[male reporter] Good morning, I'm Kai Ryssdal.
It is Monday today, the 15th of September, 2008.
And this is going to be one of those days
that lingers in the mind for awhile.
It's going to come up in say, "You remember when?"e
[woman reporter] The closing of California's IndyMac Bank
has resulted in what could turn out to be
the most costly bank failure in US history.
[Katie Couric] The DOW has dropped more than 800 points,
and it's not clear the crisis is over...
[male announcer] Last night, in Washington.mergency meeting
The leaders of Congress were told
the Nation's financial system was facing imminent collapse.
[female announcer] 53,000 Citigroup workers are losing their jobs.
Morning.
Hey.
Hey, do I have any messages?
Wilcox wants to see you.
She's in the fifth floor conference room.
Shot an 86 at the club this morning.
She said it was important.
Sally Wilcox thinks everything's important. Thank you.
Anyone want to take a guess at what I shot at the club this morning?
Go ahead, take a shot.
Just... no?
Forty-four in the front, 42 on the back.
Oh, no you didn't, Bob. Yes, I really did.
It's true.
What happened, somebody die?
Conal?
They closed Mobile and Newport News.
They merged Ship Systems with Rail Products.
- How many? - Conal, your wife's on one.
[female announcer] With the economy contracting for the first time...
- Hi, honey. - [Diane] 3,000 at the ship yards.
Rumor is another couple hundred here.
[Conal] Uh, I've got some bad news.
What's going on?
Bobby, you know Dick Landry from Legal?
The company is consolidating divisions.
Difficult decisions had to be made in areas where redundancy surfaced.
We have structured a generous severance package for you.
Your 12 years with us entitles you to 12 weeks, full pay.
And benefits.
You're firing me?
Come on, Bobby. Sit down.
[Landry] We're also offering you outplacement services,
to help you secure your next employment.
Does Gene know about this?
Please sit.
You know what, Sally?
Fuck off.
- Is Gene in here? - He's in Chicago today.
[man] We've reviewed our pipeline of some 500 projects and programs,
focusing on those with significant marketing opportunities,
and jettisoning everything that won't contribute immediately
to our profitability, selecting 37
as promising strategic growth programs
and setting aside the rest for future consideration.
[man 2] Ned Haskell, J.P. Morgan.
Mr. McClary, you were talking earlier about fiscal 2011.
You've done a good job of convincing us
that with the credit markets frozen,
your sales revenue in 2010 will slow.
Great, my job here is done.
[all laugh]
Can you talk about 2011
and what sort of a percentage increase you anticipate?
We all like to talk percentages, Ned,
your people do, our people do.
Are you suggesting that you aren't expecting
any growth in your division next year?
I'm suggesting that we face increased foreign competition,
and a difficult credit market for large capital expenditures like ship building.
So, no growth in 2011?
I am confident that while ship building will remain challenged,
the rest of the transportation systems group
will continue to make significant
contributions to growth at GTX in the coming quarters.
Yes, in the back.
[Stevens] Honesty is the best policy?
Christ, could you just try
to be a little less candid for once?
Is lying to financial analysts our new profitability plan?
What do you want? More inflated guidance so we can under-perform
in all four quarters again next year?
2011?
I'm worried about our share price tomorrow.
Salinger's gonna blow a fucking gasket.
Ah, shit.
Yeah.
They say who else is on the block?
Thanks for the sympathy, Phil.
Call you later? OK?
OK.
Did they say anything about me?
What?
About my still having a job?
You know, I didn't ask.
[woman] I've been trying to reach you.
This damn thing's dead. Recharge it for me, will ya?
Phil's in there.
Make yourself right at home, Phil.
I won't go back to the factory floor.
I've got one kid in college and another going in the fall.
[Gene] What the hell are you talking about?
You're shitting me. He doesn't know?
Sally Wilcox let some more people go.
Some? She fired goddamn everybody.
Did she fire you?
No, but I've been hiding in here all day.
They closed Mobile and Newport News.
Laid off most of the ship system sales group.
I won't let the bastards just kick me out after 30 years.
I'll take an AK-47 to this fucking place first.
[elevator dings]
- [man] ...the compensation... - What were you gonna do,
let me read about it in tomorrow's Journal?
We're in the middle of something here.
You closed two of my shipyards?
Consolidating divisions has been under discussion for months.
Yeah, and I told you it was a shitty idea.
We took that opinion into consideration...
It's my goddamn division!
This is my goddamn company!
Would you excuse us for a moment, please.
You don't embarrass me like that.
Embarrass you?
I'm gone one day and you gut one of my divisions.
Stock has stalled, revenues are flat.
The entire economy's flat, we're in the middle of a recession.
I only closed two of the shipyards,
I should've closed all three of them.
Stock is in the fucking toilet.
Everybody's stock is in the toilet.
Well, the stockholders would like to see
their share value maximized.
[chuckling] Well. Sell the fucking Degas. Hmm?
Well now, I heard you put on quite a show in Chicago.
What'd you do, you told a room full of analysts
you weren't going to generate any growth next year.
- Three thousand jobs? - Gene, we're not some shitty little shipyard anymore.
I'm not gonna keep pouring money into a losing operation.
We innovate, we retool...
American heavy manufacturing is dead.
Steel, autos, your precious shipbuilding.
The future's in health care infrastructure,
and power generation.
I have to be involved in any decision
that affects one of my divisions.
You wouldn't have approved the cuts.
You'd go behind my back to the board again, right?
They were good people, Jim.
They're not our responsibility.
- [door opens] - We work for the stockholders now.
[door shuts]
- Your dad's home? - Yeah.
Can you grab the rest of these out of the trunk?
Hi.
- What are you doing home? - Makin' dinner.
- We're going over to Jack's. - That's tonight?
Dierdre's birthday.
- I think it's gonna rain. - You know what,
you don't want to come, fine.
Don't come.
Thanks, bud.
Drew, can you finish that upstairs, please.
Can you put on a clean pair of jeans, please.
We're going over to your Uncle Jack's for dinner.
Christ, you don't have to like him, but you can pretend for my sake.
