The Party's Over (1984)

[Music] [Applause] Drinking drivers kill or injure over 800,000 people each year. This is the story of one of them. Hey, that's really a pretty darn good pumpkin, Joey. Well, what do you think, Jim? >> That is a great pumpkin, son. I think we have an artist in the making here. Listen, I'll try to be back to the party, but I have to take the truck into the shop first. >> We'll try really hard cuz Joy's got a costume that'll scare you to death. >> Oh, yeah. >> Great. >> Bye-bye, son. >> Bye, Daddy. >> Bye. >> Bye, Daddy. >> Bye-bye. On that last Halloween Friday he'll never be able to forget, Jim Kellogg left for work, did his job. >> Hey, does that mean >> joked with his boss, had lunch, finished his shift, and started to leave just as he had every day that week. >> Hey, Jim. Hey, Jim. You got time for a cold beer? >> I can't, Don. I'd like to, but I got to take my truck into the garage before they close. They said they'd have it for me by Monday if I get it in before 5:30. Man, that thing's going to nickel and dime me to death. >> When are you going to get rid of it? >> But on that last Halloween Friday, Jim Kellogg was to make three very bad decisions. One of which would destroy his life. Later, it will be said by the county coroner that the lives of a lot of people who do what Jim Kellogg did appear to have been sabotaged by their own brains. >> Yeah, I got time for a beer. Have to see you there. That's great. See you there, >> piece of junk. [Music] It is the most amazingly complex organ in the universe. So sophisticated no known computer can begin to duplicate its countless functions. It is the awesome three-pound marble that fits so snugly within your skull. The incredible masterpiece you call your brain. [Music] Injure it and you can become a vegetable in a second. A disaster always more likely without seat belts. But accidents aren't the only thing that can injure your brain. A whole pharmacy of drugs can do it. including the psychedelics, the narcotics, the amphetamines, the barbiterates, and that all-time favorite of so many people everywhere, alcohol, which can eat away the brain's judgment and decision-making abilities with the corrosive power of concentrated acid, as so many drinking drivers know so well. Yeah, for sure. I have a short history of drunk driving arrests, but on this one night, I decided to get smashed anyway. On the way home, I was driving on the freeway and this guy was driving real slow in my lane. So, I decided to bump into his bumper and accelerate and push him. Was it was crazy. He got the picture and he got out of my lane. I think back on it, man. It was crazy. It was stupid. I could have killed myself and the other guy, too. Well, I'd been to a party with some friends, and I was the one elected to drive home because everyone thought that I was more sober than the rest of them. And on the way home, people kept blinking their lights and beeping their horns and screaming at us going down the freeway. And and we couldn't understand why. And so, we just continued going. Well, it turned out we were going north on the southbound lane of the freeway. And uh we got almost all the way back to the base before the police caught up with us. And that was a distance of about 50 mi. >> Get the point? If you've ever been there, you know exactly how it can feel. You're out there behind the wheel with a few more drinks than you wish you'd had. And your eyes try to seek out potential hazards, but they don't focus or see as they should. and you hope you don't meet anything unexpected like a detour or a construction zone or a tailgating car or truck that would require a quick decision or response. Because neither your mind nor muscles are ready to do anything quick, but because your brain's good judgment centers have been drugged, you may sometimes feel that you're doing just fine. Then suddenly a squad car is in your mirrors. And the very thing you've been afraid of is right there behind you. And after you finally find a spot to pull over and off the road, you'll try as hard as you can to clear your mind, collect your thoughts, and act as sober as possible. But it isn't easy. >> Good evening, sir. The reason I stopped you is for driving with your lights out. Like to see your driver's license and registration, please. Okay, >> that's it. >> End of one bad dream and the beginning of another. >> Mr. Baker, do you know? >> Because getting busted, booked, and jailed for drunk driving can give you sweaty hands and sleepless nights for a good long time. >> Step out of the car, please. >> But then most people know how alcohol affects their judgment and performance, don't they? >> I do. One of the