The West Wing
S1E10
· In Excelsis Deo

Flamingo: Tease Meets a Line

In a busy White House hallway, Danny's playful pursuit of C.J. — offering a mock 'list' of reasons she should date him — briefly punctures the administration's gravity. C.J. parries with sarcasm, names her Secret Service codename 'Flamingo' and explicitly closes the door with a firm, professional rebuff. The beat then pivots: Sam slips by, flustered, and C.J.'s gentle interrogation exposes his evasiveness about evening plans. The moment both clarifies C.J.'s boundaries with Danny and sets up suspicion around Sam and Josh's secretive activities, escalating off-screen tension.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

2

Danny playfully confronts C.J. about the President's absence and teases her with a list of reasons she should date him, showcasing their flirtatious dynamic.

playful banter to mild deflection ['White House hallway']

C.J. deflects Danny's advances with sarcasm and her 'Flamingo' code name, asserting boundaries while maintaining their rapport.

teasing to firm dismissal

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

2
C.J. Cregg
primary

Controlled and mildly amused while deflecting Danny; becomes quietly suspicious and incisive when confronting Sam's evasiveness.

C.J. moves from passing papers to shutting down Danny's flirtation with brisk sarcasm, naming her Secret Service codename and then immediately pursuing Sam to interrogate him about evening plans, shifting from playful to probing.

Goals in this moment
  • • Maintain professional boundaries and deflect Danny's romantic advance cleanly.
  • • Clarify staff availability and probe for honesty about Sam and Josh's evening plans.
Active beliefs
  • • Personal entanglements should be kept at bay in the workplace.
  • • Evasive answers from staff indicate there may be something being concealed.
Character traits
wry professionally guarded decisive observant
Follow C.J. Cregg's journey
Danny Concannon
primary

Playful and hopeful in the flirtation; accepting but mildly deflated when politely rejected.

Danny approaches C.J. with playful confidence, uses a jokey 'list' as a pickup device, trades light banter (including an observation about the black suburban), and then withdraws when rebuffed, leaving the moment both comic and slightly vulnerable.

Goals in this moment
  • • Win C.J.'s attention and possibly secure a date.
  • • Break tension in the West Wing with humor and personal connection.
Active beliefs
  • • Humor and charm can disarm and create opportunities.
  • • C.J. will respond to a confident, lightly self-deprecating approach.
Character traits
flirtatious lighthearted persistent charming
Follow Danny Concannon's journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

2
Leo McGarry's Recurring Briefing Packet (office / crisis stacks)

A slim stack of papers functions as the physical pretext for the hallway interaction: C.J. hands them to the staffer, which initiates the scene's movement, locates characters in space, and underscores everyday White House logistics amid personal exchanges.

Before: In C.J.'s possession, neatly held while she talks …
After: Accepted by the staffer and carried off to …
Before: In C.J.'s possession, neatly held while she talks to the staffer.
After: Accepted by the staffer and carried off to be processed.
Bartlet's Unmarked Black Suburban (Secret Service SUV)

Mentioned by Danny as visible 'in back,' the unmarked black Suburban is a contextual prop that signals the President's discreet movement and the presence of security protocols, lending narrative weight to otherwise casual banter.

Before: Parked/idling out back as observed by Danny.
After: Implied to be departing or preparing to depart; …
Before: Parked/idling out back as observed by Danny.
After: Implied to be departing or preparing to depart; functions as an off-screen engine of plot movement.

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

1
West Wing Corridor (Exterior Hallway Outside Leo McGarry's Office)

The West Wing hallway is the active, transitional space where private and professional lives collide: it stages quick exchanges, overheard lines, and the accidental crossing of purposeful trajectories that converts flirtation into a moment that reveals secrecy.

Atmosphere Light, conversational, and briefly convivial; undercut by tautness when Sam's evasiveness introduces a sense of …
Function Meeting place and public threshold that exposes private intentions; a stage for incidental encounters and …
Symbolism Serves as a liminal zone between personal life and institutional duty—where boundaries are negotiated and …
Access Restricted to staff and authorized personnel; regularly traversed by aides and security.
Daylight foot traffic and passing colleagues Doors to private offices nearby, muffled voices from rooms Papers being handed between staffers and the faint hum of administrative activity

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph

Key Dialogue

"DANNY: "I've put together a list. Of reasons why you should go out with me.""
"C.J.: "My secret service code name is Flamingo.""
"SAM: "I'm going to Bermuda tonight.""