The show was shot in front of a live audience that included 300 viewers. It was done from the first shoot until the last. Amazingly, there were a lot of “one take” scenes. Desi Arnaz later claimed that Lucille Ball works better if there are real people in her front watching her performance.
You can actually hear the lyrics to the theme song in the episode “Lucy’s Last Birthday.” It’s the only episode to do this!
Desi Arnaz is probably the best in the industry when we talk about being prepared for every single scene. His incredible memory allowed him to read and memorize every one of his lines in just one script reading. Staffers on the show say he never messed up his lines despite very little preparation for every single scene.
Do you remember the famous grape stomping scene with Lucy? Turns out Lucille was actually choking on the grape, but continued to film. Once the cameras were off, the crew realized she was actually choking and came to help. If you want to track down the scene, it was in the episode “Lucy’s Italian Movie.”
Lucille Ball was featured on the very first ever cover of TV Guide. However, she was not just featured on that one alone. In fact, she would go on to be featured on 39 covers throughout her career. That’s more TV Guide appearances than any other celebrity. Given the fact that she revolutionized TV sitcoms, she is most certainly deserving of this honor. With so much hype the show did something that no other series had ever done.
