Interview: Anne Collins Ludwick, writer for “Wonder Woman” (1977-79)

Anne Collins Ludwick (then Anne Collins) was not the first female to write scripts for The New Adventures of Wonder Woman. She was the last. To clarify, she wrote the last five episodes (among others). 

On this list of the 10 best eps of the show, five (including the top four) are Anne’s (one based on a story idea from someone else).

I’ve covered various aspects of Wonder Woman before (from two granddaughters of one of his creators to two people who sang on her delicious theme song).

But I was inspired to find/interview Anne because of this line in a 2019 article: “it isn’t super easy to find out information on her.”

That’s throwing down the gauntlet to me.

Luckily Anne did not throw up her bracelets to deflect me. She kindly agreed to an interview and I excitedly share it here:

How did you end up writing for Wonder Woman?

Somewhere in the process of writing three scripts for Hawaii Five-O in the mid-70s, the show’s Story Editor, Curtis Kenyon, helped me get an agent, John Schallert. Though I was working at a PR firm and living in Denver at the time, John successfully pitched me to the people at Wonder Woman, who were looking for a woman to join its writing staff. So I packed up my VW Rabbit, sublet my apartment, and drove out to LA, fully expecting to return within a month once they discovered how inexperienced and untalented I was. 

But to my surprise, I discovered I could, in fact, hold my own when it came to working with and, frequently, heavily editing the work of the (mostly male) freelance writers to whom the show was giving assignments. The Supervising Producer, Bruce Lansbury, was such a joy to work with and so creative and sooo supportive that I stayed in LA for the next seven years and never looked back.

Did you pitch storylines on your own or as part of a team, or were writers assigned certain premises by producers?

Bruce, the studio and the network had a vision for the show, which in its second season saw it move from WWII into the ‘70s, so there was already an informal list of suggested and approved storylines. At that time TV programs were required to utilize freelance writers. We would contact writers we thought would “get” the show and assign a story area to them, though they were also free to pitch their own ideas if they wanted. I, too, could and did pitch ideas, of course, but as story editor I mostly helped outside writers develop their stories and would rewrite/polish their final drafts if/when necessary.

Tell me more about the informal list.

The “list” was a compilation of thoughts and ideas that were tossed around in meetings Bruce Lansbury had with various studio, network, and production company heads as the season progressed. Bruce, in turn, discussed these storylines or, quite often, mere arenas for storylines, in subsequent meetings with me in hopes of determining what writer might be particularly well-suited to tackle which arena. So any “list” I ever had consisted of hastily scrawled, long gone notes. This was waaayyy before index cards on bulletin boards.

It looks like you first wrote for the show during season 2 (of a three-season series). Were you already a fan of the show (or the character)?

I never saw a single episode of Wonder Woman before I joined the show. However, my two brothers and I were avid consumers of DC comics growing up so I was familiar with the character, although I must admit, she was not my fave because, unlike Superman, Superboy, or Surpergirl, she couldn’t fly. (Never was a fan of that invisible plane.)

Is there one story about your Wonder Woman days that you tell more than any other?

My hands doubled for Lynda Carter’s in the episode called (I think) “The Man Who Made Volcanoes.”

Oh, and also, I was walking across the lot (Warner Bros. in Burbank) one day for some reason with the show’s producer, Charlie FitzSimons (wonderful Irish guy, Maureen O’Hara’s brother). As he talked I became aware of a guy walking toward us, someone with the most electrically blue eyes I had ever seen in my life. I couldn’t take my eyes off his, and suddenly had no idea, and could not care less about, what Charlie was saying to me. I recognized the guy’s face, but it was his eyes I’ll never forget. Paul Newman, in the flesh.

Any other funny/inspiring/weird anecdotes about your Wonder Woman experience?

There was one Saturday or Sunday early on in my Wonder Woman stint that I absolutely had to get into my office to write/rewrite something (this was eons before laptops, remember). However, to my horror, the key I was given to the WW office suite would not work. Desperate to get to my typewriter, and more than a little pissed at the key, I took the door handle with both hands and shook it in utter frustration. Causing the lock to break and the door to limp open. I went straight to my office and got to work.

