106 The Color of Truth

The Color of Truth

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    Votes: 32 91.4%

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    Votes: 3 8.6%

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alsplacebartender

alsplacebartender

Al's Place Bartender - Brian Greene
Staff member
Jul 10, 2002
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Mount Airy, North Carolina
www.quantumleap-alsplace.com
The Color of Truth
August 8, 1955

Rigada, Alabama


As a black man named Jesse Tyler in the deep south, Sam must fight racial prejudice while preventing his boss Melony Trafford from being killed by a train.

Hints of Driving Miss Daisy abound in this leap as Sam tries to change "the way it is" with the elderly widow.

He also must find a way to save his granddaughter after she is forced off the road by two "good-ol' boys" who are trying to teach Jesse a lesson for sitting down at a whites-only lunch counter as Sam leaped in.


Written by: Deborah Pratt
Directed by: Michael Vejar


Rate and comment on this episode!
 
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This really jumped out at me... hard. In many ways, it WAS like "Driving Miss Daisy", but not in too many. The general story of Jessie Tyler, and the racial bigotry that was so prevalent in the South... especially back then.

That and I wanted to brain that Biotch Nurse! LOL!

Matt
 
I voted "good" and for every other controversial episode except for "Lee Harvey Oswald" which I voted "excellent"!

~RayBeckett(Steve)
Global User
 
This episode was a real eye-opener. Oh, I'd been aware of racism, of course, but I'm a northern girl born in the '70's, so I've never actually been exposed to the extremes. What Sam went through just floored me. Especially the part about the hospital refusing to take the girl because it was a 'white hospital.' I mean, separate hospitals? That's just... Ugh! I wanted Sam to hurt that nurse.

An excellent episode.
 
agree completely, i wanted Sam to punch that doctor and Nurse Pig Butt, as Al called her, lol. and the sheriff made me mad too, errrr.

this has to be one of my favorite episodes too, i especially love the part where Al saves Mrs. Melone.
 
A fantastic episode! I LOVE Driving Miss Daisy, so there is that initail attraction to it, but the message about it is what stays. The chitlins scene was GREAT!

Samantha Beckett
 
oh i forgot to mention, i also loved how everytime Sam was turned away they reminded him that he was black, by showing his reflection in windows and stuff.
 
Did anyone hear Sam's little laugh when Tyler's son said to him, while Sam was cooking..."You alright Papa Jessie, you're looking a little pale?"

On a personal note; I'm so glad my mum wasn't born there. She's mixed and she was born in the late 50's but here in North England. Would that mean she'd have to go to a separate hospital if she was born there. I mean it's kinda crazy to think how people act.

Well, things have gotten a little better.
 
Janna Galaxy said:
Well, things have gotten a little better.
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Give us a little more credit than that!!!!!! The Jim Crow South is LONG GONE.

Prejudice, however, is not. At least most people know better than to be open bigots these days, though.
 
The best episode in season 1 in my opinion. A lot of great Drama and acting. a real eye-opener,as LadyKayoss put it. espacially for people that are not from the US or if they are from the US they are too young to remember or witness it in thier eyes.
 
:dreaming The Best Part: I felt proud the way Miss Melony stood up to her own "people" at the hospital. This was sweet and appropriate. People in her position SHOULD stand up against these kinds of injustices... otherwise, they go unchecked and continue. I live in South Carolina and see this kind of s**t all the time... the black jokes that makes me want to hurl... makes me so damn sick. You go girl!

:lol The Funniest Part: When Miss Melony seemed to hear Al and said something to the effect that "you don't have to yell" when thinking, I guess, she heard her dead husband.

:realmad The Worst Part: There was no worse part for this one: EXCELLENT EXCELLENT EXCELLENT!

