good evening from los angeles. i'm tavis smiley. tonight a conversation with oscar winner anjelica huston about her latest "watch me: a memoir" taking up about her previous memoir about her childhood left off. a candid look at her career, life, and including a highly pa lub sized life with jack nishgalson and her husband robert. a candid interview with anjelica huston coming up right now.

♪ and by contributions to your pbs station, from viewers like you. thank you.7g ♪ so just about a year ago anjelica huston was in this very chair talking about her first memoir of hur childhood in london called "a story lately told." at that time, she let us know she was writing more about her life -- ip asked her could come back when that book was done and she agreed. since then we hung out in new

york city and now is back to join us in l.a. with the new wook damed "watch me: a memoir" and i am honored to have her back on this program. you kept your word and thank you for doing that. >> thank you, travis. my pleasure. >> i could do three, four days with you given what you have in the book. but i want to start where your book ends. i am reminded of an irish phrase, when you are faced with an obstacle on the hunting field it is said that you must first throw your heart over it before jumping. that's powerful%w. >> well, it's some -- it means that you expect a good result. you know? if you fear the fences, it's r more likely you're going to get entangled. so i think optimism, strength, forward motion, that's -- that's the way i like to go. >> yeah.

>> word of that spirit, where did that spirit of forward come from? >> very much from my father. who -- who didn't really suffer fools. he didn't suffer cowards. that's for sure. so i think in a way it comes directly from him. nothing ventured, nothing gained. >> yes. you write so lovingly of your father. in this book. i'm not surprised by that. but even more so to my mind, even more so in this text than in the first text. i mean, your father has such a presence in this book. i only raise that because i'm curious as to whether or not there's something you can put your finger on about how your relationship developed. you know where i'm going? >> sure. >> over the course of your life and over the course of your career, because he's so very present in this text? >> that's true. well when i was little i was daddy's little girl. i was his only daughter.

and i continued to be his only daughter. until he adopted my little sister allegra who was my mother's child when our mother died.ó i think -- it was probably our -- our -- our tough moment came when i became a teenager, and started to rebel a bit, and have my own ideas and my own opinions, and he was one of those fathers, i think, who wanted me to kind of remain where i was, and allow him time to catch up with me, because he was away a lot, and he'd come back from, from location and i would have grown, and have ideas about independence that he wasn't so crazy about. i wore a lot of makeup in the '60s, and i think all of that scared him a bit. then we had a moment where we made a movie together. that was difficult.

a movie called "a walk with love and death" that ostensibly he gave to me as a present when i was 16. a starring role in a movie. great by anyone's standards, but not by mine. i wasn't a happy camper for that time, and a recalcitrant actress which is not a good thing. that -- then after that, we had a moment of, sort of lull, and for about, i guess -- five, maybe eight years, and then he was honored by the afi one night, and i stood up and 3 said, give me another chance, and he gave me another chance, and that chance was called "prizzi's honor." >> yes, it was. >> and that movie brought me an oscar. >> and your dad, when you were up speaking, accepting, he was in the audience crying. >> that's right. and because i was in such shock

after receiving the prize, you're supposed to go backstage with the minders, you know? but because i was delirious, i ran off the front of the stage, back into the audience. if i hadn't done that i would never have seen my dad upset like that, and dad didn't cry easily. i think it was maybe the first time i ever saw him cry. >> wow.ncdyç that's the second project. and then you worked together one more time, but he's rather ill, the last time you worked together, which leads me to how you reflect upon what it's like to watch two people very close to you die?af your father and your husband. what's -- what can you share with me about watching people close to you do that dance with mortality? >> here's the thing. i'm a very strong person. and my father was sick for a very long time. sick with emphysema. and it's a progressive disease. >> uh-huh.

