LEAVE THE DRIVING TO US!

LUCY & BUSSES

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles – but what about busses?  When all other forms of transportation failed, there was always reliable bus transportation to rely upon. 

In May 1944, the St. Louis (MO) Public Service Company issued bus passes with film promotion for the Lucille Ball motion picture Meet the People co-starring Dick Powell. Such ads on bus passes were not uncommon in larger cities. 

Busses were common forms of transportation for touring theatrical performers, including Desi Arnaz and His Orchestra. In early July 1947 they performed in Milwaukee and Madison, Wisconsin before hitting the road for Akron, Ohio. At the last minute, Arnaz and his brother-in-law, Fred Ball, the band manager, decided to fly to Detroit to see Lucy’s play Dream Girl, while the rest of the orchestra traveled to Akron by bus. Disaster struck as the Checkerway Charter Coach driver James O’Brien fell asleep at the wheel. A westbound truck driver tried to swerve out of the way but couldn’t avoid the out-of-control bus. Nearly everyone inside was hurt – some seriously. The two band members who took Desi’s and Freddy’s regular seats up front were hurt the worst.

THE (BUS) TOUR

“The Tour” (1955) ~ Possibly the most famous example of Lucy and busses came in this memorable episode of “I Love Lucy” when Lucy and Ethel take a bus tour of Hollywood and Beverly Hills while Ricky has lunch with Richard Widmark. This episode integrated studio-shot footage, second unit location filming of the bus in Beverly Hills, and actor doubles. We see Lucy and Ethel boarding the bus (#134) and later walking towards what is supposed to be Richard Widmark’s house, but was in actuality the Arnaz mansion on Roxbury Drive. 

They board a Tanner Gray Line Motor Tour, which was an actual guided tour at the time. The Gray Line still operates sightseeing bus tours to this day.

Once aboard, the interior of the bus was recreated in the studio. The tour bus driver was played by Benny Rubin. Other passengers include Barbara Pepper (who takes the seat Lucy wanted), Audrey Bentz (the large woman who sits on Lucy), Vivian’s stand-in Renita Reachi, Desi’s stand-in Bennett Green, and Lucy’s future stand-in Joan Carey are also aboard. 

• LUCY: Pardon me, this seat is taken.
• PEPPER (not moving): It sure is, honey.

The tour bus route as it appears today, thanks to Google Earth! 

“Lucy Moves To NBC” (1980) ~ The special opens with a tour bus covering the very same route as in “The Tour”. Lucille Ball (playing herself) gets off the bus and we realize she has hitched a ride home! 

“Lucy Gets Lucky” (1975) ~ Lucy Collins takes the bus to Las Vegas to see her favorite star, Dean Martin. The bus lets her off at the MGM Grand, but Lucy’s budget has her staying at the less glamorous Cactus Flower Motel. 

Stone Pillow (1985) ~ When Florabelle is mistakenly herded onto a bus to the Brooklyn shelter, an overweight woman accidentally sits on her. A similar thing happened in “The Tour” in 1955, when Lucy Ricardo was switching seats on a bus tour of the movie stars’ homes.

SPEAKING OF BUSSES…

“Fred and Ethel Fight” (1952) ~ While trying to repair the Mertzes’ relationship, Lucy and Ricky fight and Ricky leaves. She schemes how to get him back. 

• ETHEL: I’ll call up Ricky and tell him you’ve been run over by a bus.
• LUCY: Run over by a bus? Well, that seems rather drastic.
• ETHEL: Oh, we’ll only pretend. Have you got plenty of adhesive tape and bandages in the house?
• LUCY: Well, that all depends.
• ETHEL: On what?
• LUCY: On what kind of a bus I get hit by, local or express. I hope you got the number of the bus that hit me.

“Getting Ready” (1954) ~ No sooner has Lucy agreed to take the train to Hollywood, she re-considers. She peruses the bus schedule, which has been redacted to obscure the brand name: Greyhound. 

“Tennessee Ernie Hangs On” (1954) ~ When ‘Cousin’ Ernie visits, he refuses to accept a bus ticket home. The episode becomes about how to get Ernie on the bus home without hurting his pride. 

• RICKY: Get a load of this.
• LUCY: What is it?
• RICKY: This is a bus ticket to Bent Fork.
• LUCY: He won’t take it.

