Black Caesar

Say, man, how's about a shine, mister?

No.

Come on, put your foot up there. I'll shine it up good.

OK, make it snappy.

Gonna shine 'em up good so you can see your face in 'em.

Hurry up, kid. Come on, hurry up.

No shit, man. Takes time to shine 'em up bright.

You little bastard! You little black bastard, let go of my leg! Let go!

Let go! Let go of my leg!

I was born in New York City on a Monday

It seems I was out shinin' shoes by Tuesday noon

All the fat cats in their bad hats doin' me a real big favour

I got the fat cats in their bad hats playin' it on real good

Here's a dime, boy

Give me a shine, boy

Down and out in New York City

Got nowhere to be, but where can you go

When you're down and out in New York City

I'm never, never, never gonna get that way again

Down and out in New York City

Got nowhere to be, but where can you go

When you're down and out in New York City

I'm never, never, never gonna get that way again

No

No, no

No, no, not me

When you need a break

You need an angle

When you want a friend

Gonna get myself together in the morning

Gonna leave it all as one bad dream

All the fat cats in their bad hats are doin' me a real big favour

They've got the fat cats in their bad hats playin' it on real good

Here's a dime, boy

Give me a shine

Niggers aren't allowed in this building.

They never are.

I been sent with this.

- You ever see me before? - No.

You're lyin', blackbird.

- Who's at the door, Jack? - The janitor.

We'll be back in a minute.

Where's the fella who usually brings me this envelope?

How should I know?

You don't know a lot of things.

You and me better take us a little walk.

Remember, nigger, you've never seen me, you've never been here.

You got more to be afraid of from me than anybody.

I'll cut your black balls off. You hear me?

I hear ya.

Oh, just a minute. There's not enough here.

- Enough what? - It's $50 short. Now, where is it?

I don't know. I don't have it.

You're lyin', boy.

I don't have it.

Listen, nigger, they wouldn't dare short-change me. So cough it up.

They did it, didn't they?

I don't have it!

I'll take it off of you.

I could put a bullet through you for carrying a switchblade.

Do you want to be put away or are you gonna give me that 50 bucks?

Look, you fuckin' ass! I ain't got your money. You don't get pissed at me!

Get out!

Yeah, come in.

Why aren't you with the other guys? Why are you always by yourself?

Well, the, uh, the other guys, they... they don't want me around.

Oh. Well, you're the one I wanna see.

See, I'm gonna be gone for a few years under this rap.

I'm gonna learn a lot. I want you to learn a lot too.

- What are you talkin' about? - I mean, you're the big brain.

- I take good care of you. - I'll be all right.

Just shut up and listen! I want you to finish school - high school.

I was figurin' on CCNY someday. It's for free.

I want you to learn where to put money

so you end up with more than you started with.

Then when I get out, and I've started my business, you'll be with me.

Sure. Anything you say.

- Now get out before you start cryin'. - I ain't cryin'.

OK, so you're not cryin'! Get out. Fuck off.

And Joe, before I see you again,

I want you to get laid.

Make it snappy. I gotta catch a four o'clock flight to Vegas.

Yes, sir.

- You ever been to Vegas? - No.

Figures. I never seen any coloured fellas around the tables at Vegas.

I oughta tell the boys to let 'em in.

Christ's sakes. For Christ's sakes, nobody likes to lose... like the Negroes.

They're born losers. You know what I oughta do?

I oughta build a casino right out in the desert.

Just for the nigger trade.

I bet they'd hitchhike, ride the rails, even steal cars to get there.

- Be right with you, sir. - That's OK.

Take your time. I want Mr Grossfield to look his best for his friends and relatives.

- Who the hell are you? - Did you know that a man's beard

keeps right on growin' even after he's... dead?

Now, you get it real close, Sammy. We want it to last Mr Grossfield.

You're full of shit. You ain't got no gun.

Keep right on workin', boys.

This doesn't make any sense. I don't know who sent you, but we can work it out.

Nobody sent me. I thought it up all by myself.

