Lucille Ball's Daughter Lucie Arnaz Looks Plain Stunning

Aug 05, 2021 by apost team

Lucille Ball was one of the most beloved actresses of all time. Known for her great comedic timing and charming demeanor, Ball paved the way for many future female stars in the entertainment industry. She was best known for being an actress, comedian, and model, but Ball also really made her presence known in the television industry as she also worked as a studio executive and producer.

Struggling to find work in New York City, Ball eventually relocated to Hollywood to fully pursue her passion and work at becoming a successful actress. It was challenging for the hopeful woman to find work and get the recognition she deserved, but she never gave up on her dreams. 

Ball skyrocketed to fame with her sitcom “I Love Lucy,” a show she both starred in and produced, showing just how talented she really was. She even starred in the show with her then-husband. The series brought Ball great success and led to a series of spin-offs, helping the star continue her reign as one of the best sitcom actresses of all time.

Although Ball is no longer with us, her memory and legacy have been carried on through her beautiful children. Both her son and daughter have followed in their famous parents’ footsteps as they have each ventured into the acting industry. Today, Ball’s daughter is 70 years old and looks absolutely stunning. She even worked alongside her mother in various TV shows. Lucie has continued to find work in the acting industry and make her late mother proud while carrying on the family legacy.

Life In New York

Lucille Ball (1913), (George Rinhart/Corbis/Getty Images)

Ball was born on Aug. 6, 1911, in Jamestown, New York. Her father, Henry, was a lineman for Bell Telephone, which resulted in the family moving around a lot during Ball’s childhood. The family had relocated from Jamestown to various places in the United States, including Montana, New Jersey, and Michigan. In February 1915, Ball’s father died from typhoid fever, leaving behind his pregnant wife and his daughter.

Ball and her mother moved back to the Jamestown area following Henry’s death, where Ball’s maternal grandparents helped raise both her and her younger brother Fred after he was born. The family stayed there for four years until Ball’s mother remarried. When she was 12 years old, Ball auditioned for her stepfather’s Shriner’s organization since it was in need of entertainers for the chorus line for their next show. After having the chance to perform onstage, Ball fell in love with the attention and recognition she received and quickly decided that she wanted to be an entertainer.

However, it took a bit of time for Ball to finally get the chance to go for her dreams. When she was just 14 years old, she began dating a 21-year-old boy in her neighborhood, much to her mother’s disapproval. After a year, the couple’s relationship had still not fizzled out, leading to Ball’s mother searching for a distraction for her daughter. In 1926, Ball was enrolled in the John Murray Anderson School for the Dramatic Arts in New York City as a way to both stay away from the older neighborhood boy and to finally get the chance to strive for stardom. Bette Davis was also a student at the school at the time.

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Finding Early Success

Lucille Ball (George Rinhart/Corbis/Getty Images)

However, Ball’s time at the school didn’t go exactly as planned, as she was met with harsh criticism from her teachers, who didn’t believe she would be able to make it in show business. Ball ended up leaving New York City. Wanting to prove that she could, in fact, make it big, Ball returned to the city two years later and began working for Hattie Carnegie as an in-house model. At this time, Ball was a brunette but was instructed to dye her hair blonde, to which she complied. She continued to work hard and learn the ins and outs of being a model. 

Unfortunately, Ball’s career was put on pause when she fell ill with rheumatic fever, causing her to be unable to work for the next two years. Luckily Ball was able to recover and once again returned to New York City in 1932. While trying her hand at acting once again, she also got her old job back, working for Carnegie as a means to support herself financially. She even became the Chesterfield cigarette girl, a campaign put on by Carnegie. Ball had also begun picking up some chorus work on Broadway, but the jobs were never long-lasting.

Along with her constant job search, Ball managed to land a role in “Roman Scandals” in 1933, although the role was uncredited. After this, Ball permanently moved to Hollywood to continue pursuing her passion of becoming a successful actress. She began to pick up more jobs, including a part in “Three Little Pigskins” in 1934 with the Three Stooges and “Room Service” in 1938 with the Marx Brothers. She also had minor roles in a variety of RKO musicals, including “Roberta” and “Top Hat” in 1935.

Making A Name For Herself

Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball (FilmPublicityArchive / United Archives/Getty Images)

Despite the fact that she was finding work, the hopeful actress was not receiving recognition as she continued to not receive credit for many of her roles. Ball’s first credited role came from “Chatterbox” in 1936, finally helping the rising star get some recognition. That same year, Ball also landed the part of Julie Tucker in the Bartlett Cormack comedy play “Hey Diddle Diddle.” The play premiered on Jan. 12, 1937, in Princeton, New Jersey, and received great reviews. However, the star of the show, Conway Tearle, had fallen ill. The producer and director were unable to come to terms with how to handle their star’s deteriorating health, resulting in the play coming to a close after just one week.

Ball used the play’s close as a launching pad for her career, and she went on to audition for more Broadway and film roles. After failing to land the role of Scarlett O’Hara for “Gone with the Wind,” Ball was cast as the lead in the musical “Too Many Girls.” While working in the musical in 1940, Ball met Desi Arnaz, who played one of her character’s four bodyguards in the movie. The two hit it off and fell in love and got married later that year.

Although Ball continued to land more and more roles, none of the projects she was in were huge successes. She picked up radio work to help make some extra cash and gain even more exposure. She eventually joined the cast of “The Wonder Show,” where she met the show’s announcer Gale Gordon. This was the beginning of their 50-year professional relationship.

