#336 Roots, Resilience, and Reunion: The Remarkable Journey of Lynne Moody

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Jeff Dwoskin 0:28

all right, Marcia, thank you so much for that amazing introduction. You get the show going each and every week, and this week was no exception. Welcome everybody to episode 336 of classic conversations. As always, I am your host. Jeff Dwoskin, great to have you back for what's sure to be a classic conversation for the ages. My guest today is none other than Lynn moody. Lynn is renowned for her work in the groundbreaking miniseries Roots, the TV show, that's my mama, the classic sitcom soap and so much more. And we're diving in in just a few seconds. And in these few seconds, head back to the bat cave with me. Joel Eisner was here last week. We dove into his Batman 66 TV book, the official Batman bat book. If you love Batman 66 that is the episode for you. But right now we're talking with Lynn moody. Lynn has a personal story that you are not gonna believe. We're diving into soap. That's my mama. Her connection to the Jeffersons, very interesting. Ah, so much. All right, let's get to it right now. All right, everyone. I'm excited to introduce my next guest loved her, and that's my mama, roots, not landing soap and so much more. Welcome to the show the legendary Lynn moody, hey,

Lynne Moody 1:53

thank you so much. I'm very happy to be here. You can see me. All right, I

Jeff Dwoskin 1:56

can see you. You look great.

Lynne Moody 2:00

Okay, not good.

Jeff Dwoskin 2:03

I was born in Detroit. Also, I saw you were born in Detroit. You weren't raised in Detroit.

Lynne Moody 2:07

No, no, I left when I was, uh, you know, two or three, all right. Well,

Jeff Dwoskin 2:11

you still got it, though it's always, you know, we're Michigan. We claim you. So we we're all Michiganders. All the great ones come from Michigan.

Lynne Moody 2:20

Well, I like that. I'll go along with that.

Jeff Dwoskin 2:24

I'm excited just to dive into everything that you've done. But I When did you know you wanted to be an actress or an entertainer?

Lynne Moody 2:34

When I was a little girl, I always, for some reason, I don't know how I got that in my head, but I always wanted to perform. I would beg my mother to let me be on stage when we were at certain concerts. And I just really, really liked to perform. And I had a teacher, Mr. Clark, who really put the bug in me, and he encouraged me, because he would have us do skits all the time in class. So very early on, I wanted to perform, and I think my parents felt the best way to discourage me would be not to encourage me or discourage me, but just act like it isn't even in my mind, but they were proud at the end. So

Jeff Dwoskin 3:19

your your passion one through so did you, were you and then did you start out in plays, or in in high school and college? Or, Yes,

Lynne Moody 3:29

actually, in, in high school, in junior high, we moved to Evanston. I did some plays there and junior high, and I just loved it. It was a different time then, because there wasn't a lot there for me as an African American, it was all pretty, you know, much Caucasian, but I did have a couple of parts, playing slave girl tad Lincoln in the White House that was in junior high, and I played the little slave girl Cerebella. But then people teased me about it, but then so many years later, I would be playing a slave in roots to a much different reaction. You know, everyone then was like, roots, yes, because it was the first time that Roots was told from the slave's point of view. So that's what made it stand out in the beginning. For me, Alex Haley, that wonderful man, 12 years researching and writing that book, there was just so much love involved and respect and appreciation, because this project, which was a mini series and had so many wonderful people involved in it, Stan Margulies, who was the producer, and David Wolper, who was the executive producer. And there was such love. I can't talk about Stan Margulies. What enough. We call him the heart and soul man Baruch, because he cared so deeply. And. And sorry about that. That was a surprise, but yeah, so it was very, very, very special, and everyone knew it. And then when they did Roots The Next Generations, they had a bigger budget so they could get other people that weren't in the original such as James Earl Jones. But there's a lot of pride and love from roots.

