Lucille Ball and Friends Through the Years in 30 Photos
There aren't too many entertainers where the word "legend" is applicable, but it certainly is when it comes to leading lady Lucille Ball, and there's no doubt many of her celebrity friends would agree. Her career spanned 60 years, from 1929 to 1989 and included everything from being a model to acting on Broadway, dozens of movie roles, radio, no less than four television series (including, naturally, the iconic I Love Lucy) and a wide variety of accolades, among them five Primetime Emmy Awards and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The connection that Lucille and husband Desi Arnaz made with other entertainers over the decades is extraordinary, and what follows is a kind of scrapbook of photos of Lucille Ball and her celebrity friends through the years; a journey that actually began before she met Desi when she was 28 and he was 23 (yes, she was 5 years older than him).
1. Broderick Crawford (1930s)
You'd be hard-pressed to find much info on it, but in the 1930s, Lucille and actor Broderick Crawford apparently announced their engagement, though things never went far beyond that.
2. William Cagney (1933)
Lucille Ball and actor William Cagney, brother of James Cagney in 1933 at famous restaurant the Brown Derby.
3. Ginger Rogers (1937)
Ginger Rogers is grabbed by Lucille in a scene from the film Stage Door, 1937. Decades later, Ginger would dance with Lucille and daughter Lucie Arnaz on an episode of Here's Lucy.
4. The Marx Brothers (1938)
Lucille and the Marx Brothers in 1938's Room Service. Harpo, of course, would play opposite Lucy Ricardo in the great "mirror" image sequence in an episode of I Love Lucy.
5. Desi Arnaz (1940 to 1986)
They couldn't stay married, but Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz loved each other until the day they died, the two of them connecting from the day they met in 1940. They eloped shortly thereafter, eventually changing television history with I Love Lucy and the creation of Desilu Studios (whose legacy also includes the original Star Trek and Mission: Impossible) and gave the world children Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr. Their spirits continue to touch one generation after another.
6. Henry Fonda (1942)
Lucille and Henry Fonda in the 1942 film The Big Street, which fans would be surprised to learn was heavily dramatic.
7. Misc. Stars, 1940s
At a Bond Sale Rally in Philadelphia's Convention Hall, movie stars who took part met Richard Rosen, an 18-year-old Philadelphian, who sold $35,000 worth of bonds in two months from his stretcher by telephone. Greeting him are (left to right); Harpo Marx, James Cagney, Mickey Rooney, and Lucille.
8. Anna Lee and Clark Gable (1945)
Lucille Ball with Anna Lee and Clark Gable while rehearsing for a CBS Screen Guild program, circa 1945.
9. Red Skelton (1946)
Lucille and comedian Red Skelton dining together at a Hollywood event, circa 1946. Lucille would appear on The Red Skelton Show over the years.
10. Orson Welles (1947)
Actor and Citizen Kane filmmaker Orson Welles with Lucille Ball in 1947, enjoying a night out on the town.
11. William Holden (1949)
William Holden watches Lucille at the typewriter in a scene from the film Miss Grant Takes Richmond, 1949. He would go on to appear in one of the Hollywood-based episodes of I Love Lucy.
12. Bob Hope (1949)
Bob Hope and Lucille Ball in the 1949 film Sorrowful Jones. Not only would they be life long friends, but they'd co-star in several additional films as well.
13. Eddie Albert (1950)
Eddie Albert and Lucille in 1950's The Fuller Brush Girl. Albert, of course, would go on to star in the classic 1960s television series Green Acres.
Eddie Albert: 16 Farm Livin' Facts About the Green Acres Star
14. Vivian Vance (1951 to 1979)
Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance in I Love Lucy in the 1950s and Here's Lucy in the late 1960s. Now there are friendships and there are friendships, and while there may have been a few bumps along the way, Lucille and Vivian were as tight as could be right up until the latter's death in 1979. They not only worked together on I Love Lucy, but did so for a time on the series The Lucy Show, with Vivian also making guest appearances on Here's Lucy and making her final appearance on the 1977 television special, Lucy Calls the President.
15. William Frawley (1951)
There's no question that I Love Lucy gave Lucille another dear friend in the form of William Frawley, who, of course, portrayed Fred Mertz on the show. The four main actors on that show created a bond that remained for the rest of their lives. Frawley passed away in 1966.
16. Dean Martin (1953)
Lucille Ball and Dean Martin at a surprise party for Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz' 13th wedding anniversary in 1953.
17. Rock Hudson (1955)
Rock Hudson with Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in 1955. Hudson, of course, would enjoy a very successful film career, in particular those famous "sex comedies" with Doris Day.
18. Frank Sinatra (1962)
Lucille Ball and Frank Sinatra in 1962. The two were among the biggest stars in the world at the time.
19. Jerry Lewis (1962)
Lucille Ball with Jerry Lewis at the opening of his Los Angeles restaurant, February 1962.
20. 11th Anniversary of the Sands Hotel (1963)
In 1963, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Danny Thomas, Lucille Ball and Frank Sinatra stand around a cake for the 11th anniversary of the Sands Hotel in Las Vegas. On the extreme left is Sands President Jack Entratter.
21. Mitzi Gaynor and Ethel Merman (1964)
Wedding of Ethel Merman and Ernie Borgnine in 1964 (they were divorced the same year). Left to right are Mitzi Gaynor, Ethel Merman and Lucille Ball.
22. Frankie Avalon (1967): Lucille Ball and Her Friends
Lucille Ball with Frankie Avalon in the 1967 episode of The Lucy Show, "Lucy and the Starmaker." Frankie, of course, had enjoyed great success at the time not only as a singer, but with co-star Annette Funicello in those "Beach Blanket" movies.
23. Jackie Gleason (1968)
In the 1968 episode of Here's Lucy titled "Lucy Visits Jack Benny," Jackie Gleason appears as Ralph Kramden from The Honeymooners.
24. Henry Fonda (1968): Lucille Ball and Her Friends
Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda reunited on screen 26 years later in 1968's Yours, Mine and Ours, the big screen comedy about a blended family that seemed to anticipate television's The Brady Bunch.
25. Don Adams and Bill Cosby (1968)
Three top individual winners at the Emmy awards in 1968 are (L-R): Don Adams (comedy), Lucille Ball (Comedy) and Bill Cosby (Drama series). All three received their awards for outstanding performance in a series leading role.
26. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton (1970): Lucille Ball and Her Friends
Elizabeth Taylor, Lucille Ball and Richard Burton in 1970. The duo were among many celebrities that appeared on Here's Lucy.
27. Jack Lemmon (1973)
Jack Lemmon and Lucille Ball during a Friars Club benefit for Milton Berle at the Beverly Hills Hilton, October 1973.
28. George Burns (1975): Lucille Ball and Her Friends
Two comedy legends side-by-side: Lucille Ball and George Burns in 1975. The latter, of course, exploded on the comedy scene as part of the comedy team with his wife, Gracie Allen, Burns & Allen, stars of vaudeville, radio and television.
29. Carol Burnett (1975)
Lucille Ball and Carol Burnett, who enjoyed decades of friendship, pose together at a tribute to actor and comedian Danny Thomas at the Century Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles, California in 1975.
MUST-READ: The Carol Burnett Show Cast Then and Now — A Celebration of Laughter and Talent
30. Liza Minnelli (1987): Lucille Ball and Her Friends
Lucille Ball and Liza Minnelli attend the Friars Club of California's 8th Annual Lifetime Achievement Award Salute to Minnelli, held at the Century Plaza Hotel in Los Angeles, California, 5th April 1987.
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