Shirley MacLaine Explains Why She and Jack Nicholson Never Hooked Up: 'I Would Laugh Too Much' (Exclusive)
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The legendary star writes about some of her famous leading men, including her 'Terms of Endearment' costar, in her new book 'The Wall of Life'
Fotos International/Getty Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine at the 1984 Academy Awards.
Shirley MacLaine has always been one of our more candid and forthcoming movie stars. She wrote about her past lives years before woo-woo became fashionable, and both her screen roles and her public persona have always been appealingly what-you-see-is-what-you-get.It's been 41 years since her autobiographical Out on a Limb became a new-age bestseller, and MacLaine, 90, is once again an open book with The Wall of Life: Pictures and Stories from This Marvelous Lifetime, which comes out Oct. 22.In the memoir/photo album, the actress shares previously unseen snapshots from her nine decades on the planet accompanied by observations and anecdotes as only MacLaine can deliver them.
Penguin Random House/ Crown Publishing 'The Wall of Life'' title='The Wall of Life Book Cover by Shirley MacLaine'>
Penguin Random House/ Crown Publishing 'The Wall of Life'
Related: Shirley MacLaine, 90, Reveals the Secret to Her Longevity — and It's Not About Great Genes! (Exclusive)
While it's not exactly a tell-all, she doesn't hold back when discussing her life, career and romances. She writes about her "first love," George Huvos, whose marriage proposal she turned down in order to pursue her dream of stardom as a dancer (yes, dancing — not acting — remains her first love).She also gets into her subsequent open marriage to Steve Parker, to whom she remained wed for 28 years. They shared a daughter, Sachi, now 68.
Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine in 1983's 'Terms of Endearment'' title='American actors Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine on the set of Terms of Endearment'>
Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Jack Nicholson and Shirley MacLaine in 1983's 'Terms of Endearment'
And she makes a rather bold admission, though one suspects, in jest: Her only leading men that she didn't have an affair with were Jack Lemmon, her costar in 1960's The Apartment and 1963's Irma la Douce, and Jack Nicholson, who played her love interest in Terms of Endearment, the 1983 film for which she finally won an Oscar after five nominations.Of the former, she tells PEOPLE, "Lemon was like a sister to me. He was a darling guy."
Screen Archives/Getty Shirley MacLaine and Jack Lemmon in 1960's 'The Apartment'' title='Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine ride the elevator in a scene from the 1960 film 'The Apartment''>
Screen Archives/Getty Shirley MacLaine and Jack Lemmon in 1960's 'The Apartment'
Nicholson wasn't exactly "sister" material, but MacLaine says, "He just made me laugh all the time. He was one of my favorite people." Still, she insists, nothing ever happened between them. "I don't think he would've been my type to have an affair with anyway. I would laugh too much."So does she have a favorite among her leading gentlemen?"Name them — and I'll give them numbers," she offers.She doesn't actually do that, but she does reveal that Fred MacMurray, who played her older, married lover in The Apartment, "was one of the cheapest guys in Hollywood," adding, "Every time we went to lunch or dinner, I had to pay."She actually did have an affair with Robert Mitchum, her costar in 1962's Two for the Seesaw and 1964's What a Way to Go!. "He was just extremely intelligent — hidden, but he was very, very intelligent," she says. "He didn't have much of a sense of humor."
LMPC via Getty Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLaine in 'Two for the Seesaw'' title='Two For The Seesaw, lobbycard, Robert Mitchum, Shirley MacLaine'>
LMPC via Getty Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLaine in 'Two for the Seesaw'
Related: Shirley MacLaine Is 'Feeling Good' as She Turns 90, Teases New Book About Her 'Wonderful Life' (Exclusive)
And then there's Nicolas Cage, her younger leading man in 1994's Guarding Tess. "Oh, I love Nicolas. I love Nicolas," she says. "He listened to my advice about being a star. Yeah, I really liked him a lot, but he was not attracted to me."
TriStar/Getty Shirley MacLaine and Nicolas Cage in 1994's 'Guarding Tess'' title='Shirley MacLaine is approached by Nicolas Cage in a scene from the film 'Guarding Tess''>
TriStar/Getty Shirley MacLaine and Nicolas Cage in 1994's 'Guarding Tess'
The Wall of Life will be released on Oct. 22 by Crown Publishing and is now available for preorder, wherever books are sold. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People.
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