-
Lucy and Viv Learn Judo
S1;E22
~ February 25, 1963
Synopsis
When a rash of burglaries in the neighborhood makes Lucy and Viv feel unsafe,
they learn judo for self-protection. The tactic backfires when
they teach it to their sons, who use it on one another.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Jimmy Garrett
(Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley)
This
is the final appearance of Dick
Martin
(Harry
Conners).Candy
Moore (Chris Carmichael) does not appear in this episode, although her name is spoken as if she is upstairs.Guest
Cast
James
Seay
(Mr. Sheldon) played a police officer in the 1962 film What
Ever Happened to Baby Jane?
which was mentioned in the previous episode “No More Double Dates”
(S1;E21). This is his only appearance on “The Lucy Show.”Mr.
Sheldon runs a Judo and Karate studio in Danfield.Ed Parker (Student #1, below right) was a Hawaiin-born actor and stuntman who was the founder of American Kempo Karate. He was often referred to as the ‘father of American Karate’. He was Elvis Presley’s karate instructor and acted as his bodyguard for the later few years of his life.
Louis
Coppola
(Student #2, left) was
born in 1937 in Trenton, New Jersey. He was a protege
of Ed Parker and hired for “The Lucy Show” after another actor
was unable to do the stunts. He is the author of the book
C.B.S
The Chucklehead Broadcasting System.Both
Parker and Coppola use their own names in the episode.
Alvin, Jerry’s friend Amy Schaffer’s pet dog
Alvin is staying with the Carmichaels for a month while Amy is away.
A dozen other dogs of various breeds appear in the final scene.
The episode was filmed in January 1963.
Judo
is a Japanese grappling sport derived from jujitsu while karate is
primarily a striking unarmed martial art. Judo, however, is used
primarily as a sport, while karate can be used practically for
combat.
In Louis Coppola’s book, he notes that the reason the writers titled
the episode “Lucy and Viv Learn Judo” instead of “Lucy and Viv
Learn Karate” was so ‘karate’ wouldn’t be confused with carrots,
diamonds, or the carotid artery! On “I Love Lucy” the producers had similar concerns when titling “The Adagio” (ILL S1;E12) which was really about “The Apache” dance – afraid it would infer the Native American tribe instead of the French dance.In his book, Louis Coppola remembers Lucy letting director Jack Donohue know who really was boss.
He also writes that at Desilu, any photo that was not flattering to Lucille Ball had a black circle stamped on her face, making it un-usable.
Jerry’s
friend Amy Shaffer’s dog Alvin is staying with the Carmichaels. Amy
was previously mentioned by Jerry in “Together for Christmas”
(S1;E13). In the series premiere, Harry’s dog Tiger (above) was seen,
although Harry was not!
Lucy calls her son Jerry by his full name, ‘Jerome’, when sending him to his room.
Viv reads a report in The Danfield Tribune:
“Police recommend that all residents of the Danfield area take extra precautions to guard against prowlers. In the past five weeks homes have been broken into and many valuable articles stolen.”
Viv
wishes she knew Judo take-down moves when she was married to her
ex-husband, Ralph.
Although many episodes of “I Love Lucy” were concerned with urban crime (treated in a comic vein, of course), this is the first time that Lucy and Viv express concern for their safety living in the New York City suburb of Danfield.
When Ed Parker has his hands around Lucy’s neck, she remarks that his strong thumbs would be ideal for Tiddlywinks (aka Tiddledy Winks), a game in which the object is to flip small discs called winks, into a pot, which is the target, by pressure applied with the thumb and forefinger.
Lucy
mentions Jack
the Ripper,
the serial killer who stalked the Whitechapel district of London in
1888. The name has become synonymous with violent crime.
Lucy says that she and Viv have lived together in the house for five years. This would mean they have been housemates since around 1958.
Callbacks!
Jerry’s
Black Eye is reminiscent of “The Black Eye” (ILL S2;E20) which
ended with all four principal characters sporting shiners (center). In the
final moments of “Lucy Goes to Sun Valley” (1958) both Ricky and
guest star Fernando Lamas end up with black eyes.
The
dynamic of mother Lucy, young son Jerry and small dog Alvin is very
similar to the dynamic of Lucy Ricardo, Little Ricky, and Fred the dog
on “I Love Lucy.” Lucy Carmichael says that Alvin will have to
sleep in a cardboard box in the kitchen, just as she did with Fred
the dog.Fast Forward!
In “Lucy is Her Own Lawyer” (S2;E23), the neighborhood dogs keep Lucy and Viv awake with their barking – but unlike “Lucy and Viv Learn Judo”, they remain offscreen!
Lucy Carmichael’s date
Frank Winslow (Clint Walker) broke a column in Lucy’s apartment in half when he was startled awake and went into a reflex karate chop in “Lucy and the Sleeping Beauty” (S4;E9). Lucy asks “Is that karate?” Lucy and Viv took Judo and karate lessons in Danfield, so she should recognize the moves.
In “Lucy and the Good Skate” (S3;E1), Mr. Mooney says the his wife could not accompany him to the country club dance because she had to attend her karate class, conjuring an image of the unseen Irma Mooney as a physically intimidating woman.
A still from the episode was incorporated into the photo montage on The Official First Season “The Lucy Show” DVD box cover.
In “A Home Is Not An Office” (HL S5;E4), temp secretary Miss Quigley (Susan Tolsky) tells Harry that at secretarial school she learned typing, shorthand, and karate!. She demonstrates a few moves, much to the surprise of Kim and Harry.
Susan Tolsky previously played Kim’s friend and neighbor Sue Ann in “Kim Cuts You-Know-Whose Apron String” (HL S4;E24), an episode that was centered around the single young women learning self-defense from a book.
Blooper
Alerts!
Release the Hounds! When
Lucy blows the dog whistle the first time only Alvin comes in. When
she blows it the second time, a dozen assorted dogs coming running
from every direction, despite the fact that the only open door is the
front door in the center.
“Lucy and Viv Learn Judo” rates 3 Paper Hearts out of 5
-
No More Double Dates
S1;E21
~ February 18, 1963
Synopsis
When
Lucy and Viv double date, there’s an argument about where to go and
what to do. Lucy and Harry decide they’d like to spend a Saturday
night alone, so they make up a story about having tickets to see a
Broadway show. After being caught doubling back at the trains
station, they go to a new restaurant where they naturally run into
Viv and Eddie.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Candy Moore
(Chris Carmichael), Dick
Martin (Harry Connors)Jimmy
Garrett (Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley) do not appear
in this episode.Guest
Cast
Donald
Briggs
(Eddie Collins) makes
the sixth of his seven appearances as Viv’s on-again / off-again
boyfriend.
Leon
Belasco
(Violinist) was born in Russia in 1902. He was in three films with
Lucille Ball before playing the art store clerk in “Lucy Becomes a
Sculptress” (ILL S2;E15). He will also play the violin in “Lucy
Conducts the Symphony” (S2;E13) and a Maitre d’ when “Lucy Meets
Danny Kaye” (S3;E15).
Rolfe
Sedan
(Headwaiter) first worked with Lucille Ball in the 1934 film Kid
Millions. Coincidentally, he played a cruise ship passenger
alongside episode extra Bess Flowers. When Lucy Ricardo ate
snails in “Paris at Last” (ILL S5;E18), Sedan played the Chef who
was outraged that Lucy wants to put ketchup on his food! He is
probably best remembered as Mr. Beasley the mailman on “The George
Burns and Gracie Allen Show.”
Louis
A. Nicoletti
(Waiter) was an integral member of the Desilu family, having been a
frequent extra on “I Love Lucy.” He made two more appearances on
screen in “The Lucy Show” before taking over as Assistant
Director in 1966. He performed the same chores for 26 episodes of
“Here’s Lucy.”
Allan
Ray
(Harry, a man in the Danfield train station) was seen on “I Love
Lucy” as the clapstick boy at “Ricky’s
Screen Test” (ILL S4;E6),
a Brown Derby waiter in “Hollywood
at Last” (ILL S4;E16),
and a male nurse in “Nursery
School” (ILL S5;E9).
This is the second of his three appearances on “The Lucy Show.”
He also played a hotel doorman in the 1963 Lucille Ball / Bob Hope
film Critic’s
Choice.
In 1950 Ray and Gale Gordon were in the film A
Woman of Distinction in
which Lucille Ball played herself in a cameo.The Pink
Pheasant Restaurant patrons (uncredited) are played by:
- Bess
Flowers (above) was dubbed ‘Queen of the Extras’ in Hollywood and is credited
with more than 700 film and TV appearances from 1923 to 1964. She was
seen in the audience of Over
the Teacups in
“Ethel’s
Birthday” (ILL S4;E8) and
The
Most Happy Fella during
“Lucy’s
Night in Town” (ILL S6;E22).
This is the second of her five uncredited appearances on “The Lucy
Show.” Not surprisingly, Flowers was a founding member of SEG, the
Screen Extras Guild (now part of SAG) in 1945.
