| "Gotta Run, Part 2" | |
|---|---|
| Season 4, Episode #20 (#93) in series (95 episodes) | |
 On the run, Mork, Mindy and Mearth in having to overcome both Kalnik and his men, face into a massive decision. | |
| "Mork & Mindy" episode | |
| Guest Star(s): | Joe Regalbuto Kristin Larkin Nancy Eddo Jim Greenleaf |
| Network: | ABC-TV |
| Production code: | 420 (4x20) |
| Writer(s) | Richard Gurman |
| Director | Bob Claver |
| Original airdate | May 13, 1982 |
IMDB 
|
Gotta Run, Part 2 |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "Gotta Run, Part 1" | "Gotta Run, Part 3" |
| List of Mork & Mindy seasons/episodes | |
"Gotta Run: Part 2" was the 20th episode of Season 4 of Mork and Mindy, also the 93rd overall episode in the series, also the second part of a three episode story arc. Written by Richard Gurman, the episode, directed by Bob Claver, was shot on February 26, 1982 and premiered on ABC-TV on May 13, 1982.
Synopsis[]
With their apartment in ruins after Kalnik's attack. Mork and Mindy have no choice but to go on the run, Going to ground with Mearth, they hope that Fred can get to them with money to help keep them out of sight. But the malevolent Neptunian and his men may force Mork down a path that Mindy has feared since his arrival.
Plot[]
Packed into Mindy's jeep on the run from Kalnik, Mork drives them out of Colorado and into Arizona, a beautiful place to die he notes. Mindy reminds him that this is an emergency situation and asks him not to fall apart like he usual does when his potato chip has some green on it. Mork duly promises to hold it together. But as they drive they past a brown van with a smiley face on the side, it transpires it's populated by agents reporting directly to Kalnik. The Neptunian telling them to follow the Jeep but leave them to him. Obeying orders, the agents turn after the jeep, following them from a distance.
With night fallen, the family camps out in the desert, Mindy zipping Mearth up into his sleeping bag, Mearth complaining about having to sleep in the dirt. Mindy patiently explains to him again, that this is a spur of the moment type camping trip and he's going to have to bear with them. But he feels that's alright for her to say, she's got the air mattress. But she reminds him they all agreed the coin toss was fair. Telling him to get some sleep, Mindy returns to the campfire, sitting down on the blanket, stoking the fire getting lost in thought in the flames and not having any notion of Mork sneaking up behind her with a long bleached cattle skull held up to his face. Bending down behind her and calling her name, he catches her completely unawares, grinning as she turns and near jumps out of her skin. When she grouses 'very funny', he teases her about being upset when she has the air mattress. Seriously worried, she reminds him that all they have is a $1.46 to their name. Taking his hands she tells him they have to stay out of sight until they can get a message to her father so he can get them some money, but in the meantime, she feels they are going to have to pawn their wedding rings. Mork gets upset at the suggestion, not willing or wanting to pawn the symbols of their love and commitment. Which upsets Mindy by turn, saying 24 hours ago the biggest thing they had to worry about was where to find a decent plumber and now they're running for their lives, and tearfully admits that she's scared. Mork tells her he is too, but draws her close, holding her, as he admits he never should have trusted a Neptunian. On Neptune, he tells her, Pia Zadora would've won the Oscar. Starting to laugh, she shakes her head, smiling, telling him it's so hard to stay depressed around him. Grinning he draws her back making her laugh further with the suggestion that that's probably why Ingmar Bergman doesn't come over to play tennis with them anymore, till more relaxed she lays her head on his shoulder and they sit by the fire.
The next day, they sneak into a gym of the Hidden Hills Health Farm. The gym, Mindy notes, still being a better place to hide than Edna's Reptile Dinner Theater. Mearth however is hungry, only having eaten a Junior Mint, that Mork accuses him of refusing to share, Mindy having to break them up before the argument breaks out again. She tells them, they'll go down to the check in area, sign in, got to the coffee shop and they'll be able to pay for it after her father arrives with some money for them. As she says that however a whistle goes, and a classful of people in blue tracksuits enter the gym, whereupon they realize they are in Hidden Hills weight loss facility. The following day, Mork and Mindy have donned the blue tracksuits and are joining with the class exercises, after the dinner bell goes and they avoid getting trampled in the stampede, Mindy confesses that after three days of starving she can't take much more of this. Mearth enters on the run from a wealthy widow with her own shoe factory, whose set her sights on him, Mork happy to give his blessing when he hears she's willing to sign the factory over to Mearth. Cursing his looks, Mearth heads out to hide.
