Death of a Shoe Salesman is the 10th episode of Season 7 of Married... with Children that aired on FOX on November 22, 1992, also the 141st overall episode in the series. The episode, directed by Gerry Cohen, was written by Stacie Lipp.
Synopsis[]
Al buys a cemetery plot next to his favorite Western star. Peg decides to get a plot near him, but when it gets too expensive, finds a better solution; Seven has moved in with Marcy & Jefferson.
Storyline[]
When Al's favorite movie character dies, Al buys the plot next to him for his own eternal home. But Peggy wants to be buried next to Al and will do anything to spend her life after death with him. Meanwhile, An unnoticed and neglected Seven has moved in with the D'Arcys.
Guest stars/Recurring cast[]
- Cast regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy D'Arcy
- Ted McGinley as Jefferson D'Arcy
- Buck as Buck Bundy
- Shane Sweet as Seven
Guest starring[]
- Dan Castellaneta as Funeral Director
- James R. Sweeney as Priest
- Emilio Borelli as Italian Man
- Laurel Lockhart as Lorraine
- Robert Ackerman as Harry
- Bill Applebaum as voice of Newscaster
Quotes[]
- [Marcy and Jefferson enter the Bundy residence as Al and Peg discuss where Al will be buried]
- Marcy: Hi.
- Jefferson: Hi.
- Marcy: We were just wondering, do you know where Seven is?
- Peg: [indifferently] No.
- Marcy: Well, let me put your minds to rest. He's been living with us for the last three days. He walked in and wouldn't leave.
- Jefferson: He's improving slowly. He still can't read, write, or use a knife and fork, but he has learned to chant "kill the Bundys" with the other neighbors. [he and Marcy turn towards each other and laugh]
- Marcy: If you don't mind, we were thinking about renaming him Henry, after my father.
- Peg: [shrugs] Sure, that's okay.
- Al: [shrugs] What do we care? Do what you want.
- Marcy: What we want is for you to come and get him. He's irritating. He calls us [points to Jefferson] "Dad" and... [pauses before pointing to herself] "Little Dad".
- [Jefferson becomes upset after Marcy kiss him and then calls him "Steve" ]
- Jefferson: Steve?! [grabs her by the arm and walks with her towards the Bundy's door] We are going home and I am gonna ROCK the "Steve" out of you, BA-BY! [turns and walks out]
- Marcy: [smiling as she turns to Peg] It always works! [exits]
- Peg: [turns to Al] Why don't you ever "rock" me, Al?
- Al: 'Cause I'd rather stone 'ya!
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the Arthur Miller play, Death of a Salesman.
Trivia[]
- Dan Castellaneta, who plays the funeral director in the episode, previously appeared on MWC as Pete, a man who asks Al to help him win his husband back from Peggy in the season 5 episode, "The Dance Show".
- Castellaneta is also best known as the voice of Homer Simpson among other characters on the long running FOX animated series, The Simpsons.
- Bill Applebaum, who plays the newscaster that announces the death of Fuzzy McGee, previously appeared on MWC as Tim Potter, the Senior Class president who announces the reunion queen in the Season 3 episode, "Married... with Queen: The Sequel (Part 2)".
- Although he is mentioned by name, Seven does not appear in this episode.
- Buck makes a very brief appearance at the beginning of the episode. He can be seen sitting at the top of the staircase when Al and the kids watch I Shoot Them, Cause They're Injuns.
- Marcy and Jefferson reveal that Seven has been living at their house instead of the Bundy Residence for the last few days.
- Marcy implies that she may still have some feelings for her ex-husband Steve Rhoades, as she mentions that she would like to be buried next to him and that she calls out his name in bed despite being married to Jefferson.
- Peggy reveals that she bought Al a 3 pack of underwear for their 13th Wedding anniversary in 1979.
- Bud and Kelly reveal that they were planning to quickly cremate their parents on the BBQ grill and flush them down the toilets.
Cultural References[]
- At the beginning of the episode, Al and the kids watch a film starring his personal hero, John Wayne, commonly referred to by fans as "The Duke".
- The film they watch, I Shoot Them, 'Cause They're Injuns is fictitious, but is a reference to Wayne often starring in Western films, typical where the cowboys are dealing with the Indians or "Injuns" (more commonly referred to in modern times as Native Americans).
- The kids also notice there is a white actor playing an Indian and another white actor playing a black man. This is in reference to Hollywood studios at the time typically using white actors to play roles for different ethnicity through the use of makeup. Even John Wayne played a Mongolian in the film, The Conqueror.
- After noting that most of his favorite actors from his favorite films are dead, Al mentions that only he and Charlton Heston are still alive, implying he is also a fan of the actor.
- Heston was an American actor who starred in many classic Hollywood films such as Ben-Hur, Planet of the Apes, Soylent Green, and The Ten Commandments. Like John Wayne, Heston was also noted for being a staunch conservative in Hollywood. He also was the president of the NRA (National Rifle Association) from 1998 until 2003. He passed away in 2008.
- Both Gene Autry, and Roy Rogers were still alive at the time this episode was filmed. A young Al Bundy would have enjoyed their content.
- The character "Fuzzy McGee" is a likely nod to actor Fuzzy Knight, an actor who was often starred in Western films, playing a cowboy's comedic sidekick.
