MovieChat Forums > I Love Lucy (1951) Discussion > Lucy's Mother-in-Law

Lucy's Mother-in-Law

posted 4 years ago by AndrewHNPX2 (119)
21 replies | jump to latest

I find this a very underrated episode, coming right before the group heads off to California. I almost kinda wish this had been a two-parter, akin to the Ernie Ford episodes. I would have liked to have seen more interactions with Lucy and Mrs. Ricardo, especially since we hear of a whole apparent escapade where Lucy "lost" her on the subway. I think that would have been great to see.

On a side note, I've always found it kinda ridiculous how Ethel warns Lucy by bringing up what happens when Fred's mother visits. I mean, what would she be, like late 90s or early 100s? It would have made more sense had Ethel specifically mentioned that this was when they were first married or something.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

I always thought it was strange that they chose the middle of the Hollywood arc to bring in Ricky's mother. It would have been a good two-parter, I agree. Also, interesting that Lucy's mom horns in on the Hollywood trip and they never ask Ricky's mother if she wants to go with them.

Of course they may have asked her and that was an off screen conversation that we never saw. The main reason for Lucy's mom to be in California was because Lucy needed a babysitter. They could hardly drag Mrs. Trumbull along. I think Ricky's mother could've filled that role too.

Ethel's mother-in-law? Surely she must've been about 90! Even if she did visit, I wondered why Ethel had never brought up the subject before. If elderly Mrs. Mertz made yearly visits, I'm sure Ethel would've been giving Lucy a daily, blow by blow report. But the way she said it, it sounded like she never mentioned the woman before or that Lucy had never met her.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

I've never considered this an underrated episode. It's always been discussed warmly on other boards. True, it's not
on the classic level of "Job Switching", but it's far more celebrated than "Drafted."

In recently reading Bart Andrews' book on the series, I was reminded that the Hollywood idea actually didn't come into
fruition until the very end of season three. Desi and Jess O knew they needed to spice things up, but they didn't hit
upon the Ricky-gets-a-movie offer until around May, '54 (in spite of what I remembered, the season three Ernie Ford
two-parter had nothing to do with his later appearance, as those hadn't even been mapped out yet).

Meanwhile, the cast was called back early to work in June '54 to shoot five non-Hollywood shows, so the cast could have a full summer off, and the writers could really block out the Hollywood arc. These eps included "Lucy is Matchmaker",
"Lucy Cries Wolf", "The Business Manager", "Mr. and Mrs.TV Show" and "Mertz and Kurtz." In early September, they
filmed "Ricky's Movie Offer", "Ricky's Screen Test", then "Lucy's Mother-in-Law" (hence the question from Ricky in
the opening scene about whether Lucy heard anything from Hollywood).

Desi didn't want to saturate viewers with all the Hollywood buildup, so non-Hollywood episodes were interspersed
amongst the early Hollywood shows. Brilliant producing, in my opinion. I, for one, count most of the non-Hollywood
season four offerings as superior to some of the Hollywood prep shows (with the exception of "Mertz and Kurtz").

I'm glad we meet Ricky's mother, but I don't see why they would invite her to Hollywood! Lucy's mother was the
stronger character. (Mary Emory brought a lot of sweetness to Ricky's mother, but other than the language
barrier, she wasn't nearly as funny as Kathryn Card, who was a great comic foil for Ricky).

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

I don't think they ever considered having Ricky's mother go along on the Hollywood trip. It's not that I really wanted to see her make the trip. I just wish we could have seen her reaction when Ricky told her about his movie offer. That was BIG news and I'm sure he would have told her.

One thing is a bit odd, Lucy seems so surprised that Ricky's mother doesn't speak English! She had been married to Ricky for thirteen years. You think Ricky would've mentioned it. Didn't he ever speak to his mother on the phone in all those years?
I could imagine Lucy asking if she could speak to his mother if Ricky called her.

Ricky: Well you COULD speak to her, but she doesn't speak English.

[–] Costumer (1790) 4 years ago

If she had never visited I could see it. Ricky talking to his mother on the phone in Spanish wouldn't mean anything. Spanish was, after all, was their first language.

My mother's parents emigrated from Sicily. They could speak English quite well, but they tended to talk between themselves, and to my mother and other relatives in Italian if non-Italian speakers weren't participating in the conversation. If my dad was around they always spoke English.

So, Ricky speaking to his mother in Spanish on the phone really wouldn't imply his mother's ability to speak English one way or the other.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

Of course Ricky would speak Spanish to his mother. But that has nothing to do with the scenario that I suggested.

