S4E21 - "To Err is Human" - WKRP-Cast

Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi, everybody, This is very sandy, and thank you very
much for listening to the wuk Rpcast.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
So just sit right down, relax, open your ears real wide,
and say.

Speaker 3 (00:12):
Weather today in the greater Cincinnati area. Are you awake? Wow?
Are you awake now?

Speaker 4 (00:19):
But the Senator, while insisting he was not intoxicated, could
not explain his nudity.

Speaker 5 (00:24):
Same what Dear God, She's gonna kill us all.

Speaker 1 (00:27):
Welcome to the WKRP Cast. My name is Alan Stairs.

Speaker 6 (00:31):
And I'm Donna Stair. This is the fourth and final
season of our week by week, episode by episode.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
Rewatch join us for this final season as we're getting
into the music, the.

Speaker 6 (00:42):
Trivia, and the fun of WKRP.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
So fellow babies, stay tuned and stay cool. It's time
for the WKRP Cast.

Speaker 3 (00:50):
I'm a WKRP and.

Speaker 1 (00:53):
Simpson and welcome back to another WKRP cast. All I
can say this week is oops, Donna, what is our episode?

Speaker 6 (01:03):
We are ready to discuss? To air is human? The
air date was August ninth, nineteen eighty two. Written by
Lisa Leven, executive story consultant Lisa Levin, directed by Linda
Day An ad for one of the station's sponsors is
supposed to show Venus promoting shampoo. Somehow it winds up

(01:25):
being a picture of herb at a barbecue grill. The
sponsor wants to drop them. Jennifer offers to go talk
to the guy, using her obvious appeal to convince him.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
Not to Welcome to Summertime. Did you catch the air? Date?
August ninth, nineteen eighty two was the first time anybody
got to see this pretty hilarious episode to air is Human.
Originally this app had been slotted for air on April fourteenth.
The series was tanking, so CBS pulled it from the
lineup on April twenty first, the season finale up and

(01:57):
down the dial ran, garnering some almost embarrassing ratings. Everybody
figured it would also be the series finale since WKRP
was officially canceled the first week of May nineteen eighty two.
Then Cinderella's Story. We knew this thing was good all along, right,
if anybody got a chance to see if they'd love

(02:19):
it right right?

Speaker 6 (02:22):
CBS put it back on Monday nights at eight thirty
starting June seventh. They'd come full circle back on Mondays
as a summertime rerun. On June seventh, they ran Explosive
Affair Part one. It was ranked number seventeen for the week.
The next week, Part two would finish number thirteen. At

(02:43):
this point into August of nineteen eighty two, WKRP had
become a summertime hit, with top ten finishes from the reruns.
Some were even going top five. We like to think
some exec at CBS got a cookie and they remembered
there were still two unaired episodes of this canceled hip

(03:06):
show sitting on the CBS shelf.

Speaker 1 (03:08):
Two weeks ago, a rerun of Three Days of the
Condo was number five overall for the week. Condo you
Might Remember was ranked number fifty two out of sixty
five shows the week it first aired. Who's On First
was ranked number ten for the week. Just three weeks ago,
this episode To Air is Human turned out to be huge.

(03:29):
It finishes the week with a number four ranking overall.
To Air Is Human, an episode that was pulled from
the lineup in the spring, is now tied with Baseball
for the highest finished for a week in the history
of the series.

Speaker 6 (03:44):
Going almost to the entire fourth season, with weekly rankings
in the forties and fifties did not go unnoticed by
the WKRP cast, although they didn't know it for a fact,
they were pretty sure the series wouldn't be picked up
for fall. After the Thursday rehearsal of this episode, the

(04:04):
last episode taped for the season, the cast showed up
in tuxes and formals. They had an end of series
rap party the night before the final taping of the season.
They didn't know it was the end of the series,
but they had a pretty good idea. CBS would not
hand down official word until May sixth of nineteen eighty two.

(04:29):
By the end of May, most of the cast had
moved on to other commitments. It's the life of a
working actor. You can't sit around admiring what you just did.
You have to get out there and find the next thing.
By the time CBS realized they had a top ten
hit on their hands, the WKRP gang was long gone.

(04:52):
There may have been brief talk of a fifth season,
but it was never really a possibility.

Speaker 1 (04:58):
Hey guys, come back, come back. I wish they would
have so. The title of this episode is taken from
a satirical poem published in seventeen eleven. It was called
an essay on criticism by English writer Alexander Pope. Pope
was commenting on a new era of literary commerce and
how writers and critics were both behaving. The poem is

(05:21):
satire written in heroic couplets utilizing iambic pentameter. The complete
quote is to air is human, to forgive divine, and
this guy should have gone into copywriting. Because this poem
is a source of several popular quotations, Pope also gave
us a little learning is a dangerous thing, and fools

(05:42):
rush in where angels fear to tread. In this same poem,
the little learning quote is often misquoted as a little
knowledge is a dangerous thing. So let's find out who's
being human. It's time to get into the episode.

Speaker 6 (05:56):
We start out in the lobby. Jennifer is reading a
magazine at her desk. We can hear mister Carlson yelling
at Andy about herb through the closed door of his office.

Speaker 3 (06:13):
His had okay, his heart fil.

Speaker 7 (06:16):
Why you're at it?

Speaker 8 (06:17):
Howm smell.

Speaker 6 (06:20):
Andy has opened the door to Carlson's office. He's leaning
on the door jam, waiting for a pause in mister
Carlson's rage. Well, there's finally a lull in the rant.

Speaker 3 (06:30):
Jennifer when herb comes in and tell him, mister Carlson.

Speaker 8 (06:32):
Watch soon.

Speaker 6 (06:33):
Okay, She goes back to her reading.

Speaker 1 (06:36):
I like how if you're hunting her a trophy would
be his belt. So a man enters the lobby and
tells Jennifer he's there to see mister Carlson. This guy's
obviously a salesman. Jennifer responds with her usual.

Speaker 7 (06:48):
Oh, I'm sorry, mister Carlson isn't here.

Speaker 3 (06:51):
I'm a very dear friend of his since birth.

Speaker 1 (06:54):
The man smiles. Jennifer. The approach doesn't work, not here.

Speaker 3 (06:58):
Look, I owe a large sum of money. I'm here
to pay him back.

Speaker 1 (07:02):
The man reaches into his jacket breast pocket. Surely the
lure of cash will get him into the big guy's office.
He's good, but Armis Marlowe is better. Jennifer holds out
her open hand, palm up, you can give it to me.
Jennifer Flesch is a large smile at the man.

Speaker 6 (07:20):
The salesman is being played by James Gallery. James was
born in Auburn, New York, in nineteen thirty five. His
first IMDb listing is an appearance on daytime soap The
Edge of Night in nineteen fifty six, he was twenty
one years old. James could be found on stage through
most of his twenties fun WKRP Tie. In nineteen sixty six,

(07:45):
he appeared in a play which also included Carol Bruce,
who played Mama Carlson in the cast. James returned to
TV in nineteen seventy four. Between nineteen seventy four and
nineteen ninety eight, he will rack up forty six film
and TV credits. James was a perfect every man with

(08:06):
a Tom Poston look. James had such a generic look
in some series he would return multiple times playing different characters.
James had one series regular spot in nineteen seventy nine,
but he usually picked up one off appearances like this one.
James died in two thousand and one at his home

(08:27):
in Camarillo, California. He was sixty five years old.

Speaker 1 (08:32):
So the man tries another approach.

Speaker 7 (08:34):
Hey, yeah, haven't we met somewhere before?

Speaker 8 (08:39):
Or am I getting you confused with some gorgeous movie star?

Speaker 5 (08:44):
Where was it?

Speaker 1 (08:45):
Wow? He is full of it. Jennifer is still smiling,
says Youngstown.

Speaker 3 (08:49):
Yeah, Youngstown, Ohio.

Speaker 7 (08:51):
I've never been to Youngstown.

Speaker 3 (08:54):
I like that and abroad.

Speaker 1 (08:56):
Oh, Jennifer's smiles disappeared. What Ooh, Jennifer is glad ing
at the man, lady, oh, woman?

Speaker 3 (09:03):
Which is in now?

Speaker 8 (09:04):
Well?

Speaker 1 (09:05):
The man is slowly backing away from Jennifer's desk as
he should.

