Transcript: (2x12) Lonesome Cowboy Blues

From Bravo 3/44th

Directed by: Charles Correll

Written by: W.K. Scott Meyer

See the Episode Guide

[01.32] Alex reporting on base

ALEX: The army’s trusts a grunt with rifles that fire seven hundred rounds a minute yet insist he use a ration card to buy items any American could find in a local drug store.

VIET GIRL: Excuse me – family sick, need alcohol and bandage. You buy in PX for me?

ALEX: I’m sorry – what?

ALEX: What she so scared of?

MP: Vietnamese aren’t allowed to buy at the PX – unless they’re real friendly with us.

[02.44] Myron & Alex

GOLDMAN: It’s a ration card --- Sergeant Jackson’s. Well it’s not exactly a front page story.

ALEX: Well why would a Vietnamese girl have it. Can you find out something about Jackson for me?

GOLDMAN: She probably stole it.

ALEX: Myron, please. Just find out this could be a story.

GOLDMAN: Well, it sounds like a long shot. And what’s so urgent about a ration card?

ALEX: Because we just got a new Bureau Manager and since I’m the only woman here, of course I’ve got to prove myself again.

GOLDMAN: You don’t have to prove yourself. You’re an excellent write.

ALEX: Yeah, I know that, but he wants productivity. He wants it quick and dirty. Please.

GOLDMAN: Alright, alright. I will try to find out who Sergeant Frank C Jackson is. But dinner at the Officer’s Club says that a hootch maid probably took this when she was doing his laundry. It’s not important.

[03.27] In search of Jackson

ANDERSON: Go! Go! Go!

ANDERSON: Sergeant Jackson must really rate for them to be calling out the dogs like this.

GOLDMAN: I don’t know. All they told me is he’s Special Forces’ sole contact with a village informant. The ??? wants us to find him dead or alive. Let’s get it done.

ANDERSON: Alright.

ROSELLI: Down boy! Down! Heel! Heel!

TAYLOR: Put a muzzle on that sucker will ya?

ROSELLI: Hey, hey, hey. Come on.

GOLDMAN: Sure that dog’s okay Roselli?

ROSELLI: More or less okay. Just stay clear.

[04.56] Taylor on point with Rosseli and dog

RUIZ: There’s the trail to Nam Bahn(???) ville. Those wood choppers just walked it. They say no sign of Victor Charles.

ANDERSON: Well Sergeant Jackson was camped out here for a reason Ruiz – an’ we ain’t takin’ no trail.

GOLDMAN: No. Taylor, take point with Roselli.

TAYLOR: Ooh. The dog’s a little nervous, huh?

ROSELLI: After six straight months tracking wounded VC in combat. Last blood trail we were on led to a seven hundred and fifty pound bomb that killed four people. No we ain’t nervous, we’re just glad we could be here.

[05.14] Jackson's friend

THE KID: No shoot.

ANDERSON: Hold it right there!

ANDFERSON/GOLDMAN(?): Hold your fire! Hold your fire!

THE KID: Don’t shoot.

RUIZ: Dum lai – dum lai. (sp?)

THE KID:  ??? Sergeant. John Wayne.

GOLDMAN: Taylor!

TAYLOR: Yo!

GOLDMAN: Get back here and check this kid out.

TAYLOR: Roo.

TAYLOR: Take your hat off!

THE KID: You a friend Sergeant Jackson?

GOLDMAN: Check under his shirt.

TAYLOR: Turn around.

GOLDMAN: That’s napalm.

THE KID: F(?) Four, American jet.

[05.51] Jackson's hat

ANDERSON: This says “made in Texas”

THE KID: Jackson hat. Ten gallon.

GOLDMAN: What do you know about Jackson?

THE KID: He camp that way, ‘bout a hundred yards. I number one deputy, I’ll show the way.

ANDERSON: We already know the way.

THE KID: VC Injun watch for you, I take you around.

GOLDMAN: Special Forces guys make some strange friends. Well what d’you think?

ANDERSON: I’m thinkin’ about the Indians.

RUIZ: We gonna follow him LT?

GOLDMAN: Real carefully.

GOLDMAN: Alright, Percell, Moody(?) saddle up.