- Sorry, sir. - Sammy, don't disfigure the man!

I was plannin' on givin' it to him where it didn't show. You're makin' a mess.

Look, can't we talk this out? What do we say?

I'm just as nervous as you are. This is the first time for both of us.

I ain't never killed anybody before.

I'm just tryin' to break into the business. At the top.

Look, I haven't got a gun. It's in my coat. Now, come on, give me a chance.

- Sorry, sir. - My hand's shakin' too.

- Will you be careful?! - Sorry.

The organisation is not gonna let you get away with it.

There's already a contract out on you. Cardoza wrote it.

That's right. Your friend Cardoza.

I'm just... savin' him time.

By volunteerin'.

Oh, say, you did a sloppy job, Sammy.

I ain't gonna let you shave me.

- Jesus Christ! - Sauce looked like it needed more meat.

What are you doin'? Who are you?

Just a jig who heard Grossfield needed killing.

That contract was only for professionals.

Don't I qualify? I spent eight years in some of your best private institutions.

- It was a clean job. - You call that a clean job?

In the afternoon, in a barbershop, with witnesses?

That's why I did it in front of everybody.

Everybody knows your... organisation

don't employ no niggers.

Sit down.

Uh...

Want somethin' to eat?

Peppe in un piatto di rigatoni.

E per me un piatto di spaghetti.

Where did you learn to speak our language?

One of my cellmates was a Sicilian kid.

Yeah?

I ain't never heard no dinge speak Italian before.

How many of us do you know?

- You get your 200. - Since when did the price go down?

Since when do spades make as much as whites?

Listen, shadow, you're lucky I'm even talkin' to you.

Look, you may wanna use me again. Don't screw it up.

No, I don't use the same man in the same city twice. They can be easily identified.

I got a built-in disguise.

They never look at me. They never look at my face, my nose, my lame foot.

- All they know is that I'm black. - Your kind has no guts.

If you get picked up, right away they start to talk.

You know what the other families'd do if I hired you? They'd scream bloody murder.

Nah.

You can't work for me. The other families won't let me do it.

I don't want a job. I want one full block to call my territory.

127th Street and Edgecomb Avenue.

- Why do you want that? It's shit. - I'll make it work.

Hey. Who says spooks don't have any ambition?

You don't know what you're gettin' into.

There might be a whole load of people I wanna get rid of.

You might not have a good deal after all.

So I put in a little overtime.

Salute.

Paid the cost to be the boss

Paid the cost to be the boss

I've paid the cost to be the boss

Look at me

You know what you see

You see a bad mother

Look at me

You know what you see

You see a bad mother

Paid the cost to be the boss

Paid the cost to be the boss

Look at me

You know what you see

You see a bad mother

Told you so

Told you so

Havin' fun, I got money for it

Havin' fun, I got mighty fun

Havin' fun, I got mighty fun

Havin' fun, I got mighty fun

Never fear, brother, I'm always here to save the souls and heal the ills.

And cash the cheques.

You see, uh, religious organisations is tax-exempt. Privilege, you know?

When we shake folks down, they're not payin' Tommy,

they're supportin' my religious organisation. And it all goes into a fund.

And we don't even have to hide the moneys

that we make from hookers and the numbers.

And we report it and use it tax-free to buy filling stations, supermarkets,

apartment houses - everything, anything Joe the brain can think up.

We intend to do more than just organise the rackets in Harlem,

we're going to see that black people get a fair shake. A chance to live better.

Isn't that right, Tommy?

I understand you're well-connected at the city hall, Mr Coleman.

Have you ever heard of a man called Gusick?

He's been the bagman... for certain... public servants...

since I was a snot-nosed kid.

What happened is the families that had been making the payoff

have finally demanded an accounting. An audit, you might say.

Don't tell me this... Gusick was foolish enough to keep ledgers?

I'm afraid so. I saw these ledgers once when I was a little boy.

Just a couple of ordinary books with a lot of facts and names.

But... oh, what names.

Cops, councilmen, congressmen.