Did you ever notice that some people just got it? What the heck are they doing to get it?
Ava Gardner had the spark, the charisma...and some to spare. She carried that wither her into her old age, but what about what she had a stroke?
Before we detail Ava's fierceness, let me ask you: Have you ever felt that spark simmering inside you? How has you used it in your life? Or have you not?
What went down:
When writer Peter Evans met the infamous Ava Gardner she was still greatly affected by the stroke she had a few years prior. That event left Ava with the left side of her face immobilized and much the left side of her body the same. She was renowned for her beauty and simmering sensuality, but her lost mobility caused her to be insecure about her looks.
The agent and publisher -- Ed Victor and Dick Synder -- considering her tell-all book called on Ava one evening at her London apartment. Ava was insecure about what they would think of her depleted stature.
So in preparation for their visit she rang Jack Cardiff, the best cinematographer she worked with who also happened to live in London. With incredible precision, Jack rearranged the lights in the apartment to hide her left side in shadow. She sat in the specially-lit chair and moved her face around, feeling the depth and intensity of the light when her face was held in certain angles.
The lighting, her outfit, and the apartment setting were all a backdrop for what came next. The publishers entered the room and suddenly Ava was AVA. The spark she withheld out of fear came bursting out. Now Ed and Dick had met famous actresses before. And actors, and celebrities and notable people of all stripes. Ava was once famous and stood before them as the star she once was. Were they actually impressed?
That would be an understatement.
Ed and Dick swooned. As Ava told stories and cracked jokes, all the while exuded her personal light, they were spellbound by her energy, her intensity, and her sensuality.
Did I mention that was also over 60?
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