May 30, 2007

ABC's Summer Series Features Lucy Impresonator


Premiering tonight on ABC at 8:00pm EST is the new show "The Next Best Thing: Who is the Greatest Celebrity Impersonator".

Suzanne LaRusch who is the main Lucy impressionist at all of Lucy's events in Jamestown, NY as well as over the U.S. is one of the participants on the show. In each episode, a panel of judges will critique and determine who will go on to the next round. As in "Idol", America will vote for the final winner who will receive the grand prize of $100,000.

Lucy TV for Summer

Lucille Ball on Turner Classic Movies (TCM)

The Facts of Life
Tuesday, June 26th - 05:45 pm

Five Came Back
Tuesday, July 10th - 02:30 am

Yours, Mine and Ours
Thursday, July 12th - 02:15 pm

Easy To Wed
Friday, July 20th - 02:30 pm

Miss Grant Takes Richmond
Saturday, August 4th - 02:30 am

Without Love
Saturday, August 18th - 04:15 pm

Room Service
Wednesday, August 22nd - 11:30 am

Too Many Girls
Wednesday, August 22nd - 1:00 pm
(also stars Desi Arnaz)

Upcoming DVD Releases

The month of June and throughout this summer promises many new DVD releases of movies and shows starring our favorite redhead, Lucille Ball.

While the Lucy-Desi Days Weekend was winding down, "Without Love" was released on DVD on May 29th. Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn are the star players in this 1945 movie. Lucille Ball co-stars in this film as Katherine Hepburn's cynical secretary, Kitty Trimble, in this film.

On June 12th, a movie starring Desi Arnaz, Jr. will be coming out. "A Wedding" is a 1978 comedy which also stars Carol Burnett, Lillian Gish, Mia Farrow, Lauren Hutton and many others. Desi Arnaz, Jr. plays Dino Corelli who is getting married into a different class of American society.

Then on June 19th, two releases are coming out on DVD. The Lucille Ball Film Collection, which features six of Lucille Ball Films! Critics Choice (1963), Dance Girl Dance (1940), Du Barry Was a Lady (1943), The Big Street (1942), Best Foot Forward (1943), and the long awaited DVD release of Mame (1974).

The release of "Best Foot Forward" is also available separately on DVD as of June 19th. This is the nationwide release from the DVD promotion from Amazon last year, which was released this past December.

In July, the release of "Easy to Wed" which starred Lucille Ball will be available as part of the Esther Williams Box Set.

So be sure to watch for the dates and order your copies through the "Everything Lucy Store" at youns.com to support our site and this blog!

May 25, 2007

Lucy Desi Days News Articles

If you're going to Jamestown, NY this Memorial Day weekend for the Lucy-Desi Days Celebration - here is one of the latest news articles on the events that will be taking place.

Lucy Desi Days Arrive - from The Post Journal, "The festival kicks off today with events continuing throughout the weekend celebrating the life and legacy of television icons Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz."

Highlights of the Lucy-Desi Days will be the Legacy of Laughter Interactive Celebration and Exploration and the Lucie Arnaz in Concert at the Reg Lenna Civic Center.

Ribbon Cutting of New Desi Arnaz Band Shell This Sunday

Jamestown, NY – Celoron, New York, residents and officials are looking forward to welcoming Lucie Arnaz this Sunday for the ribbon-cutting on the new Desi Arnaz Band Shell in Lucille Ball Memorial Park.

Born in Jamestown, New York, Lucille Ball spent many of her happiest childhood years living in the nearby village of Celoron. One of the places where she both worked and played was Celoron Park. During her childhood, this was a major amusement attraction, complete with the world’s largest roller coaster and ferris wheel, as well as a skating rink and music pavilion. Now a quiet lakeside park, it was renamed the Lucille Ball Memorial Park following the Queen of Comedy’s passing in 1989.

A few years ago, village officials launched a fund raising campaign to build a Desi Arnaz Band Shell to bring back some of the excitement to the park. Modest contributions were made from the Fan Reunions held in Celoron during the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center’s annual Lucy-Desi Days and Lucy’s Birthday Celebration festivals, as well as other sources. The project got a serious boost in late 2005, when Lucy-Desi Center president Lucie Arnaz announced that she was making a substantial donation.