>> and each time he would go into crisis, his -- his carbon dioxide would go up, his oxygen would go down. he'd get kind of acquiescent and dreamy, and then we'd know it was time to bring him into hospital, and the fight would begin. and i noticed that if i was present, i could really help him along. he trusted me, and because of my strength and because of my determination, i was often able to help him out, pull him back. but i believe -- i believe that god has a destiny, and i believe that when he calls your number, that it's time. we can -- we can prolong that moment, maybe. we can try to stretch it, but when the call comes, you have to learn to let go, and learning to let go, that's the hard thing for people, because we think -- we think we can control

everything. >> yeah. >> and for me, with dad, you know, it was this constant calling him back from the edge.y but each time, it became more evident that it was harder on him, that there was less to live for, that his -- his life would be compromised by being pulled back. so in a way, you learn to let go a little bit. every time he went into crisis. with -- with bob, robert, my husband, his sickness kind of came out of the blue. i didn't know he was sick. or as sick as he was. there were little things, little signs, but i -- i didn't know what it was, and, or the immensity of his problem. so it was a kind of slow and mysterious descent. with bob, i just tried to be

there. be there. hold his hand. tell him everything was going to be all right. and that's another thing. you know? do you tell a dying person that they're dying, or do you tell them everything is going to be all right? i think you have to stay on the side of the living. fight as hard as you can to keep that person with you and on earth, but ultimately, if their life is going to be compromised, like bob's life would have been compromised, he'd have had to be en dialysis every other day or every day. once you have organ failure, it's not a -- not really a question anymore, and it's -- you have to -- in a way -- take your out of it at a certain point, and allow that person the dillty

dill-of-dignity of their journey. >> speaking of allowing that person the dignity of their /x journey, anjelica, i want to çñ move off of -- so much in this book i can't do justice to it in a full show. but off of this notion of morbidity in a second, if you will answer this question first. which is -- what your take away is about your own journey from watching your father and watching your husband and i want to color the question beyond that. you've got a lot of life left in you, thank god, but when that moment comes what have you learned about your own journey, based upon helping the two of them navigate theirs? >> that's a really good question. i think -- it's obviously a journey full of mystery. >> uh-huh. >> my feeling is that there's something beyond it. >> uh-huh. >> i mean, there are dreams beyond sleep. so why shouldn't there be a life, or some sort of existence

so for me, i imagine that there is another place, a more elevated place that we go to. a place that is maybe sort of refines who we are, takes -- takes the spirit and leaves the body and who knows what the journey of the spirit is? i -- i think trust has enormousu amount to do with it, and i think that's, that's sort of the human conundrum is finding that trust and believing that you're going to be transported to a better place. >> uh-huh. >> or at least that you're on a path of evolution. >> yeah. i could have started this conversation whatever it was 15 minutes ago with a question about a singular person named jack. i didn't, because i know that everywhere you go, people want

to talk about jack, and i know what it's like being on a book tour -- you and i were in new york together when we were both announcing our books comes out and i knew then, said a prayer for you. she's going to get asked more questions about jack. >> i love that you say that, though, because it's absolutely true. it's like, the book is really about me, actually. people think it's about -- >> about jack. >> about jack. the fact we split up 30 years ago is of no consequence. >> and that's precisely why i didn't want to begin there, so i'm not even going to ask a question about jack, but since it's in the text, what do you want to say about jack? and that way you get to control what you say or don't want to say. >> you're very fun. and that's wonderful, because actually i was on a show yesterday and i was asked this question about jack first. and i found myself kind of ew getting irritable, and then the

person said, well it is on the second page, and i go, oh, okay. i guess they have a right to ask about jack. and it's not that i don't like talking about jack. i do like talking about jack. but he's not the only thing my life is made up of. he was a big part of it. a very interesting part of it. sometimes wonderful part of it. he -- i still enjoy him. i -- i think -- you know, bottom line with jack, he made a movie onceç2ñ calmed "iron weed," and was with meryl streep, and it was a very, very sad movie and he played a very, very sad alcoholic, a pd after the lights went up in that movie and i was bereft, i was so sad, and i realized that, you know, a world without jack was an infinitely duller sadder place, and that's how i feel about jack. he's one of the lights in my life. he's not the main light anymore,

