THE CITIZEN REGISTER, OSSINING, N.Y., WEDNESDAY, MARCH 10, 1965
New Rochelle Mother Of 5 Stars By HARVEY PACK
NEW YORK - Lenka Peterson is a New Rochelle, housewife, mother of five, who comes to the city at least three times week to play the part of Maria Skerba in ABC's daytime soap opera “Flame in the Wind ” She is probably the only soap opera actress in history who was delighted when she received the sponsor’s Christmas package, a carton of assorted soap flakes.
"I love my double life,” said I Lenka after completing a live performance of a recent “Flame j in the Wind” episode. “I’ve been doing daytime dramas on and off for years. In fact, I just committed suicide on one of them last summer.” Although her hours are almost office-like since she must be in by 9:30 and winds up rehearsal for the following day’s episode in the late afternoon, Lenka avoids driving into town, preferring instead to study her lines while riding on one of the Westchester commuter lines.
“When I board that train I , make the transition from Lenka O’Connor, housewife to Lenka Peterson, actress and finally to Martha Skerba. Oh, my children love to cue me and help me learn lines, but I think the best way to combine a home and a career is to keep them completely separate. With a daytime I show I get a day off to go to the supermarket and plan the household chores for the week, which is something I could never do if I were in a play."
Of course when Lenka came here from Omaha, Nebraska, it was with every intention of setting Broadway on fire with her talent. While she was studying dramatic arts at the University of Iowa, World War11 broke out and she joined a USO troupe. After the war ended she came to New York and began making I the rounds of casting offices where the little girl from Nebraska was handed the old line, “Acting is a tough business, young lady. Why don't you go home and marry the boy nest door?
Lenka was obedient. She went home and married a local boy, J Daniel O’Connor and the two of them came to New York to seek their fortunes. Today, Dan is a news producer at NBC and Lenka an actress, which sounds like the storyline of a 1935 second feature. No actress ever gives up the dream of attaining stardom with the name in lights and the cheering throngs dogging her every move, but Lenka realizes that such success would make it touch to get back to New Rochelle in time to prepare dinner at 82 Elk Ave. for the brood so he’s put off the stardom bit until she’s a grandmother.
Even when she was between soaps for a few months she found time to star, in a musical at Westchester’s Iona College which has given her ideas about summer stock and tent musicals. In spite of the demands of her career, Lenka still finds time for community work and is the guiding force behind a school dramatic club
For years Lenka was asked to play the part of women much younger than herself, but in "Flame in the 'Wind” she finally passes her own age by by portraying the mother of two girls in their early 20s. The eldest of her children is 15.
"Oddly enough, I sometimes forget myself in the role," Lenka explained." I lost my temper when one of my daughters, who was just following the script...was rude to a visitor. In fact. I often see problems I'm having with my own children popping into our scripts. You see what I mean about needing the train to make the transition from Lenka to Martha?"
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Paul Raven ·
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