Designing Women

- Season 7

(1992)

Allison has pulled out of Sugarbaker & Associates to invest in a Victoria's Secret franchise, leaving the firm's future in doubt. Their newest client, Bonnie Jean "B.J." Poteet, a multimillionaire widow from Houston, Texas, forms a friendship with them as she promises an unlimited budget. During a party in the bondage room, which the house's former owners set up, Julia loses her share in a game of Five Card Stud, but B.J. offers her a chance to win it back.

Dwayne Dobber returns and asks to stay in Carlene's apartment. Carlene rebuffs his advances, so he stays in Anthony's bedroom. He and Carlene end up in bed together.

Julia plans to participate in another fashion show, despite the enduring legacy of "Full Moon Friday." Mary Jo writes a letter to protest the school board's cuts to AIDS education program under pressure, then gets angry when Julia rewrites it. The tension explodes behind the scenes at the fashion show.

Quinton wants to live with his father, which breaks Mary Jo's heart. Tired of being the "bad guy," she asks B.J. to show her how to be more spontaneous. She suggests going on a road trip, which leads Mary Jo, Julia and Bernice to a truck stop in Tennessee where Bernice makes eyes at a trucker.

Julia has started menopause, so she warns her co-workers and her boyfriend Philip, a symphony conductor, to be aware of changes in her behavior.

Anthony is frustrated with his fiancée Vanessa. After she calls off the engagement, B.J. takes everyone to Las Vegas in her jet. While Julia and Mary Jo hit a hot streak at the craps table, Anthony watches the showgirls at the Folies Bergere and falls for the lead singer, Etienne Toussaint. After the women hit it big, they find Anthony and Etienne in bed. When Anthony wakes up, he learns they got married while drunk on champagne.

While Mary Jo becomes addicted to the thrill of victory after winning $20,000 at the craps table, Bernice suspects Etienne's motives. Anthony tries to get out of the marriage, but Etienne insists on staying together, while promising to be a good wife. B.J. suggests a monetary incentive to buy her off.

B.J. opens her late husband's safety deposit box and finds a love letter from a woman named Carolyn, written when he and B.J. got engaged.

As Anthony feels overwhelmed by the need to balance Etienne's flirtatious nature with work and school, she tells him she wants to have a baby. He asks the women for advice on how to deal with her.

Mary Jo's next door neighbor, Anita Foley, sues her over a freezer. Carlene suggests that Anthony help Mary Jo in court. After his extensive research costs her the case and causes him to break down, Anthony doubts he is fit to become a lawyer.

While Carlene gets a chain letter, Mary Jo dates a commercial model named Craig. He's not very bright, leading the others to make fun of him behind their backs.

Everyone is planning to fly to Washington in one of B.J.'s jets to see Bill Clinton's inauguration-even though Carlene voted for Ross Perot-but after the jet is grounded, they must fly commercial. Their flight is re-routed from Cincinnati to St. Louis because of weather, and everything goes downhill from there. Meanwhile, Carlene leaves the airport to visit her family in Poplar Bluff.

Mary Jo's dog Brownie may have to be put to sleep. When Bernice is recovering from cataract surgery, Mary Jo calls the vet to hear a grim prognosis for the dog, but Bernice overhears it and believes it is she who is going to be put to sleep.

Anthony's grandma Dondi and Etienne's bickering parents come to visit. Julia suggests the two of them renew their wedding vows while they are visiting.

Julia insists they go to an exhibition of the works of Nigel McFeeney, an artist she knew from the Art Institute in New York, without her. She goes anyway only to end up embarrassed when Carlene discovers the reason for her initial apprehension: his nude painting of her. Julia denies posing for him and is horrified by it, so B.J. tries to buy it.

BJ was feeling bad about another birthday and changes her hair, but the hair style just adds to her depression. Julia decides to set her up on a blind date with a really nice guy.

Mary Jo's snow shovel has the face of Elvis Presley on it, which leads fans to the office to see it. A promoter contacts her in order to exploit the shovel, offering her a 50/50 profit split. Julia convinces her not to do it, but when Mary Jo grabs Weird Phil, who found it, and tells him to go away, Phil's ear ringing goes away, which leads him to believe she is a miracle worker.

Etienne's friend visits and it seems that Etienne and "Punch" have so much in common and share many memories. Anthony gets jealous and tries to be gracious about their friendship.

The Sugarbakers get a surprise visit from Julia's former school mistress, whom Julia cannot stand. The woman says that her deceased husband told her to visit Julia. Julia decides to hold a séance which might get the woman to leave.

Carlene has a new boyfriend who seems to good to be true. However, everyone notices that he seems to be unavailable three nights a week and wonder why. A little snooping, and they find out something unusual.

The ladies try to stop a client from remodeling an antebellum mansion to suit her own bad tastes; it reminds them of their favorite movie "Gone With the Wind."

The show's seven-year run comes to a close as the ladies continue to imagine themselves in "Gone with the Wind."