Dorothy Loudon

[missthemountains]

I know there's been a lot of threads about her, but I noticed not a lot has been written about her as a person. Did anyone here ever work with her? I've heard people on both ends of the isle claim that she either definitely was, or definitely wasn't, an alcoholic. Regardless--she was a true talent and was one hell of a performer. 

[morosco]

Bob Avian discusses working with her in his new book "Dancing Man". A couple of quotes from when they worked together on BALLROOM...

"She was...a prickly woman, and we had to maneuver our way around her - if she had had a couple of drinks, you wanted to get out of her way."

"Dorothy and Vinnie (Gardenia) possessed great strengths, but she was very quirky and moody."

No matter what, like you said missthemountains, she was a true talent and one hell of a performer.

[Charley Kringas Inc]

I don't recall where I read it, but there was an anecdote from one of the cast members about working on Lolita, My Love that said that Dorothy Loudon would get drunk after a performance and enter one of "her black moods", demanding to know "what this rotten show is about" or something like that.

[Dollypop]

Several summers ago one of Louden's friends was working out here at the Gateway Playhouse and she was a regular visitor. She and her friend would head into town for supper at any one of the local restaurants and the more she drank the louder she got. The waiters dreaded when "Dot" walked through the door.

[DAME]

My friend Peter worked with her on Ballroom.  He always has stories about her.  Apparently she was not a good drunk.   But a true professional and it never affected her work.   She was a formidable talent.

[bk]

Well, gee, I guess I'll chime in, since I DID work with her on three different occasions.  She was suffering health-wise on all three occasions, but on the first of our recording sessions for the studio cast album of Night of the Hunter, we had the best time and I got her through it and she trusted me completely and once she heard the finished album she was thrilled.  We dined several times after the sessions and I never once saw her take a drink of anything other than soda and water.  The second recording was even more fun - only one song - she was struggling again with her health and vocally (those struggles eventually did her in), but we just did it and she was grand.  Same with the third recording.  Again, we dined after each session or we'd just meet when I was in town and I just loved everything about her.  I have no idea if she was a mean drunk or a drunk at all because I never saw that part of her.  She was meant to do one more recording for me, but called me a week before the session and said she just was so sick she couldn't do it.  She passed away a week later.

She was something special - very, very special.  Warm, affectionate, very funny, and I loved her dearly.  Then again, I also loved Lauren Bacall and Elaine Stritch, both of whom I'd been warned about and both of whom were just the best to work with without any issues at all.

[Dollypop]

On a positive note, I took a group of students to see her in NOISES OFF! and she met them afterwards. She couldn't have been more gracious.

[morosco]

Dorothy was sublime in NOISES OFF wasn't she? Such a perfect production with a perfect cast. That was almost 40 years ago and my sides are still a little sore from laughing so hard.