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
"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."
