"THE ENVELOPE PLEASE..."

And the answer to the question "who was that girl"...Lucille Ball. The re-runs have given another generation, or two, a glimpse of the comedic talent of Lucy. But I still couldn't or wouldn't have been able to identify her from that picture.

I did love the old Lucy show. Episode after episode was a hoot with Ricky, Fred and Ethel. Little Ricky added nothing. I wonder what happened to him?

But when Ricky and Lucy split and the show went color, they lost me. It was simply not very good tv comedy. Her boss, recognizable as a face but no name attached for me--I think Gale Gordon just popped up from a deep recess in the cranium--could have been funny and on occasion was, but the bad scripts choked Lucy and stifled the humor.

So I think there was a generation growing up who probably wondered why everyone made such a fuss over Lucy. Remember, you have to catch her in black and white. Then you'll enjoy some of the best comedy in American tv.

A final thought: The Andy Griffith Show was so much better in black and white, too. I wonder why that is? I'm glad Leave it to Beaver never lasted long enough to go color.