“Being The Ricardos”

Highly Recommended ***** When I was a kid, television was still a novelty. We had 4 channels in Chicago until the advent of WTTW ( educational TV) all we had was CBS,NBC, ABC and our local station WGN. That was it and at midnight they were all off the air, leaving us with a test pattern until the early farm shows in the morning. Our world has changed a lot, but I am not sure for the best. Back in 1951 America was introduced to a show called “I Love Lucy”, a 30 minute sit-com that told the story of a big band leader and his wife, living in New York. They rented an apartment from two retired vaudevlle performers, Fred and Ethyl Mertz, who became their friends and were part of the “situations” created by these people. Lucy ( the amazing Lucille Ball) was a woman who wanted to be a star. Her husband Ricky ( The smooth Cuban, Desi Arnez) was successful. They were Lucy and Ricky Ricardo, and they were “I Love Lucy”.

They were the biggest of hits from 1951-1957 and when they were “on-the-air” no one left their homes!

There is now a film out that tells the story of “Being The Ricardos” that we  were able to watch tonight on the North side’s Landmark Theatre at The Century Mall on Diversey and Clark.

When I was invited I was surprised to see who was playing Lucy. I read it twice, Nicole Kidman! Nicole Kidman playing the zany Lucille Ball? Imagine my surprise to see how good an actress she truly is. I have seen her play countless characters that I was sure she could not do, and sure enough, she always blows me away. She truly is a talent! In this film they recreate the stomping grapes/wine scene and she captures it to perfection. Desi/Ricky is played by Javier Bardem, who is slightly larger in size, but pulls his character off as well.

The Mertz’s are played by Nina Arienda (Vivian Vance) and J.K. Simmons, who has come a long way since his early TV days. They are both amazing, but I truly feel that his William Frawley is an award winning performance.

In the film sharply directed by  Aaron Sorkin, who also scripted this story, we are privy to the back stage elements of what was transpiring and how these people survived all of the trash that the media threw at them during the early days of TV. We get a glimpse of their romance, their business acumen ( which changed the entire industry), a look at the fights between them, the sponsors and their staff.

A lot of time is spent on a production week of one episode, but by doing this, and allowing us to watch each piece of the puzzle, we get a sharper feeling for just how strong their personalities were and how much they truly cared for the show they created. We learn about what they brought to the table and the industry and I must tell you, there was a point that I felt a huge tear in each eye.

There are some political aspects of their lives, just as all of Hollywood was feeling and going through during this period. Many of you may only have slight memories of being in the living room watching this show while enjoying a TV Dinner on a snack table ( I know I do). I am pretty sure that was Monday night on CBS ( Sunday was Ed Sullivan). I was already in  High School when it left the air, but my mom ( who dyed her hair red) and my aunt Lil ( who looked a lot like Ethyl Mertz) never missed an episode. The beauty of what Desi and Lucy did is that even today people can watch and laugh at the antics that this quartet of actors brought to the tiny screen.

note: back in the days we are talking about TV Screens were 14″ or maybe 17″ unless you were rich. Then you could have a 21″!

What a different world!

The film will be released to the theaters on December 10th and then to Amazon Prime Video on The 21st where you can watch it in the comfort of your own home on a TV much larger than we ever had , with sound that is ten times better and get a history lesson about one of the greatest television shows in our history!