Summer Heat (1987) - full transcript
Feeling lonely and neglected by her overworked husband, Roxy, a Depression-era farm wife, is drawn into an ill-advised affair with Jack, their hired hand.
ROXY: I was born
Roxanna Stanton in
Tarboro, North Carolina,
when tobacco was king.
During market time,
the warehouses were full of
cured, bright-leafed tobacco,
and any little breeze
would fan that sweet,
strong smell,
and seal it over
the center of town
like a jar lid.
Daddy owned
the funeral home.
He used to say, "There's
two things for sure
in Tar County."
"Tobacco brings
money and people die."
When I married Aaron Walston,
we moved out to
his tobacco farm.
It was about ten
miles outside
of Tarboro.
And I have to say,
the isolation of that
little farm was something I
had not known before.
By the time I was 20,
our baby, Patty Estelle,
was two.
And we worked hard
getting that crop
out every year.
I didn't think much
about whether there would
be anything else for me.
But then, the summer of 1937
changed my life forever.
At that time, I didn't
understand all the things
that happened,
but I knew they
were irrevocable.
[PLAYING]
When my grandmother,
Georgeanna, died,
I was as lonely as I
ever'd been in my life.
Georgeanna had
raised me ever since
my mother died.
[INDISTINCT CHATTERING]
Sorry about
your grandmother.
Thank you.
Are you gonna stay
at her house?
No. I'm scared to
stay there by myself.
Well, what about
livin' at your daddy's?
His wife, Ruth,
is my mother's
younger sister.
I know.
Well, I feel kind
of funny about that.
What are you doin'?Is Baby asleep?
Yeah, Baby's asleep.
I wanted to last
night and you just
shrugged me off.
I had to get up at the
crack of dawn.
Aaron...
Sometimes I think
you're just doin' this,
'cause you can't think
of anything better to do.
[SIGHS]
[SIGHS]
ROXY: Daddy hired
boys from all over
eastern North Carolina
to work at the
funeral home.
When his friends
couldn't think of what
to do with their boys
they sent 'em to
Mr. Will for a job.
What do you say, boys?Good mornin', Will.
[GROANS]
[SIGHS]
I got that Clark Gable
picture at the theater.
Where he don't
wear no undershirt?
[CHUCKLES]
STROTHER: You won't see
that one, will ya, Will?WILL: No.
BASS: How do you
expect me to keep
the theater running?
Here comes a fella
lookin' for a job, Will.
What you wanna bet?
No, I got
too many boys
here now, Strother.
Don't matter.
They know ya all over
eastern North Carolina
for havin' a soft heart.
[CHUCKLES]
I don't have any
work, and room
upstairs is plumb-full.
BASS: He ain't
from Tar County.
STROTHER: I bet you he's
a walk-away from the CCC Camp.
I'm looking for Mr. Will.
Ask inside.
I don't
work here.
Thank you.
What are you doin'?
Just waitin' here like
you told me.
Aaron!
Your folks
are here.
Hello, Mr. Tatie.
Hi there, Roxy. Aaron.
We're gonna ride over
to, uh, Eureka,
see Aunt Sally.
Thought some of y'all might
want a ride back to
Tarboro with us.
I believe I'll
just stay here.
I got my new
seedlings just
getting started.
But y'all come in.
Roxy why don't you
and Baby go on in?
Maybe we'll do that.
There's your
grandpa over there.
There's your grandma.
Yeah.
Baby, you look like
a cat under a collard.
[LAUGHING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTERING]
Well, look who's here!
We're just waitin'
for your daddy.
Come here, Baby.
Come here.
We're just waitin'
for your daddy.
There was a wreck
out at the crossroads
last night,
and he had
to stop by.
Come on, Roxy.
I have something important
to tell ya, come on!
ROXY: What?It's important,
come on.
ROXY: I grew up playing
in the backyard there.
So what happened
to the coffin for
the Mr. Masterdoll?
Well, we haven't
played in those coffins
since Raider tried to
sail off the top.
[LAUGHS] He did?
CALLIE: Daddy's gonna
have him hauled away.ROXY: Aw.
ROXY: I had copied the design
for my playhouse
out of my
weekly reader.
And then built it
out of old coffins.
Main thing my friends
at school wanted
to know was,
had I ever seen
anybody dead?
Boo! BOTH: Raider!
Hey you.
Callie and me
finally saw
a dead person.
We heard at school
this man that got burned up
that they had him
down here.
We pushed the door
open real fast,
there was this little thing
lying up on the table
like a log out of
the fireplace.
We went flying up to
the front of the house,
and then saw somebody sitting
on the stairs watching us.
He wasn't like the other
funeral home boys.
He said, "You must
be Mr. Will's girl."
I told him I was
his littlest girl.
Roxy is his biggest girl.
He said, "If she's any
prettier than you, she
must be real pretty."
CALLIE: I couldn't believe
I was standing there
talking to a grown
man like that.
Who you got
in there, Will?
Old Fate Renfroe.
You remember him?
Poor old fella.
He got hit,
broadside with a freight
train over here at
the Golden Weed.
Tear him up much?
Oh, yeah,
he looks bad.
And I worked on
him near all night,
that boy, Jack, came
in and helped me.
He's good.
With his hands,
you know?
He's cool about it too.
He was eatin' a...
Bit-O-Honey bar
10 minutes after we quit.
You gonna
keep him?
Oh, I can't.
I can't, Strother, I...
He'd be a natural,
you know...
A real natural but, you
know, I got too many
boys workin' here now.
Jack's a right
smart fellow.
He, he reminds me
of somebody, but...
I can't think who.
[SCREAMS]
What the hell?
It's just Renfroe,
giving you a goodbye.
[LAUGHING]
STROTHER: What's he
doin' sneaking up on
me like that?
What's he doin'
over there? [WILL AND BASS LAUGH]
Go on, you
shaggy-headed rascal.
Go on!
If you think you can
get past them gals
down at the hotel.
[STROTHER LAUGHS]
STROTHER: That boy's a... RUTH: Roxy!
I believe you
could use dose of
Mr. Applewhite's Capudine.
You always look like
you'd be afraid to say
"Boo!" to a goose.
ROXY: Two weeks later,
in the middle of March,
the old hearse
pulled up our drive.
At first, I thought
it was Daddy
comin' to see me.
But it was Jack Ruffin.
I'm Jack Ruffin. Hey.
Wanna draw?
What do you want?
I'm sorry. I thought
you knew I was coming out.
All I know is you're
somebody I've never
seen before in my life.
Well, Mrs. Walston,
if your husband didn't
tell ya, I guess I will.
I've come
to help out.
Your daddy run
the funeral home?
Mr. Will Stanton?
He's the one who
sent me over here.
That was Neb just
dropped me off.
JACK: Mr. Will said you
might be able to use
some help out here.
That's right,
I sure could.
Come on.
ROXY: I had seen
Jack Ruffin before.
He was with Georgeanna,
in a dream.
AARON: Roxy?
I'm driving Jack
back to town.
But supper will
be ready soon.
I'll be back soon.
[BANJO MUSIC ON RADIO]
[DOOR OPENS]
Well, dinner's not
fit to eat now.
