DAWN WELLS: ADVICE FROM THE PERFECT DESERT ISLAND COMPANION
Oh, yes. Oh,yes. And I don’t think there was any question of keeping my sanity, because I took it seriously, but I wasn’t, from the time I was a kid, wanting to be an actress. I wanted to be a pediatrician. I love science. And because the drama teacher, since I couldn’t take any more P.E., said, “You’re good at this. You ought to major in it.” I thought, “Oh, you’re crazy.” But there is that artistic side of me. I like to paint. My grandmother composed music. So there is that part of me. But, because of my being plump and braces on my teeth. because my knees had dislocated, and a bad complexion, I never considered myself pretty. Cute. But not pretty. And I studied that. I really studied, not the fashions, but I was very aware of my body type. When hip-huggers came in, I almost shot myself [laughs], because the widest part of me is my hips and that’s all you see. And I don’t have long legs. So what do you do? Well, you do costuming or hairdos for the period of the play. What hairdo of the 40s would look the best on you? You’ve got to wear something from the 40s. So I was very analytical. I went to rushes of the dailies. The day after you film it, they would show it at noon the next day. And I was the only one allowed to go, because the producers were always afraid that the actors would change their performances. But I studied it. I studied the hairdos that were best, the colors that were best, all of that. Because it’s a job. It’s called show business. It’s a business. You don’t go in to play football and not worry about what the tight end’s doing, when you’re the quarterback. You have to look at everything. And I think that’s probably a help. I think a lot of people who are real artistic don’t have the analytical mind. And I think maybe it hinders me as an actress to go real far, too. I don’t know. PCC: Having this perception of yourself as a chubby kid with bad skin, what did it do for your self-esteem, having the validation of being in the Miss America pageant? WELLS: [Laughs] Well, I kind of laughed at it, because, I was in college then, and my skin was fairly good, and I was always on a diet. And the Soroptimist Club asked me run. And I laughed. I said, “With my size? No! That’s ridiculous.” And then I thought, “Well, I’m majoring in Theatre, let me see if I can get up in front of all those people and do a scene, for the talent portion,” having no idea I would win Miss Nevada. And part of the reason I won, I think, was the question. I can’t remember what the question was. But I gave a pretty good answer, instead of just, [in a blank voice] “I want world peace.” And grooming for it and preparing for it was quite a lesson. I wanted to swim and exercise every day. Well, that lasted about four days. I thought that was boring [laughs]. I wasn’t as disciplined as I should have been. But it was a great experience, having no concept that I would ever have been here. It wasn’t a dream of mine. And the same with Hollywood. When I graduated, I went, “Okay, I’m going to give myself a year, maybe two. But if I'm not working by then, I’m going back to Med school. And then I analyzed, all right, where am I going to earn a living? At that point, it was Los Angeles or New York. And 80- percent of the stuff in New York city was musicals. And I don’t sing. So I said, “Okay, I’ll go to L.A.” - not going to Hollywood - “I’ll see if I can earn a living in the television business.” PCC: And you did guest shots on so many of those Warner Brothers shows - “77 Sunset Strip,” “Lawman,” Hawaiian Eye,” “Maverick” - did you see all of those appearances as building blocks? WELLS: Well, I don’t think I analyzed it as a career. Building blocks is a career. I learned something every time. But I don’t know that I looked past the next couple jobs. You have so many auditions. When I first went to Hollywood, I did a play with Mercedes McCambridge. I got cast in this three-character play with her. And, boy, what a thrill that was. But I was trained as an actress, you see. And agents came to see me. And I was good! I didn’t want to be a movie star, but I was theatrically trained, so that got me an agent and got me to go to work. But from one thing to another, I tried to break the mold. Or do something that would be a real challenge to me. I just did “Lion in Winter” last summer. And oh, wow, was that wonderful! I mean, it was wonderful to bite into those lines and the depth of that character, because the physical me, in Hollywood, was sweet, was a Mary Ann, basically. I mean, I got to play some sexy parts, but not [in a husky, sensual voice] sexy parts. [Laughs] PCC: When you were working with Mercedes McCambridge were you totally wrapped up in the role? Or were you also trying to observe and learn from a veteran actress? WELLS: Oh, I was. Both she and Leon Ames were wonderful. I watched her. She was not very giving. She was not very friendly. And that was even kind of nice, because you could just observe her. She