I Love Lucy-- Lucille Ball's Secret Phobias! 

Having acted on stage, I can attest that once you are in character, you leave all that is you off stage and you become that character. Lucy Ricardo was a loving character who could face anything head on to try to accomplish her goal at the time. Lucille Ball had phobias, but when acting, those phobias were never apparent because they didn't belong to the character she was portraying. Lucille Ball will always be one of the greats for that reason and so much more.

My fear is never able to watch lucy again hahaha!

I used to and still have a massive fear of heights, at work there are times I have to climb a ladder but though I climb it, I still freeze up a little.

Nick you’re a good guy. very low-key, very empathic about people. it serves what you do on your channel.

You know what, I guess we can officially call you, *Little Ricky.*

Very interesting thanks for sharing

Nick you’re a good guy. very low-key, very empathic about people. it serves what you do on your channel. Good work bro

Another great, illuminating video Rick. My phobia is rodents, mainly rats. I am terrified of them.

Interesting about the aversion to birds because later on in The Lucy Show she was once paired with a mischievous parrot named "Greenie!"

my fear is the deep end of pools

Since I was a child and saw a scary movie where someone was buried alive! It was an old movie and I want to say Vincent Price was in it. The person was thought dead [ apparently was catatonic] and they showed the person scratching on the coffin... ugh!... that was a phobia of mine until adulthood. Now it's wasps and bees bc I'm allergic to them.

I must have the same phobia. I don't like too many people around me either. It must be because of a trust issue. If it's people I know and like then it's a different story.

Lucy also worked with dolphins when she filmed her show at Marineland.

Wow! Afraid of birds, and people close to her. That's extraordinary.

I often wonder how she delt with some of the scenes in The Long, Long Trailer. She must of just held it in and got through it. Bless her

So sad...she was amazing

Claustrophobia, and an intense fear of even looking at huge things, and that means on tv and in movies, too....ships, construction equipment, towers, etc. (but I love being way up high, looking DOWN).

I was terrified of elevators so when i was 17 I spent an entire afternoon riding up and down the elevators in the Empire state building. Yes, it worked. The best way to eliminate your fears is to face them down!

Ive been a huge fan of Lucille Ball and I Love Lucy since i was a small kid and i never knew any of this!

How did she stand the birds during the Superman episode and the baby chicks.

Phobias are a very interesting topic, although rather painful for most of us. I am terribly claustrophobic and terrified of spiders. My dad couldn't handle crowds. I admire the way Lucy was so skilled and talented, though, that she had the courage and capability of never giving us, the audience, any idea that she had phobias. She was an amazing lady.

My observation from personal experience is that Lucy was subjected to prolonged situations of close contact of an intimate nature such as hair grooming where anxiety and personal space discomfort would manifest into a phobia and avoidance of those kinds of situations. I really don't think Lucy would've had any discomfort with personal contact in a casual setting or professional environment. I really think it stems from the immobility and confinement in certain situations. Another intriguing video, Rick. Thanks!

We needed to tell Lucy to , "Be HOPEFUL!"

My phobias: Heights and bats.

Words to live by! Thanks for always being so up beat! It is very refreshing!

Wow. Very interesting, Rick! I knew Lucy suffered from claustrophobia, but I had no idea about the things you mentioned here. Poor thing... Thanks for sharing this interesting information!! 😊

Thanks Rick!!! Phobias- deathly afraid of "live people".

Thank you for posting this!❤

I did know about the bird phobia, she mentioned it in her book Love, Lucy. I don't think I knew about the other one though, very interesting !

I love your channel and your narrations! It brings me calm.

Birds are supposed to be bad luck that’s part of her phobia I believe. Knowing that it’s surprising she worked with a bird in an episode of the Lucy show.

i think her phobias didn't show....maybe in a play or skit....because it was planned out ...she knew she wasn't trapped....she was in control of the situation

Birds are a common phobia but that close to people maybe she just didn't want to be hurt or doesn't trust people that much. Hollywood is full of backstabbers

Wow it never showed on the show. That's how great an actress she was &very professional.

On The Lucy Show, when discovering Wayne Newton’s farm boy character, he could only sing with his animals in attendance. There were some ducks and geese present. Maybe they weren’t considered birds in Ms. Ball’s mind?

I think that Lucille Ball was very comfortable being around Vivian Vance and therefore that phobia was not a issues when it came to them two!!!

