Macdonald Carey
Frances Reid Denise
Alexander Edward Mallory Joyce
Easton Mike
Farrell Susan
Seaforth
Tom
Horton Alice
Horton Susan
Hunter Bill
Horton Janet
Banning Scott
Banning Julie
Olson
PROLOGUE
FADE IN: EXT. HORTON FRONT STEPS & PORCH
(SAME NIGHT AS PRECEDING SCRIPT. SOUND EFFECT: WIND. OPEN ON TOM,
WALKING UP THE FRONT STEPS OF THE HORTON HOME, HAVING JUST RETURNED FROM HIS
HOUSE CALL AND VISIT TO LAURA AND MICKEY. HE IS CARRYING HIS BLACK BAG. IT IS A
COLD WINTER'S EVENING. AS TOM GETS TO THE FRONT PORCH, HE STOPS, STANDS AT THE
RAILING, LOOKS OUT TOWARD THE FRONT LAWN RATHER THOUGHTFULLY, AND WE HEAR HIS
TRAIN OF THOUGHT. RUN PRE-RECORDED AUDIO TAPE)
TOM VOICEOVER: So Bill finally
decided to ask Susan to marry him...I wonder why? I don't think he really loves
the girl...Perhaps love can come later in a marriage...The important thing is
the peace of mind this has given Laura...I won't tell Alice the news, I'll let
Bill and Susan do that**, when they make the announcement to the whole
family...
[**NOTE: An ironic line begins this script, with Tom
mentioning "Bill and Susan getting married." Bill and Susan Hayes
would marry in 1974.]
(WITH THAT DECISION OUT OF THE WAY, TOM STARTS FOR
THE FRONT DOOR, TAKES OUT KEY, SOUND EFFECT: KEY IN DOOR, OPENS DOOR, GOES
INSIDE. HE SEES ALICE ON THE LIVING ROOM PHONE, ON A ONE-WAY CALL)
ALICE
(nodding to Tom): Hello, dear. I'm on the phone with Laura.
(ALICE GOES
BACK TO HER PHONE CALL AS TOM HANGS UP HIS COAT IN THE HALLWAY)
ALICE: No,
that's all right. Tom just came home...Oh, is that so? If I'd known, I would
have gone with him...I'm so glad you're happy with the apartment. I enjoyed
doing it...All right, dear, I'll talk to you tomorrow.
(ALICE HANGS UP THE
PHONE, TURNS TO JOIN TOM AS HE ENTERS THE ROOM. THEY EMBRACE LIGHTLY, AND ALICE
SMILES AT HIM)
TOM: I'm glad you waited up for me.
ALICE: So am I.
TOM:
I dropped by Mickey and Laura's on my way home.
ALICE: I know, Laura just
told me.
(ALICE'S SMILE TAKES ANY EDGE OFF HER WORDS)
ALICE: If I'd known
you were going to stop there after the house call, I would have gone with
you.
TOM: It was a spur of the moment thing. I was in the
neighborhood.
ALICE: All right, you're forgiven. This time! But if you drop
in on them without me after they bring our grandson home...
TOM (topping
warmly): I wouldn't dare!
ALICE (laughs): Oh, Laura was so pleased with the
way the apartment looked. She called to thank me.
TOM: She was very
grateful.
ALICE: She sounded wonderful on the phone, Tom. More relaxed. More
herself than she has been in a long time.
TOM (shaded): Yes, there should be
only peace, and happiness, ahead for Laura now.
ALICE: Peace and
happiness.
(ALICE TURNS BACK TO THE DESK, WHERE SHE HAS BEEN ADDRESSING
CHRISTMAS CARDS)
ALICE: Those words make me think of Christmas.
TOM: I see
you've been addressing Christmas cards.
(TOM GLANCES AT ONE FINISHED
STACK)
TOM: Why don't you use those return address labels to save
time?
ALICE: Oh, I don't know. I guess I'm old-fashioned. I like to do all
the addressing by hand. I suppose it's the one time during the year for thinking
of old friends, dropping them a note.
(TOM PUTS AN ARM AROUND HER, WITH GREAT
AFFECTION)
TOM: You enjoy that, don't you? Keeping in touch.
