Copyright 1989

 

          AMERICAN GADFLY: The Story of Wayne Morse

 

          a teleplay by Charles Deemer

 

 

 

 

 

 

          A BLACK SCREEN

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN:

 

          "I am a sort of gadfly, given to the State by the gods; and

          the State is a great and noble steed who is tardy in his

          motions owing to his very size, and requires to be stirred

          into life.  I am that gadfly which the gods have attached to

          the State, and all day long and in all places am always

          fastening upon you, arousing and persuading and reproaching

          you. . . . You think that you might easily strike me

          dead . . . but then you would sleep on for the remainder of

          your lives, unless the gods in their care of you sent you

          another gadfly."

                                 - Socrates in his own defense

 

          FADE IN:

 

 

 

 

          INT. HOSPITAL ROOM - PORTLAND

 

          WAYNE MORSE is in bed, during his dying moments.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN:  "July 22, 1974 - Portland, Oregon"

 

 

          BACK TO ROOM

 

          where MORSE is trying to speak but we cannot make out what

          he is saying.  We hear the VOICES of two doctors:

 

                                          FIRST DOCTOR (V.O.)

                         What's he trying to say?

 

                                          SECOND DOCTOR (V.O.)

                         I can't make it out.

 

                                          FIRST DOCTOR (V.O.)

                         I don't think he knows where he is.

 


 

                                                                        2.

 

 

 

          CLOSE ON MORSE

 

          as his LIPS MOVE and we hear his soft gravely voice for the

          first time:

 

                                          MORSE

                         I want to thank you all for

                         coming . . . Thank you for such a

                         beautiful day . . . Thank you,

                         everybody . . . Thank you . . .

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE

 

          MORSE stands near the door, thanking people as they leave

          from a political meeting, reaching out to shake hands.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Thank you for coming . . . Thank

                         you . . . Thanks for your support .

                         . . .

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "December, 1951 - Eugene, Oregon"

 

 

          BACK TO ROOM

 

          where MORSE continues to thank the last of his guests.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Yes, we're going to have a fight on

                         our hands - but I see no other way

                         to save the party. . . . Goodnight.

                         Thank you for coming.

 

          He moves away from the door, looking straight at the camera

          now.  As he moves into a living room, he'll be standing in

          front of the family Christmas tree.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I can't blame them for being

                         skeptical.  General Eisenhower

                         attends to the business of NATO in

                         Europe while Bob Taft runs around

                         the country talking as if he had

                         the Republican nomination wrapped

                         up.  But I'll tell you something:

                         Sen. Taft can't win the election.

                         He can't beat Truman and if the

                         President decides not to run again,

                         he still can't win.  Sen.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        3.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         Taft represents too narrow a wing

                         of the party.  He would divide this

                         country as badly as Truman has

                         divided it.

 

                         Now let me tell you something else:

                         I've had the opportunity to

                         cross-examine Gen. Eisenhower many

                         times when he appeared before the

                         Armed Services Committee.  I found

                         him to be honest without exception

                         and a man of great integrity.  I

                         think the General possesses one of

                         the most brilliant minds in public

                         service today.

 

                         I know that the Senator from Ohio

                         has the support of many of our

                         state chairmen and party leaders.

                         But the people support Eisenhower,

                         I'm sure of it.  I was the first

                         one in the Senate to come out for

                         Gen. Eisenhower and frankly I know

                         of no other candidate who can renew

                         this country's faith in the future.

                         That's why I called this meeting

                         here tonight, to begin to generate

                         support for him.

 

                         But we've got to get Gen.

                         Eisenhower back in the country and

                         campaigning, taking his case to the

                         people.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: REPUBLICAN CONVENTION - CHICAGO (NEWS TAPES)

 

          The frenzied excitement of the convention floor.

          DELEGATIONS are waving placards and banners for TAFT and for

          EISENHOWER.  There is music and much hoopla.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "July, 1952 - Chicago"

 

 

          INSERT - CONVENTION HALL (NEWS TAPES)

 

          as EISENHOWER is seen ON THE PODIUM, waving to the crowd

          after winning the nomination.  IKE BANNERS are everywhere.

          High excitement is in the air.

 


 

                                                                        4.

 

 

 

          INT. MORSE'S HOTEL ROOM - CHICAGO - LATE NIGHT

 

          MORSE is on the phone.  He is ecstatic that Eisenhower has

          won the nomination.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I can think of no better running

                         mate for the General.  I'd be

                         honored to nominate him. . . .

                         Goodnight.

 

          Morse hangs up and turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         The Junior Senator from Oregon has

                         been asked to nominate Leverett

                         Saltonstall to run with Gen.

                         Eisenhower!  A liberal, a New

                         England man - he'd perfectly

                         balance the ticket.  The Taft

                         people are still trying to bully in

                         a conservative platform but the

                         fight's not over yet.

 

          The phone rings.  Morse answers it.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Hello?

                              (to the camera)

                         Bill Berg, my administrative

                         assistant.

                              (back on phone)

                         I've been asked to nominate

                         Saltonstall! . . . But I was just

                         talking to them a minute ago. . . .

                         That's supposed to be decided on

                         the floor of the convention! . . .

                         I can't believe it. . . . No, I'll

                         talk to you in the morning.

                         Goodnight, Bill.

 

          He hangs up.  He is very upset at the turn of affairs.  He

          speaks to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         The running mate is Dick Nixon.

                         Hand-picked behind closed doors by

                         Gen. Eisenhower himself - but you

                         can't tell me the Taft people

                         aren't behind this.  Dick Nixon -

                         who's despised in every union hall

                         in the country!

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        5.

