Midnight Cowboy Page #6

WOODSY'S VOICE

She-dogs squat, boy. He-dogs stand

up and lift their leg...

INT. REMEMBERED MEN'S ROOM - ANOTHER TIME

Woodsy, in his new Stetson, watches Little Joe in his beat-up

cowboy hat, trying to balance on one foot, one leg lifted in

front of the trough. Woodsy roars with laughter.

WOODSY:

... but he-men stand and shoot from

the hip.

INT. BUS RESTROOM - DAY

Joe laughs, flushes, checks his hair in the mirror.

EXT. HIGHWAY - DAY

The bus streaks past a brightly-colored billboard -- IN NEW

YORK, A WELCOME AWAITS YOU AT THE TIMES SQUARE PALACE HOTEL!

INT. BUS - DAY

Joe is now sitting in the wide rear seat, between two young

MARINES and a group of VETERANS wearing campaign caps and

convention buttons, passing a bottle, singing "From the Balls

of Montezuma to the Shores of Tripoli..." Joe follows the

conversation between a VETERAN and a MARINE, participating

only because he's sitting beside them, adopting a remembered

military stance.

VETERAN:

Ever stationed at Kennedy? Those

Florida chicks...

MARINE:

Instant V-goddam-D.

VETERAN:

This Pensacola teeny-bopper -- jail

bait -- but built? Ten bucks she

wanted. Three of us made a deal

for, twenty-five, see, big goddam

bargain?

MARINE:

Big peni-goddam-cillin bargain,

right?

VETERAN:

You got it.

MARINE:

No. You got it.

JOE:

Jesus goddam Christ, I ain't

laughed so hard since I was out at

Fort Benning, Georgia.

MARINE:

Did you make the Viet?

JOE:

What? Oh, hell no. Motor pool

mostly...

(shakes his head)

Kee-rist...

INT. REMEMBERED WHOREHOUSE - ANOTEER TIME

A plump, aging PROSTITUTE laughs up into camera.

PROSTITUTE:

Hey, hey, what you try to do to me?

You gonna cost me money, soldier!

INT. BUS - DAY

Joe laughs as he passes the bottle, trying to sing along

without knowing the words as the Veterans segue into "Over

hill, over dale, we will hit the dusty trail, as the caissons

go rolling along..."

INT. REMEMBERED BEAUTY SALON - ANOTHER TIME

Sally Buck fondly wipes lipstick from Joe's lips.

SALLY BUCK:

Keep your meat hooks off my

operators, sugar, hear?

INT. BUS - DAY

Joe slaps one of the Veterans on the back, trying to follow

the song into "Off we go, into the wild blue yonder..."

INT. REMEMBERED MOVIE HOUSE - ANOTHER TIME

ANASTASIA clutches a younger Joe, eyes wild, gasping.

ANASTASIA:

You're the only one, Joe, the only,

only one ever!

INT. BUS - DAY

Joe is leaning across the two Marines, staring out of the

window as the Veterans switch to "Anchors aweigh, my boys,

anchors aweigh..."

EXT. MANHATTAN SKYLINE - DAY

A stunning view through the bus window past Joe's reflection.

JOE'S REFLECTION

Gonna swing my lasso and rope that

whole goddam island, yeah!

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