Inflating a Dog Screenplay, Chapter 1

Inflating a Dog Screenplay
Chapter 1: Why Not Give It a Try? (in which Ella launches an idea)
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The screen rights are available.
E-mail Alec “Nick” Rafter.

TITLE SEQUENCE

MUSIC UP: "Indian Summer," played by Sidney Bechet

EXT. THE PARKING LOT OF A SMALL SUBURBAN HOSPITAL. 1987. DAY. WINTER. The atmosphere is gray, hushed. A car crunches into the snowy lot. PETER LEROY (43) and his wife, ALBERTINE (43, a beauty) get out and walk hand in hand to the entrance.

CUT TO:

INT. HOSPITAL RECEPTION DESK. The hospital is friendly, almost cozy. Murmuring, Peter asks to see Ella Leroy (luh-ROY). A nurse points them in the direction of the elevator.

CUT TO:

INT. HOSPITAL ELEVATOR. Peter and Albertine stand hand in hand, loving but grim. The doors open.

CUT TO:

END TITLE SEQUENCE

MUSIC DOWN

INT. INTENSIVE-CARE WARD. At the bedside of ELLA (61), who is dying of cancer. She is fettered by wires and tubes. Ella beckons to Albertine as well as she is able, indicating that she wants to say something to her.

ELLA
(barely able to speak)
Take good care of my baby.

ALBERTINE
(gripping Ella’s hand, glancing at Peter, the “baby”)
I will. Always.

ELLA

Peter . . .

Albertine drops back, and Peter comes forward.

ADULT PETER

I’m here, Mom.

ELLA

I want . . . want you to remember . . .
(like “Rosebud”)
Arcinella.

There’s a twinkle in Ella’s eyes, despite everything.

ELLA
(tightening her grip)
Remember?

ADULT PETER
(tenderly, reassuring her)
Of course. How could I forget?

ELLA
(barely audible, singing)
Wh-h-h-e-n-n you-oo-oo dance . . .

She can’t manage more than that.

ADULT PETER
(singing, badly, “When You Dance,” from 1955)
. . . be sure to hold her close to you . . . when you dance . . .

Ella is listening. Her hand is still in Peter’s. There is a smile on her face. A tear runs down her cheek.

CUT TO:

EXT. WINTER. GRAVESIDE IN A CEMETERY. Peter and Albertine are there, and Peter’s father, BERT (62, seedy, tired, and sad), and about twenty OTHER MOURNERS.
Ella’s casket is lowered into the grave.
Peter swallows and blinks back tears. Albertine puts her arm through his and hugs him to her.

CUT TO:

EXT. WINTER. THE CEMETERY. The mourners are dispersing.

ALBERTINE
(her arm through Peter’s)
Arcinella?

PETER
(it’s a pleasant memory)
Ahhhh . . . Arcinella.

ALBERTINE

An old girlfriend?

PETER
(with a reminiscent grin)
Not exactly . . . though she was a beauty . . .
(giving her a squeeze)
She was my mother’s lunch launch . . . her only successful venture . . . after a long string of failures . . .

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE LEROY FAMILY KITCHEN AND DINING ROOM. 1957. ELLA LEROY (31) is putting dinner on the table. BERT LEROY (32) is sitting at the table in his gas station uniform, reading the evening paper, drinking a beer. PETER (13) is helping Ella.

ELLA
(full of enthusiasm)
I had a wonderful idea today, Bert.

Bert looks over the top of the paper, giving her a look that says, “Oh, no. Not another wonderful idea.”

ELLA
(ignoring Bert’s look)
You know that Christmas ribbon candy?

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. THE LEROY LIVING ROOM. Every inch is decorated for Christmas. Ella bustles about, putting ribbon candy into Christmasy dishes and spotting the dishes around the room.

CUT TO:

INT. THE LEROY FAMILY KITCHEN AND DINING ROOM. As before.

ELLA

Well, I bet I could make ribbon candy.

Bert gives her another look and adds a dismissive snort.

ELLA

I could . . . I could make it . . . and sell it . . . and ship it far and wide.

BERT
(mocking her)
Far and wide!

ELLA
(dreamily)
Ella’s Ribbons of Dee-lite.

BERT
(with fake enthusiasm)
Ella’s Ribbons of Dee-lite . . .
(listing her failures)
Ella’s TV Colorizer . . . Ella’s Cards for Forgotten Holidays . . . Ella’s High-Heel-Low-Heel Convertible Shoes . . . Ella’s Peanut Butter on a Stick.

ELLA
(firmly)
Ella’s Ribbons of Dee-lite.

BERT
(with a sigh)
Ella. Look. Ribbon candy is made in a factory by machines that squirt sugar syrup out in a ribbon, fold it back and forth, snip it off, and . . .

ELLA

I could make it in my own kitchen.

BERT
(almost sneering)
Well then, why not give it a try?

CUT TO:

THIRTY SECONDS OF
"INDIAN SUMMER"
SIDNEY BECHET

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INFLATING A DOG SCREENPLAY | CONTENTS | CHAPTER 2

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The screenplay for Inflating a Dog is a work of fiction. The characters, incidents, dialogues, settings, and businesses portrayed in it are products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual events or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved. No part of this teleplay may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.

The illustration at the top of the page is an adaptation of an illustration by Stewart Rouse that first appeared on the cover of the August 1931 issue of Modern Mechanics and Inventions. The boy at the controls of the aerocycle doesn’t particularly resemble Peter Leroy—except, perhaps, for the smile.

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ABOUT THE PERSONAL HISTORY
COMPONENTS OF THE WORK
REVIEWS OF THE ENTIRE WORK
AUTHOR’S STATEMENT

LITTLE FOLLIES
HERB ’N’ LORNA
RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED
WHERE DO YOU STOP?
WHAT A PIECE OF WORK I AM
AT HOME WITH THE GLYNNS
LEAVING SMALL’S HOTEL
INFLATING A DOG
PASSIONATE SPECTATOR
TAKING OFF
MAKING MY SELF
A TOPICAL GUIDE

CLASSIFIEDS
SWELL IDEAS

COMPLETE SITE CONTENTS
WHAT'S NEW?

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