[06.33] Alex and her boss

ALEX: This girl was trying to buy PX supplies with military money. A hootch maid who knows her thinks the VC are making her do it. Charlie’s desperate for anything that can be used for bandages, antiseptic, even aspirin.

BUREAU CHIEF: So what? Where’s the story?

ALEX: She’s Vietnamese, so she has to get a GI to shop for her. Her friend thinks she’s gonna end up having to hussle GI’s at the Chit Chat Club for this. A prostitute. I think it’s an important story on the way the people we’re supposed to be defending are victimized.

BUREAU CHIEF: Forget them! This sob-sister stuff is strictly a side show. Concentrate on that Special Forces guy – Jackson. Find out the inside scoop on Jackson from that Lieutenant Goldman you’ve been shackin’ up with. What was he doin’ – when, where, why. Blood and guts. Catch?

ALEX: Catch.

[07.26] Back in the Jungle

GOLDMAN: Security out.

ANDERSON: Alright Roselli, check out the path. Taylor you go with him.

GOLDMAN: What are you doing with all this stuff?

THE KID: Hey John Wayne, Sargeant Jackson out hunt VC Injun – he come back later.

ANDERSON: You know that.

THE KID: Me number one deputy. The kid.

[08.01] VC Indians

PERCELL: LT, trail’s about eighty meters back that way. Charlie’s already got an ambush set up.

ROSELLI: We’ve got company! Down! Stay! Stay!

GOLDMAN: White Horse Three, this is Two-Six. Heavy enemy contact, we’re pullin’ back to the LZ, request immediate extraction. Over.

GOLDMAN: Pull back to the LZ!

ROSELLI: Percell! Taylor! Look out!

???:  ??? let’s go.

[09.45] Back at base

???: Here it comes.

GOLDMAN(?): Watch his neck, take it easy.

ANDERSON: Let’s go! He’s bleeding, let’s go.

ALEX: Doesn’t look like you found Jackson.

GOLDMAN: No, and we lost a man but I can’t talk to you about it until after I’ve talked to Special Forces, if at all. So don’t even ask.

[10.16] Taylor, Percell, Roselli

PERCELL/TAYLOR(?): Roselli!

ROSELLI: Sit! Sit! Sit!

PERCELL: Look, uh, you know this goes without sayin’ man, but thanks - a lot.

ROSELLI: It’s all in a day’s work.

[10.35] Alex going to Chit Chat club

ALEX: Well my new bureau chief is a (swine/slime?). He wants me to do a ??? story on him.

GOLDMAN: Sounds like fun.

ALEX: He has no idea what I do. Tonight I’m just gonna go down to the Chit Chat Club, see if I can find that girl. Maybe she knows where Jackson …

GOLDMAN: Wait a minute --- wait, wait, wait. First of all, the Chit Chat Club is on To Do Street. I don’t want you going down there.

ALEX: Well I don’t wanna end up writing some fashion blurb for some Portland newsletter. My job is on the line here. Don’t worry, I can handle it.

GOLDMAN: I do worry about it. But I’ll worry a lot less if you take two guys with ya. You can buy ‘em dinner on the paper.

ALEX: Alright, I think I can handle that.

GOLDMAN: Hey Taylor, Percell!

[11.19] VC Kid

ANDERSON: What’s goin’ on here?

MP: They’re keepin’ an eye on that VC kid they brought in from ???

ANDERSON: What are you talkin’ about? First of all, I brought him in, second of all, he’s not a VC kid. He saved out butts in an ambush today.

MP: Hey, whoa! Now I’m just followin’ orders.

ANDERSON: Who’s orders?

MP: Captain Quinton Carey an’ if you’re the sergeant who bought the boy back, Captain’s lookin’ for you.

ANDERSON: Wrong. I’m lookin’ for him.

[11.56] Captain's office

NGUYEN: This morning’s attack proves that Nam Bahn’s(???) being controlled by the VC.

ANDERSON: Staff Sergeant Anderson reporting as ordered Sir.

CAPTAIN CAREY: Next office Sergeant. Have Lieutenant Goldman brief you.

ANDERSON: Mind tellin’ me what in the hell’s goin’ on here?