ALICE:
Especially this year, Tom. So much has happened. We have Tommy back with us...a
new grandson...
TOM: Yes, we'll have so many of the children here with us.
ALICE: Which reminds me. Bill's back from New York. He got in early this
evening and called from the hospital to say hello.
TOM: Oh, did he?
ALICE:
I asked him to stop by, but he said he was going over to Susan's for dinner.
They seem to be getting quite serious, don't they?
TOM: Yes, they seem to
be.
(SOUND EFFECT: A PHONE RINGING INTERRUPTS THE CONVERSATION. TOM PICKS IT
UP FOR A ONE-WAY CALL)
TOM: Hello?...Yes, operator, this is Dr. Horton...Long
distance?...
(TOM GETS A VERY GUARDED REACTION OF HAPPINESS)
TOM: Yes, put
her on...It's Julie, calling from San Francisco.
(TAKE ALICE'S VERY HAPPY
REACTION, HOLD A BEAT. MUSIC: UP TO FINISH AND OUT. FADE TO: BLACK. MUSIC:
THEME. UP ON: HOUR GLASS & MATTE CARD. FADE TO BLACK. UP ON: COMMERCIAL
POSITION # 1)
ACT ONE
FADE IN: INT. HORTON LIVING ROOM (TAKE IT
UP IMMEDIATELY. A TWO-WAY PHONE CALL BETWEEN TOM AND JULIE. PERHAPS SPLIT
SCREEN, TO ADD INTEREST. IN ANY EVENT, JULIE CAN BE IN A LIMBO SET, CALLING
PROBABLY FROM HER ROOMING HOUSE. BY THE TELEPHONE ARE THREE OR FOUR LETTERS FROM
TOM.)
TOM: Julie, how are you?
JULIE: I'm fine, thanks.
TOM: Your
grandmother's been a little worried. We tried to call you once but there was no
answer.
JULIE (subdued, yet warm): I know. I've been away. I didn't give up
muy place, but I've been gone for about six weeks.
TOM (his face reflecting
his concern): Where did you go?
JULIE: Oh, no place special. I felt
restless, so I went up north, along the coast. I needed to
get away.
TOM: Well, it's good to hear your voice, know you're all
right.
JULIE: I found several letters from you...I was so sorry to hear about
Laura and the baby, but then your last letter said they were both all
right.
TOM: Yes, we've been very lucky. Laura came home from the
hospital today, and they'll be able to bring the baby home very
soon.**
[**NOTE: The baby spoken about is Michael Horton, who was born on the
9/27/68 episode. He was most recently played by Roark Critchlow in
1999.]
(DURING THE ABOVE, TAKE REACTION SHOTS OF ALICE, WHO IS LISTENING
INTENTLY, A HAPPY LOOK ON HER FACE. TOM REACTS, READY TO TURN THE PHONE
CALL OVER TO ALICE, SINCE THERE IS NONE OF THE OLD EASE AND WARMTH BETWEEN
HIM AND JULIE)
JULIE: I'm so glad...Give them my love, will you?
TOM: I'll
do that. And I'd better turn you over to your grandmother before we let the time
get away from us. Nice hearing from you, Julie...and take care of
yourself.
JULIE: Thanks, grandfather.
(TOM HANDS THE PHONE TO ALICE. THE
WARMTH BETWEEN THE TWO WOMEN WILL BE QUITE A CONTRAST TO THE CONVERSATION
BETWEEN JULIE AND TOM. BECAUSE NO MATTER WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN THE PAST, THIS IS
ALICE'S GRANDDAUGHTER, A CHILD WHO SPENT CONSIDERABLE TIME GROWING UP IN THIS
HOUSE)
ALICE: Julie, darling?
JULIE: Grandma, how are you?
ALICE: Fine,
dear. How are you?
JULIE (shaded): All right, I guess...I've missed you so
much...
(TAKE ALICE'S REACTION)
ALICE: We've missed you too,
dear.
(ALICE SHOOTS A LOOK AT TOM. TAKE HIS GUARDED REACTION)
JULIE: You
sound so...far away.
ALICE: So do you. Much too far away.
JULIE: I've been
thinking about you and grandfather all day, so I thought I'd call.
