- ( people chattering ) - Man: Order up!
Man #2: Where my greens at?
Man #3: Two more drinks for table six.
Man #4: Got it.
( people chattering )
- Woman: She got fired. - Darlene: What'd she do this time?
Well, she was washing dishes in the kitchen,
but then she told the manager
- she wanted to be a wait... - Donna?
- Roger. - Hey, how long you been back?
A couple days.
You look good all changed up.
Thanks.
How you making it?
Yeah, I'm doing all right.
I know your folks glad to have you back.
Yeah, they are.
Son, can we get our food today?
It's really good seeing you.
You, too.
- He's sweet. - ( chuckles )
Woman: Always was. Why'd you break up with him?
Had things I wanted to do.
Besides, I got a man.
Now, you see how he taking care of me.
- He must be rich. - He ain't starving, that's for sure.
- Pssh. - You guys want a refill?
Oh, yes, thank you.
Y'all should come back with me.
And be a model like you? You dreaming.
Maybe you ain't dreaming enough.
- ( scoffs ) - I ain't even know I was alive
till I went up there.
I'm a country girl through and through.
Plus, I like eating too much.
I heard that them New York models
got to have sex with whoever's doing the hiring.
- That's true? - Not if you don't want to.
What about you?
I do what I want, when I want.
You come back with me, you see how it can work.
So, did you hear about Leon Davidson?
He wrecked his daddy's Mustang.
Drove it right into a ditch.
What? Does Nancy know?
No, girl, I heard he was with some other girl
he met down in Charlotte.
- ( gasps ) Oh, my God, Nancy know? - Where you going?
- Outside for a little. - So, did Nancy find out?
Oh, yeah, she is mad at him.
( crow cawing )
- ( birds chirping ) - ( distant rooster crows )
- Hey. - Hey.
Pretty day.
I guess.
I heard you talking back there.
You a model?
Yeah.
In New York.
New York City?
Damn.
( theme music playing )
♪ Sisters ♪
♪ Brothers and the whiteys ♪
♪ Blacks and the crackers ♪
♪ Police and their backers ♪
♪ They're all political actors ♪
♪ But they don't know ♪
♪ There can be no show ♪
♪ And if there's hell below ♪
♪ We're all gonna go, go, go, go, go, go ♪
♪ Everybody praying ♪
♪ And everybody saying ♪
♪ But when come time to do ♪
♪ Everybody's laying ♪
♪ Just talking about don't worry, worry, worry, worry, worry, worry ♪
♪ They say, "Don't worry, worry, worry, worry, worry, worry" ♪
♪ They say, "Don't worry, worry ♪
♪ Worry, worry, worry, worry" ♪
♪ They say, "Don't worry, worry ♪
♪ Worry, worry, worry, worry." ♪
- ( Candy moaning ) Yeah. - ( man grunting )
( both moaning )
( grunting )
( both sighing )
- Okay. - ( sighs )
- Been a while, huh? - ( both chuckling )
- Feel 10 pounds lighter. - Yeah, I bet you do.
All right, G.I. Joe, up and out.
I need the room.
( sighs )
Mm, no, I'm not a whoremaster.
Nobody said you were, but, Vince, come on.
This guy is offering to set us up with another business!
- Am I right? - Us?
Whether thou goest... wait, is it whether or whither?
What the fuck do I know about a massage parlor?
( stutters ) So you'll learn.
Or, shit, I'll learn.
All right? I'll be the pussy hound.
All you gotta do is say yes to Rudy.
It'll be clean work for you.
- Clean work. - Hey, do you mind?
You should've stayed put at Kim's.
Once you start saying yes to these guys...
I can say no to Rudy on this. And I'm gonna.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, little brother, come on.
Just slow down, here. Let's talk about it.
I got a question for you.
What, you got an opinion on this, too?
Korean entree. Bi bim blank.
Bap. It's bim bup... bap. It's bap.
- Bap? - B-A-P.
In like Flynn. All right.
I got enough on my hands with this here.
Which reminds me. Hey.
You put us into the bar guides yet?
- Thanks. - Yeah, we're in.
The gay one, too? What's it called? Michael's Stick?
- ( scoffs ) - ( chuckles ) Michael's Thing.
- Whatever. - You know, it might help if we place a few ads, too.
I checked the rates.
They're not bad for a half-page.
Okay, draw something up.
- Me? - Yeah.
- I can't draw. - I thought all you guys were artistic.
Big Mike: I'll do it.
You got the time?
I'll fit it in my schedule.
