There were two sides to David Lean: on the one side, he was kind of a rather stiff, disciplined Englishman. And then he had this kind of romantic side to him. I think being true to both sides of your nature is important.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
In the early days, I was everything to David. I was his creative partner, his lover, his soul mate.
Looking back, I can see that my life with David was molded by forces beyond my control and even my understanding. Still, I don't regret trying.
I can't imagine David Lean justifying why he went to the desert to shoot 'Lawrence of Arabia.'
I love David's attitude in the Bible. He wasn't afraid to go against the trends. He wasn't going to be defined by the opinions of others.
David was the kind of guy who was totally supportive of the actors and instructed the writing staff to trust the actor's instincts, since after all, it's the actors playing the character.
David is purely a conceptual artist. He didn't play any instruments or paint or anything. We were painters.
Watching David write was inspiring to me. He was at his most content composing. Music floated from his mind and fingertips. He would strum the 11 strings on his 12-string Harptone guitar and wander to the piano and play a few bars, then off to forage for rice pudding in the kitchen.
One other fact is significant: the domestic feasts and sacrifices of single families, which in David's time must still have been general, gradually declined and lost their importance as social circles widened and life became more public.
I'd never take any credit for David's music - that's all his.
I don't know how much love David felt - I suspect very little. My main appeal to him was as a nurse, cook, housekeeper, creative ally, and business adviser.