“JUNIPER’S CAMP”
Season 1, Episode #12
Director: William Hale Written by: Barry Oringer
Guest Stars:
Dennis Cole as Bobby Cooper Shelley Fabares as Melissa Harper
JUNIPER”S CAMP
Scene 1
Jelly arrives at the ranch with a stranger and his many pieces of luggage, Moroccan leather bags, we are informed. This is Mr. Harper, giving orders as to who should and should not touch his “valise”. Harper is wearing a rounded hat, suit and tie, has a mustache and an attitude. Jelly explains that he isn’t the official suitcase toter: “Around here, everyone pitches in.”
Harper: “Are you contradicting me? I happen to be a guest in this house.”
Jelly: “And I’ve never seen a noisier guest.”
JH: “I may decide to have you fired.”
Jelly: “Well, don’t you worry about me. But if you want anything else done around here, I suggest you ask for it nice and polite. Some of the boys got real mean tempers.” Jelly picks up two bags as Murdoch comes out the door: “James”.
JH: “Murdoch”.
ML laughs, smiles: “Good to see you.” and comes over to give the man a hearty handshake.
JH: “Good to see you old friend. Listen, if I am to spend one minute in your house, I expect you to fire this servant.” He points at Jelly.
ML is bewildered: "That’s not a servant--that’s Jelly! The best horse wrangler and all around hand I’ve got, plus a good friend. C’mon Jim, let’s go in the house . . ." Harper is surprised, Jelly is smug. They head inside.
Inside: the boys! Johnny is wearing his pink shirt, black jacket, usual pants. He picks up a gun belt, evidently Scott’s, since he hands it to his brother. Scott is wearing his tan checked shirt, black pants. They walk over to the doorway.
ML: “Well, here he is, my old friend from Boston, Jim Harper.”
ML introduces the boys: “My sons: Scott Lancer and Johnny Lancer.” They each shake hands with Harper. ML urges Harper to come on in, they’ll have a whiskey, “then get down to brass tacks.” Harper is fanning himself with his hat, mops face with handkerchief. ML turns, pours a drink, gives JH a glass. “Sit down, Jim,.” ML says. “Well, what’s the story?" ML perches on the edge of a desk/table. The boys come over, JL crouches near ML’s feet, Scott stands behind Johnny.
JH: “Its my daughter, Melissa. She’s uh . . . Getting married.”
SL: “Congratulations . . . I guess”, he says uncertainly. JL turns and looks up at him, Scott shrugs.
JH: “She’s marrying a gold miner. My daughter Melissa---do you understand what I’m saying?”
JL: “No, not exactly.”
SL sits on the table now, Harper sits down on a couch or chair so that he’s back to us, facing the Lancers.
ML: “Maybe you’d better start from the beginning.”
JH: “Well, she wanted to spend the summer with her Aunt Kate in San Francisco, studying music at some institute. No, I should have known that this was going to lead to trouble, because anything that originates in the unconventional mind of my sister always leads to trouble. Especially with a girl like Melissa.”
SL: “What’s Melissa like?”
Harper starts to say something, then pulls out a photograph of Melissa. Camera shot of Shelley Fabares in period costume. He passes the picture to ML, who looks at it and sends it on to Johnny. Scott looks over his brother’s shoulder.
One of them comments that “She’s a beautiful girl”-- I think its Johnny.
JH: “My daughter was meant to stand beside a Hah-vahd lawya. Not a whiskey swilling illiterate with dirty fingernails who doesn’t know a table fork from a pick ax.” SL folds his arms, JL responds: “That describes a lot of good people I know.”
JH: “I’m sure. And I’m also sure that they would be unfit companions fro my daughter.”
SL, glances at ML: “You were saying something about a gold miner.”
JH: “He kidnapped her! And right now, she’s up in some lawless hole in Humboldt county and this villain is going to force her to marry him!!”
SL: “Well, it seems to me that’s against the law.”
JL, over his shoulder to Scott: “Like he said, there’s not much law up there.”
