SWING FOR THE FENCES - EPISODE ONE

By

William E. Spear

Two Plus Plus Productions LLC

Clinton, New Jersey
www.TwoPlusPlus.com
Two.Plus.Plus.Productions@gmail.com
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Summary
Jake Alston’s entire world is playing baseball with his
father. But when his dad is killed in World War One, Jake’s
world is destroyed.

Characters (in Order of Speaking)

Announcer Sets the tone and tenor of the series.

Chorus Sings and hums “Over There.”

Narrator One One of two storytellers who provide

exposition, transition, and background
throughout the “Swing for the Fences”
series.

Narrator Two One of two storytellers who provide

exposition, transition, and background
throughout the “Swing for the Fences”
series.

Conductor Conducts train into and out of

Bellewood Park in Hunterdon County, New
Jersey.

Jake Alston Protagonist of the “Swing for the

Fences” series. He first appears at the
age of 12 in 1914. His passion for
playing baseball with his father
ultimately blossoms into a professional
pursuit.

Mr. Ted Alston Jake’s father and Edna’s husband. He

pitched on the Chicago Cubs World
Series championship team of 1908. He is
a retired military officer but is
called back to active duty when World
War One begins.

Grandfather Ted Alston’s father and Mrs. Alston’s

father-in-law. He is a balancing
influence for events.

President Wilson His desire for a diplomatic resolution

to the hostilities of World War One
keeps the country out of the war until
1917.
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Mrs. Edna Alston Jake’s mother and Ted’s wife. She is

fearful of her husband joining the
battle in Europe.

Single Voice Sings “Over There.”

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1 Beat 1) Establish year - 1914

2 CHORUS: (ROBUSTLY) Over there, Over there;

3 Send the word, Send the word over there;

4 That the Yanks are coming, The Yanks are coming;

5 The drums rum-tumming ev’rywhere;

6 So prepare, Say a pray’r;

7 Send the word, Send the word to beware;

8 We’ll be o - - ver, we’re coming o - - ver;

9 And we won’t come back till it’s over Over There.

10 NARRATOR ONE: From the moment Austria-Hungary’s Archduke

11 Franz Ferdinand was assassinated, events of the

12 First World War began to entangle Americans “Over

13 There.” His murder, by the Serbian nationalist

14 group known as the Black Hand, ignited a series

15 of complex relationships.

16 NARRATOR TWO: Ancient treaties shaped the colliding

17 powers. Germany and Austria-Hungary were locked

18 in battle with Serbia, Russia, and ultimately

19 France and Great Britain. However, America

20 traveled along a course of neutrality set out by

21 President Woodrow Wilson on August Nineteenth,

22 Nineteen-fourteen.
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23 PRESIDENT WILSON: The people of the United States are

24 drawn from many nations, and chiefly from the

25 nations now at war. Some of our citizens will

26 wish one country, others another, to succeed in

27 the momentous struggle. The United States must be

28 impartial in thought, as well as action, so as

29 not to be construed as having preference of one

30 party over another.

31 NARRATOR TWO: Germany interpreted this as American support

32 for the British. England pressed for direct aid

33 from the U.S. Nonetheless, America’s tactics

34 struck her out on a path clear of the war.

35 NARRATOR ONE: Nine months later and an ocean away from

36 Europe’s combatants, a young boy named Jake

37 Alston tossed a baseball with his father and

38 grandfather at Bellewood Park in Roberts County.

39 Beat 2) Jake, Mr. Alston and Grandfather

40 SFX: COME UP: SOUNDS OF BELLEWOOD PARK AMUSEMENTS –

41 RAILROAD ENGINE GRINDS TO HALT.

42 CONDUCTOR: This stop – Bellewood Park.

43 ALL: (WALLA-WALLA OF AN AMUSEMENT PARK ATTENDEES)

44 SFX: SHOOTING GALLERY, ROLLER COASTER, DANCE PAVILION

45 MUSIC.
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46 JAKE: I’ll catch dad. You pitch like you did for

47 Chicago.

48 MR. ALSTON: All right son.

49 JAKE: Grandpa, you be the umpire.

50 GRANDFATHER: Already ahead of you Jakey.

51 JAKE: Okay dad. Here’s the scene. It’s the World

52 Series.

53 GRANDFATHER: The World Series? On the fourth of May?

54 JAKE: It’s just pretend. We’re Chicago and we’re

55 playing Detroit just like in Owe-eight. It’s the

56 bottom of the ninth and we’re winning.

57 MR. ALSTON: How many outs?

58 JAKE: Two.

59 GRANDFATHER: Any base runners?

60 JAKE: One’s on third and one’s on second.

61 GRANDFATHER: Who’s batting?

62 JAKE: Ty Cobb.

63 MR. ALSTON and GRANDFATHER: Oooohhhh.

64 GRANDFATHER: He’s the best. If he gets a hit we lose.

65 JAKE: That’s the situation. (CALLS TO MR. ALSTON) Start

66 with a curveball dad.

