The exotic flavor that Arnaz brought to any production was not overlooked by his fellow Latinos; in his movie career and as a bandleader and recording artist, he remained one of Cuba's top exports in the decade before "I Love Lucy" and through the 1950s. For the first time, one of their own was beamed into U.S. households on a weekly basis, and on the top-rated show on TV to boot. As Ricky Ricardo, Arnaz also was presented as half of a typical American marriage. In every area of showbiz Arnaz conquered he became that medium's personal good-will ambassador. This resulted in a slew of magazines and publicity featuring Arnaz and Ball overseas and in Latin America. In fact, if you search long enough and hard enough, you can find memorabilia relating to Lucy and her co-stars from just about any country that can support major media like magazines, movies, and television. You might not fully understand the text or language in such items, but Lucy was made to be photographed, so give in to the visual and you'll have a muy bueno tiempo.
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International Hit As a movie star and then TV legend, Lucille Ball was known way beyond the borders of the United States. TV Guide has noted that her face has been seen more often, by more people, than any other in the history of mankind. That includes "I Love Lucy" being seen in 80 different countries, not to mention Ball's more than 80 movie appearances, and all the movie and TV appearances of co-stars Vivian Vance, Wiliam Frawley, and Desi Arnaz. Way before the success of "I Love Lucy," a still-blonde-starlet graced magazine covers like the Spanish Lecturas (October 1936, left).
For example, there's Esther Williams (one of Lucy's film co-stars), on a colorful undersea Christmas set featured on the cover of Mexico's Negro y Blanco y Labores, January, 1951. Inside is a great shot of Lucille Ball. Lucy items with a foreign flavor also include such staples as "I Love Lucy" stamps, like the set from Guyana (right), which are popular tributes to Lucy, and have proliferated since her death in 1989. On eBay you can find items like a 20-page program for the movie, "Yours, Mine And Ours" … from Japan. The press book is full of great black/white and color photos, with text in Japanese, and cast list and credits in Japanese and English.
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