Jeff Dwoskin 5:22

Well, when you look back at the original roots, though, I mean, Lewis Gosset Jr, Ben Vereen Amos, you know there was, there's a bit for no budget. They Yes,

Lynne Moody 5:35

because of the love, because of the story, because of Alex Haley spending 12 years and writing that book. And Lou Gossett. Lou Gossett, what a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful human being as fiddler and who passed, yet, as you know, recently, a giant and Ben as chicken, George Ben Vereen, wonderful. So everything was about in routes. One, everything was about doing it, for the love of the work, of the show, for the project, for everyone involved,

Jeff Dwoskin 6:07

amazing. And it's, it's still revered to this day. Yeah,

Lynne Moody 6:11

I think it still has a lot of respect because of what it did at the time. I guess it's a little dated in certain areas, of course, but nevertheless, you know, it's still there.

Jeff Dwoskin 6:23

Well, anytime you can make something you know, anything in the 70s, or anything you know when to go decades later, anything, when you look back, it can, but it's, you know, if the majority of it can hold up, you know, it's, it's, yeah, it's a real test. It

Lynne Moody 6:36

was because of the ratings as well. You know, the ratings were off the charts. And it was because there was a storm in the in the Midwest, in the East Coast, I believe, at the time, that made everyone stay home and watch rooms. So we got a little help from Mother Nature in that department.

Jeff Dwoskin 6:56

Hey, whatever it takes, right? Divine intervention. Make sure everyone, everyone gets here. Yeah, there was, who else was that? I mean, Ed as I'm just looking at the IMDB real quick. Ed Asner, Boyd bridge, wonderful,

Lynne Moody 7:06

wonderful man. Ed Asner, wonderful human being that liked him so much.

Jeff Dwoskin 7:11

He was really cool. I got to talk to him just before he passed away on the podcast. Yeah, he was a good guy,

Lynne Moody 7:19

good guy. And did a lot for us with the union too, with our health benefits. He helped a lot with that before he died, still yet Asner, Ed Asner, so

Jeff Dwoskin 7:31

going back to your original role as slave girl one in the Play School, when you were just starting out, and everything was Caucasian, and there were very limited roles. What were the people that you would see in TV or movies that represented you, that you could, that they used as a as a role model, or kind of thought, Okay, this is possible.

Lynne Moody 7:55

Yes, I never. I, you know, people ask me that, and I really don't know what, what to say, how to answer it. I remember when I was in my first year at college Pasadena Playhouse, everyone was talking about their idols, and I didn't really have a reference. Ethel Waters was doing a play member of the wedding at Pasadena Playhouse, and so her name came out of my mouth when they said, Who do you admire? Both I said, Ethel Waters. Because, bless her heart, she was, she was a wonderful person. She was doing a play at Pasadena Playhouse. I was a student. Was having a conversation with some of the other students, and it was getting heated and whatnot. They were talking about morals and how if you want to be an actor, you have to lay aside your morals and do what they want you to do in the casting room. And I was so upset, and I was, you know, tears in my eyes, and I went to school back door, and Apple Waters was getting ready to go on stage. She was sitting on a chair, because this was at the Playhouse. She was sitting on a chair, I guess she was waiting for her cue, but she had some oxygen mask on her face. And I said, Miss waters, can I talk to you for a minute? And she said, No, honey, not right now. And I said, Can I ask you a question? She said, No, honey, not right now. So I went to the elevator, pressed it to go up to the classes, where, you know, above the theater. And then she said, Okay, honey, what is it? What is it that you wanted to ask me, and I just blurred it out. Do you have to lose your morals in order to make it? She said, No, you don't. Don't you dare. It's not worth it. I'm so glad she came back to me with that, and I'm so glad I had the nerve to even ask her. You know, it was this special moment between her getting ready to go on stage and me, a student.

Jeff Dwoskin 9:48

Good thing, she caught you before you got in the elevator. Who knows, you may have thrown your morals right out the door. Who knows, where would we be right now,

Lynne Moody 9:58

that's a funny thought. No, I wouldn't. I was just young and deaf for

Jeff Dwoskin 10:04

being actress. You worked at the Playboy Club. You were a Playboy bunny.

