Screenplay

» by Kristine Johnson & Jessie Nelson.
[Shooting draft]
2001

PART - I

INT. STARBUCKS - 7:30 A.M.

We're watching a pair of hands arrange white sugar packets,
blue Equal packets, and pink Sweet and Low into small
containers. With precision and lightning speed, the mixed up
colors and crumpled packets are transformed into neat little
color-coded rows. Wait, this container has three Equals and
four Sweet 'n' lows. The hand quickly plucks the mutant
Sweet 'n' Low. There. Symmetry.

We move up those hands and meet SAM DAWSON as he surveys his
domain. Something about him. He's extremely compelling,
uniquely handsome. But it's more than that. Those eyes,
they sparkle with the wonder of a child. Life's cynical edge
has not etched it's path across this face. They light on a
COFFEE CUP held by one of the Regulars.

SAM
Double double decaf low-fat Cap.

BRUCE
You got it, buddy.

SAM
Good choice very good choice.

Sam moves along, commenting to CUSTOMERS as he places Sweet
'n Lows on tables, the self-appointed host of Starbucks.

SAM (CONT'D)
Mocha rumba Frappuccino no whipped, half
low, half non. Excellent choice. Very
good choice.

He stops in front of sale mugs and turns them so that the
logos all face the same way. His boss GEORGE approaches.

GEORGE
Sam, they called. It's time for you to
go.

Sam FREEZES, but doesn't turn around.

GEORGE (CONT'D)
Sam, did you hear me?

SAM
"It's time for you to go."

GEORGE
Yes.

SAM
It's time.

GEORGE
Good luck.

Without another word, Sam walks straight out the door.

EXT. LOS ANGELES STREET - DAY

Sam, still in his white apron, walks down the busy street.
He has a fast, loping gait that doesn't slow or hesitate for
anyone. A COUPLE argue on the sidewalk. Sam WALKS RIGHT
BETWEEN THEM.

SAM
It's time. It's time.

Sam keeps moving, he crosses the street without stopping.
Traffic SCREECHES to a HALT! Cars HONK, a taxi driver YELLS.

SAM (CONT'D)
It's time, it's time for you to go.

INT. HALLWAY - LATER

Sam plows down the hall and comes to room 324.

SAM
Rebecca!

Sam pushes the DOOR OPEN. And we REALIZE we are entering: A
HOSPITAL LABOR DELIVERY ROOM AT LA COUNTY HOSPITAL.

REBECCA is in the middle of a major contraction. Her face is
the opposite of Sam's. Hardened. She lets out a scream that
stops Sam dead in his tracks. GERTIE, a no-nonsense Black
Nurse, looks up from the monitor.

GERTIE
You the one responsible for this?

Sam nods, taking Gertie quite literally.

SAM
I'm sorry.

GERTIE
Too late for sorries, daddy, get over
here and hold her hand.

Sam reaches for Rebecca's hand. She pulls it away. ANOTHER
CONTRACTION - Rebecca screams. Sam SCREAMS.

NURSE
You got a live one, Gert.

INT. LABOR ROOM - LATER

DR. JAMISON
Okay, this is it!

SAM
(spins in circles)
This is it! This is it!

DR. JAMISON
And it's a girl...

The BABY lets out her first cry. Sam watches, awestruck.
Gertie wraps the baby in a blanket and holds her out to
Rebecca. Rebecca shakes her head - NOT NOW. Gertie walks
over to Sam.

GERTIE
There's someone who's been waitin' an
awful long time to see you, Sam.

She places the BABY into SAM'S ARMS. Suddenly Sam's whole
body RELAXES and becomes very still. He looks to Rebecca,
but she has turned away. He meets Gertie's eyes. Then in
quiet amazement:

SAM
This is it.

GERTIE
What's her name?

SAM
(looks at clock)
Let me see let me see let me see.
12:17, March 2nd. Lucy in the Sky with
Diamonds. Recorded March 2nd. 1967.
Lyrics by John Lennon, music by Paul
McCartney. Lucy Diamond Dawson.

We hear LIKE A LULLABY, "Picture yourself on a boat in a
river with tangerine trees and marmalade skies..."

EXT. HOSPITAL - NEXT MORNING

Sam, holding the baby, and Becca, having just checked out,
walk down the steps of the hospital holding their
complimentary plastic baby bag. Sam is nervous haling the
precious cargo and Becca is agitated. They see the bus
pulling up and down the street and Sam moves quickly so they
can hurry and catch it. As he approaches the bus, he looks
to Becca by his side, but she is not there. He looks around
and no sign of her.
Frantically turning in a full circle, he sees the fabric of
her dress disappearing into the crowd down the street. He
screams.

SAM
Becca! Becca!

The more he screams the faster she moves away. Till there's
no trace of her. Sam stands in the middle of the busy block
holding Lucy to his chest, devastated.

We hear, "Look for the girl with the clouds in her eyes, but
she's gone."

