"I do not claim that I can tell a story as it ought to be told. I only claim to know how a story ought to be told." -Mark Twain









8.09.2011

He Loves Lucy......................!


Just in case you slept through the entire weekend
you might have missed the fact that it was 
Lucille Ball's 100th birthday on Saturday.
What a pioneer for females! 
She was the first female to run a 
major picture studio,
the first to put a pregnancy into a story line
and the pioneer of many TV production methods
that are still used today.
In fact, legend has it that reruns were created
so people could see
"I Love Lucy" again and again. 
Of the thousands and thousands of Lucy fans,
my brother ranks up their as one of her biggest.
He has loved Lucy for as long as I can remember.
To commemorate her special birthday,
he threw an 
I Love Lucy party
at his house Saturday night.
The table was not only decorated with everything "Lucy", but the entire meal, from drinks to desserts, all centered around Lucy episodes.
Notice the grapes: Who could celebrate Lucy without remembering the famous 
grape stomping episode?
My brother, Rusty, thought up and decorated the
entire table
and planned the entire menu.
His wife, an excellent cook,
got the food in "Lucy" condition.
His three sons and my parents helped him enjoy the birthday celebration for Lucy.
There were an abundance of hearts throughout the table
....which probably is still not enough to represent 
how much 
my brother loves Lucy!
My brother googled "I Love Lucy" images 
and used some of his favorites
as place mats that he created
on a color printer.

You can see some more of the 'place mats' in this picture,
as well as the grapes!
My brother used L-O-V-E blocks from 
Valentine's Day for part of his centerpiece.
He also had a Lucy doll 
from his daughter's doll collection that worked 
on the table perfectly.

There were many fun and entertaining aspects of 
the meal.
One that everyone seemed to enjoy, 
especially my mother(!!!),
(who said Rusty is SO talented),
was his re-creation of 
 Vitameatavegamin.
The vitamin drink in the Lucy episode
had a large amount of alcohol in it.
By the time Lucy got the commercial finished,
she was a little tipsy!
Rusty said his drink was a special mix he
made up, but there was no alcohol involved!



Rusty went to the drugstore and purchased
new medicine bottles from the pharmacy.
He made the labels on his computer and printed them off.
He had a variety of place mats
for the table.
Obviously, a true Lucy lover could not
pick just one! 
If you don't have a color printer
you could do the same idea by going to a copy shop
for a minimal price.
He did not miss a beat did he?
Now you know why my mother thinks
he is SO talented!
So, are you ready to see what he and his wife 
served to eat?
Each food course 
came from one of Rusty's 
favorite episodes.
Spaghetti (yes, it had meat sauce too): Do you remember the episode where Lucy had a stare-down with 
William Holden
at the Brown Derby?
Ethel had to use manicure scissors to cut the spaghetti
as Lucy was having her stare-down.
So of course Rusty supplied 
manicure scissors 
(yes, clean!!)
for everyone's spaghetti.
Also on the menu was homemade pizza.
Remember the episode where Lucy is at
the pizzeria?
She twirls and swirls and throws the 
pizza dough in the air....
and it ends up all over her head and face!
Do you think Rusty let everyone throw their own 
pizza dough?
Then there was the salad dressing episode.
Fred convinces Lucy and Ethel to 
make and market 
Lucy's aunt's oh-so-famous-salad-dressing.
Again, Rusty used his color printer 
to create a special 
salad dressing label
(from the actual episode).
Notice the heart on top of the jar as well.
Every....little.....detail......!!!
If you have ever watched Lucy at all
then you remember the 
bread baking episode.
When Lucy opens her stove
the bread just keeps coming and coming and coming.
Finally she has to use a hacksaw to 
saw it in two.
Rusty's wife made homemade 
mini loaves of bread,
but the hacksaw blade 
was there to 
cut up the loaves....
and butter them!

If you looked closely at the table pictures...
or just guessed...
you know what was for dessert!
Everyone remembers when Lucy and Ethel 
are supposed to wrap candy as it goes by on the 
conveyor belt.
Lucy can't keep up and she stuffs the candy 
in her uniform, under her hat and in her mouth.
Well, Rusty had little wrapped candies....
all you could eat! Or stuff! 
And they were lined up straight down the table,
just like a conveyor belt.

