Teamwork: Beat The Clock (Airdate: November 20, 1954)

Ralph and Alice appear as contestants on Beat The Clock, a CBS game show that, in reality, preceded The Honeymooners on Saturday nights.

In their first stunt, Alice has to propel a cup with a can of whipped cream into a net that Ralph is holding with his teeth. Believe it or not, they succeed!

Bud Collyer, the show’s MC, informs the happy couple that they’ve run out of time and will have to return the following week to continue. The Kramdens return home where we pick up their antics at about 2:00 A.M. Ralph and Alice (with Ed’s help) are practicing a stunt so they can win the big prize (a 21-inch TV). Alice picks up a coffee cup from the kitchen table and hands it to Ralph who, in turn, has to place the cup on a saucer and head for the lemon machine (manned by Ed) before the lemon rolls down and falls on the floor. All this while keeping a balloon floating in the air. Needless to say, there are broken dishes all over the place.

In the meantime, Alice’s brother-in-law, Jerry, alerts the Kramdens that Alice’s sister Helen is expecting their baby any time, but that he must leave town on business. Alice and Ralph agree to keep an eye on Helen in his absence.

Well, wouldn’t you know it. Helen goes into labor on the very night they’re supposed to return to the TV show. She has twins and Alice stays with her while Ralph, accompanied by Ed, goes to the studio to let Bud Collyer know that they can’t compete for the big prize. Bud, however, lets Ed take Alice’s place and the pair not only win the TV set, but two baby buggies, as well!



CASTING CALL
Fill in the information on the invitation below. After Who print your name, What refers to your return to the ’50s for a hip Honeymooners Party, Where is where your address goes, When should state the date and time, and you should list your phone number after R.S.V.P. Next, make copies of the invitation on a copy machine and glue (or spraymount) them to blank note cards or post cards.

And Away We Go!
Who ________________________________________________________
What ________________________________________________________
Where ________________________________________________________
When ________________________________________________________
We’ll supply the food and entertainment, so all you have to do is arrive in the attire of your favorite cast member…Ralph, Ed, Alice or Trixie!
R.S.V.P. ________________________________________________________

STAGE DIRECTIONS
Take all your furniture and store it in another room because The Honeymooners had one of the sparest sets in the history of television. So, clear the decks of everything except for a dining room set and a refrigerator.

WARDROBE
If you’re gonna play Ralph, chances are you’ll have to wear a pillow underneath a bus driver’s uniform. You should be able to find one at a costume shop. Or, if you know a mail carrier, ask if you can borrow his uniform. They look similar enough. Sewer worker Ed should come elegantly dressed, wearing a black or dark brown vest over a clean white t-shirt. Trixie and Alice should wear 50’s housedresses topped with aprons.

AcTVties
Obviously you and your guest should reenact the two stunts from Beat the Clock. In stunt number one you’ll recall that Alice, using a can of whipped cream, has to push a cup into a net that Ralph is holding with his teeth. It’s not as easy as it looks.
In stunt number two, one guest should pick up a coffee cup from a table and hand it to another guest who, in turn, has to place the cup on a saucer and head for the a person who pretends he or she is the lemon machine. As the cup holder approaches the “machine” person rolls a lemon down a makeshift ramp and the cup holder must catch it in the cup before it falls on the floor. Your guests have to accomplish all this while keeping a balloon floating in the air. We suggest you use, you guessed it, paper cups and saucers…and, ping pong balls, perhaps?

Prizes: A great gag gift would be an old bowling ball because Ralph and Ed loved to bowl. Similarly an unthinking, uncaring gift for the “girls” would be a beat-up set of old pots and pans. And everyone could use a bus schedule.

(ILLUSTRATION OF GUEST CATCHING LEMON IN COFFEE CUP)

AWARDS
The Honeymooners won only one Emmy Award. Art Carney received his for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in 1955 (presented March 17, 1956). Jackie Gleason was nominated for Best Actor (Continuing Performance) and Audrey Meadows was nominated for Best Actress in a Supporting Role the same year.

Read All About It
Wanna know about the Raccoon Lodge, pills that turned water into gasoline, Goat gland vitamins, favorite sewer sayings, glow-in-the-dark shoe polish? In other words, more, more, more about The Honeymooners?
Check out:
• The Official Honeymooners Treasury (Perigree Books) by Peter Crescenti and Bob Columbe.
Or, join:
• The Royal Association for the Longevity and Preservation of the Honeymooners (RALPH). Send a SASE to RALPH, c/o C.W. Post Center, Greenvale, NY 11548.

Video Availability
If you can’t find The Honeymooners on your TV dial, you might want to rent it from your local video store.
Honeymooners Classic 39, Vol. 16 — (Golfer/Brother Ralph)
Honeymooners Hidden Episodes #11 — (Vacation at Fred’s Landing/Teamwork: Beat the Clock)