Lights, Action, Land-Ho!

by Judy Delton

  And it was good news that she could get a badge for all this work! It wouldn’t be for nothing. She would both be a movie star and get a badge.

  That evening Molly found a black patch to put over one eye the way Kevin had said. She found a rag to tie around her head. And cord to tie around her pajama legs. She made a sword out of an old fly swatter.

  After school the next afternoon Molly and Mary Beth ran over to the garage. They put on their costumes.

  “Maybe Rachel isn’t coming,” said Molly to Mary Beth.

  But just as she said that, Rachel came up the driveway. She had on her sailor outfit. Little blue shorts and a blue-and-white shirt with an anchor on it. She had a little round white sailor hat on her head. Around her neck she had a whistle. And on her feet were tap shoes. Real, honest-to-goodness black shiny tap shoes with perky bows. They had real, honest-to-goodness metal taps on the toes and on the heels. And the shoes bent when Rachel walked. Tap, tap, tap they sounded as she walked up the driveway.

  “Where do I sit to watch?” she asked.

  Molly pointed to a box.

  Before long Patty and Kenny came in, too, to watch. They sat on some old camp stools Mary Beth unfolded.

  Rachel stared at Molly’s feet.

  “What are those?” she said.

  “They’re taps,” said Molly. “The kind that cover my whole shoes.”

  Rachel did not laugh. She just shook her head side to side. Patty and Kenny sat politely on the camp stools and did not laugh either.

  Molly took one last look at her book, and waited for Mary Beth to sing. Then she began to dance, waving her fly swatter to keep her balance.

  Push back down. Push back down. Push back down.

  Rachel held her hands over her ears.

  “You need music to dance,” she said, interrupting Molly’s dance.

  “What do you think this is, chicken feed?” asked Mary Beth impatiently.

  “You need real music. Dance music,” said Rachel. “It has to have rhythm and a beat.”

  Beat, schmeat, thought Molly. She bet Rachel couldn’t do push back down as well as she could.

  Rachel stood up with her hands on her hips.

  “This is the way you do the shuffle step,” she said, and with her hat bobbing she did the push back down right across the whole garage floor and out the door.

  “That’s shuffle off to Buffalo,” she said, coming back in. Molly wished she had shuffled off to the real Buffalo, instead of returning.

  “I shouldn’t really be dancing on a cement floor,” she said. “It can ruin my taps.”

  Why didn’t she go home then, thought Molly, and dance on her precious wooden floor and leave Molly alone.

  “You have to move when you do the shuffle step,” said Rachel. “This is the heel drop,” she said, demonstrating.

  Rachel’s shoes bent just right to do the heel drop Molly could not do with her pie pans.

  Rachel went on to show them what she called the four-tap cramp roll and some flaps and clicks. Then she did a chug, a brush step hop, and ended by making what she announced as an X turn and an O turn, ending up in a little twirl and bow, holding her hat up over her head.

  “It would be better if there was music,” she said.

  “Hey, I thought this was Molly and Mary Beth’s show,” called Kenny.

  “You do it now,” said Rachel, full of encouragement. She gave Molly a little push. Molly wanted to punch Rachel for showing off. She wanted to take off her pinching pie-pan shoes and run home. But she couldn’t. She couldn’t admit Rachel was better than she was.

  Push, brush, step, hop. Push, brush, step, hop, tried Molly. But it wasn’t like Rachel’s.

  Rachel demonstrated again, making crisp clicking and tapping noises with her feet. There were lots of clicks and lots of hops and Rachel’s feet were in the air one moment and tapping like crazy the next.

  Molly tried to follow. Her heel had a blister and her toe had a cramp. Her pie pans went clank, clank, clank, instead of tap and click.

  She tried a brush step hop and fell over.

  “Well,” sighed Rachel, putting her hat back on. “I’d better go and let you get a little practice,”

  She brushed off her silver taps and the tops of her shiny shoes with a paper hankie from her pocket. Then she retied her sailor scarf around her neck and shuffled off to Buffalo all the way down the driveway. The sharp, fast, musical sound of her taps made music in Molly’s ears.

