The Green Environment

Many episodes of this beloved series focused on either the relationship between Lucy (Lucille Ball) and Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz) or between best pals Lucy and her neighbor, Ethel Mertz (the talented Vivian Vance). And sometimes it was Ricky and Fred Mertz (William Frawley) versus their wives or, once in awhile, the Ricardos versus the Mertzes. No worries, the shows always end with a happy hug.

The most fervent I Love Lucy fans may cite, as a favorite, the first episode on this tape, "Job Switching," in which Lucy and Ethel challenge Ricky and Fred to a domestic role reversal. As the men toil as homemakers, Lucy and Ethel find work at a candy factory. When the shop supervisor explains the process of making and packaging the candy, it seems simple enough, but the conveyor belt isn't working in the gals' favor. Hilarious hijinks ensue. Also on this tape is "Lucy Meets Bob Hope." By the time this episode (number 154) appeared, Lucy Ricardo's reputation as a star-seeker and inadvertent troublemaker had preceded her. So when Ricky hopes that Bob will appear at the opening of his new club, Lucy sets out to smooth things over with the celebrity. Knowing Lucy, misunderstandings abound, but this time they work in her favor. This second episode is also notable because it reunites Ball and Hope, who starred together in such movies as Sorrowful Jones and Fancy Pants. --N.F. Mendoza