When I Love Lucy started to air on CBS in 1951, no one assumed that it would become the most watched show in America. The fascinating television sitcom won the hearts of many. For the next six years, it remained extremely popular among the audience and continued making money long after it ended. As with every long-running show, there are plenty of interesting little bits that you may or may not be aware of. We have collected an entire list of such details for you to know more about what is considered to be one of the most influential sitcoms ever. Let's start!

Click to reveal all the secrets behind the scenes of the most legendary comedy in TV History

The Pregnancy

This groundbreaking show hides some pretty interesting facts. When the show's star, Lucille Ball, got pregnant, they had to make some adjustments and the producer decided to write her pregnancy into the show. The TV executives had hired a minister, a priest, and a rabbi to sit and observe during each episode. Wondering why? Their task was to determine if there was something inappropriate that the audience may not like.

She Had to Fight for Her Husband

Lucille and Desi's love story was not only romantic but it inspired a popular sitcom that would go on for six seasons. They basically got money for playing themselves on television! However, when CBS decided to turn the radio show into a television sitcom, they didn't like the idea of hiring her real-life husband as her on-screen spouse because of his broken English and his accent. They didn't think that American viewers would accept him as her husband due to his foreign origin.

It Wasn't a Perfect Story

On screen, they seemed like the perfect couple who undoubtedly loved each other. In real life, the story was not without troubles. The couple had personal issues before they were cast for the show together. Desi was reportedly a womanizer prone to affairs and drinking and Lucy was struggling to keep the marriage whole. No one would have guessed that this charming, humorous couple that America loved was fighting to keep it together in real life.

The End of an Era

Desi's alcohol and cheating problems eventually got Lucy to file for divorce. She could no longer tolerate all that and so the famous couple separated. Desi reportedly felt a lot of pressure while Lucy could not deal with all the infidelities and the drinking any further. The two ended up getting a divorce in 1960 after 20 years of marriage but remained close after that since they both still loved each other dearly.

The Production Company

Prior to starting the show, Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball had a business plan. They formed a production company called Desilu which was the first independent company of its kind. Desi also managed to convince CBS to produce the show on film, which was not usual at the time. What's more is that this clever businessman also managed to get ownership of all episodes. A smart move, no doubt about that.

The Near-death Experience

The famous grape fight scene in the episode titled "Lucy's Italian Movie" turned out to be a near-death experience for Lucy. The woman who was to wrestle with Lucy did not speak any English so she didn't understand the part where this was to be a fake fight. The woman held Lucy's head under the grape mush until she nearly drowned. No one was aware of this until the end of the episode. She could have died in front of the camera without anyone realizing.

The Face of TV Guide

TV sitcom star Lucille Ball probably didn't even dream of becoming that famous (and rich, by the way) with dollars pouring into her bank account and offers flying around. Do you know how many times the actress appeared on the cover of the TV Guide including her initial appearance in 1953? Thirty-nine! That's right, she appeared on the cover more times than any other person. If that isn't an achievement, what is? 

The Forbidden Words

The '50s were a time of many taboos and a lot of things were simply not considered appropriate, such as the word "pregnancy" (believe it or not). It was thought that the word sounded vulgar and the audience may not appreciate that. So when Lucille got pregnant (to the shock and panic of the producers), the word "expecting" was used instead. This may come as a shock now, but many things were taboo then.

Number One

Not many shows can manage to maintain the spark all the way to the end. I Love Lucy remained captivating through all six seasons, making it America's favorite sitcom. It doesn't come as a surprise then that when the show ended in 1957, it finished as number one in the Nielsen ratings. How about that? By the time the show approached the end, Lucy's and Desi's salaries surely increased significantly.

The Candy Factory Lady

The episode in which Lucy works at the candy factory is among the funniest ones on the show. But let's put the scene aside and focus on the actress for a moment. The woman who worked at the factory next to Lucy and Ethel wasn't an actress at all! Amanda Milligan was an actual worker who was cast on a show she had never seen before. When asked if she liked acting, she reportedly said, "I've never been so bored in my life". But we bet she liked the paycheck (provided she received one, of course).

