I Love Lucy - General Discussion

[GHScorpiosRule]

12 hours ago, Kromm said:

Bare minimum, they have to be at least on the 2nd floor. It's made clear on countless occasions that the Murtz' are DOWNSTAIRS.

EDIT - actually it just occurred to me that it's not uncommon in New York City for landlord apartments to be in basements. So that's a possible explanation.

Right. But my point was is was jarring to “see” what appeared to be a regular walkway outside of the Ricardos’ kitchen doorway-instead of a fire escape or whatever they had back in the 50s.

And then when they moved so that  they now had a window-which had to be higher than the second floor, as we saw when George Reeves appeared as Superman! Too high for Lucy to get down safely herself! 😄😂

[HyeChaps]

Have you seen the episode with the washing machine or the old timey one where Ricky rides up on a horse? 
 Some of the apartments have a kitchen door that opens up onto a porch overlooking an alley. 

[Maverick]

No new colorized episode this year?   Or did I miss it?   It was a nice holiday tradition I looked forward to.  Odd year to stop it when new content is still somewhat hard to come by. 

[GHScorpiosRule]

On 12/24/2020 at 11:14 PM, Maverick said:

No new colorized episode this year?   Or did I miss it?   It was a nice holiday tradition I looked forward to.  Odd year to stop it when new content is still somewhat hard to come by. 

Nope and I was BUMMED! It would have aired  on December 11, as previous ones always aired on the second Friday of December.

Going back to the show, just how many times did Lucy get/whine about needing new furniture??!!

The first was before the baby, when she and Ethel had gone to a house show and she ended up winning the raffle. Then a few months later, after having Little Ricky, she complained how “this old furniture” which was less than a year old, was all ratty. So she got new furniture again! Then a third time! After giving their furniture to the Mertzes after fouling up repainting their apartment! And AGAIN, when they moved to Connecticut!

Wait! Then when they moved to the apartment with a window!

JEEBUS!!

[GHScorpiosRule]

The HELL??!! MeTV took this show off its schedule for that stoopid toon in crap??!!🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

[Egg McMuffin]

I don’t think Vance and Frawley hated each other nearly as much as it was publicized. Stan Livingston played Frawley’s grandson on My Three Sons, which was filmed next door to The Lucy Show. He said Frawley enlisted him in playing pranks on Vivian and that when she figured out whatever trick it was, she’d head next door and give Frawley hell. Stan Livingston said they seemed to enjoy the back-and-forth with each other.

I like seeing the appreciation of Desi here. As much as we hear about Lucy’s physical comedy, it was the back-and-forth dialogue between the four perfectly drawn lead characters (the dreamer/schemer, the straight man, the curmudgeon, and his world-weary wife) that made the show for me. And it lent itself to a number of story setups: Lucy vs. Ricky; Lucy vs. Ethel; the Ricardos vs. the Mertzes; the men vs. the women.

The Lucy Show had the physical comedy, but it didn’t have that great quartet playing off each other and it just wasn’t the same. Who were Lucy and Viv going to have those fun conversations with? Mr. Mooney?

Edited January 27, 2021 by Kyle

[GHScorpiosRule]

Came across this wonderful interview with Desi from 1976 on Johnny Carson.

 

[Snow Apple]

In the episode in England, the hotel housekeeper was showing them how to curtsy to the queen. I've never seen it done like that. She was practically on the floor. Is that really how it was done or was that just for a sitcom? Was she playing a joke on the Americans?

[Gemma Violet]

On 4/19/2021 at 12:23 PM, Snow Apple said:

In the episode in England, the hotel housekeeper was showing them how to curtsy to the queen. I've never seen it done like that. She was practically on the floor. Is that really how it was done or was that just for a sitcom? Was she playing a joke on the Americans?

I always figured it was a curtsy from maybe the 19th century or something.  I don't really know.

