“Lucy Plays Cupid”

(S1;E15 ~ January 21, 1952) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed December 13, 1951 at General Service Studio. It was the 15th episode filmed. Rating: 51.8/73

Synopsis ~ The Ricardos’ spinster neighbor Miss Lewis thinks that eccentric grocer Mr. Ritter is the ‘bee’s knees,’ but when Lucy schemes to bring the two together, Mr. Ritter mistakenly thinks that Lucy only has eyes for him.

This episode is partly based on an episode of Lucy’s radio show “My Favorite Husband” titled “Valentine’s Day,” which aired on February 11, 1949. On radio, Mr. Ritter was a butcher named Mr. Dabney and the Miss Lewis character was Katie the maid. This was before Bea Benadaret joined the cast as Iris Atterbury.  

This was the first of three episodes to be filmed within a two-week period so that the cast and crew could take a week off for Christmas.

Bea Benaderet (Miss Lewis) was considered the front-runner to be cast as Ethel Mertz, having already played Lucy’s best friend Iris Atterbury on “My Favorite Husband.” But when “I Love Lucy” was ready to start production she was already playing a similar role on TV’s “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” so Vivian Vance was cast instead. Although Miss Lewis is supposed to be an elderly spinster, Benaderet was only 46 at the time, just five years older than Lucille Ball. In 1960 she voiced Betty Rubble on “The Flintstones” and two years later created the role of Pearl on "The Beverly Hillbillies.” The show proved so popular that CBS ordered a spin-off focused on Pearl herself. Those plans were later revised and the show became "Petticoat Junction” with Benaderet starring as Shady Rest Hotel proprietress Kate Bradley. She starred in the series until her death in 1968.

Like William Frawley, Edward Everett Horton (Mr. Ritter) got his start in vaudeville. He made his Broadway debut in 1910 and started doing films in Hollywood in 1922, eventually appearing in three movies with Lucille Ball including 1935’s Top Hat.He made his small screen debut in 1949, playing Sheridan Whiteside in a TV version of Broadway’s "The Man Who Came to Dinner.” In 1965 he played the recurring role of Chief Roaring Chicken on "F Troop” and the following year played Chief Screaming Chicken on "Batman.” He is probably best remembered as the narrator of Rocky and Bullwinkle’s "Fractured Fairy Tales” (1959-61). Horton’s final screen appearance was posthumously in the film Cold Turkey in 1971.

Mr. Ritter is a butcher. 

William Frawley and Vivian Vance do not appear in this episode, nor are they even mentioned. Ricky does, however, mention Jerry, his agent. The only other episode in which both Fred and Ethel are absent is in “The Young Fans” (S1;E20 above), which has a similar theme. In that episode, the secondary characters are young, instead of old, but also mistakenly believe the Ricardos have a romantic interest in them.

This is yet another breakfast scene in which Lucy catches toast launched from the toaster. 

Oops! In this scene, Desi Arnaz mistakenly calls ‘Miss’ Lewis ‘Mrs.’ Lewis.

MISS LEWIS: “Look, elderberry wine. I made it myself. It’s been fermenting since I was 21 years old.”
LUCY: “Twenty-one! Must have quite a tang by now.”
MISS LEWIS: “I thought Mr. Ritter and I could have a couple of belts before dinner.”

One of Horton’s most famous roles is as Mr. Witherspoon in Arsenic and Old Lace (1944, above). In that film, Horton is offered poisoned elderberry wine by the amiable but murderous Brewster sisters, themselves elderly spinsters. 

On "I Love Lucy,” Lucy messes with other people’s love life again in “Lucy is Matchmaker” (S2;E27) and “The Matchmaker” (S4;E4). She probably should have taken Ricky’s advice to “mess out.” 

During Ricky’s payphone call (presumably from a local drug store), he stands next to a large cut-out of sponsor Philip Morris’ living mascot, Johnny the Bellhop (Johnny Roventini). Interestingly, the cutout holds an actual cigarette which Ricky non-nonchalantly plucks from the display and smokes during the short scene.

During season one, it was common to do specially-lit medium and close-up shots of Lucy and Desi. Above is a good example. This practice was discontinued because it was time-consuming and somewhat intrusive. 

