
''The Lucy Show'' is an American
sitcom
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
that aired on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
from 1962 to 1968. It was
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive. She was recognized by ''Time (magazine), Time'' in 2020 as one of the most influential women of the 20th century for h ...
's follow-up to ''
I Love Lucy
''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
''. A significant change in cast and premise for the fourth season (1965–1966) divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only
Gale Gordon
Gale Gordon (born Charles Thomas Aldrich Jr., February 20, 1906 – June 30, 1995) was an American character actor who was Lucille Ball's longtime television foil, particularly as cantankerously combustible, tightfisted bank executive Theodore J ...
, who joined the program for its second season, remained. For the first three seasons,
Vivian Vance
Vivian Vance (born Vivian Roberta Jones; July 26, 1909 – August 17, 1979) was an American actress best known for playing landlady Ethel Mertz on the sitcom ''I Love Lucy'' (1951–1957), for which she won the 1953 Primetime Emmy Award for Outs ...
was the co-star.
The earliest scripts were titled ''The Lucille Ball Show''; but, when that title was rejected by CBS, producers thought of calling the show ''This Is Lucy'' or ''The New Adventures of Lucy'', before deciding on the title ''The Lucy Show''. Ball won consecutive
Emmy Awards
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the series' final two seasons, 1966–67 and 1967–68.
Creation
In 1960,
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive. She was recognized by ''Time (magazine), Time'' in 2020 as one of the most influential women of the 20th century for h ...
and
Desi Arnaz
Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986), known as Desi Arnaz, was a Cuban-American actor, musician, producer, and bandleader. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom ''I Love Lucy'', in whi ...
divorced, and the final episode of ''
The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour
''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour'' is a collection of thirteen black-and-white one-hour specials airing occasionally from 1957 to 1960 (as opposed to the thirty-minute regular series, ''I Love Lucy''). The first five were shown as specials during t ...
'' aired (using the ''I Love Lucy'' format). Later that year, Ball moved to New York to try the Broadway stage in an unsuccessful musical, ''
Wildcat
The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while th ...
''. During the show's run, Ball was plagued by illness and fatigue and in early 1961, the show closed when she collapsed on stage from total exhaustion. Later that year, she married for the second time, to comedian
Gary Morton
Gary Morton (born Morton Gary Goldaper; December 19, 1924 – March 30, 1999) was an American stand-up comedian whose primary venues were hotels and resorts of the Borscht Belt in upstate New York. He was born in New York City, the son of Morr ...
. Ball returned to television in the spring of 1962, when she teamed with
Henry Fonda
Henry Jaynes Fonda (May 16, 1905 – August 12, 1982) was an American actor whose career spanned five decades on Broadway theatre, Broadway and in Hollywood. On screen and stage, he often portrayed characters who embodied an everyman image.
Bo ...
in a CBS special titled ''The Good Years''. However, she was adamant about not returning to weekly television, feeling she could never top the success of ''I Love Lucy''.
At that time,
Desilu Productions
Desilu Productions, Inc. () was an American television production company founded and co-owned by husband and wife Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The company is best known for shows such as ''I Love Lucy'', '' The Lucy Show'', '' Mannix'', '' The ...
was struggling. In the spring of 1961, four of the studio's situation comedies were cancelled: ''
The Ann Sothern Show
''The Ann Sothern Show'' is an American sitcom starring Ann Sothern that aired on CBS for three seasons from October 6, 1958, to March 30, 1961. Created by Bob Schiller and Bob Weiskopf, the series was the second starring vehicle for Sothern, wh ...
''; ''
Angel
An angel is a spiritual (without a physical body), heavenly, or supernatural being, usually humanoid with bird-like wings, often depicted as a messenger or intermediary between God (the transcendent) and humanity (the profane) in variou ...
'', a sitcom starring
Marshall Thompson
James Marshall Thompson (November 27, 1925Ancestry.com. ''U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007'' atabase on-line Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
Original data: Social Security Applications and Cla ...
and French actress
Annie Farge; ''
Harrigan and Son
''Harrigan and Son'' is an American sitcom about a father-and-son team of lawyer
A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters.
The exact nature of a l ...
'', starring
Pat O'Brien and
Roger Perry
Roger Perry (May 7, 1933 – July 12, 2018) was an American film and television actor whose career began in the late 1950s. He served as an intelligence officer in the United States Air Force during the early 1950s.
Career
Television
In th ...
; and ''
Guestward, Ho!
''Guestward, Ho!'' is an American sitcom that aired on the ABC network from September 29, 1960, through September 21, 1961. It was based on the book of the same title by New Mexico dude ranch operator Barbara Hooton and Patrick Dennis.
Overvi ...
'', starring
Joanne Dru
Joanne Dru (born Joan Letitia LaCock;Known as Joan Lacock in th1930 United States census/ref> January 31, 1922 – September 10, 1996) was an American film and television actress, known for such films as '' Red River'', '' She Wore a Yellow Ribb ...
and
Mark Miller. After a two-year run, the comedy series ''
Pete and Gladys
''Pete and Gladys'' is an American television sitcom starring Harry Morgan and Cara Williams that aired on CBS every Monday at 8:00 pm Eastern and Pacific time for two seasons, beginning on September 19, 1960. The last episode was broad ...
'' (which was a spin-off of the popular Desilu sitcom ''
December Bride
''December Bride'' is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS television network from 1954 to 1959. It was adapted from the original CBS radio network series of the same name that aired from June 1952 through September 1953.
Overview
''Dec ...
''), was canceled in the spring of 1962. It starred
Harry Morgan
Harry Morgan (born Harry Bratsberg; April 10, 1915 – December 7, 2011) was an American actor whose television and film career spanned six decades. Morgan's major roles included Pete Porter in both '' December Bride'' (1954–1959) and '' Pet ...
and
Cara Williams
Cara Williams (born Bernice Kamiat; June 29, 1925 – December 9, 2021) was an American film and television actress. She was best known for her role as Billy's mother in '' The Defiant Ones'' (1958), for which she was nominated for the Academy A ...
in the title roles. At that time, the red-headed Williams, who had been promoted as the next Lucille Ball, had just received an Emmy nomination as Best Actress in a Comedy Series for her role on the show. That left Desilu with only one hit series, ''
The Untouchables
Untouchable or Untouchables may refer to:
People
* Untouchability, the practice of socially ostracizing a minority group of very low social status
* Untouchables, word for the Dalits or Scheduled Castes of India
* Untouchables (law enforcement), ...
''.
Arnaz, as president of Desilu, offered Ball an opportunity to return to television in a weekly sitcom. At that time, CBS executives were somewhat dubious as to whether Ball could carry a show without Arnaz, and whether she could follow such a landmark series as ''I Love Lucy''. It was "never intended for this program to go beyond a single season."
