Forrest continues with his life story. A MAN is sitting next to Forrest
on the bus bench.
Forrest: That's all I have to say about that.
Man: It was a bullet, wasn't it?
Forrest: A bullet?
Man: That jumped up and bit you.
Forrest: Oh, yes sir. Bit me directly in the buttocks. They said it
was a million-dollar wound, but the Army must keep that
money, 'cause I still ain't seen a nickel of that million
dollars. The only good thing about being wounded in the
buttocks...
FLASHback - INT. US. ARMY HOSPITAL/VIETNAM - DAY
Forrest holds two ice cream cones in his hands as he is wheeled on a
rolling stretcher.
Forrest: (voice-over) ...is the ice cream. They gave me all the ice
cream I could eat. And guess what. A good friend of mine
was in the bed right next door.
Forrest, lying on his stomach, is wheeled to his bed. Forrest's butt
sticks up and is bandaged. Forrest looks at Lt. Dan lying on the bed.
Forrest holds out an ice cream cone for Lt. Dan.
Forrest: Lieutenant Dan, I got you some ice cream. Lieutenant Dan,
ice cream.
Lt. Dan, annoyed, takes the ice cream cone and drops it into his bed pan.
Forrest slides himself onto his bed. A NURSE reaches toward Lt. Dan.
Male Nurse: It's time for your bath, Lieutenant.
The male nurse places Lt. Dan's hands on a pull-up bar, then picks up Lt.
Dan, whose legs have been amputated.
Male Nurse: Harper...
Another nurse wheels the rolling bed under Lt. Dan. The male nurse sets
Lt. Dan down on the rolling bed.
Forrest looks up at Lt. Dan as he is wheeled away. A soldier reads the
names from a pile of letters.
Soldier: Cooper, Larson, Webster, Gump, Gump...
Forrest: I'm Forrest Gump.
The soldier hands Forrest a large pile of letters.
"Undeliverable as addressed. No forwarding order on fiile."
Jenny Curran
Rural Route 2
GREenbow, Ala. 39902
Forrest looks down at the pile of letters.
INT. ARMY HOSPITAL/VIETNAM - DAY
A group of wounded soldiers hang out in the hospital, recuperating.
Forrest sits and watches "Gomer Pyle" on the television.
Soldier: Gump, how can you watch that stupid shit? Turn it off!
Announcer: From the D.M.Z. to the Delta, you are tuned to the
American Forces Vietnam Network. This is Channel 6,
Saigon.
Forrest turns the TV off and he is hit on the back of the head by a
ping-pong ball.
Soldier: Good catch, Gump. You know how to play this?
Forrest shakes his head.
Soldier: Come on, let me show you. Here.
The wounded ping-pong player hands Forrest a paddle. Forrest and the
wounded ping-pong player step toward the ping-pong table.
Soldier: Now the secret to this game is, no matter what happens,
never, never take your eye off the ball.
He holds the ball up and moves it back and forth. Forrest keeps his eyes
on the ball.
Soldier: All right...
The wounded ping-pong player tosses the ball down onto the table. Forrest
begins to hit the ball back to the other player.
Forrest: (voice-over) For some reason, ping pong came very natural
to me.
Soldier: See, any idiot can play.
Forrest: (voice-over) So I started playing it all the time.
Forrest hits ping-pong balls.
Forrest: (voice-over) I played ping-pong even when I didn't have
anyone to play ping-pong with.
The balls at land in a bed pan positioned on a chair.
A group of wounded soldier sit and watch Forrest play with himself.
Forrest hits two balls at a time against the opposite side of the table.
Forrest: (voice-over) The hospital's people said it made me look
like a duck in water, whatever that means. Even Lieutenant
Dan would come and watch me play.
Lt. Dan stares out the window.
Forrest lies in his bed asleep. A hand reaches and grabs him.
Forrest: (voice-over) I played ping-pong so much, I even played it
in my sleep.
Lt. Dan pulls Forrest to the floor, and holds Forrest down.
Lt. Dan: Now, you listen to me. We all have a destiny. Nothing just
happens, it's all part of a plan. I should have died out
there with my men! But now, I'm nothing but a goddamned
cripple! A legless freak. Look! Look! Look at me! Do you
see that? Do you know what it's like not to be able to use
your legs?
Forrest: Well... Yes, sir, I do.
