E A C H T U R N

A radio drama series

Created by Episode #8

http://www.oocities.org/iconostar/film.htm

Listen to the complete radio drama on Video.Google.Com:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7536306087536871452

"PAWNS AND BATTLELINES"

Bill Olson

FIRST DRAFT: June 4-17, 1995

(Revised through August 13, 1995)

__________________________________________________________

ICONOSTAR PRODUCTIONS

Bill Olson

418 Marston Av.

Eau Claire, WI 54701

(715) 835-6446

Associate Producer /

Assistant Director: John Townsend

__________________________________________________________

CAST

JEFF ADAMS - John Townsend

GORDON STUART - Jay Blake

MONICA EVANS – Diedre Kay

"KAT" [KATRINA MAUDRE (Moh-DRAY)] - Joan Wheeler

GINNIE – Judy Gallas

1 GORDON: No, Jeff, don't move your rook there -- I'll

capture it with my knight.

2 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . .

3 MONICA: You're not supposed to tell him that, Gordon,

he's your opponent.

4 GORDON: He's my friend, Monica. Anyway, Jeff helps ME

when we play Monopoly. Right, Jeff?

5 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . .

6 GORDON: No, no, no, Jeff, you can't reposition it now,

you took your hand off it.

7 MONICA: If you're gonna help him, Gordon, the least

you could do is suspend the rules. That's what

Jeff does with Monopoly.

8 JEFF: Uh-h . . . well, chess is a different game.

9 MONICA: "A different game," he says as he sadly

watches the knight take his rook.

10 JEFF: Yeah. And now that his knight is out of the

way, my bishop can take his queen.

11 GORDON: (Sarcastically) Thanks. You're a real friend,

Jeff.

12 MONICA: That IS the way this game is played: pawn

takes pawn, knight takes pawn, pawn takes

knight, knight says good night.

13 GORDON: Unfortunately, neither of us is good enough

at this game for it to make a difference. I

just can't think far enough in advance -- too

may permutations.

14 JEFF: I have the same problem, Gordon. That's why we

do good together; we have equal inabilities.

15 GORDON: I feel a little unequal at the moment, pal; I

can't seem to find a way to protect my king

now that you've captured my queen.

16 JEFF: If the only thing protecting your king was one

piece, you were a gonner anyway.

17 MONICA: So, Jeff, do I get to play the winner?

18 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . . well, you're just too good.

19 MONICA: So you're afraid; oh man -- you know, there's

one thing worse than winning too easily, and

that's being forced to watch all the time. You

know, I'd like to play, too . . . I don't like

being discriminated against because I'm better

than you guys. Besides, how are you ever gonna

improve if you don't play someone challenging?

20 GORDON: Maybe we like being losers.

21 JEFF: If you were a loser, Gordon, you wouldn't joke

about it.

22 MONICA: You're not a loser, Jeff. Neither of you are.

23 GORDON: Maybe I value being a loser; maybe I come from

a place where it's a virtue to not show up the

other guy.

24 JEFF: I can understand that. My experiences with

competition were all negative.

25 GORDON: Well, I never had negative experiences with

competition, but where I grew up, friendship

was extremely important.

26 JEFF: What about family?

27 GORDON: Family -- now that was a very different sort

of thing. It was believed that love blinded a

person too much, so if you loved your partner,

you never admitted it -- you even repressed

it. You tried to keep your head clear so you

could be reasonable.

28 MONICA: Gordon has done a good job of overcoming that;

he loves me, AND he's the most unreasonable

man I've ever known.

29 GORDON: (Not sincerely) Ha, ha, ha.

30 JEFF: I've never known anyone who seemed more happy

together than you two -- except for this gay

couple I knew in college. I haven't had a date

for years and when I remember my ex-

girlfriend, I'm kind of glad I'm alone, but

when I think of Jack and Murphy, and you two,

I can see what I'm missing.

31 GORDON: You don't want a boyfriend, Jeff, do you?

32 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . .

33 MONICA: Man, Gordon, what a homophobe.

34 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . .

