All the King's Men (1949) - full transcript

Burden.
Hey, Jack Burden!

The boss wants to see you.

Hey, Jack, ever hear of
a fellow called Willie Stark?

No. Who'd he shoot?
Looks like it'll be the other
way around if he keeps it up.

He's really got the boys
in the Kanoma County
courthouse worried.

A politician, huh?
What's he running for?

Oh, county, uh, treasurer
or something like that.

What's so special
about him?

They say he's
an honest man.

What I want you to do
is to hop into your car...

You promised me a vacation.
Oh, that can wait.



Yeah, but there's
a girl I know...
Oh.

Well, she can wait too.

The question is, can I?
And the answer is,
get up there.

Right.

Oh, um, what'd you say
his name was?
Hmm?

The fella's name.
Oh, the, um...

Stark. Willie Stark.
Willie Stark.

I found him in Kanoma City...

a typical hot, dusty,
backwoods county seat.

... to lie to them in
order to line their own pockets
with the taxpayers' money.

When have the citizens
of Kanoma County ever witnessed
a campaign like this?

Why is the opposition
so anxious to defeat me?

Why have they used every dirty
method known to make sure I'm
not elected county treasurer?

Well, I'll tell ya why.
Because they're afraid
of the truth,



and the truth is this:

They're trying to steal
your money.

Yeah, I said "steal."

The county commissioners
rejected the low bid
on the schoolhouse.

Why? Well, they'll
tell you their reason is
the job will be done better.

The county commissioners would
have you believe that they're
interested in public welfare.

They're interested
in welfare, sure...
but it's their own.

Let's look at their reason
in the light of the facts
and the figures.

That brick factory is
owned by a brother-in-law
of one of the commissioners.

That same brick factory
uses convict labor.

Sorry, Willie.
You'll have to move on.
Why?

City ordinance number 105:

More than five people
congregating is
disturbing the peace.

If you folks'll be so kind as to
read these handbills, my boy'll
pass 'em out among you.

There's an ordinance
against that too.

Pass 'em out, Tom.
Let him alone!
Get that camera!

Willie, you're under arrest.

Where can I find
Tiny Duffy?

Right over there, mister.

They told me I could get
my camera back here.

Who told you that?
People. Can I?

You the reporter that's been
snoopin' around town?
Are you Tiny Duffy?

What paper?
Chronicle.

You sure come a long way
to stick your nose into
other people's business.

That's true,
only my boss on the paper
can't see it that way.

It ain't any
of his business either.

Whose business is it?
Them as is tendin' to it...

county commissioners the voters
of Kanoma County elected
to attend to their business...

and not take no buttin' in
from nobody.

You a commissioner?
Yeah. Name's Pillsbury.
Dolph Pillsbury.

Me too.
I'm a commissioner too.

Who isn't a commissioner?
He's the head man.

Oh, then you're
in a position to know...

He's in a position
to know nothin'
and to say nothin'.

I thought you said
he was head man.
He uses my head.

Oh, Tiny, you're a card.

Ain't he a card?
Yeah, he's a card.

Now, who thought up those
city ordinances about arresting
someone for making a speech?

Who's arrested?
Ain't nobody arrested.

Hi, Willie.
Hi, Willie.

Did you apologize
to Willie?
Yeah, I apologized to Willie.

Did you give him
his handbills back?
Yeah, I gave 'em back.

Give him back his flag
and his bag,

and give this man
his camera.

I'm gonna be on that same
street corner tomorrow,
Mr. Duffy.

You go right ahead, Willie.
We all believe in free speech.

We got to...
it's in the Constitution.

My boy is out distributing
those handbills now.

It's a free country, Willie.

If you can convince
the people to vote for you,
you go right ahead.

What did you want
to see me about, Mr. Duffy?

I wanted you to meet a fellow
that came all the way up from
the state capital to meet you...

a reporter.

Wants to write you up,
maybe put your picture
in the paper.

I'm happy to know you, sir.
Burden's my name...
Jack Burden.

Can we go somewhere
where we can talk?

Oh, that ain't polite.
Don't you want to hear
both sides of the story?

I know your side.
What happened to the slate
your men took from my camera?

Must have dropped out.
Oh, come on, fellas,
let's relax.

It's a hot day.
Hey, Sugar Boy!

Yeah?
Bring some cold beer
for the boys.

None for me,
thank you kindly.

Now, you know
Willie don't drink, Tiny.
His wife don't favor drinkin'.

And Willie's the teacher's pet,
ain't you, Willie?

I'll have some orange pop
if you don't mind.
Orange pop?

All right, Sugar Boy,
bring him some orange pop.

Th-The p-pop's
s-s-sold out.

Did you hear that, boys?
The p-p-pop is s-sold out.

Now, ain't he a card?

He stutters,
Mr. Duffy, but you...
you don't say anything.

Let's go, mister.

This is my wife, Lucy,
Mr. Burden.
How do you do?

That's my pa.
How do you do?

Now we'll talk.
You've been talking
for a long time, Mr. Stark.

Willie's got a lot to say.
You sleepy, Pappy?
You want to have a nap?

No, I want to hear it.

I'm worried about Tom.
It's getting dark.
He should have been home.

He's a strong boy.
Don't worry about him.
He can take care of himself.

How old is the boy?
Fifteen.

How long have you
been married?

Nine years.
He was a neighbor's boy.

They were poor folks...
both died.

I couldn't have any children,
so... He's a good boy.

Oh, he's the best.
I couldn't love him any more if
he was my own flesh and blood.

And now you, Mrs. Stark.
There isn't
very much to tell about me.

How did you meet?
I was teaching school,
and one day a pupil walked in.

It was Willie. I couldn't have
a grown man in the class, and
Willie wanted to learn so badly,

so I married him.

Is that the only reason?
Except that I loved him.

Get the coffee, Lucy.

When did they fire you,
Mrs. Stark?

A couple of weeks ago.

I'd been teaching a long time,
and nobody ever said
I wasn't all right.

But I don't care.
I don't want to teach
in a schoolhouse...

that they built
just so somebody can
steal some money.

Willie doesn't want to be
treasurer, either,

if he has to associate
with those dishonest people.

I'm gonna run. They
can't keep me from runnin'.

If you don't mind the truth,
Mr. Stark, you haven't
much of a chance.

I'm gonna run.
They're not gonna kick me
around like I was dirt.

I don't care if Willie loses,
just so he gets the truth
to the people.

Isn't that true, Willie?
Isn't it, Willie?

Hmm?
Yeah, yeah, sure.
That's right.

Well, if you lose,
you can give a little more time
to studying your law books.

- Are you studying law too?
- By myself at night.

Willie's a smart boy.

If I ever find the time,
I'm gonna take a course
at the university.

What happened, Tommy boy?
What's the matter?

I gave out the handbills, Pa.
Speak up. Speak up!

Let him tell it
in his own way.
Go on, Tommy.

This time they were waitin'
for me. They threw 'em
in the dirt and beat me up.

I brought some of 'em back.

Good boy.
Have you eaten yet, Tom?

Let him wash up first.
Why don't you lie down, Pappy?

I'm gonna run.
You're not gonna stop me.

I'm gonna run even if
I don't get a single vote.

Here you are... the last
of the Willie Stark articles.

Now can I go?
Yes, you've earned
your vacation.

You've been writing these
like you really mean them.

I do.

I hadn't been home
in a long time.

Home was Burden's Landing,

only 130 miles
from Kanoma City.

It was separated from
the mainland by a body of water.

For the first time,
I wondered if it wasn't
separated by more than that.

Hello, Mother.
Floyd, Jack's home.

Oh, he looks fine.
Doesn't he look fine?
How do I look, Jackie boy?

You look beautiful, Mother.

I've got so many things
planned for you...

parties, and...
it'll be just like old times...
but first let's have a drink.

- Can't that wait till this evening?
- Floyd, honey, my son's home.

- How long you plan on staying?
- Two or three weeks,
if that's all right with you.

- I'm sure your father would be...
- Stepfather, Mother.

Now, Jackie. Here we all are.
Floyd, Jackie, myself.

To the best time
we've ever had together.
Yes, Mother.

Excuse me, I...

Dr. Stanton, I presume.
Is my shingle showing?

Good to see you, boy,
very good.
Good to see you, Judge.

How've you been?
What have you been doing?
Oh, just sitting here,

waiting for all of you
to come home.