[Fidelman, p.147.] This arrangement was "meant to be a stop-gap measure for the beleaguered studio" and that through the sale of this series, Desilu was able to "force the CBS network to invest in and air other upcoming Desilu products."
[ It was a strategy that Ball would use in the future to take control of ''The Lucy Shows renewal from CBS. With Arnaz's encouragement and persuasion, Ball agreed to do the show, provided that it would be shown on Monday nights (the night on which ''I Love Lucy'' had aired), and that she would be reunited with ]Vivian Vance
Vivian Vance (born Vivian Roberta Jones; July 26, 1909 – August 17, 1979) was an American actress best known for playing landlady Ethel Mertz on the sitcom ''I Love Lucy'' (1951–1957), for which she won the 1953 Primetime Emmy Award for Outs ...
and her writers from ''I Love Lucy
''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
''. CBS agreed to a full season of episodes without a pilot, and ''The Lucy Show'' premiered on Monday, October 1, 1962, at 8:30 p.m.
Premise
The original premise of the series was that widow Lucy Carmichael lives in the fictional town of Danfield, New York with her teenage daughter Chris and younger son Jerry, with her divorced friend Vivian "Viv" Bagley and Bagley's young son Sherman as tenants. Early episodes included their next-door neighbor, Harry Connors. Lucy's late husband left her a substantial trust fund
A trust is a legal relationship in which the owner of property, or any transferable right, gives it to another to manage and use solely for the benefit of a designated person. In the English common law, the party who entrusts the property is k ...
, managed by a local banker (originally recurring character Mr. Barnsdahl, and later regular character Mr. Mooney); Lucy would frequently try to persuade the bank to let her raid the fund for various purchases or harebrained projects. Lucy also took on various jobs to boost her finances. Lucy, Viv, and Chris all dated regularly, yielding additional fodder for plots; in early episodes, Viv had a regular boyfriend, Eddie Collins.
In 1965, the show was extensively retooled for its fourth season. Lucy moves to Los Angeles to be closer to Chris, who was attending college in California (but no longer appeared on the show), and enrolls Jerry in a military boarding school there (facilitating his also being written out). Viv, now remarried as Vivian Bunson, remains in Danfield with Sherman, but visits Lucy a few times; Lucy's new best friend is Mary Jane Lewis. Lucy finds that Mr. Mooney has been transferred to the Los Angeles branch of the bank, and she eventually becomes his employee there. The new setting provided ample opportunity for celebrities to appear as themselves, often becoming entangled in Lucy's zany schemes. References to Lucy's children and her trust fund were eventually dropped, and this remained the show's premise through the sixth and final season.
Production
''The Lucy Show'' was one of only two sitcoms at the time to use the multi-camera setup and film with a live studio audience (''The Dick Van Dyke Show
''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961, to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Productions"Calv ...
'', which was also filmed by Desilu and aired on CBS, was the other).
The show began with Lucille Ball as Lucy Carmichael, a widow
A widow (female) or widower (male) is a person whose spouse has Death, died and has usually not remarried. The male form, "widower", is first attested in the 14th century, by the 19th century supplanting "widow" with reference to men. The adjecti ...
with two children, Chris (Candy Moore
Candace Lee Klaasen (born August 26, 1947), better known as Candy Moore, is an American actress from Maplewood, New Jersey. Moore attended UCLA School of Theatre Arts. Moore began her career appearing on television series such as ''Leave It t ...
) and Jerry (Jimmy Garrett), living in the fictional town of Danfield, New York, sharing her home with divorce
Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganising of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the M ...
d friend Vivian Bagley (Vance) and her son, Sherman (Ralph Hart). In order to get Vance to commit to the series, Arnaz acquiesced to her demands for an increase in salary, co-star billing, a more attractive wardrobe - though it remained somewhat dowdy - and, finally, that her character's name be Vivian. After doing ''I Love Lucy'', she was still being referred to as Ethel Mertz by people on the street, much to her annoyance.
Although the book on which the show was based, Irene Kampen's ''Life Without George'', centered on two divorcées living together in the same house raising their children, it was decided early on that the Lucy Carmichael character should instead be a widow. The consensus was that fans would be offended by a Lucy who was divorced, despite the fact that this was a new character and Ball herself was divorced. The character of Vivian Bagley became the first divorced woman on primetime television.
In the show's original format, Lucy had been left with a substantial trust
Trust often refers to:
* Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality
It may also refer to:
Business and law
* Trust (law), a legal relationship in which one person holds property for another's benefit
* Trust (bu ...
fund by her late husband, which was managed during the first season by local bank
A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...
er Mr. Barnsdahl ( Charles Lane). Comedian Dick Martin
Thomas Richard Martin (January 30, 1922 – May 24, 2008) was an American comedian and director. He was known for his role as the co-host (and comic foil of Dan Rowan) of the sketch comedy program ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' from 1968 to 197 ...
, working solo from his longtime partner Dan Rowan
Daniel Hale Rowan (July 22, 1922 – September 22, 1987) was an American actor and comedian. He was featured in the television show ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'', in which he played straight man to Dick Martin and won the 1969 Emmy for Outsta ...
, was cast in ten episodes as Lucy's next-door neighbor and frequent boyfriend, Harry Connors, during the show's first season. Character actor Don Briggs was also featured in six episodes as Viv's beau, Eddie Collins, and Tom Lowell
Lowell Thomas (born January 17, 1941) is an American film and television actor. He is best known for playing baby-faced Private Billy Nelson in the American drama television series ''Combat!''.
Life and career
Lowell was born in Philadelphia ...
, a young actor seen on various primetime television shows, appeared in three installments as Chris Carmichael's boyfriend, Alan Harper. The first season of ''The Lucy Show'' fully utilized the talents of Bob Carroll Jr., Madelyn Martin, Bob Schiller
Robert Achille Schiller (November 8, 1918 – October 10, 2017) was an American screenwriter. He worked extensively with fellow producer/screenwriter Bob Weiskopf on numerous television shows in the United States, including ''I Love Lucy'' (195 ...
, and Bob Weiskopf
Bob Weiskopf (March 13, 1914 – February 20, 2001) was an American screenwriter and producer for television. He has credits for ''I Love Lucy'' which he and his writing partner Bob Schiller joined in the fifth season. They also wrote for '' Th ...
(four of the five original writers of ''I Love Lucy'') in creating its thirty episodes, with Desi Arnaz as executive producer for fifteen of those shows. At the end of its first season, ''The Lucy Show'' received highly positive reviews from the critics and ranked #5 in the Nielsen seasonal ratings. Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award as Best Actress in a Series, but lost to Shirley Booth
Shirley Booth (born Marjory Ford; August 30, 1898October 16, 1992) was an American actress. One of 24 performers to achieve the Triple Crown of Acting, Booth was the recipient of an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awards and three Tony Awards.