JH: “She’s a prisoner, she’s helpless and lost. She’s a frail and delicate creature.”
ML: “Well, Jim, you’ve had a long journey, you’re tired, why don’t you rest for a while and we can discuss it further at dinner.” He escorts Harper out.
As they walk to the door, JH says “I need your help, Murdoch." and ML replies “You’ll get it.” Then he addresses one of the hands--”Walt, will you show Mr. Harper to his room.” Harper leaves.
ML come back into the room, JL says : “I don’t blame her for wanting to go to San Francisco. Or any place.”
SL: “If he means to chase her into mining country, he has a job on his hands.”
JL: “Well, for her sake, I hope he never finds her.”
ML: “He won’t have to. You’re gonna do it for him.”
JL: “What?”
ML: “You heard me. You leave tomorrow morning.”
SL just looks stunned.
JL: “Oh, no, Murdoch. I got a . . we’ve got a cattle drive coming up.”
ML: “I can spare you.”
SL: “What for?”
ML: “To help out an old friend. I know he’s hard to take, but he gave me help when I needed it.” Johnny turns away. ML continues: “This ranch wouldn’t even be here without him, as a matter of fact, your mother“--he gestures to Scott----“you wouldn’t be here without him.” Scott looks down and smiles at that. Johnny turns back to ML.
JL: “This is crazy, I mean, how are we gonna find that girl--that’s mining country, its another part of the world.”
SL: “He’s got a good point.”
JL: “Murdoch, we’re not going.” SL obviously agrees, he straightens up a bit to show support for what Johnny has just says. The boys look determined.
So does ML. He downs his drink. Turns to look at them.
Next scene, Scott and Johnny on horseback. Johnny in his usual outfit, black jacket over pink shirt. Scott in same tan shirt, with the blue cropped jacket we like.. They ride up to a building and dismount. Looks like the same scene as in YV!!!
Scene 2
Inside the saloon. JL is holding a rifle, butt end up, uses it to hold the swinging doors open so that Scott can enter behind him. He gives a long look at one of the saloon ladies. SL has his gloves on, his rifle, also butt end up, resting on his right shoulder.
JL speaks to the barman--”Can we get a private room?” Meanwhile SL is smiling (big smile) at someone we don’t know who. He isn’t wearing his jacket, his saddlebags are slung over his shoulders.
Barguy: “Mister, in this town, a private room means less than 4 people to a bed.”
SL takes out a roll of money. “Well, then, how about the presidential suite?” he asks as he passes a bill over his shoulder. He rolls his eyes when he has to pass the guy a second bill. Barguy directs them to the top of the stairs, room #3. They head on up.
Enter the room, two beds.
JL: “Yes sir, money will buy everything.”
SL: “Not bad, not bad.”
Each heads to a bed, smiling at each other. SL lies down, JL stands at the dresser near Scott.
JL: “Well, now what?”
SL: “Well, I’m gonna take a bath. Then sleep for a day or two. Then I’m gonna go out and find me a nice Chinese restaurant.”
JL is combing his hair in front of the mirror:
SL continues, still lying down with his hands behind his head: “Have a little won ton soup.”
JL: taps Scott’s stomach with the comb: “And an egg roll.”.
SL: “ahh--a little chicken with mushroom . . .
JL, now with both hands on Scott’s torso and bouncing him on his bed: “Egg foo young.”
SL laughs, JL tells him he’s gonna get a couple of dates, go to that musical show tonight.
SL: “And if we should happen to run into Melissa Harper, so much the better.”
Johnny goes over to his bed, shucks his jacket and starts to remove one of his spurs when the door opens and two strangers walk in. Johnny stands up as the first guy crosses the room to another door and shuts it, then goes back across--Johnny tries to tap him on the shoulder as he goes by: “Hey, something I can help you with?”
A second guy has entered. Scott is sitting up now, first guy who had gone out, comes back in and shuts the door. He says : “Hey, who are these guys?’
JL: “I’m Johnny and this is my brother Scott.’
