groundhog - Daily Script

1 groundhog DAYbyDanny Rubin .Second Revision byHarold RamisJanuary 7, 1992 FADE INHIBERNATING GROUNDHOGSA family of groundhogs is nestled together in their burrowsleeping off the end of a long CREDITS AND THEME MUSICDISSOLVE TO:EXT. A FOREST CLEARING - EARLY MORNINGThe crust of an old snowfall still covers the frozen ground,and the bare, icy branches of the trees glisten dully in theearly morning TO:INT. TV STUDIO - SAME TIMEPHIL CONNORS is standing in front of a blank green wallgesticulating animatedly at some invisible images on the wall,talking a mile a minute (MOS) . He looks completely crazy as hepoints at nothing and winks to an unseen TO:EXT. WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA - SAME TIMECREDITS CONTINUE as we streak across the winter landscape,flying over fields and farms, small towns and hamlets, railroadlines and interstates, coalyards and factories, until we crossthe Allegheny River and follow it to the TO:INT.

2 TV STUDIO - SAME TIMEPhil continues pointing out features on the blank wall , butfrom a new angle we can see that he ' s looking at a monitor outof the corner of his eye which shows the chromakey insert he'spointing to a national weather TO:EXT. NEAR PITTSBURGH - SAME TIMEThe country towns turn to suburbs, traffic on the roads getsheavier and finally we see the skyline of Pittsburgh and theconfluence of the Allegheny with the Monongahela and the zoom into a tall building in the downtown area andDISSOLVE TO:INT. PHIL CONNORS' OFFICE - MORNINGWe don't see anyone at first but the office itself speaksvolumes about it's inhabitant team pictures of the Steelersfrom the Franco Harris-Terry Bradshaw glory years, a framedmemorial portrait of Roberto Clemente, a local Emmy awardstatue, an erasable weather map and mountains of personal junkon the desk, ^windowsill, and every other available the CREDITS END, we notice a sleeping figure on the smallsofa, buried deep under a pile of coats and a stolen HAWLEY, Executive Producer of the Action News, sticks hishead in the , what a pit.

3 Phil"The sleeping figure rouses himself and looks out at 's Phil, the .Channel 9 Action News (sleepy)What?HAWLEYIt's February first, Phil. Youknow what tomorrow is?Phil sits up hard. He's in his mid-thirties, smart, rugged -looking, perhaps a little too full of himself, butclearly a guy with a lot of (catching on)Oh, no! Not jumps up and exits the office with Hawley right behind it! I'm not CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUSH awley pursues Phil through the office suite of the Channel 9 Action News, from the look of it a typical, big city, localnews operation. A logo on the wall identifies the station asWPGH - ducks into the STUDIO - CONTINUOUSH awley follows him in and catches up with him at the weathercorner of the Action News set. Phil starts putting weatherstats up on a away from me. I'm what's the outlook? We gonnaget that blizzard?Phil shakes his head and points to the chart which is headed"Phil's Phorecast" with a cute caricature of himself drawn nextto the way.

4 All that moisture comingup from the Gulf is going to missus completely and take a dump (with authority)Good, 'cause you're going up toPunxsutawney to cover thegroundhog story tomorrow morningand I want you back here in timeto do the , Gil, give me a break, willyou! I covered the goddamngroundhog last year and the yearbefore you'll do it :next year andthe year after, too. When Iworked in San Diego, I coveredthe swallows coming back toCapistrano for ten years in should've killed the guy whomade you do wanted to do you should've killedyourself. I don't want to getstuck with the groundhog for therest of my 's a cute story. He comes out,he looks around, he wrinkles uphis little nose, he sniffs arounda little, he sees his shadow, hedoesn't see his shadow it'snice. People like people are do '11 you give me?Hawley looks across the studio and sees RITA HANSON enter, avery attractive segment producer in her late (to Phil)I'll give you Rita.

5 (calls her over)Rita, could you come here for asecond? I got a little job is relatively new to the station, but very competent,personable, humorous, self-assured and very pretty in short,a genuine princess, though Phil is too self-absorbed at thispoint to realize (teasing)You can't send Rita out on astory like this. She's just acub, a pup, still wet behind theears. Look at her. Her ears aresopping wet. This needs aWoodward or a Bernstein. It's abig story. People need to (intrigued)What's the story?HAWLEYThe Punxsutawney , if it's all right with youI'd rather follow-up on thenurses' can do the nurses when youget back. Just take the squeakywheel here up to Punxsutawney andget him back in one piece. Okay?RITAYeah, exits leaving Phil and Rita alone in the studio. Sheknows Phil mainly by his reputation and it isn't good. Still,she finds him appealing in an odd (pleasantly)You know, this could be 've never done a weather storybefore.

