LUCY AND HER GENUINE TWIMBY

S5;E17
~ January 15, 1973

Directed
by Coby Ruskin ~ Written by Fred S. Fox and Seaman Jacobs

Synopsis

While
antiques shopping, Lucy spots a chair that she likes and buys it. It
turns out not to be a reproduction, but was once owned by George
Washington and worth thousands. The dealer (Bob Cummings) decides to
pretend to date Lucy to get it back – until he actually falls for
her.

Regular
Cast

Lucille
Ball (Lucy
Carter), Gale
Gordon (Harrison
Otis Carter), Lucie
Arnaz (Kim
Carter)

Guest
Cast

Robert
Cummings
(Robert Henning) was
born in 1910 in Joplin, Missouri. His godfather was the aviation
pioneer Wilbur Wright, so naturally he got his pilot’s license and
studied aeronautical engineering. After the stock market crash of
1929, he gave flying up to study drama in New York City, making his
Broadway debut in 1931. In 1934 he moved to Hollywood and started
making films. During World War II he was a captain in the Air Force
Reserves. His television career kicked off in 1952, winning an Emmy
for his role in the series “My Hero.” Starting in 1955, Cummings
starred on a successful NBC sitcom, “The Bob Cummings Show” (aka
“Love That Bob”). The show ended in July 1959, just a few months
prior to filming “The
Ricardos Go To Japan” the
penultimate episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour.” Cummings
first appeared on the series in “Lucy’s Punctured Romance”
(S4;E22). He was married five times and fathered seven children.
Robert Cummings died in 1990.

The
surname Henning is probably a tribute to Paul Henning, who created
Cummings’ TV series “Love That Bob”.

William
Lanteau
(Edgar Vincent Kinkaid) first
appeared with Lucille Ball in The
Facts of Life (1960).
In addition to an episode of “The
Lucy Show”
and “Mr. and Mrs.,” a 1964 teleplay starring Lucille Ball and Bob
Hope. This is the last of Lanteau’s
four episodes of “Here’s Lucy.” In 1981, Lucille Ball
cast Lanteau in one of her rare (official) directing projects, a
pilot for a series titled “Bungle Abbey” starring Gale Gordon and
written by Seaman Jacobs (who co-wrote this “Here’s Lucy”
episode). He is, however, best remembered for playing Charlie the
Mailman in the play and the film On
Golden Pond (1981).

The
character’s name is meant to sound like poet Edna St. Vincent Millay
because he makes up rhymes. Lanteau wears a wig and a bald pate in
this episode for a visual joke.

Bob
Harks (Restaurant Diner / Stand-In for Robert Cummings, uncredited) appeared in his first film in 1968 and was seen in the
background of Mame
(1974). In 1970, he popped up on his first television show and was
seen in more than a dozen episodes of “Here’s Lucy.” He died at
age 83 in 2010.

Virginia Kennedy (Restaurant Diner, uncredited)

The
waiter and other diners at the restaurant are played by uncredited
background performers.

Some
sources mistakenly spell TwiMby
as TwiNby
when listing and discussing the episode, making it difficult to find
on internet searches.

The chair costs Lucy $125. It is later discovered that the chair is

not a reproduction, but a genuine Twimby, made by Horace Twimby himself. It belonged to George Washington at his Mount Vernon home. It is initially said to be worth $5,000 but later a Philadelphia dealer offers Mr. Henning $6,000.

Although Horace Twimby is a fictional furniture maker, the chairs used in the episode
are very similar to those found in the West Parlor of Mount Vernon, George Washington’s home in Virginia.

When “Lucy and Viv Open a Restaurant” (TLS S2;E20) in 1964, one of the concepts they try out is a colonial-themed restaurant with Lucy and Viv dressed as George and Martha Washington!

Lucille Ball often said that there was some Ball blood in George Washington since his mother’s maiden name was Mary Ball. Genealogists say that the Father of Our Country is the 8th cousin 7 times removed to the Queen of Comedy!

In
order to get access to the chair, Henning plans to wine and dine Lucy
at the Candlelight Room.

When
Henning fails to get the Twimby back from Lucy, Kinkaid reminds him
that
“Mark Antony would have gotten the job done in Egypt if he hadn’t
bumped into Elizabeth Taylor.”
This is a reference to the 1963 film Cleopatra
starring
Taylor in the title role and Richard Burton as Mark Antony. The film
was previously mentioned on “The Lucy Show” and both stars
appeared together on “Here’s Lucy.” The same year the film was
released, Lucy Carmichael played Cleopatra in a community theatre
play opposite Vivian Vance as Mark Antony.

Kinkaid
tells Henning that his inability to retrieve the chair is because
he’s “flipped his wig” for Lucy. Coincidentally, that’s
literally what happened to Kinkaid earlier in the episode.

The
antiques shop is selling Abraham Lincoln’s Bed. Tad Lincoln’s
rocking chair played an integral role in the final scene of “Lucy
Goes to the White House” (TLS S1;E25).

Recycling! The
same red booths usually seen in the luncheonette are now used in a
more romantic restaurant.