Then Again - Diane Keaton [29]
The enclosed two photographs necessarily represent only a small segment of my scope of work. While I am flexible on subject matter, my emphasis on the natural persists in all my work.
I would like to accept a freelance assignment for XXXX magazine and can promise photographic excellence, not only as a photographer but also as an artist. If you are interested in seeing more of my work, please contact me. I will be happy to submit additional material on request and discuss a possible assignment for XXXX magazine.
I am looking forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,
Dorothy Hall
With the letter, she included a publicity shot of the actress Diane Keaton.
November 6, 1969
I won first prize at the Orange County Fair last night for the giant collage I made with photographs of Robin and Dorrie. It was one of those thrilling experiences that give me hope. Today my new business cards arrived. I’m ready to go.
I got a letter from Diane about her appearance on Merv Griffin last week. She needs more confidence. “By the way, I saw my spot on Merv Griffin. It was horrible. I wonder why I do these things. It’s so painful to watch myself trying too hard. I didn’t get Butterflies Are Free either. Too tall and too ‘kooky’—a nice way of saying strange.”
Diane Minus-the-Hall Keaton
DIANE KEATON, Mom’s massive extravaganza documenting my career from 1969 through 1984, is about as hard to grasp as Dad’s belief in the healing powers of PACE. The cover, wrapped in shiny silver paper with giant black letters, spelled out my new minus-Hall name. The size alone (twenty by thirty inches) presents the kind of deliberation DIANE KEATON doesn’t merit.
Kicking it off are two ticket stubs from Play It Again, Sam, glued next to a funny-looking caricature of Woody, next to a yellow Sardi’s napkin, below several photographs of me with fellow cast members smiling in anticipation of good reviews. Then comes the four-page spread in Harper’s Bazaar that makes it crystal clear I was not the model I aspired to be. Sure, it was really “cool” to have Bill King (famous for all those jumping shots of supermodels like Lauren Hutton) take the pictures, but I look strange in midair, with my huge smile revealing the gold caps my Santa Ana dentist reassured me would last a lifetime. Headlines like DIANE’S STAR ON THE RISE or ACTRESS DIANE KEATON CAN’T BE PIGEONHOLED, with a handwritten note from Mom saying, “Barbara sent this from Cedar Rapids,” seem sort of forced. First of all, who was Barbara from Cedar Rapids? And second, who cares? The awful review of my performance at the Ice House back in 1975 is a pathetic reminder of my stint as a nightclub singer. “She may be an adequate actress, but Diane Keaton is not a singer. Her musical selections are unvaried. Miss Keaton doesn’t communicate with her audience. She uses oddly restricted facial expressions and poorly planned body gestures.”
The headline from Orange County People stated, JACK HALL WAS RIGHT. HIS DAUGHTER DID GROW UP TO BE A MOVIE STAR.
Jack Hall’s friends used to laugh when he said his little girl Diane would grow up to be a movie star. No one’s laughing now. Not at all shy when it comes to praising their talented daughter, Jack and his wife Muriel will proudly tell anyone, “That’s our daughter.” Although they won’t take any credit for Diane’s talent (“She did it on her own”), it’s entirely possible she inherited some of the moxie it takes to be a star from Muriel, who went back to college at 40 after raising four children and earned her degree with honors. Muriel has photographed a book jacket and an album cover for Woody Allen.
Muriel? Please. It’s almost as if Mother closed her discerning eyes and went for bulk; even the loss of her first name didn’t stop her from including the article. Why? To be reminded she had no identity other than as Jack Hall’s wife and Diane Keaton’s mother?
DIANE KEATON ends abruptly, with a two-page ad from the Los Angeles