Leap Date:
April 30, 1959

Teaser:

Sam has leaped into a very un-funny night club comedian act. Sam's partner is filled with anger from his childhood, and he and their new female partner are in love but can't yet find the words to get together. As Sam and Al try to bring them together, a mob boss who has his eyes set on the girl may tear them apart permanently.

Audio for this episode:

Sam: It's sheep season.

Scott sings: Smoke Gets In Your Eyes

Promo:

Places:

The Cocono Club in the Pocono Mountains, Pennsylvania

Gallup, New Mexico

Golden Sands Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada

Synopsis & Review:

Sam leaps into a comedian named David "Davey" Parker who's part of a comedy act with his male partner Mack MacKay. They are currently working a resort and nightclub in the Poconos in the late 1950s. Sam has leaped in during the middle of their act and doesn't know the punchline! Oh, boy?

Mack gets annoyed and to make matters worse, a heckler in the audience begins to call out to them complaining that they aren't funny. He shouts back at the man, "What are you, comedically stunted, or hopelessly stupid!?" Sam finishes his joke saying it's "sheep season" but no one laughs. That is, until Frankie Washarskie, who works at the resort as a waitress, and who wants to be a part of the act, tries to save them and gets on stage to tell a joke. The heckler, Joey, likes her and comments that at least she's funny. Mack rushes into the audience attempting to get at the heckler. Sam pulls him off the man and they all go backstage.

They argue on the way to their office and Mack says Frankie should just go back to the only thing she's good at - waiting tables. He slams the office door leaving Sam and Frankie alone in the hall. Frankie is upset and Sam tells her he thinks she was funny. Frankie says all Mack thinks about is himself and yells at him through the door. Al arrives and says, "Now ask her what she really thinks of the guy." Sam asks, and she says, "I'm crazy about him." Sam says he will talk to Mack and that she can forget about waiting on tables.

The club owner, Lou, rushes up the stairs and shouts that they should all just wait tables. He is furious that Mack took a swing at one of his patrons. Frankie tries to smooth things over saying that Mack was just nervous about trying her out in the act tonight. Mack bursts out and starts yelling at Lou, who then fires them. Mack hits the owner causing Sam and Frankie to try and pull them apart from a fight.

Enter Carlo DeGorio and his cohort, Joey (the heckler). Carlo gives off a mob vibe and introduces himself as the proprietor of the Gold and Sand in Las Vegas. He offers them two weeks to perform at his resort. The only catch is that he wants Frankie to be part of the act. DeGorio says he will see them in Vegas and wants to have dinner with Frankie as he kisses her hand. Frankie shakes her head but Mack says, "No problem." Frankie looks surprised and Carlo says, "I didn't think so" as he walks away with Joey, smiling.

Lou says they can't go to Vegas because they have a contract. Mack yells back that he just fired them! Mack says Frankie will have dinner with DeGorio because is she's working for him, she will do what he says. She says she thought they were partners. "Davey and I are partners. You? You're a pain in the neck." Lou says he will sue for breach of contract and storms off. Frankie and Mack leave into the office.

"What is going on here, Al?" asks Sam as he rubs his head from all the yelling that just took place. He says these people are nuts and that DeGorio is out of some movie. Al checks with Ziggy and there is a 90,5% change he is the reason the "raging bull" (Mack) disappears. Al quips, "As we say in Italian, he's probably sleeping with the fishes." Mack and Frankie reemerge from the office with her chasing him down the hall arguing about working on their act.

On the road to Vegas overnight, Frankie and Mack sleep in the back seat while Sam drives. Al asks Sam if he knows the secret to a good comedy act - timing. Sam tells Al, "...and if you tell me that you were a stand up, I'm gonna-- POW!" as he makes a motion with his fist. "You can't POW, I'm a hologram. And no, I was never a stand up." Sam replies, "It's a miracle." Al says that he is the singing half of the comedy routine, and all he has to do is learn the songs and fake the rest. He then has to save Mack from whoever he is ticking off and he'll leap out of there. Sam worries that he won't be funny, but Al says they have Ziggy. Sam shakes his head, "Ziggy is not funny." Al says Ziggy is tapped in to the great comedy routines of all time and names a few, ending with the Three Stooges. Frankie wakes and asks to stop for coffee.

They stop at a diner in Gallup, but Mack won't wake up, so Frankie and Sam head inside alone. She says when she woke up she heard Sam say something about Mack getting killed. Sam gets by this by saying that if Mack didn't come up with routines that include her, the audience would kill him.

