JERRY HALL embraces me warmly. I have just arrived at the Bel Air estate where she lives with her husband of three years, the media mogul Rupert Murdoch. As the three of us stroll through light-filled rooms adorned with impressive modern and Aboriginal art, they’re keen to show me their pride and joy just beyond the patio: Moraga Bel Air winery. Rows of grape vines are surrounded by majestic eucalyptus trees under which trestle tables are being prepared for the winery’s 30th-anniversary celebration tomorrow. Hollywood stars, studio heads, and talk-show hosts—from a dazzling guest list comprising more than 150 luminaries—will soon be descending, as will a smattering of Murdochs and Jaggers gathered from all corners of the globe (including Sir Mick himself, who recently performed at the Pasadena Rose Bowl with the Rolling Stones). Having known Jerry for a long time, I’ve always admired her generous capacity for family and friendship, and although I am here to discuss her and her daughters’ involvement in the fight for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment, today it is her hostess duties that preoccupy her.
While a relaxed Rupert oversees arrangements armed with his iPhone, Jerry and I settle into comfortable chairs with their Goldendoodle lounging at our feet. I remark on how well she looks, in a coral T-shirt, a Dolce & Gabbana rose-patterned skirt, bare legs, and sandals. She grins, saying in her inimitable Texas drawl, “I must say, I’ve gained weight with all this good living. We’re going on a diet after the party. Too much delicious food and wine!” She’s even more radiant than the whippet-thin Jerry Hall of the 1970s, who posed for Norman Parkinson in a white bathing suit against a turquoise sea in Russia, and spread siren-like across rocks on an album cover for Roxy Music. “My life has certainly changed,” she says. “Rupert is the most wonderful husband. He’s so easy-going. Such beautiful manners.” She leans forward confidingly, lighting an American Spirit cigarette, “I’m so happy!”
When news spread of Jerry’s marriage to Murdoch, there was a great deal of speculation among both her friends and the showbiz world as to what she saw in a man 25 years her senior. A cynical press weighed in, but as I observe their playful and affectionate interaction, it’s easy to see the appeal. Perhaps Rupert, with his courtly attention, offers the kind of emotional protection that she was no longer receiving from Mick? “I had a lot of fun with Mick, the music people were wonderful, we traveled the world, we did so many fun things, but he is who he is, you know. He’s a bit of a ladies’ lad, isn’t he?” she asks with an ironic laugh. “To feel secure and loved now is the most wonderful thing ever.” After four children and many years together, she and Mick split 20 years ago after one too many of his notorious affairs came to light. “Well, you don’t want to constantly be having to keep an eye on someone who’s talking to some woman at a party. That’s a bore!” Jerry stretches out the word “bore” and says, “But I love his girlfriend Melanie. She’s beautiful and sweet,” she says. “I don’t know, maybe he’s settling down. Finally!”
Jerry herself has certainly settled down. “I started working in Texas when I was 11, first babysitting and cleaning stables, then waitressing, modeling, doing theater and films, and now I’m completely retired and I love it! It’s heaven!” Recently, however, she has been “lured out of retirement” by her daughters, Lizzy and Georgia May Jagger. Along with brothers Gabriel and James, the family is united in its determination to help pass the Equal Rights Amendment. This proposed change to the U.S. Constitution is designed to guarantee equal rights for all Americans regardless of sex. It also seeks to end the distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, and employment. “I was so pleased to see that the ERA has been brought up as a campaign promise in the Democratic debates,” says Jerry. “The women’s vote is so important, and our Constitution should include language that protects us from sexual discrimination.”
First introduced in 1923, the ERA was passed by Congress in 1972, but by 1977 only 35 states had ratified it (38 are required for it to pass). Most recently Nevada and Illinois joined the coalition. Unfortunately, a vote to make Virginia the 38th state failed in the state legislature this past February. The Jagger daughters and their mother are determined to use their influence in any way they can, joining fellow boldfaced names Patricia Arquette, Alyssa Milano, Reese Witherspoon,Gillian Anderson, and Paris Hilton to highlight the issue. “The Constitution was drafted a long time ago and the world is very different now,” says Georgia May, who is bringing awareness of the ERA via social media.
Jerry and her daughters have clearly done their homework on the subject. “The main thing we are trying to do is educate people on what their rights are,” says Lizzy, who helped her friend and filmmaker Kamala Lopez produce the award-winning 2016 documentary Equal Means Equal. “It’s one thing to talk about it, but you have to actually go to Congress and say, ‘I am not leaving until you do something about it!’ The other day, a 90-year-old woman came up to me and said, ‘I am so happy you are taking this up.’ I was thrilled!”
Jerry is bursting with pride for Lizzy. “She dresses up and knocks on congresspeople’s doors and fund-raises. She won’t take no for an answer! She has this sweetness about the way she speaks to people. I tried to instill in my daughters the same values my mother passed down to me. She taught me to always be positive yet fight for what you want.” And their involvement is very much a family affair: “Mick wrote to legislators, and Rupert paid for several newspaper ads because he believes in equal rights for women.”
Family is obviously very important to Jerry, but with such a large extended one—Mick has eight children, four with Jerry, and Rupert has six—one can’t help but wonder how she copes with sheer logistics. “To have peace is critical. Nowadays families are complicated. There are the mothers of earlier children, the mothers of later children, exes. But you have to stop yourself from being combative and paranoid because basically we’re all humans just trying to be happy.” So what’s her secret? “I make sure they’re all invited to things and try to ensure everyone feels included,” she says. “I don’t forget their birthdays and Christmas. I can’t say I’m an expert, though. After my split from Mick, I was angry and bitter, but that’s normal. It was 20 years ago, a long time ago, and we’re good friends now.”
How does she feel about the #MeToo movement? “All these guys who abused their power in the movie industry, it’s really wrong,” Jerry says. “It’s great that they’re shining a light on it. People should be held responsible for how they behave. But I also think the pendulum has swung a bit far. I mean, people today are afraid to say hello in the elevator!”
Rupert interrupts to say that lunch is ready. His sister Janet has just arrived with her husband and daughter from Melbourne. Beside an oblong swimming pool surrounded by pots of roses and agapanthus, at a table laid for six, we tuck in to a lunch of Merguez sausages and salad, washed down with excellent Moraga Bel Air red wine. The conversation turns to David Hockney (due to paint the couple) and Jerry’s online wine courses at UC Davis.“You learn about winemaking, the history of wine, types of grapes, everything to do with viticulture,” she says. “Soon I start on the chemistry part, which is more difficult.” (Earlier Lizzy had joked, “She’s not really retired. She’s become a sommelier!”) After an affectionate exchange of presents—a miniature silver platypus for Jerry and a silver wombat for Rupert—his niece Penny tells a funny story about how she introduced the two, singing the praises of each to the other when in private. “I just knew they were made for each other, but Rupert’s so shy, I had to give him a little push because he thought she was too famous for him!”
The next day at the barbecue, Jerry greets her guests in a sleeveless pale blue dress with a motif of black flowers. She is carrying a parasol to shade her face. The Murdoch and Jagger tables are placed next to each other, bedecked with white tablecloths, roses, and napkins. Rupert gives a charming speech about the winery, which he bought from its original owner in 2013. Dressed in a white cap and shirt, Mick looks relaxed, flanked by Lizzy and his oldest daughter Karis, as family photos are taken. As the mariachi band plays and the party conversation swells, Jerry slips, smiling, into the photograph. Retirement suits her beautifully.
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