Original subtitles

conversion layer up here still trapping all that hot, smoggy air in the basin.

It looks like we've got another scorcher today.

The mercury at Pacific Center in downtown Los Angeles is at 94 degrees

climbing.

Traffic on the Harbor Freeway northbound is backed up for about 12 miles.

That's 793.

That's the limit, though.

Yeah.

All right, Lalo.

Good night, Lou.

Wait a minute.

We'll go have a couple of beers.

I can't. My wife is having a thing.

I could be late. Come on. No, no.

Besides, I should get home early tonight.

I've been practicing all my cooking. I'm getting good at it.

What time was she shot?

What was her name?

Repeat that, please.

Age?

How about the kids?

Torrid. How can a guy say something like Torrid Tuesday in a news story? It's a

weather report.

Sounds like the title of an adult movie.

Hey, uh, Donovan, you want to do something this evening?

I can't, Lou. I'm busy. After all, I'm still young, active, and torrid.

While you were on the phone, I got a shooting.

A guy went up to a middle -aged woman walking home with her kids and her

groceries in East L .A. and blasted her with a rifle.

She's in critical condition at County General.

The guy just strolled away.

Call the hospital. See what's happening.

We can squeeze this into the second edition.

Sure, but why?

A mother shot walking down the street with her kids?

Uh, Luke, in Minneapolis, this might have been a big story. Here, it's not

news. This kind of stuff goes on all the time in the barrio.

This ain't no use.

Well, if we're short in a later edition, we can flip it in.

Nobody's really interested in this kind of story.

I'm interested.

Where are we eating?

I don't care.

I just need a little atmosphere.

What kind?

Air -conditioned.

Um, hi.

Maybe we should follow this. There might be a second day leave.

David? A change in plans?

I could send someone else. This is not exactly high priority around here. It's

okay. I'll take the story.

Sorry, David. He understands.

Start with the victim. Try to talk to her.

I'm sorry.

I know this seems to happen a lot.

But look, could we meet later at the restaurant around nine?

Okay. Sure.

You're the most understanding man in the world.

That's a title I'd gladly give up.

See ya.

Say, animal.

I'm not doing anything tonight, and I was just wondering if you'd like to...

Forget it.

Allow me.

Oh, thank you.

Tea.

Well, I'd rather get coffee, but look at the prices.

I love the avocados here.

Here? In California.

But since I live alone, I never know what to do with the other half.

I know what you mean.

They get all black and rotten.

Limey.

Well, a little lemon juice helps.

That's a wonderful idea.

Just wonderful.

Lemon juice, huh?

I don't know how to thank you.

I'm going to get some lemon juice right now.

Thanks so much.

Thank you very much.

Who is that very attractive woman who's lifting her?

Hey, you have good taste.

Yeah, I helped to carry her groceries home for her once.

Up the hill, you know, just up the hill. The white duplex, 2310.

You know.

Oh, yeah, yeah, I passed it.

Is that all?

No. Give me a pound of coffee.

Excuse me.

Wrong apartment.

What's going on?

Who was that? I don't know who he was. Welcome here.

I saw him at the market. I have no idea why he's here.

Dr. Klein.

Pagey, Dr. Klein.

Telephone, please, Dr. Klein.

Dr.

Hanson.

Dr. Hanson, report to obstetrics, please.

Dr. Warner.

I'm not into that much, you know that.

But this thing, I can't let it go. I mean, this is my mother.

Let me look into it.

Shooting women out, viejos, children, that's against all the rules.

Enrique. I know, I told you I'd get into it.

So will I.

I'll let the boys do anything.

Make them stay in Karzai.

You just rest and get well.

I'll take care of it.

Can you do that?

What? Take care of it.

Maybe.

I'm covering the shooting for the Tribune.

It must be a full -on news day.

What?

Why else would they put you on something?

So unimportant.

I don't think she's unimportant.

Are you a relative?

No, I work for the county.

Don't worry, Linda.

Excuse me.

Lou!

How's it going?

Okay. What are you doing here?

Well, I wasn't doing anything in particular, so I thought I'd make it up

for spoiling your date tonight.

I'm buying you dinner.

Lou, I may be onto something. I have to catch up with that guy who just walked

out. Will you call David for me and tell him that I can't make it tonight? And

thanks for the dinner offer.

Hello, David.

This is Lou Grant.

I'm just calling for Billy.

She's not going to be able to meet you tonight.

But look, there's a bright side.

