Lucille Ball
Pin-up photo of Lucille Ball in Yank, the Army Weekly. Yank the Army Weekly was a weekly magazine published by the United States military during World War II.
Born	Lucille Désirée Ball August 6, 1911(1911-08-06) Jamestown, New York, United States
Died	April 26, 1989 (aged 77) Los Angeles, California, United States
Years active	1932–1989
Spouse(s)	Desi Arnaz (1940–1960) Gary Morton (1961–1989)

Lucille Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an iconic American comedienne, film, television, stage and radio actress, glamour girl and star of the landmark sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show and Here's Lucy. Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Jamestown is a City in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Los Angeles (lɑˈsændʒələs los ˈaŋxeles in Spanish) is the largest City in the state of California and the American West The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American Gary Morton ( December 19, 1924 – March 30, 1999) was the second husband of Lucille Ball. Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience primarily by making them laugh An actor, actress, player or thespian (see terminology) is a person who Acts in a Dramatic production and who works Glamour photography is the photographing of a model with the emphasis on the subject I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley "We Love Lucy" redirects here this article is not to be confused with I Love Lucy. The Lucy Show is a Television series which ran from 1962 until 1968 Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball 's third network television sitcom Lucille Ball was one of America's favorite stars and had one of Hollywood's longest careers. ^[1] She was a movie star from the 1930s to the 1970s, and appeared on television for more than thirty years. The 1930s were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression. This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970.

She received thirteen Emmy Award nominations and four wins. ^[2] She was the recipient of the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1979, the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kennedy Center Honors in 1986 and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Governors Award in 1989. The Cecil B DeMille Award for lifetime achievement in Motion pictures has been given annually since 1952 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association at the Golden The Kennedy Center Honors is an annual honor given to artists in the performing arts The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences ( ATAS) is the Los Angeles - organization which awards the Primetime Emmys. ^[3]

In 1929, Ball landed work as a model and later began her performing career on Broadway using the stage name "Diane Belmont". Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located A stage name, also called a screen name, is a Pseudonym used by Performers and Entertainers such as She appeared in many small movie roles in the 1930s as a contract player for RKO Radio Pictures. Ball was labeled as the "Queen of the B's" (referring to her many roles in B-films). A B movie is a motion picture made on a low or modest budget Originally the term was used for films intended for distribution as the less-publicized second half of a Double In 1951, Ball was pivotal in the creation of the television series I Love Lucy. The show co-starred her then husband, Desi Arnaz as Ricky Ricardo and Vivian Vance and William Frawley as Ethel and Fred Mertz, the Ricardos' lovable landlords. Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American Ricardo Alberto Fernando Ricardo y de Acha III, aka Ricky Ricardo, is a main character in the television show I Love Lucy. Vivian Vance ( July 26 1909 – August 17 1979) When she was six years old her family moved to Independence Kansas, where she William Clement Frawley ( February 26, 1887 – March 3, 1966) was an American stage Entertainer, screen After the show ended in 1960, Ball went on to star in two more successful television series: The Lucy Show, which ran on CBS from 1962 to 1968, and Here's Lucy from 1968 to 1974. The Lucy Show is a Television series which ran from 1962 until 1968 CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball 's third network television sitcom Her last attempt at a television series was a 1986 show called Life With Lucy. Life with Lucy was Lucille Ball 's last Television series. The show ran on the ABC network in 1986, and unlike Lucy's previous The show proved to be a critical and commercial flop which was canceled less than two months into its run by ABC. The American Broadcasting Company ( ABC) is an American Television network. ^[4]

Ball met and eloped with Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz in 1940. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American On July 17, 1951, Ball gave birth to their first child, Lucie Desiree Arnaz. Events 180 - Twelve inhabitants of Scillium in North Africa are executed for being Christians Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Lucie Désirée Arnaz (born July 17, 1951) is an American Actress. ^[5] A year and a half later, Ball gave birth to their second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Desi Arnaz Jr (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV on January 19, 1953) is an American Actor and Musician and son of entertainers ^[6] Ball and Arnaz divorced on May 4, 1960. Events 1256 - The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. On April 26, 1989, Ball died of a dissecting aortic aneurysm. Events 1467 - The miraculous image in Our Lady of Good Counsel appear in Genazzano, Italy. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) She was seventy-seven. ^[7] At the time of her death, she had been married to her second husband of twenty-eight years, standup comedian and business partner Gary Morton. Gary Morton ( December 19, 1924 – March 30, 1999) was the second husband of Lucille Ball. ^[8]

