Brigitte German Magazine 1969
A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN - A TALENTED MAN
Intro: The woman we are talking about is no longer among us.
Soon after Helga Leeb interviewed Sharon in London, the script was already in print, Sharon was murdered. We had second thoughts whether we should should publish the interview or not. We decided to do it, since all Sharon said about herself is more informative than anything that has been written after her passing.
Sharon Tate seems to be the most beautiful and incerdible human being that has ever been created in the Hollywood factory. Sharon is 26 and so beautiful you can't take your eyes off of her.
She just finished her part in 12+1 with Vittorio Gassman.
About hiding her pregnancy during the making, Sharon said: "I use to wear scarfs around my neck, so no one would notice!"
The director was lucky, the baby will probably be a small baby, a real Roman baby!
When asked about her husband, Sharon said: "Roman is sitting at home, working on a new film, I'm not allowed to disturb, but tonight I don't care. Look what I bought for him!" Sharon showed two plastic red fish. "There are batteries inside, so they'll swim in circles and throw water in the air! When I get home I will put them into the bathtub and switch them on, then I'll call for Roman, I'm sure he will laugh out loud!"
Question: Do you usually buy small gifts for your husband?
"Oh yes! And he does the same for me! Roman bought me a Rolls Royce lately! It's quite an old car, but it's in very good shape, I LOVE that car!"
Besides the plastic fish, Sharon also bought a Humpty Dumpty toy from the exclusive store Fortnom & Mason in London.
"Don't you know what it is?" Suddenly Sharon began to sing: "Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall..."
"I already bought it for the baby, isn't it cute?"
Sharon showed off baby clothes and said, "All of these are so tiny and soft! I just can't wait to have my baby! It doesn't matter at all if it's a boy or a girl, the important thing is that the baby is healthy!"
Question: Have you already made plans how to raise the baby?
"No, I never make plans, I read in a book if you don't allow a child to break porcelain, you will stop the mental evolution! I also read that children will have nasty periods when they use nasty words. You see, my child is supposed to do all of that, and more!
"I have decided to stay with my baby for 6 months. We are living in a wonderful house in Los Angeles, a former farmhouse. Later I will take my baby with me everywhere."
Question: Do you believe in marriage?
"Yes, as long as marriage does not put you in chains. You have to give your partner enough space to breathe and don't start to push and pull."
Question: You met your husband during the making of The Fearless Vampire Killers....
Sharon: "I met him at a party. And I thought, well, a party where I'm going to meet the film director of The Fearless Vampire Killers. He'll probably be one of those old, baldheaded men that I can't stand. Seeing Roman the first time, I did not find him attractive at all. He had lots of hair and looked very young, like 25. Our first meetings did not go so well."
Question: Would you like to play a part on one of your husband's movies again?
Sharon: "I'm not sure. When living together you can easily get on each others nerves. And I will not push Roman either. His films are so wonderful and super-intelligent. He would have to come up with that idea when he finds a part for me. Besides, Roman is so clever, no one can come close to him."
Sharon: "I'm just feminine. Women who are too intelligent and too busy to be successful tend to loose quite a lot of femininity and sexual attraction. Sexuality is a kind of energy. When women put too much energy to their private fame some of their sexual attraction gets lost. Roman is full of energy. I am the calm one in our marriage. I don't care much for activities and I don't have ambitions at all. It happens that a movie director stands in front of me, explaining things to me but my thoughts are elsewhere! Sometimes, I think I'm a little bit weird (Sharon laughing) does it show?"
The reporter denies...
Sharon: "Oh, that's good!"
Sharon said she has little hobbies....."I'm doing many different things though. But I don't care for politics and I don't read newspapers. For me it seems a waste of time. Roman becomes a little irritated of these behaviours sometimes. He has too much energy himself. He loves doing car races, he likes to fence, etc. I tried to fence once...but, the outfit you have to wear is pretty tight. I hate to wear tight clothes."
Sharon answered the question how she feels about nude scenes: "Nudity is aesthetical!"
Reporter: Only for beautiful people.
Sharon: "Maybe. I don't know if I'm really beautiful either. I don't want to spend too much time thinking about it. My mother use to say, it's the inner beauty that counts."
Question: Do you believe you are a good actress?
