Original subtitles

Someone asked why one of the most

eligible bachelors in town hasn't married yet,

and I couldn't think of an answer.

I have to make a quick trip.

Just two or three days.

Rental agent's coming on Friday. I'd like you

- to be home for that. - I will.

- Is he dying? - I don't know.

You need something, baby?

Variety is the spice of life.

Sometime, somewhere, I'd like more than this.

McCarthy's got three weak spots,

booze, Cohn's ego and David Schine.

Mr. Kennedy,

David Schine is actively avoiding the draft.

You palled around with a bunch of queers,

and I'm just now hearing about it! You keep writing!

Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.

I've had carnal relations with a man.

Are you truly sorry for this sin?

Yes.

♪ sentimental music playing ♪

You took that.

I remember.

It was our road trip.

We need to change that bandage.

Yeah, I'll do it after my shower.

- You're sure? - I'll be fine.

Go to your movie.

And thank you for dinner.

I don't think she likes me.

Oh, she's exhausted.

We both need a break.

How long are you staying?

Uh,

I'm booked out of here early in the morning.

Twenty-four hours.

That's a long way to travel for Chinese takeout.

There's just a lot going on at home.

We're moving to Milan.

I finally got that European posting.

Congratulations.

All through dinner,

I was wondering, "Why is he here?"

Do you know?

Your sister thinks I want to ease my conscience.

You'll need a few centuries in purgatory to do that.

Well, that won't work. I'm Presbyterian.

We skip purgatory, go straight to hell.

Yeah.

It's Kaposi sarcoma.

Some weird cancer.

Only old European men are supposed to get.

My friends and I debate

who has the best chance to survive,

the ones with KS or the ones with PCP.

They say if you have lesions and PCP,

it's a matter of months.

- Have you had... - PCP? Yes.

May I use your bathroom?

Through the kitchen.

♪ melancholy music playing ♪

We must beware of these communists

and queers who are not worthy

of the confidence of the American people.

Why is it that these so-called powerful men

cringe in the face of communism

when rooting out communism

has always been a bare-knuckle job?

As long as I am in the Senate,

it will continue as a bare-knuckle job!

You're sure that your source is reliable?

Yeah. We served together.

I trust him with my life.

Well, we don't wanna destroy a man

because he's made a mistake or two.

They destroy men for much less, sir.

There you are! He's all mine tonight.

I'm dragging him to the symphony.

Well, I didn't know you went in for the long-hair stuff.

Yeah, lately I can't get enough Beethoven.

It's Ravel tonight, and we don't want to miss

- the first movement. - God forbid.

Well, good night, you two.

We'll speak when I'm back.

Are you going out of town?

Yeah, it's an old army friend. He's not doing well.

We're invited to Roger and Marie's Saturday.

- Did you forget? - Oh, God, I just found out

about my friend yesterday. I meant to tell you.

- What was that for? - Tolerating Ravel.

♪ Mad about the boy ♪

♪ I know it's stupid to be mad about the boy ♪

♪ I'm so ashamed of it ♪

♪ But must admit the sleepless nights... ♪

Your tip checks out.

A couple years ago, an army corporal

sent a letter to Senator Benton.

Big McCarthy critic.

- Went down in flames in '52. - Exactly.

Described an alleged incident with McCarthy.

I don't know the details.

But Benton lost the election and never followed up.

Where's this corporal now?

Selling himself in Rehoboth Beach.

Um, nice place to spend a weekend.

- You going alone? - I am.

But that doesn't mean I'll be alone.

Fewer eyes on you down there.

On the house, handsome.

Cheers.

Seen Tim lately?

- He walked out my door... - Hmm.

...slammed it behind him, as I recall.

Apparently I offend his sense of morality.

You offend my sense of morality.

And, not that you care,

but you missed his birthday.

He noticed.

Let me ask the question again.

Do these petitions,

supporting communist candidates,

contain your signature?

It was many years ago.

Did you sign them?

God bless you, son.

Yes.

I signed them, but I work in a warehouse.

I load supplies from trucks.

Do you think a person

who belongs to a communist organization

should be handling our nation's military supplies?

I don't know.

I take a box, I put it in the warehouse.

