Tuesday 23 February 2021

Read in 2021 - 2: One from the Hart

One from the Hart

Stefanie Powers

Celebrity (auto)biographies come in all shapes and sizes; some don't make a secret of their actual authorship, others try to pretend to be the celebrity's own work, and others still are really written by the person whose life is the subject of the book. This is the case with Stefanie Powers' autobiography, first published in 2010.

If I tell you that there is a nude picture of her inside, and a penis is mentioned as early on as page 12, you may be forgiven to think that this is a juicy Hollywood story, much like a series of yellow press articles of the lowest kind. However, if I tell you that the picture shows little Stefania Zofya as a toddler in the bath, and the scene with the penis - well, let's just say she is not talking about another actor or other Hollywood personality there, and the book's focus is not on the glitzy aspects of her life.

Instead, we learn of a close-knit family and neighbourhood where Stefania grows up, encouraged to do what she loves, which is dancing. Out of that follows acting, but again, you would be mistaken to think that she was one of those poor little girls dragged to endless castings by their over-ambitious mothers. There was plenty of time to just be a child, too; playing on the ranch of relatives, which planted a life-long love of animals in her, and with her brother.

My sister and I love "Hart to Hart" and often have been watching the reruns together; the book was in fact one of her presents for me last Christmas. We were often poking fun at how convenient it was that Jennifer Hart spoke the language of every place they went to, be it Mandarin or Spanish, and how she and Jonathan were able to do everything from horseback riding to classical ballet, singing, fencing, skiing and playing golf.

The reality is that Stefanie Powers does indeed speak all those languages (and did so long before she was cast for Hart to Hart), and both she and Robert Wagner had the classic Hollywood studio education that included all those skills - at least to the extent necessary to look good on film. In the case of singing and dancing, she was certainly more than just looking good on film, but really knew her stuff. In terms of sports, she used to be an accomplished polo player, and knew her way around on a tennis court, too.

Being of the same age as my Dad (born in 1942), Stefanie Powers looks back on decades of not only a very prolific acting career, but many friendships and relationships. She took care of her mother and her aunt until both their deaths, and had her own struggle with cancer. What she considers her most important work is not acting, but the William Holden Wildlife Foundation in Kenya. Much of the book is about her 9 years with "Wild Bill" and Kenya, far from the glamour and the cameras.

Her many travels all across the world are also included, and those were not the kind of trip where an entourage of staff would have looked after her every need; more the sleeping under a mosquito net somewhere in the woods type.

A very readable and entertaining book; honest (never nasty) and touching. Stefanie Powers is a hard-working lady deserving everyone's respect.

18 comments:

  1. Well you have given her a good write up here - certainly an encourgement to read the book.

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    1. It is undemanding but not without some food for thought, Pat. I can recommend it when one wants a change from novels, mysteries and so on.

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  2. Have always admired Stefanie Powers as an actress and conservationist. From one of her early roles in McClintock (as John Wayne's feisty daughter) to her time in the Hart to Hart series, which was fun escapism, she always seemed to embody professionalism with a touch of lively humor. Never taking herself too seriously, but always serious about her work.

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    1. You've summed it up perfectly, Mary! She is one clever lady with a good sense of humour, and so much, much more than just a beautiful face and body.

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  3. Stephanie grew up in a time when people dressed up.
    There is a colour photo of Glasgow in 1961. Men and women are crossing at the intersection of Buchanan Street and Argyle Street. It could be a Hollywood movie.
    The women are in summer frocks and the men are in suits or sports jackets. And many of the shop fronts are in the Art Deco style. Even the tramcars look elegant !
    Is that why so many of us prefer old movies?
    Or old episodes of Hart to Hart. which you watched with your sister?

    I wish Stephanie Powers had made a movie with William Holden.
    Stephanie could have played the Faye Dunnaway role in Network, on which there are stellar performances by Holden and Peter Finch.

    John Haggerty

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    1. I have never watched Network, nor did I really know anything about William Holden before reading this book.

      There are pictures of my late husband's parents from their honeymoon in Scarborough in the mid-1950s. Even on the beach, my mother-in-law was in the prettiest summer dress, and her husband (whom I never met, as he died about 25 years before I entered the picture) wore proper trousers, a shirt and tie.
      I wouldn't want that stiff formality back, but one can dress comfortably and still look decent, something that many do not seem to consider important anymore.

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    2. PS: It's really Stefanie, not Stephanie.

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    3. My apologies to Stefanie. A rose by any other name.
      Dress sense has collapsed among men. Women still have Le Style.

      I watched Stephen King on YouTube, addressing his readers, wearing a black T-shirt. *I'm just a guy,* he said.
      No, he is not. He is the biggest selling novelist in America.

      When you think how dapper Fitzgerald, Steinbeck, O'Hara and Faulkner appeared in public, it makes me sad for our old men who dress like tramps.
      When I wear a tie and tweed jacket on Saturdays, people smile quaintly.

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  4. This sounds like a good book and I love that it is not excessively "Hollywood" but more about the many other aspects of her life. It's been years since I've seen the Hart to Hart series but now I'd like to see it again!

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    1. They are, like Mary said in her comment above, fun escapism - just what I need after a busy day at work!

      You would probably like the book. So much of the person behind the many roles she played comes alive; like everybody, she had her ups and downs, her money worries and work issues - only that her work happened to be acting, and many of her colleagues and friends famous movie stars.
      I also like how frankly she talks about alcoholism and other addictions that were considered completely alright in Hollywood circles for a time.

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  5. I vaguely remember the series Hart to Hart from TV long ago, but before I read this post, I would not have remembered the name of the actors...

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    1. It is surprising how sometimes I remember names (or other facts) about music groups, TV series and so on when I have not had anything to do with them for decades. Some weird mechanism lodges such information firmly in my long-term memory, and makes it sometimes hard for me to remember the day-to-day important details I need for work.

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  6. I loved that show Hart to Hart and the two actors together playing a couple. I was also interested in her conservation work and life with the late actor William Holden.I also read the book and enjoyed it but honestly don't remember much of it.

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    1. I know what you mean - sometimes I don't remember much detail about a book or film, but can easily recall the overall experience or impression it has left me with.

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  7. Thank you for this review of this book!!!

    I too, loved "Hart to Hart"! I even worked out the layout of the home. -smile-

    Watched many roles, by both Stephanie and Robert. Being a true fan, over the years. -smile-

    Knew about the love of her life, William Holden. But not many details. I'm sure I would enjoy reading this book.

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    1. I love doing that, working out the layout of a (fictional) home I know through a TV series!
      Before "Hart to Hart", I knew nothing of Stefanie (really with an f, not ph) Powers or Robert Wagner, although both of them had been very prolific and well known actors.

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  8. Yes! I knew she was one very intelligent woman besides being an actress that I admire. I am showing my age here when I tell you that she was The Girl From Uncle! It was a 60's show! Also, I am remembering a film...seems her mother in law was trying to kill her, or else she just suspected it...anyway, I was just a kid when I saw that movie. I will never forget her performance, even though can't remember name of film or other details! I love biographies but especially autobiographies!

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    1. You mean "Fanatic" with Tallulah Bankhead. I have not seen that film, nor "The Girl From Uncle", but of course both (and much more of her work) is mentioned in the book.
      I suppose she still is a very intelligent woman, and it also impresses me that she always made sure to gain financial independance, knowing exactly how much she had and what her money was "doing" - not relying on what an agent or other staff would do. So many other actors have ended up poor after a lifetime of hard work, ripped off (or at least ill advised) by their agents or managers.

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