Two Seconds

And another thing.

I don't want any of you newspapermen trying a hidden camera stunt on me.

This isn't a public exhibition.

And you folks who've never seen anything of this kind before, remember no talking.

No matter what anybody says or does, you keep quiet.

Even if John Allen himself should talk to you, don't dare answer.

It doesn't seem quite fair not to talk.

We ought to try to make his last few minutes as pleasant as possible.

Oh shut up.

I'm not worried about him.

He'll faint dead away as soon as the show starts.

All set?

Yes sir.

Then we'll start the parade.

Why doesn't he want us to answer John Allen if he talks to us?

Why'd you come up here anyway?

There ain't gonna be any legs in this show.

Well you see, I'm taking a lot of sociology courses at college, so Professor

Summers, he teaches us you know, thought it'd be a good thing if one of us

could report to the group the actual process of an execution.

So he selected me and got me a pass from the governor.

College boy huh?

Well you'll get your belly full of it up here all right.

Doctor, you tell me will you?

Why can't we answer John Allen back?

It's because Allen is living on his nerve now.

If he talks at all, it'll be simply to keep up his courage.

He really doesn't expect an answer.

If you gave him one, you'd likely throw him off.

Then we'd have the devil of a time with him, hysteria

and all that, fighting to keep out of the chair.

I don't know about that.

He seemed pretty cool when I talked to him.

When was that?

Yesterday.

What'd he have to say?

Does he still persist that we're burning him at the wrong time?

Yep.

There's something in what he says too.

I don't know about that.

Look doctor, when that currents turned on, how long will it take before it's all over?

You mean before I'll pronounce him dead?

No, before he actually is dead.

Will he pass out as soon as the current hits him?

No.

He won't?

I thought it was all over, just like that.

Not with a powerful fellow like John Allen.

His body will be paralyzed, but his brain will

continue to function for maybe two seconds.

Gee, those will be the longest two seconds he ever lived.

Long enough for him to relive his whole life.

He's due now.

That's me.

What is it, big boy?

McGrew went dead.

McClellan?

Then I'll see.

Yeah, it's him.

What's wrong?

Got a screwdriver?

Wait a minute.

I don't want to be late quitting.

I ain't giving this outfit no free overtime.

Anyway, not when I got a heavy date on.

Hey, listen bud, I don't think I'm gonna horn in on your party tonight.

Getting stuck up all of a sudden, are you?

Me and Eddie ain't good enough for you anymore.

It ain't that.

You know it.

It's only that... Well, I don't know who the

dame is Annie's gonna bring along for me.

And I ain't so keen about a blind date.

Ah, she'll be all right.

Annie knows you're particular about dames.

She'll get you a good number.

Yeah?

Well, how about that truck horse you picked out for me last time?

I'd give her the devil for it, didn't I?

Yeah, a lot of good of dead me.

I was stuck with her for a whole evening.

Boy, all that dame wanted to do was eat.

Eat and dance.

I felt like I was handling the rear end of a fire truck.

I told Annie that.

She knows better now.

Now, you call her up and tell her it's cold turkey with me for tonight.

I can't do that now, John.

Annie's got a dame all set up.

Well, what's this one to be like?

I don't know, but she ain't gonna be no fireman's delight.

This baby's gonna be all right.

She's got class, Annie says.

What's in the laundry?

Well, I hope she's got class.

Hey, listen, remember now, I ain't promising you no Peggy Joyce.

Oh, that's all right.

I ain't expecting anything much.

After all, the laundry is where you send your dirty clothes.

You know, bud, working this way 20, 25 stories up in the air, you know,

it kind of gives a fella ideas.

You know, you meet a guy or a girl down there and they think they're hot stuff,

the amount or something.

Well, ain't nothing wrong with them being that, is it?

No, nothing wrong, nothing like that.

No, but I don't know, you know, when you get up here and look down on

them, when you get a different slant on the whole thing.

You know, they only seem like, like just a crawling bunch of little flies.

Look at them, look at them crawling down there.

The banker and the lawyer and the fancy dame, all

the rest of them thinking they're doing big things.

Yeah, making speeches and getting into the papers and cheating and hating each other.

Yeah, I bet your God gets a big laugh out of this old world.

Hey, listen, if you're gonna talk careless-like about

God, don't pick out no six-inch girder to do it on.

Well, don't it ever hit you that way, too?

Look it, John.

You and me's been bunking together for more than two years now, and I ain't never

heard you pull off anything like this before.

You got me scared.

Well, it scares me too sometimes.

You're in a bad way.

Better take some aspirin.

First thing I know, you'll be going sour on me.

You'll be clipping some of them coupons and

getting yourself a study book to carry around.

Well, that mightn't be a bad idea at that.

Oh, no.

Not while you're bunking with me.

I ain't gonna live with no Lily.

Why don't you worry?

Yeah, the girl I'm gonna fall for is gonna have real class.

Yeah, I ain't seen no poodle dogs chasing you.

Man, I wish she was gonna have an education.

A girl you can learn something from.

Ain't no use in both of us being dumb.

What do you want to go bothering your head about that education bunk for?

Ain't you making $62.50 a week?

Yeah.

Well, what more do you want?

A guy told me that $62.50 is more than what a college professor makes.

Do you want to be a college professor and

not have any dough to blow in on a good time?

No, no.

It ain't no money, Bud.

It ain't that.

It's only... Gee, I don't know.

There's so much in the world, I don't know.

One thing you sure don't know is when you're well off.

Yeah, I guess you're right, Bud.

I don't know.

I should be wanting them kind of things.

You know, it's being up here so close to the sky makes a guy think crazy.

You leave this thinking racket to the guys what gets paid for it.

You know, like college professors.

You and me?

We ain't got no time to think.

We got work to do.

Oh, you said it.

There's only one thing we gotta think about.

When we get our arms around a dame, how far can we go?

Hello?

Oh, hello.

Yeah, sure.

I did?

How much?

38 bucks?

Oh, boy!

Yeah, sure.

Where's the payoff?

Don't worry, I'll be there on time.

No, John!

John!

Hey,

John, can you top it?

I pulled away a peach blossom in the third.

Yeah?

How much did you make?

38 bucks?

Gee, not bad.

Not bad?

38 bucks without lifting a finger.

Say, where'd I be if I could pull one like that every day?

You lost over 38 on the ponies last month alone.

Oh, that don't count.

The bookie's paying off in front of Tony's place.

I'll phone the girls to meet us there.

We'll go out and fill the works.

Hey, you ain't gonna blow in the whole 38.

Well, I sure am.

If you don't spend easy money fast, no more will ever come to you.

Oh, yeah, but it seems crazy to spend all that jack on a couple of dumb dames.

I ain't gonna spend it on the dames.

Yeah.

It's on us.

A couple of ties for you and a silk shirt for me.

I seen a beauty the other day.

I'm gonna get it.

Blue silk, it was.

What's left of the 38 goes to the girls.