S4;E23
~ February 28, 1966
Synopsis
Lucy
convinces her new neighbor to invent a robot to keep Mr. Mooney’s
visiting nephew busy, but when the Robot falls down a flight of
steps, Lucy must take its place.
Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Gale Gordon (Theodore J. Mooney)
Mary
Jane Croft (Mary Jane Lewis) does not appear in this episode.
Guest
Cast
Jay
North
(Wendell Mooney) will
forever be remembered for giving life to the comic strip hellion
“Dennis
the Menace”
(1959) on TV. During the show’s final season, North played opposite
Gale Gordon as John Wilson. “Dennis the Menace” was canceled in
1963. In the ensuing three years North became a teenager with a deeper
voice and red hair instead of blonde. Two weeks prior to this
episode airing, North guest starred on an episode of “My Three
Sons” with Barry Livingston, who played Mr. Mooney’s youngest son,
Arnold (so Wendell’s cousin) in two season 2 episodes. North left
Hollywood and screen acting in 1985. He later reported that he was unhappy as a child actor and was abused by his aunt, who was his guardian. As of 2017, he was working as a
prison guard in Florida.
Wendell
is Mr. Mooney’s 13 year-old nephew. He is staying with his Uncle Theodore and Aunt Irma while his parents are on a two week vacation. The character is described as a rambunctious child, not unlike Dennis Mitchell. The
difference is that Wendell has a sour disposition, while Dennis’s
outlook was generally sunny.
Vito Scotti (Sam Boscovitch) played the Fencing Instructor in “Lucy Digs Up a Date” (S1;E2), the second episode of the series in 1962. He was born in San Francisco, but spent much of his youth in Naples, Italy. His first role with Lucille Ball was as a Tijuana shopkeeper in “Lucy Goes to Mexico,” a 1958 episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour.” He also had a small role in the Bob Hope / Lucille Ball film The Facts of Life (1960). Scotti is probably best remembered for his recurring role as Captain Fomento on “The Flying Nun” (1967-1969). He died in 1996 at age 78.
Sam lives in the apartment downstairs from Lucy.
Dorothy
Konrad
(Mrs. Fletcher, Wendell’s Babysitter) played
Danfield volunteer firefighter Dorothy Boyer in several season one
episodes as
well as several other characters. This is her final series
appearance.
In the scope of the plot, Mrs. Fletcher might well have been Irma Mooney. Konrad certainly matches Mr. Mooney’s previous descriptions of her. Instead, however, Mr. Mooney claims his wife is at a commando reunion. It is likely that that they wanted to continue the gag of keeping Mrs. Mooney off-screen.
Larry
Dean
(Major Fun Fun, the Robot) was
a mime who specialized in playing robots, which he also did on
episodes of “Lost in Space” and “Bewitched.” He previously
played the Mechanical Butler (another robot) in Bigelow’s
Department Store window in “Lucy
and the Ceramic Cat” (S3;E17).
Dean’s first entrance gets a round of applause from the studio audience, although it sounds very much like ‘canned’ applause, added later to fill the slight pause of his march step.
Sid
Gould
(Delivery Man) made
more than 45 appearances on “The Lucy Show,” all as background
characters. He also did 40 episodes of “Here’s Lucy.” Gould
(born Sydney Greenfader) was Lucille Ball’s cousin by marriage to
Gary Morton.
Bennett
Green
(Bennett, Delivery Man) was Desi Arnaz’s stand-in during “I Love
Lucy.” He does frequent background work on “The Lucy Show.”
Green
is barely seen on camera here, staying behind the large gift wrapped
box containing Lucy the robot during its delivery to the Mooney home. If Sid
Gould had not addressed him by name, he would be impossible to
identify because he is also uncredited.
The TV sitcom “Dennis the Menace” (based on the comic strip) aired from 1959 to 1962. In the show’s final season, the long-suffering character of neighbor George Wilson was written out due to the death of actor Joseph Kearns.
Gale Gordon was added to the cast as George’s brother, Henry.
Kearns had played two characters on “I Love Lucy” – a psychiatrist in season one, and a theatre manager in season six.
When Lucille Ball was finally convinced to return to network television in 1962, she naturally wanted Gordon to join her, but he was unable to due to his prior commitment to “Dennis the Menace” so Mrs. Carmichael’s put-upon banker was played by Charles Lane. Lane was also on “Dennis” as the recurring character of druggist Mr. Finch. He played the role six times before leaving for “Lucy”, his final episode airing just a day before his penultimate episode of “Lucy”!
