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Lucille Ball 1911 - 1989

Lucille Ball was born on August 6, 1911 in Jamestown, New York US to Henry Durrell Ball and Desiree Evelyn (Hunt) Ball, and had a brother Fred Ball. She married Desi Arnaz on November 30, 1940 and they later divorced on May 16, 1961. They had children Lucie Desiree Arnaz Luckinbill and Desi Arnaz Jr. She married Gary Morton on November 19, 1961, and they were married until Lucille's death on April 26, 1989.

Lucille Ball

Lucille Désirée Ball

August 6, 1911

Jamestown, New York, US

April 26, 1989

Los Angeles, California, US

Female

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Lucille Ball Lucille Ball (1911 - 1989)

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Lucille Ball's History: 1911 - 1989

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Introduction

'I Love Lucy'' had its premiere on Oct. 15, 1951, and within a few months millions of Americans tuned in every Monday evening to watch the antics of the Ricardos and their best friends, Fred and Ethel Mertz (William Frawley and Vivian Vance). ''I Love Lucy'' was one of the first shows to be filmed rather than performed live, making it possible to have a high-quality print of each episode for rebroadcast, compared with the poor quality of live-show kinescopes. The change eventually led to a shift of television production from New York to Hollywood. The show was the first to be filmed before an audience, and crew members used three cameras at once to permit motion-picture-type editing. The series won more than 200 awards, including five Emmys. Jack Gould of The Times offered this analysis: ''The extraordinary discipline and intuitive understanding of farce gives 'I Love Lucy' its engaging lilt and lift. Only after a firm foundation of credibility has been established is the element of absdurdity introduced. It is in the smooth transition from sense to nonsense that 'I Love Lucy' imparts both a warmth and a reality to the slapstick romp that comes as the climax.'' Miss Ball's superb timing, Mr. Gould wrote, makes her ''the distaff equivalent of Jack Benny,'' her professional idol. A Fortune in Rerun Rights Mr. Arnaz made a fortune for the couple by obtaining rerun rights for the series. He later sold the rights to CBS, allowing the couple's production company, Desilu, to buy a studio, the former RKO lot where Miss Ball's film career had languished and where they had met in 1940 while appearing together in ''Too Many Girls.'' Despite the continuing popularity of ''I Love Lucy,'' the couple sought a less demanding schedule and ended the series in 1957 after making 179 episodes. The format persisted, however, for three more years through a series of hourlong, high-budget, around-the-world specials called ''The Luci-Desi Comedy Hour.'' Their collaboration ended with their divorce in 1960. Mr. Arnaz died in 1986. Two years after their divorce, Miss Ball revived ''Lucy,'' playing a widow in ''The Lucy Show'' for 156 episodes until 1968, then did ''Here's Lucy'' for 144 episodes from 1968 to 1974. In these two series she was joined by her two children, her longtime friend Vivian Vance and Gale Gordon, who succeeded Mr. Arnaz as her masculine foil. In shaping situation comedies, Miss Ball consistently sought superior writers, followed their advice, gave them unstinting credit and paid close attention to production details. In later movies, she co-starred with Bob Hope in two comedies, ''The Facts of Life'' (1961) and ''Critic's Choice'' (1963), and appeared with Henry Fonda in ''Yours, Mine and Ours,'' a 1968 farce about a couple with nearly a score of children. In 1974 she starred in a film version of the stage hit ''Mame.''
08/6

