Coal Digger
Encyclopedia
"Coal Digger" is the fifth episode of the American family sitcom, Modern Family
. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company
in the United States
on October 21, 2009.
The episode was written by co-creator and executive producer
of Modern Family
, Christopher Lloyd
and directed by series main director, Jason Winer
. The episode "Coal Digger" received positive reviews from critics and was named in the top 100 best television episodes of 2009 by BuddyTV
and received a 3.4/9 in the 18-49 demographic according to Nielsen Media Research
.
at Gloria and Jay's house. At school, however, there is an incident between Manny and Luke after Manny called Luke his nephew, making things very awkward for Claire and Gloria.
Cameron is a former college football player and is comfortable with Jay's attitude towards the game. Mitchell does not care for football; in order to be more comfortable, he decides to learn more about the game and the two teams so he can try to enjoy the evening. His attempt to do so fails miserably when he regularly misuses football terms.
After the family gathers at Jay's house, Phil and Jay talk to the boys in order to have them settle their differences. Phil begins to explain the situation, but Jay takes over and simply tells the boys that they are family, and instead of fighting, they should love each other. The boys then go outside and play. While they are outside, Phil convinces Gloria and Claire to address their annoyances with each other. Later, when the boys have had some fun, Manny brings up that Luke constantly insults Gloria, calling her a "coal digger". Phil corrects Luke's pronunciation saying he meant "gold digger". Luke states that he's heard of this term from his mom, having used it through the past year. This makes the situation worse: Gloria leaves the gathering and stays in her room, refusing to join the group. Phil then tries to reason with her, resulting in an awkward situation. Eventually Claire comes to apologize, but Gloria won't accept it unless she can get even. Gloria tells Claire that the only way she can forgive her is to jump into the pool. Claire does, and soon afterward, everyone except Haley jump in as well.
co-creator of Modern Family
, making it his second writing credit for the series and first season
after the pilot episode
. "Coal Digger" was also directed by Jason Winer, his fifth directing credit for the series after directing all previous episodes. The episode, "Coal Digger" originally aired in the United States
on October 21, 2009 on American Broadcasting Company
as the fifth episode of the series and first season
.
Andrew Borba guest starred in the episode as the principal of Luke and Manny's school who is named Mr. Balaban. The episode is also the first episode featuring their school. Also the following episode "Run for Your Wife" (produced two episodes before "Coal Digger") is the episode with the first day of school.
of 3.4 rating/9% share in the 18-49 demographic.
The episode received mixed reviews from critics. BuddyTV
named "Coal Digger" the 45th best episode of 2009 saying "Gloria and Claire got into a hilarious feud after it's revealed that Claire used to call her young step-mom a gold digger, wrongly interrupted as "coal digger" by her kids." Robert Canning of IGN
gave the episode a 7.7/10 saying it was "Good" and "Coal Digger" proved that even without being packed with hilarity, the young series can still deliver some entertaining television." James Poniewozik of Time
said "Modern Family wasn't as disappointing as last night's Glee
, and I found plenty of laughs in it, but all the same it was probably the show's weakest outing."
Donna Bowman of A.V. Club gave the episode a A- saying "I say that Phil -- whom I've had my doubts about because of his broad cluelessness -- won me over this episode". Jason Hughes of TV Squad gave the episode a positive review saying "There were so many funny moments in this episode, as there are every episode."
Modern Family
Modern Family is an American television comedy series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, which debuted on ABC on September 23, 2009. Lloyd and Levitan serve as showrunner and executive producers, under their Levitan-Lloyd Productions label...
. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on October 21, 2009.
The episode was written by co-creator and executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
of Modern Family
Modern Family
Modern Family is an American television comedy series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, which debuted on ABC on September 23, 2009. Lloyd and Levitan serve as showrunner and executive producers, under their Levitan-Lloyd Productions label...
, Christopher Lloyd
Christopher Lloyd (screenwriter)
Christopher Lloyd is an American TV screenwriter and producer of Wings, Frasier, Out of Practice, Back to You, and Modern Family...
and directed by series main director, Jason Winer
Jason Winer
Jason Winer is an American director, producer, writer, actor and comedian. He is best known for being one of the directors on the award-winning series Modern Family on ABC.Winer was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland...
. The episode "Coal Digger" received positive reviews from critics and was named in the top 100 best television episodes of 2009 by BuddyTV
BuddyTV
BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website based in Seattle, Washington, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profiles, actor biographies and...
and received a 3.4/9 in the 18-49 demographic according to Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films and newspapers...
.
