It’s not every day you’re walking through the market and are confronted by a Cheviot Hills news headline so salacious you almost have to do a double take. But that’s exactly what happened to me when I was at the market down on National, picking up ice for my son’s birthday party and saw the magazine Closer (never heard of it before) with a big picture of actor Lorenzo Lamas and a headline that screamed in bold letters: “MY WIFE GAVE BIRTH TO MY GRANDSON!” I’m slightly embarrassed to admit that I had to buy the magazine so I could understand how in the world this was humanly possible. To tell you the truth, if it were any random actor I might not actually have cared too much, however, Lorenzo Lamas’ involvement piqued my interest considering his family is part of Cheviot Hills’ history.

Lamas’ mother is noted actress Arlene Dahl. She was one of MGM’s most celebrated leading ladies in the 1940’s and ‘50’s. Before she had Lorenzo, she was married to another actor, Lex Barker and together they made their home on Glenbarr Avenue in Cheviot Hills. These famous icons of another era also happened to live next door to my father-in-law and his family. Once in a while a relative would share an anecdote related to how beautiful Arlene Dahl was in person or how they would sometimes hear music coming from one of her glamorously star-studded parties. It’s possible I was just bored by being at the market that day, but seeing a headline that involved my father-in-law’s former Cheviot Hills’ neighbor’s son did spark my interest.

I read the article and, as strange as it sounds, it turned out that the story was in fact true. According to an interview he gave to the magazine, Lorenzo Lamas’ fifth wife Shawna served as a surrogate for his daughter, Shayne. Shayne was unable to have children so Shawna, an aspiring actress, stepped up to carry the baby as the ultimate gift to her new daughter and son-in-law. Lamas told the magazine that it was a win-win situation since he had no desire to add to the six children he already had, yet his new wife Shawna wanted to experience pregnancy.

And now, after a July 4th delivery, their grand baby is living with Lamas’ daughter and her husband and everyone is due to live happily ever-after. As far as Lorenzo Lamas is concerned, he no longer has relatives in Cheviot Hills, however you may spot him flying above his old house on Glenbarr since he currently works as a helicopter pilot when he’s in between acting jobs.

And the moral of the story is: sometimes you can judge a ‘book’ (or tabloid magazine) by its cover, truth is often stranger than fiction and when it comes to the type of market I like… let’s just agree it’s real estate. I have no desire to return to a grocery store any time soon!

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