The word “Groundbreaking” is tossed around maybe a little too much in Hollywood. Groundbreaking performance, groundbreaking film, groundbreaking show… But when you look back at television history, today’s guest truly fits as a groundbreaking actor. This is Still Here Hollywood. I’m Steve Kmetko. Join me with the first actor with a visible disability on a TV series, from the “Facts of Life”, Geri Jewell.
Geri's Jewels and Gems Book
https://a.co/d/eLFLnKm
Steve Kmetko:
Yes, I'm Still Here Hollywood. And coming up on today's episode!
Geri Jewell:
I was going to be on Factor Life of fifth season, but the producers sent my manager at the time saying that they would guarantee me one episode for the fifth season. And they said that if I didn't take the one episode, that I could walk as straight as I could.
Steve Kmetko:
And did you?
Geri Jewell:
I walked with tears in my eyes because I didn't want to leave the show. I didn't work in this industry for five years, almost six years after that.
Steve Kmetko:
The word groundbreaking is tossed around maybe a little too much in Hollywood. Groundbreaking performance, groundbreaking film, groundbreaking show. But when you look back at television history, today's guest truly fits as a groundbreaking actor. This is Still Here Hollywood. I'm Steve Kmetko. Join me with the first actor with a visible disability on a TV series from the Facts of Life. Geri Jewell.
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Geri, before we dive into your career, what are the things I'd like to ask you about?
Geri Jewell:
Yes!
Steve Kmetko:
Just to be proper, how do you describe your condition?
Geri Jewell:
Are we recording this?
Steve Kmetko:
Yes. Yes.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. I would say Cerebral Palsy, which is brain injury to the motor part of the brain that occurs usually before birth, during birth, or after birth. So, I had a very traumatic birth with head injury.
Steve Kmetko:
Really?
Geri Jewell:
That's how I got CP (Cerebral Palsy). CP for short!
Steve Kmetko:
CP for short. I've actually known some people in my life who had CP. Sometimes do you stop and think how hard it's made your life, or am I looking at the wrong way?
Geri Jewell:
Eh, the only thing, the only time it interferes is Makeup-- you know, because a gross mood motor movements are pretty cool for me. But fine motor movements, eh? Nope.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah.
Geri Jewell:
Mascara. Forget it.
Steve Kmetko:
Eyeliner. I--
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. Forget it.
Steve Kmetko:
So, I understand you were discovered by the Norman Lear.
Geri Jewell:
Yes, I was. I was discovered by Norman.
Steve Kmetko:
How'd that happen?
Geri Jewell:
I started doing standup comedy in 1978 at the Comedy Store in Hollywood, and in 1980, Fern Field saw me perform and she asked me to perform for the second annual Media access awards. And that night, Norman Lear and Charlotte Ray (Charlotte E. Ray) were both in my audience. And so, I give him credit for discovering me. He came up to me after my routine. I got a standing ovation that night, and he came up to me and introduced himself and he said, you know, you're a real funny kid, but your way before your time. And I said, so, so just wait a couple months. And he did. Two months later, he cast me on Facts of Life, Blair's cousin.
Steve Kmetko:
And how long were you on that show?
Geri Jewell:
Periodically over a period of four Seasons.
Steve Kmetko:
That was great. Great exposure. Great experience.
Geri Jewell:
It was, it definitely put me on the map.
Steve Kmetko:
What did you do after that?
Geri Jewell:
After I learned the Facts of Life?
Steve Kmetko:
Yes. After you learned the Facts of Life, I wasn't going to go there.
Geri Jewell:
Well, you know, to be honest with you, I was going to be on Facts of Life at fifth season. But the producers sent my manager at the time saying that they would guarantee me one episode for the fifth season. And I had a new manager at the time and he said, that's a slap in the face. Don't accept it. You've given so much to the show. They just can't guarantee you one episode. Just turn it down. They'll allow for you more. And they said that if I didn't take the one episode, that I could walk as straight as I could.
Steve Kmetko:
And did you?
Geri Jewell:
I walked with tears in my eyes because I didn't want to leave the show. But I was told, and I was very young, you have to remember how young I was. I did what my managers told me was the right business move to make. He said, don't worry about it. Your people will be pounding on your door.
