Top-rated
Wed, Jan 3, 1968
Widower Luis Armejo and Manuela Garcia are getting married, and everyone in Esperanza, the town in which they live, are happy for them. Among the happy are Luis' son, Tonio. However the attention of his affection changes quickly to Sister Bertrille, who Tonio believes is his mother. He believes so because she came out of the sky - he infers from heaven - and Sister Bertrille really is the spitting image of Luis' first wife. Sister Bertrille, the understanding Manuela and Father Dominic - the town's sage - feel that they can't tell Tonio the truth because it would both destroy Tonio's psyche as well as cause a ruckus due to the incredulity of Sister Bertrille's flight. Luis on the other hand just wants to marry Manuela and get on with leading their lives. When Manuela decides to leave Esperanza to allow Tonio to figure out what he needs in his life, Sister Bertrille decides what's best is for her to leave as quickly as she came, and to explain to Tonio that she came to make sure that someone on Earth was there to love him, that someone being Manuela. As Sister Bertrille takes off on her flight back to San Tanco, Manuela is there as Tonio's support.
Wed, Jan 10, 1968
Needing a fish for a special meal, Sisters Bertrille and Sixto go to Sister Sixto's Uncle Gus Mendoza, who she considers the most expert fisherman in San Juan. However Uncle Gus has been a little low on his fishing luck, and secretly grabs a fish for the sisters from Lily's Fish Shack, owned by Lily Romano. Apparently, Uncle Gus' luck is due to the the larger fishing companies, who have modern technology, such as sonar and helicopters, to locate schools of fish before someone like Gus can get to them. Gus has been financially supported by his family as well as Lily. But Lily is facing problems of her own as her shop is behind on payments and the bank is threatening to foreclose. To solve everyone's problems, Sisters Sixto and Jacqueline suggest that Sister Bertrille be Gus' overhead fish spotter. They figure she can get away with doing so if she flies between Gus and the sun since Gus is near sighted, so wouldn't be able to tell that it's her flying overhead. She does so. It works, and Gus doesn't know that it's Sister Bertrille leading him to the fish. He thinks she's his Patrona, Santa Rosa. With his earnings, Gus is able to pay back Lily. The problem arises that Sister Bertrille can't do this for Gus forever, especially from the Reverend Mother's perspective. When Sister Bertrille stops showing, Gus thinks Santa Rosa has deserted him. Lily is still facing her problems as the money from Gus isn't sufficient to placate the bank. The major challenge is to convince Gus that the fishing industry has changed and that he needs to find a different way to earn a living. When Sister Bertrille tries to do so, she tells him of Lily's problems. In love with Lily, Gus decides that what's best for everyone is to sell his boat and to go into business with Lily.
Wed, Jan 17, 1968
A hot spell is drifting through San Juan, and with it comes gangster Rufus Morgan, who has vowed to take over Carlos' casino. As a favor or repayment for some old air conditioners he donated to the convent, Carlos devises an arrangement, in paper only, with the convent through Sister Bertrille: he is deeding the casino to the convent while Morgan is in town, to be deeded back to him after Morgan leaves. In the meantime, Carlos goes into hiding. Although Carlos' assistant Pedro is running the casino in Carlos' absence, Morgan strong-arms Pedro into getting an official from the convent, that being Sister Bertrille, down to the casino to run things. She does so and gets conned by Morgan into playing in a table stakes poker game. He figures he can win the casino through this method. But the seemingly naive sister out-bluffs Morgan and wins everything she previously lost back. Despite this, the gig is up when Morgan catches Pedro conferring with Carlos on the telephone. The highly superstitious Morgan changes his plans for taking over the casino when Sister Bertrille hovers above his yacht telling him to lay off Carlos. Morgan believes that the vision he is seeing is an omen to get out of San Juan.
