“Lucy Hires an English Tutor”

(S2;E13 ~ December 29, 1952) Directed by William Asher. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed on October 24, 1952 at General Service Studios. It was the 48th episode filmed. Rating: 68.1/91

Synopsis ~ Pregnant Lucy is worried that the gang doesn’t speak proper enough English for the baby, so she arranges for grammar lessons. Mr. Livermore, the tutor she enlists, is looking to get into show business.

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The episode opens with Lucy knitting, a trope for expectant mothers explored in “Drafted” (ILL S1;E11).

Ricky comes in with bags.

RICKY: There’s only one place in town that sells a papaya juice milkshake.

Ricky is referring to Papaya King, a New York institution. The original Papaya King opened in 1932 on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. The restaurant originally only served drinks made from fresh tropical fruits.

He’s also brought Lucy a pickle, which she dips in the milkshake. Craving pickles is another popular trope about pregnant women. It was explored further in “Lucy, the Part-Time Wife” (HL S3;E14, above) in 1970.

Although she tells Ricky she doesn’t care what sex the baby turns out to be, Lucy is secretly hoping for a girl, so she buys frilly dresses for her future daughter.

Ricky is counting on a boy, so he brings home a football and a baby sports jersey that says ‘HAVANA U 1974.’ He want his son to walk the same campus he did – University of Havana in Cuba.  Ricky even sings the “Notre Dame Fight Song” in Spanish, with Havana U lyrics.

Founded in 1728, the University of Havana is the oldest university in Cuba, and one of the first to be founded in the Americas. When this episode was written and filmed, the University was in the news. After the government was taken over by Batista in March 1952, the University became a center of anti-government protests. Batista closed the University in 1956. The Castro regime re-opened it in 1959, but by that time American travel to Cuba was no longer possible. In real life, Desi Arnaz finished high school in Florida and then went right to work.

Likewise, Little Ricky’s real-life counterpart Desi Arnaz, Jr. didn’t attend college. In 1974 he went right to work as well, making the western film Billy Two Hats with Gregory Peck and the TV special “California My Way” with his dad.

This starts Lucy worrying whether her child will be well-educated, but knows that it will be difficult with Ricky’s thick accent.

On her bedroom shelf we see a selection of reference books, among them a set of decorative hard bound history books ”The Great Events of the Great War Volumes 1-7″ (1923) edited By Charles F. Horne and Walter F. Austin.

Also on the shelf are porcelain Colonial figurines made in Occupied Japan. These made many appearances on the show.

Lucy asks Ricky to read from a storybook to prove that he doesn’t know English as well as he thinks he does. In the story, Ricky pronounces ‘boughs’ as ‘booges’, ‘rough’ as ‘row’, ‘through’ as ‘thruff’, and ‘cough’ as ‘coo’.  The book that Lucy gives Ricky to read from is actually a Peter Pan children’s book published by Wonder Books in 1952. The prop department redacted the title for the scene but one can still see the characters on the front cover and the Wonder Books insignia on the back.

The choice of book may not have been coincidental since the guest star, Hans Conried, had just voiced Captain Hook for the Disney animated feature film of Peter Pan to be released just a month later, in February 1953.

So that her child will be surrounded by people who speak properly, Lucy hires a teacher named Percy Livermore to tutor the gang in grammar and elocution. Unsurprisingly, he has show-business ambitions.

LIVERMORE (To Ricky): In lieu of the remuneration for my tutelage, I am to be permitted to introduce my talents into your nocturnal bistro.

The writers came up with this witty exchange, which is very much like Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s On First?” routine:

LIVERMORE: I want you all to promise me that there are two words that you will never use. One of these is ‘swell’ and the other one is ‘lousy.’
LUCY: OK, what are they?
LIVERMORE: One of them is ‘swell’ and the other one is ‘lousy’.
FRED: Well, give us the lousy one first.

Hans Conried (Mr. Percy Livermore) first worked with Lucille Ball in the 1942 film The Big Street and extensively on her radio show “My Favorite Husband.” On “I Love Lucy” he had just played Mr. Jenkins, used furniture salesman (above), a month earlier in “Redecorating” (S2;E8). Three years later he would once again be employed at Desilu in “Make Room For Daddy” (1955-64, starring Danny Thomas) playing Uncle Tonoose.

On “The Lucy Show” he made two appearances as Dr. Gitterman, a drama / music coach. The first was in “Lucy’s Barbershop Quartet” (TLS S1;E19) in 1963.

Gittereman returned the following season in “Lucy Plays Cleopatra” (TLS S2;E1).

In 1973 he appeared on an episode of “Here’s Lucy” starring Danny Thomas, who he was then intractably associated with because of “Make Room for Daddy.” Conried died in 1982 at the age of 64.

Fred trivializes Livermore’s classes by dressing as Buster Brown. Buster Brown was a comic strip character created in 1902 by Richard F. Outcault. Adopted as the mascot of the Brown Shoe Company in 1904, Buster Brown, his sweetheart Mary Jane, and his dog Tige, were well-known to the American public in the early 20th century. The character’s name was also used to describe a popular style of suit for young boys.

ETHEL: All right, Buster Brown, go downstairs and get out of that silly outfit.

TIPPY TIPPY TOE by Percy Livermore

PERCY: I Tippy Tippy Toe through my garden
Where all the pretty flowers dwell.
There’s a rare perfume in my garden
And I just love to stand there and smell.

And as I Tippy Tippy Toe along,
All the pretty flowers seem to sing this song:

RICKY: Derry down pip pip,
LUCY: Dilly dilly day,
ETHEL: Hey nonny nonny,
FRED: Rippity pippity-ay!

FRED: Derry down ding dong,
ETHEL: Dilly dilly do,
LUCY: Hey nonny nonny,
RICKY: Rippity pippity poo!

Oops! Ricky tells Mr. Livermore that Lucy’s going to have a baby in “Feb-ri-ary.” But Little Ricky’s birthdate ends up being January 19, 1953, a few weeks earlier than predicted.

At the end of the episode, Mr. Livermore has been persuaded to see things Ricky’s way and, much to Lucy’s shock, bursts into an impromptu chorus of “Babalu!”

The episode’s original airing included a promo for “My Little Margie” (1952-55), a CBS TV series starring Gayle Storm and Charles Farrell. During its three season run, “I Love Lucy” cast members who appeared on the sitcom included: Irving Bacon, Kathryn Card, Herb Vigran, Florence Bates, Harry Cheshire, Fritz Feld, Tristram Coffin, Byron Foulger, Mabel Paige, George O’Hanlon, Norma Varden, Vincente Padula, Joseph Kearns, and Maurice Marsac.  Roy Roberts, who later played Mr. Cheever on “The Lucy Show,” made six appearances on the series.

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