Skip to content

WE DELIVER WORLDWIDE    More info

Congratulations! Your order qualifies for free shipping Spend £100 more for free shipping

Lauren Dickinson Clarke
Cart £0 (0)
Lauren Dickinson Clarke
Scented Candles
Mini Muse Candles Moody Muse Candles All Candles
MOODY MUSE
Shop All
Dining & Teaware
All Tableware Mugs Plates Bowls Tablemats & Coasters Cake Stands & Snack Stands
Shop by Collection
Moody Muse Divineness of Time The Creation of Madam Shoe of Eden Beware of the Wear Trap
The Surreal world of LDC
Maison Muse | Loyalty Club Reviews Occasional Musings Behind the Candle The Craftsmanship Waiting List Trade Enquiries
Account
Search
Cart £0 (0)

Currency

  • AED د.إ
  • AFN ؋
  • ALL L
  • AMD դր.
  • ANG ƒ
  • AUD $
  • AWG ƒ
  • AZN ₼
  • BAM КМ
  • BBD $
  • BDT ৳
  • BGN лв.
  • BIF Fr
  • BND $
  • BOB Bs.
  • BSD $
  • BWP P
  • BZD $
  • CAD $
  • CDF Fr
  • CHF CHF
  • CNY ¥
  • CRC ₡
  • CVE $
  • CZK Kč
  • DJF Fdj
  • DKK kr.
  • DOP $
  • DZD د.ج
  • EGP ج.م
  • ETB Br
  • EUR €
  • FJD $
  • FKP £
  • GBP £
  • GMD D
  • GNF Fr
  • GTQ Q
  • GYD $
  • HKD $
  • HNL L
  • HUF Ft
  • IDR Rp
  • ILS ₪
  • INR ₹
  • ISK kr
  • JMD $
  • JPY ¥
  • KES KSh
  • KGS som
  • KHR ៛
  • KMF Fr
  • KRW ₩
  • KYD $
  • KZT 〒
  • LAK ₭
  • LBP ل.ل
  • LKR ₨
  • MAD د.م.
  • MDL L
  • MKD ден
  • MMK K
  • MNT ₮
  • MOP P
  • MUR ₨
  • MVR MVR
  • MWK MK
  • MYR RM
  • NGN ₦
  • NIO C$
  • NPR ₨
  • NZD $
  • PEN S/.
  • PGK K
  • PHP ₱
  • PKR ₨
  • PLN zł
  • PYG ₲
  • QAR ر.ق
  • RON Lei
  • RSD РСД
  • RWF FRw
  • SAR ر.س
  • SBD $
  • SEK kr
  • SGD $
  • SHP £
  • SLL Le
  • STD Db
  • THB ฿
  • TJS ЅМ
  • TOP T$
  • TTD $
  • TWD $
  • TZS Sh
  • UAH ₴
  • UGX USh
  • USD $
  • UYU $
  • UZS
  • VND ₫
  • VUV Vt
  • WST T
  • XAF Fr
  • XCD $
  • XOF Fr
  • XPF Fr
  • YER ﷼
My Account
Scented Candles
Mini Muse Candles
Moody Muse Candles
All Candles
MOODY MUSE
Shop All
Dining & Teaware
All Tableware
Mugs
Plates
Bowls
Tablemats & Coasters
Cake Stands & Snack Stands
Shop by Collection
Moody Muse
Divineness of Time
The Creation of Madam
Shoe of Eden
Beware of the Wear Trap
The Surreal world of LDC
Maison Muse | Loyalty Club
Reviews
Occasional Musings
Behind the Candle
The Craftsmanship
Waiting List
Trade Enquiries

Cart

Your cart is empty.

Continue browsing

Shipping calculated at checkout

Access Denied
IMPORTANT! If you’re a store owner, please make sure you have Customer accounts enabled in your Store Admin, as you have customer based locks set up with EasyLockdown app. Enable Customer Accounts

Lucille Ball | Prankster Muse

Posted by Lauren Dickinson Clarke on October 19, 2020

I'd rather regret things i've done than regret things I haven't done.