I know a few of the women now.
They get a little hinky when their pimps are around,
but if you catch them alone, they talk.
After that, I wanna talk to the pimps.
Also alone, run interviews side by side.
He says, she says. Contrast and compare.
Black pimps misusing white girls from wherever?
I can deliver near as many black women being pimped as white.
Sandra, all we're doing is reinforcing the stereotypes,
just like those goddamn ghetto flicks out there now.
Everybody cheering for the pusherman.
I'm giving you life as lived.
We have Les Matthews for that.
He's got the street stuff covered.
And his copy reads smooth.
But this, it's not news.
- It's not for us. - Oh, right. Uplift only.
Sorry.
We stand up for our own, Sandra.
At least let me write something longer
and show it to you.
- He's gonna notice money's missing. - Don't worry about that.
- But how much do I take? - Just don't give him all of it.
Well, how much?
- ( music playing ) - ( chatter )
Excuse me.
Hey. What are you doing hanging around here?
Waiting for somebody.
I'm flattered, but I'm not gonna get out of here for hours.
Somebody else.
Mystery date?
Mystery to you, maybe.
Hey, what can I get you?
I'm looking for Abby. She works here.
Uh-huh. Abby.
Hey, Evan.
Is that it?
That's him.
That's what I said.
Okay. See you later.
I got your camera back from Darryl.
Cool. I've been missing it.
Keep it for me.
Hey, you two kids have a swell time, okay?
Hey.
Think he's good-looking?
He's not my type.
Yeah, well, pretend you're her.
He's nothing special.
Yeah, exactly.
Jack: Oh, Jesus, Eileen.
( Jack moaning )
Let me... let me do it.
Oh. ( gasps ) Like that?
Yeah. Yes, just like that.
- Yeah. - Oh.
- ( moaning )
Oh, oh! Oh.
Oh.
( gasping )
( Jack exhaling )
Did you come?
( chuckles )
- ( moans ) - ( laughs )
- I don't think I'm quite ready. - Sure, you are.
No, I'm not. Eileen, seriously, I'm not.
( sighs )
( exhales )
( moaning )
( panting )
( moaning )
( crying out )
( gasping )
( sighs )
So, did you come that time?
( both laughing )
- ( siren wailing ) - ( horns honking )
I told you three.
You told me three last night.
Every night three.
Till Darlene gets back, the two of you
are gonna have to start making up for the losses.
Where the hell is Darlene, anyway?
You do not need to concern yourself with where Darlene at.
She on a mission for me.
Hell, send me on a mission.
- Oh, you gonna start bitching, too? - $400.
Can we put that toward tomorrow?
Hey, that's what I'm talking about.
You start busting it like that,
you could take a whole snow day.
I'll make it up tomorrow.
Come on, Larry.
My feet are killing me.
You in pain?
Then you should learn to walk on your hands, bitch.
- ( horn honking ) - Woman: What you honking at?
Shut up!
- Man: I never said that. - ( car door closes )
That was different.
For you, maybe.
Yeah. I guess for me, yeah.
All's well that ends well, right?
( chuckles ) You're different.
How so?
Well, I meant that as a compliment.
Okay.
But how did you mean it?
As a good thing.
Good how?
- ( scoffs ) I... - I'm fucking with you, Jack.
Jesus.
Listen, what are you doing Saturday night?
My boss is having a get-together at his place...
hors d'oeuvres, cocktails.
- ( sniffs ) - Come on, it'll be fun.
Gotta see how my week's going.
Where are you going?
I got an early morning tomorrow.
Oh, okay, well, maybe next time, we'll stay at your place.
It'd be nice to sleep in the same bed and have some breakfast.
Yeah.
But now I gotta go.
Oh, um, at least let me get you a cab.
- No, no, I got money. - No, really.
( sighs )
Such a gentleman.
( door opens )
Evan: I graduate and I'm looking at a bad number.
- Really bad. - Man: Party's a bummer.
We should find a movie.
- Man #2: How bad? - Seventy-four.
No way I stay clear of the draft board with a number that low.
- You seen that book they got, 4-F? - Yeah, read every page.
Shit, I'm hoping McGovern can get in and end the fucking war.
Me, too. So, why the army jacket?
Irony.
- Everybody wears them. - Everybody's ironic, huh?
I was thinking of going for a creative writing master's next year,
but when I told my father, he said,
"Anybody who'd write a poem would suck a dick."
Man #2: You should look into the copyrighting program
at the B school.
This way, you get to write and get paid for it.
How about you, Abs? When are you coming back to school?
