The Worry Wart

Infobox Television episode
Title =The Worry Wart
Series =The Honeymooners


Caption =Ralph becomes worried after being summoned by the IRS, instead of receiving his tax refund.
Season =1
Episode =28
Airdate =April 7, 1956
Production =n/a
Writer =Marvin Marx, Walter Stone
Director =Frank Satenstein
Guests =
Episode list =List of The Honeymooners episodes
Prev =Head of the House
Next =Trapped

Plot

Ralph receives a summons to the IRS in the mail instead of a $42 tax refund he was expecting. Ralph has made plans prior to this to spend the money on a camping trip for him and Alice. He agonizes over it constantly, despite reassurances from Alice that there is probably nothing to worry about. Ralph's best friend, Ed, does not help to reassure him, constantly suggesting that he could end up in jail. Ralph stays up late into the night before he reports to the IRS, searching for mistakes he could have made when doing his taxes. Alice urges Ralph to get a good night's rest, and they end up getting into a loud argument. Ed, who lives in the apartment right above them, comes down after being waken up by them, and convinces Ralph to let him try to find a mistake in the taxes. Together, they conclude that Ralph has to pay taxes on some of his side incomes, which are things like winnings in pool competitions. Upon arriving at the IRS, Ralph is so nervous he can't even speak clearly to the man, so Ed does much of the speaking for him. The man explains that Ralph is only being summoned because he forgot to sign his tax forms. This is a tremendous relief, but both Ed and Ralph confess that they have income that they didn't pay tax on, and the IRS man provides them with forms to allow them to do so.

Trivia

When Ed is eating dinner at the Kramden's apartment, he attempts to pour a bottle of ketchup on his spaghetti. He goes through the motions, but nothing comes out of the bottle.