Proof of the “Too Close for Comfort” Monroe Rape Episode

18May2009

In the collective mind of all generations their are dark moments that dwell just at the edge of remembrance, occasionally surfacing in our fevered dreams, but remaining untouchable during our waking times. For some generations it is the dark memories of war or the specter of depression and plague. If you were born in the 1970s there is a good chance that the dark phantom that haunts you is the episode of “Too Close for Comfort” where Monroe is raped by two women in the back of a van. I know your mind is racing now. You remember it right, but you are not sure that if it really happened. Now go ask all your friends about it. About 1 in 10 will remember the episode, 4 in 10 will stare at you with a puzzled look (they remember, but are blocking) the other 5 will think you are a total idiot and will no longer take your calls.

I had read about this episode a few years ago and I was one of those 1 in 10. I clearly remember the episode, but everyone else looked at me like I was making stuff up. So I let it go – that is until I found the short movie “A Very Special Episode” by Ethan Duff and the memories returned. “A Very Special Episode” is a story about a man who remembers the episode and follows his short descent into madness as he tries to prove to himself and the world that the episode exists. If you have ever had a memory of something that no one else seems to remember this is the film for you. Watch the entire film (10 mins).

After watching the episode I decided to see if I had anything in my immediate possession that proved that I had indeed seen the episode. I knew from the movie that the episode aired on July 20th, 1985 and that it was called “For Every Man, There’s Two Women”, which is more then I had before. I started digging through old VHS tapes hoping to dredge up something. Sadly it turns out I didn’t have one episode of “Too Close for Comfort” on tape. I was about to give up when I remembered that the “Retroist Print Archive” (box at bottom of hall closet) is filled with old TV guides. After an hour of searching I found what I was looking for:

So there it is. Proof of the airing of the episode in 1985 New Jersey. Notice that the show is airing at 6 pm on channel 17? That is because at this point the show was airing on the Metromedia network (which would eventually become Fox). The show had run for 3 seasons on ABC, but due to declining ratings, they decided to pull the plug. Metromedia picked up the show and ran it in syndication from 1984 to 1986. The show still can be found in syndication, but mysteriously enough, “For Every Man, There’s Two Women” had never been rebroadcast.

I still do not have this episode of the show in my collection, but my quest for proof had energized me and it is only a matter of time before I get to watch this episode again with adult eyes and will have more to share.

Tags: A Very Special Episode, Jim J Bullock, Sitcoms, Ted Knight, Television, Too Close for Comfort

About The Retroist

The Retroist is like a BBQ on a bun without the bones. You're only human daddy. Chomp!

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

20 Responses to “Proof of the “Too Close for Comfort” Monroe Rape Episode”

josie
May 18th, 2009 at 9:48 pm

Brilliant movie. I thought I was the only one who remembered this episode. The truth is out there!
InfomercialReviewer
May 19th, 2009 at 12:50 am

I am so happy you wrote about this! I think it would be more like 1 in 1000 who remember that episode, and that number would include me!

I remember mentioning the episode to my sisters on one or two occassions. The producers of “Too Close For Comfort” must have thought the only believable way Jm J Bullock could ever have sex with a woman would be if he were forced at gunpoint.

For me the other “Am I the only one who remembers this?” episode of a TV show is an episode of Diff’rent Strokes where Mrs. Garrett dates a man in his early twenties.
The Retroist
May 19th, 2009 at 8:28 am

I think you might be right about the 1 in a 1000.

As for that Different Strokes episode….I smell another post!
Paul
May 19th, 2009 at 11:32 am

Wow that was a great movie. Thanks for bringing it to my attention. I assume that the filmmakers had access to the episode because of the clips in the film? Or am I wrong?
The Retroist
May 19th, 2009 at 11:57 am

He seemed to at least have access to some clips. I am sure the full episode will surface at some point. Until then I will continue to seek it out.
Lydia Cornell
May 19th, 2009 at 12:20 pm

I played Sara Rush on Too Close for Comfort, and now I’m going to be haunted by this episode. Was Monroe really raped by two fat women? It’s all coming back to me. Now I know why they buried this episode; it was too disturbing for the
masses.

I have repressed memories of this episode. The movie “Was Monroe Raped” is very well done…. chilling.
Now I have to look through all my taped episodes and hidden archives of
episodes. At first I thought this was actually the
Selma Diamond episode in which Monroe loses his virginity to
Rafkin’s sister.
But now the memories of this bizarre rape are coming back to me.
I’m getting together with Jim (Bullock) soon and we’ll “probe” the evidence.
Luv xo
Lyd
Lydia Cornell
May 19th, 2009 at 12:21 pm

Boy I think I overused the word “episode” a bit (above.)
Brian
May 19th, 2009 at 1:23 pm

Wow, a comment by a (major) cast member. And even she doesn’t remember!? What the heck is going on here?
The Retroist
May 19th, 2009 at 2:21 pm

Lydia – thanks for dropping by the site. Having a comment from you more then made my week.