I mean, he doesn't like you either, but at least he cares enough about me
not to treat you like a piece of shit.
They fired me.
What?
They fired me. Today.
- Sally Wilcox. - Why?
Something about redundancies.
- Gene said you were safe. - Gene said a lot of things.
He was nowhere to be found today.
Bobby, you busted your ass for them...
No, no, I'm sorry.
Fuck them, and fuck Gene McClary, and
all his promises.
Something's burning.
Hey, I... I don't want to tell anybody.
You know, until I get another job. All right?
Hey, where's your mother?
[muffled music]
Hey.
Where's your mom?
Headache.
Ah.
Oh, Dad.
They announced where we're going for our senior trip.
Italy.
Italy.
Wow. Boy, that's great.
I can go, right?
Of course, sweetheart.
Phil?
[Phil] Yeah?
Oh, God.
Ann Doherty called. They fired Conal.
Are we OK?
Yeah.
- I should get ready. - For what?
We got Salinger's dinner.
- Oh God, I completely forgot. - You don't have to come,
if you're not feeling up to it.
Just give me a minute.
To put my face on.
[woman] Gene?
[woman] Gene?
Where've you been? The car's picking us up in half an hour.
I really don't want to be late again.
Can we please try not to be late again?
Stephanie finally found a table for the window.
I like it.
I'm comin'.
[indistinct greetings]
- [Maggie] How are you? - [woman] Good, good.
[Maggie] Hey, guy.
[indistinct chatter]
How go the suit wars, Bobby?
All right, Jack.
Move any more high-paying American jobs
offshore to Asian shitholes this week?
Mostly focused on union busting now, you know how it is.
Surprised you could make it. No early flight, no golf game?
Those are the usual excuses, aren't they?
Oh hi, Bobby.
Hey, birthday girl.
I can't believe you're 35.
I mean, you don't look a day over 21.
Ah, you see, Jack. Now that's how it's done.
You're a liar, Bobby. But I love you for it.
- You need to get back to your post, barbecue boy. - [Jack] All right, all right.
Why don't you grab yourself a drink, Bobby.
We got some margaritas in the blender,
we got some beers out back in the cooler.
Thanks.
[indistinct chattering]
[Jack] I'm open! I'm open!
[man] Nice play action. Nice play action.
[speaker] Who better to introduce this year's Man of the Year Award,
than the man who's known him longer than anyone else.
Gene McClary is Executive Vice President of GTX,
Global Transportation Systems.
He's also, I'm told, one of GTX's first employees.
- Gene McClary. - [applause]
Thank you. Actually, if memory serves,
I was GTX's only employee at the time.
[laughter]
Nobody wanted Gloucester Shipbuilding.
Years of multi-million dollar losses.
Highest labor costs in the industry.
But from those humble beginnings,
Jim was able to grow Gloucester into GTX,
with 60,000 employees and 11 billion dollars
in gross annual revenue.
So, it is my privilege to introduce my...
...oldest friend.
College roommate, best man at my wedding
and the worst tennis player I ever met.
[all laugh]
Ladies and gentlemen, my boss, Jim Salinger.
Thank you, ladies and gentlemen.
Without a doubt, you don't build a company like GTX,
without the support and leadership of men like Gene McClary.
[clears throat]
Hi, Robert Walker, GTX.
Down at the end of the hall.
[indistinct chattering]
Nice suit.
- Thanks. - Orientation?
- Yeah. - That way.
Oh, thanks.
- Do the tiger for me. - What?
- Down the hall. - Thanks.
[woman] First, let me tell you what outplacement is not.
We are not an employment agency.
We are here to help you help yourselves.
Now, you all need to put together a networking list
of all your friends.
That's suppliers, competitors,
people you sat next to at a convention.
Neighbors, dentists. Anybody and everybody.
You need a new resume.
You're gonna be sending out hundreds
so make it good.
Endings.
We're not used to them.
Fear, anxiety...
...loss.
How many of you are feeling these things?
Endings.
Fear.
Change. And finally, success.
OK, everybody up.
Come on, no use sitting around feeling sorry for ourselves.
Up, up. This is called the Tiger.
We do it when we need to get our energy up.
I will win!
Why?
I will show you why, because I have faith,
courage, enthusiasm.
- Everybody, this time. - I'm all set.
I will win!
Why? Because I have faith, courage, enthusiasm. Good.
I will win!
Did Bobby Walker call back?
- Yeah, last night. - Leave a message?
Not one I'd care to repeat.
See if he can come by for lunch today.
Stocks up six, not bad.
My 401K is all GTX.
This continues, I may get to retire before I'm 80.
With ship systems and rail products merging,
we are reassigning sales regions.
How are we doing with Royal Caribbean?
They're nervous.
Don't like seeing us on Bloomberg every 15 minutes.
Well, calm them down. We need that boat.
[man] How are we supposed to cover the same number
of accounts,
- with half the staff? - I'm already gone two weeks
out of four. What am I supposed to tell my kids?
Tell them you're lucky you still have a job.
Inactive accounts.
I want to know what we're going to do to get the business back.
Client by client.
- It's taken. - All right.
Hey.
- Come in here. - Thanks.
Appreciate it.
- Friendly bunch. - You are the enemy.
Another warm body they got to claw their way over
to get back to the corporate feed trough.
- Yet you're not threatened. - I'm a very secure individual.
Besides you do not look like an engineer.
- MBA? - Yeah.
If you knew your way around a guided missile system,
I'd have to shove an ice pick in the base of your skull.
- I'll keep that in mind. - Your previous employer
has spared no expense. Fax machine, Xerox, coffee.
How was orientation?
I felt like someone was going to shave my head
and make me beat a drum.
What, uh... What do you got to do
to get yourself in one of those offices?
Your company has to pay extra for one of those.
Exec VPs and above mostly.
Corner one has a Eastman-Kodak CFO in it.
How long they give you?
Three months full salary, four months outplacement.
- How about you? - Um, nine months of both.
Been here four.
I don't think it'll take me more than a few days.
No offense.
None taken.
Sorry I'm late.
