Original subtitles

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Hello?

Hello?

I'm calling from Boston about your ad in the Globe.

Oh, yes?

It says, woman wanted live-in.

Why are you advertising in Boston when you live in New Haven?

Actually, I grew up with an Irish nanny.

She was kind and generous and pleasant to be with.

Are you married?

I'm widowed.

I have a son in his twenties who's, uh...

He's going through some difficulties.

He lives at home, and we need someone to help put our house in order.

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Thanks for the lift.

Thanks, honey.

Yeah.

Take it easy.

Thanks.

What do you do?

I'm Richard Goddard.

Hello. I didn't think you'd be so young.

My old nanny wasn't young.

-Ever? -I don't think so.

Oh, I'll get that.

Thank you.

Come on in.

This is your kitchen.

Ah.

I don't know what we'll do about dinner.

I'm not prepared.

Oh, I'm sure I can put something together.

I should have been prepared.

Why did you do that?

The house is very dark.

-Is it? -It still is.

Yeah, I guess it is.

25 waters.

Mercy.

One more hike up Lenny's room.

I'm afraid this room is dark, too.

You need some hundred waters.

You're right.

That'll cure it.

Is this you?

With the nanny?

Yes, day of my christening.

Did you love her?

Well, I suppose I did.

Yes, I did.

I think you'll be comfortable here.

There is a backstairs root kitchen, bathroom's around the

corner, and the rest of the room's up here used for storage now.

We had five in help in the old days.

One of them stole my father's ties for her

boyfriend's, and another one forged a signature on checks.

Caught her tracing one day at a sun window.

Well, I'll

leave you to your priorities.

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My name is Wendell Wharton Goddard.

My name is Emma Rowena Riley.

other people's kitchens.

It's a very large house, but you won't have to do it alone.

Lydia comes in once a week to help with the heavy work.

I was born here, I grew up here, and, um, when I went

away to college, it was a very long trip, three miles exactly.

I was six...

Sixth-generation Yale.

Yeah.

And when my father died, I had to leave the dorms and

come home and tend to my mother and an old nanny, and

we'd retained her through the years, and she was

crippled with arthritis, so I pursued my doctorate from here.

And, of course, years later, I tended to Wendell's mother.

She died three years ago of natural causes.

This quiche is wonderful.

How on earth did you do it?

I found some eggs and cheddar.

Well, you performed a miracle.

Thank you.

Welcome.

Wendell, that looks serious.

Have you seen a doctor?

Yesterday.

Eight stitches and all.

Oh.

Wendell snorted some cocaine.

And then he drank a pint of vodka.

Apparently he was afraid to come home in that condition, so he

crawled up into one of those bins at a shopping mall on Dexwell Avenue.

Salvation Army.

Well, he spent the night there sleeping it off.

Shortly before dawn, some suburban woman drove

up and hurled a broken toaster down the chute.

Left a huge gash on his forehead.

Required a trip to the emergency room.

Yes, well, I'm very popular at the emergency room.

I find them the most reliable substitution for family.

They provide 24-hour service, they welcome

you with open arms, and they never let you down.

Look at that.

I meant the book.

Oh, may I see you when I study at your leisure?

This is nice, isn't it?

Just a hint of orange.

Yeah.

Michael, my ex-husband, used to pour it on desserts and light it.

Flambe.

What did he do?

Hmm.

He was an actor.

He dropped out of Harvard junior year and joined a theater group in Cambridge.

Risky profession.

Yes.

I worked part-time as a stenographer.

We were able to buy a little vacation house in New Hampshire.

I got that in a settlement.

He became involved with a director.

A man.

He was bisexual.

Oh, my.

I'm sorry.

It must have been very difficult for you.

Well...

I had for a while an urge to become a statistic.

You know, just find a bridge and jump into the Charles.

How did you meet him?

I was 19.

I'd never been to a play.

A friend took me to see Camino Real by Tennessee Williams.

Michael played the part of Kilroy.

He was very handsome and very talented.

I joined the theater as a property girl, and we were married a year later.

And there were no children?

Oh, no.

Things were too uncertain.

I would like to provide as much of a family

atmosphere as I can, but we never had that.

Because Randall's mother was mentally ill for many years.

She died when he was in graduate school, and he left.

Very angrily.

Spent two years hanging out in Berkeley.

He appears to be rather a handful.

Yes, indeed.

Now, I must ask your patience.

I'm very bad at handling matters with the help.

And there are a few things I must say.

They seem to be mandatory.

I'd like it understood that on no occasion are you to entertain

men in this house, and on no occasion are you to drink my liquor.

Also, although uniforms aren't required, I'd appreciate it

if you wouldn't wear excessive amounts of jewelry or perfume.

And I expect you to confine your social life to Thursdays, a day off.

