Halt and Catch Fire (2014–2017): Season 1, Episode 6 - Landfall - full transcript
The impending hurricane to hit the Gulf Coast, which will peripherally affect Dallas, matches the excitement at Cardiff Electric as the PC team seems to have achieved its goal of producing a portable PC that is smaller and faster than anything on the market. This excitement is tempered by an incident that shows Joe his pecking order in the company, and Cameron's vision for the project, which she sees as so much more than just another boring beige box as she refers to PCs. For Cameron's vision to be realized, she needs both Gordon's support in extra hardware requirements, and Joe's approval. While Joe ponders the idea, Gordon is less than willing to compromise what he already sees as a great product for Cameron's fanciful whims. With Donna's help, Gordon believes he has to do more than just talk to Joe to convince him his stand is correct. In the heat of the moment, Gordon promises Donna that he will go out to buy Joanie a present she wants, some new toy called a Cabbage Patch Kid, which may fall by the wayside in his own mind as he focuses on work. Incidents that happen during the storm associated with the hurricane give each of Joe, Gordon and Cameron some added perspective as to Cameron's idea. Through it all, Joe and Cameron try to come to some understanding not only of how their sexual encounters affect their working relationship, but also what those sexual encounters mean for their emotional selves.
What the hell?
...Alicia's arrival is imminent,
currently traveling west...
...approaching 75 miles per hour,
expected to exceed that,
before reaching shore
sometime late tomorrow morning.
Reports of oil company employees
being evacuated by helicopter
from offshore rigs in the path of the storm
have punctuated the fear and trepidation
that's felt by many.
Advanced computer probability...
Hold on, wait. Wait.
- What's wrong?
- Where did you...
How did you get these?
Really?
I was in high school.
I'd been saving up money for a long time.
Summer jobs and everything.
And I bought a '64 Chevy Nova.
Bright yellow, love at first sight.
The day I got it, I took some friends out.
And it was mid-February and
cold. I mean, bitter cold.
Ice on the roads. No one
should've been out that night.
Hold on.
Is this true?
What do you mean?
You're lying to me.
Okay.
Oh, my God.
The truth is... God, this is embarrassing.
When I was a kid, I had a buddy
who lived out on this farm road
and there was this mill rusted to hell.
One day I dared him. I said, "Mike"...
Oh, my God. Stop.
Is this another lie?
Why do you care, Cameron? I mean, honestly.
Stop handling me. It's just a question.
But why do you care about the answer?
You are too screwed up for words.
Because I don't want to tell
sad stories in bed with you?
- When did this become that?
- What's "this"?
Our routine? You come over
whenever, I don't know, you need to,
and I'm happy to oblige.
Now all of a sudden you're getting
pissed 'cause I don't want to play house.
Don't do that. It's just a question.
You designed the routine.
Well, it's no longer doing anything for me.
This has gotten boring.
You're free to leave whenever you like.
- You have gotten boring.
- Like I said.
- You want a piece of advice, Joe?
- Not really.
Your whole thing, it attracts people,
but it won't keep them around.
Authenticity is what inspires people.
If you want to lead people, you
have to show them who you really are.
Otherwise, you're just a
thousand-dollar suit with nothing inside.
No one gives a shit.
- What time is it?
- Shh.
Go back to sleep. It's late.
Mm, you smell like beer.
I love you so much.
Gordon.
You're so beautiful.
Stop it. I have to sleep.
I can't.
I have so much tomorrow.
I have to pick up the cake.
And I have to do it before
work 'cause they close at 6:00.
You poor lady.
And Joanie's become fixated
on this Cabbage Patch Doll
or Kid or whatever.
She got so worked up talking
about it she started crying...
Tears of mania.
What is it?
It's a doll.
It's a stuffed baby.
I'll get it.
- What?
- I'm getting it.
Gordon Clark to the rescue.
Oh, my God, really? That would be amazing.
Don't give it another thought.
Oh, go to sleep, Drunky.
Rain check. Big storm's
supposed to be coming in.
Thanks.
How was your show last night?
My amp caught on fire.
Probably the best part.
I thought you'd be there. Where were you?
Out.
- What is that?
- Modified version of "Adventure."
I made it for you.
A stupid thing I did for fun.
Oh, thanks.
You going to work? I'll give you a ride.
"A gifted man bears his gifts
into the world not for himself,
but for the people among whom he is placed.
Because the gifts are not his.
He himself is a gift to his community."
Henry Ford said that. Did
pretty well for himself.
There are many gifted men
and women in this room,
and this moment,
we bring our creation into the world.
Today, with the touch of a button,
we start a ripple effect
that will be felt through
our community for generations.
Thanks to our engineers,
we have a prototype.
Thanks to our programming team,
we have an operating system in place.
And now, finally...
we bring our creation to life.
- Let Bosworth do it.
- Yeah, let Boz.
