Part One

Part Two

Desi @ imdb

Each film has a Tropicana star rating out of five [ * * * * * ].

8. HOLIDAY IN HAVANA (1949) * *
This film was built around Desi alone - not so much of another promotional film for his acting career - it solely aimed for more opportunities for his musical talent to get fired up and ready to go. He played Carlos, in this romantic musical?/comedy.

Director: George Abbott
Starring: Desi Arnaz, Leon Belasco, etc.
Desi's Character: Carlos Estrada
Company: Columbia Pictures
Video Availability: 0/10

9. THE LONG, LONG TRAILER (1954) * * * 1/2
Desi in his first film with Lucy, playing the usual husband who just tries to do things right, but gets things messes up when his wife comes into play. Lucy and Desi's first motion picture together…certainly a drastic change from Too Many Girls.
Click for more information.

Director: Vincente Minnelli
Starring: Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz
Desi's Character: Nicholas Collini
Company: MGM
Video Availability: 10/10 (VHS)

10. FOREVER DARLING (1955) * * *
Lucy and Desi's second and final motion picture together. Was this even better than the Long Long Trailer? Fans today believe not. Most of the laughter is saved for the last half of the film - the first half makes you want to put The Long Long Trailer back in the VCR… Click for more information.

Director: Al Hall
Starring: L. Ball, D. Arnaz, James Mason
Desi's Character: Lorenzo Vega
Company: MGM
Video Availability: 10/10 (VHS)

11. SALSA (1976) *
This was probably a small role in a short musical documentary about Desi's kind of music. Geraldo Rivera was also cast in it, as he was also the dialogue coach. This was not an important spot for Desi, it was rather another musical documentary on his musical talent.

Director: -
Starring: Desi Arnaz, Geraldo Rivera
Desi's Character: Desi Arnaz [himself]
Company: -
Video Availability: 0/10

12. JOYS (1976) [TV]  * * *
A comedy film made especially for television audiences filled with comics from the past - including an all star comedian line up with Bob Hope, Milton Berle, George Burns, Phyllis Diller, Groucho Marx, Dean Martin, Don Rickles and many more famous comics and stars.

Director: -
Starring: DA, Bob Hope, Milton Berle, etc.
Desi's Character: Desi Arnaz [Himself]
Company: Hope Enterprises
Video Availability: 0/10 (TV Movie)

13. THE ESCAPE ARTIST (1982) * * 1/2
Desi's final film role - of which he fell into quite perfectly, according to the directors, since his background matched the film heritage. A touchy drama (also starring Raul Julia), however, Desi was not recognized very much for his work in this film. What got the most attention was the plot and storyline.

Director: Caleb Deschanel
Starring: Raul Julia, Griffin O'Neal, D Arnaz
Desi's Character: Mayor Leon
Company: Zoetrope Studios
Video Availability: Discontinued; 0/10