Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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210 of 211 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Lucy Gives Birth, A Chocolate Factory & A Washing Machine!, October 7, 2004
Over 50 years ago during the early years of broadcast television, the very inspired talents of Lucille Ball (1911-1989) and her then husband Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) were showcased on their hilarious television show "I Love Lucy". TV execs had initially rejected the plausibility of the show because of Desi and because they intended to tape the shows. However, thanks to the tireless efforts of Lucille Ball and Desi's obvious talents, the show first aired in 1951 and quickly became one of the most successful TV shows during all six of its regular seasons. As Lucy and Ricky Ricardo on "I Love Lucy", Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were joined by William Frawley (1877-1966) and Viviane Vance (1909-1979) as their best-friends/apartment landlords of Fred and Ethel Mertz.
The second season of "I Love Lucy" that aired between 1952 and 1953 has 32 memorable episodes:
1. "Job Switching": Lucy & Ethel get jobs at a chocolate factory, while Ricky & Fred try their hands at being "house-husbands" and cook up a large mess; a famous & very popular all-time favorite episode.
2. "The Saxophone": Lucy's talent (or lack thereof) of playing the saxophone is showcased when she wants to join Ricky on a band tour.
3. "The Anniversary Present": Lucy thinks Ricky is having an affair when he's really just trying to buy her a set of pearls.
4. "The Handcuffs": Lucy & Ricky get handcuffed in what they thought were fake handcuffs.
5. "The Operetta": Lucy writes an operetta for her woman's club to perform to raise money. Unfortunately, Lucy hasn't been very good managing the club's finances.
6. "Vacation from Marriage": Lucy & Ethel take a vacation from Ricky & Fred.
7. "The Courtroom": Ricky & Lucy purchase a new TV for Fred & Ethel's anniversary, but things go awry when the TV appears to need to be adjusted.
8. "Redecorating": Lucy thinks that she's won new furniture and decides to give their apartment a wallpaper makeover.
9. "Ricky Loses His Voice": Lucy takes advantage of Ricky's laryngitis to write a new show for Ricky's club.
10. "Lucy is Enciente": Lucy tries to find the right way to tell Ricky that she's pregnant.
11. "Pregnant Women are Unpredictable": Ricky tries to help Lucy in the house so that she can stay in bed.
12. "Lucy's Show Biz Swan Song": Lucy 'says farewell' to show business during a "gay-90's" review.
13. "Lucy Hires an English Tutor": Wanting their child to learn proper English, Lucy hires a tutor with the promise that Ricky will let him perform.
14. "Ricky Has Labor Pains": Ricky feels neglected.
15. "Lucy Becomes a Sculptress": Lucy takes up sculpting to provide an artistic environment for their coming child.
16. "Lucy Goes to the Hospital": Ricky, Fred & Ethel practice to make sure they get Lucy to the hospital calmly and efficiently, and Ricky also has a voodoo show to do.
17. "Sales Resistance": A salesman talks Lucy into buying a vacuum cleaner and Ricky is not very pleased. Lucy tries to resell it to "Mrs. Simpson" (Verna Felton, 1890-1966).
18. "The Inferiority Complex": Lucy develops an inferiority complex, so Ricky hires a psychiatrist for help.
19. "The Club Election": Lucy bribes a fellow club-member to be nominated for a coveted club position and ends up running against Ethel.
20. "The Black Eye": Ricky accidentally gives Lucy a black eye, but Fred & Ethel don't believe the real story.
21. "Lucy Changes Her Mind": Lucy has trouble making up her mind, including when dining out.
22. "No Children Allowed": A frequent "I Love Lucy" recurring character is introduced: Mrs. Trumble (Elizabeth Patterson, 1875-1966).
23. "Lucy Hires a Maid": Having difficulty taking care of the home & baby, Ricky tells Lucy to hire a maid, but who is really in charge: Lucy or the maid ("Mrs. Porter", played by Verna Felton again)?
24. "The Indian Show": Lucy wants to be in Ricky's Native American show.
25. "Lucy's Last Birthday": Lucy gets upset when she doesn't want anything special for her birthday and gets exactly that.
26. "The Ricardos Change Apartments": Ricky & Lucy move into a larger apartment to have a separate nursery.