You're a barmaid, right?
Hey, if I stick with it,
a year from now, I'll get promoted to mermaid.
( laughs )
Seriously, I... I don't see what the big deal is.
Man: So, "Play Misty For Me" or "Straw Dogs"?
Show of hands.
So, my theory is with fucking,
the men are always wanting more, more, more, more, right?
And the women are like, "More?
You fucking kidding me?"
So, when it comes to frequency,
lesbians, both being women,
they do it the least, right?
So, they get the bronze.
Straights, one of each now,
it's "Push me, pull you."
But still, it's worth a silver.
But with you people,
it's all dick all the time, right?
No one gets a headache.
Just dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick, dick!
I mean, you're like the fucking East German track team.
You get a gold fucking medal
every time you hear the gun go off.
- It's a little more complicated than that. - Yeah, bullshit.
But you wanna know why I'm not gay?
- Not enough holes. - ( snickers )
Tommy: Mr. Martino.
- Vincent. - Vincent: The usual?
Yeah, a short one.
And the courtesy of your reply to my employer.
Well, I appreciate the faith you put in me,
even making the offer.
But?
I thought about it.
I did, Tommy, and it's not for me.
Look, everything they go through...
( exhales ) I got a lot of respect for those girls.
But running them? A parlor?
I don't know the first thing about it, and I don't want to.
Hmm.
Are you telling me I can't say no to Rudy Pipilo?
( laughs ) Of course you can.
It's... it's an opportunity he's offering, is all.
If you wanna pass, you pass.
All right, well, just tell him I'm putting everything I have
into building up this joint for him.
- All right? - He'll hear that.
All right, we'll see ya, Vince.
- ( music playing ) - ( chatter )
( door opens )
( door closes )
What?
And he's got the world so ordered in his Nixon brain.
He loses his mind if someone new parks in the driveway.
Shit, we missed the 9:00s, but we can still make a late show, though.
- "Misty" is 11:20. - No, but they're all on that fucked up frequency, though.
I had to throw everything I had at my father
just to get him to back down from law school.
Man: "Straw Dogs," 11:40.
I gotta go.
What, you don't wanna come see the movie?
Nope.
Hey.
- You okay? - ( elevator dings )
( scoffs ) You should go back in.
- ( button clicks ) - Thanks for my camera.
- ( girl giggling ) - Joey: Surrender or die!
( giggling )
Die, die, you Amerikaner "schwine"!
Hey, I told you to cut that shit.
Not in the goddamn house.
I'm trying to think here.
Come... come on, Joey!
- Take it upstairs. - ( shouts )
Christ, go drive your mom nuts for a while, all right?
( laughing )
Joey: Die, die!
Surrender or die.
( loud crashing )
( Joey grunts ) I die for "zhe" fatherland.
Larry: Turn around.
Man: Hey, Frankie, over here!
( horn honking )
This is what you bring back?
How old are you?
- Twenty. - ( mocking ) "Twenty."
Twenty going on 16. God damn it, Darlene!
I told you to bring back somebody who was street ready,
not this chocolate Gidget
gonna get me sent to Rikers.
Put her back on the bus.
Look, she here, Larry. She need a job.
Then drop her ass off at the McDonald's
or the Calico Kitchen or Childs.
But now that I think about it,
Childs is the right place for this one right here.
( car door closes, engine starts )
( music playing over radio )
( tires squeal )
( sighs )
"Street ready"?
- I can explain. - I get it.
I'll tell you one thing, though.
I ain't finna to get back on that bus.
( horn honks )
- ( projector whirring ) - ( door opens )
( door closes )
( man coughs )
You like the movie?
Want some company?
( coughing continues )
( music playing )
- Give me the third one. - Okay.
With wheat toast. Thank you.
Leon: Two eggs over easy, bacon, and wheat toast.
So, you ever done any real modeling?
You gonna eat them fries?
Leon: Come on, mama, let's get it going, sweetheart.
Three eggs scrambled, ham, home fries...
( horn honking )
- Hey. - In the van, sweet pea.
- Whoa, on what charge? - Hey, come on.
- Soliciting. - Who did I solicit?
- My partner here. - This is total crap, guys.
Be that as it may, get your faggot ass in the van.
Let's go, let's go.
You, too, get in there.
Make room.
I mean, it's gonna get done, right?
Them guineas are gonna do it whether or not we say.
I already said no.
You were there, you heard.
You can't change your mind?
