Original subtitles

[**]

Good morning, Mr. Winner. Good morning, Betty Anne.

Go all right in court?

So-so.

How's Mrs. Winner?

So sick of the hospital,

she's making a recovery in record time.

Should be home in a day or two. Oh, that's fine.

That, uh, New York lawyer, Mr. Woolf, called. He's in town.

The hearing's set for tonight, isn't it?

Yes, in your office.

He'll be here, all right, with that client of his.

Oh, Betty Anne...

Is Mr. Tuttle in?

He's having lunch in his office.

Hello, Arthur.

Hello, Noah.

The McCarthy estate file?

The hearing is tonight.

That New York lawyer and that painted client of his.

Noah, how about letting me handle the hearing?

Indeed.

You know, we're not dealing

with any of our local brothers at the bar.

This isn't friend against friend, with a drink afterwards.

This New York lawyer is gonna be out for your blood.

I'll handle it, Arthur, my own way.

Well, promise me one thing, anyway.

Mm-hm, what?

Well, that you won't blow up in a rage

and call his client, uh, an ex-prostitute,

even she is one.

She is trying to break Mike McCarthy's will.

Now, I'll protect poor dead Mike the best I can.

[CHUCKLES]

What are you laughing at?

I was just remembering,

years ago you asked my blessing to marry my daughter.

Can't remember my exact words, but I paraphrase rather neatly:

That old saw,

"I know I am not losing a daughter,

I know I am gaining a son."

Well, I didn't know I was gaining a shepherd.

[CHUCKLES]

All right, Noah, do it your own way.

Arthur Winner,

trying to run my life by pure reason.

The Winners always were possessed by reason,

but they possessed other emotions too.

Don't you have any other emotion, Arthur?

I certainly do: Terror.

I'm afraid you're gonna get your head blown off at the hearing.

Now, I'm gonna take the afternoon off.

[INTERCOM BUZZES]

[FLIPS SWITCH] Yes?

BETTY ANNE: Mr. Penrose for Mr. Winner on 3.

All right, Betty Anne.

Hello, Julius.

Say, Arthur, I'm still tied up here.

We'll be taking depositions all afternoon.

All right, but don't forget the meeting

with that fella Woolf tonight at 7:00.

Clarissa's fine. If she keeps up at this rate,

she'll be out of the hospital in a day or two. How's Marjorie?

Well, if she keeps up with this rate,

she'll be in the hospital in a day or two.

My wife has bought herself a new hunter.

Chestnut gelding, 16 hands high, the meanest in the state.

I just hope he's mean enough to burn up

some of Marjorie's excess energy.

All right.

I'll see you tonight.

Goodbye.

[**]

How'd it go today, Mrs. Penrose?

Better today.

Charlie?

MAN: Yeah, Mrs. Penrose?

Scotch on the rocks. Alrighty.

Oh, your husband called.

You can reach him at this number.

Thank you.

[**]

[**]

Hi, Mary. Is Dad home?

Yes, he's up in his study.

[SIGHS]

Taking the day off? Oh, hello, Warren.

No, just the afternoon. I've got a hearing tonight.

That thing work yet?

Heh-heh. I don't think it ever will.

Oh, Conflict of Laws, 91.

Government Regulation of Business, 93.4.

Taxation, Current Issues, 95.

All A's.

I'm impressed, Warren.

You know, they used to try for a C average at Harvard,

"A gentleman's C," it was called.

You worked at your studies just long enough

to have plenty of time to work at being a gentleman.

Well, a gentleman's C went out of style

when gentlemen went out of style.

Must've been tough for you.

To get C's when A's come so naturally.

Must have taken, uh, real control.

Oh, it wasn't entirely wasted.

The ability to appear stupid at the right time

is a useful tool in a lawyer's kit.

The right tool in the right time, huh?

The Winner family good-lawyer tradition.

Well, we have had a fairly unbroken line of good lawyers.

I can't see that there's anything

particularly sinister about that.

And from these ungentlemanly A's of yours,

you show every sign of becoming a good lawyer yourself

one of these days.

And it's such a snug little future, isn't it?

Or do I mean smug?

Living in your town, uh, working in your law firm.

Married to the girl of your choice.

Town is here. The firm is here.

Helen is here.

I can't recall exerting pressure on you

to become involved with any one of them.

Helen's a wonderful girl, but I don't see myself

marrying a pillar of this community.

When was the last time you looked at Helen?

She's not a pillar.

Don't tell me I have to point that out to you.

I doubt if you would.

To the Winners sex is unmentionable.

But, uh, not to me.

Is that what they've been teaching you at Harvard?

Oh, no, I, uh, picked that up for myself

with the help of a friend from Smith

who, uh, I'm happy to say, was no gentleman.

Now, you Mr. Tuttle, drew up the will

of my client's late husband.

I drew up Mike McCarthy's will, yes.

And you are, are you not,

executor of his will and trustee of his estate?

I am.

Now, Mr. Tuttle.

I have learned, as I'm sure you have,

to stay out of court if at all possible.

Indeed. Well, we can sue

to break the late Mr. McCarthy's will,

and in my opinion, we'd win.

But isn't there some compromise, sir,

whereby we avoid a messy lawsuit

and still increase my client's share?

Your client has a record

of 17 arrests for prostitution. That's irrelevant.

TUTTLE: Now, obviously, she didn't mean much to Mike,

so we left her as little of his estate

al the law would permit,

and she'll receive not one penny more.

Mr. Tuttle,

right now, I want a clear picture

of the assets of this estate.

I have in hand a copy of your inventory of the assets.

It's sloppy, vague.

I see listed here as an asset

a second mortgage for $2000.

Now, how much is the first mortgage?

What's the market value of the property?

Second mortgage?

I'll have to consult the records.

I have them right here.

I see listed a note

payable to Mr. McCarthy in the amount of $700.

Now, who's the maker?

At what rate of interest?

When is it due?

Mr. Tuttle handles most of the estates of this county.

How do you expect him to remember every little detail?

All right, Mr. Winner,

I'll skip over the little details.

Let's get to the big ones.

"A matter of bonds, $20,000."

Now, Mr. Tuttle,

what type bonds?

Twenty thousand dollars is a considerable sum.

Or has your memory failed to the point

where you're incompetent and should be removed

as trustee of this or any of estate?

Look, Mr. Woolf. This is a hearing.

But I'll not tolerate--

[**]

[GASPS]

Hello, Junie.

When did they let you back in town?

Well, I wasn't exactly sent an invitation, Mrs. Penrose.

I'm here to get my rights.

Oh, that's good.

That's very, very good.

Oh.

And where do you stand on women's rights, J.P.?

[LAUGHS]

And you, Noah, huh?

Oh, Arthur.

I--

Oh, boy.

Marjorie?

Oh, Arthur.

Listen, I'm so sorry.

I didn't know those other people.

That's perfectly all right. But I wanted to see you.

I wanna talk to you.

I have to talk.

Of course, Marjorie. Anytime at all.

'Cause you have to help me.

Somebody has to help me.

Talk to me.

I'll help you.

To get free of you?

Will you do that?

Oh, Arthur, talk to me.

He listens to you.

You're the only one he listens to.

Make him give me a divorce.

He hates me.

Make him let me go. Just please make him let me go.

I love you.

You know that when you're not drunk.

I'll give her a divorce anytime she asks for it, Arthur.