Lynne Moody 10:09

Oh yes, when I came to California, I needed a job at night so that my days could be free to audition and study and take classes and all of that. And I had been to the Playboy Club with some friends, and the manager said, I would hire you in a minute. And I thought, oh, no, no, no, no, I could never be a bunny. My parents would just, you know, disown me or something like that. And then I don't know, a few weeks later, a month later, you know, I'd had an agent and stuff like that, and I went back to the Playboy Club and audition, you know, an ass applied for the job, and so they gave it to me, and I did it for a while, and it was a really growing experience. I'm so not sorry. I'm glad that I was able to do that. It was

Jeff Dwoskin 10:51

fun. You get to the ears and, yeah, it's

Lynne Moody 10:55

the bunny tail and the cuffs and the little, you know, tie, bow tie.

Jeff Dwoskin 11:01

Did you meet Hugh Hefner? No,

Lynne Moody 11:04

because I was at the mansion a couple of times, so I saw him, but I never had a conversation with him or anything. He was always around doing his thing, you know, in his pajamas.

Jeff Dwoskin 11:15

That's a dream, right? Have a job where you can wear pajamas all the time, if

Lynne Moody 11:21

that's your thing. Like clothes myself, but

Jeff Dwoskin 11:28

All right, so many cool stories is like, kind of into your amazing career. Let's talk on the family Jefferson's for a second. You were the original Jenny Willis. Yes, it's interesting, because I don't know that I'd ever seen that episode. I've seen the Jeffersons, but, like, I don't think the episode of all in the family that you're in, but they had cast that entire ended up becoming that whole part of the family, but all different actors. So it's fun. It's like everyone got replaced. Did you know this was a backdoor pilot when you were doing it, and that there was a possibility, or, well, actually,

Lynne Moody 12:04

kind of, and no, because I got that to my mama, and Mike Evans had told me that, you know, you shouldn't, you should have stayed, we would have done this, or some, and I, you know, I wonder where the job was. I auditioned for that. To my mama. I got the part. I was happy that was that. And I think berlinda was lovely as the character in in the spin off, you know, the Jeffersons. And I actually, guessed it, did a couple of shows on the Jeffersons after about, I don't know, four or five years. This is a small town, isn't it?

Jeff Dwoskin 12:36

Well, it was just interesting watching the pilot. It's like, it was all the characters were there, the whole in the family episode, but none of the actors went so it's like, right? It was a little missing. It was like, it was like, Lynn, moody cast as the original. The headline makes it seem like they kicked you out. And I was just like, none of them. They didn't take any of the characters.

Lynne Moody 12:56

No, I was already, you know, contracted on. That's my mama. When that

Jeff Dwoskin 13:02

started, all right, so you couldn't have done it anyway.

Lynne Moody 13:05

I was on. That's my mama. So the timing was not there at all. And the only reason that I say that is because Mike Evans did say to me later on when I saw him somewhere, you could have done this if you hadn't done that. Got it. Everything works out for the best. Everything

Jeff Dwoskin 13:22

works out for the best Absolutely. So talk to me about that's my mama. That was my

Lynne Moody 13:27

first series. I had a really nice, close relationship with Mama, Theresa Merritt, she was wonderful, and Ted Lange and Theodore Wilson and Lyle Wilson, and, of course, Clifton, so many of them have passed, you know, but I did see a couple of reruns with the wonderful jester, Harrison and DeForest colvan. The two old gentlemen in the barbershop came from old Hollywood, because I've seen films that they that jester had done from the 40s. It's amazing how time flies. I mean, I know that's a saying, but it really does, because it just seems like last week, when you know we were doing that to my mama, but I look in the mirror I know wasn't last week, like last century.

Jeff Dwoskin 14:20

Yeah, I remember when I was talking to Ted Lange, and he was like, because this show got canceled and and ended, and then that's then he ended up on the Love Boat. And so, okay, so you did season one, but not Season Two

Lynne Moody 14:33

of of that to my mom, right, right.

