Randy Lakeman, UCLA Assoc. Dean of Development

Randy Lakeman remembers with fondness a meeting with Katharine Hepburn.

Lakeman who resides in Los Angeles, California, is in the Anderson School of Management  at UCLA and is Dep. Dir. of Development.

Years back, Lakeman wrote to Katharine Hepburn to see if she would allow him to interview her for a book he was doing at the time on actress Irene Dunne. Though Hepburn did not know Dunne , Lakeman wanted to talk to Hepburn about the Golden Age of Hollywood upon which Hepburn was an expert.

Hepburn wrote to him on one of her famous stationary sheets which had her name at the time in red. Lakeman has the letter framed in his home.

Lakeman remembers she turned him down in that note, but he inquired again and this time was successful in getting that Hepburn interview.

A phone call was made to him by Hepburn’s secretary, Phyillis Wilbourn. She told him to come on a set afternoon. She told him he would have one hour to talk with Ms. Hepburn, he must stay on message and no pictures would be allowed.

Lakeman told me he traveled to her home in Turtle Bay, New York and knocked on the door where he was met by Hepburn’s secretary, Ms. Wilbourn. Wilbourn led him to a room in which Hepburn was sitting and the interview commenced. There was a fire going in the fireplace as was commonplace with Hepburn.

He remembers being very nervous at the time and said when Hepburn began to speak in that oh so familiar voice he was awestruck. He remarked about the command she had in that room.

Lakeman says he doesn’t believe the interview even lasted one hour. Phyllis came into the room with that roaring fire and that signaled that the interview was indeed over and was led to the door.

It’s a vivid memory for Lakeman that he will never forget.

Thanks for sharing your memories Randy!

See you at “The Kate!”
Ann Nyberg, Trustee, KHCAC

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 7th, 2009 at 2:19 am and is filed under Katharine Hepburn. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.