Episode 41 - "Faith"
OPENING SEQUENCE
(Shot of a tree silhouetted against the sky. "Amazing Grace" plays.)
"Amazing grace"
(The camera pans down to a church in the distance.)
Once upon a time, our country was founded upon...
"How sweet"
(Shot of another church in the distance.)
Faith.
"The sound that saved"
(Clip of a Jewish rabbi at a podium, raising a goblet.)
"A wretch"
Faith in all its forms.
(Clip of a black choir singing.)
"Like me"
(Clip of a group of men in long robes.)
(Clip of a group of Hari Krisha's dancing.)
"I once"
But during the late nineteen-sixties, people...
(Clip of people looking up toward the sky, some using binoculars.)
"Was lost"
Began looking heavenward...
(Clip of a crowd of people at Cape Canaveral near the count-down sign, which reads 00:02. The Saturn rocket is on the pad in the far distance.)
For new answers to old questions.
"But now"
(The rocket motors starts, emitting a large blast, as the timer counts down.)
(Clip of the launch pad umbilicals retracting and the rocket beginning to ascend.)
MISSION CONTROL (V/O): And we have liftoff of Apollo Thirteen.
(Wider clip of the rocket clearing the pad.)
"I see"
(Clip of a family looking toward the rocket off-screen.)
The bravest among us...
(Clip of the rocket under boost, in the atmosphere.)
Journeyed into the unknown.
(Clip of the booster separating, with the Earth in ithe background.)
While the rest of us stood by with our support. Our goodwill. And of course...
Cut to
Int. Arnold Kitchen
(Close shot of Jack's hand holding a 1969 "Form 1040" tax form in front of the camera.)
JACK (V/O): Damn!
(Jack lowers the tax form, revealing Karen, Kevin and Wayne at the table.)
Our taxes.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack and Norma in the kitchen. Jack holds the tax form and turns toward Norma, who is at the sink. Norma glances down.)
JACK: Already?
(Norma smiles.)
For my father, April was the cruelest month.
(Close shot of Jack looking at the tax form.)
JACK: I bust my hump all year for this? (Frowns.)
It wasn't that Dad didn't have faith in Uncle Sam.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
He believed in taxes.
(Shot of Norma holding a glass. The camera pans slightly with her as she approaches Jack and hands the glass to him.)
NORMA: Here ya are, honey. (Smiles,)
(Jack frowns and nods slightly at the tax form and growls.)
It was just the part about paying them he resented.
(The camera pans with Norma as she returns to the sink and picks up an oven mitt.)
So, from the moment the old ten-forty's arrived in the mail, life around the Arnold house...
(Norma looks toward the kids off-screen.)
(Shot of Karen, Kevin and Wayne. Wayne is idly drumming on the table with carrots.)
Shifted into kind of a state of emergency.
(Karen stands up.)
KAREN: Here, Daddy. (Gestures.)
(Karen hurries to Jack's chair and holds the back.)
KAREN: Have a seat.
(Close shot of Jack frowning at the tax form as he approaches the camera slowly.)
We all knew the drill. And each of us...
(Wide shot past Norma at the oven of Jack and the kids, as Jack sits in his chair. Karen walks toward her chair.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at the tax form and growling.)
Had an assignment.
NEWS (V/O): Apollo Thirteen astronauts report smooth sailing on day one of their mission to the moon.
JACK: Kevin, turn down the damn TV!
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne. Kevin leans across Wayne and adjusts the TV, which shows astronauts.)
My assignment was to turn down the damn TV.
(Kevin sits back down and frowns. Wayne drums his carrots on the table.)
Wayne's assignment was to be...
(Close shot of Jack frowning at Wayne off-screen.)
Well...
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne as Wayne takes a bite of one carrot, and sets the other one down.)
Invisible.
(Close shot of Jack frowning at Wayne off-screen, then looking at the tax form.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma smiling at Jack off-screen.)
After that, it was all kind of up to Mom.
(The camera pans with her as she approaches Jack.)
NORMA: I'll put these in the file with the other forms. (Smiles.)
(She takes the tax form from him.)
(Close shot of Jack looking forward and frowning as Norma, off-screen, pulls the form from his hands.)
See, even though Dad filled out the forms and...
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
Signed the checks...
(Kevin looks toward Norma off-screen.)
(Shot of Norma at the counter as she picks up two TV dinners.)
It was Mom who kept the receipts, organized the paperwork...
(Close shot of Jack looking forward and frowning heavily.)
Stockpiled the bi-carb...
(Close shot of Norma approaching, and smiling at Jack off-screen.)
And generally...
NORMA: Anyone for dinner? (Smiles.)
(Shot past Norma of Jack as Norma sets a TV dinner down.)
Kept Dad from eating us alive.
JACK: I bust my hump all year for this? (Gestures.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen to Norma off-screen.)
(Close shot of Norma looking over her shoulder toward Jack off-screen, and smiling tightly.)
(Shot of Jack frowning and looking forward as he takes a sip from his glass.)
Still, for all his grumbling, on some level...
(Jack frowns heavily as he swallows.)
Dad knew taxes were inevitable.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
Something you could depend on. Like, say...
Cut to
Classroom
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins standing in front of the chalkboard.)
MISS STEBBINS: I want you to write your obituaries.
(Shot from the front of the class toward the students. Kevin and Paul sit next to each other. Harold sits behind Kevin. Paul frowns.)
