Mallory O’Meara is a film producer and the co-host of the “Reading Glasses” podcast. She is also a lifelong fan of classic horror. In her debut as an author, O’Meara reveals the long and purposefully hidden career of Milicent Patrick, the designer of The Creature from The Black Lagoon. She recently agreed to be interviewed by Daryl Maxwell for the LAPL Blog about her book: The Lady from The Black Lagoon.
As you recount in your book, it was challenging to find and put together the pieces of Milicent Patrick’s life. Were you ever tempted to give up when you hit a perceived dead-end? What inspired you to keep searching?
There were rough patches during the course of the research where I thought I wouldn’t be able to discover Milicent’s fate. Every time I felt like I should give up, I would end up talking to another monster fan or female filmmaker who told me how much they wanted to hear her story. These conversations always refueled me and reminded me how important it was to find Milicent’s story.
What was the most interesting or surprising thing that you learned about Milicent Patrick during your research?
The most surprising thing about Milicent Patrick was how well she pushed through hardships. Milicent weathered all sorts of terrible professional and personal setbacks during the course of her career, but she never lost her love of making art. The more I researched, the more I was surprised and inspired by her emotional and artistic fortitude.
If you had the chance to ask Ms. Patrick a question, what would it be?
The first question is between Milicent and I, but I can tell you the second question I would ask her. I’d like to know what her favorite creation was. Milicent had such a long and varied career in Hollywood. I am so curious to know what project or design resonated with her the most.
Is there something you would tell her if you had the chance?
If I had the chance, I would tell Milicent Patrick about the incredible influence she has had over female artists and filmmakers. She has been an inspiration to countless women over the years and I wish I could tell her about it.
If you could pick any monster, classic or contemporary, and ask Ms. Patrick to design/re-design it in her style, which one would it be?
I would have Milicent design a female werewolf... Despite my love for the Creature, my heart belongs to the Wolfman. We don’t see enough female werewolves in film and I would sell my soul to see what Milicent could design.
Your chosen profession, at the time of the writing of the book, was Film Producer. Now you are both a Researcher and Author. Do you have plans to research and write another book? Can you tell anything about it at this time?
Even though I still work as a film producer for Dark Dunes Productions, I am working on three new books. I must hate sleep. One proposal for young-adult nonfiction is with my agent. I’m finishing up a proposal for one adult nonfiction and am currently researching another. I cannot tell you anything about them right now, but if you like The Lady from the Black Lagoon, you’ll certainly be interested in the new ones.
What’s currently on your nightstand?
Death in Spring by Mercè Rodoreda, translated by Martha Tennent, is currently next to my bed. One of my 2019 reading goals was to read more translated books and this one is excellent!
What was your favorite book when you were a child?
Philip Pullman’s The Golden Compass was my absolute favorite when I was a kid. I still re-read the whole trilogy every year. Iorek Byrnison is tattooed on my right hand because he’s my favorite literary character. He’s the bear dad I always wanted.
Was there a book you felt you needed to hide from your parents?
My reading wasn’t supervised, so I never had to hide any of my books. Even when I started to read horror and adult literature, I don’t think my mother noticed. I always watched and read whatever I wanted, so it was a shock to learn that other kids couldn’t read certain things.
Can you name your top five favorite or most influential authors?
Shirley Jackson is the queen of my literary world. In addition, I’m a big Tana French fan. I’ve read all of her books and I usually inhale them in one or two sittings. I also love Kelly Link. She inherited the Short Story Writer crown from another author I adore, Ray Bradbury. Weird stories are my favorite things to read. For nonfiction, no one does it better than Mary Roach.
What is a book you've faked reading?
I always pretend to have read Bret Easton Ellis so I don’t have to listen to annoying men in bars explain the plot of American Psycho to me.
Can you name a book you've bought for the cover?
I bought My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite because the cover was so gorgeous. I was not disappointed! It was the best cover of 2018.
Is there a book that changed your life?
No book has made as much of a positive impact on me as Emily Nagoski’s Come As You Are. It’s a book focused on female sexuality, but it also discusses mental health and stress. Nagoski’s writing about how to deal with stress completely changed my life. I still use her tips and lessons every day.
Can you name a book for which you are an evangelist (and you think everyone should read)?
If I could fill a helicopter with copies of one book to drop over a city, it would be Priestdaddy by Patricia Lockwood. I have recommended it more times than I can count. It is the funniest book I have ever read while being so beautiful and heartfelt that I didn’t want it to end.
Is there a book you would most want to read again for the first time?
You Too Can Have A Body Like Mine by Alexandra Kleeman. I love nothing more than a strange book. This book is so surprising and delightful and brilliant that I wish I could go back and be gleefully startled by it all over again.
What is your idea of THE perfect day (where you could go anywhere/meet with anyone)?
My perfect day would be spent in a hammock with my cat, a pile of books and an endless supply of sandwiches that my cat would not try to steal.
What are you working on now (either book or film project)?
Besides the books and movies, I’m always working on "Reading Glasses", a podcast that I co-host with my friend Brea Grant. We put out an episode every week, so we’re always writing, recording, editing, emailing potential guests and sending each other ideas.
In The Lady from the Black Lagoon, first time author Mallory O’Meara chronicles the life of one of the most interesting and influential people whose work you have seen, but have never heard their name: Milicent Patrick.
Patrick grew up at San Simeon as Hearst Castle was being built (her father oversaw the construction). She went on to attend Chouinard Art Institute (now known as the California Institute of the Arts or CalArts) where she was handpicked by Walt Disney to be one of a handful of women animators at the studio. She worked as a model and extra on numerous motion pictures, before being “discovered” and hired by Bud Westmore for Universal Studios’ special effects makeup department where she designed one of the most recognizable monsters in film history: The Creature from the Black Lagoon. Patrick was fired from Universal when Westmore felt she was getting too much recognition for her work on the Creature. After leaving Universal, Patrick seemingly disappeared, becoming a shadowy and somewhat controversial figure in horror film circles, with both supporters and detractors regarding her claim that she designed the Creature. O’Meara brings to the fore the facts and falsehoods behind generations of hearsay and rumors, describing not only the research done for the book but also her own experiences as a woman working in the still male-dominated motion picture industry.
To this day, Patrick is the only woman to design a classic monster and it is far past the time for her story to be told. The Lady from the Black Lagoon is a compelling and enjoyable read about the legacy of a trailblazer for women in film, who not only worked, but excelled repeatedly in aspects of production dominated by men both then and now.
Book Review: The Lady from The Black Lagoon
Ms. O’Meara will also be appearing at the West Valley Regional Branch on March 30 to talk about and sign her book. Information can be found here.