 

 

 

          INSERT: REPUBLICAN CONVENTION (NEWS TAPES)

 

          EISENHOWER and NIXON are on the PODIUM, hands joined and

          raised together, the Republican ticket for 1952.

 

 

          INT. MORSE HOTEL ROOM - MORNING

 

          Morse is in his undershirt and pants, dialing a number.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (on phone)

                         Dick Nixon's room, please . . .

                         Hello, Dick.  Wayne Morse.  I'm

                         calling to offer my

                         congratulations. . . . I won't beat

                         around the bush with you, Dick.  I

                         was going to nominate Saltonstall

                         of Massachusetts but I recognize

                         that you'll be a popular candidate,

                         and I can tell you that Wayne Morse

                         will support the ticket. . . . Yes,

                         as a matter of fact, there are a

                         couple points I'd like to make.

                         The platform bothers me a good

                         deal.  It was written by Taft

                         people, by and large, and

                         Eisenhower's nomination was a

                         rejection of the Taft wing of the

                         party. . . . I think the platform

                         takes us back fifty years.  It

                         makes McKinley look like a liberal.

                         . . . I can be specific til the

                         cows come home.  Look at civil

                         rights: to compromise with states

                         rights is a retreat from the

                         principles of Lincoln.  In fact,

                         the entire civil rights plank

                         strikes me as weasel-worded

                         double-talk.  The plank on labor

                         isn't much better.  It's verbose,

                         platitudinous and evasive.  Foreign

                         policy is a hodgepodge of

                         inconsistent compromises and- . . .

                         well, yes, I think you and Gen.

                         Eisenhower have to take a stronger

                         platform to the American people to

                         win.  I think that- . . .

                         certainly, Dick, I understand.  I

                         just wanted to give you my

                         congratulations.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          EXT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - DAY

 

          Establishing shot of the ranch.

 


 

                                                                        6.

 

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "October, 1952 - Eugene"

 

 

          EXT. ON THE RANCH - DAY

 

          MORSE is repairing a section of fence.  He is working

          furiously, visibly upset about something and working it off.

          He bends a nail and stops, taking out a handkerchief to wipe

          his brow.  Even at ranch work, he is dressed rather

          dapperly.  He turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         The Armed Services Committee sent

                         me to Europe to inspect NATO bases.

                         What I found over there was

                         shocking.

 

                         I hardly know where to begin.

                         There's a shocking waste of

                         taxpayers' money, gross

                         inefficiency, I doubt if we get

                         thirty cents of value for a dollar.

                         I found a cadre of military men and

                         military minds who are convinced

                         that war with the Soviet Union is

                         inevitable, that any attempt at

                         keeping the peace is doomed to

                         fail.

 

                         Gen. Eisenhower has been the chief

                         administrator of NATO and, as far

                         as I'm concerned, the buck stops

                         with him.  I now have very serious

                         doubts about the wisdom of putting

                         a military mind in the White House.

 

                         And his campaign speeches: I've

                         heard no retreat from that

                         reactionary platform.  All I hear

                         is double-talk and political mush.

                         As hard as this is to say for a

                         lifelong Republican like myself,

                         Adlai Stevenson sounded like a

                         statesman compared to Eisenhower.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE

 

          Morse sits in an easy chair, listening to a radio speech by

          Stevenson.

 


 

                                                                        7.

 

 

 

                                          STEVENSON (V.O.)

                         I want to speak to you today on the

                         idea of peace on earth.  And I want

                         to speak of the institution of the

                         United Nations.  However great the

                         assaults on the peace of the world

                         may have been since the United

                         Nations was founded, no nation

                         today would dare to remove itself

                         from membership and separate his

                         country from the human hopes that

                         are woven into the very texture of

                         the organization.  And this is why

                         to celebrate the United Nations is

                         to hold communion with the idea of

                         peace on earth.

 

          Morse gets up and turns off the radio.  He turns to the

          camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Instead of empty rhetoric and

                         double-talk, here were words of

                         hope and vision.  Then came the

                         proverbial straw that broke the

                         camel's back.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse is at his desk, reading a newspaper.  He looks up from

          it to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Morningside Heights, October 18th:

                         Eisenhower and Taft issue a joint

                         statement of party unity.

 

          He angrily throws down the newspaper.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Unity, my posterior!  This campaign

                         has been nothing but demogoguery,

                         double-talk and dangerous

                         dissertion by Eisenhower of every

                         principle he professed to believe

                         in.  This is not the man I

                         cross-examined before the Armed

                         Services Committee.  This is a

                         sellout to the reactionary wing of

                         the party.  He embraces Taft, he

                         endorses Joe McCarthy - McCarthy,

                         who calls Gen. George Marshall a

                         front man for communists!

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        8.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         Behavior like this disqualifies

                         Eisenhower for public office.  I

                         wouldn't trust him as dog catcher.

 

          He buzzes his secretary.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Get Bill to set up a press

                         conference as soon as possible.

 

          He buzzes off.  He takes a deep breath.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          INT. AT THE PODIUM - POLITICAL RALLY

 

          Morse stands behind the podium in front of a banner for

          Stevenson.

 

                                          MORSE

                         My decision to leave the Republican

                         party in this campaign and perhaps

                         permanently has not been an easy

                         one to make.  It has been a

                         declaration of conscience.  My

                         attempt, along with other

                         constitutional liberals, to bring

                         the Republican Party back to the

                         people and free it from the

                         domination of selfish and

                         materialistic interests in our

                         country has been disheartening.

                         From this day onward, I am an

                         Independent Republican.

 

                         Today, then, I can tell you that

                         the choice in this election is

                         between the double-talking

                         demogoguery of Eisenhower and the

                         sound statesmanship of Stevenson.

