THE TWO MRS. COOPERS / LIZ’S BIRTHDAY

November 4, 1950 / November 25, 1950

“The Two Mrs. Coopers” is episode #104 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on November 4, 1950.

This was the seventh episode of the third season of MY FAVORITE HUSBAND. There were 31 new episodes, with the season ending on March 31, 1951.  

Synopsis ~ It’s Liz’s birthday and she wants to forget all about it but she doesn’t want George to forget it!  George mistakenly thinks that it is his mother’s birthday and buys her present which Liz thinks is for her. But then he realizes that he has invited his mother’s friends over for a surprise party!

[On all known sources, this episode and “Liz’s Birthday” (November 25, 1950) are the same program. It is likely that one or the other has been lost. Because the titles might fit both programs, there is no consensus on which is lost and which is extant!]

“My Favorite Husband” was based on the novels Mr. and Mrs. Cugat, the Record of a Happy Marriage (1940) and Outside Eden (1945) by Isabel Scott Rorick, which had previously been adapted into the film Are Husbands Necessary? (1942). “My Favorite Husband” was first broadcast as a one-time special on July 5, 1948. Lucille Ball and Lee Bowman played the characters of Liz and George Cugat, and a positive response to this broadcast convinced CBS to launch “My Favorite Husband” as a series. Bowman was not available Richard Denning was cast as George. On January 7, 1949, confusion with bandleader Xavier Cugat prompted a name change to Cooper. On this same episode Jell-O became its sponsor. A total of 124 episodes of the program aired from July 23, 1948 through March 31, 1951. After about ten episodes had been written, writers Fox and Davenport departed and three new writers took over – Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Pugh, and head writer/producer Jess Oppenheimer. In March 1949 Gale Gordon took over the existing role of George’s boss, Rudolph Atterbury, and Bea Benaderet was added as his wife, Iris. CBS brought “My Favorite Husband” to television in 1953, starring Joan Caulfield and Barry Nelson as Liz and George Cooper. The television version ran two-and-a-half seasons, from September 1953 through December 1955, running concurrently with “I Love Lucy.” It was produced live at CBS Television City for most of its run, until switching to film for a truncated third season filmed (ironically) at Desilu and recasting Liz Cooper with Vanessa Brown.

MAIN CAST

Lucille Ball (Liz Cooper) was born on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York. She began her screen career in 1933 and was known in Hollywood as ‘Queen of the B’s’ due to her many appearances in ‘B’ movies. With Richard Denning, she starred in a radio program titled “My Favorite Husband” which eventually led to the creation of “I Love Lucy,” a television situation comedy in which she co-starred with her real-life husband, Latin bandleader Desi Arnaz. The program was phenomenally successful, allowing the couple to purchase what was once RKO Studios, re-naming it Desilu. When the show ended in 1960 (in an hour-long format known as “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour”) so did Lucy and Desi’s marriage. In 1962, hoping to keep Desilu financially solvent, Lucy returned to the sitcom format with “The Lucy Show,” which lasted six seasons. She followed that with a similar sitcom “Here’s Lucy” co-starring with her real-life children, Lucie and Desi Jr., as well as Gale Gordon, who had joined the cast of “The Lucy Show” during season two. Before her death in 1989, Lucy made one more attempt at a sitcom with “Life With Lucy,” also with Gordon.

Richard Denning (George Cooper) was born Louis Albert Heindrich Denninger Jr., in Poughkeepsie, New York. When he was 18 months old, his family moved to Los Angeles. Plans called for him to take over his father’s garment manufacturing business, but he developed an interest in acting. Denning enlisted in the US Navy during World War II. He is best known for his  roles in various science fiction and horror films of the 1950s. Although he teamed with Lucille Ball on radio in “My Favorite Husband,” the two never acted together on screen. While “I Love Lucy” was on the air, he was seen on another CBS TV series, “Mr. & Mrs. North.” From 1968 to 1980 he played the Governor on “Hawaii 5-0″, his final role. He died in 1998 at age 84.

Gale Gordon (Rudolph Atterbury) had worked with Lucille Ball on “The Wonder Show” on radio in 1938. One of the front-runners to play Fred Mertz on “I Love Lucy,” he eventually played Alvin Littlefield, owner of the Tropicana, during two episodes in 1952. After playing a Judge in an episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” in 1958, he would re-team with Lucy for all of her subsequent series’: as Theodore J. Mooney in ”The Lucy Show”; as Harrison Otis Carter in “Here’s Lucy”; and as Curtis McGibbon on “Life with Lucy.” Gordon died in 1995 at the age of 89.

