The Black Wig

"" episode
"The Black Wig"
	Season 3, Episode #25 ; #92 in Series
Series:
Network:
Air date:	April 19, 1954
Written by:	Bob Carroll Jr.; Madelyn Pugh; Jess Oppenheimer
Directed by:	William Asher
Production code:	3-26 / 092
	Episode guide
IMDB	The Black Wig
Episode chronology
"The Diner"	"Tennessee Ernie Visits"

http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/BlackWig.jpg http://i148.photobucket.com/albums/s29/ABMfisher/WorldlyEthel.jpg

The Black Wig was the 92nd episode of I Love Lucy, also the 26th episode of Season 3 of the series. The episode, was directed by William Asher, originally aired on CBS-TV on April 19, 1954.

Synopsis[]

Lucy dons a black wig, believing it changes her appearance enough to test Ricky's marital fidelity. Eve McVeagh guest stars.

Plot summary[]

After seeing an Italian movie, Lucy longs to get one of the new chic Italian haircuts. Ricky forbids this, saying that women are meant to have long hair, and that he doesn't want Little Ricky to get confused by having a mother with short hair. When Lucy goes to her next hair appointment, she tells her hairdresser about the fight she had with Ricky about the Italian haircut. Her hairdresser lets her try on a wig styled like an Italian haircut, and Lucy looks so different that she decides to test to see if Ricky would flirt with a pretty girl if he didn't recognize her. Ricky is tipped off to Lucy's plan by Doug, the hair salon owner. So, he pretends to heavily flirt with Black Wig Lucy, and he makes a "date" with her. Lucy is furious, of course, and her tale makes Ethel want to try the same trick, to have something to "hold over Fred's head." Fred recognizes Ethel in the wig, so they plan to have Ricky bring along Fred on the date to test him again with Ethel in a new disguise. Unfortunately, the only disguise Ethel can find at such short notice is a multi-ethnic disguise that looks preposterous.

At the restaurant, Lucy and Ethel both wait for Ricky and Fred in their disguises. But Ricky and Fred have told the restaurant owner to say that the husbands already had run off with a beautiful blonde and redhead. Lucy and Ethel are hysterical, thinking they lost their husbands for good because of their silly scheme. When Ricky and Fred come out from hiding in the back of the restaurant and reveal that this was all a joke, Lucy and Ethel prepare to storm out in anger. But they are so happy to have their husbands back that they run into their arms and make up with them.

Starring[]

Guest starring[]

Douglas Evans ... as Doug
Bennett Green ... as Man on the street
Eve McVeagh ... as Roberta
Louis Nicoletti ... as Waiter