Any comment on the Tarzan films for which she became famous? "I made five. They have been remembered. I'm glad to be remembered for something. Let's leave it at that."
These days, while Maureen is waiting to hear about her autobiography, she is working on some short stories. Two have appeared in the Ladies' Home Journal. "I have no special goals," she says. "One thing leads to another. Supposing my theatrical career came to an end, I'd like to open an antique shop in Vermont, and write, and paint — I always have — and sew. If you can do one art, you can do them all. It's different ways of saying the same thing.
"I'm a special type of grandmother. At the theatre, I like to take the children backstage. And in New York, I take them in a horse and buggy around the park, or for tea at the Plaza. In that way, I can bring color into their lives."
Maureen has been a Westsider for the past 15 years. "I'm very fond of
Mal the Tailor, on 72nd near Columbus. And Mr. Walsh the florist.
O'Neal's Balloon. The Pioneer Market. They're all on 72nd Street. That's
my beat."
She walks toward the window. "I love this view. The park is different every time of the year. Now it's all covered with snow. Pretty soon the buds will be all over the trees." She smiles contentedly. "I really think that if I had to leave the West Side I'd leave New York. Because to me, this is New York."
Hannah and Her Sisters.
********
WESTSIDER BETSY PALMER
Star of Same Time, Next Year
4-1-78
"Oh, do you take shorthand?" said Betsy Palmer as we sat down in her dressing room to chat between shows. "I could always read and write shorthand. I worked for the B & O Railroad as a stenographer before I went away to school and learned acting. I guess if I had to, I could brush up and go back to it."