♪ ♪
-LINDA: Dumb overstuffed closet... -Hello.
I'm fancy dad shoe hands.
♪ Doo, doo-doo, doo-doo, doo-doo. ♪
That's how Dad should wear them.
Oh. All of you... are in here.
Uh, I hope you don't mind,
I'm gonna get dressed now,
and there's gonna be nudity.
Yeah, we've seen that movie.
It doesn't scare us anymore.
(grunting)
Uh, Lin, w-what are you doing?
I'm cleaning out our closet, Bob.
I tried to get a blanket from the top shelf
and all this fell on me.
It was like Flashdance,
but instead of water splashing down,
it was all our junk.
There's too much stuff in here.
We got to get rid of some of it.
Like this. What is this?
It's a humidifier.
Oh, right. We got this
and then it got really, really moist in here
and we got mold.
Add it to the list of ways we've gotten mold.
(grunts) Okay, and then there's this thing.
LOUISE: What's that?
The world's first R2-D2?
Oh. No, that's my Grandma Alice's radio.
Your Grandma Alice's unbelievably heavy radio.
-What, does this thing have bricks in it? -Possibly?
I-I think people used to like things that were heavy.
I remember that radio. Sort of. Hi.
Bob, I know this is your grandma's,
but maybe it's time to say goodbye?
I mean, didn't the guy at the repair shop
say it was totally unfixable?
-Like Dad's posture. -Mm.
But Lin, we can't get rid of the radio.
It-It's a family heirloom.
This is an heirloom?
You guys couldn't have handed us down,
like, a bunch of fancy gold forks or something?
Well, does it at least play MP3s?
-BOB: Uh... no. -GENE: Hmph.
When it worked, it had AM and FM,
and, uh, this one had shortwave.
Which is really cool.
You can listen to broadcasts from all over the world.
-If it worked it could do that. -Yes.
But it doesn't, 'cause it's broken.
Right. You know the story behind this radio, right?
I-I know I've told it to you.
I remember that there was a story
and the radio was in it?
I kind of remember it.
It's about your grandmother helping a soldier
with a badly burned face?
No, uh, I-I think that's The English Patient.
I remember the story about great-grandma.
There was something about a spy, right?
Wait, we have a family story with a spy in it?
Why don't I know this?
I guess it's been a while since I've told it.
You might've been pretty little.
Do you guys want me to tell it again?
-Yeah. -Yes. -No, I don't want to hear
about our family spy story.
Yes, tell it again!
I mean, we were cleaning the closet, but go ahead.
Okay, so, it was the summer in 1941 during World War II...
When English patients were losing their faces
all over the place.
Um, sure. Anyway...
My grandmother Alice
lived in Red Point, Brooklyn with her mother,
my great-grandmother Gertie.
There was a shipyard there
where they made submarines for the Navy.
Alice was a new mom to my mom, Lily,
-who was a baby at the time. -(Lily crying)
LINDA: Aw. Baby mama.
BOB: And this is while Alice's husband,
my grandpa Billy, was overseas.
Men. Am I right?
I mean, he was a soldier. Fighting in the war.
I guess that's a decent excuse.
-BOB: Lily was about six months old... -(shushing)
...and she was waking up a lot during the night--
LINDA: Oof, I remember those days.
I'm still mad at you kids about that.
Okay, baby, okay, all right.
(shushing)
BOB: And once Lily got going,
nothing really calmed her down,
except for the static on the radio.
This very specific static.
My grandmother basically invented
the first white noise machine.
-GENE: So we're rich. -BOB: Uh, no.
Ah, dang it. Where is it?
The baby's crying. A lot.
Yes. Thanks, Ma, that's helpful.
Hey, I would love it if we could leave the radio
on the shortwave static that Lily likes? Please?
Sure, but the problem is that I like to listen to music
and people talking during the day
and my programs aren't on the crying baby static channel.
Well, I'd move the radio into her room,
but who can move this thing? You know?
Somebody moved it.
They didn't build the building around it.