was so well-respected and so diligent. And on time. And prepared, when she came. I ran a film actors boot camp for about seven summers up in Idaho. And it was how to really get into the business - “I assume you all think you can act. I’m not here to teach you how to act. I’m going to teach you how to get a job.” And that’s one of the things that I was very aware of - the concentration and the focus that she had. PCC: All those TV shows that you did early in your career, did any of those actors help you, give you advice? WELLS: Well, I think the only one, really, was Louis Quinn, who played the racetrack tout [Roscoe] on “77 Sunset Strip.” And we had a scene in a cafe. And he sat next to me. It was probably the first show I did, “77,” and he said, “Now, you match, you know. “I said, “What?” He said, “Well, on the long shot, you took a sip of your water in the middle of blah-blah-blah. Now, when that happens in anybody’s close-up or your close-up, you have to take a drink of water at the same time.” And I said, “Why?” And he said, “Because you have to cut it together.” He said, “The minute you stop doing that, it’s costing them money. So you need to know the little tricks.” That was really good. He sat and told me a lot of the little stuff - if you’re late, what it means. And to speak up, if something really isn’t right for you. don’t throw a temper tantrum. Go and talk to the director yourself. I mean, he gave me a lot of insight, whereas, theater people are sort of all together [laughs]. PCC: You talk in the book about persistence. Did the determination ever waver, prior to landing the “Gilligan’s Island” role? WELLS: No, because I just assumed I was going to go on, as I got a little older, I’d maybe play more dramatic roles. I never thought there was an end in sight. I didn’t ever think I’d necessarily get a series. But I don’t think I thought that far ahead. I was still taking classes. and auditioning three or four times a week. PCC: When you did win the role of Mary Ann, was that just another job, in your mind, or did you view it as at least career-altering, if not life-altering? WELLS: No, the only thing I thought was, there might be security, if the series took off. And, if the series took off, you’d know who I was. But I didn’t think much past that, because they made such fun of it. They didn’t think it would succeed at all. I mean, CBS didn’t even want it on the air at all, until they tested it with an audience and it was the highest that they had ever had. And when they canceled us, we were in the Top 10. So, it’s a business. You just try to say that to yourself. “No matter,” I tell my actors, “No matter what, you’re an actor. And you can portray this character.” Let’s say you’re supposed to play a Swedish maid, an 18-year-old Swedish maid. Well, you can put me 25 feet away from you, on a stage, and I could convince you. But if you get really up close to me, with my coloring, etc., etc., it’s a real stretch. And you have to really know that the camera sees more in you than the audience does from far away. So there really has to be more truth, I think, in film, than there does in theatre - not meaning that theatre isn’t truth, I don’t mean that at all - but there’s a little bit more of an illusion, when the audience is 25 feet away. PCC: Creating the truths for Mary Ann, you’ve said that you really molded that character. So what went into the decisions as far as what you wanted her to be? Did you even think about her in terms of being a role model?
No. And I didn’t even think about - what am I doing? Because it was really very natural. It was very natural to me, how she would behave. And what she would do. Of course, I always wanted to play that little sexy part, where I got to think I was Ginger. Or that little dream sequence and some stuff like that. But I thought Mary Ann was the typical, perfect American girl - feet on the ground, meager upbringing, obviously loved and obviously milked cows or had a responsibility, fair, cheerful, kind of wanting to keep peace. When I did the audition, when I looked at the script, that’s what I saw. That’s who she was. I’m not telling you she was a school teacher or whatever. The description was really how she was raised and what she was doing, during it. That’s why I got to thinking about - What would she do, if you dropped her here today? Would she become a Sarah Palin? Would she be out hunting and fishing and running for politics? Would she have been a Hilary Clinton? Would she have been a housewife with four kids and didn’t work at all? Would she move out of Kansas? Now she was exposed to richness, and glamor with Ginger, and really good friends. What would she do? That’s a pretty good question. What would we all do? I think Ginger would go back to her work. Howell would go back to his wealth. I imagine the Skipper and Gilligan would probably be on a ship somewhere, a boat, cruising. The Professor might have gone back to teach. But what would Mary Ann do? What would she do? And it’s