Mack enters and is annoyingly chipper, announcing to everyone that he is here. He pretends to take their picture with a napkin holder and jokes with a patron that his ice cream truck is melting. The trucker is angered by the joke and says Mack won't think that is so funny if he's "looking out the other side of your face!" Sam breaks it up and sits Mack down.

Frankie asks why Mack acts like a geek so Davey has to come save him. Mack responds asking if she is going to do it. Sam says women are fully capable of taking care of themselves. Mack says she is not going to be part of the act, but Sam says DeGorio won't let them go on without her. Mack is adamant that she will only get five minutes with them on stage. She says she wants at least three bits with them and one by herself or she won't do it. Mack exclaims, "You think you can blackmail me?" Sam and Frankie in unison say, "Yes." Sam sits him back down and and they start working on a new bit with Supergirl and Superman, but the waitress says they will have to take their act outside. Mack is rude and says the coffee wasn't that good anyway.

They go out into the parking lot and practice their new routine, but Mack is reluctant and angry all the time. They start arguing about Frankie not being funny again and she shouts at him that he hates women. Mack asks her is she's Sigmund Freud.

Meanwhile, Sam and Al stand back and watch the arguing. Al says they are in love, but neither of them knows how to handle it. Al says the same thing happened with his forth wife. Al suggests he finds a way to get them to kiss. Sam tries to incorporate this into a bit and asks them to show how superpeople kiss. Mack says he wouldn't kiss her if she was the last woman on earth. "You probably don't even know how to kiss!" She says, "Oh yeah?" and grabs Sam and kisses him deeply instead. This has backfired horribly and Mack becomes very jealous and angry and says Sam can lose the broad or find himself another act.

Finally in Vegas, Sam and Frankie discuss the setup with DeGorio, who put his hands all over Frankie's shoulders and insists on lunch with her. Sam says they need to practice instead, but Carlos notices Mack isn't with them. Sam covers up by saying Mack has never been to Vegas and is checking things out. Carlos asks Frankie if she likes gambling, and when he hears she has never done it, offers to get her dinner and a private lesson on how to roll the dice. Sam tries to pull DeGorio away again, but he tells Sam quietly that if he doesn't "want to sing out of another orifice," he won't join them for dinner.

Frankie and Al both realize about her, "Why do I feel like I'm going to be the main course?" Sam says he'll figure that part out but that they need to figure out how to get Mack to come around because he's in love with her. Frankie scoffs at the thought. Sam says Frankie may have to teach Mack how to love. "But he's so angry!" Al quips that after six years of therapy he'll be fine." Frankie tells Sam not to tell Mack that she loves him, and Sam responds that he will let her do that part. She heads out to get ready.

Ziggy says that Mack has a pattern of changing his partner for the act whenever he gets close to success. Al guesses that Mack is afraid to get close to anyone. Al thinks that because Mack doesn't like himself, if someone does like him, Mack thinks there must be something wrong with that person. Mack wants attention so he got into show business, but starts fights to keep himself at a distance from anything that could potentially hurt him. Sam agrees and goes to find Mack.

He catches up with Mack playing blackjack in the casino. Sam tries to talk to Mack and even suggests he doesn't take another card to avoid losing, but Mack doesn't listen. He loses. Sam asks why he won't listen to anybody and Mack comments that he doesn't listen to someone who would stab him in the back. Sam follows Mack and asks why he won't just admit that he loves Frankie but is afraid of her. Sam suggests that they fight all the time because that's th only way Mack knows how to relate to a woman he's attracted to. Mack asks why Sam had to go and kiss her and says now everything is ruined. Sam says it isn't. Mack says "What happens if she finds out I'm crazy about her?" He says they would go out, start a relationship, buy a house, have kids, argue about bills, start to hate each other and then..." But Sam cuts him off and suggests that before he ruins their kids lives, he just ask her out. But not before they work everything out with their act coming up. Mack smiles and agrees to collaborate.

They practice the act, with one joke being "How do superheroes have sex?" The answer: "Vertically" as they balance themselves on stools pretending to fly. They end up having fun and laughing together. Mack attempts to compliment Frankie and her performance during the rehearsal. Mack apologizes to Frankie and professes his love for her. She suggests they just start over and kisses Mack! Al says, "I love happy endings." Sam smiles and says, "Let's leap out of here, huh?"

Al checks the handlink and says he has a bad feeling. DeGorio comes over with a box with a very nice dress in it for her to wear to dinner with him. He comments that anything she'd like to wear under it is optional. Frankie is dumbfounded. Mack become enraged and punches DeGorio to the ground. Carlos says Mack just made a very big career mistake. Mack shouts at Frankie that she is just like any other woman he has ever met. "You're just a user, another damn user!" Al says that history has now changed and now they don't go on tonight at all, and the body of Mack is "found in the desert in 1982. And 1985. And 1989. He's lizard food."

