Olivia Hussey of 'Romeo and Juliet' says she was raped in the house where Sharon Tate was murdered
Actress Olivia Hussey claims that she was brutally raped and abused by her ex-boyfriend actor Christopher Jones in the same house where Sharon Tate and her unborn child were murdered along with four others in 1969 by the infamous Manson family. The 67-year-old actress shot to fame after her role as the starstruck Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 adaptation of one of Shakespeare's most celebrated plays 'Romeo and Juliet'. Hussey met Jones through her agent, Rudi Altobelli, and the two reportedly started dating in 1969.
While talking to People, Hussey claimed that, immediately after they had started dating, Jones had begun abusing her both physically and mentally. In one such incident, Jones allegedly punched her in the stomach when they were talking. These allegations have, however, not been verified.
"We were talking and his eyes glazed over and he punched me in the stomach." However, being young and in love, Hussey did not immediately quit on the relationship. She explained, "I was young, and I loved him... I was very loyal." It was during this time that she had met Sharon Tate who was then residing along with her husband Roman Polanski at their Los Angeles home of Altobelli in 1969.
Hussey recalls, "I said to Sharon, ‘Rudy said we’re going to be best friends'... She told me, ‘I’m so looking forward to meeting you, my baby is coming soon.’ She was so sweet.” Hussey had developed a strong bond with the actress and had already planned on moving to LA to help Sharon with the baby.
However, things didn't work out exactly as planned as her agent soon received a call about the murder. "I'll never forget Rudi telling me, 'They're all dead'. It was terrible." Hussey found herself in that same house almost five weeks after the murder. She didn't mind staying there in spite of people asking her how she could ever live there.
She went to mention, "All I felt was Sharon’s vibration. And it was lovely. She’d left an orange scarf and I kept it on my prayer table for years.” However, all was not well for Hussey as her own share of the torment was about to begin. She claims that Jones showed up to the house one night, after which he brutally attacked and raped her. Hussey did not understand if Jones would actually kill her.
She described, "My face was like a balloon. I had a bloody nose, my lip was split open, and I had a black eye. It was terrifying.” Although she had told only a few close ones about the attack, she found out weeks later that she was pregnant. She did abort the child but it certainly took a toll upon her.
Although it was a heartbreaking experience for her, she doesn't regret it. In her new book 'The Girl on the Balcony' she has mentioned the experience as: "I decided I could not have the baby... It broke my heart although I have never regretted it.” Jones died in 2014, but the actress had already found her right one in her husband Dean Paul Martin who is the son of singer Dean Martin. "I fell for him because of the way he treated me and took care of me." Hussey and Martin got married in 1971 and were parents to a son Alex who is now 45-years-old. The couple continued to remain in good terms in spite of their split in 1979 until Martin died in an unfortunate plane crash in 1987.