Biography

Early life and career

Main article: Lucille Ball filmography and television work

Lucille Désirée Ball was born to Henry Durrell Ball (September 16, 1886 – February 28, 1915) and Desiree "DeDe" Evelyn Hunt (September 21, 1892 –July 20, 1977) in Jamestown, New York and grew up in the adjacent small town of Celoron. Filmography See also Lucille Ball Lucille Ball appeared in movies and television from 1933 until 1989 Jamestown is a City in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The Village of Celoron is a Village in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. Although Lucy was born in Jamestown, she told many people that she was born in Butte, Montana. Butte (IPA) is a city in and the County seat of Silver Bow County, Montana, United States. ^[9] Her family was Baptist; her father was of Scottish descent, whose mother was Mary Ball. Baptist is a term describing individuals belonging to a Baptist church or a Baptist denomination. Scottish Americans or Scots Americans are Citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates in Scotland. ^[10] Her mother was of French, Irish and English descent. French Americans or Franco-Americans are citizens or permanent residents of the United States of French descent Irish Americans (Gael-Mheiriceánach are citizens of the United States who can claim ancestry originating in Ireland. English Americans (occasionally known as Anglo -Americans although this may have a wider cultural meaning are Citizens of the United States whose ancestry ^[11] Her genealogy can be traced back to the earliest settlers in the colonies. ^[12]

Her father, a telephone lineman for Anaconda Copper, was frequently transferred because of his occupation, and within three years of her birth, Lucille had moved many times, from Jamestown to Anaconda, Montana, and then to Wyandotte, Michigan. Anaconda, county seat of Anaconda City/Deer Lodge County, is located in mountainous southwestern Montana. Wyandotte is a city in Wayne County in the US state of Michigan. ^[13] While DeDe Ball was pregnant with her second child, Frederick, Henry Ball contracted typhoid fever and died in February 1915. Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, bilious fever, Yellow Jack or commonly just typhoid, is an illness caused by the Bacterium ^[14] After her father died, Ball and her brother Fred were raised by her mother and grandparents. ^[15] Her grandfather, Fred C. Hunt, was an eccentric socialist who also enjoyed the theater. He frequently took the family to vaudeville shows and encouraged young Lucy to take part in both her own and school plays. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s ^[16]

---

This content has an uncertain copyright status and is pending deletion. You can comment on its removal. Lucille Ball as a young model and starlet

In 1927, Ball dated a gangster's son by the name of Johnny DeVita. Because of this relationship, her mother decided to ship Ball off to the John Murray Anderson School for the Dramatic Arts in New York City. John Murray Anderson ( September 20 1886 - January 30 1954) was a Theatre director and producer, Songwriter The City of New York ^[17] There, Ball attended with fellow actress, Bette Davis. Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (April 5 1908 – October 6 1989 was an American actress of Film, Television and Theatre. Ball went home a few weeks later when drama coaches told her that she "had no future at all as a performer". ^[18]

Ball was determined to prove her teachers wrong and returned to New York City in 1929. She landed work as a fashion model. Her career was thriving, when she became ill with rheumatoid arthritis and could not work for two years. Rheumatoid arthritis ( RA) is a chronic systemic autoimmune disorder that causes the Immune system to attack the Joints, where ^[19] She moved back to New York City in 1932 to become an actress and had some success as a fashion model for designer Hattie Carnegie and as the Chesterfield girl. The City of New York A model is a person who is posed or displayed for the purpose of Art, Fashion, or other products and Advertising. Hattie Carnegie (1886 - 1956 was a Clothing and Jewelry designer based in the United States during the 30s 40s 50s and 60s Chesterfield is a brand of cigarette made by Altria. It was one of the most recognized brands of the early 20th century but sales have She began her performing career on Broadway using the stage name "Diane Belmont" and was hired—but then quickly fired—by theatre impresario Earl Carroll from his Vanities and by Florenz Ziegfeld from a touring company of Rio Rita. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located A stage name, also called a screen name, is a Pseudonym used by Performers and Entertainers such as Earl Carroll ( September 16, 1893 – June 17, 1948) was an American theatrical producer director songwriter and composer born Florenz Ziegfeld Jr ( March 21, 1869 &ndash July 22, 1932) called Flo Ziegfeld, was an American Broadway For other uses of Rio Rita see Rio Rita (disambiguation Rio Rita is the name of a very successful 1927 stage musical by Florenz Ziegfeld ^[20]