This episode: AWESOME! :hurray:
 
HologramIAm said:
:lol The Funniest Part: When Miss Melony seemed to hear Al and said something to the effect that "you don't have to yell" when thinking, I guess, she heard her dead husband.
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I found this very funny, as well. Oh, and she told him he didn't have to swear, after Al said "_________". :lol
 
hologramiam said:
I felt proud the way Miss Melony stood up to her own "people" at the hospital. This was sweet and appropriate. People in her position SHOULD stand up against these kinds of injustices... otherwise, they go unchecked and continue. I live in South Carolina and see this kind of s**t all the time... the black jokes that makes me want to hurl... makes me so damn sick. You go girl!
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OMG I totally agree, and I everytime I watch I can almost feel the pride that Sam must have felt watching her. She was so scared to disobey the rules when Sam wanted to join her at the table for tea, but something Sam said finally shined a light for her. I was proud of both of them. :)

And as for the Al line Hologramiam, It was
"Thank you Charles. You didn't have to swear" because Al had shouted
"Pull into the cemetary dammit!"
 
It's really disgusting how bad it was in 1950's America. This episode really openned my eyes to it. Thankfully, most of us are past that behavior toward fellow humans.

I did notice one 'production problem'. When Sam/Jesse is standing at the doors of the White Only Hospital (shortly before he is arrested), he turns around to see the squad car pull up. Notice the refelction in the doors is actually Sam and NOT Jesse. It's right when Sam/Jesse is turning. It's quick, but if you're looking at the window, you'll see it for sure.
 
This is my favourite episode from Season 1 and way up there in my favourite episodes of the entire series.

Of course, it would have been better if we'd had Sam speak in the Southern accent like he did in Shock Theatre...

Imagine if, for the sake of argument, Sam had to try to pretend to sound like the person he'd leapt into, so that no-one realises it's not really the leapee... I know that the voice is part of the aura, but still...
 
Lightning McQueenie said:
This is my favourite episode from Season 1 and way up there in my favourite episodes of the entire series.

Of course, it would have been better if we'd had Sam speak in the Southern accent like he did in Shock Theatre...

Imagine if, for the sake of argument, Sam had to try to pretend to sound like the person he'd leapt into, so that no-one realises it's not really the leapee... I know that the voice is part of the aura, but still...
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yeah, it's a fun concept - which is why {shameless plugosity} in my story "Run for their Lives" I have Sam 'inherit' the Irish nanny's broad Irish accent! I'd truly love to hear Scott try to tackle it!
 
leaper1 said:
yeah, it's a fun concept - which is why {shameless plugosity} in my story "Run for their Lives" I have Sam 'inherit' the Irish nanny's broad Irish accent! I'd truly love to hear Scott try to tackle it!
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:lol Yes, so would I. I think it would also have been fun if Sam had to tackle accents. I think the only episode that he really had to alter his voice was in the last episode in season 3, where he kept inheriting different personalities.
 
I agree that it would've been fun to see Sam try to tackle accents or voices. Especially when he would leap into the body of a woman. ...I just got a Monty Python mental image...
 
Roflmao... Sam as Mrs Doubtfire...

"Noowe listen to Mrs Dootfoyre deary, Mrs Dootfoyre knows... Pardon me deary... call of nature..."
 
Lightning McQueenie said:
Roflmao... Sam as Mrs Doubtfire...

"Noowe listen to Mrs Dootfoyre deary, Mrs Dootfoyre knows... Pardon me deary... call of nature..."
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Actually Mrs Doubtfire was Scottish..
but of course Sam is Swiss cheesed and doesn't remember that either,
Sooo....

I do have him looking in the mirror at the start of the leap when he finds out he's an Irish Nanny and saying "Dear Lord, now I'm Mrs. Doubtfire!":roflmao:

I also have the Nanny in the waiting room - Mary Macgillicuddy - taking one look at Al in a bright green suit and commenting "Oh boy, it's a leprechaun!"

