nicholas latkovic

This short 8mm color film footage was fimed by an audience member of I Love Lucy, on the evening of October 12, 1951, at Sound Stage #2 of Desilu Studios in Hollywood, California.

The episode filmed that night was sixth episode of the first season, “The Audition”. It was a remake of the I Love Lucy pilot episode, which was presumed lost until 1990.

Although many people tried to capture the scene of filming, producer and writer Jess Oppenheimer prohibited it, because of the possibilities of leaking. This footage is the only surviving “behind-the-scenes” material of this legendary sitcom.

“The Audition”. By Madelyn Pugh Davis, Bob Carroll Jr., Jess Oppenheimer. I Love Lucy. CBS, Los Angeles. 19 Nov. 1951.

Part of the Ford Fairlane range, the Skyliner had a complex mechanism which folded the front of the roof and retracted it under the rear decklid. It had three roof drive motors driving four lift jacks, four door lock motors, ten solenoids, four locking mechanisms for the roof, and a total of 610 ft (185.9 m) of wiring.

Unfortunately, the mechanism was prone to failure, and the large top took up vast amounts of trunk space, limiting the car’s sales. Production totaled 20,766 units in 1957, declining to 14,713 in 1958 and to 12,915 in 1959, its final year of production.

“Friendship”. Written by Cole Porter.

“Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress”. By Bob Carroll Jr., Madelyn Davis (as Madelyn Pugh), Jess Oppenheimer. I Love Lucy. CBS, Los Angeles. 19 Oct. 1953.