From the time I was tiny, I knew I wanted to be an actress. I was very serious about it - never wanted to do anything else and never thought that I would be particularly capable of doing anything else. So it was fortunate that I had a dream that I imagined I might be able to realize.

My childhood was spent in the woods with neighborhood children who have remained lifelong chums. We made up stories that involved obstacles, conflicts and challenges to overcome, until eventually, our mothers would call us home to dinner.

I was able to take creative dramatic classes with a beloved teacher in our hometown named Ruby Krider for whom Krider Performing Arts Center in Paris was named. But it was entering Henry County High School and Linda Wilson Miller’s classes that best prepared me for my life in theater, television and film.

Linda was a teacher with extraordinary commitment to her students; she understood the power of community that theatre offers young people. For those three years at Henry County High School, the speech team members were together at school or on trips about ten hours a day. What seemed like most every weekend of the school year, we were at speech tournaments or performing plays in the Little Theatre, now the Linda Wilson Miller Theatre.

Being that focused and concentrated at that age was the best preparation I had for working in a professional theatre. It was like we were our own repertory theatre company. We knew each other, trusted each other, adored working with each other and with Mrs. Wilson’s confidence in us, felt that we could tackle almost any play.

The thing that gave me the brightest hope that I could get into a college that would prepare me for the professional theatre was my fairly consistent speech contest wins. I realized that I possessed some sort of ability or presence or work ethic or a combination of the three. That gave me the confidence that I had as much of a shot as anyone else to become an actor. I was getting pats on the back for my dream, and when you’re that age, or any age, that means a great deal. It means you’re connecting with people and affecting them.

When I was 16, I had the opportunity to see Colleen Dewhurst in Moon for the Misbegotten. she was this tall, big boned woman with a huge smile and a deep laugh. She didn’t look like any movie or TV star I’d ever seen, but her presence was magnificent, and her strength bowled me over. She had such power and she owned that part. And that introduced me to what was possible as an actress. You didn’t always have to fit into someone else’s mold of what an actor is allowed to do or be.

In 1974, I found myself at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA surrounded by college freshmen, many of whom could quote Shakespeare and speak perfect French. They were all very cosmopolitan to this little Tennessee girl, but because we all had a passion for the same thing, our commitment and ability leveled the playing field.

More than 40 years later, I still look forward to coming home for Fish Fry, Christmas and other events, but I when it’s time to get back to work, I can’t wait to hit the boards or be with a film crew on a set working with delightful people to create what is sometimes just pure entertainment and other times work that has more depth and meaning. I’ve always thought that the best of drama reminds us that we are not alone as human beings.

Henry County High School

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