Movie Script Arrives

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.