As he leaves, to Mindy and Mork's relief, Fred enters on the run embracing his daughter. Mindy though glad to see her father is apologetic about dragging him into this, but there was no one else to turn to. Brushing aside her concerns he's just glad she's not hurt. Fred pulls out an envelope of cash and hands it to Mork, who thrills to the 'mondo dinero' that's inside, Mindy thinking her father has been way too generous. But Fred says he can afford to be generous, before adding, after all they'll never live to spend it. Reaching up, he literally pulls off his face, revealing Kalnik beneath, who pulls a laser pistol on them.Kalnik taunts and toys with them, until Mindy wants to know why he wants to kill them?! Because, he says, the are the only ones who can put a wrench in his plans. He intends to kill all three of them, to get back in time for his haircut, and wants to know where the 'little mutant' is. Mindy pleads for her son who is only a child, and when Kalnik doesn't back down, she calls him insane. But Kalnik retorts that it's her planet that drove him to this, all he wanted to do was open a restaurant and ran it to so much trouble he thought it'd be easier to take over the planet instead. In typical megalomaniacal fashion he outlines what he did while taunting Mork for having the vision and ambition 'of a substitute teacher', telling them how he infiltrated the government, an ineffectual arm of a consumer protection agency and turned them into his personal army. Mindy and Mork start to sidle towards the open doors of the gym, but Kalnik stops them, telling them he made the government agency believe that they were the aliens threatening the planet. He slams the doors shut on them as they try and make a break for it.
Asking them if they have any last words, Mork turns to Mindy taking her hands, looking into her eyes and promptly starts to sing "I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together..." utterly bemusing both her and Kalnik as he swings around singing to her, before he kicks the gun out of Kalnik's hand. Mork grappling with him, affords Mindy the time to grab the gun and turn it on Kalnik, at least after getting her panicking husband out of the way. Kalnik thought taunts her on not having the nerve to fire, saying Earth women are only good for standing in line at the movies while their husbands park the car, Mindy warns him that she will fire if he keeps coming, but he says she doesn't have the guts. Mindy does have the guts, she just doesn't have the instructions, and when she fires the gun doesn't go off. Mork yells to her that he's open but dives the wrong way as she throws it and the gun shatters into pieces against the wall. Kalnik gets upset and angry as the gun was his mothers, and turns on Mork, promising him a painful death. Mork draws out his finger preparing to take him on, but Kalnik derides his abilities, saying they are no match for his telekinetic powers. He starts to fire in telekinetic punches on Mork who manages to block them at first but Kalnik starts to overwhelm him leaving him punch drunk and on his back.
Running to him, Mindy tries to prop him up and encourage him, trying to get him to focus on things that make him mad to help him, and he thinks of post nasal drip and her perm, getting up and moving back to Kalnik, leaving Mindy wondering what's wrong with her perm? But Mork's renewed energy doesn't last long, and Kalnik lands a near knock out blow, then as Mindy manages to get Mork back to his feet aims to land the killer blow, before being interrupted by the returning Mearth. Father and son attempt to team up 'fingers' against Kalnik who blocks them both. Mork urges Mindy to run but she refuses to leave without him, and then notices something behind her. Dragging the large fire extinguisher out, while Mork and Mearth have Kalnik distracted, she fires the contents of the CO2 container at him. The effect on the Neptunian unexpected, as it freezes Kalnik, effectively turning him into a huge white statue. Stunned they realize it's done, over, they can go home, and head out, Mork congratulating his son, Mindy wanting to know what did he mean he doesn't like her perm, Mork citing heat of the battle.
Back in their own clothes, in the jeep and on the road, Mork is still trying to dig himself out of a hole with Mindy about his hair comment, but Mearth only tosses him in deeper. Mindy declares she's not going to argue about it, she's too happy to be alive to be as mad as she should be. But as they drive on, the brown van that had been tailing them earlier comes off a side route to give chase, this time pulling up alongside the jeep. The van door opening, two gun men appear, and only the appearance of a truck coming the other direction, forcing the Van off the road gives them a chance to get away, Mork driving Mindy's jeep off road over desert terrain the van won't be able to follow, as the Government Agents fire at them.
