Children on the set

REGARDING Susan King’s article on the film “Hounddog”: [“Houndog Finds a Home,” Sept. 14], I am a mom of a daughter, now 18, who worked for a bit as a child actor, and I saw that the public just didn’t “get it.” They only look at the final edited product and do not see what occurred behind the scenes: what fell on the editing floor, the lack of child labor laws to protect the children’s welfare while they work and what the children go through to get into character. And even before that, what the parents and representation feel the child can handle.

The public didn’t see the script; they didn’t care that Dakota, a minor, didn’t have a voice to say no and trusted her agent and parents to make the correct decision to protect her welfare, including her psychological welfare. They decided Dakota could act out a rape scene. An award-winning performance is what they were looking for.

Janet Palazzotto

Wantaugh, N.Y.