Showing posts with label GIF. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GIF. Show all posts
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
26 April, Lucille Ball's Death Anniversary
I'm following Singapore's time zone, and in less than an hour's time, it will be 26 April, 2012. A year ago, this day wasn't of any significance to me. Things changed after my American Pluralism instructor introduced the sitcom I Love Lucy to me. I was so intrigued by the star of the sitcom that I researched more about her.
Today, I'm proud to proclaim that I'm probably the only Singaporean who knows this much about her. Sadly, Singaporeans do not appreciate the golden age of Hollywood, black and white movies, old Hollywood songs and so forth. Honestly, I've had a hard time obtaining Lucille Ball's books, television shows, movies and souvenirs, and the need to ship these precious items has cost me lots more. I'm a full-time student and work part-time, and I'm proud to say that I've worked hard for each penny to purchase her memorabilia. Nevertheless, I find these resources worth the money, because Lucille Ball has taught me so much, has inspired me so much, has touched me so much that I'm never the same person again.
Now, I've lived for 24 years, and never had any affinity or immense liking towards any Hollywood movie star or singer, dead or alive. I've never, ever bought biographies or souvenirs of celebrities. And sure, I've admired Angelina Jolie for her beauty and sex appeal and Sandra Bullock for her comedic talent, but I've never been deeply touched by them. Even being dead for 23 years, Lucille Ball managed to touch a part of me that no actor could- her dedication towards her career, her sincere appreciation for her fans, her unadulterated love for Desi Arnaz, and her liberal mentality but knowing what to do in good taste- all inspired me greatly.
Just a few days ago, I found an interview Lucille did for People magazine in 180. I read it, and boy, was I enlightened!
I'm sharing this with you, and I hope that you'll take away something uplifting from it, just like I did:
Do you feel disloyal leaving CBS after 28 years?
Not really. CBS didn't want my expertise to develop new half-hour comedy material and NBC did. How to do half-hour comedy innovatively is something I do pride myself on. We invented it with I Love Lucy.
Would you like to star in another series?
I wouldn't think of it—not since my Vivian's gone. [Co-star Vivian Vance died last year.] We enjoyed it so much we didn't want to go home at night.
What do you like now on TV?
I watch PBS, talk shows, game shows and documentaries. But I don't sit around watching during the daytime.
What about sitcoms?
Rarely. I've seen Mork & Mindy a couple times. Robin Williams amazes me. And I love Gary Coleman. He puts me away. He puts everybody away.
Do you catch many movies?
I just saw three this week in my screening room, but that's the most I've seen in two years. Kramer vs. Kramer, Starting Over and Breaking Out, uh, Breaking Away. If I had the time I'd go see Alan Alda three times a day in anything. God, he's talented.
When did you realize that comedy was your forte?
In television in the '50s. I sure as hell didn't know what I was doing when I started. I had too wide a variety of parts to know who or what I was. TV started for me just as a means of keeping my husband Desi off the road. He'd been on tour with his band since he got out of the Army, and we were in our 11th year of marriage and wanted to have children.
But didn't comedy help you even when you were a Goldwyn Girl?
I guess after about six months out here in the '30s I realized there was a place for me. Eddie Cantor and Sam Goldwyn found that a lot of the really beautiful girls didn't want to do some of the things I did—put on mud packs and scream and run around and fall into pools. I said I'd love to do the scene with the crocodile. He didn't have teeth, but he could sure gum you to death. I didn't mind getting messed up. That's how I got into physical comedy.
Who are your favorite current comediennes?
Carol Burnett—she heads my list, absolutely. That girl can do anything. Nancy Walker too. Goldie Hawn, I love her. Dean Martin and Ann Sothern make me laugh more in person than in pictures. Bette Midler's style is so much broader than mine, but I enjoy her. She shocks me. Knowing how honest and adorable and vulnerable she is, I'm shocked that she goes overboard that much in concert.
How about Lily Tomlin?
I don't care for her type of whatever-she's-doing. I find myself studying Lily rather than enjoying her.
Are you sympathetic with the women's movement?
They can use my name for equal rights, but I don't get out there and raise hell because I've been so liberated I have nothing to squawk about.
What about contemporary morality?
How about contemporary immorality? We're all hooked on the results of the permissiveness of the '60s. We've got a few more years to go, but our kids are doing a swingaround. They're going almost Victorian.
Did you ever have a problem with drugs or drinking?
My idea of getting high was a Coca-Cola and an aspirin. The first time I was around marijuana I wondered why someone was passing me this cigarette he had just smoked. I've never tried it. After a few drinks I'm either asleep or sick. I'm allergic to morphine, Percodan, codeine—I can't take any of those things because they work in reverse. The eyes won't close.
How do you feel about gay rights?
