like that game today?
“All: Yeah!

- You like that game?
“All: Yeah!

- What'd you think of that gorilla ball?
“All: Yeah!

Hey, kid, you were terrific. Never seen
a young player do the things you can.

- Thank you, sir.
- What's your name?

- Esquire Joe Calloway.
- Let me have your autograph.

Why, I'd be proud to.

You take this here.

All right, give me your head. I'm gonna
write on top of your head, right there.

Hello there, rainbow.

- Whaddya say?
- He don't say nothin', remember?

Yeah.

How 'bout a cigar, rainbow?

Ain't you gonna offer me
a nice, green cigar, rainbow?

Hell, they be better off
with a watchdog.

Bingo:
Rainbow? Rainbow, who was it?

This dummy lost every penny
back to the owners.

- All right. That cinches it.
- Where you goin'?

Lafferty. I figure that sallie's men
are on their way

to mess up the game
with the star of David team too.

So I'm gonna beat 'em to the punch
and make sure that game is still on.

See ya in Lafferty.

- We be right behind you, Leon.
- Walter: Hold it, bingo.

You ain't paid out the money
for today's game yet.

We in a hurry, Walter.
I'll give it to you in Lafferty.

Considerin' what's happened,
I think we'd like our money now.

All: Yeah, yeah.

All right, all right,
all right, all right.

It boils down
to seven dollars apiece.

What about rainbow here?
Now, I say he cost us heavy today.

Bingo:
It wasn't rainbow's fault.

Sallie could've gotten to any one of us.
Rainbow's been workin' hard for the team.

- He deserves full share.
- That's right.

I don't know.
I don't know, bingo.

I mean, it just seems to me
that ol' tar baby over here,

all he do is hand me my bats,
and Bob his head.

- Willie: You tell it.
- Charlie: Yeah, fat Sam.

Oh, my golly, I done forgot!

I made a deal for half the concession money.
We got another fourteen dollars to split up.

- Them folks was sure hungry today!
- Knew he was holdin' back.

- I'll take it.
- Here's some for rainbow too.

- Walter: All right.
- Bingo: Now let's get movin'. Come on!

Mack:
Did you see the way that boy shook?

Now, let's see now... $163.43!

Whoo-hoo-hoo!

Honey:
Those boys keep that up, boy,

we be in good shape on this trip.

Willie:
Charlie, when are you gonna get

that hunk of junk out of this square?
You're blocking traffic.

Charlie: Hold it.

Policeman:
The Holly arms hotel? Right over there.

C'mon. Keep it movin'. C'mon.

Fat Sam:
C'mon, everybody. Here we go!

Hey, bingo!

We got our reservations here,
and the game is on.

- Charlie: Yeow! Do it again! Yeow!
- Joe: Yeah!

Charlie:
You've gotta know how to live, my friend.

You seen, you drink this down,
it put lead in your pencil.

- This here the eraser.
- This is the eraser.

- Yes, sir.
- Yes, sir.

You gotta get a good stance now.
Come on. Hold on.

- Put it to your lips very easy.
- To your lips.

And you drink.

Wow!

Not very smooth, but once it down,
you don't feel a thing, eh?

I don't feel nothin' now.

Woo!

See, I know you like it.

Hey, girlie! Two bourbon.

No, cancel that.
We in training, Leon.

No bourbon.

How do you expect to play your best game
if you gonna get drunk the night before?

Shit! I hits better
when I can see more than one ball.

- Why ain't you drinkin'?
- I can't, man, I ain't got no money.

No money? There was a lot of folks
watchin' you pitch that gorilla ball.

I know, I know, I know,
but you see, it's like this, Leon.

I had to pass out my cut to the boys
and tell 'em it was popcorn money.

I mean, they was turnin' on rainbow.

- Murchman again?
- That son of a bitch.

Bingo, I'm really proud of you, man.

I'm proud to be your teammate
and your friend

cos you settin' an example
of brotherhood among athletes

that'll go down in history.

In history, bingo.
I loves you, and I'm truly proud of you.

- I's proud of you too, Leon.
- Why is that?

Cos I gave 'em your share too.

Well, I guess we better make
this one shot of bourbon go all night, huh?

Well, at least
it don't cost nothin' to scuffle.

Hey, girlie! Somebody close the window
and let it get hotter!

