Post by Sam Kidsgrove on Nov 21, 2020 16:35:38 GMT -5
Reporting for Duty
By: S Kidsgrove
Written by: S Kidsgrove
FADE IN
INT - SAM KIDSGROVE’S LINCOLN CONTINENTAL ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY - DAY
SAM KIDSGROVE, Hollywood A-List superstar, MP and philanthropist is currently in traffic. He’s accompanied by BEN AFFLECK, Hollywood’s favourite Batman and MATT DAMON, the greatest actor of his generation. They are firm friends and the atmosphere is jovial.
Damon is in the back seat, leaning forward so his head is between the two front seats.
DAMON
Two Questions.
AFFLECK
Man, I called shotgun! You heard me call shotgun right?
KIDSGROVE
I’ve told you a thousand times, I’m staying out of this.
DAMON
You didn’t adhere to the rules of shotgun man. You can’t just wake up in the morning and declare shotgun in a voice message on our whatsapp group.
AFFLECK
There isn’t a rule saying you can’t!
DAMON
We didn’t even know we were coming out for this until Sam asked us like an hour later!
KIDSGROVE
You had questions?
DAMON
Yeah. Where are we going and why haven’t you married Zo yet?
KIDSGROVE
Sorry, what?
AFFLECK (A little too loudly)
HE SAID WHE….
KIDSGROVE
I’m incredulous, not deaf. Ass.
DAMON
So?
KIDSGROVE
OK, well, in answer to your first question, we’re going to Troop 7320 of the Los Angeles Boy Scouts of America.
AFFLECK
Why exactly?
KIDSGROVE
This troop is a very special troop. It’s a very new set up, in a place that’s full of disadvantaged kids. Many, if not all have come from broken homes and single parent families, so we’re lending a helping hand as guests of theirs.
DAMON
Oh, of course it is, the kid isn’t going to be there you know?
AFFLECK
Which kid?
DAMON
Howard Black’s kid.
AFFLECK
Why would he be there?
KIDSGROVE
I know he won’t be there, mainly because Howard is so controlling over what he can and can’t do, even though he could literally give less of a shit. Doesn’t mean I can’t help others in a similar situation though does it?
DAMON
Why do you care so much about this anyway?
KIDSGROVE
It’s simple. I’ve been on both sides of that situation. I grew up not knowing my dad, not really. Yeah he was present, but he was too busy pushing me to be this actor and make all the money I could to fund his lifestyle. He couldn’t give two shits about me and what I was going through, I just had to work and bring in the money for him. So I know what Howard’s kid is going through.
I know how much he lays awake at night thinking about what he’s actually done to deserve the disdain he receives from his father. I know how much he must hurt when his father feels that his whole family is just a hindrance to his professional career and how much he’d be better off without them. I know the pain of assuming one day your dad is just going to never come home because he’s got what he needs now so can just dispose of you like you’re an old newspaper.
It makes me sick really, knowing that the current United States Champion, the guy who’s supposed to champion the causes of the country, to represent the United States and all that is good only represents the worst of the country.
He doesn’t care about his family, he doesn’t care about anything other than being victorious. Hell I bet his kid was stoked when he announced his retirement tour. Kid was probably thinking he’s gonna get his dad back.
Boy is he going to be disappointed when Howard retires and just doesn’t go home. He goes off to whatever McMansion he can buy with the money he’s managed to keep after the divorce and moves in with a playmate who’s the wrong side of 30.
Kid is going to be very disappointed when he tries to visit his dad only to be denied at the gate because his dad is busy snorting coke off of Ms January 1998’s ass.
DAMON
This seems like a bit of projection, you OK man?
KIDSGROVE
Yeah, I just see a lot of my dad in that loser, that’s all. The fact he’s so eager to just dispose of his family and finds them holding him back just makes me angry. But you know, it’s for kids like that we do what we do. It’s for kids like that we shine our beacon into the sky and say “You know what kid? Your father may not love you, but we will give you the tools and confidence to rebuild. We love you.”
It’s especially annoying when I can’t even see my own adopted kids. Hell since the divorce with Clarissa, I’ve been practically shoved out of their lives.
Do you realise how much hurt it is to not actually be able to see your kids, other than on Skype calls every few months? How much it hurts to see then grow and mature but not really know who you are?
I would do anything to see my kids, absolutely anything. I have to pay the price though for what I did to that marriage, to Clarissa, to the kids even. Every day I wake up to the shame I have for my past actions. I own that, but it’s clear Howard doesn’t own shit.
