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Lucy and the Franchise Fiasco


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what do you guys think of this episode? I thought it was pretty funny with Lucy in the penguin suit at the end, and typical Lucy style mayhem with the ice cream machine going berserk. Anyone notice how up close the ice cream looks much thicker and more like frozen custard out of the machine, but from the far shots, it looks more like whipped cream? And what was that yellowish liquid at the end of the scene?

 

I loved how at the end the penguins followed her to Bunny's house and they started eating the albacore and Lucy just shrugs. Wasn't her fault!

 

The restaurant that Lucy and Mary Jane and Vanda always eat at (with Sam as the waiter) really has an ugly color scheme but hey it was the 70s. Who would go there for a romantic dinner/lunch? (as seen in "Genuine Twimby")

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I actually didn't enjoy this episode. I found it was too "try hard" - they were all trying too hard to be funny and it just didn't work - it came across as really stupid. Not a fav. Yes, the diner colour scheme certainly was ugly but hey, we are talking about the early 70's!

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I've posted this before but...."Franchise Fiasco" is one of three Here's Lucy's I saw being filmed live. I actually got to sit through "FF"'s first run-through sans costumes and sets. I think the filming was some time in September and it did not air until much later (January?). Bob and Madelyn were NOT happy with the results. Changes were made to the original script and, I agree, not for the better. It reads much better than it plays.

As for the yogurt-gone-amock scene, they had trouble with the machine and filming shut down while they worked on the problem. They finally installed an air hose that blew yogurt up from the overflow tray and kept it on a wide shot. The insert shots of the thick yogurt were done later. In the original script, there was some reference earlier on to having trouble with the machine so the fact that it malfunctioned did not come out of the blue. The too-predictable bit of Harry putting on his hat that Lucy had filled with yogurt was not in the original script. Rather, Lucy is filling Harry's hat with yogurt as "Harry looks on in horror" and that's where the scene fades out. In fact, this whole scene was written much differently and ultimately directed and edited badly. Those awkward shots of the door to the storeroom with Harry saying off-camera "We're looking, lucille" were inserts.

Mary Jane screwed up her line "that's a bunny with a lot of lettuce". It was one of the very few retakes they did with Coby Ruskin encouraging us over the loudspeaker: "Give us a laugh like you're just hearing it for the first time." even though it was not a real LOL line. (And I think it actually replaced a better line B&M had written)

That Hanna-Barberra cartoon music that accompanies the scene added nothing to it and B&M were not happy with that either.

The penguins would not cooperate fully so the 'shrug' at the end was just a way to end the show. These penguins had appeared on a Jack Benny special. One of them could skate. What was supposed to happen was that in the midst of all this mayhem, a lone penguin enters on skates and Lucy says "What's the matter? Couldn't find your skate key?" For those that don't know what a 'skate key' is, you'll have to ask Joey or Claude because it was well before my time.

I can't think of another episode where Lucy and Mary jane were at odds in such a Lucy-Viv style.

 

And when nobody was looking, I got to sit in the actual booth!

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Wow Neil. Surprised you remember all that if it was 40 years ago. I remember someone said the tape date was September 21st, 1972 and it didn't air until February 5th, 1973, 40 years ago Tuesday (that's why I watched it.) I also thought it was awkward when Harry and MJ were in the storeroom talking. And I wondered why it looked much thicker up close. Talk about bad editing/continuity. I wonder if Lucy really got brain freeze when she ate it. What was that yellow stuff coming out of the machine at the end of the scene? And was Miss Ball frustrated when the cameras weren't rolling, or was she just trying to go with the flow? Or smoking her cigarettes? I actually know what a skate key is and I'm going on 24 in less than 4 months. You used to have to lock the skates instead of strapping them.

Surprised Lucy just didn't say "to hell with it!" if there were lots of production problems.

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Wow Neil. Surprised you remember all that if it was 40 years ago. I remember someone said the tape date was September 21st, 1972 and it didn't air until February 5th, 1973, 40 years ago Tuesday (that's why I watched it.) I also thought it was awkward when Harry and MJ were in the storeroom talking. And I wondered why it looked much thicker up close. I wonder if Lucy really got brain freeze when she ate it. What was that yellow stuff coming out of the machine at the end of the scene? And was Miss Ball frustrated when the cameras weren't rolling, or was she just trying to go with the flow? Or smoking her cigarettes? I actually know what a skate key is and I'm going on 24 in less than 4 months. You used to have to lock the skates instead of strapping them.

 

The whole show was just one big mess from start to finish! Much like the ice cream :lucyeww:

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