Background Blues/Transcript

Introduction

A futuristic version of Arthur is working on what looks like a tablet computer, which creates a hologram of a tower in front of him. A robot dog jumps into his lap.

R4: Hi, Hal. How's it going, boy?     A futuristic D.W. floats into the room.

3W: (giggles)  Look out, R4!       She knocks him over. The hologram disappears.

R4: 3W!!

A futuristic Mrs. Read is talking to a futuristic Bitzi Baxter on a video phone in the kitchen.

Mother: And I got the kids’ mittens on sale for only three million dollars!

R4: Mom, 3W deleted my hologram!

Mother: Why don't you do your homework instead of fighting with 3W?

R4 sits at a computer in his room. He presses the “homework” key.

Computer: Homework done.      3W comes in.

3W: R4, will you play virtual flingy with me? Please, please, please, pleease?

R4: All right, quit gleebing!

R4 and 3W stand in the living room wearing virtual goggles. They pretend to throw something.

R4: Hng.

3W: Stop throwing it so hard. You're hurting me!

R4: No, I'm not! It's all in your imagination.    The mother comes in.

Mother: All right, you two. I want you to sit on the barkazoid and watch a datagram.  

The kids sit down. The mother gets a data carrier from a shelf with a picture of the present-day Arthur and the label “53B”. She puts it into a machine.

R4: What is it?

Mother: It belonged to your great-grandfather. They used to call them videos. You can see what life was like in ancient times.   

The machine creates a projection of the “Family Photo” title card with the title “Background Blues”.

Cut to the actual title card.

Title Card: Family Photo

Mr. Ratburn points to a family tree on the blackboard.

Mr. Ratburn: For next week, I’d like you to research your family history and present it to the class. I found out some very interesting things about the Ratburns. As we can see, the Ratburn line can be traced far back into history.

The kids have a fantasy of Mr. Ratburn standing on a snowy plain dressed like Napoleon.

Napoleon Ratburn: Travaillez plus! Travaillez plus!   [Subtitle: Work Harder! Work Harder!]   The kids in French uniforms are setting up a cannon.

Arthur: What?

Another fantasy shows Mr. Ratburn sitting on a throne wearing a toga and a laurel wreath while the kids are creating a marble statue of him.

Ratburn Cesar: Laborate plus diligente!  [Subtitle: Work Harder!]

In ancient Egypt the kids are pulling a huge stone block. Mr. Ratburn is dressed like a pharaoh. He creates a speech bubble with Egyptian hieroglyphs. [Subtitle: Work Harder!]

The fantasies end.

Mr. Ratburn: And so I’ve learned that the Ratburns wouldn’t be where they are today without a lot of hard work. Let’s see what you find out.