[Hogarth is in the barn putting his bicycle away] [in the shadows]
You're late for dinner, Hogarth. [Hogarth tries to escape from the barn but Kent locks the door and stops him] Your mom's working late tonight, Hogarth. So it's just us guys. And we're gonna have a little chat. Sit down! [shoves Hogarth onto a chair and shines a bright light on him] How's that? A little too bright? Good. [chuckles] Forgive me, Hogarth. I wanted you to learn something.
What can I learn from you?
You can learn this, Hogarth: that I can do anything I want whenever I want if I feel it's in the people's best interest. The giant metal man; Where is it?
I don't know what you're talking about.
You don't? Well... [lays his pictures on the table, first the one of the piece of metal that Hogarth lured the Giant with] Does this ring a bell? [Hogarth doesn't answer] No? How about [lays another picture which Hogarth accidentally took of himself with the Giant behind him] this? You've been careless, Hogarth.
It doesn't prove anything.
It's enough to get the army here with one phone call.
Then what's stopping you?
[angrily; knocking the lamp over the table]
WHERE'S THE GIANT?! [grabs Hogarth by the jaw] You can't protect him, Hogarth, any more than you can...protect your mother.
[sighs]
It's difficult to raise a boy all alone. We can make it more difficult. In fact, we can make it so difficult it would be irresponsible for us to leave you in her care, and all that implies. You'll be taken away from her, Hogarth.
[lowers his head; defeated]
He's in the junkyard. McCoppin's Scrap, off Culver Road.
Ah, the junkyard. Of course! Food for the metal-eater. I wouldn't worry about this, Hogarth. This isn't really happening. It's only a bad dream. [puts chloroform rag on Hogarth's mouth, knocking him unconscious]
[Hogarth opens the door and sees Kent Mansley.]
Hey there, scout. Kent Mansley. I work for the government. [Hogarth quickly closes the door and he gasps]
Hogarth? [Kent knocks and rings the doorbell] Hogarth? [Hogarth opens the door]
Hey there, scout. Kent Mansley. [smile disappears] Work for the government. Your parents home?
[stares at Annie's chest; huskily]
Well, hello there. [clears throat and regains composure] Do you have a telephone I could use?
Yes, there's one in the kitchen.
Well, thank you. Thank you very much. [to Hogarth] Here. [puts his fedora on Hogarth's head] Pretend you're a gangster. [chuckles]
[Kent calls General Rogard's home phone number. The general picks up while watching a western on TV.] [annoyed]
Damn it, Mansley, you called me at home for this?
You don't understand, sir. It-it-it-- It ate my car!
No, I didn't actually see it. It went off into the... woods.
So, you don't have any evidence.
But-But sir, I've got an eyewitness!
An eyewitness with a concussion.
[shouts]
This thing i--! [covers his mouth and lowers his voice] This thing is a menace. It-It-It-It tore up a power station and-- [phone falls, and he picks up] --and caused a train wreck!
What did? Tell me again, Mansley, and this time, listen to yourself.
[sighs; wearily]
A giant metal monster. [Rogard guffaws on the other end. Kent turns around a kitchen mitt that seems to mock him.] Please, sir. I've got a feeling about this one.
That's lovely, Kent. But let me try to explain how this works: If you told me you'd found, say, um, a giant footprint, I might send over an expert to make a plaster cast of it. Hell, you get me a photograph of this thing and I could probably get some troops over there! But you tell me you've got a feeling.
All right, then fine. You want evidence? I'll get you evidence, and when I do, I'm gonna want a memo distributed.
[dryly]
That sounds swell, Kent.
I'm gonna want that memo carbon-copied, and redistributed, [Rogard hangs up.] and-- [Kent stops, and tries to hang up the phone, which falls off the receiver, twice; he gets angry, yelling incoherently and bangs the phone against the receiver several times, then composes himself.] Hi. Thanks for the use of your phone. [goes outside the door and puts his fedora back on.] Well, thank you for the use of your phone, Mrs.--?
Hughes. Annie Hughes. And this is my son, Hogarth.
Thank you, Annie. Hobart.
That's Hogarth! [grumbles irritably]
[Kent gets into his government-issue car and starts driving.]
"Hogarth"? What an embarrassing name. Might as well call him Zeppo or something. What kind of a sick person would name their kid Hogar--? [stops and looks over to Hogarth's smashed B-B gun which says "Hog Hug," instead of "Hogarth Hughes." ] "Hog Hug". "HOG HUG"?! [realizes] HOGARTH HUGHES!
[scene changes to Hogarth and Kent having root beer floats.]
First, you take a chocolate bar. Any bar will do.
No, knock yourself out, skipper.
[crumbles up choco-lax]
You crumble up the chocolate into little pieces, [stirs the ice cream] then you kind of stir it into the ice cream. See?
Yes, I see. What do you call this, again?
Landslide. It's new. Very new. [tosses choco-lax wrapper in garbage can without Kent noticing]
Mmm. Landslide. Topnotch. Mmm. [Hogarth makes a landslide with a regular chocolate bar.] You know, Hogarth, we live in a strange and wondrous time. The Atomic Age. But, there's a dark side to progress, Hogarth. Ever hear of Sputnik?
Yeah, it's the first satellite in space.
Foreign satellite, Hogarth, and all that that implies. Even now, it orbits overhead... (Boop! Boop!) ...watching us. We can't see it, but it's there. Much like that giant thing in the woods. We don't know what it is or what it can do. I don't feel safe, Hogarth. Do you?
[puzzled and confused]
What are you talking about?
What am I talking about? [angrily] What am I TALKING ABOUT?! [everyone stares at Kent] I'm talking about your goldarned security, Hogarth! While you're snoozing in your little jammies, back in Washington, we're wide awake and worried. Why? Because everyone wants what we have, Hogarth; Everyone! You think this metal man is fun. But who built it? The Russians? The Chinese? The Martians? Canadians?! I DON'T CARE! All I know is we didn't build it, and that's reason enough to assume the worst and blow it to kingdom come! Now, you are going to tell me about this thing, you are going to lead me to it, and we are going to destroy it before it destroys us! [suddenly, Kent's stomach begins to gurgle, causing his glare to fade away and his eyes to widen] Just hold that thought and stay right there! Uh-oh!
[Kent rushes to the bathroom, and Hogarth takes his chance and escapes.]
