OH, NO, YOU PULL IT
Two siblings, whose mother is on life support, debate who should pull the plug.
Think you know your kids? You might have to reconsider that warm and fuzzy thought after you read writer Daniel Broderick’s deadpan and irreverent take on what actually happens when those same wonderful kids are faced with pulling the plug on your life support.
With their saintly mother at death’s door, Natalie and Mark do their best to convince one another that they should be the one to make the call. The conversation is all about their issues, and they have no concern about poor mom. Their biggest worry is that she’ll never forgive “who” made the ultimate decision once she’s… wherever she’s gonna end up. It’s one of those “up or down” journeys.
Having decided that flipping a coin would work, and no coin in sight, Mark complains that they need to get on with it as he has to get back to work. His work just happens to be selling cemetery time shares.
NATALIE
Selling time shares to a cemetery?
MARK
They’re not time shares. They are joint plots.
NATALIE
Right.
(Mocks Mark’s voice)
Yes ma’am, I’m sure your dearly departed
will enjoy sharing this hole with Verne.
They were both in Rotary Club, right?
MARK
That’s not how it works.
But, anyway, Mom said no.
She wanted to be buried near,
but not with, grandma or grandpa.
NATALIE
Thank God.
I don’t wanna have to
take an elevator if I visit her.
Mark finally convinces Natalie that she should be the one to make the call, and he exits the room while the deed is done. When He returns, ready to size Mom up for her Plot-share space, he’s in for another hilarious twist that ends up putting Mark in his place.
“Oh, No, You Pull It” is a comedic look at how people react under stressful situations. And as we all know, it’s never what we expect. The final grave-robbing twist at the end will make you laugh out loud, but also make you wonder if you wouldn’t do exactly the same thing. With a cast of 2 living and one dead actor, a hospital room and snappy banter, this short gets all five Amens on the Hallelujah scale of dark humor.
Clark is a produced and optioned screenwriter with a focus on Sci-Fi, Dark Dramedy, and True Stories. Clark has successfully collaborated with Producers and other screenwriters on several projects. Most of his projects are grounded in themes of "the haves and the have-nots", classicism, and coming-of-age characters. Clark is open to writing assignments for features, shorts, and pilots.
Representative Achievements include:
California native. Born in Los Angeles after my parents moved there from Chicago, where my father wrote for television after WWII and college. Have lived in San Fernando Valley, Orange County, Palo Alto, Florence (Italy), Washington, D.C., New Haven (Connecticut), West Los Angeles, Germany, and Sacramento. Currently live in Pasadena, California. Stanford undergrad. Played basketball until hurt my sophomore year, Yale Law School.
Non-lawyer jobs include assembling board games,...Read more