I Love Lucy: 60 Years of Love and Laughter.

On this day, 60 years ago, the very first episode of I Love Lucy aired on CBS.

The episode was "The Girls Want to Go To a Nightclub". The original first episode was supposed to be "Lucy Thinks Ricky is Going to Murder Her", but on the night of the premiere episode there was a glitch with that particular reel and luckily, their second episode was already there to fill in.

Stills from the historic first episode

America in the 1950's was a curious time, and a time of change. They had survived the tough years -  the Depression, the War Years - and now the new decade loomed before them clear and glittering. Filled with the patriotic pride, can-do spirit, and endurance that had followed them throughout the difficulties of the past 20 years, they charged forward with a new, hopeful spirit.

Now that the boys were back home, "The Baby Boom" era had launched and families were growing quicker and faster ever than before. The American suburbs were born: pretty, tidy, yet somewhat identical and stereotypical single family homes with big backyards in a wholesome neighborhood popping up all over the country.

America in the 1950's was commercial. They were willing to reward themselves with perhaps a shiny new dishwasher or refrigerator; the Retro Housewife was getting her share of presents. And the American Woman was a new person. Though she still sent the kids and the husband to school in the morning, cooked and cleaned and gossiped with her girlfriends throughout day, all in having the house spanking clean and the pot roast ready for dinner, she was somehow becoming more independent. The War Years had given women new opportunities, told them to take charge. They got jobs and held down the fort with their husbands away. Now their husbands were back and they fell back into their role as housewives but with a new air of confidence. They wore pants, for example, and demanded the new household appliances that went hand in hand with independence.

The 1950's was very much the hyperbola of the glory years: the decade when "things were better" and that glorified "The American Dream." A gorgeous new car would cost you $1,000 - a house perhaps $9,000, the milkman would drop off the bottles of milk in the back of the house for 92 cents, and a dozen eggs would spare you two dimes and then some. America was happy, rejuvenated, and excited by the prospect of the future. They had survived the rough times and now, they could sit back and thoroughly enjoy life.

This was the world that I Love Lucy walked into. 

Television was something new, but it was hot and Americans were excited about it. Still, in the year 1950 (just a couple years after it came on the market), only one in ten Americans owned a television set. Lucy would premiere the following year, give birth to the sitcom, and change television for good. For by the year 1955, more than half of Americans would own a television set and most of the time, their dials would be turned to CBS, to Lucy.

One of the most classic of all episodes - "Job Switching."

The next morning after Lucy's premiere, the critics excitedly declared the show a runaway hit ("full of good comedy, slick in comedic construction, preformed with a smart feeling!"). The Hollywood Reporter was so enthusiastic that they blurted, "The show should bounce to the top of the rating's heap in no time at all. If it doesn't, the entire structure of  the American entertainment business should be overhauled from top to bottom!"


The Hollywood Reporter needn't worry because Americans were able to take notice of this good thing when they had it. Lucy shot to number three for the first season of the show, but that was only the beginning.

Season Two started out with a bang. Since Lucy and Desi were pregnant, Ricky and Lucy were about to be, too. CBS shook in their boots: scandal, perhaps? The infant of television had never dared show a straight up, openly pregnant woman before on TV. Some moral guardians shook their head and clicked their tongues "no", one woman writing into a newspaper:

What must we tell our eight year old daughter when she fails to see why Lucy's inability to get out of a chair is a joke?

The newspaper, who supported the show, gave it write back to the woman.

Several mothers of young daughters in our neighborhood solved the problem by explaining exactly why Lucy has difficulty getting out of chairs.

Years later, Lucy would say, "We weren't even allowed to say the word 'pregnant', and today not only can you say the word you can show how they got that way!" (That was thirty years ago).

Most, however, were supportive of the nine consecutive episodes surrounding the pregnancy and the sweet moments that were provoked from it. One lady writer wrote, "Lucille Ball lends chic to maternity", while other writers agreed the pregnancy shows were one hundred percent appropriate for the family viewing and that the episodes were done with total taste, not to mention with the approval of a priest, minister, and rabbi (who never brought up an issue, instead wondered what was the problem and thought that showing motherhood on television was a beautiful thing).

When the Ricardos' son, Little Ricky, was born on January 19th, 1953 (that morning Lucille Ball had given birth to the Arnaz baby, Desi, Jr. in perfect timing), more than 70% of TV viewers tuned into watch the episode. Based on the number of people who owned television sets and then the over all percentage that tuned in, this spawned one of the most watched TV moments. The inauguration of President Eisenhower was the next morning and he famously failed to rake in only 68% of the viewers.

If Lucy wasn't a phenomenon before, that was the clincher. The first edition of TV Guide displayed "Lucy's $50,000,000 baby", Desi, Jr. It was announced on radio in Japan that the Ricardos had given birth to a baby boy, and up until then people had even been making bets on what the sex would be. Lucille Ball's hospital room was filled with flowers - so many that they spilled into the hallway and several floors down - and the Arnazes received hundreds and hundreds of cards (only twenty-three of them were negative.)

America adored Lucy.

An interesting article entitled "I Love Lucy Takes Nation by Storm" examined and showed just how strong the popularity of the show was in the country. The article tells us just a few of the habits of religious Lucy watchers. Like, for example -

• In Dallas, Lucy viewing parties were all the rage despite the show broadcast on a Monday night, which was both a school and work night.
• In Pennsylvania, a department store manager who used to keep his store open Monday nights was forced to move it to another night because he and all his help wanted to go home and watch Lucy with their families.
• A telephone company in LA confirmed that telephone calls plummeted to a minimum during the Lucy half hour.
• Parents began sending requests to Lucy and Desi if the 9:00 PM show could be move to earlier in the evening as their children were constantly begging for allowances in bedtime to stay up to watch the show - allowances which, indeed, the parents had to make.
• The writer himself remembered one instance sitting in a dentist office on Monday night when the young lady across from him suddenly dropped her magazine and shot out of her chair, declaring, "I've got to get out of here! I forgot tonight is Lucy!"

One of the greatest conversations on a Tuesday whether it would be between girlfriends, at the office, or at the dinner table was Lucy. And it wasn't "Did you see I Love Lucy?". It was did you see the show. "The show" signified only one show in the world, everyone was watching it, and everyone knew it.

That was the 1950's, that was sixty years ago. The most intriguing thing about the show, however, is it's capability to remain popular today.

How is that so? Maybe that it is the hyperbola of the classic television, the hallmark of the Golden Age of TV; why, for most people if you were told "classic TV", the first thing that would come to mind would be Lucy. Even before I watched the show I had heard of it and in my mind it was just what you thought of when you thought of old TV or black and white TV.

To each avid Lucy viewer and fan, the show means something to him/her. Usually something individual. Oh, there all the underlying factors that just about everyone will agree with: it's hilarious, for one. But there are others that lie beneath the surface. 

