Quarrel Over Ladder

Originally Aired: May 27, 1941 Fibber McGee & Molly #289, "Quarrel Over Ladder," A simple request to retrieve a tennis ball from the roof escalates into an all-out war between Fibber McGee and his neighbor Gildersleeve. When Fibber asks Gildy to come down from a ladder so he can fetch his ball, the conversation quickly turns to the question of who actually owns the ladder in the first place. Both men claim ownership, each insisting the other borrowed it months ago and never returned it. Despite Molly's attempts to keep the peace, tempers flare as Fibber shakes the ladder while Gildersleeve clings to the top. The situation reaches a boiling point when Fibber pushes too hard and sends his portly neighbor tumbling to the ground. After Molly correctly points out that the ladder actually belongs to Gildersleeve, she insists that Fibber apologize to his neighbor. However, every attempt at reconciliation goes hilariously wrong, with Gildersleeve brandishing a baseball bat and Fibber retreating to his porch to hurl insults from a safe distance. With the two men at an impasse, Fibber hatches what he believes is a foolproof plan involving the Wistful Vista recording studios.