I imagined that if Ricky had spoken on the phone to his mother, Lucy would probably have asked if she could say a few words to her. Then Ricky would have said that his mother didn't speak any English. Lucy and Ricky were married so long that I can't believe the subject never came up.

I'm well aware that people who share a language will converse in it to each other. That happened several times on ILL. In the episode when Lucy is locked in the steamer trunk (the passport episode), Ricky enters the apartment with Marco, his piano accompanist. Marco Rizzo was actually a friend of Desi Arnaz and he was also from Cuba. It lent a note of realism to the scene when the two men spoke in their shared native tongue rather than English.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

I see your point, PJ, but it matters little, as the scenes with Lucy and her mother-in-law are hilarious! Also,
Lucy, in her embarrassment at not being prepared for her sudden arrival, could be thinking ("oh, that's right)
you don't speak any English." I agree Lucy would naturally know this, as Ricky's mother spent her whole
life in Cuba.

After this fun offering, there is only "Ethel's Birthday", and it's possible one might consider this the very last
GREAT episode set in the apartment, without discussions of Hollywood, Europe, Florida or moving to the
country.

Certainly after they returned from all these trips, there is really only a couple "every day" apartment eps
I enjoy: "Nursery School", and "Lucy and Superman." When the four left for Hollywood, it really changed
the dynamic of the show for good.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

Oh I see YOUR point too. The language barrier did make for some funny moments. However one of Lucy's remarks would get the show in trouble today. Namely, when Lucy acts out someone who is Chinese to describe rice in her chicken and rice dish, well...the PC police would go ballistic!!!

Lucy's attempt to "speak" Spanish with the earphones was funny, original and very sweet of Lucy.

Getting back to Lucy's initial surprise that Mrs. Ricardo didn't speak English, that was in keeping with the way Lucy thought. In fact, it's the way most Americans seem to still think. 'Why doesn't everyone speak English?"

In an earlier episode, Lucy was funny when she tried to speak to Ricky's friends from Cuba. She practically shouted as if yelling would make them understand her.

Ricky had to admonish her with, "They're NOT hard of hearing!"

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

The PC police really need a TRUE cause, if they'd get so upset at Lucy's harmlessly funny Chinese
impersonation. I also don't have a problem with the brilliant Fred Astaire's tribute to Bill "Bojangles"
Robinson in the 1936 film classic, "Swing Time." Yes, Astaire's in (light) blackface, but his dance
is an homage to Robinson, not a straight "blackface" number, the kind that Al Jolson did (and make
me cringe).

I also agree that Ethel should've said, "When Fred's mother CAME to visit", rather than "comes (!) to
visit."

My thought is that in those days, the network and sponsors didn't want DEATH to be a part of
a 1950's sitcom reality. As if Fred's MOTHER would have the energy and dexterity to go through
doors and windows, and peer under rugs were she still alive!

This brings me to an old "disagreement" PJ and I have concerning Ethel's mother. Clearly, she is alive
in the first and second seasons, as it's mentioned that Ethel would/could visit her. But by early '55,
she is obviously gone, as Ethel's father, Will Potter, is living alone. To me, Ethel's mother has
died, but PJ feels Will and his wife separated or divorced. Since neither death nor divorce were really
a part of '50's sitcoms, we will never know.

[–] AndrewHNPX2 (119) 4 years ago

This brings me to an old "disagreement" PJ and I have concerning Ethel's mother. Clearly, she is alive
in the first and second seasons, as it's mentioned that Ethel would/could visit her. But by early '55,
she is obviously gone, as Ethel's father, Will Potter, is living alone. To me, Ethel's mother has
died, but PJ feels Will and his wife separated or divorced. Since neither death nor divorce were really
a part of '50's sitcoms, we will never know.

I could kinda go either way on this. On the one hand, the complete lack of even a mention of her in the Albuquerque episode seems to imply that she's passed on. However if she had been alive during seasons 1 and 2 and living with Ethel's father, then Ethel would have had no reason to imply that she hadn't seen her father in a really long time and act as if she hadn't been to the house in years. So if Ethel's mom had been alive during the first two seasons and passed away at some point after that, then it doesn't really make sense that she had been living in that house with Mr. Potter.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

The last scripted time Ethel actually goes home for a visit is in 1952's "Lucy Does a TV
Commercial." The next time would be 1955 in "Ethel's Home Town."

That's a long time. So, yes, Ethel's mother may have died.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

Oh gb, you'll never let me live that one down, will you? LOL Namely, the Potters "divorce".

