Married with Children (1986–1997): Season 1, Episode 5 - Have You Driven a Ford Lately - full transcript

Al and Steve buy a beat up Ford Mustang off of one of Kelly's boyfriends. Soon they form a tight friendship while fixing it up like new. The only problem is they are neglecting their wives now that they spend every free minute with the car. Marcy gets to experience something in the backseat of the Mustang that she has always wanted to do and when Al finds out about it, he won't let her forget it.

Al, were you watching
Shane again?

Phone company commercial.

Had this father and his kid.

They were walking down
this country road...

...or alley or something.

They were kicking this rock
or pine cone or something...

...and then the father was old...

...and the kid was grown-up, and...

...he called him.
Oh, man.

You know, Peg, I wish Bud lived
far away, so I could call him.

How many beers
did you have tonight, Al?



I don't know.

Kids grow up so fast.

Sometimes I don't think we spend
enough time with ours.

Have dinner with them,
touch them, kick things.

I miss that.

Bud!
Bud, come down here.

-What did I do, Dad?
-Nothing.

It's just that I don't get to talk
to you too much anymore.

How's the fourth grade?

Fifth grade, Dad.

How about that, Peg?

Bud, where are you
going tonight?

I'm going down the block
to Joey's house and watch TV.

-That's fine. Bud?
-Yeah, Dad?



If you're gonna be late...

...call.

That's a moment
he'll always remember.

Hey, Al, let's go out tonight. You know,
to a restaurant or something.

Come on! When we were dating,
we used to go out all the time.

Eating costs a fortune, Peg.

Besides, we have
other expenses right now.

In a couple of years, our kids are
probably gonna want to go to college.

-All right, where do you want to eat?
-Good.

That must be Steve and Marcy.
I told them we'd eat with them.

You just lost yourself
a meal, Peg.

Hey, neighbors.
Ready to put on the old feedbag?

What do you feel like tonight?
Japanese, Thai, Moroccan?

Al only eats plain food.
You know, like burgers and pizza.

Come on, Al.
Live a little.

You can't go through your whole life
ordering food through a clown's head.

Oh, yeah?

Cook some food!

-Let's go out to eat, honey.
-What the hell. I ain't paying for it.

That's my man.

Got a date. Gotta run.
Bye, Mom. Bye, Dad.

Hold it a minute. Some guy honks
his horn, you come running?

-Now, I want to meet him.
-You can't.

Roger doesn't meet parents.
It's his policy.

Roger sounds like a very nice boy,
but I think I'll meet him anyway.

-By the way, what's his last name?
-I don't know.

But don't make him drive off,
because I love him.

Maybe I better go out there and make
sure Al doesn't do anything stupid.

This is so embarrassing.

I know Dad's going to misinterpret
the dog collar around Roger's neck.

I can't believe they've
been out there for over an hour.

-What could they be doing?
-It is a long time for two people...

...with nothing in common
to be spending together.

Then again, Steve went out to make
sure Al doesn't do anything stupid.

That could take a while.

-Can I go now, Dad?
-Sure, honey. Go ahead.

Have a good time, sweetheart.

Sure. I'll have a great time.

The big windows at school
are probably smashed by now.

Al, we're starving. What were you
two doing out there for so long?

Peg, we just outsmarted
a teenage boy.

We sure did.
Honey, you wouldn't believe it...

...but underneath all that rust,
that kid was driving a '65 Mustang.

That's what you did for an hour?

Looking at a 20-year-old
rusted pile of junk?

No, of course not.
We bought it.

You made a major purchase
without consulting me?

It's a car, honey.

For us hombres.
Right, Al?

You bet you.
You bet you, Steverino!

Tell me, Steverino...

...did it ever occur to you
that we don't need another car?

It's not just a car, honey.
It's a piece of history.

A 289 with dual carbs
and a pony interior.

Where did you learn
to talk like that?

Come on, honey. After all,
I was a guy before I met you.

He was, honey.
Do you believe it?

He had a Mustang
when he was in college.

I wanted one,
but I could never afford it.

I hate to break this to you,
but we still can't.

Sure, we can.

The car we bought
is a total piece of junk.

Yeah. Besides, we split it.

We'll restore it,
make it worth a lot of money...

...and never sell it.

Come on. Let's get in that garage
and strip the rust off this baby.

-Hey, what about taking us to dinner?
-Yeah.

