"It's just so they can find enemies and outsiders to blame for their mismanagement, but the majority of the people in Iran are friendly to Americans, and they admire the freedom and democracy in America."
Posted on 02/29/2004 5:30:18 PM PST by freedom44
Your new memoirs, "An Enduring Love: My Life With the Shah," offer a reverential look at your late husband, Reza Pahlavi, who ruled Iran from 1941 until he was toppled in 1979.
He was above all a patriot who wanted progress and modernity in our country. I tell my life as I lived it.
In the 25 years since he was overthrown by the Islamic Revolution and you fled to the United States for safety, have you ever been back to Iran?
No. The Islamic Republic put me on their death list. The people of Iran were promised a paradise by the fundamentalists, who opened the door to hell.
Why do the clerics demonize the United States as the Great Satan?
It's just so they can find enemies and outsiders to blame for their mismanagement, but the majority of the people in Iran are friendly to Americans, and they admire the freedom and democracy in America.
Is it because Persians view America differently than Arabs do?
For the majority of Iranians, there has never been anti-American or anti-Western sentiment, because we have never been a colony of Europe. The Iranian people understand that progress and modernity come from the West. And now we have an Iranian actress nominated for the Oscars for her role in ''House of Sand and Fog.''
Is that progress?
Yes. Your country stands for the best of everything, the best of power and possibility.
Did you ever meet Saddam Hussein during your two decades as the first lady of Iran?
I met him during the Iranian Revolution. I think it was November 1978, and I had gone to Najaf, the holy city in Iraq, to meet with a respected ayatollah. Saddam was vice president then, and he came to receive me.
What was he like?
I was a little bit astonished, because he had a long black cape coming down to his ankles, which was very strange.
You mean he was trying to make a fashion statement?
Yes. He thought the cape gave him a little style, or at least a different style.
How do you feel about the American invasion of Iraq?
When Iran was stable, we had good relations with the rest of the world, and after the Iranian Revolution happened, look what happened in that area -- the Iran-Iraq war, the Taliban, the gulf war and now the war in Iraq.
Are you saying your husband stabilized the entire Middle East? His critics describe him as a puppet installed by the C.I.A. to protect American oil interests in the region.
My husband was very close to President Nixon, and he met eight American presidents, from Roosevelt to Carter. It is true that America and the C.I.A. did not want Iran to fall in the hands of Communists.
Tell me about your day-to-day life in the United States.
At my office in the palace in Tehran I had 60 people helping me. Here I have two people. I have a lady who cooks for me and cleans up and also a driver. It is difficult for me. Sometimes I have asked friends for money.
I assume you took money with you when you fled from Iran.
Yes, and I took some jewels. Thank God, because I sold them, and it helped me live. Americans say that money doesn't bring happiness. But it helps you to live with misery in comfort.
Did you get a large advance for your book?
No! They gave me $200,000, and it was $150,000 after taxes. I keep a picture of the check because it is the first money I ever earned.
I think most writers would say that $200,000 is a nice chunk of change.
I was never interested in money. I always looked down on it. But now that I have less money, I see that without money you cannot do much. Everything in the end is about money.
Was your book at all inspired by the recent memoirs by Queen Noor of Jordan?
No. I know her book has become a best seller in America. But I didn't read all of it. I looked at it. I think mine is more personal and emotional. Actually, neither book offers much in the way of intimate revelation.
What was the shah like as a husband? Did he remember your birthday?
He was like most husbands that way. My birthday is Oct. 14, and like every woman, I'd remind him five days before not to forget.
Do you find Americans to be knowledgeable about your country and the life you left behind?
Iran is a big country -- it is three times the size of France -- and many Americans know nothing about it. Once a stranger who had heard I was the shah's wife came running up to me and asked if she could have her picture taken with me. Afterward, she turned to me and said, ''What country is your husband the shah of?''
Bump!
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