Like for me, it cheers me up. If I have ever had a hard day or a long one, all I need to do is watch one episode and it helps me relax and smile again. It is a comfort. I have seen each episode so many times, so much so that I can say the lines in unison with the characters. I know exactly what Lucy's scheming do and when and why Ricky is going to blow. Yet I watch a few episodes nearly every day, and I never get tired of it. Never "oh, that old episode again." Each time I watch it the the lines can still be funny, still fresh and new, but familiar so I feel like it's a friend and a good one.

I have always felt that in my worst moments or my worse times, I can turn to this show and instantly feel better. And I think that is simply one of the things that gives this show it's an enduring popularity. It can never feel outdated (for antagonists of old things) because some things, whether it was sixty years ago or today, can never become old. Two of these big things are "love" and "laughter", and Lucy gives us both.

"Laughter", of course, is the most obvious of these two. One might have to stop for a moment and think about "love". Is it because of the title? The title, given by the show's producer, Jess Oppenheimer, actually has meaning. He wanted the show to be about this ditzy redhead and her bandleader husband. She's always botching up, doing these silly things, he loses his temper but at the end of the day he still loves her. The show is about unconditional love. (A bit of trivia: Lucille Ball agreed to the title because she felt that it gave Desi top billing, as the "I" in I Love Lucy was Desi and he came first. Up until then, they had been trying to do "The Lucille Ball Show" or "The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show", which always gave Desi second billing).

The show is warm and loving. And I know it must feel strange to have such a strong attachment to a television show; just black and white characters frolicking on our screens (tiny then, humongous now). But I know I'm not the only one. The show was a labor of love and a gift. To me, laughter is the greatest sound in the world and Lucy is one thing you can be sure of will always have it.

Some follow-ups to what I have written:

♥ My first experience watching 'Lucy'

♥ Examining part one of 'Lucy' 's dream team: the stars

♥ and part two: the backstage brains.

♥ The top ten most classic 'Lucy' moments

♥ A list to help you discover if you're obsessed with 'Lucy' or not

And if you want more, just check my "I Love Lucy" tag.

Of course, I have made a tribute for this particular day and this amazing show. Here it is:

And I'll leave you with a picture... and quote! 

"I'm happy that I have brought laughter because I have been shown by many the value of it in so many lives, in so many ways."

- LUCY

I guess there's nothing left to say, but: Thank you. Thanks, Lucy, for all the love and laughter and the good times you've given to generations of people, for sixty years. ♥

I Love Lucy's Dream Team || Part One, "The Stars"

Hello friends (I can't say this without thinking of "Vitavetavegamin").

With the anticipation for I Love Lucy's sixtieth anniversary on Saturday, I thought I'd do a two part post on examining I Love Lucy's "dream team" - a short profiling of the handful or so of actors and backstage crew that worked to make the show a success. Instead of doing a summary of their life, however, I'm going to discuss how they became involved with the show, why their role was important, and just how they added to the show's overall amazingness. ;)

I'll probably write the second part either Friday or tomorrow, if I can swing it. For now, here's part one!

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THE STARS.

THE WOMAN WHO WAS LUCY 

Lucille Desiree Ball (1911 - 1989), would make famous the zany redhead we all know and love, Lucy Ricardo. My dahhling Lucy ventured into the world of television when her career in movies had been consistently the same for over a decade -  strings of B movies; studios were giving her second hand roles The American public was familiar with her face but she wasn't a big movie star. Television was risky. TV and movies were hardened enemies at the time because the small screens with their antennas were attacking the popularity of going to the theater - why would you, when you could just flick a dial at home? With a little help from deceased friend Carole Lombard, who appeared to her in a dream - "Give it a whirl!", Carole said - Lucy decided to take the plunge. After all, this may save her marriage to husband Desi too. Destined for true stardom, her life would never be the same.

I cannot sum into a few sentences what Lucy's contribution was to the show.. it would be impossible.. - she was the show. All the other members of this dream team were amazing and spectacular in their own way and the show wouldn't possibly be the same without them, but Lucy was the star and she proved to people what they had doubted for years. It takes a lot to be a comedienne and she had all of it: the perfect timing, a gift for physical comedy, a good rapport with her co-stars. America began a love affair with the character that never ceases to end. With all of her  imperfections, we still love her and that's the premise of the show. Look, to be put simply: Lucy was the show. Without Lucy, there was no show. She made it everything that is and always will be. ♥


Fantastically short, yes, but I think you all know already how much I love this woman. And if you've watched even a couple seconds of any episode, you'll know why she was special and why she was indeed the show. Desi, when once asked to distribute the success of the show among the actors, writers, directors, said: "Give Lucy 90% of the credit and divide the other 10% among the rest of us. Viv, Fred, and I were just props; damned good props, but props nevertheless. " And I am sure every single person who worked on that show would agree.

THE MAN WHO LOVED HER

Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (1917 - 1986) was not having much luck in the movies, either. In fact, he was doing quite a bit worse than his wife, who had at least taken the title of "Queen of the B's." Studios would not take Desi despite his obvious talent; at first they were enchanted by the "Cuban glamour boy", but their curiosity had run out. That accent, to begin with. What roles could they possibly give him with that accent? Because of these factors, his only source of income was to tour with his rhumba band all the time. This put a great strain on his marriage, however - "You can't get pregnant over the phone," Lucy would cry.

They wanted to work together but execs felt that the American public would not accept redheaded, all American Lucy and Cuban Desi together as a couple. "But we are married!" Lucy insisted. I Love Lucy was their only chance to work together. It was developed from the radio show "My Favorite Husband" which Lucy had starred in with Richard Denning voicing her husband. Lucy liked Denning but insisted that Desi be her husband or there would be no show. They were desperate to work together so he would be able to stay at home; and then they may actually begin to start a family. Again, execs balked at the idea so they took a vaudeville show on the road to convince them that the public would accept them. The show was a success and Desi was on board.

Desi as Ricky was different than any of the other TV husbands or dads on the tube. Sure, he had dark looks and the accent. That to begin with that made him stand out from any other program with their all American men. But his famous Latin temperament was the perfect foil for Lucy's antics, and the chemistry between he and his on screen wife sparkled because they were married off screen. You could believe the Ricardos were really in love.

Desi played a big part off screen, though. He was the executive producer and quite good at his job; the true brains, people would say. He made sure everything rolled smoothly, he knew how to talk to his employees and also helped birth the rerun by selling back all of the Lucys to CBS. I think Lucy sums it up pretty well in what she once told friend and protegee Carol Burnett: "Y'know, when I was married to the Cuban, I never had to worry about a thing. Desi was so damn smart about everything- scripts, cameras, lighting, costuming, you name it. I would simply waltz in on Monday mornings and the cast and I would read a perfect script, all ready for rehearsal. All I had to do was be Lucy."

THE BEST FRIEND A GIRL COULD ASK FOR

Vivian Roberta Jones (1909 - 1979) was having some steady roles in theater. Though she wasn't the toast of the town, she popped into the mind of Lucy director Marc Daniels, who "remembered her from New York." It was not so long before the original rehearsals of Lucy would begin (in fact, one must remember most of the planning for show happened in a hurried six month period), and they were searching for the perfect "second banana": Ethel Mertz. Ethel was going to be a hard type to cast. She needed to be slightly older than Lucy and somewhat frumpy, but at the same time not so out of Lucy's range that Lucy would not be able to scheme with her.

