Bradley's Buzz

26 Years Ago In Knots Landing...

Episode #9 'THE CONSTANT COMPANION'
Original Airdate: February 21, 1980


CONSTANT CHRYSANTHEMUMS
Tonight's episode found our often unused Ginger Ward in the midst of a king sized pickle. Yes, our Ginger was the focal point of today’s episode for it seems she has a constant companion who will not let her just retire to a back scene. The Ging must be brought forward and we must watch and if you’re like me, you must fall in love with this episode and our bug-eyed gal.

We know it’s going to be a great episode when the very first scene starts with a starry eyed Ging staring at a vase of flowers at work. I noticed a few episodes back that The Ging wears the highest high heels ever to walk the kindergarten classroom. That is unless you went to school in Mosinee, Wisconsin where my kindergarten teacher Mrs. Smith also wore giant high heels and had big Dolly Parton hair.. I loved that woman and as soon as I’m done typing out this little synopsis, I’m hitting google and I’m going to find out whatever happened to her. Perhaps I’ll send her some flowers, and perfume and a corsage and a tape… oops looks like I’m getting ahead of myself.

So back at Oceanside Elementary School, our Mrs. Ward calls in her local janitor to ask him about the flowers. He tells her he is just the deliveryman around here and he doesn’t know where they’re coming from but he does know they’re not from him. He figures its one of the kids, but that Ging is much too dedicated of a teacher to not come into work an hour before the kids and she even stays later than the kids, so it’s all a big mystery.


But that doesn’t stop our Ging from harassing her kindergartners. She asks them once again if anyone was giving her the flowers. She calls them chrysanthemums and the cutest little black boy tries to repeat the word. A word I can't spell or say! He finally gets it, showing this Bradley up. He also tells the Ging that he's the one sending them. Ging asks him, "You are? The flowers are from you?"

He says, "Maybe."

Then a little smart girl who is our predecessor to Meg Mackenzie says, "No, he's in my car pool and he never has flowers." to which one of his buds stands up for him and says, "He said maybe."

Our little cutie says, "I said maybe.”

So our poor Ging is still left without any answers. Meanwhile, I think the cast could only benefit by having this little child as a comic foil. It seems to work on sitcoms, why not a soap opera!

That afternoon as our Ging gets into her Datsun, there is a big problem. It seems her little car won’t start. She gets out and a short little man named Arthur comes sauntering over. He tells her to open the hood and once they do, it becomes quite apparent that neither one of them know what to do. Ginger calls the auto club and the man arrives to look under the hood and actually know what is going on. It seems her distributor cap is gone. Not broken but actually gone. He figures someone has a strange sense of humor or they didn’t want Mrs. Ward to leave. The auto man offers her a ride through his tobacco stained teeth and leery grin but she opts to go with short little Arthur instead.

The school duo arrive in the cul-de-sac and as Ginger gets out of the car and leans in to thank Arthur, that little man has already made his way to her front door claiming that he loves her yard, he loves her house and he wants to go inside and check it out. Ginger seems touched by his excitement so she lets him in. The inside is even more exciting to him and he runs through the hall to the living room and admires the stereo system, the fireplace, the walls and he never once mentions that they don’t have any windows. I personally think he will like the house even more when they rearrange it and you walk into the living room and the kitchen suddenly is next to the living room with a slated gate and bar a la Happy Days, but something tells me Arthur may not stick around long enough to notice those changes.



He asks Ginger for some coffee and she runs into some other room, (I’m still confused as to what the actual architecture is on this house). She arrives from a whole other part of the house from where she disappeared to, carrying a copper pot of coffee.. She practically drops it when she burns her hand on the hot metal. It seems that she has shoddy potholders. Arthur runs to get her some ice and puts it on her hand as Kenny walks through the door.

Kenny doesn’t know what to make of the scene with the little man cupping his wife’s digits. They explain the whole situation and Kenny decides Arthur should stay for dinner. Ginger doesn’t like it too much as she (and the viewing audience) has decided that Arthur is a strange bird.

Ging and Kenny feed the little man and apparently feeling Arthur may be uncomfortable with his height if they all sit in grown up chairs, they decide to dine on the floor around the coffee table. Once Arthur starts talking about bugs, Ginger decides that its time for him to leave. He offers to pick her up in the morning but she tells him that Kenny will take him. Kenny proves he has more going on in the looks department than the brains department when says he has to work early. Ginger insists that she too has to be in early. She tells Kenny that the little man gives her the creeps.

But The Ging isn’t the only person in the cul-de-sac to be having problems for our little Valene is having a constant companion too. Her burden is her lack of education. She sends Gary off to work and sneaks into her oak bureau pulling out books and notepads. She begins reciting dates about conquering America and wars with Mexico when Gary comes sauntering back in as he forgot his ad campaign. (On a side note our Gary has been talking about the knots landing ad campaign for about four episodes now, I get the feeling there may be a commercial coming up).

Gary sees all the books and his blonde wife under them and wonders what’s going on. Valene confesses she is studying to get her high school diploma. She feels left out since Karen and Ginger both have college degrees and even Laura had a bit of college. Note again, that Valene seems to remember that Laura dropped out of college but can’t for the life of her remember that Laura’s mother died when she was 12. I’m surprised Val didn’t ask Laura yesterday why her mother couldn’t take care of her ill father.

