burgess-meredith:Precious photo and telegram sent to Burgess from wife, Paulette Goddard during WWII
burgess-meredith:Precious photo and telegram sent to Burgess from wife, Paulette Goddard during WWII + a bit of insight.As many know, Burgess and Paulette met during the filming of SECOND CHORUS (1940). At the time, Paulette was legally separated, but not yet divorced from her second husband, Charlie Chaplin. Burgess and Paulette had a brief affair during filming and then an on-again-off-again relationship for several years during which Paulette’s name was romantically linked with numerous other men. However, Burgess and Paulette corresponded frequently throughout World War II, and when Burgess returned from Europe in 1944, Paulette surprised him by letting him know she was ready to “settle down.“ What excites me about sharing this telegram with you guys is how much insight it gives into their relationship at the time. Burgess’ nickname for Paulette was “Pete” because around the house she always jokingly sang the hit song “Pig Foot Pete” (from the 1941 Abbott & Costello comedy “Keep ‘Em Flying”). It would always crack Burgess up and so the nickname Pete stuck. Paulette’s nickname for Burgess was Oliver, which was his real first name. “Burgess” was his middle name and mother’s maiden name. He took the name Burgess as his stage name - which was his way of paying tribute to his mother. There is something I would really like to stress about Paulette and Burgess’ marriage and that was that during the good years, they really were best friends who kept each other laughing. Their humor, wit and ability to tease each other was their connection. In that sense, they were absolute soulmates. As a general rule, Burgess really gravitated towards people with a great sense of humor. Charles Laughton, Zero Mostel, Carroll O'Connor, Jimmy Stewart, Ray Bradbury, Ginger Rogers, Orson Welles, Rod Serling (and many more): all very close friends who were known to have adorable personalities. When Paulette suffered a miscarriage and, as many do not know, was extremely close to losing her own life - it took a very hard toll on their marriage. That enormous devastation, imposed on both Paulette and my grandfather, is impossible for me to put into words. Their marriage never recovered. I believe this photo, which is undated, was taken during the recording of Old Gold Comedy’s radio version of the Paramount picture Standing Room Only - March 1945. -- source link
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