When I was working at the camera shop in L.A., I regularly took on assignments for photoshoots on my lunch break or after work. One day, I was asked to shoot Chaz Bono’s 3rd birthday party.

I went to this huge house – well, a mansion – in Bell Air. There was a pony-driven cart that took people from the front of the house to the party in the back. There were clowns, and horses, and a whole lot of fancy people.

Honestly, I focussed more on Cher than on the kid. She was so insanely beautiful (and I wasn’t married yet). Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the nerve to talk to her at all that day, but I spoke to Sonny. He showed me a lot of beautiful pictures he had taken of Cher himself. Hubba hubba! I had to turn in all the pictures I took that day of the party, and I don’t really remember how many I actually took of the kids.

It happens to the best of us

In ’75, I saw here at the Rock Awards in Santa Monica, but only on stage.
Years later, Cher came to Amsterdam with Gregg Allman, who she was married to at the time. I went to visit them in their hotel room at the Pulitzer Hotel. Cher, of course, looked super hot again and I took some beautiful pictures of her. But wouldn’t you know it, I feel so stupid, the film wasn’t loaded properly so I didn’t get any shots.

The next day I ran into them again, explained what happened and asked if we could do the shoot again and she said “Oh, no! We’re leaving right now!”

I got a few quick shots on the spot but that was it. Grrrr, I’ll never forgive myself!