Lt. Dan: Did you hear what I said? You cheated me. I had a destiny.
I was supposed to die in the field! With honor! That was
my destiny! And you cheated me out of it! You understand
what I'm saying, Gump? This wasn't supposed to happen. Not
to me. I had a destiny. I was Lieutenant Dan Tyler.
Forrest: Yo-You're still Lieutenant Dan.
Lt. Dan looks at Forrest, lets go of Forrest and rolls.
Lt. Dan sits up as Forrest looks at him.
Lt. Dan: Look at me. What am I gonna do now? What am I gonna do
now?
INT. REC ROOM/VIETNAM HOSPITAL - ANOTHER DAY
Forrest plays ping-pong by himself. An OFFICER walks up to him.
Officer: P.F.C. Gump?
Forrest immediately grabs the ball and places it down on the table under
its paddle. Stands at attention.
Forrest: Yes, sir!
Officer: As you were.
The officer holds up an envelope.
Officer: Son, you've been awarded the Medal of Honor.
INT. VIETNAM HOSPITAL WARD
Forrest steps up to Lt. Dan's bed.
Forrest: Guess what, Lieutenant Dan, they want to give me a me...
Forrest stops in mid-sentence as he looks down at the bed. A heavily
bandaged soldier with bloodstains lies there. Forrest turns and look at
the NURSE.
Forrest: Ma'am, what'd they do with Lieutenant Dan?
Nurse: They sent him home.
Forrest: (voice-over) Two weeks later, I left Vietnam.
INT. BARBER SHOP/GREENBOW - DAY
Anchorman: (on T.V.) The ceremony was kicked off with a candid speech
by the President regarding the need for further escalation
of the war in Vietnam. President Johnson awarded four
Medals of Honor to men from each of the Armed Services.
The television reveals Forrest as he is awarded the Medal of Honor by
President Johnson.
President: America owes you a debt of gratitude, son.
Johnson
Color footage revealing President Johnson as he places the award around
Forrest's neck and shakes hands.
President: I understand you were wounded. Where were you hit?
Johnson
Forrest: In the buttocks, sir.
President: Oh, that must be a sight.
Johnson
President Johnson leans and whispers into Forrest's ear.
President: I'd kinda like to see that.
Johnson
INT. BARBER SHOP
The television revealing Forrest as he drops his pants, bends over and
shows the bullet wound on his bare buttocks. President Johnson looks down
and smiles.
The three men in the barber shop look up in disbelief.
Mrs. Gump looks up in shock.
President: Goddamn, son.
Johnson
EXT. LINCOLN MEMORIAL - DAY
Forrest walks by the Lincoln Memorial. A fence surrounds the Memorial, as
well as armed military guards.
Forrest: (voice-over) After that, Momma went to the hotel to lay
down, so I went out for a walk to see our national
capital.
Isabel: Hilary, all right, I've got the vets, what do you want me
to do with them?
Hilary: What are you doing here so late?
Forrest takes a photo of the memorial as a woman named Hilary gathers
together some veterans against the Vietnam War.
Hilary: We've been waiting for you for half an hour, so just get
them in a line, will you. Hey, hey, come on, pictures
later. You look GREat. Oh come on, get in this line, come
on, come on right in line. Come on, let him here, let him
in here.
Hilary grabs Forrest and puts him in the line with the other vets against
the war.
Forrest: (voice-over) It's a good thing Momma was resting, 'cause
the street was awful crowded with people looking at all
the statues and monuments. And some of them people were
loud and pushy.
Hilary leads the line of vets toward the large anti-Vietnam War rally.
Hilary: Okay, follow me! Come on.
The group of vets walk as Forrest tries to take another picture. A vet
behind him pushes him along.
Hilary: Let's move it out.
Vet: Hey, buddy, come on. We could use your help.
Forrest walks in the line. A banner reads "Veterans against the War in
Vietnam."
Forrest: (voice-over) Everywhere I went, I had to stand in line.
Hilary: Follow me, let's go!
Hilary leads the vets through a crowd of people outside the rally.
Another woman, named Isabel, leads the vets toward the back of a stage.
Isabel: All right, come on, guys.
Hilary: Stand here.
Vet: Hey, you're a good man for doin' this. Good!
Forrest: Okay.
A man, wearing an American flag shirt, stands on the stage. He is
anti-war activist ABBIE HOFFMAN.
