Original subtitles

Hi, guys. Hey, Murphy.

Here you go, Miles. Copy for my campaign story.

Sorry I'm a little late, but there was a power failure and the traffic lights

were out outside of Clinton headquarters.

Word has it that Bill, Al, Hillary, and Tipper all turned on their blow dryers

at the same time.

Hey, Murphy.

How's the baby?

Come up with a name yet? Well, Phil, I'm kind of leaning toward Gandhi.

Gandhi. That's an interesting choice for a little boy.

Why don't you just name him Throw the Volleyball at My Head Brown?

All right, Miles. I'm really going to listen to a man who's named after a unit

of measurement.

I'll have a cheeseburger, too.

Murphy, Murphy, Murphy.

Splurge a little. We've been working double time on this election, so I'm

charging lunch to the network.

Cool. Okay, okay, okay. So technically this isn't a working lunch, but I think

after four years of producing this show, I can pick up a check without having to

run to someone for permission. Phil, pie for everyone. Not now, Ted, not now.

Oh, God, it's Mr. Kinsella. No pie, no pie. Get away from here, Phil. Go.

Okay, that's one cheeseburger for Murphy and a Valium shake for the big shot.

I think it looks like we're working. Everybody, scribble down work notes on

placemats. Names of countries, world leaders, anything.

Oh, relax, Miles. He's not coming over. Why would he? The man hates me.

Honestly, Frank, why do you think every little thing is about you?

Maybe he's just waiting for a proper invitation.

I think somebody should go over and ask him to join us.

Anyone but Frank. Oh, for heaven's sake, I'll go. No, Jim, Jim, I need to do

this. It's time I finally broke through that barrier between boss and friend.

In fact, maybe I won't even call him Mr. Kinsella.

How's this now?

Hey there, Gene.

Stop, Gene.

Gene, my man.

He's right behind me, isn't he?

Hi, Gene.

Mr. Gene.

Mr. Kinsella.

Mr. Gene Kinsella.

What's up?

Silver, do you have some sort of arterial flow problem?

Oh, no, sir. Just overworked. See?

Zimbabwe.

Oh, Brownie, Jim, Corky.

Montana, you have ketchup on your face.

Gene, join us. Miles is charging everything to the network.

Oh, that'll be today.

Well, if you don't mind, I have something I'd like to discuss with

privately. Executive matters. Certainly. We were just leaving.

Yeah. After I do my famous ketchup on the face bit, we usually head back to

office. Right, guys?

Frank, why don't you sit in?

Murphy, executive matters.

Get real, Miles. I've got a cheeseburger coming.

Well, you'll hear the news later today anyway, Brownie.

That's 12 -year -old scotch there, Silverberg. Oh, thank you, sir. I'm not

of a scotch drinker. They're both for me.

Mmm.

Well, I had a call from New York this morning.

I'm being promoted from vice president of news to senior executive news

consultant.

Congratulations, sir.

That is so exciting.

What exactly does a senior executive news consultant do?

Nothing, you fool.

It's a bull -think, do -nothing job created by the network to get me out of

way. They want to replace me with this high -tech hotshot from Chicago.

Are they out of their minds? The news division ratings are through the roof.

Well, looks like I'll have to pay the network brass a little visit.

Don't worry, Gene, I'll have this cleared up in no time. No, forget it,

it's a done deal. Believe me, this is bigger than you.

Gene, how could it be bigger than me?

I don't understand how they could do this to you.

They're vicious, greedy, miserable swine. And believe me, I know. I've been

of them for 40 years.

Uh -huh.

Look, Gene, I know you have a lot on your mind, but if we could just get back

this bigger than me thing. Murphy.

Mr. Kinsella, if you feel this way, how can you possibly continue working here?

Well, I can give you the answer in one word, Silverberg.

Pension.

I got a year and a half to retirement, and they're trying to humiliate me into

quitting. Well, if they think I'll choose dignity over money, they don't

Gene Kinsella.

You see this grin here?

Well, every time you see it, you'll know that while my body's here, my mind is

sinking a pot on the 14th green.

Now, Gene, point of clarification.

When you said bigger than me, was that just a colorful phrase or was it...

You're all here.

Except Murphy.

Okay, that's not a problem.

If she gave me her word, she'd be here to meet Mr. Kinsella's replacement.