- Boz!
- Nah.
Yeah. Boz, go.
Go Boz!
- Boz!
- Do it!
Yeah, all right.
Boz, Boz, Boz, Boz...
All right. Okay.
Well, ladies and gentlemen...
a time comes when...
well, you gotta grab your
balls and jump, am I right?
Hey, congratulations.
Thank you so much. I'll see you soon.
Not bad.
- Are we good?
- Yeah.
Sorry about how things have been.
This process doesn't
always bring out my best.
That's true of us both.
We should celebrate.
Come over for dinner tomorrow night.
I don't think you've
seen more than my garage.
Yeah, you got it.
It's done.
Miss Howe?
So, that's it.
When can we expect the
peripheral drivers from your team?
Is this how you're gonna
talk to me from now on?
How would you like me to talk to you?
Like you're flesh and blood.
I'm sorry if my tone is
businesslike, but I am your boss
and this is, in fact, a business.
Oh, my God. So lifelike.
_
_
_
_
_
_
Gordon.
Our computer's gonna have a personality.
An operating system that asks
you questions, you answer it back.
You interact.
What?
Um, I need an additional 384k of RAM.
Um... no.
What do you mean, no?
I mean, it's completely
out of the question.
Operating systems are total pigs.
Even with the added memory, you're gonna
be stealing from the other applications...
- Yeah.
- ...and slowing the entire machine down.
I know, but, Gordon, figure
out a way around that.
- Cameron, it's done.
- No, it's...
- Look at it. It's done.
- No, it's not done. It's... it's...
it works fine, but it needs a soul.
It needs to be something that
people can fall in love with.
We can do that.
Okay, if there's one
thing that I've learned
in the 15 years of doing this
is that at some point, you
have to stop changing things.
You have to be happy with what you've made.
You're scared.
What would I be scared of?
Yeah, why don't we make the
machine jerk us off, too?
And I can program hundreds of commands
in the operating system
for it to understand
accounting for regional variance in speech,
program 10 ways for it to respond to each.
It would be conversational.
It would be like speaking to a human being.
- Slow down.
- You've played "Adventure."
It's like that, except instead
of, "I want to cross the stream,"
you input "I want to run WordStar."
You tell it what you want it to do.
What are the hardware implications?
Have you talked to Gordon about this?
Gordon is too scared to try
anything new or different
because he's traumatized from
being a loser his entire life.
I think you might be
overstating that slightly.
Okay.
See this?
This I made with my dad
when I was a little kid.
It's a stupid, stuffed thing,
but my dad wiggled its
head and he gave it a voice
and he brought it to life.
I named it. I fell in love with it.
This is the sort of loyalty we can create.
We have to get a share of the market first.
We have to show that we
can compete with the majors
before we start changing things up.
Maybe for a second generation,
we could do something like this.
This is because of last night.
I haven't given that a second thought.
I thought you said this was a business.
It is. If we go with a
standard operating system,
I know what is going to happen.
There are no surprises
down that road, no pitfalls.
We will go to COMDEX, we
will make it into Sears,
we will sell 50,000 units, guaranteed.
You're offering me none of that.
Gosh, you're right.
I don't know what's wrong with me.
I guess with all your grandstanding,
I somehow got you
confused with a visionary.
I guess it just doesn't
matter what you're saying
as long as people are listening, right?
What the hell does that mean?
Forgive me.
I just thought something
around here should have a soul.
I may need you to walk me through this.
It's possible some of
it's going over my head.
Yeah, no problem.
Does Gordon understand everything
that comes out of your mouth?
Yeah, as long as it's about computers.
Hm. How's his project coming along?
Oh, sorry.
His super secret project.
It's going well.
It's eating up a lot of his time.
You know, it can always be
faster, it can always be smaller.
Mm-hmm.
They solved the real
estate problem, though.
Did you help them with that?
Maybe.
What was the solve?
Chips on both sides of the board.
So simple.
I guess you're everyone's
secret weapon, huh?
Super secret.
Speaking of,
corporate's gonna want a
presentation of this work.
I'm gonna need you by my side.
Would you be up for that?
A little business trip?
Of course.
Good.
Yes, good.
Cameron tell you her bright
idea about the operating system?
It's insane, right?
I trust that you told her no.
Tell me you told her it
was out of the question.
I don't know. She might be onto something.
- It's certainly unique.
- "Unique"?
You didn't write "unique" on
the board three months ago.
- Maybe I should have.
- You wrote "faster," you wrote "cheaper."
Anyway, that's not the point. Do you
know how much real estate that would take?
I'd have to rethink the
entire layout of the board.
Greatness comes at a price, no?
Yeah, and I've paid that price.
Do you know how many nights I've
missed putting my kids to bed?
You know how many
all-nighters I've spent here?
You asked me to do something and I did it.
It was impossible and I did it anyway.
It's a thought experiment.