Speaker 6 (09:09):
Wow. We thought this guy was smooth. Then he pulled
out broad. Bad move, dude. We've always known broad, when
used to describe a woman, was vaguely insulting. But why
and where did the term come from. It's not as
respectful as a lady, but not as insulting as the
other B word reserved for the ladies. Sometimes it can

(09:33):
indicate a woman of low morals who is sexually available,
but it might also mean a woman who works among men,
so she has to be tough.

Speaker 1 (09:42):
After a couple of hours of reading and chasing down leads,
we still aren't exactly sure where broad comes from. It
first appeared in print in either nineteen eleven or nineteen thirteen,
but it may have been in use going back to
the eighteen sixties. Adam Online cites the term broadwife or

(10:02):
a broadwife as a possible source. It was the term
for a woman who was away from her husband. Now,
this woman would usually be a slave and may have
been shared sexually. Other places indicate the term broad was
a slang term for a ticket, like a meal ticket
or a train ticket. Those were broads. Well, in prostitution terms,

(10:24):
a woman could be called a broad for a pimp,
she was his meal ticket. Entomologists call this explanation plausible
but unlikely.

Speaker 6 (10:34):
The most basic explanation for broad says it's a reference
to a woman's hips. Women are by nature broader at
the hips than men. One of the more interesting explanations
we found references women who worked on Broadway prior to
World War One. Show business was a man's world, and

(10:54):
Broadway was the most cutthroat place you could find before
the movie business took over the mantle as leaders in sleeves,
a woman who could hold her own on Broadway was brassy, outspoken, tough,
and smart. According to a couple of sources we found,
these tough, savvy, successful showbiz women on Broadway were the

(11:16):
original broads.

Speaker 1 (11:17):
Herb be inners the lobby, carrying his briefcase and singing.
And as herb inners, we realize it's time Herb darligasi alert.

Speaker 6 (11:30):
Herb is wearing shades of blue and white plaid jacket
with robin egg blue pants. He has on a white
dress shirt with dark gray vertical lines. The collar of
the shirt is solid white. He is accessorizing with a
tie that has dark blue and maroon vertical stripes, and
of course his signature white belt and shoes.

Speaker 1 (11:51):
I remember in the early eighties those white collars with
a different either a pattern or a different colored shirt
or really hot, and my dad had got one because
he'd seen Tom Brokaw wearing it. Oh my goodness, so
he just thought he was the height of fashion after
he had Tom Brokaws.

Speaker 7 (12:08):
Sure, mister Carlson would like to.

Speaker 1 (12:10):
See you so, Looking at the salesman, Jennifer.

Speaker 7 (12:12):
Says, not that, mister Carlson.

Speaker 1 (12:14):
Her best. Jennifer, what mister Carlson wants to see him about?
She tells her, But he didn't say her wants to
know if it sounded important.

Speaker 3 (12:22):
Very well, I'm due for a raise.

Speaker 9 (12:24):
You know.

Speaker 1 (12:26):
Jennifer doesn't respond. She just sits there staring at herb.
Her leans towards Jennifer, his face serious.

Speaker 3 (12:32):
In trouble are I?

Speaker 8 (12:35):
He wants your heart, herb really and your belt.

Speaker 1 (12:42):
Herb turns and begins to leave the lobby.

Speaker 6 (12:46):
Well, just then Andy comes out of mister Carlson's office
and he sees Herb.

Speaker 3 (12:51):
Herbert get in here right now.

Speaker 6 (12:53):
The look on Herb's face is priceless. It's an expression
like a little kid who knows he's about to be punished,
but he's not quite sure for what. Herb walks into
mister Carlson's office, and when he gets in there, you
see his face fall. There are cardboard stand ups all
over mister Carlson's office. Once we get a chance to

(13:15):
focus in on the stand ups, the subject appears to
be Herb wearing a tall chef's hat and an apron
that says kiss the cook. He's at a charcoal grill
grilling up some big burgers. The picture is the entire
stand up. A headline superimposed above the grill says wkrps

(13:37):
Venus Flytrap says. Then there's a voice bubble coming from
Herb's mouth. The voice bubble is promoting a shampoo. It says,
my hair is laid back, and so am I with
soul SuDS.

Speaker 1 (13:51):
The stand up alone is what sells this episode. That
thing is so funny just on its own. All they
need to do is show you that our comes out
from between two of the Herb stand ups, and it
is a hilarious entrance. These things are easily six feet tall.

Speaker 3 (14:08):
Well, Herb, what do you think.

Speaker 2 (14:13):
What we have here is a commercial for Soul Said Shampoo,
shampoo that's exclusively marketed to the hip black customer. Mike Craig, Yes,
then no, why are we looking at a picture of
this really idiotic looking white.

Speaker 1 (14:30):
Mane Herb looks confused. You can see the wheels turning.
He is desperately trying to figure a way out of
this mess. Herb approaches mister Carlson and tells him this
is a mistake. Well, okay, yeah, we kind of got
that part.

Speaker 3 (14:46):
Andy, it's a mistake.

Speaker 5 (14:48):
It's a five thousand dollars mistake.

Speaker 1 (14:51):
Five thousand is big, but in twenty twenty two dollars,
that would be about a fifteen thousand dollars mistake. And
he joins Our and Herb his arms crossed.

Speaker 3 (15:02):
What happened?

Speaker 5 (15:02):
Herber?

Speaker 6 (15:03):
Herb turns to Andy a note of desperation in his voice.

Speaker 3 (15:07):
Well, it's supposed to be venus, Oh we know that,
but how did it happen?

Speaker 7 (15:10):
Come on, tell us before you die.

Speaker 6 (15:13):
Herb begins tapping his forehead as though he's trying to recall.

Speaker 1 (15:18):
Didn't you pay a professional photographer one hundred and fifty
dollars to take Venus's picture?

Speaker 6 (15:22):
Herb begins shuffling his feet.

Speaker 4 (15:24):
Yes and no, well, yes, I paid the photographer one
hundred and fifty dollars.

Speaker 3 (15:30):
No, he wasn't a professional.

Speaker 6 (15:32):
Andy asks Herb who it was. Herb takes a big pause.
He looks from mister Carlson to Andy, and then whispers
you you.

Speaker 1 (15:47):
As soon as I heard there was one hundred and
fifty bucks involved, I knew Herb had somehow taken the money.
So Herb tells them he takes a pretty darn good picture.
We kind of saw Herb's slide show from Never Leave Me, Lucille.
He does have some amateur photographer experience, although after selecting
Gonzer for the Calendar Pictures and the Filthy Pictures episode,

(16:09):
we're kind of surprised they trusted Herb with another photographer assignment.
Carlson has a problem with Herb's photographic skills on this
particular project.

Speaker 3 (16:19):
Didn't you call this a darn good picture of Venus?

Speaker 1 (16:21):
Hebbs says, no, Andy is trying so hard to restrain himself.

Speaker 3 (16:26):
What happened here, Herb?

Speaker 1 (16:27):
I just really try and think.

Speaker 7 (16:28):
Huh.

Speaker 6 (16:29):
Herb walks over to one of the cardboard stand ups.

Speaker 4 (16:32):
Well, this picture of me was on the same role
I took a Venus.

Speaker 3 (16:36):
Huh. I guess I told him to print the wrong number.

Speaker 6 (16:40):
Andy slowly but deliberately begins walking towards Herb, saying, certainly
he proved the photo.

Speaker 3 (16:48):
Certainly you stopped by the printer. Certainly you were on
top of things. Certainly you were not barbecuing when all
this went down.

Speaker 6 (16:55):
Andy now has a hold of Herb's shirt and tie
in his fist. He is to nose with herb.

Speaker 1 (17:01):
Art points to one of the cardboard's stand ups.

Speaker 2 (17:04):
Certainly you know that there's one of these at every
supermarket in town.

Speaker 4 (17:07):
And we can't even tell how good the shampoo works
on you, Herb, because you got a hat off.

Speaker 1 (17:13):
As Carlson stalking, his office, door opens and Venus enters.
Andy looks at Venus. We get a cut to Art.
He's also looking at Venus. Venus, who's supposed to be
the one talking on these displays, stands there for a
few seconds, taking in the scene, and then he explodes.
Venus rushes towards her, ready to kill him. Andy and

(17:37):
Art are holding Venus back, not even holding back, They're
holding him up. He is off the floor. Herb ignoring
all the commotion, is admiring himself in the stand ups.
As Venus flies through Art's office, we head into our
theme UKR Censon.

