Mr. Griffin Goes to Washington

Mr. Griffin Goes to Washington is an episode of Family Guy that first aired July 25, 2001. The title parodies the movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.

Written by Ricky Blitt. Directed by Brian Hogan. Guest starring Alyssa Milano as herself, Ricky Blitt as her agent, Joel, and Jack Sheldon as the Bill. Production code 2ACX11.

Plot summary

Peter is almost fired from the toy factory for skipping work to go to a baseball game. But the El Dorado Cigarette Company takes over the toy factory and Peter is retained.

El Dorado immediately starts making toys to promote underage smoking. Lois is concerned and prods Peter to confront the management about it, but when he does, the El Dorado board makes Peter president of the toy company to distract him.

File:FGMrGriffinGoestoWashington.png

"There. Now they're old news."

They then send him to Washington, D.C. to lobby on their behalf. Peter finally has a change of heart when he realizes that Stewie has not only started smoking but has developed a hacking cough.

`In a brief coda, Peter gives an educational message on the evils of killing strippers.

Notes

In the DVD commentary, MacFarlane says that an early draft of the episode made a prediction as to who won the U.S. presidential election, 2000.

Cultural references

• The episode's title is a reference to the classic movie Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
• Chris holds-up a sign reading “John 3:16,” one of the most widely quoted passages from the New Testament. It declares that God loved the world enough to give up his only Son to save mankind, but Brian jokingly says it reads, “And the Lord said ‘Go Sox!’”
• Brian says Peters excuses are “lamer than FDR’s legs.” The former president was paralyzed due to polio.
• Peter talks about the time he saw boxer Mike Tyson get beat. A cutaway shows Tyson in a spelling bee.
• Peter and Brian discuss the retail store Pottery Barn.
• Peter says "The business world sure can be funny," but a cutaway parodying the comic strip Dilbert cutaway makes the opposite point.
• Chris declares "That's imitatable!," a reference to a term used by network standards and practices to refer to dangerous actions that children might imitate, then hurt themselves, leading to a lawsuit.
• A cutaway shows an episode of the 1950s/60s children's television series Lassie with subliminal pro-smoking messages. Subliminal advertising was a popular urban legend during the early days of television.
• After becoming president of the company, Peter marches around, humming an off key version of “Hail to the Chief,” the anthem of the US Presidency.
• Stewie uses the Teflon-coated floor to do his own version of Nudes on Ice, which was a real show in Las Vegas.
• The company hires “domestic diva” Martha Stewart to help the Griffins do housework.
• Peter destroys his “company suck-up” with a logical paradox, much like the Norman android in the 1967 Star Trek episode "I, Mudd".
• The lyrics for Peter's cross-dressing segment are taken word for word from the theme song for 1960s sitcom That Girl, with "girl" substituted by "guy."
• A flashback shows Peter giving false testimony at the 1991 confirmation hearings of Supreme Court Justice Clarance Thomas, where Thomas’ alleged sexual harassment of former aide Anita Hill became an issue. After his lies are called out, he screams “Baba Booey! Baba Booey! Howard Stern’s penis! Baba Booey! Baba Booey!” Stern encourages listeners to interrupt high-profile political and media events and give him publicity, often shouting "Baba Booey," the nickname of Stern’s producer Gary Dell'Abate, as a codeword.
• Peter appears in ads featuring cigarette brand slogans and mascots:
  • "Alive with flavor!" -- Newport
  • "Welcome to smokin' country" -- Marlboro
  • Peter with a camel nose ala Joe Camel -- Camel
  • "You've come a long way, honey!" -- Virginia Slims
• Peter encounters several important politicians, including Senator Bob Dole and 2000 presidential contenders Al Gore and George W. Bush. Peter laughs uncontrollably at the name of House Majority Leader Dick Armey, asking if his wife's name was "Vagina Coast Guard." This was later referenced on Saturday Night Live.
• After a senator kills a stripper, Peter tries to comfort him with a line from The Godfather: Part II.
• Lois sees Peter in People Magazine with comedian Jim Carrey and then recites "Smokin'" the catch phrase from Carrey’s 1994 film The Mask.
• The Bill from a popular segment from the educational show Schoolhouse Rock! gets taken out with the trash.
• Peter says that, since he’s been president, "profits have been higher than Alyssa Milano," referring to tabloid accusations about the actress’s drug abuse. In a live action scene, Milano appears as herself and urges her lawyer to sue the Fox Network.
• Peter finishes his comments before the Senate with the title and catch phrase of the 1970s sitcom That's My Mama.