The Old College Try was the 11th episode of Season 7 of Married... with Children that aired on FOX on December 13, 1992, also the 142nd overall episode in the series. The episode, directed by Gerry Cohen, was written by Diane Burroughs, Joey Gutierrez and P. Sharon.
Synopsis[]
Bud receives a $25,000 grant for college and prepares to move out. Al and Peggy discover the money, and believing it to be a bank error in their favor, immediately withdraw it from the account and spend it as fast as they can.
Storyline[]
Thanks to a college grant of $25,000, Bud is ready to leave home and start the good life at college, until Al and Peggy discover the money. Being the selfish petty criminals they are, they grant the money for themselves, and go on a wild spending spree in just one day that leaves Bud with zero, which forces him to have to move back home.
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[]
- Leslie Ryan as Julie
- Stan Chandler as Bank Nerd #1
- Tim Maculan as Bank Nerd #2
- Jennifer Pusheck as Toni
- Michael Mitz as Bank Teller
- Richard Mayer as Old Man
- Alex McLeod as Coed #1
- Sabryn Genet as Coed #2
- Chi Muoi Lo as Troy Chen (uncredited)
- Melissa Vinicor as Coed #3 (uncredited)
Quotes[]
- Marcy: What's that on your chin? Have some of the stronger boys been rubbing your face in the dirt again?
- Bud: It's called a beard. Surely, you've seen one before in the mirror.
- [Bud arrives home and tells his family about going to Trumaine University on a $25,000 grant, unaware that his parents had accidentally spent it all.]
- Peg: Uh, Al...
- Al: No, not now, Peg. No. My boy just got into a big time college and uh, [gets up from the dinner table and walks over to Bud] Time for him and his dad to have a little talk. Personally I never wanted to talk to my dad. [the two men sit on the couch, with Al putting his arm around Bud] Well, I'm not really like a dad, more like a... cool, older friend. You know son, I know you're always proud of your old man.
- Bud: [hesitantly] Uh, you bet, Dad... [notices the mashed potatoes on Al's vest] Nice mashed potato stain.
- Al: Hmm? [looks down at the stain] Mm... mm
- [Al flicks the potatoes off and laughs hysterically, then licks his fingers].
- Al: Anyhow, son, now I'm proud of you! Well, you were never a great athlete in high school and... [ponders] God, it must have been cold there in my shadow. But then I thought that it might give you more time for the chicks. [Bud smiles] But then your personality killed it. [Bud becomes disappointed] Then you brought home report cards with all "A"'s. [Bud smiles again] I didn't say anything at the time, but then I was... truly ashamed. [looks at Bud] A boy getting all "A"'s, you know. Boy, did I hear about that from the boys down at the barber shop, hehehe. But, now son, you're going to a big time college, and you're going to get a chance to do something that I only dreamed of!
- Bud: Make business contacts?
- Al: Nah, who wants to hang out with a bunch of smart little acned, sexual deprived "A" students who wouldn't know a breast from a football because they've never touched either. You know the type I'm talking about, son!
- Bud: Yeah! [they both laugh, before Bud suddenly stops and realizes that he is the type that Al is talking about]
- Al: Anyhow, the only reason I wanted to go to college was to experience one good panty raid. And now, you're going to do that for me son! But, son, heed your father's advice: Stay away from the big panties! You'll see enough of those on the shower rod after you're married. Go for the little ones, boy! Go for the little ones, 'cause you don't want a girl who wears big underpants! 'Cause a girl who wears big underpants has big stuff UNDER her pants!
- Bud: Thanks, Dad! If it weren't for you, I'd probably grabbed the first pair I saw. Probably would have been a big one!
- [Both men smile and hug]
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the saying "To give it the old college try", meaning to put vigorous effort into something. It is also a reference to the fact that Bud is now starting a new life at Trumaine University.
Trivia[]
- Alex McLeod, who plays one of Bud's dormmates, would later reappear on MWC as Carrie Pease in the Season 9 episode "No Pot to Pease In".
- Bud starts growing a beard in this episode, though his beard doesn't become more noticeable until a few episodes later in "It Doesn't Get Any Better Than This" and kept it till the end of the series.