  There was a lot of work to do before Molly was a movie star. Mrs. Peters said to be ready to be in the movies by next week. But even a week wasn’t enough time to catch up with Rachel, thought Molly. Tears came rushing to her eyes. She had to admit, it looked like Smarty-pants Rachel might be the movie star instead of Molly.

  CHAPTER 5

  Only Extras!

  Molly ran home and shut herself in her room. Maybe she should forget about tap dancing. About being a star. About competing with Rachel.

  She kicked her tap shoes into a corner and lay down on her bed. She couldn’t do that. She couldn’t give up! Her dad always said, No one likes a quitter. Molly would be a quitter if she gave up. If she let someone else be the star!

  Molly got up and put on her tap shoes.

  Push back down. Push back down. Push back down.

  She practiced for so long that her mother knocked on her door and wanted to know what was making all the noise in there.

  “It’s time for supper, Molly,” she said.

  Molly gobbled down her supper and ran back to her room to practice.

  Push back down. Push back down.

  By bedtime she had practiced a long time. But she did not seem to be any better at tap dancing.

  “Rat’s knees! Mrs. Peters always says, Practice makes perfect,” shouted Molly to no one. “Well, it doesn’t!”

  Molly kicked off the tap shoes again and got into bed.

  The next day was Tuesday. It was the Pee Wee Scouts meeting day.

  “I hope Mrs. Peters knows who is going to be in this thing,” said Sonny. “My arm is getting sore from practicing that darn violin.”

  “Did you ever hear of Columbus playing the fiddle?” whispered Mary Beth to Molly. “Sonny won’t get chosen.”

  The Pee Wees sat around the big table in the basement. They sang and they recited, but their hearts weren’t in it. They wanted movie talk. Lots of it.

  “I didn’t write in books,” said Tim Noon when Mrs. Peters asked for good deeds.

  Rachel waved her hand. “Mrs. Peters, it isn’t a good deed not to do something bad. If he gets to use that good deed, then I can say I didn’t talk back to my mother.”

  “And I didn’t fight on the playground,” said Kevin.

  “I didn’t set the house on fire!” laughed Roger.

  “I didn’t steal any candy,” called Tracy.

  Mrs. Peters held up her hands. She frowned. She had a problem here, thought Molly.

  “Rachel is right. Good deeds should be something positive,” said Mrs. Peters thoughtfully.

  Rachel said “Ha!” to Tim.

  “But of course, if you have a bad habit and stop,” she went on, “it may be a good deed.”

  All the Scouts began to talk at once. They all told about things they used to do but didn’t anymore.

  “I don’t wake my little sister up anymore,” said Mary Beth.

  “I used to break dishes when I dried them,” said Molly.

  “When I was little I used to want the light on in my bedroom at night,” said Patty. “I don’t anymore.”

  Mrs. Peters held up her hand again.

  “We will just have the good things we do for others,” said Mrs. Peters. “Not things we don’t do.”

  The Pee Wees settled down. No one raised a hand. It was easier not to do something than it was to do something, thought Molly.

  “And now,” said Mrs. Peters, “I have lots of movie news!”

  “At last!” said Tracy.

  Everyone sat up to
listen. Now they would know who was going to be in the movie. Who was going to be a star!

  Molly crossed her fingers. If she got chosen and Rachel didn’t, she wouldn’t have to worry about Rachel being better!

  Mrs. Peters smiled. “You will like my news,” she said. “Because the news is that all of you are going to be in it!”

  Half the Pee Wees cheered. The other half booed. How could everyone be a star? thought Molly.

  “The director told me he can use all of you as extras! So you all will be walk-ons.”

  “What does she mean, walk-ons?” asked Lisa. “Of course we have to walk on, unless we ride a horse!”

  “A walk-on part,” Mrs. Peters went on, “means that you all will be in the background. You will be in the group scenes. You will be part of a mob.”

  “Like the Mafia?” yelled Roger.

  Background did not sound like a good word to Molly. It did not sound like something a star did. A star was up in front. Not in the back.

