We knew it started the fire, ma'am. What we didn't know is where it came from,
till this morning.
Mr.Hickam, can you account for all your rockets?
No, sir. I can't.
[ Chattering ]
If you weren't a minor, you'd be in the state penitentiary.
- I know, Dad. I-- - Homer, I've been confused by you,
I've been mad as hell at you.
But, boy, it's the first time in your life I've been ashamed of you.
[ Roy Lee Grunting, Yelling ]
- [ Grunting Continues ] - You couldn't stop, man. You couldn't!
- Get in the car, Homer! - [ Yelling Continues ]
Homer, get in the car.
[ Man Grunting ] Idiot! I ought to goddamn kill ya.
[ Grunts ]
We ain't at the mine now. This ain't your business.
You get in the car with Homer, son.
You listen to me, you drunken son of a bitch.
If that boy's father was alive, he'd kick your ass.
So I'm gonna have to do it for him.
If I see him with a bruise, you get a scar.
If I see him with a limp, you get crutches!
[ John ] You hear me? Do you hear me?
You know, I'm reportin' you to the union!
Screw you and your damn union.
Your father was one of the best men I ever had workin' for me.
I was lucky to know him.
[ Engine Starts ]
Come on.
Let's go have some fun for a change.
In love
Why does my heart
Skip a crazy beat
For I know it will beat, beat, beat
- Tell me why - They watched us get arrested.
[ Quentin ] We're practically ex-convicts.
They'll never dance with us.
Jesus, Quentin. You don't know anything about women.
Why do fools
- I heard she broke up with that dumb jock. - Fall in love
- See you later, Elvis. - [ Clapping ]
Many a tear has to fall
But it's all in the game
All in the wonderful game
That you know
As love
Hi, Homer.
Hi, Dorothy.
- You have words - Jim, look who's here.
Yeah, ain't it past your bedtime?
- And your future's looking - Let's go.
- Hey, Jim. - Dim
- But these things - Way to go.
Your hearts can rise
Above
Once in a while he will call
When the twilight is gone
Ah, ah
- Hi, Valentine. - [ Thunder Rumbling ]
Ah
- I'm glad you didn't go to jail. - When the twilight is gone
Ah, ah
You come into my heart
Ah
And here in my heart you will stay
[ Thunder Rumbling ]
It sure was exciting watching your rockets go up.
My prayer
Is to linger with you
At the end of the day
[ Train Rumbling Overhead ]
You ever see that movie, Frankenstein Meets the Wolfman?
- [ Car Horn Honking ] - [ Boy ] Homer!
Homer! Down here! Homer!
- Homer! Homer! - What is it?
Mom! Mom!
[ Panting ] Mom?
- Your father always has to be the big hero. - [ Siren Wailing ]
I swear to God, if he gets killed, I won't shed a tear.
It's comin' up!
[ Screaming, Chattering ]
[ Woman ] Who-Who is it?
[ Man ] It's Ike Bykovsky. Bykovsky.
[ Man ] It's John Hickam!
- Dad, Dad! - [ Man ] The cable snapped.
May have fractured his skull!
Get out of the way. Move back, folks! Let us through here!
Tell you what, Homer. A dozen men would've died today if it hadn't been for your dad.
[ Siren Wailing ]
Thank you, doctor.
Mm-hmm. Bye-Bye.
The, uh, doctor says...
there's a chance your dad could lose his eye.
He has to go to the hospital in Charleston,
and Olga won't pay for all of it.
I'm gonna go down to the mine and ask Jake Mosby to sign me on.
You can't do that, Jim. You've got school.
Olga owns this house, Mom, and half the furniture in it.
If you drop out, you'll lose your scholarship.
- Homer, I'm the oldest. It's my responsibility. - I'll work in the mine.
[ Phone Ringing ]
- Here you are, Mr.Turner. - Thank you, Miss Wade.
Mining coal is an honorable trade, Mr.Hickam.
Nothing to be ashamed of.
Miss Riley! Miss Riley!
[ Alarm Clock Ringing ]
Turn your light on, boy.
Remember when you gave me these, John?
Carbon crystals from the mine.
Yeah. Honeymoon. At Myrtle Beach.
And you said, "You always wanted diamonds.
But these are the best I can do. I wish they were real."
John, I never wanted diamonds.
This whole year...
has been pretty rough going down at the mine.
Bad tempers...
and a lot of strike talk.
An accident makes things worse.
