Season 3 Episode 6: Her Cups Runneth Over

January 15, 1989

Published 01/15/89

It is Peggy’s birthday, and she discovers that her favourite bra, the Fancy Figure 327, has been discontinued. The depression that follows is genuine, and Al and Steve set out to find one, a quest that takes them to a lingerie shop and eventually to Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, a real town about two hours from Chicago. Along the way Al has to establish his wife’s cup size from strangers, which the episode makes as difficult for him as possible.

This is one of the half-hours that provoked the most consequential attack the series ever faced. Terry Rakolta, a Michigan housewife and family-values campaigner, found this episode offensive enough to begin a letter-writing campaign to the show’s advertisers. A few sponsors did withdraw, and one episode, “I’ll See You in Court“, was shelved entirely. The campaign’s net effect was the opposite of its intention: the publicity delivered the series an audience it had not previously had, and FOX’s most notorious show became its most watched.

The guest casting is of its moment. Lynne Austin, who plays Peaches, was Playboy‘s Playmate of the Month for July 1986 and the original Hooters model; Devin DeVasquez, who plays Vicky, was Playmate of the Month for June 1985.

The episode also contains one of Al’s most quietly bleak runs: attempting to buy his wife flowers, discovering he cannot afford them, and asking instead for seeds. He manages the seeds, one piece of candy and a card. The final scene continues after the writing and directing credits have rolled, which the series almost never did: Al and Peg get where they were going, eventually. Al implies Peggy was sixteen when they met.