Random Fascinating Facts About Lucille Ball You Probably Didn't Know (16 items)

(#15) She Did Things Other Actresses Wouldn’t Do

Ball was widely regarded as a beauty, but it wasn’t just her looks that helped her make her mark on Hollywood. Unlike other beautiful budding starlets, Ball was game for physical comedy. In an interview with People magazine, Ball said the following: “In the ’30s I realized there was a place for me. Eddie Cantor and Sam Goldwyn found that a lot of the really beautiful girls didn't want to do some of the things I did—put on mud packs and scream and run around and fall into pools. I said ‘I'd love to do the scene with the crocodile.’ He didn't have teeth, but he could sure gum you to death. I didn't mind getting messed up.”
(#3) She Insisted On Having Arnaz Play Her Onscreen Husband

It’s difficult to imagine the lines “Lucy, I’m home!” being delivered by someone other than Desi Arnaz, but if CBS and I Love Lucy’s sponsor Philip Morris had had their way, that might have been the case. They didn’t believe the American public would buy a marriage between Lucy, “a red-blooded American girl,” and a "foreigner," even though Ball and Arnaz had already been married for ten years in real life. Luckily, Ball stuck to her guns, insisting that Arnaz be signed on as her co-star, and the network caved.
(#2) She Was The First Woman To Own A Production Studio

In 1962, Ball became the first woman to own a Hollywood production company. She took full control of "Desilu," the studio she and her husband Desi Arnaz built together – as well as the first ever independent television production company – after the two divorced. In addition to I Love Lucy, Desilu would go on to produce hits like Mission: Impossible, Star Trek, and That Girl. In 1967, Ball sold the company for $17 million to Gulf+Western. Desilu would eventually become part of the broadcasting company CBS.
(#1) She Almost Drowned In the Famous Grape Stomping Episode

In one of the show’s most memorable scenes, Lucy stomps on grapes in a giant vat with an Italian woman. That woman was actress and opera singer Teresa Tirelli D'Amico who, according to Ball, attempted to drown her during the scene. Apparently, D'Amico held her down under the crushed grapes for longer than the script directions told her to and Ball got grapes in her nose, which made it difficult to breathe. Although it's not likely that Ball almost met her maker during the filming of the scene, it is likely that the language barrier incited D'Amico to become much more physical than the script instructed.
(#11) A Creepy Statue Was Made In Her ‘Image’

The original life-size Lucille Ball statue in Celeron, New York was been dubbed “Scary Lucy” by fans who thought the statue looked nothing like the comedy icon. A group of fans started the Facebook page "We Love Lucy! Get Rid of this Statue” in an effort to get a replacement statue to honor the redheaded legend, and the mayor of Celeron even came out in opposition to the statue. Their wishes came true in 2016 when a different sculptor unveiled a new statute, one that, unlike the original, bears a strong resemblance to Ball.
(#4) She Saved Star Trek

In 1965, when NBC received the pilot for Star Trek, they initially rejected it because they thought it was “too cerebral.” Ball, who at this point was the sole owner of Desilu, liked the idea of the show so much that she used her considerable influence and money to help Gene Roddenberry make another pilot – this time with an entirely new cast. The second pilot was a hit and was picked up by NBC. Ed Holly, a former studio executive said the following about Ball’s role in the production of Star Trek: “If it were not for Lucy, there would be no Star Trek today.”