Seasons & episodes

S6 · E2The Rainbow 1980-09-13 · 30 min＋

Elisa has trouble accepting mixed-race children, especially when Kim, the gang's other classmate is the son of an interracial couple. She avoids interacting with him and runs off rather than play games with the group. She wanders into the old garment factory, which is condemned and winds up in danger. Kim and Fat Albert are able to enact a rescue and Elisa is able to learn a valuable lesson.

S6 · E3The Secret 1980-08-20 · 30 min＋

Beau and Francie are brother and sister. However, Beau lets it slip that Francie was adopted by their parents. After she confronts them, the parents indeed admit they adopted her when she was a baby. Francie is distraught and runs away, only to wind up in danger as she falls into a river and will get pulled into a drain tunnel. Beau and Fat Albert are able to save her in time and the family reunite proving that they love their daughter no matter what.

The gang is impressed with the number of material items Steve and Claudia have, giving them the impression they're rich. However, when Fat Albert investigates, he learns the twin siblings are routine shoplifters, stealing the various items from department stores and selling them to other kids. Fat Albert later notifies their parents, who indeed find some of the stolen items in their rooms. The twins think they'll never be caught. But when a stockboy is arrested, accused of being the thief, they feel guilty and confess their crimes to the store manager.

The gang's friend Richard has a tendency to "borrow" his uncle's car and gives them joyrides throughout town. He then takes a neighbor's car out while he's away, giving the gang another joyride. However, this leads to danger as their ride gets out of control and the car winds up in a lake. Fat Albert arrives in the nick of time to rescue them. As a result, Richard has to face the consequences with the police, his parents, and the neighbor who owns the car.

Weird Harold develops a gambling habit and tries to convince the gang to bet in a horse race. When they initially decline to contribute, Harold becomes an errand boy for Sheldon, a hustler, who promises to pay him. He's able to convince the others to join him, but Fat Albert refuses as he tries to talk sense into the gang. When the gang's sure bet loses, Weird Harold has to face the consequences for his actions as Sheldon has already since he was thrown in jail for his scams.

The gang's classmate Patty was a straight-A student until she fell into the drug scene and now gets regularly high on marijuana. When the gang meets her drug pusher, Rudy is tempted to try it himself, but has a change of heart when he sees Patty in danger. He and Fat Albert are able to save her. They and a police officer meet with Patty's parents about her problem and she agrees to help get the pusher arrested, which is the first step on her road to recovery.

The gang's friend Shawn thinks he's cool by carrying around his father's gun. All are impressed except Fat Albert, who goes to his parents in an effort to stop him. Though the gun is usually unloaded, Rudy finds a bullet which enables Shawn to use it for target practice. But a near tragedy occurs when the gun backfires, severely injuring his hand. Fortunately, his father had medical training which helps to save his son. As a result, the gang learns a valuable lesson.

Rosita is a shy Mexican-American girl in the gang's class. Rudy ridicules her for her halting English, prompting her to miss class for a couple of days. When Fat Albert tries to intervene, they're interrupted when a fellow Hispanic has an emergency kitchen fire. With quick thinking and communication, they're able to put out the fire with little damage. Back at school, Miss Wucher assigns a project for the kids aimed at illustrating that they all have a heritage of which to be proud. Rosita is surprised the gang know of famous Mexican figures in history after returning to class and interacting with the gang again, eventually getting the last laugh on Rudy.

The gang's friends, Arden and Baron, are so in love with each other, they want to drop out of school and get married as soon as possible. At first, they don't care what others think, but then begin to have second thoughts when Arden realizes she won't be able to go to the high school prom or get her diploma. Then Fat Albert has Baron meet Mudfoot, who introduces him to Ellen, a woman just a few years older than Baron. She and her husband Joey rushed into marriage around his age, but once on their own, had trouble finding steady jobs, paying their bills, weren't able to keep their new car, and couldn't even afford a phone once their daughter was born. These factors help Arden and Baron reconsider their decision and now choose to wait to see how things will turn out to better prepare them for life as adults.

Fat Albert has doubts about the ability of his friends Cosgrove and Doreen to accept the responsibility of owning a new puppy. Sure enough, instead of taking little Freddie for a much-needed walk, they leave him unattended in the kitchen and he runs off to play. Poor Freddie escapes through the window and ends up on the highway, becoming endangered by the heavy traffic. Luckily, Fat Albert is able to call the police, who are able to save the puppy in time. After the big scare, Cosgrove and Doreen learn a hard lesson about responsibility.

