Photoplay (Jan-Jun 1949)

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Frisco 'hhq’fn Colors \ COUPON or It POSTAL to I CO.,N-41,CW«>90 41 ' 3lson Catalog FREE to. ,_STA1E © OB C 1948 I’d Rather Be a Mother (Continued from page 63) had every symptom of polio When Mona left for the studio that morning, her daughter had a fever of 101 and a sore throat. She was unable to hold her food and her reflex actions were not good. Although the doctor tried to assure Mona that the illness was something else, she was unable to quiet her fears. She was doing a hysterical scene that day and believe me, she was really hysterical. She still doesn’t know what she did or why. She thinks it had something to do with pleading with Bill Holden not to let Macdonald Carey shoot him, but she isn’t sure. Then there was the time when Celeste Holm’s son Danny was lost. One morning, Danny went with his nurse to Saks to get some shoes. At 2: 30 p.m., when Celeste had to leave for a radio broadcast, they still hadn’t returned. She was frantic until she called from rehearsal and the nurse answered the phone. “Are you all right?” Celeste asked. “I guess so,” the nurse replied tiredly. Then, “what happened. How’s Dan?” Celeste demanded. “Oh, he’s fine,” said the girl, a little disgustedly. What happened was that when the nurse turned to pick up two boxes of shoes, Dan made a quick getaway. For two and a half hours, every clerk in Saks was looking for him. His nurse almost blacked out when she saw an open elevator shaft until the men working in it said Danny hadn’t gone down there. Finally, they found him, sound asleep on the third shelf of the cashmere sweater department. He had toured the store until he was tired and was taking his afternoon nap there. ANOTHER Hollywood problem is keeping our children unaware of the limelight. It’s easy when they’re as unimpressionable as Celeste’s son, who was bored when she showed him her Academy Award because the “Oscar” couldn’t wiggle its ears or make a funny noise or nothin’. With Dorothy Lamour, it was different. Nobody has ever referred to her by her screen name at home. They were always very careful to call her “Miss Dottie” or “Mrs. Howard.” Then one afternoon, on the nurse’s day off, Dorothy had to go to the studio to see her hairdresser and took the then two-year-old Ridge along. As they were driving through the lot he looked about him sagely. “Where’s Dorothy Lamour?” he asked. Dorothy gave him a big surprised “take.” “Who’s Dorothy Lamour?” she asked cautiously. Ridge gave her a coy look and edged closer to her in the seat. “Mudder dear — you Dorothy Lamour,” he replied. To this day Dorothy doesn’t know how he found out. But when she let him go with her to see the rushes of a picture, for once Ridge didn’t have an answer. He was just a very scared little boy. There was his mother, up on the screen, yet here she was safe and warm right beside him in the dark room. Suddenly he began screaming and Dottie took him out fast. These are the mental images that start a Hollywood mother thinking long after the lights are out at night. One thing sure, we’ll all have to fight to see that our children lead normal lives, and protect them from the hazards of being pointed out as movie stars’ kids. When Lindsay is a year older, Teddy and I plan to send her to a nursery school where she can get used to being one of a group. Now we’re making sure she learns how to play. We have slides, swings, all the playground paraphernalia out in the yard. We make it a gathering place for her friends, Bridget O’Brien (Pat’s daughter), Rebecca Welles (Rita Hayworth’s little girl) and the other children in the neigh borhood. We want them to know tha they’ll always have a good time when the; come to see Lindsay Briskin. Like all others, I suppose movie moth'1 ers have theories about child psychology! Some are strictly “schedule” mothers! others are not. All of us temper schedule somewhat when we’re working on a picture, and let the babies go to bed a littlt later. Otherwise, we would go for week; without seeing them at all. We believe ii talking to them a lot, answering the! questions — if we can, and making then feel that they belong to the family. Judy and Vincente Minnelli have starter taking little Liza out to some prominen restaurant every Sunday for dinner, sc [ she will be able to partake in gala occa-b sions and get used to eating in new places1 It has been Celeste Holm’s experience though, that sometimes a child can go toe far in a family participation project. Foi some reason, Danny, who was born with £ silver toothbrush in his mouth (a showei gift) , will have no part of it. He prefer: using his dad’s green plastic job “Othei I parents don’t have to share their toothbrushes with their children. Why do wt have to?” Schuyler Dunning complains. We couldn’t go along with dividing, toothbrush billing either, but Teddy anc I have always felt that making your chile an important part of the party just can’1 be stressed too much. We even took Lindsay on our trip to England by remotcl! control. Before leaving Hollywood, we|. got presents to be given to her every day we were gone. The first day, she got e toy airplane with a note explaining, ■“Thisj is the airplane Mommy and Daddy left! on for New York.” The next was a minia-' ture ship, representing the Queen Mary; The third, a little cardboard hotel was the “Hotel Savoy where Mommy arid Daddy' are staying.” In that way, Lindsay could' pretend she was along with us. We’ve always treated her like a grownup. In the evening, after her dinner she joins us in the den where Teddy reads to her. Sometimes we all attend a Mickey Mouse movie on television. Lindsay loves the movies and it is our secret hope thal she will someday want to become an actress. If we have guests, Lindsay’s in-' vited in for a sip of Coke and a bite of hors d’oeuvres. She loves to pass the popcorn and make herself generally useful. Judy Garland would also like to have1, Liza follow in her footsteps. “Although we would probably have very little to say about it, if we didn’t, for she is already doing it,” laughs Judy. Liza stays on the set a lot now, sitting quietly beside the' camera, never uttering a word, never; spoiling a shot, her big black eyes taking! in all the action. The other day when one' of the crew said, “Well, Liza, do you want to be an actress when you grow up?” Liza shook her head vehemently. “No,” she' said, “I want to be one now.” If Lindsay decides to be a part of show business, it must be strictly her own idea.l We won’t influence her in any way. But she has all the symptoms even now and: has been a real personality since the day she was born. Candy thinks her big’ sister is simply sensational. She watches1 her all the time and fairly worships her.1 She’s Lindsay’s most adoring fan. Of course, her mother and father aTe pretty1 strong charter members of the club, too. Whatever Lindsay decides to be, I hope she, too, will place motherhood first. All the Oscars that could encircle the globe and all the fame and adoration in the world cannot rival that experience. The End 78