Don't worry
about it. [TURNS RADIO OFF]
I got me a
hot dog in town.
Jack Ruffin's
coming out
next Saturday.
Why don't you
cook us up
a chicken stew?
Chicken stew?
When did you
get to know this
Jack Ruffin so good?
Fixing the well.
We're gonna
check on it Saturday
and he's bringing
his guitar out, we're
gonna pick a few songs.
Well...
You hardly ever
see a soul.
I didn't know
you knew him.
Well, I didn't
know him before
this mornin'.
He gave me this
mandolin string.
Had it right there
in his suitcase.
He just gave it to me.
[BABBLES]
ROXY: The wind was
blowing hard the night
Jack came for dinner.
And I couldn't help
thinking about
Georgeanna's superstitions.
GEORGEANNA: You know,
every time somethin' bad's
happened to me in my life,
it's happened to me
in the month of March.
It's like a big,
black cloud that
just hangs there.
There's somethin'
in the wind.
Aaron?
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[KNOCK AT DOOR]
AARON: Hey.JACK: Hey.
How are you? Real good.
So, how do you
like North Carolina?
I like it.
Well, how many boys
does Mr. Will have
over there now?
Too many.
It must be
pretty stuffy in that... [TEAPOT LID CLATTERS]
Hmm.
Excuse me. Watch your fingers.
Excuse me.
[BABY COOS]
What's your
baby's name?
It's Patty Estelle.
But everybody just
calls her "Baby."
Except Aaron's
mother, Estelle.
She calls her "Es-telle,"
like every syllable's
just nailed down.
[BABY CRIES]
BABY: Mom!
Excuse me.
JACK: This is good.
This is really good.
AARON: Here, here.
Have some more.
We got a lot.
Hey, Jack!
Hey, can you, uh,
plan on coming
out tonight?
Yeah. Just got me
some new strings
this morning.
Listen, Neb wanted
to come out,
if that's okay.
Well, uh...
I don't want it to turn
into a get-together.
Okay.
I'll see you tonight.
[PLAYING UPBEAT MUSIC]
Nah, I can't talk to you
about this stuff.
You're a married man
with a family to boot.
Besides, you don't
want to hear about
my date with Ava.
I got news for you, Jack.
Me and Ava Chisholm
went steady in
eighth grade.
Is that so?
AARON: In fact,
I'll never forget one
Saturday afternoon,
Ava and I were over
at her sister's house.
I was sittin'
on the couch...
[SPITS]
Ava had her
head in my lap.
All of a sudden,
she shifts around,
she says, "Aaron,
your belt buckle's
hittin' me in the head."
I said "Ava, I'm not
wearin' a belt."
[BOTH LAUGHING]
AARON: Her sister
looked at me
real embarrassed.
I don't think Ava knew
what was going on.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
So where did
you day your
parents are?
My parents
are dead.
AARON: I'm sorry.
It's all right.
It was a long time ago.
Well, I made you
all a pecan pie.
We'll be up there
in a minute.
Come on, Baby.
Let's go. Yeah. [COOS]
Whoa! Hello, Jack.
Um, Aaron's not here
right now. [CLEARS THROAT]
[WHISPERING] Pretty.
JACK: Hi, Aaron.
Some weather, huh?
Yep. [STRAINS]
How's this gonna be
for the seedlings?
This is perfect. That's
what this is. This is
perfect for the seedlings.
You know how muddy
the roads will be.
I don't know why
you just don't
stay out here.
You can just make
yourself a bed in
the spare room.
I guess it would be
a lot easier if I was
just stayin' out here.
Why don't you
bring your clothes
and things on out?
You know I could
use the help.
I know you could.
JACK: I'll tell Neb
to bring my things
out now and just...
Not go back.
As soon as
it quits rainin',
we'll have plenty
to do then.
Roxy, why don't
you clean out
that chifforobe
in the spare room
so Jack can put
his things in it.
She's only got her
sewin' stuff in
there now.
Okay.
Turn it in.
Lower it down.
[EXHALES]
We might as well
get on to bed early.
We're gonna need
this rest when it
comes time to prime.
[SIGHS]
Soon as that sun ever
comes back out,
it'll get to growin'
real fast.
It's quit raining.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Come on in.
Quit raining.
AARON: Yeah, it sure did.
Well... I guess
I'll get on back
to town, now.
See ya. See ya.
See you in
the morning.
See you in
the morning.
Phew!
You wanna pick
a little tonight?
Nah, I think we're gonna
go on to bed early.
But you know
where the keys are.
I mean, if you
need the truck
to go in
and see Ava or
anything like that,
[CHUCKLES] you go
ahead and use it.
[JACK CHUCKLES]
[DOOR CLOSING]
[TRUCK ENGINE STARTS]
Neb came
by last night.
Uh-huh.
Needed some help
with a wreck out by
Johnson Crossroads.
Old preacher
and his wife swerved
in a ditch,
hurt pretty bad.
Roxy,
Ray says, Daddy needs
me to come over
to help him
start to fix
that back fence.
Horses go out again
last night.
I gotta get
over there.
Sorry, I can't watch
Baby today.
Well, do you think
you can take
Baby to Daddy's?
Yeah, I can do that.
Come on, pretty Baby.
You're gonna
go see Callie.
Here you go, Baby.
You wanna go for a ride
in that big black car?
That's where we're goin'.
BABY: Bye.
Why don't you get
that hot hair cut off?
Roxy.
I thought you were
halfway to Raleigh.
I just wanna say that
I appreciate every one
of y'all out here.
I have a real good
feelin' about
the crop this year.
Treat every leaf
as special.
Don't let the littlest
leaf burn up in the sun.
We gotta eat.
Roxy's got fudge!
[VEHICLE APPROACHING]
ALL: ♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
[SIGHS]
[BOTH SIGH]
Here you go, Jack.
You don't get much sleep
with tobacco curing,
do you?
Can't afford it.
Two years ago
I lost my best barn.
Burned up.
Well, you want me
to stay down
here tonight?
No, I'll stay down
here tonight.
You stay down here
tomorrow night, okay?
[SIGHS]
Honey,
you have to
move a little faster.
You're movin'
like you're sleepwalkin'.
Whoa!
Oh, boy. MAN: Raider, you been
fishin' lately?
RAIDER: Not much. You wanna pass me some
more of those string beans?
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
MAN: Has your roof
got a hole in it, Raider?
Gonna need patching?
Well, let's get
back, boys.
I think it's fixin'
to get real warm
this afternoon.
Sure is. Listen,
we ought to get
those mules first.
Okay, they're gonna
need some water.
[GURGLING]
I think we ought to get on
over to Haws Landing
for that barbecue.
You know, the only reason
I didn't go sit up
with 'em last night
to help 'em cook
that pig was...
That's my best barn
curin' out there.
I just wanted to see it.
I just don't care
a thing about goin'.
Not go?
I don't see why.
I'm just not goin'.
I feel like
I'm in the way
over there.
Now, Roxy,
you know my family
thinks so much of you.
And they love
to see Baby.
Aaron,
there's somethin' about
the Fourth of July
that just tears my
nerves all to pieces.
It's all those
loud noises and
firecrackers and all.
And...
Those folks drivin'
around in those fast
pickup trucks, drunk!
