Most Zoomers haven’t a clue who these guys are; ditto a fair percentage of Millennials. The saga of the turbulent Fondas (Hank’s emotionally frosty vibes in the ‘40s, absent mom’s suicide, Jane’s constant emotional insecurity, Peter’s “I know what it’s like to be dead”) is familiar only to boomers, for the most part, and older GenXers.
I’m guessing this was taken sometime around mid ‘63, at which time Hank (58) was on screens in Spencer’s Mountain (don’t ask), Peter (23) was appearing in Tammy and the Doctor (ditto) and Jane (26) was taking bows for her starring role in the light-hearted (if barely watchable) sex comedy Sunday in New York.
Two things got my attention — one, the Kennedy-era Fondas, enveloped in obvious financial comfort, knew how to present the right kind of well-tended vibe in front of well-connected photographers, and two, Hank was still the most attractive of the three — slender, radiant eyes, ruddy complexion, broad shoulders, good taste in sporty golf shirts.
I’m relating because my family was also moderately miserable. Or I was, at least.
