The Set-Up

Man: Daily paper. Get your evening paper

with the complete fight card. Evening paper.

Daily paper. Get your evening paper

with the complete fight card. Evening paper.

City paper. Read all about it.

Evening paper and complete fight card.

Get your knockout here. All the fight news and pictures.

Evening paper. Get your evening paper.

Complete fight card.

- Hey, kid. Hey, kid. - Evening paper.

- I gotta make a buck too. - Go take a walk.

Evening paper! Evening paper!

Get your knockout here. All the fight news and pictures.

Hurry it up, won't you? The first fight's on already.

They put us back in the eighth row.

Man 2: Get your knockout here. All the fight news and pictures.

I couldn't find them anyplace. Let's go on in.

Well, we'll give them five more minutes.

All right?

All right.

I don't know why I let George talk me into coming.

Why, Harriet, I thought you liked the fights.

Like them? Last time I kept my hands

over my eyes the whole time.

- Man: Who do you like? - Man 2: Hawkins, for a sawbuck.

You got a bet. How about the semi?

I'll take Lopez. Even money.

Are you kidding? They're laying 3-to-1.

- Even money by a ko. - Forget it.

- How about Nelson and Thompson? - Stoker Thompson?

Is he still fighting?

I remember him when I was a kid.

Don't tell me you're that old.

Where's stoker?

He's over in the hotel getting some shut-eye.

Don't that guy get enough sleep in the ring?

You ought to know. You're his manager.

You wait here.

Come on, baby, and cough up.

I got it. I got it.

He'll give you an apple for an orchard any time.

Hey, put a head on this.

Hi, Danny.

Hi, tiny.

Everything's taken care of, Danny.

Uh...

If it's all the same to you, Danny...

How do I know you'll deliver?

You and me has done business a long time, Danny.

Yeah. But this deal ain't between you and me.

It's between you and little boy.

It's his dough you're taking, not mine.

- I know it, Danny. - Little boy's got a lot of plans

for young Nelson.

Little boy don't like nothing to interfere with his plans.

You said yourself stoker ain't got a chance.

Yeah, that's what I tell little boy.

But he likes insurance against accidents.

And when little boy buys insurance...

- He gets his money's worth. - My guy will deliver it, Danny.

Okay.

Now you got the set-up?

Nelson will carry your guy two heats.

Any time after that, stoker can go down for the count.

Eggs in the coffee.

Well, it's getting late. I got to blow.

It's all there. 50.

Come on. Let's go.

I said, let's go.

Did you get it? Yeah.

- How much? - Thirty.

- Thirty? I thought you said 50. - You know Danny.

- Only a fin? - Don"t you want it?

What about stoker? What about him?

He's all set, ain't he? You told him, didn't you?

Why cut him in?

I don't like it, tiny. Stoker can still punch.

If anything goes wrong, little boy's gonna...

Don't be a meathead.

Nelson will butcher him. It's 100-to-1.

That's just it. There's always the one.

I tell you, you gotta tell stoker.

You give me a bellyache.

The guy's blown 100 fights already without anybody's help,

and he ain't gonna need none tonight.

Hurry.

Yeah.

Did you sleep good?

Like a top.

Yeah. I was watching you.

Wanna know something?

I'll take that kid tonight. I can feel it.

- It's getting kind of late. - Everything's packed.

Well...

Let's get going, then.

Come on. What's the matter?

I ain't going tonight, bill. I got a headache.

Well, they gave me a good seat for you.

Row four, section c.

I told you, bill, I got a headache.

I'll be here when you get back.

Julie, you always go.

Don't you understand, bill? I don't wanna go no more.

After middle town the other night I...

That was different. I was off at middle town.

Off? Two hours after the fight, you still didn't know who I was.

Look, Julie, I can take this kid like I told you. I can feel it.

If I can belt him solid just once...

And what'll he be doing in the meantime?

You don't understand.

I understand that he's 23 and you're 35, bill.

Thirty-five in this business, you're an old man.

Look, Julie, they're building this kid up,

feeding him a lot of pushovers.

If I can get over him tonight, that'll mean a rematch.

That's a semi wind-up, 150 guarantee.

Top spot.

Yeah, a top spot, and I'm just one punch away.

I remember the first time you told me that.

You were just one punch away from the title shot then.

Don't you see, bill?

You'll always be just one punch away.

Oh, bill, it ain't I wanna hurt you,

but what kind of a life is this?

Springfield, middle town, unionville, paradise city.

How many more beatings do you have to take?

Yeah, but if I get a top spot again,

we'll get 500 bucks, maybe six.

Bill, it's been good a long time between us.

I want to keep what we've got.

Don't you see what we could do with 500 bucks?

I could get a piece of Tony Martinez.

Best-looking middleweight I seen since Harry greb.

I'll train him myself.

Or we could get a beer joint,

or maybe that cigar stand I told you about in union city.

I don't care about Martinez or cigar stands or anything else.

It makes no difference to me if you go back to the docks

or drive a garbage truck

or go on relief even. Julie.

Well, it's better than having you with your brains knocked out, bill.

It's better than having you dead.

Stop it, Julie. Stop it.

Oh, bill.

Maybe you can go on taking the beatings. I can't.

Well, that's the way it is.

If you're a fighter, you gotta fight.

Here's your ticket.

You can do what you want.

Man: Get your knockout here, all the fight news and pictures.

Get your knockout here.

- Hiya, stoker. - Hiya, bat.

- Nearly a sellout. - Good.

Well, luck, stoke. Yeah.

Get your knockout here.

- Hiya, Thompson. - Hi, Sam.

This Moore is murder.

Kill him! Kill him! Kill him! Keep it up! Come on! Kill him!

Man: Moore's got him on the ropes.

See how he's working on his middle.

Oh, another in the gut.

- The ref's gonna stop it. - Let them fight.

No, wait. He's gonna let them go.

Good. Good.

Announcer: That makes it 3 and 2, folks.

And the sox have two on and two away.

It's still anyone's ballgame.

Come on! Come on! Hit him! Throw that right!

Red: Hey, stoker.

- Where you been? - Just got out of the kip.

Hiya, tiny.

- How you feel? - In the pink.

- You do? - You wanna know something?

I'm gonna take that kid tonight. I can feel it.

Oh, take it easy, stoke. Nelson's strong.

Don't slug with him. Try to stay the distance.

Stay the distance? I tell you I'm gonna take him.

- Sure, stoke. Sure you will. - I get a semi if I win, don't 1?

Semi, nothing. I'll get you a star bout, 25 percent.

Now go on in, stoke. I'll see you later upstairs.

Look, look. Take it easy, will you, stoke?

- Hiya, stoker. - Hiya.

Hold still.

- Hiya, stoke. - Hiya.

Mickey, better get the gloves on that kid.

Yeah, yeah. Come on, kid, let's go.

Plenty of time, stoker. You're on after the main event.

Yeah, I know.

How come? =the radio.

They got to go with the main early.

Turn your hand over.

You sure this is tight enough?

I was winding bandages before you was born.

- Quit worrying. - Who's worrying? I feel super.

- I thought you said he was tough. - Well, I thought he was.

Boy, he sure laid down when I clipped him.

I told you he was a sucker for a left.

Everybody's a sucker for something.

I knew I had him the first time I let him have it in the gut.

His belly was soft, like mush. I kept hammering the same spot.