Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha

 Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha, III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986), better known as Desi Arnaz.

He is best remembered for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American television series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to whom he was married at the time. Arnaz was also internationally renowned for leading his Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra. He and Ball are generally credited as the inventors of the rerun in connection with I Love Lucy. When he moved to the United States, Desi Arnaz turned to show business to support himself. In 1939, he starred on Broadway in the musical Too Many Girls. He went to Hollywood the next year to appear in the show's movie version at RKO, which starred Lucille Ball. Arnaz and Ball married on November 30, 1940. Arnaz also played guitar for Xavier Cuga. Arnaz appeared in several movies in the 1940s such as Bataan (1943). He received his draft notice, but before reporting he injured his knee. He completed his recruit training, but was classified for limited service during World War II. He was assigned to direct United Service Organization (U.S.O.) programs at a military hospital in the San Fernando Valley. On October 15, 1951, Arnaz co-starred in the premiere of I Love Lucy, in which he played a fictitious version of himself, Cuban orchestra leader Enrique "Ricky" Ricardo. His co-star was his real-life wife, Lucille Ball, who played Ricky's wife, Lucy. Television executives had been pursuing Ball to adapt her very popular radio series My Favorite Husband for television. Ball insisted on Arnaz playing her on-air spouse so the two would be able to spend more time together. Arnaz also pushed the network to allow them to show Lucille Ball while she was pregnant. In addition to I Love Lucy, he executive produced The Ann Sothern Show, Those Whiting Girls (starring Margaret Whiting and Barbara Whiting Smith) and was also involved in several other series such as The Untouchables, Whirlybirds, and Sheriff of Cochise/United States Marshal. He also produced the feature film Forever, Darling (1956), in which he and Ball starred.

With Ball, he founded Desilu productions, which was responsible for producing many TV shows; The Untouchables, The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Lucy Show, and Star Trek. Arnaz and Ball's marriage was turbulent. Convinced that Arnaz was being unfaithful to her, and also because he came home drunk several times, Ball filed for divorce in September 1944, but returned to him before the interlocutory decree became final. In addition, Arnaz was under stress during the production of I Love Lucy, and managing the day to day operations of Desilu. The couple eventually divorced in 1960. but remained close until his death. Arnaz was a regular smoker for much of his life, who often smoked cigarettes on the set of I Love Lucy. He continued smoking Cuban cigars into his sixties. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1986, and died several months later on December 2nd at age 69.