I Wasn't Rock Hudson's Lover

by Brandon Judell


Looking like a slightly less well-preserved George Hamilton, the "legendary" producer and former studio head Robert Evans came to New York City the other day to promote the documentary that was all about him. The Kid Stays in the Picture, which opens with the quote that "there are three sides to every story: your side, my side, and the truth," is pretty much Evans' side. But since Evans is such a fascinating, egotistical yet self-effacing, witty, possibly brilliant, Machiavellian gent, you'll be more than satisfied with his side of the story.

Surprisingly, the man responsible for Love Story, Chinatown, and The Godfather, wasn't exactly satisfied himself with how he came off when he first saw "The Kid." Evans, however, cheered up when he got a standing ovation at Sundance and an 11-minute standing ovation at Cannes.

"Wrong. Fifteen. Did you know I was sick in Cannes? I had pneumonia the week before. But still it was the most exciting experience of my life. I heard, and I don't know if it's true, that I received the second longest standing ovation ever there. I felt I was hallucinating while it was happening. I cried. I couldn't help it. I could hardly walk. I tripped right afterwards. My legs aren't that good to begin with. I was shaking. Do you know who started the ovation? A man who doesn't applaud very much. Barry Diller. He stood up first and started applauding so loudly. He was so excited, and everyone then stood up and wouldn't stop. I couldn't believe it was happening. I had 101 fever. My whole body was trembling. It was certainly the most emotional experience that I've had. Good emotional experience that I've had. I've had a lot of bad emotional experiences."

Like Ali MacGraw leaving him for Steve McQueen? Let's not go into that. Instead, let's address Robert La Tourneaux's complaint. He's late actor who died from AIDS and had played Cowboy in the film Boys in the Band. La Tourneaux used to say he had been up for the lead in Love Story, but because he had played a homosexual hustler, he was put out of the running. Any truth to the tale?

"That's bull****!" Evans responds.

Are you familiar with who's gay or not in Hollywood?

Evans laughs: "I could tell you. I belong to all those causes so I go to the events. But you know in my era, color was a much bigger thing than gender. In the seventies, you couldn't get a guy to play opposite a black girl. I had a picture, "Atlanta," that Beverly Johnson signed for. She was the top black world model. She was the first black girl to break through and get the cover of Vogue, Harper's and Mademoiselle. I was going to direct the picture too because I loved the story so much. Well, we couldn't get a white guy to play opposite her with all the liberalism that's talked about. This was 1977. I was shocked. She was the most beautiful girl.

"Today that's not the case. There's been a great change. As far homosexuality, ah, it doesn't matter a lot. In other words, let's take Rock Hudson who was a great friend of mine. I have pictures of Rock and myself. I received the Photoplay Award in 1958. I won as the most promising newcomer of year, and he won as the biggest star of the year. We posed in the pictures together.

"You know, we had adjoining Winnebagos when he was making Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms and I was doing "The Sun Also Rises." We were both shooting on the back lot, and we became good friends.

"Everybody knew Rock was gay, but at the time you had to hide it, so ten years earlier, he had to marry a secretary or something. Maybe the public didn't know. The studio tried to keep it away from the public because in Kansas City, they wouldn't accept it. Or in Texas, they wouldn't accept it. If you're producing, it becomes a financial situation.

"But as far as emotionally or creatively, it makes no difference today. I remember some of the guys we tested for the Love Story part. One was Chris Walken. We tested a lot of people for the part. I must tell you. I know two gay guys who tested. But there are more rumors that come out from people. From everybody.

Taking a sip of water, he continues: "Now Richard Gere lived in my house for nine months doing The Cotton Club. That's when the gerbil story broke. That was a bull**** story. He was in India when it happened."

While Evans was slowly getting up to leave, I was able to sneak one more question to the man who also gave birth to Rosemary's Baby: Did Rock ever hit on you?

Laughing, Evan replies: "No, he never did really. But people certainly came back from our sets, and lot of them said we were lovers. It's not true at all. In fact, he was a nice guy. No one was more perfect looking than Rock. And a terrific guy! I was a kid back then, and it was my first picture, and there I'm looking at Rock Hudson who's the biggest star in the world."

What if he had tried harder? Would he have gotten you?

At the door, Evans smiles and says, "There's an old saying that was said to me: "Don't ask if you don't want to know."

But we do.