♪
(snoring)
(sniffing)
Marge is making chili? (sniffs)
Con carne? (gasps)
Dinner for breakfast.
She finally looked at the suggestion box!
Aw. Aw. Aw!
Marge, where's the smells I smelled?
This chili was for poor Ned,
after he broke his arm falling off our roof
when he went up there to get your baseball hat.
Do you know how much I paid for that hat?
(groans) Ned can't cook for a few weeks,
so I've started a meal train for him.
"Meal train"?
-(screaming) -(chewing loudly)
Homer! A meal train is when family and friends
set up a schedule to bring homemade dishes
to people in need.
Hmm. Coming up with a fake injury
to get obscene amounts of free food, you say?
No, I don't say!
-Hmm. Hmm. -And stop stroking your chin like that.
(grunting)
Poor Barney, so sorry to hear about your treadmill injury.
Yeah, it's my fault for being so addicted to cardio.
Well, my chicken enchiladas,
which aren't from the freezer aisle,
should ease your suffering as only homemade can.
Bless you, ladies.
Let the healing begin.
(chewing loudly)
Remember, Moe, tomorrow you've got
"foot shredded in garbage disposal."
Oh, yeah, I'm gonna be swimming in sympathy meatballs.
This scam is genius.
Yeah, people like doing charity,
but they love posting about it.
-(Homer chuckles) -BARNEY: We are wretched.
Uh, guys, this has been fun,
but, uh, bowling season starts in a week.
I didn't think this was physically possible,
but we're not even in bowling shape.
I'm jumping off this meal train.
(mouth full): You will be missed.
(groans)
(grunting)
Mm-hmm.
♪
(laughs) Haven't needed a belt in a while.
Well, big old mystery buckle, it's been a long time.
Yeah!
(cheering faintly)
Ah...
♪
(spray can hissing)
(coughs) Look, I'm just here
for my friend's kid's birthday party, okay?
And you're telling me that I have to put on
other people's funky shoes?
CARL: Oh, I wouldn't worry about that.
That spray he uses-- super toxic.
Some might say in-toxic-ating. (laughs)
So, Carl, you're good with wearing pre-stank rental shoes?
Oh, no, I own these babies.
Also, my work shoes, my Crocs, orthotic inserts,
pretty much all my footwear, own 'em all, free and clear.
Ooh, fancy.
You know, you're kind of sweet,
in a super chatty, shoe-splainy kind of way.
I'm Naima.
Whoa, now, that is some serious belly bling.
Oh, this? I needed something to hold up my pants,
so I immediately thought: belt.
Thank you for walking me through that.
So, Carl, maybe I'll see you around.
W-Wait!
Give me a chance to show you
why bowling is America's slowest-dying indoor sport.
I'll even get Franco here to unbox a new pair of Lane Janes.
Well, it's a good thing you are cuter than these shoes.
Come on, let me show you my world.
♪ I, I, I... ♪
♪ I'm scared to death that she might be it ♪
♪ That the love is real, that the shoe might fit ♪
♪ She might just be my everything ♪
♪ And beyond ♪
♪ Beyond ♪
♪ Space and time in the afterlife ♪
♪ Will she have my kids, will she be my wife? ♪
♪ She might just be my everything ♪
♪ And beyond. ♪
Oh.
(both giggle)
Could I see you again?
Um, how about Friday?
Ooh, we could have dinner at this place I know,
'cause I own it--
The SoulHouse.
My nephew just made this commercial.
♪ Soul House ♪
♪ Our grits are cheesy ♪
♪ And our gumbo's got okra ♪
♪ You'll get towed if you park at Springfield Yoga. ♪
There's a 14-minute version on his Soundcloud.
It's really explicit.
Then I'll meet you at SoulHouse.
Where's it at?
It's on our side of town.
Between the Jazz Hole and the First Springfield AME Church.
(laughs): Yeah, of course.
Our side. I mean, where else would it be?
Uh, guys, I just met the one.
The one person here willing to go out on a date with me.
-(kissing noises) -(overlapping chatter) -Wow, way to go.
(singsongy): Someone's not gonna die alone.
So that's why you abandoned us
and made us lose to the worst team in the league.
Good game.
Bitches.
♪ SoulHouse. ♪
Wow, that is the most sexually graphic song
about collard greens I've ever heard.
Yeah, Naima's really something.
