Thursday, August 04, 2011

Lucille Ball at 100 and I Love Lucy at 60



I own these two outfits on loan to the Hollywood Museum
 
A new exhibition at the Hollywood Museum celebrates two milestones in the life of America’s Queen of Comedy: Lucille Ball’s 100th birthday on Aug. 6 and the 60th anniversary of “I Love Lucy,” her classic TV collaboration with husband Desi Arnaz, which CBS first aired on Oct. 15, 1951.

“Lucille Ball at 100 & ‘I Love Lucy’ at 60,” presented in partnership with CBS , will be on display from Aug. 3 to Nov. 30, showcasing memorabilia saluting the careers and romance of Hollywood’s most famous lovebirds.

“The Hollywood Museum in the Historic Max Factor Building is the perfect venue for this exhibit because it's where Lucille Ball went for makeup and hair treatments from Mr. Factor,” says Museum President Donelle Dadigan. “It's where Lucy first became a redhead. She had the longest-running contract of all of Mr. Factor's celebrity clients and he frequently used her image in his PR and ad promotions. The Redheads Only Room has been carefully preserved in her memory today. The museum’s historic connection to Lucy is the reason the U.S. Postal Service chose to unveil its official Lucille Ball commemorative stamp here in 2001.”

The exhibit is presented in partnership with CBS DVD and Paramount Home Video, which just released a new DVD set “The Best of ‘I Love Lucy’” featuring 14 classic episodes that have been digitally restored. CBS describes the set, “Television's all-time queen of comedy is at her candy-wrapping, grape-stomping, Vitameatavegamin-pushing best in this timeless collection of I Love Lucy episodes. From Hollywood to Europe, from ballet to burlesque to the birth of Little Ricky... it’s all here in this hilarious 2-disc set.” The 14 episodes: “The Ballet,” “The Freezer,” “Lucy Does a TV Commercial” (Vitameatavegamin), “Job Switching” (The Chocolate Factory), “Lucy Is Enceinte” (Lucy reveals pregnancy), “Lucy Goes to the Hospital,” “L.A. at Last,” “Lucy Gets in Pictures,” “Harpo Marx,” “The Great Train Robbery,” “Bon Voyage,” “Paris at Last,” “Lucy Gets a Paris Gown,” “Lucy’s Italian Movie” (Grape Stomping).

The opening of the exhibition will be celebrated at a private party to be held tonight with Lucie Arnaz in attendance. On Lucille Ball's 100th birthday, Aug. 6,, the museum will stage a Lucy look-alike contest plus a contest to declare the best birthday cake.

“Lucille Ball at 100 & ‘I Love Lucy’ at 60” Exhibit includes:
· “Redheads Only Room" where Max Factor worked on Lucy’s famous look, featuring their original signed contract.
· Awards, Certificates, Statuettes/Trophies, Plaques - including the special tribute to Lucy at the 33rd Annual Emmys (1981) and a congratulatory letter from President Ronald Reagan
· The famous first national TV Guide (April 3, 1953) featuring Desi, Jr. on the cover as the $50 million baby
· Items showcasing the genius of Desi – including original editing equipment which allowed for the technical advancement of TV production (3 cameras, live audience, on film)
· A huge photography collection spanning Lucy’s life including her childhood, modelling career, films, radio and TV with some never-before-seen candid personal shots
· Lucy's autographed leg cast from her 1972 ski accident at Snowmass, CO
· Personal annotated copies of Lucy’s scripts from TV shows and films
· Desi's original recordings + sheet music
· Montage of original photos from Lucy and Desi’s homes and apartments including Palm Springs, NYC and Beverly Hills

Costumes Include:
· Elizabethan gown worn by Lucy opposite guest Tallulah Bankhead (“The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour,” 1957).
· Artist smock worn by Lucy opposite guest Danny Thomas ("Here's Lucy," 1973).
· Flapper dance costume worn by Lucie Arnaz in a specialty flapper dance number ("Here's Lucy," 1972).
· Bold hound’s-tooth wool pant suit worn by Lucy during the filming of her last film “Mame” (1974). Unfortunately neither the costume nor the scene made it to the final cut of the film.
· Ivory and lavender beaded gown worn by Lucy in her first MGM film "Du Barry Was a Lady" (1943) opposite co-stars Red Skelton and Gene Kelly.
· Iconic trench coat worn by Lucy and featured in ads for the classic film noir “Lured” (1947).

Lucy's Scripts Include:
·“I Love Lucy” – Season 6, Episode 6: “Off to Florida” (Nov. 12, 1956)
·“The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour” – Episode 2: “The Celebrity Next Door” (Dec. 3, 1957)
·“The Lucy Show” – Season 1, Episode 1: “Lucy Waits Up for Chris” (Oct. 1, 1962); Season 1, Episode 5: “Lucy Buys a Sheep” (Oct. 29, 1962)
·“Here's Lucy” – Season 2, Episode 10: “Lucy the Cement Worker” (Nov. 24, 1969); Season 3, Episode 1: “Lucy Meets the Burtons” (Sept. 14,1970); Season 5, Episode 16: “Lucy Goes on Her Last Blind Date” (Jan. 8, 1973)
·“Life with Lucy” – Season 1, Episode 1: “One Good Grandparent Deserves Another” (Sept. 20, 1986)

For more details, please go to http://yousend.it/mZTcDY
WHERE: The Hollywood Museum, 1660 N. Highland Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90028
WHEN: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday
EXHIBIT INFO: Aug. 4, 2011 to Dec. 31, 2011
PRICE: $15 for adults; $12 for seniors and children under 12.
INFO: (323) 464-7776 www.thehollywoodmuseum.com

Here's a video of the News Broadcast that night of the opening Gala. What's neat about this video is that 44 seconds into it, you see a shot of the two articles of clothing I lent to the museum for this exhibit. They are the Aqua Chiffon Caftan with Feather-Boa Sleeves, the 3-Piece Lilac Pant Suit and the Deep Purple High-Heeled shoes. Pictured at the top of this article.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

just dropping by to say hey