You know, when a man starts
to get old, his eyes stray
and play funny tricks on him.

As I watched you in that boat,
I thought sure I saw a boy of 12
with a fishing rod in his hands,

and I was sure the first thing
he'd say would be...

Do you mind if I kiss
your niece, sir?

To all the good times we've had
together at Burden's Landing,

and especially this one,
because my son's home.

Thank you, Mother.
Thank you very much.

Monty, Anne and I have been
discussing Jack's career.
What do you think?

Shall he be a lawyer?
Doctor?

We were just discussing...
I like what I'm doing,
Mother.

You do very well at it.
I read your articles about
this fellow... Willie Stark.

Very convincing.
Too convincing for my tastes.
A lot of people like them.

A lot of people are fools.

Articles like that
shouldn't be permitted.
They only tend to incite people.

- What are you afraid of?
- I thought they were very good.
I was proud of you, Jack.

I was particularly interested
in Stark's ideas
on health and medicine.

You know the conditions
at the hospital I work in.
They're intolerable.

I'd like to meet this Willie Stark.
He sounds like an honest man.

"Honest man"?

This state is full of these
log-cabin Abe Lincolns
with price tags on them.

The louder he yells,
the higher his price.

You think you can
buy anything, don't you?

Yes. Don't you?

- What do you think, Judge?
- I think this state could
stand a few changes.

- Well, I'll tell you what I think.
- Oh, please.

- Let-Let's not talk politics.
- Anne is right.

I absolutely forbid
any more of it.

I know what we need.
We need another toast.

You propose it, Monty.
You're so good at it.

To the young people...
to Anne, to Jack, to Adam...

to what lies before them,
to the world they'll make in
spite of mistakes we've made.

The mistakes you've made,
not me.

You're all still pretty
high and mighty, aren't you?

You all think
this state needs a change.
You don't like the way it's run.

Well, who's going to run it...
Willie Stark, the judge, you?

You can be bought too...
as a matter of fact, you have been,

and with my money.

That's a waste
of good liquor, boy.
Your mother wouldn't approve.

Jack...

You go back and apologize.
Apologize?
I'd rather die.

I've got to live with him.
Well, I don't. Neither do you.
You don't love him... never did.

Son, don't spoil anything now.
He can help you.
I can get along without him.

You need this house and
the parties and the cars and the
clothes and the lies. I don't.

It's the truth, Mother.
Face it. For once
in your life, face it.

Anne, please...
please make him understand.

Anne, Burden's Landing is
a place on the moon.
It isn't real. It doesn't exist.

It's me pretending I live
on what I earn.

It's my mother...
trying to keep herself young and
drinking herself old doing it.

It's you and Adam living
in this house as though
your father were still alive.

It's an old man like the judge
dreaming of the past.

Oh, Anne,
come away with me.

And do what?

Live in a shack
and eat red beans.

Anne, what do you want
me to do?
Oh, Jack, you haven't been sure.

You've gone from one thing to
the other... a year at law school
and now this job as a reporter.

Are you afraid
I can't make a living?
Oh, no, Jack, it isn't that.

I don't care about the money.
It's just that I...
I want you to be something.

What is it
you want me to be?
I don't know.

It's just that I want you
to be... to do...
something important.

Like your father?
All right,
I'll run for governor.

Anne, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry I said that.

All right, Jack.
I'll go away with you.

I'll do anything
you want me to.

Anne...

I've wanted you to say that
more than anything in the world,

and now that
you have said it...

Anne,
I guess you were right.

I'm not sure of anything,
including myself.

I'm not sure I could
live up to the...

Oh...

Anne, wait for me.
Please wait for me.

I'll wait for you.

Hello, Jack.
Cut your vacation short,
didn't you?

Yeah.
By the way, Jack,

the fellow you wrote
the articles about...
uh, Stark...

Yeah?
He lost.

Well, I guess that's
the end of Willie Stark.

...measure of the damages
is caused by...
A breach...

a breach...
of an agreement...

of an agreement...
to sell personal property...

to sell...

Oh, two years of this.
Oh, go on, Willie, go on.

Willie Stark, Bachelor of Law.

If you'll just let me
take your case...

Really, I'll wait for my fee
just as long as you want me to.

Go on, Willie, go on.
They're not gonna
kick me around like I was dirt.

If you lose, you can give more
time to studying your law books.
Willie's got a lot to say.

I'll be on that street corner
tomorrow, Mr. Duffy.
We all believe in free speech.

Free country, Willie.
That brick factory is
owned by a brother-in-law...

of one of the commissioners...

The county commissioners
rejected the low bid
in the schoolhouse.

All right, children,
this is a fire drill.

Remember, now, walk.
Quietly.

"Verily I say unto you,
accept ye turn and become
as little children,

ye shall in no wise
enter the Kingdom of Heaven."

Let us pray.

The grace of our Lord,
Jesus Christ,
and the love of God...

and the fellowship
of the Holy Spirit be
with us all evermore.

Amen.

O Lord, I'm punished
for voting against
an honest man.

God bless you, Willie.
If we'd only listened to you,
Willie.

We'll never forget you, Willie.
You were right, Willie.

Let me shake your hand, Willie.
We should've listened.
We should've listened.

Willie, you were right
all the time.

"A voice in the wilderness."

"A man named Willie Stark."

How 'bout that, Lucy?
That's me.

Get up there,
and get up there fast.

Your friend Willie's hotter
than a firecracker.
Stay with him!

Look, before this
Kanoma City business,
we had this whole area tied up.

Now we're losing the hick vote.
Then let's find a way
to split that vote.

Well, all I know is,
the way it is now, it looks
like I'm not gonna win.

I know a way!
Find a dummy.

"Find a dummy"?
That's what we got.

A guy from the sticks strong
enough to grab some votes...

and dumb enough
not to ask questions.

If you wanna listen to
a boy from the sticks,

I know just the guy.

So it's no more politics,
huh, Willie?

No. No, I've worked
too hard in my time
to get there.

I think I'll just go on
practicin' law and makin'
a little more money.

The question I'd like to ask is,
why all the speeches you're
making around the countryside?

I wonder who that is.

Brought some people all the way
up from the state capital,
Willie, just to meet ya.

Folks, I want you
to meet Willie Stark,
the next governor of our state.

Folks, bear with me for a couple
of minutes. I'd like to
tell you what this state needs.

It needs
a balanced tax program.

Now I'd like to give you
the facts and the figures.

How'd it sound, Jack?
Fine, Willie. Fine.

Say, I forgot to send
a telegram to Lucy.
Conductor!

Now right here... right here
I'd like to add something
about last year's taxes.

I wouldn't add a thing.
Just give 'em the facts.

Yeah, and the figures.
Great speech.

What this state needs is
a balanced tax program.

Last year...

last year the state claimed
to have spent on roads...

You all know that figures
don't lie, and you know that
facts are easy to understand.

Do you mind if I
sit with you, Sadie?
Stand, sit.

Thanks.

Tell me, what are you
on this merry-go-round for?
I take notes.

For whom?
For those "whom" pay me.

Which is?
People.

Smart people.
Yeah. Anybody
that pays me is smart.

You don't have to be smart to
frame a guy like Willie Stark.
No. No, brother, you don't.

It is a frame, isn't it?
Why don't you give me
a cigarette?

To split the vote and win
the election for Harrison, huh?
If you know, why you ask?

I just want to make sure.
Yeah.

Look, why don't you
tell the boys home
to save their money?

Willie couldn't steal a vote
from Abe Lincoln in the cradle
of the Confederacy.

I wish the poor had enough
sense to have somebody
give him a good greasing...

for the beating he's going
to get; this way all he gets
out of it is the ride.

Hey, those speeches...
ain't they awful?

Ain't they
just plain awful?

Question to you:

If somebody told him
he was a sucker,
do you think he'd quit?

I don't know, Sadie.

I really don't know.

Did it sound all right,
Mr. Burden?
Fine, Willie. Fine.

Now, friends, if you will
bear patiently with me
for a few minutes,

I'll give you the figures.

- What we need is a balanced tax program.
- No, Willie, no!

- What I need is some sleep!
Shut up!
- Shut up yourself!

Listen, Willie, try it
on your feet this time.

Oh, no, my feet are killin' me.
Let me stay here, huh?

All right. Look, Willie,
you tell them too much.

Just tell them you're gonna
soak the fat boys and forget
the rest of the tax stuff.

That's what I say.
But it's the way
you say it.