Back in the desert with night having fallen, Mindy tries to tell Mork they need to talk without Mearth overhearing. Mearth figuring it out from Mork's less than subtle pick up, isn't too bothered about listening in, more concerned on having lost out on the air mattress again. Moving away with Mork to the jeep, Mindy tells him Kalnik or no Kalnik his men believe that he is the alien secretly intent on taking over the world and are just going to keep hunting him. Mork contemplative, suggests there is only solution, and tells her that she should take Mearth and the Jeep and go East and he'll take off on foot going West to keep them on his trail. Mindy is adamant she won't do that, she will not leave him. Touched, Mork embraces her, and with that no longer on the table, thinks there's only one another solution, a dangerous one, and calls Mearth over as this will affect them all. With Mearth in attendance, Mork tells them the only way out of the trap Kalnik has laid for them is for him to finally come clean about who and what he is, to the wider world. Mindy however, is immediately perturbed. Mork tries to convince her that going public is the only way, but she reminds him that ever since they met his exposure is the one thing she has been most scared of. They have, she says, no idea how people they will react to him, or how they're going to treat him. Mork gently tries to argue her around, that he's been on the Earth for 4 years now and most people are very good.
5 days later, the opening credits of TAXI, are interrupted for a Special Live Report, from the Federal Building in L.A. and the Secretary General of the U.S. He announces that 5 days previously the U.S. Govt became aware of the presence of an Extra-terrestrial living on the planet, his origins verified by scientific and military experts. Stepping aside he hands over to Mork to address the world. With Mindy's encouragement, Mork stands to face the cameras...and gets stage fright. Mindy prompts him to do it, just like he rehearsed, but with nothing coming out of his mouth but the occasional squeak, stands up beside him. Taking his hand, she introduces herself and tells them she's married to Mork, who came from Ork 4 years ago. Mork finding his voice, but only to say 'Go Dodgers!'. Ork she tells them is a very nice planet with oxygen, gravity and dog races, Mork adding some sound effects. Sensing he's finding he's feet she introduces them to someone who has proved to her that life on other planets is not only peaceful, but compassionate and loving, and sits down, advising Mork to just tell them about himself. Which he begins to, albeit a little too literally telling them cold pizza gives him gas, mortifying Mindy.
But gradually Mork gets going, .telling them he knows his presence is gonna be difficult for many to accept. But he assures them that he poses no threat to them that he's just like them in many ways except he has three hearts and no liver. He touchingly throws himself on the world's mercy. Saying all he and his family want to do is live in peace. The the Earth has given him very very wonderful things, Mindy and his son, and he feels it's time to give something back. He tells them the Universe is a very very big place, but if they accept him he thinks they will take the first step towards making it that little big smaller. His tears starting to fall he tells them it's a great opportunity, lets not blow it? Giving them a whispered Nanu before losing his voice entirely.
As Mindy and Mearth join him, back in Arizona, at the back of the Hidden Hills facility among the garbage, the Kalnik statue has been tossed, and gradually starts to crumble, Kalnik's voice promising Mork, that his days are numbered.
Trivia[]
General[]
- The opening 'previously' segment from Part 1 actually shows dialogue/moments that were never shown in Part 1, including Mindy at the dinner with Kalnik and Tracy talking about how strange it is, having never believed in aliens, that she's now sitting at a table with 2 of them. And Kalnik making a toast to them at all.
- This episode takes the show on location shoots for the first time since S3's Dueling Skates
- Though he appears in the re-scheduled Mork Report, this is Conrad Janis's last filmed appearance in the show, The Mork Report having been shot before the Kalnik three parrter.
- When Kalnik (Joe Regalbuto) swings around on Mork & Mindy in the gym as they're trying to sidle out behind him and they freeze, it's clear first Robin Williams then Pam Dawber are struggling not to corpse.
Pop Culture[]
- Mork calls the cattle skull head he uses to scare Mindy, 'Georgia O'Keeffe's head ornament' O'Keeffe an American artist recognized as the "Mother of American modernism" spent a period of her time year in the American Southwest, which served as inspiration for her paintings of New Mexico landscapes and images of animal skulls.
- Mork jokes about the skull and the Scarsdale Diet, a high-protein low-carbohydrate fad diet designed for weight loss created in the 1970s by Herman Tarnower, named for Scarsdale, New York where he practiced.
- Mork's joke about Pia Zadora winning the Oscar on Neptune that makes Mindy laugh, refers to Zadora having won a Golden Globe in 1981 for the movie 'Butterfly', an award that many alleged was bought for by her much older extremely wealthy husband, with fears at the time being she might get an Oscar nomination too. Which did not happen.
