Which network originally aired 'I Love Lucy'? CBS originally aired 'I Love Lucy'. The sitcom premiered on October 15, 1951, as part of CBS's television schedule and remained on the network through its original run, which ended in 1957.
The series starred Lucille Ball as Lucy Ricardo and Desi Arnaz as her husband, Ricky. Vivian Vance and William Frawley played their friends and landlords, Ethel and Fred Mertz. CBS executives initially had concerns about the show's interracial marriage and Arnaz's Cuban background, but Ball and Arnaz proved the concept with a successful vaudeville act.
A common mix-up is confusing the original series with later Lucy programs. After six seasons, the cast continued in hour-long specials that were later syndicated as The Lucy–Desi Comedy Hour. Those specials are related to the original sitcom but do not change the fact that CBS was the original network for I Love Lucy.