Teen - March 1970 (typed by Carol R.)

The Bobby Sherman Nobody Knows
By Janice Lang

Almost everybody thinks a successful entertainer like Bobby Sherman has everything he wants. Except Bobby!

He stands before you looking every bit the superstar he really is. Great clothes, great poise and, of course, those great looks, his copper-brown hair slightly disheveled and thatchy, his skin tanned, and his blue eyes just a shade bluer than they look on TV. He looks like the picture of success, but his words reveal the price he's paid for it.

"I don't see them anymore," he admits as he tries to recall friends whom he used to be close to. "It's almost impossible to keep up with people if you're busy working."

His words have a tone of regret, and you know at once that at times he wishes it were still possible to just drop into a coffee shop for a Coke or call an old girlfriend up for a date. But it isn't.

Being a celebrity involves living an abnormal life where people you used to trust now treat you differently and may even be trying to use you. Bobby has had his share of these and has learned - the price you pay for public adoration is - loneliness! Because he is an outgoing, trusting person, he often wishes it weren't that way.

THE GIRL(S) HE'S FORGOTTEN - Was life simpler before when he was just Bobby Sherman - "B"- football captain and planning on a career in psychology?

His answer would have to be yes. In fact, high school years for Bobby - before he was a national favorite on "Shindig" - were filled with many exciting experiences. He had his share of troubles, too.

"I was a lot smaller than the other guys," he explained in a matter-of-fact tone, "and I was a loner by nature because of it. Kind of in a shell." He remembers that all too often during those years, people judged you on your appearance rather than on what you were.

"But I'd always loved music, and it became the means to developing confidence, I guess," he went on. Bobby's too modest to admit that he just happened to learn how to play 10 instruments and sing well too! "That was my way of communicating and joining in."

"I love people and try to understand what motivates them. I thought I would be good at psychology. But in a way, you know, acting isn't so different. Because you really have to understand and be sensitive to people in order to act well."

Despite what Bobby says about being a loner, TEEN found out it wasn't quite the way Bobby tells it. He had his share of romance, and - short or not - there were plenty of girls who liked him. One girlfriend of his felt she and Bobby had something pretty special way back then. Some of the proof came pouring across my desk in the form of a farewell letter which Bobby personally wrote to her.

Lynn,

Since I'm graduating, I won't be able to see you, but I'll be back to visit you often, I hope. Don't go with any other guys. And don't do anything I wouldn't do - ha-ha. Be real good and just remember - I love you.

Bobby

P.S. Take good care of yourself, you belong to me.

The handwritten letter was quite creased when I saw it and beginning to discolor with age. Unfortunately, circumstances made it impossible for Bobby to "get back to see her often." Nevertheless, Lynn has saved this letter with perhaps a hidden hope that he would start dating her again. What she may not realize is that it was probably even harder for Bobby than her! Because once you are trying to make it in show business, your life - 24 hours a day - is literally owned by the business. From time to time, Bobby does think how it might have been if fate hadn't stepped in. He prefers not to talk much about it.

BOBBY AND THAT GIRL - Every celebrity must face the risk that his privacy will be invaded by snoopy tear-downers who are jealous. Bobby is no exception, and it's to his credit that he chooses not to talk much about his love life. However, no one can keep a secret forever and almost everyone now knows that a lot of his special attention these days is going to a voluptuous blonde named Patti Carnel.

Some irresponsible magazines have even rumored that Bobby and Patti are secretly married. Well, I know firsthand that if and when they are, it won't be done in some kind of secret ceremony.

As Bobby himself admits, "There is no one special girl I like." Does that sound like a confirmation of marriage to you? Chuck the other rumors you've heard, please.

BOBBY SHERMAN MARRIED - Naturally Bobby dreams of the day when he will marry and settle down and have someone to share his life with. Unfortunately, the demands of his career do not permit his getting serious at this time. How could he have the kind of marriage he wants when he's on location or on tour all the time? "The hardest part of working is just the waiting," Bobby admitted. "I just don't have time to keep up with people the way I wish I could."