SL: “And you’re in our room.”
First guy laughs: “You hear that, brother Crocker? We’re in their room.”
SL: “That’s right.”
Guy leans over the foot of Scott’s bed: “In that case, why don’t you just pay us 3 dollars?”
JL: “$3? What for? Look, I mean, you want $3, you go down to the bank and get it“--he gestures with the spur he’s holding in his hand.
Guy: “You shouldn’t have said that boy.”
SL: “Why not?”
JL: “Yeah, why not?’
Second guy: “Don’t you know who we are?”
JL: “Nope.”
Second guy: “We’re the Cooper brothers.”
JL: “The Cooper brothers, well what do you know about that, huh?” Scott starts to applaud, while looking at the Coopers. He still has his gloves on.
JL: “The Cooper boys are in town, well, what do you know about that?” He starts jumping up and down on the bed. “Scott, the Cooper boys are in town--hey what is that, is that some kind of new variety of mule?”
Both of the Coopers look at Scott----the he gets hit out of the frame.
Scene 3
camera in the saloon itself for the Big Fight.
A couple of random bar patrons are hoisting Johnny up in the air and depositing him on the bar, when Dennis Cole walks in. Everyone seems to be having a good time. Scott shakes his bangs out of his eyes and goes over to Johnny who is seated on the bar. JL grabs Scott around the neck, both of them smiling like this was a lot of fun. Bobby Cooper (Cole) is criticizing his brothers.
BC: “You’re disgusting, my own brothers--one day before my wedding and you still act like a pack of animals.”
Crocker Cooper: “Oh, brother Bob, we’re just having a little fun”--he speaks with his head between the Lancer boys, who do not appear to hold any sort of grudge against him.
BC, to the Lancers: “Gentlemen, I hope you’ll accept my apologies.” JL shakes his hand, so does Scott. JL: “Sure”. BC: “Name your drink.” JL: “How ‘bout whiskey?”
Johnny and Scott are each handed a glass. JL is about to drink when BC proposes a toast. “To me and my .. uh, my beautiful bride Melissa.”
The Lancer brothers exchange significant looks before they each polish off their own drinks. JL, appreciatively: “Whoooo---then he gets belted by Bobby Cooper and sent over the bar. Scott is evidently also getting punched, although off camera. The two of them end upon the floor.
BC, with a gun in his hand: “That’s for picking on my uh, my little brothers.”
JL to SL: “That was a low blow.”
BC: “Well, we found it amusing.’
CC: “Hey Bobby--let’s paint ‘em.”
Harmon Crocker; “Yeah the old paint job.” Everyone else in the bar also appears to think that this is an excellent idea--the barguy hands over a paint can with a brush sticking in it--its yellow paint. Scott gets it first, then Johnny. Everyone laughs.
Scene 4
back in the room, Johnny at the sink, under a blanket, white socks showing, he’s getting cleaned up. We hear footsteps coming up the stairs. Door opens, its Scott. He’s got his hat on and is carrying a few things. Johnny is drying his hair with the edges of the blanket he’s wearing. His pants and pink shirt are still hanging up.
JL: “You get the stuff?”
SL: “ I did, and I also found a clerk who likes to talk.”. He tosses a coil of rope onto the bed. “The wedding’s set for tomorrow night.” Scott puts some other items on the bed., takes his saddlebags off of his shoulders. “Half the town’s going to be there.’
Johnny pulls his pants down from the ceiling: “And the girl?”
SL: “They’re keeping her pretty well hid til the wedding. Clerk says she’s a real beauty. Course he’s never seen her. But he’s heard stories.” While he’s speaking, he’s assembling and then extending a telescope and looking through it. “Ah, yes.”
Meanwhile, JL has been putting on his pants under that blanket. He looks up at Scott, but doesn’t say anything. We can see that his hair is pretty damp still.
SL: “Now the claim’s about 15 miles from here. We can get started any time--" JL is now trying to put on his shirt--”any time,” SL repeats.
