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Lucy did some amazing stunts herself, but for which scenes and episodes did Lucy (or other cast members) use doubles?

 

One I'm wondering about is Gale Gordon attempting to get into, but missing the raft and plunging into the icy Colorado River.  For someone, well over 60 and not in the greatest of shape, he did some pretty amazing things himself. (Pick ax, anyone?)

 

In that same episode has Lucy being yanked off a high rock into the water by the raft.  It's shot from a distance and is probably not her.

In "Ironman I", when she does her G-7 (swing from a chandelier), it certainly looks like her but you'd think they'd film her from the front so we could see her facial expressions, instead of showing up the back of her head.  

 

I'm 90+% sure that's Lucy doing what was probably her greatest stunt of all time.  At age 54, the somersaults in mid-air on wires for the Danny Thomas Burlesque Show.  Is anyone 100% sure?

Can you imagine any of her other 54 year old 1965 contemporaries doing that?  Eve Arden? Ann Sothern??  Maybe Joan Davis, if she hadn't died in 1961 (at age 54---or age 49: choose your source). 

 

One of Lucy's physical bits that's never mentioned, probably because it's from one of THOSE 4th season episodes that SOME people don't like, is her riding the motorized skateboard (or whatever it was) in "Lucy Bags a Bargain".   It's not so much the danger as it was the coordination it took to do a couple of laps around that dinky set and then get herself upright to make the exit.  It's evident that Lucy is doing all the steering herself.   In the same vein, I've always been impressed with her wheelchair chase in "Florence Nightingale". 

 

As in ALL of Lucy's stunts, she makes the above look a whole lot easier than it is.  

Has anyone seen another comedian do the stilt thing?  Lucy first had to master the skill herself, so she knew how to control the props, and then do it as if she's scared to death; AND make it appear that she's not in control.  All in a matter of a couple of days.  Other than Chaplin and Keaton (and probably some lesser known silent clowns), I don't know of another in the 50s and 60s with such coordinated skill, certainly no female. 

Ditto the hammock scene.  I've seen a couple other people attempt this (Don Adams, John Ritter) and there's always the sense they're doing it on purpose---which of course, they are.  But so was Lucy. 

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Lucy did some amazing stunts herself, but for which scenes and episodes did Lucy (or other cast members) use doubles?

 

One I'm wondering about is Gale Gordon attempting to get into, but missing the raft and plunging into the icy Colorado River.  For someone, well over 60 and not in the greatest of shape, he did some pretty amazing things himself. (Pick ax, anyone?)

 

In that same episode has Lucy being yanked off a high rock into the water by the raft.  It's shot from a distance and is probably not her.

In "Ironman I", when she does her G-7 (swing from a chandelier), it certainly looks like her but you'd think they'd film her from the front so we could see her facial expressions, instead of showing up the back of her head.  

 

I'm 90+% sure that's Lucy doing what was probably her greatest stunt of all time.  At age 54, the somersaults in mid-air on wires for the Danny Thomas Burlesque Show.  Is anyone 100% sure?

Can you imagine any of her other 54 year old 1965 contemporaries doing that?  Eve Arden? Ann Sothern??  Maybe Joan Davis, if she hadn't died in 1961 (at age 54---or age 49: choose your source). 

 

One of Lucy's physical bits that's never mentioned, probably because it's from one of THOSE 4th season episodes that SOME people don't like, is her riding the motorized skateboard (or whatever it was) in "Lucy Bags a Bargain".   It's not so much the danger as it was the coordination it took to do a couple of laps around that dinky set and then get herself upright to make the exit.  It's evident that Lucy is doing all the steering herself.   In the same vein, I've always been impressed with her wheelchair chase in "Florence Nightingale". 

 

As in ALL of Lucy's stunts, she makes the above look a whole lot easier than it is.  

Has anyone seen another comedian do the stilt thing?  Lucy first had to master the skill herself, so she knew how to control the props, and then do it as if she's scared to death; AND make it appear that she's not in control.  All in a matter of a couple of days.  Other than Chaplin and Keaton (and probably some lesser known silent clowns), I don't know of another in the 50s and 60s with such coordinated skill, certainly no female. 

