Go For the Old was the 19th episode of Season 7 of Married... with Children, also the 150th overall episode of the series. Directed by Gerry Cohen and writen by Stacie Lipp, the episode originally on FOX, premiering on March 14, 1993.
Synopsis[]
When Al is mistaken for a senior citizen at the movie theater, he manages to get a senior discount card, which he immediately begins to abuse. He then enters an athletic competition for seniors.
Storyline[]
After Al passes for a senior citizen to get into the movies cheap he worries that he's getting old. He then starts acting old, which both annoys and worries Peg, but a senior decathlon brings him back to life.
Guest stars/Recurring cast[]
- Cast regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy D'Arcy
- Ted McGinley as Jefferson D'Arcy
- Buck as Buck Bundy
Guest starring[]
- E.D. Miller as Ira
- Mario Roccuzzo as Vendor
- Kevin Brief as Official
- George Feinstein as George
- Peggy Gilbert as 1st Cheerleader
- Georgia Shilling as 2nd Cheerleader
- Jerrie Thill as 3rd Cheerleader
- Marian Wells as Cheerleader (as Marian M. Wells)
- Todd McLaren as Stadium announcer
Quotes[]
- [After Al asks his family if he really looks old, the kids decide to try some quick test on him]
- Kelly: I know the sure test! Old men have no heinies!
- Al: [confidently] Ah! That's proof positive! [stands up and slightly bends over while sticking his butt out] Now look at that round little apple! [taps it with his right hand, as Bud and Kelly make disgusted faces]
- Bud: ... Yeah, cool, dad! [to Kelly] Look at his pants! They just go straight down! [Al turns around and is offended] Where do old guys's heinies go?
- Peg: To that strange, far off, magical place called their bellies.
- Bud: Hope I never loose my butt!
- Kelly: Hehe, you wouldn't loose your butt in prison! [laughs]
- Bud: Gee, I hope I live to see you at 30. Or should I say... [hunches over while miming a pair of breasts that sag down to his knees] ...30! [laughs]
- Kelly: Hey, Mom, was Dad ever any good? I mean, he talks about it all the time, but was he ever really a great athlete?
- Peg: Well, actually, kids, he was really something. I remember one play in particular: Everybody thought daddy was really boxed in. So he threw a fake, broke four tackles, straight armed a guy right in the teeth and ran for daylight! It was the best run I've ever seen! Actually, he'd still be running if my uncle hadn't clubbed him with the butt of his shotgun and dragged him back to the wedding! So, in answer to your question: Yes, he was a great athlete, but no, he was never any good.
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the idiom, "Go for the gold!", which means to aim for the best possible outcome, such as winning 1st place or a gold medal in a sporting event and Al pretending that he is a senior citizen to compete in the championship game.
Trivia[]
- The ending credits features a stillframe of Al sitting on the couch with Buck and his newfound fashion choices, instead of Al and Peggy that has been used since season 4.
- As Peggy describes to Kelly, Al used his athletic ability to escape from his wedding to Peggy, saying that after he was boxed in, he "threw a fake, broke four tackles, straight armed a guy right in the teeth and ran for daylight", but was then knocked out after one of Peggy's uncle's hit him with the butt of his shotgun and dragged him back.
- While in bed, it is revealed that Al slapped his coach and took over the football team after the coach suggested they give up after falling behind in points.
Cultural references[]
- The movie that Peggy describes to the kids is A Few Good Men and says that "Well, at the beginning, Nicholson is really tough and everything, but then 90 minutes later he gives up for no apparent reason. The end!"
- A Few Good Men is a 1992 military legal drama that starred Tom Cruise, Demi Moore and Jack Nicholson. Nicholson, as Peggy described, plays a U.S. Marine Colonel who at first denies but then later defends his actions and his Marines using "Code Red".
- Marcy and Jefferson stop by to ask Al "In 'Holiday', who played Carey Grant's best friend". He then begrudgingly tells them "Edward Everett Horton".
- Holiday is a 1938 romantic comedy film starring Grant as Johnny Case and Horton as Professor Nick Potter.
- Marcy mentions the family diner, Denny's after suggesting to Al that he get senior citizen's discount card.
- After the cheerleaders sing, Kelly says that she can finally say that she's been to a "Dead Concert". This is a play on "Dead Concert" in reference to the rock band, The Grateful Dead.
- The final race that is shown in slow motion is a reference to the 1981 sports film Chariots of Fire.
- The song that plays over the scene is also from the film.
- Bud and Kelly are shown using Jiffy Pop popcorn.
- The brand of popcorn was previously seen in season 3 episode, "He Thought He Could" when Peggy cooks one that expired in 1972.
Music[]
- The cheerleaders sing the last verse of "The Star-Spangled Banner".
- The instrumental piece, "Chariots of Fire" plays during the last sporting event of the episode.
Locations[]
- Bundy Residence
- Senior Championships
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Al & Peggy's Bedroom
- Senior Championships field
Goofs[]
- Bud and Kelly are preparing popcorn on the stove at the beginning of the episode, but the burner is clearly off and yet somehow it is still able to fully cook it.
- At the beginning of the Senior Championships, Peggy is sitting between Kelly and Bud. Then, when Al is in the pole vault event, Peggy is now sitting at the edge of the bleachers. This was likely to make it easier for the actress to run over to check on Al when he lands on the lady and her cat.
- After Al Bundy defeats his elderly opponent in the decathlon, a voiceover reads the following captions: "Bet you thought Al was going to let the old guy win. Well, then you haven't been paying attention for the last seven years." This episode was taped just two and a half months after the sixth anniversary of the pilot episode, and first premiered just three weeks before the sixth anniversary of the pilot episode's premiere.