They Love Lucy at First Convention

Well, yes, that dimpled redhead in the corner does look a lot like Lucy. And frankly, now that you mention it, the handsome Cuban Lothario next to her could easily pass as Ricky.

As well they should.

They’re Lucy and Ricky look-alikes, who descended Saturday on the Burbank Airport Hilton along with hundreds of adoring fans of one of the most popular television shows ever, “I Love Lucy,” and its beloved star, Lucille Ball.

A three-day event, Loving Lucy ’96 is the first-ever national Lucy convention, marking the sitcom’s 45th anniversary.

It was expected to attract more than 500 followers of the wacky, charming, carrot-top comedian whose antics have been beamed into living rooms around the world. But by its second day, at least twice that many had packed the hotel.

“With this lady, you can’t go wrong,” said organizer Tom Watson, who worked as a publicist for Ball for four years and confesses to being a huge fan of his old boss. “I didn’t know when we opened the door yesterday whether we’d get 15 people or 1,500. And happily, it’s been the latter,” said Watson, who founded the We Love Lucy fan club in 1977.

The convention kicked off Friday night at the Academy Plaza Theater in North Hollywood with rare clips of Ball throughout her long career.

But most of the attention centered on “I Love Lucy,” the show that made Ball a household name and that still plays in syndication seven days a week.

For inveterate Lucy bric-a-brac collectors, there appeared no shortage of possibilities. There were porcelain Lucy and Ricky teapots, Lucy and Ricky banks, and Lucy and Ricky salt and pepper shakers. To say nothing of the porcelain cookie jar bearing the likenesses of not only the Ricardos but their lovable neighbors, Fred and Ethel Mertz. “It’s a flea market sort of thing,” Watson said.

Also in attendance: Keith Thibodeaux, the actor who played little Ricky.

But he isn’t little anymore.

Thibodeaux is in his forties now. These days, he lives in Mississippi, where he and his wife run a ballet company.

Conceived in the summer of 1951, “I Love Lucy” has now entertained three generations of viewers. Wholesome and winsome, the show’s winning combination of sight gags, one-liners and 1950s story lines amuses grandparents and those of the MTV generation alike.

“I’ve been watching Lucy since I was old enough to watch TV, and it’s always funny,” said Jimmy Scichilone, an estate liquidator who flew in from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio.

Scichilone said he knows all the “I Love Lucy” episodes by heart and admitted he partakes in a ritual whereby he “talks in codes with friends using lines from the show.” He said it drives everyone crazy.

Many of the fans at the convention seemed to share his passion--or, some might say, obsession.

At an auction Saturday afternoon, fans spent close to $60,000 for such things as worn slippers, photographs, one-of-a-kind gowns, books and even curtains once owned by the late actress. The items, more than 100 in all, were donated by Ball’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, to raise money for the newly opened Lucy-Desi Museum in Jamestown, N.Y.

Among the prizes were a pink ostrich-feather boa that went for $650 and a quintessential Ball gown--spaghetti straps, floor-length cape, heavily jeweled collar and rhinestone accents--that fetched $2,800.

“I’m thrilled. Look at me, I’m shaking,” said Pomona resident Scott Grani, holding a drinking glass engraved with the initials “LBM,” for which he had just paid $425.

Mark Penn, a Whittier physician, eyed his $475 purchase, a blue and white floral-print silk dress that he said would make his connection to the doyenne of comedians even stronger.

“Not that I’m into women’s clothing,” he said. “It was something very personal, something that she wore.”

“I Love Lucy” appeared on CBS for six years, from 1951 to 1957. Ball went on to star in “The Lucy Show” from 1962 to 1968, “Here’s Lucy” from 1968 to 1974 and the short-lived “Life With Lucy” in 1986. She died in 1989.