You Mean They Weren’t Driving A Real Car To California?
On July 8, 2014
- TV History
You Mean They Weren’t Driving A Real Car To California?
From Season 4, Episode 12, here’s the cast of ‘I Love Lucy’ setting out for California on January 10, 1955…sort of.
The car is a new Pontiac convertible. In case you did not know, “California, Here I Come” was written for the 1921 Broadway musical ‘Bombo’, starring Al Jolson. The song was written by Buddy DeSylva and Joseph Meyer, with Jolson often listed as a co-author. Jolson recorded the song in 1924 and it was an instant hit. Enjoy and share!
You mean, the Clampetts didn’t actually drive to California in their Model T? I’m crushed.
recalls in the book, “Desilu,” that General Motors gave the production a couple of ‘freebie’ Pontiacs and one went to Madeline Pugh, who co-wrote most of the classic episodes and later married producer Quinn Martin.
The video clip was a cell phone shot of a TV screen. It’s an understatement to say that the clip is ‘not great’ . . . 😉
Interesting that they used what looks like a projector screen back then. Nowadays it’s all greenscreen.
When my sister and I first saw this episode as kids, about 45 years ago, we often wondered why the windshield was removed from the 1955 Pontiac Chieftan. I told my sister that the only reason I could think of was that the glare from the lights would be reflected back, obscuring the audience’s view into the car. The filmed episode never showed the glass in the windshield frame, so I was just wondering if you could confirm my theory. Thanks, as always, for such a wonderful site, preserving television history. Glenn in the Bronx, NY.
They should have removed the windshield glass only and left the frame for authenticity.. I have never liked these shots.
Interesting that the Vance/Frawley age difference was never an issue.