35 GORDON: I'm not a homophobe; it's just that men are so

damn ugly.

36 JEFF: Uh-h-h . . .

37 MONICA: Now you know what we women have to put up with

-- except for lesbians.

38 JEFF: Uh, you'd asked me a question.

39 GORDON: I don't know if I want the answer.

40 MONICA: See? You ARE a homophobe. I'm engaged to a

homophobe.

41 JEFF: You're engaged now?

42 GORDON: --I'm not a homophobe.

43 JEFF: Everyone's getting married but me.

44 GORDON: Why would you wanna get married? Gay couples

can't get tax breaks.

45 MONICA: Man, you're terrible, Gordon.

46 GORDON: Now YOU sound like a homophobe.

47 [1]SOUND OF SOMEONE HITTING SOMEONE.

48 GORDON: . . . Don't hit me.

49 MONICA: Why do I sound like a homophobe?

50 GORDON: Because you think calling Jeff gay is an

insult.

51 MONICA: But I . . .! (Beat) Man, you're right.

52 GORDON: See? I've got her right in the palm of my

hand.

53 JEFF: I still haven't answered your question.

54 MONICA: What was the question?

55 JEFF: Do I want a boyfriend?

56 GORDON: I'm not sure I want an answer.

57 JEFF: Too bad, cuz here it is: I think more guys

than gals are homely. But then there's guys

like Jaye Davidson from "The Crying Game," who

happens to be the most beautiful creature

alive.

58 GORDON: Uh, oh -- Jeff's in lo-ove.

59 JEFF: Well, I do think I'd have better luck with men

than women.

60 MONICA: You're overly romanticizing homosexuality,

Jeff . . . no pun intended. Gays have the same

problems in relationships that straight people

have.

61 GORDON: That's a given, Monica -- they're people,

after all.

62 MONICA: Well, this is a turnaround.

63 GORDON: I'm not a homophobe. I just get nauseous by

thinking of kissing a man.

64 MONICA: But that nausea is the phobia, you see?

65 GORDON: Oh. (Beat) I guess I mean I'm not bigoted.

66 JEFF: That's an interesting concept -- that

homophobia may not equal bigotry.

67 GORDON: I think they CAN be separate.

68 MONICA: Yeah, I knew this fundamentalist christian

lesbian who was as bigoted against homosexuals

as anyone, but she also missed everything

about her old girlfriend. And she was really

lonely cuz she just couldn't find a man she

was attracted to.

69 JEFF: It must be hard on women to be lesbians -- I

mean if they can't fulfill that mother

instinct.

70 GORDON: Some do; I just read in the paper about a

lesbian who had a child. Now the father wants

custody and the judge said she couldn't see a

gay person raising a child.

71 MONICA: That's discrimination right there in the

courts. You should do a film about her,

Gordon.

72 GORDON: No, she lives out were you guys went to grad

school, and I'm just too busy with Jeff's and

my movie.

73 MONICA: Then why don't you do it, Jeff?

74 JEFF: I can't afford to go out there.

75 MONICA: We have a little bit saved, you can have it.

76 JEFF: I couldn't do that . . .

77 MONICA: This film would really be important to me,

personally.

78 GORDON: You didn't ask Jeff if it'd be important to

HIM.

79 JEFF: Ye -- well, I'm not really interested in

documentaries, but I would like to support

her.

80 MONICA: Well, if I cajol you, your heart won't be in

it, Jeff. You'll have to decide. But remember,

money is not the issue -- to a point.

81 JEFF: (Beat) Yeah . . . you know, I'd like to do

this. What's the woman's name?

82 GORDON: Katrina something or other. If you check with

cable access about video equipment, I'll make

a couple of phone calls and see if I can find

out who she is and if she's interested.

83 TRANSITIONAL MUSIC.

84 DOOR BELL RINGS, THEN DOOR IS OPENED.

85 GINNIE: Hi, can I help you?

86 JEFF: Yes. I'm Jeff Adams, I'm hear to see Katrina

Maw . . . uh, MAW-dree.

