How Bleen Was My Kelly

How Bleen Was My Kelly was the 5th episode aired in Season 10 of Married... with Children and the 214th overall series episode. Directed by Gerry Cohen and written by Kim Weiskopf, the episode originally aired on FOX, premiering on October 15, 1995.

Synopsis

Kelly has unknowingly created a new color chemical called Bleen and Al quickly finds out that she has created a new formula that grows hair.

Storyline

In order to prepare for her role as Marie Curie in a made-for-TV movie, Kelly poses as a scientist on a grant from Crayola to invent a new color she calls "Bleen" and mixes a bio-hazardous chemical as part of her cover, which she brings home to hide in Al's shower where she thinks it'll be safe. Al, however, just happens to be taking his bimonthly shower and uses it, believing it's regular shampoo, but it ends up vigorously re-growing his hair. It's unfortunate side effect is that it makes him and the other members of NO MA'AM who are testing it more attentive to their women, so Al begs Kelly to make an antidote. She returns to the lab and experiments on Bud till she finds it. Peg tries to find a person who makes less money than Al using the computer and finds herself.

Recurring cast/character regulars

• Lucky the Dog as Lucky Bundy
• Harold Sylvester as Griff
• E.E. Bell as Bob Rooney
• Tom McCleister as Ike

Guest starring

• Gene Wolande as Scientist
• Joseph G. Medalis as Bald NO MA'AM Guy #1
• George Hirschmann as Bald NO MA'AM Guy #2
• Barbara Baldieri as Sexy Woman
• Kim Weiskopf as Voice of Lucky (Uncredited)

Notes

Title

• The title of the episode is a reference to the 1941 drama film, How Green Was My Valley and Bleen, the product that Kelly invented.
  • Another MWC episode, "How Green Was My Apple" shares the same origin.

Trivia

• Marcy does not appear in this episode, as it was directed by Amanda Bearse.
• The Fox viewing positions gag from the season 9 episode "No Pot to Pease In" was reintroduced in this episode.
• In this episode, Kelly states that she pay Bud 75% as her agent. In "The Undergraduate", she said that she paid him 55% and then he demanded 80% to help her get out slow dancing with Robbie.

Cultural References

• After Kelly asks the family to guess what has got, Bud instead guesses what she doesn't got, saying "I'll take 'Virginity' for 100, Alex!".
  • This is in reference to the television game show Jepordy and its host at the time, Alex Trebek.
  • Bud's phrase is based on what a contestant typically says when he or she is tasked with choosing the category that the next question is picked from.
• When Kelly tells the family that she is going to play Madame Curie, she then asks where the nearest brothel is.
  • In this case, Kelly is confusing "Madame" (the French equivalent of "Mrs.") with "madam", a colloquial term used to describe a woman who is an agent to prostitutes.
• The morphing montage when Kelly is testing various Bleen antidotes on Bud (as well as its' backing instrumental track) are a reference to the 1991 Michael Jackson single "Black or White".
• After Al sees the effects of Bleen, he says out loud "Don't hate me because I'm beautiful!". The line is from a Pantene shampoo commercial from the 1980s featuring actress Kelly LeBrock.
  • The line was previously used in the season 6 episode, "Psychic Avengers" by one of the Five Psychic Families members.
• When Bud tells Kelly to pretend that she is a professor when meeting the scientist, she agrees to play along but asks if she would make a more convincing Ginger or Mary Ann, in reference to the characters The Professor, Ginger Grant, and Mary Ann Summers from the television series, Gilligan's Island.
  • The series is referenced again later when Kelly addresses the scientist as "Gilligan".
• Kelly tells the professor that she received a grant from the Crayola Company, which make crayons and art supplies for young children.
• After the professor explains his field of study that uses mice and alcohol, she asks "Kennedy Grant?" which he points out is correct. This is in reference to the politically connected Kennedy family, which is known for its members' penchant for excessive drinking and extramarital affairs, such as Ted Kennedy.
• When Kelly asks if Al used the bottle of Bleen in the shower, he sarcastically quips "No, I'm wearing this towel because I want to get a job as a New York city cabbie."
  • This is in reference to the stereotype that taxicab drivers in New York are typically immigrants from countries such as India or Pakistan who barely speak English and act rude towards their passengers.
• Al promises to buy Kelly an acting career and turn her into the next Tori Spelling if she makes more Bleen.
  • Tori Spelling is an American actress who, at the time this episode originally aired, was known for her role on the FOX primetime drama Beverly Hills, 90210.
  • Al's line about buying her an acting career may be alluding to Spelling getting her acting roles due to her being the daughter of Aaron Spelling. Aaron Spelling was a producer of several popular television shows including Beverly Hills, 90210, The Love Boat and Charlie's Angels, typically featuring his daughter in small roles.
• After Al promises to make Kelly the next "Tori Spelling", she asks "But prettier, right?" before he laughs and says "Hell, Two-Face is prettier!", referring to the DC Comics character who is the nemesis of Batman.
• When Bud promises to sue Al for getting him fired, Al tells him to get in line behind "Sy Sperling and the soon-to-be defunct Hair Club for Men".
  • Hair Club for Men (now know simply as "HairClub") is a company founded by Sy Sperling in 1976 that focuses on hair restoration for men (and women in more recent years), using a variety of methods ranging from medication to laser therapy and hair transplantation.
• When discussing products that weren't tested before appearing on the market, he mentions the Ford Pinto, a subcompact vehicle made during the 1970s that was known for catching fire in rear-end accidents,
• After the results are revealed at the NO MA'AM meeting, Al tells Kelly to call the press, especially those with receding hairlines, naming David Brinkley, Willard Scott and Barbara Walters.
• When realizing the dangers of selling Bleen to men, Jefferson tells the group "We'd be as hated as the man who invented the G-Spot" before Ike suggests that it was Kenny G.
  • The G-spot is an erogenous zone in the vagina that is believed to caused female orgasms. Though some have pointed out the difficulty of reaching it via sexual intercourse or question if it even actually exist. It is named after German physician Ernst Gräfenberg.
  • Kenny G is a Canadian born musician who is known for playing smooth jazz music with a soprano saxophone.

Music

• An instrumental version of "Black or White" by Michael Jackson is played during the montage of Bud's transformations.

Locations

• Bundy Residence
• Trumaine University

Sets

• Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
• Bundy Garage
• Trumaine University Laboratory

Goofs

• Bud explains to Kelly that Madame Curie was a French chemist. And later Kelly portrays her in the television movie speaking with a stereotypical French accent. In reality, Curie was Polish (born in Poland as Maria Salomea Skłodowska), moving to Paris in her mid 20s and becoming a French citizen after her marriage to Pierre Curie.