It's perfectly all right with me. Some of the most gifted people I've ever met or read about are homosexual. How can you knock it?
Have you read any of the biographies that have been written about you?
They're all unauthorized. I read the first two pages of one, and it was so shocking. About me leaving Jamestown, N.Y. at 14 and becoming a hooker. They didn't say hooker, but they intimated it. I thought, "Christ, I gotta see where they get this." They never substantiated anything they said.
Will you write your own book?
I don't think you should write a book until you tell the absolute truth. You can't do that until you're 85, and I don't want to live that long. I've always prided myself on knowing when to get off and I hope it works out that way.
What achievement are you proudest of?
When you have the first baby at 39, that's got to be the biggest. Any woman would say the birth of her children was her greatest achievement, unless she was Madame Curie.
What was your darkest moment?
When I got a divorce, and disappointed millions of people by doing so.
(I teared when I read this.)
When you married Desi, didn't his playboy reputation bother you?
No, it intrigued me. I was amazed at myself saying yes after knowing him only six months. Everybody gave it about a year and a half. I gave it six weeks. I thought it was the most daring thing I'd ever done, and it certainly was.
Do you get along with Desi Sr. now?
Always have, we didn't even get two lawyers for the divorce.
Do you see him socially?
Sure. He's married to a very nice girl. He's been remarried 17 years.
Why has your marriage to Gary Morton lasted?
Because Gary takes things in moderation. He doesn't think the grass is greener elsewhere, he's not a workaholic or a playaholic and he appreciates his home. Desi was a very generous man who built many houses but never lived in any home. On a scale of 1 to 10, I rate my marriage to Gary a 12.
Desi Jr. also has a reputation as a ladies' man. Does that concern you?
Well, of course, he had to emulate Dad there for a while. I just hope he doesn't continue, because that's what I had to put up with. That's not nice. It's very demeaning. Anyway, I'm sure his new wife, Linda Purl, wouldn't put up with it for as long as I did.
What is Linda like?
A porcelain doll, as sweet inside, apparently, as she is outside—and organized. If there's anyone in the world who isn't organized, it's my son. I hope she rubs off on him, and he doesn't rub off on her.
How is your daughter Lucie doing?
Thank God she got to do one of Neil Simon's plays [They're Playing Our Song] and now she's working with great talents like Neil Diamond and Laurence Olivier in her new movie, The Jazz Singer. But socially, I couldn't get Lucie to go out with anyone from the time she was 15 to 19. Then she married a very nice boy whom we were very grateful to for a couple of years for being a great babysitter. Then she got a divorce and started dating for the first time in her life. A late bloomer.
Do you worry about the kids?
Not stay-up-all-night worry. I'm very proud and I thank God out loud for their health and the fact that they like to work and mix with people. They're making things happen for themselves—and that's half the battle.
Source: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20075802,00.html
Today, I'm proud to proclaim that I'm probably the only Singaporean who knows this much about her. Sadly, Singaporeans do not appreciate the golden age of Hollywood, black and white movies, old Hollywood songs and so forth. Honestly, I've had a hard time obtaining Lucille Ball's books, television shows, movies and souvenirs, and the need to ship these precious items has cost me lots more. I'm a full-time student and work part-time, and I'm proud to say that I've worked hard for each penny to purchase her memorabilia. Nevertheless, I find these resources worth the money, because Lucille Ball has taught me so much, has inspired me so much, has touched me so much that I'm never the same person again.
Now, I've lived for 24 years, and never had any affinity or immense liking towards any Hollywood movie star or singer, dead or alive. I've never, ever bought biographies or souvenirs of celebrities. And sure, I've admired Angelina Jolie for her beauty and sex appeal and Sandra Bullock for her comedic talent, but I've never been deeply touched by them. Even being dead for 23 years, Lucille Ball managed to touch a part of me that no actor could- her dedication towards her career, her sincere appreciation for her fans, her unadulterated love for Desi Arnaz, and her liberal mentality but knowing what to do in good taste- all inspired me greatly.
Just a few days ago, I found an interview Lucille did for People magazine in 180. I read it, and boy, was I enlightened!