- Lucille Ball -

Welcome to the second post in my new series Behind The Muse. Lucille Ball is the bright and bold inspiration behind my Prankster scented candle. She was an eccentric, born-entertainer who stole the light both in front of and behind the camera.

You may know that Lucille was famously adored for her hilarious antics on the ‘I Love Lucy’ show. But we’l have you know that she was so much more than just a funny woman! She was in fact an unexpected renegade who broke through barriers and carved a path for the actresses in Hollywood. (I’ve come to nickname her Lucille Ball-er!)

Her tale is one that deserves to be told. So sit tight, and get ready for a journey of humour, Hollywood and hardships…

LET'S START AT THE VERY BEGINNING...

Dazzling Lucille entered the world on 6th August 1911 in Jamestown, New York. As the elder of two children, Lucille endured their turbulent childhood the hardest and sadly this was a childhood steeped in tragedy & adversity.

Not long after Lucille’s birth, her father relocated the family to Montana so that he could continue his work as an electrician. Shortly after, the family relocated again to Michigan due to her father taking a job offer as a telephone lineman with the Michigan Bell Company.

In February of 1915, Lucille’s father was struck with Typhoid fever and tragically passed away. At only 3 years of age, Lucille had suffered her first tragedy. Unbeknown to all, the death of her father was to be the first in a series of difficult childhood hurdles, and sadly it also became the earliest memory of her childhood.

Lucille’s world had turned upside down, yet Lucille’s mother decided to relocate the children to Jamestown, despite being pregnant with Lucille’s younger brother at the time. Here, Lucille’s mother eventually found some work in a factory… and even a new husband too! Ed Peterson swept into the lives of the family, but it wasn’t the perfect fairytale that Lucille had maybe hoped for. Ed didn’t like children, especially young children at that. He made the decision to relocate Lucille’s mother to Detroit where she would live with him… and only him. She granted his wish and moved with Ed to start a new life, leaving her children behind in despair.

Lucille and her brother moved in with Ed’s mother - a strict woman who didn’t even have enough money to buy school pencils for the children. Lucille found the years that followed to be lonely & gruelling.

FAME AND FORTUNE BECKON

Lucille and her brother were reunited with their mother at the age of 11, when she and Ed returned to Jamestown. By now, Lucille was brimming with energy and decided that she wanted to ‘do something big’. So at the age of 15 she persuaded her mother to allow her to enrol in a New York City Drama School.

Lucille stayed in New York City and in 1927, she started going by the name 'Diane Belmont'. At the age of 17, after endless castings and auditions, she eventually found work as a model - firstly for fashion designer Hattie Carnegie and then for Chesterfield Cigarettes. Despite her promising new career, Lucille was silently battling with joint pains and fevers, it is rumoured that her unknown illness would now be diagnosed as “rheumatoid arthritis”. Lucille took a break from her work whilst she focused on recovery. After 3 years, Lucille appeared to be on the mend and set back out on her quest for fame and fortune…

 

Along came the early 1930’s. Lucille had dyed her bombshell blonde and ventured to Hollywood to seek acting opportunities. Work quickly followed her and Lucille landed a stretch as one of the 12 ‘Goldwyn Girls’, in order to help promote the 1933 film ‘Roman Scandals’. Shortly after this, Lucille became an extra in ‘The Three Musketeers’ and in the year 1937, earned a large role in ‘Stage Door’. Things were looking promising once again!

ALONG COMES DESI...

In one of her earliest films ‘Dance, Girl, Dance’, Lucille met a dashingly handsome Cuban bandleader called Desi Arnaz. The two made a debut in Lucille’s next film ‘Too Many Girls’, and before the year drew to a close, they fell madly in love before tying the knot.

Although Lucille had been typically drawn to older men throughout her adult life, she felt that Arnaz was different. However Arnaz’s reputation proceeded him and he was perceived by many as being a fiery ‘ladies man’. Colleagues of the pair guessed that the romance between the pair wouldn’t last - not even for a year.

Lucille was very drawn to Arnaz, and even though Arnaz’s romantic attention did sometimes stray away from the marriage, he always greatly supported Lucille’s career.