And I'm considering it.
Well, don't. Just don't consider it.
I'm gonna do whatever I want to do
and you're gonna do
whatever I tell you to do
because that's the way
this relationship works.
And Joe tells me he's
actually considering it.
You can't change it.
It's a thing of beauty.
I don't know. Maybe he's right.
No, Gordon, you built a beautiful machine.
You have to stand up for it.
Joe MacMillan's an asshole.
He doesn't know a fraction of what you do
about what makes a good computer.
Daddy, is the hurricane gonna come?
No, no, no, no. We might
get a big storm, some rain,
but the hurricane can't reach us here.
Houston might get walloped, but...
Ahem.
We're safe here. You guys go play.
Oh, hey, did you get the you-know-what?
- What's that?
- The Cabbage...
Did I get cabbage?
No, the...
the Cabbage Patch Kid.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I left it at the office.
I didn't want Joanie to find
it. She snoops, you know?
Anyway, sort of the worst part of it is...
please keep in mind that you
love me when I tell you this,
but before everything went down,
I invited Joe for dinner tomorrow.
Dinner here?
I know, it felt like the right thing to do.
You know? Smooth things over.
Well, do you think this idea
could really compromise what you've done?
Yeah.
Well, you have to do whatever
you can to change his mind.
Even if that means
inviting him into our home.
It's your machine, Gordon.
Don't let him ruin it.
Yeah.
So, what's going on in there?
Is something wrong?
I'm stuck.
Come in.
Hey, you need a ride to work?
Uh, no, I'm on a roll.
What?
Hey, did you start the
tests on those drivers?
No, I'm waiting for the
coders to give them to me.
Hey, uh...
- Lev.
- Yeah, I know. Lev.
Listen, I was wondering when we
were gonna get some of the drivers.
We need to start end-to-end
testing as soon as possible.
I'm working on the OS expansion.
What? Who told you to work on that?
Cameron did.
Did Joe approve that?
Go back to working on the driver, okay?
I'm the boss, not Cameron.
Well, Cameron's in charge of software.
Well, I'm in charge of stopping
idiotic things from happening.
And you can trust me. I'm not screwing
the product manager to get my way.
What?
Lev, just go back to
working on the driver, okay?
I'll straighten this out.
Gordon, your wife called.
She wanted me to remind you about the...
The Cabbage Patch.
Do you know of a toy store nearby?
Well, can you find one, Debbie?
- Yes.
- That'd be great.
- No...!
- _
- Son of a bitch.
- Hey, pal. Hey there.
You ain't looking for a
Cabbage Patch by any chance?
- Yeah. Yeah, I am.
- I got one.
I paid 80 bucks for it 'cause these jerks
marked it up 'cause it was the last one.
And now they won't let me return it.
- I'll take it.
- Honestly?
- Yeah, yeah.
- Oh, you're a lifesaver.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Thank you. It's right here.
You are really saving my butt.
Likewise, believe me.
All right, well, now I might go
home and beg the wife for sex.
Probably get some, too.
Well, good luck.
No.
No!
Hey, where are you with that module?
- Are you kidding me?
- What?
Gordon retasked us all with drivers.
You keep changing
directions on us. This sucks.
Just figure out what you want
us to do and we'll do it, Jesus.
Get all the coders in my office.
Now.
I don't know what anyone else has told you,
but I'm your manager. You take
instructions from me, okay?
- That's what everyone else is saying.
- Well, they're wrong, okay?
I need that module for
the OS and I need it today.
Any questions?
I got a question. Are
you banging Joe MacMillan?
Oh, yeah, I'm stupid
for thinking a toy store
might carry the world's most popular toy.
Hello?
Debbie!
- Any luck?
- Not yet!
Uh, yes, I'm looking
for a Cabbage Patch Kid.
You do?
Uh, really?
C-can you put it on hold?
No, I will come right now.
Look, do not sell that Cabbage Patch.
Hello?
- Gordon?
- What?
You were incredible last night.
I...
I would never, okay?
Y-y-you guys
know Donna, right?
Joe, glad you could
make it in this downpour.
Oh, come in. Gordon's not back yet,
but he should be here soon.
Uh, '66 Bordeaux. Really interesting.
Thank you. How thoughtful.
You know Joanie and Haley, right?
Girls, say hi. This is
Joe, Daddy's work friend.
- Hi, Joe.
- Evening.
So, how's everything going at work?
Gordon tells me things
are progressing nicely.
Yeah, moving right along.
- Hi.
- Hi.
That shoe you're sitting on
comes all the way from Italy.
Where's that?
Far away from here.
Gordon should be back any minute.
Did I say that already?
Galveston is once again
braced for a major hurricane tonight.
Winds exceeding 110 miles per hour...
- Where are you going?
- Home.
Oh, come on. It's pissing rain out
there. Come have a drink with me.
Come on, I'll make you a Cardiff Special.