She was let go again from the Shubert brothers production of Stepping Stones. The Shubert family of New York City, New York was responsible for the establishment of the Broadway district in New York City, as the hub of ^[16] After an uncredited stint as one of the Goldwyn Girls in Roman Scandals (1933) she permanently moved to Hollywood to appear in films. The Goldwyn Girls were a musical stock company of female dancers employed by Samuel Goldwyn. Roman Scandals is a 1933 film starring Eddie Cantor, Ruth Etting, Gloria Stuart, Edward Arnold and David Manners She appeared in many small movie roles in the 1930s as a contract player for RKO Radio Pictures, including movies with the Marx Brothers and the Three Stooges. The Marx Brothers were a popular team of sibling Comedians who appeared in Vaudeville, stage plays film and television The Three Stooges were an American Vaudeville and Comedy act of the early to mid–20th century best known for their numerous Short subject films She can also be seen as one of the featured models in the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers film Roberta (1935), where she met her lifelong friend, Ginger Rogers. Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 &ndash June 22, 1987) was an American Academy Award Ginger Rogers ( July 16, 1911 &ndash April 25, 1995) was an Academy Award -winning American film and stage actress Roberta is a 1935 Musical film by RKO starring Irene Dunne, Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers, and Randolph Scott Ginger Rogers ( July 16, 1911 &ndash April 25, 1995) was an Academy Award -winning American film and stage actress ^[21] She and Rogers played aspiring actresses in the hit film Stage Door (1937) co-starring Katharine Hepburn. Stage Door ( 1937) is a RKO film adapted from the play by the same name that tells the story of several would-be actresses who live together in a boarding Katharine Houghton Hepburn (May 12 1907 – June 29 2003 was an American actress of film television and stage Ball was signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in the 1940s, but she never achieved major stardom from her appearance in those films. ^[22]

from the trailer for Stage Door (1937)

She was known in many Hollywood circles as "Queen of the B's"—a title previously held by Fay Wray—starring in a number of B-movies, such as 1939's Five Came Back. Stage Door ( 1937) is a RKO film adapted from the play by the same name that tells the story of several would-be actresses who live together in a boarding Vina Fay Wray ( September 15, 1907 &ndash August 8, 2004) was a Canadian &ndash American actress and the first A B movie is a motion picture made on a low or modest budget Originally the term was used for films intended for distribution as the less-publicized second half of a Double Five Came Back is a 1939 melodrama and a precursor of the Disaster film genre ^[23] Like many budding starlets Ball picked up radio work to earn side income as well as gain exposure. In 1937 she appeared as a regular on the Phil Baker show. Phil Baker ( August 26, 1896, Philadelphia Pennsylvania - November 30, 1963, Copenhagen) is best known as a popular American When that completed its run in 1938, Ball joined the cast of the Wonder Show staring future Wizard of Oz tin man Jack Haley. Jack Haley ( August 10, 1898 – June 6, 1979) (born John Joseph Haley Jr ^[24] It was on this show that she began her fifty year professional relationship with Gale Gordon who served as the show's announcer. Gale Gordon ( February 20, 1906 – June 30, 1995) was an American character actor The Wonder show only lasted one season with the final episode airing in April 7, 1939. Events 529 - First draft of Corpus Juris Civilis (a fundamental work in Jurisprudence) is issued by Eastern Roman Emperor Year 1939 ( MCMXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ^[25]

In 1940, Ball met Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz while filming the film version of the Rodgers and Hart stage hit Too Many Girls. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Desi Arnaz (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III) ( March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban American Rodgers and Hart were an American songwriting partnership consisting of the composer Richard Rodgers (1902 &ndash 1979 and the lyricist Too Many Girls is a Broadway musical comedy and a 1940 film version of the show starring Lucille Ball. Ball and Arnaz connected immediately and eloped the same year, garnering much press attention. Arnaz and Ball frequently argued, especially over his indiscretions with other women, but they always made up in the end. Arnaz was drafted to the United States Army in 1942. The United States Army is a military organization whose primary mission is to "provide necessary forces and capabilities. He ended up being classified for limited service due to a knee injury. As a result, Arnaz stayed in Los Angeles, organizing and performing USO shows for wounded GIs being brought back from the Pacific. "USO" redirects here for other uses see USO (disambiguation The United Service Organizations Inc Ball filed for a divorce in 1944. Divorce or dissolution of marriage is the termination of a Marriage. Shortly after Ball obtained an interlocutory decree, however, she reconciled with Arnaz again. Interlocutory is a legal term which can refer to an order, sentence, Decree, or Judgment, given in an intermediate stage between the commencement ^[26] Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were only six years apart in age but apparently believed that it was less socially acceptable for an older woman to marry a younger man, and hence split the difference in their ages, both claiming a 1914 birth date. Significant age disparity in sexual relationships has been and remains a feature of couples in many Cultures and societies. ^[27]

