"Portrait of the Artist as a Young Milo" is the first segment of the twenty-third episode of Pepper Ann. It aired on December 12, 1998.
Synopsis[]
For the first time in his life, Milo suffers a mental block when he tries to come up with an entry for the Dental Hygienapalooza Poster Contest.
Plot[]
Milo is well respected across Hazelnut for his artistic sensibilities to the point that with the upcoming Dental Hygienapalooza Poster Contest, everyone knows that he will be the winner. However, as he sits down to come up with the art piece, he works all through the night and realizes that he hit an artist's block. He explains his dilemma to Pepper Ann and Nicky who are only mildly concerned. Pepper Ann was chosen to be a judge for the contest over Nicky who believes that Nurse Oomla is out to get her (she said she had mild plaque build up).
Pepper Ann tries to discreetly help Milo (she is not allowed to), though he keeps running into problems, such as recreating the Mona Lisa, though Pepper Ann mistakes it for the new cafeteria lady. Milo tries to go back to where he had his first breakthrough at a frozen food section, but is forced to warm up in a sauna. He tries to suffer for his art by freeing lobsters, but this excursion fails as well with Nicky trying to encourage him to not give up. He decides to meet one of his favorite current living artists, Mark Hamill, but has him confused for Dorothy Hamill.
On the brink of giving up, Milo walks around town to look at all of his artwork when he is suddenly inspired by one of his own quotes. He runs back to Pepper Ann and Nicky and tells them that they were both wrong in their efforts to help him. Rather than trying to please other people based on his reputation, he simply needed to do his art for the sake of doing art. Prior, he had never felt pressured. Pepper Ann and Nicky congratulate him on coming to this conclusion and as they leave, the cafeteria lady is revealed to honestly look like Mona Lisa.
Cast[]
- Kathleen Wilhoite as Pepper Ann Pearson
- Jeff Bennett as Dieter Liederhosen, Additional voices
- Danny Cooksey as Milo Kamalani
- Clea Lewis as Nicky Little
- Pamela Adlon as Additional Voices
- Don Lake as Sherman Finky
- Mark Hamill as Himself
Desk Gag[]
"Wow, a dreidel!"
Trivia[]
- Pepper Ann is revealed to know Morse code.
- Pepper Ann noticeably takes a more supporting role in this episode.
- Milo claims to have gotten inspired to do art when he was a child after coming across the frozen foods section and seeing bags of fish sticks. However, in "The Way They Were", he gained his artistic expertise after Nicky gave him her beanie.