I'm not doing anything.

Oh, Lou, you'll have to excuse me if I'm a little groggy today. I didn't get

much sleep last night.

Neither did I.

It's just hot weather.

Oh, is the weather hot, too?

Lou, on that East L .A. shooting story... Yeah, we'll use it.

I'm talking about a feature piece on Delgado, the guy I met last night. I

think so.

You haven't even heard... There's a hearing on dam safety, the dam above

live. If you find out my house is going to be flooded out, I'm going to have to

buy an air conditioner.

Lou, last night I talked with this guy for three hours.

He works with the gangs.

What's going on down there is unbelievable.

It's another world.

We've taken the shooting story as far as it can go. No, we haven't.

Listen, are you free for lunch? Let me show you. Listen, Billy, I'm telling

you... I know what you're afraid of.

You're afraid I'm going to try to make this into a sob story.

Afraid? I'm afraid you won't. I love a good sob story.

I remember when we used to have these women reporters who wore...

Big hats.

They'd come back to the office after covering a story. Without taking off

long white gloves, they'd rap out 5 ,000 words that would wrench your guts out.

They were great, those soft sisters.

Well, I won't go with the wardrobe, but if you'll just go with me on this one, I

might. You might wrench my guts out?

Right.

Let's go.

Yes, I understand.

Well, like I said, I only had two hands.

This is the city editor of the Tribune, Lou Grant, George Delgado.

I thought it would be valuable for Lou to get a look at the situation here

firsthand. Oh, good.

I had the car outside.

Billy's told me about the work you do down here, George.

The name is Jorge.

Door is open.

This doesn't seem like too bad a place to live.

No?

It's not tenements.

It's individual houses.

Some even have a view.

See that individual house over there?

A 14 -year -old kid got half his head blown off.

And how about that yellow house, the one with a view?

A crazy mother lives with her three sons and five rifles.

You see that mean -looking character over there?

I saved his life.

You did?

Yes, I did.

Is that what you do?

Save lives?

How did you save his life?

Well, he was on a gang's death list. They thought he did something that he

didn't. I talked him into leaving the city for a few days.

Long enough for them to realize they made a mistake.

Back there is the Ruiz gang territory.

This is the Marietta territory.

How can you tell?

You just know.

Now we're coming up on the Gallagher.

Gallagher? An Irish gang in the middle of all this?

Well, they get most of the names from the streets.

You know, last week it wasn't so bad. It was pretty cool.

But after this thing that happened this week, the Ramirez shooting, very bad,

very bad.

Incredible, isn't it?

What do you think?

I think Delgado's in love with his image, the Mexican miracle worker.

But do you agree there's a story here?

I have to tell you this going in.

Hume and the others are not excited about East L .A. gangs.

There was no hard news that it was going to be tough to sell it to them.

Them, I'm not sold. I haven't written it yet.

Oh, you're going to make it good. You didn't say that.

As far as hard news, it's happening all around. You heard him pick a house.

I heard.

I also know he was a gang member himself, probably served time.

The county pays him to help solve the gang problem.

If there is no problem, he's out of a job, isn't he?

Brilliant.

They closed the pool on the hottest day of the year.

They say it's a precaution because the community is uptight.

That makes sense, though, doesn't it? No, it's totally crazy.

The kids will read that as punishment for the shooting yesterday.

Now, where are the kids going to go to cool off their bodies, cool off their

heads?

Two tacos and an iced tea.

Tostadas.

I'll have a cheese sandwich.

Lou, you don't want a cheese sandwich.

I want a cheese sandwich. At least I know what it is. You don't know tacos?

I guess they're not too big on tacos back in Minneapolis, are they?

Two tacos and an iced tea.

Try this.

Can I have a cheese sandwich? Try it.

How do you...

Well?

Let's have a couple more of these, huh?

Here's your dollar.

Hey, Henry!

Who are these guys?

They work for a newspaper.

I thought maybe they were social workers or something.

That bald guy looks like a cop.

You know you do.

Okay. I'd say a sergeant went about 20 years on the force.

Okay, okay.

Where are you headed?

That I go down to the pool.

You expecting sharks?

You're a little kid.

What are you doing with a knife? You could cut yourself.

Or worse, I could cut you.

Oh, come on. Get out of here.

If you open up your mouth to me once more, I'll put you in my taco.

Hey, Lou.

These kids are expert with knives. They could take out your appendix and you'd

never know it.

Move.

Trust me.

