33-05-26 Sade Joins the Thimble Club

Sade joins the Thimble Club (but, I have no notes of any kind about this).

Vic reads in the paper where a horse crawls instead of walks.

The title is one I have provided purely for identification purposes.

[The gist of this episode is revealed in the book, Vic and Sade on the Radio: A Cultural History of Paul Rhymer's Daytime Series] 

33-06-14 Rush Gets Kissed by Mis' Wilcox

[The following is quoted from John T. Hetherington in an interview with Jimbo, published May 27, 2014]

Vic has come home early and is hiding outside talking with Rush while Sade entertains the ladies inside. Rush has been avoiding Mis’ Wilcox for fear she would want to kiss him; however, his plan doesn’t work:

WILCOX: Your mother didn’t tell us you were out here. I came out in the kitchen to get a drink of water. Just happened to see you. My, what a big boy you’re getting to be. And cute, too. I just…

RUSH: My face is dirty, Mis’ Wilcox.

WILCOX: (LAUGHING) Oh, that’s all right. Here. (KISS) (LAUGHS).

RUSH: Thanks for the kiss, Mis’ Wilcox.

Interestingly, Mis’ Wilcox had several other lines in the script that had been crossed out.

___________

Before my interview with Hetherington, it was written in a newspaper article that the first person (other than the Gooks) to speak in a Vic and Sade episode was Mr. Gumpox, in 1938.  We now know that to be wrong.

Though not stated by Hetherington, we can assume this was at a Thimble Club meeting, outside the Gook home.  We know that Mis' Wilcox was a Thimble Club member.

36-02-21 Willard's Book of Poetry

Sade's been asked to share a review of Willard's book of poetry. Sade cannot make heads nor tails out of the superfluous, probably-pretentious work. When she asks Rush what certain poems mean, he comes up with logical (yet suspect) answers, confusing Sade even more.

Eventually, she gives up on doing the report, sending her son packing with the book but making him tell Mis' Brighton the bad news.

________

I assume no one but myself cares about this, but the John T. Hetherington book (link below) reveals that Willard is Mis' Brighton's brother.  What is not revealed though, is why Sade has such a close relationship with him.  She calls him by his first name, calls him "a comfortable friend" and has him over to the house often (yet, always with Mis' Brighton).  I wonder how Sade would feel if Pom Pom or Lolita were called the same by Vic and came over as often?  I'm not suggesting that Willard and Sade are romantically involved, I am only stating some obvious facts.

The title is one I have given the episode purely for identification purposes.

[The gist of this episode was revealed in the book, Vic and Sade on the Radio: A Cultural History of Paul Rhymer's Daytime Series]

41-01-03 Thimble Club's Exclusive Membership

In a strange turn, Mis' Appelrot proposes adding new members to the Thimble and the rest of the club seems shocked by this; Sade immediately shuts down the motion, as the majority wants the club to remain exclusive, including Ruthie, who cries at the thought.

The title is one I have provided purely for identification purposes.

[The gist of this episode is revealed in the book,Vic and Sade on the Radio: A Cultural History of Paul Rhymer's Daytime Series] 

39-01-23 Mis' Appelrot's Flower Scheme

Sade is in a huff when she finds out Mis' Applerot is twisting the arms of the Thimble Club gals in a devious plot to almost force them to purchase flowers from her nieces' husband, who just so happens to run a flower shop on Center Street.

Sade goes so far as calling Mis; Appelrot, "rotten and deceitful" - strong language indeed, even for Sade vs Appelrot.

Sade even has plans to go on a phone call crusade to let the other Thimble ladies know what is going on.

I can't be for certain, but 44-04-19 B.B. Baugh and the New Dentist looks to be re-worked from this episode.

The title is one I have given to the episode purely for identification purposes.

[The gist of this episode is revealed in the book,Vic and Sade on the Radio: A Cultural History of Paul Rhymer's Daytime Series]

42-07-2x Vic's Inspection Tour

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON

Consolidated Kitchenware has made plans to send Vic on a month-long business tour.  Just days earlier, Vic was given a shower by the Thimble Club ladies (which I'm certain he felt uncomfortable about). And now, they plan to see him off on the train as well and part of the plan is throw sawdust all over him.

Vic has strong reservations about this, since his bosses Misters Buller and Ruebush will be with him and he doesn't want them covered in sawdust!