The Three-camera Format

The popular show about the adorable couple was revolutionary in the field of television technology. At the time the show aired, most TV shows were made using a single-camera format. However, for I Love Lucy, a three-camera format was used. It was the first time in the history of television that this format was utilized. This was due to the fact that the creator of the show wanted a live audience for the show so they had to be a little creative.

The "Uh-Oh" Lady

If you have watched the show, then you probably remember that in every slightly critical situation involving Lucy, a woman could be heard with an "uh-oh" sound. Have you ever wondered who that was? It was no other than Lucille Ball's somewhat famous mother who was always present for the taping. A more shocking fact is that years later, Dede Ball's "uh-oh" could be heard in other sitcoms that she had never seen.

It Wasn't Much in the Beginning

When the popular show started in 1951, the cast's earnings were not that high at all. Desi and Lucy together reportedly received only $4,000 per episode. Although that doesn't sound as much now, it surely wasn't a negligible sum back in the day if you think about it. However, Lucy and Desi were supposed to get $5,000 but agreed to a lower salary in return for the complete rights to the show.

Lucille Was Blonde

We think of Lucy as a redhead and we get to love her like that. But brace yourselves for this next interesting fact about Lucille. She was actually blonde when she first came to Hollywood but she was advised to dye her hair red because Metro-Goldwyn-Meyer thought it would look better in the Technicolor features. That means she wasn't a natural redhead or a natural blonde for that matter. It was all for a purpose.

Not So Young

Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz portrayed the roles of a young couple, Lucy and Ricky, starting their married life together. However, the fact is that they weren't so young when the show started. In reality, Lucile was 41 years old when the first episode aired and the couple's wedding took place about ten years earlier, in 1940. Well, they certainly fooled us, didn't they? Maybe not all of us, but close.

The Babies

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that almost everyone in the United States watched the episode when Lucy was giving birth to her son, little Ricky Ricardo Jr. A fun fact is that Lucille and Desi's real-life baby boy shares the same birthday with little Ricky Jr. That's right! Lucille and her character, Lucy, gave birth on the same day. This was the second child for Lucy and Desi who already had a daughter.

Desi Was Not So Tall

Everyone lies on their resume, right? As it turns out, Desi did too because he was clearly shorter than what he indicated in his resume. Because of that, he had lifts in his shoes during the filming of the show because he had to appear taller. When she wore heels, Lucy was taller than her husband. An additional cushion was added to his loveseat to make him look taller than his wife because that was important to him.

Making Fun of Arnaz

It must have been hard not to smile hearing Desi's broken English, which certainly made people laugh. However, the only person allowed to make fun of him was Lucy. In a way, it was not offensive when she did it. Whenever she made jokes on account of his accent, people laughed. But if anyone else dared to do it, it wasn't so funny. It's kind of romantic that she was the only one who got to joke about it.

The 65-second Laugh

Back when I Love Lucy was taped, the laugh of the audience was also taped and could be heard in future shows as well. In this particular show, one scene was so funny that the audience laughed for 65 seconds! The scene in question was the one when Lucy hides the eggs and then dances with her husband. They ended up editing the laughter because it was so long it didn't sound genuine. No wonder the show earned so much money, it was hilarious!

Little Ricky

The former child actor, Richard Keith, remains famous for portraying the role of Ricky Jr. on I Love Lucy as well as later on The Lucy-desi Comedy Hour. An interesting fact about him is that his last name, Thibodeaux, was changed to Keith by Desi Arnaz because it was considered too difficult to pronounce. Hence, Keith Thibodeaux became Richard Keith. Richard's earnings were far less than those of the married couple and he did not continue to pursue his acting career after the show ended. He is a musician and the last living regular cast member of I Love Lucy.

Larry Lopez

Here's another fact about one of our favorite shows that you may not be aware of. Ricky Ricardo was not supposed to be named like that at all. Desi's on-screen name was supposed to be Lary Lopez. So why did they change their mind? The producers came to a conclusion that "Lary and Lucy" would not sound so good. So they changed it to Ricky Ricardo. What do you think?

The Show Almost Didn't Happen

One of the most famous sitcoms ever almost didn't happen due to lack of interest from sponsors. Tobacco company Philip Morris finally agreed to sponsor the show and as a result, there was a lot of smoking cigarettes on the set. The point was to see the Philip Morris name as much as possible. Little did the people know that Lucille was actually stuffing her pack with Chesterfield cigarettes because these were the ones she smoked.