Jeff Dwoskin 14:37

Were you trying to get back on the Jeffersons? No, he's gay. No,

Lynne Moody 14:39

no, my agent called me with the news, you're doing Las Vegas lady, you're not doing that to my mama. And I went, Okay, so Las Vegas lady was a movie with Stella Stevens and Stuart Whitman shot in Las Vegas. I did that. I still had a good relationship with. People on. That's my mama, particularly mama. I would even pick her up from work sometimes, after I finished my movie, everybody you know went on and did their thing. Clifton had two other shows after that, so I don't know what else to say about that. Well, how

Jeff Dwoskin 15:15

did they why did they let you go to do the movie if you were well,

Lynne Moody 15:19

they didn't contract me back on that's my mama. They said She's too pretty for the part. It doesn't work. That's ridiculous, but whatever, it's fine. Because of my immediately having another job and things working out, I got another job and series

Jeff Dwoskin 15:38

so well one season in I mean, the prettiness has left the the train, the train has left the station. It seems like that's that's horrible, that you were too pretty for the job. So they, they said, Goodbye. That's what

Lynne Moody 15:51

they said, that pretty girls can't be funny. I don't even know why I gave that life by repeating it, because that's what they said anyway. Excuse me, that was my dog barking.

Jeff Dwoskin 16:01

Oh, no worries. What kind of dog do you have? He's parked

Lynne Moody 16:05

Boston Terrier and the park Shih Tzu. He's a good little guy, but he's getting on my nerves right now because he's got too much to say. I have a little Maltese. Oh, you know what dog spelled backwards is, God yes. And they are so loving, aren't they? They just,

Jeff Dwoskin 16:21

there's nothing better than a dog. Love, love, love dogs. We had a cat also wasn't the same thing.

Lynne Moody 16:27

I'm a dog lady, for sure. Dog person, okay,

Jeff Dwoskin 16:31

so, so Las Vegas lady needs pretty lady, and so they scoop you away from that's my mama, where you were too pretty. Okay, so

Lynne Moody 16:41

they just said pretty girls can be funny. That's what the producers had said. But anyway, that's not true, right? Not true. So the bottom line is, they went another way.

Jeff Dwoskin 16:53

Okay, so I have Ben Vereen follow up 10 speed and brown shoe. Do you remember that one?

Lynne Moody 16:58

Yes, and Jeff Goldblum and Jeff Goldblum, yes, it was great.

Jeff Dwoskin 17:03

I remember that show because I used to watch it. But the thing that keeps it in the back of my mind, so when I saw it, I had to ask you about it, is when I we'd go to New York, and I saw Ben Vereen and Fossey, and we are the one. We're the type of people that we wait outside the door for people to come out. This was a long time ago, and so Ben Vereen just walks out and we're like, Hey Ben, and we take a picture with them. And a long time ago, long time ago. And my friend had always said, when you meet someone famous, bring up something unique, so that they'll want to talk to you. Don't bring up the obvious thing. So when I met him, and later, many years later, when I ran into Jeff Goldblum on the streets of New York. Also, this was the show that I brought up, like, Oh, I loved you in 10 speed and brown shoe. And it was always it was fun for me, because I'm like, Oh, I met both the entire main cast of 10 speed and brown shoe. I have photos with them. So it was just one of those things. So when I saw it on your thing, I was like, Oh, I gotta ask about that. Oh,

Lynne Moody 17:59

I'm sure Ben was tickled, because, you know, that's complimentary and sweet.

Jeff Dwoskin 18:06

Yeah, sticking with the Ben Vereen theme. I think I saw a picture of you on The Love Boat, which I love talking about trips on.

Lynne Moody 18:15

Oh yes,

Jeff Dwoskin 18:15

and Ben was on The Love Boat with you as well. I believe,

Lynne Moody 18:19

yes, Ben, I was his love interest as long as well as Denise, the lovely Denise Nicholas, and we had a great time on that shoot. Ben and myself and Denise Nicholas had a triangle kind of thing. It was it was fun. It was fun.

Jeff Dwoskin 18:37

Love, exciting and new. Yes, come aboard.

Lynne Moody 18:42

We're expecting you

Jeff Dwoskin 18:45

look at this very great team. But also Ted Lange, so there's your that's my mama, reunion with Ted. Huh?

Lynne Moody 18:52

It's a small world. It really is a small world. When you can have those kinds of relationships come about so often.

Jeff Dwoskin 19:01

We're introduced by Marsha Williams and and so. So the connection there is. So you just had a big soap reunion at the Hollywood show.

Lynne Moody 19:15

Yes, very nice.