But once again I have digressed beyond belief. I tell you being blonde is fun! Anyway, Gary tells his Val gal that there ain’t no shame in asking for a little help. Val doesn’t want any help because if she should happen to fail then everyone will know what she is up to. Gary wishes her luck and runs off to Knots Landing Motors while Val hits the books one more time.

That night, Gary comes downstairs to find his little Val all curled up in a ball on the living room floor with books and notepads all around her. He covers her and heads for bed and this my friends is where Valene first discovered the art of writing while sitting on the ground. See it all goes back to this first season.

The next day, Ginger goes into work to find more presents on her desk. This time there are not only flowers but a corsage and perfume as well. Not to mention, just for laughs a potholder. She sees Arthur out of the corner of her eye (no jokes intended for the peepers) but he runs away. After work she is finally able to confront him when he is waiting by her car. She freaks out on the little man and tells him she doesn’t want any of his gifts. He realizes the potholder was a bit bold but he wasn’t really trying to get into her pants or anything, and he most definitely did not give her flowers or perfume, as the poor guy is allergic to his own shampoo.

The little man takes off running to his Gremlin (which incidentally my grandmother; the oft mentioned Ferlie Bird, used to drive a Gremlin. I loved that little yellow car).. Anyway, it occurred to me as he went running to his car in a nervous frenzy, that we don't know exactly what this man does at Oceanside Elementary School. I mean is this man a teacher? He's so nervous around the Ging, how would he behave in front of twenty unruly children? I certainly hope he works in the office or Richard Avery may have a new campaign next year when he runs for the school board.

Ginger rushes home only to have the phone start ringing. A strange voice calls “Mommy, Daddy” a few times then hangs up. She is beside her eyes by this time. Kenny doesn’t know what to make of all the gifts either, especially her new stash of children’s book. I’m starting to sense a theme happening by now but maybe I’m the only one because our heroes can’t make hide nor tail of it all.

The final straw happens when a midget delivers a birthday cake for Ginger Killman. Yes, we have our second maiden name now.. (Clements being the first of course). Ginger says she is Ginger Ward now but the midget decides that’s close enough and sings her a birthday song. Ginger tells him that it won’t be her birthday for five months but he gives her the cake anyway. She opens the cake and the number 8 is printed on it. She freaks out and I think she’s about to remember something but Kenny decides its high time they head over to Arthur’s to find out what the little freak is trying to prove.

Arthur apologizes for his mother’s absence at this little interrogation but Kenny doesn’t even care to meet poor Art’s mama. He wants to know what Arthur is trying to prove by giving his wife all these presents. “Geez, I didn’t know a pot holder was such a big whoop. I mean the woman did burn her pretty little fingers. I was just trying to help.” Ginger realizes it’s not Arthur and we fade to commercial.


The Wards decide it’s high time to call Hill Street Blues and Daniel J. Travanti makes his grand entrance. He tells The Ging that there really hasn’t been any crime, just a big nuisance. I have expected him to pull a Richard and say, “Perhaps your husbands empty stomach is the real victim here. I hear you’ve been feeding him left overs.” He tells our Ging to make a list of people who want to schlep her or who have schlepped her in the past just in case they want more action. She gets quite perplexed when she realizes that there is going to be a long list that she will never show Kenny. Kenny decides to call off his trip to San Francisco but for some strange reason our Ging tells him, “No go, how am I ever going to prove I can carry this show if you’re always all over me. You go and then next week when I want something I’ll beg you to stay. That’s called diversity. You’ll see.”

Val’s day didn’t go much better. She has worked and worked trying to time herself on her test and no matter how many times she winds up that egg timer, she just can’t make it. She begins to get frustrated and wants to cry. Even the doorbell won’t distract our soon to be valedictorian so Karen is left with a bundle of hand picked flowers. She leaves them at Val’s door and I begin to wonder if Karen is Ginger’s stalker.

The next day Val decides to try it all again and after a much-needed talk from Gary about swallowing pride and asking for help; she rings up Laura and invites her for coffee. Once she hangs up the horn, she pulls out the bigger buns and calls the actual college graduate next door. The girls spend all day helping our Valene until Richard pops in, of course to dismiss these crazy gals as nothing. Unfortunately, he is the only one who knows the hypotenuse of a triangle. Although his lovely Red did know it had something to do with the triangle. He shows them what it is, they realize how simple it is and he asks Laura for his dinner. What a guy.

Ginger arrives home that night with a tape left in her mailbox. Poor girl, first flowers, then corsages, then perfume and now a tape. She pops it in and prays it’s the newest Cosmic Steeple demo.

Poor Ginger discovers its not a rock band, it’s a strange scary tape with a baby crying, then a woman singing a nursery rhyme, then the “Mommy, Daddy” of her earlier phone calls and finally a piano lullaby. Whatever could it all mean? Ginger wonders the same thing and then plays it again. The phone rings and she is about to answer it when we both realize that she has a very pretty nail polish on. We move back up to her face and are aghast at how lovely our Ginger really does look today. But we don’t have time for this, she is in deep drama. She grabs her purse and heads to the door. She screams as there is someone there but a la “When a Stranger Calls” it is Mr. Police Detective.

