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1
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On the whole, there are two people in me.
2
00:00:21,313 --> 00:00:23,482
I would like to be Maria,
3
00:00:23,482 --> 00:00:26,110
but there is the Callas
that I have to live up to.
4
00:00:26,777 --> 00:00:30,072
So I'm coping with both as much as I can.
5
00:00:30,739 --> 00:00:35,119
And in a crunch,
who has to win, Maria or Callas?
6
00:00:35,369 --> 00:00:38,205
I like to think that
they both go together,
7
00:00:38,205 --> 00:00:41,500
because Callas has been Maria.
8
00:00:41,500 --> 00:00:46,672
In my singing and in my work,
my own self has been there every second.
9
00:00:47,089 --> 00:00:50,009
I've done nothing falsely.
I've worked with all honesty.
10
00:00:50,009 --> 00:00:55,222
So Maria has... if somebody really tries
to listen to me seriously,
11
00:00:55,222 --> 00:00:57,683
one will find all of myself in there.
12
00:03:23,829 --> 00:03:26,373
"Madam Callas," one music critic notes,
13
00:03:26,373 --> 00:03:29,877
"has restored the ancient luster
to the title of prima donna."
14
00:03:30,461 --> 00:03:33,380
Leonard Bernstein
calls her "pure electricity."
15
00:03:35,174 --> 00:03:36,508
Good evening, Madam Callas.
16
00:03:36,508 --> 00:03:39,303
- Good evening, Mr. Murrow.
- And welcome home.
17
00:03:39,303 --> 00:03:41,680
- Thank you very much.
- I know that many people
18
00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:44,266
are under the impression
that you're Italian,
19
00:03:44,266 --> 00:03:47,436
and are not aware that actually
you grew up in New York.
20
00:03:47,436 --> 00:03:48,979
- Isn't that right?
- Yes.
21
00:03:48,979 --> 00:03:51,523
Not only was I born in New York...
22
00:03:51,523 --> 00:03:53,692
not in Brooklyn, as they say...
23
00:03:53,692 --> 00:03:55,778
not that there's anything wrong
with Brooklyn, of course,
24
00:03:55,778 --> 00:03:57,446
but just for the sake of truth...
25
00:03:58,072 --> 00:04:02,493
but I was brought up in America,
in New York,
26
00:04:02,493 --> 00:04:04,328
and I'm rather proud of that, too.
27
00:04:04,328 --> 00:04:08,290
Madam Callas, what do you remember most
about your school days?
28
00:04:08,290 --> 00:04:12,086
Well, very happy days,
I must say, carefree days.
29
00:04:12,503 --> 00:04:14,713
I remember we had a principal
who was very severe,
30
00:04:14,713 --> 00:04:18,217
and he kept on saying,
"Now, children, self-control.
31
00:04:18,217 --> 00:04:19,927
Remember that all your life."
32
00:04:20,594 --> 00:04:22,971
I am, but...
33
00:04:22,971 --> 00:04:24,932
Though it's hard sometimes to remember it.
34
00:04:24,932 --> 00:04:29,061
And also, I always used to sing
each year for the graduation.
35
00:04:29,061 --> 00:04:31,730
You know, I was the little
singer of the school.
36
00:04:32,064 --> 00:04:34,566
I sang operettas, and I sang...
37
00:04:35,234 --> 00:04:37,569
well, Chinese princes and the sailors
38
00:04:37,569 --> 00:04:40,072
and certain things like that,
as much as I remember.
39
00:04:44,451 --> 00:04:46,578
I've never been able to pronounce
the last name.
40
00:04:46,578 --> 00:04:48,414
- Would you do it for me?
- In Greek?
41
00:04:48,414 --> 00:04:49,415
In Greek.
42
00:04:50,332 --> 00:04:52,126
- Here, you ready?
- Yes.
43
00:04:52,126 --> 00:04:55,587
Kalogeropoulou. Well, it's rather long.
44
00:04:55,587 --> 00:04:57,714
And that's why your father
changed it to Callas?
45
00:04:57,714 --> 00:04:59,299
Yes, I'm afraid so.
46
00:04:59,299 --> 00:05:03,220
It was already done by the time
I understood any difference.
47
00:05:08,434 --> 00:05:10,436
My mother was rather ambitious,
48
00:05:10,436 --> 00:05:15,441
and my father wanted me
to have a musical education.
49
00:05:15,441 --> 00:05:18,694
I started on piano at eight years old.
50
00:05:20,279 --> 00:05:24,241
These were the times of Deanna Durbin
and Shirley Temple,
51
00:05:24,241 --> 00:05:26,869
and of course my mother was dreaming...
52
00:05:27,161 --> 00:05:29,246
Dreaming of what? Glory of course.
53
00:05:29,246 --> 00:05:34,418
She decided that
I should become a great singer.
54
00:05:34,418 --> 00:05:37,546
And I probably did have some talent,
55
00:05:38,130 --> 00:05:40,340
otherwise she would not have carried on.
56
00:05:40,340 --> 00:05:43,427
And I couldn't fight it
because in those days,
57
00:05:43,427 --> 00:05:45,429
one did as the parents decided.
58
00:05:45,429 --> 00:05:48,891
What could I have done? Protest?
59
00:05:48,891 --> 00:05:51,643
A girl like me against
a temperament like my mother's?
60
00:05:52,853 --> 00:05:54,271
It's cruelty, I think.
61
00:05:54,271 --> 00:05:56,648
In fact, please forgive me,
62
00:05:56,648 --> 00:05:58,775
but I must say
there must be a law against it.
63
00:05:58,775 --> 00:06:01,361
Children should not be given
this responsibility.
64
00:06:01,361 --> 00:06:02,946
They don't last long.
65
00:06:02,946 --> 00:06:05,282
Children should have
a wonderful childhood.
66
00:06:05,282 --> 00:06:08,118
I had not had it. I wish I could have.
67
00:06:11,497 --> 00:06:13,790
We left for Greece in 1937,
68
00:06:13,790 --> 00:06:16,585
so I had just gone into high school.
69
00:06:17,211 --> 00:06:21,173
So, I went to Greece,
and I couldn't continue school there,
70
00:06:21,173 --> 00:06:24,384
because my mother decided
on my singing career.
71
00:06:26,637 --> 00:06:29,473
You enjoyed your childhood?
You enjoyed being young, did you?
72
00:06:29,473 --> 00:06:32,726
Yes, the little I did have of it,
I really did enjoy it.
73
00:06:33,268 --> 00:06:35,437
And then you went to Greece,
and you were caught in Greece
74
00:06:35,437 --> 00:06:37,523
- for the duration...
- The war.
75
00:06:37,523 --> 00:06:39,233
- ...duration of the war.
- Yes.
76
00:06:39,900 --> 00:06:41,360
What are your memories of that?
77
00:06:42,402 --> 00:06:43,737
That was hard.
78
00:06:44,446 --> 00:06:48,951
I confess that that was a bit hard,
but it doesn't hurt anybody.
79
00:06:48,951 --> 00:06:51,703
You know, hardship does one good.
80
00:06:52,246 --> 00:06:53,830
And as soon as I went to Greece,
81
00:06:53,830 --> 00:06:58,210
I was put into the conservatoire,
but I had an age problem.
82
00:06:58,877 --> 00:07:01,547
My age problem was
that I was only 13 years old,
83
00:07:01,547 --> 00:07:07,094
and I couldn't enter the conservatory
unless I was at least 17.
84
00:07:07,594 --> 00:07:09,930
But I was a tall girl,
85
00:07:09,930 --> 00:07:12,808
and I could justify
very well saying a lie.
86
00:07:13,016 --> 00:07:15,060
It was the first lie in my life.
87
00:07:18,438 --> 00:07:19,898
My mother didn't allow me
88
00:07:19,898 --> 00:07:22,985
to stay in front of the mirror
for more than five minutes.
89
00:07:23,443 --> 00:07:24,861
I had to study.
90
00:07:25,279 --> 00:07:27,864
I couldn't waste time with such nonsense.
91
00:07:27,864 --> 00:07:30,367
And certainly, I owe it to her strictness
92
00:07:30,367 --> 00:07:34,288
if today I have vast
and extensive artistic experience.
93
00:07:35,205 --> 00:07:39,209
I was finally accepted
at the Conservatoire of Athens,
94
00:07:39,209 --> 00:07:42,004
where I was entrusted
to the wonderful teacher
95
00:07:42,004 --> 00:07:43,797
Elvira de Hidalgo.
96
00:07:44,423 --> 00:07:46,800
To this illustrious Spanish artist,
97
00:07:46,800 --> 00:07:50,971
I say, with a moved,
devoted and grateful heart:
98
00:07:50,971 --> 00:07:54,099
I owe all my stage and musical training.
99
00:07:54,558 --> 00:07:59,021
This elect creature, who besides giving me
her precious teachings,
100
00:07:59,479 --> 00:08:01,690
gave me her whole heart,
101
00:08:01,690 --> 00:08:04,067
and was a witness
to all my life in Athens.
102
00:08:05,986 --> 00:08:09,406
With her, more than anyone,
I felt like family.
103
00:08:09,948 --> 00:08:13,577
She had this look in her eyes.
104
00:08:14,411 --> 00:08:16,580
And a way of interpreting the...
105
00:08:18,081 --> 00:08:19,082
the arias.
106
00:08:19,082 --> 00:08:22,502
She didn't know much Italian
but was singing in Italian.
107
00:08:23,754 --> 00:08:26,923
That really struck me.
She watched me the whole time.
108
00:08:27,674 --> 00:08:30,218
With that large mouth of hers
109
00:08:30,761 --> 00:08:33,221
and her expressive eyes.
110
00:08:33,805 --> 00:08:36,892
That impressed me.
I thought, "She is someone!"
111
00:08:38,101 --> 00:08:40,812
What was she like as a student?
112
00:08:41,855 --> 00:08:43,607
- Perfect.
- Meaning?
113
00:08:43,607 --> 00:08:45,942
Obedient, intelligent,
114
00:08:46,777 --> 00:08:48,362
a really hard worker...
115
00:08:48,362 --> 00:08:52,366
Such a hard worker. That was incredible.
116
00:08:52,824 --> 00:08:54,868
I never had to tell her...
117
00:08:55,619 --> 00:08:58,330
anything twice.
118
00:08:58,872 --> 00:09:01,041
She'd say, "Yes, capito."
119
00:09:02,459 --> 00:09:03,794
The next day...
120
00:09:04,836 --> 00:09:05,837
Magnificent!
121
00:09:06,463 --> 00:09:07,798
And everything was like that.
122
00:09:08,548 --> 00:09:12,344
She was very musical and a musician,
she knew a lot about music.
123
00:09:12,344 --> 00:09:15,013
She played the piano really well.
124
00:09:15,931 --> 00:09:20,894
And she always arrived first
and was the last to leave.
125
00:09:20,894 --> 00:09:22,396
That was astonishing.
126
00:09:22,396 --> 00:09:25,732
How could she keep it up like that
for five hours?
127
00:09:26,191 --> 00:09:28,026
She'd listen to all the other students.
128
00:09:28,735 --> 00:09:32,072
The coloraturas, the tenors, all of them.
129
00:09:32,072 --> 00:09:35,075
That's why she got this...
130
00:09:36,326 --> 00:09:40,288
this idea to sing,
and especially the high notes.
131
00:09:40,288 --> 00:09:42,499
She'd say:
"Will I be able to do the pichetatti?"
132
00:09:42,499 --> 00:09:46,670
I'd reply: "If you carry on like that,
yes, you'll be able to do anything.
133
00:09:47,546 --> 00:09:50,215
Anything.
But only if you keep On working like now."
134
00:13:59,673 --> 00:14:01,841
I would have preferred...
135
00:14:01,841 --> 00:14:04,761
to have a happy family and have children.
136
00:14:04,761 --> 00:14:07,931
I think that is
the main vocation of a woman.
137
00:14:08,598 --> 00:14:12,936
But destiny brought me into this career.
I couldn't get out, and...
138
00:14:14,354 --> 00:14:19,067
I was forced into it quite frequently,
first by my mother, then by my husband.
