MovieChat Forums > I Love Lucy (1951) Discussion > Restaurant Marathon

Restaurant Marathon

posted 10 months ago by Garyandfilm (515)
12 replies | jump to latest

Tonight I'm beginning a marathon of restaurant-themed eps. I excluded the dining-at-home offerings and will focus on dinner in Manhattan, on the road ("First Stop"), The Brown Derby and the Cafe eps in Paris.

Oddly, I came up with an even dozen. I could've had a baker's dozen and included "Country Club Dance", but that's a club, not a restaurant.

Surprisingly, there is not a single restaurant ep in the first season and only one in season two.

Incidentally, I've included "The Black Wig" (the four meet at "Tony's") and "The Diner" (the four don't eat - other than Ethel tasting the sugar - but it IS their diner). Also included "Off to Florida", as Lucy, Ethel, and Mrs. Grundy stop off at that Florida coffee shop.

The marathon will begin with "Lucy Changes Her Mind" and conclude with "Lucy's Night in Town."

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5551) 10 months ago

That sounds interesting. I'll be waiting to hear what you come up with!

One of my favorite "dining at home" eps is an early one when Lucy invites a feuding Fred and Ethel to dinner. They are sitting on a bench together and Fred knocks Ethel onto the floor.

[–] jcnyclv (1420) 10 months ago

OMG that episode with Bill Holden in The Brown Derby is one of my favorites, it's absolutely hysterical from start to finish. Even my husband, who's not such a huge fan, cracks up every time. And that nose at the end! 🤣🤣🤣

[–] Ken12602 (486) 10 months ago

"Lucy Changes Her Mind" is an interesting one. The first half is good and the second half is good but the two parts don't go together. It starts off with her not being able to make up her mind and then switched to her not being able to finish what she started.

[–] Garyandfilm (515) 10 months ago

I love "Lucy Changes Her Mind." My only complaint is why would such a glamorous restaurant have VENETIAN blinds?? I guess it's to shut out the sunset, but the venetian blinds make the restaurant look more like an office.

[–] Ken12602 (486) 10 months ago

Because they are cheap to cover a a bare wall and make the audience think that there is a window there.

[–] Garyandfilm (515) 10 months ago

They could've "covered up the wall" with something more attractive - windows with drapes (they needed a window, as Lucy feels "a draft").

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5551) 10 months ago

Gee Gary, you have a great eye for detail! I've watched that episode countless times and never noticed the blinds on the window.

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5551) 10 months ago

I agree Ken. There is something that always seemed off about "Lucy Changes Her Mind". The first half about her changing her mind has nothing to do with the second half about finishing what she started.

That episode looked like two halves of two different episodes. It would have been interesting to see a first half where Lucy left a lot of things unfinished. I could imagine something like Lucy takes Ricky's tux to the dry cleaner but on the way there she stops to check out a sale. Then she gets sidetracked by shopping somewhere else, then she decides to stop for a quick bite. So by the time she gets to the cleaners, the store is closed and Ricky won't have his tux for work on time.

The second half of the episode has some interesting insights into Lucy's personality. She finds a fifteen year old unfinished love letter to Tom Henderson. Why was she keeping a love letter that was already four years old by the time she married Ricky? I thought I was a saver and a pack rat!

[–] Garyandfilm (515) 10 months ago

Can't say I agree that the second half of "Lucy Changes Her Mind" feels like a separate episode. Wasn't changing tables twice and her dinner order at least three times NOT finishing what she started??

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5551) 10 months ago

Well I don't know.....Lucy changed tables because she felt a draft. She kept changing her order because everything else seemed so good. It wasn't exactly "not finishing" what she started. She intended to finish her meal, she just couldn't decide on what to order.

[–] Corryveckan45 (145) 10 months ago

How could Lucy believe that her old boyfriend had undergone such a drastic physical change, even if it was over 10 years since she'd seen him? Especially someone who went on to play "The Lone Ranger." lol

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5551) 10 months ago

I've wondered about that too. Lucy says, "My hunk has shrunk".

That didn't make sense. Sure, some guys start to lose their hair early on, but few men lose six inches in height!