Julia Louis-Dreyfus recalled how “one of her greatest memories” is also one of her saddest.
At the top of her Lemonada Media’s “Wiser Than Me” podcast episode, the actor revealed that she suffered a pregnancy loss when she was in her late 20s.
“When I was about 28, I got pregnant for the first time and I was crazy happy,” she began. “I got pregnant easily. I felt very fertile, very womanly. And then, quite late in the pregnancy, my husband, Brad (Hall), and I discovered that this little fetus was not going to live.”
“So that was emotionally devastating as you can imagine, but it got worse because I developed an infection that landed me in the hospital,” the actor continued, calling the moment “a complete nightmare.”
The “Seinfeld” star recalled how her mom, Judith Bowles, flew out to be with her and prepared a delicious meal.
“After a couple of days, I finally gotten out of the hospital and I came home to recuperate, but I wasn’t allowed to get up out of bed yet. I was, as they say, bedridden,” Louis-Dreyfus continued. “But my mom cooked. She made this incredible cozy chili in a cast iron skillet with cornbread on top in the pan.”
Her mom and husband set up a tray of food at the foot of her bed. However, she couldn’t eat it.
“The smell of that cornbread and the chili was so wonderful. It just filled the room and the whole house and my heart, really, because here’s the thing I couldn’t eat,” she said. “I wasn’t yet allowed to have solid food, but it didn’t matter.”
The Emmy winner called it “the best meal ever,” even if she couldn’t have it. She said the making of the meal was so comforting and embracing at the moment.
“Food is central to the traditions of my family,” she said. “I would think that to most families, that’s the case. I relate food especially to my mom. She’s a great cook,” she said. “This is one of my greatest memories around food, even though it has sort of an odd kicker.”
Louis-Dreyfus and husband Brad Hall have been married since 1987. The couple share sons Henry, 30, and Charlie, 25.
Charlie Hall is following in his famous parents' acting footsteps. During a chat with Jimmy Kimmel on his late night talk show, Louis-Dreyfus revealed that she watched her son’s racy scenes in “Sex Lives of College Girls.”
Charlie Hall plays a biology student who becomes a love interest for one of the characters in the HBO comedy’s second season.
“I think he was really great,” Louis-Dreyfus said. “I mean, he was adorable. He was f------ some girl in the library and I thought it was dynamite!”
As for Louis-Dreyfus’ son Henry, he’s a musician. He released his debut album, “Neato,” in 2020 and a five-song EP, “Are You Kidding Me” in September of last year.