All My Life
Page 16
There was so much music in the show that required me to be strong to sing it. The staging was very active. I was always on the move, climbing ladders and running around. There was no way I’d be up to the task if I didn’t allow my body to heal. I could do it, but only if I were strong.
When we got to the house, Barbara took me to the front door, where I was met by Helmut and Frida. Frida never left my side. She was very caring and nurturing. Helmut made me mashed potatoes every day to fatten me up. I have to admit, that was the best perk after being so sick.
Photographic Insert I
Here I am at eleven months old…
on the day of my First Communion…
and sitting on top of a pony at age three. I used to have so much fun riding with my father!
It was great training for when I rode horseback on All My Children.
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
I always marvel at how the truck in this picture would hint at my future. I love ice cream…and years later I would fall in love with a man named Huber, too!
This is my wonderful Nana, exactly how I remember her…
my father in uniform (he was so proud to serve his country)…
and here I am dancing with my dad when I was seventeen.
Photograph by Kenneth R. Sanderson
This is my very first professional headshot taken prior to landing the role of Erica on All My Children…
Photograph by Van Williams
with my handwritten resume on the back…
my first publicity photograph for All My Children—it is currently used in the opening of the show…
ABC photographs archives
and my first professional profile in a publication (TV GUIDE, June 1971). I had no idea this article was coming out.
TV Guide magazine article courtesy of TV Guide Magazine, LLC, © 1971 Photograph by Robert Verdi
Our days on and off the set were always fun. Here I am dining at Tavern on the Green with Debbie Morgan, Carol Burnett, Darnell Williams, Kim Delaney, and Larry Lau…
at Club A in New York with Julio Iglesias…
Photograph by Peter Cunningham
and at the Friars Testimonial Dinner for Dean Martin with Dean, Shirley MacLaine, and Sammy Davis, Jr.
Courtesy of the Friars Club
This is Mona and Erica in the early days of the show.
ABC photographs archives
I loved working with Fra Heflin from our very first scene together!
ABC photographs archives
Here Erica is dressed to the nines…. She loves to make a grand entrance.
And, of course, she loves getting men’s attention, too. This is Erica with her many grooms:
Photographs by Donna Svennevik/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Dr. Jeff Martin…
ABC photographs archives
Phillip Brent…
ABC photographs archives
Tom Cudahy…
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Adam Chandler…
Photograph by Joe McNally/ABC
Mike Roy…
Photographs by Ann Limongello/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Dimitri Marick (they were the equivalent of daytime’s Taylor and Burton!)…
Photographs by Ann Limongello/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Travis Montgomery…
Photographs by Ann Limongello/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Jack Montgomery again (on the day of the wedding that definitely happened)…
Photographs by Virginia Sherwood/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Jack Montgomery (on the day of the wedding that never happened)…
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and with Jack as they consoled each other after their divorce!
Photograph by Jeff Neira/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Among Erica’s many other lovers, there was the soulful Jeremy Hunter…
ABC photographs archives
the valiant Chris Stamp (Ryan’s stepfather who was shot in the line of action, but not by Erica!)…
Photographs by Donna Svennevik/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and heartthrob Ryan Lavery, pictured here in quite a steamy scene.
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
All of these storylines were great fun, but Dick Shoberg and I really enjoyed the one in St. Croix as it was daytime drama’s first shoot on location!
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Some of the people joining us there, included Sylvia Lawrence, my first makeup artist, Jack Coffey, Dick Shoberg, Agnes Nixon, head of ABC daytime Josie Emerich, Steve Fenn, two of our producers Bud Kloss and Felicia Menei-Beher, Agnes’s husband, Bob Nixon, our wonderful director Jack Wood, and our fabulous crew.
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Another fun shoot held outside the studio, but closer to home, involved Erica modeling at New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. It was my favorite outdoor shoot of all!
Photograph by Bob Sacha/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Although AMC had many firsts, its pioneering spirit is most apparent in its storylines. This is Bianca’s Intervention, the story that won me the Emmy…
Photographs by Ann Limongello/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and a scene from the story line in which Bianca comes out.
Photograph by Lorenzo Bevilaqua/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
Here I am receiving my star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame…
Photographs by Craig Sjodin/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and on that same day with some of the cast members of AMC.
Photographs by Craig Sjodin/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
This, of course, is me holding my long-awaited and treasured Emmy…
Photograph by Ron Galella, Ltd., courtesy of WireImage
and hosting the Emmy award show with Regis Philbin at Radio City Music Hall.
