A pessimist such as I might look at the bad news that this posting will eventually get around to revealing: that I did not get to meet, nor did I get an autograph of Luise Rainer. But as I now reflect on the experience of just seeing her in person, I deemed that this event merited a posting of its own. It was on Sunday, April 25, 2010, that Bob and I attended a screening of The Good Earth at the Egyptian Theatre in Burbank. Actually, we didn’t even attend the screening itself. We just stopped in to see Louise Rainer.
To the casual movie fan – especially those not in the know about old movies -the name Luise Rainer would surely be lost. One reason for this is that Luise Rainer only starred in seven Hollywood films. But the first two were beyond notable, The Great Ziegfeld (1936), which won the Best Picture Oscar, and The Good Earth (1937). For both of these films, she was awarded with the Best Actress Oscar. Luise Rainer was the first woman to win two Oscars…and the first person to win Oscars back to back.
But after another year in the business, she decided to retire from films altogether. Although she made a few brief appearances in movies over the years, acting pretty much became a thing of the past for Luise Rainer. She has spent most of her days in London, England and in January of 2010, she celebrated her 100th birthday.
It was a thrill to not only see Luise Rainer, but to hear her be interviewed on stage at the Egyptian by TCM host Robert Osborne. She entered the theatre right in front of Bob and me, and although I couldn’t capture any good photos of her on her way in, I did snag a few decent ones of her on the stage. Flash photography was forbidden, as they were filming her interview for TCM broadcast, and in fact elicited ‘responses’ from the audience even before Luise Rainer came out.
Unfortunate was the fact that she had lost her hearing aid somewhere between her home and her arrival in California, rendering her almost completely deaf. Robert Osborne had to write down the questions and she did her best to respond. Although her weak voice and her German accent made her a little hard to understand, it was clear that her mind was still sharp as a tack.
Since Bob and I opted not to stay for the film screening, we saw Luise Rainer exit the theatre and get into her car. The patrons had been expressly asked not to ask for autographs or photos, so even though it would have been great to add her signature to Bob’s Academy Award reunion photo, we left her alone.
The thrill of seeing this Hollywood icon was worth the $20 admission in itself. Besides, when someone has lived to the age of 100, you pretty much have no choice to respect their wishes.
Return to Sunday in Hollywood…
A pessimist?? I must have typed in the wrong web address . . .
Erin
June 7th, 2010