Bingo: Boogie-woogie.

Leon!

If you think I done you wrong,
you can have my share tomorrow.

Hey, man, you got to get rid
of that solemn look.

Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay,
ay, ay, ay, ay.

Do you see that?

Ain't no women like that
down in sternville.

If there ain't,
you must've had a very sad childhood.

I played ball a lot.

- You did?
- Yes, sir.

- I'm gonna show you how a pro does it.
- You mean, you gonna go over there?

Sure. You think I'm afraid cos she's white?
That don't scare Carlos Nevada.

- No, sir.
- I have an approach.

- You got an approach?
- A technique.

She looked this way.
Did you see her?

Bartender, two more.
Landale, andale! Jpronto!

- You see, blondes like my type of man.
- They do?

- Tall, dark and handsome.
- You sure is that!

Yeah, she can tell
I've got experience.

Say "hey" for me.

What's on your mind, smoke?

Buenos knockers, senora.
Can I buy you a drink?

Don't you know the rules
around here, Sonny?

Oh, you think I'm coloured!
I'm not coloured. I'm Cuban!

Carlos Nevada,
a very famous Cuban baseball player.

- On my way to being El big time.
- Cuban, eh?

You coloured, you know,
you slay me.

It's the way you all talk.
I don't know.

It's the way we talk?
How 'bout five dollars?

Five dollars?

How'd you get so funny?

How 'bout seven fifty?

Well, listen, black beauty,
I'll tell you what.

We'll go up to my room.
We'll negotiate.

We go up to your room, we negotiate.
Think you're kiddin' somebody?

- Come on.
- Come on? That's it?

Up to her room by myself alone?
I'm not even Carlos Nevada.

You're fabulous.
Carlos goin' to give you ten dollars.

- You don't tell nobody, okay?
- Okay. Okay.

- It's American money. Very good.
- Yeah, yeah.

Perfume. Fantastic!

If you're a ballplayer, honey,
why don't you slide on home to mama?

I'm getting my bat ready.

Oh, my god! It's nothing.
In my country everybody has one.

I love a woman who can laugh.

How nice to be in this country.
You don't know how I feel.

It reminds me
of when I was a kid in Montevideo.

Beat it, lady!

He made me do it!
It wasn't my idea, I swear!

She made me do it!
It wasn't my idea, I swear!

Make them get out of here!

Bingo!

Leon!

Oh, shit!

Shh-shh-shh!

Please, please. Just drop me off
at the baseball park. Okay?

Thank you very much.
I'm sorry, I don't have money for a tip.

Lox, cream cheese, bagels.

Cracker Jacks, popcorn,
everything!

Umpire: Play!

Strike three and you're out.

What happened
to your battin' eye, mr Nevada?

I left it last night
with 100 pounds of white meat.

And now I must go
make poo-poo caca.

J la poo-poo caca,
la poo-poo caca j

Hey, fella, back of the line.

Umpire: Safel

J caca poo-poo j&

Hi!

- Not this time, Charlie.
- Oooh!

Got a little somethin' for ya, Charlie.

- Can I ask a question?
- Yeah.

If ya cut me,
who's gonna play right field?

Oh, shit.

Why are you shakin', Charlie?

Your team's gonna win
if Leon catch hold of one.

Wait for the crowd to roar.

Umpire: Ball one!

Now!

Bingo...

Leon: Get a blanket.

Er... excuse me, ma'am.
How's he doin'?

The doctor says some more surgery
will be necessary.

I guess a few more cuts won't matter.
Did he say anything before he passed out?

He babbled a lot.
He kept calling for his girlfriend.

Which one? He's got more
than anybody in the league.

I think the name was Sally.
Yeah, that's right, Sally potts.

He kept asking for her.

Sally potts.

Sallie Potter.

This is for your whole blood
and drugs. Sulphur.

It's very expensive. Then his doctor fees,
anaesthesia and surgery.

And dr McCarthy has found a dose of...

You know what, and of course
we have to clean that out.

Excuse me, ma'am,
but I should tell you right off

that we only got $225.

And that's from last night's game.
We don't got no other.

I suppose you know that
he has been hurt far worse than $225.

But we'll take what we can get.

He likes ice cream.
Vanilla, if you've got some.

Right, vanilla.

If sallie gonna pull that kind of stuff,

we're gonna have a hard time
keepin' the team together.

