Just Shoe It is the 15th episode of season 6 of Married... with Children, also the 120th overall series episode. Directed by Gerry Cohen, and written by Lisa Chernin, the episode premiered on the FOX network, airing on January 19, 1992.
Synopsis[]
Al wins the chance to appear in a sneaker commercial featuring famous sports stars, such as baseball player Steve Carlton, football player Ed "Too Tall" Jones, and boxer Sugar Ray Leonard.
Plot summary[]
Al is asked to appear in an athletic shoe commercial. Al, being Polk High's 1966 all city running back and shoe salesman is glad to reclaim his glory days. But Al ends up being just a punching bag for former star athletes Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Steve Carlton and Sugar Ray Leonard for the commercial!
Recurring cast/Guest stars[]
- Cast Regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy D'Arcy
- Ted McGinley as Jefferson D'Arcy
- Buck the Dog as Buck Bundy
Guest starring[]
- Steve Vinovich as The Director
- Ed 'Too Tall' Jones as Himself
- Steve Carlton as Himself
- Sugar Ray Leonard as Himself
- Elizabeth Giordano as Receptionist
- George C. Simms as Casting Executive
- Tom Reilly as Caterer
- Jay Gardner as Commercial Announcer (voice)
- Frank Lloyd as Al's Feet (voice)
Quotes[]
- Al: Don't you see?! Ex-Jocks! Whose the most famous ex-athlete in Chicago?
- Bud: Ernie Banks?
- Al: I said "athlete"! You should know that means football!
- Al: Who's the man who scored 4 touchdowns in a single game to clinch the city championship in 1966?
- Jefferson: Shaft, John Shaft.
- Al: No. Who's the man who rushed for 200 yards against Garfield High?
- Jefferson: Shaft. He's a bad mother...
- Al: Shut your mouth!
- Jefferson: I'm just talking about Shaft.
- Bud: Okay Mom, now who's the guy who hikes the ball to the quarterback?
- Peg: The center.
- Bud: Very good. Now, who's the guy who rushes the passer?
- Peg: The defensive end.
- Bud: Excellent. Now, who's the little foreign guy who can barely speak English, never gets hit, and is taking yet another job away from an American?
- Peg: The place kicker.
- Bud: Great job, Mom!
- [Peg and the kids run onto the boxing ring set after watching Sugar Ray Leonard knock out Al with a single blow]
- Bud: [concerned, as he puts his hands around Leonard's boxing glove] Hey, did you hurt your hand on my dad's jaw?
- [Leonard just smiles and shakes his head to indicate "No"]
- Kelly: I'm curious about your name... How did you get the name "Leonard"?
- [Leonard quickly gives Kelly a surprised look]
- Peg: Uh, Sugar Ray, I blinked and missed the whole thing... Could you hit him again?
- Leonard: [smiling and nodding] Sure, yeah, yeah...
- Peg: Al! [claps hands] Get up!
- [Al is silent as he struggles to move his legs while lying on the floor]
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title is a play on the Nike brand slogan, "Just Do It!".
Trivia[]
- Al implies that Peggy was formerly a brunette.
- Katey Sagal, who played Peggy on the show, is a brunette in real life.
- Al was an MVP for the "20 Stores and Under" Mall League.
- Frank Lloyd, who played Al's friend Norris in earlier seasons of MWC plays Al's "feet" in the final cut of the commercial in this episode.
Cultural References[]
- The Zeus shoes is a parody of athletic shoe and sportswear manufacturer, Nike,
- Buck's line, "Are you feeling lucky, punks?!" is a reference to a line said by Inspector "Dirty Harry" Callahan from the Dirty Harry film series.
- Peggy mentions that she is banned from the Bundy house during both The Super Bowl and The Bud Bowl.
- The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the NFL.
- The Bud Bowl was a stop motion animated advertisement by Budweiser Beer. Its title would serve as the inspiration for the MWC episodes "Dud Bowl" and "Dud Bowl II".
- The Bud Bowl aired yearly, from 1989 to 1997, in a series of installments during the course of the Super Bowl telecast.
- After arriving home, Al addresses his family as "Morticia, Wednesday, Pugsley". This is in reference to the 1960s sitcom The Addams Family and the characters Morticia Addams and her children Wednesday and Pugsley.
- When Al asks his family who was the most famous ex-athlete in Chicago, Bud and Peggy mention Ernie Banks, Gayle Sayers and "the FTD florist"
- Ernie Banks was a Short Stop / 1st Baseman for the Chicago Cubs baseball team. He was previously mentioned in The Mystery of Skull Island and would later appear as himself in the season 8 episode, "Dances with Weezie".
- Gale Sayers was a halfback for the Chicago Bears NFL team. He was mentioned in the season 4 episode "What Goes Around Came Around" as one of the names invited to speak at the homecoming dance before they finally settled on "Alf Bundy".
- "The FTD Florist" is a reference to Merlin Olsen, a defensive tackle for the Los Angeles Rams NFL team who later served as a spokesman for FTD (Florists' Transworld Delivery). He would be mentioned again by Marcy in "Valentine's Day Massacre".
- When Al asks Jefferson a series of questions regarding who was the most famous ex-athlete in Chicago, he responds with "John Shaft" each time before he eventually tells him "Shut your mouth!". This is a reference to the 1971 film, Shaft and its theme song.
- The receiptionist lists off several names before finally mentioning "Mr. Bindy", referring to professional atheletes:
- Mr. Bupkis - Dick Butkus, Wide Receiver, Chicago Bears
- Mr. Carlton - Steve Carlton, Pitcher, Philidelphia Phillies
- Mr. Tarkenton - Fran Tarkenton, Quarterback, Minnesota Vikings
- Mr. Namath - Joe Namath, Quarterback, New York Jets
- Namath would later appear on MWC in the Season 8 episode "Dances with Weezie".
- Al had previously claimed to be Joe Namath in order to impress Flopsie the secretary in "Weenie Tot Lovers and Other Strangers".
- After mentions that he didn't get a script, the director tells him to just follow his instinct. He then tells Ed "Too Tall" Jones "that's what they must tell Brando". This is a reference to actor Marlon Brando, who was often known for not memorizing his lines (sometimes using an earpiece to have his line fed to him) and being at odds with directors for not wanting to follow their directions.
- Al is forced to watched the 1989 dramatic film, Steel Magnolias after Buck jumps on the couch and comments on Julia Roberts' role in the film.
- When Boxer Sugar Ray Leonard knocks out Al, Peg comments "Wow! He didn't even have time to spit out a whimpering 'No más!'." That is a reference to the 1980 welterweight fight between Sugar Ray Leonard and Roberto Duran, where near the end of the eighth round, Duran deemed himself unable to continue and began yelling "No más!" ("No more!" in Spanish) to the referee.
- Throughout the episodes Peg, Bud, Kelly, and the D'Arcys seem to be excited over a blue (and later, green) toilet bowl disc, referring to in-tank toilet cleaning tablets.
Locations[]
- Bundy Residence
- Studio
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Football Field set
- Baseball Field set
- Boxing Ring set
Goofs[]
- Peggy makes a reference to Merlin Olsen when Al asked his family who was the most famous ex-athlete in Chicago. Merlin Olsen played exclusively for the Los Angeles Rams during his NFL career and in Utah during his College Football career.