Lucy Ricardo wasn’t just a housewife trying to break into show business argues one fan theory. The theory suggests Lucy Ricardo might have been a woman on the run.
I Love Lucy remains a classic favorite. The series had a pretty simple and mostly wholesome premise. Lucy and Ricky Ricardo’s marriage was at the center of everything. While fans learned plenty about Ricky and Lucy’s previous lives during the show’s iconic run, there is one person who is never, ever mentioned. Lucy Ricardo never speaks about her father. One fan theory suggests the lack of information about Lucy’s father points to a dark past for Lucy and her family before I Love Lucy hit the air.
An ‘I Love Lucy’ fan theory suggests Lucy’s father was an organized crime boss
In 2016, a Cracked writer suggested that Lucy Ricardo left Jamestown, NY, because she was trying to escape her father’s shady past. According to the I Love Lucy fan theory, Lucy’s father was involved in organized crime, and Lucy was forced to flee her tiny town for the anonymity of a big city like New York.
The writer makes a pretty good case for it, too. They point out that Jamestown, NY was an interesting pick as Lucy’s hometown. Sure, the series used the tiny, Western New York town because that’s where Lucille Ball was born, but there was more going on in Jamestown than you might think. The small town in Chautauqua County was known for its bustling furniture industry and bootlegging during the prohibition era.
The author theorizes that Lucy’s father may have been a bootlegger himself, and that’s why the feisty redhead fled Jamestown, moved to New York, and hooked up with Ricky Ricardo. Lucy, according to the author, isn’t in the clear, either. They point out that the same man pops up in Lucy’s life again and again. His repeated appearance, as different characters, suggests she was being watched. The author theorizes the FBI might be on her case. Yet, it seems equally plausible that a private investigator was keeping tabs on Lucy. Perhaps her father or his associates hired someone to keep an eye on her.
Organized crime, a shady past, and a dark family secret would be a good reason never to mention someone. Lucy carries on as if her father doesn’t exist, and so does everyone else in her life. The question is, was Lucy’s father a criminal, or did she just not know who he was?
An alternative theory would have been pretty risque for CBS
An organized crime connection is pretty dark. Still, there is an alternative theory that is less seedy but certainly would have been too risque for the network. In a season 5 episode, Lucy travels to Scotland and mentions that her mother’s ancestors, the McGillicuddys were from Scotland. Lucy’s maiden name, McGillicuddy, was established in season 1.
If the McGillicuddy clan was on Lucy’s maternal side, her father certainly would not have been a McGillicuddy. Lucy would have traditionally been given her father’s surname at birth, not her mother’s. So why did Lucy have her mother’s surname? It’s possible Lucy’s mother was unwed when she had Lucy. If Lucy did not know who her father was and were raised by a single mother, she’d have no reason to bring up her father. It would explain a lot. Still, that storyline would have been verboten to CBS executives. After all, they bristled at Lucy and Ricky sharing a bed and saying the word “pregnant.”
It’s unlikely we’ll ever know the true identity of Lucy Ricardo’s father. The I Love Lucy fan theory certainly paints the series in a different light, though.