Look,
it's just too hot.
And everybody's crazy.
They're expectin' us, Roxy.
No.
Well, you do
what you please, then.
[DOOR CLOSING]
GEORGEANNA: Long life line,
long crooked
double love line.
I got you a present.Hmm.
Okay.
Can you just
wait a minute?
Mmm-hmm. I gotta change Baby.
I'm sure her diaper's
about ready to fall off.
Please.
Just a second.
Okay?
Now.
[LAUGHS]
That's Mom. [LAUGHING] Momma.
That's good.
That was good. [LAUGHING] Okay, Baby.
Now, then, you wanna
take a picture
of me and Baby?
No. Now, we're gonna
try a little trick.
[GRUNTS]
Stay right there.
[WHIMPERING] Mom.
What's the matter?Mom.
[LAUGHING]
Whoa!
You ready?
This is going to be
some picture.
[SHUTTER CLICKS] [CLATTERING]
[BABY CRYING]
Baby!
Jack! Help!
I'll get the truck.
[CRYING]
I was cookin' some peas,
and Baby turned 'em
over on herself.
Where is she?
[VOICE BREAKING]
She's with the doctor.
Hello, Doctor.
You can take
her home now.
Okay.
Keep her quiet.
And keep her in bed.
Oh, and if she
should happen
to wake up tonight,
you might rub her
with some more of this.
Okay.
I'll come out and,
uh, check on her
in the morning,
see how she's
getting on.
Are there gonna
be scars?
DR. BEST:
Probably. Yes.
How's Baby?
Where's the Kodak?
I hid it.
Aaron, where's...
Can't you take care
of your own family?
Let me take her.
[WHISPERING]
Okay, is it better, Baby?
Is it better?
Roxy?
There's somethin'
Daddy wants me
to talk to you about.
Daddy mentioned somethin'
about Jack stayin' here.
It might be better...
He said we ought
to get the first
'bacco to market,
and then give him
some money
and send him off.
I've already
told him.
I told Jack that
after the opening sale
we'll be able to
manage without him.
Why don't you
tell him, too?
Somebody at the church
mentioned to the folks that
it didn't look right
with you and Jack
stayin' in the same house.
Talk to Jack about it.
[SCREAMS]
Jack! [LAUGHS]
[GIGGLING]
[CLEARS THROAT]
Jack, I've got to
talk to you.
Shh. Shh.I've gotta talk to you.
I've gotta...
I've gotta talk
to you, Jack.
I've gotta talk to you.
I love you, Roxy.
You're prettier
than any Ava.
Don't worry.
He's not comin'
down here.
I came down here
to tell you. Jack,
you have to go.
I'm married.
I have a baby.
You could
run off with me.
I'm married, Jack.
Did you talk to Jack?
Yes.
[SLAMS DOOR]
MAN: $5!
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
MAN: $5!
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
MAN: $7!
How're they biddin'?
They're biddin'
a little low.
Yeah, I heard that.
They'll pick up.
MAN: $4!
They better.
Stayin' out of
trouble, Jack?
Yes, sir. All right.
[INDISTINCT TALKING]
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
[INDISTINCT TALKING]
MAN: $25!
Help me out.
[AUCTIONEER CHANTS]
[CHANTING CONTINUES]
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[DOOR OPENING]
Got us hot dogs
from the Greek's.
First day of market, 1937.
[SIGHS] I never
thought I'd get a...
10.
Mmm-hmm.Oh!
I never thought
I would.
Hell, I mean...
I mean, she's worth
it and all... I just...
I never thought
I'd get it.
They're havin' a dance
down at Wainright's
this year.
I do see
why we can't go.
You get
Baby up early.
We can go on in, take in
the whole festival.
Jack can take care
of things around here.
I'll see ya tomorrow.
All right.
[PARADE MUSIC PLAYING]
ROXY: Jack still
had a pull for me.
And I thought then
that maybe
he always would.
But I had to make a choice.
All I hoped was that
Aaron and I could forget
everything that had happened
and start over.
[CHICKENS CLUCKING]
Did y'all enjoy
yourself last night?
Oh, the pageant
was beautiful.
The whole family was there,
and it was just, uh...
It was wonderful.
Nice festival?
Oh, it sure was.
Listen, I need you
to ride over with me
to Daddy's.
I wanna get that new truck
I bought from him
before we go down
to Carolina Beach.
You can drive it back here.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[BEES BUZZING]
You're gonna get stung.
God damn it, Roxy.
Come on down
back of the barn,
Aaron.
I wanna show you
something I killed
down there today.
I don't know what it is.
Somethin' strange.
Some strange
kind of animal.
[THUNDER RUMBLING]
[DOOR OPENS]
Aaron, Baby's... Aaron's not here.
[PANTING] Put some
clothes on Baby.
We gotta go.
Go where? Don't ask me that.
Just get your clothes...
Put some things
in your suitcase.
We gotta go. Now!
Get her blankets.
Where's Aaron?
Get in the car.
Jack, where is Aaron?
You don't really
wanna know, Roxy.
Just get in the car.
I'll tell you about it later.
[DUCKS QUACKING]
You got any rooms?
Jack...
Jack, I just...
I need to go home.
After you see
what's on my overalls,
you won't wanna go home.
I, I can't keep
it in any longer.
I hit him,
not too far
from the hole.
What hole? I hit him
at the hole, Roxy.
[CRYING] What hole? The hole I dug.
I dug... Is Aaron okay?
Roxy...
I hit him twice... Why?
At the hole.
I dug the hole, Roxy.
I dug a hole
behind the barn.
Saturday, while y'all
were in town.
And I sat out there
and I looked
into it all day
and all night.
I called him
out there and I...
Hit him, and I...
Covered him up.
[SCREAMING] You!
[ROOSTER CROWS]
We better be leaving here.
Roxy,
I'll treat you right.
Now, say you'll
be ready to go.
Come on. Say it.
Kiss me now and say.
We've got to go.
Got the bus tickets
to Birmingham.
I know somebody
we can stay with.
I don't know why...
I don't know why
I ever thought
you'd go with me.
I'll come back for you
as soon as I can.
[CAR DOOR CLOSES]
[CAR RECEDING]
[INAUDIBLE]
We picked up Jack Ruffin
when he was getting
on the bus.
He told us where
he buried your husband.
We called up to Tarboro,
and some of your people
went out there
and they dug him up.
He made a full
confession.
Says you two
planned it together.
You never saw those bloody
overalls till yesterday?
[WHISPERING] No, sir.
You're sure about that? Yes, sir.
You're real sure?Yes.
I believe we can
go on home, now.
She be arraigned
on Monday morning.
She's gonna be
arraigned, Roger?
[SIGHS]
I don't know how to say
this to you, Roxy,
but I want you to know a
little about what it was like.
You know. I'm used to
that phone ringing at
all times of the night.
But this time it,
I just didn't know
what to think.
I mean, it had to be
somebody crazy.
But it did finally
get through to me
that they were saying
the sheriff in Georgia
had called,
and that Aaron
was probably dead
and you and Jack
were off somewhere.
I called Ruth to come to
the phone and try to make
some sense out of it,
but she...
Was just as
bad as me, at first.
