Three days ago Richard hosted a reception for his high school alma mater, Brooklyn’s prestigious Poly Prep school. He was there from 5th grade till college (He then went to the University of Michigan.) He loved his prep school and awhile back gave the lead gift to build the Richard Perry Theatre, a state of the art theatre on campus. Meryl Streep made her directorial debut there and all her children went to Poly Prep. I will see the school at the end of April when I will accompany Richard to his 50th reunion. I have encouraged him to go. I love reunions; love seeing people I knew so intimately for so many years, so many years ago.  I figure it will be the same for Richard and maybe I’ll learn something about him, as well, because I find it’s a way to learn about yourself, be reminded of who you were and perhaps some insight into who you’ve become…and who your fellow classmates have become. I find it is always surprising.

One of Richard’s classmates was Richard Rosenberg with whom he formed a doo wop singing group, first called The Legends and then The Escorts. I just about fainted when, awhile ago, I was bragging that I knew a song in Latin and began singing Gaudeamus Igitur when Richard then began singing along with me and then put on an old LP of The Escorts on which they sang a doo wop version of the Latin song!!! OMG! I may sing it with them at the reunion if we get any chance to rehearse.

The reunion was a big success, needless to say.

Next to Richard is the former Headmaster, Bill Williams, then another alum, Nick Schenck. In front of NIck is the current headmaster, David Harmon

Richard, me, Nick Schenck and Richard Rosenberg

Last night we had a little party with the amazingly special Catherine Keener, documentary filmmaker, Amy Berg, who made the extraordinarily powerful documentary, “Deliver Us From Evil,” about a pedophile Catholic priest, Samantha Mathis, who played my daughter in “33 Variations” on Broadway and who I adore, and producer Sandy Stern who is becoming a dear friend and, hopefully we will work together. Alas, I forgot to take any pictures!!
 
It was a really fun night and ended early cause I had to get up this morning and do a photo shoot with Matthew Rolston for the covers of my new DVDs. I so adore working with Matthew. He is kind, quick, talented and the photos really look good. It may seem strange to you that the DVDs won’t come out till next January and yet we’re doing all this now but it may be the only time I get to do it—so at least it’s out of the way. I’ve put more lighter highlights in my hair and I think It’s better. The all-dark brown got a little helmety.

What else? That’s about it. The pollen-filled L.A. Air that has got me feeling tired and ill has finally blown over and I’m back to normal. Tomorrow we go to New York where I will rehearse the narration of the “Grapes of Wrath” opera that is being performed one night only with symphony orchestra and chorale (and Christine Ebersole!!!!) at Carnegie Hall. I’m excited. So many people I love will be there: Eve Ensler, Pat Mitchell, Annette Tauper and her husband, Joe Allen (Richard’s college roommate), my daughter-in-law’s parents, Dee and Boswell Bent, Roger Freidman, Kenny Vance, Jean Doumanian, Stan Dragotti, Patricia Bosworth, Hilton Als, Nat Bickford, Leslie Stahl, Eva and Yoel Haller…and Catherine Keener!!! What fun it will be.

I will take photos of it all, including the 3 days of rehearsals between Saturday and Monday night.

See You Next Time.

THIS IS THE BEAUTIFUL JEWELLE BICKFORD ON MY Arab mare, Gitane. And she thought she couldn’t do it!!!

...and here’s Nat Bickford. But what he really liked doing was fly fishing. Troy took him. It was cold but there were a few hits. He’ll come back in the summer and really get into it.

...and Troy and Simone, my son and daughter-in-law (I’m not a monster)

...Troy on the Argentine saddle that’s covered with sheep skin. Very comfy.

...Nathalie Vadim in foreground.

I cannot ride yet cause of recent and not serious back surgery. But I look forward to doing a lot of it in the spring and summer. Just because I’m falling apart doesn’t mean I have to stop doing what I love. I feel like Katharine Hepburn who said to me in her quaky voice while we were filming “On Golden Pond,” “ I’m going to live a long time, Jane, though I may spend the last of in in a chair.. All my organs are like spring chickens. It’s my joints that’ll get me.” Ditto to that.

See You Next Time

AT&T were a no-show for the five days around the holiday in spite of our continuous cries for help and as a result I have had no internet access. Our offices in Atlanta were flooded when a pipe broke and we had to move into new digs and the internet was a non-happening. That’s why my blogs are all backed up. Oh well. When these things happen I just think that a couple of decades ago the technology didn’t even exist. So—can it really be all that important in the end?

We gathered at the ranch for a week and it was great fun. My friends, the Bickfords joined us over the weekend. They were with us on the Galapagos trip so it was a 6-month reunion of sorts…though I see Jewelle all the time when I’m in New York and she’s just joined the board of The Women’s Media Center. Emily and George’s daughters, Nathalie and Elizabeth somehow didn’t make the photos but they were a delicious addition to the otherwise adult gathering.

I took everyone into town on Saturday and in the fabulous store called Nathalie on Canyon Road we all put on cowboy hats to have our picture taken.

Left to right - Laura, Nick, Nat, Jewelle, Richard, Me

Nathalie, the beautiful owner of the store, with me and Jewelle

Me with Jewelle

It was a snowy weekend…very appropriate for Thanksgiving. We played games like this one where we each had a name attached to our foreheads and had to guess who we were. I was Beethoven but didn’t guess it. We also played a fabulously fun games called Taboo. Men against women. We won. Then we sang Christmas Carrols…a holiday tradition for my family although I’ll have to admit I always have to strong-arm the kids to join me (I grew up singing the old fashioned carrols and want my kids and grands to know there’s more to it than ”Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer,” tho that’s perfectly charming).

Laura Bickford, her sister Emily Lansbury and Nathalie Vadim

Richard who is trying to guess who he is (Marlene Dietrich)

Troy, George Lansbury, Nick Jarecki and Nat Bickford

Laura and Nick gave me a beautiful Mexican bowl with a couple of skeletons dancing on the bottom. I love it cause I love how Mexico isn't afraid of death

Richard's not the only one to wear my mug shot T-shirt!!

Today’s our last day and we’re going into town for some Christmas shopping. As always, I am slightly down cause I hate leaving.

See you next time.