Business degree from Howard University,
sings in a gospel choir,
and she's in a Salt-N-Pepa cover band
called "Pepa-N-Pepa." Oh, man.
What if she doesn't think I'm, you know, "Pepa" enough?
Oh, I get it, like Peppa Pig.
Never mind.
How about a haircut to boost your confidence?
I got the clippers set to "Carl."
(sighs) Nope.
I think this time I'm gonna switch it up a bit.
If I'm going to make the right impression,
I need to go somewhere I've never gone before:
our side of town.
So, which one of these is you?
I have no idea.
Got it. "The Identity Crisis," number seven.
Thank you, sir. High-top fade.
Tight on the sides. Line it up.
Bartholomew, my man.
You are a regular here?
No one gets it right like Clarence.
Wow, look at all these great bald guy options.
I think my head could rock the Michael Jordan on the top,
but around the sides... got to be the Ving Rhames.
I can't decide.
Which haircut would this beautiful woman want to kiss?
(overlapping ooh's)
You think I can pull off "The Denzel?"
What you need to pull off is
that country junkyard hubcap holding up your Dockers.
(laughter)
Yeah, why don't you put that buckle
back on that manhole you stole it from?
(uproarious laughter)
(joining in weakly)
Who knew there was so much ribbing at a Black barbershop?
(humming)
Hmm?
(groans)
Hmm...
What about this old-school Kangol?
Dare I Samuel Jackson my new Denzel?
What's my look? I don't know. I don't know!
Carl, look, you can tell me.
Is there something going on that you need to talk about?
(scoffs) No.
Oh, thank God!
But if I was going through
a deep questioning of my inner self,
do you think I could fix it with different clothes?
Oh, for sure.
I mean, I was a lost soul
before I found this white shirt and blue pants.
Let's find the outfit that'll make Naima look at me
the way that Marge looks at you.
Worried?
Blindly in love.
♪ You're so chic ♪
♪ Oh, I love the way you do it ♪
♪ You're flossy ♪
♪ Like the way you move ♪
♪ You're so chic ♪
♪ Just take half a look at you... ♪
(record scratch)
Who said you could do
a dressing room montage in my store?
If you're not gonna buy anything,
then get your yacht-rock-listening corny asses
back to Starbucks.
Oh, come on, you got to help my friend.
He needs a new look by tonight.
Huh. What's a square like you doing with an oval like that?
(sighs) I get it, the buckle's not cool.
Every time I wear it I get razzed.
Savagely razzed.
Tell you what, you trade me that buckle,
I'll take all this wrong and make it right.
CARL: Naima's worth it.
Now, can you make me look real? You know, authentic.
Yeah, I got the perfect outfit.
♪ She shines me up like gold on my arm ♪
♪ I want to take it slow ♪
♪ But it's so hard ♪
♪ I love to see her face ♪
♪ In daylight ♪
♪ It's more than just our bodies at night... ♪
Naima, this place is amazing!
-When did you open? -Um, 75 years ago.
My great-grandparents started out selling gumbo off of a cart.
They gave free samples out to the kids,
you know, just poured it right into their cupped hands.
That cart, it became my favorite table in the house.
Wow, that's a lot of history,
and, uh, ancestors, and, uh...
flavor.
So, tell me about you.
You know, like, what are you into besides bowling?
CARL: Don't talk about Moe's. Don't talk about Moe's.
-Lenny! -Who's Lenny?
Ah, just my friend from Moe's.
Oh, that's cool.
I see you're into the Black Panthers.
Oh, yeah. Totally. Wakanda Forever.
No, Huey P. Newton, the guy that's on your shirt.
Oh, right. Him.
My man, Old Huey P.
1942 to 1989. Early life and education...
(chuckles) Are you googling him under the table?
No, I was, uh, just looking at this dope kale.
Those are collard greens.
Right. I love all the urban veggies.
Urban veggies?
Okay. You embarrassing yourself right now.
Look, I'm sorry.
I'm new to all this.
New to being Black?
Yes! I mean, no.
I mean, I'm just trying to be more convincing at it.
I got the Denzel, I'm wearing second-hand leather underwear,
and I'm doused in Michael Jordan cologne
and Michael B. Jordan aftershave.
Ooh, wow. Okay, there's a lot to unpack there.
Look, I liked the guy that I met at the bowling alley,
and I wanted to get to know him better,
but I don't see how that's gonna happen
'cause you don't know you.