139
00:14:19,067 --> 00:14:21,319
I would have given it up with pleasure,
140
00:14:21,778 --> 00:14:25,115
but destiny is destiny,
and there is no way out.
141
00:14:39,921 --> 00:14:44,801
Madam Callas, what is your impression
142
00:14:44,801 --> 00:14:48,138
on the eve of this gala,
which is your Paris debut?
143
00:14:48,138 --> 00:14:50,765
I promised I would come to Paris.
144
00:14:50,765 --> 00:14:56,187
So I ask you to wish... for your sake too,
145
00:14:56,187 --> 00:14:59,899
for me to sing like never before.
That's all I want now.
146
00:22:21,591 --> 00:22:24,385
You have a reputation
for being a good actress.
147
00:22:24,385 --> 00:22:27,221
Do you consider it necessary
and essential to be an actress?
148
00:22:27,221 --> 00:22:29,390
Oh, yes. I should say.
149
00:22:29,849 --> 00:22:31,934
I don't think
you would even want an artist,
150
00:22:31,934 --> 00:22:35,396
a real artist that cannot act.
151
00:22:35,396 --> 00:22:37,064
I'm quite sure you don't.
152
00:22:37,064 --> 00:22:39,108
You just don't bother
to go to the opera anymore.
153
00:22:39,108 --> 00:22:41,235
And opera can be a very silly thing,
154
00:22:41,235 --> 00:22:43,946
but it can be the most
gorgeous thing in the world.
155
00:22:44,447 --> 00:22:45,907
You also have a reputation
156
00:22:45,907 --> 00:22:48,826
as one of the most tempestuous
opera stars in the world.
157
00:22:49,243 --> 00:22:52,455
Well, I don't know what
you mean by "tempestuous."
158
00:22:52,914 --> 00:22:55,458
There's been lots of talk about it, too,
159
00:22:55,458 --> 00:22:58,085
and I haven't quite understood
what it means.
160
00:23:09,764 --> 00:23:13,935
The saddest evening of my career
started out as a very promising one.
161
00:23:15,478 --> 00:23:18,356
I could never have predicted
the wave of violence
162
00:23:18,356 --> 00:23:20,775
and cruelty
that would be unleashed upon me
163
00:23:20,775 --> 00:23:23,736
after that performance
so painfully aborted
164
00:23:23,736 --> 00:23:25,029
on January the 2nd.
165
00:23:26,906 --> 00:23:30,952
The papers, not only in Rome and Italy
but all over Europe and America,
166
00:23:30,952 --> 00:23:35,665
with few exceptions that
moved me for being so rare,
167
00:23:35,665 --> 00:23:38,292
set aside all international
political events
168
00:23:38,292 --> 00:23:40,419
and reserved their front pages,
169
00:23:40,419 --> 00:23:44,423
their headlines
and their chronicles to my poor name.
170
00:23:45,174 --> 00:23:47,969
It was the ideal time
to drag it through the mud
171
00:23:47,969 --> 00:23:51,055
and make me pay dearly for my successes.
172
00:23:53,057 --> 00:23:57,520
Yet everything had begun so well,
superbly well, even.
173
00:23:58,229 --> 00:24:01,315
The rehearsals had gone
to everybody's satisfaction,
174
00:24:01,315 --> 00:24:03,776
but when I returned to my dressing room,
175
00:24:03,776 --> 00:24:06,862
a freezing room in a theater
that had been closed
176
00:24:06,862 --> 00:24:08,823
and unused for several months,
177
00:24:09,407 --> 00:24:12,159
a cold wind was blowing
through the cracks.
178
00:24:12,952 --> 00:24:17,498
I felt a sudden chill
and the beginnings of a rasp in my throat.
179
00:24:18,791 --> 00:24:21,419
I woke up in the middle of the night
and realized that
180
00:24:21,419 --> 00:24:25,464
not a sound could come
out of my mouth, not one word.
181
00:24:25,881 --> 00:24:27,717
I was completely mute.
182
00:24:29,343 --> 00:24:31,679
But that evening was sold out.
183
00:24:31,679 --> 00:24:34,473
People were expecting to see La Callas.
184
00:24:35,558 --> 00:24:38,102
I was suddenly swamped with fear.
185
00:24:48,654 --> 00:24:50,865
I have been called the Tigress.
186
00:24:51,741 --> 00:24:57,330
And on that evening, the Tigress entered
the splendid yet terrifying theater.
187
00:24:58,164 --> 00:25:03,544
In my dressing room, I was getting ready,
with my voice hanging by a thread.
188
00:25:22,438 --> 00:25:26,150
The numerous remedies
had temporarily soothed my throat,
189
00:25:26,609 --> 00:25:28,069
but that was not enough.
190
00:25:28,611 --> 00:25:33,866
I had bronchitis, which, of course,
could not be cured in such short time.
191
00:25:34,617 --> 00:25:37,703
Once the effect
of the treatments wore off,
192
00:25:37,703 --> 00:25:40,039
my voice just disappeared.
193
00:25:46,212 --> 00:25:50,758
Due to major unforeseen circumstances,
the rest of the performance is canceled.
194
00:26:02,144 --> 00:26:04,689
Yes, the head of state
was there that evening,
195
00:26:05,189 --> 00:26:09,527
but there was another figure
in the theater worthy of utmost respect,
196
00:26:09,527 --> 00:26:13,072
someone whose name
had even been printed on the posters:
197
00:26:13,572 --> 00:26:15,324
Vincenzo Bellini.
198
00:26:16,659 --> 00:26:19,412
I could not, for the sake of protocol,
199
00:26:19,412 --> 00:26:23,708
offend this great musician
by moaning rather than singing
200
00:26:23,708 --> 00:26:25,751
the other acts of his Norma.
201
00:26:26,794 --> 00:26:31,340
So on that evening of January 2
at the Rome Opera,
202
00:26:31,340 --> 00:26:34,260
the first act of Norma was performed,
203
00:26:34,260 --> 00:26:37,179
perhaps not perfectly, but well enough.
204
00:26:38,055 --> 00:26:40,933
The other acts were not insulted.
205
00:26:46,605 --> 00:26:48,232
CALLAS LEAVE THE OPERA
206
00:26:50,526 --> 00:26:52,069
The following day,
207
00:26:52,069 --> 00:26:56,449
I realized my lynching had begun
with unprecedented violence.
208
00:26:57,450 --> 00:27:01,287
Yet, I didn't outrage the public
or the institutions,
209
00:27:01,954 --> 00:27:04,039
I didn't disgrace the president,
210
00:27:04,039 --> 00:27:08,335
I didn't endanger the life
of Italian lyric theater.
211
00:27:08,335 --> 00:27:10,963
I simply had bronchitis.
212
00:27:14,425 --> 00:27:17,303
Then I recalled the words
from La Traviata,
213
00:27:17,303 --> 00:27:19,054
the words of my Violetta,
214
00:27:19,054 --> 00:27:21,974
which Verdi had cloaked
in a bitter melody:
215
00:27:23,267 --> 00:27:27,521
"Hence to the miserable soul
who one day has fallen,
216
00:27:27,521 --> 00:27:31,442
any hope of resurrection
is forever stolen."
217
00:31:16,291 --> 00:31:18,502
Mrs. Callas, welcome to Chicago.
How do you feel?
218
00:31:18,502 --> 00:31:20,170
Thank you. Fine, thank you.
219
00:31:30,848 --> 00:31:32,850
Why won't you talk to the press,
Mrs. Callas?
220
00:31:32,850 --> 00:31:34,977
Why won't you talk to us?
You have a bad press
221
00:31:34,977 --> 00:31:36,770
because you won't talk to newsmen.
222
00:31:36,770 --> 00:31:40,024
- Will you discuss the Rome incident?
- I didn't discuss the Rome incident.
223
00:31:40,024 --> 00:31:42,985
It's closed for me.
Please, gentlemen, I'm here for Chicago.
224
00:31:44,445 --> 00:31:45,362
Thank you.
225
00:31:49,867 --> 00:31:52,369
Maria! Look over here, please.
226
00:31:52,369 --> 00:31:54,371
- Can we get in closer?
- Maria!
227
00:32:06,091 --> 00:32:08,844
Madam Callas, in the last few years,
228
00:32:08,844 --> 00:32:12,097
particularly since you've
been associated with the Met,
229
00:32:12,097 --> 00:32:16,560
you've received a tremendous amount
of adverse publicity.
230
00:32:16,560 --> 00:32:17,978
How do you account for that?
231
00:32:17,978 --> 00:32:21,398
I have been brought
to exasperating situations,
232
00:32:22,107 --> 00:32:25,527
as you fully realize,
and yet I have borne them with...
233
00:32:26,361 --> 00:32:28,697
calmness and with patience.
234
00:32:28,697 --> 00:32:31,158
Time does heal lots of things,
235
00:32:31,158 --> 00:32:35,287
and I'm quite sure time
will prove what I am, actually.
236
00:32:37,206 --> 00:32:39,124
There came the point
where I had to decide,
237
00:32:39,124 --> 00:32:41,960
now, is Madam Callas running the Met,
or am I running the Met?
238
00:32:43,128 --> 00:32:48,592
At that time, I was still running the Met
and said so and canceled our agreement.
239
00:32:48,592 --> 00:32:52,221
So you really did fire Maria Callas
from the Metropolitan?
240
00:32:52,221 --> 00:32:54,473
If you want to use that ugly word,
that is so, yes.
241
00:32:56,934 --> 00:32:58,727
I don't think Maria Callas is fired.
242
00:32:58,727 --> 00:33:01,271
Maria Callas is severed
from our relationship.
243
00:33:04,733 --> 00:33:05,901
Bravo!
244
00:33:08,362 --> 00:33:13,033
Why in Dallas and not here?
That's something I'd like to tell him.
245
00:33:13,033 --> 00:33:15,452
Why doesn't he do
these performances at the Met?
246
00:33:15,452 --> 00:33:16,995
And I would be there with pleasure.
247
00:33:19,331 --> 00:33:23,293
Did he have to go and say,
"She's an impossible person!" Why?
248
00:33:23,293 --> 00:33:26,255
I'm quite sure he's met so many
other impossible people.
249
00:33:26,255 --> 00:33:29,883
He just completely got even with me
for all the things
250
00:33:29,883 --> 00:33:31,885
that he could not get even with
other people.
251
00:33:31,885 --> 00:33:34,805
That is what I call bad destiny.
I was unlucky.
252
00:33:34,805 --> 00:33:37,975
Because my other colleagues
have really hurt him much more.
253
00:33:38,350 --> 00:33:42,020
That's why he respects me, and he really,
sincerely, I'm sure, loves me.
254
00:33:42,020 --> 00:33:43,647
But he's a weak man.
255
00:33:43,647 --> 00:33:46,525
I suppose I pay the consequences
of so many other,
256
00:33:46,525 --> 00:33:48,277
you know, like a glass that fills up,
257
00:33:48,277 --> 00:33:50,737
and then I was the thing
that filled his glass up.
258
00:33:55,909 --> 00:33:57,161
Of course I was appalled.
259
00:33:57,161 --> 00:34:00,747
I just refused next year's contract,
because he offered me
260
00:34:00,747 --> 00:34:05,335
the old repertoire...
that is, the old Norma staging.
261
00:34:05,335 --> 00:34:08,714
- Which you all saw.
- Which she's done time and time again.
262
00:34:08,714 --> 00:34:13,635
Norma, Barbiere, Barber of Seville,
Traviata, Lucia,
263
00:34:13,635 --> 00:34:16,597
and I said, "No, I'm sorry,
I cannot do routine."
264
00:34:16,597 --> 00:34:19,683
I want new performances, staged well.
265
00:34:20,309 --> 00:34:24,771
You know, like here, like a little young
Dallas is doing. My God.
266
00:34:24,771 --> 00:34:27,941
Yes, I suppose that made him angry.
I don't know.
267
00:34:27,941 --> 00:34:29,902
I mean, I can't explain it otherwise.