Steve Kmetko:
And were they?
Geri Jewell:
I didn't work in this industry for five years, almost six years after that.
Steve Kmetko:
Did that depress you
Geri Jewell:
Tiny bit?
Steve Kmetko:
I would think so.
Geri Jewell:
A little bit. Yeah. It was very, well, you have to understand what a lot of people don't realize is that my first manager that I had embezzled all my money from Facts of Life and I had no money, and he ended up going to prison, but not for anything he did to me. I was low man in the totem pole compared to the other things he did. So, I was so lost. I didn't know my basic instinct was how am I going to survive? I mean, I would be a real bad waitress. You want to wear your meal.
So, you know, and I always told my parents that if I didn't make it in show business, that I would go back to college and finish my degree in psychology. But I wasn't convinced that it was over yet. No, there's something there. And I think my next big break after that was when I wrote an episode of 21 Gem Street and sold it. And I think that was actually seven years after fact alive. And I also became a DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) trainer for the United States Government and Fortune 500 companies. And that was a way to keep me financially afloat and also to get another skill under my belt while I waited for Hollywood. You know, maybe they, maybe.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah, maybe. Well, apparently, they did. You know, I can't help but ask, did you get terribly discouraged at any point?
Geri Jewell:
Of course I did. Of course I did. I struggled with depression and I-- you know, I was so young and people, I always looked for the good in people. So, I had a lot of bad people around me. It took me a while to figure that out. I was 23 years old when I got Facts of Life, and I was emotionally probably 13. So, you add that together. I was really, I really had the makeup of a child star, but I was an adult. Does that make sense?
Steve Kmetko:
Yes. Yes. I think it makes a lot of sense. If I were you, I think I would’ve raised my fist to the sky and said, come on, God, give me a break.
Geri Jewell:
Well--
Steve Kmetko:
That was another show.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. That was another show.
Steve Kmetko:
Around the same time.
Geri Jewell:
Actually, after my bit on Fact of Life, there was a show called Life Goes on with Chris Burke, who had Down Syndrome.
Steve Kmetko:
Right. I interviewed him once.
Geri Jewell:
And I was so happy for him. And at the same time, I was like, God. But he has people protecting him and taking care of him and looking out for him. And I didn't have that.
Steve Kmetko:
He had Down Syndrome, but I remember he would always call it Up Syndrome.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah.
Steve Kmetko:
I had up syndrome.
Geri Jewell:
I've met him several times. He's a sweetheart.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah, he is.
Geri Jewell:
What a wonderful guy. And I had only wished that I had the same protection that I needed in those years. Does that make sense?
Steve Kmetko:
Yes, it makes sense. Why wouldn't it make sense, of course.
Geri Jewell:
So, and I didn't because I was chronologically an adult!
Steve Kmetko:
Aye, yay. It's one. If it's not one thing, it's another. Or as we say in my house, if it's not one thing, it's your mother. So how have you maintained your life all these years? Because we're talking 30 years, right?
Geri Jewell:
We're talking more than that.
Steve Kmetko:
Okay. You talk it. I'll listen. More than 30 years.
Geri Jewell:
Well, also, and I will never know the whole story. I will never know exactly why Facts of Life didn't bring me back. But there were only guesses. But one of the things that followed me was that I was gay. And truthfully, I was, but I was a baby. I didn't-- you know I really didn't know what I was, I mean, I was like, okay. But I never flaunted it. I never came out. And I think a part of my struggle during those years was I was getting so much pressure to come out of the closet and I wasn't willing. And like I said, I didn't flaunt it, but apparently that could have been one of the reasons why Facts of Life. Let me go.
Steve Kmetko:
It could be. It could be. I'll let you in on a secret. I'm gay too.
Geri Jewell:
Okay.
Steve Kmetko:
And there were, I lost a job because I was gay. I had a, a general manager at his station says, you know, you better start looking for a new job because you're not going any further here. And, well, at least he was upfront with me about it. But it's, and you have cerebral palsy on top of it. I mean, are there enough? You know, does God have to put so many hurdles in our path?
