I Love Lucy (1951–1957): Season 6, Episode 26 - Lucy Raises Tulips - full transcript

(light-hearted music playing)

("I Love Lucy" theme song playing)

(theme song ending)

(gasps)
Fred, cut that out.

Fred, you get out of my tulip bed.

The idea!

What's the matter, Mommy?

Oh, Fred's trying to bury his bone in
my tulip bed.

Oh, that's naughty, Fred.

Yes, that's naughty, Fred.

Especially when Mama's trying to win
a prize.



A prize?

Yeah, the garden club's gonna give a
prize

for the best-looking garden tomorrow,

and Mama wants to win the prize.

Hear that, Fred?

Yeah, you hear that, Fred?
Now, you just

take your old bone and skedaddle.

Here, you take it, honey, and call
him.

Come on, Fred.
Go on, go on, Fred.

Come on, Fred.
Go on.

Come on, Fred.
You go on.

Come on, Fred.
Call him.

Come on, Fred.
Go and get him, honey.

Don't let him run in the street.



Fred!

Ricky, come back, honey!

Here, now, you carry him, dear.

Take him way outside there, now.

(chuckles)
Now, you stay out of here, Fred.

Hi, honey.

Hi.

Oh... how do you think my tulips
look?

Oh, they're just beautiful.

Do you think I can win a prize?

Well, I don't know, Lucy.

I was just next door at Betty
Ramsey's,

and her tulips are beautiful, too.

In fact, her whole

garden's just gorgeous.

She really has a green thumb.

If I win that prize tomorrow, she'll
be green all over.

Gee, I never saw you work so hard.

Oh, this isn't work-- it's fun.

You know, you ought to have a garden,
Ethel.

Then you could have fresh flowers all
the time.

Oh, who has to work so hard?

I just went down to the village gift
shop

and bought some wax tulips,

and you can't tell the difference.

Wax tulips! Oh, Ethel!

How can you live with a substitute

when you could have the real thing?

I don't know.

I've been asking myself that ever
since I married Fred.

You know, I-I think I really do have
a chance

to win that prize tomorrow.

I hope so, honey, but remember, now,

Betty's won the cup three years in a
row.

That's before I moved to Westport.

Gee, I'd get a big kick out of
beating her.

She thinks she's so smart.

You know, the way she brags about

the cross-pollination she does, you'd
think she was a bee.

That's what I like--

a nice, friendly rivalry between
friends.

Well, she thinks she knows
everything.

She's always talking about root rot

and compost heaps and aphids.

and all that stuff.
Shh, here comes the queen bee.

(clears throat)
BETTY: Hi.

Hi, Betty, dear.

I'm going to New York to meet Ralph,

but I had to stop by and see how your
garden looks.

Oh, Lucy, it's lovely.

Oh, can't compare with your garden,
Betty.

Oh, I don't know.

You're going to be pretty stiff
competition.

Well, I know it hasn't got a chance
against your garden.

As a matter of fact, I was just
looking at it

and I was thinking it looks so ratty

I ought to plow it under and plant
rutabagas.

(chuckling)

Why, this is one of the prettiest
gardens

I've ever seen...

Well, thanks, Betty.

For a beginner.

For a beginner?

I'll bet you when the judges award
the prizes tomorrow,

you're gonna walk away with...
at least second or third.

And who do you think's gonna walk
away with first, Betty?

Well, three years in a row with the
same bulbs, the same soil...

And the same shy, modest gardener.

Lucy, that wasn't a very nice thing
to say.

Well, it wasn't very nice of you to
call me a beginner.

Now, Lucy...
Dear, you are a rank beginner.

You don't know the first thing about
gardening.

I'll match my tulips against the
blooms

from your burned-out bulbs any day.

Oh, now look, why doesn't everybody
take her green thumb

and go to a neutral corner?
(laughs)

You keep out of this, Ethel.

Yeah, butt out, Ethel.

We'll just see who wins tomorrow.

Yeah, we'll just see.

And if I were you, Lucy,

I wouldn't clear a place on your
mantel for that cup.

I hope all your tulips get root rot!

Well, now, that was a pretty
exchange.

Well, she makes me so mad.

There's no reason why I can't win
that prize tomorrow.

My tulips are perfect.

