Keith Thibodeaux

A legend?s in town, and like many of L.A.?s show-biz denizens, it?s made of steel?the Titanic. Well, not the whole damn ship but a pretty good part of it. It?s on display at The California Science Center.  Most fortuitously, my old pal,Keith, is in town. I ring him and wemake a date to meet at the exhibit.

Actually, Keith is everyone?s old pal. He played Little Ricky on I Love Lucy.  Several years ago, we met at an I Love Lucy convention and instantly became friends. Even though he resides in Mississippi we?vekept in touch. After four years on the legendary sitcom, Keith went on to work in other classic shows like Hazel, The Andy Griffith Show, and Route 66. Eventually retiring from acting, he joined a contemporary Christian music group, touring extensively and recording a dozen albums. In 1976,he met his wife, Kathy, a professional award-winning ballet dancer, and they?ve been together for twenty-seven years. In 1993, Keith became executive director of the company that Kathy founded, Ballet Magnificat. They have a daughter, Tara, twenty-four, who is also a ballerina. (I can?t get over the fact that Little Ricky has a grown-up kid!) For more info, about Keith pick up a copy of his autobiography, Life After Lucy?a fun read. (Here's some trivia: Keith?s first appearance on I Love Lucy was in episode 154, ?Lucy and Bob Hope,? Keith?s name never appeared in the original credits, and he auditioned to play one of the Von Trapp kids in The Sound of Music).  

At the exhibit, Keith and I leisurely stroll past some of the Titantic?s cargo:  teacups, luggage, spectacles, watches, books, etc., all retrieved from the bottom of the ocean.  Unbelievable. It takes over two hours for a submersible to reach the Titanic, which rests 2.5 miles beneath the ocean surface. There?s even a chunk of an authentic iceberg on display! We touch it, and it gives us a startling chill?a mere taste of just how desperately frigid it must have been on that tragic night. Near the end of the exhibit, we enter a large room in which a portion of Titanic?s hull hangs from the ceiling. Keith and I just stare at it in amazement. It?s eerie, and I am overwhelmed with emotion. This fifteen-ton relic was salvaged in 1998.  As we recover our thoughts, we segue into an impromptu interview.

Ruby Comer: Keith, this is incredible!      

Keith Thibodeaux: Simply stunning.

Tell me about your involvement with the AIDS epidemic.

Well, I have not been involved with any AIDS charities (Keith and Kathy are, however, heavily involved with Hope House, a cost-free ?home away from home? for outpatients receiving cancer treatment at hospitals in Jackson, Mississippi) but I have friends who have HIV, and friends who have died from AIDS. My wife?s ballet partner, an American Indian, died from it. It?s horrible, tragic. We all need to pray for those people, pray that they will get well, and pray that science will find a cure.

How do you deal with the loss?

My wife and I both are Christians and we believe in Jesus. I came to the Lord when I was twenty-four years old after coming through drugs, alcohol, my parent?s divorce, and a clinical depression.  Jesus changed my life. If not for Him I would have been another dead child star. You would not be talking to me now! (Keith grins assuredly.) Believing in the Lord helps me through someone?s passing, because I believe that this life is not the end.

You believe in Heaven?

Yep. I believe there?s a hell too?people pay the price for what they do. Yeah, our spirits live on forever.  

Losing a loved one is not easy.

No, you cry and you grieve. But I know that I will see these people again after I die, including my dog.

Your daughter came of age during the height of the AIDS epidemic. Did you approach the topic of prevention?

We instilled in her the idea that you don?t need to have sex. We are not sex machines, and not made primarily to have sex. We believe that sex is consummated in marriage.  

So Tara is a virgin and she will maintain that until she is married?

Yes, I believe that. And we pray for that. Tara is dating a young man right now.

But Keith, what do you say to the kids who are going to have sex?  

Don?t do it. If they decide to do so, hopefully the schools will hand out condoms, or they can buy them. But even with condoms you?re still sort of gambling. Like Nancy Reagan said years ago about drugs: Just say no!

You believe that is enough to?? (He cuts me off)

I know it sounds Pollyanna-ish but humans have a will, and we are strong. I understand that these kids have raging hormones?it?s not like they have to be in a nunnery?but there are other ways they can channel their energies.  

Intriguing take, Keith. (We exit into the daylight). Let?s switch gears. What was it like to be around Lucy, Desi, Viv, and Bill?

A very professional set. At times there was tension just like in any business. During those first years, Lucy took care of me and was truly my mom on the set.    

What was your favorite Little Ricky episode?

The one where Superman came to my birthday party. It was special because he was my hero, and George Reeves was really?super.  (He chuckles.)

Did you save anything from the I Love Lucy set?

Just the 1957 Gretsch drums that I used, which Lucy gave me.

What is up for you in the next six months?

Touring nationally with the Ballet, then we head to Brazil, Costa Rica, and Chile. And as you know, Ruby, I also participate in the Lucy conventions.

Driving back home on the 10 in Mother Lincoln (my pet name for the ?69 classic), I conclude that today has been a titanic experience?viewing the remains of  a legendary liner and hanging with LittleRicky?oops?Keith.

 

Ruby Comer is an independent journalist from the Midwest who is happy to call Hollywood her home away from home. Reach her by e-mail at MsRubyComer@aol.com.