A Guide To I Love Lucy
Airs on Monday nights at 9:00-9:30 on CBS
Overview:
In the third season of I Love Lucy, the
cast and crew no longer seemed to be "just starting out". It looked
more like they had been doing this for a while. The show seemed to be more
"polished".
They were more into the swing of things.
For the
third season, a few changes were made: Little Ricky was no longer a baby. He was
now seen to be a toddler (despite the fact that he had been born last January).
He was now played by Joseph and Michael Mayer. They would play Little Ricky for
this season, and the next two seasons.
Since the
show was now more polished, the writers now knew how to write good scripts for the
show. Throughout the season's 31 episodes, only six were rewritten from old
"My Favorite Husband" scripts.
During the
third season, Lucy's and Desi's movie, The Long, Long Trailer was
released. It was a hit.
As the
1953-54 season ended, I Love Lucy finished as the number one show of the
season.
When filming for the third season ended, the
cast and crew filmed five additional episodes. These additional episodes
would be held over for the next season.
67. Ricky's Life Story
First aired: October 5, 1953
Guest: Louis A. Nicoletti (dance teacher), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Life Magazine does a picture spread on the Ricardos.
The photos include Ricky and Little Ricky, but Lucy is left out. Lucy hates
this. She is determined to get into show business so that she will be in demand
herself. Ricky refuses to put her in the show. But then Fred gets an idea. He
tells Ricky "If Lucy wants to
get into your show so badly, then why not let her? Then she can see how
demanding show business is, and how much pressure there is. Maybe it will
convince her that show business isn't all fame and glory." Ricky thinks
this is a good idea, and decides to try it.
Songs sung: "Lady Of Spain" and "The
Longest Night Of The Year" (both sung by Desi Arnaz)
68. The Girls Go Into Business
First aired: October 12, 1953
Guests: Mabel Paige (Mrs. Hansen), Barbara Pepper
(customer in dress shop), Kay Wiley (customer in dress shop), Emory Parnell (policeman)
Lucy hears that Mrs. Hansen is selling her dress
shop. She and Ethel decide to buy the shop, and go into business for themselves.
They don't realize that Mrs. Hansen is cheating them into buying a business that
is destined to fail.
69. Lucy And Ethel Buy The Same Dress
First aired: October 19, 1953
Guests: Shirley Mitchell (Marion Strong), Doris
Singleton (Caroline Appleby), Ruth Perrott (clubwoman), Hazel Pierce (clubwoman), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
The Wednesday Afternoon Fine Arts League has a
chance to be showcased on a half-hour program special on Charlie Appleby's local
TV station. Lucy and Ethel each buy a new dress for the occasion, and they end
up buying identical dresses. They fight over which one of them will get to wear it.
Songs sung: "Friendship" from the 1943 movie DuBarry
Was A Lady (sung by Lucille
Ball and Vivian Vance), "When The Red Red Robin Comes
Bob-Bob-Bobbin' Along" (sung by Vivian Vance and William Frawley); and "Vaya
Con Dios" (sung by Desi Arnaz)
Real-life connections: In this episode, Ball sings the song "Friendship". She had sung it before, in the movie DuBarry Was A Lady (1943).
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "Liz Appears On Television".
70. Equal Rights
First aired: October 26, 1953
Guests: Lawrence Dobkin (Xavier, the waiter), Fred Aldrich
(policeman), Louis A Nicoletti (policeman), Richard J. Reeves (policeman at
station)
The Ricardos and the Mertzes go out to dinner.
While they are eating, they have a discussion about equal rights. Lucy and Ethel insist that
they want to be treated exactly as men. Ricky and Fred say "Okay. Then you
can pay for your own meals." The boys pay for their own dinners, but refuse to
pay for Lucy's or Ethel's. Now the girls have no money and are in trouble.
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "Women's Rights, Part One".
71. Baby Pictures
First aired: November 2, 1953
Guests: Doris Singleton (Caroline Appleby), Hy
Averback (Charlie Appleby), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky), (no word
on who played the infant Stevie Appleby)
The Ricardos spend time with another couple,
Charlie and Carolyn Appleby. The Applebys have an infant son of their own, named
Stevie. The Ricardos and the Applebys fight over who has the better-looking
child.