Sober.

I don't wanna talk to you.

I wanna talk to him.

'Cause you're not all messed up like we are with...

hating and loving and feeling.

You can think.

'Cause you're-- You're untouched.

You're untouched by human hands.

Oh, hell.

Happens quite often.

No mystery about it.

She's miserably unhappy, so she gets drunk.

I'm sorry, Julius.

Any questions you're too embarrassed to ask?

Such as, why is Marjorie so miserably unhappy?

No. No.

The answer is too obvious.

There are two Marjories, you know.

Marjorie A and Marjorie B.

Marjorie A made a remarkable adjustment to my accident.

She's quite a girl.

Runs the house like a duchess.

Can beat your pants off at tennis...

though doesn't, out of tact.

She reads books, not just reviews of books.

Works hard for the community,

but thinks it's too dull to talk about.

Yes, she's just the kind of a girl

you'd like your best friend to marry.

[SIGHS]

But I wouldn't have married her.

I wouldn't have given a nickel for her.

I married Marjorie B,

wild and restless, all body and feeling,

full of impulses and urges and needs.

Not the kind of needs that can be met by a cripple.

[CHUCKLES]

Well, I wish you would let her talk to you, Arthur.

Help her get a little of this out of her system.

All right, Julius.

You don't need me in there.

No.

[**]

Hello, Clarissa.

Hi.

How are you feeling?

Fine.

Except I can't face dinner.

Last night the meat tasted like fish,

and today the fish tasted like meat.

That's strange.

When I was here, they both tasted like stewed prunes.

Oh, you didn't.

Oh, yes, I did.

Drumsticks, French bread and cheese...

Apples. And wine.

How was the hearing?

Fireworks, with an abrupt end.

Why?

Because of Marjorie?

Now, how'd you know that?

Well, she was here this afternoon

drinking with both hands,

looking like a beautiful little percolator

all ready to boil over.

And she did.

I got a bit spattered in the process.

She said I was, let's see...

untouched by love, hate, feelings or human hands.

If I weren't so fond of Marjorie,

I'd slap her for that.

Well, darling, if you look untouched,

it's scarcely a compliment to me.

[CHUCKLES]

Dreadfully unhappy, poor dear.

How could she not be?

Seemed to have worked things out so well, she and Julius.

Well, things are seldom what they seem.

Is that an idiom, or did I make it up?

I don't know what it is, but I don't believe it.

It's been a day of surprises, though.

Warren, for example.

Why? What about Warren?

Well, I made the mistake of complimenting him

on getting all A's.

He countered by expressing his general contempt

for tradition, his future and me,

all of which he finds unbearably dull.

Well, did you talk to him,

try to find out what was really troubling him?

Oh, his decisions are his own to make.

Restlessness, rebelliousness

at who you are and what you are,

they're natural at his age.

I wonder if Marjorie could be right,

and you really are untouched by hate, love

and other assorted emotions.

That's a fine thing to say.

Do you think I'd have married you if I didn't love you?

Of course.

Winners always marry Tuttles, and vice versa.

It never occurred to you not to marry me.

It was more of a merger than a marriage.

Anyway, I'm-- I'm not talking about then, my--

My mind is on now.

Marriage, merger,

whatever you wanna call it,

I am very content.

I don't know any two people

who get along as-- As pleasantly and smoothly as we do.

Yes, that's true enough, but "pleasantly," "smoothly."

I wonder if those are the right words for marriage.

I mean, well, Still Pond in Tucker's Woods

is smooth, but it's stagnant.

That's why I never liked it.

I always have.

Yes, but-- But wouldn't it be better if--?

If there were occasional storm?

Waves that--? That knocked you down and lifted you up?

Even if it meant a--? A little less contentment?

Clarissa, I'd love to contribute a few storms to your discontent,

but, well, what can I do?

We just don't have anything to fight about.

We used to have.

But you wouldn't fight.

You always withdrew before the battle started,

so we both lost.

Hello, Arthur.

ARTHUR: Hello, Reggie.

[SIGHS]

Well...

How do you feel?

A little tired, Reggie.

Yes, that's inconsiderate of me, but, unfortunately,

I just had to sign a death certificate for one patient.

Had to stop a hemorrhage in another,

and, uh, I had to give a third an aspirin tablet.

[SNIFFS]

You, uh--

You can take Clarissa home day after tomorrow.

Then you can prance out on the tennis court again,

trip again, fall down again

and come back here to the hospital

for another week.

[**]

Shh!

NOAH [WHISPERING]: Helen, I'm your legal guardian.

I paid for the braces on your teeth.

I fixed the rap when you were expelled from school.

And the state of your morals weighs heavily on my shoulders.

[**]

When I get upstairs,

wake him up.

Flaming youth.

Darling.

You know, they say when two people can be together

and not-- Not feel they have to keep talking,

they say it's a sure sign of compatibility.

"They say."

Hon, you're always saying, "They say."

For once, will you tell me who "they" are?

[LAUGHS]

I don't know.

Well, "they" are the good women who say,

"Come give just an hour a week at the Children's Aid,"

or, "You're such good reader.

There's no one to read aloud at the home for the aged,"

or "TV for shut-ins,"

or, heh, you name it, I'm working for it.

You know, if you let 'em,

they will make you just another tax racket

in a filing cabinet.

You know, I don't understand you, Helen.

Your family left you the richest orphan in Winner County.

Left you enough loot to visit Europe, Asia, Africa...

the moon, if you really wanted to.

What do you get out of this town, Helen?

Is that your answer?

Isn't that enough?

Or do I make you feel short-changed?

Well, could be.

Who's the girl been, Warren?

Girls, Helen.

Girls, I suppose, it-- It never took you

more than once to succeed with.

With some girls, if you don't succeed the first time,

believe me, the prize isn't worth crackerjacks.

You've never even once tried with me.

Well, I wouldn't succeed, now, would I?

No. Oh, well, there you are.

You might have had the decency to try.

Wrong side of the street, Helen.

On the other side of High Street, they forbid sex,

on our side, they forget it.

Did you just made that up?

No, they made it up.

Hm.

They also say that men have to go

through seven stages of life.

I believe I know the "they" who said that.

Shakespeare, and I believe it was the "Seven Ages of Man."

Ages.

Warren...

Is this a stage?

Will you get over it?

[**]

Time to go.

Your legal guardian is gonna like this.

You're a good kid, Helen.

[**]

Hello, Arthur.

Marjorie?

The vestry meeting?

Yes.

I hoped you'd be here.

I wanted to see you to apologize.

That, uh, exhibition last night, I--

I-- I-- I felt lost and--

Well, it was that kind of a night.

Somebody switched all the signposts along the road.

I understand, Marjorie.

I know you'll forgive me.

But I wish you would forget everything that I said.

When you look at your world through a bottle,

everything takes a different shape.

But it's all right today.

I am a toucher.

It's a dreadful habit, isn't it?

Julius hates it.

Thank you, Arthur.

Good morning, Arthur.

Uh, if I could just take a moment

before the vestry meeting.

Was I clear on the phone, Arthur?

Yes, I--

Well, it's just that, uh...

if Noah, Sam Orchid'strustee,

could-- Could let the Church invest the funds,

I-- I think it would make--

I understand. I'll talk to Noah about it.

Good, good.

The Church could handle the money and the accounts.

Well, it'll get the bishop off my back.

