Do You Know Desi?

With opening night of I Love Lucy Live on Stage less than a month away, we've been learning new things about Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball that we didn't know before and we wanted to share that knowledge with all of you! 

• Desi Arnaz first became famous when he popularized the song "Babalu" in 1947, which is a tribute to an Afro-Cuban god. 
  
  
  
  
• Desi was the son of Desiderio Alberto Arnaz, the mayor of Santiago, Cuba and a member of the Cuban House of Representatives and Dolores de Acha, whose father was one of three founders of Bacardi Rum. 
  
   
• Although Desi Arnaz is not credited with inventing the conga line, he is credited with popularizing it thanks to his role in the 1940 movie Too Many Girls.
   
• Lucy's maiden name on the show I Love Lucy was McGillicuddy.
• Desi introduced live audiences and also helped develop the three-camera shoot that is still used for sitcoms today. 
  
  
  Be sure to catch the "I Love Lucy Christmas Special" Friday, December 20 at 7 PM on CBS and get your tickets for I Love Lucy Live on Stage playing January 14 - February 2, 2014 at tpac.org/lucy!