True West Act 2, Scene 8 Summary

  • Well, to prove he could steal with the best of them, Austin went out and ripped off a bunch of toasters from the neighborhood houses. He comes home, plugs them all in, and starts toasting away.
  • Meanwhile, Lee's writer's block takes its toll, and Lee starts smashing the typewriter with a golf club. (While this is a pretty solid writer freak out, it doesn't quite match Jack Nicholson's freak out in The Shining or Homer Simpson's writer freak out in "The Shinning").
  • Lee tries to track down a former lady friend in the hopes that she will help him calm down and regain his focus. This doesn't work out. He has no idea where she lives, and the operator hangs up on him. Instead of hanging the phone up like a normal person, Lee rips the phone out of the wall.
  • Austin, drunk as all get out and half-past crazy, decides he wants Lee to take him to the desert with him. Austin is willing to give up his job and his family to go to the desert with his brother.
  • Time to strike a deal. Lee tells Austin if he helps with the script and gives Lee full rights and credit, they can go to the desert together.