Is there a curfew?

Of course not.

Within reason.

May I be excused?

Certainly.

Uh, by the way, Wendell's mother's old Volvo will be at your disposal.

What was Wendell's mother's name?

Mrs. Goddard.

Marion.

My father, who had never

loved my mother.

buried her quickly in

Grove Street Cemetery.

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laid her to rest

in most indecent

haste.

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Bye.

I see your customer's make-up.

Dr. Goddard.

Oh, please, call me Richard.

What would you like for breakfast?

I, uh, think I'll skip it this morning.

Emma?

Emma, I went to bed last night very upset about our interview.

You spoke most candidly and I didn't.

I skirted the truth.

Thank you.

I skirted the truth because I wanted you to think well of me.

The truth is, I have failed my son.

Miserably.

Oh.

Well, we have a severe communication problem.

Well, these are the house keys.

And this is $200 for the market.

You can take the Volvo and stock the larder.

This is the car key.

And transportation on the weekend might be a bit of a problem.

Wendell has totaled so many cars, I refuse to buy him another one.

However, he often travels up to Bennington where he has a...

...a lady friend.

Her name is Monica Dunstan.

And I let him take the Volvo because...

...my car, you see, is in use.

Jesus.

Are you all right?

Thank you.

I also have a lady friend.

Oh?

Yes, in New York.

Her name is Ariadne Marchant.

And I often travel there on the weekend.

So the point is, you may not have the Volvo on the weekend.

But you will have, as a compensation, peace and quiet.

On the weekend.

Is something the matter?

Ah, they don't match.

Damn.

Oh, well.

Life's little indignities.

But you know, I will actually look

forward to coming home this evening.

-Bye. -Bye.

My God, you'd think they were paupers.

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mercy confirmation dresses

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That would be Lydia.

Hi.

Always come to the front door.

Yes, I see.

Never goes to the back.

Come in.

Already am.

Lydia, we're practically sticking to this kitchen floor.

Would you mind starting in here?

I don't bends.

You mean you don't do floors?

Miss Riley, I didn't bend for Miss Goddard,

who is 50 and feeble, and I don't bends for you.

I see.

Then.

-Perhaps... -you wouldn't mind...

Starting with the downing on the windows.

I see that you bends.

-Yes. --uh-uh.

Oh, hunger.

I would like two eggs over easy, a piece of

this ham, and a toasted English muffin with jam.

In your own parlor, Twindle.

Fat fucking chance.

A little cranky this morning.

A little hot under the collar.

Yes.

I observe a trickle of sweat between your cheeky breasts.

Oh, hum.

Listen, just for the record, I don't know

where you stand on race, but I love Lydia.

So if you're one of those Boston Irish

nigger baiters, you're gonna have to answer to me.

I will ignore that.

Are you familiar with Virginia Woolf?

No. Wendell, in the future, when you cook jam

like that, would you mind putting foil under it?

It gums up the machine.

Somewhere in Virginia Woolf, she refers to a shop girl.

She said she'd rather have the history of that shop girl than

the 100th life of Napoleon or the 70th study of Miltonic inversion.

So?

So I would like to have the history of the girl on our kitchen floor.

It's very bad form to drink with the spoon in the cup.

You could lose an eye.

Say, you're right.

Wow.

That's gonna be a bitch to clean.

Are you getting that?

Hi.

I'm Gracie Sario.

I'm the living next door.

Oh, hi. I just wanted to come say welcome.

Oh, thank you.

-Come on in. -Okay.

Yeah, so I come from this big Italian family down in Worcester Square.

And I got a son, Raymond.

He's 13.

You divorced?

No, never married.

I got pregnant in 12th grade.

Oh, yeah.

So I'm a high school quarterback called Dominic.

Listen, I gotta say, you're not what I expected.

I mean, you're young and white.

Do you get Thursdays off?

Uh-huh, me too.

But I always go down to Club Vincent on Whaley Avenue.

They got good music and all you can eat for $8.95.

Do you want to come?

Great, it's a date.

You can't come in here.

Ever.

This room is not to be aired or cleaned.

Must need an occasional vacuum.

It has no such need.

I write poetry in here.

My honorable father, Dickie, isn't allowed a glimpse, nor is Lydia.

You'll find that I'm an acutely sensitive person frequently given two seizures.

Is that a warning or a pledge?

What are you doing Thursday?

Wendell, please.

I heard the plumbing this morning when you were showering.

What a wonderful way to wake up, thinking of a naked woman in a stall.

Where did you get those eyes?

From my parents, Kevin and Peg.

Surely you realize if we went out

Thursday, your father would fire me on the spot.

Not at all. He wants to keep her for me.

It leaves him with the responsibility.

Boy, I never imagined this would happen.

Neither did I.