And we all know that when Murphy Brown gives her word, she's not coming, is

She's in editing.

And she said she'd never leave just to bow down to the new network mouthpiece

stoogey boss corporate oppressor.

Oh, did she?

Look, I'm the executive producer.

And when I send a message for her to come out here, oh, she will come out

Mark, call down the editing and tell them there's a fire drill.

I don't blame her, Miles.

Once again, it's the old network shop.

Experienced men like Gene Kinsella are cast aside, and suddenly people like

Stone Phillips are doing the news.

I always like to get my news from igneous rock formations.

Well, I'm sorry, but I'm glad Gene's out. Not once did he acknowledge my

contribution to FYI. It's got to be better with the new guy.

Unless it's worse.

What if he doesn't like me either?

At least Gene tolerated me. This guy could fire me.

God, I miss Gene.

I don't want Mr. Kinsella to go either.

Although, for the past four years, I've lived in fear that I'd blurt out the

fact that he's bald right in front of him.

I don't know why, but when someone has an obvious physical thing they might be

touchy about, I'm afraid I'll just blurt it out.

Corky, is there any reason you're staring at me? I don't think so.

Chief Silverberg.

You make me do these things.

Thanks to you, I have a highly paid editing staff running down 17 flights of

stairs feeling doors for heat.

Now, I want you to stay here and meet our new VP of News.

Oh, why bother? I've met his type a thousand times.

Arrogant little white -thread Ivy Leaguers who think they were born to run

world. Here, here. Oh, hey, now, now.

Let's not get excited. We don't know anything about this guy. Oh, no? He

memo inviting us to this little roll call? It's a power play, pure and

Well... Maybe I'll just stick around and show him a power play of my own. You

tell him, Slugger. Okay, fire drill's over. Back to work, Perpy.

Oh, no. You wanted me here. You got me.

Well, everybody's here and all's right with the world.

Goodie.

I'm extremely happy to introduce the newest member of our Happy Little News

team, Mitchell Baldwin.

Nice to meet you, Mr. Baldwin.

Miles Silverberg, executive producer of FYI. Let me introduce you to, uh...

Gee, clockwise.

Corky Sherwood Forrest.

Nice to meet you, Corky. And I believe you're the very first Corky I've ever

met. Nice to meet you, Mr. Bald.

Wind. Bald Wind. I don't know why I said that.

You're not bald.

Jim Dial, senior anchor. Welcome.

From the Windy City, isn't it? That's right, Jim. And between the weather and

the Cubs, I'm very happy to be here. Sure.

Hell, why not? It's a happy, happy place.

And this is Frank Fontana.

Frank, a pleasure. I'm a big fan. Have been ever since your story on Three Mile

Island. It's my kind of reporting.

Well, thanks.

I, uh, I don't know your work, but I'm sure I'll like it.

Hey, I like it already.

Frank, it's Frank.

Oh, that's everyone.

Actually, I think you're forgetting someone, Miles. No, no, no, no.

Who could I be forgetting? There's, uh, Jim Corky Frank.

Oh, Murphy.

I forgot Murphy.

What is wrong with me?

It's a pleasure.

Now, let me say right up front that I know you're probably thinking a new guy

going to come in and start making big, drastic changes. I don't think that's...

Well, that's exactly what I'm going to do.

Right now, FYI is good.

But from the hip, you've gotten a little lazy, a little soft.

Don't worry, I've got lots of ideas.

I'm not one of those guys who sits up in his office all day daydreaming about

sailing or golf.

Bottom line... I'm here to bring FYI into the 90s and up to its full

Any comments?

Well, I'm certainly open to hearing your ideas. I think you'll find we're

adaptable. Good.

Now, Miles, why don't you show me around so we can let these busy people get

back to work?

Oh, sure.

Jane, you coming?

I'd be happy to.

So, that's Gene's replacement.

The new network honcho.

The man Murphy was going to rip to pieces.

Oh, come on. I gave him a break. It's his first day on the job.

Jeez.

Dr. Binder... This must be some kind of mistake.

Are you sure Mr. Baldwin ordered the donut area removed?

It's the center of the newsroom.

It's where we put our Christmas decorations.

Where am I supposed to put the nativity scene? On top of the hot Syrah's

machine, the three wise men...

You know what I'm thinking?

Baldwin used me.

