LUCILLE "LUCY" BALL - WAIVER SIGNED 04/03/1959 CO-SIGNED BY: MARTIN N. LEEDS, EDWIN E. HOLLY, DESI ARNAZ SR. - HFSID 176953

LUCILLE BALL and DESI ARNAZ
In this signed waiver, Ball and Arnaz agree to waive notice and consent to a special meeting in 1959 of Desilu's Board of Directors. Desilu was to discuss buying Motion Picture Center Studios stock from Ball and Arnaz.
Typed document signed: "Desi Arnaz", "Lucille Ball", "(s) Martin N. Leeds" and "Edwin E. Holly", all as the Directors of Desilu Productions, Inc., 1 page, 8½x10¾. Headed: "Waiver of Notice of Special Meeting of the Directors of Desilu Productions Inc." At this meeting, the board of directors was to have discussed buying up to 103 shares of stock in Motion Picture Center Studios from Ball and Arnaz. In its six seasons, I Love Lucy ranked third (1951-1952), first (1952-1955, 1956-1957) and second (1955-1956) in the Nielsen ratings. Comedienne LUCILLE BALL (1911-1989) and her husband, Cuban bandleader DESI ARNAZ (1917-1986) had formed Desilu, which became one of the world's largest television production companies, to produce I Love Lucy after CBS had denied Lucy's request that her husband play her spouse on the show. In 1957, Lucy and Desi sold the rerun rights to I Love Lucy to CBS Films for $5 million. They used the money to help Desilu Productions purchase the RKO motion-picture lot, where both had worked as actors years before. With their expanded facilities, the couple produced such successful programs as Our Miss Brooks, The Untouchables, The Danny Thomas Show, Mission Impossible and Star Trek. In 1960, when Lucy and Desi divorced, they divided Desilu's assets in half; two years later, Lucy bought out Desi for $3 million. MARTIN N. LEEDS, the Executive Vice President of Desilu, later joined CBS. In 1993, he published Desilu: The Story of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Lightly creased. Binder and staple holes at top of each page. Otherwise, fine condition.