27. "Lucy the Matchmaker": Lucy wants to help a friend find a mate, but Ricky doesn't want her to get involved.
28. "Lucy Wants New Furniture": Lucy gets a new sofa & coffee table without Ricky's permission, so she tries to economize to pay for it.
29. "The Camping Trip": Lucy goes camping with Ricky with Ethel's help.
30. "Ricky's Life Story": An article in "Life" magazine about Ricky makes Lucy want to resurrect her own show business career desires.
31. "Ricky & Fred Are TV Fans": Ricky & Fred are engrossed with a boxing match on TV and nothing that Lucy & Ethel do can change it; not even nearly getting arrested.
32. "Never Do Business With Friends": Ricky gets Lucy a new washing machine. so Fred & Ethel purchase their old one, but it doesn't work as well as expected. (One of my favorite all-time episodes.)
Paramount Home Video did a superb packaging job of putting all 32 second season episodes on 5 DVD's, thus shrinking the overall packaging size and reducing the price from the first season set. Overall, I rate the "I Love Lucy: The Complete Second Season" DVD box set with 5 out of 5 stars!
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247 of 251 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Trip to California, Mothers-in-Law, the Brown Derby, Harpo, March 15, 2005
Over 50 years ago during the early years of broadcast television, the very inspired talents of Lucille Ball (1911-1989) and her then husband Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) were showcased on their hilarious television show "I Love Lucy". TV execs had initially rejected the plausibility of the show because of Desi and because they intended to tape the shows. However, thanks to the tireless efforts of Lucille Ball and Desi's obvious talents, the show first aired in 1951 and quickly became one of the most successful TV shows during all six of its regular seasons. As Lucy and Ricky Ricardo on "I Love Lucy", Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were joined by William Frawley (1877-1966) and Viviane Vance (1909-1979) as their best-friends/apartment landlords of Fred and Ethel Mertz.
The fourth season of "I Love Lucy" that aired between 1954 and 1955 has 30 memorable episodes:
1. "The Business Manager": Ricky's hired business manager (Charles Lane) for Lucy's household budget only allows her $5/month to spend.
2. "Mertz and Kurtz": When Fred poses as a real-estate tycoon to impress an old vaudeville partner (Charles Winninger, 1884-1969), Lucy helps by posing as the Mertz' maid.
3. "Lucy Cries Wolf": Lucy's multiple phony attempts to see if Ricky will rush home to save her finally backfires.
4. "The Matchmaker": In spite of Ricky's objections, Lucy tries to get two singles to propose to one another.
5. "Mr. and Mrs. TV Show": Ricky's reluctance to do a live morning TV show with Lucy from their apartment backfires for Lucy when she tries to get back at him by sabotaging what she believes is only a dress rehearsal.
6. "Ricky's Movie Offer": When a talent scout comes to audition Ricky at the Ricardo's apartment, Lucy isn't about to give up her big chance.
7. "Ricky's Screen Test": Lucy wants more than a bit part in Ricky's audition for "Don Juan".
8. "Lucy's Mother-in-Law": Lucy tries to impress Ricky's mother on visit from Cuba by having a Spanish-speaking translator on an earphone.
9. "Ethel's Birthday": Fred asks Lucy to pick out Ethel's birthday gift, Ethel's reaction angers Lucy with hilarious results at a play.
10. "Ricky's Contract": Overly anxious to hear back from Hollywood, Fred leaves a phony message that Ricky got the part, but Ethel can't get there fast enough to prevent Lucy from telling Ricky the "good" news.
11. "Getting Ready": When the gang decides to drive to Hollywood, Fred purchases an old used car.
12. "Lucy Learns to Drive": When Ricky gets a new convertible, Lucy insists that she learn to drive; but when Lucy wants to teach Ethel, uh oh!
13. "California, Here We Come": Confusion ensues when Lucy's mother (Kathryn Card, 1892-1964) decides to join the car trip to California, but a better decision is made as Lucy, Ricky, Fred & Ethel head west!
14. "First Stop": With everyone tired of riding in the car, Lucy pulls over to a run-down restaurant/hotel.
