JAMESTOWN, N.Y. — When Ron Howard approached Amy Poehler about directing a documentary about Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, the award-winning actress (known for her hilarious roles on NBC favorites "Saturday Night Live" and "Parks and Rec") as well as her roles as producer, director and best-selling author said: Yes, Please.
"Luci and Desi" premiered at The Sundance Film Festival. It begins streaming on Amazon Prime this week.
Poehler returned to Jamestown on Tuesday night to attend a special screening of the film in Lucy's hometown at the National Comedy Center.
"The hope of this film," Poehler told the audience, "is to keep alive the spirit of Lucy and Desi, and make people realize these people were incredibly modern, incredibly innovative, and there's a reason we're talking about the 70 years later."
Before the screening began, Poehler took time to talk about the film, including the time she spent doing research in Jamestown, with local media, including Most Buffalo's Kate Welshofer.
They talked about the film, Poehler's time in Jamestown and the best animal to defend you in a court of law.
You can also see bonus footage from the interview shared as part of Wednesday's Most Buffalo Story of the Day.
Of the film, Poehler told 2 On Your Side: "It was trying to figure out the human story and what are trailblazers, icons, geniuses, but those words tend to kind of flatten things out, and I really wanted people to remember the very complicated people that were Lucy and Desi.
"And also I think that there's a really beautiful human lesson, and not only their relationship together and their lifelong respect and love for each other, but also what it looks like to take big swings and to bet on yourself."
"Lucy and Desi" begins streaming on Amazon Prime on March 4.