Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz were a serious it couple in the 1950s, and they’re in the spotlight again in the new Amazon Prime Video documentary, Lucy and Desi.
The documentary, directed by Amy Poehler, follows the couple’s love story, features archival footage and recordings from each of them.
But who were Lucy and Desi, exactly, and what was their love story like? Here’s what you need to know.
They met in 1940 on a movie set.
The two first crossed paths on the RKO movie, Too Many Girls. Desi was a bandleader whose family had moved to the U.S. from Cuba and Lucy was a studio contract player. They eloped by the end of the year, according to Biography.
Their marriage was rocky.
Lucy filed for divorce in 1944, over issues with Desi’s heavy drinking and cheating, according to People. Desi was also gone a lot on tour and, when he was home, he would be out late while Lucy had to be up early for work.
The two eventually decided to work things out. And it helped that when Lucy got the opportunity to star in I Love Lucy—which, at the time, was a radio show making the jump to television, Lucy reportedly insisted Desi play her husband.
They were co-stars and real-life lovers.
Lucy and Desi ended up starring as a married couple on the iconic sitcom I Love Lucy in the 1950s. Lucy played Lucy Ricardo, the goofy wife of bandleader Ricky Ricardo, who was trying to make it big in show business in New York.
“They did the show so they could be together because my dad was always on the road and they never saw each other,” the couple’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz told People. “So my parents thought, ‘Well, this is going to save our marriage, and we can have a family.'”
They divorced in 1960.
I Love Lucy wrapped up in 1957, and the real-life Lucy and Desi divorced three years later. They both ended up remarrying—Lucy married comedian Gary Morton in 1962 and Desi married Edith Hirsch in 1963, Biography says.
They were still friendly after their split.
“They had a great divorce,” Lucie told Closer Weekly. “They had a very successful divorce. …They never said bad words about each other and they stayed friends until the day they died. It was a fantastic romance that got even more passionate and friendlier after they were not married to each other anymore.”
Desi died of lung cancer in 1986. Lucie told people People that Lucy called Desi on the phone before his death.
“I could hear her say, ‘I love you.’ She said it five times in a row,” Lucie said. “And he was nodding and saying, ‘I love you too, honey.’ He died in my arms. None of us realized it at the time, but the day they last spoke was Nov. 30, their wedding anniversary.”
“They loved each other until the end,” Lucie added.