"A Fishful of Dollars" is episode six in the first season of ''

Futurama ''Futurama'' is an American animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series follows the adventures of the professional slacker Philip J. Fry, who is cryogenically preserved for 1000 years a ...

''. It originally aired on the

Fox network The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations an ...

in the United States on April 27, 1999. The episode was written by

Patric Verrone Patric Miller Verrone (born September 29, 1959) is an American television writer and labor leader. He served as a writer and producer for several animated television shows, most notably ''Futurama''. Schooling and pre-television career Verrone g ...

and directed by

Ron Hughart Ronald P. Hughart (born June 18, 1961) is an American animator, director, and storyboard artist. He has worked on several shows, including ''The Ren & Stimpy Show'', '' Family Dog'', '' Futurama'' and '' American Dad!''. He also worked on ''Ren & ...

and

Gregg Vanzo Gregg Vanzo is an American animator. He has worked on several shows, including ''The Simpsons'' and ''Futurama''. He is also the founder of Rough Draft Studios. Career in television Gregg Vanzo began his career as an animator on Bill Kroyer's ...

Pamela Anderson Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian-American actress and model. She is best known for her glamour modeling work in ''Playboy'' magazine and for her appearances on the television series ''Baywatch'' (1992–1997). Anders ...

guest stars as her own preserved head in a jar. This episode marks the first appearance of the character

Mom ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given childbirth, birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the cas ...

, the series' recurring antagonist. The title of the episode is a play on name of the film ''

A Fistful of Dollars ''A Fistful of Dollars'' ( it, Per un pugno di dollari, lit=For a Fistful of Dollars titled on-screen as ''Fistful of Dollars'') is a 1964 Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood in his first leading role, a ...

''.

Plot

After having their dreams taken over by an advertisement, the Planet Express crew takes a trip to the local shopping mall. Trying to buy the product he saw in his dreams, Fry realizes he is broke. At the same time, Bender is arrested for shoplifting. As the crew scrounges up bail money, Fry notices that the bank where he used to have an account has remained in business. He still has his ATM card and remembers his

PIN A pin is a device used for fastening objects or material together. Pin or PIN may also refer to: Computers and technology * Personal identification number (PIN), to access a secured system ** PIN pad, a PIN entry device * PIN, a former Dutch de ...

code: the price of a cheese pizza and large soda at Panucci's Pizza, where he used to work. The account had contained 93 cents in 1999, but after accruing

interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct ...

at 2.25% per year for 1,000 years, the balance is now $4.3 billion. Fry goes on a massive spending spree, buying numerous 20th century artifacts, such as

Ted Danson Edward Bridge "Ted" Danson III (born December 29, 1947) is an American actor. He achieved stardom playing the lead character Sam Malone on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'', for which he received two Primetime Emmy Awards and two Golden Globe Awards. He ...

's skeleton, an antique robot toy, videotapes of past sitcoms, and the last known tin of

anchovies An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water. More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...

, which were fished to extinction shortly after the

Decapodian Dr. John A. Zoidberg, often referred to only by his last name, is a fictional character from the animated series ''Futurama''. He is a Decapodian, a crustacean-like species of alien, who works as the staff doctor for ''Planet Express'', despite hi ...

s arrived on Earth in the 23rd century. Professor Farnsworth informs Fry about their extinction after Fry's attempt to order some as a pizza topping causes a robotic waiter to explode due to a circuit overload. However, he finds himself making a rival of Mom, a famous industrialist and owner of Mom's Old-Fashioned Robot Oil. She wants to acquire the anchovies for herself since they represent a potential source of oil that can permanently lubricate robots, thus putting her out of business. Mom's sons Walt, Larry, and Igner conspire with the head of

to steal Fry's ATM card and PIN. They tranquilize Fry and fool him into believing it is still the year 2000, using a crude mock-up of Panucci's to make him think he fell asleep on the job. Anderson orders a cheese pizza and a large soda, whereupon Fry inadvertently reveals his PIN as he rings up the total, which was $10.77. Walt, Larry, and Igner empty Fry's bank account, and except for the anchovies, all of his 20th century artifacts are repossessed. Mom visits Fry with the intent of buying the anchovies, but relents upon discovering that he never knew about the Robot Oil and that he plans to eat them. Fry covers a pizza with the anchovies and shares it with the rest of the Planet Express employees while

