Brooke Shields told some wild showbiz tales about stars from Michael Jackson to Elizabeth Taylor at the opening night of her one-woman show at Cafe Carlyle — interspersed with tunes by Bob Dylan, Dolly Parton and George Michael.
The former Calvin Klein model also opened up about her late, controversial mother in the show — which brought Shields to tears.
Remembering her mother, Teri, who passed away in 2012, Shields acknowledged she “has been talked about in the press, almost more than I have, and you all probably have your opinions about her.” But, “those of us who really, really knew her… we called her Teri Terrific!”
Shields added, “on the flip side,” of the negative press about her polarizing stage mom, “There was a lot of laughter, and there was so much fun. God, my mom was funny!” she said, before launching into Dylan’s “Most of the Time.”
Shields’ momager, Teri, faced criticism for how she shaped Shields’ early career, including allowing her to play provocative roles as a minor in the ’70s films “Pretty Baby” and “The Blue Lagoon.”
Shields once recalled in a 2018 interview of her mother when she was younger, “My mother would get drunk and say: ‘Why don’t you move your fat ass?’”
The model, 58, kicked off her show, called “Previously Owned,” with “I Think We’re Alone Now,” followed by a tune called, “Fame is Weird” — in which she opened up about the eccentricities of celebrity socializing, like the time, “Elizabeth Taylor asked me to pre-chew her gum,” she claimed.
She added that, “Wayne Newtown bought me a pony. Oddly, Peter Fonda did, too.”
Jackson “loved me,” but his chimpanzee, Bubbles, didn’t, she said.
Dean Martin used to call her on the phone while she was in high school, but she insisted it wasn’t creepy. It was “just to talk… It was sweet… [He’d say], ‘Hey kid. How was school? How were exams?'” she revealed.
Unfortunately, Shields seemed to also be battling a cold, but she pushed through. (Copious amounts of flowing Bird in Hand wine helped the audience have a sense of humor about the coughing and sneezing.)
Mid-sneeze, Shields quipped to guests seated front row. “A little tissue would be great, or can I use your sleeve?”
A starry crowd included Laura Dern, Mariska Hargitay, Alan Cumming, Alexandra Wentworth, newlyweds Billy Crudup and Naomi Watts and designer Christian Siriano — who couldn’t stop gushing about how much he loved the show.
Shields closed out the nine-song performance by singing George Michael’s “Faith,” followed by Parton’s “9 to 5” as the encore.
