Vivian Vance
Encyclopedia
Vivian Roberta Jones was an American television and theater actress and singer. Often referred to as “TV’s most beloved second banana,” she is best known for her role as Ethel Mertz
, sidekick
to Lucille Ball
on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy
, and as Vivian Bagley on The Lucy Show
.
, Vance was the second of six children born to Robert Jones and Euphemia Ragan. When she was six years old her family moved to Independence, Kansas
, where she eventually began her dramatic studies at Independence High School under the tutelage of Anna Ingleman, the drama instructor. Her love of acting clashed with her mother's strict religious beliefs, and it wasn't too long before Vance, nickname
d "Viv" by friends, became very rebellious, often sneaking out of her bedroom and staying out after curfew
. She soon changed her surname
to Vance (after folklorist Vance Randolph
) and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico
, to find work as an actress. Vance was a founding member of the Albuquerque Little Theatre
, where she appeared in many plays including, This Thing Called Love and The Cradle Song. The local theatre community helped pay her way to New York to study under Eva Le Gallienne
.
and Eve Arden
for over 500 performances.
and later in her career:
and wife Lucille Ball
were casting their new television sitcom I Love Lucy in 1951, director
Marc Daniels
, who had previously worked with Vivian Vance in a theater production, suggested Vance for the role of landlady Ethel Mertz. Lucille Ball had wanted either actresses Bea Benaderet
or Barbara Pepper, two close friends, to play the role. CBS refused Pepper on the grounds that she had a drinking problem, and Benaderet was already playing Blanche Morton on the Burns and Allen
television series. Arnaz then began searching for another actress. Daniels took Arnaz to the La Jolla Playhouse
, along with producer
Jess Oppenheimer
, to see Vance in the John Van Druten play The Voice of the Turtle
. While watching her perform, Arnaz was convinced he had found the right actress to play Ethel Mertz. Ball was less sure. She had envisioned Ethel to be much older and less attractive. Vance, however, was close to Ball's age and was attractive. In addition, Ball, firmly entrenched in film and radio, had never heard of Vance, who was primarily a theater actress. Nonetheless, the 42-year-old Vance was given the role on the new television program
, which debuted October 15, 1951, on CBS
. Throughout the run of the show, Vance's character of Ethel Mertz was dressed in old-fashioned and frumpier clothing to tone down her attractiveness and make her look older than she actually was. Although Vance's and Ball's friendship was lukewarm initially, Ball eventually overcame her resistance to Vance and began respecting her as a friend and an actress, and the two formed a close friendship.
Vance's Ethel Mertz character
was the less-than-prosperous landlady of a New York City brownstone
, owned by her and husband Fred Mertz on East 68th Street. The role of Fred was played by William Frawley
, who was 22 years her senior in real life. While Vance and Frawley shared great acting, comedic, and musical chemistry on-screen, off-screen they did not get along. According to some reports, things first went sour when Frawley overheard Vance complaining about his age, stating that he should be playing her father rather than her husband. She used to skim through the script before she memorized her lines to see how many scenes she had with that "stubborn-headed little Irishman." Others recall that Vance and Frawley practically loathed each other on sight, and that Vance was put off by Frawley's cantankerous ways and attitude.
Honored for her work in 1953, Vance became the first actress to win an Emmy Award
for "Outstanding Supporting Actress". Vance accepted her award at the Emmy ceremony in February 1954. She was nominated an additional three times (for 1954, 1956 and 1957) before the end of the series.
In 1957, after the highly successful half-hour I Love Lucy episode
s had ended, Vance continued playing Ethel Mertz on a series of hour-long specials
titled The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show
(later retitled The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour). In 1959, she divorced her third husband Philip Ober, who allegedly physically abused
her. When I Love Lucy was reformatted into the hour-long Lucy-Desi shows in 1957, Desi Arnaz proposed to Vance and Frawley the opportunity to star in their own "Fred and Ethel" spin-off show. Although Frawley was very interested, Vance declined mainly because she did not want work on a one on one basis with Frawley as they already did not get along. Also, she felt the Mertz characters would be unsuccessful in a show without the Ricardos. Vance declining the would-be show intensified the animosity between her and Frawley. Instead Vance was interested in doing a series based on the life of Babs Hooten, a New York socialite who moves to New Mexico to run a hotel and ranch. Desi Arnaz financed a pilot starring Vance as Hooten titled Guestward, Ho!
which was shot in 1958 by Desilu, however, the show was rejected by CBS and in turn Vance continued in her Ethel Mertz role. Arnaz would later retool the show with model and actress Joanne Dru
taking the lead role, selling the series to ABC where it was subsequently cancelled after one season.
