I Love Lucy: Frawley vs. Vance
Ball and Arnaz weren’t the only onscreen pair constantly at odds. Behind the scenes, comedy actress Vivian Vance and vaudeville and movie veteran William Frawley fights were no joke. On television, the two did their job and played their roles to their best ability, becoming part of the I Love Lucy comedy legend. But Vance felt Frawley, at twenty-two years her senior was “an old coot,” too old to play her husband. In addition to fighting with Vance, Frawley wasn’t considered dependable. He drank too much. During negotiations to play Mertz, Desi Arnaz warned Frawley that one screw-up would result in lost pay, two would result in firing. Frawley held himself together, keeping his pay and job. At one point, the studio discussed a spinoff series featuring the Mertzes, but Vance rejected it, even when she was offered a $50,000 bonus, to avoid working with Frawley.