All language subtitles for family_ties_s03e17_birth_of_a_keaton_1

I bet we've been together for a million
years.

And I bet we'll be together for a
million more.

Oh, it's like I started breathing on the
night we hid.

And I can't remember what I ever did
before.

What would we do, baby, without us?

What would we do, baby, without us?

And there ain't no nothing we can't love
each other through.

What would we do, baby, without us?

Sha -la -la -la.

Where's Dad?

Upstairs fixing the plumbing.

Oh, great. The last time Dad tried to
fix the plumbing, we had to shower at

Y.

Well, I hope he gets down here soon. I
have to talk to him about Pledge Week.

Oh, you know, he is so excited.

He looks forward to this every year.

He sees that working together down at
the station is one of the few family

things we still do together.

What do you want to talk to him about?

I don't want to do it anymore.

I mean, we do it every year, and it's so
boring.

Stuffing envelopes, answering phone
calls, running all those errands. Oh,

Mallory, let's not forget.

End of the week.

Family portrait time.

Oh, yuck. We're not going to have to do
that again, are we?

We all stand there in front of the
camera, little frozen smiles on our

Hi, I'm Alex Keaton. Hi, I'm Mallory
Keaton. Hi, I'm Jennifer Keaton. And

our dad.

We're happy to be part of WKS family.

WKS, you're the one.

I don't believe you, kids. That is one
of the nicest parts of the program.

Come on, Mom. It's not fair, that's all.

I mean, he always assumes we're going to
do it every year and never asks us if

we want to. Yeah, Mom, we've cooperated
with him on this thing for ten years.

All we want is a year off.

I'm with them, Mom. Would you talk to
Dad for us?

No, I won't.

I think your attitudes are terrible. If
you don't want to do it, then you have

to tell them.

W .K. and your love.

Hey, good morning, everybody.

Well, today's the big day. Pledge Week
begins.

Could it have been just a year ago that
we had one?

It's not possible.

To me, of course, the most thrilling
part of Pledge Week is that final day

we have family portrait time.

There I'll be, surrounded by the ones I
love.

All there to support me in front of
thousands of people.

Oh, it sends a chill up my neck just
thinking about it.

Say, Dad. Yeah, Alex.

Uh,

about pledge week.

You're excited, huh?

Oh, excited doesn't cover it, Dad.

Uh, listen, we were thinking.

That, well, that is, um, Mallory has
something she wants to talk to you

Um, yeah, Dad.

See... I don't think I can express it as
well as Jennifer

did earlier.

Jennifer?

Uh, what time do you want us at the
station?

4 .30.

See you then.

How's the entertainment shaping up? Oh,
not bad. We've got the Chagrin Falls

Girls Choir.

Oscar Flores, the former juggler.

And Miss Finch, the Sixth Street
librarian, will read from Alice in

Again.

Any singers of any sort?

Yeah, sure.

We'll have singers. The Girls Choir.

She's trying to tell you she wants to
sing on the telephone.

Me? What a sweet idea.

Thanks.

Honey, I just don't know how it looks
when the boss's wife is the soloist.

Let me see.

And the kids probably feel a little
funny about you doing it.

Don't lay it on us, Dad.

Yeah, Mom, I can't think of anything a
teenage girl would like more than for

mother to sing in public.

I think I shouldn't do it. But I won't
do it.

Elise, I would love to have you sing.

Do you mean that? Do I mean it?

Okay, kids, I'll see you there.

I will see you there at 4 .30.

Dad, there's no water.

What? I just fixed that. Maybe I'll work
on it again tonight.

No.

Oh, Dad, look.

Listen to those pipes. That's their way
of saying, call a plumber, call a

plumber.

You really think I need a plumber?

Dad, it's the plumber. It's ringing.

All right. It goes against my principles
of self -reliance, but obviously you

all want me to hire a plumber.

And this is Pledge Week.

This week we're pulling together as a
family, right?

Oh, hey, Gus. Have you seen my kids?
They should be here by now. No, I

seen them.

