07x04 - Good Guys Finish Last

[bunniefuu]

Is that all the mail?

Yeah.

This one's got a real funny smell.

Smell?

Oh, boy, I'd like to meet her.

Whoever uses this stuff.

Well, I'm off to the grind.

See you fellas tonight.

Letter for you.

Oh, mailman been here already?

Yep.

Smell it, Ed.

Hmm?

Smell it.

Yeah, smell.

Oh, it sure does.

Perfume, huh?

Yeah.

It smells like the junk those ladies use
when they bend over and kiss you.

Tell you how cute you are.

That ought to be my complaint.

Hmm.

Hmm what?

Hmm.

Hmm.

Uh, listen to this.

Dear Stevie.

Stevie?

Yeah.

Dear Stevie, it's been so long since we were together.

Happily, I will be driving through Bryant Park and I
simply must stop off to see you and your three darling boys.

Stevie, we once meant so much to each other
and I Cherish the memory of those wonderful days.

I recall with special fondness the last time we
met when you said, I'll remember you forever.

I am, as ever, Florence.

I don't remember you ever talking about
anybody named Florence.

I don't either, Charlie.

Boy, that sure is a mushy letter.

Who is she, Dad?

I don't know.

What do you mean you don't know?

You said you'd always remember her.

Where?

Well, I evidently didn't, Charley,
because I have no idea who Florence is.

Well, I'll be home right after school.

Okay, Robbie.

Hey, you having a family conference?

No, your dad got a letter from an old flame
he can't remember who's coming to visit.

Oh, now, Charley, it doesn't necessarily
have to be an old flame.

Maybe it's, well, one of my old school
teachers or someone like that.

Who did I ever know named Florence?

Dad, is there a return address?

No, no return address.

According to the postmark, it was mailed
from Seattle, so that's no help.

Well, is it too personal?

Or could I take a look?

If I don't remember who she is,
I don't see how it could be too personal.

Maybe she's French.

Why French?

Smells like French perfume.

Dad, how could you forget somebody you
said you'd remember forever?

It ain't easy.

Rob, I don't remember ever having said that to anyone.

Don't worry.

You'll know her the minute you see her.

Oh, sure.

Florence.

Boy, get to me.

I'll see you later.

Okay, bye, Dad.

Who's here?

She is.

Florence, at least I think.

Hey, Steve, you better come down right away.

I'll take a look.

Is she pretty?

Yeah, real pretty.

Hey, what's going on?

Who's here?

She's here.

What kind of a car is she driving?

A revertible.

Wait a minute, what's happening, Florence?

She's here, Dad.

Who's here?

Florence.

Don't you remember, Dad?

The lady you don't remember?

Oregon license plate.

That's a clue.

Remember Oregon Florence?

I'll stay, Dad, right next to the Washington.

I know.

I'm just trying to remember if I know any
Florence from Oregon.

Ah, relax.

You'll recognize her the minute you see her.

Hold it.

I'll get it.

Hi.

Hello.

Is this the Douglas residence?

Yeah.

Florence?

Yes.

Stevie!

Well, it's certainly nice to see you again.

You haven't changed a bit.

It's been a long time.

I have changed.

No, no.

You look just the same as you always look.

Oh, how nice of you to think so.

The same kind, sweet Stevie.

And these are your three darling boys.

Yes, yes.

This is Robbie, and this is Chip, and
Ernie, and this is their Uncle Charley.

Hi.

Fellas, this is Florence.

I mean, Miss... Miss?

I haven't been Miss since shortly after you left town.

It's Mrs. Glendening.

Oh, fellas, this is Mrs. Glendening.

How do you do?

Hi.

Well, I guess we have some reminiscing to do.

Yes.

Well, come in and sit down, won't you?

Oh, it's so nice to see you again, Stevie.

Boys, I suppose you know your father
better than I do, but I knew him first.

Those were wonderful days, happy days.

You know, I've never met another man who
was so strong, yet so gentle, so kind,

so careful never to hurt a girl's feelings.

Well, those certainly were wonderful days.

Oh, what a charming home.

Oh, it's comfortable.

To think all of this might have been mine.

Yours?

I wonder what my life would have been like
if I hadn't married Marty.

Marty?

Mr. Glendening.

Oh, yeah, yes.

How is Marty?

He died about a year ago.

I must say I've been lonely ever since,
especially since we had no children.

But life must go on, mustn't it?

That's why I decided to make this trip.

Oh.

Oh, you like a cup of coffee?

Oh, no thanks.

I can only stay a moment.

I couldn't wait to see you, Stevie, so I
stopped by on my way to the Bryant Park Inn.

And I have a reservation there.

Oh, well, from your letter, I gathered that
you were just driving through Bryant Park.

I mean, are you planning on staying?

Yes.

We have so much to talk about.

Won't it be wonderful?

Oh, yes, yes, certainly.

Well, I thought tonight maybe that we could have dinner
together, just as though we'd never parted, if you're free.