Abbie Hoffman: We must declare to that fucking impostor in the White
House -- Johnson. We ain't going to work on your farm no
more! Yeah!
Forrest: (voice-over) There was this man, giving a little talk. And
for some reason, he was wearing an American flag for a
shirt...
Abbie Hoffman: Now, I'm going to bring up some soldiers that are going to
talk about the war, man...
Forrest: (voice-over) ... and he liked to say the "F" word. A lot.
"F" this and "F" that. And every time...
Abbie Hoffman: ... that war has come home, and we have to stop these
politicians...
Forrest: (voice-over) ... he said "F" word, people, for some
reason, well, they'd cheer.
Abbie Hoffman: ... these guys just told Lyndon Johnson where to stick
this fucking war! Yeah!
Forrest looks up at the cheering crowd.
Abbie turns and motions for Forrest to come up on the stage.
Abbie Hoffman: Come on, man. Come up here, man.
Hilary: Come on. Come on. Yeah, you!
Hilary pulls Forrest up onto the stage.
Hilary: Come on, get up there. Come on. Move, move. Let's go!
Let's go.
The other vets follow Forrest pushes onto the stage and push him toward
the microphones.
Vet: Come on, go. You can do it. Just get up there. Go on.
That's it.
Thousands of cheering protestors stand around the Washington Monument.
Forrest looks at the crowd. Abbie Hoffmann steps up to Forrest.
Abbie Hoffman: Tell us a little bit about the war, man.
Forrest: The war in Vietnam?
Abbie Hoffman: The war in Viet-fucking-nam!
Abbie raises his fist as the crowd cheers wildly.
Forrest: Well...
Forrest: (voice-over) There was only one thing I could say about
the war in Vietnam.
Forrest: ... there was only one thing I could say about the war in
Vietnam.
Forrest looks at the crowd as he speaks. A policeman looks around as he
sneaks over to the audio circuit board.
Forrest: In Vietnam war...
The policeman pulls the patch cords out of the audio board. Forrest's
amplified voice becomes inaudible.
Forrest continues to speak into the microphone, even though no one can
hear what he is saying. Hilary looks over and notices the policeman.
Hilary rushes over toward the audio board, pushes the policeman away and
grabs his night stick. Another protestor grabs the policeman and pulls
him away.
Policeman: Hey, what the hell are you doing?
Hilary: I'll beat your head in, you goddamned oinker!
Isabel, Hilary and another protestor try to plug the tangled mess of
wires back into the audio board.
Isabel: Christ, what'd they do with this?
Forrest continues to speak into the microphone. The crowd grows restless.
Crowd: We can't hear you! We can't hear anything!
Hilary: This one! This one! Give me that!
Hilary plugs in the right patch cord.
Hilary: That's it.
Forrest: ... and that's all I have to say about that.
Forrest looks at the massive crowd. They are silent. Abbie Hoffman steps
over to Forrest and pats him on the shoulder.
Abbie Hoffman: That's so right on, man. You said it all. What's your
name, man?
Forrest: My name is Forrest Gump. Forrest Gump.
Abbie Hoffman: Forrest Gump!
Abbie raises his fist into the air.
Abbie steps away from Forrest. The crowd cheers.
Crowd: Forrest Gump!
Jenny: (screaming) Forrest! Forrest!
Jenny wades out into the reflection pool and waves her hand into the air.
Forrest recognizes her.
Forrest: Jenny!
Forrest rushes off the stage as Jenny makes her way out into the pool.
Jenny: Forrest!
Forrest jumps down into the crowd and runs.
Jenny smiles as she tries to run through the water.
The crowd parts as Forrest runs into the pool. Jenny rushes toward him.
Jenny: Hey! Hey!
The massive crowd cheers for the embracing couple in the pool.
Forrest: (voice-over) It was the happiest moment of my life.
EXT. WASHINGTON MONUMENT/PROTESTOR'S ENCAMPMENT - NIGHT
Forrest and Jenny walk past the protestors who are camping out on the
lawn.
Forrest: (voice-over) Jenny and me were just peas and carrots
again. She showed me around, and even introduced me...
INT. BLACK PANTHER HEADQUARTERS/STOREFRONT, D.C. - NIGHT
Forrest stands at an open window and looks at the White House.
Forrest: (voice-over) ... to some of her new friends.