GOLDMAN: I’ll tell you in here.

[12.20] Goldman & Zeke

GOLDMAN: Carey works with a Special Forces Op called (ISACS?). You heard of it?

ANDERSON: Yeah, they’re classified. They try to ID the VC secret government.

GOLDMAN: Right, they work with the Vietnamese National Police all over the country.

ANDERSON: Well wait a minute. If Captain Carey can trust the field police, why can’t he trust the kid?

GOLDMAN: Because it’s his call. Right now he just wants us to worry about replacing Jackson with a new man. Tonto’s the one that wants to string the kid up and Carey’s got him under control.

NGUYEN: My name is Nguyen. Captain Carey would like to see the both of you.

[12.55] Back in Captain's office

CAREY: You recognize any of the men that ambushed you around Nam Bahn(???) village?

ANDERSON: We were a little bit rushed Sir.

CAREY: The red arm band means they were the K-22. That’s the muscle of Uncle Ho’s secret army. They bodyguard all the communist officials, which means we’d like to have a nice long talk with one of them. Rest of the time they use terror to destabilize rural villages on which American policy depends, which means we’d love to grease them.

NGUYEN: Which do you recommend for the villager you brought back Sergeant?

ANDERSON: None of the above.

CAREY: Your lieutenant says that kid led you into the K-22 ambush this morning.

GOLDMAN: Led us around it Sir.

ANDERSON: The K-22 were watching for us, the kid was smart enough to keep us away from them.

CAREY: Alright, let’s leave the interpretation to the experts gentlemen. Both of you and two of your men be ready at oh-five-hundred tomorrow and we’ll insert a man to look for Jackson. Dismissed.

[13.49] Roselli coming to Chit Chat club?

TAYLOR: Damn dog!

PUTNAM: Careful boy, she makes those samurai dogs look like Lassie.

PERCELL: Sergeant Putnam?

PUTNAM: That’s right. What’s your business here?

PERCELL: Well-uh, Roselli there pretty much saved out butts today. We got us a cush detail at the Chit Chat Club an’ we was hoping we could ride him on our ticket.

PUTNAM: A nightclub? He’s got no time to chase tail in Saigon. He’s gotta walk this animal around the base from now till lights out. You better get to it if you want to have time to write to your new bambino tomorrow.

[14.24] Roselli's new baby

PERCELL: Roselli, you got a new baby?

ROSELLI: Yeah, it arrived the day I was due to get out of the field. My LT was all set to make me a clerk in the rear and dontcha know he gets killed before he signed my 10-49. So Putnam takes over and gives the job to his buddy who can’t even read.

PERCELL: Well didn’t you try takin’ it higher?

ROSELLI: Yeah, didn’t work – it really got Putnam P.O’d.

TAYLOR: Well ain’t there somethin’ else in the rear you can do?

ROSELLI: He owes a really big favor to an officer in Long Binh who wants a cook. Putnam says “Roselli, you want the job, here’s what you gotta do. You’ve gotta make me my favorite dish, beef bourguignon. If I like it, you’re a cook.”

TAYLOR: Can you cook?

ROSELLI: I used to be a short order cook, but I can’t make any beef bourguignon. Putnam said if I tried an’ he didn’t like it, he’d keep me in the field my entire tour.

PERCELL: Well that’s crazy. Is there some way we can help you out?

ROSELLI: You wanna help me out? If I get killed, write my wife, okay?

[15.21] Chit Chat club

TAYLOR: Long way from here to any Sergeant Jackson.

ALEX: There she is.

TAYLOR: Mm, I’ll help you talk to her.

ALEX: That’s alright. Why don’t you just go sit down, don’t wanna scare her.

TAYLOR: Thanks

[15.54] No arrest please

ALEX: Lang(?) chi chi. I got your name from a hootch maid.

VIET GIRL: No arrest please.

ALEX: Oh no, I’m not with the police. I just wanna talk to you.

VIET GIRL: No talk here.

ALEX: Look, I’m an American newspaper correspondent. Do you remember, from Tan San Nhut, we met? I just wanna talk to you, where did you get Jackson’s card and money from?

VIET GIRL: Three men give me.

