Happy Birthday Warren Beatty!

Mar. 30, 2011

Dear Warren Beatty,

Today I’m wishing you a Happy Birthday and hoping you recollect the time we saw each other at the Getty Villa. What? You don’t remember? We bumped into each other. Our arms even touched! You still don’t remember? Well, let me refresh your memory.

The year was 1990 and I was at the Getty Villa in Malibu as a chaperone for a youth group from my church. I had my two daughters with me. I was pushing Stacy, 3, in a stroller. Julie was 6 and she was under explicit instructions to not touch anything and hang onto the stroller. We had just entered an elevator, when two older women came in. They were smiling and seemed to be excited about something.

They turned to me and asked: “Do you know who Warren Beatty is?”

I said: “Yes, of course!”

They said, “Well, he’s here today! We just saw him!”

I asked: “Where?”

They answered: “He’s walking around with a short blonde woman. He’s wearing a light colored suit. You can’t miss him!”

Well, forget all the priceless artifacts and exhibits! Forget all the beautiful gardens and architecture of the Getty Villa! This took priority over all that. Oh, was I supposed to be chaperoning the youth, too? But it was YOU, Warren Beatty! We were on the hunt!

I told Julie: “Don’t let go of this stroller! We’re looking for a movie star!”

There I was running all around the museum with my daughters, pushing the stroller through the crowds, looking for the movie star in the light colored suit with a short blonde woman. We looked everywhere.

After a while, one of the young men in our group ran up to me, excited and out of breath.

He said: "Mrs Love, Mrs Love! Madonna’s in that room over there. Go see!"

What?!! YOU and Madonna, in the same place, at the same time?  I told the girls this was our lucky day! I asked the young man to point her out to me.

He said: "She's in that exhibit room with some old guy. You can't miss her!"

We were on the hunt once again! I went into the exhibit room and there she was! The Material Girl, herself!

She was with a tall gentleman looking at a painting. I pushed our stroller right up next to them. I bumped into the gentleman and he said: "Oh excuse me." I wanted to tell him, 'get out of my way, there's Madonna!'...but I didn't. I remained polite and said, "Oh, I'm sorry."

Madonna was many years younger than you see her today. And I didn't think she was as beautiful as I’d seen her on MTV. (Oh, the magic of television!) Well, I got a good look at her and then remembered I was still on the hunt for YOU. We were off!

I ran around the entire museum and then finally walking right towards me—THERE YOU WERE!--in a light colored suit, with a short blonde woman! Wait a minute! Who was the short blonde woman? It was Madonna!

You two were together in that exhibit room where I had seen Madonna earlier!  She was the short blonde woman?  And YOU were that gentleman I bumped into--who said "Excuse me!"  You were together???

I found out later you were working on the film “Dick Tracy” together and had a brief relationship.

It was funny to me that the old ladies in the elevator only saw YOU, Warren Beatty with some short blonde woman. The young man only saw Madonna with some old guy! Luckily, I saw you both!

What Warren? You still don’t remember this event? It’s been etched in my mind all these years! I continue to be your devoted fan. (when it’s your wife’s birthday, I’ll remind her of when SHE and I ran into each other in 2003...another story for another day!)

Happy 74^th Birthday!

Regards, Mrs Love