“Lamplight Noir”

Brick Dunn: “Now listen here, Hatti. I’m takin’ that lamp if I have to haul it out in pieces.”

Hatti: “Over my dead body!”

Brick Dunn: “That can be arranged. Besides your lawyer already wrung me dry for the jalopy, the saggin’ bungalow, and that dumb statue of a black bird we’ve been draggin’ around since Moses.”

Hatti: “Yeah, what about it?”

Brick Dunn: “Babe, be reasonable. I’m a Noir guy. You know that. I make my livin’ gettin’ plugged full of lead or sent off to the Chair. It looks easy, but it’s rough. Real rough. Give us a break here! I need this lamp to practice my deep angles. My tall entrances. My slick getaways. You know the drill, Hatti. Be a sport. For old times!”

Hatti: “Alright, alright. But be quick about it before I change my mind. “

Brick Dunn: “Done! Now there’s only one more thing I need. The theremin!”

Hatti: “We own a theremin? Since when??”

Brick Dunn: “Since whenever. Look, sci-fi is all the buzz nowadays. They’re shootin’ pictures from Jupiter to the center of the Earth. Right here in Hollywood. There’s creatures of all walks and talks: giant bugs, space lizards, pod people, blobs. You name it! And the key that makes it all work is this here theremin. Actually, I won it in a poker game off Boots Malloy. He didn’t know what he had! With this contraption, I’m goin’ places, Hattie. Places you and me never dreamt of…!! You can keep that stupid black bird!”

Hatti: “It’s a deal.”