Original subtitles

Thank you.

You were mean on that sit -up board.

Well, son, it's just a matter of getting to the gym every once in a while.

Yes, yes, I understand that. But you see, you're retired.

I don't have that leisure time so I can do body sculpting. Oh, well, son, well,

maybe when you retire, you'll be able to do as many sit -ups as me.

I don't know about that. I could have done more.

Oh, I know.

You just didn't.

You smell banana muffins?

Yeah.

Never touch them.

Good afternoon, gentlemen.

Good afternoon.

Charmaine, did you move in here?

Yes, didn't they tell you?

What? No, bye.

Oh, all right, all right. I'm just helping Pam bake for her guests. Oh,

Whitaker. Yeah. Yeah, Mrs. Whitaker used to babysit for Pam.

Oh, and now Pam drives her to the supermarket every Saturday. Oh, that's

charitable. And manageable. Well, at least it was until last week when Mrs.

Whitaker invited her good friend Mrs. Grins along and the snowball effect

in. Now, this week... Really?

Mm -hmm.

Hello?

That's my good friend, Dr.

Huxtable. Hello.

Nice to see all of you.

Yeah,

Mrs. Whitaker and some.

Pam used to be able to handle these shopping excursions by herself.

Now there's such a volume of participants, she's had to call in the

lance and myself.

Okay, Charmaine, station wagon's all cleaned out. Let's go.

Oh, how you doing, Dr. Huxtable, Mr. Huxtable? Hi. How are you this fine day?

Better than you are, Lance.

Sir, I just don't know how we're going to fit all those women and their

groceries into your car. Have you ever thought about getting a minivan?

No, I haven't, and I apologize for putting you in a mid -sized car.

That's all right, Dr. Huxtable. We'll make do.

Oh,

hi, everybody.

Charmaine, when are those muffins coming? The ladies are getting testy.

okay, but I'm not going to be responsible if they burn their tongues.

the butter.

I set aside a couple of muffins for you two gentlemen, just in case you don't

want to socialize in your perspiration gear.

Oh, isn't this a sight.

Smells like banana muffins.

My husband, Richard.

May he rest in peace.

Made banana muffins.

He put in just a little nutmeg.

You didn't happen to put in a little nutmeg, did you?

No, Mrs. Grimm.

Well, that's all right.

I spent my whole life adjusting. I suppose I can adjust to a little muffin.

I'll tell you what. I'll make you some with nutmeg next time.

Oh, that's so nice.

So when are we going to see the rest of this house?

Rosanna, I'll show you around as soon as we go over our coupons.

Now, come on, let's get down to business.

What supermarket are we going to? Yes, the Advantage Market, four blocks from

here. The Advantage Market?

Why? Yes, it's the same old lousy chain as in our neighborhood, with the wilted

produce, dented cans, and overinflated prices.

It may be the same chain, but this is a better supermarket.

They have fresh produce.

They have no dented cans.

And lots of variety.

Yeah, but are they going to overcharge us for everything like they already do

our neighborhood?

No. In fact, you pay less over here. I'll testify to that.

Last week, at the Advantage Market here, I bought a bag of sugar and paid $2

.39. In our neighborhood, for the same package, we pay $2 .35.

Yeah. And that's just for one item.

They do that to all our necessities. Yeah, and I'm sick and tired of it.

Are you not alone?

Is that whole milk?

No, ma 'am. I think it's skim. Would you like whole milk?

I surely would.

But it doesn't agree with me.

Oh, I'm very sorry.

Listen, I've got an extra coupon here for Colombian coffee.

Any takers?

Oh, that's the good stuff.

But advantage market don't carry that.

This one, Doc?

Well, I'll take it. I'll take it.

Go ahead, Pauline.

Thank you, Gloria.

I'll remember you next time.

You say that all the time, but it's okay.

Ladies, ladies, I don't mean to rush you, but if we're going to get to the

market and back before dark, I think we ought to leave soon. Does that mean we

don't get the house tour?

I'll show you the house next week.

Oh, I'll bring Mrs. Laurie.

She'll love it. No, no, we don't have any room for Mrs. Laurie.

Indeed, we don't.

I promised Miss Webster and Mrs.

Jimenez that I would bring them next week.

And I have market lists for Mr.

Scott.

I'll speak to you for a moment. Go ahead, Chook.

I'm right here.

Okay.

Well, you've seen the size of Dr.

and Mrs.

Huxtable's station wagon. Now, as it is, we don't have enough room for all of

you, your groceries, and Lance and Charmaine.

Yes, I know the station wagon.

Does it still have the luggage rack?

Yes. So that takes care of our groceries.

And Lance and Charmaine, well, it's such a nice day.

I think I can solve this problem.

Why? Do you know somebody with a minivan?

No, I don't. But I say we'll go and shift.

And those of us who were promised a tour of the house will look now and

shop later.

That's a good idea.

You and Lance take Pauline and me to the supermarket first.

Yes, ma 'am.

