Actress Judith Ivey, in Lewiston the last three weeks guest-directing “The Ladies Foursome” at the Public Theatre, has played dozens of roles over a 40-year-career.

Asked to name a favorite, she pointed to B.J. Poteet on the TV series “Designing Women” in the early 1990s.

“It was based on a wonderful journalist, Molly Ivins,” Ivey said. “It was such a fun character and since I was someone who watched ‘Designing Women,’ it was so weird to suddenly be sitting on that set. Plus Annie Potts and I did summer stock as baby actresses when we first graduated from college, I’ve known her for a long time.”

For movies, “Compromising Positions” and “Hello Again,” both directed by Frank Perry, rise to the top.

“I’ve been blessed,” she said. “I’ve loved so many roles that have come my way, complex, wonderful, zany, eccentric characters.”

Absent from her nearest and dearest is the role most Mainers might recognize Ivey in, as Cathy Kramer the psychic in Stephen King’s “Rose Red” miniseries in 2002.

“It was a long shoot and my children were young at the time,” Ivey said. “Flying back and forth, trying to stay connected to them, from New York to Seattle, was a trial. The shooting schedule — had we stayed on it — I could have gone home for even weeks at a time, but because we didn’t stay on it, I ended up staying there the full four months with very little time off. And that wasn’t because I didn’t learn my lines.”

Ivey laughed and said she didn’t think anyone had ever asked her about “Rose Red” before.

— Kathryn Skelton

Lewiston supply closet gets help from NBC producer

LEWISTON — Continuing the movie star theme, check this out.

Lewiston parent Tina Hutchinson recently shared that she’s delivered classroom supplies to 22 teachers at four Lewiston schools, getting help from lots of people in Lewiston, and a special Lewiston High graduate in Hollywood.

During December, Hutchinson and Ellie and Francis Gagnon, who own Photo Finish, started a campaign to raise money for classroom supplies. They raised $1,140, more than Hutchinson expected. She’s delighted by the help from the community to jumpstart her supply closet. (For more info: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lewistonpublicschoolsparentsandstaff/)

But wait, there’s more.

Hutchinson also received two shipments of supplies from Adam Barr of North Hollywood, Calif. Barr is a writer and producer for NBC. He’s best known for writing and producing “Will and Grace.”

Barr grew up in Lewiston. After reading about what Hutchinson was trying to do, he contacted her, sent donations and helped her connect to other Lewiston High alumni, including Joe Rando who teaches business at Vanderbilt University in Tennessee.

“I’m happy to help,” he told the Sun Journal in an email. “It was hard generating funds over the holiday season, but I’m going to make another plea on Tina’s behalf.”

Barr attended Wallace School, Pettingill, the Lewiston Middle School and graduated from Lewiston High School in 1984.

Goes to show, you never know what the kid sitting in the desk next to you will become.

— Bonnie Washuk