Death.
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins.)
MISS STEBBINS: I think you'll find this very interesting. (Nods.)
Miss Stebbins was teaching us creative writing.
(Wider shot from the front of the class toward the students, who look unenthused, and glance at each other.)
And we were learning that creative writing wasn't a book report...
(Close shot of Kevin glancing around.)
Or "how I spent my summer vacation".
(Kevin looks at Paul off-screen and sighs.)
(Close shot of Paul looking forward.)
Creating writing was...
(Shot up the aisle of Miss Stebbins standing behind her desk.)
MISS STEBBINS: The end of your life. What will they say about you in the newspaper?
(Shot from the front of the class toward the students. Harold raises his hand.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Harold off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Yes. Harold.
(Close shot past Kevin of Harold.)
HAROLD: Which newspaper? (Frowns.)
(Shot up the aisle of Miss Stebbins standing behind her desk. Paul, Kevin and a couple other students look at Harold off-screen, then look forward. Miss Stebbins shakes her head slightly.)
MISS STEBBINS: Any newspaper you like.
(She turns toward the chalkboard and begins to write.)
MISS STEBBINS: What did you do?
(Shot of Kevin and Paul.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): What did you accomplish?
(Kevin leans over to Paul.)
KEVIN: What's the point of this?
(Paul looks at Kevin.)
(Shot past Kevin and Paul of Miss Stebbins turning from the chalkboard as she sets the chalk down. She has written the word "obituary" on the board.)
MISS STEBBINS: Good question, Kevin!
(Close shot of Kevin smiling at Miss Stebbens off-screen, embarrassed.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking toward Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: We became engaged in Captain Ahab's obsessive quest...
(Close shot of Paul looking at her off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): We cried when Jane...
(Close shot of Susan looking at her off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): And Rochester finally got married...
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins pausing as she looks at the class off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Why?
(Shot from the front of the class toward the students. Harold raises his hand.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Harold off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Yes, Harold? (Nods.)
(Close shot past Kevin of Harold.)
HAROLD: Cuz they were dead?
(Wide shot of the class as the students giggle.)
(Shot up the aisle of Miss Stebbins standing behind her desk.)
MISS STEBBINS: Because...you cared about the characters.
(Miss Stebbins walks around her desk slowly.)
MISS STEBBINS: Now, how do we write a character?
(Close shot of Kevin glancing toward Paul off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): We start...
(Kevin looks at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
(Close shot of Paul looking at her off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): With the one we got to know about first.
(Shot of Miss Stebbins as she leans back against the front of her desk.)
MISS STEBBINS: Ourselves. Who are you...who were you...and where are you headed?
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
Faced with such profound...
(Close shot of Peter shrugging and twiddling his pencil.)
And disturbing questions...
(Close shot of Boy1 frowning and looking off.)
One thought sprang immediately to our minds.
(Close shot of Paul looking at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
(Close shot of Susan as she raises her hand.)
(Shot up the aisle of Miss Stebbins looking at Susan.)
MISS STEBBINS: Yes, Susan.
(Close shot of Susan as she nods and gestures slightly at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
SUSAN: How long does it have to be?
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins glancing off.)
MISS STEBBINS: Oh...(Frowns.)
(She looks at Susan off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: About a page. (Nods.)
(Shot of the class as the students groan. Kevin drops his head forward. Paul looks forward and frowns.)
Cut to
Lockers
(Close shot of Paul at his open locker, frowning.)
PAUL: One page?
(Shot past Paul of Kevin looking at him.)
PAUL: One...page?!
KEVIN: Paul - it's not that bad. (Frowns.)
(Shot past Kevin of Paul.)
PAUL: How do you cram a full and productive lifetime into one page?
(Shot past Paul of Kevin smiling at him, then looking in his locker.)
(Shot past Kevin of Paul.)
PAUL: Kevin, don't you realize how deep this is?
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Paul off-screen.)
KEVIN: Paul...(frowns)...aren't you taking this a little too seriously?
Heck - this wasn't brain surgery.
(Close shot of Paul glancing off.)
We were just writing our obituaries, here.
PAUL: So many decisions to make.
(Paul sighs, then looks at Kevin off-screen.)
PAUL: Fr'instance...do I go into business with my dad, or marry Marsha Brady?
(Paul pauses, then brightens and looks off.)
PAUL: Or both!
(Shot past Paul of Kevin looking at him.)
(Close shot of Paul looking off and smiling broadly, then frowning and looking down.)
PAUL: Kev?
(Shot past Paul of Kevin looking at him.)
(Close shot of Paul looking at Kevin off-screen.)
PAUL: I don't want to die. (Frowns.)
(Close shot of Kevin frowning at Paul off-screen.)
(Shot past Kevin of Paul as Paul walks by him, frowning. Kevin closes his locker and turns after Paul as he passes the camera.)
My best friend had...
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Paul walking away.)
What you might call...a malleable mind.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Paul off-screen.)
Me? I wasn't worried.
(Kevin turns around.)
What was the big deal?
(Shot of Kevin smiling as he walks toward the camera, which rolls back.)
It was just a page - one lousy...little...page.
Cut to
Living Room
(Close shot of Kevin's hand holding a pencil, on top of a notebook page which has "My Obituary" written on it.)
Thirty three lines.
(Close shot of Kevin sitting at the coffee table in front of the couch, frowning.)
