“Cuban Pals”

(S1;E28 ~April 21,1952) Directed by William Asher. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed March 14, 1952 at General Service Studio. Rating: 64.5/86

Synopsis ~ When Ricky’s friends from Cuba visit, Lucy gets jealous of a beautiful dancer named Renita. Her scheme to take Renita’s place in Ricky’s act naturally (but hilariously) backfires! 

Coincidentally, this episode first aired the same day that Time Magazine published a cover story on Fulgencio Batista (1901-73), the US-backed authoritarian ruler of Cuba from 1952 to 1959. He was at first a ‘Cuban pal’ to America, but not to his people. He was branded a dictator and overthrown during the Cuban revolution.  

April 21, 1952 was also Queen Elizabeth II’s first birthday on the throne of England. Her televised coronation in June 1953 failed to match the ratings for the birth of Little Ricky on “I Love Lucy” six months earlier. In 1956, the series will do an episode titled “Lucy Meets the Queen” (S5;E15), although HRH stays safely off camera. In 1966′s “Lucy in London” Lucille Ball is briefly depicted as QE2, sitting in a royal box for a performance by Anthony Newley. 

A variation on this plot will be repeated almost two years later in “Ricky’s Old Girlfriend” (S3;E12), where Lucy is jealous of Cuban singer / dancer Carlotta Romero (Lillian Molieri).

The first Cuban pals to arrive are the Ortegas, Carlos and Maria, whom Ricky credits with giving him his start in show business. He is returning the favor by launching their American tour at the Tropicana. Alberto Morin (Carlos) was born in Puerto Rico, and appeared in some of Hollywood’s most cherished films: Gone with the Wind (1939), Casablanca (1943), and Key Largo (1948). Rita Conde (Maria) was the show’s only genuine Cuban pal, having been born there in 1914. Morin and Conde both died in Burbank within a month of each other in 1989. 

Before meeting Renita, Lucy encourages Ricky to dance with her to help “the Good Neighbor policy.”  The Good Neighbor Policy was a foreign policy of the Franklin Roosevelt administration regarding cooperation with Latin American nations such as Cuba. Senator Henry Clay had coined the term in the 1800s. 

the policy’s cultural impact included the launch of CBS Radio’s Viva América and Hello Americans programs. The policy is mentioned in the lyrics of “The Saga of Jenny” from the 1941 Broadway musical Lady in the Dark. 

Oops!  The show contains one of the few genuine flubs by Desi Arnaz. When translating between Lucy and his Spanish-speaking friends, he accidentally translates Lucy’s English into English again! Desi’s laughter at his error seemed so genuine that it was left in the show.

The third Cuban pal is the voluptuous Renita Perez, played by Lita Baron. 

Despite being born Isabelita Castro and appearing in the films Club Havana (1945) and Don Ricardo Returns (1946), Baron was actually born in Spain, not Cuba. 

From 1948 to 1970 Baron was married to actor Rory Calhoun. The two appeared together in the audience of “The Desilu Revue” (above) in 1959. Calhoun starred in the Desilu Western “The Texan” (1958-59). 

Lucy and Ethel disguise themselves as homely scrub women to spy on Renita and Ricky as they rehearse “The Lady in Red.” Could a young Carol Burnett have been watching? 

The song was originally featured in the 1935 film In Caliente starring Dolores del Río. It later became a staple of Warner Brothers cartoons where it was used as underscoring any time a female character would appear in a red outfit. 

To assure that Ricky does not dance with Renita, Lucy employs Fred as a cab driver to take her down to the club – the long way. In his best street-smart accent Fred says, “I know a short-cut through Phil-a-delpia!”

Oops! When Lucy opens the door for Fred the cabbie, the shadow of the boom and mic appear on the kitchen door.

In the final scene Ricky sings “Similau,” a song Desi Arnaz first recorded in 1951, although it was first sung by Peggy Lee in 1949. Ricky sets the scene for the moody song by donning an African mask, just as he did in “Lucy Goes to the Hospital (S2;E16).  

Instead of the lady in red, viewers would have to contend with the lady in dark gray – as the show was filmed in black and white. Is colorization in its future? Earlier in the  episode, Lucy falsely claimed that her hair was naturally red, and that both her mother and father had red hair. Ricky hesitates to translate the fib to his Cuban pals, telling them something in Spanish that ends with “con una henna rinse.”

LUCY: “I have a feeling my hair suffered in the translation.” 

Thankfully, a few color photographs were taken of the episode, confirming that Lucy really was ‘the lady in red’. 

Making her entrance too early, Lucy is startled to come face to face with an dancer dressed as a frightening native. Lucy has mistakenly entered during the African Wedding Dance that Renita (who is on her way to the Tropicana via Pennsylvania) does with her partner Ramon. 

The muscular native dancer / Ramon is not credited.

Lucy wildly attempts to blend in during the performance – all to no avail. 

In the original script, the episode ended with Ethel receiving telegram from Fred saying that he took Renita to Atlantic City, and that they’re living it up! The scene was cut for time.

FAST FORWARD!

A scene from this episode (above left) was inserted into the 1992 film The Mambo Kings using special effects to turn the pals of the show into characters from the film played by Armand Assante and Antonio Bandares. 

Desi Arnaz Sr. was played by his real-life son Desi Jr.