Jeff Dwoskin 19:16

You were in season three. So, okay,

Lynne Moody 19:21

yeah, I did one season and two shows from the new season. It's such a unique show, and they had so many talented people on it, and it was fun. And it was one of the few times an interracial couple was on TV, and we even had a kiss on TV, and that was rare, or that time period Ted was, I was his love interest on what Danny,

Jeff Dwoskin 19:50

there was a lot of smooching and the laundromat, yeah, and

Lynne Moody 19:56

the laundromat was a fun, fun, fun scene. They would before we got into the laundromat, they had buckets of water right outside the door, so that when we opened the door, we'd be drenched with the water. The first show, the water was cold, and it was like, oh, no, we don't like this, you know, but we had to do the scene. And then when we did the second show. You know, you did two shows. The second show, they had really nice, warm, warm water. We were fully clothed and everything, but still. So that was a that was a fun, fun bit.

Jeff Dwoskin 20:31

It was funny because Ted Danny's, yeah, Danny couldn't get it out of his head. He was into you. He could tell you guys were in love, but he always saw everyone else as judging two of you, and then the guy, the father from the 70s show, gets in you guys, gets right in your his face and Buddy, all he wanted was Danny's shirt. It was a, it's a funny exchange. Were you a fan of the show before you joined the show?

Lynne Moody 20:56

I don't know that I was a fan, because I wasn't really, because I was an actor, you know, trying to do work. I didn't really watch any particular show consistently. I watched to see what was going on, to see what people were doing, to see what I might be available for. So those were, you know, different different intentions in watching shows or not watching.

Jeff Dwoskin 21:20

Did it add to the controversy, or was it a big deal the interracial relationship? I know it was a newer in the 70s to even just show that, but is it? Was there anything that any blowback in real life at the time? Because that show was always under the microscope anyway, yeah, since the day launched,

Lynne Moody 21:38

not really that, not that I can remember. I do remember the producers said that they didn't really get hate mail. They only got one sort of postcard that said, we don't kiss ******* back here. And I think it was from Wisconsin, the letter that they sent, the postcard that they sent to BF studios, the only one that was nothing,

Jeff Dwoskin 21:56

I'm sorry that happened. Postcard, nothing lazier than a postcard. Don't even have time to put an envelope.

Lynne Moody 22:06

Ignorance isn't always bliss.

Jeff Dwoskin 22:09

No, no, but only one letter. I guess he can deal with one idiot.

Lynne Moody 22:14

Oh, yes, yes, at least that's what they told that's what they told us. You know, that they didn't get significant hate mail at all, just a postcard, milk. So blink,

Jeff Dwoskin 22:22

of course, by season three, people, everyone may have been exhausted complaining about the show. So it's funny, because when you go back and you watch it now, it doesn't, you know if that had come out right now, there was a lot of it would be like, okay, yeah, exactly. Sorry to interrupt, have to take a quick break. I thank everyone for their support of the sponsors. When you support the sponsors, you're supporting us here at Classic conversations, and that's how we keep the lights on. And now back to my conversation with Lynn moody, all right, so you were also on ER, but not to confuse people with er, E, slash R, which was the Elliot Gould Comedy, was a comedy, right, right? And to confuse things even more, George Clooney was in it,

Lynne Moody 23:08

right? And also, Jason Alexander, yeah.

Jeff Dwoskin 23:11

Jason Alexander, right now you're pretty and funny again, right? Showing the world. You can do it.

Lynne Moody 23:18

It was fun. You know, when you're doing a comedy things and the writers you have your first day, you sit around the table and read the script, and, my goodness, it's just so much fun. I remember when I first started doing this, I thought, I can't believe I'm getting paid to do this. This is so much fun. I love this so much I can't believe they're paying me. But of course, that didn't last a whole long time. You get out of that period, you go, no, they're not enough money in the world for this to pay for this. I digress.

Jeff Dwoskin 23:55

Elliot Gould was Was he fun to work with?