ALICE:
We're so glad you did...Julie...Are you all right, dear?
JULIE: Of course,
I'm fine.
ALICE: You don't sound fine.
JULIE: Well, I suppose I'm a little
lonely.
ALICE: You know, I was sitting here tonight, making out Christmas
cards, and I came to your name on the list, and I thought to myself, wouldn't it
be wonderful if she could be with us for the holidays.
(ALICE STOPS, REACTING
TO TOM'S CONCERN. THIS IS WHAT JULIE HAS REALLY WANTED TO HEAR)
JULIE: I
didn't think grandfather ever want me to come back to Salem.
ALICE (already
trapped, felling a sudden warmth toward Julie's plight): He wants you to happy,
Julie. We both do. And I see no reason why you can't be with the family for the
holidays.
(JULIE IS WARMING TO THE IDEA)
JULIE: It sounds
wonderful!...There really isn't anything to keep me here.
ALICE: How soon can
you come?
JULIE: Maybe in a week or so. I'll let you know as soon as my plans
are definite.
ALICE: All right, darling.
JULIE: I love you, grandma. Very
much.
ALICE: I love you too, dear...I'm so glad you called.
JULIE: So am
I...Say goodbye to grandfather for me.
ALICE: I will...Goodbye,
dear.
(ALICE HANGS UP THE PHONE SLOWLY, TURNS TO FACE TOM, WHOSE FACE
REFLECTS GENUINE CONCERN ABOUT ALL THIS)
ALICE: Tom, please...Don't be angry
with me.
TOM: How could I be angry with you, ever?
ALICE: She sounded so
lost and alone.
TOM (gently): I know, Alice...I love her, too. It isn't that
I don't want her home with us for Christmas...But I can't help wondering if it's
wise having Julie come back to the place where she put her baby out for adoption
a year ago.
DISSOLVE TO: INT. BANNING LIVING ROOM (JANET,
SITTING ON THE SOFA, DEEPLY THOUGHTFUL. ESTABLISH, THEN BRING SCOTT OUT FROM THE
NURSERY, A WARM SMILE ON HIS FACE)
SCOTT: The baby's sound asleep. He didn't
even turn over when I put another blanket around him.
(THERE IS A LONG PAUSE,
AND SCOTT STUDIES JANET FOR A MOMENT. HE GOES OVER TO KISS THE TOP OF HER
HEAD)
SCOTT: You're awfully quiet tonight, Mrs. Banning.
JANET: I was
thinking about Christmas coming, what a wonderful time of year for the children.
And for some reason, I found myself thinking about Julie Olson. And wondering
what it must be like a year later, after giving up a baby. I wonder what she
must be thinking now.
(TAKE SCOTT'S REACTION AND MUSIC: UP TO FINISH AND OUT.
FADE TO BLACK. UP ON: COMMERCIAL POSITION # 2)
ACT TWO
FADE IN: INT. BANNING APARTMENT (TAKE IT UP
IMMEDIATELY. SCOTT IS LOOKING AT HIS WIFE WITH A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF
SURPRISE)
SCOTT: Why would you be thinking of Julie Olson?
JANET: I find
myself thinking of her a lot. After all, we know so little about Brad's real
mother. And nothing at all about his father.
SCOTT: It's strange, but I've
almost forgotten about Julie Olson. In my mind, you are Brad's mother.
His real mother.
JANET: Oh darling, of course I am. And you're his
father.
SCOTT: Then why think about Julie Olson?
JANET: I suppose, in a
way, I wonder what kind of a woman could ever give up a baby. There must have
been so much heartbreak and tragedy in her life, to force her to make such a
decision.
SCOTT: If there hadn't been heartbreak, and tragedy, we never would
have had an opportunity to adopt Brad.
JANET: Yes, I know. The idea of having
to lose a baby. Give it up...It must be very difficult.
(OF COURSE, SHE IS
SPEAKING NOW OF WHAT SHE FACES: GIVING UP HER BABY AND HER LIFE. SCOTT LOOKS AT
HER SEARCHINGLY)
SCOTT: You forget, Mrs. Banning, that we love each other.
Any child we might have been able to have together, well, no one in the world
could have taken him away from us...It was difficult for Julie Olson. She didn't
have a husband to help her raise her baby.
