HORSEBACK RIDING

April 15, 1949

“Horseback Riding” (aka “Liz Takes Horseback Riding Lessons”) is episode #39 of the radio series MY FAVORITE HUSBAND broadcast on April 15, 1949 on the CBS radio network.

Synopsis ~ George’s female co-chair for his horseback riding club’s upcoming weekend breakfast ride has Liz so jealous that she’s determined to overcome her fear of horses and learn to ride herself.

“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 and Bea Benadaret do not appear in this episode.

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.

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 (Salesman) 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.  

Whenever there was a salesman role, Nelson was top of the casting list. He perfected the ingratiating and infuriating salesperson on Jack Benny’s radio and television shows. “Yeeeees?”

Doris Singleton (Audrey Peters) 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” and four appearances on “Here’s Lucy.”    

Alan Reed (Mr. Lloyd aka ‘Little Ole Lloyd’ / Farmer / Land-Owner) is probably best remembered as the voice of Fred Flintstone. He started his acting career in 1937. In 1963 he played a café owner in “Lucy Visits the White House” (TLS S1;E25). In 1967, he made an appearance on the Desi Arnaz series “The Mothers-in-Law”. He died in 1977 at the age of 69.

Coincidentally, Reed’s only appearance with Lucille Ball on television also had Lucy on horseback! 

Pinto Colvig (Gulliver) was the original voice of Disney’s Pluto and Goofy, until his death in 1967. In 1993, the Walt Disney Company honored him as a ‘Disney Legend.’ On May 28, 2004, he was inducted into the International Clown Hall of Fame in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He provided the dog barks for “Lucy is Her Own Lawyer” (TLS S2;E23) in 1964.

EPISODE

ANNOUNCER: “As we look in on the Coopers, we find Katie the maid serving Liz her breakfast. George is upstairs getting into his riding habit as this is the day he meets with his horseback riding club.”

Katie wants to know why Liz never goes with George to his horseback riding club. Liz says she had an incident with a horse as a child. They had to stop the merry-go-round.  George comes down to breakfast and tells Liz that he is getting a ride to the stables by Audrey Peters. They are chairing next weekend’s breakfast ride. Liz is instantly jealous. 

Audrey rings the bell. Liz is icy toward her, at best.  Audrey asks Liz why she won’t come with them. 

AUDREY: “Are you afraid of horses?”
LIZ: “No dear, I’m allergic to cats. It’s too bad I won’t get to see you ride, though. George says you look like part of the horse.”
GEORGE: “Audrey’s been riding since she’s a child and she’s never lost her seat. Can you believe it?”
LIZ: “Believe it? I can see it!” 

When George and Audrey have gone, Liz tells Katie she’s going to learn to ride a horse. 

Liz is shopping and asks the salesman (Frank Nelson) to show her some riding clothes.

FLOORWALKER: “A habit?”
LIZ: “No, I’m just starting.” 

Liz gives her sizes as “thirty around the withers” and “seven along the fetlocks.” He shows her some English riding clothes.  Although he suggests a size seven boot, Liz insists on a six. 

At the stables, he meets with Mr. Lloyd aka ‘Little Ole Lloyd’ (Alan Reed). She tells him she wants to talk lessons. He suggests a swayback, toothless horse named Gulliver. Liz is afraid of Gulliver. 

She insists she can mount him on her own, but gets on backwards!  Gulliver falls asleep before they take their first trot! 

Next day, Liz returns for her second lesson. It seems Gulliver has developed an affection for Liz, perking up as soon as she comes in the stall.  Gulliver sighs in love when Liz smiles at her. 

At her sixth lesson, Lloyd says Gulliver won’t eat unless Liz is there, and he won’t allow anyone else to ride him. Liz still hasn’t even gone once around the ring without falling off.  She finally masters walking once around the ring on her twelfth lesson. Now if she can only do it with Gulliver. 

On the day of the breakfast ride, Liz is anxious for Audrey to come pick up George and take him to the stables.  Audrey honks the horn.

GEORGE: “I’d better go.”
LIZ: “Yes. She mustn’t keep her broomstick running.”

ANNOUNCER: “George is out on a breakfast ride with his horseback riding club. Liz, to surprise him, has secretly learned to ride and is going to make a grand entrance by galloping up to greet them.”

Lloyd lets Gulliver out of the trailer about a half mile from the breakfast ride location. Gulliver trots up to the spot but a farmer (Alan Reed) tells them they rode on another ten miles to Hickory Falls. 

Arriving at Hickory Falls, Gulliver is winded. The land-owner (Alan Reed again) warns her that the breakfast riders were trespassing and he shooed them off to Buzzard’s Roost. He charged them ten dollars for trespass and does the same to Liz. She rides on to Buzzard’s Roost but ends up back where she started from!  

Back at the Cooper home, Katie answers the doorbell and finds Liz lying on the welcome mat exhausted.  

LIZ: “What a wild ride. I felt like Paul Revere. Come to think of it, we probably had the same horse!” 

Paul Revere (1734-1818) was a silversmith, engraver, early industrialist, and Patriot in the American Revolution. He is best known for his midnight ride to alert the colonial militia in April 1775 to the approach of British forces before the battles of Lexington and Concord. In a 1964 “Jack Benny Special” Lucy and Benny played Mr. and Mrs. Paul Revere.  In the sketch, it is Mrs. Revere who makes the famous midnight ride, not Paul. 

Liz asks Katie to help her get her riding boots off – but they don’t budge. Liz’s feet have swollen and the boots won’t come off. Katie she suggests Liz go down to the store and ask the salesman for help.  Once she gets there, the salesman gloats that he warned her to buy sevens. He thinks he knows the trick to getting them off, but he can’t do it.  He struggles and the boot finally comes off – but he has shattered the store window in the process!  

Liz comes home. The boots are off but her feet look like two thermometers. George comes home. He says that Audrey was thrown, when as a joke she attempted to mount an old swayback named Gulliver! 

LIZ (laughing): “I’ll have to send over a nice bouquet of flowers.
GEORGE: “Audrey will appreciate that.”
LIZ: “Who said anything about Audrey? I’m gonna send them for the horse!”  

End of Episode

The announcer reminds listeners that Lucille Ball will soon be seen in the Paramount Picture Sorrowful Jones.

Coincidentally, Sorrowful Jones was also about horses!