When Bobby does eventually decide to settle down, he has some very definite ideas about what his marriage will be like.

And it won't be a phony "show-biz" deal. "I have to believe it's possible to have a normal life and still be in this business," Bobby told us with a slightly wistful tone. "And I try not to have delusions of grandeur about my fame!" Bobby is lucky to be blessed with such a level-headed attitude, because you need that if you are going to stay as nice a person as he is and still get all the acclaim. "For my wife," he went on, "it wouldn't really matter if she's in show business, but I'd prefer not because you get into competition problems! And I don't want a life of maids and luxury. I want a gal who has energy so we could do things together and maybe even take a long cruise around the world. I think that would be so great!"

So do I...and it started me thinking that Bobby's attitude probably stems from the happy and secure upbringing his parents gave him. It has a way of staying with a person.

HIS SECRET FRIEND - There's one friend in Bobby's life that he's not shy about mentioning. That's Frank - his imaginary friend. "I invented him when I was about six years old," Bobby chuckled. "He was strictly invisible and a product of my imagination. But my parents understood the whole thing and would usually play along with Frank's existence. Mom even set an extra place at the dinner table for him."

Bobby's imaginative nature didn't stop there. He even built a miniature model version of Disneyland in his own back yard, because he had enjoyed his visit to the real place so very much. "I really dug it," he said enthusiastically.

WHEN HIS CHILD IS BORN - Bobby is an optimistic and extroverted person. He yearns for the day when he can have children of his own to love and raise with the understanding his own parents gave him.

"My folks always encouraged me to try things. They were very enthusiastic and wanted me to have confidence in myself." Isn't it too bad that more parents aren't like that? It sure would be a nicer world.

Also, Bobby realizes that the most important thing you can give a child is love and understanding. Of course, with Bobby's fantastic finances, he'll be able to give his children any material thing they want. But he probably won't give them everything because he knows it's much more important to give of yourself. This Bobby already does in his own life. That example will make it easy for any child of his to grow up to be a happy and good person.

A DREAM DATE WITH BOBBY - As he himself admits, all that must wait for the time being. But like any red-blooded American guy, he's still looking.

As for the type he prefers? "There is no one kind of girl that attracts me," he answered. "I don't care if she's a blonde or a brunette. The really important thing is for a girl to be honest and not phony!" It is obvious that fame has not made Bobby a materialistic, status-seeking, swell-headed flop of a human being. Color him "UN-affected."

Bobby is a definite believer in the idea that people have to do "their own thing" and not just follow the fads.

"I don't like to plan ahead too much when it comes to dating," he explained. It's takes a lot of the fun out of it if it's all 'programmed.' I like to play it by ear.

"If I have a date with a girl, I prefer to have her help decide where we'll go that night. When you pick a girl up for a date, you can usually sense what kind of mood she's in and what she'd enjoy. Then one of you gets an idea, and you just go!

"It might be just going down to the beach and running like a couple of kids. Or, if she's a quiet type, maybe out to dinner and take in a flick. I think that people are pretty much like what they spend their time doing." Unlike some other well-known names I could mention, Bobby bothers to really think and care about what a girl will enjoy. Not just resting on his laurels.

What it all adds up to is that Bobby practices what he preaches. Be natural and be yourself and you'll be happy. That's a pretty hard philosophy to beat, don't you agree?

WHY HE'S WAY UP ON TOP - Many people are very bitter about Bobby's success because they are envious of him. It's a sure thing they haven't met him personally, because if they had, they would know he is one of the nicest people you could ever know. He shows this in a lot of ways, but especially in his attitude about his career. He isn't cocky and he doesn't take it for granted.

"As an actor and singer, I am really very lucky because I get the opportunity to work out some of my feelings and get them up to the surface. It makes you a freer kind of person."

