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Lucille Ball: Love Lucy
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Undaunted by the "Mame" debacle, Ball undertook a dramatic role as a homeless woman in the TV-movie "The Stone Pillow" (CBS, 1985). Her fans reacted with horror and the critics were divided over her performance. Many could not get past her larger-than-life TV personality and could only see the comic "Lucy" rather than an actress. Deciding to give series TV another whirl, Ball portrayed a free-spirited grandmother, "Life With Lucy" (1986), was produced with Aaron Spelling and had a 22-episode guaranteed order from ABC. But it flopped almost immediately and was off the air within weeks with some filmed episodes never shown. For the remainder of her life, Ball confined her TV appearances to an occasional awards special or interview.
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In 1961, Ball married nightclub comedian Gary Morton, who later served as a producer for her projects. From 1962 until 1974, she worked steadily on television and starred in two consecutive series: "The Lucy Show" and "Here's Lucy." It is interesting to note that all three of Ball's TV shows ran on CBS on Monday evenings at either 8:30 or 9:00, making her a 23-year owner of that time slot.
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Ball and Arnaz's coupling had been labeled tumultuous in the late 1950s, and after 179 episodes of the "I Love Lucy Show," they decided to call it quits to save their marriage. While they said goodbye to the old show, they began taping another, named "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour." The 60-minute show didn't need the time and attention of their previous works, and Arnaz and Ball once again seemed happy and in love. Arnaz spent less time in the recording studio with his band, and 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."
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* Though she had long since died, the "character" of Lucille Ball appeared during the eleventh season of the television series The Simpson's, in the episode "Little Big Mom". In the episode Homer and Bart Simpson are watching I Love Lucy on television and you can hear Lucy give her trademark cry, after which you then hear an impersonation of Fred Mertz saying, "I think you hit her pretty hard there, Ric". This causes the spirit of Lucille Ball to appear to Lisa Simpson upstairs, in which Lucy introduces herself by using all of the last names from her past television series.
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At least one biographer has suggested that the grief associated with the loss of her father drove Lucille into playacting. Whether true or not, Ball's recollections of early childhood were, for the most part, happy. She and her brother lived with doting grandparents and a strong, independent mother. Her grandfather, Fred Hunt, was an eccentric socialist who enjoyed the theater. He frequently took the family to local vaudeville shows and encouraged young Lucy to take part in both her own and school plays. At the age of fifteen, Lucy dropped out of high school, and with her mother's approval, enrolled in the John Murray Anderson/Robert Milton School of the Theater in New York City.
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After her father died, Ball and her brother Fred were raised by her stripper and drug addicted mother and grandparents. Her grandfather, Fred C. Hunt, was an eccentric socialist who ... enjoyed the theater. He frequently took the family to vaudeville shows and encouraged young Lucy to take part in both her own and school plays.
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