Seen on eBay this week a working Westinghouse T-4 Vacuum Cleaner called the “Handy Dandy” on the I Love Lucy episode. Click picture for details on the eBay listing.
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Lucy’s “Handy Dandy” Westinghouse Vacuum Cleaner
In the I Love Lucy episode Sales Resistance Lucy falls for a slick sales patter and ends up with her “Handy Dandy” vacuum cleaner which is really an early 50’s Westinghouse Dyna-Matic tank vacuum cleaner. The Westinghouse Dyna-Matic tank sweeper had a throw away inner bag and a set of attachments as seen on the show.
See another similar one on eBay HERE
Pictured above is a well preserved Westinghouse tank vacuum cleaner with attachments found at http://www.vacuumland.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?3848 looking very similar to the one seen on the show – even the paper tag looks the same.
A 1950 newspaper ad gives the price as $49.95 which is equivalent to almost $500 in 2015 so Ricky’s reaction is not surprising. Incidentally Lucy is seen using the upright model vacuum cleaner in The Black Eye episode.
According to this NY Times article ” Hoover executives saw an episode of ”I Love Lucy” in which Lucille Ball peddled vacuum cleaners door to door. Hoover cut a deal with the show’s producers to have one of its products, and especially its brand name, displayed whenever a vacuum appeared in the plot, Mr. Kravitz said.”
The Hoover that appeared on the show was possibly a Hoover upright model 62.