LAVERNE & SHIRLEY: WE'RE IN THE ARMY, NOW {PARTS 1 AND 2} (TV)
Summary
One in this comedy series about two young working women, following their humorous adventures from the 1950s through the 1960s.
In this two-part episode, the girls return to their apartment after being passed over for promotions at the brewery. Carmine is shocked, having prepared a celebratory party. The girls' moods worsen when Lenny and Squiggy announce that they each got a raise. An outraged Laverne suggests quitting, after which Shirley decides that they should immediately join the WACS.
At the army induction center, Colonel Turner states that all the applicants have passed the initial exam and swears them in. After being shipped to Alabama for eight weeks of training, Laverne and Shirley meet kind-hearted drill instructor Sergeant Shannon. However, after three days in which Laverne and Shirley struggle with each challenge, Sergeant Shannon turns them over to the far tougher Sergeant Plout to get them "combat ready." Over the next seven weeks, they continue to struggle at their tasks, culminating in having to take part in a "mock war." Sergeant Plout trades Laverne and Shirley to Sergeant Shannon's team, not realizing that the girls aren't above cheating to earn a victory. They subsequently eavesdrop on Sergeant Plout's plans and overhear a discussion about her "secret weapon," a tank hidden in the woods. Upon commandeering that tank, Laverne and Shirley force their opponents to surrender.
The unexpected turnaround for the girls causes Sergeant Plout to change her tune. While sending the rest of the recruits to Hawaii, she decides to mold Laverne and Shirley in her image by taking them to Greenland with her, assuming that they'll be toughened up via the frigid climate. When a horrified Laverne calls home, Squiggy tells her that their replacements at the brewery have quit, and that the bosses want to give them their jobs back. Laverne and Shirley devise a scheme wherein they feign "battle fatigue" to get released from the army. Lenny and Squiggy subsequently report to the base with a Shetland pony -- having misunderstood the meaning of a Trojan Horse -- but the girls send them away when realizing that the boys can't help them.
Laverne and Shirley put on an elaborate display of craziness for Sergeant Plout, but she doesn't buy it. Instead, she marches them into the office of her superior, Colonel Henderson. The girls finally tell him the truth, after which Colonel Henderson suggests they stop running from problems at home. He advises that they fulfill their army obligations by serving once a month in Milwaukee's army reserve. Laverne and Shirley gratefully accept, then start the long trip to their apartment. Upon reaching it, they find that Frank, Edna, Lenny, Squiggy, and Carmine fell asleep while waiting up for them. Now exhausted, Laverne and Shirley head off to their bedroom, which they're horrified to discover is where Lenny and Squiggy's Shetland pony is being housed. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: March 11, 1980 8:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:48:44
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:63735
- GENRE: Comedy
- SUBJECT HEADING: Comedy
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1976-1983
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Edward K. Milkis … Executive Producer
- Thomas L. Miller … Executive Producer
- Garry K. Marshall … Executive Producer, Created by
- Tony Marshall … Supervising Producer
- Gary Menteer … Supervising Producer
- Jeff Franklin … Producer, Writer
- Joel Zwick … Director
- Lowell Ganz … Created by
- Mark Rothman … Created by
- Judy Pioli Ervin … Writer
- Dan Foliart … Music by
- Howard Pearl … Music by
- Charles Fox … Theme Music by
- Norman Gimbel … Theme Music by
- Penny Marshall … Cast, Laverne DeFazio
- Williams. Cindy … Cast, Shirley Feeney
- Betty Garrett … Cast, Edna Babish
- Michael McKean … Cast, Lenny Kosnowski
- David L. Lander … Cast, Squiggy Squiggman
- Phil Foster … Cast, Frank DeFazio
- Eddie Mekka … Cast, Carmine Ragusa
- Vicki Lawrence … Cast, Sgt. Alvinia T. Plout
- Doris Hess … Cast, Sgt. Shannon
- Woody Eney … Cast, Colonel Henderson
- Julie Payne … Cast, Colonel Turner
- Susan Barnes … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Joie Magidou … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Paula Moody … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Sandy Roveta … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Ruth Silveira … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Diane Sommerfield … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Carol-Ann Williams … Cast, Blue Team Member
- Frances Peach … Cast, Red Team Member
- Jeannie Epper … Cast, Red Team Member
- Janet Brady … Cast, Red Team Member
- Jadie David … Cast, Red Team Member
- Donna Garrett … Cast, Red Team Member
- Beth Nufer … Cast, Red Team Member