- While Peg talks to Al about how male corpses are all alike, they make a reference to Andy Rooney and Mickey Rooney. Andy Rooney was a correspondent for the CBS news program 60 Minutes, while Mickey Rooney was an actor known for his film roles during the 1930s and 1940s.
- Ironically both Andy and Mickey were still alive when the episode was taped and originally aired. They passed away in 2011 and 2014 respectively.
- When Al talks about sidekicks like Rick Moranis and Steve Guttenberg wanting to be stars instead of remaining as sidekicks, he says "Short couldn't even hold his own in 'Three Amigos'.", referring to SNL alumni Martin Short who starred in the 1986 comedy Three Amigos, alongside Steve Martin and Chevy Chase. The film was about 3 silent film era actors who travel to Mexico and defend a small town from bandits.
- Al also mentions actor Rick Moranis, who would later star alongside Ed O'Neill in the 1994 family sports film, Little Giants, playing the younger, less talented brother to O'Neill's character, who is a Heisman trophy winner and football coach in Ohio. The film also starred MWC guest stars F. William Parker, Rance Howard and Pat Crawford Brown.
- While standing at Fuzzy McGee's grave, Al starts singing "Happy Trails", which was the ending theme song for the American Western themed show The Roy Rogers Show.
- Fuzzy McGee's career is a reference to Roy Rogers given that he had a trusty sidekick as a horse, the most famous being named Trigger.
- Fuzzy McGee's career may be a reference to The Gene Autry Show which ran on CBS in the early 1950s, as well as various other movies before that, which co-starred Pat Buttram as the sidekick.
- Buttram would later co-star in Green Acres as Mr. Haney.
- The funeral director shows Bud and Kelly a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle coffin, with a turtle shell and pizza on top. He then says that Michael Jackson bought one as a secret gift for "Macaulay".
- At the time, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was a cartoon and comic book series as well as a live action film, focusing on 4 anthropomorphic turtles trained as ninjas who defend New York City from criminals and love eating pizza.
- "Macaulay" is a reference to then-child actor, Macaulay Culkin, who was known at the time for starring in the Home Alone films. He had a friendship with pop singer Michael Jackson, who was accused of being inappropriate with children. As an adult, Culkin has defended his friend multiple times, saying that nothing ever happened when he visited and stayed with Jackson at Neverland Ranch.
- The funeral director advises Al to make a decision soon, as Fuzzy McGee was very popular in France and that the French will be coming to visit the grave once word gets to Paris. This is likely a reference to American actor Jerry Lewis who was a beloved icon over in the European country.
- After showing Bud and Kelly the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles coffin, Kelly tells the funeral director, "Oh, my brother doesn't need a coffin. You can just put him into a Trix box." Bud then tells him that she only said that "'cause I do it like a bunny".
- Trix is a brand of breakfast cereal made with fruit-flavored, sweetened, ground-corn pieces. Its mascot is a white anthropomorphic rabbit named Tricks, the Trix Bunny who often tries to steal the cereal from kids but fails and is told "Silly rabbit! Trix are for kids!".
- After Peggy arrives home and gets annoyed with Al wanting to know about who invented the toilet, he tells her, "I'll tell you, it'd make a better movie than that damn Columbus. I mean, after all, America was already here; it takes some thought to think up a toilet bowl." This is in reference to the Italian born explorer Christopher Columbus, who is often credited for discovering America.
- It may also be a reference to the 1992 film, Christopher Columbus: The Discovery, which was released in theaters out about two months before this episode aired and was a box office flop.
Music[]
- Al sings "Happy Trails" while visiting Fuzzy McGee's grave.
- Al sings "O Sole Mio" for the Italian family after they overheard him sing "Happy Trails".
Locations[]
- Bundy Residence
- Cemetary
- Funeral Home
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Fuzzy McGee's / Al and Peggy's burial plot
- Funeral Home Coffin Display
Goofs[]
- In this episode, Peg says that she and Al celebrated their 13th wedding anniversary in the spring of 1979, which means they would have been married in 1966, the year they graduated high school. However, in season 1 (1987), Al and Peggy celebrated their 16th anniversary, which means they would have been married in 1971. And in season 6 (1992), they celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary, which means they would have been married in 1972.
- Peg says "Kids, don't you think that Daddy should wear his wedding ring when he's dead?" However, Al never wears a wedding ring in any episode.
- Peg requests to have a bubble top coffin to make room for her big hair, but nobody should need comfort if they’re dead.
- After being told that it would cost about $27,000 to bury Al and Peggy together while disposing of Dadgummit, Al informs the funeral director that they might have cut back on a few things and Al's hands are out of his pocket. The director then tells them that depends on if they or Al and Peggy will dig their graves themselves. Immediately the camera switches back to Al and Peggy and Al's hands had somehow been in his coat pockets the entire time.
- Al attends Fuzzy McGee's eulogy at his newly dug grave, but there is no sign that he had been buried recently. Essentially, Fuzzy's grave is no different to other older graves at the cemetery.
- As Peggy moves around and explains to Al and the funeral director about how they could move the bodies around to accompany her when she dies, she eventual stops and taps Fuzzy's headstone. The sound that is heard indicates that the headstone is clearly not granite, as it has a rather hollow sound compared to actual granite.