Speaker 6 (18:00):
We come back from commercial in the studio where Johnny
is at the mic. We hear do You Believe in Love?
By Huey Lewis and The News. If you've only watched
WKRP in syndication, this might be a new one for you.
Most of the syndication versions of this episode didn't fade
in until after the song.

Speaker 1 (18:20):
Do You Believe in Love was a huge cut from
Mister Hugh Craig the Third, better known as Huey Lewis.
Lewis had been working in the music industry for most
of the nineteen seventies. He'd been doing session work with
his harmonica while part of the band Clover. Lewis formed
The News in nineteen eighty. This cut comes from their
second studio album, Picture This, which had been released in

(18:45):
January of nineteen eighty two.

Speaker 6 (18:47):
Do You Believe in Love was written by legendary producer
Robert John mutt Lang under the title we Both Believe
in Love. UEI made a few lyrical changes to the
song before he recorded it. This cut becomes a major

(19:23):
breakthrough for Hughie in the News. It's their first charted
hit of any kind. It will go to number seven
on the US Billboard Hot one hundred in February of
nineteen eighty two. The album Picture This also peaks at
number seven on the US Top two hundred Albums chart.

Speaker 1 (19:41):
Johnny announces the time as nine thirty seven You Got the.

Speaker 3 (19:45):
Doctor on the Mighty KRP.

Speaker 4 (19:46):
Coming up next from nineteen sixty five, it's Junior Walker
and the All Star Shotgun, kicking off another twenty commercial
free minutes of rock and roll.

Speaker 1 (19:56):
Right after this, Johnny puts a card in and we
hear Venus's voice talking about Soul SuDS. Ah, this is
Venus fly Trap, and I want all my brothers and
sisters out there to know that I use Soul SuDS.
Sent a shot of the hallway outside of the studio.
Venus comes through the doorway. He looks so dejected. He's

(20:18):
dragging one of the large cardboard stand ups of herb
and slowly walking down the hallway, he stops outside the
studio window and listens as his voice finishes the shampoo commercial.

Speaker 3 (20:29):
Do as I do, My hair's laid back and so
am I.

Speaker 2 (20:34):
That's because I put the brakes on the flakes while conditioning.

Speaker 3 (20:37):
To me, so look for a life size post with
me wherever they sell Soul SuDS and get a look
at how great Venus fly trap looks like just one
U s Sola SuDS shampoo.

Speaker 6 (20:48):
We are by no means experts on black hair or
black hair care products, so of course we had to
do some research. We found a great article on a
website called Unruly titled black Hair Frequently Asked Questions Ten
Things non Blacks want to Know. It answered a lot

(21:09):
of our questions about black hair and, more specifically, the
need for a shampoo like Soul SuDS. Black hair does
not retain moisture in the same way as Caucasian hair.
It dries out easily and contend to break off when dry.

Speaker 1 (21:25):
Shampoos formulated for Caucasian hair tend to be harsh, and
most are designed to strip natural oils off the hair.
Shampoo formulated for black hair is gentle. It doesn't strip
natural oils from the hair or scalp. You heard Venus
say he put the brakes on the flakes with soul SuDS.
While using a shampoo on black hair that's stripping or

(21:45):
drying can lead to excessive dandriff and alopecia. A less
damaging formulation like Soul SuDS helps to retain moisture, so
it naturally reduces the dandriffe caused by drying. A less
stripping formula also keeps black hair healthier so it can
grow longer without breaking.

Speaker 6 (22:04):
Venus walks into the studio with the cardboard poster. He
looks like he's in a daze. Venus leans the life
size herb cutout against the wall. Johnny turns. Venus motions
to the poster, then to himself. Johnny nods, then starts
shotgun by Junior Walker and the All Stars. Johnny kills

(22:26):
the sound and turns to look at Venus.

Speaker 5 (22:29):
You got to stop using this stuff right away.

Speaker 6 (22:34):
Venus is angry.

Speaker 3 (22:36):
I go out this morning, you know, to buy some shampoo,
and I see the statue of my supermarket man. We
got to get rid of these signs, at least in
my neighborhood.

Speaker 6 (22:44):
Johnny leans back in his chair and asks if this
is Herb's fault.

Speaker 3 (22:49):
Of course it's Herb's fault. Look at this, kiss the
cook kiss the cook man.

Speaker 1 (22:54):
You had to ask kind of had to be herb fault.
So Johnny stands and walks over to Venus.

Speaker 3 (22:59):
I don't know how to say that, brother. I guess
you know you're washed up as a black man.

Speaker 1 (23:06):
He seems very interested in Venus's claim to his heritage.
It was also Johnny who was giving Venus black lessons
before his interview with Black Life Magazine back in the episode.

Speaker 2 (23:17):
Changes Relax, man, I mean, you know, just talk a
lot of jive, run the dozens on the cat, and
don't mention your Slim Whitman collection.

Speaker 3 (23:28):
I don't have any Slim Whitman records.

Speaker 1 (23:30):
We're pretty sure Venus is wanting an answer about the
stand up man. Johnny sees this as a chance to
give Venus some broad based career advice.

Speaker 3 (23:40):
Huntrey and Western.

Speaker 4 (23:43):
Beautiful Music could apply for a position in the Reagan administration.

Speaker 3 (23:49):
There are a lot of options, Venus.

Speaker 1 (23:51):
Venus looks at Johnny. He seems to have hit a
breaking point. Venus lets out a loud yell and punches
the poster. He puts his fist right through Herb's head.

Speaker 6 (24:05):
The cut Johnny went into Shotgun, was a breakthrough tune
from the band Junior Walker and the All Stars. Walker,
whose real name was Autrey de Walt Mixon Jr. Was
known for his sax work, and he would record for
Motown throughout the sixties. Walker also takes lead vocal on
this cut. He wasn't supposed to, but the lead singer

(24:27):
didn't show up for the sessions. Producer Barry Gordy, to
Walker's surprise, decided to keep the vocal track instead of
bringing a pro in to recut it.

Speaker 1 (24:36):
This was the first had for Walker and his band
The All Stars. It would also be tied with What
Does It Take To Win Your Love as their biggest hit.
Shotgun went to number four on the US Hot one
hundred and February of nineteen sixty five. Soon more, between

(25:05):
nineteen sixty five and nineteen seventy two, Walker and the
All Stars will show up on the Hot one hundred
with twenty one different tracks. A dozen of those will
go top forty. Walker's career after as a session musician
had gotten a huge bump right about the time this
episode was airing. Walker was the one who'd provided that

(25:25):
scorching sax solo on the Foreigner hit Urgent.

Speaker 6 (25:41):
We transitioned to the bullpen, where Herb is on the phone.
He gets into a hilarious conversation with the Soulsuds printers.
Bailey and Less are at Bailey's desk working on something.

Speaker 4 (25:53):
You guys call yourselves, printers, there were fifty photos of
a black guy in a tuxedo holding a bottle, sham
who and one photo of a white guy barbecuing, and
you use the white guy.

Speaker 6 (26:05):
Bailey and Les look up briefly from their work.

Speaker 4 (26:08):
I don't care which photo I'm marked. I made the
mistake and you people were supposed to catch it. That's
what I pay you for.

Speaker 6 (26:15):
Herb seems to have a history with this printer.

Speaker 4 (26:18):
Don't you remember I screw up everything? You should know
that if it comes from me, it's wrong. Now, wise up?
What's wrong with you guys?

Speaker 3 (26:28):
Anyway? Can't you get anything right?

Speaker 6 (26:30):
Herb slams down the phone, calling them idiots. This is
a clever twist. Herb has managed to turn his being
a screw up into an excuse for blaming others when
he screws up. All you have to say is how
could you let me do that? And it becomes the
other guy's fault.

Speaker 1 (26:49):
I have to remember that. I gotta use how could
you have let me do that?

Speaker 6 (26:52):
I think goodness wives have been using that for years.

Speaker 1 (26:56):
So Bailey tells Herb he should fire the printers. Herb
is already on it, even though this is nowhere closed
to being the printer's full.

Speaker 3 (27:03):
Tomorrow, I'm getting a new printer. Business is business.

Speaker 1 (27:07):
Bailey goes for the throat with Herb.

Speaker 7 (27:09):
And how about yourself? Do you think you should be fired?

Speaker 1 (27:11):
Herb, unfazed, surprisingly tells Bailey.

Speaker 3 (27:15):
Yeah, as a matter of fact, I do. What do
you think about that?

Speaker 1 (27:20):
Herb has walked over to Bailey's desk. He doesn't seem
bothered by the prospect of getting canned, because, as he
tells her, they won't do it.