- Herschel
Graham
makes his second and final appearance on the series after being seen
at the Cavalier Restaurant in “Lucy is a Kangaroo for a Day”
(S1;E7). He was reported to be the highest earning male extra of
1937! Ten years later, he appeared in the film Lured
with
Lucille Ball. He played a passenger on the S.S. Constitution in “Bon
Voyage” (ILL S5:E13) and
was a bullfight spectator when “Lucy
Goes to Mexico,” a
1958 episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour.” He was an extra in
Lucy’s 1960 film The
Facts of Life.
- Bernard
Sell is
an English-born background player making his first of three
appearances on the series. He was also an extra with Lucille Ball
and Bob Hope in their films The
Facts of Life
(1960) and Critic’s
Choice (1963).
He later turns up on a 1971 two-part episode of “Here’s Lucy”
taking place on a cruise ship headed to Hawaii.
Other train station passengers and diners are played by uncredited and unidentified background performers.
The night this episode first aired (February 18, 1963) Lucy’s good friend and co-star Ann Sothern appeared on “I’ve Got A Secret”, which was the CBS lead-in for “The Lucy Show.”
Eddie
says that while waiting for Viv he’s read the first two volumes of
the
Bobbsey Twins.
These
were children’s novels which related the adventures of two sets of
twins:
Nan and Bert and Flossie and Freddie.
There were 72 books in all, the first appearing in 1904 and the last
in 1979. Edward Stretemeyer wrote the first two books under the
pseudonym Laura Lee Hope. In 1953’s “The Camping Trip” (ILL
S2;E29) Vivian Vance had a line of dialogue that referred to Lucy and
Ricky as the Bobbsey Twins.DOUBLE DATE DILEMMA: WHAT TO SEE?
Searching
for possible movies to see, Eddie prefers Ben-Hur
(1959)
at the Ritz over Two
for the Seesaw
(1962), because you get more actors for your money. Ben-Hur famously
had a cast of 30,000. The movie was previously mentioned in “Lucy’s
Sister Pays a Visit” (S1;E15). Ralph Hart (Viv’s son Sherman) was
an extra in Two
for the Seesaw.
Viv
wants to see What Ever
Happened to Baby Jane (1962),
but Lucy thinks it will be too scary. The film starred Bette Davis
and Joan Crawford, who will make a guest appearance on “The Lucy
Show” in “Lucy and the Lost Star” (S6;E22). Lucy says she
wants to see “the
Cary Grant picture at the Danfield Theatre.”
She is probably referring to That
Touch of Mink
(1962). Herschel Graham, an extra in this episode, is also an extra
in that film. Cary Grant was mentioned several times on “I Love Lucy.”Lucy
notes that movie tickets are $1.50.
On another date, Viv suggests “a
good movie at the Bijou”
but Eddie wants to see a western at the Danfield. Lucy chimes in that
she heard “that new Doris Day picture is cute.” This is probably
another reference to That
Touch of Mink,
since Cary Grant’s co-star was Doris Day. Day will be mentioned
again on “The Lucy Show” in “Lucy is a Soda Jerk” (S1;E23) and “Lucy Goes to a Hollywood Premiere”
(S4;20). Although there were half a dozen westerns released in 1962, the most popular of those were The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance starring “I Love Lucy” guest star John Wayne, or Lonely Are the Brave starring Kirk Douglas, who will do a cameo in “Lucy Goes To A Hollywood Premiere” (S4;E20).
For movie times, Viv consults The Danfield Tribune. Lucy and Viv were on the front page of the newspaper in “Lucy Becomes an Astronaut” (S1;E6) and Lucy worked there part-time in “Lucy Becomes Reporter” (S1;E17). One of the headlines says ‘Hospital Fund Reaches Goal Building To Start Next Month’. Could this be the children’s hospital Viv’s women’s club was raising money for in “Lucy the Music Lover” (S1;E8)?
DOUBLE DATE DILEMMA: WHERE TO EAT?
For
dinner, Harry suggests going to Tony DiBello’s for Italian food.
DiBello’s will be featured in “Lucy Meets a Millionaire”
(S2;E24). Viv suggests The Country Kitchen in Ridgebury. Eddie wants
to dine where George Washington slept – the 300 year-old Colonial
Inn. In season two, when “Lucy and Viv Open a Restaurant”
(S2;E24), they transform a run-down cafe into what they name the
Colonial Inn, even going so far as to dress like George and Martha
Washington to attract diners. Lucy makes one more suggestion: The Café Tambourine, which is probably a gypsy tea room.
Despite all those suggestions and objections,
all
four end up at a new restaurant named The Pink Pheasant.
Lucy asks the Pink Pheasant violinist to play “Dark Eyes,” which is is the world’s most recognizable Russian romance song. It was first published in 1843.
DOUBLE DATE DILEMMA: DEPOT DRAMA!
When
Lucy and Harry lie about missing their train, Eddie notes that the
next one only makes one stop – in New Rochelle. The real-life New
York town has already been mentioned several times in the series,
establishing that Danfield (and nearby Ridgebury) are similar
commuter suburbs of Manhattan. New Rochelle was also the home of Rob and Laura Petrie on “The Dick Van Dyke Show”, which was running on CBS concurrently with “The Lucy Show”. Meanwhile, nightly on Broadway, New Rochelle was being sung about as a housewife’s paradise in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
The ‘call a cab’ box in the Danfield Station turned up again on “Hazel” (1961-66) starring Shirley Booth, a Screen Gems television show. The word ‘Danfield’ was covered up, but it is the same prop.
The top rack of the train station news agent displays a paperback copy of Tender is the Night. The 1934 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald was made into a hit movie in 1962. There is also a copy of the 1934 Civil War novel Arouse and Beware by MacKinlay Kantor. The book was filmed as The Man from Dakota in 1940. Kantor won a 1956 Pulitzer Prize for his novel Andersonville.
After
two round trips to New Rochelle, Lucy remarks that if they’d been
traveling in a straight line, they’d “be
in Miami Beach by now.” The Florida resort city was also mentioned in the previous episode,
“Lucy and Viv Become Tycoons” (S1;E20). Several episodes of “I Love Lucy” were set there in 1956.Callbacks!
The Pink Pheasant restaurant is really just a re-dressed version of The Cavalier, a restaurant seen earlier in the season in “Lucy Is A Kangaroo for a Day” (S1;E7). They even use the same chairs!
Two couples barely missing each other at a suburban train depot was also the source of farcical comedy in “Lucy Misses the Mertzes” (ILL S6;E17) where the confusion took place at the Westport train station. Westport, like New Rochelle, was a real life commuter suburb for those employed in Manhattan and who took the train to work.
Two
couples indecisive about where to dine is how “Lucy Changes Her
Mind” (ILL S2;E21) starts off. In that episode, Ricky Ricardo orders “a
sirloin steak; thick and juicy.”
Here Lucy Carmichael tells the waiter at the Pink Pheasant to bring her roast beef “about
that thick and nice and juicy.” In
both episodes shrimp cocktails are ordered as appetizers. Throughout both series’ the writers were prone to describing meat as “thick and juicy.”
Men
waiting for the women to get dressed for an evening out is the way
that “Lucy’s Schedule” (ILL S1;E33) begins. Here, Harry and
Eddie bring along books to read while waiting.
HARRY: “If
you’re going to ask me to elope again, it’s a bad night for it. My
ladder’s broken.”This
may be a reference to “Lucy Puts Up a TV Antenna” (S1;E9), in
which Lucy and Viv borrow Harry’s ladder to get to the roof and then
break it in half.
Eloping by leaning a ladder to a girl’s second story window was a common romcom trope. It will be seen again when Lucy and Mr. Mooney suspect his son Ted is going to elope with Lucy’s daughter, Chris!
A
hungry Lucy hiding under a table is instantly reminiscent of “The Diet”
(ILL S1;E3) – without the dog, of course.Blooper
Alerts!
Character Count? About
Two for the Seesaw,
Harry says “there are only
two actors in the entire picture”.
Although this was true of the 1958 play version by William Gibson, the film expanded the
cast to include four other characters only talked about in the play.
There were also many other uncredited actors, including “The Lucy
Show’s” Ralph Hart, who is coincidentally absent from “No More Double Dates”!
“No More Double Dates” rates 4 Paper Hearts out of 5
1963, Allan Ray, Arouse and Beware, Ben-Hur, Bernard Sell, Bess Flowers, Candy Moore, Cary Grant, CBS, Dark Eyes, Dick Martin, Donald Briggs, Doris Day, Double Dating, Herschel Graham, Leon Belasco, Louis A. Nicoletti, Lucille Ball, New Rochelle, No More Double Dates, Rolfe Sedan, Tender is the Night, That Touch of Mink, The Bobbsey Twins, The Lucy Show, tv, Two for the Seesaw, Vivian Vance, Whatever Happened To Baby Jane - Bess
-
Lucy and Viv Become Tycoons
S1;E20
~ February 11, 1963
Synopsis
Lucy, Viv and Eddie become business partners making caramel popcorn. Demand
is so high that Lucy and Viv start an assembly line in the living room, until they learn they may be in violation of zoning laws!Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Candy Moore
(Chris Carmichael), Jimmy
Garrett (Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley)Dick
Martin (Harry Connors) does not
appear in this episode.Guest
Cast
Donald
Briggs
(Eddie Collins) makes
the fifth of his seven appearances as Viv’s on-again off-again
boyfriend.Eddie reminds us that he’s been in every state of the union. He funds Lucy and Viv’s business. Eddie calls Viv “Tootsie”.