No, no, no,
it wasn't sallie who done it.

Charlie said it was two boys
from the red feather lounge,

on account of his foolin' around
with the white meat.

Oh, yeah?

I always knew that boy's Aryan proclivities
would get his nuts in a cooker.

Talkin" about that,
how we gonna pay for that hotel?

- How is he?
- He's okay. He's all right.

You gentlemen checking out?

Inasmuch as I was present
at last night's contest

and knew you were staying
at my hotel,

I took the Liberty of securing
the cost of your stay.

We was countin' on your kindness
and understandin', mr bostrum,

to see us through our misfortune
cos we done fell on hard times,

and we knew that a freethinkin'
gentleman such as yourself

would help us get back
on our feet.

What makes you think you niggers
can lay your losses off on me?

It's blackbird trash like you
that's holding the coloured people back.

Man: Okay.

Wheel it out. Come on.

Where are they takin' my car?

It will be sold at public auction
under the supervision of sheriff gleason.

And there's nothing
you can do about it.

Champ: The man got the car.

What are we gonna do now?

- Yeah, bingo, what are we gonna do?
- I'm with you, bingo.

I'm hungry.

I know.

We can go four to a seat, and take turns
standin' on the runnin' board.

Might have to leave
some of the luggage, though.

Uh-huh.

Boy ♪1:
Man, these potatoes is heavy!

Boy ♪2: Well, how else
we s'pose to make money, fool?

They say they gonna pay us
five dollars each.

It oughta go pretty fast
if we get to it.

There you go. That's one.

J steal away, steal away to Jesus

j steal away, steal away home

j I ain't got long to stay... j

I hate these goddamn potatoes!

I hate this goddamn field!

I hate this goddamn team.
Forgive me, father divine.

Damn it, murchman.
Pick them picked potatoes up.

You pick 'em up. I quit.

Any man batting .426
got no business swingin' a rake.

Where you goin'?

I'm gonna get me a cold lemonade
in st Louis.

- Hey, murch, wait for me.
- Hey, Sam.

Look out.
I got four kids to worry about.

You got five, Sam, but that
ain't the point. We're a team.

You can't leave.

I'm sorry, bingo, but if I want potatoes,
I'll buy 'em at the damn store.

Go ahead, then! Take off!

We don't need no quitters. There's plenty
of players who'd die to play on this club.

Ain't that right, men?

You goin' to st Louis?

All right, now. Don't none of
the rest of y'all get no funny ideas

about doin' somethin'
you'll gonna regret later.

We's a team on the baseball field,
and we's a team on the potato field.

Right! Boy: Right!

Now, this is good work!
I love this work!

I'm the prince of potato pickin'.
Yeah!

- Everybody say yeah.
- Yeah!

Yeah! Yeah!

J one potato...

J two potato, three potato, four

j five potato, six potato,
seven potato, mo' j;

all right, all right, all right!

- Name?
- Barnett long.

Good work, long. Two sixty-five.

Where's my five dollars?

What five dollars?
You picked twenty-four bushels.

Everybody I talked to
told me it was five dollars.

It is five dollars the long ton.
Next man.

You're tellin' I've been out here all day long,
and all I got is two sixty-five to show for it?

You're going to give it back?
Next man.

Willie Lee shively.

- Shively. Two seventy.
- Sh...

- Louis keystone.
- Keystone...

Bingo: We're late.

Sold. $120. There you go, sir.
Moving over now to lot number six.

1934 Ford touring model,

complete with a fine collection
of professional baseball equipment.

Take a good look at this paint job, folks,
and good tyres on this car too.

- How much we got?
- $48.25.

$48.25. I'll start out with thirty-five.
I'll scam off early.

I'll start the bidding off
at eighty-four dollars.

Eighy-four, going, going, gone.
Sold to me, corliss motors.

Eighty-four dollars.
Thank you, sir.

All right, lot number seven over here
is a stock chopper.

Who'll start the biddin' off on this
beauty? A brand-new, fresh paint job...

I was stupid to bring you out here
in the first place.

You gobbled up a full share
every day on payday.

And what did you do to earn it?
Nothin"

couldn't have been more useless if that
fast ball had've tore off your whole head.

Hungry? Had enough to eat?

Let me have one of those sandwiches.

Here. It's a long trip.

