The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour is a collection of thirteen black-and-white one-hour specials airing occasionally from 1957 to 1960 (as opposed to a thirty-minute regular series). The first five were shown as specials during the 1957-58 television season. The remaining eight were originally shown as part of
Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse. Its original network title was
The Ford Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show for the first season, and
The Westinghouse Desilu Playhouse Presents The Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Show for the following seasons. The successor to the classic comedy,
I Love Lucy, the programs featured the same cast members:
Lucille Ball,
Desi Arnaz,
Vivian Vance,
William Frawley and Little Ricky (billed as
Richard Keith in his post-
Lucy-Desi acting assignments). The production schedule avoided the grind of a regular weekly series.