87 GINNIE: You're that filmmaker?

88 JEFF: Yeah.

89 GINNIE: (Going off) Kattie, there's a filmmaker here,

and he can't pronounce your last name.

90 KAT: (Off, very distant and hard to hear) I'll be

there in a minute.

91 GINNIE: (Coming on) She'll be right here. Come on in.

92 JEFF: Thanks.

93 DOOR CLOSES.

94 JEFF: Excuse me, but how is her last name

pronounced.

95 GINNIE: Mo-DRAY.

96 JEFF: I knew a Maudre once. She was a professor at

Tintagle. In fact, she kicked me out of grad

school.

97 GINNIE: That sounds just like something Kattie would

do, too.

98 JEFF: Um . . . w-what . . .? what do . . .?

99 KAT: (Coming on) Hello, Jeff. I see you finally

made your dream come true. Here you are: a

filmmaker.

100 JEFF: Professor Maudre, I -- Uh . . .

101 KAT: Please, call me Kattie. We can drop some of

the formalities. Please sit down.

102 JEFF: Actually, I just wanted to touch base and tell

you I was in town. But right now, I have

another appointment; I really have to go, but

I'll call you back soon. Nice seeing you

again, Kattie. And nice meeting you, uh . . .

103 GINNIE: Virginia.

104 JEFF: Virginia. Well, I'll call you back soon.

105 DOOR OPENS AND CLOSES.

106 KAT: We'll never see him again.

107 GINNIE: He said you kicked him out of grad school.

108 KAT: I gave him a change to get back in, but he

wasn't willing to take it.

109 GINNIE: I can imagine.

110 KAT: Don't start.

111 GINNIE: Oh, no! I'm on your side. I'm sure he deserved

it. (Beat) What did he do, anyway?

112 KAT: That's privileged information, Ginnie.

113 GINNIE: I'm sure it is. (Beat) You're so cute when you

get mysterious.

114 KAT: I'm cute anyway.

115 GINNIE: That's true.

116 TRANSITIONAL MUSIC.

117 MONICA: (Filtered throughout scene) You're kidding --

Maudre? Oh man! Maudre a lesbian? How could

she be an ultra-conservative?

118 JEFF: Well, I --

119 MONICA: An ultraconservative lesbian! She's sold out

her people. That's the only explanation.

120 JEFF: Maybe it's --

121 MONICA: That'd be a good thing to find out, Jeff.

122 JEFF: But if --

123 MONICA: Are you gonna ask her ab --

124 JEFF: Why the hell does everyone always interrupt

me! If peop --

125 MONICA: Well, you've gotta learn to stand up for

yourself. One of your proble --

126 JEFF: Then I'll stick up for myself now(!).

127 MONICA: (Long pause) OK. (Beat) You have the floor.

128 JEFF: (Beat) OK.

129 MONICA: (Pause) So what did you want to say?

130 JEFF: (Beat) I forgot.

131 MONICA: So what're you gonna do? You gonna help her

cuz she's a member of an oppressed minority,

or are you gonna not help here cuz she's the

bitch who kicked you out of grad school?

132 JEFF: Well, I --

133 MONICA: I think you should leave her be.

134 JEFF: Monica, I like to think of myself as a good

person. And as such, I don't think I can

refuse to do this.

135 MONICA: You're not a good person, Jeff. (Long pause)

I'm sorry, Jeff, but you're just a person.

You're bad at chess, you stutter a lot, and

you get angry: you wanted to buy a gun and

kill Maudre, remember?

136 JEFF: I couldn’t have gone through with it.

The whole idea made me sick to my stomach.

137 MONICA: But you were angry enough to think about it.

You hate her, Jeff. I understand; I hate her,

too. But you hate her too much to spend time

with her on this film.

138 JEFF: (Depressed) Yeah. I suppose you're right.

(Fade out:) I'll just forget about the whole

thing.

139 KAT: (Fade in:) Always remember that life throws us

certain curves, but basically it's full of

pawns and battle lines.