SMASH CUT TO:

INT. BUS - NIGHT

Sam holds the now sleeping baby to his chest. Next to him is
the plastic bag from the hospital containing diapers, two
cans of formula and a half empty bottle of milk. Sam is
surrounded by PASSENGERS, the eerie world of the underground
at night. Instinctively, Sam holds her even tighter, two
against the world.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - DAWN

A marvel of organization. A closet reveals clothes on
hangers exactly equidistant from each other; precisely folded
T-shirts, underwear and socks organized by color. A
carefully systemized record collection fills makeshift
bookshelves.

Beatles posters from every era decorate the walls. Becca's
things sit in one corner. An island of chaos in an "Hold
Everything" showroom. The kitchen counter has been
transformed into a changing table. Bottles and pacifiers
lined up next to a stack of cloth diapers. Underneath, a
clothes line of baby clothes.

The sound of a CRYING BABY breaks the silence. The camera
follows and finds the CRADLE: a DRAWER tucked snugly into a
blanket hanging like a hammock between two chairs. An
exhausted SAM POPS up from his bed, behind the hammock. He
swings the hammock, hoping against hope the baby will go back
to sleep.

SAM
Didn't you just fall asleep, little
girl?
(Lucy cries harder)
Okay, if you say it's time to get up,
then it's time to get up, time to get
up.
(Sam sniffs the air)
Oh my, oh my, oh my. Quite a bit of
business.

He rushes over to the kitchen counter and unsnaps the baby's
pajamas, revealing a cloth diaper held together with
promotional buttons: one says "Hertz, #1 for Car Rentals",
the other a picture of Magic Johnson and reads "Go, Lakers,
Go!" Sam undoes it.

SAM (CONT'D)
Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. Let me
see let me see let me see.

Sam attempts to clean and diaper her. He finally manages to
pin the buttons so that it at least stays on.

SAM (CONT'D)
You look very beautiful this morning,
very beautiful.

He holds her up, and the diaper falls down around her ankles.

CUT TO:

We pan across a row of diapers on a supermarket shelf:

HUGGIES, PAMPERS, EXTRA ABSORBENT PAMPERS, LUVS...

INT. WALMART - DAY

Sam stares at the "Great Wall of Diapers", awed. He reaches
for the Pampers, balancing Lucy, then the Luvs, no, the
Huggies. Sam stops moving, Lucy starts CRYING, so he jogs in
place. Sam decides on one of each. He heads to the FORMULA
AISLE. Gerber, Carnation, Carnation Iron Fortified. He
stops. Lucy WAILS. WE HEAR THE SONG "HELP, I NEED SOMEBODY"

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - 9 P.M.

Sam paces, carrying Lucy who screams at the top of her lungs.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - 11:25 P.M.

Sam rocks the CRYING BABY in the hammock. He's exhausted,
but she's just getting started. He puts another blanket on
her.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - 1:30 A.M.

Peace. A punch-drunk Sam lays the sleeping baby into the
cradle as if she were a bomb that might detonate.
He tiptoes, his FIST raised victoriously - "YES!" He doesn't
get two steps before Lucy wakes screaming. Defeated, he
picks her up. HELP. The PHONE RINGS. HE PRESSES speaker.

RASPY WOMAN (O.S.)
What the hell are you doing to that
baby?!

He looks out his window and sees ANNIE CASSELL, his neighbor
on the phone, watching him through her window. She is a
strange creature with very thick glasses. We sense a
uniquely profound intelligence behind all that armor.

SAM
Everything's so tiny, tiny. Tiny.
Everything. Won't you please come over?
Help. I need somebody. Won't you
please please help me.

ANNIE
You know I can't do that. What does her
mother say?

SAM
Her mother? Her mother said "This isn't
my life. I'm outta here when she comes.
It didn't mean anything, Sam. It was
just one night. The two of you. That's
all I need..." Annie, what if she's
sick?

EXT. HALLWAY - CONTINUOUS

ANNIE has her door open a crack. Annie feels the baby's
forehead. Lucy stares up at her, quiet now, fascinated.

ANNIE
She's overheated and not eating enough.
How often are you feeding her?

SAM
A lot, Gerber, Carnation, Gerber.

ANNIE
What's a lot?

SAM
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Three
squares hot.

ANNIE
Babies need food every two hours, Sam.

SAM
Oh. I'm sorry Lucy Diamond.

ANNIE
What time does the little diamond wake
up?

SAM
She never really goes to sleep.

ANNIE
Okaaaay. Well, let's assume she's up at
six. Keep your TV on Nickelodeon. I
want you to feed her first while
"Bewitched" is on. Then again, when
"Hogan's Heroes" starts. After that,
well until "Father Knows Best..."

CUT:

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - EVENING

We are watching "Hogan's Heroes". We hear SHULTZ'S INFAMOUS
RESPONSE: "I know nothing, absolutely nothing!" Sam feeds a
content Lucy.

