A new statue of Lucille Ball has been unveiled in the late actress” hometown to replace one that was dubbed “Scary Lucy’.
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Celoron, New York, previously tried to honor Ball with a statue in 2009, and it went over about as well as Lucy’s stint in the candy factory. “Get Rid of this Statue!” The crowd cheered as Palmer and Schrecengost unveiled the likeness, which shows Ball in a polka-dot dress. The sculptor said the statue is a total of 7 feet tall in its entirety. It even includes her signature curly hair.
According to Yahoo News, the mayor of Celoron, Scott Schrecengost, said the cost to replace the statue would be enormous, so rather than using taxpayer money to do it, he would set up a community fund.
“I not only wanted to portray the playful, animated and spontaneous Lucy, but also the glamorous Hollywood icon”, said Palmer.
Palmer thanked the “salt-of-the-earth” people of Celeron.
An unflattering statue by another artist was banished after detractors started a Facebook campaign named, “We Love Lucy!” Poulin himself referred to the statue as his “most unsettling sculpture”. But the plan for now is to relocate it to another spot in the park.
The reaction to the sculpture was universally positive, with local Lucy fans remarking on the sculptor’s success in capturing Ball’s beauty and grace. “I find that the world was a little harsh on him”. But in person, from a distance as well as nose-to-nose, Ball’s classic visage comes across clearly in a way that transports visitors right back to the golden era of her career. “Lucy in the sky with pearls”.
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“Some people say it’s a lovable Lucy, but that’s up to the public to decide for them, if she’s lovable”, said the artist. And of course, the Lucy Dezi Museum and Center for Comedy will be open for business, with a variety of Lucille Ball exhibitions on display. The new statue will just be in the same location that the older one used to be in, and fans can decide for themselves which statue is their personal favorite.