I told them
I'll be right on out there,
and they said it's no use.
But, of course, I went.
I couldn't get to
the farm fast enough.
Somehow, I thought
you might be there.
Even though they said
you were in Georgia.
When got out there,
they had already gone
right to the grave,
a sorry hole not any way
from the barn.
Anybody could have found it.
Anybody could have
found that hole.
What was the matter
with that boy, Jack?
What could he have
been thinking of?
What was I thinking of?
[SOBBING]
You've got to
see him, Roxy.
Got to make yourself
look right at him.
[SOBBING]
Oh, Roxy.
You hold tight
to that baby, Roxy.
She misses her mama.
Don't you worry.
You daddy wanted
to buy you one
but I told him
I wanted to pick it out.
Nearly everybody
in the world's
got some kind of secret,
but everybody
doesn't get found out
and have their pictures
put in the paper.
We're gonna do
the best we can.
When you walk
in there tomorrow,
you stand up straight
and hold your shoulders back.
[CROWD TALKING INDISTINCTLY]
[REPORTERS CLAMORING]
Okay, okay,
make way, make way.
REPORTER 1: Mrs. Walston!
Are you in love
with Jack Ruffin?
Why didn't you go to
your husband's funeral?
Are you really in love
with that guy, Jack Ruffin?
REPORTER 2: Please,
can we get a picture?
Let my wife
through, please.
REPORTER 3:
Did you murder
your husband?
[WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY]
[SOBBING]
[CROWD MURMURING]
[GAVEL POUNDS]
Bailiff, please read
the confession.
[CLEARS THROAT]
"I stayed home all day
Saturday and Sunday
while the Walstons were gone.
"I dug the grave on Saturday,
about 3:00 in the afternoon.
"I used the shovel
which I got from
the Walstons' house.
"I left the shovel
at the hole.
"I hit him in the
back of the head
with the shovel.
"Knocked him out
the first lick.
"He was lying down
on his face
"when I hit him
the second time.
"I had been
sleeping with her.
"No use to say I love her,
and will die loving her.
"I had intercourse
with her from June.
"In a way,
she knew I killed him.
In a way, she didn't.
"She wanted to
run off with me,
"but she couldn't,
because of her husband.
"So, I killed her husband."
Now, Mrs. Walston,
would you tell the
gentlemen of the jury
how you met
and got to know
Jack Ruffin?
He came out to help
my husband with the well.
And then he started helping
with the tobacco crop.
Aaron told him
to come on and move in.
Aaron would go down
to the barn one night,
and Jack would go
down the next.
I got up while Aaron
was still sleeping
and I went down
to the barn.
And then I got back
before he woke up.
Now, Mrs. Ruffin, I'm gonna
ask you a little bit about
those nights down in the barn.
I'm Mrs. Walston.
But those nights down in
the barn were your idea,
weren't they?
He asked me to
come down there.
But they were your idea,
weren't they?
I wanted to go.
So you were in no way forced
to go down into that barn
were you, Mrs. Ruffin?
I am Mrs. Walston.
Now, please describe to
the gentlemen of the jury
just what happened
on the first occasion
you had intercourse with him.
You heard
the question, ma'am.
Please describe to the
gentlemen of the jury,
the first occasion on which
you had intercourse with him.
My husband had gone off,
and it happened
in the garden.
In the garden.
And the next time?
I don't know.
It might have been
the next day.
And these relations
did occur every day
thereafter, did they not?
Sometimes I was sick.
But, when your
husband was gone,
and you weren't sick,
it happened every day,
didn't it?
Please, let the record
reflect that the witness
has nodded the answer, "Yes."
For him, for the State,
and for everybody else,
for God's sake,
don't turn him loose.
But a life sentence
in prison would constitute
a far more severe punishment
than the death penalty.
Whatever damnation
comes out of this case,
she is the foundation for it.
Now, gentlemen, you have
heard the evidence.
After a comparatively
short time, this man
was living in the house
with more freedom
than the woman's husband.
She has been unfaithful
to her child,
unfaithful to her husband
and unfaithful to her God.
Not in the annals
of the history
of North Carolina,
have we had a murder
of such brutality as to
compare with this one.
Gentlemen, I want you to
return a verdict of guilty.
I want you to send
Jack Ruffin
and Roxanna Walston
to the gas chamber.
[CROWD MURMURING IN CONCERN]
No!
Wait.
She never did say
she'd run off with me.
I pushed her into
the car that night.
She didn't know
what happened.
And when I finally told her,
she ran away from me and hid.
They said yesterday
that I do not have a heart!
I do have a heart,
and there's grief
in my heart at the bottom.
[CROWD GASPS]
Will, hold her up here.
I'll get her some water.
Watch your head.
RADIO ANNOUNCER:
We have a verdict
in the Walston murder case.
The jury went out at 11:25
and they were back at 12:05.
They found
Mrs. Roxanna Walston
not guilty of
conspiracy to murder,
and they found
Mr. Jack Ruffin
guilty of murder
in the first degree,
with no recommendation
for mercy.
Handkerchiefs fluttered
as the judge intoned
the death sentence.
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PLAYING]
WILL: I know Kate would be
happy to have her.
RUTH: That sounds just like
something a man would say.
That's half
her trouble now.
Listening to ghost stories,
all her life,
and always doing something
some man thought
she ought to do.
How can she
go to Virginia,
or anywhere else?
She needs to learn
to do something first.
WILL: Could you
lower your voice?
You know, this was
your mother's bed.
That's why I brought
you in here.
There's no better medicine
in this whole world than
lying in your mama's bed.
It was our mama's bed, too.
I lay right here myself
when I wasn't much older
than you are,
talking to Mama.
When I was in
that tourist camp
in Georgia with him,
I didn't know how to say,
"No, I can't go with you."
I never said "no"
to anybody in my life,
except for Aaron
on the Fourth of July.
Different things happen
to different people, Roxy.
Don't think
you're the only one
something bad
ever happened to.
What really matters
is how you behave
after it's over.
And it is over.
Daddy, I'd like to
go to the farm today.
You gotta get your
driving license sometime.
I'm going to.
And then, I think you
and me and Ruth ought to...
We ought to talk about
you getting on a train
and heading up
to Fredericksburg,
to stay with Aunt Kate
for a while.
Daddy, I know I won't
stay in Tarboro
for my whole life.
But right now my child
needs her family.
She needs a stable home.
I'm gonna stay right here
and I'm gonna ride it out,
just the same as you.
And Ruth,
and our whole family.
♪ Now that I'm all alone
♪ All I am livin' on
♪ Is every memory I've had
♪ Of you
♪ I know the love
will never die
♪ While there's someone to cry
♪ When does the heart
come home?
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ For going to and
comin' from
♪ And someday I'll see
♪ Where my heart wants to be
♪ And I'll be glad
and I'll be home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ We guess at who we are
♪ And what we're living for
♪ We hope our heart
and soul will see us through
♪ I don't care
how far I must go
♪ As long as I can know
♪ My heart will have a home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ For going to
and comin' from
♪ And someday I'll see
♪ Where my heart wants to be
♪ And I'll glad
and I'll be home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ I know my heart
must have a home
♪ Mmm
♪ Mmm-hmm
Roxanna Stanton in
Tarboro, North Carolina,
when tobacco was king.
