There is a very famous, true story about Maureen Fitzsimmons O'Hara and Brian Keith: after their parents got divorced, Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball's children, Little Lucy and Little Desi, made their parents take them to see "The Parent Trap" at least ten times; separately of course. They had a very bitter divorce. Lucy said she enjoyed the movie the first few times she saw it, and it is a wonderful movie, but even she had her fill of it. Lucy would change the channel anytime she ran across it on TV. Fortunately, she and Desi also figured out what was going on in their children's heads. For the first time since their divorce, Lucy and Desi, first with each other, and then together with their children, sat down to talk about their divorce. It was very painful for Desi and Lucy to see how hurt their children were.
Lucy once said, that it was at that moment that both she and Desi realized how much their children must have been hurting and decided after an acrimonious beginning, they were going to work very hard to have a friendly divorce. Lucy is quoted on her death bed as having said that Desi was one of the best friends she ever had in her entire life. I was so glad to hear that. Most people may not realize this, but the movie "The Parent Trap" and the explosion in the divorce happened at almost the same time. This movie changed people's lives and perceptions for the better. It is Ms. O'Hara's wonderful, convincing performance in "The Parent Trap", along with Brian Keith's, that I consider their best. "The Parent Trap" is very personal to me because my parents had a very nasty divorce at exactly the same time "The Parent Trap" came out. I always "joke" that there were no survivors after my parents divorce. The tragedy of it is that I was only half joking.
I always wished that I had had parents like Maureen O'Hara and Brian Keith. As a child, this thought would always comfort me, and gave me a goal as to what kind of parent I wanted to be. A close friend of Ms. O'Hara said on the A&E Biography that that movie was closest to the real person she was and is; but I already knew that. To change people's lives for the better, and to give others a refuge from unhappiness: for this no one can thank you enough.
Thank You, Maureen O'Hara; and Thank you, Brian Keith.
Brian Keith O'Hara
That really is my name...
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Speaking of The Parent Trap, Beverly Hillbillies Mrs. Jane Hathaway/Nancy Kulp appeared as a camp counselor.
In case you wondered, Haley Mills played opposite Susan Henning, when the camera was filming from behind. Walt Disney gave her an award for her thankless role. I agree, integral to the movie, which no one knew.
Haley using a split screen process, where she does play both roles.
One of Brian Keith's best roles as Teddy Roosevelt in Sean Connery/Michael Caine's "The Wind and the Lion" (1976). Brian was every bit as memorable as the two leads. Pictured below with director John "The Maltese Falcon" Houston as Secretary of State John Hay.
Brian's 8-year-old son came down with a fever, within a few hours Michael was far worse, so mom and dad raced him to the hospital. Before morning Brian's son was dead. Everyone said it broke his heart and he cried without stopping for weeks missing several acting jobs as a result.
Brian made a family show, "Family Affair" which ran until 1971. He became very close to Anissa Jones, who played "Buffy". She came from a broken home, with a domineering mother and an absentee father. When the show went off the air, Brian was given his own show, The Brian Keith Show about a Pediatric Doctor in Hawaii. Brian offered Anissa a role as a nurse if she wanted it, but Anissa was enjoying being a normal kid too much to want to go back to acting.
The best chapter of the great miniseries "Centennial" (1978) was the 1880's murder by the grifing Wendell family, Anthony Zerbe, Lois Nettleton and Doug McKeon, all of whom were magnificent, of one of their blackmail victims. Mrs. Wendell would seduce their victim, then Zerbe/Mr. Wendall would catch them in the act. This time their victim fought back and was killed. The murder was solved by Sheriff Dumire/Brian Keith, who was every bit as convincing, who was later murdered. In some of the best acting I've ever seen, Sheriff Dumire/Brian Keith engages in verbal fencing with 10-year-old Doug McKeon to ascertain what happened to their last victim, who the family accidentally killed. It should be noted that Anthony Zerbe, one of the best actors in TV history, usually playing brilliant criminals, is as good as an incompetent criminal. It was up to David Janssen, Andy Griffith and Robert Vaughn to bring justice in the case, 100 years later. This is long before the wonderful Lois Nettleton walked in on George Costanza picking a half eaten éclair out of the trash and finishing it off.
Why I haven't watched the Beverly Hillbillies since the early 1970's.
I will never forget when I turned against the Beverly Hillbillies and later Barnaby Jones. Nancy Kulp/Miss Jane Hathaway ran for Congress from Pennsylvania. She was asked by reporters how her former castmates reacted to her candidacy. She said they were surprised and wished her well. She did NOT say they endorsed her. Buddy Ebsen showed what a petty person he is and made a commercial for her opponent viciously attacking Nancy. Nothing Nancy said was offensive, even, as in the case of Buddy, if he was a Republican and Nancy was a Democrat. I, a Democrat, had a friend of mine run as a Republican for some minor political office. I told them I wish you well, but he pressed me as to whether I would vote for him. I told him I wasn't in his district. At this point he was intrigued and wanted to know if I would vote for him if we were in the same district, so I said which would you rather, I tell you the truth or tell you what you want to hear? He said tell me what I want to hear. I said, I really, really, really wish you well. We both laughed. Nancy said Buddy's commercial hurt her. It would have hurt me too, after working together for 10 years. My loyalty and respect for people I work with runs far deeper than Buddy's obviously. I no longer laughed at Buddy Ebsen, Beverly Hillbillies and had no interest in Barnaby Jones. after his vicious commercial.
Another footnote: I remember one of Jethro Bodine's schoolmates in prep school Armstrong Dueser McHugh III was played by Michel Petit. I saw him being interviewed on Merv Griffin/Mike Douglas and was fascinated to find out he spoke with a French accent and was from Belgium. Just as a kid my own age, it impressed me, that acting he sounded 100% American but in real life had a heavy French accent.
To help his family out, he took acting jobs. Chris is very smart and soon made a favorable impression on casting directors, many of whom found his odd speaking pattern charming.
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