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“Bonus Bucks” (S3;E21) 
8 Little Rickys! 
Future Stars 
June Foray as Fred the Dog 
Voice Artists 
“Queen of the Extras” 
Featured Family 
“Second Honeymoon” (S5;E14) and “Gentlemen Prefer Blondes” (1953) 
Cugat + Miguelito = Xavier Valdes! 
Widmark / Arnaz Residence 10 Things I Learned (That I Didn’t Know Before) from Blogging about “I
Love Lucy”- That
the word “lucky” was banned from scripts while Philip Morris was
a sponsor to avoid giving viewers a subliminal suggestion to buy
their competitor, Lucky Strike. This was most best typified when the
“Lucky Bucks” newspaper contest had to be re-named “Bonus Bucks”
(S3;E21)! - That
Little Ricky was played by 8 performers, including “the Beaver”!
James John Ganzer (newborn); Richard and Ronald Lee Simmons
(infant); Joseph and Michael Mayer (toddler); Keith Thibodeaux aka
Richard Keith (child); Jerry Mathers, and an un-credited actor
(dream Little Rickys)! - That
so many future TV and film stars appeared on the show: Barbara Eden
as Diana Jordan; Hayden Roarke as Tom O’Brien; Strother Martin as a
Florida cafe waiter; Aaron Spelling as Zeke, Nancy Kulp as a London
hotel maid; Madge Blake as Mrs. Mulford and Martha; Gloria Blondell
as Grace Foster; Bart Braverman as Giuseppe; Natalie Shaffer as
Phoebe Emerson; Georgia Holt (aka Cher’s mom) as a Paris fashion
model; and many others! - That
Fred the dog’s off-screen bark was supplied by June Foray (Natasha
Fatale in “Boris and Natasha”) and that Pepito the Clown and
Jerry Hausner provided Little Ricky’s off-screen cry! - That
recognizable voice artists such as Eleanor Audley (Maleficent in Sleeping Beauty), Verna Felton (Fairy Godmother in
Cinderella), and George O’Hanlon (George Jetson in “The
Jetsons”) were all featured cast members! - That
Hollywood’s “Queen of the Extras” Bess Flowers, who appeared in
more than 700 films and TV shows, was featured in many episodes,
although only credited in her last! - That
despite rumors, Lucie Arnaz was not featured in the final half hour
episode, but her brother Desi Jr. was! Eva Jean Mayer (mother of the
twins who played Little Ricky) had a cameo in season six, and Philip
Ober (Vivian Vance’s real-life husband) made several appearances on
the show! - That
much of “Second Honeymoon” (S5;E14) set aboard the S.S.
Constitution, was copied directly from the 1953 film Gentlemen
Prefer Blondes where Marilyn Monroe also has a young boy for a
dinner companion and also gets stuck in a porthole! - That
Xavier Valdez, Ricky’s ‘replacement’ at the Tropicana in “Ricky
Asks for a Raise” (S1;E35) was named as a tribute to Desi Arnaz’s
colleagues Xavier Cugat and Miguelito Valdes, a Cuban musician who
billed himself as “Mr. Babalu!” - That
Lucy and Desi used their brand new Beverly Hills home for the
exterior shots of Richard Widmark’s house in “The Tour”
(S4;E30)!
Aaron Spelling, Barbara Eden, Bart Braverman, Bess Flowers, Bonus Buck, Desi Arnaz, Eleanor Audley, Ethel Mertz, Fred Mertz, George O’Hanlon, Gloria Blondell, Hayden Rorke, I love lucy, Jerry Mathers, Keith Thibodeaux, Little Ricky, Lucille Ball, Lucky Strike, Lucy Ricardo, Made Blake, Marilyn Monroe, Nancy Kulp, Natalie Schafer, Philip Morris, Ricky Ricardo, Strother Martin, tv, Verna Felton, Vivian Vance, William Frawley - That
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“Lucy Does a TV Commercial”
(S1;E30 ~ May 5,1952) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed March 28, 1952 at General Service Studios. Rating: 61.1/88
Synopsis ~ Lucy gets hired to do a TV commercial on Ricky’s new show, not realizing the health tonic she has to consume is full of alcohol!
This is perhaps one of the most recognizable moments in TV history and a clear fan favorite. In 2009, TV Guide ranked it #4 on their list of “TV’s Top 100 Episodes of All Time,” down two spots from their poll in 1997. The initial episode was watched by 68% of the television viewing audience. This episode was so popular in its initial airing that they got many requests to repeat the episode, which they did later in the series. This was also the first episode in which Desi Arnaz received a producer’s credit.
This episode is consistently considered one of the top three favorite “I Love Lucy” episodes from the 179 episode catalog. The other two are “Job Switching” (aka the Candy Factory) and “Lucy’s Italian Movie” (aka Grape Stomping).
Although Lucy’s blue and white checked dress is now forever associated with this episode, it was first worn by Lucy in “The Freezer” when shopping for meat.
The 1945 film Ziegfeld Follies, includes a sketch called “Guzzler’s Gin,” in which a (future) television spokesman gets increasingly sloshed on his product. Lucille Ball also appeared in this film and this sketch was an obvious influence on her Vitameatavegamin routine. Could Lucille Ball have decided to “borrow” Skelton’s routine after he beat her out as both Best Comedian / Comedienne and Best Show at the 1952 Emmy Awards? The episode was filmed a month after the ceremony, so it is possible. If so, Lucy and Skelton were on good enough terms to appear together in “Lucy Goes to Alaska” in 1959.
In early scripts Vitameatavegamin was originally 11% alcohol, but was increased to 23% on the show to try to account for how quickly Lucy had to become intoxicated.
For all its popularity, Vivian Vance is not in this episode, one of just five episodes where Ethel is absent. Fred says that she went to see her mother. Since we never meet her mother in “Ethel’s Hometown” (S4;E15) and she is never mentioned in the Albuquerque-set episode, we can only speculate that in the Lucyverse, Ethel’s parents may be divorced and her mother living in another city, probably close to New York.
But Where’s Ethel?
Fred’s participation in Lucy’s scheme of ‘being on television’ feels very much like it was originally written for Ethel, her ‘partner in crime’ – not Fred. Without Vivian Vance, the scene was likely re-written for William Frawley. The four previous episodes in which Ethel is absent were based upon scripts previously created for “My Favorite Husband,” Lucy’s radio show. Vivian Vance was then married to Phil Ober, who was abusive. Could this have been a personal day based on marital problems? Of course, it could be a simple ‘sick day’ but had Vance known that this would become one of the series most memorable episodes, she probably would have been there!
RICKY: You’ve never even been on a television show!
LUCY: Maybe not, but I’ve watched them a lot.
To facilitate Lucy’s business with the television set, the furniture has been rearranged for this episode. The TV set is now against the upstage left wall instead of downstage left. The sofa is under the kitchen shutters and the desk has moved from down right to the right back corner.
LUCY: When Ricky comes home tonight you’re going to turn on that television set, and you know who’s going to be on it?
FRED: Well, I can only hope it’s Faye Emerson.Faye Emerson was a very glamorous stage and screen actress turned TV hostess who had her own variety show. She wore low-cut gowns bedecked with jewelry and had bleach blonde hair pulled back in a tight bun. It seems only natural that Fred would be a big fan of hers.
LUCY: Philip Morris, America’s most enjoyable cigarette, presents the ‘Lucy Ricardo Show.’ Da-da ta-da-da-da!
In later reruns, when Lucy is in the hollowed-out TV set, direct references to sponsor Philip Morris were edited out. However, Lucy is still seen holding their product and dressed as their ‘living mascot’ Johnny the Bellboy (aka Johnny Roventini). The scenes were restored for DVD.
When Lucy accidentally drops the pack of Philip Morris cigarettes and reaches outside the set to pick it up, Ricky remarks “Well, what do you know! Third dimensional television!” In “Lucy Tells The Truth” she tells a casting director she has appeared in 3D, until she is forced to admit that this is the number on their apartment.
When this episode was filmed, 3D movies were very popular. Although there had been experiments with 3D TV as early as 1928, it never caught on, and, despite a brief recent resurgence, has mostly been abandoned.
