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Who Was Lucille Ball?
Lucille Ball began her career as a singer, model, and film star before becoming one of America’s foremost comedic actresses with her iconic role in the 1950s television show I Love Lucy. Co-starring alongside her husband, Desi Arnaz, the show became a cultural phenomenon. Following their divorce in 1960, Ball continued her successful career with The Lucy Show and Here’s Lucy, while also establishing herself as a prominent television executive. She passed away in 1989.
Early Life
Born on August 6, 1911, in Jamestown, New York, Lucille Ball was the daughter of Henry Durrell Ball and Desiree Ball. As the elder of two siblings—her brother Fred was born in 1915—Ball’s early life was marked by hardship and tragedy. Her father, an electrician, relocated the family to Montana shortly after her birth, and later moved them to Michigan, where he worked as a telephone lineman for the Michigan Bell Company.
Tragedy struck in February 1915 when Henry Ball succumbed to typhoid fever, leaving his three-year-old daughter with a profound sense of loss. This experience would become one of her earliest and most vivid memories. In her own words, Ball reflected, “I do remember everything that happened: hanging out the window, begging to play with the kids next door who had measles, the doctor coming, my mother weeping. I remember a bird that flew in the window, a picture that fell off the wall.”
In the aftermath of her father’s death, Desiree Ball, pregnant with Fred, returned to Jamestown. There, she found work in a factory and remarried Ed Peterson. However, Peterson was not fond of children, leading him to relocate to Detroit without his wife’s children. Fred was sent to live with Desiree’s parents, while Lucille was placed in the care of Ed’s family. This arrangement brought new challenges for Ball, as she had to navigate the stern environment of her step-grandmother’s household, which often lacked the financial means for even basic necessities like school supplies. These early experiences would shape her resilience and future career in entertainment.
Early Career
At the age of 11, Lucille Ball reunited with her mother, Desiree, upon her return to Jamestown. Even in her youth, she possessed an ambition to achieve greatness, prompting her, at 15, to persuade her mother to enroll her in a drama school in New York City. However, her dreams of the stage were hindered by shyness.
“I was a tongue-tied teenager spellbound by the school’s star pupil, Bette Davis,” Ball later reflected. Her instructors ultimately informed her mother, stating, “Lucy’s wasting her time and ours. She’s too shy and reticent to put her best foot forward.”
Despite these initial setbacks, Ball remained in New York and, by 1927, began working as a model under the name Diane Belmont. She initially collaborated with fashion designer Hattie Carnegie and, after overcoming a debilitating bout of rheumatoid arthritis, transitioned to modeling for Chesterfield cigarettes.
In the early 1930s, Ball, now a blonde after dyeing her chestnut hair, relocated to Hollywood to pursue acting opportunities. Success came quickly, with her role as one of the twelve “Goldwyn Girls” in the 1933 film Roman Scandals. This led to an extra role in the Ritz Brothers’ The Three Musketeers, followed by a significant part in the 1937 film Stage Door, which featured renowned actresses Katharine Hepburn and Ginger Rogers.
Marriage to Desi Arnaz
Throughout her prolific career, Ball appeared in a total of 72 films, including a series of second-tier movies in the 1940s that earned her the unofficial title of “The Queen of B Movies.” It was during the filming of Dance, Girl, Dance that she met the charismatic Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz. Their chemistry blossomed in Ball’s subsequent film, Too Many Girls, and by the end of that year, they were married.
For Ball, who had often been linked to older men, Arnaz represented a departure: he was young, fiery, and had a reputation as a ladies’ man. Many friends and colleagues predicted that the romance between these seemingly mismatched entertainers would be short-lived. However, despite occasional romantic indiscretions, Arnaz provided steadfast support for Ball’s career aspirations throughout their 20-year marriage.
As the late 1940s approached, Ball, having dyed her hair red in 1942 at the urging of MGM, found herself struggling to secure leading roles. Recognizing her stagnant movie career, Arnaz encouraged her to explore broadcasting. This led Ball to secure a lead role in the radio comedy My Favorite Husband, which caught the attention of CBS executives eager to recreate the show’s success on television. Ball insisted that her real-life husband be included, which the network initially resisted, prompting her to withdraw from negotiations. Together, Ball and Arnaz developed a vaudeville act reminiscent of I Love Lucy and took it on the road, achieving success and ultimately securing a contract with CBS.
‘I Love Lucy’
From the outset, Ball and Arnaz were clear about their vision for the new series. They requested to produce the show in Hollywood rather than New York and insisted on filming with higher-quality film instead of the cheaper kinescope format. When CBS cited the costs, Ball and Arnaz agreed to a pay cut in exchange for ownership rights and the opportunity to run the show through their production company, Desilu Productions.
On October 15, 1951, I Love Lucy premiered, instantly distinguishing itself as a groundbreaking sitcom. Co-starring Vivian Vance and William Frawley, the show tackled various themes, including marital dynamics, women’s roles in the workplace, and suburban life. One of the most memorable episodes aired on January 19, 1953, when Lucy gave birth to Little Ricky, coinciding with Ball’s real-life cesarean delivery of her son, Desi Jr.
While the show was undoubtedly centered around Lucy, Ball’s work ethic was often understated. A perfectionist by nature, she rehearsed her comedic routines extensively, ensuring each performance was meticulously crafted. Her contributions to comedy significantly influenced future stars, including Mary Tyler Moore, Penny Marshall, Cybill Shepherd, and Robin Williams.
I Love Lucy achieved unprecedented success during its six-year run, consistently ranking as the top television show in the country. The program achieved a remarkable 67.3 audience share in 1953, with the episode featuring Little Ricky’s birth garnering a 71.1 rating, surpassing even the television audience for President Eisenhower’s inauguration.
After ‘Lucy’
Following the conclusion of I Love Lucy in 1957, Desilu Productions continued to thrive, producing additional television hits such as Our Miss Brooks, Make Room for Daddy, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Untouchables, Star Trek, and Mission: Impossible.
In 1960, Ball and Arnaz divorced. Two years later, she remarried comedian Gary Morton and acquired Arnaz’s stake in Desilu Productions, becoming the first woman to lead a major television production studio. She later sold the company to Gulf-Western in 1967 for $17 million.
Ball continued to work in television, starring in The Lucy Show (1962-68) and Here’s Lucy (1968-73), both of which achieved moderate success but failed to replicate the magic of her earlier work with Arnaz. Nonetheless, her profound influence on the comedy genre and the television industry at large is widely acknowledged.
In 1971, Ball became the first woman to receive the International Radio and Television Society’s Gold Medal. Her accolades also included four Emmy Awards, induction into the Television Hall of Fame, and recognition from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts for her lifetime achievements.
In 1985, Ball ventured into dramatic acting with the made-for-TV movie Stone Pillow, earning some praise despite the film’s modest success. However, the desire for her return to comedy persisted. In 1986, she launched a new CBS sitcom, Life With Lucy, which, despite a substantial salary of $2.3 million, failed to attract a significant audience and was canceled after just eight episodes.
Death
Lucille Ball passed away on April 26, 1989, due to a ruptured aorta following open-heart surgery at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Her legacy as a pioneering figure in television and comedy endures, leaving an indelible mark on the entertainment industry.