Lucy and Her Electric Mattress

S1;E12
~ December 17, 1962

Synopsis

Viv
complains about the state of her mattress before taking a short trip
out of town. While she is away, Lucy treats her to a newly decorated
room and vibrating bed. The bed doesn’t work properly and Lucy
returns it. When Viv comes home unexpectedly with no place to sleep,
the girls use their sons’ bunk beds.

Regular
Cast

Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Jimmy Garrett
(Jerry Carmichael), Ralph
Hart (Sherman Bagley), Candy Moore (Chris Carmichael)

Dick
Martin (Harry Connors) does not
appear in this episode

On
the day of filming (November 18, 1962), Desi Arnaz resigned as
president of Desilu Productions.

In
some time zones this episode was aired opposite an hour-long
conversation with President John F. Kennedy. 

A scene from this episode was later included in “Lucy and Viv Reminisce” (S5;E16), a clips show retrospective aired during the second half of the final season.

Although
electrically controlled adjustable beds are still popular, in the
early 1960s home electronic beds were generally limited to vibrating.
There were also often coin-operated versions found in low to
mid-priced hotels and motels. The Magic Fingers Bed perfected the
technology in 1958, although vibrating beds existed before then. At
their peak of popularity in the 1960s, there were 250,000 Magic
Fingers units installed nationwide, each unit averaging eight
quarters per week, bringing in $2 million in monthly gross revenue.

Chris
is getting a ride to school with Cynthia’s mother. Although
frequently mentioned, we will not meet Cynthia until episode #23 when
she is played by Lucie Arnaz.

Viv
and Sherman are headed to Uncle Ned’s for the weekend. It
is not stated whether he is Viv’s uncle, or Sherman’s.

The
transmission on Viv’s old car failed just 75 miles outside of
Danfield in New York state. In “Lucy and Viv are Volunteer Firemen” (S1;E16) we learn that Lucy does not own a car.  In “Lucy Buys a Sheep” (S1;E5) we see
that she drives a 1949 Packard.  

Lucy
says Viv’s mattress was the same one she slept on when she was
Chris’s age. Going by Lucille Ball’s real age at the time, the
mattress would be about 36 years old!  

Lucy
says she bought Viv’s new electric mattress at Marshalls. Marshalls
Department Stores began in Massachusetts in 1956 before becoming a
nationwide chain. It is still in existence today. 

Lucy
mentions Mr. McClay at the hardware store. Howard McClay was the
name of Lucille Ball’s longtime publicist.

Lucille
Ball will use her stilt-walking skills again in “Lucy Bags a
Bargain” (S4;E17).  

A
clip of Lucy walking on stilts was part of the season three opening
credits. Although the series was in color at the time, the clip was
still in black and white. A still of Lucy on stilts is part of the
photo collage on the most recent season one DVD release.

This
is our first look at Jerry and Sherman’s bedroom. It’s most striking
feature is the wallpaper with large clouds and fighter jets. We will
see it again in “Lucy and Viv Put In a Shower” (S1;E18).

About
the runaway electric bed, Lucy says “If
Aunt Viv ever fell asleep and left the motor running she’d wake up
halfway to New Rochelle.”  New
Rochelle
is a
city
in
Westchester
County,
in the southeastern portion of New York state.
It is a popular bedroom community of Manhattan because of it has easy
access to Routes 95 and the New Haven railroad line. References to
New Rochelle can be found in the musicals Give My Regards to
Broadway, Guys and Dolls, Ragtime, and How To Succeed in Business
Without Really Trying. On “The Dick Van Dyke Show,” which aired
on CBS concurrently with “The Lucy Show,” Rob and Laura Petrie
lived in New Rochelle but the show was filmed on the Desilu lot.

When
Viv rolls over without helping Lucy into the upper bunk, Lucy say:
“I am not Peter Pan!”
This is the second mention of a character from the J.M. Barrie
story. In “Vivian Sues Lucy” (S1;E10), Lucy mentioned Tinkerbell, Peter Pan’s fairy friend, in reference to Viv’s propensity for ringing her bedside bell.  

The
upper bunk makes Viv feel claustrophobic. Viv also complained of
this in “Lucy Becomes an Astronaut” (S1;E6). In real-life it was
Lucille Ball who was claustrophobic.

A
sturdy metal handle was screwed to the inside wall of the top bunk
and painted white to match the crown molding. This handle gave Lucy
and Vivian something to grab on to during the physical stunts. The above image was incorporated into the season two opening credits. 

The
title of this episode probably should be “Lucy and the Bunk Bed”
since the scene with the electric mattress gets only a bit more than
four minutes total screen time, whereas the scene with the bunk bed
goes on more than 12 minutes and includes the memorable scene of Lucy
on stilts.

Callbacks!

Viv
is reluctant to share a bed with Lucy based on a bad memory of a
previous attempt.  

VIV:
“Oh,
no! The last time we did you ate crackers in bed and hogged all the
covers. I woke up feeling like a breaded Popsicle!”

Lucy
Ricardo ate crackers in bed to annoy Ricky in “Ricky Loses His
Temper” (ILL S3;E19). In “Lucy and Her Vibrating Mattress” she
eats potato chips in the top bunk.  

The
boys room features a small pennant that reads TAIT.  This is a
reference to the fictional Tait University in the musical Good
News,
which was seen on Broadway in 1927 and on screen in 1947. It
featured the song “Varsity Drag,” which Vivian Vance performed in
“Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined” (ILL S3;E11). The film version
interpolated the song “Pass That Peace Pipe,” which Vance sang in
“The Indian Show” (ILL S2;E24). It
was nominated for the 1948 Academy Award for Best Song.

There
is also an Indian Guides pennant.  Indian
Guides
was a father-son program of the YMCA.  It was was parodied in the
1960 Bob
Hope /
Lucille
Ball comedy
The
Facts of Life.
In “Lucy Digs Up a Date” (S1;E2) we learned that Danfield has a
new YMCA and several scenes were set there.  

LUCY:
“I
can’t afford it!  I’m not made of money you know.”  
VIV:
“I
hate to say this but do you know what you’re turning into?  A
penny-pinching landlord.”

Lucy’s line could well have been spoken by Ricky Ricardo. Viv’s line perfectly describes Fred Mertz.

Viv describes her ex-husband Ralph as having a mustache and a deep voice. In previous episodes viewers might have pictured William Frawley (Fred Mertz) as Viv’s ex, but while Frawley had a deep, gruff voice, he never sported a mustache. She might well be describing another Ralph with a mustache and a deep voice – Ralph Ramsey on “I Love Lucy” played by Frank Nelson. 

The
last time Lucy’s bed moved across the floor, pinning her to the wall,
was during the Ricardo’s and Mertzes “First Stop” (ILL S4;E13) at
One Oak Cabins outside Cincinnati en route to Hollywood.  In that
instance, it was cause by the vibrations from a nearby railroad
train. That episode also featured bunk beds and a sagging mattress.

Blooper
Alerts!

Floor Plan Forgetfulness!  This
is the third time we have seen Viv’s bedroom and once again it has a
completely different layout. Viv’s bed frame, however, remains the
same.

Tipsy Uke! After
Viv wakes up due to Lucy’s eating potato chips in bed, a ukulele that
was leaning against the bookcase in the foot-board tips over.

“Lucy and Her Electric Mattress” rates 5 Paper Hearts out of 5