Lum & Abner: Classic Small-Town Comedy

Originally Aired: March 27, 1940
Lum #275, "Wants Old-Fashioned Store,"
Pine Ridge becomes a beehive of activity as word spreads that a motion picture company is coming to town. The Jot'Em Down Store experiences its biggest day ever, with crowds flooding in from nearby communities hoping to catch a glimpse of the soon-to-be movie stars. Lum and Abner are holding a sale to clear out their old merchandise before the filming begins, planning to use the proceeds to fix up the store for its Hollywood debut. Squire has rented out the store to the movie company for $500 a week while paying Lum and Abner only $150 a month, but the partners are more concerned with how their establishment will appear on screen.
Lum enthusiastically embraces his newfound celebrity status, practicing elaborate signatures and pre-signing autographs to hand out to admirers. He's even begun signing himself as "L. Edwards" to save time. Abner remains skeptical of his partner's self-promotion tactics, particularly when Lum starts offering autographs to people who haven't requested them. When Granddad Spears stops by the store with news, the stage is set for the next development in Pine Ridge's Hollywood adventure.

Originally Aired: March 25, 1940
Lum #274, "Chickens Come Home to Roost," Lum and Abner find themselves frustrated once again by their longtime nemesis, Squire Skelton. The arrival of Hollywood actors in Pine Ridge to film a picture has brought excitement and crowds to the sleepy town, but the storekeepers are losing out on the tourist business. Squire has outmaneuvered them yet again, renting their store building from them for $150 a month and then subletting it to the movie company for $500 a week. As they commiserate over Squire's latest scheme, Lum and Abner recall his many past swindles, from worthless stock deals to the disastrous circus purchase where Squire bought their circus for a thousand dollars and immediately sold the animals to the county zoo for four thousand.
When Lum philosophically observes that "chickens always come home to roost," meaning that Squire will eventually face consequences for his dishonest dealings, Abner takes the expression literally. What follows is a comical misunderstanding as Abner insists on discussing actual chickens and their roosting habits, completely missing Lum's metaphorical point about justice and karma, much to Lum's exasperation.

Originally Aired: March 22, 1940
Lum #273, "Lum and New Deal with Squire," tensions rise in Pine Ridge as Hollywood prepares to arrive for the filming of a motion picture featuring the town. Lum becomes preoccupied with impressing the visiting movie stars, particularly a young actress whose photograph has caught his eye, much to Abner's amusement. Meanwhile, the crafty Squire Skimp sees an opportunity to profit from the production. He reveals that the original store rental contract he signed with Lum and Abner needs modification since the movie company requires exclusive use of the building during filming.
What follows is a heated negotiation as Squire attempts to extract more money from the partners while dangling the prospect of the movie deal. The wily businessman starts at fifty dollars a month, but Lum counters with an outrageous two hundred dollars demand. Despite Abner's warnings to be careful, the back-and-forth haggling intensifies with each side trying to outmaneuver the other. As the episode reaches its climax, a deal appears close at hand, but the question remains whether Lum and Abner have outsmarted Squire or walked straight into another one of his schemes.

Originally Aired: March 20, 1940
Lum #272, "Movie Script Arrives," finds the citizens of Pine Ridge in a frenzy of excitement as a Hollywood movie company prepares to film in their small town. When the actual script arrives at the Jot 'Em Down Store, Lum eagerly dives into reading it aloud to Abner, only to discover that the fictional story bears some resemblance to their own lives. The script features Dr. Walt Barnes, proprietor of the Jot 'Em Down Store and the only doctor in Pine Ridge, along with his son who is courting the local postmistress, Alice King. As Lum reads through the pages, tension builds between the two partners over who will play which role in the production.
Abner becomes increasingly frustrated as Lum assumes he'll be cast as the young, romantic doctor's son, while Abner is relegated to the part of the old storekeeper. The situation grows more contentious when they learn a beautiful leading lady from Hollywood will be arriving, with Lum convinced she'll fall for his character. Abner protests that the script's massive length makes it impossible to memorize and questions why a glamorous actress would romance a "back-number storekeeper" anyway, especially one wearing Lum's outlandish yellow pants and peculiar outfit.

Originally Aired: March 18, 1940
Lum #271, "Lum Learns of Renting Store,"
Excitement builds in Pine Ridge as a Hollywood film company prepares to shoot a picture in town. Lum has been enthusiastically showing a location scout around, and the prospect of movie stardom has already gone to his head. As Abner and Grandpap discuss at the Jot 'Em Down Store, Lum has been dressing in fancy clothes, studying acting books, and impersonating everyone from Englishmen to Kentucky colonels to Frenchmen. His friends worry he's losing touch with reality, trying out different accents and personas all over town in preparation for his big break.
However, trouble is brewing that Lum doesn't know about yet. Squire Skimp has convinced Abner to sign a lease renting out the store to the film company for their production headquarters. Abner reluctantly agreed but hasn't found the right moment to break the news to his partner. As Lum enthusiastically discusses the picture and the Hollywood stars coming to town, Abner and Grandpap nervously anticipate his reaction when he discovers what's been done behind his back. The store that Lum assumed would be his stage may now be out of his control entirely.

