(New York, NY) In the November issue of More, Patricia Clarkson discusses life as a movie 'person', her commitment to New Orleans, and why she's so much happier now, at 47, than she was at 30. Excerpts from her interview, on newsstands October 23rd, follow:
On the men in her life, including actor Campbell Scott: I don't consider the fact that I've dated several men in my life and not married one a failure. I consider that a good time! My parents have been married for 54 years, but I know what it took to have that kind of life. And that's not me. I'm a free spirit. I think anytime you have love, it's a success, however that love is defined . . . I'm fortunate because I've had great men in my life who have made me a better person, a better lover, a better everything. I don't have regrets.
The New Orleans native on finding out about Hurricane Katrina: I'll never forget it. I saw on CNN: 'Levee Breach.' And truly, I doubled over, almost sick to my stomach, and burst into tears. I knew what that meant; I knew the city was done. She witnessed the destruction firsthand: 'It was biblical and totally avoidable, which is an outrage. Anything I can do for New Orleans, I'm going to do. When they say jump, I ask 'How high?'
On avoiding being typecast: I never thought I'd break through that whole suburban-mom thing, and then I did. And sometimes I want to run around naked in euphoria for just that reason.
On approaching 50: I love being in my forties. I would never go back. I certainly have more fun now than I ever did. There's a joy in my life that I didn't have in my thirties. God, if this keeps up, by the time I'm 60, I'll be popping out of cakes!
On why she became an actor: It's been my goal to have people see me as many different things. Being a movie star? That would have been fun, but to be a chameleon . . . that's kind of why I wanted to be an actor. I'm a movie person.
Comparing her career today to when she was in her thirties: These are great female parts that I've been allowed to play - complicated, messy... I have the career now that I was hoping to have in my thirties. But I was never really an ingenue, and that, oddly, may be what saved me.
About her distinctive voice: I've finally grown into my voice. It was interesting how people in the business used to deal with it, because I looked a certain way, like a sweet, pretty girl, and then I'd open my mouth and it would be like 'boooaaah'. So people probably thought, oh no, she's not that sweet.