NewZealandWoman’sWeekly 25
A
man of voracious
appetites – for
music, women and
food (in that order) – opera
legend Luciano Pavarotti
had few rivals. And if he
could combine two of his
great passions, so much
the better.
Extolling the virtues of
Viagra to reporters, he once
claimed, “Sex is always
good for you if your little
friend asks for it. It doesn’t
matter if it is before or after
the show.” He added, “The
best thing would be during
the show, on the only table
on the stage.”
It is one of the more
colourful revelations in
Pavarotti, a documentary
film about the late Italian
tenor directed by Oscar
winner Ron Howard,
maker of movies such as
A Beautiful Mind, Apollo
13 and The Da Vinci Code.
But while it captures
the opera star’s prowess
with women – Princess
Diana was a close friend,
and soprano Madelyn
Renee, one of his many
mistresses, talks on camera
about the pain of ending
their eight-year affair – itshows that men too were
not immune to the force
of his personality.
Always keen to find
new musical collaborators,
Luciano resolved to
enlist the services of U2’s
ambivalent frontman
Bono, eventually turning
up on his doorstep in
Dublin and cajoling him
into the studio.
He was, jokes Bono, “one
of the great emotional arm
wrestlers – he will break
your f***ing arm”.
Ron witnessed Luciano’s
star power first-hand,
having met him at a
Hollywood event in the
early 1980s.
“We only had a quick
handshake,” he says, “but
certainly even then I could
sense his charisma.”
Back then, Ron was best
known for his role as Richie
Cunningham in the hit TV
show Happy Days and says
he had no idea that their
lives would again converge
decades later.
Ron’s documentary
portrays the singer as a
talented, temperamental
genius, yet also a man
plagued by lonelinessTHE FAMOUS FACE
BEHIND PAVAROTTI
TACKLES LIFE IN
THE SPOTLIGHT
IN A VASTLY
DIFFERENT WAYThe larger-than-life
Italian tenor was
legendary for his
love of food,
women and song.Two worlds collide:
Child star turned
director Ron Howard
had no idea he would
become so fascinated
with the tenor.