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["GLORY OF LOVE" PLAYING]
[INAUDIBLE DIALOG]
[♪♪♪]
You know, I just had a thought.
Why don't I go check in a hotel and get some rest, and you go find your folks.
Oh, John. You wanted to meet them, let's go meet them. The sooner we get it over with, the better.
Mom may not even be at the gallery, she'll probably be out to lunch. Dad's at his office.
You may not meet them till dinner. You may be wrong about them.
You should've called and told them we were coming.
You may be in for the biggest shock of your young life.
After 23 years living in the same house with them, don't you think I know my own mother and father?
I hope so.
There's no problem.
[♪♪♪]
We'll only be a minute, and then we'd like to go out to Claremont Drive.
CAB DRIVER: All right.
[JAZZ MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]
I'll see if Mom's in the office.
Joey? Hilary, hi. How are you?
What a surprise!
I'll be with you in just a moment. Okay.
Strange. One of Hilary's favourites.
It's called a kinetic sculpture. A what?
Look.
[BUZZING]
Why, isn't that someth...?
[BELL DINGS]
[BOTH LAUGHING]
Darling, what are you doing here? I thought Mother might be here.
Mrs. St. George, I'd like you to meet Dr. Prentice.
Dr. Prentice. I'm so pleased to meet you.
Mrs. St. George, a pleasure to see you.
Uh, Christina's lunching with Mr. Cazelet. If you like, I can ring up.
No, just tell her I'm back, will you, and that I'll be home.
Has something happened? Is anything wrong?
Something's happened, but everything's right. Thanks, Hilary.
How was Hawaii? Was it fun? Hawaii was simply unbelievable.
Do you live in San Francisco, doctor, or are you visiting?
I'm just passing through. Oh, I see.
It was a pleasure to have met you, Mrs. St. George.
Thank you. Bye-bye.
[SCULPTURE BUZZING AND DINGING]
[♪♪♪]
No, Hilary runs the gallery now, but it's Mom who has all the ideas.
Her idea for filling hotel rooms with originals is brilliant.
Gives the people who stay there time to decide if they like them enough to want them.
The hotel gets supplied with free decor,
the guests get to look at good paintings instead of bad reproductions,
the painter gets a chance to make a sale, and Mom gets her commission.
Take the next right.
Isn't that clever? Oh, that is clever.
Ohh.
[♪♪♪]
What do I owe you? $10.50, Mac.
Twelve bucks, right?
Right.
Oh, John, come meet Tillie.
Tillie, this is Dr. Prentice. John, Miss Matilda Binks.
Pleased to meet you, Miss Binks. I've certainly heard a great deal about you.
What are you doing home unexpected? You told them you're back already?
Yes, I left a message for Mom at the gallery.
Oh, it's lovely to see you, Tillie! I missed you.
You still ain't told me why you're home early. You want those bags took upstairs?
Not my two. I've not come to stay.
It's personal reasons, Tillie. I'll tell you all about it.
You eat any lunch yet, or are you expecting it now?
Oh, could you make us some sandwiches and some coffee? We'll have it out on the terrace.
Mmm.
[CHUCKLING]
Do you like it?
It's beautiful.
Come out and look from the terrace.
Oh. What?
Hey, who's that?
That's Dorothy. Isn't she a knockout? She helps Tillie during the week.
Which days? Never mind.
Hey, I ought to call my folks and get that out of the way.
Okay, use the phone in the study.
Are you gonna introduce me? Not on the phone.
Won't you tell them about me? I'd rather write to them.
Well, I'll have to meet them, won't I, before I come to Geneva?
Or are we gonna keep our marriage a secret from them?
Why didn't I think of that? See, that's a thought.
I'll shut this in case Dorothy goes by.
[♪♪♪]
Los Angeles, please. Area code 213.
Axminister 246-99. Time and charges.
Well, I've got a right to my own opinions, and you want my opinion?
I don't care to see a member of my own race getting above hisself.
Then I don't want your opinion, and if I ever do I'll ask for...
Oh, Tillie, I'm sorry. I didn't mean that.
But you can't mean what you're saying either, and you're so wrong.
Look, you're the last person I'd have expected to take such a silly attitude.
You know I've always loved you, and you're just as black as he is.
How could it possibly be all right for me to love you and wrong for me to love him?
Will you just stop and think about that?
Oh, listen, what are we having for dinner tonight? Gotta make it something special.
Celery soup and rump steak.
On, now, come on, Tillie! Turtle soup and tournedos.
And one of your best pies?
[CAR HORN HONKING]
It's Mom!
Joey? Darling?
What the hell? Joey? Mom!
Hello, darling, are you all right? Oh, Mom, so good to see you!
No, nothing's wrong. Everything's fine!
I rang the gallery right after lunch to tell Hilary that Cazelet had agreed to ask me...
He has? That's marvellous! Yeah. She was being mysterious.
She said you were back. She thought you might have a surprise for me.
What did she mean?
Do I hear someone? Is there someone here?
Oh, Mom, I'm so happy! I've never been so happy in all my life! I'm just...
Bursting. Yeah, I can see that.
And I'm already feeling happy for you. Do I know him?
No, no, that's just it. I only met him myself 10 days ago.
And you wouldn't believe what's happened in just 10 days!
Well, I think I might, if you'd pipe down long enough to tell me.
Mom... Mom, he's so wonderful. Wonderful things have happened in...
I've never known anyone like him. Never known anything like this.
I fell in love with him in 20 minutes!
Well! That was quick.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
Well, Dad, I wanted to stop on the way back, but time got so short,
and I've got to get to work.
MR. PRENTICE: Yeah, but I still don't understand why you couldn't spend one day with us.
Well, fact is, Dad, I met this girl.
You what? You met a girl? Well, why didn't you say so? Mary, he says he met a girl.
Why, that's good. That's good news. Does she live up there in San Francisco?
Yes. I'm at her house now.
He's at her house now, at the girl's house. Well, that's different, son. Where did you meet her, in Hawaii?
Yes, in Hawaii. And I wanted to meet her folks, you see.
That sounds good, son. I mean, serious.
Yes. It's serious.
This is quite a surprise.
Yes, she's surprising in a lot of ways, Dad.
Your mother says, "Is she pretty?"
Yes, she's pretty.
Says she's pretty. What?
Your mother says, "How old is she?" Mary, what the hell difference does that make?
Well, she's only 23, Dad.
Twenty-three, well, that's good.
You want my opinion? You're 37, that's just the right difference.
Women age faster than men.
You reckon to marry the girl, son?
Well, we've been talking about it, but, um...
Dad, there's one or two problems, you see,
that I'll write to you about on the plane to New York tonight.
All right?
He's so calm and sure of everything.
He doesn't have any tensions in him.
He knows what he believes and what he thinks is right,
and why, and where he's going.
Oh, Mom, there's one thing I must tell you.
He was married before, and he had a son.
It was so tragic.
Both his wife and son were killed in a train accident in Belgium eight years ago.
And John...
I haven't even told you his name.
Mom, it's John Wade Prentice. Isn't that a lovely name?
John Wade...
JOEY: Joanna Prentice, I'll be.
But, Mom. Mom?
There's something else that I must tell you
that John's been concerned about, very deeply concerned.
He's been worrying for the past week whether you and Dad would be upset if...
[JOHN CLEARS THROAT]
Well, it's about time. I was wondering where you'd been.
Mom, this is John.
Doc... Doc... Dr. Prentice?
I'm so pleased to meet you.
I'm pleased to meet you, Mrs. Drayton.
I take it Joanna's already busted out with the big news.
Well, she has told me a good deal, and all very quickly too.
Well, she's only known me for 10 days, so she can't tell you when I'm blushing.
That could be another problem for us.
Mrs. Drayton, I'm medically qualified, so I hope you wouldn't think it presumptuous
if I say you ought to sit down before you fall down.
