Based on a True Story, Part One Arthur

# Every day when you're walkin' down the street

# Everybody that you meet

# Has an original point of view

# And I say, hey! Hey!

# What a wonderful kind of day If we can learn to work and play

# And get along with each other

# You got to listen to your heart Listen to the beat

# Listen to the rhythm The rhythm of the street

# Open up your eyes! Open up your ears!

# Get together and make things better by working together

# It's a simple message And it comes from the heart

# Oh, believe in yourself For that's the place to start

# And I say, hey! Hey! What a wonderful kind of day

# Where we can learn to work and play and get along with each other

# What a wonderful kind of day, hey! What a wonderful kind of day, HEY! #

Hey, DW!

-Hey!

-Whoa!

CRASH

Hi. Today, I want to introduce you to a new friend of mine. Her name is...

Hey! Ladonna Compson here. Nice to meet you.

Today's show has everything in it - adventures, jokes, alligators,

-dinosaurs, tigers...

-Wait a minute, there are no tigers in this show.

-Oh, yeah? What do you call this? Rarr!

-A hand puppet?

Well, OK, you've got me there.

But there is the world's smartest,

most handsome white rat named General Higgins. See?

Come to think of it, there aren't any dinosaurs in this story either.

Are so. Want to pinky bet?

-Winner gets to wrap up the show.

-You're on!

-See you at the end of the show.

-Don't count on it.

CRUNCH

Ow! How did you get such strong pinkies?

Coming! Bye, Oaksey. You're the best tree in the whole yard.

Sorry, I carved a nail into ya!

Goodbye, rusty rake. Goodbye, mossy rock.

Goodbye, tree that looks like a scarecrow.

Goodbye, gopher hole.

I get to sit by the window and so does Rapty,

and you have to help me practise my harmonica, cos Daddy said so.

Hello, 16-hour drive.

They live right down the block and we want them to like us,

so you'd better let me do the talking.

Hi, I'm DW, your four houses down the block neighbour.

Pleased to meet you.

-Do you have a little sister?

-I'm Ladonna. Nice to meet you, too.

No younger sisters, but there's Bud, he's about your age.

Bud, get down here, we've got company.

-Hi, I'm Arthur. Welcome to the neighbourhood.

-Thanks. Is it a cake?

I love cake. My favourite cake is King cake.

It's got cinnamon and icing and a little baby inside.

Not a real one, of course, a plastic one.

Once, my brother, Gussie, bit into a slice and chipped a molar on it!

Cross my heart. But I've never seen King cake outside Louisiana.

It's a pie. Rhubarb, I think. My dad made it.

LADONNA SNIFFS

Smells amazing.

Hey, Mom! Someone named Arthur and DW just brought us a rhubarb pie.

What's rhubarb, anyway? A root? A berry? A tuber?

I'm sure I'll like it, whatever it is.

My daddy says I'm a garbage disposal with legs. I eat everything.

Except beets, I can't stand beets. If I even look at a beet,

my stomach starts jumping like a toad on a pogo stick.

Want to come in and have some sweet tea? Madison, make some sweet tea!

Well, are you going to come in? Or we could go outside.

I love exploring in the woods.

Are there any woods to explore around here?

Huh? Oh, yeah, plenty of them.

But we were on our way to my grandma's. Maybe later?

Oh, OK. Sure.

Well, don't be a stranger, four houses down neighbours.

Thanks for the pie.

LADONNA YELPS

You talked too much and scared 'em away, didn't you?

What? No, I didn't.

Did so. I was spying right over there

and your mouth didn't stop moving once.

You shouldn't spy. It's against the law.

Well, it was Rapty's idea, so it's only half my fault. Bad dinosaur.

-You're going to jail.

-Anyway, they seem nice.

I hope they did like me. We're going to need some new friends here.

Don't worry about me. Everyone likes me,

because I'm cute, funny and can make good animal noises.

But you might want to try and be just a little less Ladonna-ish.

Just until they get used to ya.

SHE SIGHS

I'd like you to meet your new classmate - Ladonna Compson.

CLASS CHATTERS

Hey! Over here. I saved you a seat.

BELL RINGS

-You have a really cool accent. Where are you from?

-Louisiana.

-Ladonna, is that short for something?

-Nope.

Do you play basketball?

We could really use someone your height on our team.

-I'm not very good.

-Do you like Dark Bunny?

-I haven't met him yet.

-Is he in our class?

-He's a superhero on TV.

-Oh, we don't have a TV.

BUSTER SPLUTTERS

Well, we did have one once.

-But we gave it away to the alligator sanctuary.

-Alligator sanctuary?

