LIZ & IRIS’S EASTER

March 24, 1951

“Liz and Iris’s Easter” (aka “Diet for Easter Dresses”) is episode #124 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on March 24, 1951. This is the penultimate episode of the series. 

Synopsis ~ The boys make a deal with the girls, if Liz and Iris can slim down to the same dress size they wore ten years ago, George and Rudolph will buy each of them a whole new Easter outfit.

Note: This episode was the basis for the “I Love Lucy” episode “The Diet” (ILL S1;E3) filmed on September 28, 1951, and first aired on October 29, 1951.

“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) is not heard 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

Frank Nelson (Mr. Morgan, Manager at Miller’s Department Store) 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”.  Aside from Lucille Ball, Nelson is perhaps most associated with Jack Benny and was a fifteen-year regular on his radio and television programs. His trademark was playing clerks and other working stiffs, suddenly turning to Benny with a drawn out “Yeeeeeeeeees?” Nelson appeared in 11 episodes of “I Love Lucy”, including three as quiz master Freddy Fillmore, and two as Ralph Ramsey, plus appearance on “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” – making him the only actor to play two different recurring roles on “I Love Lucy.” Nelson returned to the role of the frazzled Train Conductor for an episode of “The Lucy Show” in 1963. This marks his final appearance on a Lucille Ball sitcom.

Playing floorwalkers and other sales staff was a specialty of Nelson’s. The surname Morgan may be a nod to Kenny Morgan, then husband of Lucille’s cousin Cleo, as well as being Lucy’s press agent. 

Shirley Mitchell (Miss Evans, Sales Girl at Miller’s Department Store) was born in Toledo, Ohio, on November 4, 1919. She started her acting career on radio in Chicago but soon moved to Los Angeles. Mitchell was a regular on radio in series such as “Fibber McGee and Molly” and “The Great Gildersleeve”. She became friends with Lucille Ball in the late 1940s when she was featured in four episodes of “My Favorite Husband.” Mitchell reunited with Lucille Ball on “I Love Lucy” playing Marion Strong, a member of the Wednesday Afternoon Fine Arts League in “Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress” (ILL S3;E3), “Lucy Tells the Truth” (ILL S3;E6) and “Lucy’s Club Dance” (ILL S3;E25).  Shirley Mitchell died of heart failure on November 11, 2013, seven days after her 94th birthday.

EPISODE

ANNOUNCER: “And now let’s look in on the Coopers. Tonight we’re going to ask you to go back with us to an evening two weeks ago. George and Liz are entertaining George’s boss, Mr. Atterbury, and his wife, Iris. Dinner is over and they have just settled down in the living room.”

Liz cuddles and coos with George, much to the dismay of Mr. Atterbury. Liz is feeling affectionate toward George because he’s promised to buy her a new Easter hat. Iris says  that Rudolph has cut all the Easter sales ads out of their newspapers. Liz is feeling that her new hat will not go with last year’s outfit, but George puts his foot down – no new Easter outfit – just the hat.

LIZ: “But George! What am I going to wear to the Easter parade?”
GEORGE: “A new hat – and that’s it!”
LIZ: “Alright, but I’m liable to collect a crowd!”
MR. ATTERBURY: “You’ll really be the grandest lady in the Easter parade!”

While in the attic searching for her “Saxophone” (ILL S2;E2), Lucy Ricardo finds a fancy bonnet she says she wore on 5th Avenue for the Easter parade, which was not a formal parade, but an informal stroll on Easter morning in order to show off one’s Easter finery. The tradition started in the 1880s and inspired Irving Berlin to write the song “Easter Parade” for the 1933 Broadway musical As Thousands Cheer. The song later served as the basis for the 1948 MGM film Easter Parade. Mr. Atterbury is quoting a lyric from the title song: “you’ll be the grandest lady in the Easter parade.” This is the only mention of Easter on the series.

LIZ: “George used to say he wanted to show off my cute little figure? Whatever happened to those husbands?”
MR. ATTERBURY: “The same thing that happened to those cute little figures.” 

Liz and Iris object to the comment, insisting they have the same measurements as the day they were married.

GEORGE: “Let’s face it. We’ve all put on a little weight in the interim.”
MR. ATTERBURY: “That’s not the only place!”

To prove her point, Liz and Iris go upstairs to try on one of her old dresses. But the dress won’t come down over the hips. Iris pulls on the dress, but to no avail. Liz holds her breath and she succeeds – except for a bad case of gap-o-sis – she can’t zip up the sides.  Iris is successful in zipping Liz up and they go downstairs to show off.

Liz is in the dress, much to George’s astonishment. Trouble is, Liz can’t is holding her breath and can’t speak. Iris has to do all the talking for her.  Liz is turning blue. George deliberately keeps Liz there so that she’ll have to breathe. When she does – the dress rips!  