Sharon: "No, I'm sure not. I've just got a unique personality and I've learned to express that in front of the camera. That's all. Sir Laurence Olivier or John Gielgud or Alec Guiness, those are actors who have the ability to completely live up to every character they're playing."
Question: Do you find it fascinating to be a movie star?
Sharon: "Oh yes, very much so! But I could quit tomorrow with out crying a single tear. As I said I'm not ambitious. If there is a good part for me, I'll play it. When Roman works on a film I would not accept one, for me it's much more important for me to be with him when he travels."
When asked where she would like to settle down for the rest of her life, Sharon answered, "Settle down for good? Forever? Nowhere...."
Three days later, Sharon moved to the country for shootings, the reporter arrived at the house in Chelsea to meet Roman.
Roman: "I'm sorry, I have only a few minutes for an interview. I have to go."
Question: When you married Sharon two years ago, you told the press that a marriage has to be an eternal love affair. Have you been able to manage that in your own marriage?
Roman: "It's a little too early to ask me that. If I have reached the age of Bertrand Russell you can ask me again. Then I'll probably know!"
Question: Sharon told me that you both allow each other total space and freedom. Isn't that a bit dangerous, you could fall in love with someone else when you feel free too....
Roman: "For me a marriage means a total loyality towards your partner. When you are honest and loyal a small love affair could not harm your marriage fundamentally."
Question: Isn't it a danger zone anyways, thinking like you do?
Roman: "I can only speak for myself, I don't see any danger, as long as you are determined not to hurt your partner's feelings."
Question: Your wife describes you as full of energy and plans. She said that she is the passive one--a little careless about the future sometimes and sailing on cloud nine most of the time. Do you agree with that?
Roman: "That's correct. And that is the attraction between us, being so different. That makes our marriage successful. As long as we keep our identity, I think nothing can tear us apart."
Question: Sharon also told me, that women who care too much about intellectualism are suffering from feminity? What's your opinion?
Roman: "I agree 100% with Sharon. Besides this kind of woman bores me to death."
Question: Have you ever met a woman who is both sexy and intelligent?
Roman: "Never. And I don't want to. When I'm with a girl I want to make love and not discuss Shopenhauer."
Question: Let's talk about Rosemary's Baby.
Roman: "No, I don't want to. I'm so tired of talking about that movie. I worked on that film for two long years, gave interviews, etc. I have nothing more to say about it."
Question: Your wife is having a baby. She said she would give up her career tomorrow...
Roman: "Sharon is serious about that. You can believe her when she tells you that. If she has to make a choice between being an actress or having a happy family life she would choose a happy family life!"
Question: What would you suggest?
Roman: "I think no one should make other's choices. If Sharon wants to quit, I would not change her mind. If she continues to act, I want her to be a good actress. Until now she was not given the chance to really show off her talent. So far she only made one movie with a good director. And that was me..."
Only time would have told what could have happened... Sigh!
Thanks for that, Kerstien!!! :)
Here is another blogger Lauren who shows us her rare Sharon items:
http://www.laurenxlondon.blogspot.com/
And if you click on the photo it becomes larger--here is a big bikini pic of Sharon. :)
http://gilmoure.tumblr.com/post/537134069/blueruins-mariposima-sharon-tate
I am sorry but I do not think this interview does either one of them justice. I don't think it has anything to do with not understanding or analyzing it from "a different time period" either. Being intelligent does not have to mean discussing Shopenhauer! If I am not mistaken both had supper with Robert Kennedy before he was killed - hopefully they were aware of who he was and of his political ideas! Also didn't Sharon read Tess of d'Urbervilles. That's not exactly a book for people of low intelligence either.
ReplyDeleteGreat article, but I find it very odd. Look at it this way, Hollywood is now filled with women and men who are not too intelligent, and they make most of us cringe (think Paris Hilton). If they were being serious in this interview, I will have to disagree with both Roman and Sharon. Marilyn Monroe played dumb, but she wasn't, and she never loss her sex appeal or her femininity either.
This interview is so wonderful !!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you
I fully agree that intelligence (as well as intellectualism) does not and should not take away from femininity or sex appeal. Though I don't think Roman necessarily believed women were inferior, he was of the belief that men were intellectually superior and this probably influenced Sharon to some degree.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mike and Kerstien, too.
ReplyDelete