I'll see what I can do.

Thank you.

Good morning, gentlemen.

[**]

Good morning, Mr. Winner. Hello, Charles.

Mr. Woolf is waiting for you.

Oh, thank you.

"Twenty-three men of this town, massacred, lie buried here.

Heroes. 1778."

Massacred by whom?

By a troop of raiding Tories.

It's been a little embarrassing, actually.

Some old papers recently turned up,

indicate that what was really buried there were pigs.

Pigs? Mm-hm.

Slaughtered in 1790

to prevent the spread of swine fever.

Oh.

So far the town's turned down all proposals

to dig up and examine the bones.

Which, perhaps, is why they built this club on top of them.

Sit down, Mr. Woolf.

Mr. Winner,

you remember that $20,000 in bonds

I brought up last night?

U.S. government bonds.

You remember I kept pressing

the old gentleman, Mr. Tuttle,

"Where are those bonds?

They belong to McCarthy estate. Where are they right now?"

Well, I shouldn't have pressed him.

I shouldn't have shouted at him either.

I should have seen that at that minute,

he just couldn't remember.

Mr. Woolf, you didn't ask me to meet you here

just to say you're sorry.

What did you do? Locate the bonds yourself?

If you give them the serial numbers,

the Bureau of Public Debt

will check government bonds for you.

So you wired them,

and the Bureau wired you back what?

That Mr. Tuttle cashed in those $20,000 in bonds

two months ago.

That's why I asked to meet you here.

Why meet at your office and embarrass the old gentleman

with my telegram?

I'll go on record now.

I won't ask him to account any further

for the bonds or anything else.

That is, pending your report to the court.

If my client gets the increase

to which she's legally entitled, fine.

If not, I'll be forced to sue to break the will.

Of course, a compromise would be better.

That's very considerate.

But the old gentleman wouldn't agree, would he?

You're worried about him, aren't you, Mr. Winner?

How he didn't remember, doesn't remember.

The point is, the old gentleman's crumbling.

That's been hard for you to face, Mr. Winner?

I'd rather not discuss it, Mr. Woolf.

But I'll tell you one thing.

This man you refer to as an "old gentleman"

is precisely that.

Even though according to some people, my own son included,

the breed has gone out of style.

I'm afraid your son may be right.

Well, I suppose we'll meet next in a real court.

Friendly enemies?

Friendly enemies.

[**]

Hi, Helen, what are you doing here?

Hi.

Looking at my file.

As neat as the proverbial pin.

Birth certificate,

Mother's will, Father's will.

Papers making Noah my guardian.

Four-page power of attorney

authorizing bank to sign all my report cards

up to the sixth grade.

[GIGGLES]

Well, it isn't every kid

who gets her report card signed by a bank.

A receipt for a bill for my first lipstick.

[GIGGLES]

A bill for 39 cents.

Lipstick sure was lousy, but it was called Seduction.

Warren.

The heavy filing hand of all the Winners,

back to the Winner who started this law library

with a fifthhand copy of Coke on Common Law.

Warren, do you have to study law all day, every day?

Yes.

I'm going to be a good enough lawyer

to make sure I get out of this weary, predigested town.

Warren.

Let's get in the car and drive.

Just drive.

Drive to anyplace o-or no place.

Or would that be me pinning you down again?

If so, I-I apologize.

Oh, Warren, your father's free now.

Thank you.

Helen, don't be so touchy, so easily hurt.

What are these?

Just about every ruling on insanity in this state

since they burned Mrs. Crow.

Yeah, what about it?

Carolyn Dummer.

You're going in to court today to defend that idiot girl

who gave birth to an illegitimate

and smothered it right away.

Yes.

Carolyn's 20 years old, huh?

According to her birth certificate.

Have you spoken to that expert witness of yours,

Dr. Arsevich?

Yes, of course. Why?

What does Dr. Arsevich say Carolyn's mental age is?

Eight years old.

Entirely harmless, huh?

According to Dr. Arsevich.

Do you think that Carolyn's confinement in an institution

is necessary for the protection of society

or for her own well-being?

Well, there's no reason she shouldn't be all right at home.

Especially if they show her love and kindness.

According to Dr. Arsevich, huh?

That's right, according to Dr. Arsevich.

Have you spoken to Carolyn's parents?

Briefly.

Have you spoken to Mrs. Morton?

Mrs. Morton?

The matron who's taking care of Carolyn in jail now.

Oh. Uh, no.

Dad, they treat Carolyn like an animal at home.

Now, that's what Mrs. Morton the jail matron says,

not Dr. Arsevich.

Do you know that Carolyn never had ice cream

till she went to jail?

She never even had her hair done till the matron did it.

And I ask her father one question and his answer was,

"Nobody can do nothing for her."

Dad, you don't want her acquitted and sent home, do you?

Well, I certainly don't want her convicted and sent to jail,

even if she'd be better off there.

Plead insanity.

I can't do that.

Why not? Why not?

Because she's not guilty, because she's not insane.

Carolyn thought her baby was born dead,

that's why she buried it.

But the baby was born alive.

Wasn't she insane not to know that?

Warren, that's not the test for insanity in this state.

The test is whether the accused knows right from wrong.

That much Carolyn does know.

As an attorney, as an officer of the court,

I have no right to plead insanity

and try and have her committed to an institution.

But a person can know right from wrong

and be insane in every other way.

That's a stupid test and a stupid law.

In your eyes, perhaps.

Not in the eyes

of the high court of this state.

Dad, you've got everything neatly arranged in little boxes

with a label on each box

so you can pull out the right excuse

every time you're wrong.

You may know legal right from legal wrong,

but you don't know the real right from the real wrong.

For once, you've gotta do what's best for someone,

not what's legal.

You've gotta do what's best for Carolyn.

I've got to conform to the law.

That will be best for Carolyn.

And if not best for Carolyn, in the long run,

conforming to the law is best for the people of this state.

But we're not living in the long run, damn it! We're living now.

You're wrong, Warren. We're living in the long run.

That's why I'm gonna have Carolyn acquitted.

Arthur!

You keep that Dr. Trowbridge from pestering me.

He called five times this morning.

And look at that letter.

Look at it!

NOAH: Let him account for God and Christ Church.

I'll account for the money Sam Orchid left the church.

Trowbridge wasn't pestering, Noah.

He was-- He was just inquiring.

Sam Orchid said to me-- Know what he said?

"I built Christ Church and I want it to last.

"Nowadays," he said, "you can't be sure the parson

"isn't going to be an idiot.

"Noah," he said, "protect my church from parsons,

so I won't be turning in my grave."

All right, Noah.

I guess what Sam tried to buy with all that money

was quiet in his grave.

While I live, I've got Sam's money.

When I die.

you guard Sam's estate any way you want.

I won't know it.

I've had a long, long life, Arthur.

I sit in there blinking out on a world

that's only waiting for me to leave it.

A world of Dr. Trowbridges and Mr. Woolfs,

all waiting to change what I have done. Yes.

All the work that I've done, a new age is itching to undo.

Noah, if you keep this up, you know,

you're gonna get tearstains all over my carpet.

[CHUCKLES]

Arthur, you're the only one who really...

[SNAPS FINGERS]

...digs me. Is that the word?

Heh-heh. That's the word.

You're in court today?

It's the charity case.

Oh, the girl who murdered her baby. Yes.