1911

Birthday

August 6, 1911

Birthdate

Jamestown, New York US

Birthplace

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Ethnicity & Family History

English, Scottish, French and Irish
Early Life & Education

Jamestown, NY.
Professional Career

Actress/comedian/dancer Soda Jerk to Cigarette Girl She worked variously as a waitress and as a soda jerk in a Broadway drugstore. She then became a hat model in Hattie Carnegie's salon and also modeled for commercial photographers. She won national attention as the Chesterfield Cigarette Girl in 1933. This got her to Hollywood as a Goldwyn chorus girl in ''Roman Scandals.'' Over two years, she played unbilled and bit roles in two dozen movies and made two-reel comedies with Leon Errol and the Three Stooges. She then spent seven years at RKO Radio Pictures, getting many leading roles in low-budget movies. She was typed and mostly wasted in films, but a few roles suggested her talents - a cynical young actress in ''Stage Door'' (1937), a temperamental movie star in ''The Affairs of Annabel'' (1938), a rejected lover in the 1939 melodrama ''Five Came Back,'' a gold-digging stripper in ''Dance, Girl, Dance'' (1940), a handicapped egotist in ''The Big Street'' (1942) and a tough-talking secretary in ''The Dark Corner'' (1946). ''I never cared about the movies,'' she said later, ''because they cast me wrong.'' A Regular on the Radio In radio, Miss Ball did regular stints on Phil Baker's and Jack Haley's comedy-variety shows in the late 30's and 40's and, from 1947 to 1951, she played the precursor to Lucy: the hare-brained wife of a Midwestern banker (Lee Bowman and later Richard Denning) in the CBS radio comedy ''My Favorite Husband.'' The show's writers were Madelyn Davis and Bob Carroll Jr., who were to write many Lucy scripts in later decades. On the stage, Miss Ball won favorable notices for a 22-week tour in the title role of Elmer Rice's fantasy ''Dream Girl.'' In 1950, she and Mr. Arnaz tried to sell the ''I Love Lucy'' television show to CBS. Network executives objected, contending the public would not accept the team of an American redhead and a Cuban bandleader with a heavy accent. To prove their case, the couple went on a nationwide vaudeville tour with a 20-minute act that included a ''Cuban Pete-Sally Sweet'' medley. They produced a 30-minute film pilot with $5,000 of their own money. The broadcast officials were won over. Premiere in 1951 ''I Love Lucy'' had its premiere on Oct. 15, 1951, and within a few months millions of Americans tuned in every Monday evening to watch the antics of the Ricardos and their best friends, Fred and Ethel Mertz (William Frawley and Vivian Vance). ''I Love Lucy'' was one of the first shows to be filmed rather than performed live, making it possible to have a high-quality print of each episode for rebroadcast, compared with the poor quality of live-show kinescopes. The change eventually led to a shift of television production from New York to Hollywood. The show was the first to be filmed before an audience, and crew members used three cameras at once to permit motion-picture-type editing. The series won more than 200 awards, including five Emmys. Jack Gould of The Times offered this analysis: ''The extraordinary discipline and intuitive understanding of farce gives 'I Love Lucy' its engaging lilt and lift. Only after a firm foundation of credibility has been established is the element of absdurdity introduced. It is in the smooth transition from sense to nonsense that 'I Love Lucy' imparts both a warmth and a reality to the slapstick romp that comes as the climax.'' Miss Ball's superb timing, Mr. Gould wrote, makes her ''the distaff equivalent of Jack Benny,'' her professional idol. A Fortune in Rerun Rights Mr. Arnaz made a fortune for the couple by obtaining rerun rights for the series. He later sold the rights to CBS, allowing the couple's production company, Desilu, to buy a studio, the former RKO lot where Miss Ball's film career had languished and where they had met in 1940 while appearing together in ''Too Many Girls.'' Despite the continuing popularity of ''I Love Lucy,'' the couple sought a less demanding schedule and ended the series in 1957 after making 179 episodes. The format persisted, however, for three more years through a series of hourlong, high-budget, around-the-world specials called ''The Luci-Desi Comedy Hour.'' Their collaboration ended with their divorce in 1960. Mr. Arnaz died in 1986. Two years after their divorce, Miss Ball revived ''Lucy,'' playing a widow in ''The Lucy Show'' for 156 episodes until 1968, then did ''Here's Lucy'' for 144 episodes from 1968 to 1974. In these two series she was joined by her two children, her longtime friend Vivian Vance and Gale Gordon, who succeeded Mr. Arnaz as her masculine foil. In shaping situation comedies, Miss Ball consistently sought superior writers, followed their advice, gave them unstinting credit and paid close attention to production details. In later movies, she co-starred with Bob Hope in two comedies, ''The Facts of Life'' (1961) and ''Critic's Choice'' (1963), and appeared with Henry Fonda in ''Yours, Mine and Ours,'' a 1968 farce about a couple with nearly a score of children. In 1974 she starred in a film version of the stage hit ''Mame.'' Last Series Failed Miss Ball also appeared occasionally in television specials and played a spunky bag lady in a 1985 television movie, ''Stone Pillow.'' John J. O'Connor of The Times said she was ''as wily and irresistible as ever'' and ''in total control.'' In 1986, she returned to weekly television as a grandmother in another sitcom series called ''Life With Lucy,'' but it failed to gain an audience. Addressing a group of would-be actors, she said the best way to get along with tough directors was ''don't die when they knock you down.'' She said she was very shy at the start of her career, but overcame it when ''it finally occurred to me that nobody cared a damn.'' Associates called Miss Ball self-reliant, sympathetic and sometimes tempestuous. ''Life is no fun,'' she once said, ''without someone to share it with.'' For many years she and Mr. Morton had homes in Beverly Hills and Palm Springs and in Snowmass, Colo. Miss Ball is survived by her husband, her daughter, her son and three grandchildren.
Personal Life & Family