He only said he liked my work to win me over. Then he figured I'd get the rest

of you to go along with his changes. I wouldn't worry about that, Frank.

strikes me as a man with keen judgment. I'm sure he knows we don't listen to

you. Oh.

I'm sorry, but I want my donut area.

People, we need to... Where's the water cooler?

Where's the donut area?

Didn't you get Baldwin's latest memo?

If you keep pushing us like this, something is going to explode.

Food.

Attention, attention.

I have lost another baby pound.

Donuts for everyone.

Very good, Frank.

Really funny.

Where'd you put the donut counter?

It's in my office, right?

I didn't take it, Murph. I hate to have to tell you this, especially when you're

armed with cream -filled pastries.

Baldwin ordered it ripped out in order to put in a videotape library.

Oh.

Well, you could use a little less coffee and water.

After all, our bodies are already 65 % liquid. You keep adding to that, you're

just asking for trouble.

Morning, everyone.

Well, Things are progressing nicely down here. Oh, yeah, you bet. Old -fashioned

glaze? No, thank you.

But as long as I have you all here, you'll be getting the detailed number on

this later.

But in a nutshell, I've decided to cut the length of your individual stories

from 12 to 10 minutes.

Excuse me, did you say cut as in shorter?

That's right. I'd like to use the time working locations, montages, giving this

show a more visual impact.

Interesting idea. It's very interesting, but...

We already find it difficult to tell a complete story within the limited amount

of time we have, right, guys?

It's going to be tough.

Maybe there's another solution.

No, Murphy, I'm convinced that this is the way to go. All right, then?

Give it a shot.

Uh,

uh, Murphy, I don't believe we've heard from you.

fine with it.

Trust me on this, everyone. I'm sure you'll come around.

Thank you. I'm late.

Frank, I saw a rough cut of your piece on a helicopter pair of men.

Nice work.

Really? Thanks a lot.

No, I don't need these.

Hi there.

Murphy, I think when you hit the gold band before the eraser, that's the

sharpest it's going to get.

for coming in here other than that helpful hint, oh wizard of lead?

Nope. No reason.

It's just that I seem to remember you once telling Gene Kinsella that if he

cut our stories, you'd fill his Lexus with two -day -old squid.

What's your point? Blue BMW, license plate number 189347.

I was just wondering, you know, in a curious, wondering way, why you backed

from Baldwin just now.

I did not back down, Miles. I simply gave him the benefit of the doubt.

It's his first week on the job. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have...

The first day I worked here, you put my silk tie through a three -hole punch.

I just couldn't help noticing that you seemed to treat Baldwin differently, and

I was just wondering if maybe it's because he's...

You know.

What? He's what?

You know.

No, I don't know. What are you talking about? Yes, you do.

I think you didn't yell at Baldwin out there because he's... Black.

What? You actually think I care that Baldwin is black? No, no.

I didn't say you care. I know you don't care, and I certainly don't care. What I

said was that perhaps you treat him differently because he's black.

That's ridiculous.

Baldwin's being black is not even an issue here.

Then why are we whispering?

Murphy, you hated that he's cutting these stories, but you didn't even

him. That's not like you.

I think you didn't yell at Baldwin because he's black.

That's crazy.

My yelling has nothing to do with anything.

I yell at you all the time. Does that make you think I'm anti -Semitic? Well,

some level, yes.

Miles, be honest.

Do you think my paramedic's rough cut was really good?

Frank, come in here. Come in. Close the door.

We want to ask you something. No, we don't. Frank, do you think that maybe

been acting differently around Baldwin because he's...

You know.

Complimentary?

No.

Because he's black.

Well, now that you brought it up, don't you think it's weird that he's been here

for a week and not one of us has even mentioned it? What is this, 1954? I

believe we're even having this conversation.

Murph, last month I came to work with a sty. You called me sty boy for a week.

Corky posted stye updates on the bulletin board.

We are not the type of people who let things go by unnoticed.

Now, maybe no one mentioned it because we were afraid people might think we

a problem with it. Okay, that's it. This conversation is over.

What are you all doing in here?

What are you all talking about?

The fact that our new boss is black.

There, I said it.

Baldwin is black.

Not that it means anything one way or the other, his being black, but he is

black.

Actually, Miles...

The correct term is African -American. Oh, God, I'm politically incorrect.

