All this uproar! My God, it's only a TV show (PEOPLE, July 14)!
Brian Evans
North Platte, Nebr.
Why all the excitement about a silly soap opera? As a schoolteacher, I think I know the answer. Besides the fact that Larry Hagman is an actor who has paid his dues, it's going to be a long, hot summer, and most of what we read in the newspaper makes us sorry we read it. The American people were ready for tongue-in-cheek tragedy. Right on, Lorimar Productions!
Martha Pritchett
Lake Wales, Fla.
Your readers' survey is great. I'm looking forward to the outcome.
Lisa Grilz
Frontenac, Kans.
Ballots are gushing in at the rate of 14,000 a week. For the results stay tuned.—ED.
Who cares who shot J.R.? We have a more serious crisis on our hands. What happened to Jessica Tate on Soap? Will she live?
Michael Silva
Great Falls, Mont.
Jessica has gone to her eternal reward, says an ABC spokesman. But Katherine Helmond will return in the first fall episode to meet Beatrice Arthur, who plays the angel assigned to guide Jessica toward the Pearly Gates.—ED.
Nadine Liebling
Your excellent article on Nadine Liebling and her frustration in trying to get the FBI to assist in locating her kidnapped child is typical of thousands of current cases. Happily, the situation is improving. Throughout the country, district attorneys are forming specialized parental kidnapping units with extraordinary success. For example, in Rochester, N.Y. and in Milwaukee, more than 90 percent of children kidnapped by noncustodial parents have been returned home.
Harold H. Miltsch
Stop Parental Kidnaping, Inc.
Rochester, N.Y.
Chances are that fathers do the majority of the kidnapping. Why? The judge rules the wife has custody of the children. She gets the house, car, child support and, God forbid, sometimes alimony. The father gets the bills and weekly visitation rights. Why not grab the kid and run?
Mrs. P. LaRue
Dallas
Ultramarathoners
Congratulations on your accurate account of the ultimate human endurance test. These athletes train several years for this race, and daily runs from 25 to 75 miles of mountains and canyons are not unusual. Exhaustion, dehydration, vomiting and most injuries will not halt them. They stop only when their bodies will not go another step.
Gary Towle, M.D.
Asst. Medical Director
Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run
Fair Oaks, Calif.
What a shame so much emphasis was given to the "100-miler" casualties instead of to those who met this unbelievable challenge and finished well. No mention was made of Bjorg Austrheim-Smith who finished second among the women by a mere 2:11.
Judy Walker
Sacramento
Austrheim-Smith, 37, a housewife and mother from Sacramento, has run 11 marathons, including the Boston, since she began four years ago. "A marathon now seems like a drop in the bucket, "says Austrheim-Smith after her first 100.—ED.
Eddie Rabbitt
I'm glad Eddie Rabbitt's talent as both a performer and a songwriter is finally being recognized. A lot of folks are hearing his music now, ever since the crossover hit Every Which Way but Loose. They're gonna like him more and more as time passes.
Debbie Williams
Arvada, Colo.
Genevieve Gillaizeau
As a single parent, I can't sympathize with Darryl Zanuck's last mistress. Five'll get you 10 Genevieve's never risen at 5:30 to get her workday started. If Zanuck's generosity while he was with her isn't enough, she is the epitome of greed.
Diane Day
Oklahoma City
Bill Fisher
My father worked for Fisher Controls in Marshalltown, Iowa for over 30 years. Being an employee's child meant a Christmas party with a stage show and stocking every December and a summer carnival at the fairgrounds with free food, rides and entertainment. Each of my high school years, the entire school was entertained by the traveling opera company brought to town by Fisher. When my father lost the use of his kidneys, Fisher bought him a kidney machine and employed him at full salary until retirement, even though he could work only three days a week. Philanthropist Bill Fisher may have contributed much to the opera world, but he also has contributed a great deal to my own.
Susan Peterson Gray
Dallas
Picks & Pans
Regarding the review of Can't Stop the Music, I will agree that the acting and directing were horrible, but the movie had one plus: It was fun to watch.
Zell Malcolm
Atlanta
Chatter
Shame on Jane Fonda for depicting Ronald Reagan's acting as "lousy." He didn't take off his clothes, use profanity or start his career with a famous name, but he always entertained his audiences.
Robert D. Faltys
Maumee, Ohio
Weary or not of hearing of Pavarotti, there are thousands of us who would never have had the joy of listening to Sutherland, Domingo or any of the wonderful voices in opera if we had not had our interest captured by the magic of Pavarotti, the voice and the man.
Sharon Allert
Lodi, Calif.
Saved by the Bell Reunion
The hookups, the meltdowns, the memoires
The case reveals what was really going on what they think of each other now!
