Anyone know Mike Judge or Stephen Root?

October 4, 2006 4:29 PM

Office Space: Are the squirrels merry or married?

I've engaged in a scathing invective-laden debate with several coworkers about a scene in Office Space wherein Milton describes a pair of squirrels. I maintain that the squirrels were "married", a sad testament to Milton living vicariously through rodentia. My naysayers claim that the word in question is "merry".

I need a definitive, preferably firsthand source for verification. User-submitted quotes on IMDB or Wikipedia are insufficient proof for these chuckleheads. I'll be checking the DVD subtitles (assuming there are any) this evening, but even those are created by a third-party vendor. Anyone know Mike Judge or Stephen Root?

posted by Danelope to media & arts (23 comments total)

Subtitles say married.
posted by nineRED at 4:33 PM on October 4, 2006

IMDB says married.

Milton Waddams: [talking on the phone] And I said, I don't care if they lay me off either, because I told, I told Bill that if they move my desk one more time, then, then I'm, I'm quitting, I'm going to quit. And, and I told Don too, because they've moved my desk four times already this year, and I used to be over by the window, and I could see the squirrels, and they were married, but then, they switched from the Swingline to the Boston stapler, but I kept my Swingline stapler because it didn't bind up as much, and I kept the staples for the Swingline stapler and it's not okay because if they take my stapler then I'll set the building on fire...
posted by nitsuj at 4:34 PM on October 4, 2006

oh, and I don't think IMDB quotes are user submitted
posted by nitsuj at 4:35 PM on October 4, 2006

Just email them... IMDB says they have contact info, but you need an IMDB Pro account.
posted by hatsix at 4:36 PM on October 4, 2006

The special edition DVD discusses this line (it's "married") in one of the special features. Check out the review here for more details.
posted by Gary at 4:38 PM on October 4, 2006 [1 favorite]

The IMDB quote is of questionable accuracy, because I'm pretty darn sure the first name of the slapping-on-the-back boss is Dom, not Don.

I vote for "married", not that this answers the question...
posted by jmcmurry at 4:39 PM on October 4, 2006

i could've sworn the subtitles said "merry" but I dont have the dvd in front of me.

I too have had this debate many a time. It sounds like he says "merry" to me, although "married" is far funnier.
posted by drjimmy11 at 4:43 PM on October 4, 2006

The special edition DVD discusses this line (it's "married") in one of the special features.


oops didn't see that. guess I'm wrong.
posted by drjimmy11 at 4:44 PM on October 4, 2006

nitsuj writes "oh, and I don't think IMDB quotes are user submitted"

They are. I just added a quote to "Face/Off."
posted by WCityMike at 4:44 PM on October 4, 2006

474,000 results for married

251,000 results for merry
posted by Sonic_Molson at 5:18 PM on October 4, 2006

IMDB is not accurate. It's like wikipedia without the oversight.
posted by mzurer at 5:22 PM on October 4, 2006

I read an interview in the the cast with Stephen, Ajay, and Ron, and I believe it was originally "merry" in the script, but Root said it "married" just to be funny.... kind of like Bob's Samir Naga-naga-nagonnaworkhereanymore gag - he never said that at rehearsal, and busted it out for the real filming so he would get a realistic laugh out the other Bob.
posted by fvox13 at 5:27 PM on October 4, 2006

...and by "in the the cast", I of course mean "in a magazine"
posted by fvox13 at 5:27 PM on October 4, 2006

I always thought it was "merry". "Married" doesn't make sense to me. Besides, I can picture Milton being vicariously happy about merry squirrels.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 5:36 PM on October 4, 2006

I always heard it as married, and assumed he was prudishly saying that the squirrels were mating, or that he was projecting a fantasy Mommy and Daddy Squirrel family.
posted by i_am_joe's_spleen at 6:06 PM on October 4, 2006

"merry"

What would it possibly mean for the squirrels to be "married?"
posted by bshort at 6:46 PM on October 4, 2006

Subtitles on the Region 2 DVD say "they were married".

(and "Ze waren getrouwd", "qui etaint maries", "una familgliola di scoiattoli", "die sich hiarateten", "ja ne olviat naimisissa" and many more)
posted by cillit bang at 6:56 PM on October 4, 2006

What would it possibly mean for the squirrels to be "married?"

That they were mating.
posted by bunglin jones at 7:15 PM on October 4, 2006

Vindication! Both from the subtitles and straight from Stephen Root's mouth on the special features. My detractors will never hear the end of this! Thanks all.
posted by Danelope at 9:24 PM on October 4, 2006

Most misquoted line in Office Space:

Well, I would invest half of it in glorious mutual funds, and give the rest of it to my friend Asudalah in securities.

Even the subtitles say glorious mutual funds. WTF is are glorious mutual funds? LOW RISK MUTUAL FUNDS, damn it! Don't trust the subtitles.
posted by ryanrs at 12:22 AM on October 5, 2006

That's one small step for squirrel ...
posted by Flashman at 3:55 AM on October 5, 2006

I think it's funnier as 'merry', actually. Just giving squirrels any kind of emotional description is funny imo...
posted by angryjellybean at 9:16 AM on October 5, 2006

married. Without a doubt.
posted by Merlyn at 2:04 PM on October 5, 2006