OVER TO YOU vt 98 1 Programnr 97760/ra 11

1

URBAN LEGENDS 2

Manus: Claes Nordenskiöld Producent: Claes Nordenskiöld

Sändingsdatum: 26/1 1998 Längd: 9'30"

* Music: The Fibonaccis “Maculae” * A professor of philosophy had decided to ask only one question on the final test. The professor stood up and greeted everyone. Then he grabbed his chair, put it on his desk and wrote on the board: "Use everything that you've learned this term to prove that this chair doesn't exist. Good luck!"

Surprised but concentrated students wrote like crazy, erasers flew and page after page was filled with smart explanations. Some students wrote 20 pages, but one boy was ready after only a minute.

When the results were posted a couple of weeks later, everyone was really shocked to find out that that boy had gotten the highest grade. He hadn't even written anything, or at best one short sentence. What did you write, they asked him. All I wrote, he said, was "What chair?" * Music: The Fibonaccis “Stay Home” * Speaker: Hello, and welcome to a new edition of Urban Legends. From Miami to Mississippi, Montana to Malibu – wherever they are told urban legends are always changing. An is a story which has usually happened to "a friend of a friend" of the person who tells it. Or someone has read about it somewhere...some time... It may sound true – it may even be true, but several facts have often been changed. And I must say, that when we wrote down these stories that are used in this program we probably changed them a little, too. Listen to these new, crazy stories! Here's one that we can call "Money in the Wall". * The carpenter was tired of the millionaire who owned the magnificent old house that his firm was renovating. The owner suspiciously watched every step they took. Didn't they take too many breaks? Didn't they use materials that were too expensive? Weren't they pretty wasteful? Weren't there any less expensive alternatives?

Finally the carpenter had had it and looked for a way to get back at the owner. Some electrical wires had to be changed, so he had to make a hole in the wall. Secretly he put a ten and a twenty dollar bill in his hand and reached in.

He fumbled around for a while before he pulled out a ten dollar bill in front of the surprised owner, who of course was watching. They looked at each other and the carpenter reached in again and this time he pulled out with a twenty dollar bill.

Maybe the previous owner kept a fortune in the wall? he said. The millionaire got all excited and ordered the carpenter to tear down the entire wall. –The money belongs to me now! he yelled out loud. The carpenter warned him that it would cost a lot, but the millionaire insisted. –Whatever it costs! There could be a fortune in there!

The carpenter put two men on the job which took a whole day. Of course they didn't find any more money, but the carpenter made a little extra because of the millionaire's greediness. OVER TO YOU vt 98 2 Programnr 97760/ra 11

1 * Music: The Fibonaccis “Stay Home” * SPEAKER: Now the next story is one of my favorites. In this version it takes place in Chicago, but like all these urban legends it could be anywhere. Here's "An Honest Face". * In the Swedish quarters of Andersonville just north of Chicago, 17-year-old Ralph Lundgren accidentally scrapes against the car parked in front of him. He's just been into the Swedish bakery and bought ten cinnamon rolls and a bottle of Önos black currant juice for his mom. In the shop window he sees several suspicious faces staring at him, watching what he's going to do...

So he steps out of his father's Volvo and inspects the damage. There's a big scrape on the parked car – not a scratch on his father's car. He gets a pen and paper out of his glove compartment, writes a note, sticks it under the windshield wiper, and drives off.

The owner arrives, notices the scratch, and reads the note which says: "Those who are staring at me from the bakery think that I'm writing my name and address and the name of my insurance company, but I'm not. Sorry." * Music: The Fibonaccis “Tiny Pizzas” * SPEAKER:Well, you wouldn't want that to happen to you, would you? Our next urban legend can definitely be found all over the world. We've run into at least ten variations of this one that we call "Cookies at the Bus Station." * An older woman carrying a lot of shopping arrived at the bus station in Wichita, Kansas. She had a 15- minute wait for her bus. So she bought a newspaper and a small pack of Oreo cookies from the newsstand. Then she sat down on a seat with a small table in front of her, put her shopping and the cookies on the table, and opened the paper

She noticed that a young man sat down opposite her and saw that he opened the pack of cookies, put it on the table and started chewing. She got very upset, but didn't say anything. Instead she gave him a cold stare, and grabbed a cookie herself. The young man lifted his eyebrows and a smile spread across his face. –You're welcome, he said and took another cookie. Even more surprised and angry the woman took one more. The young man stood up, put a cookie in his mouth, and offered the woman the last one - shaking his head.

Extremely upset – but without a word – she tore the cookie from his hand. He lifted one eyebrow again, smiled, and walked away. The woman slammed the paper down onto the table. And that's when she saw – to her great surprise – her own unopened pack of cookies lying right there on the table. * Music: The Fibonaccis “Tiny Pizzas” * SPEAKER: Now that should teach us not to jump to conclusions. But the man in our next story is definitely guilty... * They met in a bar in the heart of New Orleans. It was their first evening together but since the attraction was so strong they spent the night together at her apartment.

They had had a lot to drink and they soon fell into a deep sleep. But the man woke up in the middle of the night, feeling extremely thirsty. But luckily there was a glass of water right next to the bed and he downed it in one gulp and fell right back asleep. OVER TO YOU vt 98 3 Programnr 97760/ra 11

1 The next morning they woke up together and he saw her hand fumble around over the table. –What are you looking for? he asked. She continued searching blindly and muttering: –Where is the glass of water..? I always put my contact lenses in it... * Music: The Fibonaccis “Maculae” * SPEAKER: And he didn't even notice... Now we've come to the last urban legend in this program. This one's pretty bloody... Hope you've enjoyed listening. Here's "The Choking Doberman." * A woman in Boulder, Colorado came home loaded with bags after shopping, and she found the family's Doberman on the hallway floor choking like he had something stuck in his throat – as if he was suffocating. She dropped everything. Tried to get out whatever was stuck in his throat, but it didn't work. Hysterically she lifted the dog into her car and rushed off to the nearest vet.

The vet took a quick look at the dog and informed the woman that he would have to operate immediately. Whatever was blocking the dog's throat had to be removed. He told the woman to go home, and he would call her when the whole thing was over.

The woman drove straight back home, and as she stepped into the house she heard the phone ringing. She picked it up. It was the vet who was very upset. "I want you to hang up the phone when I tell you to. Don't say a word, but turn around and run straight out of the house. Go to a neighbor and wait until the police arrive. I have already called them."

The woman was confused, but took the vet's advice. A few minutes later the police arrived. They explained that the vet had found two human fingers in the dog's throat and thought that a burglar had probably been caught red-handed. Maybe he was still in the house. A few minutes later they found a shocked man in a corner of the bedroom closet. He was desperately trying to stop the bleeding on his right hand where two fingers were missing... * Music: The Fibonaccis “Stay Home” *