01x14 - The Red Woodloe Story

[bunniefuu]

[PARTRIDGE FAMILY THEME PLAYING]

♪ Come on now
And meet everybody ♪

♪ And hear us singing ♪

♪ There's nothing better
Than being together ♪

♪ When we're singing ♪

♪ The five of us ♪

♪ And Mom working all day ♪

♪ We knew we could help her
If our music would pay ♪

♪ Danny got Reuben
To sell our song ♪

♪ And it really came together
When Mom sang along ♪

♪ Come on now
And meet everybody ♪

♪ And hear us singing ♪

♪ There's nothing better
Than being together ♪

♪ When we're singing ♪

♪ When we're singing ♪

♪ When we're singing ♪♪

CHRIS:
Boy, this place sure is rusty.

LAURIE: I think you mean rustic.

KEITH: I go along with rusty.

I tried to make it home
last night,

but we were all too tired.

This was the only place around.

I think it's nice.

I can imagine Abraham Lincoln
building a place like this.

I can imagine
Abraham Lincoln

condemning
a place like this.

Mr. Kincaid,
Danny Partridge here.

[KNOCKING]

Mr. Kincaid,
are you awake?

Yes, I am awake!

You taunt me.

Well, it's time
you and I had it--

Oh... Oh!

Why aren't you up?

I guess I forgot
to wind the rooster, kid.

You are going
to church with us.

I am?

You said so last night.

Oh. Well, I say
a lot of silly things

when I'm wide-awake.

And you do
a lot of silly things

when you're wide-awake.

That's why
there are churches.

See you there.

♪ I'm gonna walk
That lonesome valley ♪

♪ Gonna walk there
By myself ♪

♪ Oh, Lord, I'm coming ♪

♪ To the big wide river ♪

♪ But how am I gonna
Get across ?♪

♪ Now, Mama said
When I was crying ♪

♪ Son, oh, son
Don't feel alone ♪

♪ Just put your trust
In God and Jesus ♪

♪ And they will
Lead you safely home... ♪

What took you so long?

I couldn't--I couldn't
find the hot water faucet

in my room.

Those rooms
don't have hot water.

Now you tell me.
Shh.

♪ Gonna walk there
By myself ♪

Reuben.
Hmm?

Do you know
who that is singing?

No. Never
saw him before.

Me neither,
but listen to him.

That's Red Woodloe.

Who's Red Woodloe?

A very famous folk singer,
practically a legend.

Couldn't be him.
He's been dead for years.

He's dead?

Don't worry.

He looks friendly enough...

for a ghost.

So, there I was,

with this terrible case
of laryngitis.

I mean,
I couldn't sing a note.

And these crazy lumberjacks
are saying

I owed 'em a song,

and they wanted payment,
or they was gonna drown me.

What did you do,
Mr. Woodloe?

Oh, just call me Red,
please.

Well... I seen
this long train a-comin',

and you know
what a racket they make.

So as it was passing by,

I opened my mouth
and pretended to sing.

And when that train had gone by,
I had finished the song.

Did they fall
for that old trick?

No.
What did they do?

They drowned me.

Why'd you quit
show business, Red?

Well, I guess when a fella
wanders around like I did,

he's looking for something,

and when I got
to this town,

I decided I'd found it.

See, I fit here,

and I'm kind of
a hard shape to fit.

You must have made
a lot of money

to retire like that.

All the money I made
was what they put in my hat.

I earn money now
by doing odd jobs.

Odd jobs?

RED: Oh, yeah.

That's the great thing.

I do everything,

but nothing regular enough
so that I get tired of it.

Look, I hate to break this up,
but we'd better get going.

We still have
a two-hour drive ahead of us.

Do we have to?

I'd like to hear
some more stories.

So would I.

Maybe Red could come with us
and visit for a while.

Well, I'd sure like that, but--

We've got lots
of odd jobs.

Then you'll come.

Oh, come on, Red.

Well... I don't know
as how I got much choice.

It appears that Tracy here
has growed right on to my knee.

