There are at least 87 junctures on every aspiring actor's path where they groan and grab the proverbial towel, ready to throw it in.
But there are helpful ways to work past the movie business blues. Those ways include 1) Deep breathing 2) hiking Runyon and 3) watching the "Singin' in the Rain" scene where Debbie Reynolds, Gene Kelly, and Donald O'Connor sing "Good Morning" in that big Hollywood mansion. (CoughMGMsoundstagecough.)
The winsome trio is overcoming a Tinseltown downer during that song. Not a downer, though? The fact that Ms. Reynolds has spent quite a few years saving and preserving Hollywoodiana.
Her artifacts, many hailing from MGM and 20th Century Fox sales from the early 1970s, cover a wide swath of stars, films, and silver-screen arcana.
Now those artifacts are up for a final auction, at the Debbie Reynolds Dance Studio in North Hollywood. Dates? Saturday, May 17 and Sunday, May 18. (Nope, neither day is March 24, the famous date mentioned in "Singin' in the Rain" as being a good day, but, really, it should always be March 24 in every "Singin'" fan's heart, proverbially.)
On the block: Hats worn by Vivien Leigh in "Gone with the Wind," a Mae West gown, a Charlie Chaplin bowler hat, a chapeau worn by Harpo Marx, and costume pieces from "Citizen Kane."
Yeah, that feels like concentrated, undiluted Hollywood history, taken physical form, right there. But there's lots more to bid on, including a bevy of colorful lobby cards representing a rainbow of movies.
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So, aspiring actors: How will you save your industry's artifacts once you reach the stature of Ms. Reynolds? Surely being a steward of Hollywood is part of your larger game plan, in addition to improving your sword-fighting skills and British accent?
It's important. End of story.
