Written With the Stars
Interviewing the likes of a celebrity may seem like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for many, but for Taris Savell it was a commonplace in her life. And the accomplishments of her life’s work are still praised to this day.
Riddled throughout her home at St. James Place are photos and memorabilia from her adventures as a celebrity journalist. From classic authors, to Hollywood's greatest, to U.S. presidents, Taris, an LSU alumna hailing from Pensacola, has met them all.
But a career like this doesn’t happen overnight. Taris earned her recognition in the journalism world through years of slowly building contacts and relationships, and leading through each celebrity encounter with a kind, earnest and an easygoing nature.
Some of her most famous interviews with personalities like Elvis Presley, Doris Day, Betty Davis and Jimmy Carter — to name a few — were successful because of her lax and authentic interview style. “My biggest tip for interviewing is to be natural, don’t be unkind and do your homework,” Taris said. “It’s a conversation, that’s all it is.”
While her plethora of notable interviews are grand stories worth listening to—like running her fingers through President Ronald Reagan’s hair or getting an interview with To Kill a Mockingbird’s Harper Lee when no one else could — there is one story that has recently perpetuated a pique in national interest of her interviews.
“I was the last person to interview Jayne Mansfield before she was killed,” Taris said. With a documentary detailing Jayne’s life coming up, the Library of Congress reached out for the recording of the interview.
Now, the Library of Congress has purchased nearly 400 recordings from Taris, from each of which she still has photographs and autographs.
Even with such an illustrious career, Taris credits the interest in her stories to the connections she has made over the years. “It’s about their lives, showing people what their lives are like — that’s what I did.”
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