Meet the Mertzes - by Rob Edelman & Audrey Kupferberg (Paperback)

About the Book

An unauthorized double biography of Vivian Vance and William Frawley--two of America's most popular situation comedy supporting performers. 8-page photo section.

Book Synopsis

Meet the Mertzes is an expansive dual biography chronicling the lives of two of America's most popular situation-comedy actors, William Frawley and Vivian Vance, who portrayed Fred and Ethel Mertz on I Love Lucy. This meticulously researched book contains interviews with Frawley's and Vance's colleagues, friends, and relatives, and explores their personal and professional lives before, during, and after I Love Lucy. With a complete filmography and videography of each, Meet the Mertzes finally sets the record straight on the lives and legacies of these compelling stars who detested one another.

You'll learn about:

-Vance's successful Broadway career prior to I Love Lucy
-Frawley's vaudevillian roots and his passion for baseball
-Vance's nervous breakdown after the collapse of her first marriage
-Frawley's drinking and carousing
-Lucille Ball's caustic relationship with both of her costars
-Vance's hatred of being known to the world as Ethel Mertz

Review Quotes

"She's one of the finest gals to come out of Kansas, but I often wish she'd go back there." --William Frawley on Vivian Vance

"I loathed William Frawley and the feeling was mutual. Whenever I received a new script, I raced through it, praying that there wouldn't be a scene where we had to be in bed together." --Vivian Vance on William Frawley

About the Author

Rob Edelman and Audrey Kupferberg authored Angela Lansbury and The John Travolta Scrapbook. Edelman wrote Baseball on the Web and Great Baseball Films. He is also a contributing editor to Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide annual and Movie Encyclopedia, and is a freelance writer. Kupferberg is a film archivist, consultant, and researcher. They reside in Amersterdam, New York.