Though I Love Lucy had a surprising share of emotional moments (especially for a sitcom in the 50s) there can be no doubt about the moment that takes the cake. Lucy’s discovery that she is pregnant with her and Ricky’s first child, and her eventual reveal of the happy news, is easily the most touching moment in the show’s history.
Part of the success of this moment lies in the setup. Dazed with happiness to discover her pregnancy, Lucy is determined to break the news to Ricky in the most perfect way possible. But as in life, things don’t always go according to plan. Lucy’s first attempt to tell Ricky about her pregnancy is interrupted by the Mertzes, the telephone, and lunchtime; her second, at the Tropicana, is cut off to much attention.
Finally, Lucy arranges for Ricky to sing “Rock-a-Bye Baby” to an anonymous woman in the audience at the club, who wants to tell her husband of her pregnancy. Strolling through the audience, singing the lullabye, Ricky catches sight of Lucy – and sees her nod, beaming. Overwhelmed with joy, Ricky and Lucy dance together as he joyfully sings “We’re Having a Baby.”
Seriously, it’s totally moving.
“WE’RE HAVING A BABY, MY BABY AND ME!” |
Some of the scene’s palpable emotion was also due to the real-life circumstances behind Lucy Ricardo’s pregnancy. In reality, Lucille Ball was expecting her second child with Desi Arnaz – an emotional development for the couple, who had suffered several miscarriages in the past. And though it seems incredible today, Ball and Arnaz were taking a real risk by incorporating their pregnancy into the show: CBS considered the topic of pregnancy taboo, and would not allow the character to utter the word “pregnant” on the air.
But as must have been instantly clear from the moment Ricky saw Lucy’s smiling face, the Ricardo’s pregnancy was anything but controversial. Instead, the moment was honest, emotional, and deeply human – and distinguished I Love Lucy as one of the bravest comedies on television.
The world is a very different place today than it was when I Love Lucy came on the air. Shot in occasionally-fuzzy black-and-white at a time when the United States were only 48 and telephones had rotary dials, the show indisputably belongs to another era.
When I Love Lucy was on the air from 1951 to 1957, families would gather around their definitely-not-flatscreen televisions on Monday nights to catch the laughs – or else, they missed them. Not everything was rosy; I Love Lucy is a show where characters smoke de rigueur (even in the hospital!) and a cross-country road trip does not include seatbelts. Existing in the era before the Civil Rights movement, I Love Lucy only ever featured one African-American actor, who appeared as a train porter.
I Love Lucy is credited with the invention of the repeat broadcast – or rerun. |
And as vibrant, funny, and powerful as she was, Lucy is often frequently subject to Ricky’s decisions. Ricky doles out Lucy’s allowance money, and physically spanks her when she disobeys. Though their marriage is loving, Ricky insists that Lucy remain a housewife, and frequently demands his breakfast or dinner, as though turning on the stove were something a man would never do. At one point or another, Lucy’s appearance, intelligence, driving skills, financial acumen, and even her strength of will are all derided, her personhood transformed into the butt of a joke.
It would be wrong to ignore these things when watching and enjoying I Love Lucy. But at the same time, we must appreciate the show’s successes. For one thing, I Love Lucy succeeded – and still succeeds – at being hilariously funny without a speck of profanity, or references to sex. And in spite of network concerns that America would balk at the portrayal of inter-racial marriage, Lucy and Ricky’s relationship became one of the most beloved and celebrated in television history.
Desi Arnaz invented the three-camera style of sitcom filming, a staple of the modern television industry. |
And though I Love Lucy may have complied with the sexist narrative of the time, things were another story behind the scenes. Madelyn Pugh (often called “the girl writer”) was one of the show’s three head writers for the entirety of its run. Due to her secretarial skills, Pugh did most of the script-typing for the show, and along with her partner Bob Carroll, she is credited with creating the iconic Lucy character. In addition, Vivian Vance was the first woman to win the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress, thanks to her role as Ethel Mertz.
Of course, Lucille Ball herself was no shrinking violet either. Known for being wickedly smart and an incurable perfectionist, Ball was the co-owner of Desilu Productions along with Desi Arnaz. This made Ball the first female head of a Hollywood production company. After her divorce from Arnaz, Ball bought out his part of the company, and served as a hands-on chief executive until 1967.
Long-gone are the days of black-and-white televisions and animated cigarette commercials. In the modern era, all six seasons of I Love Lucy are available for purchase on DVD – as are the three seasons of the hour-long Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour. In addition, many of the episodes can be viewed on Amazon Prime, as well as on Hulu and websites like TV.com.
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