Dr Phil

PARIS: What about the [votes] for Dr. Phil?

Phillip McGraw (born 1950), better known as Dr. Phil, television personality and author, best known for hosting the talk show, Dr. Phil. He holds a doctorate in clinical psychology, though he ceased renewing his license to practice psychology in 2006.

McGraw rose to fame with appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, in the late 1990s. Oprah Winfrey then helped McGraw launch his own program in 2002.

Dr Phil has been a commencement speaker at the University of North Texas.

“Princess Diana’s butler”

PARIS: Are the [votes] for Princess Diana’s butler jokes or real?

Paris refers to Paul Burrell (born 1958), English former servant of the British Royal Household, and Princess Diana‘s butler from 1987 until her death in 1997.

In 2003 he released a memoir called A Royal Duty, detailing his life as a royal servant, and in particular focusing on Princess Diana, who he claimed had called him “the only man she ever trusted”. Princess Diana’s sons, Princes William and Harry, accused Burrell of betraying their mother’s confidences, and called the book, “a cold and overt betrayal”.

The book didn’t come out until October, but pre-publicity probably went on for a long time before that, as reviewers called it “the long-awaited” memoir. Burrell had also been in the news in November 2002, in court for theft of Diana’s possessions. The case collapsed when he was granted immunity from prosecution by the Crown.

Commencement Speaker

PARIS: Have you looked over the votes for commencement speaker? …

In the US, a graduation ceremony is often called commencement, presumably because the participants are about to commence a new life, post education. Even leaving high school is referred to as graduation in the US, not just tertiary graduation, as elsewhere.

The commencement speech or the graduation address is often given by a notable member of the community, giving them an uplifting message about education, wisdom, and hope for the future.

Radisson

MICHEL: It was one of the premiere hotel schools in the world. You two, on the other hand, are going to take a two-hour course at the Radisson.

Radisson Hotels, international hotel chain headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota. The first hotel was opened in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1909, by Chicago heiress Edna Dickerson. A high-end luxury hotel, it was bought by the Carlson Company in 1962, and the chain had 32 locations by 1982, becoming one of the top hotel chains by 2013. It was bought out by Choice Hotels in 2022.

The Radisson Hotel in Hartford [pictured] is at 50 Morgan Street South, and it hosts conventions and other events. Does this mean The Learning Center holds it classes at the Radisson, or just this one? Somehow, Michel has turned a one-day course into a two-hour course.

Ecole Hôtelière de Genève

LORELAI: Why are you being such a snob about this? You went to hotel school.
MICHEL: I attended the Ecole Hôtelière de Genève.

The Ecole Hôtelière de Genève is a Swiss tertiary-level school in a 18th century mansion in Geneva, dedicated to hotel and restaurant management. It was originally the Ecole Cafetiers-Restaurants, founded in Neuchâtel, Switzerland in 1914. It moved to the Geneva property in 1951, and its current name dates to 1996. It is ranked in the top ten of the best hotel schools in the world.

Michel said that he left France at the age of 18, and presumably it was to study here in Switzerland. The diploma course lasts for three years, so Michel would have graduated when he was around 21.

The Learning Center

MICHEL: Oh, yes, that’s right. Tomorrow the two of you go back to school.
LORELAI: It’s not school, it’s a one-day course at The Learning Center.

In real life, The Learning Center in Hartford is a preschool program for small children. There are a few adult education centres in Hartford, but they tend to focus on government programs such as GED testing, citizenship tests, and learning English as a second language.

Jackson learned beekeeping, how to buy foreclosed real estate, and diary writing, and all these educational opportunities are available in Connecticut (although not at the same place), so this doesn’t seem unrealistic.

“Super Jackson”

SOOKIE: Oh wait! What’s that? It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s Super Jackson and his atomic pea tendrils!

Sookie sarcastically compares Jackson to the comic book superhero Superman. The television series Adventures of Superman, 1952-58, with George Reeves playing the title character, was introduced each episode with a crowd of people saying the lines, “Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s Superman!”.

Sookie and Jackson are still fighting over the produce he provides for the inn. Before they were dating, it seemed cute, as if fuelled by unresolved sexual tension. Now that they’re married, it seems stupid, as if their relationship hasn’t progressed, and more like workplace bullying.

Evel Knievel

LORELAI: Jackson brought pea tendrils instead of Brussels sprouts.
MICHEL: Well, aren’t we Evel Knievel?

Robert “Evel” Knievel (1938-2007), stunt performer and entertainer, who was especially popular in the 1970s. Over the course of his career, he attempted more than 75 ramp-to-ramp motorcycle jumps. Knievel was inducted into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999.

As a point of interest, a biographical TV series called Evel starring Milo Ventigmiglia as Evel Knievel is currently searching for a TV network.

Pea Tendrils

MICHEL: Fill me in, please.
LORELAI: Jackson brought pea tendrils instead of Brussels sprouts.

Pea tendrils, also known as pea shoots, are the young leaves, flowers, stems, and vines of a pea plant. Pea tendrils are harvested before the pea pods are matured, and are therefore available in the spring and early summer. They have a similar flavour to peas.

Sookie complains that the pea tendrils are too delicate to eat with lamb shanks, and she is correct. They are more often eaten raw in salads, or lightly stir-fried and added to rice or pasta dishes.

Kazoo

[Lorelai is watching Sookie and Jackson argue]
SOOKIE: You know, next time I want some grapefruit, I’m just gonna ask for a kazoo because you can only seem to get me the most bizarre opposite.

Kazoo, a musical instrument that adds a buzzing tone to the player’s voice when they hum into it. Kazoos are especially used in jazz, jug bands, and comedy music.

The kazoo was first patented in 1883, and the instrument we know as the modern kazoo first patented in Buffalo, New York, 1902. The Original American Kazoo Company was founded in Eden, New York, in 1916 – by 1994, they were making more than a million kazoos per day, and were the only manufacturers of metal kazoos in North America. Now called the Kazoo Factory and Museum, it is still in operation and open for guided tours.