This was Lucille Ball’s follow-up to I Love Lucy. Here Ball is a widowed mother of two, sharing her home with best friend Vivian Vance, who is a divorced mother of one. All the other members of household are, of course, faced with the disasters triggered by Lucy. I screened this set immediately after viewing its close contemporary, Petticoat Junction, and the difference between the two was instructive. There are plenty of hokey gags and situations on The Lucy Show, but there is an enormous difference between the shows, thanks to the comic genius of Lucille Ball. Her energy fills each episode, her timing is spot-on, but there is also her commitment to a type of physical comedy that to this day remains pretty much the exclusive domain of male performers. Not only does she make this style her own, she grounds it in a female reality. There is a reason she was so beloved a performer, and why her work still stands up today.
The third season offers up even more laughs. Some highlights of the season include:
Video
Though the image is a bit soft, with features losing definition in long shots, the picture is still looking remarkably good for television from 1962-63. The newly-restored colors are brighter than you might expect. There is no edge enhancement to deal with. It is, frankly, very unlikely that these episodes have ever looked better.
Audio
The soundtrack is mono (you were expecting anything else?), and it’s a very solid mono. There’s a warm tone to it, and it avoids being tinny. There isn’t too much to say beyond that, but it is always clear (again, keeping in mind the vintage here) and up to the job at hand.
Special Features
Paramount went all out for the second season of The Lucy Show. Each disc contains production notes, an option to watch in the original broadcast format (vintage open/closes and cast commercials). Plus…
Disc 1:
Lucy At The World’s Fair: (28:34) Albert Fisher was on hand for Lucy Day at the 1964 World’s Fair in New York, where he got to spend the day with Lucy herself. He narrates several clips from the event.
Lucy And Jack Benny: (3:30) Tony Maietta offers up an intro to Lucy In The Plumber complete with a Lucy look-alike.
Disc 3:
The Danny Kaye Show: Lucy agreed to a trade-off that brought Benny to her show. These two clips highlight Lucy’s reciprocal visit on his show.
Disc 4:
Lucy Goes International: Promos from other countries for the show.
Final Thoughts:
Lucy’s third season won’t disappoint fans of the wacky redhead. The sets contain more than most comedy television shows get, and that should make the fans quite happy. The vintage interview and historical pieces are a big plus for the show and star’s fans who, I’m sure feel that “This is just wonderful“.
Some of this review was written by Gino Sassani.
