A Fishful of Dollars
Encyclopedia
"A Fishful of Dollars" is episode six in the first season of Futurama
. It originally aired in North America on April 27, 1999. The episode was written by Patric Verrone
and directed by Ron Hughart
and Gregg Vanzo
. Pamela Anderson
guest stars as her own preserved head in a jar. This episode marks the first appearance of the character Mom
, the series' recurring antagonist. The title of the episode is a play on name of the film A Fistful of Dollars
.
realizes he is broke. At the same time, Bender is caught shoplifting and sent to jail. Unable to pay the bail, Fry remembers he had a bank account back in the twentieth century. Surprisingly, the bank has stayed in business, and he still has his ATM card and remembers his PIN
code: the price of a cheese pizza and large soda at Panucci's Pizza, where he used to work. The account has been accruing interest
at 2.25% for the past thousand years, bringing the balance from 93 cents to $4.3 billion. Fry goes on a massive spending spree, buying numerous 20th century artifacts, such as Ted Danson
's skeleton, an antique robot toy
, videotapes of past sitcoms, and the last known tin of anchovies
, which were fished to extinction shortly after the Decapodians arrived on Earth in the 23rd century. Professor warns him about their extinction after trying to order some for his pizza and the robot exploding after repeating the words "Does not compute
". However, he finds himself making a rival of Mom, a famous industrialist and owner of Mom's Old-Fashioned Robot Oil. She wants to acquire the anchovies for herself since they represent a potential source of oil that can permanently lubricate robots, thus putting her out of business.
Mom's sons Walt, Larry, and Igner conspire with the head of Pamela Anderson
to steal Fry's ATM card and PIN. They tranquilize Fry and fool him into believing it is still the year 2000, using a crude mock-up of Panucci's to make him think he fell asleep on the job
. Anderson orders a cheese pizza and a large soda, whereupon Fry inadvertently reveals his PIN as he rings up the total, which was $10.77. Walt, Larry, and Igner empty Fry's bank account, and except for the anchovies, all of his 20th century artifacts are repossessed. They hope that doing this will force Fry to sell the anchovies to Mom.
Mom visits Fry and attempts to buy the anchovies, but realizes that Fry had intended to eat the anchovies and stops interfering. Fry covers a pizza with the anchovies and shares them with the rest of the Planet Express employees. Everyone except Fry spits their pizza out in disgust. Fry claims that they are an acquired taste. When Dr. Zoidberg enters the room, he smells the anchovies' "heavenly stench" and immediately devours all the remaining pizza. He goes on to demand "More. More! More!", flying into a rage when he learns that there are no more anchovies anywhere.
In its initial airing, the episode received a Nielsen rating of 6.4/10, placing it 58th among primetime shows for the week of April 27 - May 2, 1999.
, as indicated by the theme music heard.
Futurama
Futurama is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening and David X. Cohen for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of a late 20th-century New York City pizza delivery boy, Philip J...
. It originally aired in North America on April 27, 1999. The episode was written by Patric Verrone
Patric Verrone
Patric Miller Verrone is an American television writer and labor leader. He served as a writer and producer for several animated television shows, most notably Futurama.-Schooling and pre-television career:...
and directed by Ron Hughart
Ron Hughart
Ron Hughart is an American animation director. He has worked on several shows, including The Ren & Stimpy Show, Family Dog, Futurama and American Dad!.He also worked on Ren & Stimpy as a layout supervisor and timing director...
and Gregg Vanzo
Gregg Vanzo
Gregg Vanzo is an American animator. He has worked on several shows, including The Simpsons and Futurama. He is also the founder of Rough Draft Studios.- Career in television :...
. Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Denise Anderson is a Canadian-American actress, model, producer, author, activist, and former showgirl, known for her roles on the television series Home Improvement, Baywatch, and V.I.P. She was chosen as a Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine in February 1990...
guest stars as her own preserved head in a jar. This episode marks the first appearance of the character Mom
Mom (Futurama)
Mom, real first name Carol, is a character from the animated television series Futurama. Voiced by Tress MacNeille. Mom is one of the show's two main antagonists, the other being Zapp Brannigan...
, the series' recurring antagonist. The title of the episode is a play on name of the film A Fistful of Dollars
A Fistful of Dollars
A Fistful of Dollars is a 1964 Italian Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood alongside Gian Maria Volonté, Marianne Koch, Wolfgang Lukschy, Sieghardt Rupp, José Calvo, Antonio Prieto, and Joseph Egger. Released in Italy in 1964 then in the United States in...
.
