02x20 - Gotta Dance

[bunniefuu]

Hey, Dad, we got the results

from our career aptitude tests.

Look, it says I should be

an international investment banker

or a microtechnology design specialist.

Which one makes the most money?

-Investment banker.

-Do that one.

But I think I might find microtechnology

more personally fulfilling.

And it probably would benefit

mankind more.

Do that on the weekends.

Look, son, you know I want you to do

whatever it is makes you happy, alright?

I know that.

And just remember, I'm counting on you

kids to take care of me in my old age.

I don't want to end up in one of them

nursing homes you see on Minutes,

lying unattended on a gurney

while some orderly who's supposed to be

giving me my bath is eating my applesauce.

Oh, don't worry, Pop.

Hey, I'll take care of you.

Yeah, see, my test says that

I am gonna be involved

in the challenging field

of middle management.

Management, huh?

Middle, yeah.

Perfect place to be. See, there are people

who are above me who are responsible,

and then there's people who are below

me who I can blame.

Huh, and when the fertilizer hits the fan,

I'm gonna be the one in

the break room having a Fresca.

Yeah, and when the morale dips among

my fellow work team members,

I just haul 'em on over

to the Marriott Hotel,

where they can have a pep

talk by the big Mo.

Why Mo?

The aptitude test says

he's gonna be a motivational speaker.

Mo? What's the margin of error

on these tests, like a million percent?

No, actually, they're very accurate.

When I took the test last year,

it said I should be in the arts.

I'm either gonna be a dancer or a poet.

Either way, it sounds like you're

gonna be living at home for a while.

And I still don't get my condo in Florida.

Hey, everybody, what's happening?

Hey, Pops is concerned about his future.

Don't put concern in your future.

Put concern in your past.

Put optimism in your future,

'cause when you believe in your future,

the present happens today.

That doesn't make any sense.

I'm just getting started.

[whistle blows]

♪ Another slice of the life

Of Master T.J. Henderson ♪

♪ Super-intelligent,

A fine young gentleman ♪

♪ A -year-old whiz kid

Bustin' high school ♪

♪ A pugnacious little shorty

With a thousand I.Q. ♪

♪ He's got a way with the ladies ♪

♪ And he's keepin' it real ♪

♪ Your favorite little study buddy

He knows the deal ♪

♪ That he's still just a kid

On the ball, very clever ♪

♪ You can say that he's bright

Brainy, gifted, whatever ♪

♪ Your brother is smart ♪

♪ He's a smart guy ♪

♪ Smart guy ♪

♪ Smart guy ♪

♪ He's a smart guy ♪

Yeah, so the beauty part

of this middle management

is that you get four weeks paid

vacation each year.

Don't vacate. Motivate.

If you need time away,

then you're not really here.

'cause being here is what gets you there.

Uh-huh.

Uh, so anyway, you get things like, uh,

health care, a good dental plan,

and in some places you even

get vision care.

All you need is a vision that

you care about.

Because if you have "a" vision,

you will "b" where you want

and "c" where you're going,

and that is d-lightful.

Okay, you gotta stop doing that

e-mmediately.

Can you drive me over to George

Washington University?

I'm gonna sign up for an A.P. Prep course.

Which one you taking?

Either chemistry for microtechnology

or economics for investment banking.

If you bank on your own potential...

and invest in yourself,

you will compound daily.

Hmm? Is he gonna be okay?

I don't know.

Well, maybe Yvette can take me.

Her dance class usually ends at : .

[dance teacher] Okay, one more time,

one more time.

Five, six, seven, eight.

Hit.

Pull.

Yeah.

It should be smooth.

It should be effortless.

It should be over.

Yeah. I think that's it for today, Yvette.

Hallelujah.

Very nice. Your technique's

getting stronger,

and that's freeing you up to express

your own feelings about the music.

Thanks.

It's just that the music is so inspiring

and has such beautiful eyes.

In the sense that music has a face.

Right, right.

Forget it, Yvette. He's the teacher.

You don't have a chance.

Now how about zipping me over

to George Washington University?

-Let's go.

-Okay, okay, fine.

No, no, no. That's not working.

Here, let me try something right here.

T.J., T.J., He's gonna dance.

Oh, how about that?

Too bad we're gonna be gone.

Something like that.

Okay, T.J., we can go now.

Go where?

Dad! Dad! I finally decided

what I want to be!