Fifties sitcoms didn't mention that taboo topic and it's all speculation on my part. So maybe Ethel's mom just left her husband and they were separated. My mom's parents were separated and never got a divorce although my grandfather repeatedly asked for one. My grandmother couldn't stand the fact that he wanted to marry his girlfriend! So she would never agree to one.
Didn't Fred say that "everyone knows he's a crackpot" when referring to Mr. Potter? Maybe his wife thought so too and just up and left. ha!

I inferred that Ethel's mom lived on the east coast. Since Fred was known to be so frugal, I can't see him being willing to pay for transportation to send Ethel clear across the country. In California he refused to buy plane, train or bus tickets and instead opted for a broken down motorcycle.

Also, Ethel mentions several nearby relatives, Aunt Martha and Uncle Elmo, to name a few. I have this idea that they were Mrs. Potter's relatives and she moved to New Mexico when she got married.
Later, she left and returned home. Again, just speculation. And Fred and Ethel were in show biz and traveled across the country. Could the reason they put down roots in New York was because Ethel wanted to be close to her mother? After all, neither one of them grew up in New York.

Fred does say that Ethel "went home to her mother." Why so specific? Ethel obviously was close to her "daddy" as she called him in the hometown episode. Wouldn't Fred have said that she went home to her parents or folks? It's just my theory.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

PJ, it saddens me to have to tell you this, but my parents had friends who were acquainted with
Mr. and Mrs. Potter. It seems that Mrs. Potter passed away on July 28th, 1953, after a brief illness.
Mr. Potter mourned hard for his wife for the rest of the summer, as did Ethel.

Will Potter even named a cone after his late wife in honor of her. He was indeed thrilled when
Ethel wrote her father a year and a half later to tell him SHE was starring in a movie, and "bringing along some friends"
en route to Hollywood! This cheered him up, and he invited all four to stay overnight, in honor
of Ethel's "movie."

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

LOL You had me believing that at first! I had a rough day (well, evening, at work) so that cheered me up!

If we knew the name of Ethel's mom, we would know the name of the cone.

[–] AndrewHNPX2 (119) 4 years ago

Her name was Gertrude. Gertrude Ann Potter.

[–] [email protected] (1732) 4 years ago

According to my acquaintances, PJ, Mrs. Potter's first name was Patty. And Will went by his
middle name. His first name was actually Pete, but he didn't want them know as
Pete and Patty Potter.

Will came up with a peanut butter ice cream cone in honor of his wife. It was known as
Patty's peanuttery-buttery cone. Quite delicious!

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

Well gb, I heard it was Patty's Mint Patty Perfection! I also heard that Mr. Potter named a specialty sandwich after his son-in-law whom he "adored". It was "Freddie's Franks and Sauerkraut", heavy on the sour!

He named a sundae for Lucy too after their visit. It was Lucy's Lulu of a Sundae, six scoops of ice cream, chocolate sauce, whipped cream, nuts, and maraschino cherries.

He could have created one in honor of Lucille Ball, the "banana free split". I read a comment by Lucy where she said that she had a brief job at a soda fountain. But she got fired because she kept forgetting to put bananas in the banana splits. lol

[–] Costumer (1790) 4 years ago

So you're point is why she didn't know earlier? That's valid, but again I can see it, especially in that age where married people antagonistic towards/not wanting to talk to "in-laws", especially parents-in-law was a common cliche.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

"you're point"...No it's "your point", not "you are point". And it would properly be "where married people ARE antagonistic".... Learn English so you can understand what I am talking about.

Lucy had never met Ricky's mother, so why would she be antagonistic towards her? I think Lucy would have wanted to say something nice to her mother-in-law. In any case, Ricky would have said that his mother didn't speak English.

"Common cliche"?? Whatever...you don't sound like you gave this much thought.

[–] Costumer (1790) 4 years ago

Yes, I made a type. Thank you.

I gave it a great deal of thought. The common trope was antagonism or antipathy to in-laws, regardless of whether they met or not. I'm not talking about real life; I'm talking about the trope common in films and tv.

[–] [email protected] (5515) 4 years ago

Oh yes now I see that you meant sitcom in-laws. But Lucy seemed different. She really wanted Mama Ricardo to like her.

Didn't mean to be so harsh. I had an absolutely rotten day at work and when I sat down at the computer after I got home, your post was the first one that I read. I was mad at the world (actually mad at the lousy management at my company!)

[–] Costumer (1790) 4 years ago

No problem. It is so easy to misread posts. I did it myself with a poster on a different board.

Think nothing more about it.

And I will agree. Lucy seems different in regards to that common trope.