I'm sharing this with you, and I hope that you'll take away something uplifting from it, just like I did:
Ask Her Anything About Desi Sr., Divorce, Drugs, Gay Rights—Lucy Ball Hasn't Become Bashful at 68
In October 1951 CBS introduced a half-hour comedy called I Love Lucy, and within a year it had the highest rating of any show before or since. The former Goldwyn Girl and B-movie queen in the title role had become an American institution, and at 68, Lucille Ball remains one. Her stormy 20-year marriage to co-star Desi Arnaz ended in divorce in 1960, and a year later she married comedian Gary Morton while taking charge of huge Desilu Productions. In 1967 Lucy sold Desilu to Gulf & Western for $17 million, rode out a movie bomb Mame, and endured the rocky maturing of her daughter, Lucie, and son, Desi Jr. The last incarnation of her series ended in 1974, but the original is still in reruns after two decades and ranks as the most-watched sitcom in TV history. Lucy required a staff of 20 to handle her residuals and business affairs even before 1979, when she succumbed to the personal wooing of NBC President Fred Silverman (at a six-hour dinner) and defected from CBS. This Friday she is scheduled to bow on her new network in a special, Lucy Moves to NBC. She will also serve as a consultant to the network on new comedy properties. Lucy talked with PEOPLE's Peter Lester about comedy, stars and subjects on which she has always been outspoken, like modern morality and her own family.Do you feel disloyal leaving CBS after 28 years?
Not really. CBS didn't want my expertise to develop new half-hour comedy material and NBC did. How to do half-hour comedy innovatively is something I do pride myself on. We invented it with I Love Lucy.
Would you like to star in another series?
I wouldn't think of it—not since my Vivian's gone. [Co-star Vivian Vance died last year.] We enjoyed it so much we didn't want to go home at night.
What do you like now on TV?
I watch PBS, talk shows, game shows and documentaries. But I don't sit around watching during the daytime.
What about sitcoms?
Rarely. I've seen Mork & Mindy a couple times. Robin Williams amazes me. And I love Gary Coleman. He puts me away. He puts everybody away.
Do you catch many movies?
I just saw three this week in my screening room, but that's the most I've seen in two years. Kramer vs. Kramer, Starting Over and Breaking Out, uh, Breaking Away. If I had the time I'd go see Alan Alda three times a day in anything. God, he's talented.
When did you realize that comedy was your forte?
In television in the '50s. I sure as hell didn't know what I was doing when I started. I had too wide a variety of parts to know who or what I was. TV started for me just as a means of keeping my husband Desi off the road. He'd been on tour with his band since he got out of the Army, and we were in our 11th year of marriage and wanted to have children.
But didn't comedy help you even when you were a Goldwyn Girl?
I guess after about six months out here in the '30s I realized there was a place for me. Eddie Cantor and Sam Goldwyn found that a lot of the really beautiful girls didn't want to do some of the things I did—put on mud packs and scream and run around and fall into pools. I said I'd love to do the scene with the crocodile. He didn't have teeth, but he could sure gum you to death. I didn't mind getting messed up. That's how I got into physical comedy.
Who are your favorite current comediennes?
Carol Burnett—she heads my list, absolutely. That girl can do anything. Nancy Walker too. Goldie Hawn, I love her. Dean Martin and Ann Sothern make me laugh more in person than in pictures. Bette Midler's style is so much broader than mine, but I enjoy her. She shocks me. Knowing how honest and adorable and vulnerable she is, I'm shocked that she goes overboard that much in concert.
How about Lily Tomlin?
I don't care for her type of whatever-she's-doing. I find myself studying Lily rather than enjoying her.
Are you sympathetic with the women's movement?
They can use my name for equal rights, but I don't get out there and raise hell because I've been so liberated I have nothing to squawk about.
What about contemporary morality?
How about contemporary immorality? We're all hooked on the results of the permissiveness of the '60s. We've got a few more years to go, but our kids are doing a swingaround. They're going almost Victorian.
Did you ever have a problem with drugs or drinking?
My idea of getting high was a Coca-Cola and an aspirin. The first time I was around marijuana I wondered why someone was passing me this cigarette he had just smoked. I've never tried it. After a few drinks I'm either asleep or sick. I'm allergic to morphine, Percodan, codeine—I can't take any of those things because they work in reverse. The eyes won't close.
How do you feel about gay rights?
It's perfectly all right with me. Some of the most gifted people I've ever met or read about are homosexual. How can you knock it?
Have you read any of the biographies that have been written about you?
They're all unauthorized. I read the first two pages of one, and it was so shocking. About me leaving Jamestown, N.Y. at 14 and becoming a hooker. They didn't say hooker, but they intimated it. I thought, "Christ, I gotta see where they get this." They never substantiated anything they said.
Will you write your own book?
I don't think you should write a book until you tell the absolute truth. You can't do that until you're 85, and I don't want to live that long. I've always prided myself on knowing when to get off and I hope it works out that way.
What achievement are you proudest of?
When you have the first baby at 39, that's got to be the biggest. Any woman would say the birth of her children was her greatest achievement, unless she was Madame Curie.
What was your darkest moment?
When I got a divorce, and disappointed millions of people by doing so.
(I teared when I read this.)
When you married Desi, didn't his playboy reputation bother you?
