New Year's Eve

"New Year's Eve" is the eleventh episode and mid-season premiere from Season 4 of Modern Family, it aired on January 9, 2013.
== Summary ==
Jay has planned for the whole family to celebrate New Year's together at this great hotel in Palm Springs. However, when the hotel turns out to be less than stellar, everyone starts to branch off to do their own thing, leaving Jay dejected, that is until he runs into Billy Dee Williams. Meanwhile back at home, Haley and Alex watch over the kids, which proves to be quite a challenge.
==Plot==
Jay has a great idea for New Year's, besides never again eating the grapes Gloria has at midnight and makes a wish. He's taking Gloria, Phil, Claire, Cameron, and Mitchell to Palm Springs to a hotel he used to frequent that had a wonderful New Year's package. The kids? Haley has volunteered to take care of them, mainly because she doesn't want to go to any parties and hear how awesome college is from her friends. Phil and Claire are happy to put her in charge. Translation: Alex is in charge, who doesn't have any parties to go to and thank you for reminding her. But at least Lily is relieved that Alex was in charge.
Oh, in case you were wondering, Jay was last at the hotel in Palm Springs around 1974-1975. And the hotel didn't look like it had been upgraded since that time, even though the pictures in the brochure looked beautiful. Phil and Claire weren't too impressed with their room, but the bellhop told them there was a secluded hot spring nearby. 
Claire has brightened up at that, since it has been at least a month since she...you know. Phil has thought that it would be rude to ditch her father, but Claire has talked him into it, saying that she didn't want to hear Cam and Mitch talk about how Lily saved the kid who was choking on his gum. Mitchell and Cameron have a similar idea, given a hot gay nightclub isn't far from the hotel. And again, the Pritchett in the family is enthusiastic about it, and the one married to the Pritchett was thinking about disappointing Jay. Plus, Cam would have to be the one to fake a stomach cramp. But that beat hearing the same story from Claire about how Luke gives the pediatrician the funniest one-liners.
Back at home, Haley isn't all that up for playing The Hunger Games with everybody else. But Luke has other plans for the evening. Her name is Becca. And Manny was suddenly his wingman to Becca's cousin, Joyce. And yes, their introduction went as well as wingman introduction go. It doesn't. But Becca has no problem ditching Joyce to go to Luke's room. Haley and Alex are confused, to say the least. They don't think that they should go up, but then they wouldn't be doing their job as babysitters. Lily is just walking into the house right then would tend to lean towards the latter. Haley and Alex go up to Luke's room, but they try a compromise, saying he had to leave his door open, which creeps out Luke because he thinks they want to watch him make out with Becca. That round goes to Luke. And Joyce's snotty attitude finally gets Manny ticked off. Even Lily said she was being mean.
MANNY: I'm not going to start the New Year with this kind of negativity. By the way, if you're hungry for broccoli later, there's a piece stuck between your teeth.
Sure enough, Phil and Claire are telling Luke stories, and it is actually putting Gloria to sleep. Mitch and Cam get even more upset when Claire pulls the fake sickness out before they can. Fortunately, Gloria can't seem to wake up, so Jay takes her up to the room, hoping he can still have some Cherries Jubilee with the family. By the time he gets back, they ditch him. But he'll still take the Cherries Jubilee.
Cam and Mitch make it to the Beacon, where they can't get waited on by the bartender; they are the only ones who are wearing shirts, and get hit in the face by some underwear while they are dancing. And not dry underwear, either. Claire has bemoaned the fact it has been over a month since they have had sex.
CLAIRE: Day after Thanksgiving. I remember because I came in under budget on all of my Christmas gifts and you know how that gets me going.
PHIL: Ah, yeah. I remember. I made that joke about your clothes being half off.
CLAIRE: And yet, we still did it!
Claire is losing it. She doesn't want them to turn into a couple where they have twin beds and he starts calling her 'mother' and...that's as far as she got when Phil laid a kiss on her. And they go to find the hot spring to go have sex. And it has worked great, until the Nude Year's Eve party going on in the hot spring. (Yes, I spelled that right.)