- How you holding up? - Good.
- Maggie all right? - Yeah. She's great, we're fine.
Glenlivet, rocks.
It wasn't my call, Bobby.
Salinger's under a lot of pressure
to boost the stock price before somebody buys in
and makes him break up the company.
We'll lose a lot more jobs in a merger
than we have in this downsizing.
You trying to appeal to my sense of the greater corporate good?
I've been calling in some markers.
Tom Borden over at Lockheed, Pat Leahy at Raytheon,
you'll recognize most of them.
Come on, let's get something to eat.
I lost my appetite.
Take the names, Bobby.
Don't bother reassigning my accounts.
I'm gonna steal them back when I get a job with your competition.
- [Bobby] Hey! - Hey.
[car door shuts]
- Hey! - Hey.
- How'd it go? - Great.
- Yeah? - Yeah.
- All right. - Lunch with Gene,
he gave me some names.
That's big of him.
I mean, he didn't have to do anything, you know?
- Yeah. - What is all this?
Ah, our mortgage is resetting next month.
With that and paying off the orthodontist,
and last summer's Disney World trip,
we don't have much of a cushion left.
I don't need a cushion.
Your Porsche payments, the credit cards,
Patriots tickets?
I told you I'm splitting the Pats tickets with Darryl this year.
OK, well, just eating out and doing the damn dry cleaning
is costing us 600 bucks a month.
I was thinking maybe I could go back to work.
Uh-uh.
Not full-time, just a few shifts a week.
No.
3M needs a new General Sales Manager.
I can call up Brian Collins,
and have breakfast with him next week.
OK, well we're gonna need to cut back.
Cancel skiing at Christmas,
stop paying the club dues for awhile.
If things get really bad, I can bag groceries.
- I can be on the corner... - Don't be a jerk, OK? Just...
[phone rings]
No more big purchases. Just eat at home more.
Hello?
Hey, Kevin. Yeah?
Yeah, let me get him for you. He's right here.
- What? - He read about the layoffs in the paper.
- So what? - You gonna tell him?
No, I'm not gonna tell him, because I don't need a lecture
on parental responsibility right now.
Hey, Dad, what's going on? Oh, that?
- That's all manufactured. - [sighs]
They're trying to offer me a CEO job.
I had to turn them down.
[knocking]
I come bearing gifts.
Glenfiddich, 40 year old.
- Single malt. - Nice.
Yeah, it better be.
Strick sent it over. That bastard.
[laughs]
- That's Alaska. - Yeah.
Goddamn it, Gene. Those were good times.
The best.
Well, you and Cynthia thinking about joining us
at Sun Valley for New Years again this year?
I don't know if we can, Liam's been talking about
coming home for Christmas with Susan and the kids.
Ah, hell, bring them along, Grandpa.
Kay'd probably think she'd died and gone to heaven
with a bunch of kids running around.
- [laughs] - [sighs]
Can't have you challenging me in front of senior staff.
They respect ya. Question my judgment,
you undermine my authority.
I need to know, can I count on your full support?
Good.
You OK?
I had lunch with Bobby Walker today.
I thought he was gonna throw a drink in my face.
You were his boss, Gene. Not his father.
Sue and I are thinking of sneaking down to Palm Beach
for a weekend. Later on this month.
You know, some shopping, some golf.
Think you could get us one of the corporate jets?
Fine. We'll fly commercial.
Stock closed up two today.
My options are worth a half a million dollars more
than when I woke up this morning.
[woman] Need me to stay, Mr. Woodward?
Ah, no thanks Nan.
We'll see you tomorrow.
Don't even think about eating all the candy
you get at school. Three pieces, that's it.
- You look disgusting, you know that?
- [Maggie laughs]
So, I called Bridget, and made an appointment.
- Who? - The realtor.
I think we should at least list it.
See if we get any offers.
We're not gonna sell the house.
We don't need to accept an offer, but with the market so bad,
it may take us awhile to sell it, you know?
If we get stuck.
We're not gonna get stuck.
- How do I look? - Highly employable.
OK.
Bridget?
C'mon. We're not gonna sell the house.
- Have a good day. - OK.
[male TV announcer] Treasury Secretary Paulson this morning
announced that the Bush Administration is about to
inject billions of dollars into the banks
as a part of the financial rescue strategy...
- [door opens] - [woman] All right, great. Give me a call next week,
I should have an answer for you.
- All right, who's next? - Mr. Walker.
Mr. Walker? Joyce Robinson, sorry to keep you waiting.
[Joyce sighs] Mind if I have something to eat here,
I have another meeting right after you.
- Go right ahead. - So, it looks like you worked at GTX for 12 years.
I did. Divisional sales leader for three of those years.
Oh. Surprised they let you go.
- You and me both. - Have you handled regional sales?
I came up in regional sales. I worked for Martin-Marietta in California.
Mm-hmm. Well, we're looking to expand in the south.
We need someone in Little Rock.
In Arkansas?
Is relocation a problem?
Uh, no, no. Um... I had hoped to stay here,
because I'm from the area...
You left the salary space blank on your application.
Well, uh, you know. That's a negotiation.
I was making 120 at GTX plus incentives.
But I know times are different now.
And I'd be willing to accept 110, and hope for bonuses.
Well, our base salary is 65,000 a year
for regional sales directors.
[stuttering] I, I responded to an ad for the Vice President
of Marketing.
Well, we've had a number of highly qualified applicants
for that position.
I'm a highly qualified applicant for that position.
I'm a highly qualified applicant for that position.
Excuse me. I'm sorry.
I must've had too many cups of coffee while I was
sitting in your fucking waiting room for two hours.
Thanks for your time, Joyce. Just between the two of us?
You can probably skip the Diet Cokes.
They're not helping you.
[Gene] Jim's worried, thinks we're a target.
Who can get together that kind of money in the middle of a recession, huh?
It's what he does.
Then what? He splits us up?
Sell off the healthcare unit, rail products, close Glosterne.
He'll still have consumer electronics
and the turbine and defense departments. Whammo.