Dr. Zoidberg Dr. John A. Zoidberg, often referred to only by his last name, is a fictional character from the animated series ''Futurama''. He is a Decapodian, a crustacean-like species of alien, who works as the staff doctor for ''Planet Express'', despite hi ...

is out of the room. The others spit out the pizza in disgust as Fry explains that anchovies are an

acquired taste An acquired taste is an appreciation for something unlikely to be enjoyed by a person who has not had substantial exposure to it. It is the opposite of innate taste, which is the appreciation for things that are enjoyable by most persons without ...

. When Zoidberg enters the room, he smells the anchovies and greedily devours all of the remaining pizza. He goes on to demand more, flying into a rage when he learns that there are no more anchovies anywhere, nor will there ever be.

Broadcast and reception

In 2006 this episode was ranked as 25th in

IGN.com ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

's list of the Top 25 ''Futurama'' episodes. The episode was chosen to be included in the list in part due to its many jokes about the 1970s and 1980s. Zack Handlen of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' gave the episode a B−, stating, "...Fry’s journey from 'desperate to replicate the past' to 'happy about the present' rings about as true as the Not At All True Bell, and you have the makings of a fitfully funny, subpar half hour. Even the resolution is lazy: laying on the curb with no money, Fry dreams of Bender and Leela lecturing him on how he was a terrible friend. It’s an ugly, undynamic fantasy that flat out explains the supposed moral of the story." In its initial airing, the episode received a

Nielsen rating Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...

of 6.4/10, placing it 58th among primetime shows for the week of April 27 - May 2, 1999.

Cultural references

When one of Mom's sons says that Fry must be a genius of the highest order, they show him watching ''

Sanford and Son ''Sanford and Son'' is an American sitcom television series that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977. It was based on the British sitcom ''Steptoe and Son'', which initially aired on BBC One in the United ...

'', as indicated by the theme music heard. The episode is also a loose adaption of the novel ''

The Sleeper Awakes ''The Sleeper Awakes'' is a dystopian science fiction novel by English writer H. G. Wells, about a man who sleeps for two hundred and three years, waking up in a completely transformed London in which he has become the richest man in the world ...

'' by

H. G. Wells Herbert George Wells"Wells, H. G."
Revised 18 May 2015. ''

Baby Got Back "Baby Got Back" is a song written and recorded by American rapper and songwriter Sir Mix-a-Lot, released in May 1992 as the second single from his third album, '' Mack Daddy'' (1992). The song was written and co-produced by him, and samples the ...

" by

Sir Mix-a-Lot Anthony L. Ray (born August 12, 1963), better known by his stage name Sir Mix-a-Lot, is an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his 1992 hit song "Baby Got Back", which peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' ...

. When Professor Farnsworth discusses the Atomic Supermen, he is making a reference to the Ed Wood film ''

Bride of the Monster ''Bride of the Monster'' is a 1955 American science fiction horror film, co-written, produced and directed by Edward D. Wood Jr., and starring Bela Lugosi and Tor Johnson with a supporting cast featuring Tony McCoy and Loretta King. The film i ...

''. In the film, Dr. Eric Vornoff, played by

Bela Lugosi Béla Ferenc Dezső Blaskó (; October 20, 1882 – August 16, 1956), known professionally as Bela Lugosi (; ), was a Hungarian and American actor best remembered for portraying Count Dracula in the 1931 horror classic ''Dracula'', Ygor in ''S ...

is planning to create an army of Atomic Supermen in order to take over the world.

References

External links

* *

A Fishful of Dollars "A Fishful of Dollars" is episode six in the first season of '' Futurama''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on April 27, 1999. The episode was written by Patric Verrone and directed by Ron Hughart and Gregg Vanzo. Pame ...

The Infosphere ''The'' () is a grammatical Article (grammar), article in English language, English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fishful Of Dollars, A Futurama (season 1) episodes 1999 American television episodes Cultural depictions of Pamela Anderson Television episodes about advertising