But can I be responsible because you inherited such gorgeous peepers?

Are you responsible for anything?

Do you ever even attempt to behave responsibly?

That's it.

Wendell!

-Wendell! -Wendell! -This is infantile.

I'm going to Vermont.

To see Monica?

Yes, for my bi-monthly Monica.

Fuck!

I will not allow you to talk to me that way, Wendell.

Then don't fuck with me, lady.

And those keys.

Wendell!

Tell the dick he'll see me when he sees me.

Wendell, you can't do this!

I have to go shopping!

Self-indulgence!

Inconsiderate brute!

Did he say why he had to see Monica?

-No. -I'm afraid I got angry with him.

I felt his manner was a little too familiar.

I hope you mean verbally.

I suggested he was irresponsible, and that sent him into a rage.

Well, you're absolutely right.

And you handled it superbly.

Did, um, did me call by any chance?

-Mm. -Ariadne? -Not while I was here.

Does Miss Marchant work in New York?

God, this is good.

No, Ariadne doesn't have to work.

She has private means.

She occupies herself by making mobiles of seashells.

She sells them out of her gallery in Soho.

Now, you'll join me, of course.

-Oh, well, I... -Nonsense.

I am not going to sit in that dining room alone.

Have you known Miss Marchant long?

Oh, about four years, actually.

Uh, I'd better tell you this before he does.

I, um...

I met Nhi before my wife died.

It was the first moral lapse of my life.

It was, uh...

well...

adultery.

Your face is determinately blank.

No judgment, no opinion.

Do you expect to be condemned?

Yes, I suppose I do.

Do you remember the Bee Gees?

Uh, no.

They had a hit song called Stayin' Alive.

It's all about survival.

That's what Miss Marchand must have meant to you.

Exactly.

Thank you.

It's Wendell.

Oh, dear.

I owe Emma an apology.

I was rude to her this morning, and I felt lousy all day.

Well, that's very nice, but Emma had to

shop with a cab, so it was up to her, really.

Will you accept my apology?

I will.

Good.

Dad, I was kind of wondering maybe I could

take Em out Thursday and show her the town.

You certainly may.

I'm sure it would help her get her bearings.

Well, I just wanted your permission.

You have it.

Bye.

Bye.

Now I will introduce you to 300 years of

Puritan work ethic and rigorous repression.

Lamin Beecher is here, father of Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Samuel Morris' widow is over there, he of the code.

Noah Webster is here, Webster's dictionary, as is Olmstead and Loomis.

They were the first to discover Haley's Comet.

Charles Goodyear.

Isn't he the guy who invented vulcanized rubber?

He is.

My eternal gratitude, sir, for a long and dependable tradition in condoms.

Tomb of the Unknown Mother.

She didn't really die of natural causes, you know.

She died at Silver Hill Sanatorium.

She died because she was a nuisance, because he had her committed.

God, I loved her.

He said they had a non-marriage.

She said she wanted a divorce.

He said, Jesus Christ, Mary, and what about Wendell?

He stayed away after that.

Hiding in his study with his precious solitude, she withdrew to a room.

I didn't see him much after that.

When I did see him, I always wanted to look at him and say, Hey, man.

What about Wendell?

When I moved on to campus, I couldn't visit her every day.

One day she let someone in.

A Jehovah's Witness, carrying all of those goddamn religious magazines.

Her name was Rae Ann Wilkes.

Soon she and my mother became best friends.

When my mother passed away, she left $80,000 to the church.

Why did he have her committed?

Why don't you ask him, since you're all so palsy-walsy?

I'll tell you one thing.

I will never forgive him for what he did.

And it's a score I intend to settle.

Settling scores is direct.

You know, if you think you can come in here like Mary fucking

Poppins and kiss everything better, your head is squarely up your ass.

You're dragging all this crap around like a ball and

chain, and it makes you crippled, and you love that.

I do not.

You ought to get yourself a bullhorn so you can walk around town

announcing, My name is Wendell Wharton Goddard, and I am miserable.

Emma!

Emma!

Look, I-I don't know why I came back from Berkeley.

I know you're not gonna believe me, but I didn't wear this

ball and chain out there, and I don't wear it in Bennington either.

Are you in love with Monica?

I-I love no one but Lydia.

However you would find me most acceptable.

Oh, Wendell, get a grip.

Emma.

Um...

Here, here are a couple poems for your perusal.

Oh, no, not, not me.

Come on, take them.

They'll either reach you or they won't.

That's all a poem can do for anybody.

Just take your time.

Read them when you can.

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-Hello. -Hello.

I wonder if I could have the crossword?

You most certainly may.

Here it is.

Thank you.

Emma, you know you don't have to spend the evenings in your room.

Please sit down.

-Well, I... -Please.

Two people, civilize a room.

My, that's bright.