I know what my career is!

Alright! What's it gonna be--

the banker whozits or the micro thing?

Neither. I'm gonna be a tap dancer!

What? What?

I was watching Mr. Tierney

dance in Yvette's class,

and he was incredible.

It was the motion and the rhythm

and the flying, and I wanna do that.

Investment bankers fly, too.

First class. All over the world.

Dad, Yvette said she could pull

some strings and get me in the class.

Yvette said that, huh?

Yeah. It's all coming together for me.

Isn't that great?

This is what I wanna do

for the rest of my life.

Dance!

Look, dancing's fine, son...

but it wouldn't hurt to have

a fallback position,

you know, like one of those A.P. Courses

where the registration ends today

and if we hurry up we can still make it.

Why do I need those now?

Because hoofing isn't

a very secure career.

There's a lot of great dancers out there.

Most of them are waiters.

Ohh, I get it.

You only want me to follow my heart

if it leads to a job with

a lot of money attached to it.

No, no, I'm not saying that at all.

Do you really wanna be a dancer?

More than anything.

-Then go for it.

-Yes.

I'm behind you all the way,

but you gotta know--

it's gonna be a tough road.

Don't worry, Dad. I'm going

into that class a nobody

but I'm coming out a star.

One, two, three, four.

Oh, sorry, sorry.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I-- I think I got it now.

Well, T.J., That was, uh... better.

Mackey, heh, man, what you--

what you doin' in dance?

Well, it's artistic. It's athletic.

And I get to pick your sister up

by her butt.

Um, excuse me, Sammy Davis, can I see

your social studies notes, please?

Oh, yeah, sure. They're in my book bag.



You know, if you wanna get ahead,

you've got to rely on your own head.

I think I like T.J.'s head better.

You know your problem?

Someone said you belong in the middle,

and you're just gonna settle for that.

No, brother, see, you say... middle.

I say... middle!

But with just % more effort,

you can have % more result.

I'm putting that all out on tape.

I'm calling it,

mo-tivation with the mo-tivator!

Yeah, and I'm sure you will sell it

to a lot of mo-rons.

Starting to get through, ain't I?

Okay, T.J., break's over.

Back on your feet.

These feet?

Let's run the last three measures again.

One, two, three, four.

-Hey, Dad.

-Hey, honey.

Ooh! Aah!

Ohh! Ow!

Mr. Bojangles. So how was dance practice?

It started lousy and ended miserable.

Well, you know something?

You better get a new attitude

because I went out of my way

to get you in that show.

Well, it was a mistake. Dancing's stupid

and pointless, and I hate it.

So I'm quitting. You happy?

Ow! Ow!

I'm not unhappy.

You sure you want to quit dancing?

Yes, I'm sure.

Okay.

Dad, he just can't quit.

Well, I don't know.

Seems to me his mind's made up.

Since when did that ever make any

difference to you?

I make up my mind

about stuff all the time.

You always tell me I'm wrong.

And you're wrong about this, too.

Because as much as I may want

T.J. to continue dancing,

I can't make him do something

he doesn't want to do.

Sure you can. You love doing that.

Besides, there are a lot of people

in this show counting on him.

Mmm, there would be, wouldn't there?

Yes and the only reason

that he wants to quit

is because he had to work hard

and it hurt and he couldn't take it.

Is that true, son?

Way to go. Now you got Dad

figuring out a point to this.

Then my work here is done.

Okay, Gloria Allred's gone.

Now, let's just pick out an A.P. Course,

and I'll be on my way to a lucrative,

high-tech career,

and you can start picking out

condos in Florida.

You can't quit.

Now, those other students

are counting on you,

and you can't let them down.

I don't like dancing. It's hard.

That's why you practice.

I did practice. I practiced for

several hours, and I got nowhere.

You don't learn something

hard in several hours, T.J.

I learned French, I learned algebra,

I learned the table of elements.

-T.J.--

-I learned Cartesian philosophy.

-Okay, T.J.--

-I learned Babylonian cuneiform.

I get the point.

But now what are you telling me, T.J.?

That now you're going to quit because

for the first time in your life

you've come up against something

that you couldn't master right away?

Yeah.

Okay, look, I don't want you

quitting something

just 'cause it doesn't come easy.

Now, that's not how you build character.

Now you committed to doing

this dance program,

and you are going to practice

that routine

and you're gonna get out there

and perform it whether I like it or not.

