“Lucy Thinks Ricky Is Trying to Murder Her”

(S1;E4 ~ November 5, 1951) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by

Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed September 8, 1951 at General Service Studios. Rating: 36.5/56

The original shooting schedule for the first episode ever filmed. In future episodes, the actual film day would be shifted to Friday, but here it is a Saturday. 

This was the fourth episode aired, but actually the very first to be filmed! “The Girls Want To Go To A Nightclub” (S1;E1) was aired first, premiering on October  15, 1951. It was felt that that it was funnier – with Lucy and Ethel dressing like hillbillies to pose as Ricky and Fred’s ‘dates’. Others contend that this episode had editing problems (mainly due to the cumbersome fourth camera) that prolonged the final edit and delayed its first airing. The episode does have its share of camera goofs, so this may indeed be the cause. 

The plot for this show is partly based on “The Wills” (#80), an episode of Lucy’s radio show “My Favorite Husband” from the year before. 

Contrary to popular belief, “I Love Lucy” was not the first TV show to shoot on film – that would be “Amos and Andy.” It was also not the first to use the ‘three camera technique’ – that honor goes to “Public Prosecutor.” In fact, this first episode used four cameras, which proved too crowded for the small studio. The show was, however, the first to do it all in front of a live audience, without stopping, like a play. 

The date this episode first aired, Lucille Ball’s former on-screen co-star and friend Ginger Rogers was on the cover of Life Magazine. Twenty years later Rogers guest-starred with Lucy again on “Here’s Lucy”. 

In order to keep the act breaks short, Lucy and Ethel ‘under-dressed’ their costumes. In future, Desi’s orchestra would play during the breaks to keep the audience entertained. 

The first ‘gag’ of the series is an insert shot of Lucy dipping her crackers into facial cold cream instead of ‘Ye Old Cheddar Cheese’. It gets a giggle, but Ricky’s line “I took so many bows tonight my hip got a charlie horse!” earns the first real laugh of the series. 

When Ethel says she has learned how to read fortunes using playing cards.  Lucy says she doesn’t believe in that stuff. A few weeks later, in “The Séance” (S1;E7), Lucy believes in a lot of stuff like that!  

There is a full plate of donuts on the table and Ethel does not touch them!  In this first appearance Ethel’s fondness for food was not yet established.  

The Queen of Hearts (Lucy) next to the Ace of Spades (Death) is a bad omen, according to Ethel.  This is the second close-up insert shot of the episode. The first being the cold cream and cheddar cheese jars.  These extreme close-ups were done after the audience left. 

It only lasts for a second, but when Ricky opens the desk drawer to get some cigarettes to take to work, the Philip Morris logo is clearly visible on the carton.  Future episodes would not be so sly about promoting the sponsor’s product. 

Ricky makes an unusual fashion statement by wearing his bow tie tucked under his shirt collar. Although a French Continental Bow Tie was sometimes worn tucked under, this does not appear to be the type of tie Desi is wearing here. 

Fleeing Ricky’s clutches, Lucy’s ‘bullet proof vest’ peeks out from her house coat, but Ricky does not comment on it. 

When she runs into the living room Lucille Ball’s hand is on the skillet in order to release it from her waist and allow it to ‘accidentally’ drop to the floor.  It is only then that Ricky notices it!

When Ricky denies he is going to shoot or strangle her, Lucy, with a glance back at the sink, says “Fortunately, I’m too big for the garbage disposal.”  While in-sink garbage disposals were common in California homes, they were actually prohibited by law in New York City in order to protect the sewage system. The ban was lifted in 1977.

Lucy locks herself in the bedroom. Another (time consuming) insert shot. 

RICKY: “Lucy is acting crazy!”
FRED: “Crazy for Lucy or crazy for ordinary people?”

The character of Fred Mertz (William Frawley) is introduced 15 minutes into the episode. 

Some unique aspects of this first-filmed show…

1. Lucy’s hairstyle is fuller and looser, not yet her trademark style!

There is no cityscape backdrop visible outside the Ricardo’s bedroom or kitchen windows as in later episodes, but there is a small tree visible outside both, suggesting they may have been meant to have a ground floor apartment. In “Cuban Pals” (S1;E28) their apartment number is revealed as 4A, so it was not likely yet decided on which floor they dwell. 

LUCY: “No wonder they call it ‘The Mockingbird Murder Mystery.’ Every time I get that book in my hands it flies out the window!”

Lucy is engrossed in the (fictional) mystery novel The Mockingbird Murder Mystery. This is officially the first shot of “I Love Lucy”.  Unfortunately, the word “mockingbird” is too long to fit on the cover on one line and still be visible to the camera and studio audience, so it had to be hyphenated, something that book publishers never do.  

