Chicago Bulls, Shaq

TAYLOR: It’s already shaping up to be the best season ever, due in part to the recent arrival of our brand new basketball coach Lou Magillian, formerly the presiding legal counsel for the Chicago Bulls. Lou, come on up here and take a bow. Those other teams had better watch out, we’ve got one of the big boys on our side now, huh? Shaq who?

The Chicago Bulls are a basketball team in the NBA, founded in 1966. They had their greatest success in the 1990s, winning 72 games in 1995-1996 – the first team to win more than 70 games in a single season. They are the only NBA team to win multiple championships while never losing a finals series. Their star faded after 1998, and in the 2000s, the team was struggling. (Amusingly, the high school basketball team is thrilled to even the get the lawyer for the Chicago Bulls as their coach!).

Shaquille O’Neal, commonly known as “Shaq” (born 1972) is a former basketball player, a four-time champion, and generally regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. In 2002, he was playing for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Co-Sign the Loan

LORELAI: No, I mean it. I can’t leave without knowing there’s a way that I can save my house, so I’m just asking you to take five minutes and think of something, anything that I can do to get this money.
MILES: Well, you can get someone to co-sign the loan with you.

When someone co-signs a loan with you, they are promising to become responsible for your debt should you become unable to pay for any reason. It isn’t uncommon for parents to co-sign a loan for their child, especially for people who are too young to have built up a credit history yet.

Lorelai may feel embarassed that, even as a homeowner with a good job in her thirties, she still needs her mother to co-sign so that she can get a personal loan. However, Emily is showing quite a lot of faith in Lorelai, because if she did default on the loan and leave Emily responsible for the payments, it would damage her mother’s credit rating. Emily must trust Lorelai to be able to handle the loan payments herself, once she has been given a helping hand.

(Of course, Emily would never allow Lorelai to default on the payments – she would give her the money if necessary to make sure neither of them ended up in financial hot water).

Executive Manager

LORELAI: Oh, but I am good for the money. I, uh, pay off all my debts and I work really hard. I’ve been the executive manager of the Independence Inn for the last four years now.

We now learn that Lorelai has been the executive manager at the Independence Inn since early 1998. We don’t know what her position was before that, but the pay was good enough that Lorelai was able to buy a house even before her promotion.

“Two previous loans”

MILES: Oh, you’ve taken out two previous loans on this house?
LORELAI: Um, yes.

This explains the difficulties Lorelai has been having in getting a loan – she has already taken two previous loans against her house, and is presumably in the process of paying them back (maybe cut down on the junk food buying?).

It doesn’t explain how she got turned down by a loan shark (fictionalised by Lorelai as Jacko’s Loans and Stuff), as the more desperate and in trouble you are, the more likely they are to loan you money at an exorbitant rate to make you suffer even more. I’d like to think Lorelai herself turned down the loan shark, knowing it was financially irresponsible.

“One of these days, Alice”

LORELAI: I swear, one of these days, Alice. Pow! Right to the moon.
EMILY: What on earth are you talking about? Who’s Alice?

Lorelai references the television series The Honeymooners, originally broadcast from 1955 to 1956, and based on comedy sketches from Jackie Gleason’s variety show. The sitcom revolved around the Kramdens, a working-class couple in Brooklyn, and their marital spats (they’d actually been married over a decade, so weren’t literally on their honeymoon).

During their arguments, short-tempered bus driver Ralph Kramden (played by Jackie Gleason) would make empty threats of domestic violence to his more level-headed wife Alice (played by Audrey Meadows), such as “One of these days, POW! Right in the kisser”, or “You’re going to the moon!”. Alice was never fazed by these threats, and would reply, “Ah, shaddap”. A hint that Lorelai’s threats to Emily are equally empty.

The Honeymooners has been shown continuously since its cancellation due to syndication, and has an iconic status as a highly-popular television show which embodies postwar ideals and working-class masculinity. It’s been referenced in other shows numerous times, and been an inspiration for others, most notably The Flintstones. NASA named its infrared imaging instrument on the New Horizons space probe after Ralph Kramden, in parallel to the Alice instrument used on the Rosetta (not named after Alice Kramden, but an acronym).

Clarence Thomas

LORELAI: You’ll say hello, you’ll ask how his wife is, and that’s it. After that, you will say nothing, you will do nothing, you will sit in the corner and offer no opinions and pull a full-on Clarence Thomas, am I making myself perfectly clear?