(pigeons fluttering)
Oop. Lily's got the pigeons going again.
BOB: Their apartment was on the top floor of the building
and my grandfather Billy kept a pigeon coop on the roof.
Alice and Gertie were taking care of it while he was away.
GENE: Sounds like a recipe for pigeon poop roof soup.
I'm gonna close the window.
We don't get to sleep, but the rest of the neighborhood
shouldn't have to suffer.
Uh, no. Ma, no, it's boiling in here.
Uh, I don't want to accidentally cook the baby.
I think it's frowned upon.
-(soft static) -There it is.
-Okay, okay, okay... -(Lily quiets)
Oh, thank God.
All right, I'm going back to bed.
Good night, you little screamy mimi.
Good night. Good night, good night.
Hey, try listening to this station during the day.
-(fussing quietly) -You might like it.
Okay, eyes are starting to close.
♪ Go to sleep ♪
Um...
♪ There's the guy that... ♪
♪ Like, I think his name is Rolo? ♪
♪ I never say it 'cause I'm not confident ♪
♪ That it's Rolo ♪
♪ Why is he taking the trash out so late at night? ♪
♪ Maybe it smells ♪
♪ And there's my neighbor Mr. Miller ♪
♪ Just leaving food for the stray cats ♪
♪ And probably stray raccoons ♪
♪ I guess that all raccoons are technically stray... ♪
LINDA: Aw. Old-timey raccoons.
More about them? No, no, never mind, keep going.
♪ And there's my other neighbor Peter ♪
♪ Coming home from the shipyard ♪
♪ Working kind of late there, Peter ♪
♪ Second shift, probably ♪
♪ I'm running out of stuff to sing. ♪
Oh, you're asleep. Thank God.
BOB: But a few hours later, Lily woke up again.
-(crying) -LOUISE: I feel like this story
is, like, 80% crying baby
and not enough percent spy.
BOB: Shh. I'm getting to that.
Oh, sweetie. It is 4:30 in the morning.
You should really try sleeping.
It's so great. Everybody's talking about it.
Okay, here you go.
-(static hissing softly) -Here's your static.
(man speaking German on radio)
Huh?
BOB: All of a sudden,
the static stopped
and Alice heard someone speaking German.
LOUISE: Yes. Spy.
...Schofield boat company.
(gasps)
BOB: Alice recognized
the name of the shipyard,
which was right at the end of her street.
-(crying) -Oh, no, no, no. No, no.
BOB: And then, because the static had stopped,
Lily started to cry again.
Okay, it's okay. (shushing)
-(Lily crying) -(crying echoes through radio)
(gasps)
BOB: But then something really strange happened:
Alice heard Lily's cry through the radio.
-(pigeons fluttering) -And then the pigeons on the roof got riled up
because of Lily's crying.
And then Alice heard the pigeons on the radio.
Which could only mean one thing.
Pigeons... don't like babies?
No. Or... maybe.
It meant that the radio transmission
was coming from the roof of Alice's building.
Right above her head.
Oh, my God.
-A German spy is on my roof. -LOUISE: Ha-ha!
GENE: Der Kommissar's in town. Uh-oh.
A spy on the roof. That's so much worse
than when we had that squirrel in the attic.
-We named him Flowers. -Ugh, I'm so glad we never heard
a German spy when we were up at night with you kids
when you were babies.
The only thing I heard were your dad's farts.
-And yours. -Baby farts.
Dad. Story. Keep telling. Spy stuff. Go.
Right. So, Alice, who was very, very brave--
or so sleep-deprived that she forgot what danger was--
decided to put Lily in her crib after she fell back asleep
and go up to the roof to investigate.
Okay, sweetie, I'll be right back.
Momma's gonna go see
if-if there's a German spy on the roof.
Not a big deal. Everything's fine.
BOB: Alice walked down the hallway
and up the stairs to the roof.
(creaks)
But the roof was empty, except for the pigeons.
Uh, did you guys, uh, see him?
What'd he look like? Ugh.
I probably should've put on shoes.