When Ricky asks what happened to the insides of the TV, Lucy admits she didn’t know that the chassis came out all in one piece so she took it apart “one piece at a time”! A close-up of the TV parts shows that the screen was not glass but something made up by the props department. It is likely that the glass screen would have reflected the lights.
When Lucy refuses to get up and make Ricky’s breakfast, he mutters his dissatisfaction in Spanish. A direct (but awkward) translation is:
“Oh, what a barbarity. I don’t know what’s happened to this woman. Each time, each week, the head gets worse and worse. I’m going to leave. She is completely wrong about everything. I do not know what’s happened to her.”
A plan is hatched when Lucy overhears Ricky giving Fred instructions for the girl cast to do the commercial!
Settling in to wait for the phone to ring, Fred picks up a copy of Radio and Television Mirror from April 1949 with Arthur Godfrey on the cover. This issue was already three years old at the time of filming. Coincidentally, the issue also had an article about Red Skelton, Lucille Ball’s possible inspiration for her Vitameatavegamin routine. Godfrey was one of Ball’s favorite performers. After he fell out of favor with the public, she invited him to appear on a 1965 episode of “The Lucy Show.”
For More About the Magazines Seen on “I Love Lucy” Click Here!
Lucy introduces herself to the director as Lucille McGillicuddy. Ross Elliott uses his own name and Jerry Hausner plays Joe, his stage manager. Elliott would appear on two future episodes as Ricky’s Publicity Agent. He would play a director once again on a 1965 episode of ”The Lucy Show.“ Of Hausner’s ten appearances on the series, this is the only time he doesn’t play Jerry the Agent, a role he created in the pilot but which was minimized in the series itself. Oddly, in the first scene Ricky has a phone conversation with Jerry!
Maury Thompson, the actual “I Love Lucy” script supervisor, plays himself, although we only see him from the back. Lucy planted him directly in front of her so that he could mouth the words if she should forget the lines. Naturally, she didn’t. A muffled voice from the control room belonged to Jess Oppenheimer, the series’ writer / producer, likely speaking from the actual Desilu Playhouse booth.
Just in case you aren’t a superfan, here’s the full script of the commercial:
“Hello, friends. I’m your Vitameatavegamin girl. Are you tired, run down, listless? Do you poop out at parties? Are you unpopular? The answer to all your problems is in this little bottle: Vitameatavegamin. Vitameatavegamin contains vitamins, meat, vegetables and minerals. Yes, with Vitameatavegamin you can spoon your way to health. All you do is take a tablespoonful after every meal. (She does) It’s so tasty, too. It’s just like candy. So why don’t you join the thousands of happy, peppy people and get a great big bottle of Vitameatavegamin tomorrow? That’s Vita-meata-vegamin!”
Desi Arnaz clearly has trouble keeping a straight face when listening to Lucy. Probably he remembered her antics from rehearsals and anticipated what was to come. You can also hear his very distinct laugh as he watched off-camera. Ross Elliott later said that he had to bite the inside of his cheeks to keep from laughing while watching Lucy.
The cast and crew looked high and low to find the perfect substance to put in the bottle as Vitameatavegamin. They wanted it to be something Lucy could drink a lot of and visually had a thick, viscous quality. They finally settled on apple pectin, something found in a health food store. Lucy later said it was sickening to drink so much of it.
It took Lucille Ball just one take to do the memorable scene.
The name of the show Ricky is hosting is “Your Saturday Night Variety”.
In Spanish, Ricky sings “El Relicario” (“The Reliquary”) a pasodoble composed by José Padilla in 1914, with lyrics by Armando Oliveros and José María Castellví. The song deals with a bullfighter, which is indicated in some of Desi Arnaz’s gestures while singing. In 1952, the year this episode first aired, Eisenhower proclaimed his candidacy for President while a band played this song and it became the musical theme of his campaign.
Oops! During Ricky’s song, Lucille Ball can be seen waiting in the wings for her entrance and in the darkness behind her you can see the Ricardo apartment fireplace and mantel. Also, the TV camera’s markings have been painted over and “TVC” (TV Camera) stenciled on. “I Love Lucy” was on film, and used different cameras. This was probably a real camera borrowed from another TV studio.
Before singing, Ricky looks past the camera and says “Mr. Hatch, if you please.” Wilbur Hatch was the conductor of the Desi Arnaz Orchestra.
The original script had a tag scene where Lucy has a bad hangover and Ethel innocently returns from the store with a bottle of Vitameatavegamin to help Lucy ‘spoon her way back to health’! This scene was either cut for time or the indisposition of Vivian Vance.
FAST FORWARD!
In a 1973 episode of “Here’s Lucy,” Lucy Carter became a TV spokesperson for Polly Parker’s Perky Pickles. Her alliterative pickle pitch was reminiscent of Vitameatavegamin.
Lucy Carter: “Thank goodness I remembered to bring Polly Parker’s Perky Pickles. Mmmm, they’re delicious! Yes, Polly Parker’s Perky Pickles make any picnic perfect. Polly’s Pickles will tickle your pallet. So next time you’re planning a picnic, pick up a pint of Polly Parker’s Perky Pickles.”
During Lucille Ball’s introduction during a 1986 taping of the game show “Body Language,” someone in the audience holds up a sign saying “Lucy Doesn’t Need Vitameatavegamin!”
For Christmas 2015, CBS presented a colorized version of this episode, teamed with their annual showing of the colorized “Christmas Show.”
In 2011, more than 900 Lucille Ball lookalikes gathered under a Vitameatavegamin sign to honor Ball’s 100th birthday.
Randy Rainbow’s November 2019 Trump impeachment video starts with him referring to witness Vindman as “Lieutenant Colonel Vitameatavegamin” (although the phonetic closed captions spell it wrong)! To watch the video, click here.
On April 9, 2020, “Will & Grace” dedicated an entire episode to “I Love Lucy”, including Debra Messing performing the Vitameatavegamin routine!
SELLING VITAMEATAVEGAMIN
There have been hundreds of collectible items based on this episode. Here are just a few of the most popular – and most unique.
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“Cuban Pals”
(S1;E28 ~April 21,1952) Directed by William Asher. Written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed March 14, 1952 at General Service Studio. Rating: 64.5/86
Synopsis ~ When Ricky’s friends from Cuba visit, Lucy gets jealous of a beautiful dancer named Renita. Her scheme to take Renita’s place in Ricky’s act naturally (but hilariously) backfires!
Coincidentally, this episode first aired the same day that Time Magazine published a cover story on Fulgencio Batista (1901-73), the US-backed authoritarian ruler of Cuba from 1952 to 1959. He was at first a ‘Cuban pal’ to America, but not to his people. He was branded a dictator and overthrown during the Cuban revolution.
April 21, 1952 was also Queen Elizabeth II’s first birthday on the throne of England. Her televised coronation in June 1953 failed to match the ratings for the birth of Little Ricky on “I Love Lucy” six months earlier. In 1956, the series will do an episode titled “Lucy Meets the Queen” (S5;E15), although HRH stays safely off camera. In 1966′s “Lucy in London” Lucille Ball is briefly depicted as QE2, sitting in a royal box for a performance by Anthony Newley.
A variation on this plot will be repeated almost two years later in “Ricky’s Old Girlfriend” (S3;E12), where Lucy is jealous of Cuban singer / dancer Carlotta Romero (Lillian Molieri).
The first Cuban pals to arrive are the Ortegas, Carlos and Maria, whom Ricky credits with giving him his start in show business. He is returning the favor by launching their American tour at the Tropicana. Alberto Morin (Carlos) was born in Puerto Rico, and appeared in some of Hollywood’s most cherished films: Gone with the Wind (1939), Casablanca (1943), and Key Largo (1948). Rita Conde (Maria) was the show’s only genuine Cuban pal, having been born there in 1914. Morin and Conde both died in Burbank within a month of each other in 1989.
Before meeting Renita, Lucy encourages Ricky to dance with her to help “the Good Neighbor policy.” The Good Neighbor Policy was a foreign policy of the Franklin Roosevelt administration regarding cooperation with Latin American nations such as Cuba. Senator Henry Clay had coined the term in the 1800s.
the policy’s cultural impact included the launch of CBS Radio’s Viva América and Hello Americans programs. The policy is mentioned in the lyrics of “The Saga of Jenny” from the 1941 Broadway musical Lady in the Dark.