In 1961 she married literary agent
John Dodds (d. 1986). The couple established their home in the North Stamford
section of Stamford, Connecticut
, and the marriage lasted until Vance's death.
In 1962, Lucille Ball was planning to return to television in a new series, The Lucy Show
. The premise of the series starred Ball as Lucy Carmichael, a widow with two children living in Danfield, New York. Vance reluctantly agreed to be her co-star on the condition that she be allowed to appear in more glamorous clothes as well as having her character be named "Vivian". By this time in her life, Vance had grown tired of the public addressing her as "Ethel". She appeared on The Lucy Show from 1962 until 1965, as Vivian Bagley, a divorced mother of one son, sharing a house with Ball's character. The character was the first divorcee ever on a weekly American television series.
The strain of commuting from her home in Connecticut
to Hollywood was too hard on her. In the third season, Vance didn't appear in 7 of the season's 26 episodes. In 1965, after completing her third year on the series, Vance decided to leave. At the start of the 1965-1966 season, the format of the sitcom had changed. The "Lucy" character moved out to Los Angeles. Vivian Bagley remarried and she, her son and her new husband remained in Danfield. Before she departed the show, Vance was offered a new contract with Desilu Studios, giving her the opportunity to direct. This never came to fruition, though, when Vance could not reach an agreement on salary
. She made only 3 more guest appearances on the remaining seasons of The Lucy Show.
. Vance saw this as an opportunity to restart a movie career which never really took off. The film was a moderate success, receiving several Academy Award nominations; however, it did little to help Vance establish a career as a movie actress.
Vance was slated to make her return to Broadway in the Woody Allen
comedy Don't Drink the Water. However, Vance left the play during its out-of-town tryouts. Vance would later say that she felt the role was not right for her and asked the show's producers to be let out of her contract. Vance would end up making her Broadway return several years later in 1969 in the comedy My Daughter, Your Son. However, the show was not a success and lasted only five weeks. A national tour with Vivian reprising her Broadway role proved to be more successful.
After her departure from The Lucy Show, Vance appeared occasionally alongside Lucille Ball on reunion shows and made several guest appearances on Ball's third sitcom, Here's Lucy
(1968–1974). In 1973, Vance was diagnosed with breast cancer
. The following year, she and her husband moved to Belvedere, California
, so she could be near her sister. It was during this period that Vivian’s agent got her an endorsement deal with Maxwell House Coffee. Over the next several years Vivian could be seen in numerous commercials for Maxwell House. The 70's also saw Vance making a number of TV guest appearances as well as appearing in a number of made for TV movies including The Front Page in 1970, Getting Away From it All in 1972, and The Great Houdini in 1976.
which left her partially paralyzed
.
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She died on August 17, 1979, of bone cancer (secondary to breast cancer). After her death, Desi Arnaz
remarked, "It’s bad enough to lose one of the great artists we had the honor and the pleasure to work with, but it’s even harder to reconcile the loss of one of your best friends."
She was the godmother of Lovin' Spoonful guitarist John Sebastian
, and had been very close friends with his mother Jane. Vivian Vance, through all of her marriages, never had a child.
Her body was cremated, and the ashes scattered at sea. Family members donated Vance's Emmy Award
to the Albuquerque Little Theatre
after her death.
During a 1986 interview, Lucille Ball talked about watching I Love Lucy rerun
s and her reaction to Vance's performance: "I find that now I usually spend my time looking at Viv. Viv was sensational. And back then, there were things I had to do—I was in the projection room for some reason, and I just couldn't concentrate on it. But now I can. And I enjoy every move that Viv made. She was something."
For her achievements in the field of television, Vance was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
in 1991 at 7030 Hollywood Boulevard
.
Vance is memorialized in the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center
in Jamestown, New York
.