Lucille Ball - Famous memorial ORIGINAL NAME Lucille Désirée Ball BIRTH 6 Aug 1911 Jamestown, Chautauqua County, New York, USA DEATH 26 Apr 1989 (aged 77) Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California, USA BURIAL - CREMATION Lake View Cemetery Jamestown, Chautauqua County, New York, USA Show Map PLOT Highland Section MEMORIAL ID 7003071 · View Source MEMORIAL PHOTOS 9 FLOWERS 8K+ Comedienne, Actress. She is best known for the title role in the hit television sitcom of the 1950's "I Love Lucy." She was born Lucille Desiree Ball on August 6, 1911, in Jamestown, New York. Intent on becoming an actress, she left high school at age 15, and tried unsuccessfully to get into drama school in New York City. Undaunted, Ball took a job as a waitress while trying for jobs in modeling and in chorus lines of Broadway shows. Moderately successful in these pursuits, she was chosen to be the poster model for Chesterfield Cigarettes in 1933, which got her national exposure for the first time, and caught the attention of Hollywood. She started at the bottom, with bit parts in low-budget films, but her initial success would lead to bigger and better parts. Ball would appear in over 60 films by the late 1940s. After performing in the musical "Too Many Girls" in 1940 with popular Cuban band leader, Desi Arnaz, Ball fell in love with her co-star, and married him later that year. Their performing schedules clashed frequently, and the newlyweds often found themselves on opposite sides of the country at the end of the week. This was a problem because of the time needed for long-distance travel in the days before jet airliners. The young couple decided that the best chance for their marriage to work was if they worked together. Offered her own TV series in 1950, Ball refused unless Arnaz could co-star. Television was a godsend for the couple. They formed their own production company called "Desilu." Arnaz discovered he had a natural executive ability, and was soon calling all the shots for the project that would become "I Love Lucy." From 1951 through 1957, it was the most popular show on television, and Ball was at last firmly established as a megastar. Working on camera through her second pregnancy, 'Lucy' was the first obviously pregnant woman to appear on network television. When the much-publicized birth of her son, Desi Arnaz Jr., occurred on the show in January 1953, the story received more press coverage than President Eisenhower's inauguration. "I Love Lucy" won more than 200 awards, 5 Emmys, and the respect and adoration of the country. After 179 episodes of the "I Love Lucy," Ball and Arnaz decided to call it quits for the sake of their marriage. They soon began taping another show, named "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour," which didn't need the time and attention of their previous works. Arnaz was able to spend more at home, working with "Desilu." By the end of the 1950s, Desilu became a powerful, respected corporation, producing such hit TV shows as "Star Trek" and "Mission Impossible." After 20 years of marriage, Ball and Arnaz divorced in 1960. While Arnaz turned to alcohol and was rarely seen in public again, Ball took out a loan for $3 million and bought her ex-husband's half of Desilu. Desilu was then the world's largest television production facility, so Lucy's take-over made her the first woman in Hollywood history to hold such a powerful position. In 1962, encouraged by fans, Ball reprised her role as 'Lucy' in a new TV series, as she starred in "The Lucy Show." It would run successfully for 6 years, and feature her former "I Love Lucy" co-star, Vivian Vance. When "The Lucy Show" went off the air, Ball wasted no time in reformatting the show and starring in yet another series based on the same character. "Here's Lucy" was instantly picked up by the networks and ran on prime time through 1974. Also, in 1960, Lucy won rave reviews on Broadway in "Wildcat." On the heels of that success, Ball teamed with Bob Hope for two feature films and co-starred with Henry Fonda in the critically acclaimed, "Yours, Mine, and Ours." Though she played a scatterbrained redhead, Ball was nothing of the kind in real life. Desilu Productions continued to grow and prosper under her leadership, ultimately acquiring RKO Studios, where both Ball and Arnaz had formerly worked as contract players. In 1967, she sold Desilu Productions to Gulf & Western for $17 million, netting some $10 million cash out of the deal. Ball remarried in 1961, taking Gary Morton as her second husband. Morton, a former comedian, worked with Ball to help create "Lucille Ball Productions." Lucille also starred in the multi million dollar movie "MAME" in 1973. In the late 70s and early 80s, Ball made only sporadic appearances on TV, usually as the guest star. In 1985, she portrayed a New York homeless woman in the TV film, "Stone Pillow." Her last attempt at a new comedy series, "Life with Lucy," was a failure. Lucille Ball spent much of the rest of her life out of the spotlight. Her last public appearance was at the 1989 Academy Awards. One week after undergoing open heart surgery, on April 26, 1989, Lucille Ball suffered a ruptured aorta and died. She was 77 years old. Ball is survived by two children. Desi Arnaz died of cancer in 1986. Today, "I Love Lucy" is syndicated in more than 80 countries and remains one of the most popular and beloved TV shows of all time. Bio by: Edward Parsons Inscription "You've Come Home" Gravesite Details She was cremated and her ashes were buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills, California. However in 2002, her children, Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. moved her remains to the family plot at Lake View Cemetery in Jamestown, NY. Family Members Parents Henry Ball Henry Durrell Ball 1887–1915 Desirée Ball Desirée Eveline Hunt Ball 1892–1977 Spouses Desi Arnaz Desi Arnaz 1917–1986 (m. 1940) Gary Morton Gary Morton 1924–1999 (m. 1961) Siblings Lucille Ball Lucille Ball 1911–1989 Frederick Ball Frederick Henry Ball 1915–2007actress, comedian, I love Lucy
04/26