But now that I know how vague it is to the cast, I wonder what hope their is for the rest of us. The mystery deepens.
Doug
May 20th, 2009 at 4:28 pm

Great article! The link above wasn’t working, but I poked around on Google and found this:

http://www.dufftownmedia.com/wasmonroeraped.html
The Retroist
May 20th, 2009 at 5:23 pm

Thanks Doug – Link must have just changed or something. I updated it.
CLAM
May 26th, 2009 at 1:03 pm

Five or six years ago I worked for a pop-culture radio program. I was and am one of those people with ghostly memories of this episode, but at the time I had grave doubts about its actual existence, and was frankly a little worried about what it meant that my imagination would create such a thing.

I discovered that it was real, which was amazing enough. I wanted to find out the reasoning behind this episode, so I got in touch with the guy who was the story editor for that season of Too Close For Comfort. Turns out he taught creative writing or screenwriting at, I think, Columbia, or possibly NYU. And then I happened to be going to New York, and so I pitched a piece for the radio show which would explore the journey of discovery and get an interview with this guy (whose name I forget), and clear up the whole mystery.

Well, we made a date for the interview, but the guy never showed, and I never did the radio piece. I call conspiracy! There are powerful forces trying to keep this from us, people.
Jewel
June 4th, 2009 at 11:08 pm

It’s listed on IMDB, but no plot outline.
The Retroist
June 5th, 2009 at 10:17 am

Like they are trying to erase it from our collective memory?
angel love Figueroa
July 11th, 2009 at 11:53 am

I was 13 when I saw this episode. What I can tell you from my memory is that when Munroe told Henry Rush what happened to him, he had Munroe lay on the kitchen table to reenact him being taken away in the van. He had to remember which way the van turned and how far it went so that they can try and find the place where these women lived. Anyway, they find the place and knock on the apartment door, and when it opens up a LARGE woman answers the door. We’re talking Weather Girls large, only taller. And Munroe yells, “That’s the little one!” and runs off. Then it cut to commercial. After that I guess they confronted them in the 2nd part of the show, and I think in the end, if I’m not mistaken, Henry gets it too. But that’s left up to the imagination of the viewer because that’s where the episode ended. Has anyone checked Youtube, or Hulu.com yet?
The Retroist
July 14th, 2009 at 10:29 pm

I keep checking for for it angel, but its a difficult episode to get a hold of. I have a lead, but they guy is on a long holiday and it will be a few weeks before he comes back. So I wait.
Jim
August 23rd, 2009 at 2:00 pm

I remember that episode VERY well. I remember Henry and Monroe going to confront the women, and a VERY fat woman comes out, and Monroe says, “There she is… the LITTLE one!” Later an absolutely towering gigantic woman (well, someone in a dress anyway) comes out. I think I blacked out at that point.

At one point Henry was having a conversation with Jackie and Sarah in their apartment, with Henry saying something like “After all you’ve said about equal rights between the sexes, how can you not take this seriously?” and one of the girls said, “It just doesn’t seem as serious when it happens to a man.” Very “Oprah,” n’est-ce pas?
drose
August 26th, 2009 at 1:04 pm

I remember this episode, too. I only watched the show a few times and was never really a big fan, but this episode really made an impression on me. I was just a kid when I saw it, but I knew that there was something Very Wrong about the episode, which is probably why I remember it so clearly. I didn’t realize there was anybody claiming it didn’t happen until I stumbled across this today.

Also, the few times I did see TCFC it was in the afternoon. I never once saw the series in it’s first-run time slot, so it had to have been shown in syndication at least once…
Melanie
October 16th, 2009 at 1:25 pm

this is hilarious! I thought I was the only one obsessed with finding proof that this episode existed, lol!

And “drose” is correct, it must have been shown in syndication. I didn’t watch the show when it originally aired, but I did see this episode. And what a surreal experience it was…

I’m about to watch the movie now – can’t wait! Thanks for the link!
jimmy
November 8th, 2009 at 6:00 am

I was 5-7 when the show was in first run so the only time that I would have watched it was in afternoon syndication yet I remember this episode. The non network, later Fox affiliate, channel only showed syndicated programming from the big three. This is one of the first syndicated shows I remember, along with Mork and Mindy and Benson. For us this was BC (before cable) You know when you had to go to Radio Shack and spend $1.50 for a bow tie shaped UHF antenna and spend 3 days finding the best place to lean, tape, hold it, to get the clearest picture. Definately not HD!