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - LATER

"Father Knows Best" on TV. Lucy blissfully falls asleep in
Sam's arms. Euphoric, he tiptoes to the cradle and places
her ever so gently, when suddenly, the FRONT DOOR FLIES OPEN.

Sam's BEST FRIENDS DESCEND inside: IFTY, a Pakistani
gentlemen with a gentle face and a wide smile, carrying a
large stuffed giraffe with a bow on it. BRAD, who sees
himself as a real ladies man, in tight jeans and a Farrah
Fawcett T-shirt; and ROBERT, highly paranoid, thinks the
world's out to get him. Lucy WAILS. Sam RUNS to the CRIB.

SAM
What are you doing here now?! Her first
sound sleep, not a sound, not a sound.

BRAD
Eight years every Thursday Video Night
and you forgot?!

SAM
Oh my god, Video Night. First Thursday
of the month. Video night at Sam's
house. I'm sorry, I forgot.

IFTY
Becca's gone. "Gone with the Wind" is a
very sad movie.

ROBERT
Oh here we go...Everything changes now.
Soon you'll forget about Wednesday night
Denny's and Friday night Karaoke. And I
got hit by a car today.

SAM
You did?

ROBERT
It's probably that guy from the V.A.

BRAD
What guy?

ROBERT
(closing window)
I can't discuss it. And now this.

Ifty makes ORIGAMI BIRDS out of newspapers. Lucy's rapt.

SAM
She looks smart, doesn't she?

IFTY
Of course, look. She's already reading
the newspaper. I have five smart
sisters in Pakistan. I am only brother.
"Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" was a
wonderful movie I forgot to bring last
week for Video Night...

BRAD
Did you get "Blade Runner" for tonight?

ROBERT
Now it's all my fault?!

BRUCE
Don't tell me you forgot again. I broke
a date with a daydream to come here.

There's a knock at the door. Ifty goes to get it. Brad
moans when he sees his 65 YEAR OLD MOTHER, ESTELLE, standing
in the doorway.

BRAD
Mom! I told you Video Night's over at
nine! It's only six-thirty!

ESTELLE
(unaware of the baby)
Sorry. I'll wait in the lobby.

She exits. Lucy begins to CRY. Brad takes her - like a hot
potato, Robert takes her - now Ifty runs around in circles.

IFTY
She needs motion. My father drove my
sisters in his taxi to get them to go to
sleep. Two-fifty surcharge on all
taxi's from the airport...

ROBERT
I got hit by a taxi on Tuesday.

And it all starts again and we --

CUT TO:

EXT. BUS - NIGHT

An empty bus makes its way through the city at night.

INT. BUS - NIGHT

BUS DRIVER
Main and Temple...again. She out yet?

The camera moves along and stops on the long seat at the
back. Sam lies with Lucy spooned into the crook of his arm,
almost asleep.

SAM
Almost there, almost there. One more
round and she'll be down for the night.

We hear the song "Golden Slumbers". In a SERIES OF
DISSOLVES, we see Lucy and Sam in DIFFERENT SLEEPING
POSITIONS on the bus seat. Gradually, she GROWS in HIS
PROTECTIVE EMBRACE --

ONE MONTH, THEN TWO. NOW FIVE. She's BIG AND ROUND at SIX
MONTHS. And on and on into the night...

INT. WALMART'S PHOTO BOOTH - DAY

We see Sam and Lucy CRAMMED into the booth, wearing birthday
hats, taking HER FIRST BIRTHDAY picture. We see the PHOTO
STRIP as it comes out of the slot. Sam's shoulder with
Lucy's ear - Lucy's nose with Sam's elbow, their faces never
made it into the picture.

INT. STARBUCKS - 8:30 A.M.

The place is packed. Sam moves from table to table,
cleaning.

SAM
Double macciatto, low foam, low-fat.
Good choice, very good choice.

Sam turns and WE SEE LUCY attached to him in a handmade
snugly, crocheted by Annie. She faces outward, all hands,
all 16 MONTHS of her; too big for the snugly. She grabs a
croissant from a customer. George looks confused. Then
makes a SWIPE for a customer's coffee, knocking it to the
ground. It SPLATTERS all over an anorexic, on-her-fourth
double-latte WOMAN in a designer exercise outfit. She begins
shrieking. George looks at Sam, this can't go on.

INT. APARTMENT HALLWAY - MORNING

Sam, Lucy by his side, has his foot in Annie's door.

SAM
Please, Annie! She's too big to take to
work.

ANNIE
I'm not a baby-sitter. I'm too busy.

LUCY
Annie, Annie, Annie...

ANNIE
(suspicious)
Did you teach her that?

SAM
It was her first word. Very first word.

Annie opens the door, takes Lucy's hand, and pulls her in.

ANNIE
And people worry you're not smart.