Bern
Hoffman
(Sergeant Robbins) was seen on Broadway in the original cast of Guys
and Dolls.
He is probably best remembered as Earthquake McGoon in both the
Broadway and film versions of Li’l
Abner.
He was an extra in such Hollywood musicals as On
the Town
(1949) and Hello,
Dolly
(1963). In 1960, he appeared in the Lucille Ball / Bob Hope film The
Facts of Life.
This episode was filmed on January 10, 1963, just a month prior to air. As with many episodes of the series, Gary Morton’s loud guffaw can be heard on the soundtrack.
Viv
says the recipe for her caramel corn was from her grandmother Ragan. In real life Vivian
Vance’s grandmother was named Louisa Mae Ragan.
Chis
mentions her friend Cynthia again. In episode #23 we will finally meet this much-talked-about character. She will be played by Lucie Arnaz (above).
After some debate, Lucy, Viv and Eddie name their caramel corn “Crazy Crunch.” Much to Viv’s dismay, Sgt. Robbins says “It’s not as good as Cracker Jack.” Cracker Jack is a molasses-flavored caramel-coated popcorn and peanut confection first patented in 1896. It is famous for being packaged with an inexpensive novelty item (a ‘prize’) inside the box. Food historians say it may be America’s first ‘junk food.’ The product is still sold today.
Crazy
Crunch is a hit with Danfield!- Marge Green wants 100 boxes to sell
at her sewing circle bazaar. - Dr.
Hoffstedder at the Drug Store has ordered 10 boxes. - Old Man Armstrong
is interested in selling Crazy Crunch in his chain of candy stores
across NY State. - Frances Sculley, Food Editor of the New Rochelle
Bulletin, calls for an interview about the new product.
Child Labor! Lucy and Viv recruit their kids to help out in their make-shift factory! The boys are in “the boxing department”…
…while Chris is in charge of weighing and gift wrapping!
Lucy
and Viv write a Crazy Crunch jingle to the tune of “Old MacDonald”
just in case they sponsor a great big television show.Buy some Crazy Crunch today, C-R-A-Z-Y.
Make your sweet tooth say ‘hooray,’C-R-A-Z-Y.
With a crunch crunch, here and munch
munch there.
Here-a crunch, there-a munch, eat a
bunch for lunch or brunch.
Buy some Crazy Crunch today, C-R-A-Z-Y.
It’s full of nuts!The cast (except Lucille Ball) often did in-character commercials for sponsors of “The Lucy Show.”
Callbacks!
The
plot of this episode is most most directly taken from 1953’s “The
Million Dollar Idea” (ILL S3;E13). In it, Lucy Ricardo and
Ethel Mertz go into business selling Lucy’s family recipe for salad dressing, naming
it after her Aunt Martha. They also set up a home kitchen to make the
product and are also inundated with more orders than they can handle.The episode was colorized and aired on April 19, 2019.
“Carmichael’s Caramel Corn! Buy it by the Bagley!”
Lucy
and Viv argue over what to name the popcorn. Lucy wants "Carmichael’s
Caramel Corn” and Viv wants “Vivian’s Caramel Corn.” This is a rehash of the argument in “The
Girls Go Into Business” (ILL S3;E2) where
Lucy wants top billing in the dress shop (“Lucyeth’s”) and
Ethel wants her name to lead (“Ethelu’s”).
Another funny variation on the ‘billing war argument’ was found in “The Diner” (ILL S3;E27), which results in the eatery being divided in half: The Mertz side is named ‘Big Hunk of America’, and the Ricardo side is called ‘A Little Bit of Cuba.’
Lucy
and Ethel’s chef’s hats and uniforms, as well as the assembly line for their confection is
reminiscent of their chaotic employment at Kramer’s Candy Kitchen in
“Job Switching” (ILL S2;E1).
Lucy
wears her apron with the heart-shaped pocket. Lucy Ricardo first
wore it in “The Business Manager” (ILL S4;E1). Although it is mostly covered by her apron, Lucy Carmichael has on a monogrammed shirt. Lucy Ricardo also owned one of these.
Cracker
Jack was frequently the punchline of jokes on “I Love Lucy.”
From
1954’s “Ethel’s Birthday” (ILL S4;E8):
ETHEL
(thinking Fred has given her ugly hostess pants): What
I can’t figure out is how they got them to fit in a box of Cracker
Jack.
From
1956’s “The Fox Hunt” (ILL S5;E16):ANGELA RANDALL: (About
Ricky) He’s
a prize.
LUCY:
Yeah,
well that prize belongs in my box of Cracker Jack!
From
1957’s “Building a Bar-B-Que” (ILL S6;E24):ETHEL (after Lucy
can’t find her wedding ring): If
I lost my wedding ring we wouldn’t have to find it, we’d just have to
buy
another box of Cracker Jack.From 1954’s “Bonus Bucks” (ILL S3;E21):
FRED: I found a diamond ring in a box of Cracker Jack.
LUCY: Oh, now, stop! You stop joking.
ETHEL: He’s not joking. Where do you think he got this? (Holds up her ring finger)Fast Forward!
Lucy Carter also goes into business selling sweet snacks in “Lucy and the Franchise Fiasco” (HL S5;E20) where Lucy, Mary Jane, and Harry go into business to sell frozen custard. Like the popcorn popper, the custard machine runs amok!
Blooper
Alerts!
Too Hot To Handle! While
Viv is on the phone, Lucy takes a hot pot of caramel syrup off the
stove. After she does this, her oven mitt falls off, but she
continues to handle the hot pot with her bare hands.Clean Up on Aisle 2! When
Lucy is putting the nuts into the mixture, one falls on the floor.
Lucy quickly picks it up and throws it in the sink.
Door is Ajar! When
Eddie rushes in to report that they may be in trouble with the
police, the front door is already ajar and he doesn’t close it when
he comes in. In the next scene, although Lucy opens the door for
Sergeant Robbins and appears to close it after he’s in the living
room, the door is still noticeably ajar while he is searching the
house.5 Second Rule? When
Lucy and Viv have one last piece of Crazy Crunch for old times just
before the police arrive, Lucy’s piece falls on the floor.
Sitcom Logic Alert! When the policeman comes to the Carmichael home to investigate reports of a caramel corn business being operated on the premises, he should immediately smell the unmistakable aroma of popcorn popping, let alone hear the sound! Perhaps the officer has no olfactory glands? In any case, it is logistically impossible for the amount of popcorn spilling from the closet to have been popped without the constant re-filling of kernels and oil.
“Lucy and Viv Become Tycoons” rates 4 Paper Hearts out of 5
- Marge Green wants 100 boxes to sell
-
Lucy’s Barbershop Quartet
S1;E19 ~ February 4, 1963
Synopsis
When
one of the members of Viv’s female barbershop quartet drops out, Lucy
convinces Viv and her friends to let her fill the vacancy. Lucy takes
singing lessons to learn to stay on key, but her instructor can do
nothing for the stage fright that seizes the redhead when she learns
that the group’s first performance will be in front of three thousand
people.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Candy Moore
(Chris Carmichael)Jimmy
Garrett (Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley), Dick
Martin (Harry Connors) do not
appear in this episodeGuest
Cast
Hans Conreid (Dr. Gitterman) had co-starred with Lucille Ball in The Big Street (1942). He then appeared on “I Love Lucy” as used furniture man Dan Jenkins in “Redecorating” (ILL S2;E8) and later that same season as prissy Percy Livermore in “Lucy Hires an English Tutor” (ILL S2;E13) – both in 1952. The following year he began an association with Disney by voicing Captain Hook in Peter Pan. Conreid returns to the role of Dr. Gitterman in the season two opener, “Lucy Plays Cleopatra” (S2;E1). He was probably best known as Uncle Tonoose on “Make Room for Daddy” starring Danny Thomas, which was filmed on the Desilu lot. When Thomas guest-starred on “Here’s Lucy” in 1973, Hans Conreid was also in the cast. He died in 1982.
A recognizable face to viewers, Conreid earns entrance applause from the studio audience. The character is based on one he created on “My Favorite Husband” named Professor Krausmeyer.
Carole
Cook
(Thelma Green, below left) makes
the second of her four appearances playing Thelma Green, although she
will also play Mrs. Valance in three episodes, and a variety of other
characters in eleven others. Lucille Ball took Cook as a protege
during the Desilu Playhouse years. Although she was born as Mildred
Cook, Ball suggested she take the name Carole, in honor of Lucy’s
great friend, Carole Lombard. Cook also went on to appear in five
episodes of “Here’s Lucy.”Ironically, Cook was Lucille Ball’s ghost singer for several episodes of her television shows.
