WIFE OF FAMOUS SINGER

Dominion, Volume 31, Issue 271, 12 August 1938, Page 4

WIFE OF FAMOUS SINGER

Mrs. Lawrence Tibbett

Enjoys The Life

Mrs. Lawrence Tibbett, wife of the famous singer, now in 'Wellington, has a personality as charming and as individual as that of her popular husband. Iu an interview yesterday, she revealed an unusual angle of her life

and her husband’s when she explained the philosophy which has enabled her to feel she lias a real share in her husband’s successes while retaining her own personality to the full. Mrs. Tibbett modestly explained her own success as a wife because, she said, her husband was a simple person whose career had never robbed him of his appreciation of the liner things of life. Both recognised that as an artist he belonged to his public, and as a husband and father of their children he belonged to his wife and family. The two ideas were separate and called up two different personalities in the singer.

“There are three of us really,” Mrs. Tibbett explained, “when on tour, not just a husband and wife, for there is a third person, a “star” whom we. take round. We both manage him, laugh over his successes and worry over his trials.” Taken like this, life as the wife of a famous man could not be hard.

Both Mr. ami Mrs. Tibbett love big families—they have six big sous between them. She considers the importance of home life could not be stressed too much, and cannot see how any woman could be completely satisfied without a home wherein she could express her own individuality. The woman who did not like her home was lacking in some feminine quality. From time to time this type of person was met, said Mrs. Tibbett, sometimes among the wives of famous artists, and it was especially difficult to realise how such women who “lived in and out of suitcases” so much, did not feel the urge to return to some place which they could call their own to there become refreshed and relaxed. Mrs. Tibbett said how glad she would be to see her home, again, after being absent from it for six months. Travelling abroad for this length of time meant careful packing for all kinds of climates and it was, for instance, a problem to know what clothes to leave in Australia and what to bring to New Zealand. Although her husband would give concerts when he landed in America at the conclusion of the present tour, she intends, on arrival, to leave by plane for Honeyhill Farm, Connecticut, where they have their home.

Both Mrs. Tibbett and her husband are keen out-of-doors people, and at their farm,’ with its old remodelled farmhouse, they lead tire lives of an ordinary every-day American family with their children, whose ages range from four and a half to 18 years of age. They are all boys and are keenly interested in outdoor sports, liking nothing better in winter than to come to the farm for the week-end to indulge in coasting and skating on the frozen pond. The farm is just across the border of New York .State, so that it is only a matter of a two hours’ drive from their New York apartment.

Fann Life.

Here they learn something of the earth and how to do things for themselves. They help with the chickens, pigs and the garden planning, and later when the orchard is in full swing Mr. Tibbett wants tho boys to pick and pack the fruit themselves. Mrs. Tibbett said she and her husband bought the farm to enable their sons to grow up “in homely, individual surroundings, with all the benefits which are the heritage of children.” Mrs. Tibbett spoke of the children's love of music. Quite often she took them to the opera, aud at no time during their lives has she ever "thrust” music on them, but allowed them to come to her with a real desire to appreciate it. Consequently not to be taken to the opera was now something in the nature of a punishment. Even her youngest child had demanded to be taken and had listened with evident enjoyment to “Tristan and Isolde.” American Women. Throughout America there was a tremendous and very necessary peace movement taking place to-day. Women were becoming “peace conscious” and worked hard and sincerely to establish a nation-wide appeal. American women, too, were doing splendid charitable work helping poorer people to better their lives and surroundings, and they looked upon their efforts as the duty of all good American citizens. Women were beginning to take an active interest in political matters, and were studying these things with a view to taking their place in the nation’s affairs. Mrs. Tibbett compared American and Australian, women, saying that, in dress both countries were very similar, although she noticed that the complexions of Australian and New Zealand women were fresher. American women were paler and used cosmetics more freely titan Australasian women needed to. Australian women faced life in much the same way as their American sisters. They took a lively intelligent interest in world affairs, and were able to discuss a wide variety of subjects which showed they were as observant and modern in outlook as the women of Europe, England and America.

Mrs. Tibbett said she goes on tour because her husband was a riuther shy person, and became lonely very easily, so that she kept him happy by being mother, wife, secretary and critic to him. and by seeing that his practice hours wore not interfered will).

"Progressive" Club

The Y.W.C.A. Has organised a club, consisting of girls from Wellington manufaeturing linns, who meet at tlie Y-W.C.A. every Wednesday night for sports, handicrafts, community singing and physical culture. At a general meeting held recently it was decided to name the club “Progressive.” Officers were elected, and after the close of the meeting community singing was held, for which Mrs. C." E. Proctor played Hie piano.