“Lucy, I’m home!” is one of the most recognizable lines from one of the greatest comedies in television history, delivered by Cuban musician and actor Desi Arnaz in his role of Ricky Ricardo in the 1950s sitcom I Love Lucy.
Today, Google is honoring his 102nd birthday, celebrating his life and legacy with a Google doodle.
Arnaz, most famous as comedic actress Lucille Ball’s real life and on-screen husband on I Love Lucy, is considered to be a Hollywood trailblazer, who pioneered the development of sitcoms with a multi-camera setup (which would later become a standard), using film and bringing in a live studio audience. He and Ball are also credited as the inventors of the syndicated rerun, which they introduced with the I Love Lucy series.
The sitcom at one point during its original run had 44 million viewers. Almost 70 years since its 1951 debut, I Love Lucy can still be seen around the world in over 40 countries and in dozens of languages, with an estimated 40 million daily viewers.
And to think that the couple had a hard time initially selling the show. Arnaz’s thick accent was a turn off for executives, who thought audiences wouldn’t buy that Ball could be Arnaz’s wife, although they were indeed married in real life.
The showbiz couple believed so much in the potential of their sitcom, that they produced a pilot with their own money, creating one of the most iconic and popular shows in television in the world. As part of their production deal, Arnaz and Ball retained all rights to the content, which enabled them to sell the series into syndication.
Arnaz and Ball founded the Desilu production company, through which they produced I Love Lucy, as well as a number of other shows, including the first season of Mission: Impossible, and co-produced The Untouchables and Season 1 of Star Trek.
Born in Cuba, Arnaz immigrated to the United States in 1933 as a 16-year old, determined to become a musician. He landed a role in a 1939 Broadway production that was made into a film, where he met Ball. The couple, who had two children – Lucie and Desi, Jr. – divorced in 1960. Diagnosed with lung cancer, Arnaz died in 1986.
“As his family, we have wonderful memories of him as a Dad and a Grandpa. At home, he was a great cook and entertainer. He loved to create laughter and filled our home with music and fun. He loved spending time with us in the pool and showing us each and every sunset. Wherever we went, he was the leader and we were his band. But he also had his personal struggles. Because of pains too deep to reach, he struggled with alcohol addiction later in life and a love of cigarillos, which eventually caused him to leave us way too soon. He lived life with enormous passion. He was incredibly generous. He was likable. He was fallible. He was human,” shared his children Lucie Arnaz Luckinbill and Desi Arnaz, Jr. “We are so proud that he is being recognized for his talent and his gifts of entertainment. Desiderio Alberto Arnaz III was a one-of-a-kind innovator and trailblazer, and we wish he could have lived to see this special acknowledgment of the lasting contributions he gave to the world.”
The Desi Arnaz Google doodle can be seen in Cuba, the United States, Argentina, Bulgaria, Chile, Israel and Peru. There’s also a comprehensive exhibit of the works of Desi Arnaz in Google Arts and Culture. For those who missed the Google Doodle on his birthday, it continues to live in the Google Doodle archive.