This was the second time that Gordon and Ball failed to connect contractually, when he was offered, but turned down, the role of Fred Mertz in 1951 after playing a similar character on Lucy’s radio show “My Favorite Husband.” When “Dennis” was canceled and Gordon was finally free, Ball wasted no time in hiring Gordon and had Lane’s character Mr. Barnsdahl written out in order to make way for new banker Theodore Mooney.
“Dennis the Menace” also had a character named Theodore Mooney – a police sergeant (George Cisar). He was often seen in the company of Lucy Elkins (Irene Tedrow) and John Wilson (Gale Gordon).
Besides Gordon, Lane, and Kearns, “Dennis” also featured “Lucy Show” and/or “I Love Lucy” alumni like:
- Mary Wickes (Miss Cathcart)
- Edward Everett Horton (Uncle Ned)
- Kathryn Card (Mrs. Biddy)
- Parley Baer (Captain Blast)
- Elvia Allman (Edna)
- Tyler McVey (Mr. Carlson)
- Dub Taylor (Opie Swanson)
- Norman Leavitt (various roles)
- Bob Jellison (Announcer)
- Richard Reeves (Mr. Kelly)
- Lurene Tuttle (Mrs. Courtland)
- Nestor Paiva (Gamali)
- Jonathan Hole (Addison Brook)
- Stanley Adams (Jerry Richman)
- Willard Waterman (Otis Quigley)
- Harry Cheshire (Mr. Petry)
- Eve McVeagh (Mrs. Purcell)
- Harvey Korman (Bowers)
- Stafford Repp (Lt. Wheeler)
- Verna Felton (Aunt Emma)
- Madge Blake (Mrs. Porter)
- Ellen Corby (Miss Douglas)
- Eleanor Audley (Mrs. Pompton)
- and frequent extras Leoda Richards, Leon Alton, Olan Soule, Larry J. Blake, George DeNormand, and Monty O’Grady
On
the date this episode first aired (February 28, 1966) “The Lucy
Show’s” CBS TV lead-in was an episode of “I’ve Got a Secret”
with guest star Vivian Vance (Ethel Mertz / Vivian Bagley). It would
be her last of six appearances on the quiz show.
Also on February 28, 1966, actor Jonathan Hale died at age 74. He had appeared with Lucille Ball in Her Husband’s Affairs (1947) and Easy To Wed (1946).
Following
the previous week’s episode, an episode of “The Andy Griffith Show” (also filmed at Desilu
Studios) featured Vito Scotti (Sam Buscovitch). The episode also co-starred Jamie Farr (above left), who was featured in “Lucy the Rain Goddess” (S4;E15).
After
Sam’s explosion causes Lucy’s TV to short out, she asked if he was in
New York during the big blackout.
The
Northeast
Blackout of 1965
occurred on Tuesday, November 9, 1965, affecting parts of Ontario
in
Canada, Connecticut,
Massachusetts,
New
Hampshire,
New
Jersey,
New
York,
Rhode
Island,
Pennsylvania,
and Vermont.
Over 30 million people were left without electricity for up to 13
hours.
Lucy
says she’s a big fan of inventors like Thomas Edison and Alexander
Graham Bell because she’s always making telephone calls and turning
on lights.
Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922, left) is the inventor of the telephone. Thomas
Alva Edison (1847-1931, right)
is credited as the inventor of the light bulb.
Sam tells Lucy that he was a fat kid. Lucy confesses to Sam that she had braces and flaming red hair. This confession indicates that Lucy Carmichael’s hair is naturally red (albeit maybe not that particular shade), and not dyed, as Lucy Ricardo’s was.
We
learn that Mr. Mooney has a cat named Cleo.
It was probably named for Cleo
Morgan (nee
Mandicos aka Cleo Smith) who was Lucille Ball’s first cousin,
although the two were raised as sisters. Morgan later became a
producer on “Here’s Lucy.” Mr. Mooney also has a Sheepdog named
Nelson. Neither Cleo nor Nelson appear on camera in this episode.
MR. MOONEY: (Into telephone) “Tell him not to put Cleo’s head in the goldfish bowl!”
Hearing that Wendell is putting Cleo’s head in the goldfish bowl is reminiscent of the relationship between Figaro the cat and Cleo the goldfish in Disney’s 1940 animated film Pinocchio. The pair were given their own short film in 1943.
Cleo (the toy) made an appearance on “I Love Lucy” in May 1953.
This
is the first time we see the inside of Mr. Mooney’s California house.
In “Lucy Helps the Countess” (S4;E8) he flirted with the idea of
moving into an ultra-modern high rise apartment in Cucamonga.