Ruth Perrott (Katie, the Maid) was also later seen on “I Love Lucy.” She first played Mrs. Pomerantz, a member of the surprise investigating committee for the Society Matrons League in “Pioneer Women” (ILL S1;E25), as one of the member of the Wednesday Afternoon Fine Arts League in “Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress” (ILL S3;E3), and also played a nurse when “Lucy Goes to the Hospital” (ILL S2;E16). She died in 1996 at the age of 96.

Bob LeMond (Announcer) also served as the announcer for the pilot episode of “I Love Lucy”. When the long-lost pilot was finally discovered in 1990, a few moments of the opening narration were damaged and lost, so LeMond – fifty years later – recreated the narration for the CBS special and subsequent DVD release.

GUEST CAST

GeGe Pearson (Miss Perkins, Mr. Atterbury’s Secretary / Miss LeNoy) did two other episodes of “My Favorite Husband.” She will play a New York City tourist in “Lucy Visits Grauman’s” (ILL S5;E1) in 1955. She did the episode with her husband, Hal Gerard. The two actors were married in real-life. In 1956 the couple returned to CBS to appear in the same episode of “Damon Runyon Theatre.” She is perhaps best remembered as the voice of Crusader Rabbit. The couple died just a year apart in 1975 and 1976. 

Bea Benadaret (Miller’s Department Store Clerk / Miss Morton) was considered the front-runner to be cast as Ethel Mertz but when “I Love Lucy” was ready to start production she was already playing a similar role on TV’s “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” so Vivian Vance was cast instead. On “I Love Lucy” she was cast as Lucy Ricardo’s spinster neighbor, Miss Lewis, in “Lucy Plays Cupid” (ILL S1;E15) in early 1952. Later, she was a success in her own show, “Petticoat Junction” as Shady Rest Hotel proprietress Kate Bradley. She starred in the series until her death in 1968.

Although she normally plays Iris Atterbury, Benadaret often voice smaller female roles in the series, in lieu of hiring another actress. She also played a Miller’s Department Store clerk in 1948′s “Liz Sells Dresses.” Benadaret uses the ‘old lady’ voice she will use as Miss Lewis. Coincidentally, Morton is the surname of her character on “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” (1950-58) on which she played Blanche Morton for the first time two weeks earlier. Her commitment to Burns and Allen prevented Benadaret from accepting the role of Ethel Mertz on “I Love Lucy.”  Even more coincidentally, Morton would become Lucille Ball’s surname when she married comic Gary Morton (nee Goldaper) in 1961.

EPISODE

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers it’s morning and we find Katie the maid in the kitchen. Liz Cooper is just coming into the room.”

Upon seeing Liz, Katie begins to sing “Happy Birthday” until Liz tells her that she had her last birthday a year ago today. 

LIZ: “Today I’m 33. That’s more than halfway to 35. I’m practically 40!” 

This means that Liz Cooper was born on November 4, 1917. Lucille Ball was actually 39 when this broadcast aired. She was born on August 6, 1911. Lucy Ricardo’s birthday was celebrated in “Lucy’s Last Birthday” (ILL S2;E25), although she always declined to reveal her true age. Lucy Carter also celebrated her birthday in

a 1968 episode of “Here’s Lucy.”

Liz wants George to forget her birthday, too. George comes in to remind her of an important date: It’s Saturday and he told her to call the plumber last Wednesday about the leaky bathroom basin! George leaves for work without remembering Liz’s birthday. She dissolves into tears. 

An hour later, Liz is still weepy. Katie tells Liz it is normal for husbands to forget birthdays. Liz decides to calling Mr. Atterbury, George’s boss, and drop a hint. Liz phones him claiming to be a close relative of George’s and sings “Happy Birthday” in an unrecognizable nasal voice. 

Mr. Atterbury summons George into his office and imitates the voice on the phone. George tells Mr. Atterbury he’s sure it isn’t Liz’s birthday. He thinks her birthday is June 3 – of February 8 – or in the Spring sometime. He finally comes to the conclusion that it must have been his mother hinting about her birthday!  He runs out to Miller’s department store to buy her a present. 

The store clerk (Bea Benadaret) recognizes George and assumes he is shopping for his wife. Much to the clerk’s surprise, George buys a wool flannel nightgown and goes off to look for a cake that will hold 65 candles. George fills out a card for the clerk to send out with the gift. 