Speaker 3 (27:27):
Carlson's a marshmallow and he's too nice of the job.

Speaker 6 (27:30):
Bailey tells Herb she would fire him. Herb doesn't believe it.
He tells Bailey she wouldn't really do it.

Speaker 3 (27:37):
I mean, you couldn't come in here every day and
stare at this empty desk.

Speaker 6 (27:42):
He thinks the guilt would be too much for her.
HERB looks Bailey right in the eyes.

Speaker 3 (27:47):
Am I right?

Speaker 7 (27:48):
Well?

Speaker 6 (27:50):
Across the room, we get input from Less the mercenary
firing Bailey. HERB tells Less to stay out of it.

Speaker 10 (27:59):
And now special look at this episode's bandage placement for
a five time Buckeye News Awk Award winner, less Ness Men.
This is the less Nessman bandage report. Now here's Donna
Staiir with her report about less Ness Men.

Speaker 6 (28:14):
Entire left middle finger.

Speaker 10 (28:16):
This has been a look at the bandage placement boys
Silver Sow and Copper Cobb Award winning journalist less ness Man.

Speaker 6 (28:25):
Less does not stay out of it, do it? Bailey
looks at herb. She folds, even hypothetically.

Speaker 4 (28:32):
Hey, hey, nobody gets fired around here. They get assaulted now,
and then nobody gets fired.

Speaker 6 (28:43):
We're thinking the assaulted comment might be a reference to
what happened with Venus earlier in Carlson's office.

Speaker 1 (28:50):
If Venus got through them, he definitely got a few
inn on her. And cutting back to mister Carlson's office,
we find Andy sitting on Art's desk with the phone
to his ear. Only one more episode to go and
Andy still doesn't get furniture. Mister Carlson is swiveling in
his seat waiting for Andy to finish. We hear Andy
say thank you goodbye and he hangs up the phone. Well, well,

(29:12):
if we pay for the signs and get him out
of the stores, he will want police. Commercials Andy seems
to have been smoothing things over with the client. Mister
Carlson wants to know what this means to them. Well,
Andy tells him the whole promotion becomes a total wash out.
They won't make a dime, but at least they won't
lose any money.

Speaker 5 (29:31):
We could have made five thousand dollars.

Speaker 6 (29:33):
Andy tells mister Carlson, this guy is letting them off
the hook. He has a reputation for being tough as nails.

Speaker 5 (29:40):
Talk about HERB tarling for a miss.

Speaker 6 (29:42):
Andy stands and says okay. Mister Carlson wants to know
how much longer they're going to let this sort of
thing go on. Andy says he'll talk with Herb, and
he heads for the door.

Speaker 2 (29:53):
I'm not talking about the scolding, Andy, I'm talking change.

Speaker 6 (29:59):
This sounds serious. There's a pause as Andy looks at
mister Carlson.

Speaker 5 (30:04):
Oh, you think about it for a while, right, yeah,
I will.

Speaker 6 (30:07):
Andy leaves the office.

Speaker 1 (30:09):
Art picks up his phone and dials Jennifer.

Speaker 5 (30:12):
Yeah, will you come in here for a minute.

Speaker 1 (30:13):
Late. Jennifer comes into Carlson's office with a look of
unease on her face. We know Art has consulted with
Jennifer on business matters in the past. He asks if
she's aware of the Sherman Soulsud's mess. She tells him
she knows about it.

Speaker 3 (30:28):
What would a prudent businessman do?

Speaker 1 (30:30):
Jennifer nervously rubs her hands together.

Speaker 7 (30:33):
Give him another chance.

Speaker 1 (30:34):
This is kind of surprising. You'd think Jennifer, of all people,
would jump at a chance to rid herself of herb.
Art asks her, why.

Speaker 8 (30:43):
Well, I think you really made an impression on him
this time. I think you'll see some improvement.

Speaker 6 (30:49):
The door to mister Carlson's office opens and Herb sticks
his head in. He's as cocky and self assured as
ever the guy.

Speaker 4 (30:57):
Here's the deal, I just fired the drop them like
a hot rock.

Speaker 6 (31:02):
Herb snaps his fingers. Mister Carlson points at Herb and says, shit,
that lobby for.

Speaker 3 (31:07):
A little bit Herb, I want to see you in
a minute, okay, but make it snappy.

Speaker 2 (31:12):
All right.

Speaker 6 (31:13):
Herb closes the door. As he leaves, Jennifer grimaces.

Speaker 3 (31:18):
He really doesn't help himself much, doesn't worry.

Speaker 6 (31:22):
Jennifer shakes her head and says, no.

Speaker 3 (31:24):
Well, Jennifer, this is it. You just give me a
couple of seconds before you send him in.

Speaker 6 (31:29):
Jennifer's eyes are wide, Yes, sir, this is really it.
Herb's gone too far with this one, and it sounds
like Herb's gone.

Speaker 1 (31:38):
Jennifer walks down of Art's office and shuts the door.
Herb stands. He's ready to just go right on into
the meeting. He has no idea how close he is
to really getting the acts.

Speaker 8 (31:48):
Herb get over to Hester Sherman Products right away and
straighten everything out.

Speaker 1 (31:51):
Jennifer puts her hands on Herb's chest and pushes him
towards the lobby entrance.

Speaker 3 (31:55):
The guy wants to see.

Speaker 7 (31:56):
No, no, he doesn't knuck go over there now.

Speaker 3 (31:58):
I thought i'd call her I don't even know.

Speaker 7 (32:00):
Well, just go over there and fix it.

Speaker 3 (32:02):
Here's toughest, go go.

Speaker 1 (32:04):
Jennifer pushes her right out the lobby door.

Speaker 6 (32:06):
Less enters the lobby from the door leading to the bullpen.
He's wearing his hat and he seems to be headed out.
Jennifer grabs him. Mister Carlson wants to see him right away.
Less is surprised. He asks her, what about.

Speaker 7 (32:21):
The metric system.

Speaker 3 (32:22):
I don't know anything about the metric system.

Speaker 7 (32:24):
That's the problem. Less, Now get in here.

Speaker 6 (32:29):
Jennifer opens the office door and pushes Less inside. She
then hurries over to her desk and begins flipping through
a magazine.

Speaker 1 (32:37):
Not surprisingly, Art comes out of his office looking confused.

Speaker 3 (32:43):
Jennifer, do I have an appointment with less Ness with?

Speaker 1 (32:45):
Jennifer grabs her appointment book.

Speaker 7 (32:49):
Let me see.

Speaker 1 (32:50):
She runs her finger down the page.

Speaker 8 (32:52):
Less Ness man Less, Yes, Yes, the metric system ten
forty five to twelve fifteen.

Speaker 1 (33:02):
Oh, there it is. Carlson stands still, looking confused. He
turns and goes back into his office, muttering to himself.
Ninety minutes seems like a long time for the metric system,
especially with Less. He's not sure about it, but decides
to go along with it. You don't question, Jennifer. Placing
both hands on her desk, Jennifer gives a sigh of relief.

(33:23):
As we fade to commercial.

Speaker 6 (33:24):
The metric system, which Less is meeting art about, is
a decimal based universal system of measurement. The meter was
first introduced in France in the seventeen nineties. The metric
system uses the gram for weights and the meter for length.
All other measurements are decimal increments of those units, so
either ten times or one tenth. The metric system has

(33:48):
been adopted throughout the world. Oh except for Liberia, me
and mar and oh yeah, the United States.

Speaker 1 (33:56):
It's kind of a big We ain't on board yet.
And I found out some really cool you know what
the meter is at length? The guys who introduced it
in seventeen ninety said that it was one ten millionth
of the way from the north pole to the equator.
I don't know how close they were on that, but
that's where they are seventeen hundreds.

Speaker 6 (34:15):
How did they come up with.

Speaker 1 (34:16):
That, I don't know. We come back from Commercial. In
the offices of Hester Sherman, a woman with her hair
and a tight bun and reading glasses out on the
tip of her nose has just come out of an office.
She sits behind a large desk in the lobby. Herb
enters as the woman is busily writing.

Speaker 3 (34:32):
Honey, look, I don't have an appointment.

Speaker 1 (34:34):
Bunny broad earlier. Now, honey, what's with the sales guys
insulting the gatekeepers?

Speaker 6 (34:41):
Any good sales rep nose? If the secretaries and assistants
like you, you've got a better shot at talking to
the boss. You have to cultivate those gatekeeper relationships. The
woman peers at herb over the rims of her glasses.
HERB tells her he'd like to see mister Sherman.

