Have you ever noticed that most of our favorite movie stars faded away quickly these days, William Holden, James Stewart, John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Burt Lancaster just to name a few. The latest one is Esther Williams. She was one of my favorite stars when I was a kid in primary school. She was a marvelous swimmer and starred in many swimming related movies. She was truly a mermaid of the time. She single-handed created a niche movie (water drama) just like Shirley Temple created her own (child drama) movies.
I used to mix Esther Williams up with another movie star, Doris Day. Somehow they got similar body build and the look of all American healthy women. I was most impressed by her movie "Bathing Beauty" (出水芙蓉). She admitted she couldn't act, dance or sing. But she can swim and swim like mermaid. She died on June 6, 2013. Every once in a while, PBS TV station ran some program like 'That's Entertainment' and it always shows some beautiful and graceful swimming routines by Esther Williams. This kind of movie is unique and never duplicated for another actresses. Indeed, there is one and only one mermaid, Esther Williams in our world. I sort of miss something profound that I know I can't get it back. Fortunately we have high tech to the rescue, I can still rent many DVDs to see Esther Williams and her lovely smiles. But mostly, I will always remember her wonderful swimming style, beautiful,elegant and graceful to the eyes.
Esther Williams published her autobiography in 1999. I found it interesting that she went through some kind of LSD (under doctor's supervision) experience. She got information and advice from Cary Grant that LSD somehow got some psychic energizer that dug into her inner soul. She said she was in a state of emotional and financial ruins when this LSD session re-energized her life. She realized that she actually tried to replace her older brother after he died at 16 years old. She worked so hard and moved so fast to support her family as her parents were in despair. In fact, she saw herself as half her brother and half herself. I have never tried LSD, maybe I miss something I don't know.
Esther Williams influences me since she shows me there is something so beautiful and so graceful in this world. It is the swimming in such an aesthetic form that is beyond the description of any speech. Here is one video clip that captures her beauty and some of her swimming skill.
2 comments:
Thank you for highlighting the wonderful contributions of Esther Williams. Having been introduced to her talents through MGM movies as a child by my loving parents, Esther Williams was part of my cultural upbringing. It is true that she brought sheer delight and entertainment. It would have been a crying shame if she hadn't been discovered and brought to the world via these fun and lavish movies (I remember being disappointed when I learned that the Hippodrome Theater in New York City was no longer existing!).
You're right that Esther Williams, like Doris Day, represents to me a wholesome, healthy American woman of that "golden cinema" age. Although I look quite different from them, being Chinese-Taiwanese, the good values and sometimes cheeky qualities they exhibited helped inspire me to be a strong, independent, and yet still feminine person. In that way, Esther Williams was a sort of role model for me. Plus, like her, I enjoy performance - but not in the water!
I'd also like to add that it saddened me to learn that Esther Williams was so unhappy later in life, but her legacy lives on and she brightens the lives of many, including mine.
This makes me think; let us cherish every day, no matter how trying. Our lives are worth living well, now, with the people we care about! The legacy we leave behind is how we made others around us feel. That is very important to me and I believe it's worth working hard for.
Thank you for the reminder, via a reminiscing look at Esther Williams.
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