He thinks you're gonna faint because he's a Negro.
Well...
I don't think I'm going to faint. Ahem.
But I'll sit down anyway.
Can't we all sit down?
Well, I, um...
I suppose it would be all right if I said,
"My goodness," wouldn't it?
Well, my goodness.
Do we mind her saying "My goodness"?
I don't mind.
Did you tell them about me? Yes.
What'd they say? They said I sounded serious
and asked if you were pretty. I said you were.
They said this was a big surprise. I said it was.
What did they say when you told them I wasn't a coloured girl?
Well, I didn't. It felt like too big a shock for the telephone.
After all, an awful lot of people are gonna think that we're a very shocking pair.
Isn't that right, Mrs. Drayton? I know what you mean.
Tillie's made us some sandwiches. Let's go outside.
Yes, let's.
Come on, Dr. Prentice.
JOEY: I can explain the whole situation in two minutes.
You see, John was invited to lecture at Hawaii University.
And we met at this big party at the dean's, and after the party we went for a long drive.
Thank you.
And since then, we've been somewhere together every night. We've been swimming every day.
And then John was supposed to fly back to Los Angeles on Saturday to see his parents.
That's where they live.
Thank you, Tillie.
Try one of these. They're great.
Do you want some coffee? No. No, thanks. No coffee.
Does your father know that you're back?
Oh, no, I was gonna phone him. Do you think he'd come back early if I...?
Oh, he's coming back early, all right. He's playing golf with Monsignor Ryan.
That's marvellous! Then he can meet John and then we can all talk over dinner.
Because, you see, John has to fly to New York tonight to see a friend of his at Columbia University.
And then tomorrow night, he's flying to Geneva to do three months' work for the World Health Organization.
And what I intend to do is fly to Geneva next week so that we can be married.
And that's the whole situation. In a nutshell.
Except that he thinks that the fact he's a Negro and I'm not creates a serious problem.
Does he?
I've told him 97 times that it wouldn't make the slightest bit of difference to you or to Dad.
But he just wouldn't believe me. And so that's why we're here.
And that's why he's watching you so closely right now while he's pretending not to watch you at all.
[BOTH CHUCKLING]
Ahem. She's absolutely right, Mrs. Drayton. I'm sorry.
I told her not to spring all this on you so suddenly, but...
Look, if your father's coming home, you could at least say that I'm somebody you met in Hawaii...
Oh, now, really!
But you could give him a half-hour to adjust...
But what for? He still has to be told, doesn't he?
[CAR HORN HONKING]
Well, you should make up your minds, because I think I just heard his car.
[DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES]
TILLIE: Mr. Matt? Hi, Tillie. How are you?
All hell's done broke loose now! What's wrong, that waste disposal?
No, it ain't that, but you just remember I said all hell's done broke loose!
What happened? Where's Christina? She's on the terrace with little Joey,
With Joey?
And somebody calls hisself Dr. Prentice.
Doctor? There's a doc... Well, what's wrong? What's happened?
Joey?
Here he comes.
JOEY: Daddy! How are you?
MATT: Well, what's happened? What are you doing here?
Tillie said there was a doctor...
There is, there is. Dr. John Wade Prentice. This is my dad.
Pleased to meet you. How are you? Nice to know you.
MATT: What is it? Is something wrong?
JOEY: Of course there's nothing wrong. I decided to come home early.
Oh, uh, Dr. Prentice and I met in Hawaii and we flew back on the same plane this morning.
Oh! Oh, well, well, well. Sit down. I thought something was really wrong. Tillie said...
JOEY: Oh, Tillie's behaving very strangely today. Would you like a cup of coffee?
No, thanks. I have a date to play golf with Monsignor Ryan.
How are you? What's the matter? Are you having a chill?
No, darling. I'm fine, I...
Doctor? Where are you practising, in San Francisco?
Sit down. No, sir. I am just here for one day.
Oh, well, where is your practice? Hawaii?
No, not real... I'm not established in any one place.
I'm in tropical medicines, mostly in Africa these past few years.
Oh, well, that sounds interesting.
Everything about Dr. Prentice is interesting.
I'm sure it is. I wish I had more time. Will you excuse me?
Couldn't you be half an hour late and stay and talk with us?
I'd love to, Joey, but I mustn't keep the monsignor wait...
No, I'm gonna be late as it is. Will I be seeing you later, doctor?
You certainly will. Good. Well, that's good.
Dr. Prentice will be here for dinner. Fine. Then you can tell me...
And there's a great deal to tell too, isn't there, Mom?
Well, fine. See you all later.
[FOGHORN BLARING IN DISTANCE]
What the hell is going on here?
This doesn't make sense either. Well, I told you, didn't I?
What did you tell him?
Look, Chris, if you don't explain to me in the next few minutes what you three are playing at...
I can explain it, Mr. Drayton. You can? Well, let's have it.
Well, it's my fault. See, we have a sort of a situation here.
Joanna and I didn't just meet in Hawaii. We spent a good deal time together.
I mean, all the time after we met.
And, well, we have this problem.
I fell in love with your daughter.
And as incredible as it may seem, she fell in love with me.
And we flew back to San Francisco
to see if you or Mrs. Drayton would have any objections if we got married.
Joanna told her mother as soon as she walked in.
And I had the stupid idea that maybe there was some way to
break this gently.
Daddy, you're making John and me nervous.
Am I? Well, I wouldn't want to do that.
I wouldn't want to make anybody nervous.
How about you, Chris, are you nervous?
Sit down, doctor, before you make me nervous.
Ahem. Would, um, anybody like a cup of coffee?
What did she say when Joanna told her? Did she raise any objections?
None so far. There hasn't been much time.
What objections?
Dad, I know this is sort of a shock because it's all so sudden and unexpected.
And it never occurred to me that I might fall in love with a Negro,
but I did, and nothing in the world is gonna change that.
Even if you had any objections I wouldn't let him go now, if you were the governor of Alabama.
I mean, if Mom were. So tell him, will you?
Tell John if you have any objections, and then you can go play golf.
What is it you expect me to say?
If you want me to think about this, you'll have to give me time.
The doctor says you have a problem. You certainly have.
And if you're expecting any sensible statement from me, you'll have to give me a little time to think about it.
Does that sound reasonable?
It's reasonable, Mr. Drayton, but not quite practical.
You see, Matt, there's sort of a special problem.
See, I've got to fly to New York tonight, and on to Switzerland tomorrow night.
Yes, and what Joey wants, what she proposes, is to go to Geneva herself
so that they can be married within the next couple of weeks.
What the hell is all the rush?
JOEY: Well, we know that we want to get married.
And unless somebody does have any objections, why should we waste any time?
John and I aren't gonna change our minds.
Are you saying...? Are you telling me
that you want an answer today about how your mother and I feel?
Well, of course we do. We want you and Mom to state
absolutely clearly that you have no objections whatever.
And that when we do get married, we'll have your blessing.
Now, are you gonna play golf, or no?
No, no, no.
I'll just call it off. Excuse me, doctor.
And that's my dad. Do you like him?
I don't know. Does he like me?
I don't know either.
When he puts on his American-eagle face, nobody can tell what he's thinking except Mom.
Yeah, well, I don't think he liked any of us after the silly way we began.
Excuse me, will you? Give John some more coffee.
She's beautiful, Joanna. She's even better-looking than you, you know that?
Hello, Edie? Two things, Edie, both of them urgent.
Call up Monsignor Ryan, make my apologies and tell him I can't play this afternoon.
Tell him something's come up, something personal at home.
Then call the library and see if they've got any dope on a John Wade Prentice.
Prentice. A doctor of medicine, fellow of about 35, 36.
Oh, Matt! Tsk-tsk-tsk. Gee. He's a coloured fella.