Clarence Thomas (born 1948), associate justice of the US Supreme Court since 1991, the longest-serving member of the court to this date, and often cited as the most conservative.

At the time of his confirmation hearings that would see him confirmed for the Supreme Court position, Thomas was already reticent on answering questions from senators about his philosophical stance, in the belief that his conservative views could see him rejected.

However, he refused to answer any questions as his final approval was being debated, when a woman named Anita Hill accused him of sexual harassment involving making sexual comments to her. Hill was questioned aggressively, and Thomas defended his right to privacy. He said that they were turning his appointment into a circus, and he refused to participate in what he saw as a racist exercise. He was voted in a week later.

I think this is what Lorelai is referring to, telling Emily to keep her mouth as tightly shut as Clarence Thomas during his confirmation hearings.

Rah, Rah, Rah

[Rory walks up the porch steps]
LORELAI: Hey, uh, Dean called twice.
RORY: Rah, rah, rah. [goes into the house]

Rah, rah, rah is a typical cheerleader chant meant to create greater enthusiasm and excitement. Rory says it very snarkily.

Also note that Rory has only just had coffee with Dean, and had a short interaction with Lane on her way home. By the time she’s walked back to her house, Dean has already phoned twice before she even gets in the front door. That seems worryingly insecure, and even rather controlling. Rory’s ironic cheer may be a sign that she doesn’t welcome Dean’s constant calls.

Luke Tries to Loan Lorelai Money

LORELAI: Luke, that’s a loan.
LUKE: No, it’s just a temporary exchange of money for services that will be paid back when you finally have the . . . it’s a loan.

Luke makes an attempt to help Lorelai by advancing her the money to pay for the home repairs, as well as getting in a “good contractor” who did some work at the diner for him. I wonder if this is Tom the Contractor, who appears later in the show, and may be the same Tom who assisted Rory in her volunteer work for Rebuilding Together?

Lorelai thanks Luke but turns his offer down. She is refusing help from both family and friends, apparently determined to go it alone.

Tony Soprano

LORELAI: So, let me get this straight. Uh, you and some guys who actually know what they’re doing are gonna come over and fix my house, and I can pay them back whenever I want?
LUKE: That’s right.
LORELAI: ‘Cause I’m Tony Soprano?

Tony Soprano (played by James Gandolfini) is the central protagonist of the crime drama television series The Sopranos, shown on HBO from 1999 to 2007 (a similar run to Gilmore Girls, oddly enough). Tony becomes the head of the DiMeo crime family, and is the patriarch of the Soprano household.

The Sopranos was a ratings success, despite being on a premium cable service, and was hailed by many critics as the greatest and most ground-breaking television series of all time, with writing, acting, and directing all singled out for praise. It has won numerous awards, and is regarded as extremely influential on the development of television drama as an art form. A prequel film set in the 1960s and ’70s called The Many Saints of Newark was released this year.

As Lorelai loves the Godfather films, it makes sense she would enjoy The Sopranos as well.

Rory Fights With Lane

In this episode, Lane has been mysteriously unavailable whenever Rory tries to catch up with her to share her news, such as her stellar PSAT results, or their termite disaster. While talking to Dean at Stars Hollow High School, Rory suddenly notices that Lane is one of the cheerleaders who are staying late for practice. Aghast by this discovery, Rory heads off for coffee with Dean.

When Rory sees Lane at the school on her way home, they have a confrontation. Rory is upset that Lane hid her cheerleader tendencies from her, while Lane says she couldn’t tell her the truth because she feared being mocked or Rory getting upset. Rory is actually quite rude to Lane, insulting her cheerleader outfit and reminding her that they always made fun of cheerleaders like Janie Fertman.

Lane points out that Rory isn’t around much any more, always being busy with Chilton stuff or Dean, that she wanted to try something new, and doesn’t have to justify her choices. This is all perfectly reasonable, and it’s great to see Lane get to do something for herself for a change. Rory is in a bad mood because of the fight with Lorelai, and gets in a temper with her, and it ends with both girls raising their voices at each other.

(In an episode about secrets, this is the third secret: Rory keeping her PSAT results a secret from Paris, Lorelai keeping her termite problem a secret from Emily, and Lane keeping her cheerleader secret from Rory).