On January 20, 2010, the San Francisco Chronicle
reported that a local antique dealer had inherited many of Vance's photos and scrapbooks and a manuscript of Vance's unpublished autobiography when John Dodds died in 1986.
Vance will be inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame on March 1, 2012.
Ethel Mertz
Ethel Roberta Louise Mae Mertz is one of the four main fictional characters in the highly popular 1950s and 1960s American television sitcom I Love Lucy, played by Vivian Vance. Ethel is the main character Lucy's middle-aged landlady - supposed to have been born about 1905, and raised in New Mexico...
, sidekick
Sidekick
A sidekick is a close companion who is generally regarded as subordinate to the one he accompanies. Some well-known fictional sidekicks are Don Quixote's Sancho Panza, Sherlock Holmes' Doctor Watson, The Lone Ranger's Tonto, The Green Hornet's Kato and Batman's Robin.-Origins:The origin of the...
to Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
on the American television sitcom I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy
I Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
, and as Vivian Bagley on The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS from 1962 until 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to I Love Lucy. A significant change in cast and premise for the 1965-66 season divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only Gale Gordon, who joined the program...
.
Early life
Born Vivian Roberta Jones in Cherryvale, KansasCherryvale, Kansas
Cherryvale is a city in Montgomery County, Kansas, United States. The population was 2,386 at the 2000 census.-History:Cherryvale was founded on the land of the Osage Indians who were pushed out by veterans of the American Civil War looking for land. The first white man to purchase property and...
, Vance was the second of six children born to Robert Jones and Euphemia Ragan. When she was six years old her family moved to Independence, Kansas
Independence, Kansas
Independence is a city in and the county seat of Montgomery County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 9,483.-Geography:...
, where she eventually began her dramatic studies at Independence High School under the tutelage of Anna Ingleman, the drama instructor. Her love of acting clashed with her mother's strict religious beliefs, and it wasn't too long before Vance, nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
d "Viv" by friends, became very rebellious, often sneaking out of her bedroom and staying out after curfew
Curfew
A curfew is an order specifying a time after which certain regulations apply. Examples:# An order by a government for certain persons to return home daily before a certain time...
. She soon changed her surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
to Vance (after folklorist Vance Randolph
Vance Randolph
Vance Randolph was a famous folklorist who studied the folklore of the Ozarks in particular. He wrote a number of books on topics including the Ozarks, Little Blue Books, and juvenile fiction....
) and moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
, to find work as an actress. Vance was a founding member of the Albuquerque Little Theatre
Albuquerque Little Theatre
The Albuquerque Little Theatre was founded in 1930 by a group of civic-minded citizens led by Irene Fisher, a reporter and the society editor for the New Mexico Tribune. The idea of a local theatre group was born when Ms. Fisher attended a lecture by a professional actress named Kathryn Kennedy...
, where she appeared in many plays including, This Thing Called Love and The Cradle Song. The local theatre community helped pay her way to New York to study under Eva Le Gallienne
Eva Le Gallienne
Eva Le Gallienne was a well-known actress, producer, and director, during the first half of the 20th century.-Early life and early career:...
.
Broadway
Starting in 1932, Vivian was in a number of shows on Broadway, usually as a member of the chorus. Eventually she graduated to supporting parts after she replaced Kay Thompson in the musical Hooray for What! Her most successful stage role was that of Nancy Collister in the Cole Porter musical Let's Face It! in which she starred alongside Danny KayeDanny Kaye
Danny Kaye was a celebrated American actor, singer, dancer, and comedian...
and Eve Arden
Eve Arden
Eve Arden was an American actress. Her almost 60-year career crossed most media frontiers with supporting and leading roles, but she may be best-remembered for playing the sardonic but engaging title character, a high school teacher, on Our Miss Brooks, and as the Rydell High School principal in...
for over 500 performances.
- Music in the Air- November 8, 1932-September 16 , 1933
- Anything GoesAnything GoesAnything Goes is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London...
