Credit: Jason Bell
Robin Givens was photographed exclusively for ESSENCE May 1, 2007.
|
You can say this for Robin Simone Givens: It's impossible not to have an opinion about her. Her defenders think that the New York–born actress was unfairly vilified by the press as a gold digger who married heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson in 1988 solely for his millions. Her detractors feel she deserved the distinction as America's Most Hated Woman that same year, just eight months after the controversial couple were wed. Now, nearly 20 years after she said "I do" to Tyson, Givens, who has consistently delivered stellar performances on-screen and onstage, is ready to set the record straight about who she is, and more important, who she isn't in real life.
With the exception of her appearances on Broadway in Chicago, in which she was the first Black woman to play murderous schemer Roxie Hart, and her roles in urban theater productions like Men, Money & Gold Diggers, we've seen very little of Givens. All that will change this summer when she releases Grace Will Lead Me Home (June 5, Miramax, $23.95), her eagerly anticipated memoir that sheds light on a lot of dark moments in her life, especially her tumultuous union with Tyson. In person, Givens is tinier—both in height and size—than you'd think of someone with such a larger-than-life persona. At 42, she can easily pass for a coed, and at times during this two-hour interview, she has the energy of a freshman cheerleader. Gone is the icy armor that she admits she used as protection from the slings and arrows of a two-decade-plus show business career that has seen its share of up and downs. This is the softer side of Givens, a working mother who is most proud of her sons, Buddy, 13, and Billy, 7, and that today she is a "survivor."
"GOLD DIGGER? IT'S A WORD I HATE!"
Givens concedes that she sees how people could have confused her with her starring role in the 1986–1991 brainiac ABC sitcom, Head of the Class, that cemented her aloof and not-one-of-us reputation—but she's still hurt by the perception that she's less than Black. "I'm a Black woman," she says, leaning forward. "I am a sister through and through. To have your people not embrace you, hurts." Still, there was suspicion when Givens began dating "Iron" Mike Tyson in early 1987. What, many wondered, could this sophisticated young girl see in Mike Tyson besides his $40 million net worth? The differences were beyond stark. Givens enrolled at tony Sarah Lawrence College at 15, graduated at 19, and quickly landed a guest spot on The Cosby Show that put her on another career track. She and her younger sister, Stephanie, were raised by their single mother, Ruth Roper, an entrepreneur who designed portfolio management systems for brokerage houses in New York. Tyson grew up in Brownsville, a section of Brooklyn where life could be hard. In 1987, at age 21, the former juvenile delinquent became the “undisputed heavyweight champion of the world” by defeating Tony Tucker. It had been a long time since we had a champ we could root for. We liked Mike. We wanted to protect him. Givens spelled trouble to many. She had already dated two of our wealthiest and most eligible bachelors. First, Eddie Murphy, whom she'd met while in college, and then Michael Jordan, when he was gearing up to set records as a member of the Chicago Bulls basketball team, both before the public really knew who she was. In early February 1988, after a whirlwind courtship, Mike Tyson and Robin Givens were married in Chicago and later in New York. He was 21, she was 23.
Continued on next page >>
Pick up the July issue of ESSENCE with Kerry Washington on newsstands June 9, 2007.
Click below to post your comments about this article and to see photos of Robin Givens and Mike Tyson.
|