I Love Lucy and Desilu

Ball as Lucy, Vivian Vance as Ethel on the "Job Switching" episode of I Love Lucy

In 1948, Ball was cast as Liz Cugat (later "Cooper"), a wacky wife, in My Favorite Husband, a radio program for CBS Radio. Vivian Vance ( July 26 1909 – August 17 1979) When she was six years old her family moved to Independence Kansas, where she I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley My Favorite Husband is the name of an American Radio program and network Television series. This article is about the radio group for the radio network see CBS Radio Network. The program was successful, and CBS asked her to develop it for television. She agreed, but insisted on working with Arnaz. CBS executives were reluctant, thinking the public would not accept an All-American redhead and a Cuban as a couple. CBS was initially not impressed with the pilot episode produced by the couple's Desilu Productions company, so the couple toured the road in a vaudeville act with Lucy as the zany housewife wanting to get in Arnaz's show. Desilu Productions was a Los Angeles California based company jointly owned by American actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Vaudeville was a Genre of variety entertainment prevalent on the stage in the United States and Canada, from the early 1880s The tour was a smash, and CBS put I Love Lucy on their lineup. I Love Lucy is an American Situation comedy, starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance and William Frawley ^[28] The I Love Lucy show was not only a star vehicle for Lucille Ball, but a way for her to try to salvage her marriage to Desi Arnaz, which had become badly strained, in part by the fact that each had a hectic performing schedule which often kept them apart. ^[29]

Along the way, she created a television dynasty and reached several "firsts". Ball was the first woman in television to be head of a production company: Desilu, the company that she and Arnaz formed. After buying out her by-then ex-husband's share of the studio, Ball functioned as a very active studio head. ^[30] Desilu and I Love Lucy pioneered a number of methods still in use in television production today. ^[31] During this time Ball taught a thirty-two week comedy workshop at the Brandeis-Bardin Institute. Now the Brandeis-Bardin Campus of American Jewish University, this Jewish retreat in Simi Valley was formerly the Brandeis-Bardin Institute Ball is quoted as saying, "You cannot teach someone comedy, either they have it or they don't. "^[32]

When the show premiered, most shows were aired live from New York City studios to Eastern and Central Time Zone audiences, and captured by kinescope for broadcast later to the West Coast. "Live TV" redirects here For the British TV station formerly known by this name see L!VE TV. The City of New York The Eastern Time Zone ( ET) of the Western Hemisphere falls mostly along the east coast of North America and the west coast of South America The Central Time Zone observes Standard time by subtracting six hours from UTC during standard time ( UTC−6) and five hours during Daylight saving Kinescope (ˈkɪnɨskoʊp originally referred to the Cathode ray tube used in Television receivers as named by inventor Vladimir Zworykin in 1929 The kinescope picture was inferior to film, and as a result the West Coast broadcasts were inferior to those seen elsewhere in the country. Ball and Arnaz wanted to remain in their Los Angeles home, but the time zone logistics made that broadcast norm impossible. Prime time in L. A. was too late at night on the East Coast to air a major network series, meaning the majority of the TV audience would be seeing not only the inferior picture of kinescopes but seeing them at least a day later. ^[33]

Sponsor Philip Morris did not want to show day-old kinescopes to the major markets on the East Coast, yet neither did they want to pay for the extra cost filming, processing and editing would require, pressuring Ball and Arnaz to relocate to New York City. Ball and Arnaz offered to take a pay cut to finance filming, on the condition that their company, Desilu, would retain the rights to that film once it was aired. CBS relinquished the show rights back to Desilu after initial broadcast, not realizing they were giving away a valuable and durable asset. Desilu made many millions of dollars on I Love Lucy rebroadcasts through syndication and became a textbook example of how a show can be profitable in second-run syndication. In Broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast Radio shows and Television shows to multiple individual stations without going through In television's infancy, the concept of the rerun hadn't yet formed, and many in the industry wondered who would want to see a program a second time. A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a Radio or Television broadcast. ^[34] In fact, while other celebrated shows of the period exist only in incomplete sets of kinescopes too degraded to show to subsequent generations of television viewers, I Love Lucy has virtually never gone out of syndication since it began, seen by hundreds of millions of people around the world over the past half century. The success of Ball and Arnaz's gamble was instrumental in drawing television production from New York to Hollywood for the next several decades. ^[35]

