A Guide To I Love Lucy
Desi Arnaz was born Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III in Santiago, Cuba, on March 2, 1917. He was born into a prominent Cuban family, the only child of Desiderio Arnaz II and his wife Dolores. Desi's family was rich. His father was the mayor of Santiago. And he also had an Uncle Alberto (his mother's brother) who had been one of the founders of the Bacardi Rum Company. The family had three ranches totaling one thousand acres, another home in the city, a private island in Santiago Bay, several cars, several boats, and several racehorses. Desi's father had planned him to become a lawyer.
But all that changed in 1933, when Desi was 16. On August 12, 1933, the first Balista revolution occurred in Cuba. Fulgencio Balsita rebelled against Machado, the leader of Cuba. The revolution succeeded, and all the officials associated with Machado, including Desi's father, were thrown in jail. The Arnaz family lost all of their money, property, and power. Desi's father was released mostly because the U.S. officials believed him to be neutral during the revolt.
The Arnazes fled to Miami, Florida. There, Desi went to Notre Dame High school. (One of his classmates was Sonny Capone, the son of Al Capone.) The family now had a life that was much different from what it had been before. They lived in a dingy rooming house. Desi had to take odd jobs to help pay the rent. And he had to learn English.
In 1936, when Arnaz was 19, he was introduced by a classmate to the Siboney Septet, a small chorus that performed at the Roney Plaza Hotel (one of the biggest resorts in Miami Beach). He auditioned for the septet, and was hired at $50 a week. Compared to his earlier jobs, that was a huge salary.
Later, their show was seen by Xavier Cugat, the world's leading Latin bandleader. (He was called the "king of Latin music".) Cugat saw the show, and liked Arnaz. He gave Arnaz an audition for his own band, and hired him as a singer. The job paid only $35 a week, but it was a job with a big-time band.
After a year with Cugat's band, Desi left to strike out on his own. He formed his own Latin band. He was now the leader of his own band and nightclub act. He started playing in clubs, and the band eventually made their way to New York City. In New York, Desi's dark good looks and talent for music made him a local star among the city's nightclubs.
While Desi was still in New York, he was seen by Broadway director George Abbott. Abbott was casting for a Broadway musical called "Too Many Girls", and he thought that Desi would good in one of the roles. Desi won the role of Manuelito, a college football player with fractured English. "Too Many Girls" debuted in 1939, and it was a hit. Desi stopped the show nightly with his conga drum playing. RKO Pictures decided to make a movie version of the musical. Several of the cast members of the stage version were taken to Hollywood to repeat their roles in the movie version. Desi was one of them. This would be his first motion picture.
But not all of the roles in the movie were played by the same actors from the stage version. One of the role that was recast was the female lead. Instead of the actress from the stage version, the role would be played by one of RKO's stock players, a leading actress from their B-movies. Her name was Lucille Ball.
Lucy and Desi had actually met each other while Lucy was filming an earlier picture, Dance, Girl, Dance (1940). But while they were making Too Many Girls (1940), Lucy and Desi fell in love. Later that year, they were married.
After they were married, Lucy continued her film career. Desi appeared in two or three other movies, but he really never tried to make a career out of it. Desi said "I didn't take too well with the movies, and they didn't take too well with me." He decided instead to focus on his nightclub act. His band kept touring over the country, while Lucy stayed in Hollywood making movies. And even when Desi was home, Lucy's filming schedule still kept them away from each other. Their enforced separations put their marriage on an erratic course. By 1942, they had been married for only a couple of years, and already they were headed for divorce.
In the late 1940s, things improved for the couple. Lucy's friend Bob Hope had a popular radio show, and its band was departing. Lucy got Desi's band to replace them. For two years, Desi's band was the regular band on Hope's program. That kept him at home. At the same time, Lucy starred in the radio series "My Favorite Husband". The show was a hit. CBS wanted to turn it into a TV series. But Lucy said that she wouldn't do it unless Desi co-starred. That led to I Love Lucy.
After Lucy, Desi divorced Lucille Ball and left Desilu Productions. Three years later, he married his second wife, Edith Mack Hirsh. They eventually moved to Del Mar, California, where Desi lived the rest of his life in semi-retirement.
A lifelong smoker, Arnaz died in Del Mar on December 2, 1986, from lung cancer. His body was cremated.
Lucille Ball Desi Arnaz Vivian Vance William Frawley Jerry Hausner
Elizabeth Patterson Doris Singleton Richard Keith Mary Jane Croft Frank Nelson