Cliff House: You're Fired

February 2- 3, 1993

Shortly after the night ROGER was thrown out of HOLLYBEND, he is at WSPR preparing to air an interview of JENNA BRADSHAW, meant to damage the reputations of HENRY CHAMBERLAIN and SPAULDING ENTERPRISES. ROSS MARLER has come on behalf of SPAULDING to try to stop the interview. HOLLY does not even know about it—or rather, has just found out . . .

ROGER: All right, Marler, why don’t you tell everybody here just exactly how you intend to pull our license?

ROSS: I’ve requested a gag order.

ROGER: You’ve requested . . .

ROSS: To stop Jenna Bradshaw from giving a potentially libelous interview against Spaulding Enterprises.

ROGER: Well, “requested” implies to me that you don’t have your precious gag order yet.

ROSS: No, but I will, and if you defy it, you’ll be in contempt.

ROGER: The only thing I’m in “contempt” of is you. Now get outta here—you’ve got nothing!

ROSS: Roger, I’m warning you!

ROGER: Listen, we’re reporting facts. Nothing libelous in that.

BLAKE steps off the elevator in the background.

ROSS: They are not facts until proven in a court of law, and I suggest you don’t broadcast that kind of “facts.”

ROGER: Now listen, unless your gag order comes by the time Jenna Bradshaw gives her interview, she’ll say anything she damn well pleases! Now gag on that!

ROSS [To everyone there]: Anybody involved in this interview is subject to fines and/or imprisonment if Spaulding presses charges!

The camera focuses on GILLY and WILLIAM.

ROGER: You’ve got nothing to worry about! This is my station; I take full responsibility. You can’t stop me.

HOLLY steps off the elevator and rushes into the circle of faces, facing ROGER first.

HOLLY: Maybe not—but I can! [She turns to glare at GILLY].

The camera focuses first on HOLLY, then shifts to GILLY, and then ROGER.

HOLLY: How long is that piece we did on alternative energy sources?

WILLIAM: Eighty minutes.

HOLLY: Run it.

GILLY: Holly, It’s too late to pull Jenna’s interview.

HOLLY: It’s not six o’clock yet. Then we’ll need a fluff piece. Tell the entertainment editor—what’s-er-name—to drag out her Oscar predictions.

GILLY: But leads have aired. People will be expecting the interview.

HOLLY: They won’t see it.

GILLY: But Holly—

HOLLY: Want me to pull rank here? I’m station manager here. What I say goes!

Before she can get to her office, HOLLY comes face-to-face with ROGER, who coolly says:

ROGER: Not anymore. You’re fired.

HOLLY looks puzzled as the scene fades.

END of Episode.

HOLLY: You can’t fire me!

ROGER [walking away from her]: I just did.

HOLLY: I own half the station!

ROGER [turning back to her]: I’m trying to salvage your investment. You’ve been a miserable station manager and you’re outta here!

Both of them stride past an open-mouthed BLAKE, into HOLLY’s office. HOLLY slams the door.

HOLLY: You don’t think I’m gonna let you get away with this, do you!?

ROGER: Just calm down . . .

HOLLY: Why don’t you just go to hell!?

ROGER [reaching as if to touch her back]: Would you just listen to me, please?

HOLLY [jerking away]: Don’t touch me!

ROGER: Holly, you’ve had a tough year. Nobody knows that better than I do.

HOLLY [with a sneer]: Oh, yeah? And out of your concern for my well-being you’re firing me?

ROGER: Out of my concern for your well-being and the station’s. Yes.

HOLLY [Shaking her finger at him]: No, no—this isn’t about me. It’s about you using the station to help your mistress win a lawsuit!

ROGER: We are handling this like any other story.

HOLLY: The hell we are!

ROGER: Okay. Here’s the file. You go ahead and read it. You’ll see—we are not slanting anything.

HOLLY: The gospel according to Roger Thorpe?! No thanks! [Flings it down]

ROGER: Okay, fine. Then you read my contract instead. You’ll see I have the right to fire anybody who is not fulfilling their obligations. That includes you!

HOLLY: Get the hell out of my office right now!

ROGER [pulls a piece of paper out of pocket—he and HOLLY interrupt each other throughout the rest of the scene]: All right, Holly. In November 1992, you failed to show up for six staff meetings. On November 19^th, seven calls were made in an attempt to locate you.

HOLLY [dumbfounded, staring at the paper]: You’re keeping records of phone calls—what is this?

ROGER: When you couldn’t be found, we lost an important sponsor worth $25,000 in billings.

HOLLY: Let me see that!

ROGER: During the entire month of December, you showed up at this station a grand total of three times.

HOLLY: I don’t believe that you’ve got nothing better to do than to monitor my every move!

ROGER: You also signed over decision-making authority to a subordinate.

HOLLY: Now, I wasn’t feeling well, but I wanted to make sure that I was kept up with—

ROGER: In January 1993, you allowed the contract of our morning show to lapse—

HOLLY: That was a decision—

ROGER: That was a decision that cost us another $50,000! Holly, over the last six months you have cost this station $200,000 — well over!

HOLLY: You didn’t want me to know what was going on! And you knew how I would react about that story about Jenna! You set me up!

ROGER: Paranoia is not much of a defense.

[GILLY comes in.]

HOLLY: Gilly, this is wrong and you know it. If we run that interview, we could get sued. We could lose our license!

GILLY: Holly, we have researched the facts.

HOLLY: What facts? Where? All the information comes from Roger and Jenna!