67 Beat 3) Ball one

68 MR. ALSTON: All right Jake. Here’s the first one.

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69 SFX: BEAT. THUMP OF BASEBALL INTO JAKE’S MITT.

70 GRANDFATHER: Too high. Ball one.

71 JAKE: Another curve.

72 MR. ALSTON: Okay.

73 Beat 4) Ball two

74 SFX: BEAT. THUMP OF BASEBALL INTO JAKE’S MITT.

75 GRANDFATHER: Still high. Ball two.

76 JAKE: Time out ump. Let me talk with my pitcher.

77 GRANDFATHER: (CHUCKLES) Go ahead Jakey.

78 JAKE: Hey dad. You’re doing it again.

79 MR. ALSTON: What?

80 JAKE: Dropping your shoulder. Your pitches always stay

81 high when you drop your shoulder.

82 MR. ALSTON: Are you sure?

83 JAKE: It’s practically scraping the ground. Try the

84 curve again.

85 MR. ALSTON: All right Jake. Here it comes and I’m

86 keeping my shoulder up.

87 Beat 5) One strike, two balls

88 SFX: BEAT. THUMP OF BASEBALL INTO JAKE’S MITT.

89 GRANDFATHER: Stee-rike one.

90 JAKE: Great pitch dad. Bring your fastball.

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91 GRANDFATHER: Don’t you want him to stay with the curve

92 since it’s working?

93 JAKE: Batter’s looking for the curve. The fastball’ll

94 catch him off guard.

95 MR. ALSTON: Here’s my best.

96 Beat 6) Two strikes, two balls

97 SFX: BEAT. EXTRA LOUD THUMP OF BASEBALL INTO JAKE’S

98 MITT.

99 JAKE: Holy schmoly was that fast.

100 GRANDFATHER: Stee-rike two. Great pitch son. Old Ty Cobb

101 never would’ve hit that one.

102 MR. ALSTON: Thanks dad. Okay Jake, we’ve got the batter

103 right where we want him. Let’s close out the

104 Series and go home.

105 JAKE: Bring the curve one more time.

106 MR. ALSTON: Everything’s on this pitch Jake. Get ready.

107 Beat 7) Three strikes, they win

108 SFX: BEAT. THUMP OF BASEBALL INTO JAKE’S MITT.

109 GRANDFATHER: Stee-rike three. The batter’s out and the

110 Cubs win the World Series. Just like in Owe-

111 Eight.

112 JAKE: Absolutely beautiful pitch.

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113 MR. ALSTON: No more low shoulder?

114 JAKE: No more.

115 MR. ALSTON: Let’s tell your mother we won the World

116 Series.

117 JAKE, MR. ALSTON and GRANDFATHER: (WALLA-WALL OVER WINNING

118 WORLD SERIES)

119 Beat 8) Torpedoes elsewhere

120 NARRATOR ONE: Jake’s Chicago Cubs celebrated their

121 imaginary World Series victory. But in President

122 Wilson’s world, torpedoes were wreaking havoc and

123 taking lives. In Nineteen-fifteen, his path of

124 neutrality was straining.

125 NARRATOR TWO: German warcraft were sinking ships with

126 Americans on board. In March, the Falaba went

127 down. In April, the Cushing was sunk by a German

128 aeroplane. On May First, the Gulflight was

129 attacked and sunk.

130 NARRATOR ONE: But on May Seventh, the Lusitania was sunk

131 with the loss of one hundred American lives. The

132 country’s neutrality was fraying and President

133 Wilson’s words were blunt.

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134 Beat 9) The President speaks

135 PRESIDENT WILSON: These attacks constitute a series of

136 events which this Government has observed with

137 growing concern and distress. The United States

138 is loathe to believe that these acts have the

139 sanction of the Imperial Government of Germany.

140 This Government and the people of the United

141 States look to the Imperial Government of Germany

142 for prompt and swift action on this vital matter.

143 Beat 10) Bumper

144 MUSIC: BUMPER.

145 Beat 11) Back in Roberts County

146 NARRATOR ONE: But Germany rebuffed President Wilson’s

147 diplomacy and stated that the Lusitania was armed

148 with wartime munitions. To their eyes, the

149 Lusitania was a war vessel. To Wilson, the

150 chances of averting the war were sinking.

151 NARRATOR TWO: Back in Roberts County, in the midst of the

152 Nineteen-fifteen baseball season, Jake Alston’s

153 beloved Cubs were trailing further behind the

154 National League leaders. One day, after rushing

155 home to read about his Cubbies, his Mother had

156 some strange news.