[Tippi]

I really miss I Love Lucy in the mornings.  It was my go to show for getting up and ready for work!  Now I have to make do with Bewitched and My Three Sons, and they are no substitute for Lucy.

[EtheltoTillie]

10 hours ago, Tippi said:

I really miss I Love Lucy in the mornings.  It was my go to show for getting up and ready for work!  Now I have to make do with Bewitched and My Three Sons, and they are no substitute for Lucy.

Yes it’s hard to think of a time when Lucy was not on any channel. I love the William Holden episode and I also love the immediately preceding episode where they go to Albuquerque on the way to Hollywood.  The comeuppance antics behind Ethel are hysterical. 

[Snow Apple]

I'm still working from home and watch on Decades at noon. while eating lunch.

The Scotland episode is on right now but one thing confused me. Lucy wanted to go find her mother's family, the McGillicuddys. But wouldn't they be her father's family?

[Tippi]

GussieK, I love the Hollywood episodes too!  It was so much fun to see all these big stars pop up as guests.  These writers really did come up with some great storylines--not only were the Hollywood episodes great, but the getting ready to go and the train trip home were so funny as well.  My favorites were the William Holden and John Wayne episodes.  I think Lucy lighting the fake nose on fire is up there with some of the funniest things I've ever seen on tv.

[SmithW6079]

I watched "Yours, Mine, and Ours" not too long ago, with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. I know Lucy got her start in movies before making it big on ILL, but watching her in this movie (which is amusing) makes me wonder why she didn't go back to movies after ILL was over or make a different type of sitcom. I know she made a few movies, but "Mame" was a bomb (but the TV movie she did, "Stone Pillow" made me cry). Instead, she stuck (was stuck?) with the same tired schtick over and over. I watched a few episodes of "Here's Lucy" on Hulu, and it's just not funny. I won't even give the one with her kids a try (although I think I must have watched it back in the day). It was kind of sad that she was trapped as "Lucy" for the rest of her career.

[EtheltoTillie]

On 8/25/2021 at 12:00 AM, SmithW6079 said:

I watched "Yours, Mine, and Ours" not too long ago, with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. I know Lucy got her start in movies before making it big on ILL, but watching her in this movie (which is amusing) makes me wonder why she didn't go back to movies after ILL was over or make a different type of sitcom. I know she made a few movies, but "Mame" was a bomb (but the TV movie she did, "Stone Pillow" made me cry). Instead, she stuck (was stuck?) with the same tired schtick over and over. I watched a few episodes of "Here's Lucy" on Hulu, and it's just not funny. I won't even give the one with her kids a try (although I think I must have watched it back in the day). It was kind of sad that she was trapped as "Lucy" for the rest of her career.

I watched this too recently, on TCM.  I had seen it when it came out, but I was a kid then.  Lucy and Fonda were good together. 

[Scarlett45]

On 8/24/2021 at 11:00 PM, SmithW6079 said:

I watched "Yours, Mine, and Ours" not too long ago, with Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. I know Lucy got her start in movies before making it big on ILL, but watching her in this movie (which is amusing) makes me wonder why she didn't go back to movies after ILL was over or make a different type of sitcom. I know she made a few movies, but "Mame" was a bomb (but the TV movie she did, "Stone Pillow" made me cry). Instead, she stuck (was stuck?) with the same tired schtick over and over. I watched a few episodes of "Here's Lucy" on Hulu, and it's just not funny. I won't even give the one with her kids a try (although I think I must have watched it back in the day). It was kind of sad that she was trapped as "Lucy" for the rest of her career.

From what I remember from the autobiography she preferred tv- playing the same character over and over, as well has having more behind the scenes/production control. 

 

On 8/23/2021 at 12:40 PM, Snow Apple said:

I'm still working from home and watch on Decades at noon. while eating lunch.

The Scotland episode is on right now but one thing confused me. Lucy wanted to go find her mother's family, the McGillicuddys. But wouldn't they be her father's family?

Maybe not. Or her father might have been a McGillicuddy as well (they could’ve been distant cousins). 