Wed, Jan 24, 1968
Dr. Jennifer Ethrington, Sister Bertrille aka Elsie Ethrington's older sister, is coming by San Juan en route to Brazil where she is to work in the small remote villages. Sister Bertrille is worried that her sister may be bored by the rather sedate lifestyle of the convent during her stay. But her stay will be anything but sedate as she meets Carlos Ramirez on the flight into San Juan, Carlos who has become smitten with her. Although Jennifer mentions that she has a sister at the convent, Carlos doesn't know it's Sister Bertrille. And although Jennifer mentions to her sister that she has a date with a local, Sister Bertrille doesn't know it's Carlos until he comes by the convent to pick Jennifer up. Despite Carlos being her friend, Sister Bertrille is worried about Jennifer going out with Carlos. The truth for everyone comes out when Sister Bertrille barges in on Jennifer and Carlos' date. Jennifer implies to her sister that she's a big girl who can take care of herself. But Sister Bertrille's prayers are answered when the Reverend Mother asks Sister Bertrille to ask Jennifer to go out to a remote village to take care of a rabid dog bitten patient. For Sister Bertrille, it's just in time as Carlos has just asked Jennifer to marry him. As Jennifer thinks about the proposal, Carlos, Jennifer and Sister Bertrille fly off in Carlos' plane to the village. The trip is a disaster for Carlos in his perception of how Jennifer sees him as a potential mate living in the outback of Brazil - he falls in a swamp, faints when helping Jennifer with the patient, and in an accident falls on some broken glass which requires some stitches in his derrière. Carlos is mad about the situation and mad at Sister Bertrille, who he thinks has purposely sabotaged his relationship with Jennifer who has declined his proposal. Sister Bertrille is upset that the damage to their friendship may be irreparable. But Jennifer clears the air with Carlos, this act repairing his friendship with Sister Bertrille. Jennifer tells him that her sister had nothing to do with her declining his marriage proposal. To make Carlos even happier, Jennifer reminds him that if they did get married, Sister Bertrille would become his sister-in-law, which he's not quite ready for.
Wed, Jan 31, 1968
Running into a craps game down at the docks, Sister Bertrille is renamed Sister Lucky by Juan, whose luck has changed for the better with the sister's arrival. The Reverend Mother however makes Sister Bertrille return Juan's donation since it was obtained through gambling as well as through the false pretense of Sister Bertrille being his lucky charm. He refuses to take the money back, so Sister Bertrille starts an impromptu craps game just to prove she isn't his lucky charm. Not only does she fail to do so - Juan's dice throwing is red hot - but she and the rest of the gamblers get hauled off to jail when the police arrive on the scene. Down at the jail solely to get her out of jail, Sister Bertrille convinces Carlos and Captain Lopez that Carlos, the professional gambler, should gamble with Juan one-on-one to prove that she isn't his lucky charm. It doesn't start out well as Juan wins when the sister is there and loses when the sister isn't. Finally the streak turns as Juan loses when the sister is present. Unfortunately Juan is out of money and his markers are worthless. Rather than let Carlos' lawyers deal with the situation, Sister Bertrille proposes that Carlos let Juan work at the casino to pay off his debt and more importantly work off his zest for gambling.
Wed, Feb 7, 1968
Sister Bertrille meets Captain Otis Barnaby while he's working on his small boat, which he plans to sail to Miami. Captain Barnaby is as stereotypical an old seafaring captain as one could imagine. However looks can be deceiving. The stories he tells the sisters and the kids at the convent of his seafaring days are all tales of fancy as Otis Barnaby is no captain and is as much of a landlubber as one can be having lived his entire life in Lincoln Nebraska. Conrad, his son, wants Sister Bertrille to persuade Otis not to make the dangerous voyage. Nothing will dissuade him and he sets sail for Miami. A storm sets in and all at the convent are worried for his safety. He radios the convent. He is weak and without supplies - they went overboard - but his pride refuses to let them call in the Coast Gurad to rescue him. Armed with the necessary supplies, Sister Bertrille takes flight when the weather clears to find Otis at sea. She locates him. He thinks that she's a figment of his imagination. Once she sees that he's OK, she takes off once again to leave him to continue his voyage on his own. When Otis radios in to Conrad that he had a visit from "Sister Figment", Conrad promptly calls in the Coast Guard to save his obviously sick father. Sister Bertrille tries to convince Conrad to call off the Coast Guard, that his father isn't crazy, that Otis will finish his dream trip to Miami and that it really was her out at the boat. The statistician Conrad isn't convinced until Sister Bertrille gives him a flying demonstration. He ends up calling off the Coast Guard and Otis safely makes it to Miami.