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
I’ve always had great fun acting with guest stars, such as Rosie O’Donnell who played Adam Chandler’s maid…
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and, of course, acting with all my cast mates. Dear, longtime colleagues such as Jimmy Mitchell…
Photographs by Heidi Gutman/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
and the beloved Eileen Hurley, who was a great actress and wonderful storyteller, are both sorely missed.
Photographs by Steve Fenn/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
I am forever grateful to All My Children creator, Agnes Nixon, for the world she imagined for us to play in.
Photograph by Isaac Brekken/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc.
The Mouse has been very good to me, too.
You never forget the kindness of people when you’re sick, but Fran and Barry, God bless them, went beyond the call of duty when they called the next day to tell me they postponed opening night for a week so I could take care of myself and get back on my feet. As hard as it was, I spent the next four days following my doctor’s orders. And it was a good thing I did because it paid off. My strength returned and I was back at rehearsals in time to make the new opening night of the show. I have to thank Dr. Korovin for her insistence that I lie low. If it weren’t for her supreme care, I would never have fulfilled my lifelong dream to perform on Broadway.
By the time I was up and out of bed, All My Children was on hiatus for the holidays, so I was able to put one hundred percent of my focus on final preparations for the big night. I poured my heart and soul into the days I had left. I used to lie in bed at night with an earpiece, listening to the music and practicing my blocking and dancing. Helmut wou
ld endure an hour or two of stomping and moving around until he’d finally lean over and say, “Are you done yet?”
The first time I worked with the orchestra for the show was the day we were set to open. Up until then, I had only worked with a piano. Since the show was already up and running, a new actor taking over a role only gets around three weeks’ rehearsal time before they are basically put in the mix on their very first night in the cast. My only dress rehearsal was on the day of opening night. And if that isn’t enough to make you nervous, there is a whole additional show that happens backstage while the play is going on in the front of the house. Wardrobe people, other cast members, and crew are all scurrying about. Annie Get Your Gun required some very quick changes that meant lots of Velcro in the costumes and people helping me do everything from changing my shoes to grabbing my props. I had to literally hit the ground running.
We took a break between rehearsal and my first performance. I was a basket of nerves. I didn’t want to eat before going onstage but forced myself to get some chicken soup down me so I wouldn’t get light-headed. I had some hot water with lemon and honey to keep my vocal cords well coated and sucked on some delicious glycerin drops Joan had suggested I use.
This particular production introduces Annie on page thirteen of the script. I got ready early so I could watch the show from the wings. I was in such awe of the company I was performing with, especially Tom Wopat who was my costar. The kids from the show came and put their arms around me and we would stand in the wings together and watch until it was my turn to go on.
Annie’s entrance required me to climb up a wooden ladder and into the orchestra pit stage left while holding my rifle. Climbing that ladder felt so elementary, as if I were putting on a show in my backyard with my friends. And yet fitting, too, because it was as if I were actually coming onstage through a barn. As I reached the top rung, one of the clarinet players would grab my rifle so I could pull myself over the top of the ladder and duck down until it was time for me to appear. Once I was securely in place, I’d grab my rifle back and wait for my cue. When I heard the line, I’d walk down a flight of stairs on the side of the stage and make my grand entrance, filthy and muddy, as Annie Oakley.
That moment was magic on opening night and every night thereafter. My parents were in the audience that first evening, surrounded by my friends and cast mates from All My Children. It was very sweet to know that all of those warm and familiar faces were out there, even if I couldn’t see them. In fact, I made a point to tell the stage manager that I never wanted to know who was in the audience on any particular night until after the show so I wouldn’t get nervous before going on. I remember asking Tom Wopat how he did it. He loved looking into the audience and seeing familiar faces. He was very much at ease doing that, which I respected but could never understand.
“I have been doing musicals since I was twelve years old,” he said.
To this day, I would rather not see the faces of the audience or know who is out there. Don’t get me wrong. I want you to come, but I don’t want to know where you are sitting or that you’re even there until after my last curtain call.
Although I am shy, I’m at home onstage. I’d much rather be surprised to learn who came to see the show at the end of the evening. It’s a funny combination, but there are a lot of people in the theater who feel this way.
My friends who were in the audience that first night later told me that they saw my father beaming with great pride as he watched his little girl up onstage. Kelly Ripa told me that she was sitting right near him and generously shared her observations with me. “Your dad was so proud of you. So proud,” she said.