But it gets even more dicey - "the girls from the office" (including Lolita di Rienzi) are also coming along for the ride!

_________________

Trivia:

+ Rush says people might get the impression Vic has just gotten married (because of the sawdust).

+ The "kids from the office" may be carrying flowers, according to Vic.

+ At the end of the episode, Sade says she isn't mad and does not seem mad, so we assume she is NOT mad.  So why is that Vic is upset, when he mutters, "Dog gone! Dog gone! Dog gone!"?
 
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xx-xx-xx Sade Elected President of Thimble Club

An excited Sade tells Vic and Rush about her winning the election to become President of the Thimble Club.

___________________

This synopsis comes from a newspaper article from 1943. The date is unknown. We know that Sade was a member of the Thimble Club as early as 1933. The title is my own and is used only for identification purposes.

41-01-09 Sade Smashes Mis' Applerot's Wrist-Watch

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON

• Sade arrives home from Thimble Club all upset.  Vic is busy polishing his sword – she wants to talk. Rush tries to the Uncle Strap story...
• Sade says she smashed Mis' Appelrot's wrist-watch into a million splinters with her "gravel".  She slammed the gavel down without noticing Mis' Appelrot's arm was between the gavel and the table. Mis' Howard muttered over and over: "Oh my heavens, oh my heavens!" Mis' Appelrot's acting like it wasn't an accident.  Sade's chagrined because when it happened, she laughed.  "...glass an' springs an' wheels flyin'".
• Rush tries to help, telling a story of a fella in Texas that let a ton of coal fall on his grandmother's foot and he laughed so hard he had brain-failure and died on the spot.  Vic puts a stop to this helpful story.
• Mis' Appelrot's arm was in the way because she was reaching over to snoop into Sade's record-book, which is none of her business.
• Afterward, Mis' Appelrot's words accepted the accident, "but her eyes were cold and accusing as a horse."
• Sade says she'll never pick up another "gravel" as long as she lives.  Rush asks, "Isn't the word ‘gavel'?"  Sade will not be corrected.  She moves on to organize dinner.
• Vic (chuckling): "Your mother flourishes a mean ‘gravel'."  Rush (chuckles): "Yes, sir."  Vic: "She's a cute girl." - compiled by Barbara Schwarz, edited by Jimbo Mason 

SEE SOME DIALOGUE AND SYNOPSIS

___________________

This might be the first episode where Sade used the word 'gravel' instead of 'gavel.'  One of the many, many continuous jokes in the show's history.

If there was one character I would like to hear on the show, I think it would be Mis' Appelrot.  She would not be funny but I think she would make Sade mad a lot and I like it when Sade is mad!

44-06-26 Thimble Club Bazaar

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND DAVID WHITEHOUSE

Sade has left a note for Vic and Russell; she wants the boys to do yard work while she is gone.

But Vic has contentions with the note, saying the word "boys" refers only to Russell and not him.

When Sade comes home, Russell is bound to tell on Vic and get him in trouble but Sade is so excited about working at a Thimble Club bazaar that his tattling goes unheeded.

SCRIPT (part 1) (part 2) (part 3)

________________________

Fun episode where the gist of the episode ("the boys") is quickly swept away by Sade changing the subject.  Russell goes out of his way to squeal on Vic, but to no avail.

Trivia:

+ At the Thimble Club bazaar, they are going to sell clothes, candy, cake and knickknacks.

+ The Thimble Club has rented a vacant building on Center Street, across from the Courthouse.  We also learn The Greek's Confectionery is across the street from the courthouse.

+ Vic's argument that "boys" did not refer to him was smashed while Sade talked to he and Russell as she used the same word 4 times in reference to to the two.

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41-xx-xx Icebergs in Illlinois

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY,  BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON

Sade excitedly tells about a special speaker heard at the Thimble Club, who claimed there were icebergs making their way across the plains of Illinois 40 to 400 years prior.

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Sade tells about a lecture on prehistory she heard at the Thimble Club, but a few details may have been lost in translation.

There are two possibilities here:

1. Sade heard a legitimate speech about the Ice Age and is misremembering some of the details. 
2. Dr. Seabury* is a crackpot. 

There is certainly precedent that makes scenario #1 possible — Sade was not well educated and, while she is enthusiastic about learning, she lacks essential critical thinking skills. But I think scenario #2 is far more likely. There’s probably a reason the Thimble Club got Dr. Seabury to address them for free. There’s a reason he’s defensive enough about his iceberg theory to speak like a charismatic preacher instead of a professor. And the incident on the train doesn’t do any favors for Dr. Seabury’s reputation either. 

