THOMAS EDISON: Tom in youth (M)
DOT: (F)
Plays MRS. ENGLE (Teacher), TRAIN
PASSENGER, EDITOR, GIUSEPPE, OTT (Inventor), MARY (Tom's first wife),
WALLACE (Inventor), REPORTER, FORD (Henry)
DASH: (F)
Plays MOTHER, LUCILLE (Student),
REPORTER, SENATOR (Boston), TEA SELLER, CLERK (Gold Exchange), BOSS
(Western Union),
KRUESI (Inventor), MINA (Tom's
second wife)
CODY: (M)
Plays FATHER, WILLIAM (Student),
ALEX, STEVENSON (Coach), REPORTER, MANAGER (Telegraph office),
MERCHANT, BROKER (Gold Exchange), BATCHELOR (Inventor), HAYES
(President), GROSVENOR (Financier), FIRESTONE (Harvey)
DASH: With his belly
full of apple pastry Tom wandered the streets looking for work and a
place to sleep.
DOT: At last he found
someone willing to lend him a cot in the cellar of the Gold Indicator Company.
DASH: One morning he
woke up and heard a ruckus...
(CODY enters as BROKER.
DASH rushes in as nervous clerk. They huddle around "Stock ticker".)
CODY/BROKER: Fix it!
Fix it! Hurry up! We’re losing money faster than juice through a goose!
DASH/CLERK: I’m
trying sir, I just can’t see what’s wrong with it!
BROKER: Can’t see
what’s wrong, what do I pay you for, for garsh darn sake?
CLERK: I keep track of
the profits, sir! I am not a telegraph operator!
EDISON: Telegraph
operator? Did someone say telegraph operator?
BROKER: My kingdom for
a telegraph operator! I got a house full of over educated smarty
pants and not one of them can save the ship. We’re going down
boys, we’re going down!
EDISON: What seems to
be the problem?
BROKER: This ticker
won’t tick! Don’t you see there’s an army, a universe
of brokers out there watching for the price of gold. They’re
buying, they’re selling. Stock quotes and price changes!
It’s how the world goes round, don’t you see? This
contraption is the one that transmits...
EDISON: Telegraphs...
BROKER: Telegraphs
schmelagraphs! The diddly ding dong thing don’t work! We’re
ruined boys, ruined I tell you...
(EDISON quietly goes to the
machine and rattles a few parts. BROKER rages on behind him as EDISON
finishes and stands back.
SOUND CUE: Sound of
ticker ticking happily away.)
They’re gonna sue me,
boys don’t you see? They’re gonna rip the shirt right off
my back, don’t you see? The end is near, boys, the end is near!!
CLERK: Um. Sir. Um. Look.
(They all look at machine.)
BROKER: Well I’ll
be a horse’s wide patoot. Did you do this young man?
EDISON: It wasn’t
hard. Seems a spring broke off, and fell down between these wheels...
(BROKER & DASH are hushed.)
BROKER: You’re a
genius, son. A bonifide genius. I want to offer you a job.(With a
thumb over his shoulder at DASH.) His job.
Note: This is a
sample from the actual script. To review the entire play, order
the PERUSAL SCRIPT (online instant download).
"Could a kids' show be more fun? More educational? More
positively electric?"