Yeah, it's where they rescue alligators

and other lizards that have been abandoned.

My brother was working there and there was this 'gator named Penny

and she was kind of grumpy and no-one could figure out why.

But TV really calmed her down, so my daddy...

This is really boring, isn't it?

ALL: No, go on.

Well, they put the TV right outside Penny's enclosure.

Turned out that she really liked this one soap opera.

-I have something to confess to you. I'm not Sheldon.

-You're not?

I am Shelby, Sheldon's twin. I should have told you sooner, Karen.

I'm not Karen. I'm Kara.

PENNY ROARS

Karen's my undercover name.

Then Penny had all these alligator babies

and they really like the soap, too.

Though my younger brother, Bud, was upset

because we didn't have a TV and everyone else did.

So, he made my daddy take it back.

But then Madison was home sick one day and there was nothing to watch.

So she started watching that soap

and she had it on really loud because her ears were stuffy

and when it was over, she discovered that she wasn't alone.

MADISON SHRIEKS

After that, we gave the TV to the alligator sanctuary for good.

You had a carnivorous reptile in your house?

Brain, it was an alligator. Haven't you been listening?

Did you keep him?

You know, alligator oil is a fabulous moisturiser.

I believe history follows lunch. Not story time.

I have an older sister, too. Do you guys have to share a room?

After school, you and me, the mall, big sale on glitter headbands.

Don't tell anyone,

but I have a coupon for Greggerson's all-you-can-eat buffet.

We can have thirds, fourths, they can't stop us!

But the largest crab I ever caught was as big as a pizza.

Cross my heart.

And he had a hook instead of a hand, but he could do anything with it,

even thread a needle.

BUSTER LAUGHS

BUSTER SHUDDERS

And my momma played in that band until she was 25, but got so broke,

she had to sell her trumpet. But then the soldier bought it back.

And that was my daddy - Captain Rufus Tucker Compson.

-Woo-hoo!

-Ha-ha-ha!

Rarr!

-What was that?

-A whale.

-Really?

It sounded like our car just before it died. Listen to this.

DW CROWS LIKE A ROOSTER

-That's the best rooster I've ever heard.

-Thanks! Keep practising.

See ya!

She didn't like my whale. She didn't like my pig sound, either.

Said it was too oinkey. Not like a real pig.

These things take time, Bud. We've only been here a week,

-you can't expect to have friends overnight.

-Why not?

You've got friends already. You're not paying them, are you?

Of course not. They like me because I tell great stories.

-Well, what happens when you run out of stories?

-He-he-he! Me?

Run out of stories?

Please, the Atlantic Ocean will dry up before that ever happens.

But Gussie's face was so red and swollen,

he decided to wear a mask to school.

-That's how he became known as...

-The Phantom of the Poison Ivy.

-How did you know that?

-You already told us that story.

Well, how about this one?

Once I heard this mysterious sound coming from somewhere in our walls.

First, I thought it was a ghost...

But it turned out a barn owl had made a nest in your chimney.

You told us that one twice. But I love it.

Especially when the owl lays an egg in Madison's hat.

-Ha-ha! Hey, did you see Dark Bunny last night?

-Oh! Wasn't it amazing?

I was so surprised by that ending.

And who knew Bionic Bunny's real name is Sue?!

And then when that guy turned out to be a mutant. Hey!

Where are you going? There's still five minutes of recess left.

Huh? Oh, I just have to get my mittens. Yeah, they're in my locker.

-Hey, Ladonna. Got any stories for us today?

-Erm, no.

Actually, it's a little crowded here. Why don't you sit over there?

BUSTER LAUGHS

-Did I ever tell you about the time we had a bear as a pet?

-What?

-No.

You have to tell us.

Once my daddy and I were alone

on this camping trip around Mount Driskill in Louisiana

and we came across this ginormous grizzly bear

who was roaring his lungs out like this - roooar!

-And we thought we were goners for sure. But then...

-Wait!

There are no grizzly bears in Louisiana.

The Ursus Arctos Horribilis, or grizzly bear, lives out west

in places like the Rockies and British Columbia.

Well... I... I... I guess this one just got lost.

Anyway, Madison fed him some, erm, some pizza and...

-I thought you said it was just you and your dad on the trip?

-I did?

-No, no, she was there too.

-Is this story true?

Maybe I fibbed in a few parts,

-just to make it a little bit more exciting.

-Which parts?

-Well, the part about the bear for one.

-What about your other stories?

-Were they lies, too?

-No, they weren't. Cross my heart.

-I don't believe you.

-I bet you don't even have mittens.

Arthur, I just lied this one time. You believe me, don't you?

I don't know what to think any more.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd