Episode One - "Gone With Daddy" (Part One)


It's November 1994. One whole year since we lasted visited the cul de sac, and nothing much has changed. However as we zoom in on a Californian kitchen, the tension is high.

This kitchen is a familiar one - it has after all played host to many a family drama, neighbourly feud or even the odd heart to heart between two best friends. Tonight though, the atmosphere is different, because neighbour is being pitted against neighbour as a high tension poker game reaches it's climax. The 4 main players are Gary Ewing, Mack Mackenzie, Mack's brother in law Joe Cooper and Al Baker !

Gary:"I'm out"
Mack:"So am I"
Al:"Okay Cooper, show us what you're made of"
Joe:"I'll see you 10 bucks and I'll raise you 25"!
Gary:"WOW"
Al:"Okay, I saw your 25 and I'll raise you 25"
Joe:"I'll call your 25 - what've you got?"
Al:"Full House"
Joe:"You got me"

Mack starts applauding Al at that point

Mack:"You gotta hand it to the man. He's been around longer than any of us"
Joe:"He's been playing longer than any of us"!
Al:"Well my friends, you shouldn't play with fire unless you're prepared to get burned"
Mack:"Words of wisdom from a voice of experience"
Gary:"Sounds more like the voice of my mother-in-law"!
Al:"Speaking of whom, I better be getting back to check on my darlin' Lilly"

Al rises from the chair and staggers a little:

Gary:"Now THAT'S the voice of a bottle of bourbon"!!!


Minutes later, Gary and Al burst through the front door arm in arm with Al singing his own rendition of "Old Man River". Lilimae is disgusted!

Lilimae:"I warned you Al Baker about the evils of that poison you throw down your throat"
Al:"Kiss my ass woman"
Lilimae:"What?" (shocked)
Gary:"I'll take him upstairs"

Gary takes a drunken Al upstairs to bed while Lilimae returns to the dining table where she and Val are making favours for Michael Fairgate's forthcoming wedding:

Lilimae:"Lord knows what I'm gonna do with that man"
Val:"Oh leave him be momma, he'll be fine"
Lilimae:"Just be grateful you married a dried up alcoholic"

Off Val's look:

Lilimae:"Sorry"...


Later that night, Karen returns from the shops with lots of bags. Mack, Joe and Michael are all standing in the centre of the Mackenzie living room dressed with coats and tails. Meg and Karen start whistling at the handsome threesome:

Karen:"Considering that one of you is my brother and the other my son, I'm only left with one other man to proposition"
Mack:"I'm spoken for"
Karen:"With who?"
Mack :(picking up Meg) "This little beauty"...

Karen then asks why Joe is wearing a coat and tails as well:

Michael:"Oh Uncle Joe's just testing the outfit. We reckon if it'll fit him, it should fit Eric"
Mack:"Speaking of whom, when is he due home?"
Karen:"Friday"
Joe:"I think he'll wear it fine - albeit I haven't seen Eric since he was like 17 or something"
Michael:"Oh he's not changed all that much"...



The next morning, a taxi arrives in the street stopping just outside Abby's. When Brian looks out the window, he is stunned:

Brian:"Hey mom! It's Olivia"
Abby:"Olivia?"

The pair then head outside to greet her:

Abby:"But I thought you weren't due home till Friday for the wedding? Today's only Tuesday. And where's Harold?"
Olivia:"It's a long story!"

Inside, Olivia proceeds to tell Abby and Brian that she and Harold have split up - all because Harold couldn't keep off the gambling, the booze or the women...

Abby:"I hate to say that I told you so, but..."
Olivia:"Don't mother, okay?"
Abby:"Okay" (that's her been told)......



Meanwhile Gary heads out to work. He's due on site today as the firm has been building an extension to Knot's Landing's Community Hospital and today the completed wing is due an inspection:

Val:"Good luck darling"
Gary:"Thanks" (giving Val a kiss and a hug)

In the kitchen, Lilimae is giving Al a hard time about his drinking and gambling the previous evening. "Who cares, I won" is Al's reply...

As they listen to the pair arguing, Gary asks Val:

Gary:"How much longer will they be staying?"
Val:"I don't know, maybe a few more days till Thanksgiving's over, Michael's wedding?"
Gary:"You said they'd go after the twins birthday party and they're still here. What comes after the wedding? Oh yeah, Christmas, then New Years. Maybe they'll even stay on for Valentine's"
Val:(hitting Gary) "Would you stop that?".......


Val then heads next door with the wedding favours for Karen. Val tells Karen all about how 'momma' is getting on her nerves:

Karen:"I thought you liked having them here?"
Val:"I do BELIEVE ME, I do"
Karen:"Well, quit complaining and make the most of it. Joe's home, Lilimae's home, Eric and Diana are coming home in the next few days, let's just be glad that we're all gonna be together come the weekend"
Val:"Yeah" (convinced)

The pair hold hands as they look forward to having something nice to celebrate again...