Two hundred and ninety words.
(Wide shot of Kevin, and Jack and Wayne on the couch. Wayne has his feet on the table. Jack is frowning slightly, and has his cheek on his fist, looking at the TV off-screen.)
If ya wrote big.
WAYNE: What's that?
(Kevin looks over his shoulder, surprised.)
KEVIN: Oh! Nothing.
(Kevin looks forward as he smoothes the page and smiles.)
Which was true.
(Close shot of Kevin looking off, then at the page.)
I'd been staring at that page for an hour-and-a-half without coming up with a single word.
(Kevin frowns.)
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne as Wayne leans forward.)
Some kind of writer's block, I guess.
(Kevin glances at Wayne, then back to his page.)
WAYNE: An obituary? Oh, lemme see...(gestures)...maybe I can help.
KEVIN: Wayne...
(Shot past Wayne of Kevin looking at him.)
WAYNE: Let's see...
(Wayne gestures, and Kevin looks forward and sighs.)
WAYNE: "Kevin Arnold."
(Wayne looks at Kevin.)
WAYNE: "Born a butthead."
(Shot past Kevin as he and Wayne look at each other. Jack is looking off in the background.)
WAYNE: "Lived a butthead's life."
(Wayne looks off, and squints.)
WAYNE: "Died..."
(Wayne looks at Kevin.)
WAYNE: "A butthead!" (Frowns.) Did ya get any of that down?
(Shot past Wayne of Kevin frowning at him.)
NORMA (V/O): Wayne!
(They look toward Norma off-screen.)
NORMA (V/O): Stop teasing Kevin.
(Shot of Norma in the dining room holding a small tablet.)
NORMA: Your father's trying to watch the news. (Gestures.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at the TV off-screen.)
Mom was serious. Every year...
(Kevin glances at Jack off-screen.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at the TV off-screen as he frowns and rubs his mouth with his finger.)
The night before he paid his taxes, my father had a ritual...
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne as Wayne tilts his head back and drops some powdered candy into it.)
Of watching the news. We figured it made him feel better...
(Close shot of Jack looking at the TV off-screen as he frowns and rubs his mouth with his finger.)
To know that others were suffering.
(Close shot of the TV which shows a clip of an astronaut in the capsule.)
And at least it helped keep his mind off of...
NEWS: Astronaut John Swigert today joked he'd forgotten to file his Federal income tax returns.
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne, as Wayne perks up, spilling his candy on his shirt.)
(Close shot of Norma pausing, and worriedly glancing at Jack off-screen.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at the TV off-screen. He drops his hand slowly as his eyes get bigger, then he folds his arms and frowns.)
(Close shot of the TV which shows a clip of an astronaut in the capsule.)
NEWS: Manned-spacecraft Center officials assured him...he'd get an extension.
(Close shot of Jack looking at the TV off-screen. He frowns, nods and growls.)
(Wide shot of Jack, Wayne and Kevin.)
WAYNE: Oh, abandon couch.
(Wayne stands on the couch and hops over the back of it, and exits to the hallway.)
(Close shot of Norma looking at Jack off-screen.)
NORMA: Bi-carb, Jack?
(Close shot of Jack frowning at the TV off-screen.)
Too late - the beast was stirring.
(Jack looks at Norma off-screen.)
JACK: Did you get those receipts together yet, Norma?
(Wider shot of Norma the dining table. She turns to Jack and smiles.)
NORMA: Don't worry, honey. (Gestures.) Everything...is under control.
(She winks and smiles.)
That was Mom. Always the picture of calm.
(Norma smiles, then looks it the large brown bag on the table.)
(Close shot of Jack frowning at Norma off-screen.)
JACK: Saturday we'll fill out the forms - we'll get it over with. (Nods.)
(Close shot of Norma looking in the bag. She frowns slightly, then reaches for her purse.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward Norma off-screen.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at Norma off-screen and pausing.)
JACK: Norma?
(Close shot of Norma looking at Jack off-screen, then looking of and shrugging slightly.)
NORMA: Right.
(She looks at Jack off-screen and smiles.)
NORMA: I'll get your bi-carb.
(She looks over her shoulder and frowns slightly as she puts her tongue on the corner of her mouth, then exits toward the kitchen.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at Kevin off-screen and nodding directionally.)
JACK: What's wrong with her?
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen, then toward the kitchen off-screen.)
Hard to tell. I guess Mom had problems of her own.
(Kevin looks at his notepaper.)
Meanwhile, I had a deadline.
(Kevin sighs.)
And I do mean "deadline".
KEVIN: Dad...
(Kevin turns toward Jack off-screen.)
KEVIN: Have you ever thought about your life? (Frowns.)
Listen to that line.
(Shot past Kevin of Jack. Jack pauses then turn to Kevin and frowns incredulously)
JACK: Huh?
KEVIN: Uh, well...it's for school.
(Kevin looks off.)
KEVIN: I mean, if you had to write about it, what would you say?
(Kevin looks at Jack off-screen.)
OK.
(Shot past Kevin of Jack looking off and frowning heavily.)
Time for a meaningful father-son exchange here.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
A thoughtful summing up.
(Close shot of Jack frowning and looking off.)
JACK: I get up at five in the morning. (Nods.) I fight traffic.
(Jack raises his eye-brows.)
JACK: I bust my hump all day...(frowns)...I fight traffic again. Then I come home. (Nods.)