a good question, because she was really the nucleus of a lot of things. PCC: That bunch was like a family on screen. Was that the case, off screen, as well? WELLS: Pretty much. I mean, we didn’t socialize a lot together. We’d go maybe twos and twos. But we worked 15, 16 hours a day. And Bob had an awful lot of special stunts. But we really all loved each other. People talk about discord with Tina. And I never saw any of that. If there was any discord that people talk about, it must have been in the front office, because she was always on time. She always did what she did. She always did it well. She was not real sociable with us. But there are people that aren’t. I don’t think Tina and I would ever have been best friends... or even known each other, had we been in an acting class together. I don’t know. But there was no discord. But I was in awe, when I first went there, because she was a movie star. She’d done ”God’s Little Acre.” She’d been on Broadway. And she was absolutely gorgeous. But that does not a friendship make [laughs]. PCC: What would be your thumbnail impressions of each of the cast members? WELLS: Well, Jim Backus [Thurston Howell III] was very fun and very generous in sharing his comedy. He’d tell you how to get a bigger laugh. Or “Put a word in there with the letter ‘k’ in it. It always gets a better laugh.” And he would help Natalie [Natalie Schafer, Lovey] learn to ad-lib. But I laugh, and I’ve said it before, but he was so cheap! He had so much money, but he would say to Natalie and me, “I want to take you girls to lunch. Let’s go to lunch.” And we’d go to lunch and he’d say, “Oh, I forgot my wallet” or “I don’t have my credit card.” One of us or the other would pick up the tab. And after the end of the first year, Natalie presented him with a $360 bill for lunch [laughs]. But he was a joy. And Bob [Bob Denver, Gilligan] was very different. Bob and I were quite close. He was very, very smart. Kind of an introvert. Not funny-ha-ha. Not clowny. Very serious. Way against pesticides before anybody even thought of it. He was wonderful with children. He’d come in and he’d have circles down under his eyes and I’d say “Bobby, you look so tired.” “Well, we had to build a spider farm last night. We had to name the spiders.” [Laughs] There was a kid inside of him. I think that’s why he found the joy in Gilligan. It’s a naiveté, that wonderful joyful - here I am and I’m alive and I'm doing my best. Alan [Alan Hale, Jr., Skipper]was just like a dad. So every time he hugged me, it was such a fatherly feeling and protecting and jovial and kind. He fell out of a tree and broke his wrist and worked the whole rest of the day. None of us knew he had broken it. Never a bad word or cranky. Russell [Russell Johnson, the Professor] was the funniest. He had the best sense of humor. Handsome. He and I were very close, because we were “ and the rest” the first year [in the show’s theme song]. And then Tina [Tina Louise] was Ginger, really. She really was her character. She was conscious of what angle she was being shot. And how she looked in front of the mirror. And what she wore and all of that. She was closest with Jim Backus, I think. Two Hollywood kind of personalities. Whereas, Natalie Schafer, of course, was exactly like her character. We were very close friends. She hobnobbed, in her youth, with George Kaufman and Moss Hart and all the playwrights on Broadway. Her father had a seat on the Stock Exchange. So she was Mrs. Howell to the core. But funny! And she had gone through a tremendous breast removal from cancer in the 50s and it just scarred her, unbelievably. And we spent many hours talking about that, because she was a real beauty. And it just kind of shut the door. We were close right till the end. She died in ‘91. PCC: And Sherwood Schwartz, the show’s creator? WELLS: He’s very interesting, very much a family man, very funny. Underneath it all, very strong. I liked him very much. He was very nice and very fair. Except - we’ve talked about this [laughs] - he made $90 million, according to CBS, because they had me do “TV Moguls,” as one of their hosts. He made $90 million on the reruns of “Gilligan’s Island” alone, not “The Brady Bunch,” not the productions, and we did not get a dime of residuals. I mean, the first year, with AFTRA, maybe we made $1,200 or something like that. Yes, he created the show - no question about that. And fought for it and all of that. But we had a part in it, too. And he could have taken one of those million dollars and split it between the seven of us. But he didn’t. But that’s life. And he was very much a family man. And the shows he wrote were very family-oriented. PCC: The series was so immensely popular with families. And yet, not so popular with critics. Did that bother you? WELLS: Well, I think, once they had such a hard time getting it sold, and CBS kind of bit their tongue and bought it, because of the audience reaction, I think we kind of expected that. And I think, after the first six