Desilu also hired legendary German cameraman Karl Freund as their director of photography. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as Karl W Freund, ASC ( January 16, 1890 - May 3, 1969) was an Oscar-winning German cinematographer and Film director Freund had worked for F.W. Murnau and Fritz Lang, shot part of Metropolis (1927) and had directed a number of Hollywood films himself. Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau, better known as F W Murnau ( December 28, 1888 &ndash March 11, 1931) was one of the most influential Friedrich Christian Anton "Fritz" Lang ( December 5, 1890 &ndash August 2, 1976) was an Austrian German - American Metropolis is a silent Science fiction film directed by Fritz Lang and written by Lang and Thea von Harbou. Freund used a three-camera setup, which became the standard way of filming situation comedies. ^[36]Shooting long shots, medium shots, and close-ups on a comedy in front of a live audience demanded discipline, technique, and close choreography. Among other non-standard techniques used in filming the show, cans of paint (in shades ranging from white to medium gray) were kept on set to "paint out" inappropriate shadows and disguise lighting flaws. ^[37][38]

I Love Lucy dominated the weekly TV ratings in the United States for most of its run. In the scene where Lucy and Ricky are practicing the tango in the episode, "Lucy Does The Tango," the longest recorded studio audience laugh in the history of the show was produced. It was so long, in fact, that the sound editor had to cut that particular part of the soundtrack in half^[39] The strenuous rehearsals and demands of Desilu studio kept the Arnazes too busy to comprehend the show's success. During the show's hiatus, they starred together in feature films: Vincente Minnelli's The Long, Long Trailer (1954) and Alexander Hall's Forever, Darling (1956). Vincente Minnelli ( February 28, 1903 &ndash July 25, 1986) was a famous Academy Award -winning Hollywood director The Long Long Trailer is a Novel by Clinton Twiss from the 1950s Alexander Hall was a Theatre Actor from the age of four through 1914 when he began to work in Silent movies Following his military service in World

Desilu produced several other popular shows, most notably Our Miss Brooks (starring Ball's 1937 Stage Door co-star Eve Arden), The Untouchables, Star Trek, and Mission: Impossible. Our Miss Brooks, an American Situation comedy, starred Eve Arden as a sardonic High school English Teacher. Stage Door ( 1937) is a RKO film adapted from the play by the same name that tells the story of several would-be actresses who live together in a boarding Eve Arden ( April 30, 1908 – November 12, 1990) was an Academy Award -nominated and Emmy -winning American The Untouchables is the name of a television series that ran from 1959 to 1963 on the American Broadcasting Company. Star Trek is a Science fiction Television series created by Gene Roddenberry that aired from September 8, 1966 through Mission Impossible (often referred to as Mission Impossible The Original Series) is an American Television series that chronicles Many other shows, particularly Sheldon Leonard-produced series like Make Room for Daddy, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show, and I Spy, were filmed at Desilu Studios and bear its logo. Sheldon Leonard ( February 22 1907 – January 10, 1997) was a pioneering American Film and Television producer The Danny Thomas Show (known as Make Room for Daddy during the first four seasons is a Sitcom which ran from 1953 to 1957 The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television Situation comedy which initially aired on CBS from October 3, 1961 to The Andy Griffith Show is an American sitcom first televised by CBS between October 3 1960 and April 1 I Spy is an American television Secret agent adventure series

Testimony Before the House Committee on Un-American Activities

In 1953, Ball was subpoenaed by the House Committee on Un-American Activities because she had registered to vote in the Communist party primary election in 1936 at her socialist grandfather's insistence (per FBI FOIA-released documents in a declassified FBI file). The House Committee on Un-American Activities ( HUAC or HCUA 1938–1975 was an investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. Communism is a Socioeconomic structure that promotes the establishment of an egalitarian, classless, stateless Society based The Freedom of Information Act ( FOIA) is the implementation of freedom of information legislation in the United States ^[40] Immediately before the filming of episode 68 ("The Girls Go Into Business") of I Love Lucy, Desi Arnaz, instead of his usual audience warm-up, told the audience about Lucy and her grandfather. Arnaz quipped: "The only thing red about Lucy is her hair, and even that's not legitimate. " Then, he presented his wife and she received a standing ovation from the audience ^[16]