Let me get this straight,
you, with all the seniority in the world,
union card since you were 18,
married to my sister,
fucking rug rats all over the house,
Mr. Bay Ridge himself...
you're gonna run whores for the fucking wise guys?
You fucking hate those guys, remember?
They beat one of your people last month.
Fucking tore into me like my name was Gambino or something.
Now you're gonna work for them?
Doing this? Give me a fucking break.
I go back to a job site,
doctors say I'll stroke out within a year.
That's what they say.
I need money, Vince.
You're not doing this so you can go pussy hound on me, right?
I mean, my sister finds out...
Fuck you think of me, Vince?
I wouldn't poke those girls with your dick.
But if it's true what they're saying,
- that the whole thing's fixed with the city? - Yeah.
- Which might be bullshit. - If it's true,
then this could be a lot of fucking money.
And I understand how you feel about running whores,
but me, I look on it like if it's me,
I'm gonna be better than some asshole
who ain't even gonna try to be fair.
I mean, I've been a supervisor, right?
I made shop steward at 26.
You gonna rep these girls, Bobby?
What are you gonna do, get them to work the contract?
Time-and-a-half on weekends?
Come on, Vince.
You'll see the money's right and front to Rudy and them,
but I'll take care of everything else.
I will.
( whispers ) Fuck you.
She said she's 20.
Looked like jailbait.
Fifteen would not surprise me.
Fake ID, homeslice. Ain't no thing.
Maybe. All the same, I don't need another child to support.
Start calling you Charlie Brown.
- Good grief, motherfucker. - Plus, she's gonna be a lot of work.
I mean, like, from the ground up type work.
Shit, I'll take her off your hands.
( chuckles )
You want her, you buy her.
She a looker?
Eye of the beholder.
( sucks teeth ) Bring her to Leon's.
I like what I see, I'll throw you 2K
and maybe a player to be named later.
Mm-mm, you too good.
Keep your player.
2-5.
- ( music playing ) - ( chatter )
Hey, so how'd the big date go last night?
- It went. - ( phone ringing )
Hi-Hat.
Hey, Paul, we're slammed over here. Where the fuck are you?
Oh, well, I'm honored that I was your only phone call.
No, fuck it. It's cool.
Yeah, I'm on it. All right.
Mike, can you do me a favor?
Can you go over to the 14th station house,
bail out our bartender?
- Okay. - ( register closes )
- ( shutter clicks ) - Did I say you could do that?
Relax. Just a hobby.
I'm working on something.
Yeah, well, work on making me
another Jack and Coke instead.
♪ She makes me colder in her arms... ♪
Have you ever had a job, Reggie?
You think this ain't a job?
I see Shay and Melissa doing all the work.
I don't know exactly what it is you do
except count the cash and treat them like shit.
( scoffs ) Well, what you don't know about me would fill a library.
You think I don't know your type?
- Shit, I read you like a comic book. - All right, Reg.
Which is not to say that I don't admire
those pert little nay-nays
you got in that onesie you wearing.
I'm not serving you.
( chuckles )
Shit.
Girl take my picture without asking
and then won't fix my drink?
I feel downright exploited.
Vince: Hey, how about both of you
back this bullshit up, all right?
Vince, you ain't heard the news? Sexism's out.
If you want pussy nowadays, treat it equal.
Ain't that right, Miss Chrissy?
( shutter clicks )
( scoffs ) Well, now...
don't start the revolution without me.
Too late. Shit's already started.
Hey, man, you best hit that shit before I do.
Where the fuck did that come from?
Just taking a fucking picture.
This is a bar. Look like an art studio?
- ( horn honking ) - You like to watch?
Yeah?
( moaning )
( grunts )
Oh, mother...
Get the fuck off me!
( screams, groans )
I want the money.
- ( screaming ) - The money!
- ( muffled screaming ) - Where's the money?
Okay, I'll give it to you!
- I'll give it to you! - ( panting )
( gasps ) Just don't hurt me.
Get it.
All of it.
Just wait here. ( grunts )
- Motherfucking piece of shit! - ( groaning )
- ( grunts ) - ( groaning )
( groans )
- Man: You bitch! - ( blows landing )
- ( Candy groaning ) - ( both grunting )
( thudding, clattering )
- ( door slams ) - ( phone ringing )
( chatter )
( door buzzes )
Officer: Hendrickson, Paul.
Here.
Officer #2: Big mistake every time, you know?
Hey, thanks.
These fucking cops and their bullshit rousts.
You know?
- We should go. - ( scoffs )
No humanity in these motherfuckers.
- Am I right? - Such a lovely couple.
