Laughs, Luck...and Lucy: How I Came to Create the Most Popular Sitcom of All Time (with "I LOVE LUCY's Lost Scenes" Audio CD)
Paperback – April 1, 1999
Description
From The New Yorker If you love Lucy, you'll love this book (and CD). If you love Lucy, you'll love this book (and CD). ― The New Yorker A must-have for true Lucy lovers. ― TV Guide Oppenheimer's fond reminiscence is an important addition to the burgeoning collection concerned with TV's early years and subsequent effects on popular culture. ― Booklist Offers intimate glimpses of the world's favorite redhead-and of a bygone era as wide-eyed and irrepressible as Lucy herself. ― Total TV Book Description Jess Oppenheimer, the man Lucille Ball called the "brains" of I Love Lucy, gives us a rare first-hand look at television history as it was being made. If you love Lucy, e-mail me for a FREE Chapter! [email protected] I grew up on I LOVE LUCY. Yes, I know--YOU did, too. But in my family, it was different. For me, watching I LOVE LUCY has always been a little like watching home movies - and not just because I grew up in and around Desilu Studios. As creator, producer and head writer of I LOVE LUCY, my father infused the show with his own unique sense of humor - something he wielded with equal skill at the studio, at our dinner table, and on family outings. His greatest delight was to crack us up with comical off-the-cuff remarks and funny stories. Many of them ended up on I LOVE LUCY, and the best have made their way into LAUGHS, LUCK...AND LUCY. So this book, which Dad and I began together, is my own "gift of laughter" to Lucy fans everywhere. A hilarious memoir from Jess Oppenheimer, the man Lucy called "the brains" of I Love Lucy A dear friend and a true genius. I owe so much to his creativity and his friendship. He put the word 'love' in our title, and for that I will always be grateful. - Lucille Ball One of the top comedy writers in radio and television. - GEORGE BURNS "Jess Oppenheimer, the genius behind I Love Lucy , has given us a rare first-hand look at how it all began. This is a terrific book--warm, fascinating, and full of laughs." - PETER FALK "I thoroughly enjoyed Laughs, Luck . . . and Lucy , a revealing glimpse into the world of radio and television comedy and an eye-opening look at the creation of 'I Love Lucy.'" - LEONARD MALTIN, Correspondent, Entertainment Tonight. "Jess's stories of Lucille Ball, Jack Benny, Edgar Bergen, Marlene Dietrich, Fred Astaire, and John Barrymore are hysterically funny. And fascinating. A must read for anyone who loves the entertainment industry." - JANET LEIGH "For those of us who worked during the golden years of radio and television, Jess Oppenheimer's book is truly a trip down memory lane told with humor, understanding, and accuracy." - RALPH EDWARDS Jess Oppenheimer (1913-1988), creator, producer, and head writer of I Love Lucy, had an extensive broadcast career that began in radio's "golden age." His association with Lucille Ball began in 1948, when he signed on as head writer, producer and director of her radio series, My Favorite Husband. When CBS made a deal with the legendary redhead, Lucy made it a condition that Oppenheimer be in charge of the venture. He remained as producer and head writer of I Love Lucy for five of its six seasons, writing the pilot and 153 episodes. Read more
Features & Highlights
- Jess Oppenheimer, the man Lucille Ball called the "brains" of I Love Lucy, gives us a rare first-hand look at television history as it was being made. A rich entertainment resource, Laughs, Luck . . . and Lucy features a hilarious memoir, more than fifty rare photos, three never-before-published scripts (including the only I Love Lucy script that Lucy or Desi ever refused to perform), and CD of Lucy's classic radio comedy performances, unheard for more than 40 years! Oppenheimer's book, written with his son, Gregg, is not only a reliable record of how I Love Lucy was conceived an executed, but also a humorous insider's account of the broadcasting industry's development from the wild early days of radio to television's "golden age."
