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Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz
The true, behind-the-scenes story of television's happiest couple, andHollywood's most tumultuous marriage.
Fifty years ago the magical union of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz enthralled American audiences who couldn't got enough of the fiery redhead or her sexy Cuban husband. But off camera the situation couldn't have been less comic, with backstage battles, oversized egos, drinking, philandering, and the demands of phenomenal success undermining what was once a storybook romance.
With exclusive access to family members (including daughter Lucie Arnaz) and rare photographs, Desilu is the first candid, inside account of a celebrated, complex, passionate, but ultimately tragic relationship -- as well as a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at Desilu Studios, the Golden Age of Television's most powerful production empire.
Librarian's Note: this is an alternate cover edition - ISBN 10: 0688135145
384 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
December 4, 2013
Steve Sanders sadly passed away in February 2013, and I know he had other projects in the planning stages. This, however, the updated and expanded edition of a work that many already considered definitive, is a final act of which he could be very proud.
Desilu was a production powerhouse in its heyday, and Desi Arnaz was the man who made it happen. He built a studio that made Star Trek, Mission Impossible and The Untouchables possible. Without him, I Love Lucy would not have happened and would probably not be available in such pristine film prints to watch today, and Lucille Ball wouldn't be the cherished comedy icon that she has become over the last sixty-plus years. The company, and their life together, are inevitably intermingled, so you can't really discuss the company without discussing their marriage, and vice versa.
The Arnazes were that sad phenomenon that occurs sometimes: They absolutely adored one another, and could not make marriage work. He chased other women and didn't understand why it upset her, and he drank beyond excess. She was harsh and difficult, and that only got worse as she got unhappier in her marriage and as she got older and more insecure in her looks. However, after they divorced, they spoke to one another just about every day, sometimes worked together, remained close, and were each others' biggest fan.
Sanders has exhaustively researched the finances and productions that were part of Desilu, and the behind-the-scenes deals and squabbles that were such a huge part of how it moved forward. He also, sadly, shows us how it all started to come apart at the seams, professionally and personally. It makes for fascinating, illuminating, and sometimes heartbreaking reading.
Desilu was a production powerhouse in its heyday, and Desi Arnaz was the man who made it happen. He built a studio that made Star Trek, Mission Impossible and The Untouchables possible. Without him, I Love Lucy would not have happened and would probably not be available in such pristine film prints to watch today, and Lucille Ball wouldn't be the cherished comedy icon that she has become over the last sixty-plus years. The company, and their life together, are inevitably intermingled, so you can't really discuss the company without discussing their marriage, and vice versa.
The Arnazes were that sad phenomenon that occurs sometimes: They absolutely adored one another, and could not make marriage work. He chased other women and didn't understand why it upset her, and he drank beyond excess. She was harsh and difficult, and that only got worse as she got unhappier in her marriage and as she got older and more insecure in her looks. However, after they divorced, they spoke to one another just about every day, sometimes worked together, remained close, and were each others' biggest fan.
Sanders has exhaustively researched the finances and productions that were part of Desilu, and the behind-the-scenes deals and squabbles that were such a huge part of how it moved forward. He also, sadly, shows us how it all started to come apart at the seams, professionally and personally. It makes for fascinating, illuminating, and sometimes heartbreaking reading.
June 10, 2012
BLAH.
The title of this book is true; the subtitle is false. This book is NOT about the story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. This book is about the studio, Desilu. I'm sure for some people that's fascinating. I'm not one of them. I really could not have cared less about how many pilots they filmed that were picked up that season or who got promoted to what during the year 1964. Blech. Every once in a while we got some good, interesting information about Lucy or Desi, but it was far and in between.
On top of that, the book just wasn't well written. One paragraph would be about Lucille's worries about her son's drug problems, and the next paragraph would be about a taping of the Lucy Show. No transition. Sometimes this happened WITHIN THE SAME PARAGRAPH. On top of that, a BUNCH of the book is quotes from other people, and it's impossible to remember who all these people are. Frankly, it felt like the authors had a bunch of quotes from a a bunch of people, and threw it all into a book, and didn't care in what order it landed or if it made sense.