268
00:34:29,902 --> 00:34:33,071
And then yesterday,
I received a telegram saying,
269
00:34:33,071 --> 00:34:36,950
"Either you answer me"--
yesterday at around 3:30, I think,
270
00:34:38,160 --> 00:34:41,330
just before I left
for the theater, and he said,
271
00:34:41,330 --> 00:34:43,749
"Either you answer me tomorrow
or breach of agreement
272
00:34:43,749 --> 00:34:45,250
and contract terminated."
273
00:34:45,250 --> 00:34:47,044
I don't know what got into the man.
274
00:34:47,461 --> 00:34:49,296
I cannot do those... excuse me,
275
00:34:49,296 --> 00:34:52,841
lousy performances,
and I cannot change artists
276
00:34:52,841 --> 00:34:54,801
every performance, now you can know it.
277
00:34:54,801 --> 00:34:57,262
Each performance we have,
if we do ten Macbeths,
278
00:34:57,262 --> 00:34:59,765
ten different tenors, ten baritones...
279
00:34:59,765 --> 00:35:02,559
So I'm sorry, I can't do that.
That's not art.
280
00:35:02,559 --> 00:35:05,354
Well, I mean, let's get it out
now while we're at it.
281
00:35:05,687 --> 00:35:09,066
Do you know that last year
I did Traviata never seeing the set?
282
00:35:10,359 --> 00:35:13,654
Never seeing the set,
never seeing my colleagues.
283
00:35:14,321 --> 00:35:17,199
Do you think that's right?
ls that seriously good theater?
284
00:35:17,199 --> 00:35:20,494
Now, I kept these things quiet.
All my friends knew about it.
285
00:35:33,131 --> 00:35:34,925
Our job is very serious,
286
00:35:35,550 --> 00:35:37,803
and it helps too,
287
00:35:37,803 --> 00:35:40,597
but all experiences help on the whole.
288
00:35:40,597 --> 00:35:42,683
But of course I'm human like everyone,
289
00:35:42,683 --> 00:35:45,394
and I like to be entertained
with nice shows,
290
00:35:45,394 --> 00:35:50,232
things that are not too serious,
not dramatic all the time,
291
00:35:50,232 --> 00:35:52,567
and all those tragedies,
that we get so fed up with...
292
00:36:04,037 --> 00:36:08,458
When you're not busy
recording or appearing in opera...
293
00:36:08,458 --> 00:36:10,377
I know what you're going to ask:
What do I do?
294
00:36:10,377 --> 00:36:11,545
- There you are.
- Yes. Hobbies?
295
00:36:11,545 --> 00:36:13,714
- Nothing. Nothing.
- Nothing?
296
00:36:13,714 --> 00:36:16,967
- I just live a human life.
- Well, well, good for you.
297
00:36:16,967 --> 00:36:19,344
- Good for you.
- I have lots of fresh air.
298
00:36:19,344 --> 00:36:23,390
When it rains, I go out, and I don't care
if I get wet, you know,
299
00:36:23,390 --> 00:36:24,725
just to relax the nerves.
300
00:36:24,725 --> 00:36:27,019
- I do some cooking. I love to cook.
- Do you?
301
00:36:27,019 --> 00:36:30,314
Now, for instance, my husband bought
a little house on the lake,
302
00:36:30,314 --> 00:36:32,107
and he's buying a little motorboat.
303
00:36:32,107 --> 00:36:33,608
- In Italy?
- In Italy.
304
00:36:33,608 --> 00:36:36,653
And so I'm dying to learn
how to drive the little thing
305
00:36:36,653 --> 00:36:38,322
and just go and enjoy myself.
306
00:36:38,322 --> 00:36:42,784
And, well, I must say, I have
a very ridiculous and embarrassing hobby.
307
00:36:43,201 --> 00:36:45,495
My husband always pulls my leg for it.
308
00:36:45,495 --> 00:36:49,666
But it's something, you know,
a mania, shall we call it.
309
00:36:49,666 --> 00:36:53,045
I love recipes.
I know I'll never use them.
310
00:36:53,045 --> 00:36:56,214
But wherever! find a recipe,
on a newspaper, on a magazine,
311
00:36:56,214 --> 00:36:58,383
I just tear it out
and I stick it in a book,
312
00:36:58,383 --> 00:37:00,135
you know, I paste it on.
313
00:37:00,135 --> 00:37:04,306
It's the only hobby, really, that I have.
Isn't it ridiculous?
314
00:37:04,306 --> 00:37:07,225
- I know it is, but there you are.
- I'm going to cut out something
315
00:37:07,225 --> 00:37:09,144
I saw the other day
and send it to you, because...
316
00:37:09,144 --> 00:37:11,271
- every once in a while, I...
- Oh, thank you. I'd love it.
317
00:37:11,271 --> 00:37:14,441
...for no reason,
because I don't cook if I can avoid it.
318
00:37:14,441 --> 00:37:17,235
Then there is another hobby
that I would like to pick up.
319
00:37:17,235 --> 00:37:19,488
- It is the carillon.
- Oh, really?
320
00:37:19,488 --> 00:37:21,823
Although there is one trouble,
that I have too good an ear,
321
00:37:21,823 --> 00:37:25,952
so when I hear them, you know,
doing something I don't like, I get angry.
322
00:37:25,952 --> 00:37:28,747
- But I do love carillons.
- But I don't know how they...
323
00:37:28,747 --> 00:37:31,333
I'm afraid I'm
very old-fashioned even in that.
324
00:37:32,751 --> 00:37:35,087
Well, old-fashioned or no,
have you ever considered
325
00:37:35,087 --> 00:37:37,255
doing musical comedies, Madam Callas?
326
00:37:37,255 --> 00:37:42,177
Well, I've been offered musical comedy.
I make a confession.
327
00:37:42,177 --> 00:37:44,763
I think that's going
a little too far, though.
328
00:37:45,263 --> 00:37:48,809
Can you imagine me, the tragic dame,
singing musical comedy?
329
00:37:48,809 --> 00:37:52,020
Though I admit,
I would enjoy myself sometimes.
330
00:37:52,020 --> 00:37:53,605
Oh, bother the dog.
331
00:37:54,189 --> 00:37:57,859
He's my little one,
my little monster of the house.
332
00:37:57,859 --> 00:37:59,611
- What's his name?
- Toy.
333
00:37:59,611 --> 00:38:02,239
Well, what name could you give
a little thing like that?
334
00:38:02,906 --> 00:38:05,742
So, that's why I...
335
00:38:10,997 --> 00:38:14,418
You are so sweet!
336
00:38:14,418 --> 00:38:16,169
My darling...
337
00:38:17,129 --> 00:38:18,338
My Joy.
338
00:38:29,224 --> 00:38:31,560
I think it is more difficult for a woman
339
00:38:31,560 --> 00:38:35,397
to run a fabulously
wonderful family than a career.
340
00:38:36,648 --> 00:38:39,151
- But to do both is very...?
- I have made a career.
341
00:38:39,151 --> 00:38:42,821
It doesn't work together.
I doubt whether...
342
00:38:42,821 --> 00:38:46,741
being a good mother at home can make you
also a wonderful career woman.
343
00:38:47,325 --> 00:38:48,869
Not my job.
344
00:38:48,869 --> 00:38:50,829
- It doesn't work.
- Really? What would you...
345
00:38:50,829 --> 00:38:53,039
It's a full-time job, my career.
346
00:42:13,531 --> 00:42:15,742
I was dying to ask a question,
347
00:42:15,742 --> 00:42:17,661
and I was trying to think of
how to ask it.
348
00:42:17,661 --> 00:42:19,871
The gentleman, Aristotle Onassis, is a...
349
00:42:19,871 --> 00:42:24,459
a mutual friend, he's a good friend,
and I think he's a delightful man,
350
00:42:24,459 --> 00:42:27,045
and I wondered what you thought
were his greatest qualities.
351
00:42:27,045 --> 00:42:30,465
Oh, you can ask.
We're the finest of friends.
352
00:42:30,465 --> 00:42:36,054
I've always said that, and I'm quite sure
that he considers me his best friend,
353
00:42:36,054 --> 00:42:37,806
and that's a lot in life.
354
00:42:39,808 --> 00:42:41,142
He's charming,
355
00:42:41,810 --> 00:42:43,269
very sincere...
356
00:42:45,730 --> 00:42:47,107
spontaneous.
357
00:42:48,983 --> 00:42:51,277
So, these are qualities
that are very good.
358
00:42:51,277 --> 00:42:54,322
Absolutely. When did you first meet?
A long time ago or...?
359
00:42:54,948 --> 00:42:57,367
1957, I think, in Venice.
360
00:42:58,576 --> 00:43:03,707
And we were on the beach, and we met,
and we became fine friends,
361
00:43:04,082 --> 00:43:06,292
and we've stayed, and we will be...
362
00:43:07,502 --> 00:43:09,379
all our lives, we hope.
363
00:43:15,719 --> 00:43:19,305
It was destiny that gave birth
to my friendship with Aristo.
364
00:43:21,015 --> 00:43:24,269
I joined the cruise on the Christina
to please my husband,
365
00:43:24,269 --> 00:43:25,895
who was very keen to go.
366
00:43:26,688 --> 00:43:30,191
Battista only cared for money
and position.
367
00:43:33,445 --> 00:43:36,740
What can you do
when you no longer trust your husband?
368
00:43:37,532 --> 00:43:40,785
I thought of Meneghini
as a sheltering screen at first
369
00:43:40,785 --> 00:43:43,663
to protect me from the outside world,
370
00:43:43,663 --> 00:43:47,542
and he did that,
until my fame went to his head.
371
00:43:48,126 --> 00:43:53,339
Battista should have used more diplomacy
in his negotiations with the theaters.
372
00:43:53,339 --> 00:43:57,343
His methods backfired,
and I had to pay the consequences.
373
00:43:58,219 --> 00:44:00,847
That was the beginning
of the end of our marriage.
374
00:44:01,347 --> 00:44:04,392
It was not Onassis or the money.
375
00:44:11,399 --> 00:44:13,443
From the very beginning of the cruise,
376
00:44:13,443 --> 00:44:17,906
I realized that Aristo was
the kind of friend I had been looking for.
377
00:44:19,324 --> 00:44:23,828
I was very impressed by his charm,
his strong personality,
378
00:44:23,828 --> 00:44:27,040
and the charismatic way
he held everyone's attention.
379
00:44:27,791 --> 00:44:32,587
He was not only full of life,
he was a source of life.
380
00:44:33,922 --> 00:44:37,967
One night, after a long
and irritating argument with my husband,
381
00:44:37,967 --> 00:44:41,471
I went out on deck for some air
and some solitude.
382
00:44:42,889 --> 00:44:46,976
There was Aristo,
contemplating the dark sea.
383
00:44:48,603 --> 00:44:51,064
I'm sure our friendship began there.
384
00:44:51,731 --> 00:44:56,277
I had found something I deeply needed
and had never encountered before.
385
00:44:57,070 --> 00:44:59,322
He made me feel liberated
386
00:45:00,198 --> 00:45:01,908
and very feminine.
387
00:45:03,159 --> 00:45:05,161
I came to love him deeply.
388
00:45:11,584 --> 00:45:15,672
Dear Walter and Judy,
I've had a wonderful time on the cruise,
389
00:45:15,672 --> 00:45:18,091
and we were back
one week later than planned.
390
00:45:18,758 --> 00:45:22,303
I'm afraid I'm going to give you
some bad and shocking news.
391
00:45:22,929 --> 00:45:25,056
I'm separating from Battista.
392
00:45:25,515 --> 00:45:28,685
I hope, dear friends,
that this won't murder me.
393
00:45:28,685 --> 00:45:32,146
I've been through quite a bit,
and there's a lot of disillusionment.
394
00:45:32,146 --> 00:45:35,525
Don't be alarmed by newspapers
if and when they come out.
395
00:45:36,317 --> 00:45:38,903
Dear friends, pray for your poor Maria.
396
00:45:48,788 --> 00:45:51,457
Can you talk for a minute, please, for us?
397
00:45:51,457 --> 00:45:53,918
- Oh, I'm sorry.
- Can you tell us why you left Dallas?
