Originally Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz wanted Bette Davis, (she was an classmate of Lucy, in her early dramatic school days) to play the "celebrity next door." Bette agreed but to the tune of $20,000, equal billing to Lucy and Desi, and the cost of her return fare home after filming covered. Lucy and Desi were considering giving in when Bette suffered some personal setbacks (including falling off a horse and cracking a vertebrae) and she had to drop out.
Ms Bankhead was small 'a tiny thing' said Maury Thompson. At first, Lucy was afraid the studio's audience wouldn't see her (forgetting the fact that Ms Bankhead was a much better known theatre star than film or TV). When Ms Bankhead made her entrance, Lucy said, 'make sure you open the door real wide, Desi, be sure they see her'. When shooting her scene, and he opened the door, 'there she was, leaning on the doorjamb, and my god, the place went wild'. The take used was cut, due to the length of time the audience went wild.
In Lucy Fakes Illness (1952), Lucy pretends to have multiple (celebrity) practicalities, in order to get into one of Ricky's shows. One of those personalities was Tallulah Bankhead.
Elvia Allman (Ida Thompson) was one of the favoured actors who had frequently appeared on I Love Lucy (1951) and The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour (1957). She's probably most familiar as the extremely strict boss in the classic episode, Job Switching (1952) (wherein Lucy and Ethel work at a chocolate factory).
Contrary to her on-camera persona, Tallulah Bankhead was a wonderfully kind, generous person. During an early read-through, Ms Ball complimented Ms Bankhead on her crocheted sweater. Ms Bankhead took it off her shoulders and tossed it at Lucy. 'Take it', she said. In spite of Lucy's refusal, Ms Bankhead insisted, stating; I've dozens more'. Ms Vance complimented her on her slacks, at which point, Mr Arnaz left the roomv - fearing Ms Bankhead wouldn't stop her 'strip-gifting'? Ms Bankhead did give the slacks, and stopped at that point.