The Iceman Cometh (10 page)

MARGIE

Glancing around
.

Jees, Poil, it’s de Morgue wid all de stiffs on deck.

She catches
LARRY’s
eye and smiles affectionately
.

Hello, Old Wise Guy, ain’t you died yet?

LARRY

Grinning
.

Not yet, Margie. But I’m waiting impatiently for the end.
PARRITT
opens his eyes to look at the two girls, but as soon as they g
la
nce at him he closes them again and turns his head away
.

MARGIE

As she and
pearl
come to the table at right, front, followed by
ROCKY.

Who’s de new guy? Friend of yours, Larry?

Automatically she smiles seductively at
PARRITT
and addresses him in a professional chant
.

Wanta have a good time, kid?

PEARL

Aw, he’s passed out. Hell wid him!

HOPE

Cocks an eye over his specs at them
—
with drowsy irritation
.

You dumb broads cut the loud talk.

He shuts his eye again
.

ROCKY

Admonishing them good-naturedly
.

Sit down before I knock yuh down.

margie
and
pearl
sit at left, and rear, of table
, rocky
at right of it. The girls pour drinks
. rocky
begins in a brisk, business-like manner but in a lowered voice with an eye
on
HOPE
.

Well, how’d you tramps do?

MARGIE

Pretty good. Didn’t we, Poil?

PEARL

Sure. We nailed a coupla all-night guys.

MARGIE

On Sixth Avenoo. Boobs from de sticks.

PEARL

Stinko, de bot’ of ’em.

MARGIE

We thought we was in luck. We steered dem to a real hotel. We figgered dey was too stinko to bother us much and we could cop a good sleep in beds that ain’t got cobble stones in de mattress like de ones in dis dump.

PEARL

But we was outa luck. Dey didn’t bother us much dat way, but dey wouldn’t go to sleep either, see? Jees, I never hoid such gabby guys.

MARGIE

Dey got onta politics, drinkin’ outa de bottle. Dey forgot we was around. “De Bull Moosers is de on’y reg’lar guys,” one guy says. And de other guy says, “You’re a God-damned liar! And I’m a Republican!” Den dey’d laugh.

PEARL

Den dey’d get mad and make a bluff dey was goin’ to scrap, and den dey’d make up and cry and sing “School Days.” Jees, imagine tryin’ to sleep wid dat on de phonograph!

MARGIE

Maybe you tink we wasn’t glad when de house dick come up and told us all to git dressed and take de air!

PEARL

We told de guys we’d wait for dem ’round de corner.

MARGIE

So here we are.

ROCKY

Sententiously
.

Yeah. I see you. But I don’t see no dough yet.

PEARL

With a wink at margie
—
teasingly
. Right on de job, ain’t he, Margie?

MARGIE

Yeah, our little business man! Dat’s him!

ROCKY

Come on! Dig!

They both pull up their skirts to get the money from their stockings
.

ROCKY
watches this move carefully
.

PEARL

Amused
.

Pipe him keepin’ cases, Margie.

MARGIE

Amused
.

Scared we’re holdin’ out on him.

PEARL

Way he grabs, yuh’d tink it was him done de woik.

She holds out a little roll of bills to
rocky.

Here y’are, Grafter!

MARGIE

Holding hers out
.

We hope it chokes yuh.

ROCKY
counts the money quickly and shoves it in his pocket
.

ROCKY

Genially
.

You dumb baby dolls gimme a pain. What would you do wid money if I wasn’t around? Give it all to some pimp.

PEARL

Teasingly
.

Jees, what’s the difference—?

Hastily
.

Aw, I don’t mean dat, Rocky.

ROCKY

His eyes growing hard
—
slowly
.

A lotta difference, get me?

PEARL

Don’t get sore. Jees, can’t yuh take a little kiddin’?

MARGIE

Sure, Rocky, Poil was on’y kiddin’.

Soothingly
.

We know yuh got a reg’lar job. Dat’s why we like yuh, see? Yuh don’t

live offa us. Yuh’re a bartender.

ROCKY

Genially again
.

Sure, I’m a bartender. Everyone knows me knows dat. And I treat you goils right, don’t I? Jees, I’m wise yuh hold out on me, but I know it ain’t much, so what the hell, I let yuh get away wid it. I tink yuh’re a coupla good kids. Yuh’re aces wid me, see?

PEARL

You’re aces wid us, too. Ain’t he, Margie?

MARGIE

Sure, he’s aces.

ROCKY
beams complacently and takes the glasses back to the bar
. margie
whispers
.

Yuh sap, don’t yuh know enough not to kid him on dat? Serve yuh right if he beat yuh up!

PEARL

Admiringly
.

Jees, I’ll bet he’d give yuh an awful beatin’, too, once he started.

Ginnies got awful tempers.

MARGIE

Anyway, we wouldn’t keep no pimp, like we was reg’lar old whores. We ain’t dat bad.

PEARL

No. We’re tarts, but dat’s all.

ROCKY

Rinsing glasses behind the bar
.

Cora got back around three o’clock. She woke up Chuck and dragged him outa de hay to go to a chop suey joint.

Disgustedly
.

Imagine him standin’ for dat stuff!

MARGIE

Disgustedly
.

I’ll bet dey been sittin’ around kiddin’ demselves wid dat old pipe dream about getting’ married and settlin’ down on a farm. Jees, when Chuck’s on de wagon, dey never lay off dat dope! Dey give yuh an earful every time yuh talk to ’em!

