Monday Muses: Anjelica Huston

Happy Monday! Back with a Monday Muse fit for the week before Halloween, particularly, given her roles in 90s classics like The Addams Family and, my personal favorite, The Witches.  Oscar-winning actress, model, and author...  Anjelica Huston

I recently read her memoir, A Story Lately Told, and it is one of the better bios I've read in quite a while.  I found it fascinating and humorous but also exceedingly tragic in places.  In this book (a part one, of sorts) she talks about her childhood - growing up in Ireland as the daughter of a former prima ballerina Enrica “Ricky” Soma and the eccentric (to put it lightly) film director John Huston. She tells of how her father more or less pushed her in front of the camera as a young awkward teen and how this push, coupled with her “exotic” looks, eventually lead to a career as a fashion model.   The book ends as she moves to LA in her early 20s but it's jammed-packed for such a short amount of life. The second book comes out later this year and I can’t wait!

Like many of our muses,  Ms. Huston has inspired more people than I could possibly condense into one measly post...photographers, designers, actors, directors, etc, etc.  One of the first being photographer, Bob Richardson.  The two made beautiful work together but their romantic relationship was a less than beautiful thing.  Anjelica was barely an adult and still recovering from her mother’s tragic death (Anjelica was just 16 when her mother (age 39) was killed in a car crash).  Richardson, 20 years her senior, suffered from severe mental issues and took his frustrations and neurosis out on his young girlfriend. The two eventually parted ways when Anjelica made the move to LA to pursue acting but they left us with some remarkable photos.

Anjelica went on to play muse to many, including: Yves Saint Laurant, Halston, Jack Nicholson (who she was in an on and off relationship with for the better part of the 1970s and 80s)...

and, in recent years, she has been something of a muse to film director Wes Anderson as well - which is a match made in heaven, in my humble opinion...

Suggested viewing: The Royal Tenenbaums, The Grifters,  and obviously "the Witches" and "Addams Family". She is also genius in smaller roles in films like Buffalo 66.