What a waste. Anyone got any GOOD books about Lucille Ball or Desi Arnaz?
The title of this book is true; the subtitle is false. This book is NOT about the story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. This book is about the studio, Desilu. I'm sure for some people that's fascinating. I'm not one of them. I really could not have cared less about how many pilots they filmed that were picked up that season or who got promoted to what during the year 1964. Blech. Every once in a while we got some good, interesting information about Lucy or Desi, but it was far and in between.
On top of that, the book just wasn't well written. One paragraph would be about Lucille's worries about her son's drug problems, and the next paragraph would be about a taping of the Lucy Show. No transition. Sometimes this happened WITHIN THE SAME PARAGRAPH. On top of that, a BUNCH of the book is quotes from other people, and it's impossible to remember who all these people are. Frankly, it felt like the authors had a bunch of quotes from a a bunch of people, and threw it all into a book, and didn't care in what order it landed or if it made sense.
What a waste. Anyone got any GOOD books about Lucille Ball or Desi Arnaz?
November 13, 2014
I don't think there is one person in the world that doesn't know the show I Love Lucy. They can imitate her laughter and her whine, she has people around the world that even impersonate her and go to conventions just to celebrate her laugh out loud comic television personality.
What a lot of people didn't know is that comical style didn't come naturally to her and that laugh riot personality wasn't how she was in the real world once the cameras were turned off.
Lucille Ball's life wasn't a barrel of laughs at home or on the stage.
Lucy had to cope with a very difficult marriage to her on screen partner and real life husband Desi, and a very difficult case of stage fright every time she stepped into the studio.
Despite Lucy's natural beauty from the beginning she was forced to hide her natural beauty behind the make up, play the role given to her and was more often than not type cast a certain roll because of the show I Love Lucy even though she really wanted to be in more series rolls in film.
But no matter what she went through Lucy held herself and her family together even when tabloids would tear at her marriage and Desi's drinking problem lead to many affairs that Lucy would be then left to discover on front page newspapers.
Despite I Love Lucy's long run on the tv screen things were cut short as both her marriage came a part and the times began to make an impact on what people watched on television.
Lucille Ball was a woman who didn't get enough credit for the strength she had inside of her.
The Story of Desilu is a well written book that delves into not just the lives but the business relationship of the company and what it had to go through to grow and change to stay in every persons home.
What a lot of people didn't know is that comical style didn't come naturally to her and that laugh riot personality wasn't how she was in the real world once the cameras were turned off.
Lucille Ball's life wasn't a barrel of laughs at home or on the stage.
Lucy had to cope with a very difficult marriage to her on screen partner and real life husband Desi, and a very difficult case of stage fright every time she stepped into the studio.
Despite Lucy's natural beauty from the beginning she was forced to hide her natural beauty behind the make up, play the role given to her and was more often than not type cast a certain roll because of the show I Love Lucy even though she really wanted to be in more series rolls in film.
But no matter what she went through Lucy held herself and her family together even when tabloids would tear at her marriage and Desi's drinking problem lead to many affairs that Lucy would be then left to discover on front page newspapers.
Despite I Love Lucy's long run on the tv screen things were cut short as both her marriage came a part and the times began to make an impact on what people watched on television.
Lucille Ball was a woman who didn't get enough credit for the strength she had inside of her.
The Story of Desilu is a well written book that delves into not just the lives but the business relationship of the company and what it had to go through to grow and change to stay in every persons home.
August 10, 2013
I actually only read a little bit of it because I got tired of the profanity. What I did like, was getting to know the people who play Lucy, Ricky, Fred, and Ethyl better. Lucy was said to be withdrawn, moody... If she was your friend, she was a great friend, but she may drop you the next minute. I loved how happy she became to be a mother. Along with loving her babies, she probably thought it would make her marriage better. I always felt sorry for her and thought Desi was horrible for being a womanizer. I think what he did is unacceptable, but I learn from the book that she knew what kind of reputation he had before she married him and liked a challenge.