If you need anything, just write it down
and show it to the bus driver.

He'll know what to do.

And don't go pokin' your nose
into no pinochle games, you hear?

Where'd that Leon go to?

Damn it, I wish you could talk!

Maybe you could tell me how we fouled up.
I sure as hell don't know.

- If fair and square don't work, what do?
- Okay, there you go.

There's a change up in Chicago
for Raleigh.

You leave them girls alone now, hear?

So long, rainbow.

I'm sorry.

Bingo, we got our backs
up against the wall, no place to go.

What do you say we get back in the car
and go on back where we come from?

It's all over, man.

I guess you're right, Leon.

Listen, how 'bout I meet y'all back here
'bout a half hour?

I got somethin' I gotta do first.

Here, have somethin' to eat on me.

Leon: Where're you goin'?

What was that you once told me
about seizin' the means of production?

- Corliss: It'll cost ya four.
- Gleason: Come on, Lars.

Corliss:
Let's have some change out of there.

Here you go. You callin'?
All right, we're all in.

Okay. Big king, big ten,
pair of sevens.

I'll bet a half. It'll cost you
seventy-five cents to stay, Lars.

Lars:
Let's see what you got there.

- Gleason: Yeah.
- Lars: Sure enough.

Corliss: Okay.

Corliss:
What's goin' on out there?

Lars:
You've just got coons in your garbage.

Oh, shit!

Radio:
Down in the torture chambers,

flash and his friends have been put to work
stoking the great atom furnaces of the hawkmen.

"Seize the means of production"?

Oh! Sweet Jesus!

- That poor child's gonna get hisself lynched.
- What's the matter, Leon?

Nothin', unless they done
already got bingo treed.

- C'mon.
- C'mon, c'mon.

- Step on it.
- Wait a minute, Leon. We comin"!

It's adventure time
with little orphan Annie.

Hey, boss, don't you do it!

Stick 'em up, jazzbo.

Damn it, gleason. Hit him!

Radio: A fiery horse
with the speed of light.

A cloud of dust, and a hearty,
"hi-yo, silver!" The lone ranger.

- No wonder this team is breakin' up.
- Go get it!

Radio: With his faithful
Indian companion, Tonto,

the daring and resourceful masked rider of
the plains led the fight for law and order.

From out of a pass come the thundering
hoofbeats of the great horse silver!

- Lars: Carl, ain't that your car?
- It's a goddamn conspiracy!

Radio: Come on, silver.
Let's go, big fellow. Hi-yo, silver, away!

At a mile a minute,
hell, you'll never catch that v12!

Don't shoot! I surrender!

Get in quick.
It's only me, you dope.

Gimme the damn thing. C'mon!

Gleason: Goddamn! What is this?

Lars:
Maybe there's something wrong.

- There's a lot of smoke in the car.
- No shit!

Ah! Don't you love to squirm
in this upholstery?

Feel that pickup. There's more
than a squirrel in the barrel up front.

Here comes our ride, boys.

Lars: Hey, gleason,
I don't think they saw you.

- We scared the hell out of 'em!
- Oh, shit!

You had no business stealin' this car.
Seize the means of production, my ass!

Leon, I'm just gettin' my own back.

Listen, sneak thief, this ain't no '34 Ford
with the bearings shot.

Don't I know it.
It's got a radio, too.

Bingo, you stole a car.

You know what that make you?
A grand larcenist.

I done what I had to do
to keep this team from goin' under.

Sallie locked us out,
we play the white teams.

He steal our company box,
and we put up our own shares.

Now, he cut up one of our boys and...
Whoops.

So, it was sallie
took care of Charlie.

Oh... I was gonna tell you, Leon.
Honest I was.

But, bein' the leader,
I gotta keep this team together.

You know... and you get
real ornery sometimes.

Jack Benny on radio:
Rochester? Gee, that's a peculiar name.

- How did you get that?
- Rochester: I was born in Syracuse.

Hey, Leon. Look here.

Hey, buddy, how 'bout a ride?
Hey! Hey!

I tell you, you really get all riled up,
don't you, Leon?

Hey!

Oh, listen.

If that other car bothers you so much,
why don't you get in this one?

You oughtn't be walkin' around
on that foot.

- I ain't goin' your way, bingo.
- What you talkin' 'bout, Leon?

