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Berry Berenson Perkins was born
Berinthia Berenson in April 1948, in New York, to a wealthy and privileged, aristocratic European family, her father Robert L. Berenson was a diplomat, her grandmother was legendary Paris fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli, her great uncle was famed art historian Bernard Berenson, her sister is supermodel/actress Marisa Berenson. As a child Berry was given the nickname "Berry Bee" by her mother Gogo Schiaparelli Berenson, and was known by her nickname "Berry" for the rest of her life.
Berry and her sister Marisa, who was born in 1947, had a privileged childhood. They were educated in European boarding schools in Switzerland, France, and England.
In early 1965 their father Robert Berenson died after a long bout with cancer.
Berry became a photographer initially, but eventually through her photography work in fashion magazines, including shooting fashion layouts of her sister Marisa, she followed in the footsteps of her sister Marisa, who was a top model in the 1960's and 1970's, and also started doing modeling work. Her modeling photos appeared in Vogue,Town & Country, Glamour, and many other magazines. Berry and Marisa were named among the best-dressed women in the world. They also were included in a book of the most beautiful women in the world by photographer Patrick Litchfield.
Berry also took many of the cover photos for Andy Warhol's Interview magazine in the1970's and her photos appeared in many other magazines. Berry eventually devoted her entire career strictly to photography.
Berry and her sister Marisa were well-connected socialites, their friends included fashion designer Halston, artist Andy Warhol, and Vogue editor Diana Vreeland. The sisters could meet anyone they wanted, the person Berry most wanted to meet was actor Anthony Perkins, whom she used to collect clippings of and dream that one day she would marry.
Berry met her childhood idol Anthony Perkins, whom she had fallen in love with at the age of 12, when she was 24 years old in 1972 at a wrap party for his film "Play it as it Lays". At first she wasn't sure if she wanted to meet him because as she said years later "It was something which I preferred to keep a fantasy", she did indeed meet him, at the party they were introduced by her close friend Joel Schumacher. She asked to interview and photograph Tony for Interview magazine and during these interview sessions, Tony also fell in love with Berry and their relationship blossomed into a romance. Tony later said "I didn't think there were any girls like that in the world. I couldn't understand why she wasn't already married."
Berry moved in with Tony, and they were married on August 9, 1973, in Wellfleet, Massachusetts. It was an informal ceremony, Berry went barefoot, and wore a pastel pink, blue and green dress, and carried a bouquet of wild flowers. Berry was 25, and 4 months pregnant with their first son Osgood, Tony was 41. Berry said at the time that their marriage was like "a dream come true" Years later she told People magazine. "To think that Tony Perkins wanted to marry me! It was like a fairy tale happening."
Osgood was born on February 2, 1974. Berry and Tony's second son Elvis, was born on February 9, 1976. Berry devoted much of her time to raising their two sons. In 1977 Berry told The New York Times, "I'm so delighted with my life. I have this fabulous husband, the man I always wanted to marry. I have two fabulous children, which I always wanted, we're all so happy." During this period she also took some acting classes. Berry made her screen debut in "Winter Kills" in 1976, which also featured Tony Perkins, the film was released in 1979. Berry and Tony also appeared together in the film "Remember My Name" in 1978. Berry later had a part in the 1982 film "Cat People" and a part in the 1980 miniseries "Scruples".
Berry devoted much of her life to her favorite role which was being the wife of Anthony Perkins and a mother to Osgood and Elvis. She also continued with her photography work, collaborating with Marisa on her 1983 book "Dressing Up" for which she took all the photos of Marisa.
In a 1983 People magazine interview Tony Perkins talked about his deep love for Berry and said " We've been together for 11 years now and I've never seen another woman I could love as much as I love Berry"
In 1990, Anthony Perkins found out he was HIV positive. Berry was devastated. She nursed her husband through his illness for 2 years, never leaving his side. She was at his side, when he passed away at the age of 60, from AIDS on September 12, 1992, they had been together for 20 years, and married for 19 years. In an interview one year after her husband's death Berry spoke about their years together, "We had a very satisfying life together, it was a wonderful love affair"
In the next 9 years after her husband's death, Berry watched with pride as her sons grew into young men, Osgood has followed in his father's footsteps by also becoming an actor, with parts in "Six Degrees of Seperation" and in "Legally Blonde" which was released in 2001. Elvis is a musician.
Berry completed a book on her old friend the late fashion designer Halston, in early 2001. She spent the summer of 2001, in her Cape Cod, Massachusetts home which had belonged to Tony Perkins since the early 1960's. She was flying home to California, back to her home in the Hollywood Hills on September 11, 2001, to see her son Elvis perform, and also be with her sons on the anniversary of their father's death the next day.
She was a passenger on American Airlines Flight 11 out of Boston, the first plane which was hijacked and deliberately crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center at 8:45 am, the morning of September 11, 2001. She was 53 years old when she was killed along with over 4,000 other innocent victims that were also murdered in the worst terrorist attack that has ever occured in the history of the United States.
She died one day before the ninth anniversary of Anthony Perkins death.
May God Bless all the victims and their families in the World Trade Center and Pentagon tragedies. They are all true American heroes. |
