50 Facts About I Love Lucy That Lucille Ball Kept Under Wraps
Nearly 60 years after it last aired, I Love Lucy is still a fixture on TV. In fact, thanks to its regular re-runs, the sitcom still attracts 40 million annual viewers to this day. It even spawned its own stage show at Los Angeles’ Greenway Court Theater for a three-month run in 2011. But behind the laughs lie some incredible secrets that you never knew – from the real-life dramas and fights between the cast to the incredible clause that William Frawley had written into his contract. So sit back as we reveal 50 little-known facts that every I Love Lucy fan should know.
50. Producers had somebody else in mind for Ricky
Although I Love Lucy would eventually revolutionize TV, the series actually started off on a different medium: radio. In 1948 Ball began acting in the radio show My Favorite Husband, which starred Richard Denning as the comedienne’s fictional other half. Then, when it came to adapt the series for television two years later, Denning was all set to reprise his role. Well, until Ball recommended her real-life partner instead – and we’re kind of glad she did.
49. Ball wasn’t a natural redhead
Yep, Ball’s red hair wasn’t the star’s natural color. Before I Love Lucy, she even made her name as a brunette. It wasn’t until stylist Sydney Guilaroff suggested the scarlet shade that Ball adopted her trademark flaming tresses. On set, the color would be lovingly maintained by Irma Kusely.
48. Lucille Ball couldn’t keep up with Harpo Marx
Harpo Marx made a memorable cameo on I Love Lucy, but his presence was, let’s just say, a challenge for Lucille Ball. You see, Marx declined to rehearse his famous mirror scene, making the scene incredibly difficult for the two to perform off the bat. In the end, that four-minute moment actually took the pair hours to film.
47. Ball had a thing for letters
Some hard work may have gone into I Love Lucy, but its success could have come down to just a couple of letters. Well, Ball may have believed that, anyway! The highly superstitious funnywoman apparently thought that putting “A” and “R” together was lucky. Yep, the name Lucy Ricardo was no accident. And given what a hit the show was, maybe there was some method in Ball’s madness after all.