...
for the NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
comedy hit ''Hazel
Hazels are plants of the genus ''Corylus'' of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family, Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K ...
''. On the strength of its high ratings, the series was renewed for a second year, but a number of significant changes were made.
At the beginning of the 1962–63 season, Desi Arnaz resigned as head of Desilu and as the executive producer of ''The Lucy Show''. Ball took over as president of the studio and Elliott Lewis Eliot or Elliott Lewis may refer to:
*Elliott Lewis (politician)
Sir Neil Elliott Lewis (27 October 1858 – 22 September 1935),Scott Bennett, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, MUP, 1986, pp 94-95. Retrieved 2009-09-13 Austra ...
replaced Arnaz as executive producer of Ball's series. Dick Martin, Don Briggs, Tom Lowell, and Charles Lane left the show. The characters of Harry Connors and Alan Harper were never mentioned again. Briggs would make one more appearance as Eddie Collins in the episode "Lucy Goes Duck Hunting". The Barnsdahl character was replaced by Theodore J. Mooney, played by Gale Gordon, who would remain with the series for the remainder of its run, surviving another format change. In the episode "Lucy Gets Locked in the Vault", Gordon's character is introduced when Lucy discovers that Mr. Barnsdahl has been transferred to another bank and that the management of her trust fund has been taken over by a new banker. The name "Theodore J. Mooney" had been used earlier by the actor George Cisar, who was cast as a police sergeant on thirty-one episodes of Gordon's other CBS sitcom, '' Dennis the Menace''.
Gordon had worked with Ball as far back as 1938 on the CBS radio program ''The Wonder Show'' and later worked with her on another radio show, ''My Favorite Husband
''My Favorite Husband'' was an American radio program and network television show. The original radio show, starring Lucille Ball, shaped into the famous sitcom ''I Love Lucy''. The series was based on the novels ''Mr. and Mrs. Cugat, the Recor ...
''. When CBS retooled ''My Favorite Husband'' for television as ''I Love Lucy'', Gordon was offered the role of Fred Mertz, but he was already committed to the radio series ''Our Miss Brooks
''Our Miss Brooks'' is an American sitcom starring Eve Arden as a sardonic high-school English teacher. It began as a Old Time Radio, radio show broadcast on CBS from 1948 to 1957. When the show was adapted to television (1952–56), it became ...
'' (which also was about to move to television) so William Frawley
William Clement Frawley (February 26, 1887 – March 3, 1966) was an American vaudevillian and actor best known for playing landlord Fred Mertz in the sitcom ''I Love Lucy.'' Frawley also played "Bub" O'Casey during the first five seasons of t ...
was cast in the part. In 1952, Gordon guest starred on the first season of ''I Love Lucy'' as Ricky Ricardo's boss at the Tropicana, Alvin Littlefield. Six years later, Gordon became a regular on the short-lived NBC-TV
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
sitcom '' Sally'' which starred actress Joan Caulfield
Beatrice Joan Caulfield (June 1, 1922 – June 18, 1991) was an American actress and model. After being discovered by Broadway producers, she began a stage career in 1943 that eventually led to signing as an actress with Paramount Pictures. Ear ...
(who inherited Lucille Ball's role as Liz Cooper when ''My Favorite Husband'' was directly adapted to television in 1953). In the late fall of 1958, Gordon guest-starred as a judge in the hour-long ''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour
''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour'' is a collection of thirteen black-and-white one-hour specials airing occasionally from 1957 to 1960 (as opposed to the thirty-minute regular series, ''I Love Lucy''). The first five were shown as specials during t ...
'' episode "Lucy Makes Room for Danny". From 1960 to 1962, he had recurring roles on two CBS-TV sitcoms – ''The Danny Thomas Show
''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the sho ...
'' and ''Pete and Gladys''. Gordon was to have joined ''The Lucy Show'' at its premiere in the fall of 1962, but he was still contractually obligated to ''Dennis the Menace'', in which he had replaced Joseph Kearns
Joseph Sherrard Kearns (February 12, 1907 – February 17, 1962) was an American actor, who is best remembered for his role as George Wilson ("Mr. Wilson") on the CBS television series '' Dennis the Menace'' from 1959 until his death in 1962. He ...
, who had unexpectedly died earlier in the year. It was later revealed that Ball had grown unhappy with Charles Lane because of his difficulty remembering his lines in front of the studio audience and was eager to have Gordon join the cast. Lane then became a semi-regular on the CBS-TV sitcom ''Petticoat Junction
''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, an ...
'' as Homer Bedloe.
During the first two seasons, a few guest stars were brought in for some episodes such as Broadway superstar Ethel Merman
Ethel Merman (born Ethel Agnes Zimmermann; January 16, 1908 – February 15, 1984) was an American singer and actress. Known for her distinctive, powerful voice, and her leading roles in musical theatre, musical theater,Obituary ''Variety Obitua ...
, actor-comedian Wally Cox
Wallace Maynard Cox (December 6, 1924 – February 15, 1973) was an American actor. He began his career as a standup comedian and played the title character of the popular early American television series '' Mister Peepers'' from 1952 to 195 ...
, singer Roberta Sherwood, and golf pros Jimmy Demaret
James Newton Demaret (May 24, 1910 – December 28, 1983) was an American professional golfer. He won 31 PGA Tour events in a long career between 1935 and 1957, and was the first three-time winner of the Masters, with titles in 1940, 1947, and 1 ...
and Bo Wininger
Francis G. "Bo" Wininger (November 16, 1922 – December 7, 1967) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s.
Early life and amateur career
Wininger played on the same high school football and basebal ...
. Character actor-comedian Hans Conried
Hans Georg Conried Jr. (April 15, 1917 – January 5, 1982) was an American actor and comedian. He was known for providing the voices of George Darling and Captain Hook in Walt Disney's '' Peter Pan'' (1953), Snidely Whiplash in Jay Ward's ...
, who was a semi-regular on ''The Danny Thomas Show
''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the sho ...
'' playing Uncle Tonoose, appeared on two episodes of ''The Lucy Show'' in 1963 ("Lucy's Barbershop Quartet" and "Lucy Plays Cleopatra") playing Dr. Gitterman, a voice teacher. At this time, Ball also used many other well-known character actors in featured parts such as Carole Cook
Mildred Frances Cook (January 14, 1924 – January 11, 2023), known professionally as Carole Cook, was an American actress, active on screen and stage, best known for appearances on Lucille Ball's comedy television series ''The Lucy Show'' and ...
, Mary Wickes
Mary Wickes (born Mary Isabella Wickenhauser; June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American actress. She often played supporting roles as prim, professional women, secretaries, nurses, nuns, therapists, teachers and housekeepers, who made ...
, Roscoe Karns
Roscoe Karns (September 7, 1891 – February 6, 1970) was an American actor who appeared in nearly 150 films between 1915 and 1964. He specialized in cynical, wise-cracking (and often tipsy) characters, and his rapid-fire delivery enlivened many ...