Village officials worked with Ms. Arnaz on the design of the structure, and it was completed this spring. Part of Ms. Arnaz’s motivation to play a major role in this weekend’s Lucy-Desi Days festival was to be in western New York for the ribbon-cutting and inaugural event in the band shell named after her father.

The ribbon-cutting will take place at 3 pm on Sunday afternoon, May 27. Following the ceremony, Ms. Arnaz and three musicians she’s brought in from around the country will offer a brief performance. Their numbers will offer a “sneak peek” at the full 17-piece orchestra concert they will perform at 7:30 pm in the Reg Lenna Civic Center.

The Celoron event is free and open to the public.

May 22, 2007

Lucy & Desi Weekend Extravaganza


A news article in the Press & Sun-Bulletin of Greater Binghampton, NY contains a great story on all the weekend festivities for the Lucy-Desi Days.
...hordes of her fans will descend on Jamestown, her proud hometown, for the annual Lucy-Desi Days festival running Friday through Sunday.

Some will be die-hard pilgrims from one of more than 75 countries that air "I Love Lucy." Others will be weekenders simply out for some fun, remembering how, as youngsters, they howled with delight as Lucy stuffed herself sick with chocolates as candy streamed by relentlessly on a conveyor belt.

Whoever they may be, visitors will not want for diversion. A nine-page printout of the festival's events includes screenings, memorabilia shows and auctions, tours of the city (including Ball's 1911 birthplace, childhood home and gravesite), a boat cruise (related to a sitcom episode), "laughter yoga" workshops, musical revue, reunion picnic, comedy improv troupe, masquerade party, contests, photo opportunties with impersonators and a concert by Ball's daughter, Lucie Arnaz, a performer in her own right.

Lucie Arnaz Reunites Broadway Debut at Kennedy Center Concert

Lucie Arnaz reunites with Robert Klein and Marvin Hamlisch for a Kennedy Center concert that will include songs from their Broadway hit, They're Playing Our Song for three nights starting May 31st.

Having first gained fame for her appearances on her world-famous mother Lucille Ball's TV sitcoms in the 1960s and early '70s, Lucie Arnaz made a smashing Broadway debut in They're Playing Our Song in 1979. Now she is preparing to revisit that triumph in They're Playing Our Song -- Again!, a Kennedy Center concert that will include a condensed version of the show.

Conducted by composer Marvin Hamlisch and co-starring Lucie's original leading man, Robert Klein, the concert will be presented for three performances, May 31-June 2.

Read more of the interview with Lucie and Theater Mania where she speaks about her career, the death of her mother, Lucille Ball and her future plans!

Lucie Arnaz and Legacy of Laughter

The AP has a interview on Lucie Arnaz and the "Legacy of Laughter", Lucie Arnaz Explores Humor as Healer.

Lucie will be at this year's Lucy-Desi Days Celebration in Jamestown, NY and will have a panel discussion on the healing power of laughter. Lucie will also perform a tribute to her father, Desi Arnaz with a 17 piece orchestra in a new pavilion that was built in honor of her father.

The celebration will be this coming weekend during Memorial Day Holiday.

My Favorite Husband Recreation

Those Were the Days Radio Players will take audiences back in time at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 24th at The Timbers of Shorewood, 1100 N. River Road, Shorewood, Illinois.

The Radio Players' South Chicago chapter will present two vintage programs from the "Golden Age of Radio" - a time during the 1930s, '40s and '50s when radio airwaves were filled with live dramas, mysteries and comedies. The Players will perform from authentic scripts using music and props for sound effects, similar to what was used on the original programs.

The group will perform an episode of "My Favorite Husband," which ran from 1948-1951 and starred Lucille Ball, and "Jane Sits on a Jury" from the Easy Aces radio show, which ran from 1930-1945.

This event is free. Reservations are required. Call Judy Malin at (815) 609-0669.