A Black Panther, named RUBEN, steps over and pulls the shades down.
Ruben: Shut that blind, man. And get your white ass away from
that window. Don't you know we in war here?
Another Black Panther named MASAI grabs Forrest and pats him down.
Jenny: Hey man, he's cool. He's cool. He's one of us. He's one of
us.
Masai: Let me tell you about us.
Wesley: Where the hell have you been?
Jenny: I ran into a friend.
Masai: Our purpose here is to protect our black leaders from the
racial onslaught of the pig who wishes to brutalize our
black leaders, rape our women, and destroy our black
communists.
Black Panther: Masai, phone. Talk to these guys.
Wesley: Who's the baby killer?
Jenny: This is my good friend I told you about. This is Forrest
Gump. Forrest, this is Wesley. Wesley and I live together
in Berkeley, and he's the president of the Berkeley
chapter of S.D.S.
Masai: Let me tell you something else.
Wesley: I want to talk to you.
Jenny: Okay, but...
Wesley: No. Now! Goddammit!
Masai: We are here to offer protection and help for all of those
who need our help, because we, the Black Panthers, are
against the war in Vietnam. Yes, we are against any war
where black soldiers are sent to the front line to die for
a country that hates them. Yes, we are against any war
where black soldiers go to fight and come to be brutalized
and killed in their own communities as they sleep in their
beds at night. Yes, we are against all these racists and
imperial dog acts.
Jenny: You are a fucking asshole!
Wesley hits Jenny across the face.
Slow motion -- Jenny falls back.
Slow motion -- Forrest steps forward with rage.
Slow motion -- Wesley turns and looks at Forrest.
Forrest tackles Wesley and slams him onto a table.
Jenny turns and look as Masai pulls out a gun.
Jenny: Forrest! Quit it! Quit it! Forrest! Stop it!
Jenny rushes over to Forrest and pulls Forrest off Wesley.
Jenny: Stop it!
Jenny tries to help Wesley as he moans on the floor. Wesley knocks
Jenny's hand away. He gets up, holding his bloody lip.
Wesley: Oh, God. I shouldn't have brought you here. I should have
known it was just gonna be some bullshit hassle.
Forrest: He should not be hitting you, Jenny.
Jenny: Come on, Forrest.
Jenny steps out the door as Forrest picks up his hat.
Forrest: Sorry I had a fight in the middle of your Black Panther
party.
The group of Black Panthers glare at Forrest. Forrest turns and walks out
the room.
EXT. WASHINGTON D.C. - NIGHT
Forrest and Jenny walk past the White House. Protectors hold a
candlelight vigil behind them.
Jenny: He doesn't mean it when he does things like this. He
doesn't.
Forrest: I would never hurt you, Jenny.
Jenny: I know you wouldn't, Forrest.
Forrest: I wanted to be your boyfriend.
They walk in silence. Jenny touches Forrest's uniform.
Jenny: That uniform is a trip, Forrest. You look handsome in it.
You do.
Forrest: You know what?
Jenny: What?
Forrest: I'm glad we were here together in our national capitol.
Jenny: Me too, Forrest. I have so much to tell you, you won't
believe what's been going on...
Forrest: (voice-over) We waled around all night, Jenny and me, just
talkin'.
EXT. ROUTE 66 - FLASHBACK - DAY
Jenny stands in the rain, hitchhiking. A car pulls over to pick her up.
Jenny and other other girls get into the car.
Forrest: (voice-over) She told me about all the travellin' she's
done.
EXT. COMMUNE IN NEW MEXICO - NIGHT
A hippie gives Jenny a sugar cube of acid as they sit in front of a
roaring fire.
Forrest: (voice-over) And how she'd discovered ways to expand her
mind and learn how to live in harmony...
EXT. HOLLYWOOD/WALK OF FAME - DAY
A star with the name "Jean Harlow" on the sidewalk. Jenny and two other
girls sing on the sidewalk and collect change from the passersby. Jenny
plays the guitar.
Forrest: (voice-over) ... which must be out west somewhere, 'cause
she made it all the way to California.
Jenny: (sing) "Smile on your brother, everybody get together, try
to love on another right now"
A young hippie looks over his faded Volkswagen at the girls.
Young Hippie: Hey, anybody want to go to San Francisco?
Jenny: I'll go.
Young Hippie: Far out!