                         I have full confidence that the

                         American people will elect Adlai

                         Stevenson by a landslide!

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERTS: NEWSPAPER HEADLINES OF EISENHOWER'S PRESIDENTIAL

          VICTORY

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse enters the office in a rage.

 


 

                                                                        9.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE

                         They won't get away with this!

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Washington D.C. - January, 1953"

 

 

          BACK TO OFFICE

 

          Morse turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         They can strip me of Armed

                         Services, they strip me of Labor,

                         they can ban me from every

                         committee in the Senate - but they

                         can't stop me from speaking on the

                         floor!  And if they don't want an

                         Independent Republican sitting on

                         their side of aisle - well, where

                         do they expect me to sit?  With the

                         Democrats?  I'd be no better off

                         there because I'll tell you

                         something, you don't have two

                         parties in this country, you've got

                         a coalition of reactionary

                         Republicans and reactionary

                         Democrats who are running American

                         politics, irrespective of what

                         party label they wear.

 

          He is buzzed by his secretary.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (answering)

                         I'm taking no calls.

 

          Back to camera:

 

                                          MORSE

                         I vote my conscience, not a party

                         line.  If you want a Western Union

                         boy as your senator, don't send

                         Wayne Morse!

 

          He gets up and will fetch a folding chair.

 

                                          MORSE

                         The Republicans disown me, the

                         Democrats have nothing to offer me.

                         Then I'll bring my own chair to the

                         Senate and sit in the aisle!

 

          He hurries off, carrying his folding chair.

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        10.

 

 

 

          INSERT: A SERIES OF POLITICAL CARTOONS

 

          depicting cartoonists' reactions to Morse leaving the

          Republican Party.  As we see the CARTOONS we hear a

          conversation between two women, one of whom is a little

          tipsy.

 

                                          TIPSY WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Wayne Morse is an embarrassment to

                         the country.

 

                                          OTHER WOMAN (V.O.)

                         He was kicked in the head by a

                         horse, you know.

 

                                          TIPSY WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Really?

 

                                          OTHER WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Yes, a few years ago.  They say

                         he's been imbalanced since then.

 

                                          TIPSY WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Look at him over there - even the

                         way he carries a lunch tray is

                         pompous.

 

                                          OTHER WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Where are you going?

 

                                          TIPSY WOMAN (V.O.)

                         I'm going to have a few words with

                         Mr. Morse.  I'll never call him

                         Senator again.

 

                                          OTHER WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Alice, don't do anything rash . . .

 

 

          INT. CAFETERIA, TIPSY WOMAN'S POV

 

          as she approaches Wayne Morse, who is emptying the contents

          of a lunch tray onto a table.  He is lunching alone.

 

          As the TIPSY WOMAN APPROACHES, the camera weaves

          accordingly.  Finally the woman is at the table.  We stay on

          Morse.

 

                                          TIPSY WOMAN (V.O.)

                         Mr. Morse?

 

          Morse turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Yes?

 


 

                                                                        11.

 

 

 

          As Morse faces the camera, THE WOMAN THROWS A DRINK IN HIS

          FACE.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE'S OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse is in a reflective mood, sitting at his desk and

          speaking to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         For myself, I soon got used to

                         insults and defamation of

                         character.  The press has never

                         been fair to me.  It's the price

                         one sometimes has to pay for

                         speaking his mind.  But the

                         personal attacks on my family, the

                         phone calls to my wife Midge at all

                         hours of the day and night, ranging

                         from threats of violence to vile

                         pornography; and the charges of

                         treason against my daughters by

                         their schoolmates; and the loss of

                         lifelong friends who phoned or

                         wrote they never wanted to see us

                         again - all because I followed my

                         own conscience.

 

                         And my conscience was clear -

                         because no sooner had Eisenhower

                         taken office than my worst fears

                         began to materialize.  The

                         President sided with economic

                         pirates to begin a systematic and

                         complete giveaway of this country's

                         valuable natural resources, and the

                         Republican press was conducting a

                         virtual news blockade against

                         letting the American people know

                         what was going on.  Well, they

                         could gag the press - but they

                         couldn't censor the Congressional

                         Record.

 

          Morse gets up from the desk, speaking to Bill Berg in the

          office.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Bill, I'm going to speak against

                         giving away the Texas tidelands to

                         oil interests for as long as it

                         takes to be heard.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        12.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         But we've got to be careful - they

                         slipped a mickey to La Folette

                         once, and I wouldn't put anything

                         past the Eisenhower gang.  I don't

                         want anything from the Senate

                         kitchen that hasn't been tasted

                         first.  I'll want an aide with me

                         at all times - you can work in

                         shifts.  I'll need boullion, tea, a

                         little coffee, fruit juice.  Be

                         sure to have someone standing guard

                         in the Senate kitchen at all times.

                         Oh yes - I'll need some Kotex . . .

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: THE SENATE CLOCK, WHICH READS 11:30

 

 

          INT. SENATE PODIUM

 

          where Morse begins the Tidelands filibuster.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Mr. President, I do have a few

                         things which I wish to talk about

                         today.  I also intend to speak for

                         several hours on the pending joint

                         measure concerning ownership of

                         tidelands.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "April 24, 1953"

 

 

          BACK TO PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         There is a purpose to prolonged

                         debate, even when it takes on the

                         features of a filibuster.

 

 

          INSERT: THE CLOCK READS 3:15

 

                                          MORSE

                         That is the purpose of arousing

                         public understanding and educating

                         the public about controversial

                         pieces of legislation.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 


 

                                                                        13.

 

 

 

          AT THE PODIUM

 

          Morse clears his throat, sips juice and continues.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I know that the little band of

                         liberals who are fighting for the

                         public interest in preventing this

                         giveaway program of the people's

                         treasure are going to get terrible

                         treatment in the press.  They will

                         try to make monsters out of us, and

                         our patriotism will be attacked.