140 GINNIE: Oh, Kattie, what about love?

141 KAT: Love is a part of that, Ginnie.

142 GINNIE: As in "Love and War"?

143 KAT: Love and war are part of this, so are raking

the leaves. By pawns, I mean the things you

manipulate in life -- not to help them, but to

satisfy yourself. By battle lines, I mean the

goals you have vis a vi the forces of

opposition. They exist in everything: You want

to read a book, but there's too much noise;

you want to sleep, but there's too much on

your mind. Pawns and battle lines don't have to

be life and death struggles.

144 GINNIE: Leave it to a professor of International

Politics to use symbols of war and intrigue to

describe everyday events.

145 KAT: I do have that propensity.

146 GINNIE: Have fun with her, Jeff; you should end up

with a very interesting film.

147 JEFF: It'll be a video, actually.

148 GINNIE: I'll be back at ten o'clock. Bye honey.

149 A KISS.

150 KAT: Bye. (Beat) So, Jeff. To tell you the truth, I

believed you wouldn't be back.

151 JEFF: I needed to do some soul searching.

152 KAT: I assume you were quite angry at me after our

final encounter at the university.

153 JEFF: Uh, well yeah, I was. But it was one of those

blessings in disguise: Now I'm doing what I've

always wanted to do: writing and filmmaking.

154 KAT: Videomaking. (Beat) You corrected Ginnie.

155 JEFF: Well, "video" is technically correct, but I

often use the terms "film" and "video"

connotatively. Video, to me, has a connotation

of cold technology. Film is warm and

emotional. As a writer, I've been training

myself to be connotative.

156 KAT: That's very commendable. Beware however: Some

people are not so educated to understand

connotativeness; they cannot understand it's

value. Ginnie is not so educated; her gifts

lie elsewhere. She could understand

connotation if she were so instructed.

However, you could see the truth whether she

called it a film OR a video, so why did you

correct her?

157 JEFF: I'm not sure.

158 KAT: Perhaps you're emotionally distracted because

of your anger at me, or because I'm much more

conservative than you. (Beat) Perhaps because

I'm a lesbian. (Beat) Maybe as a man you have

a hard time homogenizing thought and feeling:

One moment, this is a video -- cold

technology; the next it's a film -- warm and

emotional.

159 JEFF: Your discourse reminds me of the International

Relations classes at Tintagle.

160 KAT: Well, Jeff, we have something in common after

all: each of us brings our work into our

everyday lives; you with your connotations and

me with international relations. Our work is a

valuable part of what defines us. You had

never alluded to International Relations in

discussions at Tintagle, not like the other

students. But you do allude to your work as a

writer, which shows you have not fallen from

glory as you might've once thought, but you've

fallen into your own special nitch.

161 JEFF: I've thought that a lot.

162 KAT: Tell me how you'd like to shoot your film.

163 JEFF: I'll just turn on the camera and ask you some

questions.

164 KAT: I see.

165 JEFF: Tape is now rolling. So, tell me what led to

your losing custody of your child.

166 KAT: When my husband, Erik, learned I was gay, he

felt he could no longer continue in the

marriage. He divorced me.

167 JEFF: Why were you married if you're gay?

168 KAT: Because homosexuality was not totally

consistent with my conservative ideology.

169 JEFF: So you hadn't "come out."

170 KAT: Actually by then, I had accepted my own sexual

orientation. This is unusual for a young

ultraconservative, but I found it something to

celebrate. Coming out was another story.

Sharing intimacy with another woman, that was

another story. Not procreating the species,

well that was unacceptable, and I felt I could

only do it in a heterosexual marriage.

171 JEFF: Did you feel you were living a lie?

172 KAT: No I didn't. If I had been engaged in gay-

bashing, then yes. But as it was, I felt like

God and I had a little secret between us, and

I felt comfortable with that.

173 JEFF: How did God feel?

174 KAT: From what my heart told me, I believe God was

happy, too.