If they haven't got anything, call up the Medical Association, see what they've got.
Get anything you can, will you? Hurry it up and call me back.
Surely there can't be any necessity for that.
It can't do any harm either.
But, Matt, for gosh sake. Joey said he was lecturing at the university in Hawaii.
Tell me something, did this ever occur to you that this might happen?
No.
Never occurred to me either. Not once.
Well, can you tell me your reaction? How do you feel about it?
Oh, I don't know. I was shaken at first. I still am, I suppose.
But, Matt, they're serious. They mean what they're saying.
Both of them. They know what they're doing.
No, they may mean what they're saying, I accept that,
but they don't know what they're doing. I won't accept that.
[KNOCKING]
If I'm not intruding?
Of course not, John. Please come in.
I'd like to have a couple of minutes with the two of you, if I may.
MATT: Sure, sure, doctor. Come on in.
There's something you both ought to know. I made a decision.
Joanna doesn't know about it, and I don't see any reason why she should.
What is it, doctor?
Joanna thinks she's committed and that our whole future is settled,
but there is no real commitment.
And up to now, nothing is settled at all.
I don't understand. Joanna said you were gonna be married no matter what we might think about it.
Well, that's not the case.
Unless you two approve, and without any reservations at all, there won't be any marriage.
Well, why, John? Why have you decided that?
Well, Mrs. Drayton, this thing has happened so quickly
I'm just as startled as you must be.
Two weeks ago I would have said such a thing was inconceivable.
But two weeks ago I had not met Joanna.
She's not at all like anyone I've ever known.
It's not just that our colour difference doesn't matter to her.
It's that she doesn't seem to think there is any difference.
The trouble is, this thing has come up at a time when I already have all the problems I need.
And I feel that I couldn't afford to get married if it meant that I would have to take on any special problems
in addition to those we're obviously going to have.
When you say "special problems," doctor, what do you mean?
Well...
Your attitude, Mr. Drayton,
and yours, Mrs. Drayton.
Joanna is very close to both of you.
If by marrying me she damaged her relationship with either of you,
the pain of it would be too much for her.
I wouldn't know how to deal with that kind of situation.
In any case, I wouldn't even want to try.
Well, I'm glad you told us this, doctor.
Don't misunderstand me. I love your daughter.
There is nothing I wouldn't do to try to keep her as happy as she was the day I met her.
But it seems to me without your approval we will make no sense at all.
That is why I am asking for the clearest possible statement
of what your attitude is going to be.
I appreciate that, doctor.
It's almost in the form of an ultimatum.
Not quite, Mr. Drayton.
All you have to say is "goodbye."
Well, that's where it's at.
Thank you for the opportunity to speak my piece.
[DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES]
Well? Still think you ought to have someone check on him?
No. He's right about Joey too.
You know that, don't you? Yes.
Thank God he is, Matt. That's the way I feel, thank God he's right.
She's 23 years old
and the way she is, is just exactly the way we brought her up to be.
We answered her questions. She listened to our answers. We told her it was wrong
to believe that the white people were somehow essentially superior to the black people,
or the brown, or the red, or the yellow ones for that matter.
People who thought that way were wrong to think that way,
sometimes hateful, usually stupid, but always, always wrong.
That's what we said.
And when we said it, we did not add,
"But don't ever fall in love with a coloured man."
[PHONE RINGS]
Yes. EDIE: Edie, Mr. Drayton.
You want the whole story? Yeah, yeah, what is it, Edie?
Well, he's an important guy. Just the main points: Born Los Angeles, 1930.
Graduated maximum cum laude Johns Hopkins, '54.
Assistant professor, Yale Medical School, '55.
Three years, professor, London School of Tropical Medicine.
Three years, assistant director, World Health Organization.
Two textbooks and a list of monographs and Medical Society honours as long as your arm.
Married Elizabeth Bowers 1955, one son: John Wade.
Oh. Both killed in an accident in 1959. There's a lot more here.
Oh, no, that's all right. Thanks, Edie.
What's the $2.20?
He made a call to Los Angeles, to his parents.
I guess he doesn't bum free telephone calls either.
Well, I can certainly understand why he didn't have much to say about himself.
Who the hell would believe him?
[LAUGHS]
[♪♪♪]
I beg your pardon, lady. Loves me, loves me not.
Well, tell me, what do you think?
Aren't they exactly the way I said they were?
I must admit they are very special people...
Shall I tell you something? What's that?
For a whole week I've been nervous.
No. I don't believe...
Oh, not about what they'd ultimately feel, just about their first reaction.
I thought it was just possible that, for the first time in 23 years,
they might let me down for the first half-hour.
You're a phoney, you know that? You're a big phoney!
I'm not a phoney.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Well?
She's always been a happy human being.
She laughed out loud before she was 6 months old.
She was happy as a baby, happy as a little girl,
happy all through school and college.
But, um,
I don't think I've ever seen her quite so happy as she is right now.
And I have to be happy for her, Matt,
and I am.
I feel happy for her.
And proud of the fact that we helped to make her.
And whatever happens now, I feel glad that Joey is Joey.
[ROCK 'N' ROLL MUSIC PLAYING ON RADIO]
[DOORBELL BUZZES]
How are you today? Having a steak fry, huh?
Well, now, there she is. How are you today?
Wanna give me a lift to Market Street? Save me a cab.
You know it, doll!
I hope these is better than the last we had, hotshot.
Lady, don't look at me. I just deliver it, I don't rustle the cattle.
You said to remind you to open the wine.
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Civil rights is one thing. This here is something else.
[♪♪♪]
I went out onto the terrace. Oh, I'll never forget it, it was so beautiful.
It was already dark and the moon was rising.
I guess I didn't see him at first because I was looking at the view, but he was standing there.
Then, all of a sudden, he moved or something, and I jumped.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
And he just stood there, looking at me, and sort of...
You're burning your shirt. Oh, yes. Sort of smiling.
"Hello," I said. "Who are you?"
And, ooh, I think he thought I was, you know, attractive.
Anyway, finally he said, "Well, do you think it could possibly matter?"
And it's just crazy, and I admit it... You'd better let me do this.
But 20 minutes later I felt I was in love with him.
No.
Mom, how long did it take you to fall in love with Dad?
Oh, well, nothing like so long as 20 minutes!
Is that really true? Oh, Mom! Yes, that's really true.
Joey, I wanna ask you something. How deeply are you and John invol...?
No, no, I have no right...
How deeply involved? Do you mean have we been to bed together?
I don't mind you asking me that. We haven't.
He wouldn't.
I don't think he could have been in much doubt about my feelings, but he wouldn't.
You're burning my shirt.
He's been concerned the whole time about my getting hurt somehow.
They're still talking. Wouldn't you think they'd have said everything by now?
Are you saying they don't have any special sense of rhythm?
That's right.
But, hell, you can see it.
You can't turn on the television set anywhere without seeing those kids dancing.
And I say the coloured kids are better than the white kids.
But there's an explanation for that.
It's our dancing and it's our music. We brought it here.
I mean, you can do the watusi, but we are the Watusi,
if you know what I mean.
I remember when I was about your age, my sports editor telling me
that Negroes would never be able to play baseball.
Now I suppose if he wanted to, Willie Mays could be elected mayor of San Francisco.
I own a newspaper, but I couldn't be elected dogcatcher.
Well, I don't guess you want to be dogcatcher any more than he wants to be mayor of San Francisco.
No, I suppose that's right.
Doctor, we've talked about a good many things,
but there's one thing we haven't talked about.
Have you given any thought to the problems your children are going to have?
Yes, and they'll have some. And we'll have the children.
Otherwise I don't know what you'd call it, but you couldn't call it a marriage.
Is that the way Joey feels?
She feels that every single one of our children will be president of the United States
and they'll all have colourful administrations.
