Paul and Samantha Converse. Somewhere

Paul Newman: Hey, kid

Samantha Smith: Hi, Mr. Newman

Paul: Hows tricks?

Samantha: Great! I'm so happy it's Christmas time and there's a bunch of snow in Maine

Paul: Yeah. Hows your Dad doing?

Smantha: He's OK

Paul: Yeah, kid. And Mom?

Samantha: She's great! Mom talks to me all the time! She can't hear me, but I talk to her all the time, too. I love my Mom

Paul: Who doesn't?

Samantha: She's talking to me right now. I feel all warm inside. Can she feel it when I hug her back?

Paul: Yeah, I suppose. But it makes you feel better even if she can't, right?

Samantha: That's right

Paul: Ok, kiddo. The reason I wanted to talk was "War Horse." Have you seen it?

Samantha: Bleech! Not good, Mr. Newman. Not good. What happened? Mr. Speilberg made "ET"

Paul: Well, it's a bit hard to explain, but don't blame him. He is doing just fine. The reason "War Horse" should have been put out to pasture has to do mostly with money. You see, Sam, Mr. Speilberg's company is having a hard time paying their bills. And the folks at the bank told Mr. Speilberg to make a movie for this year's Christmas or they would shut down his studio. Mr. Speilberg said "OK", but didn't really spend any time on "War Horse." A couple dozen 30 year old men, who make a living doing something called "computer programming", made the movie in the office where they work. Mr. Speilberg is sad that the movie is so bad, Sam, but he was trying to make a very important point. Movies should be made by moviemakers, not computer programmers and certainly not by people who work in a bank. Does that make sense, kiddo?

Samantha: .......um, no. Not really.

Paul: Yeah, it is a tough nut to crack. But everything's gonna be OK, I promise. Mr. Speilberg is going to get back to making great movies. And everyone in Hollywood now knows that men who program computers or work in banks can't make good movies. So next year, I promise you, Sam, there's gonna be bunch of nice movies to see

Samantha: That's terrific. I love going to a good movie. Now can I get back to talking to my Mom?

Paul: Sure, kid