weeks, we were in the Top 10. And I’ll tell you a funny story. You don’t realize what the public believes. It’s so different now. But we were in our sixth or seventh week in production - We did 39 episodes a year. you’d be lucky if you get 12 now - Sherwood stopped the filming and brought the Coast Guard in, five or six big muckety-mucks from the Coast Guard. And he said, “The Coast Guard wants to talk to you.” And they said, “We have received several telegrams, saying there are seven people marooned in the middle of the ocean - why can’t you find them?” Really! Seriously! Now stop and think about those poor people that really think this stuff has happened. PCC: Even now, 50 years later, in this changed world, the show is still popular. Why do you think it has this timeless appeal? WELLS: Well, first of all, I think it’s everybody’s problem. I think everybody sees what it’s like to try to get along with people. I think it’s beautiful to look at. It was the first sitcom out of the living room. And it’s wholesome. And there’s no dating it at all. No ‘56 Chevy in the driveway. You don’t know when it’s happening. It could be happening now. And I think it brings the child out in you a little. It’s light-hearted. PCC: You mentioned in the book that it wasn’t permissible to show Mary Ann’s belly button. Now we have we have shows that display just about everything. Do you see a positive side to the change in television? Or do you wish it was more like it was in the 60s? WELLS: Well, I think it should be a combination. I like the idea of doing a television sitcom with an audience. That’s the epitome, because you’ve got the audience reaction, which is wonderful. With all the special effects and ways of doing things in film now, you can go so much further with so many things. I think we’ve gone a little bit too far on some of the really corny, obnoxious stuff. But that will even itself out. Like a boy on Easter vacation, that kind of stuff, I don’t know what you call it. I think the violence is tapering now. Now it’s just so ridiculous that it can’t be possible. We used to have a black hat and a white hat and you knew who that bad guy and the good guy were. Now somebody shoots the bad guy, but 200,000 people are killed all around them. I think the price of life is very different. And maybe it’s because the world is different. I think there are still some phenomenal scripts and some wonderful actors. What bothers me so much is just the lack of privacy - We’re all trying to find the flaw in somebody and let’s broadcast it. That really is too bad. But that’s the whole world. I do think the entertainment business does say a lot about the world. It duplicates it, but it also instills it and also encourages it and incites it. So I don’t know - are we leaders or are we followers?
After “Gilligan,” did it take you a while to resign yourself to being forever viewed, to some degree, at least, as Mary Ann? WELLS: It surprised me. Now I’m really used to it. But it surprised me. Being in Beijing or somewhere and somebody knowing who you are. Maybe not so much the first four or five years. It’s the constant reruns. And it’s three generations. What I love to see in these autograph shows are the dads bringing in their kids. And they watch it together and it’s a family together. Or brothers and sisters say, “We could hardly wait. We got home from school and we were stupid enough to think, next month, they’re going to get off the island.” [Laughs] PCC: Do you ever get tired of the dads coming up, telling you they grew up with a terrific crush on you? WELLS: No! How could you get tired of that? [Laughs] I always feel sorry, because it’s the Ginger and Mary Ann contest. And of course, when they come up to me, they say, Mary Ann was my favorite. And I say, “That makes me feel bad for Ginger.” As a young boy I can understand that. As an 18-year-old, maybe not. For a fifth or sixth-grader, Mary Ann would be your girlfriend or your best friend or she’d go to the prom with you. Or whatever. PCC: You did appear on a lot of top series after “Gilligan.” “Invaders,” “Wild Wild West,” “Bonanza.” With those available on DVD, are there particular performances you’d like people to catch? WELLS: Well, I don’t know. I’ve done more exciting things in theatre, as far as really stretching and doing something interesting. But yeah, I think they’re kind of fun to see the growth. Like “The Invaders,” that was the first thing I did after “Gilligan’s Island.” I played a grown-up. You know? [Laughs] And then I did that thing with Chad Everett, where he played a doctor - “Hagen.” And I went crazy, which was kind of fun. And then I played a Native American, which you aren’t allowed to do anymore. I’d always wanted to do that. I didn’t play anything that would knock your socks off, as far as real acting is concerned, because I’m so typecast. It was very difficult for me to even get an off-Broadway audition. Mary Ann, are you kidding? “Vagina Monologues” - are you kidding? They don’t take it