Honey, we can't afford
to eat out now.

We just bought a car.

-Good night, Mom.
-I thought you had a date.

Roger said he sold his car
to a couple of idiots.

You think I'm gonna
be seen walking with a guy...

...who wears a dog collar?

I hate that car,
and everything it stands for.

Well, you have to admit...

...the boys have gotten along this week.

Who cares?

That car is beginning
to take over our lives.

Today I brought it to Steve's attention
that his fingernails were dirty.

Do you know what he said?

He said, "It's not dirt.
It's Mustang juice, baby."

Well, Al is reawakening certain
ugly, manlike qualities in Steve...

...but this could work
to our advantage.

You see, they bought something
that we hate without asking us...

...and that is bad.

But now we have the right to go
and buy whatever we want...

...without asking them,
and that is good.

It's in the Bible.

But we can't afford
to buy anything.

Well...

...then let's just be
mean as hell.

Peg, Marcy,
we just wanted you to know...

...we rebuilt one of the carburetors
in the Mustang.

Road warriors!

-We're bored.
-And mean as hell.

Wanna come out in the garage
and use one of the sanders?

Not on the car.

-You still owe us a dinner.
-That's right. We've been patient.

We can't force you
to go to bed with us...

...but we insist
you take us out to eat.

Okay.

-Steak place okay with you, buddy?
-You got it.

Steve, we're vegetarian.
You don't eat meat.

Honey, I'm working on a car.

"Honey, I'm working on a car."

I'm sorry I neglected you
all week, Marcy.

I don't know
what got into me.

It was the car, Steve.

But it has brought you closer to Al,
so at least we don't...

...have to suffer that uneasiness
whenever we come over here.

You can't be serious.
I have to stay with Bud...

...so you can go out with those
boring people next door?

Yes.

I have to lose a night of my glory days
for a couple of complete orthos.

Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Rhoades.

It's nice to see you,
as always.

Kelly, could you please
bring me a tissue?

Get one yourself,
you little zit!

Never mind. I found a whole
bunch of them in your bra.

Excuse me.

You're still on the pill,
aren't you?

Sorry to keep you waiting.

We had to dig through the hamper
to find a shirt for Al.

Did you make the reservation?

Yes. And we're going
to get a great table.

We made it under
the name of Dr. Bundy.

By the way, Marcy, we told them
it was your birthday...

...so we'd get a free cake.

Just play along
when the waiter starts singing.

Well, I could eat a horse.

-I won't be, will I?
-Kelly, we're leaving!

The phone number's
on the refrigerator...

...and make sure
Bud is asleep by 10:00.

He's already sleeping, Mom.

I love you too, Bud.
We're ready to go.

Great news!

I got an original ashtray
for the car.

An ashtray?

We gotta go.
He's got another offer.

-Forget it.
-That's right. We're going to dinner.

The restaurant will hold
our reservations...

...because, after all, it's
your birthday and I'm a doctor.

Come on, girls,
we're going to the ghetto.

It's beautiful.

Look at it, Steve.
It's a virgin.

There has never been
a cigarette in that ashtray.

Are you irritated because
we left you in the car...

...when we went to haggle
on the price?

Oh, no.
I had a great time.

I like sitting in a car that's
being rocked back and forth...

...by grown men yelling,
"Hubba-hubba, my name is Bubba!"

But I think Marcy's
a little ticked.

This is the worst birthday
I've ever had.

I've never been so humiliated.

What about me?
They offered me $20.

They offered me 30.

That was for both of us,
pretty mama.

I got them to leave,
didn't I?

Yes, you did, honey,
and you were so clever.

I wish I had thought of throwing
my purse down the street.

Nothing I ever do is good
enough for you, is it, Peg?

Now I'm gonna go
put the ashtray in the car.

I'll help.

I swear to God, as soon as
Steve goes to sleep tonight...

...I'm gonna smash that car
into little bits.

Except for the ashtray.

I have special plans for that.

Well, maybe we've been
too hard on the guys.

Cars are in their blood.
You see, with men...

...they hear the engine,
and they think it's their engine.

They see the sleek
and smooth lines of the car...

...and they think
they're sleek and smooth.

Then they reach
for that stick shift, and....

Well...

...you know what I mean.

I don't know, there's something
about a stick shift.

Yeah. I don't know what it is.

-That's a nice one, isn't it?
-Got the ashtray?

Yeah, right here.
Be my guest.

