Lucie Arnaz
Encyclopedia
Lucie Désirée Arnaz is an American actress, singer, dancer and producer
. She is the daughter of actors Lucille Ball
and Desi Arnaz
, and is the sister of actor Desi Arnaz, Jr.
.
, and attended the Roman Catholic Immaculate Heart High School
.
and on Lucille Ball's second TV series The Lucy Show
, Arnaz made her first acting appearance in a continuing role in the series Here's Lucy
from 1968 to 1974. She played Kim Carter, the daughter of the eponymous Lucy—who was played by Arnaz's real-life mother, Lucille Ball
.
Arnaz branched out into television roles independent of her family from the mid-1970s. In 1975, she played infamous murder victim Elizabeth Short in a production of Who is the Black Dahlia?, while in 1978, she appeared in an episode of Fantasy Island
as a woman desperately trying to save her marriage. She has continued to make appearances in a number of popular television series over the years, including Murder, She Wrote
, Marcus Welby M.D., Sons and Daughters, and Law & Order
. Arnaz also briefly had a series of her own, The Lucie Arnaz Show, in 1985.
She has also had a lengthy career in musical theatre. In the summer of 1978, she played the title role in "Annie Get Your Gun
" at the Jones Beach Theatre on Long island, NY. This was the first production at Jones Beach Theatre after the death of longtime producer Guy Lombardo
. She made her Broadway debut in 1979 in the musical They're Playing Our Song
. Arnaz won the Theatre World Award
and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award
for Best Actress in a Musical for her portray of Sonia Walsk in the show. In 1986, she won the Sarah Siddons Award
for her tour with Tommy Tune
in the international company of the musical My One and Only
. She has numerous other theater and musical credits both in the United States
and abroad, including roles in Seesaw
, Annie Get Your Gun
, Whose Life Is It Anyway?
, The Guardsman
, The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
, Sonia Flew, The Witches of Eastwick
, Vanities
, Neil Simon's Lost in Yonkers
, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
, and Terence McNally's Master Class
.
Arnaz has also made some feature film appearances, the most prominent of which was 1980's The Jazz Singer
, in which she co-starred with singer Neil Diamond
and renowned actor Laurence Olivier
. She earned a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe nomination for her work in the film.
She won an Emmy Award
in 1993 for her documentary Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie.
in Jamestown, New York
. She resigned over a dispute with the Executive Director over the future direction of the Center.
In October, 2008, Arnaz and long-time family friend, Hollywood columnist and Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne participated in a tribute to Arnaz's mother Lucille Ball at The Paley Center For Media in New York City. The program, Lucie and Lucy: Lucie Arnaz Shares Treasures From The Family Video Collection, included a discussion between Osborne and Arnaz about Ball, and also focused on Ball's last long-running series, Here's Lucy
(which was celebrating its 40th anniversary) as well as several of Ball's television specials and guest appearances during 1970s, which Arnaz had recently donated to The Paley Center for Media.
In the summer of 2010, Arnaz performed in (along with Raul Esparza
and Valarie Pettiford
) and directed "Babalu: A Celebration of the Music of Desi Arnaz and his Orchestra". There was a Miami, Florida performance in July 2010.
On July 17, 2010, Heritage Auction Galleries
planned to auction
off some items that belonged to Lucille Ball. Arnaz has gone to court to block the auction of love letter
s from Ball to her second husband Gary Morton
, as well as photos and awards, which Arnaz claims are hers. Morton's third wife Susan McAllister Morton has sued Arnaz for the right to conduct the auction.
A judge agreed with Arnaz but charged too high a bond, so the auction went on but the auction house agreed to return lifetime achievement awards to Arnaz.
(June 22, 1980 – present).
She and actor-writer Luckinbill have three children together—Simon, Joseph and Katharine—while Luckinbill has two from his previous marriage, Nicholas and Benjamin.
She shares a birthday with her uncle, her mother's brother Fred Ball
.
