And for the I Love Lucy fanatics:
RETURN HOME FROM EUROPE
Episode #153, Aired May 14, 1956
The Ricardos and Mertzes are packing to leave Nice, France to go home. Fred and Ethel come to see Lucy and check on her packing. Lucy's mother has sent their mail but it contains a telegram for Ricky and this upsets him because she sent it to them by regular mail, so he blames her for not thinking. Lucy sides with her Mom saying maybe it's a birthday greeting. He opens it and it's an important booking at The Roxy Theatre in New York and they want Ricky to open there with his band for 2 weeks, starting next Monday. Fred suggests they fly home to get there in time. Ricky calls the Roxy and meanwhile, tells Fred to go and reserve them and the band on Pan American Airlines. Fred checks and says a clipper leaves tomorrow arriving in New York the following day. Ricky tells the theatre they'll arrive in plenty of time by air from Europe. Fred will call the steamship lines and say they're going home by plane. He reminds Ricky the band was going home free for playing on the boat, but now, Ricky has to buy plane tickets for the band too. Ricky tells Lucy that thanks to her mother, he has to play The Roxy for 2 weeks for nothing, but he's been waiting a long time to play there and that's what he'll do. Lucy insists she must take to her mother some rare Italian cheese that weighs 25 pounds. Being fed up with Lucy's mother, Ricky does not want her to take the cheese, besides it will add too much to the allotted weight of 66 pounds people can carry back on the plane. He and Fred leave the room as they have a lot to do. Lucy thinks she will disguise the cheese as a baby thinking babies travel for free. Later, on the plane, Ricky discovers Lucy's disguise and refuses to sit with her. Another mother, Evelyn Bigsby, and her baby take the seat beside Lucy so they don't disturb the others with their babies. Lucy keeps the cheese a secret from Mrs. Bigsby, and still pretends that it's a baby. Lucy admits her child is named Chester and Bigsby reveals her daughter is named Carolyn. During the flight Lucy finds out that babies cost 10 per cent of the regular fare on overseas flight, which comes to $30.00 and since it costs $2.00 per pound for anything over 66 pounds allotted, then the cheese would come to $50.00. Either way, she cannot afford it. She insists Ethel and she have to eat as much of the cheese as they can, to get rid of it so they don't have to pay for the cheese, or for the disguised baby. They'll figure out what to do later with whatever is left of it. After hiding the remainder of the cheese, Lucy returns to her seat and Bigsby asks her where her baby is. Lucy reveals it was a piece of cheese, to shrieks of horror from Bigsby, causing an investigation of Lucy at the customs office when the plane lands. Ethel reveals she and Lucy ate as much as they could of the cheese and it's discovered that the rest of it is hidden in the band's musical instruments. Ricky surmises it's not easy being married to Lucy but it's a lot of fun. With anticipation, he suggests to her it is time to go home now and see the baby.
Songs: Rock a Bye Baby.
Cast: Mary Jane Croft as Evelyn Bigsby; Frank Nelson as customs officer; Bennett Green as member of the press; Mildred Law as stewardess; Ray Kellogg as airline pilot.