| "The Night They Raided Mind-ski's" | |
|---|---|
| Season 2, Episode #18 (#43) in series (95 episodes) | |
 After Mork unwittingly befriends a group who's revealed to him and Mindy as a hate group, they target Mindy, because of her Polish background in "The Night They Raided Mind-ski's" in Season 2 (ep.#18). | |
| "Mork & Mindy" episode | |
| Guest Star(s): | Ed Peck Nancy Steen Tom Kindle |
| Network: | ABC-TV |
| Production code: | 218 (2x18) |
| Writer(s) | Ed Scharlach & Tom Tenowich |
| Director | Howard Storm |
| Original airdate | January 10, 1980 |
IMDB 
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The Night They Raided Mind-ski's |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "A Mommy for Mindy" | "Mork Learns to See" |
| List of Mork & Mindy seasons/episodes | |
The Night They Raided Mind-ski's was the 18th episode from Season 2 of Mork and Mindy, also the 43rd overall episode in the series. Co-written by Ed Scharlach and Tom Tenowich, the episode, directed by Howard Storm, premiered on ABC-TV on January 10, 1980.
Synopsis[]
Mork successfully advocates on behalf of Nelson's election campaign with a clean energy group, Pure Power. in reality a White Supremacist Group. When he brings them to meet Nelson at the apartment, Mindy throws them out. But to her dismay, Mork can't seem to see the problem with the racist jokes they make, thinking they are just jokes. That is until Mindy herself becomes the target of the hate group.
Plot[]
The episode opens with Mindy at lunch with Nelson in the Deli, where he wants to speak with her about his campaign progress. Mindy is trying to inject a note of reality into her cousins attempt to run for City Council but as they talk, to Mindy's bemusement and Nelson's delight, they hear what sounds like a parade for Nelson coming down the Mall towards the Deli. The unexpected event is explained when Mork enters the Deli with a tape recorder and a loud hailer, making Remo rush to stop him driving customers away with the noise. Mork reports back positively on his activities back to Nelson, but it's clear that no one has any idea who Nelson is. Nelson tells Mindy he needs to get already established groups on his side to advocate for him. He has two groups he wants to try and get on side, but they both have meetings that night that conflict, and asks' Mindy if she would go to one, a conservation group he thinks, committee to clean up Boulder clean. But Mindy tells him she has a student teacher seminar that night in college and she can't go. Mork volunteers vocally. Nelson accepts warily, on the condition Mork does not do anything he wouldn't.
TV Guide Ad that ran with The Night They Raided Mind-skis - Jan 10, 1980
That night, in the meeting hall, Mork turns up looking like a tin-type of Nelson, complete with glasses. It is immediately evident from the 'Pure Power' signs on the walls and the arm bands that this is very organized and rather ominous looking group, and the man who greets him, Lloyd, wonders if Mork is in the right place. Mork assures him that Nelson is all for keeping Boulder clean, and that Nelson himself is squeaky clean. Mork introduces himself to Helen Anderson and then Jim Blake the leader of the group who quizzes him about Nelson. When he asks Mork if Nelson has a lot of influence Mork tells him he will with groups like his behind him, and when Blake asks Mork what Nelson thinks of the race problem, Mork tells him Nelson feels he should be ahead of everyone else, something they approve of. .After they call themselves a white bread group, and Mork tells them Nelson fits in perfectly with that, Blake wants to meet Nelson in person, and Mork invites them to Mindy's the next day so they can meet face to face. Any lingering doubt as to their actually being a racist group is dissolved when they pull out their hoods and robes, Mork just enjoying young people playing dress up again.