Sometimes I take a box from the warehouse,

I put it in the trucks.

If this lachrymose display of emotion

is intended to gain the committee's sympathy,

sir, I warn you, I believe it rather suggests your guilt!

Mr. Palmiero,

is it true that your mother passed away yesterday?

Yes, sir.

Is it possible that your distress

and your tears have been caused by that loss?

Yes, sir. I'm very distressed about it.

Now, if the point of these

closed door hearings is to allow you to badger...

Take this to Senator Smith, please. Thank you.

Mr. Laughlin.

I see you've been promoted.

- Head water boy. - Mr. Fuller.

Here.

I need to speak with this young man

on a very urgent matter of national security.

Would you mind?

Thank you, sir.

- I've decided to forgive you. - Forgive me?

You haven't called in three weeks.

- Four. -"How do I love thee?"

"Let me count the weeks."

I'm going away for the weekend.

Well, I hope you enjoy yourself.

I will, if you join me.

That letter you made me write Mary

was the ugliest thing I have ever done.

Shh. It was all for the best, wasn't it?

We're still employed, including Mary.

I am so sorry to hear about your aunt's passing.

I hope she didn't suffer long.

Listen, Skippy.

I wanna spend the weekend with you.

Go back to the office, tell Dragon Lady

you don't feel well.

Meet me on the southwest corner

of Independence and Third in 15 minutes.

- Fifteen? - Green Ford.

Oh,

and happy birthday.

"McCarthy's Men."

How's it going with the Italian communist?

When I left, he was weeping.

Cowards always cry when they get caught.

His mother just died.

Don't waste your pity on our enemies.

Christ says we should love our enemies.

What has gotten into you?

I don't feel well. I should go home.

That leaves me in a bit of a pickle.

- We have a big-- - I'll come in early Monday

and catch up. Sorry!

♪ exhilarating music playing ♪

This is nice.

I should get going.

- No, don't. - Got to.

Interviewing someone about the transit union strike.

Don't expect to win a Pulitzer,

but it's a paycheck.

I'll make you some Sanka.

You miss it, don't you?

Hmm?

The Senate beat.

Not as much as my father misses it.

Don't you know I'm supposed to be the Jackie Robinson

of journalism?

Well, I hope this isn't too forward, but...

if you need a break from wallowing...

come to our show tonight.

Duke's at Foggy Bottom.

That's a white club, and I don't think it's queer.

No, those white squares love Storme.

Do I scare you?

Why would you scare me?

Well, for one, I'm not exactly like the studs

you used to leave the bar with.

I'm a man who likes to fuck men.

And I don't apologize for it.

Sorry if that came out a little rough.

My dad was a drunk ex-boxer.

I can handle myself.

The question is, "Can you handle me?"

♪ Night is cold ♪

♪ The moon is new ♪

♪ But love is old ♪

♪ And while I'm waiting here ♪

♪ This heart of mine is singing ♪

♪ Lover come back to me ♪

Welcome to the famous Nomad Bar.

What's it famous for?

Cheap booze and rough trade.

Glen Mhor and soda.

And a Sea Breeze for my friend.

Comin' right up.

You'll love this drink.

Is this my birthday present?

It's more like an education.

- Educate me. - All right.

Clientele are DC professionals who can afford a weekend away.

They feel safer out here, 100 miles between them

and Hoover's agents and McLeod's spies.

What about the "rough trade"?

They'll offer to blow you for five bucks,

but 50/50, they just beat you up and take your wallet.

Why would anybody take that risk?

It's the risk that makes it exciting, Skippy.

Here you go, gentlemen.

Do you find it exciting?

Cheers.

♪ Lover come back to me ♪

All right! Bull's-eye!

- Yeah! - Every time?

All right. Yeah, sure.

You got this.

- No pressure. - All right.

- Ooh! - Hey, Skippy!

Hey!

All right.

Hey, I'm gonna take a little stroll out back.

All right. All right.

Just, uh, hang tight for me, okay?

Hey, I've gotta take a little walk.

- What? - It's an army friend next door

Bill and I are helping out. Twenty minutes, tops.

So he's gonna ask for money.

I see him hustling the Nomad a lot these days.

- You're sure he has the goods? - He says he does.