[Egg McMuffin]

Ball was afraid of trying anything different, that the audience would reject her. That said, when she did Mame, she was planning to quit TV to focus on movies (in her salad days, acting in movies - not TV - was the pinnacle of success). But when Mame bombed, it reinforced her fears that she wouldn’t find success outside of the “Lucy” character.

[legaleagle53]

On 9/4/2021 at 8:29 PM, Kyle said:

Ball was afraid of trying anything different, that the audience would reject her. That said, when she did Mame, she was planning to quit TV to focus on movies (in her salad days, acting in movies - not TV - was the pinnacle of success). But when Mame bombed, it reinforced her fears that she wouldn’t find success outside of the “Lucy” character.

She wasn't entirely wrong about that, either. "Stone Pillow" was very well received,  from what I remember, but fans told Lucille personally that while they enjoyed her dramatic performance in that movie, they wanted her to stick to screwball physical comedy because that was what they had grown up with, so that was how they wanted to remember her -- as "Lucy."

[SmithW6079]

On 9/4/2021 at 11:29 PM, Kyle said:

Ball was afraid of trying anything different, that the audience would reject her. That said, when she did Mame, she was planning to quit TV to focus on movies (in her salad days, acting in movies - not TV - was the pinnacle of success). But when Mame bombed, it reinforced her fears that she wouldn’t find success outside of the “Lucy” character.

To be fair, she was entirely too old to be Mame, and she couldn't sing, at least not by that stage in her life.

[Scarlett45]

On 9/19/2021 at 10:27 PM, legaleagle53 said:

She wasn't entirely wrong about that, either. "Stone Pillow" was very well received,  from what I remember, but fans told Lucille personally that while they enjoyed her dramatic performance in that movie, they wanted her to stick to screwball physical comedy because that was what they had grown up with, so that was how they wanted to remember her -- as "Lucy."

 

On 9/22/2021 at 7:02 PM, SmithW6079 said:

To be fair, she was entirely too old to be Mame, and she couldn't sing, at least not by that stage in her life.

Lucille had been a working actress for many years, but it was “I Love Lucy” and tv that made her a STAR, a household name and a multi-millionaire. I don’t blame her for not wanting to break out of that mold. I remember from the autobiography that she was grateful to make a living as an actress but longed for more recognition and acclaim that she never got until ILL. 
 

As far as her age, she was playing Lucy at 40+, we know how Hollywood treats women over 40 in 2021, much less in the 50s/60s/70s, the fact that she was playing a character that was pregnant in “Yours, Mine & Ours” did make people side eye (she was 58yrs old when that movie was released and very much looked it). Lucille was certainly beautiful, but given that she rose to national prominence after 40 that was another level of issues about aging and self image. 

[Gemma Violet]

I read an interesting book last week entitled An Only Child and Her Sister by Casey Maxwell Clair, a Hollywood writer.  It was sort of a memoir which included her abusive childhood.  Her mother was cold, emotionally-distant, and at times downright cruel.  Her father was strung out on pills for many years.  Something interesting is that there's a Lucy connection.  The mother's name is Eve Whitney and she had a small part in the Charm School episode.  She and her husband knew Lucy and Desi, and Lucy offered her the role and said they would put her real name in the script.  You'll remember the scene where, even though the men and women start out chatting together in the living room, eventually the men get together and talk about sports and the women gather in the kitchen.  Lucy gets increasingly annoyed that the men and women can't converse together....until Eve Whitney is brought in and all the men follow her like little puppies.  (You may recall when she was introduced, she said, "How do you do?" three times.)  Apparently, as cold a fish as she was in that scene, she was like that in real life.

[marypat57]

Today I watched the episode (on Decades TV)where Ricky was telling the “Little Red Riding Hood” to Little Ricky in Spanish and English.  It was really funny, and very well done.