, John McGiver
John Irwin McGiver (November 5, 1913 – September 9, 1975) was an American character actor who made more than a hundred appearances in television and motion pictures over a two-decade span from 1955 to 1975.
The owl-faced, portly character ac ...
, William Schallert
William Joseph Schallert (July 6, 1922 – May 8, 2016) was an American character actor who appeared in dozens of television shows and films over a career spanning more than 60 years. He is known for his roles on ''Richard Diamond, Private ...
, John Carradine
John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later J ...
, Robert Alda
Robert Alda (born Alfonso Giuseppe Giovanni Roberto D'Abruzzo; February 26, 1914 – May 3, 1986) was an American theatrical and film actor. He was the father of actors Alan and Antony Alda. Alda was featured in a number of Broadway productio ...
, Majel Barrett
Majel Barrett-Roddenberry ( ; born Majel Leigh Hudec; February 23, 1932 – December 18, 2008) was an American actress. She was best known for her roles as various characters in the ''Star Trek'' franchise: Nurse Christine Chapel (in the origi ...
, Karen Norris, Dorothy Konrad, Lou Krugman, Stafford Repp
Stafford Alois Repp (April 26, 1918 November 5, 1974) was an American actor best known for his role as Police Chief Miles Clancy O'Hara on ABC's ''Batman'' television series.
World War II
Soon after the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbo ...
, Ellen Corby
Ellen Hansen Corby (June 3, 1911 – April 14, 1999) was an American actress and screenwriter. She played the role of List of The Waltons characters#Esther Walton, Esther "Grandma" Walton on the Columbia Broadcasting System, CBS television ...
, Philip Carey
Philip Carey (born Eugene Joseph Carey, July 15, 1925February 6, 2009) was an American actor, well-known for playing the role of Asa Buchanan on the soap opera ''One Life to Live'' for nearly three decades.
Early life and education
On July 15 ...
, Carl Benton Reid
Carl Benton Reid (August 14, 1893– March 16, 1973) was an American actor.
Early years
Reid was born in Lansing, Michigan. He used his full name professionally because when he worked in radio, four other people in the business were named Carl ...
, Lyle Talbot
Lyle Talbot (born Lisle Henderson, also credited Lysle Talbot; February 8, 1902 – March 2, 1996) was an American stage, screen and television actor. His career in films spanned three decades, from 1931 to 1960, and he performed on a wide ...
, Leon Ames
Leon Ames (born Harry Leon Wycoff;U.S. Federal Census for 1910 for Fowler, Center Township, Benton County, State of Indiana, access via Ancestry.com January 20, 1902 – October 12, 1993) was an American film and television actor. He is best rem ...
, Jackie Coogan
John Leslie Coogan (October 26, 1914 – March 1, 1984) was an American actor and comedian who began his film career as a child actor in silent films. Coogan's role in Charlie Chaplin's film ''The Kid (1921 film), The Kid'' (1921) made him one o ...
, Kathleen Freeman
Kathleen Freeman (February 17, 1923August 23, 2001) was an American actress. In a career that spanned more than 50 years, she portrayed acerbic maids, secretaries, teachers, busybodies, nurses, and battle-axe neighbors and relatives, almost i ...
, Keith Andes
Keith Andes (born John Charles Andes, July 12, 1920 – November 11, 2005) was an American actor. He is known for films such as '' Blackbeard the Pirate'' (1952) and '' Clash by Night'' (1952).
Early life
Andes was born to Mr. and Mrs. William ...
(who was Ball's leading man in the Broadway musical Wildcat), William Windom William Windom may refer to:
* William Windom (politician) (1827–1891), U.S. representative from Minnesota
* William Windom (actor) (1923–2012), his great-grandson, American actor
See also
* William Windham (disambiguation)
{{hndis, Wi ...
, Vito Scotti
Vito Giusto Scozzari (January 26, 1918 – June 5, 1996), also known as Vito Scotti, was an American character actor who played both dramatic and comedy roles on Broadway theatre, Broadway, in films, and later on television, primarily from th ...
. Robert Rockwell
Robert Rockwell (October 15, 1920 – January 25, 2003) was an American stage, film, radio and television actor. He is best known for playing the handsome, but awkward biology teacher Philip Boynton in the radio and television sitcom ''Our Miss ...
, Frank Aletter
Frank George Aletter (January 14, 1926 – May 13, 2009) was an American theatre, film, and television actor.
Early years
Born in College Point, Queens, on January 14 1926 in New York, Aletter studied acting at the Dramatic Workshop in Manha ...
, Reta Shaw
Reta Shaw (September 13, 1912 – January 8, 1982) was an American character actor, character actress known for playing strong, hard-edged, working women in film and on many of the most popular television programs of the 1960s and 1970s ...
, Murvyn Vye
Marvin Wesley Vye Jr. (July 15, 1913 – August 17, 1976) was an American character actor. He is best known for portraying Prince Ken Arok in the comedy film ''Road to Bali''.
Early years
Vye was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, and educat ...
, Hazel Pierce, J. Pat O'Malley
James Rudolph O'Malley (15 March 1904 – 27 February 1985) was an English actor and singer who appeared in many American films and television programmes from the 1940s to 1982, using the stage name J. Pat O'Malley. He also appeared on the Bro ...
, Roland Winters
Roland Winters (born Roland Winternitz; November 22, 1904 – October 22, 1989)DeLong, Thomas A. (1996). ''Radio Stars: An Illustrated Biographical Dictionary of 953 Performers, 1920 through 1960''. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 287. was an Ame ...
, Sandra Gould
Sandra Gould (July 23, 1916 – July 20, 1999) was an American actress, known for her role as Gladys Kravitz on the sitcom ''Bewitched''. Gould was the second actress to portray the role, debuting at the start of the third season.
Life and caree ...
, Cesare Danova
Cesare Danova (March 1, 1926 – March 19, 1992) was an Italian television and screen actor. He was best known for his roles in '' The Captain's Daughter'' (1947), ''Viva Las Vegas'' (1964), '' Chamber of Horrors'' (1966), ''Mean Streets'' (1973 ...
, Bobs Watson
Robert Ball Watson (November 16, 1930 – June 26, 1999), credited as Bobs Watson, was an American actor and Methodist minister.
Early years
Robert Ball Watson was a member of the Watson Family, famous in the early days of Hollywood as bein ...
, Nancy Kulp
Nancy Jane Kulp (August 28, 1921 – February 3, 1991) was an American character actress, character actor, writer and comedian best known as The Beverly Hillbillies#Jane Hathaway, Miss Jane Hathaway on the CBS television series ''The Beverly Hill ...