- ( officers laughing ) - Officer: Better watch your mouth there, slick.
No stitches.
Well, maybe just a butterfly bandage will do.
Oh, probably don't even need that.
You're lucky.
Lucky me.
- ( horns honking ) - ( police radio chatter )
You just let it go like this?
Sure. Why not?
They need to make a living, too.
What he means to say is the timing's all wrong.
- Timing for what? - For OT.
A lot of guys on 4:00-12:00s
don't get serious about pross collars
until around 11:00 or 11:30.
You work past shift, you make time-and-a-half on the overage.
Because?
Because you go home, sleep a few hours,
and then you're in court the next morning.
Pick up eight hours of time-and-a-half
that you can bank for vacation if you want.
I'm guessing the charges don't stick.
Girls are back on the street by breakfast.
There was this dude in Greek mythology
that the gods punished by making him roll a boulder up the side of a mountain,
only to see it come back down the other side.
So, he had to do it again and again and again.
That'd be Sisyphus,
except he didn't get paid
each time he made it up to the top.
Meaning what?
- Never mind. - I earn my money.
What, you think you can have us drive you around
and just say any snide shit that comes in your head?
You have no idea what we have to deal with around here.
- Sorry. - I earn my money.
- Got it. - Are you hungry?
I could eat.
Drop us off at Leon's.
Gladly.
- Hey. - ( jackhammer rattling )
Thanks for tolerating my back and forth on this.
Hey, you like to think things through. That's a good way to be.
So, with the girls, the cops, your weekly nut,
what's gonna be left for us?
Plenty. And if I'm wrong about that, we'll adjust my end.
I'm not greedy, Vincent.
I make money, you make money, just like the bar.
- You're saying that this is all fixed with the city? - They want this.
They want as much shit off the street as they can get.
They're offering five locations like this one.
We make this one work, there's gonna be plenty right behind it.
- You'll see. - Yeah, so no raids, no arrests.
There's a raid now and then for show.
We'll know it's coming.
You and your people take the night off,
kick back up the next day.
This is gonna spread me a little thin.
But you're okay if I bring in Bobby?
He'd run the shop and I'd give him
Black Frankie on the door.
Who you hire is your decision.
You're in charge of your own, Vince. I'm not gonna interfere.
As long as the money's right, I don't care.
Yeah, well, this shithole's
gonna need work to get it where it needs to be.
Well, that's my cost, but nothing too fancy.
I mean, make it classy, but keep it simple.
- Classy but simple. - Yeah.
- Well, I guess Bobby could handle construction. - Tommy: Two things.
You're gonna wanna rig some kind of back entrance
so guys can come and go without being seen from the street.
- And also a VIP room. - VIP?
For spenders, you know.
There needs to be a little high-end in the place.
Tommy: Yeah, not everything in life
is a $20 drip job, you know.
- Oh. - You made a good decision here, Vince.
- This is gonna be real good. - Tommy: See ya, Vince.
( exhales )
- Penny for your fucking thoughts. - ( door opens )
Someone gonna sell the pussy, someone gonna buy the pussy.
- ( door closes ) - We're just landing the cut, man.
Right.
She don't get out the house much
'cause she got arthritis and everything.
Doctor doesn't give her any painkillers?
Rochelle: Yeah, but she's stubborn.
- You know him? - Richie?
( chuckles ) Sure.
- You don't want him. - Why not?
Richie is not exactly the typical mack.
One time, I brought his girl in for beating on him.
( laughing )
- Guess I need a better pimp, huh? - Mm-hmm.
Most of the guys just give me the stink eye.
Don't worry, they'll start talking.
They love to hear themselves talk.
I was hoping maybe you could make some introductions.
Maybe.
I'll look into it.
You know, I've been reading about the testimony
that went over to the Knapp Commission,
what's coming out now, all that stuff about the pad.
Well, that guy was in Queens, mostly, working narcotics.
Anyway, it's supposed to be widespread.
They're saying whole precincts.
So they say.
Is it true? The pad?
I wouldn't know.
I mean, I just thought you were so up front about the OT...
All I know is what I read in the paper, just like you.
I'm done. You?
Leon: You're getting too agitated.
Woman: How do you want your eggs?
- ( bell dings ) - Got it.
( ringing )
Candy's voice: Record your message now.
( beeps )
Jack over phone: Hey, I'm just calling to say
what a great time I had with you the other night.
Really great.
I feel like we're starting
to get to know each other a little.
Um... I hope you feel the same.
