Merlinsky: The Sorcerer's Apprentice
By Alan C. Baird
Copyright 2015 Alan C. Baird
ISBN 1522731806 and 9781522731801
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Cover image: illustration by Ferdinand Barth (1842-1892) of Der Zauberlehrling (The Sorcerer's Apprentice) from an 1882 German book, "Goethe's Werke" (Goethe's Work).
Screenplay log line: Imagine the Lord of the Rings meets Harry Potter and they go back to the future. Based on the Arthurian legend and the ancient folklore myth of the sorcerer's apprentice.
Synopsis: The endless hordes of Hollywood tourists in the late 1940's are easy marks for a con-man magician like Harry Merlinsky. He knows how to sucker the rubes and flash the ol' hamster-outta-the-fedora every now and then, to baffle 'em and dazzle 'em. But he didn't expect a naive fan like Jake, who wants to learn Harry's Old Knowledge - "real" magic. Harry's archenemy obliterates Jake's girlfriend, forcing Jake to become a wizard, just to stay alive. Will Jake use his newfound powers for vengeance? The timeless myth of the Sorcerer's Apprentice unfolds against the backdrop of the Magic Castle and the Hollywoodland sign.
Lineage: 12th-century folklore myths begat The Sorcerer's Apprentice by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, which begat a tone poem by composer Paul Dukás, which begat Disney's Fantasia, which inspired Merlinsky, a magical action-adventure. [Completed before the Nicolas Cage film was released.]
Quarterfinalist in these competitions: American Zoetrope, Writers Network.
Find Merlinsky on Facebook: https://facebook.com/mrlnsky
ToC Bookmarks:
MAGIC CASTLE "PALACE OF MYSTERY"
UNCLE RALPH'S CABIN
OSTRICH CORRAL
SKULL ROCK
FADE IN: EXT. "HOLLYWOOD" SIGN - DAY
The CAMERA PANS across the sign, from "H" to "D"... it's a bit run-down, but still the proud calling card of a city built on dreams. After the last "D", the PAN continues, and we find... more letters: an "L", an "A", an "N" and yet another "D", to spell out the word "HOLLYWOODLAND". A sudden flash of light turns the whole scene white, then negative, as if an atomic bomb exploded.
EXT. HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD - CONTINUOUS
An old-fashioned hand-painted sign announces "The Great Merlinsky", with appropriate flourishes and curlicues. HARRY MERLINSKY, a tall, thin con man sporting suspenders and a beat up fedora, is running a street show "con game", and the ten or twenty PEOPLE in his audience look up at the Hollywoodland sign in wonder. Their faces are illuminated by the glare. Harry refuses to be stopped by the interruption, and sets his jaw.
HARRY: It's just another publicity stunt to attract househunters up into those godforsaken hills, folks. Let's get back down to business. Where's the ace of spades? Card number one, two or three? Larry, Moe or Curly? Nixon, Haldemann or Ehrlichman? (pause, perplexed) Wait a minute, that's a little ahead of this time, ain't it?
INT. TROLLEY ON THE BOULEVARD - CONTINUOUS
JAKE TIMMONS, an athletic boy in his late teens, looks out the trolley window and sees Harry's act. Picking up a small suitcase, he gets off the trolley.
EXT. HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD - CONTINUOUS
Jake moves up to stand at the back of the crowd, craning his neck to watch Harry's show.
Harry points at a WOMAN, in the front row of the crowd.
HARRY (continuing): Madame, may I examine the contents of your handbag?
The woman obliges, and Harry rummages through the handbag... looking up, he notices the crowd watching him.
HARRY (continuing, offhand): This ain't part of the act, I just wanted a stick of gum.
Harry, disappointed, doesn't find any gum, and tosses the handbag back to the woman.
HARRY (continuing): Next time, let's come prepared, huh?
Harry pulls out a deck of cards, looks over the crowd, and tosses the cards to MAN #1, in the front row.
HARRY (continuing): You with the moustache! Catch! Separate the red cards from the black cards... it's a simple job... don't screw it up! In the meantime...
Harry pulls, out of his bag, a mechanical, expandable-collapsible accordion-like device with a rubber hand on its end. He "shoots" it into the crowd, hanging it in front of Jake.
HARRY (continuing): ...I need a fresh victim, ah, a new volunteer. You, young man, you in the back. Shake hands!
JAKE: Me??!
HARRY: Yeah, you in the ten-dollar suit! You just volunteered!