JANET: It wouldn't be easy, trying
to raise a child, with only one parent. It wouldn't be easy at all.
(CAMERA
HAS MOVED IN CLOSE TO TAKE THE DIMENSION OF JANET'S FEELINGS AND THOUGHTS. SHE
IS THINKING ABOUT SCOTT, HOW HE WILL HAVE TO CARRY ON ALONE. TAKE SCOTT'S
REACTION, THEN HIS OBVIOUS EFFORT TO LIGHTEN JANET'S MOOD)
SCOTT: Hey, not so
serious! Christmas is coming, and we have to decide what to give Brad.
JANET
(a half smile): You mean, decide what not to give him.
SCOTT: You
think I'll spoil him?
JANET: Of course, why not?
SCOTT: Would he like an
electric train, do you think?
JANET: No, but you would!
SCOTT: I'm going
to buy him everything I ever wanted and didn't get when I was a kid.
JANET:
Whose Christmas is this...yours or the baby's?
SCOTT: Ours. Yours and
mine...If Brad's a good boy, I might let him touch the electric
train!
JANET: Oh, Scott!
(SCOTT KISSES HER VERY GENTLY, PAUSE AS HE LOOKS
AT HER)
SCOTT: Still thinking about Julie Olson?
JANET: I was thinking
just then about Susan...and the future. Her future.
SCOTT: Marriage to Bill
Horton, I imagine.
JANET: He's a very lucky man. I wonder if he knows
that?
SCOTT (smiling): I'm sure he does. In fact, from what Susan told us
earlier, he's probably proposing to her right now.
DISSOLVE TO: INT.
SUSAN'S APARTMENT (A CONTINUATION OF PREVIOUS EPISODE WITH SUSAN AND
BILL. SUSAN IS LOOKING AT BILL, HER FACE SOLEMN AND HER EMOTIONS UNDER CONTROL.
HOLD A BEAT, THEN CAMERA PULLS BACK TO INCLUDE BILL, WHO IS FEELING THE STRAIN
OF HAVING TO RECOUNT THIS STORY)
BILL: Don't look at me that way,
Susan.
SUSAN: What way?
BILL: I don't know exactly. Except that you seem
to be a million miles away.
SUSAN: I'm listening Bill. For the rest of the
story. You said that was only the beginning, the night you had too much to drink
and went to Laura's room at the hospital.
BILL (turning away from her): You
aren't making it any easier, Susie.
SUSAN: I love you, Bill...Nothing you
tell me can change that.
BILL: I'm counting on that...I want to bring out
marriage all the honesty I can. You deserve that much.
SUSAN (her voice low,
controlled): Go on with the rest of the story, Bill.
BILL: It isn't very
pretty.
SUSAN (very low): Life has a way of not being very pretty.
Sometimes...
(HOLD ON SUSAN A BEAT, THEN MUSIC: UP TO FINISH AND OUT. FADE
TO: BLACK. UP ON: COMMERCIAL POSITION # 3. MUSIC: THEME. UP ON: HOUR GLASS/MATTE
CARD. UP ON: COMMERCIAL POSITION # 4)
ACT THREE
FADE IN: INT. SUSAN'S APARTMENT (TAKE IT UP
IMMEDIATELY. BILL IS TRYING TO GO ON WITH THE STORY)
BILL: Well, anyway, I
never took another drink after that night...It wasn't easy, facing Laura the
next morning. She told me to get out of her life and stay out...I swore I would
do that, that I would never hurt her again, in any way...And I did stay out of
her life...But neither one of us realized just how much I had hurt her that
night.
SUSAN: What can I say to you, Bill? Something like this happening to
Laura...
BILL: Susie, I didn't know what I was doing. I was drunk.
SUSAN:
She never told Mickey?
BILL: How could she? He would have wanted to kill
me...And I wouldn't have blamed him.
SUSAN: Laura was right. Let's put the
past behind us. Don't let it in any way jeopardize what we want to build
together...
BILL: I want to do that, Susie. If only Laura and I were
involved, there would be no reason to have told you what happened.
SUSAN: I
don't understand.
