Al, Carole and Evadna

Carole Landis in some ways could be a prototype for Marylin Monroe, who was born later and lived longer than Carole. Both were beautiful, underrated actresses, changed their names, attempted to survive the Hollywood system in place at the time, and died tragic deaths.

While the world knows of Marylin, few remember Carole. The only reason I know of her is because of a distant family tie. My Great Aunt Evadna was married to Carole’s father, Al Ridste. This was after Carole had died, but Uncle Al still carried a photo of her in his wallet and was proud of his daughter.

Over the years Evadna and Al were married they would travel back to Iowa from their California home to visit friends and family. Al was a mechanic, and gifted me as a kid a child size set of hand tools, which I treasured for years. Al complained he could never get a truly cold glass of water, so my dad showed him a trick. He filled a glass with ice then slowly filled it with a trickle of water from the faucet, making sure the water was constantly running over the ice. Once full, he handed the glass to Al, who drank it down and said it was cold, but not as cold as he would have liked. Whenever I have used dads trick the water can be cold enough to hurt my teeth. On a different visit Al ended up with cake slicing duty. Things went well at first, but Al did not wipe the knife off between cuttings, eventually resulting in a giant mess of mangled cake. My dad had offered to help, but Al insisted on doing it himself.

Al was always very kind to me, and he and Evadna were a memorable couple to me as a child. They both seemed very old and loud (as do most people to a kid) and foreign, because I didn’t know them except for their trips to Iowa in the summer when the family welcomed them back. I remember Al being very animated and talkative while Evadna would stand back and observe and smile, watching with her piercing, pale blue eyes. I associated happiness with them because the family always welcomed them back with joy and open arms.

Over the years I have sought out and enjoyed some of the movies Carole Landis appears in, and I have read a few brief biographies of her. She seemed to be very thoughtful and caring, but emotionally vulnerable. She died at age 29 of suicide. Al died as the result of a car accident, and Evadna from Lupis and strokes. All three are buried in California.