All language subtitles for First.Monday.in.October.1981.1080p.WEBRip.x264-RARBG

Yes, that's right. The whole
court is in turmoil.

Couldn't have happened at a more
inconvenient time.

No, Dan doesn't know.

That's why I'm calling you. I've
got to get through to him right away.

Just a moment.

Excuse me, Mr. Chief Justice. This
is the file you asked for.

Thank God I caught you, Christine.
Any idea where he went?

What makes you think I'd know
where he is?

Dan?

Dan?

No,
he's not here.

I just walked through the door, CJ.

Where have you been?

Europe, as usual.

Stanley left some instructions
that involve Dan.

And I've gotta find him.

He surprised the hell out of me in
Brussels.

He sent me a postcard.

The only part I can make out is
"Dear Christine."

At least I think that's "Dear." You
know what his handwriting is like.

Then there's something here about
climbing a mountain.

Did he happen to mention which
mountain?

See that peak straight ahead?

That's where we'll be
tomorrow at this time.

Grab a couple
of lungs full of this.

Pity the poor bastards in the cities
who don't get to taste real air anymore.

Can we take a rest?

Another 30 minutes.

I know a great place for lunch.

Just hold on, I'm looking for it.

D. Snow." Would that be it?

CJ: That's it.

Mr

Do you have a number there where
we could call you back?

I do. I do indeed.

Area code 202, 252-3271.

Hello. Do you read? Over.

Yes, I read you.

Press the button to talk.

The little one on the top.
With your thumb, there.

Hello? Hello? Come in, please.
Come in, please.

Dan.

Patching you through on another channel.

Go ahead, Highport.

CJ: Do you hear me there? Hello?

Dan Snow here. Is that you, CJ?

We need you back here, Dan.

Couldn't hear that. Say it again,
will you, CJ?

Stanley Morehead died this morning.

Are you still there, Dan?

I say Stanley Morehead died this morning.

I

You gotta press to talk.

Heard you, CJ.

Tell Alice I'm sorry.

How fast can you get back here?

You see, Stanley asked if...

Hello?

Hello?

Hello?

Hello? Hello, Jeff?

Up here these CB patches pick up
a lot of DX noise.

You want me to try
getting him again?

No, that's okay.
We'll be getting downhill.

Thou preparest a table before me
in the presence of mine enemies.

Thou anointest my head with oil.

"My cup runneth over.

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life

and I will dwell in the house of
the Lord for ever."

I don't really know...

When Stanley left instructions
that he wanted me to, uh,

what do you call it... Say a few
words.

I was surprised.

Mr

and I guess it's only natural that
we keep right on disagreeing.

I know seven other men who could
do this better,

but I'm not about to file a
dissenting opinion.

Stanley Morehead was
a gentleman of honest mind.

You can't say that about many men
in this city

in this century.

Stanley and I were like a pair of
flying buttresses.

Leaning against opposite sides of
a Gothic cathedral

we helped keep the roof from
caving in.

If we'd both been on the same side
all the time,

we might have pushed the building
over.

You don't have to agree with a man in
order to respect him.

Stanley and I had one argument
over and over again.

I never won. I never could win.

He used to ask me,

What in God's name is the
practical use of mountain climbing?"

One time I said to him,

"Well,on a mountaintop, maybe you're
a little bit closer to God."

He laughed and said, "Dan, what the hell do
you know about God?"

I do know this.

Mr. Justice Stanley Morehead is
not in any box

about to be covered by earth.

He

Fire!

Ready. Aim.

Fire!

Ready...

Aim... Fire!

Ready... Present arms!

CHRISTINE: I think we should have
hired a limousine, like the others.

DAN: Nonsense. The fresh air will
do you good.

Alice looked awful.
You know what burns me?

Today's Star brushed off Stanley's
whole life with two inches.

And printed two full pages of
smart-ass speculation about his replacement.

DAN: I'll bet it's a surprise.
Somebody nobody thought of.

CHRISTINE: She doesn't have
many close friends.

DAN: It's always a surprise.
Especially for the guy who gets capped.

CHRISTINE: Maybe I'll plan a small
dinner party for her after we
get settled.

DAN: When the President gave me
the nod, I was so surprised

I couldn't talk for a week.

CHRISTINE: I don't think
I could stand

one of those terrible teas
with all those wives.

Could be anybody.

A lot of good men around.

A lot of lousy ones, too.

If I were Alice,
I'd go to Europe.

The warm part.

How was Europe?

Wet.

How was your mountain?

High.

You have any idea who's going to be
appointed?

To what?

The court.

I never try to second-guess a
president.

Man moves into the White House,

you have no idea what happens to his mind.

I just hope he has an active membership
card in the human race.

Waldo. Hi, Ted.

Always feels like the first day of
school, doesn't it?

Hope I never graduate.

I don't know what we'd do without
you, Dan.

Morning, Radabaugh. Anything
happen?

Everything that's happened is on your desk,
Mr. Justice Snow.

Still got the same cold?

Sinus.

DAN: Who's there?

Mason Woods, sir.

May I come in, sir?

Of course you can come in. What the hell do
you think you're here for?

Thank you, sir.

And you don't have to knock.

It

Yes, sir.

I

You're
too goddamn polite.

Stop being scared of me, Mason.
You got the job.

Yes,
sir.

Uh, would you care for some tea, Mr. Justice,
or a scotch?

Maybe I'd better have both.

No, I don't wanna overdo it.
Forget the tea.

Um, now this supports your
position

on Abbot vs. Omnitech.

Forget Omnitech.

But that's at the top of the
order list.

It's gonna get struck.

Why?

Because my brave brethren
on the court

are too chicken-hearted
to hear it, that's why.

When I'm getting ripped off,
Mason, I want to know who's doing the ripping.

How much can these multinational
monsters get away with?

I don't know, and neither do you.

Because they keep hiding behind
all those TV commercials

saying how goddamn holy
they are.

Even the CJ is scared to
hear Omnitech.

He says,
"It's like telling God

"you want to examine the books."

Peace, up to a point.

I tell you, Mason. The most
dangerous thing in the world is to be cautious.

People are always falling down the
ones who are afraid they'll trip over something.

Take a chance.
Yes, sir.

And don't always agree with me.

If you think I'm wrong
and don't say so,

then what the hell good are ya?

I like law clerks who argue with me.
Yes, sir.

No, sir.

I mean I'll try to do that, sir.

Not to do that, sir. What's this?

This is Collins vs. California.

It's a kinky one that came up
from the Ninth Circuit.

The Berkeley student who wore a
T-shirt that said, "Fuck the White House."

Did he
have his pants off?

It doesn't say.

Well then, I don't see any clear
and present danger

that he intended to implement the
opinion of his T-shirt.

Well, the Ninth Circuit held it was "offensive
to the public sensibility."

Just being offensive is not an
offense.

One man's pornography may be another
man's poetry. Yes, sir.

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.

Lady purity, speaking from the
cloisters of California.

Free speech is not ipso facto
filthy speech.

Dirt is a splendid environment
for earthworms,

but it is a grave for the human
mind."

I wish to hell she didn't write so
goddamn well!

You see, Mason? That's what this
court is for.

To restrain the Ruth Loomises of
the world.

Sir, I found this opinion
on surveillance.

But you won't
have to read it.

Why not?

You wrote it.

Well, read it to me.

