On his birthday, March 12th, I was delighted that John would be finished filming early enough that we could go out for a birthday dinner. I made reservations at Miceli’s on Las Palmas. We were going to Matty with us and spend the evening as a family. As John showered, I tried to come up with a clever way to present the ring to him. I drew a blank and quickly, before he came out of the bath, popped the wrapped gift into his sock drawer, knowing he would find it when he opened the drawer. I watched him out of the corner of my eye as he rummaged around looking for the pair he wanted. Pulling out the ring, he stroked his chin and said, “Hmmm, how did this get in there?”
“Oh, it must have slipped in and nestled among your argyles when we weren’t looking,” I said, trying to feign ignorance. I literally held my breath as he removed the gift wrapping, then opened the box and examined the ring.
“It’s … awesome. I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said as he put the ring on his finger.
“And you never will,” I told him as I sat on the bed next to him. “I designed it and had it made because I wanted to give you something no one else would have. Happy Birthday, my love.” I kissed him on the cheek.
As spring progressed, Snow Queen steadily rose on the pop charts. By July, it had reached the top spot. I had trouble believing it, even though almost every time I turned on the radio, it was playing. When I met with Dee-Dee one day and told her this, she laughed and put her arm around my shoulders. “Honey,” she said in her North Carolina drawl, “don’t question things too closely. You’re talented and you deserve recognition of that. Just accept it and be happy.”
As we ate lunch, I told her about John’s and my engagement and wedding plans. “I hope you can come. It’s going to be so beautiful. Everything is coming together so well. I have the most beautiful dress picked out. ” I practically gushed, I was so excited.
“What will make it beautiful, Hannah, isn’t the dress or the flowers or the table centerpieces at the reception. It will be you and John and the love you have for each other. Everything else is just so much decoration.”
21
Later that month, Danny and Patrick came to visit us with their friend, Szabo. Szabo had just moved to Los Angeles from Chicago and lived in the same apartment complex as Danny and Patrick. He was a photographer and was hoping to do magazine shoots but as yet hadn’t landed his breakout gig. He had a portfolio with him which he showed us. John and I were impressed with his photos. We all said we would be happy to help him find work if we could. While I fixed some snacks for us, Szabo looked at John and asked, “Have you ever thought of doing any modeling?”
“No,” John answered. “I’ve never even imagined myself doing anything like that.” He smiled nervously.
“Think about it,” said Szabo. “You’re tall, strikingly handsome and you move gracefully. You’d be a natural.”
John laughed and shook his head. “I don’t think so. I just can’t see myself in magazines modeling Armani suits and Prada shoes.”
“Would you pose for some photos anyway? You and Hannah together. I’d be happy to do them as a wedding gift for you.”
John and I looked at each other and had the same thought. “Can you do sexy, romantic ones, ones that would be just for us?” I asked. “We want you to do our wedding photos too, and we will pay a fair price for those, of course.”
The next afternoon, Szabo returned with his cameras and other equipment. Matty was down for his nap, so we had a couple of hours. At first, I was nervous and uncomfortable taking my clothes off in front of a strange man and then wearing nothing but that see-through teddy that John had given me for Valentine’s Day. To his credit, Szabo was professional and polite and I soon felt at ease. I noticed John watching intently how much and where Szabo touched me when he posed me. I was amused to think that John was feeling jealous, even a little, and I had to suppress a smile.
We took a dozen poses, all of which I think were beautiful. My favorite is the one where John and I are both kneeling, with John cupping my face in his hands and mine on his chest. Szabo had me pull the straps of the teddy down so it barely covered my nipples in order to make me appear more vulnerable. When I saw it, I was touched at how perfectly the expressions on our faces conveyed how we felt about each other. John and I were delighted with all of the other photos as well. Taking them added another dimension to our relationship. That’s why it upset me so to see them on the internet and strangers making obscene remarks as if they were cheap pornography. It just made me sick because it was something deeply personal and special to us.
