An sort interview from Desi Arnaz Jr. about his relationship with his mother:
“While I was growing up she tried to keep our lives simple in the midst
of what was going on, tried to let us have a real life. I grew up at the studio
behind the camera, climbing up ladders and running around the soundstage. But I
understood right away about the difference between real life and television. I
wasn't the one who was confused—other people were. They thought I was Little
Ricky. But I knew Fred and Ethel didn't live next door—Jack Benny did. I just saw her as my mother. She wasn't really a disciplinarian or taskmaster. Since Dad was no longer there [after 20 years, Lucy and Desi divorced in 1960], she felt she had a responsibility to the show. She had a lot of old-fashioned values that she got from her mother. My parents always said there's a lot more to life than how much money you have or how much you impress people.
During the days I was doing drugs, they tried to help me. My father had a drinking problem; my mother was a person just like anybody else. When I went through drug and alcohol recovery seven years ago, they went through it with me. Sometimes people in the public eye don't want to reveal anything going on inside them in front of even one other person, and it was extraordinary that they did it. It got better for us after that. We could talk to each other more easily.
We were really very close in those later years,
we were able to say everything we needed to say to each
other. All along she said, "What's important in this life is to be happy and to enjoy your life and have a good relationship with somebody." She wanted to have a happy life. She did the best she could.”
.jpg)
That's a very sweet thing to say, Mr. Arnaz. I'm afraid I've been mad at your sister because of the way she makes you mom look. But you are heroic in the way you defend her. God bless you.
ReplyDeleteMellowed by this profound knowledge of letting go, middle-aged love is less arrogant,more abject and more philosophical. Unlike in the first flush of youth when love is at the very first sight and its demise is at the very first slight, love, if it at all happens at this age, is rather with a philosophical construct, than with a person.
ReplyDeletekizi Games free
free games online
friv school Games 2019
Desi Jr, If by chance you read this forum...
ReplyDeleteI believe your parents would be very proud of the man you've become and also of your sister. I'm sure they were always proud of you. It's so easy for us to judge other people's lives when we have no idea of the reality of their experiences. Unfortunately fame throws celebrity lives in front of a world full of people who don't know you (myself included) and yet think they do because of the amount of visibility and press. I once met Robert Reed after a performances in Orange County CA. I asked him what it was like to be part of TV history and be famous. His exact words where "it doesn't amount to a hill of beans."
I can only imagine the ups and downs of teenage years magnified by having Hollywood legend parents. Your parents with all of their success ultimately wanted to have a happy family and loved their kids. Unfortunately the biz took a toll on Lucy & Desi Sr. It without a doubt complicated their lives. I'm sorry for the loss of your beloved wife.It appears you found something real with her. I must add that I admire your sister Lucie's candid remarks of your parents' marriage difficulties etc. I never got the impression that she was dishonoring them. In fact I think she was standing up for them. She also seems very loyal to her brother.