SALLY FIELD
The veteran actress on her quirky role in a new romantic comedy, the joys of being a grandmother and why she’s no fan of social media
If you don’t already have a special place in your heart for Sally Field, you will after you see her new movie. In Hello, My Name Is Doris, the two- time Academy Award winner plays a 60- something woman who falls for a much younger man. Hilarity and heartache follow, with Field, 69, embracing both quirky Doris and her late- in- life love story with affection, grace and warmth. How did Doris’ story resonate with you? There were things about her that resonated in me, about moving on with your life. No matter how old you are, there’s some part of you that’s brand- new. She’s in her late 60s and she’s brand- new to the world— she might as well be an adolescent. Every part of life is a stage. Every time you enter it, it just feels awkward and new. How was it getting romantic with your younger co- star, New Girl actor Max Greenfield? Embarrassing! But he is so adorable and generous, and such a wonderful actor. I thank God [ it was] him, not somebody with an attitude. Doris’ wardrobe is like a character all its own. Did you have anything to do with her quirky style?
Absolutely! Finding who Doris was began with a whole lot of dress- up. Rebecca [ Gregg, the movie’s costume designer] is genius. She went to thrift shops and we had a room with racks and racks and racks of clothes. We just started dressing up and putting things together that had a language unto itself. And Doris’ hair! Those scarves were incredible! I had it in my head that she’d seen a picture of Brigitte Bardot in the ’ 60s— that she just always wanted to look like that. I copied her hair f rom a Brigitte Bardot picture, where she has it all piled on her head using what we used to call a postiche, a little piece of fake hair. Then she tied a great big scarf around it. That’s what I thought was her look. We worked around that. Did you keep any of Doris’ clothes? Most of it had to go back. But a lot was mine: scarves and some old jewelry. Everybody was bringing things of their own to drape on Doris. It was like, “Rent a barn and put on a show.” Everybody pitched in, made it work.
Doris saves stuff. Are you a saver? Not like she is. I’m organized to a fault. I do keep stuff, but stuff that’s worth keeping. I keep letters f rom the kids, pictures, great things that make you go, “Whoa. I’m keeping that.” Various and sundry awards and honors. There’s a scene in Doris where you’re with a knitting group. Do you knit? I do! I was the only one who was really knitting. Everybody was asking me, “Oh, look. I’ve screwed this up. How do I fix it?” I was constantly fixing everybody’s knitting. They were trying to fake it. You’re passionately involved with Vital Voices. What is the organization about? It’s an extraordinary group, formed [ in 2000] right after the Beijing Women’s Conference. I went away feeling that if we couldn’t bring half of the world’s population [ women] to the table in important ways, the world would never be really healthy— environmentally, economically, politically. This group identifies and invests in emerging women leaders, whether they’re on a political level or leaders as far as economics is concerned or human rights. They go into small cities and countries and communities and identify these emerging leaders who need to have their voices supported. They mentor them and empower them to fulfill their dreams.
Do you ever feel like women haven’t come such a long way
after all? We haven’t. Even in this country, where there’s not equal pay for equal work. How can anyone justify that? It continues to be brushed under the carpet. Doris gets a crash course in Facebook in the movie. Are you a fan of
social media? I’m not. I’m on Facebook but not under my real name. It’s only so I can talk to my grandkids and see pictures my brother and sister- in- law put up. I don’t ever post anything myself. First of all, I wouldn’t even remember to do that— I can’t remember to take pictures with my phone when we’re all doing something just for the family. I wouldn’t be able to remember to stop and tweet the world that I just bought a new pair of shoes!