Ouija Board in Sam's Office

Used humorously to redirect conversation among the characters in Sam's office.

4 appearances

Purpose

A recreational parlour board meant for novelty 'spirit communication' sessions; here it functions practically as a conversational prop and icebreaker rather than a serious instrument.

Significance

Operates as a comic and cultural cue that undercuts alarm—its invocation reframes technical urgency into banter, marks Sam's measured deflection of panic, and lends an eerie, folkloric aftertaste to otherwise procedural exchanges.

Appearances in the Narrative

When this object appears and how it's used

4 moments

S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Unsettling UFO Pitch to the White House

The Ouija board is invoked by Sam as a jokey cultural prop to deflate Bob's alarming technical report. It functions narratively to undercut panic, mark Sam's irreverent tone, and signal institutional impatience with extraordinary claims.

Before: Resting in Sam's office as a jocular prop, lightly worn and visible as part of office furnishings.

After: Unchanged and unengaged physically — mentioned only rhetorically in Sam's joke and left as background office détournement.

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S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

The Unseen Object and a Presidential Pen

Sam invokes the Ouija board as a comic cultural prop to deflate Bob's alarm, referencing the First Lady's board to compare the absurdity of briefing the President about UFOs — the board functions as tonal punctuation and institutional shorthand for superstition versus official procedure.

Before: Resting in Sam's office as a jocular prop, printed letters slightly faded and edges worn, present as an offhand reference.

After: Unaffected physically; its invocation lingers as a rhetorical device that frames Sam's dismissal and lightens the mood.

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S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Chili Night: Bartlet Deflates the Briefing and Reorients the Room

Sam references Mrs. Bartlet's Ouija board in passing as a cultural joke that frames the UFO/radar talk: the board functions as an offbeat tonal device that normalizes the weirdness of the radar report while subtly undercutting Josh's growing seriousness.

Before: Stored in Sam's office as a jocular prop, not central to formal business.

After: Mentioned conversationally to provide levity but remains otherwise inert in the scene.

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S1E5 · The Crackpots and These Women

Hollywood Fundraiser Moral Standoff

Mrs. Bartlet's Ouija board is referenced in corridor banter (Mrs. Bartlet's Ouija board) as a humorous cultural touchstone, helping Sam and Josh bridge conversation from the absurd toward the more serious radar/UFO topic.

Before: Part of Mrs. Bartlet's paraphernalia at residence; referenced conversationally.

After: Remains a referenced joke that momentarily lightens the tone before the N.S.C. card exchange.

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