Princess Dianahad quite the effect on gentlemen, according toElton John.
In his upcoming memoir,Me, which was exclusively excerpted in theDaily Mail, the musician recalled a dinner party he once held where actorsRichard GereandSylvester Stalloneappeared to come very close to duking it out over Diana.
The legendary singer, 72, writes that the London dinner party was held for former Walt Disney Studios chairman Jeffrey Katzenberg while John was working on music for the 1994 filmthe Lion King.
“Straight away, Richard Gere and Diana seemed very taken with each other,” writes John, explaining that at the time, Diana was separated fromPrince Charlesand Gere, now 70, had ended his relationship withCindy Crawford.
Kevin Winter/Getty Images; Jayne Fincher/Princess Diana Archive/Getty Images; Elisabetta A. Villa/Getty Images
Although Furnish was able to break things up, John notes that the tension between the trio was noticeable for the rest of the evening.
“After dinner, Diana and Richard Gere resumed their position together in front of the fire, and Sylvester stormed off home,” John writes, adding that the actor yelled that he “never would have come” if he knew “Prince f—n’ Charming was gonna be here.’ ”
Reps for Stallone did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment. A rep for Gere had no comment.
Princess Diana and Elton John.AP/Shutterstock
John’s autobiography offers up other revelations about his close friend, according to theDaily Mail, including details about their brief falling out, as well as their reconciliation following the death of their mutual friendGianni Versace.
John has spoken about some of the trying moments in their friendship in the past.
During an interview on U.K. showLorrainein 2018, shortly beforePrince HarryandMeghan Markletied the knot, John spoke about Diana,calling her a “great friend.”
“She was very much loved,” he said. “She was a controversial figure in some respects, but not to me. I loved her because she did so much for AIDS and she was a great friend to me. We had a falling out, but we reconciled in the end. It was an extraordinary summer. Gianni Versace was murdered [on July 15, 1997], and then Diana rang me up and we reconciled. And six weeks later, I’m in the same house, and she’s dead. It was extraordinary, and I just couldn’t believe what was going on.”
John’s autobiographyMeis set to be published on October 15.
source: people.com