No, it intrigued me. I was amazed at myself saying yes after knowing him only six months. Everybody gave it about a year and a half. I gave it six weeks. I thought it was the most daring thing I'd ever done, and it certainly was.
Do you get along with Desi Sr. now?
Always have, we didn't even get two lawyers for the divorce.
Do you see him socially?
Sure. He's married to a very nice girl. He's been remarried 17 years.
Why has your marriage to Gary Morton lasted?
Because Gary takes things in moderation. He doesn't think the grass is greener elsewhere, he's not a workaholic or a playaholic and he appreciates his home. Desi was a very generous man who built many houses but never lived in any home. On a scale of 1 to 10, I rate my marriage to Gary a 12.
Desi Jr. also has a reputation as a ladies' man. Does that concern you?
Well, of course, he had to emulate Dad there for a while. I just hope he doesn't continue, because that's what I had to put up with. That's not nice. It's very demeaning. Anyway, I'm sure his new wife, Linda Purl, wouldn't put up with it for as long as I did.
What is Linda like?
A porcelain doll, as sweet inside, apparently, as she is outside—and organized. If there's anyone in the world who isn't organized, it's my son. I hope she rubs off on him, and he doesn't rub off on her.
How is your daughter Lucie doing?
Thank God she got to do one of Neil Simon's plays [They're Playing Our Song] and now she's working with great talents like Neil Diamond and Laurence Olivier in her new movie, The Jazz Singer. But socially, I couldn't get Lucie to go out with anyone from the time she was 15 to 19. Then she married a very nice boy whom we were very grateful to for a couple of years for being a great babysitter. Then she got a divorce and started dating for the first time in her life. A late bloomer.
Do you worry about the kids?
Not stay-up-all-night worry. I'm very proud and I thank God out loud for their health and the fact that they like to work and mix with people. They're making things happen for themselves—and that's half the battle.
Source: http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20075802,00.html
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Lucy and Ricky in Love
Season 6: Lucy Hates to Leave
Desi and Lucy's love still shone through as Ricky and Lucy.
Sunday, April 8, 2012
Savoir Faire and Savoir Vivre
And that lovely dimple is to die for!
She looked like royalty, like a dame who exuded refinement and quality.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Gif
Here's a gift to Lucille Ball's fans! A .gif image of her rare color pictures.
May more people get to know about this awesome woman.
May her spirit live forever!
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Du Barry was a Lady
Lucille Ball was photographed so breathtakingly beautifully!
I love it when her hair's long!
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Destined
Look at those kids dressing up in costumes and fooling around at home. It's destined that these two wonderful people would costar in a show one day. They just didn't know when.
I'm so glad that Americans in the 1940s and 1950s accepted them as a couple. Otherwise, there wouldn't be I Love Lucy, there wouldn't be laughter that cheer people up, even till today!
Happy Home
Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball really had high hopes about their marriage in the first few years. They loved everything about their home in Chatsworth that they had built together. Furniture and bric-a-bracs were inexpensive but meaningful. Lucille, with the help from her mother, had made white ruffled curtains and knitted sofa covers. Families and friends would always visit them and the couple would always hold fun parties.
There is a distinct difference I see in Lucy between the first 10 years and the last 10 years of her marriage. During the first 10 years, there was something childlike about her, she had blind faith in everything and believed that all would work out if one was diligent. She gave her unrestrained love to her husband, her family, friends and her pets. She even loved her plants and farm animals.
I guess she built a wall around herself from the hurt and humiliation Desi had given her with his indiscretions. He never had the intention of hurting her, and he loved her very deeply. But we cannot deny that he had hurt her, so much that a part of her died and lost connection with the rest of the world. She was disillusioned, afraid of letting herself go, and I don't blame her.
I guess she built a wall around herself from the hurt and humiliation Desi had given her with his indiscretions. He never had the intention of hurting her, and he loved her very deeply. But we cannot deny that he had hurt her, so much that a part of her died and lost connection with the rest of the world. She was disillusioned, afraid of letting herself go, and I don't blame her.
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
My First Attempt
I'm so proud of myself to have succeed in making my own .gif image!
She's so cute!
Those home movies are really precious; they portray Lucy and Desi having such naive high hopes on their marriage, before Lucy had built a wall around herself from Desi's indiscretions. Desi really had no intention to hurt her, but as the number of years the marriage stretched into, you could see that Lucy was disillusioned. She became the tough woman nearing and after the divorce.
Looking forward to making more of these!
Those home movies are really precious; they portray Lucy and Desi having such naive high hopes on their marriage, before Lucy had built a wall around herself from Desi's indiscretions. Desi really had no intention to hurt her, but as the number of years the marriage stretched into, you could see that Lucy was disillusioned. She became the tough woman nearing and after the divorce.
Looking forward to making more of these!
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