In the 1940’s, Lucille dyed her hair flaming red and was relentlessly searching for the movie roles that she had always dreamed about. Ever the supportive husband, Arnaz pushed Lucille to try the world of broadcasting. It wasn’t long before Lucille landed a leading part in the radio comedy, ‘My Favourite Husband’ which caught the attention of television executives. They hoped that Lucille would be able to recreate something similar… Except this was to be published on the small screen.

Lucille took the idea home and shortly after, along with Arnaz, put together ‘I Love Lucy’. Success quickly greeted them at the door… and so did a contract with CBS!

WE PRESENT TO YOU... I LOVE LUCY!

At the beginning of the exciting ‘I Love Lucy’ journey, both Lucille and Arnaz knew exactly what they wanted. They wanted the TV show to be created in Hollywood and not New York, and to have their show shot on film rather than the less-expensive kinescope. Sadly, CBS informed them that it was going to be too expensive to shoot their show that way, so Lucille and Arnaz agreed that in order to make it happen, they would take a pay cut. Thanks to this, they gained full ownership of the programme and were able to run it under their new production company - ‘Desilu Productions’... Wow!

It was October 1951, when ‘I Love Lucy’ made its grand debut to the audiences around the country. It quickly proved to be a sitcom that was like no other. I Love Lucy paved the way for other family-related sitcoms to follow, including storylines that focused on marital issues, women in the workplace and suburban living.

Lucille was the star - just like the TV show stated. Lucille was a perfectionist, and hardly anything in the show was ad-libbed. Unbeknown to her at the time, her hard work and success within the field of comedy were laying the foundations for future stars including, Penny Marshall and even Robin Williams!

For four of its seasons, I Love Lucy was No.1 in the country.

LUCY THE LEGEND LIVES ON IN MEMORY

Even though the ‘I Love Lucy’ show came to an end in 1957, Desilu Productions continued and produced more TV hits. Have you ever watched ‘The Dick Van Dyke Show’, ‘Star Trek’ or ‘Mission: Impossible’? You have Lucille and Arnaz to thank for those!

Sadly, Lucille and Arnaz had filled for divorce and this was finalised in 1960. Fast forward 2 years, and Lucille married again to a man named Gary Morton. Lucille bought out Arnaz’s shares in Desilu Productions and took over the company. This meant that she was the first ever woman to run a major TV production studio! In 1967, Lucille sold the company to ‘Gulf-Western’ for $17million… Talk about female empowerment!

So Lucille said ‘goodbye’ to Desilu Productions, but thankfully not to performance! More acting work followed and Lucille landed roles in 2 more sitcoms. Even though these didn’t capture the magic and success of the original I Love Lucy show, it didn’t matter. Lucille had already made her mark and was hugely respected and recognised in the TV industry.

Another huge milestone for Lucille’s came in 1971. She became the first woman to receive the ‘International Radio and Television Society’s’ Gold Medal. Alongside this, there were 4 Emmys, induction into the ‘Television Hall of Fame’ and recognition for her lifetime’s work in the ‘Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’.

On 26th April 1989, Lucille underwent open-heart surgery. Tragically, Lucille’s aorta ruptured and sadly she died on the operating table.

The legend of Lucille lives on in the TV, film & comedy industries (not to mention in the hearts of her fans). She broke down barriers, created jobs, and elevated the roles of women in TV. She was a true renegade in her own right and we will be forever grateful for her wit, grit & bravery.

We love you Lucille!

← Older Post Newer Post →

Occasional Musings

RSS

LDC SCREAM LINE

For anyone who's going through it

Invalid password
Enter

Main menu

  • Scented Candles
  • Shop All
  • Dining & Teaware
  • Shop by Collection
  • The Surreal world of LDC

Newsletter

Join our loyalty club Maison Muse and collect Muse Miles with everything you buy. You will be the first to hear about mystery muses too...