 Lucy was at home resting from her Cesarean pregnancy to daughter Lucie when Desi, Marc, and Jess Oppenhemier (the producer) went to the La Jolla Theater to see Vivian in "The Voice of the Turtle." They loved her and went backstage to deliver the good news, but Vivian was dubious. The character sounded kind of frumpy and Vivian wanted to be a serious actress. None the less, she would audition for the role and a few days later, she got it.

Vivian made Ethel Mertz the most famous second banana or sidekick of all time. Vivian's Ethel and Lucy's Lucy went together like peanut butter and jelly. It certainly helped that backstage they were becoming great friends (and always would be), much in the same way that Lucy and Ricky's marriage seemed real because the Arnazes were truly married off screen. You can sense their friendship and that even if Ethel knows what kind of a mess she's going to be getting into, she'll do it because she (like us) loves Lucy... also, sometimes she can't resist the fun!

The Ethel-Lucy pairing would produce some of the funniest moments in the show, most famously the candy factory scene.

HE WAS FRED;

AND FRED WAS HIM

William Clement Frawley (1887 - 1966) actually can be noticed in small character roles in several films, like "Miracle on 34th Street" or "East Side, West Side." He first met Lucy on the set of "Ziegfield Follies". They did not work together in the movie (the whole film was stitched up musical numbers or skits starring various MGM stars - Bill participated in a skit with Fanny Brice whereas Lucy had a fancy musical number consisting of horses and beautiful pink outfits centered around her) or got to be great friends or anything. But when Bill discovered Lucy needed a Fred Mertz, and that her first choice (Gale Gordon) was unavailable, he called her up and asked for the role.

Both Lucy and Desi loved him as Fred Mertz, but the others became worried about Bill's habit of drinking. A deal was made that if Bill was ever late or missed a show for any reason but a truly important medical situation, he would be fired. Bill agreed to it. Though he would often pluck through the script for his lines and learn them alone (sometimes so that he didn't even understand the plot or the jokes), as well as battled hard with Vivian Vance (it has been said she declared "Champagne for all!" when the news of his death reached her), Bill never missed a show due to his drinking or any other reason. He was never drink on set and best of all, he made the perfect Fred Mertz.

"He was Fred Mertz," Lucy would say of him. He identified so perfectly with Fred's cranky yet lovable character that the two become one and it resulted in pure hilariousness. His banter with his wife, his adoration for his godson, his love of watching the fights with Ricky. Fred Mertz really put definition into "being a character" and we loved him for it.

                                                                                      THE SUPPORTING PLAYERS

As if it wasn't even wonderful enough that the stars of the show would be so perfect and true in their characters, the supporting cast and bit players were excellent players as well. They were familiar faces throughout the whole run of the show. There was Keith Thibodeaux (billed as Richard Keith or simply "Little Ricky") as the Ricardos son, Little Ricky (read here my explanation why he was the cutest TV kid EVER). Or Doris Singleton who would appear several times in hilarious episodes as Lillian, or later on, Carolyn Appleby. Elizabeth Patterson, another character actress veteran, was Mathilda Trumbell, who we'd all come to know and love as Little Ricky's dependent babysitter, or Mary Jane Croft was Betty Ramsey, who would become one of Lucy and Ethel's BFFs when the gang moved out to Conneticuit. They supported the main characters perfectly and even in roles that were sometimes quite small, shone and contributed to the sitcom to make it all around perfect. 

***

Okay, that's it for part one. I'll be back with part two soon that will spotlight the writers, directors, even cameramen. 

By the way, as we celebrate I Love Lucy's 60th among the next few days, I'm personally inviting everyone to leave your comments with what you think made the show special, why we love it so much, which member of the "dream team" is your favorite, which episode, etc. I hope you all would comment anyway, but this is a special request. Think of it as a big valentine to the show. :)

Happy 60th Birthday, I Love Lucy!

Okay, my title is slightly misleading. If you were to consider the first day "I Love Lucy" ever went on air (and has not gone off since), that would be about a month from now (and I've got, of course, a lot under my sleeves for that).

HOWEVER, the first episode of "I Love Lucy" was filmed on September 8th, but it would not go on air until a whole four episodes later because of complications. The first episode to air was "The Girls Want to Go to a Nightclub", and it was filmed on this date sixty years ago. Technically, that makes it the first episode and therefore I will celebrate the 60th filming anniversary on this date.

*Few*. I hope I didn't confuse the heck out of you there, though I probably did.

Anyhow, in honor of this day, I have a few tributes. The first is the top ten most classic moments of "I Love Lucy"; not exactly my favorite, I listed those here in my 100th birthday tribute for Lucy. These are the ten most iconic or classic moments that have emboldened the show into history, and keep it fresh and a favorite nearly 60 years after it first went on air.

THE TOP 10 CLASSIC "LUCY" MOMENTS

1)      Vitameatavegamin – Lucy Does a TV Commercial (1952):

“And it’s so tasty, too!” Ask anyone and they’ll recount one of Lucy Ricardo’s greatest moments: Vitameatavegamin. Lucy wheedles her way into a TV commercial on Ricky’s TV spot. The product is Vitameatavegamin, a type of elixir that contains vitamins, meat, vegetables, and minerals – that promises to “spoon your way to health!” What Lucy doesn’t know is the product contains 23% alcohol. It isn’t long before Lucy is in a woozey state, – “Do you pop out at parties? Are you unpoopular?” – Therefore creating one of the most hilarious and well-known Lucy moments of all time…and sixty years later, it still has us keeling over with laughter.

2)      Lucy, A Pie, and Bill Holden – LA At Last (1956):

One of the most infamous Lucy scenes in history – when Lucy and the gang finally arrive at Hollywood, the first thing Lucy, Ethel, and Fred decide to do is scope out all the movies stars at the “watering hole,” or rather, the Brown Derby. While there, Bill Holden innocently takes the booth behind Lucy, Ethel and Fred. Lucy and Ethel can’t stop drooling and eying the star until Bill tries to give them a taste of their own medicine. When he won’t stop gazing at Lucy, she gets uncomfortable, jumps up, and starts to leave – crashing into a waiter carrying a pie. The pie goes flying into Bill Holden’s face, and, well, need we say more?

3)      Lucy and the Putty Nose – LA At Last (1956):

This other famous bit takes place in the same episode. After smashing a pie into Bill Holden’s face, Lucy hurries home. Whereas later on, Ricky brings Bill home to give his starstruck wife the pleasure of meeting the star, Lucy is scared to death knowing Bill Holden will recognize her as the woman who smashed a pie into his face. So she disguises herself with glasses and a scarf to cover her memorable hair, and then makes a putty nose for herself. While chatting with Bill Holden, she lights a cigarette – or rather, her nose! Her putty nose on fire another classic Lucy moment.