We're a bargain. Hell, one more quarter
and Lipton will be able to put together enough votes
to wage a proxy battle and install his own damn board.
Jim's not gonna give up without a fight though.
I'm sure he's already got somebody out there
looking for a white knight. Keats, maybe Roberts?
Somebody with deep pockets.
- What? - Nothing.
Tell me more about capital depreciations of manufacturing...
[phone rings]
Shit.
It's my office. I have the senior staff at 3:30.
- Reschedule. - I can't.
How about lunch again next Tuesday?
I don't think so.
[laughing]
Maybe.
Bye.
[yells]
Hi, Jonas Gall, please.
Robert Walker. Nope. Doesn't know me.
Mike Talbet recommended me from Unicor.
Uh, he said that Mr. Geller may have an opening for a senior sales associate.
OK. That's too bad.
It's OK. Not the first time I've heard it.
All right, bye.
Sixty-five dollars an hour for oil rig workers
in the North Atlantic. Another thousand a week
if you got your commercial deep sea certification.
Doesn't everybody?
I got mine last year at the Y.
Six of clubs on the seven of hearts.
Sally Wilcox, please.
[Danny] Construction, hazardous waste removal, aircraft mechanic.
Thank God I got my doctorate, huh?
Hey, is she in? It's Bob Walker calling.
He's calling her again.
Hi, Sally. Bob Walker.
Uh, thanks for not returning any of my phone calls.
If you do return my call, I would love to know why you fired me
without any notice, you fucking cowardly bitch.
[all laugh]
[Danny] Gee, I wonder why she never calls you back.
[sighs] Feels good though. God.
You know what I think?
- It's quitting time. - Quitting time?
It's 3:30.
A man can only take so much rejection.
[Danny] I'm thirsty, who's coming?
- [Danny] Conal? - Sure, why not?
I'm in.
All right, why not?
I know if you two are going,
it's gonna be good.
- [loud slamming] - For how much?
SEC filing says 3.8 percent.
- Hard hats, gentlemen. - He's just trying to boost our stock.
He gets it up ten a share, he walks away with
a couple hundred million in profit.
[James] Lipton wants more than a couple hundred million.
He wants the company.
[man] Well, our share price is still too low.
It's making us a very tempting target.
[James] Paul, your office is over there.
- [Paul] Whole floor Legal? - [James] No.
This is just for the five of us.
CFO's office, David, Noah. You are over here.
Conference rooms, private dining room.
Bathrooms and showers.
Gym and kitchen.
Gene, come here.
This is you.
Well, don't get too excited.
My office is gonna be much bigger.
What do you think?
- [man 1] It's beautiful. - [man 2] This is amazing.
Travertine. Floor to ceiling glass.
If you look that way you can see all the way to Boston.
[Maggie] Hey. Help me.
- Help you? You need help? - Yeah.
- How you doing? - You smell like a brewery.
- How did that happen? - I don't know.
What's Drew doing?
- Waiting for you. - Me? Why?
He's worried about you.
- [boy] OK, dude, but wait up. - [girl] OK.
What's going on out here, bud?
I'm not a baby. I can handle stuff.
I lost my job.
What did you think it was?
You and mom, maybe.
Me and mom are all right.
You'll get another one, right?
Yeah.
Hey. You don't have to worry about me. OK?
Hey, look at me.
You don't have to worry about me. All right?
I'm your dad.
You understand me?
I'm gonna be fine, OK?
[TV announcer] Billionaire investor Arthur Lipton today
stepped up his campaign for changes at GTX,
issuing a letter to shareholders accusing
executives of mismanagement...
What does it all mean?
Nothing good.
Need something, Phil?
We lost Royal Caribbean.
[indistinct chatter]
[woman] Do we have any cranberry jelly?
Carson, round up your cousins...
[Jack] Let me help you with that, Fran.
[Fran] Thank you.
[woman] Boys, wash your hands, wipe your feet.
[man] Beautiful.
How's business, Jack?
Business. Well, we got a big renovation in Roxbury,
next to the house I did last year.
Nice bonus, when I finish by September.
- If you finish by September. - By September.
[man] Whenever you're ready to plumb the place, give me a call.
I got a special on Kohler.
[Jack] Good.
- How's work, Bobby? - Good, Jack.
Line up more dollar a day Laotian preschoolers to
stitch tennis shoes for you in Bangkok?
I'm in manufacturing, Jack.
The dollar-a-day Laotian preschoolers aren't tall enough
to turn the screws on the diesel engines, so no.
You know I was reading about your guy Salinger in the Globe the other day.
Do you read now? Good.
Very small words.
Said he, uh... he made 700 times what the average GTX worker made last year.
What do you think? Salinger working 700 times harder
than the welder pounding hot rivets
into a tanker hull all day?
Why don't we say grace so the kids can start?
OK, Carson? Would you do the honors?
Dear God. Thank you for the food
and for letting us be together on Thanksgiving.
And for everybody being OK.
And please help my Dad find a job.
So he won't be unhappy all the time. Amen.
OK.
- Want some wine? - It's a nice table, Fran.
Thank you.
You know if things get tough, I could, uh...
I could always use some extra help this winter.
Hanging drywall?
Yeah, it'd be lots of work.
4000 square feet, we're gutting the place.
Thanks, Jack. I don't...
...exactly see myself pounding nails though.
You know? Appreciate it.
Your husband is such a dick.
[man] Goldman Sachs is doing due diligence for Lipton.
Skadden Arps is snooping around for somebody,
maybe Allied, maybe Simonov's Baltic Global, out of Moscow.
[man 2] What's the top price Bater'll pay?
[man 1] Well, Lipton put the market value at 100.
All right, so we need to get the stock to 102.
That's 17 more a share.
Yeah, I can add, Noah.
We're already in danger of missing our quarterly.
We start fooling around and miss our numbers again, we're...
No, we don't need to get the stock to 100,
we get it in the mid-90's, it'll show a positive trend.
How are we supposed to boost the share price again?
Increased efficiencies, lowering costs.
More downsizing.
Suppose we try that stunt again and the stock stalls...
Increasing market value isn't a stunt.
We should at least consider alternatives.
