Peter Robinson: The Elusive Magic of Desi Arnaz

Recording the podcast just now, Rob Long, James Lileks and I found ourselves discussing Lucille Ball's husband, the Cuban band leader Desi Arnaz.  (How did he come up?  Ah, you'll have to tune in to find out.)  

Rob provided a brief Hollywood history lesson, explaining that Arnaz was a business genius.  That is, of course, good to know, but it leaves the central puzzle unsolved.  Desi Arnaz couldn't act, couldn't sing, and couldn't really dance.  And yet, and yet.  He was a really marvelous entertainer.  Just get a load of this clip of Arnaz singing one of his biggest hits, "Cuban Pete."

As I say, Arnaz couldn't act, sing, or dance--but he was just marvelous all the same.  

If you can figure out how he did it, would you let the rest of us know?