(Jack looks at Kevin off-screen.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking off.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at Kevin off-screen and smirking.)
JACK: Then I pay my taxes.
(Jack glares at Kevin off-screen.)
JACK: "The End".
(Jack frowns and growls as he rises.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen, and smirking, then glancing off.)
In a way, it kinda made ya feel ya knew the guy.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at his paper.)
My only consolation was I was pretty sure no one else was gonna do this assignment, either.
(Kevin looks off.)
Cut to
Classroom
(Shot of Susan standing in class, holding her paper.)
SUSAN: The world mourns the loss of a great poet, Susan Kelley, whose work made her lots and lots of money. (Smiles.)
(Shot of Peter standing, wearing his Army shirt, and holding his paper.)
PETER: The minute he got out of high school, he joined the service, to fight...(gestures)...for his country!
(Peter nods and holds the pocket of his Army shirt.)
(Shot of Boy1 standing, holding his paper.)
BOY1: After he won the Grand Prix...(nods)...there was series of empty relationships.
(Shot of Boy2 standing, holding his paper.)
BOY2: When he spoke...
(He glances off.)
BOY2: People listened!
(Shot of Girl1 standing, looking at her paper.)
GIRL1: She brutally murdered her little sister and was cleared of all charges. (Smiles.)
(Shot of Peter sitting with his head tilted back, bored. The kids behind him are bored, also.)
PAUL (V/O): Chapter seven, age thirty-six.
(Shot of Paul standing, holding his essay book, and glancing around the class.)
PAUL: "The Harvest Ripens". (Nods.)
(Shot of a bored girl.)
PAUL (V/O): Poised on the very cusp of young adulthood...
(Shot of Kevin sighing and looking off.)
PAUL (V/O): I venture forth from the secure hallways of academia...
(Shot of Girl1 sitting with her head tilted back, bored. The kids behind her are bored, also.)
PAUL (V/O): And into the cut-throat world of opthamology.
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins is looking out the window through the venetian blinds.)
PAUL (V/O): Before the age of forty, I invent the strapless sport spectacle.
(Miss Stebbins turns toward Paul off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Ah...(sighs)...thank you very much, Paul.
(Shot of Paul pausing, and frowning at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
(Wider shot of Miss Stebbins near the window.)
MISS STEBBINS: But we have to have time for everyone.
(Close shot of Peter making fists with both hands and mouthing "Yes!")
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): Now!
(Shot of Kevin as Paul sits in the seat next to him.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): Who's next?
(Kevin scrunches down slightly.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Kevin?
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins nodding at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: How about you? (Smiles.)
(Close shot of Kevin smiling, embarrassed, then glancing around as he stands up. He picks up his paper, then looks over his shoulder, then looks at his paper.)
KEVIN: He was born of humble parentage, and grew up living a simple life.
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking off and frowning slightly.)
KEVIN (V/O): He served several years in the Virginia legislature...
(Shot of Kevin looking at his paper.)
KEVIN: Then went on to become...(smiles)...President of the United States. (Nods.)
There! Short-and-sweet.
(Kevin looks at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
Honest.
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Kevin off-screen.)
To the point.
MISS STEBBINS: That was very nice, Kevin...(Nods.)
(Close shot of Kevin smiling at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: That was also George Washington's life.
(Shot from Miss Stebbins' perspective of Kevin and the class as students giggle and look at Kevin.)
Rats!
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Now, I suggest...you get a life of your own, and write about it.
(Close shot of Kevin pausing and glancing away.)
KEVIN: Well, Miss Stebbins...(frowns)...it's just that...(nods)...I'm not sure I'm ready to write about my life, yet. (Nods.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins looking at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: I understand. (Nods.)
(Close shot of Kevin nodding, and glancing off.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): In that case, you may have...
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins moving to the podium, as she looks at Kevin off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS: Over the weekend...turn it in on Monday.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Miss Stebbins off-screen.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): Right?
KEVIN: Right. (Smiles.)
(Close shot of Miss Stebbins smiling at Kevin off-screen.)
(Close shot of Kevin sitting down, as Paul looks at him.)
MISS STEBBINS (V/O): Alright, Harold - your turn.
Kevin Arnold. He lived a good life. Until he got this writing assignment.
(Kevin looks at Paul, who shrugs. Kevin taps his pencil on his paper and sighs.)
Cut to
Night - Arnold Kitchen
(Kevin enters from the living room.)
It didn't seem fair.
(Kevin walks to the refrigerator.)
When you're thirteen years old...
(Kevin opens the freezer.)
The last thing you want to have to worry about...
(Kevin looks toward the kitchen table off-screen.)
Is your life.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma seated at the table, wearing a robe, watching the TV and eating ice-cream.)
That's what you have parents for.
(Closer shot of Kevin looking toward Norma off-screen.)
Sure...
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma at the table, watching the TV.)
Let her worry.
(Close shot of Norma looking at the TV off-screen. Kevin closes the freezer in the background.)
Only let's not overdo it, here.
KEVIN: Mom? (Frowns.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma at the table, watching the TV.)
(Closer shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen.)
KEVIN: Is everything alright?
(Closer shot of Norma as she turns toward Kevin off-screen.)
NORMA: I'm sorry, Kevin. (Frowns.) What were you saying?
(Shot past Norma of Kevin approaching slowly. Norma looks off.)
Something was wrong.
