BARBARA WALTERS SPECIAL, THE {CHER, DIAHANN CARROLL, RAQUEL WELCH} (TV)

Summary

One in this occasional series of interview specials, hosted by Barbara Walters.

This episode features interviews with singer Cher, actress and singer Diahann Carroll, and actress Raquel Welch. Cher discusses the design of her Las Vegas home and her philosophy on interior design in general. She also talks about her amusement with her own appearance and self-image, regarding her “Cher” persona as an “invention.” She describes her childhood experiences living for a time in foster care due to her overworked mother, as well as her mother’s sporadic marriages and her lack of a singular male figure in her childhood. This leads into a discussion of her children’s fathers and her views on some of her ex-husbands, including Sonny Bono and Greg Allman. She also talks about the recent death of her father and her experiences with him as a child, calling him a “letdown,” describing his negative qualities and the reasons why she did not involve him in her life. She talks about her reasons for marrying Allman and her current relationship status, noting the scrutiny she undergoes due to the public nature of her romances. She also mentions her concerns about aging and the complicated nature of her feelings towards Bono.

Carroll talks about her role on the television show “Dynasty” and her relationship with co-star Joan Collins. She talks about how she feels about men and how her relationships alter the ways in which the public perceives her. She talks about how the media reacted to her role in the 1968 television series “Julia,” the first television program featuring a female African-American lead character; she notes she was criticized for being “not representative” of the African-American community. She talks about how she used the program as a means of demonstrating an effort to break out of pre-existing racial stereotypes. She discusses several of her failed marriages and her decision to leave one husband after he became physically abusive. One of these marriages includes Robert DeLeon, a young magazine editor who was killed in a car accident two years into the marriage; Carroll talks about how she gave up her career temporarily and talks about DeLeon’s faults. She also talks about her current romantic interests and plans for the future.

Welch notes how her former status as a sex symbol made her “terrified” and “vulnerable.” She explains that when she was younger her appearance was her “advantage” and she felt compelled to use it. She talks about how difficult it was for her to be taken seriously on an intellectual level and the psychological disconnect she perceives between appearance and intellectualism. She expresses frustration that she was unable to parlay her “sexy” appearances into anything more substantial, lamenting that she often appeared in films in which “nothing sexy was happening.” She talks about the success of her Broadway musical “Woman of the Year” and how a subsequent miscarriage discouraged her from returning to work immediately. She also talks about the interaction between her personality and her work, and how she has garnered a reputation for being “difficult.” She recounts her difficult childhood and how she became an actress to live up to her father’s demanding expectations of her; she notes that she contemplated retiring from acting after her father’s death. Program ends abruptly.

(This program is incomplete due to missing media. It represents the best copy available at this time.)

Details

• NETWORK: ABC
• DATE: May 29, 1985 9:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 0:42:08
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: B:01435
• GENRE: Talk/Interviews
• SUBJECT HEADING: TV - Talk/Interviews
• SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 1976-
• COMMERCIALS:
  • TV – Commercials – Chuck Wagon dog food
  • TV – Commercials – Clairol hair coloring
  • TV – Commercials – John Hancock financial services
  • TV – Commercials – Mercury automobiles
  • TV – Commercials – Tender Vittles cat food
  • TV – Promos – “20/20”
  • TV – Promos – “I Desire”
  • TV – Promos – “The Shining”

CREDITS

• Barbara Walters … Host, Interviewer
• Cher … Interviewee
• Diahann Carroll … Interviewee
• Raquel Welch … Interviewee
• Greg Allman
• Sonny Bono
• Joan Collins
• Robert DeLeon