Desi was said to be a likable person to work with, although what he did behind the scenes was still repulsive. William and Vivian couldn't stand each other in real life. So I guess it worked out that they got to fight on the set. She thought he was old enough to be her grandpa. She was actually one year younger than Lucy. They really did make fun of each other and say how the other was fat, just like they do in the show. Lucy wanted to be queen bee and said that Vivian needed to be 20 lb over weight at all times while filming, wear a bathrobe, look frumpy. One time Vivian had fake eyelashes on. Lucy pulled them off and said she should be the only one wearing them. They would fight like sisters but Vivian mostly gave in. Lucy was lucky to have Vivian because she said she didn't care about being a big star like Lucy, she was just willing to go along for the ride, because if the I love Lucy show turned out, this would be her biggest break. Lucy was the star of the show. "We had a generous share of ongoing feuds simmering during I love Lucy but not a hint of it is seen on the screen."-Oppenheimer 1986
Desi was said to be a likable person to work with, although what he did behind the scenes was still repulsive. William and Vivian couldn't stand each other in real life. So I guess it worked out that they got to fight on the set. She thought he was old enough to be her grandpa. She was actually one year younger than Lucy. They really did make fun of each other and say how the other was fat, just like they do in the show. Lucy wanted to be queen bee and said that Vivian needed to be 20 lb over weight at all times while filming, wear a bathrobe, look frumpy. One time Vivian had fake eyelashes on. Lucy pulled them off and said she should be the only one wearing them. They would fight like sisters but Vivian mostly gave in. Lucy was lucky to have Vivian because she said she didn't care about being a big star like Lucy, she was just willing to go along for the ride, because if the I love Lucy show turned out, this would be her biggest break. Lucy was the star of the show. "We had a generous share of ongoing feuds simmering during I love Lucy but not a hint of it is seen on the screen."-Oppenheimer 1986
September 25, 2008
I've always loved the "I Love Lucy" show and have always been interested in learning more about the couple's behind the scenes story so I finally picked up this book. While this book did a good job at explaining the business side of Desilu, it didn't really delve into the details of the relationship between Lucy and Desi, which is what I was hoping for.
January 22, 2022
Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz is the definitive book on one of the most successful show biz teams in American history, a couple who were believed to be madly in love with each other because of their on-screen personas in the wildly successful I Love Lucy and whose divorce devastated their fans. Through that journey, they created a business empire, largely run by Desi and later taken over by Lucy. And through it all, even though both remarried, their love endured, according to this account. Apparently the two loved each other dearly but couldn’t sustain a marriage. In this new and expanded edition of the book, authors Coyne Steven Sanders and Tom Gilbert take us all the way through to the bittersweet end, not only of the business empire and the careers of both but to their deaths. This is a fascinating book. The story told is validated by none other than their own daughter Lucie Arnaz, so we can believe what is said. Desi was brilliant intellectual, a man with a keen artistic eye and a sure-fire business sense; Lucy was a masterful comic and a fine actress. Desi descended into alcoholism, and Lucy was plagued by insecurity and an intense work ethic. The authors lay it all out, the good and the bad. Often books of this nature that deal with beloved icons anger me because I feel our perceptions should not be shattered, well after an icon’s death, by tales about their shortcomings. If we love these people, we don’t need to know if they were mean or drunkards or whatever. This borders on that type of book in places, but all is tempered by the authors’ insistence, backed up with so many accounts from close friends and family of Desi and Lucy, that Desi was a product of his father who was a drinker and Lucy could be so controlling because of her insecurity. The book is a journey into a beloved couple, and the authors treat their subjects with honesty and reverence.
February 24, 2023
I found this book to be such a compelling and intriguing read. Absolutely fascinating! If you are at all interested in knowing the real story about Lucille and Desi's lives, including their working relationship and their development of Desilu Studios, etc., I highly recommend this book. Lucie Arnaz stated that she felt it to be the most accurate depiction of her parents.