I noticed the cute little pillow in the baby’s crib that had an embroidered design on it.  Upon closer examination, it proved to be the stick figure Lucy and Ricky characters from the original opening.  You can see it in the video clip someone else posted on a previous page.

[legaleagle53]

14 minutes ago, marypat57 said:

Today I watched the episode (on Decades TV)where Ricky was telling the “Little Red Riding Hood” to Little Ricky in Spanish and English.  It was really funny, and very well done.

 

I'd bet a month's salary that this was one of Desi's favorite episodes because it gave him a chance to do something funny and physical and silly instead of always playing Lucy's straight man. He really was underrated as an actor and comedian in his own right.

[HyeChaps]

The trailer for the movie about Lucille and Desi (as opposed to Lucy and Ricky){

 

[legaleagle53]

Ah, so this is what the fuss on Twitter was about. Fans are apparently aghast over the fact that Nicole Kidman was cast as Lucy instead of Debra Messing.

[Spartan Girl]

7 hours ago, marypat57 said:

Today I watched the episode (on Decades TV)where Ricky was telling the “Little Red Riding Hood” to Little Ricky in Spanish and English.  It was really funny, and very well done.

Oh that was adorable. I first saw that episode long before I took Spanish in high school, but because of his body language (and because everyone knows that story by heart) I could still get the gist of it.

Relating to that upcoming movie, did anyone else hear that Aaron Sorkin apparently thinks this show wouldn’t be considered funny today?! Ugh…

[GHScorpiosRule]

On 11/11/2021 at 8:40 PM, legaleagle53 said:

Ah, so this is what the fuss on Twitter was about. Fans are apparently aghast over the fact that Nicole Kidman was cast as Lucy instead of Debra Messing.

I’m not aghast, but I do think Nicole was miscast. It’s being discussed in the movies thread, but I’ll say it here as well: Nicole can’t move her FACE, and Lucille had a very expressive face that could move and relay all kinds of emotions. She isn’t even close to even sounding like Lucille or Lucy.

And don’t get me started on the casting of Bardem as Desi. Desi was smooth, slender and not at all stocky or OLD-as he was younger than Lucille and for the time period this movie is set in.

And no, I wasn’t hoping that Messing would have been cast. They should have gone with unknowns.

Edited November 23, 2021 by kariyaki
Typo fixing requested by user

[JAYJAY1979]

13 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Oh that was adorable. I first saw that episode long before I took Spanish in high school, but because of his body language (and because everyone knows that story by heart) I could still get the gist of it.

Relating to that upcoming movie, did anyone else hear that Aaron Sorkin apparently thinks this show wouldn’t be considered funny today?! Ugh…

Sorkin's is an elitist so of course he'd say that.

Lucille Ball was so unique it's difficult to cast anyone to play her...but Nicole Kidman...wow...not even close.

Debra Messing looks like Ball...but doesn't have her essence.

I know Frances Fisher and Rachel York have played her before to some degree of success.

[Snow Apple]

Back to the show for a bit. Why isn't Mrs. Trumble ever invited to parties? She wasn't invited to Lucy's surprise birthday bash at the club (friends of the friendless episode) and she wasn't invited to the Ricardo's surprise anniversary party (the one where they hid in the closet).

I guess they want her to babysit but she can show up and enjoy herself for a bit before leaving with the baby. 

[SmithW6079]

20 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Relating to that upcoming movie, did anyone else hear that Aaron Sorkin apparently thinks this show wouldn’t be considered funny today?! Ugh…

 

6 hours ago, JAYJAY1979 said:

Sorkin's is an elitist so of course he'd say that.

I don't think it's "elitist" to say something wouldn't be funny today that was funny 70 years ago. I watch the show on Hulu, and there are some episodes that would be considered "problematic" today.

The plot of one is where Lucy gets a black eye from Ricky throwing a book at her, and Fred and Ethel think it's because he hit her -- and it's played for laughs. And it's not just one episode; there are a number of episodes where Lucy expresses the belief that Ricky is going to beat her for something she did "wrong." And if I recall, he spanks her on more than one occasion.