And I also wanna check in,
see if you had any more of a handle
on coming to the party with me Saturday night.
Okay, call me when you can.
- Bye. - ( clicks )
- Kind of young, ain't she? - Mind your business.
One order up. Two eggs, mesh, bacon.
( music playing )
This is Rodney.
You're with him now.
- What now? - Think of yourself as a ballplayer.
They get traded all the time.
( patting )
( clears throat )
I'm Bernice.
Ruby. She Tiffany.
- ( chuckles ) Ruby? - That's my name, Rodney.
It wouldn't kill you to use it every now and then.
Yeah, all right.
He broke you in yet?
Break me in?
Rodney, you're embarrassing her.
If she the embarrassing type,
she in the wrong line of work.
I'm all right.
That's good.
One thing, though.
Ain't nobody wanna fuck a girl named Bernice.
Leon: Pickup for Maria.
I think I'ma call you Ginger.
Everybody, say hello to Ginger.
You don't like it?
Not really.
Well, it's better than Ruby.
Ain't that right, Thunderthighs?
Get your hand out of my face.
( laughing )
How many girls are we talking about?
Fuck do I know?
Well, they each need a room, right?
What kind of bed?
( scoffs ) Fuck do I know?
And a john?
They each need a bathroom or they go out to use the toilet?
Fuck do I know?
We put locks on their doors?
- Fuck do I know, Bobby? - On the inside of the doors.
Do we want them locking themselves in with the customers?
Fuck do I fucking know?
You're not much help here.
Sorry.
Don't worry, fucko.
I got this surrounded.
Great.
I can't believe Art didn't wanna come. He loves to dance.
- ( muffled music playing ) - I didn't invite him.
This hide-and-seek game that he plays with his job, I'm done.
You mean the job that pays your rent.
- Whose side are you on? - Honey, I'm Switzerland.
I'm just pointing out that it might be easier to be out
when you serve cocktails to old queens for a living.
Fuck it, I wanna be in the world.
So, when's Art moving out?
As soon as I can afford my own rent.
- He's with me. - Okay.
Jesus, $3 just to go dancing and they don't even have beers?
No booze, no liquor license, no raids, and no mob owners.
- And no profit. - Sweetheart,
some things are more important than the bottom line.
♪ Rain, yeah ♪
♪ Oh, no ♪
♪ It's gonna rain, yeah ♪
♪ Oh, uh-uh, no ♪
♪ I don't want it to rain ♪
- ♪ I don't want it to rain, no... ♪ - Love saves the day.
- ♪ I don't want it to rain ♪ - ♪ Wow ♪
♪ I'm a long way from home ♪
♪ I'm a long way from home, now ♪
♪ I'm a long way from home, so... ♪
- Woman: Hey, Daddy. - ( horn honks )
- Looking for a date? - ( people chattering )
Hey there, Candy girl.
CoverGirl shit don't quite do it.
What are you, a fashion photographer?
No, though I'll say this,
it don't look as bad as that ass whooping you took last Christmas.
- Girl, you looked a mess that time. - Rodney.
- Yeah? - I'm working.
Yeah, about that...
I always wondered how you gave head with a busted jaw.
Or turn tricks with that cast on your arm.
No, wait, that was another time.
April maybe. May.
That one had you over at Lenox Hill if I recall.
( clears throat ) Fuck off.
Oh, no, no, mama.
Okay, now, wait a minute, now.
See, you got me all wrong.
I ain't out here to bust on you, baby.
It's just that you keep expecting better,
but you keep getting worse.
I mean, you go it alone,
come the dark hour, you are alone.
May I?
( sniffles )
Now, what could be more lonely than that?
So, what are you offering?
Next time I get my ass kicked, I can cry on your shoulder?
What's the cut you take for that?
Ain't gonna be no next time you come with me.
I'ma have your back everywhere you go, baby.
( horn honks )
- ( sniffles ) - Aw, no, no, no.
See here. No, no, look. Look here, baby.
Or maybe next time you hook up
with some hacky sack, wack-ass motherfucker...
( both chuckling )
...we'll need to come by after
and sweep up what's left of you from under the bed,
take it out to the cemetery in a cereal box.
You and me out here...
you kidding me?
I'm talking world-famous, baby.
( crying )
( sniffles ) Mmm.
You like that, huh?
( horns honking )
( cries )
Give your number to my secretary.
( sniffles )
See, what always fucked me up about you was
what the hell some high-class acting, movie-looking individual
was doing down here to begin with, huh?