INT. ANNIE'S APARTMENT - ONE WEEK LATER

The apartment looks like a fallout shelter. The kitchen
contains enough canned goods to last a year. Brightly
colored crocheted doilies - Annie's hobby - adorn every
available surface. The BRIGHTLY COLORED WEB of an
AGORAPHOBE.

Lucy sits in Annie's lap, getting her first piano lesson. WE
SEE LUCY'S TINY FINGERS on the keys. In a SERIES OF
DISSOLVES, it is joined by Annie's hand tapping out one note,
now two notes, and as the weeks pass, a chord. Until finally
the notes merge to become the most unlikely duet of "Twinkle,
Twinkle, Little Star".

ANNIE
This is Mozart. He did twenty-two
variations of "Twinkle Twinkle Little
Star". You smell good. You can tell a
lot about a person by their smell. If
they've got too much perfume on they're
covering something up. You gotta watch
someone who smells like soap. Gotta
wonder what their priorities are.
Nervous people. People who try too
hard. They smell like fish. But you.
You smell like milk. Milk and hope.

Lucy leaves the piano and toddles over to Annie's loom and
plays with a ball yarn.

VOICE (O.S.)
Groceries, Annie.

ANNIE
Thanks.

Annie opens the door to pull in the groceries. The ball of
yarn ROLLS OUT the door and Lucy chases after it. Annie,
terrified, bellows:

ANNIE (CONT'D)
Lucy! Come back here! Come back!

It becomes obvious Annie can't walk outside. Trembling:

ANNIE (CONT'D)
"Lucy in the sky with diamonds..."

Hearing the familiar tune, Lucy stops and toddles back.
Annie sweeps her up, relieved and we --

INT. KARAOKE BAR - NIGHT

Sam on stage, with Ifty and Brad as his back-up singers,
continuing the song in the oddest, most heartfelt version to
Lucy who sits on Robert's lap and in heaven.

EXT. PARK - DAY

A beautiful blue sky. And "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds"
continues as Lucy's THREE YEAR OLD laughing face SWINGS INTO
FRAME on a swing then DISAPPEARS out THE OTHER END OF FRAME.
Now Lucy SWINGS BACK DOWN and out of the other end again...

Sam's FACE, glowing with delight, APPEARS AGAINST THE SKY and
then disappears. Sam and Lucy are on swings surrounded by
MOTHERS and KIDS at the park.

LUCY (V.O.)
Daddy, where does the sky end?

SAM (V.O.)
Let me see, let me see. I've never been
there but they say it's somewhere near
China.

EXT. PARK - ONE YEAR LATER

Lucy FLIES INTO FRAME, now FOUR, sitting on Sam's lap,
swinging.

LUCY (V.O.)
Are lady bugs only girls or are there
boys, too. And if there are, what are
they called?

SAM (V.O.)
The Beatles.

EXT. PARK - ONE YEAR LATER

Then Lucy FLIES INTO FRAME, now FIVE, followed by Sam.

LUCY (V.O.)
Do I look more like you or Mommy?

ON SAM'S FACE

He knew this moment would come.

INT. DENNY'S - THURSDAY NIGHT DINNER - EVENING

Lucy and Sam are having a serious talk over breaded Sole.

LUCY
If you and Mommy liked each other enough
to have me, how come you're not together
anymore?

SAM
I think she fell out of love with me.
Not you, never you. Me, just me.

LUCY
When you fall out of love where do you
land?

SAM
Somewhere in Florida, I think.

LUCY
Do you think she'll ever come back?

SAM
(long pause)
Paul McCartney lost his mother when he
was fourteen. John lost his mother
twice. First when Julie gave John to
her sister Mimi to raise. And then
again when Julia was hit by a car. They
say God picks certain people, special
people. That's what they say.

Lucy takes this in. Sam begins to shift his tomatoes just
so... his potatoes just slightly to the left. Lucy watches.

LUCY
Daddy, did God mean for you to be like
this or was it an accident?

SAM
Do you mean - what do you mean?

LUCY
I mean you're different.

SAM
What do you mean? I mean, what do you
mean?

LUCY
You're not like the other daddies.

SAM
I'm not am I. I'm sorry.

LUCY
Don't be sorry. I'm lucky. Nobody
else's daddy ever comes to the park.

ON SAM'S FACE

Filled with relief. Bursting with love.

SAM
We are very lucky, aren't we?

Grace approaches with two plates of pie, ice cream on the
side.

GRACE
Ice cream on the side.

LUCY
Not on top. Not on top.

SAM
Good choice. Very good choice.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - THURSDAY NIGHT VIDEO NIGHT

SAM
Brad, I know it was your turn. I'm sure
of it.

BRAD
I swear to God it was Robert's turn.

ROBERT
Why is it always my fault?

IFTY
I keep track, last time, I say to
myself, I say, write it down... Bank of
America give away beautiful calendar,
every month a picture of wild animal,
look June, an Elk. Elke Sommer...she
starred in the remake of "Prisoner of
Zenda"... Three stars Leonard Maltin
video movie guide.