- How about selling the healthcare group?
- What?
- Maybe Lipton's right. - [man 2] Gene, come on.
Healthcare's the only division that's exhibiting any growth.
I'm not breaking up the company.
All right.
How about selling the new headquarters building?
[Noah] We're going to need that space.
Not if we keep firing people, we're not.
I'm not selling the new building!
Get a hold of Human Resources,
have them start making up a list
for another round of downsizing.
Wait a minute, Jim.
Could you guys give us a minute?
What do you want me to do, parrot back everything you say?
I've always told you what I thought, right or wrong.
And this... is wrong.
I'm late for a meeting.
[Maggie] We're not gonna be able to make
the mortgage next month.
I talked to Bridget.
She thinks if we price the house low enough
we might be able to get as much as 850,000 for it.
That's less than we got in it.
Yeah, it doesn't matter how much we got in it.
Your severance ends in three weeks.
We're gonna end up in foreclosure.
We won't have enough money to put down on another house.
We're not gonna be able to qualify
for another house on just my salary anyway.
Well, OK. Where are we gonna end up?
Gonna pitch a tent in the park?
- Yeah. - OK.
We could move in with your folks.
- No. - They have two extra bedrooms.
Maggie, we're not living with my parents.
It'd just be temporary.
I'd choose death. I opt for death.
No, I'd have to kill myself first.
Jack said he offered you a job the other day
and you shot him down pretty hard.
Can you imagine that? Me working for your brother.
He was just trying to help.
How, by letting me hang drywall?
You'd get back into great shape.
Calluses. A tan.
- In the middle of winter. - Yeah, big broad shoulders
from carrying all that heavy lumber.
I gotta get up early, babe.
OK?
Bobby Walker keeps leaving me messages.
My assistant thinks he's psychotic.
She wants to get a restraining order.
I'm sure you've gotten worse.
So, what do you think?
You gonna get away for a day or two for skiing at Christmas?
I don't know, we'll have to see.
Hansen get you started on that new list yet?
- I was at the meeting, Sally. - Yesterday.
How many? How many?
5,000.
Well, what is the criteria for getting canned this time?
Gary Hunt's put on a few pounds, maybe we should let him go.
And I hear Jill Carter has cancer.
We could save a bundle on her insurance premiums. Hmm?
Sally.
Ho! Billionaire Boy's Club.
- [strained laughter] - How's the plotting going?
Warren Buffet still safe on top of the Fortune 500 list?
How's the job search going, Bobby?
Good actually, real good. They're out there.
Mr. Connors, your group's on the first tee.
- Ready to get your ass kicked, Eric?
- Let's golf.
Mr. Walker.
May I speak to you for a moment?
[Bobby] Hey.
What the hell's going on?
I just got thrown off the course at the club.
All right, keep your voice down.
We haven't paid the dues since October?
Yeah, I've paid a lot of things.
I look like a fucking deadbeat.
This is real, Bobby, OK? This is happening to us.
You are wandering around like you're in some sort of a daze,
but you're playing golf? Getting your Porsche detailed?
Maggie, I need to look successful. OK?
I can't just look like another asshole with a resume.
You are just another asshole with a resume!
I cut them a check for the balance.
- Cancel it. - No.
We can't afford it.
No.
I should have been honest with you about the club,
but you haven't been honest with me.
We're not gonna need these, are we?
Maybe we could have a little rummage sale.
You need to get a job.
Any job.
I can't do this alone, Bobby.
I know. I'm out there playing golf.
In two weeks, I won't be able to support my family.
Things are gonna get great again.
- No. - We can get through this.
Things aren't gonna be great again. OK?
I'm trying to get a job.
I've been out there every day,
for three months, trying to get a job.
I haven't had one offer.
- I know. - I've been to everybody we know.
And a lot of people I don't.
And I have begged, I've fucking begged.
For a lead, anything.
There's thousands of new MBAs out there.
No mortgage, no kids. Work 90 hour work weeks, for nothing.
You want honesty, Maggie?
I'm a 37 year old unemployed loser,
who can't support his family.
OK, look. You are gonna find a job.
Working for people who know how lucky they are to have you.
When did it all go to shit?
It hasn't turned to shit. You have Drew and Carson.
Your parents, and me.
OK, you have me.
[Landry] We're still at least 75 short.
[Paul] What about Debra Hayes,
Senior Director of Accounting, Maritime Sales.
[Sally] Debra Hayes has 10 years with the company,
and outstanding evaluations.
She also has a husband with a successful law practice.
And two kids who would be delighted to have mommy at home.
She's 60, I doubt her kids are still living at home,
much less calling her mommy.
Phil Woodward's back on this list.
- He fits the criteria. - Wasn't talking to you, Dick.
He's grossly overpaid and just blew...
What are you, deaf? Shut the fuck up!
The list is still preliminary, Gene.
I'm looking and all I see are people over 50
with enough young ones thrown in to protect us
against litigation.
I'm confident all of these dismissals will stand up to outside legal scrutiny.
What about ethical scrutiny?
We're not breaking any laws, Gene.
I guess I always assumed we were
trying for a higher standard than that, Paul.
Mr. Walker.
Fred Thayer.
Have a seat.
- Thanks for seeing me. - Sure.
A GTX casualty.
- Yeah. - How you holding up?
Good, thanks.
Well, Dan Mass gave you a great recommendation.
MBA, you went to school at State College.
- Undergrad. Yeah. - My wife went to Penn.
- Really? - Loved it.
Are you, uh, willing to work for 90 a year,
- plus commission and bonus? - Uh, yeah.
Good news is we're growing fast,
and there's plenty of head room around here.
So, I can't promise you anything.
But with Dan's recommendation,
and your resume, you seem like the right fit for the job.
Thanks.
Ho! Who's winning?
Who knows. How'd it go?
- The interview? - It's good. It's good.
Come on, we're all getting our asses kicked here.
Yeah, you can take my place.
Blue 32, hut!
Robert Walker calling for Troy Thayer, please.
No problem.
Bob Walker for Troy Thayer.
Um, that's OK.
