Recipes for Life by Linda Evans Read Free Book Online Page B

be ready. From where I was I couldn’t see or hear what was happening; even the roar of the bike was drowned out by the roar of the crowd.
    Suddenly, there was Evel, dropping toward the ramp. I remember thinking,
Thank God he’s made it.
But then, to my horror, he came crashing down, the bike going out from under him! Evel was hurling down the ramp toward me, flipping and twisting like a rag doll. I had no idea what I shot or didn’t, all I could think of was that this beautiful man was being broken into pieces.
    When he finally came to a stop, we started rushing toward him, but security and medical were already surrounding him. We couldn’t reach him. All we could do was watch as the ambulance came and took him away. It was one of the saddest things I’ve ever seen, but thank God, somehow, Evel did survive.
    Later at the hospital, we were greatly relieved when we were able to speak to him and confirm that he was really going to be okay. We still didn’t know whether we’d actually captured the jump on film, but John said whatever we got, he was going to give to Evel. He kept his word. In spite of the fact that we needed the money, we signed over all the film rights.
    I loved John for doing what he believed was right. And I was thrilled that what I somehow managed to capture on film was what Evel needed from that ill-fated jump: footage that he would one day use in a movie about his extraordinary life.

The Trials of a Bunky

    D ESPITE THE WARNINGS from John about Bunky and her madcap antics, during my hiatus from
The Big Valley
, I called her and invited her to have lunch. We decided to go to Brown’s on Hollywood Boulevard (something that later became a tradition that Bunky and I continued through our
Dynasty
days). We both loved their egg-salad sandwich and their hot fudge sundae.
    I picked up Bunky at her house and off we went. It was perfect; there was hardly any traffic on the freeway. Bunky noticed there was a police car behind us. I told her not to worry, I was within the speed limit. Next thing we heard was a voice through a bullhorn telling us to pull over.
    “Well, that can’t be meant for us,” I said. But then the police officer pulled up alongside of us and repeated, “Pull over.” And so I did.
    Out of the squad car came the youngest policeman we’d ever seen. Bunky whispered to me that this rookie must have just gotten out of the academy yesterday.
    When he reached my window, I asked, “What did I do wrong?”
    “You were going too slow,” he replied.
    Stunned, I looked over to Bunky, who leaned across me and got right into the policeman’s face. “You’re full of shit!” she said, and now
he
was stunned. For a long moment, he and Bunky just stared at one another, neither backing down. Then he asked for my license. He took it and walked back and got into his car. I could see him in my rearview mirror. He was just sitting and glaring at us for what seemed like an eternity.
    “What’s taking him so long?” I asked nervously.
    Ignoring the question, Bunky glanced back and said, “Don’t let him think he’s gotten to us. Laugh, Linda, laugh!” Then she threw her head back, arms in the air, and laughed hysterically.
    Reluctantly I followed her lead, while thinking, “Oh my God, what am I going to tell John? I’m certain I’m coming home with a ticket!”
    The young officer returned to my window and, to my surprise, asked, “Can your friend drive this car?” Before I could even respond, he added, “Because I am taking you to jail on a warrant for an outstanding parking ticket.”
    Bunky couldn’t get her mouth open before he said, “And I’ve called for backup!”
    When I was under contract to MGM, they wouldn’t allow us to park on the lot, hence the many parking tickets. Parking on the street meant we had to move the car every few hours. I thought I’d paid them all, but apparently one had slipped through the cracks.
    When the backup arrived, the new officer put my hands