Willie, make 'em cry,
make 'em laugh, make 'em mad...
even mad at you.

Stir them up,
and they'll love it
and come back for more.

But for heaven's sakes,
don't try to
improve their minds.

A man don't have
to be governor.

What?
A man don't have
to be governor.

Well, they haven't
counted the votes yet.

I'm gonna lose, Mr. Burden.
I know that.
Don't try and fool me.

I'm not gonna lie to you...
I wanted it.

I wanted it so badly,
I-I stayed up nights
thinkin' about it.

A man wants somethin' so badly,
he gets mixed up
in knowin' what he wants.

It's somethin' inside of you.

I would have made a good
governor... better than
those other fellas.

Come in.

A great governor.
If you won't let me sleep,
you might give me a drink.

Build highways... greatest system
of highways in the country.
Help yourself.

I'd build 'em schools.
What's up?

Nothing, except Willie here's
been saying as how he's
not gonna be governor.

- So you told him.
- I don't tell anyone anything.
I just listen.

Who told you?
Told me what?

Told me what?

That you're not
going to be governor.

Jack, told me what?

Told me what?
All right!

That you've been framed,
you poor sap.

Framed?
And how.

Oh, you decoy...
you woodenhead decoy.

And you let 'em!
You know what you are?

Well, you're the goat.
You are the sacrificial goat.

You are a sap
because you let 'em.
Sadie, that's enough.

Enough? He didn't even
get anything out of it.

Oh, they'd have paid you
to take a rap like that.

But they didn't have to pay
a sap like you. Oh, no.

You were so full
of yourself and hot air,

all you wanted was a chance
to stand up on your hind legs
and make a speech.

"My friends...

"My friends,
what this state needs is
a good five-cent cigar.

What this state needs is a..."

Is it true?
He wants to know
if it's true.

Is it true?
That's what they tell me.

Here.

Lay off. You're not used to it.
He's not used to a lot
of things, are you, Willie?

Why don't you
lay off him, Sadie?
Are you, Willie?

Are you? Are ya,
are ya, are ya, are ya?

Hi.

Well, things seem to have
quieted down.

Yeah, I quieted him down.

Yeah.
How was he... noisy?

Oh, he reared some.
He's been tellin' me
all the things he's gonna do.

He's gonna do big things,
this fella.
He's gonna be president.

He's gonna kill people
with his bare hands.

I quieted him down.
Hey, who's Lucy?
His wife.

He talks like she's
his mammy. She's gonna
blow his nose for him.

Well, I'll take it from here
on in. They're waiting for him
at the barbecue.

Yeah. Well, give me
a receipt for the body.

I'll be on my way.

Hey, Willie. Willie.

Come on, wake up, Willie.
Come on, Willie.

♪♪Where is he?

There he is.

Whoops.

Is he drunk?
Never touches the stuff.
Lucy doesn't favor drinkin'.

How'd you get him here?
He was out stiff.

Hair of the dog that bit him.
"Hair"?

He must have
swallowed the dog.

Ladies and gentlemen,

it gives me great pleasure
to introduce that true man
of the people,

the next governor
of the state, Willie Stark!

My friends... My friends,
I have a speech here.

It's a speech about
what this state needs.

There's no need in my telling
you what this state needs.

You are the state,
and you know what you need.

You over there,
look at your pants. Have they
got holes in the knees?

Listen to your stomach.
Did you ever hear it
rumble for hunger?

And you... What about
your crops? Did they
ever rot in the field...

because the road was so bad
you couldn't get 'em to market?

And you...
What about your kids?

Are they growin' up ignorant
as dirt... ignorant as you...
'cause there's no school?

Nah, I'm not gonna
read you any speech.

But I am gonna
tell you a story.

Hey, what's he up to?
Shut up.

Get ready to
bust your sides laughin',
'cause it's sure a funny story.

It's about a hick...
a hick like you,
if you please... yeah, like you.

He grew up on the dirt roads
and the gully washes of a farm.

He knew what it was to get up
before dawn and get feed and
slop and milk before breakfast,

then set out before sunup and
walk six miles to a one-room,
slab-sided schoolhouse.

Oh, this hick knew what it was
to be a hick, all right.

He figured if he was gonna
get anything done, well,
he had to do it himself.

So he sat up nights and studied
books, studied law. He thought
he might change things some...

for himself
and for folks like him.

Now, I'm not gonna lie to you.
He didn't start off
thinking about the hicks...

and all the wonderful things
he was gonna do for them... no.

No, he started off
thinking of number one.

But something came to him
on the way.

How he could do nothing himself
without the help of the people...
that's what came to him.

And it also came to him,
with the powerful force
of God's own lightning,

back in his county when the
school collapsed because it was
made of politics' rotten brick...

It killed and mangled
a dozen kids.
But you know that story.

The people were his friends
because he fought
that rotten brick.

And some of the politicians
down in the city,
they knew that.

So they rode up to his house
in a big fine car and said they
wanted him to run for governor.

Sadie, he's wonderful...
wonderful!
So they told this hick,

and he swallowed it.

He looked in his heart,
and he thought, in all humility,

how he'd like to try
and change things.

He was just a country boy
who thought even the plainest,
poorest man can be governor...

if his fellow citizens find
he's got the stuff for the job.

Well, those fellows
in the striped pants,
they saw that hick...

and they took him in.
Willie!

What are you trying...
There he is! There's your
Judas Iscariot! Look at him!

Lickspittle, nose-wiper!
Look at him! Look at him!

Play! Play anything!
Joe Harrison's dummy!
Look at him!

That's a lie!
Look at him!

- Come get him, boys!
Come get him!
- Look at him! Look at him!

Go get him!

Now, shut up!
Shut up, all of you!
Now, listen to me, you hicks.

Yeah, you're hicks too, and they
fooled you a thousand times
just like they fooled me.

But this time
I'm gonna fool somebody.
I'm gonna stay in this race.

I'm on my own,
and I'm out for blood.
Now, listen to me, you hicks!

Listen to me and lift up
your eyes and look at God's
blessed and un-flyblown truth...

And this is the truth:
You're a hick,

and nobody ever helped a hick
but a hick himself.

All right, listen to me!
I'm the hick they were gonna use
to split the hick vote.

But I'm standin' right here
now on my hind legs.
Even a dog can learn to do that.

Are you standing on
your hind legs? Have you
learned to do that much yet?

Here it is!
Here it is, you hicks!

Nail up anybody
who stands in your way!

Nail up Joe Harrison!
Nail up McMurphy!

And if they don't deliver,
give me the hammer,
and I'll do it myself!

I want his throat cut
from ear to ear.

No use going any further, Jack.
We're not printing them anymore.

I thought
the Chronicle line was...
"Divide and conquer."

Stark is getting
too big for his britches, and
the hicks are getting too smart.

We're now
supporting Harrison.
How do you square that?

I work here.
Well, I don't...
not anymore.

Jack, you fool.
If you had any guts
you'd print this.

I work here.
I take orders.

I know. You got a wife
and three kids, and your boy
goes to Princeton.

You won't find it easy
to get another job.

I'm too rich to work.

We didn't do so good.
Double bourbon.

Same for me.
And a beer.

Hear you got fired
from the paper.
You heard wrong. I quit.

You're smart,
'cause before I'm through
with that mob,

they're not gonna have enough
money left to pay the boy
that cleans the spittoons.

How do you feel,
Willie?
I feel fine, fine.

You see, Jack,
I learned something.
Yeah? What?

How to win.

I didn't see
Willie again until his second
campaign, four years later.

I drifted from job to job...

that is,
whenever I could find one...

but always further
and further away from Anne...

and the life
at Burden's Landing.

But Willie wasn't drifting.
He knew where he was going.

He had his foot in the door,
and he kept right on
pushing to get in.

He had lost the election,
but he'd won the state,

and he knew it,
and the people knew it.

They were all
hopping on his bandwagon...
even Tiny Duffy.

Yep, Willie came back
like he said he would.

You wanna know
what my platform is?
Here it is.

I'm gonna soak the fat boys,
and I'm gonna
spread it out thin.

Willie was right...
he'd learned how to win,

and he spent
a lot of money doing it...

an awful lot of money.

I was beginning to wonder
where he got it from.

There were rumors throughout
the state that Willie was making
deals with all kinds of people...

strange deals...

for Willie Stark.

The second time out,
it wasn't a campaign;
it was a slaughter.