***
The album containing Snow Queen continued to ascend the charts until it reached number one the last week of July. It had been well received by music critics and obviously resonated with the public. There was talk going around that the album and perhaps also Snow Queen itself may be nominated for a Grammy. I was thrilled at the idea of anything of mine, especially a song about a cocaine snorting prostitute, even mentioned in the same breath as the word ‘Grammy,’ but I didn’t dare to get my hopes up too high or be too presumptuous about it.
On June 4th Alicia, John’s sister, had a baby boy. They named him Michael Erik. He was a few weeks premature and was jaundiced at birth. He would need extra special care for a while and Louise wanted to be with Alicia to help her. She phoned John and me to tell us this. “I really can’t leave Alicia now. She really needs help with the baby and Erik is being shipped out next week for another tour of duty. He will be gone for six or seven months. Once the baby is better, I’ll be able to get away,” she said.
“Well then, we’ll postpone the wedding. We wouldn’t think of having it without you,” I told her. John heard this and nodded in agreement.
“Don’t do that. Robert can still come. I hate to miss it, but I don’t want to ruin your plans.”
“Nonsense, Louise. We’ll wait until October. It’s nicer then, anyway; not so hot.” Just then, John took the phone from me and said, “Mom, it’s settled. We’re postponing until October. It means too much to Hannah and me to have you here. Give our love to Dad, Alicia, Erik, and of course to the baby.”
The wedding was scheduled for July 23rd, but I rescheduled everything we had arranged so far to October 21st. Greg and Cindy Barnes, since they had already had arranged the trip and taken time off from their jobs, came out to Los Angeles anyway. John and I had planned a honeymoon to San Francisco, so we decided that the four of us plus Matty would take that trip and John and I would go to Lake Tahoe for our honeymoon instead.
The arrived on July 21st. Cindy and I spent the next two days catching up, while the men made the rounds of the jazz clubs. They both were still jazz aficionados, which was largely what forged their friendship back in college. We introduced them to my family and to Laurie and James. Greg and Cindy married in 1978, when I was on tour with Tony. I was so happy to see them again. I hadn’t seen them in over three years. Greg had just finished a degree in Finance and had a job with an investment firm. He was a member of a community acting company and had appeared in a couple of plays with them, but acting was now just a hobby for him now.
We drove up to San Francisco rather than fly, so we all could enjoy the scenery. California’s central valley is beautiful, though it can be unbearably hot in summer. We stopped in Monterey to eat and got to see the otters frolicking in the water nearby. Matty really got a kick out of them. It was all we could do to keep him from jumping in the water after them. We also stopped in Gilroy, so we could show them the ‘Onion Capital of the World.’ One could smell the onions from miles down the freeway. The first thing I wanted to do once we reached San Francisco was to tour Chinatown. Next, we just had to ride a streetcar and then to go to Fisherman’s Wharf for some fresh seafood. We even took the boat ride to Alcatraz. It was challenging, walking up and down all those steep hills, especially carrying Matty, but John stepped in and carried him on his shoulders when I got tired. Matty loved being able to sit up high and see everything. I loved every minute we
were there. It reminded me of when we all lived together, running around New York, taking in everything we could.
One night, Greg and Cindy dressed up as John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in Grease, a movie they both loved and while John and I played the drums and piano, danced to You’re the One that I Want. They were such a darling couple, I was glad to see they were just as fun-loving as they were back then.
When the time came for Greg and Cindy to return home, John, Matty and I stayed with them at the airport right up to the minute they had to board the plane. They promised to return in October for the wedding.
About a month later, I received a phone call from Cindy. She was pregnant and wanted John and me to be among the first to know. She said she was certain she conceived during the time she and Greg visited us. I teased her, telling her, in light of that, to remember John and me when they chose the baby’s name.
