Even though much has changed in Hollywood in the last 100 years, something that has, unfortunately, withstood the test of time is how an actress should look.
“The Nanny” actress and award-winning writer Renée Taylor, 92, knows a thing or two about that. Ever since her start in the business, which included coming out to Palm Springs when it was just a “sleepy little town,” she used to think that if she ate like a star, she could look and live like one. That led her down quite the diet journey with tips from some of the most gorgeous and legendary starlets, including Marilyn Monroe and Grace Kelly. She has even called herself a “diet junkie.”
Though Taylor admitted in a recent interview with The Desert Sun that that journey led to very complicated feelings about her body, today she’s able to poke fun at it. She’ll do just that at her one-woman Plaza Theatre show, “Renée Taylor: My Life on a Diet,” which is scheduled for Wednesday, March 18.
Taylor, a new desert dweller who will turn 93 the day after the show, spoke with The Desert Sun about her time in Palm Springs, some of the craziest diet fads she’s tried and how she’s come to accept who she is, no matter how she looks. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Desert Sun: You’ve had a long history with Palm Springs. What are your favorite things about the desert?
Renée Taylor: When I was 24 and I came out here to do a movie with Jerry Lewis, ‘The Errand Boy,’ I was a standup comedian. I had an engagement at the Racquet Club, which was built by (actors) Charles Farrell and Ralph Bellamy, and that was like 70 years ago. I only came when I was making a Hollywood movie, and now I’m living here 70 years later. It was just a sleepy little town then. It was so exciting because these people were so exciting.
I was also in class with Marilyn Monroe, so it was very exciting now to see the statue of her here. She would have loved it. On June 1, I’m going to be in (the Marilyn Monroe lookalike event). … I met her in class and what a wonderful girl she was, she was very inspiring to me. She was so vulnerable.
DS: Throughout your career, and specifically as you were starting out, who were the actors who inspired you?
RT: Grace Kelly, I talk about her in the show, Marlon Brando. I was in (acting coach) Lee Strasberg’s class, so I got to meet all the greats. I was just very inspired by them being in class with me. (Marilyn) would call somebody, and she was a big star, she would ask them to do a scene with her. She’d say, ‘This is Marilyn from class, I sit behind you. Would you do a scene with me?’
DS: You’ll be performing at the newly opened Plaza Theatre. Have you been able to see a show in there?
RT: Yes, I saw Debbie (Wileman), who imitates Judy Garland there. She was incredible. And the theater is just remarkably beautiful.
DS: Pivoting to your show, it’s interesting to see how, like today, there was this idea of the ‘perfect Hollywood star,’ and that sadly you had to be so thin to make it. I know you’re able to make light of it today, but how has your relationship with body image changed over time?
RT: After I was on ‘The Nanny,’ people came up to me. I really saw that people didn’t care what weight I was. They just enjoyed the laughter.
I used to say to my husband, ‘Do you mind what weight I am?’ And he’d say, “no, but I just want, when we’re dancing, that you’re light enough that I can dip you.’ That was my rule of thumb. We were married for 52 years, and I have to say that he loved me no matter what my weight was.
DS: How did you find that acceptance within yourself?
RT: It came from him, and it came (‘The Nanny’) because my character was always eating cake.
DS: What are some of the ridiculous weight loss tips or trends that you’ve tried in your lifetime?
RT: The most ridiculous ones were the champagne diet, where you have to drink two glasses of champagne for each meal. My husband would say, ‘You can’t walk around with champagne, darling,’ and I’d say, ‘Please, it’s my diet, don’t take it away from me!’ I became a drunk from that and I had to go to Alcoholics Anonymous from that diet.
Another one was the protein diet. You have like three ounces of protein, three times a day, and people died from it. I got off that because that wasn’t enough to eat. I did a lot of fasting, I did amphetamine, I did all the things you shouldn’t do and I’m lucky I’m still alive.
DS: Are there any diets you follow today or are you letting it all happen naturally?
RT: I’m a vegetarian except when I have to have a steak. The best steakhouse is at Agua Caliente.
DS: You’re going to turn 93 the day after the show. Is there anything on your birthday to-do list?
RT: Right down the road from where I live is the Smoke Tree Stables. I want to do horse therapy for my birthday. You get to love a horse and a horse loves you there.
If you go
What: “Renée Taylor: My Life on a Diet”
When: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 18
Where: Plaza Theatre, 128 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Palm Springs
Cost: Starting at $84
More info: palmspringsplazatheatre.com/events/detail/renee-taylor-my-life-on-a-diet
Ema Sasic covers entertainment and health in the Coachella Valley. Reach her at ema.sasic@desertsun.com or on Twitter @ema_sasic.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: ‘The Nanny’ star Renée Taylor on Marilyn Monroe, diet fads ahead of Palm Springs show
Reporting by Ema Sasic, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
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