Forwarded by the ASC-VSO Posted: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 04:12:46 GMT In: alt.startrek.creative From: Jungle Kitty Title: Backwards and In High Heels Author: Jungle Kitty Contact: kittyjungle @ earthlink . net Series: TOS Posted: 4/20/2004 Part: 5/5 Codes: Various characters including real people, humor Rating: PG Feedback: Yes, please. See part 1 for summary, disclaimers, and acknowledgements. *** BACKWARDS AND IN HIGH HEELS, part 5 (c) 2001-2004 Jungle Kitty EPILOG--FOUR MONTHS LATER "What'll you have, dear?" Pad in hand and pen at the ready, the waitress shifted her weight from one hip to the other. Julie shook her head. "Just a Coke right now. I'm waiting for someone." With a long-suffering sigh, the waitress went back to the kitchen. Julie moved closer to the window and scanned the street. Seeing a familiar face--but not the one she was expecting--she half-rose in the booth and rapped on the glass. 'Me?' the man outside mouthed. She smiled and waved him in. Moments later, the former Daphne Howard stood in front of her, hands in his pockets, smiling awkwardly. "I didn't think you'd ever want to see me again." "I didn't. But--well, sit down. How have you been?" "Out of work." "I'm sorry. We didn't blackball you, you know." "I know." "That would have required telling people about what happened and the studio wanted the whole thing hushed up." "It's so reassuring to hear that the best performance of my career can't even be talked about." In the long silence, the waitress returned with Julie's Coke. "Ready to order?" "Do you want something?" Julie asked. "No, thanks." The waitress glared at them both and left. "I'm glad I saw you standing out there," Julie said. "I've been wanting to tell you something. They've asked Gene to do another pilot." "What kind of show?" "Star Trek." "What? They went for it?" "Kind of. They wanted some changes--" "They always do." He sat back, now relaxed and confident. "Who's playing the captain?" "William Shatner." "Oh." He slumped unhappily. "Well, yeah, I can see that. I saw his 'Alexander the Great' pilot--he looked pretty good in a skirt." Rolling her eyes, Julie said, "The captain is a *man*." "A man? Awww, Julie. That's so predictable. A man." "America isn't ready for a cross-dressing captain." "Jamocha wasn't a cross-dresser! She was a woman played by a man! Like in Shakespeare's day." "Unfortunately, Elizabethan groundlings were more sophisticated than the average TV viewer." "I can't believe this. After all that work! I was very proud of what I did as Jamocha. I really felt I understood her." "I know, and I think it was a wonderful performance. And I think you should know--" Her eyes lit up. "--so did Desi Arnaz." "Really?" "He had a few criticisms, but up until Jamocha turned out to be a man, he really liked her." "Then why aren't you going with that?" "Lucille Ball vetoed the idea. She said TV already has a wacky redhead." "She thought Jamocha was *wacky*?" "Well, you have to admit that last speech was a little over-the-top." "Over the top? That was great acting! It was honest, it came straight from the gut, it was--" "Oh, come on! An accident that splits someone into two people? A dying woman transferring her soul to her brother? Space-faring Cherokee?" "Okay, so maybe it could have used a little editing, but it could work." "Not all in one episode." "It's science fiction!" Laughing, Julie conceded to his logic. "All right, all right, it's perfectly plausible. I'll make sure Gene uses every bit of it. Right now, I'm more concerned about you." "What about me?" "An actor as talented as you are shouldn't be out of work. I wonder..." "What?" "Well..." She thought for a moment as she twirled her straw. "I just heard about a project that I think you'd be right for. It's a movie about a young man just out of college. He's searching for direction and- -" "Wait a minute. I heard about that. He gets involved with an older woman, friend of his parents, right?" "Yes." "I saw the call sheet. They want a good-looking, Ivy League type. I'm all wrong for it. Definitely. All wrong. Definitely, definitely wrong." "Listen to me. You convinced Gene Roddenberry, Desi Arnaz, and everyone on that lot that you were a woman. An extraordinary woman, capable of commanding a starship. You can play any part you set your mind to. Make your agent submit you for it. I've got a feeling about this. It could be your big break." "Well...all right. I'll give it a try. Thanks, Julie." Julie found herself enjoying his smile. It was warm and playful, and she suddenly felt at ease in a way she hadn't since...well, since the last time she'd had coffee with Daphne. "Listen," she said, "I wonder if--" There was a rap on the window and both looked out to see a young girl pressing her face to the glass. "Oh, here's my niece! She and her mother are having lunch with me. They're visiting from England. Would you like to join us?" "Thanks, but I think I'm going to go talk to my agent." "Good for you. Give my regards to Harry." As he left the coffee shop, he passed Julie's niece on her way in. "Have a nice lunch with your aunt." "Oh!" The girl stopped and stared at him. "How did you--?" He just smiled and kept going. "Aunt Julie," the girl exclaimed as she slid into the booth. "I think I just met a psychic!" Julie laughed. "The man in the doorway?" "Yes! He knew I was having lunch with my aunt." "He wasn't a psychic, he's a friend of mine. Where's your mother?" "She dropped me off. I think she didn't want me to see her trying to park the car. She keeps trying to drive on the left. She's quite dangerous, you know." "Everyone here is dangerous on the road. That's part of our charm. So what do you think of California so far?" "It's very different from home. Lovely weather and all but..." "Yes?" She was still young enough to pout and she did. "My autograph book is still empty. I haven't seen a single film star." "You just spoke to someone who will be a star very soon." "Who?" "My friend. The one you thought was a psychic." "What's his name?" To her great embarrassment, Julie realized she still didn't know Daphne's real name. Oh well. She felt certain that she'd see it soon enough on a movie screen. "Aunt Julie?" Seeing the eager curiosity in her niece's face and thinking of the future that Daphne had envisioned, Julie reached across the table and patted the girl's hand. "Jeanne-Louise, he's the woman I'd most like you to be when you grow up." "Whatever does that mean?" "Anybody ready to order yet?" the waitress interrupted. "Yes, please," Jeanne-Louise replied. "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot." [The End] ADDITIONAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: This story was inspired not only by Star Trek, but also the movie "Tootsie," written by Larry Gelbart, Barry Levinson, Elaine May, Don McGuire, and Murray Schisgal, and produced by Columbia Pictures Corporation, Delphi, Mirage, and Punch Productions. No copyright infringement is intended, only affectionate tribute. On more thing--it would be wrong wrong wrong if I failed to acknowledge the delightful and inspiring performance of Dustin Hoffman in that movie. His portrayal of both "Dorothy Michaels" and "Michael Dorsey" ranks high on my list of favorites. I only wish I could have worked in the part where he shoved the mime. -- Stephen Ratliff ASC Awards Tech Support http://www.trekiverse.us/ASCAwards/commenting/ No Tribbles were harmed in the running of these Awards ASCL is a stories-only list, no discussion. Comments and feedback should be directed to alt.startrek .creative or directly to the author. Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ASCL/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: ASCL-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ From ???@??? Sun Apr 25 00:01:46 2004 X-Persona: Status: U Return-Path: Received: from n21.grp.scd.yahoo.com ([66.218.66.77]) by mamo (EarthLink SMTP Server) with SMTP id 1bhAOM4ir3NZFk70 for ; Sat, 24 Apr 2004 21:00:36 -0700 (PDT) X-eGroups-Return: sentto-1977044-13467-1082865636-stephenbratliffasc=earthlink.net@returns.groups.yah