Sam tries to console Frankie and asks her to tell Mack the truth about her and DeGorio. Sam goes to look for Carlos to straighten things out. Al says he's going back to see if he and Ziggy can "piece together what happened. No pun intended."

Frankie explains things to Mack. He is angry again and confused and hurt. He says he will just go out on his own. Frankie says he cdertainly has the talent to go solo, but, "Who you gonna come home to, Mack?" He says she doesn't know what makes him tick. She comes over and rubs on his back and guesses that maybe he got beat up as a kid and the only way he could make thm stop was to make people laugh. Sam approaches them and suggests that Mack sets up everyone else up to fail so that when things go wrong, it's not his fault. Mack calms down and Sam comes up with a plan to keep him from getting killed by Degorio.

Al arrives again and tells Sam that they have to go onstage tonight because there is a talent scout in the audience and that's how Davey end up meeting his wife and having future children. They go on and give a pretty funny performance! Sam sings "Smoke gets in your eyes."

The crowd loves the trio and they get a wild round of applause! They head backstage but the crowd keeps clapping so the announcer asks them to come back out again. Sam and Frankie run back on stage, but Mack doesn't return. Al spots him being carried away by DeGorio's men and alerts Sam!

Sam follows them into the kitchen and punches one of the goons to the ground. He punches the second man, but he doesn't budge. Sam hits him again with the same result. The goon throws him into the serving table, landing Sam's face into a pie. Sam gets back up, his face covered in whipped cream.

Suddenly there is a gunshot and it's Joey shouting that this has nothing to do with Davey or Frankie. It's between Mack and DeGorio. He says that if they get out of there and forget about it, he will let them keep breathing. Al disagrees and says they will all end up dead unless he does something about it right now!

Sam tells Joey that if he could just speak to Mr. DeGorio, they can work all this out without killing anyone. Carlos enters and tells Joey it isn't too bright to shoot off a gun in the club. Sam says none of this would have happened if Carlos hadn't come on to Mack's fiancée. Carlos says, "What was that?" Frankie steps forward and says that's why she didn't want to go out with him, because she is engaged to Mack. DeGorio takes a beat. Then he smiles and says, "Well why didn't anybody tell me these two were engaged?" He laughs and wishes Frankie the best. He offers his hand to Mack and punches him square in the nose! He says, "McKay, don't ever hit me again." Then Carlos puts his arms around them both and says they are both staying at his club on him.

Al says, "Well, you did it, Sam. You got something on your face." Al chuckles at the sight of Sam with whipped cream all over his face. The observer checks the handlink and tells Sam that Frankie and Mack go on as McKay & McKay, write a couple of Broadway hits, and then move to Connecticut and are still married today. Sam picks up a pie and threatens Al with it. Al backs up and asks what he's going to do with that pie! Sam slams it into Al's face, but it goes right through the hologram. Al steps forward, chuckling, saying, "Say goodnight, Gracie," a phrase used by the comedy team, Burns & Allen. Sam leaps!

Music:

"Orange Colored Sky" by Nat King Cole (covered in the club)

"Smoke Gets In Your Eyes" from Broadway's "Roberta" (covered by Scott Bakula)

The diner music was previously heard in "8 1/2 Months."

Sam Trivia:

Sam doesn't have comedic timing!

Sam wears the same jacket he wore in "8 1/2 Months" when they go to Las Vegas.

Al Trivia:

Al’s says that his fourth wife and him fought all the time because they were in love, and were crazy about each other, but didn’t know how to handle it.

Al says that he was never a stand up comic.

Al's Women:

Al wants to help Carlo's lady "powder her nose."

Al’s Outfits Worn in the Episode:

Al has a gray suit with a black collar, a white shirt that has red squares and shapes on it, and a red skinny tie.

Al’s second outfit is a teal shirt with matching green jacket, black pants, striped gray and green tie, and a large metal fish like pin.

Al’s third outfit is a purpleish suit, with a light purple shirt, silver tie, and a gold rectangle pin.

Miscellaneous Trivia:

There is a slot machine in the men’s bathroom, in this episode.

In the Leap-in sequence from the previous episode, an extra line is inserted about hiding in the bushes.