It's a hundred watts.

Hang the expense.

I imagine that your life used to revolve around theater people.

Almost entirely.

So this must seem very conventional.

Oh, I'm quite content.

I've had a belly full of the unconventional.

How beautiful!

It's bone China

This is so thoughtful of you

Thank you.

You're very welcome.

Um, how about today for a visit to the lab?

Oh, I'd be up for that.

And I promise not to be too predictable.

Finish your egg, and then we'll go.

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You see all these categories Optical physics

plasma physics particle physics solid-state physics.

They're all just methods of measurement We're trying to calculate

the interactions between matter and energy Because that's all we

have in the world There's matter and energy You're certain of that?

Absolutely What about us?

Us?

Yeah humans like you and me and

This piece of work over here.

Oh, yes, right.

Well

We scientists learned early on that human

interactions are impossible to calculate.

So we left that up to the philosophers and the poets.

You know, there is something about you

that requires, well, it really demands honesty.

And that tends to blur the delicate line between employer and employee.

Oh, well, I hope you don't feel an obligation to entertain me.

An obligation?

Not at all.

A desire, perhaps.

What I do feel now is a compulsion to share my thoughts, to be understood.

I was brought up to be obedient.

It's been the curse of my life.

My family thought poetry a fine hobby, but a stupid profession.

So I obeyed and I opted for physics.

Then my family summers near Marion's on Martha's Vineyard.

Now, Marion never dated.

She was still a virgin at 25.

I felt very sorry for her.

So when I saw that our families were settling a match, I obeyed again.

And then after Wendell's born, her mind just deteriorates.

She retreats inside herself.

But she took Wendell with her as an ally.

And over the years, they effectively shut me out.

But you know the worst time?

When Wendell ran away to Berkeley.

I was middle-aged.

My life felt totally unrealized.

And everything was still unresolved between Wendell and me.

But, you know, if he hadn't come home, I never would have placed

that ad, and you wouldn't be sitting here listening to me drone off.

In a nutshell, Michael was my education.

I sort of absorbed him by osmosis.

That's a good word.

Osmosis.

He was an omnivorous reader.

I mean, omnivorous reader.

That's another good word, if you can say it.

He was a hell of an actor.

That man came on and just took the stage.

Oh, I shouldn't.

You wanted to have a baby very badly and so did I

but I didn't dare because of you know our problem

Certainly tasty, what is it Woodbridge, California?

Well, I believe I'm over speaking myself

After you left, I locked myself in the apartment for three days.

My dad came and hollered at the door, Are you dead, Emma?

I told my dad to bugger off and he replied,

Poor choice of words, Emma, in the circumstance.

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha,

ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha

What are you doing?

I'm taking her up.

Oh, will I be fired in the morning?

No, you will not.

Oh, that's good.

I'm so tired of being booted out of places.

Richard, regarding the light bill, Thomas

Alva Edison wanted us to use the Hundred Waters.

More profit that way.

Go to sleep now.

-Richard? -Yes?

Isn't slumber a lovely word?

Lovely.

Good night.

No, no, no, no. Don't, don't close the door all the way.

All right.

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Morning.

Did you read the poems yet?

Not yet.

I'm terrified.

Don't worry.

Just take your time.

Listen, did you do something weird to the sheets?

There's a giant welt down the middle of mine.

Mm.

It's my mother's old trick.

You cut them in two and flip them.

That way you get the thin parts at the edges.

Some trick.

Oh, what a night.

I was almost flayed to death.

What did you do to the sheets?

It's ambrosia.

What is it? Apricots, prunes, and figs for the stuffing.

You have the most extraordinary eyes.

Thanks.

-Taste? -Please.

Oh, is it good?

Hi.

Hi.

Richard.

Why did Marion have to be committed?

Well, it was either Marion or all three of us.

I was walking around like some kind of neutered hound,

and Wendell was seeing psychiatrists with alarming regularity.

Well, surely you consider divorce?

Oh, God, I don't.

God, I skip the contracts.

You know, there's a need in all families to wear blinders occasionally.

But in extreme cases, occasionally becomes frequently.

And frequently becomes the status quo.

And you keep adjusting your level of tolerance, and things keep deteriorating.

You finally realize that life is unbearable.

Ditto.

With Michael?

-Yes. -But there's always a straw

that breaks the camel's back.

Always.

After her wedding, I left for Yale.

She never ventured out.

She was living in a kind of lithium stupor.

I spent her days Bible-thumping with Ray Ann Wilkes.

But then one day, she found a letter from me.

She rolled her hair up in curlers and painted her toenails.

She put on a yellow robe.

And she walked that way, barefoot, down

St. Momen, to the physics buildings.

He stomped into one of my lectures

and started screaming obscenities.

The doctors suggested Silver Hill Sanatorium.

