Claudine Longet was a big name in the 1960s and 1970s. As a singer and actress, she possessed quite a lot of talent. And being married to Andy Williams for several years also didn't hurt. However, the star's life changed due to one very specific event, and fans still can't tell whether or not she may also need to add "murderer" to her list of credentials.
Back in 1976, Claudine was linked to Olympic skier Spider Sabich. The alpine ski racer was quite popular in the United States. The two reportedly met at a pro-celebrity event held in California back in 1972 and quickly fell in love.
In fact, they were one of Hollywood's most intriguing couples. The two had an instant bond, but one night literally changed it for the both of them. Spider died due to a gunshot wound, and Claudine admitted that she was the one who fired the weapon.
Claudine claims the incident was an accident. The event happened in Aspen, Colorado, and Spider was killed with a single bullet. In her defense, Claudine said that the gun went off by mistake while Spider was showing her how to use it. Cocaine was reportedly found in her bloodstream at the time of the incident.
Throughout her trial, she was supported greatly by her ex-husband Andy Williams — even though the scandal also tarnished his clean public image. The two were initially married in 1961 and divorced in 1975 after a lengthy separation. It was during that separation that Claudine's romance with Spider blossomed.
Andy reportedly helped pay for Claudine's legal defense team and took her to and from court. Since the couple had three children together — Noelle, Christian, and Robert — they were always going to be part of each other's life. However, Andy must have truly thought that Claudine was innocent of the crime to put so much on the line.
Spider seemed serious about Claudine — so serious that he invited Claudine and her children to live with him. Since Spider was younger and enjoying a Hollywood life of recklessness, the change was very different. Fans believe that this move may have caused tension between the couple. And things got physical.
At one point, Claudine reportedly threw a wine glass at Spider after feeling as if she wasn't getting enough attention from him. While it's reasonable to peg this particular murder as an accident, and while Claudine was reportedly with Spider in the ambulance when he took his last breath, the gunshot reportedly doesn't match up with Claudine's story. Judging by the distance in which Claudine shot and where Spider was struck with the bullet, it's very unlikely that he was explaining to her how the gun worked.
One of the reasons why Claudine may have been let off with a minor penalty? The investigation screwed up in two big ways. For one, the Aspen police took a blood sample from Claudine. They also took her diary from her as evidence. But they did both without a warrant, which was unlawful.
After deliberating for roughly four hours, the jury chose to find Claudine guilty of the misdemeanor of criminally negligent homicide. The verdict established that she was guilty but let her off as being negligent instead of motivated by a failing relationship. Even with some of the evidence not matching up, jurors didn't think she was motivated to murder him.
Claudine started serving time on April 18, 1977. However, her 30-day jail sentence was broken up. And she was reportedly allowed to paint her jail cell, meaning that she didn't get the same treatment as other inmates. And she also found another love — her defense attorney, Ron Austin.
Since then, she's stayed under the radar. But people are still playing her music. No matter what happened that night, a prominent athlete lost his life and a starlet lost her career. Her last official album, Let's Spend the Night Together, was released in 1972.
Still, fans can't help but wonder what really happened that night. Was Claudine getting tired and weary over a crumbling relationship with Spider? Was the shot premeditated? Even though her diary revealed that the relationship was going through some hardships, was that enough for her to risk so much?
While she chooses to live her life privately these days, there are still plenty of pop culture references about her — for one, the song "Claudine" by the Rolling Stones. The song was recorded but unreleased. While her music is still being appreciated, many — especially those who live in Aspen — reportedly aren't over the incident.
"It's certainly acceptable — some might say desirable — for a female icon to radiate a sense of recklessness and danger," wrote British GQ. "But in Longet's case, the events of that Sunday afternoon shifted the emphasis so firmly from femme to fatale that, even now, many have not forgiven her." Keep in mind, this case was very heavily publicized back in the day.
In fact, many compare this particular case to the case of OJ Simpson. Not only did people mourn the loss of Spider, but they couldn't believe such a joyous personality had admitted to shooting him. Suddenly, the entire relationship between Spider and Claudine raised many questions.
Only Claudine really knows what happened that day. And based on what we know, even her own memory may have been slightly fuzzy. However, it seems like she tried her hardest to move past it. She had no problem saying goodbye to the public eye and starting a new life with her new love.
