What, the old man tries to raise his head, hearing is poor, what you say, Hollywood is burning, the words mean nothing to him, he is in a hospital bed. His daughter is reading the paper to him, she is trying to keep him interested, it’s the anniversary of his wife’s death too, he seems to be wondering about her, there are tears in his eye, slow weepy tears, tears of regret, you say something about Tom Hanks, the green mile being his favorite movie, No Dad, Hollywood is burning, he still doesn’t understand. No Spider man to rescue him, no superman to help him, no Iron man either, just the help of the public hospital and those who fund it, Hollywood, the word is one he associates with the lives of others, Hollywood always burned, burned into his memory.
Tom Hanks is thinking of running for President Dad, what do you think of that, do you hear me, TomĀ Hanks is running for President, the old mans ears prick up, a crease covers his brow, you mean Donald Trump is dead, his eyes are open. No Dad, Donald Trump is in Paris, it says so in the papers, he’s at the George Cinq, where the paper says it costs $3,000 a night. The old man shakes his head, the election promises, the blue collar man’s friend, blue collar fraud, when an old man can’t find a hospital in his neighborhood and has to travel twenty miles to find a room to die in.
The daughter looks anxiously at her beloved Dad, she wants him to cheer up, give him a happy thought. There’s a Marilyn Monroe movie on tonight. His eyes widen, a round smile fills his face. his eyes twinkle, he turns his head to the side, looks at his youth, and says, I drove her in my cab once, and she left me a fifty dollar tip, some broad he says. His daughter nods, she has heard the story fifty times, it makes him smile. Hollywood was alive then he sighs…