seriously. They do take the Broadway actors seriously, that they can play other characters. But the East Coast was very snobbish about “Gilligan’s Island.” They thought it was so stupid. Well, how stupid could it be, to have lasted 50 years? It’s that kind of comedy. I mean, It’s not my kind of comedy. Three Stooges don’t make me laugh much. Abbott and Costello didn’t make me laugh much. George Carlin makes me laugh. But that’s a different kind of sense of humor. And I think this sense of humor is national. I’m putting together a reality show - whether it happens or not - it’s called “Hunt For History,” where you go into cities and find out something about the city you didn’t know. Well, I was in downtown Los Angeles and I did not know Los Angeles has more theatres than Broadway. And beautiful theatres. Did not they were still standing. One of them has all been redone, because they use it when they’re doing a set in a theatre. But the blacks had to come from outside through the fire escape, on the metal stairs, That’s the only way they could get in. There weren’t any restrooms inside. Everybody had to use the restrooms outside. Very, very interesting. Anyway, my guide was talking to me and he said, “You know who built these two theaters?” I said, “No.” He said, “Charlie Chaplin.” “I said, “You’re kidding!” He said, “Oh, no, he lived down here and he loved theatre. And he built these two theaters.” He said, “You know who Charlie Chaplin’s best friend was?” This just blows my mind - Albert Einstein! And you see, the two of them, walking into the theatre, opening night, they’re arm in arm. And Mrs Einstein’s following. But can you just think of those brains together? Wouldn’t you love to be a mouse on the wall? Because Charlie Chaplin was brilliant in what he did. And Einstein,too. And is there a relationship between... I don’t know. I wanted to be with them. I wanted to hear what they were talking about. PCC: After “Gilligan,” you had a big offer to pose topless for a men’s magazine. In terms of wanting to break out of the wholesome stereotype, were you ever tempted? WELLS: No, no, not at all. That’s just a privacy thing. Not at all. Even for the money - which I could have used to live on a yacht and not have to see anybody the rest of my life, maybe [laughs]. No. That’s just not who I am. I’m more private than that. PCC: Some actresses went that route and didn’t succeed in creating a new image. WELLS: I don’t know, there’s so many people walking around naked now, I don’t think it makes a difference at all. When you think about Miley Cyrus and the Kardashians and all these see-through dresses and all this stuff and movies like “Monster Ball” and all this sort of stuff. None of that existed then. It was more titillating then - the Playboy Club and Hugh Hefner. And it was all more I guess, seedy, no, not even seedy - glamorous? I don’t know. PCC: But you did find a diversity of roles in theatre? WELLS: Oh, yes. And the first thing I did on stage was “The Owl and the Pussycat,” playing the hooker - first thing I did. Somebody said to the director, “You’re not going to cast her?!” And he said, “Let me read her.” I read it and he said, “Of course, she can do it.” The image was not there. You didn’t expect it. That was one of my favorite roles. I’ve thought about re-mounting it, because she could be a tired old hooker now, one that just couldn’t get arrested anymore. And the guy that she’s living with, the out-of-work writer, could be a really young stud. It might be interesting to take that approach. It’s one of the funniest second acts ever written. The movie was nothing like the play. But it’s one of the funniest plays. But it has to be done right. PCC: From what you say in the book, it seems that you really don’t shrink from aging. It seems you embrace it. WELLS: Well, you have no choice, number one. You do have a choice now, to get things pulled and tucked and stretched and waxed and peeled and all of that. I know a few people that have had work done and you really can’t tell. But there are also people, with all the money in the world and all the connections, mistakes keep happening, I don’t know why. And it would just scare me to death. I guess I’m not so beautiful that it would break my heart, if I’m aging. I wasn’t that beautiful to begin with, with the acne and plump and whatnot. I’ve worked at it. I’m attractive. I know what works. And I know not to be one of those with bright rouge and red lipstick and bleached blonde hair at 80. You need to grow older gracefully. And I’m blessed with looking a little younger than I am. But I think it’s also inside. I’m not talking about healthy. Well, I’ve been a good eater. But believe me, I eat meat. And I like chocolate some. I’ve always worried about my weight, but I’m not a health nut. But I do like vegetables. But I drink. I’ve never smoked. And I don’t exercise much. I couldn’t, with my knees. But I have an outlook. And I really think, only because of this book have I started to delve into