- November 21, 1934-November 16, 1935 - Red, Hot and Blue - October 29, 1936-April 10, 1937
- Hooray for What! - December 1, 1937-May 21, 1938
- Skylark - October 11, 1939-May 25, 1940
- Out From Under - May 4, 1940-May 11, 1940
- Let’s Face It! - October 29, 1941-March 20, 1943
- It Takes Two - February 3, 1947-February 8, 1947
- The Cradle Will Rock (revival) - December 26, 1947-February 7, 1948
and later in her career:
- My Daughter, Your Son - May 14, 1969-June 21, 1969
Film
Following her appearance in a revival of the 1930s’ musical The Cradle Will Rock, Vance decided to move to California to pursue other theatre projects as well as opportunities in film. During her stay in Los Angeles, Vance appeared in two films: 1950’s The Secret Fury as Leah, a streetwise chambermaid, and in 1951’s The Blue Veil as Alicia. Aside from receiving several positive notices for her performance the films did little to further Vance’s career as a film actress. In all Vance was only to make four film appearances.- Take a Chance (1933)-Dancehall Girl
- The Secret Fury (1950)- Leah
- The Blue Veil (1951)- Alicia
- The Great Race (1965)- Hester Goodbody
I Love Lucy
When Desi ArnazDesi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
and wife Lucille Ball
Lucille Ball
Lucille Désirée Ball was an American comedian, film, television, stage and radio actress, model, film and television executive, and star of the sitcoms I Love Lucy, The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, Here's Lucy and Life With Lucy...
were casting their new television sitcom I Love Lucy in 1951, director
Television director
A television director directs the activities involved in making a television program and is part of a television crew.-Duties:The duties of a television director vary depending on whether the production is live or recorded to video tape or video server .In both types of productions, the...
Marc Daniels
Marc Daniels
Marc Daniels , born Danny Marcus, was an American television director.-Life and Career:After serving in World War II, Daniels was hired by CBS to direct its first dramatic anthology program, Ford Theater. He mastered live television directing, and was hired to direct the first 38 episodes of I...
, who had previously worked with Vivian Vance in a theater production, suggested Vance for the role of landlady Ethel Mertz. Lucille Ball had wanted either actresses Bea Benaderet
Bea Benaderet
Bea Benaderet was an American actress born in New York City and raised in San Francisco, California. She is best remembered for her wide variety of television work, which included a starring role in the 1960s television series Petticoat Junction and Green Acres as Shady Rest Hotel owner Kate...
or Barbara Pepper, two close friends, to play the role. CBS refused Pepper on the grounds that she had a drinking problem, and Benaderet was already playing Blanche Morton on the Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen
Burns and Allen, an American comedy duo consisting of George Burns and his wife, Gracie Allen, worked together as a comedy team in vaudeville, films, radio and television and achieved great success over four decades.-Vaudeville:...
television series. Arnaz then began searching for another actress. Daniels took Arnaz to the La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse
La Jolla Playhouse is a not-for-profit, professional theatre-in-residence on the campus of the University of California, San Diego. -Background:...
, along with producer
Television producer
The primary role of a television Producer is to allow all aspects of video production, ranging from show idea development and cast hiring to shoot supervision and fact-checking...
Jess Oppenheimer
Jess Oppenheimer
Jess Oppenheimer a radio and television writer, producer, and director, was producer and head writer of the CBS sitcom I Love Lucy.Lucille Ball called Oppenheimer "the brains" behind I Love Lucy...
, to see Vance in the John Van Druten play The Voice of the Turtle
The Voice of the Turtle (play)
The Voice of the Turtle is a comedic Broadway play by John William Van Druten dealing with the challenges of the single life in New York City during World War II...
. While watching her perform, Arnaz was convinced he had found the right actress to play Ethel Mertz. Ball was less sure. She had envisioned Ethel to be much older and less attractive. Vance, however, was close to Ball's age and was attractive. In addition, Ball, firmly entrenched in film and radio, had never heard of Vance, who was primarily a theater actress. Nonetheless, the 42-year-old Vance was given the role on the new television program
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
, which debuted October 15, 1951, on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
. Throughout the run of the show, Vance's character of Ethel Mertz was dressed in old-fashioned and frumpier clothing to tone down her attractiveness and make her look older than she actually was. Although Vance's and Ball's friendship was lukewarm initially, Ball eventually overcame her resistance to Vance and began respecting her as a friend and an actress, and the two formed a close friendship.
