# Television episodes that wouldn’t fly today **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 20, 2017, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312 "2017-02-20T12:21:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/161 "2019-01-16T15:25:53Z")
Forgot all about this one. M_A_S\*H, the two-part episode _Comrades in Arms_. Hawkeye and Houlihan get lost on a trip to the 8063rd, and take refuge in an abandoned hut as North Korean soldiers wander the area. In part 2, Houlihan starts getting the hots for Hawkeye. When they abandon the hut and take refuge under a tree, as they huddle together she begins pawing and fawning over him and… it’s fucking creepy. Suddenly you have this professional soldier and nurse acting like she’s in heat or something. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/162 "2019-01-16T15:27:33Z")
> [@DesertDog](#): > > Then there’s the _Dick VanDyke_ episode where Laura is so proud of a black sweater she bought she, commissioned a struggling artist to paint a portrait of her wearing it for $25. Thing was, using his imagination he painted the portrait without the sweater (or anything else) on her. She was so mortified she fled without taking the painting. > > Years later he’s made it big time and the Laura nude is included in a big art show in Manhattan. Rob demands he take it down but the artist refuses, saying he had two potential buyers for about $5,000, one in New York and the other in Brazil. Rob points out the painting had been sold to Laura and the artist had no right to resell it. “I’m not gonna hand you my painting and watch you destroy it!” > > “Oh, no, I wouldn’t do that; it’s too good and I wouldn’t want to deprive you of the money. But you know that guy on a mountain top in Brazil…” > > “Gone like it had wings!” Er… is this supposed to be a punch line? (Or is it something that “wouldn’t fly” because it’s just a meaningless non sequitur?) ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/163 "2019-01-16T17:00:36Z")
> [@Steve\_MB](#): > > Er… is this supposed to be a punch line? (Or is it something that “wouldn’t fly” because it’s just a meaningless non sequitur?) Curiosity got the better of me, so I just watched the episode. The painter (played by Carl Reiner) has possession of the painting and wants to sell it for much more than Laura had given him for it years ago ($50) but never took possession of it. One of the potential buyers is a South American millionaire that wants it for his mansion on top of a mountain in Brazil. Other supposed potential buyers is a famous producer that wants to hang it in the lobby of his theaters and the World’s fair wants to hang it in the art pavilion. Rob doesn’t care if it goes somewhere where no one he knows will see it, but he is worried it might go somewhere like the two latter locales. The painter wants to resolve this issue somehow, but he doesn’t want to give up the painting that he has possession of regardless of who is the rightful owner because he thinks he can sell it for $5000. Rob realizes this, and doesn’t attempt to take ownership. Rob suggests that they compromise and tells the painter that all he wants for the $50 is the right to choose which of the offers he accepts. The painter agrees and asks Rob where he would like the painting to go. Rob replies “you remember that fella in Brazil with a mansion on top of a mountain?” The painter answers with “like it had wings, it’s off to Brazil flying to the mountain top.” The painting was never shown and it wasn’t at all controversial. DesertDog, Baker, and Musicat just decided to talk about any old TV episodes that pop into their heads. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/164 "2019-01-16T17:09:10Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > Curiosity got the better of me, so I just watched the episode. > > The painter (played by Carl Reiner) Did anyone mention that the painter looked a lot like Alan Brady (also played by Carl Reiner)? ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/165 "2019-01-16T17:16:47Z")
> [@Intergalactic\_Gladiator](#): > > There was a similar Night Court episode where lothario Dan Feilding meets up with a former classmate who has transitioned from male to female. Of course he has issues with it and to add to it, they cast a blond bombshell for the part. > > Dan overreacts and can’t believe that his best bud is now a woman. At some point, he grabs a friend and says “Can you believe that she used to be a man?” > > The friend’s answer was “so?” > > Which is a very nice and progressive point, especially for 80s TV, I think. I believe most of the jokes were at Dan’s expense but I think the actor who played her was a bit of a stretch. I remember that one; even for a teenager in the 80s, it was obvious that the show was making a point of what a dick Dan was being about it. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/166 "2019-01-16T17:20:29Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Did anyone mention that the painter looked a lot like Alan Brady (also played by Carl Reiner)? Nope. ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/167 "2019-01-16T17:52:03Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > There was an episode of “Alice” where she sent her son on a weekend camping trip with several men, one of whom turned out to be gay, and when she found out, she asked her son if that particular man did anything to him. > > :smack: > [@Derleth](#): > > Boys Beware! > > One of the things it’s going to be hard for future generations to really wrap their minds around was the degree to which male homosexuality and pedophilia were conflated in the popular imagination. Not that one lead to the other, but that there was no admitted distinction between them. > > Where are the bears when you need them? > > (Uh, that’s _not_ a gay joke.) I’m surprised no one has mentioned the most terrifying episode of all time. Diff’rent Strokes - The Bicycle Man (Part 1 and 2)- Arnold and his friend Dudley are groomed by a pedophile. ---