Now we end up lyin' to each other
and stealin' cars. I done had it.

You mean you leavin' the all-stars
to go back and play with the masters?

No, I ain't doin' that neither.
I'm retirin'.

I don't want to see another baseball the
rest of my life. Nor a bat, nor a glove.

The great Leon Carter
windin' up a quitter!

You ain't no better
than Walter murchman.

- You're rilin' me, loudmouth.
- That ain't all I'm gonna do.

Oh, man! Get off!

Bingo!
I ain't startin', you fool!

Get outta the way, man!

Oh, man! You is the fool
to end all fools.

We'll see who the fool is,
you baboon!

Bingo: Go ahead.

Hey, can I get a ride?
Thank you, sir.

Go ahead! All right, go ahead!

I's overcome with joy.
I don't have to see your ugly face no more.

Get out!
You're over the hill anyway.

We'll find somebody
twice as good as you.

Catcher:
How do you like this here?

Put it right here.
Ol' boy can't hit nohow.

Umpire:
Let's do it! Let's do it!

All right.
How do you like this here?

How do you like this over here?

Umpire: Come on. Play ball!

What about right here?
Right down the centre, baby.

What'd you say?
All right, come on.

- Come on. Let's go, baby!
- All right, let's do it. Come on now.

Get in here!

Umpire: He's out!

All-stars.

Wait a minute!
Hold it, goddamn it. Everybody!

I didn't come here
for no goddamn brawl.

- All right, boy, let's talk.
- Do me like you did rainbow.

Your team's fallin' to pieces, bingo.

And the owners is willin'
to bail you out.

We even took care
of that stolen car business for ya.

Now, we gonna let y'all back in the leagues
on your old teams for the same salary.

Tell you what. You come back this week,
there'll be a little extra dough in it for you.

And a bonus for the rest of the boys.
Free funerals.

You barkin' up the wrong tree, fat man.

- This team ain't about to fold up.
- All right, bingo. All right.

Make you another offer.

Your all-stars against mine.

One big game down in st Louis.

People'd pay a pretty penny
to see that one.

Are you offering us
a guarantee or a percentage?

Better than that.
You beat my all-stars,

you can come back in the league
as your own team.

- Official?
- Official.

Chance for your boys
to be respectable.

But if you lose,
you all return to your old teams.

You play out the rest of this season
and all the next at half salary.

We got a game?

Sallie, sallie, sallie.

You still the same old snake
you always was.

- Have we got a game?
- Yeah, we got a game.

And we gonna win, too. Easy.

We got a game.

Bingo: Leon, you there?

Leon!

Boy: Come on! Hit the ball!

Leon: Strike two!

Boy:
You stand there like a dummy.

C'mon, hit the ball!
C'mon! Hit it!

Hit it!

- Out!
- Boy: Man, that was no out.

What do you mean, that wasn't no out?
You was out by a mile.

So you don't wanna see another baseball
for the rest of your life,

- nor a bat, nor a glove, huh?
- What you want here, bingo?

- You seen this?
- I ain't seen nothin' but.

That poster must be on every wall
in st Louis.

This is it, Leon.
A chance to say goodbye to barnstormin',

and get back in the league
as our own men.

Equal pay for equal play.

You still slicin' up that same baloney, but
it's still too hard to swallow. All right!

I know I shouldn't have lied to you, Leon.
I know I should've never stole that car.

You know, that's grand larceny.

- I don't want it no more.
- Strike!

Look here, I don't want it no more.
Goodbye, packard.

You must think I'm pretty dumb.
Them the keys to your old Ford.

Strike two!

The all-stars can't do it
without you, Leon.

I'm begging you to come back and help us
whup the owners once and for all.

- What if we lose?
- Look, if we lose, I'm quitting the game.

Strike three!

There's nothin' that can make me
work for sallie again.

Nothin! Even potatoes is better.

Leon, you and me. We can't lose.

All right, all right,
all right, all right! Hey!

Bingo, I'm enjoyin' my retirement too much
to worry about that old can of beans,

but I'll tell you, if I change my mind between
now and game time, I might see ya there.

Yeah! Now you feelin' the spirit!

Hey! We got some future all-stars out there.
You take care of 'em little boys now.

And I'll see you at the ballpark, okay?
All right, Leon?

All right. All right.

Foul ball!

