42 -TV SERIALS, SANDY THOMAS ADVERTISING "B"

"You looked so neat, Miss," I bubbled. "Like in the 'fifties' outfit in the laundry room, and at your desk in that great suit. And this last dress Wow!"

Cindy laughed, and I laughed too as I realized I'd just gushed about nearly every outfit she'd worn.

"He told me he thought you were doing pretty good, Cissie. He said you looked like everyone's fantasy of a maid. The whole thing is supposed to be like some girl's ideal dream or something -the clothes and the maid and the exciting date and everything."

وو

Cindy had me get her tight, shell gray Lycra miniskirt and her oversized gray and rose sweater. She could pull down the sweater over her hips in the restaurant and pull it up to her waist out at a club later. Of course, either approach would expose lots of leg, but at least the sweater could cover her bottom, which the Lycra mini hugged so tightly it was nearly X-rated!

Since panty-lines would definitely be a problem with the clingy Lycra skirt, Cindy had me get her a silky pair of sheer-to-the-waist pantyhose. She still wore the sexy little Dior bra she'd had on for one of the shots. I struggled to zip up the very tight Lycra mini before I dropped the cashmere sweater over Miss Cindy's head and scurried off to get her shoes.

Everyone yelled through the door, "Bye Bye, see you there," and when we emerged, only the make-up girl was still hanging around.

"I just wanted to thank you for doing a good job for us, Cissie. Everyone just kind of takes off and doesn't say much, but we all thought you were great.

She suddenly looked nervous and said, "When Issac told me there was going to be a . . .well, a guy .playing the maid, I wasn't sure. But you were great it's like you've been her maid for years!"

I looked at Cindy with surprise as the girl packed up last case and left.

her

"What did she mean, Miss. . .did she think I was just . . .well, like a model?”

Cindy smiled and held my hand.

"The photographer knows who you are, Cissie. I mean, he pretty much knew the whole story before. It doesn't bother him though; he thinks you're interesting. But the more I thought about it, the more I figured it would be safer to be

MAID IN FORM "B" 43

discreet, you know? So everyone thinks you're a female impersonator friend of mine from Seattle that I flew in to model as my maid. They think I did it for the challenge or something. I guess there's some truth to that, anyway.'

I laughed, relieved that people didn't actually know I was Miss Cindy's maid. They all thought I was just playing a part. "But what about when I served tea and . my room!" I said, remembering things that would blow holes in the story. "You're a method actor and wanted to get into it. People do it all the time kind of live the part. And I mentioned that Issac and I'd done up your room, and the laundry room, special for the shoot. We actually did use the laundry room.

"You're great, Miss," I said without thinking, laughing at how we'd fooled everybody. But maybe I was the real fool after all, who'd be spending the next two days cleaning this mess up!

CINDY STAYED OUT LATE THAT NIGHT AS I STAYED HOME AND TOOK IT easy for awhile. It had been an exciting day. I don't know when she came in, but she told me the next day that they'd had a good time at dinner and some of them had gone out to a club to dance afterward.

"They couldn't stop talking about you, Cissie. If you would have been a girl, they would have thought you did a good job, but a guy? . . . they couldn't believe it. One of the girls said you looked more like a maid than anyone she'd ever seen."

Cindy had to get to work, so we didn't talk long, and the excitement died down over the next day or two. And by Sunday, I even had the apartment pretty much back to normal.

I got to see the pictures about two weeks later, and the one of me in the doorway was fine, so I approved it. Cindy was so gorgeous as she rushed by in that dress, I could have been naked with a spotlight and nobody would have noticed me! The maid was just the right background for the breezy, beautiful girl. You could almost smell her perfume as she rushed past.

And the laundry room shot was good too. It was fun to look at because it was obvious Cindy was having so much fun in the clothes and talking on the phone. The fact that the maid was diligently taking care of her dress for her just added to the sense of carefree fun.

A month after I saw them, they came out in Vogue. Normally the turnaround time is longer, but Cindy was