Next morning Lucy finds the book she accidentally tossed out of the bedroom window when she goes out to get the milk.  It is dirty and has a banana peel in it. When Lucy washes it off in the sink, viewers can see it has illustrations in it!  An illustrated murder mystery?  Oh, and a note to Lucy – you don’t rinse books! 

2. Ethel is dressed quite fashionably, not yet the ‘dowdy landlady’ look Lucy and Desi would later insist on!

Eventually, the show became an international hit and was eventual seen in eight countries and dubbed or subtitled in 22 foreign languages. Here is “I got a Mickey from Ricky” in Spanish! 

A ‘Mickey” or Mickey Finn refers to spiking someone’s drink with a drug. It is most likely named after the bartender of the Lone Star Saloon in the Chicago. In December 1903, newspapers reported that Michael “Mickey” Finn was accused of using knockout drops to incapacitate and rob his customers. The first known example of the term being used is in 1915, which was 12 years after his trial. In modern times, the idea of Fred and Ricky drugging Lucy and Ethel is fairly unsavory. Bear in mind that not only was “I Love Lucy” finding a tone, but also dealing with a changing America. 

Ricky tells Lucy not to worry, it is just a sleeping powder.

LUCY: “Ha! The sleep from which no one returns.”

Lucy is loosely paraphrasing Shakespeare. Hamlet compares death to 

“The undiscovere’d country, from whose bourn
No traveler returns…“  ~ HAMLET III;i

3. One of the few times we see Ricky shirtless!

It sounds like Ricky is just scheduled to be the Tropicana performer for four weeks. He said that they might get to stay "another four weeks.” Clearly, his appearance there started out tentatively.  

4. Ricky and Lucy’s single beds are pushed together for most of season one, instead of apart! 

While they are definitely two beds, they might as well have been sleeping in the same bed. This configuration must have been hell for making the beds in the morning!  

5. A

risqué

joke surrounding Ricky having an affair with a man named “Theodore”!  Even the suggestion of homosexuality had to be handled carefully, and only in a humorous context. 

An established vaudeville act, Hector and His Pals was also seen in the film Easter Parade in 1948.

The dog trainer Hector, calls one of the dogs by its real name ‘Yorkie’. In the episode, the dogs are named Ann, Mary, Helen, Cynthia, Alice, and Theodore. 

As in the pilot, Jerry Hausner plays Jerry, Ricky’s agent. Ricky doesn’t seem to remember him at first. He is calling from a pay phone in New Jersey. They discuss firing Marilyn, Ricky’s girl singer. The name was probably chosen in homage to one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, Marilyn Monroe. In 1951 alone, Monroe starred in four feature films. 

BLOOPER SQUAD! 

The poster announcing Ricky’s extension at the Tropicana spells his last name with two C’s – RICCARDO!  Like which floor of the building they live on, this was probably not yet formalized. 

Right away in the first episode, a couple tiny technical goofs make it onto the screen. When Lucy and Ricky dance around the living room, we can briefly see the wall dividing the different sets and brief peek into their bedroom.

When Ricky takes a phone call and sits at the desk, you can briefly catch a glimpse of camera and lighting equipment on the right side of the frame.

When Lucy and Ethel confront Ricky at the club, Lucy yawns due to the sleeping pill she’s been slipped and Ethel yawns right after her. Ethel’s yawn was unscripted and Vivian Vance was simply responding in the moment to seeing Lucy yawn.

Notice that the full Tropicana set is not yet in place. It is hardly the “beautiful Tropicana” that the poster touted earlier in the episode. 

The episode ends back in Lucy’s bedroom as it begun, reading The Mockingbird Murder Mystery.  This time when Ricky startles her Lucy has a string to retrieve her book after it goes out the window!  This coda was cut from the syndication version but restored for the DVD release. Several early episodes of the series featured comic codas, but these were quickly abandoned. 

FAST FORWARD

This episode was rerun during Lucy’s maternity leave in season 2 on November 13, 1952. The new intro has Lucy telling Ricky about the great new murder mysteries she just bought that they can read instead of watching TV: Murder at Midnight, The Blood-Stained Stiletto and Gore. Ricky tells her she shouldn’t be reading this kind of book and  reminds her about what happened in this episode. [cue flashback to “Lucy Thinks Ricky Is Trying To Murder Her”]

Lucy Carter thinks her brother in law / boss Harry (Gale Gordon) is trying to murder her in a 1969 episode of “Here’s Lucy.”  

Scenes from this episode were recreated for the 1991 TV biopic Lucy and Desi: Before the Laughter starring Frances Fisher as Lucille / Lucy and Robin Pearson Rose as Vivian / Ethel. 

Nope!  Just the beginning!