May 1995
I once thought actors and celebrities were quite stellar. They lived in a special world. They lived in mansions, drove limousines, and had “people” for everything. There was a time when Hollywood stars did things to be “seen”. If they weren’t at a gala opening, they were at a top Beverly Hills restaurant. Those days are over, but we do have glamorous events now and then, like the recent Soap Opera Awards. This black tie affair really was “star-studded”. I saw Harry Hamlin (from LA Law), and Deidre Hall (Marlena on DOOL), and all my other old buddies from Days of our Lives. I had a great time, but these events are an exception.
With a husband and three small children, I lead a suburban life and spend most of my spare time at home or carpooling the kids around the neighborhood. Last weekend, I’d just had a truck load of compost dumped on my drive way and I was shoveling it off into a barrow. There I was, knee deep in cow manure, when a studio runner arrived to deliver my General Hospital script. I signed below John Travolta’s name. The runner told me he’d just delivered a script to John’s house and he said: “You can’t smell the dump nearly so bad over there.”
I’m not the only ordinary one. I live two doors down from the head of a major movie studio. Our children play together and often he’s running them to hockey practice, or I am. The other day when I left for the market, he was watering his lawn barefoot. I returned an hour later and he was wearing a dinner suit and stepping into a stretch limo on his way to a premiere.
Once at the airport, I was dragging and pushing my luggage- right behind Kathleen Turner, who was heaving her own bags. Another time I saw Madeline Stowe waiting at the counter- for 45 minutes! I’ve flown with many “celebrities” and they’re just like us. They have to stand in line and use the privy. And they have to work hard at looking good, too. I’ve stepped and jumped at aerobics with Madonna and Terri Garr–who were sweating like everyone else!
Often celebrities look so normal, you don’t recognize them. I’m surprised when people talk to me. I forget I’m recognizable. Once I bumped (literally) into Robert Conrad and all I could do was blurt out, “My mom used to watch you when I was little.” He was NOT flattered. Yesterday, I took my son to basketball practice. One father, a professional baseball player, was advising the kids on teamwork. I chatted with another dad, a weatherman on the primetime network news. When I left, another father, a popular film actor, was showing my son how to dribble. They’re not stars…just Dads.
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