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
. She is the daughter of actors Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
and Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
, and is the sister of actor Desi Arnaz, Jr.
Desi Arnaz, Jr.
Desi Arnaz, Jr. , is an American actor and musician and the son of entertainers Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz.-Early life:...
.
Early life
Lucie Arnaz was born and raised in Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, and attended the Roman Catholic Immaculate Heart High School
Immaculate Heart High School (Los Angeles)
Immaculate Heart High School is a Catholic, all-girl, college preparatory school located in the Los Feliz neighborhood in Los Angeles, California, at the intersection of Franklin Avenue and Western Avenue. There are 200 students in the middle school and 521 in the high school . It is located in...
.
Career
Having had one walk-on part in her parents' television series I Love LucyI Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
and on Lucille Ball's second TV series The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS from 1962 until 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to I Love Lucy. A significant change in cast and premise for the 1965-66 season divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only Gale Gordon, who joined the program...
, Arnaz made her first acting appearance in a continuing role in the series Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
from 1968 to 1974. She played Kim Carter, the daughter of the eponymous Lucy—who was played by Arnaz's real-life mother, Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
.
Arnaz branched out into television roles independent of her family from the mid-1970s. In 1975, she played infamous murder victim Elizabeth Short in a production of Who is the Black Dahlia?, while in 1978, she appeared in an episode of Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island
Fantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:...
as a woman desperately trying to save her marriage. She has continued to make appearances in a number of popular television series over the years, including Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote
Murder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
, Marcus Welby M.D., Sons and Daughters, and Law & Order
Law & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
. Arnaz also briefly had a series of her own, The Lucie Arnaz Show, in 1985.
She has also had a lengthy career in musical theatre. In the summer of 1978, she played the title role in "Annie Get Your Gun
Annie Get Your Gun (musical)
Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Herbert Fields and his sister Dorothy Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley , who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.The 1946 Broadway production...
" at the Jones Beach Theatre on Long island, NY. This was the first production at Jones Beach Theatre after the death of longtime producer Guy Lombardo
Guy Lombardo
Gaetano Alberto "Guy" Lombardo was a Canadian-American bandleader and violinist.Forming "The Royal Canadians" in 1924 with his brothers Carmen, Lebert, and Victor and other musicians from his hometown, Lombardo led the group to international success, billing themselves as creating "The Sweetest...
. She made her Broadway debut in 1979 in the musical They're Playing Our Song
They're Playing Our Song
They're Playing Our Song is a musical with a book by Neil Simon, lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager, and music by Marvin Hamlisch.In a story based on the real-life relationship of Hamlisch and Sager, a wisecracking composer finds a new, offbeat lyricist, but initially the match is not one made in heaven...
. Arnaz won the Theatre World Award
Theatre World Award
The Theatre World Award, first awarded for the 1945-46 season, is an American honor presented annually to actors and actresses in recognition of an outstanding New York City stage debut performance, either on Broadway or off-Broadway.-History:...
and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award
Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award
The Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards is an annual awards program presented by the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle . Established in 1969, the awards recognize excellence in theatre in the Greater Los Angeles Area....
for Best Actress in a Musical for her portray of Sonia Walsk in the show. In 1986, she won the Sarah Siddons Award
Sarah Siddons Award
The Sarah Siddons Society is an American non-profit organization founded in 1952 by prominent Chicago theatre patrons with the goal of promoting excellence in the theatre. The Society presents the Sarah Siddons Award annually to an actor for an outstanding performance in a Chicago theatre production...
for her tour with Tommy Tune
Tommy Tune
Thomas James "Tommy" Tune is an American actor, dancer, singer, theatre director, producer, and choreographer. Over the course of his career, he has won nine Tony Awards and the National Medal of Arts.-Early years:...
in the international company of the musical My One and Only
My One and Only
My One and Only is a musical with a book by Peter Stone and Timothy S. Mayer and music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin.Written to incorporate classic Gershwin tunes from Funny Face and other popular shows into one evening of entertainment, the plot, set in 1927 America, revolves around Capt...
