Despite being abandoned by her father, having a nasty, evil mother, a jealous sister, a greedy husband, and betrayal by the man she really loved, Maria Callas rose above it all to be a beautiful, classy, intelligent lady with the best female voice of the 20th century. Unprecedented, unparalleled, unequaled and never to be repeated. RIP Ultimate Diva.
Her beauty and style is similar to my mom's 😢. Both women also had a lot of toxic people in their lives and unfortunately passed away too soon. My mom was born in 1979 a few years after maria's death and died last year at just 44.
What an incredible artist she was! And what a horrible loss when she died at only 53. Maria Callas has my deepest respect and admiration. She was just so very special in so many, many ways.
'There is high price for integrity and honesty. But I can pay that price." I love you so much more (if possible) hearing your words. You lived according to your values and that is something no woman should ever forget. Rest in peace, adored Maria Callas ♥️♥️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️♥️♥️♥️
Yes exactly. Not many people understand this. Everyone seems so fixated on her perceived mistakes like what is wrong with people? Are they with no mistakes? And I guess it is easy to make no mistakes when you choose a boring life with zero dangers to have to resist to. She did fantastic- career and life. Her choices were her choices. I feel she was a person with great spiritual lessons she went through openly while most people do it all behind closed doors to not risk being judged. She just lived what she felt was right each moment. And this is integrity. Not many can say the same for themselves.
Such grace, class, beauty, honesty and pure intelligence, emotionally intelligent to be precise, plus her unparalleled artistry, Callas la Divina, just sublime! People of that generation just did not have a clue as to how bloody lucky they were to have this beautiful magnificent lady in their world!!
eduardo torres betancourt Sorry if you never saw her performing, she was the first opera singer who could sing and act at the same time , a very difficult thing to do , also she never developed into a large singer who may have had a better voice but were large women, I saw her at Covent Garden and because she was slim , beautiful and talented she was a joy to listen to and a joy to behold. Rudolf Nuryev was in the same category with his beauty , strength, grace and stamina. They don't seem to make them like that anymore sadly .
Maria Callas was damaged, like many of us. She was trashy, stupid, pretentious, and an emotional child. Anorexic, and addicted to quaaludes which is what killed her when she overdosed and had a heart attack.
wow she's so pushy and i love Callas because she is so elegant and poised in the way that she handles these invasive questions makes me love and respect her even more
I think that Maria Callas was gracious, dignified and classy in this interview. If she didn't want to answer any of the questions from Barbara Walters, then she could have politely declined. But she did answer the questions in a calm and gracious manner. She didn't seem to have anything to hide, no resentment or anger or bitterness over Onassis and Jackie. Maria Callas was my mother's favorite opera singer of all time. I grew up listening to her magnificent voice. I think she was quite poised in this interview and good for her!
She answered because SHE wanted to talk about it. She had nothing to hide. She was a fantastic human being. What did she see in Onassis ? an ugly cheater ? he treated his kids like crap while drowning them with gifts.....He thought money would fix everything. When his son died in that plane crash, I expect the guilt destroyed him. He had a lot to regret in terms of how he had been a lousy father. Christina OD'ed.....not so cool, either.
La DIvina is more beautiful than Jackie imo. I never understood what the World thought about Jackie O's face. Jackie does nothing for me. But Callas is gorgeous!
Jacqueline Onassis: She was above average in looks! She was followed because she married a US President! There are very few former US First Ladies ( there is a status to the position) Jacqueline spoke Italian, French and Spanish! She used her language skills when traveling as a First Lady and private citizen! She was an intellectual woman! Another thing was Jacqueline was a fan of the " good" life!Jacqueline had awesome jewelry, stunning homes and sent her kids to legendary schools! Jacqueline was stylish and so rare! The working class in the US knew very little about persons of her status (her step-dad was a millionaire) and this is what fascinated people about her!
Maria Callas handled herself with grace and elegance in this interview considering that this interviewer is badgering her. Today, a star of her caliber would get up and walk off the set.
