My Birthday--August Something

It's my birthday, and once again, dear Kathleen pulled out all the stops. (By the way, the photo at left is of Yours Truly at the tender age of one year.)

As I'm sure you read in the society pages, my party was quite a "To Do;" located in Forest Park with a large air-conditioned tent and a guest list of hundreds.

Dear Kathleen thinks of everything; and when she doesn't, she hires it done. Therefore, I enjoyed appropriate back-lighting the entire evening. My seat was cleverly situated between the dessert table and the gift table, with an excellent view of Toni Tennille performing her set. (So glad she and The Captain are still together, after 25 years of marriage! But he, being the shy one, no longer performs.) She dedicated Muskrat Love to dear Kathleen, which I consider a very thoughtful gesture. And then, as she introduced Donna Summer, they sang a duet of Bad Girls while dear Kathleen provided the "toot toot/beep beep" descant! So charming...so very charming.

After the sit-down dinner and concert, guests filed out onto the lawn for the fireworks show. A near mishap was avoided...I held my breath when that second "B" resisted lighting up, presenting the crowd with "BEST BIRTHDAY WISHES ASIA." Fortunately, though, dear Kathleen offered her lighter and the back-up fuse was lit just in the nick of time. Whew! Close one!

No sooner had the fireworks ended than the hot air balloons lit up like a forest of beautiful, glowing blobs. The lift-off was truly breathtaking, particularly because the humid, night air was filled with the scent of burning kerosene. Imagine my surprise as a parachute-clad military band leaped from the balloons as soon as they reached 5,000 feet! Astonishing! I could even hear the piccolo during the coda of Stars and Stripes Forever as the band came lilting down through the leaves and branches of nearby trees.

As guests filtered out, one by one, drowsy with laughter and merriment, they were given a memento of our evening together--my likeness cast in genuine resin.

This was not an evening we will forget any time soon...dear Kathleen truly out-did herself this time. Many, many thanks to the woman who helps me.

Ever~~

Basia

P.S. We still have a few pallets of the Resin Basia figurines. They are available first come/first served through this blog or some of your Better Retailers. Don't hesitate to contact my publicist, Kristin, for more information.

The Most Professional 27 Seconds on Television

I usually try to humor Kathleen when she rambles on about Hollywood gossip while she paints my nails.

Bless her heart.

This week it was all about Miley Someone and who she is more popular than, and blah blah yawn. Dear, simple Kathleen, of course, doesn't put it together that these orchestrated "rivalries" are just attempts to garner publicity.

Back in my day, we starlets pretended not to notice the competition. If some boorish interviewer insisted on bringing it up, we casually denied it all. Think of it as an unspoken agreement between Lauren, Katherine , Bette, myself, Joan, et al. And we adhered to it, not out of fear, but out of professionalism.

Please let me share with you what I call "The Most Professional 27 Seconds on Television," featuring my old friend and current Spirit Guide, Bette Davis: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4Y9B9PJnW8&NR=1

I regret that I don't know how to make the clip appear in this post, but I believe you can follow the link. And I also believe you can follow the logic--the true Professional, when asked directly, denies petty rivalries with a flick of her ashes.

Ever~~

Basia

P.S. Regardless of my hectic schedule, I try to answer all my fan mail personally. You can reach me through the "comments" section on this blog site.

Among Friends...

I am happy to report that my hiatus has ended, and I am back online. Dear Kathleen (the woman who helps me) and I have been summering in the Riviera, enjoying three-martini brunches with friends and drowsy afternoons in the sand. It has been a much-needed break, and I return refreshed.

Our bliss, of course, was marred by the loss of hard-working and talented Sydney Pollack, who, "directed more than 21 films and 10 television shows, acted in over 30 films or shows, and produced over 44 films" during a 48 year career. This astonishingly prolific man will certainly be missed.

Enjoy the rest of summer. It goes so quickly.

Ever~~

Basia