My roses are beautiful and my lawn...

(gasps)

Oh, good heavens, the lawn.

Ricky forgot to mow the lawn.

Well, it does look kind of shaggy.

He promised me faithfully he'd get
this mowing done

in time for the judging tomorrow.

Husbands make me so mad.
They're always promising you

they'll do something for you, and
then they don't do it.

Well, that's one problem I never have
with Fred.

You don't?
Nope.

Never promises to do anything

for me in the first place.
Oh...

Come on, let's go find my reluctant
grass cutter.

Okay.

Rick, you asleep?

No, Fred, just relaxing.

Okay.

(sighing)

You think you'd maybe like to go down
to the village?

We could browse around the hardware
store

and kind of poke at the power tools.

No, not today, Fred.

My day off.

Wouldn't move off this couch if my
foot was on fire.

Ricky?

Oh, hi, honey.

Do you think if a person makes a
promise, he should keep it?

Sure, honey.

And if a husband makes a promise to
his wife

and doesn't keep it, isn't he a cad?

I guess so.

Then why didn't you cut the grass?

Hi, Ethel.

What have you got to say?

Well, it looks like you're married to
a cad.

Ricky!

The judges are coming tomorrow,

and the lawn looks terrible!

Look, honey, it's my day off.

I don't feel like pushing a lawnmower
all afternoon.

But the grass is a foot high.

What am I going to do?

Maybe you could rent a couple of
sheep for the day.

Oh, you two are a big help.

Lucy's trying so hard to beat Betty

and win that prize.

Ralph cut the grass for Betty.

Well, I would, too, if I had a power
mower like Ralph has.

Well, good, 'cause Ralph said that
you could borrow

his lawnmower any day you want, so
then it's all settled.

Except that today is not the day I
want to borrow it.

You promised to cut the grass,

Enrique Alberto Ricardo y De Acha,
the Third.

(sighs)

Well, are you going to do it?

When she uses my full name, I'm
cooked.

Go help him, Fred.

I will not.

You go out there and help him,

Frederick Hobart Edie Mertz, the
First.

Hobart, huh?

(laughs)

(lawnmower running)

Hey, the boys are doing a good job on
the lawn.

Yeah.

Are you ready to go to town?

Soon as I finish my list here.

(lawnmower stops)

FRED: Come on, Rick, how about it?

RICKY: Nothing doing.
Get out of my way.

FRED: I'm not moving.

RICKY: Now, Fred, for the last time,
I'm warning you!

What's going on?

Now, Fred, I'm telling you for the
last time, I want to cut

the lawn where you're standing.
Get out of my way!

I'm not moving till you let me take
my turn

and quit trying to hog it all.

What are you arguing about?

Wh-What's-What's the matter?

Fred won't get out of my way.

It's Ricky. He won't let me take my
turn on the mower.

It's not your turn yet!

I still got a whole minute to go.

Not by my watch, you haven't.

Oh, come on, now.

You must be able to settle this
peacefully.

I'd love to, if he just gets out of
my way.

I'm not getting out of his way till
he lets me take my turn.

He's been on that mower so long,

you'd think he was glued to the seat.

Come on, Ricky, let Fred have his
turn.

(Fred grunts)

I don't have to let him have his
turn.

It's not his lawnmower.

Well, it's not yours, either.

Well, it's my lawn!

Oh, now, now, kiddies.

Come on, take your turns

like little gentlemen.

Well... all right.

Go on, take your old turn.

Your darn tooting, I will.

Oh, come on, let's go.

Oh, now wait!
Do you think it's safe

to leave the children here with...
all by themselves?

They may get to fighting again over
that toy.

Well, I'll tell Little Ricky to keep
his eye on them.

How do you start this thing?

Figure it out for yourself.

Oh, gee, isn't it a beautiful day?

Yeah, and the lawn looks great--

what they've cut of it.

Yeah. I wonder why they left the
mower

out by the garage.

Where do you think they've gone?

Probably in the kitchen having a cold
drink.

Hey!

They're not in there.

Ricky!

Fred!

That's funny.

Well, they can't have gone far,
honey,

with the lawn only half-mowed.

Oh, they haven't gone far, huh?

Just to Yankee Stadium.

What?

