MovieChat Forums > I Love Lucy (1951) Discussion > All Parties Welcome!

All Parties Welcome!

posted 6 years ago by [email protected] (1732)
3 replies | jump to latest

Another great thing about this wonderful series, is that it appeals to ALL walks
of life: the young, the middle-aged, the elderly, conservatives, bleeding heart
liberals, gays, straights...everyone.

ILL was not topical in any way (unlike, say, "The Golden Girls", which now dates
badly when it 'goes there.'). ILL is brilliant comedy, focusing on human behavior,
which, of course, includes everyone who is human!

I am a MODERATE Democrat, but have family members who are Republican, and I
respect their point of view because they aren't nuts! And they respect my point of
view. When fans sign on to comment on ILL, it is a "safe" place for ALL kinds of
people to post. In other words, even if people are fans of HELLary or Chump, it
doesn't matter because these kind of jabs don't work for this board. Hallelujah!

Yet another reason this great TV show has endured.

P.S.: Hope I didn't offend anyone - just couldn't resist that teensy-weensy little "example."

[–] [email protected] (5507) 6 years ago

Ha ha, at first I thought by "parties" you meant Lucy's social life. But yes, ILL was a show everyone could relate to. it was about relationships, marriages, friendships, rivalries, loyalties, ambitions, greed, family, etc. Those are subjects everyone can relate to.

ILL rarely made any topical references. One of the few I can think of is in "The Sublease". Fred and Ethel were stubbornly refusing to approve of anyone that the Ricardos wanted to sublet their apartment to.

Lucy said, "I don't think they'd approve of Ike and Mamie." it was one of the few references that mentioned anything topical.

Other classic sitcoms were the same. The Honeymooners and Dick van Dyke stayed away from any current events or topics. They were also about marriage, work, friends, family, etc. No matter what your politics are, everyone can relate to those subjects.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 6 years ago

Bewitched could be preachy, but only lightly so. Very rarely did it go overboard (although some feel that "Sisters at
Heart" dates badly).

I think Samantha's speech at the end of "A Thanksgiving to Remember" is still very, very powerful, and does not
come across preachy in the least.

[–] [email protected] (5507) 6 years ago

Bewitched was a bit more of a message show. Endora was always commenting on the human condition and criticizing it. But she could get away with it because she wasn't human.
The Thanksgiving episode did have a powerful message. But Samantha was speaking to everyone. Her speech was not directed at any one group, but rather to everybody to examine his own prejudices.
Yeah, I think the "Sisters" episode was pretty heavy on the preaching.
The fifth season episode "Samantha's Anniversary" had a pretty strong message at the end when Darrin learned a lesson about showing gratitude. He had immediately assumed the worst about Endora and her gift.

ILL was not much of a message show. Lucy was so immature and self centered, the one message the audience could take away was not to act so manipulative.
If you paid close attention there were a lot of little lessons to be learned like, don't fight with your best friends, don't be so quick to expect the worst from them, don't fight over money and definitely "Never Do Business with Friends" LOL