Speaker 3 (34:58):
It's kind of important.

Speaker 7 (35:00):
I'm sorry, it's impossible.

Speaker 6 (35:01):
HERB grabs the phone from her desk and sets it
down in front of her.

Speaker 3 (35:05):
Come on, give him a buzz.

Speaker 6 (35:07):
Moving her phone is a pretty aggressive move. HERB tries
to smooth things over by flashing his best smile.

Speaker 1 (35:15):
See Tammy Beeler. The receptionist is being played by Sue
Ann Gilfillan. If you pull up this episode on IMDb,
you'll see this character identified as C. Tannis Bieler, although
she's only referred to as Beeler. You can clearly see
on her desk the name plate is for C. Tammy Beeler.

(35:36):
But back to Sue Anne Gilfillan, Sue Anne also sometimes
performs under the name Sue Anne Converse, her married name.
She was born in Barnett, Vermont, in nineteen thirty. Sueanne
graduated from the Yale School of Drama in nineteen fifty five.
She was a regular on stage in the Williamstown, Massachusetts
area for many years. In nineteen seventy seven, Sue Ann

(35:57):
moved to Hollywood to give film and TV a try.
Over the course of twenty years, she managed to accumulate
about two dozen actor credits in addition to the usual
guest shots on series. She made a number of appearances
in both TV movies and theatrical releases. She was the
saleslady in the nineteen eighty nine Clint Eastwood film Pink Cadillac.

(36:18):
Suanne passed away in March of twenty seventeen at the
age of eighty six.

Speaker 6 (36:23):
The woman picks up the phone and replaces it. She's
not the least bit cowed by Herb. Actually, she's having
fun picking on him, which brings us to the line
of the episode.

Speaker 9 (36:35):
Look, if we want a used car, we'll come to
the law.

Speaker 1 (36:44):
And Herb knows the reference too. He's dressed like he
used car salesman.

Speaker 6 (36:48):
Herb gives a little chuckle that ends in a sneering
eye roll. He tries again, I'm not trying to sell anything.

Speaker 3 (36:55):
I just want to talk.

Speaker 6 (36:56):
The woman stops. She takes off her glasses. There is
a bark of recognition.

Speaker 7 (37:01):
Wait a minute, you're the one on the soul Sid's poster, right.

Speaker 6 (37:07):
Herb quietly responds, yes, that's him. The woman's attitude quickly changes.

Speaker 9 (37:13):
Oh, I think mister Sherman would like to speak with you.

Speaker 6 (37:17):
She asks Herb to wait at her desk as she
goes into the office.

Speaker 1 (37:21):
Once the door closes, Herb starts rehearsing what he plans
to say to mister Sherman. He's mouthing the words and
moving his arms in a very animated way. The door
to the office opens, and with a big sweep of
her arm see Tammy Beeler addresses her Herb.

Speaker 3 (37:36):
I'm right in, mister Tarlick. Thank you. I hear he's tough.

Speaker 1 (37:40):
Herb walks into the office. As soon as Herb is
through the door, we hear a dog start barking.

Speaker 6 (37:48):
There's a cup to continuity, and we find ourselves in
mister Sherman's office. It's large with dark paneling and dark
green carpeting. A man wearing a conservative blue gray suit
is petting a dog. The dog is wearing a harness
with a leash hanging to one side. Ah, we understand,
mister Sherman is blind. Herb got his guide dog all

(38:10):
riled up. Sherman calms the dog down and gives it
a nice pat on the back. The camera pulls back
to reveal Herb flattened against the closed door. He just
came through one of the cardboard soul said stand ups.
Is leaning against the wall. Herb eyes the dog.

Speaker 5 (38:28):
Warily, dogs don't like me much.

Speaker 3 (38:31):
I knew well with birds though. We had a couple
of perkes.

Speaker 1 (38:35):
For a while.

Speaker 6 (38:35):
Mister Sherman is standing facing herb.

Speaker 1 (38:40):
Where do you think all those stand ups went?

Speaker 6 (38:42):
I wish we had one.

Speaker 1 (38:43):
You think Frank Bonner took one home with him?

Speaker 6 (38:46):
That is so fanny. He probably signed him or something
and gave him out to fans at that.

Speaker 1 (38:52):
Time, or they could have done some kind of a fundraiser.
Mister Sherman is being played by Tom Sullivan. Tom sullib
is a one man entertainment empire. Oh and he also
happens to be blind. Tom was born prematurely in nineteen
forty seven. Too much oxygen to his incubator saved his
life but cost him his sight. His lack of vision

(39:15):
has proven a minor inconvenience. It didn't get in the
way of his becoming an excellent golfer, snowskier, marathon runner,
and wrestler. Tom's also an accomplished pianist. His earliest forays
into performing were as a singer and composer.

Speaker 6 (39:32):
He sounds like a slacker.

Speaker 1 (39:33):
Yeah, off your button, do something Tom.

Speaker 6 (39:36):
Tom first gained national attention with appearances on The Tonight Show.
In nineteen seventy five. Tom wrote a memoir called If
You Could See What I Hear. It would go on
to become a motion picture in nineteen eighty two. Tom
has published more than a dozen books. He's been a
motivational speaker for more than three thousand corporate clients around

(39:58):
the world. He was a correspondent for ABC's Good Morning America,
and while doing all the other stuff, he also managed
to rack up nineteen performance credits on his IMDb profile.

Speaker 1 (40:13):
Also, I hear he's just a really nice guy.

Speaker 6 (40:15):
It seems like he would be.

Speaker 1 (40:16):
Yeah, he just he's just a nice guy and does everything.
Herb sits eyeing mister Sherman closely. Sherman takes his seat
behind his desk and starts a Newton's cradle. The clacking
is a bit ominous.

Speaker 5 (40:29):
Well, you really miss this one up, dude.

Speaker 1 (40:33):
Herb is eyeing Sherman closely.

Speaker 3 (40:35):
Yes, sir, I guess in a way you could say that.

Speaker 4 (40:39):
But let's just ask ourselves how much trouble am I
my really in?

Speaker 6 (40:48):
Mister Sherman's dog is what's known as a guide dog
in the US, they are also referred to as seeing
eye dogs. Historians have found indications of dogs leading the
blind going back to the first century near Pompeii. A
twelfth century Chinese scroll depicts a guide dog at work.

(41:08):
Modern seeing eye dogs can be traced to Germany. During
World War One. They were trained to assist returning veterans
who had been blinded in battle.

Speaker 1 (41:18):
The use of service dogs was not popular outside of
Germany until an American dog breeder named Dorothy Harrison Eustace
witnessed the incredible success of guide dogs being trained in Switzerland.
She wrote an article about it for The Saturday Evening
Post in nineteen twenty seven. In nineteen twenty nine, Eustace
and a blind man named Morris Frank established a school

(41:40):
called the Seeing Eye in Nashville, Tennessee. It was dedicated
to training guide dogs for use by the blind. Frank
had heard about Eustace's Saturday Evening Post article. He'd also
traveled to Switzerland to get his own guide dogs.

Speaker 6 (41:57):
The school they established, the Seeing Eye UI, is still
in operation today. It is considered the oldest and largest
guide dog training facility in the world. It is now
located in New Jersey. The entire operation was moved from
Nashville in nineteen thirty one. The climate of the Northeast

(42:18):
was considered better for dog training. The Seeing I School
is why in America we frequently refer to guide dogs
as Seeing Eye dogs.

Speaker 1 (42:28):
Mister Sherman started the balls clacking on his Newton's cradle.
It's the device sitting on his desk with the swinging balls.
It's the original executive desktop toy. The principle of transfer
of energy and conservation of momentum illustrated by the device
was theorized originally by Sir Isaac Newton. The phenomenon was

(42:52):
first demonstrated by a French physicist in sixteen seventy one.
There is a lot of confusion as to who came
up with the desktop version of the cradle.

Speaker 6 (43:03):
Most sources credit English actor Simon Prebble and his company
Scientific Demonstrations Limited for introducing the cradle as we know
it today. It was Prebble who first coined the term
Newton's Cradle for his desktop Diversion in nineteen sixty seven.
The term is now used generically for any device of

(43:26):
this kind. Initially, retailers resisted the device. It's a toy
that wasn't directed at kids and it really didn't do anything.
Preble was finally able to convince Herod's of London to
carry the device. The success of Newton's Cradle spawned the
industry of executive desktop toys.