ALEX: My God. Did they do this to you? Did they.

BOUNCER:  ???

ALEX: Don’t threaten her. Leave her alone. Get your…..

BOUNCER: ???

ALEX: Get your hands off me.

[16.48] French food's good

TAYLOR: That jive ??? Putnam’s right about one thing. This French food is good.

PERCELL: Just makes me think we oughta do something for Roselli.

TAYLOR: What are we gonna do for him?

ALEX: Get off me----just get off me. Alright, I’m going.

PERCELL: C’mon. C’mon!

ALEX: Bastard.

[17.10] Simple stay behind

GOLDMAN: Alright, this is a real simple stay behind. We drop this guy off, he goes out an’ finds Jackson. You ready?

GOLDMAN: Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s get the hell out of here.

RUIZ: I can’t believe it. They hit us as soon as we got off the chopper.

ANDERSON: He’s gone LT.

RUIZ: What the hell happened?

GOLDMAN: They knew we were comin’.

[17.55] Captain's office again

CAREY: I’ve been ordered to brief the director of ISECS(?) about Sergeant Halloran’s(?) death in forty eight hours and I intend to destroy those K-22 killers around Nam Bahn(???) well before then.

GOLDMAN: With all due respect, it’s obvious that the K-22 have penetrated your program. They were waiting for us when we went to look for Jackson; they were waiting for us this morning.

CAREY: Lieutenant, I had a year of training at Fort ??? to do just what I am doing now. If you don’t happen to agree with it, keep it to yourself like a responsible officer.

GOLDMAN: Is it responsible Sir to take men out who might die because the VC have penetrated your program?

NGUYEN: The Lieutenant may have a point. I think it’s a very poorly designed program – that was set up too quickly. One leak to K-22 could mean disaster for everyone, as you recall from your own first tour. I say interrogate the villager in the hospital, make an example of his for all of Nam Bahn(???).

[18.47] Kid's with us all the way

GOLDMAN: Oh no, I agree with my sergeant. That kid was with us all the way, there’s no reason to put pressure on him.

NGUYEN: Then burn Nam Bahn(???). Make the villagers talk.

CAREY: They might do the job.

GOLDMAN: You go around burning down villages, you may as well hand the countryside over to the VC. The villagers aren’t trying to protect the enemy. They’re scared. Now maybe if we just offered them some help instead of trying to hurt them, well maybe – just maybe – they’d tell us the truth.

CAREY: I know that’s policy Lieutenant and as a first step I have to try it, but it’s not gonna do one thing more than prove you wrong. And Lieutenant, when it doesn’t work, we’ll do it the hard way – starting with your sergeant’s kid and you’d better be on the team.

GOLDMAN: We’re all on the team, Sir.

[19.31] It's John Wayne

ANDERSON: Hey kid.

THE KID: Hey, John Wayne. We make it.

ANDERSON: Yeah we made it. The injun just grazed you. Here, try to hang on to it this time. We all figure we owe you one you know. We all want you to get out of this hospital in one piece so if people start comin’ around here askin’ you questions about the VC and Nam Bahn(???), you tell ‘em everything you know, you understand me?

THE KID: I no live in village – live in jungle.

ANDERSON: Wait, you don’t have family in the village?

THE KID: Sergeant Jackson my family. He come get me.

ANDERSON: We’ll tell him just as soon as we find him.

THE KID: I show you, we need more John Wayne fighting the VC injuns.

ANDERSON: Don’t get out there now …. That’s right.

[20.33] Danny wants to help Rosseli

TAYLOR: Woo-hoo. Need some help countin’ that ??? boy.

PERCELL: You figure Putnam’s lower enough to take a bribe to get Roselli out of here?

TAYLOR: Man, Vietnam’s a hard dollar brother. Why you wanna spend your money on Roselli.

PERCELL: Taylor, the guy’s a father. Be nice if he can get home an’ take care of his kid himself. Think about my ol’ man an’ I don’t know if we coulda made it without him.

TAYLOR: Huh, when I was growin’ up it was just me an’ my grandmother and half the time she was working. I had to take care of myself.

PERCELL: Thanks a lot Taylor. I’ll do it on my own.