                         This happened in the Washington

                         Star only last night.  My

                         colleagues may be surprised to

                         learn that I read a reactionary

                         newspaper like the Washington Star.

                         I find it helps me get to sleep.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          AT THE PODIUM

 

          It is later.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I'm glad to see my colleagues from

                         North Dakota have returned from

                         dinner.  I was run out of Verdon,

                         South Dakota once.  I was mistaken

                         for a Wobbly.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          INSERT: THE SENATE CLOCK READS 8:10

 

                                          MORSE

                         Most politicians cannot seem to

                         look beyond the next election; they

                         do not seem to be able to raise

                         their sights into the next century.

                         Yet what we do in our generation

                         has terrific repercusions for

                         decades and sometimes centuries to

                         come - especially in the entire

                         field of natural resources

                         legislation.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          A SLOW PAN OF THE EMPTY SENATE CHAMBERS

 

          as Morse talks on.

 


 

                                                                        14.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (V.O.)

                         Historians writing a hundred years

                         from now will record that our

                         generation of Congress, by means of

                         the beginning made by such

                         legislation as that now proposed,

                         began to write the first chapter of

                         the volume on the decline of

                         American civilization.  That is

                         what is involved in this debate!

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          AT THE PODIUM

 

          Still later, as Morse talks on.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Let me say that someone had better

                         start thinking about paying off the

                         national debt!

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          INSERT: THE SENATE CLOCK READS 8:30

 

          Morse takes a throat lozenger and talks on.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Nice to see you back this morning,

                         gentlemen.  As I was saying before

                         you came in, my daughters rib me

                         from time to time.  They will say,

                         Dad, do you ever get anything

                         through the Senate?  Do you ever

                         win any of your battles?

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          AT THE PODIUM

 

          Morse stretches while speaking and looks at the Senate

          clock.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Until I got into this debate, I

                         thought I knew something about the

                         separation of powers doctrine.  But

                         I certainly don't know anything

                         about it if this giveaway program

                         is passed.  I cannot believe that

                         it will be.

 


 

                                                                        15.

 

 

 

          THE SENATE CLOCK: MORSE'S POV

 

          It is 9:56.

 

                                          MORSE (V.O.)

                         Thank you, Mr. President.  That is

                         all I have to say.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. SENATE LAVATORY - AFTER THE FILIBUSTER

 

          Morse is splashing cold water on his face.  We straightens

          up and we see his reflection in the mirror, looking at the

          camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         As I left the floor of the Senate,

                         a reporter asked me what I had to

                         eat during the past 22 hours and 26

                         minutes.  Not a question of

                         substance, mind you.  What I had to

                         eat!

 

          He turns from the mirror and faces the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         For the record: I had four cups of

                         boullion, two cups of coffee, nine

                         cups of tea, three cups of orange

                         juice and a few crackers.  It

                         sustained me very well.

 

          He starts out and stops.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Oh yes - another reporter asked if

                         I had any desire to use the men's

                         room.  I told him, Yes, thank you,

                         I believe I will.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. RADIO STATION - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse is seated in front of a large microphone of the era,

          waiting to go on the air.  We hear the announcer's voice.

 

                                          ANNOUNCER (V.O.)

                         This is Washington.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "May 6, 1954"

 


 

                                                                        16.

 

 

 

          BACK TO RADIO STATION

 

          Morse waits patiently to begin.

 

                                          ANNOUNCER (V.O.)

                         Direct from the nation's capital,

                         we present at this time as a public

                         service the regular weekly report

                         of your United States Senator Wayne

                         Morse.  Now here is Senator Morse.

 

          Morse goes on the air.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Fellow Oregonians.  This is your

                         Senator Wayne Morse, reporting from

                         the capital at Washington.  Our

                         country faces many serious problems

                         but none equals in importance or

                         has the potential consequences of

                         the dilemma of Indo-China . . .

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. SENATE PODIUM - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse at the Senate podium.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Mr. President, it is my patriotic

                         duty and an obligation to my own

                         conscience to rise and express my

                         objection to involving the United

                         States in a Chinese civil war.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "January 26, 1955:

 

 

          BACK TO PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         Now I am in favor of defending

                         Formosa and its nearby islands to

                         the hilt but we don't need the

                         resolution before us to do this.

                         The President, as Commander in

                         Chief, has the emergency power to

                         take whatever defensive action in

                         his wise discretion is necessary to

                         protect the security of the United

                         States.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        17.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         But I also wish to stress the point

                         that under its constitutional

                         checking power, the Congress has

                         jurisdiction and authorization to

                         modify a course of action followed

                         by a President, even when

                         exercising his emergency powers.

                         The Formosa resolution would

                         handcuff Congress in this regard.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse has spread a large map over his desk and is pointing

          to the FORMOSA and CHINA area.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (with map, pointing,

                               explaining)

                         Here is Formosa, over a hundred

                         miles from the Red Chinese

                         mainland.  The adjacent Pescadores

                         islands, clearly in the defensive

                         sphere of Formosa.

 

                         But look here - the islands of

                         Matsu and Quemoy, only eight miles

                         from the Chinese mainland.  These

                         islands do not threaten the

                         security of Formosa.

 

          He turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Try to think like a Red Chinese for

                         a moment.  You see the Seventh

                         Fleet in the Formosa Straits.  You

                         see the United States claiming a

                         defensive posture with these

                         islands only eight miles from your

                         mainland.  It's as if the Red

                         Chinese would claim Cuba.  So who

                         is the aggressor and the real

                         threat to peace?  Who is behaving

                         like an international bandit?