Hey, bingo! Yeah?

Where the hell's Leon?

Don't worry. He'll be here.
We shook hands on it.

Hey, fat Sam!

Hey, bingo! Hey, bingo!

Get your peanuts, popcorn,
cracker Jacks, hot dogs, cold beer!

- Rainbow! Hey, rainbow, is that really you?
- Yeah, it's me.

- Looky there! It's rainbow!
- Popcorn, y'all!

You're talking! What happened, man?
Tell us what happened.

I was on that bus to Raleigh.
You told me don't get in no pinochle game.

- Uh-huh.
- So I played gin rummy instead.

- Yeah?
- I got into a lot more than I could pay.

When we got to chattanooga,

they took me off the bus,
knocked me in my head,

and when I woke up,
felt my pocket and I knew.

"Wait a minute, I ain't got no money.
Where my money at?"

And I said, "help, help!
I been robbed."

And I been talkin' ever since.

Okay, that's enough!
I liked you better the old way.

All right!

The negro national league
has never seen anything like this.

The bingo long all-stars take the field
to give us fans a little pre-game show

in the barnstorming tradition
that made them famous.

If they win here today,
they'll gain a regular spot in the league,

a contest unprecedented
in the history of negro ball.

Sallie Potter, this is the dumbest deal
ever made.

Now, the league ain't got no room
for no nine teams.

That's a problem we ain't gonna
have to face, blubberpuss.

Now, with the new additions to our team,
and the deletions to bingo's,

the game is in the bag.

- What if Leon Carter shows up?
- You take it from me.

Much chance of that
as you wakin' up skinny!

- What you think happened to Leon?
- Don't worry 'bout it. He'll make it.

He probably had a late night
rollin' with pearline.

Mm-hmm.

Yoo-hoo! Isaac!

Oh, please, lord!

Crowd chanting:
Invite pitch! Invite pitch!

Invite pitch! Invite pitch!

- Who...
- Crowd: Who...

- Gonna hit...
- Gonna hit...

- My...
- My...

Invite pitch?

Commentator:
Look at this! Heading up the batting order,

Walter murchman,
who used to play for the all-stars.

Story goes he quit in some fight
over working conditions.

And here he is
to face his former teammates

and the world-famous invite pitch.

Hey, bingo,
where's your gorilla suit?

Easy.

The boss knowed you was gonna get
that last-minute itch.

Oh, sweet Jesus.

Smart ass!

I got him.

C'mon, big fella.
It's all right.

Sit down.

Try to relax, mr Carter.
You gonna be here all afternoon.

Give you somethin'
to listen to, mr Carter.

Don't get no ideas.
We be right outside.

Announcer on radio:
And so, ladies and gentlemen,

no pitch, no runs, no errors

and the bingo long all-stars
go down one, two, three in the first.

All right, c'mon, bingo.

Nice and easy.
All right, c'mon, bingo! Come on now.

Come to me now.

Right, here we go now.
Let's go get 'im. Let's go get 'im.

Go get it, Joe!

That a baby, Joe!

- So that's Calloway.
- Yes, sir. And he's only nineteen.

Hey, honey.
Mack, how's it goin'?

All right.
What you boys doin' here?

We come down
for the deceased, mack.

- Okay, but be quick.
- Okay.

Commentator: Short stop
who's batting hopeful for the day.

This year his average
is holding at .204.

- Bingo looks for the...
- Honey, get in here!

The ball is hit.
It's a hard grounder.

Goddamn!

Bet he's in here.

The score remains one to nothing.

That brings the bingo long all-stars
up to bat.

And, at a time like this, they surely
miss the services of Leon Carter,

perhaps the league's heaviest hitter.

I called everybody.
No-one's seen him.

- Isaac: All right, Sam.
- Well, er... don't worry about it, man.

He's comin'. He's on his way
to the stadium right this minute.

He'll have some story to tell,
won't he?

You know, bingo, it's the last of the
seventh. Now, he ain't showin' up.

I bet sallie done paid him money
to stay away.

He said he was comin'.

He promised me.
He incorruptible.

Leon never let nobody down,
and I don't want that thought in your mind.

- Mr long, let 'im go!
- Turn me loose, Louis!

- C'mon, Sam! C'mon!
- Go, Sam!

Umpire:
Strike three, and you're out!

