A gorgeous, dark-haired woman is walking toward me along a
canal in Europe. On the other side of the tapered road is a line of two-hundred
year old homes. I’m in modern times but the lady walking toward me seems to be
from the not-so-distant past. Her high heels are dropping soft footfall clicks
on the cobblestone. Her shadow looms large, enveloping the area. I recognize
the curvy shape and the attitude in the stroll, even though her face is still
unclear. It’s the actress, Ava Gardner.
I’m eager to meet this Hollywood star, even if I’m just dreaming.
She’s been a favorite of mine since having seen THE KILLERS, THE NIGHT OF THE
IGANUA, ON THE BEACH, and THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JUDGE ROY BEAN. Lately, I’ve
been reading The Secret Conversations.
But how do you talk to a legend? It comes to me … I’ll start with saying that
my wife and I named our daughter after her.
I thumb my fedora up. I relax my hand off Jack Laramie’s
Colt that I brought along. I’m feeling Alan Ladd-ish cool, but my enthusiasm
and ease are short lived. Out of the shadows I see the well-known face for only
a second before she morphs into a zombie. She smiles a wicked I’m-going-to-kill-you
grin.
I’m petrified but can’t run. I know the end has arrived.
She lunges.
Fade Out.
Speaking as a woman (naturally) I never saw her charm although my husband tells me I am wrong, wrong, wrong. She had one of those Max Factor faces from that era that never seemed real. It seemed like if I saw her without makeup I wouldn't recognize here.
ReplyDeleteAlso too predatory for me.
In most of her films she was a face with lots of charisma and that's talked about in the new Conversations book. Once Hollywood figured out how to make money off her they kept recycling the formula and she didn't seem to mind. I think in IGUANA she showed some strong acting chops though some may suggest she was playing a version of herself.
ReplyDeleteI don't watch the old movies, so I've only ever seen pictures of her, but she's certainly beautiful.
ReplyDeleteMy "celebrity muse" is Dita Von Teese, so I can relate. I actually had a long hiking daydream a couple weeks ago about running into her into an airport. Heh. My wife even teases me about her. Thing is, I've actually gotten to see her live when we went to one of her performances in Seattle, and we were right up against the stage. She was literally inches away from me, David. INCHES!
Now I'm feeling left out. I don't have a celebrity muse. Although I probably have some zombie muses. I've also got a gaunt, vicious female wolf who is a muse. We generally hate each other.
ReplyDeleteChris, I remember, last year, I tweeted that I wonder what Dita Von Teese is doing at this very moment. She surprised the hell out of me when she responded and I felt important for the rest of the day. Walking on air and all. That close to the stage, huh? Damn. Lucky son-of-a-gun!!
ReplyDeleteCharles, "a gaunt, vicious female wolf." Ha. Gotta be wary of those, friend. Actually, Ava Gardner is not my muse but I find her life interesting. She hung out with Frank Sinatra, Ernest Hemingway, John Huston, and Howard Hughes. She swore like the boys and cut a helluva trail.
I've had multiple interactions with Dita online, and she's favorited a number of my tweets related to her. It always makes my day.
ReplyDeleteI always scoff at people who tweet at celebrities, but I make an exception for myself when it comes to her, heh.
Nice piece. If I had a celebrity muse, I think it would be Linda Darnell. Or maybe Clara Bow. Myrna Loy? Oy, come to think of it, there's too many...
ReplyDeleteChris, I think when the desperation that some people show in talking to famous people then I have to scoff at that myself. On the flip side, I bet it must be rewarding (most of the time) to be on the pulse of your fan base.
ReplyDeleteHeath, Myrna Loy. Whew! Hilary Davidson has a Pinterest page devoted to the star of The Thin Man series. Incredible lady.
A recent article about Ava Gardner was published in THE NEW YORKER. The writer believed that her best roles were in MOGAMBO and IGUANA, in which she basically played herself. Patti Abbott's remark notwithstanding, I always find her quite stunning, although for a muse, I'd pick someone like Lee Remick.
ReplyDeleteRon, Ava is not a muse of mine. (Chris mentioned his "celebrity muse" is Dita.) I've never had a Hollywood muse. I did read the piece in The New Yorker devoted to Gardner. Well written by David Denby and probably was the spark for my dream.
ReplyDelete