Meanwhile, Liz comes to the bank and explains to Mr. Atterbury about her cryptic phone message. Mr. Atterbury realizes that George is shopping for the wrong Mrs. Cooper, but doesn’t tell Liz. When she goes, he phones the store to stop him. He talks to the clerk, who tells him what George has bought. Mr. Atterbury tells the clerk not to send the nightgown, but substitute a suede jacket instead. 

The package arrives from Miller’s Department Store. Liz is curious so she opens the package. It is the suede jacket she’s wanted!  Liz wants to wear the jacket out to the store to show it off. 

George phones the office to report he will be delayed because he can’t find a big enough cake for 65 candles. He speaks to Miss Perkins (GeGe Peterson) who tells him that Mr. Atterbury is out looking for George to to tell him that it’s not his mother’s birthday, but his wife’s!  Thinking he’s sent his wife a flannel nightgown, George rushes home to intercept the package before Liz can open it!   

George arrives home and looks to see if the package is in the closet. Just then, Liz comes back and he has to hide in the closet to make sure she doesn’t see him. She goes to put the jacket back in the box in the closet. Hearing a noise in the kitchen, she ducks into the closet, too, just in case it is George.  The two are hiding in the dark in the same closet!  

Writer Madelyn Pugh remembers: "For some reason, Bob [Carroll Jr.] and I liked the idea of people hiding in a closet. We used it in [’The Saxophone’], and in a couple of other ‘Lucys.’ We even used it in the pilot of ‘The Mothers-in-Law’ fifteen years later – and it always got a laugh!”

Once the shock wears off, Liz confesses: she’s opened the present and loves it. George, still thinking it is a flannel nightgown, is confused. Liz says she wore it out shopping. George is confounded! Liz says she took it off, gave it to the clerk to try on, and then carried it over her arm all the way home. George is shocked! 

Mr. Atterbury arrives and asks about the suede jacket, which confuses George even more. Liz wonders how he knew!  Mr. Atterbury whispers to George what he did. 

The doorbell rings: it is the guests for the surprise party George arranged for his mother: two elderly ladies, Miss Morton and Miss LeNoy (Bea Benadaret and GeGe Pearson). Whenever the ladies start to ask the whereabouts of George’s mother, George and Mr. Atterbury loudly sing “Happy Birthday”!

MISS LENOY: “They sure sing a lot, don’t they?”
MISS MORTON: “Loudly, too.” 

The old ladies realize that someone’s made a ‘boo-boo’ and they are at the wrong party, so they play along. They ladies have brought presents, which Liz excitedly opens. 

Miss LeNoy gives Liz an embroidered night cap and Miss Morton give her a hot water bottle for her lumbago. 

LIZ: “What makes you think I have lumbago?”
MISS MORTON: “Doesn’t everybody?”
LIZ: “Well, no.”
MISS MORTON: “Keep it, dear. You will.” 

Lumbago is generalized pain in the lower back and was often relieved by the warmth from a hot water bottle (or bag). These were made of rubber and designed to be filled with warm water.  Lucy uses one on ‘old Ricky’ in “The Young Fans” (ILL S1;E20) in 1952. 

The ladies have brought a cake but had to bring it around to the back door because the heat from the 65 candles was overwhelming! George knows it will give away that George thought it was mother’s, not Liz’s, birthday!  Katie enters with the cake ablaze!  

MISS MORTON: “I ain’t seen a blaze like that since the Chicago Fire!”

The Great Chicago Fire of October 1871 killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly 3.3 square miles of the city, and left more than 100,000 residents homeless.

The fire is claimed to have started in or around a small barn belonging to the O’Leary family on DeKoven Street. Officials never determined the exact cause of the blaze, but legend says that a cow kicked over a lantern. The 1938 film In Old Chicago dealt with the blaze and featured “Lucy” actors Charles Lane and Bess Flowers.

Liz is challenged to blow out the candles, but it takes several attempts. Once extinguished Liz counts the candles and puts two and two together.  Katie thinks fast and makes up a story.

KATIE: “I told Mr. Cooper that you felt that you were getting old and he figured that if he gave you a real old lady’s party it would make you see how young you really are!” 

Liz starts crying tears of joy.

LIZ: “I’m married to the most thoughtful man in the world!” 

Liz loves her coat so much she vows she will even wear it to bed to remind her of how wonderful George is. She sees the card in the box with the jacket and reads it. This was the card George put in the box with the flannel nightgown meant for his mother.

LIZ (reading): “Hope this keeps you warm in bed tonight!” 

End of Episode