LUCY AND JOAN RIVERS DO JURY DUTY

S6;E9
~ November 5, 1973

Directed
by Coby Ruskin ~ Written by Bob Carroll Jr. and Madelyn Davis

Synopsis

Lucy
is called to jury duty and clashes with one of her fellow jurors
(Joan Rivers). After Lucy is the sole dissenter toward a unanimous
verdict, the unlikely pair must room together for the night.

Regular
Cast

Lucille
Ball (Lucy
Carter), Gale
Gordon (Harrison
Otis Carter)

Lucie
Arnaz (Kim
Carter) does not appear in this episode, nor is she mentioned in the
dialogue. The final credits do state, however, “Lucie Arnaz
wardrobe by Alroe.”

Guest Cast ~The Jury

1)
Joan Rivers
(Joan Reynolds, Juror) was born in 1933 as Joan Alexandra Molinksy.
She became stand-up
comedian, actress, writer, producer, and television host. She was
noted for her often controversial comedic persona – heavily
self-deprecating or sharply acerbic – especially toward celebrities
and politicians.
Rivers
gained prominence in 1965 as a guest on “The
Tonight Show.”
Hosted by her mentor, Johnny
Carson,
the show established Rivers’ comedic style. She also was the first
female guest-host of the show interviewing Lucille Ball three times.
She was nominated for a Tony on Broadway and co-wrote two plays.
There seemed like nothing Rivers could not (or would not) do. She died in 2014.

Joan
Reynolds’ boyfriend is named Marvin Winterbottom III. Joan thinks he
is about to ‘pop the question.’

2)
James E. Brodhead (Mr.
Miller, Jury Foreman ) previously played Tilford in “The Big Game”
(S6;E2). He makes his fourth screen appearance in a career that
lasted until 1995.

3)
Burt Mustin (Mr.
Robertson, elderly juror) was born in 1884! He didn’t do his first
film until age 67, although his stage and radio career started
earlier. He was generally cast as the stereotypical little old
man. He is probably best remembered as Mr. Quigley on “All in the
Family” and Mr. Lanson on “Phyllis.” He played Old Uncle
Joe in two 1973 episodes of “The Lucy Show.” Mustin also
played Uncle Jeff in Mame (1974). He died at age 92.

Mr.
Robertson has a date with a ‘heavy date with a swinging chick’ after
the deliberations.

4)
Judd Laurance
(Mr. Stalkup, Football Fan Juror) started his screen career in 1969
doing mostly crime dramas. This is his only appearance with Lucille
Ball.

Mr.
Stalkup has tickets for a Rams game after the deliberations. His
surname is never spoken aloud, only listed in the final credits.

5)
Savannah Bentley
(Miss Holmes, Juror) makes her only appearance with Lucille Ball.

Her surname is never spoken aloud, only listed in the final credits.

6)
Alice Backes (Mrs.
Barnes, Juror) made her first TV appearance as a contestant
on Groucho Marx’s “You Bet Your Life” in 1950, billed
as a ‘future actress.’ She previously appeared on the series
in “Lucy, the Matchmaker” (S1;E12). By her death she accumulated
nearly 100 screen credits, so her game show ambitions were more than
realized.

Mrs.
Barnes is celebrating her wedding anniversary.

7)
Lew Palter
(Mr. Patrick, Juror) holds
a PhD in Theatre and has been a well respected acting instructor for
decades. This
is his only appearance with Lucille Ball.

Mr.
Patrick’s name is never spoken in the dialogue, it is just listed in
the final credits.

8)
Shirley Anthony
(Juror) makes
the seventh of her 13 episodes of “Here’s Lucy.” This
is one of only two times where she received screen credit.

9)
Bob Whitney
(Juror) appeared
with Lucille Ball in The
Facts of Life (1960).
This is the third of his five appearances on the series.

10)
Sid Gould
(Juror) made
more than 45 appearances on “The Lucy Show,” all as background
characters. This is one of his nearly 50 episodes of “Here’s
Lucy.” Gould (born Sydney Greenfader) was Lucille Ball’s cousin
by marriage to Gary Morton.

11)
Walter Smith (Juror)
made 14 mostly uncredited appearances on the series. He also did one
episode of “The
Lucy Show.”

Hank
Brandt (Bailiff)
was born in 1934 in New Jersey. He began his screen acting
career in 1961. He previously played one of the astronauts
in “Lucy
and the Astronauts” (S4;E5)
and Johnny Muldoon in “Lucy and the Little Old Lady”
(S4;E17). This is his final episode
of the series.

When
Lucille Ball died in 1989, Joan Rivers wrote:

“She
was tough, smart, a brilliant comedian and a walking master class in
comedy.”

When Joan Rivers died in 2014, The Lucille Ball / Desi Arnaz Museum and Center for Comedy wrote a tribute to her on their website, remembering her visit in 2012:

“In
an effort to showcase the very best in American comedy in Jamestown,
Joan Rivers joined us to celebrate the 100th anniversary of
Lucille Ball’s birth date in the most fitting way possible;
laughter. Her presence has been a key factor in the realization of
Lucille Ball’s wish for her hometown: to celebrate and honor the
best in comedy. Like Lucy, Joan changed the face of comedy for women
on TV. We will continue to celebrate Joan’s unique talents so that
her legacy lives on for generations to come.”

~ Journey Gunderson, Executive Director

In
his DVD introduction, James E. Brodhead (Jury Foreman) recalls that
the episode was filmed in fall of 1973.

Brodhead also remembers that Lucy
and Joan enjoyed making each other laugh.

As Johnny Carson’s substitute host on “The Tonight Show,” Joan Rivers interviewed Lucille Ball several times.

This
episode is a loose satire of 12
Angry Men (1957),
a film starring Henry Fonda about a lone juror standing up for his
principles.
The movie is mentioned by Joan Rivers in the dialogue. It was based
on the CBS 1954 teleplay “Twelve Angry Men” which inspired a 1955
stage play. On television, the lone hold out was played by “Lucy”
alumni Bob Cummings. Henry Fonda co-starred with Ball in the 1968
film Yours,
Mine and Ours.

The
case is about the last will and testament of one Everett Covington,
who has left his million dollar fortune to his nurse, Susan Bartlett.
The will is contested by Covington’s grandson, George, on the basis
that his grandfather was coerced by the much-younger Bartlett to
change his will.

Lucy
calls elderly juror Mr. Robertson “the
Burt Reynolds of Sun City.”
The actor (and Playgirl centerfold) Burt
Reynolds
was one of the hottest male sex symbols of the 1970s. He released
three films in 1973 alone. Sun
City
is a gated, age-restricted community outside of Palm Springs,
California. In 2008 it was renamed Desert Springs.

Harry
picks up Lucy a couple of magazines to read in her hotel room
confinement: Fisherman’s Quarterly and The TV Log, two fictional
publications.

This
is the third celebrity named Joan that has guest-starred with Lucille Ball.
The other two are Joan Blondell…

and
Joan Crawford.

Although
they can’t talk about the case, Lucy reasons they can act it out through charades.
This gives Lucille Ball a chance to do pantomime, something she loved
and was quite good at.

Lucy first played charades on TV in “The Gossip” (ILL
S1;E24) in 1952.

The
argument between Lucy and Joan about whether to sleep with the window
open or closed was also a point of contention between Lucy and Ricky
Ricardo in “Breaking the Lease” (ILL S1;E18).

Sitcom
Logic Alert! A
contested will would certainly not call for a jury trial lasting two
weeks.