It was Saturday night
in a mining town.

Yep, Willie came back
like he said he would.

He came back,
and he took me with him.

This is Jack Burden, a friend
of mine. He's gonna live here.
Give him anything he wants.

Let these boys through,
officers.

Duffy works for me now.
Looks like everybody
works for you.

No, not yet. But I wanna keep
him around. He reminds me of
something I never wanna forget.

Come on, come on,
come on, come on.
These the boys?

These are the boys
that can get the boys.

How many you think
you can get?
Fifty.

How much?
Five dollars a head.

What do you think, Sugar?
They look like good boys?

They b-better be.

Get a hundred. All right,
go on, all of you.
Blow. Blow. Blow.

You too, Duffy.
Go on.

Handbill distributors.
If they all look like them,
I'd hate not to take one.

That's the object.
Not like when they beat up
my boy, Tom.

How is Tom?
Oh, he's fine.
He starts college in the fall.

Oh. And Lucy?
Fine, fine.

Hey, I need a boy!
Where's a boy?

Take that downstairs.
They're waiting for it.
Right away. On the double.

Listen, baby, you gotta
double-space all of this.
He can't read it, see?

This is for you. They need
four copies. Hi, Jack!
Sadie!

How are you?
Sadie's my secretary now.
Oh, pardon me.

Fix your tie, Willie.

Hey, Sugar.
Huh?

Keep everybody outta here.
I want to talk
to Jack and Sadie alone.

Now you're gonna
work for me.
Doin' what?

I don't know. Something'll
turn up. Won't it, Sadie?
Yeah.

We need a college man around...
for research.

How much did they pay you
on that newspaper?

Three hundred dollars
a month.

I could buy you cheap,
couldn't I?
For a bag of salt.

No. No, I don't play that way.
I like you, boy. I always have.

I'll tell you what I'll do.

I'll give you $400 a month
and traveling expenses.

You throw money around
like it was money.

Money.

I don't need money.

- People give me things.
- Why?

Because they believe in me.

I was going home again,
but this time it was different.

Now I had a feeling that
maybe the waiting was over...

for me and for Anne.

It's a far cry from where
I come from to this house,

and, standing here under the
portrait of one of the greatest
governors of this state,

talking to you people...
well, it's an honor
I never thought I'd have.

Are there any questions?
Mr. McEvoy?

No.
I have no questions.

- Judge?
- A few, but it will hold.

- I have a question.
- Shoot.

A lot of people in this state
have been saying that you've
been making deals...

some of them
with the very groups
you claim you're against.

Is that true?
Adam, you
know how rumors start.

Yes. Yes, that's true.
I have nothing to hide.

I'll make a deal
with the devil if it'll
help me carry out my program.

But believe me,
there are no strings
attached to those deals.

You're sure about that?
Doc,

Jack here has been telling me
how you feel about things...

how you'd like to see
the sick people in this state
given a break,

how you'd like to see
a new hospital built...

a hospital that's the biggest
and best that money can buy.

You want those things, Doc,
because... well, because you're
a man who wants to do good.

- Now I'd like to ask you a question.
- Shoot.

Do you know
what good comes out of?
You tell me, Mr. Stark.

Out of bad...
that's what good comes out of,

because you can't make it
out of anything else.

- You didn't know that, did you?
- No, I didn't.

There's another question
I'd like to ask you.

You say there's only bad
to start with, and that
the good must come from the bad.

Who's to determine
what's good and what's bad?

You?

Why not?
How?

Why, that's easy.
Just make it up
as you go along.

Folks,

there's a time to talk,
and there's a time to act.

I think the time to act
is right now,
and, with your support,

I not only will win,
but I will do
all of the things I promised.

I need your help.
Oh, I need it badly,
but I'm not gonna beg for it.

In the name of this state,
which we love...

in the name of the governor
in whose house we meet...

I demand it.

Well, what do you say, sir?
You've got to say yes.
With you in the race, we...

I'm an old bird.
I...
But a game one.

Look, I'll give you
complete power
as attorney general.

You can do anything you see fit.
I'll swing the ax
to clear the way for you.

Is that a deal?
It's a deal.

Jack, we have to get
back to town... a lot to do.
Dr. Stanton.

Good night, Anne.
Good night, Jack.

Good night.

I'm very glad
to have met you.

We want Willie!
We want Willie!

We want Willie!
We want Willie!

Willie! Willie!
We want Willie!

This is not a time
for speech-making.

I should get on my knees
and ask God to give me strength
to carry out your will.

This much I swear to you.

These things you shall have.

I'm going to build
a hospital... the biggest
that money can buy...

and it will belong to you,

and any man, woman or child
who is sick or in pain
can go through those doors...

and know that everything
will be done for them
that man can do...

to heal sickness,
to ease pain, free...

not as a charity,
but as a right.

And it is your right.
Do you hear me?
It is your right!

And it is your right
that every child should
have a complete education,

that any man who produces
anything can take it to market
without paying toll,

and no poor man's land
or farm can be taxed
or taken away from him.

And it is the right
of the people that they shall
not be deprived of hope.

Does he mean it, Jack?
Does he?
That's his bribe.

What if it is his bribe?
He swept the old gang out of office.

What if they hollered
like stuck pigs?

He jammed through bill
after bill, and the people got
what they wanted.

I demand that this bill be
passed! Nobody's gonna
tell me how to run this state.

He started to build the roads,
the schools, power dams...

to change the face of the state
from one end to the other.

His methods?
Politics is a dirty game,

and he played it
rough and dirty.

Willie's little black book was
a record of sin and corruption,

and me, Jack Burden...
I kept the book
and added up the accounts.

"Clown, show-off, playboy,"
they yelled at him,

building football stadiums,
fiercely proud of his son
who played in them.

He's gonna be an all-American.

They said he was
building up a private army,

but he was building...
always building.

Always playing up to the crowd,
letting them trample
on tradition.

Well, tradition needed
trampling on.

The crowds loved it
and Willie loved it...

and so did I.

You lowdown, no-good redneck!

What goes on here?
That's what Sadie
wants to know.

The boss poses
for too many pictures.

I'll kill him.

Why, Sadie,
I'm surprised at you.

I'll kill him.

I hate all women!

Was she pretty?

Was she pretty?
If I met her on the street,
I'd never recognize her.

Was she pretty?
How should I know?
I wasn't looking at her face.

Look, if it's gonna cause
all this grief, let him go.

Let him go? I'll kill him.
I'll drive him outta this state.

Just because a guy's
sitting with a couple of girls
on his knees in public...

Public or private,
I know him.

How about what happened in
Chicago... that girl on skates?

And the time you both
went to St. Louis.

There's a new invention,
you know... photography
and newsreels.

Willie Stark in a nightclub.
Willie Stark with a blonde.
You could bleach your hair.

I could also break
every bone in his neck.

After all I've done
for him.

Now he goes two-timing me.
He's been two-timing Lucy,

so there's another kind
of arithmetic for what
he's doing to you.

Lucy?
Lucy's a fool.

If she had her way, he'd be
back in Kanoma City slopping
the hogs, and he knows it.

He knows what she'd do for him.
She had her chance.

You seem to think
Lucy's on her way out.
He'll ditch her. Give him time.

You oughta know.
Oh...

- Hey, you got the wrong guy.
- I'm not the hero of this piece.

All right, come on,
both of you. Let's go.
Hurry it up. Come on.

Pillsbury put his hand in
the pork barrel and got caught.
I never did trust that guy.

Later, boys, later.

Say, Jack, go back and get
the judge. Let's get him over
to my hotel as soon as you can.

I waited for you.
Hello.

You promised we could
discuss my charity project...
Children's Home?

Oh, I'm very sorry.
Something very important
came up.

You'll call me later,
won't you?
Yes, certainly.

We're late.

Look at you, Pillsbury...
50 years old,

gut-sprung, teeth gone,
never had a dime.

If the Almighty had intended you
to be rich, He'd have taken care
of that a long time ago.

The idea of you bein' rich...
that's plain blasphemy.

Ain't that a fact?
Answer me!
Yes.

Louder, man! Don't mumble!
Speak up! Say it's a fact,
a blasphemous fact!

It's a fact.
It's a blasphemous fact!

Yeah? Oh.
I see.

Dumond can't come.
He says his wife is sick.

I don't care if she's dyin'.
Sugar, get the car. Get him
and bring him over here.

