"THE INTERVIEW" WITH BARBARA LEIGH! (PART 1)

Barbara Leigh in the film "Junior Bonner"

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My Guest is the unforgettable actress and model Barbara Leigh. Barbara was born in Ringgold, Georgia. Her personal journey led her to New York City, where she signed with the famous Ford Modeling Agency, and Los Angeles where she began her acting career and was signed by agent Dick Clayton (who had discovered James Dean) and was the undisputed "Agent to the Stars". Barbara's first commercial was for Coca-Cola; she went on to make over 50 commercials including several that won awards for Best Commercial Of The Year. Television and film roles would follow. She appeared regularly on the television series “Harry O,” starring David Jansen, and was discovered by Roger Vadim and cast in the role as Jean, Rock Hudson's wife in the movie, “Pretty Maids All In A Row.”

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As I recounted in yesterday's post, I first noticed Barbara in what turned out to be her favorite film, “Junior Bonner” where she was cast opposite Steve McQueen. Barbara has graced the covers of dozens of magazines and today has fan clubs internationally. She resides in Los Angeles and works for Playboy Enterprises, Inc. Barbara's philanthropy has included working with a local Animal Rescue, The Star Light Foundation and The Aids Healthcare Foundation. Barbara co-wrote her autobiography, entitled, “The King, McQueen and The Love Machine,” with Marshall Terrill. The new Audio Book details Barbara's life, along with the excitement, passion and heartache of her romantic relationships with Elvis Presley, Steve McQueen and Jim Aubrey. In our visit, Barbara shares her reflections on the lessons she has learned from her life journey, the choices we make from the insights we seek, and ultimately that life must be lived with Meaning and Hope. On my Blog post yesterday, I shared with you my own story about the first time I spotted Barbara Leigh in a small movie house that was showing "Junior Bonner" in first-run. A sweet and down to earth person, we spoke about that experience with great laughter. Barbara's story is one of courage and inspiration. We covered many subjects. I hope you'll enjoy it.

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Manning: Well, you know my opening story about the first time I saw you up on the Big Screen with my best pal from childhood. We were 14 years-old and when we saw this beautiful young girl in the movie, we were smitten! Hours after the movie, all we could think about and talk about was you! And as 14 year-old boys we just couldn't understand how Steve McQueen managed to go to a rodeo and leave this beautiful girl he had met behind, buy her a plane ticket and send her home. We thought, 'No! Take her in the car off to the next rodeo. What are you thinking!'

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Leigh: (laughing): You know the ending was kind of strange. I really didn't think it was the best ending because it kind of left him in a sort of...'What's he going to do?' But you really didn't know and it just kind of left you without an ending. So, that is the one thing that I do think "Junior Bonner" lacked. But did Marshall (Terrill) tell you that he took me back to that bar (the Palace Bar in Prescott, Arizona where much of the filming took place) and on that wall in the back there is a mural from "Junior Bonner" with Steve and me? It was so sweet. (laughter).

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Manning: I saw that! And I did a BLOG on that subject...my trip out there.

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Leigh: You did?

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Manning: Oh, yeah! I took myself there back in November on a Sunday. and I must have spent three hours there. I had dinner. I had strangers take pictures of me so I would remember my visit. I had a Blast!

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Leigh: Was "Junior Bonner" the first Steve McQueen film you had seen?

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Manning: No. I was 9 years old when I saw "The Great Escape" on television over two nights.

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Leigh: Oh, well of course you were in love with him after that. Who wasn't? I saw that film too when I was young and I just adored him. And when I went to read with him, I was just totally in awe of that movie, "The Great Escape", because that's the image of him that was left in your mind about this bad boy that gets away.

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Manning: You know, I was quite surprised as I walked up and down the street from the bar there in Prescott at how friendly people were, but they knew very little about the film. And I really expected people to know the facts and just regale me with stories of the filming locations about town and so forth. But I didn't get a sense of that.

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Leigh: Well, I think maybe that a lot of them are new people. Do you know when we had the Northridge earthquake out here (Los Angeles, 1994) a lot of people left and they went to Prescott. And they opened those wineries and breweries. If you walk out of the bar, you see the Gazebo in the center of town. Around it they have all these different restaurants and they never had that before. The (Palace) bar was interesting. But it changed a little bit.

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Manning: Well, I looked all over that bar for the phone booth (mutual laughter).

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Leigh: They should have auctioned that phone booth off. (more laughter) It's true! (we continue laughing) They might have gotten some money for that...

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Manning: ...And I mean we were kids! And we talked for hours after the movie let out and we couldn't get that romantic scene of you in that phone booth kissing Steve out of or minds. We'd periodically ask 'Are you still thinking about that girl we saw in the film?' And we'd say, 'Yeah'. You really got to us! It came up every fifteen or twenty minutes! And we'd be in a record store at the shopping mall back when vinyl records were still big, and my buddy would walk down an aisle, I'd walk down an aisle. 'Still thinking about the girl?' 'Yeah'. Oh, we had it bad!

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Leigh: (laughing) Oh, that's funny.Very sweet.

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Manning: But I wanted to ask you as you look back on your life during that time period, what stands out to you most vividly about where your life was then and where it is today?