TAYLOR: Hold on man, hold on. If you don’t be careful an’ watch out, jive dude like Putnam’s just gonna take your money an’ laugh at ya. I think we can do better than that.

PERCELL: What are you sayin’, you wanna help Roselli?

TAYLOR: No, no. I’m sayin’ I wanna help you.

[21.26] Anderson & Goldman

ANDERSON: The kid thinks Jackson’s still alive.

GOLDMAN: The kid’s got a lot of crazy ideas Zeke.

ANDERSON: Yeah, well LT, he lost his family in the worst possible way – napalm. In fact, he almost got killed himself. I think I’d have a few crazy ideas myself if I went through that.

GOLDMAN: Well, the worst is yet to come. In a couple of hours we’re going back to Nam Bahn. We’re gonna ask the villagers real nicely if they know anything about the K-22. If Carey doesn’t hear what he wants to hear, he’s gonna put this kid through the wringer.

ANDERSON: Why’s he pushin’ so hard?

GOLDMAN: Well I got in straight from Nguyen. On Carey’s first tour he was out with an A team helping some villagers build a fort. One of the villagers turned out to be a VC informant and Carey lost his whole company. The informant was a thirteen year old girl.

ANDERSON: Come on LT. You an’ I both know this kid is not VC. He’s got no family, he was raised on his own.

GOLDMAN: Alright, I’ll do my best to help convince Carey. You do your best not to get too attached to that kid. ‘

[22.24] Chit Chat's chef

PERCELL: Hey ???, you the cook for the Chit Chat Club?

CHEF: No cook Jack, chef. Trained ten years in Parie.

TAYLOR: Let me talk to the man Danny. Excuse me, the officers on our base are having a banquet and they’d like to audition you to be the chef. They pay real good.

CHEF: What is aud—audition?

TAYLOR: You cook one meal on our base tomorrow night.

PERCELL: Can you cook—uh—what’s it called?—beef bourginyin

CHEF: Beef bourguignon.

TAYLOR & PERCELL: Yeah, that’s it.

CHEF: You’ve got fresh beef?

TAYLOR: The man Marcus Taylor’s on the case. Write me a list, we’ve got grade A, USA whatever you need.

CHEF: You got grade A US twenty dollars?

TAYLOR: Man, you really wanna help Roselli? You owe my grandmamma, she sent me this money from the ??? You will be there right?

CHEF: Yeah.

[23.25] Myron warns Alex about Nguyen

GOLDMAN: Alex, listen – I’m on my way to Nam Bahn(???), did your big story show up yet?

ALEX: Any minute I think.

GOLDMAN: Listen a minute. If she does, keep real quiet about it. You see that guy standing behind me with the khaki’s on? He’s a Special Forces advisor. He’s looking to hurt anyone remotely connected with the VC – your girl, that kid we brought back, anybody. So be real careful.

[24.02] Alex meeting with girl

VIET GIRL: You have supply for me?

ALEX: Yes Lang, uh, one second. Here it is. Now is this going to the VC?

VIET GIRL: Yes. When I sleep VC come – beat me. They give me NPC and card say buy PX supply. But no can buy without GI friend. They say make friend, maybe sell drug, maybe sell boom-boom.

ALEX: Look, you don’t have to do that. I will give you the supplies if you take me with you and show me who gets them.

VIET GIRL: I take to man in car, he bring to other men some place else. VC moving all over city – not know each other, no know where it going.

ALEX: Well when will you meet this guy in the car?

VIET GIRL: I not know now. They tell me – soon.

ALEX: When they tell you, you call me at this number here, okay.

VIET GIRL: They find out, they kill me.

ALEX: Lang, you have to trust me. Okay?

VIET GIRL: Okay. I’ll do it.

ALEX: You call me.

[25.23] Friendly persuasion

ANDERSON: So this is Captain Carey’s idea of friendly persuasion.

GOLDMAN: Yeah, I bet his full scale interrogations aren’t real pretty either.

ANDERSON: I just hope the kid doesn’t have to find out.

NGUYEN:  ??? (Vietnamese). She says your kid who lives in the jungle is a very nice boy. She also says she has not seen the K-22, She’s a liar.

