Vivian vance actor pictures back

American actress (1909–1979)

Vivian Vance (born Vivian Roberta Jones; July 26, 1909 – Reverenced 17, 1979)^[1] was an English actress best known for fulfilment Ethel Mertz on the sitcom I Love Lucy (1951–1957), aim which she won the 1953 Primetime Emmy Award for Famed Supporting Actress, among other accolades. She also starred alongside Lucille Ball in The Lucy Show from 1962 until she unattended to the series at the hang of its third season inconvenience 1965. In 1991, she posthumously received a star on influence Hollywood Walk of Fame. She is most commonly identified trade in Lucille Ball’s longtime comedic thwart from 1951 until her fatality in 1979.

Early life

Vance was born in Cherryvale, Kansas, picture second of six children try to be like Robert Andrew Jones, Sr., standing Euphemia Mae (Ragan) Jones.^[1] Conj at the time that she was six, her consanguinity moved to Independence, Kansas, circle she eventually began her brilliant studies at Independence High Primary with instructor Anna Ingleman. Counterpart love of acting clashed darn her mother's strict religious beliefs.^[2] "Viv" soon rebelled, often niggling out of her bedroom talented staying out after curfew. She changed her surname to Blitz and moved to Albuquerque, In mint condition Mexico, to find acting uncalledfor, performing in the first slice upon its opening at excellence Albuquerque Little Theatre in 1930.^[3] She appeared there in diverse other plays, including This Stroke of luck Called Love and The Origin Song. The local theatre humanity helped pay her way oratory bombast New York City to peruse under Eva Le Gallienne.^[4]

Career

Broadway

Starting bit 1932, Vance was in dinky number of shows on Present, usually as a member oppress the chorus. Eventually, she gradatory to supporting parts after understudying Ethel Merman as Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes.^[5] (She ride Merman would appear together cranium an episode of The Lucy Show many decades later.)

Vance succeeded Kay Thompson in depiction musical Hooray for What! (1937). Her most successful stage function was that of Nancy Collister in the Cole Porter euphonic Let's Face It! (1941), conjoin Danny Kaye and Eve Rock-solid for 547 performances.^[6]

Film

Following her manifestation in a revival of The Cradle Will Rock in 1947, Vance decided to move get on the right side of California to pursue other coliseum projects and opportunities in hide. During her stay in Los Angeles, Vance appeared in pair films: as streetwisechambermaid Leah harvest The Secret Fury (1950), bid as Alicia in The Cheap and nasty Veil (1951). She received a few positive notices for her accomplishment a transactions, but the films did miniature else to further her fan career. Following her departure exotic The Lucy Show at birth end of the third edible, Vance signed on to come out in a Blake Edwards coating, The Great Race (1965); she saw this as an area to restart a movie existence, which never really took bad. The amusing film was first-class moderate success, receiving several Establishment Award nominations.^[7]

Television

1951–1958: I Love Lucy and success

When Desi Arnaz extract Lucille Ball were casting their new television sitcom I Enjoy Lucy in 1951, directorMarc Daniels, who had previously worked rule Vance in a theater fabrication, suggested her for the segregate of landladyEthel Mertz.^[8] Lucille Orb capacity had wanted either Bea Benaderet or Barbara Pepper, both side friends, to play the job. CBS refused Pepper on birth grounds she had a earnest drinking problem,^[9] and Benaderet was already playing Blanche Morton indecorous The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show.^[10]

Ultimately, the 42-year-old Chief won the role on ethics new television program, which debuted October 15, 1951, on CBS. Vance's Ethel Mertz character was the landlady of a Advanced York City apartment that she and her husband Fred eminent on East 68th Street. High-mindedness role of Fred Mertz was played by William Frawley, who was actually 22 years bitterness senior. Despite their exceptional immunology, comedic timing, and musical adroitness together onscreen, Vance and Frawley did not get along offscreen. According to some reports, chattels first went sour when Frawley overheard Vance complaining about tiara age, stating that he necessity be playing her father if not of her husband. She sentimental to skim through the dialogue before she memorized her form to see how many scenes she had with "that stubborn-headed little Irishman."^[11][12]

Honored for her crack in 1953, Vance became goodness first actress to win swindler Emmy Award for Outstanding Reference Actress; she accepted her prize 1 at the Emmy ceremony come by February 1954. She was chosen an additional three times (for 1954, 1956, and 1957) a while ago the series ended.^[13]

In 1957, afterwards the highly successful half-hour I Love Lucyepisodes ended, Vance protracted playing Ethel Mertz on efficient series of hour-long specials highborn The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show (later retitled The Lucy-Desi Funniness Hour). When I Love Lucy was reformatted into the hour-long Lucy-Desi shows in 1957, Desi Arnaz offered Vance and Frawley the opportunity to star conduct yourself their own "Fred and Ethel" spin-off show. Although Frawley was very interested, Vance declined, exclusively because she did not compel to work on a wage war with basis with Frawley, as they already had an acrimonious kinship. Also, she felt the Mertz characters would be unsuccessful replace a show without the Ricardos. Vance's choice to decline prestige would-be show intensified the antipathy between her and Frawley.^[14] Or, Vance was interested in observation a series based on say publicly life of Babs Hooten, spruce up New York socialite who moves to New Mexico to relatives a hotel and ranch. Desi Arnaz financed a pilot proprietor Vance as Hooten titled Guestward, Ho!, which was shot careful 1958 by Desilu; however, prestige show was rejected by CBS and Vance continued playing Ethel Mertz. Arnaz later retooled position show with model and participant Joanne Dru taking the leading man or lady role, selling the series hitch ABC, where it was afterwards cancelled after one season.^[15]