Wed, Feb 21, 1968
Pedro Alvarez and Juan Cortez are business partners of a produce business, Juan the business oriented partner, Pedro the customer oriented partner. When Pedro reveals he is illiterate (he can't read a letter from his girlfriend in Miami, Ethel Tarnower), Sister Bertrille suggests that he learn to read and write. He takes her suggestion and shows up unannounced in her kindergarten class. Although she doesn't think her class the best venue, Sister Bertrille is buoyed by Pedro's eagerness. Others are not as easily swayed. The Reverend Mother is echoing the concerns of traditional Bishop Pool that Pedro would be a disruptive influence to the convent, and Juan just wants Pedro back at work. But Sister Bertrille eventually convinces the Reverend Mother that Pedro should stay since his learning progress would convince Bishop Pool of the need for an adult English class. In class, Pedro has a roller coaster of emotions matching his learning curve, which is mainly flat. Just as Pedro's about to quit, Sister Bertrille convinces him to stay by telling him of the importance of books, as demonstrated by the sonnets of Elizabeth Barrett Browning, and the fact that Ethel will soon be visiting when he can recite sonnets to her. At the bishop's first inspection, he is less than impressed by Pedro's demonstration, first by the fact that Pedro didn't read but memorized a sonnet that he recited, and second in a banner he made for the bishop where Pedro spelled the bishop's last name Fool. But there is another month until the end of the semester and Pedro will have to be better prepared for the bishop's next visit then. Pedro's progress is steep this time, and is all ready for the bishop when all of a sudden he stops his learning. Ethel has sent him a letter, a letter he reads himself. It is a Dear John letter. He feels his reason for learning is no more. On the bishop's next visit, Sister Bertrille finally convinces Pedro to show up. Pedro does, not to make a presentation, but rather to tell the bishop all the benefits that reading and writing has provided him. The most important of these benefits is that he can now read the business' books, and has learned that Juan has been robbing him blind for the past 15 years.
Wed, Mar 13, 1968
In the will of a benefactor, the convent is the sole beneficiary of the estate. Unfortunately the only asset of the estate is the contract of a boxer, the Buffalo Buzzsaw aka Mike Sever. The sisters cannot keep Mike in any sense of the word, let alone let him stay at the convent, and Mike has no where else to go. So they let him stay temporarily in the gardener's quarters and work as the convent's odd job man. They learn that Mike is not a prize winning fighter, and has not had a bout in over two years. The sisters want to give him his freedom, but Mike likes it at the convent. They can't "sell" his contract out of principle, but with Carlos' help, they decide that it may be for the best. They get Mike into training and eventually get him a bout, at which they hope to attract a manager who will buy Mike's contract and give him the boxer's life he really deserves. When Mike finds out, he runs off. Sister Bertrille finds him and finds out the reason for running off and for not having a bout in two years: he likes it at the convent, doesn't want to sold like chattel anymore, and most importantly hates boxing, at least the hitting others part of it. He would prefer to get beaten to a pulp than to punch someone else out cold. Mike decides to fight to help the sisters, and with a one-two punch, knocks his opponent out cold, although he is traumatized by it. But they receive several offers for his contract. What the sisters decide to do is give Mike his own contract to negotiate. What he wants and decides to do is to tear up the contract and work for Carlos, not as a fighter but as a chef in his restaurant. This act starts a new career for the Buffalo Buzzsaw.
Wed, Mar 20, 1968
Carlos Ramirez is doing his mandatory 2-week active duty with the marine corps, and is stationed on a small remote island near San Juan. His battalion is scheduled to do large-scaled battle maneuvers, and Sister Bertrille is watching over him from afar, but Carlos doesn't initially need any help as he is coping just fine with a large stash of libations, gourmet food and female companions transported to the island via his yacht. His commanding officer, Captain Daniel J. "Do-or-Die" Dolger, finally catches up with Carlos' ant-military ways. The captain threatens to make life miserable for Carlos not only for the 2-weeks but well beyond. Carlos learns that the captain and the Reverend Mother are old friends, actually cousins, so Carlos sends message via Ginger - one of his female companions - to Sister Bertrille to come to the island on an emergency. When the Reverend Mother learns that it's her cousin that is the cause of Carlos' emergency, she tries to call her cousin, but cannot get through the Red Alert the island is under at the start of the maneuvers, and thus does send Sister Bertrille to at least investigate what's going on. Sister Bertrille does manage to make it through the Red Alert and to speak to Carlos, who wants the Reverend Mother to intercede on his behalf with her cousin. Since the Reverend Mother has already tried via telephone, Carlos suggests to Sister Bertrille that she fly a letter back to the island from the Reverend Mother to the captain. The captain catches Sister Bertrille on the island before she can do so. After she tells the captain she flew there, he tries to confirm the story with the Reverend Mother, who does confirm Sister Bertrille's story. He first thinks that they are all working for the enemy until the Reverend Mother convinces him otherwise. But the cousins get into a war of words and a war of control over their respective charges. When the captain returns to the island, he does ask the sister to demonstrate her abilities, she unable to do so due to the lack of wind. Just at that moment, the enemy is ready to attack. As the military men go back to their maneuvers, the wind picks up and Sister Bertrille makes it off the island. Sister Betrille reports back to Carlos that the ships they see off the island are only decoys and the real attack is approaching from the other side of the island. When Carlos tells Captain Dolger the information as well as its source, the captain does not believe him. The captain finally takes Carlos' advice when he sees an airborne Sister Bertrille. Because of the information, they win the maneuvers, and Captain Dolger, Carlos and Sister Bertrille are all heroes.