, future Academy Award-winning actor Jack Albertson
Harold "Jack" Albertson (June 16, 1907 – November 25, 1981) was an American actor, comedian, dancer and singer who also performed in vaudeville. Albertson was a Tony, Oscar, and Emmy winning actor, which ranks him among a rare stature of 24 ...
, and the so-called "Queen of the Hollywood Extras" Bess Flowers
Bess Flowers (November 23, 1898 – July 28, 1984) was an American actress best known for her work as an extra in hundreds of films. She was known as "The Queen of the Hollywood Extras," appearing in more than 350 feature films and numerous ...
. In addition, young performers like Don Grady
Don Grady (born Don Louis Agrati; June 8, 1944 – June 27, 2012) was an American actor and musician. He was best known as one of the Mouseketeers on the Mickey Mouse Club, and as Robbie Douglas on the long-running ABCCBS television series ...
, Tina Cole, Barry Livingston
Barry Gordon Livingston (born December 17, 1953) is an American television and film actor, known for his role as Ernie Douglas on the television series '' My Three Sons'' (1963–72). He is the younger brother of actor/director Stanley Living ...
, Eddie Applegate, Stephen Talbot
Stephen Henderson Talbot (born February 28, 1949) is a TV documentary film producer, producer, writer and reporter. Talbot directed and produced "The Movement and the 'Madman' " for the PBS series American Experience in 2023. He is a longtime co ...
, Lee Aaker
Lee William Aaker (September 25, 1943 – April 1, 2021)Goldrup, Tom & Goldrup, Jim (2002) Growing Up on the Set: Interviews with 39 Former Child Actors of Classic Film and Television', McFarland & Co Inc, , pp. 5–12 was an American child actor ...
, Eddie Hodges
Samuel "Eddie" Hodges (born March 5, 1947) is an American former child actor and recording artist. His 1961 cover of the Isley Brothers' single " I'm Gonna Knock on Your Door" reached number 1 in Canada, the Netherlands, Sweden and Australia, ...
, and future Academy Award-nominee Michael J. Pollard
Michael J. Pollard (born Michael John Pollack Jr.; May 30, 1939 – November 20, 2019) was an American character actor. With his distinctive bulbous nose, dimpled chin and smirk, he gained a cult following, usually portraying quirky, off-beat, ...
. In addition, Ball's two children Lucie Arnaz
Lucie Désirée Arnaz (born July 17, 1951) is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, and the older sister of actor and musician Desi Arnaz, Jr.
Early life
Lucie Arnaz was born at Cedars of ...
and Desi Arnaz Jr. made appearances on the program. In the second season, Ball's second husband Gary Morton made his acting debut on ''The Lucy Show''.
At the end of the second season, a disagreement erupted between Ball and head writers Bob Carroll, Jr., and Madelyn Martin regarding a particular script which Ball found to be inferior. As a result, Carroll, Martin, Weiskopf and Schiller left the series.
In early 1964, the show was in threat of getting canceled when Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive. She was recognized by ''Time (magazine), Time'' in 2020 as one of the most influential women of the 20th century for h ...
attempted to retire from CBS to spend her time as president of Desilu Productions
Desilu Productions, Inc. () was an American television production company founded and co-owned by husband and wife Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The company is best known for shows such as ''I Love Lucy'', '' The Lucy Show'', '' Mannix'', '' The ...
, but she changed her mind and signed a new three-year agreement with the network.
In the fall of 1964, though CBS began to broadcast sporting events and cartoons in color, they still refused to broadcast ''The Lucy Show'' in color even though the series had been filmed in color since the start of the second season, 1963-1964. Through that year ownership of color TV sets grew, and several other manufacturers began making color equipment and color TV sets.
At the beginning of the 1964–65 season, ''The Lucy Show'' went through a significant staff change. Elliott Lewis left the series as executive producer and was replaced by Jack Donohue, who served as producer and director. With the absence of Carroll, Martin, Weiskopf, and Schiller, Ball hired veteran comedy writer Milt Josefsberg
Milt Josefsberg (June 29, 1911 – December 14, 1987) was an American screenwriter.
Career
Milt Josefsberg's first big break came in 1938, when he was hired as writer on Bob Hope's radio program.Josefsberg, Milt: ''The Jack Benny Show'' (Arlin ...
, who had written for Jack Benny
Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky; February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success as a violinist on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
, as script consultant. Under Josefsberg's supervision there were no permanent writers for the series and different writers were employed each week (among them, Garry Marshall
Garry Kent Marshall (November 13, 1934 – July 19, 2016) was an American screenwriter, director, producer and actor. Marshall began his career in the 1960s as a writer for ''The Lucy Show'' and ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' until he developed the T ...
). Ball persuaded Weiskopf and Schiller to return and write four installments.
There were further changes to the series. Vivian Vance reduced the number of episodes in which she appeared in that season to spend more time on the East Coast with her husband, literary editor John Dodds. Ann Sothern
Ann Sothern (born Harriette Arlene Lake; January 22, 1909 – March 15, 2001) was an American actress who worked on stage, radio, film, and television, in a career that spanned nearly six decades. Sothern began her career in the late 1920s ...
, whom Ball considered to be "the best comedian in the business, bar none" and a personal friend, made a number of appearances during 1964 and 1965 as the "Countess Framboise" (née Rosie Harrigan) to fill Vance's absence. The Countess, who had been widowed by the death of her husband, "who left her his noble title and all of his noble debts," was always trying to get money to pay off her debts. She also did battle with Mr. Mooney and, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, she addressed him as "Mr. Money," which he found mildly annoying, even as he gently attempted to correct her. Because it was known that Vance would be leaving the series, Sothern was proposed as the new co-star, but she declined. Sothern reportedly wanted to share top billing with Ball, who flatly refused to consider the notion. Sothern made three more guest appearances during the following (1965–66) season.
In the spring of 1965, Vance was growing tired of commuting weekly between her home on the East Coast and Los Angeles. To continue appearing on the show, Vance wanted more creative control with the opportunity to produce and direct episodes and to receive better pay. Agents and studio executives misinformed Ball regarding Vance's desires, believing that she wanted to be Ball's equal. It was decided not to meet Vance's requests, leaving both Ball and Vance feeling betrayed by the other. As a result, Vance decided to leave the series. Ball would later regret not giving Vance what she requested. Without Vance on the show, Ball seriously considered ending the series, feeling she couldn't continue without her.
Even though Candy Moore, Jimmy Garrett, and Ralph Hart were still contracted to the series, they were used minimally during the third year. For example, in the episode "Lucy and the Old Mansion", which was the final Season 3 installment, filmed in January 1965, Moore, Garrett, and Hart appear in the opening scene, have a few lines of dialogue, then exit. It is the last time in which all of the three children are seen, and they were subsequently written out in Season 4. Dropping Candy Moore, in fact, was Ball's decision. Because Moore was popular with teenagers and the subject of dozens of articles in youth-oriented magazines at the time, her departure was originally nixed by CBS but finally accepted when Ball threatened to "retire."