(Norma sighs.)
Mom could usually talk on the phone...
(Norma looks toward the TV off-screen.)
Cook dinner, yell at Wayne and help you with your homework...
(Norma looks off, then down.)
All without missing a beat.
(Kevin puts his hand on the counter and frowns.)
KEVIN: Mom? (Frowns.)
(Norma looks off.)
NORMA: How could I be so stupid?
(Shot past Kevin of Norma looking off.)
NORMA: The whole point of taking them to make copies was so we wouldn't...
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen, slightly startled.)
NORMA (V/O): Lose the receipts.
KEVIN: You lost the tax receipts?
(Shot of Norma looking at Kevin off-screen. A shot of the moon is on TV.)
NORMA: They're just...
(She glances off, then looks at Kevin off-screen.)
NORMA: Gone.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen and glancing around.)
This was unbelievable! My mother? The most organized woman in the world?
(Kevin frowns.)
NORMA: Oh, don't worry, honey!
(Shot past Kevin of Norma resting her head in her hand, looking at him.)
NORMA: They're bound to turn up... (Nods.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen, then sighing slightly.)
KEVIN: You really think so?
(Shot past Kevin of Norma looking at Kevin, then nodding.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen.)
I wanted to believe her. I did.
(Shot of Norma as she turns to the TV.)
But something about the way she was staring at that TV...
(Close shot past Norma looking at the TV off-screen. Kevin is in the background.)
Gave me the distinct impression that...well...to put it mildly...
NEWS: We interrupt this broadcast for a CBS News special report.
(Norma frowns.)
(Close shot of the TV. The words "Special Report" are on the screen, then clips of mission control personnel.)
ASTRONAUT: Uh, Houston, this is Apollo Thirteen...we've had a problem here...
(Close shot of Kevin looking at the TV off-screen, frowning slightly.)
ASTRONAUT: OK, Houston, we've had a problem, here.
Fade to
Int. Morning - Arnold Kitchen
(Close shot of the TV. The words "Special Report" are on the screen.)
NEWS: This is a CBS News Special Report.
(Shot cuts to the news anchor.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER: Trouble has developed aboard Apollo 13. Trouble serious enough, to jeopardize the continuation of the mission.
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne turned toward the TV.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): Just over an hour ago..
So much for emergencies in space.
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): Spacecraft commander Jim Lovell suddenly radioed...
(Close shot of Norma on the phone.)
NORMA: It was just a grocery bag full of receipts. (Frowns.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): 'Houston, we've had a problem here'...
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne looking toward Norma off-screen.)
We had a few of our own right here at home.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma on the phone.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): A problem with the onboard electrical power system.
NORMA: No?
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): Apparently an unexpected power surge...
NORMA:....Oh, dear...(Sighs.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): Set off a master alarm in the command module.
NORMA: Well, thank you, anyway.
(Norma hangs up the phone.)
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne looking toward Norma off-screen.)
Tax day at ground zero. Situation...
(Close shot of Norma looking off and frowning.)
Grim. Mom had tuned the house upside down looking for those tax receipts.
(Norma looks toward the TV off-screen.)
(Sound of a door opening and closing.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward Norma off-screen.)
With no luck.
JACK (V/O): Norma?
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma turning toward a metallic chopping sound, as Jack enters from the basement, testing a hedge trimmer.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): And the spacecraft was 'venting something into space, a gas of some kind'.
JACK: Time to get started...
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne frowning toward Norma and Jack off-screen.)
Gee, what was he gonna do - hack those W-2's to death?
(Shot past Norma of Jack frowning at the trimmer as he runs his thumb over the tip of the blade.)
JACK: Thought I'd sharpen these clippers out in the garage.
(Shot past the open trimmer of Norma looking at it.)
NORMA: Oh...(Frowns.) That's a good idea. (Nods.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward Norma off-screen.)
Sure, good idea. Distract him with tools.
(Shot past Norma of Jack frowning at the trimmer, then looking at Norma quickly.)
JACK: Then after dinner...(gestures)...we'll go to work on those taxes. (Nods.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): Although there has been some tumbling or rotation of the spacecraft the astronauts do not appear to be in any immediate danger.
(Jack steps past Norma.)
(Shot past Jack of Norma looking after Jack and frowning.)
NORMA: Honey? (Frowns.)
(Shot past Norma of Jack pausing at the door and turning toward her.)
JACK: Hmmm?
(Shot past Jack and the open trimmer of Norma putting her hand on her hip.)
NORMA: I was just thinking...why waste a perfectly good Saturday night on paperwork?
(Shot past Norma of Jack looking at her.)
NORMA: Why don't we...go out to a movie?
(Shot past the Jack and the open trimmer of Norma.)
NORMA: It's been ages since we all went out together.
(Shot of Kevin looking toward Jack off-screen.)
KEVIN: Come on, Dad - I think it'll be fun. (Smiles.)
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): At a point, even in an emergency it is more efficient to swing around the moon and return...
(Close shot of Jack frowning and looking off.)
(Shot of Kevin and Wayne as Wayne sets a glass down.)
(Close shot of Jack.)
JACK: Maybe tomorrow.
(Shot past Jack and the open trimmer of Norma looking at him.)
JACK: We're doin' taxes tonight.
NEWS ANCHOR DAVID SHOEMAKER (V/O): If it is necessary to end the flight the astronauts could burn their main spacecraft engine tomorrow and splash down in the Pacific...