Next thing I know, a wide-eyed security guard was peering at me from around the corner of my doorway, hand on his nightstick, ready to use it on whomever had broken into the suite. I apologized for breaking the door but it was an emergency. I just kept working, and he finally went away to get the door fixed. He also filed a report, so that come Monday everyone knew the story and thought it was quite amusing, and appropriate, that a woman employed by Wonder Woman had busted down a door.

What was it like to be a female writer in Hollywood in the 1970s? How did the men involved with the show treat you?

Frankly, so grateful was I to be getting paid for something I absolutely loved to do that I never gave my gender much thought. I never came close to being pressured into sleeping with someone in order to get work, and I never felt like I was being patronized, or that my work was in any way discounted because I was female. When dealing with some of the older male freelancers (and there were quite a few back then that had written for network TV since its inception), I occasionally detected some arrogance and resistance to my notes on their scripts, but I don’t recall any major incidents. I felt like the producers on the show respected me because I could, and did, get the job done promptly and well.

At the time, did you reflect on the number of women vs. number of men writing for the show?

No, because at that time, there were very few women writing action-adventure, and there was also nowhere near the pressure to hire women and minorities back then that there is now. True, I was hired by WW largely because everyone, including Lynda, felt the show could only benefit from including “a woman’s POV,” but I’m not sure my gender ever really had a big influence on the scripts we churned out.

Do you remember any instances where you felt strongly about an idea that didn’t make it on air?

No. Hey, I well understood the perimeters of what we were creating: WW aired at 8 pm on Friday and was considered “family” programming. Which meant no realistic violence, no swearing, no drinking, no depiction of deviant behavior, no adult situations. The network’s Standards and Practices Department scoured every script and finished episode to make sure nothing that could be construed in any way as offensive made it on the air.

Did you interact with Lynda Carter, and if so, what was your impression of her? Did it change over time in any way?

Lynda was a sweetheart. We didn’t hang out, but our interactions were always pleasant and she always came across as genuine. She wasn’t hired because of her acting skills, and she no doubt knew that, which had to’ve made showing up for work every day somewhat terrifying. But by golly she did her best, and I have to say, whenever I happen to catch an episode, I’m struck with how likeable she comes across on screen. Not just because of her considerable physical beauty, but she has a nice, watchable presence. Probably because she is/was basically a sincerely nice person.

What is your favorite episode that you wrote and why?

“Phantom of the Roller Coaster,” probably because it was such a colorful arena (who doesn’t love amusement parks?) and I have an affinity for Raggedy Man-type stories. It started out as a single episode, but the shoot at Magic Mountain went so well that we made a two-parter out of it, though I forget when in the process that decision was made, or exactly how much more shooting was involved.

What did you do professionally after Wonder Woman?

After WW was cancelled, Bruce Lansbury became the Supervising Producer on Buck Rogers. To repeat, Bruce was one of the kindest, merriest, most creative people I’ve ever known, so when he asked me to come aboard as Story Consultant, I immediately said yes. I was on staff on a couple of other shows after that, and eventually wound up story editing for Matlock while raising two kids in Seattle. I have two fantastic grown-up daughters. 

What are you doing these days?

Living in the PNW, enjoying my WGA pension, and writing, though I’m not sure yet exactly what.

Anne 2022

Are either of your children fans of Wonder Woman?

I don’t think either of them have seen an episode of TV’s Wonder Woman, nor to my knowledge have they read a WW comic book. They both saw and liked the first Wonder Woman movie but passed on the second one (as did I).

Have you participated in any Wonder Woman-related event (comic convention, panel, documentary, etc.)? If not, would you be open to meeting fans and signing autographs?

No thanks. That kinda stuff just isn’t my thing.

Are you still in touch with anyone from the cast or crew?

No. Although I am still in touch with novelist Alan Brennert, the most talented freelancer to ever write for Wonder Woman.

When was the last time you watched Wonder Woman? How did you think it held up?

