VOICE TWO:

The success of the “I Love Lucy” show did not come early in Lucille Ball’s life, or easily. Instead, it was the result of years of hard work.

Mizz Ball was born near Jamestown, New York, in nineteen-eleven. She tried to get into show business at an early age. Early on, she went to the same acting school as the famous actress Bette Davis. However, she left when she was told that she did not have enough acting ability.

In the early Nineteen-Thirties, she moved to Hollywood. She appeared in a number of movies, but was not well known.

VOICE ONE:

In nineteen-forty, she met the leader of a musical group who had been born in Cuba. His full name was Desiderio Alberto Arnaz de Acha the Third. They worked together in a movie and married soon after they met. For the next ten years, she appeared in movies and on radio. He travelled a lot with his band.

In Nineteen-Fifty, the broadcasting company, CBS, decided to make a television program based on the radio show, “My Favorite Husband.” Lucille Ball was the star of the radio show. She wanted Mister Arnaz to play the part of her husband on the television show. CBS rejected the idea. But, she refused to give up. She and Desi travelled around the country performing in a show together to prove that they would do well on television. Their show was a success. CBS offered them both jobs.

VOICE TWO:

Mizz Ball had another demand. She wanted her show to be a production of the best quality. Early television pictures were not of good quality. Mizz Ball wanted her program to be filmed, which would improve the picture, and then broadcast later. Yet she wanted people to watch the program as it was being filmed so the sound of their reactions could be captured.

Mizz Ball also wanted to film the shows in Hollywood. CBS did not want the extra costs. So, Mizz Ball and Mister Arnaz agreed to work for less pay. In exchange, CBS let them own the program. That agreement made them owners of what would become one of the most successful programs on television.

VOICE ONE:

During the fifties, Mizz Ball won almost every honor there was for television actors including several Emmy Awards. Yet, even the most popular performers could not escape the political realities of the time. Conservative lawmakers accused Lucille Ball of being a communist. The Federal Bureau of Investigation kept a secret record of information about her, just as it did about many Hollywood actors at that time.

VOICE TWO:

Mister Arnaz supervised their company, Desilu Productions. The company produced sixteen different television programs and ran three production centers, called studios.

In Nineteen-Sixty, Lucille Ball and Mister Arnaz legally ended their marriage. Mister Arnaz sold his part of the company to his ex-wife. Mizz Ball became the first woman to head a major production company. It was one of the biggest in Hollywood.

Mizz Ball also was the star of several other shows of her own. “The Lucy Show” was broadcast from nineteen-sixty-two to nineteen-sixty-eight. “Here’s Lucy” followed until nineteen-seventy-four. Mizz Ball later sold her production company to Paramount Studios.

VOICE ONE:

“I Love Lucy” showed Mizz Ball at her best. Mister Arnaz added something that was unusual for American television at the time. Many of the songs on the show were in Spanish. One song, “Babalu,” is popularly connected with “I Love Lucy”. Its words are Spanish and its sound is Latin American. It is this mixture along with the excellent performances that made the show special:

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VOICE TWO:

Mizz Ball died in nineteen-eighty-nine after a heart operation. Yet, she still makes people laugh. Her programs are rebroadcast on television and there are hundreds of Internet sites about her. After all these years, everyone still loves Lucy.

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VOICE ONE:

This Special English program was written by Mario Ritter and produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Mary Tillotson.

VOICE TWO:

And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another PEOPLE IN AMERICA program on the Voice of America.