BALL OF FIRE
She started off in Brooklyn
Ruby Stevens was her name
Petite, brown-eyed, brunette, lithe
She was destined for fame
First it was those small parts
The best friend or the maid
Then they saw beneath the sheen
there lay a bright-edged blade
Some years further down the road
Changed her style, her dress, her spiels
Stood tall to kiss Gary Cooper
Seven books beneath her heels
Throughout the years she played ’em all
from tough-as-nails jive dancer
to executive and old West rancher
to cute and sly romancer
But the role of hers I love the most
was never shown on screens:
Simply being Barbara Stanwyck
playing cards with the boys ‘tween scenes
© 2010 Amy Barlow Liberatore/Sharp Little Pencil
Sharp Little Pencil 
poetcolette
Goodness gracious! This is great!
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks, Colette! One of my favorite subjects: Old movies and their stars. Stanwyck was a regular person, which I love. Sheila Harris and I had been talking about her and I can’t remember when she came up in our conversations, but Sheila deserves some credit as well.
Eileen O'Neill
Amy,
Welcome to Poets United.
I enjoyed reading this poem, especially as I admit to knowing very little about Barbara Stanwyck. However, I am now much more aware of her and her style, since reading your tribute to her.
Thank you for sharing this delightful read,
Best wishes,
Eileen
Sharp Little Pencil
Eileen, thank you for the warm welcome! A friend and I were chatting online about our mutual love of Stanwyck in all her various phases of career, and voila! A poem was born. Have to acknowledge Sheila Harris for the inspiration…
sheilaeh
wait up wait up!
you pulled that poem ’bout our girl, Barbara , outta that amazing vast brain all by yourself ..i came along much later with a true story to share that your poemsparked in MY pea brain ’bout my father meeting the “Ball of Fire ” Missy,circa ww2..and then we got to note comparing..:)
really enjoyed this again and thank you for the undeserved acknowledgment..but it was always all you,Amy BL..
btw..i have a blog now..omg..my first ever…
the responsibility !! scary…
and gave you the kudos for it at Writer’s Island..;)thanks! (i think)
still workin’ out the bugs…
Sharp Little Pencil
Just go with the flow re: the blog. But no, your story about your dad sharing that few minutes with “Missy” really got me thinking about all the ways she was a mensch… a regular person. Never let the fame go to her head, and the legend is true: Her own stunts (even on Big Valley, when she was in her 60s) and played poker with the stagehands between shoots. They loved her. She was one of the few “blue collar” stars around, along with Clark Gable, Jean Arthur, Jimmy Cagney, and others.
signed .............bkm
Love this..she was a classic and a beauty…and strong…loved that about her….nice. and welcome to Poets United….bkm
Sharp Little Pencil
Thanks! Glad you liked this one. Amazing how many Stanwyck fans are out there, even among the under-AARP crowd! Amy
uponthewingsofnight
I always remembered Barbara Stanwyck for her tough roles but I saw her bio on the Biography Channel once. She was, indeed, a great person. Well done, Amy. Brett
Sharp Little Pencil
A great person, yes. A real “mensch.” And, I think, perhaps a closeted lesbian. One tough cookie either way!