. She has numerous other theater and musical credits both in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and abroad, including roles in Seesaw
Seesaw
A seesaw is a long, narrow board pivoted in the middle so that, as one end goes up, the other goes down.-Mechanics:Mechanically a seesaw is a lever and fulcrum....
, Annie Get Your Gun
Annie Get Your Gun (musical)
Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Herbert Fields and his sister Dorothy Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley , who was a sharpshooter from Ohio, and her husband, Frank Butler.The 1946 Broadway production...
, Whose Life Is It Anyway?
Whose Life is it Anyway?
Whose Life Is It Anyway? is a play by Brian Clark adapted from his 1972 television play of the same title. The play premiered at the Mermaid Theatre in London's West End in 1978 starring Tom Conti as Ken.-Plot:...
, The Guardsman
The Guardsman
The Guardsman is a 1931 film based on the play Testőr by Ferenc Molnár. It stars Alfred Lunt, Lynn Fontanne, Roland Young and ZaSu Pitts...
, The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True was a 1995 musical performance based on the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz . The book and score of the film were performed on stage at Lincoln Center to benefit the Children's Defense Fund...
, Sonia Flew, The Witches of Eastwick
The Witches of Eastwick (musical)
The Witches of Eastwick is a 2000 musical based on the novel of the same name by John Updike. It was adapted by John Dempsey and Dana P. Rowe , directed by Eric Schaeffer, and produced by Cameron Mackintosh....
, Vanities
Vanities
Vanities is a comedy-drama stage production written by Jack Heifner. The story centers on the lives and friendship of three Texas cheerleaders starting from high school.-Production history:Vanities had one of the longest Off-Broadway runs on record...
, Neil Simon's Lost in Yonkers
Lost in Yonkers
Lost in Yonkers is a 1991 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Neil Simon. After eleven previews, the Broadway production, produced by Emanuel Azenberg and directed by Gene Saks, opened on February 21, 1991 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, where it ran for 780 performances...
, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (musical)
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is a Broadway musical, with music and lyrics by David Yazbek and a book by Jeffrey Lane; it is based on the film of the same name...
, and Terence McNally's Master Class
Master Class
Master Class is a play by Terrence McNally, with incidental music by Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, and Vincenzo Bellini.The play originally was staged by the Philadelphia Theatre Company and the Mark Taper Forum. After twelve previews, the Broadway production, directed by Leonard Foglia, opened...
.
Arnaz has also made some feature film appearances, the most prominent of which was 1980's The Jazz Singer
The Jazz Singer (1980 film)
The Jazz Singer is a 1980 American musical remake of the 1927 classic The Jazz Singer. It starred Neil Diamond, Sir Laurence Olivier, and Lucie Arnaz and was co-directed by Richard Fleischer and Sidney J...
, in which she co-starred with singer Neil Diamond
Neil Diamond
Neil Leslie Diamond is an American singer-songwriter with a career spanning over five decades from the 1960s until the present....
and renowned actor Laurence Olivier
Laurence Olivier
Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier, OM was an English actor, director, and producer. He was one of the most famous and revered actors of the 20th century. He married three times, to fellow actors Jill Esmond, Vivien Leigh, and Joan Plowright...
. She earned a Best Supporting Actress Golden Globe nomination for her work in the film.
She won an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
in 1993 for her documentary Lucy and Desi: A Home Movie.
Activism
From about 2002 to 2007, Arnaz was the President of the Board of Directors of the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz CenterLucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center
The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center is a museum in Jamestown, New York, dedicated to the lives and careers of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. The museum officially opened in 1996 "to preserve and celebrate the legacy of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and enrich the world through the healing powers of love...
in Jamestown, New York
Jamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The population was 31,146 at the 2010 census.The City of Jamestown is adjacent to Town of Ellicott and is at the southern tip of Chautauqua Lake...
. She resigned over a dispute with the Executive Director over the future direction of the Center.