The Inspiration

Have you ever wondered what inspired the logo of I Love Lucy? It was so simple and yet so sufficient. The story behind the logo is that about ten years before the sitcom aired, Lucille received a gift from Desi in the form of a heart-shaped lapel. She clearly liked the gift very much since it inspired the logo years later. This goes on to say that you don't need to go bankrupt when buying a gift for someone as long as it's sentimental!

The Other Couple

While Lucy and Desi were very much in love on screen (and off-screen), the other couple was not very fond of each other. The truth may be in the fact that William Frawley, who portrayed the role of Fred, was 22 years older than Vivian Vance, who portrayed the role of Ethel. Apparently, she didn't like the fact that she was married to such an older guy. He was partly bald but we would never have guessed the age difference!

Vivian Wasn't the First Choice

Thinking about it now, it seems that the cast of this beloved show was supposed to look entirely different. First, they didn't like Desi for the husband and then it turns out that Vivian wasn't the first choice for Ethel either. In fact, Bea Benaderet was considered for the role of Ethel but she had to refuse since she agreed to be on another show. Nevertheless, it was Vivian who landed the role. Although, we are certain her earnings were less than those of the main couple.

The End of Everything

Since the marriage of the couple, Desi and Lucille, didn't last, they finally parted ways professionally as well. Not long after their divorce in 1960, Desi wanted to get out of their business so he asked his now former wife Lucille to buy him out. As a result, she paid him about $2.5 million for his shares. It was a lot of money back in the day so at least Desi didn't walk away empty-handed.

Vitameatavegamin

Probably one of the funniest scenes in I Love Lucy was when she did a commercial for a new medicine called Vitameatavegamin. The medication supposedly contains vitamins, meat, and alcohol among other things. The word does sound incredibly hard to pronounce, especially if you're a little drunk. But you know what that stuff she was drinking really was? It was actually soluble fiber naturally found in apples—apple pectin! Who would have thought?

No Money for the Babies

Back then, things were a lot different. For example, the identical twins who portrayed the role of little Ricky Jr. on the show didn't get a very enviable salary. Richard Lee and Ronald Lee Simmons only got $25 per week. Although to be fair, they only had to appear for the Friday shooting and they didn't do that much acting. Besides, $25 meant a lot more than it does today anyway!

Reruns Begin

Reruns were unheard of before I Love Lucy. But the series was so popular that CBS decided to splash out the money to buy the rights to broadcast the show again. This marks the beginning of the reruns industry and numerous shows after the famous sitcom were broadcast again and again. Once again, Desi proved to be great at financial planning because Desilu productions got $5 million for selling the rights.

Breaking Records

So as we have already said, I Love Lucy was super popular among Americans and remained that way until the show ended in 1957. But this next fact is shocking anyway! More people watched the episode in which their baby boy Ricky Jr. was born than the very inauguration of the new President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower, in 1953. Sounds crazy, but it's true—44 million viewers saw the birth of that boy!

The One with the Taxes

Desi Arnaz was apparently very fond of his new homeland and he believed in the American Dream. After all, he was only 17 when he and his family were forced to leave Cuba and headed towards the United States. That is why Desi refused to take part in a scene in the episode Lucy Tells the Truth in which he was supposed to cheat on his taxes. He cared about what the audience would think of him if he had done that. Now that is what you call an honest man!

A Powerful Woman

Lucille started her career as a model when she was 18 but soon moved on to the theatre. Many years later, she became the first woman to run a television studio—her production company called Desilu Productions. After her divorce, she took over the company. She turned out to be very successful producing hit shows such as Star Trek and Mission Impossible. She must have been great at managing her personal finances because her wealth was estimated at $40 million at the time of her death.

Until Her Last Breath

Lucille Ball became a major star thanks to her role in I Love Lucy, and she continued to appear in television and film roles after the show ended. However, she was not as focused on acting as before and none of her later roles ever matched the success of that popular sitcom from the '50s. Ball received many awards, built an enviable net worth, and continued to act until her death in 1989. She died from an abdominal aortic dissection, a few years after her ex-husband Desi passed away.