398
00:45:53,918 --> 00:45:56,921
- I'm sorry. I can't talk.
- When are you gonna be going to Italy?
399
00:45:56,921 --> 00:45:58,882
I'm leaving this afternoon on the jet.
400
00:45:58,882 --> 00:46:01,634
How do you feel about the court litigation
that's coming up?
401
00:46:01,634 --> 00:46:04,178
I'm giving no interviews.
Do you mind, gentlemen?
402
00:46:04,178 --> 00:46:06,681
Mrs. Callas, did you have
any disagreement in Dallas?
403
00:46:06,681 --> 00:46:08,683
- Did that have anything to do with it?
- I'm giving no interview.
404
00:46:08,683 --> 00:46:11,561
- Did you have any trouble in Dallas?
- None at all.
405
00:46:11,561 --> 00:46:13,396
I'm giving no interview at all.
406
00:46:13,396 --> 00:46:15,899
- Why did you cut short your trip?
- Don't push me, please.
407
00:46:15,899 --> 00:46:18,276
- Are you going to marry Mr. Onassis?
- I said don't...
408
00:46:18,276 --> 00:46:20,987
I'm not answering any interview.
Now, stop it.
409
00:46:29,370 --> 00:46:32,749
Mrs. Callas,
does all this attention disturb you?
410
00:46:32,749 --> 00:46:35,335
Why not? When you're nice, I smile.
411
00:46:35,335 --> 00:46:37,253
- We try to always be nice.
- We try to be nice.
412
00:46:37,253 --> 00:46:40,506
- When you push me around, I don't like it.
- Well, we don't mean to push you around.
413
00:46:40,506 --> 00:46:42,425
I wish you'd stand still
so I wouldn't have to.
414
00:46:42,425 --> 00:46:43,885
But I have to walk, you know.
415
00:46:44,510 --> 00:46:49,807
Mrs. Callas, do you hope this trip
in Italy will end this romantic squabble?
416
00:46:51,267 --> 00:46:54,771
This is no romantic squabble.
It's a separation. That's what it is.
417
00:46:56,981 --> 00:46:58,691
Have you talked to Mr. Onassis?
418
00:46:59,317 --> 00:47:01,653
I talk to all my friends.
419
00:47:02,153 --> 00:47:04,739
Can you tell us when the last time
you spoke to him was?
420
00:47:04,739 --> 00:47:07,617
Do you expect to see Mr. Onassis
when you go to Europe?
421
00:47:07,617 --> 00:47:11,537
I hope I see all my friends,
and I hope I see Mr. Onassis. Why not?
422
00:47:12,080 --> 00:47:13,748
- Do you deny the...
- Watch out!
423
00:47:14,374 --> 00:47:16,459
I am answering no more questions.
424
00:47:17,001 --> 00:47:18,378
That's all, gentlemen.
425
00:47:26,970 --> 00:47:30,139
MENEGHINI VS CALLAS
426
00:47:33,518 --> 00:47:35,353
CIVIL COURT
427
00:48:27,113 --> 00:48:29,157
It would be so nice
to be able to come home
428
00:48:29,157 --> 00:48:31,701
and have a nice,
honest shoulder to lean on.
429
00:48:32,076 --> 00:48:35,204
I had hoped that of my husband.
I was so wrong.
430
00:48:35,204 --> 00:48:36,581
Glory went to his head.
431
00:48:37,290 --> 00:48:40,585
Glory goes to people's heads. Not my head.
432
00:48:40,585 --> 00:48:44,797
Glory terrifies me, because you're
quite uncomfortable up there.
433
00:48:44,797 --> 00:48:47,467
But other people around you...
they get drunk.
434
00:48:47,467 --> 00:48:49,260
It's a wine that goes to the head.
435
00:48:54,098 --> 00:48:55,975
He was a good person, I thought.
436
00:48:55,975 --> 00:49:00,646
And with my mother, I was not well off,
and I was alone,
437
00:49:00,646 --> 00:49:03,316
and I felt that this person
really loved me,
438
00:49:03,316 --> 00:49:07,236
but I'm afraid that he loved
what I represented.
439
00:49:07,236 --> 00:49:11,157
He wanted so much that I be La Divina.
440
00:49:11,157 --> 00:49:14,619
For instance, he was taking
things out on people,
441
00:49:14,619 --> 00:49:17,330
as he was nothing special.
442
00:49:28,549 --> 00:49:30,176
You mentioned you were persecuted.
443
00:49:30,176 --> 00:49:33,346
What period of your life were you
referring to? At the end of your--?
444
00:49:33,346 --> 00:49:36,224
When I separated from my husband,
that was very hard,
445
00:49:36,224 --> 00:49:38,184
and about two years before.
446
00:49:38,184 --> 00:49:41,604
I don't know why it was
sort of a style to attack...
447
00:49:42,271 --> 00:49:43,689
to attack me.
448
00:49:43,689 --> 00:49:46,359
And I'm the kind of type
that cannot defend myself,
449
00:49:46,359 --> 00:49:47,610
because I find it useless.
450
00:49:47,610 --> 00:49:50,780
First of all, the newspapermen
have the last word,
451
00:49:51,197 --> 00:49:52,740
so it's no use you fight.
452
00:49:53,407 --> 00:49:59,080
And then I don't like to defend myself.
I feel that time takes care of things.
453
00:49:59,413 --> 00:50:01,541
In what way were you perse...
You were blamed for things
454
00:50:01,541 --> 00:50:03,459
- that weren't your--?
- I was blamed for things.
455
00:50:03,459 --> 00:50:05,169
I was misunderstood.
456
00:50:05,169 --> 00:50:10,758
They took me for fiery, tempestuous,
canceling performances and this and that,
457
00:50:10,758 --> 00:50:12,635
and there was no end to that.
458
00:50:12,635 --> 00:50:14,595
I have canceled performances,
459
00:50:14,595 --> 00:50:17,431
but very few in comparison
to other singers.
460
00:50:17,431 --> 00:50:19,058
I was very famous, I suppose.
461
00:50:19,058 --> 00:50:21,769
It's a compliment, again,
but when I was not well,
462
00:50:21,769 --> 00:50:23,688
I could not do performances, so...
463
00:50:24,105 --> 00:50:26,357
I was blamed that, you know...
464
00:50:27,650 --> 00:50:29,318
And so these things, you know, hurt,
465
00:50:29,318 --> 00:50:33,197
and at a certain moment
you have to rest to...
466
00:50:34,073 --> 00:50:36,367
re-dimension things and to...
467
00:50:37,785 --> 00:50:42,123
You say you plan to get divorced
when this new law comes in Italy?
468
00:50:42,123 --> 00:50:44,500
Yes. I've been separated for 11 years.
469
00:50:45,376 --> 00:50:46,919
- Yes.
- It's a long time.
470
00:51:08,191 --> 00:51:10,860
Aristo was adorable.
471
00:51:11,319 --> 00:51:12,987
Straight and fearless.
472
00:51:13,738 --> 00:51:17,450
And his boyish attitude
made him irresistible.
473
00:51:18,201 --> 00:51:21,954
He was only rarely difficult
and uncompromising,
474
00:51:21,954 --> 00:51:24,415
unlike some of his friends.
475
00:51:24,415 --> 00:51:26,500
He could be generous to a fault,
476
00:51:27,210 --> 00:51:30,171
and I don't mean only materialistically.
477
00:51:30,171 --> 00:51:31,797
He was never petty.
478
00:51:32,548 --> 00:51:35,218
He never interfered with my art,
479
00:51:35,218 --> 00:51:37,511
except to tell me that I should not feel
480
00:51:37,511 --> 00:51:41,349
under any obligation
to continue my singing career.
481
00:51:42,308 --> 00:51:45,895
Obviously, he said,
the stress had come to be too great,
482
00:51:45,895 --> 00:51:48,856
and as I had more than done my duty...
483
00:51:48,856 --> 00:51:50,983
his words, not mine...
484
00:51:50,983 --> 00:51:56,030
I was entitled to relax
and enjoy my well-earned money.
485
00:51:58,324 --> 00:52:00,326
He would have liked for me to make films,
486
00:52:00,326 --> 00:52:04,330
as he believed it would
have been less tiring for me.
487
00:52:10,544 --> 00:52:11,921
Dear Walter,
488
00:52:12,463 --> 00:52:16,008
I'll probably rest
for the beginning of the coming year.
489
00:52:16,509 --> 00:52:20,179
I owe it to myself and to my voice.
490
00:52:20,179 --> 00:52:23,391
Next year I'll start again, but right now,
491
00:52:23,391 --> 00:52:27,019
I'll just let myself be tired of resting
492
00:52:27,019 --> 00:52:31,107
until I feel like working again,
and will then work.
493
00:52:32,191 --> 00:52:36,279
I've really lost interest in my art,
with all the pushing my husband did,
494
00:52:37,071 --> 00:52:42,326
so now I intend to love my art
by desiring it.
495
00:52:48,124 --> 00:52:52,128
So, I must confirm what everybody says.
You've really changed completely.
496
00:52:52,128 --> 00:52:54,213
You're another woman. Are you happy?
497
00:52:55,506 --> 00:52:56,799
Well...
498
00:52:56,799 --> 00:53:00,928
I am much happier,
but no real artist could be happy.
499
00:53:00,928 --> 00:53:05,933
It has been said that even your voice
has changed in quality.
500
00:53:06,976 --> 00:53:09,478
An artist develops in years.
501
00:53:10,938 --> 00:53:14,483
Shall we say that now you've become
a tamed animal;
502
00:53:14,483 --> 00:53:18,362
before, you're just...
you know, you just do things by instinct.
503
00:53:18,362 --> 00:53:22,408
I still do.
In fact, if people come during...
504
00:53:22,408 --> 00:53:25,911
to my performances, they will never find
them exactly the same.
505
00:53:25,911 --> 00:53:29,665
Because I feel that it should be,
at the moment, given...
506
00:53:30,666 --> 00:53:31,751
instinctively.
507
00:53:31,751 --> 00:53:37,882
But we also learn,
we suffer, we develop, we mature,
508
00:53:37,882 --> 00:53:40,593
so therefore, from year to year,
509
00:53:41,302 --> 00:53:43,596
we, of course, change our interpretation.
510
00:53:43,929 --> 00:53:49,435
But I have to feel what I do.
I have to like people to be with them.
511
00:53:50,561 --> 00:53:54,315
I just cannot learn
the art of being a hypocrite.
512
00:53:54,315 --> 00:53:55,608
I wish I could.
513
00:58:37,181 --> 00:58:39,391
In France, people let you be.
514
00:58:39,391 --> 00:58:41,518
That's something I really enjoy.
515
00:58:41,518 --> 00:58:45,439
That's why I chose to stay here for now,
516
00:58:45,439 --> 00:58:48,567
at least for a few months,
because anyhow, we travel all the time.
517
00:58:48,567 --> 00:58:51,195
Sure, I stay at home a lot.
518
00:58:51,195 --> 00:58:53,739
People leave you alone, here.
519
00:58:53,739 --> 00:58:56,158
They don't smother or bother you.
520
00:58:56,158 --> 00:58:58,535
French people have a very special way...
521
00:58:59,578 --> 00:59:03,040
of loving and respecting artists.
522
00:59:03,040 --> 00:59:05,417
People have a particular subtlety here.
523
00:59:05,417 --> 00:59:09,588
No one comes at your door to watch you
like some kind of strange beast.
524
00:59:09,588 --> 00:59:14,426
Whereas in some countries, people do that.
You're in a city to give a concert
525
00:59:14,426 --> 00:59:16,887
and you can't even walk the streets.
526
00:59:16,887 --> 00:59:19,723
They don't let you go shopping.
527
00:59:19,723 --> 00:59:23,060
It's bad because then
you stay locked up inside.
528
00:59:23,060 --> 00:59:25,896
But we all need to get some fresh air
529
00:59:25,896 --> 00:59:28,607
and to live freely,
it's vital for our nerves.
530
00:59:38,867 --> 00:59:42,329
I think that, as a woman,
I'm perfectly normal.