reason I never get in trouble, I know my limits. I never drive after drinking. >> Yeah, I don't either. You know, there's a lot of difference in how you think and feel after one drink than after several. >> Absolutely right. But the critical thing is that the more alcohol an individual consumes, the worse driving performance gets, which is precisely the reason how much a driver drinks is a matter of life or death on the highways. But most people know all that too, right? >> Yeah. They uh taught us about that in alcohol class on the base. >> I heard about it at DW High School. >> They taught us a lot of facts about alcohol and driving in driver's ed. >> Fact. Alcohol is an anesthetic drug quite similar to surgical ether in both its chemistry and effects. Fact. When ingested, alcohol rapidly affects vision, hearing, and motor skills. Fact: There are no sober up fast remedies. Only time removes alcohol from the body. Fact: When alcohol is ingested with other drugs, the combination can be fatal. Fact. In any amount, alcohol can impair driving performance, and you can be seriously impaired without being legally drunk. Fact: Alcohol kills and injures more young people in traffic each year than any other single thing. [Music] But of all the facts that have been written, published, and taught about the effects of alcohol on driving, one of the most important facts of all is simply this. Alcohol can demolish your ability to make good judgments and decisions with the force of a pile driver. A process that can begin with the very first drink >> for a drinker who plans to dry. >> Hey, it's got good brakes. >> Well, I haven't seen you guys in a couple of days. >> Well, we haven't had anything to celebrate lately. >> What do you have? >> Oh, uh, whatever you got on draft will be all right. >> Yeah, same here. >> For Jim Kellogg, it begins now. [Music] Decisions about drinking and driving. Many are possible. Many are necessary. But there are at least three decisions affecting life or death. Number one, will you drink at all? >> Will you have? >> Uh, I'll have a draft. >> Okay. with your car keys in your pocket and a sure knowledge that you may drive later. That first decision should never be taken lightly because the very first effects of alcohol are unjudgment. And one of the many reasons so very many drinkers cause so much trouble in and out of bars is the amount of risk they're willing to take when sober so often increases so much after drinking. Decision number two, how much will you drink? Whether you're drinking at home, a bar, at an office party, a picnic, in the backyard, at a cake party, at a formal affair, on the base, or wherever. Remember, you are responsible for knowing how much alcohol it takes to make you intoxicated. But because alcohol impairs the brain's best decision-making abilities so rapidly, even experienced drinkers like Jim Kellogg should understand that the decision to stop drinking gets harder the more they've had to drink. >> Hey, did you pick up on what Charlie told the boss last Monday morning? >> Oh, last Monday morning I was so hung over. I didn't hear what anybody said to anybody. >> That's for sure. So, what did he say? I can't repeat it in front of a lady. >> Oh, excuse me. >> You folks ready for another? >> Yeah, sure. Why not? >> Don't forget your truck, though. >> Oh, forget that truck. I'll fix it next week. Hey, what has it done for me lately? >> Get the point? Promises and good intentions made before the first drink are so often broken or forgotten after the last drink, aren't they? I'll only have a couple. >> Sure. I'll be home for dinner. >> Just one more a waiter, then we'll order lunch. >> Don't worry, I won't drive if I've had too much. >> I'll try to be back for Joey's party. >> Sure. And perhaps the most frightening of all is the total blackout in which drinkers can't remember anything they said or did. Embarrassing to forget what you had for dinner last night or who you may have insulted at the party. Terrifying not to remember what you did in your car. >> Is your name Alan J. Michaels? >> Yes. >> Mr. Michaels, we have a warrant for your arrest charging with felony hit and run driving. >> Hit and run? No. No. You must be mistaken. It It just isn't me. >> We had witnesses that saw you driving your car last night at 10:30. >> No, it it can't be. >> Would you get your coat, Mr. Michaels, and come with us, please? It can happen like that to drinkers who drive. [Music] >> I don't suppose you guys want another I got to go. But for almost every drinker like Jim Kellok, at some point in the drinking, the desire for self-preservation and survival makes something click in the brain's lower levels. And the