"Sade says dumb stuff" episodes aren’t my favorites because there’s something a little uncomfortable about using someone’s poor education as a joke, but at least Vic and Rush aren’t too mean to her in this one. They seem to have learned that when she’s this excited about something, it’s best to let her speak and not argue with her too much. As far as crackpot pseudoscientists go, Dr. Seabury is fairly harmless, and Sade’s misconceptions about icebergs aren’t hurting anyone.

The audio is pretty bad here, so my transcription’s probably imprecise, and there were some places where I couldn’t understand what was being said at all. As challenging as it was, though, it was nice to finally sit down and transcribe this one since the bad audio makes it hard to listen to it attentively. Dr. Seabury is quite a character.

Here I go, messing with Jimbo’s characters page again! He’s listed as Dr. Seaver, but I swear I hear another little vowel there at the end of his name, so I went with Seabury. The audio quality is so bad, though, it’s tough to tell for sure.

SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

________________________

Vic and especially Rush give Sade a hard time about the lecturer.

Trivia:

+ Dr. Seaver is mentioned as the name of the lecturer. The week prior, he had been in Somerset, Kentucky lecturing.

+ This is just half an episode or so, with only 5:00 or so of the play remaining and the sound is pretty rotten.

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41-03-18 After Dinner Talk

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN, BILL IDELSON AND CLARENCE HARTZELL

Uncle Fletcher is over at the Gooks for supper and afterwards, he asks Sade if she would invite his lonely landlady, Mis' Keller, to a Thimble Club meeting.

This is a great act of thoughtfulness by Fletcher, who has shown us many times already that he is sensitive to the needs of others and that even though he's a bit loony, he and people like him can still be a valuable part of our communities and lives.

WHAT MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Uncle Fletcher has a certain matter to discuss with Sade.

Mrs. Keller is supposed to be taking care of Uncle Fletcher, but he ends up taking care of her! It’s funny how delicately he treats this. Most people would say “Hey, you should invite my landlady to your Thimble Club sometime! I know she’d like it.” But Fletcher is so reluctant to tread on anybody’s social toes , he is almost apologetic in the way he approaches Sade, and he begs her not to tell Mrs. Keller anything about his involvement because “she’d skin me alive” (I doubt this is true!). And, of course, he insists that proper application paperwork be completed for Mrs. Keller – paperwork that doesn’t exist. The rules of social conduct change with each generation, and Uncle Fletcher probably comes from a politer time than Sade – heck, his heyday would have been in the buttoned-down Victorian era – so it’s not too surprising that he behaves this way. Sade and Vic, as always, are happy to humor him.

SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed bu Lydia Crowe)

________________________

If you aren't touched by Fletcher's various acts of kindnesses, I say you have no soul. It is imperative that we realize the fact that Fletcher, though his mind is not all there and can't remember a lot of things correctly - is still, somehow, EXTREMELY THOUGHTFUL. Recall that he's already stayed up late in order to do a favor for both Alvy Trogel and his wife. And it was also assumed earlier that Fletcher had bought a $1000 harness for Mr. Gumpox and garbage wagon horse, simply because he saw a need.

Though somewhat humorous, I think this shows us yet another side of Paul Rhymer's writing; that he would include such incredible, touching irony in a character like Uncle Fletcher.

Think about this too: Uncle Fletcher with full wits, must have been one incredible human being.

Trivia:

+ The first few seconds of the introduction is missing. Also, the episode is about a minute shorter than usual, although it doesn't appear to be missing any other parts.

+ Uncle Fletcher refers to a man he knew that really liked popcorn: Albert Morton.  Morton supposedly had popcorn eating habits that were very much like another man he mentioned in episode 41-02-24 Uncle Fletcher To Meet 1 AM Train, Ed Niarbarque.  I could not guess whether they are one in the same or completely different people.

+ Even after being told a few times that there's no need to fill out an application blank in order for Mis' Keller to join the Thimble Club, Fletcher is so insistant on filling one out that Rush is forced to make one for him.

+ As of this episode, Mrs. Keller was 56 years old and weighed 165 pounds, according to Fletcher.

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40-02-20 Rush's Good Looks

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON 

Rush thinks he's good-looking, because Anabel Hemstreet "has been talking mighty free" about Rush's good looks at school.