The last time I caught an episode was probably two years ago. As I said, Lynda was very watchable, but oh my gosh, the production was so amateurish compared to what’s on TV now. The special effects were dreadful, the storyline was simplistic, the dialog was utilitarian, and the characters were one-dimensional. But that was the way episodic TV was back then. The networks had a very low opinion of their audience; we writers were instructed to repeat info important to the plot as often as possible, and to spell things out for viewers instead of relying on them to figure things out. Pretty much the opposite of the way TV is now.

Do you have any mementos from the experience such as set photos, a script, or anything from the set?

I think I have copies of all the scripts I wrote for the show in a trunk somewhere, but that’s about it.

What did you think of the first Wonder Woman movie?

I loved it. It struck just the right tone and it worked. There was one scene—I think Wonder Woman making her way through a battlefield—that was incredibly moving. I didn’t bother to see the second movie after reading the reviews.

What did you think when you first heard my request?

I thought, who the hell would be interested in hearing about my experience on a short-lived TV show that ended more than 40 years ago?

How do you look back on your Wonder Woman experience?

I loved every single minute of it. Needless to say, as a kid originally from Toledo, Ohio, I’d never been on a real movie set before (though I did participate in some student productions during my two years of grad school at UT Austin). It felt good to be part of a major creative endeavor and to have my work appreciated (and well-compensated, though little did they know I would’ve gladly done all that writing for free!).

If the experience changed your life in any way, how?

Though I don’t remember the exact circumstance, I do remember Bruce Lansbury, in response to some expression of self-doubt I’d just made, sternly admonishing me, “You are a writer.” Not sure if he changed my life at that moment, but he definitely defined it.

Anything you’d like to add?

I’ve bored you enough. 

Anne, no you didn’t. If you don’t believe me, put the magic lasso around me…

Interview: Pamela McMyler (co-star of Steven Spielberg’s first theatrical film “Amblin’”)

Legendary director Steven Spielberg’s first theatrical release was a 26-minute-long film about young hitchhikers in the desert…and maybe in love. It was called Amblin’ (which later became the name of his production company). To date, the film has not been remastered and made available digitally.

Shot in 1968 when Spielberg was 21 years old and released the same year, it starred only two people, neither of whom speak during the film. One of those people, Pamela McMyler, had not given an interview about it…until now.

What were you doing professionally prior to Amblin’?

My first acting job was The Man from U.N.C.L.E. I also might have done The Donna Reed Show before. The U.N.C.L.E. [producers] had to write a letter to the Screen Actors Guild to say “No one else in the world could say this [one] line like she can.” I got my SAG card and Eddie Foy (a casting director) really liked me. 

Friends of mine had a little restaurant/bar a couple of blocks from my house. It was like an “actor bar” and they kept asking me to work there because it would be good for business. I was young and perky. I agreed to do it. One night a guy named Mark, very nice man, young man, good looking, said my cousin is making a short film and he has the financing and I think you’d be right for the girl, and so I met with Steven Spielberg. He wanted to do a screen test—I believe [the other person up for the role] was his girlfriend at the time. I got the part and I freaked out because I wasn’t yet a member of SAG.

What do you remember about the meeting with Steven?

How can I describe him? He was a young, friendly, nice Jewish boy. He talked about his mom a lot. Very nice, down-to-earth man.

How old were you when you got the role?

I was 23. I was a couple of years older than Steven. He was just out of film school. 

Did he cast you on the spot?

After the screen test. A couple of days later. 

What did you think of the story?

The way I describe it, it was a romp. [The male lead] was [a surrogate for Steven]—a nerdy Jewish kid. He said basically we’re going to go out and ad lib. He’d say “Now I want you spit olive pits.” More than a script, it was kind of descriptions. 

Was there a written script?

There was but how do you write ad lib scenes? It was a description of what would go on because there was no dialogue. He know exactly what he wanted for every shot. God bless the cinematographer Allen Daviau [who died from COVID-19 in April 2020]. Allen was a big sweetheart, like a big old bear. At one point he hung by his heels out of the trunk of a car to get a shot that Steven wanted. 

Do you still have the script?

No. I don’t know that I ever did! 

Any funny anecdotes about your Amblin’ experience?

