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• I Love Lucy is an American situation comedy television show starring Lucille Ball in the titular role with Desi Arnaz as her husband, bandleader Ricky Ricardo. The show ran from 1951 to 1957 on the CBS television network.

• Fast Facts

  1. Debuted: October 15, 1951
  2. Aired: 1951 - 1957
  3. Original network: CBS
  4. Total episodes: 193
  5. Based on radio comedy: My Favorite Husband
  6. Radio show based on: Mr. and Mrs. Cugat by Isabel Scott Rorick
  7. Syndication rights: Hallmark Channel
  8. 1. Lucille Ball
  9. 1. Desi Arnaz
  10. 1. Vivian Vance
  11. 1. William Frawley
  12. Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were married in real-life
  13. Shot in front of a live audience

• The Mother of All Sitcoms

  I Love Lucy was the first situation comedy filmed in Los Angeles instead of New York, where most were filmed at that time. It was also the first filmed on 35mm film with three cameras and a live studio audience -- now the standard for situation comedies. While television pregnancies have become a sweeps-week standard, in 1951 Lucille Ball was actually pregnant with her first child, Lucie Arnaz, a fact that was not incorporated into the show. When Ball was pregnant with Desi Arnaz, Jr., the pregnancy and and the arrival of "little Ricky" added to the dynamic of the on-screen husband and wife's antics.

• Related Pages on Mahalo

  Lucille Ball | Desi Arnaz | William Frawley | The Honeymooners | Father Knows Best | CBS | Hallmark Channel | Edie Adams Dead

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