Plot
The whole family is invited for some barbecue and footballAmerican football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
at Gloria and Jay's house. At school, however, there is an incident between Manny and Luke after Manny called Luke his nephew, making things very awkward for Claire and Gloria.
Cameron is a former college football player and is comfortable with Jay's attitude towards the game. Mitchell does not care for football; in order to be more comfortable, he decides to learn more about the game and the two teams so he can try to enjoy the evening. His attempt to do so fails miserably when he regularly misuses football terms.
After the family gathers at Jay's house, Phil and Jay talk to the boys in order to have them settle their differences. Phil begins to explain the situation, but Jay takes over and simply tells the boys that they are family, and instead of fighting, they should love each other. The boys then go outside and play. While they are outside, Phil convinces Gloria and Claire to address their annoyances with each other. Later, when the boys have had some fun, Manny brings up that Luke constantly insults Gloria, calling her a "coal digger". Phil corrects Luke's pronunciation saying he meant "gold digger". Luke states that he's heard of this term from his mom, having used it through the past year. This makes the situation worse: Gloria leaves the gathering and stays in her room, refusing to join the group. Phil then tries to reason with her, resulting in an awkward situation. Eventually Claire comes to apologize, but Gloria won't accept it unless she can get even. Gloria tells Claire that the only way she can forgive her is to jump into the pool. Claire does, and soon afterward, everyone except Haley jump in as well.
Production
The episode was written by Christopher LloydChristopher Lloyd (screenwriter)
Christopher Lloyd is an American TV screenwriter and producer of Wings, Frasier, Out of Practice, Back to You, and Modern Family...
co-creator of Modern Family
Modern Family
Modern Family is an American television comedy series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan, which debuted on ABC on September 23, 2009. Lloyd and Levitan serve as showrunner and executive producers, under their Levitan-Lloyd Productions label...
, making it his second writing credit for the series and first season
Modern Family (season 1)
The first season of the television comedy series Modern Family aired between September 23, 2009 and May 19, 2010, on ABC in the United States. The season was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Lloyd-Levitan Productions with series creators Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan as executive...
after the pilot episode
Pilot (Modern Family)
The pilot episode of the television series Modern Family, written by Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd and directed by Jason Winer, premiered on ABC in the United States on September 23, 2009. The pilot introduces viewers to three sets of people who make up a single family...
. "Coal Digger" was also directed by Jason Winer, his fifth directing credit for the series after directing all previous episodes. The episode, "Coal Digger" originally aired in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on October 21, 2009 on American Broadcasting Company
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
as the fifth episode of the series and first season
Modern Family (season 1)
The first season of the television comedy series Modern Family aired between September 23, 2009 and May 19, 2010, on ABC in the United States. The season was produced by 20th Century Fox Television and Lloyd-Levitan Productions with series creators Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan as executive...
.
Andrew Borba guest starred in the episode as the principal of Luke and Manny's school who is named Mr. Balaban. The episode is also the first episode featuring their school. Also the following episode "Run for Your Wife" (produced two episodes before "Coal Digger") is the episode with the first day of school.
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Coal Digger" was viewed by an estimated 8.661 million households and got a Nielsen ratingNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
of 3.4 rating/9% share in the 18-49 demographic.
The episode received mixed reviews from critics. BuddyTV
BuddyTV
BuddyTV is an entertainment-based website based in Seattle, Washington, which generates content about television programs and sporting events. The website publishes information about celebrity and related entertainment news through a series of articles, entertainment profiles, actor biographies and...
named "Coal Digger" the 45th best episode of 2009 saying "Gloria and Claire got into a hilarious feud after it's revealed that Claire used to call her young step-mom a gold digger, wrongly interrupted as "coal digger" by her kids." Robert Canning of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave the episode a 7.7/10 saying it was "Good" and "Coal Digger" proved that even without being packed with hilarity, the young series can still deliver some entertaining television." James Poniewozik of Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
said "Modern Family wasn't as disappointing as last night's Glee
Mash-Up (Glee)
"Mash-Up" is the eighth episode of the American television series Glee. The episode premiered on the Fox network on October 21, 2009. It was written by series co-creator Ian Brennan and directed by Elodie Keene...
, and I found plenty of laughs in it, but all the same it was probably the show's weakest outing."
Donna Bowman of A.V. Club gave the episode a A- saying "I say that Phil -- whom I've had my doubts about because of his broad cluelessness -- won me over this episode". Jason Hughes of TV Squad gave the episode a positive review saying "There were so many funny moments in this episode, as there are every episode."
External links
- "Coal Digger" at ABC.com