Papa Hemingway in Cuba Page #5

Ernest talking to himself.

It's been going on for weeks.

Listen, kid.

Hem may be crazy.

But no way do we want him cured.

He's a great writer.

True genius.

That's rare in this world, huh?

Maybe all our geniuses are crazy.

Maybe it comes with the territory.

I've known him for over 30 years.

Since we were kids in Paris,

back in the '20s.

Hem can be the meanest son of a b*tch

you've ever seen.

I've seen him at his best and his worst.

But he's the only true friend I've ever had.

Kind, loyal, gentle.

You can't judge him like an ordinary man

because he's not ordinary

in any sense of the word.

A hundred years from now,

people will read his work

and know his name.

Kid, you should know

what's going on around here.

This character, is he a good guy?

Yeah, you know, he's a political reporter,

Pulitzer winner.

Pulitzer doesn't make you a good character.

I'm living proof of that.

So, she left him to be with you, huh?

Yeah.

Do you love her?

Yeah.

What do you want?

I don't know.

I'm trying to write about Hadley.

My first wife.

The only true love I ever felt was from her.

I'm trying to get one, true sentence

to start it, you know.

The fun we had,

loving each other in a warm bed

in Austria that winter.

And then I had to go back to New York

to deal with publishers.

And when I came back the next spring,

I stopped off in Paris

to f*** the woman

that would later be my second wife,

my rich wife.

And then on to Austria.

Seeing Hadley at the station with our son...

How beautiful she looked.

Unforgivable.

When you make a decision, kid,

make it carefully.

Know what you truly want.

Consider every possible consequence,

or you'll wind up at 59

wondering what the hell happened.

Did the cab come?

Not yet.

What are you reading?

Reading about your new friend Hemingway.

I can see that.

Eddie, what's California like?

California? You know,

it's like here, but, without the humidity.

I want you to run away

to California with me.

Don't go to Havana, Eddie.

Deb, I got...

They're waiting for me, it's his birthday.

The flight's about to leave, I'm late.

What are you afraid of?

Will you listen to something?

It's Hemingway.

"The celebrated develop a technique to

deal with the persons they come across.

"They show the world a mask,

but take care to conceal their real selves.

"They play the part

that is expected from them..."

- I gotta go.

- "...but with practice play it very well."

- Let's talk about this later.

- "But you are stupid

"if you think that this public performance

of theirs corresponds with the man within."

I'll be back Tuesday.

Deb certainly deserved someone

who could commit to her.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes