THE MARRIAGE LICENSE ERROR

January 21, 1949

“Marriage License Error” (aka “Marriage License”) is episode #27 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on January 21, 1949 over the Armed Forces Radio Network (AFN). 

Synopsis ~ Liz and George find their marriage license and discover that instead of “George H. Cooper,” it says “George C. Hooper.” Now Liz is convinced that she and George aren’t legally married!

Portions of this radio show served as the basis for “The Marriage License” (ILL S1;E26) filmed on February 28, 1952 and aired on April 7, 1952, on CBS-TV.  On television, the Ricardo’s marriage license mistakenly read “Bicardi” instead of “Ricardo”. 

“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 Benadaret 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.

REGULAR 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 as 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.

Ruth Perrott (Katie, the Maid) was also later seen on “I Love Lucy.” She first played Mrs. Pomerantz (above right), 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.

Announcer Bob LeMond is not heard in this episode as it is part of the American Forces Network and has a different announcer. 

Gale Gordon (Rudolph Atterbury) and Bea Benadaret (Iris Atterbury) had not yet joined the cast as regular characters.

GUEST CAST

Frank Nelson (Joe Ridgley) was born on May 6, 1911 (three months before Lucille Ball) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. He started working as a radio announcer at the age of 15. He later appeared on such popular radio shows as “The Great Gildersleeve,” “Burns and Allen,” and “Fibber McGee & Molly”. This is one of his 11 performances on “My Favorite Husband.”  On “I Love Lucy” he holds the distinction of being the only actor to play two recurring roles: Freddie Fillmore and Ralph Ramsey, as well as six one-off characters, including the frazzled train conductor in “The Great Train Robbery” (ILL S5;E5), a character he repeated on “The Lucy Show.”  Aside from Lucille Ball, Nelson is perhaps most associated with Jack Benny and was a fifteen-year regular on his radio and television programs.

Doris Singleton (Hotel Biltmore Telephone Operator) created the role of Caroline Appleby on “I Love Lucy,” although she was known as Lillian Appleby in the first of her ten appearances. She made two appearances on “The Lucy Show.” 

Singleton played a secretary in the first episode of “Here’s Lucy” and was meant to be a series regular, but her role was written out to concentrate on Lucy Carter’s family life. She did two more episodes of the series.

Ted de Corsia (Police Officer) was an actor in touring companies and on radio before making a memorable film debut as the killer in The Lady from Shanghai (1947). De Corsia’s New York street demeanor and gravelly voice assured him steady work playing street thugs, gang leaders or organized-crime bosses. On radio he starred in the CBS series “Pursuit” (1949-50). Two years after this episode of “My Favorite Husband,” he appeared with Lucille Ball on the radio show “The Golden Touch.” 

The actor voicing the role of Paul Buchanan is not credited and has not been identified.

EPISODE

GEORGE: “Well, it looks like the inauguration came off alright.” 

George is referring to the second inauguration of incumbent President Harry S. Truman, which happened in Washington DC the previous day. It ushered in Truman’s second term in office. It was the first televised U.S. presidential inauguration and the first with an air parade.

Liz insists that crosswords build her vocabulary. George quizzes her on current events. 

GEORGE: “Where did the President take his oath of office?”
LIZ: “On a special platform built in front of the capitol building. 
GEORGE: “How did you happen to know that?”
LIZ: “It showed through the hole when I cut out the crossword puzzle.”
GEORGE: “Try this: who administered the oath?”
LIZ: “What?” 

The familiar trope of husbands being engrossed in the morning papers to the dismay of their wives takes a slightly different spin here, but was continued well into “I Love Lucy.” The answer that George is looking for is that Chief Justice Fred M. Vinson administered the presidential oath of office that day in 1949.

Through the hole, Liz recognizes the name of Paul Buchanan, who is in the paper because he was elected president at the jewelers convention. Liz recalls dating him in high school. He played tuba in the school band. Liz says she might have married but for his tuba playing. 

Liz says that if she had married Paul she might have gotten an engagement ring. Instead, George couldn’t afford a ring and gave her a sweat shirt with his initials on it. George says the initials actually stood for Gym Class!  

LIZ: “I was lovely!  I was engaged!  I was dressed like Maxie Rosenbloom!”

Max Everitt Rosenbloom (1907-76) was a professional boxer, actor, and television personality. In 1948 he played a truck driver in the Paulette Goddard film Hazard.

