By the time actress Molly Ringwald reached her teenage years, she had blown out Sixteen Candles, dined with The Breakfast Club and looked the part in Pretty in Pink.
Following her time as a member of the so-called Brat Pack, made up of ’80s teen actors, Ringwald went on to continue acting in movies, pursued the stage on Broadway and landed a role on ABC Family network’s series The Secret Life of the American Teenager in 2008.
Now at the age of 40, Ringwald can add author to her list of accomplishments. Her book, Getting the Pretty Back, is a whimsical but true depiction of her life, insecurities, coming to terms with aging and what it means to be pretty. Splashes of colorful images by well-known artist Ruben Toledo fill the pages of the book, the same artist who creates the artwork for the current Nordstrom ads.
Ringwald brought her new book, husband, Panio Gianopoulos, and seven-year-old daughter, Mathilda Ereni, to a book reading and signing at Nordstrom in Bellevue Square this past weekend.
A large audience packed the Narrative department in the downtown Bellevue store for the InStyle magazine event featuring fashion expert Dina Biblarz and Ringwald.
Ringwald had the crowd laughing as she read from the pages of her book, describing her pregnancy and her very relatable interactions with her mother-in-law.
“I wanted to write this book because I felt like there were no books around that were stylish, inspirational and uplifting about this time in a woman’s life,” she said. “Aging is something that happens to all of us and there’s no point in denying it. It’s better to embrace it and age gracefully.”
Ringwald points to her husband, a Greek-American writer and book editor, as a large source of encouragement as she tackled writing her first book. He helped Ringwald stick to a writing schedule of 500 words a day. The regiment worked, and Ringwald was able to turn in her finished manuscript two weeks prior to her twins, Adele Georgiana and Roman Stylianos, being born.
“My husband is the only person who read it as I wrote,” she explained. “It’s different from doing television and movies because you don’t get instant feedback.”
According to Ringwald, although writing is a very different medium from acting and singing, she feels at home when writing and is excited to tackle a new area.
Ringwald has never been one to shy away from a challenge.
“I’ve always liked to challenged myself as long as it’s not too terrifying,” she said with a laugh.
“Like what,” her daughter Mathilda chimed in from the corner of the room where she sat quietly creating her own masterpiece with paper and crayons.
“Well, like jumping out of an airplane,” Ringwald answered her daughter. “Oh wait, I did that once,” she said correcting herself.
“And your parachute didn’t open,” said Mathilda, adding to her mother’s story.
Ringwald went skydiving on her 32nd birthday as a gift from her brother. She jumped tandem with a professional skydiver and the first parachute failed to open. Luckily the backup shoot was functional.
“I probably won’t be doing that again,” she said laughing.
Ringwald survived her skydiving experience and her teen years in the spotlight of Hollywood – not an easy feat.
“I think growing up is really hard and growing up in the public eye is even harder,” Ringwald said. “I wouldn’t presume to tell anyone how to do it because everyone makes their own mistakes and learns along the way. I think I was very lucky because even though I sort of became a teen icon overnight, I had (and still have) a great family and I was always encouraged to expand my mind outside of Hollywood.”
In her new book, Ringwald explores a very non-Hollywood idea of what defines pretty. She asks her readers to focus on the core self, and not just the exterior packaging.
“When I talk about pretty, it’s not anything physical, but instead is more of a state of mind,” she said. “It’s all about having confidence in who you are and what you have achieved. Confidence is the true definition of pretty.”
Lindsay Larin can be reached at 425-453-4602.