6 What's Punxsutawneylike?PHILOh, it's an enchanted place. Amagical world. It's theConstantinople of the wholeWestern Appalachian-SusquehannaDrainage you always joke?PHILA bout 70 to 80% of the I'm actually a very shyand sensitive lot of people around here thinkyou're not very me the names of 'll line up a crew andtransportation. If you don'tfeel like driving, we can all goup in the van think I'll take my own 'm not that fond of my (exiting)Nice face.(calls after her)Why don't you ride up with me?RITANo, DECASTRO , an attractive, dark-eyed, dark-hairedcorrespondent, glares at Phil from across the PHIL'S OFFICE - LATERPhil is in his cluttered cubicle talking on a headset phonewhile he reviews cassettes of his groundhog spots from the pasttwo years on a small monitor. As he talks, he stuffs a numberof personal items in an overnight bag, all the time watchinghimself on the TV (on the phone)They don't really think of me asa weatherman around here.

7 Moreof a "personality," but with thecredibility of a first-classbroadcast journalist. Once youlook at my tape I think you'llsee what they enters and stands in the doorway looking at Phil fora long moment. There is something vaguely off-center aboutthis woman, not quite FATAL ATTRACTION but still a (bitterly)I just want to know one thing:did I do something wrong or areyou just tired of me or what? Ihave to (on the phone)Dan, can I call you back? I'vejust been handed something and Ibetter get on (he picks up somepapers and rustlesthem for effect)..Okay, takes off the headset, gets up and closes the door (kindly)You didn't do anything wrong,Stephanie, and I'm not tired ofyou. It's just that I don't havetime for a real relationshipright now. I told you that thefirst time we went (getting close)Everybody says that at thebeginning of a (gently pushing heraway)I'm different. I really meantit!

8 Things are really startingto move for me now. I'm notgoing to be doing the weather forthe rest of my life. I was justtalking to the CBS guy about anetwork job. I want that. Thisis just the beginning for me. Ican't waste any more you saying our relationshipwas a waste of time?PHILOur relationship? We went out atotal of four times! And onlytwice did anything happen. Itwas fun but I don't see that asa big (closing in again)I had our charts done. Myastrologer says we're extremelycompatible. There may even besome past lives involvement So we've already done ''ss mmoovvee NNeexxtt know what's wrong with you,Phil? You're selfish. You don'thave time for anyone 's what I'm trying to tellyou. You don't want to be withme. You can do better. Look,Stephanie, if I ever said or didanything to mislead you I'm sorryfor that, but right now I have todo this groundhog thing and Idon't have a handle on it throws some papers and his datebook into a briefcase andputs on his (CONT.)

9 I'll tell you what. I'm going todo some serious thinking whileI'm in Punxsutawney, okay?He pats her on the shoulder and brushes past her, leaving herstanding there with a malevolent look on her TO:EXT. A HIGHWAY - AFTERNOONA VAN marked ".Channel 9 Action News" speeds along a two-lanehighway through the winter landscape of West CentralPennsylvania. Mounted atop the van is a microwave is riding up front with LARRY, the union cameraman andtechie. Phil is following close behind the van in a new Lexuscoupe. His car has a bumper-sticker that reads "WeathermenLike it Wet."PHIL ( )(on his earphone)I'm on my way to (forced to repeat it,a little embarrassed)Punx^ or fun?I think that all depends on THE LEXUS - CONTINUOUSPhil is talking to one of his girlfriends, sorting through astack of CD's, as usual, grabbing at the good life with I thought maybe you couldmeet me up there tonight and letme vulgarize you for about I'm supposed to spendthe night in Punxsutawney allalone?

10 Loads a CD and a great, driving song kicks TO:A SIGN"Welcome to Punxsutawney - The Original Weather Capitol of theWorld Since 1887." Depicted on the sign is a large cartoonGROUNDHOG wearing a top hat and clutching an umbrella under mini-convoy passes some fast food places on the outskirtsof MAIN STREET - PUNXSUTAWNEY - LATERThe van drives along , the small-town main drag. There arecartoon groundhogs everywhere you look and the whole town hasbeen gaily festooned with banners and MOTEL - LATERThe van pulls into the parking lot at a Quality Inn. Theannouncement billboard in ;front of the motel reads: "GroundhogDay Breakfast Special - - All You Can Eat - $ " Theparking area is already crowded with cars including a number ofother news vans. The Lexus pulls in behind the van andeverybody gets takes one look at the motel and shakes his (calls out)Rita! I can't stay is already helping Larry unload equipment from the (muttering)Prima 's okay.