Commentator
after seven-and-one-half innings,

it's the negro league two,

the bingo long all-stars nothing.

Come on out, mr Carter.
Hide-and-seek is over.

- We mourn this wonderful lady.
- Congregation: Yeah.

- Her spirit moves through this room.
- Congregation: Yeah.

At this very minute.

Come on, boy.
I ain't no Charlie snow.

Wait!

The negro league all-stars
have reached bingo long for ten hits now.

The fire seems to have gone out
of his fastball.

Walter: What happened?

Lose your arm pitchin' potatoes?

Bingo:
Who's that? Walt murchman again?

Commentator: Bingo long is in real trouble.
Top of the ninth, two outs.

And the bases are loaded with
the negro league power hitter up to bat.

If he connects, it could be all over
for the bingo long all-stars.

They say you a pretty fair hitter.

So they says!

Well, hit this.

Umpire: Strike!

I love it!

Commentator:
There goes the wallop! It's a long ball!

It's going, going...

Foul!

Foul ball.
Out by a few, short feet.

Bingo long seems to have lost his stuff.

Woman: Get him outta there!

Commentator the catcher's running out to
the mound. This may be the last we see

of this exhausted pitcher today.

Don't worry, Isaac. Don't worry.
He just caught a lucky one.

Bingo, your arm's goin' out.
I'm comin' in to relieve you.

You tryin' to tell me my vanish ball
won't go right by him?

Your vanish ball disappeared
the middle of the fifth innin'.

It's so fast, it burned the atoms
off the leather.

It attained the speed of light.

It tend to disappear
when approachin' the plate!

Okay. But if you don't get him out
this time, I'm comin' in.

Oh, lord, I can feel
that woman's flab already.

Now, here we go, bingo.
Magic time, baby. Magic time.

Me and you now.
Me and you, bingo.

Commentator: Bingo's calling in
the outfield. I don't believe it!

A full count, and bases loaded,
and he's calling in his team.

Bingo long is wagering
the future of his team

on this one,
this one single, solitary pitch.

Come on, bingo.
Let's sink this. It's all right, bingo!

- I'm with ya, baby.
- Let's go, now.

Come on, bingo. Let's go!

Old fat Sam will bail you out
if it come down this way.

Hey, come on, bingo!
You can get him!

Hey, be tough!
Be tough, bingo! Come on!

Here we go!

Out!

Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!

Louis: Way to go, bingo!

We needed them insurance runs, sallie.

The game is over. The rebels 'bout
to breathe their last gasp.

We gonna win this game anyway!
Yeah! Come on, Sam!

Come on, Sam! Come on, Sam!

Megaphone:
Premiums as low as ten cents a week.

Don't let your family
be embarrassed.

On that final day,
let us put you away.

What's the score?
What's the score?

Sallie done it, bingo.
I was on my way.

Oh, man, I knew you was comin'.
I just knew you was comin'.

Everybody else was carryin' on,
but I was cool.

- Leon: Bingo, am I up?
- You pinch-hittin' for Isaac.

You get us that home run now!

Umpire:
All right, who's next? Batter up!

Get somebody up here!

Come on, mr Carter.

Here's your hickory, mr Carter.

What's the matter with you?
Cat got your tongue?

Gimme a touch for luck! Yeah!

Come on, Leon! Hit one!
You can do it! C'mon!

C'mon!

Sallie:
Can't trust nobody nowadays.

Ball one!

Ball two!

Ball three!

Well, you big hippo!

You was always sayin',
"let's book a game with the all-stars."

What?

It was you who wagered to give 'em a spot
in the negro national league.

- Oh, woman!
- Well, you just did. You give 'em your spot.

My spot?
Woman, you can't do that.

Huh! Tell her, boys.

- It's already done.
- It were unanimous.

Bertha: Come on, boys!

Who won?

Jbuenos dias, Carlos Nevada!
¢; Como estas, amigo?

No more of that Spanish stuff.
Uh-uh.

I was stupid tryin' to break
into the white leagues as a spaniard.

- You gonna play for us again?
- Sure I am! Soon as I get my big break.

How, kemosabe!

Make 'em big wampum.

From now on, I'm known
as chief takahoma.

Yeah, that means "tomahawk"
in mohican.

You the original smoke signal.

Charlie:
Boy, you niggers played your ass off today!