  “Many stars are discovered this way,” said Mrs. Peters. “They started out in mob scenes, and a talent scout discovered them and made them a star.”

  So there was hope. But there was no chance to be the star in this movie.

  “Rat’s knees!” said Molly to Mary Beth. “None of us can be a star.”

  “But there will be talent scouts there,” said Rachel. “If we do well in the background, they might discover us. Me,” she added, tossing her hair.

  “Who do we get to be?” asked Mary Beth.

  “The movie is about a modern-day town’s celebration of Columbus Day, so the moviemakers want you to pretend to be modern children dressed as Native Americans.

  “Remember, when Columbus came to America the Native Americans were already living here,” their leader went on. “Columbus called the Native Americans ‘Indians’ because he thought he was in India.”

  “We are going to be Indians?” shouted Roger. “Yeah!”

  Indians! Molly thought being an Indian would be exciting. She imagined herself wearing beautiful colored feathers. It would be fun. But it would not be stardom.

  “Who gets to be Columbus?” shouted Roger.

  “I’ll bet it’s some guy older than us,” said Sonny.

  “Columbus and all the rest of the cast will be played by Hollywood stars,” said Mrs. Peters. “Moviemakers bring along their own cast, and just use local people for the walk-ons,”

  Well. Instead of a pirate’s outfit, Molly would need an Indian outfit.

  “The producers will supply the costumes,” said Mrs. Peters. “This is a professional movie, so they must be professional costumes. We must remember to do what the director asks, and be quiet and polite. We want to make the director glad that he or she asked the Pee Wees to have this honor.”

  “Yes, Mrs. Peters,” said the Pee Wees.

  On the way home, some of the Pee Wees grumbled.

  But some were happy.

  “I like being an Indian,” said Tim.

  “I don’t like being in the background,” said Sonny. “I want to be the star.”

  “Well, none of us are going to be the stars,” snapped Rachel. “So get it out of your head. You’re just pretending to be an Indian like all the rest of us.”

  Molly did not want to be just a walk-on. She had a secret plan of her own up her sleeve.

  The next day a big truck pulled up in front of Mrs. Peters’s house. Two women and one man stepped out. Hollywood was here! thought Molly. But they weren’t wearing dark sunglasses.

  “They’re here to measure you Pee Wees for your costumes,” said Mrs. Peters.

  “I think I have all of your sizes in stock,” said the man. He brought out the costumes from the truck.

  “They are beautiful!” said Rachel.

  They were, thought Molly. They had colored beads sewn all over them. They looked like real leather. They had feathers. And fringe! They were the best costumes Molly had ever seen!

  When all the Pee Wees had them on, they ran around the table chasing each other and whooping. Mrs. Peters frowned. She held up her hand. The Indians sat down.

  “We will have several rehearsals,” said one of the Hollywood women. “We rehearse without the walk-ons until production time, then we will include all of you.”

  She told them how to come onto the set. And how to walk. And how to act naturally.

  “Don’t stay in one big group,” she said. “Spread yourselves around near the trees and in the woods. Pretend you are surprised to see Columbus arrive.”

  The Pee Wees nodded.

  “Next Saturday they film!” said Mrs. Peters. “A van will take you out to Olsen’s Woods. Be sure to be here at eight-thirty A.M. sharp!”

  The Pee Wees were filled with excitement.

  “Being an Indian isn’t much different from being a sailor,” said Rachel. “Or a pirate.”

  “It’s different from being a fairy princess,” grumbled Mary Beth.

  On Friday night Molly couldn’t eat. She couldn’t sleep. All she could think about was being in the movie.

  In the morning, she was the first one at Mrs. Peters’s house to get on the van. She had a small brown bag with her.

  Rachel came next. She had a bag too.

  “What’s in there?” demanded Tracy.

  “My lunch,” said Rachel quickly.

  “We get lunch on the set,” Tracy reminded her.

  “I might be allergic to it,” said Rachel.

  Sonny was carrying a big plastic bag when he came down the street.

  Mrs. Peters was so busy counting noses of everyone on the van, she didn’t ask any questions.

