The Goldbergs

Adam's bedroom wall in "Schmoopie's Big Adventure"

"Daddy Daughter Day"

"You Opened the Door"

"You're Not Invited"

"I Drank the Mold"

"Jackie Likes Star Trek"

"Adam Spielberg"

"Adam Spielberg"

"Game Night"

"Pretty in Pink"

The Goldbergs is a 2013 ABC sitcom set in the 1980s, based on creator Adam Goldberg's family.

The series launched a spinoff in 2019, Schooled, which focuses on the faculty of the Goldberg children's high school some years later.

References

• Wendi McLendon-Covey appeared in a pair of promotional spots for The Muppets, representing the cast of The Goldbergs and name-dropping the show in a promo with Gonzo.

Mentions

• Throughout the series, Adam's bedroom wall has a Dark Crystal poster and the Miss Piggy Calendar 1982, which is set to the particular month the episode originally airs.

Season One

• "Daddy Daughter Day" — A 1976 Muppet Show lunchbox is shown when Beverly Goldberg wants to pack Adam's lunch in it.

• "Who Are You Going to Telephone?" — Barry Goldberg's Hulk costume is mistaken for Oscar the Grouch at a Halloween party.

• "You Opened the Door" — Murray Goldberg uses Fraggle Rock puppets of Mokey and Boober in an attempt to teach Barry about sex.

• "You're Not Invited" — Adam states that he wants a Bert and Ernie cake for his birthday. Beverly later comes in with one.

Season Two

• "Big Baby Ball" — in a rapid fire list of answers to Trivial Pursuit questions meant for kids, Barry's answers include "Cookie Monster".

• "A Goldberg Thanksgiving" — A montage of balloons from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is shown, including the original Kermit the Frog balloon.

• "The Most Handsome Boy on the Planet" — Murray complains about waiting in line to see E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, saying it's "just about a puppet." Adam responds: "Is Fozzie Bear just a puppet? Is ALF just a puppet? Is Yoda just a puppet?"

• "I Drank the Mold" — Beverly is seen with a Kermit the Frog-shaped birthday cake for Adam. Later, Adam is seen filming his own version of The Swedish Chef at the episode's end (a re-production of an old home movie of the real Adam Goldberg).

Season Three

• "Jimmy 5 is Alive" — Coach Meller refers to Adam as "that weird kid with the Muppet voice" and "Muppet Boy."

• "Couples Costume" — Pops mistakes a child's Kermit the Frog Halloween costume for "Herman the Frog." He then tells the child, "Wakkity, wakkity!"

• "The Tasty Boys" — Developing a rap group, Adam suggests their signature style be based on the Fraggles. He recommends Barry dress as Boober, Geoff as Wembley and then debates over being a Doozer or a Gorg.

• "Lainey Loves Lionel" — Erica claims that Barry's attempted sculpture of Lainey looks like "someone sat on a puppet from The Dark Crystal."

• "12 Tapes for a Penny" — Adam's claim to be a badass is immediately contradicted when Beverly calls him down to watch Muppet Babies. Later, one of Adam's fake aliases to get cheap tapes from Columbia House is "Kermit D. Fonz." The package contains a cassette of The Songs of Fraggle Rock.

• "Magic is Real" — Erica tells Adam that her celebrity heartthrobs are set apart from him in that they "don't cry at The Muppet Movie." Adam responds, "If 'Rainbow Connection' doesn't move you to tears, then you're not alive!"

Season Four

• "Recipe for Death II: Kiss the Cook" — Dave Kim lists off "Fraggles" among Adam's nerdy obsessions.

• "Han Ukkah Solo" — Adam tears down a Jaws poster, and crumples it into a Kermit waste basket. "I'm going down stairs to find a trash can for men!" The Miss Piggy Calendar 1982, turned to December, can be seen next to the poster.

• "So Swayze It’s Crazy" — Adam uses an Animal puppet in a dramatic scene for his acting reel.

• "Fonzie Scheme" — A Red Fraggle doll is seen in the Goldberg's basement.

• "Jedi Master Adam Skywalker" — Uncle Marv describes the film Gremlins, claiming the title creatures are "little Muppets."