I’m sure there are many I’ll remember when we get off the phone. (laughs) At one point there was a description about how the girl chases the guy with a snake. I wasn’t crazy about snakes. They took us out to Palmdale in the heat of the desert. They had a snake in a little aquarium on the bus. I had to take it out and talk to it and get to know it. [We ended up not filming that scene], but I made a friend. 

I think we drank beer in the desert and it dried up immediately. 

We did [the shoot] in very few days. Steven was serious. Friendly and casual but we were there to make a film in only a couple of days with X amount of money.

Is there one story about your Amblin’ experience you tell more than any other?

I was a little nervous to do the scene when I took off my top. That whole campfire scene was shot on a soundstage. It looks like it’s outside, to me. There were a couple of lighting guys and a sound guy. They set it up and left so it was just Steven, [co-star] Richard, and Allen when I showed my little boobies. 

What challenges did you face shooting this film?

Really only the heat. I’m sure it was summer. Pearblossom Highway in Palmdale. It’s outside of Los Angeles some sixty miles. It’s pure desert. At one point [after the initial shoot], Steven said “Pammy, we have to go back out to the desert. I didn’t get a good close-up of you when you two first see each other across the road.” I said “Nooo!” (laughs) We went back out there and I’m glad we did. It was a great close-up of me. 

We spent a good day out there to get the close-up and other pick-up shots. 

The original shoot had been, I believe, maybe four days. We stayed out there in a motel. We shot the ending in Malibu. 

What is your interpretation of the film’s ending? Debate rages on the Internet.

Oh really? Nobody’s ever asked me that question before. To me it was always Steven’s vision of himself as being a straight-laced, very serious Jewish boy who…what am I trying to say? The character was based on Steven. So it had to be his vision of wanting to be this cool guy with his guitar, which he didn’t have or play [in real life]. 

Why do you think the girl walked away after she saw what the boy had in his bag?

Maybe she was shallow. Not shallow, but she felt deceived in a way. She thought he was somebody he was not. She had come to care for him. He probably also would not have ended up with her, by his choice.

Did Steven articulate this or rather let the characters’ actions speak for themselves?

He pretty much let actions speak for themselves. He would tell us the technical things and let us go. That’s part of the genius of Steven. 

While working on it, did Spielberg seem like just another filmmaker or did you sense something special?

At first I thought “just another filmmaker.” But his enthusiasm kind of changed my mind. Then when we had the screening, when I saw it for the first time, I saw what his vision was. I was proud that I accomplished what he wanted. The reception—I was taken aback by how well-received it was. Someone told me [actor] Clu Gulager was in love with me. [So of course] when I walked onto the Universal lot, in front of the commissary, the first person I saw was Clu. 

Did you talk to him?

No, I was too embarrassed. 

What do you remember about your co-star, Richard Levin?

He was a sweet guy. A very gentle soul. Quiet. 

Did you stay in touch with him?

For a little while. We lost track—I hate when that happens. 

Were you paid to be in the film?

No. I often thought in the back of my Irish mind I could go to Steven and say “I could use a couple bucks these days.” (laughs) Of course I wouldn’t do that.

What are you doing these days?

I’m retired. I work around my house, plant my cactus garden, raise my dogs and my pig. 

I was doing antiques and collectibles and painted furniture. I did very well at it. At one store I worked in, I had all the windows and front of store for three days a week. They’re like antique malls and people have sections. I went into that about 1997. I did it for a long time. Ten years. But a lot of the shops closed. 

And before that?

Not long after Amblin’ I got married. I was married for eight years. 

In the 1980s I worked in film or TV only a couple times. You get to be a certain age and they don’t know what to do with you. I did a lot of small theater in LA. I enjoyed that a lot.

I had a beautiful house in the hills in Sherman Oaks. Sometime in the ‘80s, at midnight, I sat bolt upright and said to myself “I’m out of here.” My parents weren’t getting any younger. I wanted to be closer to them. They lived in Santa Barbara. Good luck affording anything in Santa Barbara so a friend recommended Ventura. In 1992, I moved from Sherman Oaks to where I am [still am today] in Ventura, a few blocks from the ocean. [For the first] five years here, I did nothing but go to the beach five hours a day.

