Birth name Lucille Désirée Ball NationalityUSA Birth 6 august 1911 at Jamestown (USA) Death 26 april 1989 (at 77 years) at Beverly Hills (USA) Awards Presidential Medal of Freedom
Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, model, film studio executive, and TV producer. She was the star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy, and Life with Lucy.
Ball's career in the spotlight began in 1929, when she landed work as a model. Shortly thereafter, Lucille began her performing career on Broadway using the stage name Diane Belmont and Dianne Belmont. She performed many small movie roles in the 1930s and 1940s as a contract player for RKO Radio Pictures, being cast as a chorus girl, or in similar roles. In the midst of her work as a contract player for RKO, Ball met Cuban bandleader Desi Arnaz. The two eloped on November 30, 1940.
During the 1950s, Lucille Ball became a television star. In 1951, Ball and Arnaz created the television series I Love Lucy, a show that would go on to be one of the most beloved programs in television history. On July 17, 1951, at almost forty years of age, Ball gave birth to their first child, Lucie Désirée Arnaz. A year and a half later, she gave birth to their second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Ball and Arnaz divorced on May 4, 1960.
In 1962, Ball became the first woman to run a major television studio, Desilu. Her studio produced many successful and popular television series, including Mission: Impossible and Star Trek. She continued making film and television appearances for most of the rest of her life, albeit without ever attaining the success she enjoyed in the 1950s.
Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award thirteen times and won four times. In 1977, Ball was among the first recipients of the Women in Film Crystal Award. 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 Governors Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences in 1989.
On April 26, 1989, at the age of 77, Ball died of an abdominal aortic dissection. At the time of her death, she had been married to standup comedian Gary Morton, her business partner and second husband, for more than 27 years.
Biography
Marriage, children, and divorce
In 1940, Ball met Cuban-born bandleader Desi Arnaz while filming the Rodgers and Hart stage hit Too Many Girls. When they met again on the second day, the two connected immediately and eloped the same year. Although Arnaz was drafted into the Army in 1942, 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 GI's being brought back from the Pacific. That same year, Ball appeared opposite Henry Fonda in The Big Street, in which she plays a paralyzed nightclub singer and Fonda portrays a busboy who idolizes her. The following year Ball appeared in DuBarry Was a Lady.
Ball originally filed for divorce in 1944, going so far as obtaining an interlocutory decree; however, she reconciled with Arnaz and stopped the proceedings.
On July 17, 1951, one month before her 40th birthday, Ball gave birth to her first child, Lucie Désirée Arnaz. A year and a half later, Ball gave birth to her second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Before he was born, I Love Lucy was a solid ratings hit, and Ball and Arnaz wrote the pregnancy into the show. (Ball's necessary and planned caesarean section in real life was scheduled for the same date that her television character gave birth.) 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'".) The episode's official title was "Lucy Is Enceinte," borrowing the French word for pregnant; however, episode titles never appeared on the show. The country was in an uproar over Lucy’s approaching delivery through the winter of 1952. Even the coverage of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s winning the 1952 U.S. presidential election had to battle for media time against Lucy's special event. On January 14, 1953, reports flew around that baby Ricardo would be born on the following Monday’s show. Thousands called the studio and the Hollywood Press Office, demanding to know the details. January 19 would be a date to be remembered in the records of television history. Eisenhower’s swearing-in ceremony had an audience of 29 million people, while 44 million watched Lucy Ricardo welcome little Ricky. The birth made the first cover of TV Guide for the week of April 3–9, 1953. Lucy appeared on the cover of TV Guide more times than any other star in the history of the magazine.
In October 1956, Ball, Vivian Vance, Desi Arnaz, and William Frawley all appeared on a Bob Hope special on NBC, including a spoof of I Love Lucy, the only time all four stars were together on a color telecast. By the end of the 1950s, Desilu had become a large company, causing a good deal of stress for both Ball and Arnaz.
On March 3, 1960, a day after Desi's forty-third birthday (and one day after the filming of Lucy and Desi's last episode together), Lucy filed papers in Santa Monica Superior Court, claiming married life to Desi was "a nightmare" and nothing at all like it appeared on I Love Lucy.