Now you know
what you're supposed to do,
don't you, Pillsbury?

You're supposed to
stay poor and take orders.

Oh, there'll be some sweetening
for you from time to time,
but Duffy'll take care of that.

Don't go settin' yourself up
on your own again.
Do you understand that?

- Yes.
- Louder, man, and say
"I understand that."

- I understand that!
- Give him a pen
and some paper, Sadie.

See who that is, Duffy.

Oh, hello, Judge. Sit down.
I'll be with you in just
a couple of seconds, huh?

Now, write what I tell you
to write.

"Dear Governor Stark,

"I wish to resign as auditor
due to ill health,

"to take effect as soon
as you can relieve me.

Respectfully yours."

- Did you sign it?
- No.

Well, sign it!
Don't put any date on it.

I can fill that in
when I need it.

Now bring it to me.

Here.

Now get out.

The papers have the story.
Yeah, I know.

They're talking about
impeachment proceedings.

Against who?
This time, Pillsbury.

I got that "this time," Judge.
How true is it?

It's too true.

Yes?
This is it, Willie.

Jeff Hopkins on the wire.
What have we got
on Hopkins, Jack?

Hello, Jeff.
About that Pillsbury business...

Here's what I want you
to do when it comes up
in the legislature.

Now, wait a minute.
Wait a minute.
You listen to me.

You've got a mortgage comin' due
on that place of yours in about
five weeks, haven't you?

You'd like to get it renewed,
wouldn't you?

All right. Tiny'll
talk to you in the morning.
Get going.

You haven't answered
my question. Why are you
saving Pillsbury's hide?

I'm not a bit interested
in Pillsbury's hide. It's
much more important than that.

If the McMurphy boys can
get away with this, there's
no tellin' where they'll stop.

Or where you will.
Pillsbury is guilty.

As attorney general
of this state,
it's my job to prosecute.

Judge, you talk
like Pillsbury was human.

He isn't.
He's a thing.

You don't prosecute an
adding machine if a spring
goes bust and makes a mistake.

You fix it.
Well, I fixed him.

I'm not a bit interested
in Pillsbury. It's something
much bigger than that.

Yes, it is.

He's right, Judge.
Can't you see
that he's right?

He's right because you want him
to be right. You're afraid
to admit you made a mistake.

Do it now
before it's too late.

I'm offering my resignation
as attorney general.

You'll have it in writing
by messenger in the morning,
dated.

Took you a long time to
make up your mind, Judge...
a long time.

What made you take
such a long time?
I wasn't sure.

Now you are.

I'll tell you what you are...
you're scared.

You sat in that easy chair
of yours for 30 years
and played at being a judge.

Then I put a bat in your hand
and said, "Go ahead, Judge,
start swingin'," and you did,

and you had a wonderful time,
but now you're scared.

You don't want
to get your hands dirty.

You want to pick up the marbles,
but you don't want
to get your hands dirty.

Look at my whole program,
Judge. How do you think
I put that across?

I knew how,
but I never knew why.

You're not by any chance
thinkin' of goin' over
to McMurphy's boys, are you?

I'm through with politics.

I'm happy to hear that.
No hard feelings.

Good-bye, Governor.
You coming with me, Jack?

You're making a mistake.

You think he means it
when he says he's through
with politics, Sadie?

No. No, I don't.

What about you, Jack?
I've known the judge
all my life.

He's always meant
everything he said.
All right, all right.

Take it easy.
I'll take your word for it.

Sugar, take Miss Stanton home.

When am I gonna
see you again?

What's the matter, Anne?
Please take me home now,
Sugar Boy.

You've got to understand me.
I understand you.

It's myself
I don't understand.

Do you think I like
sneakin' around corners
any more than you do?

But right now
with the Pillsbury business
and with your uncle quitting,

if I get a divorce...
Maybe we'd better
stop seeing each other.

No.

No, we won't stop
seeing each other, will we?

No.
Because you believe
what I tell you.

Because I believe
what you tell me.

Good evening, Governor Stark.

I thought you might like
to know that Judge Stanton
kept his promise.

He gave the story
to every paper in town.

Sugar, meet me at the hotel
as soon as you can.

These are serious charges...

that Judge Stanton
has given to the press.

This legislature is entitled
to a complete and full report
on the Pillsbury affair.

Let the truth be known!
Let it come out!

I vote we adjourn.
I second the motion.

- All those in favor, say "aye.
- " Aye!

Motion carried.

Quiet!
House is adjourned.

You let Willie Stark get away
with the Pillsbury graft,
there's no telling...

But we beat the Pillsbury rap.
It's over.

These things are never over.
Tell you what I want you
to do, Jack.

I want you to start a new page
in that black book of yours...

under the name
of Judge Stanton, huh?

You're crazy.
There's nothing on the judge.
Why?

Because his name
is Stanton?
Shh, shh, shh.

Easy.
What if
I won't do it?

You know, some of this
has rubbed off on you.

What are you gonna do?
Have me shot?

No, but I'll have to get
myself a new boy.

I tell you, there's
nothing on the judge.

Jack, there's something
on everybody.

Man is conceived in sin
and born in corruption.

It's a waste
of time.

What's the matter, Jack?

You're afraid you might
find something out?

I kept
saying to myself that Willie
was wrong about the judge.

If there was anything left
at Burden's Landing,
it was honor.

I had to believe that.

Anne, I want to
ask you a question.

Was the judge ever broke?

Really broke?

Why do you want to know?

I don't want to know.

But I've got to.

Did he tell you...
Did who tell me?

I don't know.

How should I know
if the judge was ever broke?

Hello. Come on, Anne.
Take this food and start
cooking. I'm hungry,

Me, I'm on the thirsty side.
Bring some glasses,
Anne, quick.

It's been a long time
since I played this thing.

What do you say
we wake up the ghosts, huh?

Another glass, Anne,
for a ghost.

Remember the last time
I played this?

You and Anne
were dancing.

Shall we dance?

Let's-Let's have
a drink first.

No, no.
Keep playing.

Anne and I want
to hear this,

don't we, Anne?

Adam,

ghost...

and me.

What shall we drink to?

To ghosts?

To Adam.
To the director
of the new medical center.

Don't you ever stop
working for him?

Adam.
I came up here
to get away.

I'm sorry, Adam.
Well, I'm not.

What's wrong with being
the director of the new
medical center?

Nothing, except that
I'm not going to take it.

Why? Because
your uncle resigned?

That's partly it.
There are other things.

- What other things?
- You too?

Yes, me too.

Anne, if Adam doesn't
want to discuss it,
let's not.

All right.
Let's discuss it.

But calmly.
Calmly.

Go ahead, Jack.
Why do you think
he wants me?

Because you're the best
man for the job.

It could have nothing to do
with my name being Stanton?

- It could have.
Let's grant that.
- That's your answer.

No, it's not.

If that were the only answer,
I wouldn't be with him anymore.

There's another side of it.
I learned something from him:

You can't make an omelet
without cracking eggs.

Or heads.

But at least
a hospital will be built,
and the sick will be cared for.

- At what price?
- At any price.

Do you really
believe that, Jack?

I really believe that
Stark wants to do good.

You do too.
It's a matter of method.

Many times,
out of evil comes good.

Pain is evil. As a doctor,
you should know that.

Pain is an evil.
It is not evil.
It is not evil in itself.

Stark is evil.

People of this state
don't think so.
How would they know?

The first thing Stark did
was to take over the newspapers
and the radio stations.

Why be so afraid
of criticism?

If Stark is interested
in doing good, he should also
be interested in the truth.

I don't see how
you can separate the two.

No, Stark is not for me.

No, Stark is not for you.
Well, what's for you?

Pride.
Pride, that's all it is.
Foolish, stupid pride.

All you've ever talked about
is what you could do...

if somebody would
tear down and build.

All right. Somebody has,
and he's given it to you.

But he's not for you.
No, he's not for you.

Anne.

Anne!

Will I find anything, Judge?

Will I?

I didn't find it
all at once.

It takes a long time to go
through old courthouse records
and musty deeds.

A very long time.

But it wasn't
too hard for me.

I was well trained
in research,

especially this kind.

I found
what I didn't want to find.

Have some photostat
copies made of these.
Yes, sir.

I'll be back
tomorrow for them.

Who is it?

It's me...
Sadie Burke.

Wait a minute.

All right. Come in.

Whew!
Awful lot of smoke.

Awful lot of whiskey.

You sober?