myself, because of these people like you, asking me these questions. And I’m positive. I look forward to tomorrow - what can be accomplished. And I don’t mean earning a living or anything like that. Or - oh good, I can clean my closet tomorrow, because I have four hours off. I’m very curious. I’ve climbed to see the gorillas in Rwanda, been to the Solomon Islands with some of my Stephens College classmates, where no white women had ever been before. Because I’m not athletic, but I am adventurous, I would skeet and trap-shoot with my Dad. I’m a good fly fisherman. I produced a fly fishing show all over the world with the Canadian fly fishing female champion [Kathy Ruddick]. So there’s a side of me that’s so much different and so much more than Mary Ann. I’m curious about everything. I'm smart. And I’m not bragging about that. I have no idea about I.Q. We didn’t even do that. But my mother was smart. Sensible smart. And curious. My manager just laughs at me, “God, Dawn. You ask so many questions!” I said, ‘Well, here’s a question for you - who’s the person that decided to put the yellow line in the middle of the highway? Why was it yellow? Why not pea green?” [Laughs] But now, with the internet, you can get all those questions answered. PCC: I guess there is a correlation between optimism and good health, longevity. WELLS: I think so. I think, when you have something really seriously wrong or you lose hope, or there’s tremendous sadness, it’s awfully hard to look forward to something. And that’s what life is - looking forward to tomorrow. Oh, my gosh, this is getting very serious. I think I’m getting depressed [laughs] PCC: Do you think, for you, part of having the healthy perspective, is related to having avoided that “Notice me! Notice me!” syndrome you talk about in the book? WELLS: Yes, I think so. I think then it becomes work. I mean, I try my best. But it’s night and day, if you see me at home. I don’t go to the grocery store with full make-up on. I am who I am. I can look prettier, I know that. But I’m lazy, I guess. I don’t know. I think that’s so superficial. I can’t stand to have lunch with somebody who can’t talk about anything, too. I mean, that’s why I like men. I like a man’s point of view and I like what they think about and what they’re doing. It’s different. It’s different from women. I’m not saying that women aren’t strong or can’t be just as capable. But if you sat with four men having lunch, as opposed to four women having lunch, there’s a whole different conversation. Of course, it’s about the Falcons and the Rams. And it’s about the Kardashians and the new shoes. Women are more intimate, more emotional with what they’re talking about. It overlaps a lot, because there are lots of wonderful female executives. It would be an interesting sitcom, to have all female executives, Secretary of State, Vice-President and everything, just having lunch, discussing the world. I wonder what they’d talk about. PCC: The fact that you still have a lot you want to accomplish and have such varied interests, do you think that’s what keeps you so vibrant? WELLS: Oh, of course. And I don’t have children. I don’t have grandchildren. So I don’t have little babies to worry about. Or worry about my son’s little girl running away or anything like that. I don’t have those worries. I took care of my mother, when she was ill. I took care of her, because she was not particularly capable,. She was so frail. But she was only ill for three days. But she couldn’t see very much. I bought a house with a guest house so I could have her close to me. And I took care of my ex-husband, when he was dying of leukemia. So I’ve been through all that. But I don’t have that left to do. One of my doctors, I was having a physical or something, and he said, “Now, what do you think your propensity is.” I said, “Well, I don’t know. My mother choked to death. And they gave my father the wrong medicine in the hospital. So I don’t know what’s going to get me. [Laughs] Maybe nothing!” Let’s look at it that way. Maybe nothing. No, when I sit and contemplate getting old and realize - how many good years do I have left? I mean, I look at Betty White. And I had a wonderful lunch with Carol Channing last week. And she just blew my mind. She’s 93 and she’s just charming and funny and little sequined pants and a blazer jacket and her little hair. She’s just adorable. She’s still so interested in everything that’s on Broadway and who’s working. I think you have to have an interest. You don’t want to get bored. It’s easy to say, but if you don’t feel good... what if you hurt all day long or you’re on an I.V. How do you keep those spirits up? I don’t know. And people are doing it. PCC: In the book, you say that there is no Back Button. Have you managed to banish all regrets? WELLS: Oh, I think the regrets have taught me a lot. I’ll see myself kind of going in that direction and I’ll talk myself through it. No, I don’t think I’ve forgotten them. But I don’t have a lot of regrets. I