Accompanied by her grandson, Conor FitzSimons, and looking incredibly beautiful in a fuchsia-colored blouse and black slacks, Maureen O'Hara made a public appearance at Boise's Egyptian Theatre this past Saturday, in order to introduce The Quiet Man---one of six of her films being shown at the historic theatre in celebration of the lovely lady's 93rd birthday. Because Miss O'Hara is in a wheelchair, she didn't ascend to the stage to address the audience but, instead, spoke to them from the front left-center floor area. I was sitting just to the right of center in the floor's middle section, meaning that I was about 10 rows back from her and about 8 people in. However, with the large crowd all clamoring for photos and my extremely sub-par photography skills, I might as well have been on the moon, for I was unable to get a decent picture. While I did get a few shots, they are all so horribly blurry that I am embarrassed to post them. Suffice to say (and you will have to take my word for it) that the lovely Irish lass is still exceedingly elegant and beautiful.
Speaking for about three minutes---in a voice as strong and vibrant as ever---Maureen introduced The Quiet Man as her "favorite movie," quipping that she "even got paid for it." Lovingly referring to director John Ford as "the old divil himself," she stressed what a terrific opportunity it was to have worked under him. (Yes, in Miss O'Hara's delightful Irish brogue, the word "devil" became "divil".) Smiling all the while and introducing the audience to her doting grandson, Miss O'Hara worked her charm on the 700+ crowd. We were brought to our feet twice, and before she departed the room, the audience serenaded her with "happy birthday."
The real downside to a live event like this, of course, is that there is no opportunity to hit the rewind button. If you miss something (because you're fussing with your camera or just because you're overwhelmed with the experience), you miss it forever. There's no rewind with live---so I can't remember much more than those few snippets of her address. I was so enthralled with the whole experience (really, a "once in a lifetime" thing for me) that I was in a bit of a daze. I felt somewhat felt like I was dreaming, or that I was looking in from somewhere outside myself. At any rate, because of my "overwhelmed" status, much of Maureen's introduction went by in a bit of a blur (like my photographs).
The Quiet Man was the only film being introduced by Maureen O'Hara herself, so naturally, it was the star attraction. According to the Egyptian's website, the theatre seats 745 people, and since I saw very few empty seats, my guess is that there were almost that many in attendance. Disappointingly, though, the other films (at least the two I saw) were shown to audiences of less than 50. Of course, since How Green Was My Valley was showing at the same time as the benefit dinner was taking place, that may have affected its attendance; after all, we humans still haven't learned how to be in two places at the same time! The evening showings (The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Only the Lonely) may have seen attendance on the rise---I hope so, as I don't like the idea of Miss O'Hara's new city of residence giving her anything less than a wholehearted reception.
Y'all are no doubt wondering what I thought of the three films I saw? Well, by the time my 6+ hours of viewing were finished, I had made another 5-star film discovery for the year; been powerfully and deeply moved by and moved to 5-star, "love it" status, a film which I didn't care for and gave 2 stars upon my first viewing; and made it through (and enjoyed) a film I had previously turned off in boredom after only 20 minutes. That makes two 5's and one 3 for me this weekend---and I call that highly successful movie viewing. Over the next few days, I'll be sharing my thoughts about each of those films. First up will be the star of the day---The Quiet Man, now my newest 5-star film discovery of the year.
NOTE: You can see photos of the event at the official Maureen O'Hara Magazine Facebook page. (HERE)