Who are your two assistants?

Oh, come on. Now you know Bill and Judy.

Those are your kids? Wow. How is it that
kids keep getting older, but we stay

the same?

You don't.

You look older, too.

Nice to see you again, Judy.

Why don't you guys get started over
there organizing these flyers and

envelopes? Be glad to.

Listen, Stephen.

Yeah, Ted.

Comic Jackie Jackerman is here. He wants
to audition.

Drive time to duck him.

Hey, Steve!

Nice to see you. Good to see you.

A little more snow on the roof this
year, huh?

Welcome back, Jackie.

Thanks. I got a lot of new material. Of
course, I'm wearing most of it.

I've got a new suit. Yeah, that's good.

Hey, Dad. Hi, Dad. Oh, hi, kids. Great
to see you. You excited?

Oh, you bet.

There's just electricity in the air,
isn't there? Yeah, absolutely.

Dad, can we make long -distance calls on
the phones this year? Well... Oh, you

kid her, Mal.

How's it going, honey?

Oh, well, okay. We hired that comedian,
Jackie Jackerman.

Oh, well, the audience is all like
Jackie. They feel comfortable with him.

know all his jokes.

Yeah, well, at least Jackie Jackman's a
professional, you know? You know, some

of those other PBS stations, all they do
is put on friends and relatives.

That's true.

Excuse me, Elise.

What are you doing here, Elise? You
going to help us answer the phones?

I've come to rehearse my number.

Oh, I see.

Just treat me like any other singer.

Oh, yes, absolutely.

Hey, Larry, we want to do a sound check
on the boss's wife.

I'll be very professional, Stephen.

I got in touch with that plumber, and
he's coming to the house later today.

Huh?

That's a nice intro.

He's just beautiful.

Thank you. I'll work on that note,
Steve.

Don't worry about it. Everything's going
to be fine. You're here. I'm here. The

kids are here working hard.

Okay.

Well, I feel terrible, Judy. Lost all
your money on the first hand.

That's all right. You can forget about
that IOU.

That's a nice watch, Judy.

I don't understand it, Elise. The kids
used to love Pledge Week so much. Today

they were bored out of their minds.

Why would you say that? They were busy
working on the phones.

They were calling each other.

Look, they really don't want to
participate in Pledge Week, do they?

I wouldn't say that.

You know, Stephen, it's not a question
of whether they want to participate or

not. Maybe... Oh, never mind.

No, no, what is it? No, I couldn't say
anything to get them wrong.

You're not wrong.

How do you know?

You're never wrong about this stuff.

Well, if I am wrong, it's better left
unsaid.

But if you're right, I'll never know if
you don't tell me.

That's true.

So tell me.

Maybe I'm wrong. Elise.

Okay. Now, this is just my opinion, but
maybe the kids simply resent the fact

that you never asked them if they wanted
to help during pledge week. You just

assumed.

I'm sure if you presented them with a
choice that they would say yes.

Elise, you're right.

I was unfair. Oh, this is great.

It is? Of course, because now I know
what the problem was.

I was insensitive. I was a fool.

I was a jerk.

Congratulations.

Oh, hi, bud. Hi, Mr. Keaton. Mrs.
Keaton. Hi. Haven't seen you folks for a

while.

Well, I've been doing a lot of plumbing
repairs myself, Bud. Great. Maybe I'll

get that new van I've been looking for.

Listen, Bud, you're not going to charge
extra because it's nighttime, are you?

Well, let me put it to you this way. The
time it took you to ask me that

question just cost you $8 .40.

Oh,

Jennifer, my little helper.

How have you been?

Great. My, how you've grown.

How's business? Jennifer, try to keep
the chatting down to a minimum.

I'm not a wealthy man.

Bud, the problem is in the upstairs
bathroom. Okay.

Oh, kids, I'd like to talk to you for a
minute.

Look, I made a mistake the other night,
and I want to apologize for it. I was

wrong to just assume you wanted to
participate in pledge week.

You have your own lives, and just
because something's important to me

mean it has to be important to you.

