My Celebrity Encounters: Erin Ryan

At the age of six, I was a troubled child. Over the course of a year, I suffered from nearly every childhood illness known to mankind. Measles, mumps, chicken pox, and colon stenosis, as well as lesser illnesses like colds, flu, chronic earache, and headaches. On top of all this, one day on my way home from school I was chased by a group of kids. When they caught me, I was severely beaten. The beating included a kick to the eye, which resulted in surgery and the wearing of an eyepatch for an extended period afterwards. My mother was the kind of person who did her best to make the best out of a bad situation. I made an eye patch and hand embroidered a skull and crossbones pattern. When I went back to school, all the kids thought I was the best.

Shortly after my eye surgery, I developed a severe case of tonsillitis. My tonsils became very infected, and I was taken to the hospital. The morning after surgery, a nurse came to check on me and said the lady in the next room wanted to meet me. The nurse put me in a wheelchair and ushered me into the next room. I immediately recognized the lady in bed as Irene Ryan, the actress who played “Granny Clampett” on the TV show “The Beverly Hillbillies.”

At the time, “The Beverly Hillbillies” was one of the most popular TV shows. I was pleased when Mrs. Ryan introduced herself and asked me how I felt. She asked about my eye patch and whether I was a pirate, and I told her the whole story. We talked for hours about so many things: acting, pets, cartoon games, TV and movies, and the cast members of “The Beverly Hillbillies.” We ate ice cream together. Lots of ice cream. We found out we were die-hard Los Angeles Dodgers fans.

I was a shy child, but her sweet personality and attentiveness put me at ease right away. We talked as if we were old friends. Later that day when she was getting discharged, she came by my room and gave me a small gift and an autographed photo. Her kindness and friendship made a great impression on me. Although this happened over fifty years ago, it is one of my favorite childhood memories.