4)      Lucy Tells Ricky She’s Pregnant – Lucy is Enceinte (1952):

In 1952, Lucille Ball made history as the first pregnant woman on TV. In fact, “I Love Lucy” was the first show to acknowledge a pregnant woman on TV – just, they couldn’t use the word pregnant. So instead they said “expecting,” or rather, “enceinte,” the French word for pregnant. In the episode which Lucy tells Ricky she is pregnant, she wants to tell him the way she’s always dreamed she would. But something or another keeps interrupting the perfect moment. Finally, she goes down to the club that night and writes an anonymous song request for the song, “We’re Having a Baby, My Baby and Me”. Ricky goes from table to table trying to find the expecting couple. When he comes to Lucy, she nods, and Ricky is ecstatic – “It’s me! I’m the father!” He and Lucy dance while he sings her the song. Actress Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, who played Ricky, were married in real life. They were so happy to be expecting another child (they already had one daughter, Lucie Desiree) after so many miscarriages they couldn’t help it; the tears came spilling out. The director filmed a more emotional take, but the audience protested – “NO! NO NO!” the original, sentimental take was used, and is considered one of the sweetest moments in TV history.

5)      Lucy and Ethel are Candymakers  – Job Switching (1952)

Lucy and Ethel and Ricky and Fred decide to switch places for one day. Ricky and Fred will stay home and do housework while Lucy and Ethel go out to get jobs. While Ricky and Fred struggle with cooking dinner and ironing clothes at home, Lucy and Ethel get jobs at a chocolate factory, which is where the famous scene takes place. Chocolate truffles are coming down a conveyor belt and Lucy and Ethel must wrap every single piece and put it back on the belt; not a single piece must go by unwrapped. At first, it’s easy, but when the conveyor belt becomes too fast for them, they struggle to grab all the truffles and try to hide them anywhere they can – down their shirt, in their hats, in their mouths.

6)      Lucy’s Happy Little Loaf of Bread – Pioneer Women (1952):

Its boys vs. girls when the gang bets each other they couldn’t do with the modern appliances of the time. So they pretend its 1900 again and can’t use any appliances made after that year. Which means Lucy and Ethel have to bake and make their own bread and butter. While Ethel churns (so hard that her hands begin to grow to the dasher), Lucy uses one too many cakes of yeast to bake a loaf of bread – one that turns out to be 5 feet long! When Lucy opens the oven, the bread is so long it pushes her across the kitchen and forces her up against the counter! The huge loaf of bread was later shared with the studio audience.

7)      Lucy Gives Birth – Lucy Goes to the Hospital (1953):

The night Lucy Ricardo gave birth, 71.7% of all Americans with televisions tuned into watch the episode. The next morning, President Eisenhower was sworn into office, and only 67.7% of people tuned into watch! The whole episode is iconic; when Lucy’s doctor tells her the baby may be coming in any day now, Ricky, Ethel, and Fred are all jittery. When Lucy goes to lie down, they even rehearse what to do when Lucy tells them, “the time has come.” When the time does come, they’re so nervous they almost forget Lucy! It’s also opening night at Ricky’s club. He’s desperate to be at the hospital while Lucy is in labor, but the setup does not allow him to do so. While he is at the club performing a voodoo number (complete with makeup) he gets a notice his wife has given birth. He rushes back to the hospital, where he is almost arrested by the hospital police because of his stage makeup. Finally, he gets to peer into the glass window to see his little baby boy – Ricky Ricardo, Jr. The same morning that day, actress Lucille Ball gave birth to she and Desi Arnaz’s second child – Desi Arnaz, Jr.! The timing turned out, well, perfect!

8)      Lucy Smashes Eggs – Lucy Does the Tango (1957):

The episode which would garner the longest laugh from the studio audience in Lucy history (65 seconds – so long it had to be edited!) featured Lucy doing the tango with eggs in her shirt. It all begins when the Ricardos and Mertzes’ chickens aren’t producing any eggs, so Ricky threatens to get rid of them and get out of the egg business for good. He and Fred get into a fight, and Fred is all planned to move back to New York unless the chickens start laying eggs. Lucy and Ethel buy some eggs to put in the chickens’ nest so Ricky and Fred will think they are laying. When they bring them home, circumstances cause them to hide the eggs – in their shirts, in their back pockets. Then Ricky shows up and forces Lucy into practicing the tango they are learning for a PTA meeting at Little Ricky’s school. The end calls for Ricky to throw Lucy away from her, and then for Lucy to throw herself back at him, crushing herself against him. Knowing this is a setup for disaster, Lucy tries to wheedle her way out of it, but it doesn’t work. The eggs smash in Lucy’s shirt and the whole story spills out – along with all the yolk!

9) Lucy is a Thief - Lucy Visits Grumman’s, Lucy and John Wayne (1956)

Lucy decides to get herself the perfect souvenir from the Ricardo/Mertz trip to Hollywood: John Wayne’s footprints from Grumman’s Chinese Theater! Of course, this cannot possibly go off with a hitch and this results in a hilarious series of events which include Lucy getting stuck in some cement, the breaking of the precious footprints, and a guest visit from the Duke himself.

10) Lucy Stomps Grapes – Lucy’s Italian Movie (1956)

In order to prepare for her “movie debut” in an Italian film called Bitter Grapes, Lucy decides to go soak up some local culture. The shots of Lucy and a real Italian grape stomp-er wrestling in a vat of juicy, big grapes (with Lucy teasing her through and through, of course) is one of the most classic “Lucy” moments of all time.

A shot from the first episode to air, "The Girls Want to Go to A Nightclub"

Also, a tribute to Lucy Ricardo/Lucille Ball set to the song "Bubbly." I think this song is absolutely perfect for both Lucys. I was working on it for a while but decided to publish it on this particular day as it will have a meaning! Enjoy! :)

***

That's it for now. Take a little time for some "I Love Lucy" today! Well, you should always make room for some "I Love Lucy" in your day. But especially today. ;)

You know you're obsessed with "I Love Lucy" when...

So, today was my first day of school. It was only a half day, which is just what it sounds like, and you come home from school before lunch. Tomorrow is another half day but by Thursday I'll be getting back into "the swing of things" with my first full day and classes and all of that. I think I was truly depressed when I changed back into that usual plaid skirt and blouse (yep, I go to a private school) and my new school shoes (with little bows at the toe - oh! Something to get excited about!).

Over all, though, this is going to be my last year in a school which I have pretty much been going to forever, so I guess I ought to enjoy it (and with all the perks that come from being on the top of the heap). I have a really nice homeroom teacher (she was my teacher last year and I was thrilled to pieces when I found out I'd have her for homeroom again), and even the same classroom because of that reason. My class is really tiny (just twelve of us.  The Destructive Dozen??? The Dangerous Dozen??) , which I really like because we all know each other quite well and it's more of a little family then a class.