Vance's Ethel Mertz character
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
was the less-than-prosperous landlady of a New York City brownstone
Brownstone
Brownstone is a brown Triassic or Jurassic sandstone which was once a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States to refer to a terraced house clad in this material.-Types:-Apostle Island brownstone:...
, owned by her and husband Fred Mertz on East 68th Street. The role of Fred was played by William Frawley
William Frawley
William Clement "Bill" Frawley was an American stage entertainer, screen and television actor. Although Frawley acted in over 100 films, he achieved his greatest fame playing landlord Fred Mertz for the situation comedy I Love Lucy.-Early life:William was born to Michael A. Frawley and Mary E....
, who was 22 years her senior in real life. While Vance and Frawley shared great acting, comedic, and musical chemistry on-screen, off-screen they did not get along. According to some reports, things first went sour when Frawley overheard Vance complaining about his age, stating that he should be playing her father rather than her husband. She used to skim through the script before she memorized her lines to see how many scenes she had with that "stubborn-headed little Irishman." Others recall that Vance and Frawley practically loathed each other on sight, and that Vance was put off by Frawley's cantankerous ways and attitude.
Honored for her work in 1953, Vance became the first actress to win an Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
for "Outstanding Supporting Actress". Vance accepted her award at the Emmy ceremony in February 1954. She was nominated an additional three times (for 1954, 1956 and 1957) before the end of the series.
In 1957, after the highly successful half-hour I Love Lucy episode
Episode
An episode is a part of a dramatic work such as a serial television or radio program. An episode is a part of a sequence of a body of work, akin to a chapter of a book. The term sometimes applies to works based on other forms of mass media as well, as in Star Wars...
s had ended, Vance continued playing Ethel Mertz on a series of hour-long specials
Television special
A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...
titled The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show
The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour
The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour is a CBS television situation comedy. The show is a collection of occasional specials rather than a regular series and originally served as part of Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse...
(later retitled The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour). In 1959, she divorced her third husband Philip Ober, who allegedly physically abused
Physical abuse
Physical abuse is abuse involving contact intended to cause feelings of intimidation, injury, or other physical suffering or bodily harm.-Forms of physical abuse:*Striking*Punching*Belting*Pushing, pulling*Slapping*Whipping*Striking with an object...
her. When I Love Lucy was reformatted into the hour-long Lucy-Desi shows in 1957, Desi Arnaz proposed to Vance and Frawley the opportunity to star in their own "Fred and Ethel" spin-off show. Although Frawley was very interested, Vance declined mainly because she did not want work on a one on one basis with Frawley as they already did not get along. Also, she felt the Mertz characters would be unsuccessful in a show without the Ricardos. Vance declining the would-be show intensified the animosity between her and Frawley. Instead Vance was interested in doing a series based on the life of Babs Hooten, a New York socialite who moves to New Mexico to run a hotel and ranch. Desi Arnaz financed a pilot starring Vance as Hooten titled Guestward, Ho!
Guestward, Ho!
Guestward, Ho! is a situation comedy which aired on the ABC network in the 1960-1961 television season, based on the 1956 book of the same title by Patrick Dennis, author of Auntie Mame....
which was shot in 1958 by Desilu, however, the show was rejected by CBS and in turn Vance continued in her Ethel Mertz role. Arnaz would later retool the show with model and actress Joanne Dru
Joanne Dru
Joanne Dru was an American film and television actress, known for such films as Red River and All the King's Men.-Career:...
taking the lead role, selling the series to ABC where it was subsequently cancelled after one season.
The Lucy Show
Literary agent
A literary agent is an agent who represents writers and their written works to publishers, theatrical producers and film producers and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers...
John Dodds (d. 1986). The couple established their home in the North Stamford
North Stamford
North Stamford is section of Stamford, Connecticut north of the Merritt Parkway. Often hilly and woodsy, it is less densely developed than the rest of the city....
section of Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
, and the marriage lasted until Vance's death.
In 1962, Lucille Ball was planning to return to television in a new series, The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show
The Lucy Show is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS from 1962 until 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to I Love Lucy. A significant change in cast and premise for the 1965-66 season divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only Gale Gordon, who joined the program...