Jackie was a gold digger who was afraid of being poor and that's why she married Ari. Ari married Jackie because he thought he could use her connections somehow to network. His true love was the beautiful, talented, passionate, and sometimes crazy Maria Callas.
Jackie was Ari's trophy wife. For a self-made man like he was who came from peasant stock, she was the final jewel in the crown of his power and success. It was reported that, when Jackie finally slept with him, he afterwards bragged to everybody, "I bagged the queen." Like a hunter who successfully got his prey.
Yes! And he was too awed by her status and too STUPID to realize that she took almost every penny he worked so hard for. If Christina hadn't been alive, she would've got everything. He could've spent his final years in the embrace of a woman who loved him (Maria), but he chose a cold, calculating gold digger. All in love is fair.
Beauty, talent and class. One of the two on the video showed grace and dignity and the other dug for cattiness and found none. One of the most brave feelings Ms. Callas shared was that she desired to be a good wife to a good man. Although her answer may seem dated now, it was well on its way to dated then. She answered honestly, and though it isn't every woman's heart's desire to be a good wife, it was her desire, and it took courage to say it. She wasn't speaking for every woman, she was speaking for herself.
+Patti Page i agree....Babara Walters keep badgering the poor woman...This is ridiculous..Callas should've walked out the interview..EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE REPORTERS ARE RELENTLESS, EVIL AND RUDE..THEY ARE ALL NASTY PAPPARAZIS IN THEIR OWN WAY
Callas had been fat and lost a lot of weight ; also got a nose job. At the end, she was beautiful but her voice was failing. Opera singers die young as their hearts get really stressed....no matter how well you are trained, it is hard to sing that way. Not really natural. Her voice was the best, at its peak. It was magical. No one can sing that well.
La Divina shows that she has what it takes to be Divine about love as well on stage! Very few people could be as elegant, as generous or as precise without losing their composure. Her last remark about integrity rather puts Walters in Walters' not very enviable place. Not Ms. Walters' finest moment. Thanks for posting.
The interview (which she freely agreed to ) reveals an important aspect of her personality; the self-destructive part. She states it is more a woman's job to have a man of her own than to sing. That is not a particularly wise belief to hold when you're maria callas. She chose in Menegheni a man who helped develop her career and in Onassis one for whom she'd neglect it. Fascinating personality and artist.
Jackie was a greedy, money-hungry grabber, and made Ari sign a pre-nup that she didn't have to sleep with him before they married. She just wanted his wealth, and he wanted a woman of renown on his arm for show -- a conquest; that was the extent of their relationship! Ugly situation. Maria Callas was a lovely woman, who was more than understanding.
M.J. Leger =the fault was to Onassis,If he proposed to Jackie who needed live a secured life(after the assassination of her husband and brother in law).why not grasping this opportunity ?to live out off the USA?A marriage without deep love...Finally He did return to MariaCallas who pardoned him!We really did not and do not know what was in Jackie ' s soul and heart.She had passed away.why still criticise or judge a late first lady who had behaved herself as such with so dignity and elegancy.She certainly had played a role in maintenance of peace with France during mr de Gaulle 's presidency.He was stunned by her charisma and charm.She spoke good French fluently,..Better think about good things peoples had done or kept in them. ?think about her smiling face,her classy figure..She did no harm to the USA,as first lady and after mr Kennedy 's assassination.
@@shadrach6299 the u.s government had something on onassis, and guaranteed, he was going down. they had him. (i don't remember what the situation was; it had something to do with business between the countries, etc. etc.) anyway, since jfk got murdered, jackie became the national saint. so, by onassis marrying jackie, the u.s government really couldn't go near him anymore. that's why he married her. ...and she did bring him back luck. there was really bad luck around that chick. onassis learned that the hard way. he and maria callas were meant for each other. they're perfect together.
Jackie was so shallow and materialistic, all she can claimed fame to was being an U.S. president's widow. Compared to Jackie, Maria was a talented, poised and a better person in every way, Maria was so elegant and handled herself beautifully in this difficult interview.
