The Dundies
Encyclopedia
"The Dundies" is the second season premiere of the American comedy
television series
The Office—the show's seventh episode overall. Written by Mindy Kaling
and directed by Greg Daniels
, who is also a producer for the show, the episode originally aired in the United States on September 20, 2005 on NBC
.
In the episode, Michael hosts "The Dundies" (a play on the company name Dunder Mifflin), the annual awards show in which he presents awards to various members of the office. But the night does not turn out as he plans, and Michael ends up angering or humiliating the majority of the office staff. Meanwhile, after Pam argues with her fiancé and becomes obviously intoxicated, she kisses Jim.
Michael Scott
(Steve Carell
) is the only person who looks forward to "The Dundies", his annual awards show at the local Chili's
restaurant. Jim Halpert
(John Krasinski
) tries to dissuade Michael from once again awarding Pam Beesly
(Jenna Fischer
) the "World's Longest Engagement" award. Meanwhile, Dwight Schrute
(Rainn Wilson
) learns that there is graffiti about Michael on the ladies' room wall, and his attempts to investigate are embarrassingly unsuccessful.
At the awards show, Michael's performance as MC falls flat. Pam's fiancé Roy Anderson (David Denman
) and Darryl Philbin
(Craig Robinson) leave, taking Pam with them. In the parking lot, Roy and Pam argue, and Pam returns alone to the restaurant, where she begins drinking beer and margaritas. Heckled by other customers, Michael decides to end the show, but an intoxicated Pam leads the office in encouraging him to continue. Relieved upon winning the Dundie for "Whitest Sneakers", Pam gives a drunken acceptance speech and kisses Jim on the lips. This leaves Jim surprised, but happy.
As Jim recaps the Dundies for the camera, Pam looks longingly at Jim and then falls off her stool, and Dwight springs to her rescue, thinking Pam is having a seizure. He then tries to take off his dress shirt and tie, but a Chili's employee stops him. After the party is over, Pam runs to the camera and screams "I just like to say this was the best Dundies ever! Whoo!". In the parking lot, Pam admits to Jim that it was she who wrote the graffiti. She begins to ask Jim a question, but stops when she notices the camera. A Chili's employee then talks to the camera and says that Pam apparently was sneaking drinks off of other's tables, which is against the restaurant's rules. He then tells the audience that the employee Xeroxed her driver's license and therefore is never welcome at Chili's again. Jim helps Pam into Angela Martin
's (Angela Kinsey
) car and smiles as they leave.
. Daniels had previously directed the first season episode "Basketball". "The Dundies" was written by Mindy Kaling, who also acts for the show as customer service representative Kelly Kapoor
.
According to writer and producer Greg Daniels
, at the King of the Hill
office he used to work at they had a Dundies-type event called the "Swampy Awards". At Chili's, many parts of the script were changed so the restaurant would allow filming. In the original script, Pam vomits at Chili's and Dwight responds, "A woman has vomited!" The completed script was not available to Chili's until shooting had already started, and they objected to a customer vomiting in their restaurant. Chili's withdrew its permission to shoot, but, after a few hours, Steve Carell developed a compromise: Pam falls off her bar stool and Dwight responds, "A woman has had a seizure!" Pam was also to be over served alcohol by the Chili's staff. Chili's did not want this in the episode either, so the writers had Pam steal drinks off other tables. They also agreed to include a scene in which the actual owner of the Chili's restaurant (Jon Bosshart, not an actor) makes it clear that the restaurant does not over serve alcohol to its customers. Since Jenna Fischer does not drink much in real life, B. J. Novak
took her out so she could get drunk while Novak described to her how she was behaving and how it did not match her own perception. She drew upon this experience for her performance.
. This means that 4.3% of all households with an 18 to 49 year old living in it watched the episode, and 10% had their television tuned to the channel at any point. The episode was watched by 9.0 million viewers.
"The Dundies" represented a turning point in the series, in which the show found its own tone. In its "The Top 10 Moments from The Office", IGN
ranked Pam's drunken scene at Chili's as number five. Michael Sciannamea of TV Squad stated that "This season's first episode showed a marked improvement over the final episode from last season", and went on to praise the episode's expansion of supporting characters as one of the main reasons for the improvement. Seb Patrick of Noise to Signal, while comparing the American version of The Office favorably to its UK counterpart
, writes that the series "could be finding its feet again over the course of its opening couple of episodes." It was later named the second best episode of the series after "Casino Night", according to an episode poll by OfficeTally.