15. "Tennessee Bound": When Ricky is arrested for driving too fast, it's up to good ol' Cousin Tennessee Ernie Ford (himself, 1919-1991) to save the day.
16. "Ethel's Home Town": When the gang stops in Albuquerque to visit Ethel's family, Ricky, Lucy & Fred aren't happy when the whole city thinks that Ethel is the star.
17. "L.A. at Last": Lucy, Fred & Ethel eat the famous Brown Derby where Lucy makes a mess of William Holden (himself, 1918-1981) in a nearby booth.
18. "Don Juan and the Starlets": Lucy wants a divorce when it appears that Ricky stayed out all night with five starlets.
19. "Lucy Gets in Pictures": Lucy finally gets her big chance to appear in a film thanks to Ricky, but the headdress is too much to handle.
20. "The Fashion Show": Lucy finds a way to get a free original Don Loper (himself, 1906-1972) dress; but she quickly learns that sunburns and wool don't mix.
21. "The Hedda Hopper Story": Lucy tries to further Ricky's career by trying to impress the rumored hotel guest Hedda Harper (herself, 1885-1966).
22. "Don Juan is Shelved": When Ricky's movie is shelved, Lucy tries too hard to make Ricky popular and get him another role.
23. "Bull Fight Dance": When Ricky lets Lucy appear with him on a TV show, she's not too happy about being a bull.
24. "Hollywood Anniversary": Ricky frantically attempts to find out his forgotten anniversary date and plans a huge surprise nightclub party for Lucy, who is miserable thinking that he's forgotten it.
25. "The Star Upstairs": Desperately wanting to see Cornel Wilde (himself, 1915-1989) whose hotel room is directly above the Ricardos, Lucy will do anything to see him and ends up trying to climb back down using bedsheets.
26. "In Palm Springs": With Lucy, Ricky, Fred & Ethel bored with other, Lucy & Ethel travel to Palm Springs and meet Rock Hudson (himself, 1925-1985).
27. "The Dancing Star": To impress the visiting Carolyn Appleby (Doris Singleton), Lucy convinces Van Johnson (himself) to let her dance with him.
28. "Harpo Marx": Again to impress the visiting Carolyn Appleby, Lucy pretends to be Harpo Marx, but the real Harpo (himself, 1888-1964) shows up!
29. "Ricky Needs an Agent": When Lucy poses as Ricky's agent, she accidentally has his movie contract cancelled.
30. "The Tour": Lucy & Ethel leave their Hollywood tour bus so that Lucy can pick a grapefruit from Richard Widmark's (himself) garden.
Paramount Home Video's superb job of packaging all 31 episodes of the third season of "I Love Lucy" onto 5 DVD's is a good indication as to how they will similarly package the fourth season. Overall, for superb packaging and a great price, I rate the "I Love Lucy: The Complete Fourth Season" DVD box set with an anticipatory 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it!
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150 of 158 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Dress Shop, Home Movies, Telling the Truth & Cousin Ernie, December 29, 2004
Over 50 years ago during the early years of broadcast television, the very inspired talents of Lucille Ball (1911-1989) and her then husband Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) were showcased on their hilarious television show "I Love Lucy". TV execs had initially rejected the plausibility of the show because of Desi and because they intended to tape the shows. However, thanks to the tireless efforts of Lucille Ball and Desi's obvious talents, the show first aired in 1951 and quickly became one of the most successful TV shows during all six of its regular seasons. As Lucy and Ricky Ricardo on "I Love Lucy", Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were joined by William Frawley (1877-1966) and Viviane Vance (1909-1979) as their best-friends/apartment landlords of Fred and Ethel Mertz.
The third season of "I Love Lucy" that aired between 1953 and 1954 has 31 memorable episodes:
1. "Ricky's 'Life' Story": Not happy about being ignored in Ricky's magazine interview, Lucy gets back at Ricky.
2. "The Girls Go Into Business": Lucy & Ethel purchase a dress shop, but things don't turn out as profitably as they had imagined.
3. "Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress": Getting a rare opportunity to perform on TV for their women's club, Lucy & Ethel purchase the same dress.
4. "Equal Rights": When Lucy & Ethel demand equal rights from Ricky & Fred, the men only think that they are getting back at them at a restaurant.