I'm not taking no for an answer.
Come on, shake it, kid.
Hope everything's all right.
No, everything's fine.
If I know my husband,
he's out right now
running around frantically,
trying to find a Cabbage Patch Kid.
Oh, hi.
Oh, girls, would you
leave him alone, please?
- How old are you?
- I'm 35, why?
I don't know. I'm six.
Hey, okay, okay. What about a fort?
- Okay.
- Would you like to build a fort?
All right, uh...
Do you girls know if we
can find any blankets?
- Okay.
- Okay, let's turn that chair around.
- Okay.
- Whoa.
Here we go.
All right, everyone in.
- Come on, everyone in. Everyone in.
- Yay!
So, Gordon tells me you're thinking
of doing something
experimental with the OS?
I'm considering it.
The truth is, I just want
to do something great.
How did torturing Cameron fit into that?
I regret that...
but it was about getting
the world's attention.
I guess I also want to
do something successful.
Well, then you should listen to Gordon.
He's actually a genius.
Why do you think I chose him?
You know the competition. The only
way to cut into their market share
is by doing what they do
better or cheaper or both,
and you can do that if you
stick with what you've got.
There's something to be
said for ingenuity, no?
Well, sure. Exactly.
That's what I'm saying.
There's ingenuity in there.
You've been sitting with this
machine for a few months now.
It's easy to lose sight of what's great
when it's right in front
of you. You get used to it.
The computer you two
built is a work of art,
and not only that, it'll sell.
So you can believe in your original vision.
You made it all happen.
Whew, God Alfrighty.
Jeez, it's coming down now.
What was that dustup in
the bullpen this afternoon?
It's a long story.
Yeah, well, I got nothing but time.
Clark, huh?
Gordon is good.
- Mm.
- He's really good.
- Mm-hmm.
- But Gordon wants to build a computer
that'll impress all the other
people who build computers.
I want to build something for people
who never thought they'd want a computer,
who don't know anything about them.
I want to build a computer for you.
Hey, now. I know my way
around a damn computer.
I've been in this business since
before you were in diapers, kid.
All right. You know what I mean.
I want to build something
that makes people fall in love.
How'd you fall in love?
Computer Club.
I didn't have a ton of
friends in junior high.
Oh, I am shocked by that.
Yeah.
So, yeah, I was hiding
out in a classroom at lunch
and the Computer Club came in.
I just pretended I was there on purpose.
Mr. Monroe taught us BASIC
and it was like finding water
in the middle of the desert.
For the first time, I knew
how to talk to something.
I finally had the right language.
You're talking just fine now.
I'm drunk.
Listen, now, the...
the theatrics out there today.
Be more careful, Cam.
I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself.
Oh, hell, I know that. That's
plain as day. It's just...
Some of the people around here,
no matter what they say,
or even what they think...
part of them wants to see you
shit the bed on this thing.
Why's that?
'Cause you're the future.
Ain't nothing scarier than that.
When I was little, any
time there was a big storm,
my dad would take us out in it
to show me there was
nothing to be afraid of.
Then a kid in our neighborhood
got pinned under a fallen tree
and so he stopped doing that.
I feel like parenting used to be different.
My mom used to take me up to the roof
of our old Victorian to look at the stars.
That any of us survived is a miracle.
Hey, hey, it's okay.
You afraid of the hurricane?
But you've got hurricane
zappers right here.
You don't know about hurricane zappers?
Oh, yeah, these.
Just point them at the
storm and it can't hurt you.
Here, I'm telling you the truth.
- Give it a shot.
- It'll work through the roof?
Oh, yeah. A bigger storm,
you might need to go outside.
But a little storm like this,
through the roof should be fine.
- Let's try it.
- There they go.
It's not working.
Mind if I give it a shot?
It's a big storm. You
have to do it outside.
No, sweetheart...
You're probably right.
You're probably right.
- Joe, you don't have to...
- Okay, follow me.
You really don't have to.
- Be careful, don't let her get hurt.
- Her?
- Anastasia.
- You named it.
Mine is Sharky.
And they're your friends?
Huh.
I promise to be very careful.
Okay, watch.
- What's he doing?
- Let's go see.
Whoa!
It works a lot better outside.
All right, all right.
- Here you go.
- Oh, thanks.
- Gordon!
- Daddy!
We were worried about
you. Are you all right?
Yeah, I'm fine. I'm so sorry I'm so late.
What happened to you?
Oh, thanks for sticking
around, Joe. I appreciate it.
It's no problem.
Should we eat? Did you guys eat?
I should go, leave you guys alone.
Storm's clearing up anyway.
Well...
Joe, I need to talk to you.
Oh, no, Gordon, you can talk tomorrow.
Hey, thanks for inviting me.
Uh, I'll see you tomorrow.
- Bye, girls.
- Bye.
Hey, are you okay?