Sorry, no offense.
BOB: But then something caught Alice's eye.
There was a little bit of a shoe print
in the pigeon poop right near the coop.
-(gasps) -LINDA: Ooh, a poop print.
TINA: A poop clue.
GENE: I've left those before.
BOB: Alice went back downstairs,
wondering which one of her neighbors could be the spy.
-GENE: Mort! -BOB: Gene, Mort's our neighbor and he's not a spy.
GENE: That's what he wants you to think.
BOB: Okay. On her way back to her apartment,
-(gasps) -...she ran into her neighbor Peter
who works at the shipyard.
And he seemed kind of nervous.
Uh, Alice. Uh, so sorry to startle you.
What, were you... up on the roof?
Uh, yeah? Were you... up on the roof?
What? N-No.
(strained laughter) I'm joking.
Are you, um, heading to work? It's so early.
Yeah, I'm doing a double shift today.
I'm working as much as I can these days.
That's-that's good.
Good to make ships.
We need 'em, 'cause of the war.
Uh, yup.
Okay, well, I'd better go.
-Uh, have a good day. -You, too.
Uh, are you looking at my feet?
Uh, my... back just went out.
(groaning)
Oh. Should I, uh--
-Oh, my God, it's better. Silly back. -Oh.
Anyway, good luck with making boats.
BOB: Alice went back to the apartment
and tried to get some sleep
before morning, but she couldn't.
At breakfast, she told Gertie everything.
So, you heard a man speaking German
on the channel that only plays static?
Yes, and he mentioned the shipyard.
Uh-huh. And you saw a footprint in some bird poop?
Yep. Up on the roof.
And you're sure you weren't dreaming this?
Ma, this happened.
I am 89% sure.
Alice, honey, look at you. You're exhausted.
You poured coffee in your oatmeal
and you've been stirring it for the last five minutes.
What? Why didn't you tell me?
I thought you were being more efficient
about breakfast or something.
Oh, my God.
Listen, I'm gonna go to the store
and pick up some groceries.
How about I bring Lily with me?
You can stay here. Take a little nap.
We won't gossip about you at all.
Or at least I won't.
Okay. Fine. I'll go lay down.
And we can talk about the spy in our building later.
Mm-hmm.
♪ Your mommy's doing fine ♪
♪ Yes, she is. ♪
I am doing fine
and Lily's on my side, Ma. She heard it, too.
BOB: After a nap, Alice got the laundry off the line
and went into the living room to fold it.
LOUISE: Ugh, don't fold laundry, catch the spy.
Well, I guess even if there's a spy,
you still got to fold laundry.
I think the next James Bond movie is about that?
Anyway...
Alice looked out the window
and saw Peter coming home from work.
Which was strange, because she'd never seen him come home
in the middle of the day. And then another guy
who Alice didn't recognize came up to Peter.
They shook hands, and the guy started to hand Peter
what looked like a small package.
-GENE: Small package Peter. -BOB: Gene.
Peter shook his head
and motioned for the guy to follow him.
They walked around the corner and disappeared.
LOUISE: A handoff!
(gasps) A handoff.
BOB: Alice-- again, very brave person--
ran downstairs to see if she could get a better look.
But when she got to the alley,
Peter was gone.
And so was the mystery man.
LINDA: Oh, my.
-GERTIE: Nice bathrobe, lady. -Hmm?
Oh, hi, Ma.
Mr. Miller. Hello.
Hi, Alice.
I saw Mr. Miller at the store
and we walked back together.
He was just telling me about
the flowers he planted out front.
Right. Those are pretty, the flowers.
And, uh, what kind... would they be?
Delphiniums. They match your mother's eyes.
Oh, well, more like my varicose veins.
Well, you do have the prettiest varicose veins of anyone I know.
Mmm, yeah, well, I bet yours
aren't too shabby either, mister.
Gertie was gettin' flirty.
So, dear, what are you doing out here,
in your bathrobe?
Not that Lily's embarrassed of you at all.
