Jayne Meadows

I must admit I watched this interview to hear about what she had to say about her sister Audrey and I sense that she was a bit jealous of her younger sister who did less work than she did but got really lucky with one of the best shows in history and is ultimately the more remembered of the two. On another note it is nice to hear about a successful show biz marriage when there seemed to be so few and she had some cute stories.

Thanks for letting be be your office boy from the Burbank office. I remember sitting along side you in my Datsun pick up truck coming back from the docks of San Pedro trying to deliver a Chinese vase to your door and you ask me to turn on the air conditioner. To which I replied, "Just roll down the window Jane". My car had no air conditioning. We both laughed and then sighed.

Lovely woman...just died today. Rest in Peace dear heart.

Lovely woman...just died today. Rest in Peace dear heart.

The description of her early life in China and growing up there and US, the stories about her whole family were the most delightful I have heard! I hope she is back with her whole family in Heaven! Wish I could have met her!

Mrs Allen was very expressive and complimentary about her parents, brothers, and husband, but wasn't very generous about her sister. I may be wrong, but I sensed there must have been some rivalry between them. Since Audrey was no longer with us, would have been nice if Mrs Allen did a bit more to add to he sister's memory as a sister, a person, and actress. Otherwise I was thoroughly attentive and interested in every word Mrs Allen said. She was fascinating, especially when she spoke of her early years in China and moving to the USA. A great story teller for sure. I can see why she was so good on shows where her communication talents were used. With the only disappointment being her lack of generosity toward her sister, I came out of this interview liking Mrs Allen very much and I thank her for her time doing this for the Archive of American Television.

This is an absolutely marvelous peek into the world of television that I grew up in. Jayne so articulately describes everything that we would want to know about that era of television. Her story about suggesting the tune for Elvis' "Love Me Tender", and the fact that he actually used it, confirms the close knit community that television was at the time. The panel of "What's My Line?", which was more of an "adult show" when I grew up, which means "mom turned it on...", communicated in an intellectually elite style. You got the feeling that they were all close friends in New York, having cocktails in one of their penthouse apartments after the show. But, they still captured you, even though they were a little stuffy, they were still very likeable. I recall always liking Arlene Francis, she was so elegant, ladylike, and smart. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I will definitely recommend it to friends for their enjoyment. Jayne's comment about the cabbie who yelled, "Great show last night, Jaynie!", was so descriptive of how the general public felt about their stars. My dad was a lifelong Oakland cab driver and we once took a drive to Beverly Hills, where Lucille Ball was standing in her front yard. My dad yelled out, "Hey Lucy, where's Desi...?"! She actually yelled back at him, although we in the back seat were totally mortified. Thanks, Jaynie!!

Jayne Meadows....thank you so much for this wonderful visit! You not only enlightened me to the what the early years in television were like, but you gave me a first row seat to your very own story and your wonderful success. Thank you for allowing me into a small part of Audrey's career and sharing your most intimate thoughts about her. Thank you for including Steve as well....your honesty and love for him was quite evident. Allow me to also say, he was a very lucky man to have you in his life. Well spoken, full of good humor, full of spark and simply delightful in every way....Mrs Allen you're quite a lady. It's been an honor :) Jeramy , Cape Cod, Massachusetts Jsinopoli@live.com