I have zero respect for anyone who brings a life into this world and treats them as if they are holding them back. I’ll try to help them see the right path, sure, but people like Howard are a blight on this earth. Conceited, arrogant and negligent can be tolerated if you aren’t also a coward that doesn’t step up to the plate when you have a kid and do everything you can for their wellbeing.
So, yeah this Thanksgiving it’s personal. When millions of families across America are going to sit together in thanks for everything they have. When millions of parents and children are going to drink, dance, eat, be merry and watch football, I’m going to be facing Howard Black and Stuart Slane for the United States Title. I am not in the mood to give thanks this year, not to Slane and definitely not to Howard. For my thanksgiving, I’ll be representing the many children who don’t get to spend thanksgiving with their parents.
I’ll be representing the many children who won’t have a nice turkey because their mum can’t afford to put one on the table. Or their mum can’t bear to do it because she too is heartbroken thanks to the father of her children just doesn’t care about his family.
I’ll be representing Howard Black’s family.
I’ve already sent a food hamper to his address. So, hopefully, when they tune in on Thanksgiving after tucking into a wonderful turkey dinner, they can watch me take the only thing he cares about away from him. They can use that to see the light in the darkness, realise that they can do it without him and stand up to be their own little family unit. I’ll be there to support them every step of the way.
After all, it’s difficult to get away from abusive and negligent family members. We’re still going through that with Emily now, Nightingale did a number on her and, if we’re not careful, Howard’s family are just gonna go the same way. Which is why we need to help them as much as possible if they ask for it. We need to be the father figures for them, we need to be inspiration for them, we need to step up. For them.
That being said, this match is not going to be easy. Not by a long way. Howard is still plenty tough. He’s still plenty talented. He’s in the final of the Wrestler of the Year for crying out loud. He beat the World Champion. He’s a big man on campus right now, riding the crest of a wave, loving his familyless life and being at the top of his game. He’s favourite to go and win it all.
He can come out of Thanksgiving with everything. The gold, the trophy, the adulation, everything he so desperately craves is there, waiting for the moment he grabs it and has it all.
Shame then, he’s coming up against ol’ Sam Kidsgrove.
The same guy who stops streaks dead. The momentum killer. The only 3 time United States Champion, the only guy who can get knocked down so many times to get straight back up again the following week and shock the world.
There’s a sad reality for Howard Black, the man who thinks he can do no wrong. He thinks he has destiny in the palm of his hand and everything he ever wanted is just so close he can taste it. Let’s say he’s sitting at the table, there is a massive turkey, there is all the trimmings, there is an avalanche of food just waiting to be eaten.
It’s all a mirage though.
He’ll see on Thanksgiving at Turmoil that the feast he’s just about to sit down for, the glory he’s just about to get is all just going to disappear in a puff of smoke when he tries to grab it too eagerly. Because life is like that sometimes. You try to grasp something too hard and it’ll just slip through your fingers.
His title. His trophy. His family.
All 3 things will be up in smoke by Wednesday and he’ll be left with just ash and dust.
We’re here.
CUT TO
INT - MAIN HALL, CHET DAKOTA REC CENTRE L.A.
Troop 7320 of the Los Angeles Boy Scouts of America is in session. A number of kids are there, they have threadbare equipment and shabby, mismatched uniforms. The troop is underfunded and morale is low yet, the kids are all looking on with excitement and expectation, despite their poor backgrounds and downtrodden lives.
STEVEN SLOAN, Boy Scout of America leader of 30 years, is trying to explain to the kids what a hangman’s knot is but is interrupted by a massive cheer when Kidsgrove, Damon and Affleck suddenly walk into the room, carrying boxes. His jaw hits the floor and he stands, hands on hips, feet shoulder width apart while trying to compose himself.
SLOAN
What in the dickens is this? I’ll be carted off on a horse in a sandstorm, it’s Sam Kidsgrove!
Kidsgrove smiles as they put the boxes down, he shakes Steven’s hand and waves at all the cheering kids.
KIDSGROVE
Hi troop 7320! Go Cougars, am I right?
An almighty cheer goes up from all the kids.
KIDSGROVE
Sorry for just dropping by, but we were in the neighbourhood and figured we’d see how you guys are doing. Do you mind, Steven if I just address the kids for a moment?
SLOAN
Sure, go right ahead you wondrous wordsmith.
Kidsgrove smiles as Affleck whispers to Damon
AFFLECK
Are they all like this?
DAMON
Mine was.
AFFLECK
Weird.
DAMON
Yup. It’s the bad ones you have to watch out for though.
AFFLECK
Bad ones?
DAMON
Yeah. Sam will fill you in about this guy he knows. Real piece of work.
Kidsgrove is talking to the kids now.