Walking around here, smiling down your nose at everybody
- like some cream filled, tiara wearing... - ( sobbing )
- ..."I shit beige" bitch got everything under control. - Rodney, Rodney.
Everything and everybody all under control.
Rodney, why don't you just hop back into that piece of shit
- pimp chariot of yours... - Look at your face.
...and drive into a fucking wall!
Hoping to slob a johnson tonight for not enough money, baby.
- You don't control shit down here! - And you do?
Now that I think on it, baby, that high-post act of yours
has got to make you the saddest, "pathetic-est,"
craziest bitch on this stroll.
- I'm the craziest? - What happened, Candy?
Daddy have his way with you back in the day?
- You don't know shit. - Pass you around to his drinking buddies?
- You don't fucking know shit. - I don't have to.
You the one need to do the knowing.
( people chattering )
Whoa!
- Man: Bro, did you see that one? - Man #2: You like that?
Man: All that woman all to myself?
Hell, yeah!
( music playing )
( music continues )
- Whoa, whoa, whoa. - ( laughs )
( moans )
Art: Paul?
Yeah, it's me.
- Who's that? - My roommate.
- Is he cute? - Yeah, he's cute, all right.
Does he want to join us?
- Mmm, maybe. - ( door opens )
Hello.
Hi.
Sorry if we woke you.
You didn't.
- ( blows ) - Would you like to join us?
You have some catching up to do.
- ( coughing ) - ( chuckles )
- ( laughs ) - ( moans )
( horn honking )
Man: Hey, you free?
Wow. You are beautiful.
How much?
How much, sweetheart?
Man: What the fuck?
Hey, you think you're better than me, huh?
( tires squeal )
( horn honking )
Right on. Yeah, well, they talk about it, right?
That sound... how do they get it and keep it so consistent?
What's the secret sauce?
Well, here's the secret.
Ain't no sauce, brother. It's the pipes.
- Voice pipes? - No, man.
Pipes, pipes. Pipes in the building.
See, they sing all that shit downstairs
and record it upstairs.
Smokey, Stevie, and all them killers.
They voice go through the ducts
and pick up the soul of the place on the way.
Ain't no expensive recording equipment,
ain't no high-tech bullshit.
- Just pure innovation. - There you go.
And see, that's what separates us from the white man.
See, we can turn a dime into a dollar just like that.
And why? That's all they gave us, baby.
Berry Gordy, for real.
"Make do with what you got."
- It's what we do, brah. - That's the genius of the race.
( scoffs )
Listen, I've been talking to a reporter.
- Mm. - Doing a story on the street trade.
- She want to rap. - ( chuckles )
You say rap, I hear "enrapment."
Right? She comes out here,
catches a little naughty business,
and then your people pull up,
and there goes Reggie Love, dumbest mack on Earth.
- Man, would I do you like that? - Shit.
She just wants to write what goes on down here.
Tell it straight.
Let me ask, is she that uppity afro queen
I seen you with?
- Mm-hmm. - ( laughs )
Yeah, Officer Alston just trying to get on her good side,
so he could jump that thing.
( chuckles ) Coming to Reggie Love
talking about some, "She just wants to write
about what's going on down here."
- Ooh, telling it real. - ( laughs )
Man, are you in or not?
Well, it might be bad for business
if people see me talking to a reporter.
Well, it might be bad for business
if I go through your pockets right now.
See? You catch more flies with honey, what I heard.
Shit.
She want to know about my game?
Man, somebody should write a book.
Melissa: Oh, my God, just...
- oh, don't stop, baby. - Man: Yeah.
Melissa: Oh, baby, just keep going.
- ( music playing ) - ( moaning )
- ( man moaning ) - Oh, God, right there. Right there.
- Not yet, not yet, not yet. - ( grunts )
No, no, don't, don't, don't, don't stop.
- I'm so close. ( moans ) - ( cries out )
- ( toilet flushes ) - ( both sighing )
( chuckles ) Finished without me?
Sorry, babe.
I got nothing left.
( sighs )
Make sure you get the money up front.
- All right. - Rodney ain't as bad as the others,
but you gotta bring in your piece.
You keep getting took, shit gets bad.
What kind of bad?
Abby, baby. Come meet Bernice.
Tiffany: Abby works at the Hi-Hat just down there.
Place jumps till late.
You new in town?
Just came up from Carolina.
She know Darlene.
Actually, we just met down there.
But I do know some of her cousins, though, so.
Ah.
Well, uh, welcome to New York.
- How is Darlene down there? - What?
You saw her down in Carolina.
How is she doing back home?