Oops! The show contains one of the few genuine flubs by Desi Arnaz. When translating between Lucy and his Spanish-speaking friends, he accidentally translates Lucy’s English into English again! Desi’s laughter at his error seemed so genuine that it was left in the show.
The third Cuban pal is the voluptuous Renita Perez, played by Lita Baron.
Despite being born Isabelita Castro and appearing in the films Club Havana (1945) and Don Ricardo Returns (1946), Baron was actually born in Spain, not Cuba.
From 1948 to 1970 Baron was married to actor Rory Calhoun. The two appeared together in the audience of “The Desilu Revue” (above) in 1959. Calhoun starred in the Desilu Western “The Texan” (1958-59).
Lucy and Ethel disguise themselves as homely scrub women to spy on Renita and Ricky as they rehearse “The Lady in Red.” Could a young Carol Burnett have been watching?
The song was originally featured in the 1935 film In Caliente starring Dolores del Río. It later became a staple of Warner Brothers cartoons where it was used as underscoring any time a female character would appear in a red outfit.
To assure that Ricky does not dance with Renita, Lucy employs Fred as a cab driver to take her down to the club – the long way. In his best street-smart accent Fred says, “I know a short-cut through Phil-a-delpia!”
Oops! When Lucy opens the door for Fred the cabbie, the shadow of the boom and mic appear on the kitchen door.
In the final scene Ricky sings “Similau,” a song Desi Arnaz first recorded in 1951, although it was first sung by Peggy Lee in 1949. Ricky sets the scene for the moody song by donning an African mask, just as he did in “Lucy Goes to the Hospital (S2;E16).
Instead of the lady in red, viewers would have to contend with the lady in dark gray – as the show was filmed in black and white. Is colorization in its future? Earlier in the episode, Lucy falsely claimed that her hair was naturally red, and that both her mother and father had red hair. Ricky hesitates to translate the fib to his Cuban pals, telling them something in Spanish that ends with “con una henna rinse.”
LUCY: “I have a feeling my hair suffered in the translation.”
Thankfully, a few color photographs were taken of the episode, confirming that Lucy really was ‘the lady in red’.
Making her entrance too early, Lucy is startled to come face to face with an dancer dressed as a frightening native. Lucy has mistakenly entered during the African Wedding Dance that Renita (who is on her way to the Tropicana via Pennsylvania) does with her partner Ramon.
The muscular native dancer / Ramon is not credited.
Lucy wildly attempts to blend in during the performance – all to no avail.
In the original script, the episode ended with Ethel receiving telegram from Fred saying that he took Renita to Atlantic City, and that they’re living it up! The scene was cut for time.
FAST FORWARD!
A scene from this episode (above left) was inserted into the 1992 film The Mambo Kings using special effects to turn the pals of the show into characters from the film played by Armand Assante and Antonio Bandares.
Desi Arnaz Sr. was played by his real-life son Desi Jr.
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“The Mustache”
(S1;E23 ~ March 17,1952) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by
Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed on February 8, 1952 at General Service Studios. Rating: 58.6/81
Synopsis ~ Ricky decides to grow a mustache to impress a talent agent so Lucy retaliates by gluing on a full beard. After Ricky gives in and shaves, Lucy’s beard won’t come off!
In reality, it was not uncommon for Latin men to have mustaches. Desi Arnaz, however, was clean-shaven for his entire career.
Ethel references her grandparents and says that her grandfather had a handlebar mustache.
Naturally, the episode is full of ‘beard’ references, comparing Lucy to:
- Santa Claus
- the Smith Brothers (of cough drop fame)
- actor Monty Woolley (of “The Man Who Came To Dinner”)
- a bearded lady in the circus
- Uncle Sam (US Armed Forces recruitment poster image)
- a Billy and a Nanny goat! (not pictured)
Lucy refers to Ricky’s mustache as a ‘cookie-duster’ and asks if he’s using Vigoro, a popular lawn care product designed to grow grass!
LUCY: “Of course, we can always get mustache cups marked his and hers.”
Mustache cups were popular during the Victorian era when most men had mustaches and beards. The cups had a built-in protective span to keep mustaches dry while drinking tea or coffee.
To affix her beard, Fred mistakenly gives Lucy Bulldog Cement #3, thinking he is giving her spirit gum. Spirit gum is made mostly of SD Alcohol 35-A (the solvent, or “spirit”) and resin (the adhesive, or “gum”), used primarily for affixing costume prosthetics such as wigs or false facial hair. It has been manufactured since at least the 1870s, and has long been a standard tool where prosthetic makeup is used. Unfortunately for viewers, only those in show business know what Fred is referring to!
The name of the movie Ricky hopes to audition for is called Moon Over Baghdad, an Arabian nights-style Technicolor extravaganza. This is the first time we get a hint of Ricky’s movie aspirations, which will eventually take the foursome to Hollywood in season 4. Through tenuous connections (“My agent has a friend whose brother-in-law knows the talent scout’s wife.”), Ricky invites the man home and instantly pulls out his scrap book bragging about his first stage appearance in Too Many Girls. In real life, Desi Arnaz made his Broadway debut in this musical. He also did the film version, which is where he met Lucille Ball.
Ricky also brags that he also appeared at the Copacabana. The Copacabana was one of New York’s top nightclubs.
The Copa had Brazilian décor and Latin-themed orchestras, although the menu featured Chinese food. The club was also known for its chorus line of Copacabana Girls, who had pink hair and elaborate sequined costumes, mink panties and brassieres, and fruited turbans!
The night spot was mentioned in the very first episode of “I Love Lucy”. In real-life, Desi Arnaz did play the Copa, and he and Lucy were often photographed there.
Ricky then serenades Mr. Murdoch with “I’ll See You in C-U-B-A” using the phonograph in place of an orchestra. The song by Irving Berlin was introduced in The Greenwich Village Follies in 1919. It will be sung again in “Ricky’s Contract” (S4;E10, above photo) two years later.
After that, Murdoch is inundated with auditions from Fred and Ethel (as a snake charmer and harem girl), as well as a bearded Lucy doing the dance of the seven veils – one of which strategically draped over her whiskers! The neighbors introduce themselves as:
ETHEL: “Ethel Mertz, former star of musical comedy. Can sing, dance, act and do voices; have wardrobe, will travel.”
FRED: “Freddy Mertz, formerly of Mertz and Kurtz – Famous vaudevillians: Soft shoe, tap dancing, and smart quips.”
We will meet Fred’s former partner in “Mertz and Kurtz” (S4;E5). Fred also reminds us that the last vaudeville gig he played was a split week in Peoria in 1925. “Will it play Peoria?” was a common phrase that originated during the vaudeville era and was popularized in movies by Groucho Marx. The belief was that if a new show was successful in Peoria, Illinois, a common Midwestern stop for vaudeville acts, it would be successful anywhere. The phrase was later appropriated by politicians and others as a euphemism for appealing to mainstream America.
After being subjected to a variety of acts in the Ricardo living room, Mr. Murdoch exclaims “What is this? A stranded Major Bowes unit?” This is a reference to Edward Bowes, a former military man (hence the title) who became a popular amateur hour host on TV and CBS radio. He sent scouting units out across the country to find talent for his programs.
Mr. Murdoch, the much put-upon talent agent, is played by John Brown, who was the second of four actors to play the role of Harry Morton (husband of Blanche, played by Bea Benaderet) on “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” in 1951. He first came to fame as friendly undertaker ‘Digger’ O’Dell on the radio show “The Life Of Riley” starring William Bendix. He repeated the role on television when Jackie Gleason played Riley, but when Bendix returned to the show in season 2, Brown’s character was written off because he had been blacklisted as a communist sympathizer (not unlike Lucy herself nearly was). He died suddenly in 1957 at the age of 53.
Ricky uses an electric shaver to remove the mustache. The logo on the shaver can be seen in the screen capture above and it looks like a Schick 20 Electric Razor, which was heavily advertised the year this episode was filmed.