PEARL

Yeah. Chuck wid a silly grin on his ugly map, de big boob, and Cora gigglin’ like she was in grammar school and some tough guy’d just told her babies wasn’t brung down de chimney by a boid!

MARGIE

And her on de turf long before me and you was! And bot’ of ’em arguin’ all de time, Cora sayin’ she’s scared to marry him because he’ll go on drunks again. Just as dough any drunk could scare Cora!

PEARL

And him swearin’, de big liar, he’ll never go on no more periodicals! An’ den her pretendin’—But it gives me a pain to talk about it. We ought to phone de booby hatch to send round de wagon for ’em.

ROCKY

Comes back to the table
—
disgustedly
.

Yeah, of all de pipe dreams in dis dump, dey got de nuttiest! And nuttin’ stops dem. Dey been dreamin’ it for years, every time Chuck goes on de wagon. I never could figger it. What would gettin’ married get dem? But de farm stuff is de sappiest part. When bot’ of ’em was dragged up in dis ward and ain’t never been nearer a farm dan Coney Island! Jees, dey’d tink dey’d gone deef if dey didn’t hear de El rattle! Dey’d get D.T.s if dey ever hoid a cricket choip! I hoid crickets once on my cousin’s place in Joisey. I couldn’t sleep a wink. Dey give me de heebie-jeebies.

With deeper disgust
.

Jees, can yuh picture a good barkeep like Chuck diggin’ spuds? And imagine a whore hustlin’ de cows home! For Christ sake! Ain’t dat a sweet picture!

MARGIE

Rebukingly
.

Yuh oughtn’t to call Cora dat, Rocky. She’s a good kid. She may be

a tart, but—

ROCKY

Considerately
.

Sure, dat’s all I meant, a tart.

PEARL

Giggling
.

But he’s right about de damned cows, Margie. Jees, I bet Cora don’t know which end of de cow has de horns! I’m goin’ to ask her.

There is the noise of a door opening in the hall and the sound of a man
’s
and woman’s arguing voices
.

ROCKY

Here’s your chance. Dat’s dem two nuts now.
CORA
and
chuck
look in from the hallway and then come in
. cora
is a thin peroxide blonde, a few years older than
pearl andmargie,
dressed in similar style, her round face showing more of the wear and tear of her trade than theirs, but still with traces of a doll-like prettiness
. chuck
is a tough, thick-necked, barrel-chested Italian-American, with a fat, amiable, swarthy face. He has on a straw hat with a vivid band, a loudsuit, tie and shirt, and yellow shoes. His eyes are clear and he looks healthy and strong as an ox
.

CORA

Gaily
.

Hello, bums.

She looks around
.

Jees, de Morgue on a rainy Sunday night!

She waves to
larry—
affectionately
.

Hello, Old Wise Guy! Ain’t you croaked yet?

LARRY

Grins
.

Not yet, Cora. It’ damned tiring, this waiting for the end.

cora Aw, gwan, you’ll never die! Yuh’ll have to hire someone to croak yuh wid an axe.

HOPE

Cocks one sleepy eye at her
—
irritably
.

You dumb hookers, cut the loud noise! This ain’t a cat-house!

CORA

Teasingly
.

My, Harry! Such language!

HOPE

Closes his eyes
—
to himself with a gratified chuckle
.

Bejees, I’ll bet Bessie’s turning over in her grave!

CORA
sits down between
MARGIE
and
PEARL
.
CHUCK
takes an empty chair from
HOPE’s
table and puts it by hers and sits down
. A
LARRY’s
table
,
PARRITT
is glaring resentfully toward the girls
.

PARRITT

If I’d known this dump was a hooker hangout, I’d never have come here.

LARRY

Watching him
.

You seem down on the ladies.

PARRITT

Vindictively
.

I hate every bitch that ever lived! They’re all alike!

Catching himself guiltily
.

You can understand how I feel, can’t you, when it was getting mixed up with a tart that made me have that fight with Mother?

Then with a resentful sneer
.

But what the hell does it matter to you? You’re in the grandstand.

You’re through with life.

LARRY

Sharply
.

I’m glad you remember it. I don’t want to know a damned thing about your business.

He closes his eyes and settles on his chair as if preparing for sleep
.
PARRITT
stares at him sneeringly. Then he looks away and his expression becomes furtive and frightened
.

CORA

Who’s de guy wid Larry?

ROCKY

A tightwad. To hell wid him.

PEARL

Say, Cora, wise me up. Which end of a cow is de horns on?

CORA

Embarrassed
.

Aw, don’t bring dat up. I’m sick of hearin’ about dat farm.

ROCKY

You got nuttin’ on us!

CORA

Ignoring this
.

Me and dis overgrown tramp has been scrappin’ about it. He says Joisey’s de best place, and I says Long Island because we’ll be near Coney. And I tells him, How do I know yuh’re off of periodicals for life? I don’t give a damn how drunk yuh get, the way we are, but I don’t wanta be married to no soak.

CHUCK

And I tells her I’m off de stuff for life. Den she beefs we won’t be married a month before I’ll trow it in her face she was a tart. “Jees, Baby,” I tells her. “Why should I? What de hell yuh tink I tink I’m marryin’, a voigin? Why should I kick as long as yuh lay off it and don’t do no cheatin’ wid de iceman or nobody?