On May 4, 1960, just two months after filming that episode (the final episode of The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour), the couple divorced. Until his death in 1986, however, Arnaz and Ball remained friends and often spoke very fondly of each other. Her real-life divorce indirectly found its way into her later television series, as she was always cast as an unmarried woman.
The following year, Ball starred in the Broadway musical Wildcat, which co-starred Keith Andes and Paula Stewart. That marked the beginning of a thirty-year friendship between Lucy and Stewart, who introduced Lucy to second husband Gary Morton, a Borscht Belt comic who was thirteen years her junior. According to Ball, Morton claimed he had never seen an episode of I Love Lucy due to his hectic work schedule. Ball immediately installed Morton in her production company, teaching him the television business and eventually promoting him to producer. Morton played occasional bit parts on Ball's various series.
Ball was outspoken against the relationship her son had with Patty Duke. Talking about Duke dating her son, she was quoted as saying, "I miss Patty, but you cannot domesticate Patty."
Ball's close friends in the business included perennial co-star Vivian Vance as well as film stars Ann Sothern and Ginger Rogers, and comedic television performers Mary Wickes and Mary Jane Croft; all appeared at least once on her various series. Former Broadway co-stars Andes and Stewart also appeared at least once on her later sitcoms. Ball mentored actress and singer Carole Cook, and befriended Barbara Eden, when Eden appeared on an episode of I Love Lucy.
, 2h4 Directed byJay Roach OriginUSA GenresDrama, Biography ThemesFilms about writers, Political films ActorsElle Fanning, Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, John Goodman, Helen Mirren, Alan Tudyk Roles Self (voice) (archive footage) (uncredited) Rating73% In 1947, Dalton Trumbo (Bryan Cranston) was Hollywood’s top screenwriter until he and other artists were jailed and blacklisted for their political beliefs. Trumbo (directed by Jay Roach) recounts how Dalton used words and wit to win two Academy Awards and expose the absurdity and injustice under the blacklist, which entangled everyone from gossip columnist Hedda Hopper (Helen Mirren) to John Wayne, Kirk Douglas and Otto Preminger. The film also stars Diane Lane, John Goodman, Louis CK, Elle Fanning, and Michael Stuhlbarg.
Directed byGeorge Schaefer OriginUSA GenresDrama ActorsLucille Ball, Daphne Zuniga, William Converse-Roberts, Stephen Lang, Rebecca Schull, Anna Maria Horsford Roles Florabelle Rating73% Carrie Lange (Daphne Zuniga) has just begun her career in social work. She wants to make a difference but must first learn what life is really like for New York City's homeless. She meets an elderly woman named Florabelle (Ball), who makes it known she does not want company or help. Equipped with the precious cart that contains all of her belongings, Flora takes care of herself on the streets of Manhattan. Carrie wins Flora's trust after saving her cart. Flora takes her for a runaway, and Carrie plays along as Flora finds her the best food and warmest places the street have to offer. Flora even divulges painful memories about her past life. They go to Grand Central Station for the night, but are separated after the police throw everyone out. Flora looks for Carrie at a shelter and is stunned to find her working there. She feels she has been betrayed. Against her will, Flora is shuttled off to a woman's shelter in Brooklyn, where she is treated poorly, and then must find her way back to Manhattan. Finding compassion difficult to come by even in those within her profession, Carrie decides she can make a difference one person at a time. Finally realizing she cannot go on living the way she does, Flora accepts Carrie's helping hand. Through Carrie's intervention, for the first time in years, Flora has a place to call home.
, 1h Directed byJack Donohue OriginUSA GenresComedy ActorsArnold Schwarzenegger, Lucille Ball, Art Carney, Nanette Fabray, Peter Marshall, Don Porter Roles Norma Michaels Rating56% Norma and Malcolm Michaels are a middle-aged married couple who are in the midst of a midlife crisis. Both decide to separate and begin their lives anew away from each other. However, problems ensue once they discover that they are no longer as young as they used to be.