Speaker 1 (43:48):
The Newton's Cradle works so well because of the elasticity
and dense structure of the steel ball bearings. They very
efficiently transfer energy without generating heat or causing any motion.
The television show MythBusters took the Newton's Cradle to the
extreme when they created an oversized version. Each of the

(44:10):
balls in the Mythbuster's Cradle was a concrete and steel
rebar filled booie that weighed a ton. The device did
not work as expected. All of the balls moved, not
just the one on the end. Concrete doesn't have the
same surface elasticity or resistance to heat build up as steel.

(44:31):
The concrete balls used by MythBusters couldn't efficiently transfer energy,
so they wound up moving themselves.

Speaker 6 (44:39):
As cringe worthy as it is, Herb is trying to
mess with the blind guy. He's putting himself in odd
positions as he keeps looking at mister Sherman.

Speaker 4 (44:48):
How bad do you think that poster really is?

Speaker 6 (44:54):
Herb begins waving his arm back and forth. Maybe he's
trying to get an idea as to just how blind
mister Sherman is. Sherman answers Herb's question.

Speaker 3 (45:04):
Very bad.

Speaker 6 (45:05):
Herb tells mister Sherman he doesn't think the posters as
bad as he thinks.

Speaker 3 (45:09):
Oh really.

Speaker 6 (45:10):
Herb takes a couple of sheets of paper from mister
Sherman's desk and begins shuffling them around to make noise
as he continues, in.

Speaker 4 (45:18):
Fact, I have a couple of letters here from some
very very happy supermarket manager, Jessir.

Speaker 5 (45:30):
Even though the posters just went into the markets today.

Speaker 1 (45:33):
When he put his arm over his head, I thought, oh, no,
he's not he's not doing what I think, And yes
he was. He was messing with the blind.

Speaker 6 (45:42):
Guy and he doesn't stop there.

Speaker 1 (45:43):
Herb is a lousy liar. He has to think quickly
to cover this mistake.

Speaker 4 (45:49):
Actually, these are telegrams.

Speaker 1 (45:52):
Sherman asked to see the letters and puts his hand out,
waiting for Herb to hand them over. Surely, Herb places
the sheets of paper in Sherman's hand. Sherman feels the papers.

Speaker 5 (46:02):
He's the telegrams.

Speaker 3 (46:04):
They're photo copies of a telegram.

Speaker 1 (46:08):
Would have felt like regular paper. At the time. Most
photo copies had a really slick finish to them. You
could tell just by feeling one that it was a photocopy.
What Herb had handed over were obviously photo copies. Thinking
he's pulled one over on mister Sherman, Herb smiles and
swivels completely around in his chair, feeling triumphant.

Speaker 3 (46:30):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (46:31):
He picks his feet up off the floor and his
knees are bent up, and he spins around.

Speaker 1 (46:36):
Like, hooray, I did it, but silently so right. Sherman
can't see him.

Speaker 6 (46:40):
The chair did not squeak. Mister Sherman puts the papers
on his desk and sits back.

Speaker 5 (46:45):
You know, I called your station and I already made
an arrangement with them.

Speaker 6 (46:50):
Herb is nodding and saying mmmm. As he leans back
in his chair. He places one of his feet on
mister Sherman's desk. His white dress shoe is practically glowing.
Mister Sherman continues, after.

Speaker 5 (47:05):
Meeting you, I'm gonna have to call him and change
all that.

Speaker 6 (47:09):
Whoa good Herb is rubbing a scuff from his shoe
as his foot continues to rest on mister Sherman's desk.

Speaker 5 (47:17):
I'm so delighted you.

Speaker 6 (47:19):
Herb isn't getting the oh so obvious sarcasm. Sherman is
delivering it and buckets, but Herb is oblivious.

Speaker 1 (47:27):
Herb takes his foot off the desk and leans forward,
making a face as he says.

Speaker 3 (47:33):
It was my pledge.

Speaker 1 (47:37):
Placing his pointer fingers in the corners of his mouth,
Herb pulls his mouth wide and sticks out his tongue
before standing to leave. As Herb walks towards the office door,
mister Sherman tells him he'll call the station right away.

Speaker 3 (47:51):
Oh, well, thank you, mister Sherman, and.

Speaker 1 (47:53):
Herb is dancing and moving his arms around as he speaks, let's.

Speaker 3 (47:57):
Do that lunch thing, okay.

Speaker 6 (47:59):
Herb gives me, mister Sherman his standard finger gun salute
as he smiles. Mister Sherman gives Herb the finger gun
right back.

Speaker 3 (48:08):
You bet them?

Speaker 6 (48:11):
Oop? Did he see? Herb stands frozen for a minute.
A look of terror passes over his face, and then
he decides Sherman didn't really see anything. Herb recovers by
pantomiming a dramatic tipping of his hat. The long Herb
opens the door to leave, he has his back to

(48:31):
mister Sherman. Mister Sherman places his pointer fingers in the
corners of his mouth as he says, ah, God, that's
the same move Herb did earlier when they were talking.
Herb freezes Sherman is really getting to him. Without looking back,

(48:52):
Herb slowly walks out of mister Sherman's office.

Speaker 1 (48:56):
I think the fingergun things was just a really good guess.
He could just tell talking to Herb this guy would
do fingerguns.

Speaker 6 (49:02):
Finger guns.

Speaker 1 (49:03):
He's a finger gun kind of guy.

Speaker 6 (49:04):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (49:04):
A quick observation as we're leaving Sherman's office. This is
a company that makes at least one product we know
of for African American hair. We don't know about the
rest of their product line, but if you're making a
black specific shampoo, probably means you make other products directed
towards African Americans. How is it the only two people
who we've seen working for this company are white?

Speaker 8 (49:27):
Oh?

Speaker 6 (49:27):
Maybe there are more offices elsewhere, I hope. So we
transition to the bullpen, where Johnny is leaned back in
the chair at the DJ's desk. He's talking to Venus
and Bailey. Johnny has a mug of coffee in one
hand and a Ray Charles album in the other. The
Ray Charles album is from nineteen sixty two. It's called
Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music.

Speaker 7 (49:50):
All right, all right, all right, here's how it works.

Speaker 3 (49:54):
We go into the supermarket. You create a ruckus in
the produce section. You grab the sign of hold it up,
You put it into your jacket. We're out the door.

Speaker 6 (50:02):
Johnny snaps his fingers, then puts his hands on his hips.
Bailey asks, what kind of ruckus?

Speaker 3 (50:08):
I don't know, something with mangoes, mangos.

Speaker 1 (50:12):
Andy enters the bullpen.

Speaker 3 (50:14):
I don't worry about the signs. They'll be out of
the stores by the moment.

Speaker 1 (50:17):
Pinus looks relieved.

Speaker 3 (50:18):
Thanks goodness.

Speaker 7 (50:19):
Oh too bad.

Speaker 8 (50:20):
I was just getting a mental picture of me and
those mangoes.

Speaker 1 (50:24):
Yeah, Johnny's leaning toward Bailey, wanting to hear more about
these mangoes. Jennifer sticks her head in from the studio
hallway door. She asks for Andy. Jennifer motions for Andy
to come out in the hallway.

Speaker 6 (50:36):
As Andy is entering the studio hallway, we were checking
the walls for a poster watch and no nothing. We've
talked about everything in the hallway. The Duran Duran poster
on the door of the studio seems old, and the
pretender's poster on the door to the bullpen is old.
Everything else we've talked about in the last couple of episodes.

Speaker 1 (50:58):
Jennifer's standing in the studio hallway wringing her hands.

Speaker 8 (51:02):
Mister Sherman just called. Well, he didn't really want to
speak to anyone. He just said that he wants all
of his commercials off the air and he doesn't want
to do business with us ever again.

Speaker 1 (51:14):
Well, the last Andy knew about it, they still got
to run the spots, but they were gonna have to
eat the cost of the posters.

Speaker 3 (51:20):
And why what happened?

Speaker 7 (51:22):
Herb went to see him?

Speaker 6 (51:24):
Andy lets out a big breath.

Speaker 7 (51:26):
Why because I sent him there?

Speaker 6 (51:29):
Andy tells Jennifer he had the whole thing straightened out. Well,
Jennifer didn't know, and she's really sorry.

Speaker 7 (51:36):
Please don't tell mister Carlson about this.

Speaker 6 (51:38):
Andy tells Jennifer he has to tell mister Carlson.

