Where There's Smoke

"Where There's Smoke" opens with the Evans sofa burning a hole in the cushion, and Willona demanding an explanation. First up is Michael, whose tale of attracting JJ's latest date Mandy (Brenda Sykes) is undone by blaming Thelma's cooking pot for the fire, which turns out to have been cold. Thelma's story has Mandy fascinated by her cooking, blaming JJ's lit match for the fire, despite its presence in the ashtray where it belongs. JJ's highly amusing rendition features an incredibly passionate Mandy all over him, Thelma 'the wicked witch of the kitch,' cackling over her bubbling cauldron, Michael's Bunsen burner taking the blame. The solution comes from an unexpected source, much to Willona's surprise. Already a busy movie veteran, Brenda Sykes was the latest bodacious babe to 'play house' with JJ, with Fay Hauser still to come.