I might have forgotten it or
changed my mind.

"When God created the world,

he did it alone, in private. All
by himself.

"No monitors,
no hidden microphones.

"He made it
the way he wanted it.

"But what if someone
had invaded God's privacy?

"Would he have put the world together
the same way?

"I doubt it.
He would've made it a popular world.

BOTH: "And the Garden of Eden
would have turned out

like Las Vegas or 42nd Street."

Would you like
to take any calls, sir?

Uh, Ms. Radabaugh will get that.

No, she won't.

Chambers of
Mr. Justice Snow.

Oh.

Yes, Mrs. Snow.

It's your wife
but she doesn't want to bother you.

You're not bothering me. You're
interrupting me, but you're not bothering me.

How should I seat them this evening?

I don't care how you seat 'em. Try
chairs.

Hello? Hello?

What happened to Radabaugh?

She left early.

Sinus?

She looked terrible.

Radabaugh's been with me for 23 years,

and she always looks terrible.

How do you do that, sir?
Do what?

Well, you reach in there and find exactly
what you're looking for.

In the middle of all that...
All that... Mess?

To you it's a mess. To me, it's a
wilderness of free association.

Don't ever straighten up
my desk, Mason.

I'd never be able
to find anything.

Always been suspicious
of neatness.

If there's nothing on top
of a man's desk,

he's probably shoved
all the clutter into the drawers.

And if his drawers are empty, what
the hell does he need a desk for?

May I come in, Dan? Sure,
CJ.

How are you, Mr. Chief Justice?

Uh, I'm not sure.

Mind if I lie down on your couch?

Mason, see if those T-shirts are
available on the open market.

I

What T-shirts?

None of your goddamn business.

Do I ask you about your underwear?

How come your couches are
much more comfortable than mine?

You know something, CJ?

Maybe I'll give you that couch

as a going-away present.

Who's going away?

Think of how many people would
bust a gut with joy if I retired.

Nah, you wouldn't do that
to me, Dan.

Oh

I

Yeah. Hmm.

Who's the President going to pick?

He's already been appointed?

Who is he?

Mr. Justice Snow,
I'm gonna have to ask you to rephrase that question.

A woman.

He picked a woman.

Great!

Good for him. It'll be fun.

Who is it? Who is she? Who? Who?

The President has just
sent up to the Senate Judiciary Committee

the name of Judge
Ruth Hagador Loomis,

of the Ninth Circuit
Court of Appeals.

Get off my couch. I have to lie
down.

Now... Now, Dan.

You're joking. It's a joke. It's
a joke, isn't it?

The President, I am told,
thinks he has made

a great, progressive step in the history
of mankind.

Ruth Loomis? The mother superior
of Orange County?

What goes through a man's head
when he makes an appointment like that?

Guess he was trying to be
evenhanded.

President of all the people.

The Senate'll never go for it.
Will they? Will they?

Forget it.

Where's Ms. Radabaugh?

Chambers of Mr. Justice Snow.

It

No comment from Mr. Justice Snow at
this time.

You're better than Ms. Radabaugh.

The President wants a woman on the court,
why not pick Ms. Radabaugh.

She'd be perfect.
She'd never show up.

Jeff, why in God's name do I get
a sinking feeling in my gut every time

I think about that woman sitting
on this court?

It's not because
she's a woman.

I like women.
My wife's a woman.

The bench will smell better with
a little perfume on it.

But Ruth Loomis...

How can you just let it ring?

Telephone has no constitutional
right to be answered.

Don't pay any attention to it.
It'll go away.

See?

I hear she plays tennis.

Hitler played the harmonica.

Oh,
she may not be so bad.

She's young.

We could use some young blood
around here.

And she isn't stupid.

Fix yourself a drink.

I just might do that.

Here she is now. Come in.

Is it true?

Jack Anderson's on the phone.

Would either of you care to say
anything to him?

Yes. Ask him where I'm spending my
vacation next summer.

I don't know, but he probably does.

I'll just tell him neither of you is available
for comment.

How does a newspaperman like Jack
Anderson

find out what happens in the Oval
Office so fast?

Simple. He's got a friend
in the Soviet embassy.

And I'm 10 minutes late.

Only one thing, Dan. Before you
consider resigning.

Resigning? Who the hell's gonna
resign?

You think I'd leave you here alone
and get sprayed down

by the Lysol lady of Orange County?

And if that holy junta
at the White House

picked her to replace Stanley
Morehead,

who in God's name do you suppose
they'd send up to take my seat?

Shirley Temple?

5-2.

BILL: Change sides. I'll let you
take the sun for a while.

Not bad for a beginner, am I?

When are you gonna let me take you
someplace where I can win?

Don't you think a year is long enough
to be a practicing widow?

Seven months.
Don't rush me.

Am I on the list?

You're at the top.

PUBLIC ANNOUNCER: Judge Loomis, telephone.

Long distance call for Judge Loomis.

Sorry, Bill.

SENATOR: I'm sorry these proceedings are taking so much time

but we're breaking ground here.

And I trust the committee's questions

aren't embarrassing you, Judge Loomis.

I don't embarrass easily, Senator.

Judge Loomis?

Judge Loomis, about your interests and equities,

would they influence your decisions on the high court?

The financial statement in front of you is complete, Senator.

When I was appointed to the Ninth Circuit,

I disposed of anything that might possibly raise

a question of conflict of interest.

Thank you.

But you were still married to a very active

and successful corporation lawyer.

Was I expected to dispose of him?

According to this FBI report,

you and your husband were partners in
the law firm of Loomis and Loomis.

Excuse me, Senator. Why do you keep bringing up my husband?

When I was appointed to the federal bench,

he took over the entire practice.

It was a tremendous burden on him.

It's probably what killed him.

Did you ever represent Omnitech International or its chairman,

Donald Richards?

No, Senator.

You're quite sure about that?

RUTH: Quite sure.

SENATOR: After you left, is it possible
that the firm represented him?

I'd have no knowledge of that.

And since your husband's death, you've had no
contact with any member of that firm?

RUTH:
None. Oh, that's not quite true.

I do play tennis once in a while with Bill Russell.

William Russell.

He joined the firm after I went to the bench.

SENATOR: Do you ever discuss legal business with him?

No, Senator.

Do you think perhaps,

you're a little too young, Judge Loomis,

to take these responsibilities on yourself?

As I recall,

Mr. Justice Snow was a year younger than I am

when he was appointed to the court.

Do you feel your decisions on the High Court

might be influenced by the fact that...

Well, you're a woman?

I hope so.

Uh, aren't a man's decisions influenced by the fact that he's a man?

For two centuries, this court has expressed
men's opinions.

And perhaps it's time for the majority of the population

to have one voice in nine in the
rulings of the Supreme Court.

SENATOR: Is the lady implying

that male justice is perverted?

RUTH: Haven't we outgrown those fears about the periodic instability

of the female of the species?

Eggs are not the seeds of insanity.

A woman can ovulate and think at the same time.

SENATOR: We're striving
to be objective.

Yes, but really,
what does sex have to do

with being a judge?

Somebody with the capacity to bear children

is gifted, not crippled.

A uterus is like absolute pitch,

so me people have it, some don't.

Well, according to this fact sheet,

Judge Loomis has never had any children.

Yes , but does the Constitution say that a
Supreme Court Justice has to be a mother?