So take my advice-- it's time to figure that out.
I'll have them wrap up your oxtails to go.
I was eating what?
(country music playing)
(sighs)
Back early, eh? You know what they say,
"The shorter the date, the more it went great."
No! It was terrible.
All she wanted to know about was the real me.
You mean self-reflection? Who does that?
Yeah, whoa, whoa, whoa, trust the sign.
Mm-hmm.
I think I know what she was getting at, but...
See, it's got to do with...
Nah, never mind.
You guys wouldn't understand.
Sure we would. We're your best friends.
We pee in the same trough together.
We've melted so much ice.
Just say what you need to say, eh? We got this.
I'm confused about my racial identity!
(overlapping nervous mumbling)
(slurping nervously)
Hey, I know avoidance slurps when I hear 'em.
(slurping)
No, we're perfectly comfortable talking about...
(whispers): race.
I mean, I can talk about
(whispers): race...
(normal volume): ...all day.
Oh, me, personally,
I don't even see... (whispers): color.
Look, being adopted and raised by white folks from Iceland,
I've always felt like an outsider--
not Icelandic enough, not Black enough.
I mean, hey, sure, I'm barfly enough,
but that's not enough.
Hey, barflies have a rich and storied-- (belches)
I don't know anything about my roots!
That stupid old rodeo belt buckle was the only thing
I ever got from my birth parents.
-(sighs) -The buckle?
But you gave that away.
I know! It-it was a panic swap!
I thought I could get rid of this sucky feeling of emptiness,
but now it's worse than ever.
If I'm ever going to be with someone as great as Naima,
then I need to find out who I am.
And for the first time in my life,
the answer isn't in this bar.
(slurping nervously)
(slurping continues)
-(Barney belches) -(slurping continues)
Carl's never been away from Moe's this long.
He missed Public Domain Karaoke Night.
How could I sing "Toot, Toot, Tootsie, Goodbye!"
without my duet partner?
Well, Carl did open up to you about some big issues.
Just his identity.
My book club book says it's important to look at
the discomfort you felt as an opportunity
to "explore your unacknowledged privilege."
Oh, buzz words.
Have you even called him?
What am I supposed to say?
Let's start with what you're not supposed to say.
-"My feelings matter, too." -Said that.
-"Slavery was a long time ago." -Thought that.
-"But I love Eddie Murphy." -Lenny tweeted that.
I just want things to be normal again.
Oh, that's on the list.
Doesn't the book have any suggestions
for what I should do?
Hmm. Not to gesture, not to quote,
not to laugh too hard at, not to think, not to wear,
not to wear on Halloween, not to sing along to in the car.
Look, Homer. I know you.
You're never going to say the right thing,
but that doesn't mean you should stop trying.
Lenny, are you sure you're okay
with selling your vintage suspenders
to buy back Carl's buckle?
Well, the doctor says I should take a break
because of the shoulder grooves and nipple abrasions.
You guys had the same idea as me.
You're the best friends a guy with no sense of self can have!
We're gonna get that buckle back.
I already sold that buckle.
Aw. Who bought it?
I don't know. Some white guy who talks funny.
Oh, that could be any of the weirdos in this town.
-Crinkle me kilt! -Avast!
Zounds, Horatio.
Damn, this place gentrified fast.
Look, I don't know who bought your buckle.
All I know is I call him the Rich Texan
on account of him being a rich Texan.
I love buckles. Yeehaw!
-(bullet ricocheting) -(exclaiming)
While that's doing its thing, let's talk.
My buckle shows a cowboy wrestling a bull
and kind of... kissing it?
Oh, that one? Ain't no smooch.
He's biting its lip. Bulldogging.
I already flipped it.
Aw! You sold it?
To a pal of mine who's a real buckle-head.
He said it had a heapin' helpin'
of historical heritage.
Do you think the guy who bought it could help me find my roots?
Hmm. Well, it's a long shot.
Fellas, meet the host of Finding Your Roots,
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Dr. Gates, you're a national treasure.
Please, at best I'm a regional treasure.
That buckle is a stunning piece of American history.
What's your connection to it?
Well, all I know is that after my parents died,
it was in my bassinet when I was dropped off
at the orphanage.
Other than that, my heritage is a blank slate.
Solving this kind of life-defining, soul-affirming
historical riddle is the reason I created this show.