Across town meanwhile, an exhausted Sumner emerges from the Sumner Group elevator out of breath wearing a tracksuit and trainers and looking very red faced. He is then approached by one of his workers 'Gloria':

Greg:"Morning Glo"
Gloria:"Have you been running?"
Greg:"I certainly have - I swear that Wiltshire Boulevard gets longer everytime I take that route"
Gloria:"Wiltshire Boulevard? You've been running downtown?"
Greg:"Sure I have"
Gloria:"You mean to tell me that you went for a nice healthy run downtown?" (surprised)
Greg:"Huh?" (still out of breath)

At that point, another colleague Bradley appears:

Bradley:"She's absolutely right Mr Sumner. When it comes to carbon monoxide emission's, statistics show"...
Greg:"The hell with statistics! It would help if you kids would DO something with all that useless crap you have stored up there" (pointing to his brain)...

Gloria and Bradley are left standing there rather abruptly by their boss...

While Greg bursts into his old office (now Paige's) as Paige is chairing a meeting with potential investors:

Greg:"Sorry am I interrupting your little party?"
Paige:"This is a very crucial meeting" (angry)

As the 3 investors watch on with grins on their faces, Paige is forced to ask Mort to take over the meeting while she follows Greg into his own private suite next to her office:

Greg:"Don't mind me, I'm just in to take a shower"
Paige:"What the hell do you think you're playing at?"
Greg:"I'm taking a shower woman"
Paige:"This is a business - not a leisure complex. If you want that, then go to one or even better BUY one!"
Greg:"Can a man not take a shower without the third degree?"
Paige:"What's gotten into you huh? Lately you've been acting like an overgrown teenager. You're never away from your horses, or baseball games, now jogging. What next?"
Greg:"Oh by the way, I need you to arrange a meeting for me. I'm looking into buying that Motor Racing circuit down in San Diego. You know the one that I mean"
Paige:"The Sumner Group does not need to be doing business with a motor racing circuit"
Greg:"Who said it was for The Sumner Group?"
Paige:"You're serious aren't you?"
Greg:"Dead serious Barbie"
Paige:"I don't get it. Why? Why the sudden second youth?"
Greg:"It's called REACHING 60 Paige - wait till it happens you!"
Paige:"Well if you wanna feel young again, father my child"
Greg:"Come on, I don't wanna feel THAT young"...

An angry Paige storms out the suite:

Greg:"What did I say?"



Abby arrives home to find Olivia in tears after calling Florida and hearing another woman answering her telephone:

"That's men for you" is Abby's expected reply...



Mack and Paige meanwhile have lunch with Paige telling her father all her problems:

Paige:"He's having a mid life crisis"
Mack:"And you're only discovering that now?" (Surprised)
Paige:"No I'm serious, and he's handling it pretty srangely"
Mack:"Gregory handles everything strangely"
Paige:"He's off drinking every night, watching baseball matches, jogging, he even went to a club the other night with the Salaries Department!!! Now he wants to buy a Motor Racing circuit"
Mack:"That's Sumner for you"...



Mack then returns home from work to find Karen, Joe, Meg and Michael all gathered. They are celebrating the early arrival of Diana who made it home 2 days early:

Mack:"DIANA"
Diana:"Hi ya Mack. Good to see you"
Mack:"You're looking wonderful"

As 'Uncle Joe" pulls out his guitar, the gang start singing 'Bye Bye Miss American Pie' with Mack pulling Karen up into the centre of the room for a dance. Meg finds this hilarious and the atmosphere is jovial to say the least...



Next door, Lilimae & Al are still arguing about the poker game and Val (who is sitting at her computer working on her latest novel 'Hostage') has had enough so shouts on the kids:

Val:"Okay come on kids, we're going out for pizza"
Bobby:"Weh heh"
Betsy:"Yippee"!!!

Al then grabs his jacket...

Val:"Uh uh, I'm going out alone with the kids - give you two some time to discuss this poker game once and for all. But when I return, I swear you better be through. Okay?"
Lilimae:"Sorry sweetpea" (hitting Al with her dishtowel)...

At that point, Gary then arrives home and announces they are ALL going out for dinner. The Hospital Wing has been cleared and he is in the mood for celebrating. Al is delighted while Val is pissed off!!!!!



Meanwhile across the street, there is a major disagreement in the Cunningham household as Brian & Abby come to blows when Brian announces he is going to New York for Christmas to visit "friends":

Abby:"Why aren't you spending Christmas here with your family? I was left alone last year as well. Just exactly who are these so called 'friends'?
Brian:"Just friends" (not revealing too much)
Olivia:"Don't worry mother. Looks like you'll have me this year"..