Yes, I'd like to have dinner with you, Florence.

I mean, I sort of planned on it.

It sounds so strange to hear you call me Florence.

It does?

Don't you remember what you used to call me?

Your pet name?

Oh, the pet name.

Now, let's see.

I used to call you...

It's funny.

It's right on the tip of my tongue.

You've forgotten.

I'm afraid.

Honey bun.

Honey bun.

Honey bun?

Dad called you a honey bun?

It's the same chills up my spine.

Well, I'd better go now.

Check in, freshen up.

See you tonight?

Yes, yes.

I'll pick you up at the end around 8 O
'clock, if that's all right.

That'll be fine.

Goodbye, Stevie.

Goodbye.

Goodbye what?

Oh, goodbye, honey bun.

I just don't remember.

But, Dad, you called her honey bun.

Well, a lot of fellas called girls honey bun in those days.

Why didn't you just blurt out that she had
slipped your mind?

Well, Charlie, I couldn't do that.

I didn't want to embarrass her.

Besides, I kept thinking maybe it'd all come back to me.

Think of a girl you were with when it was cold and snowy.

Cold and snowy.

Cold and snowy?

Yeah.

She said chills ran up her spine.

Maybe she's a girl I dated in college.

She thinks of something more than just casual, Dad.

She was talking about marriage.

Marriage?

How would I ever forget a thing like that?

Well, maybe it'll come back to me tonight
when I'm having dinner with her.

I hope.

Oh, thank you.

Sir.

Thanks.

Would you care to order now, sir?

Well, I guess I'll order.

I'll bet you don't remember what my favorite dish was.

You know, it's funny.

I was just wondering if you remembered mine.

Mr. Douglas will have steak, medium rare,
baked potato with sour cream and chives,

and French dressing with his salad and coffee black.

I'll have the lobster with the salad.

Sir?

Well, you certainly remembered.

The only thing is I switched from French to Thousand
Island, but of course I couldn't expect you to know that.

Who would believe it?

Uh, that I switched to Thousand Island?

No.

But here we are together.

Again, after all these years.

Strange, isn't it?

Yes, yes, it's strange.

Stevie.

Uh, Florence, why don't you just call me Steve, huh?

I mean, Stevie sounds a little juvenile now, doesn't it?

That's true, we are older.

Steve, tell me the truth.

About what?

Were you terribly hurt when you heard I
was going to marry Marty?

Well, yes, yes, a little.

I understand your pride.

I wonder what my life would have been like
if I'd married you instead of Marty.

Well, that's water over the dam, isn't it?

You remembered.

I did?

What?

Our song.

You requested it.

The song we used to sing.

In just out of town, right near the Midwest campus.

Yes.

Did you used to go there, too?

Oh.

Stop teasing me.

You took me there.

That's right.

Shall we dance?

Oh, yes.

Yes, I'd like to.

For auld lang syne.

Remember,

you used to sing it softly in my ears.

You had a lovely voice.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Boy, it might be interesting.

Hey, that's Dad.

He must have been about my age.

Hey, Dad, you look just like one of us guys there.

I'll be darned.

Where did you get that picture?

I took it.

You did?

Guess who this is.

Oh, that's you, isn't it?

Yes.

Your father took it.

You know, it's a funny thing, but I don't
remember having taken that.

Oh, yes, you snapped it right after I took
this one with you.

Oh, that's right.

I'm kind of different there.

Oh, these bring back memories, don't they?

Yes, they certainly do.

That's why I've kept them.

And this.

Robbie Dyer, an old Midwest pennant.

The old green and white.

Where did you get that?

You bought it for me the same day.

I kept it all this time.

Well, I can see why you'd want to hang on to it.

It's a nice memento.

I'm very fond of it, but would you like it, Steve?

Oh, no, no, you keep it.

I have my memories here.

Thank you.

Okay, soup's on.

Come and get it.

Well, I hate to leave all this, but I guess dinner's ready.

Bye, Leo.

We're going to leave.

All right, fellas.

Have a good day.

Hi, Dave.

Morning, Rob.

Charlie.

Hi.

Well, you mean to say you don't remember her,
even after those pictures and all that college junk?

No.

Do you suppose my mind is going?

You probably have a mental block about her, Dad.

You know, at first I thought maybe she had
me confused with somebody else,

some other fella, but now I know she hasn't.

Dad, I can't see how you could forget a
girl you considered marrying.

Now, that's one thing I know for sure.

I never considered marrying her.

Well, Dad, then why can't you just tell
her you don't remember her?

Well, I didn't have a heart at first,
and now it's too late.

I didn't think she was going to stay in town this long.

You should take memory pills.

Yeah, you need something to stimulate your memory.

I got it.

Word association.

What's that?

We studied it in psych.

Psych.

Now, when I say a word, you say the first
thing that comes to your mind.

For instance, if I said college, what would you say?

Fast, Dad.

