[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?
We're eating.
Mmm, boy.
Who's there, honey?
[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!
And you saw this happen?
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.
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!