531
00:59:42,830 --> 00:59:44,581
As for my character,
532
00:59:44,581 --> 00:59:49,545
do you mean on the stage of life
or on the theater stage?
533
00:59:49,545 --> 00:59:50,963
Maybe both?
534
00:59:50,963 --> 00:59:54,591
No, they're two completely
different things.
535
00:59:54,591 --> 01:00:00,305
Yet equal.
The spiritual part is always mine.
536
01:00:00,848 --> 01:00:03,142
It belongs to me, and...
537
01:00:03,767 --> 01:00:07,354
You don't see that in life,
because you see just a woman
538
01:00:07,354 --> 01:00:11,024
who likes to walk down the streets,
simple, joyful...
539
01:00:12,401 --> 01:00:17,614
who doesn't like to be watched
because, frankly, I get embarrassed.
540
01:00:17,614 --> 01:00:22,536
When I'm complimented on the street,
I don't know where to hide.
541
01:00:22,536 --> 01:00:24,621
Because obviously it...
542
01:00:25,205 --> 01:00:27,583
it's a bit embarrassing.
543
01:00:28,709 --> 01:00:31,462
Call it shyness or whatever.
544
01:00:31,462 --> 01:00:33,255
And that's hard to believe
545
01:00:33,255 --> 01:00:37,593
because people have a different
impression of me as Callas.
546
01:00:37,593 --> 01:00:41,722
Whereas the woman has simple tastes,
likes to watch TV, read nonsense,
547
01:00:41,722 --> 01:00:46,477
listen to pretty things, of course,
read...
548
01:00:47,102 --> 01:00:51,064
and play the intellectual,
which I'm not as I've never had the time.
549
01:00:51,940 --> 01:00:55,110
I've always been working on
the stage, so...
550
01:00:55,110 --> 01:00:58,655
As an intellectual,
I just learn here and there, that's all.
551
01:02:31,582 --> 01:02:33,083
Maria Callas!
552
01:02:40,841 --> 01:02:45,095
For the last few months,
I only opened my mouth to laugh,
553
01:02:45,095 --> 01:02:47,723
thank God!
554
01:02:47,723 --> 01:02:52,185
I haven't practiced every day
for a long time,
555
01:02:52,185 --> 01:02:54,688
and I just had a look at the lyrics,
556
01:02:54,688 --> 01:02:56,773
so I may stumble on the words.
557
01:02:56,773 --> 01:02:58,358
I'll do my best.
558
01:03:56,917 --> 01:03:59,336
My dear and illustrious colleague.
559
01:03:59,336 --> 01:04:02,089
As I explained to you
in my letter from Monte Carlo,
560
01:04:02,089 --> 01:04:04,466
I was operated on for a hernia
561
01:04:04,466 --> 01:04:09,763
and was unable to offer my beloved maestro
the apogean performance he well deserved.
562
01:04:10,722 --> 01:04:13,767
I do not have, dear friend,
the physical strength
563
01:04:13,767 --> 01:04:15,769
to face the arena once more.
564
01:04:16,603 --> 01:04:20,399
Everyone has faith in me.
You, the maestro, the critics...
565
01:04:20,857 --> 01:04:23,860
but I cannot get over
that evening at the Rome Opera
566
01:04:23,860 --> 01:04:25,696
and how much I suffered.
567
01:04:26,446 --> 01:04:30,117
Perhaps if I had been 20 or 30,
I wouldn't care,
568
01:04:30,117 --> 01:04:33,120
and the joyful dance
of the spirit, as you say,
569
01:04:33,120 --> 01:04:35,372
would help me forget and move forward.
570
01:04:35,914 --> 01:04:38,875
But I don't think I have
the strength to risk facing
571
01:04:38,875 --> 01:04:41,003
such cruelty any longer.
572
01:04:42,212 --> 01:04:43,672
My soul would not recover.
573
01:04:44,423 --> 01:04:46,133
At least that's how I feel now.
574
01:04:47,926 --> 01:04:49,428
I need time.
575
01:04:50,053 --> 01:04:52,931
I would like to thank you
from the bottom of my heart
576
01:04:52,931 --> 01:04:57,352
for having written to me
and for the respect you have shown me.
577
01:04:57,352 --> 01:05:00,147
Please know that I will never forget it.
578
01:05:00,564 --> 01:05:02,399
And thank your wife also.
579
01:05:02,983 --> 01:05:04,693
I envy your family.
580
01:05:05,277 --> 01:05:07,571
There is no greater wealth on earth.
581
01:09:30,125 --> 01:09:33,795
As you look back,
are there things you'd like to change,
582
01:09:33,795 --> 01:09:36,881
or do you buy the package wholesale?
583
01:09:36,881 --> 01:09:38,591
I'll buy the package wholesale.
584
01:09:38,591 --> 01:09:43,179
My God, I never would have dreamed
to come to such a privileged position,
585
01:09:43,179 --> 01:09:45,140
with its good and with its bad.
586
01:09:46,349 --> 01:09:48,893
I have had the possibility
587
01:09:48,893 --> 01:09:52,772
of having inside something that
I could expose to the people,
588
01:09:52,772 --> 01:09:55,066
give to the people and be understood.
589
01:09:56,192 --> 01:09:58,653
You call this little?
590
01:10:00,030 --> 01:10:02,198
I have had, on the other hand,
591
01:10:02,198 --> 01:10:05,410
I didn't have a family, as I wanted to,
592
01:10:05,410 --> 01:10:10,332
and this and that, but...
being right here is already a privilege.
593
01:10:10,332 --> 01:10:15,587
Being able to talk,
even if I'm talking badly, is a privilege.
594
01:10:22,427 --> 01:10:25,555
Miss Callas, how did it feel
595
01:10:25,555 --> 01:10:28,308
to come back to New York
and the Metropolitan
596
01:10:28,308 --> 01:10:31,686
after an absence of seven long years?
597
01:10:31,686 --> 01:10:36,691
First of all, enormous happiness to be,
shall we say, at home.
598
01:10:36,691 --> 01:10:40,737
Then I must say, though,
that all the New Yorkers
599
01:10:40,737 --> 01:10:43,406
really made it...
600
01:10:43,698 --> 01:10:46,326
quite clear that they've
considered me back home,
601
01:10:46,326 --> 01:10:49,662
which was, of course,
the first happy thought about it.
602
01:10:49,662 --> 01:10:53,458
Before I went back,
I really sincerely tell you,
603
01:10:53,458 --> 01:10:54,751
I was terrified.
604
01:10:55,168 --> 01:10:58,755
I didn't want to, and I was trying
to find excuses not to go.
605
01:11:03,635 --> 01:11:05,762
Dennis, how about you?
What brings you out to the line?
606
01:11:05,762 --> 01:11:08,014
Is it Miss Callas
or just plain a love of opera?
607
01:11:08,014 --> 01:11:10,350
Maria Callas. She's the greatest.
608
01:11:10,350 --> 01:11:12,936
Only for her would I do this. Nobody else.
609
01:11:13,603 --> 01:11:16,022
How about you, Lex?
What brings you out in the line?
610
01:11:16,022 --> 01:11:18,400
Well, I've come specifically
to see Callas.
611
01:11:18,400 --> 01:11:20,735
I think it's a shame
that she hasn't been here.
612
01:11:20,735 --> 01:11:22,987
And now that she has agreed to come back,
613
01:11:22,987 --> 01:11:25,490
I think to miss her
would be really a crime.
614
01:11:25,490 --> 01:11:28,993
This woman is undoubtedly
the greatest singer of this century and...
615
01:11:28,993 --> 01:11:30,787
Why do you think she's so great?
616
01:11:31,204 --> 01:11:34,290
Well, first of all,
as a technician, she's magnificent.
617
01:11:34,290 --> 01:11:36,835
As an actress, she is...
618
01:11:36,835 --> 01:11:38,795
there's no word to describe her.
619
01:11:38,795 --> 01:11:42,340
And just her magnetism:
she could sing a poor performance--
620
01:11:42,340 --> 01:11:44,843
I've never had an occasion
to hear it, but she could,
621
01:11:44,843 --> 01:11:47,470
and she would still be
just as magnetic as ever.
622
01:11:47,470 --> 01:11:49,055
This woman is just amazing.
623
01:11:49,347 --> 01:11:55,061
Every line, every rest in the score
has some meaning to Madam Callas.
624
01:11:55,061 --> 01:11:57,897
In your eyes,
then, it's just pure, raw genius.
625
01:11:57,897 --> 01:11:58,898
You bet.
626
01:12:00,191 --> 01:12:01,860
How long have you been in the line?
627
01:12:01,860 --> 01:12:04,404
I've been in line since yesterday at 4:00.
628
01:12:04,404 --> 01:12:06,239
How have you passed the time?
629
01:12:07,490 --> 01:12:10,535
I've just sat, and went across
and had something to eat.
630
01:12:10,535 --> 01:12:14,247
What's going to happen when she finally
gets to appear here after seven years?
631
01:12:14,247 --> 01:12:17,959
She'll get around a 30-minute ovation,
and most likely it will be standing,
632
01:12:17,959 --> 01:12:20,336
even if I have to be
the only one to stand.
633
01:12:20,336 --> 01:12:22,380
- I'm very sure.
- You think you'll have company?
634
01:12:22,380 --> 01:12:24,883
Oh, I'm sure I will. Very sure, yes.
635
01:12:28,052 --> 01:12:31,514
Bravo! Bravo!
636
01:12:39,355 --> 01:12:42,859
As soon as I came out,
the applause started enormously.
637
01:12:43,443 --> 01:12:46,154
And you had to stand there
freezing in a position.
638
01:12:46,154 --> 01:12:50,241
Exactly, freezing in a position that you
don't know how and what to do about,
639
01:12:50,241 --> 01:12:52,327
but especially the great emotion.
640
01:12:52,327 --> 01:12:53,953
I wish we weren't emotional.
641
01:12:53,953 --> 01:12:57,499
I really was crying, and I had to sing.
642
01:12:57,499 --> 01:12:59,501
You know, it kept on for about ten minutes
643
01:12:59,501 --> 01:13:01,794
during my singing.
I was just too emotional
644
01:13:01,794 --> 01:13:04,005
to do anything really properly well.
645
01:13:04,005 --> 01:13:05,882
It was so overwhelming.
646
01:13:05,882 --> 01:13:07,342
- Really incredible.
- I think that...
647
01:13:07,342 --> 01:13:09,886
- the warmth of the reception itself is...
- The warmth of the American public,
648
01:13:09,886 --> 01:13:11,888
I'm afraid it is unique.
649
01:13:11,888 --> 01:13:14,724
And they made a point of showing me
how much they love me,
650
01:13:14,724 --> 01:13:18,811
so they deserve every
best part of me, actually.
651
01:13:19,562 --> 01:13:22,565
And I couldn't even start
to thank all of the people--
652
01:13:22,565 --> 01:13:26,694
the letters, the presents,
the flowers, the adoration
653
01:13:26,694 --> 01:13:30,490
that I have had, which I never,
never thought, honestly.
654
01:13:30,490 --> 01:13:32,242
That was really unique.
655
01:13:44,462 --> 01:13:48,174
It seems nowadays,
the public is much more aware
656
01:13:48,174 --> 01:13:52,679
of the effort you put in,
of all the tension it involves,
657
01:13:52,679 --> 01:13:54,639
- and the love...
- That's true.
658
01:13:54,639 --> 01:13:57,892
A lot of love
and a lot of gratitude, curiously.
659
01:13:58,309 --> 01:14:01,854
They thank me all the time.
It surprises me, you know.
660
01:14:01,854 --> 01:14:03,773
So you're a happy woman?
661
01:14:03,773 --> 01:14:07,110
That's true, I should think so more often.
662
01:14:07,110 --> 01:14:08,695
- You should.
- I should.
663
01:14:08,695 --> 01:14:11,906
- It's the best way to be...
- I just don't always realize it.
664
01:14:12,907 --> 01:14:16,744
What sort of music makes you feel...
at home?
665
01:14:17,036 --> 01:14:19,122
Of course, the music
666
01:14:19,122 --> 01:14:22,041
of Rossini, Donizetti,
Bellini especially...
