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In You Can't Take it With You, an unkind dying billionaire has a machine designed to send his money and possessions to the other side, so that he'll have it after he dies. Unfortunately, the machine releases horrendous ghosts in exchange![2]

Cast[]

Egon Spengler

Peter Venkman

Ray Stantz

Winston Zeddemore

Mr. Tummel

Tummel's Employees

Unstable Ghosts

Possessed Elevators

Equipment[]

Containment Unit

Tummel's Matter Transporter

Tummel's Wheelchair

Ecto-1

Tummel's Cargo Loading Drone

P.K.E. Meter

Proton Pack

Particle Thrower

Trap

Portable Control Console

Ecto Shield

Tummel's Laser Defense System

Locations[]

Tummel's High-Rise

Firehouse

Plot[]

Late at night, a high rise building glowed ominously. Energy shot out and windows shattered. At the Firehouse, Peter snored away as Egon attempted to read a newspaper. Suddenly, an alarm from the basement sounded off. The Ghostbusters all woke up and rushed downstairs. Oddly, the Containment Unit was fine but the alarm signaled a non-corporeal rupture. Peter is tired and voted to go back to sleep. Egon, however, was very concerned. They had never experienced such an ecto surge and even the alarms that were shut off detected it.

Back at the high rise building, a giant pyramid is standing in a vast laboratory. A scientist readied the machinery after compensating for the O-Zone balance and attempted a transit. Several guns fired on the pyramid. On the streets, a device on Ecto-1 and Egon's P.K.E. Meter tracked the surge to the high rise.

An automated fork lift picked up a stack of gold bars and brought it to the pyramid. Cannons blasted the gold and it drifted up into a hole in the ecto barrier above the building. The old man, Mr. Tummel, planned to transmit his fortune into the Ghost World. Outside, Egon threw his smoking P.K.E. Meter aside and realized someone opened a direct passage to the Spirit World. Tummel ordered his scientist to send more gold. The scientist refused until he could check for any adverse effect on the environment, per their agreement. Tummel summoned two goons and had the scientist thrown out of the building. Tummel then activated a control panel and automated the entire operation. He mused he didn't work 80 years to become rich and leave it all to charities. Hundreds of ghosts escaped from the passage. Tummel activated precautionary measures embedded in his wheel chair - an Ecto Shield and two Particle Throwers. The ghosts moved throughout the building.

The Ghostbusters entered the building and blasted some of the ghosts. After some fragments fell on Winston and Ray, Egon realized that since that ghosts were brought to the physical plane by artificial means, their ecto-molecular intro-structure was unstable. They would break down and each fragment would become a new ghost. In 15 hours, the entire world would be overrun with ghosts. This convinced Peter to go along with the pro bono bust. Since the building contained 150 floors, Peter summoned the elevator but they were all possessed! Ray got an idea and took the team up by helicopter. However, the magnetic field of the vortex and the lightning storm caused the helicopter to die out. Egon quickly hooked up the ignition to his Proton Pack and got it back online. The helicopter landed but the Ghostbusters found their entrance was locked and made of solid steel. Ray got another idea to swing over the edge and crash through the windows. Peter refused and picked the lock with a nail file.

The Ghostbusters heard sounds and freed three servants Tummel planned to take with him to the Netherworld. They now know Tummel was the one who had to be stopped and entered the laboratory. Egon is annoyed about how their own lab paled in comparison and declared it was time to talk about the research budget after they got home. When they tried to talk with Tummel, he instead fired on them with his laser security and continued with the transfer of his money. Egon decided the next course of action was to overload Tummel's equipment and close the gate. Peter waved an improvised white flag and surrendered to Tummel. He then manipulated Tummel, playing on his greed, into using the technology on his building. Egon then added they might blow up. In the chaos, Tummel's wheel chair is hit and he goes rolling into the transfer area. Peter shot the controls but it didn't respond. Egon ran off with an open Ghost Trap and tossed it into the pyramid. Hopefully, it would set up a feedback, jam the transmission, pull back the ghosts, and close the portal. The Ghostbusters and the three servants ran to the helicopter and attempted to fly away.