During market time,
the warehouses were full of
cured, bright-leafed tobacco,
and any little breeze
would fan that sweet,
strong smell,
and seal it over
the center of town
like a jar lid.
Daddy owned
the funeral home.
He used to say, "There's
two things for sure
in Tar County."
"Tobacco brings
money and people die."
When I married Aaron Walston,
we moved out to
his tobacco farm.
It was about ten
miles outside
of Tarboro.
And I have to say,
the isolation of that
little farm was something I
had not known before.
By the time I was 20,
our baby, Patty Estelle,
was two.
And we worked hard
getting that crop
out every year.
I didn't think much
about whether there would
be anything else for me.
But then, the summer of 1937
changed my life forever.
At that time, I didn't
understand all the things
that happened,
but I knew they
were irrevocable.
[PLAYING]
When my grandmother,
Georgeanna, died,
I was as lonely as I
ever'd been in my life.
Georgeanna had
raised me ever since
my mother died.
[INDISTINCT CHATTERING]
Sorry about
your grandmother.
Thank you.
Are you gonna stay
at her house?
No. I'm scared to
stay there by myself.
Well, what about
livin' at your daddy's?
His wife, Ruth,
is my mother's
younger sister.
I know.
Well, I feel kind
of funny about that.
What are you doin'?Is Baby asleep?
Yeah, Baby's asleep.
I wanted to last
night and you just
shrugged me off.
I had to get up at the
crack of dawn.
Aaron...
Sometimes I think
you're just doin' this,
'cause you can't think
of anything better to do.
[SIGHS]
[SIGHS]
ROXY: Daddy hired
boys from all over
eastern North Carolina
to work at the
funeral home.
When his friends
couldn't think of what
to do with their boys
they sent 'em to
Mr. Will for a job.
What do you say, boys?Good mornin', Will.
[GROANS]
[SIGHS]
I got that Clark Gable
picture at the theater.
Where he don't
wear no undershirt?
[CHUCKLES]
STROTHER: You won't see
that one, will ya, Will?WILL: No.
BASS: How do you
expect me to keep
the theater running?
Here comes a fella
lookin' for a job, Will.
What you wanna bet?
No, I got
too many boys
here now, Strother.
Don't matter.
They know ya all over
eastern North Carolina
for havin' a soft heart.
[CHUCKLES]
I don't have any
work, and room
upstairs is plumb-full.
BASS: He ain't
from Tar County.
STROTHER: I bet you he's
a walk-away from the CCC Camp.
I'm looking for Mr. Will.
Ask inside.
I don't
work here.
Thank you.
What are you doin'?
Just waitin' here like
you told me.
Aaron!
Your folks
are here.
Hello, Mr. Tatie.
Hi there, Roxy. Aaron.
We're gonna ride over
to, uh, Eureka,
see Aunt Sally.
Thought some of y'all might
want a ride back to
Tarboro with us.
I believe I'll
just stay here.
I got my new
seedlings just
getting started.
But y'all come in.
Roxy why don't you
and Baby go on in?
Maybe we'll do that.
There's your
grandpa over there.
There's your grandma.
Yeah.
Baby, you look like
a cat under a collard.
[LAUGHING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTERING]
Well, look who's here!
We're just waitin'
for your daddy.
Come here, Baby.
Come here.
We're just waitin'
for your daddy.
There was a wreck
out at the crossroads
last night,
and he had
to stop by.
Come on, Roxy.
I have something important
to tell ya, come on!
ROXY: What?It's important,
come on.
ROXY: I grew up playing
in the backyard there.
So what happened
to the coffin for
the Mr. Masterdoll?
Well, we haven't
played in those coffins
since Raider tried to
sail off the top.
[LAUGHS] He did?
CALLIE: Daddy's gonna
have him hauled away.ROXY: Aw.
ROXY: I had copied the design
for my playhouse
out of my
weekly reader.
And then built it
out of old coffins.
Main thing my friends
at school wanted
to know was,
had I ever seen
anybody dead?
Boo! BOTH: Raider!
Hey you.
Callie and me
finally saw
a dead person.
We heard at school
this man that got burned up
that they had him
down here.
We pushed the door
open real fast,
there was this little thing
lying up on the table
like a log out of
the fireplace.
We went flying up to
the front of the house,
and then saw somebody sitting
on the stairs watching us.
He wasn't like the other
funeral home boys.
He said, "You must
be Mr. Will's girl."
I told him I was
his littlest girl.
Roxy is his biggest girl.
He said, "If she's any
prettier than you, she
must be real pretty."
CALLIE: I couldn't believe
I was standing there
talking to a grown
man like that.
Who you got
in there, Will?
Old Fate Renfroe.
You remember him?
Poor old fella.
He got hit,
broadside with a freight
train over here at
the Golden Weed.
Tear him up much?
Oh, yeah,
he looks bad.
And I worked on
him near all night,
that boy, Jack, came
in and helped me.
He's good.
With his hands,
you know?
He's cool about it too.
He was eatin' a...
Bit-O-Honey bar
10 minutes after we quit.
You gonna
keep him?
Oh, I can't.
I can't, Strother, I...
He'd be a natural,
you know...
A real natural but, you
know, I got too many
boys workin' here now.
Jack's a right
smart fellow.
He, he reminds me
of somebody, but...
I can't think who.
[SCREAMS]
What the hell?
It's just Renfroe,
giving you a goodbye.
[LAUGHING]
STROTHER: What's he
doin' sneaking up on
me like that?
What's he doin'
over there? [WILL AND BASS LAUGH]
Go on, you
shaggy-headed rascal.
Go on!
If you think you can
get past them gals
down at the hotel.
[STROTHER LAUGHS]
STROTHER: That boy's a... RUTH: Roxy!
I believe you
could use dose of
Mr. Applewhite's Capudine.
You always look like
you'd be afraid to say
"Boo!" to a goose.
ROXY: Two weeks later,
in the middle of March,
the old hearse
pulled up our drive.
At first, I thought
it was Daddy
comin' to see me.
But it was Jack Ruffin.
I'm Jack Ruffin. Hey.
Wanna draw?
What do you want?
I'm sorry. I thought
you knew I was coming out.
All I know is you're
somebody I've never
seen before in my life.
Well, Mrs. Walston,
if your husband didn't
tell ya, I guess I will.
I've come
to help out.
Your daddy run
the funeral home?
Mr. Will Stanton?
He's the one who
sent me over here.
That was Neb just
dropped me off.
JACK: Mr. Will said you
might be able to use
some help out here.
That's right,
I sure could.
Come on.
ROXY: I had seen
Jack Ruffin before.
He was with Georgeanna,
in a dream.
AARON: Roxy?
I'm driving Jack
back to town.
But supper will
be ready soon.
I'll be back soon.
[BANJO MUSIC ON RADIO]
[DOOR OPENS]
Well, dinner's not
fit to eat now.
Don't worry
about it. [TURNS RADIO OFF]
I got me a
hot dog in town.
Jack Ruffin's
coming out
next Saturday.
Why don't you
cook us up
a chicken stew?
Chicken stew?
When did you
get to know this
Jack Ruffin so good?