Meanwhile, Jay is ready to call it a night, but Gloria is snoring in the New Year. Thankfully, there is a poker game going on with Billy Dee Williams as Billy Dee Williams. He is glad that there is someone at the poker table that has seen one of his movies that came out after Mahogany. Actually, Jay has enjoyed that one...well, Mitchell forced him to watch it.
As for Cam and Mitchell, they have decided to keep trying until they have found a place because they want to feel young. And they have found a gay bar for the octogenarian crowd. Well, at least they have felt young.
On the good side, Joyce apologizes for her behavior and is having a good time with Manny. Joyce thinks that he was such a good friend for boosting her self-esteem, and Manny is suddenly ticked that he has ended up in the friend lane. He coldly drops her and Luke starts having his own problems with Haley and Alex. But give Haley credit; she has correctly guessed Becca's parents and didn't know that there are no adults in the Dunphy house at the moment and got the boot. Luke lashes out at Haley, but Alex takes Haley's side. Luke storms out, saying that he hates her.
HALEY: You hate me now, but someday you'll thank me! (click!) I think I owe Mom a huge apology!
LILY: (covered in makeup and jewelry) Is anybody watching me?
Jay's night is a lot of fun, and he has even said so. With Gloria right behind him. Billy Dee Williams has introduced himself to Gloria. (GLORIA: Nice to meet you, I'm Gloria Dee Wife.) Despite Jay's excuse everybody has ditched him, Gloria has needed her dozen grapes for her midnight tradition. Billy has offered to take them to his house, since every night was New Year's. Billy had actually heard of this tradition since he did that episode of The Love Boat with Charo. Gloria had seen Billy's Rolls Royce Corniche. (GLORIA: In my village, if you didn't drive one of these, you couldn't consider yourself a drug lord!) Billy let her drive it.
Everybody has made the best of the New Year, including Jay, Gloria, and Billy Dee Williams watching the L.A. Fireworks from high above the city.
HALEY: New Year's is so weird. The way it makes you think about time. I think that's why people put so much pressure on themselves to have fun. I guess I sort of get it. Like right now, I just wish I could slow down time. Because I am so not ready for him to grow up yet.
ALEX: Me, too. I just want him to stay our stupid little brother.
They enjoy their drinks as midnight hits. Well, Haley does. Alex isn't sure what is in her drink, but Haley has given her the wrong drink.
Best of all, now everybody has new stories to tell.
==Main Cast ==
(The characters striked out do not appear in this episode)
* Jay Pritchett
* Gloria Pritchett
* Manny Delgado
* Claire Dunphy
* Phil Dunphy
* Haley Dunphy
* Alex Dunphy
* Luke Dunphy
* Mitchell Pritchett
* Cameron Tucker
* Lily Tucker-Pritchett
==Guest Starring==
*Lainie Kazan as Eleanor
*Billy Dee Williams as Himself
*Brielle Barbusca as Joyce
*Paris Smith as Becca
*Clint Tauscher as Male Nudist
*Lyle Kanouse as Hugo
*Khali MacIntyre as Female Nudist
*Hansford Rowe as Bugs
*Kevin Kirkpatrick as Robby
*William Dennis Hunt as Elderly Gentleman
*Guerin Barry as Waiter
*Hamilton Mitchell as Older Bartender
*Justin James Hughes as Hot Bartender
==Trivia==
*Haley's expulsion from college is somehow indirectly mentioned ("Arrested").
* This is the only episode where the action takes place during New Year's Eve.
* This is the second episode in which an actor plays himself.
* This is the first episode to be broadcasted in 2013.
* This episode has no recurring characters.
* The scene where Haley and Alex suggest Luke keep his door open is a reference to the pilot where Claire suggests the door be open to not give Haley and Dylan privacy.
* Despite the title, the episode did not actually air on New Years Eve. It aired on January 9th.
==Cultural References==
*Jay talks about the Billy Dee Williams film Mahogany. His The Love Boat appearance with Charo is mentioned.
*Mitch is compared to Van Johnson.
*Haley calls Luke's date "Nicole Bitchie", a reference to Nicole Ritchie.
==Continuity==
*Alex mentions "walking in" from "Caught in the Act".
*This episode aired six years before A Moving Day.
==Gallery==
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Category:Episodes
Category:Season 4
Category:Content