Ricky Thinks He’s Going Bald – I Love Lucy episode 34, season 1, originally aired 6/2/1952
Ricky Thinks He’s Going Bald is a very good episode, highlighting Ricky’s vanity instead of Lucy’s foibles for a change. After Lucy talks about crows feet, Ricky begins worrying about growing bald. He goes the point of wearing a hat to the breakfast table. Despite Lucy’s efforts to build up his ego, Ricky becomes more preoccupied with his imminent hair loss. Lucy visits a shop that deals with men’s hair products, looking for products to soothe Ricky’s ego.
Later, she comes up with the idea of hiring bald men to come to the apartment, letting Ricky see himself in comparison to truly bald men. She contacts the hair store in order to find so many men, and even the proprietor comes – and removes his toupee and get paid as one of the bald men! Even Fred Mertz gets in on the act – in his own fashion. However, Ricky calls to say that he won’t be home until late, making the ‘bald party’ a moot point.
Later, Lucy gives Ricky a hilarious scalp massage, with some of the best physical humor seen in the I Love Lucy show. Only to have Ricky claim that he likes it and wants to do it several times weekly!
Ricky Thinks He’s Going Bald is available as part of the season 1 I Love Lucy DVD collection.
Quotes from I Love Lucy – Ricky Thinks He’s Going Bald
Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz): [Lucy is making funny faces in her vanity mirror] Lucy, what are you doing?
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball): Honey, remember what you said to me the first time you met me?
Ricky Ricardo (Desi Arnaz): I sure do. I said you were a cute little chicken.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) : Well, I got something to tell you about this cute little chicken. She has crow’s feet.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball): If your hairline was any lower, they’d have to bill you as Ricky Ricardo, boy sheepdog.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball): Fred, you’ve given me an idea. I’m going to give Ricky scalp treatments. And they’ll be so drastic he’ll be glad to forget the whole thing.
Fred Mertz (William Frawley): It won’t work…
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) : Why not?
Fred Mertz (William Frawley): Nothing has ever been invented that a man won’t try if he thinks he can get his hair back.
Lucy Ricardo (Lucille Ball) : Oh, yeah? Well, you haven’t heard of the “Lucy Ricardo Torture System of Hair Restoring.”
Trivia from I Love Lucy – Ricky Thinks He’s Going Bald
- The hair-treatment scene was originally scheduled to appear in the first half of the episode. The audience reaction was so strong that the script was rewritten, to make it as the climax.
- In real life, Desi Arnaz never went bald – his hair turned gray.