Olivia isn't pleased...



Late that night once everyone has gone to bed, Karen sits up late looking through an old family photo album from years back with photos of Sid, Joe, her parents, and the kids when they were young. Mack then emerges from the kitchen with hot milk for the pair of them:

Karen:"You know I look at these photos of all my family, and having them all here again makes me realise how much I don't want this moment to end. Why can't it always be like this Mack, eh?"
Mack:"Come on, it's not that bad when it's just the two of us"
Karen:"You know what I mean"
Mack:"Yeah I do. All I can say is let's just be grateful for the time that we have now. Don't look back, and don't look ahead. Let's just live for the moment"

Karen realises how right he is and leans forward to kiss him.....



The following morning as the Californian sun rises above the horizon, Val is down on the beach jogging when suddenly she spots Greg jogging too:

Val:"You again huh?"
Greg:"You know if I didn't know better, I'd say you were following me. Probably determined to finish off that damn autobiography".

Val just looks at Greg

Greg:"Just kidding, just kidding"...
Val:"If anything, it's YOU following ME! I've been jogging on this beach 'most every day for the last 15 years"
Greg:"My apologies woman"
Val:"So why all of a sudden, why start jogging now?"
Greg:"Cos the heart wants what the soul needs, and right now it needs to stay young"
Val:"Ah - a midlife crisis?"
Greg:"Got it in one"
Val:"Well don't be too hard on yourself, you've got acres of beautiful land, horses, money, a beautiful young partner. More than most people half your age. If I were you I'd count my blessings"
Greg:"Save it for one of your books Valene"...

Val then challenges Greg to a race along the beach - needless to say who wins. Yes, it was Val - by a MILE!!!


Val then arrives home and is told by Lilimae that they've been invited to a Thanksgiving Barbecue at the Mackenzie's tomorrow. Lilimae thinks she will stay on a little longer in Knots Landing - as long as Val and Gary don't mind. Val then think's about Karen's words before telling Lilimae:

"I don't mind momma, I don't mind atall. It's great having you both here. You stay on as long as you want to"...

The pair then hug.......



At the Barbecue the following day:


Val challenges Greg to another race along the beach. "I'll pass" is Greg's reply...

Lilimae and Al complain about the "junk food" being served at the barbecue. It dosen't stop them though from feeding their faces...

While Mack and Joe promise Michael a "night to remember" tomorrow on the eve of his wedding once Eric has arrived home...

Paige meanwhile asks Val how often she sees Greg jogging:

Val:"Oh just a couple of times - nothing too much"
Paige:"It's just that I'm worried about him. He's not getting any younger"
Val:"I think that's what's worrying him!"
Paige:"I've never seen him like this before. Usually he'd exercise his energies at the office"
Val:"That's the problem sweetie. Before you came along, he was head of Galveston Industries, and before that he held a seat on the United States Senate. Now he's getting to see a different world. You should support him rather than discourage him".
Paige:"You think so?"
Val:"I know so"!!!

At that point, Karen comes along and puts her arms around both ladies, however Paige walks away with Val telling Karen what's on her mind. The pair then look around them and see everyone who is present for the Thanksgiving celebration including Mack, Gary, Joe, Lilimae, Al, Diana, Michael, Lori, the kids, Greg and Paige. Karen then comments:

Karen:"I'm just so happy Val. So happy to have all the family together again. What if we never see it like this again?"
Val:"What do you mean?"
Karen:" I don't know, I guess you could call it a sixth sense..."

Val thinks about what Karen has said and dwells for a moment.....



Gary meanwhile is in for a shock when he heads next door to the garage for some charcoal for the grill. He is delighted to see Olivia who is arriving with Abby for the barbecue:

Gary:"Olivia"
Olivia:"Hi Gary"

The pair hug...

Gary:"Where's Harold?"
Olivia:"Don't ask"
Abby:"It's a long story"...

At that point, another past cul-de-sac resident returns to the fold. Followed by a removal firm lorry. As the 'For Sale' sign comes down outside Laura's old home once more, we see CLAUDIA emerge from the car on the drive:

Claudia:"Hi Gary"
Gary:"Hi"
Abby:"What the hell..."


Then there is a shock for everyone as another car arrives on the circle. It's the police and they are looking for 'Karen Mackenzie'. Gary leads them round the back and the two detectives ask to speak with Karen in private. Mack accompanies her indoors.

Then once the four are inside, the police break the awful news to Karen that Eric has been KILLED in a tragic car accident while driving home for the wedding. As Mack wraps his arms around her, Karen justs sits there motionless.......




END OF EPISODE

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