667
01:14:22,750 --> 01:14:24,544
- That's...
- Bel canto.
668
01:14:24,544 --> 01:14:26,421
Bel canto, exactly.
669
01:14:26,421 --> 01:14:32,844
Do you feel you've given Bel canto
something special, which is yourself?
670
01:14:34,304 --> 01:14:37,265
I realize people like it a lot more.
671
01:14:37,265 --> 01:14:40,727
Rather than saying: "Opera is so boring!"
672
01:14:40,727 --> 01:14:43,313
Unfortunately,
opera was considered boring.
673
01:14:43,313 --> 01:14:48,234
Obviously, if it's sung badly,
it can be very boring.
674
01:14:48,901 --> 01:14:50,945
But also...
675
01:14:51,404 --> 01:14:55,533
it's the way in which
I express myself best.
676
01:14:55,533 --> 01:14:59,704
It's my world, if you like.
677
01:15:01,247 --> 01:15:05,126
I feel elevated above everything.
678
01:15:05,126 --> 01:15:10,214
It's my way of expressing myself
and of giving, perhaps...
679
01:15:11,090 --> 01:15:16,095
giving the public perhaps an illusion
of something better in life.
680
01:19:43,529 --> 01:19:46,699
February 18, 1965.
681
01:19:46,699 --> 01:19:48,409
To Elvira de Hidalgo.
682
01:19:49,160 --> 01:19:54,165
Dear Elvira, my gratitude
for your affection is immeasurable.
683
01:19:54,624 --> 01:20:00,546
You know me. I'm shy and rather strange,
but you know how to love me as I am.
684
01:20:01,672 --> 01:20:07,136
The rehearsals went magnificently well,
with the high notes just like before.
685
01:20:07,762 --> 01:20:11,349
In the third act,
I had a moment of panic and fatigue,
686
01:20:11,349 --> 01:20:16,354
but I still sang the C well,
and even the last time, superbly well.
687
01:20:17,605 --> 01:20:21,776
If I manage to control myself,
everything should go as planned.
688
01:20:22,443 --> 01:20:27,490
I am still studying, and I think of you
with so much love and respect.
689
01:20:27,949 --> 01:20:29,158
Your Maria.
690
01:20:31,118 --> 01:20:32,578
To Grace Kelly.
691
01:20:33,245 --> 01:20:35,873
Dear Grace, I wanted to answer you sooner,
692
01:20:35,873 --> 01:20:38,501
but I was busy
gathering my nerves and strength
693
01:20:38,501 --> 01:20:40,920
to fight back on the next performance.
694
01:20:41,295 --> 01:20:43,923
It went perfectly, thank God.
695
01:20:44,840 --> 01:20:46,968
It's hard work, isn't it?
696
01:20:46,968 --> 01:20:50,137
There's always some enemy
ready for a moment of weakness.
697
01:20:51,472 --> 01:20:54,350
I'm dying to finish my work
so I can take a nice rest.
698
01:20:54,350 --> 01:20:55,810
I certainly need it.
699
01:20:56,477 --> 01:20:59,438
I do so hope to see you
and Rainier very soon.
700
01:20:59,438 --> 01:21:03,776
And thank you, dear Grace,
for your lovely flowers and letters.
701
01:21:04,193 --> 01:21:06,028
Lots of love, Maria.
702
01:21:06,696 --> 01:21:09,657
P.S. Aristo sends you both his love.
703
01:21:10,074 --> 01:21:13,285
- Bravo, Maria!
- Bravo!
704
01:21:13,285 --> 01:21:14,954
Bravo!
705
01:23:07,817 --> 01:23:09,777
Ladies and gentlemen,
706
01:23:09,777 --> 01:23:12,988
since the beginning of this performance,
707
01:23:12,988 --> 01:23:16,951
madam Maria Callas has been trying
to overcome extreme weakness
708
01:23:16,951 --> 01:23:18,619
and severe depression.
709
01:23:19,161 --> 01:23:23,207
Unfortunately,
despite her exceptional courage,
710
01:23:23,207 --> 01:23:26,919
for which we thank her,
and the care of her doctor,
711
01:23:26,919 --> 01:23:31,340
it is absolutely impossible for her
to finish this performance.
712
01:23:31,340 --> 01:23:34,051
She is deeply distraught about this,
713
01:23:34,051 --> 01:23:37,513
and we ask you to join us in excusing her.
714
01:24:14,550 --> 01:24:17,469
June 4, 1965.
715
01:24:18,470 --> 01:24:21,974
Dear Elvira, I've wanted
to write to you for a while now,
716
01:24:21,974 --> 01:24:24,977
but I couldn't find the time
or, rather, the energy.
717
01:24:26,145 --> 01:24:27,897
Changing my voice and technique
718
01:24:27,897 --> 01:24:30,691
during the performances
did no good for my nerves,
719
01:24:30,691 --> 01:24:34,361
which were already strained
after all these years.
720
01:24:35,905 --> 01:24:38,532
After New York, my body shut down.
721
01:24:38,949 --> 01:24:41,202
My blood pressure dropped to seven.
722
01:24:42,119 --> 01:24:43,495
I took a month off to rest,
723
01:24:43,495 --> 01:24:45,915
but it was obvious
that my nerves could not bear
724
01:24:45,915 --> 01:24:47,708
a huge role like Norma.
725
01:24:49,001 --> 01:24:51,253
Now my fatigue is endless,
726
01:24:51,962 --> 01:24:55,591
and my rage even more so
for having crumbled like this.
727
01:24:57,968 --> 01:25:01,972
I found an apartment,
and I'm taking care of it for the moment.
728
01:25:02,890 --> 01:25:05,226
36 Avenue Georges Mandel.
729
01:25:06,685 --> 01:25:08,520
I am at peace here at home.
730
01:25:09,647 --> 01:25:12,858
Peace that has nothing to do
with happiness,
731
01:25:12,858 --> 01:25:15,527
but which at least allows
my nerves to calm down.
732
01:25:16,487 --> 01:25:19,365
They were the real culprit
for everything, as you once said.
733
01:25:21,784 --> 01:25:26,372
I began at 13, and now I am 41.
734
01:25:26,372 --> 01:25:29,500
I'm not complaining, but it's a long time.
735
01:25:30,793 --> 01:25:33,337
The soul burns out, and the energy, too.
736
01:25:35,214 --> 01:25:36,924
I'm studying alone.
737
01:25:36,924 --> 01:25:39,760
I have my records to teach me
what I used to do
738
01:25:39,760 --> 01:25:42,554
and my tape recorder
to play me back what I do now
739
01:25:42,554 --> 01:25:44,181
and what I shouldn't do.
740
01:25:44,181 --> 01:25:45,975
If it works, all the better.
741
01:25:45,975 --> 01:25:48,018
If not, I'll give it all up.
742
01:25:48,978 --> 01:25:52,439
Besides, I have Aristo.
What more could I want?
743
01:25:53,899 --> 01:25:57,945
Don't you find Aristo
has changed a lot for the better?
744
01:26:15,296 --> 01:26:17,589
You've given up your citizenship.
That's correct?
745
01:26:17,589 --> 01:26:18,716
Yes, that is correct.
746
01:26:18,716 --> 01:26:20,551
And you're taking
your Greek citizenship back?
747
01:26:20,551 --> 01:26:22,720
I've already taken
my Greek citizenship back.
748
01:26:22,720 --> 01:26:24,680
What is the reason behind this,
Madam Callas?
749
01:26:24,680 --> 01:26:27,224
Well, the real reason I could even say it
750
01:26:27,224 --> 01:26:31,895
is that I am a free woman,
you see, because... during...
751
01:26:32,688 --> 01:26:36,942
with the Greek law,
who is not married after 1946,
752
01:26:36,942 --> 01:26:39,695
in church, is not married.
753
01:26:41,655 --> 01:26:43,657
- So you understand?
- I understand completely.
754
01:26:43,657 --> 01:26:46,201
Now, do you have any intention
to marry Mr. Onassis?
755
01:26:46,201 --> 01:26:49,246
Oh, well, those are not questions to...
756
01:26:50,414 --> 01:26:52,708
No, right now I'm a free woman,
and very happy to be,
757
01:26:52,708 --> 01:26:56,628
so that is why I had to give up
this American citizenship, unfortunately.
758
01:26:56,628 --> 01:26:58,213
You understand?
759
01:27:02,801 --> 01:27:04,636
Aristo, my love,
760
01:27:05,346 --> 01:27:08,098
I know this is a meager birthday present,
761
01:27:08,098 --> 01:27:11,852
but I must tell you that,
after eight and a half years,
762
01:27:11,852 --> 01:27:13,979
with so much we went through,
763
01:27:14,730 --> 01:27:17,983
I am happy to tell you
from the depths of my heart,
764
01:27:18,525 --> 01:27:20,194
I am proud of you,
765
01:27:20,778 --> 01:27:26,075
I love you, body and soul,
and only wish that you feel the same.
766
01:27:26,950 --> 01:27:31,497
I feel privileged to have reached
the highest level in a tough career
767
01:27:31,497 --> 01:27:34,458
and to be graced by God to have found you,
768
01:27:34,458 --> 01:27:38,087
who went through hell also
and reached the heights,
769
01:27:38,087 --> 01:27:40,923
and to have us together, as we are.
770
01:27:42,925 --> 01:27:48,180
Try, oh, please do,
to keep us united always,
771
01:27:48,180 --> 01:27:51,725
for I do need your love
and respect forever.
772
01:27:53,894 --> 01:27:56,647
I am too proud to admit it,
773
01:27:57,606 --> 01:28:00,818
but know that you are my very breath,
774
01:28:01,568 --> 01:28:05,197
brain, pride and tenderness,
775
01:28:05,197 --> 01:28:08,492
that if you could see
into my feelings for you,
776
01:28:08,492 --> 01:28:13,038
you would feel the strongest
and richest man in the entire world.
777
01:28:15,207 --> 01:28:17,501
This is not a child's letter.
778
01:28:18,419 --> 01:28:22,673
This is a hurt, tired, proud woman
779
01:28:22,673 --> 01:28:27,302
that gives you the most fresh
and youthful sentiments ever felt.
780
01:28:28,512 --> 01:28:30,139
Never forget that,
781
01:28:31,014 --> 01:28:34,226
and be always as tender with me
as these days.
782
01:28:35,227 --> 01:28:37,771
And you make me the queen of the world...
783
01:28:38,981 --> 01:28:40,065
my love.
784
01:28:40,607 --> 01:28:43,318
I need affection and tenderness.
785
01:28:44,153 --> 01:28:45,237
I am yours.
786
01:28:45,863 --> 01:28:47,614
Do as you will with me.
787
01:28:51,785 --> 01:28:53,036
Your soul...
788
01:28:54,037 --> 01:28:55,122
Maria.
789
01:29:08,886 --> 01:29:12,389
There is one prayer that I do.
It's my own.
790
01:29:12,389 --> 01:29:15,476
- I hope you won't laugh at me.
- No. What is it?
791
01:29:15,476 --> 01:29:18,896
Every now and then, I say:
"God, help me...
792
01:29:18,896 --> 01:29:22,357
give me what you want.
I have no choice, good or bad.
793
01:29:22,357 --> 01:29:26,278
But give me the strength also
to be able to overcome it."
794
01:29:37,539 --> 01:29:42,336
Dear Elvira, I'm doing fairly well,
given the circumstances.
795
01:29:42,336 --> 01:29:45,047
It's as if I've been hit hard
over the head
796
01:29:45,047 --> 01:29:47,257
and I still can't catch my breath.
797
01:29:48,550 --> 01:29:52,554
I received three phone calls,
one I didn't answer.
798
01:29:53,388 --> 01:29:55,641
When I answered the two others, it was...
799
01:29:56,141 --> 01:29:57,476
it was horrible for me.
800
01:29:58,101 --> 01:30:00,270
As I told you, he is irresponsible,
801
01:30:00,270 --> 01:30:03,357
and therefore it's
really disgusting for me.
802
01:30:04,441 --> 01:30:08,445
I'm at home in Paris
trying to sort things out in my head,
803
01:30:08,445 --> 01:30:10,822
which hurts so terribly.