I assume your dogs are in your house and your pig is not?

My pig did live in the house for a year and then she started rearranging the furniture—she’s an exterior and interior decorator. [So she then had to move outside.] 

How did you come to have a pig?

My neighbor had a baby pig, white with big black spots. I’d always wanted a baby pig. I would babysit the pig all day when she was little and eventually adopted the pig from the neighbor. I adopted her when she was little. Now she’s enormous. 

Can you housetrain a pig?

She housetrained herself. We left the front door open and she’d go in the corner on the porch. Always in the same place. Occasionally she’d pee in the living room.

A friend built a ramp outside my bedroom door. I don’t know how he knew a pig needed a ramp, but it did. 

What’s your pig’s name?

Blossom.

Your dogs?

Bobby and Mickey. Both boys.

Do the dogs and the pig get along?

They do. Once in a while she will chase them around the yard. But they run in.

If she caught them, what would she do?

She pushes them with her snout and sniffs them. Pigs can be gnarly once in a while. I brush her every day and tell her she’s a pretty girl. She eats only her pellets and fruits and vegetables.

I don’t eat ham or bacon anymore. Matter of fact, since I got her, I don’t eat meat anymore.

Any interest in acting again?

If someone just gave me a part and I liked it, sure, I would do it. But a craving? No.

Do you have children?

No.

Have you ever appeared at a pop culture convention? If not, would you be open to meeting fans and signing autographs?

No. Universal used to send us to places, but not conventions. Veterans hospital—kids paralyzed from the waist down. We—all these young starlets, pardon the expression—went there supposedly to cheer them up.

In the late 1960s, they sent a bunch of actors on a bus to Orange County—Republican country—to sit at various tables and hand out awards at a real estate headliners of the year event. We ate these pineapple starters. Then a lady said “Sorry, wrong table” and put us at another table. Ate the pineapple starters again. They moved us a third time. Then someone came out and said [to the attendees] “Welcome to Orange County, the land of Richard Milhous Nixon!”

People told me I should do conventions because of Chisum, [a 1970 movie she starred in with John Wayne]. I might be interested in that.

What was it like to work with John Wayne?

Working with John Wayne was a hoot and a holler. He’d already [screen] tested six girls. My agent was a small agent who sat on the director’s doorstep until he would see me. He told me later that he liked me immediately. He showed John Wayne Amblin’. John walked out and said “Can the little girl talk?” Amblin’ certainly did its job for me for a while. 

Have you seen Steven Spielberg or Richard Levin since shooting Amblin’?

I worked with Steven a couple of times after Amblin’. He said I was his good luck charm. Then I guess he didn’t need a good luck charm anymore. (laughs)

The first thing he directed when signed at Universal was an episode of Night Gallery with Joan Crawford. Here’s this young kid directing Joan Crawford, of all people. Bless her heart, she drank vodka all day but covered it with a tissue so no dust would get in it. She was a germaphobe. 

Steven called me one night and said “Pammy, I have to put you in a brown wig because Joan doesn’t want any redheads on the set.” She thought her hair was red, but it was dyed some pinkish color. (They ended up having to cut my main scene from that show.)

Another time Steven called to tell me something he said I wouldn’t believe. Joan had called Steven into her dressing room. She had this whole entourage around her. She was naked with her butt up in the air and she was getting a shot for something. 

I used to run into Steven at a restaurant—late ‘70s. Once we went with another couple. Steven came over to our table to say hi and one of my friends said “What have you been doing since Amblin’?” Steven laughed. He’d already done Jaws.

That was probably the last time I saw him. Once in the ‘80s I called him at his office and he told [his assistant] to hold other calls. He said “I can’t believe my Pammy is in her forties!” He said he thinks of me because his company is called Amblin’. We talked for a long time.

Would you call Steven Spielberg’s office again now? 

I don’t know. 

He seems like the type to be receptive.

He’s pretty guarded. 

What about Richard Levin?

