The Project Gutenberg EBook of Poker!, by Zora Hurston

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Title: Poker!

Author: Zora Hurston

Release Date: May 25, 2005 [EBook #15902]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK POKER! ***

Produced by Library of Congress, American Memory Project,
Charlene Taylor and the Online Distributed Proofreading
Team.

[Transcriber's Note: This play transcribed from an original manuscript.
There are pencilled notations possibly by Ms. Hurston herself. These
pencilled edits have been transcribed as *[Handwritten: (text)]]

Copyright 1931 by Zora *[Handwritten: Neale] Hurston

POKER!

Time--Present

Place--New York

Cast of characters--
Nunkie
Too-Sweet
Peckerwood
Black Baby
Sack Daddy
Tush Hawg
Aunt Dilsey

SCENE--

A shabby front room in a shotgun house.

A door covered by dingy portieres upstage C. Small panel
window in side Wall L. Plain centre table with chairs drawn up
about it. Gaudy calendars on wall. Battered piano against wall
R. Kerosene lamp with reflector against wall on either side of
room.

At rise of curtain NUNKIE is at piano playing.... Others at
table with small stacks of chips before each man. TUSH HAWG is
seated at table so that he faces audience. He is expertly
riffing the cards ... looks over his shoulder and speaks to
NUNKIE.

TUSH HAWG
Come on here, Nunkie--and take a hand! You're holding up the game. You
been woofin' round here about the poker you can play--now do it!

NUNKIE
Yeah, I plays poker. I plays the piano and Gawd knows I plays the devil.
I'm Uncle Bob with a wooden leg!*[Handwritten: Last sentence crossed out
in pencil in manuscript.]

BLACK BABY
Aw, you can be had! Come on and get in the game! My
britches is cryin' for your money! Come on, don't give
the healer no trouble!*[Handwritten: last sentence crossed out in pencil]

NUNKIE
Soon as I play the deck I'm comin' and take you alls money! Don' rush
me.

Ace means the first time that I met you
Duece means there was nobody there but us two
Trey means the third party--Charlie was his name
Four spot m