Luvsbway Posted March 14, 2014 Report Share Posted March 14, 2014 A topic I don’t think we have discussed before. From what I can figure out based on photos and off screen appearances it seems like our fab 4 only needed glasses to read for at least most of their life. So lets take a closer looks at who wore them and when. Let’s start with Lucy. On ILL Lucy only wore glasses on rare occasions for a comedic purpose. Lucy Writes a Novel, Ricky Needs and Agent, LA At Last. I can’t recall her ever wearing them to read anything. On the Lucy Show it’s mentioned that Lucy Carmichael had some eyesight problems thus she got a trial pair of contacts that she quickly lost. What we don’t know is if she ever did get her eyesight corrected. As for off screen Lucy the first time I start noticing her with glasses is late 50’s/early 60’s. The stockholder meetings are where I see her with them on. Then throughout the 60’s/early 70’s a smattering of pictures with her holding them/laying in front of her and occasionally wearing them to read. Come the late 70’s and through the 80’s we see Lucy wearing glasses a lot more off screen. Those are the big frames with the tinted lens. I’m sure they were worn for 3 reasons. One to read/see up close, the tinted lens helped work as sunglasses and finally they helped hide any aging around the eyes. On the Lucy Moves to NBC special there is a very real moment when the cast for the pilot show sits down for a table read and Lucy pulls out her glasses and mentions about needing them. We also knew that she did need them to read as is evident in that Emmy clip where she doesn't have them and can’t read anything. The Password episodes from the 80s she also uses them but in a unique fashion. She looks through them backwards, never actually putting them on. Betty even comments about it on one episode. So I think based on these events she just needed them to read. There are many other times though when she is reading that I don’t see her with glasses, such as the 60’s Passwords for example. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 On another glasses front I’ve noticed Lucy wears sunglasses a lot when she is outside. I love her shots from the 40’s with sunglasses and her 60’s styles are super cute. What I have noticed on and off camera is if she is outside without them she tends to squint a lot. I know I wear mine even when cloudy and raining and unless it is night I always drive with them. Bright light I have a lot of sensitivity too, so I wonder if she had that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 I think Desi was the only one of the 4 who was never shown on ILL with glasses (he only shows up in sunglasses on a few occasions). I first start noticing him with glasses, again only to read, in the mid 50’s. In the backyard scene in Forever Darling he wears them to read the paper. This shot they are in his hand. In the Westinghouse promo piece at the end where he is addressing the camera he puts them on and off to read. In the behind the scenes footage of the Mothers-In-Law you can see his glasses sitting on the table at the table read and he does have them on a few times in that footage. I’ve also seen photos of him at stock holder meetings with them as well. Here they are on the table. Again photos of him I have seen past the 50’s I've very rarely seen him with them. Of all 4 cast members though I think he looked the best in glasses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Now looking at Viv. Viv does wear glasses a few times on all 3 series but they are rarely used for comic effect. In Second Honeymoon she has them on to read. There are quite a few times on the LS she has them on to read as well. Comedic wise they are used in Loophole in the Lease. I believe the only time she shows up in glasses on HL is the Lawrence Welk episode again for comedic effect and we’ve discussed how she is apparently blind without them, then in the next episode in Tijuana she can see fine. I have seen a few off screen shots of her wearing them to read, and on the Dinah! show she puts them on to read the fake contract. What is interesting is all the times she is shown with glasses I think they are her own pairs. I don’t think I remember her having a pair that were not white. On the LS and HL they were white. On the Dinah! episode white. I'm not sure if these are sunglasses are tinted glasses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 15, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Bill I have the least amount of info on with glasses but again he seems to only wear them to read. He also probably had the most jokes made about his glasses on the show. In Vacation from Marriage he can’t find them as they are always on his head. He couldn't read the itinerary in Switzerland as Ethel sat on them, and in CT to see Betty’s legs better . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyImHome Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Vivian is wearing some bizarre spectacles when she and Lucy are on Dinah!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C L A U D E Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 And Bill was forever looking for his glasses and they were right there on top of his head, IF THEY'D BEEN A SNAKE, THEY'D HAVE BIT HIM! Great collection of glasses and the fab four, great thread Shel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Great thread! (And I love that photo of Desi with Belushi on the SNL set. I've never seen that before. Wonder what they are leafing through -- that looks like the photo of Desi holding the Meyer twins.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeySanJoaquin Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Great thread! (And I love that photo of Desi with Belushi on the SNL set. I've never seen that before. Wonder what they are leafing through -- that looks like the photo of Desi holding the Meyer twins.) Yes and the other guy they're talking with is familar but can't place him... anyone? anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeySanJoaquin Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 On another glasses front I’ve noticed Lucy wears sunglasses a lot when she is outside. I love her shots from the 40’s with sunglasses and her 60’s styles are super cute. What I have noticed on and off camera is if she is outside without them she tends to squint a lot. I know I wear mine even when cloudy and raining and unless it is night I always drive with them. Bright light I have a lot of sensitivity too, so I wonder if she had that. Okay this Clint Eastwood/Mr. Morton (dig that 'spression on his face!!) one BEGS for some captions! Let's get busy, kids! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Okay this Clint Eastwood/Mr. Morton (dig that 'spression on his face!!) one BEGS for some captions! Let's get busy, kids! I thought it was SNL writer Tom Schiller -- son of Bob -- at first glance, but I don't think so. I wonder what it was like for Desi to work with two generations of Schillers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeySanJoaquin Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 I thought it was SNL writer Tom Schiller -- son of Bob -- at first glance, but I don't think so. I wonder what it was like for Desi to work with two generations of Schillers! Could be...I think I've only met the senior Schiller....god love him, he's STILL funny! Do we know what junior's doing these days? Whether he's still East Coast or back here on West Coast to be close to his aged dad? He'd be a great interview, I bet. Think of all the things he's 'sperienced with his lineage, work experience, etc. etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C L A U D E Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 As soon as I saw him, I knew it was Schiller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brock Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Okay this Clint Eastwood/Mr. Morton (dig that 'spression on his face!!) one BEGS for some captions! Let's get busy, kids! Clint Eastwood: Doing weird things with chairs since 1975 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C L A U D E Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Yeah, noticed him right away, so Lucy must have liked him a lot seeing as she was the one to send out the invitations for his Variety Clubs tribute. Wish I had thought of your great line about the chair Brock, I'm yealous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 23, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 23, 2014 I was watching Lucy's Sister Pays a Visit. Viv wears her real white framed glasses at the end of the episode. Since she really is playing the organ here she needed them to see the music. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FreddieMertz Posted March 24, 2014 Report Share Posted March 24, 2014 I always thought Viv's white glasses were groovy and that she should have worn them more often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luvsbway Posted March 24, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 24, 2014 So 60\70s looking. A statement type of glasses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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