Wed, Mar 27, 1968
Bridgett Faulkner and Joel Bascomb reluctantly accept their prizes donated by Carlos Ramirez as the top students at the convent, the award being a day out on the town and dinner at the Captains Table. For bookwormish, self-consciously Plain-Janish and headstrong Bridgett, it is a day of frivolity that she cannot afford to take as it will take away from study time. Joel follows Bridgett's every move, as he idolizes her. On the day out, Bridgett eventually falls under Carlos' spell, Carlos who was only trying to be nice. Bridgett changes her focus from her school work to making herself look beautiful for Carlos. Joel on the other hand is jealous. Out of concern and out of jealousy, he tells Sister Bertrille what Bridgett is up to. The sister and Carlos figure that he needs to tell Bridgett directly that he is only her friend and could be nothing more, but is late in doing so and Bridgett explodes when she catches Carlos romantically with another woman. Despite Bridgett's anger, Sister Bertrille convinces Joel that he should tell Bridgett how he really feels about her. He does and the reality of more appropriate puppy love comes to light.
Wed, Apr 3, 1968
Janus Zayukovsky, a.k.a. The Gypsy, is a reformed thief. However his dog, Raffles, isn't so reformed. Raffles snatches a purse and Janus pays the price by being hauled off the jail. While Janus is behind bars, Raffles is off to fend for himself. He comes across the sisters and the children on an outing, the sisters who take him back to the convent since he has bonded with loner child Jamie. They feel that Raffles can help Jamie get out of his shell, and the Reverend Mother agrees, temporarily lifting the no animal policy at the convent. But Raffles shows his true colors to the sisters by snatching wallet after purse after briefcase. In their delivery of the purses back to their rightful owners, the sisters have a close encounter of the uncomfortable kind with a police officer, this encounter giving Raffles the opportunity to transfer the purses from the sisters' station wagon into the officer's patrol car. Sisters Bertrille and Jacqueline want to rehabilitate Raffles, but the Reverend Mother disagrees, and decides that Raffles needs to be sent to the pound pending his rightful owner contacting them within the next couple of days. Just as they are ready to send Raffles to the pound, Janus is released from jail and sees the ad the sisters have placed regarding Raffles. However when Janus gets to the convent, Jamie has run off with Raffles. But Sister Bertrille knows where to find him - in his "safe place" on the beach. The sisters tell Jamie that Janus has come to reclaim him and that they, the kids included, are going to help Janus reform Raffles. Janus ends up getting a nice place and good job and the reformation of Raffles from stealing purses and wallets, with the help of Jamie, is going well. Unfortunately Raffles has moved onto hubcaps and car curb feelers instead. The reformation will take some more work.
Wed, Apr 10, 1968
Sister Bertrille crash lands on a remote and seemingly deserted island after the wind dies on one of her flights. Unfortunately her cornette lands in the water and is torn, and she is thus stranded at least until her cornette is repaired and is dried and starched. But she is not alone as she sees a footprint in the sand. Her island mate turns out to be Carlos Ramirez, who is also stranded on the island as his date, April Chance, pushed him off his yacht when he got too fresh with her and sailed off without him. So now it's a matter of survival for the pair. They manage to build a fire and catch fish for food. But when they go in opposite directions to find fresh water, Sister Bertrille stumbles on yet another person on the other side of the island. It's April, who accidentally sank Carlos' yacht. She too is stranded. Sister Bertrille keeps the two feuding lovers apart and unknown that the other is on the island. They all individually try to repair Sister Bertrille's cornette, while the sister tries to mend the fences between the two ex-lovers. The sister's efforts fail and eventually Carlos and April see each other on the island, and their feud begins once again. It isn't until they need to bond together to save Sister Bertrille, who has fallen into quicksand, that Carlos and April end their feud and rekindle their romance. Their efforts to repair, dry and starch (using coconut milk) the cornette are eventually successful and the sister can finally fly off the island to get help.