The gang goes on a camping trip to Cedar Lake where they meet some new people. Along the way, Fat Albert takes a particular interest in Janine, a pretty girl, and brags about his knowledge of water safety, only to find himself embarrassed when he learns she's the camp's main lifeguard, who knows more about safety than he thinks. The two get along and she makes him her assistant lifeguard. Eventually, their teamwork comes in handy when Rudy's prank on Russell backfires, leading both to jeopardy. After the narrow rescue, the gang and their new friends get a firsthand lesson in water safety.

After her father died, Buffy's mother recently started dating again and Mr. Haney is becoming more involved in their lives, much to Buffy's reluctance. She becomes further resistant when they announce they'll be getting married. Buffy runs away from home and hides out at the amusement park, even though it's closed. She winds up in danger as the gang tracks her down. Fortunately, Mr. Haney is able to save her in time and Buffy is willing to accept him as part of the family.

The gang's friend Melinda tells them of a group she's taken interest to known as Double Cross. However, they don't care for Fat Albert and company because they're not of the same ethnic background. Mudfoot introduces Fat Albert to a rabbi who tells him of the tough life he had when the Nazis invaded his homeland. Later, Fat Albert confronts George, the Double Cross leader about his racism. Then late at night, George tries to vandalize a Jewish synagogue before he slips and gets himself in danger. Fat Albert and the police are able to mount a rescue, and George is arrested for his vandalism. Afterward, Melinda learns her lesson about who the true special people are in her life.

Greta is a teenage runaway who steals the gang's television and sells it to get what little money she can. Fat Albert tries to help Greta change her ways and Mudfoot tells her the story of Hansel and Gretel in hopes she'll return home to her family. Greta eventually runs afoul of a gang who plan on stealing some bicycles. Fat Albert comes to her aid at the train yard despite the odds. Luckily, Weird Harold gets the police at the scene to rescue them in the nick of time. After her close call, Greta makes a much-needed phone call to her mother, eventually taking the first steps to return home.

Fat Albert and the gang meet Marcus, a good athlete who's recently moved into the neighborhood. They invite him to play in an upcoming father/son baseball game, but he's reluctant to go, mentioning his father is out of town. But the true reason is revealed when he shows up after all, and everyone sees him drunk. It's eventually learned that Marcus' father in an alcoholic. Marcus and his sister Michelle run away from home to avoid the problem. After initially getting into danger, they go to the gang's clubhouse where Fat Albert convinces them to go to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. There, they learn not to be ashamed or angry of their father and decide to return home to help their mother face the situation in hopes they can get him to recovery.

The gang stays after school to learn about CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation), but Rudy ditches the class early to focus more on basketball. When Mudfoot stops by, he joins him in practice and gives his usual advice on the importance of education. Shortly afterward, he has a heart attack and Rudy is unable to help. Luckily, the gang leaving CPR class, is able to intervene with Fat Albert giving Mudfoot CPR while others call the paramedics. Mudfoot recovers and Rudy learns an important lesson, deciding to take the CPR class to be better prepared.

The boys go to a Neighborhood Watch meeting after a burglary at Dumb Donald's house.

Bill devises a new form of entertainment when the clubhouse TV breaks.

An accident foils the boys' plan to enter Rudy's new bike in a big race.

Mudfoot offers to help when the boys enter a battle of the bands.

A police officer offers kids at school safety tips, but Hank was not listening.

A field trip is canceled because of the expense of covering over graffiti painted on a school wall. In order to recoup the money, the gang takes on a city project to paint a patriotic mural on a city building.

Larry is a car thief who impresses the gang by saying he knows how the police work. However, accepting a ride from Larry to the pool leads to trouble when Larry realizes John Law has other ideas up his sleeve. The gang is frightened of what they see in the jailhouse and a police sergeant sentences them to one-minute imprisonment, showing they could have a much longer time behind bars if they are not more careful who they associate with.

The kids contribute to the school's rummage sale. The gang is concerned some of the older stuff will not sell, but Rudy uses slick ways to sell their entire selection. One of the teachers shows Rudy the effects of his actions by giving him a faulty device that ruins his hat versus that shown in a glitzy TV commercial. The lesson is not over, as Rudy, Fat Albert and the others must also head the harbor when Rudy realizes he sold a faulty raft to a boy who cannot swim.