She here. She come back with me.
( women shouting )
So, what kind of bad?
( music playing )
Count it if you need to.
What's wrong with her now?
Oh, had an encounter out there.
An encounter, huh? Just one?
We need some time alone here.
Here you go.
How come she don't gotta wear the leotard no more?
The elastic was chaffing.
Oh, yeah? Well, mine, too.
Hey, that's the uniform.
Wear it or walk.
You, too.
What?
- It's our trademark. - Ah.
- What can I get you? - Gin, please.
- Vince: Gin. - ( crowd chattering )
Loretta: Did you see your family?
Darlene: I stayed with a cousin.
Barbara: What about your parents?
If I went to see them, they'd probably want money or something.
- Why? - I don't know.
They think I owe them for being born or some shit.
- Welcome back, Darlene. - Thank you.
Barbara: I wish I could go home, just for a night.
- What for? - Kill some people.
( chuckles ) You seen any of the new Saint Laurents?
- Barbara: No. - I don't know what the big deal is.
Most of them look boring to me,
but there's this green fur I like.
Barbara: No.
( sighs )
She said she was leaving.
Can't believe I fell for that.
Who?
Darlene.
Larry's girl.
She left. Now she's back.
Why?
Maybe she likes her life the way it is.
You ever think of that?
The way he controls her?
( laughs )
Did your daddy pay for your college?
- So what? - Oh, but then I heard you quit.
Is he still helping you out? Paying your rent and shit?
- No way. - Mm-hmm.
Daddies, husbands, and pimps... they're all the same.
They love you for who you are
until you try to be someone else.
At least pimps are up front about it.
Yeah, that's, um...
( sighs )
I'm a little surprised you called.
Tell you the truth, we have a lot of the same questions.
Except for a few.
( people chattering )
I want you to meet Reggie Love.
Your name rings out.
Yeah, I cut a wide swath in Midtown.
Sandra Washington, "Amsterdam News."
Thought you was with the "Times."
Reggie Love does not play in the rec leagues.
I'm sorry, I thought Officer Alston had...
why didn't you tell him that I work for...
Reggie Love is fucking with you.
I'll leave you to it.
You know my fee, right?
- $20 an hour? - $20?
You see me in coveralls,
cow shit on my shoes?
$40.
- ( sighs ) - Time is money, baby.
Pretty girl like you gots to know that, right?
That the first rule of pimping?
First rule of pimping is look a man in his eyes
when you're talking to him.
- Got it. - Mm.
$40.
( police radio chatter )
She got you all fucked up, partner.
I can see.
- She's in your head. - It's just a favor.
- Yeah. - ( engine starts )
- ( tires screech ) - Whoa!
- ( groans ) - ( chuckles )
You know, it's customary to signal your intentions
before pulling your vehicle into traffic, Officer Flan-a-gan.
It's customary to signal your intentions
before licking my hairy Irish ass, Officer Haddix.
Sweeney took the day tomorrow, so juice flows today.
He wanted to get to you before you went end of tour and missed him.
All right? Behave yourselves.
( engine starts )
Guys are fucking testifying on this shit downtown,
and this asshole's tossing envelopes around in the street.
Guess they figure the worst is over.
That's what I heard.
From who?
Steaks tonight. Tad's, maybe?
- I might have dinner plans. - Oh, shit.
( chuckles )
( sighs )
( horn honks )
So, why'd you change your mind?
So, what, you got anything?
Or there's still no film in the camera?
Matter of fact, there's been a change.
What kind of change?
In the law.
Or the way they're reading it.
That's what my lawyer is telling me.
Something about community standards.
What about community standards?
Apparently, New York has none.
( chuckles ) So, you're back to filming?
When do we start?
From the looks of it, you might need a couple weeks.
How's Wednesday after next?
Great.
( tools whirring )
- Hey, Ralphie. - Hey, Bobby.
- Oh, that looks good. - Yeah, thank you.
I figured about two foot per person,
so that's room for five, maybe six.
- Man: Right here? - Yeah, looks fine.
Your guys do good work.
As always, pays to go with the union.
Anyway, here's for the real action.
We fill the bowl with water
so the girls can...
I get it. I got it.
Anyway, by the end of the month,
the only thing will be missing will be women.
All right. ( exhales )
I'll talk to Frankie, he can talk it up
with the pimps he plays cards with.
Okay.
I gotta get home, your sister's got
some kind of Tupperware festival happening tonight.
Later, Vin.
- ( tools banging, whirring ) - Man: Here.
( music playing )