Speaker 7 (51:41):
Just give me an hour. Where is Sherman's office?

Speaker 3 (51:44):
Well, what can you do?

Speaker 6 (51:46):
Jennifer puts her hands on her hips. What kind of
a question is that? She wiggles and gives Andy a
sexy look. Andy gets the picture. He tells Jennifer she
can find Sherman in the Haste building down the street.

Speaker 7 (52:00):
Give me a moment to freshen up, and I'll be
on my way.

Speaker 1 (52:04):
We did a quick search looking for a Haste building
in Cincinnati. We didn't find a building, but we did
find Haste plumbing and backflow in Fairfield, Ohio.

Speaker 6 (52:15):
Backflow backflow where once again, back at mister Sherman's office,
His receptionist is sitting at her desk reading a magazine
when the door opens, and.

Speaker 1 (52:25):
The most popular reading material among receptionists in Cincinnati seems
to be Vogue. See Tammy Beeeler is reading the US
Vogue issue dated February first of nineteen eighty two. The
young lady on the cover of this one is maryel Hemingway.
She was hot at the time, set to portray Dorothy
Stratton in the movie Star eighty.

Speaker 6 (52:45):
The following year, Jennifer enters the reception area. She walks
up to the desk and asks to see mister Sherman.

Speaker 7 (52:52):
Do you have an appointment? No, but he'll want to
see me. I don't think so.

Speaker 6 (52:57):
Jennifer is getting a taste of her own medicine from
a receptionist who might be as tough as she is.
This is a great callback.

Speaker 7 (53:05):
I have urgent business. Nope.

Speaker 8 (53:09):
If he doesn't see me now, he'll see me in court.
The welfare of a young child is at stake.

Speaker 6 (53:16):
WHOA. Jennifer ups the ante. We didn't hear this one
from the guy this morning. The receptionist is not impressed.
She just shakes her head no and tells Jennifer she's
heard them all before.

Speaker 7 (53:28):
I owe him some money, and I'd like to pay
him back.

Speaker 6 (53:31):
Jennifer's panicking. Now she's just stealing material from this morning
sales guy. It doesn't work. She is not getting in.

Speaker 1 (53:41):
Well, all right, then I'll just wait and speaking of
this morning sales guy, the door opens and the guy
we met at WKP comes walking in. He recognizes Jennifer, you.

Speaker 7 (53:51):
Again, yes, go right in.

Speaker 3 (53:54):
Thanks.

Speaker 1 (53:55):
Salesman strides across the room mister Sherman's office door, but
he's stopped. I see Tammy. She tells him he can't
go in. The confused salesman motions to Jennifer.

Speaker 3 (54:06):
He said I could go right in, and you can't.

Speaker 1 (54:08):
The receptionist takes the man by his arm and ushers
him out, as see Tammy is playing bouncer. Jennifer quickly
walks right through mister Sherman's office door.

Speaker 6 (54:17):
Jennifer doesn't pause when she gets through the door. She
begins walking toward mister Sherman's desk. She goes into flirt mode,
immediately wiggling her body, looking at him in a sexy way,
and using her best sexy voice. She says, well, hello,
mister Sherman stands. Jennifer stops short. She gives Sherman a

(54:39):
double take and then looks down and sees his guide dog.
Jennifer begins sputtering, trying to say something anything, as the
door opens and the receptionist comes in.

Speaker 9 (54:52):
I'm oh, mister Sherman, I'm so sorry this person got past.
I'm you will have to leave now, mister Sherman, I'm sorry.

Speaker 6 (55:04):
Please forgive me Jennifer's kryptonite. We saw this same thing
in the episode Filthy Pictures when she thought Gonzer was gay.
Jennifer's powers do have their limits.

Speaker 1 (55:15):
The receptionist glare, is it Jennifer?

Speaker 7 (55:18):
I'm sorry too, It's not her fault.

Speaker 5 (55:19):
Oh that's sweet.

Speaker 3 (55:20):
Get out.

Speaker 1 (55:22):
Jennifer looks towards mister Sherman.

Speaker 7 (55:24):
Mister Sherman, can you see it all?

Speaker 5 (55:27):
No?

Speaker 7 (55:28):
I can't, not even shadows.

Speaker 5 (55:30):
Or forms, No, no, nothing.

Speaker 7 (55:35):
Well then I guess I better go.

Speaker 1 (55:39):
And Jennifer's just decides she's out. She turns to leave
his way.

Speaker 3 (55:43):
Please.

Speaker 1 (55:43):
The receptionist shows Jennifer to the door and begins following
her out, but Sherman isn't done talking to her.

Speaker 5 (55:50):
That perfume you're wearing it's French, right, very subtle.

Speaker 7 (55:56):
Why yes, it's a special blend.

Speaker 1 (56:00):
It'll be all, Baeler, So maybe Jennifer's magic extends to
the other senses as well. Beeler rolls her eyes and leaves,
closing the door.

Speaker 5 (56:11):
Is she gone?

Speaker 7 (56:12):
Why?

Speaker 10 (56:12):
Yes?

Speaker 5 (56:13):
Sometimes she closes the door and stands there. She's tricky.
You're kidding. No, no, no, she really doesn't think I know.

Speaker 1 (56:22):
Jennifer is giggling. Sherman as Jennifer to sit down.

Speaker 6 (56:25):
Jennifer sits in the chair herb had occupied earlier.

Speaker 5 (56:29):
Now, how are things at the old radio station?

Speaker 6 (56:31):
Jennifer looks stunned.

Speaker 7 (56:33):
How did you know?

Speaker 5 (56:34):
We've talked on the phone. I may not be so
hot at faces, but voices never forget.

Speaker 7 (56:39):
A miss Jennifer Marlowe.

Speaker 5 (56:42):
And they sent you down here to change my.

Speaker 6 (56:44):
Mind, right, Jennifer tells mister Sherman it was her idea
to come see him. He asks her why WKRP is.

Speaker 8 (56:51):
A very unusual radio station. We hire some people that
otherwise couldn't get jobs at.

Speaker 1 (56:58):
Another race, like his shelter for radio employees. Mister Sherman laughs,
like that tarlet fellow. Yeah, Jennifer tells him, yes, exactly,
like that tarlet fellow.

Speaker 8 (57:11):
I don't think i'd be spreading tails if I were
to tell you that he probably couldn't get another job
in the city, let alone the state.

Speaker 1 (57:19):
Jennifer admits to mister Sherman that, as crazy as it sounds,
she likes HERB after seeing them together and put up
her shut up fire and changes. Finding out Jennifer likes
Herb isn't really a surprise. She also admits she was
the one who sent Herb to see him. She doesn't
want HERB to get fired.

Speaker 5 (57:38):
So you took it upon yourself to come down here
and change my.

Speaker 1 (57:41):
Mind, Jennifer tells him, Yes, mister Sherman leans forward, I
can't help you. Pouch. Sherman seemed to be melting under
the spell of Jennifer, but no, he is tough as nails.

Speaker 6 (57:53):
Jennifer thinks, for a moment.

Speaker 7 (57:54):
You're very self assured.

Speaker 5 (57:56):
I like that, thank you.

Speaker 7 (58:00):
I also like a little compassion.

Speaker 5 (58:02):
I'm a perfectionist when you handicapped her, always trying to
show the world you can be a little better.

Speaker 6 (58:09):
This is a line right off Tom Sullivan's website. Jennifer
tells mister Sherman, well, she knows all about that you do.
Jennifer explains, I'm a pretty blonde so when people meet me,
they naturally think I'm dumb.

Speaker 5 (58:22):
Oh no, I didn't think so.

Speaker 8 (58:24):
Well, that's because you can see through all that, and
I'm sure you can see through me.

Speaker 6 (58:30):
She admits to mister Sherman she came to see him
because she thought a pretty face could change his mind.
Although we'd really like to feel sorry for Jennifer, this
is kind of an insult. She's comparing the downside of
being gorgeous to the challenges of being blind. It's really
not an apples to apples kind of thing. Sherman lets

(58:51):
it slide because he's making time with the pretty girl.

Speaker 1 (58:55):
For me, that was almost as cringe worthy as herb Yeah,
messing with saying oh well, I'm beautiful, so I understand
what it's like.

Speaker 6 (59:04):
That was not appropriate at all.

Speaker 1 (59:06):
Sherman gets a laugh out of the sea through me
line by telling her he's not that kind of guy.