The third season included such guest stars as Jack Benny
Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky; February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success as a violinist on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
, Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...
, Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye (born David Daniel Kaminsky; ; January 18, 1911 – March 3, 1987) was an American actor, comedian, singer, and dancer. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs.
Kaye starred ...
, and Arthur Godfrey
Arthur Morton Godfrey (August 31, 1903 – March 16, 1983) was an American radio and television broadcaster and entertainer. At the peak of his success, in the early to mid-1950s, Godfrey was heard on radio and seen on television up to six days ...
.
Format, setting, and major cast changes
In the first episode of the fourth season, Lucy and Jerry Carmichael and Mr. Mooney moved from Danfield to California, where Lucy began working for Mr. Mooney at the bank. Lucy's daughter Chris was said to have gone away to college and was not mentioned again. It was explained that Vance's character (Vivian Bagley) remarried and that she, along with her son Sherman and her new husband, remained in Danfield, although she returned for a few guest appearances towards the end of the series' run. With Candy Moore and Ralph Hart having already left the show at this point, only Jimmy Garrett was retained, but he would make only two appearances to support the transition before he, too, was phased out of the series.
This procedure was later explained by Oscar Katz, one of Desilu's vice presidents. According to Katz, "If you go into a network with the same series but a radically changed format, the contracts allow for greater financial renegotiation." Candy Moore adds, "By dropping all of us at once, Desilu was able to get a lot more money out of CBS for the continuation of ''The Lucy Show''."
In the fourth season premiere episode, "Lucy at Marineland", Jerry was quickly shipped off to a military academy. He made one final appearance, in a Christmas-themed episode, midway in the 1965–66 season. Sothern made three more guest appearances as the Countess, and Joan Blondell guest-starred in two episodes as Lucy's new friend Joan Brenner. However, Ball felt there was no chemistry between them and so, the idea of Blondell becoming Lucy's new comrade on the series was quickly rejected.
Finally, Lucy gained a new best friend, Mary Jane Lewis (Mary Jane Croft). Croft had prior experience performing with Ball and was the wife of former executive producer Elliott Lewis Eliot or Elliott Lewis may refer to:
*Elliott Lewis (politician)
Sir Neil Elliott Lewis (27 October 1858 – 22 September 1935),Scott Bennett, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, MUP, 1986, pp 94-95. Retrieved 2009-09-13 Austra ...
. In 1954, she made her first appearance on ''I Love Lucy'' playing Cynthia Harcourt, a rich friend of Lucy Ricardo in the episode "Lucy Is Envious". In 1956, she returned to the series playing Evelyn Bigsby, a traveler seated next to Lucy on an airplane in the fifth season finale, "Return Home from Europe". In 1957, she made her final appearances on the series as Lucy's neighbor Betty Ramsey in the sixth season. During the 1950s, Croft also had occasional roles on ''I Married Joan'' and ''Our Miss Brooks
''Our Miss Brooks'' is an American sitcom starring Eve Arden as a sardonic high-school English teacher. It began as a Old Time Radio, radio show broadcast on CBS from 1948 to 1957. When the show was adapted to television (1952–56), it became ...
''. She was also the voice of Cleo the basset hound in the sitcom ''The People's Choice (TV series), The People's Choice''. Croft then portrayed Lucy Carmichael's friend Audrey Simmons during the 1962–64 episodes of ''The Lucy Show''. In the third season, with the departure of Elliott Lewis as executive producer, Croft had also left the series, although her character of Audrey was still referred to in a few episodes but never seen. At this time, Croft had also been a regular for ten years on the long-running ABC-TV sitcom ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'', which was in its final year of production in 1965. In returning to ''The Lucy Show'' in the fall of 1965 as a new character, Croft was replacing Vivian Vance as Lucy's pal and co-conspirator; she did not, however, get co-star billing – like Roy Roberts, who played Mooney's boss at the bank, Mr. Cheever, she received featured billing despite playing a regular character.
By January 1966, all references to Lucy Carmichael's children, her trust fund, and her former life in Danfield were dropped. Lucy Carmichael was firmly established as a single woman living in Los Angeles. Lucy worked in films disguised as stunt man "'Iron Man' Carmichael" for three episodes ("Lucy the Stunt Man", "Lucy and the Return of Iron Man", and "Lucy and Bob Crane"). At the end of the 1965–66 season Lucille Ball was nominated for her second Emmy for ''The Lucy Show'' as Best Actress in a Comedy Series, however, Mary Tyler Moore took home the trophy for her role as Laura Petrie for ''The Dick Van Dyke Show
''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' is an American sitcom created by Carl Reiner that initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961, to June 1, 1966, with a total of 158 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. It was produced by Calvada Productions"Calv ...
''.
The next two seasons featured many stars making guest appearances as themselves conducting business at Lucy's bank. For the last two seasons, Vivian Vance made three guest appearances in her role as Vivian Bagley (except it was now Vivian Bunson, as her character had gotten married again when Lucy Carmichael moved to California). In all three episodes in which Viv visited Lucy, there were passing references to their former life in Danfield as well as Viv's new husband, but no mention was made about any of their children. In the fifth-year episode "Lucy Gets Caught Up in the Draft", Lucy Carmichael receives a letter from her son, who is away in military school. In that installment, he is called Jimmy, not Jerry. During the filming of that particular show, Ball was constantly being corrected by her crew saying that the son's name was Jerry and that Jimmy Garrett had played that part and that was the reason for her being confused. However, Ball refused to listen and so the error stayed in and that was the last reference to Lucy Carmichael's son. For the 1966–67 season, Gale Gordon was nominated for an Emmy Award as Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series, but lost to Don Knotts, who won for his guest appearance in the episode "The Return of Barney Fife" on ''The Andy Griffith Show''. Maury Thompson received a nomination for Best Directing in a Comedy Series and is the only Lucy director ever to receive a nomination in the directing category. After eleven years, Ball was finally awarded an Emmy as "Best Actress in a Comedy Series" (she had previously won two, as "Best Comedienne" in 1953 and as "Best Actress in a Continuing Performance" in 1956 for ''I Love Lucy'').
During the 1967–68 season, Ball's second husband, Gary Morton, became executive producer of ''The Lucy Show''. Lucille Ball sold Desilu Productions
Desilu Productions, Inc. () was an American television production company founded and co-owned by husband and wife Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball. The company is best known for shows such as ''I Love Lucy'', '' The Lucy Show'', '' Mannix'', '' The ...
to Gulf and Western Industries, Gulf+Western Industries, abandoning ownership of the series. In the spring of 1968, ''The Lucy Show'' won Emmy nominations for Best Comedy Series, Milt Josefsberg and Ray Singer for Best Writing in a Comedy Series, Lucille Ball for Best Actress in a Comedy Series, and Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series (Gale Gordon). This time, Gordon lost the award to Werner Klemperer of ''Hogan's Heroes'', and the show itself lost the Best Comedy Series Award to the NBC sitcom ''Get Smart''. For the second straight year, Ball was awarded the coveted statuette. At the end of its sixth season, ''The Lucy Show'' posted its highest Nielsen rating, ranking at #2.