Top-rated
Wed, Sep 25, 1968
The rock group, Sonny and the Sundowners, is appearing at Carlos' casino. Sonny is an old friend and musical partner of Sister Bertrille's when she was plain old Elsie Ethrington, and she goes to see him. He is thrilled to see her but surprised at her choice of career. When in the natural course of conversation she tells him that the convent is short of money, he suggests to her that she write a song for the group, whose last record sold more than a million copies. He will even give her an advance. Sister Bertrille is excited, and in discussion with the other sisters, they decide not to tell the Reverend Mother of the arrangement, because rock music is in her mind unbecoming and she will probably not approve of the convent making money through such. So the sisters all take on Sister Bertrille's chores while her main task is to compose. After some struggle, she comes up with a simple, pretty, acoustic song. Although the song's not quite in the tone of the Sundowners' music, Sonny likes it, but tells her he needs to tweak it to fit the Sundowners' groove. The song is to be debuted at the concert at the casino to which the sisters are invited. The day of reckoning comes for telling the Reverend Mother; but it's too late as she already knows. She approves of the arrangement and is only disappointed that they felt the need to keep this from her. She even wants to attend the concert with the other sisters. Sister Bertrille's song is the first one sung at the concert. Or is it really Sister Bertrille's song. Sonny has turned it into a psychedelic head-trip rock song. The Reverend Mother is not amused. Sister Bertrille is also not amused, but is more disappointed. She feels she can't accept the advance for the song since what Sonny and the Sundowners performed was not her song. It isn't until Sister Bertrille performs the song the way that she wrote it that the Reverend Mother understands. So does Manny Julian, Sonny's manager, who still wants to use the song and pay the sister for it. Instead of for Sonny and the Sundowners, Manny will give the song to his one other client: The Salt Lake City Boys Choir.
Wed, Oct 2, 1968
The new Captain of Police, Gaspar Fomento, is frequenting the convent's bazaar. Carlos has donated a lot to the bazaar, has won some of his donations back, and the captain has lost much. He has suspicions that the convent and Carlos are working together in a gambling ring. His suspicions increase when Sister Bertrille, in order to placate the captain, gives him back his losings from the bazaar, which the captain thinks is a bribe. To gather evidence, the captain sends in one of his assistants, Nacio, to work undercover at the convent. Nacio is working undercover of his own, as a real life bookie. When Sisters Jacqueline and Bertrille discover Nacio is taking bets at the convent, they want to warn him not to come back as they believe Captain Fomento is on to him. The captain overhears the sisters talking about horse racing and bookies, strengthening his suspicions about the illegal gambling by the sisters. Sister Bertrille goes to the race track to warn Nacio, but also to fill him in on Sister Jacqueline's expert opinions on the miserable bets that Nacio will be making. When Nacio sees Sister Bertrille fly, he figures he'd be crazy not to do what the sister tells him. In the meantime, Captain Fomento has hauled all the sisters and Carlos down to the police station to arrest them for illegal gambling. When Carlos arrives, he tells the captain that Nacio was the one doing illegal activities and was originally doing it from the police station. Before leaving San Juan for good, Nacio placed a long shot bet on one of Sister Jacqueline's picks, the bet on behalf of the convent and which paid off. The convent is $500 richer, and Chief Galindo, Captain Fomento's superior, strips Captain Fomento of his stripes due to his failure in this investigation.
Wed, Oct 9, 1968
The Temple Beth Sholom overseen by Rabbi Mendez is the only synagogue in San Juan. Rabbi Mendez has a problem. Engaged couple Alfredo Acquilar and Sophia Baldazon want to get married but the temple is too small to hold all their invited guests. So Sister Bertrille convinces all to hold the ceremony on the grounds of the convent. All is going well until Alfredo, a heavy gambler, loses his honeymoon money at Carlos' casino. Sister Bertrille wants Carlos to show Alfredo and Sophia, who happens to be his bookkeeper, some kindness and "return" the money via losing at a fixed craps game using loaded dice. Carlos is reluctant since he does run a legitimate business, but concedes as usual to Sister Bertrille wishes. She convinces Alfredo to go along with it since she says she had a premonition of him winning at something that looked liked craps. Two unfortunate things happen during the craps game. First, Alfredo refuses to stop after he wins back his honeymoon money. And second, Captain Fomento comes by the casino and finds the loaded dice. Carlos is thrown in jail. Carlos is furious with Sister Bertrille, but his anger softens when Captain Fomento drops the charges on the advice of Rabbi Mendez. So Alfredo and Sophia get married and live happily ever after. But first Carlos has to bail out Alfredo once again with the provision of his yacht as Alfredo lost the honeymoon money at yet another casino.
