How Desi Invented Television

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Desi Arnaz, seen in 1955, was one of the first characters to speak Spanish on English-language television. nc/AP hide caption

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Desi Arnaz, seen in 1955, was one of the first characters to speak Spanish on English-language television.

nc/AP

I Love Lucy made television history when it first aired in 1951. Lucille Ball is the godmother of the situational comedy or "sitcom," and with her husband and co-star, Desi Arnaz, made a show that still makes viewers young and old laugh today.

But as revolutionary as Lucille was on the screen, Desi was just as revolutionary off of it. In Lucy, he saw not only laughs, but dollar signs. On today's show, we look at how television became the financial powerhouse it is today, and how a Cuban refugee made it all happen.

Music: "I Love Lucy Theme," Conga from Too Many Girls," Cuban Pete," and "Babalú."

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