Hey, esquire Joe!

Esquire Joe! Esquire Joe!

- Oh, nice game!
- Esquire Joe! Esquire Joe!

- You okay?
- I'm okay.

All right then. You know,
you in the league now!

I love you, esquire.

Mr long, there's a man...
Mr long, there's a man outside.

Bingo:
Hold it, hold it. Hey, what?

There's a man outside
who runs the Brooklyn Dodgers!

He say he heard a lot about me,
so he come down and have a looky see.

He wants me to go off
and play on some white farm club.

He say if I'm good,
he's gonna put me onto a team.

A white team?

He said we gonna break
that colour line.

The white team is takin' on the kid!
That's what he told us.

All right! Yeah!
All right, all right!

That's a whole lot of crap, man.

Ain't no big league gonna sign
no coloured for no money!

- No, they're lyin' to you, boy.
- No, they ain't! No, they ain't!

Shoot, bingo, be glad for 'im!

Anybody goin' up, Joe a good one!

- Shit!
- Goddamn!

Goddamn.

But a rookie like you?

I thought I'd better come down
and see you first, mr long.

You know, sorta ask your permission,
and all.

- Permission?
- Yes, sir.

Well...

You got it. You got it.

- Louis: Give 'em hell, Joe.
- Champ: Yeah, Joe. You can do it.

Mr long, you always was
real good to me.

Oh...

I done learned a lot,
and I ain't gonna never forget it.

Rainbow:
Go get 'em, esquire Joe Calloway, sir!

Charlie: Ain't that a bitch?

They takin' negroes now
and I'm an Indian.

Fat Sam:
Get 'em, Joe. Go get 'em!

Go on ahead, git!
Go on, head off!

- Sing 'em!
- All: Esquire Joe! Esquire Joe!

- Sing 'em! Sing 'em! Sing 'em!
- All: Esquire Joe! Esquire Joe!

After all 'em years and all that double-talk,
the white man finally movin' in.

Shit, I don't care.
We gonna rule the league now.

Yeah, man, that just as long
as the league's still here.

What that supposed to mean?

Ain't no black folks gonna pay
to see us play no more,

not when they can see kids
like esquire playin' with the white boys.

No, no, no.
This is the end of negro ball.

When they see Joe do his stuff,
they gonna be comin' back for some mo'.

They like him,
they gonna love us!

I'm afraid not, good buddy.

They like a new kind of coloured player
now, and we ain't nineteen no more.

Well, hell, that's okay!

We in the league now.

- We the pinnacle of baseball creation.
- Come on, bingo. Come now.

Can't you see it, Leon?
Can't you see it? This is all ours.

We gonna set it right.
New paint!

And a new scoreboard
with a giant picture of you on the left

and one of me on the right.

And free hair-curlers and ten-cent cigars
every Tuesday!

Hey, nigger, you're crazy.

I don't know, I don't know. Maybe you got
somethin' in your fuzzy head after all.

Big business now, huh?
Twilight double-headers.

That's it, Leon! That's it!
And a new sign, a new sign.

A new sign that blinks all night.

The bingo long traveling all-stars
& motor kings!

- Starring Leon Carter.
- Yeah!

Oh, Leon.

You know somethin'?

It's you and me, Leon.

We can't never lose.

Never.

J strut your stuff

j and if they tell ya
you ain't good enough

j don'tcha get the blues

j you've tried to follow the golden rule

j but sometimes
you gotta kick that mule

j with that there kinda stuff
you just can't never lose

j remember, life's a tool

j it teaches you
what you can't learn in school

j oh, yes, it do

j and when you're on third
and need to win

j and no-one's there to bring you in

j just listen to bingo
and steal on home

j sweet home

j listen to bingo
and steal on home

j where is your players pride?

J move your ass
and make that slide

j then stand up
while the crowd is cheering you

j you gotta take a chance

j make your own music
when you do your dance

j and sing it strong

j and if you're off pitch
now and then

j you will find that key again

j and pretty soon
the world will sing along

j and I know it's written
in the book

j that when they say
they gave ya what ya took

j just give 'em a smile

j I know ya spent your life
just singing the blues

j and we all know
we ain't got nothin' to lose

j so just listen to bingo
and steal on home

j sweet home

j listen to bingo
and steal on home

j one more time

j listen to bingo
and steal on home j