Well, you made her, Mr. Drayton. I just met her in Hawaii.
But how do you feel about that problem?
Well, frankly, I think your daughter is a bit optimistic.
I'd settle for secretary of state.
[CLEARS THROAT]
Would you think it was some kind of cowardice if I told you that,
no matter how confident you two are, I'm just a little scared?
No, it wouldn't.
But you never know. Things are changing.
I have a feeling they're not changing anywhere else quite as fast as they are in my own back yard.
Just tell me this. Don't you think this quick decision
about how we feel about this thing is just a little unfair?
In a way, I do.
But it wasn't my idea that everything be settled so quickly.
Your daughter said there's no problem.
She said, "My dad is a lifelong fighting liberal who loathes race prejudice
and has spent his whole life fighting against discrimination."
She said, "My parents, well, they'll welcome you with open arms."
And I said, "Oh, I sure wanna meet them."
John! Telephone, it's Los Angeles.
Take it in my study. Thank you.
Hello. Yes, this is he. OPERATOR: Dr. Prentice?
MR. PRENTICE: Hello. Hi, Dad.
What's up, man? Dr. Graves call again?
Oh, no, it's not that, son.
I just had an idea. What would you say to us flying up there to spend the evening?
This evening? We could be up there at 6:30.
I thought maybe we could take you and your young lady friend out...
Tell them to come to dinner. Just a minute.
No, no, no, Dad, see, I'm having dinner with her folks.
Don't be silly. They're invited! Who's that speaking, the young lady?
Yes, that's her. Just a minute. You haven't asked your mother...
Mr. Prentice, won't you come to dinner, you and Mrs. Prentice? John and I will meet your plane.
Stop butting in, Joanna. Hi. Who am I talking to? John?
Looks like she wants us, even if you don't. And we certainly wanna meet her.
So we'll see you at 6:30. Yeah. Oh, no, no, no.
Your mother says she's pleased. Oh, hell, he knows that!
All right, son. We'll see you later. Dad? Dad! Dad! Dad!
[PHONE HANGS UP]
What's the matter with you?
Mom! CHRISTINA: Yeah?
John's father and mother are coming to dinner.
Oh. Good. Marvellous.
JOEY: We'll meet their plane at 6:30.
Fine. You tell Tillie, won't you?
JOEY: Okay.
Joanna, I told you. My folks, they don't...
They think you're a coloured girl. Why didn't you tell them?
I was gonna write to them. What difference does it make?
Do you think they wouldn't come? Call them back and tell them.
They're gonna know anyway at 6:30 because I'll go with you to meet them.
Oh, no, that's not a good idea. I'll meet them.
It gives me a chance to explain... Ohh.
I have to explain... Why do you dramatise everything?
Look, I told Peter and Judith that we'll meet them for a drink at 5:30.
That gives us just enough time to get to the airport.
She's my best and oldest friend. You've just got to let them meet you.
Did he tell you about this medical plan of his?
No. What?
It's the damnedest thing you ever heard of.
They put a whole medical school on about 20 trucks, run into some African country,
pick up the brightest native kids, hundreds at a time,
and put them through courses. Like the U.S. Army Corpsmen.
Only his idea is that they're all specialists, each one trained to do one simple thing.
Like sewing up a wound, or delivering a baby, what have you.
They go into places where people never heard of an aspirin tablet,
let alone a doctor.
Imagine what that means.
For every thousand kids they train, they can save a million lives a year. Now, just think of that.
He seems to have made quite an impression on you.
Yeah.
I asked him how he got so far. You know, he's only 37.
He said he thought he got the best breaks
because everybody he met didn't want him to think they were prejudiced.
Yeah, he made an impression. I wouldn't know how to fault him.
Are you trying to fault him? No, of course I'm not.
You know his father is a mailman? Retired now, lives in Los Angeles.
Now, how do you suppose a coloured mailman
produced a son with all the qualities he has?
You'll find out this evening. What?
Guess who's coming to dinner. Who?
You mean... His parents?
Now, wait a minute.
Whose idea was that? Joey invited them.
Yeah, Joey, Joey. We're being pressurised. You know that, don't you?
First there was no marriage unless we approved.
Then we had one day to make up our minds.
Now we have to spend hours entertaining somebody we never heard of!
What the hell is coming off here?
Don't look at those. Those are my baby pictures. That was at Klosters the year...
[DOORBELL RINGS]
I'll get it, Tillie. Just a second.
Monsignor Ryan, how wonderful to see you!
Well, good afternoon. Good afternoon.
But why are you here when you should be in Hawaii?
What is the problem that caused your father to chicken out on our game of golf?
And who is this gentleman? This is Dr. John Wade Prentice.
We met in Hawaii 11 days ago and the two of us are gonna be married.
Are you indeed? I take it you mean to each other?
Dr. Prentice. Monsignor.
Of course, you're the problem. Yes.
I'm afraid I am.
Why haven't your parents informed me?
They didn't know either. We only flew back this morning.
Excuse me a second, I forgot to tell Tillie something.
Well, uh...
I suppose this was all very sudden? Yes, it was.
I suppose you two have had time to consider what you're doing.
No, we've not.
Tillie, we'll be two more for dinner.
How many steaks did you get? I got four. I was told four.
Order two more because the doctor's father and mother are coming and we'll be six.
His father and mother, here? That's right.
If the butcher can't send them, tell him to put them in a taxi.
It's getting more like a Holy Rollers' meeting every minute.
Of course! I know about you. I read an article about you in Commonweal.
I shall want to talk to you about that.
Do you know this fellow you brought home is a very important man? Are you aware of that?
I'm wholly aware of it. When I'm married to him, I'll be important.
Yes, I daresay you will, as a matter of fact.
Where's Arnold Palmer? Dad and Mom are in the garden.
Just go on with what you're doing. Fore!
Of all our friends, he's the closest.
We're not Catholics,
but he and Dad and Mom have done things together, sat on committees and things.
He's a wonderful man, and we love him.
You're a remarkable fellow, Mike. You get younger every minute.
Did you? Yes! I've just seen him.
Handsome fellow, isn't he? Little Joey's nothing less than radiant.
It warms me chilly old heart just to look at her.
Mike, aren't you just a little shocked?
Shocked? Why should I be shocked?
I've known a good many cases of marriages between races in my time.
Strangely enough, they usually work out well. I don't know why.
Maybe because it requires some special quality of effort.
More consideration and compassion
than most marriages seem to generate these days.
Could that be it? Yes, it could.
I'm glad you said that.
That's a beautiful thought. You do have beautiful thoughts.
It's my trade, you know.
What about laddie over here? You making heavy weather of it?
You know, this man is quite a famous fellow in his own right.
He's done incredible work in Asia and some awful place in Africa.
Mom! Hilary's here. She wants to see you.
Oh.
Excuse me. Express some more beautiful thoughts to the lad.
Thank you.
I hope you won't think I'm prying, but, naturally, one is curious.
Naturally.
Dr. Prentice and I are gonna be married, Hilary.
Are you?
I didn't even know. Christina hadn't even mentioned it.
She didn't know. It was a surprise to her too.
A surprise? Well, I should think it was!
[CHRISTINA CLEARS THROAT]
My dear, Joey tells me that congratulations are in order, and that you didn't even know.
What's the problem, Hilary? What brings you all the way up here?
Oh, Mr. Cazelet phoned about the...
Oh, that. Excuse us, will you? I'll walk out to your car with you.
I hope I'll be seeing you shortly.
Actually, no, Hilary, Dr. Prentice is leaving tonight, and Joey within the next couple of weeks.
Then you must permit me to wish you every happiness.
Come along, Hilary.
Christina! Oh, my poor dear, what a shock for you.
I knew something was up when I came into the gallery, but this? Whatever are you going to do about it?
The child is of age... Yes, the child is 23.
