WEBVTT - FunStuff Playlist 09: How Did Desi Arnaz Change Television?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of I Heart Radio,

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<v Speaker 1>Hey brain Stuff. Lauren Bogelbaum Here. The nineteen fifties most

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<v Speaker 1>iconic television show may have centered around Loving Lucy, but

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<v Speaker 1>the famous Redhead's ex husband, entertainment industry pioneer Desi Ernez,

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<v Speaker 1>deserves a whole lot of love too. Born in Santiago,

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<v Speaker 1>Cuba in nineteen seventeen, Arnez immigrated to the United States

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<v Speaker 1>just before the Cuban Revolution and went on to change

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<v Speaker 1>the landscape of TV as we know it. Arnez started

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<v Speaker 1>life in a somewhat privileged position. His great great grandfather,

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<v Speaker 1>Don Manuel Arnez, made an early move to the US,

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<v Speaker 1>buying up tons of land all over Los Angeles, including

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<v Speaker 1>the area that would become Posh Beverly Hills. Arnez's father

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<v Speaker 1>was the mayor of Santiago, his mother was the daughter

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<v Speaker 1>of one of the Cardi Rum Company founders, and his

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<v Speaker 1>grandpa had accompanied Theodore Roosevelt and the Rough Riders at

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<v Speaker 1>the Battle of San Juan Hill. All in all, not

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<v Speaker 1>a bad family treat to sprout from, But in ninety four,

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<v Speaker 1>an uprising in Cuba landed Arnez's dad in jail. And

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<v Speaker 1>once he was released, the family fled to Miami, Florida,

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<v Speaker 1>rebuilding a much humbler life in the States. Two years later, Arnez,

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<v Speaker 1>then a musically inclined high schooler, started playing guitar and

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<v Speaker 1>singing in a small raumba band. That's when famous band

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<v Speaker 1>leader Xavier Kuga discovered him, swooped him into his band,

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<v Speaker 1>and Arnez found enough success to branch out on his own.

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<v Speaker 1>Ever heard of a congo line, Arnez is credited with

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<v Speaker 1>introducing that dance party staple to Miami crowds. Gaining more

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<v Speaker 1>and more popularity, Arnez and his band made the move

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<v Speaker 1>to New York, started on Broadway in a musical called

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<v Speaker 1>Too Many Girls, and then was asked to appear in

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<v Speaker 1>the film adaptation of the play. On the set of

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<v Speaker 1>that nineteen thirty nine movie, he met Lucille Ball. The

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<v Speaker 1>two fell in love, and six months later they eloped.

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<v Speaker 1>Though they briefly separated in nineteen forty four, the pair

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<v Speaker 1>reconciled and began dreaming up opportunities to collaborate again on screen.

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<v Speaker 1>The magic moment came in nineteen fifty when Arnez and

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<v Speaker 1>Ball pitched CBS on a sitcom that developed called I

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<v Speaker 1>Love Lucy. Network executives initially weren't sold on the Cuban

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<v Speaker 1>born actor's accent, so the couple used their own money

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<v Speaker 1>to produce a pilot and convinced the big bosses that

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<v Speaker 1>ar Nez was more than fit to play the fictional

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<v Speaker 1>Ricky Ricardo and that the show would be a hit.

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<v Speaker 1>Not only was it a hit, it was the hit.

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<v Speaker 1>I Love Lucy was America's most popular TV show for

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<v Speaker 1>four of its six prime time seasons between nineteen fifty

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<v Speaker 1>one and nineteen fifty seven, and viewers fell in love

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<v Speaker 1>with the couple's non traditional partnership that's now credited as

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<v Speaker 1>a groundbreaking example of multi ethnic relationships, progressive Latino American masculinity,

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<v Speaker 1>and gender dynamics. But Arnez wasn't just the on screen

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<v Speaker 1>straight man, two balls uproariously funny lead character. He was

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<v Speaker 1>also heavily involved in every aspect of production, from coordinating

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<v Speaker 1>taping in front of a live audience, a first for

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<v Speaker 1>televised sitcoms, to figuring out how to simultaneously operate three

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<v Speaker 1>cameras in real time. Filmmaker Penny Marshall once said, blessed

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<v Speaker 1>Desi Arnaz for creating the three camera you could find

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<v Speaker 1>out what's funny You're not With an audience, they're faster

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<v Speaker 1>than anything. Arnez and Ball formed the first ever independent

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<v Speaker 1>television pction company, Desilu, in preparation for the show, and

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<v Speaker 1>they convinced CBS to give them full ownership of their episodes.

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<v Speaker 1>When arne Has later sold them back to CBS. He

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<v Speaker 1>reportedly made millions and the show continues to live on

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<v Speaker 1>thanks to his business savvy But Desi Luke Productions wasn't

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<v Speaker 1>just responsible for I Love Lucy. The company also produced

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<v Speaker 1>major projects like The Untouchables, Mission Impossible, and Star Trek.

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<v Speaker 1>Although Arnez and Ball eventually divorced in nineteen sixty, they

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<v Speaker 1>remained close friends for the remainder of their lives. Arne

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<v Speaker 1>has passed away from cancer in six at the age

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<v Speaker 1>of sixty nine, but his legend indoors thanks to the

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<v Speaker 1>immeasurable impact he had on the entertainment industry, his loved ones,

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<v Speaker 1>and the communities that continue to draw inspiration from his

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<v Speaker 1>immense contributions. Today's episode was written by Michelle Konstantinovski and

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<v Speaker 1>produced by Tyler Clang for I Heeart media, and how

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<v Speaker 1>stuff Works. For more on this and lots of other topics,

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