Lucy
suggests the expressionless Robot would be a good replacement for Ed
Sullivan.
The famous TV show host was nicknamed “Old Stoneface” for
his unsmiling demeanor. From 1954 to 1968 Lucille Ball made 10
appearances on “The Ed Sullivan Show.” Ed Sullivan and his show
were also mentioned several times on “I Love Lucy.”
When
the Robot is leaving Sam’s apartment as well as when Lucy is marching
around the Mooney living room, the underscoring is “Parade
of the Wooden Soldiers”
(also known as “Parade of the Tin Soldiers” or “March of the Wooden Soliders”) composed by
Leon Jessel in 1897.
‘In’ Jokes!
- Wendell
to Lucy / Major Fun Fun: “Boy,
I’m gonna have a BALL with you!” - Wendell
to Lucy / Major Fun Fun: “This
HAIR doesn’t look real.”
[Lucille Ball’s color was the result of Henna dye and she sometimes
wore wigs on the show.] - Mr.
Mooney to Lucy about Wendell: “You
will keep that MENACE subdued for the next eight days!”
Callbacks!
The
exploding television set is reminiscent of “The Courtroom” (ILL
S2;E7) in which both the Mertzes and the Judge’s TV sets explode.
Lucy spanking Wendell as punishment, is reminiscent of the many episodes Ricky spanked Lucy, one of the most controversial aspects of the show to modern audiences. Today, even corporal punishment of one’s own children is frowned upon and would not be depicted on television in a comic way.
Lucy Carmichael previously encountered a robot butler (also played by mime Larry Dean) in “Lucy and the Ceramic Cat” (S3;E16).
In
Sam’s kitchen cupboard, there is a box of Kiddie Cookies, a fictional
product first
seen on “The Talent Discoverers Show” in “Lucy
and the Plumber” (S3;E2)
and then again in the Los Angeles supermarket during “Lucy and
Joan” (S4;E4).
Lucy Carmichael: “What would keep a 13 year-old boy happy?”
Sam Boscovitch: “How about a 13 year-old girl?”
~ “Lucy the Robot” 1966
Lucy Ricardo: “It’s just a little boy. Now, what do you think I better have ready for him when he gets here?”
Ethel Mertz: “How about a little girl?”
In Sam’s apartment there is a toy Ferris wheel that was first seen back in Danfield in “Vivian Sues Lucy” (S1;E10). It belonged to Jerry, Lucy’s son.
After the Robot leaves Sam’s apartment there is an off-camera crash, and Lucy Carmichael walks back in carrying the Robot’s head and leg. In “The Ricardos Dedicate a Statue” (ILL S6;E27), Lucy Ricardo leaves her Westport home, there is an off-camera crash, and Lucy walks back in carrying the statue’s head and leg. Lucy Ricardo pleads with Mr. Silvestry, the statue’s creator, to make another statue, just as Lucy Carmichael pleads with Sam to make another robot. Lucy Ricardo then takes the statue’s place for the unveiling, just as Lucy Carmichael assumes the identity of the Robot in the gift box.
Blooper
Alerts
Me Too! When Lucy meets Sam Buscovitch for the first time, he says he just moved from New York. Oddly, Lucy does not say “Me too!” This would be a natural response from a recent transplant to the West Coast.
Sitcom Logic Alert! It takes Sam a total of 15 seconds to ‘fix’ and ‘adjust’ Lucy’s television set! It then receives broadcasts from Hong Kong, more than 7,000 miles away!
Door is Ajar! When
Sam rushes into Lucy’s apartment after the explosion, he leaves the
door wide open, which is usual on “The Lucy Show.” After the
Delivery Men leave the Mooney house, they also leave the front door open.
Sitcom Logic Alert 2! Both Wendell and Mrs. Fletcher touch Lucy but still don’t realize she is a real person, not a robot.
Floor Plan! During the second scene in Sam’s apartment, his kitchen
table and chairs have disappeared. Lucy’s
desk at the bank is now back inside Mr. Mooney’s office. In the
previous episode, “Lucy and Bob Crane” (S4;E22), she was
re-assigned to New Accounts with a desk in the bank’s lobby.
Fast Forward!
A more realistic robot will be featured in the “Life With Lucy” episode “Lucy Makes Curtis Byte the Dust” (LWL S1;E6) in 1986. His name is Rupert.
A still from this episode was incorporated into the photo montage on the Season 4 DVD box cover.
“Lucy the Robot” rates 2 Paper Hearts out of 5
Papermoon Loves Lucy 
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