Mr. Sandman (21 page)

Page 15 panel 4

 

Closeup of Bogeyman, looking eager and totally evil.

 

Bogeyman: ...then
I
certainly won't complain.

 

 

 

Page 15 panel 5

 

Suddenly, Bogeyman whirls into action, shouting commands to his servants and hustling away from the Dream Lord and Lullaby.

 

Bogeyman: Bentley, lower the screen! Jenkins, set up the slide projector! Carter, douse them lights! Everyone, we're going to view a
slideshow
!

 

Man: Bravo! Delightful!

 

Woman: What a vivacious plan!

 

 

 

Page 15 panel 6

 

Bogeyman (addressing Dream Lord as he walks to a long, marble table where a butler is setting up the slide projector): I believe you'll enjoy this, Kubla. You seem to like crippling anguish. Feel free to close your eyes at any point, if it gets to be too much for you. I
did
put a
lot
of work into this project, though--hours and hours of thankless labor
just
so I could make you scream like a banshee.

 

 

 

Page 15 panel 7

 

Bogeyman (as he sits down behind the slide projector and marble table): You see? I really
do
care. (He smiles demonically.)

 

 

 

Page 15 panel 8

 

The butler flicks a switch on the projector and it comes on, emitting a bright beam of light from its lens.

 

Jenkins: There we are, sir. All ready to go.

 

Bogeyman: Thank you much, Mr. Jenkins. We can begin as soon as Carter finishes turning down the lights.

 

 

 

 

Page 16 (8
panels)

 

Page 16 panel 1

 

Carter is standing below a chandelier full of candles. He uses a candle douser on the end of a long, gold pole to quench each one, leaving little wisps of smoke above each unlit candle. He's about halfway through with the chandelier

 

Carter: That'll be just a moment, sir. Almost done.

 

Bogeyman: Heavens! Pardon me, Carter...l thought I'd made myself fully clear. What I meant to say was...

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 2

 

Bogeyman (screaming and furious): ...
lights out
!!

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 3

 

Carter: As you wish, sir.

 

He swings the long pole at the chandelier, as if he is trying to hit a piñata, and shatters it into thousands of glass shards. The shards fly out into the crowd and everyone ducks out of their way.

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 4

 

Bogeyman (once again placid and relaxed, as if he had never shouted): Thank you. And now, without further ado, let us embark on this hypnotic, splendiferous entertainment--this unparalleled, extravagant bonanza of grins and wonders!

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 5

 

Wide shot of the ballroom. The crowd is now all seated in organized rows of chairs, as if in a movie theatre. They are all watching the screen intently, and most have boxes of popcorn in their hands. This shot is from behind the crowd, revealing the large screen on which Bogeyman is showing his slides.

The first slide is up--a title slide written awkwardly in crayon, as if by a 3-year-old. It says:
The Life and Crimes of the Happy Dream Lord
.

 

Bogeyman (off-panel): I present to you my latest cinematic achievement--destined for Academy recognition! Welcome to the premiere of
The Life and Crimes of the Happy Dream Lord
--or,
The Story of a Mad Dog
. It's the sequel to
In Cold Blood
.

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 6

 

Bogeyman: Our tale begins in Crandall, Ohio, where the adorable infant Dr. Adams first left the womb. At the time, of course, his Ph.D. was in its
very
early stages.

 

Chubby woman: Oh, isn't he
precious
? What an angel!

 

Other woman: Those chubby little cheeks!

 

Another slide is on the screen, this one a baby picture--a typical portrait of a newborn.

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 7

 

Medium shot of Dream Lord and Lullaby standing at the rear of the crowd, still by the entrance, watching the slideshow. Dream Lord is grim and humorless, his arms crossed and his eyes trained straight at the screen. A lady in the row of people in front of them turns around to talk to him.

 

Lady: Alfalfa, would you be disturbed if I pinched those dollbaby cheeks? Just once? I simply
must
!

 

Lullaby (Dream Lord ignores the lady): Hey, lady, he's a big
star
. No autographs and no cheek pinching--unless you've got a multi-picture deal for him! Buzz off.

 

Bogeyman (off-panel): As you can see, even in those primal years, our hero sported something of an insidious, scheming veneer.

 

 

 

Page 16 panel 8

 

Next slide: A young boy sitting in a classroom, watching a teacher. There are other students in the photo, but he is at the focus of it.

 

Bogeyman: Ah--"School days, school days, dear old golden
fool
days." There he is again, friends, ruthlessly pillaging the Crandall educational system...filching the fruits of other citizens' research in preparation for larger, later heists.

 

 

 

 

Page 17 (9
panels)

 

Page 17 panel 1

 

Next slide: A young Emmett Adams wearing a cap and gown, holding a diploma--his mother on one side of him, forcing a smile, and his father standing grumpily on the other side. It's his high school graduation.

