Austin Sane
EXT. STUDIO PARKING LOT – DAY
A red light glows beside a metal door with a sign on it that reads: “DUDLEY THE DINOSAUR SHOW RECORDING! PLEASE BE SILENT.”
The red light turns off and the door flings open.
DUDLEY, mid 30’s, emerges wearing a big blue dinosaur suit. He is patting down the suit like he is looking for something.
A 7-year-old BOY runs up to Dudley from nowhere, he is wearing a Dudley the Dinosaur T-shirt, jumping excitedly.
BOY
Mommy, look, it’s Dudley! It’s Dudley
the Dinosaur!
Dudley ignores the boy and continues running his hands over the suit.
The MOTHER approaches Dudley with a cellphone in her hand.
MOTHER
Well, isn’t that neat. How about a
photo, huh?
Dudley ignores them.
MOTHER
I said my son wants a photo.
The boy starts to yank down on Dudley’s leg.
BOY
Dudley, can I have a photo?
Dudley finally looks down at the boy.
BOY
I want a photo, give me a photo, I want a
photo now, Mommy!
The mother moves her cellphone closer to Dudley.
Dudley looks over at the mother, then back to the boy.
MOTHER
Okay, here we go, one…
Dudley leans down toward the boy.
MOTHER
two…
The boy is smiling from ear to ear.
MOTHER
Th…
Dudley shoves the boy to the ground with a hard push.
The mother and boy are both taken back.
BOY
(tearfully)
Why would you do that, Dudley? You always
taught us that fighting is bad and it makes
people sad.
The boy starts to sob into his T-shirt.
MOTHER
How dare you touc-
Dudley slaps the phone out of the mother’s hand.
DUDLEY
(muffled)
Fuck off.
MOTHER
Excuse me?
Dudley takes off his blue dinosaur head.
Dudley looks like a shell of a man. Sunken eyes, balding, and even missing a few teeth. He has no joy left in his body.
The young boy’s eyes widen in disbelief, his innocence is destroyed.
DUDLEY
I said fuck off, lady. I’m on my smoke
break.
With an ungloved hand, Dudley reaches down in his suit and pulls out a LIGHTER and a PACK OF CIGARETTES from his underwear.
BOY
(tearfully)
And you smoke cigarettes?
DUDLEY
Dudley smokes a lot of things, kid.
The boy clutches his mother and starts to cry.
DUDLEY
Now fuck off.
BOY
(crying)
You were my hero. I can’t believe this.
The boy buries his head into his mother’s coat.
MOTHER
(angrily)
I can’t believe this either. How dare you!
The mother grabs her son by the arm and storms away.
MOTHER
Just you wait. I’m going to report this to
your superior. You don’t understand the
power I have!
DUDLEY
Yeah, well fuck you too, lady.
Dudley opens the pack and frowns, the pack is empty.
DUDLEY
Sonofabitch.
He spots an ashtray on a picnic table nearby and tosses the empty pack on the ground.
Dudley walks over to the ashtray and digs around in it. He pulls out a few cigarette butts, examines them, but just tosses them aside.
A gust of wind blows and a cigarette rolls out from underneath a car.
Dudley quickly grabs the cigarette, but it crumbles as soon as he picks it up.
A car pulls into the parking lot and a HOOKER gets out.
The hooker looks like she’s been in the sun too long.
Dudley peeks out from behind a parked car.
The hooker reaches in her bag and pulls out LIPSTICK.
The sores around her mouth squish together as she applies lipstick in the car’s side mirror.
She gets a brush out of her bag, looks in the mirror again, then begins to brush her hair.
The car quickly drives off.
HOOKER
JERK!
The hooker shoves her middle finger in the air, then finishes brushing her hair.
Dudley continues to stare.
The hooker pulls out a STICK OF GUM and slides it into her mouth. She digs in her bag again and pulls out a CIGARETTE as she walks away.
Dudley follows behind.
EXT. BUS STOP – MOMENTS LATER
The hooker sits down on a bench outside the parking lot.
The bench is covered by a picture of a large blue dinosaur that reads: “#1 CHILDREN TELEVISION SHOW!”
Dudley watches closely from around the corner.
The hooker takes a long drag from her cigarette and exhales with delight.
A car pulls up and creeps to a stop in front of the bench. The car window rolls down and a hand flashes money.
The hooker leans into the car and reveals her yellow teeth with a grin.
She takes the money and puts it in her bra.
The hooker seductively pulls out the piece of gum from her mouth and sticks it onto the bench.
She takes a quick drag, squishes the cigarette into the wad of gum, gets into the car, and they drive away.
Dudley quickly shuffles over to the bench and stares hard at the cigarette stuck in the gum.
INT. BACKSTAGE OF DUDLEY THE DINOSAUR SET – MOMENTS LATER
Dudley sits smoking a lipstick stained cigarette. A CREW MEMBER caters to Dudley with a tray of food.
ANNOUNCER
Ladies and gentleman, the star of the show…
Screams and cheers from the studio audience fill the room.
Dudley takes one last drag of the cigarette, then squishes the rest into the tray of food.
Dudley puts on his dinosaur head and walks out on stage.
ANNOUNCER
Dudley the Dinosaur!