**Author:** ![Patch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a183cd/32.png) [@Patch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patch)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/168 "2019-01-16T18:13:39Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > I’m surprised no one has mentioned the most terrifying episode of all time. > > Diff’rent Strokes - The Bicycle Man (Part 1 and 2)- Arnold and his friend Dudley are groomed by a pedophile. As humorously recapped in [A Very Special Episode](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hdBjll62XHs). ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Nylock](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/77aa72/32.png) [@Mr.Nylock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Nylock)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/169 "2019-01-16T19:41:31Z")
Probably many episodes of _Highway to Heaven_ would have a rough time today. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/170 "2019-01-16T19:45:55Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > I’m surprised no one has mentioned the most terrifying episode of all time. > > Diff’rent Strokes - The Bicycle Man (Part 1 and 2)- Arnold and his friend Dudley are groomed by a pedophile. There was also an episode [that centered around a photograph of Arnold’s butt](https://www.google.com/search?q=Different+strokes+%22A+Case+of+Overexposure%22&oq=Different+strokes+episode+photo+arnolds+butt&aqs=heirloom-srp..). (The photo was shown.) And that reminds me of something else. Back in the 1990s-ish I remember a special on with one hour of the best/funniest foreign commercials. One of them (possibly for film?) showed a girl and 2 or 3 boys, all around 12 or 13 years old. The girl is leaning against a fence looking at something. Suddenly, one of the boys lifts the girl’s skirt (she is wearing no underwear) and the other boys photograph her before they all run away. this was shown in the US unpixellated. Does that ring a bell with anyone? ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/171 "2019-01-16T20:13:56Z")
I can think of a couple that not only wouldn’t fly now, they didn’t fly very well back when they aired. First, there was an episode of _Too Close for Comfort_ where the people who previously rented the girls’ room came back for the furniture, and when Henry refused to pay for replacements, the girls moved out into their own apartment - in Oakland. During the entire episode, Henry and Muriel freaked out over how Oakland was “a high crime area,” and the apartment turned out to be in an unsafe neighborhood. When the episode was repeated, every TV listing that I saw for San Francisco’s ABC station had it replaced with an episode of _The People’s Court_; however, it did air in San Francisco - after all references to Oakland were overdubbed (poorly) with “Oaktown.” Second, there is an episode of _Are You Being Served?_ that ends with the show performing a “minstrel show” number, with the men (and Mrs. Slocombe) in blackface, and they appear in blackface over the closing credits. While some PBS stations aired the episode uncut, at least one (San Francisco’s KQED - which, in earlier years, had no problems with airing an episode of _Monty Python’s Flying Circus_ that showed a topless woman) had those scenes removed. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/172 "2019-01-16T21:01:09Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > however, it did air in San Francisco - after all references to Oakland were overdubbed (poorly) with “Oaktown.” [Old Town](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VG0i1BH9IYE) (YouTube vid) ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/173 "2019-01-16T21:33:02Z")
You’re going to have to excuse my language on this one, because I think it’s important to use the words that were actually used on the show. I have vivid memories of one episode of **The Jeffersons**. They were offering a CPR class somewhere near his apartment, and George attended. As I remember it, George practiced on the CPR dummy, and as they asked for new volunteers, two men stood up and walked out. The instructor asked why they were leaving, and the older one said, “I’m sorry, but I won’t touch something that’s been kissed by a nigger.” They were straight-up Klansmen, as I recall. Anyway, other stuff happened that I don’t remember. Somehow, as events progressed during the episode, the older man had a heart attack and stopped breathing. George, who had finished the CPR class and knew what to do, saved the guy’s life. At the end, they were wheeling him out to the ambulance as he regained consciousness, and his son told him George had given him CPR. “_He_ saved my life?” he asked. The son said yes. He responded, “You should have let me die.” Good luck getting the networks to let you make that episode today. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/174 "2019-01-16T22:24:10Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > Good luck getting the networks to let you make that episode today. That’s because they’re generally more gutless these days. That’s a pretty bold statement for television of any era. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/175 "2019-01-16T22:32:25Z")
