Chapter Fifty

291 9 0
                                    

February 5th, 1975

Mindlessly, Josephina fiddled with the tablecloth at her legs as she waited for her agent and two of his associates for a lunch at the Stanford Hotel.

Despite the success of Carmen Jones, she'd had five auditions in the last year and as of recent days, her agent has been dodging her calls. At least that was until she showed up at his office and he'd agreed to talk over lunch.

So here she was, waiting for the man who had been building her career. She'd yet to tell him or Warner Brothers of her impending pregnancy, something John warned her about.

"They're going to find out Angel." He said warningly once she returned home and told him about her agent, Harry Clayton had finally agreed to have a sit down about what exactly was going on.

"Who?" Josephina took the basket of laundry set aside and began to fold.

"Warner Brothers and Harry," John said pointedly and she rolled her eyes.

"I've got some time before they know." She shrugged and her husband snorted.

"Not that much time love."

"I've got four months before lose fitting clothes can't hide it. I'll tell Harry once I get a part and he can tell the producers in his way like he always does. Trust me, Johnny," she looked over at John seriously, "I'm not the first actress to be already knocked up during filming."

"There she is, my little bombshell." The familiar New York accented voice of her agent/manager broke Josephina from her trance and she leaned up to accept the cheek kiss from the older man who went to sit across from her.

"A scotch." He nodded to the waiter who immediately approached, the young man nodding before rushing off to being said drink.

"Thank you for meeting with me Harry." Josephina smiled, lacing her fingers on her lap.

"You didn't give me much of a choice, I was afraid you'd call my wife next if I didn't agree to meet with you." He joked, leaning back in his chair, "na, I always got time for you kid. So what's been eating you?"

"What's going on Harry? Besides the two guest appearances on some sitcoms, I haven't gotten any good scripts to audition for since Carmen." She said, and he frowned, running a hand down his face.

"Josie, you know how the business is. What can I say, you get the good parts, sometimes you're the lead's best friend's sister. Things happen." He watched as Josephina scoffed, taking a drink from her glass of lemonade with a shake of her head.

"That's bullshit."

"This is Hollywood kid."

"You don't think I know that? Harry, you've been my agent for almost three years now. You know I can't stand sugar-coated words thrown at me. Give it to me straight." She crossed her arms and he sighed.

"They want to take it easy with casting a young woman of......mixed heritage is still somewhat tabooed," Harry must have seen the alarm and anger on my face as he was quick to hold up his hands, "don't look at me like that Jo! That's what the executives and producers are sending me signals of when I send your headshots. I've been trying to get you work, but they're just not interested. There's also the issue with your husband."

"What about John?" She looked defensive, but the eyebrow raise Harry gave her caused her to falter.

"It's no secret the president and the government don't like the stirrups he's making with the war. The studios got the feds breathing down their necks already with filming anything they don't approve of about Nam, they're not going to think twice about passing over woman in the interracial marriage with John Lennon."

In My Life I Love You MoreWhere stories live. Discover now