drinking stops. >> I got to go. I'll see you tomorrow. >> Tomorrow is Saturday, dummy. See you Monday if you can make it. >> Yeah, Monday. >> Are you okay to drive? Yeah. Okay. To drive. >> Well, take it easy. It is Halloween, you know. >> Sure. See you. [Music] And now, at just this moment, it's time for the third and by far the most crucial decision drinkers are called upon to make. Will you drive at all? Drinkers don't have to drive. They could call a cab or a friend or a parent or even find a nice safe place to sleep it off. Because anything is better than joining traffic while drunk. But because the brain's judgment centers have been drugged, that can be a difficult decision for the driver who's had too much. That's it. From this second, Jim Kellogg and other drivers like him are on their own. And there's just not very much his brain can do to help because it's been reduced to a pretty primitive response level. Not even adequate to help him fasten his safety belt or back up without hitting something. So, what's to do? That's a tough question, but a lot of drinkers and people who care about drinkers have some workable ideas. Listen to a few. >> I've got the ability to say no thanks when I've had enough and to say no when I don't feel like drinking at all. I mean, it's all right not to drink. When I was in the service and we went out drinking, we decided that one of us would always stay sober, drive the rest of us back to the base. We took turns that it really seemed to work out for us. I signed a contract with my parents to phone them for advice or transportation at any time if I'm ever in a situation where I've had too much to drink and they'll come and pick me up with no questions asked. >> I signed it, too. It's called a contract for life. It not only requires me to pick up my daughter, but it obliges me to get safe transportation home just in case I've had too much to drink. >> Well, if I know I'm going to be drinking, I make my transportation plans in advance. I mean, I know how I'm going home before I take my first drink. Well, I was at this uh party and my buddy was getting kind of drunk, so I kind of sneaked off and uh went to his car and I took his coil wire out so he couldn't drive. You know the saying, friends don't let friends drive drunk. >> Yeah, I think that's right. Only I'd call him a cab or let him sleep it off at my place or something. Maybe I'd even drive him home myself. The trouble with me and drinking is that my best intentions go right out the window with my third or fourth drink. But I didn't give up drinking. I gave up driving. >> Some good ideas there. >> You might want to consider one or two. >> Okay. I want you to blow into this like you're blowing up a balloon. Now you keep blowing until I tell you to stop. All right. >> Okay. But just in case you think all that's irrelevant or couldn't possibly apply to you, be advised that the party's over and there's a brand new mood in society today. From the grassroots to the very top, people are mad and the days of leniency for the highway drunk are over. If you drink, that's your business. But if you drink and drive, that's everybody's business. Because highway drunks have been declared top targets for identification and conviction. So whether first offenders or DWI repeaters for intoxicated drivers, the party's over. Which brings us back to Jim Kellogg, whose drugged brain has been reduced to such a primitive response level that none of his senses are anywhere near sharp enough to let him identify highway hazards or predict what other drivers might do. And his sober ability to decide his best responses to traffic conditions has disappeared along with the motor skills which would let him perform safely. [Music] In short, Jim Kellogg is a driving disaster, unable to handle anything he meets, whether vehicles or unexpected pedestrians like trick-or-treaters. To sum it up, Jim Kellogg is a kind of ticking time bomb with little awareness of what he's doing or the near misses he's just had. [Music] But at least he made it home in one piece. Perhaps in a way Jim Kellogg could be called a very lucky man. >> Jim. Jim, is that you? Well, it's about time you got home. Did you forget the kids Halloween party? Everybody's already gone home. But Joey's out in the driveway to scare you with his pumpkin. Didn't you see him? Boy, you're really a mess. You know that? Go on, get out of here and go to bed. Sleep it off. Joey. Joey, time to come in, honey. Joey. Joey, where are you? >> Of course, it's anything but lucky to run over your own little boy in your own driveway. Joey. >> But things like that can happen >> to people who drive drunk. >> Joey [Music] [Music] [Music]