Ficlets

FADE IN :

INT . DETROIT INSTITUTE OF ART – RIVERA COURT – MORNING

The museum is empty save three figures: a well dressed blue haired DOCENT and a young man, HOWARD , docent in training are speaking near the composite image of Henry Ford / Thomas Edison. An OLD MAN shuffles slowly towards them.

The OLD MAN examines the fresco with a wry smile.

OLD MAN
That guy was a bastard.

DOCENT
Oh? Did you know him?

OLD MAN
My father was one of Mr Ford’s first one hundred employees. That man was a bastard.
(beat)
Mr. Ford I mean, of course.

(HOWARD looks on in amusement)

DOCENT
There are certainly a lot of stories to that respect.

OLD MAN
When he finally kicked off, they don’t tell this story in your movies or what not, but his family had to post a guard twenty four hours a day on the old man’s grave. Every last one of his workers wanted to piss on his grave, he treated them so badly.