Currency

  • Afghanistan (AF ؋)
  • Åland Islands (AX €)
  • Albania (AL L)
  • Algeria (DZ د.ج)
  • Andorra (AD €)
  • Angola (AO £)
  • Anguilla (AI $)
  • Antigua & Barbuda (AG $)
  • Argentina (AR £)
  • Armenia (AM դր.)
  • Aruba (AW ƒ)
  • Ascension Island (AC £)
  • Australia (AU $)
  • Austria (AT €)
  • Azerbaijan (AZ ₼)
  • Bahamas (BS $)
  • Bahrain (BH £)
  • Bangladesh (BD ৳)
  • Barbados (BB $)
  • Belarus (BY £)
  • Belgium (BE €)
  • Belize (BZ $)
  • Benin (BJ Fr)
  • Bermuda (BM $)
  • Bhutan (BT £)
  • Bolivia (BO Bs.)
  • Bosnia & Herzegovina (BA КМ)
  • Botswana (BW P)
  • Brazil (BR £)
  • British Indian Ocean Territory (IO $)
  • British Virgin Islands (VG $)
  • Brunei (BN $)
  • Bulgaria (BG лв.)
  • Burkina Faso (BF Fr)
  • Burundi (BI Fr)
  • Cambodia (KH ៛)
  • Cameroon (CM Fr)
  • Canada (CA $)
  • Cape Verde (CV $)
  • Caribbean Netherlands (BQ $)
  • Cayman Islands (KY $)
  • Central African Republic (CF Fr)
  • Chad (TD Fr)
  • Chile (CL £)
  • China (CN ¥)
  • Christmas Island (CX $)
  • Cocos (Keeling) Islands (CC $)
  • Colombia (CO £)
  • Comoros (KM Fr)
  • Congo - Brazzaville (CG Fr)
  • Congo - Kinshasa (CD Fr)
  • Cook Islands (CK $)
  • Costa Rica (CR ₡)
  • Côte d’Ivoire (CI Fr)
  • Croatia (HR €)
  • Curaçao (CW ƒ)
  • Cyprus (CY €)
  • Czechia (CZ Kč)
  • Denmark (DK kr.)
  • Djibouti (DJ Fdj)
  • Dominica (DM $)
  • Dominican Republic (DO $)
  • Ecuador (EC $)
  • Egypt (EG ج.م)
  • El Salvador (SV $)
  • Equatorial Guinea (GQ Fr)
  • Eritrea (ER £)
  • Estonia (EE €)
  • Eswatini (SZ £)
  • Ethiopia (ET Br)
  • Falkland Islands (FK £)
  • Faroe Islands (FO kr.)
  • Fiji (FJ $)
  • Finland (FI €)
  • France (FR €)
  • French Guiana (GF €)
  • French Polynesia (PF Fr)
  • French Southern Territories (TF €)
  • Gabon (GA Fr)
  • Gambia (GM D)
  • Georgia (GE £)
  • Germany (DE €)
  • Ghana (GH £)
  • Gibraltar (GI £)
  • Greece (GR €)
  • Greenland (GL kr.)
  • Grenada (GD $)
  • Guadeloupe (GP €)
  • Guatemala (GT Q)
  • Guernsey (GG £)
  • Guinea (GN Fr)
  • Guinea-Bissau (GW Fr)
  • Guyana (GY $)
  • Haiti (HT £)
  • Honduras (HN L)
  • Hong Kong SAR (HK $)
  • Hungary (HU Ft)
  • Iceland (IS kr)
  • India (IN ₹)
  • Indonesia (ID Rp)
  • Iraq (IQ £)
  • Ireland (IE €)
  • Isle of Man (IM £)
  • Israel (IL ₪)
  • Italy (IT €)
  • Jamaica (JM $)
  • Japan (JP ¥)
  • Jersey (JE £)
  • Jordan (JO £)
  • Kazakhstan (KZ 〒)
  • Kenya (KE KSh)
  • Kiribati (KI £)
  • Kosovo (XK €)
  • Kuwait (KW £)
  • Kyrgyzstan (KG som)
  • Laos (LA ₭)
  • Latvia (LV €)
  • Lebanon (LB ل.ل)
  • Lesotho (LS £)
  • Liberia (LR £)
  • Libya (LY £)
  • Liechtenstein (LI CHF)
  • Lithuania (LT €)
  • Luxembourg (LU €)
  • Macao SAR (MO P)