May 21, 2007

Old Time Radio Presents Podcast Featuring Lucille Ball

A Podcast from Old Time Radio of Jerry Lewis' "The Martin & Lewis Show" features an episode with Lucille Ball from April 3, 1949.

You can download it or listen to it online.

QUOTE FROM JERRY LEWIS:
"Like Burns and Allen, Abbott and Costello, and Hope and Crosby, we were vaudevillians, stage performers who worked with an audience. But the difference between us and all the others is significant. They worked with a script. We exploded without one, the same way wiseguy kids do on a playground, or jazz musicians do when they're let loose. And the minute we started out in nightclubs, audiences went nuts for us. As Alan King told an interviewer a few years ago: "I have been in the business for fifty-five years, and I have never to this day seen an act get more laughs than Martin and Lewis. They didn't get laughsâit was pandemonium. People knocked over tables."

Buffalo News: Jamestown Loves Lucy

The Buffalo News, reported on Sunday about many of the upcoming events to be held in Jamestown, NY this coming Memorial Day. The event, Lucy-Desi Days is an annual event held in Lucy's hometown each year.

Today, Arab, Turkish and Chinese couch potatoes — and viewers who speak one of 18 other languages — are watching dubbed reruns of the show centered around her endearing character. After five decades on television, more people have seen her face than any other person who ever lived, according to TV Guide, which did its part by putting Lucy on its cover more than 45 times.

That explains, in part, why thousands of her fans will descend on Jamestown, her proud hometown, for the annual “Lucy-Desi Days” festival over the Memorial Day weekend.

Some will be diehard pilgrims from one of more than 75 countries that air “I Love Lucy.” Others are simply out for some fun, remembering how they howled with delight as they watched Lucy stuff herself sick with chocolates as candy streamed by relentlessly on a conveyor belt.

May 17, 2007

I Love Lucy Tops on TV's Greatest Shows

Hall of Fame Magazine has listed "I Love Lucy" as the top TV Greatest Shows:
We say in the television business, that "funny is money," and nothing has endured longer than I Love Lucy. This show was born out of Lucille Ball's desire to keep her Cuban bandleader husband Desi Arnaz off the road, as Desi was a bit of the ladies' man. When no network was willing to cast the thickly accented Desi as Lucy's husband, they used their own money to produce the pilot. In doing so, they created a comedy classic, one against which all other comedies are still measured.

For more on Lucy, read Why I Love Lucy, by Billy Van Zandt.

May 13, 2007

Lucy says "No Embalming"

A self-admittedly ghoulish eBay seller has listed copies of the wills and death certificates of the four "I Love Lucy" stars. Lucille Ball's will reveals an explicit instruction: No embalming!

According to the seller:
Of course Lucy's is the most "professional" of the lot, and there is very little of it that is sentimental in any way. She makes a point on the first page of saying that she intentionally is not leaving anything to any of her relatives not specifically mentioned, especially her brother Fred and his wife Zoe. (There's got to be a juicy story there!) It's 20 pages long, and comes with a copy of her death certificate - (NO embalming!). Desi Arnaz specifically excluded Lucy from his will and provided for the lifetime care of his mother above and beyond any other provision in his will. And he goes to great lengths to see that both Desi Jr. and Lucie Arnaz receive equal benefits. His will is only 5 pages long, but attached to it are 13 pages of court documents filed after his death, including creditors claims, and even a claim by the executor. Lots of interesting documents, signed by his kids, and his death certificate -- (he died from lung cancer, which he had for 9 months prior.) Vivian Vance had four sisters and one brother, and left each of them one thousand dollars -- but named her much younger husband as the executor of her will and left him everything else (ah, love!). Her will is 4 pages but followed by about six more pages dealing with the husband's appointment in the courts. Her death certificate (scattered at sea!) is also attached. William Frawley's is the simplest (only 2 pages) and the saddest (24 pages of will contesting and creditors claims - including one from the cemetery in which he was laid to rest.) It goes so far into the assets he left behind that it lists individual pairs of cufflinks valued at $3.00. His death certificate (arrived DOA at a Hollywood hospital).