In the episode’s final scene, Lucy has finally managed to remove her whiskers and Ricky lands a screen test for Moon Over Baghdad, although we never hear anything about it again, even when he tests for Don Juan in season 4. There’s also an offer for Lucy.
LUCY: “I don’t care what they pay me. I am not going to play the part of your father!”
Visiting Lucy backstage the night this show was filmed were actors J. Carroll Naish and Bob Cummings. Both were preparing new situation comedies for fall. Naish would star in “Life with Luigi” on CBS (in the time slot immediately following “I Love Lucy”), and Cummings in “My Hero” on NBC. Lucy (still in her harem costume) had just slathered her face with cold cream to counteract the effects of the glue for the beard.
FACE FURNITURE FAST FORWARD
A pregnant Lucy Ricardo chooses a barbershop quartet as her ‘swan song.’ In this song, everyone dons fake mustaches!
Lucy and Ethel both glue on fake mustaches to go to a stag party – aka ‘Daddy Shower’ – although their disguises don’t fool Ricky and Fred!
Lucy glues on a mustache to play a cowboy in her “Home Movies” (S3;E20) in 1954.
At the start of season 6, to disguise herself as a hot dog seller at Yankee Stadium, Lucy draws on a pencil mustache hoping Hope will not recognize her.
The comparison of Lucy to Santa Claus came true with “The I Love Lucy Christmas Special” (1956) as well as the Christmas tag that was added as early as 1951.
Lucy needs to blend in with other jockeys in “Lucy Wins A Racehorse” (1958).
Facial hair will again be major part of the storyline (and the title) of 1960’s “Lucy Meets the Mustache,” the final episode of “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour.” In this case, the mustaches belonged to TV comic Ernie Kovacs AND Lucy – who disguises herself as his chauffeur.
Trying to get the attention of the Westinghouse dealer (Ross Elliot) during his tour of Desilu Studios, Lucille Ball disguises herself as a set painter!
During a quick change sketch on “The Danny Kaye Show”, Lucy gets confused backstage…
…and can’t keep her mustaches (or characters) right!
In 1963′s “Lucy and the Little League” (TLS S1;E28) both Lucy and Viv don facial hair to go undercover at their sons’ ball game!
When Lucy Carmichael poses as Iron Man the stunt performer, she adopts facial hair.
Iron Man Carmichael returns – this time playing a pirate!
To blend in with a bagpipe band, Lucy taps her Scottish roots!
Vindictive Viv paints a mustache on the Mona Lucy when the two vie for the same art-loving gentleman.
To keep a watchful eye on a temp secretary who may want her job, Lucy Carmichael goes undercover as Jose, the rug cleaner!
Lucy Carmichael and Mr. Mooney get parts in Bob Crane’s new film – playing German soldiers!
Early on “The Lucy Show” Lucy Carmichael put on one of the most famous mustaches in movie history! It was so successful, she revived her Chaplin impression several more times.
Lucy Carter applies an impromptu Groucho-style mustache made of grease when she goes as an undercover construction worker.
To get access to comedian Flip Wilson, Lucy Carter dresses up as one of the three musketeers!
In 2001, a Polish remake loosely based on “I Love Lucy” titled “Kocham Klara” (”I Love Clara”), presented “Mustache” loosely based on this episode and co-written with the cooperation of the original “I Love Lucy” writers.
Synopsis: Kuba grows a mustache because he is counting on the main role in the movie “Jump the Fence”, an American blockbuster about the life of Lech Wałęsa. Klara thinks that Kuba looks idiotic with a mustache and demands that he shave it off immediately, and for the film he puts on an artificial one. Jan, who along with Hanna has been drawn into a family quarrel, brings the fake mustache he used to play at school academies. Klara puts on a fake mustache and blackmails Kuba that he won’t peel them off until Kuba shaves his own. Kuba gives in and shaves his mustache. Unfortunately, the mustache on Klara won’t come off.
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“The Adagio”
(S1;E12 ~ December 31,1951) The episode was directed by Marc Daniels. It was written by Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. It was the 12th episode filmed on November 23, 1951 at General Service Studios. Rating: 46.2/7
This episode is based on Lucille Ball’s radio show, “My Favorite Husband” (#66), “The French Lessons." The radio show also inspired “The French Revue” (S3;E7) above.
Interestingly, the episode is titled “The Adagio,” which in dance terms can mean a male / female duet that features lifts and spins. It was probably felt that if they called the episode “The Apache” it would be confused with the Native American tribe to viewers using TV listings. Indeed, in the episode, Lucy makes the same assumption.
Synopsis ~ There’s an opening for an Apache dancer at the Tropicana, so naturally Lucy wants the job. To teach her the routine, Ethel enlists the help of Frenchman Jean-Valjean Ramond, who has more than just dancing on his mind!
The Apache is a highly dramatic and sometimes violent dance style associated with Parisian street culture from around 1900. The dance is sometimes said to reenact an encounter between a pimp and a prostitute. It is typified by mock slaps and punches, the man picking up and throwing the woman to the ground, or lifting and carrying her while she struggles. In Lucille Ball’s autobiography, Love, Lucy, she mentions that she once dislocated her shoulder doing an Apache dance at the age of twelve.
The episode opens at dinner (in the living room) with everyone watching Ethel eat. This reinforced the continuing character trait that Ethel Mertz had a healthy appetite. Lucy and Ethel have some banter leaving the room to “put on a new face.”
ETHEL: Say, did you see that little polka-dot dress at Ohrbach’s? The one with the white, ruffled collar?
Ohrbachs, a moderately-priced department store chain, supplied clothing for the series – everything except Lucille’s dresses, which were designed by Elois Jenssen. Although their name was infrequently used on “I Love Lucy” (Macy’s got more mentions) Lucy Ricardo shopped there when the characters appeared on “Make Room for Daddy” (above, another Desilu series) in 1959.
Lucille Ball and hairstylist Irma Kusely were still experimenting with Lucy Ricardo’s hairstyle. In this episode it is fuller than her iconic look.
Ricky has a phone conversation with Jerry, his agent, during which Lucy persistently pitches herself for the job as Apache dancer. Although the character does not appear on camera, Jerry Hausner (inset) had played Ricky’s agent since the pilot. The scene ends with them having an argument.
Ironically, Hausner left the series after an argument with Desi about a phone – one that did not have a voice feed, as the actor expected.
At first, vaudeville jack-of-all-trades Fred volunteers to teach Lucy how to dance the Apache, so she can get into the act. In “The French Revue” (S3;E7), Fred and Ethel perform an Apache dance in the hopes of starring at Ricky’s club.
When a frustrated Fred gives up, Lucy says “I wonder what Fred Astaire is doing these days.” In reality, Fred Astaire was was quite busy, having just starred in Royal Wedding. The Belle of New York, an MGM Technicolor musical in which he co-starred with Vera-Ellen, would be released just six weeks later. Lucille Ball and Astaire starred in four films together, the last being Ziegfeld Follies (1945).
Ethel suggests the recently-arrived cousin of someone at the French laundry to teach Lucy: Jean Valjean Raymond.
JEAN: Oh, madame, but you have such a beautiful hand!
LUCY: Oh, really? Well I have another one just like it!
Shepard Menken plays Jean-Valjean Raymond, a name doubtless chosen for its internal rhyme and reference to the central character in Les Miserables. This was Menken’s first of four appearances on the series. He would go on to play the art store owner in “Lucy Becomes a Sculptress” (S2;E15), the eye doctor in “Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined” (S3;E11), and the counterfeiting artist in “Paris at Last” (S5;E18).
Announcer Johnny Jacobs calls him “Shep Menken” during the closing credits. Listeners sometimes mistakenly hear this as “Jeff Menken.”
When Ricky lights two cigarettes at once he quips, “Look at me! I’m making like Paul Henreid.” This is a reference to one of the most-imitated scenes in motion pictures – from Now, Voyager (1942) starring Henreid and Bette Davis.