Tell my next guest he's bumped.
Ah, it's probably for the best.
ANNOUNCER: Finding Your Roots.
With Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
Carl, when you look at this buckle, what do you feel?
I just want to know... what gives?
Today, you'll hear the story that answers
that very question: "what gives?"
What got you started on this journey of discovery?
An amazing woman I met.
Hey, the most awkward guy I ever dated is on TV.
Ooh, come on, mention the restaurant.
I felt like such a fool
as I left with my takeout bag from SoulHouse.
-(cheers) -He said it! Ooh, he said it.
Let me introduce you to Ellis.
Ellis! I bet I'm related to him.
I wasn't supposed to say that yet, was I?
Just act surprised later.
Turn the page.
From this pre-Civil War document, we know that
your fourth great-grandfather was born into slavery
on a ranch in Texas.
On what would become the first Juneteenth in 1865,
Ellis got word that the Emancipation Proclamation
had freed the slaves
two years earlier.
Angry and determined,
he leapt onto the wildest stallion on the ranch
and held on for dear life.
Three days later, and two states over,
that stallion was broken.
But Ellis, who'd been born a slave,
was not only free,
now he was a cowboy.
Really? I come from cowboys?
DR. GATES: My friend, you come from a long line of cowboys,
right up to Wyatt, your father.
CARL: That's my dad.
And here he is at the Okmulgee Oklahoma Rodeo.
-(bull grunting) -(spectators cheering)
20 seconds! Unbelievable ride!
What are you gonna do with your grand prize buckle?
Use it to hold up my Wranglers. (chuckles)
But then I'm going to pass it on to my kin.
Folks don't always see us as cowboys,
but when my boy wears this blue-ribbon belly-badge,
he'll know bull riding's in his blood.
I finally know who I am.
I'm a Black cowboy.
Uh, that's great, Carl,
but does that mean you're qualified to be doing this?
(bull snorts)
Yeah, what the hell are you doing?
What I was born to do.
Get killed by a 2,000-pound super cow?
Guys, don't worry, I got the buckle.
Uh...
Doctor, can't you do something?
Sorry, I see this a lot.
Once, I had to pull Laurence Fishburne out of a jet cockpit
after he found out his great-uncle was
a Tuskegee Airman.
Naima, you came!
Yeah, I got your suicidal Evite.
(bull snorting)
Carl, don't do this.
You don't need to prove anything to me.
No, I need to prove it to myself.
Bull riding is in my blood.
(groans) That is not how blood works!
Now, get off of that monster before I come over there.
♪ Black ♪
♪ Cowboy ♪
♪ I am a Black, I am a Black cowboy. ♪
(spectators exclaim)
-MARGE: Oh, my God. -(spectators gasp)
Genealogy can be a wild ride.
(cheering)
(chuckles): I did it!
-I'm a cowboy! -That was crazy.
Carl, you held on for three whole seconds.
(whoops) Cowboy Carl!
-(laughs) -(bone cracks)
Uh, is it supposed to do that?
Don't worry, I'll fix that.
My great-great-grandfather was a doctor in the Civil War.
Get the hell out of here.
One in four cowboys who settled the Old West was Black.
(chuckles) Oh, and you know the Lone Ranger?
No, I'm a young person.
Well, he was based on a real guy, Lawman Bass Reeves.
Maybe it's that you took my advice and explored your past,
or maybe I just like a man who does what I tell him,
but I feel very close to you right now.
Me, too.
Oh, and thanks for the O-positive, by the way.
So, does this make me a cowboy, too?
That's not how blood works.
(laughs)
♪ I just try to be ♪
-♪ Exactly what you see ♪ -(Naima and Carl laugh)
♪ Today and every day ♪
♪ I'm just me. ♪
♪ I was just born to be ♪
♪ Exactly what you see ♪
♪ Nothing more or less ♪
♪ I'm not the worst or the best ♪
♪ I just try to be ♪
♪ Exactly what you see ♪
♪ Today and every day ♪
♪ I'm just me ♪
♪ Oh, I was just born to be ♪
♪ Exactly what you see ♪
♪ Today and every day ♪
♪ I'm just me. ♪
Captioning sponsored by 20th CENTURY FOX TELEVISION
and FOX BROADCASTING COMPANY
and TOYOTA.
Shh!
Captioned by Media Access Group at WGBH access.wgbh.org