In a way, I guess,
I'm the one who's responsible for what happened to Mr.Bykovsky.
Listen to me, Homer.
Last month,
I gave Ike the chance to go back to the machine shop,
and he turned it down.
Yeah, he stayed in the mine 'cause the money was better.
That was his decision.
You understand me?
Yes, sir.
Well, is mining coal as terrible as you figured it'd be?
I guess not.
- But almost. - [ Laughing ]
[ Coughing ]
Everybody says to say hi. Michael and Billy.
Valentine Carmina.
How about Miss Riley?
She ain't been around much. She got some new boyfriend over in Welch.
So, uh, what's it like down there?
You get used to it after a while.
Besides, shoveling coal has got its advantages.
Check this out.
Man, no wonder my stepdad can slug me so good.
After a month down there, you'd be able to knock him out.
Well, I ain't in no hurry.
[ Work Whistle Blowing ]
- See ya all later. - See ya, man.
See ya, Homer.
In Christ's name, we pray. Amen.
Amen.
We appreciate the sacrifice you made here, Homer.
But pretty soon, you'll be able to go back and finish up the school year.
I'm not going back to school.
A few weeks left in the term,
I'll just stay put.
Well, I think you ought to finish high school.
Well, tell him, John.
Homer's not a boy anymore.
I don't think I can tell him anything.
[ Dishes Clattering ]
[ Jake ] All I'm saying, John, is the cutoff was not done proper according to contract.
Well, the company did what it had to do.
Well, you know the union won't put up with it.
Just give it a rest, Jake. It's my first day back.
Hey, Lenny, how's he doing?
He's a chip off the old block, John.
- It's good to have you back. - [ Chuckling ] Thank you.
Hi. I'm headed toward the face. You wanna come along?
[ John ] Even though I don't have that piece of paper--
the thing from college-- they listen to me.
You know why?
'Cause you know more than they do.
You bet your life I do. Homer.
I know the mine like I know a man.
Heck, I can take one look around here-- [ Coughing ]
Are you all right?
Yeah, I'm not afraid of a little coal dust.
Hell, Homer, I was born for this.
I guess it shouldn't surprise me that you were too.
Let's go watch 'em shoot some coal.
Elsie, hold dinner for a while, will you?
I have to make a call.
Homer,
I was in the store today, and I heard some talk.
Boy, it's sure hard to keep a secret in this town, isn't it?
But I guess I did a pretty good job.
You know, there's a rumor going around that I been sneaking off to Welch to see some beau.
- I wish that rumor'd been true. - Yeah.
They told me Hodgkin's can go into remission, so I might have some time.
Is there anything I can do, Miss Riley?
You can accept my apology.
For what?
My life's work is teaching.
And I believed that if you boys won that science fair,
got scholarships, went off and did something great with your lives,
somehow my life would have counted for something.
Homer.
You know what?
Sometimes you really can't listen to what anybody else says.
You just gotta listen inside.
You're not supposed to end up in those mines.
You know why? 'Cause I think you made other plans.
I want you to know something.
I'm proud of you. I am.
Whatever you choose.
[ Ringing ]
[ Mine Alarm Blaring ]
Excuse me, ma'am, is Quentin home?
Quentin.
Homer, y-you figured this equation out by yourself?
Well, if I did the math right. It proves that you can't--
- I-It proves we didn't start that fire! - Quentin, what're you doin'?
Now, the AUK XIII was the only one that we couldn't find that day.
And our best guess for fall time with the AUK XII,
which is exactly identical, was about 14 seconds.
If you help me with the trig part, Quentin,
we should be able to make a good guess where that rocket landed.
Six thousand, three hundred and twenty-eight feet.
One point two miles.
- Homer? - Yeah?
Are you gonna tell Roy Lee and O'Dell where I live?
It wouldn't matter if you lived in the governor's mansion,
they'd still think you're weird.
I'll see you at dawn.
Don't you have to go to the mine?
I don't work there anymore.
One.
Two.
Ninety-nine.
A hundred seven.
One hundred and twenty-six.
That's 6,300 feet.
It's gotta be around here somewhere.
What'd we do wrong?
I don't know. I-I'll check the math again.
Was there a wind that day?
I-I don't remember.
'Cause if there was,
the wind probably came from the west...
which means that it would've pushed the rocket...
right there.
Prodigious.
...associated--
[ Students Murmuring ]
Mr.Hayes, where you off to in such a hurry?