"Harry Munson had some tickets

"for the baseball game,

and we took Little Ricky with us."

Well, what are they gonna do about
the lawn?

It says they'll finish it in the
morning.

Oh, well, then that's all right.

All right, my foot!
I have no idea how early

those judges are coming in the
morning.

Oh, honestly!

If they hadn't spent so much time

arguing about whose turn it was

they could've had it finished.

Well, I guess there's just one thing
to do.

What?
I'll have to finish the lawn myself.

You?!

You don't know anything

about running a power mower.

Well, what is there to know?

I know how to drive a car.

It can't be any harder than that.

Come on.

Interesting little machine, isn't it?

I wonder how you get it started.

Oh, fine.

Oh, look, it's got a crank.
I guess you crank it

like the old Model T's, remember?

That was quite a bit before my time.

Oh, come, now, Ethel.

I only go back as far as the Stutz
Bearcat and no farther.

Oh...
(giggles)

Hey, this looks like it might be fun.

Come on, crank her up, girl.

Gee, it's got gear shifts and
everything.

(sighs)

(grunts)
Oh, you got to get a good grip.

You got to get a good grip and go
around there.

Lots of elbow grease.
Steady--

steady around.
(grunts)

Oh, honey, you're not doing it right.

This is exactly the way we used to
cr...

Same way you used to crank, huh?

Well, I've been watching those old
movies on television.

Oh...
They... do it there.

Yeah.
The late, late show.

Yeah. Come on, crank her up.

(sighs)

(engine starts)

There she goes!

Hooray!

Ethel, what do I do?

Switch it off, Lucy!

I can't!

Switch it off!

No, no!
Well...

Lucy, turn it off!

I don't know how to turn it off!

There must be a switch there
someplace!

A switch, a switch!
Lucy, what are you do...?!

I don't know where the switch is!

What?!
I don't know where...

Call the hardware store!

Ask Mr. Becks how to turn it off!

The hardware store?

Yeah!
Mr. Becks?

Hurry up, I'm getting dizzy!

Operator, get me the Village Hardware
Store, quick.

Hello, Mr. Becks, this is Mrs. Mertz.

You know that power lawnmower that
you sold...?

I'm fine, thank you.

You know that power lawnmower that
you sold, uh...?

He's fine, too, thank you.

You know that power lawnmower that
you sold to the Ramseys?

Well, how do you turn it off?

Oh, Mr. Becks, I haven't got time

to look at a book of instructions.

M-Mrs. Ricardo's outside, and she's
on the thing,

and she's going around in circles!

Yes, in circles!

Huh?
Ethel!

Oh, Mr. Becks, she's not going in
circles anymore.

She's-she's running amok.

Huh?

What?

(Lucy shouts)

(screaming): Ethel...!

Now she's running amok backwards.

Huh?

Well, ho... just tell me how to shut
it off.

(screaming): Ethel!

There she goes again.

(screams)

What? A little gadget that's by the
carburetor?

Well, where's the carburetor?

Oh, is that the carburetor?

Oh, now, what do I do?
I push down on that...

by the little gadget, and that...
O-Okay.

Just a minute and I'll see if I can
find the gadget.

Lucy!

Lucy!

Lucy!

Mr. Becks, I can't even find Mrs.
Ricardo.

What?

She just went by your store heading
for Main Street?

Oh, no!

(phone rings)

Lucy?

Oh, it's you, Grace.

Uh, this is Ethel.

No, Lucy isn't here just now.

Well, to tell you the truth, I don't
know just where she is,

but the last I heard

she was on a lawnmower heading toward
Main Street.

No, I haven't been nipping at the
cooking sherry.

(motor humming)

Grace, I think I hear her coming now.

Yeah, she's heading this way.

(thudding and crashing)

Call back later, Grace.

Oh, Lucy.

Hi.

Are you all right?

Yeah, I'm all right.

Oh, honey!

Poor little thing.

How'd you finally get that thing
stopped?

Well, you know that hedge out here

that we were thinking of getting rid
of?

Yeah.

We don't have to think about that
anymore.

Did you hurt the lawnmower?

No, not a scratch on it.

That thing is indestructible.

Oh, Lucy.

Where have you been?

Oh, where haven't I been?

I've seen parts of Connecticut I
didn't even know existed.