Judge Loomis, we don't mean to probe into your personal life...

Why not?
My entire life is public.

The FBI is wrong in reporting to you
that I have no children.

I have hundreds.

We are the parents of our ideas,

and, uh, so my children,

in other words, my opinions, my decisions,

are the result of conception,

and the delivery is sometimes painful.

You may not like my children.

You may find them ugly,

but, by God, your ideas and mine

have equal rights to live together,

to grow, to change, even to die.

If there are no further questions,

the committee will consider an executive session

where we'll recommend to the full body of the Senate.

Thank you, Judge Loomis.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

T hank you, gentlemen.

Now let's check it
just once more.

Mr. Justice Carey
is now on this end.

That's correct. Then Mr.
Justice Webb.

Webb. Mr. Justice Quincy.

That's him. Mr. Justice
Snow.

That's right. The CJ stays
in the center, of course.

Then Mr. Justice Halperin.
Okay.

Mr. Justice Clewes.

That's him. Mr. Justice Thompson.

That's right. And the new
chair for Justice Loomis

on this end.
That's correct.

Does a lady need this?

We'll tell her
it's a wastebasket.

Good afternoon.

Welcome to Washington,
Justice Loomis.

Thank you. Everything's
ready.

Great. Oh, is the phone in?

Ah, yes.
The man left an hour ago.

Hello?

Ready for your coronation?

Bill?
Yes.

How did you get this number? I
don't even know it.

Well, I do. If it ever slips your mind, just give me a ring.

In the bedroom, please.

In the bedroom?

I'm talking to the bellman,
you idiot.

It's sweet of you to call.

I just wanted to be the first man in recorded history

to ask a Supreme Court Justice for a date.

So noted.
The clerk will put it on the docket.

That'll take two years!

Not now that I'm in charge.

Mr. Agronsky?

Whenever you're ready.

Tape is rolling.

This is an historic day for the
nation

and for the Supreme Court of the
United States.

The court has been in session

since the first Monday in October,

which, according to the Judiciary
Act of 1789,

marks the start of a new term
each year.

No camera has ever photographed

the traditional robing ceremony

in the sanctum sanctorum of the court,

and none is there today.

Since the death of Justice Stanley Morehead,

this has been an eight-man court,

which as Justice Daniel Snow has pointed out,

resembles a four-man basketball team.

Today the vacancy has been filled.

But this still remains an eight-man court.

Well, where is she?

Maybe we ought to sound the
warning buzzer a little sooner.

I suppose she has things to do
that we don't.

After all, I don't have anything
to do with my hair.

AGRONSKY: This is
an historic occasion.

Like the Jesuits going coed.

Suppose she'll wanna hang
chintz curtains everywhere?

I hate chintz.

Why am I nervous? She's the one who
should be nervous.

Now, gentlemen, things are not
going to be any different

from the way they've been every
two minutes to 10 in the history of the court.

Now we've got to think of her
exactly as one of the brothers.

Good morning.

Justice Loomis, welcome.

Welcome to the court. Thank
you.

Good morning.
Good morning, ma'am.

Thank you
for the lovely roses.

Uh...

You don't send me roses anymore,
CJ.

It's 9:58, gentlemen and Madam
Justice.

We shake hands
like this every day.

Every morning just before we take
the bench.

Like nine boxers coming in to a
ring.

We shake hands before we knock each
other out.

The honorable, the Chief Justice
and Associate Justices

of the Supreme Court of the United
States.

Oyez, oyez, oyez.

All persons having business

before the honorable, the Supreme Court of the United States

are admonished to draw near and give their attention,

for the Court is now sitting.

God save the United States and this honorable Court.

CJ: Today's orders
of the Court

have been certified by the Chief Justice filed with the clerk

and will not be announced orally.

Probably the peak of every
lawyer's career

is that moment when he is presented
and accredited to plead

before the highest court
in the land.

Only lawyers ever plead in that
hallowed chamber.

But today, all eyes are focused on the court's newest newcomer

who has just received confirmation from the Senate of the United States.

Court watchers will be fascinated in the weeks and months ahead

by the figure in the leather chair farthest to the left

of the Chief Justice.

How will this feminine presence

affect what for two centuries

has been an all-male preserve?

Because so many states

have accepted pornography
as a way of life

does not mean that we are willing

to compromise our values

in the sovereign state of Nebraska.

Ergo, I beseech this
distinguished body,

in its infinite and scholarly
wisdom,

to uphold exalted standards of
morality

which this lofty court so
fervently advocates.

And how rare it is
to find judicial minds

so attuned to the higher
reaches of the spirit.

So understanding
of the basic values

we so dearly cherish.

So incredibly sensitive to the
deep strains of decency

which constitute
the lapping tidewaters

of our heritage.

The state of Nebraska

contends that
Herbert G. Maloney,

knowing and willfully,

perpetrated an obscene and foul...

Your time is up.

May I be permitted...
CJ: No.

Any questions, gentlemen?

Madam Justice?

I get the impression
that the state of Nebraska

would like to see this film
confiscated, burned,

and the ashes sent into space.
Is that the idea?

If the court so recommended.

Is it your contention
that the Constitution

gives this court
any such power?

This court is the judge
of its own power.

Until we actually examine the film in
question, I think that...

May it please the court.

I respectfully submit that my
client's rights under the First Amendment...

The First Amendment doesn't give
anybody the right

to commit acts which are harmful
to the public good.

But this is an educational film.

A major documentary, a work of art.

How can we judge that
until we've seen it.

Do any of the justices object,

besides Justice Snow?

I think it's essential that we see
the film.

Alright then. The clerk will
schedule a showing of the film

at some future date which is not
in conflict

with the schedule already on the
calendar.

NARRATOR: If you saw Lois
walking along

in the sunshine of Beverly Hills,

you might think she was just a healthy, ordinary girl.

But Lois has a problem.

Like the alcoholic who cannot stop with one drink,

like the compulsive eater

who must consume one dessert after another,

Lois can never be satisfied,

can never get enough of what she craves.

Why isn't
Mr. Justice Snow here?

He never comes to these showings.

NARRATOR: The average young woman wants one man,

but Lois is insatiable.

Have we missed much?

The lady's just
getting started.

You guys get over there.

And shut the door.

NARRATOR:
We asked a distinguished physician

to give his opinion of Lois' condition.

He has asked that his name be withheld

be cause of his high standing in the medical profession.

Dr. X, from the point of view of a man of science,

what can be done for Lois?

Th is sort of affliction is difficult to treat.

Let's look at the other sex as Lois sees them.

Oh, let's not.

NARRATOR:
Can Lois ever be cured?

Or is she doomed to a life

of ever-increasing frustration?

I don't know about Lois, but I'm
cured.

Haven't we seen enough?

NARRATOR: During the next hour

we'll try to show you...

No, I don't think so.

Projectionist,
stop the film, please.

Please.

Thank you. Does anyone object?

No.
Not me.

Mr. Chief Justice,
are you stopping the film

because there's a woman
in the room?

No

You think I'm offended?
Of course I'm offended,

but that's no reason
to stop the film, is it?

CJ,
just a moment, please.

Madam Justice Loomis, as a man,

I am somewhat embarrassed
that you have to sit here and watch this thing.

I certainly can understand how Harold
feels.