February 1, 2021
A very enjoyable book I learned a lot of things I never knew bits a great read
June 26, 2011
I was always fascinated about their relationship. This was 40's america and a latino married a famous white actress. That does not happen in the US. At least not in that time. The book was written in two ways. The business they started (Desilu) and their relationship. I'd say 60% focused on the business and was VERY detailed and at some points very dry. I felt like I was reading MLB stats for the 1961 baseball season.However they did a great job of explaining the powerhouse that Desi was and Lucille's prowess on stage and backstage. She was hardcore and made grown men cry in fear. "Fiery redhead" was a very fitting moniker.
The other half dealt with their relationship. And while I felt they covered it well. They glossed over lots here and there. They completely skipped their reaction to William Frawley's death (not even a sentence). Very bad. Also a scant mention of Vivan Vance's death. They skipped lots of details of Desi. However I believe the authors tried to stay within second hand information and nothing less reliable.
That being said there was still lots of great information and lots of juicy facts that made me really go 'wow'.
Given her show ... almost 60 years later is still show in syndication, almost 4 generations still 'Love Lucy'. Millions and millions love her ... but Desi will always Love her more. Despite their issues, he Loved her more than anything.
Some very amazing pictures and insight on a couple I truly respect.
The other half dealt with their relationship. And while I felt they covered it well. They glossed over lots here and there. They completely skipped their reaction to William Frawley's death (not even a sentence). Very bad. Also a scant mention of Vivan Vance's death. They skipped lots of details of Desi. However I believe the authors tried to stay within second hand information and nothing less reliable.
That being said there was still lots of great information and lots of juicy facts that made me really go 'wow'.
Given her show ... almost 60 years later is still show in syndication, almost 4 generations still 'Love Lucy'. Millions and millions love her ... but Desi will always Love her more. Despite their issues, he Loved her more than anything.
Some very amazing pictures and insight on a couple I truly respect.
June 12, 2014
From beginning to end, Desilu Studios was driven by the very personal journey of Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, much more personal than I’d previously known. So what better way to tell the story of Desi and Lucy than to take a look at Desilu?
Was the name “Desilu” created for the studio? Why did they need their own studio? Why did they produce other shows and take on such tremendous growth, if their goal was simply to work together on their own show? Why didn’t they stop, sell, invest their wealth, and live the life they wanted? Why did Desi leave Desilu? The answers are in the book, plus a few eyebrow raisers, all presented with honesty and without judgment.
This book is an enjoyable read, and the authors clearly spent much time on research. Lucie Arnaz’s contributions create a kind of hub, a warmth, which seems to unify the input of those who once worked at Desilu as well as friends and family.
Loved it.
Was the name “Desilu” created for the studio? Why did they need their own studio? Why did they produce other shows and take on such tremendous growth, if their goal was simply to work together on their own show? Why didn’t they stop, sell, invest their wealth, and live the life they wanted? Why did Desi leave Desilu? The answers are in the book, plus a few eyebrow raisers, all presented with honesty and without judgment.
This book is an enjoyable read, and the authors clearly spent much time on research. Lucie Arnaz’s contributions create a kind of hub, a warmth, which seems to unify the input of those who once worked at Desilu as well as friends and family.
Loved it.
December 27, 2011
Great book! I am a huge fan of Lucille Ball and I Love Lucy and this book gives a revealing look at how this great (and I think the greatest) sitcom was created as nothing more than a vehicle for two people to work together and save their marriage. Needless to say, the marriage wasn't as successful as the show. The authors do a great job of getting past the legend/myth of Lucy and Desi and tell a revealing story - how deep love and passion are not always enough. The book is filled with insight from people who knew the Arnazes, showing us how they really were - which was not always that flattering.
July 19, 2016
I was excited to read this book, as I am a huge I Love Lucy fan. It was an interesting read, but I feel it got bogged down with details a little too much. So much of it was naming every single show that did or didn't get produced, that I found myself skimming a lot of it. I hadn't heard of a lot of these shows, even the ones that went on for several seasons. Other than that, the story of Lucy and Desi was a good one. They were definitely soul mates for life, even though they couldn't stay together.