. The premise of the series starred Ball as Lucy Carmichael, a widow with two children living in Danfield, New York. Vance reluctantly agreed to be her co-star on the condition that she be allowed to appear in more glamorous clothes as well as having her character be named "Vivian". By this time in her life, Vance had grown tired of the public addressing her as "Ethel". She appeared on The Lucy Show from 1962 until 1965, as Vivian Bagley, a divorced mother of one son, sharing a house with Ball's character. The character was the first divorcee ever on a weekly American television series.
The strain of commuting from her home in Connecticut
Connecticut
Connecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
to Hollywood was too hard on her. In the third season, Vance didn't appear in 7 of the season's 26 episodes. In 1965, after completing her third year on the series, Vance decided to leave. At the start of the 1965-1966 season, the format of the sitcom had changed. The "Lucy" character moved out to Los Angeles. Vivian Bagley remarried and she, her son and her new husband remained in Danfield. Before she departed the show, Vance was offered a new contract with Desilu Studios, giving her the opportunity to direct. This never came to fruition, though, when Vance could not reach an agreement on salary
Salary
A salary is a form of periodic payment from an employer to an employee, which may be specified in an employment contract. It is contrasted with piece wages, where each job, hour or other unit is paid separately, rather than on a periodic basis....
. She made only 3 more guest appearances on the remaining seasons of The Lucy Show.
Life after Lucy
Following her departure from The Lucy Show at the end of the third season, Vance signed on to appear in a Blake Edwards Film, The Great RaceThe Great Race
The Great Race is a 1965 slapstick comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood, directed by Blake Edwards, written by Blake Edwards and Arthur A. Ross, and with music by Henry Mancini and cinematography by Russell Harlan. The supporting cast includes Peter Falk, Keenan Wynn,...
. Vance saw this as an opportunity to restart a movie career which never really took off. The film was a moderate success, receiving several Academy Award nominations; however, it did little to help Vance establish a career as a movie actress.
Vance was slated to make her return to Broadway in the Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
comedy Don't Drink the Water. However, Vance left the play during its out-of-town tryouts. Vance would later say that she felt the role was not right for her and asked the show's producers to be let out of her contract. Vance would end up making her Broadway return several years later in 1969 in the comedy My Daughter, Your Son. However, the show was not a success and lasted only five weeks. A national tour with Vivian reprising her Broadway role proved to be more successful.
After her departure from The Lucy Show, Vance appeared occasionally alongside Lucille Ball on reunion shows and made several guest appearances on Ball's third sitcom, Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
(1968–1974). In 1973, Vance was diagnosed with breast cancer
Breast cancer
Breast cancer is cancer originating from breast tissue, most commonly from the inner lining of milk ducts or the lobules that supply the ducts with milk. Cancers originating from ducts are known as ductal carcinomas; those originating from lobules are known as lobular carcinomas...
. The following year, she and her husband moved to Belvedere, California
Belvedere, California
Belvedere is an affluent city in Marin County, California, United States. Belvedere is located northeast of Sausalito, at an elevation of 36 feet...
, so she could be near her sister. It was during this period that Vivian’s agent got her an endorsement deal with Maxwell House Coffee. Over the next several years Vivian could be seen in numerous commercials for Maxwell House. The 70's also saw Vance making a number of TV guest appearances as well as appearing in a number of made for TV movies including The Front Page in 1970, Getting Away From it All in 1972, and The Great Houdini in 1976.
Death
Vance made her final television appearance with Lucille Ball on the CBS special Lucy Calls the President, which aired November 21, 1977. That same year, Vance suffered a strokeStroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
which left her partially paralyzed
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
.
Desi Arnaz
Desi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
remarked, "It’s bad enough to lose one of the great artists we had the honor and the pleasure to work with, but it’s even harder to reconcile the loss of one of your best friends."
She was the godmother of Lovin' Spoonful guitarist John Sebastian
John Sebastian
John Benson Sebastian Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and autoharpist. He is best known as a founder of The Lovin' Spoonful, a band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000...
, and had been very close friends with his mother Jane. Vivian Vance, through all of her marriages, never had a child.
