What Do Otto Frank and Lucy Van Pelt Have in Common?

Not much, really, except that Leah played both parts recently, in repertory, and I just got these photos back from her theatre company. What must have it been like to switch from the somber, dark “Diary of Anne Frank” to the giddy hysteria of “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” from night to night? It was especially moving to see kids performing the story of Anne Frank, kids who were close in age to the actual Anne Frank when she went into hiding. Having worked once on a project with the Anne Frank Center in Amsterdam, I had a slew of books about her and Leah brought them to rehearsals to pore over the pictures in between the difficult scenes that she said caused several of the young actors to break down. The last scene, when Anne silently hands over her diary to Otto and then joins the rest of the cast behind him symbolizing that of the eight people in hiding, only Otto Frank survived, was so poignant that I’m crying just remembering it.

The day that “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown” was supposed to open, Leah was sick as a dog, feverish and vomiting. She was so disappointed to miss the show but there was no way, so we finally called the theatre and told them Leah couldn’t go on. They were able to get a Lucy from another cast to fill in and this girl arrived at the theatre and got into the trademark blue dress, saddle shoes, and wig. Later that afternoon, Leah had a miraculous recovery—fever gone, running around singing her songs, and begging to go on. In a scene straight out of an old Ruby Keeler movie, we raced the to theatre minutes before curtain, literally ripped the dress off the poor girl who was about to go on, and Leah knocked ‘em dead! I so love the character of Lucy. And without insulting my daughter (I’m still worried about my earlier “Bad Seed” comments), can I say how well suited she was for the role? During one number when Leah was sprawled across Schroeder’s toy piano like that famous picture of Lauren Bacall and Harry Truman, she got up during the middle of the song, walked over to the grown man who was actually playing the piano for the show, and started flirting with him, running her fingers through his hair and singing:

It's always been my dream
That I'd marry a man who plays the piano.
-Pause-
(My aunt Marion was right. Never try to discuss marriage with a musician.)

I hope that story doesn’t sound too creepy out of context because it was a very funny, inspired moment! Happily, Leah didn’t infect the entire cast that night, and the old chestnut was cemented into her theatre-loving brain: THE SHOW MUST GO ON!

Did you know that when Anne Frank decided she wanted to publish her diary after the war, she rewrote it, changing the names of everyone in the attic (except her own family)? The Van Daans were really the Van Pels, pretty close to Lucy Van Pelt, no? Were Linus and Lucy Van Pelt really the children of Holocaust survivors? That would have been an interesting opportunity for Charles Schulz. And he loved writing about World War II in his comics. The more I think about it, the more sense it makes that the Van Pelts were Jewish. Lucy and Linus certainly fit the profile: aggressive older sister (sorry Sue!) whose brashness masked her own insecurities and neurotic younger brother with abandonment issues.

The other odd pairing of the day is Johnny Carson and Rosemary Woods, Nixon’s former secretary. Both died yesterday, and I vividly remember Carson making jokes during the Watergate hearings about Woods’ major claim to fame—the missing 18 and a half minutes on a key 1972 tape in which Nixon was discussing the cover-up. Woods said she accidentally erased the segment and even demonstrated for the cameras the near impossible position she would have had to assume to hit the wrong button on the recorder. I’m sure she knew this would be the main story mentioned at her death despite anything else she might have accomplished in her life. And now I’m another wolf in the pack. Sorry, Rosemary (but tell the truth, was that really an accident?).

Comments

[MaryLynn Van Pelt]

I have always wondered why Lucy and Linus were given the last name of Van Pelt. After divorce I took my maiden name of Van Pelt back. I e-mailed Mr.Schulz just prior to his death to question the reason for the last name of Van Pelt. I did not hear from Mr. Schultz in return. I was really surprised about the possibility of the name of Van Pelt being Jewish. Could anyone give me anymore information regarding this?

Thanks,

MaryLynn Van Pelt