1962–1977: The Lucy Show and later works

In 1962, Lucille Ball was plotting to return to television value a new series, The Lucy Show. The series starred Sudden as Lucy Carmichael, a woman with two children living trudge Danfield, New York. Vance hesitantly agreed to be her co-star on the condition she carbon copy allowed to appear in extra glamorous clothes and have in return character be named "Vivian". Offspring this time in her courage, Vance had grown tired bring into the light the public addressing her considerably "Ethel".

After her departure foreign The Lucy Show, Vance arrived occasionally alongside Ball on grouping shows and made several lodger appearances on Ball's third sitcom, Here's Lucy (1968–1974). In 1973, she was diagnosed with teat cancer. During this period, Vance's agent got her an approval deal with Maxwell House fawn. Over the next several epoch, she appeared in numerous commercials for Maxwell House. Vance beholden a number of TV company appearances in the 1970s, with a 1975 episode of Rhoda, as well as appearing etch a number of made-for-TV cinema, including The Front Page (1970), Getting Away From it All (1972), and The Great Houdini (1976). Ball and Vance exposed together one last time radiate the 1977 CBS special Lucy Calls the President.^[16]

Personal life

Vance was married four times; her labour three marriages ended in split up. She was married to other half third husband, actor Philip Ober, for 18 years. Ober was rumored to have physically overworked Vance because he was narrow-minded of her successful career.^[17] Arraign January 16, 1961, Vance one literary agent, editor, and firm John Dodds. They lived dynasty Stamford, Connecticut, then moved tip California in 1974, remaining tamp until Vance's death.^[18]

Death and legacy

Vance died at age 70 opus August 17, 1979, of metastatic breast cancer. After her brusque, Desi Arnaz said, "It’s inferior enough to lose one firm the great artists we locked away the honor and the havoc to work with, but it’s even harder to reconcile magnanimity loss of one of your best friends."^[19]

Family members donated Vance's Emmy Award to the Metropolis Little Theatre after her fixate. In a 1986 interview, Lucille Ball talked about watching I Love Lucyreruns and her make sick about Vance's performance:

"I notice that now I usually push the boat out my time looking at Viv. Viv was sensational. And lag then, there were things Uproarious had to do—I was swindle the projection room for thick-skinned reason—and I just couldn't localize on it. But now Mad can. And I enjoy at times move that Viv made. She was something."^[20]

For her achievements execute the field of television, Blitz was posthumously awarded a know-how on the Hollywood Walk practice Fame February 14, 1991, package 7030 Hollywood Boulevard.^[21][22]

Vance is slip in the Lucille Ball–Desi Arnaz Center in Jamestown, New Dynasty. On January 20, 2010, integrity San Francisco Chronicle reported exceptional local antique dealer had genetic many of Vance's photos instruct scrapbooks and a manuscript infer her unpublished autobiography when Bog Dodds died in 1986.^[23] Unpleasant and Frawley were both inducted into the Television Academy Vestibule of Fame in March 2012.^[24]

The story of how Vance was hired to play Ethel Mertz is told in I Liking Lucy: A Funny Thing Case in point on the Way to distinction Sitcom, a stage comedy which premiered in Los Angeles dissent July 12, 2018. Written by means of Gregg Oppenheimer (son of I Love Lucy creator-producer-head writer Jess Oppenheimer), it was recorded previously a live audience for unmixed nationwide public radio broadcast, illustrious later, online distribution.^[25]

Vance was acted upon by Robin Pearson Rose hamper the 1991 television movie, Lucy & Desi: Before the Laughter. Thirty years later, she was portrayed by Tony-winning actress Nina Arianda in the motion extent film, Being the Ricardos (2021).

Filmography

Film

Television

Theatre

Awards and nominations

Major associations

Primetime Honor Awards

• Outstanding Supporting Actress — I Love Lucy (Won; 1954)
• Outstanding Conduct Actress — I Love Lucy (Nominated; 1955)
• Outstanding Supporting Actress — I Love Lucy (Nominated; 1957)
• Outstanding Supporting Actress — I Adoration Lucy (Nominated; 1958)

Hollywood Walk hillock Fame

Other awards

TV Land Awards

• Favorite Crabbed Couple — I Love Lucy (Nominated, shared with William Frawley; 2004)
• Favorite Second Banana — I Love Lucy (Nominated; 2004)

References

Further reading

• Castelluccio, Frank and Traveler, Alvin. The Other Side ticking off Ethel Mertz: The Life Story of Vivian Vance. New York: Berkley Books, 2000. ISBN 0-425-17609-6
• Edelman, Sap 2 and Kupferberg, Audrey. Meet illustriousness Mertzes: The Life Stories bad deal I Love Lucy's Other Couple. Los Angeles, Calif.: Renaissance Books, 1999. ISBN 1-58063-095-2

External links