Synergising Sam and the leapee can be such fun!
 
leaper1 said:
yeah, it's a fun concept - which is why {shameless plugosity} in my story "Run for their Lives" I have Sam 'inherit' the Irish nanny's broad Irish accent! I'd truly love to hear Scott try to tackle it!
Click to expand...

Where can I read "Run for their Lives"?
 
Lightning McQueenie said:
Where can I read "Run for their Lives"?
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http://www.fanfiction.net/u/827199/Madders_Ahatter

This lists all five of my stories, which form an arc.
Run for their Lives is number 3 out of 5
1. Terror Firma
2. High Hopes
3. Run for their Lives
4. Snake in the Grass
5. M.E., Myself and Sam

Thank you for your interest, if you do read, please let me have your honest opinion.

Run for their Lives is the story I am taking to give Scott on Sunday, although it was actually written longer ago, and it shows! - High Hopes is the one I gave Dean.
 
Lightning McQueenie said:
You should have asked him to read it with the Irish accent :p
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I haven't met him yet - I'm hoping to ask him on Sunday.

Edit update:
I did ask him to read a couple of lines with an Irish accent.
Considering it was written phonetically and he was sight reading, he did pretty well.
 
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I have to agree with Samantha Beckett,this episode has always reminded me a little of Driving Miss Daisy.
All in all a great episode.
 
Al_Calavicci said:
I have to agree with Samantha Beckett,this episode has always reminded me a little of Driving Miss Daisy.
All in all a great episode.
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It's quite clearly based on "Driving Miss Daisy." Many of the episodes were homages to or take-offs of previous movies. I don't think anyone involve in QL would deny that.

I love the tea scene. Both actors just nailed their respective positions. There was only so far Miss Melony was prepared to go, and Sam crossed the line. Her reaction was perfect.
 
Al's the Best said:
Something I've always wondered. Why did Sam jump all over Al when he said "A lot of my friends are black!"
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That sentence, "A lot of my friends are black," was, at one time, used by people to explain why they couldn't be racist...often preceeding or proceeding a racist statement. Basically, it was used a an excuse. I think the statement (and Sam's reaction to it) has lost the meaning over time and if you didn't grow up in the 60's or 70's, it probably seems like a perfectly innocent thing to say.
 
One of my favourite episodes, this is in my top 10 episodes. I never really knew how bad racism was in the 1950s in America, sure I'd heard about it, but seeing this episode was a real eye opener for me. My favourite scene has to be when Al gets through to Ms Melony, and she thinks it's her husband who told her to turn in at the cemetery.
 
Wow! Everything about this episode is quite memorable. One of Deborah's best screenplays, if not THE best. Everything ran so smoothly. Every character was very likable, even the "bad guys". Up until this point, the show was either a hit or a miss. Then comes along a mind-blower like The Color Of Truth and now you know people (and even more people) is going to stick around. What a commentary, and inside a very simple story! I think this is the episode for which QL is remembered, even to this day.

There's no single thing I dislike about this ep. Also loved the fact that the leaping effects had improved here. One of the first ones I keep playing whenever I decide to watch the whole first season again. For some reason, everytime I see this ep., I want to taste that soup Sam is preparing.

My rating: Excellent.
 
Donofrio_QLTD said:
Wow! Everything about this episode is quite memorable. One of Deborah's best screenplays, if not THE best. Everything ran so smoothly. Every character was very likable, even the "bad guys". Up until this point, the show was either a hit or a miss. Then comes along a mind-blower like The Color Of Truth and now you know people (and even more people) is going to stick around. What a commentary, and inside a very simple story! I think this is the episode for which QL is remembered, even to this day.

There's no single thing I dislike about this ep. Also loved the fact that the leaping effects had improved here. One of the first ones I keep playing whenever I decide to watch the whole first season again. For some reason, everytime I see this ep., I want to taste that soup Sam is preparing.

