Fireworks

Hey.

Hey.

Wow. Hot-dog times, huh?

I only eat them on special occasions.

What's the special occasion?

I decided to eat one. Fair enough.

You going this way?

Uh, no, I'm going in here, actually.

I'll see you later.

Okay.

Church on a Tuesday?

But he seems so normal.

I know. Right?

And this is Kenneth, one of our pages.

Kenneth, this is Devon Banks,

Our vice president of West Coast News Web content

And theme-park talent relations.

Hey, Devon, you better watch out.

Kenneth might take your job one day.

Or your job, Jack.

Or his job!

Why don't we just, uh...

Devon? Yeah.

Morning. My notes.

Oh, dude, how can we be wearing the same outfit?

You saw me leave the apartment this morning.

I saw you put it on. I thought it looked nice.

How long are you staying with me?

Indefinitely.

Liz, I want you to meet Devon Banks.

He's in from L. A. Devon, this is Lemon.

Hi, love the show. Thank you.

Look, I got to go. Thanks for the tour.

You guys... You're the real heroes.

They get younger every year.

These punks who think

They can take down Jack Donaghy.

You're worried about that guy?

Banks is in New York for a reason,

And I intend to send him back to L. A.

Wow, if this turns into a showdown,

You guys could settle it

With a talking-like-this contest.

Banks is no slouch.

He pioneered the concept of 10-second Internet sitcoms.

♪ Makin' it happen ♪

Honey, I'm home!

Oh, great!

♪ We made it ♪

I'm sure he's here to dazzle the old men

With his Webisode ideas, but I have ideas, too.

Like what?

Something big...

A live television special with fireworks.

They can do shapes now.

One time I saw a cowboy hat.

Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, boom.

Boy, you're gonna need more than that, though.

Maybe you're right. I want you on this, Lemon.

Those jokes you wrote

For my Mitt Romney fundraiser were topnotch.

Those weren't jokes.

That was an appeal for a return to common sense and decency.

Well, it got big laughs.

We should do a sketch about alien abductions.

Like a Lamaze class in Roswell...

Lamaze-well.

Dude, what's with the ridiculous hat and glasses?

I'm incognito.

Some dude is trying to slap me with a subpoena

For a paternity suit, and the kid ain't mine!

How do you know it's not your child?

'Cause I remember the girl, and it's impossible.

I never got out of my car,

And she never got all the way out of her tollbooth.

Okay. Let's get back to work, guys.

How about a sketch about Bill Clinton eating hamburgers?

That stinks. What is this? 1992?

What do you want from me? I'm not a comedy writer.

Huh?

Mr. Jordan...

You've been served.

The more I think about it,

The more jazzed I'm getting about these fireworks.

Maybe don't pitch the fireworks thing right away.

I'm gonna come up with a couple other things

I think you'll like better.

Well, what I'm saying is,

That is what we're selling at the pitch meeting, Lemon...

Spectacle.

It's what people want.

The Romans knew it. Louis Quatorze knew it.

Wolfowitz knows it.

Mr. Donaghy, as instructed,

I was spying on Mr. Banks.

And there is something you should know.

So, what team do you play for?

Oh, it's not really a team.

It's just a bunch of guys who like doing gymnastics.

You know, I'm gonna be in town for a little while.

Maybe we could get together.

My, you're friendly.

Good God, Devon is gay.

He's even more powerful than I thought.

Maybe you should seduce him

And get him to tell you all his secret plans.

So, Mr. Donaghy, what can I do for you?

I heard you were talking to my colleague Devon Banks.

Did he tell you why he was in New York?

No, sir. We just talked about Anderson Cooper mostly.

You should get to know Devon,

Tell him all of your television ideas.

You know, he started off as a page just like you.

Really? So did I!

You say the right things, ask him the right questions...

I'm sure he could open some doors for you.

Okay. What kinds of questions?

I'll write them down for you.

You call him, tell him you got two tickets

For "Chorus Line" for tonight.

Now, uh, Kenneth, have you ever used bronzer?

Dr. Spaceman, when they check my DNA,

Will it tell me what diseases I might get

Or help me to remember my ATM pin code?

Absolutely.

Science is whatever we want it to be.

I'll let you know as soon as I have the results.

I already know the results.

The kid is not mine.

Boy, it's crazy to think

We used to settle questions of paternity

By dunking a woman in water

Until she admitted she made it all up.

Mmm, different time, the '60s.

But he was going to church

In the middle of the day on a Tuesday.

What do you think that means?

Well, it means he probably murdered someone

And found God while he was in jail.

Maybe he's born-again. Oh, boy.

We can spend our Saturdays in Central Park

Trying to save gay rollerbladers.

I just wish people would tell you immediately

When you meet them, "Hi, I am so-and-so.

Here is all the weird stuff about me."