I keep thinking if somebody would just talk sense to these... Henry, listen.

If you find out who hurt your mother and you hurt them back, all you'll do is

end up in jail. And then what would your mother... Don't you know revenge

doesn't work?

Billy, we're not social workers.

We're just reporters trying to find out what happened down here.

Are you crazy, kid?

Have you ever seen the inside of a jail?

You're not going to like it.

What you should do is just play some ball today, give us your knife, and have

nice summer for yourself.

Nice summer?

Hey, it's funny.

Listen, mister, you don't know me. You think I can't handle this?

What if I told you I've been in jail before?

You're too young to have been in jail.

Maybe I haven't been in jail. But I've been to juvenile hall three or four

times.

That's a great speech, Henry. If I didn't know for a fact, you've never

juvenile hall.

How'd you know that?

I didn't. You just told me.

It's an old reporter's trick.

Henry, listen.

I'd like to learn more of what it's like down here. I'd like to come over to

your house and talk to your family.

You would, huh?

How about it?

I'll bring a bottle of wine.

No.

Make that a six.

Just give me a chance to explain.

David. David, I know we had plans for tonight, but this is exceptional.

I really need for you to understand this.

Well, if you'd been there this afternoon, you would understand. It's

Well, of course.

Of course you're important, too.

Yes. Yes, tomorrow. I promise.

with that story.

What? They're talking to the county supervisor's office about cutting back

Delgado's funding.

Cut his funding?

It's not very popular with the county supervisors.

He steps on a lot of big toes, doesn't answer phone calls, doesn't do the

paperwork. Well, maybe he's doing more important things.

They also think he's high -handed, arrogant, abrasive. All qualities which

admire.

Ruckus at the Board of Education.

Uproar over corporal punishment in the schools. Might be a story.

Capital punishment in the schools. Now there's a story.

Why don't you send Billy on it?

She's still working on the East L .A. gang story.

I wouldn't invest too much time in that. What? The West Side has been nervous

reading about the Chicanos, and the Chicanos don't read the Tribune.

You sent me to the wrong apartment last night.

Oh, no, no, no, no. That can't be. I have been there.

I was talking about a different woman.

The one I was talking about was a very attractive brunette with a nice shape.

Uh, Mr.

and... Grant.

Yes. This is Miss, uh... Enders. Uh -huh.

Yes, I'm in women's robes.

What I mean is that I represent a line of women's robes.

I have an office in the trademark.

Oh, that's a coincidence.

I thought you said you worked for the L .A. Tribune.

We both work downtown.

Would you like to have dinner together? I didn't have any plans for this

evening.

Oh, I'm sorry I can't make it tonight.

Maybe tomorrow night.

We could meet downtown someplace, like the lobby of the Biltmore.

We could look for a little restaurant.

No, I can't make it. I have a meeting.

I don't even want to go, but I have to.

I'm free the next night.

So am I.

Oh, yeah?

Well, at last.

Well, I could tell.

I didn't think it would come.

This is my grandfather and my grandmother.

Esta es... Billy.

I'm gonna name.

Mucho gusto, Billy.

How do you do?

Otro tanto.

My sisters.

Amanda, Felicia, and Rosa.

Siéntese, por favor.

He has to keep lookout.

How's your mother?

She might be out tomorrow, they said.

I feel as nervous as when I was 16 and my boyfriend invited me over to his

to meet his parents for the first time.

Then I found out that his parents were out of town for the weekend. Then I was

really nervous.

Did you tell them what I said?

No way.

It's okay. It's nothing.

This revenge thing is stupid. And you're stupid for thinking it makes you a big

deal. But you don't understand.

I don't understand.

I've lived here all my life. I understand everything you do. I'm the

protects you. I protect all of you, the whole family.

Terrific. We don't have anything to worry about. You think you know

since you went on that hike.

What hike? Maybe it did change my head. Thank God.

Your kids go hiking?

No.

George Delgado, you know.

Yeah? He had this program, but it ran out of money.

where he'd take a bunch of kids from different gangs, you know, onto the

mountains or desert.

What did you do?

He got poison oak.

We camped and stuff. For a lot of us, it really changed our heads.

And the funny thing about it is, we don't hate each other as much anymore.

Boy, what a great idea.

And they cut his funding.

Yeah.

Well, maybe if I write this story, just write, we can see if...

next to a 76 -year -old grandmother and a 6 -year -old child as bullets tore

into the wall above their heads.