Well, you'll learn.

All the cases you do for free,

you pay for dearly.

Oh, Betty Anne, I'll be in the library with Warren.

Warren's gone.

Oh.

I checked the Mike McCarthy estate file.

Mr. Tuttle sold $20,000 in bonds on May 4th.

And deposited the money in the McCarthy estate account?

No, but on May 7th, Mr. Tuttle deposited $20,000

in his own general account. Would that be the one?

Huh? Thanks, Betty Anne.

[DOOR CLOSES]

JULIUS: Now, consider the tax savings.

You're trading 90 percent bracket income

for 26 percent capital gains.

Right.

All right, I'll catch the night plane

and see you in Washington in the morning.

[CHUCKLES] Fine.

Goodbye.

Arthur, this conception of mine

of incorporating Finn never occurred to him.

Those bonds in the McCarthy estate.

Yes?

Noah sold them two months ago.

So that's Noah's right. He's trustee.

Was it his right to deposit the $20,000 in his own account?

Noah mingled estate money with his own money?

In his personal account?

That's right.

Julius, you and I have to face a very unpleasant fact.

Noah's powers are no longer what they used to be.

And there's something else we have to face.

From now on, you and I are gonna have to do all the work.

As long as he lives, Noah will--

Yes, he'll still be

the senior partner of Tuttle, Winner and Penrose.

Still the grand old man, is that it?

Now, wait a minute, Julius.

Woolf said it last night, you heard him.

Incompetent.

That's right.

We just can't let him continue to work

in any responsible capacity.

But, Arthur, work.

Responsible work, that's Noah's life.

Don't you think I know that?

Look, no matter how politely you put it,

pensioning Noah off is what you're proposing.

Pension him off, and you'll destroy him.

It's gotta be done. Well, we won't do it!

We won't destroy Noah.

Julius, we can't be ruled just by our emotions.

We've got to be ruled by what we know is right.

Three-quarters of the people out there are our clients.

We have a duty to them.

Duty?

[SNICKERS]

That's the cruelest word in the English language.

I mean, you're using it as a polite way

of giving the man a death sentence.

Julius, putting estate funds in a personal account

is a statutory offense.

Now, we can cover this bumbling of Noah's.

See that the money's credited, proper entries are made.

But how many more bumblings will there be?

If we'd gone into court with Woolf this time,

he'd have discovered it like that.

All right.

We'll do it.

Or rather, you'll do it.

I couldn't.

I'll do it, Julius.

Well? What happened?

She's acquitted.

Let the DA send Carolyn to an institution,

just because she'd be happier there?

No, indeed.

That would have been showing mercy.

That would have been one of your rare moments

of weakness, Arthur.

This town is comfortable with justice, but mercy?

Mercy died on the cross.

You're parading your cynicism

a little heavily tonight, Reggie.

Oh.

Not for this town.

Gin.

Clarissa, I, uh--

I want to talk to you about your father.

Well, what about him?

Julius and I are gonna have to take over

his responsibilities at the firm.

Why?

Noah will continue, of course, as senior partner, but...

we'll simply be doing the work.

Why?

Well, his accounts are messed up,

his memory's not what it used to be, he's--

Well, he's too old.

[SIGHS]

It would kill Noah.

That's what Julius said.

Well, Julius is right.

I'm not at all sure about that.

Clarissa, I'm gonna have to do it.

I love Noah, because Noah's my father

and because he's Noah.

Well, what do you expect me to say?

"Go ahead, darling, cut his throat

gently as you can"?

I expect you to understand. You're a lawyer's daughter.

I'm a man's daughter.

I'm Noah's daughter and I love Noah.

I love him too.

But I can't let that keep me from doing what I know is right.

You know, Arthur, I've just begun to realize

for the first time that you expect too much of yourself

and you expect too much of everyone else.

What else have you just suddenly begun to realize?

That love has two hands.

You've got to be able to give love,

you've got to be able to accept love.

I love you.

Oh, the hell you do!

All right, forget it. Forget about Noah.

It's not just Noah. It's us.

We don't have the happiness I thought we had.

Do we?

All right, we don't.

What am I gonna do about it?

I'm gonna work it out by myself.

I'll never be able to do it with you.

All right, Clarissa.

Goodnight.

Goodnight.

[**]

Julius?

Mr. Penrose?

Yes. It'll just be a moment.

[**]

Washington again?

Yes. And you?

Oh. The Halloween dance at the club.

You'll get a laugh out of this. I'm to be a chaperone.

Will you be gone long?

I don't know.

Long enough to save a client some tax money.

Well, I'll have my first drink to you and to your success.

Marjorie, do you know what electric lights

were named after?

No.

Mazda.

"Mazda" is the ancient Persian word for fire,

which they worshipped.

The high Persians spent their lives tending their holy fire.

And you want me to spend my life

tending the holy fire of the ancient Penrose.

Get to it, J.P., I know the introduction.

This community loves to label people.

Noah is the grand old man,

I am the egghead,

Arthur is the pillar of the community.

And you,

if you keep on the way you're going,

they're going to label you the lovely lush.

I gather you don't care if I'm a lush,

so long as I'm not labeled.

I care...

and I try to understand.

Well, it shouldn't be too difficult.

You know how I live my life.

Running your house,

blasting golf balls, jumping horses.

Going to luncheons, giving luncheons.

But "understand," Julius?

No, you don't understand that I'm a human being,

with human wants and needs.

Is that all there ever was between us?

Well, it must have been. Look at us now.

Then go and get what you need.

Just don't let me know.

You said that to me once before, remember?

The night you came home from the hospital.

I went to your room

full of love and anxiety,

wanting to comfort you...

and to be comforted.

And you said, "You'll have to get what you need elsewhere."

And then you pushed me away.

You made me feel like an animal.

Before I knew, I was one.

I-- I didn't want you to touch me out of...

I was afraid of...

pity.

But it wasn't pity.

And if it were, is pity a dirty word?

It always has been to me.

Well, I feel no pity now.

Nothing.

Give me a divorce.

No.

You told Arthur last night

that you'd let me go anytime I ask you.

Sober.

Well, I'm sober, Julius.

No.

[PLAYING UP-TEMPO JAZZ MUSIC]

Another one.

Are you bored, Warren?

No, not particularly, Sydney girl.

I am.

Sober, you're bearable, Sydney,

but drunk, you're dull.

I know.

I think I'll take off all my clothes and jump in the pool.

Again, huh?

Am I too young to buy a chaperone a drink?

Well, if you're old enough to ask, Warren,

you're old enough to buy.

Thank you.

Good evening, Mrs. Penrose. Scotch?

A double.

Hi, Helen.

Hi, Sydney.

Helen...

I've been meaning to ask you.

Who's your psychiatrist?

I have no psychiatrist. Why?

I don't know.

I get a feeling now and then I might need one,

and I thought somebody said you had one.

Oh, well.

See you.

Hi, Marjorie.

Good evening, Helen.

Is she going to jump in the pool?

Oh, yes, her mother always stripped and jumped in the pool.

'Course, it's true her grandmother didn't.

No pool. Her grandmother just stripped.

[GIGGLES]

Sydney's only doing what the town expects of her.

Aren't we all?

Except you and me.

Thank you.

Well, the party seems good,

but there's something missing with you two.

Or is it bad form to notice?

Well, it's unusual, anyway.

What's missing is one word.