Songs sung: "In Acapulco" (sung by Desi Arnaz)
72. Lucy Tells The Truth
First aired: November 9, 1953
Guests: Doris Singleton (Caroline Appleby), Shirley
Mitchell, (Marion Strong), Charles Lane (casting director), Mario Siletti
(Professor Falconi), Dorothy Lloyd (woman who sings like a chicken), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Lucy is caught in a lie, again. Ricky and the
Mertzes bet Lucy that she can't go without lying for 24 hours. Lucy takes the
bet.
But can she do it?
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "Absolute Truth".
73. The French Revue
First aired: November 16, 1953
Guests: Alberto Morin (Robert DuBois), Richard J.
Reeves (stagehand), Fred Aldrich (stagehand), Louie A. Nicoletti (maitre d' at
the Tropicana Club), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Ricky stages a show at the club commemorating
France. He refuses to let Lucy into the show, and he even forbids her to go
anywhere near the club. Lucy bets Ricky that somehow she will end up in the show
anyway. Ricky takes the bet. (Knowing Lucy, you can be sure she will find a
way.)
Songs sung: "Valentino" (sung by Desi Arnaz)
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "The French Lessons".
74. Redecorating The Mertzes' Apartment
First aired: November 23, 1953
Guests: Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Ethel is ashamed of the furniture in her apartment.
The Ricardos decide to help the Mertzes by redecorating their apartment.
75. Too Many Crooks
First aired: November 30, 1953
Guests: Elizabeth Patterson (Mrs. Trumbull), Allen
Jenkins (policeman), Alice Wills (Madame X)
There is a rash of robberies in the neighborhood by
a female crook called Madame X. During preparations for Fred's birthday, a
series of misunderstandings lead Lucy and Ethel to believe that each other
is Madame X!
76. Changing The Boys' Wardrobe
First aired: December 7, 1953
Guests: Oliver Blake (Zeb Allen), Jerry Hausner
(Jerry the agent), Lee Millar (Phil, the photographer), Paul Power (award presenter),
Alberto Calderone (Alberto)
Lucy and Ethel complain that Ricky and Fred are
always wearing sloppy clothes. The husbands refuse to dress more neatly. So the
wives secretly sell the husband's clothes to a used clothing store, hoping that it
will force the husbands to wear newer clothes.
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "Husbands Are Sloppy
Dressers".
77. Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined
First aired: December 14, 1953
Guests: Arthur "Kingcat" Walsh (himself),
Dayton Lummis (Bill Parker), Shepard Menken (eye doctor)
Ricky brings home a theatrical producer, Bill
Parker. Mr. Parker says that he can find a spot for Lucy in his show if she can
dance the jitterbug. Secretly Lucy doesn't know that dance, but she lies to
Parker that she can do it. Then she tries to
learn it from Arthur "Kingcat" Walsh.
Songs sung: "There's No Business Like Show
Business" (sung by Lucille Ball, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley), and
"The Varsity Drag" (sung by Vivian Vance and William Frawley)
Notes: Arthur "Kingcat" Walsh was a
professional jitterbug dancer in real life.
78. Ricky's Old Girlfriend
First aired: December 21, 1953
Guests: Rosa Turich (Carlotta Romero), Jerry
Hausner (Jerry the agent), Lillian Molieri (Carlotta in Lucy's dream), Joseph
and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Lucy is always bragging about her past boyfriends.
To make Lucy jealous, Ricky invents a fictitious old girlfriend named Carlotta
Romero. The truth is, Ricky did once know a girl in Cuba named Carlotta Romero,
but they were not dating. By coincidence, Carlotta is now in New York, and she
wants to see Ricky again. Lucy gets very jealous.
79. The Million Dollar Idea
First aired: January 11, 1954
Guest: Frank Nelson (Dickie Davis)
Fred raves about Lucy's homemade salad dressing.
Lucy needs money to pay household bills, so she and Ethel decide to bottle the
salad dressing and sell it. They go into business, make the salad dressing, and
sell it on TV. But things go wrong when Ricky does some math and figures out how
much profit they are making.