The next morning in her apartment Mindy is finishing off prep for the arrival of the group. While Nelson waits, moved, by the idea of them coming to meet him, Mindy asks Mork about them as he hasn't actually said much about the group. Mork thinks they're swell and they have some really good ideas for getting the trash out of Boulder, which Mindy likes the sound of, as well as the fact that he got to meet some new people. When Jim Blake, Helen and Lloyd arrive, everything starts out fine, with any comments innocuous and with double meanings, it is only when Mindy mentions that Nelson is concerned with protecting the Environment, and Lloyd answers who cares, that any bum notes are struck. As Mindy hands out coffee to everyone, Mork gives Nelson the big sell, and Jim admires how much of a staunch supporter Nelson has in him, with Mindy commenting that Nelson and their group could work real well together. Mork says he can't wait for them to teach Nelson what they taught him, and that the town really needs some cleaning up.
Nelson asks Jim what he thinks he could do to help them clean up Boulder. Jim replies casually that he thinks they need to start with 'The Spics'....at which both Mindy and Nelson spit their coffee out all over the floor. Mindy asks 'The What?' in case she misheard but Helen follows up with another Latin slur, Jim telling them that Boulder is for Americans before Helen adds to Mindy's disbelief and horror, with further slurs for the Japanese, East Asian and Jews as others on their list, with Lloyd adding Germans, Poles, Mexicans and Africans to the list, each with their own racial slur. Outraged, Mindy says to Mork she doesn't know what these so called Americans told him but finds their philosophy ugly and disgusting. She then informs them that both Nelson and herself are both part Polish, that their grandmother arrived in America from Warsaw at which they all do coffee spit takes. Her mood doesn't improve when Mork makes a joke of her heritage, and Nelson hedges on whether its true or not, and she orders the group out of her apartment. As they go, Mork asks her not to be so harsh on his friends, and she tells him if they are his friends he's free to leave with them throwing him out too, he happily grabs his jacket and to her shock tells her he'll pick her up a Polish six pack while he's out, four beers.
Later, at the Deli, Mindy is telling Jeanie what happened, including how before she knew it she had thrown Mork out. She knows how impressionable he is though, and that these groups can really do a number on someone. Jeanie is stunned that there are any hate groups in Boulder, but Mindy says they can be hard to see, but they are there hiding behind the flag. Remo pokes fun at her for being 'Polish' with an Irish last name like McConnell, Mindy asserting that her grandmother was Polish. Jeanie has no idea why people make fun of the Poles, and Mindy conjectures probably for the same reason they make fun of other ethnic groups, its easier to put down other people then try to understand them. Remo thinks its a pity thought as some of the Polish jokes he's heard he thinks are pretty funny. He starts to tell one, but Jeanie stops him...then, on seeing Mork enter tells him they should make themselves scarce. Leaving Mork and Mindy alone. Mork approaches her with a Polish greeting, and offers her a gift as a peace offering. As usual she melts, and takes the bag, but looks at him perplexed when she pulls out a lightbulb, and he tells her he wants to see how many of her relatives it would take to screw it in. Unimpressed she drops the bulb into the bag on the floor, her mood deteriorating rapidly as Mork, on a roll, starts barraging her with Polish jokes. Her face like stone she tells him that's enough, and he agrees to change the subject, and makes an Irish joke instead, at which she walks away from him.
As Remo & Jeanie watch, he follows Mindy, cracking Greek jokes She tells him again to stop, but he doesn't understand why she's not laughing they're just jokes, when Jeanie & Remo intervene, Mork makes an Italian joke using a slur, which irks them both. When he makes a nasty black joke, Mindy finally cracks and tells him angrily to shut up. Her genuine anger finally makes an impact and he wonders what's wrong, his friends all laugh at them. She asks him if she sees anyone there laughing then pulls him aside, back to a table. She asks him if he knows what Bigotry is? And he answers, what they have in Italian Forests...Big-a-Tree....which the listening Remo finds funny. Mindy does not however and leaves Mork in no doubt what Bigotry is, and the jokes he thinks are harmless are just the precursor hate filled people use until they have the guts to buy bullets. Mork is confused though, wondering aren't there any lazy, shiftless, dumb people on Earth, and she tells him of course but in every race, creed, and colour and asks them if they don't have them on Ork? Not since they sent him to Earth, he replies, which makes her smile again. He didn't want to hurt anyone he says, he only wanted to tell a few jokes, and tells her he's sorry. Taking his hand she says she knows he is and suggests there are a few others around he should apologize to, to which he agrees.