(Jack snaps the trimmer closed, and exits. Norma looks after him and frowns.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen.)
It made ya wonder.
(Sound of the door closing behind Jack.)
Do moms...
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of of Norma as Karen approaches, carrying a soda bottle. Norma is looking off as Karen looks at her.)
Ever actually sweat?
KAREN: Are you OK, Mom?
(Norma turns toward Karen, slightly surprised.)
NORMA: Oh...(Frowns.)
(Norma shrugs, then looks off and sighs.)
NORMA: I think I'll take a shower. (Frowns.)
Well - that answered that.
(Karen glances toward the boys off-screen, as Norma takes a step closer.)
NORMA: Those poor astronauts. (Frowns.)
(Karen steps toward the table.)
NORMA: Their families must be worried sick.
(Shot of Kevin as Karen sits at the table next to him.)
Well, somebody's family, anyway.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma as she turns and walks toward the living room.)
Still, maybe I was blowin' this all out of proportion.
(Shot of Kevin and Karen.)
I mean, what's the worst that could happen?
KAREN: He's gonna kill her.
(Karen sips from the bottle as Kevin glances at her.)
(Closer shot of Kevin looking toward Wayne off-screen.)
(Sound of a grinding wheel.)
(Close shot of Wayne frowning at Kevin off-screen.)
Cut to
Int. Day - Arnold Garage
(Shot of the small door to the garage. The camera slides up to the window, showing Jack standing in front of the grinding wheel, holding the trimmer against it.)
Kill her?
(Shot throught the window of the small door of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
That sounded a little extreme. After all...
(Close shot of the trimmer on the grinding wheel.)
Dad was a reasonable kind of...
(The camera pans up to Jack as he holds the trimmer up and snaps it a few times.)
Guy.
(Jack frowns and turns the bolt holding the blades together.)
JACK: Damn piece of tin...
(Shot of Kevin entering through the small door.)
(Shot of Jack turning the bolt on the trimmer as Kevin passes the camera.)
KEVIN: Dad?
(Jack turns toward Kevin.)
(Shot past Jack of Kevin looking at him.)
KEVIN: I was just wondering...
(Kevin glances off and frowns slightly, then looks at Jack.)
KEVIN: What happens if you don't pay your taxes?
(Shot past Kevin of Jack frowning at him.)
JACK: What are ya talkin' about?
(Shot past Jack of Kevin glancing off.)
KEVIN: Well, say you...
(Kevin looks at Jack.)
KEVIN: Forgot. Or, you couldn't, for some reason. What would happen then?
(Shot past Kevin of Jack frowning at him.)
A reasonable question.
(Jack glances off, and back.)
JACK: You go to jail. (Shrugs.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking off.)
A reasonable answer.
(Jack's hands press the trimmer against the grinding wheel. Kevin looks at it and frowns.)
KEVIN: Oh...
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack at the grinding wheel, looking at the trimmer.)
JACK: Unless, of course, you have a legitimate excuse.
(Shot past the grinding wheel of Kevin looking at it and frowning.)
OK - that might apply here.
KEVIN: What if...(shrugs)...say, uh...like...you...
(Kevin glances at Jack, then the grinder.)
KEVIN: Lose...your, your receipts...
(Kevin looks at Jack off-screen.)
KEVIN: And stuff?
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack at the grinding wheel, looking at the trimmer.)
JACK: What?
(Shot past the grinding wheel of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
KEVIN: Through, uh, somehow by a...freak accident. (Smiles.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack frowning at him.)
(Close shot of Kevin frowning and glancing at the grinder, then Jack, off-screen.)
Oh, my gosh.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack frowning at him.)
He knew.
(Jack smiles slightly as he puts the trimmer down.)
JACK: Now I get it.
(Close shot of Kevin frowning at Jack off-screen.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack looking at him.)
JACK: You know what, Kev? (Gestures.) You worry too much.
(Close shot of Kevin frowning at Jack off-screen.)
KEVIN: I do?
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack looking at him and holding the trimmer.)
JACK: Your mom would never lose those receipts.
(Close shot of Kevin smiling slightly at Jack off-screen.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at Kevin off-screen, leaning slightly closer.)
JACK: She guards them with her life.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at the trimmer off-screen.)
Uh-huh. That's exactly what I was afraid of.
(Kevin looks at Jack off-screen and smiles slightly.)
(Close shot of Jack looking at Kevin off-screen. He chuckles as he snaps the trimmer open and closed two times, then looks at the grinding wheel. The camera pans down the the wheel as Jack presses the blade against it.)
Cut to
Int. Day - Living Room
(Close shot of Norma's fingers tapping the arm of the couch.)
It was becoming pretty clear...
(The camera pans up Norma's arm to her face. She is looking at the TV off-screen, frowning.)
Mine wasn't the only obituary that needed writing.
(Sound of a door opening and closing.)
(Shot of Kevin at the dining room table, with his homework in front of him, as he looks toward Norma off-screen, then toward the kitchen as Jack crosses the shot.)
JACK (V/O): Norma?
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma on the couch as Jack approaches her, wiping his hands on a rag.)
JACK: Time to get to work. Put it off long enough.
(Shot past Jack of Norma looking off, then at Jack.)
NORMA: What, honey?
(Shot past Norma of Jack looking at his hands as he cleans them.)