Fixing the well.
We're gonna
check on it Saturday
and he's bringing
his guitar out, we're
gonna pick a few songs.
Well...
You hardly ever
see a soul.
I didn't know
you knew him.
Well, I didn't
know him before
this mornin'.
He gave me this
mandolin string.
Had it right there
in his suitcase.
He just gave it to me.
[BABBLES]
ROXY: The wind was
blowing hard the night
Jack came for dinner.
And I couldn't help
thinking about
Georgeanna's superstitions.
GEORGEANNA: You know,
every time somethin' bad's
happened to me in my life,
it's happened to me
in the month of March.
It's like a big,
black cloud that
just hangs there.
There's somethin'
in the wind.
Aaron?
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[KNOCK AT DOOR]
AARON: Hey.JACK: Hey.
How are you? Real good.
So, how do you
like North Carolina?
I like it.
Well, how many boys
does Mr. Will have
over there now?
Too many.
It must be
pretty stuffy in that... [TEAPOT LID CLATTERS]
Hmm.
Excuse me. Watch your fingers.
Excuse me.
[BABY COOS]
What's your
baby's name?
It's Patty Estelle.
But everybody just
calls her "Baby."
Except Aaron's
mother, Estelle.
She calls her "Es-telle,"
like every syllable's
just nailed down.
[BABY CRIES]
BABY: Mom!
Excuse me.
JACK: This is good.
This is really good.
AARON: Here, here.
Have some more.
We got a lot.
Hey, Jack!
Hey, can you, uh,
plan on coming
out tonight?
Yeah. Just got me
some new strings
this morning.
Listen, Neb wanted
to come out,
if that's okay.
Well, uh...
I don't want it to turn
into a get-together.
Okay.
I'll see you tonight.
[PLAYING UPBEAT MUSIC]
Nah, I can't talk to you
about this stuff.
You're a married man
with a family to boot.
Besides, you don't
want to hear about
my date with Ava.
I got news for you, Jack.
Me and Ava Chisholm
went steady in
eighth grade.
Is that so?
AARON: In fact,
I'll never forget one
Saturday afternoon,
Ava and I were over
at her sister's house.
I was sittin'
on the couch...
[SPITS]
Ava had her
head in my lap.
All of a sudden,
she shifts around,
she says, "Aaron,
your belt buckle's
hittin' me in the head."
I said "Ava, I'm not
wearin' a belt."
[BOTH LAUGHING]
AARON: Her sister
looked at me
real embarrassed.
I don't think Ava knew
what was going on.
[BOTH LAUGHING]
So where did
you day your
parents are?
My parents
are dead.
AARON: I'm sorry.
It's all right.
It was a long time ago.
Well, I made you
all a pecan pie.
We'll be up there
in a minute.
Come on, Baby.
Let's go. Yeah. [COOS]
Whoa! Hello, Jack.
Um, Aaron's not here
right now. [CLEARS THROAT]
[WHISPERING] Pretty.
JACK: Hi, Aaron.
Some weather, huh?
Yep. [STRAINS]
How's this gonna be
for the seedlings?
This is perfect. That's
what this is. This is
perfect for the seedlings.
You know how muddy
the roads will be.
I don't know why
you just don't
stay out here.
You can just make
yourself a bed in
the spare room.
I guess it would be
a lot easier if I was
just stayin' out here.
Why don't you
bring your clothes
and things on out?
You know I could
use the help.
I know you could.
JACK: I'll tell Neb
to bring my things
out now and just...
Not go back.
As soon as
it quits rainin',
we'll have plenty
to do then.
Roxy, why don't
you clean out
that chifforobe
in the spare room
so Jack can put
his things in it.
She's only got her
sewin' stuff in
there now.
Okay.
Turn it in.
Lower it down.
[EXHALES]
We might as well
get on to bed early.
We're gonna need
this rest when it
comes time to prime.
[SIGHS]
Soon as that sun ever
comes back out,
it'll get to growin'
real fast.
It's quit raining.
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Come on in.
Quit raining.
AARON: Yeah, it sure did.
Well... I guess
I'll get on back
to town, now.
See ya. See ya.
See you in
the morning.
See you in
the morning.
Phew!
You wanna pick
a little tonight?
Nah, I think we're gonna
go on to bed early.
But you know
where the keys are.
I mean, if you
need the truck
to go in
and see Ava or
anything like that,
[CHUCKLES] you go
ahead and use it.
[JACK CHUCKLES]
[DOOR CLOSING]
[TRUCK ENGINE STARTS]
Neb came
by last night.
Uh-huh.
Needed some help
with a wreck out by
Johnson Crossroads.
Old preacher
and his wife swerved
in a ditch,
hurt pretty bad.
Roxy,
Ray says, Daddy needs
me to come over
to help him
start to fix
that back fence.
Horses go out again
last night.
I gotta get
over there.
Sorry, I can't watch
Baby today.
Well, do you think
you can take
Baby to Daddy's?
Yeah, I can do that.
Come on, pretty Baby.
You're gonna
go see Callie.
Here you go, Baby.
You wanna go for a ride
in that big black car?
That's where we're goin'.
BABY: Bye.
Why don't you get
that hot hair cut off?
Roxy.
I thought you were
halfway to Raleigh.
I just wanna say that
I appreciate every one
of y'all out here.
I have a real good
feelin' about
the crop this year.
Treat every leaf
as special.
Don't let the littlest
leaf burn up in the sun.
We gotta eat.
Roxy's got fudge!
[VEHICLE APPROACHING]
ALL: ♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Somebody needs you, Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Come by here, good Lord
Come by here
♪ Oh, Lord, come by here
[SIGHS]
[BOTH SIGH]
Here you go, Jack.
You don't get much sleep
with tobacco curing,
do you?
Can't afford it.
Two years ago
I lost my best barn.
Burned up.
Well, you want me
to stay down
here tonight?
No, I'll stay down
here tonight.
You stay down here
tomorrow night, okay?
[SIGHS]
Honey,
you have to
move a little faster.
You're movin'
like you're sleepwalkin'.
Whoa!
Oh, boy. MAN: Raider, you been
fishin' lately?
RAIDER: Not much. You wanna pass me some
more of those string beans?
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
MAN: Has your roof
got a hole in it, Raider?
Gonna need patching?
Well, let's get
back, boys.
I think it's fixin'
to get real warm
this afternoon.
Sure is. Listen,
we ought to get
those mules first.
Okay, they're gonna
need some water.
[GURGLING]
I think we ought to get on
over to Haws Landing
for that barbecue.
You know, the only reason
I didn't go sit up
with 'em last night
to help 'em cook
that pig was...
That's my best barn
curin' out there.
I just wanted to see it.
I just don't care
a thing about goin'.
Not go?
I don't see why.
I'm just not goin'.
I feel like
I'm in the way
over there.
Now, Roxy,
you know my family
thinks so much of you.
And they love
to see Baby.
Aaron,
there's somethin' about
the Fourth of July
that just tears my
nerves all to pieces.
It's all those
loud noises and
firecrackers and all.
And...
Those folks drivin'
around in those fast
pickup trucks, drunk!
Look,
it's just too hot.
And everybody's crazy.
They're expectin' us, Roxy.