CAREY: If she’s never seen the K-22, how come it looks like she’s running away? Ask her why her bags are packed.

NGUYEN: I did. She says she’s visiting her sister in the ??? refugee centre in Saigon. Another lie.

[26.06] Bodies in a ditch

RUIZ: LT! Sarge! Come here!

RUIZ: Didn’t even cover ‘em up man.

NGUYEN: Red cloth. K-22.

NGUYEN: Sergeant Frank Jackson. Dead a long time.

CAREY: Tortured and murdered.

ANDERSON: Captain, you know the kid – this is gonna break his heart.

CAREY: That’s a lot of bull! I didn’t buy his act for a minute and now he’s gonna talk – one way or another.

[27.25] Captain's office

CAREY: Right. Payback time, we just got clearance for a sweep. We arrest every suspected VC in the Nam Bahn(???) area tonight.

GOLDMAN: Well then you’ve got plenty of people to question. Why do you still wanna interrogate the kid.

CAREY: Because I still think he was in with Jackson’s killers. He trusts you Lieutenant. You handle the interrogation.

[27.52] McKay & Alex

ALEX: McKay, who can tell me when Myron’s gonna be finished talking to the Special Forces?

MCKAY: You never know with those guys.

ALEX: This girl, Lang, I’ve been talking to just called me. She’s gonna meet the VC who gave her Jackson’s ration card.

MCKAY: Jackson’s dead Alex.

ALEX: Yeah I know but the VC had his card, they might be connected to the ones that killed him. I’m gonna go follow her. Do me a favor, don’t tell Myron, alright.

MCKAY: Whoa—ho—ho, wait a second. Alex, Goldman would have my butt if I let you do this alone. Okay, let me get a jeep.

ALEX: Alright, c’mon.

[28.25] Interrogating the kid

GOLDMAN: I want you to look real closely. Now some of these are VC military, some of ‘em are VC political.

NGUYEN: Who in Nam Bahn(???) gives you your orders?

GOLDMAN: Nguyen, Captain Carey left me in charge of this interrogation. I’ll ask the questions.

NGUYEN: Ask him who killed Sergeant Jackson.

THE KID: Jackson not dead. I see him one week ago.

NGUYEN: (Vietnamese). You need another story.

THE KID: He not dead. You wrong—you wrong.

GOLDMAN: That’s where it ends right there.

CAREY: What is this?

NGUYEN: He does not know how to interrogate VC. I have people who can get answers.

GOLDMAN: The kid doesn’t have any answers.

NGUYEN: My police interrogators will find out.

ANDERSON: Police interrogators will just tear him apart.

GOLDMAN: You cannot do this Sir, we are dealing with a child.

CAREY: Lieutenant, you saw what they did to Sergeant Jackson. Don’t tell me what I can and can’t do.

[29.32] Chicken Roselli

PUTNAM: Let’s remind ourselves what the deal is here. We’ve either got a four star beef bourguignon served in my quarters by sixteen hundred hours or chicken Roselli served up to Victor Charlie daily at oh-nine hundred.

TAYLOR: Damn dog!

CHEF: You stay out of here.

ROSELLI:  ??? buddy. So where’s the cow man?

TAYLOR: It’s on its way. Alright, Delta company beef. Smitty comes through almost as good as me.

GI: Well, he said he did the best he could.

TAYLOR: Thanks (Reilly?)

GI: Sure.

TAYLOR: Bye.

[30.03] Fish bourguignon

TAYLOR: Oh wow! We gotta problem Home.

PERCELL: That ain’t gonna help us much.

TAYLOR: It ain’t over yet. First thing is to get Roselli outta here before he flips out. I ain’t gonna let you down – Hey Roselli! Go with Danny, he’s gonna talk to the banquet people, dig?

ROSELLI: Okay, sure thing.

PERCELL: Marcus, I’m countin’ on you.

[30.58] Slick cooking to do

TAYLOR: You got some slick cooking to do my friend.

CHEF: You don’t need a chef, Jack, you need a magician. I can’t make beef bourguignon from fish like this for twenty dollars.

TAYLOR: How about forty?

CHEF: For forty I try.

[31.25] McKay & Alex in Saigon

MCKAY: So what kind of car this VC supposed to be driving?

