12/30/2024
Once upon a time, for a Chinese documentary film on US/China relations, I found myself in a room of the Carter library, alone with President Carter. It felt surreal, doing makeup/hair for a president. Especially since it was just he & I, kicking it behind closed doors for about 10 minutes. I'll never forget two things about that experience:
1. How friendly and down-to-Earth and curious he was- he chose to initiate & engage in lengthy conversation, to ask questions about my upbringing in Georgia, etc. etc. His relaxed & humble demeanor really made him so easy to be with/around.
2. What a beautiful and unique blue color his eyes were- in person they had such a "wow" factor, unlike all the times I'd seen him on TV or in print when nothing about the color stood out then.
Because of his vision challenges, he had a special assistant who would sit in first and gauge the lighting on interview sets. She knew exactly what level of brightness his eyes could tolerate and how lighting equipment should be arranged to accommodate his vision challenges. Her efforts guaranteed him a comfortable environment before sitting down. I thought that was pretty neat.
May he rest in peace 🕊
