I Love Lucely
Identifier
F.2010-02-0324a
Date Of Production
1952
Abstract
A short film presented by the "Bert Ray Players" that centers around the antics of a group of employees in an advertising firm near Water Tower Place. The coworkers play cards, tiddlywinks, and fool around in the office. Their colleagues at the Annex down the block discover the impending arrival of their boss, and try to call them to alert them in time, but the advertisers have taken their phone off the hook! Luckily, a brave coworker sprints across the street and up the stairs before the slow-moving elevator arrives at the 4th floor, and the office workers manage to sort themselves out before their boss walks through the doors.
Bert Ray was an advertiser and designer and co-founder of the 27, alongside Rhodes Patterson. The Bert Ray Players were likely his colleagues at an advertising firm in the Loop in the 1950s.
This film features many of the same filming locations and actors as "Moulin Chartreuse."
Bert Ray was an advertiser and designer and co-founder of the 27, alongside Rhodes Patterson. The Bert Ray Players were likely his colleagues at an advertising firm in the Loop in the 1950s.
This film features many of the same filming locations and actors as "Moulin Chartreuse."
Description
This comedic short film begins with two women walking to work. The water tower and Water Tower Place are visible in the background of these shots. When they arrive, their co-workers are engaged in a variety of fun activities--ostensibly, not working. One woman is combing her hair and smoking a cigarette. Two men play tiddlywinks, while two others debate the orientation of a poster featuring a nude woman. Behind them is a poster that reads "VOTE NOV. 4 / WHIGS & DEMS / POLK for PRES." Meanwhile, a man and woman play strip poker; she hands him one of her heels. Another couple laughs and plays checkers. Mild chaos ensues when some of the men and two women playfully chase each other and run around the office, leading to a hook-up in a closet.
Halfway through the film, a title card reads "MEANWHILE, back at the ANNEX." In the next shot, a woman leafs through a "Paris" magazine and opens a travel brochure while smoking a cigarette. The camera pans to the other side of the room, where a man in a suit and bow tie is seen drinking liquor at his desk. The man gets up, and the woman does a comedic barre exercise and dance while holding a small broom. The man watches her routine and then stands up to open a window. The next shot: a close-up of a suited individual's legs walking on the sidewalk. The man in the bow tie does a double-take, realizing that the approaching individual is their boss. The women in the office react quickly and call their co-workers on the phone to warn them. The boss enters the elevator and slowly begins his ascent to the 4th floor. The women are dismayed when they realize their calls are not going through to their colleagues at the firm, who, annoyed by the ringing, have taken the phone off the hook. The man in the bow tie takes action and sprints out of the Annex to the office building across the block. The women in his office look out the window and cheer him on. He runs up the stairs, and his ascent is juxtaposed with shots of the slow-moving elevator and the works at the advertising firm, who are still doing anything but their jobs. He arrives just in time and yells out to them, alerting them of their boss' arrival. The workers then quickly put away their games, sort themselves out, and appear hard at work by the time their boss walks through the door. The final shot of this film is the spire of the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Halfway through the film, a title card reads "MEANWHILE, back at the ANNEX." In the next shot, a woman leafs through a "Paris" magazine and opens a travel brochure while smoking a cigarette. The camera pans to the other side of the room, where a man in a suit and bow tie is seen drinking liquor at his desk. The man gets up, and the woman does a comedic barre exercise and dance while holding a small broom. The man watches her routine and then stands up to open a window. The next shot: a close-up of a suited individual's legs walking on the sidewalk. The man in the bow tie does a double-take, realizing that the approaching individual is their boss. The women in the office react quickly and call their co-workers on the phone to warn them. The boss enters the elevator and slowly begins his ascent to the 4th floor. The women are dismayed when they realize their calls are not going through to their colleagues at the firm, who, annoyed by the ringing, have taken the phone off the hook. The man in the bow tie takes action and sprints out of the Annex to the office building across the block. The women in his office look out the window and cheer him on. He runs up the stairs, and his ascent is juxtaposed with shots of the slow-moving elevator and the works at the advertising firm, who are still doing anything but their jobs. He arrives just in time and yells out to them, alerting them of their boss' arrival. The workers then quickly put away their games, sort themselves out, and appear hard at work by the time their boss walks through the door. The final shot of this film is the spire of the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Format
16mm
Extent
300 feet
Color
B&W
Sound
Silent
Reel/Tape Number
1/1
Has Been Digitized?
Yes
Element
Work Prints
Genre
Form
Subject
Related Collections
Related Places
Main Credits
Patterson, Rhodes (is filmmaker)
Bert Ray Players (is co-producer)
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