Dorothy Konrad (Dorothy Boyer, above right) will play this role again in “Lucy Drives a Dump Truck” (S1;E24) and then will play a variety of other characters in four more episodes.
When
we first met Dorothy in “Lucy and Viv are Volunteer Fireman”
(S1;E16) the role was being played by Ruth Crews.
Allan
Ray
(Emcee) was
seen on “I Love Lucy” as the clapstick boy at “Ricky’s Screen
Test” (ILL S4;E6), a Brown Derby waiter in “Hollywood
at Last” (ILL S4;E16),
and a male nurse in “Nursery
School” (ILL S5;E9).
He made three more appearances on “The Lucy Show,” all in 1963.
That
same year he also played a hotel doorman in the Lucille Ball / Bob
Hope film Critic’s
Choice.
In 1950, Ray and Gale Gordon were in the film A
Woman of Distinction
in which Lucille Ball played herself in a cameo.
A barbershop quartet is a group of four singers who perform using four-part harmony, generally without accompaniment by instruments, a style called a cappella.
This album was released in 1963. Sadly, Lucy’s group – the Four Alarms – didn’t make the cut!
Just prior to the filming of this episode, the film version of The Music Man was in American cinemas. The plot includes a barbershop quartet played by The Buffalo Bills, a real-life group from Buffalo, New York. Coincidentally, the film also featured Ralph Hart, who plays Sherman on “The Lucy Show.” Other ‘Lucy-com’ actors in the film’s cast include Mary Wickes, Buddy Hackett, Barbara Pepper, Charles Lane, Max Showalter, Ray Kellogg, Larri Thomas, Jesslyn Fax, John Breen, Milton Parsons, Ronnie Dapo, Leon Alton, Fred Aldrich, Natalie Masters, and Walter Bacon. The leading role of Harold Hill was played on stage and screen by Robert Preston (above far left), who would play Lucy’s love interest in the 1974 movie musical Mame.
This
is the second of two season 1 episodes to somehow have entered public
domain. Out of the series’ 156 episodes, 30 are no longer protected
under copyright, resulting in their availability on low-quality,
low-cost DVDs.
For its original 1963 telecast, the episode’s lead-in was “I’ve Got a Secret” featuring Jack Benny, Lucille Ball’s neighbor and frequent guest star. Ball appeared on the game show four times between 1956 and 1966.
Chris
mentions her friend Cynthia again. She has been mentioned several
times in previous episodes but will not actually be seen until
“Lucy Is A Soda Jerk” (S1;E23), when she will be played by Lucie Arnaz (above).
Viv’s
barbershop quartet is named The Four Alarms. Making an age joke, Viv
says they couldn’t very well be named The
Four Freshmen.
This was the name of a real-life all-male close harmony jazz and big
band group founded in 1948.
Lucy says that she was not initially included in the barbershop
quartet because others have more singing experience: Dorothy and
Grace sing in the church choir and Viv sang with a band in college.
Lucy tells Chris that Viv
believes she could have been another
‘Wee’ Bonnie Baker
(1917-90),
who was a jazz and popular music singer. Her biggest hit was "Oh
Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh!”
recorded in 1939. Lucy sings a few bars of this song for Chris and
then compares it to Elvis Presley’s “Hound Dog” of which she also
sings a chorus. Elvis and “Hound Dog” were previously mentioned
in “Lucy the Music Lover” (S1;E8).
Lucy says that Thelma Green once appeared in the third road company of Rio Rita, a real-life 1927 musical comedy produced by Florenz Ziegfeld. It ran nearly 500 performances on Broadway. In 1929 it was made into a film and then re-made in 1942 starring Abbott and Costello. At age 15, Lucille Ball left Jamestown for New York City and was promptly hired for the ensemble of the road company of Rio Rita. Before the show even left on tour, she was fired because she couldn’t keep up with the more experienced dancers.
To
replace Grace, who moved to California with her four children because
her husband got a job transfer, Viv suggests Barbara Cushing, who is
a soloist in their church choir, but she isn’t a one of the volunteer
firemen. In real-life, Barbara
Cushing
was better known as Babe Paley, wife of CBS chairman William S.
Paley.
Dorothy
suggests Pauline Lopus but Viv says that she has seven children and
can barely get away to fight a fire, let alone travel to Albany. Flo
Pauline Lopus
was the name of a one of Lucille Ball’s childhood friends. Her name
often found its way into the scripts of “I Love Lucy.” An off-screen character named Flo (a manicurist) was mentioned in “Lucy
Waits Up for Chris” (S1;E1) and Mrs. Lopus is said to be one of
Jerry’s former teachers in “Lucy Digs Up a Date” (S1;E2).
Nonchalantly
trying to audition for Dorothy’s spot in the quartet, Lucy moves
around the room humming and singing “Down
By the Old Mill Stream,” a
song written by Tell Taylor in 1908. It was one of the most popular
songs of the early 20th century selling four million copies of sheet
music. Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz performed it as Western bell
ringers in “Lucy Goes to the Rodeo”
(ILL S5;E8).
The
girls also toy with performing “Moonlight Bay” and “Red Red
Robin”. Along with William Frawley, Vivian Vance sang “When
the Red, Red Robin (Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin’ Along)”
in “Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress” (ILL S3;E3). Written
in 1926 by Harry Woods, the song was popularized by Al Jolson. In
1953 it was recorded by Doris Day.
The quartet actually rehearse Lucy’s suggestion “Be
My Little Baby Bumble Bee,”
in which Lucy sings lead and the other back-up (“buzz
around buzz around buzz around”).
The
song was written by Henry I. Marshall with lyrics by Stanley Murphy.
It first appeared in the 1912 Broadway musical A
Winsome Widow starring
Mae West.
The
Four Alarms eventually settle on performing “By
the Light of the Silvery Moon,” written by Gus
Edwards and
Edward
Madden
and first published in 1909. It was also sung by Lucille Ball and
Vivian Vance in “Lucy’s Show-Biz Swan Song” (ILL S2;E12) in 1952.
A year later it was featured in a film of the same name starring
Doris Day. Coincidentally, “Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee” was one
of the songs incorporated into the film By the Light of the
Silvery Moon.
The
girls travel to the Annual Ladies Barbershop Quartet Contest in
Albany. The act preceding The Four Alarms is called the Wilton Warblers.
Wilton, New York, is a real-life town 40 miles north of Albany.FAST FORWARD!
Much
of the comic business in Dr. Gitterson’s music lesson with Lucy will
be repeated“Lucy Teaches Ethel Merman to Sing” (S2;E18), with Lucy as the teacher and Merman as her music pupil.
In 1966, “The Andy Griffith Show” also did an episode titled “The Barbershop Quartet” (S7;E3), a show filmed on the Desilu backlot.
Callbacks!
Lucille
Ball and Vivian Vance also sang in a barbershop quartet in “Lucy’s
Show-Biz Swan Song” (ILL S2;E12).
“By the Light of the Silvery
Moon” was also performed by Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance in that same episode.
The
unbalanced division of the parts in “Be My Bumble Bee” is
reminiscent of Lucy Ricardo’s dissatisfaction with her vocal part in
the song “Auf Wiedersehen, My Dear” in “The Benefit” (ILL
S1;E13). In that episode, all Lucy sang was “Auf”, sounding like a trained seal. Here, the rest of the quartet only sings “buzz around” sound like bees!THELMA: “I’m certainly not going clear up to Albany just to be a buzzer.”
A few episodes earlier, “Down By the Old Mill Stream” was featured in the family sing-along in “Lucy Puts Up a TV Antenna”
(S1;E9).
Dr.
Gitterman helps correct Lucy’s posture just the same way Miss Emerson
(Natalie Shaffer) did with Lucy Ricardo and Ethel Mertz when they attended “The
Charm School” (ILL S3;E15).
Lucy also held her breath for an unreasonably long time in “Lucy’s Last Birthday” (ILL S2;E25). In that case, it was Mrs. Trumbull’s unwound watch that caused Lucy’s breathless expression!
When
Lucy hears there’ll be 3,000 people in the audience, she gets a
sudden case of stage fright. Lucy Ricardo’s son developed the
same fear in “Little Ricky Gets Stage Fright” (ILL S6;E4).Blooper
Alerts!
Stepping on my Line! After the rehearsal of “Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee,” Dorothy starts to say “Don’t—” but is cut off by Vivian.
Boom! As Lucy runs across the room to grab the telephone, the shadow of the mic boom follows her. [Note: boom shadows are very hard to see in still photos, so I’ve illustrated the path of the mic boom above. The actual microphone, however, is never in frame.]