JACK: You got all the forms together?
(Close shot of Norma looking off, slightly worried.)
JACK (V/O): You got the state...and federal...my W-2's...the receipts?
(Norma looks off and nods half-heartedly.)
NORMA: Of course.
(Close shot of Jack looking at Norma off-screen.)
JACK: I'll get cleaned up, and we'll start.
(Jack starts to walk off.)
(Close shot of Norma frowning at Jack off-screen.)
NORMA: Uh, Jack?
(She rises.)
(Shot past Norma of Jack as she stands up.)
Well, the moment of truth had come.
(Close shot of Kevin looking at them off-screen.)
Mom was gonna have to come clean.
(Shot past Norma of Jack looking at her.)
She was gonna have to...
(Shot past Jack of Norma looking at him.)
NORMA: I have an...errand to run in town. (Frowns.) I'll be back in a bit.
(Norma hurriedly turns, picks up her coat and purse, then glances at Jack. The camera pans with her as she then hurries toward the kitchen. Wayne and Karen are in the doorway.)
Run for her life.
(Shot of Jack looking after her.)
(Shot of Karen and Wayne in the kitchen doorway. Norma passes the camera, pats Wayne on the shoulder and walks through the kitchen.)
It was kinda like watching Custer turn tail at Little Big Horn.
(Shot of Kevin looking toward the kitchen off-screen, as the door slams shut.)
(Shot of Karen looking at Wayne.)
KAREN: I-I gotta go. (Shrugs.)
(Wayne looks at Jack off-screen.)
WAYNE: Can I have a ride?
(Karen frowns and walks toward the door. Wayne looks at Kevin off-screen, then follows Karen.)
(Shot of Kevin looking toward Jack off-screen.)
And I alone...
(He looks toward the kitchen off-screen and sighs.)
Was left to tell the tale.
JACK (V/O): Well...
(He looks at Jack off-screen again.)
JACK (V/O): Maybe I'll get started without her.
(Shot of Jack wiping his hands with the rag, then looking toward the kitchen off-screen.)
JACK: Where'd she leave those damn receipts? (Frowns.)
(Jack exits toward the hallway.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Jack off-screen.)
Well, that was that.
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward the kitchen.)
In a matter of hours, my family was going to explode.
(Wide shot from the kitchen of Kevin at living room table.)
And there was nothing I could do about it.
(Kevin taps his pencil on the table.)
Except, of course...
Fade to
Ext. Day - The Street
(Shot of Kevin riding his bike in the street, toward the camera which rolls back. Some Snuffy guitar plays.)
Head for the hills, myself.
(Closer shot of Kevin.)
I wasn't sure where I was going.
(Wider shot as Kevin rides toward the camera.)
All I knew was - I couldn't go home.
(Kevin slows up and looks off.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma getting oput of the car, parked in front of a church. Music ends.)
(Closer shot of Norma as she walks from the car, looking up at the church, then looking down as she walks forward.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at her off-screen as the church bells ring.)
I guess Mom was feeling that way, too.
(Shot of Norma opening the church door and entering.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at her off-screen.)
Cut to
Int. Day - Church
(Shot of the door as Kevin opens it and steps inside, walks slowly forward a few steps, then pauses.)
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma in the distance, near the end of the aisle.)
It was strange. I'd never seen her in church before.
(Norma steps over to the side.)
Except for weddings...
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen.)
And funerals.
(Shot of Norma in the distance.)
But there she was.
(Close shot of Norma's hand as she lights some candles.)
Lighting a candle for those stupid tax receipts.
(Wider shot of Norma as she kneels. Some music plays.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen, and slowly walking forward.)
I wanted to help her.
(High wide shot as Kevin walks down the aisle. Norma is in the distance, and sunlight pours though one window.)
To make everything right. But I knew I couldn't.
(Close shot of Kevin walking toward the camera, which rolls back.)
All I could do was hope that, somehow, she'd find an answer here.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma as he approaches her at the candles. Kevin passes the camera as it slows.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at Norma off-screen.)
(Close shot of Norma from behind.)
(Close shot of Norma looking at the candles, and Kevin standing a few feet behind her.)
KEVIN: Mom?
(Norma looks over her shoulder.)
(Shot past Kevin of Norma as she turns toward him.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at her off-screen.)
(Closer shot of Norma looking at Kevin off-screen, slightly surprised.)
(High wide shot of Kevin and Norma as she stands up.)
Fade to
Ext. Day - On the Road
(Shot through the windshield of Kevin and Norma in the car. Kevin's bike is in the backseat. Kevin looks at Norma.)
KEVIN: Mom?
(Norma looks at Kevin.)
NORMA: Yes, honey?
(Shot from Norma's perspective of Kevin as he turns toward her.)
KEVIN: Do you think your prayers will be answered?
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Norma as she turns toward him, then looks forward, then at him again.)
NORMA: One way or another.
(Shot from Norma's perspective of Kevin as he looks at her, then looks forward.)
Fade to
Ext. Dusk - Arnold House
(Shot of the car approaching the camera, which pans with it as Norma turns into the driveway.)
We drove for quite a while.
(The camera rises.)
I guess neither of us were in a hurry to get home.
(Norma parks the car.)
Cut to
Int. Evening - Kitchen
(Shot of the door as Kevin enters and removes his jacket. The news is on the kitchen TV.)
