WONDERLAND • The Ultimate Wonder Woman Site

and I saw the book The Baby Brokers, which dealt with the illegal selling of human beings, became interested in the social issue, and decided to give the social issue a fictional treatment."

"Before we got started on the project, I wasn't aware of the fact that there was a -multi-billion dollar industry developed around the sale of babies. I tried to figure out where the crime and the social problem was; to find out, I went to some unwed mothers' homes, which I had not even realized still existed. I soon realized that the screening processes were at fault. You can buy consent from all the agencies and not know whether the parents are fit or whether the mother of the child was on drugs or alcohol or had a transmittable disease. It ultimately is an issue of human slavery and white collar crime between doctors and lawyers-with one out of seven couples unable to conceive, the issue becomes fascinating."

As with all other phases of her career, she worked closely with her husband, with whom she can perfectly mesh her business and personal relationships. "I couldn't care less what other people think about the relationship. They can call him Svengali; they can call him whatever they want to-and they have. But Ron had his own career before I met him, and I had mine-and we're much better together than we were apart." She continues, "I think there's a blessing when you defer to your husband's opinions. I can't think of anything worse than a henpecked husband or a wife who's domineering. But he doesn't put that pressure on me. There is very, very rarely a situation where he says ,absolutely not' about something."

Lynda met Samuels while doing Wonder Woman. At that time he was managing such luminaries as Lindsay Wagner and Jaclyn Smith. He agreed to manage Lynda professionally, and has been doing so ever since. "I don't have to worry if the people representing me are trying to take advantage of me," Lynda explains, "or just don't care, or had a headache that day and didn't feel like working, or a million other things. Of course, sometimes it can wear on you emotionally. I'm so close to Ron; I know what he goes through, waking up in the middle of the night or staying up all night.

"He gets involved in everything. He spent two hours inspecting every available picture of me for the poster. He picked this shot of me in a shirt tied up above the waist and I said, 'Oh God, it's so corny' -but it became the top-selling poster for a year and a half!"

Lynda, however, has asserted a long standing interest and has displayed definite know-how in managing their investments. "I get most everything initiated and then Ron gets into it very deeply," she explains. With a combined income of over three million dollars a year, Lynda and Ron spend much of their spare time finding tax shelters that include property such as their 18-acre ranch in the Malibu mountains, their hilltop home in Beverly Hills, as well as a hideaway in Palm Springs. Other investments include diamonds and-most importantly-Lynda's career.

"We put $200,000 of our hard-earned money into Lynda's Las Vegas act," Ron states. "I said to her, 'this is an investment just like buying property' but it was even better. Within a week and a half we had already made that back, and the act was there to use for another couple of years."

Lynda's career goals are clear. She's set out to prove that she's a serious singer, actress and, in her words, "a respected person in the business." The long, hard hours don't faze her. "Ever since I can remember, all I wanted to do was perform, and that is what I'm doing. Dreams are coming true for me." Dreams, indeed, and a lot of hard earned success. Her Las Vegas debut was an unmitigated triumph. "I was nervous at first. You know, for so long I had been doing television, and scenes are shot over and over. You become used to that security as you reshoot a scene from different camera angles. But when you perform live, you get the immediate reaction from the audience." Lynda's face lights up as she remembers. "If you could close your eyes and imagine what it's like to be on stage in front of thousands of people, with lights and -great costumes and a big band behind you, and you're singing and dancing..." she trails off.

Life hasn't always been so wonderful for 29 year-old Lynda Jean Carter. Born in Phoenix, she recalls, "When I was small, people said I was pretty. Then I went through a stage in grade school that was terrible. I was tall, lanky, and wore size ten shoes. The other children called me Olive Oyl because I looked like Popeye's girlfriend." Her beauty didn't begin to blossom until much later. "I didn't have many dates in high school. Boys didn't think of me as glamorous. No wonder. When I was 14, 1 grew two and a half inches and gained 25 pounds in three months. All I wanted to do was perform, but everyone tried to discourage me. They said I was too tall, too this, too that. It's easy to forget how hard it was."

After winning the 1973 Miss World USA title, Lynda came to Hollywood and won the lead role as Wonder Woman over 2,000 other women. She catapulted from a humble hand-to-mouth existence to an overnight television star. Success changed Lynda's life quite a bit. "I'm not the same person," she observes. "I'm not as free to do things I usually do. Even going to the bank ... it's kind of neat, but sometimes it's irritating. I do find most people polite. Like if I'm having dinner and someone comes up to me for my autograph, I'll say, as soon as I'm finished eating.' It's neat ... it makes you feel real good!"

