Larry King Told Tina Turner She Was ‘A Feminist Hero’
Larry King‘s career spanned over six decades and consisted of tens of thousands of interviews. The world continues to mourn King’s death at the age of 87 and look back on the countless influential interviews he conducted throughout his life. King got to speak with everyone from presidents and world leaders to the biggest actors and artists in entertainment, such as The Beatles, Madonna, and Tina Turner.
Larry King’s long and illustrious career
Larry King’s career dates back to the 1950s when he got his start as a radio host in Miami. Over the years, King parlayed his natural interviewing skills into a well-established career.
In the mid-1980s, King began his popular show Larry King Live on CNN. King welcomed some of the biggest names in the world to the talk show. In 1994, King went to award-winning actor Marlon Brando’s house. He reunited the remaining Beatles in 2007; in that same year, he infamously made the mistake of assuming that Jerry Seinfeld’s show had been canceled.
Larry King’s big interview with Tina Turner
One memorable interview from Larry King Live was with the Queen of Rock ‘n Roll, Tina Turner. Turner stopped by the show in February 1997 to promote her Wildest Dreams album and tour, as well as discuss what her life was like at that point in time.
Turner was already living happily in Switzerland at the time, and King pressed her on why she loved living in Europe so much instead of her home country. Turner found fame around the world, and she pointed out that across the pond, she was as big as Madonna was in the US.
King was also upfront with Turner and asked her questions about her life and relationship with her abusive ex-husband, Ike Turner. Despite it being an extremely sensitive topic, Turner was very candid when she discussed everything.
Larry King praised Tina Turner
Part of Turner’s decision to move to Europe was her now-husband Erwin Bach, a music industry executive. She was madly in love with him at the time of her interview with Larry King, and their romance would continue for more than a decade before they finally tied the knot in 2013.
King remarked on how happy Turner seemed when she talked about Bach. “This is not Ike,” King told Turner, to which she replied, “Who?”
King then let Turner know how her inspiring story has helped countless women who have been in abusive relationships. “Do you realize that you are a feminist hero in America?” he asked her. “Do you realize that?”
“I’m beginning to,” she answered. “It wasn’t something that I planned. I kind of see it as a gift because of the life I lived, it had a meaning.” She added, “I think if I had not given the story to the world, maybe my life would not be as it is.”
