“Then/Now” compares TV classics to their modern-day counterparts.
At the end of “30 Rock’s” freshmen season, Entertainment Weekly compared the NBC comedy to CBS’s classic “Mary Tyler Moore Show,” noting each show’s use of similar character archetypes: the plucky career gal
(“MTM’s” Mary Richards, “30 Rock’s” Liz Lemon), the gruff boss (Lou Grant, Jack Donaghy), the resident egomaniac (Ted Baxter, Tracy Jordan), the Jewish confidant (Rhoda Morgenstern, Pete Hornberger).
Now that we’ve gotten to know “30 Rock” a little better – the show is now in its fourth season – there’s a stronger basis for comparison: the similar relationships between Mary and Lou on “MTM” and Liz and Jack on “30 Rock.”
Each show depicts the career gal and her boss as more than colleagues and more than friends – but less than lovers.
Neither twosome’s flirtation is reduced to a simplistic “will-they-or-won’t-they?” cliché, allowing each series to explore other dynamics that occur in friendships between men and women.
In “Baby Sit-Com,” the “MTM” episode that aired 38 years ago tonight, Mary (Moore) is babysitting Bess (Lisa Gerritsen) – landlady Phyllis Lindstrom’s refreshingly un-smart-alecky 11-year-old daughter – when an old flame calls to ask her to dinner.
Mary declines (politely, of course). After some arm-twisting from Rhoda (Valerie Harper) and Bess, she changes her mind, then spends the rest of the afternoon trying to find a replacement sitter.
Finally, Mary calls Lou, who agrees to help out – but only because he wants to watch a big boxing match on her TV.
(When Lou arrives at Mary’s apartment, he explains he couldn’t watch the fight at home because his wife wanted to watch a documentary. “‘The Six Wives of Henry the VIII?’ ‘The Eight Wives of Henry the VI?’ I don’t know,” he huffs.)
Much of the rest of “Baby Sit-Com” is devoted to Lou’s scenes with Bess, revealing the crusty newsman’s softer side. Initially, the two struggle to connect, but they soon discover a mutual appreciation for freshly baked cookies and five-card stud.
It isn’t hard to imagine the “MTM” scriptwriters coming up with the episode’s concept – “Lou Grant, babysitter!” – and then working backward, engaging in the usual sitcom-narrative acrobatics (Rhoda can’t sit for Mary because she has the flu; Ted can’t do it because he’s out of town, etc.) to make an otherwise unlikely situation seem plausible.
And even though Mary and Lou share just two scenes – when he arrives at her apartment to sit with Bess and when Mary returns from her date and Lou departs – “Baby Sit-Com” offers insights into their relationship.
When Mary’s trying to line up a replacement sitter, “Mr. Grant” is her call of last resort, but there’s no hint of desperation in her voice when he answers; she knows she can count on him.
(How far Mary’s come from the “MTM” pilot, when Lou cows her with his famous “I hate spunk!” tirade.)
Meanwhile, Lou’s reason for taking the babysitting gig – he wants to watch a boxing match on Mary’s TV – rings a little hollow. Couldn’t he just as easily watch the fight in a neighborhood bar?
Maybe this is another sitcom plot convolution, or maybe the scriptwriters wanted to demonstrate Lou’s willingness to step outside his comfort zone – his initial interaction with Bess prove he’s uneasy around kids – to help Mary out of a bind.
Similar themes are explored in “Retreat to Move Forward,” the “30 Rock” episode that aired one year ago tonight.
In the storyline, Jack (Alec Baldwin) has been asked to give a speech at General Electric’s annual retreat but he’s nervous about attending because he’s had a rough year, including being implicated in a bungled corporate coup.
Liz (Tina Fey) is reluctant when Jack asks her to accompany him, but finally relents when he frames the request as a favor. “Ugh, fine, I’ll go – for you,” she says.
At the retreat, the executives Jack idolizes welcome him back into their inner circle. One expresses concern over Jack’s chumminess with Liz – an underling! – so Jack asks her to call him “Mr. Donaghy” for the duration of the retreat.
Liz is offended: “Friendship over!” she declares.
Before his speech, Jack retreats to the men’s room to give himself a pep talk in the mirror – unaware the microphone attached to his lapel is hot. The audience in the ballroom roars as they hear Jack tell himself, “It’s winning time, you magnificent son of a bitch!”
Liz races into the men’s room to alert Jack (“I’m ruined!” he says, collapsing to the floor), then swipes his mic and heads to the stage, where she tries to “outdo” him by performing bad impressions (Sling Blade, Mrs. Cunningham) and then finally ripping off her blouse and dancing.
The episode’s final scene finds Jack and Liz in his office, where he says her ploy worked. “A lot of people from the conference e-mailed me to ask if I was there when the bra lady went crazy” he says. “I can’t believe you did that for me.”
“That’s what friends do, Jack,” Liz responds.
Just as the relationship between Mary and Lou evolved after the “MTM” pilot, Liz and Jack have come a long way from the “30 Rock” premiere, when their first meeting went so badly Liz had to lay down, convinced she was having a bad dream.
Today, Liz and Jack’s friendship reminds us that, while “30 Rock’s” style of comedy is much broader than “MTM’s,” the relationships on each show are often equally warm.
From the Pages of TV Guide
Also airing January 22, 1972:
8:00 CBS ALL IN THE FAMILY
No night could be more frenzied than the one being shared by all in the family. Reason: a woman just dropped off her little boy, said he was Mike’s son – and left. Archie: Carroll O’Connor. Edith: Jean Stapleton. Mike: Rob Reiner. Gloria: Sally Struthers. Guest Cast … Marilyn Sanders: Marcia Rodd. Boy: Stephen Manley.
Also airing January 22, 2009:
9:00pm NBC The Office (CC): Michael and Dwight spy on a rival company. NEW
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