I heard a rumor many years ago that he had passed away. [But then] I have a friend who lives in Arizona—she and I have been friends since we were 17; her husband knows Richard and said he’s fine, but that was a while ago. I’m going to find out about Richard. [MTN: She was unable to.]

Did you meet Rod Serling when you worked on Night Gallery?

No.

When was the last time you watched Amblin’? 

Couple of years ago. I have it on tape. I’ve also watched it on the internet.

Do you have any mementos from the experience such as set photos, a script, or anything from the set?

I may have a couple of photos. No candids. Snapshots that maybe Allen took. I don’t even think Steven had a camera. 

Have you been interviewed before about this specifically?

No. There was some guy a few years back who tried to interview me about me but I cut it short. It didn’t work. Another guy doing a book on Universal Studios has interviewed me. He’s great. He asked me about my credits. I said I was in a TV series called Crosstown and he could never find it. [MTN: Me neither.]

What did you think when you first heard from me?

My first thought was “How did he get my cell phone number? And why is he doing something on Amblin’ 50 years later? Who is this nerd? I better talk to him.”

(laughs) Nerd...you got that right. If the Amblin’ experience changed your life in any way, how?

I was only working here and there and it got me a contract at Universal. John Wayne didn’t want a contract player in Chisum. But after he saw Amblin’, he wanted me for the part. And he wanted to put me under contract at his company, Batjac.

How do you look back on your Amblin’ experience overall?

It was a great, fun thing to do. I loved acting but was even more thrilled when I saw the reaction to the film. 

Interview: Laura Wardle (stand-in for Sarah Jessica Parker/Dianne Wiest in “Footloose”)

What were you doing professionally prior to Footloose? 

I was working on an MFA in Acting at Brigham Young University. All of my experience prior to Footloose was in student films and in university and community stage productions.

How did you become involved with Footloose? 

I auditioned for Cate Praggastis, the local casting agent for the film. I did not get cast, but Ric Waite, the cinematographer, saw my audition and hired me as a stand-in for Sarah Jessica Parker and Dianne Wiest.

Is there one story about your Footloose time you tell more than any other? 

I was sitting in a booth at the Hi-Spot with Kevin and Sarah Jessica. It was a late-night shoot and everyone was getting a little silly and tired. Kevin and Sarah Jessica started carefully examining my nose. They both decided that I had a perfect nose and they wished they had my nose. I don’t see it personally, but it’s nice to remember that once upon a time two famous movie stars thought I had a nice nose.

Sarah Jessica Parker and Liz Gorcey

While working on it, did it seem like just another script to you, or did it feel like something special? 

I have always been a film buff so even before we started filming I was impressed by the crew that was assembled for Footloose. When I wasn’t needed on set, I would hang out with the camera crew (Ric Waite was already known for his great work with long lenses) or, if nobody was in the make-up trailer, I would ask Daniel Striepeke to tell me about his make-up work on Planet of the Apes and the Mission: Impossible television series. I was also very impressed with the work that Kevin Bacon had done in Diner so I was in awe of everybody and more than a little nervous around all of them.

cinematographer Ric Waite

What do you remember about your impression of Kevin Bacon? 

Kevin was always very professional but friendly and full of energy. I must have made an offhanded comment that Kevin looked good without a shirt. One day, Robbie Robinson, the film’s still photographer, had a shirtless Kevin Bacon come up and wrap his arms around me while Robbie took photos. I look like such a dork in the picture but it’s a great memory.

Chris Penn and Kevin Bacon

Chris Penn?

Chris was a sweetheart. He was so nervous about his dancing. He practiced constantly. I was very sad when he passed away at such a young age.

Lori Singer?

Lori did a kindness for me that I will never forget. The stand-ins were paid in cash in the morning for our previous day’s work. I was in college and the money was very important to me. The stand-ins shared a small dressing room in a honey wagon. It was never locked but we had to leave our personal belongings in there while we were on set. 

One day they paid us for three or four previous days, and someone went into my purse while I was on set and stole all my money. Rent was due—my husband Tom and I were both students paying our own way through school—and I just burst into tears when I discovered the theft. 

