- Born
- Died
- Birth nameDesiderio Alberto Arnaz y De Acha III
- Height1.77 m
- Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III was born in Santiago, Cuba on March 2, 1917. His father was the mayor of Santiago. The 1933 revolution led by Fulgencio Batista had landed his father in jail and stripped the family of its wealth, property and power. His father was released because of the intercession of U.S. officials who believed him to be neutral during the revolt. The family fled to Miami, Florida. One of Desi's first jobs in America consisted of cleaning canary cages. However, after forming his own small band of musicians, he was hired by Xavier Cugat, the "king" of Latin music.
Desi soon left Cugat, formed his own Latin band, and literally launched the conga craze in America. He was cast in the Broadway play "Too Many Girls" and then brought to Hollywood to make the film version of the play. It was on the set of Too Many Girls (1940) that he and Lucille Ball met. They soon married and approximately 10 years later formed Desilu Productions and began the I Love Lucy (1951) shows. Desi and Lucille had two children, Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz Jr.. At the end of the I Love Lucy (1951) run, which included The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour (1957), the two divorced. Desi later wrote an autobiography entitled "A Book." In 1986 he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He died on December 2, 1986 at age 69.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Wynne Nafus <samantha@csb.cambridge.ne.us> and Tom Barrister
- SpousesEdith Eyre Skimming Mack Hirsch(March 2, 1963 - March 23, 1985) (her death)Lucille Ball(November 30, 1940 - May 16, 1961) (divorced, 2 children)
- Children
- ParentsDesiderio Alberto Arnaz IIDolores de Acha
- RelativesHaley Arnaz(Grandchild)Julia Arnaz(Grandchild)Joe Luckinbill(Grandchild)Simon Luckinbill(Grandchild)Katharine Luckinbill(Grandchild)Desiree Anzalone(Great Grandchild)
- Distinctive laugh
- Slicked back black hair
- Cuban accent
- "Lucy, I'm home", his catchphrase from I Love Lucy (1951)
- Exasperated reactions
- Invented many techniques that are now taken for granted in sitcoms, including the use of several cameras to film the performance, preceding performances with a warm-up act, performing before a live audience, and the rerunning of old episodes.
- Lucille Ball was the last person he talked to before his death, on what would have been their 46th wedding anniversary.
- In 1950, along with wife Lucille Ball, in an effort to find a way to work together, formed a production company with $5,000 of their own money, naming it 'Desilu' which is what they had named their ranch in Chatsworth, California. He remained president of the company until selling his interest to his ex-wife in 1962 for $3 million.
- For many years during their marriage, Desi and Lucille Ball hid the fact that she was six years older than he by splitting the difference in their ages. She (born in 1911) said she was born in 1914 and he (born in 1917) also said he was born in 1914.
- In 1957, in an effort to expand Desilu, he sold CBS his and Lucille Ball's rights to 179 I Love Lucy (1951) 30-minute shows for $4,500,000. They also sold their rights to December Bride (1954) for $500,000 and CBS had exclusive rights to their public appearances for 10 years for an additional $1,000,000. With these profits, Desilu purchased RKO Studios for $6,125,000.
- I Love Lucy (1951) was never just a title!
- [after wife Lucille Ball was accused of being a Communist] The only thing red about her is her hair, and that isn't even real.
- If you don't know what to do, don't do anything.
- Failure is the most terrible thing in our business. When we fail, the whole world knows about it.
- On Lucille Ball: I loved her very much and, in my own and perhaps peculiar way, I will always love her. "
- La roulotte du plaisir (1954) - $125,000 + $150,000 (profits bonus)
- I Love Lucy (1999) - $2,000 /episode + 50% of the profits for the first 39 episodes as well as full ownership to negatives of all future shows (1951-52)
- Cuban Pete (1946) - $10,000
- Bataan (1946) - $650 /week
- La marine triomphe (1944) - $10,000
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