Thirtysomething (TV Series)

Thirtysomething (1987)

Ken Olin: Michael Steadman

Quotes 

• Hope Murdoch Steadman : [watching their baby sleep]  She's so pretty.

  Michael Steadman : Yeah, I know. What if she grows up ugly?

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : I think about that, too.

  Michael Steadman : What if she grows up poor?

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : Will you stop worrying?

  Michael Steadman : Oh, listen, you don't know what I did today. Start packing the bags. We're closing in the morning. I blew off the Teller account.

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : Well, good. Teller's a yutz.

  Michael Steadman : Yeah.

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : I can always go back to work.

  Michael Steadman : No, no, no. You're not gonna go back to work until you want to go back to work. I make plenty of money when I'm not going bankrupt.

• Michael Steadman : Let's go backpacking.

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : Michael.

  Michael Steadman : Come on. We're allowed to have a life, aren't we? What's wrong with spending a few nights away from your kid after seven months?

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : What am I supposed to do, interview babysitters? How do you interview babysitters? "Good morning. Are you a genius? Are you totally wonderful and kind? And have there been any child molesters in your family for the last 12 generations?"

  Michael Steadman : Seems to hit the main points.

• Michael Steadman : Babysitters?

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : Can we talk about it later?

  Michael Steadman : That good.

  Hope Murdoch Steadman : We are never gonna have a babysitter. We are never going to leave this house. We're never gonna have a life until she's 30 and she can baby-sit for us.

• Michael Steadman : [on the phone with a client]  That would never work. Because it's sleazy, Mr. Teller. Hasn't that occurred to you?

  [Elliot enters as he talks and tries to get his attention] 

  Michael Steadman : No, no, no, no. Their campaign isn't sleazy. I love their campaign. I wish I had done their campaign, but I didn't do their campaign. Therefore, if I steal their campaign, it's sleazy. It doesn't matter what their sales were afterwards. Am I speaking English here? Plagiarism, theft, taking things that aren't yours? Well, you know something? You're right. And one of the privileges of being a bunch of amateurs is we still have the illusion of doing our own work and having a little integrity.

  [mortified, Elliot covers his ears and tries to pretend he's not hearing him] 

  Michael Steadman : Which I now see any further association with your business or, in fact, you personally, would make me sick to my stomach and throw up!

  [hanging up, he pretends to hang himself with his tie] 

  Elliot Weston : [to make a point, he picks up the receiver]  Mr. Teller? Hi. Mike's partner, Elliot. Listen. Mike's had an unfortunate accident, and he's dead. And I just want to tell you how much I like the idea of stealing a Clio Award-winning campaign and especially how much I like the idea of $200,000.

  [hanging up] 

  Elliot Weston : Because without that $200,000, we're going out of business, and that's what my partner forgot, and that's why he's dead.