As they go on, Lucy matter-of-factly PULLS A VIDEO OUT OF HER
BACKPACK, and puts it in the VCR. She turns it on. It's
"Kramer vs. Kramer". Everyone stops their arguing and stares
at Lucy.

LUCY
Annie let me borrow it.

INT. CHILDREN'S SHOE STORE - DAY

A row of brand new children's shoes on display. Lucy tries
on dozens of school shoes, surrounded by Sam and her
"Godfathers": Ifty, Brad and Robert.

SAM
You need a good sturdy school shoe.
Arches are very important.

IFTY
Sturdy is boring. Red shoes bring good
luck.

BRAD
But red doesn't got with green.

IFTY
Except on Christmas.

BRAD
No brown clodhoppers. Everyone will
make fun of her.

SAM
NO ONE will make fun of Lucy.

ROBERT
She might be stupid.

IFTY
No she's not --

ROBERT
Did they test her?

BRAD
You don't know for sure.

SAM
Yes I do.

BRUCE
But if she is, don't make her go to
school.

ROBERT
Don't let her in the lunch room. Johnny
Marzettie's there.

BRAD
And gym. Get her a pass. The rules for
volleyball are so hard to remember.
"Rotate Rackman Rotate."

IFTY
Throw the ball at his forehead and the
water on his brain will come out his
nose.

Meanwhile, Lucy has been trying on a simple brown shoe.

LUCY
I like these.

SAM
She know what she likes. She likes
these. How much are they?

SALESMAN
Forty-nine ninety-nine.

SAM
One penny less than fifty. These shoes
are one penny less than fifty?

LUCY
It's okay, Dad. I don't really like
them.

SAM
No, no no no no.

IFTY
We'll all give ten dollars.

BRAD
I've only got three plus five. But I
need one for stamps.

ROBERT
Don't pull your wad out in front of
people.

They all dig in their pockets and begin counting very slowly.

SAM
Thank you, thank you. We are rich in
friends. That's what our fortune cookie
said. 1, 2, 3, 4, quarters that makes
one.

SALESMAN
I'll count it.

SAM
Is it enough?

SALESMAN
(exasperated)
If there's a God.

BRAD
Do we get a balloon with these?

SALESMAN
Yes.

ROBERT
All of us, or just her?

SMASH CUT TO:
EXT. STREET NEAR SHOE STORE - DAY

Those new little brown shoes walking in between four pairs of
man's shoes. We move up from those shoes to see FIVE PAIR OF
HANDS tightly clasping their balloons as they march
victoriously down the street. We MOVE IN on Lucy's little
brown shoes skipping with joy and --

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. SCHOOL FIELD - DAY

Those same little shoes in the midst of a mass of black
soccer cleats. We move up and see Lucy in the middle of a
fierce kids soccer game.

Score's tied. The ball comes to Lucy. She kicks and misses.
From the sidelines we hear:

SAM
Beautiful kick! Very close!

Lucy looks up at her dad proudly. The ball comes again.
Nobody could miss this one. But Lucy does.

SAM (CONT'D)
Thatta girl! Thatta girl! They're
getting scared now!

The game continues. The GOALIE'S FATHER, DUNCAN RHODES,
handsome, commanding and dressed in a suit, calls to his son:

MR. RHODES
C'mon, Conner! On your toes! They're
all counting on you!

Conner tenses up, alert under the pressure. Meanwhile, down
at the other end, the ball heads toward Lucy. She kicks it!
Hard. Right into her team's own goal. The crowd GROANS.

SAM
Hurray, Lucy! You're getting the hang
of it now! You've got them scared now!

Lucy's bursting with confidence, plows toward the ball and
NAILS IT! The ball goes flying. The parents in the stand
are completely baffled! Sam is completely ecstatic!

SAM (CONT'D)
L-u-c-y! That's our battlecry!

The ball heads into the goal, just passing the goalie,
Conner. Sam runs to embrace Lucy when he hears Duncan
reaming his son --

MR. RHODES
The whole game was right in front of
your nose! I leave work early to watch
you blow the whole game!?

Conner slouches against the fence as his father walks away.
Seeing this, Sam whispers to Lucy.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - AFTERNOON

A child's hand double jumps across a checker board.

CONNER (O.S.)
Ha!

Lucy and Conner are playing checkers while Sam cooks dinner.
Two carrots cut into ten pieces. Bow Tie Pasta - 35 pieces
each.

CONNER (CONT'D)
What's wrong with your father? Why's he
acting like a retard?

LUCY
He is.

Their hands graze against each other on the check board - he
pulls his hand away.

CONNER
Are you?

LUCY
No.

CONNER
Are you sure?

LUCY
Yeah.

CONNER
How do you know?

LUCY
He told me.

CONNER
But he's a retard.

LUCY
Yeah well it takes one to know one!

He crowns her - her eyes shift to Sam in the kitchen, for the
first time a bit uneasily.