She died a month later.

Thank you.

Oh, God, this is good.

Sunday at home with a bird in the oven.

Wendell gave me two poems.

He did?

He wants me to read them.

He does?

Well, that's wonderful.

It's a breakthrough.

Well, I'm scared.

I'm terrified, but...

I can't keep putting it off and putting it off.

This will take three hours.

May I take the Volvo?

Of course you can.

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-They're good. -Oh, yes.

Awfully good.

-Wonderful. -I think.

Thank you.

So that's it.

You liked them.

I liked them.

I liked them very, very much.

Why?

Because... of what they convey about your feelings.

Jesus, Emma, that is so tepid!

Look, if you had to use one word to describe both poems, what would it be?

Well, I-I would have to think about that.

Don't think!

React.

Coastal.

-Coastal? -Yes.

East and west.

Look, you had a word in mind and I didn't hit on it.

Hit on it?

Jesus Christ!

I mean, you're not even in the fucking ballpark!

How about poignant or pithy or searing?

Anything but fucking coastal!

You will not take me seriously, lady!

You are causing me friggin' torment!

I believe you're suing for damages from the grave.

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You're going to change my life, you know.

Good.

Bye.

Have a good weekend.

Thank you.

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Well, here we are, just Marion and me.

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Marion...

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Thank you so much.

Grandma?

Richard.

I love you.

I do.

I know it in my bones.

It's like a revelation.

Oh, my God, are you making sense?

Come here.

Come here.

Come here.

Come here. Come here. Come here. Come on.

I don't know.

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I remember watching other mothers nuzzling their

babies and wondering why Marion didn't do that to Wendell.

I've never known how to compensate for that.

Richard

Richard.

Isn't it time Marion's room was cleared?

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I haven't a stomach for it.

Maybe the three of us could do it together.

Maybe we could.

Terrible task.

Bye-bye.

Suppose that it has to be done.

Who is that?

I don't know.

Who could it be?

Nobody.

Hi.

We got married.

Excuse me.

Wendell, are you all right?

I'm fine.

I think Wendell's caught a little bug.

What made you decide so suddenly?

I'm not pregnant.

We were tired of all the traveling, and there's no privacy at the dorm.

There's no need for me to be in school.

All I want to do is paint, and, well, talent can't be taught.

I can paint anywhere.

She can paint in the sunroom.

Is the light good there?

Yes.

Now, kids, this just may be a mistake.

I think we all need a night's rest and

a good, honest evaluation in the morning.

Listen, Dick, I proposed.

I phoned her father. I bought the rings.

I've got a goddamn certificate.

This is not a fucking mistake!

Wendell, your father has a right to ask a few questions.

I'll paint, and we'll get part-time jobs and paperwork.

And you won't have to worry about any extra mess.

I'll take charge of Wendell's room.

No one goes in my room.

Wendell, don't be silly.

Excuse me.

And this might be my dad.

Now, don't listen to me.

Are you in love with this girl?

What the fuck does that matter?

Did I know himself be true?

I better get our bags upstairs.

Well, I think we can manage for a while.

Yes, yes, she's right here.

Hold on.

-Excuse me. -Sorry. -Hello?

Why do I have to go to the most expensive

school in the country when all I want to do is paint?

But I don't need a degree.

Did Rembrandt have a degree?

Did Van Gogh?

I ask you, did Grandma Moses have a degree?

You know what you are?

You're middle-aged, middle-class, middle-west bourgeoisie.

Come on!

What the hell is this?

She's crying.

So I suggest that we all sit down and talk this through.

Look, I tried to do the responsible thing.

But the truth is, I don't know what I've done.

I'm so confused.

It's all right, Wendell.

I think you've just caught a little bug.

No, this is one of my seizures.

Look, I have to go and spend some time alone in my room.

Maybe you could stay in Mother's room.

Shit, I think I'm going to have to go to the hospital.

Look, all I do know is that under any circumstances, I cannot cohabit.

Wendell, what's happened?

Monica, sit.

Stay.

Night.

I

-Ha! -Ha!

Ha!

Wendell?

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Wendell, lunchtime.

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Am I in the wall?

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Some people think my work is morbid.

But if I really wanted to sell,

I'd paint boats and barns.

But what I'm obsessed with is nuclear holocaust.

See, I want to paint the wasteland after they've pushed the buttons.

I mean, do you find them morbid?

Oh, no.

Not really.

I would not say morbid.

See, what sells with certainty in all the arts is escapism.

But I won't let them off the hook that easily.

I want them to hear a kind of

keening from the souls of the dead.

Can you hear it?

Oh, yes.

Quite so.

Audibly.

We have to call a shrink.

No.

There is no mystery to any of this.

He's done a dumb thing, and he doesn't know how to save face.

Emma.