but in a starry skies, he shines bright, and i trust him. you know -- the little things in the old days, maybe not the most faithful man in the world, but if the"q chips were down, and ty have been down a few times, i rely on jack for his -- for his strength and for his loyalty. he's a very loyal and fine friend. he's a very loyal and fine know, he's a -- he'll be a better friend to you than a lover, and in a way, i think that's true. >> yeah. because you were together, it's been over 30 years now. because you were together a while during a certain heyday, a lot of things happened while the two of you were together, and i was completely blown away by the roman polanski story. i did not remember that. i wasn't living in l.a. at the time. i was just completely -- i was,

couldn't believe that -- i didn't recall that it happened in that house. >> right. >> i'll let you tell the story. it happened in the house. they come back the next day. the cops do. they're checking everything. checked your purse. i'll let you tell the story. >> what happened initially, roman called me up and asked me if i wanted to go to the movies and we went to the movies, and had a nice night, and he dropped me off in the parking lot on rodeo drive in beverly hills and i watched his taillights go on up the street, and i thought, i wonder if it's true that things go bad in roman's life?nlx and the next evening i was, at jack's house. jack was in aspen, i was packing up some bags.) we were splitting up at the time, and when i walked into the house i saw a blue jeans jacket and some cameras, and i recognized the jacket as the one roman had been wearing the night

before. i didn't really think anything of it, because jack's house was always sort of populated, people came in and out. he had a number of people working for him. people dropped by. it was -- it wasn't unusual -- it wasn't an unusual thing to see an item of clothing of somebody's sitting on the bulkhead. so i paid no attention. i made a phone call, and within minutes, roman appeared with a young woman. i -- i didn't think, really, about how old she might be. she was tall. she asked the sex of the dog, and they left. the next evening, i'm still packing up in the house, and i saw a lot of flashlights below the window in the garden. there were some guys in the garden, and i -- i went to a

window above the main door and looked down, and there were about seven big guys there. and roman. and roman was ringing the doorbell, and i went down, opened the door, and he said, these guys just want to have a look around.[z it's nothing. it's about something last night. so i -- i was relaxed. i didn't think much about it. they came into the house. one of them said, you better show me the drugs. i had some cocaine in my bag. i gave him the bag. next thing i knew, i was going down to santa monica police station in the back of his squad car. i knew -- nothing about what -- what had allegedly happened. i went down to -- i was sort of in the process of being booked,

and -- and then, you know, i was allowed to make a phone call. i made it to jack's business manager, who came and bailed me out. they kept saying, he better show up. otherwise, you're going town to city jail. it was not a -- not a highlight of my life. >> yes. >> and eventually, you know, bob's -- i mean, jack's business manager showed up, and i was tr sprung, and that was really the story. >> it's quite a story. >> yeah. >> and it's quite a story, and as i'm reading it i'm imagining you living it. i mean, reading it is one thing, but that had to be beyond frightening?

>> it was very frightening. >> yes. >> and i didn't know to what extent i would be involved, or -- i didn't know what -- i didn't know what was going on. it was -- it was not only frightening, it was humiliating. it was very depressing, because when i was asked for the names of my next of kin at the police station, i had to mention my father's name and my sister's name, and that was pretty brutal. but i knew i hadn't done anything wrong. the fact that i was in possession of that drug was, it wasn't very sharp of me, and, you know, i learned a big lesson. but i -- i hadn't hurt anyone, and i hadn't, you know -- so it seemed to me -- a bad twist of fate. >> yes. there's more. i'll stop you there, because we don't want to give the book away. there's something -- again, i can't do justice to all the stuff in here. let me -- let me dramatically shift gears. you get a call from michael douglas one day, who wants to ask you if you will give a script to jack.

anjelica, help me out. getting this script to jack. and the script happens to be -- >> "one flew over the cuckoo's nest." yeah. >> that wasn't just a script. i mean that wasn't just any script. >> no. actually, i met michael when i was first in l.a. i had a very good friend from london who was a set designer, and i guess when he came to l.a. a few years before i did, he had this whole codery of friends and michael douglas at the time was going out with brenda vacarro and they were part of the group. so i think michael was a little bit trepidatious, a little scared to approach jack directly. so he asked me if i could get the script to him. and, of course, i never read it. i said to jack, you know -- michael's got this script he wants you to read. jack was like, oh, okay. >> yeah.