Her body was cremated, and the ashes scattered at sea. Family members donated Vance's Emmy Award
Emmy Award
An Emmy Award, often referred to simply as the Emmy, is a television production award, similar in nature to the Peabody Awards but more focused on entertainment, and is considered the television equivalent to the Academy Awards and the Grammy Awards .A majority of Emmys are presented in various...
to the Albuquerque Little Theatre
Albuquerque Little Theatre
The Albuquerque Little Theatre was founded in 1930 by a group of civic-minded citizens led by Irene Fisher, a reporter and the society editor for the New Mexico Tribune. The idea of a local theatre group was born when Ms. Fisher attended a lecture by a professional actress named Kathryn Kennedy...
after her death.
During a 1986 interview, Lucille Ball talked about watching I Love Lucy rerun
Rerun
A rerun or repeat is a re-airing of an episode of a radio or television broadcast. The invention of the rerun is generally credited to Desi Arnaz. There are two types of reruns—those that occur during a hiatus, and those that occur when a program is syndicated. Reruns can also be, as the...
s and her reaction to Vance's performance: "I find that now I usually spend my time looking at Viv. Viv was sensational. And back then, there were things I had to do—I was in the projection room for some reason, and I just couldn't concentrate on it. But now I can. And I enjoy every move that Viv made. She was something."
For her achievements in the field of television, Vance was posthumously awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
Hollywood Walk of Fame
The Hollywood Walk of Fame consists of more than 2,400 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along fifteen blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, California...
in 1991 at 7030 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood Boulevard
-Revitalization:In recent years successful efforts have been made at cleaning up Hollywood Blvd., as the street had gained a reputation for crime and seediness. Central to these efforts was the construction of the Hollywood and Highland shopping center and adjacent Kodak Theatre in 2001...
.
Vance is memorialized in the Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center
Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center
The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center is a museum in Jamestown, New York, dedicated to the lives and careers of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. The museum officially opened in 1996 "to preserve and celebrate the legacy of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and enrich the world through the healing powers of love...
in Jamestown, New York
Jamestown, New York
Jamestown is a city in Chautauqua County, New York in the United States. The population was 31,146 at the 2010 census.The City of Jamestown is adjacent to Town of Ellicott and is at the southern tip of Chautauqua Lake...
.
On January 20, 2010, the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
reported that a local antique dealer had inherited many of Vance's photos and scrapbooks and a manuscript of Vance's unpublished autobiography when John Dodds died in 1986.
Vance will be inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame on March 1, 2012.
Filmography
- Lucy Calls the President (TV, 1977) as Viv
- The Great HoudiniThe Great HoudiniThe Great Houdini: Magician Extraordinary, written by Beryl Williams and Samuel Epstein, is a biography on Harry Houdini, the great handcuff king and magician.This book tells about Houdini's life and reveals some of the secrets to his greatest tricks....
(TV, 1976) as Minnie (nurse) - RhodaRhodaRhoda is an American television sitcom, starring Valerie Harper, which ran for five seasons, from 1974 to 1978 airing in 109 episodes. The show was a spin-off from The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which Harper between the years 1970 and 1974 had played the role of Rhoda Morgenstern, a spunky,...
(1 episode, 1975) as Maggie Cummings - Here's LucyHere's LucyHere's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
(4 episodes, 1968–1972) as Vivian Jones - Getting Away from It All (TV, 1972) as May Brodey
- The Front PageThe Front PageThe Front Page is a hit Broadway comedy about tabloid newspaper reporters on the police beat, written by one-time Chicago reporters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur which was first produced in 1928.-Synopsis:...
(TV, 1970) as Mrs. Grant - Love, American StyleLove, American StyleLove, American Style is an hour-long TV anthology produced by Paramount Television and originally aired between September 1969 and January 1974...
(1 episode, 1969) as Madame Zimia Zygmundt (segment "Love and the Medium") - The Lucy ShowThe Lucy ShowThe Lucy Show is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS from 1962 until 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to I Love Lucy. A significant change in cast and premise for the 1965-66 season divides the program into two distinct eras; aside from Ball, only Gale Gordon, who joined the program...