I'm actually just calling in regards to a position.
Uh, sure. Northeast Regional Sales Manager.
It has. Oh.
- Thank you very much. - [phone beeps]
What's that?
My last paycheck.
[indistinct chatter]
[Gene speaking indistinctly]
[woman laughing]
[Gene] This guy comes babbling on and on and on.
You were at a banquet with nine meat soup?
Yeah, I didn't know they had nine meats in China.
I didn't either, can you name them?
- Well there was beef, pork, chicken, shark fin... - Gene?
- Hey Phil, grab a drink. - Gene.
Relax Phil, grab a drink. Man, it's a party.
Sally Wilcox just fired me.
Find Sally Wilcox,
tell her to get her ass up here right now.
She's already in your office.
You fired Phil Woodward.
- Hire him back. - Gene...
Goddamn it, Sally, we talked about this.
Gene.
You too?
Ah, fuck 'em.
They think this is tough.
I worked hull assembly at Gloucester, remember, Gene?
Try spot welding inside a 36 inch propeller shaft,
60 hours a week.
[Cynthia] Gene?
Gene!
[doorbell]
Bobby. Bobby.
You will never guess who's in Joanna's office.
Gene McClary's favorite ass-kisser. Phil Woodward.
[Joanna] Your resume's very impressive, Phil.
Thank you. Thanks.
You started on the factory floor,
not many people can claim that anymore.
You want to get rid of all the ancient stuff, anything pre-90's.
Instead of listing the number of years you held each position at GTX,
indicate your title and responsibilities.
And here, where you've noted your military service,
don't say Vietnam.
Combat infantryman is impressive enough.
You smoke, Phil?
- Occasionally. - Quit.
Employers don't want employee health problems
ratcheting up their insurance premiums, Phil.
You may want to think about dying your hair,
get rid of some of that grey.
- Do we know each other? - Excuse me?
You keep using my first name.
I'm not the enemy, Phil.
You're pushing 60, and you look like hell.
You're going to have a rough time out there.
Could you show me to my office, please?
[knocking]
You got a window.
Company had to pay extra for that.
The least the pricks could do.
So how's the best damn salesman on the East Coast?
Unemployed.
Yeah, a lot of that going around.
Dress code pretty lax around here?
You should see casual Fridays.
[Bobby] Hello? Yeah. Mm-hmm.
I talked to somebody else from your company last week,
and they said I wasn't going to have to
make another payment on that this month.
Uh-huh. Look, I don't know what you want me to do.
I can lie to ya. Tell you I'm writing a check
and I'm putting it in the mail, and you'll have it right away.
OK? I'm gonna write you a check right now,
I'm gonna put it in the mail and you'll have it tomorrow.
How's that sound? Terrific, outstanding,
look forward to it.
- Which one? American Express? - Mortgage.
Yvette asked me if I could work tomorrow night.
- That's New Years Eve. - Double time.
- Dad? - Yeah?
Could you drive me over to Kyle's?
No, I'm busy now. OK? C'mon.
[Bobby sighs] C'mon, Drew.
Hey. Why don't you play Guitar Hero?
[Bobby] Halo? You should play some Xbox.
Oh hey, Bobby. Hang on a sec.
[Bobby] Come here. Hey! Drew!
Hey! Drew!
Damn it. There's a fucking nor'easter outside.
Kid's pissed off because I won't drive him to Cotuit
to visit the Matlocks. Right, right when he wants him to.
He doesn't have the Xbox anymore.
- Why? What happened to it? - He gave it back.
What?
He knew we couldn't afford it.
He asked me if he could, and I said yes.
He's right. We can't afford it.
I need a job, Jack.
I don't think you're gonna be needing that just yet.
Nice tool belt, man.
Keep 'em coming, Bob.
Hey, Bobby.
- [Bobby] Yeah. - Grab two this time.
- Lunch. - Oh.
Where are we going?
They're new.
That's why you're getting blisters.
Thanks.
- Here. - Appreciate it.
Hey. You wanna come down for dinner?
I want you to take a gun and shoot me.
- [Maggie laughs] - Just shoot me.
Oh, let me see.
Ah. Yeah, let me get the Neosporin.
I hate your brother.
- [Maggie laughs] - I fucking hate him.
I don't think I can go back.
Sure you can.
[folk music playing]
[hammering]
Too thin. Add another sack to the mix.
Easy work, huh, Bobby?
Pretty much like moving cost reports
from the in-box to the out-box, am I right?
[laughs]
Didn't say nothin'.
[radio announcer] ...plans to make credit easier for small businesses.
How does he propose to do that with credit as tight as it is?
The president wants to take 15 billion dollars
for the bank rescue fund.
Basically bankroll small business loans made
for the FDA.
He wants to temporarily waive the fee for borrowers...
What do you have planned today?
Not much.
Ed and Dana invited us to dinner tonight.
- Who? - My old friends.
7:30.
Pick up a nice bottle of Pinot when you go out, OK?
OK.
[female announcer] President Obama plans to spend up to
250 billion dollars taking...
- Hi, Phil Woodward. - Just sign in and take a seat.
[man] Hell, Jack, you hear that?
Bob gets 12 weeks pay when they fucking shitcanned him.
My uncle Tommy worked for the phone company 19 years.
They laid him off 10 months short of lifetime medical.
They hire him back, like four months later.
Half his old wages, no benefits.
- What's this? - It's your paycheck.
Hey, Jack.
There's an extra 200 in this.
Must've made a mistake, Bob.
[indistinct conversation]
You gonna be all right,
sleeping in the same room as your sister for awhile?
Sure.
- All tucked in? - Yeah, Dad.
I couldn't wait to get out of this house.
My parents, neighborhood, church.
I was gonna be a CEO.
[man] She seems nice, Dad. Good with kids.
- She have any of her own? - Hey.
What? Never too late to start.
Think you and Susan could get away for a week in June?
We rented a house out on Stonewall Beach.
June? Maybe.
So you keeping busy?
Yeah, I've been asked to join a couple of boards.
Dynex, Procar.
- You gonna do it? - I don't know.