Why didn't you simply ring up with the Cazelet information?
I must admit, I was intensely curious.
I simply couldn't believe it. It's so unlike Joey to do anything so appallingly stupid.
Yes, come along, Hilary. What you must be going through!
You must try not to worry about it.
I have some instructions for you. Go straight back to the gallery. Start your motor.
[CAR ENGINE STARTS]
When you get to the gallery, tell Jennifer that she'll be looking after things temporarily.
She's to give me a ring if there's anything she can't deal with herself.
Then go into the office and make out a cheque, for cash, for the sum of $5000.
Then carefully, Hilary, remove absolutely everything
that might subsequently remind me you had ever been there,
including that yellow thing with the blue bulbs which you have such an affection for.
Then take the cheque for $5000, which I feel you deserve,
and get permanently lost.
It's not that I don't want to know you, Hilary, although I don't,
it's just that we're not really the sort of people
that you can afford to be associated with.
Don't speak, Hilary, just go.
You see that boy, the tall one? If he'd played his cards right, you'd never even have met me.
But he fell for some girl from Pomona. That'll teach him.
[DOOR CLOSES]
Mom, you know what Hilary was doing? She was being an absolute bitch! She was.
I almost wish you'd fire her, I really do.
Joey! How can you be so hard?
She has a ruthless streak, John. Be warned about it.
She gets it from her father.
They need all the help you can give them.
They're gonna have special difficulties...
Christina. Don't budge, please. Sit.
Of course, they know all that. They're serious people, fine, intelligent people.
And if they know what lies in store for them,
and they still want each other enough to accept it,
then it's as plain as anything that they love each other very much.
And you have to agree that any two people who love each other that much
deserve all the best luck in the world.
I don't know. I wish I didn't have the feeling that they'll never make it.
That the whole thing's impossible.
Oh.
You feel that way, do you?
You're really thrashing about, then.
That's very interesting, indeed. And rather amusing, too,
to see a broken-down old phoney liberal come face to face with his principles.
[CHUCKLES]
I always have believed that in that fighting liberal façade,
there must be a reactionary bigot trying to get out.
Oh, go to hell. You and your crowd are still preaching hell.
Well, I'm off.
As much as I'm enjoying your discomfort, I may be able to save a few souls before supper.
But I am, as it happens, free for dinner...
Please come, 7.30. The doctor's family are flying up from Los Angeles.
Oh, well, in that case, you'll actually need me.
Otherwise, your side won't even outnumber the blacks.
Thank you, my dear.
Half past 7. Oh!
What was that the Beatles sang?
[SINGING THE BEATLES' "WE CAN WORK IT OUT"]
[LAUGHING]
Mom did it. Do you think it looks like him?
He looks a little grim...
Hey! No, no. Don't let me disturb you.
Not at all.
I hope you don't mind, but I've just wangled an invitation to dinner.
I'm delighted you're coming. Thank you, my dear.
I'm very delighted to have met you.
My pleasure. Certainly. See you this evening.
You know, you two make me feel
quite extraordinarily happy.
I'd better tell Tillie. If you listen, you'll hear her going through the roof.
I've brought you the latest bulletin. Guess who's coming to dinner now.
The Reverend Martin Luther King? Oh, Tillie.
You're so close. Monsignor Ryan.
Bake a second pie. He loves your cooking.
Oh, listen, is the big guest room in order? Dr. Prentice wants to have a shower and change.
He does? He does.
She's 23. She has the right to do as she pleases.
That's not the point. The doctor said... I know what the doctor said.
Could we get out of here for a few minutes?
Can't we take a ride? What are the others doing?
Meeting Peter and Judith, then going to the airport.
Yeah, yeah, all right. Come on!
Well, come on, will you?
[FOGHORN BLARING IN DISTANCE]
What happened to Homer, that lawyer? I thought she liked him very much.
Nothing happened to Homer. Dr. Prentice happened to Joey.
Hell, it was only last Christmas she said Homer had the inside track.
Isn't that the place we got the good ice cream? Let's get some ice cream.
Oh, Matt, it's after 5! A little ice cream can't hurt!
[ROCK 'N' ROLL MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]
[CROWD CHATTERING]
Yes, sir?
When I had ice cream before, I had a special kind of flavour that I liked very much.
I can't remember what it was. I'll bring the list.
Oh, no, you must know what it is.
Daiquiri ice, honeycomb candy, cocoa-coconut, jamoca almond fudge,
mocha jamoca, peanut butter and jelly, cinnamon, banana mint?
Must've been some other place. Fresh Oregon boysenberry sherbet.
That's it. That's it.
That's it. Fresh Oregon boysenberry. Bring me a big one, huh?
Will you have some? No, black coffee.
One double fresh Oregon boysenberry sherbet and one black coffee. Thank you.
[CLEARS THROAT]
You know, Matt,
I think Mike was right, that Joey is lucky.
The work he's doing is so important. She'll be able
to help him with it and share it all with him. It's the best break any wife can have.
You know, for us it's all been great.
But do you know what was the best time of all?
Was in the beginning, when everything was a struggle.
And you were working too hard and worried, sometimes frightened.
And there were times when I felt, when I really knew,
that I was a help to you.
That was the very best time of all for me.
Okay. One black coffee. Thank you.
And one fresh Oregon boysenberry sherbet.
Thank you. Thank you.
This is not the stuff. I never had this stuff before in my life.
[CAR HORN HONKING]
You know, it's not bad at all. I kind of like it.
Fresh Oregon boysenberry.
Yes, sir?
When I had the ice cream before, this isn't the stuff I had.
But I like it, it's very good. I like it very much.
Okay.
[KNOCKS]
How do you do, Miss Binks? I got something to say to you, boy!
Just exactly what are you trying to pull here?
I'm not trying to pull anything. I was looking to find me a wife.
Ain't that just likely?
You wanna answer me something?
What kind of doctor are you supposed to be anyhow?
Would you believe horse?
Ohh!
You make with witticisms and all, huh?
You may think you're fooling Miss Joey and her folks, but you ain't fooling me.
You're one of those smooth-talking,
smart-ass niggers just out for all you can get,
with your Black Power and all that other trouble-making nonsense.
You listen here, I brought up that child, and ain't nobody gonna harm her none.
As long as you're here, I'm right here watching. You read me, boy?
You bring trouble, you'll know what "black power" means!
And furthermore, you ain't even all that good-looking!
[♪♪♪]
[ROCK 'N' ROLL MUSIC PLAYING OVER SPEAKERS]
That was very good. If I come in again, remind me about the Oregon boysenberry.
Yeah, I sure will. Thank you, sir.
Shall we take home a couple quarts for dessert?
No. Tillie's baked some pies.
You stupid idiot!
You stupid idiot! Why can't you look where you're going?
Your car's so low, I couldn't see it.
Of course you didn't see me! You weren't even looking!
Look what you did to my car! All right, it's my fault. My insurance...
Who cares about your lousy insurance? I worked over three months on that!
How much to have it repaired? Look at it! Thirty or 40 bucks.
Stupid old man! You ought to be put away someplace, in a home or something.
There's 50 bucks. Don't bother to have it fixed. Buy a new one!
Some of these old guys, they're senile!
Stupid old man!
There ought to be a law! There ought to be a law!
What the hell is it today?
Less than 12 percent of the people in this city are coloured people.
I can't even have a dish of Oregon boozenberry without running into one of them!
[SINGING "GLORY OF LOVE"]
[BAND PLAYING]
[SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
I just can't tell you how happy I am for you.
And the whole thing having happened so quickly.
You remember what it was with Peter and me. It took us three years to get married.
We'd been living together for two of them.
To John and Joey. John and Joanna.
He won't call me anything but Joanna. I'm beginning to like it too.
To John and Joanna.
