I Love Lucy and Frasier
Posted: 06 Apr 2015, 05:46
So I'm up too early this morning and I just caught the end of I Love Lucy. Her husband and best friends were threatening to sue her for libel because she'd apparently written a scandalous tell-all about them in which she referred to Fred as an old coot, etc. Then her publisher came over and explained that his secretary had been distracted and he'd signed off on the wrong book--he hadn't wanted hers.
"So long, book of the month!" she swore. "Now no one will benefit from my beautiful work of art."
Disheartened, and in true comic fashion, she ripped up all her copies and threw them away. Then her publisher called back and said he had a colleague who was interested in her manuscript. She had to dig through the incinerator and piece-meal her manuscript, and she stayed up all night retyping it.
Then she phoned her new publisher that morning, and he said, "I don't think this was made clear to you, but I want to use excerpts from your novel in a how-to book about writing a novel."
Lucy was thrilled, and told her friends. Then he said, "Your novel's excerpts are going to be in a section called 'Don't Let This Happen to You.'"
HA HA HA.
***** ***** *****
The episode of Frasier is even better. Frasier and Niles meet TS Houghton, a reclusive favorite author of theirs, who was famous for one book... he never published again. TS Houghton doesn't want to discuss his work and he's sick of people approaching them about it. He makes friends with their dad, Martin, though; because Martin just wants to hang out with him and catch a ballgame.
But when Houghton comes over to pick up Marty for the game, he accidentally leaves his writer's satchel with Frasier and Niles, who (of course) open it and read Houghton's entire second manuscript, fresh on its way to his publisher.
They love it. They're rapt. They're still trying to process it when Houghton and Martin return from the double-header. Martin is furious, but Houghton says, "No, it's OK. Someone had to read it first. So what did you think?"
Frasier and Niles become tongue-tied idiots and can't articulate a thing to save themselves. Houghton excuses himself to use the restroom, and by the time he's come out, Frasier and Niles are gushing about his book's reference to Dante's Inferno.
"You noticed that, did you?"
"Oh, yes. It was brilliant."
Mr. Houghton loses it. "That's it. That's what I was afraid of: I have nothing original left to say!" And then he hurls his only typed manuscript copy off the balcony.
Frasier and Niles are trying to comfort each other afterward (meanwhile their dad wants to kill them), and Frasier says, "If he couldn't handle our criticism, he wasn't ready to publish another novel."
And Niles says, "Yes, but what if..."
And Frasier says, "Don't go there."
"And that's why you're the big brother," Niles replies.
***** ***** *****
That's one of my favorite episodes of all time--it's just the way the actor says that: "I have nothing original left to say!" And then the document hurling. Anyone out there seen these, seen other shows similar, or have any comments?
"So long, book of the month!" she swore. "Now no one will benefit from my beautiful work of art."
Disheartened, and in true comic fashion, she ripped up all her copies and threw them away. Then her publisher called back and said he had a colleague who was interested in her manuscript. She had to dig through the incinerator and piece-meal her manuscript, and she stayed up all night retyping it.
Then she phoned her new publisher that morning, and he said, "I don't think this was made clear to you, but I want to use excerpts from your novel in a how-to book about writing a novel."
Lucy was thrilled, and told her friends. Then he said, "Your novel's excerpts are going to be in a section called 'Don't Let This Happen to You.'"
HA HA HA.
***** ***** *****
The episode of Frasier is even better. Frasier and Niles meet TS Houghton, a reclusive favorite author of theirs, who was famous for one book... he never published again. TS Houghton doesn't want to discuss his work and he's sick of people approaching them about it. He makes friends with their dad, Martin, though; because Martin just wants to hang out with him and catch a ballgame.
But when Houghton comes over to pick up Marty for the game, he accidentally leaves his writer's satchel with Frasier and Niles, who (of course) open it and read Houghton's entire second manuscript, fresh on its way to his publisher.
They love it. They're rapt. They're still trying to process it when Houghton and Martin return from the double-header. Martin is furious, but Houghton says, "No, it's OK. Someone had to read it first. So what did you think?"
Frasier and Niles become tongue-tied idiots and can't articulate a thing to save themselves. Houghton excuses himself to use the restroom, and by the time he's come out, Frasier and Niles are gushing about his book's reference to Dante's Inferno.
"You noticed that, did you?"
"Oh, yes. It was brilliant."
Mr. Houghton loses it. "That's it. That's what I was afraid of: I have nothing original left to say!" And then he hurls his only typed manuscript copy off the balcony.
Frasier and Niles are trying to comfort each other afterward (meanwhile their dad wants to kill them), and Frasier says, "If he couldn't handle our criticism, he wasn't ready to publish another novel."
And Niles says, "Yes, but what if..."
And Frasier says, "Don't go there."
"And that's why you're the big brother," Niles replies.
***** ***** *****
That's one of my favorite episodes of all time--it's just the way the actor says that: "I have nothing original left to say!" And then the document hurling. Anyone out there seen these, seen other shows similar, or have any comments?
Poor downtrodden Lucy! I didn't think it was fair that the publisher made her give the check back - it was their mistake so they could eat their money. And Fred threatening to sue Lucy for calling him an 'old coot' is hilarious - Fred was the epitome of an old coot.