KIDSGROVE
So yeah guys, I heard about your troop here and, well, I have to say I am impressed, proud even. Each and every one of you has come from a disadvantaged home, you’ve been bullied, you’ve been through unimaginably bad things in your life and I couldn’t be more proud to see you all here today with hope on your faces. Hope for a better world for yourselves and hope that whatever you learn from scoutmaster Sloan will equip you for a brighter future away from whatever problems you face. You have found a beacon, you are walking the path and making the world a better place through your charity work and learning how to commune with nature. You should be proud too. I can see it in your faces that you are. It makes me so happy to see this.
The difference a great scoutmaster makes it immeasurable. Too often there are bad men out there that want to take advantage of you. Too often there are bad men out there that want to bully you, abuse you and make you feel worthless. I hope Scoutmaster Sloan is being the great man I expect him to be, that he’s a beacon for you in these tough times and not being like another Scoutmaster I know.
You see, I know a man called Scoutmaster Stuart Slane. He’s a terrible man, who is taken by envy, vanity and greed. He is a man that stood there, in the same position as Scoutmaster Sloan and did all the things a bad man could do. He bullied, he abused, he taught nothing but hatred and jealousy to his scouts. So much so that he was thrown out. Since then he’s descended into a pitiful, spiteful little boy who whines and complains when he doesn’t get his own way. Since then he has spent his life asking “Where’s my shot” or “What about me” rather than going out there and taking his chances with both of his hands.
He would rather wait for 180 days or whatever it is, complaining about someone not giving him respect, not giving him his chance than actually doing something about it. He would rather complain and demand these chances than improving himself and putting himself in this spot.
We are in a land of opportunity. You might not think it now, but all of you have the chance to make a difference, to do something with your lives. You all, as long as you look for the light and follow the path will bring whatever it is holding you back down to its knees.
Unlike Mr Slane. A man so full of petty vengeance, he saw the path and walked away from it. He saw the path I laid out for him and wanted none of it. He would rather spend his life shouting from the sidelines while the big boys play. He would rather be a cheerleader than being in the ball game.
You see kids, he keeps asking why I was added to the title match this thanksgiving, rather than a 1v1 between Slane and Black.
Two reasons.
1: He hasn’t deserved it, at all. All he has done is bleat on about how Howard Black ignored him and did not force the issue. He didn’t make a situation where Black was forced to look at him and see him as a contender. He didn’t do anything pro active to say “look, I’m here, let’s dance.” For that reason we go onto our second point.
Howard Black knows that a title defence against Stuart Slane means very little compared to a title defence against Sam Kidsgrove.
You see, Black needs the credentials against top tier opponents to make his own title reign mean something. Otherwise there’s always that little asterisk against it, disputing when he says “I elevated the title more than anyone has ever done in AW”
Stuart Slane? He doesn’t fit that bill. Stuart Slane is not a great scalp or a big name to take on. Stuart Slane is not A-List.
This is why I was added to the match. This is why I’m talking to you all today.
Don’t be a Stuart Slane.
Be a star.
Follow your path to greatness. Be that shining beacon of hope to others. Don’t stand there and wallow in your issues, stand up for something. Stand up for someone. Be a hero to one another and then you can turn this troop into an unstoppable force for good in this community. I see greatness in all of you, I see you guys being pillars of your community and why? Because you don’t have a Stuart Slane as your ScoutMaster.
You have Steven Sloan. This man is a good man. This man and I go back a long time, he is one of the first men to reach out to me and thank me for helping him follow the light to a better person. I am truly humbled by his journey and I know that you’ll be in safe hands with him. The man is truly the opposite in Slane in every way. You can bring anything to him and he will teach you the way to a bright future.
He is a true man.
Now, enough of my talking. Let’s get to the good part! I have a task for you all today. It’s in two parts.
The first part, I need you to create a design for a new patch that I’m introducing today. This patch will be special because only you guys get to wear it. This patch is called “The Beacon” and will be awarded to any Scout in troop 7320 who shines like a beacon of hope to anyone else, whether it’s their siblings, their friends, heck even their parents.
It will be the patch that shows Steven or myself that you are ready to become a hero to the people, the standard bearer of the new hope we’re all going to share together.
The second part? Well that’s a little more straightforward.
Kidsgrove reaches into one of the boxes and takes out a crisp, new and very fashionable scouts uniform.
KIDSGROVE
You can’t exactly be beacons of hope without some new uniforms can we? I want you to all come up here and grab a new uniform.
I know money is tight for some of you and your parents worry about how they can fund you coming here and being superstars every week, which is why this troop will be fully funded by myself, Ben, Matt and Zooey going forward!
There’s a cheer as all the kids move toward Kidsgrove to get their new uniforms.
FADE OUT
END