Okay, everybody, back in your seats.
Miss Stanton, Miss Blue, let's go, back in your seats. Mr.Hancock.
That goes for you too, Mr.Wilson.
Miss Riley, what's going on in here?
They didn't start that fire, Mr.Turner.
In the first place, you are not a member of this classroom.
- Neither are you, Mr.Turner. - [ Students Chuckling ]
Why don't you let the boy defend himself?
And in the second place, this rocket proves nothing.
You've already admitted having lost a number of your rockets.
You cannot prove conclusively...
- that another one of them didn't start that fire. - Yes, I can.
Are we to conclude, Mr.Hickam, that since leaving school,
you've not only become an expert in rocket science, but in the field of trigonometry?
- I didn't say that I was a rock-- - Obviously, you learned more...
- in the coal mines than you did in high school. - [ Students Chuckling ]
Let the boy talk. Go ahead, Homer.
Now, that fire was near Welch, just under three miles from our launchpad.
And at the time of the fire, the best that we could do was 1.2 miles...
which is exactly where we found that rocket, Mr.Turner.
See, Mr.Turner, that rocket fell for about 14 seconds, which means...
that it flew to an altitude of 3,000 feet...
according to the equation...
"S" equals one-half "A" "T" squared...
where "S" is the altitude, "A" is the gravity constant-- or 32--
and "T" is the time it took for that rocket to come back down.
- Velocity equals acceleration times time. - Get him, Homer, get him.
- Are you following this, Mr.Turner? - [ Students Chuckling ]
All right, we're all duly impressed.
But do you mind telling me, if you did not start that fire, who did?
[ Phone Ringing ]
What is it?
Whatever it is, i-it's ingenious. The fins are spring-loaded.
That isn't a rocket at all.
It's an aeronautical flare.
There's an airport here in Welch. It's right above where the fire started.
Mr.Hickam, report to my office as soon as we return to school.
You do intend to enter the county science fair, do you not?
Yes, sir, we do.
Well, if you intend to represent Big Creek,
you're gonna have to be enrolled as a student at Big Creek.
[ Engine Starting ]
"Prodigenous."
[ Homer ] Do you think you can draw well enough Mr.Bolden could build it?
Yep. Let me see.
- Yeah. - Hey, Homer.
- Hi, Dad. - What's this stuff doin' here?
- Mr.Hickam, we didn't start the fire. - The troopers gave it back to us.
- Yeah, it wasn't even one of our rockets. - It was an aeronautical flare.
Y'all go on home now.
Yes, sir.
- This the reason you skipped work today? - Yes, sir.
I thought you put all this nonsense behind you, Homer.
- I thought you weren't gonna be doin' it-- - Dad, it isn't nonsense.
I-I don't wanna argue with you.
Look, son,
I can't even begin to tell you how proud of you I've been these past weeks.
I mean, you've just been doin' a hell of a job in that mine.
You keep goin', you're gonna have my job someday.
Everybody says so.
You got any idea how proud that would make me?
- Dad, what I-- - [ Stammering ]
I guess what I'm sayin' is, is that if this rocket stuff is so important to you,
then so be it, as long as you're careful.
Guess there's worse hobbies you could have.
But skippin' work, that's out of line.
And you gotta know that.
So let's go and get you right with Jake.
Tell him you'll work the hoot owl shift tonight.
No.
The coal mine's your life. It's not mine.
I'm never going down there again.
I wanna go into space.
[ Man ] Homer Hickam, Roy Lee Cook, Quentin Wilson...
and Sherman O'Dell of Big Creek High...
for their ingenious display of amateur rocket-building techniques.
I can't believe we beat the kid with the robot dog.
And I thought the see-through ear was gonna win.
I got Miss Wade workin' on your travel arrangements,
so you boys are gonna have to decide who's goin' to Indianapolis.
- We're all goin'. - Yeah.
Son, I wish you could, but we can't afford to send all four of you.
Only one. Let me know what you decide. I'm gonna have to know by Friday.
You boys did a fine job today.
I need to borrow a suitcase, and I'm gonna need you guys' addresses...
- because I'm gonna write some postcards. - Oh, you shut up, Roy Lee.
Come on, you dope. You know, you're goin', Homer.
- Yeah. - Yeah.
Say hello to the outside world for us.
- Do we know what we want? - [ All ] Yeah!
- Are we gettin' it? - [ All ] No!
