Inside The Secret On-Set Feud That Tested Lucille Ball On I Love Lucy

By Tessa Hayley Hellberg
Lucille Ball posing for a picture in a lace dress with a high collar. Hulton Archive/Getty Images

"I Love Lucy" may have had viewers in hysterics throughout its six-season run, but that's not to say everything was always a riot behind the scenes. Granted, we guess that depends on what you think of when you hear the word "riot," because one testy moment came down to a power struggle between Lucille Ball and one of the show's directors, William Asher. 

Diehard fans of "I Love Lucy" may know that Asher was only brought in as a director for the sitcom in its second season. Naturally, there are always growing pains when a new face is brought in to an established team, and the show's set was no exception. However, speaking to American Masters in 1999, Asher shared that the first show of the season had gone very well. Ahead of the second episode being filmed, though, Ball began giving directions behind the scenes — without telling Asher. "I get everybody together for [a] run-through ... and they were doing different things, which I couldn't understand. And I asked them about it. They didn't know what to say. ... Finally Lucy said, 'Well, I gave some suggestions,'" Asher recalled. Unsurprisingly, he wasn't impressed by what he saw as an overstep. "I said, 'Lucy ... there can only be one director on the set. And if you want to direct it, you direct it, but then why pay me? Pay yourself," he said. 

Unfortunately, that didn't go down particularly well with the show's star, and Asher shared, "She broke into tears and ran off the stage." Cue some serious stress from Asher, who feared he'd ruined his chances of continuing with the show. Asher also ran into serious trouble with Ball's then-husband and co-star Desi Arnaz, who yelled at him after seeing Ball cry. Talk about an inauspicious start. 

Lucille Ball and William Asher made nice soon after

Split image of Lucille Ball smiling in a studio and William Asher smiling outdoors Martin Mills & Silver Screen Collection/Getty

Luckily for William Asher, his argument with the star of "I Love Lucy" didn't cost him his job. On the contrary, after Asher explained what happened, Desi Arnaz calmed down and actually agreed with the director. Arnaz told him to talk it over with Lucille Ball, who was crying in her dressing room, which he did — and they worked it out pretty quickly afterward. In fact, Asher explained in his interview with American Masters that he believed her overstep had been a result of insecurity, and that that was something he'd observed with all of the comedians he'd worked with. "They're very, very self-conscious, and I don't blame them. They're taking direction from somebody who is not going to be on the film," he explained. 

It's worth noting that over time, Asher and Ball became close, and he told American Masters that they would rehearse scenes together the night before filming so she wouldn't have to worry about whatever the rest of the cast or crew thought. Given that there were even times Ball was downright afraid while filming some of the scenes, we have no doubts she appreciated being able to run through those ahead of time. 

As an aside, Asher was also close enough with Ball and Arnaz to share his thoughts on their divorce with People in a 1991 conversation. "There was a great, great love there, there really was. Desi was unhappy about the breakup, and I think she was too. I don't think either one of them ever got over it," he'd told the outlet. Well, they might not have had the smoothest start, but it's safe to say that at least when it came to Asher's relationship with the former couple, despite that initial hiccup, it all worked out in the end.

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