It's deja vu

While Rush is full of himself in this episode, the strange twist is that the entire family is going through a terrific deja vu but that phrase, "deja-vu" is never uttered; instead, the family keeps piling on items that happened exactly the same way before.

The episode is much shorter (about half-length) than usual and we never find out the ending.

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Rush’s good looks could beat out Leland Richards’ good looks any day.

The insightful Sarah Cole points out [below] that Paul Rhymer comments on the shared experience of the human psyche here by having the characters talk all about experiencing deja vu, without knowing the proper name for the phenomenon. I would like to add that at the end of the episode, Rush employs a tactical social maneuver that didn’t even have a name until 2011 — the humblebrag. “I want to brag about myself but I don’t want to seem like I’m bragging so I’m going to veil it in a self-pitying complaint.” Although Macmillan Dictionary argues that the humblebrag “is a product of the social media revolution,” this episode shows that Rush, a 14-year-old in 1940, was no stranger to this form of human vanity, and Leland Richards finds himself on the receiving end of a very blatant humblebrag indeed.

This episode is incomplete. I’m guessing some kind of technical malfunction must have occurred during the recording because the organist hops in right after it cuts out and improvises quite beautifully for a while in order to fill the dead air. I do love that organ music…wish we had the rest of this one, though, because it’s a funny one, just like any episode concerning Rush and his high school problems. It’s also strangely jarring to come into a Vic and Sade episode in the middle because Paul Rhymer was such a structured writer — the scripts are arranged almost like musical compositions, as Gary Motter has observed. Repeating gags or phrases within an episode (“Somebody knock me over with a feather,” “I will not sign,” “Shall we jump?”) tend to come in threes or fives, distributed evenly throughout the ten minutes, like a refrain, with each instance building upon the material that came before it. I’m guessing Rush talked about his “good ol’ skull” and his “creamy complexion” three to four other times in the minutes of tape that we didn’t get to hear.

 SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

___________________

I would really like to know the turn of events in the last half of the show. Whatever it was would certainly play in with the deja-vu the family is having and I can envision it also having to do with Anabel.... but I wasn't blessed with Paul Rhymer's brain so I suppose I will never know.

Trivia:

+ Sade says she has that feeling (deja vu) at Thimble Club meetings.

+ Anabel Hemstreet is mentioned for the first time in the surviving audio.

DEJA-VU
One of the aspects of Paul Rhymer's domestic descriptions I've appreciated has been his candor. For instance, in the episode about the wheels within wheels at the local high school, Rush lets drop he has a butter-filching friend, and that one of the teachers has a physically abusive wife. Uncle Fletcher regularly refers to acquaintances who face uncomfortable personal problems. The situations are mentioned, not to be shocking, but because, unhappily, they are part of the human condition. The members of the Gook family trust each other enough to confide such sensitive information. In this episode, Sade mentions an odd experience she has had: that of feeling as if she has lived through an incident before. Although the revelation is not shocking, it could have led to suspicions of mental instability, if told to the wrong person. As it is, Sade describes her sense of deja-vu without comment or criticism. I wonder how many of her listeners would have felt comfortable enough with their intimates to make such a confession.

Another interesting thing about Vic and Sade's naturalness is its historical accuracy. Because it is a contemporary description of life in central Illinois during the 1930s and '40s, modern listeners can hear the sort of things that was on the minds of their great-grandparents. We often find out that the problems we face today aren't all that different from the ones they faced; or conditions we think no other generation has had to confront, are, in fact, as old as the human psyche. Only the name is new. Sade may never have heard the words "deja- vu," but her description is evidence that the phenomenon is not a recent development. - SARAH COLE

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39-11-14 Rush, House Destroyer

STARRING:BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON

Rush has made a deal with J.J. Gifford, the contractor, to knock down a building by himself.

Though he won't get paid, he doesn't seem to mind as there are stories to be told and bragging to be done for a 14 year old boy destroying a whole building by himself.

As Rush says, "(There's) Not much glory in helping tear down a building."

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Rush strikes an intriguing deal with a local contractor and prematurely basks in the resulting fame and glory.

