...-.. .

- 36 - THE WILD PARTY

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NADINE
Eighteen.
MADELAINE
Eighteen? You know, it's not every day one meets a woman like you. So mature. So
refined. So ... ripe. May I?
(SHE reaches in to kiss her. NADINE bolts upright and runs
to the back of the room.)

MADELAINE (CON'T)
Must be a school night.
(The third CAROUSEL leads into: BURRS is with EDDIE
and MAE at the bar. EDDIE is drinking a very large beer and
MAE is timing him to see how long it takes to get it down.)

ALL
Eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty one -­
(EDDIE grunts and gurgles.)

EDDIE
Uhn uhn uhn.
(HE wipes his chin.)
Aaaaahh. Done.
MAE
You downed it in twenty one and a half seconds. Better than last night.
BURRS
With your talent, you'll break fifteen seconds any day now.
EDDIE
Nah. You guys are too good to me. I'll never break fifteen. Never.

II (HE begins to sob.)

MAE
Hey, buddy bear, no crying. You can do fifteen. You just gotta practice.
EDDIE
You think?
BURRS
Sure. I once saw you throw a fight in nine seconds. And that's gotta be harder-what
with the gloves and all ...
(Suddenly viscious, EDDIE grabs BURRS by the collar.)
 THE WILD PARTY - 37 ­

EDDIE
Are you making fun of me?

BURRS
Easy, killer. No problem. Fifteeen seconds by the end of the week. Let me go?
(Eddie calms down.)

MAE
He gets excited.
BURRS
(straightening his shirt)
Any more excitement and I'll need new underwear.
ALL
HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA, HA,
HAH!
(KATE approaches BLACK.)

KATE
(breaking him out of his reverie, spoken)
Where have you been?
BLACK
(sung to Kate)
WHAT A SCENE, WHAT A GROUP

BUT KEEP ME IN THE LOOP

AND TELL ME, WHO'S THAT WOMAN?

WHO'S THAT WOMAN STANDING OVER THERE IN WHITE?

SO SLIGHT.

SO ­

KATE

(interrupting)
RIGHT ­
WOULDN'T YOU LIKE TO KNOW?

BLACK
WHAT'S HER NAME?

KATE
CLARA BOW.