JL, pulling on shirt: “You just want to ride on in there, get the girl with Cooper and his buddies hanging around? Just like that, huh?”
SL: “Sure, why not? You know what’s the trouble with you?”
JL: “No, what’s the trouble with me?’
SL: “You don’t read enough. You know what Emerson said?”
JL just looks at him.
SL: “Our strength lies in our weakness.”
JL: “What’d you go buy all this stuff for?’
SL: “You can’t have too much of a good thing.”
SCENE 5 At the Mining Camp
Finally we see Melissa--she’s carrying a laundry basket and heading towards a clothesline. She’s taking items off the line, and when she moves a quilt, guess who is standing behind it. She gasps in surprise,
JL: “Melissa”.
MH: “Who are you?”
JL: “I’m Johnny Lancer. This is my brother Scott.”
SL: “Your father sent us to take you home.”
MH: “My father is in Boston. You don’t look like any Boston gentlemen tome.”
SL: “Your father left Boston two weeks ago he’s at our ranch in Morro Coyo.”
MH: “What does he look like?”
JL: “Well, your father, he’s something else. He’s about my size. Rugged looking, in a big city sort of way. Mean tempered, talks a lot.” (Johnny looks at Scott, SL smiles at him.) “And he thinks anyone who eats beef with a salad fork ought to be deprived of his citizenship.’ SL laughs. JL, to Melissa: “That right?”
MH: “Yes, that’s Father, all right. How do you plan to do it?”
SL: “Well, as quietly as possible. If not, we’re willing to make a little commotion.”
JL: “But that’s up to your boyfriend. He don’t like us too much.”
MH: “Listen, he’s expecting his laundry in a few minutes, and if I’m missing, he’ll have his men all over the country side after us. But tonight, the boys are throwing a big stag party in town. So come and get me then I‘ll be in the big tent, the one with the decorations.”
JL: “All right.” She slides the quilt back into place.
SCENE 6
Back at the ranch, we see Harper’s pacing feet on ML’s carpet.
ML: “I figure if you straightened out that pacing, you’d be in Humboldt County by now.”
JH: “They’ve got to bring her back, Murdoch, they’ve just got to bring her back.”
ML: “If humanly possible they will. You gotta believe it.”
JH says that he knows and his telegram will help. ML questions this--JH explains that he sent a telegram to Melissa to tell her that ML’s boys were on the way.
JH: “I wanted her to know that they were different from those Pinkerton men I sent.”
ML: “You already sent Pinkerton men?”
JH has negative comments about the Pinks--worthless, gutless, “they take a few blows and run away with their tails between their legs.”
ML: “What are you telling me? How’s you know where to send a telegram?”
JH: “I knew, Murdoch. Now there’s nothing really bad about Melissa, she’s just . . . Stubborn.”
ML: “I need more answers than that, Jim. Was she kidnapped or wasn’t she?”
JH: “Of course she was kidnapped. In almost every sense of the word. A helpless young girl like that, what does she know about love?”
ML is startled by the word: “Love?”
JH: “Physical young animal comes, sweeps her off her feet. How do you expect a child like Melissa to contend with that?”
ML: “I don’t know about her, Jim, but if you’ve led my boys into a trap, you’re going to have a lot to contend with.”
SCENE 7
At the camp. Its night--the boys are sneaking around in the dark while ominous background music plays. Johnny at the opening of the tent says “Melissa?”;
MH: “In here.”
JL, enters with SL behind him: “What’s it so dark in here for?”
MH: “it’s a kerosene lantern, you have a match?”
JL holds up a lit match, sees Harmon Cooper with a rifle.
HC: “Go ahead, light it”. Johnny lights the lamp, we see Melissa with Bobby Cooper’s arm around her. Melissa is smiling.
BC: “You sure do have a way of not minding your own business.’
JL removes his hat. The camera is on Scott, standing behind Johnny’s shoulder:
SL: “You know, Brother it just could be that we were misinformed.”
BC: “Well, what do we do with them?”