He comes in and asks about Kenny actually having gone to San Francisco. I begin to suspect that he is her stalker and wonder what Mr. Travanti’s story really is. After a little coaxing, Ginger fesses up about the tape. He wants to hear it so Ginger plays it one more time. This time our Ging is ever excitable and begins to cry. He realizes there is some connection being made and he pulls her closer to him and tells her he is there for her.

Now either there was a little edit here and I missed something he said or something he did or even worse, I just totally missed a Daniel J. move on the woman, but she jumps from him and calls him a bastard. He leaves but tells her she knows where to find him if she needs him. I just don’t get it but I can only assume that she thought or he really was trying to come onto her in this dire time of ginger need.

She runs in the dark night to the only safe haven in the cul-de-sac; the Fairgates. She tells Karen and Sid the whole sordid tale. Why it’s just like her flashback from a few episodes ago. It seems our Ginger got pregnant when she was 16 and her mother forced her to have an abortion. The boy she had the fling with was named John. She lost track of him but the corsage is the one she wore to junior prom and the perfume is what he used to buy her. Oh my god, is everyone connecting all the dots here, I by now am at the edge of the barcelounger practically spilling my wine. Finally, Ginger says that Johns’ mother still lives in the same house and maybe she should go and see him. Sid tells her she should bring Kenny but our Ging has one more basket to drop, it seems Kenny knows nothing about any of this. So fearless leader Fairgate, Karen that is, offers to come with her.

The next day, Valene breaks the big drama of the Ginger spectacle when Gary drives her to the local community college to take her GED test. He offers to come in with her but she says she needs to do this on her own and she is ready, ready I tell you, to get that diploma and start on a novel about his evil family. She’s going to be a success damn it. And damn it if it isn’t true for our next Val/Gary scene shows our happy bumpkin hopping into that Mercury and telling her hubby that she did it, its’ over and she even finished on time! That Val, only nine episodes in and she’s already moving her character forward.

We open the scene at John's mother's house (who by the way has the burden of being named Beatrice) with overdubs of her talking but our very first camera shot is of a garden of yellow flowers. Flowers like the ones our Ginger has been getting for the whole episode. Our special guest star Priscilla Pointer (a/k/a Katherine Wentworth) has finally emerged. She is talking to Karen and Ginger about all the kids that used to hang out in the garden and yard. There were children for miles until one by one they all grew up and went to school, had abortions and broke her heart. She gets postcards from all over the world. Ginger finally asks about John but our special guest has big news. John went to Vietnam and though he came back, he was wounded and he died about six months ago. Ging and Karen stare at each other and are both quite upset that this mystery still isn’t solved.

Karen and Ginger arrive back at the Fairgates where Karen is holding a vase full of those flowers. She tells Ginger that she feels bad for Priscilla Pointer having nothing to hold onto anymore but the memories and her flower gardens. That’s all Ginger needs to hear and she realizes that it’s the special guest star that’s been terrorizing her for the past hour! Well, its about time Ginger! But she did look fab through out her ordeal, don’t you think?

Ginger runs out the door to go confront the guest star just as Diana walks in to say, “What’s going on?” and earn her Also starring bill.

Ginger sneaks up behind Priscilla who is watering her flowers and wearing a mumu (can’t believe I didn’t mention that earlier.. maybe this is where Ginger gets the idea for her and Abby’s season 4 outfits)..

“It’s you,” says Ginger. “You’re the one sending me all those gifts and harassing me.” Our special guest swears she doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Ginger tells her that her mother made her give up the baby. Then Priscilla surprises us all when she talks about those flowers and how she saw Ginger and John having sex in those flowers and she wasn’t upset by it at all for she really thought they made a wonderful couple. I also think she was taking some lessons on how to make Mr. Special Guest Star feel good. But what do I know; all I really know is this mother was staring out the window as her son was doing the bimbo from down the block.

Finally our special guest freaks out and tells Ginger that she killed her grandchild and she killed John; for if the baby had been born John would’ve never went to Vietnam. Ginger shows us her acting chops when she tells the stalking basket case that this is something she has lived with all these years, the baby was hers and it was inside of her and she feels the emptiness every day. Ginger finally says, “I tried to forget and get on with my life and you hold on to it and it’s killing you. I won’t suffer for you or with you.” I give a great big hurrah! And Priscilla is left holding her hose and wondering if Dallas is hiring.

Ginger comes home to find Kenny in the bedroom. She tells him that it’s all over. I think there’s going to be huge emotions and all of the truth will come spilling out of our Ging but apparently the last scene wiped her clean of her acting chops so she just tells him that there was a boy long ago who had a mother who went crazy but now there will be no more flowers, books, perfume, or corsages. There is however, a tape she’d like her husband to hear, as it could be the next big hit if a disco beat is put to it.

So there you have it, the story of Ginger’s constant companion from your constant companion

posted by swivek @ 9:52 PM