So, yeah. I'm not all that thrilled about going back, but if there is one good thing about back to school it is that FALL IS COMING! Okay, don't think ill of me, and and you'll probably be all, "Wow, Rianna's so weird" but fall (and winter - yes, winter too) are my favorite seasons. You may call me partial for liking the cold weather so much because I'm a February baby, but I don't do it to be different or anything - I actually love the fall and winter. I love all the sweaters and all the warm, fashionable coats and not to mention I have an obsession with boots. I love staying in on cold days with the leaves turning golden-red and watching an old movie or curling up with a book (and a cup of hot chocolate). Most of all, I love snow and I love Christmastime, which is my favorite time of the year (another reason for me to love fall/winter - all the holidays! Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's... and my birthday, of course. ;]).

Well, call me crazy, but I love it. And so despite the fact it's still August, it's nearly September, which means only two weeks until fall, and yes I really do <3 it that much!

***

So, you've probably seen those kind of lists like "You know you're obsessed with Harry Potter" or insert any other kind of culture phenomenon like "Twilight" or whatever. I was disappointed to find that I could not find a list like that applying to "I Love Lucy" (hmph. Well. of course. What would you expect?).

But since I know so much about the show, I'm like why not write one myself? Brilliant! So... here it is. If you have watched all the episodes you ought to understand all of them, if you're more of a casual fan you'll understand most but perhaps not all. Anyway, I hope it makes sense... and I hope you enjoy ;)

YOU KNOW YOU'RE OBSESSED WITH "I LOVE LUCY" WHEN...

• Whenever you see a golf game or someone watching golf you feel the great urge to tell out, "Dormie!"
• You randomly find yourself saying "dun't" instead of "don't."
• You often find yourself sawing "dawnsy" when someone asks you, "How are you feeling?"
• The word "Tropicana" does not evoke thoughts of orange juice,  but more appropriately, a nightclub.
• You find that you can sing along to every Ricky Ricardo song word for word.
• Whenever you hear a saxophone playing it sounds like "Glo Worm" to you, even if it isn't.
• "I tippy tippy toed through my garden..."
• You keep waiting for "Real Gone With the Wind" to come out.
• The last name "McGuilicuddy" holds a special place in your heart.
• The names "Flo Pauline Lopos", "Marian Strong", "Carlotta Romero" and "Joe Harris" all sound familiar to you.
• You teared up when Lucy and Ricky cried at the end of  Ricky's "We're Having a Baby, My Baby and Me".
• You have always wanted to stomp grapes with your feet.
• You have ever wanted a bottle of "Vitavetavegamin."
• Forget about Tennessee Williams; it's Tennessee Ernie.
• "623 East 68th Street, Apartment 3D" is more than just an address to you. (If this address was real, then the Ricardos and Mertzes would be living in the East River!)
• You know how to speak Martian.
• "The time has come" sounds really familiar.
• You always wonder who the real Madame X was.
• Lucy Ricardo wasn't born in Jamestown, New York. She was born in West Jamestown (which, in reality, does not exist).
• The words "hatchet" and "water cress" go together.
• Stealing John Wayne's footprints from Grumman's Chinese Theater makes a lot of sense to you.
• When you think of a nightclub, you do not think of dimly lit lounges with techno music pulsing through it, but Club Babalu.
• "Black lace blue jeans" rings a bell.
• You know all the lyrics and the dance steps to Lucy and Van Johnson's "How About You?"
• You stopped subscribing to TV Guide when they put "I Love Lucy" second on their list of "The Greatest TV Shows of All Time."

***

I hope you enjoyed my little list. I had fun making it, and if it gets a good response I may do more editions in the future or similar lists with different obsessions. ;)

Happy One-Hundredth, Lucy!!!!! (Day Six of Her Birthday Bash)

Where I live, it's a little after midnight, which means that it is officially August 6th, 2011.

And 100 years to the day of Lucille Ball's birth - which makes our beloved redhead officially 100 years old!


!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
IT'S FINALLY HERE!

Lucy is 100! 

♥♥♥

Actually, I've been blogging for Lucy for five days now (today is day sixth!), all in celebration of her big 100.

Here's a quick review of what I've already blogged about Lucy for her birthday....

Day One:

I discussed Lucy tributes on TV, on the web, in press releases.... etc. Btw, since that post (which I wrote on Monday), the coverage on Lucy's 100th has doubled. Among many, you can check out LIFE.com for a gallery of "Lucy's many faces," "I Love Lucy," and my personal favorite, unpublished photos of Lucy taken by LIFE. Also, Access Hollywood honored Lucy on their Friday, August 5th show with loving words about her from Mary Tyler Moore and  Carol Burnett, who are just a few of the many television actresses, and actresses in general, who benefited from what Lucy has given us, as well as their five favorite "Lucy" moments. It's on their website, so check it out. That's not all - just Google "Lucille Ball," and you'll be hit with articles from top news services everywhere.

Day One of Lucy's Birthday Bash: Your Guide to Celebrating Lucy's 100th

Day Two:

I showed you my Lucille Ball book collection and reviewed every book.

Day Two of Lucy's Birthday Bash: My Lucille Ball Book Collection

Day Three:

I Blogged about Lucy's numerous appearances on the game shows "What's My Line?", "I've Got a Secret," and "Password."

Day Three of Lucy's Birthday Bash: Lucy, The Game Show Queen

Day Four

I shared with you "Finding Lucy," one of my very favorite documentaries about the Queen of Comedy.

Day Four of Lucy's Birthday Bash: "Finding Lucy"

Day Five

And yesterday, I shared some old articles about everyone's favorite redhead from my "Lucy Desi" scrapbook.

Day Five of Lucy's Birthday Bash: My Lucy Archive

So, I thought long and hard about how to make this post on her actual birthday a really awesome tribute to the funniest lady that ever lived. I'm going to be sharing a couple things with you (And I'm really sorry if this gets a little long.... you're welcome to stop and turn away at any time, because I'm not that interesting. Well, actually, this is about Lucy. Well, Lucy and me. But anyway, it's just - I really wanted to make it an awesome post so everything will come spilling out sort of).... about why I love Lucy, what "I Love Lucy" and Lucille Ball/Lucy Ricardo means to me, and, of course, a tribute video from Frankly My Dear TV. (You expected, that right?)

(from LIFE magazine)

♥♥♥

How Lucille Ball Became My Favorite Actress of all Time,

And how "I Love Lucy" Became my Favorite TV Show, and all of That Jazz

The first time I ever actually watched an episode of "I Love Lucy," (and not just in passing), was when I was nine years old. That was the same year I fell in love with classic movies - but that's another story, for another day.

The thing is, even though it wasn't until then that I'd actually watched an episode, I'd always heard of "I Love Lucy" - even before I loved classic film and all things Golden Age. It was a show that my mother loved and I think, really, even if you don't watch the show, is simply the show that comes to everyone's mind when you think of "classic television." There are other shows, other shows that are wonderful -- but "I Love Lucy," holds a place in our hearts, minds, memories, etc. that other shows are forced to compete with.

