"Inherit the Wind" - Final Scene

To me this is the greatest scene in the film. Even more meaningful than the scene about Evolution; which is the whole theme of this film to begin with. And for good reason. 

This scene speaks to the duality of conscious. The integrity that is the ability to see more than one side, even though you may have already chosen yours. The ability to repect another human being, no matter how bitterly your disagreement may be. 

In this excange, when the two learn of William Jennings Bryan's death, these two, who have been allies in their cause, finally come to terms with the difference in their individual motivations. 

Here is the dialogue for the scene above. It is one of the most intense on-screen exchanges I have ever seen. The D stands for Henry Drummond, the fictitious name for Clarence Darrow, the Attorney for the Defense. The H stands for E.K. Hornbeck, the fictional H.L. Mencken, reporter for the Baltimore Sun. 

 D: I cannot imagine a world without Matthew Harrison Brady. What did he die of? Did they say?

H: He died of a busted belly.

D: There was much greatness in this man.

H:  Can I quote you  in the obituary?

D: Write anything you damn, write anything you please.

H: How do you write an obituary for a man who’s been dead thirty years?Say?  What did he say to the minister? It fits! He delivered his own obituary! They must have one here some place. Here it is: his book!  Proverbs, wasn’t it?

D: (Quietly) “He that troubleth his own house shall inherit the wind: and the fool shall be servant to the wise in heart."

H: Well, we’re growing an odd crop of agnostics this year!

D: You know, Hornbeck, I'm getting damn sick of you.

H: Why?

D: Because you never pushed a noun against a verb except to blow up something.

H: You know, that's a typical lawyer's trick - accusing the accuser.

D: What am I accused of?

H: Contempt of conscience, sentimentality in the first degree.

D: Why? Because I refuse to erase a man’s lifetime?

H: You know what I thought of him, and I know what you thought. Let us leave the lamentations to the illiterate! Why should we weep for him? He cried enough for himself! The national tear-duct from Weeping Water, Nebraska, who flooded the whole nation like a one-man Mississippi! You know what he was: A Barnum- Bible-beating bunko artist! What is this? Be-Kind-To-Bigots Week?

D: A giant once lived in that body. But Matt Brady got lost. Because he was looking for God too high up and too far away.

H: You hypocrite! You fraud!  The Atheist who believes in God... You’re just as religious as he was!

D: Everything is grist for your mill, isn't it? Well go on grind it up; Brady's past, Cates future.....My God, don't you understand the meaning of what happened here today?

H: What happened here has no meaning...

D: You have no meaning! You're like a ghost pointing an empty sleeve and smirking at everything people feel or want or struggle for! I pity you.

H: You pity me?

D: Isn't there anything? What touches you, what warms you? Every man has a dream. What do you dream about? What... what do you need? You don't need anything, do you? People, love, an idea;  just to cling to? You poor slob! You're all alone. When you go to your grave, there won't be anybody to pull the grass up over your head. Nobody to mourn you. Nobody to give a damn. You're all alone.

H: You're wrong, Henry. You'll be there. You're the type. Who else would defend my right to be lonely?

"70 Most Unforgettable Characters" - Reader's Digest (1967)

The binder of this volume of short narratives was the only portion of the cover with any writing on it, hence the unusual, at least for me, display of the book cover above. This is a perfect book for vacations, or sitting around the airport waiting for a plane. Filled with 70 of the most wonderful, and unforgettable characters, just as it says on the cover, this book will inspire you as well as make you laugh out loud.

When I was a young boy I used to eagerly read the “My Most Unforgettable Person” story in every Reader’s Digest I came across. And, in those days, they were everywhere. I even remember reading them at my Grandmother Nana’s house. Barbershops, shoeshine parlors; you name the place and there was a Reader’s Digest in there somewhere. It might be an older issue- but they still had my favorite feature in them.

This book is the same as those old issues were. There is something; or should I say someone; in here for everybody. There are accounts of the obscure, such as elevator operators; and also the recollections of newspapermen, doctors, writers, and so much more between these plain looking covers.

Without going into detail about all of the 70 people represented here, I will give you a glimpse of my favorites. There is the account by Jackie Robinson and his admiration for Branch Rickey when he integrated major league baseball in the era of Jim Crow.

