She was capricious, outspoken, madcap, and never embarrassed. And we loved her for it. Thirty years after the death of one of TV's legends, LIFE remembers the life and career of Lucille Ball, the hilarious comic actress whose iconic sitcom, I Love Lucy (which she created and starred in with her real-life husband, Desi Arnaz) was so popular that the episode featuring the birth of their characters' son, Little Ricky, attracted more viewers than the inauguration of President Dwight Eisenhower. A Hollywood giant who blazed a trail for women in front of and behind the camera, Ball was the first female to run a major television production studio, and she green-lighted such classic broadcasts as Star Trek and Mission Impossible. A former showgirl on Broadway stage, Ball was known as one of the hardest-working actresses in Tinseltown before conquering radio and then TV. With her unique brand of fearless, physical comedy, she paved the way for funny folks like Mary Tyler Moore, Penny Marshall, and Robin Williams. As Will and Grace's Debra Messing writes in the heartfelt foreword to this LIFE Special Edition, “It's fair to say that I have my career because Lucy paved the way. She and Desi invented the sitcom.” And, boy, did she make us laugh.
LIFE: Lucille Ball
LIFE Bookazines • Lucille Ball
Afternoon Delight • LEADING LADY AND WILL & GRACE STAR DEBRA MESSING EXPLORES HOW WATCHING I LOVE LUCY RERUNS SAVED HER FROM A LIFE OF LONELINESS AND SET HER ON A PATH TO COMEDY
Why We All Love Lucy • LUCILLE BALL WAS A HOLLYWOOD GIANT WHO BLAZED A TRAIL FOR WOMEN IN FRONT OF AND BEHIND THE CAMERA. AND, BOY, DID SHE MAKE US LAUGH
Unforgettable Moments • FROM 1951 TO 1957, AMERICANS WHO TUNED INTO I LOVE LUCY WERE TREATED TO A HALF HOUR OF UNBRIDLED JOY THROUGH THE ANTICS OF LUCY AND RICKY RICARDO AND THEIR NEIGHBORS ETHEL AND FRED MERTZ. HERE ARE A FEW HIGHLIGHTS
Wishing Upon a Star • LUCILLE BALL CAME TO HOLLYWOOD IN 1933 DETERMINED TO MAKE IT IN THE MOVIES. SHE WORKED HARD—HARDER THAN ALMOST ANY OTHER ACTOR OR ACTRESS—AND APPEARED IN SCORES OF FILMS. BY THE 1940S, SHE WAS AMERICA’S UNDISPUTED ‘QUEEN OF THE B MOVIES.’ BUT SHE WANTED MORE. MUCH MORE.
Making It Big in Hollywood • RADIO GAVE LUCILLE BALL MORE THAN A MEDIUM IN WHICH TO HONE HER ACTING SKILLS AND COMIC TIMING. HER HIT BROADCAST MY FAVORITE HUSBAND SPARKED THE IDEA THAT SHE AND DESI ARNAZ WOULD LATER TURN INTO TELEVISION’S I LOVE LUCY
An Odd Couple • UNLIKE LUCY AND RICKY, THE ACTORS WHO PLAYED FRED AND ETHEL WERE NOT A MATCH MADE IN HEAVEN. BUT FRICTION ADDED SPARKS TO THEIR PERFORMANCES
The Queen of Comedy • FROM 1951 TO 1960, LUCILLE BALL AND DESI ARNAZ’S I LOVE LUCY RULED TELEVISION. BEHIND THE SCENES, THEIR DESILU PRODUCTIONS REVOLUTIONIZED THE SMALL SCREEN, BECOMING ONE OF HOLLYWOOD’S MOST INNOVATIVE STUDIOS
We’ll Always Remember Lucy • AFTER HER DIVORCE AND HER REMARRIAGE TO COMEDIAN GARY MORTON, LUCILLE BALL CONTINUED TO THRIVE AS AN ACTRESS AND STUDIO BOSS. WITH HER DEATH AT 77, SHE BECAME A LEGEND. ‘GOD HAS HER NOW,’ SAID HER FRIEND BOB HOPE. ‘BUT THANKS TO TELEVISION, WE’LL HAVE HER FOREVER.’
Perfect Instinct • AT THE HELM OF DESILU FROM 1962 TO 1967, LUCILLE BALL RELIED ON THE PERSEVERANCE AND CONVICTIONS THAT MADE HER A GREAT COMIC ACTRESS
