Alex Carson
There are few celebrities more individualistically iconic as Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon, which can make the fact that they once co-existed in a relationship all the more interesting. As one can imagine, the relationship between these two revolutionary icons involved quite a bit of head-butting, but it also entailed quite a bit of love below and above the surface. Join us as we take a look at the 12-year romance between two of Hollywood’s most legendary figures, Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher.
Both Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon were individualistic icons that rose from one status to another almost mercurially, as if destined to achieve some kind of star status beyond their limits in their respective spheres. This iconic status only goes to make the couple’s history all the more interesting… and all the more secretive in regards to Hollywood romances of the time. Join us for a closer look at the relationship between Hollywood icons Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon. Let’s explore all of the things that made them work as a couple, as well as all of the things that inevitably tore them apart.
Heroine In Hollywood Cinema
Carrie Fisher was a reluctant heroine in Hollywood cinema, and Paul Simon was a reluctant hero in the pantheon of popular music. Despite coming from disparate media backgrounds, both rose to cult status almost despite their roles in their respective mediums. This individualistic drive is perhaps drew them together as they crossed paths, and perhaps what drove them apart as they began to interact.
You could say that the relationship between cult icons Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon was tumultuous, but that would almost be an understatement worthy of their greatest respective performances. One could imagine that the 12-year relationship between the iconic celebrities didn’t go off without a hitch, but it was perhaps more plagued with error than one biographer could ever give it credit for. Still, in this video, we’re going to try and pinpoint where exactly Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon went wrong, as well as why exactly they went so great together in the first place.
Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon were both very much poetic beings, and this often went unlooked in their increasingly large public personas. Paul often took a back seat to the general public image of his project “Simon and Garfunkel”, in exchange for the increased media presence of his fellow singer Art. Still, Simon was due most of the credit behind the scenes. Likewise, Carrie Fisher often went unmentioned in regards to her performances in George Lucas’ revelatory Star Wars trilogy, overlooked for the series’ young auteur.
Cultural Status In Favor Of Art
In the pop sphere, both icons becomes associates with, and inseparable from, their individual arts, but neither icon thank for it in the way that they truly wanted. Paul looks past when it came to cultural status in favor of Art, although Paul put a much greater amount of effort into maintaining an amount of creative control. Likewise, Fisher overlooks for her performance in favor of the general conceit of the Star Wars trilogy itself, as with her fellow co-star Mark Hamill. Unbeknownst to many, the entire time she was filming the trilogy, as well as after, Carrie was as much a prolific activist and philosopher as she was an iconic feminine figure.
However you want to look at it, both Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon were very much individualistic artists in the fields that they chose to walk, and very much artists that each other could relate to in regards to their immediate public personas. Both had secrets that they didn’t want Hollywood to know about, and they were having a very hard time keeping Hollywood away from them without each other.
Public Stage On Fire
There are many famous Hollywood romances that have gained notoriety in recent history. Still, few stand the historical significance of Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher, and not only because of their respective places in Hollywood history. These two mercurial figures truly lit the public stage on fire, and their chemical reaction to each other was something that really rocked the cultural sphere.
Although one could imagine that the two met in the heights of Hollywood excess, they actually met a few months before Fisher was even famous for her iconic performance in Star Wars. It is understandable that this is at a time when Simon is more popular than ever, as a part of his touring group “Simon and Garfunkel”- Paul Simon was certainly no stranger to romantic company. Still, something about Fisher stood out to him from the get go, and it was his mission to make her his longtime partner in crime. Although Fisher may not have immediately stood out to Simon on a social basis, she must have made her impression somehow, and the two would soon meet again and again in differing roles. Each time they met, Simon would become more and more infatuated with her, and the two were soon in love.
1977’s Star Wars
On an SNL appearance soon after the incredibly successful release of 1977’s Star Wars, the two solidified their off-screen and on-screen chemistry, and truly became the couple the media would peg them as to this time today. The problem was, as efficient as their dualistic personalities were at creating a contrast on the screen, their contrasting personalities would prove somewhat unworkable in the decidedly un-Hollywod realm of the real world. Join us as we continue to explore what exactly happened with the relationship of Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon. As well, like the video and subscribe to our channel to promote more engaging content that aims to fully examine Hollywood’s deep past.
