"The Robot Lawsuit"

"The Robot Lawsuit"
October 25, 1977
B-

This is the first of fourteen episodes written by Judy Ervin, who had recently played Terry Buttafucco.  It's another that I vaguely remember from the time, especially moments that would've amused a nine-year-old, like Shirley's Mr. Get Well singing to cheer up Laverne.  L & S are toy-shopping for Shirley's nieces, Mindy & Cindy.  (It doesn't say who their father is, but I get the impression that Shirley has at least two older brothers.)  Laverne plays with a robot, which attacks her.  She can't move her neck, which is why Shirley has to cheer her up.  Also, the toy store is charging them $120 (about $250 in 1977 money, $1050 in 2019) for damage to the robot.  A lawyer shows up and encourages them to sue for $100,000, even if it means Laverne must lie on the witness stand.  Laverne gives a speech about "your system," but the judge does the right thing and makes a little speech of his own, another way this was very much a kids' show (no matter the innuendo of a robot mounting Laverne).

The shipping notes on this one are pretty straightforward.  Lenny and Squiggy want Laverne to give them money even before she goes to court, and in the effort to kick them out of the apartment, her neck is cured.  She acts as if she's going to kiss both boys in gratitude but thinks better of it.  Squiggy doesn't seem to notice, but Lenny is definitely receptive.

Richard Karron is Robert A. Markland here but would return as The Ghost in the final season.  Although he didn't do any other L & S episodes, Billy Curtis, who is in the robot suit, had a long-running career, from The Terror of Tiny Town and The Wizard of Oz in the '30s to Faerie Tale Theatre and Eating Raoul in the '80s.