Vault: We Reenact Movie Cliche Proposals

Summary

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The Bert Show – Vault: We Reenact Movie Cliché Proposals

Date: December 17, 2025
Host: Bert Show Team (Bert, Jamie, Kristin, Abby, Cassie, Tommy & Cast)
Theme: Testing the truth behind movie cliché public proposals—do spontaneous applause and scene-stealing reactions actually happen in real life?

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Main Theme / Purpose

This special "Vault" episode playfully investigates a classic romantic comedy trope: after a public proposal, does the crowd always break into joyful applause, just like in the movies? The team debates, shares personal stories, and stages their own public proposal experiment to find out if Hollywood meets reality.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Movie Proposal Clichés: Fact or Fiction?

• Context: The conversation launches from last week’s viral "Survivor" on-air proposal and the resulting eruption of applause.
• Cliché in Focus: The idea that whenever someone proposes in a public setting, spontaneous clapping and excitement automatically erupt, much like in countless TV and movie moments.

2. Real-Life Experiences with Public Proposals

• Skepticism vs. Confirmation:

  • Jamie expresses doubt, having never personally witnessed such an event despite frequenting many public places.
  • Others on the team, like Jamie and Tracy, share that they have actually witnessed such applause in real life, including at sporting events and popular hotels.

  Notable Quote:

  • "I've been out in a lot of restaurants and a lot of bars and a lot of public places and I have yet to see one of those. Have you?" – Jamie (Co-host) [01:51]
  • "I've seen more than one." – Jamie [01:59]

• Listener Call-In:

  • Laurie calls in with her own story: a meticulously planned public proposal at Cafe Lily, which did result in a round of applause and warm greetings from strangers.
  • "Everybody started clapping and cheering, taking our picture. It was absolutely wonderful. Strangers were coming over congratulating us." – Laurie [02:51]

3. The Bert Show’s LIVE Social Experiment

• The Setup:

  • Phil volunteers to stage a fake public proposal with Tracy at a busy Caribou Coffee shop, crowd of about 15 people, to see what kind of reaction unfolds in real-time.
  • The team gives Phil guidance on how to play up the moment with over-the-top declarations and authentic emotion.
  • Tracy is asked to act genuinely shocked for realism.

  Memorable Moment:

  • Suggestion for Phil to use the awkward line: "I know you're my sister," as a joke about proposal tropes.
  • "At some point during the proposal, I want you to use the sentence, I know you're my sister." – Jamie [05:58]

4. The Proposal and Reaction

• Phil’s Performance:

  • Phil stands on a chair, gathers everyone’s attention, and gives a heartfelt (albeit staged) speech recalling the “movie” style.
  • Tracy plays along, and the scene builds anticipation.

  Notable Quote (Phil’s proposal):

  "Hey, guys, if I can have y’alls attention for just two seconds. … I hate to bug y'all ... but this is my girlfriend, Tracy. I love her more than anything in the entire world ... I just want to know if you would marry me." – Phil [07:05]

• The Crowd’s Response:

  • Success! The coffee shop breaks out in applause, validating the movie trope.
  • "She said yes. They're applauded!" – Phil [07:41]
  • The team celebrates, surprised and delighted the social experiment worked so perfectly.

5. Reflecting on the Reality vs. Cinema

• The experiment suggests that, at least sometimes, real life can mirror Hollywood – strangers are often happy to join in on the joy, even if the moment is staged.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [01:45] Jamie (Co-host): "And everybody is applauding and they're starting the wave. And all the John 3:16 signs come out."
• [02:25] Phil (joking): "I told Scott to make him feel better that when we kiss, I won't use my tongue, so it'll just be a deep kiss."
• [05:58] Jamie: "At some point during the proposal, I want you to use the sentence, I know you're my sister."
• [07:05] Phil: (Public proposal monologue highlighted above)
• [07:41] Phil: "She said yes. She said yes. They're applauded."
• [08:08] Jamie (Co-host): "They're absolutely applauded."
• [08:11] Jamie (Co-host): "I just never saw any fall, right. That start with a movie cliche. Very nicely done. There you go."

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Important Timestamps

• 00:52: Topic Introduction – Testing movie cliches, specifically the spontaneous applause after public proposals.
• 01:51–03:27: Hosts and listeners share personal experiences with public proposals.
• 04:36: Plan for the live experiment at Caribou Coffee.
• 06:29: Staging instructions and comedic asides.
• 07:05–08:03: Phil executes the proposal; Tracy accepts; applause follows.
• 08:08: Hosts react and debrief the experiment.