 

                         We have no business making these

                         unilateral resolutions when we

                         should be taking the entire dilemma

                         to the United Nations.  This is a

                         sad time for this country.

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        18.

 

 

 

          EXT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - DAY

 

          Morse throws a saddle onto a section of fence.  He is in

          good spirits.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "February, 1955"

 

 

          BACK TO RANCH

 

          Morse smiles at the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         They say I've become the number one

                         target of the Eisenhower

                         administration!

 

                         I consider that an honor.  Why?

                         Because Dwight Eisenhower is the

                         most dangerous man ever to occupy

                         the White House!  They also say

                         Eisenhower himself has handpicked

                         my opponent next year, and it's

                         none other than Douglas McKay, our

                         former governor here in Oregon -

                         and more recently Eisenhower's

                         Secretary of the Interior and a

                         Charlie McCarthy puppet of private

                         monopolies.  I can't wait for the

                         campaign to begin!

 

          He looks over his land.

 

                                          MORSE

                         In the meantime, it's good to catch

                         up on chores.  I've got three more

                         Devon cattle on their way to

                         Oregon, from the Mark Hammette

                         herd, probably the best in the

                         country.  That'll bring us to over

                         a dozen registered Devons here, and

                         a few more back in Maryland.  I

                         grew up on a farm in Wisconsin, and

                         it's still the best work there is.

                         There's nothing like cleaning out

                         the barn on election day!

 

                         People are wondering which

                         political convention I'm going to

                         attend.  I'm accused of doing a

                         political dance of the seven veils.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        19.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         One thing to say for the Democrats,

                         though, they managed to defeat the

                         reactionary Republicans here in

                         Oregon last year.

 

                         But to be honest with you, I'm not

                         sure which convention I'll go to.

                         Maybe I'll have my own.  I could

                         hold it in a phone booth.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - DAY

 

          Morse has moved inside and is pouring himself a cup of tea.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I wouldn't join the Democrats

                         unless I'm wanted and unless they

                         understand I'm not a party man, I

                         reserve the right to be independent

                         no matter what party I'm affiliated

                         with.  I'm not sure but that I

                         represent more people as an

                         Independent, that your Mr. and Mrs.

                         Independent Voter is the real

                         majority in this country.

 

                         But it would be interesting to see

                         Eisenhower's reaction if I returned

                         to the Senate as a Democrat.

 

          Morse has to smile at this, enjoying the thought.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINES THAT MORSE HAS BECOME A

          DEMOCRAT

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINES THAT MCKAY HAS RETURNED TO

          OREGON TO TAKE ON MORSE

 

 

          EXT. OREGON CITY STREETS - DAY

 

          A series of MAN/WOMAN ON THE STREET INTERVIEWS about the

          1956 Morse-McKay campaign.

 

                                          MAN #1

                         I voted for McKay for governor, and

                         I'll vote for him for senator.

 

                                          MAN #2

                         Wayne Morse.  He tells the truth.

 


 

                                                                        20.

 

 

 

          INSERT: A POLITICAL CARTOON ABOUT THE CAMPAIGN

 

 

          EXT. ON THE STREET

 

                                          WOMAN #1

                         I'm a Democrat and don't know if

                         Morse is a real Democrat or not.

 

 

          INSERT: ANOTHER POLITICAL CARTOON

 

 

          EXT. ON THE STREET

 

                                          MAN #3

                         Eisenhower's doing a good job - so

                         I'm for McKay.

 

                                          WOMAN #2

                         Wayne Morse, I don't care what

                         party he is.  I'd vote for him as a

                         Whig!

 

                                          MAN #4

                         Douglas McKay.

 

                                          WOMAN #3

                         I think we should keep Sen. Morse.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - ELECTION NIGHT

 

          Morse enters in work clothes -- he has, in fact, been

          cleaning out the barn.  He speaks to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Always clean the barn out on

                         election day.

 

          He moves to the living room where the television set is on.

 

 

          INSERT: ELECTION RESULTS SHOWING THAT MORSE IS WINNING

          (NEWS TAPE)

 

 

          BACK TO ROOM

 

          Morse is relaxed and confident, speaking to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         You know who helped me in this

                         campaign more than anyone?  Dick

                         Nixon.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        21.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         The Vice-President came to Oregon

                         in September and gave poor Doug

                         McKay an albatross of an idea.  He

                         said forget about the issues, it's

                         the votes that count.  And McKay

                         couldn't help repeating it and

                         making it a part of his champaign!

 

                         I said from the beginning that the

                         issues are important.  Tell the

                         people how McKay would sell the

                         Snake River to private monopolies,

                         to the Idaho Power Company, which

                         would develop only a fraction of

                         its power and neglect the

                         irrigation and flood control

                         potential of a major multi-purpose

                         dam in Hell's Canyon - well, you

                         give the people of Oregon the facts

                         and they will listen.

 

                         Poor McKay didn't even want to be

                         in this race.  He was put up to it

                         by the Eisenhower gang.  But I was

                         confident that the people of Oregon

                         were not about to let the White

                         House purge them of their Senior

                         Senator.  We rate second in the

                         nation in literacy here in Oregon -

                         give me an enlightened people, and

                         I'm never going to worry.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          EXT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - NIGHT

 

          Morse is gathering a load of firewood to bring into the

          house.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "December, 1959"

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - NIGHT

 

          as MORSE enters with the load of wood.  The phone is

          ringing.  Morse passes by the family Christmas tree on his

          way to the phone.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (on phone)

                         Hello? . . . No, I just got in this

                         afternoon. . . . In the L.A. Times?