Kids — even big monstrous teenage boys like Rush — have a lot of gaps to fill in regarding their perceptions of the world and their abilities. I remember when I was about 6 one summer day I attempted to dig myself a swimming pool in the garden. I managed about a 2 foot by 2 foot by 1 foot mud hole before I gave up and called it quits. Later, when I was about 11 and home alone, I somehow got it in my head that I was going to build myself a playhouse outside. My father was a machinist and had a lot of junk lying around so this seemed within the realm of possibility. One of my parents came home from work to find me dragging lumber around the yard. So, thinking back on my own childhood, I can very strongly relate to Rush’s ambitions here.

I’m wondering what kind of a wiseacre J.J. Gifford is to have struck this deal with Rush. The only thing this guy would have gotten out of this would have been to make Rush look like a dummy. Poor Rush is in for some bitter disappointment when he first goes down to the site and attempts to tear down this brick building. I’m glad we didn’t have to hear the fallout from that…I have such affection for Rush; such things go straight to my heart.

I’m noticing a trend: doesn’t it seem like Vic and Sade are both easier on Rush when it’s just one of them interacting with him at a time? It’s as if, when both parents are present, one of them has to take on the authoritative role, in order to demonstrate their parental effectiveness to the other. When it’s just Sade and Rush or Vic and Rush, the atmosphere is much more relaxed. Normally one of the two would attempt to enlighten Rush as to the craziness of this scheme…but today, Sade just goes with the flow. Obviously, Sade realizes, Rush will understand the impracticality of his ambitions the second he goes down to the warehouse and starts working…so what’s the point of working herself up?

 SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

________________________

Vic is missing in this episode and though Sade doesn't throw water on Rush's idea, one can imagine what Vic would say if he were around to hear Rush. But I'm not quite sure if he would encourage him or poo-poo the idea...

Trivia:

+ First mention of J.J. Gifford. He lives on the 700 block of University Street.

+ The house that Rush was to destroy is on West Mulberry Street

+ Rush imagines Sade will be able to brag about him tearing down the house at Thimble Club meetings.

+ West Monroe Street is mentioned for the first time. It's the street the house to be destroyed is on.

+ Mis' Trogle is mentioned. We find that she also lives on West Monroe Street and has baked four apple pies.

Sade imitates Mr. Buller: {{{HEAR}}}

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39-09-22 Wildflowers

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON 

Sade had promised members of the Thimble Club some names of wildflowes and a little information about them.

Well the week goes by and she's forgotten all about it.

She knows Vic will save the day though, since he grew up on a farm out in the country. But Vic doesn't know a wildflower from Wild Thing.

However, Rush's imagination - blended with half facts and truths, provides some stunning wildflower information for 6 separate Thimble Club members.

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Sade gathers last-minute information about wildflowers for her Thimble Club meeting.

In this episode, we find out that Vic and Sade’s is a mixed marriage — he was raised on a farm; she was raised in town. Sade has certain misconceptions about what farm life entailed for Vic. She seems to think growing up on a farm must have made him a naturalist and a botanical encyclopedia. However, this knowledge would not have been of much use to young Vic as he labored in the fields. He only knows about a few common, garden-variety flowers…plus the repulsively-named “rotten splotches.” (My parents once owned an elderly, incontinent house pet who earned this as a nickname, incidentally. The language of Paul Rhymer has pretty much cemented itself into our vernacular.)

Since Vic can’t provide the information (and Sade’s increasing annoyance at his good-natured efforts is one of the comedic high points of this episode), Sade turns to that master schemer and quick thinker, Rush. He helps her come up with a few facts…and a lot of fiction. Sade has probably criticized Rush in the fast for doing fast, sloppy, last-minute schoolwork. But now, I’ll bet she sees the value in this improvisatory skill set of his, one that is practiced and honed regularly by anyone who is in school. 

I love the glimpse we get of Rush’s moral compass:

SADE: Both Mis’ Oliver and Mis’ Carmelson will call out stuff at thimble meetin’ that ain’t true!
RUSH: Nobody’ll check up on ‘em, though. You take the average American citizen, he wouldn’t bother to go to the trouble —
[…]
SADE: Certainly made a botch of this. Makin’ ladies call out trash that ain’t even true!
RUSH: I wouldn’t worry, Mom. You’ll never get caught. 

Perhaps young Rush has a future as a politician?

SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

___________________

Rush's made up names, Sade's passing off the fake information and Vic's lack of wildflower knowledge just make for a lot of fun.

Trivia:

+ Mis' Carmelson, Mis' Welch, Mis' Cryder and Mis' Oliver are all mentioned for the first time in the surviving audio. They are all Thimble Club members.