- As Jefferson and Marcy are headed into the bank vault together, Jefferson very quickly and subtly pats the rear end of a blonde woman in black pantyhose who is standing at the counter near the entrance.
- On the wall near Bud's dorm is a poster for a sorority called "Alpha Finna Gyna".
- Starting with this episode, Bud is a college student at Trumaine University, where he would remain a student until finally graduating in the Season 10 episode "Bud Hits the Books".
- It should be noted that during this season, the school is called "Tremaine University".
Cultural References[]
- When Bud sees Marcy lifting her leg to check her stockings, before telling her to put some gravy on it because it looks finger lickin' good, he is referring to the fast food chain, KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) and its slogan, "It's finger lickin' good!"
- Marcy makes a reference to the 1991 thriller film Basic Instinct and reenacts the scene where the female lead crosses and uncrosses her legs for a group of detectives interviewing her.
- Bud makes a reference to the 1987 action film Lethal Weapon.
- Al mentions that Bud was featured on America's Most Wanted, a television show that profiled wanted criminals and reenactments of their crimes, before asking its viewers to call in if they had more information. It ran on FOX from 1988 to 2012
Locations[]
- Bundy Residence
- Kyoto National Bank
- Trumaine University
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Kyoto National Bank lobby
- Trumaine University dormitory
Goofs[]
- In this episode, Bud is now a student at Trumaine University, yet a few episode earlier, in "Frat Chance" he stated that he was still attending a community college, as he was beginning his sophomore year and intends to graduate with an associate's degree from there. Considering that this episode took place only two months after "Frat Chance", this would imply that Bud somehow completed his transfer/graduation requirements in an extremely short amount of time and then started at Trumaine in the winter (as this episode takes place in late fall /early winter). Additionally, universities typically accepts transfer students in the fall of the new school year, while Bud transferring at this point would be where students are halfway through their fall semester.
- It's not very clear how exactly Al and Peggy would have gotten Bud's money in the first place.
- Bud said that he wants to cash the check, implying that he wants the grant money in cash.
- Marcy gives Bud a checkbook which would imply he's opening a new account, but none of the necessary paperwork is filled out to keep a record of the new account, meaning she even wouldn't know who the account number it is attached to.
- She then passes it off to the bank nerd next to her as she heads to the vault with Jefferson. But when Al and Peggy arrive, the nerd is still at his desk and talking to the other bank nerd from earlier.
- As Marcy points out, it would still take time for a deposited check to clear, especially for such a large amount. So it would be odd that it would go directly to an account owned by Al Bundy and be instantly accessible to him within the span of 2 minutes at most.
- Al is somehow able to deposit the 20 cents without a deposit slip, which would make difficult unless the teller recognized Al and knew his bank account number in his head.
- When Al spits up the mashed potatoes. the potatoes land down towards his lap and the floor and some of it is still on his lip as he laughs. After Kelly asks about the new appliances, the camera cuts back to Al. His lip is now clean and the potatoes are smeared on the right side of his vest of his suit vest. After Al gets up to talk to Bud, the potatoes are now smeared on both sides of his vest by the button.
- The degree of damage to the big screen TV Kelly broke differs between shots. When Kelly first breaks it, the left side of the TV screen is still intact. When Buck comes in, the left is completely damaged. When Seven walks upstairs with his date, the left side is intact again. When Al takes Bud to the couch, the left side is completely damaged again. When Bud gets up from the couch to tell them he's moving out that night, the screen is intact again. Finally, after Peg tells Bud to wash his chin and he heads upstairs, the left side is completely damaged again.
- Al gave the teller a quarter and asked for 5 cents back resulting in a deposit of 20 cents. Peggy states that with one deposit, Al just doubled the amount in their savings account. This implies that the amount in the account is now 40 cents (plus the 25,000 that had unwittingly been deposited by Bud). However, when they look at the receipt the balance shows $25,050, not $25,040.
- After being kicked out of the dorm, Bud is using Seven to batter down the locked front door at the Bundy Residence. As the door falls, the arm of a crew member in a blue long sleeve shirt can be briefly seen helping to push the door down near the door knob.
- The studio lights can seen seen reflecting off of Seven's football helmet after knocking down the front door.