Stone.
I'll have one with you.

What are you
hiding out for?

I'm not.
I've been sleeping.

For four days?
You've been back in town
for four days.

Willie knows everything.
Willie's worried
about his boy.

Willie's boy is worried
about Willie's boy.

Why don't you put something
on the phonograph...
a lowdown, mean blues?

Play it over and over again
until you crack it and get
sick of it and go back to work.

I do it all the time.
That's not my problem.

No, it isn't your problem.

I'll wait for you
if you want to powder
your nose.

I'll be with you
in a minute.

Hmm.

Yeah, I can see it.

I got to look in the mirror
to be able to see it.

Soft, white skin.

Not like mine.

I had smallpox
when I was a kid.

Where I lived, it seemed
nearly all the kids
had smallpox.

It leaves your face hard.

She's got poise.

Look at the way
she holds her head
at just the right angle.

That takes training.
That takes years of training.

I see what Willie sees.

Willie's got
big ideas, Jack.
What do you mean?

A girl like that could be
a governor's wife or even
a president's.

What are you talking about?
He ditched Lucy, he ditched me
and he'll ditch you.

Answer me!
He'll ditch everybody, because
that's what Willie wants.

Nobody in the world
but him.
What are you talking about?

You and your
high-toned friends.

What do they know?
What do they know
about anything?

Why did you have to
mix her in?

You're crazy, Sadie.
You're out of your mind.
Am I?

Why don't you
go down and ask her.

Or ask him. Ask Willie.
Go ahead. Ask him, ask him.
Shut up! Shut up!

Ow-w-w!

Oh-ho-ho-ho.
Well.

Nice catch.

All right, all the ends
over here.

All the ends over this way.
Come on.

He's off today.

It's only practice.
He'll be all right tomorrow.

You've been gone
a long time, Jack.

Yeah, I figured
if you needed me,
you'd yell.

Why'd you lay around
that hotel?

Thinkin'.
About what?

Things.

What did you find
on the judge?
Nothing.

You're sure you didn't find
anything on the judge?

Yeah, I'm sure.
You're going to keep trying,
aren't you?

If you want me to.
I want you to.

Something else
I want you to do too.
What?

Bucket boy?
Towel-swinger? What?

What's eating you, Jack?
What else do you
want me to do?

If you've got something on your
mind, spit it out. We've been
together too long to play games.

What do you want me to do?

I hear your pal, Adam Stanton,
turned down the job
as director of the hospital.

That's bad, especially
at a time like this.

Oh?
How did you hear?

Why? What difference
does it make?

I just wanted to know.

I heard it around.
How did you hear
he turned it down?

Be right back, Jack.
I want to see
what's happening here.

You're going to practice
the way I tell you.

I'm gonna do it the way
I want to do it.
Tom, come here.

What's going on here?
I don't care if he is
your son, Governor.

No special rules for him.
Doesn't make any difference
to me whether I play or not.

It does to me.
What do you want
him to do?

To behave himself
like the rest of the boys.

Four times this season,
he's broken training.

He was on the practice field
half-potted.

Tom, you're going to have
to obey the rules.
Do you hear me?

I put 'em across, don't I?
Every Saturday,
I put 'em across.

I can still do it
drunk or sober.
That's all you want, isn't it?

For me to put 'em across
so you can big-shot it around?

Isn't that all you want?

Tom. He's a little
high-strung.

Tom, come here!
Tom!

Come on, Tommy.
Let's go faster.

Come on!

It's the governor's son.

Willie, Mr. Hale's
here to see you.

Go on upstairs, Lucy.
I have some business I want
to talk over with Mr. Hale.

What I've got to say,
anybody can listen to.

Where is your boy?
Now, now,
don't get excited.

Get me another drink,
Sugar.
My daughter may die.

She's not gonna die.
She'll get the best
medical attention there is.

No expense is
gonna be spared.
Where is your boy?

I'll get him.
Wait a minute,
Lucy.

He's asleep, and the doctor
said after a good night's
sleep, he'll be all right.

No. He won't be all right
unless you make him all right.

I'll get him.
Lucy!

Care for a drink?
No, thanks.

Accidents will happen,
you know.

"Accidents"?
Your boy was drunk.

I saw
the police report.

There was nothing
about drunkenness
on the police report.

Whose police
and whose report?

I say the boy was drunk,
and I know it.

Right here before your father,
I want you...
Mr. Hale.

Tom, the doctor says
you need rest, boy.

I don't want you to try
to cover up for me.

I was wrong.
That's all
there is to it.

You don't know what
you're talking about.
I saw the police report.

I don't care what
the police report says.

I was driving,
and I was drunk.

It's all my fault.

Anything you want to do
to me, you can do.

Whatever you want me
to do, I'll do.

Nobody has to do anything.
Stop worrying. I'll
take care of everything.

I don't want you to
take care of anything.

Tom, go on upstairs
and get some rest, boy.
Go on. Go on.

Go on.
Sugar, help him.

Mr. Hale.

Come on over
and sit down.

Sure you wouldn't care
for a drink, Mr. Hale?

Hey, Tiny.
Go home, will ya?

Go on. Out of here.
Go on.

What business did you
say you were in?
I didn't say.

What business
are you in?
Trucking business.

Trucking business.

Trucks run
on state roads.

If a man in the trucking
business had a contract
with the state...

a big one,
that'd be pretty good,
wouldn't it?

Go, on, Jack, tell him
what would happen.
Go on, tell him.

You're trying to bribe me,
aren't you?

No, no.
I'm not trying
to bribe you.

I'm only talking
things over with you,
that's all.

You're pretty good
at talking.

I remember when
you first started talking.

A place called Upton.
You did a lot of talking then,

and the things
you said made sense...

to me and a lot
of other people.

I believed in you,
I followed you,
and I fought for you.

Well, the words
are still good.

But you're not.

And I don't believe
you ever were.

Sugar, follow him.
Keep calling in.

Lucy!

I'd like Anne
to see you now.

I'd like Anne to see you now,
you drunken sot!

Come on!

All right, all right, gentlemen.
I'll give you a statement.

This whole thing
is a mess of lies.
It's a frame.

The man that made
that statement... Have him
repeat it to my face.

You can't.
He's vanished.

Let me ask you some questions.
Why has he gone? Where is he?

Maybe you could answer
those questions too,
Governor.

Look...
I won't dignify that
question with an answer.

One more question, Governor.
Where's your son?

At the football stadium,
where he's supposed to be.

He's going to play for
State University,

which this administration
is responsible for.

He's not hiding from anybody,
gentlemen. He'll be out there
in full view of 70,000 fans,

one of which
will be me.

See you, men.

Where's Stark?
How 'bout Tommy Stark?

Hey, Willie,
send your boy in!

Why don't they
put him in?

Come on, Willie!
Send your boy in!

What's the matter, Willie?
Is your little boy ashamed
to show his face?

Get this man out of here!
Go on, get him out of here.

What's the idea?

They're booing you.
Ever since the accident,
my head...

The doctor said
it was nothing.
Get dizzy, can't see...

You were scared,
plain scared.
Get out of here.

They're booing me too.
Me, Willie Stark. I built
the stadium for those dirty...

Get out of here!
That-a-boy. Get mad.
Show some spirit.

Jack, tell him what
his playing means.
Go on, tell him.

You can never tell
about a head injury.
Maybe the boy's hurt.

He's hurt? I'm hurt.
It wasn't me that wrapped
the car around the tree.

It wasn't me that got drunk.
But me, I'm taking the rap.

Go on, kid. Get out there
and play. Show 'em the kind
of stuff a Stark is made of.

I wouldn't know.

Cut it out.

All right. I'll play.
Now, get out of here!

Stark's going in.

One, two, three,
four, five.

One, two, three,
four, five.

Tommy!
Tommy!

Boss, you
got-gotta eat.

You g-gotta.

I'm the one
that made him play.

I sent him in.

Sit down, Willie.
Please sit down.

I sent him in.
What difference
does that make now?

What goes on?
There isn't
a plane flying.

They've got to fly.
This is my son.
He's got to live.

I just got a call
from Dr. Burnham.

The earliest he can possibly get
here will be tomorrow morning.

Isn't there anybody else
we can get?

I still think Dr. Stanton
should operate.
That's up to Governor Stark.

He wanted another doctor,
a specialist.
I sent for one.

How bad
is it really, Doc?

He's unconscious
and paralyzed.

