work.”
“Len, will you please go in my room and start studying,” his mom said tiredly. “I simply cannot argue with you this way every night.”
“I’m going.”
As he went, he thought of himself getting in the Firebird, fastening the seat belt, turning the key. He thought of his face lighting up as the engine started.
However, he thought, walking slower, if he could go on just one game show, it had better be something like Let’s Make a Deal, where knowledge didn’t count. He would dress up like a pizza, and if he got in the Big Deal of the Day, he would go for Curtain Number 2.
“Don’t stall, Lennie.”
“I’m not stalling.” He walked into his mother’s room. His mom had set up a card table in the corner, and Lennie had to study there these days. It was the only place in the motel where there was nothing to do and nothing to look at. He couldn’t even see out the window without getting up and walking around the bed.
His mother was still standing in the doorway. Lennie glanced at her. He said, “If you’re thinking that I’m too ugly to be on television—well, you don’t have to worry about that either. The uglier you are these days, the better. Ugliness is in.”
“Start with Science.”
“Mom, have you ever had a look at that kid on all those meat-spread commercials? I know I look as good as him, and they say he makes thousands of dollars.”
“Lennie.”
“He gets three hundred and twenty dollars for every one of those commercials. Think of it. The kid is sitting at home, probably watching himself on TV, and he’s making three hundred and twenty dollars.”
“Lennie—”
“And if you get on a soap opera, Mom, if you just walk in front of the camera, which anybody could do, for that you get fifty-one dollars. If you have five lines, you get ninety.”
“Lennie, stop this and get to your work.”
“’Course, five dollars goes to your agent and twenty goes into a trust fund for when you get too old to perform. I read that in TV Guide.”
“Lennie!”
“All right! ”
They stared at each other for a moment. Then with a sigh Lennie flipped open his Science book. He turned to the chapter on plants. There was a pencil hole in the page where in anger he had stabbed the book.
With his mother watching, he stared down at the cross section of a plant. To give the illusion that he was serious about studying, he put his finger on the first part of the leaf. Slowly he moved his finger down the page, around the pencil hole.
His mom watched a moment more, and then she turned and went back into the office.
Lennie kept his eyes on the page. As he got to the picture of the stem, his eyes began to close. His mind drifted to more pleasant things. He saw his own face on TV, a close-up.
He would make the perfect contestant, he thought. In the first place, he was eager and enthusiastic. In the second place, he was a little dumb, so the audience would be glad when he won. And third, he was such a good sport he would go along with anything.
As the parts of the plant grew dimmer in his mind, his own face on TV grew sharper and clearer. The announcer’s voice, hushed with urgency, replaced the sound of the trucks on the highway.
He dreamed.
Chapter Two
“A nd now, Lennie, you have won over three thousand dollars in cash and merchandise, and, more important, you have won the chance to spin our Vacation Wheel. How do you feel about that, Lennie?”
“Real good, sir.”
“Then join me over here at the Vacation Wheel. Now, Lennie, I don’t have to remind you that up there on the wheel are twenty all-expense paid vacations to places all over the world, do I?”
“No, sir.”
“You can go to Rome, to London, to Paris. You can go to beautiful Hawaii, exotic Mexico, or sunny Spain. All in all, there are twenty wonderful all-expense paid vacations up there on the wheel. But, Lennie, as you know, there are also what we call our zonk trips. How do you feel about those, Lennie?
“Well, I
“Len, will you please go in my room and start studying,” his mom said tiredly. “I simply cannot argue with you this way every night.”
“I’m going.”
As he went, he thought of himself getting in the Firebird, fastening the seat belt, turning the key. He thought of his face lighting up as the engine started.
However, he thought, walking slower, if he could go on just one game show, it had better be something like Let’s Make a Deal, where knowledge didn’t count. He would dress up like a pizza, and if he got in the Big Deal of the Day, he would go for Curtain Number 2.
“Don’t stall, Lennie.”
“I’m not stalling.” He walked into his mother’s room. His mom had set up a card table in the corner, and Lennie had to study there these days. It was the only place in the motel where there was nothing to do and nothing to look at. He couldn’t even see out the window without getting up and walking around the bed.
His mother was still standing in the doorway. Lennie glanced at her. He said, “If you’re thinking that I’m too ugly to be on television—well, you don’t have to worry about that either. The uglier you are these days, the better. Ugliness is in.”
“Start with Science.”
“Mom, have you ever had a look at that kid on all those meat-spread commercials? I know I look as good as him, and they say he makes thousands of dollars.”
“Lennie.”
“He gets three hundred and twenty dollars for every one of those commercials. Think of it. The kid is sitting at home, probably watching himself on TV, and he’s making three hundred and twenty dollars.”
“Lennie—”
“And if you get on a soap opera, Mom, if you just walk in front of the camera, which anybody could do, for that you get fifty-one dollars. If you have five lines, you get ninety.”
“Lennie, stop this and get to your work.”
“’Course, five dollars goes to your agent and twenty goes into a trust fund for when you get too old to perform. I read that in TV Guide.”
“Lennie!”
“All right! ”
They stared at each other for a moment. Then with a sigh Lennie flipped open his Science book. He turned to the chapter on plants. There was a pencil hole in the page where in anger he had stabbed the book.
With his mother watching, he stared down at the cross section of a plant. To give the illusion that he was serious about studying, he put his finger on the first part of the leaf. Slowly he moved his finger down the page, around the pencil hole.
His mom watched a moment more, and then she turned and went back into the office.
Lennie kept his eyes on the page. As he got to the picture of the stem, his eyes began to close. His mind drifted to more pleasant things. He saw his own face on TV, a close-up.
He would make the perfect contestant, he thought. In the first place, he was eager and enthusiastic. In the second place, he was a little dumb, so the audience would be glad when he won. And third, he was such a good sport he would go along with anything.
As the parts of the plant grew dimmer in his mind, his own face on TV grew sharper and clearer. The announcer’s voice, hushed with urgency, replaced the sound of the trucks on the highway.
He dreamed.
Chapter Two
“A nd now, Lennie, you have won over three thousand dollars in cash and merchandise, and, more important, you have won the chance to spin our Vacation Wheel. How do you feel about that, Lennie?”
“Real good, sir.”
“Then join me over here at the Vacation Wheel. Now, Lennie, I don’t have to remind you that up there on the wheel are twenty all-expense paid vacations to places all over the world, do I?”
“No, sir.”
“You can go to Rome, to London, to Paris. You can go to beautiful Hawaii, exotic Mexico, or sunny Spain. All in all, there are twenty wonderful all-expense paid vacations up there on the wheel. But, Lennie, as you know, there are also what we call our zonk trips. How do you feel about those, Lennie?
“Well, I
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