BETWEEN THE COVERS : TRUE BRITT JOAN FIXES IT FOR ROD!

This week's excerpt comes from the 1980 autobiography -  'True Britt', by the legendary Britt Ekland, published by Prentis Hall. Joan has known Britt for many years, when she was married to Peter Sellars and in this extract at the start of Britt's great romance with Rod Stewart.

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Rod Stewart was playing Los Angeles in March 1975 and Joan Collins and husband Ron Kass, two close friends mine, persuaded me to join them for his concert at The Forum. I had first seen Rod on the stage of The Rainbow Theatre in London at the 'Tommy' charity premiere produced by Lou Adler. With his mousey-coloured, cactus spiked hair, an elongated mobile face and his limp figure swathed in yards of tartan, he resembled a rag doll! In a melancholy state over my break with Lou Adler, I was reluctant to move out of the house. I did not want to see anyone, or talk with anyone. Joan wouldn't give in. 'Come on, Britt. You've got to pull yourself together,' she said, 'an evening out will cheer you up.'


BRITT WITH JOAN AND JOHNNY GOLD AT TRAMP.

 The Forum was packed as we took out seats and when Rod came on stage, in the most poisonous of green suits, the auditorium erupted into scenes of hysteria. When the concert was over Joan and Ron led a foray of celebrities backstage to congradulate Rod on his performance and against Champagne corks we were properly introduced. Joan and Ron immediately invited Rod to join us for dinner at Luau's. Rod, an extrovert on stage, was terribly shy in private life and all through dinner he sat coyly at the table like 'Little Boy Lost', saying hardly a word. We went on to Cher's house party and it was only then he began to thaw out. I got the impression that Rod was intimidated by my image, but slowly he came out of his shell and at Cher's we found a quiet corner and immersed ourselves in conversation. Out of the corner of my eye I caught a glimpse of Ron and Joan smiling towards us, obviously feeling that their matchmaking efforts had succeeded. By the end of the night I knew that I would have Rod but I wasn't going to be a one-night groupie. My strategy would be entirely different with Rod than with any other of my lovers. There would be no harm in keeping him waiting, because I figured that Rod needed to respect a woman.


BRITT AND ROD AT THE HEIGHT OF THEIR PASSION

 Rod was eighteen months younger than me. At last I was with a man virtually of my own generation. For so much of my life I had been influenced by the father figure. I had missed out so much in my youth. My early twenties had been stifled by Sellers and his indoctrinations on the immaturity and rashness of youth. With Rod I could go to parties and discos and let my hair down.
(c) 1980.. BRITT EKLAND....