A Girl Named Jo (2018–…): Season 1, Episode 7 - Hard Headed Woman - full transcript

At the Homecoming basketball game Jo, Cathy, and Allen uncover a surprising new connection.

(dramatic music)

- [Jo] Previously on A Girl Named Jo.

- The Phoenix Fest is now two weeks away

and I've heard barely a peep from Cathy.

- I just think we've had
other things on our mind.

- [Cathy] Fiona Hovac?

I thought her name was Jane Hovac.

- [Allen] Jane was the other
woman who died in the fire,

but the lady standing next
to Francis isn't Jane.

That's Jane's mother.

- Why did you leave Attaway?



- [Lenny] I'm afraid that if I tell you,

you're gonna think less of me.

- [Jo] Please don't tell
me you started the fire.

- [Lenny] No, no I didn't start it.

I certainly didn't help.

- Isn't that what you came here for?

To see if you could ask
Jo to the Phoenix Fest?

- I uh...

- [Lenny] You gotta appreciate
good things in your life

when you have them, Jo.

The people you love, people who love you?

Those are the good things.

- I need to know about
the fire, Mrs. Hovac.

Who started it, was it Lenny?



- Who is Lenny?

You murdered my daughter,

you murdered my Jane!

You and that man, murderers!

Murderers!

(glass shatters)

- We need to address
the situation with Cathy

before it gets further out of hand.

(sinister music)

- [Narrator] Phoenix Fest
was fast approaching,

which meant kids had
already started coupling off

for the dance.

- Looks great, babe!

Yeah!

- Lawrence, of course, had asked Alice.

As they were favorite for King and Queen.

- Ah, glad to see you
at school today, Cathy.

- Glad to be here.

- Do you know how I punish

the most delinquent students, Cathy?

- How?

- I have them alphabetize the report cards

in my office.

They go back to 1903.

(melancholy piano music)

- [Narrator] In fact,

it seemed like everyone had
a date in school except,

you guessed it, me and Jo Chambers.

- Mariam, will you go
to the dance with me?

- Yes! Of course!
- [Dwight] Yeah?

- [Cathy Voiceover] Not
that we didn't have offers.

- Hey.

- Oh, hi. It's you.

You sure you're allowed to talk to me?

- I should hope so.

It'd be mighty odd to go to the
dance together and not talk.

- What?

(Junior laughs)

- Catherine Fitzroy,

will you please accompany
me to the Phoenix Fest?

- (gasps) You shouldn't have.

- I had to.

- No, I mean, you really shouldn't have.

Not because I don't want to, I do.

- So?

- But I can't.

Not when your sister
won't even look at me.

- Maybe she'll come around.

Hey, are you coming tomorrow?

- To the Millwood game?

Wouldn't miss it.

- Good, 'cause I need
all the luck I can get.

- [Student] Hey Junior, think fast.

- [Narrator] All that stood
between us and Phoenix Fest

was the big game against Millwood.

(Lawrence screams)

(Coach blows whistle)

And tensions were running high.

- I appreciate the aggression, Lawrence.

But save it for Millwood.

I don't want anyone to get injured.

(whistles)

Again!

- [Narrator] But no one knew

just how high tensions were running

and just how close the
town was to boiling over.

(dramatic guitar music)

♪ I know her name is Jo ♪

♪ Her last name I don't know ♪

♪ When I close my eyes ♪

♪ I'll visualize ♪

♪ Little girl ♪

♪ Named ♪

♪ Jo ♪

(loudly tapping paper)

(Cathy scoffs)

- Golly, Ray. You knock?

- (sighs) What's this?

- It's Flaubert.

- I mean this.

Who is F.H. and why is
mom hiding his letter

in a book about a dirty cheater?

- (sighs) You're too young for this, Ray.

Just know people aren't
always who they seem.

Also, stay out of my room.

(slams door)
(Cathy sighs)

(tense music)

- [Bobby] (singing) Jo!

(door slams open)

It's game day!

Get up!

Rise and shine!

When you rise, you get up!

And when you shine, you sparkle!

(claps hands) Get 'em! Get' em! Get 'em!

On da move!

(footsteps going down the stairs)

(footsteps slow down)

(laughs) You ready?

- Dad know you took all
of this from the diner?

- Who do you think brought it home, son?

Come on, we're all excited
to watch you tonight.

- You coming?

- What about you, sis?

You gonna cheer on your bro?

- Nothing better to do.

- Can you just make up with Cathy already?

She won't go to the dance with me

until she knows it's right by you.

- Okay, got it.

