Why Do We Love Maria Callas

It's been many years since Maria Callas died, yet the fascination she exerts is as great today as it was during her career. It's really like she's reaching out from the grave to grab hold of our imagination. She won't let go of it. Her records today are outselling those of other artists. There have been over 30 books written about her, which is a great deal more than famous figures such as Nijinsky or Laurence Olivier. And the question is, why? It's a difficult question, but it has to do, of course, with that enormous theatrical personality of hers as reflected by her voice. But it also has to do with another facet, because there was not only Callas the artist, but Maria the woman. And the story of Maria the woman is really just as fascinating. It's really one of the great tragic love stories of our time. I mean, I'm undefended. I've been undefended all my life. You might be, as I have found out, frequently misunderstood, hated, attacked. And I have not been able to fight back. And you've had to sit back and take it in absolute silence. It hurts. You hate it because it is unjust. The world is full of injustice. And she was there waiting to go on stage for the last big aria. And I saw, it was not the premiere. It was one of the performances. And I saw, and she was in a state of nervous, that I went and said, for God's sake, I mean, it's now. I mean, the glory, and then you have a performance. And he grabbed my arm, you know, like he squeezed and said, you know, that every time I go out there, they are waiting to get me.