Daily Dialogue — February 17, 2018

At the urging of her workmates, Mary checks her answering machine messages.

Answering Machine (V.O.): You have two new messages.
Jude (V.O.): (singing) Oh, Mary. Mary, Mary, my Mary.

Mary and her friends all smile. Joshua, one of the co-workers, pipes up.

Joshua: I just got hard.
Jude (V.O.): Hey, Mary, this is Jude. I’m just calling to tell you again how special it was to meet you, so call me back. Bye-bye.

The sound of Jude hanging up and a dial tone on the answering machine.

Bruce: A-mazing.

The answering beeps for a second message.

Jude (V.O.): (singing) Oh, Jen. Jenny, Jenny, Jenny.

Mary and her friends’ expressions change from joy to consternation.

Jude (V.O.): Hey, Jenny, it’s Jude. I was just calling… oh, shit. What number did I just dial?

— He’s Just Not That Into You (2009), screenplay by Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein, book by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo

This week’s Daily Dialogue theme: Voice Mail.

Trivia: Greg Behrendt: Co-author of the novel, played the wedding minister.

Dialogue On Dialogue: Voice mail is a great dramatic device precisely because characters can screw up and create havoc and misunderstandings.