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Feb 23, 2022 · The new Amazon Prime Video documentary Lucy and Desi, directed by Amy Poehler, tracks their romance using archival footage and recordings of the stars' stories in their own words. Arnaz was 69 ...
- 3 min
- Liz McNeil,Benjamin VanHoose
- Overview
- Desi Arnaz: Hispanic, Latino or both?
- ‘Lucy, I’m home’
Javier Bardem pursued the role of the trailblazing Latino entertainer Desi Arnaz for years, even before Amazon Studios greenlit its new film “Being the Ricardos,” a dramatic slice-of-life story centered on one of America’s most famous TV couples as they face a series of crises that threaten their personal and professional lives.
In an interview, Bardem said he was interested in exploring the many layers that come with interpreting such a multifaceted performer and businessman, who revolutionized American television while embracing his Cuban roots at a time when the word “Hispanic” hadn’t even emerged.
“There are many colors and layers into what he represented as an entertainer, as a musician, as a producer, as a husband and also the origin of a Latin personality that was coming to Hollywood back in the day,” Bardem said. “He was able to really make room to present himself and his skills and make sure everybody would respect that.”
With their highly successful show “I Love Lucy,” Arnaz and Lucille Ball pioneered changes in the entertainment industry that paved the way for the Golden Age of television. The couple played Ricky and Lucy Ricardo, characters who were essentially exaggerated versions of themselves.
“The similarities were a lot between Desi Arnaz and Ricky Ricardo in some ways, in many ways. But this is the story about the people behind the scenes, behind the show,” Bardem said. “You don’t need to be a Lucille fan or an ‘I Love Lucy’ fan to understand the stories. It’s about two people that love each other very much, but we don’t know if they’re going to be able or capable of being together for several reasons.”
Director and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin condenses a string of pivotal events in the couple’s life into an intense one-week timeline, starting off with a gossip columnist who accuses Ball of being a communist. In 1953, the accusation meant Ball could end up on the Hollywood blacklist and lose work opportunities because of suspicions of communist or subversive ties.
The team behind “Being the Ricardos” faced a fair amount of criticism for casting Bardem, who is from Spain, as one of the most defining Latino entertainers of all time.
Critics pointed to Hollywood’s long track record of excluding Latinos at all levels, from talent agency mailrooms to studio corner offices. According to Nielsen’s latest Diversity Intelligence Series report, Latino representation is about 10 percent across streaming services and cable and broadcast networks (including Spanish-language ones).
Sorkin defended Bardem’s casting, telling The Hollywood Reporter last month that “having an actor who was born in Spain playing a character who was born in Cuba was not demeaning,” because Spanish people are considered Hispanic.
The word “Hispanic,” which emerged in the 1960s, accounts for people who can trace their roots to Spain or Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America or the Caribbean. The word “Latino” emerged three decades later to include other Latin American countries where Spanish is not the dominant language, such as Brazil.
Lucie Arnaz, the daughter of Arnaz and Ball, who was also the film’s executive producer, said in an Instagram post that while Bardem did not look like her father physically, “he had everything that dad had.”
“He had his wit, charm, dimples, musicality. He has his strength and tenacity. You can tell from his performance that he just loved him,” Arnaz said.
In the opening scene of “Being the Ricardos,” Sorkin shows Kidman and Bardem through reflections to effectively signal the blurred lines that divided Ball and Arnaz’s love life on screen from their real marriage.
For Sorkin, Ricky Ricardo’s iconic catchphrase, “Lucy, I’m home,” was more meaningful for Ball than just another line in a TV sitcom script. While Ball strived to have a stable home, she often wondered whether the home she yearned for existed only on TV. The internal conflict is one of the cornerstones of the movie.
Tensions between the couple rise as Arnaz’s multiple indiscretions threaten to destroy their marriage at the peak of their fame.
“When we play real people, we want to get as close as we can to reality, but there’s a moment where you have to let that go,” Bardem said. “You have to express what the person is going through.”
The film has already garnered three Golden Globe nominations: Bardem and Kidman for best performance and Sorkin for best screenplay. It has also been nominated in similar categories for the Critics Choice Awards, the Satellite Awards and the AACTA International Awards.
“Being the Ricardos” is out in theaters and streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime.
- 3 min
- Nicole Acevedo
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Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Alberni II. Dolores de Acha y de Socias. Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986), known as Desi Arnaz, was a Cuban-American actor, musician, producer, and bandleader. [1] He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy, in which he co-starred with his wife ...
Feb 5, 2021 · Starting in 1951, "I Love Lucy" set the comedic standard for TV that holds up today. In an era with only three TV networks, 70% of households tuned in. Lucille Ball and her husband, Desi Arnaz ...
- Sonari Glinton
Mar 19, 2022 · Stage and television actor Desi Arnaz carries his bride, actress Lucille Ball, across the threshold of a theater dressing room in Greenwich, Conn., on Nov. 30, 1940. AP Photo
Nov 21, 2021 · Friends and associates say Billy Hinsche, a singer-songwriter and musician in a 1960s pop band with Dino Martin Jr. and Desi Arnaz Jr. who later performed for decades with The Beach Boys, has died. November 21, 2021. The Associated Press is an independent global news organization dedicated to factual reporting. Founded in 1846, AP today remains ...