Jacqueline had a great education though. She attended a top French University ( the Sorbonne). She then graduated George Washington University ( located in Washington DC). Ari Onassis was obsessed with Jacqueline Kennedy. He essentially bought her. He loved her style and the fact, that she was a Former US First Lady.
Maria had a son that lived (he did not die) I guess she hid George (Aristotle and her son) Because he was the result of an affair, and when Maria died Aristotle Onassis took George to live with him and Jacqueline Kennedy Caroline, Kennedy, and JFK Junior. The JFK Jr. john john is George Onassis after his father was killed in 1975 he was raised by organized crime. The REAL JFK Jr. is alive he has a book out called “Stolen identity” and it’s on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
This is so heartbreaking to watch. She bravely tries to act as though she's fine with Onassis' marriage to Jackie Kennedy and had no hopes for marriage to him, but every biography of Callas I've read relates how utterly betrayed she felt and how she longed to be Mrs. Onassis. She lost her will to live after he died. What greater testimony of love can there be? She was a great lady, who deserved better than him. But it was part of her dark genius to be attracted to dark men.
This is brutal to watch and Barbara's questions are beyond cruel. This was nothing new to Maria, she had a sad and contentious relationship with her mother and sister - also named Jackie. Maria was hiding her heartbreak here but she handles this interview with class and dignity.
Onassis found his true materialistic, superficial, mannequin - two-dimensional soul mate in Jackie... Callas was an Ocean full of exotic and beautiful depth to his rancid pond.
Onasis was engaged to Jackie's sister, Lee Radziwill but dumped her for a former first lady he could brandish. He came to know her when she took a respite after her miscarriage on his yacht. Jackie felt he could provide safety and a change for her children, which he was happy to do.
I'd always heard of her, such a wise woman, and certainly a beauty. She was so right to not be corralled by a strong, dominating man like Onassis. Wow! She's wonderful.
The irony is that according to Di Stefano, the tenor she was on tour with during this interview, stated that Callas spoke by phone to Onassis each evening on the tour. They were friends again (even if not romantically) but he died very shortly after this concert tour ended. OF course, even if they were kindred spirits, Onassis was ultimately horrible for her career.
Maria Callas made her choices and payed the price, true to herself- unfortunately, she fell on a hard rock and broke her heart. Pity for both of them. they would have been great together, to the end. I am sure he regret it, too.
. Bravo Dame Callas. People say you cheated ur husband, that u were greedy, that u aborted, even that u commited suicide. Lol, nobody is perfect, and life is a struggle. Thank u for ur dedication to the humanity. Till the end of humanity, u won't be forgotten
Maria Callas had an open idealistic soul of one true artist, the way she was treated art was the way she treated stuped Onasis later...She exchanged a true love for art for the love of a dissrespectful man...That is why she payed enormous price...Noone can be born ever to sing like she did...She makes heart trembling when the music came out of her...Rest in peace Maria.
Gosh I feel like punching Ms Walters. I hate the way she asks these harmful question with that sweet voice, like "Yes I'm tearing your heart into pieces but I'm still classy. Deal with it." Callas shows so much dignity here... which proves once again what a great actress she was !! I can't imagine how she must have felt after the interview... Damn Ms Walters !!!
I don't know much about Maria but this says alot. She refuses to diminish herself in the face of badgering & handles everything with élan, including the here yenta-ish Walters. To have told Barbara to "go to hell" or to leave the interview would be reactionary & as tacky as Walters herself. So sticking to her guns and telling Babs she felt no remorse or jealousy (even if the truth lie elsewhere) she is the bigger person of all people involved in the issue. I love her bit about integrity also.
+tis now or never OK....that explains it! Thank you for sharing that info. It totally sheds a different light on things. Too bad his decisions for business reasons destroyed happiness for both himself and La Callas. She brought so much enjoyment to the masses through her great gift of voice. Can you imagine having to deal with her kind of heartbreak of losing him to JK, a highly visible celebrity, in the highly visible press and full view of the public! That must've been absolutely horrible and humiliating for her! I think she died of heartbreak as well!
