MARCH 31st 2003 HOSTS: Joy Behar, Star Jones, MeredithViera and Barbara Walters.

Star Jones: I’m so excited! 
When the landmark mini-series “The Thorn Birds” first aired 20 years ago, I was one of the millions of women glued to the TV to watch Richard Chamberlain as a priest caught in a life-long tug-of-war between his sacred vows and the woman he loves. Now it’s coming back to TV to captivate a whole new generation.

(clip of the show is shown)

RC: Hello
Star: I am such a fan, I’m all giggly. I’m supposed to ask you a bunch of topics but I don’t really care—all I want to say is “What else have I done to pay for the great sin of loving Ralph de Bricassart?”  I love that line!
 

RC: Yeah
Star: I’m a big fan! In case you haven’t figured that out.
Joy Behar: Follow that with the next scene….
Star: That’s right they’ve just done the nasty--for 2 straight weeks--on the island—then he snuck over there ‘cause his friends sent him over to figure it out.
Joy: hmm, he figured it out!
Star: Do I need to tell more of the story? I’m a huge fan but I’m not the only one, Richard. It became such a phenomenon. Did you have any idea that people would love the “Thorn Birds”?

(everyone agrees)
RC: I did actually. When I read the book, I thought this is the mini-series of all time and then they cast it so brilliantly. And Rachel was so wonderful. She was so beautiful and so great to work with and she was very fresh at the time. Well, she’s still very fresh. But…
 

Joy: Well, she married Bryan….
RC: Yes, she married Bryan Brown
 

Joy: Is she still married to him?
RC: Yes, she fell for Bryan on the film which gave her this amazing glow which I thought, you know, was for me but…..
Joy: What about Barbara Stanwyck who played…..
 

(everyone talks at once)

RC: Stanwyck
Joy: She’s a legend
RC: Was great
Star: Mary Carson, one of the greatest characters on TV.
RC: Yeah, a great character and she was so, still so young. 
She was 70 something, 4 I guess, and what an incredibly professional as is her reputation.
Joy: Was she strict? Tough?
RC: She is a little tough on the outside and at the first rehearsal dauntingly she knew every line!
 

Everyone: She did?
RC: And every look. She said to the cameraman who was there, “Would you catch this look” This is the first rehearsal; the first read through actually, and then she played every scene. You know you shoot scenes many, many times in these things. And every take was exactly the same, which you’d think might be boring but was totally fresh, totally new every time. I loved her!
Meredith Viera: Yea, but she was in the scene, the first ever nude scene, where you’re naked?
RC: Yeah.  (big smile)
 

(everyone talks, you hear someone say: “male nude scene”)

Meredith: Was it hard to do that?  (laughs and giggles from the others)   Not that I meant that but…. I didn’t mean that but …I meant that…I didn’t mean that! As a matter of fact she’s watching you.
Joy: As a matter of fact you were rehearsing
Meredith: I did not!
RC: She…
Meredith: Was it difficult to do that with Barbara Stanwyck staring at you?
RC: Um no, I sort of had one leg up so that it wasn’t total nudity….
One of the girls: A fine leg it was, too!  (all laugh)
 

RC: I had been working out like crazy so I felt OK kind of being naked. But I was talking about her professionalism—she came up to me in that scene and she comes onto Father Ralph in that scene and it was the first time she lost her lines! And there was this pause on the set ‘cause no one could believe it. And then she said, “Well, it’s been a long time since I stood next to a naked man”. It was sweet.
Tamara: And what a man to stand next to.
RC: She was wonderful. I loved her.
 

Tamara: So, in the movie you’re in love with Maggie…so beautiful, and, um, it’s a 10 hour mini-series but everyone has to wait about 8 hours until they consummate their love.
RC: Yes. Yes. That segment is being shown Tuesday night, this coming Tuesday. The first one was Sunday at 8 o’clock on the Hallmark Channel. And tonight, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, I guess.

Joy: Tell me something, at that time, when you were doing all this and you were so handsome, and I don’t mean to say you’re less hot than you were then, maybe more….
Everyone: maybe more!!
Joy: Yea, maybe more, but I was wondering, did any of the fans drive you nuts? Did you have a lot of women going bananas over you and acting crazy?
RC: There was. I was building a house about this time in Hawaii. And they had just laid the floors. These beautiful wood floors in the downstairs. And it was the rainy season so it was all very muddy on the outside because of the tractors and everything. So this German woman…
Joy: German?
RC: Yes, yes, German (and he goes into a German accent) she was very aggressive and she climbed the fence and walks into the house with mud all over her boots into these just newly refinished floors and the people working on it say to her “Lady, you can’t do this!” She says, “I have a perfect right to be here. Without people like me, Mr. Chamberlain couldn’t afford this place!” Which is true, of course.
 

(everyone laughs)

Star: I want you to know I watched all 10 hours again. I got it on DVD and I had the best time. I watched it on the plane, coming and going and it was so wonderful. It stays good 20 years later.
RC: It is a good show. A really good….
Star: You need to know that. And Happy Birthday!
RC: Thank You. Thank You. Thank You.
Star: You won’t tell? You never tell your age? Joy says you should never tell your age.
Joy: Who cares? He’s ageless, look at him! 
RC: 69
 

(everyone claps and “wow”!!)

Star: And an Aries! Richard Chamberlain, still hot!
 

(Then Star plugs the mini-series and informs the audience they each receive a copy of the DVD)
End of segment