My rating: Excellent.
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Just make sure you have some salt on hand :p
 
I just wanted to say, this was the first episode of Quantum Leap that I ever watched in full (I'd seen a few minutes of some episodes earlier but the limited attention span my ten-year-old self could muster was busy with other things at the time), and this is the episode that got me hooked on Quantum Leap. In fact, if it wasn't for "M.I.A." it would be my favourite episode of all.

My mum had seen the majority of the series the first time it was shown here in Australia, then when we got PayTV, each weekday she would, without fail, watch and tape onto VHS every episode. This was the first episode where I actually sat down and watched it with her. I love history, and I simply could not believe that the segregation and racist attitudes of the town actually happened. Over the course of the episode, Mum explained why Sam had a different reflection, why Al could walk through things, why only Sam could see him, and the time-travel "putting things right that once went wrong" premise, and I was hooked. After that, without fail I would watch every episode with her (unless it was an episode considered too violent or adult-themed for my ten-year-old self... I watched those on my mum's videos whenever I could sneak them away ;) )
 
I'm watching this episode now. The first time the train is shown in this episode, a train passed my house and blew the horn for the crossing at the exact same time the train in the show blew its whistle.
 
Following up now that I've finished the episode. An excellent episode. It truly shows the way life in the South was before the Civil Rights movement (and still quietly is, in some people's minds). I love how, as stubborn as Miss Melny is with the way she was raised, she saw the light and the townspeople had too much respect for her to behave otherwise.

About the train: There is no Alabama and Pacific Railroad. (It's to be expected that television writers make up names for places and businesses.) The locomotive shown in the episode is the Savannah and Atlanta Railway's Locomotive 750. At the time of filming, it was owned by Southern Railway (which is now Norfolk Southern - the railroad that goes past my house [see above post]), and was used as an excursion locomotive for steam trips. If you want to see it in person, head to Duluth, GA and visit the Southeastern Railway Museum.

This episode gets an "Excellent" rating in my book.
 
Two excellent episodes in a row here. While Double Identity makes my top 5, The Color of Truth is more of a top 10 episode. Still brilliant, though. One of the most famous episodes of them all, The Color of Truth sees Sam leap into Jesse Tyler, chauffeur to an elderly southern woman. The Driving Miss Daisy dynamic between Sam and Miss Melny is beautiful to watch. To see her slowly begin to embrace change, and accepting that part of herself that always knew that change needed to happen was beautiful to see.

My favourite part of this episode has to be Al getting through to Miss Melny. It was a dramatic, humorous and confusing moment all in one. I don't believe Miss Melny was senile or crazy, so she shouldn't have been able to here Al. I guess like in the end of MIA, this is one time when GTFW decided that Al needed to become present in the past, if only for a fraction of a second.

The message of this episode is powerful. I can't even begin to imagine how hard it must have been to have been a black man or a black woman living in the south during this period of history. Themes like this will be touched on again in the series, but it's never better than this one. The ending scene makes me smile every single time.

My rating. Excellent. A stellar effort by Deborah Pratt.
 
MO said:
Following up now that I've finished the episode. An excellent episode. It truly shows the way life in the South was before the Civil Rights movement (and still quietly is, in some people's minds). I love how, as stubborn as Miss Melny is with the way she was raised, she saw the light and the townspeople had too much respect for her to behave otherwise.

About the train: There is no Alabama and Pacific Railroad. (It's to be expected that television writers make up names for places and businesses.) The locomotive shown in the episode is the Savannah and Atlanta Railway's Locomotive 750. At the time of filming, it was owned by Southern Railway (which is now Norfolk Southern - the railroad that goes past my house [see above post]), and was used as an excursion locomotive for steam trips. If you want to see it in person, head to Duluth, GA and visit the Southeastern Railway Museum.

This episode gets an "Excellent" rating in my book.
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I love finding out facts behind the eps. Thanks for this insight, MO. Cool that you are so close to this railroad, though I expect the noise can be intrusive at times.
 
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