No.
Well, you do
what you please, then.
[DOOR CLOSING]
GEORGEANNA: Long life line,
long crooked
double love line.
I got you a present.Hmm.
Okay.
Can you just
wait a minute?
Mmm-hmm. I gotta change Baby.
I'm sure her diaper's
about ready to fall off.
Please.
Just a second.
Okay?
Now.
[LAUGHS]
That's Mom. [LAUGHING] Momma.
That's good.
That was good. [LAUGHING] Okay, Baby.
Now, then, you wanna
take a picture
of me and Baby?
No. Now, we're gonna
try a little trick.
[GRUNTS]
Stay right there.
[WHIMPERING] Mom.
What's the matter?Mom.
[LAUGHING]
Whoa!
You ready?
This is going to be
some picture.
[SHUTTER CLICKS] [CLATTERING]
[BABY CRYING]
Baby!
Jack! Help!
I'll get the truck.
[CRYING]
I was cookin' some peas,
and Baby turned 'em
over on herself.
Where is she?
[VOICE BREAKING]
She's with the doctor.
Hello, Doctor.
You can take
her home now.
Okay.
Keep her quiet.
And keep her in bed.
Oh, and if she
should happen
to wake up tonight,
you might rub her
with some more of this.
Okay.
I'll come out and,
uh, check on her
in the morning,
see how she's
getting on.
Are there gonna
be scars?
DR. BEST:
Probably. Yes.
How's Baby?
Where's the Kodak?
I hid it.
Aaron, where's...
Can't you take care
of your own family?
Let me take her.
[WHISPERING]
Okay, is it better, Baby?
Is it better?
Roxy?
There's somethin'
Daddy wants me
to talk to you about.
Daddy mentioned somethin'
about Jack stayin' here.
It might be better...
He said we ought
to get the first
'bacco to market,
and then give him
some money
and send him off.
I've already
told him.
I told Jack that
after the opening sale
we'll be able to
manage without him.
Why don't you
tell him, too?
Somebody at the church
mentioned to the folks that
it didn't look right
with you and Jack
stayin' in the same house.
Talk to Jack about it.
[SCREAMS]
Jack! [LAUGHS]
[GIGGLING]
[CLEARS THROAT]
Jack, I've got to
talk to you.
Shh. Shh.I've gotta talk to you.
I've gotta...
I've gotta talk
to you, Jack.
I've gotta talk to you.
I love you, Roxy.
You're prettier
than any Ava.
Don't worry.
He's not comin'
down here.
I came down here
to tell you. Jack,
you have to go.
I'm married.
I have a baby.
You could
run off with me.
I'm married, Jack.
Did you talk to Jack?
Yes.
[SLAMS DOOR]
MAN: $5!
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
MAN: $5!
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
MAN: $7!
How're they biddin'?
They're biddin'
a little low.
Yeah, I heard that.
They'll pick up.
MAN: $4!
They better.
Stayin' out of
trouble, Jack?
Yes, sir. All right.
[INDISTINCT TALKING]
[AUCTIONEER CHANTING]
[INDISTINCT TALKING]
MAN: $25!
Help me out.
[AUCTIONEER CHANTS]
[CHANTING CONTINUES]
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[DOOR OPENING]
Got us hot dogs
from the Greek's.
First day of market, 1937.
[SIGHS] I never
thought I'd get a...
10.
Mmm-hmm.Oh!
I never thought
I would.
Hell, I mean...
I mean, she's worth
it and all... I just...
I never thought
I'd get it.
They're havin' a dance
down at Wainright's
this year.
I do see
why we can't go.
You get
Baby up early.
We can go on in, take in
the whole festival.
Jack can take care
of things around here.
I'll see ya tomorrow.
All right.
[PARADE MUSIC PLAYING]
ROXY: Jack still
had a pull for me.
And I thought then
that maybe
he always would.
But I had to make a choice.
All I hoped was that
Aaron and I could forget
everything that had happened
and start over.
[CHICKENS CLUCKING]
Did y'all enjoy
yourself last night?
Oh, the pageant
was beautiful.
The whole family was there,
and it was just, uh...
It was wonderful.
Nice festival?
Oh, it sure was.
Listen, I need you
to ride over with me
to Daddy's.
I wanna get that new truck
I bought from him
before we go down
to Carolina Beach.
You can drive it back here.
[BIRDS CHIRPING]
[BEES BUZZING]
You're gonna get stung.
God damn it, Roxy.
Come on down
back of the barn,
Aaron.
I wanna show you
something I killed
down there today.
I don't know what it is.
Somethin' strange.
Some strange
kind of animal.
[THUNDER RUMBLING]
[DOOR OPENS]
Aaron, Baby's... Aaron's not here.
[PANTING] Put some
clothes on Baby.
We gotta go.
Go where? Don't ask me that.
Just get your clothes...
Put some things
in your suitcase.
We gotta go. Now!
Get her blankets.
Where's Aaron?
Get in the car.
Jack, where is Aaron?
You don't really
wanna know, Roxy.
Just get in the car.
I'll tell you about it later.
[DUCKS QUACKING]
You got any rooms?
Jack...
Jack, I just...
I need to go home.
After you see
what's on my overalls,
you won't wanna go home.
I, I can't keep
it in any longer.
I hit him,
not too far
from the hole.
What hole? I hit him
at the hole, Roxy.
[CRYING] What hole? The hole I dug.
I dug... Is Aaron okay?
Roxy...
I hit him twice... Why?
At the hole.
I dug the hole, Roxy.
I dug a hole
behind the barn.
Saturday, while y'all
were in town.
And I sat out there
and I looked
into it all day
and all night.
I called him
out there and I...
Hit him, and I...
Covered him up.
[SCREAMING] You!
[ROOSTER CROWS]
We better be leaving here.
Roxy,
I'll treat you right.
Now, say you'll
be ready to go.
Come on. Say it.
Kiss me now and say.
We've got to go.
Got the bus tickets
to Birmingham.
I know somebody
we can stay with.
I don't know why...
I don't know why
I ever thought
you'd go with me.
I'll come back for you
as soon as I can.
[CAR DOOR CLOSES]
[CAR RECEDING]
[INAUDIBLE]
We picked up Jack Ruffin
when he was getting
on the bus.
He told us where
he buried your husband.
We called up to Tarboro,
and some of your people
went out there
and they dug him up.
He made a full
confession.
Says you two
planned it together.
You never saw those bloody
overalls till yesterday?
[WHISPERING] No, sir.
You're sure about that? Yes, sir.
You're real sure?Yes.
I believe we can
go on home, now.
She be arraigned
on Monday morning.
She's gonna be
arraigned, Roger?
[SIGHS]
I don't know how to say
this to you, Roxy,
but I want you to know a
little about what it was like.
You know. I'm used to
that phone ringing at
all times of the night.
But this time it,
I just didn't know
what to think.
I mean, it had to be
somebody crazy.
But it did finally
get through to me
that they were saying
the sheriff in Georgia
had called,
and that Aaron
was probably dead
and you and Jack
were off somewhere.
I called Ruth to come to
the phone and try to make
some sense out of it,
but she...
Was just as
bad as me, at first.
I told them
I'll be right on out there,
and they said it's no use.