At the end of "The Leap Back" Al says that Sam leaped into a stand-up comic (playing the Catskills) in 1956, where he's meant to save a little girl that's being torn apart by a divorce, and make sure that she has a good stable home to be raised in. Though we never see that leap ourselves, in this episode Sam is a stand-up comic in 1959. He has a completely different goal in this leap, but the vague resemblance between these two leaps is interesting.

Bloopers:

Regular Cast:

Scott Bakula
Dean Stockwell

Guest Cast Notes:

Amy Yasbeck as Frankie Washarskie: Married to John Ritter, who she co-starred with in Problem Child 2, as Annie Young. Yasbeck played Olivia Reed on Days of Our Lives from 1986-1987. She is also well known for her part as Casey Chapel Davenport on "Wings" (1994-1997).

Bob Saget as Macklyn "Mack" MacKay: Bob Saget was an American actor, stand-up comedian, and television host from Philadelphia. His best known role was playing pater familias Danny Tanner on the hit sitcom "Full House" (1987-1995). He played the character again in the sequel series "Fuller House" (2016-2020). Saget served as the original host of the long-running clip show "America's Funniest Home Videos" from 1989 to 1997. Saget voiced the narrator in the hit sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" (2005-2014), depicted as an older version of main character Ted Mosby. In 1956, Saget was born to a Jewish family in Philadelphia. His parents were supermarket executive Benjamin Saget and hospital administrator Rosalyn "Dolly" Saget. The Saget family eventually moved to Norfolk, Virginia. Bob received his early religious education at Temple Israel, a synagogue of Norfolk which adhered to Conservative Judaism. He was reportedly a rebellious student. Saget's big break came when he was chosen to portray widowed father Danny Tanner in the sitcom "Full House" (1987-1995). The series depicted Danny's efforts to raise three young daughters, with the assistance of his best friends. The show suffered from poor viewership in its first season, but attracted a family audience due to its portrayal of the struggles associated with parenting. By its third season, it was ranked among Nielsen's Top 30 shows. Saget became a household name, and the series lasted for 8 seasons and 192 episodes. The series was eventually canceled due to its increasing production costs. Its rating had remained high until its final episode. In 1989, Saget was chosen as the host of the clip show "America's Funniest Home Videos". The show featured humorous homemade videos which were submitted by its viewers, often highlighting physical comedy, pranks, or unusual behavior by children and pets. While the show was popular with viewers, Saget himself was increasingly frustrated with its repetitive format. When his contract for the show expired in 1997, Saget was not interested in negotiating for a renewal. In 1996, Saget directed the dramatic television film "For Hope". The film depicted the struggles of a woman who is slowly dying due to being afflicted with scleroderma, an autoimmune disease with no known cure. Saget was reportedly inspired by the life and death of his sister Gay Saget, who had died due to scleroderma. The film received high ratings in its debut. From 2001 to 2002, Saget had the starring role of Matt Stewart in the sitcom "Raising Dad". The premise of the series was that widowed father Matt Stewart was trying to raise two daughter, while pursuing a teaching career at his eldest's daughter's high school. Despite the series having a similar concept to "Full House", it failed to find an audience. It lasted for a single season. In 2005, Saget was cast as the narrator in the sitcom "How I Met Your Mother" (2005-2014). The premise of the series was that middle-aged Ted Mosby narrates his life story (and the life stories of his best friends) to his son and daughter. The series repeatedly implied that Ted was an unreliable narrator, who either embellished or censored aspects of his various stories. The series was quite popular, lasting for 9 seasons and 208 episodes. In January 2022, Saget was in Florida for a stand-up tour. On January 9, Saget was discovered dead in his hotel room at the Ritz-Carlton Orlando, located south of Orlando, Florida. He was 65-years-old. His autopsy revealed that the cause of death was blunt head trauma from an accidental blow to the back of his head, likely from a fall. He had died in his sleep. He was buried at the Mount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery, next to the graves of his parents and his sister. Mourners honored Saget by offering donations to the charity "Scleroderma Research Foundation" (SRF), since Saget had long served in its board of directors. Saget is gone, but his popularity endures due to his acting and directing roles in several popular films and television shows.

Mark Lonow as Lou Collins: Born on May 11, 1944 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is an actor and producer, known for The Wedding Singer (1998), National Security (2003) and Thank God It's Friday (1978). He has been married to JoAnne Astrow since 1966.

Robert Miranda as Carlo DeGorio: born in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. He is known for Midnight Run (1988), Blue Streak (1999) and Eraser (1996).

Tom LaGrua as Joey: Born on September 28, 1949 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Caroline in the City (1995), NYPD Blue (1993) and The Boys (1988).