August 22, 2014
This book was ... dense. That's not to say it wasn't good or interesting, but there was just so much information, close type, long chapters - it was not a quick read. And since the majority of their story took place before my time, I didn't have the frame of reference someone a little older might have. My memories of I Love Lucy come from watching the afternoon reruns in the '70s. And I am still enjoying watching them on the Hallmark channel!
December 28, 2018
This book was fascinating. It’s an excellently well researched personal journey through their lives and the Desilu company. I ate up the juicy details and all of the backstage stories. It made me feel like I was right there experiencing all the good and bad parts with Lucy and Desi. There were times I wanted to slap both of them silly and yell, “Wake up and look what you’re doing to yourselves!” And it broke my heart that I couldn’t. I highly recommend this book for all Lucy lovers. 5 stars!
May 27, 2016
While I was never a huge fan of the 'I Love Lucy' show, this is still a fascinating look behind the scenes. An 'odd couple' who revolutionised television in many ways and a love story that lasted beyond divorce.
There are a few moments where details bog down the story but still an entertaining read.
There are a few moments where details bog down the story but still an entertaining read.
December 18, 2012
This book truly has all about Desilu! Unfortunatly I am not so interested in the statisics of their income per year so those parts bored me a bit. But aall in all I found out many fun facts about the couple that I didnt know before.
"Good luck on the show, honey"
"Good luck on the show, honey"
September 6, 2011
This gives a great behind-the-scenes look at their careers and relationship. It involves so many perspectives, it's nearly unbiased!
November 18, 2011
Picks up where Lucy's autobiography leaves off.
August 30, 2012
A little slow moving because it is sooooo detailed, but still a good book describing the journey of Desilu productions as well as Desi and Lucy.
January 15, 2014
I enjoyed the insight into studio running.
September 24, 2013
I thought this was more of a business journal than a story kinda let down
February 10, 2014
I didn't really enjoy this book much at all. It was difficult to read and really talked more about the studio etc than Lucy & Desi
July 20, 2014
I would give it 3.5 stars if I could. A lot of information about the corporation "Desilu" and not as much on the relationships between the stars.
September 20, 2014
A Great Inside Look!
October 16, 2017
This was an enjoyable book about the behind the scenes workings of Desilu Studios as well as the tumultuous marriage and divorce of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.
As most people in America are aware of, regardless of the generation they belong to, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz starred in the groundbreaking TV show “I Love Lucy”. They were married a decade prior, and ended up turning to Television as a kind of last resort. Lucille was known as “The Queen of the B’s”, as she never was able to get out of “B” movies, and her career was pretty much stalled. Desi was a bandleader, and was touring throughout the country. In an attempt to keep their marriage intact, they started their own studio. Though their TV marriage was a happy one, their real life one was not. It was filled with fights, infidelity, miscarriages, alcohol, all the while trying run the studio and maintain the TV image of their marriage.
Through the 50’s and 60’s Desilu studios was responsible for some of the more famous TV shows to air. Besides “I Love Lucy”, there was “The Lucy Show”, “The Untouchables”, “Star Trek”, and “Mission: Impossible”, to name a few. Unfortunately, the pressures of running a studio, a failing marriage, in part due to womanizing and increased alcohol use, started Desi down a path of illness, multiple hospitalizations, and increased loneliness, especially after Lucy bought his shares of Desilu from him. Lucy, meanwhile, was so focused on her career that her marriage to Desi suffered, and was so temperamental to work with that she alienated many people after they worked with her. She was not a “Mommie Dearest” type, but she always had to be number 1. The ironic part of her relationship with Desi was that it got better after they divorced. There was still a deep love between them, even after each got remarried, that they carried to their dying day.
I enjoyed this book about Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, and the building and running of Desilu Studios. It seemed to be written more from Lucille’s perspective than Desi’s, but it is an overall well written book. There is a little bit of “tell-all” moments within the pages that can distract from the story, but I think it does help flesh out this complicated relationship of two very famous people. I would recommend this book to people who like biographies, non-fiction books about television and/or TV personalities, and people that enjoy reading books that are based mainly in the 50’s and 60’s.
