Lucille Desiree Ball was born on August 6, 1911 in the small town of Celeron, just outside of Jamestown, New York. Lucy began studying drama at the John Murray Anderson-Robert Milton Dramatics School. However, after only twelve months of going there (with Bette Davis as a classmate) Lucy was informed by the acting coach that she was not talented and should go into a different field, because she'd never make it in acting! She then was a soda fountain clerk at Walgreens Drug Store and also sold hotdogs at the Celeron amusement park. There, she liked to act up for the customers and be silly, but her boss didn't appreciate her antics.
A bad thing happened to Lucy's family in 1927, when Lucy was 16. They were having a birthday party for her brother, Fred, and Lucy's Grandpa Hunt allowed a girl who had never used a gun before, to fire it. When she did, she accidentally hit a neighborhood boy, who ended up paralyzed below the neck. The boy died five years later. The judge in the case ruled the shooting an accident, but still ordered the Ball family to pay all the medical bills. They had to sell their home. From then on, Lucy remained terrified of guns.
Lucy then stayed in bed for months because of rheumatoid arthritis. After that time, she landed a job as a Chesterfield Cigarette Girl in 1933. This got Lucy noticed and soon she was in a number of movies. Beginning in 1948, Lucy decided to try radio. She did a show called "My Favorite Husband", which I Love Lucy was later based on. Lucy met Desi Arnaz while filming "Too Many Girls" with him.
Lucy and Desi toured the vaudeville circuit, performing many of the acts that they later incorporated into the I Love Lucy show.
Lucy ws nominated for 13 Emmys and won four. In 1984, she was given the Kennedy Center Honors, the country's highest honor for acting. But these awards cannot compare to the hearts she won - of millions.
Lucille Ball passed away on April 26, 1989 while recovering from surgery to correct heart problems. A billboard was put up that said:
"Heaven Needed A Laugh!".
