Katharine Houghton
I was 15 at the time when I became a fan of hers, and was “randomly” (or not, you decide =] ) searching for any of her latest projects, and found one-she was performing as Lettice Douffet in Lettice & Lovage at the Ivoryton Playhouse for the River Rep that was opening shortly after my 16th birthday. I asked for tickets to the show that there was an question and answer session with the director and cast after the performance for my birthday, and got the tickets as one of my birthday presents.
Mom & I stayed for the Q&A session, and after it was over, Katharine (of which who I’d been watching like a hawk all night) slide off stage only to have a flock of us who had attended-myself included-surrounding her. I remember there being like twenty of us, and I had to fight my way up to get to her.
I remember being so “WOW! Katharine…within two feet of me” that when she looked at me and smiled, all I could do was ask her if working on the original Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner? with her aunt had been fun. She politely answered me, then turned back to the others who were there (I found out from her co-star years later that Katharine had given about 50 tickets away to friends and family for that night’s performance, so that explains all of the people around her) and mom and I left a few minutes later.
A couple of years went by, and a friend from Northern Ireland came across her agent’s address in NYC, and sent it to me. I “tested” the address by writing her a fan letter and sending it to the address my friend had given to me. After a couple of weeks, I had forgotten I had written her a letter. That summer, after coming home from a doctor’s appointment and getting the mail, I came across a letter postmarked from Santa Clarita, CA-who did I know in Santa Clarita, I thought? I handed my mother the other mail, and went back to my room to open the letter. I opened it and had to re-read the letter several times before I started breathing again.
She had written me a personal handwritten letter in return for my letter, and had actually READ my letter as she had answered some of my questions and said she remembered me from Lettice & Lovage. I remember running back out to the living room, bouncing on the couch next to my poor mom who was still looking over the other mail, and grinned, staring at her. She looked at me, and goes “What are you grinning about?” I continue grinning, hand her the letter and demand she read the letter. She reads it and smiles, and says “Well, that was nice of her to write you back.”
This post was submitted by Marcia.
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