Geri Jewell:
I don't think it's a matter of God putting so many hurdles in my path. I think it was a spiritual choice that I took before I even came into the world. And knowing how my brain works, that doesn't surprise me. Oh, I'll take the gay, I'll take the CP, I'll take the hearing impaired. Let's see, what else? Just give it out. Because truthfully, I wanted to get it all done in one life. I didn't want to keep coming back for every individual.
Steve Kmetko:
I see. So, the next time you come back, everything will be taken care of, huh?
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. I've done that in there.
Steve Kmetko:
Good for you. How do you keep a such a positive attitude?
Geri Jewell:
Because I've always been spiritually grounded. When I go through anything, you know what I think it also has to do with, I came into the world because of a traumatic birth. My mother was six months pregnant with me, and she was sitting on the front porch in New York, and a driver came around the corner going too fast, lost control of the car, ran up my parents' front lawn, dropped knocked over the maple tree, and my mom ran to escape the tree, which landed on the porch where she was sitting. And when she ran, she fell and the water sack broke. And she was rest to the hospital hemorrhaging. And I was born three months too early. And I was put into an incubator for the first three months of my life. And back then they believed that preemie babies couldn't be humanly touched. So, I wasn't even physically touched. For three months, I was just in this little box with windows everywhere, and probably some maintenance guy came in at night in Windex.
Steve Kmetko:
Maybe!
Geri Jewell:
And I was in that incubator for so long that they decided not to put my full name on the incubator. They just put, they put precious Jewell.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh, that's sweet.
Geri Jewell:
And I wasn't expected to live they had an emergency baptism at 4 AM o'clock in the morning. Come on, your baby's not going to live to see another sunrise. So, they did that. I had a blood transfusion, which I needed, and then a nurse. Now this is the irony. One nurse did handle me with her bare hands. She gave me pneumonia. So, on top of the head injury on top of, I had a slight crack in my lower back from the fall. Cerebral palsy, obviously, nobody knew it then. I was just three pounds and I battle pneumonia. And the way I see it is, is that if you're going to come into the world with that much fight in you to live in spite of everything that's going on around you, which could destroy your life, you are going to be a very pretty strong human being. And I've been strong from the day I came into the world.
Steve Kmetko:
When you look forward at the rest of your life, what do you see?
Geri Jewell:
It's challenging because now I have other issues with aging. Walking isn't as easy as it used to be, you know?
Steve Kmetko:
I understand that.
Geri Jewell:
I mean, I always had a certain gait, but my balance is not near as good. My hearing is impaired even more. And I get very, very frustrated. I also what a lot of people don't know. Yes, I broke my neck in 1999 and I had to have emergency neck surgery from C-1 to C-7. My neck is now 45% titanium, and it's pretty strong. But the Cerebral Palsy still wants to move my head all over the place and my neck is going, no, I can't do that. So, I have that issue and I just have to pace myself, do what I have to do. Hopefully my medical insurance won't run out. I get Botox. I get two vials of Botox injected in my neck and shoulders every three months for chronic pain because my head is cons. The hardware is constantly being pushed. I have dystonia, which I always had, but I never realized it, which is pulling to one side with the neck is pulled to one side. I never knew it. But now that I have a titanium neck. I know when the Botox is going off because it's pulling even farther. So, I have a lot of issues. But so does everybody else when they age.
Steve Kmetko:
Well, I must say your neck is very smooth. I don't see a wrinkle on it.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. I have the neck of a 12-year-old. Yes, I do.
Steve Kmetko:
You have a good sense of humor too.
Geri Jewell:
I'm very blessed. I mean, how can I be All the challenges that I've had, that everybody has in life, it's a sense of humor that's going to get us through it. Because if I couldn't laugh within a while, I'd be in a loony bed. I have to laugh. You have to
Steve Kmetko:
Back with more in a moment!
Do you realize how groundbreaking your role was on Facts of Life?
Geri Jewell:
I'm beginning to understand that now. I didn't at the time. I was too young to understand any impact at all. I was just a kid. And what has given me a lot of joy is in the last year or so, I reunited with Lisa Whelchel.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh!