EXT. WASHINGTON D.C. - DAWN
Forrest and Jenny walk through the park.
Forrest: (voice-over) I was a very special night for the two of us.
I didn't want it to end.
EXT. PARKING LOT - EARLY MORNING
Jenny carries a backpack as she prepares to board a bus back to Berkeley.
Forrest: I wish you wouldn't go, Jenny.
Jenny: I have to, Forrest.
Wesley: Jenny? Things got a little out of hand. It's just this war
and that, that lyin' son-of-a-bitch Johnson. I would never
hurt you. You know that.
Forrest: You know what I think? I think you should go home to
GREenbow. Alabama!
Jenny: Forrest, we have very different lives, you know.
Forrest looks down at Jenny. He pulls his Medal of Honor from around his
neck.
Forrest: I want you to have this.
Forrest places the Medal of Honor in Jenny's hand. Jenny looks up at him.
Jenny: Forrest, I can't keep this.
Forrest: I got it just by doing what you told me to do.
Jenny: Why're you so good to me?
Forrest: You're my girl.
Jenny: I'll always be your girl.
Jenny and Forrest hug each other. Wesley waits for Jenny. Jenny turns and
walks up to Wesley. They walk toward the entrance of the bus.
Forrest smiles as Jenny looks at her. Jenny climbs up into the bus.
Wesley glares at Forrest. Forrest gives Wesley the "evil eye."
Jenny through the near window of the bus, knocks on the window. Forrest
turns and looks. Jenny waves to Forrest. Forrest looks up and smiles
sadly.
Jenny gives Forrest the peace sign as the bus pulls away. The sign on the
back of the bus reads "Berkeley to D.C." Forrest gives Jenny the peace
sign.
Forrest: (voice-over) And just like that, she was gone out of my
life again.
INT. VETERANS ADMINISTRATION HOSPITAL/REC ROOM - DAY
A footage of Neil Armstrong's first step on the moon on television.
Neil: That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.
Armstrong The, uh, the surface is fine and powdery. I can, I can
pick it up loosely.
Forrest demonstrates a ping-pong to some wounded vets.
Forrest: (voice-over) I thought I was going back to Vietnam, but
instead, they decided the best way for me to fight
communists was to play ping-pong. So I was in the Special
Services, traveling around the country cheering up all
them wounded veterans and showing them how to play...
BUS STOP - PRESENT - DAY
Forrest looks at a man.
Forrest: ... ping-pong. I was so good that some years later...
EXT. CHINA/PING-PONG TOURNAMENT - FLASHBACK - DAY
Forrest plays ping-pong against a Chinese player. A large mural of Mao
Tse-tung hangs on the wall. A crowd of communist leaders sit and watch.
Forrest: (voice-over) ... the Army decided I should be on the
All-American Ping-Pong Team. We were the first Americans
to visit the land of China in like a million years or
something like that, and somebody said that world peace
was in our hands. But all I did was play ping-pong. When I
got home...
BUS STOP - PRESENT - DAY
Forrest: ... I was national celebrity. Famouser even than Captain
Kangaroo.
Color footage of the DICK CAVETT Show. Dick Cavett stands up as he
introduces Forrest.
Dick Cavett: Here he is, Forrest Gump, right here.
Forrest makes his way onto the stage, shakes hands with Dick Cavett.
Dick Cavett: Mr. Gump, have a seat.
Forrest sits down between JOHN LENNON and Dick Cavett.
Dick Cavett: Forrest Gump, John Lennon.
John Lennon: Welcome home.
Dick Cavett: You had quite a trip. Can you, uh, tell us, uh, what was
China like?
John Lennon lights a cigarette.
Forrest: Well, in the land of China, people hardly got nothing at
all.
John Lennon: No possessions?
Forrest: And in China, they never go to church.
John Lennon: No religion, too?
Dick Cavett: Oh. Hard to imagine.
John Lennon: Well, it's easy if you try, Dick.
Forrest looks oddly at John Lennon.
Forrest: (voice-over) Some years later, that nice young man from
England was on his way home to see his little boy and was
signing some autographs. For no particular reason at all,
somebody shot him.
EXT. STUDIO - LATER
A guard lets Forrest out a side entrance door. Forrest steps, an then
stops as he hears s man sitting in a wheelchair speak to him.
Lt. Dan: They gave you the ConGREssional Medal of Honor.