In October, 2008, Arnaz and long-time family friend, Hollywood columnist and Turner Classic Movies host Robert Osborne participated in a tribute to Arnaz's mother Lucille Ball at The Paley Center For Media in New York City. The program, Lucie and Lucy: Lucie Arnaz Shares Treasures From The Family Video Collection, included a discussion between Osborne and Arnaz about Ball, and also focused on Ball's last long-running series, Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
(which was celebrating its 40th anniversary) as well as several of Ball's television specials and guest appearances during 1970s, which Arnaz had recently donated to The Paley Center for Media.
In the summer of 2010, Arnaz performed in (along with Raul Esparza
Raúl Esparza
Raúl Eduardo Esparza is an American stage actor, singer, and voice artist noted for his award winning performances in Broadway shows...
and Valarie Pettiford
Valarie Pettiford
Valarie Pettiford is an American stage and television actress, dancer, and jazz singer. She received a Tony nomination for her role in the broadway production Fosse. She is also known for her role as "Big Dee Dee" Thorne on the UPN sitcom Half & Half.-Stage:Pettiford began her career as a dancer...
) and directed "Babalu: A Celebration of the Music of Desi Arnaz and his Orchestra". There was a Miami, Florida performance in July 2010.
On July 17, 2010, Heritage Auction Galleries
Heritage Auction Galleries
Heritage Auction Galleries is the world's largest collectibles auctioneer and the third largest auction house, with over $700 million in annual sales and 600,000 online bidder-members...
planned to auction
Auction
An auction is a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bid, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder...
off some items that belonged to Lucille Ball. Arnaz has gone to court to block the auction of love letter
Love letter
A love letter is a romantic way to express feelings of love in written form. Delivered by hand, by mail or romantically left in a secret location, the letter may be anything from a short and simple message of love to a lengthy explanation of feelings...
s from Ball to her second husband Gary Morton
Gary Morton
Gary Morton was the second husband of Lucille Ball. He was a stand-up comedian, whose primary venues were the hotels and resorts of the Borscht Belt in upstate New York.-Relationship with Lucille Ball:...
, as well as photos and awards, which Arnaz claims are hers. Morton's third wife Susan McAllister Morton has sued Arnaz for the right to conduct the auction.
A judge agreed with Arnaz but charged too high a bond, so the auction went on but the auction house agreed to return lifetime achievement awards to Arnaz.
Personal life
She has been twice married, to Phil Vandervort (July 17, 1971 – 1977) and Laurence LuckinbillLaurence Luckinbill
Laurence George Luckinbill is an American actor.-Life and career:Luckinbill was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas, the son of Agnes and Laurence Benedict Luckinbill. He graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1956 and The Catholic University of America in 1958.He starred in the 1976 Broadway play...
(June 22, 1980 – present).
She and actor-writer Luckinbill have three children together—Simon, Joseph and Katharine—while Luckinbill has two from his previous marriage, Nicholas and Benjamin.
She shares a birthday with her uncle, her mother's brother Fred Ball
Fred Ball
Frederick Henry Ball was an American movie studio executive, actor, brother of comedienne Lucille Ball.-Early life:...
.
Stage
- They're Playing Our SongThey're Playing Our SongThey're Playing Our Song is a musical with a book by Neil Simon, lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager, and music by Marvin Hamlisch.In a story based on the real-life relationship of Hamlisch and Sager, a wisecracking composer finds a new, offbeat lyricist, but initially the match is not one made in heaven...
- My One and OnlyMy One and OnlyMy One and Only is a musical with a book by Peter Stone and Timothy S. Mayer and music and lyrics by George and Ira Gershwin.Written to incorporate classic Gershwin tunes from Funny Face and other popular shows into one evening of entertainment, the plot, set in 1927 America, revolves around Capt...
- Lost in YonkersLost in YonkersLost in Yonkers is a 1991 Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Neil Simon. After eleven previews, the Broadway production, produced by Emanuel Azenberg and directed by Gene Saks, opened on February 21, 1991 at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, where it ran for 780 performances...
