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by Patricia Fripp, CSP, CPAE
When I was 23, I became one of the first women in the new industry of men's
hairstyling. My boss, Jay Sebring, was stylist to the stars. I would pick up
the
phone and find Steve McQueen on the other end of the line saying, "Hey, can
Jay go racing with me tomorrow?" If Jay's answer was "yes," I had to call his
executive clients and say, "I'm very sorry, but Mr. Sebring has been called
out
of town on urgent business. Could I reschedule your appointment?"
At the opening party for our salon, I, of course, was the hostess. Warren
Beatty
and Julie Christie flew in for evening. Also Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward.
When Paul Newman walked in, he literally glowed. It was an amazing
experience,
and I have never seen anything like it since. He was surrounded by people,
but it
was as if he were alone. This was the first time I truly understood what
people
mean by a magnetic personality.
Tragically, my boss died that year. Jim Markham took over his business and
clientele. Years later, Jim told me a story about Paul Newman. Jim had been
in
Paul's kitchen, cutting his hair, when Joanne Woodward came in. Paul jumped
up,
bits of hair flying everywhere, and raced over to his wife. "Lovely lady, how
are
you?" he cried, hugging and kissing her. Jim Markham commented, "Here is the
sex symbol of the world being wonderful to his wife. A real lesson for us
mere mortals!"
Joanne Woodward's film, Rachel, Rachel, had just come out. In one scene, she is walking down a country lane, and the camera angle goes up until I
honestly
thought she must be six feet tall. Yet, when I shook hands with her, I had to
lower
my eyes to make eye contact -- and I am only 5'1".
I don't know about you, but I love seeing movie stars on talk shows.
Obviously if you
have previously met them, it is even more exciting. I remember seeing Joanne
Woodward being interviewed by Barbara Walters, and Barbara asked her,
"What is success to you?" That's easy, I thought: being rich, famous, and
sleeping
with Paul Newman! But Woodward said something that I have never forgotten.
"To me," she said, "Success would be raising four children who don't need a
psychiatrist -- and I haven't done it."
Joanne Woodward, according to her own definition, would probably think that
the majority of Americans are more successful than she is. Maybe the most
important role for Paul Newman and Joanne Woodward is the role they play
at home rather than on the screen.
So many of us look at celebrities and think they must be a lot more special
than
we are. They're not. Don't sacrifice your core values to win the approval of
people
who don't care about you.
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