BILL: After that night, I searched the fiber of my being to
figure out what kind of man I was. It changed my whole life, that night. I
decided not to let one mistake wipe out everything else of value...I kept my
distance from Laura. And I built a new relationship with my brother.
SUSAN:
Yes, I remember, how happy everyone was, when you and Mickey got back together
again.
BILL: I was trying to forget what happened, and I had started to
forget. Until last July...Do you remember, I wasn't feeling well, I had a bit of
abdominal discomfort.
SUSAN: Yes, I gave you soup several times because you
couldn't keep anything else down.
BILL; Well, I finally stopped being
bull-headed and decided to see a doctor.
SUSAN: Yes, I remember...
BILL:
Dad was out of town, so I went to Dr. Lincoln for a checkup...It's, it's almost
incredible the way things happen, Susie. Maybe the word is "destiny."
SUSAN:
I don't know what you mean.
BILL: I went to Dad's office to get my medical
file to give to Dr. Lincoln, and I got into a conversation with Miss Perkins,
who gave me the folder...Well, I went back to my quarters, waiting to see Dr.
Lincoln, and I started to read through the history. I don't know why I did it,
just browsing I guess. Anyway, I suddenly realized it wasn't my file at all. It
was a case history on my brother, Mickey.
SUSAN: Bill, why are you telling me
all this? None of it makes much sense!
BILL: It will in a moment. I tried to
phone Miss Perkins, to tell her about the mistake, but her line was busy. By the
time I tried again, she'd gone out to lunch. I was closing the folder, when a
notation on the last page caught my eye...I...I was stunned by what I
read.
SUSAN: What do you mean?
(BILL DOESN'T ANSWER HER DIRECTLY)
BILL:
I found out later about a test Mickey had taken...Why he did it, I don't
know...The point is, he did have the test done, by my father. Mickey had been
reading one of Laura's medical journals, an article on mumps in the adult male.
That sometimes it can leave a man...sterile. So Mickey, who remembered he'd had
mumps in law school, went to Dad and had a test taken. He and Laura had been
married only a few months, and both of them were anxious to have children right
away.
SUSAN: What was the notation on Mickey's medical history?
BILL: I'll
never forget the words: "Sterility test proves the patient to be unequivocally
infertile..."
(SUSAN UNDERSTANDS THE MEANING OF THESE WORDS, BUT FOR A BRIEF
MOMENT, DOESN'T RELATE IT TO THE POINT BILL IS TRYING TO MAKE ABOUT THE
BABY)
SUSAN: Bill, that can't be. I mean, that can't be true...Laura and
Mickey have a baby....
(TAKE BILL'S LONG, PENETRATING LOOK)
BILL: There is
no question about the test being right, Susan.
(TAKE TIME HERE FOR SUSAN'S
REACTION. KEEP HER INTENSE, HER VOICE VERY LOW. WHEN SHE SPEAKS, HER VOICE IS
SHAKEN)
SUSAN: Bill, what are you saying? If this isn't Mickey's
baby...
(BILL IS GRIM, INSISTING ON THE COMPLETE TRUTH)
BILL: It isn't
Mickey's baby. It can't be...The baby is mine...
(TAKE REACTIONS OF THIS
BOMBSHELL, AND... MUSIC: UP TO FINISH AND OUT. FADE TO: BLACK. UP ON: COMMERCIAL
POSITION # 5)
ACT FOUR
FADE IN: INT. SUSAN'S APARTMENT (TAKE IT UP
IMMEDIATELY. SUSAN TURNS AWAY FROM BILL, TOTALLY SHAKEN TO THE VERY FOUNDATIONS
OF HER BEING)
BILL: Susan, don't turn away from me. Please...
(TAKE HER
FACE IN CLOSE, AS SHE TRIES TO SAY SOMETHING, REASSURE HIM IN SOME
WAY)
SUSAN: Oh, Bill...
(HE CROSSES TO HER, DOESN'T TOUCH HER)
BILL:
Susan...Please understand...why I had to tell you...
(TAKE TIME HERE. BECAUSE
THIS WILL BE VERY IMPORTANT LATER ON IN THIS STORY. IT IS A LONG MOMENT BEFORE
SUSAN SPEAKS)
SUSAN: Why did you have to tell me?
BILL: I wanted
everything to be honest and above-board between us.