ALEX: Lang said a taxi. Look there she is.

ALEX: Johnny look, that guy’s supposed to be a Special Forces advisor.

MCKAY: Special Forces?

MCKAY: What the hell’s going on here?

ALEX: I’m getting a terrific story, that’s what’s going on.

ALEX: Forget the story. Hey!

ALEX: Are you okay? You alright?

[32.51] Goldman, Anderson & Captain

CAREY: That’s Nguyen and the VC courier taking his latest report on all of us straight to the K-22.

ANDERSON: So Nguyen fed the enemy every move we’ve made.

CAREY: Apparently.

GOLDMAN: Who took the photos.

CAREY: An A & I correspondent. She was following up on some story about the VC buying med supplies from the PX.

GOLDMAN: Was it Alex Devlin?

CAREY: Yes, it was.

GOLDMAN: Is she alright?

CAREY: She’s fine. We’ve got the location of the drop where the courier’s supposed to leave Nguyen’s report. The courier died before he could tell us anything else, which means it’s time we found out what the kid knows. Explain it to you man Lieutenant.

ANDERSON: Sir, if you just ……..

GOLDMAN: Sergeant, wait a minute. You can’t blame him for thinking the kid’s a plant. Nguyen was.

[33.35] Zeke's got a better plan

ANDERSON: Captain!

CAREY: What is it Sergeant?

ANDERSON: You wanna nail the K-22. I got a better idea.

CAREY: Make it fast.

ANDERSON: Alright, you send me in alone to replace Sergeant Jackson. The K-22 don’t know the courier’s dead, so you re-write me in his report to say where I’ll be. You know where the drop point for the message is. Deliver it. That’ll get the K-22 after me.

CAREY: We put enough troops around to protect you, the K-22 will never bite.

ANDERSON: No troops. Just me and the radio. The K-22 show up, I’ll take cover and call in an air strike.

CAREY: You’ll never get out of there without help on the ground, that’s a suicide mission.

GOLDMAN: I’ll take the radio.

CAREY: Self-sacrifice seems to be in the air today.

ANDERSON: You can join the party too Sir if you want. Just sent the interrogators home an’ let that kid go.

CAREY: Not till you get me those K-22 killers, that’s as far as I can go. Take it or leave it.

ANDERSON: I’ll take it.

[34.24] Get him to the orphanage

ANDERSON: Alright Ruiz, listen up. The LT an’ I got a tough one coming up. And-uh, if for some reason we don’t make it back, I’m just kinda afraid the boy there’s gonna be in a world of hurt. You understand? So, what I want you to do is the minute we’re gone – I mean the minute we’re outta here, sneak him out of here -- get him to that refugee centre in Saigon. I know some of the people from his village are there. Hear me?

RUIZ: You got it Sarge. Good luck out there.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

[35.04] Listen to my buddies

ANDERSON: Alright, listen up. I gotta go now, gotta take care of some injuns – you know what I mean.

THE KID: Yeah.

ANDERSON: It’s real important now, while I’m gone you gotta listen to my buddies back there. Do everything they say. They’re number one deputies, just like you.

THE KID: Good luck.

ANDERSON: Good luck.

THE KID: Partner.

[35.30] Alex's not very tough

GOLDMAN: I’m proud of you. You saved that girl, you exposed Nguyen.

ALEX: I’m sorry, I’m just not very tough.

GOLDMAN: You never get used to somebody getting killed in front of your face.

ALEX: That’s not all of it, I’m thinking about you going out there with Zeke right now.

GOLDMAN: It’s a piece of cake. Come here.

[36.13] Getting ready for mission

no dialogue

[37.03] Dobermann bourguignon

PUTNAM: This better be good. ‘Cos I ain’t sending nobody nowhere if it’s gonna make me look bad.

PUTNAM: This guy’s looking for a chef. It’s the guy that got me this rear end job. I send him someone who’s not an A number one cook, you know I’m gonna catch the flak – and that ain’t gonna happen.

PUTNAM: Boy, I’ve been looking to pay off this favor six months. You’re gonna make me shy.

[38.16] Not bad for $40

TAYLOR:  ??? Roselli. Hey – chef.