So now I'm responsible for
your Phoenix Fest prospects?

How do you know she just
wasn't using me as an excuse?

- She cares about you, Jo.

I know it's hard to believe, trust me.

It is for me, too.

(sighs) A girl like Cathy
with a girl like you.

(Junior laughs)

But please think about it?

It'd really help me focus on the game.

And I can tell you really want to.

- She said you and that man killed Jane.

Like there was two people.

- Yeah, but how does that
tie into your mom's letter

and how is my dad involved?

- I don't know, but when
I said Lenny Alvarez,

it didn't seem to ring a bell.

- Seems like it all just leads back to...

- F.H.

- What about him?

- Hey...
- [Allen] Hey...

- So...

- So.

- Look. I'm sorry, Jo.

I never should have said...

I didn't mean it.

- No, I'm sorry.

To both of you.

I've been acting like a real phony.

And I never should have
called you meek or spineless

'cause you're not.

- I mean if anyone's weak
or spineless, it's me.

I should've been honest with you.

- I don't get along with
a lot of people, and...

Your... Your friendship to me?

It's important and I
really don't want to...

(giggling)

- It's good to have you back, Chambers.

A lot we gotta catch you up on.

- Me too.

(dramatic string music)

- All right, guys.

Gather round.

Well, here it is.

The big game (laughs).

Now I'm not gonna say much because,

an Armadillo is, uh.

Well, a man of few words.

It's been a tough season.

We've got some uh, fresh blood.

Some shifting roles.

But here, here is where
it all pays off, huh?

All right, hands in.

[Team] 1, 2, 3, go team!

(Junior cries out in pain)

- Oh, sorry?

- Junior, you okay?

- Coach, I'm good. I'm good.

- Lawrence.

- Yes, Mr. Richards?

Oh no. Junior, what happened?

- You're starting.

- Anything for the team.

- What, no, I can play, Coach!

- I'm not going to take any chances.

(Junior angrily exhales)

(carnival music)
(crowd cheering)

- I still can't believe you
broke into a nursing home.

- I still can't believe your
Uncle Bobby kept that in

for so long.

- I can believe my dad was dead drunk.

Maybe he actually is guilty.

- It wasn't him, Allen.

- There's only one person
that can connect all the dots.

And that's--

- Hurry along, children.

Millwood turned out their whole town,

we need every booster we can find.

- Well you know me,
practically a cheerleader.

- How positively exciting!

All those strapping young men,

locked in hand-to-hand combat!

Oh, let's go!

(squeaking feet on the basketball court)

- Uh, are you coming?

- The records.

They date back to 1903.

- Excuse me?

- We're giving ourselves detention.

(spectators cheering)

- [Announcer] And we're just about ready

for the big homecoming game!

- [Bobby] Didn't Junior
say he was starting?

- Yeah, that's what I thought too.

Hey, have you seen Jo?

- She was supposed to meet us here.

- (softly) No.

- So earlier, Principal Hurley
told me that he punishes kids

by making them alphabetize report cards.

- So you want to help out
instead of watching the game?

- No, I'm gonna find a missing student.

We're gonna find F.H.
or get caught trying.

Just go with it.

I'll go in first to make
sure that nobody's there

and then you two just
sit here and act natural.

(slow tense music)

- So, how'd it all start?

You know, your dad's drinking.

(Allen laughs quietly)

Sorry, you don't have to
tell me if you don't want to.

- Uh, okay.

Well, my mom says he always drank.

But for fun, for parties.

But then he hurt himself on the floor

and he drank for the pain.

And then, the fire and us leaving.

At that point he just
drank to forget, I guess.

- Hey, I've been thinking.

You know, I have to go to the dance

because of Cathy and Phoenix Fest.

- Yeah, I mean, I guess I should go too.

- Will you go with me?

- You're asking me to the dance?

- I know it sounds stupid but like,

Cat's going with my brother.

- Yeah, I'd love to.

- Really?
- Yeah.

- Cool! I mean, yeah.

Great, good, yeah.

- Good.

- Cool.

- [Cathy] Hey, his secretary
finally left, let's go!

- [Announcer] They're
approaching the center circle,

the Ref's bringing the ball in...

(blows whistle)

And the Armadillos win the tip off!

- One!

- [Announcer] The ball
goes to Lawrence Dupont,

the starting point
guard as he brings it up

to the front court.

And Millwood goes man to man.

Dupont comes off the screen,

drives in the lane,

shoots...

(spectators cheering)

and it's 2-0, Armadillos!

Good start for Attaway.