“Lucy’s Barbershop Quartet” rates 4 Paper Hearts out of 5
1963, Allan Ray, Babs Paley, Barbershop Quartet, Be My Little Baby Bumble Bee, By the light of the Silvery Moon, Candy Moore, Carole Cook, CBS, Dorothy Konrad, Down By The Old Mill Stream, Hans Conreid, Lucille Ball, Lucy’s Barbershop Quartet, Rio Rita, The Four Freshmen, The Lucy Show, tv, Vivian Vance, Wee Bonnie Baker -
Lucy and Viv Put in a Shower
S1;E18 ~ January 28, 1963
Synopsis
Lucy
decides that her home needs another shower and asks Harry to help her
install it. Harry and Eddie get out of helping by paying a local
plumber to do the job under the guise of being an old friend. After
Lucy drives him away with her meddling, she and Viv finish the job
themselves, nearly drowning as a result!Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Jimmy Garrett
(Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley), Dick
Martin (Harry Connors)Candy
Moore (Chris Carmichael) does not appear in this episode, although the character is mentioned and is the catalyst for Lucy wanting to install a second shower.Guest
Cast
Donald
Briggs
(Eddie Collins) makes the fourth of his seven appearances as Viv’s
on-again / off-again boyfriend.Eddie’s pet name for Viv is “Tootsie”.
Stafford
Repp
(Joe Melvin, a plumber from Ridgebury) made a career of playing
policemen even before he became famous as Chief O’Hara on TV’s
“Batman” (1966-68). He played two different officers of the
law on “Dennis the Menace” in 1962 and 1963, alongside “The
Lucy Show’s" Mr. Mooney, Gale Gordon. Coincidentally, “Dennis the
Menace” had their own Mr. Mooney, who was a police officer! Repp
returned to “The Lucy Show” for “Lucy Is a Process Server”
(S2;E27) and did 1970 episode of “Here’s Lucy” as (what else?) a
police detective!
This episode was filmed on December 13, 1962. It is sometimes referred to as “Lucy the Plumber”.
This
is one of two Season 1 episodes (as well as 30 others) that
somehow fell out of copyright and into public domain, which accounts
for its appearance in low-cost / low quality DVDs.
The original broadcast was sponsored by Jell-O, and featured the product in the opening and closing credits.
There was even a special commercial featuring
Vivian Vance, Jimmy Garrett, and Ralph Hart in character extolling the ease and versatility of Jell-O. During season one all actors except Lucille Ball participated in such ‘in-character’ commercials. In her medium shots, Vivian Vance’s eyes are clearly reading from the teleprompter just over Ralph Hart’s head.
The
day this episode aired, January 28, 1963, film director John Farrow (inset photo) died. Farrow directed Lucille Ball in the 1939 movie Five
Came Back.
The film was made at RKO Studios. In January 1963, RKO was known as
Desilu Studios and Lucille Ball was its president. Farrow was
married to another redhead, Maureen O’Sullivan, and left behind seven
children, including daughter Mia Farrow.
Harry’s
favorite dish is Eggs Benedict.
When
Chris hogs the bathroom, Jerry and Sherman are washing their hands in
the kitchen sink before going to the Y to play basketball. Jerry
says that at the Y, “They
frown on filth!” The
Y has been mentioned in several episodes so far, and in “Lucy Digs
Up a Date” (S1;E2) we see inside Danfield’s new YMCA.
Reinforcing the YMCA theme, the boys have a pennant for Indian Guides.
The youth nature program
started in 1926, although the name later morphed into Y Indian Guides, then simply Y Guides.
Lucy
prices putting in the new shower with Paisley the Plumber. His
prices are so high that Lucy says they are in danger of needing
“socialized
plumbing.”“The
only way to get clean is to be filthy rich.”These jokes are clearly about the high cost of health care in
America, which was a topical issue, even in the early 1960s. In 1962, President Kennedy appeared at a rally at Madison Square
Garden to promote the King-Anderson Bill, an early form of Medicare.
In February 1963, just a week after this episode aired, author Ayn Rand gave
a talk in Ocean, New Jersey, against socialized medicine.
When
the water in the shower begins rising to shoulder level, Lucy says “Where’s Lloyd Bridges when you need him?” Lloyd
Bridges was
the star of “Sea Hunt” (1958-1961), a TV series about a scuba
diver which featured extensive underwater filming. He was also mentioned in the same context in “Lucy Buys a Boat” (S1;E30). Bridges played a
doctor on the season five opener of “Here’s Lucy” in 1972.
To allow for another camera angle, the wall inside the shower stall opposite the taps was made of glass. It is not visible when the camera shoots from the front. While it is supposed to be invisible (the ‘fourth wall”) it collects water drops and Lucy puts her hands on it for support.
At
one point Lucy doubts Joe is really a plumber and says “You
could fool the panel on ‘What’s
My Line’.” “What’s My Line”
was the name of a popular CBS quiz show which had three
blindfolded celebrity panelists trying to guess the profession of a
mystery guest by asking yes or no questions. It ran from 1950 to
1967 so it aired during both “I Love Lucy” and “The Lucy Show.”
Lucille Ball was a celebrity guest six times between 1954 and 1965,
one of which was broadcast just a few months after this episode.
Desi Arnaz appeared on “What’s My Line” three times, one of which
was alongside Lucy.
In
this episode, both the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore are used
as punchlines. Lucy voiced Lady Liberty in “Swing Out Sweet Land,” a 1971 TV special celebrating American history.
When the water causes the plaster to fall from the ceiling, the production uses an insert shot of the water-stained kitchen ceiling. Of course, the show’s sets had no ceilings to accommodate lighting, so this shot had to be recreated and inserted into the film.
VIV:
“Lucy,
I wanna tell you something. This is absolutely the last time I slip
into my coveralls to be an apprentice on one of your dreadful little
projects.”
LUCY:
“Aw, no. These are things we’re gonna look back on and laugh at
one day when we’re old and gray.”
VIV:
“And from the way things are going that may be next week.”This sentimental dialogue at the end of the episode pretty much sums up Lucille Ball
and Vivian Vance’s comic partnership. Of course, this is far from
the last time she slips on those coveralls to help Lucy get out of a
predicament. The pair did indeed stay friends off screen until they
were old and gray.
Between takes, the crew kept the set laughing with this funny sign.
Shower Scenes!
She’s not exactly Marion Crane from Psycho (1960), but Lucy’s shows had their fair share of shower scenes.
In the “I
Love Lucy” pilot Lucy and Ricky Ricardo are standing in their
bathroom in front of a shower curtain.
Ricky RIcardo loved to sing in the shower – which actually moved locations! In “Bonus Bucks” (1954) it was a shower stall and In “Little Ricky Learns to
Play the Drums” (1957) it is a tub shower! (BTW, both bathrooms are in their second, larger apartment.)
In “Lucy Goes to Sun
Valley” (1958), everyone seems to interrupt guest star Fernando
Lamas when he is trying to take a shower. She also interrupted the shower of Cornel Wilde in “The Star Upstairs” (1955).
At the end of “Lucy is a
Referee” (S1;E3), Lucy Carmichael beds down in the tub and
mistakenly turns on the shower.
Viv took an unscheduled ‘safety’ shower in the chemistry lab when “Lucy and Viv Take Up Chemistry” (S1;E23).
Lucy Carter barged in on Harry’s shower in “Lucy Stops a Marriage” (HL S3;E16) in 1970.
Lucy Carter has a realization in the shower, when she visited Danny Williams on “Make Room For Granddaddy” (S1;E16) in 1971.
Blooper
Alerts!
Floor Plan Fiasco! This
is the second time we have visited Jerry and Sherman’s bedroom, the
first being “Lucy and Her Electric Mattress” (S1;E12). A
quick pan to the left side of the room reveals that there is a
dresser where the boys’ bunk beds were located. In that episode the
Indian Guides pennant was just to the right of the door. It is now
just to the right of the shower, which was formerly a closet.
Talk Show Stories! Lucille
Ball later stated that she nearly drowned during the filming of this
episode, when she went to the bottom and found herself unable turn
herself upright. Vivian
Vance realized
she was in trouble, and pulled Lucy up by her hair. Vance ad-libbed
until Lucy could catch her breath and resume her lines. The
near-disastrous moment was edited for broadcast so that we see Lucy
go down, Viv react to her distress, and then Lucy surface again. It
is clear there was an edit in the film due to water levels in the
tank between the takes. This scene was probably rehearsed without
water and then done in one take. Later in her career, Lucille
Ball also stated that she nearly drowned while doing the grape
stomping in “Lucy’s Italian Movie” (ILL S5;E23).
Shoddy Construction! Grasping
at the top of the shower door, Lucy accidentally knocks loose the
chrome trim.Fast Forward!
At the end of the episode, Lucy convinces Viv to help her plaster the ceiling after the shower damage. Eleven months later, Lucy and Viv are once again plastering the kitchen ceiling after Sherman accidentally leaves the bathtub water running in “A Loophole in the Lease” (S2;E12).
Lucy Carmichael again did her own plumbing in “Lucy and the Plumber” (S3;E2) starring Jack Benny and Bob Hope as plumbers!
