I Love Lucy this Valentine's Day
Feb 14, 2020 — Currently, I'm listening to a podcast called "History Chicks" and specifically listening to a 2-part episode all about the life and career of the one and only - LUCILLE BALL.
To celebrate Valentine's Day, it felt appropriate to highlight some of the reasons she is an icon of mine. And why I love Lucy so much.
Did you know I Love Lucy didn't air until she was 40? 40!! She started in the industry back when she was 15 and she persevered UNTIL SHE WAS 40. Wow. When she took her first acting class in NYC at 17, her teacher said she didn't have what it takes and to go home. She got rejected by major production houses well into her late 20s. She had family issues that took her away from LA. She had some health issues (nervous breakdowns from anxiety, she was a perfectionist) that kept her down, AND she still kept persevering and made it. PERSEVERANCE.
Another neat thing about her was that she loved her family so much, she brought the whole gang out to LA with her - mom, brother, grandparents, uncle, etc - to live with her. She even registered as Communist for the vote to please her grandfather, since it meant so much to him and she didn't really care about politics. The communist sign up thing would come back to bite her, but the fact that she did it to make her grandpa happy shows what a family person she was. She made movies and built I Love Lucy while going through 3 miscarriages and 1 almost divorce with Desi as well. She was a FAMILY lady. (Maybe didn't pick the best partner since her and Desi constantly fought, but they loved each other so much, who can say)
Going into her big break, she first made a good amount of money modeling which set her and her family up in LA. She started auditioning for MGM and Ziegfeld. She kept auditioning and networking and auditioning and networking and finally she knew so many people in the business, she was booked in a film that got her some notice. She then started getting asked to be on radio shows to show off those comedy chops she always had BUT that no film exec thought could be worth any money because, well, in the 40s who wanted to see a woman be funny. But the radio bits led to people feeling like they knew her, like she was a part of their home, she had a character that felt familiar. Through friendships and RELATIONSHIPS and being true to herself, she found a way into the mass public's hearts.
Lucy had so much fun on these comedy radio shows, she started acting things out and using props. The radio show brought in live audiences and then the radio show turned into a real show for Lucy and the hosts. This led the studio to think - maybe Lucy should have her own show. Lucy and Desi got real smart here - they made their own production company and pitched to own all the rights AND both be in it (Lucy wanted to make sure Desi stayed around, she knew what she wanted and she got it!) which all led to I Love Lucy starting when she was 40 right after her first baby was born and at the EXACT RIGHT TIME all America had just bought their first TV set. Perfect life and culture timing, stars aligned moment, when you are right you are right.
I'm not all the way through the podcast, we are now getting into where I Love Lucy went, how big it got and how Lucy progressed forward, but I already know I love her. And I am so inspired by her. She had major struggles, she was not perfect, she made mistakes, she got derailed, AND despite all of that, she built a career that she was proud of and a life that, I think, she loved. She knew what she was good at and SHE DID IT. Coming out as a leading lady through a time when most women were pin-ups or bimbo bond girls, Lucille Ball created a whole genre of comedy and a style of entertainment that has lasted through until today. She carved out a place for herself in this world. She worked hard for what she believed in. And I love her.