Ricky says “All this shaving is liable to wear my chin away,” to which Lucy replies “Okay, Andy Gump.” Although barely remembered today, Andy Gump was a comic strip character from "The Gumps” which appeared in newspapers from 1917 to 1959. The character had a bushy mustache but no lower jaw. Cartoonist Sidney Smith based him on real-life Andy Wheat who had his jaw removed after a tooth infection.
Thinking out loud, Ricky presciently ponders moving to the country. He first suggests Long Island or Westchester, but then also considers New Jersey. The characters and the writers couldn’t have known then that they would eventually relocate to suburban Connecticut in season 6.
When Ricky comes face to face with Raymond, the Frenchman challenges him to a duel with “pee-stolls” (pistols):
JEAN: “Tomorrow at dawn behind Radio City Music Hall.”
Radio City Music Hall, New York’s premiere showplace since 1932, is where Lucy and Desi’s film The Long, Long Trailer premiered in 1954. They fully expected their next film, Forever Darling, to open there as well,
but it was rejected by Music Hall programmers. It opened instead at the Loew’s State Theatre, where newlyweds Lucy and Desi had performed in 1941.
Despite this, Radio City was credited on “The Homecoming” (S5;E6) as the place of the premiere.
At a loss for an insult, an angry Ethel calls Jean Valjean Raymond a French dessert!
The iconic treat is made with a crêpe with beurre Suzette (a sauce of caramelized sugar and butter), tangerine or orange juice, zest, Grand Marnier, and triple sec or orange Curacao liqueur. It is often prepared tableside flambé.
Ethel later makes Crêpe Suzette for Lucy to serve to reporter Eleanor Harris in “Fan Magazine Interview” (S3;E17).
This episode was aired on New Years Eve 1951 and for the first time a preview of the next week’s episode (”The Benefit”, above) was shown. This was done only until the end of season 1 but it is a audience-building tactic that is still commonly used today.
1951, Andy Gump, Apache Dance, Betty Davis, crepe suzette, Desi Arnaz, Ethel Mertz, Fred Astaire, Fred Mertz, I love lucy, Lucille Ball, Lucy, Lucy Ricardo, Make Room for Daddy, Now Voyager, ohrbach’s, paul henreid, Radio City Music Hall, Ricky Ricardo, Rockettes, Royal Wedding, Shepard Menken, The Adagio, The Benefit, tv, Vivian Vance, William Frawley -
“The Audition”
(S1;E6 ~ November 19, 1951) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by
Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr.
Filmed October 12, 1951 at General Service Studios. Rating: 41.9/62
Synopsis ~ Ricky has an audition for a new TV program, and he knows all too well that Lucy will want to get into the act. When Buffo the clown is hurt at rehearsals – Lucy decides to replace him.
This episode was filmed just three days before the series premiered on television on October 15, 1951. Lucy and Desi still had no idea if they had a hit on their hands or not.
Also on filming day, stage and screen actor Leon Errol died at age 70. He and (a blonde) Lucille Ball had appeared in the comedy shorts Perfectly Mismatched (1934) and One Live Ghost (1936, above).
Also on that date, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz appeared on the cover of the pre-National TV Guide. They were joined by such celebrities as Abbott & Costello, Bob Hope, and Danny Thomas, all comedy legends that Lucille Ball had worked with. After the birth of Little Ricky / Desi Arnaz Jr., Lucy and Desi Jr. will be featured on the very first National edition of TV Guide.
Almost the entire episode (dialogue and all) was taken from the (then) un-aired pilot. The major change is that Jerry the Agent’s lines have been given to Fred Mertz.
The characters now bear little resemblance to the pilot’s Lucy and Larry Lopez or Liz and George Cooper from Lucy’s radio show
“My Favorite Husband”. A minor subplot of the episode (sending Lucy on an errand to deliver their wills to a downtown lawyer) was borrowed from the radio episode titled “The Wills” broadcast in March 1950.
This is the first episode to mention that Lucy dyes her hair, something Lucille Ball first did to set herself apart from all the other girls vying for roles at the studio.
Lucy’s “Professor” act was taken directly from Lucy and Desi’s 1950 live stage tour designed to convince CBS and a sponsor that America would believe Lucy as wife to a Cuban bandleader.
When Lucy did the Professor routine in the pilot, the baggy costume worked perfectly to hide the fact that she was six months pregnant.
Pepito the Clown originally taught Lucy and Desi the “Professor” routine but was not available for the filming, so the character was re-named Buffo and played by Pat Moran.
An actor with some circus skills, Moran played a clown again in the 1953 Bob Hope film Here Comes the Girls and the 1958 Cary Grant movie Houseboat.
Pepito later appeared in “Lucy’s Show-Biz Swan Song” (S2;E19) and supplied the off-stage cry of infant Little Ricky during season 2.
The ‘loaded’ cello (with plunger stand and bow launcher) was created by Pepito Perez. When it was finally re-discovered in 2005, it was discovered that inside the cello Pepito had safely stored a telegram from Lucy and Desi, thanking him for his help “We love you very much and appreciate you even more. Lucy & Desi.” The cello (and its contents) is now in the collection of the Lucy-Desi Museum in Jamestown, New York.
This is one of the few times we see the Ricardo bathroom. The pilot also had a scene set in the bathroom, so this episode followed suit. Their bathroom will be seen again in “Breaking the Lease” (S1;E18). The only thing missing from the bathroom? The toilet, naturally!
Since there were no neighbors in the pilot, Vivian Vance does not appear at all – one of only five episodes in the series. Fred, however, does at least mention Ethel.
Oops! When Lucy has the brilliant ‘light bulb’ idea to take the frilly lampshade off the bedroom lamp for her Ziegfeldian hat – there is no bulb in the lamp!
As a showgirl, Lucy accents her lampshade with the same fur stole she wore at the end of “The Girls Want To Go To A Nightclub” (S1;E1).
Lucy ironically says “I’ll bet if Ziegfeld or Earl Carroll had seen me, they’d sign me up like that!” She then puts a lampshade on her head and struts about the room humming “A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody,” the signature song of the Ziegfeld Follies. The song was written by Irving Berlin in 1919 and became the theme song of Broadway’s Ziegfeld Follies. However, the song was not included in the 1946 MGM film Ziegfeld Follies, which starred Lucille Ball. Instead, it ended up in Paramount’s Blue Skies starring Fred Astaire, also in 1946.
While Buffo rehearses his bicycle handstand, the Ricky Ricardo orchestra plays “Entry of the Gladiators” (aka “Thunder and Blazes”) written around 1899 by Julius
Fučík, a popular Czech composer. In circuses, it is often used to introduce clowns and today is known mainly by this association.
When she was a struggling chorus girl in New York City (using the name Diane Belmont), Lucille Ball was reportedly cast in shows by Earl Carroll and Florenz Ziegfeld, Jr. – but she never performed in them. When she got to Hollywood, she appeared in the film Murder at the Vanities, which was based on the Broadway revue Earl Carroll’s Vanities.
The tune Lucy / The Professor honks out on the saxavibratronophonovitch is “How Dry I Am” (aka “The Near Future”) which was written by Irving Berlin in 1919. The tune has its roots in prohibition (a time when alcohol was illegal in the USA) and the word “dry” refers to “sober”.
This is the first episode in which Desi Arnaz sings “Babalu”. Ironically, it is Lucy who actually sings it first, when she bangs out an off-key wake-up call (complete with conga drum) to get Ricky out of bed. The song will become Ricky’s signature song throughout the series.
“Babalu” is a legendary Cuban folk song that is about the Afro-Cuban deity Babalú Ayé, the god of illness and disease. In 1939, Miguelito Valdés made the song famous worldwide. Desi Arnaz and Valdés became friends in the 1940s after they left Cuba and both worked with Xavier Cugat. Desi never denied he was inspired by the original Señor Babalu, Miguelito Valdés. Desi paid tribute to both Cugat and Valdés by naming his successor “Xavier Valdez” (above poster) in “Ricky asks for a Raise” (S1;E35).
The grim-faced sponsors at the club are real-life CBS executives Jess Oppenheimer, Harry Ackerman, and Hal Hudson, adding to the episode’s self-referential tone.
RICKY: “They don’t look too happy.”