What the town expects of Helen and me.

I'll say the magic word, Helen: Marriage.

The town expects us to get married.

It expects bluebloods to marry bluebloods

till the redbloods safely disappear.

It's not as bad as that, Warren.

I'm afraid it's worse.

'Cause the town expects our marriage to be dull?

Yes. Just as it expects Sydney

to get drunk and strip and be dull doing it.

Excuse me, Marjorie.

I'll be back in a minute.

Warren.

Forget Sydney and the town and all that.

What do you want?

I'm afraid I only know what I don't want.

Me too.

You know, I think you and I are a lot alike.

I wish you better luck than that.

Warren, chaperones are supposed to see

that none of you duck out.

But tell me.

How does a chaperone duck out on you?

I'll get you out of here and you'll never be missed.

Well, ex-- Well, except by me.

The only interesting woman around

and I bored her into flight.

But you haven't bored me.

I like you.

And thanks for talking to me and not telling me consolingly

that all people my age are sometimes unhappy.

All I tell you is that it gets worse as you get older.

If that consoles you, enjoy it.

Happy Halloween.

Thank you.

[UP-TEMPO JAZZ MUSIC CONTINUES PLAYING]

[**]

Are you as lost as you look?

Oh, I went for a walk. I wanted to think.

I deserted my post at the country club.

I don't feel like a chaperone tonight.

Or a censor.

Or an inhibitor, if you know what I mean.

Of anyone's pleasures...

including my own.

I know what you mean.

It's been that kind of a day.

Someone switched all my signposts along the road.

Well, somebody painted arrows on mine.

"This way to nothing."

That's all they say now.

[BULLFROG CROAKING IN DISTANCE]

Remembering?

Yes.

And here we are again.

It's funny, isn't it?

Same people, same place,

same kind of boring party.

Same bullfrog.

No doubt about it. I remember him well.

I remember everything about that night.

Ducking out of the party with you.

Walking through the woods.

Wondering if something was happening.

Was going to happen.

But didn't happen.

It couldn't, Marjorie. Not then.

And now?

[**]

I...

I suppose a groom lived here

when this was a stable.

I don't always grab for a drink when things are rough.

I guess you could call this my hideaway.

Anyhow, it's mine.

No one has ever been here before but me.

[**]

Drive you home, Veronica?

Now, if you wanted to drive Veronica home, Warren,

you wouldn't have stopped.

[MID-TEMPO SWING MUSIC PLAYING]

The woods at Still Pond.

Where else?

Don't you want anything to drink?

Scotch or vodka?

Veronica isn't the kind of girl

who's all the time gotta get loaded.

Uh-uh.

If, uh, I get drunk and pass out,

it's no fun for me.

And if you get drunk and pass out,

it's no fun for me.

[**]

[CRICKETS CHIRPING]

Uh-uh.

You remember Smokey Bear?

Smokey Bear hates forest fires.

Veronica's got long legs.

Long, lovely legs.

[SEAT CLICKING]

Kiss Veronica.

Now, that's a good idea.

Veronica's full of good ideas.

[**]

Tomorrow night?

Only, uh, Veronica likes the Bide-A-Wee better.

Would you take Veronica there tomorrow night? Please?

Look, I told you

I wouldn't know about tomorrow night until tomorrow.

Veronica likes the cabins at the Bide-A-Wee.

They're all built of pine.

Couldn't we hide at the Bide-A-Wee?

Uh, Veronica's house.

[DISTANT HORNS HONKING]

Tomorrow night. Please, please?

Veronica, tonight was tonight, and I like being with you,

but I don't know how I'm gonna feel tomorrow,

or the next day, or next Founders' Day.

Veronica is now getting--

And stop saying "Veronica is"

and "Veronica does" and that "please, please."

It's stupid and it's common.

Nobody calls Veronica stupid. Nobody.

And nobody treats Veronica like a tramp but Veronica.

I'll make that clear to you.

[DOOR SLAMS]

[**]

I don't want this night to end.

Or this spell to be broken.

I hate the mornings.

People think the day begins with the mornings.

People, as usual, are wrong.

[**]

The day ends with the morning.

He doesn't have to flatter me

and he didn't have wear his nails to the quick

climbing into the district attorney's office.

Oh, Jerry has merit.

He manages to get himself and others elected.

Mr. Winter? A gentleman to see you.

Excuse me.

Of course.

NOAH: He's a politician.

A pox on the whole breed.

Where'd you pick him up, Bernie?

At his house.

Hello, Bernie, what can I do for you?

Uh, we took Warren down to Joe Harverson's J.P. court.

Joe is holding him on a complaint.

Speeding again?

Not this time.

Well, what is it, then?

It's a-- Well, it's an alleged offense

against this girl, Veronica Kovacs.

Veronica had a laugh.

Who's Veronica Kovacs?

BERNIE: Ah, she's a tramp.

How she could claim that she was--

I mean, with her, a guy's lucky he don't get raped.

Where is he? Joe Harverson's?

Yeah.

Hello, Mrs. Winner.

You can use the parlor if you like.

Where does the crumb think he's going?

Shut up. Where does that crumb think he's goin'?

Just a minute. I'll run this thing, Mrs. Kovacs,

if you don't mind.

You go right ahead, Mrs. Winner.

I don't want to talk about it, Mom.

That's all right, Warren.

Your father will be here in a minute.

May I see the complaint, Joe?

Mm-hm.

You'll no doubt want to consult with the accused,

Mr. Winner. He's in the parlor.

Now, don't tell me he's goin' in there.

Mrs. Kovacs, the accused is entitled

to the right of counsel.

We'll hear you and your daughter,

the prosecutrix,

when the proper time arrives.

You go right ahead, Mr. Winner.

They called me at the hospital.

Are you gonna defend me?

Of course I'm gonna defend you.

I'd rather have Julius handle it.

You're not Julius' son, you're mine.

Dad, we sort of talk at each other,

but we don't communicate.

Warren, Joe Harverson has to hold you for trial

if he finds even the slightest possibility

of a case against you at the preliminary hearing.

We'd better communicate.

Warren, for God's sake, let him help you.

I don't want his kind of help.

Clarissa, there are a lot of questions--

Go ahead and ask them.

You don't have to go. I didn't do anything.

What did happen, Warren?

Okay.

Last night, after I dropped Helen off,

I picked her up, drove to Still Pond,

where I did not rape her.

Boy, if they picked up every guy in this town--

Every guy won't be on trial. You will.

And the law assumes that the lowest tramp

may still be raped.

Now, the elements of rape are carnal knowledge,

force and the absence of consent.

Did you have carnal knowledge of Veronica?

Yes.

Did you use force on her?

No. The least bit of force is enough to convict.

If you-- If you put her in fear.

Fear for her life, should she resist.

That would be force, even if you didn't strike her.

Or if she was too drunk to know what she was doing.

She was as sober as a judge.

That's a pretty good phrase, considering.

Were you in the back seat?

The back seat of cars went out of style

when they put in the automatic shift.

Don't be flip, Warren.

Juries don't like it.

And they're gonna be hearing this.

All of it?

All of it.

Were you drunk?

No.

Did you pay her?

No.

You drove her home?

Yes.

Any talk on the way back?

Well, she--

She kept asking me, you know,

when we'd date again.

Next time, she wanted to go to the Bide-A-Wee.

