Break-In

Break-In was the eighth episode of Season 1 of The Golden Girls TV series, also the 8th overall series episode. Directed by Paul Bogart and written by series co-executive producer Susan Harris, it originally aired on NBC-TV on November 9, 1985.

Plot
After a Madonna concert, the girls arrive home to discover their house has been broken into. This leads the girls to seek out means to protect themselves. First, the girls have a burglar alarm installed. Also, at Rose's insistence, the girls take home a guard dog from the shelter, that turns out to be quite cowardly, hiding in fear from a hungry Sophia.

After returning from an errand, Rose finds Blanche in distress on the couch. Blanche tells her that she borrowed Rose's pocket hairspray and went to the police station for an update on her jewels and Dorothy's mink stole but, in a horrifying experience, discovered that Rose's hairspray was mace. She blinded herself and was detained and later let go by the police, who originally thought she was on drugs.

Rose then tells the girls she purchased a handgun, which she later used on "intruders," that turned out to be Blanche and her boyfriend, Lester. Destroying Blanche's favorite Chinese vase, She realizes that she is not okay and may be permanently affected by the experience. However, after subduing a parking attendant she mistook for a predator, she had a revelation and learned that she could defend herself in a violent situation. The thieves were caught, the cops found Dorothy's stole and Blanche forgot she put her jewels in the Freezer.

Guest Cast

 * Robert Rothwell as Lester
 * Christian Clemenson as Salesman

Episode Notes, Goofs, and Trivia

 * Rose says one out of every three people will get cancer and that that means one of us will get cancer. Years later (in 2009) Bea Arthur one of the three golden girls died due to cancer.


 * Rose says that she's afraid of large dogs but she has no problem bringing home large dogs in season two's "Joust Between Friends",additionally, she loves the fact that the girls got her a large dog in "Questions and Answers" and wanted to keep one of Dreyfuss's puppies in "Stand By Your Man".She has also helped look after Dreyfuss for Harry Weston.
 * At the beginning of the episode, before entering the house, the girls mention they went to see Madonna in concert. In 1985, when this episode originally aired, the only show Madonna played in Miami was at the now-demolished Hollywood Sportatorium on May 11,but, indicating that the show was six months before the November 9 air date.
 * When Dorothy is imitating Dirty Harry, she says her gun is a .375 Magnum, one of the most powerful guns in the world. Dorothy transposed the numbers, and was meaning a .357 magnum. A .375 Magnum is a rifle, the gun referred to as "one of the most powerful in the world" is a .44 Magnum.
 * In the parking garage, you can hear a women's footsteps moving at pretty much the same pace throughout the entire sequence. Even though Rose walks, stops, speeds up, runs and stops again, the footsteps don't really change and at times aren't even in sync with her steps.
 * After Blanche is attacked, she tells Dorothy she was wearing the wrong underwear. In "The Custody Battle", Blanche admits she never wears underwear.
 * In this episode, Rose shoots at that big floral vase that sits by the door and breaks it into pieces. In later episodes, you see that vase sitting in the same place in perfect condition.
 * The background shot during the closing credits features the four leads in a huddle by the doorway looking on at the mess in the house.
 * A deleted scene from this episode was notably included in the series' opening credit sequence. The short scene shows Blanche pulling her arm into the sleeve of her red jacket as Dorothy and Rose gasp.No dialogue is heard during the credits but it appears Blanche is telling a story of a dog biting someone's hand off (perhaps after the girls are talking about the dog in the kitchen for protection.)
 * When Blanche is lying on the couch and Dorothy is preparing washcloths for her, there is clearly no water in the bowl. However, the cloth Dorothy is wringing out produces several drops into the dry bowl.
 * The scene of the girls all huddled up and walking further in the house when they see it was robbed, a close-up of Sophia and Dorothy and Blanche congratulating Rose for overcoming her paranoia were included in the series' opening credit sequence.
 * Dorothy said that her mink stole was given to her by Stan. In the first episode of the second season, The End of the Curse, when fixing the mink cages Rose asks if Stan ever gave Dorothy mink. Dorothy says she always wanted mink while Sophia says he wouldn't buy her popcorn at the movies.