- Ingmar Bergman not coming over to play tennis, because it's so hard to stay depressed around Mork, refers to the Swedish directors notoriety for making somber, morose movies, with the occasional literal depiction of Death.
- As he and Mindy are working out with Suzanne's class, Mork starts to turn the exercise into a rendition of 'Yankee Doodle Boy'.
- "I'm So Glad We Had This Time Together..." that Mork sings to Mindy as a distraction as they are about to be shot, is the closing theme from The Carol Burnett Show.
- Mork's quip about the gun shattering being Mind or the Memorex refers to an ad for the cassette tapes in which Ella Fitzgerald shatters a wine glass with her voice, and then a recording of her voice on Memorex tape.
- Mork does his usual punch drunk reaction of 'Howard, boxing has been good to me...' groggily speaking to boxing commentator Howard Cosell
- The near knock out blow delivered to Mork results in his reverting to the "Bachelor number one...." type speech/IQ of a Dating Game contestant.
- Mearth says that Mork referred to Mindy's tight perm as making her look like "Marty Allen in a wind tunnel", the wild haired zany comedian and philanthropist.
- Mork tries to argue with Mindy that if people can accept Diana Ross the former lead singer of The Supremes as Dorothy they can go for him. Ross having appeared as a rather over age Dorothy Gale in The Wiz (1978)
Quotes/Excerpts[]
- Mork: *looks around at gym* Would you look at this place? Looks like Sylvester Stallone's library.
- Mindy: Who cares, it's a better place to hide than Edna's Reptile Dinner Theatre.
- Mork: Though I loved it when that Iguana sang Oklahoma *flickers his tongue*
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- Mindy: It's been three days of starving. I can't take much more of this
- Mork: Yeah it's almost like Mahatma Ghandi opened up a burger stand.
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- Mindy: You're insane!
- Kalnik: I'm just a product of your sick society. All I wanted to do was open a little restaurant! But I had so much trouble getting a liquor license I decided it'd be easier to take over the planet instead!
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*Mindy finishes spraying Kalnik with the fire extinguisher, revealing a fully frozen almost marble like statue*
- Mork: The ultimate Caucasian!
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- Mork: C'mon now Mind, I never said I hated your hair. I just preferred it when it was...well...attractive.
- Mindy: Oh great so now I'm not attractive!
- Mork: I never said that, now did I son? I mean just the other day didn't I causally remark how attractive your mother was?
- Mindy: No, I believe you said that she looked like Marty Allen in a wind tunnel.
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- Mindy: Mork we need to talk
- Mork: Alright.
- Mindy: But not in front of M.E.A.R.T.H.
- Mork: Who is Me Arth?
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*About Mork's plan to go public about being an alien*
- Mindy: *unsettled* Mork for as long as I've known you this is the one thing I've been the most scared of! You have no idea how people are going to act. Or...or how they're going to treat you. *shakes head, looks away* I don't know.
- Mork: *softly* Min, c'mon now. I've lived on this planet for 4 years and most of the people are very good. I mean if they can accept Diana Ross as Dorothy they can go for me!
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- Mork: Good evening Mr & Mrs America and all couples just living together.
- Mindy: *reaches out* Just tell 'em about yourself.
- Mork: Okay, alright. *nervously clears his throat* Yes I am an alien. And cold pizza gives me gas. *pauses as Mindy drops her head to the desk* I...I. Know it's gonna be difficult for many of you to accept me, because I'm different. Well hey I really pose no threat to you. Hey I'm really just like all of you except I have three hearts and no liver! And who likes liver anyway?! I'm throwing myself on your mercy. See...see...all we wanna do is live here in peace. I...*starts to get emotional* This world has given me very very wonderful things. My wife. My son. And now I think it's time for me to give you something back. You see the Universe it is a very very big place. But if you accept me today, I think we take the first step towards making it that little big smaller. *his tears start to fall* Umm...it's a...it's a great opportunity. Lets not blow it? *finding it hard to speak* I don't know what else to say. *barely a whisper* Except, Nanu.
Image Gallery[]
Cast[]
- Robin Williams as Mork
- Pam Dawber as Mindy McConnell
- Conrad Janis as Fred McConnell
- Jonathan Winters as Mearth McConnell
- Ralph James as Voice of Orson
Guest starring[]
- Joe Regalbuto as Kalnik
- Kristin Larkin as Suzanne
- Nancy Eddo as Stella Benson
- Jim Greenleaf as Donald