So, let me say right now.

If you want to participate, that is
great. But if you don't, that's fine,

So, what do you think?

Uh, uh, Dad, you're unbelievable.

I mean, I mean, that is very sensitive.

I mean, what other father would approach
it that way? Well, probably lots of

fathers. Ah, come on, Dad, I'm not so
sure now.

No. Come on. All right.

Francine Wilcox wanted me to study with
her this Saturday, and, uh, now I can.

Now, you're the greatest, Dad.

Good luck with pledge week.

Thanks, Dad.

There's a big sweater sale at Fleur de
Lis this week.

This is great.

What about you, Jennifer?

Do you have anything?

Special you want to do?

Go to Chrissy's house?

Hockey game?

Hockey game at Chrissy's house?

Okay, okay. Your excuse from pledge week
two.

Thanks a lot, Dad.

Maybe I was wrong.

The big night. Did you finish your
speech?

Uh, yeah.

You don't sound too excited.

No, no, I am.

Well, come on, read it to me.

Okay.

Hi. I'm Stephen Keaton, manager of WKS.

I know when you met the other people who
work here, you also met their families.

But my children don't care enough about
their father to be here.

Stephen.

Too rough?

Okay, I've got an alternative.

Hi, I'm Stephen Keaton, manager of WKS.

You've already met my wife, Elise.

I guess you can tell we have no
children.

I have to get something out of the
truck, but I think I'm zeroing in on

problem upstairs.

Bud, you keep saying that. Every day you
fix something, the next day you're

back. What, are you getting tired of
seeing me?

I'm tired of paying to see you.

Mr. Keaton, if I worked for free, you
wouldn't respect me.

Hi.

Getting ready to go down to the station?

Yeah, we're all set.

We haven't seen much of you guys this
week.

We know.

We've been working.

Down at the station.

Your dad works.

Earning money for his family.

Come on, Alex. Tell him.

Yeah, I can't wait to see Dad's face.

Yeah. Listen, Jennifer and Mallory and I
have something we want to tell you.

Well, we've been thinking about it all
week.

And we decided that, hey,

this is a big day for you.

Thank you, Alex.

Oh, thanks.

I had a feeling you'd come around.

After all, if something is important to
one member of the family, it should be

important to all of us.

Absolutely. Absolutely, and that's why
we wanted to give you that.

Good luck.

Yeah.

Have a great time. Love, Mallory,
Jennifer, and... I

forget to sign that.

Let me just get that.

A -P -K.

There you go. I mean that, too.

got to go.

Yeah, Gus has been running things down
there since noon.

Better get going. Right. Well, drive
safe. Careful of the snow.

Okay. Bye -bye.

All right. Okay, I have to be at
Francine's in an hour. If you guys want

drop you off somewhere, you better get
ready.

Hey, that's Becky Berman.

She did my class.

Hi, kids. What are you watching?

My dad's telephone.

Thank you, thank you. That was 11 -year
-old Becky Berman singing her version of

Don't Cry For Me, Argentina.

Now, we'll take a little break in the
entertainment while we meet another WKS

family. My family, the Thompson.

Now, that's nice.

How come you kids aren't down here?

What?

I've got a study date.

Francine Wilcox.

I'm going to a sweater sale.

I need some time to myself.

We're proud of our dad and we're proud
to be here.

It's a thrill for us to honor our dad
since this is such a special night for

him.

Now that's sweet.

Those kids must really love their dad.

I sure loved my dad.

Beautiful man.

I sure miss him.

You know, my dad was the plumber.

Taught me all I know.

I used to go watch my dad work when I
was so small I could hardly carry a

plunger.

If it wasn't for my dad, I don't know
who I'd be today.

But that's what dads are for.

So, tell me, how come you kids aren't
down here?

Uh, we're kind of busy, bud.

I've worked in all kinds of places. I
worked in one club that was so tough

had a sign that said, thank you for
spitting.

This thing on.

Testing, one, two, three, testing.

