The Mind is a Funny Thing

It’s funny how the mind works.  I heard a snippet of a song on NPR the other day and now I can’t get “The Ladies Who Lunch” out of my head.  I was singing it in my mind this morning and then I started thinking how Dean Jones originated the role of Bobby in the original Broadway cast of Stephen Sondheim’s Company and how he left the show soon after it opened and I was wondering if he left it to go to Hollywood to star in several Disney films.  Then I remembered that I had loved a TV show he starred in, in which he played a navy officer (Ensign O’Toole).

That reminded me of another naval TV show which I had also loved called Hennessey starring Jackie Cooper. Then I asked myself, “Wait, was that Jackie Cooper or Jackie Coogan? No, it was Jackie Cooper; Jackie Coogan was The Kid in the Charlie Chaplain films and later Uncle Fester in The Addams Family.”  Jackie Cooper was special to me because he had made me cry so much as a child when he played Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island.

That reminded me of another actor who tore my heart out as a child- Shirley Temple. All of her movies made me cry but especially Wee Willie Winkie when she begged the British and the people of India not to fight each other but to see the good in each other.  Buckets of tears!

That made me think of how grateful I am to all of the child stars for their gifts to us- their charm, their cuteness, their mischievousness, and most of all their emotions. I thank all them all because even though some of them are no longer with us and most of them are no longer children, their gifts are still there for us.

All of this passed through my mind in the time it took to wash my face, and brush and floss my teeth.  It’s funny how the mind works!