804
01:30:11,782 --> 01:30:14,535
I'm just trying to survive
these few months.
805
01:30:15,285 --> 01:30:18,580
I don't make too much effort,
as my mind is weakened,
806
01:30:19,373 --> 01:30:21,250
and so my psyche, too.
807
01:30:22,709 --> 01:30:26,046
I really wouldn't know where
to go to get a little rest.
808
01:30:27,673 --> 01:30:29,007
I am so lost,
809
01:30:29,633 --> 01:30:34,513
after so many years of work
and sacrifices for one man,
810
01:30:35,514 --> 01:30:38,725
that I find myself incapable
of knowing where to go.
811
01:30:39,560 --> 01:30:41,395
It's the last straw.
812
01:30:45,274 --> 01:30:48,735
Anyway, if you wish, write to me here.
813
01:30:49,403 --> 01:30:51,071
I send you all my love.
814
01:30:51,989 --> 01:30:54,366
I hope that you don't worry
too much about me.
815
01:30:55,576 --> 01:30:58,078
God has always been my guide.
816
01:30:58,620 --> 01:31:00,539
He will show me the way again,
817
01:31:01,039 --> 01:31:03,000
and I hope that
he will give me the strength
818
01:31:03,000 --> 01:31:05,043
to get through this crisis, too.
819
01:31:07,129 --> 01:31:09,965
My dear, sweet, longtime friend.
820
01:31:11,675 --> 01:31:14,595
Your Maria, always.
821
01:31:30,485 --> 01:31:33,655
Thank you, dear Elvira,
thank you for your kind letter.
822
01:31:34,448 --> 01:31:37,701
It's cruel, isn't it?
But they're both paying for it.
823
01:31:37,701 --> 01:31:39,995
Or they will pay. You'll see.
824
01:31:39,995 --> 01:31:44,458
What is worst of all is that he said
nothing to me about the marriage.
825
01:31:44,458 --> 01:31:48,712
I think he at least owed me that
after nine years by his side.
826
01:31:48,712 --> 01:31:52,174
I shouldn't have found out
about it in the papers.
827
01:31:52,174 --> 01:31:54,134
But I consider him a fool,
828
01:31:54,134 --> 01:31:57,054
and as such,
I am erasing him from my mind.
829
01:31:57,804 --> 01:32:00,432
I need to work as soon as possible.
830
01:32:00,432 --> 01:32:03,810
Anyhow, I won't be able
to do anything until next year.
831
01:32:05,020 --> 01:32:08,273
I'm coping rather well
under the circumstances,
832
01:32:08,273 --> 01:32:10,692
and I thank you for all of your affection.
833
01:32:11,109 --> 01:32:14,946
I will write to you soon to tell you
about my possible projects,
834
01:32:14,946 --> 01:32:17,699
given that I haven't decided
anything for now.
835
01:32:18,408 --> 01:32:20,786
All my affection and respect.
836
01:32:21,578 --> 01:32:24,122
As always, your Maria.
837
01:32:29,169 --> 01:32:33,090
For nine years,
you've been living a hidden life
838
01:32:33,090 --> 01:32:36,009
and a humiliating life
for a person like I am,
839
01:32:36,009 --> 01:32:39,096
and you're not cured in two months,
840
01:32:39,096 --> 01:32:41,473
and I don't have
that much time to get cured.
841
01:32:42,015 --> 01:32:44,267
Next year I've got to sing,
somehow or another,
842
01:32:44,267 --> 01:32:45,852
I don't care at what price.
843
01:32:45,852 --> 01:32:48,563
I've given up a hell of a career,
844
01:32:48,563 --> 01:32:51,650
and it's too easy to say,
"Oh, thank you very much."
845
01:32:51,650 --> 01:32:54,903
For eight years, nine years,
we did our best to be happy.
846
01:32:54,903 --> 01:32:57,197
"Oh, ain't that sweet,"
as they say of all this.
847
01:32:57,197 --> 01:32:59,241
It's so easy to say no one is immature.
848
01:32:59,241 --> 01:33:03,537
Christianity says you must forgive,
you must have no resentment.
849
01:33:03,537 --> 01:33:06,623
I don't have resentment, but I have hurt.
How can I get rid of that?
850
01:33:08,083 --> 01:33:10,168
One last cigarette, and you drive me home?
851
01:33:18,218 --> 01:33:22,597
The phenomenal publicity that surrounds
your friendship with Aristotle Onassis,
852
01:33:22,597 --> 01:33:24,641
to what extent does that limit your life?
853
01:33:24,641 --> 01:33:27,519
Does that, in fact,
create a barrier that prevents you
854
01:33:27,519 --> 01:33:30,981
meeting and talking because you know
that flashbulbs are going to flash?
855
01:33:31,481 --> 01:33:33,775
Of course, it's not pleasant, because...
856
01:33:34,568 --> 01:33:36,778
there is no relaxation.
857
01:33:36,778 --> 01:33:39,781
He is a married man.
Before, I was a married woman.
858
01:33:39,781 --> 01:33:43,410
I still am, but I'm going to get a divorce
if the divorce law comes out.
859
01:33:43,994 --> 01:33:47,122
And well, they have created problems.
860
01:33:47,122 --> 01:33:49,416
He had a family. He had children.
861
01:33:49,416 --> 01:33:51,626
Now he has a wife; I've never met her.
862
01:33:52,377 --> 01:33:54,212
Never. And so...
863
01:33:55,130 --> 01:33:58,425
naturally, not having met her,
it could create problems.
864
01:33:58,425 --> 01:34:00,802
I don't know. I hope not.
865
01:34:01,553 --> 01:34:05,557
'Cause I'm not the kind of type
that would create problems.
866
01:34:05,557 --> 01:34:08,226
But I mean, a meeting like that
is made much more difficult
867
01:34:08,226 --> 01:34:09,978
by all the publicity, I presume.
868
01:34:10,562 --> 01:34:11,980
Well, I don't know.
869
01:34:11,980 --> 01:34:15,275
It depends on whether the man needs you.
870
01:34:15,275 --> 01:34:20,864
There are many a time that I'm sure
Onassis needs me as a friend,
871
01:34:20,864 --> 01:34:22,616
because I would tell him the truth.
872
01:34:23,533 --> 01:34:25,577
Not that you men like the truth.
873
01:34:26,203 --> 01:34:27,454
- Not...
874
01:34:28,747 --> 01:34:31,124
- Hey, well...
- Don't we? Oh, we love it.
875
01:34:31,124 --> 01:34:33,001
- Oh, no.
- We're so grateful for it.
876
01:34:34,211 --> 01:34:37,130
- You're lying.
- We're so grateful for the truth.
877
01:34:37,130 --> 01:34:38,465
We can't get enough of it.
878
01:34:39,382 --> 01:34:44,346
I'm quite sure, though, that Mr. Onassis
would always come to me with his problems,
879
01:34:44,346 --> 01:34:49,434
knowing that I would never repeat
and he would find an objective mind.
880
01:34:51,186 --> 01:34:55,649
Now, I bet you're wondering,
would I need his friendship?
881
01:34:55,649 --> 01:34:57,692
Yes, I suppose.
882
01:34:57,692 --> 01:34:59,569
And would you go to him with a problem?
883
01:35:00,362 --> 01:35:04,825
Yes, but I have many friends, also,
that in the meantime have taken place.
884
01:35:04,825 --> 01:35:06,993
I mean, just plain good friends.
885
01:35:07,619 --> 01:35:10,038
I would. I would.
886
01:35:26,388 --> 01:35:28,265
Medea is your first film,
887
01:35:28,265 --> 01:35:31,685
but is it the first film
you've ever been offered?
888
01:35:31,685 --> 01:35:33,728
No, I've been offered several,
889
01:35:33,728 --> 01:35:38,024
but it's the first one
I thought was worthy enough
890
01:35:38,024 --> 01:35:39,985
for me not to say no.
891
01:35:39,985 --> 01:35:44,197
For an actress,
I think it's a wonderful role.
892
01:35:46,825 --> 01:35:49,327
You're a friend of Pasolini, I believe.
893
01:35:49,327 --> 01:35:52,080
I've become his friend, I think.
894
01:35:52,080 --> 01:35:55,709
My collaboration with Mr. Pasolini
has really been...
895
01:35:57,168 --> 01:35:59,671
It's been very...
896
01:36:00,297 --> 01:36:04,134
very moving and very real,
every minute of the day.
897
01:36:06,636 --> 01:36:09,973
(speaking French)
898
01:36:14,394 --> 01:36:16,271
Everything is timing in life.
899
01:36:16,771 --> 01:36:22,068
What we are trying, I may say,
is to find the human part of Medea.
900
01:36:22,277 --> 01:36:23,361
A woman.
901
01:36:25,614 --> 01:36:27,574
With all the experiences of a woman.
902
01:36:28,783 --> 01:36:31,620
Even more so. Everything is bigger.
903
01:36:32,704 --> 01:36:34,581
Bigger sacrifice, big...
904
01:36:34,581 --> 01:36:36,833
Everything is bigger.
The scenery is bigger.
905
01:36:37,334 --> 01:36:40,420
But the hurt is just there,
just the same as any other woman.
906
01:36:41,046 --> 01:36:42,380
Even more so.
907
01:36:51,181 --> 01:36:53,642
(speaking Italian)
908
01:37:01,483 --> 01:37:03,735
How much would you like
to make more films?
909
01:37:05,403 --> 01:37:07,405
I don't have that much experience.
910
01:37:07,405 --> 01:37:09,574
I don't know what
this experience will bring me,
911
01:37:09,574 --> 01:37:12,661
so I think we should
talk about that a little later
912
01:37:12,661 --> 01:37:15,997
when I've finished this work.
913
01:37:16,289 --> 01:37:20,835
But I must say that this role is the...
at least the way we've built it up.
914
01:37:20,835 --> 01:37:22,212
I don't know whether you know it,
915
01:37:22,212 --> 01:37:24,381
and I don't know how the public
will take it, but...
916
01:37:24,381 --> 01:37:29,719
I don't think you can find roles
as hard and as vast as this one.
917
01:37:29,719 --> 01:37:32,806
I think we are starting at the end
instead of at the beginning.
918
01:38:01,751 --> 01:38:06,089
I'll let Mr. Pasolini speak
because he's got to know me.
919
01:38:06,089 --> 01:38:09,092
He can judge me objectively.
920
01:38:09,092 --> 01:38:11,761
What am I like, Pier Paolo, really?
921
01:38:11,761 --> 01:38:14,556
The thing you like most is work.
922
01:38:14,556 --> 01:38:16,850
- That's true.
- And then life.
923
01:38:16,850 --> 01:38:18,184
Life itself.
924
01:38:18,184 --> 01:38:21,354
So you see me as a life enthusiast.
925
01:38:21,354 --> 01:38:24,232
- I take part...
- You always have strong feelings.
926
01:38:24,232 --> 01:38:27,986
When you're happy,
you're completely and utterly happy.
927
01:38:28,319 --> 01:38:30,613
The same when you're unhappy.
928
01:38:30,613 --> 01:38:32,323
Yes, but I hide, don't I?
929
01:38:32,323 --> 01:38:35,618
- Is there room for love then?
- Yes, but love is so difficult.
930
01:38:35,618 --> 01:38:38,496
And you pay a heavy price.
931
01:38:38,496 --> 01:38:42,417
Good God, love is something very noble,
932
01:38:42,417 --> 01:38:45,045
but, my God, it can be difficult...
933
01:38:49,716 --> 01:38:54,137
In the coming years, you have to realize
934
01:38:54,137 --> 01:38:57,432
that I can't go on singing forever,
obviously.
935
01:38:57,432 --> 01:39:01,144
If I'm considered, at least,
a decent actress,
936
01:39:01,144 --> 01:39:02,979
that's already a great deal for me.
937
01:39:04,856 --> 01:39:08,109
And it opens up
the possibility of working,
938
01:39:08,109 --> 01:39:10,612
in the few young years which I have left.
939
01:39:10,987 --> 01:39:11,988
Honestly.