Children and divorce

On July 17, 1951, just one month before her fortieth birthday and after several miscarriages, Ball gave birth to her first child, Lucie Desiree Arnaz. Events 180 - Twelve inhabitants of Scillium in North Africa are executed for being Christians Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January Lucie Désirée Arnaz (born July 17, 1951) is an American Actress. ^[5] A year and a half later, Ball gave birth to her second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Desi Arnaz Jr (born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV on January 19, 1953) is an American Actor and Musician and son of entertainers ^[6] When he was born, I Love Lucy was a solid ratings hit, and Ball and Arnaz wrote the pregnancy into the show (indeed, Ball gave birth in real life on the same day that her Lucy Ricardo character gave birth). ^[6] There were several challenges from CBS, insisting that a pregnant woman could not be shown on television, nor could the word "pregnant" be spoken on-air. After approval from several religious figures the network allowed the pregnancy storyline, but insisted that the word "expecting" be used instead of "pregnant". (Arnaz garnered laughs when he deliberately mispronounced it as "'spectin'"). ^[41] The episode's official title was "Lucy Is Enceinte," borrowing the French word for pregnant. ^[13] The birth made the first cover of TV Guide in January 1953. TV Guide is the name of a North American weekly magazine about television programming ^[42] Ball's instincts with business were often astonishingly sharp, and her love for Arnaz was passionate, but her relationships with her children were sometimes strained. Lucie Arnaz, her daughter, spoke of her mother's "controlling" nature. ^[43] Ball was very outspoken against the relationship that Desi Jr. had with Liza Minnelli. Liza May Minnelli (born March 12, 1946) is a legendary American actress and singer She was quoted as saying, "I miss Liza, but you cannot domesticate Liza. "^[44] She had a few very good friends in the business: Ginger Rogers, Mary Wickes and Vivian Vance. Ginger Rogers ( July 16, 1911 &ndash April 25, 1995) was an Academy Award -winning American film and stage actress Mary Wickes ( June 13, 1910 – October 22, 1995) was an American Film and Television Actress. Vivian Vance ( July 26 1909 – August 17 1979) When she was six years old her family moved to Independence Kansas, where she All were childless; Wickes never married.

By the end of the 1950s, Desilu had become a large company, causing a good deal of stress for both Ball and Arnaz; his increased drinking further compounded matters. Desilu Productions was a Los Angeles California based company jointly owned by American actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. ^[45] On May 4, 1960, just two months after filming the final episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, the couple divorced. Events 1256 - The Augustinian monastic order is constituted at the Lecceto Monastery when Pope Alexander IV Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. "We Love Lucy" redirects here this article is not to be confused with I Love Lucy. Until his death in 1986, however, Arnaz and Ball remained friends and often spoke very fondly of each other. ^[46] Indeed, both Arnaz and Ball spoke lovingly of each other after the breakup. Her real-life divorce indirectly found its way into her later television series, as she was always cast as a single woman. ^[47][48]

The following year, Ball did a musical on Broadway, Wildcat, co-starring Paula Stewart. Wildcat is a musical with a book by N Richard Nash, lyrics by Carolyn Leigh, and music by Cy Coleman. Paula Stewart (born April 9 1929 is a Motion Picture Television and Broadway Actress and Singer as well as a Film Producer ^[49] It was Stewart who introduced her to her next husband Gary Morton, a Borscht Belt stand-up comic who was thirteen years her junior. Gary Morton ( December 19, 1924 – March 30, 1999) was the second husband of Lucille Ball. Borscht Belt is an informal term for the summer resorts of the Catskill Mountains in Sullivan and Ulster Counties in Upstate New York which were Stand-up comedy is a style of comedy where the performer speaks directly to the audience with the absence of the theatrical " Fourth wall " ^[8] Morton claimed he had never seen an episode of "I Love Lucy" due to his hectic work schedule. ^[44]That marked the beginning of a thirty-year friendship between Lucy and Paula. Ball immediately installed Morton in her production company, teaching him the television business and eventually promoting him to producer. The primary role of a television producer is to control all aspects of production ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking Morton also played occasional bit parts on Ball's various series. ^[44]

