Another wonderful memoir I’ve had the pleasure of reading recently. I picked up this book solely because of my fascination with memoirs and autobiographies. I had no idea who Lucille Ball was. “Love, Lucy” turned out to be everything that I love about reading people’s life stories. Told by Lucille Ball herself, her memoir is a reflection of her personality, which she generously let us see in her book.
“Love, Lucy” is a manuscript that was forgotten and then miraculously found. The author’s children found it after their mother’s death among the papers kept at her attorney’s. It was in the form of tapes recorded by Lucille Ball herself and the manuscript, compiled by the writer Betty Hannah Hoffman based on those tapes. For some reason, Lucille Ball did not publish it, nor did she continue working on it to cover her life after 1960. So, the story ends shortly after the dissolution of her first marriage and the beginning of the second.
To me, the most enchanting thing about this memoir was the portrayal of old Hollywood. Reading about the inner workings of the dream factory never fails to mesmerise me. What a huge machine it was back in the thirties and forties! So perfectly attuned to the needs of cinema-goers, people who craved hope, glitter, and beautiful stories. Only then could movie stars become national and even worldwide icons. Nowadays, with almost all boundaries between common folk and celebrities erased, and everyone carrying a camera in their pocket, it isn’t possible anymore. Or, at least, it is very different from what it used to be in the golden era of Hollywood.
Also, while reading, I mused about how drastically life in general has changed in less than a century. The prices, the manner of travelling, opportunities to start a career in a chosen field, especially in the areas related to show business – all that has altered beyond recognition. I was marvelling at how Lucille Ball, a girl without any connections and with a modest background, set out on her journey first to Broadway and next, to Hollywood, and couldn’t get rid of the thought that it is unimaginable that something like this could happen today. This struck me as a curious paradox, considering how much easier a lot of things have become in the past decades. But I won’t pollute this review with unnecessary details of my musings.
Lucille Ball was a remarkable woman. She combined talent and creativity with a practical mind and a pragmatic attitude. She didn’t give up because of hardships. She was resilient in the face of failure. I admired the way she handled the situation when she rejected a prominent man’s marriage proposal and put her career in the world of show business, ruled by men, at huge risk. I was also impressed that she didn’t fall victim to harmful substance addictions. All this resulted in a successful career that spanned many decades.
Whether you are a fan of Lucille Ball or, like me, haven’t heard about her or seen a single episode of ‘I Love Lucy,’ the show that made her truly famous, I heartily recommend this book.
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