♪ There is bread and cheese
Upon the shelf, uh-huh ♪

♪ Uh-huh ♪

♪ There is bread and cheese
Upon the shelf, uh-huh ♪

♪ Uh-huh ♪

♪ There is bread and cheese
Upon the shelf ♪

♪ If you want anymore
You can sing it yourself ♪

♪ Uh-huh ♪

♪ Uh-huh ♪

♪ Uh-huh ♪

That's a silly song.

Tracy, you're too young
to be a critic.

And you won't get any older

unless you get
some sleep.

Get under those covers,
young lady.

Okay, but wait until us women
have our revolution.

The rest of you shoo.
Leave Red alone.

Come on, Simone.
Come on, Simone.

Good night, Trace.

Good night,
sweetheart.

Good night, Mom.

Good night, Tracy.

Good night, Tracy.

I'll turn out
the light.

No, don't do that.

Don't tell me you're
afraid of the dark.

Okay, I won't tell you,
but I am.

You know...

I used to be
scared of the dark too...

till I learned a secret.

What secret? Tell me.

All right,

seeing as how you're
such a good friend of mine.

First off,
you've gotta close your eyes.

Now, what do you see?

Nothing.

Right.

And you ain't
scared of a nothing,

because a nothing
is a nothing.

That makes sense.

Okay. You can open
your eyes again.

Now, when I turn off the light,

what do you see?

[LIGHT SWITCH CLICKS]

Nothing.

And that's the whole secret.

Because the dark
is a nothing...

and since you can't
be scared of a nothing,

there's no reason
to be scared of the dark.

Right?

Mr. Red, you wouldn't lie
to a little girl, would you?

Never ever.

Well, okay.

You get some sleep now.

Why aren't you
kids out playing?

CHRIS: Because this
is a lot more fun.

We figured if
we helped you now,

you might tell us
a story later.

That's a promise, Danny.

Now, what's all this?

Oh, those are our amplifiers.

You mean you carry all this
equipment when you work?

It'd be kind of hard
to jump a freight

with all that stuff.

Well, when you work
in a big room,

no one can hear you without 'em.

You know, I seldom played

for more than people
at a time.

Yeah, I figured
if they couldn't hear me,

they was either deaf
or very smart.

Twenty people?

It doesn't
sound very lucrative.

Well, maybe not in money, Danny,
but in other things.

Hey, how would
you have liked

to have performed
at Woodstock,

over , people
at one time?

Three-hundred-thousand people!

That sure would be excitin'.

You know, I guess
that's more people

than I played to
in my entire life.

Boy, wouldn't I liked to have
had an audience like that.

I was telling him
about Woodstock,

and you should have
seen his face.

Well, I'm sure he'd perform
if he wanted to.

He sings at the church.

Yeah, but he ought
to have a real gig.

It's just not right
to waste all that talent,

as hokey as that sounds.

Well, don't look at me.

Why don't you ask Red
if he wants a job?

That wouldn't work.
He's too independent.

He wouldn't
accept our help.

We'd have to make it sound
as though someone wanted him.

And, naturally, they'd ask
his booking agent.

Look, I'd like to help,

but he's been out of circulation
for years.

Not many people remember him.

Won't you try?

Do I have a choice?

No.

Well, then I'll try.

So, if they keep
building highways,

it's gonna be a world
of cars and cement.

RED: Well, what do you think
we should do about it?

Get the parking concession
right away.

I'm glad Red
led you all in here,

because I've got
some good news.

Reuben,
it's your good news.

Well, uh, I was negotiating
our next gig,

and the manager,
who's an old fan of Red's,

found out
that we knew him,

so he wants...

Red to work
on our next bill.

Oh, great.
Great!

Great!

DANNY: Oh, wow!

Me, perform?