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        22.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         Well, it's the first I've heard

                         about it. . . . They don't need my

                         permission in Oregon. . . . To tell

                         the truth, I've never given it any

                         thought. . . . Yes, maybe I should.

                         . . . Have good holidays.  Goodbye.

 

          He hangs up and calls to his wife in another part of the

          house.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Midge, we appear to be running for

                         President!

 

          He dials a number.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (on phone)

                         This is Wayne. . . . Yes, I just

                         heard.  I appreciate the vote of

                         confidence but between you, me, and

                         the fence post, I would have

                         preferred to stay out of it. . . .

                         No, what's done is done, and I'm

                         not going to dodge a good political

                         fight if it's inevitable.  At the

                         very least, I may be able to keep

                         Humphrey, Kennedy and the rest

                         honest. . . . I'm not saying I'm

                         angry - I'm just the last to know!

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse is pacing, giving dictation, thinking on his feet.

 

                                          MORSE

                         For immediate release, et cetera.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "January, 1960"

 

 

          BACK TO OFFICE

 

                                          MORSE

                         Despite news reports to the

                         contrary, Sen. Wayne Morse is a

                         serious candidate for President of

                         the United States.  For this

                         reason, he has entered primaries in

                         Oregon, Washington D.C.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        23.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         and Maryland, and he will enter any

                         other primary in this country where

                         sufficient political backing

                         justifies his running.  He is

                         running for himself and is not a

                         stalking horse for Stevenson.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINE, HUMPHREY WINS WASHINGTON D.C.

          PRIMARY

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINE, KENNEDY LANDSLIDE IN MARYLAND

          PRIMARY

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - NIGHT

 

          Morse is watching the returns on television.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "May 20, 1960"

 

 

          BACK TO ROOM

 

          Morse goes to the TV and shuts it off.

 

                                          MORSE

                              (to others in the room)

                         I'm ready to call it a night.

 

          He escorts people to the door.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Bill, can you draft a statement of

                         congratulations to Kennedy?  And

                         another withdrawing from the race.

                         We spoke to the issues.  It's all

                         we can do.  Goodnight.

 

          He comes back into the room, alone.  He speaks to the

          camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         And we did speak to the issues.

                         You know, I was brought up in the

                         political school of Bob La Folette,

                         who was for years a Senator in my

                         home state of Wisconsin.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        24.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         Often I've heard him tell how many

                         times he lost a fight for policies

                         that five, ten years later, became

                         national policy.  And that speaks

                         to a problem in this country, to a

                         great cancer in American life.

                         It's that politicians don't enter

                         fights, they don't battle for

                         policies, unless they believe they

                         can win.

 

                         In that sense, I'm not a

                         politician.  Because I believe

                         great good can be accomplished by

                         entering fights and espousing

                         policies even though they will, at

                         the moment, be unsuccessful.  It

                         wakes people up. It makes them

                         think.  And in the long run, it

                         brings victory to the policies, if

                         not to the individuals who fight

                         for them early on.

 

                         It demonstrates something else as

                         well: it demonstrates that there

                         are individuals in this country who

                         don't think and vote as

                         organization men, and this in turn,

                         in time, encourages others to act

                         independently.

 

                         So I'm not ashamed of what we did

                         in the District of Columbia, or in

                         Maryland, or here in Oregon.

 

          The phone rings.  Morse answers it.  There is a quick change

          of mood.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Hello? . . . Condolences seem a

                         little out of hand, considering you

                         backed Kennedy when I could have

                         used your support myself. . . .

                         Betrayal might be a better word for

                         it. . . . Of course I was a serious

                         candidate!

 

          Morse angrily hangs up and turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I'll tell you this, I don't trust

                         Jack Kennedy any farther than I can

                         throw him!

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        25.

 

 

 

          INSERT: THE KENNEDY FUNERAL (NEWS TAPE)

 

          Images from the Kennedy funeral.

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C. - LATE NIGHT

 

          Morse is buried under a pile of books and documents, working

          late on a major Senate speech reviewing policy in Vietnam.

          He rubs his eyes and stretches, then turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         The late President and I had our

                         disagreements but we agreed on many

                         things as well.  As chairman of the

                         education subcommittee, I'd worked

                         closely and agreeably with

                         President Kennedy on a number of

                         important education bills.

 

                         With one exception, President

                         Kennedy never discussed Vietnam

                         with me, though I was often on

                         record speaking against our foreign

                         policy in Southeast Asia.  The only

                         time we discussed Vietnam was

                         during my last conference with him,

                         only a few weeks before his

                         assassination.

 

                         I was sponsoring an amendment that

                         would prohibit a President from

                         making foreign aid available to any

                         military junta that had overthrown

                         a democratically elected,

                         constitutional form of government.

                         The President and I discussed the

                         amendment and then we discussed the

                         Diem regeme in South Vietnam.  I

                         told him that I did not believe

                         Diem represented the South

                         Vietnamese people and our support

                         of him amounted to the creation of

                         an American protectorate in

                         Vietnam, in violation of the Geneva

                         Accords, the United Nations

                         Charter, and international law.

 

                         And then President Kennedy

                         surprised me.  "I've come to the

                         conclusion," he told me, "that

                         you're probably not wrong in your

                         criticism of our involvement in

                         Vietnam.

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        26.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         I want you to know that I'm in the

                         midst of analyzing an intensive

                         study that concerns, in part, an

                         analysis of your speeches in the

                         Senate on Vietnam."  A bit later,

                         the President walked with me from

                         the Oval Office, down the sidewalk

                         to the pavement within the White

                         House grounds, where I was to take

                         a car.  It was a beautiful day.

 

          Morse stops.  The memory is too painful.  He regains his

          composure before going on.

 

                                          MORSE

                         That was my last meeting with him.

