Paul Child was a fascinating man. He was an expert in judo, a painter, and a photographer （although he only had the use of one eye due to a childhood accident）; spoke fluent French; worked in the OSS （the precursor to the CIA） in Sri Lanka, where he met Julia; and eventually became a member of the American diplomatic corps after the Second World War, working as a cultural liaison in France, Germany, and Norway. He was as voracious a reader as he was an eater, and therefore had an extensive knowledge of countless subjects. During their time abroad Paul encouraged Julia to study cooking and eventually take those skills to television when they returned to live in the US, in the early 1960s. Retired at this point, he supported her behind the scenes, carrying her kitchen kit from studio to studio, helping with prep work, and washing pots and pans at the end of the day as well as illustrating and taking photos for her cookbooks. In short, he was a very advanced fella for his time and one of the most interesting people I’ve had the pleasure of playing. The entire experience was only made better by Nora, Meryl, and the convivial atmosphere on set. As I may have alluded to in previous pages, this is a rather rare occurrence.
That conviviality remained when we were reunited over a year later for our press tour. To kick it off, President and Michelle Obama chose Julie & Julia to be the first film shown in the White House screening room when he was first elected, an event to which we were all thrilled to be invited. When we arrived, the president and the First Lady greeted us and could not have been more charming as we tried our best not to gush all over them. After a little chitchat, President Obama left to attend to some affair of some state while Mrs. Obama and the rest of us went to the small White House screening room to watch the film. We knew in that moment that no matter where we subsequently went on the remainder of the press tour, this would be a tough act to follow. However, there was one other experience that was also very notable but for distinctly different reasons.
There’s a little restaurant slightly inland from the Normandy coast, the name of which I can’t remember, and that’s probably a good thing. This is where Meryl, Chris Messina, and I found ourselves one afternoon as we were heading from Deauville to Paris. We had been promoting Julie & Julia at the Deauville film festival, which is one of my favorites because it is a very relaxed affair, unlike most of the other major festivals. At Deauville there is a fair amount of the usual repetitive press interviews to be done as well as a few photo shoots （always painful）， but screenings take place only during the day, hence the evenings and nights are for the most part one’s own. Guests will stay at the Hotel Barrière Le Royal with a view of the seemingly endless beaches made famous by the painter Boudin over a century ago. The air is fresh; the skies are blue until they suddenly turn a deep gray and let loose a dramatic thunderstorm, making the whole experience quite romantic. The festival and the setting are a film lover’s and a filmmaker’s dream. The location is a food lover’s dream.
That area of the Gallic coast is of course known for its seafood as well as its more rustic country fare. The buffet lunch poolside at the Hotel Le Royal is in itself a typical Norman treat. Platters of fruits de mer on beds of ice, crisp green salads with a classic shallot dressing, fresh baguettes, and bottles of rosé or Sancerre are on offer and quickly snapped up by all the guests. There are also many wonderful restaurants in the surrounding area if one is interested in venturing out of the Barrière bubble.
I have been to the festival often over the years, staying for varying lengths of time, but on this trip I was there only a couple of days, as we were scheduled to attend a premiere for the film and a press junket in Paris. The morning of our departure saw us in a parade of cars heading northward to our destination with a small detour to the hallowed beaches of D-Day. As a World War II buff, I was beyond excited to visit this place I had read so much about. Needless to say it turned out to be more fascinating and moving than I ever could have imagined, and years later I am still overwhelmed by the experience.
After our tour （well, actually Meryl got the tour; our designated guide, who was I think the head of the whole site, was clearly smitten and hastily whisked her away while the rest of us tried to keep up as best we could, straining to overhear a fact or two that he imparted breathily into my costar’s ear）， we returned to our convoy and headed for lunch at a little country bistro that one of the drivers was familiar with.
We arrived at a charming eatery off a side road famished and thirsty for the grape as usual. The cast of characters at the table was composed of M. Streep; my publicist Jenn; Chris Messina; Meryl’s brother Dana, an avid eater to say the least; and myself. The owner, who was no doubt as excited to meet Meryl as our D-Day beach tour guide, at least had the decency to acknowledge the presence of her dining companions, and swiftly brought us bread, water, the menu, and thankfully, wine.