LOS ANGELES — Paula Deen didn’t post a 2011 Halloween costume photo on her Twitter account showing her son Bobby in dark makeup as “I Love Lucy” character Ricky Ricardo, and the social media manager responsible for it was fired, Deen’s spokesman said.
The photo from a holiday episode of one of the celebrity cook’s former Food Network shows, with a tweet mimicking Arnaz’s accented English on the show, was quickly removed Tuesday from Twitter after it drew a flurry of comments about Bobby Deen’s dark-skinned depiction of the character played by Desi Arnaz, Lucille Ball’s TV and real-life husband.
The late Arnaz was a Cuban-born Hispanic.
“Paula immediately had this picture taken down as soon as she saw the post and apologizes to all who were offended,” according to a statement from spokesman Jaret Keller. He declined to identify the fired social media manager.
Deen’s 2013 acknowledgment that she’d used a racial slur in the past ended her relationship with the Food Network and toppled her cooking empire.