The look on their faces said that, for them, this was another part of daily

life, like going to morning mass.

That's pretty good.

Listen, Lou, the weather bureau says it's going to be even hotter tomorrow,

what I thought we'd do... It's perhaps more terrifying to be shot at by someone

who doesn't even know you, but is willing to kill you.

I felt that in the war.

Even that made more sense than this somehow.

I wouldn't know. I was the clerk typist. Now, where are the beach pictures? We

gotta hit this heat wave harder.

We needed a picture of a girl on a block of ice or something.

City desk.

Who?

Henry Ramirez.

I never heard of him, Tim.

Tim, wait! Tim!

Is that a kid about 14, 15?

Send him up.

We had a great one last year. Picture of a girl washing a guy in a bathtub of

beer. First time I saw that was about 30 years ago when I was in Milwaukee.

Oh.

Always wondered why that guy's bathing suit had a top.

Hi.

Hi. I came to see Billy. This is hers.

She dropped that last night. Last night during, we had some trouble.

I heard about it.

My grandmother made me come.

She's ashamed that happened when we had a guest in the house.

I'll give it to her. She's not here right now.

Or do you want to wait? She'll be back.

Yeah, okay.

Here.

Want something to read?

Thanks.

How come a kid like you isn't down at the beach on a hot day like this?

I don't go to the beach.

I never had a reason to, you know?

You've never been to the beach?

Well, I haven't either, as a matter of fact.

Not this beach.

I saw it from the air when I flew in.

But actually, I haven't been down there since I've been in the city.

One day I'll go.

Donovan.

Okay, we'll see you later.

Billy won't be back till around four.

Okay, tell her I came. Wait a minute.

Let's go to the beach. What do you say?

Who? You and me?

Yeah, you and me.

Well, okay, if it means that much to you.

It's quiet.

I'm going to blow my lunch hour down at the beach. I'll take Animal and get you

your heat wave pictures.

Well, just a second.

I've got something for you.

What's that?

Have fun.

That's it, huh?

That's it.

It's not so big.

that isn't all of it it keeps going

doctor

What are you having?

A fish burger.

What do you think?

They're better in East Delane.

Trip, I need your names, a caption.

And your phone numbers.

Phone numbers for the captain?

All I know is we can't run pictures without phone numbers.

555 -2364.

I just want to play baseball. I didn't care about no gang.

When was that?

When I was 10.

But they kept coming after me all the time.

After school, they kept beating me up. So I joined.

A major joint.

Yeah, but they were right.

They helped me. See, you have to join. Why?

See, the gang, the gang is like your family.

No, no, it's more than your family. It's everything.

And it's always been like that.

My father was in the gang, and his father was in it, too.

This war win right now has been going on for about five years.

Longer than my war.

Yeah? What was that?

World War II.

Oh, I heard of that.

Listen, as long as I got this thing, you want to toss it around?

Sure. Okay, go on.

Let's say you keep looking for the guy who shot your mother and you find him.

Then what?

When I find whoever shot my mother, I'll shoot him.

What do you think happens after that?

Cousins and brothers try to shoot me.

This isn't a game.

They might actually do that.

You know, for a second there, I was thinking this whole conversation like we

meant it.

I did mean it.

This is the way life's supposed to be.

These street wars you're talking about are stupid. No, they're not, because

soldiers have to protect their homeland.

What homeland are you protecting?

USA?

California? First Street and Gifford Avenue.

I like the girls down here.

Go to work.

You know, you are right.

Even if you do look like a cop.

When you're good, you're good. That barrio shooting piece was not bad.

Thank you, Ross.

Of course, you did have some luck.

Luck? Being right there when the bullets were flying.

Some people just live right, I guess.

Are you going to do more research on this?

No, I've done enough.

I'm still shaky from last night.

Tonight, I'm going to go home, relax in a bath, have a nice dinner, and snuggle

up with someone I like.

Yes?

Put him on.

Delgado.

Hello, George.

When?

Tonight.

No, I can't.

Wait, what time and where?

Yeah.

Right. I've been after him to take me when he makes contact with the gangs.

Thought you had a date.

Yeah. I gotta call David.

Brad. David must be an angel.

He understands my job.

He respects it. It's one of the things I love most about him.

Yeah, but he's also human.

I'll handle it, okay?

See, that's why I have no commitments.

I thought it was because you were obnoxious.

You know, everybody thinks I don't mind that kind of stuff.

I mind.

Who wouldn't?

I mind a lot.

