“I Love Lucy” RARE On The Set Video
On October 15, 2016
- TV History, Viewseum
This is a close to “being there” as we’ll ever get. This clip, from an “I Love Lucy” movie, takes us inside the Desilu Playhouse and gives us an ultra rare glimpse of what it was like on the set of one of television’s most famous shows.
The location is General Services Studios, Studio 2, which in 1952 got its own audience entrance at 6633 Romaine Street. The sign at the new entrance invited you into the Desilu Playhouse. The first few years of the show were done here.
As we have confirmed with other sources, this was pretty much the same warm up that Desi used for the entire six years, including the camera push in. Enjoy and share! -Bobby Ellerbee
Today’s sit com set is not a whole lot different.
As I understand it, one of the reasons that “I Love Lucy” lasted so long on air was because of the ageless quality of the recording media. They recorded the show using three film camera covering the action. It made for more cutting options, and the quality was far superior to the more typical video cameras cut live and recorded onto film with a kinoscope. The up front cost was high, but the payoff was a product that looked fresh many decades on. Desi and Lucy had a lot of business savvy, as well as being talented performers.
“So THIS is television.”
Always wonder what the thinking was with casting William Frawley.
Desi Arnaz is so hot.