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
The Office—the show's seventh episode overall. Written by Mindy Kaling
Mindy Kaling
Vera Mindy Chokalingam , better known as Mindy Kaling, is an American actress, comedian, writer and producer who plays Kelly Kapoor on the NBC sitcom The Office. Kaling is also a co-executive producer and writer of several of the show's episodes.-Early life:Kaling was born Vera Chokalingam in...
and directed by Greg Daniels
Greg Daniels
Gregory Martin "Greg" Daniels is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director.-Life and career:...
, who is also a producer for the show, the episode originally aired in the United States on September 20, 2005 on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
.
In the episode, Michael hosts "The Dundies" (a play on the company name Dunder Mifflin), the annual awards show in which he presents awards to various members of the office. But the night does not turn out as he plans, and Michael ends up angering or humiliating the majority of the office staff. Meanwhile, after Pam argues with her fiancé and becomes obviously intoxicated, she kisses Jim.
Plot
Michael Scott (The Office)
Michael Gary Scott is a fictional character on NBC's The Office, portrayed by Steve Carell, and based on David Brent from the original British version. Michael, the central character of the series, was the manager of the Scranton branch of paper and printer distribution company Dunder Mifflin Inc...
(Steve Carell
Steve Carell
Steven John "Steve" Carell is an American comedian, actor, voice artist, producer, writer, and director. Although Carell is notable for his role on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, he found greater fame in the late 2000s for playing Michael Scott on The Office...
) is the only person who looks forward to "The Dundies", his annual awards show at the local Chili's
Chili's
Chili's Grill & Bar is a restaurant chain founded by Larry Lavine. The chain has more than 1400 casual dining restaurants, mostly located in the United States and Canada...
restaurant. Jim Halpert
Jim Halpert
James Duncan "Jim" Halpert is a fictional character in the United States version of the television sitcom The Office, played by John Krasinski. The character is based on Tim Canterbury from the original version of The Office...
(John Krasinski
John Krasinski
John Burke Krasinski is an American actor, film director, and writer. He is most widely known for playing Jim Halpert on the NBC sitcom The Office...
) tries to dissuade Michael from once again awarding Pam Beesly
Pam Beesly
Pamela Morgan "Pam" Halpert is a fictional character on the U.S. television sitcom The Office, played by Jenna Fischer. Her counterpart in the original UK series of The Office is Dawn Tinsley....
(Jenna Fischer
Jenna Fischer
Regina Marie "Jenna" Fischer is an American actress and director. She is most widely known for her Emmy-nominated portrayal of Pam Halpert on the NBC situation comedy and mockumentary The Office, and has also appeared in several films, including Blades of Glory, Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story,...
) the "World's Longest Engagement" award. Meanwhile, Dwight Schrute
Dwight Schrute
Dwight Kurt Schrute III is a character on NBC's The Office portrayed by Rainn Wilson. He originally exactly resembled Gareth Keenan from the original UK version of The Office. Dwight is the top salesman and former acting manager for the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company and has won numerous awards for...
(Rainn Wilson
Rainn Wilson
Rainn Dietrich Wilson is an American actor and comedian. He is primarily known for his role as the egomaniacal Dwight Schrute on the American version of the television comedy The Office...
) learns that there is graffiti about Michael on the ladies' room wall, and his attempts to investigate are embarrassingly unsuccessful.
At the awards show, Michael's performance as MC falls flat. Pam's fiancé Roy Anderson (David Denman
David Denman
David Denman is an American film and television actor.-Education:After graduating from Fountain Valley High School, Denman attended the summer training congress at American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco before receiving his B.F.A. from Juilliard.-Career:He made his film debut with Keanu...
) and Darryl Philbin
Darryl Philbin
Darryl Mathias Philbin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office. He is played by Craig Robinson.-Overview:Darryl Philbin is the foreman of the warehouse of the Scranton branch of fictitious paper distributor Dunder Mifflin....
(Craig Robinson) leave, taking Pam with them. In the parking lot, Roy and Pam argue, and Pam returns alone to the restaurant, where she begins drinking beer and margaritas. Heckled by other customers, Michael decides to end the show, but an intoxicated Pam leads the office in encouraging him to continue. Relieved upon winning the Dundie for "Whitest Sneakers", Pam gives a drunken acceptance speech and kisses Jim on the lips. This leaves Jim surprised, but happy.
