Lucille Ball's Favorite Movie Is An Oscar-Nominated Gem You Can Stream For Free
Lucille Ball was a force of nature in the entertainment industry for six decades. She starred alongside her husband Desi Arnaz in the pioneering sitcom "I Love Lucy," which, for four of its six seasons, was the most popular show on television. She was one of the most gifted comedians of the 20th century, and parlayed her success into co-founding Desilu Productions with Arnaz, which made her the first woman president of a production studio. Without Ball, we wouldn't have such classic series as "Star Trek," "Mission: Impossible," "The Untouchables," and "Mannix."
In front of and behind the camera, Ball generally had stellar instincts for what works (the 1974 movie production of "Mame" being a notable face-plant). Just think of all the classic "I Love Lucy" bits (the conveyor belt mayhem, Lucy practicing the tango, Lucy getting plastered while shooting a TV commercial); no one could get a studio audience roaring like Ball. She was a laugh-getting dynamo.
If Ball came up short anywhere in her legendary career, it was in the movies. She appeared in all-timers like "Top Hat" and "Stage Door," and worked with the Marx Brothers in "Room Service," but these were all small roles. She had some big-screen hits later on (like 1968's "Yours, Mine and Ours"), but never matched the greatness of her television work. In an interview with the Chicago Tribune near the end of her life, she reflected on her run in the movies. She also let slip that her favorite movie ever was Sam Wood's Oscar-nominated adaptation of Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, "Our Town." This seems fitting.
Lucille Ball was enchanted by the Grovers Corners of Thornton Wilder's Our Town
Thornton Wilder's "Our Town" might be the most frequently produced American play in the country's history. It's received numerous Broadway revivals, and remains a regional theater mainstay to this day (Wilder's drama was even referenced on a recent episode of "Starfleet Academy"). It's a timeless exploration of ... everything, really: life, love, friendship, community, and death. It has a rep for being old-fashioned and sentimental, but the only people who believe this have almost assuredly never seen it.
Ball clearly had, and I can see how a performer who established such a strong rapport with her viewers would find special resonance in a play/film wherein the stage manager speaks directly to the audience. Set in the small town of Grover's Corners, New Hampshire, it's a work of quiet nobility. The stage manager introduces us to Gibbs and the Webb families, who live peacefully next door to each other, and seem to be like one expanded unit. George Gibbs (a shockingly young William Holden) and Emily Webb (Martha Scott) fall in love while young, eventually marry, and start a family together. It's a wonderful existence, but then life throws a tragic curveball.
The play is typically performed on a bare stage, but Wood's movie employs traditional sets (with cinematographer Bert Glennon providing the requisite ethereal mood). The screenplay mostly sticks to Wilder's work, so the heart and soul of the piece are very much in place. I wish the Tribune interviewer had asked Ball to elaborate on her adoration for Wood's "Our Town," but the aforementioned themes (not so much the tragedy) echo throughout the comedic genius' work. It's a movie that unites people, which is all Ball ever tried to do.
"Our Town" is currently available to stream for free on Pluto TV and Tubi.