Geri Jewell:
And we're very, very close to this day. And it's so nice having a relationship with her as an adult. Because when I was on the show, believe it or not, we were roommates, we were roommates for a year. She just decided, hey, you want to be my roommate? Well, okay. And then we went separate ways, you know, after fact, she got married. I got married. I know, I did it too. And when we lost track of one another until the TV Land Awards, and that's when I realized my impact was in 2012 when I was invited to do the TV land award with all the girls in Charlotte Ray. I mean, why me? I wasn't a regular-- you know, I was a semi-regular.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah. But you made an impact.
Geri Jewell:
That's what I'm saying. That's when I realized, oh wow. I guess I really am a part of this show.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah. People knew who you were. How did your role in Deadwood come about?
Geri Jewell:
Oh, that was amazing like I told you, I broke my neck.
Steve Kmetko:
Right.
Geri Jewell:
And I was living with my sister Gloria at the time in Laguna Beach. She was taking care of me because I was in the hospital for a month. And then my insurance ran off, ran out, and they wanted to put me in a nursing home. And Gloria said, absolutely not. So, she got handrails, put in the shower, got her home all prepared for me, and took me in and took care of me for five years. And I learned how to walk again. See, I had to learn how to walk without that gay. That gay as much as it was not normal, it was my normal, it would, it's what gave me balance. And you take that away. How do I balance myself? I still struggle with it because I learned how to walk totally differently. And Gloria made me renew my driver's license. I said, what she just fakes it. They'll never Come on, Julia, you're an actress. You can do it. I can't drive you everywhere for the rest of your life. And I did, I got my driver's license and--
Steve Kmetko:
Good for you!
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. And I drove up to LA to get my Botox.
Steve Kmetko:
For your smooth neck?
Geri Jewell:
Yes. For the, for this neck. And I was in so much pain that morning because I had no Botox in me whatsoever. The pain level was through the roof. I was in so much pain. I couldn't even get dressed. I couldn't button any buttons. Could it hurt to even move my arms? So, I thought, oh, it's just, nobody's going to recognize me at eight 30 in the morning. I'll just go in my pajamas. And I did.
Steve Kmetko:
And did anyone recognize you?
Geri Jewell:
Well, what happened was, it was only eight 30 in the morning, and I'm standing in line at the pharmacy and this man in front of me turned around and he's so excited. Oh my God. And I didn't even want to admit I was who I was, because I looked like that morning.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh, well we have those days.
Geri Jewell:
And I said, yeah, yeah. He goes; I love you. I have followed your career since day one. Oh my God, you've inspired me. You've made me laugh, but I haven't seen you on TV in a long, long time. What are you doing with your life now? I said, Botox. And he said, no, seriously. And I said, seriously, seriously. I'm doing Botox. And he said you want a television series? I said, wait a minute. Wait a minute. This isn't a casting office.
Steve Kmetko:
This is going too fast.
Geri Jewell:
This is a pharmacy and it's really not nice to play with someone mine in a pharmacy. And he laughs. And he said, in case you don't recognize me, Geri, my name is David Milch, do executive producer of NYPD Blue. He said, yep. And I said, well, Mr. Milch, I'm flattered that you love my work and that I've made you laugh and inspire you. And, but I make a real cop. He said, no, no, no, no. I just signed a contract with HBO last week. I'm doing a new series called Deadwood. It's a western, you want to do a western? And I looked up as far as my titanium neck would let me. And I said out loud, I said, God, you have a quirky sense of humor. I'm standing here with cerebral palsy, a titanium neck, depending on Botox. And David Milch wants me to ride a horse. And he asked the woman behind the counter if she had a piece of paper, and she handed him a prescription pad for an antidepressant. And he wrote his phone number on a prescription for an antidepressant which is kind of poetic.
Steve Kmetko:
Yes. Yes.
Geri Jewell:
And he told me to call him. And the rest was history. I was the first person cast even before Ian McShane.
Steve Kmetko:
Good for you. Good for you. I can see why people are drawn to you. You have a very magnetic personality and one that puts you at ease, puts people at ease.
Geri Jewell:
Oh, thank you!
Steve Kmetko:
How did your standup comedy help educate audiences?