HC: “I say, let’s beat ‘em up, like we did those Pinkertons.”
Crocker Cooper is there too: “No, no . .Beatings too good for a man that ‘d steal another man’s woman. You know, I think we ought . . Let’s trample them with a herd of bulls.” JL raises his eyebrows at this.
BC: “What we gotta do is teach ‘em a real lesson.”
MH: “Bobby, can’t we just let them go? I don’t think they meant any harm, I just didn’t want there to be any shooting over me.”
BC, places his hands on her shoulders: “We gotta make your pa realize that he can’t keep sending men to break us up. Now you realize that’s true, don’t ya?” Now we can see that there is yet another man in the tent, he’s seated at a table drinking coffee.
MH: “I guess so, but I just get so scared inside sometimes, I don’t know what’s right.”
BC: “We’re right.” He kisses her. “Marshall, why don’t you take our . . Our gentlemen friends into town and keep ‘em locked up until after the wedding. By that time we’ll have thought of something real good for ‘em.”
The Marshall gets a last sip of his coffee and escorts the lancers out. The coopers laugh, MH doesn’t look very happy. JL puts his hat on sort of over his face as he exits.
Scene 8 (in jail)
We see the Marshall seated playing solitaire.
We hear Johnny’s voice: “Marshall, I can’t stand being in this place now will you let me out? “ Marshall turns to look as JL gets louder: “I mean, I have no business being in here. If it wasn’t for him and my father we wouldn’t even be in this place, ain’t that right Scott?’
Scott is lying on the bunk, with his feet up on the wall. “Hey Marshall, can’t you do something about the noise around here?’
JL knocks his feet off of the wall. “Get up and do some thinking about how to get us out of here, that’s what you ought to do.”
Scott sits up on the bunk: “If you’re so smart, why don’t you use your head instead of your lip and get us out of here?”
JL: “You know, one of these days its gonna be my pleasure taking you apart Scott”- -he points his finger at him while he speaks.
SL: “You know what the trouble with you is?”
JL: “What is it?”
SL: “You worry too much . . .worry all the time, you’re worse than an old maid.”
JL: “Is that right?”--he slugs Scott, who gets right up and punches him back. The Marshall stands up. The old guy in the next cell says “use the chair”, Scott says “thanks” and smashes it into the bars above Johnny’s head.
The Marshall goes into the cell and the boys punch him together. The old guy cackles. Scott and Johnny exit, grabbing their gun bets as the pass through the office. They look out the door, the street are deserted.
JL: “Everyone must be out at the wedding.”
SL: “Let’s lead the horses out, its quieter.”
JL: “What difference does it make, we’re heading south, we’ll be out of here before they can catch us.’
SL: “Oh, no, no. We’ve gotta go back after the girl.”
JL: “Oh you ain’t learned nothin’ yet.”
SL: “Look, Murdoch said come back with the girl, so we come back with the girl.”
JL: “She don’t want to come back, I mean, you saw her, she’s no more of a prisoner than we are.”
SL: “She’s young, she doesn’t know what the man’s really like, after tonight, its too late.”
JL: “That’s her business.”
SL: “Not until she’s twenty-one, its not. Now are you coming with me or ahn’t you?”
JL: “No.”
SL: “Well, then ride back to the ranch and tell Murdoch I’ve been delayed.” He leaves. JL thinks for a bit, makes a frustrated sound and follows Scott.
SCENE 9 Back at the Mining Camp
There’s a party going on. Lots of noise, gunshots, whoo hoos. Melissa is in the tent, combing her very long hair. Harmon Cooper is with her, telling her how pretty she is. Melissa says nothing in response, even when he tells her she’s just about the prettiest woman he’s ever seen.
HC: “Vivian”.
MH: “What?’
Harmon tells her that Vivian was almost as petty, mentions her pretty legs, nice soft pretty arms . . . Melissa rolls her eyes and asks ‘Was she your girl?”
HC: “No, Bobby always got the best ones. Nothing left for anybody after he got through.’ Then he explains that Bobby’s old girlfriend, Vivian is dead : “Didn’t Bobby tell you?’