- SeesawSeesaw (musical)Seesaw is a musical with a book by Michael Bennett, music by Cy Coleman, and lyrics by Dorothy Fields.Based on the William Gibson play Two for the Seesaw, the plot focuses on a brief affair between Jerry Ryan, a young lawyer from Nebraska, and Gittel Mosca, a kooky, streetwise dancer from the Bronx...
- VanitiesVanitiesVanities is a comedy-drama stage production written by Jack Heifner. The story centers on the lives and friendship of three Texas cheerleaders starting from high school.-Production history:Vanities had one of the longest Off-Broadway runs on record...
- Master ClassMaster ClassMaster Class is a play by Terrence McNally, with incidental music by Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini, and Vincenzo Bellini.The play originally was staged by the Philadelphia Theatre Company and the Mark Taper Forum. After twelve previews, the Broadway production, directed by Leonard Foglia, opened...
- The Witches of EastwickThe Witches of Eastwick (musical)The Witches of Eastwick is a 2000 musical based on the novel of the same name by John Updike. It was adapted by John Dempsey and Dana P. Rowe , directed by Eric Schaeffer, and produced by Cameron Mackintosh....
- Dirty Rotten ScoundrelsDirty Rotten Scoundrels (musical)Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is a Broadway musical, with music and lyrics by David Yazbek and a book by Jeffrey Lane; it is based on the film of the same name...
Filmography
- Billy Jack Goes to Washington (1977)
- A Different Approach (1978) (short subject)
- The Jazz SingerThe Jazz Singer (1980 film)The Jazz Singer is a 1980 American musical remake of the 1927 classic The Jazz Singer. It starred Neil Diamond, Sir Laurence Olivier, and Lucie Arnaz and was co-directed by Richard Fleischer and Sidney J...
(1980) - Second ThoughtsSecond Thoughts (1983 film)Second Thoughts is a 1983 American drama film directed by Lawrence Turman and starring Lucie Arnaz, Craig Wasson, Ken Howard and Anne Schedeen.-Cast:* Lucie Arnaz - Amy* Craig Wasson - Will* Ken Howard - John Michael* Anne Schedeen - Janis...
(1983) - Down to YouDown to YouDown to You is a 2000 romantic comedy film about losing a first love. It was directed by Kris Isacsson. The main characters are Alfred 'Al' Connelly Imogen and Cyrus...
(2000) - Wild Seven (2006)
- The Pack (2007)
Television
- Here's LucyHere's LucyHere's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
(1968–1974) - Who Is the Black Dahlia? (1975)
- Marcus Welby, M.D.Marcus Welby, M.D.Marcus Welby, M.D. is an American medical drama television program that aired on ABC from September 23, 1969, to July 29, 1976. It starred Robert Young as a family practitioner with a kind bedside manner, and was produced by David Victor and David J. O'Connell...
(1975) - Death ScreamDeath ScreamDeath Scream is a made-for-television film first aired in the USA on September 26, 1975. The film is based on an actual event concerning the real-life account of "a young woman whose murder was witnessed by fifteen of her neighbors who did nothing to help and refused to cooperate with the...
(1975) - Fantasy IslandFantasy IslandFantasy Island is the title of two separate but related American fantasy television series, both originally airing on the ABC television network.-Original series:...
(1978) - The Mating Season (1980)
- Washington Mistress (1982)
- The Lucie Arnaz Show (1985)
- Murder, She WroteMurder, She WroteMurder, She Wrote is an American television mystery series starring Angela Lansbury as mystery writer and amateur detective Jessica Fletcher. The series aired for 12 seasons from 1984 to 1996 on the CBS network, with 264 episodes transmitted. It was followed by four TV films and a spin-off series,...
(1988) - Who Gets the Friends? (1988)
- Sons and Daughters (1991)
- Abduction of Innocence: A Moment of Truth Movie (1996)
- Law & OrderLaw & OrderLaw & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
– episode "Bitch", as Jackie Scott, a cosmetics mogul (2003)