MovieChat Forums > I Love Lucy (1951) Discussion > Lucy/Desi Comedy Hour

Lucy/Desi Comedy Hour

posted 5 years ago by [email protected] (1732)
12 replies | jump to latest

Lucy and Desi were obviously focused on just having the four characters travel and meet/
annoy more famous people. It got old quick.

I would've liked to have seen an "old home week" theme interspersed where Caroline and
Charlie, Mrs. Trumbull, and even Peggy and Arthur (now newlyweds) visit Connecticut.
I'm not saying these kinds of script would've been easy to facilitate. Good writing is
hard to come by, and I'm not sure how much of Caroline would've lasted for a 60-minute
run time. Also, the availability of actors, such as Richard Crenna (already starring in "The
Real McCoys") would've been an issue. It might not have worked, as sometimes the magic
of certain characters only works for the early part of a series.

One of the reasons I enjoy the Danny Thomas ep is that the actors are portraying
fictional characters, which was always funnier to watch Lucy act off of.

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

For some reasons I always wanted to see Mr. Benson. I sort of pictured him as a mousy, milquetoast guy like Mr. Beecher.

I would have liked to see the Bensons come out to Connecticut. The actress who played Mrs. Benson was a trip. She was a favorite character actress of mine.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

Funny, but as much as I love her brief scene in that historic moment (she's the very FIRST character we see in that
new apartment), I don't feel she made as much of an impression, especially since the scene itself is so badly written
(we've discussed this).

However, the Bensons are mentioned at least twice more. Ricky gets ice cream from her in "Lucy Has Her Eyes
Examined" and Lucy has her down as one of the neighbors she shops for in "The Business Manager."

It seems to me she's mentioned at least once more, but I can't recall the episode now.

I always try to imagine her in that first apartment...with all that tacky furniture she owned!!

Strange how Mr. and Mrs. Benson would have such a luxurious apartment, when all the apartments seen previously
in the series are rather dull and small.

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

Oh yes the Mrs. Benson scene...there was something I never noticed until i read it in a Lucy book. Mrs. Benson says that she is mixing a meatloaf and Lucy replies that "it smells good."

It was pointed out "how could Lucy smell a raw meatloaf?" haha

True, Mrs. Benson didn't say that she was BAKING it, she was just mixing it.

I've always tried to count all those notepads in "The Business Manager" when Lucy was buying groceries for the whole building. It seems like the brownstone had a dozen apartments.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

That Lucy Book is nonsense because Lucy doesn't say she smells BEEF, she simply says "it smells good." Meaning
the onions, garlic, or whatever else she was seasoning it with, for heaven's sake.

Always annoying when fans/books try to find "errors" that really aren't errors.

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

Oh the book doesn't say she smells beef. She just says it smells good.

I've made many a meatloaf in my time and i can attest to the fact that when it's still raw, you can't smell it from another room with the door closed! haha

Actually I never made too much of that "error". I chalked it up to Lucy trying to butter up Mrs. Benson in the hope that she'd be willing to switch apartments.

Just like Lucy and Ethel try to sound consoling when they say , "Poor Mrs. Benson."

I don't think either woman was too concerned that Mrs. Benson was missing her daughter. Lucy just needed a bigger apartment and Ethel didn't want her best friend to leave.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

Sorry, I disagree.

My mom made meatloaf when I was a kid, and you could smell the onions and garlic.

Meatloaf isn't just hamburger meat cooking; it usually has spices mixed in with it. This is no error at all.

I think the real error is Mrs. Benson stating she's "mixing" a meatloaf, but then has to rush off and help
her daughter get settled in.

She's gonna leave while a meatloaf is baking in the oven???

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

That's true. A meatloaf bakes in about an hour. Maybe she was mixing it and planning to pop it into the oven when she got home after helping her "poor baby" get settled.

I use onion but I never use garlic in a meatloaf. But both are definitely very "fragrant". But I don't think you can smell a raw meatloaf from the other room with the door closed.
I just think Lucy was trying to flatter her and soften her up to get her to trade apartments.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

I think we can agree on this: If Mrs. Benson hadn't STATED what she was making, I don't think
Lucy would've known what the meal was. She probably would've only smelled the onions and what
not. For instance, Mrs. Benson could've said, "Oh, I was just mixing dinner when you came by",
and Lucy could've said, "Oh, well, something sure does smell good."

As for just plain beef cooking, how about the end of "The Freezer", when Lucy has stuffed all that frozen
meat into the furnace. As she herself is thawing out, Ethel says, "Smells like someone is cooking
a roast!"

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

Oh yeah, "Get a knife and fork and a bottle of ketchup and follow me to the biggest barbecue in the world!"

I never understood why Lucy asked for ketchup though. lol I don't like ketchup on meat. I like mustard on burgers.

No matter what Mrs. Benson said she was making, I do think Lucy would've been inclined to compliment her since she wanted her apartment!

Again, as far as characters on the Comedy Hour, it would've been nice to see the Ramseys. After all, they were the Ricardos neighbors and it would've been realistic to see them. As you said, some of the magic of those city characters might not have transferred to the country.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

Yes, it is weird that we never see the Ramseys again. But the Comedy Hour was supposed to
be more like a variety show - guest stars and the studio audience.

As for guest stars on ILL, I'm done with the whole concept by the time of Charles Boyer. It's
such a tired gimmick by this point. We didn't need Bob Hope or (especially) Orson Welles in
season six. But I have grown a fondness for "Lucy and Superman", as it brings back Caroline,
and the script is very clever. Plus, Superman doesn't dominate the who half hour.

P.S.: Bob Hope also makes a surprise appearance on one of the lamer episodes of "The Golden
Girls." This ep is very uninspired.

[–] [email protected] (5497) 5 years ago

The Superman episode wasn't too "gimmicky" with Lucy chasing down another celebrity. In this case, she was doing it for Little Ricky.

And interesting, he was always referred to as Superman and not the actor. I read that they did not want to mention the actor's name, not even in the credits. They wanted the kids who were watching to think it was really Superman.

As I wrote before, the only Comedy Hour episode that I really like a lot is the one with Tallulah Bankhead. Lucy acts lie a nitwit in it, but I loved the great Talloo's performance.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 5 years ago

I enjoy the TB ep too, but I don't enjoy how Lucy TURNS on Bankhead, at the expense
of the entire play. Yuck. But, yes, the early scenes are funny.

I like the Danny Thomas one, too. Ball's genius comes into full play when Lucy's
trying to sneak out of the bedroom in Danny's wife's robe. Too funny.