WONDERLAND • The Ultimate Wonder Woman Site

“My faith is the most important thing in my life," Lynda Carter asserts. "It affects every area of my life and career. If I'm upset, concerned or nervous about something, my faith allows me to have a better perspective on what's really important."

Obviously that faith stood her in good stead when, four years ago, she hung up "Wonder Woman's" satin shorts and plastic mylar bracelets, determined to succeed before a new and more mature television audience via variety and dramatic specials. And succeed she did-her variety specials, including 1982's "Lynda Carter: Street Life," garnered top ratings for CBS, and her three dramatic specials, particularly her 1981 expose, "Born To Be Sold," concerning the multimillion-dollar industry developed around the sale of babies, brought in gratifying critical plaudits.

That success also led to her present project-portraying the legendary actress Rita Hayworth in a two-hour special scheduled to air soon on CBS. "Two years ago, the producer, David Susskind, called me while I was in New York City for the U.S. Open and asked me if I would like to do the life of Rita Hayworth," she smiles. "He said he had seen me in one of my specials and said he thought I'd be perfect for Rita because I could sing and dance, and there aren't too many people around who can do both."

The parallels with Hayworth's own career are also surprising: Hayworth started her career as a dancer at 15, and Carter commenced hers at the same age-as a singer. Both share a Spanish-Irish heritage, and both had success in their early 20s. "There are a lot of similarities,"

Carter adds, "but the times and the systems are so different-I have so much more freedom as a woman now than she did then. She was a disciplined person and a fine actress, had warmth and a sense of humor but, I think, had a tragic life, full of loneliness." Hayworth herself lives in New York with Yasmin, the daughter she had with Aly Khan, but she is a sad victim of a crippling disease that attacks the brain cells.

"The script shows Hayworth in a realistic way and follows her career from the age of 16 to 32," Carter, herself 31, explains. "It tells her story with glamour and realism-it's not just another biographical ripoff. It tells the story of how a woman feels, from the inside." Carter, who has never met Hayworth, has always been a fan and prepared for this role by "reading everything written about her and reseeing all her films. I can only give of myself what is in me and try to find the things that we have in common," she adds, "the main thing being that we both worked all our lives in similar occupations."

Andrew Susskind, coproducer of the Rita Hayworth special, adds, "We picked Lynda because we were looking for someone who could project star quality, and I think she's going to surprise a lot of people. She's been terrific in every way. Lynda is just a doll." Lynda Jean Carter was born in Phoenix, Arizona, the youngest of three children. "I've worked since I was 12-I was a terrible waitress and also cleaned people's houses to make extra money and paid for my own school books," she says.

"When I was small, people said I was pretty," recalls Carter, who was once selected by London's International Academy of Beauty as "the most beautiful woman in the world." "But then, I went through a stage in junior high 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. I didn't have many dates in high school."

By the time she was in high school (the same one E. T. producer Steven Spielberg attended two years ahead of her), she was appearing in local night clubs. "I was on the road with a lounge act from 17 to 21," she recalls. Her love of live performances led more or less directly to her eventually successful appearances in Las Vegas and at London's Palladium.

In 1973, Carter won the Miss World-U.S.A. title and shortly thereafter outdistanced hundreds of other actresses for the part of "Wonder Woman," a character she made memorable. The series still continues as a rerun hit in 140 countries. She laughs, "The show is going through a resurgence. I'm sure 20 years from now, they'll still be rerunning them. I feel it presented a positive image of an attractive person who was bright and kind, and it gave me what I have now. The fantasy element of the show translates to young people as an image-they feel they can be strong. I wasn't even aware of its impact when I was doing it."

While making "Wonder Woman," Carter met artist's agent Ron Samuels, who also guided the careers of such television luminaries as Lindsay Wagner and Jaclyn Smith. Samuels, whom she married in 1977, was basically responsible for transforming her from the role of a comic-book character on television to the status of a recognized variety entertainer and dramatic actress. He reportedly took an interest in every detail of her career, down to picking publicity shots.

When Lynda filed for divorce last year, citing reasons of incompatibility, the couple reportedly shared an annual income of $3 million. Among their investments was an 18-acre ranch in Calabassas, California, 40 miles northwest of Los Angeles, where Lynda lives today.

"I have 200 oak trees," she says happily, "two horses (Jose and Sweet Willie), three dogs, two cats, lots of rabbits and gophers and an eagle's nest." Her house, only 3,200 square feet and certainly small by Hollywood standards, is "very rustic and rural." It also has a swimming pool and a 360-degree view of the surrounding Santa Monica Mountains. It is also her refuge from the Hollywood madness. "I live on a ranch for a reason-to be away from the Hollywood crowd," she asserts.

