I Love Lucy had long-since entered the realm of Classic TV when the show's lost pilot first aired on CBS April 30, 1990. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz produced the pilot in 1951 as The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show in a bid to find a sponsor while negotiations with CBS were at a standstill.
It's hard not to judge the pilot against episodes and characters we have already come to love. Fans will sorely miss best friends/landlords Fred and Ethel, but this unpolished gem glimmers with the genius and sparkling chemistry of its stars.
Meet Lucy and Ricky
"In this city live Lucy and Ricky Ricardo," narrator Bob LeMond says as a film-worn, blurred image of New York City appears.
"Of course you know Ricky as famous orchestra leader and singer, and Lucy is the famous, uh, well she's - her hair is very red...and she's married to Ricky."
A giant hand points us to the apartment of Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, not the familiar East 68th St. brownstone, but a cramped pair of rooms with a fake backdrop of the city. The couple is still in bed, and our narrator explains that Ricky is the morning person. He's waking up and doing vibrant stretches, while Lucy is still sinking deep into her pillow.
Their morning routine consists of Lucy pestering Ricky about his upcoming television audition while he tries to shave. Like the Lucy we all know and love, she is determined to weasel her way into the act. She emerges from the bedroom in a sweeping makeshift cape and an over-sized lampshade hat.
Ricky explains that he just wants Lucy to be a housewife - to cook, clean, and be the mother of his babies - an idea that triggers offense in many modern women. Yet, the charm of I Love Lucy endures, because Lucy is so intent on breaking that mold. She wants to fulfill those same wishes of Ricky's, but she also wants to have a career of her own.
Where There's a Will, There's a Way...
Ricky wants to be sure Lucy can't interfere with his audition, so he sends her on an all-day errand to have papers signed for their wills. The scenario offers a classic bit of dialogue over breakfast as Lucy worries about the wills.
"You're keeping something from me...you're sick!" she exclaims.
Ricky insists he feels great.
"Then you lied to me when we were married; you're really older than I think," she says.
Ricky explains that it's good business sense to have wills prepared.
"After all, you have to know what to do when I go."
"Oh, Ricky I miss you so!" Lucy wails.
"For goodness sakes, Lucy, I haven't gone, yet!"
Ricky assures her that he's fine, and that they all have to go sometime...even Lucy.
"He brought your will along, too," Ricky says.
"My will?"
"Yeah."
"What for? You're the one that's going! What're you tryin' to do, shove me ahead of you in line?"
Pepito the Clown
Ricky is trying to energize his band when the star of his act shows up. Pepito the Clown is a flamboyant performer who specializes in imitations and bicycle tricks. Ricky gets a kick out of Pepito riding a miniature bike around the stage, but when he mounts the larger bike, the clown loses his balance and crashes, leaving him with a headache and Ricky without his main attraction. He sends Pepito to his apartment where he can try to rest before the show.
After a long day downtown, Lucy is exhausted when she arrives back at her apartment, only to have Pepito the Clown scare her. When she comes to her senses, the clown explains what happened and jokingly suggests that Lucy should take his place.
It's no joke for Lucy.
"Lucito the Clown" Crashes the Audition
Down at the club - the future Tropicana - Ricky is busy trying to hold the audition together without Pepito the Clown, schmoozing his audience with a rendition of "The Cuban Cabby." Just as he's about to close the show, Lucy wanders in dressed as a hobo clown, asking if anyone has seen "Ricky Risk-ar-dough."
Without missing a beat, Ricky plays along with "Lucito the Clown" and gives her an audition to join the band. With a blend of slapstick gags and classic one liners (Lucy is shocked when Ricky demands to see her "credentials), Lucy is the one who's offered a television contract instead of Ricky.
Desi clearly struggles as the straight man to Lucy's antics, trying desperately to conceal his laughter, but it works with the rough-around-the-edges charm of the lost pilot.
Trivia
- This episode was filmed on March 2, 1951 - Desi Arnaz's 34th birthday - in front of a live audience at CBS Studio A in Hollywood.
- Prior to filming the pilot, "Lucy and Ricky Ricardo" were called "Lucy and Larry Lopez."
- Lucille Ball was six months pregnant with baby Lucie during the filming of the lost pilot.
- The premise of the lost pilot is revisited in Episode 6: "The Audition."
- Lucy and Desi had to give up all other professional work to focus on I Love Lucy. Ball credits friend Carole Lombard for helping her commit to the unstable project. "Take a chance, honey. Give it a whirl!" the late actress advised her in a dream.
- I Love Lucy: The Collector's Edition DVD compilation prefaces the lost pilot episode: "When a 16mm print of the lost I Love Lucy pilot was finally found in 1990, the opening titles andfirst few seconds of narration were missing or damaged beyond repair."Lucy's original announcer, Bob LeMond "steps back into the role of narrator after a break of 50 years."
Amanda Flinner - Amanda is a freelance writer who earned her Bachelor's degree in Writing from Geneva College in 2006. Although a variety of interests ...
Join the Conversation