SCENE 11
SOUND:
car horns and traffic.
VIOLET enters FRONT and stands down center.
GEORGE enters SR arch followed by ANGEL and CLARA.
GEORGE crosses to VIOLET.
ANGEL and CLARA stay up
stage.
DURING the next sequence MARY’s Mother’s house is
placed up stage, a record player, a small round table
with a very old telephone, two chairs with blankets
over the backs, a small easel on another round table
with a drawing of George lassoing the moon.
VIOLET: Hello, Georgie-Porgie.
GEORGE: Hello, Vi.
VIOLET: What gives?
GEORGE: Nothing.
VIOLET: Where are you going?
GEORGE: Oh, I'll probably end up down at the library.
VIOLET: George, don't you ever get tired of just reading about things?
GEORGE: Yes... what are you doing tonight?
VIOLET: Not a thing.
GEORGE: Let's make a night of it.
VIOLET: Oh, I'd love it, Georgie. What'll we do?
GEORGE: Let's go out in the fields and take off our shoes and walk through the
grass.
VIOLET: What?
GEORGE: Then we can go up to the falls. It's beautiful up there in the
moonlight, and there's a green pool up there, and we can swim in it. Then
we can climb Mt. Bedford, and smell the pines, and watch the sunrise
against the peaks, and... we'll stay up there the whole night, and
everybody'll be talking and there'll be a terrific scandal...
VIOLET: (interrupting) George, have you gone crazy? Walk in the grass in my
bare feet? Why, it's ten miles up to Mt. Bedford. You think just because
you...
GEORGE: Okay, just forget about the whole thing.
VIOLET angrily walks off HALL. ANGEL and CLARA cross
HALL and stand in the shadow.
MARY enters SL.
GEORGE starts to leave HALL.
MARY: What are you doing, George Bailey?
George stops, startled, and looks up.
GEORGE: I just happened to be passing by.
MARY: Yeah, so I noticed. Have you made up your mind?
GEORGE: About what?
MARY: About coming in. Your mother just phoned and said you were on your
way over to pay me a visit.
GEORGE: My mother just called you? Well, how did she know?
MARY: Didn't you tell her?
GEORGE: I didn't tell anybody. I just went for a walk and happened to be
passing by... went for a walk, that's all.
MARY crosses to the record player and switches it on.
SOUND:
Buffalo Gals in background.
MARY: Well, are you coming in or aren't you?
GEORGE: Well, I'll come in for a minute. When did you get back?
MARY: Tuesday.
GEORGE: I thought you'd go back to New York like Sam and Ingie and the rest
of them.
MARY: Oh, I worked there for a couple of vacations, but I don't know... I guess I
was homesick.
GEORGE: Homesick? For Bedford Falls?
MARY: Would you like to sit down?
GEORGE: All right, for a minute. I didn’t tell anybody I was coming here.
MARY: Would you rather leave?
GEORGE: No, I don't want to be rude. (looks at cartoon) Some joke, huh?
GEORGE sits.
I see it still smells like pine needles in here.
MARY: Thank you. (sing) “And dance by the light..”
GEORGE: What?... Oh, yeah…
GEORGE looks at his watch.
MARY: It was nice about your brother Harry, and Ruth, wasn't it?
GEORGE: Oh... yeah, yeah. That's all right.
MARY: Don't you like her?
GEORGE: Well, of course I like her. She's a peach.
MARY: Oh, it's just marriage in general you're not enthusiastic about, huh?
GEORGE: No, marriage is all right for Harry, and Marty, and Sam and you.
MAMA HATCH enters loft thrust.
LIGHTS:
Thrust special.
MAMA HATCH: Who's down there with you?
MARY: It's George Bailey, Mother.
MAMA HATCH: What’s he want?
MARY: What do you want?
GEORGE: Me? Not a thing. I just came in to get warm.
MARY: He's making violent love to me, Mother.
MAMA HATCH: You tell him to go right back home. Sam Wainwright promised
to call you from New York tonight.
GEORGE: (heatedly) I didn't come here to... to... to...
MARY: (rising) What did you come here for?
GEORGE: I don't know. You tell me. You're supposed to be the one that has all
the answers. You tell me.
MARY: (terribly hurt) Oh, why don't you go home?
GEORGE: (almost shouting) That's where I'm going. I don't know why I came
here in the first place! Good night!
SOUND:
phone rings.
MARY: Good night!
MAMA HATCH: The telephone! It's Sam!
MARY: (almost weeping) I'll get it.
MAMA HATCH: He’s waiting!
MARY: Hello.
LIGHTS:
Special on SAM SL loft with phone.
(trying to make GEORGE jealous) Hee-haw! Hello, Sam, how are you?
SAM: Aw, great. Gee, it's good to hear your voice again.
MARY: Oh, well, that's awfully sweet of you, Sam. There's an old friend of yours
here. George Bailey.
SAM: You mean old moss-back George?
MARY: Yes, old moss-back George.
SAM: Hee-haw! Put him on.
MARY: (to GEORGE) He wants to talk to you.
MAMA HATCH: He doesn't want to speak to George, you idiot!
MARY hands the phone to GEORGE.
GEORGE: (watching MARY) Hello, Sam.
SAM: What are you trying to do? Steal my gal?
GEORGE: Nobody's trying to steal your girl. Here... here's Mary.
SAM: No, wait a minute. Wait a minute. I want to talk to both of you.
GEORGE: (to Mary) Here. You take it.
MARY: We can both hear.
GEORGE and MARY listen to the ear piece.
MARY: (on phone) We're listening, Sam.
SAM: I have a big deal coming up that's going to make us all rich. George,
you remember that night in Martini's bar when you told me you read
someplace about making plastics out of soybeans?
GEORGE is staring at MARY.
GEORGE: Yeah-yeah-yeah... soybeans.
SAM: Dad's snapped up the idea. He's going to build a factory outside of
Rochester.
GEORGE: Rochester? Well, why Rochester?
SAM: Can you think of anything better?
GEORGE: (still looking at MARY) Why not right here? You remember that old
tool and machinery works? You tell your father he can get that for a song.
And all the labor he wants, too. Half the town was thrown out of work
when they closed down.
SAM: Well, now listen both of you. I want you to put every cent you've got into
our stock, you hear? And George, I may have a job for you; that is,
unless you're still married to that broken-down Building and Loan. Mary
tell this guy I am giving him the chance of a life time.
MARY: (staring into GEORGE’s eyes and whispering) He says it's the chance
of a lifetime.
GEORGE hangs up the phone.
LIGHTS:
SAM special out.
MAMA HATCH: No!
LIGHTS:
Thrust special out.
GEORGE: (fiercely) Now you listen to me! I don't want any plastics! I don't want
any ground floors, and I don't want to get married – ever – to anyone! You
understand that? I want to do what I want to do. And you're... and
you're...
GEORGE pulls MARY to him.
LIGHTS:
SOUND:
.
Fade to Black.
Wedding March.