Notes: At one point, Lucy and Ethel make a TV
commercial selling their salad dressing. Although this show was made in the
1950s, their commercial is very similar to the infomercials that we see on TV
today. It seems strange in that we are seeing a TV show from the 1950s, and yet
that scene has a very modern day feel to it. The scene seems to be ahead of its
time.
80. Ricky Minds The Baby
First aired: January 18, 1954
Guests: Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Ricky has a week's vacation off from work. He
agrees to spend time watching Little Ricky so that Lucy will also have some free
time. But Ricky pays so much attention to a football game on TV, that Little
Ricky wanders off. Lucy decides to teach him a lesson.
Notes: This episode was filmed without a live
audience because the Mayer twins were used a lot in it. The cast and crew were
afraid that this might cause delays and retakes.
81. The Charm School
First aired: January 25, 1954
Guests: Tyler McVey (Bill Hall), Vivi Janiss (Lou
Ann
Hall), Maury Hill (Tom Williams), Eve Whitney Maxwell (Eve Whitney), Natalie
Schafer (Phoebe Emerson)
Ricky and Fred pay way too much attention to a glamorous
fashion model. Lucy and Ethel decide that they need to be more charming in order
to allure their husbands. So they go to a charm school.
Notes: Guest Natalie Schafer (Phoebe Emerson) is
best remembered for playing Mrs. Howell in the classic 1963-66 TV series Gilligan's Island.
82. Sentimental Anniversary
First aired: February 1, 1954
Guests: Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky), Barbara Pepper, Hazel Pierce,
and Bennett Green (party guests)
It's the Ricardos' 13th anniversary. They want to
spend it alone in their apartment. But the Mertzes plan a surprise party for
them.
Real-life connections: In the scene where the
Ricardos are reminiscing, the photos came from the Arnazes' own photo album at
home.
Notes: If you listen carefully to Ethel's voice in
this episode, you might notice that she sounds nasal. Vivian Vance had a bad
cold during the filming of this episode.
83. Fan Magazine Interview
First aired: February 8, 1954
Guests: Joan Banks (Eleanor Harris), Jerry Hausner
(Jerry the agent) Kathryn Card (Minnie Finch), Elvira Allman (one of Minnie's
neighbors), Hazel "Sunny" Boyne (one of Minnie's neighbors)
Jerry, Ricky's agent, makes a couple of publicity
gimmicks that cause trouble: a magazine writer wants to follow Ricky through an
average day, and Jerry invites many women to the Tropicana as Ricky's
"date". Lucy finds an invitation, and mistakenly believes that Ricky
is having an affair.
Real-life connections: The character of Eleanor Harris
was named after a real magazine writer named Eleanor Harris, who often wrote
about the Arnazes.
Notes: Guest Kathryn Card (Minnie Finch) would
later play the recurring character of Mrs. McGillicuddy, Lucy's mother. Also,
this episode marks the last time that we see
the recurring character of Jerry the agent. There is a sequence in this episode
where Ricky and Jerry speak to each other on the phone. It was during the filming of the
"phone" scenes in this episode that Desi Arnaz lost his temper and
yelled at actor Jerry Hausner (Jerry) in front of everybody. Hausner was so
upset over being embarrassed by Desi that he quit the show that very night.
Producer Jess Oppenheimer understood. After this episode,
the character of Jerry the agent would be
referred to, but never seen again.
84. Oil Wells
First aired: February 15, 1954
Guests: Harry Cheshire (Sam Johnson), Sandra Gould
(Nancy Gould), Ken Christy (Ken, the detective)
New tenants move into one of the other apartments
in the Mertzes apartment house. They are con-artists who claim to be oil tycoons
from Texas. They con the Ricardos and the Mertzes into buying stock in a phony
oil well.
Notes: Guest Sandra Gould would later play Mrs.
Kravitz, the nosy neighbor on the 1964-72 Bewitched TV series.
85. Ricky Loses His Temper
First aired: February 22, 1954
Guests: Madge Blake (Mrs. Mulford, the saleslady), Byron Kane (Morris
Williams), Max Terhune (Sir Hume, the ventriloquist)
Ricky gets mad at Lucy because she is always
spending too much money buying new hats. Lucy complains that Ricky loses his
temper too much. So they make a bet. They bet that Lucy can keep from buying a
new hat longer than Ricky can keep from losing his temper.