>> but, of course, it was -- it was a script that michael's father had wanted to do for years. kirk had wanted to play this part for, you know, as long as he could remember, and finally wasn't -- wasn't young enough to play it. so had to hand it back to michael, but it was -- yeah. that was pretty good. wasn't it? >> it was very good. what do you make of the life that you have lived and being in all of these interesting places with these interesting people for all of these years? >> well, i once described mysel1 as sort of the zelek of the 21st >> you're like a much cuter, much smarter forrest gump. every time i look up, there's, like, you can make it into the

steer story some sort of way. >> well, i've been connected to some really interesting people and i think it's true that where interesting people go, interesting stories develop. >> yeah. that makes sense. i take that. broadway. >> broadway next. >> yeah. >> actually, i'm going to do "love letters" on broadway. i'm really excited in january. >> how many -- this is technically a debut of sorts? >> it's technically a debut. when i was like 17 years old, i had just arrived in new york, understudying francesca annie in tony richardson's "hamlet." so i was -- how can i say? you know, a -- an on-stage player but i didn't have a line. i think i was a lady in waiting in the court of hamlet's, and i emitted a scream during the fencing scene, but that was about it. this time i have some lines. >> yeah. more than a few. you know, how are you approaching this? are you excited, or -- a little scared? a little -- >> i'm very excited.2q

when i was in new york just now on my book tour i went to see candice bergen and alan alda who are fantastic, and it's just one of those plays that just changes so radically with whoever's in it, or at least i -- i assume it will, because it was full of surprises watching both of them work, and i'm a huge fan of both of their work. i have to say. so it scares me, and it excites me, and i can't wait. >> i'll come back to see you. i can't wait to get there. jonathan do me a favor before we run out of time. we put the first book up. the cover. when you were here for this conversation a year ago, i was just raving about the cover photo on this first, your first book, "a story lately told." i didn't think it could get any better than that, and then the cover of this book. "watch me."

it's just a gorgeous photo. >> thank you. >> you are to be happy with it? >> i am. i'm really happy with the way scripters treated my work. i have to say, i've -- i'm so lucky to have this publisher nemgram, and i have to also mention my amazing editor bill whitworth, between them i feel like i've just been with the best.fi it's like having two of best coaches in the world. >> tomorrow night, and i've been crying for the last week or so. live talks. tomorrow night if you're here in l.a., tomorrow night, an organization called live talks l.a. you can look it up online. anjelica in town, in conversation tomorrow night. kind enough to ask me if i'd moderate that conversation and i would love to do nothing more than spend two nimts in arow with anjelica huston, i've got to be in new orleans. traveling later in the week. it you're in l.a., tomorrow night, live talks l.a., if you want to get this book and get it

signed and see her in person, for the rest of you, go to your bookstore or online. anjelica is in town tomorrow might at live talks to sign her second memoir, it's called "watch me" and it is a -- it's i wonderful book, rich with detail, and great stories, and that cover photo, i could just -- fall asleep to every night. but, anyway, anjelica, i love you. an honor to have you on the program. >> thank you so much, tavis. it's always such a pleasure to be here. >> thank you, sweetie. that's our program for tonight. as always, keep the faith. for more information on today's show, visit tavis smiley at pbs.org. hi, i'm tavis smiley. join me next time for a conversation way emmy winner lisa kudrow. that's next time. we'll see you then. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

and by contributions to your pbs station, from viewers like you. thank you.

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