Grandpa Dave's Memory Album

"Grandpa Dave's Memory Album"
Season/Series:	15
Number in season:	6a
Original Airdate:	June 15, 2012; May 21, 2013; January 20, 2011 ; October 14, 2010;
	Credits
Written by:	Ken Scarborough
Storyboard by:	François Brisson
	Episodes
Previous; "S.W.E.A.T."	Next; "Buster's Carpool Catastrophe"
	Read transcript

"Grandpa Dave's Memory Album" is the first half of the sixth episode in the fifteenth season of Arthur.

Summary

Grandpa Dave is moving closer to the family and the kids are thrilled. But something isn't quite right; he's forgetting all sorts of things. Francine's grandmother helps the kids understand that Grandpa Dave loves them just as much as he always has.

Plot

The show begins with Francine's grandmother Bubbie talking to the viewers about what it's like being old, such as the good and bad things. Before she can tell the viewers her new friend, the show has to start.

After the title card, D.W. comes rushing into Arthur's room shouting that Grandpa Dave is coming. She also tells Arthur to move the cot in D.W.'s room, causing Arthur to frown.

After moving the cot, the scene cuts to the Elwood City train station. Grandpa tells Arthur that he has grown a lot. Arthur declines and says that it has only been a few months.

Then at home, the kids have fun playing with their grandfather like playing catch, singing, and playing hide and seek. But something isn't quite right. He forgets that they were playing and goes inside. When Arthur and D.W. go inside to ask what happened, Grandpa Dave forgets Arthur's name. Jane has to remind him. She tells the kids that she will be taking him to a doctor appointment and that they will have a family meeting when they get back. Arthur looks out the window surprised that he had forgotten his name, and blames D.W. for spending too much time with him. That evening, Grandpa Dave states that he's having trouble remembering and that it's no one's fault. Later, D.W. tries to get Arthur to help her build a memory book, but Arthur declines.

The next day, Arthur got hit by a frisbee and Bubby inspected him. Then Francine arrives and they can tell Arthur is upset. At Francine's apartment, Bubby explains that people change. The next night, Arthur, D.W., and Francine made a memory book for Grandpa Dave. Bubby showed him more pictures, thus ending the episode.

Characters

Major characters

Minor characters

Jane Read

Background characters

David Read

Mentioned (and pictured) characters

Trivia

Bubbie broke the fourth wall in this episode when she said "It's public television".

Cultural references

After Grandpa Dave accidentally calls Arthur 'Arnold', D.W. tells him that he does look more like an Arnold. This is a reference to Arnold Perlstein from The Magic School Bus, who coincidentally wears glasses, blue jeans, and a yellow shirt.
Alzheimer's is a serious disease that affects the persons brain, mainly the memory part of it. In Grandpa Dave's case, he has the early stages of Alzheimer's where it is easily to get lost and forget who people are.
Drinnens Pickles-37 varieties, is a parody of Heinz Ketchup- 57 varieties.

Episode connections

The pizza party from "Is That Kosher?" is mentioned again. Bubby mentions that Arthur ought to have changed the date, referencing how Francine tried to fast for Yom Kippur before the pizza got to her.
Pictures from Aunt Lucy's wedding in "D.W. Thinks Big" are in Grandpa Dave's memory album.

Errors

In the photo album wedding scene at Aunt Lucy's wedding from D.W. Thinks Big, Lucy and her husband's hair colors are switched.

Production notes

This is the last episode where Robert Naylor voiced D.W.
This is the second and last episode to have Joan Rivers as the voice actress of Bubbie, due to her death in 2014.
This episode has one of the longest intros of any episode, with 2 minutes and 15 seconds before the title card.