JAKE: Oh, no!
HARRY: Oh, yeah! Get yer fresh face and yer youthful gullibility up here. We'll see what we can do to corrupt ya. What's yer name, and where ya from?
The crowd parts, and pushes Jake to the front.
JAKE: Jake Timmons, from St. Louis!
HARRY: St. Looey, eh? They'll stamp your passport down at the corner, after the show.
The crowd APPLAUDS, loving it.
Harry sets up a shell game on a table to the side, arranging three over-sized "walnut" shells in a row, a few inches apart from each other.
HARRY (continuing): Here we have three garden-variety walnut shells...
Harry looks up in surprise as the crowd reacts to the huge size of the shells.
HARRY (continuing): I didn't say whose garden it was, did I?
Harry becomes absorbed in setting up the shells.
HARRY (continuing): A good friend of mine got these for me. He was a little nuts...
Harry examines one of the shells.
HARRY (continuing): And these were big nuts... they were hell to crack.
Harry turns to Man #1, with the cards:
HARRY (continuing): Ya got the red cards separated from the black cards, yet?
MAN #1: Yes.
HARRY (to Man #1): Now throw out the aces and the queens.
Harry looks over at Jake.
HARRY (continuing): Lessee here, we need something else for this shell game... Ah, here it is...
Harry pulls a red rubber ball from behind Jake's ear; Jake is bewildered and delighted. Harry continues, to the crowd:
HARRY (continuing): This is an old game. You've all seen this one, haven't ya? The con man... that's me... tricks the rube...
Harry indicates Jake with a small motion of his head.
HARRY (continuing): ...that's him... into guessing which shell the ball ain't under, after a few fancy moves, like this.
Harry demonstrates the shell game, then turns to Jake and hands him the ball.
HARRY (continuing): But this game is different, 'cause this time you get to "Con The Con Man." (pause) I developed this into a radio quiz show, but it didn't fly... nobody but me ever won.
Harry hands the ball to Jake and steps away. His back is to Jake and the shell game table. Harry faces the crowd, and continues, to Jake:
HARRY (continuing): Okay, take the ball and place it under one of the shells. Make sure you remember which one it's under.
HARRY: (continuing, to the crowd)
Everybody see it?
CROWD: Yes!
Harry, still facing the crowd, to Jake:
HARRY (continuing): Okay. Now mix 'em up, mix 'em up... not too fast, we don't wanna lose anybody here.
Jake moves the shells around. Harry continues, to the crowd:
HARRY (continuing): Okay, everybody know which one the ball's under?
Crowd responds with mixed yesses and noes.
HARRY (continuing, exasperated): You guys wanna run a shell game, ya gotta pay at
tention. Now lissen up, lissen up...
Harry looks back toward Jake:
HARRY (continuing): If a pig and a half eats a pie and a half in a minute and a half, how long does it take for a talking horse to read the New York Times? (pause) Remember where the ball is? Don't show me.
Harry smiles, and turns back to the crowd.
HARRY (continuing): I'm tryin' to mix him up, but he's doin' a helluva job on his own...
EXT. "HOLLYWOODLAND" SIGN - CONTINUOUS
Another dazzling flash of light illuminates the sign, which again turns negative.
EXT. HOLLYWOOD BOULEVARD - CONTINUOUS
Harry clenches his teeth and mutters, under his breath:
HARRY (continuing): I'm gonna hafta deal with that joker, sooner or later...
JAKE: What?
HARRY (to Jake): Nuthin', kid, nuthin'.
Harry continues in a louder voice, facing the crowd, to Jake:
HARRY (continuing): Alright, show 'em where the ball is.
Harry's tone is sarcastic, as he knows Jake is confused:
HARRY (continuing): If you hafta lift up all three shells, go ahead, go ahead... (pause) Okay, show 'em the first one, put it back. (pause) Show 'em the second one, put it back. (pause) Show 'em the third one, put it back.
Harry lets the crowd know he's losing patience with them:
HARRY (continuing): Now, one more time, everybody know where the ball is?
CROWD (resounding): Yes!
Harry smiles and turns back to the table and Jake.
HARRY: Now, it's got to be under this one (points at first shell), this one (points at second shell), or this one (points at third shell). Don'tcha just love the suspense?!
Harry looks out in the crowd to harass Man #1, still struggling with the cards:
HARRY (continuing): All the aces and queens gone?
MAN #1: Yes.
HARRY: Then separate the face cards from the number cards.
Harry