A scene from this episode was included in “Lucy and Viv Reminisce” (S6;E16), the series’ only clips episode.
On “Here’s Lucy,” Richard Burton disguised himself as Sam the Plumber in “Lucy Meets the Burtons” (HL S3;E1). Burton recited Shakespeare while fixing her bathroom sink but an unimpressed Lucy Carter refused to pay extra for it!
The episode was playing in the background during the short horror film Room To Breathe (2006). The show’s opening credit sequence was also included. It likely was chosen as it is in public domain and no royalty fee or permission were needed for its use.
In 2017 “Will & Grace” repeated the shower stall stunt in “Who’s
Your Daddy?” (S9;E2) with Debra Messing (Grace) and Megan Mullalley (Karen) trying to keep their heads above water. In Spring 2020, the pair transformed into Lucy and Ethel for one of the final episodes of their sitcom’s reboot. Lucie Arnaz was also in the cast.
It seems that several real-life plumbers on Tumblr are Lucy fans! Or plumbing fans! Or both!
“Lucy and Viv Put In a Shower” rates 5 Paper Hearts out of 5
A nominee for Best Picture 2019 in the Desilu Academy Awards!
1963, CBS, Cornel Wilde, Debra Messing, Dick Martin, DIY, Eddie Briggs, Fernando Lamas, Gale Gordon, I love lucy, Indian Guides, Jello, Jimmy Garrett, John Farrow, Lloyd Bridges, Lucille Ball, Lucy and Viv Put in a Shower, Plumbers, Ralph Hart, Richard Burton, Room To Breathe, Sea Hunt, Shower, Stafford Repp, The Lucy Show, tv, Vivian Vance, What’s My Line, Will and Grace, YMCA -
Today is International Women’s Day.
In November 1962 Lucille Ball broke the glass ceiling by becoming the first woman to head a Hollywood studio. Under her leadership, Desilu developed such iconic TV shows as “Star Trek,” “Mission: Impossible” and “Mannix.”
-
Lucy Becomes a Reporter
S1;E17 ~ January 21, 1963
Synopsis
After
just three days as the fill-in society reporter for the Danfield
newspaper, Lucy’s job is hanging by a thread. The only thing that
will save it is an interview with a press-shy financier visiting
town. Once she learns he had been Viv’s high school sweetheart, Lucy
heads down to his hotel for a scoop, passing herself off as Vivian.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley)Jimmy
Garrett (Jerry Carmichael), Ralph Hart (Sherman Bagley), Candy Moore
(Chris Carmichael), and
Dick Martin (Harry Connors) do
not appear in this episodeGuest
Cast
John
Vivyan
(Argyle Nelson) makes his only appearance on “The Lucy Show.” He
played the title character of the CBS series “Mr. Lucky”
(1958-60). He died in 1983.The character is named after Desilu’s Vice President for Studio
Operations W. Argyle Nelson.
Roscoe
Karns
(Mr. Foley, the Editor) appeared with Lucille Ball in the 1939 film That’s
Right – You’re Wrong.
This appearance on “The Lucy Show” is his penultimate screen
credit. He died in 1970.Foley is the name for creating sound effects in the film business.
Bobs
Watson
(Calvin, the Copy Boy) started in the business as a child actor who could cry on
cue, earning him the nickname ‘The Crybaby of Hollywood.’ At the age
of eight he appeared with Lucille Ball in the film Go
Chase Yourself (1938).
He was probably most famous for playing Pee Wee in
Boys Town
(1938) and Men
of Boys Town
(1941). He does not cry like a baby in this episode, but Lucy does! He died in 1999 at the age of 68.
Emlen
Davies
(Mr. Nelson’s Secretary) makes her only series appearance in this episode. Her
final screen appearances was as a background player in a 1967 episode
of “The Mothers-in-Law,” a series produced by Desi Arnaz.
This episode’s copyright date is December 6, 1962.
On the date this episode first aired, silent film actor Al ‘Fuzzy’ St. John, one of the original Keystone Cops, died at age 68. He had briefly appeared with Lucille Ball in the 1943 film Valley of the Sun. Coincidentally, his second wife’s last name was Ball (no relation).
After this episode of “The Lucy Show,” “The Danny Thomas Show” featured ‘Lucy’ character actors Hans Conried (Dr. Gitterman), Sid Melton (“The Lucy Desi Comedy Hour”), and Phil Ober (Vivian Vance’s ex-husband).
Viv sets up the premise of the episode by reading from
Betty Gillis’ Society Column in The Danfield Tribune:“Argyle
Nelson, mystery man financier, has checked-in to the Danfield Hotel.
Could it be another of his hush-hush million dollar business deals?”
Mr.
Foley, the Tribune’s editor, refers to Lucy as Brenda Starr. Brenda
Starr
is the lead character in a comic strip about an adventurous female
reporter. It debuted in 1940. Like Lucy, she had red hair.
Lucy
says that she was called ‘Clare Boothe Lucy’ in high school. This is a
pun on Clare
Boothe Luce
(1903-87), who was a writer and journalist in her own right, in
addition to being married to Henry Luce, a powerful publishing
magnate in the magazine industry. Luce was the author of the 1938 play Kiss The Boys Goodbye, which starred Vivian Vance in its Chicago production. On Broadway, the role was played by Vance’s friend (and Ethel Merman understudy) Benay Venuta. It also featured Vance’s third husband, Phil Ober. In the 1941 film version (above) the role was taken by Barbara Jo Allen, but the film featured Elizabeth Patterson (Mrs. Trumbull). The storyline of the play / film was inspired by the search for Scarlett O’Hara. Lucille Ball was one of the many actors who was considered for the role.
Viv
calls Lucy ‘Louella’ a reference to gossip columnist Louella
Parsons (right).
Lucy later invokes the name of Parsons’ chief rival, Hedda
Hopper (left),
anotherchronicler of
Hollywood during the mid-twentieth century. Both
women were frequently mentioned on “I Love Lucy,” although only
Hopper appeared on the show, playing herself in two episodes.
Lucy
hangs up the phone with Betty Gillis saying “That’s
thirty!”“-30-” has
been traditionally used by journalists in North America to indicate
the end of a transmitted or written story.
There are many theories about its
origin. In 1959 there was a film about the newspaper business titled
-30- (inset photo).
In the UK, the movie was titled Deadline
Midnight
because the number 30 is predominantly an American press usage.LINGO JINGO! Trying to fit in to the world of ink-stained men, Lucy answers the phone by saying “Shoot!” instead of “Hello” and identifies herself as “Scoop” Carmichael. She calls Mr. Foley
“Chief” and tells him that Viv is her “leg man” with a “hot
item.” Lucy shouts “stop the presses” to report that Vivian Bagley has been invited to play bridge at Audrey
Simmons’. Mr. Foley points out that it is not a “scoop” because
there are no other papers in town.
Lucy
and Viv were featured on the front page of The Danfield Tribune in
“Lucy Becomes an Astronaut” (S1;E6).Mr.
Foley sends Lucy to Oak Street and Long Ridge Road. Lucy thinks it
is to cover a big story, but it is to pick up lunch from
the drug store. The drug store was first mentioned in the series
opener. This episode also
gives us a look at a suite at the Danfield Hotel.We
learn a lot about Viv in this episode. Her maiden name is Tuttle.
Argyle “Socks” Nelson was her first kiss.Lucy gets a phone call from Audrey Simmons complaining that Lucy has spelled her name with just one ‘m’ when writing about her dinner party. Audrey Simmons is usually played by Mary Jane Croft, although she does not appear in this episode.
Viv
went to Shortridge
High School, which was the real life Indianapolis high school of
writer Madelyn
Pugh Davis.
The yearbook that Lucy and Viv look at was a real 1938 yearbook Davis
brought in from home.
Viv mentions that her high school principal was Mr. Hadley, which
was also the name of Davis’s high school principal. Lucy says the
school was named after educator George P. Shortridge, but in fact
his name was really Abraham C. Shortridge. The school colors were
blue and white and they were known as the Blue Devils. Argyle and
Viv were cheerleaders together.
According
to Nelson, Viv was known in high school was as ‘Truckie’ because of her dance moves while doing “The Big Apple.” The
dance dates back to the African American ritual dances of the
mid-1800s. The name comes from its revival in the 1930s at The Big
Apple Club in Columbia, South Carolina. In 1937 it became a national
dance craze. ‘Truckin’ is a shuffle step variation popularized after the vaudeville
era.
The right hand is held up with the index finger extended and wagging.
Lucy
and Argyle demonstrate it during the episode. The name of the move
comes from the song “Truckin’ My Blues Away” by Blind Boy Fuller
and later led to the expression “Keep on Truckin’!”
Viv
says that Nelson has turned into an eccentric, or as Lucy
calls him ‘a weirdo,’ who won’t talk to the press. It sounds very
much like they’re describing reclusive billionaire Howard Hughes
(1905-76) who was also described in such terms and avoided the
press.Callbacks!