First that galloping grass cutter

took me straight through the main
street of town.

The way people came out of their
houses to watch me ride by

you'd have thought I was Lady Godiva.

Then what happened?

Well, the next thing I knew I was on
the Boston Post Road.

The Boston Post Road?

Why did you go on a busy highway like
that?

It wasn't my idea.

That beast has a mind of its own.

I stayed on that Post Road for a mile
and a half.

You didn't.

Yeah.

Against traffic all the way.

Oh, Lucy.

You must've been terrified.

Oh, I was. If I ever let my hair get
dark at the roots

I'm afraid it's going to be snow
white.

Lucy?

What?

Was there much damage?

Well, every lawn between here and
town is half-mowed.

Well, thank goodness nothing really
serious happened.

That's what you think.

Just now as I was coming through the
Ramseys' yard

I plowed right through Betty's
garden.

Lucy... what happened?

(makes whooshing sound)

All of them?

All the tulips.

When I looked back, all I saw was a
sea of stems.

Oh, honey.

Oh, what am I ever going to tell
Betty?

She'll think I did it on purpose.

Oh, now, don't get too upset.

Uh... maybe you could get some tulips
at the nursery

a-and put them in Betty's garden

before she gets back from town.

Oh, honey, there isn't a tulip left

in the nursery with a bloom on it.

I was just there yesterday.

I feel so bad, I could cry.

Oh, dear.

I know what you could do.
What?

You can take your tulips

and transplant them into Betty's
garden.

Ethel, I feel bad, but not that bad.

Now, Lucy...

Well, maybe I'd better.
I ruined hers.

I guess it's only fair I give her
mine.

Good girl.

Oh, gee, when I think of the loving
care

I've given those little pink blooms.

Wait a minute.

Betty's tulips are yellow.

I could never fool her with my pink
ones.

It won't work...
thank goodness.

Gee, that's right, they were yellow,

just like those wax ones I bought.

That's it!

Wax tulips! I'll go down to the gift
shop

and get some wax tulips and put them
in there.

Come on!

Lucy?
While we're down there,

can I get some liniment for my
shoulder?

Yeah.

the Boston Post Road and headed for
home.

Wait a minute.
Wait a minute.

You mean to tell me you were going
the wrong way

on the Boston Post Road?
Yeah, honey.

But nothing happened--

no accidents or anything.

All that happened was

that people slammed on their brakes

and pulled over to the side.

when they saw me coming.

Then what happened?

Well, like I said, I-I finally got

the fool thing headed for home, and I
went along pretty good--

except for an occasional detour into
someone's yard, you know--

until I got to the Ramseys'.

And then that infernal machine

had the nerve to plow right through
Betty's tulip bed.

Oh, no.
Yeah.

How did you finally get it stopped?

Well, I-I cleverly ran it into that
hedge

I wanted to get rid of.

How come you didn't turn that little
switch

by the carburetor and shut off the
motor?

Because I didn't know anything about
the little switch

by the carburetor to shut off the
motor!

Now, don't pick on him just because
you insisted

on fooling around with a machine

that you didn't know anything about.

And I wouldn't have been fooling
around

with a machine I didn't know anything
about

if you hadn't gone tooting off to
some

baseball game.

Well, you know something, honey,

you're right.

I let you down.

The minute the Ramseys get home, I'll
go over there

and I'll tell Betty that it was all
my fault.

Oh, well, honey, thank you, but that
won't be necessary.

What do you mean?

Well, I know how Betty feels about
her garden,

so I replaced them.

Oh, good. You went to the nursery

and bought some new ones and
transplanted them, huh?

Yeah, well... No, the nursery was all
out of tulips,

so I went to the gift shop

and got some wax ones.

Wax tulips?!

Yeah.

Oh, you think you're going to fool

the judges with wax tulips?

ETHEL: Oh, yes.

Yeah, Rick.

They look real.
You can't tell the difference.

Oh, come on, now. Any child can tell
the difference

between a real tulip and a... and a
wax tulip.

Well, honey, do you mean that I
wouldn't be able

to get wax tulips that look as good
as these?

Never in a million years.

These are wax.

What are you talking about?

Yeah.

By George, they are wax.

Yeah.
(chuckles)

You know something, maybe these could
fool the judges.