Oh. I just saw our neighbor Peter.
Another guy handed him something.
Is this about the spy stuff again?
Ma. Shush.
Ugh, my daughter thinks she heard
a German spy on our roof last night.
She eedsnay more eepslay.
You know, I thought I heard Fred Astaire
above my apartment, but I think it's just
that my neighbors must have extra loud shoes.
(laughs) Extra loud shoes. You're too much.
You should go up there and threaten to Ginger them
right in the Rodgers, if you know what I mean.
Huh. He's taking out his trash again already?
Good lord, Alice, are you keeping tabs on everyone?
You try to raise them to be not too creepy
and look what you get.
Okay, I'm gonna go... away from here, inside.
Uh, come on, Lily. Goodbye, Mr. Miller.
And also, Ma, I'm not creepy.
No one thinks that I'm creepy... at all.
Of course you're not, dear.
(soft static playing)
Alice, honey, should we turn off the static since Lily's awake?
Well, I'm keeping it on
in case another spy broadcast comes through.
And before you say anything,
I know you think I'm being silly,
-but to you I just say... Meh. -(coos)
Yeah, you think that's funny? Bluh, bluh. Mleh.
Okay, well, I'll leave you to it.
I'm going to Doris's apartment to play cards with the girls.
We started gambling.
I'm gonna take them for all they're worth.
-Sounds fun. -All right, I'll see you two later.
Good luck with your mom, Lily.
Come and get me if she gets too weird.
Bye, Ma.
Huh...
Peter, Peter, Peter,
what are you doing, Mr. Secret Handoff Man?
(gasps)
(panting)
Oh, my God. Oh, God.
Where'd he go? Where is he?
Well, that wasn't good, right?
No, that did not seem good.
-(knocking) -(gasps) Oh, God. Peter.
GENE: He can radio secrets to the Germans,
but he can't call before coming over? Rude Nazi.
Oh, I'm on pins and needles.
I know the story, sort of,
and I'm still on pins and needles.
-Me, too. -Does anyone want some popcorn?
Can someone make some popcorn?
No. No popcorn. Father. Continue. Please.
Okay, so Alice had just seen Peter
staring up at her from the sidewalk
and then there was a knock at the door.
Uh, who is it?
MR. MILLER: Hi, Alice, it's Mr. Miller.
Oh. Thank God.
Is your mother home? I had something I wanted to give her.
Coming. Heh.
Oh, how pretty.
I bought them at a flower shop.
I would've picked the ones I planted,
but then... there'd be no flowers there.
Do you think she'll like them or will she think
this is corny and start avoiding me?
I think she'll think it's the perfect amount of corny.
Uh, Mom's at her girlfriend's house, playing cards.
I think they're gambling?
You should watch out for her, she's trouble.
-Oh, my. -Come on in.
I'll put these in some water.
Do you want something to drink? Do you want some tea?
Okay. Can I give you a hand?
Or can I hold the baby for you?
I raised four kids and six grandkids
and I hardly ever dropped them.
Yeah, okay. Sure. Thank you.
-(babbling) -(cooing)
Uh, somebody's face is leaking.
Oh, heh. She only drools on people she likes.
-(laughs) -Oh, then I'm flattered.
Hey, Mr. Miller, do you know Peter from down the hall?
Have you ever seen him act... funny?
What, like a clown?
No. Not quite like a clown...
But more like cagey?
Why? Do you think he's a spy?
Eh... Maybe?
Well, one time I saw him picking his nose
and then he pretended he was just scratching it,
but we both know what I saw.
Oh. I'll get that. (gasps)
And that's when Alice saw it.
She knew immediately what that white smear was.
-LOUISE: Shoe poop. -TINA: Shoop.
-Uh... -What's that, hon?
Uh, I got surprised by the, uh, the kettle.
Why do they make them so loud? I'm right here.
You know? You don't got to, like,
scream and whistle so loud.
Well, no. You made a sound
and I said, "What's that, hon?"
and then the kettle started whistling.
So you must've made a sound for some other reason.
