The JULIE ANDREWS Only I Know

THE STEPDAUGHTER OF THE SOUND OF MUSIC STAR SHARES MEMORIES OF THEIR WARM FAMILY LIFE

-  LOUISE A. BARILE

When Jennifer Edwards landed her first lead role in Heidi, at age 10, her father, director Blake Edwards, had lots of advice, but her stepmother, Julie Andrews, had just a few words. "I remember her saying, 'Have fun,' as I was getting on the plane," Jennifer tells Closer. "It was also, 'Don't forget to have fun.' I thought that was very appropriate. Don't take anything too seriously."

Generations of children have watched Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music and Mary Poppins and wished she could be their friend and confidante. Jennifer, 67, the daughter of Blake and his first wife, costume designer Patricia Walker, grew up with Julie as an important part of her family. "My stepmother, Julie, was the rock for all of us," says Jennifer. "We love each other very much."

After a chance meeting outside their shared therapist's office, Julie and Blake teamed up to work on the 1970 musical Darling Lili and fell in love. Jennifer remembers meeting Julie for the first time at her dad's home. "I had seen Mary Poppins like five times," she says. But as a child of Hollywood, she rarely felt starstruck. "I could walk down the stairs to Audrey Hepburn or Tony Curtis in the living room," she explains, adding that she mostly wondered about the nature of her father's relationship with Julie. "He was introducing me to her, so it was like, 'Is he serious about her?""

He was! Julie and Blake, who were both divorced with children, wed in 1969 and created a blended family. "We were so young, it wasn't difficult to acclimate," says Jennifer. "Julie's biological daughter, Emma, was around 3. My brother was 5, and I was 7."

HAPPY AT HOME