I think I'm... I think I'm tired of board rooms.
Why don't you start a consulting firm?
- Yeah? - Sure.
There's always somebody out there willing to
pay an opinionated old bastard for some shitty advice.
So, what do you say to the Vineyard in June?
Your mother will be OK.
You two talking?
She's having a pretty rough time.
She's talking about selling the house.
[girl] Look Daddy, I found another egg!
Where's Mike?
- He, uh, got busted again. - For what?
Drunk and disorderly.
Assault.
Managed to take a swing at one of the cops, too.
Thanks.
- Hey, Bobby. - Yeah?
- Still have your tool belt? - Yeah.
Why don't you grab it.
All right.
- Oh, Jesus. - I thought I had it
measured right.
You got to rip all this shit out before Jack sees it.
- The whole thing? - Yeah, all of it.
Use your speed square as a spacer.
Get it on two points. Give me that.
All right? One right there. Bang.
Bang.
- You got it? - Yeah.
- You got it? - Yeah.
- Finally done? - This side, yeah.
Jesus Christ. That's ugly.
If you, uh, need another guy,
I know somebody who could use a job.
Yeah? Well, whoever it is, let's hope he, uh...
...let's hope he isn't as slow as you are.
OK.
[buzz saw]
[radio playing]
[Jack singing]
He ever sing on-key?
No.
What're you doin'?
Oh, getting drunk.
I called outplacement, see if you wanted to have lunch.
They said you hadn't been coming in much lately.
- Oh, yeah. - Couple of weeks now.
No kidding.
Miss.
What do you say, I give you a ride home?
Can't go home.
Lorna doesn't want the neighbors to know
I got fired so I can't show up until after six.
Makes me haul my briefcase back and forth, too.
You see the Journal this morning?
They listed how much CEOs made last year.
You know who was 17th on the list?
James Salinger, GTX.
Wanna go to the movies?
Take you to the matinee, sure they still have matinees.
We can get a bucket of popcorn, couple of those big Cokes.
- Hey, Daddy. - Hey, beautiful.
- What are you smiling at? - A man called today from Chicago.
Fred Munder?
He said he was impressed with your resume,
wanted you to give him a call.
His phone number's over there.
That's where he's based. The guy's a headhunter.
I just thought the job was in Boston.
It is in Boston. I'm gonna go there,
I'm gonna stay in Motel 6. OK, I'm gonna eat
very inexpensively.
The job is a vice president of sales and marketing
with extensive experience in transportation. OK?
This is it. This is me. This is my job.
I don't know what else I can look for.
- This is the one. - OK. OK.
Excuse me.
I have an appointment with Frederick Munder. Robert Walker.
Mr. Walker?
Yes?
I'm Jane Nefeld, Mr. Munder's assistant.
- Hi. - You say you have
an appointment.
Yes. At 10.
I don't see it.
Uh, I spoke to Mr. Munder myself.
So, Friday at 10.
We talked two days ago.
Oh my, he has you down for next Friday.
The 17th. Can you come back next week?
I flew in from Boston.
Oh, I am so sorry.
I don't mind just sitting in the waiting room.
Or I could come back this afternoon.
My flight doesn't leave until tonight.
Oh, Mr. Munder's in Dallas on business.
He won't be back till next Wednesday.
Hey. Sorry I'm late. Got caught on a call.
No problem. I got a drink.
Looks good. I'll have what he's having.
Hang on. You know what you want?
I'll have the Cobb, no bacon.
Um. Rib eye, medium rare. With fries.
Sorry to rush things.
I have to get back for a staff meeting at 1:30.
You look great, you losing weight?
Uh, yeah, well. Dying my hair.
- So, how you doin'? - I'm fine. Um...
Sending out a lot of resumes.
Ah, you're lucky to be out of it.
Uh-huh. Word on the street is,
you're looking for a foreign exec.
You have someone to recommend?
Yeah, me.
It's international travel.
I have extensive overseas experience.
I'm sure you do.
You mind my asking... how old are you, Phil?
You're not worried I'll sue?
I wouldn't hire anyone over 30 for that job. It's a killer.
Out of the country five out of every six weeks.
- Well, travel's not a problem. - Why don't you cash it in?
Shit, I would, go lie on a beach.
I can't afford to go lie on a fucking beach.
I can't recommend you for the job, Phil,
they'd laugh me out of the office.
Lorna's pretty worried about you.
Has you wrapped around a tree someplace.
[grunts] Sons of bitches!
[grunts]
Motherfuckers!
Tom Brady couldn't hit that building
from here on his best day.
Ah, Sarah's tuition for Brown is due.
I write the check, I can't make the mortgage.
- Phil. I could... - No, you stop it.
No.
You know the worst part?
The world didn't stop.
The newspaper still came every morning.
The automatic sprinklers shut off at six and...
Jeff, next door, still washed his car every Sunday.
My life ended.
And, you know, nobody noticed.
[grunts]
[electric saw buzzing]
- Hey, Bobby. - Yeah.
- Boss says it's quitting time. - All right.
- Where's Jack? - Still working.
- Come on, I'm buyin'. - What's he doing?
He's working late to make the completion deadline.
- Get the bonus. - He doesn't want our help?
- He can't pay us. - Pay us out of the bonus.
He needs the bonus to break even.
He underbid the job to keep us working through the winter.
Could Maggie give Sally a ride home?
We used to make something here.
Back before we got lost in the paperwork.
At one time, we had a frigate, right here, back there.
Guided missile cruiser.
Phil started out here, in hull assembly.
[laughs] He was a skinny little bastard.
Fearless. He'd hang upside down all day long
in a bosun's chair, 70 feet off the shop floor
welding an inside seam. I mean, Jesus.
Two thousand men a shift, three shifts a day.
Six thousand men earned an honest wage in that room.
Fed their kids, bought homes.
Made enough to send their kids to college.
Buy a second car.
Building something they could see.
Not just figures on a balance sheet, but a ship.
They could see, smell, touch.
Those men knew their worth, knew who they were.
One day you're making fifty dollars
the next day, 5,000. And then one day, five million.