I'm not getting Yvette

anything for Christmas.

Yeah. I've done that.

I knew I'd find you here.

Now what kind of middle manager

are you gonna be

if you spend all your spare time

watching girls dance?

The happy kind.

You've got to stop being a human watching

and start being a human being.

Whoa, that one just came right out.

Excuse me. I was at your motivational

workshop in the cafeteria,

and you've changed my life.

I really was afraid of success.

Like I've always said, if you take

the "poo" out of "poor,"

it leaves the "r," and

that's the beginning of rich.

Wow! So I'll see you at your seminar

Sunday morning?

Westport room at the Marriott. Free coffee

and pastry with your paid admission.

Take five, everybody.

So what's up, T.J.?

You ready to try this again?

What's the point? I'm hopeless.

You're not hopeless, you're a beginner.

We're all beginners at some point.

So were you as bad as me when you started?

Uh, it's not really important what I did.

I mean--

Were you this bad?

No.

But I still had to work hard.

Well, at least you had talent.

So do you. Just lighten up a little.

Easy for you to say. Your feet work.

I'm gonna be the one up there stumbling

around and bumping into everybody else.

Mmm.

Well, how about if you

were just bumping into me?

You'd dance with me?

Yeah. You can do this.

You just want it to be perfect right away,

but dance doesn't work like that.

Don't get so caught up in mechanics.

Let some emotion flow into it.

But how?

Alright.

What's something that gets you mad?

When you buy a new computer

and it comes with an internet browser

you really don't like

but you have to use it

'cause it's bundled with the software.

Okay.

What's something else?

Getting picked last for sports

just because I'm small.

Oh, and w*r.

Let's stick with sports.

When you're picked last, what would you

do about it if you could?

-I'd say, "pick me!"

-See? Do it again.

-Pick me!

-And stomp.

-Pick me!

-[stomp]

Keep going.

Pick me! Pick me! Pick me, pick me!

[tapping]

[tapping continues from upstairs]

[tapping continues]

[tapping continues]

Ladies and gentlemen, students,

friends of Piedmont,

welcome to Manifest Dancetiny...

the story of America in movement!

[harpsichord plays a minuet]

[changes abruptly to a jitterbug]

[back to the minuet]

Hey, you know this program tonight

is two hours and minutes long?

Well, then just wake me

when they get to the lambada

'cause you know it's forbidden.

Mmm.

Wow, Yvette's kind of good.

Why's she gotta wear

that skimpy little thing?

Why couldn't she be in the number

with the raccoon coats?

I think T.J.'s number's up next.

Yeah, Pop, you said that

an hour and a half ago.

I don't even believe you anymore.

[crowd cheering]

[excited reaction from audience]

Yeah!

[cheers and applause]

Great work tonight, Yvette.

No, you great work.

I mean, without you we didn't have

worked great at all.

Much.

Come on, honey.

See, your problem is

you're living in the past.

Yeah. You're right.

Morris, glad I caught you.

The career aptitude test center called.

They were very distraught.

It appears your test results

were switched with Brian Tedesco's.

I'm not supposed to be

a motivational guru?

Afraid not, son. Here are your results.

Vice principal?

-Get used to it.

-Hey.

Sorry, man. Let's go get a burger.

That'll make you feel better.

Yeah, sure it will.

What the-- hey, hey, hey, hey!

No horseplay in the auditorium!

And pick up these cups. Do you throw

trash on the floor at your house? Huh?

Do this again, I'll see you in my office.

-Pretty b*at, huh?

-I'm wiped.

Well, I'm proud of you, son.

You didn't quit.

You got through the show,

and you were great!

Do you really think so?

Oh, yeah. You knocked me out, man.

But that's what happens

when you stick with it.

Now this way you can quit

and keep your head up high.

Quit? But I had a blast tonight.

This is definitely what I want

to do for the rest of my life.

-But--

-Thanks, Dad.

If you hadn't made me stick with it,

I'd be headed for some

soul-k*lling financial job.

Sure, we'd all be rich,

but would I be happy?

-Uhh...

-Exactly!

I ain't gettin' Yvette nothin'

for Christmas!

Yeah! You know what I mean?

How y'all doin' over there?

Nothin' to it, baby. You know, we got it.

Watch it, man.

Better stay in your spot now.

Hey!

[martial arts cry]

[clapper]

I'm never workin' for this guy again.