BENJAMIN FRANKLIN

screenplay by

Robert Christie

co-written by Matt & Jen

OPENING MONTAGE/ NARRATION

NARRATOR

Benjamin Franklin, otherwise known as B franks. Was known as

many things, a scientist, inventor, diplomat, printer,
philosopher, congressman, and so called “pimp“

He was born January 17th, 1706 in Boston Massachusetts to father,

Josiah and mother Abiah. 16 siblings 7 were half siblings with a
different mother, Elizabeth, Samuel, Hannah, Josiah, Anne, Joseph
I, and Joseph II. 9 were biological siblings: John, Peter,
Mary, James, Sarah, Ebenezer, Thomas, Lydia, and Jane.
We spoke to James.

Interview with his brother, James Franklin

Interviewer:
So tell me James, how are you related to Ben?

James:
hmm, Ben, yes he is one of my younger brothers, you see there is
so many of them I sometimes forget some, but Ben and I have
worked together, I could never forget him.

Interviewer:
How many siblings do you have?

James:
Oh golly, I guess there were about 17 of us kids running around,
John, Peter, Mary, James, Sarah, Ebenezer, Thomas, Lydia and
Jane. Then there were the ones from my other mother Elizabeth,
Samuel, Hannah, Josiah, Anne, Joseph I and Joseph II. They ran
out of names at the end.

Interviewer:
Woah, that’s a whole lot of kids

James:
Yes ma’am

Interviewer:
Where did you all live?

James:
 Boston area, Massachusetts. Ben spent a lot of time in
Philadelphia

Interviewer:
can you tell me a little about Ben?

James:
Sure, we’ll start at the beginning, first off he was born January
17th 1706

Interviewer:
so that would make him.. 304?

James:
yes...that sounds right 304

Interviewer:
what else can you tell me?

James:
He was pretty smart even though he only went to school for about
a year. He taught himself mostly. He played a lot of chess, and
read a lot, yes always reading. I suppose that’s where he learned
everything. He even stopped eating meat to save money, to buy
more books

Interviewer:
sounds like he was a nerd

James:
Indeed, but when he was 10 he helped me in my printing shop and
became my apprentice. He learned the printing trade, and got
quite good. Wrote some articles, under a pen name of course. And
even opened up his own printing shop eventually.

Interviewer:
He was successful as a printer?

James:
oh yes, very. He published the Poor Richards Almanac VERY
popular. Everybody read it. He was good at pretty much everything
he did, and he did so much, printer, scientist, inventor, and all
his lady friends...I don’t know how he fit everything in!

NARRATOR
Ben worked as an apprentice in his Brother James’ printing shop.
James taught Ben the printing trade.
SCENE:
Ben is sitting in a dimly lit room writing documents and
organizing papers. It is a sign of his hard work and works as a
printer and author. He is writing Poor Richard's Almanac.

NARRATOR
Deborah Read Rogers, was Ben’s first wife, he was her 2nd husband.
Her first was John Rogers. Rogers fled without divorcing Deborah,
so he and Franklin had a common law marriage. They were former
sweethearts, and after Rogers found out her husband died, she
began dating Franklin again.

Interview with his wife Deborah Read Rogers:

Interviewer:
Hello Deborah

Deborah:
Hello

Interviewer:
How did you meet Ben?

Deborah:
We were dating until I met my firs husband, after he fled I
began dating Ben again. Since my first husband fled without
divorcing me, Ben and I had a common law marriage.

Interviewer:
Did you have Children?

Deborah:
Yes, we did. We had Franky who unfortunately died when he was
just 4 from smallpox. Sally, and Ben had a son from another woman
but I raised him, his name was William, he later became governor
of New Jersey

Interviewer:
oh, I see. Ben was away , over seas in England a lot, wasn’t he?

Deborah:
yes, he was.

Interviewer:
how did you feel about that? Did you ever want to join him?

Deborah:
Ben asked me to come with him, or at least visit. But I was very
afraid of traveling overseas, so I never went. Ever. So I was
very often alone. Even though I heard he was messing around with
other women, I remained faithful, but never went to see him.

NARRATOR
Deborah Read Rogers had a series of strokes, she sent Ben a
letter telling him the strokes were caused by stress, he still
didn’t come home to her. She lost memory and her speech became
slurred due to the strokes, finally a stoke killed her, while Ben
was in England as a representative for the people of Pennsylvania
as their colonial agent.

Ben represented Pennsylvania in its’ fight with the descendants

of the Penn family over who should represent the colony. His
testimony in Parliament helped to repeal the Stamp Act.

RE-ENACTMENT (Ben testifies against stamp act in Parliament)

Parliament:
The Stamp act is great, were gonna make a lot of money!

Ben:
NO you’re not. Nobody is going to pay for little paper stamps to
put on all paper documents, its stupid. Colonists are going to
boycott it and you wont make very much at all.

Parliament:
But Ben, we need money, and taxing the colonists is so easy, its
like taking money from a baby!

Ben:
Of course it is, they don’t have a representative here in
parliament to say anything about it!

Parliament:
that’s what makes it so easy!

Ben:
But, its not fair!

Parliament:
so?

Ben:
NO TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION

Parliament:
huh?
 Ben:
that means nobody should have to pay taxes, without a
representative in Parliament

Parliament:
yeah.. i guess that does seem fair

Ben:
mhmm.

Parliament:
and we aren’t making a lot of money.. maybe he’s right

Ben:
I am!

Parliament:
okay, I call to a vote to repeal the stamp act

Ben:
Yay!