Daniel!

♪ So, if you love me, baby... ♪

Hey!

Can you turn that off?

Corporal Cherney? I'm Sgt. Fuller.

Bill's friend.

Hey, snap out of it, Corporal. We need to talk.

Hawk?

Goofballs.

Christ.

What? What's that... Stop.

Yeah, put some salt in warm water.

We need to coax the pills out of him.

I'm up. I'm up. I'm up.

Yes.

Corporal Cherney! Hey!

I hear you got a story about McCarthy?

You got a cigarette?

Despite Mr. Palmiero's

repeated denials, his emotions spoke the truth.

He knew he was caught, fellas,

and his tears were clearly an admission of his guilt.

Do you expect a confession, sir?

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need lunch.

- But, sir... - Senator McCarthy.

Lookin' lively there, Johnny!

Senator McCarthy's office.

They work for you, and I don't believe

- they're helping your cause. - I need Roy

- and he needs David, so... - Do you know

how the East Coast elite refers to the three of you?

I have a feeling you're about to tell me.

"Bonnie, Bonnie and Clyde."

I assume I'm Clyde in that equation.

It's not funny, Senator.

Jean, they've been saying all sorts of things

about me for years. Nothing sticks.

We can't control the press,

protected as they are by the commie-loving courts.

Perhaps we should focus on things we can control.

- Such as? - Well, has it occurred to you

that the three men leading

the Christian crusade against communism,

you, Roy and David are all bachelors?

Have you thought about that?

It's crossed my mind.

You won't have to worry about David much longer.

Someone managed to get his draft status changed

from 4F to 1A.

Eligible to serve.

Mr. Schine is not qualified

for a direct commission.

General, I'll be frank with you.

I'm a man of power and influence.

I tend to get what I want,

often at the expense of those who try to prevent me

from getting what I want.

Really?

Well, I'm afraid there's nothing to be done here.

If Mr. Schine is drafted, which I expect he will be,

he'll be inducted and treated as any other soldier.

Good day, gentlemen.

I can't be drafted.

An officer is one thing,

but an enlisted man living in the barracks?

Taking orders from the kinds of brutes

that you see fighting on 14th Street,

that I wouldn't let shine my fucking shoes.

Won't let that happen.

I'll go over Reber's head

all the way up to the Secretary of Defense...

or Eisenhower, if I have to.

What's the matter, Dave?

"I am a man of power and influence,

and I always get what I want!"

- Don't you dare mock me! - But you can't help a friend

when he needs you the most!

Where... Where are you going?

New York.

I have a date.

Is this a new girl?

Yes, Roy.

She's beautiful.

She got tits like you wouldn't believe.

And her face is perfection.

And, Roy, she will do anything for me...

anything that I ask.

♪ 'Cause I've got something to say ♪

♪ I heard a bluebird ♪

♪ A-passin' the good word ♪

♪ Ain't this a wonderful day? ♪

♪ Life is a pleasure ♪

♪ That you can measure ♪

♪ And wear what the birds have to say ♪

♪ I heard a bluebird ♪

♪ A-passin' the good word ♪

♪ Ain't this a wonderful day? ♪

♪ While I was dreamin'... ♪

- Hello. - Um, hi.

I shouldn't have done that.

Why not?

I'm with someone.

You've been sitting by yourself.

Anyone that'd leave you behind doesn't deserve to keep you.

I'm sorry.

How's he doing?

He just needs to sleep it off.

This evidence, do you have any idea

where he might hide it?

No, but it's got to be in here somewhere.

Do you have any idea where

he might have hidden the evidence?

Well, not that many places he would.

What is it that we're looking for?

Hawk?

Shit.

Get some food in him. Keep him away from the booze.

I'll be back tomorrow.

Skippy!

Hey!

Skippy!

Hey! Hey, Skippy. Will you stop?

I don't like being spied on.

I don't like being abandoned!

- Who was that? - It's a friend of Bill's.

He's having some trouble.

Will you get out of the street? Christ.

Look... I had some business.

I didn't think it would take long,

- and then you and me could-- - We could, we could what?

Fuck like rabbits comes to mind.

Tim, what do you want?

- I wanna be with you. - Let's go inside.