Has he got a chance?
To live, yes.

What do you mean?

Even if the operation
is successful...
that is, if he lives...

I think he'll be
paralyzed for life.

You'll do everything
you can, won't you?

Anything between you and me,
that won't count, would it?
It doesn't have to.

Look, Doc, anything you want
in the world, you just ask
for it, and you got it.

Go on, Doc.
Ask for it.

There are some things,
Governor Stark, that even
you can't buy.

Do you want me to operate
or don't you?

Yes.

I want you to operate.

Please,
may I see Tom now?

Yes.

How much
does the doc know?

About what?
Oh, you know what
I'm talking about.

How much does he know?
About what?

About Anne and me.

He doesn't know a thing.
Not a thing.

Jack, how is he?

The boy?
Yes.

He'll live.
Oh, thank God.

How is...
Willie?

He blames himself,
doesn't he?

He'll find someone else
to blame in a few days.

I tried to call here
at the hospital,
but I just...

Anne.

Anne, why did
you do it?

He wasn't like anybody
I ever knew before.

You mean,
he wasn't like me.

He wasn't like anybody
I ever knew before.

I love him, I guess.
I guess that's the reason.

Everybody loves him.

He wants to marry me.

Are you going to?
Not now.
It would hurt him.

A divorce would hurt
his career.

"His career."
Jack.

Jack, what are you
going to do?

You can't leave him now.
He needs you now more
than he ever did before.

What Willie needs,
Willie's got.

You don't know him.

You've known him all these
years, and you don't really
know him at all.

What about Adam?
Adam?

Well, you don't have to
worry about him.
If Adam finds out,

it'll be easy to prove
that Stanton is no different
than anyone else.

Just show him these.

Willie was right.
Man is conceived in sin
and born in corruption.

Even Judge Stanton.

Show them to him, Anne.
Change the picture of the world
that Adam has in his head.

Just like our picture
of it has been changed.

Wipe out everything
he's ever believed in.
It'll be good for him.

There's no god but Willie Stark.
I'm his prophet, and you're his...

Oh, Anne.
Anne, I'm sorry.
I didn't mean...

Anne.
What's going on here?

It's all right, Officer.

We both work
for Willie Stark.

Right over there. That's going
to be the main building.
Fifteen stories, like the model.

Over there, the laboratory.
Finest technical equipment
in the world.

What are you trying
to convince me of?
I've taken the job.

Why?

My reasons are
my own.

Why are you building
the hospital?

To do some good
for the people of the state.
And get some votes.

Oh, there's lots of ways
to get votes.
Yes, I know.

I won't stand for
any interference.

I won't interfere.

I may fire you,
but I won't interfere.

If that's a threat,
you're wasting your time.

You know what I think
of your administration.
Yes, I know.

I'll tell you what.

You stay on your side
of the fence;
I'll stay on mine.

Is that a deal?

Now he had us all...
me, Anne and Adam.

Now we all
worked for him.

And so the eyes of the entire
nation are now focused...

upon Governor Willie Stark,

an amazing phenomenon
on the American political scene.

The whole state is filled
with his accomplishments,

each one of them,
of course, bearing
his personal signature...

to make sure that no one
will ever forget
who gave them to the state.

This is the way
the roads used to be.

But there are those who claim
that they were adequate
for the people's needs,

that you don't need a four-
or six-lane highway
for a horse and buggy.

When Stark boasts of his
great school system,

his critics say,

"You can't go to school
and work in the fields
at the same time."

And they question the benefit
of these projects,

charging that the need
and the poverty of the people
is as great as before.

Willie Stark has never forgotten
the source of his power...

the people who supported him.

He still keeps his touch
with these people
of the back woods,

making periodic trips to such
places as Kanoma City,

now famous as his birthplace.

For those who say
that Willie Stark
is a man of destiny,

there are others who claim
that he is a man of evil,

a man who cares neither
for the people or the state,

but only for his own
personal power and ambition.

Obviously, these ambitions go
far beyond the boundaries
of the state.

Just how far?
Only time will tell.

Meanwhile, he is here.
And from the looks of things,
he is here to stay.

Willie Stark...

messiah or dictator?

How do you like it, Governor?
How many theaters
will this play in?

All over the country.
Hear that, Jack?
All over the country.

Oh, there's one thing in there
I didn't like too well...
that "messiah or dictator."

That's our point of view,
Governor. That's the way
it stands.

All right.
All right.

That's the way it stands,
as of now.

Hello, Lucy.

How you makin' it, Pa?
How are you, Tom?

I've made some refreshments
for your friends.
I'll get them.

I'll help.
Thank you.
Thank you kindly.

If you don't mind, Mrs. Stark,
the boys have to get back
to make the morning editions.

Set 'em up on the porch, fellas.
We'll take some pictures
out here first.

Mrs. Stark, please.

All right, fellows.
Take one down there.
Shoot it up this way.

You're still a great cook,
Lucy. Great cook.

Well,

I guess I better be
getting back to town.

Nice to have spent
the day with the family.

Bye, Lucy, Tom.

Bye.
Take care of yourself,
Pappy.

Oh, uh, how do you like
the new radio I got you?

You know how it works?
You can get police calls on it.
Come here. I'll show you.

This one for police calls,
up here.

Car 62, proceed
to 518 Oak Street.

Tom Jones is beating
his wife again.

Car 62, Car 62...

Now this one.
It's all right.
Go ahead, go ahead.

We interrupt
this program to bring you
a special announcement.

This afternoon,
the body of Richard Hale,

father of the girl who died
in the automobile accident...

involving the governor's son,
was found.

A medical examination revealed
that he was beaten to death.

The ugly charge
of official murder...

had been hurled at the
administration by a coalition
of Stark's opponents...

led by Judge Stanton,
lately an outspoken critic
of the administration.

- Your friend, the judge.
- Thus, an almost
forgotten incident...

provided the spark that might
set off the explosion...

needed to rock Willie Stark
out of power.

The latest report is that
impeachment proceedings
may be instituted...

How long will it take you
to pack? I want you to go back
to Capital City with me tonight.

Why?
Because I need you.

What for?
I'll explain all that later.
Lucy, do like I say.

I'll wait outside.
Stay right here. Bear witness
to what I've got to say.

- She can bear witness too.
- I'm going back to the capital
and get hold of Duffy.

You stay right here, Sadie.

Somebody's got to go back
to the capital.
I'll go in the other car.

Then tell Duffy not to do
anything or say anything
till I get there.

- Yes, Governor.
- Now that he's in trouble,
he needs us...

so he can lead us around
like monkeys with rings
in our nose.

So he can say to people,
"Look at me. Feel sorry for me.
Just a family man...

with a wife
and a crippled son."

Shut up!
Willie!

- Why don't you leave us alone.
- Leave him alone?

How many scrapes have
I gotten him out of?
How many girls...

Willie, stop.
It's not him
they're after. It's me.

How many half-witted apes
do you think I'm gonna have
to pay to square this one?

What do you think
this is gonna cost me?

What do you think
it cost him?

A man builds for his son.

That's all he builds for.

Willie.

Tom.

Tom!

Give me a drink, Jack.

She'll go.

No good, Willie.

I offer a house resolution.

Whereas Willie Stark,
governor of this state,

has been guilty
of incompetence,

corruption, and favoritism
in office...

yes, and other high crimes...

and he is hereby impeached...

and ordered to be tried
by the senate.

- What's the score?
- - They're lined up against you solid.

They had a meeting.
How do you know?
Were you there?

Me? What would I
be doing there?
Selling me out.

How many votes
have we got?
Eleven.

We need 20.
We might be able to
dig up a few more.

Yeah?
Do you know how?

No.
Do you?
Jack, come here.

What do you got in your
black book about that
old friend of yours?

What do you mean?
You know who.
Your friend, the judge.

If and when you need it.
If and when...
Right now!

He's got four senators
wrapped up in his hip pocket.
Come on, boy. What do you got?

I'm gonna give him a break.
If he can prove it isn't true,
I won't spill it.

I oughta bust you, Jack.

I promised two people
I'd do it this way.
Who are they?

Myself... and someone else.
It doesn't matter who.
I'm gonna give him a break.

All right.
But if you got the facts,
you got the facts.

The truth is sufficient,
just like it says
in the Bible.

That's the way
it's going to be.

All right, boy.
I trust you.

Where are you going?

I'll be around.

Who else do you think
he promised, Willie?