And Charmaine, you will stay here.

And give the tour to these three ladies.

Yes, ma 'am.

Now, see?

That wasn't so hard. And everybody is happy.

Yes, ma 'am.

I'll see you in a week.

I love you, too, ma 'am.

All right, bye -bye.

In a week? Yep.

Oh, is interviews with the Tardin Company finished?

But he wants to stay in San Francisco for the rest of his winter break.

Well, tell me something. What happened to Theo's plans about grad school and

working at the community center?

Oh, they're still there.

He's just exploring.

In San Francisco.

Are you two prepared for him to live 3 ,000 miles away?

I am prepared for him to get a job.

I am prepared for whatever makes him happy.

Okay. But when that first teardrop falls, I'll be here for you and Mrs.

Stoneface.

Hello. Hello.

Well, if it isn't the grocery carters.

We put dinner aside for you three.

Thanks. Oh, here's your keys, Brother Bloom.

Thank you.

So, how was it at the supermarket?

They gave free samples at the bakery and deli departments.

All these women scooting back and forth making teeny tiny sandwiches.

And while they were trading recipes with their fellow shoppers, I had to chase

down the meat manager to bring out more stewing pots.

And, well, at least you weren't in charge of sorting out the bulk items.

Mrs. Grins accused me of short -changing her on paper napkins, but I made up for

it in white potatoes.

Well, at least you have the satisfaction of knowing that you helped some good

people out.

Yeah, we understand that. Yeah, I'm for that.

Me too, but, you know, this Good Samaritan thing is definitely dogging my

weekends. Well, it's not done being dogged yet. We still have to take the

home.

Unless, speaking of good deeds, Dr. Huxtable would lend his mold of

transportation to those deserving youths without wheels.

I'd be happy to.

Favorite subway tokens.

Dr. Huxtable, these are from 1970. Nobody uses these anymore.

I'll give the deserving youths a ride home after they eat.

Oh, thank you, Mr. Huxtable.

Ma 'am, my lucky tokens.

Thank you very much.

It's our main lunch. You can't eat until we deal with this shopping crisis.

Crisis? Yeah.

And when we took the ladies back into the neighborhood, there were at least 40

or 50 people who all asked if they could go to the market of all different ages.

Look at these phone numbers I got.

You got phone numbers? I thought I was the only one.

Me too.

And all this wagon training back and forth, I mean, it makes no sense.

Why does Advantage Market charge more in a neighborhood where the people can

afford it the least? Because they can.

Now, they'll tell you it's because the rents, insurance, and security costs are

higher, but they're not.

Truth is, they don't have any competition, so they can charge whatever

want. Isn't it illegal?

No, because in theory, you could take your business elsewhere.

But the reality of it is that the people who live in those neighborhoods really

cannot afford to get any sort of transportation to go over to these other

markets, so they're stuck.

Well, this is raw.

Tragic. A tragedy.

That's it?

I think so.

That's the new generation.

Full of truth.

Quick to cite a wrongful situation.

Shouldn't we be doing something about all this?

Well, yes.

Okay.

We're going to take action. That's right. Those people need us.

Wait, wait a minute. We are those people. We need us.

Oh, man, she's such a take -charge babe.

Save the passion for the protest, baby.

Oh, my first protest. This is so exciting. Yes. Pam Tucker, civic

First our neighborhood, then our city, our country. Hey, let's...

Miss Whitaker's been doing that for as long as I've known her.

Okay, we'll go higher. We'll write letters to the head office and demand a

meeting. No good.

These women have been writing letters for years. In fact, Mrs. Ortiz was a

runner -up on that consumer watchdog show, Have You No Shame?

What? You know.

Have You No Shame?

You mean she was almost a watchdog? Get out!

Oh, well, what did they tell her on Have You No Shame?

That she had no airtime.

Writing letters is out. What else is there?

Action.

I say we plan a protest march.

Bet. A protest march. But where are we going to march?

To the corporate headquarters of Advantage Market in Stanford,

Yeah, boy. Look out, Advantage. Whoa, reformers.

We can't get these five shoppers across town. How are we going to get these

babes to Connecticut?

If distance is a problem, I say we picket the Advantage Market right here

neighborhood. Yeah.

Except if a little could change. starts right here at home.

Charmaine, if we picket the only supermarket in our neighborhood, we will

our own people. Come on, think, Charmaine, think.

I don't hear you thinking over there.

Why don't you tell us some of your brilliant ideas?

All right, I have a solution.

Prices are too high, right?

So we go into the supermarkets dressed as stock boys with price guns and mark

everything two for 99.

Two for 99.

Ice cream? Two for 99.

That's a very creative idea, Lance.

Thank you very much, Mrs. Huxtable. And she's a lawyer.

Of course, it constitutes fraud, and that'll get you three to five years.

That was just a trial balloon.

Try this one here out.

We patch into the PA system.

Then during peak shopping hours, I come on the mic and go, attention, advantage

shoppers. In the next two minutes, everything in aisle five will be

free.