175 JEFF: So, what changed?

176 KAT: What changed was Erik's efforts to force a gay

church to close down. I could never accept

that because to me, churches are not an

establishment of man, but of God. And God has

the right to minister to homosexuals in His

own way. I felt it was good for the community

to have gays learning Christian values rather

than be alienated from them. Eventually, I

felt the only way I could make a stand was to

reveal my secret.

Once Erik learned of my sexual orientation, he

divorced me and tried to gain custody of our

child. Even though I had never been a

practicing homosexual, he claimed he could not

morally allow his natural offspring to be

raised by someone he felt lived in sin. The

court agreed, and I'm appealing.

177 JEFF: This judgment might harm other gay parents.

178 KAT: That's why I must win this; it's more than my

family's life, it's the life of each gay

parent in the country. The legal system in

this country is based very strongly on

precedents, did you know that?

179 JEFF: I've always thought that was unfair.

180 KAT: Ever hear someone say, "If I make an exception

for you, I'll have to do so for everyone"?

Well, the idea there IS fairness. That's why

our winning is important for more than just my

child and I. For the same reason, I believe

Erik is not interested in the welfare of the

child, but in his ideals of Christian

morality; he wants to go to heaven, and will

do anything he believes necessary to win

points.

181 JEFF: The child is a pawn -- just as you were

describing earlier.

182 KAT: Yes.

183 JEFF: Could one say that you, too, are using the

child as a pawn.

184 KAT: Yes; a pawn for all gay parents; for Ginnie

and I to fulfill our maternal instincts; and

simply for a recipient of our love. Don't fool

yourself about love: the giving of love is not

altruistic; it is very, very selfish: one

gives love because one has the need to do so;

it is not a sacrifice.

185 JEFF: So, if the child is a pawn in any event, then

Erik using the child as a pawn is itself not

the issue.

186 KAT: Correct. The issue is "Do gay parents have the

right to raise their own child?" In fact, "Do

same-sex couples have the right to raise a

child?" I believe the answer to both is yes.

That's the issue.

187 JEFF: You mentioned Erik's Christian morals. You,

too, have very strong Christian morals. You

and I, in fact, are as opposite as two people

can get ideologically. You're perhaps as

conservative as he is --

188 KAT: More conservative.

189 JEFF: Doesn't that pose a dilemma for you?

190 KAT: When I was at the most impressionable period

of youth, I was very conscious of the wrath of

God, a god who would damn you for simply being

evil. Before I was a teenager, I knew I was

different. When I was fourteen, I knew why --

but I hadn't been damned. That's when I

realized that bigotry and vengeance were

MORTAL failings. All God required of us was to

love Him, and through that love, to find a

community in each other. Most Christians find

offense in a great many human actions and

traits which in the Bible were used to

illustrate a point. They see the text, but

miss that underlying point.

191 JEFF: That must be a painful thing. I mean,

ultraconservative people -- that's your

community, yet a central part of you is

alienated from them.

192 KAT: It's unfortunate. I believe in group loyalty

and self-sacrifice, and conservative

Christians often sacrifice personal wisdom to

follow the teachings of others. I understand

the emotions that drive a person toward this,

the need to put yourself in a group. You

derive power from the group. How could someone

not be influenced by that? I would go so far

as to say my current estrangement is not so

much a result of morals as it is personality.

Conservative Christians who condemn gay people

are insecure in their own faith, and as I

indicated earlier, need to rack up points to

feel safe from damnation. The Christian

community should be finite with well-defined

boundaries so we can control our community.

The proof we don't have that is the belief

that outsiders can destroy our way of life.

Jews had a threat from outside for thousands

of years. They did not survive by changing the

laws of society but by an abiding loyalty to

their chosen lifestyle.

193 JEFF: Kattie, you sound a lot more liberal than you

let on being.

194 KAT: Why do you say that?

195 JEFF: You seem to be against the Christian

Coalition's effort to change the laws of

society -- the so-called Contract with the

American Family and so on: laws that tyrannize

people who don't accept their religion.

196 KAT: I think you missed the point here, Jeff. I

simply believe in boundaries.

