We know Melanie best on camera. Her bold and outgoing personality comes before her. But it’s not exactly the truth. Inside, she is incredibly shy. Her shyness created a difficult challenge for her.
Starting out as a model, she got to the point when she realized, after years of posing at awkward angles and attempting to avoid facing the camera, that she was not cut out for modeling and left it for acting.
Melanie Opens Up About Her Divorce for the First Time
After a life of bouncing from one man to another, Melanie is feeling a bit gun shy. She is cautious with men and prefers to spend time with friends. She opened up with Porter about her divorce recently.
She said, “I think part of the reason my marriage to Antonio fell apart was that I was stuck; nobody else is to blame. It’s just that I personally got stuck and I won’t let that happen again, I want to enjoy life, I want to do whatever I want to do.”
The Day They Met
The instant connection between Melanie and Antonio was apparent to all. Especially since they made few attempts to conceal the love they were feeling. At the time, Antonio Banderas was not yet a household name; 'Puss in Boots' did not exist. He was just breaking into the scene, and she was the perfect girl to have on his arm.
His wife in Spain and Melanie’s severing (for the second time) with Johnson were placed on the back burner, but those details were placed front and center on the covers of tabloids.
A Model and an Actress, Just Like Mom
Tippi worked as a model before she landed the part in 'The Birds' and won Hollywood fame. Melanie followed in her mom’s footsteps and got into modeling early. Really early! At just 9 months old, she debuted in her first TV commercial. She continued to book modeling gigs and TV commercials until she landed a part in 'Night Moves', in 1975.
There was nowhere to go but up, and she catapulted herself into her own place in the acting world of the rich and famous. It was a world she would come to despise, a world of grief and sorrow.
A Birthday Gift She Will Always Remember
After Alfred Hitchcock screened Melanie’s mother, Tippi, for the lead in 'The Birds', he became obsessed with the then-young actress. He saw her as his muse and was madly in love, but he mistreated her. He threatened to ruin her career when she walked away from his offer for another role.
And then he outdid himself. As creepy as his own Norman Bates creation, he sent 4-year-old Melanie a disturbing birthday present. He gave her a small wooden coffin containing a wax effigy of her mom. Talk about insane