Oh. You're right. Heh. Gosh.
It was so long ago, I don't even remember.
Here, uh, l-let me, uh, let me take, uh, Lily back.
I, uh, don't want her spitting up on you. Again.
Uh, I-I can just take her back.
LINDA: Oh, good, yes, take the baby back.
GENE: You want that baby back baby back baby back.
-LOUISE: Gene. -GENE: Sorry.
♪ ♪
(awkward chuckle)
You're gonna want to let that steep.
Unless you like just hot water with a bag in it. (chuckles)
BOB: At this point, there is no doubt in Alice's mind
that Mr. Miller is the German spy
she heard over the radio.
LOUISE: And he knows that she knows?
BOB: Well, she's not sure if he knows she knows.
TINA: She knows what she knows,
but she doesn't know what he knows she knows.
BOB: Uh, yeah. Right.
GENE: And she definitely shouldn't let her mom date him.
Swipe left, Gertie.
Aren't you going to sit?
Oh, yes. (strained laughter) Of course.
(rattling)
Are you... okay?
Uh, yeah, uh-huh.
Oh. Oof, ugh, I got to change Lily's diaper.
Really? I don't smell anything.
Oh, yeah. Sometimes she's sneaky with 'em.
But there's definitely something there.
Um, I'll be right back.
I'm gonna-- I'm gonna change her.
(line ringing)
OPERATOR: Operator. How may I direct your call?
-The police. I need the police. -One moment please.
-(line ringing) -OFFICER: Police department.
Yes, hi, I have a German spy in my kitchen.
A... a what? Can you speak up? It's hard to hear you.
Well, I can't talk that loudly
because of the German spy that's in my kitchen, right now.
All right. Uh, why do you think this person is a spy?
'Cause of the pigeon poop on his shoes.
-Okay... -It's from the roof.
Where the pigeons are. That's where he sends
his messages in the middle of the night.
Sure. And what does he say in these messages?
I don't know, I don't speak German.
-(babbling) -Well, don't get testy, young lady.
Oh, do I hear a baby?
Yes. Yes, there's a baby.
That's nice. You must be pretty sleepy most of the time, right?
Maybe you got mixed up about this whole spy thing?
What? No. There is a spy in my apartment, okay?
There you go getting testy again.
Ma'am, I got to take a real call.
You take care now.
No, no, no, no, no. Okay, great.
Thank you, bye.
Hi.
Were you calling somebody?
I... was calling... someplace...
because we ran out of baby powder.
So I called my...
mother at her friend's house
to pick some up on her way home.
Isn't that baby powder?
This? What was that-- Oh, that one?
That baby powder is too powdery.
So, yup.
-Oops. -(gasps)
That's broken.
GENE: And that's the problem with landlines.
Ugh, poor Alice. Stuck in a room
with a baby and a spy?
She must've have been terrified.
You know what I would do if I was cornered by a spy?
-What? -Diarrhea.
Out of fear or as a weapon?
-Both. -Good idea.
So, anyway, Mr. Miller had just ripped
the phone cord out of the wall
and Alice had to think fast.
I just called the police. They're on their way.
It didn't sound like they're on their way.
Uh... You know what?
I think there's been a misunderstanding.
(nervous chuckle) I mean, you're Mr. Miller.
My nice, old neighbor.
And that is-- That's all I know.
I'm not that old.
I know, you're not elderly,
but compared to...
You know... Never mind.
Alice, I like you.
You're a nice lady.
And you've got little Lily, but...
No. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, please.
I'm-- I'm a tired mom.
You know, people think I'm delusional.
My own mother doesn't believe anything I say.
BOB: Alice looked around for a weapon,
but all she had were nipples and rectal thermometers.
GENE: Nipple him! Then take his bottom's temperature.
LOUISE: Gene, shh.
I'm sorry, Alice.
Don't do anything rash, Mr. Miller. Think of Lily.
Your-your mother will take care of Lily.
Oh, no, no, no, no, no,
she's a better grandmother than a mother.