  “All of you on!” she said. “We don’t want to keep Hollywood waiting!”

  That’s right, thought Molly. It might be just walk-ons. But this was not pretend! This was really Hollywood!

  CHAPTER 6

  Best Foot Forward

  When the Pee Wees arrived, they saw cameras. Lots and lots of cameras. Men and women walked around looking busy. They all wore costumes. Columbus was there wearing big puffy pants.

  “Where are the boats?” asked Molly. “Where are the Niña and Pinta and Santa Maria?” Molly was disappointed not to see them parked on the shore.

  The Hollywood man who fitted their costumes said, “We don’t film scenes on the boats here. We do that another day.”

  “It’s not even real,” scoffed Roger. “Having Columbus land before he sails!”

  “That’s the way movies are,” said Rachel. “Scenes are not shot in order.”

  A friendly man named Sam, who looked like he loved to playact, said, “So here are our Pee Wee Scouts! Let’s get you into costume and ready for Scene Three!”

  The Scouts followed him to the dressing rooms, which were set up in the woods.

  “There are no lights around this dressing table,” whispered Mary Beth. “I thought movie stars’ dressing rooms were fancier.”

  Sam laughed. “These are portable dressing rooms,” he said. “We aren’t as fancy when we are on location.”

  When the Pee Wees were in their costumes, Sam talked to them about Scene Three.

  “The important thing is to just act natural,” he said. “Laugh and talk, then pretend to be very surprised when Columbus and his crew arrive. Maybe you are just a little bit afraid to see this stranger in your land. Remember, America is your land and these people have come uninvited.”

  There were lots of adult Native Americans milling about. Warriors with painted faces and feather headdresses. Indian princesses with black hair and beaded dresses. Old Indians smoking peace pipes. And one Indian papoose on a mother’s back. Molly wondered if the real Native Americans had dressed like that all the time. She didn’t think so. It would have been too hard to wash all that beaded clothing so often.

  The Pee Wees milled around while they waited to be “shot.” Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Stone kept counting them to see that no one ran off and got lost in the woods.

  “I just hope a talent s
cout is here,” said Rachel, looking around in the crowd.

  “I hope so too,” said Molly. This was her chance to be a star. It was her only chance to be a star.

  “Lots of stars get discovered doing walk-ons, my mom said,” added Lisa. “I wonder what a talent scout looks like.”

  “Maybe like a Pee Wee Scout!” Kenny laughed.

  Rachel was putting lipstick on her lips, Molly noticed. It was red and bright.

  “My mom won’t let me wear lipstick!” said Patty.

  “This is special,” said Rachel. “All stars wear lipstick. My mom lets me wear lipstick whenever I want to anyway.”

  “She does not,” said Roger.

  “Does too,” said Rachel with a toss of her head.

  Rat’s knees, thought Molly. Why didn’t she think to bring lipstick? Now Rachel would be discovered and she wouldn’t!

  Molly saw something red at the edge of the woods. It was a berry bush! Red berries grew on it. Here was her lipstick! She picked a few and rubbed them around the edge of her mouth. She decided not to put them on her whole lips because they might be poison. If they were poison and she got them in her mouth she might die, and then what good would it do to be discovered by a talent scout? She couldn’t act if she was dead!

  After she had put the red around her mouth, she decided to make her cheeks a little rosier too. She rubbed a little here. And a little there. Now she would look even better than Rachel. She had more than lipstick. She had real makeup.

  She heard Sam call, “Scene Three, take one!” and took her little bag from the branch of a fir tree. She opened it and took out her pie-pan shoes. She slipped her moccasins off and her pie pans on. She ran out just as Sam called “Break a leg!” and winked at the Pee Wees.

  The cameras began to roll. Columbus walked in from the water onto the beach. He stopped to drop on his knees and kiss the ground.

  “We are in India!” said Columbus to his crew. “And these people are Indians!”

  The camera zoomed in on a close-up of Columbus, just as Molly came out of the woods doing a shuffle off to Buffalo. She shuffled right into a tree root and tripped and fell into Columbus’s arms!