Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life and Comic Art of Lucille Ball [Paperback]

Stefan Kanfer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 2004

Trade paperback biography of Lucille Ball. Illustrated.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Alfred a Knopf Inc (2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 037572771X
• ISBN-13: 978-0375727719
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.8 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,683,698 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very disappointing, September 2, 2003

By 

J. Baxter (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life and Comic Art of Lucille Ball (Hardcover)

Drawn entirely from secondary sources, there is nothing new to be found in this biography. I wouldn't even recommend it to someone who has read no other biography of Ball, as it is filled with the most elementary mistakes. The author doesn't even describe the "Lucy" episode with William Holden accurately. Just skip this one.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars If you can't even describe the Bill Holden episode..., October 21, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life and Comic Art of Lucille Ball (Hardcover)

correctly, you have no business being a Ball biographer. (Lucy had an 'argument' with Holden at the Brown Derby? As Ricky would say "Whaaaa????")

A tepid rehashing of every Lucille Ball book ever written. We know every story by now, and his one original thesis )that she was more successful on television than in the movies) is never really argued or clarified.

Rent it at the library if you must but I would save my dough.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Behind the Scenes Where No One Loved Lucy, December 18, 2003

By 

takingadayoff "takingadayoff" (Las Vegas, Nevada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Ball of Fire: The Tumultuous Life and Comic Art of Lucille Ball (Hardcover)

Ball of Fire concentrates on the I Love Lucy show, how it came about (and almost didn't get off the ground), behind the scenes tidbits, its effect on America. Kanfer doesn't stint on the rest of Lucy's life, both before and after the Show, but I Love Lucy really is the star of this book.

Never having read a biography of Lucille Ball, this was all news to me, and I enjoyed discovering that Vivian Vance loathed William Frawley, and that Ball was such a stickler and control freak. Kanfer's style is easy and very readable, and there are plenty of photos to round things out, including an unexpected one of a young topless Lucille Ball.

If you are in the mood for an entertaining and, let's face it, unimportant, book, this one is worth the money.