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Summary

This episode brings The Bert Show’s signature blend of humor, authenticity, and listener engagement to full effect. By testing a time-honored rom-com cliché, the team uncovers that while life isn’t always like the movies…sometimes, when love is put on display (even as a stunt!), the world just might clap along.

Transcript

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[Knox]

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[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Hey, the bird show.

[Host]

All right.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

These movie and TV cliches, we are going to start testing these out. And the one that we're focusing on this week is. Is the spontaneous applause that always breaks out after a public wedding proposal. Just like the one that we saw on Survivor last week.

[Contestant]

If you don't mind, I'd like to say something to her.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Oh. Everybody's gonna say you came home there.

[Contestant]

In this crazy game. I've seen you at your highest high and your lowest low. And between it all, we worked together as a team to accomplish so much. And in the end, I ended up falling in love with you.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Here it comes. Listen to the crowd.

[Contestant]

I want to spend the rest of my life with. I love you with all my heart. Will you marry me?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

And everybody is applauding and they're starting the wave. And all the John 3:16 signs come out.

[Jamie]

I love you. I love you with all my heart.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Yo. Wicked beautiful.

[Jamie]

Seriously, we'll have a piss of life together.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

I've been out in a lot of restaurants and a lot of bars and a lot of public places and. And I have yet to see one of those. Have you?

[Jamie]

I've seen more than one.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

You have?

[Host]

Really?

[Phil]

Seriously.

[Jamie]

And people do break into applause. I've seen one at a baseball game.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

I don't believe it.

[Jamie]

And if. See, where did I see? I saw one Baseball game.

[Tracy]

It's up on the jumbotron.

[Jamie]

Oh, and I saw one just recently.

[Host]

We were.

[Jamie]

We were at the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas, and I think that was the hotel, and they have, like, an indoor garden, like plants with the water show. So we were in the water show, and there's this big, huge, like, marble staircase going up to maybe some. What are they called, conference rooms or something upstairs. And we saw a guy while we were in there. We saw the guy get down on the knee and propose to the girl on the steps of the. I think of Bellagio. And everybody broke into applause.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

They were filming Ocean's Twelve.

[Jamie]

And they need to get some better looking actors and actresses.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Hey, Laurie, you think you've seen this also?

[Laurie]

It happened to me.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Okay, tell me all about it.

[Laurie]

My husband took me out to dinner at Cafe Lily in Decatur, and he had it set up with. He knows the owner, had everything set up. We ordered nothing off the menu, everything. We had a seven course meal. Everything was absolutely wonderful. At the end of the dinner, we had dessert and champagne. My ring was in the bottom of the champagne glass. And he got down on one knee, proposed to me. Everybody started clapping and cheering, taking our picture. It was absolutely wonderful. Strangers were coming over congratulating us. It was. It was wonderful. It does happen.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Bert, how embarrassed would you be if, like, he gets up on a table or he gets up on a chair, which is what Phil Turan is going to do here in a couple of minutes, makes the proposal, and everybody just keeps on eating?

[Jamie]

They can't even see you.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

No one.

[Host]

Shut up.

[Phil]

You see that?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Hey, Phil.

[Phil]

Hey. What's going on, guys?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

How you doing, man?

[Phil]

Real good. I'm really nervous.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Well, it's the first time you've ever proposed to a beautiful woman.

[Phil]

Exactly.

[Jamie]

Plus, you're not used to talking to girls in general.

[Phil]

And I know her, too. And that makes it even worse. You gotta be more comfortable.

[Tracy]

I think Tracy looked visibly nervous when she left here.

[Knox]

She is.

[Phil]

She is, too. You know why?

[Tracy]

Because she's like, oh, my God, it's gonna jinx it.

[Host]

And then Scott's never gonna propose.

[Jamie]

I don't wanna make you more nervous or anything, but Scott Kinney's waiting outside your office. He said he's gonna beat your ass.

[Phil]

When you get back in. We had that discussion this weekend.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

I think Tracy even said, like, last week, her boyfriend Scott was like, I know this is all for the radio and stuff, but it's really kind of bumming me out that someone's gonna propose to you. Before I do.

