TV Radio Mirror (Jan - Jun 1963)

LUCILLE BALL (Continued from page 21) that he had good reason for looking solemn. He's executive producer of the new "Lucy Show" and TV is a serious, million-dollar business. But there could well be another reason, Hollywood suspects. A more personal and pressing reason, based on that old familiar pattern of a triangle: Lucille Ball . . . Gary Morton — to whom Lucy has been wed for just a year . . . and Desi Arnaz — divorced from Lucy, after almost twenty years of marriage, and father of her two children. That's the delicious triangle, the goose-for-the-gander sauce which is intriguing Hollywood. They wonder: What's going to happen, as the show goes on and week after week, Monday through Thursday, Lucy works a twelveto-fourteen-hour day with Desi at her side? What's going to happen to that urbane, witty Gary Morton when — as a top comedian himself — he goes to faraway places to fulfill his bookings? What's going to happen to Mr. and Mrs. Morton's precious weekends, when Lucy sends Lucie Jr. (almost fourteen) and little Desi (not quite ten) to stay with their father? And Lucy takes that lull as her much-needed opportunity to rest up between shows? Trouble— and $12,000,000 Can this truly wonderful dame — who is the real Lucille Ball — be the bright bride who can eat her wedding cake and have it, too? If you really want to know, Hollywood would find it enchanting if she could. They know what she suffered with Desi. That doesn't mean Hollywood doesn't like Desi. It admires him tremendously. In fact, he is regarded as a veritable genius of a showman. Besides, he only acted like many a Latin husband. He loved her wildly. He adored his children. He was infatuated with his own home — the beautiful home where Gary Morton lives now. There were only two small troubles. (1) They say he liked a nip every now and then. (2) They say he liked to flirt. He also worked too hard, but you can scarcely call that a trouble, even if it did begin to trouble Lucy terribly. In fact, it bothered her so much she got a divorce and about twelve million dollars as her split of the Desilu assets. Whereby hangs a tale which tells you a lot about Lucy: She and Desi had wound up "I Love Lucy." They both believed it had exhausted its popular appeal, which at the time Desiderio Alberto Arnaz de Acha IV had been born to them — in 1953 — had attained the highest rating any TV show ever had. (They were wrong. Today, in re-runs, "I Love Lucy" T is one of the top-rated shows, even in v competition with brand-new producr tions.) Lucy . . . depressed over the breakup of her marriage . . . depressed over facing that most distressing of 68 feminine birthdays, her fiftieth . . . uncertain of her future . . . felt she had to prove herself. Years ago, on Broadway, she had been just a chorus girl. At the end of 1959, she determined she'd go back to Broadway as a star. She'd conquer a brilliant new world. That was when she accepted "Wildcat." She packed up Lucie and little Desi and moved to New York. At that time, she believed she'd not miss it if she never saw Hollywood again. Now, Lucy is a perfectly wonderful mother, and one reason is that she has such a wonderful mother of her own. Her kids know she is always there, with love and understanding, when they need her, just as Lucy knows her mother is there, looking after all of them. So, of course, Grandma Ball became a member of the household in New York. To this day, Lucy has never said a word against Desi to her children. Practically speaking, she's never talked against him to anyone. But, there in New York, she tried to do things with just her daughter, her son and herself. No husband. No father. Statement required by the Act of Auqust 24, 1912, as amended by the Acts of March 3, 1933, July 2, 1946, and June 11, 1960 (74 Stat. 208) showing the ownership, management and circulation of TV RADIO MIRROR, published monthly at New York, N. Y., for October 1, 1962. 1. The names and addresses of the publisher, editor, manaein? editor, and business managers are: Publisher, MacfaddenBartell Corporation, 205 East 42nd St., New York 17, N. Y.; Editorial Director, Jack J. Podell, 205 East 42nd St., New York 17, N. Y.; Editor, Claire Safran, 205 East 42nd St., New York 17, N. Y.; Executive VicePresident, Frederick A. Klein, 205 East 42nd St., New York 17, N. Y. 2. The owner is: (If owned by a corporation, its name and address must be stated and also immediately thereunder the names and addresses of stockholders owning or holding 1 percent or more of total amount of stock. If not owned by a corporation, the names and addresses of the individual owners must be given. If owned by a partnership or other unincorporated firm, its name and address, as well as that of each individual member, must be given.) Macfadden-Bartell Corporation, 205 East 42nd St., New York 17, N. Y.; Gerald A. Bartell, 205 East 42nd Street, New York 17, N. Y.; David Bartell, 205 East 42nd Street, New York 17, N. Y.; Lee B. Bartell, 205 East 42nd Street, New York 17, N. Y.; Melvin M. Bartell, 205 East 42nd Street, New York 17, N. Y.; Ralph & Rosa Evans, 3500 North Sherman Blvd., Milwaukee 16, Wisconsin. 