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - NIGHT

Sam's reading Lucy her homework book.

SAM
"They perched in sisisi..."

LUCY
"Silence."

SAM
"...silence for a long time." Boy.
Your teacher chose a hard book this
time. "How can we be so difdifdif..."

LUCY
"Different."

Sam glances up at Lucy self-consciously. Lucy grabs the book
from Sam, tosses it on the pile and picks up another.

LUCY (CONT'D)
I don't like that book - let's read
"Green Eggs and Ham".

Relieved, Sam plunges into the book, which is more memorized
than read.

SAM
"I am Sam, Sam I am. Do you like green
eggs and ham? I do not like them, Sam I
am!"

They both laugh, delighted. Lucy looks sleepy.

MATCH DISSOLVE:

Lucy is getting drowsy. Sam is just getting started.

SAM (CONT'D)
"And I will eat them here and there.
Say I will eat them ANYWHERE. I do so
like green eggs and ham, thank you thank
you, Sam I am!" One more time!

LUCY
Daddy, I have school tomorrow...I don't
wanna be too sleepy.

SAM
Just the part about the boat and the
goat in the rain in the train?

LUCY
Daddy, Hamburger Hamlet has twelve
different kinds of hamburgers. Can we
go there Wednesday instead of Denny's?

SAM
But Wednesday night's Denny's,
Thursday's Video Night, Friday Night
Karaoke.

Lucy nods, a little deflated.

SAM (CONT'D)
How about one more time, just the
beginning? "I am Sam, Sam I am..."

Lucy sighs and closes her eyes against her father's chest.

INT. CLASSROOM - DAY

Lucy draws a picture while everyone reads aloud from
"STELLALUNA".

MISS WRIGHT
Lucy, your turn. Start where Sara left
off...Lucy?

LUCY
I can't.

MISS WRIGHT
Sure you can.

LUCY
"They perched in sisisisi..."

MISS WRIGHT
Silence.

LUCY
(throws down book)
There. I told you. It's too hard.

MISS WRIGHT
Lucy! I know you can read this!

LUCY
No, I can't! And you can't make me!

Lucy runs out of the class.

EXT. BUS STOP - DUSK

Sam, in sunglasses, waits for the BUS. A YOUNG WOMAN, LILY,
sits down next to him. The WIND CATCHES her floral dress
that's just left of innocent; just right of alluring. She
reads a TABLOID.

LILY
Look here. "Premature baby claims he's
cupid - has the arrow to prove it." Do
you believe that?

SAM
Well, if he has the arrow.

LILY
Yeah. You got a good point.

She crosses her legs. A tuft of pink dress falls on Sam's
knee.

SAM
You're a good reader.

LILY
Yeah, I've always been smart.

SAM
You're lucky. I'm looking for a smart,
good mother.

LILY
I can be a mother. A real good mother.

SAM
Oh, good. Good.

LILY
I could even spank you.

SAM
Oh no no no. I don't believe in that.

LILY
Okay okay. I can be very gentle.

SAM
Gentle. Gentle. Yes. Do you tell
stories?

LILY
I got stories up the wazoo. Why don't
you come with me. I'll tell you a nice
story.

SAM
I have to pick up Lucy at Annie's first.

LILY
A menage a toi?

SAM
French, French the language of France.
You could teach my daughter, Lucy.

LILY
Your daughter?! Can't you pick her up
after?!

SAM
After?! No no, Lucy comes too.

LILY
Whatever.

She takes Sam's hand, they move to get on the bus JUST AS
ANOTHER HAND brusquely lands on theirs.

COP
Not so fast. You're under arrest.
Solicitation.

LILY
He wanted to bring his kid, I said no.

A lightbulb flashes and we --

SMASH CUT TO:

INT. POLICE HEADQUARTERS - THAT NIGHT

Sam blinks as his MUGSHOT is being taken. Now the profile.
He turns so they can get the back of his head. Now the
FINGERPRINT.

Now Sam, in the corner of the room, on the phone making
thumbprints on the wall. While the COP discusses his case
with a social worker, MARGARET BROWN. Over the years she's
seen it all, and to get through it has had to pretend it's
just a job.

COP
It's the first time in nineteen years I
actually believe the guy when he says he
didn't know she was a hooker --

MARGARET BROWN
You say that like it's a good thing.

SAM
...Your teeth don't sound like they were
brushed. Do it with me now.

COP
Let him go. He says he's never spent a
night away from his kid... Come with me -
I got a guy who beat the shit out of his
two year old. Again.

Her cell phone beeps.

MARGARET BROWN
Yes. I am seeing you tomorrow, Mr.
Rabins. She's still screaming? No,
McDonald's won't help...she's four
months old.

SAM
Thirteen up...not on the gum line not on
the gum line, 1, 2, 3.

Margaret watches Sam as he talks to Lucy on the phone.

INT. PRINCIPALS OFFICE - DAY

The WALLS are lined with CHILDREN'S ART. Various
interpretations of the family. We stop at one of a very
small man and a very big little girl with her arm around him.

