Modern Screen (Jan-Dec 1960)

■ About thirty years ago, when Babe Ruth was at the height of his glory, a chunky little boy named Billy was batboy for the New York Yankees. Billy grew to love Babe Ruth with a fierce loyalty. He was almost a slave to all the great man's wants. That batboy followed Babe Ruth wherever he went. He ran errands for him. He shined his shoes. He was his messenger boy. his servant; he was the keeper of Babe Ruth's bats. When Babe Ruth had a good day in a ballgame, Billy would be the happiest youngster in the world. When Ruth had one of those bad days on the field, he would feel worse than the Babe himself. That chunky little batboy wanted to be just like Babe Ruth. He would say to Ruth, "Babe, would you teach me to play ball? There's nothing I want more than to become a major-league ballplayer like you." Babe Ruth would put his arm around him and say, "Son, you can be anything you want, if you want it bad enough, and try hard enough." Ruth encouraged him to stick around and learn all the baseball he could. He told him to practice, practice, and then practice again. "Stick to the training rules," Ruth would advise, "and live a clean life." But there were times when Ruth, himself, did not follow his own advice. He stayed up late at nights. He stuffed himself with food at all hours of the day without any regard for training rules. Many of his foolish acts made newspaper headlines, as did his home runs. But to that batboy, the great Babe Ruth could do no wrong. One afternoon, before a ballgame, Babe Ruth decided to have a little snack. He told his loyal batboy to go fetch him a couple of hot dogs and some soda pop. Billy rushed away to do Babe Ruth's bidding. He brought back a dozen hot dogs and a dozen bottles of soda pop. And Babe Ruth ate all those hot dogs and drank all that soda pop. Of course, no one knew about this except Babe and the batboy. That afternoon the million-dollar ballplayer came down with a bellyache heard 'round the world. He collapsed, and had to be rushed to a hospital. Newspaper headlines all over the world blazed with the shocking news that Babe Ruth was dying. When the Yankees' manager found out who had fed the Babe, he promptly fired that unhappy batboy. Very soon Babe Ruth became well again and went on to even greater glory. Billy never did become a big league ballplayer. Being fired from his job and not being near his idol, crushed him. His baseball dreams were dead. His whole world crashed about him. As the years drifted by, that chunky little batboy looked back upon his baseball dreams and considered himself a failure. But he did go on to become famous, though not in baseball. He followed Babe Ruth's advice, and, in time, went on to become a famous motion picture and television actor. You know him now as William Bendix. However, the strangest part of the story is that William Bendix was the actor chosen to play the part of Babe Ruth in the motion picture story of his fabulous life — The Babe Ruth Story. pies can share. And we had a chance to know each other as we really are, to iron out problems so that there wouldn't be any unpleasant surprises or disillusioning discoveries after we're Mr. and Mrs. . . . "We took our time about planning all the details of our wedding and it was the most wonderful kind of planning. We decided on a formal wedding at an early nuptial mass with Dwayne as best man. "In those months we had together, planning our future together, I made an important decision — to give up my career and be a full-time wife. Our engagement period made me know that what I wanted most out of life was to be Mrs. Darryl Hickman, wife, homemaker, mother. "And because there was no particular rush, we could take all the time we wanted finding our first home. That was so much fun, looking at model rooms, model homes, dreaming and planning. We looked at houses and apartments both and finally agreed that we'd rent an apartment. Then when children arrived, we'd buy a house. "Furniture shopping took us to antique shops, quaint out-of-the-way stores, exciting auctions where we'd bid for just the right piece. What a thrill it was to go to the apartment that would soon be our very own and rearrange the furniture each time something new was delivered. We were going to have a lovely place that was truly our home, furnished leisurely just the way we both wanted it, to move into right after our honeymoon. . . ." In between the questions and the teasing, Pamela did manage to open all her gifts. Then Judi stood up and made a little speech: "We hope the gifts we gave you are just what you need, Pam, but there is something that every bride-to-be needs most — and I'm afraid it hasn't arrived yet." "What's that?" Pamela asked innocently. "A husband!" Judi laughed. At that moment the door opened and in came Darryl. followed by 'Dobie' and 'Maynard.' Pam's husband-to-be was just as delighted with the gifts as she was, which is a good thing since the loot got piled in his strong arms, and he left the party loaded down with all their packages. . . . Not long after the shower, Pamela had a luncheon party for her bridesmaids — Darryl's sister Dierdre, Judi (Mrs. Martin) Milner, Anna Lou Kent, and Diane Miller — and her matron of honor, Ruth (Mrs. Jerry) Paris. Pam had her heart set on an all white wedding, but she wanted the girls to have a say in what style their gowns would be. They decided on something that would look lovely and appropriate for the wedding and yet could be worn later on for I parties. They chose a simply-cut white ' dress with a scoop neckline, bell skirt and three-quarter sleeves, and with it they'd carry deep red American Beauty roses. Pamela's mother was flying to Hollywood from Connecticut for the wedding, but she couldn't get there in time to be with her daughter for that crucial time of getting ready for the ceremony and easing pre-ceremony jitters. But her landlady, Mrs. Brown, was a kind and motherly woman and offered her own home for the bridal party to dress in. When the girls arrived, at 8:00 in the morning, Mrs. Brown had fruit cake and coffee waiting. Pamela was too trembly to button buttons properly; however with the help of her bridesmaids and her landlady, she managed to get into something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. An old lace handkerchief of her mother's, a borrowed hoop petticoat, a blue garter — and her new wedding gown. She looked very sweet in her beautiful wedding gown, but she kept asking the girls nervously, "Do I look all right. Do I look all right?" Somehow they got to the church, in plenty of time and all in one piece. It