Annette Bening

A leading lady from the old school, and the woman who made an honest man out of Warren Beatty, Annette Bening epitomizes the wit and glamour of modern Hollywood. This month she triumphs in American Beauty with Kevin Spacey and Peter Gallagher, and reveals here that her most treasured role is offscreen—as mother to Kathlyn, Benjamin, and Isabel Beatty

Proust Questionnaire

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Solitude.

What is your greatest fear?

Losing my mind.

Which historical figure do you most identify with?

Victoria Woodhull, the tum-of-the-century presidential candidate, feminist, and advocate of free love.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

Harsh self-criticism.

What is your greatest extravagance?

Massages, expensive lingerie, and lots of shoes.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Virginity.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

"You know" and "Fuck it."

What or who is the greatest love of your life?

I am married to him.

When and where were you happiest?

First, conceiving, and second, giving birth.

What is your current state of mind?

Confused, amused, and curious.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

My need to rush.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

Driving across town with a thirsty five-yearold, a pissed-off two-and-a-half-year-old, and a hungry newborn.

What is the quaMty you most like in a man?

Passion.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Wit.

Who are your favorite writers?

Shakespeare; Chekhov; George Bernard Shaw; Thornton Wilder; Maureen Dowd, columnist; Germaine Greer, especially her latest book, The Whole Woman. It's infuriating, funny, and provocative.

Who is your favorite hero of fiction?

Nora from Ibsen's A Doll's House.

Who are your heroes in real life?

Eva Le Gallienne, Ruth Gordon, Maggie Smith, Daniel Moynihan, Vaclav Havel, B. K. S. Iyengar, and Ann Roth (costume designer of 41 years, who won the Academy Award for The English Patient). She has boundless energy, great taste, and infectious joy. I want to be her when I grow up.

What are your favorite names?

Kathlyn, Benjamin, Isabel.

What is it that you most disike?

Root beer.

How would you like to die?

Quickly and painlessly at a very old age, napping on my porch swing.

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