No, that would never work.

If I told my wife in college,

"Hey, I'm gonna lose all this beautiful hair

And fart in my sleep for the next 20 years,"

She never would have married me.

Love is like an onion,

And you peel away layer after stinky layer

Until you're just... Weeping over the sink.

Is that my sweatshirt?

Hey.

Oh. Sorry.

No, no! Ohh.

And I have an idea for a show about a teacher named Art.

I call that one "Art School."

And one about a Jewish guy who opens an ice-cream parlor.

That one's called "Ice Cream Cohen."

And a drama about two cops...

One named Cash and one named Carrie.

I don't have a title for that one.

But, then, also I have some...

Kenneth, can I offer you a libation?

I have champagne, vodka, absinthe.

Fruit punch, please!

Right.

If you'll excuse me,

I'll go slip into something a little more comfortable.

Like in the movies!

So, Mr. Banks...

"What brings you to New York?"

Oh, just making the rounds.

"What projects are you working on near/long-term?"

Oh, my, that's an awful short robe.

I know. I had to cut it down myself.

Oh, Kenneth.

You know, I was a page.

And when I was in the program, we'd give each other a hand.

Can you give me a hand, Kenneth?

For a fellow page, anything!

Great.

Tell me about Jack Donaghy.

Tracy, I have the results of your DNA test.

Now, I'm very serious about doctor/patient confidentiality.

So I'm gonna have to ask

That all four of us keep this to ourselves.

What's the verdict, Doc?

Good news.

You are not the father of that child.

Yeah.

However, according to my DNA database,

You are a direct descendant of our third president.

Jasper Buckleman?

No, Tracy.

Our third president, Thomas Jefferson.

Jefferson? Not possible.

Yeah, that's a white dude.

Yeah, but that guy was into black chicks.

I'm surprised I'm not a descendant.

These DNA results show that, genetically,

You're mostly white.

That's ridiculous. I can't be white!

My whole persona is based on an in-depth analysis

Of the differences between black and white.

This is how black people dial a phone.

Boop-a-doo-boop, ba-doop, ba-doop, boop, boop.

This is how white people dial a phone.

Boop, boop, boop...

Boop, boop, boop, boop, boop.

I got to call my wife.

Boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop, boop.

Aah! Aah!

Aah!

Devon, what can I do for you?

I think we're way past that, Jack.

Let's be honest with each other.

I'll go first.

I'm gay, and I want your job.

Devon, I'm straighter than you are gay,

And I leave particles of guys like you in my wind.

I'm not afraid of you.

Yeah, well, you should be.

Let's just see how it all shakes out in the meeting.

Yeah.

Let's.

Oh, by the way,

A little slim-waisted birdy in a page jacket

Told me you got nothing.

You're going down.

No, Devon...

I don't do that.

Yeah.

No, no, no, no, no. Are you kidding me?

You eat too many hot dogs.

Please, I am concerned.

I copy this article on sodium for you.

Fine. But I will be reporting this

To the Fox Problem Solvers.

Oh, boy. What is this, Bible study?

Excuse me a sec.

Hey. Hi.

I didn't know you came here.

Oh, well, I haven't been in a super long time,

But, yeah, my parents used to make me go every week.

Wow.

Well, welcome back.

Thanks.

You're doing the right thing.

Go ahead, have a seat.

Okay, everybody, let's get started.

Hi, my name is Floyd, and I'm an alcoholic.

Hi, Floyd.

Hi, Floyd.

Uh, it's been four years since my last drink,

But I just broke up with my girlfriend,

So I guess today I'll be talking

About my issues with women and trust.

The dishonesty that my dad...

You stayed?!

Pete, you don't understand.

He was pouring his guts out.

It was like eavesdropping on somebody else's therapy.

It was great.

Yeah, that's not okay.

I just feel like I've known him forever now.

You know, I mean, his father was awful, awful.

And he told this story about trying to make French toast

For his mom when he was a kid, and he started crying.

I love him.

Liz, what is your plan here? What are you gonna do?

You gonna fake being an alcoholic

For the rest of your life?

I don't know, okay?

One day at a time, Pete.

I'm gonna take it one day at a time.

I want you to tell me everything that happened last night.

The curtains open on a group of chorus-line dreamers

In 1970s leotards.

Stop that. I'm not talking about the show.

The only reason I sent you to Banks was to get information.

Why were you telling him anything?

I'm sorry, sir.

I had to keep talking

Just to stop him from putting his fingers in my mouth.

Kenneth, you are the worst gay bait ever.

You used me?

For television, Kenneth.

I humiliated you for television.

Like on "What's Happening!!" When that man used Rerun

To bootleg that Doobie Brothers concert.

Exactly.

And I need to humiliate you again.

I've got a very important meeting coming up,

And Banks cannot be there.

