Hi there. My name is Brad, I'm 31, an actor and
live in Sydney Australia. I joined the Fay Wray list
a couple of months ago and wasn't really sure what was
supposed to be happening so it has been nice to see
the recent communications. Thought I'd share some of
my Fay stories.
I first discovered Miss Wray when I was 12 in a book
titled "The King Kong Story" in the school library.
Thus began my fascination with King Kong, Fay Wray and
movies in general and I suppose the fact that I've
been an actor for the past 13 years might be related
too. I quickly began amassing as much information as
I could about the original Super Simian and his
luscious lady which in my home town of Perth in
Western Australia in the pre-video, pre-internet early
eighties was a more difficult task than one might
imagine. It was almost a year before I even got to
see the film when it was screened as part of a five
day film festival; It had one scheduled screening in
the late morning on a Monday, which was a school day.
During my entire school career I was only granted one
half day away from school for non-sickness or
non-educational purposes by my parents and that was
it. Mind you, they were intelligent enough to know
the futility of trying to deny me on THAT subject.
And so I saw Fay quivering like a very loud delicate
white petal for the first time in glorious Black &
White on the big screen and I don't think I've loved
another girl since. There just aren't any girls like
Fay anymore are there? Or was she really only ever a
gossamer creation of spun light sent to tease our
masculine need to protect and embrace?
As an infatuated schoolboy I managed to procure her
addres from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences in L.A. and sent her a couple of birthday
cards. My hope was that I might get an autographed
photo in return but alas, I never received a reply. I
was a little hurt at the time but it didn't require
much hindsight to realise that I hadn't actually ASKED
for a photo, that sending birthday cards probably
wasn't a tactful method of introduction and that the
lady would still receive a decent amount of fan mail
and silly schoolboys would be low on her list of
priorities.
Years passed, my passion for classic movies grew, my
acting career started, and stopped, and started and
stopped etc. and I continued my Kong and Fay research.
In the early nineties just before I moved to Sydney,
I read an article in "Architectural Digest" magazine
about Miss Wray's home on Selma Ave. in the 1930's.
The article mentioned her autobiography,
"On The Other Hand" and, unable to obtain a copy in
Perth, I wrote again to Miss Wray (who had moved)
asking for the name of the publisher. I also enclosed
a photo of her I had acquired and some remuneration
and asked if she would be so kind as to sign it for
me. A short while later, the photo returned
personally autographed to me accompanied by a copy of
her book likewise signed! Opening those twin packages
that day with trembling hands remains etched forever
in my memory.
Since my arrival in Sydney my career has started
again, stopped again etc. and I have found the
INTERNET and other like-minded film buffs. My life
has expanded in ways I would never have dreamed
possible in Perth and my Fay Wray photo is still one
of my most closely held treasures.
When I was in Hollywood briefly a couple of years
ago, a memorabillia store owner told me how Miss Wray
had stayed several hours instead of the allocated one
at a signing for her autobiography at his store and
that the line of fans had stretched round the block.
What an amazing lady! No wonder we all love her. I
hope she does write another book. Go Fay!



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