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In the June edition of Preview, Associate Editor Susan Moss began her
exclusive interview with the sultry star of TV's "Wonder
Woman." In the concluding portion, Lynda talks about her upcoming
marriage to Ron Samuels! |
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Q. What is it
about yourself that got you the part of Wonder Woman? |
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A. I look like
her. I look like the part. I had done a screen test for Larry Gordon
for a film that he was doing, and when Larry heard that they were
casting for Wonder Woman, he said: "I've got the girl for you.
This girl is good and she really looks like what you need." So he
sent my screen test over to them. I tested for the part and about
two-and-a-half weeks later, I got a phone call from my agent saying.
"Hello, Wonder Woman." That's the first and not the last
time that's been said to me. |
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Q. Do you find
that you're recognized a lot more now? |
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A. Oh, yes. It's
really incredible. It's very strange, too. I went on a personal
appearance last weekend and it was very difficult to relate to that.
There were people, adults and children, mashing each other to get to
me, to sign an autograph before I left. I was flanked by armed
policemen. There were children, and this one kid was getting crushed,
and I said: "Wait a minute. Stop the autographing, and somebody
help this child!" It was frightening. It can really get nuts. |
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Q. What kind of
schedule do you keep when you're filming? |
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A. It's like
living in a vacuum, because you're working so many hours. You have to
get up at 4:30 or 5:00 in the morning. Then you don't get to bed until
nine or ten at night...and that's if you're lucky. And living in a
vacuum like this, it's hard to relate to your own success. You're not
aware of the tremendous influence of television. Someone can be in a
film and it can be a hit film. Yet, not as many people are going to
see that one time when you're on prime time television. And that's
what's so incredible. |
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Q. A schedule like
that doesn't leave much time for a social life, does it? |
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A. Well, my social
life is Ron (Samuels), now. Before, I didn't care. It didn't make any
difference to me about my social life. If it was there or it wasn't; I
didn't care. It didn't make any difference because all my energies
were going toward my work. I was involved in working and it's all that
I really cared about...except for my family or my close friends. But
in terms of social life or parties, I never have liked them. I don't
like being part of any group. It feels bad, it hangs heavy on my soul.
And now with Ron, he walks in the door and I want to run and give him
a hug. It's the first time in my life that I've ever really loved
anyone. I've loved people before but I've never been in love...not
like this! It's like everything you've ever dreamed of. Everything
that you've ever heard about. The poetry, the lyrics to the
songs...it's all so real for me now! He's so terrific and he works so
hard. So in between what I'm doing and what he's doing, we just try to
catch every moment that we can. It's beautiful... |
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Q. Some columnist
have you and Ron marching down the aisle. Is it true? |
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A. Yes, it's true. |
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Q. Well,
congratulations..or is it best wishes? |
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A. Thank you and
it is a "congratulations" because I feel: "How can this
possibly happen?" I mean, I never thought it would happen. Not
that kind of feeling with the fireworks and all that stuff! |
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Q. How'd you meet
him? |
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A. I met Ron a
long time ago. But that was all, we just met. Then we were at an ABC
affiliates gif or a press party or something and I remembered him. And
at this time, his success with Lindsay (Samuels is Lindsay Wagner's
agent) had already been in all the papers. I remembered that he was a
really nice person. He didn't seem phony when I met him and said:
"Hi, I'm Lynda Carter," and he said: "Yes, I
know." He had forgotten that we met before and I said: "We
met a long time ago, but you probably don't remember that. I just
wanted to congratulate you on your success with Lindsay." I just
felt happy for him, and decided to tell him so. Then I forgot all
about it. But evidently, it impressed him because a little more than
two months ago, he stopped by my set to talk to the director about
doing one of Lindsay's shows and then he came over to me. He said:
"I was going to tell you that I Thought it was super, your saying
'Congratulations.' So few people do that. I think it was neat and I
just anted to tell you that." Later, he knocked on my dressing
room door, and he said: "How would you like to come and have
dinner with me?" And I said, "I would like to," but I
couldn't because I had previous plans. So we went to lunch instead. It
turned out to be a four-hour lunch! The next day we played tennis all
day long and into the night. And after that weekend, I just never left
him. I couldn't. We've already started looking at houses. |
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Q. What qualities
about him first attracted you to him? |
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A. He's dignified.
He's old-fashioned in a lot of ways. He has values as a human being.
He believes in himself and in the people he represents. He does what
he believes in. He's high-powered and aggressive. He's got a great
sense of humor. He's warn, he's sensitive, he's child-like, he's
everything I've ever wanted in a man. He's good-looking, but as you
know, good looks can wear off very fast in any relationship. Someone
can be gorgeous, but there's got to be more or the relationship goes
pfft! Out in storage. It's nice to be with someone you feel proud of
and I can feel proud of him. We take good care of each other. Ron said
something really neat: "We're better together than apart. We're
good apart and we were before we met, but it's so much nicer
together." I don't know when we're going to get married. It'll
probably be this summer. |
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Q. Wow, that's
wonderful... |
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A. He's just
really terrific and I've got my work and it's very important to me,
and his work is very important to him. No one can replace what you do
creatively. No other human being can give you that. |
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Q. Do you remember
the first time you felt successful? |
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A. I've been
wanting ton answer that. The first time I felt like a success was when
I did The Battle of the Network Stars and the next week there was a
full page picture of me in a bathing suit in a magazine. It freaked me
out because there were so many people who showed up at the Battle and
then I saw the show -which freaked me out even more- because I really
appreciated all those people. That's the first time I felt a welling
-and this might sound corny- of humility. I felt very small... |
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Q. What do you
attribute your success to? |
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A. I think the
success of any individual is not solely because of that individual. I
think the individual must have something special, though...that
special something that everyone talks about and nobody knows what it
is until they see it. But there are a lot of people who have helped me
and I'm very grateful and very thankful to them. |
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Q. You mentioned
that you liked the old-fashioned quality about Ron, but do you
consider yourself and "Old-fashioned girl"? |
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A. Oh. yeah. I was
raised in Phoenix, Arizona and I was raised with very definitive ideas
in terms of morals. None of my family smoked or drank. It was a
tumultuous up-bringing, but we raised with very definitive ideas in
terms of values and judgments about ourselves and how we felt about
ourselves. We were raised to believe in maintaining our own dignity
and seeking what we want for ourselves. There's no one in my family
who is doing the same thing. No one is doing what I'm doing, or my
sister, or my brother, or my mother or my father. I mean, we all have
separates careers... and separate ideas. And that's what my parents
taught us. They taught us to believe in ourselves and to feel good
about ourselves. |
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Q. To follow
through... |
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A. Exactly, to
follow through. Because you can talk and talk, but it's the
follow-through that means anything. The execution of your dreams. The
dreams that dreams are made of! |