Lucy
Carmichael disguises herself as Vivian Bagley to get the story. Lucy
Ricardo and Ethel Mertz disguised themselves as male newspaper
reporters to crash Ricky’s daddy shower when “Ricky Has Labor
Pains” (ILL S2;E14).
Lucy
Carmichael consulting the newspaper want ads for a part-time job was also
something done by Lucy Ricardo in “The Amateur Hour” (ILL
S1;E14), “Job Switching” (ILL S2;E1), and “Lucy is Envious”
(ILL S3;E23, above).Blooper
Alerts!
Recycling! When
Lucy puts her first piece of paper in the typewriter, it already has
typing on it!
Calendar Clues! Judging
by the arrangement of dates and the fact that the ‘25′ is a
different color, the wall calendar must be for December 1963.
The episode was probably filmed in December 1962 using a new 1963
calendar flipped ahead to December.
“Lucy Becomes a Reporter” rates 4 Paper Hearts out of 5
-
Lucy and Viv are Volunteer Firemen
S1;E16
~ January 14, 1963
Although a colorized photo from this episode was featured on Gold Key’s “The Lucy Show” comics in September 1963, the story inside was not the same as the episode.
Synopsis
Lucy’s
letter-writing campaign to get Danfield a fire department leads to her
becoming the captain of an all-woman volunteer brigade. Lucy and Viv
practice, making sure they are ready for their first call to duty.
When the alarm finally rings, the women accidentally set the
firehouse ablaze.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Jimmy Garrett
(Jerry Carmichael), Ralph
Hart (Sherman Bagley), Candy Moore (Chris Carmichael)Dick
Martin (Harry Connors) does not
appear in this episodeGuest
Cast
Patrick
McVey (Captain
Metcalf) makes his only appearance on “The Lucy Show.” He was a
busy background player in Hollywood (mostly in westerns) doing nearly
30 films between 1941 and 1942 alone.McVey uses a slight Irish brogue for his character.
Carole
Cook
(Thelma Green) makes the first of her four appearances playing Thelma
Green, although she will also play Mrs. Valance in three episodes,
and a variety of other characters in eleven others. Lucille Ball
took Cook as a protégé during the Desilu Playhouse years. Although
she was born as Mildred Cook, Ball suggested she take the name
Carole, in honor of Lucy’s great friend, Carole Lombard. Cook also
went on to appear in five episodes of “Here’s Lucy.”We
hear that Thelma has a husband named Ernie.
Ruth
Crews
(Dorothy) makes the first of two appearances on the series. She will
next be seen in “Lucy Is a Soda Jerk” (S1;E23).Crews has a few lines at the end of the episode that were obscured by the
chaos and sound like they were over-dubbed. The actor is never
called by her character name, but is one of the few firefighters to speak distinct dialogue.Bess
Flowers (Volunteer
Firefighter, uncredited) was
dubbed ‘Queen of the Extras’ in Hollywood and is credited with
more than 700 film and TV appearances from 1923 to 1964. She was seen
in the audience of Over
the Teacups
in “Ethel’s
Birthday” (ILL S4;E8)
and
The
Most Happy Fella during
“Lucy’s
Night in Town” (ILL S6;E22).
This is the second of her five uncredited appearances on “The Lucy
Show.” Not surprisingly, Flowers was a founding member of SEG, the
Screen Extras Guild (now part of SAG) in 1945.
Hazel
Pierce
(Volunteer Firefighter, uncredited) was
Lucille Ball’s camera and lighting stand-in throughout “I Love
Lucy.” She also made frequent appearances on the show, although
only once did she speak, when she won the television auctioned off by
Ladies Overseas Aid in “Ricky’s
European Booking” (ILL S5;E10)
and
she shouted “I
won!”.
This is the third of her 21 uncredited on-camera appearances on “The
Lucy Show.” In the opening of season two, “Lucy Plays Cleopatra”
(S2;E1), she received screen credit as Mary Lou. She was also an
uncredited extra in the film Forever
Darling (1956).
Pierce died in 1984 at the age of 90.
This episode was filmed on November 29, 1962 but was aired out of filming order. The storyline about Lucy and Viv becoming volunteer firefighters on an all-female brigade continues into season two. The title came about before women in the fire department were known as firefighters.
A rare still of Lucy and Viv rehearsing this episode.
Commercials during the original broadcast advertised Jell-O desserts, Log Cabin maple syrup, and Swan dish soap.
There was also a promotional spot for “The Danny Thomas Show” which aired immediately after “The Lucy Show” on CBS and was produced by Desilu. Their guest cast included “Lucy” actors Frank Nelson, Sid Melton, and Milton Frome. It was directed by Coby Ruskin, who would later direct many episodes of “Here’s Lucy.”
“The Danny Thomas Show” was followed by “The Andy Griffith Show,” which that evening featured Richard Keith (Little Ricky) as Johnny Paul Jason. At 10pm was “The New Loretta Young Show” featured “Lucy” character actor Norman Leavitt, who also had appeared in that evening’s “Andy Griffith Show!”
As the episode opens, Lucy is typing a letter to Senator John R. Dodds to complain about the lack of a fire
department in Danfield. In real life, John Dodds was the name of Vivian Vance’s
second (and at the time, current) husband.
Dear
Senator Dodds;I
feel it is my duty to point out an alarming situation which exists
here in Danfield. Because of re-zoning in the county our fire
department has been transferred to Ridgebury many, many miles away.
As a result, in case of a fire, defenseless women and little children
will be left helpless to face a flaming inferno. Until this outrageous
condition is rectified, the least you can do for Danfield is to
create a volunteer fire department.Yours very truly,
Lucille Carmichael
PS:
I plan to vote for you in the next election. That is, if the polling
place hasn’t burned down.
At
the end of “Lucy Puts Up a TV Antenna” (S1;E9) two firemen come
to Lucy and Viv’s rescue when they are trapped on the roof. Thanks
to information in this episode, we know that they must have been from
the Ridgebury Fire Department.
Viv
mentions The Danfield Tribune. Lucy and Viv were seen on the front
page in “Lucy Becomes an Astronaut” (S1;E6). Lucy will later take a job at the paper in “Lucy Becomes a Reporter” (S1;E17).
Talking about the potential for a fire, Lucy
says she doesn’t want to be known as one of the “Last of the Red Hot
Mamas.” This was the sobriquet of Sophie Tucker (1887-1966), a
singer,
comedian, actress, and radio personality known for her stentorian
delivery of comical and risqué songs. In 1977, Lucille Ball played
Tucker (above photo) on a Bob Hope TV special.
When
Captain Metcalf says that someone’s been writing letters to the
newspapers, Viv points to Lucy and says “meet the press.” “Meet
the Press” is a Sunday morning news panel show that began on NBC TV
in 1947 and (as of this writing) is still on the air. It is said to
be the longest running TV show in history.
Metcalf claims Lucy has written to everyone except the President. Viv replies “Give her time.” I didn’t take very long. Lucy Carmichael will actually write to the President – and then meet him – in “Lucy Visits the White House” (S1;E25). At the time, the White House was occupied by John F. Kennedy.
Captain
Metcalf appoints Jerry and Sherman Junior Firemen. This is a
real-life program for youth run by most American and British fire
departments to encourage home safety in fire prevention.
Lucy shows Captain Metcalf her son’s precious bronzed baby shoe. Nearly two years later it turns up again in Lucy’s over-stuffed purse in “Lucy the Coin Collector” (S3;E13).
When Metcalf is training the women at the old firehouse, there is a Smoky Bear Forest Fire Prevention poster behind him. This particular design was first issued in 1953.
Captain
Metcalf claims that the reason the Danfield volunteer fire brigade will
consist of all females is because so many men commute to New York,
further reinforcing that fictional Danfield is a bedroom community of
Manhattan. The town’s name is purposely similar to real-life Danbury, Connecticut, and here the writers use the second part of the name with Ridgebury, which is a real-life suburb of Danbury. There is also a Ridgebury, New York, but it is located 65 miles from New York City above northern New Jersey.
Lucille
Ball usually wore wigs, but in this episode she wears her own hair to
accommodate the fire hat.
The
cause of the brigade’s first call is that Grandma Sutton’s cat is up a
tree, a familiar TV trope of the time. Grandma Sutton (although never seen on screen) will be mentioned again in “Kiddie Parties Inc.” (S2;E2) in which clown Lucy floats away on helium balloons and knocks over Grandma Sutton’s TV antenna!
Curiously,
Lucy and Viv’s good friend Audrey Simmons (Mary Jane Croft) is not a
member of the brigade here, but will be in future episodes. The character was
introduced in “Lucy is a Music Lover” (S1;E8).
In
connection with this episode, Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance were made
honorary fire chiefs of the Los Angeles Fire Department. They were
photographed wearing official white helmets with Henri O’Bryant, vice
president of the Fire Commission, Fred
Kline, commission president, and LA Fire Chief William L. Miller.
