Jan 5, 2016
No podcast on women in television is complete without a long hard look at the life and career of Lucille Ball. Host Cynthia Bemis Abrams found that even with a lot of research, Lucy left this world as a bit of a mystery. There's just not much written. Ball seemed to have kept wisdom to herself (or at least kept it closely held). Cynthia navigates Ball's public appearances and statements gleaned from available sources, finding points where Ball's humility and pride are profound. Kennedy Center Honors and then-Pres. Ronald Reagan celebrated Ball, but it's important to understand the contexts of Ball's run in with the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) and Communist blacklisting. There's the marriage and divorce from the Desi Arnaz and how it resulted in a settlement that included the studio. From talk shows to famous quotes, Cynthia walks a detailed history that makes Lucille Ball a solid feminist.—Cynthia Bemis Abrams
Great resource: Stefan Kanfer's Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life & Comic Art of Lucille Ball.
* Two TV interview clips (Johnny Carson Tonight Show 1969 and a Barbara Walters Special 1977) retrieved from YouTube contain background noise that we were unable to filter out.