Yes?

I want to make love to you.

We mustn't.

No.

Night.

Richard, Richard, we mustn't, we mustn't.

What are we supposed to do?

Go to a motel?

They're both asleep.

I am so brave.

Monica?

No, it's me, Wendell.

You're talking.

Yeah.

I'm looking for Dad.

I can't find him anywhere.

I think he went down for a snack.

I already looked there.

Okay, thanks.

Oh, there you are.

Um, I want you to call Alex Bloom.

I need to get an annulment.

Why on earth did you marry her?

Well,

because I fell in love with Emma.

I am very sorry to hear that.

Well, I tried to tell her, but she refused to take me seriously.

She thinks I'm infantile, but I'm not.

I'm a grown man.

No, you're not.

You are certifiably married, and I think you're certifiably out of touch.

Last weekend, I fled Ney's apartment.

I had fallen in love with him, and the feeling was mutual.

And when I got here...

The feeling was confirmed.

Confirmed.

Consummated. We were waiting to tell you.

To ask for your blessing.

You were with her just now, weren't you?

Yes.

You son of a bitch!

You were begged to take care of this house, not fuck my father!

Is Wendell talking?

Oh, Wendell, is it over?

Monica, we have to get an annulment.

It's the only responsible thing to do.

You bitch!

You sleazy bastard!

Why did you marry me and then fold up your fucking tent?

You're right.

I'm a bastard.

I'm no good.

I've been treated like a goddamn leper.

Monica, I've got no confidence.

I can't even put a fucking poem in an envelope.

I'm on an allowance, for Christ's sakes.

Do you really want to be married to that?

Yes.

Monica, you need to go back to school and take some time and just try and heal.

I'm sorry.

I have to go.

Thank you for liking my paintings.

Hello?

Miss Riley?

Yes?

This is Lydia.

I got Wendell sleeping here just now on my-a-bed.

Miss Riley, he say you be in bed with Dr. G.

Yes, Lydia.

That's right. Now, you have to come and get Wendell, because

I ain't sleeping on this Barker lounger one more night, hear?

I've taken Monica back and I've called Alex Bloom to work on the annulment.

I would like you to come home, but only if you stop this fantasy about Emma.

Understood?

Yes.

And I have to say, I can no longer abide your bolted door nor your attitude.

Now, Dr. G, you go easy with the boy.

Lydia, some things just must be said.

Agreed?

I agree.

Good.

Thank you.

Thanks.

You're welcome, Dr. G.

Well, that's it

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I love you, Thrift.

I love your $1.99 mascara.

I love you

♪

Let's talk about the future.

Okay.

I would like us to be permanent.

So would I.

Now, this may seem unreasonable, but your

being shut up in the house all day disturbs me.

Isn't there something that you'd like to do,

some aspiration that got tabled along the way?

Maybe motherhood.

I'd like to have a child.

I mean beyond the biological.

Richard, I've worked, and I've been married, and I think

the most important thing in life is loving someone completely.

Are you really that traditional?

I am now.

Well...

Then maybe you could join the Lawn Club.

I've moved down to his room.

Oh, my God.

I think I can accept him as he is.

I mean him and his past.

I sense a fleeting doubt.

I'm not sure he can do the same for me,

but if he can, I-I think I'd like...

to...

Well, this is heavy.

What, you want to get married?

Yeah.

But only if it could be a real partnership.

We'd have to get Wendell settled first.

Listen.

Let's go to church sometime.

Wait, like Catholic church?

-Yeah. -It's what we know.

Yeah, all right.

Oh, Emma.

Heh heh.

Heart and hair as pediatricians.

No ma'am, they close at five.

Is it an emergency?

Bridget Cosgrove.

Four years old, eight, three

gold, goldfin, fish.

Three goldfish.

Three fantailed goldfish.

Wow.

Yes, ma'am, right away.

So I'm gonna be bringing home 300 a week.

I figure I can use 100 for room and board, 50 for spending.

I'd like to bank 150.

I'd like to get my own car.

When are you gonna start submitting?

What, poems?

Yeah, poems.

If you knew what was out there, you wouldn't ask.

Isn't there in the act of writing a desire to have your voice heard?

You're gonna have to join a gang of mailboxes.

Well, I can't.

No, you're saying you won't.

Wendell has to start submitting.

May I read his poems?

I don't think so.

It would betray his trust.

You're fond of them, aren't you?

Yes.

But-but why did he write...

My father, who had never loved my

mother, laid her to rest in most indecent haste.

Oh, for Christ's sake.

That's what he's writing?

What does it mean?

Obviously me.

I'm going downstairs.

Why was Marian buried in haste?

You want a cup of tea?

Why was the haste indecent?

It was terrible.

Reprehensible.

When she died, they called me at the office.