She kept trying to pin me down, I wouldn't be pinned down.

I got mad, she got mad.

ARTHUR: I suggest you're lying.

I suggest Veronica was drunk.

So drunk that she couldn't consent.

So there was presumptive force.

I suggest you lost your head.

You made all the advances, not Veronica.

And all the elements of rape necessary to convict

were committed by you.

Is that what you think?

It doesn't matter what I think, Warren.

It's what the district attorney thinks

and what the jury thinks.

You don't understand why I'm being rough on you.

Well, you've never seen Jerry Brophy in a courtroom.

This is no joke, Warren. This is gonna be tough.

And you don't think I understand

what happened last night, do you?

I sure don't.

Well, I do. I understand very well.

Lust isn't like love, Warren.

Lust doesn't pick the man it grabs.

It just grabs.

Lust, love. You didn't get that

out of your infallible law books.

Where did ya get it?

Your generation doesn't have a monopoly on sex,

legal or illegal.

You just talk about it more.

Okay, what's gonna happen?

That depends.

There are two things that worry me.

Veronica's lies--

And me. That's right.

You have a man's confidence,

but the panic and fright of a boy.

When will it hit the papers?

Not yet.

But if it goes to trial--

It'll be news. And they'll print it.

I'm going in there, arrange your bail

and a date for your hearing.

I want you to go home with your mother.

I'm going to the office and work out your defense.

Jerry, you are here to act on behalf of prosecutrix?

JERRY: No, not until after Joe's hearing.

JOE: We can have the hearing

practically any time, Mr. Winner.

ARTHUR: All right. Monday?

Monday...

Yes, Monday at 3 p.m.

Fine. Now, about bail.

Just a minute. I come here--

Ma. Shut up.

I stay here till I see that stinkin'--

JERRY: That's enough of that talk, Mrs. Kovacs.

That's all right.

I want a court reporter at the hearing.

Court reporter at a JP hearing?

Yes. When I cross-examine the prosecutrix,

I want every word she utters taken down.

I'll utter 'em good and loud.

Shut up. I got rights. I want 'em.

Then I suggest you be here Monday at 3 p.m.

The defendant is released in the amount of $750 bail.

I be here. I see you put that stinkin' louse in jail.

Shut up.

The defendant is released in the amount of $750 bail,

and not to leave this jurisdiction

pending appearance at a hearing before me,

justice of the peace,

in and for the county of Winner on Monday next at 3 p.m.

Why do young people today take too much license?

Because opportunity comes on wheels.

The automobile.

It's the devil's playground.

What would you call a buggy and a hayloft of your day?

The devil's playground.

Any word from Dr. Shaw, Betty Anne?

He's on his way here between house calls.

Has Helen heard about it yet?

I don't know.

Well, she's not Clarissa.

Clarissa knows how to face facts.

Stare the world down.

But Helen...

She's my ward and I cherish her.

But she's a Detweiler.

The Detweilers always know

the world is too much for them

from the moment they're born.

Not Helen.

Oh.

There you are, Miss Lucy.

Your income for another quarter.

And here you are, Dr. Truebridge.

God's presented you with Christ's Church

for another three months.

Despite your idiocy.

Why don't you write one more check, Noah.

To Mr. Woolf, for his client, Junie.

Why?

Well, you don't want to rake up poor Mike McCarthy's follies,

or buy Junie the limelight she loves.

Even if it is the limelight of a witness chair.

Don't you get tired of it all, Noah?

The-- The trust you have to guard,

the accounts you have to keep.

The work that never stops growing.

Never a day's vacation.

Arthur, when I talked your grandfather

into retiring from the firm,

I used polite, considerate, sugar-coated words.

Just like those.

But you did get him to leave

the running of the firm in your hands.

When I become the bumbling old fogy he became,

you won't have to do to me what I had to do to him.

Noah...

sit back in your chair.

Look at that town out there.

Three-quarters of those people are our clients.

Trustful of our firm.

We have an obligation to those people.

A duty to them. [INTERCOM BUZZES]

BETTY ANNE: Dr. Reggie's here.

Have him wait in Mr. Winner's office.

Arthur...

you can make me look out that window till kingdom come.

But I'll not retire from this firm

till I'm ready to retire.

Under my own steam.

[SIGHS]

Reggie.

Noah.

Well, Arthur?

Well, come on. Make it quick.

I've got to see old Josiah Adams.

Give him hell, and an aspirin.

Reggie, suppose I make a formal demand

that Veronica Kovacs submit to a physical examination.

Why?

Well, she may think if you examine her,

it'd prove she'd been lying. That she hadn't been raped.

An examination of Veronica wouldn't prove a damn thing.

I know it and you know it. But she may not.

And if she refused, I'd have a case.

Then you don't have a case. She won't refuse to be examined.

Reggie, I know that there's a very small chance,

but it's Warren's only chance.

Veronica's too sharp for that.

She's been around more in her 20 years

than the moon in its millions.

Oh, go deliver your hell and your aspirin.

You still taking those pills I prescribed for you?

No.

Good.

Having people in?

The sewing club. Bridge.

The date was made weeks ago.

I didn't think I should cancel it.

Is Warren here?

No, he went over to Helen's a little while ago.

I told him you'd call him there

if you had anything to tell him.

Well, I'll get a bite out.

I was going back to the office later anyway.

Fascinating subject, rape.

Crowds the law books.

How is he?

All bottled up. He-- He can't let it out.

He spent the afternoon rehearsing

how he was gonna tell Helen about it.

He can't talk to me. Not really.

Arthur, it's you he needs.

He doesn't feel close to me.

I never realized it before,

but I don't think he believes I-I care anything about him.

Why didn't you make him believe it?

At Joe Harverson's,

why didn't you put your arms around him?

Why didn't you say "I'm your father, I love you.

There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you"?

How can he come close to you if you won't move close to him?

I tried to by working for him,

defending him, believing in him.

It's the only way I know, Clarissa.

[**]

[**]

I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner.

It's all right.

I saw Jerry Brophy. He told me about Warren.

How is he?

He's confused, hostile,

guilt-ridden, he won't talk to anyone.

Arthur, it's you he needs.

He doesn't feel that way.

I never realized it before,

but he doesn't think I care anything at all about him.

Neither does Clarissa.

Have you been home?

Just to change.

I came back here to work and...

The answer isn't in those books, is it?

Part of it is.

I'm not gonna let Warren down.

I believe in him and I'm gonna defend him.

And if I can't keep this thing from going to trial,

I'll tear Veronica Kovac's story to pieces in court.

But...

that's...

That's not the only thing that has to be straightened out.

It's not just Warren or Clarissa

or you or Julius.

It's me.

You've been looking at your life through the bottle.

Yes. Sometimes, Marjorie,

things aren't distorted that way.

Did you ever see a more peaceful and ordered life than mine?

Good husband.

Good father. Good friend.

As you said, "pillar of the community." True?

Of course it's true.

It's false. A good husband?

My wife tells me there's no happiness at all

in our marriage.

A good father? My son is a stranger

who thinks I don't love him.

Seems there are some cracks in the pillar.

In my family, we've always believed

you kept your house in order by character.

A way of life that gave you pride

and respect for yourself.

I've lost all of it.

[**]

[SIGHS]

I came to you for help...

because I needed you.

Because I wanted you.

But I seem to have a special talent for destruction.

I say things that can't be taken back.