Start out with a crazy plan.
Take insane risks.
Barely make enough money to feed your family.
Not a chance in hell you're going to succeed.
And then, all of a sudden, you've got all these things.
You get terrified of losing them.
Stock options, corporate jets,
vacation homes in the Bahamas.
You know. Truth is...
I like 500 dollar lunches and 5000 dollar hotel suites.
Now everything I spent 30 years
trying to build for myself and everybody else is...
...gone.
I'm sorry, Maggie.
[Maggie] For what?
For everything. For letting you down.
You haven't let me down.
Yeah, I did.
You were never here before.
And now you are.
I think the dryer vent's clogged. I'll take a look at it.
- Hey, Bobby? - Yeah?
It can wait.
- This meeting... - Hello, Jim.
Gene. How ya been?
Not good. I was recently fired by my best friend.
Missed ya at the funeral.
I was sorry to hear about Phil.
How's Lorna holding up?
We built something here, Jim. Together.
Together. It wasn't just you, it wasn't just me.
It was all of us.
They got a paycheck every week.
Medical if they got sick. Disability if they got hurt.
Hell, it's a business, not a charity.
You took home 22 million dollars last year
and these people have lost their homes, their marriages,
the respect of their children.
[Jim] We did what the market required of us to survive!
The Board accepted Allied's bid last night.
Thirty-nine billion, 97 a share.
- I'm sorry. - Don't be.
My shares are worth 600 million.
- Congratulations. - What are yours worth, Gene?
I have to get to work.
Give me the ball. Give me the ball.
Clear for possession, all right? You're in trouble now, kid!
[Bobby] Oh, no!
[Bobby] Hit the head flat on it. There you go.
That's it. Try a little more action. Sink it.
- Hey, Bobby? - Yeah?
Gene McClary's on the phone, something about a job.
Uh. Get some more 18 inch sinkers, I'll be right back.
What are you waiting for?
You working Sundays now?
Talked to Dierdre, she says you're down here every weekend.
- Losing money on this job, Jack?
- A bit.
'Cause of me?
Sometimes I'm up, sometimes I'm down.
It all comes out in the end.
Got a call from a guy today. Used to work for him.
- Offered me a job. - Yeah? Decent pay?
- Eighty. - Thousand?
Yeah.
It's half what I used to make.
World's a fucked up place.
Actually, I was thinking about...
...staying on with you, Jack.
My old job, I was scared all the time.
The quarterly cost reports,
young guys coming up, losing an account,
who was getting ahead of me.
Can I be honest with you, Bobby?
- Yeah. - You should take that job.
You're a shitty carpenter.
[Danny] Christ.
Can't make these damn things any lighter?
I, uh... I can't pay you for today.
Guess we better get started then, huh?
[Danny] I will win, why?
Why? Because I have faith,
[both] courage, enthusiasm.
I will win! Why?
Because I have faith, courage, enthusiasm.
I will win! Why?
Because I have faith, courage, enthusiasm.
[Gene] Could we get a pencil sharpener?
- Sure. - The kind with a crank?
- Oh, the old fashioned kind. - Yeah, yeah.
McClary Maritime Associates?
Yeah, we don't have any associates yet,
but what the hell, it sounds good.
The printer's from the dark ages.
I'll stop by Staples tomorrow, get a new one.
OK.
- Nice office. - It's not much.
If I make the overhead the first year, I'll be happy.
Ran into Ben Wilson the other day.
He said you were going out to possible investors.
Yeah, I'm gonna make a bid for Gloucester.
- The shipyard? - Yeah.
Allied doesn't want it.
I've already got the skilled labor,
I'll just renegotiate with the unions.
Start slow, see if it'll grow.
I think there's a business there.
Any time for lunch, Tuesday?
No.
I sat in rooms and talked about how to destroy people's lives.
I thought I could do more from the inside.
Save a few jobs here and there.
If I didn't do it, somebody else would.
Keep me in mind for a possible associate.
I think I may be looking for a job.
- Say hello to Gene for me. - How do I look?
Highly employable.
Go on, you don't want to be late.
- Come here. - I love you.
I love you.
All right. Hope you had your fill
of sitting around the house all day watching Price is Right.
Time to get working now. Don't complain about the luxury accommodations here.
Gene's basically kickstarting this thing on his AMEX card.
If you want to impress a client, take them to the Upper Crust.
Buy them a slice. Diane?
I'm gonna need you to do some seller financing
and long term lease backs, if we want to stay competitive.
So, run financials on our old customers,
vendors, capital expenditure budgets, future needs.
- You got it. - OK.
Conal. We need our union guys back.
- How many? - I don't know, a hundred?
Something like that. Start with the local, see who's available.
- I'm betting everyone. - Mechanics, machinists,
fabricators, welders, engineers.
Start with the crew chiefs.
We work as hard in here every day as we did
trying to get a job, we're gonna be all right.
What's the worst thing they could do? Fire us?
[male newscaster] ...Federal court is exploring
whether the British bank Barclays took advantage
of the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
The UK bank made billions
when it bought the US brokerage business
days after the company failed,
paying less than 2 billion...
[female newscaster] While acknowledging
that this latest round
of 18 billion in bonuses might be offensive to many Americans,
he went on to say that it was necessary
if they were going to keep...
[male commentator] At least 100 billion dollars
of these obscene earnings should be confiscated
to pay back all the taxpayers that bailed these bastards out.
[woman] I've been out of work for 2 years.
My sister and her kids are living in their car,
we got broken schools and a failing health care system...
[female commentator] The question here is whether
they did anything illegal.
not whether it was unethical to take investors' money
without disclosing the firm was betting against investments
it was selling to its own...
[male commentator 2] And now they're whining
that their bonuses
are only 2 million bucks this year instead of 3?
[male newscaster 2] ...released a report
this morning
saying Federal mortgage aid programs aren't doing enough
to help more families out of foreclosure.
RealtyTrac reports over 9 hundred thousand homes...
[male commentator 3] Yeah, to paraphrase
the old TV commercial,
these private equity guys, they make money
the old-fashioned way.
They steal it.
