Extract from the Deposition

Date: November 6, 1998, 10:30 a.m

Extract from deposition of Michael Ellis, Owner (1963 — 1996), Practical Office Equipment Inc., Mifflinburg, Pennsylvania

Case: Michael Ellis and Practical Office Equipment Inc. VS. Unnamed Defendants, Class Action

Location: Offices of Halley Barrett LLC, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

Present:

Michael P. Ellis, deponent

Anthony Jarvis, Counsel for Michael Ellis and Practical Office Equipment Inc.

Robert Evert, Counsel for Class Action, Halley Barrett LLC

Louise Penrod, Reporter

Albert Parkes, Videographer

(this extract begins at 10:55:11 a.m.)

Evert: Okay. Okay. Now… Mr. Ellis… how many of these… we’re looking at a pink and blue eraser, in case the video is fuzzy… how many of these pink and blue erasers do you figure your company made between 1966 and 1996?

Ellis: Oh God… (unintelligible)… really?

Evert: Roughly will do.

Ellis: Alright. I’ll say… six hundred million. Maybe seven. Seven hundred million.

Evert: Thank you. And this part, this blue half — this is what?

Ellis: What do you mean, what?

Evert: What is its purpose? You need to tell me—

Jarvis: He needs to tell you?

Evert: I… all right, yes. I would like you to tell me what it is, describe it for me.

Ellis: (leans over to lawyer) (unintelligible)

Jarvis: Mr. Ellis needs a few minutes.

Evert: Needs?

Jarvis: That’s not necessary. Please stop the tape. Stop it please.

(Recording paused for 17 minutes)

(Recording resumes)

Reporter: Time is now 11:16 am, Friday, Sixth of November, 1998.

Evert: Mr. Ellis, what is the purpose of this blue half of this eraser?

Jarvis: Go ahead, Mike.

Ellis: To erase things. It’s an eraser.

Evert: Things? Don’t you mean ink?

Jarvis: That’s push—you can’t do that, Bob.

Ellis: We never said that, we never said that once… it was to erase heavy paper. Pencil on heavy paper.

Evert: Did you ever say that?

Ellis: What? Did someone… it’s really hot in here.

Evert: If it was for heavy paper, why did you make it blue?

Ellis: What?

Evert: It could have been black, or green, or purple, or polka-dotted…. but you made it blue. Why?

Ellis: We… blue? I… I… I don’t know.

Evert: Oh, I think you know. In fact, I know you know. (produces paper) Is this your name on this email?

Jarvis: What in my grandmother’s motherfucking panties is…

Ellis: It’s an email from your client to Jim Dorban… who was… Mr. Ellis?

Evert: My head of development. God bless him.

Evert: That’s nice.

Jarvis. Fuck you.

Evert: Excuse me? Mr. Ellis, I’m going to read this email from you to Mr. Dorban: (reads) “Okay. Blue’s good. Just don’t say anything about it. Maybe talk to Neil. No marketing materials, nothing about pen or ink, I don’t want those words within 500 miles of us. Let the ink thing just be you know. One of those things you assume.” (stops reading) So Mr. Ellis, what’s this about? (reads) “One of those things you assume.” (stops reading) Assume what?

Jarvis: We’ve had enough.

Evert: Assume… that the blue is for… ink?

Jarvis: Mike, not one more word.

Evert: Mr. Ellis, I am now going to write something on this paper here with this pen. I’ll write my name. There. Done. Mr. Ellis, can you now please take this eraser, and, with the blue part, erase my name?

Ellis: You’re kidding. What—

Jarvis: We didn’t agree to this.

Evert: He’s not going to erase it? Why not?

Jarvis stands up.

Jarvis: We’re done here. Mike.

Evert: Because of the reason we’re here today, Mr. Ellis? Because it doesn’t work… because it never worked? Is that—

Ellis: We had three hundred families on the payroll. Those people nee—

Jarvis: MIKE!

Evert: Because it’s going to TEAR THE PAPER? LIKE IT TORE MILLIONS OF PIECES OF PAPER TEN THOUSAND TIMES A DAY EVERY DAY FOR FIFTY YEARS?

Ellis: You just have to go slowly wi—

Jarvis: MIKE, NO MORE TALKING. (He sits down.)

Evert: What’s that, Mr. Ellis? Okay, I’ll do it then. I’ll go slowly. Watch.

Jarvis: This is a joke.

Ellis: No, not like that, softer, more roundy(?)…

Jarvis: What is this, Matlock? Mike! Shut up!

Evert: I’m going very, very gently, Mr. Jarvis, I’m going roundy… we’re filming this professionally as you know. (Evert stops erasing). There. There we go. Now Mr. Ellis, can you tell me what that is on the paper there, on top of my name, where I erased with the blue?

Jarvis: (stands up) Mike, let’s go. We want that eraser, Bob. We’re getting that eraser.

Evert: Is this a tear in the paper, Mr. Ellis? On the page? (Evert holds it up to the ceiling). I’ll make sure they get a good picture. Do you see that through your camera, Mr. Parkes?

Videographer: Yes, hold it… that’s good, yes, good.

Ellis: We never said anything. We just made a pink side and a blue side and—

Jarvis: (loud) MIKE! SHUT UP!

Evert: You said it three minutes ago, Mr. Ellis. Correction — you wrote it. You wrote “the ink thing.” I wrote it down, here, see? In pen. Do you want me to erase these words “the ink thing” as well? Tear your credibility as easily as this paper?

Jarvis: I’m going to get that paper and pen as well, Bob.

Ellis: The thinking was that it would simply lighten the ink enough that you could write ov—

Jarvis: MIKE THAT’S ENOUGH!

(Ellis stands up.)

Ellis: People rubbed too fast, too hard. We had a wonderful Christmas party every year. I paid for everything. A beautiful chuck roast at every table. One year we brought the Osmonds in. Another year everyone got a watch, embossed. You… you had to rub slowly. We had single mothers.

Evert: Merry Christmas, Mr. Ellis.

Jarvis: Shove it, Bob.

(Jarvis and Ellis leave the room.)

Evert: Okay, we can stop the tape. You got it, right?

Videographer: Yes, looks good.

Court Reporter: Logging out, 11:21 a.m.

(tape ends)