Excuse me, but my coffee mug is missing.

It's pink and blue, shaped like a fish. I'm offering a small reward.

Jim.

Jim, we want to ask you something. Oh, come on. Leave Jim out of this. Leave

out of what?

Jim, what do you think it means that no one has even mentioned the fact that

Baldwin is black?

He is. I haven't noticed.

Come on, Jim, you don't expect us to believe that you haven't noticed. That's

story, and I'm sticking to it. Now, will you excuse me?

We shouldn't be having this conversation. What is the big deal about

conversation? The man is black. It's just an observation.

No judgment, no prejudice.

Now, come on, everyone, admit it. When he first walked off that elevator, what

is the first thing you noticed?

That Mr. Kinsella was bald.

I noticed that Baldwin was black.

It took me by surprise.

I mean, let's face it, there are not a lot of blacks at the network corporate

level. Is that why Murphy's been afraid to stand up to him? Why are you all

putting this on me? This is not an issue with me.

I don't remember having any difficulty expressing my anger to Idi Amin or Al

Sharpton or Lionel Richie.

You all think there's some sort of white liberal guilt at work here? Maybe you

should just take a closer look at yourselves.

I simply came in to look for my fishmonger.

Murphy, don't be silly.

can't stand up to him i'm from the south miles has a problem with authority

figures jim is in denial and frank's just happy somebody likes his work but

mr baldwin is the first person i've ever seen you back down from i think it's

down what is this what you right now i am not going to fold on this i'll wait

murphy what a nice surprise Well, something came up I wanted to talk to

about, and I thought, hey, I don't need an appointment.

Wrong. Absolutely unacceptable.

Sorry?

No, Bob.

Not now.

I'm backed up. Make an appointment with my assistant.

Good. Now, Murphy, what can I do for you?

Uh, would I be out of line if I asked you to take off a head fit? I once had a

nasty run -in with Julie, the time -life operator.

Of course.

Have a seat.

Where to start.

Starting's always the hard part.

I always find it best when starting to get right to the point.

Ooh, that's a nice award.

Thank you. It's from the National Association of Black Journalists. I

have one.

What's on your mind?

We have a problem.

I don't know any other way to say this, so I'll just say it.

I have been behaving differently toward you because you are black.

I see.

Behaving differently how?

I have been open, attentive, and very supportive.

And you've been open, attentive, and supportive because I'm black?

Well, I don't have a problem with that.

In fact, I keep up the good work.

No, no, no. You don't understand. That's not our problem. Our problem is that's

not who I am.

Murphy, are you telling me that you usually have a problem with black

No, I'm telling you I usually have a problem with all people, regardless of

race, creed, or color. That's who I am.

But as much as I'm ashamed to admit it, when you stepped off the elevator last

week, I treated you nicely.

Murphy, as soon as I took this job, people started calling me to warn me

how impossible you are to work with.

I got calls at the office. I got messages at home.

I even got a sympathy card from President Bush.

Oh, great. The country's falling apart and he's browsing at Hallmark.

My point is that I was expecting the worst.

When I stepped off that elevator and walked into the middle of all of that

liberal guilt, I thought, Peter, I better make my changes while I can.

Wait a minute. Are you saying you knew what was going on and you used it?

Sure.

Wouldn't you?

You're good.

Well, I have to be, Murphy. Because of who I am and where I am.

I have so many obstacles thrown in front of me that when I see an opening, I

have to go for it.

Bottom line, you saw black. I saw white.

We both reacted. But it shouldn't matter. That I'm black?

Murphy, being a black man has everything to do with the way I do my job. It

should. It's who I am.

Much like being a woman must influence you.

Okay. Maybe what you say is true, but I'd like to think that one day people

won't be judged by the color of their skin or by their gender, but by the

that really matter, like their taste in music.

Motown. Country western.

All right.

I guess that's just about everything.

Just thought it was only fair to let you know I've worked through my niceness

problem. Well, I figured that you might.

But you have to admit, I got a lot done in my first week.

You know, that reminds me.

There's no way I can live with only ten minutes for my stories.

Ten minutes, no budging.

Eleven and a half.

Eleven. Eleven and the donut area.

Nice working with you.

Nice meeting you, Murphy.

Oh, just out of curiosity, you drive the Green Range Rover, right?

That's right.

And you're the white Porsche, right?

You are good.