Albert Einstein (1879-1955), German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged as one of the greatest physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theory of relativity, but he also made important contributions to the development of the theory of quantum mechanics – relativity and quantum mechanics are the two pillars of modern physics.
His intellectual achievements and originality resulted in the name “Einstein” becoming synonymous with the word “genius”, so that Luke is saying that he is the genius of his family. In fact, Jess looks to be the genius of the family we know so far, and in a future season, Luke will meet a previously unknown relative who appears to be the real family genius.
His attitude to teachers ranges from indifference to hostility
He shows no interest in school activities or fellow students
He stole all the baseballs
Principal Merton only tells Luke about all these issues one month before the end of semester! I don’t think it’s just Jess who’s been indifferent to his teachers – they sound like they’ve been indifferent to him as well. It’s almost as if the school has just been waiting for Jess to fail, rather than intervening to help or trying to engage with him – or talking to Luke about all these problems a lot earlier.
Schools really are quite useless in Gilmore Girls. Even if Jess was a model student for the next month, surely that wouldn’t be enough for him to pass, considering he’s had an entire year of doing nothing?
By the way, notice that Principal Merton’s observation that Jess isn’t interested in social activities or making friends at school is very similar to the criticism Mrs Verdinas had of Rory not socialising at Chilton. One might be failing while the other is maintaining a straight A average, but Rory and Jess have more in common academically than people think.
Rory is busy getting ready for school in the morning, how does she have time to talk on the phone? Christopher even says that he can’t talk for long, but he’s sent an email, and to add an extra 40 minutes onto next week’s call. There’s no way she can chat on the phone for 40 minutes before school. It seems as if Christopher has figured out a way to make his weekly phone call just a quick check-in. He is the king of minimal effort fathering.
TAYLOR: It is a fine, wholesome motion picture. Moving story, lovely scenes of nature.
The Yearling, 1946 dramatic family film directed by Clarence Brown, based on the 1938 novel of the same name by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. It stars Gregory Peck and Jane Wyman, and was filmed on location in the Ocala National Forest in Florida. The film is about a young boy, played by Claude Jarman Jr, who adopts a troublesome deer, the “yearling” of the title.
The Yearling was praised by critics as a heart-warming family film, and was the #9 film of the year at the box-office. However, high production costs meant that it didn’t actually make a big profit. It won three Academy Awards, including a Juvenile Award for Claude Jarman Jr. A television adaptation was released in 1994.
Note that we later learn in this episode that when Taylor says, “Moving story, lovely scenes of nature”, he is quoting from the description given in the film catalogue.
After Lorelai complains that Taylor has chosen The Yearling for the past three years for Movie Night in the Square, Taylor unexpectedly gives her the job of choosing the movie instead, saying she has never volunteered once to help with this event (which is surprising to learn, since Lorelai loves film, and volunteers for most community festivals).
RORY: Oh yeah, that’s Marty. He’s subbing for Dean while he’s out of town.
Dean is suddenly visiting his grandmother out of town in this episode – doesn’t he have to attend school? Considering how upset Dean was at the end of the last episode, it’s possible he has gone to stay with his grandmother to have a break from Stars Hollow and Rory, or to think things through.
[Lorelai pulls up to the house and finds Dean sitting on her front porch]
LORELAI: Dean.
DEAN: She likes Jess, doesn’t she?
Dean has done what Lorelai suggested, and only sent Rory one pager message in two days – presumably the one she gets as they drive into Stars Hollow is to ask how the Business Fair went, and he is considerate enough to wait until Rory is likely back from her grandparents’ place.
Lorelai suggests that Rory should call Dean back, as a tacit reward for his “good behaviour”, but Rory says she’ll call him the next day. She’s heading over to spend time with Lane, and they might even sneak out to Luke’s. Mrs Kim is away at an antiques fair, and Lane’s grandmother, who must be Mrs Kim senior, her father’s mother, is babysitting, but conveniently goes to bed at 6 pm – this might explain other times Lane has mysteriously been able to go out late at night, such as Madeline’s party.
Lorelai returns home alone to find Dean sitting on their porch, waiting for Rory. (So much for not turning up uninvited any more!). Seeing that Rory isn’t with her mother, a depressed Dean gives voice to his worst fears as he says, “She likes Jess, doesn’t she?”.