Lucy is often infantilized by Ricky and treated like little more than a stubborn, slightly "slow" child who needs to be punished. Her career aspirations (whether or not she has any talent is beside the point) are mocked and squashed down.

Even "The Operetta" has Lucy singing about being a gypsy, a term which is considered offensive to the Roma today. 

[Spartan Girl]

20 minutes ago, SmithW6079 said:

 

I don't think it's "elitist" to say something wouldn't be funny today that was funny 70 years ago. I watch the show on Hulu, and there are some episodes that would be considered "problematic" today.

The plot of one is where Lucy gets a black eye from Ricky throwing a book at her, and Fred and Ethel think it's because he hit her -- and it's played for laughs. And it's not just one episode; there are a number of episodes where Lucy expresses the belief that Ricky is going to beat her for something she did "wrong." And if I recall, he spanks her on more than one occasion.

Lucy is often infantilized by Ricky and treated like little more than a stubborn, slightly "slow" child who needs to be punished. Her career aspirations (whether or not she has any talent is beside the point) are mocked and squashed down.

Even "The Operetta" has Lucy singing about being a gypsy, a term which is considered offensive to the Roma today. 

I agree that some stuff hasn’t aged well. But overall the show is still funny.

[Magnumfangirl]

22 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

Relating to that upcoming movie, did anyone else hear that Aaron Sorkin apparently thinks this show wouldn’t be considered funny today?!

If that's what he thinks, why did he make this movie?  The show is still funny.  The fact that there is activity on this message board 70 years later proves it.

[Spartan Girl]

22 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

And no, I wasn’t hoping that Messing would have been cast. They should have gone with unknowns

I agree. I don’t like Debra Messing and I couldn’t but her as Lucy any more than Nicole.

[GHScorpiosRule]

Just came across this interview with Lucille on The Dick Cavett Show.

Of course the clip with Lucy and Harpo was excluded!

 

 

 

Edited November 22, 2021 by GHScorpiosRule

[GHScorpiosRule]

I really miss the annual color version of the Christmas and whatever regular episode CBS used to air at this time of year. Even though that one Hollywood episode=fashion show? where we could see how hideous that tweed suit was and how godawful that sunburn was on Lucy!

[Egg McMuffin]

Agreed - it’s a shame that CBS has stopped doing it. The last time it aired was two years ago. And the ratings were still good. I wish they used a slightly less garish palette for the colorizations. Lucy’s hair looked like a clown’s in those specials. At that point in her career, she wasn’t yet wearing a wig, and her hair was more strawberry blonde. And Ethel’s hair looked yellow. The apartment looked good though.

[jschoolgirl]

Her body language in the Cavett interview is interesting. She is mostly turned away from him and often looks to her right.

[Egg McMuffin]

Ball rarely seems comfortable in interviews. When she and Arnaz were married, he discouraged her from doing interviews because he felt that audience would be disappointed that she was so different from Lucy Ricardo. She usually comes across as uptight and high strung.

This is one of her better TV interviews. Probably because it’s short and because she’s discussing subjects she’s comfortable with. And she’s sentimental and affectionate when discussing Vivian Vance, Bill Frawley, Desi.

Edited December 23, 2021 by Kyle

[Spartan Girl]

You know one moment I really love? It was in one of the road trip to Hollywood episodes, the one I believe where they stopped at Ethel’s hometown, and Lucy was anxious to call to check on Little Ricky. Ricky is at first annoyed because she already called home a million times, but when Lucy makes him say hello to the baby on the phone and Little Ricky (who is just starting to talk) says “dada” Ricky does a 180 and just explodes with joy.

It’s just those heartwarming moments of new parenthood (the pregnancy announcement, Ricky’s reaction to the birth, etc) that always felt so genuine.