3. The known bondholders, mortgagees, and other security holders owning or holding 1 percent or more of total amount of bonds, mortgages, or other securities are: (If there are none, so state.) None. 4. Paragraphs 2 and 3 include, in cases where the stockholder or security holder appears upon the books of the company as trustee or in any other fiduciary relation, the name of the person or corporation for whom such trustee is acting; also the statements in the two paragraphs show the affiant's full knowledge and belief as to the circumstances and conditions under which stockholders and security holders who do not appear upon the books of the company as trustees, hold stock and securities in a capacity other than that of a bona fide owner. 5. The average number of copies of each issue of this publication sold or distributed, through the mails or otherwise, to paid subscribers during the 12 months preceding the date shown above was: (This information is required by the act of June 11, 1960, to be included in all statements regardless of frequency of issue.) 677,217. (Signed) FREDERICK A. KLEIN, Executive Vice-President Sworn to and subscribed before me this 27th day of September, 1962. [SEAL] TULLIO MUCELLI, Notary Public State of New York No. 03-8045500 Qualified in Bronx Co. Cert. Filed in New York Co. Commission Expires March 30, 1964 Ask any woman who has had a family, and a home, and a husband, what that's like. It's the loneliest. It's a constant dagger in the memory, an eternal reminder of what has been so terribly lost. Put on top of that the awful emptiness of a person who for years has been working sixteen hours a day — as Lucy had on "I Love Lucy" — and now has nothing but time, time, time. It's a dragging hell. Thus at first, when the rehearsals of "Wildcat" started, she was pleased. But presently, with her sense of show business — which is almost as sharp as Desi's — she realized that it wasn't a good show, and she could not make it into a Broadway hit unless she personally galvanized it by an almost impossibly great performance. So she started to do that, and it very nearly killed her. She began working hours on end to sing better, dance better, make the laughs come louder and longer. She would collapse into bed, when she got home nights, and sleep as though drugged for hours. There even came a time, on the outof-town tryout, when she slept over the entire weekend, and her mother and her maid, both shouting and pulling at her, could barely arouse her. They did, in fact, drag her out of bed and started dressing her while she was still asleep. In a taxi, heading toward the theater, she was only halfawake. It wasn't until she was in the backstage hallway, heading toward her dressing room, that Lucille became completely aware of her surroundings. Leaning wearily against the dingy wall, she stared at her mother with tears rolling down her cheeks. "Mom, why am I doing this?" she sobbed. "I've got twelve million dollars. Why am I doing this?" She couldn't stop now That morning, there had been headlines in the New York papers about Desi Arnaz, in Hollywood, being up on a drunk-driving charge. There had been a bunch of girls with Desi. That was his fashion. He rushed around with girls in bunches. For Lucille, the show "Wildcat" had to go on. She was a complete triumph in it, though every critic said the show itself was terrible. By the sheer force of her skill and personality, Lucille made audiences roar with delight. Only her mother knew how she was exhausting herself every night. Only her mother knew how, every weekend, Lucy did things with her children, just the three of them, all making believe they had forgotten when they were a complete family. There were even a couple of weeks when Lucy had to be out of the show. She was sick. Her mother knew that she was really sick of her heart's freedom, her heart's emptiness. But one evening, Lucy's pal Paula Stewart asked her to go along with her and Paula's husband, Jack Carter, to a pizza parlor. A night-club comedian, Gary Morton, was at the same pizza parlor. Alone — but (Lucy knows now)