Lessons in Chemistry
by Bonnie Garmus
Contents
Chapter 30: 99 Percent
Overview
Madeline’s embellished family tree triggers school gossip, while a reverend’s call signals renewed leads on Calvin’s past. Elizabeth discovers pay inequity and, after Harriet is assaulted by her husband, pointedly ridicules processed soup on air. Confronted by executive Phil Lebensmal, she’s summarily fired, then averts his sexual assault by brandishing a knife.
Summary
Elizabeth confronts Madeline about a fanciful family tree claiming lineage from Nefertiti, Sojourner Truth, and Amelia Earhart, and corrects Madeline’s “ninety-nine percent” genetic similarity to “up to ninety-nine point nine percent.” Harriet drops off messages, including a call from Reverend Wakely of First Presbyterian asking for Madeline, and the Los Angeles Times seeking a women’s-page interview that Elizabeth distrusts.
At home, Elizabeth dodges intrusive questions about Calvin’s boys’ home, emphasizing privacy and resilience as she runs a fume-hood dishwashing experiment with masks and goggles. Walter calls: both girls are in trouble over the family trees; he also pressures Elizabeth to feature a soup sponsor to placate Phil Lebensmal. Elizabeth agrees to see the can on Thursday but wants a face-to-face with Phil, which Walter warns against.
School gossip erupts Tuesday, with Mrs. Mudford spreading children’s family revelations. On Wednesday, an anonymous compensation list exposes KCTV’s gender pay gap and male-only profit-sharing. Thursday morning, Harriet arrives bruised; Mr. Sloane threw a bottle at her after a Dodgers loss and complaints about the show. Elizabeth wants police and confrontation; Harriet refuses. Elizabeth resolves to act.
On air, Elizabeth theatrically introduces the sponsor’s soup only to denounce it as chemical-laden, then “jokes” about poisonous mushrooms—contrasting death caps with straw mushrooms—and skewers sexism and wage inequality. Walter, panicked, leaves; the audience laughs and takes notes, while Phil watches, enraged.
After the show, despite warnings, Elizabeth meets Phil. In a smoke-filled, TV-blaring office, he berates her, locks the door, waves ratings and complaints, and fires her and the team. Elizabeth calmly challenges his logic and defends the show’s purpose—focusing on shared human chemistry over limiting social norms—while exonerating Walter. Phil, infuriated, undoes his belt and exposes himself; Elizabeth warns him, then draws a fourteen-inch chef’s knife. Phil faints, and the assault is averted.
Who Appears
- Elizabeth ZottHost of Supper at Six; corrects Mad’s science, rejects canned soup on air, exposes sexism, faces Phil, is fired, thwarts his assault with a knife.
- Phil LebensmalKCTV executive producer; enraged by Elizabeth’s show, fires the team, attempts sexual coercion, and faints when confronted with a chef’s knife.
- Harriet SloaneNeighbor and ally; arrives bruised after her husband’s violence, refuses police involvement; her ordeal fuels Elizabeth’s on-air barbs.
- Walter PineProducer; urges Elizabeth to use a soup sponsor to appease Phil, warns against meeting him, leaves the studio during the controversial broadcast.
- Madeline ZottElizabeth’s daughter; submits a fanciful family tree and misstates genetic similarity, prompting Elizabeth’s correction and school gossip.
- Mrs. MudfordTeacher; reports Madeline’s family tree and spreads students’ family revelations, stoking schoolwide gossip.
- Reverend WakelyFirst Presbyterian minister; leaves a message for Madeline, indicating ongoing interest in tracing Calvin’s past.
- Six-ThirtyFamily dog; observes household tension and notes the universality of human ancestry in his expanding vocabulary.
- Mr. SloaneHarriet’s husband; throws a bottle at her, exemplifying domestic abuse that Elizabeth implicitly targets in her broadcast.
- RosaMakeup artist; warns Elizabeth not to meet Phil alone and praises the show’s humor.