Notes: Guest Madge Blake (Mrs. Mulford) is best
remembered for playing Aunt
Harriet on the 1966-68 Batman TV series.
86. Home Movies
First aired: March 1, 1954
Guest: Stanley Farrar (Bennett Green)
Ricky makes a filmed TV pilot called "Ricky
Ricardo Presents Tropical Rhythms". He intends to show it to a TV producer.
He refuses to let Lucy or the Mertzes participate in it. So Lucy and the Mertzes
decide to make their own TV pilot, a western, and show it to the same
producer.
Songs sung: "I'm An Old Cowhand" from the
1935 movie Rhythm On The Range (sung by
Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance); and "Vaya Con Dios" (sung by Desi
Arnaz)
Real-life connections: The character of Bennett Green
was named after a frequent guest star on this series. It's interesting that
they didn't get Bennett Green himself to play the role. He's on the show often enough.
Why shouldn't he play a character named after himself?
87. Bonus Bucks
First aired: March 8, 1954
Guests: Tony Michaels (laundryman), Don Garner
(grocery boy), Frank Jacquet (laundry checker), Bennett Green (laundry delivery
man),
Patsy Moran (laundry worker), John Frank (newspaper seller)
A newspaper is holding a contest based on serial
numbers from dollar bills. Lucy keeps checking her dollar bills for the serial
numbers to see if any of them match. Ricky finds a dollar that matches. But to
make Lucy feel better, he puts the dollar into Lucy's purse so that she can find
it herself. Not knowing that the dollar is a winning bill, Lucy spends it! When
she finds out what she has done, she has to get it back.
Notes:
88. Lucy's Hawaiian Vacation
First aired: March 22, 1954
Guest: Frank Nelson (Freddy Fillmore)
Ricky and his band are slated to play in Hawaii.
Lucy and the Mertzes want to go along, but Ricky says no. He hasn't got enough
money in the budget to take them. So Lucy plans to go on a TV game show called
"Be A Good Neighbor", and win a free trip to Hawaii.
Songs sung: "Hawaiian War Chant" (sung by
Lucille Ball, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley)
Real-life connections: In an early scene, the Ricardos'
TV mentions a Cleo Morgan. Cleo Morgan was the name of a cousin of Lucille Ball.
Notes: Frank Nelson makes his third (and last)
appearance as game show host Freddy Fillmore. For some reason, he doesn't seem
to recognize the Ricardos from when they appeared on his earlier game shows in
"The Quiz Show" or "Lucy Gets Ricky On The Radio". Also in
the last scene, Fillmore is really sadistic.
89. Lucy Is Envious
First aired: March 29, 1954
Guests: Mary Jane Croft (Cynthia Harcourt), Herb
Vigran (Al Sparks), Dick Elliott (Henry), Kay Wiley (Martha), Louis A. Nicoletti
(elevator operator)
A charity worker collects money from Lucy's
friends. When Lucy hears that a friend of hers "gave six", Lucy pledges
"five". She later discovers that "five" meant five hundred
dollars! Now she has to get five hundred dollars! So she and Ethel answer an ad
for women who are brave. To publicize a science-fiction movie, they have to
dress up as maids from Mars and "invade" the Empire State Building.
Real-life connections: Guest Mary Jane Croft once guest
starred on "My Favorite Husband" with Lucille Ball. Croft would later play the
recurring character of Betty Ramsey in the sixth season.
90. Lucy Writes A Novel
First aired: April 5, 1954
Guests: Pierre Watkin (Mr. Dorrance), Dayton Lummis
(Mel Eaton), Bennett Green (messenger)
Lucy hears about a housewife who wrote a novel, and
had it published for $10,000. So Lucy tries writing a novel of her own, called
"Real Gone With The Wind". The Ricardos and the Mertzes are all characters in
it. But Ricky and the Mertzes don't like what Lucy is doing, and try to stop her.
91. Lucy's Club Dance
First aired: April 12, 1954
Guests: Doris Singleton (Caroline Appleby),
Shirley Mitchell (Marion Strong)
The Wednesday Afternoon Fine Arts League plans a
dance, where they will play music with an all-girl orchestra. The girls
themselves will be the orchestra. They are all amateur musicians, so they bring
their instruments together and form the band. They start rehearsing for the big
night. But they are terrible musicians. Lucy tries to get Ricky to help them out.