Speaker 5 (59:11):
I know. Actually, it was your voice to change my mind.
I've always been a voice mans. I hope this doesn't
sound forward, you know, or dumb or anything, but could
I feel your face?

Speaker 1 (59:32):
Jennifer has a smile on her face, but she doesn't
seem thrilled about this request. She leans forward.

Speaker 7 (59:38):
Is this some sort of sightless come on?

Speaker 5 (59:42):
They're absolutely right, I'll settle for a hand.

Speaker 6 (59:45):
When Sherman asked to feel Jennifer's face, we felt like
maybe it was a TV thing. Do blind people really
touch faces to meet someone? Thanks to some very frank
quorra and reddite threads, plus a great article called top
ten Misconceptions about blindness, the consensus is no, blind people

(01:00:07):
don't normally touch faces to identify someone. There are, of course, exceptions,
but for the most part, blind people say feeling facial
features doesn't provide a lot of information about that person.
The blind people commenting also agreed it's socially kind of creepy.
Jennifer not wanting her face touched is pretty common. We're

(01:00:31):
surprised Tom Sullivan would allow this misconception to be perpetuated
by the show, although the request does get a laugh
and he doesn't actually do it.

Speaker 1 (01:00:41):
Sherman holds out his hand, Jennifer takes it. Sherman speaks
very softly, go.

Speaker 5 (01:00:46):
Quietly, all right, and don't let me even hear the door.

Speaker 1 (01:00:50):
Jennifer doesn't know what he's up to, but she plays along.
She tiptoes to the door and quietly opens it. When
Jennifer pulls the door open, Ms Beeler, the reception falls
right into the room. She'd been leaning against the door
trying to hear what was happening in Sherman's office. Mister
Sherman laughs and claps his hands. Jennifer is laughing as

(01:01:16):
Mss Beeler stands huffing and rolling her eyes.

Speaker 6 (01:01:19):
We come back for our capper scene to the lobby.
Bailey is sitting at Jennifer's desk, furniture denier. Andy is
sitting on Jennifer's desk, and Herb is standing talking to Andy.

Speaker 5 (01:01:32):
Look, Andy, she can't do everything.

Speaker 3 (01:01:34):
The guy is blind, totally blind. I mean, you gotta
see Jennifer to get in the game, you know what
I mean.

Speaker 6 (01:01:41):
This earns a disgusted look from Bailey. Jennifer enters the lobby,
thanks Bailey for covering, and then Andy asks how it went.

Speaker 7 (01:01:50):
Delightful, man, no problem, so.

Speaker 3 (01:01:53):
He's not gonna pull his ASDs.

Speaker 1 (01:01:55):
No. Herb shakes his head in disbelief.

Speaker 3 (01:01:57):
Amazing, just amazing.

Speaker 1 (01:01:59):
Jennifer, Herb what he's talking about?

Speaker 3 (01:02:01):
Don't you get it? He's blind.

Speaker 1 (01:02:03):
Jennifer gives Herb a very matter of fact, Look, he's
not blind. Woo. Herb sputters and lets out an exasperated breath.
He looks at Jennifer, then he looks around. His eyes
are darting and he takes a long pause. He's not sure.
You can see the wheels turning in his head.

Speaker 3 (01:02:19):
Then he's pulling off one hell of an act.

Speaker 1 (01:02:23):
Jennifer smiles.

Speaker 7 (01:02:24):
Not an act he can.

Speaker 3 (01:02:25):
See, believe me, how well.

Speaker 6 (01:02:27):
Herb gets a panic to look on his face. He
runs his fingers through his hair, thinking.

Speaker 3 (01:02:33):
What did you do? Wave your hand in front of
his face?

Speaker 7 (01:02:35):
Oh, Herb, come on, give me a little credit. I'm
not an idiot.

Speaker 6 (01:02:40):
Herb, totally confused, now turns and slowly walks out of
the lobby, headed to the bullpen. Jennifer asks Andy if
mister Carlson still wants to see herb. Andy hops off
the desk and goes after Herb.

Speaker 1 (01:02:53):
Carlson's door opens, Les comes out, followed by Art.

Speaker 4 (01:02:57):
We should do everything else and celsius from now on ohe.

Speaker 1 (01:03:02):
Still talking metric. Carlson agrees and tells Les to get
back with him about it. Less leaves the lobby. Art
tells Jennifer he still wants to see her.

Speaker 7 (01:03:11):
I mean that, Jennifer, Yes, sir, right away.

Speaker 1 (01:03:14):
Carlson goes back into his office and shuts the door,
just as the salesman from this morning comes through the
main door. He's back. He's smiling as he walks up
to Jennifer's desk. You owe me, Jennifer tells him. He's right,
and she's sorry.

Speaker 7 (01:03:28):
What is it exactly that you sell a super new
staple remover.

Speaker 3 (01:03:32):
We're quite proud of perfect.

Speaker 7 (01:03:34):
Go right in.

Speaker 3 (01:03:36):
Thanks.

Speaker 1 (01:03:37):
The salesman thanks her, straightens his tie and heads to
Art's door. He goes right in.

Speaker 6 (01:03:43):
Jennifer begins reading a magazine when mister Carlson comes out
of his office. He has a daze to look on
his face.

Speaker 5 (01:03:50):
Super new staple removers.

Speaker 7 (01:03:52):
Oh yes, yes, yes, yes, you have them from four
fifteen to six o'clock.

Speaker 6 (01:03:59):
Mister Carlson, I wouldn't think to question Jennifer. He blinks
a few times, then turns and goes back into his office,
closing the door. After we saw Carlson by the stapler
that's supposed to staple through concrete back in the Doctor's Daughter,
we're thinking maybe having a super duty staple remover wouldn't
be a bad thing.

Speaker 1 (01:04:19):
And yeah, we caught the time discrepancy. When Jennifer scheduled
the metric system meeting, she said it would end at
twelve point fifteen. We saw Less leave Art's office just
before this staple remover guy entered. Suddenly, the staple remover
meeting is set for four fifteen. We've jumped ahead four hours.

(01:04:40):
What happened? We have no idea, but we have a theory.
We think the morning meeting would so well. Lesen Art
took a break for lunch, then convened in afternoon session
to discuss Celsius. What we just saw was the end
of the second meeting. Either that or script continuity really
blew it.

Speaker 6 (01:05:00):
Elson goes back to his office, Jennifer gets back to
her magazine, and the screen fades to black Boy. This
episode really illustrates how Jennifer is the puppet master around
the office.

Speaker 1 (01:05:12):
She runs them all. Such a fun episode and a
great guest star turn for Tom Sullivan. We're coming close
to the end, fellow babies. Some upcoming program notes. We're
off next week for Labor Day. We will have a rerun,
but we may have a new interview included. Be watching
your podcast feed the next week. On September thirteenth, we'll

(01:05:35):
be talking to some of our favorite contributors from the
past couple of years. You've heard their names almost every week.
Now you can hear from them directly. Then, on Tuesday,
September twentieth, the fortieth anniversary of the last first run
episode of WKRP, what is our episode?

Speaker 6 (01:05:53):
Donna the Impossible Dream. Lesa's mother is visiting and complains
that Less is in a dead job. Les decides he's
going to follow his dream. He intends to apply for
a job at CBS for a spot on the evening
news in New York.

Speaker 1 (01:06:11):
That's going to do it for this episode of the
WKRP Cast. If you'd like to watch, you along with us,
make sure to check our show notes. You can find
us on social media. Follow our Facebook page at wkrpcast.
For more WKRP fun, Become a patron go to patreon
dot com slash WKRP Cast from behind the scenes, fun,

(01:06:31):
full interviews and more.

Speaker 6 (01:06:33):
Got a question, comment or correction Let us know about it.
Write us wkarpcast at gmail dot com.

Speaker 1 (01:06:42):
And remember to please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.
Thanks for listening.

Speaker 6 (01:06:47):
Bye.

Speaker 3 (01:06:47):
Now, may the good news be yours.

Speaker 1 (01:06:57):
The WKRP cast, who is not endorsed by MTM Enterprises,
Shout Factory, or CBS. His podcast is intended for entertainment
and informational purposes only WKRP and Cincinnati. The WKRP logo,
and all names, pictures, and audio of WKRP and Cincinnati
characters are registered trademarks of MTM, CBS, shout Factory, or

(01:07:18):
their respective copyright holders.

Speaker 3 (01:07:27):
Almost Gotfella Babies Booger

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S4E21 - "To Err is Human"

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}S4E21 - "To Err is Human"