MORE THAN EVER
Written by Jeremy Wilmarth
1228 Kenneth Dr.
Bloomington, IL 61704
309-664-2791
WGA #874535
FADE
IN:
INT.
CONCERT ARENA – NIGHT
THE
THUNDEROUS CLAPPING OF THE CROWD pounds
in our chests.
crowd
(chanting)
Dave! Dave! Dave…!
STAGE
LIGHTS FLASH. DEATH HEAD WITH BLAZING
RED EYES HOVERS OVER STAGE BELCHING FIRE.
LONG-HAIRED ROCKERS appear,
clad in leather and chains. JETS OF
FLAME SPEW FROM OPEN VENTS. ROCKERS
START TO PLAY: “Back In Black”. THE
CROWD ERUPTS.
FINALLY
DAVE BRANNON STRUTS ON STAGE. He’s a
clean-cut thirty-something wearing a polo shirt, khakis and loafers. SECURITY GUARDS grimly steel themselves
against the HEAD-BANGING crowd.
Dave
shakes his moneymaker and lip syncs like a ship going down. GORGEOUS WOMEN SCREAM in hysterical fits
from the front row. Dave makes love to
the microphone stand, pumping raw sexual energy into a charged crowd.
Dave
rips apart his shirt. He flexes his
white, hairy chest like a peacock. He
tosses the shirt into audience, which devours it like a swarm of piranhas.
GROUPIES
BREAK THROUGH SECURITY AND CHARGE THE STAGE.
They clutch and grasp at any free spot on Dave’s body. When Security pulls Groupies off, Dave is
left with only his holey briefs, black socks, and shoes. Dave rocks on without missing a beat.
Dave
throws himself into the audience. He
surfs the crowd as the song goes on.
Suddenly
his support wavers. The crowd sends him TOWARD A SUPPORT
BEAM. He’s going to hit where it hurts
and he can’t stop.
BUZZ.
INT.
MASTER BEDROOM – DAVE’S HOUSE – MORNING
The ALARM
CLOCK BUZZES. ALLEY, Dave’s precocious
three year-old daughter, does a flying leap and body slams him. Dave groans.
FROM
DAVE’S POV. we see Alley looming large, beaming at us.
alley
Rise and shine, Daddy!
dave
I’ll give you a dollar to stay in
your room.
Alley
holds up DAVE’S WALLET. CREDIT CARDS
SPILL OUT.
KITCHEN
– LATER
Dave,
dressed for work, walks in. He spots
Alley sitting on the table eating her cereal.
dave
Hey little Buddha, do your zen-thing
on a chair.
Dave
glances at PORTABLE TELEVISION and grabs a cereal bowl.
narrator (on
TV)
…Prairie dogs are community animals
that live in large colonies of connected tunnels and nests…
Dave
seats himself at the table. TAYLOR,
Dave’s six year-old son, digs deep into a cereal box, spilling cereal all over
the table and floor.
dave
Taylor, you got the toy yesterday.
taylor
But it was the wrong one. It wasn’t like the picture on the box.
Dave
guides piles of loose cereal mixture across the table into his bowl.
dave
Get used to it.
taylor
If you loved me you’d sue them for
me. That’s what Joey’s daddy does.
dave
Joey’s dad is a lawyer. He gets paid to chase ambulances.
taylor
Oh that’s why he runs so fast… What do you get paid for, Dad?
dave
You know that stuff inside the toilet
we can’t scrub off? I get paid to be
like that.
JANET,
Dave’s vivacious wife, rushes by.
janet
Alley… Taylor… let’s go. Dave, remember to pick up the kids from
Carolyn Driesbach’s today.
dave
Uh, didn’t she have a nervous
breakdown last spring?
janet
Oh she’s fine now. She’s earning extra money for
treatments.
Dave
gives Janet a look-over. She wears an
exceptionally tight-fitting dress.
dave
Is that supposed to be your power
statement?
janet
It’s called dressing for
success. You should try it some time.
dave
I do. It’s called camouflage.
narrator (on
tv)
…Prairie Dog towns exist in areas with short grass so they can spot the approach of predators…
janet
The V.P. flew in for some emergency meetings. I can’t make it for the Stoned Deadheads concert.
dave
The Stone Cold Stoners.
Janet, we’ve had this planned for months.
janet
We’ll visit the retirement home. Isn’t that where they stay between shows?
Janet
leads the kids out the door.
dave
Yeah, well I’d like to know how old
your V.P. is.
janet (o.s.)
He’s forty-five… and has a nice tan-!
taylor
(o.s.)
Mom, did you know people poop on Dad
at work?
janet (o.s.)
Yes, and Mom wishes Dad didn’t bring
his work home with him.
narrator (on
tv)
…While the prairie dogs feed, one
serves as the watch guard. If it sees
danger, it barks to warn the others who run for the safety of the tunnels…
PRAIRIE
DOG BARKS. Dave is startled.
cut to:
INT.
CUBICLE FARM – VERICOM OFFICES – DAY
We
move along ROW OF CUBICLES:
A.
CO-WORKER #1 paints her nails.
B. CO-WORKER #2 makes COKE-BOTTLE MUSIC.
C. MIKE, a bespectacled, round
thirty-something, plays a
computer game.
D. Dave, pencil in hand, writes on lined sheets of paper. PIN