Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium

This is one of my favorite stories of all time,

even though it begins in a basement.

I'm gonna tell it the way it was written

by this guy-- Bellini--

who lives underneath the amazing, the remarkable...

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium.

And, yes...

he sleeps with a dolly.

Bellini's job is to build all the books

for all the kids who come to the Emporium.

But it is also to chronicle the life of Mr. Magorium himself.

Mr. Magorium once made toys for Napoleon,

beat Abraham Lincoln at hopscotch

and holds the current record for time spent upside down.

There were those who called Magorium a genius.

My mom called him an eccentric.

And this one guy from Detroit

inexplicably called him ''Steve. ''

But Magorium's story

was reaching its final chapters.

That's okay--all stories, even the ones we love,

must eventually come to an end...

...and when they do,

it's only an opportunity for another story to begin.

So the beginning of the end begins with a chapter called,

''Molly Mahoney's First. ''

Molly Mahoney was the manager of the Emporium,

Mr. Magorium's apprentice, and my only friend.

In the mornings, Mahoney would play her piano,

attempting to finish her very first concerto,

but she never could find the right notes.

When she was younger,

everyone thought she was a musical genius,

a brilliant pianist,

and she believed them.

But now, as she became a grown-up,

she wasn't so sure.

I don't know why grown-ups don't believe what they did

when they were kids.

I mean, aren't they supposed to be smarter?

What Mahoney needed was the opportunity to prove to herself

that she was something more than she believed.

And that opportunity was about to appear.

And so that's how this chapter begins...

with my hat getting stuck.

Eric.

Hi, Mahoney.

You're back.

Yeah.

I thought camp was four weeks.

No, no...just the one.

Uh-huh.

My hat's stuck.

Huh.

Looks like you're gonna need a ladder.

Nah.

I just need to jump higher.

Eric, that's seven feet, at least.

Seven feet?

- Really? - At least.

You think I should get a running start?

Yeah.

So, did you make any friends at camp?

Yeah.

Uh...Jeff.

Is Jeff real?

Yeah. Sure.

Is he an animal?

He was a squirrel.

Good morning.

ERIC Gotcha.

Uh-oh.

That's a good way to lose a train.

Mahoney.

Morning, sir.

Already?

Drat. Come in, come in.

How did you sleep?

Upside down. Made my feet tingly.

Mortimer, get off the couch.

Do you like turnips?

Nobody likes turnips.

So you probably wouldn't like turnip pudding.

Probably not.

It's a shame because I made some.

Sir, I was hoping to talk again

about what we spoke about last week.

About how paper really shouldn't beat rock?

No, sir.

About me possibly finding a new job.

That's what I was saying.

What?

I stayed up all night making turnip pudding,

and thinking, and it occurred to me

that I've owned the Emporium for over 1 1 3 years.

That's a very long time, Mahoney.

Yes, it is.

It's almost 1 1 4 years.

And not once have I even

looked at a receipt, so I have absolutely no idea

what the store is worth.

Well, that's probably not very good.

Exactly.

Mortimer... fetch.

Stupid zebra.

I'm hiring an accountant.

- A what? - An accountant.

According to the word,

it must be a cross between a ''counter'' and a ''mutant.''

And that may be precisely what we need.

That's great, but...

I'm pretty sure that word is pronounced...

I placed a call into one of those agencies

and they said they'd send over one of their best mutants

sometime today, hmm?

So consider the matter settled.

How is the matter settled?

Quite perfectly in my opinion.

- Come with me. - Sir?

- Hmm? - I'm serious.

What?

I'm stuck.

Ooh! To my floor?

No, sir.

Then what?

Like as a person.

You remember when I was a little girl,

and I could play Rachmaninoff's 2nd Piano Concerto

and everyone was talking about my potential?

Mm-hmm.

Well, I am 23 now,

and everyone's still talking about my potential,

but if you ask me to play the song I know best...

I'll still play Rachmaninoff's 2nd.

May I suggest you stun the world

with Molly Mahoney's First?

I want to.

But I am stuck.

Come with me.

This, my lovely, is for you.

Thank you.

What is it?

It's the Congreve Cube.

It looks like a big block of wood.

It is a big block of wood.

But now, it's your big block of wood.

Thank you.

I was just saying last night

I don't have enough big blocks of wood.

Unlikely adventures require unlikely tools.

Are we going on an adventure?

Well, my dear, we're already on one.

All I will say is this:

With faith... love...

this block... and a counting mutant,

you may find yourself somewhere you've never imagined.

And with that... let's open the store.

Wait, sir...?

Mortimer, I'm way ahead of you.

Stay out of the refrigerator.

Sir...

Yes, my honeycomb?

You're wearing your pajamas.

Flapdoodle.

Fore!

Whoa!

Whoo-whee!

Whoosh!

Eric, may I borrow your hat?

Sure!

Oh, excuse me. Hello.

Uh, how much are you asking for that fish mobile up there?

- Oh, that one. - Yeah.

Well, that's $50.

- Fifty! - Mm-hmm.

50-- don't you think that's a little high, just for a mobile?

Well, if you'll notice, they're fresh fish.

Uh...

If you don't want to spend that much,

we do have that fish mobile over there for only $1 7.

But those are not fresh.

And they're high in cholesterol.

Molly? Molly Mahoney?

Yeah.

It's Dave. Dave Wolf.

I was in your physics class in college.

Oh, hey!

Hey! Holy... cow. You still work here?

Yeah!

I mean, well... yeah.

So, uh, what about you? What are you up to?

I'm an engineer.

Congratulations.

You know, it's funny.

I would never have recognized you

if it wasn't for that finger thing.

Hah-- comes in handy on the cash register.

Do you still play the piano?

I do. Every day.

Well, I'm here for a week. Where are you playing?