***
Around the middle of August, Tony phoned me from New York and said he planned to visit some friends who lived in Van Nuys and wanted to see Matty while he was here for Matty’s second birthday and to take him for an overnight visit. Since I moved to Los Angeles, Tony called several times to briefly ask about Matty and had sent him a gift for Christmas. That was about the extent of his interest in him. I supposed he couldn’t be expected to visit often when he lived three thousand miles away.
I invited a couple of my neighbors who had children Matty’s age, my parents and Laurie, to Matty’s birthday party. I expected Tony, as he said he was coming, but he didn’t show. We waited nearly half an hour past the time and then began without him. An hour later, when I was busy with Matty and his little guests, Tony finally arrived. I heard Dad answer the door and say, “Oh, good. You’re here. We were getting worried that you weren’t going to make it.”
“I couldn’t find the damned place,” Tony snapped. “It’s so confusing trying to get around in this city.” He dropped the birthday gift he was holding onto the dining table. I took Matty by the hand to say ‘hello’ to his father. He must have sensed Tony’s irritation and frustration because he ran and retreated behind John’s legs. I noticed Tony, when he saw this, regard John with an icy glare, contemptuously raking his eyes up and down. I held my breath, waiting for some nasty comment to come out, but immediately, he smiled broadly at John and held out his hand, but I could sense resentment still simmering.
“You must be Eaton.”
“Yes, John Eaton.” John bent down to Matty and said gently, “It’s OK. It’s your Dad. See, he brought you a birthday present.” He led Matty to the dining table and put Tony’s gift into his hands. Mother came out of the kitchen with a piece of birthday cake we’d saved and some lemonade and placed them in front of Tony. As Matty began pulling the paper and ribbon off, Tony talked to him and made funny faces at him. Finally Matty laughed and seemed to take to Tony. The gift Tony brought was a soccer ball nearly as big as Matty himself. I had to suppress a laugh.
Breathing a sigh of relief, I went back with John to say goodbye to the other mothers and children and thank them for coming. When Tony was ready to leave, I carried Matty’s things out to Tony’s car. As I put them into the back seat, I said, “We’ll be home all evening, so if you need anything, just call.”
“Thanks,” he said, his voice dripping with contempt, “but I’ll manage.” He cast a quick glance back at the house. “I can’t believe you’re back with that pretty boy. What do you see in him?”
I wanted to rip into Tony for his rudeness, but I knew I would just be playing into his hands, so I reined in my anger and merely said, “What I see, Tony, is love – every time he looks at me. What’s more, I see respect. You were a little lacking in that area.”
“Ah yes, of course. And when he decides that his career can’t compete with yours, he’ll pull out and leave you high and dry. Mark my words.” Before I could answer, Tony threw the car into gear and sped off, leaving me fuming in a cloud of exhaust.
22
Around the end of September, Mother’s doctor found a lump in her left breast. A biopsy showed malignant cells. Surgery to remove the lump was scheduled for the second week in October. Because of this, I had to reschedule the wedding once again, this time for April 29th. I couldn’t think of getting married until Mother was well and strong enough to be there. Dad and I visited her every day at the hospital. I went for Dad as much as for Mother because I knew he was worried sick, though he didn’t show it openly.
After Mother went home from the hospital, John and I continued to visit her and check to see if she or Dad needed anything. I took Matty with me on these visits because I noticed that Mother seemed to recover more quickly having him to play with and read to. One day, when she had just finished reading him his favorite story for about the fifth time, Matty smacked the book cover with his chubby little hand saying, “gen, ‘gen,” wanting yet another reading. I was really surprised at her forbearance with him. She never had such patience with Danny and me when we were young. When her follow up check showed no remaining malignant cells, we were all grateful and relieved.
In November, Dad received word that Daily Grind was going to be cancelled. He was disappointed because after more than six years, he’d become accustomed to the steady work and he hated that he would no longer be working with the people he had come to regard as a second family. On the other hand, he knew that seven seasons was a good run for a television comedy and he was glad to have been a part of such a successful one. He told us that he and Mother, now that she was better, planned to take a cruise and afterward, he would start looking for movie projects.