Later career

The 1960 Broadway musical Wildcat was a successful sell-out that ended its run early when Ball became too ill to continue in the show. Broadway theater, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 39 large professional theaters with 500 seats or more located Wildcat is a musical with a book by N Richard Nash, lyrics by Carolyn Leigh, and music by Cy Coleman. ^[44] The show was the source of the song she made famous, "Hey, Look Me Over", which she performed with Paula Stewart on The Ed Sullivan Show. Paula Stewart (born April 9 1929 is a Motion Picture Television and Broadway Actress and Singer as well as a Film Producer The Ed Sullivan Show was an American television Variety show that ran from June 20, 1948 to June 6, She made a few more movies including Yours, Mine, and Ours (1968), and the musical Mame (1974), and two more successful long-running sitcoms for CBS: The Lucy Show (1962–68), which costarred Vance and Gale Gordon, and Here's Lucy (1968–74), which also featured Gordon, as well Lucy's real life children, Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz, Jr. Yours Mine and Ours is a 1968 Film, directed by Melville Shavelson and starring Lucille Ball, Henry Fonda and Van This is an article about a 1974 film For the Broadway musical upon which it's based see Mame. The Lucy Show is a Television series which ran from 1962 until 1968 Gale Gordon ( February 20, 1906 – June 30, 1995) was an American character actor Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball 's third network television sitcom Ball appeared on the Dick Cavett show and spoke of her history and life with Arnaz. Richard Alva "Dick" Cavett (born November 19, 1936) is an American former Television Talk show host known for his conversational She insisted that Mame was by far one of her most favorite "family" movies she had ever done. During that interview, Ball revealed how she felt about other actors and actresses as well as her love for Arnaz. She continued by telling Dick that the success to her life was, getting rid of what was wrong and replacing it with what is right. (Talking about her divorce from Arnaz and marriage to Morton) Lucy also reveals in this interview that the strangest thing to ever happen to her was after she had some dental work completed and after placing lead fillings in her teeth, she started hearing radio stations in her head. She explained coming home one night from the studio and as she passed one area, she heard what she thought was morse code or a "tapping. Morse code is a Character encoding for transmitting telegraphic information using standardized sequences of short and long elements to represent the letters numerals " She stated that "As I backed up it got stronger. The next morning, I reported it to the authorities and upon investigation, they found a Japanese radio transmitter that had been buried and was activeley transmitting codes back to the Japanese. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. " ^[32]

Ball was originally considered by Frank Sinatra for the role of Mrs. Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra (December 12 1915 &ndash May 14 1998 was an American singer and actor Iselin in The Manchurian Candidate. For the novel by Richard Condon, see The Manchurian Candidate. Director/producer John Frankenheimer, however, had worked with Angela Lansbury in a mother role in another film and insisted on having her for the part. John Michael Frankenheimer ( February 19, 1930 &ndash July 6, 2002) was an American Film director. Angela Brigid Lansbury, CBE (born October 16, 1925) is an English Golden Globe Award and Tony Award winning Actress ^[50]

Ball at her last public appearance at the 61st Academy Awards in 1989 just four weeks before her death

During the mid-1980s, she attempted to resurrect her television career. The 61st Academy Awards were presented March 29, 1989 at the Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. In 1982, Ball hosted a two-part Three's Company retrospective, showing clips from the show's first five seasons, summarizing memorable plotlines, and commenting on her love of the show. Three's Company is an American Sitcom that aired from 1977 to 1984 on ABC. ^[51] A 1985 dramatic made-for-TV film about an elderly homeless woman, Stone Pillow, was well received. Stone Pillow was a 1985 Television movie, directed by George Schaefer, in which Lucille Ball, in an attempt to make a Dramatic Her 1986 sitcom comeback Life With Lucy, costarring her longtime foil Gale Gordon and co-produced by Ball, Gary Morton, and former actor Aaron Spelling, was a critical and commercial flop which was canceled less than two months into its run by ABC. Life with Lucy was Lucille Ball 's last Television series. The show ran on the ABC network in 1986, and unlike Lucy's previous A foil is a character that contrasts with another character usually the protagonist and so highlights various facets of the main character's personality Gale Gordon ( February 20, 1906 – June 30, 1995) was an American character actor Gary Morton ( December 19, 1924 – March 30, 1999) was the second husband of Lucille Ball. The American Broadcasting Company ( ABC) is an American Television network. ^[4] The failure of this series was said to have sent Ball into a serious depression, and other than a few miscellaneous awards show appearances, she was absent from the public eye for the last several years of her life. Her last public appearance, just one month before her death, was at the 1989 Academy Awards telecast in which she and fellow presenter, Bob Hope, were given a standing ovation. "The Oscar" redirects here for the film see The Oscar (film. Bob Hope, KBE KCSG ( May 29, 1903 &ndash July 27, 2003) was an American comedian and actor who appeared in

