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by CHARLES WITBECK• • • • • . * i / «* , • 0 • ( ' . ’ « • • ' ■ V • • . *iynse j^opdy likes'Comexly ifteles_ HOLLYWOOD—That's My Mama, the Wednesday night comedy; fa f MHJ's only new show to make the tap 20 in ratings. But the adventures of i i Washington, D.C., barber (Clifton Davis)/-his.mother (Theresa Meiv j rifct),* sister(Lynne Moody):and cronies hasn't exactly electrified j audiences. .'■ ‘V ; •• -*• /•r-' ■'• NBC's'competing Little House On The Prairie usually wins the time ;ipot, and the CBS entry, Sons And Daughters, makes an early departure to be replaced by Orlando.And Dawn in December. New York's TonyOrlando and his two slinky .girl singers could spell trouble for Mama in the future.'’ T • ••• • ' '..Withthe black Sailfoitf And’Son supposedly, depicting the junk business, arid-Good Timescornering the TV market on black ghetto life, Mama must stake put new territory. ... . ^ r .... . /. :“We're’attempting to mirror life of;any middle-ciaBS family — back or white —,with some degree of Reality/ said Lynne Moody, a former airline stewardess who became bored offering caffee/ tea or milk to passengers.. .’• . ; . . ' /. . * *:’ As sister Tracy with husband Leonard out on the road.rnost of the time, Miss Moody:must play second fiddle to star. Clifton.Davis, Mama rheresa*Merritt and the barbershop gang. She’s around'for contrast, a ' pretty thing, playing the sweet and feminine woman, not the expected brassy type with hip sayings. It's tough to play.tbe lady on television these lays when flashiness is in demand. _ \ .. ’ .In the early going; sister Tracy mostly hovered in the background as brother and big Momma canted the action. Produce!? Gene Farmer (former Sanford And Son writer) and Walter Bica were fishing with Tracy, waiting to see which way to go with the young woman * The outcome StiU isn’t clear. Talk of stories about abortion arc mentioned and then dismissed since this, after all, is supposedly light comedy.. ..; ..One thing is dear, newcomer. Mias Moody intends to'be known as alady. Miss Moody — the daughter of br. Alwyn Gatlin,.an Evanston, Illinois gynecologist and director of Chicago's Maternity Centre, and niece of Illinois Judge Edith Sampson — fits the part of the sweet ar.d gentle. Tracy, and may be familiar to All In The Family. fans as Ihe liancee of Lionel Jefferebo. ’ vV’•* /' • The middle child in a family of two brothere and four sisters, Miss Moody always talked about becoming an actress. She studied a year at Pasadena Playhouse, but;grew homesick, and. continued training at Chicago's Goodman Theatre ar.d Hull House. One day she announced that she was tired oF living at home, and would go out and get a job. Applying for a reservation desk job%with an airline, Miss Moody was hired instead * as a stewardess. 'V. ; ,..A.F • '. : “On my first training flight out of Pittsburgh, an engine blew out/. ; she sdid. “Sitting in the back, I let out a scream, while the paBsengers looked back and smiled. When the plane landed safely I rushed lo a phone and called my mother to say I was through./Get back on that plane this instant,’ was Mom’s reply/* • sThe would-be actress stuck it out and became an airlines favorite by landing a job in a rock musical The ensuing publicity helped the show and her flying employers, who loosened work schedules for the youngster. ,i “I hecame a big fish in Minnesota,” she said with a grin. “I would go on chartered flights south for Bobbie Kennedy, and later flew ihc Orient route. I learned how to be independent, how to pack, how to get around in almost any city, but somehow I felt unfulfilled. I quit and came to , Hollywood/ ‘ .;•••'. /•- . ‘ iNaive Miss Moody had no conception of Hollywood life, but was fortunate enough to be accepted by a good workshop and later find a hardworking agent, Mike Karg. •“It’s a lot rougher than I expected,” Miss Moody said. “Surviving In this town is not jiiat a matter of talent or knowledge. Determination is the main thing. Along with luck and timing/So far, family approval for the determined youngster is mixed/My father is not too pleased,” Miss Moody said. “He thinks the business is sick. But mv aunt, the fudge, wrote and asked for mv autograph/
Newspaper Details
Winnipeg Free Press
Winnipeg, Manitoba, CA
Sat, Dec 14, 1974
Page 142
Full Page
Clipped by
Anonymous
MI, USA 23 Sep 2017
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