At Thanksgiving dinner, when John and I were at Dad and Mother’s, Dad told me that the casting director had approached him with the idea of me guest starring in a two part episode. The writers hadn’t yet finished the script, but they had planned it as the season finale. Now, they were revising it to be the series finale. I asked why my name came up, since I wasn’t an actress, but I was still flattered. Dad said that the story was going to be that one of the characters, a geeky sort who never seemed able to get a girl, was at last going to fall in love. His love interest was going to be a music teacher, so the producer and casting director thought a real musician in the role would be a nice touch. The episode was going to be shot in January or February. I was thrilled at this and told Dad that of course I wanted the part.
The following week, I began rehearsals with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Maestro Giulini for the annual Los Angeles County Holiday Celebration, to be performed on Christmas Eve. The Philharmonic was one of many musical performers scheduled in the Chandler Pavilion as part of this tradition. Even the long days of work didn’t dampen my excitement to be playing again with an orchestra. My only worry was about Mother caring for Matty for those weeks. I was concerned about her state, both physical and mental, and I missed Matty and didn’t like being away from him.
John, Danny, Patrick and Dad all wanted to see the performances. It was really a wonderful concert. We opened with Joy to the World, continued with Carol of the Bells, and ended with Beethoven’s Ode to Joy. I don’t remember who all of the other performers were, but I do remember the Jimmy Joyce Children’s choir being one.
Afterwards, we all piled into the Dad’s car and drove around, looking at the Christmas lights around the valley like we did when Danny and I were kids. As we did so, we each shared a favorite Christmas memory. I remembered the year I was in the fourth grade and the school Christmas play we students at St. Francis de Sales put on for our families. At the end of the performance, we recreated the nativity scene while the choir sang Silent Night. We had the baby brother of one of my classmates be our Christ Child. He wasn’t a newborn, but over a year old and walking. Which was exactly what he did. Climbed out of the “manger” and walked or rather, toddled around the stage in nothing but his diaper. Having been given strict orders by Sister Catherine not to move until the choir finished singing and the curtain fell, we remained frozen in our places until one of the fath
ers called from the audience, “Hey! Your Baby Jesus is getting away. You’d better grab him.” Chaos ensued as we all jumped up at once and began running in all directions trying to catch the baby who, enjoying the game, just giggled and continued to evade us. My wise man’s robe was too long for me and I tripped on it. As I fell, my crown came loose and fell down over one eye, so I didn’t see who finally grabbed Baby Jesus, but I heard the roars of laughter coming from the audience as Sister hurried to restore order and get us to the front of the stage to take our bows.
Dad laughed and shook his head as he remembered the incident. “Oh, Honey,” he said with a wink, “Your mother and I still think that was the best play we’ve ever seen.”
John told us about the Christmas he was eleven years old. The Dukes of Rhythm had been invited to play in a Christmas jazz concert in New York and Robert decided to take the whole family. “I was pissed at having to spend Christmas in a strange city with just my parents and little sister when I’d planned to spend it with my friends. I was in a blue funk for days, bound and determined I was going to be miserable, just to spite my parents. One day while Dad was rehearsing with the Dukes, Mom took Alicia, who was seven then, and me to a play. As I sat in that dark theatre, my blue funk gave way to fascination with the actors, the sets, everything.
It was right then that it dawned on me that acting was what I wanted to do. From then on, there was never anything else I wanted to do with my life. I started reading and studying up about theatre and about famous actors and playwrights. I went to plays and movies whenever I could. It took a while to convince my parents that it wasn’t just a passing fancy, since up until then, I’d changed my career choice about every week.”
Just before I drifted off to sleep that night, I thought about the story John told us. He never told it to me before and I’d never thought to ask him how he decided to become an actor. I just assumed that acting just came naturally to him like music did to me.
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