When in Rome

My parents loved films from the Hollywood Golden Age and I grew up watching a lot of movies from this era.  Bill Collins, the Australian film enthusiast and host of ‘The Golden Years of Hollywood’, was a regular Saturday night fixture on our TV screens as he introduced viewers to classic after classic.

Mum and I shared a mutual appreciation of great actresses – our fondness for Marilyn Monroe, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Lauren Bacall, Audrey Hepburn and Vivien Leigh to name a few.  My admiration of female acting talent continues to the present day of course (Kate Winslet, Meryl Streep, Judi Dench, Julianne Moore, Naomi Watts to list a handful).

I was a kid when I first saw the 1940s film: ‘Mildred Pierce’ starring Joan Crawford.  I’ve seen it several times since and when Kate Winslet and Guy Pearce came together for the HBO remake I was excited beyond belief (and not disappointed with its result).

But there’s something special about an original – especially a film you’ve loved from your childhood (Wizard of Oz/Grease/Oliver anyone?).

There’s a memorable scene in Mildred Pierce, which is set during the Great Depression, where Mildred spends her day pounding the pavement looking for work. Mildred’s despair and desperation at her dire predicament is clear.  

Digress to Julie Andrews in ‘Victor Victoria’ (also set in the 1930s) when her character is so skint she tries the ‘cockroach in my salad’ approach to skip on paying for dinner (from memory it doesn’t work and she ends up having to wash the dishes).

Such scenes stick – intelligent, talented and capable women who are thrown to the curb but inevitably make their way out.

I’ve been on the job hunt in Los Angeles for a month now.  

Most of my days are spent on the professional networking site Linkedin.  I've built more than 1500 contacts through this channel and with each valuable ‘connection’ I'll personalise a message that relates to my job search.

I’ve met a handful of PR people and continue to schedule meetings through Linkedin but there comes a point when it’s time to branch out and try other means.

My roomie (flatmate) has been saying for a while now that I should just 'show up' (something I’ve resisted because ‘showing up’ at company offices unsolicited is not the way it’s done in Australia).

But when a Melbourne friend and mentor who has spent a lot of time in LA repeated the same mantra, I decided it was time to channel my inner Mildred. 

And what comes of Mildred and her door-to-door job search?  

After an exhaustive day of endless rejection and subsequent blistered feet, Mildred takes respite in a coffee shop.

And it is here where she hadn’t been looking, that she finds work.

Photo: A scene from Mildred Pierce, in Mildred's restaurant.