Ditto the hammock scene.  I've seen a couple other people attempt this (Don Adams, John Ritter) and there's always the sense they're doing it on purpose---which of course, they are.  But so was Lucy. 

 

Neil:  NOW you got ME wondering if she really WAS driving that lawn mower in the TULIP episode!    Strange how one simple thing reminds you of another.  HOWEVER, many thanks for the reminders....  Loving you, JK :fabrary:

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Neil... you said it perfectly...others always seemed to do it on purpose but Lucy always looked spontaneous. .. ALWAYS. (A FEW SMALL times it didn't ) What about that Marineland stuff... watching the behind the scenes footage you feel the frustration to get in sync with the animals... (who else could make it look believable?) Are she and Gale on that plank and is it them falling into water?? On the Here's Lucy DVD there is car driving footage from the airport and I dont think that's LUCY driving. Those were corny stunts in later years but believable. I really get a kick (and this is an example of her characterization. Might I have a Mai Tai??

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In a clever bit of staging, Ironman stumbles out of the bar doors, comes back in and is picked up and tossed through the window, then stumbles back in the doors.  The was obviously a stuntman(woman).....ironic that the stuntwoman is doing the stunt for the stuntwoman character.

I don't think it's Lucy that does the heels over head tumble over the fence as she's running from the bull in "Mexico", or leaping onto the back of Fred MacMurray's burro in "Uranium",or skiing on the back of Fernando in "Sun Valley", but the crack the whip/slide across the ice done by Lucy is impressive. 

And yes, both she and Gale had doubles doing some of the stuff in the mishmash climactic scene in the otherwise highly enjoyable "Marineland".   That scene and the punting on the Thames collision in "London" are the two worst (worstest?) edited scenes of her career.  (What an episode for Maury Thompson to make his directorial debut!)

She's doubled on the chariot in "Horse Race" as all three are in the cement bucket scene from "Milton Hides Out". 

Our TVs were the opposite of HD back then and it wasn't until the DVD release that I even noticed.  Nor did we notice the obvious wires holding them up as they hung from each other on the bucket. 

And of course, nobody was going to risk Lucy on a runaway horse in "Mame" with her pin-together leg.  It's obvious, but done as well as could be expected.   The horse ride's rear screen is pretty well done, but were they still using actual rear-screen projection in 1973?

 

Pointing out the times she used stunt doubles doesn't take away from the miraculous things she DID do. 

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STILL WONDERING ABOUT THE LAWNMOWER RIDE....

​         So, went to the 'master;' Fidelman came through; says: 

 

'Notice Lucy's scene on the runaway lawn mower; film speeded up; sound overdubbed to give impression she's moving much faster that she is.'

  (guess that almost says 'no double')

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STILL WONDERING ABOUT THE LAWNMOWER RIDE....

​         So, went to the 'master;' Fidelman came through; says: 

 

'Notice Lucy's scene on the runaway lawn mower; film speeded up; sound overdubbed to give impression she's moving much faster that she is.'

  (guess that almost says 'no double')

 

To quote the REAL"master", "For this you need a book??!"  (help me Senor Expert Jimmy, what ep is that from?? Thanks!)

:HALKING::lucywow::vanda::lucythrill:

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I'm always interested in the use of stunt doubles too. The hour shows have the most obvious use of them. Lucy's skiing double in Lucy Goes to Sun Valley broke her leg doing her stunt.

 

To quote the REAL"master", "For this you need a book??!" (help me Senor Expert Jimmy, what ep is that from?? Thanks!)

:HALKING::lucywow::vanda::lucythrill:

Lucy Fakes Illness. :) "I'm learning to act abnormal."
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I'm THAT WAY EVERY DAY . . . shades of Lucy! 

 

Fits right in with my crowd; when my daughter was about 16; she turns to me and says: 

 

QUOTE:  Mom, you and Gramma are NUTS!  And...........I feel myself getting just like you...unquote

 

.  She's gonna be 49 this August 5!   [we have MANY Leo's in my family!  :fabrary:

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