As Jim recaps the Dundies for the camera, Pam looks longingly at Jim and then falls off her stool, and Dwight springs to her rescue, thinking Pam is having a seizure. He then tries to take off his dress shirt and tie, but a Chili's employee stops him. After the party is over, Pam runs to the camera and screams "I just like to say this was the best Dundies ever! Whoo!". In the parking lot, Pam admits to Jim that it was she who wrote the graffiti. She begins to ask Jim a question, but stops when she notices the camera. A Chili's employee then talks to the camera and says that Pam apparently was sneaking drinks off of other's tables, which is against the restaurant's rules. He then tells the audience that the employee Xeroxed her driver's license and therefore is never welcome at Chili's again. Jim helps Pam into Angela Martin
Angela Martin
Angela Noelle Martin is a fictional character from the US television series The Office played by American actress Angela Kinsey. She is an original character, and has no equivalent in the British version of the show, The Office.-Overview:...
's (Angela Kinsey
Angela Kinsey
Angela Kinsey is an American actress. She currently appears as the uptight accountant Angela Martin on the hit NBC television series The Office.-Personal life:...
) car and smiles as they leave.
Dundies
- Phyllis – Busiest Beaver award (mislabeled Bushiest Beaver)
- Ryan – Hottest in the Office award
- Angela – Tight Ass award
- Kelly – Spicy Curry award (trophy has a bowling figure rather than a business man)
- Kevin – Don't Go in There After Me award (in the shape of a squatting figure)
- Stanley – Fine Work award
- Pam – Whitest Sneakers award
Production
This episode was the second episode of the series directed by Greg DanielsGreg Daniels
Gregory Martin "Greg" Daniels is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director.-Life and career:...
. Daniels had previously directed the first season episode "Basketball". "The Dundies" was written by Mindy Kaling, who also acts for the show as customer service representative Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Kapoor
Kelly Rajnigandha Kapoor , is a fictional character from the US television series, The Office. She is played by Mindy Kaling, who is also a writer and producer for the show....
.
According to writer and producer Greg Daniels
Greg Daniels
Gregory Martin "Greg" Daniels is an American television comedy writer, producer, and director.-Life and career:...
, at the King of the Hill
King of the Hill
King of the Hill is an American animated dramedy series created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, that ran from January 12, 1997, to May 6, 2010, on Fox network. It centers on the Hills, a working-class Methodist family in the fictional small town of Arlen, Texas...
office he used to work at they had a Dundies-type event called the "Swampy Awards". At Chili's, many parts of the script were changed so the restaurant would allow filming. In the original script, Pam vomits at Chili's and Dwight responds, "A woman has vomited!" The completed script was not available to Chili's until shooting had already started, and they objected to a customer vomiting in their restaurant. Chili's withdrew its permission to shoot, but, after a few hours, Steve Carell developed a compromise: Pam falls off her bar stool and Dwight responds, "A woman has had a seizure!" Pam was also to be over served alcohol by the Chili's staff. Chili's did not want this in the episode either, so the writers had Pam steal drinks off other tables. They also agreed to include a scene in which the actual owner of the Chili's restaurant (Jon Bosshart, not an actor) makes it clear that the restaurant does not over serve alcohol to its customers. Since Jenna Fischer does not drink much in real life, B. J. Novak
B. J. Novak
Benjamin Joseph Manaly “B. J.” Novak is an American actor, stand-up comedian, screenwriter, and director. He is best known for being a writer and co-executive producer for and playing the role of Ryan Howard on the US version of The Office, as well as appearing in Inglourious Basterds...
took her out so she could get drunk while Novak described to her how she was behaving and how it did not match her own perception. She drew upon this experience for her performance.
Reception
"The Dundies" received 4.3/10 in the ages 18–49 demographic in the Nielsen ratingsNielsen 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...
. This means that 4.3% of all households with an 18 to 49 year old living in it watched the episode, and 10% had their television tuned to the channel at any point. The episode was watched by 9.0 million viewers.
"The Dundies" represented a turning point in the series, in which the show found its own tone. In its "The Top 10 Moments from The Office", 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...
ranked Pam's drunken scene at Chili's as number five. Michael Sciannamea of TV Squad stated that "This season's first episode showed a marked improvement over the final episode from last season", and went on to praise the episode's expansion of supporting characters as one of the main reasons for the improvement. Seb Patrick of Noise to Signal, while comparing the American version of The Office favorably to its UK counterpart
The Office (UK TV series)
The Office is a British sitcom television series that was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 9 July 2001. Created, written, and directed by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the programme is about the day-to-day lives of office employees in the Slough branch of the fictitious...
, writes that the series "could be finding its feet again over the course of its opening couple of episodes." It was later named the second best episode of the series after "Casino Night", according to an episode poll by OfficeTally.
External links
- "The Dundies" at NBC.com