"The Lucy Show" isn't the same show as "Here's Lucy" - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TV Guy · 05-04-2001, 09:43 AM

These are two different shows. Granted, they have some of the same cast members (Lucille Ball, Gale Gordon, Mary Jane Croft) and creative team. And "Here's Lucy" (1968-74) started on CBS right after "The Lucy Show" (1962-1968) ended. A couple of reference books even refer to them as the same show. But they're not.

In "The Lucy Show", Ball plays Lucy Carmichael, a widow living with two children named Chris and Jerry. During the show's first three seasons, she shares her suburban New York (not Connecticut, as incorrectly reported elsewhere) house with Vivian Bagley (Vivian Vance, from "I Love Lucy") and Viv's son Sherman. Gale Gordon plays Mr. Mooney, the banker who administers the trust left to Lucy by her late husband.

Halfway through the series, Vance bails out, and the kids are dropped. It is said that Viv remarried and Chris went off to college. Lucy moves to southern California (not San Francisco, as some reference books say) to be closer to Chris and Jerry, who's attending boarding school there. (This is a funny explanation, since Chris is never seen again, and Jerry only appears a couple of times). Lucy gets a a new apartment, a new best friend (Mary Jane Lewis, played by Mary Jane Croft), and a new job, working as a secretary for Mr. Mooney, who amazingly enough, has moved out to California as well. Viv occasionally drops by for visits.

By 1968, Ball had sold Desilu, the producer of both "I Love Lucy" and "The Lucy Show", to Paramount. The format of "The Lucy Show" was now owned by Paramount, but Ball wanted to fully own her television show. So, "The Lucy Show" came to an end, and Ball began producing "Here's Lucy" through her new Lucille Ball Productions. In this series, she plays Lucy Carter, another widow with two children, Kim and Craig, this time played by Ball's real-life children, Lucie and Desi, Jr. Lucy works as a secretary for her brother-in-law Harry (Gale Gordon) at an employment agency. Her best friend is again played by Mary Jane Croft. Vivian Vance still drops by for occasional visits, now playing Lucy's old pal Vivian Jones. Desi Jr. leaves halfway through the run, but otherwise, the show remains pretty unchanged for its six seasons.

Sorry to be longwinded, but you can see that these are two separate shows, owned by separate companies, that are never rerun together. As it is, neither one is seen very often these days, which probably explains the lack of interest on this board

dawsongirl · 05-04-2001, 02:49 PM

Thank you. I'm glad to see somebody say that. I keep running into people and books that think they're the same. Drives me nuts, because I much prefered Here's Lucy to The Lucy Show.

TJ · 05-04-2001, 07:27 PM

Thanks for the explanation, I guess the Tim Brooks/Earle Marsh tv reference book is way off as they listed it as one show with a title change. This board is brand new so that might explain the lack of posts. I would have combined them into one board like What's Happening/What's Happening Now regardless.

EdLuvsLucy · 12-11-2001, 08:12 PM

I couldn't have said it better myself TV Guy. It drives me crazy when people reffer to these as the same series. Especially reference books and Lucy biographers. I would think these people would do thier research. I recently bought a 2 disc DVD featuring 10 episodes from the California episodes and on the back of the box they list the characters that were regulars through out the run of the series. They say Lucille Ball portrayed Lucy Carmichael/Carter and the Gale Gordon portrayed Theodore J. Mooney/Harrison Otis Carter. They also say the series ran from 1962-1974. They act as if The Lucy Show and Here's Lucy are one entity. I would expect them to get thier facts straight.

05-04-2001, 09:43 AM	#1
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	"The Lucy Show" isn't the same show as "Here's Lucy" These are two different shows. Granted, they have some of the same cast members (Lucille Ball, Gale Gordon, Mary Jane Croft) and creative team. And "Here's Lucy" (1968-74) started on CBS right after "The Lucy Show" (1962-1968) ended. A couple of reference books even refer to them as the same show. But they're not. In "The Lucy Show", Ball plays Lucy Carmichael, a widow living with two children named Chris and Jerry. During the show's first three seasons, she shares her suburban New York (not Connecticut, as incorrectly reported elsewhere) house with Vivian Bagley (Vivian Vance, from "I Love Lucy") and Viv's son Sherman. Gale Gordon plays Mr. Mooney, the banker who administers the trust left to Lucy by her late husband. Halfway through the series, Vance bails out, and the kids are dropped. It is said that Viv remarried and Chris went off to college. Lucy moves to southern California (not San Francisco, as some reference books say) to be closer to Chris and Jerry, who's attending boarding school there. (This is a funny explanation, since Chris is never seen again, and Jerry only appears a couple of times). Lucy gets a a new apartment, a new best friend (Mary Jane Lewis, played by Mary Jane Croft), and a new job, working as a secretary for Mr. Mooney, who amazingly enough, has moved out to California as well. Viv occasionally drops by for visits. By 1968, Ball had sold Desilu, the producer of both "I Love Lucy" and "The Lucy Show", to Paramount. The format of "The Lucy Show" was now owned by Paramount, but Ball wanted to fully own her television show. So, "The Lucy Show" came to an end, and Ball began producing "Here's Lucy" through her new Lucille Ball Productions. In this series, she plays Lucy Carter, another widow with two children, Kim and Craig, this time played by Ball's real-life children, Lucie and Desi, Jr. Lucy works as a secretary for her brother-in-law Harry (Gale Gordon) at an employment agency. Her best friend is again played by Mary Jane Croft. Vivian Vance still drops by for occasional visits, now playing Lucy's old pal Vivian Jones. Desi Jr. leaves halfway through the run, but otherwise, the show remains pretty unchanged for its six seasons. Sorry to be longwinded, but you can see that these are two separate shows, owned by separate companies, that are never rerun together. As it is, neither one is seen very often these days, which probably explains the lack of interest on this board

12-11-2001, 08:12 PM	#4
EdLuvsLucy Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Mar 08, 2001 Location: Glenshaw, Pa. 15116 Posts: 57	I couldn't have said it better myself TV Guy. It drives me crazy when people reffer to these as the same series. Especially reference books and Lucy biographers. I would think these people would do thier research. I recently bought a 2 disc DVD featuring 10 episodes from the California episodes and on the back of the box they list the characters that were regulars through out the run of the series. They say Lucille Ball portrayed Lucy Carmichael/Carter and the Gale Gordon portrayed Theodore J. Mooney/Harrison Otis Carter. They also say the series ran from 1962-1974. They act as if The Lucy Show and Here's Lucy are one entity. I would expect them to get thier facts straight.
	__________________ ELL

05-04-2001, 02:49 PM	#2
dawsongirl Member Forum Icon Join Date: Jan 04, 2001 Posts: 53,128	Thank you. I'm glad to see somebody say that. I keep running into people and books that think they're the same. Drives me nuts, because I much prefered Here's Lucy to The Lucy Show.

05-04-2001, 07:27 PM	#3
TJ Site Owner Administrator Forum Star Join Date: Feb 03, 2000 Location: Marietta, GA Posts: 10,677	Thanks for the explanation, I guess the Tim Brooks/Earle Marsh tv reference book is way off as they listed it as one show with a title change. This board is brand new so that might explain the lack of posts. I would have combined them into one board like What's Happening/What's Happening Now regardless.