Mindy treats Mork to a movie, and later as they enter the apartment, he tells her how generous Polish people are. Their good humor evaporates the moment she turns the light on and they see that the entire place has been trashed with the furniture upended all over the place. They haven't been robbed as the Stereo and the TV are still there, but Mindy's dishes have been smashed, her plants tossed, and a lamp her father gave her when she first moved in, broken beyond repair. Her bedroom too has been wrecked, and she wonders if they did anything to the attic the stairs of which are closed. Mork goes to check and pulls on the rope to bring down the stairs down, they are startled as a dummy with a noose around its neck, wearing Mindy's dress, swings down with the sign "Go Home Polack" pinned to it. Mindy is genuinely frightened, but Mork reacts in an unexpected fashion. With focused calm and simmering fury at their threatening her. Telling her to stay here and lock the door, he says he'll be back soon, and when she anxiously asks where he's going he tells her to settle a score with some friends and leaves.
Mork arrives at the Pure Power headquarters kicking the doors in, vowing if they want Pure Power he'll give it to them. He proceeds to wreck the place, using his powers to drag down blinds, break and blow out windows, destroy light fittings and furnishings, conjure up an oily substance to cover their posters, and set fire to the portraits of Jim, Helen & Lloyd. He's distracted by Mindy's anxious voice, having come after him, looking in she spots him and is shocked with what he's done, running to him, she tells him violence only leads to more violence. His anger subsiding, he agrees that maybe he's done the wrong thing, that this is how wars get started. She tells him they can't fight hate with hate, they're no good at it, and that she was taught to fight hate with love and understanding...which Mork's thinks is good odds 2 to 1. However fear is the prime concern when the entire contingent of the Pure Power group, hooded and robed enter to see what Mork has done. Seeing their place in a mess, they break out heavy chains vowing to make a mess out of him and 'the Polack'. Mork stepping forward tries a bit of Love, which fails, so he switches to Understanding, using his powers on them, making them feel strange. When Blake pulls off his hood, he is now a Black Man, and as each of them pull off their hooods it's revealed that Mork has reprogrammed their genetic makeup turning them all different colors (red, black, blue, Hispanic and Asian). He tells Mindy it will wear off when "they learn about brotherhood without the hood."
The episode ends with Mork giving his report to Orson in the nicest sweetest tone, until Orson says he;s gotten used to Mork's fat jokes, and Mork happily launches back into them. Delivering his report Mork tells him that this week a group of popele taught him about a new emotion called Hate. When Orson asks him the difference between Hate and Love, Mork replies that they use the sheets for different things. Some people only get a lift, he tells Orson, by putting down others. For example you might call someone ambitious, they will call them pushy. You might call someone carefree, they might call them a lazy bum. If you call them different, they call them hippy freak. If they call someone inscrutable, you ask what's that? It seems to Orson that hate affects vision and distorts what people see. Mork agrees and wishes they could make a contact lens for the mind that allowed people to see that when you mix all the different sorts of people together you get this incredible human rainbow and each person has their own pot of gold.
Trivia[]
General[]
- This time playing Lloyd, this is the second of Tim Kindle's three appearances in the show, the first being as George's nice friend in Season 1's Mork's Greatest Hit and the third as Wheel's nefarious sidekick in Season 3's Dueling Skates
- Ed Peck who plays Pure Power leader Jim Blake was a staple of Garry Marshall's shows having appeared in The Odd Couple, and Laverne & Shirley as well as having a recurring role as Kirk in Happy Days..
- Mindy mentions that she (and Nelson) are part Polish. Minsk County is a part of Poland.
- Mindy mentions that her grandmother came to America from Warsaw, the Capitol of Poland. It's not explicitly stated that it's Cora, but as it's Nelson's grandmother too, and Mindy and he are first cousins on the maternal side (with Fred only having a brother) It is likely Cora came to America as a child.
