Barbara’s unforgettable day on the set of I Love Lucy —and the question that still lingers decades later.
Appearing on I Love Lucy was a dream come true for many young actresses in the golden age of television—but for Barbara, it was also a moment filled with nerves, uncertainty, and quiet hope. Coming off a difficult experience with a previous leading lady on another prime-time show, she walked onto the Lucy set with excitement in her heart—but also a trace of fear. Would she fit in? Would she be accepted? Would a single wrong step cost her this golden opportunity?
Those fears came to a head the moment Lucille Ball called her into her dressing room.
“Do you like that dress?” Lucy asked, gesturing to the costume Barbara was wearing for her role as Diana.
Caught off guard and still walking on eggshells, Barbara answered with a bright, rehearsed enthusiasm: “Oh! Yes! It’s fine! It’s just fine!” In truth, she would’ve worn a flour sack if it meant staying on that iconic set. She wasn’t about to complain—not to the Lucille Ball.
Then Lucy simply said: “Take it off.”
Barbara’s heart skipped. Had she done something wrong? Was this it?
But what happened next wasn’t criticism—it was pure, quiet magic.
During rehearsals, Lucy, with the help of her assistant, sat with Barbara’s dress in hand and carefully began punching tiny sparkles into the fabric. Every glittering addition was made with purpose—not to show off, not for herself, but to ensure that Barbara would shine on camera.
“She was a true professional who cared more about her show than anything else,” Barbara recalls. “She wanted me to look great to make my scene really stand out.”
It was a small act that said everything. For Lucille Ball, success wasn’t about spotlighting herself—it was about lifting others up with her. Making everyone around her better, brighter, more confident. Barbara had entered that dressing room afraid. She left it in awe.
Still, she wonders to this day—what if?
“What if I had said yes to Desilu instead of Fox?” she muses. “Would I have ended up on Star Trek? On Mission: Impossible? Maybe I Dream of Jeannie would have never been made… or at least, not with me.”
But even without a Desilu contract, Barbara walked away with something just as lasting: a moment of kindness, a lesson in grace, and the memory of a woman who made her sparkle—on screen and off.
