The idea to write a suspense series about a struggling young actress grew out of my own experiences trying to make it as an actress in New York City. I dreamt of acting in plays by Shakespeare and Chekhov. Instead I walked onto countless soap operas and movies with nary a line, and acted in summer theater that paid barely enough to cover my groceries. But I had some successes too – like singing Day By Day in Godspell to a standing ovation. I reveled in singing at the Gaslight Club for inebriated patrons calling for more. And then there was the time I almost landed a part on Broadway in Look Homeward Angel (which closed in less than a week, if memory serves me correctly. Some things just are not meant to be.)
Yet despite the trials and tribulations, these were exciting times I remember with fondness. Everyday I leapt out of bed in anticipation of what might be waiting for me around the corner. Like falling in love with my husband.
He was teaching at Columbia University at the time and I was working on a made-for-television movie starring Penny Marshall and Rob Reiner. I was Penny’s stand-in, which is kind of like being human furniture. All the shots were set up on Rob’s stand-in and me. Then someone shouted “first team,” and we faded into the background while the stars took over. Filming took place all day and all night, winding through different neighborhoods around the city.
One marathon shooting session wrapped up in Columbia’s neighborhood. So I called this guy, John, I had met recently at a party. When he answered the phone, he politely asked me if I knew what time it was. I didn’t. 6 AM, he pointed out.
Woops.
Undeterred, he came downstairs and followed our film crew around with his camera. Then he took me to dinner. A year and five months later we were married. So you see, one thing leads to another.