And you want me to kill him.

No.

I need you to distract him.

You've got to make sure he doesn't leave

That hotel room tomorrow morning.

I'll do it.

Just like Sydney Bristow on "Alias,"

I'll use my sexuality as a weapon.

To the wig shop!

Psst, Lemon!

Lemon, it's on.

Banks is gunning for me.

8:00 a. M. Thursday. Are you ready?

Yeah, I've been working on it all week.

I don't know what happened in your life

That caused you to develop a sense of humor

As a coping mechanism.

Maybe it was some sort of brace or corrective boot

You wore during childhood.

But in any case, I'm glad you're on my team.

I can't do this sketch.

What? Why?

Because you can't have a white dude playing a criminal.

That's a negative portrayal of my people.

Tracy, you're not white.

I don't know who I am anymore!

There's been a black man inside of me for a long time.

Now there's a white guy up in here, too!

It's like an audience for a Bobby McFerrin concert in here!

Tracy, you should be honored

To be a descendant of Thomas Jefferson.

Of course you would say that.

You wish you were white.

How dare you?

I happen to know what it means

To be proud of one's heritage.

My great-great-great- grandfather

Was one of the few black men

Who had achieved an officer's rank during the Civil War.

This is a picture of him

Shaking hands with Ulysses S. Grant.

Let me see that.

I think he's shaking hands with Robert E. Lee.

Dude, your relative fought for the South.

You're related to a black Confederate officer.

That's messed up.

See?

Now you know what I'm going through.

You think these other black guys are his prisoners or what?

Maybe Jack's special could be based on a holiday.

What's left in April?

Arbor Day, the Boston Marathon, and Hitler's birthday.

So, you got options.

Mmm.

Hey, Liz?

Hi. Hey.

Can... Can I talk to you for a sec? Yeah.

I'm sorry to do this at work.

I just wanted to make sure you're okay.

You weren't at the meeting today.

Oh! No. I'm okay.

Okay. Good.

I just want to offer my support.

If you ever need to talk to someone,

I'd be more than happy to take you out for coffee.

Do you have time now?

Sure.

Okay. Oh.

Sorry. Sorry.

All right, Tracy, I have the DNA results right here.

Are you ready to find out who your biological father is?

I think I am.

Tracy...

Meet your father, Tom!

No!

I hate you, Thomas Jefferson!

I don't know who I am anymore!

You can't be my father!

Hey, Maury, he a dog! He a dog and a liar!

Sally Hemings just called you a dog, Thomas Jefferson.

No matter, Maurice.

I'm here for you, Tracy Jordan.

I rode a horse all the way from Heaven

To tell you something important.

America, which I invented...

... Which I invented,

Is a great country

Because we are not burdened by our pasts.

Embrace who you are, Tracy Jordan.

And may the Force be with you always.

I have never seen so much come out of one pigeon.

Yeah, I think it might have been sick.

Or maybe the little guy ate a cigarette or something.

Hey, do you want to come over?

My friend Pete is staying with me,

And we've decided that we're gonna do this thing

Where every night we watch one of the AFI Top 100 movies.

How many you gone through?

Well, I only have "Star Wars" and "Tootsie,"

So we just keep watching those two over and over.

I'm in.

But only 'cause your friend's there.

Otherwise, it would be too tempting

For this to turn into a... A real date.

What do you mean?

Well, obviously, since we're in the same group,

We can never date.

It's against the rules.

Right, but isn't that one of those rules like,

"Don't walk between the subway cars,"

And all the cool people just do it anyway?

Liz, I need the rules.

The last time I drank, I ended up doing

A man-on-the-street commercial for "Tarzan On Ice."

It was awesome.

I mean, he was swinging on skates,

And the little monkey was funny.

I want to see it again!

Yikes. Yeah.

And I didn't even see it.

So, all the rules.

Yeah.

But I'll buy the popcorn.

Karate!

Karate!

Karate!

Kenneth, what are you doing here?

Well, I was in the neighborhood.

Hmm, do you want me to dance for you?

Yeah. That's the business.

Man. Yeah.

Woman: This is "Traffic On The 2s."

Top deck of the G. W. Bridge...

Yep. Touch your belt buckle!

Oh, touch the peacock.

Construction on the Merritt, causing slowdowns...

Oh, you're a peacock.

The time is now 7:52.

7:52?

You warlock.

You came to entrance me.

Donaghy sent you.

Where the hell is Lemon?

I can't find her.

Hey. Good morning.

Good morning.

Oh, I'm sorry.

I guess I kind of fell asleep on your legs.

It's weird, I've never let anybody

Put their head that close to my feet before.

Um, do you want some coff... Aah!

Oh, boy!

Pins and needles! Are you all right?

Oh, both my legs are asleep.

Okay, all right, here we go.

