| DVD Roundup November 2004
 Reflections
on Lucy: A Time When Sitcoms Were Really Funny
The show that started it all
Since almost the very beginning, the situation-comedy genre
has been a cornerstone of American television. One shining light in the early days was
Lucille Ball. In her multiple hit television series, including I Love Lucy and Here’s
Lucy, Ball evinced an impeccable sense of timing, a talent for physical comedy, and
the ability to play to the crowd even when the majority of the crowd was in its own living
rooms.
One of the very first sitcoms, I Love Lucy set the
standard for all that followed. The show’s backstory was simple: Lucy Ricardo (Ball)
is married to nightclub bandleader Ricky Ricardo (Ball’s then-husband, Desi Arnaz).
Their married friends, Fred and Ethel Mertz (William Frawley and Vivian Vance), live in
the same building. Each episode consists of the introduction of a problem, the trials of
trying to solve the problem (often with a brief musical interlude of Ricky at the club),
and the wrap-up. Series writers Bob Carroll, Jr., Madelyn Pugh, and Jess Oppenheimer were
able to keep this simple formula fresh and funny for years.
In the pilot episode, Ricky must perform for television
sponsors who are considering giving him a show, but he does not want his wife to be in the
act. Lucy, however, desperately wants to be part of the show. During band rehearsals, a
key part of the show, Pepito the clown is injured and retires to Ricky’s apartment to
recuperate. Pepito finds Lucy at home, and she quickly decides to take the clown’s
place in the show. Lucy gets to perform, hoping to help Ricky’s chances at TV
stardom, but the sponsors offer Lucy, not Ricky, a TV show. In another episode, it is Fred
and Ethel’s anniversary; Ethel and Lucy want to celebrate at a nightclub, while Fred
and Ricky want to take in the fights. This classic "boys vs. girls" scenario
results in Lucy and Ethel dressing up as other women in an attempt to fool their husbands.
Their plot backfires, and all four end up at the fights.
Lucy’s performances are marked by exaggerated facial
expressions and physical comedy that were ideal for the small television screen. In one
opening scene, Lucy wakes up with the kind of slow motion and sleepiness that we’re
all familiar with, mimics Ricky as he shaves, and dances with a lampshade hat and
bed-sheet dress. In another bit of excellent physical comedy, Lucy tries to play a cello
while taking Pepito’s place. Lucy and Ricky also share easygoing banter, as when
Lucy, in disguise, arrives to perform with the band. Ricky asks, "Oh, are you a
musician?" Her affirmative answer is met with, "I have to see your
credentials," to which she responds in shock and outrage -- as if he had asked to see
something much more personal. In another episode, Lucy remarks, "Since we said
‘I do,’ there are lots of things we don’t." The sets and costumes are
simple, which allows the focus to be on the performance and the actors.
I Love Lucy (****) is available on DVD, both
as single discs and in two boxed sets, one each for the first two seasons. I had only one
disc of the first season on hand, but the video and sound are good, and the extras are
worthwhile companions to the episodes. Some material may seem dated to some, such as Ricky
wanting a wife who stays at home to be the mother of his children, as well as the
occasional fun poked at Ricky’s Cubano accent, but such humor is never malicious
here.
Lucy finished, Ball rolled on to another hit show
I Love Lucy went off the air in the late 1950s, but
Ball remained on television in various capacities into the ’70s. From the late
’60s into the early ’70s she starred in another sitcom, Here’s Lucy,
in which she played the widow Lucy Carter. Ball’s two children, Desi Jr. and Lucie,
play the Carter children, and Gale Gordon plays Lucy’s brother-in-law and boss and
functions as the straight man. As in the earlier series, the show is kept simple, which
allows the characters and comedy to come through beautifully. A good selection of episodes
is available on a new set from Shout! Factory, Here’s Lucy: Best-Loved Episodes
from the Hit Television Series (****). This collection is important not only for
Lucy’s work, but also for the performances of the many guest stars, who include Jack
Benny, Milton Berle, and Flip Wilson.
In one of the series’ best-known episodes, Lucy
mistakes Richard Burton for a plumber, ends up getting Elizabeth Taylor’s diamond
ring stuck on her finger, and, standing behind a curtain, substitutes her own arm for
Taylor’s so the press won’t know of the mixup. In another episode, Lucy
convinces Flip Wilson (playing himself) to play the role of Prissy in a local production
of Gone With the Wind. Ball and Wilson are beautiful together; the episode is
funnier than anything I’ve seen on television in recent years. Viewers too young to
remember many of these great performers are in for a lovely treat. Twenty years after I
Love Lucy, Ball still had great comedic timing and understood her audience.
Shout! Factory and Lucy’s children have done a superb
job of putting the Here’s Lucy collection together. The episodes are funny,
the guest stars are important show-business legends, and the commentaries are interesting.
The bonus material offers a rare peek behind the show, including a humorous blooper reel
of Jack Benny and Ball. The set offers hours of enjoyment.
Today’s sitcoms owe much to Lucy’s legacy
In contrast to these Lucy shows, consider two of
today’s most popular sitcoms, Friends (**1/2, Warner Home Video) and Everybody
Loves Raymond (***, Warner Home Video). I’ve found neither of them as
inventive, enjoyable, or funny as the classic shows just discussed. Both rely on an
increased sense of realism that is detrimental to the overall production. The sets are
more cluttered and designed to look more "real" than earlier series, which left
the sets sparse and concentrated on the actors’ interactions. These later shows are
sentimental in the most saccharine ways -- fake emotional distress followed by sympathetic
"ohs" from the audience do little to propel a dramatic scene.
The contemporary shows are more like soap operas -- the
viewer needs to know who the characters are and their relationships with each other for
the humor to be understandable. In contrast, all one needs to know about I Love Lucy
is that there are two married couples. And about the characters in Here’s Lucy you
often need to know nothing at all -- just put it on and watch the story unfold. Try to
follow the convoluted relationships on Friends and you’re likely to get a
headache, or realize you have better things to do.
Raymond does everything possible to make family life
look unattractive and family relationships antagonistic. Except for the seldom-seen
children, I can think of no relationship that Raymond doesn’t portray as a
struggle for power. Lucy and Ricky were often at odds, but what underlay their
disagreements was their obvious love for one another. On Raymond, I can’t for
the life of me figure out why Ray and his wife remain married -- they’re always
arguing about trivial matters.
Several seasons of Friends are available in DVD
boxed sets, and the first season of Everybody Loves Raymond was recently released.
I’m sure fans of these shows will be pleased with them, but casual viewers looking
for comedic release would do better to stick with Lucy.
Comedy has an important role in life: to allow us to relax
and laugh at ourselves and the human condition. The creators of the early television
comedies seem to have grasped this fact. The universality of their themes and the talents
of their actors and writers often seem to make those old shows more entertaining than
anything contemporary TV has to offer. The next time you need to escape from your daily
stress, do yourself a favor: Turn off contemporary television and seek out these truly
funny productions.
…Eric Hetherington
erich@hometheatersound.com |