[Tracy]

Are you serious?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Totally serious.

[Phil]

Well, I told Scott to make him feel better that when we kiss, I won't use my tongue, so it'll just be a deep kiss.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Atta boy. All right, so set the scene for me. Where are you guys? How many people are around?

[Phil]

Okay, actually, where we're at right now is caribou coffee, and there's actually. This is the most crowded place we found. There's about 15 people in here, and it's actually a pretty good crowd in here. And they've got some people. Some early morning business discussions, and, you know, of course, people are obviously getting their coffee and reading the paper and everything. So it's actually a good crowd. It's not a bad crowd at all.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Okay, now, is your game plan to stand up on a chair or something and publicly, you know, announce your love for Tracy and break off in a proposal at that point?

[Phil]

Well, that was my. That was my question, because, you know, they have that commercial. I think it's that jewelry commercial, where we were talking about the guy standing out in the courtyard, and he's yelling at the top of his lungs, I love this woman.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

I love this woman. And then she whispers in his ear.

[Jamie]

I love this man.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Come on.

[Jamie]

So, yeah, that's your next studies. I want you to go to a busy place where there's a lot of pigeons and yell out, and I want to see if they all fly off in unison.

[Phil]

So do you want me to make a big scene and get everybody's attention?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Well, yes. I think you have to be on a chair and say something like, excuse me. Excuse me, blah, blah, blah, and then profess your love for Tracy. You got to say something sweet to get a everybody on your side. And then you say, that's why I want to spend the rest of my life with you. And you get on a knee and blah, blah, blah. Does that sound right?

[Tracy]

Yeah, sounds about right. Tell her she needs to look shocked, like, it's a total surprise right now.

[Phil]

She's reading the paper. She has no interest in me whatsoever right now.

[Jamie]

And at some point during the proposal, I want you to use the sentence, I know you're my sister.

[Tracy]

And, Phil, don't break character. Like, don't start laughing in the middle of it.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Yeah, man, you gotta be serious.

[Phil]

Yeah, well, that's one thing I told her. I was like, as I'm doing this, I'm gonna try really hard to look you in the eye, but I might have to kind of stare over your head.

[Tracy]

Just pretend it's intern Jen There you go.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Put intern Jen's on. Tracy's behind.

[Jamie]

You.

[Phil]

Remember that I retract that earlier tongue comment.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

All right, the floor is yours, man. Go for it. All right, again, we are testing the movie and TV cliche that a public wedding proposal will always get a big round of applause.

[Jamie]

Jen, you know it's not real, right?

[Tracy]

I was just, like, all of a.

[Host]

Sudden kind of nervous.

[Jamie]

She's tearing up over there. Oh, God.

[Phil]

I hope she said.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

Yeah, she was mouthing to Melissa. I'm really nervous.

[Tracy]

Damn. I don't know what I think. I just got nervous for Phil that he's gonna have to be publicly embarrassed in front of all these people, but go ahead, honey.

[Jamie]

That's a stretch for him.

[Knox]

Yeah.

[Phil]

All right, y' all ready? Hey, guys, if I can have yalls attention for just two seconds. Just give me just one second. I hate to bug y'.

[Host]

All.

[Phil]

I know y' all are in the middle of coffee and getting ready for work and everything, but this is my girlfriend, Tracy. I love her more than anything in the entire world. And it's kind of special. We had our first date here, and I just want y' all to know how much I love this girl right now. And I'm so in love with her, I can't even see straight. And so I have a question I want to ask you. I'm shaking. I'm sorry. I'm shaking. Traci, the past four years have been the best four years of my entire life. And I love you so much. You are my everything. You are my best friend. When I go to bed at night. I love having you there beside me when I wake up in the morning.

[Knox]

I love.

[Phil]

I. You start my day off great just by knowing you're. You're beside me. You make me want to be a better person, and I love you so much, and I just want to know if you would marry me. Come here. Come here. She said yes. She said yes. They're applauded.

[Host]

Thank you.

[Jamie]

Thank you.

[Phil]

Appreciate it, guys.

[Host]

Thank you.

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

They're absolutely applauded.

[Jamie]

Why did you think they wouldn't?

[Jamie (or Co-host)]

I just never saw any fall, right. That start with a movie. Cliche. Very nicely done. There you go. Hey, the bird show.

[Host]

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[Knox]

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[Phil]

So good, so good, so good.

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