As most people in America are aware of, regardless of the generation they belong to, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz starred in the groundbreaking TV show “I Love Lucy”. They were married a decade prior, and ended up turning to Television as a kind of last resort. Lucille was known as “The Queen of the B’s”, as she never was able to get out of “B” movies, and her career was pretty much stalled. Desi was a bandleader, and was touring throughout the country. In an attempt to keep their marriage intact, they started their own studio. Though their TV marriage was a happy one, their real life one was not. It was filled with fights, infidelity, miscarriages, alcohol, all the while trying run the studio and maintain the TV image of their marriage.
Through the 50’s and 60’s Desilu studios was responsible for some of the more famous TV shows to air. Besides “I Love Lucy”, there was “The Lucy Show”, “The Untouchables”, “Star Trek”, and “Mission: Impossible”, to name a few. Unfortunately, the pressures of running a studio, a failing marriage, in part due to womanizing and increased alcohol use, started Desi down a path of illness, multiple hospitalizations, and increased loneliness, especially after Lucy bought his shares of Desilu from him. Lucy, meanwhile, was so focused on her career that her marriage to Desi suffered, and was so temperamental to work with that she alienated many people after they worked with her. She was not a “Mommie Dearest” type, but she always had to be number 1. The ironic part of her relationship with Desi was that it got better after they divorced. There was still a deep love between them, even after each got remarried, that they carried to their dying day.
I enjoyed this book about Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, and the building and running of Desilu Studios. It seemed to be written more from Lucille’s perspective than Desi’s, but it is an overall well written book. There is a little bit of “tell-all” moments within the pages that can distract from the story, but I think it does help flesh out this complicated relationship of two very famous people. I would recommend this book to people who like biographies, non-fiction books about television and/or TV personalities, and people that enjoy reading books that are based mainly in the 50’s and 60’s.
February 6, 2022
With the reignited public interest in Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz thanks to "Being the Ricardos", a high-profile TCM podcast, and an upcoming Amy Poehler documentary, 1993's "Desilu" by Coyne Steven Sanders and Tom Hilbert has been reprinted again, following 2001 and 2011 reissues. Part corporate biography, part dual celebrity biography, "Desilu" covers both the history of the Desilu studio and the lives and careers of its founders, Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, giving interesting insights into all three. While neither the company nor its two principals escape unscathed, the biographers do a relatively good balance of presenting the good and bad of all. (That balancing grows a tad thin toward the end when the writers quote someone who was thrown out of the company after say, 25 years, and then follow up that example of cruelty with someone saying, "But Lucy could also be loyal." We get it. For four hundred pages we have examples of her bring a contradiction. Enough.) But to their credit, the writers don't do a fan piece; this isn't a book that glosses over the stars' personal demons nor does it play armchair psychiatrist and attempt to understand either. (This also is not the place to go for insights into every I Love Lucy episode as very few details about specific episode are included. The details focus more on how its production operated than backstage gossip) Later biographies--book, podcast, and other--have mined this book for content since its initial publication 30 years ago so some may find it old news to even casual Lucy or/and Desi fans. But in its telling of three powerhouses, it ends up being very moving--from how Desilu became so big it overwhelmed the Desi/Lucille marriage, through the divorce that may have legally ended their marriage but may not have ended their love for one another. Informative, yes. Touching? Definitely. Gripping? Absolutely. A perfect balance that could have gone wrong but, skillfully, stays readable and fascinating, page after page.