A little while later Lori came up to me with a wad of cash in her hand and said something like “I never spend all my per diem. I want you to have it.” I think I said “no” but she stuffed it in my hand and walked away. It was completely unexpected and such a kind gesture from a leading actress to a member of the crew.

Lori Singer (in sweatshirt given at end of production) 

and her stand-in Heather

John Lithgow?

He was very quiet, but he would often sit next to me at lunch or dinner and he always asked questions about my life. He was a true gentleman during the entire shoot.

Dianne Wiest? 

The job of a stand-in is to watch the actors rehearse so that you can reproduce their blocking for the cinematographer and camera crew after the actors are released. I loved watching Dianne rehearse. She is such an amazing actress. Observing her was a great learning opportunity for me. Dianne also loved her dog. He came to the set every day and stayed in her dressing room. 

Sarah Jessica Parker? 

I probably spent more time with Sarah than anyone else in the cast. She was funny and extremely intelligent. She also did something very kind for me. She knew that after graduation that I was headed to Los Angeles to pursue acting. She somehow convinced Herbert Ross to put me in a few scenes so that I could get my SAG card. Being a member of the union makes a big difference when you are starting out and trying to get an agent. She didn’t have to do that for me and I have always appreciated it.

Sarah Jessica Parker

What did you do after Footloose? 

I had a career of small and insignificant parts in film and television in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1994 I had the opportunity to work for Jack Valenti at the Motion Picture Association of America where I served on the Ratings Board—the 12-person panel that applies the ratings to more than 600 films per year. [When] our family moved to the East Coast in 1998, I did not have any association with the film industry for many years. 

Since moving back to Utah a few years ago, I have started acting again. I do mostly voice over work for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but I have [also] appeared in several commercials and film projects. My favorite is a little spot called “Going to Grandma’s,” which I had the pleasure of doing with my daughter and granddaughter.

Where do you live? 

Midway, Utah.

If you have children, how many and ages? 

We have two children and five grandchildren.

When was the last time you saw a member of the cast, and was it on purpose or by chance?  

Sarah Jessica Parker and I kept in touch via letter for a year or so after the film shoot. The last time I saw her was in Los Angeles at the party for the premiere of Franco Zeffirelli’s Hamlet (Mel Gibson, Glenn Close; 1990). She was with Robert Downey Jr. at the time and we just exchanged a quick hello. Kim Jensen and I have remained friends and I see her several times a year.

When was the last time you watched Footloose? How did you think it held up? 

If I’m ever channel-surfing and I come across it I will stop and watch it for a bit. It’s always an odd feeling to be transported back to the summer of 1983 and have so many memories about filming each scene, but there is little to no evidence of me in the film.

Laura is in the lavender dress

Do you have any mementos from the experience such as set photos, a script, or anything from the set? 

I have a number of photos. I think I wore my cast and crew Footloose sweatshirt and socks until I wore them out. They are long since gone.

How do you look back on your Footloose experience? 

Footloose was a fabulous experience for me. I was initially very disappointed that I was not cast, but working every day as a stand-in for a major motion picture taught me more about acting for film than anything I learned in college.

Kevin Bacon and his stand-in Blair Treu

If the experience changed your life in any way, how? 

Not long after arriving in Los Angeles, Bob Stone (First Assistant Director for Footloose) cast me in a national Ford truck commercial that he was directing, which then led to a McDonald’s commercial for me. Without Footloose I would never have gotten either.

Interview: Kim Jensen (Ariel’s friend Edna in “Footloose”)

In Footloose (1984), Kim Jensen (now Abunuwara) played Edna, friend to Lori Singer’s character Ariel Moore.

Kim’s behind-the-scenes recollections of the experience:

What were you doing professionally prior to Footloose?

I was an undergraduate acting student at Brigham Young University. Not much professional at this time.
 
How did you get the role?

There was a huge cattle call. Then another trimmed down [call]. Finally, five of us [were] called back to read for [director] Herbert Ross in a hotel room in Salt Lake City. I think I was cast because I was blond and not rail thin (as he already had Lori and Sarah who were brunette and rail thin), and I’m a decent actor.
 
Is there one story about your Footloose time you tell more than any other?