Mr. Atterbury and George announce that if she’d been successful, they’d have bought them new Easter outfits. They must diet down to size twelve or no deal. They will go down to Miller’s Department Store and put aside outfits in size twelve. The boys will go along to make sure that the outfits truly are size twelve.

IRIS: “And first thing tomorrow we start eating water cress sandwiches!”

In “Off to Florida” (ILL S6;E6), Lucy and Ethel are forced to eat water cress sandwiches prepared by their eccentric driver, rather than stop the car for a hot meal. They call it ‘buttered grass’. 

End of Part One

The announcer does a commercial for Jell-O, providing a recipe for chocolate pudding pie. 

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers once again, we find them with the Atterbury’s in Miller’s Department Store.”

Mr. Atterbury wants to go through the lingerie department, and is ogling them models – until Iris points out that they are mannequins. A sales girl (Shirley Mitchell) approaches them.  When Liz and Iris ask for size twelves, she is in disbelief and the boys laugh out loud. Liz explains that they will diet down to fit them and the sales girl shows them the dresses. 

While the girls go to write up the sale, the boys check out the prices – $135 and $150!  To assure they don’t have to pay the hefty price tag, they substitute size tens for the dresses the girls have selected. 

A week later, Mr. Atterbury and George are commiserating about the diet food their wives have been feeding them. 

MR. ATTERBURY: “Three times last night, I stood up and my pants stayed down.” 

Liz serves dinner. A stalk of celery each!  Iris has lost fourteen pounds and Liz has lost twelve.

LIZ: “Well, dinner’s over. Let’s do the dish.”

When the girls are in the kitchen, Mr. Atterbury fears they will lose the bet and tells George they need to return to Miller’s and swap the size tens for size eights!  

At lunch the next day, Liz and Iris confesses they haven’t really lost any weight at all. Liz says that she isn’t worried. She called Miller’s and told the sales girl to swap the size twelves for size fourteens!  They then order double chocolate sundaes to celebrate!

At Miller’s, Mr. Morgan, the manager (Frank Nelson), advises sales girl Miss Evans that there’s been an outbreak of shoplifting in the dress and suit department. He tells her that the culprits hide the merchandise under their own dresses and walk out that way. Miss Evans goes to lunch and Mr. Morgan watches her department. 

When Liz and Iris think Mr. Morgan isn’t looking they grab two size fourteen suits and go to the dressing room to try them on – but they are skin tight. They realize they are more of a sixteen.  As they come out of the dressing room, they spot George and Mr. Atterbury, so they dart into the dressing room to hide. They decide to put their dresses on over the suits so the boys won’t know what they’ve been up to. 

Mr. Morgan is suddenly there to accuse them of shoplifting.  The girls whisper to the boys that the do indeed have the new suits under their dresses. When faced with a choice of calling off the deal in exchange for the boys clearing their names, Liz has a different idea. She tells Mr. Morgan that George and Mr. Atterbury, are not their husbands, but their crime bosses: ‘Fagin’ Atterbury and ‘Blackie’ Cooper, criminal masterminds!  Iris plays along. 

The name ‘Fagin’ was borrowed from the Charles Dickens’ 1838 novel Oliver Twist. 

In the preface to the novel, he is described as a “receiver of stolen goods”. He is the leader of a group of child pickpockets and prostitutes. Alec Guinness portrayed Fagin in David Lean’s 1948 film adaptation of Oliver Twist, The release of the film in the USA was delayed for three years on charges of being anti-Semitic. It was finally released in the United States in 1951.

The name ‘Blackie’ was borrowed from Boston Blackie, a jewel thief and safecracker in stories by Jack Boyle but who became a detective in adaptations for films, radio and television. Actor Chester Morris was the best-known Blackie, playing the character in 14 films (1941–49), and in a radio series (1944-50) starring Richard Kollmar. In September 1951, the character made his television debut played by Kent Taylor. In many markets, the syndicated show ran on the same night as “I Love Lucy.” 

IRIS: “Remember that cute little baby kangaroo you picked up at the zoo?”
LIZ: “Yeah, his mother never felt a thing.” 
IRIS: “Then we moved on to bigger and bigger things.”
LIZ: “The next three months were misery. Trying to hide out with a hot merry-go-round on our hands.”

Liz whispers to George and Mr. Atterbury that she will drop the gag if they get two new Easter outfits each.  The boys give up.

LIZ: “Happy Easter, Iris!” 

End of Episode

The announcer does a commercial for Jell-O puddings and pie fillings.  He reminds listeners to watch for Lucille Ball in The Fuller Brush Girl.