Season Five

• "Jackie Likes Star Trek" — Adam's girlfriend Jackie is shown giving him a homemade Beaker puppet. The TV behind him shows a scene from The Muppet Show episode 514.

• "Adam Spielberg" — Adam briefly recreates a scene from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial by hiding in Erica's closet, surrounded by toys. Among them are an Animal puppet, Uncle Traveling Matt and Gobo dolls and the makeshift Beaker puppet from "Jackie Likes Star Trek." Later in the episode, Johnny Atkins shows off his collection of bootleg videotapes, including a tape labeled "Sesame Street Ep. 847."

Season Six

• "The Wedding Singer" — A poster for The Muppets Take Manhattan appears on Adam's bedroom wall.

• "The Beverly Goldberg Cookbook" — A clip of The Swedish Chef from The Muppet Show episode 514 is shown at the beginning during a channel surf of television cooking shows.

• "I Lost on Jeopardy!" — Andy says "Yellow is the color of our enemy and Big Bird."

• "Mom Trumps Willow" — Erica says Barry practiced kissing on a Miss Piggy puppet.

Season Seven

• "Game Night" - Adam is seen wearing a Gonzo t-shirt.

• "Dave Kim's Party" - Pops mentions that a party he once threw "went Gonzo." Adam claims Gonzo is one of his favorite Muppets. Pops advises him not to discuss Muppets at an upcoming party.

• "Pretty in Pink" - Adam wears a Dark Crystal t-shirt.

Season Eight

• "Dee-Vorced" - Brea tells Adam she loves him more than Cookie Monster loves cookies.

Season Ten

• "Another Turkey Trot" - Pop-Pop remarks on the size of Beverly's Thanksgiving turkey, "Whoa, are we eating that yellow dingbat from Sesame Street?"

Schooled

• "I'll be There for You" - CB tries to stop Glascott from dissecting a frog by imitating Kermit the Frog saying "I play the banjo and I'm in love with Miss Piggy." Wilma tells him, "This frog is not Kermit, Kermit's not even Kermit, he's felt on a man's hand."
• "Principal for a Day" - Jessica says Gina would call her "Miss Piggy" because of her baby fat, to which Marni says she snorts when she laughs.

Connections

• Kirstie Alley played Janice Bartlett in "Food in a Geoffy"
• Diedrich Bader played Lou in "The Lost Boy"
• Charles Barkley played Coach Green in "The Pina Colada Episode"
• Rowan Blanchard played Jackie Geary (2017-2018)
• Michael Bunin played a cranky customer in "The Goldbergs: 1990-Something"
• Jackie Geary played Mrs. Geary in a handful of episodes
• Judd Hirsch plays Ben "Pop Pop" Goldberg
• Hulk Hogan played himself in "WrestleMania"
• Melissa Joan Hart directed "Hail Barry" and "Parents Thursday", played Elaine in "Angst-Giving", and directed the Schooled episode "Lainey's Mom"
• Jennifer Irwin plays Virginia Kremp, and served as a part of the writing/story team in seasons 5 and 6
• Richard Kind plays Formica Mike
• Nia Long played Lucy Somers in "The Goldbergs: 1990-Something"
• Jon Lovitz played Jimmie Moore in "The Wedding Singer"
• Wendi McLendon-Covey plays Beverly Goldberg
• Rick Moranis played the voice of Dark Helmet in "Spaceballs"
• Donielle Muransky served on the production staff for season three, then the writing staff for season six, and a story editor and writer for Schooled
• Patton Oswalt narrates as the voice of adult Adam Goldberg
• Rhea Perlman played Margo Letien in "Food in a Geoffy"
• Kat Purgal played a store employee in "Bever-lé"
• June Diane Raphael played Pamela in "Cocoon"
• Paul Scheer played Garrison Whitby in "Cocoon"
• Matt Sohn directed "Stop Arguing and Start Thanking"
• Lea Thompson directed several episodes of both The Goldbergs and Schooled, and played Fran in "The Return of the Formica King"
• Stephen Tobolowsky plays Principal Earl Ball
• Shayne Topp played Matt Bradley
• "Weird Al" Yankovic appeared as himself in "Weird Al"
• George Wendt played Ned Frank in "Food in a Geoffy"
• Marissa Jaret Winokur played Susie Goodman in "Our Perfect Strangers"