Wed, Oct 16, 1968
Sister Bertrille needs to see Dr. Paredes, the dentist, to have a toothache fixed, but Sister Bertrille is scared of dentists. So the Reverend Mother goes with her to hold her hand. To calm Sister Bertrille's nerves, Dr. Paredes puts her under hypnosis. However the Reverend Mother accidentally gets hypnotized at the same time. Fascinated by this, Carlos wants to see the results of the hypnosis, and as a lark, Dr. Paredes gives them a post-hypnotic suggestion: every time they hear the word "red", Sister Bertrille will act like the Reverend Mother and the Reverend Mother will act like Sister Bertrille. It works. Before Dr. Paredes needs to rush off, he fixes Sister Bertrille's tooth and brings both women out of hypnosis. However he forgets to remove the post-hypnotic suggestion. Unfortunately, this act coincides with Father Lundigan's visit to the convent, Father Lundigan the church's psychiatrist. Last Father Lundigan visited, he had a year of therapy since all the sisters tried to convince him that Sister Bertrille could fly and he thought he imagined Sister Bertrille flying outside his airborne airplane (it actually was her). Father Lundigan says "red" in front of the women, and they start acting like each other. The worse part about it is that the Reverend Mother believes she can fly as she is acting like Sister Bertrille. Father Lundigan thinks the sisters are once again going crazy and quickly rushes off back to the mainland to provide his report as such to the bishop. Just as Father Lundigan leaves, Dr. Paredes arrives to take the post-hypnotic suggestion off. Once back to their own selves, Sister Bertrille finds out from Sister Jacqueline about Father Lundigan's visit. The only thing Sister Bertrille can do to convince the Father that she can fly is to fly up to his airborne airplane, which she does. Father Lundigan sees her outside the plane, and once again will have to undergo more therapy himself.
Wed, Oct 23, 1968
By-the-book Captain Fomento is getting bored in San Tanco, a town where he says nothing exciting happens, and is thinking of resigning. He has even resorted to threatening the sisters with a ticket for their non-licensed old clothing drive, and has given citations to his own mother for jaywalking and his brother-in-law, who happens to be the police chief, for littering. To get him from not resigning, Sister Bertrille tells him that there is a crime wave at Carlos' casino: ashtrays have been stolen. Carlos actually encourages it as they have the advertising "Stolen from Casino Carlos" on them. Captain Fomento just sees Carlos as aiding and abetting thieves. Once the captain raids the casino and threatens to haul off all those with ashtrays in their possession, Carlos decides that he is going to take the Mayor of San Filipe up on his offer to move the casino there as San Filipe does not have a Captain Fomento with which to deal. Sister Bertrille, playing on Carlos' philanthropic nature toward the convent, hatches a plan to keep Carlos in San Tanco. In the captain's presence, the sisters imply that there is one building code violation after another at the convent. The captain promptly condemns the building. When Sister Bertrille tells Carlos what has happened thinking that he will stay and bail them out, Carlos seems non-plussed. In actuality, he sees through the sister's story and is touched by the act and decides to stay. Now they just have to convince the captain that the convent isn't really in a condemned state. They tell him that because they cannot afford to make all the repairs, they are selling the convent to Carlos, who will turn it into a nightclub. For the pious captain, that move would be sacrilege, and thus he overturns his own decision and declares the convent a national historical monument exempt from building code requirements.
Wed, Nov 6, 1968
Carlos will do anything to get away from Manuel, who wants Carlos to audition his step-niece by marriage for his nightclub show. Even after he sees and starts dating the beautiful Felicia, Carlos still doesn't want to audition her since he has had bad luck with Manuel's clients, and he doesn't want to ruin the his image of Felicia with what he supposes will be a horrible audition. Carlos will even help Sister Bertrille rather than audition Felicia. First, he runs off to help Sister Bertrille move the convent's newly acquired pipe organ to the convent, and second, he runs off to help move the said organ from the convent. You see, the organ is causing the convent some problems. It is an old, somewhat garish instrument whose air pump is not working properly. Once they get over that issue with the help of a blowing vacuum cleaner, the organ has a couple of glass shattering keys, in particular high-C. This final problem is just too much for the sisters to keep the organ. As Carlos rushes off to the convent for this final move, Felicia tracks him down at the convent and auditions for him right then and there, playing the organ and singing. She's very good and Carlos is mesmerized. He hires her on the spot and takes the organ off the sisters' hands for Felicia's act. However Sister Bertrille forgets to tell them about the problematic high-C key, and at the end of Felicia's act, Carlos has an unfortunate and unexpected glass bill.
