Desilu Productions

…Ball and her husband formed Desilu Productions, which, after experimenting with a radio program, launched in October 1951 a television comedy series entitled I Love Lucy. Starring the two of them in a comedy version of their real lives, the show was an instant hit, and, for the six years…

…helped launch Arnaz and Ball’s Desilu Productions, which became hugely successful. In an unexpected move in 1957, the couple used their fame and wealth to purchase RKO Studios, where they had filmed their first movie together, Too Many Girls. Desilu’s other notable productions included the popular television series The Untouchables…

…1953, and was sold to Desilu Productions in 1957. After numerous corporate reorganizations, the firm continued under the name RKO General, Inc., owning and operating radio and television stations, theatres, and related enterprises.

…Angeles production companies such as Desilu, which began producing I Love Lucy in 1951, had started supplying programs on film even earlier. Whereas 80 percent of network television was broadcast live in 1953, by 1960 that number was down to 36 percent. (By the end of the 1960s, the only…