This is one of several episodes where Ricky spanks Lucy like a naughty child. He also ‘forbids’ her from passing along Miss Lewis’ dinner invitation to Mr. Ritter. Although such things seem unthinkable today, it helps to remember that this episode was filmed in 1951 and was based on an even earlier radio show. By the series conclusion in 1957, Lucy will be the one backing Ricky into a corner to do some ‘splainin’ in “Lucy Raises Tulips” (S6;E26).

Knowing Mr. Ritter “demands immaculate housekeeping” and likes good cooking, Lucy arranges the dinner date from hell. Dressed in a ratty cardigan and headband, she sloppily sets the card table with newspapers for a table cloth and wooden orange crates for chairs. 

Oops! Publicity photos of the episode reveal that one of the crates says “Product of California” on it. A similar goof would occur during season five in “Paris at Last!” (S5;E18) when the props department puts a bottle of California wine on the table of a French café. 

As an appetizer, Lucy serves tomato juice, still in the tin can with the sharp-edged lid hanging off. Lucy says she added a dash of Tobasco, although Mr. Ritter’s reaction confirms that she probably added more than a dash. Tabasco is the brand name of a hot sauce made from Tabasco peppers, vinegar, and salt. It is was first produced by the McIlhenny Company of Louisiana in 1898 and is still sold today. 

Knowing Mr. Ritter doesn’t like children, Lucy trots out a stream of youngsters as her offspring. Mr. Ritter counts 25, although Lucy says six are missing. In reality, ten uncredited child performers were featured in the episode, one even dressed as a “little” Ricky playing a conga drum! 

This was a year before Lucy gave birth to their son, who would eventually also play the conga drum.

Oops!  When Miss Lewis and Lucy are talking, a cymbal is heard. A band member accidentally hit the cymbal. The nightclub set was adjacent to the apartment set and in early episodes, played music during scene changes and into commercial breaks. 

Although this was the only appearance of Miss Lewis, she was occasionally mentioned as a tenant of 623 East 68th Street (#8 – “the Lewis apartment”). In one episode, Ricky borrows some ice cream from her. Mr. Ritter, however, will never be referred to or seen again. Supposedly, he and Miss Lewis strolled arm and arm into a happy ending!  Can you name the other tenants seen in the above illustration?

Sitcom Logic Alert!  Throughout her TV career, spinsters and little old ladies in “Lucy” sitcoms were generally depicted wearing dated clothing, presenting characters that were more stereotypical than realistic.  

CollectCritter created this limited edition bear to commemorate the episode. Obviously, the Valentine’s Day theme has been played up, despite being absent from the episode. 

Over the closing credits, announcer Johnny Jacobs gives Edward Everett Horton a special credit: 

“We’d like to give our special thanks to Mr.
Edward Everett Horton for appearing with us tonight.”

Bea Benadaret, meanwhile, gets a more straightforward mention:

“The part of Miss Lewis was played by Bea Benadaret.”

Although Benadaret was a busy radio personality – often going from one show to another in the same day – her experience in film was mostly limited to voicing characters for the Warner Brothers cartoons. Horton, on the other hand, had done over 100 feature films by 1951, three with Lucille Ball. His casting was quite a coup for the series. Thanks to television, it is Benadaret who is more familiar to modern audiences. 

On this date (January 21) in 1971, Lucy will encounter another old man with dishonorable intentions when she guest stars on Danny Thomas’ “Make Room For Granddaddy” in an episode titled “Lucy and the Lecher” (S1;E16).  To dissuade what she thinks are his amorous unwanted advances, Lucy Carter (in a cross-over from “Here’s Lucy”) decides to be less feminine, much as Lucy Ricardo does in 1952. 

Editor’s Note: When asked if I have a ‘least favorite’ episode of the series – this would be it.  Mr. Ritter’s lecherous advances, Ricky’s spanking of Lucy, and casting a youthful Bea Benadaret as a spinster, all are uncomfortable to watch, especially in the “Me Too” generation. On the plus side, this is the only time Horton and Benadaret will be seen with Lucille Ball on television – so it is good that this episode exists to document their work.