The episode was "Return Home from Europe." I did not know much more than Lucy and Ricky were married - I didn't even know who Fred and Ethel were! How embarrassing is that? But it was just after dinner, and I sat down to watch it. I didn't understand where they'd been (Europe) or where they were going (New York) but I decided to watch. needless to say, I'm very thankful for watching!

That's the episode where Lucy wants to bring a heavy, Italian cheese home to her mother, who, with Mrs. Trumbell, has been watching Little Ricky back in New York. However, Ricky's not about to pay for the pricey cheese's airfare, so Lucy disguises it as a baby, thinking it will fly for free in her arms. Needless to say, the results are priceless - especially when Lucy is seated next to a fellow "mother", played by the woman who would later become Betty Ramsey in the Connecticut episodes (Mary Jane Croft, I believe). 

From the opening credits of the satin heart, to the moment where Ricky finds melted cheese in an instrument in the band, I could not stop laughing. I just couldn't get over how plain funny it was. It wasn't like anything I'd ever seen before. Up until that point, I'd seen Disney Channel and was used to sarcastic humor that you could only chuckle at - but Lucy was different. The laughter I got from her was the type that makes you clutch your stomach, with tears running out of your eyes. I loved laughing like that.

That was really all it took. After that, every day after school I'd settle in for two episodes of "I Love Lucy", to make myself laugh like mad. (Those were the days when homework was just a "worksheet".) No episode failed me. I was religious. I was quickly drawn into the show and the characters in ways I'd never felt with another show (I still stand on that, by the way) - why can't Fred buy Ethel a new dress??? Why can't Ricky just let Lucy be in the show??? 

By November of that year, they began to air the pregnancy episodes. I was so excited and happy for Lucy and Ricky. I didn't even know anything about Lucy and Desi's real marriage, and the reason that they began to tear up in the end of "Lucy is Enciente." Even though I already knew that the baby would be a boy and his name would be Little Ricky, I was excited and almost on the edge of my seat in the "Lucy Goes to the Hospital" episode... I acted as if this was a new show, airing for the first time.

I loved seeing Lucy Ricardo, the mother. As a young kid I often paralleled TV characters with my own life, and for me to like them, or love them in this case, they needed to be likable characters... characters I could relate to. In the episodes with Lucy and Little Ricky, I was happy about the way Lucy cared for Little Ricky. Take the episode "Lucy and Superman," for example. Lucy is willing to climb out onto the ledge with all of New York City below her (and in a helmet and cape, mind you!) just to keep a promise to Little Ricky. With this episode, i could feel her love for Little Ricky in the ways my own mother loves me, and keeps her promises. 

Of course, as a nine year old, I was not analyzing this as I watched. It was somewhere in the back of my brain, someplace I couldn't understand yet - but it was there. And I knew I loved Lucy because I loved to laugh, but also because I loved to smile. It's impossible to watch an episode without smiling. All of these episodes were new to me when I first watched them, despite being so old, and I anxiously awaited to see what Lucy, Ricky, and the Mertzes would be up to next... I knew "I Love Lucy," was classic. But it hadn't really yet registered in my brain how important it was in history, and all of that... I just knew I liked it.

Then there was Lucille Ball, the actress who played Lucy Ricardo. I wasn't a great researcher, as most nine years old aren't, and I didn't know much about her... it took a while for that to come. But I loved her show, and so it was as simple as that: Lucille Ball was my new favorite actress.

Over the years came the books, the TV specials, the documentaries, and the Googling... but then it was very simple. I just loved Lucy.

It's still that way. It's always going to be that way. I just can't imaging not loving Lucy, and not needing to watch the show. Because sometimes I need to - sometimes I think we all need to. Whenever I'm feeling stressed or just need cheering up, a single episode of "I Love Lucy" does the trick.

♥♥♥

I guess I'm not a Lucy expert, but I'm pretty close! I've read books, watched documentaries and interviews... I know a lot. So I thought it would be appropriate to give you a brief biography of her, and some of my favorite trivia (like I did on Natalie Wood's birthday).

Biography

Lucille Desiree Ball was born on August 6th, 1911 in Jamestown, New York. Her parents were Desiree "DeDe" and Henry Durrell Ball. DeDe was a beautiful pianist and was working to that profession when she met Henry. She was seventeen when she married him (it was common of those days to be married so young), and became pregnant with their first child - Lucille. Not long after she was born, Lucille and DeDe traveled to Detroit, where her father was holding down a job. There the family was united, but soon after they traveled to Michigan for a softer change of scenery. It was here where Henry worked as a telephone linesman. He worked through a rough winter storm and caught the grippe - not much longer after, he died. DeDe was about nineteen, pregnant with their second and, obviously, last child. Lucille was not yet four. They went back to New York to live with DeDe's parents, Fred and Florabelle, who raised Lucille when DeDe was gone, holding down jobs wherever she could get them. Fred, Lucille's brother, was born soon after. Lucy's childhood was tough, often parceled off from relative to relative. They were also quite poor. But she maintained a strength that she would carry with her for the rest of her life, and developed a love of acting, putting on "plays" in her front yard with friends. When she was fifteen, DeDe sent her rebellious daughter to acting school in New York. However, everyone there was too enchanted by the star pupil, Bette Davis, and did not think Lucille had any talent - she was sent home. Lucille was not discouraged, and it was not long after when she was on her way to Hollywood as one of Samuel Goldwyn's "Goldwyn Girls." She made a home there, and after she had enough money, sent for her family. She did her best to climb up the Hollywood chain. Eventually she was getting lead roles in B movies; the public dubbed "RKO's Queen of the B's." It was in 1940 when she met a Cuban drummer named Desi Arnaz on the set of one of these B movies, "Too Many Girls." They fell in love and six months later they were married. Their union proved to be a tumultuous one. They were often separated, which resulted in nasty fights. They wanted children; but Lucille suffered many miscarriages. Desi called her "Lucy," and the name stuck. Lucy continued to be the Queen of B movies, her career stuck. It was not until the late 1940's, when her radio show "My Favorite Husband" was turned into a TV show - it was called "I Love Lucy." (We don't really need to get into that, do we?) It was an amazing success. In 1960, the Arnazes ended the show and divorced. Lucy got custody of the two kids they eventually were able to have - Lucie and Desi, Jr. She did two more television shows, "The Lucy Show" and "Here's Lucy" - successful and popular in their own right, but not with the same impact of "I Love Lucy." She also made a few movies. She continued to be insanely popular with the public. She died on April 26th, 1989, at the age of 77 from a ruptured aorta. 

Once again, that's just a brief little biography... there are lots of books about Lucy's life, most notably her autobiography, "Love, Lucy." So you should be sure and check that out to learn more.