You be smart.
Play square with him.

You're gonna need people
like us around.

Are you sure?

The chips were down,
and Willie knew it.

He was fighting for his life.

He roared across the state,
making speech after speech,

and all of them adding up
to the same thing...

"It's not me they're after;
it's you."

Willie hollered "foul."

Willie knew
if you hollered long enough,
hard enough and loud enough,

people begin to believe you.

Just in case they didn't,
he organized spontaneous
demonstrations.

Tell the boys
to get the hicks out.

Bring 'em in from the sticks.
Empty the pool halls.
Turn 'em out.

Turn the yokels out.

In case anyone argued back, he
organized spontaneous slugging.

Willie pulled every trick
he ever knew...

and added a few more.

Hey, Sugar.

You'll never live
to be impeached.

Boy, I'll live
to be president.

Step on it.

I've got 14 senators to vote
against this impeachment.

If I win,
you're out of politics.

I'll do whatever
the judge says.

And always the trail led
to one place...

to Burden's Landing
and the judge.

You sure you don't want me
to go in with you?

I'm sure.

Hurry it up, boy.
We got places to go.

Judge, I beg you,
as a favor to yourself,

to me, call up,
release your votes.

I made a mistake once, Jack...
when I resigned.

It was too easy then,
just resigning and pulling out.

No, Jack,
I've made my choice.
I have nothing more to lose.

Judge, you know what Stark
is capable of.

Think it over.
I'll leave now.
I'll come back tomorrow.

We'll talk about it then.
You can give me
your answer then.

I can't wait until tomorrow.
I'm a very impatient man.

I told you
not to come in here.

Is it true, Judge,
that you're behind the
impeachment proceedings?

Yes, it's true.

I wanted to hear you say it
with your own silver tongue.

Well, you've heard it.
If that's all you came to hear,
you could've saved a trip.

Mind if I pour
myself a drink?

How about you, Judge?
Will you have one?

You better.
You're gonna need it.

What did he say, Jack?

You'll get your answer
tomorrow.

Are you kidding?
Did you show it to him
or didn't you?

Show me what?

That's what I figured.

Let's get down
to cases, Judge.

You remember a man with
the name of Littlepaugh?

How did you find out?

Do you remember a man
by the name of Littlepaugh?

Remember the Fortune
Electric Company?

Of course.
I was their counsel
for over ten years.

Remember how
you got the job?

How did you find out?

Do you remember how
you got the job?

You know, Judge,
dirt's a funny thing.

Some of it rubs off
on everybody.

How did you get
the job, Judge?
Blackmail?

I swear I never even
remembered his name.

Isn't that
remarkable, Jack?

I never even
remembered his name.

It's all so long ago,
it's hard for me to realize
it ever happened.

Yeah, but it did.

Yes, it did.

But it's difficult
for me to realize it.

For me too, Judge.

Thanks for that much.

Well, I guess you know
what the next move is,
don't you?

Yes, I do.

Jack Burden,
Willie Stark's hatchet man.

I asked you,
how did you find out?

This would never stand at law...
not for a minute.

It happened
over 25 years ago.

And you could never get
any testimony.
Everybody is dead.

Everybody
except you, Judge.

You're alive.
And people think you're
a certain kind of man.

And you just couldn't
bear for people
to think otherwise.

But ever since then,
I... I've done my duty.

I... am responsible
for many good things.

But I also did this.
Yes, yes, you did.

Judge, I beg of you.

Call and release your votes,
for your sake.

You have tender sensibilities
for a hatchet man.

Good night,
gentlemen.

How about my answer?

You'll have it
in the morning.
I want it tonight.

In the morning.

Good night,
gentlemen.

How did you find out?

We got a lot to do.
It's getting late, Jack.
Let's get back to town.

You know we're through,
don't you?
You don't mean that.

What are you doing here?
It's all right. Just here to
discuss politics with the judge.

Oh, I see.

Well, good night.

Good night.

Did you give him...
Wait a minute,
Jack.

- Answer me.
- Did you give...

Aren't you going
back with him?

No.
Why not?
You belong with him.

Jack, how could you
have done it?

When Anne brought me those
papers, she told me you promised
not to tell Stark until...

I know.

And I kept
my promise.

Anne.

Anne.
Anne!

From all over the state,
they're streaming in.

From the hill country
and farms, the lumber camps,

by boat, by train,
by horse and on foot,
Willie Stark's army.

The state capitol is filled
with rumors,

one of which that Stark
is planning to seize power
by force.

As commander of
the state militia, he has...

Come in.
The door's open.

Jack...
What do you want?

No, I want to
see you cry.

Stop it!

I called you all afternoon.
I've been calling...
I know. I was here.

You've got to tell Adam.
You've got to see him.
Tell him what?

He knows about me.
About you and Willie?

I tried to explain to him.

I tried to explain to him
that it wasn't the way
he thought is was.

How was it, Anne?
You tell me.

He hit me, Jack.

My own brother.
He hit me.

Your brother's
an old-fashioned man.
He believes in a sister's honor.

Me, I'm a modern man.
The 20th-century type.
I run.

I'm frightened, Jack.
For who...
your brother or Willie?

We're through.

Who's through
with who?

He called me
this afternoon.

He's going back
to Lucy.

He said it was better
this way.

Better for who...
him?

Both of us.

Did he tell you that, too,
when he asked you
to betray the judge?

- At least I walked out on him.
- Oh, Jack.

Help me,
please, please.

Adam's all
I got left now.

Oh, Jack,
if you ever loved me...

If I ever loved you?

I'll go find Adam.

Where do you think
you're going?

Oh, I'm sorry,
I didn't recognize you.
Do you know who Dr. Stanton is?

Yes, sir.
Did he try to come
though here today?

Haven't seen him, sir.
Can you check
the other entrances?

There are no other
entrances today.

Other entrances are blocked off.
Orders are to take no chances.

If you care to come inside
and wait, Mr. Burden,
we can find you a seat.

No, thanks. I'll wait out here.
If Dr. Stanton shows up,
let me know.

Pass the word along
to the boys, will you?
Yes, sir.

All right, now.
Everybody.

That means everybody.

Let's let Willie know
we're here. All together.

- Willie! Willie!
- We want Willie!

Willie! Willie!
We want Willie!

We will first proceed
to take the judgment
of the senate...

on the question of the
impeachment of the governor.

Mr. Speaker,
this is a farce...

to ask us to vote...

in the face of the kind
of intimidation...

and pressure that
has been exerted here
in the past few weeks.

Even that crowd
outside...

yelling on cue...

is part of
that pressure.

Willie! Willie!
We want Willie!

Attention, please.
Attention, please.

This is a special
announcement from Willie Stark
to you people out there.

He doesn't want
any one of you to leave.

He wants you to stay in front
of this state capitol
until the fight is over.

If you want
Willie Stark to win,

stay where you are,
do you hear me?

Stay where you are.
Don't go away.

Stay where you are.

Don't go away.

Attention, please.

The balloting on the
impeachment proceedings...

against Governor Stark...

has just ended.

This is the result.

Willie Stark...

has won!

They tried to ruin me,

but they are ruined.

They tried to ruin me
because they did not like
what I have done.

Do you like
what I have done?

Remember, it's not I
who have won, but you.

Your will
is my strength,

and your need
is my justice.

And I shall live
in your right and your will.

And if any man tries
to stop me from fulfilling
that right and that will,

I'll break him...
I'll break him
with my bare hands,

for I have
the strength of many.

Jack, boy, I knew
we'd win out.
Come on.

Doctor, I'm very glad to...

Does it...
hurt much, boss?

Does it hurt much?

Anne. Anne,
where are you going?

I don't know.
Leave me alone.
To do what?

I don't care.
No, that's too easy.

I don't know,
I don't know, I don't know.
I do.

Leave me alone, please.
No, no more.

He's dead.
We're alive.

My brother's dead.
We've got to
go on living.

How?
So Adam's death has meaning.
So that it wasn't wasted.

Anne, our life has to give
his death meaning.
Don't you see that?

Look at those people.
Look at them.

They still believe.

And we've got to make them
see Willie the way
Adam always saw him,

or there's no meaning
in anything, anything.

Mr. Burden,
the governor's
asking for you.

You better hurry.
He's going fast.

Will you wait here?

Could have been...
whole world,

Willie Stark.

Whole world,
Willie Stark.

Why did he do it
to me,

Willie Stark?

Why?