[Gemma Violet]

Here's what Lucie Arnaz thinks of the new Lucy/Desi movie:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RW4gBOt2ASs

[Egg McMuffin]

Lucie and Desi Jr are listed as producers of the movie so they are a bit biased. Lucie gave an interview over the summer where she talked about the inaccuracies and the “theatrical license” that Aaron Sorkin took.

I couldn’t get past the first 30 minutes. Lucille Ball, from the accounts I’ve read, would not have dropped f-bombs on the set. There were other little inaccuracies, like Jess Oppenheimer being listed as the “executive producer” (he was the producer - a better title back then - not the EP, who was basically the business affairs person). And everyone seemed unhappy on the job; from what I’ve read, Desilu Studios was a very good place to work and people cried when the Arnazes got divorced, worried that the studio would get sold.

[Spartan Girl]

Lucy’s greatest moments have been up for discussion in the Being the Ricardos thread, with the William Holden episode being top among them. That episode was priceless: I love that the whole debacle started by William turning the tables on Lucy’s constant staring at him by letting her know how it felt like. And even after he recognized her in the fake nose at the end, he decided to be the gentleman and spare her further embarrassment.

[GHScorpiosRule]

49 minutes ago, Spartan Girl said:

Lucy’s greatest moments have been up for discussion in the Being the Ricardos thread, with the William Holden episode being top among them. That episode was priceless: I love that the whole debacle started by William turning the tables on Lucy’s constant staring at him by letting her know how it felt like. And even after he recognized her in the fake nose at the end, he decided to be the gentleman and spare her further embarrassment.

Ahhhh, "Hollywood at Last!"

With a cameo by Eve Arden, who I've only ever seen in the original Grease with Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta.

And the episode ending with Lucy laying a big kiss on William Holden and sorta passing out with "I--I--IIII....kissed Bill Holden!!!!"

😂😂

Edited December 30, 2021 by GHScorpiosRule

[chessiegal]

I'm old enough to remember Eve Arden in Our Miss Brooks. I mentioned to my husband the other day that William Holden was a guest star on a tv show. His response - who is William Holden? 😄

[GHScorpiosRule]

21 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

I'm old enough to remember Eve Arden in Our Miss Brooks. I mentioned to my husband the other day that William Holden was a guest star on a tv show. His response - who is William Holden? 😄

For some reason, it's not available in black & white, but I found the setting nose on fire in COLOR!

@GussieK!

 

[Snow Apple]

I love the entire Brown Derby scene. Ethel when she spotted William Holden. Eve Arden. Fred about Ave Gardner: "She may be people, but she's not like you and me."

Edited December 31, 2021 by Snow Apple

[Egg McMuffin]

The Decades TV channel is running “Our Miss Brooks”. Eve Arden was a fine comic actress, but the show is very dated - not quite sure why this is a show they’ve decided to get out of mothballs. Also, as someone who watched the later Lucy shows in reruns as a kid, I’ve found that a little of Gale Gordon goes a long way.

Edited December 30, 2021 by Kyle

[GHScorpiosRule]

"Lucy Does the Tango"

I found the clip and it's still HILARIOUS. I remember Madylyn Pugh saying in some special years ago, that this was the longest recorded laugh in television history. I believe it!

 

[GHScorpiosRule]

I stumbled across this and it's WONDERFUL!

Maybe I'm just naive, but their love just comes across to me.

 

[Egg McMuffin]

I’ve found that many real-life married couples don’t have a lot of onscreen chemistry but the Arnazes are the exception. I think they were the classic example of “opposites attract” but if you don’t share the same values, then the marriage is tough going. They had a relatively easy divorce and after a few years passed and the hurt had a chance to subside, they became close again. There’s an interview from the early 80s on Youtube (it was with ET) where Ball says that she and Arnaz still talk two or three times a week. And she’s very diplomatic about why the marriage failed (“Desi does nothing in moderation - he works hard and he plays hard”). I’ve read that when he was going through treatment for cancer in the mid 80s, he stayed at her guest house for a while so she could keep an eye on him.