Stripper role took some getting used to

Press, 28 September 1988, Page 18

Stripper role took some getting used to

Jameson Parker (top) and Gerald Mcßaney star as fraternal private eyes A. J. and Rick in “Simon and Simon,” at 7.30 p.m. on Two. In tonight’s episode they end up going undercover at the notorious prison Alcatraz. Having gone to San Francisco to dissuade their younger cousin from opening her own private investigation agency, they get involved in a case she is already working on, and are drawn into a jailbreak story which had its beginnings in 1962.

For the 26-year-old actor, Elaine Smith, her role as stripper Daphne Lawrence in “Neighbours” took some getting used to. “At first I was very very shocked that they would cast me as a stripper,” she exclaims. “It gave me the shock of my life, but the producers wanted to go against the grain of the way people generally think of a stripper. “I guess I was as guilty as anyone in that my own view of a stripper was probably as cliched as everybody else’s. I was surprised they picked somebody who looked like me.” For Smith’s parents, the main concern was not that their daughter was playing a stripper but that she had landed a full-time job. Initially they had their reservations about her ambitions to become an actor as they had originally hoped she would use her mathematical ability to become an accountant. However, their doubts turned to pleasure when, after a couple of roles in TV ads and guest spots in “Carson’s Law” and “Sons and Daughters," she won the role of Daphne in “Neighbours.” “I have a brother, Peter, in a very different profession — he’s a policeman in Perth — and he enjoys watching the show too.” As Smith explains, Daphne has her redeeming virtues. “Daphne is seen as a person first and a stripper

second. “There are many sides to her and that is a challenge for me. I admire her and I’m sure the viewers do too. She’s got a lot of guts and I can identify with that because I used to be a shy person.” Born in Scotland, Smith spent her early childhood in South Africa, living near Johannesburg, and

spending holidays exploring national game parks. From the age of 14 she grew up in Perth, and after gaining a degree in English, spent a year working with a theatre-in-education group which performed at schools all over Western Australia. Then in December, 1984, she got a phone call from the producer of “Neighbours” asking her

to screen test for a guest role. "On Boxing Day the phone rang, she recalls. It was the producer from Sydney and he told me they had a role in the show I could do.” She has found that being a star in a soap opera is demanding work. Her day starts as early as 6 a.m. so that she can be costumed and made up by 8, and often goes through to 7.30 at night. “But when you go into acting you know that’s the sort of workload to expect. It goes with the job but of course your social life goes down the drain.” After work, it is home to bed with a cup of cocoa and a “Neighbours” script for a future episode. Then there is her physical appearance to think about. To maintain the image of her character, whose body is her greatest asset, Smith tries to keep an eye on her health and fitness. “It’s not easy though, as I’ve never been a physical fitness nut and I love to get stuck into the chocolates,” she confessed. “At school I played in the girls’ soccer team but that was about it. These days, I go swimming or bike riding to keep in shape.” However, for all this, Smith has few complaints. “I’m just very thankful that I’m a working actor. There are so few roles around for women, and so many female actors that getting any job is difficult.” “Neighbours” screens Monday to Friday at 7 p.m. on Two.