                         I don't know what happened to that

                         study.

 

                         But I do know this: Vietnam didn't

                         disappear.  Before you knew it,

                         Goldwater was campaigning like a

                         trigger-happy madman until he was

                         soundly defeated - and then Lyndon

                         Johnson was turning around and

                         out-Goldwatering Goldwater.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. SENATE PODIUM - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse stands behind the podium.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "August, 1964"

 

 

          BACK TO PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         Mr. President, I don't know how

                         many times the Senior Senator of

                         Oregon has gone on record in the

                         past decade to distinguish between

                         the defensive powers of the

                         President as Commander-in-Chief and

                         the constitutional perogative of

                         the Congress, which alone can

                         declare war, to check those powers.

                         The Gulf of Tonkin resolution now

                         before us gives me no choice but to

                         rise and speak out again.

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        27.

 

 

 

          INT. MORSE OFFICE - WASHINGTON D.C.

 

          Morse is on the phone, lambasting someone.

 

                                          MORSE

                         You have no right to call yourself

                         a liberal!  There's not a bona fide

                         liberal in the Senate except my

                         colleague from Alaska!  The rest of

                         you are phony liberals,

                         phraseological liberals.  You've

                         let yourself become jelly-bellied

                         puppets of the administration!

 

          He hangs up and turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         We have no way of knowing what

                         really happened in the Gulf of

                         Tonkin.  What we do know is this:

                         South Vietnamese vessels have been

                         shelling islands in the north.

                         Then what was an American vessel

                         doing in the area in the first

                         place, if not offering protection

                         to the South Vietnames?  Is it any

                         wonder the North Vietnames fired on

                         us?  Above all else, we need to

                         determine the facts in this case.

                         Ignorance does not justify giving

                         the President the power to make war

                         when Congress has not declared war!

 

                         We can't win a land war in Asia.

                         The French tried for eight years,

                         at the expense of 240,000

                         casualties, at the expense of a

                         toppled government.  The French

                         dumped the whole mess in our lap

                         and we took it, hook, line and

                         sinker.  Now we find ourselves in

                         the strangest, the most ludicrous,

                         most paradoxical, inexcusable

                         American military operation in the

                         history of this Republic!

 

          He picks up the phone and dials.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Bill, Wayne. . . . I want you to

                         accept any speaking engagement I'm

                         offered.  I want you to find

                         speaking engagements where I've

                         never had them before. . . . I

                         don't care if it's a Ladies Church

                         Bizarre! . . . Starting yesterday!

 

          CUT TO:

 


 

                                                                        28.

 

 

 

          A SERIES OF SHOTS - WAYNE MORSE ON THE SPEAKING CIRCUIT,

          1964-8

 

 

          (A) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Baltimore"

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         Foreign policy belongs to the

                         American people, not to the

                         President of the United States.

                         Under our constitution, all the

                         President is is the administrator

                         of a people's foreign policy.

 

 

          (B) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "The University of New Mexico"

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         The American people are not well

                         informed about the facts concerning

                         our foreign policy in Asia.

                         Fiction, propaganda, concealment of

                         behind-the-scene diplomatic

                         activities and a shroud of

                         government secrecy have withheld

                         the facts from the public.

 

 

          (C) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Mississippi Junior Chamber of Commerce"

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         The immediate, massive violations

                         of the Geneva Agreement - which

                         took France out of Indochina after

                         World War Two - were committed by

                         the United States and South

                         Vietnam, not by North Vietnam.

 

 

          (D) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Coos Bay Lions Club"

 


 

                                                                        29.

 

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         Don't you forget, as you sit here

                         tonight in relative affluence,

                         relative security, that you're not

                         dying in the jungles of Asia in an

                         undeclared war!

 

          (E) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "United States Senate"

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         Mr. President, I ask unanimous

                         consent to put on record an article

                         published in the American Journal

                         of Orthopsychiatry called

                         "Psychological Habituation to War."

                         It discusses the techniques

                         employed by the government to

                         reduce opposition to the war in

                         Vietnam.

 

          (F) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Brown University"

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         I believe we should: one, stop the

                         bombing of North Vietnam; two, stop

                         the progressive increase of

                         American forces within Vietnam;

                         three, seek a multilateral peace

                         table that includes the National

                         Liberation Front, North Vietnam and

                         Red China, as well as the United

                         States and South Vietnam.

 

 

          (G) SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Concerned Clergy About the War in Vietnam"

 


 

                                                                        30.

 

 

 

          AT PODIUM

 

                                          MORSE

                         President Johnson and his

                         administration have fixed the 1968

                         election as a major test of his

                         national popularity front in

                         support of the war.  But don't

                         forget that the unity of the

                         Democratic Party was never greater

                         and never wider than it was in

                         1964, when our candidate called the

                         war in Vietnam one that Asians

                         should fight and to which American

                         boys should not be sent to do the

                         job that Asian boys should do.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: JOHNSON ANNOUNCES HE WILL NOT SEEK REELECTION (NEWS

          TAPE)

 

 

          INSERT: RIOTS AT THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION, 1968 (NEWS

          TAPE)

 

 

          INSERT: HUMPHREY AT PODIUM AS DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE (NEWS

          TAPE)

 

 

          EXT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - DAY

 

          Morse is raking up a pile of brush he has cleared off the

          ranch.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "September, 1968"

 

 

          BACK TO RANCH

 

          Morse leans the rake against the fence and turns to the

          camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         What has happened to us?  What has

                         produced the kind of national

                         psychology we have in the United

                         States today?  Are we surprised at

                         all the criticism being shot at us

                         from all around the world?

                                          (MORE)

 


 

                                                                        31.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (cont'd)

                         Does it really come as any surprise

                         that we are becoming the most

                         feared country in the world?

