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Lucille Ball in Life with Lucy (1986)

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Life with Lucy

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Producer Aaron Spelling blamed himself for the show's failure, saying he never should have granted Lucille Ball creative control. Spelling knew something was wrong when the studio audience gasped when Ball did a physical stunt while filming the pilot, fearing she would get hurt. Spelling never produced another sitcom, saying "If you're gonna fail with Lucille Ball, you should not do comedy."
Lucille Ball lured Gale Gordon out of retirement to be her co-star again. Gordon joined the show but only on the condition that he be paid for an entire season, even if the show was canceled quickly.
The pilot made Nielsen's Top 20 for the week. Ratings for subsequent episodes dropped steadily, ultimately turning the show into one of the biggest flops in television history. Reportedly, its failure hurt Lucille Ball so deeply that she never completely recovered, convinced that the public no longer wanted her.
This was Lucille Ball's final acting project.
Thirteen episodes were filmed, but only 8 aired. A 14th episode was written but not produced.

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