From Publishers Weekly
Forty-two years after I Love Lucy premiered on TV, this first dual biography of Lucille Ball (1911-1989) and Desi Arnaz (1917-1986) painstakingly details their business and personal dealings. The famed redhead and her Cuban husband, who met as young Hollywood contract players, pioneered TV situation comedy by starring in their own series and founding Desilu Productions, which was responsible for such other hit shows as Star Trek and Mission Impossible . Colleagues, friends and relatives--particularly daughter Lucie Arnaz--contribute to this telling of the team's successes and failures. Lucille's obsessive involvements with her co-stars and children and Desi's alcoholism and womanizing come to stand out in sharp contrast to the zany TV antics of Lucy and Desi, who remain beloved by the viewing public worldwide. The book will disappoint fans, however, due to excessive attention paid to the finances of Desilu Productions. Sanders is the author of Rainbow's End: The Judy Garland Show ; Gilbert is an editor for Daily Variety. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--Ce texte provient d'une édition qui n'est plus publiée ou qui est non diponible.
From Library Journal
Claiming to be the first dual biography "supported by family members and close friends," Desilu is actually something more. Here are the familiar stories of the stormy Ball-Arnaz marriage, their phenomenal success with I Love Lucy , and their inevitable parting. The real value of this book lies in its detailed charting of the fortunes of the couple's TV studio, which launched The Untouchables , Mission Impossible , and Star Trek , as well as a host of forgettable programs. The authors' something-for-everyone approach--interweaving dishy tales of Lucy's insecurity-fed tantrums and Desi's drinking with yearly accounting of the studio's profits--doesn't always work, but this is still a valuable book about the inner workings of television. Recommended for most public libraries. Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 10/1/92.
- Thomas Wiener, formerly with "American Film"Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--Ce texte provient d'une édition qui n'est plus publiée ou qui est non diponible.