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157 JAKE: Mom the Cubs lost again.

158 EDNA: I heard. But your Father’s friend, Mr. Schulman,

159 hit a home run.

160 JAKE: I’ll tell dad when we play catch.

161 EDNA: He went to Washington.

162 JAKE: To see the monuments?

163 EDNA: To talk with the President. Bad things are

164 happening and he wants a briefing from the Armed

165 Services.

166 JAKE: But dad retired.

167 EDNA: All the officers have been called to Washington.

168 President Wilson wants to hear more about Europe

169 from a military perspective in case of...

170 JAKE: (BITE CUE) In case of us going to war?

171 EDNA: Yes Jakey. In case of us going to war.

172 Beat 12) Mr. Alston sees war

173 ANNOUNCER ONE: America did not enter the War in Nineteen-

174 fifteen or Nineteen-sixteen. But circumstances

175 were changing. On a raw, blustery March day in

176 Nineteen-seventeen, Jake, his father, and

177 grandfather were playing catch at Bellewood Park,

178 again, but with different results.

179 GRANDFATHER: Ball three and no strikes.

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180 JAKE: That was way high. Go back to the curve but don’t

181 drop your shoulder.

182 MR. ALSTON: Let’s finish another day.

183 JAKE: But we’re playing in the World Series.

184 MR. ALSTON: Not today.

185 JAKE: But it’s the World...

186 GRANDFATHER: (GENTLY BITE CUE) Jakey.

187 JAKE: Okay Grandfather.

188 Beat 13) It’s war

189 ANNOUNCER TWO: Jake would not play catch with his father

190 again in Nineteen-seventeen. One week later, on

191 April Second, President Wilson petitioned

192 Congress for a declaration of War and four days

193 after that, the United States was at war.

194 ANNOUNCER TWO: For many months, Jake’s father spent more

195 time in Washington and less time at home in

196 Roberts County. His mother was sad and cried

197 often. Grandfather spoke very little.

198 Beat 14) Last holidays

199 MUSIC: BED: SOMBER HOLIDAY MUSIC.

200 ANNOUNCER ONE: The holidays came dreadfully and frightfully

201 fast. Thanksgiving was a solemn time.

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202 ANNOUNCER TWO: Christmas had many gifts under the family

203 tree but not the usual sparkle and laughter. On

204 New Year’s Eve, Mr. Alston’s toast, in past years

205 a promise for the future, was more of a hope.

206 MR. ALSTON: As we gather to end this year, with loved

207 ones drawn together, we reflect upon our joys and

208 sorrows of the past twelve months. As we look

209 forward to Nineteen-eighteen, and if it is the

210 will of our Lord, we pray that we will be

211 together to celebrate twelve months from tonight.

212 Happy New Year everyone.

213 JAKE: Happy New Year dad.

214 GRANDFATHER: Happy New Year son.

215 MR. ALSTON: (BEAT) Happy New Year Edna. (BEAT) Edna?

216 EDNA: (GO OFF MIC: SOBBING)

217 MR. ALSTON: (GO OFF MIC) Edna come back.

218 SFX: OFF MIC: DOOR CLOSES.

219 JAKE: Mom’s been crying alot lately.

220 GRANDFATHER: The world’s gone crazy Jakey. And your dad’s

221 sailing into the middle of it.

222 JAKE: Happy New Year Grandfather.

223 GRANDFATHER: Happy New Year Jakey.

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224 Beat 15) Mr. Alston – Casualty of war

225 MUSIC: RISE AND ESTABLISH: SOMBER HOLIDAY MUSIC. OUT.

226 ANNOUNCER TWO: Three weeks later, Jake’s father left for

227 the First World War. Mr. Alston and over two

228 thousand American soldiers and officers boarded

229 the Tuscania - a converted luxury Ocean Liner.

230 The ship left Hoboken, New Jersey out of the same

231 birth previously reserved for the Lusitania.

232 ANNOUNCER ONE: The Tuscania met a similar fate. On the

233 night of February Fifth, Nineteen-eighteen, she

234 was sunk by German Submarine U-B-dash-Seventy-

235 seven near the Scottish Island of Islay. Two

236 hundred U-S soldiers were killed - including Jake

237 Alston’s dad.

238 SINGLE VOICE: (SOLEMNLY) Over there, Over there;

239 Send the word, Send the word over there;

240 That the Yanks are coming, The Yanks are coming;

241 The drums rum-tumming ev’rywhere;

242 So prepare, Say a pray’r;

243 Send the word, Send the word to beware;

244 We’ll be o - - ver, we’re coming o - - ver;

245 And we won’t come back till it’s over Over There.

246 Beat 16) The End