 

                         I don't care if people don't want

                         to hear this - it's the truth!

 

                         I sometimes wonder if I'm going at

                         this a little too hard.  But then I

                         think of all the men and women who

                         wish there were just one politician

                         in Washington who would speak his

                         mind and cast his vote honestly and

                         freely with only his conscience to

                         guide him.  Maybe it's a bit brash

                         to assume that I'm that man, but

                         believe me, I'm trying to be.

 

                         The hawks came after me with guns

                         blazing in the primary.  Every

                         daily newspaper in Oregon endorsed

                         my opponent, Bob Duncan.  But we

                         won because we gave the people of

                         Oregon the facts about this war.

 

                         Now we have Bob Packwood on our

                         hands.  But this time we have an

                         endorsement - the Coos Bay World!

                         That's one more than we managed in

                         the primary.

 

                         It's a tough campaign.  Bill Berg

                         passed away, and I miss him.  You

                         don't have an administrative

                         assistant for over two decades and

                         not miss him.

 

                         Some of the people around me now,

                         they'd have me dodge the fight.  No

                         one wants me to debate Packwood but

                         I've never dodged a political fight

                         in my life.  My record speaks for

                         itself.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INT. MORSE RANCH - EUGENE - NIGHT

 

          Morse is meeting with aides a few days after the election.

          He is pacing, trying to make up his mind about something.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "November, 1968"

 


 

                                                                        32.

 

 

 

          BACK TO ROOM

 

          Morse looks off-camera, to aides in the room.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Here's what we do about it:

                         absolutely nothing.

 

          He raises a hand against protest about his decision.

 

                                          MORSE

                         I'm not going to be remembered as

                         someone who doesn't know how to

                         take defeat.  I'm not asking for a

                         recount and I'm not drumming up

                         charges of election misconduct.  If

                         they want to remember me, let them

                         remember my record on

                         constitutional law and the

                         fifteen-odd years I've argued

                         against our immoral policies in

                         Asia.  We lost and, frankly, it

                         doesn't surprise me.  It was closer

                         than I thought it would be.

 

          He turns to the camera.

 

                                          MORSE

                         But don't think for a minute that

                         I'm going to retire.  Retiring

                         isn't a part of my blood chemistry.

 

          CUT TO:

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINES ABOUT MORSE WINNING DEMOCRATIC

          PRIMARY, LEADING TO A REMATCH WITH PACKWOOD

 

 

          INSERT: NEWSPAPER HEADLINE, THE RACE IS TOO CLOSE TO CALL

 

 

          EXT. AN AUTOMOBILE ON THE FREEWAY - NIGHT

 

          Establishing shot of Morse's campaign car on the freeway.

 

 

          INT. THE CAR

 

          Morse is asleep in the back seat.  He is visibly older than

          we've seen him before.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "July 1, 1974"

 


 

                                                                        33.

 

 

 

          BACK TO CAR

 

          A hand reaches from the front seat of the car, waking Morse.

          We hear a voice:

 

                                          VOICE (V.O.)

                         We're here, Senator.

 

          Morse stirs and wakes up.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Is this Medford?

 

                                          VOICE (V.O.)

                         Medford was the last stop.  This is

                         Grants Pass.

 

          Morse is sitting up straight now.

 

                                          MORSE

                         Grants Pass.  Thank you.

 

          DISSOLVE TO:

 

 

          EXT. FOURTH OF JULY PICNIC - EUGENE - DAY

 

          Morse is surrounded by children at a Fourth of July picnic.

          A three-legged race is about to begin, and Morse and a young

          girl companion are preparing to enter.

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "July 4, 1974"

 

 

          BACK TO PICNIC

 

          as preparation for the race continues.  Over this scene we

          hear Wayne Morse on the campaign trail in 1974:

 

                                          MORSE (V.O.)

                         The struggle for peace, which is

                         the major crisis of our generation,

                         is a struggle for men's minds,

                         rather than for their emotions.  It

                         is a struggle for human decency,

                         rather than for human debauchery.

 

          The three-legged race has begun, the 73-year-old Morse and

          his young companion among its most enthusiastic contestants.

 


 

                                                                        34.

 

 

 

                                          MORSE (V.O.)

                         It involves an appeal to reason.

                         Peace can be won and maintained

                         only if we convince freedom-loving

                         people elsewhere in the world that

                         rule of reason, procedures of

                         international justice, and the

                         relinquishment of selfish interests

                         must be substituted in the thinking

                         of people everywhere for the

                         emotional nationalism that still

                         dominates the world.

 

 

          CLOSE ON MORSE AND THE GIRL, IN THE THREE-LEGGED RACE, ONE

          GENERATION BOUND TO THE NEXT

 

          Both are laughing, having a high time, as the race

          continues.

 

                                          MORSE

                         So if you asked me, Wayne Morse,

                         name the one thing in our country

                         that you think will do more to

                         strengthen American foreign policy

                         in the next half century, you might

                         be surprised at my reply.

 

 

          FREEZE ON MORSE AND THE GIRL, HAVING A HIGH TIME

 

                                          MORSE

                         I would say, Do something to

                         protect the educational standard of

                         American boys and girls.  Do

                         something to protect American brain

                         power.  Because the only sure and

                         lasting defense of peace is a

                         highly educated and enlightened

                         citizenry.

 

 

          HOLD ON MORSE AND THE GIRL

 

 

          AND SCREEN TO BLACK

 

 

          SUPER ON SCREEN

 

          "Wayne Morse died in Portland, Oregon, on July 22, 1974.  He

          was seventy-three years old and vigorously campaigning for

          reelection to the United States Senate."

 

          FADE OUT.