You know, where you're so lucky is in Joey's folks. Joanna's folks.
You've only just met them, but take my word for it,
Matt Drayton really stands for something in this town.
It's always been a good paper. And he made it what it is.
And there's never been a single public issue on which Matt Drayton didn't take a stand.
JUDITH: When are you flying over? Sometime next week?
As soon as I can arrange everything.
Why aren't you flying over with John?
Why am I not flying over with you?
JUDITH: Is your passport in order? Yes.
JUDITH: Need clothes or anything? Nothing I couldn't get over there.
Then it seems crazy for both of you to go all that way alone when you could go together.
Why don't you both leave tonight? Why not?
Yes.
[ALL LAUGHING]
It's 6:00. In an hour they'll be here. The doctor's plane leaves at 10:45.
No matter what it is or when you say it, you have to tell them how you feel.
I need more than one day to make a decision like that.
It's the silliest thing I ever heard of. But I'll tell you this:
I am not gonna try to pretend that I'm happy about it. I'm not.
If the doctor's decision depends upon that, then it's too bad.
And I'm thinking only of Joey's welfare.
I have nothing against him, but he's a grown man,
and he behaved irresponsibly by letting this thing happen.
Now he wants me to be happy about a situation
when I know they'll both get their brains knocked out!
Sorry, but that's the way I feel. And I know how you're reacting.
You're so wrapped up in Joey's excitement
that you are not behaving in her best interest.
[♪♪♪]
Yes, Mom, but there wasn't any reason not to go tonight. You can understand, can't you, Mom?
My passport's in order, I don't need anything. I can pack in an hour.
I'll be with him. We'll be together the whole time.
Mom, they're here. I can see them.
They look like awfully nice people. His mother looks lovely.
Break it to Dad for me, will you?
Well...
I should've called you back again, because there is one thing I...
I've been meaning to write to you. There's one thing I didn't explain.
And I'm afraid it's gonna be kind of a shock.
If you see what I mean.
Mom, Dad, this is Joanna Drayton.
Joanna, my mom, my dad.
Mrs. Prentice, I'm so happy.
Miss Drayton? Drayton, yes.
JOEY: Mr. Prentice, I'm very pleased to meet you.
I can explain.
I can imagine what's going on in your mind,
but we can explain.
You can? Of course we can.
You have bags?
Of course you have bags. Let's go get your bags.
Mama.
What did your folks say? All's well.
Did you talk with your father? To Mom, but she'll tell him.
Tonight? I thought I ought to tell you.
This whole damn thing... No, that's out of the question.
I couldn't do what you're about to do, so I don't begin to understand how you propose to go about it.
You can't break their hearts over a drink and then expect them to sit down to dinner.
Don't you think I know that?
I'll talk to the doctor after dinner. Tell him exactly how I feel.
Matt, I'm not trying to argue.
There's nothing to say that you don't know.
But it's important that you understand just how wrong I think you...
I believe you're making the worst mistake...
I think you'll regret it for as long as you live.
You're as wrong as you can be.
I'm thinking of her. Even the doctor's gonna know I'm thinking of her.
There's something else. I'm surprised it hasn't occurred to you.
The doctor will accept whatever you say to him because he's a terribly sensitive man
and because he said he would.
But Joey won't. Your mistake is in underestimating your daughter.
She'll fight you and your whole attitude and everything you do
and every argument you ever try to give her.
And one thing more.
Until today I'd never have believed I could say such a thing.
But when she fights you, and for what it may be worth,
I'm going to be on her side.
I never would've believed I'd hear you say a thing like that.
Damn it.
Can I get you another drink? No, thanks. I'll get it myself.
[ALL CHATTERING]
I wish we had more time...
What were you gonna say?
I was gonna ask Miss Drayton how her parents reacted to...
Yeah, I wanted to ask that too. Please call me Joanna.
They were shaken. I don't think I've seen them so surprised.
What really shook them was that I wanted to marry anybody they hadn't even heard about.
I can't blame them for being stunned.
Then you couldn't blame us if we were a little stunned too.
I mean, I wouldn't appear unreasonable if I suggested
that you two are behaving like escaped lunatics.
Dad,
this whole thing happened so quickly. It's like riding a rocket.
We didn't plan it that way, it just happened that way.
It's hard on Joanna's folks, and it'll be hard on you.
If you have any objections, you'd better raise them in a hurry,
because in exactly four hours we're gonna be on that plane and gone.
I can't list all my objections in four hours. I think I'd need more like eight hours.
You've only got four hours, so you'll just have to talk twice as fast.
[DOORBELL RINGS]
Christina! Hello, darling. How are you?
Forgive me. I'm a little bit early.
[SPEAKS IN LATIN]
Come in.
I don't like to be always repeating myself,
but how long since I remarked
that you are the loveliest woman I've ever known?
There is a kind of envy that is in no way sinful.
That's what I've always had for Matt.
What can I get you to drink? I like Scotch.
But aren't we drinking wine? Yes.
I'll have a drop of Scotch anyhow. Equal amount of soda, please.
Thank you.
My dear, what's the matter?
We're in trouble, Mike.
We're in terrible trouble, terrible trouble.
John told us, Matt and me, that he wouldn't marry Joey
unless we approved the marriage with no reservations whatever.
Joey doesn't know he said that.
Now she's decided to go with him tonight.
They're on their way in from the airport with John's parents.
Neither of them knows that Matt has decided...
Well, Matt has decided that he can't approve.
That's not true. Please tell me it's not true.
Where is Matt? He's upstairs, changing. He's...
He's not himself, Mike.
Oh.
Excuse me.
It's incredible!
Table all right? It's fine, Tillie. Thank you.
Miss Christina, what's gonna happen here?
I don't know, Tillie. I just don't know.
You and Mr. Matt gonna put a stop to this damn nonsense foolishness?
Tillie, I don't want to put a stop to anything.
He's a fine man. He's a wonderful man.
And Joey is very much in love with him.
And it isn't just "damn nonsense foolishness."
I tell you, the way you're talking,
I don't understand nothing no more.
Nobody understands nothing no more.
MATT: No, I don't think you're butting into something that doesn't concern...
Damn, blast these lousy...
I understand how you feel, Mike. I understand how everybody feels.
But you have to understand something too. They've boxed me into a hell of a corner here.
And no matter what Christina says, or what you say, I won't behave irresponsibly.
I'm not gonna tell them they can't get married. I don't even have the right.
But they don't have the right to come in here and expect me to be happy about something...
Oh, for God's sake!
You're about to destroy all the happiness there is
in one of the happiest families I've ever known.
Have you any appreciation at all for Christina?
Christina?
Have you any appreciation at all of how she has behaved today?
She was all for it as though there were no problems.
But there are no problems they don't know about.
Christina respects Joey's judgement more than you.
Oh, come off it! If Joey came home with some fuzzy-wuzzy and said,
"Mom, this is the man for me," Christina would say, "How wonderful!
Where will we get enough roses to fill the Rose Bowl?"
I'm trying to remember where I've seen you so angry.
Oh, yes. When you took nine shots on the seventh green.
Would you mind getting the hell out of here?
I think I know why you're angry too.
Not with the doctor, not with Joey or Christina, not even with me.
You're angry with yourself. You pontificating old poop!
You're angry because suddenly you've been thrown.
You're the last man I'd expect to behave this way.
You're not yourself! You're off balance!
You don't know who you are, what you are, or what you're doing.
That's your trouble. You've gone back on yourself. In your heart, you know it.
There's a limit to what I'll take, even from you!
For 30 years, there's been no man I've admired or respected more.
You know that, Matt.
And for the first time in all those 30 years, I feel sorry for you.
Damn it, that's enough!
Are you really capable of putting yourself in my position?
Unless you've got kids of your own somewhere,
how could you know how a father feels in this situation?