Uh, yeah, yeah.
What do you want?
Do you have anybody?
What are you talking about?
If you got stuck in a hurricane,
do you have anybody you would call?
I don't.
Show me what you've been working on.
Press "Enter."
_
Don't be rude. Computer's talking to you.
Answer it.
_
You messing with me?
Well, it only does first names right now.
_
_
When I was a kid, my mom used to take me
up to the roof to look at the stars.
She was wild and...
experimented with drugs.
One time, she let go of my hand
and I fell three stories
and landed on a fence in the front yard.
I spent most of the next
two years in a hospital bed.
Cameron?
Yeah?
This is really good.
...Alicia's arrival is imminent,
currently traveling west...
...approaching 75 miles per hour,
expected to exceed that,
before reaching shore
sometime late tomorrow morning.
Reports of oil company employees
being evacuated by helicopter
from offshore rigs in the path of the storm
have punctuated the fear and trepidation
that's felt by many.
Advanced computer probability...
Hold on, wait. Wait.
- What's wrong?
- Where did you...
How did you get these?
Really?
I was in high school.
I'd been saving up money for a long time.
Summer jobs and everything.
And I bought a '64 Chevy Nova.
Bright yellow, love at first sight.
The day I got it, I took some friends out.
And it was mid-February and
cold. I mean, bitter cold.
Ice on the roads. No one
should've been out that night.
Hold on.
Is this true?
What do you mean?
You're lying to me.
Okay.
Oh, my God.
The truth is... God, this is embarrassing.
When I was a kid, I had a buddy
who lived out on this farm road
and there was this mill rusted to hell.
One day I dared him. I said, "Mike"...
Oh, my God. Stop.
Is this another lie?
Why do you care, Cameron? I mean, honestly.
Stop handling me. It's just a question.
But why do you care about the answer?
You are too screwed up for words.
Because I don't want to tell
sad stories in bed with you?
- When did this become that?
- What's "this"?
Our routine? You come over
whenever, I don't know, you need to,
and I'm happy to oblige.
Now all of a sudden you're getting
pissed 'cause I don't want to play house.
Don't do that. It's just a question.
You designed the routine.
Well, it's no longer doing anything for me.
This has gotten boring.
You're free to leave whenever you like.
- You have gotten boring.
- Like I said.
- You want a piece of advice, Joe?
- Not really.
Your whole thing, it attracts people,
but it won't keep them around.
Authenticity is what inspires people.
If you want to lead people, you
have to show them who you really are.
Otherwise, you're just a
thousand-dollar suit with nothing inside.
No one gives a shit.
- What time is it?
- Shh.
Go back to sleep. It's late.
Mm, you smell like beer.
I love you so much.
Gordon.
You're so beautiful.
Stop it. I have to sleep.
I can't.
I have so much tomorrow.
I have to pick up the cake.
And I have to do it before
work 'cause they close at 6:00.
You poor lady.
And Joanie's become fixated
on this Cabbage Patch Doll
or Kid or whatever.
She got so worked up talking
about it she started crying...
Tears of mania.
What is it?
It's a doll.
It's a stuffed baby.
I'll get it.
- What?
- I'm getting it.
Gordon Clark to the rescue.
Oh, my God, really? That would be amazing.
Don't give it another thought.
Oh, go to sleep, Drunky.
Rain check. Big storm's
supposed to be coming in.
Thanks.
How was your show last night?
My amp caught on fire.
Probably the best part.
I thought you'd be there. Where were you?
Out.
- What is that?
- Modified version of "Adventure."
I made it for you.
A stupid thing I did for fun.
Oh, thanks.
You going to work? I'll give you a ride.
"A gifted man bears his gifts
into the world not for himself,
but for the people among whom he is placed.
Because the gifts are not his.
He himself is a gift to his community."
Henry Ford said that. Did
pretty well for himself.
There are many gifted men
and women in this room,
and this moment,
we bring our creation into the world.
Today, with the touch of a button,
we start a ripple effect
that will be felt through
our community for generations.
Thanks to our engineers,
we have a prototype.
Thanks to our programming team,
we have an operating system in place.
And now, finally...
we bring our creation to life.
- Let Bosworth do it.
- Yeah, let Boz.
- Boz!
- Nah.
Yeah. Boz, go.
Go Boz!
- Boz!
- Do it!
Yeah, all right.
Boz, Boz, Boz, Boz...
All right. Okay.
Well, ladies and gentlemen...
a time comes when...
well, you gotta grab your
balls and jump, am I right?
Hey, congratulations.
Thank you so much. I'll see you soon.
Not bad.
- Are we good?
- Yeah.
Sorry about how things have been.
This process doesn't
always bring out my best.
That's true of us both.
We should celebrate.
Come over for dinner tomorrow night.
I don't think you've
seen more than my garage.
Yeah, you got it.
It's done.
Miss Howe?
