Jan is excited about taking her daughter to an Andy Gibb concert. The writing was out-of-touch here because by 1980 Disco was dead and Andy was no longer a big draw. But anyway... Jan reminisces her first concert experience was the Rolling Stones. She asks the girls "Do you know what satisfaction is?" and Cassie shoots back "Often!".
Lois announces she is fighting with husband Bill just as the two are supposed to vacation at a lodge. She's then blindsided when one of her customers turns out to be her old high school sweetheart Frank. The reunion has Lois blushing and pleasantly flustered and the girls all discussing sex and men again (just like they did in the pilot). Cassie cracks a funny gay joke at Jan's expense.
The episode gets a lot of mileage out of Cassie wanting to see Lois let loose her inner bad girl and give in to temptation. Cassie shoots Lois one of those "You go, girl!" looks when she finds out what's going on and later pesters Lois for juicy details, all with practically giddy delight.
When Dot sees Frank slip Lois the key to his hotel room she and Vicki plot to save Lois from herself. Amidst all this drama, Chef Mario - who never really made a splash in this show - has his funniest line of the series when he says "I like waiters better. Sure, they drink, they gamble, they steal. But at least they don't have problems".
The scene between Lois and Frank in the hotel room is typical sitcom, but it's elevated by the actors. Susan Sullivan is just one of those actresses - like Kate Jackson or Valerie Harper - who can make an ordinary line sound interesting.
This is a well-written episode that has lots of amusing chatter about sex and relationships mixed in with the more human moments. It's amazing that THE GOLDEN GIRLS and DESIGNING WOMEN did this same stuff years later, yet IT'S A LIVING never really caught on the same way, and episodes like this prove it was just as good.
There are several minutes of footage missing from the print that current airs on TV and streaming services:
There is a scene where Nancy posts a revised schedule making Jan unable to take her daughter to the concert. Jan makes a critical remark about Cassie's dating habits. With this missing, the later scene where Cassie offers to take Jan's shift seems awkward because Cassie politely asks Jan not to be judgmental toward her lifestyle and now this comes out of nowhere.
Also deleted is the tag scene where Jan walks into the lounge announcing a newly acquired crush on Andy Gibb, and a bouquet of roses has arrived for Lois --- from husband Bill. A still image of this is used over the closing credits.
SONGS: Sonny sings "Chances Are" and "The Twelfth of Never".
Lois announces she is fighting with husband Bill just as the two are supposed to vacation at a lodge. She's then blindsided when one of her customers turns out to be her old high school sweetheart Frank. The reunion has Lois blushing and pleasantly flustered and the girls all discussing sex and men again (just like they did in the pilot). Cassie cracks a funny gay joke at Jan's expense.
The episode gets a lot of mileage out of Cassie wanting to see Lois let loose her inner bad girl and give in to temptation. Cassie shoots Lois one of those "You go, girl!" looks when she finds out what's going on and later pesters Lois for juicy details, all with practically giddy delight.
When Dot sees Frank slip Lois the key to his hotel room she and Vicki plot to save Lois from herself. Amidst all this drama, Chef Mario - who never really made a splash in this show - has his funniest line of the series when he says "I like waiters better. Sure, they drink, they gamble, they steal. But at least they don't have problems".
The scene between Lois and Frank in the hotel room is typical sitcom, but it's elevated by the actors. Susan Sullivan is just one of those actresses - like Kate Jackson or Valerie Harper - who can make an ordinary line sound interesting.
This is a well-written episode that has lots of amusing chatter about sex and relationships mixed in with the more human moments. It's amazing that THE GOLDEN GIRLS and DESIGNING WOMEN did this same stuff years later, yet IT'S A LIVING never really caught on the same way, and episodes like this prove it was just as good.
There are several minutes of footage missing from the print that current airs on TV and streaming services:
There is a scene where Nancy posts a revised schedule making Jan unable to take her daughter to the concert. Jan makes a critical remark about Cassie's dating habits. With this missing, the later scene where Cassie offers to take Jan's shift seems awkward because Cassie politely asks Jan not to be judgmental toward her lifestyle and now this comes out of nowhere.
Also deleted is the tag scene where Jan walks into the lounge announcing a newly acquired crush on Andy Gibb, and a bouquet of roses has arrived for Lois --- from husband Bill. A still image of this is used over the closing credits.
SONGS: Sonny sings "Chances Are" and "The Twelfth of Never".
