LITMIR.BIZ

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island in the world, is the very heart of the city. It includes everything that most people think of when they say New York: the financial district with Wall Street and the New York Stock Exchange, Fifth Avenue with all its shops and museums, the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, the United Nations Building, Broadway as well as Lincoln Center, the home of all the arts: the Metropolitan Opera House, the New York State Theater and the Avery Fisher Hall, known as Philharmonic Hall.

      Finding one’s way around New York City is very simple. The streets and avenues are numbered.

      When they’re giving directions, Americans often say “That’s three (or four, or five, etc.) blocks away.” A block is a group of buildings surrounded on all four sides by streets. It’s quite common to give a corner address by giving the point where a street and an avenue meet, for example 96th and Lexington.

      41 A Crime in the City

      (F = Frenchie, L = Lauren, W = Waitress, A = Attendant, N = Newscaster, Man)

	(At a lunch counter in a deli-restaurant in New York City)
F	Oh! So sorry.
L	Excuse me. Is this seat taken?
F	No. Of course it’s free – for you.
L	Gee, thanks. Thanks a lot. I haven’t seen you here before.
F	No, you haven’t. It’s my first time in New York.
L	Well, you can spend your whole life at this counter waiting to be served. But you gotta hand it to them.
	They have the best pastrami in town. Say! You’re British, aren’t you?
F	English, actually.
L	My name’s Schmidt. Lauren Schmidt.
F	ffrench. The Honourable Pilkington Booth ffrench. With two f’s.
L	The Honourable?
	Son of a lord? No kidding? You here on vacation?
F	I suppose it’s a sort of holiday.
	I’ll do a bit of sightseeing. Maybe a bit of work, too.
L	Oh! What sort of work?
F	Oh, business – you know –
L	Real estate? Stock market? Wall Street?
F	Anything to do with money, actually. I’ll take what comes along.
L	So what do you think of the Big Apple?
F	Big Apple?
L	New York. We call it the Big Apple.
F	Fine city. Romantic …
L	Romantic? Let me give you a piece of advice. For free! Take care where you go in this city. It’s a mighty rough place. There’s a lot of crime around.
F	What about your police? They can handle it, I’m sure.
L	Yes. But they’re very busy a lot of the time. Too busy to keep an eye on everybody.
F	Oh, I see. A useful piece of information. Thank you.
L	So take care where you go. Specially at night. Keep away from Central Park. And mind how you go on the subway.
F	Subway? Ah, yes. Not quite like the London Underground. Excuse me. I must be going. But I’d like to see you again.
L	Sure! What about here? Around noon, tomorrow.
F	Yes. Splendid! Well, cheerio!
L	Have a good day! And take care! (Frenchie leaves)
W	Hey, mister! Your check!
L	Don’t worry. He’ll be back tomorrow. Now, how about a pastrami on rye and a coke?
W	All right, lady. You got it.
	(Frenchie somewhere in New York City, knocking at a door)
F	Good afternoon. Joe sent me. From London.
	(the door is opened from inside)
F	Silent type, isn’t he?
Man	Guess so. You’re Frenchie, aren’t you?
F	At the moment I’m the Honourable Pilkington Booth ffrench, with two …
Man	Aw, you can cut that out with me. You’re Frenchie and you’re here for a piece of the action. Right?
F	Well, I certainly need a bit of cash.
Man	You got it. On my terms. I say what goes round here. OK?
F	OK.
Man	Right. It’s a hold-up. A liquor store. Uptown. Corner of 96th and Lexington.
F	All right. Sounds fine.
	(man gives him a gun)
Man	You’ll need a piece. Here!
F	Oh, no. I don’t like guns.
Man	I said a hold-up.
F	Oh, all right. I’ll take it.
Man	You have transportation?
	You have a car?
F	No. But I’ve got a map. Now, let’s see. I’ll take a cab to Grand Central Station. Then Underground – sorry, the subway. Take the subway to Times Square. That’s down the stairs and into the line 7. Change to line 1 for West 59th Street. Walk through Lincoln Center and across Central Park. That takes me out on Fifth Avenue. A bus uptown to 96th Street. Walk three blocks and I’m there.
Man	You crazy? That’s round the world.
F	I like to make sure I’m not being followed.
Man	Well, you sure will be followed if you wear those clothes …
F	Oh, I’ll change my jacket and my trousers. And I’ll put on this pair of spectacles. And …
Man	OK. Do anything you like, but get there just before closing. It’s the end of the week, so you should get about five grand. Bring it back here. We’ll split it fifty-fifty.
F	Two thousand five hundred dollars each, eh?
Man	Say! He’s quite smart after all.
F	I’ll be off, then. See you later.
Man	Make sure that you do. It wouldn’t be healthy otherwise.
	Get hold of Larry for me and tell him that if he doesn’t …
	(scene changes to liquor store)
F	That’s good. But don’t move for two minutes because you might get hurt if you do.
A	Please, mister. I didn’t do anything. I didn’t move.
F	No. But I nearly forgot the cash.
A	I didn’t move.
F	And I forgot my map. I’d be lost without it.
Lincoln Center, New York City
	(scene changes back to deli- restaurant)
N	… and the weather in New York City will be hot again, with a little light rain …
W	What can I get you?
F	I’m waiting for someone, actually. But I’ll have a cup of coffee.
N	And here is the local news. The police are looking for a man who held up a liquor store last night and took five thousand dollars at gunpoint. The police have issued the following description of the man, who is thought to be a well-known London criminal, Frenchie Boots, alias the Honourable Pilkington Booth. He is about six feet tall, a hundred and eighty pounds, with fair hair …
	(F is making for the door when he comes up against Lauren)
F	Ah, hello. I’m afraid I’ve got to leave. I’m in a bit of a hurry.
L	Lauren Schmidt, lieutenant, 31st Precinct. Sorry, Frenchie. I’m taking you in for armed robbery.
	I’d like to see the contents of that bag, officer.
F	I think there’s been some kind of mistake.
L	It was your mistake, Frenchie.
	I gave you a piece of advice, remember? Take care where you go at night.

       41 B Questions

      Who is Lauren?

      What sort of crime did Frenchie commit?

      What did he hold up?

      What do the police know about Frenchie?

      How much money did Frenchie take?

      What description did the newscaster give of Frenchie?

       41 C And you?

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