MISS WRIGHT
It gives us a great deal of insight into
what she must be feeling. And in the
classroom, it's becoming clear she's
holding herself back. It's as if she's
literally afraid to learn.

We PULL BACK and see Sam staring at the picture. Mrs. Wright
and the principal watch him.

MISS WRIGHT (CONT'D)
No one doubts that you love your
daughter, Mr. Dawson. But the
Department of Social Services contacted
us. They shared with us that your
records show that your intellectual
capacity is around that of a seven year
old. Our concern is what happens when
Lucy turns eight?

PRINCIPAL
Mr. Dawson, do you understand what Miss
Wright is trying to tell you about Lucy?

SAM
No one wanted The Beatles to break up.
But you can hear it on the White Album.
They were going in different directions.

INT. LUCY'S BEDROOM - NIGHT

It's bedtime. Sam and Lucy are reading from "STELLALUNA".

LUCY
How can we be so dif..dif...I don't know
that word.

SAM
Yes you do. It starts with a "d" --

LUCY
I'm tired.

SAM
I don't believe you.

LUCY
Are you calling me a liar?

SAM
Yes. Now read the word.

LUCY
(crying)
No...I'm stupid.

SAM
No you're not.

LUCY
I don't want to read it if you can't.

SAM
It makes me happy. I'm happy hearing
you read it.

He holds the book open for Lucy. Now Lucy, pushing through a
mountain of resistance, reads. And reads beautifully.

LUCY
"Why are we different and so much
alike?"

INT. SCHOOL HALLOWEEN PARADE - AUDITORIUM - DAY

Two children, dressed as Batman, march followed by
CINDERELLA. We see Lucy dressed in NEWSPAPER - an ORIGAMI
BIRD. And behind her, marching more proudly than any child,
is Sam, dressed as PAUL McCARTNEY, in the black suit era -
with Beatle boots and guitar strapped to his chest. Sam is
the only adult participating in the parade.

Music BLASTS over the loudspeaker. Sam begins to dance with
joyous abandon. Lucy joins him. They dance together
happily.

Suddenly Lucy becomes aware that her classmates are beginning
to laugh. She slows and watches through their eyes Sam pony
around the room. Conner pulls up his pants high on his waist
and begins to imitate Sam. Another kid joins him.

KID
I'm a Super Freak!

CONNER
And I thought my dad was a dork.

Lucy's face hardens for the first time. In a corrupt world
the pure can only stay pure for so long.

INT. HAMBURGER HAMLET - EVENING

Sam and Lucy sit in a booth. Lucy's ecstatic. Sam's trying.

LUCY
They have eleven different kinds of
hamburgers. This is so great.

SAM
A new place. Your choice. I said we'd
go to a new place. And here we are.

Sam anxiously rearranges the condiments on the table. Lucy
tries to fold a napkin into an Origami bird.

LUCY
You know what else I want for my
birthday, Daddy? I want a hundred
birds.

SAM
The napkins are much stiffer at Denny's.
They make better birds. There's not so
much stuff on the tables there either.
Why do they have two kinds of mustard on
every table?

WAITRESS
Coffee?

SAM
No, no coffee. Sam's system can't
handle coffee.

WAITRESS
Okaaay! What can I get you folks?

LUCY
I'd like the Benito Bandito burger and a
chocolate chip milkshake, please.

SAM
I'll have the fish special, side of
potatoes, salad with Thousand Island
Dressing, cherry pie, and...

WAITRESS
I'm sorry, sir. We don't have a fish
special. There's fish and chips. It
comes with a dinner salad.

SAM
Chips, chips? You mean potato chips? I
don't want potato chips. I want a side
of potatoes.

WAITRESS
You want french fries?

SAM
No, a side of potatoes, like at Denny's.
A side of potatoes.

LUCY
They're little red potatoes.

WAITRESS
We don't have new potatoes...

SAM
Denny's has new potatoes. Six new
potatoes parsley garnish parsley
garnish...

ON LUCY

Her smile fades.

SMASH CUT TO:

INT. DENNY'S - HALF-HOUR LATER

Sam happily eats his fish special with six new potatoes.
Lucy's untouched dinner sits in the middle of the table. She
doodles on the placement - drawing a man sitting with a pile
of new potatoes in front of him; larger than he is.

SAM
Fish and chips fish and chips. I will
not eat fish and chips.

LUCY
(exploding)
I will not eat them here or there! I
will not eat them anywhere! I will not
eat green eggs and ham! I will not eat
them, Sam I am!

INT. SAM'S APARTMENT - DAY

Balloons and a banner reading "Happy Birthday, Lucy!" For
Lucy's birthday, Sam has rented a moon bounce - which sits in
the center of the apartment and filling the entire place -
leaving no room for the few kids and their parents. Brad
stands too close to a young attractive mother. Robert shakes
all the presents suspiciously.

