Peggy Made a Little Lamb is the 20th episode of Season 4 of Married... with Children, also the 77th overall episodes of the series. Directed by Gerry Cohen, the episode was written by Ellen L. Fogle. The episode originally aired on FOX on April 15, 1990.
Synopsis[]
Peggy tries to earn her high diploma over 20 years later along with Kelly.
Episode summary[]
While going through her high school memorabilia, Peggy discovers that she never passed Home Economics class in high school and must make up the lost credit by going to Kelly's Home Economics class. Peggy is soon asked to make a Rack of Lamb for her finals. Kelly now has to attend summer school in order to graduate when Peggy steals her project, a gelatin dish, after the long-starving-for-a-decent-dinner Al eats the Rack of Lamb for dinner!
Recurring cast/Guest stars[]
- Regulars
- Amanda Bearse as Marcy Rhoades
- Buck the dog as Buck Bundy
Guest starring[]
- Marge Redmond as Mrs. Beyer
- Patrick J. Dancy as Ruben
- Zoe Trilling as Susan (as Geri Betzler)
- Keely Christian as Senior #1
- Sandi Whitten as Senior #2
- Chuck E. Weiss as Bum
Quotes[]
- Peg: Ok, I see the problem. It seems that I failed one stupid, useless class my senior year.
- Bud: What did you fail, mom?
- Peg: [hesitantly] Home economics.
- Kelly: [sarcastically] Gee... what a shock.
- Al: [enters through the front door] Peg? I want to introduce you to someone who proves you don't need a high school diploma to be important. Sir?
- [a homeless man who is shaking slowly enters with a blue cup in hand]
- Bum: Change? [Al puts his arm around him and laughs at Peggy along with the kids]
- Mrs. Beyer: Miss Bundy, why can't you be more like Ruben [Ruben is seen sitting up and smiling at the teacher]
- Kelly: Well, we both like boys!
- [Al arrives home from work and takes a seat next to Peg and Buck]
- Al: Ahh, what a day. It was, uh, "Born Before 1900 Day" at the shoe store. There were some feet that were so wrinkled you could've made a third foot out of them. [Peg grimaces and turns her head away] I truly, truly want to die... But at least I have a High School Diploma! [laughs] You staying up, Peg?
- Peg: Yes.
- Al: [shrugs] Ah, no reason for me to then.
Notes[]
Title[]
- The title of this episode is a reference to the children's song " Mary Had a Little Lamb".
Trivia[]
- This is the very first time viewers get to hear the inner voice of Buck.
- The recipe for Cinnamon Toast on the board reads:
- Ingredients: Bread, 1 tbls - butter, 1 tbls - powdered cinnamon, 1 tsp - sugar
- Turn on Toaster, set the temperature to 125 for aprox 4 min. watch closely as not to burn it you want it to be just the right crispness. Using real butter is very important. Don't forget the butter.
- This episode marks the final appearance of Chuck E. Weiss as the Bum who would randomly appear during a Bundy's moment of depression during season 4.
- Al reveals that his diploma hangs above the work desk in the living room.
- At the beginning of the episode, Kelly asks Peggy for a tattoo or a nose ring for her senior portrait.
- Kelly had previously mentioned that she asked for a nose ring in "Tooth or Consequences".
- In the later seasons of MWC, Christina Applegate's ankle tattoo can be clearly seen in some shots.
- Peggy reveals that her mom has the words, "Love" and "Hate" tattooed above her breasts, in order to discourage Kelly from getting a tattoo on her upper body.
Cultural References[]
- When Al and the kids make fun of Peg by reading the title of one of the shows in the TV Guide, the show he tells her about is Goober Goes to Town, a reference to The Andy Griffith Show character, Goober Pyle.
- When Peg enters Kelly's class, she says "Of all the Home Ec classes in all the cities in all the world, she has to walk into mine". This is a reference to a line from the 1942 film Casablanca
- Peg mentions a show called Battle of the Luckiest Men Alive featuring Gavin MacLeod and Joe Piscopo.
- Gavin MacLeod is an actor best known for his roles during the 1970s and 1980s on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Love Boat, which featured Ted McGinley.
- Joe Piscopo is an actor and comedian who is best known for being a member of the NBC late night variety show, Saturday Night Live during the early 1980s. He would be referenced on MWC multiple times throughout its run.
- At the beginning of the episode, Peggy mentions that her mom has "Love" and "Hate" tattooed above her breasts. This may be a reference to the character, Reverend Harry Powell from the film, The Night of the Hunter, who has "Love" and "Hate" tattooed across his knuckles.
- This episode is based off a 1984 Mama's Family episode titled "Educating Mama." The plot had "Mama" Thelma Harper return to school to earn her diploma with her son Bubba.
Locations[]
Sets[]
- Bundy Living Room / Kitchen
- Home Economics Classroom
Music[]
- The song that plays when Peg works in the kitchen to make the rack of lamb is "Working in the Coal Mine" by Lee Dorsey.
Goofs[]
- How did Peg not know she did not graduate? She didn't march with a cap and gown with her classmates? At the very least, she would have been notified multiple times beforehand about being in danger of failing. Plus, even if she chose not to march with her class, or missed graduation, Peg didn't once open the envelope to see her diploma after all those years?
- The teacher isn't good at keeping track, since Peg had the lamb, and Kelly had the Jell-O, but the next day their projects are switched and she let Peg get away with turning in another student (Kelly) assignment.
- Kelly and Peggy spend eight hours making Jell-O and rack of lamb which are significantly longer times that most people would spend on those dishes. Jell-O typically takes about 3-5 minutes to mix the water and powder together and then it is usually set 2-3 hours after refrigeration. Rack of lamb would require less than an hour of roasting in the oven.
- The only explanation for this is that Kelly is a total moron while Peggy doesn't like working period.
- Around 3:30am, Peggy is trying to plate her rack of lamb and then faints. Meanwhile, Kelly pulls out the wet box of Jell-O floating in the mix. When 4am comes around, her Jell-O is perfectly set and cut up. As stated above, Jell-O takes about 2-3 hour of chilling in the refrigerator before it is set and ready to consume. Yet it was clearly sitting out in the warm kitchen until 3:30am.
- When Al arrives home and talks about that day being "Born before 1900 Day", he still has his coat on as he heads upstairs. Then, after Peggy punishes Bud for peeping on Marcy, as she runs to Marcy for advice on cooking, Al's coat is suddenly laying on the couch, near where Buck is laying.
External Links[]
Peggy Made a Little Lamb at the Internet Movie Database- Peggy Made a Little Lamb on Bundyology
- Peggy Made a Little Lamb - Transcript on albundy.net
- #78 Peggy Made a Little Lamb - MWC Podcast on Horrorphilia
