Academy Award winning actress Kathy Bates loves her RV, freedom of the open road

Kathy Bates' famous hot tub scene in 'About Schmidt.'

Kathy Bates talked about her affection for hitting the open road in AARP  Magazine's  October-November edition, reported an item in RVTravel.com.

"I've always loved driving. I own an RV and drove it to Memphis a couple of years ago. I stayed in an RV park on the Mississippi. It was wonderful to watch that river roll by," she said.

"On the road, some people don't have any idea who I am; they just see some old woman doddering around. I don't have paparazzi chasing me — I'm not of that ilk."

Jack Nicholson in 'About Schmidt'

When I read that quote, I flashed on the film "About Schmidt," where Jack Nicholson (right) plays a middle-aged Omaha executive who, after his wife’s unexpected death, takes his new Winnebego motor home on a road trip to his estranged daughter's wedding in Denver. Along the way Schmidt experiences various adventures and self-discoveries — including a hot tub encounter with Kathy Bates (above). Both actors received Academy Award nominations. It is a sweet, sad and funny film.  Well worth a Netflix and bowl of popcorn.

On that 2010 RV trip she mentioned above to her Memphis, Tenn., hometown, Bates and her travel companion stayed at the Tom Sawyer RV Park on the Mississippi River. "You can just sit there and watch the barges go by. It's beautiful," she said.

In a 2009 article in the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Bates was quoted as saying she "spends much of her free time driving around the country with her boyfriend, in an RV. 'Sometimes I just take off, just get away from L.A. and drive around and see real people. I like getting out at truck stops. I've always kind of liked the open road. So I'm often kind of on the lam.'"

Read more RV lifestyle articles by Julianne G. Crane in RVWheellife.com