Satirical commentary of I Love Lucy every Friday! Here’s the info to watch ahead, plus all the WTFacts for this week. 

This week’s episode: 

“The Diet”

Original Air Date: 

October 29, 1951

The week’s WTFacts:

Did you know the original I Love Lucy pilot episode disappeared until 1990? A widow of one of Lucy and Desi’s close friends notified CBS she had a copy. Now it’s on the DVD collection and you can see it here. 

Since it never aired, I may review it as a special post down the road. I did promise every episode, but I want to prioritize those shows that, you know, were actually on TV. And episode six (“The Audition”) is the exact same plot, anyway. 

• Lucy filmed the pilot while six months pregnant with daughter Lucie Arnaz.

• Writers changed Lucy and Ricky’s last name from Lopez to Ricardo to avoid confusion between Ricky Lopez and bank leader Vincent Lopez.

• Fred and Ethel don’t appear in the pilot because their roles hadn’t been cast yet. It apparently took a long time to find a beautiful, capable actress willing to be shat on for nine years.

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See you Friday!

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