In case you don't recognize his name, you probably know him as Jimmy Stewart, the actor. You know him from Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, The Philadelphia Story and It's a Wonderful Life. I know him from Harvey. And I mean that I actually know him. I met him. I didn't actually talk to him. One person in our group of four was our designated spokesperson. The rest of us just took in the moment.
Because of the losses he caused or incurred during World War II, it was said of him that he became "flak happy." We now know this as PTSD. Stewart wrestled with guilt and remorse for the rest of his life for the killing of civilians in France and Germany and the loss of members of his own squadron, In one case because of a gross miscalculation, he bombed the wrong city. The military may have called it "callateral damage", but he called it an unthinkable tragedy.
After the war when he returned to Hollywood, Jimmy Stewart poured his pain into his various roles. One role in particular, that of George Bailey in It's A Wonderful Life, allowed him to express his deep loss and grief. It's no wonder that this film has become the icon that it is in Hollywood and around the world. For Stewart, it wasn't just a perfect role; it was autobiography.
In June of 1975 I was on a two week choir trip. England was our fifth country to visit in ten days. We had been sight-seeing all day. I was exhausted, a little depressed and just wanted to be left alone for a while. I settled down in my hotel room to read a novel I had bought that day. There was a knock on the door and when I opened it Ben was standing there. He said, "You need to get up and get dressed. You have a date tonight." "What do you mean, a date?" He said "Susan is going with me and Elaine is going with you." I said, "I don't know where you're going, but I have plans to stay here." He said, "Get up and get dressed. We're leaving in an hour."
Somewhere along the way I learned that we were taking the Tube into London to see a play. "David, it's not just 'a play'. It's Harvey. And it's starring Jimmy Stewart." No offense to my very sweet and cute double date, but for the first time that evening I was perking up a bit.
Whenever he introduced himself in the play he said, "Dowd's the name. Elwood P."
Elwood P. Dowd was an "affable man". He never met a stranger and he always introduced those strangers to his best friend Harvey, an invisible rabbit. Harvey stood six feet, three inches tall, interestingly enough the same height as Jimmy Stewart. Harvey went everywhere Elwood went, but he especially liked taking Harvey with him to bars. His favorite bar was Charlie's Place and he and Harvey went there quite often.. His family tried to get him committed, but his invisible friend had a strange effect on people. It was almost as if Harvey was real.
The American playwright Mary Chase wrote Harvey. It premiered on Broadway on November 11, 1944. Jimmy Stewart was still fighting in Europe, but before its run of 1775 shows was over, Jimmy Stewart starred as Elwood P. Dowd. Stewart was thirty-nine years old.
Jimmy Stewart was sixty-seven years old during London's West End revival in 1975. There Harvey was performed for just a few months at the Prince of Wales Theatre. Stewart again played the role of Elwood P. Dowd. And thanks to Ben, I was there.
This afternoon I was thinking about "Charlie's Place." And how we all need a "Charlie's Place." It might be a bar, a church, a coffee shop or the back porch of a friend. It can be any place where we feel expected, accepted and loved. And I was thinking of how much Elwood loved that place and no matter who he met or what they might be dealing with, he said, "Let's just go down to Charlie's Place." And I was thinking "I hope that Jimmy Stewart had a 'Charlie's Place.' " If there really is a Heaven, maybe for all of us it's "Charlie's Place." And there we'll spend eternity with our friends and invisible friends who are no longer invisible. On tap is friendship, peace of mind and great laughter.
As we were leaving the theatre that night, it occurred to somebody for us wait in the alley for Jimmy Stewart to come out to his limo. Amazingly enough, it didn't occur to anyone else. Besides the driver, we were the only souls in the alley. After about ten minutes the stage door opened and a lumbering giant emerged. He smiled and greeted us and on cue Elaine, a charming southern lady with a charming southern accent, said "Mistuh Stu-wart, may I kiss you?" He said as he bent down to meet her, "Sure honey" as she kissed him on the cheek.
The book I had bought to read was The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens. You know, light reading for the depressed. I had wanted to read something British. I eventually got around to reading it. But isn't it an irony that instead of reading an unfinished book by a British author, I instead, in London, England, saw a play by an American icon.
I love going out on the town from time to time. You never know who you're going to meet. But tonight I'm home with my wife, and I couldn't be happier. As it turns out, Charlie's Place isn't really a place. It's a state of mind.
No comments:
Post a Comment