Midnight Cowboy Page #4

SALLY BUCK:

No, a little lower, sugar, yeah,

yeah, that's good. Grammaw's beat.

SALESMAN'S VOICE

You gotta sell yourself, that's the

whole trick...

INT. BUS - DAY

A seedy TRAVELING SALESMAN with badly-fitted dentures and a

frayed collar has taken the aisle seat next to Joe. As he

lectures Joe on salesmanship, he figures his expenses in a

worn leatherette notebook, nervous fingers and eyes

unconsciously revealing the extent of his failure.

SALESMAN:

It ain't the product and it ain't

the price, no sir, and it ain't

what you sell, it's personality,

pure and simple. I ain't shined my

own shoes or shaved my own face in

forty years, how's that? Not bad

for a kid that didn't pass the

eighth grade, right?

JOE:

Yeah, hell, yeah.

SALESMAN:

And that's my golden rule. Make 'em

love you. Put yourself over and you

can sell them anything. If they

like you, they'll buy horsemeat for

prime beef...

INT. REMEMBERED BEAUTY SALON - ANOTHER TIME

A gawky, adolescent Joe sits sprawled on the couch, leafing

through a magazine while Sally Buck bleaches the roots of a

young woman's hair.

SALLY BUCK:

You get him to the church, honey.

He ain't gonna find out you ain't a

real blonde till after you're

married, then's too late.

Sally Buck turns, pretending to be stern as Toe laughs.

SALLY BUCK (CONT'D)

You getting too big for your

britches, sugar.

EXT. HIGHWAY - NIGHT

The headlights of the bus flash past a huge sign, painted on

the slant roof of a barn: JESUS SAVES.

INT. BUS - NIGHT

Joe is alone again. The Salesman has disappeared. The bus is

dark, most-passengers trying to sleep. Only one reading light

still burns, over the head of the old-Lady in the seat ahead

of Joe. Joe squirms, restless, trying to lull himself to

sleep with the music of a revivalist gospel group on the

radio.

SALLY BUCK'S VOICE

Don't forget to say your prayers,

honey...

Joe leans forward to help the old Lady, irritably struggling

with the release button on her seat. She scowls as Joe leans

over to release her seat, then pulls her blanket around her

and turns away from him. Joe switches off her reading light.

OLD LADY:

I want it on.

Joe switches it on again, fakes a good-natured grin, settles

back with his radio, aware of an OLD COWHAND seated opposite

him, replacing the Pale Blonde. The Old Cowhand is appraising

Joe's wardrobe curiously. He looks away when he sees Joe

watching him. Joe settles back, unable to think of a way to

open a conversation.

EVANGELIST'S VOICE

Oh, my friends, I say unto you,

invest with Jesus, put your dollars

to work where they'll pay off at

compound interest. The Good Book

says money answereth all things...

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