ABSTRACT
I, Lewison Burns O'Connell, was born May 25, 1937, the only child of Joyce Ivy Burns O'Connell and Lewis William O'Connell, in a Christian Science Birthing Center in Pasadena, California. Joyce was a Busby Berkeley dancing girl and a direct descendant of the poet Robert Burns. Lewis (known as Connie) was a cinematographer in the movie industry, working with directors Howard Hawks and Cecil B. DeMille. The old saying about being born with a silver spoon in my mouth doesn't apply. I was born with a silver service for eight in my mouth. During my first few years of life, I lived in the luxury of Beverly Hills, California, with nurses caring for me and many internationally known entertainment personalities fawning over me and showering me with lavish gifts. As I struggled through school years, it was difficult for anyone to control what one teacher termed "this frisky young man." I was transferred through all of the best schools on the West Coast until finally I managed to graduate from high school. I then tried college and, when that didn't work out, I joined the naval reserves. During this period, I was experimenting sexually with male friends in college and the Navy. Ultimately, societal pressures forced me to marry. It was certainly a marriage of convenience—and to satisfy "Mother." From this marriage there were two abortions and finally the birth of a daughter (with whom I continue to have a comfortable relationship, though she has her own family in California).