FRED: ”Are you kidding? For them, that’s hilarious.”In reality, once CBS was on board, the pilot was used primarily to convince a company to sponsor the show. Phillip Morris was the first to step up. Essentially, the pilot was an “audition” to woo sponsors.
In fact, part of the scene in the bathroom was deleted in syndication because Lucy holds up a pack of cigarettes when telling Ricky how a pretty girl can help sell a sponsor’s product. The DVD restores this part of the episode. As was common at the time, Lucy and Desi frequently did product promotions before and after the episodes.
Lucy refers to “The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show” which ran on CBS from 1950 to 1958.
LUCY: “George Burns uses his wife on the show. Why don’t you?”
RICKY: “I’d love to. You think she would leave George?”
LUCY: “Oh! Well, I know one thing – you’ll never be a success on television.”
In 1951, Lucy could have no way of knowing that they would become television’s ultimate success story. Above Desi poses with an original figurine based on Lucy’s professor character.
At the end of the episode, Lucy is offered a contract herself based on her comedic routine. This is ironic, since it was always comedienne Lucy, and not musician Desi, that the network wanted.
The episode ends with “Risky Riskerdo” (as the Professor calls him) mistakenly thinking Lucy might be pregnant but the only thing in her ‘oven’ is his favorite pie!.
When she said the same lines in the pilot she actually was!
Unbeknownst to producers, someone took 8mm color video footage from the studio audience during the filming of this episode. Here it is above, edited alongside the original black and white film.
Jess Oppenheimer, and the famous cinematographer Karl Freund, are seen briefly.
FAST FORWARD! ‘Seal’ of Approval
Lucy revived her ‘trained seal’ impersonation again on “The Bob Hope Chevy Show” (October 1956) where the ‘saxavibratronophonovitch’ is renamed a ‘gramasousaxylophonovitch’.
Lucille Ball brought back her Professor character for a 1964 “Jack Benny Program” doing much of the same comic business she created in 1950,
even getting on her knees pretending to be a trained seal.
Lucille Ball’s ability to imitate a seal came in handy during “Lucy [Carmichael] Meets the [Milton] Berles” (TLS S6;E1) and with real seals in “Lucy at Marineland” (TLS S4;E1).
“A Pretty Girl Is Like A Melody” is the song in the background when Lucy struts down the staircase wearing the unwieldy headdress in “Lucy Gets Into Pictures” (S4;E18). Lucy Carter will do an impromptu fashion show to the song on an episode of "Here’s Lucy” in 1968.
SELLING THE AUDITION!
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“The Diet”
(S1;E3 ~ October 29, 1951) Directed by Marc Daniels. Written by
Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh and Bob Carroll, Jr. Filmed September 28, 1951 at General Services Studio. Rating: 37.9/56
Synopsis ~ When a featured dancer at the Tropicana quits to get married, Lucy naturally wants the job. The only catch is that she doesn’t fit the costume, so she goes on a crash diet.
The story was mostly based on an episode of Lucy’s radio show “My Favorite Husband” called “Iris and Liz’s Easter” (#123 broadcast March 1951).
art by Aireen Arellano
This was the fourth episode filmed, but it was aired third when the fourth episode (”Lucy Thinks Ricky is Trying to Murder Her”) was moved to the premiere.
The plot seemed especially timely since Lucille Ball was still trying to lose weight gained during her pregnancy with her daughter Lucie.
Ricky has a phone conversation with Jerry, his agent, although Jerry Hausner is not heard and does not appear on screen. He tells Ricky that Joanne, a dancer at the club, has quit to get married. Joanne was a size 12, so her replacement has to be that size to fit the new costume. Joanne was probably named after
Joanne Pérez (nee Joanne Falcy)
who was the wife of Desi’s friend and clown, Pepito
Pérez. A former dancer herself, Joanne ran the dance academy that provided the students and scenery for “Little Ricky’s School Pageant” in 1956.
While everyone else is eating steak with mashed potatoes and biscuits, Lucy dines on a single stalk of celery, which she liberally salts, peppers, and sauces with A.1. Steak Sauce. Sold from 1831 as a condiment for meat or game dishes in the United Kingdom, the makers later introduced the product to North America, where it was marketed as a steak sauce. In May 2014, the word “steak” was dropped from the name to “better reflect modern dining habits”.
This is the first time Lucy uses her maiden name, McGillicuddy. It was originally going to be Teitelbaum, but that was deemed ‘too Jewish.’
This is the first time Lucy does her “eeugh” sound when she’s lying on the gurney at the episode’s conclusion. The writers named this sound ‘the spider,’ because Lucy first did it when she played Miss Muffet in a commercial for JELL-O, sponsor of “My Favorite Husband.” The publicity still above is from “The Ricardos Change Apartments” in 1953.
This is the first (and last) appearance of the Mertz’s dog, Butch. In fact, when Little Ricky gets a dog in season 6, Fred sites a ‘no pets clause’ in their lease, also conveniently forgetting about Mrs. Trumbull’s cat.
Butch looks quite alarmed by the crazy lady under the table!
“Cuban Pete” is a song composed by Joseph Norman under the name José Norman in 1936, recorded by Louis Armstrong in 1937, and popularized by Desi Arnaz in the 1946 film Cuban Pete. Lucille Ball’s cousin Cleo had an uncredited role in the film.
The version of “Cuban Pete / Sally Sweet” Lucy and Ricky perform at the end of the episode was taken directly from the live stage show tour Lucy and Desi did in 1950. The tour was designed to convince CBS that the American public would believe that an all-American girl like Lucy could be happily married to a hotblooded Cuban like Ricky. Even Lucy’s emerald green Sally Sweet outfit is the same as in the original act.
Lucille Ball takes a smoke break with former co-star Jack Carson, who had done three films with Ball in 1937 and 1938. At the time, there was talk that Carson would also get a television show on CBS, but unlike Lucy, he wanted to do it without a studio audience. The show never materialized.
Faded with age, the dress is now in a museum.
UNCREDITED PERFORMERS
Marco Rizo (audition accompanist) was Desi Arnaz’s pianist and played himself on this and many future episodes. Although not credited, he is referred to by name by Ricky.
Even the blonde on the left, who has dialogue with Lucy (”You’re not his type!”), goes uncredited. There are four dancers in the scene. Personally, I think their wigs deserve a credit line of their own!
The doctor and orderly do not speak, and are not credited and have never been identified. Anyone?
FAST FORWARD!
On February 9, 1953, while Lucille Ball took some time off after the birth to Desi Jr., CBS re-broadcast “The Diet” featuring a new opening sequence. The scene involved Ricky, Ethel and Fred discussing the health of Lucy’s new born baby. Ethel offers to make some homemade cookies for Lucy, but Ricky explains that Lucy is worried about her figure. The three then remember the last time Lucy went on a diet – cue flashback. This two-minute scene has been included on the DVD release.
Two years later when Lucy is forced to stop fibbing in “Lucy Tells the Truth” (S3;E6) she reveals that she is 129 pounds, the same weight she is in this episode. Lucille Ball generally did not talk about her weight or her age unless the plot dictated it. It was Vivian Vance who bore the brunt of the jokes about over-eating and Bill Frawley who was constantly belittled about his age.
Lucy Carmichael and Viv Bagley are on a 153 calorie diet when Harry (Dan Rowan) arrives with a box of sweets from Friehoffer’s Bakery in this 1962 episode of “The Lucy Show.”
Lucy also hid under the dinner table (sans dog) in this 1963 episode of “The Lucy Show.” Viv is out on a date with her boyfriend Eddie (Don Briggs).
Lucy Carmichael dieted and exercised at a fat farm in 1965′s “Lucy and the Countess Lose Weight” (TLS S3;E21). The Countess (Ann Sothern) also counted calories with Carmichael!
In 1968′s “Lucy and Miss Shelley Winters” (HL S1;E4), Lucy Carter helped movie star Shelley Summers diet and exercise to get in shape for a new motion picture.
Lucy used a steam cabinet again in a 1970 episode of “The Lucy Show”. Both times she was watched over by her partners in crime: Vivian Vance and Gale Gordon.