You can see evidence of this on interview shows (she also became agoraphobic in the last decade or so of her life, and seldom left her home). She usually just shook the hand of the host instead of hugging & kissing him or her. You could also see that she was uncomfortable when she was embraced by someone she didn't know well. But to those she loved, it was a different story. She & Desi were always wrapped in each others embrace in home movies. This phobia seemed to have made her emotionally sentimental. She cried easily when getting standing ovations (when a standing ovation was truly a badge of honor, unlike today) from an audience or received a sad letter from a fan. I remember reading in a biography about her ("I Loved Lucy" by Lee Tannen). She stayed at a hotel near the military base for a Bob Hope special. People would slip notes or photographs for her autograph under her door. She always signed each one & made it clear to the receptionist that each & every letter & photograph got back to its intended receiver. She never took her fans for granted. Lee read one particular letter to Lucy. A soldier wrote to tell her that his mother absolutely adored her & for 30 years had tried to match the color of Lucy's hair, to no avail. He said that she was dying of cancer, & too weak to travel. He asked Lucy, that, upon her return to Hollywood, if she would send an autographed color photo of herself to his mother. He included his mother's home address. Lucy told Lee to get the woman's telephone number from information immediately. Lucy then telephoned her. It took her a minute to get the woman to believe that it was actually Lucy herself, but once she did, they had a marvelous conversation, & Lucy promised to send her the autographed photograph & one years supply of the special Henna rinse (imported from Egypt) that she used to create her unique hair color. They spoke for quite a while & Lucy found out that they were both about the same age, both had a daughter & son & both grew up in upstate N.Y. Lucy ended the call by telling the woman to take good care of herself & to get well soon. Then Lucy hung up the phone, went into the other room & cried. A day or two later, after filming completed, she collected all of the new letters & photographs that were placed under her door & got on a flight back to California. Lee was reading some of the letters when he came across a letter from the soldier, whose mother Lucy had spoken to only a day or two earlier. Lucy was exhausted, so she asked Lee to read it to her. The letter read as follows: Dear Miss Ball: My mother told me that talking to you on the phone was the happiest day of her life. Sadly, I must report that it was also the last day of her life. She died peacefully in her sleep in the middle of the night. There are no words for my family and I to adequately express our thanks and deep appreciation for your most kind gesture. We are holding a memorial service next week in Oneida, New York, my mother's hometown. If you could send the colored autographed picture of yourself like you promised my Mom, we will proudly display it at the ceremony. My best wishes and God bless you. The letter was signed with love by the private first class. According to Tannen, Lucy was stunned but said nothing. She turned her head away, reclined in her seat and just stared out the window until the plane landed one hour later. She was one classy lady.

I never thought I had any phobias. Yet one comes to mind that has developed as I have gotten older (I have 4 grandchildren). My phobia isn't heights necessarily because I'm used to flying all over and have been on hundreds of flights. Yet, I find that I can't be near "the edge" of a walkway, platform or anything that has a "glass wall" instead of a solid one. I'm okay with windows that look out at a great height, such at the top of the Statue of Liberty, St. Louis Arch, Washington Memorial, etc. Yet, if there is a walkway in a mall that is a solid yet has two side glass panels for walls, I'm petrified and can't seem to walk on it. I also can't stand glass elevators that ride specifically on the outside of buildings, yet if in an indoor elevator with glass walls I still stay close to the solid door. Regular elevators don't bother me, it's just the glass ones.. Then I read your phobia...and I realized my second one is the same.....so now I have two phobias to claim! LOL

My phobia is height and deep crevices like the Grand Canyon. I did go to the barrier but walked slowly to it. Afraid the barrier might collapse. And I would fall out or fall over.

My phobia is when my brother goes out places other than to work. He had a big accident a few years ago, and now, when he goes out, I lock down like crazy. If he goes out at night, I go to bed! No matter if it's eight-thirty on a Friday summer night. It's bad.

Great video Rick, I'm the same way as lucy lol that makes me feel better

Well there was one episode where she had birds flying all around her...wen she dressed up like superman for little Ricky's birthday and she was out on the ledge.

In "Lucy & Superman", lots of pigeons land on Lucy. If she was afraid of birds, how did she cope with these pigeons in that episode?

I knew about her phobias but this is a great video ! 👍

Fear of heights for me.

Actors when in character may take on that role; that may help them in real life confront issues.

I've had a mushroom phobia my whole life!

Huge fear of balloons!

I found out about her bird phobia from the Lucy movie.

Great video as always

Women from Mars and Equal Rights are my favorite episodes.

fire and bees. so a swarm of bees coming at me that is on fire, id die right away .

The episode with Superman. She was on the ledge with pigeons. If I’m not mistaken some even landed on her.

