Lips that kissed Elvis kissed me!

Like every young guy in high school, I admired (or more) some of the younger actresses Hollywood was cranking out. My favorite will always be Natalie Wood. West Side Story sealed her role in my heart forever. To this day, I am still saddened by the untimely death of this talented and beautiful woman. I had heard from people in the industry that her life was not always pleasant and a specter of loneliness haunted her. To be loved for just who you are by the one you love will always hold more personal value than status or money.
Another heartthrob of that era was a blue-eyed blond named Stella Stevens. She played the wife of New York cop, Earnest Borgnine in the original blockbuster film, The Poseidon Adventure. Prior to that she played leading lady to such men as Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Jerry Lewis, Glenn Ford and Elvis Presley. Elvis had been making a string of light hearted musical romances in the early 60’s, one being Girls, Girls, Girls. Stella was the leading lady.
I had an opportunity to meet Ms. Stevens at the 2009 Reno Film Festival where one of the films I directed (Arabian Silk) happened to be a finalist in its category. She was one of the honored guests handing out awards along with Oscar-winning writer, Michael Blake (Dancing with Wolfs). To be honest I would have never recognized her as the famous bombshell of forty years past. Still at 72 years old, she has a wonderful manner about her with plenty of energy to boot. I was feeling pretty good after our film picked up an “Audience Choice Award” and decided to speak with her during the following reception. I was mostly surprised, almost stunned by her willingness to talk with me. I discovered she has a great love for westerns and loves to write. She joked about the re-make of The Poseidon Adventure and we talked about her co-star, Shelly Winters. I thanked her for her contribution to film and that’s when she gave me a little peck on the cheek. So it wasn’t quite a knock-you-down–and-take-me-home kind of smooch but it was sure more than anyone else I know ever received from a Hollywood legend. My wife arrived with a camera and asked if it would be OK to take a picture of us together. She did not hesitate at giving a positive reply.
In the last decade, Ms. Stevens has appeared in 10 T.V. and box-office films. She currently has two movies in post-production to be released later this year.
Miss Wood may soon lose her position.