This is a script adapted from a text in New College English Integrated Course in Unit Five

[character]

Somerset Maugham (Maugham), Edward Hyde Burton (Burton), Lenny Burton (L. Burton)

[voice-over]

How we judge a person? Many people would say that their first impressions of a person are always right. These arrogant and ignorant guys must not know that the longer time passed, the more authentic a person will show. In Maugham’s experience, he will talk about the relationship between appearance and the inner world of a person.

Act One

[scene one] Maugham’s home

[voice-over] One morning, Maugham was reading a magazine.

(sip a cup of tea with a magazine in his hand, shocked face, frowned)

Maugham:‘Oh my god! He passed away.’

[voice-over] The dead person was called Edward Hyde Burton, a merchant with great business in Japan for many years. Actually, Maugham didn’t know him very well. But once by chance, he was spending a few days in Yokohama, waiting for a ship, where he met Burton. He would have regarded Burton as a usual person. He was a tiny little man, not much more than five feet four in height, and very slender, with white hair, a red face much wrinkled, and blue eyes.

[scene two] the British Club for bridge play

(Maugham was daydreaming at the bar)

Burton:‘Hey guy, what are you doing? Don’t drink much. Go, go, go, let’s play bridge!’

Maugham:‘Aha, an interesting guy, ok I’m not afraid of you.’

(play bridge and chat)

Maugham:‘You can call me Maugham; what should I call you?’

(Burton smiled slightly)

Maugham:‘Oh, I lose again, you play really well guy.’

(Burton smile slightly, play several times…Maugham never won)

Maugham:‘Fuck, oh sorry…sorry, I think I must have bad luck today.’

Burton:‘Tell you a joke about luck. Today I have commercial negotiation with my business partner. You know I’m a merchant just like…sorry I just forget to introduce myself. You can call me Burton.’ (embarrassed, scratch his head)

Maugham:‘That’s OK. So…Burton, tell me, did you train your bridge in very good clubs before?’

Burton:‘You guess.’ (smile slightly, sip a cup of tea, leisure)

[voice-over] They played bridge for a while again. This time a rat silently crawled under the chair of Burton.

(frighten to jump from the chair, scream and shout)

Maugham:‘Help! No, no, no… NOT COME HEAR! See Burton, a big rat under your hip!’ (heavily tread on the floor)

Burton:‘(smile slightly, keep sitting) You are a REAL RAT kid, come on, continue playing OK?’

[voice-over] The next day, Burton invited Maugham to dine with him. In Burton’s home, Maugham was impressed by his united and affectionate family. In Maugham’s mind, Burton is a man full of kindliness. In the journey of life, he made every penny himself, loved his fellows, founded his own business corporation, and one day met his wife and had two pretty daughters. Maugham supposed that one thing that made you like him was that he was so small and frail that he aroused your instincts of protection.

Act Two

[scene one] the lounge of the Grand Hotel

[voice-over] One afternoon Maugham was sitting in the lounge of the Grand Hotel when Burton came in and seated himself in the chair next to mine.

Burton:‘So hot today Maugham, you need this.’

(Burton gives Maugham a gin fizzes, self has, shake, cheers!)

Maugham:‘Nice!’ (down the hatch)

Burton:‘Do you remember the last time you asked me why I played bridge so well?’

Maugham:‘Yes, of course…so, you can tell me now, don’t you? Or you can say YOU GUESS. I do not blame you for that.’ (give supercilious look to Burton)

Burton:‘There was a fellow here last year, oddly enough a namesake of mine, who was the best bridge player I ever met. I suppose you never came across him in London. Lenny Burton, he called himself. I believe he’d belonged to some very good clubs. He won a good deal of mine, you know. Of course, it’s worth paying for this, (burst into laughter) I learnt a lot from him.’

Maugham:‘Indeed, I really don’t know that man.’