BC enters: “About what?’
HC: “Nothing, Brother Bob, I just dropped by here to pay my respects to my future sister-in-law.” HC exits.
BC: “Melissa?’
MH: “Why didn’t you tell me?”
BC: “I was afraid.”
MH: “Afraid of what?’
BC: “That you’d turn away from me”
MH: “Well, who was she?’
BC: “She was going to be my wife.”
MH: “Well, what happened?’
BC: “She was a school teacher, the only one there was. We grew up together in the hill country in Arkansas, came here. There was an epidemic, typhoid, she had to take care of the children who got sick, got it herself.”
MH, looks sad: “How long ago was it?”
BC: “Four years ago.”
MH: “Did you, um, love her very much?”
BC: “We were, um, just going to be married, she died the day before the wedding.”
MH: “Oh Bobby.”
BC: “She was the only decent woman I’d ever know, til I met you. I guess I don’t deserve that kind.” He puts his hands on her shoulders. “I love you. I was afraid to tell you. If you say that you don‘t want me, I‘ll understand.”
MH: “Oh Bobby, you don’t ever have to be afraid of me, no ever.” They embrace.
Crocker barges in, to tell about a challenge--for Bobby --to a hog wallering contest.
BC: “Ain’t that a fit interruption.”
Outside--private conversation between Bobby and Harmon. Harmon is afraid that Bobby might be sore at him. Bobby says he ain’t sore, but that Harmon should stay away from Melissa. He accuses Harmon of telling her about Vivian. HC denies it. BC: “Stay away from Melissa or I’ll kill you just like I killed her.”
BC starts with his hands on his brother’s shoulders, but then they find their way around his throat--BC throws HC against the tent. Bobby then strips off his jacket so that he’s attired in a sparkling white shirt and he dives into the pig pen with another man and a rather large pig.
SCENE 10 The Boys
Johnny is climbing up some rocks with a white cord. Scott is seated, looking through the telescope.
JL: “What’s going on?”
SL: “They are wrestling --a pig.”
JL: “You don’t have to be so sarcastic.”
SL: “Well, then, forgive me. Actually they’re out there in tie and tails rehearsing to Mendelssohn’s wedding march.” (While he says this, we see on screen the small circle of the telescope view with the pig chasing in progress.)
JL: “You know, I hope we’re doing the right thing.”
SL: Well, Emerson says . .
JL: “Emerson’s back east, minding his own business.” He lights the fuse.
Alternating scenes between the fuse burning and the pig wrestling festivities until there is a big explosion. Every one runs to see what has happened--except Melissa. BC tells her to get inside the tent.
She goes inside where the boys are waiting. JL is standing, he moves to block the entrance once she’s inside. Scott is lounging on the cot, he jumps up and grabs her around the waist. She does not scream.
Meanwhile, at the site of the explosion, the Coopers find nothing. BC is still very muddy. They decide to return to the party. BC goes to the tent, Melissa is gone. The Marshall shows up: “They broke out, the strangers who were after your girl.”
BC: “Marshall, keep the party going. I’ll be back with my bride. Harmon, Crocker, let’s go.”
SCENE 11
Its dark. Three riders on horseback.
SL: “Come on, Johnny. I’m bushed. This place looks fine.”
JL: “Its your party.”
Melissa is on horseback, her horse is led by SL. They dismount, JL is standing next to Melissa. He tells her to come on. SL follows after them--they go inside an old building, it may be a barn. SL lights a match and looks around, while behind him JL is lighting and hanging an old lantern. SL puts out his match.
SL: “Something bothering you?”
JL: “No”
SL: “I’ll have a look around outside.” He exits.
MH to Johnny: “You and your brother fighting?”
JL, picks up a bedroll. “He’s got his ways, I’ve got mine, Melissa.”
MH: “Well, how are they different?” She is wearing a cropped fitted jacket over a fullish skirt, nice length. She has her hands behind her back and is smiling.
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