"I Love Lucy" (1951)TV series 1951-1957

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

Release Date:

15 October 1951 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Family

Plot:

A daffy woman constantly strives to become a star along with her bandleader husband and gets herself in the strangest situations.

Plot Keywords:

Friendship Between Women | Product Placement | Friendship Between Men | Bandleader | Sitcom

Awards:

Won 4 Primetime Emmys. Another 3 wins & 24 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Sun. July 27	10:00 AM	TVLAND	The Business Manager	#4.1
Sun. July 27	10:30 AM	TVLAND	Mertz and Kurtz	#4.2

Cast

Lucille Ball	...	Lucy Ricardo / ... (181 episodes, 1951-1957)
Desi Arnaz	...	Ricky Ricardo / ... (181 episodes, 1951-1957)
Vivian Vance	...	Ethel Mertz (176 episodes, 1951-1957)
William Frawley	...	Fred Mertz (175 episodes, 1951-1957)

Also Known As:

Lucy (USA) (working title)
Lucy & Ricky (USA) (working title)
Lucy in Connecticut (USA) (rerun title)
The Sunday Lucy Show (USA) (rerun title)
The Top Ten Lucy Show (USA) (rerun title)

Runtime:

30 min (179 episodes) | Argentina:30 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Argentina:Atp | Canada:G

Filming Locations:

Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

CBS Television

Trivia:

Ethel was from Albuquerque, New Mexico and her father ran the candy store. Also, one of her neighbors was Betty Ramsey, who would later become a neighbor of Ethel's and Lucy's when they moved to Connecticut in the final season.

Goofs:

Factual errors: For an entire season, the closing credits list Wilbur Hatch conducting the "Dezi" Arnaz orchestra. He spelled it Desi.

Quotes:

Ethel Mertz: Three!
Lucy Ricardo: Two!
Ethel Mertz: One! One cent hamburgers.
Fred Mertz: Ethel, are you out of your mind?
Ethel Mertz: Well I thought this could get'em.
Fred Mertz: One cent hamburgers.
Customer: [Gives Ethel one dollar] I'd like a 100 hamburgers.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "The Golden Girls: Son-in-Law Dearest (#2.23)" (1987)

Soundtrack:

Jingle Bells

How much more can be said?

I want to echo all those who have praised Desi Arnaz--he was simply the best straight man in show business. Lucille Ball was incredibly funny, but when you watch her later series, there seems to be something missing--and it's of course Desi. He's hilarious, and as others have mentioned a real pioneer in TV production. Throw in his musical ability and he's hard to beat as performer by anyone (better than Jackie Gleason in my opinion).

As for the show itself, it's timeless. These days it's strange to watch MASH, All In The Family, Maude, they've all faded and seem hopelessly dated. Not so with I Love Lucy, it's just as funny today--no it doesn't deal with abortion, or teen suicide, it deals with funny people who are even funnier when they are together, who have great chemistry together and then the show puts them into genuinely funny situations. In todays politically correct world, one wonders if the thought police would have allowed Lucy to jab at Ricky's accent, or would require some sort of social message about Lucy's role as a housewife. Please. I tend to find more meaning in Ricky singing "I Love Lucy" or Lucy trying to sneak into Ricky's show down at the Tropicana after he's banned her than in all of Maude's tired feminist rants put together.