• Air date: 19 Nov '80 20 episodes
      The third season of Taxi aired on ABC from November 19, 1980 to May 21, 1981.
  • List of Episodes (20)
    • 1. Louie's Rival

      19 Nov '80
      Louie and Zena are running into trouble in their relationship, and Zena dumps him after confessing that she's been dating Dwight, a bartender at Mario's. A depressed Louie tells Alex about it over drinks at Mario's, and when they suspect that Dwight is working the bar, Alex goes up to talk to him. Dwight then tells him that he's breaking up with Zena for getting serious too quickly. Alex shares the news with Louie, who sees an opportunity to get Zena back on the rebound. Zena initially rejects h
    • 2. Tony's Sister and Jim

      26 Nov '80
      Tony's sister, Monica, has returned to New York after her divorce, and Tony has set her up on a date with Alex, with hopes that they will fall in love. However, while Monica waits for Alex in the garage, she gets to talking to Jim and they hit it off famously. They begin dating, but Tony is not supportive of the relationship and asks Jim not to see her anymore. However, Tony catches Jim at Monica's apartment when he stops by for a visit. Tony is angered that they are seeing each other despite h
    • 3. Fathers of the Bride

      03 Dec '80
      Alex learns through a wedding notice in the newspaper that his daughter is getting married in New York. Alex is very upset that he hasn't been invited and calls his ex-wife, whose secretary explains that he was specifically not invited. Alex crashes the reception anyway, bringing Elaine with him. Cathy, his daughter, is thrilled to see him and asks why he didn't respond to her invitation. Alex gets angry again and tells off his ex-wife, insulting her weight in the process. Alex eventually feels
    • 4. Elaine's Strange Triangle

      10 Dec '80
      At Mario's, while Elaine is complaining about problems with her love life, a handsome man named Kirk approaches. Tony then plays matchmaker for Elaine and soon she and Kirk are dating happily. Kirk later tells Tony in private that he has a problem: he is interested romantically in someone else-- Tony! Tony, who is not gay but does not want to see Elaine hurt over this, tells Alex and although he doesn't really want to get involved, Alex agrees to meet Tony and Kirk at a gay bar to help smooth ov
    • 5. Going Home

      17 Dec '80
      Jim is sought out by a detective, hired by his wealthy father to locate him and give him plane tickets to come visit him in Boston. Jim explains to the gang that he has been estranged from his family after dropping out of Harvard in the 1960's and changed his name from Caldwell to Ignatowski. Jim agrees to go to visit his father and brings Alex with him, who is curious about what Jim's family must be like. At his father's mansion, Jim's oddness upsets his father and they get into an argument dur
    • 6. The Ten Percent Solution

      07 Jan '81
      Bobby is fed up after losing an acting gig to an inferior actor with the right look, which he explains to be like Tony. Tony decides he wants to capitalize on this and give acting a try, and asks Bobby to be his manager. Reluctantly, Bobby agrees and soon, despite a terrible audition, Tony gets a major role in a movie. Bobby is soon regretting his decision to take Tony under his wing, though, since he's resentful that Tony (whose acting is not improving, despite Bobby's coaching) could get a par
    • 7. The Call of the Mild

      21 Jan '81
      After witnessing Bobby playing a lumberjack in a beer commercial, the guys are inspired to go camping and rough it in the woods for a week. They opt for a hunting cabin 100 miles away from civilization in the middle of winter, and their guide is justifiably concerned they won't make it, but they reassure him that they're fine and to come back for them in a week. They soon regret their decision when they learn that there is no electricity in the cabin. To keep their food from spoiling, they put t
    • 8. Latka's Cookies

      05 Feb '81
      When Latka's grandmother dies, he is pleased that she has left him her famous cookie recipe, complete with a supply of the secret ingredients. He bakes up some for the cabbies to enjoy, but the cabbies don't enjoy them. Nonetheless, Latka begins his own cookie business. In the days to come, the cabbies find that they are indeed starting to inexplicably like the cookies, and are also unusually happy and energetic. When Jim samples one, he determines that the secret ingredient is cocaine—which
    • 9. Thy Boss's Wife

      12 Feb '81
      At the garage, the cabbies overhear a screaming match between the company's owner, Mr. McKenzie, and his wife. Meanwhile, Louie tells them that whenever McKenzie and his wife are fighting, she chooses a handsome young cab driver to have a fling with, then confesses to her husband, and the cabbie is then never heard from again. Louie continues that even if the cabbie turns her down, she still will make up a story about him to tell her husband. The cabbies don't buy it until Alex comes in, overhea
    • 10. The Costume Party

      19 Feb '81
      Bobby finds a fancy briefcase in the back of his cab, and when the cabbies are going through it, with the intention of returning it to its rightful owner, they find an appointment book that shows appointments with various celebrities. They also find an invitation to a cocktail party on a yacht. Thinking that this is their chance to meet celebrities, they dress up and crash the cocktail party, and are soon star struck with costumed people they think are stars. They eventually realize that it's
    • 11. Elaine's Old Friend

