Entertainment

Lucille Ball I Love Lucy Radko Christmas Ornaments

Every Christmas, we give friends and family members a complete copy of Lucille Ball’s recorded TV episodes. The list of recipients keeps growing, and we’re amazed about how often they contact us throughout the next year, sharing their favorite episodes! They laugh and chuckle as they explain how hilarious Lucy is! What a great way to stay in touch!

Since Valentines Day is around the corner, we thought it would be appropriate to showcase a few Christopher Radko "I Love Lucy" European glass ornaments.

Christopher Radko realized that Lucille Ball was a timeless performer whose works would gain popularity over time. His “I Love Lucy” series was created to commemorate over 40years since her TV show first aired!   Well, last year we celebrate the 60th anniversary! Needless to say, Radko’s “I Love Lucy” creations continue to gain in popularity and collectability!

Radko Candy Maker I Love Lucy 1997  

The Candy Maker – Chocolate Factory I Love Lucy Christopher Radko ornament is one of our favorites and captures a great comedic moment in television history!

The ornament depicts the famous scene from the 1952 episode, "Job Switching," where Lucy wraps chocolates in a candy factory. As her boss pressures her to wrap every candy without fail, the conveyor belt increases in speed, making it impossible for Lucy to keep up. Lucy hilariously does everything possible to make sure not one piece of candy gets by her unwrapped, including stuffing the chocolates in her mouth, hat and shirt. While in this predicament, her boss examines her work.

Here’s a You Tube of her Chocolate Factory performance. Take a few minutes and enjoy a great laugh!

Radko Grape Stomping I Love Lucy 

Accordingly, the Christopher Radko “Grape Stomping” ornament captures a mischievous and adventurous Lucy who stomps purple grapes with a bright smile on her face. She wears a glittered pearl scarf with green accents on her head, a pearl shirt, and green pants. By the time Lucy's grape stomping experience is over, she's in a fight with a native Italian grape worker whom Lucy's managed to insult. With grapes flying everywhere, the two go at it in the stomping barrel!

Here’s our favorite grape stomper episode quote, made immortal when Lucy tells Ricky about her role in the “Grapes” movie and Fred’s response:

• LUCY : Gee, did you hear that, honey? It's going to be called "Bitter Grapes." I wonder what part they want me for.
• FRED : Oh, you're probably going to be one of the bunch.

We will again showcase other great I Love Lucy Christopher Radko collectible ornaments that capture classic moments in the series.  Visit our webstore often to see all the collectible I Love Lucy ornaments that we have in stock, since these ornaments sell quickly! 

I Love Lucy -  Lucille Ball

The year 2011 marks the 60th anniversary of the commencement of the “I Love Lucy” television series in 1951 and the 100th anniversary of Lucille Ball’s birth in 1911.

We warmly pay tribute to her legacy with some of the finest Christopher Radko and Polonaise “I Love Lucy” European glass ornament collectibles!

Lucille Ball became immortalized as “Lucy Ricardo” in the “I Love Lucy” television program, which has been watched by more people than any other TV series to this day. Not only is she known for her character’s zany impersonations and rubber-faced antics, but she was also a Broadway star, a serious actress, and a shrewd businesswoman.

Early Life

Lucille Desiree Ball was born on August 6, 1911. Following her father’s death in 1915, she lived with her mother, DeDe Ball, and grandparents in Celoron near Jamestown, New York.

DeDe Ball served as a constant inspiration in Lucy’s life. Lucy’s laugh mimics her mother’s laughter, which frequently reverberated throughout the home. DeDe strongly encouraged Lucy to pursue an entertainment career and enrolled her daughter in the John Murray Anderson/Robert Milton School of Theater and Dance in New York, the same school where Bette Davis, “The First Lady of the American Screen,” studied. Unfortunately, Lucy failed and the school told DeDe it was a waste of money for her daughter to continue.
Lucy went back to the stage after a brief return to Celoron and worked as a model. At age 17, she suddenly fell ill with rheumatic fever and DeDe cared for her for three years, finally nursing her back to heath.

A Serious Entertainer

Lucy received her first recognition when taking a “pie in the face” as a walk-on replacement in “Broadway Thru a Keyhole,” a Busby Berkeley production. After watching her, the renowned Berkeley demanded, “Get the girl’s name. That’s the one who will make it.”

Subsequently, Lucille Ball gained tremendous skill by working with comic greats such as the Marx Brothers, Buster Keaton, Laurel and Hardy, and the Three Stooges.  She received critical praise for her performance in “Stage Door” in 1937 and in “The Big Street” in 1942. She also met Desi Arnaz, a Cuban-born entertainer whom she later married in 1940. But from Berkeley’s first recognition of her talent, it took another fifteen years for her to gain stardom after the "I Love Lucy" show aired on TV.

Rise to Fame

In order to prove to CBS that their talent was television-worthy, Lucy and Desi performed as a duo on the road, during which time they formed the jointly owned Desilu production company. Seeing their success, CBS premiered the "I Love Lucy" show in 1951. Within six months, the show was the number one rated program on TV.  It later became the first to claim more than ten million viewers. Filmed live before a studio audience that importantly helped Lucy gauge her comedic affect, it also revolutionized television production through the use of three cameras.

In the series, Lucille Ball was portrayed as a daffy, red-haired woman who strives to become a star. Her aspirations involved both her bandleader husband and her in some of the strangest and funniest situations imaginable. Along with Lucy and Desi, the Mertzes also became household names. Vivian Vance as Ethel and William Frawley as Fred were long-term neighbors who invariably tried to resolve or added to Lucy’s ensuing predicaments. The actors and series won numerous Emmy awards.

A Shrewd Businesswoman

Lucy once said, “Ability is of little account without opportunity.” She largely created her own opportunity, first by working with Desi who proved to have good business acumen, and later, on her own.

Desilu took a major risk by requiring the series to be filmed, instead of using the commonly used inferior kinescopes technique.  Film allowed the episodes to be preserved but was extremely expensive.  In fact, CBS required that Balll and Arnez discount their wages to help both pay for the added cost.  However, never having experienced the "re-run" phenomenon, CBS gladly allowed Desilu to own the rights of the film after the episodes were aired. The use of film proved to be an investment that handsomely paid off and ultimately ensured the legacy of the series and of Lucile Ball. Lucy was also able to select Desilu productions, such as “The Untouchables,” “Mission Impossible,” and Star Trek,” with strong syndication and re-run potentials that would offset the cost of production. 

After Lucy and Desi divorced in 1960, Lucy bought out the Desilu corporation for $3 million, becoming the first woman to own a big studio, and later sold it for $18 million.

A Lasting Legacy

In real life, Lucille Ball was surprisingly quite a different person from the “I Love Lucy” personality. In describing herself, she’s stated, “I never thought I was funny. I don't think funny … What I am is brave”. Accordingly, she was mostly a serious, practical thinker. She not only persevered and overcame various adversities, but pioneered comedic roles that her fans still cherish today, such as her wonderful Hobo clown performances with Red Skelton. In general, she worked to perfect her entertainment craft -- her performances appeared effortless and endlessly funny and otherwise superbly acted.

Today, millions of fans continue to watch “I Love Lucy” reruns, and it remains one of the top 30 series of all times.

So here’s to you Lucille Ball, from the Team at SundryShop. Happy Anniversary, “I Love Lucy!” As our great I Love Lucy collectibles attest, we certainly do love you!