Lucy Loves Desi: A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Sitcom:
Lucille Ball paved the way for many of today’s top comediennes, while forcing Hollywood to begin dealing with the rising power and influence of women artists both on-screen and behind the scenes. Her iconic series, I Love Lucy, remains one of the most groundbreaking and influential shows in television history.
Playwright Gregg Oppenheimer—son of I Love Lucy creator Jess Oppenheimer— spins this witty, fast-paced tale of Lucy and Desi’s battles with CBS over the pioneering ideas that changed the face of television forever: Lucy insisted on Desi Arnaz, her Cuban- born bandleader husband, as her TV co-star—instead of the “All-American” leading man preferred by the network. The couple wanted the show filmed in Hollywood, here they planned to raise a family—not broadcast live from New York like other major TV programs of the time. They demanded and won the right to own the show themselves. Their writers incorporated Lucy’s real-life pregnancy into the program’s story line—an absolute taboo in 1950s America— resulting in the highest audience share ever recorded. And they proposed the unheard-of notion of airing “reruns” on the network in order to accommodate Lucy’s mid-season maternity leave— an experiment that ultimately turned the entire TV industry’s business model on its head.
Gregg Oppenheimer, who co-authored his father Jess’s memoir, Laughs, Luck...and Lucy, and produced the award-winning I Love Lucy DVD series, is one of the world’s foremost authorities on this classic sitcom. And he received input on this project from Lucy & Desi’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, who served as technical advisor.
Includes:
Deluxe Motorcoach Transportation
Dinner at Grand Concourse
‘Lucy Loves Desi’ Show Ticket: Byham Theater
Driver Tip
Tentative Departure is 4/4:30pm from
Cracker Barrel/New Stanton & Kohls/Irwin
(All departure locations not guaranteed, there must be at least 6 boarding at each location.)
Return is roughly 9:45/10pm
(Exact times will be communicated closer to our trip)
Cost: The cost for this trip is $140 and includes your transportation to & from for the show, an all-inclusive dinner package at the Grand Concourse Restaurant (including tip), & driver tip. The official registration deadline is December 30, 2022, and the trip must be paid in full at that time. You MAY still be able to register after that date, IF seating /tickets are still available – call to inquire before registering, if after this date. Send your registrations/checks, made payable to Carrie’s Bus Tours, to 215 Glenn Fox Rd, New Stanton, PA 15672
Dinner Package Menu: Martha’s Vineyard Salad, your choice of Shrimp & Artichoke Linguine (Provençale tomato sauce), Chicken Milanese (parmesan crusted, Provençale sauce, linguine, lemon butter, basil) or Sirloin Steak (grilled medium, warm blue cheese butter). Plus, bread service, coffee, tea, fountain sodas & apple dumpling.
Contact Carrie’s Bus Tours w/ questions at 724-640-8828 or carriesbustours@gmail.com (note: new email)
*Cancellation policy – all money is fully refundable through midnight of the official registration deadline. After that, you will receive a full refund less any non-refundable charges (i.e. theater tickets, service fees, etc.- which depends on exact cancellation date). NO REFUNDS after the official trip deadline. Written notice of cancellation is required before any monies are refunded.
In the event that the show is canceled, you will receive a full refund.
In the event of any other more “minor” itinerary changes, a reasonable & comparable substitute will be made at the tour leaders’ discretion.