Kim (Lucie Arnaz) and Lucy Carter help Uncle Harry (Gale Gordon) lose weight and exercise in preparation for a visit from an old girlfriend in 1971′s “Lucy and Harry’s Italian Bombshell.” Kaye Ballard played the buxom bombshell!
In 1973′s “Goodbye Mrs. Hips” Vanda (Barra) and Mary Jane (Croft) move in together to lose weight and Lucy (Carter) takes drastic measures to curb their late-night cravings. Temptations came by the forkful in both episodes!
In 1994, Jim Carrey sang a Desi Arnaz-inspired version of “Cuban Pete” in The Mask.
With their Dad present, Lucie and Desi Arnaz Jr. performed (in costume) as Sally Sweet and Cuban Pete for a one-time benefit.
Desi Arnaz and son performed “Cuban Pete” together on “Saturday Night Live” in February 1976.
SELLING ‘SWEET’ n ‘PETE’!
For the 60th anniversary of the series, Mattel released a Cuban Pete / Sally Sweet Barbie doll set.
The The Hamilton Collection also released a Sally Sweet doll…
…and a 1981 plate.
Precious memories from Precious Moments!
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“Ragtime Band”
(S6;E21 ~ March 18, 1957) Directed by William Asher. Written by Madelyn Martin, Bob Carroll, Jr., Bob Schiller, and Bob Weiskopf. Filmed on February 14, 1957 at Ren-Mar Studios. Rating: 40.2/52
Synopsis ~ Lucy volunteers Ricky to perform at the Westport Historical Society’s annual show. When he refuses, Lucy is determined to form her own ragtime band, starring Ricky Ricardo – Junior!
ETHEL: “Wait’ll they hear the bad news.”
LUCY: “They’ll have to change their name to the Westport Hysterical Society!”Returning from a meeting of the Westport Historical Society (a real-life group that still is around today), Lucy mentions to Ethel that Betty Ramsey’s husband Ralph will handle the advertising for the program. This makes sense since Ralph is mentioned as being with Burton Warshman and Ramsey, which is likely an ad agency. Grace Munson’s husband Harry (who we met briefly in “Lucy Misses the Mertzes” S6;E17 and will attend the “Country Club Dance” S6;E25) will supply the floral decorations. Although we know little else about him, perhaps we can infer that he is a florist? Finally, Gertrude Foote’s husband will supply the printing of the programs. We never meet the Footes on screen, but her name is the same as one of Lucille Ball’s real-life New York City roommates in the early 1930s.
When Ricky refuses to participate, Lucy reasons that she only promised Ricky Ricardo – not which one! She recruits her son!
LUCY: “I always believe in having a spare!”
To form her ad-hoc Ragtime Band, Little Ricky is on drums, Ethel plays piano, Fred the violin, and Lucy herself on (of course) saxophone.
This is the first time we hear that Fred can play the violin, although Ethel points out that the last time he played was for a Teddy Roosevelt rally. She is probably exaggerating since Fred would have to have been about 14 at the time.
Ethel claims she only knows “Comin’ Round the Mountain” on piano, when she has always been an extremely adept pianist, including the last time she plays the role of Ethel Mertz in “Lucy Meets the Mustache” (1960) where she sensitively accompanies Edie Adams singing “That’s All.”
The writers almost seem to get amnesia in this episode. Ever since Lucy’s saxophone was introduced early in season 2, she has only ever been able to play “Glow Worm,” but in this episode she claims she can only play “Sweet Sue.” It may have been changed for the sake of a joke:
LUCY: “Don’t blame me if it sounds like Sweet Sue is Comin’ Round the Mountain.”
Sitcom Logic Alert! In “Little Ricky Gets Stage Fright” (S6;E4, above) ends with Little Ricky and his music school classmates (plus Lucy) performing in a ragtime band at the Club Babalu! Why doesn’t Lucy try to re-assemble that crew?
When Ricky tries to take a nap before dinner, he instead gets a private appeal by the band members, each praising Little Ricky (and, of course, themselves), but complaining about the other two. This is some of the best writing of the Connecticut episodes:
LUCY: “Fred’s violin sounds like he’s breaking in a new pair of shoes. And what Ethel does to those ivories is enough to make an elephant want to take back his tusks.”
ETHEL: “Lucy playing the saxophone sounds like a wounded moose calling to its mate. And Fred’s violin? Oh, I make better music when I file my nails.”
FRED: “The way Ethel hits those piano keys I wouldn’t blame them if they hit her back. And Lucy with that saxophone – it’s a wonder every hog in Westport didn’t answer the call.”
Ricky eventually relents and agrees to perform at the benefit, performing a song from his album, using the rest of the rag-tag ragtime band in the ‘rhythm’ section: Little Ricky on the bongos, Ethel on the cencerros (cowbell), Fred on the quijada (clapper), and Lucy on the cuica (which makes a low ‘mooing’ sound). The tune is the calypso song “Man Smart (Woman Smarter)” written by Norman Span. It was most famously recorded by Harry Belafonte on his studio album “Calpyso” (1956), but it was also later sung live on tour by the Grateful Dead!
Vivian Vance is thinking: “I went to drama school for this?”
Although the title of this episode is “Ragtime Band” it is the Calypso Band that makes the show most memorable!
Lucy Carmichael also played the cuica in “Lucy and Carol in Palm Springs” (TLS S5;E8) a 1966 episode of “The Lucy Show” featuring Carol Burnett.
The episode was sponsored by Lilt Home Permanent.
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“Lucy Hates to Leave”
(S6;E16 ~ February 4, 1957) Directed by William Asher. Written by Madelyn Martin, Bob Carroll, Jr., Bob Schiller, and Bob Weiskopf. Filmed December 13, 1956 at Ren-Mar Studios. It was the 169th episode of 179. Rating: 42.5/57
Synopsis ~ While waiting to close on their new home in Connecticut, the Ricardos must move in with the Mertzes, something they previously did at the end of season 3 in “The Sublease” (S3;E31).
Worried about paying off his mortgage, Ricky says he’ll be 56 in 20 years. In reality, Desi Arnaz was 40 at the time of the filming, so he would be almost 60. Naturally, Lucy declines to discuss her age in 20 years time, but Lucille Ball would have been 45 in 1977.
RICKY: “Maybe I can get a hit record or something.”
LUCY: “You never had one before.”
Oops! When a worried Lucy gets out of bed at 4am there is already a smoldering cigarette in the ashtray, despite the fact that both Lucy and Ricky went to bed an hour earlier, a long time for a cigarette to smolder.
This is the second episode to feature a special close-up of the Ricardo’s ‘Dorm’ model Telechron electric alarm clock. The first was “Little Ricky Gets a Dog” (S6;E14), two weeks earlier. As per company policy, the electric cord is not shown in photographs!
FRED: “This is getting to look like the will-call department at Macy’s!”
The writers were so detailed about how they wanted the Mertzes crowded apartment to look after the Ricardos moved in that they even drew a diagram in the script to specify the placement of the boxes.
Macy’s was where Lucy first met Orson Welles. The sporting goods and record department was recreated on the Desilu soundstage (above). Macy’s was mentioned in several episodes and a soundbyte of Lucy talking about the store (”I found a lot of nice things. At Macy’s”) was used in the television advertising.
Lucy sets aside a box to donate to the Salvation Army. In 1947, movie star Lucille Ball helped promote the opening of their ‘Red Kettle Season’.
The organization was satirized in “Lucy’s Last Birthday” (S2;E25) as “Friends of the Friendless.”
In the crowded Mertz apartment the Anchor Hocking fishbowl that is home to Little Ricky’s goldfish Mildred and Charles is atop the piano. Fred refers to the fish as “Moby,” a reference to the novel and film Moby Dick.
We see only one fish. What happened to the other fish?
The parakeet cage against the wall is home to Alice and Phil (after Phil Harris and Alice Faye). They were all first seen in “Little Ricky Gets a Dog” (S6;E14).
Little Ricky has packed Fred (the dog) and is ready for the move. Little Ricky is played by Richard Keith and Fred the dog by Danny.
Gene Reynolds (Mr. Taylor) started to transition from acting to writing / producing the same year this episode aired. He went on to be nominated for 24 Emmy Awards, winning 6 for such shows as “Room 222,” “Lou Grant,” and “M*A*S*H.”
