In the show's original format, Lucy had been left with a substantial trust fund by her late husband, which was managed during the first season by local banker Mr. Barnsdahl (Charles Lane). Comedian Dick Martin, working solo from his longtime partner Dan Rowan, was cast in ten episodes as Lucy's next-door neighbor and frequent boyfriend, Harry Connors, during the show's first season. Character actor Don Briggs was also featured in six episodes as Viv's beau, Eddie Collins, and Tom Lowell, a young actor seen on various primetime television shows, appeared in three installments as Chris Carmichael's boyfriend, Alan Harper. The first season of "The Lucy Show" fully utilized the talents of Bob Carroll Jr., Madelyn Martin, Bob Schiller, and Bob Weiskopf (the original writers of "I Love Lucy") in creating its thirty episodes, with Desi Arnaz as executive producer for fifteen of those shows. At the end of its first season, "The Lucy Show" received rave reviews from the critics and ranked #5 in the Nielsen ratings. Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award as Best Actress in a Series, but lost to Shirley Booth for the "NBC" comedy hit "Hazel". Bolstered by great ratings, the series was renewed for a second year, but many changes were made.