I wouldn't want to sit through it
with my wife

or arrange a special showing for
Mother's Day.

But your wife and your mother
haven't been appointed to this court.

Time is the point, gentlemen and
Madam Justice.

And we have a responsibility not
to waste it.

I have seen enough to make my
decision.

JUDGES: Me, too. Yes.

I do apologize, Justice Loomis.

Why?

Something is very wrong here.

You're all so polite to me.

I'm not being
too outspoken, am I?

No. No.

No

Raise hell, if you want to.

You may be sorry
you said that.

Actually, I do have one question.
Oh.

How can Mr. Justice Snow
pass judgment on something

without even seeing it?

Hasn't he virtually
disqualified himself on Maloney?

Would you like to suggest that to
Justice Snow?

I don't think that's one of my
privileges. Isn't it yours?

Well, yes, I suppose it is.

And, Mr. Chief Justice,
I'd like to examine the rest of the film.

If you don't mind.

Just to see if there's a shred of redeeming
social or artistic value.

Projectionist.
Would you continue the film, please?

Thank you.

5:30 will be fine.

Howdy, Ben.

Good afternoon, Mr. Justice.

How are you felling?

Just fine, thank you.
Just fine.

How's Esther?

Better and better.

Good.

The usual, Mr. Justice?

Sure.

Dan.

Hi, Waldo.

I just want you to know I'm not
gonna support Madam's motion.

What kind of a motion
is she making?

Oh, I thought you knew.

Knew
what?

You
better get it from CJ.

We'll do this later, Ben.

Yes, sir.

Hi, Dan.
Missed you at lunch.

What's she up to? What's
who up to?

How many "she's" do we have on
the Court?

Oh, that. Well it's just
that a question came up.

Or more accurately, a suggestion was made.
Yeah?

Well, what it amounts to is, uh...

Should, uh...

Should attendance be obligatory

at these obscenity screenings?

Who wasn't there besides me?

Oh, house was packed.

What's your beef?

Well, the lady wonders

whether a justice who hasn't seen
any part of the film

hasn't in effect...

She wants me to disqualify myself

because I won't go down there

and sit through that pile of
crap? Uh, well...

So it's crap. What if it is crap?
That's not the point.

Crap's got the right to be crap.

Drop the legal language, Dan.

Are you as Chief Justice

suggesting that I disqualify
myself from voting on Maloney?

No. I'm merely suggesting that,
uh...

It's been suggested.

Where are you going?

I

Not roses.

And have a look
at US v. Albertson, 1954.

It's in volume 348, US. Maybe 349.

Is she in?

Oh, yes, sir,
Mr. Justice Snow.

Uh, just hold on a second. Yes?

ROBINSON: Madam Justice, Mr. Justice Snow would like to see you.

He would. When?

He's here.

Just check those references. I'll
get back to you. Thank you.

Tell Mr. Justice Snow I'll be
happy to see him in a minute.

She'll be happy to see you
in a moment, Mr. Justice.

Thank you.

Ask Mr. Justice Snow to come in,
Mr. Robinson.

You may go in, Mr. Justice.

Thank you.

No, no. Please, please. Don't get
up, don't get up.

You'd stand, Mr. Justice, if I came
to call on you in chambers.

Oh

I can't tell you how grateful I am
to you for seeing me like this.

On no notice whatsoever.

It's my honor.
Is it?

Well, I suppose it is.

Say...

That's quite a desk.

And so neat.

Do aircraft land here frequently?

What is it that you wanted
to see me about?

Nothing earthshaking.

By George, I was a little startled
to see

that you've got a male law clerk
out there.

Mr. Robinson?
He's not my law clerk.
He's my secretary.

Well. Well, well, well.

What a generous gesture.

Letting men into a field

previously dominated by the other
sex.

I'm glad you're
in favor of men's lib.

Say, let's relax.

Do you feel like relaxing?

Madam Justice,

I hope you aren't finding our
national capital too dull

after the grandeur of Disneyland.

You don't think much
of California, do you?

I try not to think of it at all.

Why don't you try climbing
some our mountains?

Oh, I have, I have. I admire your
mountains.

It's your valleys that make me
nervous.

Now, Madam Justice,

I would like your opinion on a
point of law

concerning that great American art
form, the motion picture.

Help yourself.

Oh, thank you.

Now, I was wondering if by any
chance

you'd seen a film called, um...

The Naked Nymphomaniac.

That's the one.

Now you probably didn't even notice
I wasn't there.

I noticed.

Oh, you did? Mmm.

Well...

Well...

I wonder if you found anything,

uh, unpleasant in the picture.

First of all,

I see no reason to overturn the
lower court.

Anyone who'd seen that film would
realize that The Naked Nymphomaniac

is a total offense
against the public sensibility.

It's sickening,
degrading, disgusting.

My, my, my, my, my, my.

As bad as all that?

Now, I
wonder
if you can put your finger

on exactly what it was that
offended you?

Was it the title?
Some particular word in the title.

Naked", is that it?

What if they called it

The Fully-Clothed Nymphomaniac?

Or maybe it was the other word that
bothered you.

Nym-pho-maniac."

Supposing they called it The Naked Methodist,

or Naked Daughter of the American Revolution?

Are you finished?

Madam Justice, I am a long way
from being finished,

but I'll pause briefly in case
there's something you'd like to say.

Thank you.

Let me ask you
something.

Would you call a female governor
a governess?

Is a woman composer
a composeress?

No. And her sex is entirely
beside the point.

And a justice
of the Supreme Court

is a justice,
not "Madam Justess."

Now, Mr. Justice, I submit that we
are failing in our duty on this court

if we don't try to stop the
avalanche of prurient slop...

Madam, if you'll... I'm not
finished.

Which is about
to bury us.

Are we doing our job
if we permit anything?

What are we permitting?

Violence in the streets.

Kids on drugs.

Filth. Pornography.

Who slaps the labels on? You? Me?

Somebody better.
No, thank you, ma'am.

I think it's unconstitutional to
set myself up as a censor.

Refusing to look at something is
censorship.

Hell, I don't look at television,
that doesn't make it illegal.

That's not the point.

Seeing that film is material to
making a judgment.

If you'd spent 10 minutes in that
screening room. Five minutes.

You would see how obscene, how
outrageous...

Censorship
is an outrage.

What about a training film for
terrorists?

A free lecture. How To Make a Nuclear Bomb in Your Basement.

Do you condone inciting to
violence?

No,
ma'am.

What about inciting to decadence?

Define
decay.

That's what we're here for.

Not me.

We'd better try.

The people of this country have only one
absolute protection against chaos.

The law.

And you and I were appointed to
this court for only one reason,

to uphold and sustain that law.

Watch out. You can't turn the law
into a straitjacket.

The law's gotta be a suit
of clothes a man can wear.

It's gotta fit easy,
be comfortable.

Law shouldn't strap a man in at the
throat, or the brain, or the crotch.

That's vivid.

Do you know what you're doing?

You're making Maloney more
important than the law.

He is more important
than the law!

This court doesn't try men. We
put their trials on trial.

That's it. We're constantly
examining the witness who isn't there.

All we ever get to see are lawyers,
cold records, cold briefs.

Where's the human being?
Where's the pain? We've gotta touch flesh.

I

It's in the people who get hurt.

The innocent little kid who sits in
the dark theater while Maloney's filth

pours over him.