Plot
After having their dreams taken over by an advertisement, the Planet Express crew takes a trip to the local shopping mall. Trying to buy the product in his dreams, FryPhilip J. Fry
Philip J. Fry, known simply as Fry, is a fictional character, the main protagonist of the animated science fiction sitcom Futurama. He is voiced by Billy West using a version of his own voice as he sounded when he was 25.-Character overview:...
realizes he is broke. At the same time, Bender is caught shoplifting and sent to jail. Unable to pay the bail, Fry remembers he had a bank account back in the twentieth century. Surprisingly, the bank has stayed in business, and he still has his ATM card and remembers his PIN
Personal identification number
A personal identification number is a secret numeric password shared between a user and a system that can be used to authenticate the user to the system. Typically, the user is required to provide a non-confidential user identifier or token and a confidential PIN to gain access to the system...
code: the price of a cheese pizza and large soda at Panucci's Pizza, where he used to work. The account has been accruing interest
Interest
Interest is a fee paid by a borrower of assets to the owner as a form of compensation for the use of the assets. It is most commonly the price paid for the use of borrowed money, or money earned by deposited funds....
at 2.25% for the past thousand years, bringing the balance from 93 cents to $4.3 billion. Fry goes on a massive spending spree, buying numerous 20th century artifacts, such as Ted Danson
Ted Danson
Edward Bridge “Ted” Danson III is an American actor best known for his role as central character Sam Malone in the sitcom Cheers, and his role as Dr. John Becker on the series Becker. He also plays a recurring role on Larry David's HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm and starred alongside Glenn Close...
's skeleton, an antique robot toy
Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
Rock'em Sock'em Robots is a popular two-player action toy and game, designed by Marvin Glass and Associates and was first manufactured by Marx toy company in 1964. It features two dueling robot boxers mechanically manipulated by the players, and the game is won when one player knocks the head off...
, videotapes of past sitcoms, and the last known tin of anchovies
Anchovy
Anchovies are a family of small, common salt-water forage fish. There are 144 species in 17 genera, found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans. Anchovies are usually classified as an oily fish.-Description:...
, which were fished to extinction shortly after the Decapodians arrived on Earth in the 23rd century. Professor warns him about their extinction after trying to order some for his pizza and the robot exploding after repeating the words "Does not compute
Does not compute
"Does not compute", and variations on it, is a phrase often spoken by computers, robots and other artificial intelligences in science fiction works of the 1960s to 1980s...
". However, he finds himself making a rival of Mom, a famous industrialist and owner of Mom's Old-Fashioned Robot Oil. She wants to acquire the anchovies for herself since they represent a potential source of oil that can permanently lubricate robots, thus putting her out of business.
Mom's sons Walt, Larry, and Igner conspire with the head of Pamela Anderson
Pamela Anderson
Pamela Denise Anderson is a Canadian-American actress, model, producer, author, activist, and former showgirl, known for her roles on the television series Home Improvement, Baywatch, and V.I.P. She was chosen as a Playmate of the Month for Playboy magazine in February 1990...
to steal Fry's ATM card and PIN. They tranquilize Fry and fool him into believing it is still the year 2000, using a crude mock-up of Panucci's to make him think he fell asleep on the job
Sleeping while on duty
Sleeping while on duty or "sleeping on the job" refers to falling asleep while on the time clock or equivalent, or else while responsible to be performing some active or passive job duty. In some workplaces, this is considered gross misconduct and may be grounds for disciplinary action, including...
. Anderson orders a cheese pizza and a large soda, whereupon Fry inadvertently reveals his PIN as he rings up the total, which was $10.77. Walt, Larry, and Igner empty Fry's bank account, and except for the anchovies, all of his 20th century artifacts are repossessed. They hope that doing this will force Fry to sell the anchovies to Mom.
Mom visits Fry and attempts to buy the anchovies, but realizes that Fry had intended to eat the anchovies and stops interfering. Fry covers a pizza with the anchovies and shares them with the rest of the Planet Express employees. Everyone except Fry spits their pizza out in disgust. Fry claims that they are an acquired taste. When Dr. Zoidberg enters the room, he smells the anchovies' "heavenly stench" and immediately devours all the remaining pizza. He goes on to demand "More. More! More!", flying into a rage when he learns that there are no more anchovies anywhere.
Broadcast and reception
In 2006 this episode was ranked as 25th in IGN.com's list of the Top 25 Futurama episodes. The episode was chosen to be included in the list in part due to its many jokes about the '70s and '80s.In its initial airing, the episode received a Nielsen rating of 6.4/10, placing it 58th among primetime shows for the week of April 27 - May 2, 1999.
Cultural references
When one of Mom's sons says that Fry must be a genius of the highest order, they show him watching Sanford and SonSanford and Son
Sanford and Son is an American sitcom, based on the BBC's Steptoe and Son, that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977....
, as indicated by the theme music heard.
External links
- A Fishful of Dollars at The Infosphere.