Forrest: Now that's Lieutenant Dan. Lieutenant Dan!
Forrest looks at Lt. Dan. He is a dirty with long hair.
Lt. Dan: They gave you the ConGREssional Medal of Honor!
Forrest: Yes sir, they sure did.
Lt. Dan: They gave you an imbecile, a moron who goes on television
and makes a fool out himself in front of the whole damn
country, the ConGREssional Medal of Honor.
Forrest: Yes, sir.
Lt. Dan: Well, then, that's just perfect! Yeah, well I just got one
thing to say to that. Goddamn bless America.
Lt. Dan's wheelchair begins to slide down the ramp and spins around on
the icy ground. Forrest looks down at Lt. Dan crashes at the bottom of
the ramp.
Forrest: Lieutenant Dan!
EXT. NEW YORK CITY STREETS - NIGHT
Taxi cabs crowd the street as Forrest pushes Lt. Dan along the sidewalk.
Forrest: (voice-over) Lieutenant Dan said he was living in a hotel.
And because he didn't have no legs, he spent most of his
time exercising his arms.
Lt. Dan: Take a right, take a right.
A taxi driver honks his horn as Forrest wheels Lt. Dan out in front of
the taxi.
Taxi Driver: Hey! Come on already!
#1
Lt. Dan: Ah!
Forrest: What are you doing here in New York, Lieutenant Dan?
Lt. Dan: I'm living off the government tit. Sucking it dry.
A taxi skids to a stop, almost hitting them as they cross the street. The
taxi honks at Lt. Dan. Lt. Dan slaps the bumper of the taxi.
Lt. Dan: Hey! Hey! Hey! Are you blind? I'm walking here! Ah, get
out...
Taxi Driver: Why don't you go home before you kill yourself? Get out of
#2 the way!
Lt. Dan: Come on, go! Go! Go!
EXT. LT. DAN'S HOTEL ROOM - LATER
A Bob Hope Christmas special in Vietnam on television.
Lt. Dan and Forrest watch the television.
Forrest: (voice-over) I stayed with Lieutenant Dan and celebrated
the holidays.
Bob Hope: You have a GREat year and hurry home. God bless you.
Lt. Dan: Have you found Jesus yet, Gump?
Forrest: I didn't know I was supposed to be looking for him, sir.
Lt. Dan chuckles, drinks the rest of a bottle of wine and tosses it down.
He looks at Forrest. He wheels himself over to television and turns it
off.
Lt. Dan: That's all these cripples, down at the V.A., that's all
they ever talk about.
Lt. Dan picks up another bottle of port wine, but it is empty. He tosses
it onto the floor.
Lt. Dan: Jesus this and Jesus that. Have I found Jesus? They even
had a priest come and talk to me. He said God is
listening, but I have to help myself. Now, if I accept
Jesus into my heart, I'll get to walk beside him in the
Kingdom of Heaven.
Lt. Dan tosses the empty liquor bottle down and picks another bottle. He
becomes enraged as he throws the bottle and looks at Forrest.
Lt. Dan: Did you hear what I said? Walk beside him in the Kingdom
of Heaven. Well, kiss my crippled ass. God is listening.
What a crock of shit.
Forrest: I'm going to heaven, Lieutenant Dan.
Lt. Dan: Huh? Ah, well, before you go, why don't you get your ass
down to the corner and get us another bottle of wine.
Forrest: Yes, sir.
INT. TIMES SQUARE BAR - NIGHT
A television shows DICK CLARK as he emcees the Times Square New York Eve
celebration.
Dick Clark: We are at approximately 45th Street in New York City at
One Astor Plaza. This is the site of the old Astor Hotel.
Down below us, well over a hundred thousand people are
milling about, cheering with horns and whistles and
hats...
Lt. Dan: What the hell's in Bayou La Batre?
Forrest: Shrimpin' boats.
Lt. Dan: Shrimpin' boats? Who gives a shit about shrimpin' boats?
Forrest: I gotta buy me one of them shrimpin' boats as soon as I
have some money. I make me a promise to Bubba in Vietnam,
that as soon as the war was over, we'd go in partners.
He'd be the captain of the shrimpin' boat and I'd be his
first mate. But now that he's dead, that means that I
gotta be the captain.
Lt. Dan: A shrimp boat captain.
Forrest: Yes, sir. A promise is a promise, Lieutenant Dan.