Come on. Hop up.

There we go. All right?

Walk it off, scarecrow.

Ah, that was really fun last night.

I, uh, I think "Tootsie's" a very well-crafted movie.

Yeah, they use it as an example in all the screenplay books.

Oh.

Look, I would really love to do this again some time,

But I... I don't think it's a good idea.

Floyd, I'm not an alcoholic!

I lied.

I followed you to that church because I have a crush on you,

And I let you think that I belong there.

What?

I know, I know.

It makes me seem just nut-log, Anne Heche crazy,

But if there's any way that you could see past it...

No!

No. That...

I said stuff in there that even my best friends don't know.

I know.

That's supposed to be a safe place.

I know.

It is extremely not okay that you did that.

What are you still doing here?

Don't you have a breakfast meeting with Jack?

Oh! Oh!

Floyd, I'm sorry, I have to go!

No, no, no, no. No. I'm... I'm going.

I feel more confused and betrayed

Than those people that worked with Tootsie.

Bear with me. Sorry.

Gentlemen, lady...

If Jack's not ready,

I'd like to tell you about the future of entertainment.

What am I talking about?

Celebrity snuff reality content

Made exclusively for your mobile phone.

Now, what's that?

MC Lyte just murdered Danny Bonaduce?

Oh, thanks, phone!

Or...

Fireworks.

What?

Banks here wants to make TV smaller,

But broadcast television is big.

It's about spectacle,

The kinds of shows we watched as kids

Sitting on our neighbor's knee...

Inaugurations, the Super Bowl, the Oscars.

That's why we got in to television in the first place.

That's why I give you...

The "Rockefeller Center Salute to Fireworks."

Can you get those fireworks that look like... Cowboy hats?

You sure can.

Thank you so much. I appreciate your patience.

Mr. Donaghy, Liz Lemon is on the phone.

Don't bother coming in, Lemon.

You're off the project. I'll do it without you.

Jack, I'm so sorry.

I told you about the Flower Guy...

I don't have time for this.

You've made your priorities clear.

I hope he's worth it.

I found a biography on your ancestor.

It's called "Confederate Monster:

The Tobias Spurlock Disaster."

Yo, Toof, how you doing?

Not good.

The barn that John Wilkes Booth hid in

Belonged to Tobias Spurlock.

Well, listen.

Dream Jefferson told me some amazing stuff.

He said it's not about who you were.

It's about who you are right now.

No, Toofer.

Give in to your heritage.

Kill Tracy.

Let me shoot something at you.

I came up with a movie idea about all of this,

And I want you to write it.

Okay, what's the movie?

It's the story of Thomas Jefferson.

Only thing, we gonna do it like "Norbit,"

Where I play all the parts.

That's actually hilarious.

It's not a comedy.

It's a drama.

Oh.

Hi.

I'm really sorry about what I did,

And I know that you can't forgive me.

But just to even things out,

Here is all of my weird, secret stuff.

I have been sexually rejected by not one,

But two guys who later went to Clown College.

I get super nervous whenever I hear a vacuum cleaner

Because when I was a kid, my mom used to turn on the vacuum

To drown out the sound of her and my dad fighting,

Which is why I rarely vacuum my apartment...

Like... Never.

I have had three doughnuts so far today.

Once in college, I pooped my pants a little bit

At a Country Steaks all-you-can-eat buffet.

And I didn't leave

Until I finished my second plate of shrimp.

A couple months ago, I went on a date with my cousin.

Wow, I... I am a mess!

There is an 80% chance in the next election

That I will tell all my friends I am voting for Barack Obama,

But I will secretly vote for John McCain.

Here's one...

When I was a kid, I used to put on my fanciest nightgown,

And then I would mix orange soda and cream soda

In a champagne glass,

And I would sit in the dark and watch "The Love Boat."

Consequently, I have some weird sexual-fantasy stuff

About Gopher from "The Love Boat."

And I... Lied!

I have had five doughnuts today.

So, um, that's my deal.

Now we're even.

Liz.

You know, the Roomba is a nice, quiet alternative

To a vacuum.

Thank you. That's a...

That's a good tip.

And in the interest of full disclosure,

I also have a sexual fantasy about Gopher...

Except mine's the one from "Caddyshack."

Well, that makes sense because he's a very good dancer.

♪ Skyrockets in flight ♪

♪ Afternoon at night! ♪

Oh, boy.

I really should have been at that meeting.

Welcome to the "Rockefeller Center Salute To Fireworks."

Now, without further ado, three hours of fireworks!

Wait, fireworks... In midtown?

On a day that's not the 4th of July.

Oh, my God!

Oh, boy. That's gonna scare a lot of people.

Sir... The mayor.

Shut it down!

Shut it down!

Oh, boy.

Oh, the cowboy hat!