Goldie Hawn—Ruben V. Nepales
LOS ANGELES—Yes, Goldie Hawn confirmed Kurt Russell’s recent disclosure on Harry Connick Jr.’s TV talk show that they were caught having sex on their first date ever.
That anecdote and more came up in our recent talk with Goldie, who also opened up about living with Kurt for 34 years now.
After 15 years, the actress is back on the big screen in the comedy “Snatched,” where she and Amy Schumer portray mom and daughter who are kidnapped while vacationing in South America.
Here’s hoping that it won’t take another long spell before the 71-year-old grandmother to five kids agrees to star again in another film.
Goldie, with her endearing big, blue eyes, giggles and natural charm, rose to prominence in the late ’60s and early ’70s—a different era from these times that Amy is seeing her own star rise in.
Still, Goldie notes that sexual harassment hasn’t gone away. “What we’re dealing now with Fox and these men—excuse me, is this really 2017 and we’re still doing this?” she said. “A few men exposed themselves to me in the elevator in the ’60s. It’s like, when are we going to grow up?”
“A lot of women just took it,” she recalled the attitude during that time. “Most did, and you do that thing which is like, ‘Ugh ugh!’ Then, you’d walk on, but it was so humiliating. But we had a different level of resilience about seeing a guy opening up his trench coat.” She quipped, “Wow (laughs), good morning!”
Excerpts from our talk:
Do you still remember the moment you saw Kurt for the first time? I was interviewing Kurt for a movie that I was producing. I liked him. I thought he was really fun. He’s awfully good-looking, but he never had that air of being cool. He was just a regular guy. He’d been up all night with his dad, and he was tired. We both knew two people who worked in the industry.
When I got up and went to do something, Kurt went, “I didn’t realize you had such a nice figure (laughs).” I went, “Oh. Well, thanks!” That might have been a moment, but it wasn’t like, “Oh my God, I’m in love at first sight. I liked who he was. I still do like who he is.
When Kurt recently guested on Harry Connick Jr.’s show, he revealed how the guards caught you and him having sex on your first date. I guess so (laughs).
You were busted by the guards because you had to break into your house, which was being renovated at the time. I know. It was so much fun. We had a good time. It was a very beautiful night. That was indeed my house. Those were the guards who were actually looking as we broke into my house.
I wanted Kurt to see the house because I was redoing it. Then, we sat on the stairs, and I said, “What will we do if we really lived here?” He said, “We’d probably go down and get cookies and milk.” I said, “What kind of cookies? Oreos?” He went, “Maybe chocolate chip.” And that was the beginning.
Goldie Hawn (right) and Amy Schumer—RUBEN V. NEPALES
Thirty-four years of being with Kurt Russell is quite a feat. How do you keep it fresh? Do you think the secret to your long-lasting relationship is that you never got married? Maybe. I like the idea of being Kurt’s girlfriend and vice versa. I think that part of it is that you don’t fishwife or demand things. There’s an independence that we have to accept. We are two pillars who hold up the house.
People lose themselves oftentimes when they become one. Friction is important. Arguments are important. You don’t want somebody just like you. You have to learn how to work your way through an argument, be skillful about it and resolve it.
Both people need to want to be there (in the relationship). If two people really want to be there, then there’s really something to cherish. You keep it fresh by surprising each other, making sure you go out, laughing a lot, getting away from the kids. You have to go away. Go to a hotel room, do something fun, take a hike.
Make something happen that’s unusual. That, to me, will be the way of igniting a new flame. Put on a new outfit when you go to bed (laughs).
How do you feel about returning to acting? It’s great to be acting again. Keep in mind that performing has always been what I’ve done all my life, so when I was working with children and creating this educational program (MindUP) for them, it was another approach to what I’ve done all my adult life—creating product. So, I never felt like I wasn’t doing something.
I speak all over the world. When I get up in front of people, it’s a form of sharing, acting and “making funny.” So, it isn’t as if I left the world. I got focused very much on MindUP, my children’s charity. We’re now in nine countries, so I’m excited about where I’ve been and what I’ve done. I never retired, but I did redirect my focus to what I thought was important.
What were the best moments of those years? Oh my God, I did amazing things and traveled to amazing places. I went to India. I saw some of my children whom I’ve adopted. But more importantly, I’ve created a program. Our children are overstressed. A lot of them are on psychotropic drugs. This isn’t just in the United States.
If we’re going to build a better world, we’d better start looking at how our children are being educated and given practices in order to manage emotions that are out of control.
In this program, the children get a “brain break” three times a day. They sit in a class and get quiet. We’re teaching children how the brain works and so on. It’s been incredibly exciting.
When 9/11 happened, we knew the world was going to be upside down. That was when I thought about this program. I wasn’t thinking about movies. I was thinking about our world, our children and our future. These 13 years have been and will continue to be the most exciting time of my life—speaking and going to Davos. MindUP is now in Jordan. I never retired. I basically was just moving this way on a project I believed in. Then, this movie came along.
How do you stay in shape? I was a dancer. I’ve always worked my body out, but I’m not a crazy workout person. I don’t eat a lot of crappy food, except sometimes I have a hot fudge sundae on American Airlines (laughs). I’m always moving.
This morning, I was feeling pooped, because we’ve been doing this (series of interviews) for three days. I got up on my trampoline because I wanted to jump. It keeps my butt in, keeps everything going. I lifted a little bit of weight. I don’t have a lot of time, but I do what I can.
I usually work out much harder, [and] I also hike. But when you’re busy, I don’t go, like, “Oh my God, I have to wake up at 5 a.m. and work out.” No, I need my sleep more.
E-mail rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com. Follow him at https://twitter.com/nepalesruben.