, 2h12 Directed byGene Saks OriginUSA GenresComedy, Musical ThemesFilms about music and musicians, Théâtre, Musical films, Films based on plays, Films based on musicals ActorsLucille Ball, Beatrice Arthur, Robert Preston, Bruce Davison, Jane Connell, Joyce Van Patten Roles Mame Dennis Rating59% At the reading of the will of young Patrick Dennis's (Kirby Furlong) father, a trustee, Mr. Babcock (John McGiver), reveals that Patrick is to be left in the care of his aunt, Mame Dennis (Lucille Ball), as well as his nanny, Agnes Gooch (Jane Connell). Taking a train to New York City (Main Title Including St. Bridget), Babcock and the boy arrive at Mame's home, where they walk into a wild party that Mame is giving for a holiday she herself created (It's Today). Patrick asks if he may slide down her banister, then reveals his true identity. Mame introduces the boy to her friends, including a renowned stage actress (and famous lush), Vera Charles (Beatrice Arthur).
, 1h29 Directed byGene Kelly OriginUSA GenresComedy, Romance ThemesFilms about sexuality, Erotic films ActorsWalter Matthau, Robert Morse, Inger Stevens, Sue Ane Langdon, Elaine Devry, Aline Towne Roles Technical Adviser (Mrs. Joe X) Rating65% Paul Manning discovers one day that his dear friend and neighbor Ed Stander has been cheating on his wife. Curious, he asks Ed about it and is given the history and tactics of men who have successfully committed adultery. With each new story, Paul can't help but notice the attractive blonde, Irma Johnson, who lives nearby.
, 1h43 Directed byNorman Panama, Melvin Frank OriginUSA GenresDrama, Comedy, Romantic comedy, Romance ThemesFilms about sexuality ActorsBob Hope, Lucille Ball, Ruth Hussey, Don DeFore, Louis Nye, Philip Ober Roles Kitty Weaver Rating62% As the yearly vacation of six neighbors, the Gilberts, Masons, and Weavers, approaches, Kitty Weaver (Lucille Ball) and Larry Gilbert (Bob Hope) find themselves frustrated with the routine. When both their spouses (Ruth Hussey and Don DeFore) are kept away from the vacation, Kitty and Larry find themselves alone in Acapulco, with the Masons (Philip Ober and Marianne Stewart) bedridden with illness. Forced together, Kitty and Larry fall in love. Once the vacation is over, however, they have difficulties in either abandoning or continuing their romance.
Directed byAlexander Hall OriginUSA GenresComedy, Romantic comedy, Romance ActorsLucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, James Mason, Louis Calhern, John Emery, Natalie Schafer Roles Susan Vega Rating60% After five years of marriage, chemical engineer Lorenzo Xavier Vega (Arnaz) tends to neglect his wife Susan (Ball) in favor of his work. When she wishes aloud that she had a more attentive spouse, her Guardian Angel—coincidentally the mirror image of her favorite movie star (Mason) -- appears.
, 1h36 Directed byVincente Minnelli OriginUSA GenresComedy, Romance ThemesTransport films, Road movies ActorsLucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Marjorie Main, Keenan Wynn, Moroni Olsen, Madge Blake Roles Tacy Collini Rating68% As Nicholas Collini (Desi Arnaz) takes a new job as a civil engineer, his new bride Tacy (Lucille Ball) comes up with an idea to buy a trailer to travel around the USA to various work projects on which Nicky is employed, as well as to save money that would otherwise be spent on a house. Tacy also hopes to haul the trailer themselves to Nicky's new place of work in Colorado, as part of their honeymoon trip to the Sierra Nevada mountains. But the honeymoon trip, as well as happenings leading up to it, rapidly become a catalog of disasters.
, 1h21 Directed byEdward Sedgwick, Marc Daniels OriginUSA GenresComedy ActorsLucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, William Frawley, Ann Doran, Mary Wickes Roles Lucy Ricardo Rating82% The film plays out with three first-season episodes edited together into a single story: "The Benefit", "Breaking the Lease", and "The Ballet", with new footage included between episodes to help transition the episodes into one coherent storyline. As the series routinely took the format of filming scenes in chronological order, this adds to the "show within a show within a show" format of the film, as viewers watch the cast perform the episodes live. The film itself ends with a "curtain call", as the cast comes out and Arnaz thanks the audience for their support.