Lt. Dan: Now hear this! Private Gump here is gonna be a shrimp boat
captain. Well, I tell you what, Gilligan, the day that you
are a shrimp boat captain, I will come and be your first
mate.
Forrest: Okay.
Lt. Dan: If you're ever a shrimp boat captain, that's the day I'm
an astronaut.
Two sleazy women, named LENORE and CARLA, walk up to Lt. Dan.
Lenore: Danny, what are you complaining about?
Carla: What are you doing, huh?
Lenore: Mr. Hot Wheels. Who's your friend?
Forrest: My name is Forrest, Forrest Gump.
Lt. Dan: This is Cunning Carla, and Long-Limbs Lenore.
Carla puts a "Happy New Year" crown on Lt. Dan's head. Lenore fixes her
makeup.
Carla: So where you been, baby-cakes, huh? Haven't seen you
around lately. You know, you should have been here for
Christmas 'cause Tommy bought a round on the house and
gave everybody a turkey sandwich.
Lt. Dan: Well, well, I had, uh, company.
Lenore: Hey, hey! We was, we was just there. That's at Times
Square.
Lenore leans and speaks into Forrest's ear.
Lenore: Don't you just love New Year's? You get to start all over.
Carla: Hey, Lenore.
Lenore: Everybody gets a second chance.
Forrest: (voice-over) It's funny, but in the middle of all that
fun, I began to think about Jenny.
Dick Clark: (on television) ... getting wild out there. It's beginning
to...
INT. APARTMENT/L.A. - NIGHT
The New Year's Eve celebration over the T.V.
Dick Clark: (over television) ... pour here in Times Square. It's been
off-and-on all night, but these people hang in there.
Jenny fills her bag with her belongings.
Forrest: (voice-over) Wondering how she was spending her New Year's
night out in California.
A man lies passed out on the bed. Jenny looks at her black eye in a
mirror, then leaves the apartment. The TV shows the ball in Times Square.
Crowd: (over television) 9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...
INT. TIMES SQUARE BAR - NIGHT
The ball is lowered, lighting up a sign that reads "1972."
Crowd: (over television) ...1! Happy New Year!
The people in the bar cheer and kiss each other. They blow horns and toss
confetti into the air. Forrest looks around as Carla and Lenore lean over
and kiss him.
Patrons: (sing) "Should auld acquaintance be forgot and never
brought to mind...
Forrest: Happy New Year, Lieutenant Dan!
Patrons: (sing) Should auld acquaintance be forgot and days of auld
lang syne."
INT. LT. DAN'S HOTEL ROOM - LATER
Carla removes her top and sits on top of Dan in his wheelchair. They kiss
and play around. Forrest sits in a chair. Lenore leaps on him and begins
to kiss Forrest. She reaches down to Forrest's crotch. Forrest stands up
nervously, causing Lenore to fall down on the floor. Lenore stands up,
angry.
Lenore: What are you, stupid or something? What's your problem?
What's his problem? Did you lose your pecker in the war or
something?
Carla: What, is your friend stupid or something?
Lt. Dan: What did you say?
Carla: I said, is your friend stupid or something?
Lt. Dan: Hey! Don't call him stupid!
Lt. Dan throws Carla back onto the bed.
Carla: Don't push me like that!
Lenore: Hey, don't you push her!
Lt. Dan: You shut up! Don't you ever call him stupid!
Carla: What's the matter, baby? Why you treating me like shit?
Lt. Dan: Get the hell out of here!
Lenore: You stupid gimp. You belong in "Ripley's Believe It Or
Not."
Lt. Dan: Get the hell out of here! Go on!
Lenore: You should be in a side show!
Lt. Dan: Go on! Get out of here! Get out of here!
Lenore: You big loser!
Carla: Come on, Lenore. We don't need this shit!
Lenore: You're so pathetic.
Lt. Dan: Get out of here!
Lt. Dan falls out of his wheelchair and lands down on the floor.
Carla and Lenore laugh as they leave the apartment.
Carla: You retard!
Lenore: You loser! You freak!
Forrest tries to help Lt. Dan. Lt. Dan pushes Forrest away.
Lt. Dan: No!
Forrest steps back as Lt. Dan flips back over, then pulls himself back up
onto his wheelchair. He breathes heavily.