Wed, Nov 13, 1968
Condorillo hawks and their eggs are outlawed by the authorities since they are considered a nuisance, especially to sugar cane farmers. However Sister Bertrille stumbles across a pair of such orphaned eggs and cannot in good conscience leave them unattended to die. She plans on hatching the eggs at the convent. This act draws mixed reactions. A couple of tourists, who see Sister Bertrille fly to get the eggs, think she's from outer space and is hatching like aliens. And Carlos uses Sister Bertrille's need for transporting her incubation equipment as an excuse to avoid Margo Richmond, a wealthy but serious women who Carlos thinks is coming to take him up on his offer to marry him (he asks all women to marry him, and all except perhaps Margo know it's a joke). He plans and gets permission to hide out at the convent. Everyone eventually descends onto the convent. First, Margo finds out Carlos is there but she in fact does not want to marry him. She is just stopping by to give him a gift of a shotgun before she heads off to her own wedding. However Carlos thinks she's there to shoot him, and he gets dressed up as a nun as a disguise and drives off. And second, Captain Fomento finds out that Sister Bertrille has the contraband eggs - which have since hatched - tipped off by the tourist couple who are with Captain Fomento in tow. When the couple see Carlos as a nun, Sister Bertrille flying again, and later Sister Bertrille with two young orphaned twins in church choir outfits, they are convinced that the alien eggs have hatched. With the captain, Sister Bertrille makes quick escape with the baby hawks before the captain finds her. She finds a nice home for her babies at the San Juan Zoo.
Wed, Nov 20, 1968
While everyone else is at a charity benefit, Sister Bertrille is alone at the convent nursing sick child Felix. She hears a news bulletin on the radio that escaped convict Ignacio Ferrante is in the vicinity of San Tanco, and she gets worried for her and Felix's safety. Captain Fomento confirms her fears about how dangerous Ferrante is. Sister Bertrille wants so much for a strong man to be around to protect her and Felix, she lets in a stranded man whose car has broke down outside the convent. Sister Bertrille isn't concerned as the man doesn't match the mustached description of Ferrante. However when the man is surprised by the presence of Felix - Sister Bertrille had told him that they were alone - the man reveals himself by pulling a gun that he is indeed a shaved Ferrante. To protect Felix, the sister tells him the gun is a toy. A complication arises when Captain Fomento comes back to the convent, he who sees the unfamiliar car. By this time, Ferrante has further disguised himself as a nun, who Sister Bertrille introduces as the Mother General, who doesn't speak due to a vow of silence. The captain discloses to Sister Bertrille and who he thinks is the Mother General the plans to capture Ferrante. The "Mother General" also asks Fomento for a gun for protection from Ferrante. With a gun-less captain, a gun in his own hands and the knowledge of what the police are up to, Ferrante reveals himself to the captain. Ferrante is certain he can escape with the sister and captain as his shields. But Fomento, fed up with his boring existence in San Tanco, stands up to Ferrante despite Ferrante having his gun. With a little help from Sister Bertrille who goes airborne which distracts Ferrante, Fomento manages to overtake Ferrante. Fomento becomes a hero for overtaking the dangerous criminal singlehandedly without a gun. It isn't until he actually hears this fact that it sinks into his head what happened. Fomento thus does only what he can do under the circumstances: faint!
Wed, Nov 27, 1968
This episode is one of misunderstandings stemming from a $5,000 donation from Juan Hernando. Juan Hernando is a former orphan of the convent before the Reverend Mother's time. He wants to show his appreciation of the convent for his growing up period. The misunderstandings start when the $5,000 check is destroyed and the sisters, who have never met Juan Hernando, try to find him so that he can write them another check. Sister Bertrille finds a Juan Hernando, who she thinks is the Juan Hernando for who she is is searching. This Juan Hernando - Honest Juan Hernando as he calls himself - is in fact not, but a crooked politician. When Sister Bertrille mentions the $5,000 donation, he misunderstands and thinks the sisters are donating to his mayoralty campaign. The next misunderstanding happens when Honest Juan Hernando tells his constituents that he is being supported by the sisters, after which the bishop reads about their support and thinks the sisters are indeed mixing religion and politics, but worse yet supporting a crook. Honest Juan Hernando finally figures out that the sisters have him confused with someone else, but fails to clear up the confusion as he figures their support will get him elected, when he can use public funds to do whatever he wants include donating $5,000 to the convent. The Reverend Mother perpetrates the next misunderstanding when the real Juan Hernando shows up at the convent, and she ultimately thinks that he is the crooked politician who was using the donation to bribe the convent for its political support. So she refuses to take his replacement check/donation. Before it's too late, all the misunderstandings are cleared up. However, the real Juan Hernando won't donate the $5,000 anymore since he agrees with the Reverend Mother that his wealth was primarily gained by dubious means. But he does ends up donating the proceeds from one legitimate business transaction, the proceeds being $100. It's better than a kick in the pants, but not by much. As for Honest Juan Hernando, the sisters make him repent for perpetrating the falsehood that he was the philanthropic Juan Hernando - they make him tell his constituents the political truth.