You know something?

It doesn't get any better
than this.

You know, Steve, you're not
my kind of guy or anything...

...and I don't wanna
hang around with you...

-...but you know your cars.
-Well, thanks, Al.

Remember, I used to have
one of these babies.

Gee, I loved that car.

Those were the days.

Being alive really meant
something then.

You used to buy a car
to have fun.

Now you worry
about four doors, mileage...

...whether or not you'll survive
a head-on collision.

I mean, who cares?

Looking cool and going fast.
That's what cars should be for.

Hey, Al?

You think we'll still look cool?

What are we, old men?

These things are classics.

Everybody looks cool
in these things.

Wait till we get
this thing finished.

Yeah, it's gonna be great, buddy.

There's nothing like
a nice, healthy salad.

Yeah. It's much better
than going to some restaurant...

...where you can
sit back and relax...

...while some peon
serves your every need.

No beverage?

Sorry.

I never thought I could have this
much hate for an inanimate object.

You mean Al?

Yeah. And that car.

Well, you know, Marce...

...the love of a nice automobile
is not just a guy thing.

You can't tell me you never
dated a guy because of his car.

-Never.
-Come on.

Well...

...don't tell Steve...

...but there was this guy
in high school. He had a GTO.

A black one.

But I finally had to break up
with him, because....

This is so disgusting.

He wanted to, you know...

...get me in the back seat
of the car.

-So did you?
-Of course not.

It's so dirty and tawdry.

No, it isn't.

-You did that?
-Well, sure.

It gets expensive chipping in
for a hotel every few days.

I just never could.

Steve wanted to,
but I'm glad we didn't.

It's still our family car.

We put groceries back there.

Well, good news, girls.
We got the ashtray in.

Where's Steve?

He's still out there
playing with the top.

-He gets carried away.
-I'm gonna go get him.

It's late, and we have to pick out
his clothes for tomorrow.

Hello?

Albany? Collect?
Hell, no, I'm not--

We'll pay for the charges!

Hello? Dr. Mustang?

You got the ornament?
He got the little horse.

Yeah. You got yourself a deal.

I'll send the check in the morning.

Best to Mrs. Mustang.

Wow! The little horse!
Come on, we gotta go tell Steve.

Don't you two
want to be alone for this?

Isn't that sweet?

It's their first time in a car.
Come on, honey.

Okay.

Wait a minute, Peg.

Hey, Steve!
We got the horse!

All right!

Well, it's almost time
for the unveiling.

To tell you the truth,
I'm kind of curious.

I haven't seen it
since they painted it.

Aren't you getting excited?

What's that supposed to mean?

Come on, Marce.
It's been three weeks.

You can look me in the eye.

I can't help it.

I'm still so embarrassed,
especially around Al.

He doesn't say anything,
but I know when he looks at me...

...he's thinking about
how he caught us in that car.

Believe me,
I've known him a long time...

...and when Al's not talking,
he is not thinking.

Girls, time for the unveiling.

-Big deal.
-Well, it will be for you, Marce.

This is your big chance
to see the outside of the car.

Come on, let's go.

-Gee. It's beautiful.
-Shut up, Peg.

This is a big moment, and
I wanna make sure it's right.

Okay. Ready.

Al, it really is beautiful.

Yeah, we know.

Come on. Let's take
this baby for a spin.

Girls, get in the back seat.
Peg, Marcy can show you the way.

Steve, I'll drive. We'll take
a nice spin out in the country.

You sit and lean coolly
out the window.

We'll pretend
these are our mothers.

I'm sorry about the car, honey.

You couldn't have known
it was stolen.

I think Al might have gone overboard...

...starting the fight
with the police.

Al had it in his head that the cop
might have been an impersonator.

Sorry I put that
in your head, Al.

By the way, Al?

They say the effects of the stun gun
will wear off in a few hours.

Yeah, you were
really holding your own...

...until that angry mob showed up.

I wonder where those farmers
got their stun guns.

Well, there goes
our dream, old buddy.

Al?

They impounded the car.

We'll never see it again,
except at the trial.

Well, at least one good thing
came out of this.

We found we could have
a good time...

...and that's more important
than a car.

Hear, hear.

It's still early. Why don't we
go out and get some dinner...

...kick back and lick our wounds?

-Let's go eat.
-How about Japanese?

Thai? Moroccan?

Whatever.
Al won't know the difference.