Some Trivia

• Carole Lombard was her favorite actress - Carole and husband Clark Gable would often come over to Lucy and Desi's ranch in the years before Carole's death, and vice versa.
• She made over 100 movies, most of them B movies before "I Love Lucy" turned her into a sensation. Her own personal favorite was "The Big Street," where she played a beautiful yet cold hearted chanteuse... her co-star was Henry Fonda.
• TV Guide says her face has been seen by more people than any human being who ever lived. (How awesome is that????!!!)
• "I Love Lucy" went on air in 1951, and thanks to reruns, has never been off since. It plays on television someplace in the world, every day, and every day, someone's watching it. It is dubbed in twenty-two different languages.
• There is a Lucille Ball Diabetes Research Library, named after her when she was honored by the Variety Club ("All Star Party for Lucille Ball.")
• Her favorite song was "Make Someone Happy."
• She loved the show "Three's Company," and even made a guest appearance.
• Whoismorefamous.com (a little lame sounding - but they have a substantial list of "the most famous people of all time") lists Lucille Ball as the 103rd most famous person of all time.
• After Desi Arnaz gave up his position as president of Desilu Studios, Lucy ran the company - she was the first woman to do so.
• Her favorite episode of "I Love Lucy" is the one in which she dresses up as Queen of the Gypsies.. "The Operetta."
• When Americans were polled a few years ago, they named Lucille Ball the most missed deceased celebrity.

♥♥♥

Okay, so this is the first of my two special tributes for Lucy.... since she is turned one hundred, I thought I'd share with you my top 100 favorite TV episodes and movies starring Lucy. I promise not to go into detail. I'll just list them. Because if I did go into detail, you'd be here forever... and I've already blabbed for too long! (But it's Lucy blabbing... so... I think that makes it better. I hope!)

Oh, and by the way - after the first few, it's kind of in no particular order. I mean... these are my one hundred favorite, just I didn't want to get into the technicalities after about the first ten. 

MY TOP 100 LUCILLE BALL APPEARANCES 

(in films and movies)

----

1. "Lucy is Enciente" - I Love Lucy
2. "The Handcuffs" - I Love Lucy
3. "First Stop" - I Love Lucy
4. "The Girls Want to Go to a Nightclub" - I Love Lucy
5. "Lucy Goes to the Hospital" - I Love Lucy
6. "Lucy Does a TV Commercial" - I Love Lucy
7. "Return Home from Europe" - I Love Lucy
8. "Stage Door" - movie
9. "Yours, Mine and Ours" - movie
10. "Lucy Fakes Illness" - I Love Lucy
11. "Lucy Thinks Ricky is Trying to Murder Her" - I Love Lucy
12. "The Quiz Show" -  I Love Lucy
13. "Lucy is Jealous of Girl Singer" - I Love Lucy
14. "Breaking the Lease" -  I Love Lucy
15. "The Ballet" - I Love Lucy
16. "Young Fans" - I Love Lucy
17. "Fred and Ethel Fight" -  I Love Lucy
18. "The Gossip" - I Love Lucy
19. "Pioneer Woman" - I Love Lucy
20. "The Marriage License" - I Love Lucy
21. "The Publicity Agent" - I Love Lucy
22. "Lucy's Schedule" - I Love Lucy
23. "Job Switching" - I Love Lucy
24. "The Anniversary Present" - I Love Lucy
25. "The Courtroom" - I Love Lucy
26. "Pregnant Woman are Unpredictable" - I Love Lucy
27. "Lucy Hires an English Tutor" - I Love Lucy
28. "Sales Resistance" - I Love Lucy
29. "Inferiority Complex" - I Love Lucy
30. "The Black Eye" - I Love Lucy
31. "No Children Allowed" - I Love Lucy
32. "Ricky and Fred are TV Fans" - I Love Lucy
33. "Never Do Business with Friends" - I Love Lucy
34. "Lucy and Ethel Buy the Same Dress" - I Love Lucy
35. "Sentimental Anniversary" - I Love Lucy
36. "Fan Magazine Interview" - I Love Lucy
37. "Ricky Loses his Temper" - I Love Lucy
38. "Home Movies" - I Love Lucy
39. "Lucy Writes a Novel" - I Love Lucy
40. "The Black Wig" - I Love Lucy
41. "Tennessee Ernie Visits" - I Love Lucy
42. "Tennessee Ernie Hangs On" - I Love Lucy
43. "The Golf Game" -  I Love Lucy
44. "The Sublease" - I Love Lucy
45. "Lucy's Mother-in-Law" - I Love Lucy
46. "Ethel's Birthday" - I Love Lucy
47. "Getting Ready" - I Love Lucy
48. "Lucy Learns to Drive" - I Love Lucy
49. "California, Here we Come!" - I Love Lucy
50. "Ethel's Hometown" - I Love Lucy
51. "L.A At Last" - I Love Lucy
52. "Lucy Gets in Pictures" - I Love Lucy
53. "The Fashion Show" -  I Love Lucy
54. "The Hedda Hopper Story" -  I Love Lucy
55. "Hollywood Anniversary" - I Love Lucy
56. "The Star Upstairs" - I Love Lucy
57. "Lucy in Palm Springs" - I Love Lucy
58. "Dancing Star" - I Love Lucy
59. "Harpo Marx" -  I Love Lucy
60. "Ricky Needs an Agent" - I Love Lucy
61. "Lucy Visits Grauman's" - I Love Lucy
62. "Lucy and John Wayne" -  I Love Lucy
63. "Ricky Sells the Car" -  I Love Lucy
64. "The Great Train Robbery" -  I Love Lucy
65. "Nursery School" - I Love Lucy
66. "The Passports" - I Love Lucy
67. "Staten Island Ferry" - I Love Lucy
68. "Bon Voyage" - I Love Lucy
69. "Second Honeymoon" - I Love Lucy
70. "Lucy Meets the Queen" - I Love Lucy
71. "Paris at Last" - I Love Lucy
72. "Lucy Gets a Paris Grown" - I Love Lucy
73. "Lucy in the Swiss Alps" - I Love Lucy
74. "Lucy Gets Homesick in Italy" -  I Love Lucy
75. "Lucy Goes to Monte Carlo" - I Love Lucy
76. "Little Ricky Learns to Play the Drum" - I Love Lucy
77. "Visitor From Italy" - I Love Lucy
78. "Off to Florida" -  I Love Lucy
79. "Lucy and Superman" - I Love Lucy
80. "Lucy Hates to Leave" - I Love Lucy
81. "Lucy Misses the Mertzes" -  I Love Lucy
82. "Lucy Does the Tango" - I Love Lucy
83. "The Celebrity Next Door" - The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour
84. "Lucy's Summer Vacation" - The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour
85. "Too Many Girls" - movie
86. "The Facts of Life" - movie
87. "Lucy and Viv Put in a Shower" - The Lucy Show
88. "Lucy Gets Trapped" - The Lucy Show
89. "Lucy and Joan" - The Lucy Show
90. "Lucy Gets the Burtons' Ring Stuck on her Finger" - Here's Lucy
91. "The Long, Long Trailer" - movie
92. "Forever Darling" - movie
93. "Lucy's Italian Movie" - I Love Lucy
94. "The Big Street" - movie
95. "Best Foot Forward" - movie
96. "Easy to Wed" - movie
97. "Dance, Girl, Dance" - movie
98. "Sorrowful Jones" - movie
99. "Lured" - movie
100. "Mame" - movie

If you're wondering why there is a lack of "The Lucy Show" and "Here's Lucy" episodes, it's because i haven't seen that actual many. I can't find it on TV and not all the seasons our on DVD yet, so whatever I watch is usually whatever I can find on YouTube. Also, some of these movies, like "The Big Street" and "Mame" aren't actually good movies... but I enjoyed Lucy's performances in them.