All right! All in favor of goin' out on strike, say "aye"!
[ All ] Aye!
- All right, let's go! - [ Shouting ]
All right, settle down! Let's go!
Strike! Strike! Strike!
[ Shouting Continues ]
Well, they sure are gettin' themselves worked up.
Everybody's sayin' this one's gonna be a long one.
And it will, if I have anything to say about it.
Ungrateful sons of bitches.
- Mom, have you seen the big green suitcase? - Did you look in the attic?
- Yes, ma'am. - Well, I don't know. John, you know where the suitcase is?
How the hell should I know where the suitcase is?
I don't know, sug.
[ Mother Murmuring ]
[ Sighing ]
[ Gunshot, Glass Shattering ]
- John! - Y'all stay inside!
- [ Tires Screeching ] - Earl Lee!
[ Jim ] I'm gonna kill that son of a bitch!
Oh, don't be a damn fool.
- All right, well, what are we gonna do? - Nothin'.
Drunken bastard couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.
- He tried to kill you, Dad. - Yeah, Dad, you can't just stand--
Hey, hey, don't trouble yourself, Homer.
You got more important things to worry about.
[ John ] Just go look for your suitcase.
Forget about it, Homer.
Shut up, Jim!
Listen, I'm sorry about what's goin' on around here, but it isn't my fault!
- What do you want from me anyway? - Better watch yourself, Homer!
If I win at Indianapolis, maybe I can go to college,
maybe even get a job at Cape Canaveral!
There's nothing here for me! The town is dyin'!
The mine is dyin'! Everybody knows it here but you!
You wanna get out of here so bad, then go! Go!
Yeah, I'll go! Yeah, I'll go!
- Go, go! - I'll go!
And I'll be gone forever! I won't even look back!
[ Door Slamming ]
[ Man ] Welcome to Indianapolis!
Visitors to the fair will include prominent members of every branch...
of the national scientific community.
The fair will be open to the public over the next two days.
The following day, the judges will arrive to select the winners.
By timing the rocket's descent, we would be able to figure out just how high the rocket flew.
Would you like to see? This is a Delaval nozzle.
Do any of y'all know what a Delaval noz--
- Two, please. - The judges always go for the most expensive exhibits.
That guy with the biosphere's gonna win.
I don't think so. My money's on the kid with the rocket display.
Have you seen it yet? It's really cool.
[ Woman On P.A. ] Mr.Owens, to the security office.
Mr.Owens, to the security office, please.
It's not like we got a hell of a lot of time, Roy Lee. The judging is tomorrow.
There's nothin' we can do without Mr.Bolden.
And he can't get anywhere near the machine shop.
They even took my picture of Dr. Van Braun.
They stole everything.
[ Car Horn Honking ]
Leon, what are you doing back here?
You know you shouldn't be seen back here.
I know, Elsie, but Homer's in trouble.
[ Shouting ]
Elsie, I don't have the power to settle this strike.
The bosses listen to you. They'll do what you tell 'em.
I am not gonna crawl on my belly...
in front of those miserable union rats.
Is that what this is about, John? Is this about your pride?
No, it's about what's best for Coalwood.
If this mine doesn't produce, then the town dies.
Think the union gives a good damn about that?
They're nothin' but a bunch of greedy sons of bitches that--
Shut up, John. Just shut up.
Homer once said you love the mine more than your own family.
And I stuck up for you 'cause I didn't wanna believe it.
Homer has gotten a lot of help from the people in this town.
They've helped him build his rockets, they've gone out there and watched him fly 'em.
But not you, John. You never showed up. Not even once.
Now, I'm not asking you to believe in him,
but he's your son, for God's sake, John.
And I am askin' you to help him.
If you don't, I'll leave you.
I'll find work. I'll do whatever it takes to get away from here.
I'll live in a tree to get away from you. Don't you think I won't.
Where would you go?
Myrtle Beach.
[ Door Opens, Closes ]
I guess we all know this isn't gonna fix things,
uh, at least not for long.
We know you did what you could for us.
- Jake. - Thanks.
Leon.
Yes, John.
Don't you have some work to do?
It's packed and shipped and on its way. Be at the bus station, 8:00 a.m.
- Okay, Mom, but how'd you-- - Your father, Homer.
- It was your father. - Give 'em hell, Homer!
[ Cheering ]
- Good luck, sweetie. - Bye.
[ Coin Clinks ]
Thanks, Dad.
