On April 3, 1953, historical past was made with the publication of the very first subject of TV Guide. And the enduring tv programming journal went massive with its first cowl.
Founded by Walter Annenberg, TV Guide’s 1953 launch featured probably the most well-known infants of the time—Desiderio Alberto Arnaz IV—in his first printed picture, with a small insert of his well-known mother, Lucille Ball, on the prime. The cowl was captioned “Lucy’s $50,000,000 Baby.” The fifteen-cent journal featured program listings for April 3-9 in addition to the picture of the tot who wasn’t even a TV star.
Julien’s Auctions credited the well-known cowl for the journal’s success from the leap. “That first cover, featuring Lucille Ball – arguably television’s first megastar – and her son, cemented its place not just as a utility, but as a chronicler of American popular culture,” the put up from the public sale website acknowledged.
Following the enduring launch, TV Guide grew to become a weekly staple for greater than 20 million American households and earned greater than $3 billion {dollars} through the years, in line with The Deseret Sun.
TV Guide cowl that includes new child Desi Arnaz. Jr.Photo by San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers on Getty Images
(Photo by San Francisco Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers on Getty Images)
The cowl induced confusion for Baby Desi
In a sixtieth anniversary retrospective in regards to the well-known cowl, TV Guide famous that the picture of Ball and husband Desi Arnaz’s “chubby-cheeked newborn” helped make son Desi Arnaz Jr.’s life “confusing.”
“Because that cover was so widely seen, everyone thought I played Little Ricky, and that’s stuck with me throughout my life,” Arnaz Jr. defined to the outlet.
Throughout his life, Arnaz Jr. was confused for I Love Lucy character Little Ricky Ricardo, who was performed by a collection of infants earlier than baby actor and drummer Keith Thibodeaux took over the function.
The confusion got here, in half, resulting from the truth that the Arnazes’ real-life son was born on the identical day that Little Ricky was born on I Love Lucy. The extremely rated January 19, 1953, episode, “Lucy Goes to the Hospital,” aired on CBS because the beloved sitcom star underwent a cesarean part on the Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles.
In an interview with The New York Post, Thibodeaux, now 75, recalled going on public outings with the Arnaz household and being mistaken for his or her real-life son. “We’d go to Disneyland and of course go to the front of the line with Lucy and people would look at Lucy and say, ‘Wow, there’s Lucy and Little Ricky!’ People always confused me and Desi Jr.,” he said.
Thibodeaux also revealed that he “grew up” with Arnaz Jr. and have become good mates with him. “There was always that dynamic of people getting us mixed up,” he mentioned in the 2025 documentary TV We Love. “I think in [Desi Jr.’s] mind, it was very hard. He wanted to do what I did.”
Arnaz Jr. wasn’t a baby star, however he later co-starred on Ball’s Seventies sitcom right here’s Here’s Lucy, the place he performed her son Craig Carter in 67 episodes.
RELATED: Lucille Ball’s Favorite ‘I Love Lucy’ Episode Was a 1956 Classic
Desi Jr. joked about his famous magazine cover
As for that TV Guide headline that described Arnaz Jr. as a $50 million baby, the magazine explained that the child’s birth unleashed “an avalanche” of merchandising that included dolls, records, books, maternity wear, and nursery sets.
As an adult, Arnaz Jr. said of the cover line, “A $50 million child? Really? Not solely does that sound like some form of sci-fi present, I am unable to think about anybody thought I used to be value that a lot. It’s some huge cash, particularly in 1953!”
He also joked that he was the “innocent victim in a massive publicity stunt,” but noted that he embraced it all. “I would not commerce any of it — not even the confusion — as a result of it is all been a blessing,” Arnaz Jr. mentioned.
This story was initially printed by Parade on Apr 3, 2026, the place it first appeared in the Entertainment part. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