CHEF: Not bad for forty dollars uh?

TAYLOR: You did it man.

CHEF: You guys want this? It looks several dollars to me.

TAYLOR: No! No! No!

[38.48] Kid's hospital ward

???:  ??? Say you’ve gotta go to the bathroom.

THE KID: Hey, gotta go bathroom.

???: You’re in luck, we’ve got one right here. You wanna go with him?

MP: Why don’t you take him?

???: Hell, he’s strong enough to go alone.

[39.01] Ruiz is waiting

RUIZ: (We’ve got?) no time kid. Put this on, let’s get out of here. Come on, come on.

[39.49] Meanwhile on the mission

ANDERSON: Alright, if the messenger got through, the K-22 should be lookin’ for us right down over in there somewhere. I’m gonna go check it out.

GOLDMAN: Whoa—whoa—whoa. You’re getting’ way ahead of me in the hero department here Sergeant.

ANDERSON: It’s best you wait here, you hear my rifle shot, you call in the air strike.

GOLDMAN: You’re not listenin’ to me. Both of us comes back or neither one of us comes back. End of discussion. Let’s go.

ANDERSON: Alright.

[40.24] At the orphanage

RUIZ: Look, the Sarge wants you to stay with these people.

THE KID: Sarge come see me?

RUIZ: He don’t know. He’ll be thinking about ya – but his orders are different. Look, he gave me this, you’re promoted. American kids like you don’t fight injuns – they play baseball.

THE KID: John Wayne never die, right?

RUIZ: Yeah, that’s right.

THE KID: So give to him.

RUIZ: Take care kid.

[41.09] Give them the bait

ANDERSON: Alright, we’ve got movement. Let’s give ‘em the bait an’ see if we can lure ‘em up to this tree line.

GOLDMAN: You ready?

ANDERSON: I’m ready.

ANDERSON: Let’s go!

[42.14] Calling the air strike

ANDERSON: They’re flanking us LT. Call in an air strike.

ANDERSON: Go!

GOLDMAN: Stormcloud, this is Blueboy. Over.

STORMCLOUD: This is Stormcloud, Go.

GOLDMAN: Contact, at my smoke. Let it rain. Zeke, they’re comin’ in!

GOLDMAN: Come on Zeke!

[43.19] How's it look down there

STORMCLOUD: Bluebird, how’s it look down there? Over. (Note: Stormcloud definitely says “bluebird”. Sure Goldman says “Blueboy” earlier.

GOLDMAN: Looks perfect.

[43.26] Alex & her boss

BUREAU CHIEF: I gotta tell you, this piece on the VC agent is dynamite stuff.

ALEX: Well, if you want the story, we need an understanding.

BUREAU CHIEF: If I want it?

ALEX: Either I have a voice in what I write, when I write and how I write, or you lose this piece and me to another wire service.

BUREAU CHIEF: I was afraid you wanted more money. I’m happy to have your input.

ALEX: Here you go. Thanks for the coffee.

[44.14] Myron's back

ALEX: You made it.

GOLDMAN: I told you, piece of cake.

[45.00] Pecan Pie

PERCELL: Roselli’s wife an’ baby. Mrs Roselli’s the real cook in the family. Hey.

TAYLOR: Whoa – Pecan Pie.

PERCELL: Hey, take it man. You saved his tail, you have it.

TAYLOR: No, doin’ it was your idea. I’d have passed the brother by.

PERCELL: Yeah but Taylor, you didn’t pass him by. You come through for him, and me.

TAYLOR: You know, his having this baby didn’t mean nothin’ to me since growing up I didn’t have a family, I didn’t know nothin’ about it. But now I’m over here it’s like – it’s like you’re my family. So you keep the pie – I’ll keep the picture.

TAYLOR: Hey Danny, keep this too.

[45.00] Zeke's back too

ANDERSON: I just came all the way over here to tell everybody to get some sleep tonight because tomorrow’s duty roster is posted outside my hootch just like always.

RUIZ: Sarge.

ANDERSON: Yeah.

RUIZ: The Kid wanted you to have this.

ANDERSON: No. Why’d he do this?

RUIZ: Maybe because you’re John Wayne.

End

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