Oh, I hope so, for Betty's sake.

And look, for my sake, when are you
going to finish

cutting the grass?

I'm going to do it right now.

Right now?!
Yeah.

It's so dark, you won't know what
you're doing.

Oh, yes, I'll be able to see all
right.

Besides this thing was all my fault.

The sooner I get it out of the way,

the better I'll feel.

Well, okay, honey.

Fred, we're having dinner over here
tonight,

so just read the paper for a while,
while we fix it.

FRED: Okay, okay.

(whispers): Fred, where are the
girls?

In the kitchen.

Come on.

Where we going?

I want you to go to the gift shop for
me.

What for?

Well, you know how Lucy said that it
was

too dark out there to see what I was
doing?

Yeah.
She was right.

Do you mean...?

Yeah, Lucy's tulips are going to be
wax, too.

Come on, let's go.
Oh, no.

...some of those marigolds...

Well, the judges are still over at
the Ramseys'.

Oh, honey, is it hot, or am I just
nervous?

Both-- it's hot, all right.

Why are they taking

so long over there?
I don't know.

They didn't find out about the
tulips, did they?

Now, now, honey, calm down.
Everything will be all right, dear.

Oh, I just hope those judges are
nearsighted.

That makes two of us.

What?

Uh... we don't want Betty to find
out...
Lucy!

Do you know anything about this
outrage?

What outrage?

The judges have disqualified me.

Someone replaced my tulips with wax
ones.

Oh, Betty, I'm sorry.

I can explain everything.

Then you did do it.

Oh, Lucy, I knew you wanted to win,

but I didn't think you'd stoop so
low.

Oh, now, Betty, it was an accident.

I ran amok on that lawnmower of yours

and just plowed through your garden.

And I-I tried to fix it by replacing
your tulips

with the wax ones.

I'm sorry.
Well, you fixed it, all right.

You fixed it so I couldn't possibly
win.

Oh, I really...
I'm terribly sorry, Betty.

Look, if I win the cup, I'll give it
to you.

Well, that won't be necessary.

No, I insist, Betty.

Uh, Betty, by the way,

how did the judges find out

that the tulips were wax?

Well, it wasn't hard.

They were melting in the sun.

Lucy, the judges are coming up the
walk.

The judges are here.
This is it.

Yeah, this is it, all right.

Lucy, honey?

Yeah?

Uh, I got to tell you something,
dear.

What?

Yeah?

Huh?!

Good luck.

Oh.

Oh, please...

Lovely, just lovely.

Oh, thank you.
Yes.

Certainly the nicest grounds we've
seen.

Oh...

Well, I don't think there's any doubt

about who the winner will be.

You mean Lucy's won?

Oh, honey.

Well, as long as it couldn't be me,

I'm glad it was you, Lucy.

Oh, thanks, Betty, but my offer still
goes

about that cup.
Oh, no!

Well, look, let's all go inside

and have some lemonade, eh?
It's very hot outside.

These are remarkably perfect tulips.
Yeah, well, let's...

Well, I certainly loved raising them.

You see, I started from scratch.
I-I didn't have a compost heap.

I didn't have anything, 'cause I just

moved here, as you well know.
Let's go inside

and have some lemonade.
Huh? Everybody?

And I just had a wonderful...

We can talk about it inside, honey.

If you notice these wonderful little,
uh...

Oh, no!

My tulips, my tulips!

What's happening to my baby tulips?

My little pink blooms!

Oh, gracious!

These are wax, too.

Wax!

Well!

Now, just a minute.
Well, what?

Just a minute, just a minute, girls.

Honey? Uh... Betty didn't have
anything to do about this.

I can 'splain.

You?

Well, start "splaining."

Well, now, this might be very hard to
believe,

but you know, like you said last
night,

it was too dark outside to see what

I was doing?
Yes? Yes?

Well, you was right.
It was dark.

Oh, it was so dark!

It was darker than the inside of your
sombrero.

And, uh, I was mowing the lawn very
nicely.

I mean, you really...
I don't know

how you did so well on the Boston
Post Road, I...

Never mind!

(applause)

(closing orchestral flourish plays)

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("I Love Lucy" theme song playing)

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Stay tuned for December Bride
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which follows immediately over most
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