So, that's it.
When can we expect the
peripheral drivers from your team?
Is this how you're gonna
talk to me from now on?
How would you like me to talk to you?
Like you're flesh and blood.
I'm sorry if my tone is
businesslike, but I am your boss
and this is, in fact, a business.
Oh, my God. So lifelike.
_
_
_
_
_
_
Gordon.
Our computer's gonna have a personality.
An operating system that asks
you questions, you answer it back.
You interact.
What?
Um, I need an additional 384k of RAM.
Um... no.
What do you mean, no?
I mean, it's completely
out of the question.
Operating systems are total pigs.
Even with the added memory, you're gonna
be stealing from the other applications...
- Yeah.
- ...and slowing the entire machine down.
I know, but, Gordon, figure
out a way around that.
- Cameron, it's done.
- No, it's...
- Look at it. It's done.
- No, it's not done. It's... it's...
it works fine, but it needs a soul.
It needs to be something that
people can fall in love with.
We can do that.
Okay, if there's one
thing that I've learned
in the 15 years of doing this
is that at some point, you
have to stop changing things.
You have to be happy with what you've made.
You're scared.
What would I be scared of?
Yeah, why don't we make the
machine jerk us off, too?
And I can program hundreds of commands
in the operating system
for it to understand
accounting for regional variance in speech,
program 10 ways for it to respond to each.
It would be conversational.
It would be like speaking to a human being.
- Slow down.
- You've played "Adventure."
It's like that, except instead
of, "I want to cross the stream,"
you input "I want to run WordStar."
You tell it what you want it to do.
What are the hardware implications?
Have you talked to Gordon about this?
Gordon is too scared to try
anything new or different
because he's traumatized from
being a loser his entire life.
I think you might be
overstating that slightly.
Okay.
See this?
This I made with my dad
when I was a little kid.
It's a stupid, stuffed thing,
but my dad wiggled its
head and he gave it a voice
and he brought it to life.
I named it. I fell in love with it.
This is the sort of loyalty we can create.
We have to get a share of the market first.
We have to show that we
can compete with the majors
before we start changing things up.
Maybe for a second generation,
we could do something like this.
This is because of last night.
I haven't given that a second thought.
I thought you said this was a business.
It is. If we go with a
standard operating system,
I know what is going to happen.
There are no surprises
down that road, no pitfalls.
We will go to COMDEX, we
will make it into Sears,
we will sell 50,000 units, guaranteed.
You're offering me none of that.
Gosh, you're right.
I don't know what's wrong with me.
I guess with all your grandstanding,
I somehow got you
confused with a visionary.
I guess it just doesn't
matter what you're saying
as long as people are listening, right?
What the hell does that mean?
Forgive me.
I just thought something
around here should have a soul.
I may need you to walk me through this.
It's possible some of
it's going over my head.
Yeah, no problem.
Does Gordon understand everything
that comes out of your mouth?
Yeah, as long as it's about computers.
Hm. How's his project coming along?
Oh, sorry.
His super secret project.
It's going well.
It's eating up a lot of his time.
You know, it can always be
faster, it can always be smaller.
Mm-hmm.
They solved the real
estate problem, though.
Did you help them with that?
Maybe.
What was the solve?
Chips on both sides of the board.
So simple.
I guess you're everyone's
secret weapon, huh?
Super secret.
Speaking of,
corporate's gonna want a
presentation of this work.
I'm gonna need you by my side.
Would you be up for that?
A little business trip?
Of course.
Good.
Yes, good.
Cameron tell you her bright
idea about the operating system?
It's insane, right?
I trust that you told her no.
Tell me you told her it
was out of the question.
I don't know. She might be onto something.
- It's certainly unique.
- "Unique"?
You didn't write "unique" on
the board three months ago.
- Maybe I should have.
- You wrote "faster," you wrote "cheaper."
Anyway, that's not the point. Do you
know how much real estate that would take?
I'd have to rethink the
entire layout of the board.
Greatness comes at a price, no?
Yeah, and I've paid that price.
Do you know how many nights I've
missed putting my kids to bed?
You know how many
all-nighters I've spent here?
You asked me to do something and I did it.
It was impossible and I did it anyway.
It's a thought experiment.
And I'm considering it.
Well, don't. Just don't consider it.
I'm gonna do whatever I want to do
and you're gonna do
whatever I tell you to do
because that's the way
this relationship works.
And Joe tells me he's
actually considering it.
You can't change it.
It's a thing of beauty.
I don't know. Maybe he's right.
No, Gordon, you built a beautiful machine.
You have to stand up for it.
Joe MacMillan's an asshole.
He doesn't know a fraction of what you do
about what makes a good computer.
Daddy, is the hurricane gonna come?
No, no, no, no. We might
get a big storm, some rain,
but the hurricane can't reach us here.
Houston might get walloped, but...
Ahem.