After six seasons, Ball decided to end the series, feeling that the show had enough episodes for syndication. Ball opted to continue on television under the provision that her two children, Lucie Arnaz
Lucie Désirée Arnaz (born July 17, 1951) is an American actress and singer. She is the daughter of actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, and the older sister of actor and musician Desi Arnaz, Jr.
Early life
Lucie Arnaz was born at Cedars of ...
and Desi Arnaz Jr., agreed to appear alongside her. Thus, in the fall of 1968, an entirely new series, ''Here's Lucy'', debuted. This series featured her and her children, as well as Gordon. Croft was gradually added as a regular and Vance made several guest appearances. Gordon, as well as both actresses, played new characters which were similar to their characters on the former series. Like ''I Love Lucy'' and ''The Lucy Show'', ''Here's Lucy'' also ran on CBS for six seasons.
Cast
Guest stars
From the 1965–66 season onward, with the change in format, a number of celebrities guest starred on ''The Lucy Show'', usually playing themselves under the premise that the Lucy Carmichael character, now living in Hollywood, crossed paths with them, either in her day-to-day life, or through her job at the bank. These included Jack Benny
Jack Benny (born Benjamin Kubelsky; February 14, 1894 – December 26, 1974) was an American entertainer who evolved from a modest success as a violinist on the vaudeville circuit to one of the leading entertainers of the twentieth century with ...
, Mickey Rooney, Carol Burnett, George Burns, Joan Crawford, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Dean Martin, Phil Silvers, Frankie Avalon, Wayne Newton, Robert Stack, Mel Tormé, John Vivyan, Jack Cassidy, Clint Walker, and Milton Berle.
Other CBS shows were sometimes brought in. In the episode "Lucy and John Wayne", a photograph of Bob Crane as Colonel Hogan from ''Hogan's Heroes'' can be seen as guest star Wayne is exiting a scene.
The episode featuring Joan Crawford, "Lucy and the Lost Star", caused much celebrity fodder given Ball and Crawford's public feud during the filming. According to Ball, Crawford was often drunk on the set and could not remember her lines. Ball was said to have requested several times to replace Crawford with Gloria Swanson, who was supposed to have filled the role originally but bowed out for health reasons. Crawford was so upset that at one point, she wouldn't leave her dressing room. According to Ball's friend the singer-comedian Kaye Ballard, it was Vanda Barra, a featured actress frequently used on ''The Lucy Show'', who finally persuaded Crawford to continue with the show by giving her a much needed pep talk. As a result, Crawford sailed through the filming with nary a flaw. After the show was filmed, Crawford went out of her way to thank Barra for encouraging and supporting her.
The February 14, 1966 episode featuring Dean Martin (in which Lucy Carmichael accepts a blind date with Dean Martin's lookalike stunt double "Eddie Feldman," but when he can't make it, the ''real'' Dean Martin takes his place on the date with Lucy) was described by Ball as her favorite episode of the series.
Lucie Arnaz, Ball's daughter, appeared in several episodes of the show during its run: she was an extra in the first season's third episode, "Lucy Is a Referee," the teenage best friend of Chris in "Lucy Is a Soda Jerk" and "Lucy Is a Chaperone" (though she was only 12 at the time), and later as one of her mother's friends, Dottie, in the 1967 "Lucy and Robert Goulet" (although she was only 16). She was also seen briefly as a teen walking past Lucy and Mr. Mooney in the episode "Lucy and the Ring a Ding Ring". She was also seen playing a student named Patty in the episode "Lucy Gets Her Diploma".
In addition, Desi Arnaz, Jr. appeared in six episodes on ''The Lucy Show'' as Mary Jane Croft's son Billy Simmons ("Lucy Is A Referee", "Lucy Visits the White House", "Lucy and the Little League", and "Lucy and the Scout Trip"). Lucie Arnaz appeared with her brother Desi Arnaz Jr. (Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz's son) briefly in the first episode of the fourth season, "Lucy at Marineland".
The October 1965 episode, "Lucy and the Countess Have a Horse Guest" reunited Ball and her former ''I Love Lucy'' co-star William Frawley
William Clement Frawley (February 26, 1887 – March 3, 1966) was an American vaudevillian and actor best known for playing landlord Fred Mertz in the sitcom ''I Love Lucy.'' Frawley also played "Bub" O'Casey during the first five seasons of t ...
, who played a small role as a horse trainer, for the last time. It was his last television appearance, six months before he died. In the episode credits, he's listed as "Our Own Bill Frawley"
Opening credits
A different opening sequence was created for each season:
*Season 1 (1962–63): animated stick figures of Ball and Vance were used (similar to the ones used in the original opening sequences of ''I Love Lucy'' and of the subsequent 13 hour-long specials later syndicated in reruns as ''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour
''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour'' is a collection of thirteen black-and-white one-hour specials airing occasionally from 1957 to 1960 (as opposed to the thirty-minute regular series, ''I Love Lucy''). The first five were shown as specials during t ...
'').
*Season 2 (1963–1964): stills from previous episodes
*Season 3 (1964–1965): Clips appear from previous episodes
*Season 4 (1965–1966): Clips from previous episodes appear viewed from a kaleidoscope. The titles were designed by Howard A. Anderson Jr., Howard Anderson Jr., who was also responsible for the "heart" opening for ''I Love Lucy''.
*Season 5 (1966–1967): an additional opening was created at the beginning of the season that featured Lucille Ball as an animated "jack-in-the-box". Ball reportedly hated it, and it was only used in a handful of episodes at the start of the season before being replaced by a slightly revamped version of the kaleidoscope opening. However, because of poor editing, the theme music to this opening was retained while the kaleidoscope opening played for several of the early 1966 fall episodes.
*Season 6 (1967–1968): the kaleidoscope opening was used once again, but the theme music was reorchestrated. Also the "Glamour Shot" of Ball at the end of the opening is a different clip than season five. For the episodes in which Gale Gordon did not appear, the "Co-Starring: Gale Gordon" voiceover was omitted from the audio track.
During later television airings, including 1970s and 1980s syndicated runs, as well as Nick at Nite's 1990s reruns of the series, the later "kaleidoscope" opening was used in nearly all episodes (with a "costarring Vivian Vance" voiceover edited in for episodes from the first three seasons).
The theme music was composed by Wilbur Hatch, who was the show's musical director, a role he also performed on Ball's previous series ''I Love Lucy
''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
''.
