Or just a local personality? I just wonder why if he was a celeb in show business that they lived very middle class and didn't have alot of money.

Ricky's "albums" were mentioned a few times on the show. So, I assumed by that, he was well known outside of New York City. Also, he had been visited by a talent scout, not once, but twice. The first time was when Lucy glued that beard to her face. The second time was of course Mr. Benjamin who got him the testing for his movie, Don Juan, when they all went to Hollywood. If anything, I assumed after Don Juan is when Ricky was really well known. They had a movie premiere and according to the magazine interview, women swoon over Ricky, etc. Oh and in London, he was mobbed by the people in the hotel Lobby when Lucy thought it was the Queen of England giving out autographs. :lol:

I always thought he must have been a b-list celebrity. Someone people know, but he or she doesn't have as much fame and wealth as a a-list celebrity. Maybe by the time show ended he was considered an a-lister. I think he was on the fringe of being a superstar though.

I always got the impression that he was up & coming..but not at the top of the hill yet.

ill go with "B-list" also.. famous, but, not a superstar as of yet

I'd say B-list. They didn't live like millionaires, that's for sure. Famous celebrities are rich, for the most part. If Scouts were checking him out, he hadn't made it yet. Scouts are out to discover talent.

I always got the impression that he was up & coming..but not at the top of the hill yet.
:yeahthat

I was thinking about this more last night and Ricky was definately a b-lister in the first seasons because his publicity manager (and Lucy) were always coming up with gimmicks to increase his popularity. If he would have been really popular Lucy, Fred and Ethel wouldn't have had to pretend to be his fans in the episode "Ricky Asks for a Raise."

I was thinking about this more last night and Ricky was definately a b-lister in the first seasons because his publicity manager (and Lucy) were always coming up with gimmicks to increase his popularity. If he would have been really popular Lucy, Fred and Ethel wouldn't have had to pretend to be his fans in the episode "Ricky Asks for a Raise."
That gimmick was more to prove that Xavier was not popular, therefore, Ricky was needed to keep the Tropicana alive. Then, Ethel and Lucy tied up the phones at the Tropicana, so no one else could call in. They would never have known if anyone would have called and asked to make reservations to see Ricky perform.
I didn't see Ricky as an "A" list celeb, but he was definitely a celeb in New York, a local celebrity. His talent got him noticed by two talent scouts who wanted Ricky for movies. You can't get noticed unless you have been seen. It wasn't like Ricky was out going to auditions, meeting with agents, etc. He had an agent already.

Like most are saying, I think Ricky was on the verge of breaking into the big leagues. I saw an episode recently where a national magazine (LOOK, maybe?), profiled him, and didn't put pictures of Lucy in the article, much to her dismay.

The premise of the show wasn't for him to be a big star. His character wasn't written that way. That would have changed the dynamics, plotlines, everything. He was what we saw, which was a successful entertainer, but not a superstar. He'd probably get asked for his autograph in New York, but not in Boston, that type of thing.

Like most are saying, I think Ricky was on the verge of breaking into the big leagues. I saw an episode recently where a national magazine (LOOK, maybe?), profiled him, and didn't put pictures of Lucy in the article, much to her dismay.

The premise of the show wasn't for him to be a big star. His character wasn't written that way. That would have changed the dynamics, plotlines, everything. He was what we saw, which was a successful entertainer, but not a superstar. He'd probably get asked for his autograph in New York, but not in Boston, that type of thing.
It wasn't until after DON JUAN that he was recognized outside of New York as a celeb. Though, not a big star or else he would have lived better. It was always stated (by Lucille Ball) that the Ricardos were better off than their friends the Mertzes, but they didn't want them so rich that they were out of touch with the audience.

As mentioned before, Ricky has recorded albums; however, in the episode where he and Lucy are experiencing a restless night due to the "Home owners heebie jeebies," Ricky makes a comment along the lines of "Maybe I'll have a hit record," and Lucy's response was "You've never had one before," and Ricky's rather introspective response was "Yeah, that's true."

^^^ Which didn't make sense since his hit record was "Babaloo." I guess it was just a funny line for the scene by the writers.

It wasn't until after DON JUAN that he was recognized outside of New York as a celeb. Though, not a big star or else he would have lived better. It was always stated (by Lucille Ball) that the Ricardos were better off than their friends the Mertzes, but they didn't want them so rich that they were out of touch with the audience.


Yeah, I had read that, although Ricky's salary was never revealed (I don't think), the intent of the series was to have him earning about $150 a week in his job as band leader. While that was certainly enough to make a nice living at that time, it was obviously nothing close to what would be considered "big bucks".

When the gang got to Hollywood, Ricky was immediately shown as being very well respected, even among the established stars. And Lucy took part in that "Don Loper" fashion show with other "Hollywood Wives" of established stars.

And Harpo Marx was certainly aware of "Babaloo", since he mimicked the song during his "conversation" with Lucy at the end of that episode.

Ricky was able to get a number of superstar celebrities to "do him a favor", so they must have seen him as an up-and-coming star. I forget the chronology of their trip to Hollywood, but didn't Bill Holden give Ricky a ride back to the hotel after Ricky's first full day at the studio? That was a pretty good start.


EDIT: btw, along those lines, here is a list of "Guest Stars" that appeared in each of Lucy's TV Shows... Just amazing when looked at today. Talk about a Hollywood "Who's Who"

http://www.geocities.com/televisioncity/6066/guststar.html