Winston threw his Proton Pack and Trap at the building and it helped close the portal. The ghosts and Tummel were pulled into the Netherworld. Ray "landed" the helicopter on the streets. The building is gone but it displaced the gold and money. It all rained down on the Ghostbusters, proving without a doubt the old proverb: you can't take it with you. After some thought, the Ghostbusters didn't take anything and went to Ecto-1 as the police arrived on scene.

Quotes[]

  • Egon: "Mr. Tummel? Can we have a word with you?"
    Mr. Tummel: "No, but you can have a word with THESE!" (activates laser security guns)
    Winston: "Lasers! Take cover! Look out!" (the Ghostbusters quickly scatter to avoid getting shot)
    Peter: "Nice try, Egon, but the more I see of this Tummel clown, the less I like."
  • Egon: "The system's running wild!"
    Peter: "SHOOT THE CONTROLS!"(shoots the control box, destroying it, but nothing happens)
    Ray: "It's too late! The system's on automatic!"
    Peter: "Computerized death. Don't you love progress?"
    Egon: "Yes, we do. (runs towards the portal) Cover me!"
    Peter: "Egon! Come back!"
    Winston: "COVER THE MAN!"
  • Peter: "Tummel's over there... but his money's over here! Any thoughts, Egon?"
    Egon: "Molecular instability, I guess. His building displaced the loot that he already sent."
    Ray: "Which means he's over there alone with his empty building."
    Winston: "He ain't alone, he's got his ghosts!"
    Peter: "And we have his money, don't we? (Egon, Winston, and Ray look at each other, then toss the money and gold to the ground) Well, I guess this proves two old sayings."
    Ray: "Uh, 'you can't take it with you', and what's the other one?"
    Peter: " 'Easy come, easy go'." (tosses money to the ground)

Trivia[]

  • The episode was recorded on August 29, 1986.[3]
  • Mr. Tummel's building and equipment is adorned with Egyptian motifs. In Egyptian history, great lengths were made to help the dead's journey through the underworld into the afterlife.
  • Tummel's scientist mentions compensating for the O-Zone balance.
  • Mr. Tummel mentions the Easter Bunny after the scientist is taken away by the two goons.
  • Peter refers to Ray as Tex again.[4]
  • Ray won a free helicopter lesson in 1976.[5]
  • Peter baits Mr. Tummel by promising he'll give the building to the United Way, a group of charities across the USA.[6]
  • Ray mentions Peter owed him $5.[7]
  • Egon exclaims, "Holy Heisenberg!" which is a reference to Werner Heisenberg, a German theoretical physicist.[8][9]
  • Neither Slimer nor Janine appear in this episode.

References[]

  1. Marsha Goodman (1986). Episode Call Sheet and SAG Report - "You Can't Take it With You" (1986).
  2. Eatock, James & Mangels, Andy (2008). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection booklet, p. 13. CPT Holdings, Inc.
  3. Marsha Goodman (1986). Episode Call Sheet and SAG Report - "You Can't Take it With You" (1986).
  4. Peter Venkman (2009).The Real Ghostbusters- "You Can't Take it With You" (1986) (DVD ts. 08:34-08:35). Time Life Entertainment.
  5. Ray Stantz (2009).The Real Ghostbusters- "You Can't Take it With You" (1986) (DVD ts. 10:31-10:33). Time Life Entertainment. Ray says: "I won one free lesson back in '76."
  6. Peter Venkman (2009).The Real Ghostbusters- "You Can't Take it With You" (1986) (DVD ts. 16:04-16:06). Time Life Entertainment.
  7. Ray Stantz (2009).The Real Ghostbusters- "You Can't Take it With You" (1987) (DVD ts. 18:04-18:06). Time Life Entertainment. Ray says: "If it doesn't you can forget about the five bucks you owe me!"
  8. Egon Spengler (2009).The Real Ghostbusters- "You Can't Take it With You" (1986) (DVD ts. 18:42-18:43). Time Life Entertainment.
  9. Eatock, James & Mangels, Andy (2008). The Real Ghostbusters Complete Collection booklet, p. 13. CPT Holdings, Inc.

Gallery[]

Episode Screen Caps[]

Collages and Edits[]

RGB DVD Boxset Features[]

 
Previous Episode Based on Next Episode
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