A Partridge By Any Other Name
Preparing for a Canadian tour the Family must have their birth certificates. The attic produces certificates for all except Danny, his is not to be found. When introduced to the Family, booking agent Marty Burns jokingly refuses to believe Danny is a Partridge, "not with that hair and those ears," and Danny is convinced he is an adopted child. Shirley tries hard to talk him out of his belief, but Reuben and the others, in trying to kid Danny about his origin, only confirm his opinion he is not a Partridge. At the hospital where all the others were born Danny finds there is no record of his birth. Heartbroken, he refuses to believe Shirley's story that he was born unexpectedly while the family was on a picnic and thus missed the "regular" hospital. On a return visit to the hospital Danny learns the name of the one male child born there on his birthday, a son to a Mr. & Mrs. Young. The phone book provides the names of all the M. Youngs in the city and Danny takes off to find his parents. There ensues a series of very strange confrontations between Danny and his "father." One, Mike Young, a construction worker and single, tells Danny he would have had to be born in Korea. Then Danny meets a priest; an old man wielding an ear trumpet; a widow who produces a ten year old M. Young, and catches with another in the cemetery. Meanwhile, Shirley and Reuben have contacted the hospital and learned what Danny was doing. They find him at the last address on his list and watch while he rings the doorbell, which is answered by a handsome young black man. Later, a happy Danny admits he has made two mistakes; one, thinking he was adopted and two, not realizing that to be adopted by the Partridge Family would be the greatest compliment anyone could ever be paid.