NEWSCASTER (V/O): The emergency rules out any chance of a lunar landing...
(Norma follows him in, and sets her purse on the table.)
Faced with the inevitable...
(Norma takes her coat off as Kevin put his on the table.)
Mom seemed so calm. And brave.
JACK (V/O): Norma?!
(Close shot of Kevin looking over his shoulder.)
(Close shot of Norma looking over her shoulder.)
NEWSCASTER (V/O): The command module's oxygen...
JACK (V/O): Norma? Where the hell are those receipts?
(Close shot of Kevin looking toward the living room off-screen. Norma squeezes his shoulder and walks across the shot.)
NEWSCASTER (V/O): Mission control has given no official word on what will be done, but has declared...
(Shot from the living room door of Norma approaching the camera, then passes it. Kevin watches from the background.)
NEWSCASTER: The second rocket engine will be used in aborting the mission, and getting the astronauts safely back to earth.
(Kevin turns toward the TV.)
(Close shot of Kevin looking at the TV off-screen.)
NEWSCASTER (V/O): And now, the world holds its breath as the brave astronauts of...
(Close shot of the TV showing a clip of an astronaut in the capsule.)
NEWSCASTER: Apollo 13 prepare to swing around the dark side of...
(Close shot of Kevin looking at the TV off-screen as some Snuffy guitar plays.)
NEWSCASTER: The moon, in their disabled spacecraft.
Fade to
Ext. Night - Arnold Front Yard
(Close shot of Kevin walking down the driveway toward the camera. He pauses and looks around, then up.)
I stood in the yard for a long time.
(Shot of the moon though clouds.)
Looking at moon and thinking. About Mom and Dad, and the receipts...
(Close shot of Kevin looking up. The camera moves in very slowely.)
About those astronauts. About how things in a life can get lost...without any certainty of ever finding them again.
(Kevin closes his eyes.)
I said a little prayer for all of us.
(High shot from nearly above Kevin, as he stands with his eyes closed.)
Fade to
Int. Night - The Hallway
(Shot from the hallway toward the front door, and Kevin's bedroom door. Kevin enters from outside.)
I was prepared for the worst.
(Kevin walks toward the hallway.)
Tears. Rage. A family in shambles.
(Kevin turns toward his room, then pauses, as he hears Norma laugh.)
Or...
(Kevin looks toward their bedroom off-screen and approaches as Jack laughs. The camera pans with him as he passes it, and pauses in the bedroom doorway. Jack is sitting on the floor against the bed. Norma is on her stomach with her feet up, looking over Jack's shoulder.)
NORMA: That's when we went to Omaha. You remember the plane fare?
JACK: A hundred and fifty bucks.
(Close shot of Kevin at the edge of the doorway, looking at them off-screen.)
I couldn't believe it. I'd never seen them quite so close.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack looking over his shoulder toward Norma and saying something and smiling. Norma smiles and writes in a little notepad.)
Like they didn't have a care in the world. But watching them, together...
(Close shot of Kevin at the edge of the doorway, looking at them off-screen.)
Loving each other...recreating the past year from memory, I felt...a bond.
(Shot from Kevin's perspective of Jack looking in a notepad, as Norma reaches down toward (?)
A promise that things would work out.
JACK: So where'd ya go today?
NORMA: First I went by the post office to see if anyone had turned in the receipts...
JACK: Ah...
(Norma puts her arm around Jack's neck.)
NORMA: And then I stopped by a church.
(Close shot of Kevin at the edge of the doorway, looking at them off-screen, then glancing off.)
(Close shot of Jack and Norma.)
NORMA: Said a prayer for the astronauts.
(Jack turns and looks at her, then looks off and nods slightly.)
JACK: Unh...
(Some Snuffy guitar plays as Jack pats her hand and kisses it.)
(Close shot of Kevin at the edge of the doorway, looking at them off-screen, then glancing off.)
And suddenly, a lot of things made sense.
NORMA (V/O): So how many days were you in that hotel in Omaha?
JACK (V/O): Three days...
NORMA (V/O): Three days. What, at about...?
JACK (V/O): Thirty bucks a day...
Fade to
Int. Night - Kevin's Desk
(Close shot of Kevin's hand writing his name across a notebook. Some Snuffy guitar plays.)
(Shot of Kevin sitting at his desk. The camera slowly moves fronm the side to the front of him.)
As I looked at that blank page, I knew that whatever I wrote would be a lie - or at best, a wild guess. It didn't matter.
(Kevin looks off.)
Whatever life lay ahead of me - a life of hope, of possibility, of uncertainty - I felt sure I knew what it would take to survive. I guess what I'm saying is...for the first time, I understood that some things are bigger than death and taxes. Like family.
(The camera has just passed in front of him, and he glances toward the sky.)
Like faith.
(Kevin looks at the notebook, and begins to write.)
I could only hope Miss Stebbins would understand, too.
Fade to
Ext. Night - Arnold House
(Shot across the yard of the house. The camera rises slowly.)
KEVIN (V/O): Mom?
NORMA (V/O): Hmmm?
KEVIN (V/O): (Sighs.) Do you think the astronauts will get home?
NORMA (V/O): I don't know, Kevin.
Fade to
CLOSING CREDITS
Music
"Amazing Grace" - Various
Apollo 13 Transcript (1/2 way down for accident...)
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Titles/Transcripts
Episode Info
Wonder Years Menu
02/02/05 18:55