The Day Mrs. Ed Wood met Johnny Depp

I give thanks to my online amigo Bob Blackburn for this firsthand account. It’s a cool story.

Kathy Wood, the widow of the legendary Ed Wood, had been out shopping one afternoon in the early 90s in Los Angeles and was walking back to her apartment with her groceries when she passed an alley that was serving as a location shoot for a movie. Curious, she stopped to ask someone what project was being filmed. They told her ED WOOD. She had of course known that a movie about Ed was being made, but she hadn’t know the particulars of the shooting schedule or anything, so this came as a surprise to her. “That’s my husband!” she exclaimed. Someone overheard her and, more importantly, believed her. The “someone” was, as Ms. Wood recalled it, Denise DiNovi, co-producer of ED WOOD. Ms. DiNovi came over to talk to her, then took her to meet director Tim Burton. Then she was escorted over to a nearby Catholic church that was serving as a staging area, where all the trailers were, and introduced to Johnny Depp. (A crew member took care of Ms. Wood’s groceries for her while she visited with Depp. I do hope she wasn’t carrying milk or anything that needed to be refrigerated, but then again a meeting with the star of a movie based on your husband’s life is probably worth the price of a gallon of milk or a carton of eggs.) She spent over an hour talking with Depp, who plied her with questions about Ed. They arranged for her to be driven home, and she was invited back the next day to view the filming of the scene wherein Martin Landau, portraying Bela Lugosi, performed the “I have no home!” monologue from BRIDE OF THE MONSTER on the sidewalk and the passersby stopped to applaud. She was provided a chair and a special place to sit to watch the filming. She even loaned Johnny Depp Ed’s wallet to carry throughout the shoot.

It saddens me greatly that Ed Wood never received the accolades he deserved while he was alive, but it’s nice to know that, for a couple of days, anyway, his wife knew what it was like to be treated like a star.

By TheCheezman

WAYNE MILLER is the owner and creative director of EVIL CHEEZ PRODUCTIONS, specializing in theatrical performances and haunted attractions. He has written, produced, and directed (and occasionally acted in) over two dozen plays, most of them in the Horror and True Crime genres. He obtained a doctorate in Occult Studies from Miskatonic University and is an active paranormal investigator. Is frequently told he resembles Anton Lavey. And Ming the Merciless. Denn die totden reiten schnell!

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