Eric congratulates the audience on making it to the final part of The Spoils Before Dying. He admits that the movie was controversial in its day, and other writers of the time lacked his raw courage. For speaking his mind, Eric was exiled from the U.S. and went broke financing his own films. Now he can’t shoot a commercial for cat food, but if he did he would turn it into an illumination of the human soul.
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Rock drives through the night to recover the mysterious sculpture. He goes to Stymagian’s home and finds Salizar waiting for him. Salizar is dying from Caligarious’ drug mixture, and explains that the case was important to his company. It was made for his grandmother by the F.M. Woolworth Company , and she asked him to guard it with his life. Salizar lost it to Stymagian in a poker game, and Salizar pursued it because he lived for the lie. The Mexican dies, and Rock takes the sculpture and leaves him there because there’s nothing he can do for him.
Next, Rock drives to his cabin to meet Alistair and Delores. As Rock reads The Spoils Over the Border, the others arrive and Rock offers them biscuits and brandy, brandy not included. Delores has the sax case and Rock explains that the case has a hidden compartment. Bepop got hold of the case and tried to sell it, hoping he’d cash in. There’s an envelope in the compartment, and inside are a set of negatives of famous Americans and secret homosexuals. They were taken in Stymagian’s secret room, and Rock figures that they were blackmailing Stymagian and his friends. Stymagian had something on his blackmailers, more dangerous than pictures, and Rock figures that it’s in the sculpture.
Rock opens the sculpture and finds the cigarette case inside. Inside is a Nazi notebook and Delores is unable to translate it because she doesn’t speak German. Alistair determines that it’s a list of Nazi collaborators, including J. Edgar Hoover.
Agents Day and Nestly park outside and call over the megaphone for the book. Rock figures that if they hand over the book then they’re dead. The agents open fire and Alistair tells Rock that he booked him for a string section. The agent insists that it won’t ruin Rock’s career, but Rock insists that it’s selling out. He says that a dedicated artist answers to himself, He’s seen men that are afraid to reveal the truth about themselves, so now Rock is going to strike back against the secrets Nazi calibrations because the truth is the highest vibration, and jazz musicians are dedicated to the truth.
Alistair and Rock return fire and wound Day and Nestly. Rock tells them to have their boss Hoover meet him at Kelton’s beach house if he wants the book. The agents drive off and Delores suggests that they run away together. Rock refuses, figuring that he has his enemies on the run for the first time. He tells Delores and Alistair to take the back roads out and he’ll catch up to them later, and then they’ll have all the time in the world.
Rock drives to the beach house, figuring that Hoover tries to pressure the homosexuals into giving up the book, but Stymagian pushed back by threatening to blackmail he FBI director with the book. Hoover explains that he traded the photos for the book, and freely admits that he worked with Hitler because they both understood using fear and repression to control people. After the war, Hoover cleaned up Washington by kicking homosexuals out. He was going to go after Hollywood next until Stymagian blackmailed him. Rock refuses to hand over the book, and Hoover draws a gun on him. The jazz musician runs for it and Hoover fails to hit him. However, Chip and Steve arrive and kill him. They tell Hoover that he can’t be seen there, and assure the director that Rock is dead. Police sirens go off in the distance, and the detectives promise that they’ll get him the book.
As Rock lies dying, Dizzy reminds him that it’s about vibrations, vibrations, and vibrations.
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Rock wakes up in the morgue and Alistair and Gary tell him that it worked. Chip and Steve are there and assures Rock that Hoover bought it. Now Rock is officially dead and nobody will come after him. The detectives knew that Hoover was behind the murders, but no one would let them work the case. Kermit admits that they’re no heroes and can’t take on heroes. He considered letting Rock take the fall, but Chip explained. Chip says that no man should live in fear, and Kermit insists that Chip is a real ma’s man. His partner refuses to confirm or deny, and Rock gives them the Nazi book. Before he goes, Rock says goodbye to Fresno. He tells her that the world killed her, because the world always kills the artist, and kisses her goodbye. Kermit asks if he can give up Jazz, and Rock asks why he thinks he has. Dizzy appears and tells Rock to go get ‘em.
Later, Delores is singing at the Jaz-Tec when Rock comes in and they smile at each other. A lot.
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Eric sits and stares at the camera. A lot.
Written by Gadfly on Dec 20, 2015