Cher has opened up about her experiences in Hollywood, revealing that there have been just two directors she didn’t like in an acting career spanning six decades.
The US artist, 78, is known for releasing hit singles such as “Believe” and “If I Could Turn Back Time” as well as for starring in movies such as The Witches of Eastwick, Mask, and Tea with Mussolini.
She has now released the first part of her new memoir, in which she recalls her storied career in entertainment as well as her chaotic childhood and romantic relationships.
Promoting the memoir in an interview with The Times, Cher said there were just two directors she didn’t enjoy working with: Peter Bogdanovich and “the guy from The Muppets”, apparently referring to Frank OZ, known for his work directing The Muppets movies who was hired to direct the 1990 film Mermaids, in which Cher starred.
“I actually got the guy from The Muppets fired. I said, either you’re going or I’m going, which is a shame because he’s a really good director, but he had a thing about me. He would go, ‘At least my wife loves me!’” she said.
The Independent has contacted Oz’s representative for comment.
Meanwhile the late Bogdanovich, who once claimed Cher was the most difficult person he’d ever worked with, was branded an “asshole” by the star: “He was not nice to the girls in the film and he was so f***ing arrogant. I really, really disliked him.”
She recalled one particular encounter with the director while shooting the 1985 film Mask: “He comes in and says, ‘Cher, where do you think we should film this scene?’ And I say, well, the kitchen is working pretty well, why don’t we do that again?
“The next morning he arrives on set, eating an egg sandwich,and starts screaming that he’s not going to let me direct this film; I’m a nobody; he can cut me out at any moment. Oh yeah, he was a pig.”
In the first part of her memoir, Cher also recounts how she was forced to address the actions of her own husband, the late Sonny Bono, after making a horrifying discovery about the artist’s contract she was under.
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At the time, Cher was in the process of divorcing Bono and nearing the end of their star-making variety show, The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour, which was cancelled due to their split in 1974.
Record executive David Geffen, whom Cher was dating at the time, managed to get hold of her contract: “He called me up after reading it and said, “Sweetheart, this contract is involuntary servitude. You work for Sonny. You have no rights, no vote, no money, nothing,” Cher recounted. “You’re an employee of something called ‘Cher Enterprises’ with a salary you were likely never paid and three weeks’ vacation per year.”
Cher said that she was stunned and initially refused to believe this was the case: “Then David started reading the contract to me, and sure enough, I couldn’t even sign a [cheque] or withdraw any money without Sonny or Irwin’s signature.
“I was an employee of Cher Enterprises with no ownership, so I couldn’t access any of the money I earned for the company,” she said.
“Beyond that, I was signed to the company and could only work with Sonny’s permission. That meant not only did I have no money, I had no way to make any money unless Sonny signed off on it.”