He understands what Rory has not given herself permission to feel. And yet, despite knowing that Rory’s affections are now otherwise engaged, he continues to try to hold onto her, in exactly the same way that Lorelai told him he shouldn’t.
RICHARD: This whole week, this whole experience with Rory and the locker first aid kit – that is a damn good idea, by the way, no matter what those yarnheads at that school of yours say. Anyway, this whole week made me realize something – I don’t want to be retired.
When they were first discussing the Business Fair, Rory said they had three weeks to prepare for it. Yet Richard, who helped them develop and market a product right from the beginning, says that he worked with them for a week.
Richard retired in December and finished at work in January, being restless and miserable ever since. Now in April, he decides that he’s had enough of retirement and wants to return to working life in some capacity. After a winter of discontent, Richard is ready to emerge in the spring to begin life anew.
LORELAI: Hey, did you notice when he gets mad he gets taller? … The day I told him I was pregnant, twenty-four feet tall.
And yet in “Rory’s Birthday Parties”, Lorelai told Rory that on the day she finally told her parents she was pregnant, “it was the only time they ever looked small to me”.
SOOKIE: Okay, new plan for the invites. We’re getting married May fifteenth, four o’clock, front lawn – pass it on.
There are very few exact dates given in the show, but there’s one for for Sookie and Jackson’s wedding – they’re getting married on May 15. That means that somehow the next four episodes are going to be squeezed into two and a half weeks! I don’t possess whatever time machine/portal to another dimension/magic powers that Lorelai and Rory have, so unfortunately the blog entries will not all be done for this season by May 15.
In real life, May 15 2002 was a Wednesday, but in the show, Sookie and Jackson’s wedding was on Sunday. Even when you get a firm date, it doesn’t make any sense and isn’t consistent with the timeline given.
MADELINE: Okay, well, first we go for the obvious – magazines.
LOUISE: You know, Teen, Young Miss, Seventeen.
MADELINE: Spin and Rolling Stone, especially to hit the guys.
RICHARD: I hear that Jane magazine also has a young, hip following.
Teen, a lifestyle magazine for teenage, published from 1954 to 2009. The magazine included articles on technology, celebrity role models, advice, quizzes, beauty and fashion, and personal essays by readers.
Young Miss, a magazine for girls which began in 1932 and ended in 2004; it was the oldest girl’s magazine in the US during its run. It began as two magazines in the 1930s called Compact (for older teens), and Calling All Girls (for younger girls). They merged into Young Miss in the 1960s, then the name changed to Young & Modern in the 1980s, before becoming Your Magazine in 2000, although known as YM in all these cases. For some reason, Louise refers to it by its 1960s title, possibly because Your Magazine might be confusing for viewers.
Seventeen, bimonthly teen magazine aimed at 13-19 year old females, published in New York City since 1944. At first providing girls with working-woman models, and information about self-development, it gained more focus on fashion and romance, but still attempts to instil self-confidence in girls. Sylvia Plath had her first short story published in Seventeen in 1950. The magazine’s cover that month featured a story on Chad Michael Murray, who had played Tristan on Gilmore Girls.
Spin, music magazine published from 1985 to 2012. It had a focus on college rock, grunge, indie rock, and hip-hop, providing an alternative to the more establishment Rolling Stone magazine. It provided extensive coverage of punk, new wave, world music, electronica, experimental jazz, and the underground scene, as well as non-mainstream cultural phenomena such as manga, monster trucks, Twin Peaks, the AIDS crisis, and outsider art. It continues to be published online.
Rolling Stone, monthly magazine focusing on music, politics, and popular culture, founded in San Francisco in 1967, but moving to New York City in 1977. From the beginning, it identified with the hippie counterculture, but distanced itself from the more radical elements and aimed for a more conventional journalism than the underground music press of the time. Hunter S. Thompson was one of its early journalists, and they covered major stories, such as the Patricia Hearst abduction, Charles Manson murders, and NASA space program.
Jane, previously discussed. This is now the third mention of the magazine. Even Richard has heard of it, slightly unbelievably! Perhaps it was research for the Business Fair project.
The Annotated Gilmore Girls 