FROM CIA WIFE TO SOBRIETY

About a week later, I was home alone at our little cottage at the Garden of Allah. Johnny Stompinato dropped by. I was in shorts and halter, as it was a very hot day, I invited him in and left the door open. Johnny asked me if I had a cold beer to which I replied, "sure, help yourself". As he was leaning into the refrigerator getting the beer, Bob walked in. Bob said (and I can hear it so plainly today) "you’re in my refrigerator getting a beer today, next time, when I’m not here, you’ll be getting into my wife!" He was stretching it a bit, as he had told everyone we had gotten married in Mexico. Johnny left quickly and always kept a polite distance from then on, even when he was "designated dancer" for the evening. His main duty, of course, was to be Mickey Cohen’s Italian bodyguard. He was a handsome man and thinking back, a JFK, Jr. look-alike but in a gangster-style way.

Our daytime activity was to visit the set. They were shooting the Road to Bali, which starred Bing Crosby and Bob Hope. I had already met Bing in San Francisco on the evening that I was waiting for Ben Blue and on several other occasions. It was fascinating to see so much talent on a set at one time. Even when the cameras weren’t turning, it was "show time". They were really good together, funny-funny. Beautiful gals were wandering all over the place including Dorothy Lamour who kept blowing her lines, take after take. I don’t think they really liked her. They sure didn’t treat her very nice and there were a lot of private jokes about her. Thank God, both Bing and Bob Hope just nodded to me when they saw me, no more, no less. Bob Patterson didn’t pick up that I had even met them, let alone knew them. Monty, of course, made the introductions. Bing and Bob were well aquatinted with my husband through his movie script writing and working for Mr. Hearst. All in all, it was a fun two weeks.

I knew Don Hornsby, from my days in Long Beach and Belmont Shores, when Bob Hope was helping Don get his start. Don was appearing in the San Fernando Valley at The Sportsman Lodge. One evening, Bob and I, Monty, and a friend went out to see his show. The showroom was all on one level and sitting in front of us were Ronald Reagan, Jane Wyman, Bill Holden and wife. I kept scooting around but couldn’t see around Ronnie so, I tapped him on the shoulder and said, "if you will just move an inch that way, I could see the show". Well, he didn’t move and sat up straighter than ever. Needless to say, he never got my vote! Even Holden smiled and shook his head.