My parents never held back from telling me how proud they were of me over the years, but it is always great to hear, especially since my dad wasn’t completely on board with my decision to pursue acting in the beginning. They were always in the audience whenever I performed, but my father in particular had not been so anxious for me to become a professional actress. It was extremely meaningful to me that my Broadway debut was at this particular theater because my father had a hand in building the original steel structure for the Marriott Marquis Hotel, which was the building in which the theater was housed. Talk about a coincidence!
I don’t know that there are words to describe what it feels like to be up there on a Broadway stage for the very first time. It took my breath away and it was THRILLING! The expression “There’s no business like show business” comes from this very show, and in a way, that just about sums it all up. Being onstage, in a theater on Broadway, is everything I ever wanted as an actress. Opening night was a moment when I can honestly say that all of my dreams from the time I was a little girl had finally come true. I didn’t realize just how thrilling it would be, and I certainly did not expect the standing ovation I received at the end of that performance and after all of the other performances that followed.
At the end of that first night, the press came running down the aisles of the theater, snapping photos and waving their recorders with their pens in the air. I’d seen them do this at other openings for other actors, but I never paid as much attention to that kind of excited reaction as I did that night. It was an absolute dream.
After I changed out of my costume, Sallie Schoneboom, my publicist from ABC, and I walked outside through the stage door. We were headed to the after-party to celebrate my wonderful and unforgettable Broadway debut. There were police barricades everywhere holding back mobs of people. It was utter mayhem, as some people even stood on top of their cars, screaming. I turned to Sallie and said, “Did something happen? Is there a fire?”
“No, Susan. They’re here for you,” she said, beaming with great pride as we took in that incredible moment together. I had no idea such a thing would happen. But then again, I had been one of those fans many times, waiting to meet Sammy Davis Jr., Lena Horne, and Richard Burton. I guess I just never thought there would be those types of fans waiting for me.
I only appeared in Annie Get Your Gun for four weeks, with the understanding that I would jump back into the role when Bernadette Peters left the show the following April. I was very pleased with the experience and eager to come back. Unfortunately, that opportunity never came to fruition. Bernadette decided to extend her contract twice, which was well within her prerogative. Fran and Barry assured me that when Bernadette decided to leave, the part was mine. When she actually did leave the show, however, the producers of All My Children wouldn’t let me commit to the show because they were about to embark on one of the most important story lines in the show’s history—a story that would require more of my time than ever and the material would be very intense and demanding. They simply couldn’t guarantee that I would be done filming and out of the studio in time to make an eight o’clock curtain every night. Although they wouldn’t tell me exactly what that story was at the time, it ended up being the story of Erica’s daughter Bianca coming out as a lesbian.
* * *
The part of Bianca was played with so much intelligence, compassion, and skill by the outstanding young actress Eden Riegel, whom I came to love and admire and count as one of my closest friends in the industry. From the moment Eden was cast, I knew she was the right choice for the part. The material was so complex, yet she was undaunted by the challenge. She brought that special something to the role that made her character even richer than the words on the page. The story line was potentially controversial. We were told to expect a lot of talk in the media around what we were doing—and there was. In the end, it was worth it if we could help one teenager and hopefully even more who might have been struggling with their sexuality feel better about who they are and find the inner strength to live as their authentic selves. Ultimately the story line was widely accepted and greatly praised. This could not have been achieved without several important elements being in place, including intelligent, informed, and sensitive writing, directing, and performing.
* * *
Although I understood where the pr
oducers of All My Children were coming from, I was very disappointed about not being allowed to reprise my role as Annie Oakley on Broadway. I DO NOT…take “no” easily. In fact, it was very hard for me. At the time I didn’t understand the demands that were going to be put on me with this new story line. I really thought I could do both. The producers were continually assuring me that in their opinion, it couldn’t be done. I didn’t know what to make of this, but I finally, after much discussion, accepted it. There was a very strong trust bond between myself and the producers that time and experience certainly had built. This was one of those occasions when I had to rely on that trust. I continued studying with Joan Lader anyway, keeping up my voice, you know, just in case and because I loved the idea of returning to Broadway in this role so much. Sadly, the chance to get up on that stage one more time as Annie Oakley never came. I was very sad the day I met with Fran and Barry for lunch and had to give them the news that I’d be unable to continue. I don’t know why I thought of this, but I asked the Weisslers if they had ever considered the ebullient Reba McEntire to play Annie Oakley. I thought she was absolutely born to play the role. The Weisslers are the very best at reaching out to an untapped Broadway crowd because they aren’t afraid to cast talent that gives their shows a different perspective than traditional Broadway offers. Naturally, they said they had thought of Reba. In fact, she eventually took over the part and she did a wonderful job playing Annie.