940
01:39:11,988 --> 01:39:14,240
Why do you say "young years"?
941
01:39:14,240 --> 01:39:17,118
Surely one can act at any age?
942
01:39:17,118 --> 01:39:19,913
That's true.
943
01:39:19,913 --> 01:39:23,208
But I can see very clearly
into the future,
944
01:39:23,208 --> 01:39:25,585
and I'm a young woman...
945
01:39:25,585 --> 01:39:27,796
but not so young anymore.
946
01:39:27,796 --> 01:39:32,258
You say you need to work,
so why haven't you sung for four years?
947
01:39:32,258 --> 01:39:33,635
I wasn't well.
948
01:39:34,886 --> 01:39:37,639
My health was...
949
01:39:37,639 --> 01:39:40,308
I can't say I fell apart, but...
950
01:39:40,767 --> 01:39:43,061
ever since I was a child,
951
01:39:44,145 --> 01:39:46,856
I seem really, really strong,
952
01:39:47,357 --> 01:39:49,275
but in fact, I'm not.
953
01:39:49,943 --> 01:39:53,196
Then there was my career,
which was really tough
954
01:39:53,196 --> 01:39:54,781
though really wonderful,
955
01:39:55,448 --> 01:39:57,659
with all the stress and so on...
956
01:39:57,659 --> 01:40:00,912
And of course,
the body cannot withstand it all.
957
01:40:01,538 --> 01:40:03,164
I'm a woman, after all.
958
01:40:04,207 --> 01:40:09,212
Do you have a precise plan
or a desire you would like to fulfill?
959
01:40:11,172 --> 01:40:14,634
I'm open to any... to any...
960
01:40:15,844 --> 01:40:17,303
temptation.
961
01:40:17,303 --> 01:40:20,265
Now that I've made a start,
if people like me,
962
01:40:21,266 --> 01:40:23,643
maybe I can start having a little fun.
963
01:40:24,352 --> 01:40:25,770
Lady Macbeth?
964
01:40:26,229 --> 01:40:30,024
That's very tempting.
I've done it on the opera stage.
965
01:40:30,525 --> 01:40:32,819
I have to admit, I'd be tempted.
966
01:40:33,278 --> 01:40:34,404
What else?
967
01:40:34,404 --> 01:40:36,823
Even comic roles, I'd like that.
968
01:40:43,663 --> 01:40:45,707
Madam President!
969
01:41:12,483 --> 01:41:16,279
The 38th Artists' Gala is now open.
970
01:41:16,738 --> 01:41:18,656
Let the attractions begin!
971
01:41:59,906 --> 01:42:01,824
Maria? Maria!
972
01:42:46,869 --> 01:42:50,248
At first,
I would not let him into the flat,
973
01:42:51,165 --> 01:42:54,711
but imagine that one day
he kept on whistling outside,
974
01:42:54,711 --> 01:42:58,798
as young men used to do
in Greece 50 years ago.
975
01:42:59,716 --> 01:43:02,093
They wooed their sweethearts with song.
976
01:43:02,969 --> 01:43:06,014
So I had to let him in
before the press realized
977
01:43:06,014 --> 01:43:08,683
what was going on
in Avenue Georges Mandel.
978
01:43:09,726 --> 01:43:13,771
Nevertheless, at the time,
I was terribly upset
979
01:43:13,771 --> 01:43:16,399
and thought him a proper bastard.
980
01:43:17,150 --> 01:43:20,278
I used other words
I do not care to repeat.
981
01:43:21,321 --> 01:43:24,449
It was later, when he came back,
982
01:43:24,449 --> 01:43:28,328
and when I began to regain my lost pride,
983
01:43:28,328 --> 01:43:33,916
that I was able to put things in a wiser
and more realistic perspective.
984
01:43:35,084 --> 01:43:39,756
Of course, his immediate explanation
was that his marriage was a mistake.
985
01:43:39,756 --> 01:43:44,135
His mistake, not his wife's,
as I bluntly told him.
986
01:43:44,719 --> 01:43:47,555
He got exactly what he had bargained for,
987
01:43:47,555 --> 01:43:50,850
and he had only himself to blame.
988
01:43:50,850 --> 01:43:53,019
His so-called "marriage contract"
989
01:43:53,019 --> 01:43:56,022
was a bizarre arrangement
I could never understand.
990
01:43:57,982 --> 01:43:59,400
I took him back.
991
01:44:01,027 --> 01:44:04,572
That is how my great friendship
with Aristo was born.
992
01:44:04,572 --> 01:44:06,991
Let's say, a passionate friendship.
993
01:44:11,996 --> 01:44:14,665
After his marriage, we never quarreled.
994
01:44:15,625 --> 01:44:19,754
We talked things through constructively.
He stopped arguing.
995
01:44:20,963 --> 01:44:23,841
There was no longer the need
to prove anything,
996
01:44:23,841 --> 01:44:26,969
either to ourselves or to one another.
997
01:44:29,430 --> 01:44:31,933
My affair with Onassis was a failure,
998
01:44:33,017 --> 01:44:34,936
but my friendship with him...
999
01:44:35,937 --> 01:44:37,522
was a success.
1000
01:44:47,698 --> 01:44:51,035
You recently said
in a newspaper interview:
1001
01:44:51,035 --> 01:44:53,746
"I believe I must be
just a little American kid
1002
01:44:53,746 --> 01:44:58,251
at the back of my mind,
because I wanted someone, Prince Charming,
1003
01:44:58,251 --> 01:45:01,087
to come in and take me away."
1004
01:45:01,087 --> 01:45:03,548
- Very true.
- Do you think he ever will?
1005
01:45:03,548 --> 01:45:06,843
Up to now, he hasn't. Or rather, he has.
1006
01:45:08,803 --> 01:45:10,888
You know the man I'm talking, of course.
1007
01:45:10,888 --> 01:45:14,058
It was only the second man
and probably the only one,
1008
01:45:14,058 --> 01:45:16,936
a non-husband, Mr. Onassis.
1009
01:45:16,936 --> 01:45:19,480
And, you see...
1010
01:45:21,315 --> 01:45:23,276
You hope a lot. Maybe it's my fault.
1011
01:45:23,276 --> 01:45:28,739
I put a man on a pedestal,
and... I hoped a lot,
1012
01:45:28,739 --> 01:45:32,201
and I probably was disappointed,
and it probably was my fault.
1013
01:45:32,994 --> 01:45:35,621
- Do you still hope?
- Hope in what?
1014
01:45:35,621 --> 01:45:38,166
- To find...?
- You still hope Prince Charming will come?
1015
01:45:38,624 --> 01:45:40,918
Well, it won't be
Prince Charming at our age.
1016
01:45:40,918 --> 01:45:43,421
At my age, I don't expect
a Prince Charming.
1017
01:45:43,421 --> 01:45:47,341
I expect a mature man
who will accept me as I am
1018
01:45:47,341 --> 01:45:49,469
- and will guide me--
- Would you give up singing then?
1019
01:45:49,469 --> 01:45:51,179
- Oh, naturally.
- You would?
1020
01:45:51,179 --> 01:45:52,763
Well, at this age, yes.
1021
01:45:53,431 --> 01:45:58,269
It has been said Maria Callas
gave up singing for Aristotle Onassis.
1022
01:46:00,980 --> 01:46:07,320
Well, I could do without answering that,
but I think it's an honest question.
1023
01:46:10,072 --> 01:46:14,535
I thought that when I met a man I loved
that I didn't need to sing.
1024
01:46:15,161 --> 01:46:19,957
Because I think that a woman necess...
the most important thing in a woman
1025
01:46:19,957 --> 01:46:24,295
is to have a man of her own
and to make him happy.
1026
01:46:24,295 --> 01:46:27,423
And I have integrity,
which is a very expensive...
1027
01:46:27,798 --> 01:46:30,843
using Onassis' words,
it's a very expensive...
1028
01:46:31,636 --> 01:46:34,096
price to pay for integrity and honesty.
1029
01:46:35,473 --> 01:46:37,016
But I can pay that price.
1030
01:47:05,503 --> 01:47:08,714
Maria! Maria!
1031
01:47:09,298 --> 01:47:14,178
Maria! Maria! Maria!
1032
01:47:35,283 --> 01:47:36,993
Maria!
1033
01:47:42,415 --> 01:47:46,252
I must say, this evening,
I was a little more emotion than usual,
1034
01:47:46,252 --> 01:47:50,256
because when a public loves me that much,
I have to give that much more...
1035
01:47:51,090 --> 01:47:52,550
and there's no end to it.
1036
01:47:58,222 --> 01:48:01,851
So I'll try a little more,
and I'll do the usual song,
1037
01:48:01,851 --> 01:48:04,562
which I... "O mio babbino caro."
1038
01:48:04,562 --> 01:48:06,397
"O my public caro."
1039
01:48:36,761 --> 01:48:39,180
It's really very, very rewarding.
1040
01:48:40,514 --> 01:48:45,227
They were probably applauding
what they were hoping to hear.
1041
01:48:45,227 --> 01:48:49,065
I don't know if they were really...
if I deserved all that,
1042
01:48:49,065 --> 01:48:52,109
but you can never fight the public.
1043
01:48:52,109 --> 01:48:54,737
So they seem very happy,
but I must say also,
1044
01:48:54,737 --> 01:48:58,949
they were very grateful, as I was also,
1045
01:48:58,949 --> 01:49:00,743
that I was able to come back.
1046
01:49:01,619 --> 01:49:06,290
You can't just applaud the legend,
if you don't give them something to...
1047
01:49:07,416 --> 01:49:09,293
And after all, what is the legend?
1048
01:49:09,293 --> 01:49:10,795
The public made me.
1049
01:49:11,379 --> 01:49:12,630
What is a legend?
1050
01:49:13,964 --> 01:49:17,510
I think I'm a very human, human being.
1051
01:49:17,510 --> 01:49:20,513
If I wasn't human,
I probably would have sung better.
1052
01:49:21,097 --> 01:49:23,974
I had a touch of nerves
in the beginning, and...
1053
01:49:25,226 --> 01:49:28,521
You see, when a public loves you so much,
you want to do so much more.
1054
01:49:29,230 --> 01:49:33,776
And what I want more is
never what I would like to.
1055
01:49:33,776 --> 01:49:35,736
Not even in the good old days.
1056
01:50:50,978 --> 01:50:53,773
When I saw Aristo for the last time,
1057
01:50:54,523 --> 01:50:58,444
he was calm and,
I think, at peace with himself.
1058
01:50:59,028 --> 01:51:03,365
He was very ill, and he knew
that the end was near,
1059
01:51:03,365 --> 01:51:05,326
though he tried to ignore it.
1060
01:51:09,246 --> 01:51:11,999
We did not speak about old times
1061
01:51:12,500 --> 01:51:14,376
or much about anything else.
1062
01:51:15,836 --> 01:51:19,423
We mostly communicated
with each other in silence.
1063
01:51:21,258 --> 01:51:23,302
As I was about to leave,
1064
01:51:23,302 --> 01:51:25,763
he made a special effort to tell me...
1065
01:51:29,308 --> 01:51:30,684
"I loved you.
1066
01:51:31,811 --> 01:51:36,023
Not always well,
but as much and the best I could.
1067
01:51:37,316 --> 01:51:38,526
I tried."
1068
01:51:42,613 --> 01:51:44,573
I have written my memoirs.
1069
01:51:45,950 --> 01:51:48,118
They are in the music I interpret,
1070
01:51:49,245 --> 01:51:51,789
the only language I really know.
1071
01:56:06,210 --> 01:56:11,131
I want to thank all the public,
who remained close to me,
1072
01:56:11,131 --> 01:56:15,427
in difficult times,
not only in times of glory.
1073
01:56:16,136 --> 01:56:18,639
They wrote to me, they adored me,
1074
01:56:18,639 --> 01:56:22,309
they understood me,
generally they loved me.
1075
01:56:22,309 --> 01:56:25,437
So for that too I am very grateful.
1076
01:56:25,437 --> 01:56:27,981
I feel only gratitude towards the world.
1077
01:56:28,524 --> 01:56:29,525
That's all.
88332
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