No! No. I wanna be with you.

Sleep in the same bed with you all night.

Not get kicked out at midnight

so the neighbors won't see me leaving in the morning!

I wanna eat a meal with you like other couples.

We've never eaten in a restaurant!

Men do eat in restaurants!

I could be your cousin.

Nephew.

From the poor side of the family.

Obviously. Come on.

Here's your key, sir.

- Thank you. - Enjoy your stay.

Thanks.

Good afternoon. Checking in?

Hello. Uh, reservation. Anderson.

♪ mellow classical music ♪

- Hello? - Hey there, sweetheart.

Hi, Pop.

Uh, you're up late tonight, huh?

You know what?

We're pretending we're camping.

You were? Hey, is Grandma there?

Goddamn it!

You okay?

Hello?

Hey, Jenny, Grandpap has to go, okay?

- Pop? - No, I'm okay.

Tell Grandma I called, right? I love you.

Tim?

No, don't come in!

Do not come in!

Just get out!

All right.

- Get out! - I'm gonna help you up, okay?

All right. I'm just gonna- I'm gonna help you up.

Come on.

- I'm sorry. - It's okay.

All right. All right. All right. All right.

I'm so... Let's get you covered up.

Here you go.

- My legs buckled, - All right.

- in the shower. - All right.

I scraped my elbow on the damn sink.

It's okay. You're okay.

Okay. You're okay.

What do you want, Hawk?

Huh?

Did you come here looking for forgiveness?

Because I don't have any left to give.

I'm too angry to forgive anybody.

I needed to see you, Skippy.

That's all I know.

Just go. Wash your hands.

You need an AIDS test.

I don't have any cuts on my hands.

I'm not talking about my blood.

I'm talking about your life.

- Name, please? - Marcus Gaines.

You have a reservation?

Yes, sir.

I don't see you.

Uh, one of the performers put me on the list.

- Are you alone? - Yes, sir.

Let me see if I can find something for you.

Just one moment, please.

Sure.

Ah, welcome.

Mr. York and company.

Hello.

Watkins.

Congratulations on your birthday, sir.

Thank you.

My uncle is treating me to dinner.

No, thanks.

Don't overdo it, Skippy.

You're not a convincing liar.

Maybe you should give me some lessons.

Take it easy on the wine, nephew.

You never told me.

How did you end up at the State Department?

I came out of the war with four assets,

degree from Penn, a hero's war record,

no particular political ideology,

and a passing acquaintance with three languages.

Throw in a talent for prevaricating

and a taste for travel and fine clothes,

you have the makings of a competent,

mid-level Foreign Service bureaucrat.

Not an ambassador?

An ambassador can't have what I'm looking for.

And what are you looking for?

Complete personal freedom.

You mean not giving yourself to something or somebody.

If you want to see it that way.

How does Lucy Smith see it?

I'm cutting you off.

Oh, live music.

I love this song!

Sing it to me like you do at home.

No. I can't .

Come on. it's our anniversary!

♪ You won't admit you love me ♪

♪ And so How am I ever to know ♪

♪ You always tell me "Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps"♪

Aw!

♪ A million times I ask you ♪

♪ And then I ask you over again ♪

♪ You always answer "Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps" ♪

♪ So if you really love me say yes ♪

♪ Or if you don't dear, confess ♪

♪ But please don't t... ♪

That's sweet.

Oh!

My nephew's not feeling well.

- Could I just get the check? - Yes, sir.

Thanks, boss.

- May I ask what's the holdup? - I'm sorry for the delay.

We confirmed that you had been placed on the list.

- Great. - But, unfortunately,

there's been an overbooking of reservations.

We just don't have any more tables.

What about standing room at the back?

- I'm sure I could stand there. - Something wrong?

So this is how you're dodging the desegregation laws?

"Overbooking reservations"?

I think you should leave?

You mean, "I think you should leave, nigger."

Marcus?

Don't worry,

I wouldn't waste my money in this alley dump anyway.

Marcus! What's going on?

They won't let you in?

- It's fine. Just go back-- - It's not fine.

Just forget it. I'm leaving any--

No! Who do you think all of these people came to see?

He goes, or you both go.

