Desi Arnaz~Ricky Ricardo

Desi started working with the Xavier Cugat band in 1937 and later put together his own rhumba band. In 1940, he appeared in both the stage and movie versions of "Too Many Girls." On the movie set, he and Lucille Ball hit it off, and they were married in November of 1940. The marriage was subject to the conflicting requirements of Desi's bandleader career which had him on the road most of the time and to Lucy's movie career. When the couple came up with the idea for a TV series, they fought to do it together to save their marriage.

Network executives didn't think the pan-American shtick would work, so in the summer of 1950 Lucy and Desi went on tour, performing for live audiences to prove that Desi was believable as Lucy's husband. Early in 1951 the couple produced a film pilot with their total savings of $5,000. The rest, of course, is television history.

Desi parlayed the five grand into millions in just four years. He convinced the show's sponser, Philip Morris, that Lucy having a baby on the air would be a publicity bonanza, and he was right. The filmed birth of Little Ricky in 1953 drew in 44 million viewers, and the story made headlines from coast to coast. While a successful executive at Desilu Productions, Desi also produced "December Bride," "Make Room for Daddy," "Our Miss Brooks," "The Untouchables," and other shows. Fashion-wise, Desi brought back smoking jackets, adult denims, and matching he-and-she pajamas.

After Lucy and Desi divorced in 1960, Desi produced several shows, owned a successful breeding farm, wrote an autobiography, was a professor at San Diego State University, and was appointed Ambassador to Latin America under President Nixon. He died in 1986.

Ricky has a great temper. He channels his aggression into his nightclub act at the Ricky Ricardo Club Babalu, which used to be the Tropicana Club. Ricky's favorite song is "Babalu," which he sings all the time. People have yet to learn what it means.

Ricky frequently yells at Lucy, but he really is a loving husband and a good father. You can see his soft side after he and Lucy make up after a fight. He spends most of his time with Fred Mertz, his landlord who is twice his age.

Even though he went to Hollywood to make "Don Juan," Ricky's break never seems to come for him. And it certainly doesn't help that Lucy wants to be in every show with him. :o)

Ricky doesn't seem to mind that his wife is a bit of a lunatic, because he stands by her in the long run. Ricky really is a great guy and Lucy definitely adds spice to his life.