Lynne Moody 23:57

Yes, he was lovely to work with everyone was good to work with that I have worked with so far. You know, maybe I have selective memory, but I don't remember really nasty scenes. Usually the cast is rooting for each other because they all want to show to work. I did. I Okay. I have to tell you, that's my mama. I had a big, huge crush on my brother, Clifton Davis, so did lots of other women so, but we became friends, and then he did a couple of other series that I actually ended up guest starring on. So that was fun. Is

Jeff Dwoskin 24:35

there a certain sense of comfort and like when you do meet up with people that you've worked with before, and you get to work together again. There

Lynne Moody 24:44

is, there's a connection, and then there's a fondness, you know, and of course, history memories, unless, of course, it was not a good relationship. And then, you know, you just cheaply. Think

Jeff Dwoskin 25:02

you just said you liked everyone. So I think I feel like you're holding back on something.

Lynne Moody 25:06

Well, I know this could live forever, so I'm watching what I say some a little bit. Of course, you can't like everybody, because people are different, and they have different you know, everybody's got different tastes, but you try your best to respect everyone, even if you don't agree with them or like them, to respect them as a human being is what is needed and is a challenge sometimes, of course,

Jeff Dwoskin 25:35

taking the high road. There's there's you, not throwing out those morals. I like it. I like it in action really. All right, let's see what else other cool stuff that you have done. Okay, so we talked about soap, but also you had a role in the soap spin off Benson. You were in love with Robert

Lynne Moody 25:56

Neil, that's right, I forgot all about that. I don't remember much about that. I don't remember except I think I only did one episode or two. Maybe it was a two episode event. Yeah, I

Jeff Dwoskin 26:08

was going to ask you about that, because it seemed like I just I pulled it up so I could watch some of it. And it was like, you guys were in love. And I was like, Is IMDb wrong because it shows one episode Benson. I was like, but if you're in love, I mean, there's gotta be some backstory here, like I but okay, so it was kind of in and out.

Lynne Moody 26:26

So maybe that's why I don't remember much about it, because just didn't feel right. Maybe it didn't there was no more. There was no more to it didn't work out, I guess,

Jeff Dwoskin 26:38

yes, also it didn't work out. Your marriage to the Richard Pryor's character and some kind of hero

Unknown Speaker 26:47

that didn't work either. Yes,

Jeff Dwoskin 26:49

he comes home and you're you're in love with another. How is it working with Richard Pryor? Oh,

Lynne Moody 26:53

he was very sweet. You know, it was after his accident, so he was very vulnerable. Wanted to be assured that he wasn't repulsive, you know, because he he wasn't. And so he was vulnerable and sweet. He even asked me at one point if you know his face, if I if it bothered me. And I said, Oh, no, no. So he was vulnerable at that time.

Jeff Dwoskin 27:22

Well, it's good that you were there to help him get through. He

Lynne Moody 27:26

had a lot of support. He had a lot of support. People love Richard Pryor. Yeah,

Jeff Dwoskin 27:30

everyone loves Richard Pryor. I was just watching the Gene Wilder documentary, and there's a whole thing about their friendship. And yeah, the movies that they made together fascinating. All right, so you were on soap, but then you were also on real soaps, General Hospital, that's a daytime soap, right? And then Knott's landing and evening soap, General Hospital,

Lynne Moody 27:51

easy, because I don't even remember, just so quick and not much going on there. But Knots Landing, it was the first black family in the cult the Psych and everyone there was very, very welcoming. It was good, you know. And that lasted as long as it did. And that was a long run, yeah. Well, Knots Landing was on a long, long time. The family and myself were only on, like a season, season season and a half, my character got killed. They brought on others to try to make a family, I guess. Got it, got it, got it. This business can be tough.

Jeff Dwoskin 28:33

One minute you got a job, and the next minute they're killing you. Yeah.

Lynne Moody 28:37

This business can be a lot of things, a lot of things at the same time.

Jeff Dwoskin 28:42

What advice would you give to somebody who wants to break in and be an actor or actress?

Lynne Moody 28:49

You know? I would say, go for it. And I would say, follow your heart, follow your dream. And I would also say, prepare yourself for a tough ride. Prepare yourself for a hard life in places, also a brilliant life in other places. You know, it can up and down. The highs are very high, the lows are very low. So follow your dream. It did your dream. Go for it and hang in there. Otherwise, get out.