And I do things that can't be taken back.

Marjorie.

Marjorie...

Oh, Arthur, hold me.

Just hold me.

Helen, I--

Well, you succeeded, all right.

You proved it didn't take more than once with Veronica.

Helen, don't say that.

I suppose you're innocent?

Of course, it's all right with everyone

if you slept with Veronica,

just so long as you didn't rape her.

I'm sorry.

I didn't mean to say that.

What about your father? What--?

I don't think he can stand the sight of me now either.

Not that I ever measured up, really.

Not since the first grade and I hit you in the nose.

I didn't mind.

You know, if he'd hit me, I'd have howled,

and that would've been that.

But not him. He said, uh, "We don't hit girls, Warren,

"because we're stronger.

"I don't expect you to ever do that again."

Only I know he did expect that I'd do it again, or worse.

And he was right, as always.

Well, that's just ridiculous.

I-I've heard him praise you a hundred times for--

For a hundred things, from--

From doing well in school, to--

And always as though as he was just a little surprised

I hadn't disgraced him.

Well, this time I made it. This time he's not surprised.

[**]

I don't know. I-I-I just don't know.

I'm so scared and so lost.

Let me help you.

I'll go and see Veronica.

I'll beg her.

I-I-I'll buy her.

I'll do anything, I'll--

I-I-I'll tell her we're in love with each other,

that we're going to be married.

That-- That she'll be ruining both our lives.

That's not true, Helen!

But it could be true.

We could make it true.

Warren, I love you.

I love you so much.

And I believe you do love me, you do.

If we were married, everything will be different--

Helen, stop it! I don't love you.

I wish I did, but I don't.

Why do you make me say terrible things to you?

That sounds pretty final.

Why don't you go on and make the rest of the speech.

"You're a good kid, Helen.

And someday, you'll find the right guy."

Helen, I'm in a cold sweat about what's gonna happen

to my mother, to my father, to me, the rest of my life.

I can't think about anything--

Then what did you come here for?

I don't know! And I'm sorry I did!

And I never will again.

Helen, it's just--

I know.

I'm a good kid.

[**]

[TYPEWRITER CLICKING]

Morning, Diane.

Oh, good morning, Mr. Winner. I didn't know you were here.

Yes, I, uh...

She has a 10:00 appointment.

Oh.

Morning, Helen.

Good morning, Uncle Arthur.

I'm sorry, I didn't know you were here.

That's all right. I-- I kept busy.

That your file again? Mm-hm.

I often wondered what you found so fascinating about that.

I once had a notion that vital statistics,

everything down in black and white...

Well, it seemed sort of a proof that I was real.

They're just...

numbers and figures about a name.

I'm not really in that file at all.

I-I came to say goodbye, Uncle Arthur.

You're going away?

For how long?

Well, as long as possible.

But, where to?

Well, I'm going from, not to.

It's the bill for my first lipstick.

Seduction.

Isn't this rather a sudden decision?

I saw Noah yesterday, he didn't mention it.

Oh, I don't think he'll be surprised.

He's known how long I've thought about it.

Helen, don't you think if you go now, it'll look as though

you condemned Warren

before he even went on trial.

Oh, but I-I'll make it very clear

that I haven't gone because of Warren.

For a while, I thought I could stay because of him.

But I really couldn't.

Well, not for long, even if he loved me.

What makes you think he doesn't?

Well, he told me.

It seemed cruel of him, but it wasn't, you know.

It was brave and hard to do.

It's so much easier going on with something,

even if you know it's wrong.

That's why I'm going now.

Though it's hard to do.

[PHONE RINGS]

Excuse me.

Yes.

Oh, I'll take it in my office, Betty Anne.

Don't go yet, please.

Oh, don't worry about me, Uncle Arthur.

I'm really very happy and excited about going away.

Sometimes on a trip...

[CHUCKLES]

...they say you find yourself.

I'll be right back.

Hello, Julius.

Good, that's fine.

You are?

What time does your plane get in, Julius?

All right, see you then.

Goodbye.

Helen?

[**]

Jerry, what's the matter?

Warren.

He took off.

What do you mean, "took off"?

Just that.

We spotted his car on the Albany road,

near the state line.

Well--

Jerry, are you sure it was his car?

I had to put it on the Teletype.

Special bulletin to the state police to pick him up.

Arthur, if they can get him before he hits the state line,

I'm gonna have to add the charge of breaching bail on a felony.

Thanks, Jerry.

You'll be here if there's any news?

No, I'd, uh-- I'd like to go with you, if you don't mind.

Fine.

I'll be out in the car.

[DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]

Arthur, don't feel that he's letting you down.

He's not acting they way a Winner should,

or the way you would.

Oh, it isn't that, it's--

He panicked.

There's nothing for me to do but wait.

Well...

I'll, uh-- I'll be...

[RINGING]

Hello?

Oh, hello, Arthur.

What?!

Oh, no.

[**]

Look, Duncan, you've been a coroner long enough

to know that nobody swallows cleaning fluid by accident.

Phenol compound.

I don't know how Helen got it down.

Yes.

Oh, uh. I've, uh...

I've got the suicide note here. I'll see that you get it.

NOAH: Uh, Reggie.

Uh, I'll have that, please.

Uh, Duncan, this is Noah Tuttle.

I want you to hear Helen's letter.

"Dear Noah, I guess we Detweilers have always been

"the town suicide family.

"Even my mother and father's drowning was no accident,

"though I know how hard you tried to make me think so.

"And you know how hard I've tried to hide

"my spells of depression,

"but they've grown deeper every year.

"And suddenly, it's too hard.

"Do one last favor for me, darling.

"You've done so many.

"Give my love to Warren,

"who's been my closest friend.

"Tell him I know his troubles will soon be over,

"just as I knew he was innocent before he even told me so.

"My will is in your office vault.

"Now, with a kiss for goodbye,

Helen."

All right, Duncan?

Good.

Now, m-may I suggest that you hold a closed inquest,

reach a quick decision

and issue a--

A short statement to the press?

Yes, I knew you would.

That's all.

Uh, here's Reggie.

Hello.

Anything else, Duncan?

No, it isn't.

I moved the body.

Yes, Bernie Breck is here.

All right.

Certainly.

She was in our library just this morning.

Taking a last look at all she had left in the world.

A bunch of legal papers.

She practically drew a suicide map for me,

only I was too blind to read it.

Clarissa...

as you get older, you realize there are things

once put into motion...

Life has once put into motion,

and they can't be changed.

They must follow a course to an inevitable end.

Sometimes inevitability... is bitter beyond belief.

[CAR APPROACHING OUTSIDE]

Come in.

Marjorie.

Would you like some coffee?

Or a drink?

No, thank you.

Why did she do it, Arthur?

I guess Helen wanted something she couldn't have.

And she couldn't live without having it.

Julius called this morning from Washington.

He'll be here in an hour.

I know, he wired me.

I'm gonna pick him up at the airport

and drive him to the office.

Something about, uh...

Helen's suicide?

I found some things in her file that led to other things,

and those other things couldn't wait.

How's Warren taking it?

Warren's gone. He ran away.

He ran away.

Helen ran away.

You and I have been running away too.

Together.

Marjorie.

That's what I wanna talk to you about.

I've been thinking about it.

I knew Julius would be coming home,

whether it's tonight or tomorrow.

So I've made a decision.

