1978 "An All-Star Salute to the Ohio Jubilee" Part 1 Lucille Ball

PART 1: In 1978, Ohio was celebrating its Golden Jubilee, and the dedication of the newly-refurbished Ohio
Theater in Columbus where Hope had performed in vaudeville. Produced by Bob Banner, our
hour-long special would include a parade in which Hope would be the Grand Marshal,
capped by a black-tie, invitation-only stage show. It had been a long day for Hope, and on the
evening of the performance, about a half-hour before the taping was set to begin, he was
standing in the wings with his manager, Elliott Kozak. Most of the guests had already filed into
their seats, and a pianist was playing a medley of Ohio-themed songs. Hope turned to Elliott and
said, "Feel my pulse." Elliott did and was alarmed by what he felt. Hope's heart was racing at
about two hundred
beats per minute!

As Elliott led him back to his dressing room, Hope said he felt all right and had no chest pains.
Regardless of the absence of heart attack symptoms, his heart was racing abnormally, so Elliott
insisted he lie down. Banner was called in from the tech truck outside the theater and after
speaking with Hope, told a production assistant to go out front — and without explaining why —
locate the insurance executive whose company had sponsored the charity event. Banner wanted to
avoid alarming the audience with the usual announcement that was sure to do just that.
The insurance guy told the PA that a well-known cardiologist was on the guest list, but hadn't
arrived yet. She got his number. Banner called him and described Hope's symptoms. The doctor
told Banner to take Hope back to his hotel — just a block from the theater — where the
heart specialist could examine him more thoroughly.
With Hope still protesting that he felt fine, Banner and Elliott quietly slipped him out a side door.
Meanwhile, the audience — and most members of Hope's staff —had no inkling of the emergency.
Gig and I accompanied Hope to the hotel and went to our own rooms to stand by if needed.
As Hope lay on the bed waiting for the doctor to arrive, Banner had second thoughts. Maybe they
were being too cautious in their attempts to keep the episode under wraps. After all, Hope was 76.
Banner dialed 911.

Within minutes, fire engines, sirens blaring, pulled up to the hotel entrance. Watching them from
our balconies, Gig and I thought the unthinkable had happened. We rushed to Hope's suite where
he was being examined by the cardiologist while the fire department ME's stood by in case their
equipment was needed. They were soon released by the doctor, and after they left, we learned
that Hope had been diagnosed with nothing more than an episode of tachycardia — an anxiety
attack. The doctor had reduced his racing heart rate by applying pressure on Hope's femoral
artery. He was back to normal.

We all returned to the theater where some of our guest stars had kept the audience entertained
during the hour-long delay they blamed on "technical difficulties." The taping proceeded without
incident with Hope as emcee.

You can read all about the how Hope worked with his guests and his writers and what happened

behind-the-scenes of these classic Bob Hope video clips by reading my book "THE LAUGH

MAKERS: A Behind-the-Scenes Tribute to Bob Hope's Incredible Gag Writers," chosen a "Top

20" 2009 Year End Pick by Leonard Maltin who says...

"Having spent twenty years writing for the indefatigable Bob Hope, and traveling all over the

world, Bob Mills is well qualified to salute the famous corps of gagmen who kept the comedian

knee-deep in jokes. These first-hand recollections summon up the final phase of Hope's career—

and the end of the trail for an entire brand of show business."
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[TheLaughMakers]

yes. Lucy was really something. She was one of Hope's favorite guests so we had her on whenever possible. I'll be uploading her appearance at Pope Air Force Base soon. Watch for it. Thanks for visiting my channel...

[italoman9]

You know, I realize it didn't happen, but it would've been so great and fun if Desi Sr. and Lucy had had a chance to do some variety special husband-and-wife skit like this, just one more time, in their later years on TV, since they remained in contact and relatively cordial after their subsequent second marriages. Sigh. Thanks for this great share!

[1960galBSAM]

@TheLaughMakers Yeahh!! I'm so glad...I've always wanted to see that!

[DeanLeonard1]

What a marvelous pair of stems Lucy had (at age 67, no less).