Then I phoned Wendell at his dorm.

Then I phoned the funeral home.

And then...

I got on a train, and I went to see me.

For how long?

Two days.

And Wendell was alone.

Why?

Why?

I needed to cry.

I'm sure he did, too.

And we did it separately.

That's the way we've lived.

with this great chasm between us.

Marion.

Come here

The funeral was at one o'clock.

I was late.

I didn't get off the train till 10-2.

And when they lowered her into the ground,

there we stood on either side of the grave.

Absolute strangers.

And I went back to New York.

I left him alone again.

And he left for Berkeley.

Right there.

Come here.

Nope.

Actually, LASER is an acronym, but it was almost called LOSER.

Accurately, it's Light Oscillation by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.

LOSER.

He reminds me a little of what I've read about the young Robert Lowell.

You like his stuff?

Oh, very much.

But he doesn't know where to begin.

He really needs, you know, a connection with the profession.

However, they changed it, I think stupidly, into

Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation.

Ah, LASER.

You know, I hate to impose, but he

would benefit tremendously from your opinion.

Oh, I'd be glad to read a sampling.

I'd ask him to bring them over tomorrow.

It's been a thrill, a thrill to speak with you.

My pleasure.

You were quite ensconced with the poets.

I went to work for Wendell.

It's smashing results.

I think you look smashing.

Oh, Jesus Christ, what have you done?

You gotta phone him, you gotta make an excuse.

I won't. Select four or five right now and take them over to Martin Martin.

Martin Martin?

Yeah.

-Choose them! -Now!

Okay.

I'll choose him, but you've got to take him over.

Deal.

♪

It's you again

Thank you.

You get it.

Hello?

Oh, yes.

Thank you for calling so quickly.

Yes.

I do, too.

Actually, he is not well just now.

I think he's caught a little bug.

Oh, yes.

Uh-huh.

Yes, I'll tell him.

Martin, we appreciate this very much.

Thanks again.

He says you have a very distinctive voice, and he'll try to help.

He's submitting the poems to three magazines with a letter of introduction.

Here they are.

He says there's no guarantee, and you must be

patient, because you won't hear anything for at least a month.

Bucko, now you're running the race.

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Nothing but bills and flyers.

It's chilly tonight.

Yes, Chris.

What are those for?

Aroma Perfume the whole house.

That's nice little touches What are those for?

something quite vital Put another log on the fire.

Oh, please don't let's go to bed.

Wendell will be home any moment I want to show you these

please And no objections until I

finish my spiel Yale

offers a BLS degree It's a bachelor of liberal studies and

it is created for working people who want to augment their education

Ancient and modern lit.

History of civilization.

I think it's ideal for you.

Get you out of the house, and give a focus to your life,

and we could convert Marion's bedroom to a study for you.

You're up late.

I'm advocating a BLS for Emma.

Why?

Keep her mind occupied.

Remind us five the way it is.

Good night.

Richard, I'm tired.

I think I'll tune in.

You'll think about this, though, won't you?

Um... Maybe after my birthday, or maybe when you get back from Washington.

Night.

Nice.

Happy

♪

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anymore.

I'm not a man anymore. Emma Rowena Riley, happy birthday.

Emma Rowena Riley, happy birthday. Happy birthday. Cheers.

It's water for Crystal from Ireland.

The government says it's really good stuff.

You're crazy.

This must have broke the egg.

Yeah.

This will be a really...

memorable birthday.

Because you know what?

The ring is somewhere in this house.

When will you do your turkey?

What turkey would that be?

The one you learned at that camp.

Oh, yes.

Happy to oblige.

Yeah, I'm off.

This is from me.

You're beautiful.

Thank you, Richard.

It's too...

Lustrous.

So beautifully lustrous.

Do you want me to help you put them on?

Yes, please.

I surely hope it's a productive meeting, but

God, I hate grubbing for money at the Pentagon.

Your study is raring to go, Emma, so please,

take another look at that BLS stuff, will you?

I will.

Godspeed.

You don't really want to go back to school, do you?

I don't think I'd be happy.

Well, kiddo, let thine own self be true.

if your dad and I were legit.

I'd like to have a baby.

He wouldn't.

Does he think he's too old?

He's already had his kid.

Ahab's appointment is with me.

♪

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Annie, I don't think I can stay.

May I take these?

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Home base answering service it's right here in my hand

Well, well, well.

Judgment day.

Should I open it?

God, no.

Um...

Should I bring it down?

Leave it on the stairs for me.

I'll open it when I get home.

Bye.

Okay, bye.

You can kill me here now.

begin a new story of your own.

Oh, they're gonna do it.

They're gonna publish two of them.

Ah, $2 a line.

I cannot believe that this is happening.

Um, this is for you.

Thank you.

I don't even know how to celebrate.