Fine with me, we're overrun with fags tonight.

What are you trying to say?

I'm saying you and your boyfriend

- need to get out of here. - That's not my boyfriend,

you shit, huh!

That's not my fuckin' boyfriend!

Get outta here! Go!

Come on! Let's--

- Get off of me! - Come on.

Marcus! Wait!

Why'd you do that back there?

Do what?

To them, I'm just another Negro

walking around Foggy Bottom.

But you had to come out and make it worse.

Marcus!

I was standin' up for you.

I don't need you to stand up for me.

Not there, not anywhere.

Oh, you're upset because he called us fags

in front of all those good-paying white folks.

They called you one!

Cover yourself up.

And get out of the street

before you get yourself arrested.

I need my stuff.

Walk me back to the club.

Hawk?

I embarrassed you.

- I can't have this. - I know.

You can't have this.

This emotion.

And you can't hold your liquor.

You'd rather be with one of the guys from the Nomad.

One of the rough trade you find so exciting.

Someone who doesn't ask questions.

You know, that would be refreshing.

At the bar, I kissed a man.

Congratulations.

I could've gone home with him.

He wanted me.

You want me to be rough trade?

Hit me.

Again.

Take your pants off.

Keep lookin' at me!

All of it.

Everything.

Put your hands out.

Who do you belong to?

You.

- Who do you belong to? - You.

Who do you belong to?

You!

That's it. You can take it.

- Who do you belong to? - You.

- Say it. - You.

- Say it. - I belong to you.

Say the whole thing. My name.

- Hawkins Fuller! - The whole thing. I belong...

- I belong... - To Hawkins Fuller.

I belong to Hawkins Fuller.

C-o-h-n!

Do you not read the Washington Post?

Time magazine?

Have Colonel Ladue call Roy Cohn immediately!

It's an urgent matter concerning G. David Schine,

Chief Consultant to the Senate Subcommittee

on Investigations! Thank you.

Thanks for this, Ma.

I was a year old and I wasn't pretty enough.

You had to fix my nose?

You fixed it all right.

♪ unsettling music playing ♪

It was surreal...

coming back from the war a colored man in America.

Knowing you've put your life on the line for persons

who see no value in it.

Surreal.

A lie. Like President Eisenhower's

declaration of a desegregated D.C.

Tonight I was blocked at the door

as white people walked right in.

Promises are great when they are upheld.

But how long do we wait

for these promises to be fulfilled?

How'd you get this?

Italy.

I led a squad of four men

in the push to liberate Velletri.

We got pinned down by a Krupp K5.

It's a heavy railway gun with a 70-foot-long barrel.

The Krauts had two of 'em pointed at us.

When they fired the K5,

you could count the seconds after the boom

to know when it was gonna hit.

We all took a piece of it.

By the time they got to us, two of my men were dead.

Was it bad? The wound.

I needed a couple surgeries,

but mostly it was my head that was screwed up.

Senator Smith took care of me.

Rented me a little house.

He didn't let anyone come near me

till I got my thinking straight.

So now you do things for him.

Yeah.

Bad things?

Necessary things.

Senator Smith is a good man, Skippy.

Like you.

Can I come in?

I'm not sure.

Would you read this?

I need your opinion.

The words just... Just kept coming.

Oh. I can tell.

It's good.

Really good. But...

I don't mean to sound like a prima donna, but where am I?

I know.

The bouncer called us fags. You forget that?

Frankie...

That's not a fight I can win right now.

No editor would run that story.

I'll always be a colored man first.

It's all folks see.

When I was a kid, no one noticed me.

Which was a good thing,

because when they noticed me, it was with a curse,

or a smack or a shove.

But the first time I went full drag to a club,

in a cheap Halloween wig and a borrowed poodle skirt...

people noticed.

They looked at me.

I'm lookin' at you.

Dave. Come in.

My car is waiting downstairs.

I told you that I'm going to New York.

For your date.

But you said that it was important.

Sit down. Here, let's have a cigar.

The pinko laborer we interrogated yesterday.

Yeah.

Wop who cried like a girl.

Yeah?

I dug through a thousand transcripts.

Found testimony on at least a dozen military personnel

with communist ties working out of Fort Monmouth.