I'm leaving Julius.

But because of Julius and me, nothing else.

I've tried.

Marjorie.

If he had just once

taken a step towards me,

I'd have run a mile toward him.

But there's no hope for us now.

And I'm through asking for a divorce.

I'm just leaving.

And after that?

I don't know.

You, uh...

You realize how much you'll be hurting Julius?

Not as much as he hurts himself.

Marjorie, it was wrong. We both know that.

But you did bring something to me.

Something I--

I treasure.

[**]

We aren't saying goodbye,

not to each other.

Only to a memory. Something that happened.

We were both unhappy and angry,

and things had piled up on us.

We needed something.

An escape.

An act of defiance.

Yes.

But you've made me feel alive again,

and I love you for it.

[**]

[PHONE RINGS]

Hello.

Yes.

Oh, fine.

Uh, did you get the hotel reservation in New York?

Good.

12:45.

Well, I'll pick the ticket up at the airport.

Thank you.

[**]

Mrs. Penrose.

Uh...

Warren.

Oh, I'm so very sorry.

I know what you must be feeling.

Well, that's why I came to you, Marjorie.

We kind of understand each other.

Will you lend me some money?

Money?

Yes, of course, but...

I, uh--

I got as far as the state line,

and, uh, I stopped for a hamburger

and I found I had a fast $1.60.

Well, I've made up my mind.

I'm gonna get out of here, Marjorie.

Town can stop worrying, did I or didn't I?

I'll leave the town to Veronica. They can have it her way.

You haven't heard about Helen.

Heard what about Helen?

She's dead, Warren.

She committed suicide.

You know,

I lied to Helen.

I did love her, in a way.

I could talk to her and she'd understand almost always.

But, you know, you can't play with someone's love

and expect forgiveness.

This is my fault too, isn't it, Marjorie?

You didn't kill her.

She killed herself.

The things in her life she had to face were...

She was right not to understand.

And I know my father never will.

Oh, now wait a minute, Warren.

You're passing judgment on somebody

I don't think you even know:

Your father.

He probably doesn't understand you completely.

But he does believe in you.

And he would do anything in the world for you.

Have you ever tried to understand him?

At all?

[SIGHS]

You didn't come here for a lecture.

You came to borrow money.

I'll give it to you.

Then you decide what to do.

When I read Helen's will--

She left everything to Noah, of course.

--there were some things in her accounts

that made me take a look at Noah's.

Noah's not incompetent,

he just made himself seem so to cover what he was doing.

He paid Helen the income from her father's estate

every three months, right to the day.

And with all his other accounts, same story.

Income paid on time.

Assets missing and unaccounted for.

How much is missing?

Three hundred and eight thousand dollars,

263 and 8 cents.

Why, Arthur?

Why?

Thirty years ago,

Noah dreamed a dream.

He persuaded the people of this town to invest

in a company he owned.

A trolley line.

Four years later, the dream turned into a nightmare.

The company went broke.

It should have gone into bankruptcy.

But it didn't.

But the people got all their money back.

Oh, yeah.

They were so delighted to get it, they never asked how.

Well, that's the money he embezzled.

And that's why.

[SIGHS]

Well,

we better call Jerry Brophy.

To do what?

To put Noah in prison. This is a felony, Arthur.

Julius,

who did Noah harm?

Look at the accounts.

Everybody's getting their income.

To the penny, to the day.

Noah juggling the money from one account to the other.

Sooner or later, it'll be discovered.

Wouldn't that be inevitable, Arthur?

He's thought of that.

All right, he did wrong.

But can you imagine what hell it was, Julius?

Every minute of every day,

26 years, waiting for this.

I might,

but I'm a little surprised that you do.

No, Arthur.

You've always been a devout letter-of-the-law man.

Black was always black, white was always white.

Nothing in between.

I've discovered gray.

What exactly are you proposing?

That we keep quiet about this?

Become accessories after the fact?

Compound a felony?

Noah's repaid all but a quarter of the money.

If he lives long enough, he'll pay off the rest.

And if he dies?

Well, if he dies,

we'll go on with it.

If we have to, we'll pay it off for him.

You and I.

No one will know, but no one will be hurt.

Well, why don't we pay it back now?

Then there'd be nothing to worry about.

Except Noah. We'd have to tell him.

He might be delighted.

[SCOFFS]

No, Julius. If he knew we'd found him out...

You said it. It would destroy him.

Last Tuesday,

you wanted to tell Noah he was incompetent.

Too old, too feeble to run the firm.

It was your duty to tell the truth!

Never mind if it destroyed him.

That was Tuesday. This is Friday.

What happened in between?

Wednesday and Thursday.

Would you go along with this?

Sure I will.

Drink?

Thanks.

You know, Arthur, I like you better this way.

But there was a certain security in having

a devout letter-of-the-law man for a partner.

No surprises, maybe.

But no shocks.

I found a certain security in it too.

[THUNDER CRASHES]

[**]

By the time you hear the thunder,

the lightning's already struck.

I've been told that since I was 2.

It never helps.

Any word about Warren?

Not yet.

Would you, uh--?

Would you like to go downstairs and light a fire?

Yes.

Clarissa, some of the things you said at the hospital--

With your lawyer's mind,

you remember them all, don't you?

I'll tell you what I remember.

I remember that from the time I was a small boy,

I always said,

"When I grow up, I'm going to marry Clarissa Tuttle."

I remember when I looked down

at that damned bouquet in my hands, I thought,

"I'll never let him go."

Because ever since I was a little girl I thought,

"If Arthur Winner doesn't marry me, I'll die."

Do you think he'll come back on his own?

I don't know, I--

I hope so.

So I didn't let you go.

And later, when I--

I began to wonder if you did love me,

my pride was working.

I-I didn't want any favors.

It isn't that I didn't love you.

It's...

Ah, it's so hard to say.

Try.

Well...

If--

If I come home and you're not here, I--

I can't stay in this house.

I-I hate it!

I never pass a shop window without thinking,

"She'd like that."

Or, "She wouldn't like this."

I love the way you look.

I'm proud of you.

And if you catch cold

or get hurt, or something happens to you,

I get angry, as though you've been careless with a part of me.

You're so woven into my life

nothing could get you loose from it. Nothing!

[DOOR CLOSES]

They didn't catch me, Dad. I came back on my own.

I can't explain, I'm so sorry.

Warren...

There's nothing you have to explain.

You're accused, you're not guilty.

It's what we have courts and juries for.

You may have to stand trial.

But you're gonna win.

I can promise you that.

And you're not alone.

We love you and we're with you.

I need you so much, Dad.

[**]

You're leaving?

Yes.

Tonight.

On a plane to New York.

You can take your freedom.

It's long overdue.

Why, Julius?

Why do you say that now?

What else is there to say?

The end of anything that once was good is sad.

The memory of love is a heartbreaking thing.

But it's not enough to build on, is it?

You're still a human being

with human wants and human needs.

And I'm still a cripple.

You are what you are.

A strong, moody, complicated man.

And you are a cripple.

But that needn't keep you from affection,

warmth, fun and friendship

and love.

All of those are human needs.

Do you still have the hope you used to have

that someday, somehow,

we can get back all those things we had before?

That hope.

Have you ever felt it?

Constantly.

Secretly.

And senselessly.

Because every time you tried to rebuild our life...

I tore it down.

I couldn't.

I...

[**]