get in the car

        This one scene in the movie Coal Miner's Daughter kept playing over and over in my mind.

An actress named Beverly D'Angelo plays the part of real-life country singer Patsy Cline.  Early in Loretta Lynn's singing career, she met Patsy Cline and they became friends.

        Miss D'Angelo is a formidable screen presence - in one scene where she and Sissy Spacek (as Loretta) are having a quiet heart-to-heart girls' talk,  Beverly walks around wearing slacks, kitten heels, and a boxy top and somehow looks sexier than if she wore the most stupendous, low-cut evening gown you could find.

It's funny.

        The main scene I was thinking of is when Loretta Lynn and her husband Doolittle, and Patsy Cline and her husband Charlie, are out together and "Doo" is drunk and combative and telling Loretta she mustn't wear make-up because he doesn't like it.

He has told her that, before - "You know I don't like it"....

        Earlier in the movie when he says, "Forget the lipstick, I like you better natural" she goes along with that, partly because she respects his opinion, and partly because they're running out of time to take her photograph to go with her first record.

But now, later on, in Nashville, after some country-music chart success and associating with Patsy Cline, Loretta wants to "try" a little make-up.

        Doolittle likes her to have her singing success, which was his idea in the first place, but then the confidence and independence she gets from it is making him a little resentful.  Like he's losing some of his influence and - well - control. ...

Plus, he's drunk and unreasonable.

So they're out, and a nice time is turning into something else as Doolittle demands Loretta not use make-up and she says decisively, "I'll wear make-up if I want to!"

He says, "You'll do exactly what I tell you!"

Loretta:  "I'll do just what I want!"

(He slaps her and says) - "Don't you talk to me like that!"

Loretta:  "Don't you hit me!"

        And she round-houses him with her purse and either sprains or breaks his wrist.

Patsy Cline intervenes, grabs Loretta, says, "Hey, hey, get in the car!"  [Doolittle is scrambling to grab his wife and Loretta, purse in hand, kind of wants to take another swing at him - Charlie is hoping Doo will calm down and everything will be ok...]

Patsy:  "Charlie, get in the car and drive!

             Loretta, get in the car!

             Charlie, get - get in that car and drive!"

Domestic violence is never funny.

And yet - we can't, with this scene.

                "Get in that car and drahv!!"        LOL

-30-