inherit or suddenly get money
Someone urges Augie to explain where the money came from, excited and slightly teasing.
We came into some money. Tell him how, Augie.Blue Jasmine · 2013 — Chapter 3 of 15 · 2'45" · B2
Lottery Winners Get a Pitch, Explained: make a killing
The lottery story is warm, funny, and full of wonder — "I never held that kind of money in my hands" — until the talk slides from celebrating a windfall to steering it into a hotel venture with a promised 20 percent return.
What happens
At a home gathering, the talk starts with a lottery win — 200,000 dollars, a once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck — and a wish to start a construction company. The conversation turns when someone proposes putting the money into a low-risk, high-yield hotel development in the Caribbean instead.
Listen for
come into moneydrop deadonce-in-a-lifetimelow-risk, but very high-yield
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Now
Phrase of the scene
make a killing
make a large profit quickly
Someone urges the other person to include them, framing huge profit as a casual favour with no hint of risk.
Investors can make a killing on that downtown property.
Also in this scene
- come into money
inherit or suddenly get money
- drop dead
literally to die suddenly; used to exaggerate shock
- once-in-a-lifetime
extremely rare, never repeated
- low-risk, but very high-yield
safe-sounding but highly profitable
- Am I right?
a tag that invites agreement
Everything marked in this scene
24 notes across 54 lines
Link 'came' into 'into' smoothly; avoid a hard pause.
We came into some money. Tell him how, Augie.save a small amount regularly Here it means saving, not storing something away
Put away a little each week.buy lottery tickets
We always play the lottery, and we never even get two numbers. Am I right?won the lottery or hit the jackpot — Casual talk about winning or succeeding; not for formal writing.
Uh-huh. But last week, we hit it.dollars — American casual speech; use 'dollars' in formal contexts.
We got 200,000 bucks.that much money
I never held that kind of money in my hands. I mean, ever.Keep 'that' light and let 'kind of' run together.
I never held that kind of money in my hands. I mean, ever.extremely rare, never repeated
Someone calls the win a rare event, half-jokingly passing the excitement to the other person, half in earnest.
Me? You had to see her. I had to tell her, this is a once-in-a-lifetime.know nothing at all about something
I mean, not with my one chance to-- Hey, come on. We don't know the first thing about money, but he does.hand over a large share in taxes Here it points to taxes, not a donation
First thing is how not to give half your money to the government.wh-infinitive: The phrase turns 'how to avoid taxes' into a compact noun-like clause.
First thing is how not to give half your money to the government.safe-sounding but highly profitable
Someone floats a hotel project, pairing low risk with high return as if doing the math for them.
Suppose I put you in a venture that was low-risk, but very high-yield.hypothetical clause: It frames the pitch as a hypothetical, making the offer sound tentative.
Suppose I put you in a venture that was low-risk, but very high-yield.build and run a hotel group
He's developing a group of hotels in the Caribbean.the entire amount Here it means the entire lottery sum
Jeez, investing what? You mean the whole thing?a mild exclamation of surprise — Mild surprise among acquaintances; avoid it in formal settings.
Jeez, investing what? You mean the whole thing?Keep 'to' weak and quick; stress both 'money' beats.
You need money to make money. Am I right?include someone in a deal or secret Not letting them enter a room, but letting them join
Let them in on one of your--? The hotel deal or something.make a large profit quickly
Someone urges the other person to include them, framing huge profit as a casual favour with no hint of risk.
It'd be great for them. Make a killing.take a day away from work
Tomorrow I'm taking the day off.do what you are expected to do
Here, for doing your duty.elliptical sentence: Dropping 'That's' makes the compliment sound casual and teasing.
Not bad taste for a philistine businessman, huh?Stress 'bad' and 'taste'; let 'huh' lift lightly.
Not bad taste for a philistine businessman, huh?Lottery Winners Get a Pitch, explained
What's really going on
The scene looks like friendly boasting, but the real action is a pitch: people who admit "We don't know the first thing about money" are being steered toward someone who claims to know better. The promise is calibrated: not 6 or 7 percent but 20, and the phrase "low-risk, but very high-yield" makes the offer sound safe and exceptional at once. The lottery story supplies the emotional proof — "I never held that kind of money in my hands" — while the pitch supplies the social pressure. The line "You need money to make money. Am I right?" makes putting the money in sound like common sense. Even "Make a killing" is doing work: it makes the venture feel like a favor rather than a sales pitch.
Theme
MoneyA lottery windfall becomes the stake in a pitch about hotels, taxes, and 20 percent returns.
ClassThe promise of low-risk wealth exposes the gap between people who have money and people who admit they don't understand it.
Listen for
- came into — Link 'came' into 'into' smoothly; avoid a hard pause.
- that kind of — Keep 'that' light and let 'kind of' run together.
- money to — Keep 'to' weak and quick; stress both 'money' beats.
- bad taste — Stress 'bad' and 'taste'; let 'huh' lift lightly.
I never held that kind of money in my hands. I mean, ever.The speaker is marveling at the sheer size of the lottery win: not just a large sum, but an amount they have never physically handled before.
I'm not talking about 6 or 7 percent. I'm talking about 20 percent.The pitch contrasts ordinary returns with an extraordinary 20 percent, making the investment sound exceptional.
You need money to make money. Am I right?A familiar saying used to justify risking the whole sum; the tag question invites agreement.
It'd be great for them. Make a killing.The speaker frames the investment as a favor and predicts a huge profit.
Not bad taste for a philistine businessman, huh?A teasing compliment about a gift: 'philistine businessman' sounds like an insult, but the point is that the gift shows good taste.
Questions about this scene
Why does the pitch promise 20 percent?
The offer is built on contrast: "I'm not talking about 6 or 7 percent. I'm talking about 20 percent." The higher number makes the hotel venture sound exceptional enough to justify putting in the whole lottery sum.
What does "make a killing" mean here?
It means to make a large profit. The line "Make a killing" is used to encourage the couple to join the hotel investment.
Why does the lottery win matter to the conversation?
It supplies the money being discussed: "We got 200,000 bucks." Without that sum, the later pitch about investing "the whole thing" has nothing to work with.
Are they still planning to start their own business?
The dialogue raises the idea — "Start your own construction company? Great idea" — but then redirects: "No, we mean investing with Hal." The talk moves from a business to an investment.
Is the hotel venture presented as risky?
No. It is called "low-risk, but very high-yield," and the pitch promises 20 percent. The sales language stresses safety and high return.
Blue Jasmine · 15 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 4looking the other wayJasmine Hears About Hal and Raylene
Chapter 1splurge from habitJasmine Arrives Dead Broke
Chapter 2flushGinger and Augie Visit the Family
Watching · Chapter 3make a killingLottery Winners Get a Pitch
Chapter 4looking the other wayJasmine Hears About Hal and Raylene
Chapter 5on top of the worldJasmine's Awkward Blind Date
Chapter 6find my feetHouseguest Pressed on Length of Stay
Chapter 7I don't mean to pryBoss Asks Her for a Drink
Chapter 8slick operatorJasmine Can't Study During the Fight
Chapter 9beat around the bushDr. Flicker Hits on an Employee
Chapter 10hit the jackpotJasmine Meets Dwight at the Party
Chapter 11by all rightsParty Fight Over a Phone Call
Chapter 12swept me off my feetJasmine Tells the Boys Her Story
Chapter 13put something behind youAugie Confronts Jasmine on the Street
Chapter 14tap danceAffair Confession Turns Ugly
Chapter 15let sleeping dogs lieChampagne Celebration Turns Into a FightChapter 3 of 15 · about 39 min to go