Wed, Dec 11, 1968
Captain Fomento has had parking meters installed in San Tanco, a move he had to convince Chief Galindo into doing. Nobody but the Captain likes the meters. Even the Chief doesn't like them as the expected revenues promised by Fomento have not materialized as someone has been stealing the money out of the meters. Fomento plants some marked coins in some meters and waits for them to materialize to flush out the thieves. Through a series of connected transactions, Sister Bertrille gets one of the coins who unwittingly passes it back to Fomento. The always suspicious Fomento doesn't suspect the sister as being the thief, that is until Sargeant Salazar witnesses her fiddling with a tampered empty meter. The sister actually saw the real crooks - the two men who sold Fomento the meters and who kept a set of keys for the meters - and airborne, she chases them down. But Galindo gets to them first, not to arrest them, but to sell the meters back to them. Next on the scene is Fomento, who wants to tell the Chief that Sister Bertrille is the thief. Next on the scene is Sister Bertrille, who implicates the real thieves. As the two thieves try to run, Fomento and Galindo chase them down, but Salazar still thinking that Sister Bertrille is the real thief, places her in handcuffs. Ultimately Fomento asks forgiveness from Sister Bertrille with gifts in hands: he has repaired the convent station wagon (which he had impounded due to missing headlights), and has a commendation from Cheif Galindo. Sister Bertrille can't stay mad.
Wed, Dec 18, 1968
There are two upcoming important events: the novices are approaching their rededication ceremony, and the Reverend Mother is attending a conference in Chicago. With the latter, she can take one travel companion, and all the sisters do extra things for the Reverend Mother in hopes that that will sway the Reverend Mother's decision in her favor. Sister Bertrille is especially hopeful as she went to school there, and desperately wants to see it again. The Reverend Mother even believes that she would be the appropriate choice, however as Chicago is the Windy City, it is too much of a risk for Sister Bertrille to go. She is sad enough about that, but it makes her realize that she needs to be able to control her flying more so than she is able, especially with the upcoming rededication ceremony with the Mother General in attendance. Consulting an aeronautical engineer, she learns that all she needs to do is to gain five pounds to ground herself. So she embarks on an eating binge. Having only gained three and a half pounds by the day of the Mother General's arrival, Sister Bertrille has to use other techniques for the extra weight: lead boots. After the Reverend Mother sees the boots, she demands that Sister Bertrille find another way. Sisters Jacqueline and Teresa rig a string pulley system to her, and everything is working fine during the ceremony, despite it being a blustery day, except the string is too short due to a miscalculation on Sister Teresa's part. But ultimately, Reverend Mother comes to the rescue. The Reverend Mother reiterates that Sister Bertrille has a special gift that must not be questioned, but rather cherished and used wisely and discretely.
Wed, Dec 25, 1968
Carlos is looking for a wife - only temporarily. His grandmother, Amalia Ramirez, is coming for a visit, and once, when it looked as if she was dying, he told her he was married with a family to make her happy. He doesn't know whether he should tell her the truth as she still has a weak heart. But thinking of a wife, he remembers back to the one who got away, namely Sister Bertrille's sister, Jennifer. When Carlos' grandmother arrives, she sees Jennifer's photo on Carlos' desk and assumes that's his wife. Telling her that Jennifer is away on vacation for a couple of weeks only makes his grandmother decide to stay in San Juan until Carlos' family returns. Carlos learns from Sister Bertrille that Jennifer is currently in Miami, and he calls her to come to San Juan on a medical emergency. Two complications arise when Jennifer arrives. First, she has a fiancé in tow. And second, Carlos' grandmother sees her. They need to extend the deception further and use two of the convent children as Carlos' kids. Things take a turn for the worse when Amalia first sees Jennifer kissing her fiancé Paul, then sees Carlos kissing one of his girlfriends, Lisa. Thinking that she is saving the children from a possible broken home, Amalia runs off with the two children, planning to take them back to Argentina with her. Sister Bertrille manages to catch up with her and the children at the airport before they take off, and finally tells her the truth. Rather than keel over and have a heart attack like Sister Bertrille expects, Amalia is relieved and happy that her grandson loves her so much as to fabricate a story just to make her happy.