And now here come the
Muskrats from Millwood,

up bringing the ball
is Jimmy Karl McGrogan.

- Hey, Fitzroy!

You see my girl Jo?

- No, but a boy can dream.

- Where is she?

(tense music)

- (laughs) Wow, Alice
really does get bad grades.

- Jo, you gotta go back
to at least the '40s.

- Look, I'm all in for
tracking down leads,

but this seems like a wild goose chase.

- F.H. is in here somewhere, I swear.

- What do we do when we find him?

We know that he sent
love letters to your mom

and now he sends flowers
to Jane Hovac's mom.

- At least we'll be one step closer.

Keep looking.

(papers flipping)

(exciting string music)

- And that's eight successive
points for Attaway,

it's tied 50-50, we're all square.

And now Millwood is bringing
the ball up once again.

- [Spectators] (chanting)
Defense! Defense!

McGrogan up brings up the ball and--

Ooh!
(blows whistle)

There's a lot of contact,
right at mid court.

- [Lawrence] Come on!
- [Referee] That's a reach in.

- [Announcer] There's
some trouble brewing.

- What are you blind, dumb, Deaf?

- Technical.

- Oh, we have Helen Keller
(crowd drowns out) biggest game!

- You're out of here, get out!

- Lawrence Dupont just
kicked out of the game

for the giving the ref the business.

Now who's gonna fill his shoes?

- Hey, how's that ankle?

- Good enough, put me in Coach.

(whistle blows)

- [Announcer] Oh, it looks like

it's gonna be Junior Chambers!

(spectators cheering)

He's getting a nice ovation from the crowd

and we have an inbound
pass just to my left.

(loud exciting string music)

- That's our boy!

(quiet tense music)

- We've looked through the entire 1940s,

not a sign.

- What if F.H. didn't go to Attaway?

What if he's like a pen pal or something?

- We've gotta be missing something.

- Yeah, we are missing something.

The basketball game?

My dad's gonna kill me.

(soft string music)

(spectators cheering)

- Careful with that back layup,

number five's got your number.

- Thanks, but I've got it.

- Doesn't look like it.

- Maybe it's hard to see from the bench.

- I should sock you right in the mouth.

- Hey, knock it off!

You're representing Attaway High,

act like men.

- And with five minutes
left on the game clock,

it's a real nail-biter, folks!

Tie ball game.

Once again so many lead changes,

so many ties, this is one for the ages.

- Go Millwood!

- Nurse Havermeyer?

- (laughing) Hey.

- What brings you here?

- My boy plays for Millwood.

(cheers) Go, Charlie!

Sorry about the other day, huh.

What a commotion.

- Pardon?

- Well, a little girl broke into the room.

Can't, for the life of me, figure out why.

- What girl?

- Uh, fake name, 13 or 14.

(tense string music)

Well, good luck to you, Frank.

- Frank...

Frank Hurley, F.H.!

- "Madame Bovary"?

Another letter!

(unfolding paper)

- "It's like I've loved you forever.

From another time, another place,

throughout eons."

- [Announcer] Folks,

this is one of those good
old-fashioned seesaw battles.

- [Allen Voiceover] "But in this time,

In this place,

I cannot continue to
act upon those feelings.

You can't act on those feelings."

- Nine, Eight, Seven, Six--

- [Allen Voiceover] "I'm
getting married, Frank.

To Jane, and you know how she is.

If she finds out, she'll kill me.

I swear, she'll kill us all."

- [Spectators] Three, two, one!

- Okay, stop.

I'm gonna vomit.

- [Jo] Wait, so--

- [Cathy] Don't you get it?

My mom and Principal Hurley are in love.

- (soft laugh) That can't be.

- It's all right here in my mom's letter.

Jane was going to kill them,

but they got to her first.

And then they killed your mom

and got Allen's dad to
take the fall for it.

(softly) They're murderers.

- Cathy, come on.

Don't you think that's a
little bit of a stretch.

- It's like The Twilight Zone.

- Our family...

The fire...

It's all connected.

(buzzer)

- [Announcer] Attaway
wins the homecoming game!

Unbelievable, holy (crowd drowns out)

- (cheering) Go Junior!

(spectators cheering)

- [Narrator] My friends didn't
want to say it out loud,

but it was obvious what had happened.

My mother had an affair with Frank Hurley,

who was engaged to Jane Hovac.

When Jane found out and
threatened to expose her,

they killed her.

And they killed Jo's mom.

- [Spectators] (chanting) Attaway!

- [Narrator] I was the daughter
of a stone-cold killer.

(upbeat music)