+tis now or never Wow! The fervent pursuit of money, power, connections and influence can really change the course of one's life! Wonder if Lee actually wanted to marry Onassis, and if so....how did she feel about her sister marrying him instead?!
+personaking7 he was a power hungry womanizer who loved famous women. He neglected Maria when she got pregnant with their child. The baby was I think born dead or died shortly after birth. I am so surprised she was able to forgive him for his lack of interest or insensitivity.
It was a tragic mistake that Onassis made by throwing this woman over for Jacqueline Kennedy. In some ways, it was his undoing. In that respect, Callas was completely vindicated.
No really - she died of a heart attack because he died. It was her own undoing - dumping her husband to be a mistress for a cheating lothario. Women love bad men I guess.
What a lot of rot Ari Onassis he gave Maria Callas a terrible time and couldn't be faithful to her anymore than to his first wife. That he wouldn't attend her performances is strange his support and public appreciation surely meant a lot to her. Jackie Onassis. thought she had found a safe haven for herself and her two children after the deaths of Jack and Robert Kennedy in America Onassis had cultivated friendship with the Kennedy's long before. Jackie wanted to get away from America he offered her a safe haven . He married her because he liked to collect the best. I think he was incapable of loving any woman but he did love his son. The loss of his son in a plane crash sent him into depression and a downhill decline in his health then he died.
Jackie deserved an uncouth, mean, ruthless and cruel man like Onassis, because she was those things herself, more or less. But Jackie didn't win in the end either, for her son died(ironically, in a plane crash, the same way Ari's son died) just five years after she did, so her future and her dreams died along with her son.
@@3333sweetie Ugh, bet you weren't even around during this time. However I was, Jackie was none of what you said, she was a woman of her time. John Kennedy was a serial cheater, while Jackie was the dutiful wife same with Onassis. She had the misfortune of being married to 2 men who didn't know the meaning of commitment and respect for the sanctity of marriage! She stood by both husbands in the face of their disrespect, it had nothing to do with money it had to do with her religion. I further think your disgusting reference about John Jr's. death was unnecessary! She was a stand up woman who continued to put one foot in front of the other until the day she died, in the face of all the tragic things she's endured! My God the President's brains were splattered over her as she sat next to him!
Onassis told a Kennedy insider that they were just going through the motions towards the end. Onassis caused Maria callas great suffering but it all came back to him when his marriage to Jackie fell apart. He must have had big deep regrets. Onassis never appreciated callas' talent. He did not go to her performances. Callas was the most amazing artist.
+Brenda Anne Du Faur For him not to appreciate her extraordinary talent and gift to the world, and not attend any of her performances.....is heartbreaking within itself! He must've been a premiere selfish, dyed in the wool....male chauvinist of the first rank!
Sorry, but I think Jackie O was the kiss of Death to nearly everyone she encountered in her personal life. Misery and tragedy seemed to follow her. Perhaps it should be called the Bouvier Curse.
Jennifer Rodgers O moves on to a US arms dealer and financier for the African dictator (child killer) Mobuto.She seriously has something wrong with her brain
I feel the confrontational, judgmental tone is part of the culture of the time. It seems aggressive to us now but women who broke the mould, as Callas did, were castigated by the media. To interrogate a woman about her love life, as happened here, just wouldn't happen these days. It's such bad form and so disrespectful.
I'm looking forward to the movie to come out. I remember the inundation of news when Jackie and Onassis teamed up (and that's some story). Maria was so classy, but she suffered. I am eager to see how Angelina Jolie acts in this movie for such a major talent as Maria Callas.
Maria Callas is fantastically eloquent, elegant, tremendously fluent in English. Just watching this dumb television interview, she radiates pride, intelligence, a bit of sardonic wit, - she was simply amazing. Or perhaps complicatedly amazing. So regal! I like Jackie, but Onassis was something of a cad for breaking Maria's heart like that. Then again, all we know is gossip. But it seems pretty true. Jackie was the prize for Onassis. Maria Callas was suddenly left out in the cold. Sympathy for Maria.