Geri Jewell:
Well, of course I educate audiences through humor. I always have. And if you notice, there's a lot of comedians with Cerebral Palsy today. There's a lot of them out there. And I didn't make fun of people with disabilities. I made fun of our reactions to disability. Now interestingly, when I started doing standup I was in college at the time and I was really bummed out. Because I was flunking anatomy and physiology. I flunked algebra twice. And I knew that my parents didn't have money. And I knew that I had to graduate. I had to do something with my life because what else was I going to do? And I was in the Disabled Student services at Fullerton College. And my friend Alex Ash was sitting there and he said, God, you're really depressed today. And I said, yeah, I am. And he goes, why? And I said, well, because, because I'm flunking algebra again, and I flunked anatomy and physiology and I really don't even want to be here. And he says, then why are you here? And I said, well, because the state of California is paying for my education.
It's the only way that I can get an education, but you're not happy. And I said, true. Well, what do you want to do? I want to be in show business. I want to be an actress. I want to be a comedic actress. I want to be a writer. He said, well, why don't you do what I do? Well, what do you do? I go to the comedy store every week and tell blind jokes. I said, Alex, that may work for you because you're blind. I said, but I don't know if you realize, but I see perfectly fine. And he said, no dinky face. You go on stage and you tell Cerebral Palsy jokes. And he was my coach. He helped me write my first routine. And he didn't drive me up to all, obviously I never would've gotten there. But his friend, our friend--
Steve Kmetko:
Obviously, yes.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. John Hilton was his driver. And he drove us up to LA and Alex wanted me to meet Danny Moore, who ran the original room at the comedy store. And so, he introduces me to Danny and Danny's like, whoa, Cheral pal. And Alex is going, oh, come on Danny. She's funny. Yeah, I know I listen Geri, I'm going to do you a favor. And I said, what? I don't want you to come every Monday night and stand in line, and you might get a spot. You might not, you put your name in a hat. I'm not going to put you through that. Also, I don't want Mitzi Shore, the owner of the comedy store to know that you're performing in her club. And I said, why? And he explained it to me. He said, she might not have a problem with it, but then she might. And I want to see you totally polished before Mitzi ever realized you're performing in a club. So, what I want you to do is come to the comedy store every Monday night around 11:30 PM, midnight, knock on the back door and tell them to tell Danny that Geri is here and I'll know what to do. And as soon as Mitzi leaves the room, I'll bring you on stage.
Steve Kmetko:
You had someone on your side.
Geri Jewell:
Oh, tell me about it. And not only that, but I had Alex as the coach, and he told me, he said, whatever you do, don't just tell Cerebral Palsy jokes because a lot of people are not going to understand it. And you won't sustain longevity. You can use Cerebral Palsy, but be educated. Read the newspaper, see what's going on in the world. Bring the whole audience with you.
Steve Kmetko:
So, tell me, Jewell, do you remember Geri, do you remember a joke from your first
Geri Jewell:
Yeah, that's what I'm coming to.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh, okay. Okay. I jumped ahead. Sorry.
Geri Jewell:
That is what I'm coming to. This is important because I knocked on the door the first time I ever performed. I was so nervous. You have no idea.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh, I have an idea.
Geri Jewell:
And, and Mitzi left the room. So, Danny ran up on stage and he told the, he's whispering in the Mascara, he said, don't introduce the next comic. Introduce Geri from Orange County right now, right now, introduce Geri. And because he said, let's give a big hand for this next comedian, Geri Jewell from Orange County. And they all applaud. I get up on stage, you can hear a pin drop. It was so quiet. People were staring at me and I'm hearing impaired. And I could hear the murmurs, I could say because they assumed that I was a he, because he said, Geri, they don't automatically think female. They think J-E-R-L-Y.
Steve Kmetko:
Right.
Geri Jewell:
And so, they're going like, oh my God, that's it. That's a he. And if it is a he, he's really *** up. And I went up on stage and my first thing out of my mouth was, I say, I don't know about you people, but I've heard an awful lot about the gay that have been coming out the closet lately. And it got even quieter. But what you haven't heard about is all of the terrible palsy people that have been coming out of the closet. But don't tell anybody about me, and especially, don't let Anita Bryant know about me, because she could get on another bandwagon and she'll go all over the country and say, we must stop these people with cerebral palsy from teaching in our public schools. They will influence our children. And before you know it, all our children will be moving like this.