There is also the story of a delicatessen owner who becomes friends with a Supreme Court Justice, to the betterment of both men. Journalist H.L. Mencken is remembered by author H. Allen Smith; Cole Porter is fondly recalled by a friend who tells of the debilitating pain which the composer suffered for 35 years; all the while with a smile on his face and a song in his heart. On the way to the hospital after the initial accident which caused his lifelong pain, he finished the lyrics to “You’ll Never Know.”

Not only the famous are represented here; there are stories of Preachers, Nuns, and even working men and women who have made a difference in the lives of others. For instance, there is the story of Oddie Cox, an educator of the so-called “Negro Schools” in North Carolina during the days of Jim Crow. He had been the Principal of the Institution he ran, but only gets his teaching certificate 20 years after first enrolling; not because he didn’t attend; but because he took only courses which would benefit his students when he passed that knowledge onto them. The College Board awarded him a degree based on his accumulated knowledge, and the way in which he used that to better the lives of others.

The stories of a woman Chimney Sweep; helicopter pioneer Igor Sikorsky; and Pearl S. Buck’s account of an old Chinese Empress, all make this a wonderfully fulfilling read. There is literally something in here to satisfy anyone who might pick it up. Ma Pullen, of Pullen House fame in Alaska, is a great example.

And, as always with this type of book, you can pick it up and open to any chapter to begin, making it a perfect book for the beach, as well as the aforementioned airports. If the book is not available at your local library, then you can pick this one up on line for less than $5 bucks. Sue picked this one up in a basket full of books she bought last weekend at an auction. She bought the basket, but I’m reading the books.

The Scopes Trial / Inherit the Wind

I could never have let the day go by without making some reference to the famous Scopes "Monkey" Trial of 1925. In a sleepy town in Dayton,Tennessee the new State Law against teaching Evolution in the Public Schools was drawing to a close. With Clarence Darrow for the Defense; versus William Jennings Bryan for the Prosecution; this would be the trial that killed Bryan.

His beliefs where shattered by the brilliant defense presented by Clarence Darrow. The teacher in question, John Scopes, was found guilty of violating the State Prohibition against teaching Evolution. But Darrow had made his point. The law was later struck down and the controversy over this subject still rages, across the land, today.

Take a minute, or three, and watch this video. It is a compilation of actual courtroom dialogue between the two great men, along with some scenes from the movie "Inherit the Wind" with Spencer Tracy and Frederic March playing the two attorneys. In most places the movie consists of exact quotations from the trial. Some of the most soaring rhetoric comes from the actual transcript. But what a difference in delivery! This film will give you the opportunity to compare them.

And as a side note, the famous summation of the case was conducted outdoors in the Town Square, rather than the Courtroom. There was not enough room for the all of the spectators on that fateful last day of the trial. So, due to the combination of very hot weather and overcrowding, the last day of the case was argued outdoors.

Enjoy the film, it's pretty good stuff. Today is the anniversary of the last day of this legendary trial, and is worth noting.


http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=hV840sEiqYY&feature=related

American Lightning by Howard Blum

What do you get when you put William Burns, Clarence Darrow and D.W.Griffith together in one book that links them all? One of the greatest true detective stories ever written.

The sheer scope of this book- from the explosion by anarchists at the LA Times in October 1910 to the Union battles of Chicago and the discovery of a nation wide plot by the Unions to destroy Capitalism, to the nascent film studios of D.W. Griffith in NY City and then back to Los Angeles for a sensational trial this book never stops giving the reader one surprise after another.

Add to this the battle for water rights in LA and the surrounding county (the underlying true story behind the Jack Nicholson movie “Chinatown”) and throw in some Mary Pickford and you have a book that can’t be put down.

Mr. Blum doesn’t confine himself to just the story- as if that wouldn’t be enough- he delves into the lives of the participants in detail- showing the how and why of the actions undertaken by each in this intricately told tale of domestic terrorism long before 9/11.

Of special interest to fans of the Scopes Monkey Trial and Clarence Darrow will be the

motivations that led one of the greatest legal minds of his day to commit bribery and suborn perjury in his quest to seek justice.

This book reads like a Robert Ludlum spy thriller- just when you think you’ve got it- you get another surprise.