Consider Your Ass Kissed is Ruta Lee’s new memoir. She’ll be in Fort Worth at Casa Manana on Sunday, Nov. 14, from 4-7 p.m. for a book signing.
Why Casa Manana?
Fifty years of connection to Casa. She last appeared at the Fort Worth theater in Steel Magnolias a few years ago, but has appeared there in The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, South Pacific, Hello Dolly and Mame. In fact, over a 50 year period, she’s appeared in so many shows at Casa Manana, she’s not sure how many times she’s been here. But it’s been enough that she thinks of Fort Worth and the DFW area as a second home.
Lee starred in the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, appeared on every major TV show in the 50s (Superman, Alfred Hitchcock Presents), 60s (five times on Perry Mason including once as the obviously not guilty defendant and once as the murderer who confesses ast the last minute) and beyond (The Love Boat, Mork & Mindy, Roseanne) and co-hosted the game show High Rollers with Alex Trebek for two years.
Lee has always embraced the LGBT community and talks about that in her book.
And she discusses how she made international news when she convinced Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev to release her 90-year-old grandmother from Lithuania.
Tough as nails but what you really need to know about Ruta Lee is what a big heart she has. Along with Debbie Reynolds, she founded and raises money for The Thalians to provide mental health services for youth. She’s served as president or chair for more than 45 years.
Jayne Mansfield and Mamie van Doren attended an organizing meeting for The Thalians, Lee said. They left with the task of finding a cause for their fundraising efforts but returned with the news that “all the good diseases were taken.” But they had met a doctor beginning to do some work on children’s mental health.
So The Thalians helped build a new clinic at Cedars Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles.
Today, The Thalians continue to fund mental health projects including working with soldiers who’ve returned from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan with PTSD and other injuries, filling what Lee called an unfilled need.
“I’ve been blessed so many ways in my life,” Lee said. “Those of us who can take care of ourselves need to take care of others.”
To everyone who’s ever donated to her fundraising efforts, Lee said, “Consider your ass kissed.” And for those who’d rather have their assed kissed in person, she said, come meet her at Casa Manana on Sunday anytime between 4 and 7 p.m.
And listen to her live on Lambda Weekly on Sunday, Nov.14, at 1 p.m. on 89.3 KNON-fm.
— David Taffet
