Eyes love new Lucycy
Lucy is scary no more. On Saturday — on what would have been Lucille Ball’s 105th birthday — a new statue of the famed late actress was unveiled in Celoron, NY, putting an end to what has been a national embarrassment for the actress’ hometown.
The town first erected a life-size bronze tribute by sculptor Dave Poulin in 2009, but it was soon dubbed “Scary Lucy” by townsfolk for its hideous, toothy grin and vacant eyes. Even Poulin called it his “most unsettling sculpture.”
“Scary Lucy” went viral in 2015 after one fan launched a Facebook group to advocate for the statue’s removal called “We Love Lucy! Get Rid of this Statue.”
“The people of Celoron have erected this horrible statue of Lucy in her hometown,” the Facebook page read. “It is a nightmare. We want them to replace it.”
Enter Carolyn Palmer, who was selected to create the new statue from a national competition of 65 sculptors, the Hollywood Reporter revealed. Private donors are covering the estimated $250,000 cost.
The new statue stands at 7-feet tall and depicts Ball standing on her Hollywood star and wearing a ’50sstyle polka-dot dress, pearls and heels with her hair in its signature coif.
The creation is the result of nine months of hard work by Palmer, spent watching “I Love Lucy” reruns, hiring models similar to Ball’s build and crafting the sculpture itself.
The statue will take over Scary Lucy’s spot in Lucille Ball Memorial Park.
“I’m a thin-skinned person and artists are sensitive, and I do feel bad for [Poulin],” Palmer told the Hollywood Reporter. “I find that the world was a little harsh on him. That’s the biggest nightmare in the world for anybody.”
But this isn’t the end of “Scary Lucy.” Celoron Mayor Scott Schrecengost revealed that the statue has become such a tourist at- traction they decidedd to simply relocate the old statue to another spotot in the park, according to The Associated Press.