Songs sung: "Twelfth Street Rag"
(instrumental performed by Desi Arnaz's band)
Notes: For some reason, this is one of Desi Arnaz's
least favorite episodes.
92. The Black Wig
First aired: April 19, 1954
Guests: Eve McVeaugh (Roberta), Douglas Evans
(Doug), Louis A. Nicoletti (waiter), Bennett Green (man on street)
Lucy wants to get one of the new Italian haircuts,
but Ricky says no. So Lucy borrows a wig from her hairstylist, Roberta. Roberta
says that when Lucy wears the wig, she looks like a different person. Lucy
decides to disguise herself, and flirt with Ricky.
Real-life connections: The character of Roberta was
named after Roberta "Bert" French, one of the show's hairstylists.
Notes: This episode was partially based on an old
"My Favorite Husband" radio episode, "Hair Dyed".
93. The Diner
First aired: April 26, 1954
Guests: James Burke (Mr. Watson), Fred Sherman
(drunk in diner), Don Garner (delivery boy), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky), Marco
Rizo, Nick Escalante, Alberto Calderone,
and Joe Miller (customers in diner)
Ricky is disgusted with show business, and he
decides to invest in a normal occupation. He hears that a diner is for sale, and
decides to go into the diner business.
Fred joins him, and together the Ricardos and Mertzes all buy the diner. They
will run it together. Immediately arguments begin between them.
Notes: This episode contains the largest pie fight
of the series.
94. Tennessee Ernie Visits
First aired: May 3, 1954
Guest: Tennessee Ernie Ford (Ernie Ford)
Ernie Ford, a hillbilly, visits the Ricardos, and
starts to wear out his welcome. He is a nice guy, but he doesn't know anything
about big city ways. Lucy tries to get rid of him.
Real-life connections: The letter from Lucy's mother mentions a
Pauline Lopus. Pauline Lopus was the name of a childhood friend of Lucille
Ball's.
Notes: Guest Tennessee Ernie Ford was a
country singer since the 1940s. He later had his own TV variety show, The
Ford Show, from 1956 to 1961.
95. Tennessee Ernie Hangs On
First aired: May 10, 1954
Guests: Tennessee Ernie Ford (Ernie Ford), Richard
J. Reeves (TV show host)
This is a sequel to "Tennessee Ernie
Visits". Ernie Ford is still staying at the Ricardos, and he is still
being a pain to them. They keep trying to get rid of him.
Songs sung: "The Wabash Cannonball" (sung by
guest Tennessee Ernie Ford); and "Y'all Come" (sung by Lucille Ball,
Desi, Arnaz, Vivian Vance, William Frawley, and guest Tennessee Ernie Ford)
96. The Golf Game
First aired: May 17, 1954
Guests: Jimmy Demaret (himself), George Pirrone
(caddy), Louis A. Nicoletti (tournament announcer)
Ricky and Fred become interested in golf. They
spend so much time playing golf, that Lucy and Ethel feel neglected. They try to
spend more time with the husbands by joining them in the golf game. But the
husbands don't want the wives along, and try to get rid of them.
Real-life connections: In real-life, Desi Arnaz
loved to play golf.
Notes: Guest Jimmy Demaret was a
real-life pro golfer in the 1940s and 50s. He was the first person to win the
Masters tournament three times.
97. The Sublease
First aired: May 24, 1954
Guests: Virginia Brissac (Mrs. Hammond), Jay
Novello (Mr. Beecher), Joseph and Michael Mayer (Little Ricky)
Summer's almost here. Ricky has a booked to have his band
play at a hotel in Maine over the summer. The Ricardos decide to sublease their
apartment, eventually working it out with the Mertzes. The apartment is
subleased to Mr. Beecher, a nervous man who wants peace and quiet. The deal is
made, when suddenly Ricky's booking is cancelled. Now the Ricardos have nowhere
to live for the summer. What will they do?
Season One (1951-52) Season Two (1952-53) Season Three (1953-54)
Season Four (1954-55) Season Five (1955-56) Season Six (1956-57)