[ Homer ] When the rocket propellant burns, it produces a river of gas...
which flows through the convergent section of the nozzle.
If the river continues through the nozzle,
but through the throat at less than sonic speed--
that is to say, less than the speed of sound--
it becomes compact in the-- compacted in the divergent section,
bound in turmoil and inefficient.
Lyle Wells and Jean Cooper, Schrader High School, McMinnville, Oregon.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, the big moment.
The Highest Scholastic Achievement Award for Science.
The National Science Fair first prize gold medal...
goes to Homer Hickam,
Quentin Wilson, Roy Lee Cook and Sherman O'Dell,
Big Creek High School, McDowell County, West Virginia.
Tom Webster of Virginia State College. I wanna talk to you about a scholarship.
Jack Palmer, Virginia Tech. We got the best science program in the state, buddy, okay?
Congratulations, son. Good luck to you.
- What did he say to you? - What did who say?
Von Braun. That was Wernher von Braun. You just shook his hand.
[ Cheering ]
- Oh, Homer, I'm so proud of you. - Thanks, Mom.
He's not here, hon.
Where's Miss Riley?
Hello, Miss Riley.
Hi, Homer.
- Hi. - Hi.
Oh! You did it!
I knew you would.
The Rocket Boys are goin' to college.
We all got scholarships. [ Chuckling ]
And you know what?
From now on, every school year,
I'm gonna brag to all my new students...
about how I taught Homer Hickam and the Rocket Boys.
Maybe one day,
one of them'll feel like they can do what y'all did.
You know, just, stuff like that takes time.
Will you let me out?
[ John ] I don't know what they were doin', charging Olga for that.
Hell, why don't you try for something up here?
- Hey, Dad. Hi. - Hello, Homer.
I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate what you did for me.
I know it wasn't easy for you, so thank you.
A-And we're shootin' off our last rocket today at 5:00,
- so if you'd like to come see it-- - I got a lot of work to do.
All right. Well, I just thought I'd ask.
Hear you met your big hero.
Didn't even know it.
Look,
I know you and me don't exactly see eye to eye on certain things.
I mean, man, we don't see eye to eye on just about anything.
But Dad, I come to believe that I got it in me to be somebody in this world.
A-And it's not because I'm so different from you either.
It's 'cause I'm the same.
You know, I can be just as hardheaded and just as tough.
I only hope I can be as good a man as you are.
I mean, sure,
Dr. von Braun's a great scientist,
but he isn't my hero.
[ Mine Alarm Blaring ]
- It's our last rocket. - Yeah, let's do it.
- Wire it up for me, will ya? I gotta do something. - Yeah.
- Hi, Homer. - Hi.
Congratulations on winning the science fair.
It's gotta be the most exciting thing that's ever happened around here.
Um, I was thinking, Homer, if, if you've got some time--
- Excuse me, Dorothy. Hi. - Hi.
- Good luck. - Thanks. [ Clears Throat ]
Hey, everybody, can we have your attention, please?
Come on, Homer, let her fly!
We're gonna launch the rocket in a minute, but we'd like to say thank you first.
If it wasn't for y'all, we'd never have gotten into any science fair.
We'd probably never have gotten past blowin' up my mom's fence.
- [ Laughing ] - But we did...
because of your help and support.
And this is for Coalwood.
There are a few people who believed in us even before we did.
We'd like to dedicate this rocket to them.
To Ike Bykovsky.
To Mr.Bolden, who helped us so much.
To the person who first inspired us,
our teacher, Miss Riley.
And, finally, I'd like to dedicate this rocket to my mom and to--
my dad.
You know, it, uh, won't fly unless somebody pushes the button.
It's yours, if you want it.
- Ten, nine-- - [ Together ] Eight,
seven, six, five,
four, three, two, one.
Look at it go, Homer. This one's gonna go for miles.
Many a tear has to fall
But it's all
In the game
All in the wonderful game
That we know
As love
You have words
With him
And your future's
Looking dim
But these things
Your hearts can rise
Above
Once in a while you will call
But it's all
In the game
Soon he'll be there at your side
With a sweet
Bouquet
And he'll kiss
Your lips
And caress
Your waiting fingertips
And your hearts
Will fly
Away
Soon he'll be there at your side
With a sweet
Bouquet
Then he'll kiss
Your lips
And caress
Your waiting fingertips
And your hearts
Will fly
Away