COUNTRY CLUB DANCE

February 3, 1950

“The Country Club Dance” is episode #74 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on February 3, 1950.

Synopsis ~ Iris and Liz want to go to the country club dance, but George and Rudolph want to go to the fights.  The girls decide to get dates and go anyway, until their plan ends in disaster. 

The plot later inspired elements of the story in “The Girls Want To Got To A Nightclub” (ILL S1;E1), the very first episode of “I Love Lucy” aired on October 15, 1951. 

Parts of the story also inspired “Vacation from Marriage” (ILL S2;E6) aired on October 27, 1952. Despite the similar titles, this script does not  have anything to do with “Country Club Dance” (ILL S6;E25), the episode that featured Barbara Eden on April 25, 1957. 

“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.

Bea Benadaret (Iris Atterbury) 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.

Ruth Perrott (Katie, the Maid) does not appear in this episode.

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

Richard Crenna (Dick) would make his television debut with Lucille Ball as Arthur Morton in “The Young Fans” (ILL S1;E20). The character is virtually a carbon copy of Walter Denton, the role he played for four years on radio’s “Our Miss Brooks” starring Eve Arden. In 1952, Desilu brought the show to television where Crenna recreated his role. He later starred in Desilu’s “The Real McCoys.” He would become one of Hollywood’s busiest actors, starring in “Vega$” and Sylvester Stallone’s Rambo films. He died in 2003.

Sam Edwards (Barney) played the star-struck bellboy in “Lucy Meets the Queen” (ILL S5;E15). He was also the voice of the adult Thumper in Bambi (1942).

EPISODE

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers tonight we find there’s nobody home because they’re over at the Atterbury’s. Liz and Iris must have something up their sleeve for they serve their husbands a tremendous dinner and they are now sprawled out helplessly in the living room.” 

After a big meal, the men are ready to relax, when Liz and Iris spring a favor on them. They want to go to the county club dance on Friday night. The boys say absolutely not because they always go to the fights on Friday nights.  Liz tries to romance into saying yes, but to no avail. Liz gives them an ultimatum: if they won’t take them to the dance, they’ll find dates who will. 

LIZ: “We’ll go with some other fellas.”
MR. ATTERBURY: “Who?”
LIZ: “You’ll see!”
MR. ATTERBURY: “Who??” 
LIZ: “Don’t worry!!” 
MR. ATTERBURY: “Whoooo???”
LIZ: “Oh, shut up. You sound like an owl.” 

The joke is a variation on one that will be heard the very first-aired episode of “I Love Lucy,” “The Girls Want To Go To a Nightclub” (ILL S1;E1) in 1951:

Ethel (to Lucy, who is dialing the phone): “Who are you calling? Who? Who? Who?”
Lucy: (to Ethel): “Quiet, you sound like an owl.”

The joke was reinterpreted again in “Lucy Buys A Sheep” (TLS S1;E5) in 1962:

Viv: “Who got dinner last night? Who did the laundry last week? Who did the marketing yesterday? Who? Who?”
Lucy: “Apparently some crabby blonde owl.”

Next day, Iris drops by to see Liz who is now determined to find dates for Friday night. They can’t think of any men other than their husbands. Liz suddenly remember her old college address book.  

LIZ: “Girls called me from all over the campus to see if I could recommend a date. I was the Duncan Hines of Petter’s Point.” 

Duncan Hines (1880-1959) was a pioneer of restaurant ratings for travelers. He is best known today for the brand of food products that bears his name. Petter’s Point was probably the local Lover’s Lane at Liz’s college.

In Liz’s Little Black Book, Iris finds a curious code: 

• Bill Arnold COAD  = Caution: One-Armed Driver
• Tom Crawford CNAD  = Caution: No-Armed Driver
• George Cooper = Nothing in Common!

Liz decides to take a different tact. They will make-up boyfriends to make the boys jealous. Liz’s will be named Fred, and Iris will date Harry. In order to convince the boys, that evening, Iris (aka Fred) will call Liz, and then Harry (Liz) will call Iris to arrange their dates.

It should come as no surprise that the writers chose the name Fred, which was the real-life name of Lucille Ball’s younger brother, and later inspired the name of the landlord (and later Little Ricky’s dog) on “I Love Lucy.” 

That night, sitting in the living room after dinner, George suspects something is up when Liz is reading a book upside down and has the phone in her lap!  Iris rings and pretends to be Fred lowering her voice, even though George cannot hear her.  They set a ‘date’ for Friday night.

When Liz hangs up, George jealously wants to know who was on the phone. 

LIZ: “What’s sauce for the gander is sauce for the goose and I might tell you, Mr. Gander, that this Goose is going to honk!”
GEORGE: “If you do any honking, this goose is going to be pushing the button.”

George relents and agrees to take her to the dance. The phone rings and George picks it up first. It is Mr. Atterbury who tells George he just heard Iris talking to Liz with her voice lowered. The girls’ game is up!

GEORGE: “That was Fred’s husband, Rudolph!” 

On Friday night, George and Mr. Atterbury are ready to leave for the fights, but George is concerned that the wives are sitting in the living dressed for the dance. He isn’t so sure they are bluffing.  The doorbell rings and two young men are at the door Dick (Richard Crenna) and Barney (Sam Edwards), there to take them to the dance!  

Outside, Liz and Iris get into the boys’ car. It is revealed that they the sons of Liz’s friend and they are being paid $2 each to pick them up and flatter them.  Their roadster has no windscreen or top and wreaks havoc with the girl’s hair. 

They come to a stop at a nearby corner.  The boys can’t take them all the way to the club because they are due at the school dance. Liz offers to give them $10 for use of the car, which they mistake for buying the whole vehicle outright! 

LIZ: “Congratulations, Iris. You are now half-owner of…an Essex!”

The Essex was a brand of automobile produced by the Essex Motor Company between 1918 and 1922, and by Hudson Motor Car Company between 1922 and 1933. During its production, the Essex was considered a small car and was affordably priced.

Liz and Iris drive toward the club, hoping to find George and Rudolph there waiting for them. Suddenly, the heavens open up.

LIZ: “Something’s falling and it must be rain because pennies don’t splash like that.” 

“Pennies from Heaven” is a song by Arthur Johnston and Johnny Burke introduced by Bing Crosby in the 1936 film of the same name. It was recorded in the same year by Billie Holiday.  The song title is joked about again in “Lucy Buys A Sheep” (TLS S1;E5) in 1962 and (naturally) in “Lucy, the Coin Collector” (TLS S3;E13) in 1964.

The car then gets two flat tires and Iris notices they have driven into the middle of a cow pasture!  The girls decide they must walk (in heels) back to the highway and hitchhike home. When they finally make it to the road, a car pulls up. It is George and Rudolph, who don’t at first recognize their soggy wives!

The men confess that didn’t go to the fights after all. They went to the dance to look for them right after they left!  

End of Episode