+ Vic names several flowers he thinks might be of the wild variety. The actual wildflowers he does name are too common for Sade and the others are not wildflowers at all. The flowers he names are: dandelions, bluebells, chrysanthemums, tulips, iris, rotten splotches, carnations, heliotrope, sweet pea, orchids and poinsetta.

+ One of the wildflowers that Rush names is actually the name of a marble (kinnikinnick, but see Mis' Crowe's note at the bottom of the transcription.)

+ Mis' Appelrot is mentioned as being the Thimble Club Chairman ("chairwoman", these days!)

Rush makes up little-known facts about 6 wildflowers (edited): {{{HEAR}}}

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39-08-30 Rush Mad at Pre-selected School Clothes

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON 

Rush is upset and what 14 year-old boy could blame him?  Sade has gone
and picked out all of his school clothes at the various department stores around town.  All Rush has to do is go in and they will fit him to the right size.

Being 14 years old, he feels he is too old for such stuff.  Sade is afraid he would pick out crazy clothes.

Vic and Sade feel that Rush should just be happy his parents can afford clothes for him and not sulk.

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Sade has selected Rush’s school clothes in advance and Rush is terribly unhappy about it.

Whenever Rush wants to do something grown up, Sade reminds him that he’s a “little boy.” Whenever Rush does something childish, Sade chides him for being a “big, monstrous, grown-up high school gentleman.” The poor guy just can’t win!

Sade is worried about Rush picking out “loud, crashy” clothing, but so what? He is a teenager, after all. But Sade has always been concerned about appearances. She badly wants to be accepted by her community, and she’s a little overly-conscious of what others will think. It extends to her husband, too — particularly in the area of headwear. She wants a good social standing among her friends and neighbors, and she isn’t going to let anything stand in the way of that.

Such customer service in those days, though! Sade’s request would be too extreme for most stores in today’s world (especially if she were shopping for school clothes at a big-box store, like most parents do nowadays). But it’s no trouble for the fine professionals at Yamilton’s, Kleeburger’s, and Emson’s.

Rush is such a teenager in this episode. The potential for embarrassment is everywhere, his parents are unbelievably cruel and unfair, and everything is a gigantic disaster. He’s suitably overdramatic about the situation and Bill Idelson really gets to shine.

SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

________________________

Not a very memorable episode.  Rush is whiny and sulky and mad at Sade.

Trivia:

+ In a previous episode, Mis' Harris was not a member of the Thimble Club but in this episode, Rush relays a message from her to Sade, "That she will not be at the Thimble meeting."

+ Sade pre-bought Rush a blue serge suit, a pair of reddish brown shoes and a  plaid cap.

+ At Yamilton's, Rush is to ask for Mr. Richards.  At Kleeburgers, he is to ask for Mr. White (a young fellow with nose glasses) and at Emson's Shoes, he is to see Mr. Finn (he's bald and probably has an artificial leg).

+ Mr. Call is mentioned.  We can assume this is Heinie Call's father.

TWO SIDES...

JIMBO: This episode and a later one (42-08-24 Rush's New School Clothes) seems to show that Sade doesn't trust Rush when it comes to buying clothes. We also know she doesn't trust her husband when he buys clothes either (a suit and numerous hats.)

I say this is because Sade is all hung up on controlling the family but I have a feeling (from other conversations we have had and writings you have submitted) that you will say that Sade is only being prudent and that their clothes' selection reflect on her.

That might be, but why does Ruthie and the other ladies have to come along? Rush doesn't want to be embarrassed and she doesn't seem to care if he's put into that situation.

SARAH COLE: One of the keys to understanding the relationship between Sade and Rush is that Sade can't get used to the idea that Rush is nearly an adult. A mother can take a child shopping with her friends -- she had probably done it plenty of times when Rush was a little boy. Rush, however, is no longer a child. Although Sade may still think of him as the eight-year-old the Gooks adopted, he is approaching a man's estate, and expects to be treated with adult respect.

In Sade's defense, it has just occurred to me that she has probably never seen a healthy adult parent/child relationship modeled. She had left school to marry, her father was seldom (if ever) mentioned, and her mother died when she was still fairly young. The only behavior she has ever seen is that of adults governing their inexperienced offspring. Discovering that, eventually children expect to govern themselves is a disagreeable surprise to her.