Thank you.

♪

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I'm fixing tea

Would you like some?

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I'll tell them in the car.

Okay.

I want you to be here when we get home.

Jesus Christ, Emma, how can I?

Please.

This night on 7th and 3rd is...

Oh, God, I missed you.

How's Wendell?

Richard, I have to leave.

Leave?

Where?

I've broken faith with you.

I went to bed with Wendell.

He raped you?

He must have.

This is lunacy.

Please, let's not hurl insults.

He's cuckolded his father.

He's got me wearing horns, for Christ's sakes!

I should think that you would be on your fucking knees begging for mercy.

How do you explain this?

She attacked you?

Big brawny Emma overwhelmed you?

Or did you have one of your convenient seizures?

I was very, very lonely.

Lonely?

Try it for a quarter of a century, buddy.

Try it for three solid decades.

Why didn't you ever talk to me?

You were a boy.

You were her child.

I was your child, too.

And why in God's name are you talking about Marion?

I come home to the vilest news of my life and you've got Marion on the brain.

Loneliness?

That's a feeble-minded excuse.

Bitch.

You got on a train and you went to see me before Mother was even fucking cold.

I spent two days here alone.

I watched all the hours tick by.

Two days alone here, man.

With all her fucking religious magazines, her curtlers, her nail polish.

I fucking despise you, Dick.

Listen to me, you little twerp.

For 20 years, you've walked around this house like a goddamn specter.

Faulting me somehow for your mother's condition.

You thought me some kind of self-absorbed, ineffectual man.

Well, you were fucking wrong, buddy.

I was out there functioning.

I was putting on the tie, hiring the help, paying

the bills, and putting a roof over your addled head.

And you were never, ever there for me.

Now, I know it was horrible, terrible,

leaving you alone like that, but you were so hostile.

And I was so desperately lonely.

I asked people to come visit her.

The women from the lawn club, Mrs. Silverman.

Emma, Naomi Silverman comes over here.

Marion is sewing.

She picks up her scissors and walks over

and cuts a slash in the hem of Naomi's skirt.

Why?

Why did you have to have her committed?

Because she was dangerous.

She wanted to die, Wendell.

She had for many years.

The only reason that she got up in the morning was because of you.

And most of the time.

You were the only reason I had to get up.

And then, when Emma came into our lives, I

thought, you know, you know, there's a chance.

But not anymore.

I swear, if I had a gun, I'd shoot you.

I want you out of my house.

Take the Volvo and don't ever come back.

I want you out of my house.

Please come with me.

What was he like?

Was he good?

Richard, I won't do this.

A letter came from Poetry Review.

They accepted two poems.

Oh, Jesus.

Please don't go to a hotel, would you please stay with me?

I can't.

Yes.

Hey.

Hey.

Hey.

Oh, God.

Grandma?

I'd like to explain why I gave you the pearls.

Please don't.

I went to Sacta Libia to buy a ring, but when I got

there, a cold panic came over me, and the rings just

blurred in their cases, and I wanted to run away in the Volvo.

I remember as a boy being confused about what I believed in,

and my father said, well, what would you be prepared to die for?

That seemed like such a crucial question.

So I left Sacta Libia, went back to the office, and I thought about that.

What would I, Richard Goddard, be prepared to die for?

The answer was Wendell.

Yes.

I do love you, but at that moment I didn't want anything resembling marriage.

I'd see your face and repose, you're sad about Michael.

I wondered if these moods would eventually require lithium.

I have done you a terrible injustice.

Please don't go.

How can I stay?

How?

Hello?

Are you all right?

Where are you?

I want to see you.

I'm afraid that's not possible.

Let me talk to him.

Congratulations.

I'm proud of you, Wendell.

I'm very proud of you.

I'll buy a dozen copies

Yeah, well...

I...

Congratulations.

I'll sleep in Nanny's room.

Hi

♪

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St. Mary's Church Police.

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O Jesus, who has said, ask and it shall be given you,

seek and you shall find, knock and it shall be opened

to you, through the Immaculate Heart of thy Most Holy Mother.

I knock, I seek, I ask, that my prayer be granted.

Please let me be with child.

O Jesus, who has said, if you ask the Father anything in my name, he

will give it to you through the Immaculate Heart of thy Most Holy Mother.

I humbly and urgently ask thy Father in thy name, that my prayer be answered.

Please let me be with child.

O Jesus, who has said, heaven and earth will pass away, but my words

will not pass away through the Immaculate Heart of thy Most Holy Mother.

I feel confident that my prayer will be granted.

Please let me be with child.

♪

Hey Dad, I've changed my mind.

I'm moving to the house in New Hampshire.

I want my kitchen stuff.

My dishes, pots and pans, you know, from the attic.

Will you send them to me?

Great.

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