Listen, uh... I got kind of a date tonight.

There's a nice place around here I could take someone for dinner.

You want seductive or funky?

I want steak.

New girlfriend?

She's okay.

Sure. Hey, George, listen, when you see Henry Ramirez, give him a message.

Tell him he better not try anything stupid like coming up here.

Why should he? You're here, aren't you?

That means you got your face into who shot Henry's mother.

It wasn't a gang thing, George.

Okay, maybe the guy who did it is a member of a gang we both know.

But the dude is loco.

He is really crazy. I mean, that's what we call him. You know, loco.

He's fried his brain so many times on angel dust and red.

Shooting a woman, man. And a mother. That's really bad.

We plan to take care of it ourselves.

Someone blasted Henry's house last night.

You know who did that?

Yeah, I do.

We did.

We had to let Henry know to keep his head down.

To be cool.

Look, it's crazy for any more people to get hurt over this.

So when you see Henry, you tell him, okay?

George, tell him.

Was that kid saying they shot up Henry's house because they didn't want any more

trouble? Can you understand that?

Not easily, George.

Well, you've got to stop thinking Anglo.

This is a different kind of a culture.

To the kids, it makes sense.

Will Henry buy it and keep away?

No.

The only reason why nobody's got killed so far is because Henry isn't sure who

did it yet.

What can you do?

Try and keep it that way.

Yeah, Rossi, yeah, I got that. The supervisors are going into special

They still haven't voted on their pay raise.

Sure, they got to show they're suffering before they give themselves an

increase.

Okay, Rafi, stay with it for the vote.

We'll have to keep a spot open for it. Yeah.

Yeah, yeah. We ought to get somebody to do background on the whole issue, too.

Well, get somebody. Don't worry, Luke.

You'll make your date on time.

I don't know if you're going to have time to stop by your florist for a

wristlet, but...

Hi.

Hi, Henry. Que pasa?

I was just in the neighborhood.

What did you think of the Court Street gang?

You know, you met them last night with George.

Those locals shot my mother.

How did you find out?

Just now.

It's an old reporter's trick.

Henry knows who shot his mother. We've got to stop him. Who told him?

I did.

I'm going to call George.

Yeah, yeah.

Give me Tim in the lobby.

Yeah, Tim?

Luke Grant, listen. That Ramirez kid is coming downstairs. Stop him.

Oh, I'm sorry, Mr. Grant. I don't know how, but he outmaneuvered me.

Yeah, yeah.

That's okay, Jim.

Thanks anyway.

Hello? Thank God I found you.

Henry knows who did the shooting.

How did he find out?

From me.

He tricked me into it. I'm sorry.

Well, I hope the story you get out of this is worth a kid's life.

I'm going out for a drive.

Come on, Henry, forget it.

You didn't tell me who did it. Did you think I would?

Okay, so now you know and you're still going through with it?

Haven't we said it all?

No. You guys got real... Oh, come on, George, you at least understand.

If you stop me now, I'll just go on and do it tomorrow.

All you have to do is tell me, don't do it, man, you're crazy.

Then I can get out of here.

You're not a cop, George.

You're going to have nothing here in the battery if you start acting like one.

Stop him, Jorge.

Oh, it's past that now.

It's got to go down.

Yeah.

I know.

Let me go.

Hurry up. This is a very attractive woman. You said you wanted it great.

Give me very good. Hurry. Come on.

I've got to get out of here.

I like the ensemble.

New tie?

It almost works.

Phone call for you, Lou.

Hello.

Lynn. I was just waiting for some copies.

Billy. Just fair. Fair is okay.

Oh, come on.

I could be there five minutes.

I got a new tie.

How about Saturday night?

How about next week?

What's the... What's the point?

I like you.

I'm only an hour late.

Well,

should I call you next week?

Well, maybe some other...

I'm sorry.

Goodbye.

or be Pulitzer Prize material now.

Life in the barrio goes on, as does death.

Even as gang violence rages more and more out of control, the county

in a flurry of budget trimming have cut funding for the one person who many

consider to be the best hope of averting an even more serious escalation of gang

warfare.

George Delgado, who for five years has kept things relatively cool working in

the barrio,

He'll have to return to his old job in a San Gabriel welding shop.

Good writing.

It's okay.

Get it in.

You want to go to dinner?

No. You gonna see David?

No more David.

He told me to call him when I get out of this business.

That dinner offer still stands.

Could be a quiet dinner.

Could be a silent dinner.