Parliament:
Okay, the stamp act is officially repealed.

INTERVIEW WITH BEN

Interviewee-
Its nice to have you here Ben

Ben-
it’s nice to be here.

Interviewee-
well aren’t you a nice man

Ben-
I got that a lot as a young boy

Interviewee-
What acts of goodness did you have for the new nation

Ben-
well I had the idea of combing all of the states and calling it
one nation. I used the diagram of a snake to do this and I showed
that when the snake is one whole piece we are an amazing nation.
 Interviewee-
wow that some powerful stuff right there
Ben- yes it is

SCENE:
Actor 1-
hello Ben
Ben-
hello
Actor 1-
are you ready for this nation to become one nation
Ben-
yes I am!!!
INTERVIEW:
Interviewee-
Ben so what was your gain from the new nation

Ben-
well I was thinking about how the nation would be able to come
together and be able to fight wars better. I was also thinking at
how the nation would be able to expand more. And now that were
not controlled by Britain we can start to move west because
Britain was tying us down.

Interviewee-
thank you my kind sir.

NARRATOR
Franklin is considered one of the most influential and prominent
founding fathers.
He is regarded as an American hero. His many duties in state and
federal governments left a big mark on America and its History.
He was a businessman, writer, publisher, scientist, diplomat,
legislator, and social activist and inventor.

RE-ENACTMENT (American Philosophical Society)

Guys talking on the street:

you going to the American Philosophical Society meeting tonight?

Other Guy:
of course! I can’t wait to discuss my new theory with everybody!

Ben Franklin:
What’s the American Philosophical Society?
 Other Guy:
It’s where scientific men go to talk about their theories with
other men.

Ben Franklin:
That sounds fascinating! Can I go

Other Guy:
Sure you can come with us tonight!

NARRATOR
This began his electricity research. With Ben Franklin’s business
associate David Hall he made a very good profit off the shop for
18 years, Since he was making money he had plenty of extra time
to study. He took advantage of this time as always. He studied
and read constantly because of this he discovered many things,
and became well known in Europe.

SCENE:
Montage of Ben preforming science experiments, lightning and
kite, as well as images of some of his inventions.

NARRATOR
He Was one of the earliest & strongest advocates for the
abolition of slavery. Franklin wrote several essays on the topic
of letting slaves back into society. In An address to the public
in 1789,Franklin talked about human power and how slaves have
been treated as animals not as humans.

NARRATOR
Ben was the oldest member of congress and worked on a committee
of five that helped to write the Declaration of Independence.
SCENE: SIGNING THE DECLARATION
Although the physical writing was mostly Thomas Jefferson, Ben
Franklin was the one who came up with most of the ideas
In 1776 Franklin signed the document.
INTERVIEWER:
What can you tell us about Ben franklin?
RANDOM PERSON:
Who?
(next person)
 INTERVIEWER:
What can you tell us about Ben franklin?
EXPERT:
Well Ben was a controversial and eccentric character. He was
often perceived as an extremist and threat to/by Great Britain.
He was considered by other founding fathers to be lazy.
INTERVIEWER:
What makes you say this?
EXPERT:
Well for one he was a skirt chaser.
INTERVIEWER:
...and what would that be?
EXPERT:
well he was quite the ladies man. He had several women in his
life.
INTERVIEWER:
so in a way, Franklin was a pimp?
EXPERT:
well I wouldn't call it that, but yes he did have his way with
women, he was known to have many ongoing affairs.
SCENE:
Franklin is flirting intensely with a girl when his wife comes
out and smacks him with a newspaper.

INTERVIEWER:
As much praise that surrounds Franklin, there is also great
slander.
Benjamin Franklin is suspected to have been part of a club linked
to the occult while he lived in England. The club was called the
Hellfire club and members would participate in sacrifices,
orgies, and other satanic rituals. In 1998 ten bodies were found
buried under Ben Franklin’s house. This lead to the conspiracy
that Ben might have been a serial killer or was just using the
bodies for dissections. Using bodies to study anatomy was illegal
in England at the time.
BEN
What can I say?.....
NARRATOR
Though Franklin has his skeletons, controversies, and failures,
he is revered as one of the most influential and prominent men in
history.
He was Clerk of the Pennsylvania Assembly, Postmaster of
Philadelphia, Member of Pennsylvania Assembly, Deputy Postmaster
general of the British colonies in America, Founded Academy of
Sciences of Philadelphia, Agent to Europe for Pennsylvania,
Georgia, New Jersey, MassachusettsElected to Continental
Congress, Testified before Parliament concerning the Stamp Act,
Postmaster General of the united colonies, Commissioner to the
French Court, Minister plenipotentiary to the French
Court,Negotiator in and Member of the Treaties with Gr.-
Britain,Member of the Supreme Executive Council of
Pennsylvania,President of Pennsylvania Society for the Abolition
of Slavery, Senior member of the Constitutional Convention
(sarcastically)
....Just to name a few.

SCENE:
Franklin is standing in the distance near an American flag.

INTERVIEWER
Franklin is considered one of the most influential and prominent
founding fathers.
He was the only founding father to have signed all four of the
documents
which helped to create the United States:
the Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Alliance, Amity,
and Commerce with France, the Treaty of Peace between England,
France, and the United States, and
the Constitution

NARRATOR
Benjamin Franklin.
Businessman, writer, publisher, scientist, diplomat,
legislator, social activist, inventor, and American hero.
January 17, 1706 – April 17, 1790