I ended up getting a standing ovation. And what I realized at that point in time, I didn't know about sexuality at all. I barely passed human sexuality in college. I didn't know what being gay was. I didn't know. I was so young. The reason I chose that joke wasn't because I was saying I'm gay. It was because Anita Bryant was in the headlines and Alex told me to read the paper. But looking back on it, in retrospect, I think unconsciously I did know, and unconsciously I said opposite. In other words, you know that t-shirt that I had made that said, I don't have Cerebral Palsy, I'm drunk.
Steve Kmetko:
No, I'm sorry. I don't remember that.
Geri Jewell:
Well, that was also that night I opened up my shirt and said, I don't have Elbow Palsy. I'm drunk. You know, this cost 30 cents a letter. Wish I had Polio would be a hell of a lot cheaper. Again, I flipped it. What I did was say, I have Cerebral Palsy without saying, just like I said, I was gay without saying, I think there was a higher self that was walking through the child in me at the time, guiding me.
Steve Kmetko:
If you don't mind my asking, you got married?
Geri Jewell:
Yes.
Steve Kmetko:
To a man.
Geri Jewell:
I did.
Steve Kmetko:
How did the divorce happen? Did you just come to your senses or?
Geri Jewell:
No. I mean, yes. I mean; to tell you the truth, I am also a survivor of sexual abuse. And I was abused by both male and female during my fact life use. So, I would say the sexuality part of my growth was shut down completely from all the abuse that I had been through. And here I am trying to make it in Hollywood where you can't be openly gay. And Richard walked into my life. I looked up to him, idolized him. He loved me, but I didn't marry him because I was either Straight or Gay or Bi. I married him in all honesty, because he loved me and I believed he wouldn't hurt me like I'd been hurt before. And that was worth it to me.
Steve Kmetko:
And that was the case?
Geri Jewell:
Pardon?
Steve Kmetko:
That was the case?
Geri Jewell:
Yeah. And he promised me that I could have a baby. See, that was my next goal. I thought, okay, if I can't make it in Hollywood, I'll forget about Hollywood and I'll become a mother because to this day, I've always wanted a child. I still do.
It's never going to happen. But in a nutshell-- you know, I would believe it or not, I was with Richard for 12 years, married 10, and he did not live up to his promise of allowing me to have a child. And he became, our relationship was very difficult. And it ended. And then a year after I left Richard, I broke my neck.
Steve Kmetko:
I'm sorry.
Geri Jewell:
So, the only mistake I made in leaving him was tell-- it was a wimpy way to do it. But instead of saying, the marriage has ended because I'm tired of the way you treat me, what you, you know the truth, I'm gay. It was an easy out he, but I told him that from day one that I had relationship with women. So, it wasn't anything earth shattering new. And I should have never given him that out because I never left him for anyone, man or woman or giraffe. I just left him because it was miserable. And--
Steve Kmetko:
Are you still in touch with him?
Geri Jewell:
No.
Steve Kmetko:
Oh, no.
Geri Jewell:
No. In fact, he remarried, had another child. He had two children before me, with two other wives. And I was heartbroken that he could give the next wife a child something that he knew I wanted so badly. And the only thing he could say to me was, the reason he didn't have a child with me was because he was afraid that I would have the child and leave him. And that's not even me. I wouldn't have done that. So, whatever.
Steve Kmetko:
Yeah, whatever. Tell me about your book, Geri's Jewels and Gems.
Geri Jewell:
That is a collaboration of articles that I wrote for Ability Magazine over the years. And I asked the editor if I could make it into a book, just put them on the book with fun photographs. And he gave me permission to do that. And a good friend of mine, who, his name is Dr. Randall Bell (Dr. Randall C. Bell, MD). I think the hardest thing that I have ever been through to this day out of everything that I had been through was my sister death in 2017, Gloria.
Steve Kmetko:
Was she the one you lived with for a while?