1989

Death

April 26, 1989

Death date

Heart Failure

Cause of death

Los Angeles, California US
Death location

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1989

Gravesite & Burial

1989

Funeral date
Forest Lawn Memorial Park 6300 Forest Lawn Dr, in Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, CA 90068, États-Unis
Burial location
Obituary

Lucille Ball, the irrepressible queen of television comedy for nearly a quarter-century, died yesterday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles a week after undergoing heart surgery there. She was 77 years old. A hospital spokesman, Ron Wise, said the actress had suffered a rupture of the aorta after having improved steadily from a seven-hour operation. Miss Ball, noted for impeccable timing, deft pantomime and an endearing talent for making the outrageous believable, was a Hollywood legend: a contract player at RKO in the 1930's and 40's who later bought the studio with Desi Arnaz, her first husband. She made her last public appearance four weeks ago at the Academy Awards ceremonies, when she and Bob Hope introduced a production number. The elastic-faced, husky-voiced comedian was a national institution from 1951 to 1974 in three series and many specials on television that centered on her ''Lucy'' character. The first series, ''I Love Lucy,'' was for six years the most successful comedy series on television, never ranking lower than third. The series, on CBS, chronicled the life of Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, a Cuban band leader played by Mr. Arnaz, who was Miss Ball's husband on and off screen for nearly 20 years. It was a major national event when, on Jan. 19, 1953, Lucy Ricardo gave birth to Little Ricky on the air the same night Lucille Ball gave birth to her second child, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha 4th. The audience for the episode was estimated at 44 million, a record at the time, and CBS said 1 million viewers responded with congratulatory telephone calls, telegrams, letters or gifts. Miss Ball's first child, Lucie Desiree Arnaz, was born July 17, 1951, three months before the show went on the air. The Ricardos were the best-known, best-loved couple in America, and the first ''Lucy'' series is still in syndication in more than 80 countries, at times with six episodes a day in a single area. Analyzing the reasons, Miss Ball explained why her inspired exaggeration of an average middle-class housewife was credible: ''I believe it all the way. I do what I do with all my strength and heart.'' ''Lucille Ball will always be the first lady of CBS,'' William S. Paley, the chairman of the network, said yesterday in a tribute issued by his office. ''Lucy's extraordinary ability to light up the screen and brighten our lives is a legacy that will last forever.'' Miss Ball was also an astute business executive. From 1962 to 1967, she headed Desilu Productions, one of the biggest and most successful television production companies. Also, starting in 1968, she and her second husband, Gary Morton, a former nightclub comic, headed Lucille Ball Productions. She bought Mr. Arnaz's share of Desilu Productions in 1962 with a $3 million bank loan, and she sold the company to Gulf and Western Industries in 1967 for $17 million. Her share totaled $10 million. Discussing how she became an executive, Miss Ball said: ''My ability comes from fairness and a knowledge of people. I ran my studio like I run my home, with understanding of people. We touch in our house. I tell my children, 'There's so little time.' '' Miss Ball was a tireless worker. ''I have to work or I'm nothing,'' she once said. ''I've never been out of