Onassis was the most creeping and ugly thing a man can be in life. Apart from how he treated his first wife and his employees, his bad manners and his greed and obsession of being able to get close to the real powerful people to make contracts. A climbing man. Apart from that, he had two of the most beautiful and admired women in the world and treated them both like trash. What she did to Maria is unforgivable and she acted with hellenic dignity, and in Jackie's case, she might want to be with Onassis to continue to live the wealthy and easy life she always led (because she had that kind of life since her youth) but allow a paparazzi to go to his island of Skorpios to take nude photos of his wife and then sell them to force a divorce is the dirtiest and most humiliating thing that can be done to a woman. Neither of them deserved that cretin.
Don’t forget he was involved with Jackie’s sister Lee first who he dropped like a hot potato for Jackie (she represented a bigger trophy for him). This caused friction between the sisters for life.
Don't listen to them. It was a heart attack.Yes it was stress related, she had depression, she had lost a baby with Onassis(she gave birth and the baby died the same day),she had made a suicide attempt with barbiturates in the early '70s, and she was on many meds the years leading to her death(sleeping pills and amphetamines). But she also had a rare disease which affected her muscles and her voice and this also played a role to her death.
I think Jackie really may have had some magic to her: How else to explain her popularity? She certainly didn't possess classic beauty: Her face looked mannish, an odd face, yet her adoring fans seemed to have overlooked that. She was no match for Callas, who possessed a striking, exotic beauty.
Jacqueline was attractive but never a great beauty ( Google Yasmeen Ghauri). Jacqueline had other attributes. Jacqueline was great with foreign languages:( Italian, Spanish and French were spoken by the Former US First Lady)! Jacqueline had the status of being a Former US First Lady. She only wanted JFK, because he was a US Senator ( later a US President). Jacqueline was also a stylish person. She was known to wear beautiful clothes. Jacqueline was a great equestrian, voracious reader and a very interesting person!
We are talking Maria Callas the greatest artist who graced the Earth.A woman who gave it all to the music and craft and created her own fortune and welth.On the other side we have jackie who lived her lavish live using her husbands money.So the gap between this two ladies is obvious!
If only she could have fallen madly in love with a wonderful man who returned her feelings - didn't she leave a husband who adored her for the Greek billionaire? Onassis was such a hard, selfish so-and-so, he was always going to break her heart. He met his match in Jackie Kennedy, she was as ruthless as him I suspect. It may not have been a love match but it was a match - she wanted his money, he wanted her status, as the most famous and eligible widow in the world! On that basis the marriage should have worked. But of course no marriage works without love. I am staggered at how beautiful and charismatic Maria Callas was here. That her life was short and ultimately unfulfilled is very sad.
Absolutely! There is nothing so fascinating and entertaining as other people's romantic - and in the case of Onassis and Jackie, not-so-romantic - lives!
Hmm... I heard that Onassis treated her better than her husband. I heard he didn't try to stop her from being a normal human being unlike her husband who didn't want her to sing or be on stage.
It's true, and well spoken. Callas nearly lost her mind. The comments on here asking why Walters is asking such personal questions were due to the whole reason to interview Callas. Her public display of despair over Onassis was already well in hand before Jackie even came on the scene. Years and years of that dark attraction. (the first Mrs. Onassis didn't fare better)......Callas is putting on the act of the century here. Walters' interview seems typical of the times...not worthy of negativity.
It's a clip from the last act of Ponchielli's La Gioconda. The ironically named streetsinger La Gioconda has just given up her beloved Enzo to his beloved Laura and has resigned herself to suicide rather than give in to the lecherous treachery of Barnaba, who imprisoned her blind mother and had her killed. Venetian intrigue. Like Callas in the Walters interview, Gioconda attempts to act as though everything is a coloratura paradise when all hopes for her happiness have in fact been aborted.
