Ava Gardner reportedly bragged about Frank Sinatra’s girth in a quote that has lived on for decades.
“He is only 110 pounds, but 10 pounds of it is c–k!” the MGM star allegedly quipped years ago, when asked about what she saw in her then-husband.
The famous quote is one that has long been attributed to Gardner. Many fans and celebs have chosen to believe the remark did indeed come from the late Hollywood starlet, including Elizabeth McGovern.
The actress is portraying the screen legend in a new off-Broadway play, and joked about the provocative remark while exclusively chatting with Page Six at a press event earlier this week.
“I can’t personally vouch for that,” she began, laughing. “[But] I think, you know, I choose to [believe it]. I think we’ve got to choose to believe what we want. It’s a great quote.”
McGovern, 63, is portraying the “Show Boat” star in “Ava: The Secret Conversations.” The off-Broadway show is based on a series of real-life interviews Gardner conducted with Peter Evans, who wrote the book that inspired the play.
The chats — which included details on Gardner’s marriages to Mickey Rooney, Artie Shaw and Sinatra, along with her romance with Howard Hughes — were initially barred from publication.
They were published decades later and are now being reimagined in the play, which runs July 29 to Sept. 14 at New York City Center and Sept. 24 through Oct. 12 at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago.
Gardner, a renowned beauty who starred in movies like “The Killers” and “The Barefoot Contessa,” died in 1990 at the age of 67.
She was married to Sinatra from 1951 to 1957. Their relationship was famously volatile.
McGovern told Page Six that she first developed an interest in Gardner when she “stumbled” on Evan’s candid tome.
“That gave me the idea that it might be a wonderful play; these two people trying to mine the story of one of their lives,” she explained. “That began a whole process of looking at Ava Gardner’s films and finding out [more] about her, which was a delightful bit of research for me.”
The “She’s Having a Baby” star said she was initially “struck” by Gardner’s “great beauty.”
“But then as you watch her films, this character emerges, who is so authentic and smart and funny and way ahead of her time in a lot of ways,” she continued. “She survived being one of the first major movie stars, and so I think her story has relevance for us today.”
In addition to the off-Broadway show, fans can catch McGovern later this year when she stars in the third film of the beloved “Downton Abbey” saga.
She promised Page Six, however, that this will truly be the last movie for the franchise.
“All those times before, there were tears, hugs, all that. And this time, we were like, ‘OK, bye,’ we’ve done it so many times,” she said. “As fun as it was, I think we’re all ready to look to new pastures.”