September 14, 1940
On September 14, 1940, Lucille Ball and Maureen O’Hara reached the end of their whirlwind press tour to promote their new RKO film Dance, Girl, Dance.
Ball and O’Hara made four personal appearances between screenings of the film, introduced by local radio star Roy Brandt of WFBM.
On September 1, 1940, The Indianapolis Sunday Star is already reporting the possibility of Ball and O’Hara appearing live at the Circle.
Before arriving in Indianapolis, the final stop on their tour, the pair were in Washington DC, and posted for this photograph. Lucille and Maureen became inseparable while shooting this film, and remained lifelong friends until Ball’s death in 1989. O’Hara was having lunch with Lucy during the filming (June 1940) when Ball first saw her future husband Desi Arnaz. On November 30, 1940, the couple were married in Connecticut.
The film had premiered two weeks earlier, August 30, 1940. It was directed by one of Hollywood’s only female directors, Dorothy Arzner (above), who was also a lesbian. The film employed a young film editor named Robert Wise, who would go on to direct the iconic films West Side Story (1961) and The Sound of Music in 1965. Gowns were credited to Edward Stevenson, who would do wardrobe design on all Lucille Ball’s sitcoms.
The film opened in Indianapolis, Indiana at the Circle Theatre. The theatre was given its name because it is on Monument Circle. It was built in 1916 as a “deluxe movie palace.” In 1984, after extensive renovation, it reopened as home to the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra. In December 1996, it was renamed the Hilbert Circle Theatre after being endowed by philanthropist Stephen Hilbert. The theatre holds 1,660 seats and is home to a Wurlitzer theatre organ.
“[They] will sing, dance and do dramatic bits during their four appearances.” ~ Indianapolis News, September 14, 1940
In 1940, Lucille Ball was still claiming Butte, Montana, as her birthplace. She felt it was more exotic than Jamestown, New York.
“Miss Ball has a joyous spirit that frequently breaks out into deep-throated, hearty laughter.” ~ Indianapolis News, September 14, 1940
This article notes that Lucy continued on to Chicago to meet up with the cast of George Abbott’s Too Many Girls. This was undoubtedly to meet Desi Arnaz, who she met while shooting the RKO film version back in Hollywood. In 1940, the stage version was still touring and a hit Chicago’s Grand Opera House. A romantic rendezvous was doubtless planned.
~ Louella Parson, September 25, 1940
The article also states that Lucille will do a film with Charles Laughton titled Mr. Pinky. No such film was ever made and Ball and Laughton never acted together, although she did work several times with his wife, Elsa Lanchester. In real life, Mr. Pinky was the name of Charles Laughton’s cat! It is possible that this project refers to the film Brighton Rock (1947), which was based on a 1938 novel and a 1940 West End play about a young mobster named Pinkie Brown. The article notes that Laughton will soon be in Chicago doing his famous readings of the Gettysburg Address and the 23rd Psalm.
O’Hara states that she “has a grudge against Hitler.” World War II was in full force and travel restrictions prevented O’Hara from visiting her native Ireland. The darkest days of the London blitz dominated the headlines worldwide.
~ Philadelphia Enquirer, August 19, 1940
The article also references Ball’s beginning to film the (yet untitled) Harold Lloyd film. The famous silent film comic was a great influence on Ball. He became a film producer and the movie was eventually titled A Girl, a Guy, and a Gob (1941). Lucy was the “Girl”, George O’Brien was the “Guy” and George Murphy played the “Gob” (a slang word for sailor).
The Indianapolis papers reviewed the film, describing Lucille Ball as “pert and mercenary”.
At the Circle, Dance, Girl, Dance was a double feature with Flowing Gold, a 1940 Warner Brothers release starring John Garfield, Frances Farmer and Pat O’Brien.
At a previous stop on the tour in Chicago on September 8, the film was on a double feature with Men Against The Sky, a 1940 RKO action / adventure film.
The film featured Donald Briggs, who would play the recurring character of Eddie Collins (Viv’s boyfriend) on season one of “The Lucy Show.”
On September 5, the pair met Cincinnati, Ohio, Mayor James Garfield Stewart, in advance of their appearance at the Palace Theatre.
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