I loved the 60s Southwest Missouri State College (SMS) basketball Bears. For three seasons, Curtis Perry, an impressive forward from Washington, DC, led the team. Perry made the 1970 draft to San Diego. A young Perry later showed up in a George Pelecanos crime thriller, in an early 60s chapter.
SMS produced actors, too. It was known for Tent Theater, the summer stock drama program. My dad still reminisces about his favorite performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, ” in the 70s. John Goodman was Bottom. Kathleen Turner was Titania. Tent Theater also featured Tess Harper back then, who later starred in a Texas movie with John Malkovich and was never heard from again. A kid named Pitt from Kickapoo High School made the big time. On Sell’s bio page IMDB erroenously reported that Pitt spent time at SMS but Pitt actually attended Mizzou. Known as Brad, made his big screen debut getting offed in a parking lot by Susan Sarandon. My brothers played little league with Pitt’s brothers.
Springfield produced TV notables, too. Our neighbor Wilbur taught Price is Right host Bob Barker at Drury College when Barker was an economics major in the 1940s. My friend Kathy’s parents entertained Donna Douglas, “Ellie Mae” of the Beverly Hillbillies, at their boat up at Lake of the Ozarks. Kathy’s family met Donna when an episode was filmed in Missouri. Branson had not yet become the entertainment mecca we know today. Back then, the Shepherd of the Hills pageant was the biggest show after Silver Dollar City.
My cousins lived a block from the Ciccone family in Rochester, Michigan. The Ciccone’s oldest daughter graduated from Adams High School with my cousin Tom in 1976, and attended his graduation party. My late Aunt Kathy recalled that the girl came to the party barefoot, her feet dirty. Aunt Kathy also sold an a used girls’ bike to Mrs. Ciccone. My cousin Marie once espied the neighbor girl under the school stadium bleachers, smooching another girl. When the neighbor girl became famous in show biz. she dropped her family name and went by her first name, Madonna.
A guy I knew from high school, Rod Sell , spent time at SMS, but then became a stage actor in Chicago in the 80s. I used to see Rod in plays. He was great in Bob Meyer’s brilliant production of Mamet’s “American Buffalo.” Rod got into movies. Years later, I watched a home video of “Groundhog Day.” Who should be playing the mustachioed town mayor, but Rod! Over and over and over again, Rod presided over the big town rally with his shoulders shaking, belly rolling and voice booming : “Hey, there, what can I do yah for!!” “Hey, there, what can I do yah for!!”
My NYU law school classmate Marc Platt produced the law school musical every year. Marc is now a fabulously successful Hollywood and Broadway producer with more insight into the entertainment needs of my teen and pre-teen girls than I’ll ever have. See, e.g., Wicked; Legally Blonde; Legally Blonde II, Wicked, the movie, Legally Blonde, the musical . . . .
I studied piano in Chicago with Mrs. Evans, whose daughter Andrea Evans was a soap opera star. Mrs. Evans is in one of the pictures on Andrea’s website. I now study piano with Mrs. L, whose actress daughter Robin starred in an HBO series where Robin’s character cussed up a storm. Mrs. L. is not on Robin’s website.
My husband’s college classmate Chris Murray finished filming the new season of Zoey 101 at the end of August last year. Chris’s star-struck seven year old daughter was so excited to meet Jamie Lynn Spears at the wrap party! Chris was so pleased to be working for Nickelodeon! When Chris came to visit my daughters were so thrilled to meet a star from cable! We can’t bring ourselves to phone Chris and ask him his plans for next season.
