About Angie Dickinson

 I hope she's surrounded by friends, friends who present her with a lovely, festive cake. Today, September 30th, is the birthday of Angie Dickinson. She's 90 today. As an actress, maybe she didn't have the range of Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, Cicely Tyson, Jane Fonda or Meryl Streep -- but I sure did love watching her on the TV and movie screen. She was a babe and there was no pretense about her acting. It was straight-forward, smart and her characters had an unforced sexiness. She was the  down-to-earth gal who was a match for the guys. She could play the game as well as they could. Often, even better.  

 That's why she's so perfect opposite John Wayne in RIO BRAVO and with Frank Sinatra in the original OCEAN'S 11. She held her own in scenes with Marlon Brando in THE CHASE. I liked so much when I was a kid that I got mad at Ronald Reagan when he, as a bad guy, slapped her in THE KILLERS. (That was not the only time in my life that I'd be mad at Ronald Reagan.)

In the 70s, when Angie Dickinson played undercover cop "Pepper" Anderson on POLICE WOMAN, that NBC series immediately became Must-See TV for me.

I started my professional TV career at Milwaukee's ABC affiliate, WISN, in September 1979. I worked part-time on the city's edition of a syndicated show called PM MAGAZINE. I was the movie reviewer on the Friday shows. My executive producer liked my work. She gave me the opportunity to do entertainment interviews which, for me, was a dream come true. For my first trip to New York City for a weekend -- a working weekend -- I had the chance to interview Angie Dickinson in the Plaza Hotel when she was promoting her 1980 film, DRESSED TO KILL.

The movie was pretty good but, honestly, I loved meeting her more than I loved the film. She was that engaging down-to-earth babe in real life. Vivacious, warm, sharp and sexy. She gave me a great interview. At one point, I wanted to confirm something, so I asked "Are you still married to Burt Bacharach?"

She looked at with a quizzical expression on her face. Then looked at the camera crew and, in a somewhat baffled tone, replied, "I'm not...sure."

And then we all broke up laughing. That's when this photo was snapped.

What a fabulous trip to New York City that was. Back in 2016, I was in Los Angeles and on my way to meet friends for dinner. I spotted her in the lobby of the hotel. She was in conservation with a couple of people. I glanced over and, when I caught her eye, I smiled. She gave me a charming smile in return. Angie Dickinson.. What a cool dame.