[SINGING
"I CAN FEEL YOUR HEARTBEAT"]

♪ Love, love
Can't you feel my heartbeat ?♪

♪ Love, love
I can feel your heartbeat ♪

♪ Love, love
Can't you feel my heartbeat ?♪

♪ Love, love
I can feel your heartbeat ♪

♪ Love, love
Can't you feel my heartbeat ♪

♪ Love, love
I can feel your heartbeat ♪

♪ Love, love
Can't you feel it ♪

♪ Love, love
I can feel it ♪

♪ Love, love
Gettin' stronger ♪

♪ Love, love
Oh, I can feel it ♪

♪ Love, love
I can feel it ♪

♪ Love, love
It's gettin' stronger ?♪

Thank you very much,
ladies and gentlemen.

And now it's my privilege
to introduce

a truly great folk singer,
Mr. Red Woodloe.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

truly a sensation,

Mr. Red Woodloe!

Where's
the fabulous Red Woodloe?

I don't know.

I knew you could
always find me.

I just didn't think

you'd want
to bother looking.

Well...

I didn't pay you
for those odd jobs.

[MUMBLES]

[CONTINUES
TO PLAY GUITAR]

Why'd you run away?

You know, I've been
sitting here all night

trying to think up
a fancy reason...

but I can't.

It all come out
sounding like

one of my crazy stories.

As long as I know
you're all right,

you don't have to
give me a reason.

Oh, I owe you
an explanation

or I wouldn't
be sittin' here

trying to make one up.

Why don't you
just tell me the truth?

'Cause I don't know the truth.

Why, I've always been a bum
with a guitar and a hat,

and people paid me
if they liked me.

And the idea of...

having people pay,

and then decide
if they like me...

that ain't my style,

so I just had to run.

Do you understand?

I think I do.

[SIGHS]

But you should have told us.

The kids were so worried.

I think
they're blaming themselves.

Oh, can't have that.

I should've realized.

Well, I would have explained,

but then, you see,
I would have had to stay.

But if I'd stayed,
I would have had to go on,

and I didn't wanna go on,
so I run away.

I'm sorry.

Boy, I thought
I'd heard of everything,

but running away
because you're paid?

Boy, that's weird.

Say, if you think
that's weird,

you come on out
in the garage

while I finish up
out there,

and I'll tell you
the story about the man

who had all the money
in the world.

That's my kind of story.

CHRIS: Can we go too?

Oh, sure. There's room
in my story for everybody.

Come along.

Something wrong?

No.

Well, yes.

I don't know
what exactly,

but I don't think Red
was telling the truth.

Oh?

It sounded to me

like a plain case
of stage fright.

Could be.

He's never performed
on a real stage

with a large audience before.

Whatever his reasons,
that's his business.

But how could he
do that to himself?

He's got talent
most people never even heard of.

He can't just...
blow it off.

He's never gotten a cent off
all those songs he's written.

It's about time
he got some credit.

What can I do?

Just ask Reuben to get Red
another gig, that's all.

Okay. I'll talk to Reuben.

You know something?

You're pretty nice people.

I bet you say that
to all your kids.

That's got it.

There's a great
casual crowd out front.

How do you feel?
I'm scared.

Some day, this will
all make a funny story.

I keep telling myself that.

I think you need
a few moments of quiet and rest.

Come on, g*ng.

KEITH: Red, we'll be
cheering for you.

CHRIS: Don't worry
about stage fright.

You'll grow out of it.

Thanks a lot, old-timer.

See you out front.

Oh, Shirley?

Yes?

[SIGHS]

Thanks for everything.

TRACY: Red?
Hmm?

Are you going somewhere?

No!

Uh... Well, I mean, yes.

I'm just gonna get
some fresh air.

I can't sing
without fresh air in my lungs.

I'll come with you.

I have something to tell you.

Come with me?

Yeah, well, maybe
on second thought,

I shouldn't go.

It's cold outside.

Now, uh,
what'd you wanna tell me?

Are you really afraid
to go on stage?

I guess so.

I can tell you a secret.

I was scared the first time too.

No kidding.
How'd you get over it?

When you get on stage,
close your eyes right away,

and you won't see nothing.

And you know you can't
be afraid of a nothing.

That's what you told me.

Of course.

Can't be afraid of a nothin'.

Then open one eye,
then open the other.

and you'll be so busy singing,

you won't have time
to be afraid.

That should work.