The Star Of The Show

Lucille Ball (1968), (Photoshot/Getty Images)

In 1948, Ball was cast as Liz Cooper in the radio comedy “My Favourite Husband.” The show was successful, leading to CBS developing it for television. Ball agreed on the condition that her real-life husband, Arnaz, would be cast alongside her. Unfortunately, the network was unimpressed with the pilot episode and ended up scrapping the show.

This failure ended up leading to Ball’s claim to fame, as “I Love Lucy” was later put on air on CBS. The network had seen great potential in Ball and her vibrant red hair as she portrayed the role of a zany housewife in “I Love Lucy.” Ball easily skyrocketed to fame with her starring role on the show and achieved several firsts in the television industry. She became the first woman to head a TV production company, Desilu Studios, and “I Love Lucy” was the first show to feature an ensemble cast. Alongside Ball starred her real-life husband as her on-screen husband. Other notable cast members included Vivian VanceWilliam Frawley, and Richard Keith.

Just months before “I Love Lucy” had gone on air, Ball had given birth to her first child and only daughter, Lucie Desiree Arnaz. In January 1953, she gave birth to her youngest child and only son, Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV, known as Desi Arnaz, Jr. Before her son was born, “I Love Lucy” was receiving rave reviews and had solid ratings, so Ball and Arnaz decided to write the pregnancy into the show. The episode where Ball’s character gave birth was aired on the same day that Ball herself gave birth in real life.

Ball And Arnaz’s Relationship On And Off The Screen

Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball (1960), (Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

Desilu Productions set the stage for future TV shows to follow, as “I Love Lucy” was a pioneer for filming in front of a live studio audience with more than one camera and had distinct, adjacent sets. The series was highly successful and well-received by fans and critics alike for the majority of its run. The sitcom ended up lasting from October 1951 until May 1957, with a total of 180 episodes over the span of six seasons. Even after the series ended, the main cast continued to work together and often appeared in hour-long specials under the title “The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” until 1960.

Ball and Arnaz’s production company flourished and produced several other popular shows, including “The Untouchables,” “Star Trek,” and “Mission: Impossible.” In 1967, Desilu Studios was eventually sold and merged with Paramount Pictures.

Although Ball had just ridden a long wave of success with her hit sitcom, not everything was going just as swimmingly in her personal life. Her marriage with Arnaz had been full of struggles as they two had difficulties balancing their work life and home life together. Ball had initially filed for divorce in 1944, but the couple ended up being able to reconcile. In March 1060, Ball once again filed for divorce, but the couple ended up going through with it this time, resulting in their divorce being finalized by May that year. Despite their differences as a couple, Ball and Arnaz remained friends until Arnaz’s death in 1986.

The Actress’ Legacy

Lucille Ball (circa 1970), (Art Zelin/Getty Images)

In 1960, Ball starred in the Broadway musical “Wildcat” alongside Keith Andes and Paula Stewart. Ball and Stewart went on to become great friends for many years to come. Stewart was even the one who introduced Ball to her second husband, Gary Morton. The two got married in 1961. Ball and Morton not only had a romantic relationship, but they worked together as Ball had installed Morton in her production company and helped him learn more about the television business.

Along with Stewart, Ball had made many friends in the industry, including Judy GarlandGinger Rogers, and Carol Burnett. The more she worked in the industry, the more amazing relationships she made with her co-workers. Ball continued to land roles in various television shows and even became an assistant professor at California State University, Northridge, in 1979.

Near the end of her life, Ball had suffered from a few health complications. Lee Tannen, one of Ball’s friends, had told Closer Weekly that Ball had had a stroke in 1988, “but it didn’t get her down.” In fact, the actress even continued to exercise and work on her health. On Apr. 26, 1989, Ball died at the age of 77 from a ruptured aorta.

During her life, Ball had achieved incredible success as an actress. She received two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960 for her work in both the film and television industries. Ball was also one of the first recipients of the Women in Film Crystal Award, being honored with the recognition in 1977. She had been nominated for 13 Primetime Emmy Awards over the years and even took home four of them. In 1984, Ball was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.

Meet Lucie Arnaz

Lucille Ball (circa 1955), (Silver Screen Collection/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Lucie was born on Jul. 17, 1951, to her famous parents Ball and Arnaz. Just like how her parents had been incredibly famous and successful as actors, Lucie ventured into the industry herself to follow in their footsteps. She had walk-on roles on her mother’s television series “The Lucy Show,” and officially made her acting debut in the series “Here’s Lucy.” Lucie played Kim Carter, Lucy’s daughter, from 1968 until 1974.

While working with her family had first helped her find her footing in the industry, Lucie eventually branched out and found more roles on her own. The rising star landed roles in a number of TV movies, including “Washington Mistress,” “Death Scream,” and “Who Is the Black Dahlia?” Lucie has taken television jobs on and off throughout the years, with her most recent work being in an episode of “Will & Grace” in 2020. Lucie has also starred in a plethora of theatre productions, including “Annie Get Your Gun” and “They’re Playing Our Song.”

Lucie has done great work preserving her mother’s legacy. In 1993, she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Special for her documentary “Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie.” Lucie also served as the president of the board of directors of the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center in Jamestown from 2002 until 2007, a museum dedicated to the lives and careers of Lucie’s late parents.

Ball was undoubtedly one of the greatest sitcom actresses who was a trailblazer for future generations. Even though Ball is no longer with us, Lucie has worked hard at carrying on her famous mother’s legacy through her own work as an actress and her work to highlight the life and career of Ball.

Lucie Arnaz (2006), (Mathew Imaging/FilmMagic for Academy of Television Arts and Sciences)

What do you think about Lucille Ball and her long-lasting legacy? What do you think about her daughter becoming an actress, too? Let us know, and be sure to pass this along to your loved ones, too!

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