Because it strokes my ego: When rehearsing the scene where Lori climbs out of my [moving] car into her boyfriend’s [moving] truck, Herbert rode in the back of a camera truck and held up a pencil for us to look at as a focus point for our reactions when we were to pretend to see the approaching rig. After we did it the first time, Ross said something like “it’s too much” or “you’re overdoing it, I’m only getting anything real from Kim.” I was incredibly proud of this because it isn’t easy to look at a pencil and act like it’s an approaching rig.

While working on it, did it seem like just another script to you, or did it feel like something special?

I wasn’t sure that the script was special. But I knew the people involved were special:
Wiest, Lithgow, Bacon, Ross. I felt, because of them, the movie could be special.

Kim with Laura Wardle

 

What do you remember about your impression of Kevin Bacon? 

Incredibly professional, focused. Doing his job.
 
Chris Penn? 

Not much interaction with Chris.
 
Lori Singer? 

She may have been in a tough patch. She didn’t seem to be on her game. One day someone brought a viola to the set (I think we were at the Osmond Studios that day because it was inside a large studio and we were very often outside on set) and she played for us in a pink robe and curlers and she was amazing! I thought, wow, she is a very gifted musician.

 

John Lithgow? 

He really helped Lori to focus when shooting the scene when he finds her listening to music (bad) at the Hi Spot. When the cameras were reversed and they did Lori’s shot, he could’ve left and let an AD read, but he stayed and pointed at her and really gave her a lot to work with. Also, when they did his shot and he is supposed to be super disappointed in and betrayed by his daughter, the track was set in his path so as he walks away it would have to be over some very wide dolly tracks which would make him need to take unnaturally large steps. As John walked off, the shot was going to be on his face. I remember Herbert offering to reset the shot and John said no and just made it work; acting it perfectly while taking these enormously awkward steps over the dolly track. What a pro.
 
Dianne Wiest? 

Just incredible. Just super professional. And wow, able to make so much out of material that is just “meh.”
 
Sarah Jessica Parker? 

Incredibly confident and charming. She was the doll of the production. She was incredibly funny and entertaining. Witty. A people magnet.
 
Did you attend the premiere, and if so, what was that like? 

We had a premiere in Utah that I attended. My boyfriend took the wrong exit and we were late and I could’ve murdered him.
 
How often were you recognized on the street? Any funny stories about that? 

Never. I am no one.
 
Do you remember what you earned for the movie?

$16,000. It paid for graduate school and 3.5 months in Europe. 

Do you still earn residuals?

Yes.
 
What are you doing these days?

I teach at UVU. Do voice work and the odd TV show that is shooting in SLC.

 

Any interest in acting more frequently? 

Sure. The money is great when it works.
 
Where do you live? 

Orem, Utah.
 
Children? 

Ages 27, 25, 24, 20.
 
If they have seen you in Footloose, what do they think about it? 

The love me a lot and are very proud of me.
 
Have you ever participated in a Footloose-related event (reunion, convention, documentary, etc.)? 

No, I haven't taken part in anything like that. I wouldn't want to.
 
When was the last time you saw a member of the cast, and was it on purpose or by chance?

 
I haven’t.
 
When was the last time you watched Footloose? How did you think it held up? 

Can’t remember. Although last year they showed [Lori’s] climbing-out-of-my-car-into-her-boyfriend’s-truck scene in faculty senate at UVU while I was serving as a faculty senator. People think its special that I was in a movie.

Do you have any mementos from the experience such as set photos, a script, or anything from the set? 

I used to have a small oblong cardboard dashboard sign that said "Paramount" that I stole out of one of trucks. I wish I still had it.
 
Have you been interviewed before about this specifically, and if so, do you have those clippings (particularly from back then)? 

Once. But I don’t know where the clipping went. It was a SLC paper.
 
What did you think when you first heard from me? 

Happy to help.
 
How do you look back on your Footloose experience? 

Positively.
 
If the experience changed your life in any way, how? 

Well, it has always been an attention getter. It is a well-known film. It looked good on my résumé. It paid for school and a trip to Europe. Those things certainly changed my life.