Just in case the meal itself was not 
enough fun,
Rusty had DVD's of Lucy episodes playing
as they piled on their food
and enjoyed their meal.
Yes, Rusty has every episode of I Love Lucy.
He probably has it on VHS tape, 
DVD's
and Blue Rays if I know him!
DVD covers and books add to the 
party decor.
Don't forget little things like that
to fill in the blank spots.
Believe it or not,
Rusty had not even thought of any of this
until 6 p.m. on Saturday night.
He then got it all together,
created and decorated
while his wife cooked
his ideas!
If you know Rusty, you are not surprised.
Imagine what he would have done with
some planning!!!!!!!!!!
In the end, it was more than just Rusty loving Lucy.
It was about having a fun family meal.
It was about celebrating the nonsensical things in life.
It was about enjoying time together before kids 
go to college.
It was about using a big imagination
and a little time and effort and
creating great memories....
and making his Mama laugh!
Find some nonsense and celebrate 
with your family
before summer slips away!
I have linked this with Wow Us Wednesdays
and Tablescape Thursdays. Also Open House Party with Sherry. 
And over at the ever wonderful My Romantic Home Show and Tell Friday.

20 comments:

  1. That is absolutely amazing. He could make a career of party planning.

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  2. OMG! I see the creativity runs in the family!! What a hoot! I am a huge fan of I Love Lucy. They aren't showing it on any stations here right now. Did you know my nickname is "Lucy". Go figure!!

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  3. This WAS a big story to tell!
    Every little detail! I saw every episode except the spahetti one, I think.
    My favorites were the Vitamin commercial episode and the one where she losed her wedding ring in the stone fireplace.
    She was a hoot.
    One in a million.
    Just like Rusty, right?
    Great party. Great memories for all of you.
    xx
    Alison

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  4. Oops! I meant to say... where she loses her wedding ring! NOT LOSED!
    xx
    LOL
    A

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  5. This is fantastic! I love the creativity and would have loved to be a guest. I love Lucy too!

    I always love it when folks try to name their favorite episode. It always turns into a , "... and what about the one? ... and remember the one where?" The next thing you know, you are laughing so hard that you can't even breathe.

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  6. Amazing! Great creativity here. What a grand party...thanks for sharing.
    Hopoe to see you on my blog:)

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  7. Your brother must be a hoot to be around! This is an amazing celebration! And so much fun! The table is genious!

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  8. I absolutely smitten with this table.. The love and joy that went into it is evident in every detail. I too love lucy.. it's a perfect table and so wonderfully laid out and put together.. xo marlis

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  9. How fun! I cannot believe your brother's level of creativity and detail!!!

    - The Tablescaper

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  10. Oh, what a fun party. I would have loved to be there, because I Love Lucy, too. I watched her all day on her birthday. :)
    He did such a great job! Clever ideas, too.
    D

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  11. Wow! I am very impressed. How organized and talented Rusty is and what a supportive wife he has. This is so entertaining and do much funb...Christine

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  12. How creative and fun. I can't believe your brother didn't spend weeks planning all this. Looks like everyone had lots of fun. Great tribute!

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  13. You took me back in time, I loved watching Lucy, my whole childhood was laughing to her, my grandma, grandfather mom and dad use to gather around and watch and have fun.

    Thank you so much for sharing.

    Rusty did a wonderful job.

    PS I was 4 years old when my parents moved to LA Ca and until I graduated from college then we moved back to Istanbul.

    Love,
    Karin Şen Cankan
    karinsfairytale.blogspot.com

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  14. What a fun idea! Lucy and Ethel would have loved to be sitting and remembering all the fun at this wonderful table.

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  15. I DO Love Lucy! I still watch the shows and have seen them all so many times. Vitameatavegamin...oh my...so funny. William Holden and John Wayne were two of my favorites.

    What a talented brother!

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  16. YOUR BROTHER ROCKS!!! I love it when men get really creative and join in on all the fun! What a fun tablescape!!! Since Rusty has 3 sons, will "My Three Sons" be his next tablescape project? ;-) Great job!!!

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  17. I love this! It's amazing...so many fun & creative ideas.

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  18. Amazing! What fun you must have had at this dinner!! I am such a "Lucy" fan and enjoyed the marathon that was on all weekend. But you got to actually enjoy a special party in her honor. Your brother must be such a fun guy! And creative...your mother is right! :)

    Thanks for sharing this...I so enjoyed every picture and every word!

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  19. What a fun and very creative party! Rusty did such a wonderful job putting the party together and the details are fabulous. Thanbk you for joining the Open House party.
    xo,
    Sherry

    ReplyDelete
  20. Anonymous6/12/2012

    I am giving my mom a surprise party for her 70th birthday and love these ideas. Where did he find the images so that they print clearly? He did an awesome job on this, he has given me lots of ideas.

    Thanks,
    Jackie Bailey

    ReplyDelete

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