  • Madagascar (MG £)
  • Malawi (MW MK)
  • Malaysia (MY RM)
  • Maldives (MV MVR)
  • Mali (ML Fr)
  • Malta (MT €)
  • Martinique (MQ €)
  • Mauritania (MR £)
  • Mauritius (MU ₨)
  • Mayotte (YT €)
  • Mexico (MX £)
  • Moldova (MD L)
  • Monaco (MC €)
  • Mongolia (MN ₮)
  • Montenegro (ME €)
  • Montserrat (MS $)
  • Morocco (MA د.م.)
  • Mozambique (MZ £)
  • Myanmar (Burma) (MM K)
  • Namibia (NA £)
  • Nauru (NR $)
  • Nepal (NP ₨)
  • Netherlands (NL €)
  • New Caledonia (NC Fr)
  • New Zealand (NZ $)
  • Nicaragua (NI C$)
  • Niger (NE Fr)
  • Nigeria (NG ₦)
  • Niue (NU $)
  • Norfolk Island (NF $)
  • North Macedonia (MK ден)
  • Norway (NO £)
  • Oman (OM £)
  • Pakistan (PK ₨)
  • Palestinian Territories (PS ₪)
  • Panama (PA $)
  • Papua New Guinea (PG K)
  • Paraguay (PY ₲)
  • Peru (PE S/.)
  • Philippines (PH ₱)
  • Pitcairn Islands (PN $)
  • Poland (PL zł)
  • Portugal (PT €)
  • Qatar (QA ر.ق)
  • Réunion (RE €)
  • Romania (RO Lei)
  • Russia (RU £)
  • Rwanda (RW FRw)
  • Samoa (WS T)
  • San Marino (SM €)
  • São Tomé & Príncipe (ST Db)
  • Saudi Arabia (SA ر.س)
  • Senegal (SN Fr)
  • Serbia (RS РСД)
  • Seychelles (SC £)
  • Sierra Leone (SL Le)
  • Singapore (SG $)
  • Sint Maarten (SX ƒ)
  • Slovakia (SK €)
  • Slovenia (SI €)
  • Solomon Islands (SB $)
  • Somalia (SO £)
  • South Africa (ZA £)
  • South Georgia & South Sandwich Islands (GS £)
  • South Korea (KR ₩)
  • South Sudan (SS £)
  • Spain (ES €)
  • Sri Lanka (LK ₨)
  • St. Barthélemy (BL €)
  • St. Helena (SH £)
  • St. Kitts & Nevis (KN $)
  • St. Lucia (LC $)
  • St. Martin (MF €)
  • St. Pierre & Miquelon (PM €)
  • St. Vincent & Grenadines (VC $)
  • Sudan (SD £)
  • Suriname (SR £)
  • Svalbard & Jan Mayen (SJ £)
  • Sweden (SE kr)
  • Switzerland (CH CHF)
  • Taiwan (TW $)
  • Tajikistan (TJ ЅМ)
  • Tanzania (TZ Sh)
  • Thailand (TH ฿)
  • Timor-Leste (TL $)
  • Togo (TG Fr)
  • Tokelau (TK $)
  • Tonga (TO T$)
  • Trinidad & Tobago (TT $)
  • Tristan da Cunha (TA £)
  • Tunisia (TN £)
  • Turkey (TR £)
  • Turkmenistan (TM £)
  • Turks & Caicos Islands (TC $)
  • Tuvalu (TV $)
  • U.S. Outlying Islands (UM $)
  • Uganda (UG USh)
  • Ukraine (UA ₴)
  • United Arab Emirates (AE د.إ)
  • United Kingdom (GB £)
  • United States (US $)
  • Uruguay (UY $)
  • Uzbekistan (UZ )
  • Vanuatu (VU Vt)
  • Vatican City (VA €)
  • Venezuela (VE $)
  • Vietnam (VN ₫)
  • Wallis & Futuna (WF Fr)
  • Western Sahara (EH د.م.)
  • Yemen (YE ﷼)
  • Zambia (ZM £)
  • Zimbabwe (ZW $)
  • © Lauren Dickinson Clarke 2023
  • Search
  • Contact Us
  • Candle Care
  • Product Care
  • Privacy Policy
  • Delivery & Returns
  • Maison Muse | Loyalty Club
  • Trade Enquiries
  • Powered by Shopify
  • Instagram
x