Bad news, Stephen. We've only got about
$10 ,000 in pledges. Now, that's down

$40 ,000 from last year. I don't
understand it. Why aren't people giving

year? But, you know, PBS is very
educational.

In fact, from watching it, I learned how
to spell PBS.

Maybe he's almost finished. If I was
anywhere else in the world, people would

try to stop me from talking. Of course,
they do that here, too.

God bless you all. I love you. Stay
real.

Good night.

That was Jackie Jackerman.

Well, you've already met several of the
WKS.

It now gives me great pleasure to
introduce my wife, Elise Keaton. Elise?

Thank you, Stephen.

Hi, I'm Elise Keaton.

I'd like to reassure the audience that
the fact that I'm married to this man

here has nothing to do with the fact
that I'm singing later on.

I'd like to reassure them, but it's not
true.

You know, Elise...

These times when we meet the WKS family
are always my favorite moments.

Now, my kids can't be here tonight, but
just a few hours ago, before we left the

house, those beautiful kids gave me
this.

Paul, can you zoom in on this?

It says, good luck.

And then on the inside they wrote...

Have a great time.

Can you believe that? Jennifer, she's my
youngest.

Mallory, she's my 16 -year -old. And
APK, that stands for Alex P. Keaton, my

son.

Well, I don't have to tell you how proud
I am of this card.

If they were here tonight, you'd get to
meet... Not now, honey. You'd get to

meet these three beautiful... Oh, hi,
kids. Hi, Dad. But here they are.

Well, I'd like you to...

Meet my family.

Hi, I'm Alex Keaton. Hi, I'm Mallory
Keaton. Hi, I'm Jennifer Keaton. And

our dad.

And we're happy to be a part of WKS
family.

WKS, you're the one.

Thank you, kids. Thank you. Thank you so
much.

And now back to the entertainment.

Next up.

the mother and daughter tap dancing
team, Karen and Sharon McLaren.

I'm so glad you came.

Oh, my.

What made you change your mind?

Well, we realized we were wrong, Dad.
I'm sorry.

Yeah, we were being selfish.

It was something you said this morning.
You know, I mean, we're a family. If

something's important to one of us, it's
important to all of us.

Just didn't want to let you down.

You didn't.

Excuse me, Stephen, you have a telephone
call? Bud Carlton?

Oh, no.

Bud, what's wrong?

Uh -huh.

What?

Oh, no way. No, don't touch a thing.
Don't do anything until I get there.

I've got to go home. We've got major
plumbing problems.

Oh, Stephen, I don't want you to miss my
song.

Oh, don't worry. I'll only be gone for a
little bit. There's plenty of time

before you go on.

Gus, I'll be back in a few minutes.

I guess I'll rehearse.

Okay, Elise, you're on after the
magician.

Well, I don't want to sing if Stephen's
not here. But, Elise, he wasn't going to

harmonize with you.

No, but he's going to lend me moral
support.

We'll give you that, Mom.

Yeah, we'll cheer you on.

We'll clap really loud and let a halibad
you sing.

What's going on here?

Oh, not much. I'm just watching a pledge
night on your TV station.

That magician you had was great.

But I'm not here to talk about
magicians. I'm here to talk about the

What's going on in this house?

Does that give you a clue?

Ceiling is falling apart.

Yes, that ceiling has to be opened up.
The pressure's gonna keep on building,

and the whole ceiling's gonna fall down.

Bud, you have already bled me dry. I'm
not paying you one more cent.

So how much is it if you work overtime?

Well, until midnight, it's double.

After that, it's triple.

Triple!

Now, Mr.

Keaton... Hey, your wife's on
television.

She looks great.

She sure does.

Let me hear the way she hits this one
note.

Each beat of my heart.

You really nailed it that time.

Don't stop, Elise. Why did she stop?

I'm sorry.

I think I'm going into labor.

That explains it. Labor.

Ten minutes and I'll get your suitcase.

Don't forget my suitcase.

Stop nagging. I'm coming.

Sit, Ubu, sit.

Good dog.