      26 Feb '81
      In her cab, Elaine picks up a woman who turns out to be her old high-school rival, Mary. Elaine is embarrassed that she is a cab driver, especially since Mary heads a prestigious ad agency, so to save face, Elaine makes up a story about having a wonderful boyfriend who is a Columbia University professor. Over the next few days, Mary calls Elaine to try to arrange a dinner with their respective boyfriend's, but Elaine keeps making excuses, as she is ashamed that she made up a lie about having a
    • 12. Out of Commission

      12 Mar '81
      After Tony is beaten badly in his most recent boxing match, the state takes his boxing license away. Tony is depressed, because despite his losing record, he fancies himself a boxer by trade, and will be giving up on his dream. Soon, Tony's manager comes to the garage and tells Alex that Tony has bought the license of a retired boxer named Kid Rodriguez (""the pride of San Juan"") and plans to fight under that name. What's more he has a fight that very evening. The gang shows up in Tony's locker
    • 13. Zen and the Art of Cab Driving

      19 Mar '81
      Jim picks up two men in his cab and overhear them talking about the secret to success: dynamic perfectionism. Jim takes it to heart and decides to use the technique to reach his goal, which he won't reveal to the cabbies. Soon, Jim becomes the perfect cab driver, setting company records on every shift. After a few weeks, Jim gives up, announcing that he's reached his goal and can no longer stand to work so hard. He invites the gang over to his apartment to reveal what he's been working so ha
    • 14. Louie's Mother

      26 Mar '81
      Louie is reveling in the news that he's moved his mother out of his apartment and into a nursing home and is throwing a party to celebrate, inviting only Alex. Alex grudgingly shows and learns that the party is a sad affair, the only other guests being three losers that soon leave to go to another party. Louie confesses to Alex that he's actually depressed-- his mom actually moved out after they had a fight and he misses her. Louie's depression gets worse over the days to come and Alex convinc
    • 15. Bobby's Roomate

      09 Apr '81
      Elaine is forced out of her apartment when her building goes co-op and moves into Bobby's place while he's away with a touring stage production. Soon, Bobby returns because he is kicked off the tour for fooling around with the director's daughter, and suddenly, he and Elaine are living together. A few days later, Elaine tells Alex how much she's enjoying living with Bobby, when suddenly she gets a call from her boyfriend, who breaks up with her. Elaine leaves upset, and Alex briefs Bobby to lo
    • 16. Louie Bumps into an Old Lady

      16 Apr '81
      Louie, driving a cab in order to give pointers to a new driver, accidentally runs into an old lady pedestrian. Louie starts catering to the old lady, in the hopes of avoiding being sued, but soon learns she is still going to sue him for a million dollars. Alex notices that the old lady looks familiar, and recognizes her as a con artist, who pulls scams like this on cab drivers all the time (faking injuries in order to sue them). Alex makes a deal with Louie to find some of her previous victim
    • 17. Bobby and the Critic

      30 Apr '81
      Bobby, who is appearing in a one man play, is fired up about a ruthless theater critic who has been writing scathing reviews. Bobby writes an angry letter to the critic, but throws it away without sending it, having already felt better for venting his anger. Predictably, Louie fishes it out of the trash and mails it, and it gets printed in the newspaper. Bobby is soon getting cheers from actors all over the city, but gets worried when he learns that the critic himself is going to be at Bobby'
    • 18. On the Job (1)

      07 May '81
      The cab company goes bust, and the gang is forced to get other jobs. They meet at Mario's a month later to discuss their new jobs. Tony is a collector for a bookie, but feels guilty about this line of work, especially when he needs to collect on a priest. Elaine is an executive assistant, but after she convinces her spineless boss to speak his opinions at a board meeting, they both get fired. Jim takes a job as a door to door salesman, but forgets that he is selling encyclopedias rather than
    • 19. On the Job (2)

      14 May '81
      In part two, the gang continues talking about their new job experiences. Louie gets a job as a stock broker, after convincing the boss that his persistence and lack of morals will make him successful. While this proves to be true, he is fired nonetheless, because his colleagues can't stand him. Bobby takes a job as a bunny for children's party, but when he discovers that a kid's mother is a famous director, he acts out a monologue from ""Whose Life is it, Anyway,"" to the disappointment of th
    • 20. Latka the Playboy

      21 May '81
      After Latka is rejected by a snobbish, but beautiful woman at Mario's, he decides to change his image by taking some time off and studying Playboy magazines and English language tapes. When Latka reemerges from his sabbatical, he has lost his accent and now is a lounge lizard who goes by the name, Vic Ferrarri. He soon easily picks up on the woman who had rebuffed him earlier. Although amused, the cabbies become concerned about the changes Latka has gone through, since he has now lost all of