You don't know! I know they won't have a dog's chance,
not in this country, not in the whole stinking world!
They are this country, Matt.
They'll change this stinking world.
In 50 years, maybe, or 100 years,
but not in your lifetime. Maybe not even in mine.
My dear friend,
I wish with all my heart you could be restrained.
If I were 10 years younger, to prevent you from going downstairs,
I'd make an effort to wrestle you to the floor.
That'll be the day. That will be the day.
[CAR HORN HONKING]
Is that the car? Did you hear a car?
Mrs. Prentice. I'm Christina Drayton.
How do you do?
I'm so pleased to meet you.
Let me take your coat and hat. And yours, Mrs. Prentice?
How good of you to come all this long way. Do go in.
What did Dad say? Did you tell him? Was he shaken?
Well, it was a surprise.
Does he wanna talk to me?
I'm sure he does, later. Please come in.
May I get you a drink? May I have some sherry, please?
What a lovely room. John, would you be bartender?
Shall we sit over here?
What will you have, Dad? Bourbon? Thank you.
MRS. PRENTICE: You have such a magnificent view, Mrs. Drayton.
Thank you. Please sit down.
Sit down, Mr. Prentice.
Did you have a pleasant flight?
Very pleasant, thank you.
The view of the sunset was breathtaking.
Only took 40 minutes. Four hundred miles.
It's incredible, isn't it?
[CLEARS THROAT]
My husband will be down directly, I think. He's upstairs changing.
And we have a friend coming to dinner, Monsignor Ryan.
They'll be down in a minute. Mrs. Prentice. Mom.
Here you are, Dad. Thanks, son.
Are you Catholics, Mrs. Drayton?
No, we're not, Mr. Prentice.
I'm afraid we're nothing in particular. Monsignor Ryan just happens to be an old friend.
Do you come often to San Francisco?
I've got to talk to your father. There he is.
Dad, I'd like you to meet Mr. And Mrs. Prentice.
This is my father. Mrs. Prentice, nice to meet you.
How do you do?
Mr. Prentice, happy to meet you. May I present Monsignor Ryan?
How do you do? How do you do?
Glad to meet you, sir.
Are you and John tending bar? Yes.
We're both drinking Scotch. Coming up.
Sit down, sit down. Sit down there, Mike.
Well...
Did you have a nice flight from Los Angeles?
Oh, yes. Very nice flight.
TOGETHER: Only 40 minutes.
Only 40 minutes from Los Angeles. Terrifying.
If you're going to talk about flying, you could talk about flying to Geneva,
because John and I are hoping to persuade all four of you to fly over for the wedding.
Would anybody like to talk about that before I go up and start packing?
I take it they've told you all about their plans.
Of course we have. It's only when you're eloping that you keep it a secret.
I don't know about you, Mr. Prentice,
but it seems to me that these two are rushing it just a little bit.
It seemed that way to me too.
It seems like that to you too? That's right.
Mm-hm. I'm certainly relieved to hear that.
I was beginning to think I was the only one...
I would like Mrs. Prentice to see the view.
What are you talking about? What view?
From the terrace, before it gets too cold.
Would you care to see the view? Yes, thank you. I would.
Good. Excuse us. Bring your drink, that's fine.
Mrs. Prentice, have you had any chance to speak privately with John?
Well, no.
It's important you understand what's happened here,
and what I'm terribly afraid is going to happen.
May I explain the situation to you, or try to?
Yes, please. I wish you would. First I have to ask you...
Forgive my being so abrupt and so direct.
Are you shocked by the fact
that John, your son, is involved with a white girl?
Yes, surprised.
It never happened before.
I guess it never occurred to me that such a thing might happen.
But it wouldn't be true to say that I'm shocked.
Are you, Mrs. Drayton?
Well, I think I was at first, this afternoon,
because it came as a surprise to us too.
But now I know how they feel about each other.
Joey's very young, Mrs. Prentice, but she's not a child.
And they're deeply in love with each other.
Are you about to tell me that you'd approve the marriage,
but that your husband won't? Is that it?
Yes, that's it.
My husband won't either.
I wish there were more time, just to adjust to the situation,
but there just isn't any time.
If we're going to accept the thing at all, it seems to me,
we'll have to trust the two of them
and accept that they know what they're doing.
And, Mrs. Drayton, my husband just won't do that.
They seem to be having quite a conversation out there.
It might do no harm if we had a few words, Mr. Drayton.
Yes, sure.
We can go into my study. Will you excuse us, please?
Doc, you'll excuse us, please?
I'll have another drink, if you will.
Another? No.
If you'll excuse me, I'll go up and throw a few things together,
like for the next 10 years.
Mr. Drayton...
I don't know you at all, and I certainly wouldn't wanna offend you,
but are you some kind of a nut?
Are you telling me that you approve of this?
I wasn't going to tell you that.
Because if you do, you may be a big newspaper publisher,
and I'm nothing but a pensioned-off mailman, but you are out of your mind!
I have a good idea of what my father is saying to him.
I wish I knew.
You were talking with him upstairs.
Have you any idea what Mr. Drayton is saying to my father?
I can tell you one thing.
I was sorry to hear that you intend to withdraw from the situation
if you encounter any opposition.
She's up there packing.
John, your mother would like to speak to you.
This is a mess. Where's Joey? She's upstairs.
I'm going up.
Everything is ready when you are. We're not ready, Tillie.
Well, what you're saying is you feel practically the same as I do.
That's right. But even so, you know, this is a hell of an unhappy situation
for both your son and my daughter.
I think it'd be best if you talked to John yourself.
Hmm.
I said that if they didn't approve, there'd be no marriage.
I set the terms, Mama. They don't disapprove.
Only Mr. Drayton. Are you sure?
She said she'd even drive you to the airport.
John, I've lived with your father for almost 40 years.
God willing, there'll be a lot more.
And even though I've only known about this situation for one hour,
I feel the same way Mrs. Drayton does.
She says Joanna will never give you up.
I guess it depends upon how much you want her.
Want her?
I want her, Mama.
You know what it's been like for me these past eight years?
I felt like I never wanted anybody again.
But, Mama,
these last few days with her,
it's like I'm alive again. It's love.
MATT: Excuse me, doctor.
[♪♪♪]
Your father wants to talk to you. Does he?
He's in my study.
I've been talking to your husband, Mrs. Prentice.
He seems pretty much upset by all this.
I know. Your wife says you are too, Mr. Drayton.
Not upset, exactly. It's a very difficult problem.
For whom? For you and my husband?
I think you'll solve your problem.
All you have to do is tell them you're against them. That's all.
And you'll have no problem.
You're not telling me you're happy about this?
This is not a night for talking about happiness.
This is an unhappy night.
You talked to Christina. I know how she feels.
Can you imagine for one minute that I want to see them hurt?
No. No more than my husband does.
But hurt they're going to be,
worse than my husband knows.
I think worse than you know too.
He's as much against this as I am, maybe more.
Son, you've got to listen. I'm not telling you how to live your life,
but you never made a mistake like this.
You've been nothing but a source of pride for me and your mother your whole life.
But you don't know what you're doing!
This affair happened too fast, you said so yourself.
You've got to stop and think! Have you thought what people would say about you?
In 16 or 17 states you'd be breaking the law. You'd be criminals.
And say they changed the law, that don't change the way people feel about this thing.
For a man who never put a wrong foot anywhere, you're way out of line, boy!
That's for me to decide, man.
Shut up and let me... Don't say that to me!
You have no right after what I've been to you.
You know that and I know that. I know what you made of yourself,
but I worked my ass off to buy the chances you had!
You know how far I carried that bag in 30 years?
Seventy-five thousand miles. And mowing lawns in the dark
so you wouldn't be stoking furnaces and could bear down on the books.
There were things your mother should have had that she insisted go instead for you.