Episodes
Unproduced episodes
There were several scripts written that were never filmed. "Lucy & Viv Fight Over Harry" was set to be produced as the 11th episode in the first season, but there were too many "production problems" and the episode was canceled. In an interview with Jimmy Garrett, he said the audience barely laughed at rehearsals, and Desi Arnaz cancelled the episode with Lucille Ball's permission.
During season 2, both "Lucy is a Girl Friday" and "Lucy Plays Basketball" were canceled before filming began as well. The details of these "lost" episodes can be found on the official DVD sets for the first two seasons.
Awards
Filming
Unlike most sitcoms of the era, ''The Lucy Show'' was filmed before a live audience; standard practice at the time was to film an episode on a closed set and add a laugh track during post-production. However, a laugh track was still used to fill any gaps in audience reactions or missed punchlines. The live format was used for all ''I Love Lucy
''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
'' episodes, for all but a few ''The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour'' installments and on ''The Lucy Show''. Arnaz felt Ball performed better in front of a live studio audience. Carole Cook, Ball's long-time friend and protégée in a radio show ''Great Lives'' based on Lucille Ball said that three cameras were used so to capture everything in one go, and the best angles would be used. While Ball would ad-lib during rehearsals, she followed the script when filming the actual show.
While filming the 1963 episode "Lucy and Viv Put In A Shower", in which the leading ladies attempted to install a shower stall (but become trapped inside, unable to shut the water off), Ball nearly drowned while performing in the tank of water. She was unable to bring herself back to the surface, and it was Vance who realized there was a problem and pulled her co-star to safety; Vance went on to ad lib until Ball could catch her breath to resume speaking her lines (all the while, cameras continued to film). Neither the film crew nor the live studio audience realized there was a problem.
In her autobiography ''Love, Lucy'', Lucy talks of this episode:
:...I found I had no room to wikt:manoeuvre, manoeuvre. I couldn't get back to the surface again. What's more I swallowed a lot of water and was actually drowning right there in front of three hundred people who were splitting their sides laughing. Vivian (Vance), realising in cold terror what had happened, never changed expression. She reached down, pulled me safely to the surface by the roots of my hair and then calmly spoke both sides of our dialogue, putting my lines in the form of questions. Whatta girl! And whatta night.
The two special episodes to feature Ethel Merman ("Lucy Teaches Ethel Merman to Sing" and "Ethel Merman and the Boy Scout Show") were originally just one episode, "Lucy Teaches Ethel Merman to Sing". This installment was a consolation prize to Merman after her Desilu-produced pilot, ''Maggie Brown'', was rejected as a regular series by CBS. The plot was much as it remains today with Lucy and Viv trying to pass off Agnes Schmidlap as Ethel Merman, not knowing that it really is Ethel Merman, and Lucy attempts to teach her how to sing. In the original version, Lucy's voice lesson scene with Merman (which was lifted from the previous season's episode "Lucy's Barbershop Quartet" in which Hans Conried was the instructor and Lucy the pupil) was much shorter than it is today and that episode ended with the Boy Scout show, with Jerry Carmichael hosting, Sherman Bagley dancing, and Lucy joining Ethel for a brand new version of Merman's great hit "Anything You Can Do (I Can Do Better)". But then, Desilu Productions thought that maybe too much had been crammed into one half-hour and since Ball and Vance (who both were great friends of Merman) were having such a marvelous time working with the legendary Broadway belter, they decided to expand it into two episodes, thereby taking advantage of Merman's formidable talents. So, a second filming was scheduled. In Part 1, Ethel was to be the houseguest of Lucy and Viv for a few weeks, and then in Part 2, a full blown episode was created that included scenes of Lucy once again, trying to get into the act. An all new Boy Scout show was filmed also, with Jerry once again hosting, Sherman dancing, and Lucy, Viv, and Ethel, this time joined by Mr. Mooney, singing and dancing through a history of show business.
An episode from the 1966–1967 season called "Lucy Flies to London" served as the basis for a standalone one-hour special called ''Lucy in London'', which featured Ball with guest stars Anthony Newley and the Dave Clark Five. Much of the "Lucy Flies to London" episode, which centered around Lucy's lack of experience in air travel, was based on an unsold pilot shot in 1960 that was written by Bob Carroll, Jr. and Madelyn Pugh Martin Davis. It starred Lucille Ball and Gale Gordon. Desi Arnaz was the director.[Fidelman, Geoffrey Mark. “The Lucy Book: A Complete Guide to Her Five Decades on Television,” 1999. Renaissance Books. ]
Comic book
A comic book adaptation, ''The Lucy Show'', was published by Gold Key Comics for five issues, from June 1963 to June 1964.
Home media
Before July 2009, there were only thirty episodes available on DVD and/or VHS (two episodes from the first season, twenty-one from the fifth season, and seven from the sixth season), all of which are believed to be in the public domain due to copyright oversights. These episodes have been released by unauthorized companies like Vintage Home Entertainment, Mill Creek Entertainment, Alpha Video, Digiview, Front Row Entertainment, Diamond Entertainment, Madacy Lifestyle Marketing, Madacy Entertainment and Echo Bridge Home Entertainment.
CBS Home Entertainment, CBS DVD (distributed by Paramount Home Entertainment) has released all six seasons of ''The Lucy Show'' on DVD in Region 1, as of October 9, 2012. CBS announced that all the episodes have been restored and remastered using the original film negatives, and was presented uncut in its original broadcast form. However, some of the episodes were edited from the original, uncut versions due to expensive costing issues, as well as the original music scores were replaced due to music licensing issues.
The first three official DVD releases allow viewers to view the original openings, closings, and cast commercials directly in the episode, while the fourth, fifth and sixth season DVD releases do not have this function.
The Complete Series was released on November 15, 2016.
In Australia, The Complete Series was released on April 1, 2020, and is distributed by Shock Entertainment.
Other releases
In September 2018, Time-Life released a DVD, ''Lucy: The Ultimate Collection'', that contains 24 episodes of ''The Lucy Show'', and which also collected 32 episodes of ''I Love Lucy
''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...
'', as well as 14 episodes of ''Here's Lucy'', and 4 episodes of the short-lived ABC-TV series ''Life with Lucy'' (which had at the time never before been released to home media), plus a wide variety of bonus features.
See also
* Fidelman, Geoffrey Mark. “The Lucy Book: A Complete Guide to Her Five Decades on Television,” 1999. Renaissance Books. .
Notes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lucy Show, The
1960s American multi-camera sitcoms
1962 American television series debuts
1968 American television series endings
Black-and-white American television shows
American English-language television shows
Television series about widowhood
Television series by CBS Studios
Television series by Desilu Productions
Television shows based on books
Television shows set in Los Angeles
Television shows set in New York (state)
CBS sitcoms
Television series created by Bob Carroll Jr.
Television series created by Madelyn Pugh