The issue is not that Sade won't let Rush pick his own school clothes (for, no matter what he may think, he is inexperienced in the selection of smart, yet durable attire), but that she treats the process so casually that it is incidental to her real motivation: an afternoon socializing with her friends while shopping. Eventually, the social circle expands to the point where even Sade sees Rush's embarrassing position, though pride, perhaps, keeps her from altering her plans.

Another issue that would influence her decisions is the Depression. In 1939, the country was beginning to emerge from the second dip of the Great Depression (see Amity Shlaes' history of The Forgotten Man). Frugality had been a crucial virtue, and Sade is domestically virtuous! The fact that Vic presumably makes a good salary as head bookkeeper, and that the economy is starting to improve have not occurred to her. Even at the expense of Rush's self-respect, a sale is an opportunity not to be missed.

An ideal solution to the situations in both of these episodes would have been for Sade and Rush to go together to pick out his clothes, with Sade acting as adviser, rather It would have provided a fine opportunity for mother/son bonding. But Sade still has a lot to learn about being a mother; just as Rush has a lot to learn about being a son.

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37-11-28 Congress and the Supreme Court

STARRING: ART VAN HARVEY, BERNARDINE FLYNN AND BILL IDELSON

This is an episode of -not Vic and Sade- but of a program called The Magic Key.

Vic, Sade and Rush discuss the government, Congress and the Supreme Court and it's importance in society.

Sade reads the paper and brings up the "Super 'em Court" (or so it sounds) and explains this is the same thing the "know-it-all" Mis' Appelrot talks about at the Thimble Club.

Sade doesn't seem to take knowledge of the government very seriously and acts nervously when the Gook men discuss the subject.

MIS' CROWE SAYS:
Sade expresses her confusion about the federal government. Vic & Rush attempt to enlighten her.

NOTE: This is not, in fact, an episode of Vic & Sade, but of a show called The Magic Key of RCA. (So does this mean it’s not canon? AU? Hmm…)

Like “Sade’s Trip to Dwight,” this is another one where the joke is Sade’s ignorance — in this case, willful ignorance — of something Vic and Rush consider to be basic knowledge. Now, my immediate, knee-jerk reaction to this and episodes like it, as a feminist, is slightly negative — especially with lines like this:

SADE: Mis’ Appelrot’s a grown-up woman with a family and a house to keep clean. What on earth does she care about the Congress?

Sade refuses to listen to all of Vic’s and Rush’s good-natured attempts to straighten her out about this. It looks a little bit like the message being sent here is “You can’t educate women about civics, even if you try!” But that reaction is unfair (Mis’ Appelrot and Mis’ Brighton have educated themselves, after all). That’s not the message being sent here. This show is character-driven, and the message is about Sade as an individual. Episodes like this one tell us a lot about her background and her inner life.

Sade never graduated from high school, and in at least one later episode, she expresses some self-consciousness about it. In this episode, she almost seems to take pride in her ignorance, but this is a defense mechanism:

SADE: Yeah, all that monstrous, big important talky-talk, and actually you’d think they were the king of Peoria. What was it Mis’ Appelrot said the other day?

VIC: Couldn’t tell ya.

SADE: Uhh, a Republican form of government, lah dee dah, Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg, Constitution, lah dee dah, receivable taxes, canal zones, Congress, dumpty dumpty dum. Silly.

RUSH: See, when the nation adopts a Republican form of —

SADE [giggles]: Looks like we got a Mis’ Appelrot right here in the family.

VIC: What?

SADE: Oh, Rush explains a thing the same way she does. Instead of comin’ right out and sayin’ what she wants to say, she hems and haws and beats around the bush ‘til a person wants to scream. Son, why don’t you just say they got Congress fellas in Washington, D.C. that fixes the law?

 In Sade’s eyes, Mis’ Appelrot and others like her are flaunting their superior education, talking in circles to confuse her on purpose. Without intending to, they are making her feel put down. So her defense is to deny that any of this information is important to her. Sade has spent her whole life learning to be an excellent homemaker and mother (ironically, she is hammering on Rush throughout this episode to study algebra and improve his grades, while resisting any attempt to be educated herself). She has worked hard to become what she is, and she is very good at it. She has a well-defined sense of her place in the world and her strengths as a person. But sometimes, people around her unintentionally make her feel inferior by implying that she needs to be something more than what she is. When that happens, this worldview is threatened, and the defenses go up. She curls up into a ball, puts her bristles out, and refuses to listen. And, if she can reinforce her self-image as homemaker extraordinaire by chastising Rush or Vic (“Your feet!”), so much the better.