Now, uh...

you'd better go on back
to your mama, honey.

You weren't trying
to disappear again?

Oh, of course not. I--

You wouldn't lie
to a little girl,

would you, Red?

Never ever, honey.

Red, you're on.

Well, I guess I'm up here
to sing some songs,

or maybe tell a few stories.

[CROWD CHATTERING]

Maybe I shouldn't
even be up here at all.

[CROWD QUIETS DOWN]

[GUITAR PLAYING]

Surprise.

I'm the entertainment.

I bet you thought
I was the janitor.

Well, my regular job is janitor.

I'm just moonlighting.

Now, right about there,

I'm supposed to jump in
and sing a song,

but, uh, I got my pickin' hand
going so good,

I kinda hate to interrupt it...

But I will.

♪ From the calm Pacific waters ♪

♪ To the rough Atlantic shore ♪

♪ Ever climbin' hills
And mountains ♪

♪ Like no other did before ♪

♪ She can ride the rails
So easy ♪

♪ Smoother than the waterfall ♪

♪ As we roll
Right through the prairies ♪

♪ On the Wabash cannonball ♪

♪ Well, now
Listen to the jingle ♪

♪ The rumble and the roar ♪

♪ As she glides along
The woodlands ♪

♪ Through the hills
And by the shore ♪♪

Red, you were
terrific.

I knew you had it
the first time I saw you.

The first time you saw him,
you thought he was dead.

Well, dead or not,

I know talent
when I see it.

They wanna book you here
for four weeks.

Oh, that's great!

[ALL CONGRATULATING]

Oh, congratulations, Red.

Yeah!

Reuben... I can't take the job.

Well, this kind of life
is fine for you

because you love it.

Me, well, I love to sing,

but when I gotta be some place
and sing at : ,

and : , and ...

well, that ain't
just singing anymore.

That's business.

And for me, there ain't nothing

that will take the fun
out of somethin' faster

than makin' it a business.

Besides, I got my home.

The way things are,

I'm free to enjoy my home
as often as I want.

That's what makes me happy.

Well, I guess
that's kind of hard

for you all to understand,
isn't it?

I think we understand, Red.

Well, then what's everybody
standing around

with such a gloomy face on for?

Come on. Let's get on home.

We've got a lot of work to do
in that garage.

Come on, kids.

Did I ever
tell you the story

about the scarecrow
and the talking chicken?

CHRIS: Chickens can't talk.

RED: Now, you went and ruined
the end of my story.

That scarecrow
was a ventriloquist.

Well, we've got a whole church
full of singers here today.

My friends,
the Partridge family

have stopped by to
pay us a little visit.

And they tell me they've got
a very special song

that they'd like to sing for us.

Folks?

[CROWD MURMURING]

Thank you, Red.

My son, Keith, wrote this song,

and he dedicated it
to Mr. Woodloe,

so we couldn't
think of a better place

to sing it for the first time.

[SINGING
"FIND PEACE IN YOUR SOUL"]

♪ I was cold and tired
And hungry ♪

♪ And a long, long way
From home ♪

♪ When I met an old man
Singing by the road ♪

♪ Well, he offered me
His overcoat ♪

♪ And a place to rest my feet ♪

♪ When I tried to thank him
He just smiled and sang to me ♪

♪ You ain't gonna find it
Lookin' down that road ♪

♪ You find joy in the world ♪

♪ You find joy in your soul ♪

♪ Well, they were
Having a revival ♪

♪ In a tent
Just down the road ♪

♪ I was soaking wet
So I stepped inside ♪

♪ Where I could dry my clothes ♪

♪ Standing right
In front of me ♪

♪ Was a crippled soldier boy ♪

♪ But those crutches
Didn't keep him ♪

♪ From singing out with joy ♪

♪ You ain't gonna find it
Lookin' down that road ♪

♪ You find peace in the world ♪

♪ You find peace in your soul ♪

♪ And you ain't gonna find it
Lookin' down that road ♪

♪ You find peace in the world

♪ You find peace
In your soul ♪♪

[♪♪♪]