GILLY: I believe her. I think she’s telling the truth.

[HOLLY realizes . . .]

HOLLY: Oh, of course. You’re in on this, too.

HOLLY [quiet sarcasm]: I should have seen this coming. Good for me you were here to prop things up for me. Oh, what would Roger have done without you?

GILLY: I was trying to help.

HOLLY: Sucking up to Roger at the expense of this station’s integrity isn't helping! And it’s career suicide, honey!

GILLY: Holly, I think going with the Bradshaw interview is the right call.

HOLLY: Oh, yeah, and you’re just the girl to make it. You should have told me, Gilly.

ROGER: Okay, now—you do not get to blame Gilly for your incompetence! She has held this station together while you were off having your mid-life crisis!

HOLLY [to GILLY]: A compliment from the chief! You must be glowing!

ROGER: I’m giving her more than a compliment. I’ve giving her your job.

HOLLY: Well, well. Mission accomplished. Congratulations.

GILLY: Holly, I did not want it like this.

HOLLY: I suppose your conscience would be much clearer if I just dropped dead!

GILLY [genuinely distressed]: Holly, now that’s a cheap shot!

HOLLY: I’m just getting warmed up!

ROGER: Yeah, but she doesn’t have to stay here and listen to this. [To GILLY] Go ahead and prep for the interview.

GILLY [breathless at first]: Okay. Thank you for your confidence in me. I will do a good job.

ROGER: I know you will, Gilly.

[ROGER closes the door as GILLY leaves.]

HOLLY: You’re not gonna win this one, Roger!

ROGER: I like my chances!

HOLLY: We’ll see if my lawyer agrees with you!

ROGER: Oh, don’t take this to court, Holly.

HOLLY: What do you expect me to do—roll over and play dead?!

ROGER: A lawsuit is a very public thing. It gets very unpleasant.

HOLLY: Is that a threat?

ROGER [crisply]: It’s a reality.

HOLLY: Just out of curiosity, what horror story are you planning to drag up about me?

ROGER: No stories, your recent behavior is quite enough, thanks.

HOLLY: My behavior?!

ROGER: No judge in the country is going to reinstate a clearly disturbed woman like yourself to a demanding job like this one.

HOLLY: WHAT??!!

ROGER: That is what you are going to hear if you take this to court.

HOLLY: Nobody is going to believe that I am disturbed!

ROGER: Holly, not even in light of your recent suicide attempt? Think about it. [ROGER gets up and moves to the door].

The tone has changed ... HOLLY seems hurt, and ROGER is more vulnerable, too.

HOLLY: You know what happened was just an accident.

ROGER: I wasn’t the only one to see you that night, you remember?

HOLLY: You wouldn’t really do this to me ...

ROGER: To you? Holly, you mean to my great and good friend? We’re not friends, Holly. We’re not anything to each other. You made that very clear the other night. I came to you. I was a little lonely; I was a little vulnerable. Hard for me to admit. And what did I want? Really, all I wanted was to be with someone who knew me, somebody that I could talk with. That's all. It didn’t seem like a whole lot to ask, even from you.

HOLLY: I didn’t know ...

ROGER: Oh, the hell you didn’t! But you threw me out anyway. You even threatened to call the police. So you’ll forgive me, dear and good friend, if I can’t muster a whole lot of sympathy for you.

[JENNA opens the door just in time to hear the following, and look crestfallen.]

HOLLY [all the wind out of her sails]: I remember now when you came over the other night, there was a moment, just a moment, when I felt there was something real, something human, but I wasn’t the one who ruined it, Roger. You always manage to do that all by yourself.

[HOLLY goes past JENNA as she leaves. ROGER follows as far as the doorway, and calls after her . . . ]

ROGER: It was business, Holly!

JENNA: Well, you never mentioned you went to see Holly that night.

ROGER is caught.

JENNA: So, what is that look in your eyes when you look at Holly? Is it hatred—or is it passion?

ROGER: Neither. It’s nothing.

JENNA: Oh, I don’t think so. No, in fact, I think that, if I were any other woman, I might feel jealous.

ROGER: But not you?

JENNA: No, no, no—not me.

ROGER [tickled]: But just curious? Look, we work together—or we used to. It’s not easy to cut the ties when you share a child together.

JENNA [looking at HENRY through the window]: Easier for some.

ROGER: You’re having second thoughts about this interview?

JENNA: No, no—I’m not, really, I’m just . . .

ROGER: Okay, let’s call it off.

JENNA: You mean that?

ROGER: Absolutely. It’s your decision. If you don’t feel right about this interview, I don’t want you to go through with it. Okay, okay? You see, I don’t want you to do anything that you don’t want to do. [ROGER hugs JENNA].

A few minutes later, as Jenna watches Henry embrace Vanessa ...

ROGER: I wish this story had the fairytale ending you'd always dreamed of, but it doesn't. Henry's not your father, Jenna. He already has a daughter.

JENNA: I know. When do we get started then?

ROGER: You're absolutely sure about this?

JENNA: Yes, I'm absolutely sure about this.

The same day . . . at the DINER, MICHELLE BAUER makes her father miserable . . . HOLLY arrives in the midst of it.

ED: So, how’s the ice cream.

MICHELLE: Fine.

ED: When you were small, you wouldn’t eat ice cream. You said it made your teeth fall asleep. I guess that was because it was cold.

[MICHELLE looks at him like he’s an absolute bloomin’ idiot.]