Geri Jewell:
Yes. And we were like this, we were so close. And Randall Bell went to high school with me and Gloria, but he was Gloria's age, not mine. He was more her friend, and they were close. And when Gloria passed, he took me under his wing and a way he really did. He’s been a phenomenal friend to me to this day, and he published my book for me. He said, I'll do it. We're going to get this done. And the wonderful thing about that book is, is that I called Norman Lear and I said, Norman, I said, I have a new book. Can I show it to you? And he said, well, come on over to the house, come on over right now. So, Randy and I went to his home and Dustin Hoffman was there with him. So, we spent two hours with Dustin Hoffman and Norman Lear, and it was the most amazing afternoon.
And I showed Norman the book, and I said, I know that you're really busy and you have a lot on your plate, but I was wondering if you could write the fold for my book. It's going to be a coffee table book, Norman. And he said, but what if they don't have a coffee table? Then what? And, Dustin laughed and I laughed, oh, come on Norman. He goes, of course I'll write the forward for you. And that was his last gift that he gave me. He wrote that forward at age a hundred, and he passed two months later. And that was his final gift to me, was to write that forward. And there's a lot of stuff in there about my sister Gloria. There's even a photo of her German Shepherd Kayah that I put in there. So, it's a-- this book is Total Love all the way around it.
And I have to read it, reread it sometimes, because the world we're living in right now is so hostile and so depressing and so negative that if we don't see the positive, like there's a section in my book about my sister about loss, the painful loss. And I explained that you have to remember the good things to move forward. And one of the stories that I write in that book is, and it's a true story, and you know, because you just saw my hearing aids go off, but I'm in a sax fifth Avenue looking for a gown for a celebrity event. And I'm in a lot of pain and there's no place to sit. So, I just plop myself on the, on the cement and the gown department. And their people are looking at me like, wow, there's something wrong with this woman.
And Gloria calls me on my phone as I'm sitting there, I don't have to pick up the phone because it goes right to my hearing aid. So, my phone is in my purse, and I just press a button in the purse, hi. And I'm having this conversation with her. Everybody thinks that I'm talking to someone that isn't there. And, the security guard comes over to me, he says, ma'am, you have to get up. You can't sit there. You have to move. And Gloria can hear him, but he can't hear her. And she says to me, tell him to go *** him. And I said, Gloria, I can't say that to him, Geri, you are so compliant. You do everything everybody tells you to do. Stop being an adult. You're talking to me now. So, I said, so I looked up at him and I said, Sir, Gloria said, I don't help them.
Steve Kmetko:
That's what you said.
Geri Jewell:
Yes.
Steve Kmetko:
You didn't quote her verbatim.
Geri Jewell:):
No, no, no, no, no. Are you kidding?
Steve Kmetko:
I understand you wrote Carol Burnett when you were young.
Geri Jewell:
I did. I wrote her several times as a kid and she always wrote me back. I think I started writing her when I was about 12, and she always wrote me back and she said, you know, I told her that when I grew up, I wanted to be like her. I want to be a comedian. I want to make people laugh and feel good. And by the way, I have Cerebral Palsy. What are my aunts? And she wrote me back. And every letter that I ever received from her was always the same. She said, go for it. Get into acting in every capacity. She told me there were no guarantees that it would become professional. There's no guarantees in life, period. The important thing is to put out the effort and to try, because nobody will know what they can do unless they try. That was very powerful coming from Girl Benet as a kid.
Steve Kmetko:
Yes, I would think so.
Geri Jewell:
Yeah.
Steve Kmetko:
We have a few Patreon subscribers. I don't know if you're familiar with them, but it's kind of like online. People write in and we in turn relay the questions to you. What did you do once Facts of Life Ended? That's a question from Just Jules. Did you stay in touch with the cast?
Geri Jewell:
I stayed in touch with Lisa for a while up until she moved to Texas. So, I was never really close to the others except Charlotte. I was close to Charlotte Ray, but we couldn't, like, you can't call up Charlotte. Hey, go to a movie. You know, there was a big age difference. And I was the oldest of all those girls. Don't forget, I was 23 when I was cast on fact of life. Lisa was 18 and the other girls were 16, 14. There was a big age gap back then.
Steve Kmetko:
But you looked younger.
Geri Jewell:
I know. And I act younger.
Steve Kmetko:
We have another Patreon subscriber who writes to us. There are certain shows that change the way people are the public perceives. What some perceive as issues, for example, how Will and Grace helped normalize the gay community. Are you with me?
Geri Jewell:
I'm with you.