Forrest: I'm sorry I ruined your New Year's Eve party, Lieutenant
Dan. She tastes like cigarettes.
Forrest: (voice-over) I guess Lieutenant Dan figured there's some
things you just can't change. He didn't want to be called
crippled, just like I didn't want to be called stupid.
Lt. Dan: Happy New Year.
EXT. WHITE HOUSE - NIGHT
An ANCHORMAN reports in front of the White House.
Anchorman: The U.S. Ping-Pong Team met with President Nixon today at
an Oval Office ceremony...
Forrest: (voice-over) And wouldn't you know it...
PRESENT - BUS STOP
Forrest looks at the fat man on the bus bench.
Forrest: ... a few months later they invited me and the ping-pong
team to visit the White House. So I went again. And I met
the President of the United States again.
INT. WHITE HOUSE - DAY
A plaque, presented to Forrest, reads "Presented to Forrest Gump, member
of the United States table tennis team as player of the year for 1971.
President NIXON holds the plaque.
Forrest: (voice-over) Only this time they didn't get us rooms in a
real fancy hotel.
President: So are you enjoying yourself in our national capital,
Nixon young man?
Forrest: Yes, sir.
President: Well, where are you staying?
Nixon
Forrest: It's called the Hotel Ebbott.
President: Oh, no, no, no, no. I know of a much nicer hotel. It's
Nixon brand-new. Very modern. I'll have my people take care of
it for you.
INT. WATERGATE HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT
Forrest speaks on the phone.
Security: Security, Frank Wills.
Guard
Forrest steps over to a window. FLASHlights are moving around in an
office across from Forrest's room.
Forrest: Yeah, sir, you might want to send a maintenance man over
to that office across the way. The lights are off, and
they must be looking for the fuse box or something, 'cause
them FLASHlights they're, they're keeping me awake.
Security: Okay, sir. I'll check it out.
Guard
Forrest: Thank you.
Security: No problem.
Guard
Forrest: Good night
Security: Good night.
Guard
Forrest hangs up the phone. The camera tilts down, revealing the hotel
stationary, which reads "The Watergate Hotel."
INT. GYMNASIUM - DAY
President Nixon makes a resignation speech on TV.
President: (over television) Therefore, I shall resign the Presidency
Nixon effective at noon tomorrow.
The television cuts to a shot of President Nixon standing outside Air
Force One with his hands in the peace sign.
President: (over television) Vice President Ford will be sworn in as
Nixon President at that hour in this office. As I recall the
high hopes for America with which we began this second
term, I feel a GREat sadness that I will not be here in
this office...
Forrest is playing ping-pong by himself at the gymnasium. An officer
steps up to him.
Officer: Sergeant Gump!
Forrest: Yes, sir!
Officer: As you were. I have your discharge papers. Your service is
up, son.
The officer hands Forrest an envelope, then walks away.
Forrest: Does this mean I can't play ping-pong no more?
Officer: For the Army it does.
Forrest: (voice-over) And just like that, my service in the United
States Army was over. So I went home.
Forrest takes his paddle and runs out of the gymnasium.
EXT. GUMP HOUSE - DAY
Mrs. Gump walks out of the house and smiles. Forrest walks up to the
house, wearing his uniform.
Forrest: I'm home, Momma.
Mrs. Gump: I know, I know.
INT. GUMP HOUSE
Mrs. Gump and Forrest walk into the house.
Mrs. Gump: Louise, he's here. He's here, everybody.
Forrest: (voice-over) Now, when I got home, I had no idea that
Momma had had all sorts of visitors.
In the house are stacks of ping-pong paddles and life-sized cardboard
cutouts of Forrest playing ping-pong. The name on the ping-pong paddles
boxes reads: "Gump-Mao table tennis."
Mrs. Gump: We've had all sorts of visitors, Forrest. Everybody wants
you to use their ping-pong stuff. One man even left a
check for twenty-five thousand dollars if you'd be
aGREeable to saying you like using their paddle.
Forrest: Oh, Momma. I only like using my own paddle. Hi, Miss
Louise.
Louise: Hey, Forrest.
Mrs. Gump: I know that. I know that. But it's twenty-five thousand
dollars, Forrest. I thought maybe you could hold it for a
while, see if it grows on you. Oh, you look good, Forrest.
You look real good.
Forrest: (voice-over) That Momma, she sure was right. It's funny
how things work out.
