Cinderella's Double

As current history's most spectacular Cinderella story, the life of Eva PerOn is a logical subject for cinema treatment. Last week a winsome Parisian actress, her blonde hair combed back and tied in a bun as Evita used to wear hers, was in Buenos Aires seeking the leading role.

Andree Debar* first heard that she looked like Evita a year ago, when she appeared at a film festival in Uruguay (as a brunette). After Evita's death last July, Andree wangled a promise from France's Elysee studios to star her if she could get Argentina to approve the filming of the life of Eva PeroOn.

Juan PerOn received his late wife's double at his suburban home. "I had a little stage fright at first," she reported later, "but after five minutes you forget he's the President; he's just another man. He was very friendly. Very warm. Very enthusiastic. Very kind. He told me 'Your hands are just like my wife's.' He also said my figure was like Evita's.

"I explained what we wanted to do--to tell the story of the poor little girl who becomes rich and successful and the wife of the President and wears beautiful clothes and helps the poor."

For two hours PeroOn talked to her in his faltering French. Then he said oui, Andreee could make the movie. That, however, was only "preliminary" approval. An Argentine commission will have to supervise the film. And all PeroOn's appearances will probably have to be spliced in from newsreels or official films.

* Currently being seen in the U.S. in The Seven Deadly Sins.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.