Burt Lancaster: Ned Buntline
Photos
Quotes
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[explaining why Sitting Bull should be in Buffalo Bill's show]
Ned Buntline : A rock ain't a rock once it becomes gravel.
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Ned Buntline : Injuns gear their lives to dreams. And what an Injun dreams, no matter how farfetched, will wait until he dies to come true. The white men - they're different. The only time they dream is when things are going their way. I'm no expert on the subject, but it seems to me that what Sitting Bull does is a hell of a lot cheaper than mounting a Wild West Show - which is dreaming out loud.
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Ned Buntline : Bill, any youngster like yourself who figures to set the world on fire best not forget where he got the matches.
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Nate Salisbury : I'm the only partner Bill Cody ever had who tells him the truth. And in the end, we always agree.
Ned Buntline : I was taught that when two partners always agree, one of them ain't necessary.
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Crutch : Come here, Mr. Buntline! Come over here and look at Sitting Bull! The son-of-a-bitch must be seven feet tall!
Ned Buntline : He's getting smaller every year.
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Ned Buntline : I bring up this dream business because, well, because things are beginning to take on an unreal shape. Now I was thinking about Sitting Bull. Just put yourself in that Injun's place. You sit in your tepee and dream. And then yu go to wherever the dream may take you... it might come true. And you wait for real life to catch up.
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Ned Buntline : Nate and Bill are in the big time now. They can afford to spend fifty bucks a week. Now, tell me, what Injun villain do you know who's worth that amount? Sitting Bull.
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Ned Buntline : So, one morning, I'm wandering through the camp, and I spot this - this scrawny-lookin' kid, lyin' underneath the wagon. I drag him out, I take one look at him, and I know I can make him a star. I ask him, "What's your name?" He says, "Cody, Bill Cody." I say, "What do you do?" He says, "I'm a scout and a buffalo hunter." Well, I'm really gonna write about somebody, because I got a batch of exciting new plots I might take to Hickok, except I'm mad at him. So I say to the kid, "From now on, your name is Buffalo Bill, and in six months, the whole damn country's gonna know about you."
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Ned Buntline : Times are bad and gettin' worse. That's when the show business flourishes, when times are bad.
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Ned Buntline : Yes, he was truly born to entertain. No ordinary man woulda had the foresight to take credit for acts of bravery and heroism that he couldn'ta done. And no ordinary man could realize what tremendous profits could be made by tellin' a pack of lies, in front of witnesses, like it was the truth. No, Bill Cody could only trust his senses. And when his senses fail him, he might just see things as they really are.
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Ned Buntline : You ain't changed, Bill.
William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody : I ain't supposed to. That's why people pay to see me.
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Ned Buntline : Ah, the Shakespeare of the half-dime. Sit down.
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Ned Buntline : What a fine citizen you're makin' out of Bill. Why, it don't even seem like the same man anymore. Never gets into trouble. Never looks bad in public.
Nate Salisbury : All I care about is the Wild West. I'm going to Codyfy the world.
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Ned Buntline : Well, I'll be Goddamned if it ain't Nervous Nate.
Nate Salisbury : Buntline, you're not doing anybody a favor by being here.
Ned Buntline : I ain't in the favor business, Nate.
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Ned Buntline : When Bill's dressed for a ride, and mounted on that high-steppin' stallion of his, any doubts concerning his legends are soon forgotten. Yes, Bill's fine physical portrait hides whatever faults his mind might possess. But even the least seasoned of trappers will tell you: "If you don't know what it is you're truly after, you're better off staying at home."
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Ned Buntline : Well, I'll be damned! Buffalo Bill himself.
William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody : Hi, Ned.
Ned Buntline : Buy an old friend a drink, Bill?
William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody : Another glass.
Ned Buntline : I was beginnin' to think you didn't exist. But here you are in the glorious flesh and what a sight for sore eyes! Oh, you sure passed me by. Like plantin' a seed and watchin' it grow into a tree, too tall to climb. You got everything you ever wanted, my friend. You even got the President of the United States sleepin' in your bed, right now.
William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody : Let's forget all that stuff, Ned, and get drunk.
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Ned Buntline : Crutch? What do I owe you for my stay?
Crutch : Nothin', Mr. Buntline. You don't owe me nothin'.
Ned Buntline : Thanks, Crutch. 'Cause that's what I got. Nothin.
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William F. 'Buffalo Bill' Cody : I'll see you around.
Ned Buntline : See you in hell, Bill!
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Ned Buntline : I'm off to California to preach against the vultures of Prometheus.