January 27, 2018
Ostensibly this is the story of Desilu, the television and film production company owned by Desi Arnez and Lucille Ball, creators of the iconic I Love Lucy televion series of the 1950's. But really it should be subtitled "when Desi met Lucy" because the tale of the rise and fall of this studio is linked inextricably to the tragic love story of Arnaz and Ball. Like Liz and Dick-Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton to those of you under 50- these two people were equally responsible for the demise of their marriage and,in this love story, ultimately the studio itself. He was charming and intelligent and a notorious alcoholic philanderer who thought it was ok to cheat on Lucy with prostitutes as they weren't "real girlfriends". She was a comic genius and a control freak who could never really relate to her co-workers and friends. Ball was too insecure to update or modify her Lucy persona to suit changing times so she never surpassed the golden days of the first series while Desi languished in alcohol and obscurity. The really sad thing about all this is that the two never really got over each other. This is verified by what they said about each other and by anecdoes told by countless friends and associates. Just before Desi died Lucy called him and told him over and over as she said goodbye," I love you,I love you.." and was for all intents and purposes the last person to speak to him. A great account of two very smart and talented souls who just couldn't conquer their demons.
March 19, 2022
As an avid Lucy and Desi fan, and having read many books about them including their respective autobiographies, I was really excited for this book.
It is, by all measures, a very thorough account of their lives together, though not a very interesting one. This incredibly detailed book goes through their relationship, personalities (the good, the bad, and the ugly) and, in my opinion, a little too much depth on the inner workings and decision-making that happened at Desilu studios (it lists in excruciating detail every single TV show, movie, and pilot that the studio ever filmed as well the buying, selling and other business practices among major film studios at the time).
The book is a bit disorganized, jumping around time periods, backtracking in stories, and going on tangents for much of the time. It reads less as a story and more as a very long, dry newspaper article- reporting the facts as a series of events with no artistry or intrigue in the writing. I will say that I loved the anecdotes about them and how much they truly loved each other for their entire lives, long after their divorce. Ultimately I’m glad I read it, but I don’t think this would be of interest to anyone other than avid Lucy and Desi fans.
It is, by all measures, a very thorough account of their lives together, though not a very interesting one. This incredibly detailed book goes through their relationship, personalities (the good, the bad, and the ugly) and, in my opinion, a little too much depth on the inner workings and decision-making that happened at Desilu studios (it lists in excruciating detail every single TV show, movie, and pilot that the studio ever filmed as well the buying, selling and other business practices among major film studios at the time).
The book is a bit disorganized, jumping around time periods, backtracking in stories, and going on tangents for much of the time. It reads less as a story and more as a very long, dry newspaper article- reporting the facts as a series of events with no artistry or intrigue in the writing. I will say that I loved the anecdotes about them and how much they truly loved each other for their entire lives, long after their divorce. Ultimately I’m glad I read it, but I don’t think this would be of interest to anyone other than avid Lucy and Desi fans.
April 25, 2022
Frankly, this was one of the saddest books I ever read. Because I Love Lucy was a brief moment in time in both Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz’s lives but they were defined and beholden to that level of success and could never repeat it. Pursuing it became fruitless and destroyed both their lives and they both knew they were leading dysfunctional, toxic lives and were seemingly powerless to stop it. Desi with alcoholism and Lucy living her life for the approval of others and never achieving that. And neither one of them were truly "successful" running Desilu. Not in the way to compete with the big studios. They came close but ultimately it folded. Star Trek and Mission Impossible were bother financial flops before they sold them to Paramount. So the last half of the book is them failing at everything they’re doing and the public not being receptive to them trying new and ambitious things. I just found it to be very sad, especially knowing the careers they had before and doing the I Love Lucy show.
Overall, huge fan of them both and this was a great insight into their lives and careers together.
Overall, huge fan of them both and this was a great insight into their lives and careers together.
June 1, 2022
When I ordered this book, I was very excited to read about Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, a couple I grew up watching in I Love Lucy marathons. However, it took me five months to finish this book, picking up other books in between. It is not a particularly interesting read, but the book does not claim to be action packed. In fact, it is exactly what it claims – it is the story of Desi Lu, the production house and its inner workings. If you are looking for a tell all regarding the Lucy and Desi relationship, this book is not for you. I am fascinated with learning about celebrities and how they balance their personal and professional lives and that is what I was hoping to get from this book. It does touch up on their relationship, but the vast majority is about the studio itself. This one was not for me, though it is very detailed and does a great job avoiding casting blame and being sympathetic to both parties.
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