🪞The Fame That Wasn’t—And Why I’m Grateful

I’ve often wondered what life would’ve looked like if my mom had chased the spotlight.

Judy DeBolt in the role of Eliza Doolittle in a 1960s Odessa, Texas production of My Fair Lady. She never made it to Broadway—but she lit up every stage she ever stood on.

She had the chops for it, no question. In Odessa, Texas—not exactly off-Broadway—she was a local theatre star. Everyone who saw her said she could have made it in New York. Or Hollywood. Or Nashville. She was a gifted actress and an even better singer. I have recordings of her playing piano and performing songs she wrote, and they still leave me in awe. I even had the joy of singing with her many times, and there’s no doubt where my musical ability came from.

I sometimes imagine what might have happened if she’d pursued a professional career—taken that leap to L.A. or Broadway. Would she have become a household name? Would I have grown up in green rooms and studio lots? Would I have been one of those celebrity kids whose foot in the door came not from talent but from lineage?

It’s not a far-fetched fantasy. Plenty of stars are where they are today because their famous parents gave them a leg up. Some barely had the talent, but they had the access. And some, to be honest, did have both.

And then I think about what might have been lost.

Celebrities are often human train wrecks. We’ve all seen it—drug abuse, alcoholism, broken families, the constant toll of being in the public eye. Maybe in that alternate universe, I never meet Daryl. Maybe I don’t have Lizzi as my daughter or Sully as my grandson. Maybe I never become a teacher, never meet Scott, never find the joy of a quiet life anchored in faith and family. Maybe the spotlight blinds me to the things that matter most.

The road not traveled can seem alluring… until you see where it might have led.

As much as I would’ve loved to perform on a big stage, sing with musical heroes like Toto, or write a screenplay that gets me to the Oscars—none of that compares to the life I get to live now. My mom didn’t chase fame. She chose a different kind of legacy. She chose to be a wife and a mother. She chose us.

And if her choice meant that I would one day be Daryl’s husband, Lizzi’s father, and Sully’s Papi… then that choice was more than worth it.

So thanks, Mom. For the voice. For the dreams. But most of all, for picking me.

About Douglas Blaine

Capnpen is a writer who was a newspaper and magazine journalist in a previous life. A college journalism major, he now works as an English teacher, but gets his writing fix by blogging about a variety of topics, including politics, religion, movies and television. When he's not working or blogging, Capnpen spends time with his family, plays a little golf (badly) and loves to learn about virtually anything.

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