All of Seinfeld or any other sitcom that requires missed phone calls or the inability to get in touch with people as a plot device. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2019, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/176 "2019-01-16T23:31:54Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > All of Seinfeld or any other sitcom that requires missed phone calls or the inability to get in touch with people as a plot device. > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > For the purpose of this thread, I’m not talking about entire series that would not be made Also, the OP isn’t going for that sort of thing. All older shows have differences due to the period it was made in and “wouldn’t fly” if today’s show was in the current time period. Some of today’s shows take place in the past and missed phone calls would fly. The kind of “wouldn’t fly” the OP is going for: > [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > I mean perfectly “normal” series that would have an occasional episode that is pretty WTF by modern social conventions. (And, I suppose, by “not fly today”, I would have to exclude series that make it a point to push at boundaries as hard as possible, such as _Family Guy_ and _South Park_.) > > A strong example is the episode of _Star Trek: The Next Generation_ where Geordi La Forge is kidnapped by a shipful of mentally retarded aliens. Another example is a single episode each of both _Andy Griffith_ and _Car 54, Where Are You_ were based around jokes about Gypsy curses. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2019, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/177 "2019-01-17T01:14:50Z")
> [@Sparky812](#): > > I’m surprised no one has mentioned the most terrifying episode of all time. > > Diff’rent Strokes - The Bicycle Man (Part 1 and 2)- Arnold and his friend Dudley are groomed by a pedophile. [Mr. Belvedere - The Counselor](https://www.retroist.com/2009/07/28/on-a-very-special-episode-of-mr-belvedere-wesley-get-molested-in-the-counselor/) At summer camp, Wesley gets touched inappropriately by a counselor. He protests, and the counselor stops. Later, the counselor moves on to one of Wesley’s friends, and Wesley reports him. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2019, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/178 "2019-01-17T16:13:50Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Not only did John Wayne spank Maureen O’Hara, but Patrick Wayne spanks Stephanie Powers. With the total approval and encouragement of the crowd, I might add. Both the Waynes hand the other a makeshift paddle in each case as well. > [@Red\_Wiggler](#): > > Worse, both women become compliant and adoring as a result. I saw this scene when I was a kid in the 60s , It makes me shudder to remember it. It was really upsetting and confusing. I wondered if that was part of what growing up and having a husband was going to be for me. I’ve been thinking about the pain and humiliation that would result from such treatment in real life until I had to stop. It’s just revolting. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2019, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/179 "2019-01-17T16:27:34Z")
Blame Shakespeare. The same thing happens in _The Taming of the Shrew_. It’s cringeworthy there, too. ---
**Author:** ![Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Springtime\_for\_Spacers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Springtime_for_Spacers)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2019, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312/180 "2019-01-17T17:13:58Z")
> [@TCMF-2L](#): > > For literally decades from the 1960s the most important TV show for pop music on British TV was the weekly **Top of the Pops**. Hit songs of the day would be ‘performed’ (mimed) in the studio, or played over some female dancers or promotional videos would be shown. > > Old episodes are regularly shown as repeats these days however there is an unfortunately increasing amount of episodes which are now taboo since the show format had BBC radio disc jockeys as hosts introducing the songs and several of them (notably **Jimmy Saville** ) have since been outed as sex offenders. > > Plus some of the acts themselves have been outed as sex offenders. Prolific hit maker **Gary Glitter** alone eliminated most of the shows from the first half of the 1970s. It appears no one has the will to edit the shows to eliminate the bad people. Instead more and more episodes just disappear. > > TCMF-2L They actually aired a [sexual assault committed by Savile](sexual assault committed by Savile) during recording. > [@](#): > > The assault happened during the filming of Top Of The Pops and footage captures Sylvia’s discomfort as the presenter made lewd comments while groping her. > > Sylvia has blasted the idea that bosses at the BBC had no idea about Savile’s antics and told GMB of how her complaints about the incident were brushed off. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312.md?page=8) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/television-episodes-that-wouldn-t-fly-today/780312.md?page=10)