“Paris at Last”

(S5;E18 ~ February 27, 1956) Directed by James V. Kern. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, Bob Carroll, Jr., Bob Schiller, and Bob Weiskopf. Filmed on January 12, 1956 at Ren-Mar Studios. Rating: 49.7/67

Synopsis ~ Lucy is finally in Paris and wants to do typical tourist things… like buying forged paintings, eating snails, and passing counterfeit francs! Naturally, she gets into trouble! 

As with all of the European episodes, the episode was filmed completely in Hollywood, with stock location footage of Paris. The opening depicts a montage of Paris landmarks with a ghosted image of Lucy in various reaction shots. 

The day this episode first aired in 1956, “The Tony Martin Show” on NBC aired its final episode. Although the primetime variety show was not in direct competition with “I Love Lucy,” Lucille Ball had done several movies with Martin and both were on stage at the 1989 Academy Awards, Lucille Ball’s last television appearance. 

The gang are staying at the Royal Hôtel (conveniently with a picture-postcard view of the Eiffel Tower). Fred enters singing “Mademoiselle from Armentières,” a song popular with World War I soldiers. 

FRED: “What a town! Hasn’t changed a bit. Everything is exactly the same as it was in 1918.”
ETHEL: “Present company excepted.”

The episode reminds us that Fred joined the Army as a doughboy and went overseas by boat. He was only stationed in France for three weeks, but made it to the rank of corporal.

Although primarily known for their credit cards today, in the 1950s American Express was an international banking company that issued travelers checks and was a trusted source of currency exchange. Their international offices were equipped with reading and writing rooms which offered the latest American newspapers and magazines. They also maintained a post office where clients’ letters could be forwarded. In this episode, the actual Paris American Express office at Rue Scribe and Rue Auber is seen, presumably in stock footage. As of today, American Express is still located there.

The exchange rates in the episode are quoted in US dollars and French Francs. In 2002, France switched their officially currency to the Euro.  

Lawrence Dobkin plays the counterfeiter Lucy encounters on the street. He had already played a frustrated waiter in “Equal Rights” (S3;E4) and the Diner Counter Man who has Lucy arrested in “Ricky and Fred Are TV Fans” (S2;E30).

Shepard Menken (Pierre Charpontier, the sidewalk artist) also played another Frenchman, Jean Valjean Ramond, in “The Adagio” (S1;E12). He was also the art store owner in “Lucy Becomes a Sculptress” (S2;E15) and the eye doctor in “Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined” (S3;E11).

Fritz Feld plays the Tour Guide. Although he does not do it here, his trademark was to ‘pop’ his mouth by slapping it with the palm of his hand. He had appeared with Lucy in two 1938 films, Go Chase Yourself and The Affairs of Annabel.

Lucy and Vivian’s camera and lighting stand-ins Hazel Pierce and Renita Reachi are in the crowd of tourists with Ethel, led by Fritz Feld.

Actually born in Paris, background player George Nardelli was seen with Lucille Ball in the films Jealousy (1934), Stage Door (1937), and would later do Critic’s Choice (1963).

Lucy chooses to dine at the La Porte Montmartre street cafe. Maurice Marsac (the Waiter) had previously played the Tropicana Maître D’ in “Ricky Asks for a Raise” (S1;E35). He was born in France in 1915. 

When Lucy requests ketchup for her snails, the Chef goes into an untranslated rant. Above is a rough approximation of what he is actually saying! Clearly the actor was told told to ad-lib based on the situation. American-born Rolfe Sedan plays the indignant French Chef protective of his Snails Burgundy! Sedan started his career as a nightclub performer, also performing in vaudeville with Al Jolson. With Lucille Ball, he appeared in the movie Kid Millions (1934) and returned for a 1963 episode of “The Lucy Show.”

Blooper Alert!  Perhaps it was an oversight or maybe it was a sly tribute to the show’s origins, but the bottle of wine on Lucy’s table is not French, but Paul Masson, a California vintage! Their coin and crest logo is clearly visible in the medium shots.

The café patron in the beret who toasts Lucy is actually series writer Bob Carroll, Jr.. His writing partner, Madelyn Pugh, is seated next to him, although she is off camera during the toast. 

Above is a Paris café named La Porte Montmartre. Could it be the inspiration for the one patronized by Lucy? 

Trevor Ward plays the gendarme who arrests Lucy for passing the fake Francs. He had just appeared as the Cockney groom at the English country estate in “The Fox Hunt” (S5;E16) two episodes earlier. In real life Ward was not French, American, or English – he was Welsh!

When Lucy is hauled down to the Paris police station, the writers invoke the Bastille and Devil’s Island. The Bastille was a legendary fortress and state prison during the French Revolution, demolished in 1790. 

Devil’s Island was a notorious remote penal colony located in French Guiana but criminals were sent there from all parts of the French empire. It was closed in 1953, less than two years before this episode was filmed.

Lucy describes Ricky to the gendarmes as a “Spanish Chevalier.” Ricky not only wore a straw hat, he also wore it at an angle just like Maurice Chevalier. Chevalier was originally supposed to guest star in one of the Paris episodes, but was unavailable. He eventually guest starred (as himself) in “Lucy Goes To Mexico”, a 1958 episode of "The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour” (above right). 

When the episode was re-aired during more politically-correct times, Lucy’s line “Nobody speaks English. They are all foreigners!” was cut out by cable channel TV Land.  

Ramsay Hill plays the police desk sergeant who only speaks French. This is his one and only role on the series, but he served as technical adviser on the 1947 film Lured starring Lucille Ball. He was born in Georgetown, Guyana.

Johnny Mylong plays the gendarme who speaks both French and German. The other characters say he’s from Strasbourg but Mylong was originally born in Vienna, Austria. He soon returns to the series as the Casino Manager in “Lucy Goes To Monte Carlo” (S5;E25).

The German and Spanish-speaking Drunk is played by Vicente Padula, who would return shortly to play Signore Nicoletti, the Hotel Manager, in “Lucy Gets Homesick in Italy” (S5;E22) where he speaks only Italian. He would go on to play a Havana nightclub owner on the very first episode of “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour” in 1957. Despite playing an Italian, a Frenchman, and a Cuban, Padula was actually an Argentinian by birth!

The original script had an extended ending: After everyone reveals their identical paintings back at the hotel, the police arrive and say that Ricky paid Lucy’s bail with counterfeit money. It seems Charpontier used the counterfeit money Lucy used to buy his painting to later give Ricky change when he bought his copy of the painting – and those were the fake bills that paid the bail! 

Sound confusing? It was! So much so that it was cut and the show fades out with the foursome laughing at the folly of everyone buying the same painting.

Following this episode, Lucille and Desi did a 30 second public service announcement for “Heart Month”. The couple were stalwart supporters of the Heart Fund of the American Heart Association. Ironically, Lucille Ball died of an aortic dissection, a heart-related ailment.

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On December 20th 2019, CBS aired a colorized version of “Paris at Last” teamed with their annual rebroadcast of the “I Love Lucy” Christmas Special.  It became the 17th colorized episode of the series. To see what was cut from this prime-time airing, click here.