As soon as Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher starts making pacts with each other in regards to their romance, the drama starts to unfold in spite of it. The two contrasting members in an increasingly overflowing Hollywood scene, each saw themselves on the top of their respective spectrums, which begins to put them at odds with each other. The immeasurable pressures of their societal status weighed upon them, and their immeasurable freedoms regarding the procurance of illegal drugs began to fuel their paranoia in more ways than one. Soon, this media giant would self-destruct.
Carrie Fisher And Paul Simon
It says that the bond between Fisher and Simon is a result of their increasing mutual codependence on various uppers and downers, but that is almost incidental to Hollywood These were two unprecedentedly iconic figures in the throws of hitherto unthought of fame, and this was an experience that no one in their vicinity, be it Fisher, Simon, their PR team, or the public, could have planned for, or was ever likely to forget. As one of the biggest Hollywood romances of the time, it would go on to the set the stage for many that followed, and mimic the fate of many that fell before.
To understand the ups and downs of the relationship between Simon and Fisher, one may only look at an incident which occurred around the set of 1981’s The Blue Brothers, a film during which’s filming star Dan Aykroyd incidentally saved a cameoing Carrie Fisher from choking. This incident results in the almost-marrying of Aykroyd and Fisher, which ends by the barely-protesting Paul Simon. It all just kind of happened, with Fisher and Simon spiraling around each other over and over during that very short, and very long, 12-year period.
They Tie The Knot
Carrie, with her strange Hollywood pedigree, and Simon, with his long Hollywood past, both found themselves somewhat distrusting of the idea of their being much more tabloid publicity involved in their futures, be it career or otherwise. Perhaps this is the reason that both continually found themselves floating back together like the two competing coils in a strand of DNA. Their relationship was notoriously documented, but perhaps never fully understood. The media routinely tattled on their constant bonding and un-bonding, but perhaps they never realized that the two were growing stronger together with each passing interlude in their tumultuous relationship.
Eventually, Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher tied the knot for real, and it was an expectedly star-studded affair. SNL headshot Lorne Michaels was present, along with pop uber-legend Billy Joel, and it was almost certainly an experience like something out of a dream for both Carrie Fisher and Paul Simon. As with all dreams, though, whether bad or good, both parties would inevitably wake up. However magical the set up between these two God-like entities was, time would not bode well for this couple united beyond the stars.
Relationship After Returning To America
After the marriage, Fisher and Simon would periodically separate, date, get back together, and then separate, and date, and so on. This went on and on ad nauseam, with the two constantly quarreling and remedying despite each other. Still, they would work together in the raising of their respective children, regardless of whether or not the other was the biological parent.
They were certainly a progressive couple, and a pair that empathized with each other beyond the average understanding of the paparazzi, or even the general public, the likes of which consumed the general news of their relationship like so much tabloid fodder before and after it. This fact only makes it that much more troubling that their relationship was eventually doomed to end, for better or for worse.
After time and time again of drifting apart and coming back, the coiling was eventually put to a stand still by a vision that Carrie Fisher had on a quest with a spiritual guide in Brazil. Accompanying Simon during a recording session, Fisher saw fit to pass the time by consuming some psychedelic tea. This tea was said to grant her some unprecedented insight regarding the future of her and Simon’s relationship. Fisher saw that her relationship with Paul wasn’t something that she should consider mutually beneficial, and decided to end their relationship soon upon returning to America.
The legacy of Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher
It becomes all too obvious when looking back at the relationship between Fisher and Simon that the two were together for reasons that didn’t necessarily jive well with the notion of a true romance. It could’ve been just for publicity, or it could’ve just been good timing, but it certainly wasn’t the kind of destiny we all dream of when we think of a Hollywood romance. The two began to find fault with each other immediately upon their honeymoon, and the whole thing just gradually unravelled from there. It’s gone on like this before, and it will again and again.
The legacy of Paul Simon and Carrie Fisher is certainly a very interesting part of Hollywood history, and their romance stands as one of the most notable romances in Hollywood history. It was just one early instance in which both public relations and press became a defining factor in a lot of the average American’s perception,
It’s easy to look at Simon and Fisher as two people who just loved being independent too much to coexist. These are certainly two contrasting visionaries who each aimed to control their general sphere, and it was inevitably just too hard for them to co-habit to co-exist. If you see any parallels between this momentous Hollywood romance and any others before or after, be sure to let us know! As well, if you have more insights to share regarding Fisher and Simon in particular, feel free to have us take a look! As always, be sure to like this video for more informative content of the same nature, and subscribe and press the notification bell to ensure that you’ll always be notified when a new video drops!