A scene from this episode was included in “Lucy and Viv Reminisce” (S5;E16), a clips show retrospective aired during the second half of the final season.
Callbacks!
Lucy
and Viv calmly and methodically rehearse changing into their fire fighting uniforms is reminiscent of when Ricky, Fred, and Ethel rehearsed what to do
when Lucy Ricardo was ready to give birth in “Lucy Goes to the Hospital”
(ILL S2;E16). Just like in that episode, when the “time comes”
pandemonium breaks loose, including comic bits like getting stuck in
doors, mishaps with the telephone, and clothing going everywhere. In
real life, Lucille Ball was a stickler for rehearsals.Blooper
Alerts!
Lucy
and Viv read magazines, but their mastheads have been masked.At
one point, Metcalf calls Lucy “Captain Mrs. Carmichael”.The
final time the alarm sounds during Lucy and Viv’s rehearsal it sounds
as if it is in their living room. The fire alarm effect is done
practically with an air horn.
After
rehearsing the change into their uniforms, Lucy announces that they
got it down to one minute and 28 seconds. In fact, just one minute and
two seconds of screen time pass between when Lucy hears the alarm and she checks the time.
“Lucy and Viv are Volunteer Firemen” rates 3 Paper Hearts out of 5
1963, Bronzed Baby Shoes, Candy Moore, Carole Cook, CBS, Fire Department, Jello, Jimmy Garrett, John Dodds, Junior Fireman, Lucille Ball, Lucy and Viv are Volunteer Firemen, Madelyn Martin, Meet The Press, Patrick McVey, Ralph Hart, Ruth Crews, Smokey Bear, Sophie Tucker, The Danfield Tribune, The Danny Thomas Show, The Lucy Show, tv, Vivian Vance -
RIP Robert Osborne, film historian and host on TCM. He set out to be an actor and was under contract to Desilu as part of Lucille Ball’s group of young actors. He did one episode of “Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse” (hosted by Desi) before Lucy took him aside and suggested that he might make a better writer than an actor. Osborne always credited Ball with his career success. He was 84.
-
Lucy’s Sister Pays a Visit
S1;E15 ~ January 7, 1963
Synopsis
Lucy’s
sister Marge shows up at her doorstep in the middle of the night
after having an argument with her new husband Hughie. Lucy is
convinced their marriage is rocky because they didn’t have a big
wedding. So Lucy and Viv throw her the wedding she never had, getting
drunk on spiked punch in the process.Regular
Cast
Lucille
Ball (Lucy Carmichael), Vivian Vance (Vivian Bagley), Jimmy Garrett
(Jerry Carmichael), Ralph
Hart (Sherman Bagley), Candy Moore (Chris Carmichael), Dick
Martin (Harry Connors)Dick
Martin appears but does not have any lines in this episode. This is
the second episode in a row that the actor hasn’t spoken after
playing the waiter in the silent movie sketch in “Chris’s New
Year’s Eve Party” (S1;E14). Martin was often away on the road with
his comedy partner Dan Rowan during filming, so not having to
memorize lines probably suited him fine.Guest
Cast
Janet
Waldo (Marge)
was pregnant when
she played Ricky’s teenage fan Peggy
Dawson in “The Young Fans” (ILL S1;20). She went on to fame as
the voice of daughter Judy on the animated series “The Jetsons”
but she also voiced dozens of other cartoon characters including
Penelope Pitstop and Granny Sweet. She died in 2016 at the age of
96.Lucy’s sister has not been mentioned before and is never again seen in any future episodes.
Peter
Marshall
(Hughie) was an actor before he became known as the host of “The
Hollywood Squares” for which he won four daytime Emmy Awards. He
was responsible for introducing Dick Martin to Dan Rowan. Marshall
twice appeared on “Rowan and Martin’s Laugh-In” in 1972. He
appeared with Lucille Ball in “Happy Anniversary and Goodbye” a
1974 TV movie directed by Jack Donohue, who directs this episode of
“The Lucy Show.”Fifteen
or so uncredited extras of various ages play the guests at the
wedding ceremony.This is the last episode that Desi Arnaz is credited as Executive Producer. He resigned from Desilu Productions in November 1962.
There
is a lot of confusion about Marge’s letter but it has nothing to do
with the fact that on January 7, 1963, the day this episode first
aired, the cost of a first class postage stamp increased from four to five
cents.
The letter is found in Jerry’s lunchbox, a 1961 King
Seeley Thermos
tin lunchbox
featuring images from the television western “Lawman,” which ran
on ABC from 1958-1962. A “Lawman” lunchbox is now part of the
collection of the National Museum of American History at the
Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC. “Vivian Sues Lucy” (S1;E10) featured Sherman’s lunchbox, a US Navy Submarine-themed metal
lunchbox.
Viv
sings and plays the traditional wedding song “Oh Promise Me,” an
1887 art song by
Reginald
de Koven
and
Clement
Scott.
It was interpolated into the 1912 Broadway operetta Robin Hood at
the New Amsterdam Theatre. It has been frequently heard on
television weddings, including four times on “Petticoat Junction”
and twice on “All in the Family.”
When the living room is transformed for the wedding ceremony, the piano seen in previous episodes has been replaced by an organ. This is the first time we see Vivian Vance wear her white plastic framed reading glasses. As Ethel Mertz, she wore glasses briefly in “Second Honeymoon” (ILL S5;14).
We
learn that Viv and her ex-husband Ralph had a big formal garden
wedding which did nothing to keep them together, despite Lucy’s
assertion that formal weddings are important to a marriage’s success.
Viv
says that Father
of the Bride
(1950) is showing on TV. Later, seeing the number of chairs set up
for the ceremony, Hughie
asks Lucy if she invited the cast of Ben
Hur
(1959) to the wedding. Possibly the pun is on the words “chairs”
and “chariots” but more likely the shear size of the film’s cast
of extras is what inspires the quip.
Lucy
mentions another sister Cleo and her husband Cecil. This is a
reference to Lucille Ball’s real-life cousin, Cleo
Morgan,
and her new husband, Cecil Smith. Lucy also mentions her brother
Fred and his wife Zo. This is a reference to Lucille’s real brother,
Fred
Ball and
his wife Zo. She also plans to invite Jack and Paula Carter, who she
tells Viv are not family but close friends. This comes from Lucille
Ball’s real life. Comedian Jack
Carter
and his wife Paula
Stewart
(Lucille Ball’s co-star in Broadway’s Wildcat, above)
introduced Lucy to fellow comic Gary Morton and was best man at their
wedding in 1961. Carter later appeared as Lucy’s lawyer in “Lucy
Sues Mooney” (S6;E12). Stewart was seen in a 1969 episode of
“Here’s Lucy.”
The
episode’s ending is rather anti-climatic, with Lucy announcing that
the bride and groom have eloped again. An orchestral sting attempts
to put a ‘button’ on the scene.Callbacks!
Janet
Waldo is the first guest star who also guest starred on “I Love
Lucy.” The episode “The Young Fans” (ILL S1;E20) is
responsible for one of the most memorable (and unintentionally
salacious) lines of the series: “Keep
jiggling, Peggy!”
Lucy
Ricardo famously (and hilariously) got drunk from consuming too much booze in “Lucy
Does a TV Commercial” (ILL S1;E30) selling Vitameatavegamin, which
(unbeknownst to her) was made with 23% alcohol. Unusually, this was one of the
few episodes that did not feature Vivian Vance as Ethel Mertz. It
was rare for Lucille Ball to use drunkenness as a source of comedy,
but the character(s) did not purposely set out to get drunk. Lucy
Ricardo also took a sedative (sea sickness pill) and comically reeled
from the side effects in “Staten Island Ferry” (ILL S5;E12). As
with Lucy Carmichael, with Hughie’s tranquilizer, she was wary about
taking the drug and did not fully realize how it would affect her.Marge’s
wedding ring accidentally getting lost in the punch bowl is similar to
when Lucy Ricardo’s wedding ring accidentally got lost while “Building a Bar-B-Que” (ILL S6;E24). The ring was first thought to have fallen in the wet
cement, but it turned out to have fallen into a bowl of hamburger meat.Blooper
Alerts!
Keep The Cold In! Hughie
does not close the refrigerator door properly and it remains slightly
ajar through the rest of the scene. When Hughie returns to the
kitchen a moment later, the door is firmly closed.
Time Check! Lucy
enters the kitchen to announce that it is only 2 o’clock, but the
electric clock over the stove reads 1:05.
“Lucy’s Sister Pays a Visit” rates 3 Paper Hearts out of 51963, Ben-Hur, CBS, Cleo Morgan, Dick Martin, Father of the Bride, Fred Ball, I love lucy, Jack Carter, Janet Waldo, Jimmy Garrett, Lucille Ball, Lucy Carmichael, Lucy’s Sister Pays a Visit, Oh Promise Me, Paula Stewart, Peter Marshall, Ralph Hart, The Lucy Show, The Young Fans, tv, Vivian Vance, Wedding Cake
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