“California, Here We Come!” (1955) ~ Just before the gang leave for California, Lucy’s mother (Kathryn Card) shows up unexpectedly. How did she get there from Jamestown? 

• Mrs. McGillicuddy: I took the bus. It let me off right in front of the door.
• Lucy: Wait a minute. The bus doesn’t come down this street.
• Mrs. McGillicuddy: That’s what the bus driver tried to tell me.

“Visitor from Italy” (1956) ~ Mario (Jay Novello), a Venitian gondolier they met on their trip to Europe, shows up on the Ricardos’ doorstep looking for his brother. He refuses to accept bus fare to San Francisco, where they believe his brother has gone. 

• RICKY: (Returning home) Well, that’s that.
• LUCY:You get him on the bus?
• RICKY:Yep. He’s on his way to San Francisco. I stayed there until the bus pulled out.

The doorbell rings. It is Mario’s brother. He’s been visiting a sick friend – Sam Franceso, not in San Francisco. Of course, the episode is best known for Lucy making pizza.

“Lucy and Superman” (1957) ~ Carolyn Appleby (Doris Singleton) tells Lucy and Ricky about the film they saw starring Marilyn Monroe. Although the title is never mentioned, it is clearly a description of Bus Stop, also starring Don Murray. It was released in August 1956, two and a half months before this episode was filmed. The story, from a play by William Inge, takes place primarily at a desolate bus stop cafe. 

“Lucy Meets Sheldon Leonard” (1967) ~ Lucy’s excuse for being late to work is that the smog was so thick she couldn’t find the bus.

“Lucy and Viv Reminisce” (1968) ~ Instead of flying her out, cheapskate Mr.  Mooney sends Viv a bus ticket to travel 3,000 miles to come and nurse Lucy when she breaks her leg.

“Leave The Driving To Us” ~ was the advertising slogan of the Greyhound Bus Company. It was first used in 1956 and appeared for the next 40 years. It was used as a punchline in “Lucy the Laundress” (1970), “Lucy Helps Craig Get a Driver’s License” (1969) and “Lucy and the Used Car Dealer” (1969).  

BUS SPOTTING

1940 ~ A New York City bus passes by the Roxy Theatre where Desi Arnaz was performing when he eloped with Lucille Ball.

1955 ~ “Lucy Visits Grauman’s” includes stock footage of a bus passing by Grauman’s Chinese theater, where the Clark Gable / Jane Russell film The Tall Men was premiering. 

1957 ~ “Lucy and Superman” includes a rare insert shot of the street below the ledge where Lucy intends to ‘crash’ Little Ricky’s birthday party as Superman. This view shows a city bus stopping outside 623 East 68th Street. This disproves Lucy’s assertion to her mother in 1955′s “California Here We Come” that the bus doesn’t come down their street! 

1957 ~ In “Lucy Wins a Racehorse” a bus unloads passengers headed into Roosevelt Raceway in this establishing footage. 

1958 – Busses in the distance line up to go through customs headed in and out of Tijuana in “Lucy Goes To Mexico”. This second unit footage was shot on location using actor doubles. 

1966 ~ The iconic double-decker busses of London crowd Picadilly Circus in this establishing footage from “Lucy in London”, a special shot on location. 

SPECIAL BUS ROUTES

“I Love Lucy Comics” (1961) ~ “The School Bus” has Little Ricky missing the bus! 

“Lucy is a Process Server” (1964) ~ Tracking Mr. Mooney to the train station, a bedraggled Lucy passes a winter-themed travel poster for Greyhound. 

2013 ~ A Toronto sightseeing bus is wrapped with advertising for an “I Love Lucy” stage show. 

Busses for the “Lucytown Tours” in Jamestown NY stop at the Lucy-Desi Museum. 

The Rat Race (2011) ~ In the film, Cuba Gooding Jr. drives a tour bus full of Lucy look-a-likes!  

In a scene deleted from the film (but included on the DVD extras), the bus-load of Lucys encounter a tour bus full of Rickys!

Finally, the most famous bus driver on television, Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason) of “The Honeymooners” makes a cameo appearance at the end of “Lucy Visits Jack Benny” (1968). It seems money-hungry Benny charges busses of tourists to tour his Palm Springs home. The tour includes a hamburger or hot dog. Bus driver Kramden opts for a hamburger with dollar bill lettuce!