Mark Twain Would Have Been “Dazzled and Charmed”

I was talking about my lovely phone interview with Hal Holbrook last night at dinner, only to come home and find that his beautiful wife Dixie had passed away. I’d done the interview to help promote his Mark Twain performance at the Carson Center last fall.

Of course, I couldn’t help but ask him all about the woman I’ll always remember as the feisty Julia Sugarbaker. I have no doubt that he’s absolutely devastated today. As you can see, he was crazy about her:

Your wife, Dixie Carter, is so beautiful. What would Mark Twain have thought of her?
She’s beautiful all right. He would have been dazzled and charmed by her. It’s impossible not to be. I don’t know anybody who isn’t. She’s so gorgeous and beautiful to look at and, as a person, she’s so kind and she cares about how other people feel. And cares about her family. And she’s intelligent. She can give you a pretty stiff time on certain topics, but I respect her. We can have some wonderful discussions, I’ve learned a great deal from her. It’s been really gorgeous.

I’ve read where Dixie says you didn’t like her when you first met.
I didn’t want to get mixed up with any more women. All I wanted to do was ride my motorcycle, sail and act. I didn’t know Dixie Carter, but they cast her as my wife in the Killing of Randy Webster. I remember thinking, careful — I don’t want to get involved with another woman. I met her in the costume shop. I saw the costume lady’s desk and there was this woman with her back to me. And I thought, Oh God, here we go. Then, I turned around and looked at her and thought: Great! She’s not my type.

How could she not be your type? She’s gorgeous!
Mary, I had two marriages go down and I had had enough. I wanted to escape the clutches of all women. I wanted to get away. But I got lassoed.

What won you over?
It was slow. She has a wonderful sense of humor and she put up with a great deal in the film and I admired her and began to realize that she was not just a girl — she was a woman who knew who she was. And I met her children — she has two. I liked them very much. They were beautifully behaved.

I became their stepfather when they were 10 and 11 years old. They’re now in their late 30s. I really love these children very much. They’re wonderful to me. They never caused me a bit of trouble. I didn’t have to tell them what to do — Dixie did that. I didn’t have to punish them, just keep quiet and seem like a good fella. They’ve been the light of my life, as have my other three children.

Photo by boston.com