If there's anything a celebrity should stand for, it's the idea that chasing your dreams eventually pays off. Last Monday,
Big Love series regular
Ginnifer Goodwin returned to her alma mater's East Memphis campus in order to give an inspirational talk to students. Goodwin graduated from the Lausanne Collegiate School in 1966, and later got her degree from Boston University. Pursuing her acting interests, she continued her studies with the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and the Shakespeare Institute of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
“I don't think that there's anything more powerful than going after something with an education behind you,” declared the 30-year-old actress. She also advised the attentive audience to abide by their mothers, and try not to harm any photographers on the way to stardom.
Her listeners consisted of about 400 students in grades 7-12, watching Goodwin be honored with this year's award for “Chair of Ideas.” The accolade is given to those who have made a “significant impact” in their areas of expertise. The actual prize is a chair – like a small school desk – adorned with plaques for past honorees.
Of course, with a list of successful credentials behind her, Ginnifer Goodwin was a quick choice for the award. Others who have been recognized by the school include Benjamin L. Hooks, the former NAACP national executive director, and opera luminary Mignon Dunn.
For her speech, Goodwin praised Lausanne by saying it was “an ideal place for a creative spirit.” She even acknowledged retired teacher Jane Harris for her love of her craft, which gave her the conviction to say: “Tom Hanks is my boss.” This was in reference to Hanks being a producer of HBO's
Big Love.
Talking about her experience on the show, Goodwin revealed how much of a taxing job it was to be a star. Behind the glamour is a 16-hour stay on the set, and a frustrating 3:45 am wake-up call just to shoot
Big Love.
“I wish that I could pick my nose in public, I wish that I could get the paper in my P.J.'s, I wish that when I'm in love I could talk with my girlfriends in public,” she announced. But despite that, she knows that she got what she wanted.
“I'm living my dream,” she exclaimed. “There's nothing I would rather do than be on a movie set.
-Maria Gonzalez, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source:
The Commercial Appeal
(Image Courtesy of The Commercial Appeal)