Chapter 31

After the morning routine on Thursday, Dick and I went to the law office. They were ready for us and seemed to be really nice people. Later when I found out that they had made one hundred dollars for reviewing the contract I felt they should have been nicer.

Mr. Baxter was there and anxious to get the deal signed and start negotiating. I took him aside in the parking lot on the way out and told him.

“From the way Mr. Wayne was talking, I think maybe we should ask for two points.”

Mr. Baxter laughed and said, “No, we will ask for five, hope for three but settle for two.”

When I arrived at the studio they started coaching me on Sir Nicklaus’s lines immediately. John Wayne sat in for a while to confirm that I could do the accent. He must’ve been satisfied because he quietly left.

After lunch, Mr. Danson took me over to Hollywood High. After checking in at the office and confirming that everything was still on track he took me to Miss Powell’s classroom. It was a free period for her so we were able to talk.

I liked her and was convinced she would really help me. She was the first black teacher that I had met, so it was going to be interesting. She was a happy outgoing person. If she is like that all the time Biology will be fun.

We agreed that I would come back at one o’clock next Monday and stay till three. Mr. Danson took me back to the studio where I spent the time with the stuntmen. I practiced roping on the ground. I was hoping to graduate to a horse one of these days.

After that, I went through the sword exercises. I had a list of the moves and if I saw the name I could go through the correct motions. I started out to do them slow and sped up each round.

My arm was starting to get tired, so I switched to lifts. These seemed to help the tiredness. It must be stretching the muscles in the other direction or something.

When I got home I found that the telephone installers had been and gone. Janice had come over to let them in. I called Mum and Dad and talked to them for a long time. A lot had happened. They thought I had been handling things well.

Dad had some big news. We had our first inquiry on the adjustable shower fixture. Detroit Faucets wanted to meet with Dad to see about a license.

I reread a book that night, a Western about Cullen Baker. The author had him as a good guy. The actual historical record shows a different story. The theme of the story is that a man should have good friends in life. While the story wasn’t close to being accurate it makes a fine tale.

Friday there was actually a light rain. The first rain I had seen in California. After my exercises with my new addition of holding my sword out straight, I managed two minutes before my arm began to quiver.

Dick and I still ran. When we got to the studio they had me go to costuming and makeup. They had me try on several outfits for a young English nobleman. They fit so they would be used in the movie. They already had my western clothes from the other movie.

After that, we did walkthroughs of several scenes so we wouldn’t waste time learning in front of the camera. Fortunately for me, the longest speech in the movie was given by Sir Nicklaus’ father after he had been sent down. My responses would be, “Yes Sir, No Sir, and as you say, Sir.”