Nicknamed “Slapsie Maxie”, he had appeared in the film Muss ‘Em Up (1936) in which a blonde Lucille Ball was a background performer. She posed with him for the above publicity shot, helping him apply his make-up!

Liz senses that George is still upset about the ring, so she sits on his lap and they cuddle and kiss.  Liz opens their scrapbook, looking at their wedding photos.  She sees her marriage license. 

LIZ: “On this date, Elizabeth Elliott was married to George C. Hooper!” 

Liz panics thinking that their license may be invalid – and they might not even be legally married!  As soon as the Sheridan Falls City Hall opens, Liz intends to go down there personally and find out for sure! 

Unbeknownst to Liz, George calls his friend at the license bureau, Joe Ridgley (Frank Nelson). He tells Joe that he wants him to play a joke on Liz, and tell her that they are not really married!  Joe agrees. 

Liz arrives at the bureau and explains to Mr. Ridgley about the error.  He tells Liz that it does indeed matter. He refers to her as “Miss Elliott” and confirms that she hasn’t been married to George for ten years! 

Liz returns home. When George goes to kiss her – she says that she is no longer his to touch! 

LIZ: “The man at the license bureau put the padlock on our wedlock.”

A rumble seat was an additional padded passenger seat that popped up from the rear of the vehicle, usually just big enough for two. This led it to becoming synonymous with romantic trysts!  

Liz knows that George can’t hear Paul on the other end as he protests that he is married with six kids!   He abruptly hangs up, but Liz continues her staged phone conversation with the hotel operator (Doris Singleton).  Liz says that she will meet him at the Flamingo Room of the Biltmore. 

In the kitchen, Liz tells Katie that while George thinks she is on a date with Paul Buchanan at the Biltmore, she and Katie will actually be watching Humphrey Bogart at the Strand movie theater.   

In January 1949, Bogart’s most recent film would have been Key Largo, released in mid-summer 1948. It went on to win an Oscar for Claire Trevor. 

Humphrey Bogart never appeared on screen with Lucille Ball. However, in “Ricky’s Movie Offer” (ILL S4;E5) Desi Arnaz does an impression of Bogart and in “Lucy and the Andrews Sisters” (HL S2;E6) Lucy blows a kiss to a large poster of Bogart from the movie Casablanca.

Coming out of the Strand later that evening, Liz and Katie notice a crowd in front of the Biltmore Hotel. Katie thinks it might be a wreck! 

LIZ: “When you see a crowd in front of a window these days, it isn’t a wreck, it’s television!” 
KATIE: “Oh, well maybe they’re showing a wrestling match!” 

Before television sets became affordable to the general public, it was not uncommon to find people gathered on the sidewalk in front of a store window to view it from the street.

LIZ: “Katie it is wrestling!  There’s gorgeous George!” 

Liz is referring to her husband, George but wrestling matches were very popular on early television, producing such colorful wrestlers as Gorgeous George. George Raymond Wagner (1915–63), was known as Gorgeous George because of his long blonde hair. He was mentioned on “I Love Lucy” in “Pioneer Women” (ILL S1;E25) and “Ricky’s Movie Offer” (ILL S4;E6). In 1949, Republic Pictures released a film starring Gorgeous George.

A Policeman (Ted de Corsia) is breaking up a brawl between George Cooper and Paul Buchanan. Paul is nothing like Liz remembered: bald, fat and with a black eye. Paul remembers George from school. Liz is delighted having two men fighting over her. George spots Liz in the crowd. When George insists Liz is his wife, Liz claims she never saw him before.  

When the cop wants to arrest George, Liz pretends to be from Brooklyn (Myrtle Avenue) to talk him out of it. She insists that George buy her an engagement ring (from Paul) to get out of going to jail. The office gladly agrees – if George will properly propose on one knee first!  Liz insists he use her ‘pet’ name. 

GEORGE: “Will you marry me… toodly-woodly-ums!” 
COP: “When you gonna get married?”
LIZ: “Ten years ago!” 
COP: “Why that’s impossible!” 
LIZ: “Who cares!  I’ve got back my favorite husband!” 

In the bedtime tag, Liz asks George to get up and get her a glass of warm milk. After bickering about it for a moment, George reluctantly agrees, stubbing his toe on the chair.  By the time he finds his slippers, Liz is snoring, fast asleep. 

GEORGE: “How do you like that? Goodnight, Liz.”