In celebration of Lucille Ball's 100th birthday celebration, True Classics is hosting the Loving Lucy Blogathon! Here is my contribution...
Most people know Lucille Ball as the hilarious housewife of Ricky Ricardo on the show I Love Lucy, but here are some things about Lucy you may not know. Who knows, maybe it will make you "love Lucy" more?
» Although famously a red-head, Lucille was born a brunette.
» In New York City, Lucille attended the John Murray Anderson School For The Dramatic Arts. One of her classmates was none other than diva Bette Davis. Ball went home a few weeks after starting because her drama coaches told her she "had no future as a performer."
» Early in her modeling career, Lucille had to spend 2 years re-learning how to walk after being stricken with rheumatoid arthritis .
» Although famously a red-head, Lucille was born a brunette.
» In New York City, Lucille attended the John Murray Anderson School For The Dramatic Arts. One of her classmates was none other than diva Bette Davis. Ball went home a few weeks after starting because her drama coaches told her she "had no future as a performer."
» Early in her modeling career, Lucille had to spend 2 years re-learning how to walk after being stricken with rheumatoid arthritis .
» When she first arrived in Hollywood, Lucille went by the stage name Diane Belmond.
» One of her biggest breaks in Hollywood was meeting Lela Rogers (mother of Ginger Rogers) on the set of her first memorable role in the RKO picture Roberta. Lela took Lucille under her wing and introduced her to the best agents. She would go on to be featured in two other Astaire-Rogers films, Top Hat & Follow The Fleet.
» Around Hollywood, Lucille was known as "Queen of the B's" because of the number of B-movies she starred in.
» After she left RKO for MGM, they lightened her red mane to a shade known as "tango red" and gave her the up and lacquered look. This set the stage for the style she is most known for on I Love Lucy.
» Lucille was the first woman to head her own studio, Desilu. The studio went on to produce such shows as Star Trek, and other shows like The Andy Griffith Show and The Dick Van Dyke Show were taped at the studio.
» The technique of using 3 cameras on a tv sitcom was pioneered on the set of I Love Lucy. This is still in use today as the standard for filming TV sitcoms.
» Lucille missed out on the opportunity to star in many famous films such as: Ball of Fire (Barbara Stanwyck), Born Yesterday (Judy Holliday), Driving Miss Daisy (Jessica Tandy), The Man Who Came To Dinner (Ann Sheridan), and The Manchurian Candidate (Angela Lansbury).
There is much more to know about Lucille Ball, but these are some things I found interesting in my quest to learn more about this funny lady. I've only seen her in Stage Door and on the I Love Lucy show, but I look forward to discovering more gems from the Lucille Ball filmography.
In the mean time, if you would like to learn more, please visit the following websites:
» One of her biggest breaks in Hollywood was meeting Lela Rogers (mother of Ginger Rogers) on the set of her first memorable role in the RKO picture Roberta. Lela took Lucille under her wing and introduced her to the best agents. She would go on to be featured in two other Astaire-Rogers films, Top Hat & Follow The Fleet.
» Around Hollywood, Lucille was known as "Queen of the B's" because of the number of B-movies she starred in.
» After she left RKO for MGM, they lightened her red mane to a shade known as "tango red" and gave her the up and lacquered look. This set the stage for the style she is most known for on I Love Lucy.
» Lucille was the first woman to head her own studio, Desilu. The studio went on to produce such shows as Star Trek, and other shows like The Andy Griffith Show and The Dick Van Dyke Show were taped at the studio.
» The technique of using 3 cameras on a tv sitcom was pioneered on the set of I Love Lucy. This is still in use today as the standard for filming TV sitcoms.
» Lucille missed out on the opportunity to star in many famous films such as: Ball of Fire (Barbara Stanwyck), Born Yesterday (Judy Holliday), Driving Miss Daisy (Jessica Tandy), The Man Who Came To Dinner (Ann Sheridan), and The Manchurian Candidate (Angela Lansbury).
There is much more to know about Lucille Ball, but these are some things I found interesting in my quest to learn more about this funny lady. I've only seen her in Stage Door and on the I Love Lucy show, but I look forward to discovering more gems from the Lucille Ball filmography.
In the mean time, if you would like to learn more, please visit the following websites:
Her films will keep her forever in the hearts of those of us who grew up with her. You found some beautiful picture of Lucy, to share with us.
ReplyDeleteLucille was the first woman to head her own studio, Desilu. The studio went on to produce such shows as Star Trek, The Andy Griffith Show, and The Dick Van Dyke Show.
ReplyDeleteJust a tiny nitpick -- it's probably more correct to say that the Griffith and Van Dyke shows were filmed at Desilu because both sitcoms were actually Danny Thomas productions...whose own series, Make Room for Daddy (aka The Danny Thomas Show) also used Desilu's soundstages. Series like Our Miss Brooks, The Untouchables and Star Trek, however, were official Desilu shows.
This was a really informative post- I had no idea Lucy was considered for films like Ball of Fire and Born Yesterday! I also loved the beautiful photos of Lucy included.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your trivia facts about Lucy! Adding to your tidbit about Lucy and Lela/Ginger Rogers--did you know that Ginger and Lucy were actually distant cousins? So cool!
ReplyDeleteThank you for participating in the blogathon!