work except for two hours once between contracts.'' On the set, she was said to know every term, every lighting fixture and every worker. A Veteran of Motion Pictures Before entering television, Miss Ball appeared in more than 50 films, beginning in 1933 as an unbilled chorus girl in an Eddie Cantor musical farce, ''Roman Scandals.'' Her other films included ''Having Wonderful Time'' (1938), ''Room Service'' (1938), ''The Big Street'' (1942), ''Best Foot Forward'' (1943), the title role in ''Du Barry Was a Lady'' (1943), ''Without Love'' (1945), ''Sorrowful Jones'' (1949) and ''Fancy Pants'' (1950). Frank S. Nugent of The New York Times wrote in 1938 that she ''is rapidly becoming one of our brightest comediennes.'' In 1960 she also starred in a Broadway musical, ''Wildcat.'' In 1964 there was a Lucy Day at the New York World's Fair, and in 1971 she became the first woman to receive the International Radio and Television Society's Gold Medal. Her many other awards included four Emmys, induction into the Television Hall of Fame and a citation for lifetime achievement from the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Daughter of a Pianist Lucille Desiree Ball was born on Aug. 6, 1911 in Celoron, outside Jamestown, N.Y. She was the daughter of the former Desiree Hunt, a pianist, and Henry Dunnell Ball, a telephone lineman, who died when she was 3. As a girl she spent a great deal of time with her maternal grandparents, who instilled in her a deep family loyalty and a commitment to hard work. Her favorite times were attending vaudeville shows and silent films and acting out episodes and plays. Of a school production of ''Charley's Aunt,'' she said, ''I played the lead, directed it, cast it, sold tickets, printed the posters and hauled in furniture for props.'' She embarked on a show-business career at 15 by going to Manhattan and enrolling in John Murray Anderson's dramatic school. From the first, she was repeatedly told she had no talent and should return home. She tried and failed to get into four Broadway chorus lines.

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18 Memories, Stories & Photos about Lucille

Amanda S. Stevenson

16.8k+ favorites

09/23/2023

Lucille Ball

Restored by me.

Date & Place: Not specified or unknown.

Comments

Daniel Pinna

9.26k+ favorites

08/06/2011

Lucille Ball

Comedian Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was a true superstar whose talent expanded across the entire entertainment spectrum. Lucille Ball began her acting career in the 1930s and by the 1950s had become a hugely successful television star. Her career included taking part in movies, television, stage, and of course her most popular role as "Lucy" in the tv sitcom 'I Love Lucy'. Other shows of hers included The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy, and Life with Lucy.

Lucille was the first woman executive in the entertainment industry to run a major television studio named Desilu.

Date & Place: 1930 in USA

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Kathy Pinna

2.74k+ favorites

08/06/2011

Happy 100th birthday, Lucy. Thank you for the laughter!

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Natasha Medeiros

43 favorites

08/25/2011

Lucille Ball

Lucille Ball was a film, television, radio, and stage actress, best known for her role in "I Love Lucy". But she began as a dancer . . .which she used to great advantage in her television show!

Lucille Ball was nominated for an Emmy Award 13 times and won four of them. I think that this is one of the best pictures I've seen of Lucille.

Date & Place: Jan in USA

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