Never letting any opportunity to bash President Trump go to waste, the November 15 episode of CBS’s Murphy Brown even worked a line into a conversation with a patient coming out of a coma. Of course, the woman is horrified to find out that Donald Trump is now president.
In the episode titled "The Coma and the Oxford Comma," Murphy Brown (Candice Bergen) is desperate to get an interview with a patient named Holly Mackin Lynne (Brooke Shields) as she emerges from a 10-year coma. Murphy covered the story a decade ago when Holly’s husband stood trial for attempted murder, accused of pushing her down a staircase to potentially kill her rather than give her half of his software empire in a divorce.
Corky Sherwood (Faith Ford) is an old friend of Holly, and they were in beauty pageants together back in the day. Corky even introduced Holly to her husband, so she's able to get them in to see her.
So, while visiting Holly in the hospital, Murphy updates her on what she missed in the last 10 years. Holly asks to go back into a coma when she's told that Donald Trump is now President of the United States. She refers to him as the “handsy guy who liked walking through our pageant dressing room.”
Murphy: Well, here’s a recap. If you owned Lehman Brothers stock or loved myspace, you won't be happy. If you loved "Will & Grace" and "Magnum, P.I.," you will be. And remember Donald Trump?
Corky: Murphy! No!
Holly: The handsy guy who liked walking through our pageant dressing room pretending to check the thermostat?
Murphy: That's the one. He's president.
Holly: Of what?
Murphy: The United States.
Corky: Why don't you just hit her over the head with a bedpan?
Holly: I want to go back in the coma.
Corky: Way to go, Murphy. Thank God you didn't tell her that Miss America got rid of the swimsuit competition.
Holly: Nooo.
Though her husband was acquitted of attempted murder, Holly eventually remembers what really happened that night. She is live on-air with Corky when she tells America that it was her husband who pushed her down the stairs. And, of course, she hires Gloria Allred as her lawyer.
Poor Corky is devastated. She loves a fairy tale and considered Holly’s marriage like one. She has a hard time dealing with the truth and does some Vodka shots at Phil’s after the show to ease the pain of reality. Phyllis, the owner of Phil’s, tells her if she doesn’t slow down with the booze, she’ll have to move her from the barstool to the back corner booth – “the Kavanaugh booth.” Yep. Cheap shot at Justice Kavanaugh.
It’s no wonder why the ratings of this show aren’t very strong. What does CBS expect? It’s crazy to think a show can insult half of the country’s population over and over again each week without suffering in the ratings. Perhaps it will be a one season reboot. We can only hope.
