Free Republic

When Desi Arnaz first set eyes on Lucille Ball in the commissary of RKO Pictures in Hollywood in early 1940, it was not an auspicious beginning to their relationship. The Cuban bandleader-turned-fledgling actor made a derogatory remark about the then-B-movie actress’ appearance. “He wasn’t impressed at all, calling her a ’10-cent whore,’ a ‘p–a’ — the Spanish word for prostitute,” author Darwin Porter told The Post, noting that the 28-year-old Ball, five years older than Arnaz, was dressed for a role as a cheap burlesque dancer in the film “Dance, Girl, Dance” with Maureen O’Hara.

The great-granddaughter of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, Desiree S. Anzalone, died Sept. 27 at 31 following a battle with breast cancer. Anzalone, Ball and Arnaz’s first great-grandchild, had been receiving treatment at Smilow Cancer Center in Connecticut, according to People. SNIP Desiree, who worked as a photographer, had battled breast cancer since the age of 25; it was initially diagnosed as stage 2. She elected to undergo a double mastectomy and subsequently went into remission, though two years ago, doctors determined that the cancer had returned, spread elsewhere in her body and progressed to stage 4.