At her ranch, to which she commutes in her chocolate-brown Porsche 914 Targa, she spends a lot of time exercising, but not as much as some reports have said. "I've always been an outdoor person," she says, "and my parents had me in competition swimming and volleyball." She also lifts weights, does aerobics, rides on her bike and her horses, plays tennis, swims and has recently replaced jogging with race walking. "But I don't do everything every day," Lynda laughs. "It sometimes sounds like exercising is all I spend time on, but what I try to do is one of something every day because it feels good. I do it for cardiovascular reasons. But there are weeks when I am working that I don't do any exercise." The ex-Wonder Woman asserts, "I'd be superhuman if I did all the exercises people say I do!"

Lynda, who is just under 5 '9 ", claims her ideal weight is "around 125," but she's rarely "around" that. "What I do for my diet basically depends on the weight I'm at," she laughs. "And when I'm dieting, I just avoid food." She also avoids nearly all salt in her food, noting, "But I love it-green olives, anchovies, caviar. But not eating it makes a big difference in my life. If I had one secret to give, it's that I drink a lot of water, at least a half gallon a day." But she rarely drinks mineral water because of the high saline content of most brands. "If I have a big class of orange juice," she adds, "I'll dilute it with water so I can feel as if I'm having a lot of orange juice and not have all the calories. I try to trick myself."

Carter drinks wine or beer moderately, and she doesn't drink either coffee or tea because "caffeine does funny things to me."

"It's painful," she says. "I've got to work at keeping myself looking good. In spite of whatever image I may have, I'm not perfect. I'm just a human being, and I might get five or ten pounds overweight and have to lose it. I'm grateful for the type of work I do because it forces me to keep in shape."

Lynda Carter's cultural interests are hardly parochial. In music, they range from the works of British composer Ralph Vaughn Williams to those of the rock band Styx. She loves ballet. On her bedside table is a book of Renaissance art and, significantly, a copy of the new American Standard Bible.

Born a Catholic, Lynda's religious beliefs evolved to her present "born-again" way of life over a period of years, but the catalyst for her present commitment was her sister, Pamela Cole, who has a half-hour show combining exercise and Christian Music on the Trinity Broadcasting Network. "My sister got me involved," she proudly confides. "I was unhappy at the time-four years ago. I was unhappy, and I had everything. I knew there was a void in my heart and in my spirit, and I knew what it was-I knew it was my relationship with God. But I was afraid he was going to take something away from me if I made a commitment-that I would have to do something-but that's not the case at all.

"If you're a father, and you see your child doing something that is going to hurt him, you're going to do all that you can to guide him, to help him do what's best for him-even though he might not think it's best. How much more does our Lord love us! It is not a matter of reprimanding. There are disciplines such as 'thou shalt not kill' and all the other commandments. And all that he has to offer us-me-is for my benefit, and it gives me a sense of peace. I know in my spirit when things are - right, so that now in my life I have something that is real-and Jesus Christ is real-a real personal relationship."

Lynda continues, "There was a conscious realization-I felt the spirit of God. At first, I was all gung-ho, ready to convert the world. Now, I'm a little more relaxed about it. It's something that's very personal to me, and I hesitate talking about it. I don't want to push my beliefs on people, but I do want to share that there is such a thing as a real relationship with God." She is not a member of any particular church, but occasionally seeks out Bible meetings and goes to church.

And where does she want to take this? "I think it'll be where the Lord leads me," she affirms. "It will be a natural progression for me. If I can inspire anyone by something I do or make anyone feel good, that's fine. But I want to be an instrument in the Lord's way, not mine."

Obviously, that future will also include expanded personal and professional horizons. Recently, she has started enjoying success and freedom and not having to work all the time. She notes, "I'm starting to do things I didn't do before, such as skiing, scuba diving and seeing the world outside of work."

One of the more pleasant aspects of her work is the role she has filled for the past three years as spokesperson for Maybelline Cosmetics. Her title is Beauty and Fashion Director, and she does commercials for the Moisture-Whip line. She explains further: "As a consultant, I give them my opinions on colors and consistencies. I know a lot about make-up and skin care. I've really become involved with the company-they're very receptive to my ideas, and they implement them, too. I also test products for them."

Obviously, the Lynda Carter image has been a good one for the firm. In the time she has represented its products to the public, sales have jumped some 200 percent.

Part of the future involves her relationship with her new boyfriend, Robert Altman, 36, an attorney with ex-Secretary of Defense Clark Clifford's law firm in Washington, D.C., whom she met at a friend's dinner party five months ago.

Obviously, much of that future is career-oriented. Says Lynda, "I'm going to be doing another variety special and another TV movie, and CBS wants me to do a series.

"I'm maturing as an actress now. What I would like to continue doing in the future are the kinds of projects that are stimulating to me-and to do a variety of different things. I'd like to do theatre and a Broadway show, but the main thing for me is just working with talent, with other actors who are inspiring to me and directors who can pull from me all the resources I might possess.

"It's not money, it's not fame-I have a solid foundation from which to grow. It's putting yourself on. the line. It's exciting and it's frightening. It's really scary, but it's also incredibly rewarding to know that the effort you put in and the time you spend are paying off."