Studies.

There, you see?

Now, if I said studies, you'd probably say
poli-sci or American lit or something like that.

Then you remember all the classes you took.

Well, I'm willing to try anything.

Okay.

Girls.

Dates.

Dates.

Girls.

No, you have to say something specific,
like, well, the girls you dated.

Oh.

Golly, let's see.

There was Evelyn, Norma, Marilyn, Virginia, Susan.

Huh.

You would have liked Susan.

She was a peppy.

Get to Florence, will you?

I haven't got all day.

No, Robbie's right.

I just got a metal block when it comes to Florence.

Florence, do you have another date with her tonight?

Well, naturally, I didn't know how to get out of it.

It's nice of you boys to invite me here.

I was hoping for a chance to get to know you better.

Well, we thought you might be able to tell us a
couple things about Dad, from when you used to date him.

Why?

Well, we're doing a biography on Dad for our class.

Both of you?

No, Ernie is.

I'm helping.

Well, why don't you ask your father?

He doesn't like to talk about himself.

No, that's true.

He was shy even then.

Well, put that down, Chip.

Dad was shy.

Is there anything special he did?

Oh, lots of things.

I remember he used to play the saxophone.

And his favorite song was Paddling Madeline Home.

Paddling who home?

Oh, Madeline.

How do you spell Madeline?

Just put it down, Chip.

We'll fill in the spelling later.

I'll write it for you.

Thanks.

Anything else?

Well, he had a great love for poetry.

He used to recite it to me.

Recited poetry.

Now, boys, there are a few things I want to ask you.

Okay.

Okay.

She said you played a saxophone and sang a
song called Paddling...

Paddling Somebody Someplace.

Oh, Paddling Madeline Holmes?

Yeah, that's it.

Wow, I remember.

We did, Chip.

You remember her?

No, no, I mean I remember the song.

All right, kids, what else?

Well, not much, because then she started
asking us questions.

That's strange.

Strange?

I'll tell you what she's getting at.

My job.

I'll get it.

Hello?

Oh, hi.

Uh, yes, he's here.

Hang on a second.

Dad, it's for you.

It's Mrs. Glendening.

Hello, Florence.

You've reached a decision?

What decision, Florence?

Well, yes, I suppose I could meet you there.

It's urgent.

Well, I could be there in about 15 minutes.

All right, I'll see you.

Well, she's reached a decision.

What decision?

Who knows?

I'm meeting her at the hotel coffee shop.

Maybe she's decided to tell you who she is.

Well, don't hold dinner for me, Charlie.

This may be the showdown.

Good luck, dear.

Thanks, Aaron.

Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first
we practice to deceive.

That's poetry.

Would you care for a chiller of cream?

Oh, no, thanks.

Now, Florence, this decision you've made,
it sounds pretty important.

Well, it affects your future and mine.

Well, that is important.

I told you I was here on business.

You are that business.

I am?

Yes.

Remember Howard Dillon?

Howard Dillon?

Yes.

He was in your American Lit class.

He still speaks of you.

Oh, that Howard.

He was in my American Lit class.

He wants to marry me.

That's why I came here.

You came here to marry him?

No.

I came here to decide whether to marry him or you.

Oh.

As soon as I saw you, I knew that things
were the same between us.

You still felt the same way about me.

You remembered every little thing.

Well, I think now is the time for me to
tell you that I really... Please, let me finish.

This isn't going to be easy.

I decided to marry Howard.

I mean, you have.

His wife died about a year ago,
and ever since he's had his hands full

with her, two little girls, you've done a
beautiful job raising your boys.

Well, thank you.

Everything seems to be running smoothly.

The boys told me how Charley supplies the woman's tax.

Well, you know what I mean.

Anyway, Howard needs me.

You don't.

Well, when you put it that way.

It was the only decision I could make
under this circumstance.

I tried to understand that.

Well, I, I understand.

Harold needs you.

Oh, God.

Goodbye, and drive careful.

I will.

Well, Florence, it was nice of you to stop
by to say goodbye to the family.

Oh, why not?

They could have been mine.

Be sure and give Harold my regards, won't you?

Howard.

I know you two are going to be very happy.

Thank you.

Now, Steve, remember.

Remember, you're going to try to forget me.

Yes, I'm going to try.

Is she gone, Dad?

Yeah, she's on her way.

Off to the arms of Harold.

Howard.

Oh, Dad, there was a phone call for you
just before Miss Quindan came this morning.

Well, I'm glad you finally told me, Aaron.

Who was it?

I don't know.

Chip took the message.

Who called, Chip?

Oh, he said his name was Mr., uh, I forgot.

You forgot?

Well, Chip, that could have been a very
important phone call.

I mean, well, you're 14 years old now.

How can you forget a simple thing like a name?

Well, what are we going to do?

Stick around.

I'd be glad to.

There's another episode of My Three Sons
straight ahead on TV Land's Twice as Nice Morning.