Burton:‘He wasn’t a bad chap. I like him. (chuckle, then stroke the chin) He was always well-dressed and smart-looking. He was handsome in a way with curly hair and pink-and-white cheeks. Women thought a lot of him. There was no harm in him, you know he was only wild. Of course he drank too much. Those sorts of fellows always do.’ (shrugging his shoulders)

[insert-switch-show] Lenny Burton was showing as the Burton’s sayings, he is handsome and women thought a lot of him. He was fully confident, brilliant, sunny and magnetic.

Maugham:(curiously ask) ‘Did any funny story happen between you and that namesake?’

Burton:‘You got it! (snap his fingers) It did have. It’s rather a funny story, you aresure you that you fasten your seat belts. (use a kind of humorous tone)’

Maugham:‘OK, I have already got on the bus. (excited and simper) DeeDee (the sound of POS the card) …Old driver, let’s go!’

Act Three

[scene one] Burton’s office

[voice-over] Lenny Burton didn’t have a formal job except for a ‘really official’ one---bridge game player. His all money comes from this. However, he had bad luck at cards for some time. He hadn’t been willing to stick to bridge, he’d been playing poker, and he’d got trimmed. He hadn’t a penny. He’d pawned everything he had. He was all to pieces. He began to be immersed in alcohol. He looked terrible,dirty, sad and unconfident. Therefore, he came to the Burton’s office for help.

[insert-switch-show] Lenny Burton was showing as the Burton’s sayings, he was all to pieces now. Hiswas drunk and he looked dirty, suffering, sad, unconfident.

L.Burton: ‘Could you offer me a job, my friend? I have nothing now…’ (look downthe ground, murmur, unconfident, beg)

Burton:‘How old are you?’

L.Burton:‘Thirty-five, listen…I am still strong and…’

(Burton interrupts him)

Burton:‘And what have you been doing hitherto?’

L.Burton:‘Well, nothing very much.’

Burton:(couldn’t help laughing) ‘I’m afraid I can’t do anything for you just yet. Comeback and see me in another thirty-five years, and I’ll see what I can do.’

(Lenny Burton doesn’t move, pale, not say a word for a long time)

(about 6 seconds later…)

Burton:‘Well, isn’t there anything you can do except play cards?’

L.Burton:‘Swim.’

Burton:‘What?!’

L.Burton:‘I can swim. I swam for my university before.’

Burton:‘Oh BOY (laughing). I was a pretty good swimmer when I was a young man, OK? Do you know, I swam from the Shioya Club round the beacon and landed at the creek of Tarumi. It’s over three miles and it’s rather difficult on account of the currents round the beacon. My young man, you mean you’re a GOOD swimmer?’

L.Burton:‘I’m not in very good condition now.’

Burton:‘Don’t say that, if you can do as I did before, I commit to giving you a job.’

(Lenny Burton was rather taken aback, shocked)

L.Burton:‘OK… (hesitate for a moment) all right, when do you want me to do it?’

Burton:‘(look at watch) You can go now. The swim shouldn’t take you much over an hour and a quarter. I’ll drive round to the creek at half past twelve and meet you. I’ll take you back to the club to dress and then we’ll have lunch together.’

L.Burton:‘Done.’ (shake hands with Burton, and then go to prepare immediately)

Burton:‘Good luck!’ (wave)

Act Four

[scene one] the lounge of the Grand Hotel

Maugham:‘So…how was Lenny Burton? Did you give him a job at last?’

Burton:‘I had a lot of work to do that morning and I only just managed to get to the creek at Tarymi at half past twelve. But I needn’t have hurried; he never turned up.’

Maugham:‘Did he funk it at the last moment?’

Burton:‘No, he didn’t funk it. But thank for his frail body ruined by drink and dissipation, he couldn’t finish the race. We didn’t get the body for about three days.’

(Maugham is a trifle shocked)

Maugham:‘When you made him that offer of a job, did you know he’d be drowned?’

Burton:‘(chuckle, rub chin) Well, I hadn’t got a vacancy in my office at the moment.’