That's where the pain is.

You're on the right track.

You're beginning
to look at people.

And when you let a little more
humanity into your thinking,

you might make a damn good
justice.

But I won't bet on it.

You're just being sweet to me
because I'm a woman.

Do I have any appointments this
afternoon?

3:15. Miller, securi...

Cancel it.

Mrs. Stowe just called.

Call her back, tell her I can't
talk to her.

And blow your nose, please.

I don't wanna talk to anybody. I
gotta work, I gotta concentrate.

Yes, sir.

He says he doesn't want to...

I wouldn't dream
of disturbing Justice Snow.

I

Film producer. Oh...

There you are, Mr. Maloney.

What?

A respected colleague of mine,

Mr. Justice Snow, feels that this
court

is doing you a great injustice

by not meeting you face-to-face.

We ought to hear your voice,

bask in your personality.

What was the expression he used?

Oh, yes, we should "touch flesh."

Mason, call the guard.

Don't go, Mason.

This might be quite
educational for all of us.

Would you care to take the
witness stand,

Mr. Maloney?

Going to swear me in?

Going to lie to me?

Maybe you better swear me in.

I

to be the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth, so help me
Loomis.

Let's get right
to the point, Mr. Maloney.

Are you aware
that you broke a law?

No, ma'am.

You didn't realize
that the State of Nebraska

has statutes
prohibiting pornography?

Doesn't the First Amendment apply
to guys like me?

Isn't it an umbrella that's
supposed to keep all of us from
getting wet?

Or is there a hole in it over
Nebraska?

But the people of Nebraska
have the freedom

to protect themselves
against your abuse of their freedom.

That's what this case
is all about.

Look, lady, I'm a businessman,

and I don't see where the
government's got any business

telling me how to run my business.

Oh, I'm relieved.

For a while, I thought you
might be thinking of yourself as an artist.

I do recall the word "art"

plastered across your film.

Tell me, Mr. Maloney,

do you honestly believe

The Naked Nymphomaniac is art?

Sure, why not? Who's to say it
isn't? What's art anyway?

Artists don't even know, let
alone lawyers.

Exactly what was
your motivation

in filming The Naked Nymphomaniac?

Money.

You can't have much pursuit of
happiness in this country

unless you pursue a little money.

Anything unconstitutional about
that?

Does the Constitution give you the right to
do anything for money?

Does it give you the right to
shove me into bankruptcy?

The lawmakers of Nebraska want to stop the
pollution

of the minds and morals of the
public.

By films like yours.

My colleague on this bench, Mr.
Justice Snow...

Fine man.
Know him very well.

He feels very strongly about
profit-pursuing

conglomerates which pollute the
air.

Air is different. You've got to
breathe.

You don't have to go to the
movies.

State and local governments have a right
to set community standards.

People can say, "I don't want this
kind of thing in my neighborhood."

Is it okay for people to say,

We don't want any Baptists in our
neighborhood, damn it"?

Your film, it's called
an exploitation film, is that correct?

Right, and you're keeping me from
exploiting it.

Aren't you exploiting women,

the act of love?

Giving a distorted picture of sex
to young people?

Who am I hurting?

I'm not talking
about bodily harm.

Has anyone died from seeing
The Naked Nymphomaniac?

What about injury
to the spirit?

Doesn't your
celluloid poison

attack all human dignity
and decency and beauty?

I don't think you like my picture.

I think somebody had better set
some standards,

some voice had better say,
"This far and no farther."

You're talking like a woman, not
a justice.

You're talking like a justice, not
a witness. Sit down, Maloney.

Have you been
to New York lately?

Times Square,
44th, 45th Street?

It used to be a decent place to
visit.

Unforgettable music, powerful
plays.

Today, right around the corner on
8th Avenue,

your picture's
probably playing

alongside a lot of other
pornography and filth.

Watch out, lady.

Scratch me, put me out of
business, and who else gets scratched?

The same end of the eraser can wipe out

your unforgettable music and your
powerful plays.

You're sharp, Maloney.

You pull every sleeve
inside out.

You want the liberty
to dirty up my liberty,

my security against

the profiteering
two-legged cockroaches of this world,

my right to live in a sweet
and decent society and not some kind of sewer.

Even in New York you have
to clean up after your dog shits on the sidewalk,

and it's a perversion
of the Constitution

to shove our faces
into excrement

masquerading as art.

I'm glad I met you,
Mr. Maloney.

I feel I have a much better
understanding of you...

And Justice Snow.

He may want the absolute freedom
to go straight to hell,

that's his right.

But he has no right to force the
rest of the country to take the trip with him.

You may step down.

Yeah, you make a pretty good
trial lawyer.

Too bad you had to gave it up.

You make a very good actor.

I may always have the feeling
there's a pornographic producer
under your robes.

It makes me sick to my stomach

to have to defend a principle as
noble as the First Amendment

on the basis of that can of film
you found so offensive,

but by God, as long as I have
tongue and tonsils,

and the ability to talk, I'll
defend everybody's right to speak,

and every man's right to be wrong.

I yield to you as the authority on
that, Mr. Justice.

She's dangerous.

That woman is positively
dangerous.

The men on this court have got to
stick together, Mason.

After all, there are only eight
of us left

against all of her.

Should we smile a little?

Good God, no.
Who would trust a happy justice?

Should the lady be standing while the five
of us are sitting?

This is where the newest member of
the court is supposed to be, I think.

Ready, everybody?

Now, please don't look
directly into the camera.

And I think if you seem to be
looking out into space?

Into the future?

I can't see that far.
I didn't bring my glasses.

You'll need more than glasses.

My wife always hates these
pictures. She says we all look stuffed.

Why don't we take a snapshot of
our convictions?

It would have to be a moving
picture, if convictions mean anything.

My convictions don't move.

Neither did
the dinosaurs.

Come on, tear that one up.

Yes, Mr. Chief Justice.

Would somebody suggest to our
great dissenter

that he curb his celebrated sense
of humor?

He'll need all his wits to keep on

writing
minority opinions.

Well, a man's got to decide
whether to be on the right side or the winning side.

Once in a while,
they are the same.

This court isn't going to reverse
the Seventh Circuit on Omnitech.

DAN: We sure as hell won't
if we don't even hear it.

Come on, gentlemen.
Hold that for the conference room.

You can wreck the whole business
establishment,

Mr. Justice Snow,

with your damn socialist ideas!

I'm about as much of a
socialist as Donald Duck and you know it,

you brainwashed
Brahman!

Come on, come on. Harold, sit
down.

Come on, now. Dan,
behave yourself.

Here we go.

Destroy that negative.

Yes, sir.

Harold, try to remember
what you did with your
face last year.

You looked pretty good.

I did?

Just look trustworthy.

Somebody in Washington
better look that way.

Is Justice Snow implying

that nobody in this city, or this
country, is honest except him?

Oh, to hell with the picture.

CJ: Dan, where are you going?
We've got to finish this!

Paste me in from last year.

CJ: All right, Richard, we'll try
again tomorrow.

RICHARD: Yes, sir.

It's been a pleasure.

Good afternoon, sir.

Where are you going? Not to
Europe again?

Much farther than that.

Virginia.

Yes, you can take those two.
I'll bring these myself.

I thought I'd be gone
before you came home.

Usually, that's
not very difficult.

I left a note for you on
the dining room table.