Does that name sound familiar?

That was the base of operations

for the Julius Rosenberg spy ring.

Where military engineers

built radio equipment for the Voice of America.

This begs the question,

how are so many security risks

allowed to work so closely

to the inner workings of our own military?

Either the Army's

administrative officials are inept,

unable to identify subversives

working under their own goddamned noses,

or they're corrupt,

and there's a conspiracy afoot.

Either way,

I think the Army needs to be investigated.

And, if it turns out that the Army Command

is riddled with commies, we'll smoke 'em out,

every last stinkin' pinko traitor.

And when we do, Dave,

they won't dare to touch you.

We have a lot of work to do.

I met McCarthy at an Elk's Club dinner

when I was on leave.

It was a couple of years ago.

McCarthy noticed I liked bourbon.

At some point, he says he wants to see the town.

So, we stopped off a few places.

Ended up getting a room at a motor hotel,

and kept on drinking.

That's all?

No.

The Senator performed sodomy on me.

It wasn't my first time.

I'm that way. Especially when I drink.

I'm not proud of it.

I'm not judging you.

At the time, I was stationed in Fort Campbell,

and he said he could get me transferred

to a base closer to home.

My mother was alone, you see, not well.

And I didn't hear from him, so I...

wrote him a letter, just very polite.

Reminded him of what he offered to do.

Next thing I know, the FBI's breaking down my door,

sayin' I'm going to prison for making threats.

I didn't threaten no one!

It's okay.

They said they were gonna tell my mother what I was.

I begged them not to. She was sick.

They told her anyway.

She never looked at me again.

Bill said you have evidence.

He said you have money.

Take care of yourself.

Careful.

You don't want to burn that sensitive Irish skin.

Are we going now?

Yeah, I have to get back.

Back to leaving in the middle of the night.

Sneaking down the stairs. Lying.

Skippy, everybody lies about somethin'.

You and me, we lie about who we sleep with.

I know it hurts you

'cause you're good...

Sweet.

But the lying... gets easier.

Eventually, it doesn't hurt as much.

'Cause you have no choice.

- Not "who we sleep with." - What?

It's not... who we sleep with.

It's who we love.

Mr. Ruvalcaba?

Won't be long, Tim.

Castro Mission Health Center.

They know you?

I worked here. Before.

You said your sister needs a break.

I nursed my kids through measles, mumps.

- Broken arms. - Hawk. No.

- How long would she need? - No. No.

- It's not a good idea. - How long?

What, a week?

I can do that.

Skippy, just...

- Will you give me a chance? - A chance to do what?

To...

To fuck it up again.

- Are you sure? - No.

I'm not sure of anything anymore.

Mr. Fuller?

We have unearthed a trail

of dangerous espionage activity

at the Army's Fort Monmouth radar laboratories.

The very same site

where the Rosenberg Spy Ring was hatched.

My Subcommittee will immediately reconvene

to get to the bottom of this scandal.

The champions of communism

have selected this as the time

to destroy the Christian world.

We will do what it takes to protect the security

of every American citizen

and every citizen of the free world.

Senator, how widespread is the corruption?

On another note,

soon you will be addressing Miss Kerr as Mrs. McCarthy,

as we are engaged to be married.

Do you have a regular sexual partner?

Yes.

Do you and your partner use condoms?

No, she's my wife.

Have you had a sexually transmitted disease

- in the past year? - No.

Have you injected drugs

or shared needles in the past year?

Of course not.

In the past six months,

have you had sex with another man?

Yes.

- Penetrative? - Yes. With condoms.

Were you an active or a passive participant?

Active. Always.

What is the frequency of these sexual contacts?

Oh, it's not frequent. It's, uh...

I don't know, three... Three or four times a year.

With the same partner?

Not if I can help it.

Okay. You can roll up your sleeve now.

♪ rock music playing ♪

♪ Oh, yes ♪

♪ I'm the great pretender ♪

♪ Pretending I'm doing well ♪

♪ My need is such ♪

♪ I pretend too much ♪

♪ I'm lonely but no one can tell ♪

♪ Oh, yes ♪

♪ I'm the great pretender ♪

♪ Adrift in a world of my own ♪