The King of Comedy Page #3
- PG
- Year:
- 1982
- 109 min
- 1,457 Views
PUPKIN:
Really? Fine. I'm Rupert Pupkin, Jerry.
I know that the name itself doesn't mean
very much to you but it means an awful lot
to me, believe me. Maybe you've seen me
outside your show and wondered who I am.
Well, right now, I'm in communications but,
by nature, I'm a stand-up comedian. I know
what you're thinking -- 'oh no. Not another
one.' And I wouldn't take up even one minute
of your time if I wasn't absolutely convinced
of my talent. I'm really good, Jerry,
believe me, I'm dynamite. Now you're probably
wondering if I'm so good why haven't you
caught my act somewhere, right?
LANGFORD:
Well ...
PUPKIN:
Well, up to now, I've been biding my time,
developing my act slowly and carefully so
that when my big break finally comes, I'm
ready -- like you were that night Paar got
sick and you sat in for him. I was there
that night, in the theater. That was the
most important night of my life, until
tonight, of course.
PUPKIN fishes a cigarette case out of his jacket pocket,
flips it open and offers one to LANGFORD.
LANGFORD:
No thanks. I don't smoke.
PUPKIN returns the pack to his pocket.
PUPKIN:
Me neither. I just carry them as a
courtesy. How about a cough drop?
LANGFORD:
(smiling indulgently)
No thanks. I don't cough.
PUPKIN:
I try not to but sometimes, you know
... Am I making any sense?
LANGFORD:
(smiling)
Go on.
PUPKIN:
Well, that night you did Paar, I walked
out of the theater like I was in a dream.
All of a sudden, I knew what I wanted.
I started catching your guest appearances
on Sullivan and taping them and, when you
got your own show, it got to be a kind of
regular thing. I studied how you built
to your one-liners, nice and relaxed like
you were chatting, and how you delivered
the jokes without leaning too much on
them, without saying "here's the punchline,
folks." And I watched the way you played
off dead audiences, how you let those long
silences build until people couldn't
stand it and then the way you got them
off the hook with that slow smile. You
were my college of comedy, Jerry, like
a kind of teacher, a friend. I know it
sounds crazy, but when you watch someone
every night ... But that's all in the
past. What I'm trying to say is this.
I'm ready now. I've finished the course.
And I'm thinking as we sit here talking
"Is this it? Is this that one big break?"
Is it, Jerry?
There is a long pause.
PUPKIN:
Jerry?
LANGFORD:
Look ... er ... what was the name?
PUPKIN:
I'm Rupert, Jerry.
LANGFORD:
Look, Rupert. I know what you're saying.
But things don't work that way. You can't
just walk onto a network show without any
experience. You've got to start at the
bottom ...
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