SUSAN: Is that why you
told me?
BILL: What other reason is there?
SUSAN: I'm asking you,
Bill.
BILL: No other reason, except that I couldn't live with this, I
couldn't marry you, until you knew everything.
(SUSAN MOVES AWAY FROM BILL,
TRYING TO DIGEST EVERYTHING HE HAS TOLD HER. SHE IS CONFUSED, TORN APART BY
CONFLICTING EMOTIONS)
SUSAN: Does...Mickey know....How could he
know...
BILL: Dad never told him the results of the sterility test. Because
Laura told both Dad and Mickey what seemed to be wonderful news. That she was
pregnant.
SUSAN: So Mickey believes this is his child?
BILL: He believes
it is his son.
SUSAN: And your father?
BILL: He knows the whole story.
Because Laura had to tell him. But they don't know I know the results of
Mickey's sterility test. I put the folder back in Dad's file without anyone
knowing I received it by mistake.
SUSAN: You've been living with this, all
these months, both you and Laura...
BILL: I can't tell you how much better I
feel, now that you know everything...It won't make any difference, will it,
Susan?...As far as out marriage is concerned?
(SUSAN TURNS AWAY, HER GLANCE
COMING TO REST UPON THE UNOPENED WINE BOTTLE, THE CELEBRATION GIFT FROM SCOTT
AND JANET. SHE PICKS IT UP, STARING PAST IT, HER MIND IN A CONFUSING WHIRL. HER
WORDS HAVE LITTLE MEANING. SHE IS IN A STATE OF SHOCK)
SUSAN: So, that's
why you stopped drinking.
(SUSAN LOOKS AT THE BOTTLE)
SUSAN: Janet bought
me this wine so we could make a toast to our happiness, our future.
(TAKE
BILL'S REACTION, HIS CONCERN. HE CROSSES TO SUSAN, TAKES THE BOTTLE FROM HER.
HIS VOICE IS LOW, VERY SOLEMN)
BILL: Susan, please...I had to tell you...I'd
give anything to put back that special look on your face, the smile you gave me
tonight when I asked you to be my wife...Let's open the wine, and make a toast,
to us. Our happiness. Our future. Together.
SUSAN: No, don't open the bottle.
Not yet.
(SUSAN SMILES SADLY)
SUSAN: Good wine keeps, Bill. It even
improves with age...Let's wait to open the wine.
(SHE TURNS AWAY AGAIN. TAKE
BILL'S REACTION. SOMEHOW, HE REALIZES HE MAY BE LOSING SUSAN, AND HE IS
CONCERNED)
BILL: Susan, I asked you to marry me. And you said yes...Then I
told you a story I had to tell you. Is your answer still yes?
(A LONG BEAT
HERE, AS SUSAN TURNS TO BILL, HER LOVE FOR HIM DEEP, HER CONCERN ABOUT HIS
FEELINGS FOR HER BEGINNING TO SURFACE)
SUSAN: I need time, Bill.
BILL: You
keep moving away from me. Do I disgust you so much?
SUSAN (deeply moved): Oh,
Bill...You keep forgetting...that I love you.
BILL: I'm asking you to marry
me, Susan. I'm waiting for your answer.
(THERE IS A LONG SILENCE BETWEEN
THEM. FINALLY:)
SUSAN: How many people have you told about asking me to marry
you tonight?
BILL: No one, except Laura and Mickey, of course.
SUSAN: If
they mention it tomorrow, please tell them you didn't ask me to marry you
tonight.
(TAKE BILL'S REACTION. HE IS COMPLETELY THROWN)
SUSAN: I need a
few days to think.
BILL: Why, Susan?
SUSAN: Because I want the same thing
you want, Bill. A marriage based on honesty...A marriage looking toward the
future, not the past...
(MUSIC: UP TO FINISH AND OUT. FADE TO: BLACK. UP ON:
COMMERCIAL POSITION # 6. MUSIC: THEME. UP ON: HOUR GLASS/MATTE
CARD.)
HERE IS A SCAN OF SUSAN'S FIRST PAGE OF DIALOGUE AS JULIE, PAGE
8 of EPISODE # 780, AIRED ON DECEMBER 11, 1968.
