69 Years Ago Today, Four Beloved Sitcom Characters Came Back To TV In A Totally New Format

Exactly 69 years ago today, the cast of the groundbreaking sitcom "I Love Lucy" returned to TV screens. On November 6, 1957, just six months after the original show had aired its final episode, a new program that would come to be known as "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour" premiered on CBS. Stars Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz reprised their roles as the married couple Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, while William Frawley and Vivian Vance returned as their friends and neighbors, Fred and Ethel Mertz. 

The new show consisted of 13 one-hour standalone specials that ran between 1957 and 1960. "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour" was produced by Ball and Arnaz's own Desilu Productions, the same company that made Ball the first woman to own a Hollywood studio. The show featured appearances by numerous celebrity guests like Tallulah Bankhead, Betty Grable, Milton Berle, Hedda Hopper, and many more. The show ended in 1960, the same year that Ball and Arnaz divorced. 

Though it was the end of an era, some cast members continued to work together on other projects. Ball and Vance's longstanding friendship led them to work together for several more years on the '60s sitcom "The Lucy Show." Frawley, who couldn't stand his "I Love Lucy" wife in real life, also made a brief appearance in one of the episodes. Additionally, Vance starred in multiple episodes of Ball's sitcom, "Here's Lucy," which aired from 1968 to 1974, and the two reunited again in 1977 for the TV movie "Lucy Calls the President."

While filming "The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour," successor to the smash-hit sitcom "I Love Lucy," the real-life relationship between Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz was falling apart behind the scenes. After 20 years of marriage, Ball filed for divorce from Arnaz on March 4, 1960, shortly after filming their final episode together. 

Although they were known for playing a beloved couple on TV, the truth about Ball and Arnaz's marriage is that they had reportedly been on the rocks for a while, due in part to each of their demanding schedules. Alcohol abuse and alleged affairs are also said to have put a strain on the relationship. The pair's daughter, Lucie Arnaz, said she remembered her parents "fighting all the time" when she and her brother, Desi Arnaz Jr., were growing up. "There was a lot of anger and screaming," Lucie told Closer in 2018. "Their divorce was horrible. And then there was the alcoholism. I had preferred those things had never been there. We didn't have any abuse, but we did go through some pretty hard stuff, and that's why my parents didn't stay together."

Following their divorce in 1960, Ball and Arnaz went on to marry other people, but remained close friends for the remainder of their lives. Ball married comedian Gary Morton in November 1961, and they remained together until her death in 1989. As for Arnaz, he was married to his second wife, Edith Hirsch, at the time of his death in 1986. The final conversation between Ball and Arnaz was recounted in a 2022 interview, as their daughter recalled to People, "I could hear her say, 'I love you.' She said it five times in a row. And he was nodding and saying, 'I love you too, honey.'

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).