 

Bogeyman: And now, the full regalia! No more high school--no more unstudious, unscrupulous nitwits to hold him back. Nowhere to go but up--the sky's the limit! There's a lad with a
future
, and more than enough gumption to shoot to the
top
.

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 2

 

Next slide: An older Emmett, at another graduation--this time from college. He wears another cap and gown, has another diploma, but looks grimmer, quieter than in the last photo. His mother is in the picture behind him, but she only looks blasé'.

 

Bogeyman: Will you look at this? More commencement! Without question, this
was
an exceptional young scholar, a veritable
wunderkind
! They grow up so fast, don't they? Only three slides ago, he was our bouncing baby boy.

 

Lady (wiping eyes with handkerchief):
Sob
! Oh dear...where have all the good times gone?

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 3

 

Next slide: Emmett again, still older, at his post-graduate ceremony. This time, even his mother is gone from the photo.

 

Bogeyman: Ho-hum. Are you all as tired of this scene as I am? More achievements, more awards, more certificates. This time, our hero has completed his Ph.D. By now, he has enough sheepskin to assemble a small
lamb
.

 

Man: You know, I'm very proud of him.

 

Woman: He's just
so
well-groomed.

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 4

 

Next slide: Emmett at the same age as the last slide, working with parts of a complex mechanism on a bench in a laboratory.

 

Bogeyman: Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it's off to work he goes! Desiring to pursue new facets of the medical technology he studied in school,
DR
. Adams secured an appointment to a sleep research program at UCLA. Ostensibly, he wanted to tap into dreams to assist the mentally ill. Confidentially, his goals were loftier: large sums of money and lucrative corporate job offers resulting from his discoveries.

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 5

 

Slide: The heavy girl, in her early 20's, who appeared in the Dream Lord's flashbacks in Part II as Tally. The girl is wearing a light summer shirt and shorts, and is standing outside by some trees, smiling.

 

Bogeyman: And who, pray tell, is
this
? The
love interest
, or course! Tally Grover pined for our boy from the moment she first scrubbed his beakers. Young and impressionable, this poor urchin turned to Jell-O each and every morning she came to work as the Doctor's undergrad lab assistant. Adams's affections, naturally, ran to more exotic entrees.

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 6

 

Slide: A young, well-built man with black hair, wearing a lab coat and carrying a clipboard. He is waving good-naturedly at the camera. It is the Bogeyman, perhaps 4 or 5 years younger.

 

Bogeyman: Now who is
that
handsome devil? Hmmm... He looks a bit
familiar
, doesn't he, Kubla?

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 7

 

Closeup of the Dream Lord, hypnotized by the screen, staring, his mouth open with shock and sudden recognition.

 

Bogeyman (off-panel): But I can't seem to
place
him. Oh, I can't
bear
it when I forget a face.

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 8

 

Next slide: Another shot of the young, dark-haired man. This time, he is seated before a microscope, making notes in a notebook. He is intent on his work.

 

Bogeyman: Something about him appeals to me. Could it be his rugged good looks? The obvious intelligence in those piercing eyes? Perhaps his charming, wholesome, and courageous personality? I'm not quite sure...

 

Man: Could be any one of those, you know, or a combination. I, for one, am stunned by his dynamic and forceful
charisma
.

 

Woman: By all means! That individual is nothing short of
extraordinary
! Is he a president or a pontiff? A champion at
anything
he would undertake, most certainly!

 

 

 

Page 17 panel 9

 

Slide: The dark-haired man is standing in the lab, holding a piece of equipment. Beside him is the young Emmett Adams, looking very subdued and displeased.

 

Bogeyman:
Here
we go, now! Our boy seems to
know
that fellow! What uncanny luck! They must have
worked
together, or some such. Does it ring a bell, Kubla--maybe just jingle it a teensy bit?

 

 

 

 

Page 18 (9
panels)

 

Page 18 panel 1

 

Slide: Closeup of the dark-haired man's head and shoulders. On his lab coat is an I.D. badge, with letters large enough to be read by the audience.

 

Bogeyman: Wait, there's a
name
! How fortunate! The coincidences this afternoon continue to multiply! Let's see--it says "Dr. Thomas Paulsen." Thomas Paulsen...Thomas Paulsen. Does that engender any recognition here?

 

Woman: It
is
an impressive title, but I recall no one bearing it. I would
remember
such a
spectacular
specimen!

 

Woman: Paulsen...Thomas Paulsen... let me think...

 

 

 

Page 18 panel 2

 

Closeup of the Dream Lord, horrified as memories begin to return to him, triggered by the bizarre slideshow.