And remember, we at Advantage invite you to take advantage of us.

And you will be taking advantage of the big house for inciting to riot.

Well, what is up with our justice system, I ask you?

The system is there, Lance. You have to work within it.

Wait, wait, wait.

Okay. Okay.

Our problem?

High prices, poor quality.

Our goal? To have poor people treated like everybody else.

Our solution?

We get all the people in the neighborhood together.

Hundreds of people. We buy up all the dented cans from the Advantage Market

bring them over to this Advantage Market and demand a refund.

That's perfect.

We'll all line up at the manager's office in the front of the store.

giant bottleneck right around the checkout counters. Oh, shit. Shopper

I like that.

And then everybody will see how crowded it is. And they won't come in. And

Advantage Market will lose business.

And we'll hand out flyers. And the whole of New York will be outraged. And we

won't go to jail.

Will we, Mrs. Hudson?

No, not as long as you don't create physical or verbal disturbance.

Not us civic reformers.

Troubleshooters. World changers.

Dishwashers.

Look at the dents in these things.

Advantage Market. They ought to be ashamed of themselves.

Ladies, what do you think of our sign?

If I wanted my canned kit, I would have said so.

Colleen, if we want to win today, we'll have to keep our anger in check.

Now, we only have an hour before we have to meet the people at the market.

Now, let's get down to business. All right.

Let's go.

Now, our flyer said that we would meet everyone in front of the market with

their dented can.

Now, who's going to pass out the price comparison sheet to the pedestrian?

Oh, I can do that. I wouldn't want you ladies to catch a cold.

You think I can't take the cold? I got frostbite standing in the frozen food

section looking for a deal on peas.

Somebody ought to fix that thing.

Dan, you're out of breath.

And we're out of luck, ladies.

I just ran from Advantage Market.

Operation Dinner Can is in serious trouble.

Oh, no. What happened?

Well, somehow they knew we were coming and they were ready for us.

See, there was a truck parked down the way, and it had a big sign on it that

said, Advantage cares about quality.

Redeem your dented cans here.

Oh, no. They're cutting our marsh off at the pad.

Well, how could that have happened?

Somebody in this room leaked the information.

I didn't say anything.

I just told them that this Saturday was their day of reckoning.

And all I said was, I wonder where all those dented cans are going.

I just said I was taking my business.

To Brooklyn Heights. But I didn't say when.

And what did you just say, Mrs. Whittaker?

Lance, stop accusing these women.

Look, here's your lease.

500 flyers, copyright Lance.

Oh. I got a plan.

Thank God.

Who's got pennies?

Everybody, right?

Of course. We saved them in jars in our home. And why did we save them?

Because the stores don't want them. That's right. But they're going to take

ours. One at a time.

Well, let's get our penny.

We need your car.

Well,

Dad, I want to thank you for giving me a lift from the hospital.

The baby boom is back.

And I'm exhausted.

Well, son, you might have more pep if you got enough sleep and exercise.

I am going to go to sleep right now. Thank you. I don't know. There's a

going on in the living room.

Oh, Lord, I'm not going in there. I'm going around the back. Don't tell them

saw me.

Victory carrot. Well, thank you. It looks like quite a celebration.

Yes. Oh, yes, it is.

You should have seen us down at that supermarket today.

Tons of people came.

All shapes, all colors, all ages, all sizes. People I hadn't seen in years.

Yes, each with a dented tan. It was inspiring.

Oh, you should have seen them, Russell. One by one, all paying with pennies.

And the manager called the police on us. Yeah, but we were breaking no laws.

So the police just left us.

And so did their regular customers left them full carts right in the middle of

the aisle.

Now, was it me or was the manager crying?

Oh, it definitely was the manager that went up. He started welling up when his

regular customers pulled out their pennies. Sounds like a victory to me. It

certainly was. And you should come and help me prepare the victory tea for the

Brooklyn Reform.

things for sure.

Advantage Market will never forget this day or us. I bet they won't since we'll

be back with the press next Saturday.

Yeah!

Next Saturday.

Oh, sure, honey. This is just the start of it.

Where you all been?

Now, here's the book. There's never been a change that wasn't hard for us.

That's right.

If I was in Costa Rica right now and I was protesting, honey, I would be

bye!

What does that mean?

It means we'll be doing our penny run at the markets from now until they make a

change.

Oh.

Well,

to be honest, I mean, we were just in this to see that justice was served.

we didn't know it would take all our weekend.

Yeah, I mean, after all, we're just high school seniors. Yeah, we have to study.

We have to do chores. Yeah, and don't forget about our social things.

started us out on this.

Now you can walk away with your heads held high. Yeah, we're proud of you.

But we're here for the long haul. We're not going anywhere.

I know I'm not.

I'll be in charge of fires and I'll get a phone tree going.

I held on to my driver's license and I know the church still has a van.

I mean, you're acting like we're nobodies now.

Well, puff up, dear, and stop acting like you're nobody.

Well, that's easy.