Connie, Mr. Boynton and Mr. Conklin play sneaky games to make sure their gift exchange goes smoothly.
This episode is a delight and if the first half was stronger, it would be a contender for a 10-star episode. By the time we get to the hilarious final act, it almost has a SEINFELD-esque quality to it with all the main characters exchanging their gifts at the store over and over.
Florence Bates almost steals the episode as the cranky Gift Exchange lady. She made appearances on other Desilu shows including PRIVATE SECRETARY and I LOVE LUCY's "Pioneer Women" episode before her death in 1954 at age 66. When Connie returns the perfume, and Bates deadpans, "Is it too feminine for you?", we're off and running!
Later, when she arrives at the Xmas party exhausted, she says of Connie "One woman in particular swapped me silly". Eve Arden is sublime when she makes her "Jingle Bells" entrance then registers immediate shock upon seeing Bates' at the table. The gag with Connie, Mr. Boynton and Mr. Conklin taking turns hiding under the Santa beard could have come off as dumb in lesser hands, but these pros made it work.
One thing I am seeing when watching Xmas episodes from the Fifties is that there seems to be a common theme of people obsessing about how $ values need to be exactly the same when giving/receiving. Was this a big deal back then? Just hearing the ridiculously low (by today's standards) prices for the items the script mentions is entertaining in itself.
This was directed by Al Lewis, but not the same guy who played Grandpa Munster and was on CAR 54.
The Manufactured-on-Demand DVDs of this show contain edited episodes so unfortunately the version I have is chopped up. This probably would have played even better in its full-length glory. 8/10.
This episode is a delight and if the first half was stronger, it would be a contender for a 10-star episode. By the time we get to the hilarious final act, it almost has a SEINFELD-esque quality to it with all the main characters exchanging their gifts at the store over and over.
Florence Bates almost steals the episode as the cranky Gift Exchange lady. She made appearances on other Desilu shows including PRIVATE SECRETARY and I LOVE LUCY's "Pioneer Women" episode before her death in 1954 at age 66. When Connie returns the perfume, and Bates deadpans, "Is it too feminine for you?", we're off and running!
Later, when she arrives at the Xmas party exhausted, she says of Connie "One woman in particular swapped me silly". Eve Arden is sublime when she makes her "Jingle Bells" entrance then registers immediate shock upon seeing Bates' at the table. The gag with Connie, Mr. Boynton and Mr. Conklin taking turns hiding under the Santa beard could have come off as dumb in lesser hands, but these pros made it work.
One thing I am seeing when watching Xmas episodes from the Fifties is that there seems to be a common theme of people obsessing about how $ values need to be exactly the same when giving/receiving. Was this a big deal back then? Just hearing the ridiculously low (by today's standards) prices for the items the script mentions is entertaining in itself.
This was directed by Al Lewis, but not the same guy who played Grandpa Munster and was on CAR 54.
The Manufactured-on-Demand DVDs of this show contain edited episodes so unfortunately the version I have is chopped up. This probably would have played even better in its full-length glory. 8/10.