don’t regret my marriage. I don’t have a whole lot of regrets. I’ve learned every lesson as I’ve gone along. There are things in my life I wish I hadn’t done. Did I really say that? [Laughs] And not eating chocolate cake - I don’t mean that. We are responsible - I say that in the book - we are responsible for our own lives. And those choices you make at 14 to 18 are pretty crucial, because you’re testing everything. I’m always fascinated with somebody who gets into college and he’s a math major. That’s what he likes. And then, all of a sudden, his senior year, he becomes a dancer. For that brain to be switched - did he think he had to be that math teacher in order to have stability, but inside he was always a dancer? I don’t know. And I love that. Or if I had to do it over again, what would I do? I would love to go someplace and learn a language. I keep trying. I’m in a class for three weeks and then I have to go somewhere. And I would love to, let’s say, go to Italy and spend six months just painting. But I think that’s a fantasy. I don’t think I'm ever going to really do that. PCC: Looking back on this wonderful career you’ve had, what has been the most satisfying aspect? WELLS: The most rewarding, I guess would be the influence that character has had. And I really didn’t have anything to do with that. I didn’t write it. I didn’t cast myself. It’s not about me. But because of that character, I have touched people’s lives. I didn’t intentionally go out as a prophet. Didn’t intentionally go out as Mother Teresa But I have touched lives. I’ve had people tell me their stories and how I kept them alive or how they were bullied and thought nobody cared about them and how they knew that Mary Ann would. You don’t make that up. Whatever it is, people cry when they hear an opera. Why? It’s hard to say exactly. But that’s probably the most gratifying thing in my life. And maybe because it gave me some notoriety, I can make a difference. Whereas, if I’m a housewife in Huntington Beach with three children, I’m making a difference in my family. But I maybe couldn’t have the time, really, to make a difference elsewhere. And that’s why I really think this book - I don’t want to sound like it’s heavy - but I do think this book might make a difference, a lot, in where families are today. I was doing an autograph show in Kentucky for a big Bourbon Barbecue thing. It was all outside and I was sitting behind this table and this little girl, about 12, 13 years old, came and sat next to me. Her mother introduced her and then her mother went to see what was going on. And we chatted for a little while. And I have never, never, never ever seen a face as beautiful as that little girl’s. She should be on the Sistine Chapel. I looked at every feature, the coloring, everything. She’s so beautiful, it just takes your breath away. So we chatted. She’s a lovely, sweet little girl. And I took both of her hands in mine and said, “I just want to say, ‘Say no.’” She said, “What?” I said, “People are going to be asking you so many things, your whole life- little boys, advertisers, because you are so exceptionally pretty that they don’t necessarily even want to get to know you. They approach you because you’re so beautiful. You’re going to be asked many things that you won’t understand. And start with ‘no.’ Then you can analyze it and see if you really want to go on with it. Start with a ‘no.’” And she really listened. And then we talked about something else. She got ready to leave. She hugged me and kissed me. She said, “Thank you.” About 15 minutes later, she was dragging her mother back to thank me. PCC: They must have really appreciated your taking the time. WELLS: Well, I just like people so much. And also, I think it’s because I don’t have much family. I think, if you have three or four children, and a wife and an aging parent and everything, your love is spread pretty thin. And to spend time with other people is not accessible. My mother used to say about my father, “I don’t know if your father is going to bring home a bum off the street or the governor for dinner, because, to your father, everyone is the same.” And it’s kind of that way with me. PCC: And you have the world’s largest family, with all of your TV fans. WELLS: I think television has made a big difference for the people who have no one. It means something to them to be able to think of someone like Mary Ann as a friend. PCC: And this great new book will bring them even closer to you and your positive philosophy. WELLS: Thank you. I hope it does well, because I think that it has a cute little message. And besides, there are some fabulous pictures in the middle of it, pictures that I got out of my trunk and thought, “My gosh! I don’t even remember these!” So those are kind of fun, too. PCC: You’ve brought a lot of fun to a lot of people. Thank you for your time. WELLS: I really enjoyed this conversation. It was a lovely interview. Thank you. For the latest on this charming actress, visit dawnwells.com. |