Wil Albert as Charlie: Born on August 22, 1930 in New York City, New York, USA. He is an actor, known for Frost/Nixon (2008), Private Benjamin (1980) and I Wanna Hold Your Hand (1978).

Pete Schrum as Trucker: Attending a catholic school, Peter "Pete" Schrum realized that he wanted to be an actor. Born in 1934, Peter started doing play acting and drama all over the place. He was enthused to work and loved doing stage. He and lifelong friends vowed to become actors one day. Peter was the only one to uphold the promise. Every so often, Peter would be out of work and laugh about some of his characters. Schrum took up the job of the Coca-Cola Santa Claus, then stopped working for years. Pete's last film, Hulk (2003) was released in mid 2003. You can spot him as Sgt. Crowe. Most memorable for playing the shotgun-firing bartender, Lloyd, in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991). See him in action below:

Jon Melichar as Emcee: Jon Melichar is known for Halo halo (2008), Quantum Leap (1989) and Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction (1997).

Martha Jane as Waitress: Martha Jane Urann is known for Quantum Leap (1989), D.C. Cab (1983) and Odd Jobs (1986).

Rosemary Tarrquino as Maria Rose: Rosemary Tanguinia is known for Quantum Leap (1989), The Agency (2001) and Avenger (2006).

Rafe Battiste as Davey Parker (Mirror Image): Rafe Battiste is known for Hercules: The Legendary Journeys (1995), She Spies (2002) and Quantum Leap (1989).

Say What?

The episode starts out with a joke about a sheep and cop, but they never tell you how it ends.

At the beginning of the episode, Mack continues his joke with “and what did the cop say?”, but when Sam doesn't know what to say, Mack changes his wording to “so, what did you say?” Is Sam the cop?

Mack points at the drummer for a comedic drum sound, but both times the drummer has already done it. Timing!

Al once leaves using the relocation sound rather than the Imaging Chamber door effect.

Quotable Quotes:

Mack: "Oh boy, oh boy. How do you like that ladies and gentlemen. Davey’s got a new routine and he forgot to tell me about it."
Guy in audience: "Thank goodness one of you got a new routine."
Mack: "Hey buddy you want to come up here and do the show by yourself. I bet you do a lot of things by yourself. Huh?"

"That’s it. I’m killing you."

"You’re on a real roller coaster here."

"The three of us. The Three Stooges. That’s not funny."

Mack: "You think you can blackmail me."
Sam & Frankie: "Yes."

"That’s the way my mind works."

Mack: "Hit me."
Sam: "I would if I thought it would do any good."

"He’s lizard food."

"Two big ugly guys with noses for faces."

Best Scene:

At the end before Sam leaps he takes a pie and tries to put it in Al’s face. Since Al is a hologram, the pie goes straight through him, all over the wall. Then Sam leaps.

Production Credits:

Theme by: Mike Post
Music by: Velton Ray Bunch
Co-Executive Producer: Deborah Pratt
Co-Executive Producer: Michael Zinberg
Supervising Producer: Harker Wade
Produced by: Jeff Gourson, Tommy Thompson
Produced by: Chris Ruppenthal, Paul Brown
Created by: Donald P. Bellisario
Written by: Deborah Pratt
Directed By: Michael Zinberg

Executive Producer: Donald P. Bellisario
Associate Producers: James S. Giritlian, Julie Bellisario
Coordinating Producer: David Bellisario
Director of Photography: Robert McBride
Production Designer: Cameron Birnie
Edited By: Jon Koslowsky, A.C.E.
Unit Production Manager: Ron Grow
First Assistant Director: Ryan Gordon
Second Assistant Director: Kate Yurka
Casting by: Ellen Lubin Sanitsky
Set Director: Robert L. Zilliox
Costume Designer: Jean-Pierre Dorleac
Costume Supervisor: David Rawley
Art Director: Ellen Dambros-Williams
Sound Mixer: Barry D. Thomas
Stunt Coordinator: Diamond Farnsworth
Sound Editor: Greg Schorer
Music Editor: Bruce Frazier
Special Visual Effects: Roger Dorney, Denny Kelly

Panaflex ® Camera and Lenses by: Panavision ®

This motion picture is protected under laws of the United States and other countries. Unauthorized duplication, distribution or exhibition may result in civil liability and criminal prosecution.

Copyright © 1992 by Universal City Studios Inc. All Rights Reserved.

The characters and events depicted in this photoplay are fictitious. Any similarity to actual persons living or dead is purely coincidental.

Bellisarius Productions in association with Universal Television, an MCA Company