Jeff Dwoskin 29:22

Are you glad you did it? Do you have any any regrets? Or I'm

Lynne Moody 29:25

glad I did it. I am very glad I did it, and I'm kind of proud of myself for doing it too. Like I said, I didn't have family pushing me or encouraging me in that direction, my parents or I really would just say, good luck and go for it and be kind. Be kind. I would say that be kind. Don't forget to everyone.

Jeff Dwoskin 29:48

So when Marsha reached out to me, and she's like, Oh, I can introduce you to Lynn, and she's and she said, Google, Google, Lynn, go ahead. She goes, I'm not gonna tell you, but. Just go, you know, so, and it was, like, the most fascinating story. I mean, all this is amazing, but, oh, thank

Lynne Moody 30:06

you.

Jeff Dwoskin 30:07

Thank you. But the reunion of you and your daughter after 50 years was like, was like, it was really heart touching. It was like, you know, really tugged at the heartstrings to watch that.

Lynne Moody 30:19

And, you know, the thing it is, is that, so we are going to do a podcast. My daughter and I, she wants to do this podcast. She's getting it ready, and she's going to call it conversations with mine. That

Jeff Dwoskin 30:32

is a great name for a podcast. I love it. You were younger and you were pregnant, and then the where you were working the action. What was the

Lynne Moody 30:42

Oh, I was young. I was at school. I came out to California to go to Pasadena Playhouse. So I was 17, and my birthday is in February. I in February. I turned 18 in April. I went to a party with a guy one time, got pregnant, changed my whole life. At school, I stopped talking to everybody, I stopped eating, I stopped going to classes. People were wondering, what was wrong with me? The directors would come and say, what's wrong? I don't even want you on that stage if you can't do this or can't do that, what is happening? And I couldn't talk to anybody because I was pregnant, and that was the worst thing in the world. So I finally told my parents on the phone. I got sent to this home for unwed mothers. I stayed there for a very long time because I went in so early, I was barely showing and then delivered. They thought. My parents thought that it would be best if I didn't see her, so they put a towel over my face when she was born, a little Poth so I couldn't see her. I couldn't see her, but I could hear her. I could hear her cry, and I could just say, I'm sorry, baby, I'm sorry, baby, and I was crying. That's all I could say. And that's then they took her away, and there I was. So I had to sign away all my rights so that she could be adopted. And I did that because I wanted her to be adopted. They assured me she'd be adopted right away, because of my background, what, whatever. So they said the forms that I had to fill out and sign in order for her to be adopted, I had to sign away all my rights, all my rights. I could not find out about the adoption about her, about anything, so I signed away all my rights, but they said she can find out about you. They can find out about you, where you are, anything like that, because that was the law at that time. So I go on with my life after I leave there, I try to, you know, remove when I go on. And so I go on with with my life, and then I try to live with the knowledge that I have a daughter. I don't know if she's dead or alive, if she's happy or sad, if she's been adopted or not, if she's in trouble or anything. I don't know any of that. So I try to live with that knowledge that I don't have to make a long story short, then I was at my sister's house in Oregon, get a call from my brother who says, Emmy, a woman has contacted me that thinks that she might be your daughter. And I went find out when she was born, if she was born, December 10, 1964, that it is her, it is her and see I had been praying all this time that she would try to find me. So with that DNA, I said, find out when she was born. And so he said, Okay, so we hung up. I went for a walk with my dog. I came back. 10 minutes later he called, and he said, Emmy, she was born December 10, 1964 and she is your daughter. And with that information, my world exploded and changed. I crumbled to the floor. It was like I was giving birth all over again. I was sobbing up with joy, joy. I was screaming. I was running up and down the stairs. I have a daughter. She's alive. Her name is Lisa. She wants to see me. It's not a dirty secret anymore. It's no longer secret. I have this beautiful daughter. So he said, My brother told me she's going to call you in a half hour. So I said, Well, can I call her? And he said, Yes, yes. So he gave me the number. He said she's at work. And so I said, Okay, I my voice was gone because I've been crying and screaming. So I call a number of female answers. I said, Hello. Can I speak to Lisa, please? And she said, This is Lisa. Is this my mom? And at that moment, I can't tell you what went through my entire body, this warm, warm inner calm, this God, warm up, bring me. And I said, Yes, honey, this is your mom. I'm your mom, in a very calm voice. And both then just said, Oh my god, oh my god, oh my God, for about, I don't know, three or four minutes, just oh my god, oh my god, oh my god. So I said, can I. See you. And so she said, Yes. I said, I'm coming back to Los Angeles tomorrow. Can I see you Sunday? And she said, Yes. And then I thought, well, maybe can I see you Saturday? When I come in, she said, Yes, yes, yes. So that's what happened. I came home Saturday. I knew she was on her way. I kept looking for her. I saw her car pull up in my driveway. I ran out when I saw her, I opened her car door, I started hugging her and kissing her and hugging her, and it was just

