Phantom of the Paradise

Swan... He has no other name.

His past is a mystery,

But his work is already a legend.

He wrote and produced his first gold record at 14.

In the years since then, he has won so many others...

That he once tried to deposit them in Fort Knox.

He brought the blues to Britain.

He brought Liverpool to America.

He brought folk and rock together.

His band, The Juicy fruits,

Single-handedly gave birth to the nostalgia wave of the '70s.

Now he is looking for the new sound of the spheres...

To inaugurate his own Xanadu,

his own Disneyland,

The Paradise,

the ultimate rock palace.

This film is the story of that search...

of that sound,

of the man who made it, the girl who sang it...

and the monster who stole it.

Eddie's sister, Mary Louise,

Needed an operation.

To get the money he would have to become an overnight sensation.

Had wonderful, love-giving hearts.

His well-publicized end he considered would send...

his memorial album to the top of the charts.

When a young singer dies to our shock and surprise...

In a plane crash or a flashy sports car,

He becomes quite well-known and the kindness he's shown...

has made more than one postmortem star.

Well, you did it, Eddie.

And though it's hard to applaud suicide,

you gave all you could give so your sister could live.

All America's choked up inside, man.

You know, it just seems like yesterday I found Annette in that church choir.

I got her singing lessons. I taught her how to dress.

I got her first club job, and I paid off a columnist.

He did a beautiful story on her.

I taught her who to be nice to, who to...

I fed her the drugs to get her through the road tours.

I made her record a hit. Then I sold her to you.

You made her the biggest thing in rock. So now what does she do?

She fires us, cancels her Vegas date...

And wants to give free concerts for starving gook orphans.

She was more than a piece to me. She was the light of my life.

And now she's gone.

There will be a 20-minute intermission...

Before the next show.

We sued her. We couldn't lose.

We had her in an ironclad contract.

It was a lock. It was over. It was closed.

I even bribed the judge.

He ruled against us. Said we couldn't sign anyone to a life contract.

Said we were a disgrace to the profession. A disgrace, he said!

I was the one that made her the money-grubbing whore she was, and he calls me a disgrace.

What do you want me to do?

Break her.

Is that all? Isn't that enough?

Annette is nothing, finished, washed up.

But she's at the top of the charts.

That's today, Philbin, today. Tomorrow she'll be forgotten.

Besides, we have more important business, you and I... the Paradise.

I know, boss. We've looked everywhere. You just don't seem to...

Listen.

What?

That's it. What?

The music to open the Paradise.

After all these years, I've finally found it.

You want that creep to open the Paradise? No, not him.

The music. Listen to the music.

You'll think of something.

Mr. Leach?

Hello? Yeah. My name's Arnold Philbin.

Hello. Look, I scout talent for Swan,

and, uh, he's interested in your stuff.

The Swan? That's right.

He said your sound could be real big. Did he really say that?

I was sittin' next to him. Oh, if Mr. Swan would produce my music,

the whole world would listen to me.

The game plan exactly. But you need a lot of work, a lot of polishing.

Oh, I know, Mr. Philbin. I-I have a long way to go.

Right. Now, do you have any tapes of your stuff?

No, but it's all written down here.

Well, why don't you give us just two or three of the really good up numbers...

Two or three up numbers? You don't understand.

The scope of this cantata is 200 or 300 pages long, and I haven't finished yet.

Well, never mind the sonata. We just want the songs.

It's not just songs. It's more. It's much more.

I don't get you, kid.

Well, it's a whole series of songs that tell the story of Faust.

Who? What label is he on? Faust.

Faust was a legendary German magician who sold his soul to the devil...

For worldly experience and power.

What is this, kid, school time? I got a plane to catch.

Look, a song is a song. You either dig it or you don't.

Now, I like your stuff, kid. I think it's terrific.

You know what? What?

I think The Juicy Fruits are gonna dig it.

The Juicy Fruits? I'm not promising anything. First...

I'm not gonna let my music be mutilated by those grease-balls!

I'm the only one that can sing "Faust"!

Relax, kid. It was just an idea.

Swan makes all these decisions, you know?

I'm-I'm sorry. I...

It's just that I've worked so hard on this thing.

Uh, it's okay, kid.

Boy, you sure got some temper.

I'm sorry. I don't know what comes over me.

It's all right. Just relax. Take it easy. Why don't you give me the music,

Swan'll take a look at it on the plane and we'll get right back to you.

But if you ask me, I think we're gonna produce your first album.

Really?

Hello. I'm Winslow Leach.

Yes? Mr. Philbin said...

Mr. Swan was gonna call me about producing my first record.

Mr. Philbin said he'd get right back to me. That was a month ago.

One moment, please.

Taxi! Taxi, taxi!

Follow that car.

Well, I got it from Philbin, to audition with.

Sing it again.

Why? Go ahead, sing it.

That's incredible.

How'd you know it went like that? I wrote the song.

If you wrote this stuff,

then why aren't you in there with Swan auditioning the singers?

I don't know. There must be some mix-up. Oh, sure.

They must not know who you are. Your name's not on the music.

Well, that's funny. Swan heard me sing that song.

Why is he auditioning girls for my cantata? I only sing it solo.

Haven't you heard? What?