Selling their furniture to the new tenants, Lucy is horrified to learn that Mrs. Taylor wants to use her own lampshade, paint the coffee table black, and saw the legs off the sofa. Lucy ends up buying most of her furniture back, rather than see it ruined. Mary Ellen Kay (Mrs. Taylor) had a minor role in the 1950 film A Woman of Distinction, which featured Lucille Ball in a cameo.
Ricky sentimentally says that they’ve spent “15 wonderful years in this apartment.” Actually, they only moved into apartment 3-D four years ago having spent 11 years (or at least since the fall of 1951) living in the smaller apartment 4-A upstairs.
When Lucy and Ethel reminisce about the fun times they’ve had together, they mention Lucy being locked in the trunk (“The Passports” S5;E11)…
…Lucy wallpapering Ethel into the closet (“Redecorating” S2;E8)…
…and the day the pressure cooker exploded (“Job Switching” S2;E1) – all of which happened in apartment 4-A.
Oops! About the last memory, Lucy recalls that “it took two days to get the chicken fricassee off the ceiling.“ Actually, it was Ricky’s arroz con pollo (chicken and rice) that was in the exploding pressure cooker, not fricassee.
When Ethel leaves Lucy in the apartment alone for a few minutes (90 beautifully wordless seconds, to be exact), Lucy tearfully gazes around the apartment that she (as well as we, the viewers) will never see again.
Johnny Jacobs (Announcer): “’I Love Lucy’ starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz has been presented for your pleasure by Instant Sanka, the hearty coffee you can drink as strong as you like, it still can’t upset your nerves.”
One wonders if the Taylors might still be living happily in apartment 3-D at 623 East 68th Street!
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“The Ricardos Visit Cuba”
(S6;E9 ~ December 3,1956) Directed by James V. Kern. Written by
Madelyn Martin, Bob Carroll, Jr., Bob Schiller and Bob Weiskopf. Filmed October 18, 1956 at Ren-Mar Studios. Rating: 45.9/64
Synopsis ~ While visiting Florida, the Ricardos and the Mertzes take a side trip to Cuba to visit Ricky’s relatives.
For a long time, CBS removed this episode from syndication due to the political situation with Cuba. The Cuban revolution started in 1953 and by the time this episode aired guerrilla warfare was starting to occur throughout the country.
The original title of the episode was “The Ricardos Visit Havana”. Uncle Carlos was renamed Uncle Alberto, to stay closer to Desi’s real family tree.
For the flight from Miami to Havana, the gang once again flies Pan American Airways, the same carrier they took home from Europe.
The airline folded in 1991.
The Pan Am flight attendant was played by Barbara Logan.
Ricky reads to his son from the book “Three of Us.” Lucy hopes Ricky’s family will like her.
ETHEL: “What if they don’t [like you]? What are they going to do? Start another Spanish-American War?”
The Spanish–American War was an armed conflict between Spain and the United States in 1898. Hostilities began in the aftermath of the internal explosion of USS Maine in Havana harbor in Cuba, leading to US intervention in the Cuban War of Independence.
At the time, Pan Am owned the historic Hotel Nacional de Cuba where the Ricardos and the Mertzes stay.
Ten years earlier the hotel was the site of a mob summit later depicted in the film The Godfather Part II (1974). The same year this episode was filmed and aired, Nat King Cole wanted to stay at the Nacional, but was not allowed to because he was black. He still fulfilled his contract to perform at the nearby Tropicana, the club that served as the inspiration for Ricky Ricardo’s NYC nightclub.
In the episode, Ricky is performing at the hotel’s new nightclub, the Casino Parisién. It opened in January 1956 with a show starring Eartha Kitt. Fidel Castro closed the Casino in October 1960, almost two years after his overthrow of Batista. Both the Nacional and the Parisién are still in operation today, although the Casino has since been re-named the Cabaret
Parisién.
UNCLE ALBERTO: (To Lucy) “Where did you get that beautiful red hair?”
LUCY: “Oh, I get it every two weeks.”
Unsurprisingly, Ricky has a large family:
Uncle Alberto, Uncle Eduardo (a judge), Uncle Pedro, Aunt Rosa, Uncle Rafael, Aunt Silvia, Aunt Maria Pepa, Uncle Jorge, Uncle Guillermito Menendez Nandine, Manuel, Amberta, Amparo, Pepe, Enrique, Josefina, and a pair of twins!
- Mary Emery reprises her role as Ricky’s (unnamed) mother. She first played the character in “Lucy’s Mother In Law” (S4;E7). This would be her last screen role before retiring.
- Jorge Trevino (Uncle Alberto) started making films in Mexico in 1934. He would also appear as a Judge in the very first episode of “The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour” called “Lucy Takes a Cruise to Havana” (1957). Desi Arnaz’s grandfather was named Alberto, an executive at Bacardi, and it is also Desi’s middle name.
- Mexican-born Rodolfo Hoyos Jr. also appeared as one of the two Spanish-speaking party guests in “Lucy’s Mother in Law” (S4;E7).
- Lillian Molieri played ‘Dream’ Carlotta in “Ricky’s Old Girlfriend” (S3;E12).
- Manuel Paris was a Spanish-born actor who appeared in more than 150 films, including as an extra in Casablanca (1943). His credits include Cuban-themed films like Havana Rose and Cuban Fireball (both in 1951). He died in 1959.
- Abel Franco was born in El Paso, Texas. He did more than 50 films and television shows, mostly as Mexican characters.
- Amapolo Del Vando was born in Seville, Spain and came to America at age 9.
Trying to replace the cigars she sat on for Uncle Alberto, Lucy goes shopping. Things don’t go as planned when she accidentally steps on a $15 box of Corona Grande cigars just as Uncle Alberto and Ricky come through the shop door.
The Cigar Store Owner was played by Nacho Galindo, a Mexican-born actor whose first film was Week-End in Havana (1941). Eight years later he was in Holiday in Havana (1949) and – along with Manuel Paris – Cuban Fireball in 1959.
Lucy’s fellow cigar-roller is named Angelo, but the actor goes un-credited.
The episode finishes with two songs: “Babalu” and “A Lucky Guy.” By this time, Philip Morris was no longer a sponsor, so the word “lucky” was no longer banned to avoid suggestion of Lucky Strike cigarettes (aka Luckys). This episode was actually sponsored by Lilt Home Permanent and Sanka. The song was written especially for this episode.
Venezuelan-born actor Eddie Le Baron played the nightclub emcee.
This rendition of “Babalu” is probably the most memorable of its many in the series, since Little Ricky joins his father playing the miniature conga drum that Big Ricky used as a child and the scene is set in the nation of Ricky’s birth. Keith Thibodeaux (Little Ricky) later said that the song was in the wrong key for him, so he had to squeak out the really high notes. It only makes the scene more poignant.
BACK TO THE FUTURE!
Been there, done that, got the t-shirt!
The first episode of “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” (1957) was a flashback to 1940 and set in Havana, Cuba, where Lucy McGillicuddy met Ricky Ricardo. Although filmed in Hollywood, a second unit was sent to Havana to get establishing footage. When violence broke out in Cuba, Desi Arnaz instructed them to pack up and come home.
In Lucille Ball’s 1969 appearance on “The Carol Burnett Show,” two flight attendants encounter a mysterious passenger (Harvey Korman) with a Fidel Castro-like beard, cigars tucked in his breast pocket, and a thick Spanish accent.
LUCY: “Where are you from, sir? Havana?”
KORMAN (alarmed): “Havana? What makes you think I’m from Havana?”
LUCY: “Well, if it’s one thing I know, it’s a Cuban accent.”
Fan Fiction – Cuban Style!
1956, Babalu, Cabaret Parisien, CBS, Cigars, Cuba, Desi Arnaz, Florida, Havana, Hotel Nacional, I love lucy, Jorge Trevino, Keith Thibodeaux, Lillian Molieri, Little Ricky, Lucille Ball, Lucy, Lucy Ricardo, Mary Emery, Pan Am Airlines, Ricky Ricardo, Rodolfo Hoyos Jr., The Ricardos Visit Cuba, Three of Us, tv
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