Steve Kmetko:
Okay. Do you feel that your role in Facts of life changed the perception of the disabled?
Geri Jewell:
Well, of course it did. It put me right out there so people could see me. Absolutely. And I think one of the most memorable roles that I've ever done was, I love Liberty, which was in 1982, and there were 25,000 people in the audience that night.
Steve Kmetko:
Wow!
Geri Jewell:
And Norman Lear cast me in that also. And that was while I was on vax. And in this show called I Love Liberty, I had to walk up three flights of stairs on crutches. And that was my idea, to use the crutches, be that's how my self-esteem. I didn't think I looked like I had silver poverty. I'm not disabled enough for this. Well, Norman, give me crutches. He said, alright, if you insist.
Steve Kmetko:
All right; we'll give you crutches.
Geri Jewell:
So, I'm walking up on stage, went into a comedy routine in front of 25,000 people. Nobody laughed. 25,000 people were staring at me. And I tried so hard. I went into another bit. Nobody laughed. So, I dropped the crutches on the stage and I had tears in my eyes and I said, you know I think I need help really bad. Norman Lear came running up on the stage. He's holding me in his arm. He thought that I was having a nervous breakdown, because when you're nervous and CP you have more movement. He was trying to hold me still. And he goes, are you all, right? And I said, and I backed him up. And this is in front of 25,000 people. Mind you, I backed him up and I said, Norman, I'm fine, but your material sucks. And he puts his hand on my shoulders. He said, Geri, read my lips. Your mic wasn't on. And everybody thought that he was going to walk me off stage and I was going to be cut from the show. He turned around, put his hand, put his arms around my shoulders, and said, how many people out there want to give this girl a second chance? And they stood up and gave me a second chance, gave me a standing ovation, and I was allowed to do it again, and I stayed in the show.
Steve Kmetko:
Great. That's a nice story. I have one more to ask you about and that's the play
Geri Jewell:
Yes.
Steve Kmetko:
That you have coming up.
Geri Jewell:
I'm doing a reading of a play called Mary Jane, and it's going to be in West Hollywood. It's sold out, but you can still call in and donate to the cause because it goes to people with disabilities who have lost their homes and the fires. And there's a lot of people that need help. So, it's a total fundraiser. And when they emailed me the play, I had tears in my eyes because I'm playing two roles. I'm playing a superintendent of Mary Jane at the beginning of the play, and at the end I'm playing a Buddhist Nun. And what is amazing to me is that in both parts, there's reference to someone dying of cancer. The superintendent explains that her sister and it, none, none of the lines were chains. I lost a sister to cancer, which I really did. And I thought, oh my God. And then when I was switched over to the Buddhist Nun, there was another part in that character where I say, I noticed that your son had a goldfish. Yes. He loves goldfish, and we named her Gloria. So, it's as if Gloria's hand is coming through the heavens and saying, you have to do this play. I mean, again, if you get out of your own way and just allow a higher energy vibration to go through, to walk through you.
Steve Kmetko:
Right!
Geri Jewell:
It's amazing what your life can turn out. What are the odds of that?
Steve Kmetko:
I don't know.
Geri Jewell:
So, I know it's Gloria. Gloria saying I'm still with you.
Steve Kmetko:
Thank you, Geri. I really enjoyed sitting and talking and listening to you today.
Geri Jewell:
Oh, thank you.
Steve Kmetko:
You're very inspiring. And I don't mean that in a Schnulte kind of way.
Geri Jewell:
Oh, I know you don't. I know the difference.
Steve Kmetko:
Okay, good.
Geri Jewell:
I know you don't.
Steve Kmetko:
I lost three sisters.
Geri Jewell:
Okay.
Steve Kmetko:
One of whom was severely handicapped.
Geri Jewell:
Okay.
Steve Kmetko:
Disabled! So, I can relate.
Geri Jewell:
You know, you've been there.
Steve Kmetko:
Yep. Thank you.
Geri Jewell:
You're very welcome. Thank you for having me.
Steve Kmetko:
Still Here Hollywood is a production of the Still Here Network. All things technical run by Justin Zangerle. Theme Music by Brian Sanyshyn and executive producer is Jim Lichtenstein.