So while the humor in these “Sade is ignorant” episodes does appear to be at her expense, they also give us a lot of insight into her as a person. It’s also important to remember that Vic & Sade's primary audience was housewives like Sade — not know-it-all husbands like Vic. While it sometimes seems like Rush and Vic are ganging up on Sade for her ignorance, I'll bet the audience was right on her side. Some of them probably experienced the same feelings at one time or another and were able to laugh a little at themselves while laughing at Sade. Vic & Sade wasn’t written to enforce a status quo — it was written to entertain ordinary Americans by describing life as it was (with frequent injections of the bizarre and the absurd to keep things interesting). To criticize it through a 21st-century feminist lens would be to miss the point. Sade is ignorant because Sade is Sade. That’s all. 

Was this too much to write about a 5-minute piece of light family comedy? Grad school warps you, I tells ya. Warn the young people you know.

SEE THE SCRIPT (transcribed by Lydia Crowe)

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There's not a lot of comedy here. Sade's poo-pooing of learning about the government here is the only joke going and it's not that funny.

Trivia:

+ This is the first time the Thimble Club is mentioned in the surviving shows.

+ One episode after being friendly with Mis' Appelrot, Sade is already beginning to turn on her, as I promised in the previous post.

+ T.W. Vogel is mentioned: He lives at 718 Tender Street. According to the paper, he was mysteriously ill for 3 weeks.

+ Mr. Steelpump is mentioned: Sade reads in the paper that he is going to marry Marie Hunkerman.

Sade poo-poos Mis' Appelrot's government talk:  (((HEAR)))

SADE DOESN'T HATE THE GOVERNMENT

I think it's a shame that Sade doesn't have better citizenship skills and knowledge. Or the desire to take initiative to learn more about how government works. Her problem doesn't seem to be a lack of patriotic pride, just a lack in her education. Government was one of my lesser enjoyed classes in school. It can be very complicated. The same can be said for Sade's other weaknesses in math and science.

Sade's personality is geared towards her loyalty to her family, and local society of friends, and acquaintances. Something like big government is foreign to her, and isn't a daily impact on her life, so she doesn't concern herself to learn it. And anything where Sade can't be on the top of her game, and dominate in, has to be silly and trivial. If you can't beat 'em, don't join 'em. Make fun of 'em. - Keith @ Retro Radio Podcast

Download the complete commercial-free, sound-improved episode!

Thimble Club Members/Info

+ Sade Gook, President

+ Mis' Fenwick, Vice President

+ Mis' Adams

+ Mis' Allbrick

+ Mis' Appelrot (Club Chairman)

+ Mis' Armbrister

+ Mis' Brandeis (Mae) ("out west clique")

+ Mis' Brighton

+ Mis' Bushwell (Barbara) ("out west clique")

+ Mis' Carmelson

+ Mis' Cheevers

+ Mis' Chlorine

+ Mis' Coleman (Ellen) ("out west clique")

+ Mis' Craig

+ Mis' Cryder

+ Mis' Donahue

+ Mis' Feeby

+ Mis' Frawley

+ Mis' Freeze

+ Mis' Garrison

+ Mis' Groppleman

+ Mis' Guller

+ Mis' Henry (President of the club in 1933 and probably Club Founder)

+ Mis' Hettles

+ Mis' Harris

+ Mis' Heesner

+ Mis' Howard

+ Mis' Johnson

+ Mis' Kessler

+ Mis' Kennedy (Cad) ("out west clique")

+ Mis' Kester

+ Mis' Morris

+ Mis' O'Donnell

+ Mis' Oliver

+ Mis' Thomas

+ Mis' Trogle

+ Mis' Vrockli

+ Mis' Welch

+ Mis' Wheeler

+ Mis' Wilcox

+ Mis' Wyckle

+ Ruthie Stembottom - Was a member, then quit. As of episode 42-03-xx Mis' Applerot's Petition, she is again a member.

+ Harry Antidisestablishmentarianistic Jackson

? Mis' Keller - Sade said she would invite her to join.

x Frida Gateman - Was a member but has been absent from the club for more than a year.

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The Thimble Club meets on Thursdays. They meet every week in a different member's home. It appears they meet at 2:00 pm.