Cybill wants more L Word

MERRYN JOHNS
Cybill Shepherd joins The L Word
www.lotl.com

I was nervous. I’d heard on the grapevine that Cybill Shepherd could be diva-like, but I find her surprisingly charming – possibly because I begin the interview with a flattering observation: that with 40 years in showbiz she’s close to becoming a living legend.

She lets out a throaty chuckle. “I hope so. That would be nice!” I suggest she’s always been cool: she was “Miss Memphis” 1966, dated Elvis, worked with Bogdanovich and Scorsese, marched on Washington for women’s rights, discovered a young Bruce Willis and didn’t sleep with him, produced the groundbreaking Cybill show, dabbled in cabaret, and now heats up our screens as a mature-age lesbian sex bomb. “I was going to say that The L Word has made you cool, but you always have been,” I offer.

The diva melts further. “You’re the kindest, most wonderful person in the world,” she coos, “But I see it as a rollercoaster ride. I had my times when I was out, when nobody recognized me. 1998 was the Bermuda Triangle for women in their 40s. We were wiped off the air. Everything from Murder She Wrote, to The Rhett Butler Show, to Roseanne, to the Cybill show. We didn’t come back on air as the centre of the story until recently. And The L Word has been an incredible source for that; to show that we exist, that we are sexual beings, and we’re powerful and fulfilled and unfulfilled in the drama.”

She’s been around the Hollywood block more than a few times, and still believes in the power of women in film to change things. She is thrilled about her role on The L Word: “I think it’s just a wonderful show. Where have you ever seen – and will you ever see again – women loving women of every age, background, skin colour, religion? It’s very unique, it’s never been done before.”

Currently filming one of the last episodes, Shepherd, like many of us, doesn’t want it to end. In fact, she’s determined to pursue a spin-off, rumoured to be based on one of the main characters.

And what about the “L word” in Shepherd’s life? On record is a colourful heterosexual history including relationships with several notable men, and two divorces under her belt. But she also once said, “At various times in my life I wanted to be open to the possibility of having a woman as a lover. I am not actively pursuing it, but it is not over yet.” I ask Shepherd if she does in fact have an active lesbian side.

“Of course I do,” she almost trills. “Yes,” she says. “Yeah, I’m very turned on by women. They’re very sexy, very sexy.”

“It was so much fun to do a lesbian scene.” she says emphatically. “I was so turned on. I was very nervous, and I sat down with (L Word creator) Ilene Chaiken, and she told me how they do it on The L Word: that it would be a very private set, and we’d work out the choreography. It gave me a wonderful sense of security and excitement.

“Oh my god,” she moans, her voice dropping to a sensual whisper. “It was the most comfortable love scene I’ve ever done. Really loving, very respectful, very cool. When I was doing the first love scene I was going, ‘I wonder whether I should wear perfume … How about I share a breath mint, just in case … I have the breath mint, still. I saved it as a little memento. It has a heart on it!”Cybill Shepherd joins The L Word