And I don't mean fancy things. I mean a decent coat. A lousy coat!
You'll say that means nothing? You'll break your mother's heart?
What happens to men when they grow old?
[♪♪♪]
Why do they forget everything?
I believe those two young people need each other
like they need the air to breathe in.
Anybody can see that by just looking at them.
But you and my husband,
you might as well be blind men.
You can only see that they have a problem.
But do you really know what's happened to them,
how they feel about each other?
I believe that men grow old,
and when sexual things no longer matter to them,
they forget it all, forget what true passion is.
If you ever felt what my son
feels for your daughter, you've forgotten everything about it. My husband too.
You knew once, but that was a long time ago.
Now the two of you don't know.
And the strange thing for your wife and me
is that you don't even remember.
If you did, how could you do what you are doing?
I don't care what your mother says. Maybe she's gone haywire too. This is between you and me.
That's the first thing you've said that makes any sense, because that's exactly where it's at.
And what I mean to say... You've said what you had to say.
You listen to me.
You say you don't want to tell me how to live my life?
So, what have you been doing?
You tell me what rights I've got or haven't got and what I owe to you.
Let me tell you something. I owe you nothing.
If you carried that bag a million miles, you did what you were supposed to do.
Because you brought me into this world.
And from that day, you owed me everything you could ever do for me,
like I will owe my son if I ever have another. But you don't own me!
You can't tell me when or where I'm out of line,
or make me live by your rules.
You don't even know what I am, Dad.
You don't know who I am. How I feel, what I think!
And if I tried to explain it the rest of your life, you will never understand.
You are 30 years older than I am.
You and your whole lousy generation believes the way it was for you is the way it's got to be!
And not until your whole generation has lain down and died
will the dead weight of you be off our backs!
You understand? You've got to get off my back!
[♪♪♪]
Dad.
You're my father.
I'm your son. I love you.
I always have and I always will.
But you think of yourself as a coloured man.
I think of myself as a man.
Now, I've got a decision to make.
And I've got to make it alone, and I've got to make it in a hurry.
So...
would you go out there and see after my mother?
Ooh, Mom!
[♪♪♪]
CHRISTINA: Oh, darling!
Talk John's parents into flying over with you.
It would mean so much to John, and I know they can afford it.
John's father will make it rough for him.
Did you see his expression when he went to talk with Dad?
But isn't she lovely? Don't you like her already?
Yes, darling, I do. She's a good one.
When John's father saw that I was white, I thought he'd faint.
What about your own father? Yes. That was funny, wasn't it?
Mom, isn't this thrilling? Aren't you just...?
Yes, darling, I am just...
[♪♪♪]
I should be able to say something to you, Mrs. Prentice.
In my trade there are a hundred clichéd phrases of comfort,
for every human condition.
But in the midst of this heartbreaking distress,
I must admit I'm completely stumped.
There's simply nothing I could say.
Mary, you've got to understand... Please, John.
The monsignor is right. Please, say no more.
I'll be a son of a bitch.
Close the door, Mr. Drayton.
You didn't have the guts to tell me face to face?
Before you start telling me how much guts I've got,
I told you I'd have something to say.
Now I'm ready to say it.
Are you going to stay in here?
Joey.
You know that I'm completely sympathetic, don't you?
You know that I have no reservations about anything.
And that whatever makes you happy is my happiness too.
Of course I know that.
Then listen to me, darling.
There's something I have to tell you about this situation,
which you don't really...
MATT: Christina! What are you doing up there?
Joey! Come on down here, both of you!
How about your glasses? Can I get you a drink, Mr. Or Mrs. Prentice?
No, thank you. John? Mike? No, you've had enough.
Dad. What's going on?
MATT: There's something I want to say.
I'd like you to sit down and see if you can keep quiet. Please, sit down, John.
Sit down, Chris, please.
I have a few things to say, and you might just think they're important.
It's been a strange day. That's not putting it too strongly.
I might even say it's been an extraordinary day.
I've been thinking about the day and the way it has gone,
and it seems to me that now
I need to make a few personal statements
for a variety of reasons.
The day began for me when I came in and Tillie said to me...
Excuse me. Tillie!
This'll only take a second.
Everything's been ready... All right, Tillie. Sit down.
This is Miss Matilda Binks,
who's been a member of this family for 22 years.
And who today has made a great deal of trouble. Sit down.
Now, the minute I walked into this house this afternoon,
Miss Binks said to me, "All hell done broke loose now."
I asked her, naturally enough, to what she referred,
and she said, "You'll see." And I did.
After some preliminary guessing games, at which I was never very good,
it was explained by my daughter that she intended to get married,
and that her intended was a young man whom I'd never met
who happened to be a Negro.
I think it's fair to say that I responded to this news
in the same manner that any normal father would respond to it,
unless, of course, his daughter happened to be a Negro too.
In a word, I was flabbergasted.
And while I was still being flabbergasted,
I was informed by my daughter, a very determined young woman,
much like her mother, that the marriage was on
no matter what her mother and I might feel about it.
Then the next rather startling development occurred, when you said
that unless we, her mother and I, approved of the marriage,
there would be no marriage.
You didn't. What a funny thing to do.
Joey.
This may be the last chance I'll ever have to tell you to do anything.
So I'm telling you, shut up.
Now, it became clear that we had one single day
in which to make up our minds as to how we felt about this whole situation.
So, what happened? My wife, typically enough,
decided to ignore every practical aspect of the situation
and was carried away in some kind of a romantic haze, which made her, in my view,
totally inaccessible to anything in the way of reason.
I have not as yet referred to His Reverence,
who began by forcing his way into the situation,
and then insulting my intelligence by mouthing 300 platitudes,
and ending just a half-hour ago by coming to my room
and challenging me to a wrestling match.
What time is your plane? 10:45.
Right.
Now, Mr. Prentice, clearly a most reasonable man,
says he has no wish to offend me but wants to know if I'm a nut.
Mrs. Prentice says that, like her husband,
I'm a burned-out shell of a man who cannot remember what it's like
to love a woman the way her son loves my daughter.
And strange as it seems,
that's the first statement made to me all day
with which I'm prepared to take issue.
Because I think you're wrong. You're as wrong as you could be.
I admit that I hadn't considered it,
but I know exactly how he feels about her.
And there is absolutely nothing that your son feels for my daughter
that I didn't feel for Christina.
Old, yes.
Burned-out, certainly.
But I can tell you, the memories are still there.
Clear, intact, indestructible.
They'll be there if I live to be 110. Where John made his mistake
was attaching so much importance to what her mother and I might think.
Because in the final analysis it doesn't matter a damn what we think.
The only thing that matters is what they feel
and how much they feel for each other.
And if it's half of what we felt...
that's everything.
As for you two and the problems you're going to have, they seem almost unimaginable.
But you'll have no problem with me.
And I think that when Christina and I and your mother
have some time to work on him, you'll have no problem with your father, John.
But you do know, I'm sure you know, what you're up against.
There'll be 100 million people right here in this country
who'll be shocked and offended and appalled at the two of you.
And the two of you will just have to ride that out,
maybe every day for the rest of your lives.
You can try to ignore those people,
or even feel sorry for them and for their prejudices and their bigotry
and their blind hatreds and stupid fears,
but where necessary, you'll just have to cling tight to each other
and say, "Screw all those people."
Anybody could make a case, and a hell of a good case, against your getting married.
The arguments are so obvious that nobody has to make them.
But you're two wonderful people
who happened to fall in love
and happened to have a pigmentation problem.
I think that now, no matter what kind of a case some bastard could make
against your getting married, there would be only one thing worse.
And that would be if, knowing what you two are,
knowing what you two have,
and knowing what you two feel,
you didn't get married.
Well, Tillie. When the hell are we gonna get some dinner?
["GLORY OF LOVE" PLAYING]