"The Masquerade Ball" is the twelfth episode of the second season and the fortieth overall episode of the original series, The Flintstones. It aired on December 8, 1961.
Synopsis[]
When Fred braves a visit to the office of his boss, Mr. Slate (called Mr. Rockhead in this episode), to request a promotion, Slate is in the process of trying to sell four surplus $25 charity masquerade party tickets to the appropriate "chump".
Plot[]
Of course, Fred is delighted to buy them, while under the mistaken impression that $25 is the total price for the four, and after Slate has committed Fred to this purchase, he informs Fred of the true, $100 fee and says that he will deduct the money from Fred's salary. Fred sells two of the tickets to Barney for $50, and the Flintstones and Rubbles prepare to attend the party, with Betty dressing like Robin Hood and Wilma in Rockette garb.
Fred and Barney visit the store of snobby costume-provider Mortimer Stoneface to obtain a body-concealing outfit, and Stoneface rents to them a rubber dinosaur skin into which Fred and Barney confine themselves, with Fred as the head and Barney as the tail. Fred learns from Stoneface that Slate will be wearing a turtle's mask, and Stoneface will also be at the party, as a bird. Everyone at the party is required to keep secret his/her identity, to heighten the fun, and because Slate will not know that Fred knows which costume conceals Slate, Fred hopes to "butter up" his boss- while pretending that he does not recognize Slate as the turtle- with compliments to Slate and accolades for his own work performance and loyalty to Slate's company.
What Fred does not expect is a switching of masks between Slate and Stoneface because Slate intensely dislikes the turtle guise. Fred showers Stoneface with praises and self-affirmations intended for Slate and offends Slate by colliding with him during a dance and bragging to him about how he ingratiated himself with whom he thought was Slate and that he often goes home for supper before the five o'clock quitting-time whistle, and calls Slate a penny-pinching birdbrain from the moron section of the Bedrock knucklehead club.
Slate does not reveal himself to Fred until the next workday, allowing Fred to believe in the interim that Fred's "mission" to impress his employer for a promotion has been a success. He invites Fred into his office, provides Fred with a cigar, and shows to Fred the mask that he truly wore at the party. Fred shrinks to thumb-size as Slate browbeats him. "Oh, boy! Me and my big mouth."
Characters[]
- Fred Flintstone
- Wilma Flintstone
- Barney Rubble
- Betty Rubble
- Dino
- Mr. Rockhead
- Mrs. Rockhead (first animated appearance)
- Mortimer Stoneface (only appearance)
- O'Shale (only appearance)
Locations[]
Bedrock[]
- Flintstone home
- Rubble home
- Cave Construction Co.
- Bedrock Costumers (only appearance)
Objects[]
- Tickets
- Gin Rummy cards
- Dinosaur costume (only appearance)
Animals[]
- Snorkasaurus
- Brontosaurus (as a Bronto-Burger)
- Pterodactyls (as clothespins)
- Beeasaurus (as a shaver)
- Crocosaurus (as a time card puncher)
- Pelicansaurus (as a trash can)
- Turtlesaurus (as a costume)
Vehicles[]
Events[]
- Charity Masquerade Ball
Cast[]
| Alan Reed | Fred Flintstone |
|---|---|
| Jean Vander Pyl | Wilma Flintstone |
| Mel Blanc | Barney Rubble Dino Bird #1 |
| Bea Benaderet | Betty Rubble Mrs. Rockhead |
| John Stephenson | Mr. Rockhead O'Shale |
| Don Messick | Mortimer Stoneface Man |
Notes/Trivia[]
- Mr. Slate is named Mr. Rockhead this time in this episode. Obviously the writers hadn't really decided on a name for Fred's boss at this point. In the episode, "Flintstone of Prinstone", he's referred to as Mr. Slate, but in the episode, "The Missing Bus", he's referred to as Mr. Granite. Finally, by the end of this season, the name Slate stays.
- Mrs. Rockhead's first name is Martha.
- Wilma's grandmother was a Rockette.
- "Think big, and be big," is Fred's new motto.
Errors[]
- None known.
| Season 2 of The Flintstones |
|---|
| "The Hit Songwriters" • "Droop-Along Flintstone" • "The Missing Bus" • "Alvin Brickrock Presents" • "Fred Flintstone Woos Again" • "The Rock Quarry Story" • "The Soft Touchables" • "Flintstone of Prinstone" • "The Little White Lie" • "Social Climbers" • "The Beauty Contest" • "The Masquerade Ball" • "The Picnic" • "The House Guest" • "The X-Ray Story" • "The Gambler" • "A Star is Almost Born" • "The Entertainer" • "Wilma's Vanishing Money" • "Feudin' and Fussin'" • "Impractical Joker" • "Operation Barney" • "The Happy Household" • "Fred Strikes Out" • "This is Your Lifesaver" • "Trouble-in-Law" • "The Mailman Cometh" • "The Rock Vegas Story" • "Divided We Sail" • "Kleptomaniac Caper" • "Latin Lover" • "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" |