(from LIFE magazine)

♥♥♥

Finally, I of course made a special tribute for her on Youtube... I'm still getting used to this tribute thing. I have this really old, unfortunate version of Windows Movie Maker that for some reason sticks at the beginning of clips, which really annoys me - but there's nothing I can do about it. * sigh *...and the ending is choppy, too. I really wanted this to be good and perfect, because it's Lucy's birthday, and it's her 100th!!! So I worked on it for several days... and yep. I used clips from several "I Love Lucy" episodes, and the movies "The Big Street," "Dance, Girl, Dance," "Too Many Girls," "Du Barry was a Lady" and "Beauty for the Asking".... as well as a few clips from "Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie."

I decided to use the song "Isn't She Lovely" by Stevie Wonder. Okay, so, I know the song is about a baby girl being born - you can tell from the lyrics... Just one minute old! - BUT I just liked the feel of it.... and maybe since it's a birthday tribute, it's somewhat appropriate.  I know at times the lyrics don't work, but I really wanted to use this. I decided to use Lucy's "pretty" moments from her movies and television shows, and "Isn't She Lovely" just went very well. Besides. She was lovely..

So.... yep. I really hope you enjoy it and I hope it captures... I don't know the word. "Birthday spirit"? Lol.

♥♥♥

Soo, there it is. I hope I was able to give Lucy a little bit of the 100th birthday tribute she deserves!!!!

Lucille Ball was - and is - truly amazing. She's inspirational, too. She had a spirit in her that never gave up. And she inspires me to do the same... She was just a girl growing up in a small town in New York, struggling a little, and she was able to make herself famous around the whole world! Chances are, I'm not likely to become an actress like she. But I love to write. And Lucy proves to me that with handwork and determination, anything is possible - and if I want to write, I'll write.

Thanks a billion, Lucy. And happy birthday. <3

One of my favorite photos of Lucy

I can hardly wait to see other blogger's tributes, and I hope you've enjoyed mine. I'll be watching Lucy all day long, and I've got a feeling I won't be the only one.

Happy, happy, happy birthday Lucy. 

♥♥♥

Day Four of Lucy's Birthday Bash: "Finding Lucy"

It's Day 4!

Lucytennial is so close I can just TASTE it!!!

This is my fourth day of blogging for Lucy, the birthday girl. On Day One, we discussed tributes and press releases in this news for Lucy's big 1-0-0- (read it here). After that, I shared with you reviews of my extensive Lucille Ball Book Collection (see here), and finally, yesterday the topic was Lucy's appearances on game shows (here).

Today's post will be a little shorter. I often watch biographies, and I've seen several of Lucy's. A few days ago I stumbled upon one I hadn't seen - "Finding Lucy," by American Masters. It is an incredible tribute to everyone's favorite redhead.

^^ This is part one

I think it did an excellent, excellent job of showing Lucy's life, and all her hardships, successes, marriage and divorce with Desi, and just the amazing person she was... It was beautifully filmed, with special little touches here and there that make it all the more wonderful to watch. It also has a great many special guest stars to take about Lucy, like:

• Fran Drescher of "The Nanny"
• Dean Martin
• Madelyn Pugh Davis and Bob Carroll, Jr. ("I Love Lucy" writers)
• Maury Thompson (family friend and involved with the production of "I Love Lucy")
• Van Johnson
• Edie Adams
• Carol Burnett

It just really felt like a loving, warm tribute to Lucy. My very favorite part of all was a montage of Lucy's clips in the end, set to "My Funny Valentine," followed by excerpts of Lucy's eulogy, written and read by Diane Sawyer (entitled "Is There Laughter in Heaven?").  It was sooo moving.

^^ Last part, with "My Funny Valentine" bit at the end

Everyone who speaks has a lot of respect for her; the producers do not criticize her but praise her... they remind you of how wonderful she really was, and what an impact "I Love Lucy" made on the American public and just history in general. and I really got shivers down my spine watching the last part! So far, it is one of the best Lucy documentaries I have ever seen.

Here are some screencaps:

"TV Guide says the face of Lucille Ball has been seen by more people than the face of any human being who has ever lived... She reigned as the First Lady of Television for 35 years."

- 'Finding Lucy'

^^ From the "My Funny Valentine" montage.

***

It's really a loving, wonderful documentary... and so if you want to watch some Lucy related in honor of her birthday, this is a good thing to add to your lineup.

Well, that's all for today. Just two more days!

Ciao!

PS: As a good American citizen, i guess I find it my duty to wish our President a happy birthday... he turns 50 today. Happy Birthday!

Day Three of Lucy's Birthday Bash: Lucy, The Game Show Queen

Hi everyone!! It's Day 3 already!


Okay, so I think everyone has an opinion on game shows. Some people hate them, some people love them, some people are in between and others just don't care. Well, about a year ago I stumbled across vintage "What's My Line?" clips with Old Hollywood celebrities as mystery guests, and, of course, I just fell in love!

I was even more ecstatic to find that Lucy was a frequent contestant on these game shows - "What's My Line?", "I've Got a Secret" and "Password." Her appearances on these shows are just awesome and funny and wonderful, so I thought I'd share them with you for Day 3.

Enjoy!

***

"What's My Line?"

^^ I love this one, it's one of my favorites. I believe this was her first appearance, and sometime during the run of "I Love Lucy."

^^ I'm guessing that this is her second, or maybe it's her first and the latter one is second. (??) Haha! But I love this one, too. During "I Love Lucy"s run for sure. I love her 'Swedish' accent!

^^ If she seems a little different here, that's because she was doing "Wildcat" on Broadway at the time and was becoming very ill from overwork.

^^ I think this is to publicize for "Critic's Choice."

^^ 1965

^^ Aren't the audience receptions for her just ahmazzing?

"Password"

^^ Lucy, her kids, and Gary Morton. I loveeee this episode. This is just the first part; double click to go to the  Youtube page to get the following parts.

^^ Another one I love, this is in 1964 with Vivian Vance, her husband, and Peter Lawford.

^^ An appearance in the 1980's with her son and Betty White... there are lots of other parts, so double click the video for the rest!

^^ In 1980, with Dick Martin... once again, click the video for more!

"I've Got a Secret"

^^ Lucy in the panel!!! This is part one. You know what do. ;)

^^ And with Johnny Carson on the panel and Lucy with "the secret." 

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Okay, that's all for Day 3.

Just a few more days!! We'll back tomorrow, and with more loving Lucy!!

Ciao!