I'm with Lucy on that one I hate birds!

I knew about Lucy's fear of people but I did not know that she did not like birds. Thanks. she's one of my all-time favorite actresses

Great video Rick! I never knew any of this. I’m not surprised though because, as you say, we are all human. I think she worked through it on the show because she was quite close to people especially Vivian Vance in so many episodes. Thanks for sharing! Now on to your phobia........

Thanks for the info, Rick!

My phobia is the ocean. Terrified of sharks and sinking a d giant squids. I could go on but I think you get my point

Great job! I didn't know about this and some of the earlier pictures, I've never seen!

I am terrified by fish

I never knew. Thanks for sharing!

My fear is the color pink I get scared to death when I see that color I can't explain why

It's interesting that many professionals have phobias and learn to deal with them.

How did Lucy deal with all those pigeons when she sitting out on the ledge in the Superman episode?

Hi Rick Great video! 💞

Clutter and being surrounded by too many people, like inside an apartment store! I start getting panicky and I get shortness of breath!!

Balloons!

Concerning the subject of this video, I noticed you didn't mention the episode "Lucy meets Superman".

I just got done watching an episode where she had like 30 pigeons all over her when she dressed as superman.. plus the two birds that little Ricky has as pets

Very interesting and as usual great info to know about Lucy,I love all your videos

Great stuff here man! I had no idea about these. It is good to see how human these actors really were. We all have our quirks and what not. I agree I think from the outside looking in it is easy to forget these actors are humans with weaknesses and flaws. Keep up the good work man! Best, Marvin 😀

very interesting!

Thanks rick for posting info on lucy phobias.

Love your videos!

Anotjet good video. I cant wait for the next one you put up on RU-vid.

My phobias are the usual ones: spiders and claustrophobia. But I don't like bugs or alligators/crocodiles, either. The spiders and claustrophobia are the really bad ones, though. I've never heard of a people phobia like Lucy's.

Great vlog!! And yes I've heard of her phobias. I think some fool told her as a child that that bird trapped in their house meant death or some such.

My phobia is claustrophobia

I have claustrophobia and acrophobia.

A Excellent Video.. Very Well Made.. Highly Recommended.. Be Hopeful!

Thanks Rick.

Im afraid of flying and eye drops. I saw a movie where someone put acid in a woman's eye drops.

Just a thought in case nobody mentioned it in the comments.....a hug is a short moment, usually. It may be the long closeness that was setting her off?

I had no idea! She was a great actress! Great info and I always love your commentary!

Heights. I dont even like to stand on a step stool to change a light bulb.

Thanks again... I’m also a big Lucy fan... we should hang and have some coffee out and talk about I love Lucy... I live in Glendale

I'm mildly claustrophobic.

Lucille Ball must have gotten over her phobia of. Birds as The Lucy Show there was an episode Lucy Gets The Bird.where she is pet sitting Mr. Mooney's bird: a cockatiel. So what happened... (My phobia is this phobia - I am afraid.of dying. I know many people are but with me it's a constant fear.

I'm absolutely terrified of blimps and dirigibles of ANY KIND!! Whenever I see one flying around outside my instinct is to take cover immediately!!

Great video Rick.. it would be nice to see if the others have fobias.

I always noticed that Vivian always stood apart from Lucy. I asked my mom (probably about 1967?) about this and she said she believed it was to play up the weight difference between them. But as I got older and saw Ball on Dick Cavett and a few other noticed talk shows I realized this “space blanket” was always there. Interesting how you’ve debunked the Heavy-Ethel-Contract myth. I’ve been rewatching the entire series again and noticed how often Ball herself was a bit on the heavy side. Of course it’s rare for most women to remain consistently slender, and Ball was aging like anyone else. Odd how super thin she was in the Lucy Show though.... Glad to have discovered your channel Rick!

Great other channel, awesome Porsche!! My phobias are Bridges, which is challenging since I drive Lyft in Jax FL that has 7 bridges. and the other is fear of heights.

I know she was claustrophobic. How did she stand being locled in that seal trunk when they were going to Europe. And I know she hated birds because birds flew into the funeral parlor when her father died.

Spiders...ugh!

Great video Rick! I knew about the birds but had no clue about closeness of people.

I'm SCARED T0 DEATH 0f Spiders!!!!!!! 🕷🕷🕷🕷🕷

Spiders!

Interesting, I never knew...good stuff.

Snakes, lizards and fish

I always found it odd that she was afraid of birds, but in the episode, "Lucy and Superman." She literally had live pigeons on her.