We're safe here. You guys go play.
Oh, hey, did you get the you-know-what?
- What's that?
- The Cabbage...
Did I get cabbage?
No, the...
the Cabbage Patch Kid.
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I left it at the office.
I didn't want Joanie to find
it. She snoops, you know?
Anyway, sort of the worst part of it is...
please keep in mind that you
love me when I tell you this,
but before everything went down,
I invited Joe for dinner tomorrow.
Dinner here?
I know, it felt like the right thing to do.
You know? Smooth things over.
Well, do you think this idea
could really compromise what you've done?
Yeah.
Well, you have to do whatever
you can to change his mind.
Even if that means
inviting him into our home.
It's your machine, Gordon.
Don't let him ruin it.
Yeah.
So, what's going on in there?
Is something wrong?
I'm stuck.
Come in.
Hey, you need a ride to work?
Uh, no, I'm on a roll.
What?
Hey, did you start the
tests on those drivers?
No, I'm waiting for the
coders to give them to me.
Hey, uh...
- Lev.
- Yeah, I know. Lev.
Listen, I was wondering when we
were gonna get some of the drivers.
We need to start end-to-end
testing as soon as possible.
I'm working on the OS expansion.
What? Who told you to work on that?
Cameron did.
Did Joe approve that?
Go back to working on the driver, okay?
I'm the boss, not Cameron.
Well, Cameron's in charge of software.
Well, I'm in charge of stopping
idiotic things from happening.
And you can trust me. I'm not screwing
the product manager to get my way.
What?
Lev, just go back to
working on the driver, okay?
I'll straighten this out.
Gordon, your wife called.
She wanted me to remind you about the...
The Cabbage Patch.
Do you know of a toy store nearby?
Well, can you find one, Debbie?
- Yes.
- That'd be great.
- No...!
- _
- Son of a bitch.
- Hey, pal. Hey there.
You ain't looking for a
Cabbage Patch by any chance?
- Yeah. Yeah, I am.
- I got one.
I paid 80 bucks for it 'cause these jerks
marked it up 'cause it was the last one.
And now they won't let me return it.
- I'll take it.
- Honestly?
- Yeah, yeah.
- Oh, you're a lifesaver.
- Yeah, yeah.
- Thank you. It's right here.
You are really saving my butt.
Likewise, believe me.
All right, well, now I might go
home and beg the wife for sex.
Probably get some, too.
Well, good luck.
No.
No!
Hey, where are you with that module?
- Are you kidding me?
- What?
Gordon retasked us all with drivers.
You keep changing
directions on us. This sucks.
Just figure out what you want
us to do and we'll do it, Jesus.
Get all the coders in my office.
Now.
I don't know what anyone else has told you,
but I'm your manager. You take
instructions from me, okay?
- That's what everyone else is saying.
- Well, they're wrong, okay?
I need that module for
the OS and I need it today.
Any questions?
I got a question. Are
you banging Joe MacMillan?
Oh, yeah, I'm stupid
for thinking a toy store
might carry the world's most popular toy.
Hello?
Debbie!
- Any luck?
- Not yet!
Uh, yes, I'm looking
for a Cabbage Patch Kid.
You do?
Uh, really?
C-can you put it on hold?
No, I will come right now.
Look, do not sell that Cabbage Patch.
Hello?
- Gordon?
- What?
You were incredible last night.
I...
I would never, okay?
Y-y-you guys
know Donna, right?
Joe, glad you could
make it in this downpour.
Oh, come in. Gordon's not back yet,
but he should be here soon.
Uh, '66 Bordeaux. Really interesting.
Thank you. How thoughtful.
You know Joanie and Haley, right?
Girls, say hi. This is
Joe, Daddy's work friend.
- Hi, Joe.
- Evening.
So, how's everything going at work?
Gordon tells me things
are progressing nicely.
Yeah, moving right along.
- Hi.
- Hi.
That shoe you're sitting on
comes all the way from Italy.
Where's that?
Far away from here.
Gordon should be back any minute.
Did I say that already?
Galveston is once again
braced for a major hurricane tonight.
Winds exceeding 110 miles per hour...
- Where are you going?
- Home.
Oh, come on. It's pissing rain out
there. Come have a drink with me.
Come on, I'll make you a Cardiff Special.
I'm not taking no for an answer.
Come on, shake it, kid.
Hope everything's all right.
No, everything's fine.
If I know my husband,
he's out right now
running around frantically,
trying to find a Cabbage Patch Kid.
Oh, hi.
Oh, girls, would you
leave him alone, please?
- How old are you?
- I'm 35, why?
I don't know. I'm six.
Hey, okay, okay. What about a fort?
- Okay.
- Would you like to build a fort?
All right, uh...
Do you girls know if we
can find any blankets?
- Okay.
- Okay, let's turn that chair around.
- Okay.
- Whoa.
Here we go.