But, of course, I went.
I couldn't get to
the farm fast enough.
Somehow, I thought
you might be there.
Even though they said
you were in Georgia.
When got out there,
they had already gone
right to the grave,
a sorry hole not any way
from the barn.
Anybody could have found it.
Anybody could have
found that hole.
What was the matter
with that boy, Jack?
What could he have
been thinking of?
What was I thinking of?
[SOBBING]
You've got to
see him, Roxy.
Got to make yourself
look right at him.
[SOBBING]
Oh, Roxy.
You hold tight
to that baby, Roxy.
She misses her mama.
Don't you worry.
You daddy wanted
to buy you one
but I told him
I wanted to pick it out.
Nearly everybody
in the world's
got some kind of secret,
but everybody
doesn't get found out
and have their pictures
put in the paper.
We're gonna do
the best we can.
When you walk
in there tomorrow,
you stand up straight
and hold your shoulders back.
[CROWD TALKING INDISTINCTLY]
[REPORTERS CLAMORING]
Okay, okay,
make way, make way.
REPORTER 1: Mrs. Walston!
Are you in love
with Jack Ruffin?
Why didn't you go to
your husband's funeral?
Are you really in love
with that guy, Jack Ruffin?
REPORTER 2: Please,
can we get a picture?
Let my wife
through, please.
REPORTER 3:
Did you murder
your husband?
[WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY]
[SOBBING]
[CROWD MURMURING]
[GAVEL POUNDS]
Bailiff, please read
the confession.
[CLEARS THROAT]
"I stayed home all day
Saturday and Sunday
while the Walstons were gone.
"I dug the grave on Saturday,
about 3:00 in the afternoon.
"I used the shovel
which I got from
the Walstons' house.
"I left the shovel
at the hole.
"I hit him in the
back of the head
with the shovel.
"Knocked him out
the first lick.
"He was lying down
on his face
"when I hit him
the second time.
"I had been
sleeping with her.
"No use to say I love her,
and will die loving her.
"I had intercourse
with her from June.
"In a way,
she knew I killed him.
In a way, she didn't.
"She wanted to
run off with me,
"but she couldn't,
because of her husband.
"So, I killed her husband."
Now, Mrs. Walston,
would you tell the
gentlemen of the jury
how you met
and got to know
Jack Ruffin?
He came out to help
my husband with the well.
And then he started helping
with the tobacco crop.
Aaron told him
to come on and move in.
Aaron would go down
to the barn one night,
and Jack would go
down the next.
I got up while Aaron
was still sleeping
and I went down
to the barn.
And then I got back
before he woke up.
Now, Mrs. Ruffin, I'm gonna
ask you a little bit about
those nights down in the barn.
I'm Mrs. Walston.
But those nights down in
the barn were your idea,
weren't they?
He asked me to
come down there.
But they were your idea,
weren't they?
I wanted to go.
So you were in no way forced
to go down into that barn
were you, Mrs. Ruffin?
I am Mrs. Walston.
Now, please describe to
the gentlemen of the jury
just what happened
on the first occasion
you had intercourse with him.
You heard
the question, ma'am.
Please describe to the
gentlemen of the jury,
the first occasion on which
you had intercourse with him.
My husband had gone off,
and it happened
in the garden.
In the garden.
And the next time?
I don't know.
It might have been
the next day.
And these relations
did occur every day
thereafter, did they not?
Sometimes I was sick.
But, when your
husband was gone,
and you weren't sick,
it happened every day,
didn't it?
Please, let the record
reflect that the witness
has nodded the answer, "Yes."
For him, for the State,
and for everybody else,
for God's sake,
don't turn him loose.
But a life sentence
in prison would constitute
a far more severe punishment
than the death penalty.
Whatever damnation
comes out of this case,
she is the foundation for it.
Now, gentlemen, you have
heard the evidence.
After a comparatively
short time, this man
was living in the house
with more freedom
than the woman's husband.
She has been unfaithful
to her child,
unfaithful to her husband
and unfaithful to her God.
Not in the annals
of the history
of North Carolina,
have we had a murder
of such brutality as to
compare with this one.
Gentlemen, I want you to
return a verdict of guilty.
I want you to send
Jack Ruffin
and Roxanna Walston
to the gas chamber.
[CROWD MURMURING IN CONCERN]
No!
Wait.
She never did say
she'd run off with me.
I pushed her into
the car that night.
She didn't know
what happened.
And when I finally told her,
she ran away from me and hid.
They said yesterday
that I do not have a heart!
I do have a heart,
and there's grief
in my heart at the bottom.
[CROWD GASPS]
Will, hold her up here.
I'll get her some water.
Watch your head.
RADIO ANNOUNCER:
We have a verdict
in the Walston murder case.
The jury went out at 11:25
and they were back at 12:05.
They found
Mrs. Roxanna Walston
not guilty of
conspiracy to murder,
and they found
Mr. Jack Ruffin
guilty of murder
in the first degree,
with no recommendation
for mercy.
Handkerchiefs fluttered
as the judge intoned
the death sentence.
[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PLAYING]
WILL: I know Kate would be
happy to have her.
RUTH: That sounds just like
something a man would say.
That's half
her trouble now.
Listening to ghost stories,
all her life,
and always doing something
some man thought
she ought to do.
How can she
go to Virginia,
or anywhere else?
She needs to learn
to do something first.
WILL: Could you
lower your voice?
You know, this was
your mother's bed.
That's why I brought
you in here.
There's no better medicine
in this whole world than
lying in your mama's bed.
It was our mama's bed, too.
I lay right here myself
when I wasn't much older
than you are,
talking to Mama.
When I was in
that tourist camp
in Georgia with him,
I didn't know how to say,
"No, I can't go with you."
I never said "no"
to anybody in my life,
except for Aaron
on the Fourth of July.
Different things happen
to different people, Roxy.
Don't think
you're the only one
something bad
ever happened to.
What really matters
is how you behave
after it's over.
And it is over.
Daddy, I'd like to
go to the farm today.
You gotta get your
driving license sometime.
I'm going to.
And then, I think you
and me and Ruth ought to...
We ought to talk about
you getting on a train
and heading up
to Fredericksburg,
to stay with Aunt Kate
for a while.
Daddy, I know I won't
stay in Tarboro
for my whole life.
But right now my child
needs her family.
She needs a stable home.
I'm gonna stay right here
and I'm gonna ride it out,
just the same as you.
And Ruth,
and our whole family.
♪ Now that I'm all alone
♪ All I am livin' on
♪ Is every memory I've had
♪ Of you
♪ I know the love
will never die
♪ While there's someone to cry
♪ When does the heart
come home?
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ For going to and
comin' from
♪ And someday I'll see
♪ Where my heart wants to be
♪ And I'll be glad
and I'll be home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ We guess at who we are
♪ And what we're living for
♪ We hope our heart
and soul will see us through
♪ I don't care
how far I must go
♪ As long as I can know
♪ My heart will have a home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ For going to
and comin' from
♪ And someday I'll see
♪ Where my heart wants to be
♪ And I'll glad
and I'll be home
♪ I know the heart
must have a home
♪ I know my heart
must have a home
♪ Mmm
♪ Mmm-hmm