"I Love Lucy" Series Bought by Hallmark Channel

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Hallmark Channel has completed one of its biggest series acquisition deals, nabbing rights to "7th Heaven," "Cheers" and "I Love Lucy" along with additional episodes of "Matlock" and "Touched by an Angel," all from CBS Television Distribution.

The deal also includes rights to 12 holiday movies, including "Finding John Christmas," "Town Without a Christmas" and "When Angels Come to Town."

"7th Heaven" will be the first of the three newly acquired series to come available to the network, where it will be ready to launch as early as January, while "Cheers" will become available later in 2008 and "Lucy" in January 2009. The deal includes rights to all episodes of all three series.

Hallmark senior VP acquisitions and programming Michelle Vicary said the plan is to run the three series in Monday-through-Friday strips. Executives also are considering weekend runs.

Vicary said the shows will appeal to Hallmark's regular viewers -- the baby boomer audience -- and attract the "occasional" viewers who tend to tune in primarily for the network's original movies. She added that the shows will complement Hallmark's other acquired series, including "M*A*S*H," "Little House on the Prairie" and "Murder, She Wrote."

"All (three) shows are what you think of when you think of Hallmark Channel," she said.

Hallmark and CBS declined comment on the financial terms of the deal.

Gregg Oppenheimer Discusses I Love Lucy DVD Release

On Wednesday, November 28th, Gregg Oppenheimer, son of "I Love Lucy" producer and creator Jess Oppenheimer and producer of the "I Love Lucy" DVD releases, will be on Shokus Internet Radio from 4 pm Pacific Time (7 pm on the East Coast) until 6pm PST. Stuart Shostak will host the two-hour long call-in show. The website is free, and there's no registration required to listen or to call in and ask your own questions.

In addition to discussing how Gregg painstakingly restored every episode of the classic sitcom, "I Love Lucy" for the DVD releases, he will also cover his father Jess's incredibly successful career first as a radio writer for Lucy's "My Favorite Husband" series and then as co-creator and head writer for “I Love Lucy.”

As always, listener phone calls will be welcomed toll-free at (888) SHOKUS-5 (746-5875). The program will be repeated daily at the same time through December 4, except Sunday, when it will air at 10 a.m. PT. To hear the broadcast, please visit www.shokusradio.com and select one of the players to access the live feed. There is no registration or cost involved -- it's all free!

Lucille Ball Part of Quilt Exhibit

From the Dodge City Daily Globe, Rebekka Seigel creates a tribute quilt as part of an exhibition that tells the lives of 13 influential women. The exhibit is currently on display at the Stauth Memorial Museum in Montezuma, Kansas.

"The seventh quilt in my paper doll series evokes the most nostalgia from my childhood," said Seigel in a press release. "The Lucille Ball tribute is a collage of things that represent images that describe Lucy's life on screen and off."

The quilts are "paper doll quilts," complete with tiny, quilted outfits that symbolize the defining moments in each of the women's lives. The clothes are attached to the main quilt, but can be maneuvered to dress the doll.

"Three of Lucy's outfits represent my favorite adventures from (I Love Lucy)," said Seigel. "The maternity outfit makes note of the fact that she was the first woman to be allowed to be 'with child' - the word 'pregnant' was not allowed by the censors - on a television show.

"This wonderful clown was also the first female head of a television studio when she got control of DesiLu (Productions) in her divorce from Desi Arnaz, and that accomplishment is acknowledged with an outfit as well."

Each quilt in the "Women's Work" series is different and each is dedicated to a different woman. Maya Angelou, Lucille Ball, Pearl S. Buck, Rachel Carson, Babe Didrikson, Ella Fitzgerald, Martha Graham, Barbara Jordan, Lucy Martin Lewis, Margaret Mead, Louis Nevelson, Jean Ritchie and Eleanor Roosevelt are each represented in the series.

Joining the "Women's Work" exhibit will be a display of 40 quilts created in all parts of the state of Kansas. The quilts were stitched in a wide variety of patterns and materials, including cross-stitch, scrap and Stack 'n' Wack, Christmas and samplers. Some of the quilts were made as long ago as the mid-1800s, while others were finished just this year.

The exhibit is open from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Sundays. The exhibit is closed on Mondays and all major holidays. "Women's Work" will be on display through Jan. 6, 2008.

Exclusive Mattel Ethel Doll Released for Christmas

Mattel released another doll and this time it was an exclusive version of Ethel Mertz! I believe this one hit above everybody's radar. This version is a Platinum I Love Lucy series, which means less than a 1,000 were made. It has Ethel in the Christmas episode, which is the same episode that was last year's exclusive Lucille Ball Mattel doll release. This is Mattel's 14th in their I Love Lucy series.

The Plantinum label edition is truly rare. There are only three other classes of dolls produced by Mattel; Gold which produces 25,000, Silver which produces 50,000 and Pink which is your normal everyday release.

This Mattel Platinum Label I Love Lucy, Ethel Doll is truly rare and will not be found in stores anymore. This is the first-ever solo Ethel Mertz doll released by Mattel. The Christmas Show, also known as Jingle Bells, first aired on Christmas Eve, 1956. This episode featured flashbacks woven with newer Christmas-themed footage, in which all four main characters, Lucy and Ricky Ricardo and Fred and Ethel Mertz, all dressed as Santa Claus only to be surprised by a visit from the real Santa at the end!

I Love Lucy Square Dedication

The late comedian Lucille Ball and the owner of Lucy's El Adobe Cafe were recognized for their contributions to Hollywood with the renaming of an intersection to "I Love Lucy Square."

Lucille Ball and Lucy Casado shared the honor Thursday afternoon at the intersection of Melrose Avenue and Plymouth Boulevard near Paramount Studios. Lucille Ball and her husband, Desi Arnaz, started Desilu Productions at the cafe in 1951.

Lucy's El Adobe Cafe has become a popular campaign stop for politicians. Former California Gov. Jerry Brown, now the state's attorney general, first met singer Linda Ronstadt at the cafe in the 1970s.

Councilman Tom LaBonge unveiled the square's new sign during an afternoon ceremony.