(80 episodes, 1962–1968) as Vivian Bagley - The Great RaceThe Great RaceThe Great Race is a 1965 slapstick comedy film starring Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Natalie Wood, directed by Blake Edwards, written by Blake Edwards and Arthur A. Ross, and with music by Henry Mancini and cinematography by Russell Harlan. The supporting cast includes Peter Falk, Keenan Wynn,...
(1965) as Hester Goodbody - The Red Skelton ShowThe Red Skelton ShowThe Red Skelton Show is an American variety show that was a television staple for two decades, from 1951 to 1971. It was second to Gunsmoke and third to The Ed Sullivan Show in the ratings during that time. Skelton, who had previously been a radio star, had appeared in several motion pictures as...
(6 episodes, 1960–1964) as Clara Appleby - Guestward Ho! (1 episode, 1960)
- The Lucy-Desi Comedy HourThe Lucy-Desi Comedy HourThe Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour is a CBS television situation comedy. The show is a collection of occasional specials rather than a regular series and originally served as part of Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse...
(13 episodes, 1957–1960) as Ethel Mertz - The DeputyThe DeputyThe Deputy, a Christian tragedy , also known as The Representative, is a controversial 1963 play by Rolf Hochhuth which indicts Pope Pius XII for his failure to take action or speak out against The Holocaust. It has been translated into more than twenty languages...
(1 episode, 1959) as Emma Gant - I Love LucyI Love LucyI Love Lucy is an American television sitcom starring Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley. The black-and-white series originally ran from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, on the Columbia Broadcasting System...
(176 episodes, 1951–1957) as Ethel Mertz - The Blue VeilThe Blue VeilThe Blue Veil is a 1951 American drama film directed by Curtis Bernhardt. The screenplay by Norman Corwin is based on a story by François Campaux, which was adapted for the French language film Le Voile bleu in 1942.-Plot:...
(1951) as Alicia - The Secret FuryThe Secret FuryThe Secret Fury is a 1950 American black-and-white drama film distributed by RKO Radio Pictures, directed by Mel Ferrer.-Plot:A wealthy classical pianist, Ellen, is accused of already being married when she attempts to take her wedding vows; the wedding guests are shocked...
(1950) as Leah - Take a Chance (1933, uncredited) as Dancehall Girl
Broadway credits
- Music in the AirMusic in the AirMusic in the Air is a musical written by Oscar Hammerstein II and Jerome Kern . It introduced songs such as "The Song Is You", "In Egern on the Tegern See" and "I've Told Ev'ry Little Star"...
(1932–1933) - Anything GoesAnything GoesAnything Goes is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The original book was a collaborative effort by Guy Bolton and P.G. Wodehouse, heavily revised by the team of Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The story concerns madcap antics aboard an ocean liner bound from New York to London...
(1934–1935) - Red, Hot and BlueRed, Hot and BlueRed, Hot and Blue is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter and the book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. The musical premiered on Broadway in 1936 and introduced the popular song, "It's De-Lovely" sung by Ethel Merman.-Synopsis:...
(1936–1937) - Hooray for What!Hooray for What!Hooray for What! is an anti-war musical with music by Harold Arlen, lyrics by E. Y. Harburg and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It introduced the song "Down With Love".-Productions:...
(1937–1938) - Skylark (1939–1940)
- Out From Under (1940)
- Let's Face It!Let's Face It!Let's Face It! is a musical with music and lyrics by Cole Porter. The book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields is based on the 1925 play The Cradle Snatchers by Russell Medcraft and Norma Mitchell....
(1941–1943) - It Takes Two (1947)
- The Cradle Will RockThe Cradle Will RockThe Cradle Will Rock is a 1937 musical by Marc Blitzstein. Originally a part of the Federal Theatre Project, it was directed by Orson Welles, and produced by John Houseman. The show was recorded and released on seven 78-rpm discs in 1938, making it the first cast album recording.The musical is a...
(1947–1948) - My Daughter, Your Son (1969)
For further reading
- Castelluccio, Frank and Walker, Alvin. The Other Side of Ethel Mertz: The Life Story of Vivian Vance. New York: Berkley Books, 2000. ISBN 0425176096
- Edelman, Rob and Kupferberg, Audre. Meet the Mertzes: The Life Stories of I Love Lucy's Other Couple. Los Angeles, Calif.: Renaissance Books, 1999. ISBN 1580630952