Jeff Dwoskin 35:32

beautiful. That's amazing. It's such a it's such an amazing story. So Lisa, your daughter was did a 23andme right? And that's how she connected with your brother. They matched, right? The DNA match,

Lynne Moody 35:46

right?

Jeff Dwoskin 35:47

What was, what was her? Was she looking at that point, or was she? It was just a random thing where she was doing the DNA test,

Lynne Moody 35:54

right? She had to find out DNA wise, because that's all there was. Yeah, she you gotta meet her at some point. Lisa, she's in marketing, and she's a lovely, lovely girl. People say you look just like her. You look just like her. This is what a fan drew of me, how beautiful from a picture. Love it. Presented it to me in an autograph signing.

Jeff Dwoskin 36:22

So you guys just connected, like, boom, and it was like,

Lynne Moody 36:26

oh yes, we were hugging. She pulled up in the driveway. She could barely get out of the car. I'm hugging her and kissing her, and she's the same, and she has me on her phone because my grandson is watching all this video, if you know. So it was real, real sweet that I got to meet my grandson at the same time.

Jeff Dwoskin 36:50

It's such an amazing story. And like the other piece of the story, which I found amazing, was she grew up watching you Yes, so she, like, knew who you were, yes,

Lynne Moody 37:01

it's just a thrilling, thrilling event. I mean, my grandson. People say, you have a grandson? I said, Yeah. They think I'm going to say three or four, six or seven. They say, How old is he? 35 my grandson is 35 Yeah. So

Jeff Dwoskin 37:22

it's, that's an amazing story, you know, crazy like technology. I mean, yes, I don't know, three of me has been around or that technology's been around, but it's just amazing that,

Lynne Moody 37:33

yeah, DNA tells, tells everything, and can put us together. She know that

Jeff Dwoskin 37:39

this is, I appreciate you sharing all the stories with me, and it's just it's so amazing. I'm really happy that we got to talk

Lynne Moody 37:47

me too, and we can stay in touch at some point if you'd like to contact me again or vice versa, because you're cute. Thank you. Welcome Jeff. I'm going to see Marsha probably Sunday. I'm going to go to her house for dinner Sunday, so I'll say hello to her. Yes,

Jeff Dwoskin 38:10

please do say hello. Absolutely amazing. Oh, you know what I'm talking to. Jay Johnson, oh,

Lynne Moody 38:18

cool. Cool. Such nice, nice people, the whole group, the whole soap entourage and whatnot.

Jeff Dwoskin 38:25

He was, he was in your episodes. He was in some of your episodes, like the one where your parents came over to their house and the puppet gets to say all these inappropriate things. It's really interesting. We can get away with stuff because it's a puppet. All right, you're amazing. Thank you for sharing these stories. Tell your daughter hello and tell Marsha Hello, and we will talk again.

Lynne Moody 38:52

Absolutely. Bye. All right, how

Jeff Dwoskin 38:55

amazing was Lynn moody? So many great stories. And how about that? Reuniting with her daughter? Oh my god, amazing. Love that story. Well, the interview is over, so that means we're at the end of another episode. I can't believe it either. Huge. Thank you to Lynn moody for hanging out with me. Huge. Thank you to Marcia for introducing us And a huge thank you to all of you for coming back week after week. It means the world to me, and I'll see you next time.

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