5. "Baby Pictures": Lucy's jealousy over Carolyn Appleby's (Doris Singleton) baby as compared with Little Ricky is not advantageous to Ricky's upcoming appearance on a TV show hosted by Carolyn's husband.
6. "Lucy Tells the Truth": Lucy bets Ricky that she can tell the truth for 24 hours and drives everyone crazy.
7. "The French Revue": Ricky bets Lucy $50 that she won't be able to sneak into his new French review club act.
8. "Redecorating the Mertzes' Apartment": Lucy helps Ethel & Fred redecorate their apartment, including new paint and new upholstery with obvious results.
9. "Too Many Crooks": Ricky thinks Lucy is the notorious "Madame X" that has been robbing nearby apartments; she's really been collecting objects for a club bazaar.
10. "Changing the Boys' Wardrobe": Disgusted by Ricky & Fred's aging wardrobe, Lucy & Ethel sell their husband's old clothes to a second-hand man.
11. "Lucy Has Her Eyes Examined": A visit to an eye doctor doesn't help Lucy audition for a jitterbug number that she has practiced for.
12. "Ricky's Old Girlfriend": Lucy's worried about Ricky's reaction to a visit in NY by one of his old Cuban girlfriends: Carlotta Romero.
13. "The Million-Dollar Idea": Lucy & Ethel's TV commercial to sell Lucy's salad dressing ends up doing much better than expected.
14. "Ricky Minds the Baby": Ricky doesn't do as good a job as Lucy of taking care of Little Ricky.
15. "The Charm School": Lucy & Ethel go to charm school to keep Ricky & Fred interested in them.
16. "Sentimental Anniversary": Lucy & Ricky want to have a quiet wedding anniversary, but Fred & Ethel have other ideas.
17. "Fan Magazine Interview": Lucy & Ricky prepare for a fan magazine interview, but a quarrel between them could change the interview outcome.
18. "Oil Wells": The Ricardos' new neighbors want them to invest in oil wells.
19. "Ricky Loses His Temper": Lucy bets Ricky that he can't keep his temper and that she won't buy any new hats.
20. "Home Movies": When Ricky gets the opportunity to do a film audition, Lucy, Ethel & Fred create their own film that Lucy edits with Ricky's home movies of Little Ricky.
21. "Bonus Bucks": Lucy & Ethel become obsessed with trying to win money with 'bonus bucks'.
22. "Ricky's Hawaiian Vacation": Lucy & Ethel go on a game show to try and win a trip to Hawaii to be with Ricky.
23. "Lucy Is Envious": Lucy is too ashamed to admit that she can't afford a $500 donation to a rich friend's charity.
24. "Lucy Writes a Novel": Lucy decides to write a novel, but doesn't like the response that she gets from an interested publisher.
25. "Lucy's Club Dance": When Lucy & Ethel's 'all-girl' orchestra rehearse horribly for a club dance, Ricky has to think fast since Lucy put his name as their orchestra leader.
26. "The Black Wig": To test Ricky's fidelity, Lucy dons a black wig to tempt him; but Fred knows all about the scheme.
27. "The Diner": When Ricky decides to quit show business, he & Fred purchase a diner; but everyone isn't too happy with their new duties.
28. "Tennessee Ernie Visits": When Cousin Ernie (Tennessee Ernie Ford, 1919-1991) pays the Ricardos an unexpected visit, Lucy tries to scare him away.
29. "Tennessee Ernie Hangs On": Still staying with the Ricardos, Lucy once again tries to get him to leave by pretending that she & Ricky are impoverished.
30. "The Golf Game": Wanting to spend more time with Ricky & Fred, Lucy & Ethel get the men to teach them how to play golf; but it isn't how most people play the game.
31. "The Sublease": Planning to be gone for a while, Lucy & Ricky sublet their apartment; but Lucy (per usual) changes her mind and wants to get their apartment back from the timid Mr. Beecher (Jay Novello, 1904-1982).
Paramount Home Video's superb job of packaging all 32 episodes of the second season of "I Love Lucy" onto 5 DVD's is a good indication as to how they will similarly package the third season. Overall, for superb packaging and a great price, I rate the "I Love Lucy: The Complete Third Season" DVD box set with an anticipatory 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it!
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