I don't want to read any notes.

Then you can talk it
over with my lawyers.

They thought that would
avoid any unnecessary unpleasantness.

What's so pleasant about talking
to lawyers?

What the hell is happening around
here?

Maybe the court can stand your bad
temper, but I can't.

What do you mean,
bad temper?

Goddamn it, I'm the sweetest-
tempered son of a bitch in the District of Columbia!

Sit down.

Why
should
I sit down?

What the hell are you doing?

Describe the wallpaper. What
wallpaper?

In this room.

Wallpaper...

What color is it?

What design? Who memorizes
wallpaper?

You can't memorize
what you don't ever see.

Good-bye, Dan.

Pink roses and butterflies, for
Christ's sake!

RUTH: How does the great dissenter

feel about our playing tennis
together every week?

I'm not sure.
I haven't told him yet.

Well, I must say, Dan Snow has
done a lot for my game.

Every time I get a high one I can
really kill.

That's not you on the
other side of the net.

That's
why they go by me so fast.

Go change.
I'll give you a lift to
Mount Olympus.

How do you stand his moods, Mason?

Every time I see him, he's ready
to explode.

Does he ever just relax?

Yeah, he does have
strong feelings.

Same as you do.

I hope you're
not implying that he and I are alike.

No, no, no.
I just mean that you
have similar differences.

You both care about things,

nothing's unimportant,

whether you're making
a point on the bench

or on the tennis court.

Does Justice Snow ever talk about
me?

Oh, all the time.

Anything quotable?

Well...

I withdraw the question.

Hearsay evidence.

Inadmissible.

Morning.

You're not a double agent, are
you, Mason?

No, sir.

We just get in a set of
tennis about once a week before breakfast.

She plays very well for a justice
of the Supreme Court.

She's got a hell of a
backhand, sir.

Yeah, I know. I've seen it work.

When we found out we
were both tennis players...

Well, I hope you don't mind, sir.

Hell, no.

Go ahead.

Wear her out.

Yes, sir.

Why are you trying
to persuade me?

You know I won't vote to hear it.

All right, all right!

We'll table this one.

Why not table everything?

DAN: Oh, no. Abbot vs. Omnitech.

I think putting Omnitechon the
calendar

is an exercise in futility.

Right.
Oh, is it?

Perhaps if we stopped
recruiting judges

from the jungles of Orange County,

maybe we can get a 4-5 court turned
into a 5-4 court.

I

That's what we're trying to save
you from, Dan.

Well, I don't want to be
saved! I want to keep right
on going, straight to hell.

What's Omnitech done?

That's what these little stockholders
are trying to find out.

But, Dan, the momentum
engine doesn't work.

That's
what Omnitech says.

What about these experts who say
otherwise?

But we'll never know, will we?

Because Donald Richards, chairman
of Omnitech,

has bought up all the patents and
buried them.

This action is against Omnitech,
not Donald Richards.

Donald Richards is Omnitech, for
Christ's sake.

Where the hell is he, and why has
he disappeared?

Immaterial.

I don't see any new Constitutional
grounds

for us to review Omnitech.

If we don't hear it, who in the
hell will?

This is the last goddamn stop,
lady.

Why does Brother Snow
insist on wasting the court's valuable time?

Because I smell plenty of
unrefrigerated fish here.

Muckraking.
That's all it is, Dan.

Do you
like being screwed?

Because that's what Donald
Richards is doing, you know.

Screwing you and me and
the whole country.

You're a troublemaker, you know
that?

Yes, I know that.
But somebody has to be, CJ.

Move up Omnitech.

Good morning,
Mr. Justice Snow.

Morning

What makes you think
it's going to rain?

The newspaper said there's an 80%
chance of rain or snow.

What do they know?

They're wrong
80% of the time.

That was our floor.

Yes. Why didn't you get out?

I thought you'd go first.

How would you like to take
a little trip with me?

That's what we seem to be doing.

Ever been to the Smithsonian?

Not lately.

Understand I wouldn't dream
of trying to change your mind for the world,

but there's something at the
Smithsonian I think you ought to look at.

Some early American pornography?

Good
morning, Mr. Justice.

Good morning. Morning.

What have you got in the
briefcase, Harold,

dirty books?

What I want you to see
at the Smithsonian

isn't even vaguely offensive to
the public sensibility.

What time?

3:00.

Make it 3:15.

We'll take my car.

What time does the Smithsonian
close?

This won't take long.

Why don't we
take my car?

It has a top.

Well, I guess the paper was
right about the rain.

First time they've been
right in 20 years.

Lady, what you are about to see
is a revolution.

Nonviolent, I hope.

This is it.

Spin it. Go ahead.

Go ahead, give it a spin.
It won't hurt you.

That is a momentum engine.

It's a model of course,
a prototype.

Imagine a flywheel
20 times heavier

revolving 1,000 times faster in a
sealed vacuum.

This could revolutionize
the entire auto industry.

We could have cars without gas
tanks because they wouldn't need gas to run.

This is what Omnitech bought and
buried.

If you want to change my vote on Omnitech,no, thank you.

I

Don't treat me like
a first-year law student.

I'm just trying to...
You're trying to change my
mind.

I

That machine is a dandy idea and
it just doesn't work.

It's never been given a chance to
work.

It's been squashed.

Would you go to all this trouble
if I were a man?

One of the brothers?

Sex has nothing to do with it.

Because I'm a woman, your resplendent
male ego wants to win me over.

Jefferson said an educated electorate
is the basis...

You're an arrogant, self-centered,
male chauvinist pig.

You're just being sweet to me
because I'm a man.

I only wanted you to see
with your own eyes,

that gasoline isn't the only way
to store energy.

Well, don't expect me to believe

that Alice in Wonderland whirligig
could run a car.

Having trouble, are you?

Excuse me.

Finally
got the auto club.

May be a while.

We could take a cab
if we could get a cab.

Have you eaten anything?

No, I just got in here.
Same as you.

I meant today.

Oh, today. Well, I, um,

I'm not sure.
I don't keep track.

Do you know what that does to your blood sugar?
What do you care?

A person can't make valid judgments
with low blood sugar.

Is that any place in the Constitution?

Well... Good evening.

I

I think you are hungry and you just
don't know it.

I'm not hungry
and I know it.

I'll order something for you.

You're not telling her
to put poison in my food, are you?

I don't know how to say poison.

I appreciate
your concern about my insides.

Dome a favor, will you? Put your
hand over your eyes?

Why?

A test.

What's on the wall?
Wallpaper.

Uh, what color?

Gold. Any pattern?

Yes. What is it?

Cherry blossoms with bluebirds.

How the hell
did you know that?

I saw it when we came in!

You go around looking
at wallpaper everyplace?

My God, that's what's
wrong with you!

Your brains are
full of wallpaper.

Well, your brain is full of...

Watch that.
Watch...

People...
People here...

I was going to say momentum engines
and Omnitech.

Omnitech may be the most importance case
of this decade.

When one tiny group of
stockholders tries to

undermine a
great corporation...

Big. Huge.
Not necessarily great.

How come the president
of Omnitech didn't show up at his own trial?

Don Richards doesn't want the
courts to put him out of business!

Rule against Omnitech, and down
goes the whole corporate system.

Only the abuses.

In your isolated opinion.

Not so isolated.
We have statutes that define the abuses.