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Leigh: Oh! Well, that's a good question but that's a hard question because it's hard to reflect back. At my age today, I can look back and say 'I wish I'd handled it this way or I wish that I had handled it that way'. But I think that I that I acted out of...I was completely naive. Even though I was out with this exotic life with dating all these famous men. I think I was naive and I think that was a good thing because it sheltered me. As you get older, you see life differently. And it's not always as pretty. Because people disappoint you and you see reality. And I really think that I was living in some sort of fantasy. So, it's hard to be any more specific than that.

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Manning: But that is an incredible amount of insight for anyone to have. Not everybody gets there.

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Leigh: Well, I got there late (laughter). I really think that was part of the time that men found in me this image of this sexpot. And then when they got to meet me they saw this sweet, good person and this attracted me to them more than just physically. And I see that in myself as I get older, because when I started to change I could look back and say, 'Oh! now I wouldn't believe it, but then I would'. You see, when people disappoint you...and it's just like one day I was 50 and it was the old saying that a cloud disappeared, or a curtain is lifted. You see life totally different. And that happened to me. So, all I can say is that I'm glad I was naive. Because I had a ball! And I felt blessed, you know I really do! I mean, some people look at it and say 'slut!' Because when you're dating three men or something like that...today it's "Sex In The City" and those girls are famous and everybody admires them. But the reality is that people tend to be a little harsher. But I had a great time, and everything I did came from the heart. So I look back and I don't have any regrets in that respect about my life at all.

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Manning: Well, you were a world-class actress and a model in the early 1970's. For the benefit of readers who are just now discovering you and your work, please tell us how a small town girl from Georgia launched her career in 1967. You mention in your book, that "timing is everything", and the late 60's were very, very intense in the entertainment world and for our country. Tell us how you started?

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Leigh: Well, I'll start quickly by telling you that I came out here to Los Angeles at 19 with my husband and my son. And I started to work. We didn't get along for many reasons. I chose to stay and he went back. I worked for a doctor who was such a wonderful person in my life at that time. He trained me to do things. I had no knowledge of anything. But I was patient and I was able to earn a living for myself and my son. The nurses I worked with took me to Beverly Hills one night to this night club and there was this really gorgeous singer performing. His name was Mark Devlin. He saw me in the lobby and he came down and introduced himself and we started dating, we got engaged and he said "I don't know why you;re working as a nurse. You should be working as a model". So he had a friend take pictures of me and my first little job was for Kodak. And after that I just started working and got an agent. One night, I was with friends at "The Candy Store"...and this was where all the stars and celebs went and were really wonderful. This was 1969. An agent came up to me and said "Have you been an actress or have you ever thought about it?" I said that I had. So, he took me to AFA (Ashley Famous Agency), which later became the famous ICM (International Creative Management). He introduced me to Dick Clayton, the famous agent who had discovered James Dean and was a wonderful agent..."agent to the stars". He signed me on the spot and that is how my career got started. But I concentrated on my private life more than I ever did on my acting career because I think I was always searching for my dad, my father, that male influence in my life that I didn't have growing up. So a relationship was more important to me than my career at that time. I didn't think of myself in that way..what's going to happen to me? Build a future? I was existing and living in the time with my man...that kind of thing.

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Manning: Well, I found it fascinating that you have fans all over the world and they're familiar to this day with the Warren Comic Book character of Vampirella.

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Leigh: Yeah, that was more of a blessing in the end. It was a heartbreak at the time because I was under contract with Hammer Films in England. And I loved Hammer Films because they did all the great Dracula Films, "One Million B.C." with Raquel Welch. So, when I got signed to do that it was like a dream come true. Then when it didn't happen it was a heart breaker. And then Jim Warren who owned Warren Comics...we did some publicity. Hammer Films took me to New York. We were all there and a photographer was hired to do publicity photos of me. Jim Warren wound up using them on the cover of his magazines. I think there was a total of eight. He never paid me for it and it's a long story. But in the end, Vampirella came back and I had these fans, so it all paid off and my broken heart was healed. It was really a blessing.

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Manning: While my focus here is on you, it is impossible not to mention your relationships with Elvis Presley, Steve McQueen and Jim Aubrey...it's the prominent title of your book "The King, McQueen and The Love Machine". Your personal journey is what fascinates me. But how would you summarize the role each of these men had in your career?

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Leigh: Well, Jim Aubrey (MGM President) didn't have any...he was a strange man. He would go out of his way not to help you because he didn't ever want to be criticized if he put his girlfriend in a movie because he told stories of that...how heads of other studios...he had a daughter, Skye Aubrey. She's a fine actress and one of my dearest friends. And she studied at The Royal Academy of London. He could have helped us both but he didn't. So that was his principle on the situation. And Steve McQueen of course, I met him in the interview (for "Junior Bonner") and he fought for me for that part in "Junior Bonner" which luckily I did end up getting. As you know from the book, I wasn't the first choice of (Director) Sam Peckinpah. Long story in history is that I did it. And then he, at that time was talking to me about "The Getaway". He gave me a little paperback version of it and he would talk about us doing it. He met Ali (MacGraw) and the rest is history.

To Be Continued...