Check it out - bids are running until May 16th.

May 12, 2007

They Still Love Lucy in Jamestown

Newsday gives a writeup on the upcoming Lucy-Desi Days in Jamestown.
Today, Arab, Turkish and Chinese couch potatoes -- and viewers who speak one of 18 other languages -- are watching dubbed reruns of the show. More people have seen her face than any other person who ever lived, according to TV Guide, which did its part by putting Lucy on its cover more than 45 times.

That explains, in part, why her fans will descend on Jamestown, N.Y., her proud hometown, for the annual Lucy-Desi Days festival over the Memorial Day weekend, May 25 through 27. Visitors will not want for diversion, including memorabilia shows and auctions, screenings, tours of the city (including Ball's childhood home and grave site), "laughter yoga" workshops, musical revue, comedy improv troupe, and a concert by Ball's daughter, Lucie Arnaz, a performer in her own right.

Jaime Pressly Gives Birth to Dezi


Jaime Pressly, the blonde star who plays Joy on NBC's My Name is Earl gave birth to Dezi James on Friday, May 11th at 7:31pm.

She named her son after the famous couple Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball as she is such a huge fan. Her husband, Eric Cubiche is also Cuban. About her naming the baby, she told TV Guide, “one day we were joking around about it and he was putting on the Cuban accent, saying, ‘Lucy, I’m home!’ — and that’s when we decided.”

May 08, 2007

Lucy - Greatest TV Character of All Time

According to the readers of the News Observer of Raleigh, NC - Lucille Ball takes first place as "The Greatest TV Character of All Time".

In the poll of over 900 voters, Lucy Ricardo picked up 273 and Barney Fife (played by Don Knots) of "Mayberry RFD" fame came in second with 99 votes.

After Lucy Ricardo and Barney Fife, the champions who showed up on the most ballots were Homer Simpson, Jack Bauer, Hawkeye Pierce and Heathcliff Huxtable. Near the bottom were Col. Steve Austin and Gilligan, who each received one vote as the greatest of all time. Several notables, including Jed Clampett and J.J. Evans, received zero championship votes.

May 06, 2007

A Weekend With Lucy and Ricky

The Chicago Tribune has a great writeup in an article by Hal Smith on all the events and information on Jamestown's celebration of Lucille Ball. (Although the story has the death year of Lucy wrong, it wasn't 1986 - it was 1989)

Even if you don't get to make the upcoming Lucy-Desi Days over Memorial Day (May 25-27) Weekend, there are still plenty of things to see and do in Jamestown concerning Lucille Ball.

The Lucy-Desi Museum which opened in 1996 covers the personal lives of Lucy and Desi. The Desilu Playhouse is primarily devoted to the "I Love Lucy" show. It contains the replicas of the studio sets of the "Ricardo's apartment" in New York City as well as the Hollywood hotel suite where Lucy burnt her putty-nose over William Holden. Then there is The Lucy-Desi Center Gift Shop, which carries all the Lucy-Desi memoriabilia collectables.

You can also see Lucy's Homes and Grave in Jamestown. Lucy was born her maternal grandparents home at 69 Stewart Ave. in Jamestown. Her childhood home in Celeron was recently restored by the Rapports and is located at 59 Lucy Lane (formerly 8th Street) in Celoron, a village about five minutes from Jamestown. Lucille Ball's ashes are interred in the same plot with her parents and other family members named Hunt (her mother's maiden name) at Lake View Cemetery, 907 Lakeview Ave.

For information on accommodations and other attractions in Jamestown or Chautauqua County, go to www.tourchautauqua.com

May 03, 2007

Women of Distinction Exhibition

A traveling exhibit, "Women of Distinction" is set to open on Friday, May 4th at the National Soaring Museum in Elmira, New York.

The exhibit features famous New York women, including Elmira native Eileen Collins, the first female to pilot and command a space shuttle, as well as comedian Lucille Ball and former first lady Eleanor Roosevelt.

The exhibit will be open when the museum, located on Harris Hill, is open, which is 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.