If we try to extend our
jurisdiction... All I'm asking is what's fair.

.into legislative area.

Don't you see? Omnitech must win.

Oh, you think that, do you?
Yes!

Well it seems to me anything can
happen, no matter how great the odds.

That's what makes
this country so wonderful.

I absolutely agree with you.

But do you know what I believe more
than anything else? You said it on the bench!

You said, "The noblest purpose of
this high court

is to keep the government off
the backs of the people."

People, yes.
Not the large...

Aren't corporations people?

Owned by people, run by
people. ...not the large.

Not the large...
For the benefit of people?

Not the large...

And they may be destroyed by people
on the high court who seem to have

forgotten some of their earlier
and wiser opinions.

Ah, the hell with this!

You haven't eaten your dim sum.

To hell with my dim sum!

What about your blood sugar?

To hell with my blood sugar. All I
wanted anyhow was a cup of coffee and a fork.

Is something wrong, sir?
Yes. Everything.

Give me a check!

I'll take the check.

Yes, you do that. You'll feel much
better about it.

And don't worry about me.
I'll be just fine. I'll take a cab.

Good.

It's nothing personal.

He's just very upset.

He's been working too hard.

I don't have any
money for a cab.

Good night, Madam Justice.

Would you see that these
are delivered to Justice Snow in the morning?

Justice Snow's still here.

I don't think so.

He's in the court, ma'am.

This late?

Yes, ma'am.

Okay. Thank you.

How long have you been here?

Since October.

I'm not sure the lady has enough
seniority

to haunt these chambers at, uh,

1:20 in the morning.

What the hell are you doing here
so late?

Studying for finals.

What about you?

Well, I used to think I lived in
Georgetown,

but I guess this is more my
permanent residence.

I brought you these.
A few opinions of mine from the lower court.

I

You're welcome.

May I ask you a question?

Sure.

Other than my blood sugar

and my bad table manners,

exactly how repulsive do you
think I am?

Do you want my opinion as a
justice of the Supreme Court?

No, no, no.

As a woman.

You want to take the Fifth?

Maybe one of us
had better.

My car runs now.

Would you like a lift home?

No.

Pretty cool around the Snow
household these days.

I heard that.

I'm sorry.

It's your fault, you know.

My fault?

I think my wife thinks that I spend
so much time being furious at you that I don't

have enough energy left to be
furious with her.

And I have a hunch

she thinks I consider you attractive.

There's certainly
no evidence to support that contention.

Oh, I wouldn't be too sure about
that.

I hope you assured Mrs. Snow that
the mere fact one of your

colleagues happens
to be a woman...

That's no mere fact.

That's an overwhelming fact.

But I've never been prejudiced by
sex.

Entertained, yes. Prejudiced,
never.

Yes, yes, yes.

This is a dandy. I remember it well.

I don't agree with a word of
it, but it's well-written.

How can you be so goddamned
logical

and so goddamned wrong?

What's so wrong about encouraging
the economy?

I

about improving the quality of
life on this planet

and I
agree with you, Dan.

Justice Snow.

Dan is fine.

Look what these great companies
have done for us.

Large companies.

Large.
Large.

Are we going to throw those
benefits away?

Should I take my weekly wash down
to the banks of the Potomac River and

and beat it with rocks?

Won't get it very clean.

If we reverse the
Seventh Circuit on Omnitech...

If it's so damn important,

why doesn't Donald Richards
stand trial?

What do you want to know?

You're not Donald Richards,

and he's the one
with the answers.

Swear me in.

Oh, you want to play that game
again.

All right. You're sworn.

I am delighted, Mr. Donald
Richards,

to have you here at last.

In the flesh, so to speak.

Would you state your occupation,
please?

I'm president and chairman of the board of
Omnitech International.

Why did you refuse to testify in
the suit against your company?

I never received a subpoena.

They have to know where you are
to serve it.

But you deliberately made yourself
unavailable, remained in hiding.

Doesn't an American citizen

have a right to privacy?

Tell me something, sir.

I

I'm the majority stockholder.

Yes. I kind of thought you were.

Now,what about all those little
stockholders

who got wind of the appalling
notion

that you, Mr. Richards, grabbed up an
earthshaking idea and strangled it.

You know what
I find appalling?

That you have the
arrogance to pass

judgment on something you don't
know anything about.

But you do, Mr. Richards?

When we test something,
like the momentum engine,

and we find out it doesn't work,

we drop it and spend
our time and money on something that will work.

What about the experts who say it
does work?

You think I would
deliberately dump an idea

that could make millions for my
stockholders?

But you've got billions committed

to the internal combustion engine.

Omnitech makes spark plugs, you
wanna go on making spark plugs.

There's money in carburetors. You
wanna go on making carburetors.

You've got vested interests in 16
oil companies.

You wanna go on selling gas.

You have one noble purpose, Mr.
Richards, to keep things the way they are.

An idea doesn't just turn
into a reality.

Some thing's gotta
make it happen.

It takes money
to build factories,

grind out a product,
advertise it, sell it.

Did you ever hear
of a box of cereal

or a tube of toothpaste
going out and giving birth to itself?

Do you know what it takes?

Capital. Capital. You're
damn right.

And I'm not going to
commit my corporation

to the expenditure of millions of
dollars on an idea

that just doesn't work.

That you say doesn't work.

Look.

Thomas Edison dreamed up the
electric light bulb.

The government gave him a patent.

So that he could profit from his
invention.

Fine! But the light itself belongs
to everybody,

and nobody... Nobody has a right

to turn on the darkness.

You dare accuse me,
my company, my companies, of practices

that belong in the Dark Ages?

Then let there be light!

Come out of the dark, Donald
Richards!

Who are you?

What do you look like? Where have
you been?

Holy Christ.

You know what I think? I think
you're dead, Donald Richards.

I think you've been dead for a long
time. Eight, maybe 10 years.

It's been that long since anyone has
seen you.

And if you are dead, who is
running Omnitech?

Who actually holds all that power?

Some cabal of faceless men

without names, without
fingerprints,

without Social Security numbers,

who are compounding your
suppression of the momentum engine

by hiding behind a dead man?

Why would anybody
want to do that?

Hell of a lot of reasons. Dodge
inheritance taxes,

avoid a power struggle.

Hang on to government contracts.

Omnitech is a phantom government
hiding behind a dead man.

We can't see it. We didn't elect
it.

It doesn't exist. It never dies!

Why don't we hoist up a new flag?

The star-spangled Omnitech!

Omnitech rules the waves!

Omnitech uber alles!

Ugh.

Ugh.

Oh.

Dan, are you all right?

Yeah, sure.
It was a lot of fun.

I enjoyed it.

ATTENDANT: One...

Two...

Up.

What do the doctors say?

They don't know.
They're making tests.

Is he in any pain? No, I
don't think so.

I don't ever remember Dan being
sick before.

He considers it
unconstitutional.

I

Are you ready, gentlemen
and Madam Justice?

After today's session,
I need 24 hours. Oh?

I have to go to California. There's
something I have to be absolutely sure about.

Of course.

PILOT: Ladies and gentlemen,
we are making our descent

to John Wayne Orange County Airport.

Pl ease be sure your seat belt is securely fastened.

ANNOUNCER: Golden West Airlines announces Flight 710

from Los Angeles

now arriving at Gate 8.