"What I enjoy best is performing in front of a real audience because it really inspires you to give of yourself and really entertain them to the best of your ability. It's a wonderful feeling!" he commented.

"As far as advice on how to get into acting goes, I'd have to say I don't think there is any 'formula' to success. Mostly you have to be prepared to really stick with it and don't give up!" he declared.

Again, I was impressed that Bobby didn't add something like "talent is all it takes." He realizes that much success - even his own - is based on timing. "Formal study does give you the fundamentals, but if you're really involved, you have to go beyond that," he added. "Sure, maybe you'll make mistakes. We all do. But then you can learn from them and get better at it." It was refreshing to hear someone talk about it as if it really is possible to break into it and make it instead of hearing all the critics who wail how impossible it is.

HIS BIGGEST WEAKNESS - As Bobby openly admits, "My biggest weakness is that I'm overly sensitive. I'm probably moved too much by people. I'm always trying to "feel" what people are like and figure out if they're uptight."

"Especially people who aren't sure of themselves. They really get to me. Such as high school reporters who interview me. Sometimes they're so scared and I just try to tell them, 'look, I'm no different from anyone else. In fact, your job right now is much harder than mine!'"

Well, all I can say is if that's a weakness, it's some prob. Putting yourself in the other guy's shoes is what life at its best is all about. Right?

If I sound gushy, please forgive. But it just isn't all that often you meet such an unaffected person. Sad to say, but all too many celebs really have their heads way up on Cloud 9 and have stopped being considerate of other people. Bobby is still, for all his fame, a very down-to-earth person.

WHAT TURNS BOBBY OFF - "My philosophy is - if something bugs you - usually just let it pass. But a few things I don't like are people who are hypocrites, especially girls who put on an act. Like some girls follow every fad - say, a mini look - even when it's totally wrong for them. People should be individuals and do what's best for them in that sense."

HOW HE FEELS ABOUT GOD - Naturally, much of Bobby's thinking is based on moral conviction. But it isn't "official" in the usual religious sense.

"I'm not a member of any religion, but I do think that all religions have something to say and offer," he said. "Yet I do think of myself as a religious person. As a matter of fact, I think each person develops his own totally individual outlook on religion. And I think that it's important to live those beliefs every day - not just Sunday. You have to use your faculties all the time! Not just 1/7th of it."

THINGS HE REALLY, REALLY LIKES - By nature Bobby Sherman is an optimistic and enthusiastic person. So it follows there are many things he enjoys - especially personal mementos and souvenirs. "I think rooms should be full of them," he declared. I plan to get some antiques for my house, too. I dig them."

"Sure I like all kinds of music, but I guess my favorite is hard rock. Tops are the Beatles who have 'their own little part of the world.' I also enjoy Glen Campbell a lot who - by the way - is a really nice person. I know him from the days we worked on 'Shindig' together."

"And I'll have to admit I'm a nut for clothes! No, I don't prefer any one special look. I go to lots of stores. I guess I prefer subdued colors. One day I just feel like being dressed up and then another day it's a 'jeans' kind of day."

WHAT HE'S REALLY LIKE - Unlike a lot of public figures, Bobby in person is much like the character, Jeremy. And the mood you get from his with-it, enthusiastic singing is genuinely from the heart. Of course, he is a great deal more poised than the average guy you'll meet.

Also, in person he's a lot cuter than he even looks on "Brides." Probably because his personality is geared toward you and not himself. That makes his neat looks just that much more appealing.

KISSED BY BOBBY SHERMAN! - That last part is the best because when I finished interviewing him, Bobby did the best thing he ever could have done; leaned over and gave me a brotherly kiss on the cheek. If I had any doubts about Bobby's genuine warmth and gracious manners, which I didn't, this would surely have dispelled them.

So, once and for all, forget all the myths about Bobby being stuck-up or secretly married or whatever nonsense you've read. It just ain't so.

No one could deserve being a star more than he. Period.