All right, everyone in.
- Come on, everyone in. Everyone in.
- Yay!
So, Gordon tells me you're thinking
of doing something
experimental with the OS?
I'm considering it.
The truth is, I just want
to do something great.
How did torturing Cameron fit into that?
I regret that...
but it was about getting
the world's attention.
I guess I also want to
do something successful.
Well, then you should listen to Gordon.
He's actually a genius.
Why do you think I chose him?
You know the competition. The only
way to cut into their market share
is by doing what they do
better or cheaper or both,
and you can do that if you
stick with what you've got.
There's something to be
said for ingenuity, no?
Well, sure. Exactly.
That's what I'm saying.
There's ingenuity in there.
You've been sitting with this
machine for a few months now.
It's easy to lose sight of what's great
when it's right in front
of you. You get used to it.
The computer you two
built is a work of art,
and not only that, it'll sell.
So you can believe in your original vision.
You made it all happen.
Whew, God Alfrighty.
Jeez, it's coming down now.
What was that dustup in
the bullpen this afternoon?
It's a long story.
Yeah, well, I got nothing but time.
Clark, huh?
Gordon is good.
- Mm.
- He's really good.
- Mm-hmm.
- But Gordon wants to build a computer
that'll impress all the other
people who build computers.
I want to build something for people
who never thought they'd want a computer,
who don't know anything about them.
I want to build a computer for you.
Hey, now. I know my way
around a damn computer.
I've been in this business since
before you were in diapers, kid.
All right. You know what I mean.
I want to build something
that makes people fall in love.
How'd you fall in love?
Computer Club.
I didn't have a ton of
friends in junior high.
Oh, I am shocked by that.
Yeah.
So, yeah, I was hiding
out in a classroom at lunch
and the Computer Club came in.
I just pretended I was there on purpose.
Mr. Monroe taught us BASIC
and it was like finding water
in the middle of the desert.
For the first time, I knew
how to talk to something.
I finally had the right language.
You're talking just fine now.
I'm drunk.
Listen, now, the...
the theatrics out there today.
Be more careful, Cam.
I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself.
Oh, hell, I know that. That's
plain as day. It's just...
Some of the people around here,
no matter what they say,
or even what they think...
part of them wants to see you
shit the bed on this thing.
Why's that?
'Cause you're the future.
Ain't nothing scarier than that.
When I was little, any
time there was a big storm,
my dad would take us out in it
to show me there was
nothing to be afraid of.
Then a kid in our neighborhood
got pinned under a fallen tree
and so he stopped doing that.
I feel like parenting used to be different.
My mom used to take me up to the roof
of our old Victorian to look at the stars.
That any of us survived is a miracle.
Hey, hey, it's okay.
You afraid of the hurricane?
But you've got hurricane
zappers right here.
You don't know about hurricane zappers?
Oh, yeah, these.
Just point them at the
storm and it can't hurt you.
Here, I'm telling you the truth.
- Give it a shot.
- It'll work through the roof?
Oh, yeah. A bigger storm,
you might need to go outside.
But a little storm like this,
through the roof should be fine.
- Let's try it.
- There they go.
It's not working.
Mind if I give it a shot?
It's a big storm. You
have to do it outside.
No, sweetheart...
You're probably right.
You're probably right.
- Joe, you don't have to...
- Okay, follow me.
You really don't have to.
- Be careful, don't let her get hurt.
- Her?
- Anastasia.
- You named it.
Mine is Sharky.
And they're your friends?
Huh.
I promise to be very careful.
Okay, watch.
- What's he doing?
- Let's go see.
Whoa!
It works a lot better outside.
All right, all right.
- Here you go.
- Oh, thanks.
- Gordon!
- Daddy!
We were worried about
you. Are you all right?
Yeah, I'm fine. I'm so sorry I'm so late.
What happened to you?
Oh, thanks for sticking
around, Joe. I appreciate it.
It's no problem.
Should we eat? Did you guys eat?
I should go, leave you guys alone.
Storm's clearing up anyway.
Well...
Joe, I need to talk to you.
Oh, no, Gordon, you can talk tomorrow.
Hey, thanks for inviting me.
Uh, I'll see you tomorrow.
- Bye, girls.
- Bye.
Hey, are you okay?
Uh, yeah, yeah.
What do you want?
Do you have anybody?
What are you talking about?
If you got stuck in a hurricane,
do you have anybody you would call?
I don't.
Show me what you've been working on.
Press "Enter."
_
Don't be rude. Computer's talking to you.
Answer it.
_
You messing with me?
Well, it only does first names right now.
_
_
When I was a kid, my mom used to take me
up to the roof to look at the stars.
She was wild and...
experimented with drugs.
One time, she let go of my hand
and I fell three stories
and landed on a fence in the front yard.
I spent most of the next
two years in a hospital bed.
Cameron?
Yeah?
This is really good.