Welcome home, Madam Justice.

You look fabulous.
Thanks, Bill. Thanks for meeting me.

Thank you for letting me.
How about your luggage?

This is it. That's it?

I have to catch the red-eye back
tonight.

You're kidding! I had a lot
of things arranged for us.

I'm a working girl.

Not even one set?
I was planning on beating you this time.

The court sits tomorrow morning.

Well, you were right.

Loomis and Loomis
did have dealings with Omnitech.

But I don't think it's anything you
should be worried about.

I

lasted about five minutes.

Is this all there is?
That's it.

Now, I've made reservations for
lunch at a great new place right on the water.

But first, if you don't mind,
let's stop by the office.

Lots of people there would like to see what a
Supreme Court Justice looks like.

What's the matter?

Never could read your husband's
shorthand.

I can.

Take me to
Bekins warehouse.

What for?

Just take me.

Loomis' records
are on the left hand side, at the end.

Why is this one locked?

Big surprise to me.

I never thought of the
Supreme Court as an investigative body.

What's in there?

You don't want to know.

Give me the key.

Don't tell me you haven't got it.

You knew about this all along,
didn't you?

So did your husband.

Reverend Loomis
preached the sermon.

I just said amen.

I don't believe this.

I just
don't believe this.

Good. It's better
that way.

Put the file away,

turn the key and it never happened.

If you think I'm going to shove
this back into the dark

to protect you, or the firm or myself,

you're dead wrong.

Get me the references on Dalton v. Utah.

And I want a facsimile

of the black letter that's on my
desk on top of Sparey v. Virginia.

Right.

You shouldn't be
out of bed, Mr. Justice.

Nurse, can you lend me a quarter?

Uh, just a minute, operator,
reverse the charges, will you?

Yes, just reverse... Make it a collect...

Mason, tell the operator you'll
pay for the call, will you?

Justice Snow is at the telephone
again.

I'm aware of that, Mason.

I am aware of that.

Just because I'm in a hospital

doesn't mean my mind isn't functioning.

Listen, don't let them take
that Omnitechvote without me.

NURSE OVER PA: Dr. Hollerand,
please call extension 429...

Will the head surgical nurse call the main desk, please?

Dr. Singh, please go to the orthopedic wing.

Dr. Singh, go to the orthopedic wing.

You have just dropped

American justice on the floor.

NURSE OVER PA: Dr. Foley, please go to admitting.

Hi.

Come on in.

How are you?

How are you?

I'm fine.

Pay no attention to
the buzzards circling above the building.

You know what they did? They
yanked out my telephone.

How do they expect you to
get any work done around here?

Hey, what are you doing?
I'm not going to fall out.

You know they can kill you in a
hospital if you don't stick up for your rights.

You be a good boy now, Mr.
Justice.

Oh, shut up.
And don't give us any more trouble.

Get me another pillow.

Maybe I should talk to you another
time, Dan.

No, no, no.

What's the problem?
Come here.

I just wanted to tell you this

before you heard it from somebody
else.

I went to California for the day.

Couldn't take it, huh?

I'm resigning from the court.

Why would you do a
damn fool thing like that?

I found out that Jack, my husband,

and our law firm were involved
with Omnitech.

Good morning, Dan. Morning.

Dr. Fogger,
Madam Justice Loomis.

Oh. Oh, well... How do you do?

Hello. It's a pleasure.

Somebody swiped my telephone, Doctor.

No, no, no. We took it out, Dan.
We want you to rest.

How do you expect me to rest
without a telephone?

That logic will get you nowhere.

Would you please stop trying to
change the hospital rules?

The First Amendment to the Constitution does not
apply in hospitals.

It should.

What the hell
are you doing here?

Official business of the federal
government.

May I come in?

Oh, did I get you in the middle
of something?

I'm sorry.

What did you do, just get up and
walk out?

Yes, ma'am.
This is very nice.

They told me you're still under observation.

It's bigger than my place.
They don't even know what happened to you.

Well, they'll have to figure it
out without me.

I can't give them
any more of my time.

Dan, if it was a coronary...

Coronary?

My heart wouldn't
dare attack me.

Now what's all this
crap about quitting?

Do you mind?

Why don't you lie down?

That's okay. I'll be all
right in a minute. Put your feet up.

Can I get you a pillow?

Sure, why not?

Are you asleep?

Yes.

Here.

You want to tell me what's wrong?

Are you well
enough to talk?

I

The other night,

you made an outrageous statement.

You said you didn't
think Donald Richards was still alive.

I got this out of a sealed
Loomis and Loomis file
in Santa Ana.

It's Donald Richards'
death certificate.

Holy God.

Anybody else see this?

No.

This makes Omnitecha whole new
ballgame.

God, are we going to shake up the
brothers!

Get your clothes on.

We can still make that morning
conference.

I'm not going.

What?

I told you.

I'm resigning from the court.

That's idiotic. It doesn't make any sense.

My husband knew.

Jack knew that Donald Richards
died in Costa Rica in 1973.

And he was part of the
conspiracy to cover it up.

Did you know?

Did your husband ever tell you
anything about it?

No. Of course not.

Then there's no reason to resign.

Get some clothes on. Let's get
down there.

If there's the slightest doubt in
anybody's mind that I belong there,

I don't want to be there.

Lady, that is extremely noble,

but goddamned wrong.

What do you think I should do, Dan?
What's protocol?

Should I write the President?

You don't write anybody. Keep
your robes on.

Let the mud fly. It won't stick
to you.

Quitting the court without good reason

is spitting in the face of the
government that put you there.

Without good reason?
I've got good reason.

Because of something your husband did
that you know nothing about?

When you're married
to somebody you become...

You're a member of the high
court...

You don't dissociate yourself from
somebody that you're married to.

...by God, something happens.

In a moment, in the twinkling of
an eye,

"this corruption shall put on incorruption."

St. Paul vs. The Corinthians.

Et al.

Interesting case.

But what if an incorrupt person
finds out that she's corrupt?

That's applesauce and you know it.

I thought you'd be happy
to have me off the court.

That was before you were on the
court.

I never thought I'd ever kiss a
Supreme Court Justice.

You didn't kiss me.
I kissed you.

Make you a deal.

You don't resign, I don't die.

Let me think about that.

Don't we want the working
entrance?

Not this morning.
Right up the front steps.

Can't wait to get into
that conference room.

You really think we can go in there and I can
pick up where I left off?

Hell no.
Every day is different.

You're different.
I'm different.

Every morning,
a fresh beginning.
Fresh start.

First Monday in October.
Always.

CABBIE: Hey!

What about the meter?

I don't have any money.

You liberals never do.

4.25.

Here.
Keep the change.

Thanks, Your Honor.

You know what's on the calendar
right after Omnitech,don't
you?

First Atheist Church vs. The City of Waco, Texas.

You ain't going to miss
that one, are you?

Obviously, community standards
should prevail.

What about
religious freedom?

Atheism is a religion?

God, yes.
Oh, Dan!

What about Cook County Diocese vs. John Doe?

What about Smith v. US?

M Miller vs. Moon.

Dalton v. Utah.

Oh, we're going to have a battle
on that one.

You can count on it.

You shouldn't be climbing
these steps! Why not?

This is my mountain,
our mountain.

You know something?

You and I make each other
possible.

Damn right, we do.