Death

On April 18, 1989, Ball complained of chest pains and was rushed to the emergency room of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Events 1025 - Bolesław Chrobry is crowned in Gniezno, becoming the first King of Poland. Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a Hospital located in Los Angeles California. She was diagnosed as having a dissecting aortic aneurysm and underwent heart surgery for nearly eight hours. The surgery was successful, and Ball was recovering; she was walking around her room with little assistance. ^[7] On April 26, shortly after dawn, Ball awoke with severe back pains. Her aorta had ruptured in a second location and Ball quickly lost consciousness. All attempts to revive her proved unsuccessful and at approximately 05:47 PST, Lucille Ball died at the age of seventy-seven. The Pacific Time Zone observes Standard time by subtracting eight hours from Coordinated Universal Time ( UTC-8) ^[7] She was initially interred in Forest Lawn – Hollywood Hills Cemetery in Los Angeles, but in 2002 her children moved her ashes to the family plot at Lake View Cemetery in Jamestown, New York where Ball's mother, father, brother, and grandparents are buried. Forest Lawn - Hollywood Hills Cemetery is part of the Forest Lawn chain of Southern California cemeteries Jamestown is a City in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. ^[43]

Legacy and posthumous recognition

Ball has received many prestigious awards throughout her career including some that she received posthumously such as the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George H. W. Bush on July 6, 1989. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is a decoration bestowed by the President of the United States and is along with the equivalent Congressional Gold Medal bestowed George Herbert Walker Bush (born June 12 1924 served as the forty-first President of the United States from 1989 to 1993 Events 1044 - The Battle of Ménfő takes place 1189 - Richard the Lionheart is crowned King of England Year 1989 ( MCMLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar) ^[52] The Women's International Center's Living Legacy Award. ^[53] The Little Theatre in Jamestown, New York was renamed the Lucille Ball Little Theatre in her honor. Jamestown is a City in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. ^[54] Ball was among Time magazine's 100 Most Important People of the Century. Time (trademarked in capitals as TIME) is a weekly American Newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and ^[55]

On August 6, 2001, on what would have been her ninetieth birthday, the United States Postal Service honored her with a commemorative postage stamp as part of its Legends of Hollywood series. Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. ^[56] Ball appeared on the cover of TV Guide more than any other person; she appeared on thirty-nine covers, including the very first cover in 1953, with her baby son Desi Arnaz, Jr. TV Guide is the name of a North American weekly magazine about television programming ^[57] TV Guide voted Lucille Ball as the Greatest TV Star of All Time and later it commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of I Love Lucy with eight collector covers celebrating memorable scenes from the show and in another instance they named I Love Lucy the second most influential television program in American history. ^[58] Because of her liberated mindset and approval of the women's movement, Ball was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame. The National Women's Hall of Fame was created in 1969 by a group of people in Seneca Falls, New York, the location of the 1848 Women's Rights Convention ^[59]

Finally, she was awarded the Legacy of Laughter award at the fifth Annual TV Land Awards in 2007. The TV Land Awards are American television awards that generally commemorate shows now off the air rather than in current production as with awards such as the Emmys ^[60] and I Love Lucy was named the Greatest TV Series by Hall of Fame Magazine. ^[19] In November of that year, Lucille Ball was chosen as the second out of the 50 Greatest TV Icons, after Johnny Carson. John William “Johnny” Carson ( October 23, 1925 &ndash January 23, 2005) was an American Television host and In a poll done by the public, however, they chose her as the greatest icon. ^[61]

References

Further reading

• Love, Lucy (1997) ISBN 0-425-17731-9
• The Comic DNA of Lucille Ball: Interpreting the Icon by Michael Karol (2005) ISBN 0-595-37951-6
• Lucy A to Z: The Lucille Ball Encyclopedia by Michael Karol (2004) ISBN 0-595-29761-7
• The Lucille Ball Quiz Book by Michael Karol (2004) ISBN 0-595-31857-6
• Lucy in Print by Michael Karol (2003) ISBN 0-595-29321-2
• Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz by Coyne Steven Sanders and Tom Gilbert (1993) ISBN 0-688-13514-5
• Laughing With Lucy: My Life With America's Leading Lady of Comedy by Madelyn Pugh Davis with Bob Carroll Jr.(2005) ISBN -13; 978-1-57860-247-6
• Ball of Fire: the tumultuous life and comic art of Lucille Ball by Stefan Kanfer (2003) ISBN 0-375-41315-4

External links

• Official website
• Lucille Ball at Find A Grave
• Lucille Ball at the Internet Broadway Database
• Lucille Ball at the Internet Movie Database
• Lucille Ball at Allmovie
• Lucille Ball at TV.com
• Lucille Ball at the Museum of Broadcast Communications
• New York Times obituary
• Lucille Ball biography on TVLand.com