- This is one of the very few times through the show that Mindy is shown to be truly, rightly, angry with Mork's behavior unthinkingly, negatively affecting others (Mork the Prankster being another).
- Mork's revenge on the group for their attack on Mindy is only one of two times he is seen using his powers for destructive purposes. The only other time he does so is in My Dad Can't Beat Up Anybody when he wrecks a bar in defense of Mearth.
- The crew elicited genuine surprise from the audience at the reveal of the altered Pure Power group's ethnicities, by bringing in the original actors in their hoods to do their lines, then resetting for shots gradually one and two at a time, brought in the altered actors, so no one noticed until the actual reveal.
- Mork starts to delivers his report without the usual jokes about Orson's weight, but reverts to type as soon as Orson says he's gotten used to them.
Pop Culture[]
- Mork plays the John Philip Sousa March 'Stars & Stripes Forever' on his tape recorder as part of his one man 'parade' for Nelson.
- Mork tells Lloyd that Nelson is so clean he makes 'Debby Boone look like a Sweathog'. Debby Boone, most famous for the song 'You Light Up My Life' made contemporary Christian pop music and was regarded as squeaky clean. The Sweathog analogy could be any of the rock band Sweathog, the juvenile delinquent group called The Sweathogs in Welcome Back Kotter, or the name give to a sweaty trailer trash woman.
- Mork greets Mindy with 'Dobrze, Mind' the Polish for 'Okay, Mind'
Quotes/Excerpts[]
- Nelson: What I need are organized groups of people to support me.
- Mindy: Don't look at me! What can I do?!
- Nelson: I knew I could get you to go there for me tonight!
____________________
- Jim Blake: We're a white bread group, we think there is too much rye and pumpernickel in the world.
- Mork: Then you'll like Nelson he's well bread and he's no crumb!
____________________
- Mork: Mindy, Nelson I'd like you to meet my three friends.
- Mindy: Uhh...Mork, didn't forget something?
- Mork: Oh three friends, I'd like you to meet Mindy, Nelson
____________________
- Mindy: Mork, Shut UP!
- Mork: What's wrong, Mind? I mean my friends laugh at these.
- Mindy: Do you see anyone here laughing?
- Remo: Well I almost did at the one about the dog *gestures throwing it up...Jeanie jamming an elbow in his ribs hard*
____________________
- Mindy: Mork do you know what Bigotry is?
- Mork: Sure, bigotry that's what they have in Italian Forests...Big-a-Tree!
- Mindy: *stoneyfaced* No. Bigotry is when people hate other people just because they're different.
- Mork: I don't hate anybody Mind, my friends just laugh at them, because they say they're inferior.
- Mindy: Mork, I don't know about where you come from, but here on Earth we are all supposed to be created equal. And the only people who are inferior are those who say that other people are.
- Mork: My friends tell me...
- Mindy: Your 'friends' could fertilize Iowa with their mouths!! They're a bunch of sick stupid creeps who do a lot of harm.
- Mork: Mind, they're just telling jokes.
- Mindy: Mork, they use those jokes as weapons, till they have enough guts to buy bullets. I wouldn't be surprise if 40 years ago someone said did you hear the one about the two Jews? Before long that was almost all that were left!
____________________
- Mork: Well, there's one thing that confuses me, though, Mind, I mean aren't there any people on Earth who are lazy, shiftless, pushy, dumb and inscrutable?
- Mindy: Well of course there are! But in *every* race, creed and color. Aren't there people like that on Ork?
- Mork: Not anymore, they sent me here.
____________________
- Orson: Is this Hate anything like Love?
- Mork: Well sir, lets say they use the sheets for different purposes.
Image Gallery[]
Cast[]
Starring[]
- Robin Williams as Mork
- Pam Dawber as Mindy McConnell
- Jim Staahl as Nelson Flavor
- Jay Thomas as Remo DaVinci
- Gina Hecht as Jeanie DaVinci
- Tom Poston as Mr. Bickley (credited only)
- Ralph James as Voice of Orson