197 JEFF: But in grad school, you told be I needed to

. . . how did you say that again? -- cultivate

an abiding loyalty to the government. Now,

that sounds different than what you're saying

today.

198 KAT: What I told you in graduate school was in the

context of working in the field of

international relations. If the issue had been

how to live your life on a daily basis, I

would've given you different advice. I believe

in group loyalty and strict boundaries. I also

agree that, to a certain point, there are no

strict boundaries, and laws in the larger

society are necessary. We must be careful,

however, about making laws based upon

emotional insecurity. I'm against flag

desecration, but should it be outlawed in the

constitution? Perhaps; but the motivation is

important. (Beat) So, am I talking you out of

video tape?

199 JEFF: Actually, I . . . ah-h-h . . . Well, I . . . I

didn't put a tape into the machine.

200 KAT: You mean you forgot a basic thing like that?

201 JEFF: Um . . . I actu -- that is . . . uh . . . I

uh, I uh -- I did it on purpose. (Beat) I was

so angry at you for kicking me out of grad

school, that I -- uh -- I was waiting to tell

you that I never intended to videotape you. I

just wanted to jerk you around the way you

jerked me around. But after talking with you,

I regret it. I'm no longer angry. I see you as

a person with some depth. I'll put a tape in

right now, and we can start over, if that's

OK.

202 KAT: Oh, Jeff . . . Put that tape back into your

bag.

203 JEFF: I'm sorry, Kattie; I wish I hadn't done that.

204 KAT: I'd like you to return to calling me Professor

Maudre. This was a very childish thing, I'm

very upset about it. For you to come into my

house and show such a total disregard for my

problems in order to exact revenge is

unacceptable.

205 JEFF: I know, I'm sorry and --

206 KAT: Being sorry is not the point, Jeff. You see,

how am I supposed to trust you now? We're

working on a documentary that could have us

working together for years. What will you do

in 36 months? Will you have a sudden surge of

anger as you remember the past again? Will you

suddenly feel that my loyalty to conservative

Christianity is just too threatening to the

liberal Jeff Adams?

207 JEFF: Well, I --

208 KAT: Pack up your equipment, Jeff. Leave my house.

I'll find a documenter I can trust.

209 TRANSITION MUSIC.

210 MONICA: So, she did it to you again, huh, Jeff?

211 JEFF: No, Monica, this time I did it to her. After

all this time of wanting revenge, I finally

got it.

212 MONICA: So, that's the whole reason you decided to do

the video after you found out who she was?

213 JEFF: I suppose so.

214 MONICA: You used Gordon's and my money just to seek

revenge.

215 JEFF: At the time, I kind of thought you might go

for it, I --

216 MONICA: I would never go for revenge. Certainly not

against someone I found out was a member of an

oppressed minority and lost her baby because

of it.

217 JEFF: I --

218 MONICA: You used me, Jeff. Oh, man, this was not

right.

219 JEFF: I feel really bad. I guess I just didn't look

far enough ahead to see the consequences of

what I was doing. I've never been very good at

that.

220 MONICA: Well, you'd better get good at. You'd better

talk to me more about things you want to do. I

AM good at looking ahead -- we're friends, I

won't judge you; I just want to help you.

221 JEFF: Thanks, Monica. I really appreciate that.

222 MONICA: Here, have a cinnamon roll; (Fade out:) I made

them just last night . . . .

223 SOUND OF DOOR OPENING AND CLOSING.

224 GINNIE: Kat? Kattie, where are you?

225 KAT: (Off) I'm over here.

226 GINNIE: How is my little movie star?

227 A KISS.

228 KAT: The movie's off.

229 GINNIE: What happened?

230 KAT: Jeff Adams came here to learn a lesson in

wisdom and compassion, and I taught him.

231 GINNIE: Are you gonna explain that one to me?

232 KAT: Not today. However, you'll be happy to know

he's on our side.

233 GINNIE: I thought he was anyway.

234 KAT: Well he wasn't. But in two months, should we

decide to ask him to return, I'm confident --

I'm very confident -- we'll find that he's a

documenter we can trust.

THE END