SAM
Now when they come through the door,
everybody yell "Surprise!" Do you want
to rehearse again?

CONNER
No. I bet she already knows.

ROBERT
I didn't tell her. Did Brad say I did?

There's a KNOCK at the door.

SAM
Is that Lucy? Annie's supposed to call
and warn us. Shhhh, everyone.

Brad hits the lights. Sam OPENS THE DOOR and everyone yells
"SURPRISE!" But instead of Lucy, it's the Social Worker.

MARGARET BROWN
I don't know if you remember me. I'm
Margaret Brown from Children's Social
Services. We met at the police station.

SAM
Put your present over there - Hurry up!
Lucy might be on her way.
(the phone rings)
Hello? Annie says she's coming up the
stairs. Everyone be quiet. Assume
surprise positions!
(Conner keeps talking)
Be quiet! Assume surprise positions!

CONNER
Oh brother!

SAM
Why are you such a party pooper?!
Assume surprise positions!

CONNER
Make me!

Sam puts a hand over Conner's mouth; Conner struggles against
him.

MR. RHODES
Hey!

SAM
He's gonna ruin the surprise! He's
gonna ruin the surprise!

CONNER
He touched me! I've got cooties! I've
got cooties!

MR. RHODES
Get your hands off my boy!

Conner's father hurls Sam across the room - Sam gets tangled
in the MOON BOUNCE! To get attention, Conner bursts into
tears. We hear FOOTSTEPS outside the door - Brad hits the
lights. We hear a CRASH! And in the light, the DOOR SHEDS
as it opens, Lucy and Ifty see - that MOONBOUNCE, swaying.
Then from within the Moonbounce:

SAM
Surprise! Happy Birthday!

Lucy stands frozen, holding a red balloon.

LUCY
Daddy?!

CONNER
You don't have to call him "Daddy".
(in Sam's face)
She says you're not her real father,
anyway. She's adopted!

Humiliated, Lucy RUNS AWAY! The Social Worker watches,
profoundly concerned, and reaches for her cellular phone.

EXT. WALMART - DAY

A police car pulls into the parking lot. Sam and Margaret in
the back. Sam and Margaret see Lucy's little feet dangling
from beneath the curtain of the photo booth.

SAM
I'll go get her.

MARGARET BROWN
It would be better if you stay here.
I'm sorry to say this, Mr. Dawson, it's
clear how much you love your daughter,
but we're going to have to remove Lucy
from your home.

Sam's baffled. One cop places his hand on Sam's shoulder,
restraining him. The OTHER heads toward the photo booth.

SAM
No, no no no. It's her birthday! It's
her birthday!

MARGARET BROWN
I know how hard this must be...
(cell phone rings)
...Hello, Betsy. I'm scheduled to come
to your apartment at four. No, not five
every two hours. It's two every five
hours. She only weighs thirty pounds
for chrissakes...
(back to Sam)
The city has given me the difficult task
of deciding when to intervene on behalf
of the child. Unfortunately, I've
learned the hard way that it's better
too soon than too late. For now the
court will decide what's in Lucy's best
interest.

Sam watches the cop's legs meet Lucy's under the curtain.
Suddenly, Sam screams from the deepest core of his being.

SAM
Run, Lucy, run!

We see LUCY'S FEET KICK the COP'S LEGS and wrestle out of his
grasp. She flies out the booth, holding that balloon. She
runs down the street, the balloon soaring into the sky - a
cop follows. Sam struggles.

ON SAM

Reeling, devastated, we HEAR A JUDGE speaking:

JUDGE (O.S.)
Given the fact that the father was
arrested for solicitation, did not
cooperate with the police...

INT. COURTROOM - DAY

Sam sits ALONE. At another table, Margaret Brown and a
lawyer, along with several people from the CPS.

JUDGE
...could not control his emotions,
endangering other children. Miss Brown
also cites Mr. Dawson's mental
deficiencies which raise serious
questions about his ability to properly
parent. I agree to grant petition.
The child shall be removed from the home
until a forma jurisdictional hearing.
Mr. Dawson, is there anything you'd like
to add?

SAM
Yes. I just wanted it to be a nice
surprise party. I had gotten the plates
at Pic-N-Save. Pink and yellow, pink
and yellow. Like a princess. And the
balloons at --

JUDGE
(gently)
Mr. Dawson, it sounds like a lovely
party, but right now I want to talk to
you about your legal rights. I would
strongly suggest you get yourself legal
counsel and allow your attorney to
present your case at the jurisdictional
hearing on February 13th. Counsel, are
you available?

COUNSEL
Ted, I have a trial that day.

JUDGE
February 20th. 8:00 a.m.

SAM
(panicking)
Twenty-two days? Lucy will come home
and you want me to bring Lucy back in
twenty-two days?

JUDGE
No, Mr. Dawson. You'll have supervised
visits twice a week for two hours. Now
I'm sorry, we have thirty more cases