It must feel especially good, considering Lynda was voted "The Most Beautiful Woman in the World" by the London-based International Academy of Beauty. She's also been a regular on Mr. Blackwell's "Ten Best Dressed Women in America" list and the International Bachelors Association's "Ten Most Exciting Women in the World" chart.

To keep her famous shape up-to-date, Lynda exercises regularly in her gym at home. "I do every kind of physical exercise you can think of. I run a mile and a half a day, I work with light weights, I do 250 leg lifts in the morning, and I ride a stationary bike." -If this doesn't sound rigorous enough, she adds, "I play tennis with my husband, and if I am on location and there's an Olympic-sized pool, I'll do 500 laps." Lynda says that half of any exercise is concentration. "When I jog, I concentrate on flexing my muscles instead of simply going through the motions." Exercise has changed her state of mind. "When your body feels good, your mind feels good, and your spirit feels good."

Sticking to a sensible diet is also one of Lynda's top priorities. She eats no breakfast, only a light lunch, and prefers to eat dinner by 5:00 p.m. Her diet is simple: chicken, fish, no red meat, and lots and lots of vegetables. "I'm sort of a vegetarian. I've never liked fried foods, and I'd rather eat a raw potato than a creamed one."

Although she maintains a slim figure today, she didn't always have it so easy. She carefully watches what she eats. "I could sit in front of the television and eat a bowl of potato chips. Greek olives could become another obsession. When I feel like I'll just die without a candy bar, I've discovered that it's a good idea to wait as long as I can and get busy with something else." She doesn't drink hard liquor, but does indulge in wine and light beer. Her only vice is smoking, which she tries to keep to a minimum.

Lynda maintains her hair in a classic 'A' cut, which is easiest to adapt to changing costumes and characters in her shows. During leisure hours, she keeps her locks in a ponytail off her face. "I enjoy taking photographs because you can play with your hair, but as a general rule, I like it simple. Mine is very, very fine, but I do have a lot of it. Because it's so fine, when I put it in a ponytail it looks like I don't have any hair." She washes and conditions her hair daily and changes shampoo as often as once a week. "If I don't switch, my hair starts to get matty and isn't as shiny."

One of the first things Lynda does upon waking is to thoroughly cleanse her skin. She follows that with a mild cleanser and light moisturizer and "always wears a sunscreen."

"I know a lot about makeup," she explains. "I've experimented with different concoctions, so I know what's good for my skin and how to use it." Her general hint for any makeup application is to blend it completely and apply it with an upward sweep. "You should apply makeup in the opposite direction, going up toward your eyebrows. There is nothing worse than seeing a line." When she's not working, Lynda usually doesn't wear makeup at home. "I spend so many hours a day getting poked and prodded by makeup people on the set. I prefer to do my own egg facials when I can."

Her devotion to looking good led Lynda to accept the position of Beauty and Fashion Director for Maybelline Cos metics. "What attracted me to Maybelline Cosmetics is that so many of them offer multiple benefits like sunscreen and moisturizers as well as excellent coverage. The eye cosmetics are waterproof and long-lasting, which is very important to me not only as a performer, but as an active woman." She adds, "I was also impressed with the amount of research that has gone into the development of their cosmetics." Lynda appears in Maybelline advertisements and commercials, and serves as a consultant in the development and marketing of new products.

For Lynda Carter, life is indeed looking good. She's got the determination and the talent to take herself as far as she wants. She's got the backing of her husband, whose track record for launching his clients to the top is unbroken. Her work is cut out for her, but she's ready. "The ultimate, the maximum, the potential for each person is just like a handprint ... totally unique and individual. You have to learn to stand up for what you believe in and have the courage to pursue your creativity."

	Since handing in her bracelets and hanging up her satin shorts four years ago, Lynda Carter hasn't been just sitting pretty. Though no longer leaping to the tops of skyscrapers or battling the bad guys' bullets, Lynda is still fighting to keep her superstar status. "I'm not trying to break the Wonder Woman image," she explains. "Wonder Woman gave me a lot. I have a great deal of love and affection for that time in my life, although that time is over. But the tagline will be around for awhile. You can't expect people to forget something you did for four years."

	In the last five years, Lynda has taken major steps in a career that's gone nowhere but up. Under the watchful eye of husband/manager Ron Samuels, Lynda has appeared in five television specials, sold out opening nights in Las Vegas, and performed center stage at the prestigious London Palladium. She is now working hard on several television movies and feature films.

	The latest television film, "Born To Be Sold," which aired last November, reflected Lynda's social concerns. "I get a lot of projects submitted to me," she says, "and am in the wonderful position of being able to choose what I want to do. My husband