You got to trust me on this.
(breathing heavily)
GERTIE: I'm back.
Just then, Gertie came back home.
I forgot my wallet.
I walked all the way to Doris's and she said,
"I hope you brought your money."
And I said, "Ah, I'll be right back."
Oh, Mr. Miller.
Oh, Gertie. Oh, dear.
Are you okay? You look... sweaty.
Ma, he's the spy! He's the spy!
Oh, Alice.
Oh, Alice!
BOB: Alice saw her chance. She used her free arm
and all her strength
to tip the radio over onto Mr. Miller's foot.
-(grunting) -(screaming)
Run!
-(screaming) -(grunting)
LOUISE: Yeah! Suck it, spy!
(groaning)
Alice and Gertie got away, got help,
and called the police who tracked down
and arrested Mr. Miller,
whose real name was something in German that I can't remember.
-Kraftwerk. -(chuckles) No.
And she broke up a Nazi spy ring.
They found the transmitter, they got Mr. Miller,
and they got other spies eventually.
It was in the newspaper.
GENE: Online newspapers or the other kind?
BOB: The other kind.
And it was my grandmother, your great-grandmother.
Okay, we're never getting rid of this radio.
And I'm not sure I want to share it
with Gene and Tina when I inherit it.
Mom, Dad, I'm the oldest. I think you know what to do.
I'm gonna run away with it, marry it, and start a family.
Wait, Dad, what happened with Peter from the shipyard?
What was the deal with the handoff and all that?
Oh. Yeah. Turns out, Peter was planning
to propose to his girlfriend. And his brother
was a jeweler. The handoff Alice saw
was his brother giving him the ring.
And his girlfriend's building was on the same block,
so he didn't want her to see them and spoil the surprise.
TINA: Aw.
And that other neighbor guy
just had a lot of trash
that he had to take out all the time?
H-He turned out to be a serial killer.
-Really? -No, uh, I'm kidding.
He just had a lot of garbage.
And baggage. I'm guessing.
Oh, Bob, I forgot how amazing your grandma was.
I'm sorry I wanted you to get rid of the radio.
You know I forget things.
Most of my brain is Dynasty trivia.
Yeah, she was amazing. And holding on to the radio
helps keep the story alive, you know?
Well, I can't wait until I get to take down a Nazi spy.
I'm assuming everyone in our family will get that chance.
-I'll take down a Nazi spy. -I'll take down Mort.
Aw, my courageous cutie pies. You, too, Bobby.
I mean, not like Alice.
Hey, you could hold your own, mister.
You got some Alice in there. Trust me.
-I know you. Inside and out. -TMI.
-Also, Dad, maybe don't make this about you? -But I... Yup.
Okay, so we're keeping the radio.
That's happening.
But what about all this other stuff?
What's this, a travel pillow?
We don't need this. We don't travel.
-Gimme that. -Okay...
Oh, what about these slippers that look like duck feet?
We can get rid of these, right?
I gave those to you for your birthday last year.
You said you loved them.
Right. And I do.
Uh, should we just...
put everything back in the closet?
-BOB: Yeah. -GENE: Yeah!
♪ I'd sit alone and watch your light ♪
♪ My only friend through teenage nights ♪
♪ And everything I had to know ♪
♪ I heard it on my radio ♪
♪ Radio ♪
♪ All we hear is radio ga ga ♪
♪ Radio goo goo ♪
♪ Radio ga ga ♪
♪ All we hear is radio ga ga ♪
♪ Radio blah blah ♪
♪ ♪
♪ So don't become some background noise ♪
♪ A backdrop for the girls and boys ♪
♪ Who just don't know, or just don't care ♪
♪ And just complain when you're not there ♪
♪ All we hear is radio ga ga ♪
♪ Radio goo goo ♪
♪ Radio ga ga ♪
♪ All we hear is radio ga ga ♪
♪ Radio blah blah ♪
♪ Radio, what's new? ♪
♪ ♪
LOUISE: Yeah! Suck it, spy!
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