Originally Aired: March 15, 1940
Lum #270, "Squire Skimp Rents Store,"
Excitement fills Pine Ridge as word spreads that a Hollywood motion picture company is coming to town to film a movie. Abner mans the Jot 'Em Down Store while trying to arrange a fishing trip, when Squire Skimp drops by with questions about the production. The talent scout Mr. Rosen has promised prominent roles for Lum and Abner, with plans to feature the store and other local landmarks like Uncle Henry Lunsford's property and the picturesque picnic ground down by the river. Abner mentions that Lum has been acting strangely, spending their store earnings on flashy Hollywood-style clothes and parading around town in checkered coats and yellow knickers.
Squire Skimp suddenly presents Abner with an unusual business proposition: he wants to rent the Jot 'Em Down Store for twenty-five dollars a month, while allowing Lum and Abner to continue running it and keeping all their profits. When Abner questions how the Squire could possibly benefit from such a generous arrangement, Squire deflects and pressures him to sign an agreement immediately, warning that the offer might disappear if Abner waits to consult with Lum.

Originally Aired: March 13, 1940
Lum #269, "Movie to Be Shot on Location," excitement grips Pine Ridge after a Hollywood talent scout suggests the town would make an ideal setting for a motion picture. Lum has gone completely Hollywood before even receiving a firm offer, practicing dramatic scenes in the store, telling tourists he's a movie actor, and studying railroad timetables for the trip west. He's even paying off debts and collecting accounts in preparation for the big move, much to the bemusement of his partner Abner, who watches Lum's theatrical preparations with skeptical concern.
As word spreads through town, everyone wants in on the action. Cedric Weehunt hopes to be hired as an actor, while Grandpappy Spears is already negotiating his salary, insisting he won't work for less than his current pay of forty-five cents an hour. Abner tries to keep a level head, reminding everyone that the scout only said he thought it was a good idea and would talk to the studio, but Lum has already transformed the tentative possibility into a done deal, complete with costume changes and overwrought rehearsals of melodramatic scenes.

Originally Aired: March 11, 1940
Lum #268, "Movie About Lum and Abner,"
A Hollywood talent scout has arrived in Pine Ridge hoping to sign Abner's wife Elizabeth to a movie contract after reading about her heroic capture of three bank robbers. However, after meeting Elizabeth in person, the scout discovers she doesn't fit the young Western heroine type he envisioned. While the scout waits in town for his car to be repaired, staying as a guest at Abner's house, he finds himself charmed by small-town life and attends church services, delighting in the friendly community atmosphere.
Meanwhile, at the Jot 'Em Down Store, Lum becomes increasingly wistful about missed opportunities for stardom. He laments his natural acting talent going to waste selling navy beans and lard, convinced he could be making hundreds of dollars a month in Hollywood. Lum reminisces about a school play from years past and fantasizes about getting his face lifted to pursue a movie career. The irony isn't lost that while the big-city scout wishes he could trade places and enjoy Lum's peaceful small-town existence, Lum dreams of escaping to Hollywood glamour and fortune.

Originally Aired: March 8, 1940
Lum #267, "Lizabeth's Fame Grows," finds the peaceful town of Pine Ridge buzzing with excitement after Elizabeth Peabody, the new chief of police, single-handedly captured three bank robbers. The nationwide publicity has transformed her into an overnight celebrity, complete with colorful newspaper headlines like "Poker Face Peabody" and "Lucky Liz Lassos Lawbreakers." Her husband Abner finds himself relegated to the background, fielding constant phone calls and being referred to as "Mr. Elizabeth Peabody," a situation he definitely doesn't relish.
Over at the Jot'em Down store, Abner complains to Lum about his wife's newfound fame and increasingly exaggerated stories of her heroic deed. When Lum suggests that Abner could manage Elizabeth's business affairs and mentions a stage offer of $100 a week, Abner bristles at the idea. Despite the five-hundred-dollar reward and Elizabeth's plans to buy a full cowgirl outfit with pearl-handled pistols, Abner remains skeptical of her abilities and adamant that he won't have an actor for a wife, even as Lum playfully suggests Abner could join her act.

Originally Aired: March 6, 1940
Lum #266, "Capture of Bank Robbers,"
In this episode, the all-woman city government of Pine Ridge faces its first major crisis when three bank robbers strike the county seat. Elizabeth Peabody, the newly elected chief of police and Abner's wife, has taken it upon herself to track down the desperados single-handedly. She's been missing in the mountains for two days with only Abner's beloved hound dog, Old Blue, as her companion. Down at the Jot 'Em Down Store, Abner frets over Elizabeth's absence, though his concerns seem divided between his wife's safety and the welfare of his prized hunting dog. When a wanted poster arrives offering a five hundred dollar reward for the Waldron brothers and Charles Sherman, the situation becomes even more tense.
Lum tries to keep Abner focused on Elizabeth's safety rather than the dog, while young Cedric stops by and recognizes one of the outlaws from the poster. As they discuss the dangerous situation and the substantial reward money, Cedric mentions Greasy Coal Summers and a location that might be key to finding both Elizabeth and the bank robbers.