Robert Blake saw a lot to love in Bonny Lee Bakley. She was smart. She was charming. And, best of all, she put out on the first date.
Such was the actor's testimony Thursday as his wrongful-death civil trial continued in Burbank, California. "There aren't many women who will simply sleep with you and get on the bus, if you know what I mean," Blake offered, per City News Service, in tribute of Bakley, whom he made his bride in 2000. "...With Bonny, pathetically, a part of me required that, you know, 'Help me make it through the night, and I'll see you later.' "
Blake and Bakley's relationship began as a would-be one-night stand at a Los Angeles hotel in 1999. Later, their sacred union was shattered in May 2001 when she was shot to death in Blake's car, then parked outside the star's favored Italian restaurant in Studio City, California.
Los Angeles police and prosecutors charged that Blake, after failing to convince aging stuntmen to "whack," "pop" and "snuff" Bakley, pulled the trigger himself in a bid to gain control of the couple's daughter, Rosie, now five.
A jury acquitted Blake of all criminal charges in March. Bakley's family has picked up the thread, seeking civil damages from Blake for the murder. In his fourth day on the stand, the 72-year-old Blake, who did not testify during the criminal trial, said no when asked if he shot Bakley, and said no when asked if he hired a hit man.
"I loved Bonny," Blake said, per the Associated Press, "and always prayed to God to get a little light in there." The warm-hearted words for his late wife were in contrast to the "venting" that Blake admitted he was prone to doing when the subject turned to Bakley or her family, also known as "those monsters."
Under questioning by his own attorney, Peter Ezzell, Blake sought to show his tender regard for the woman his camp long ago branded an ex-con scam artist. According to reports, Blake described Bakley as "extremely intelligent," "resourceful," "cunning" and oh so "charming." "She could charm the eyes off a rattlesnake," Blake said by way of attempted compliment.
In earlier testimony Wednesday, Blake declared that his commitment to his rattlesnake charmer was real. Why, if she hadn't been plugged after they dined out that night back in 2001, Blake had brought a loaded gun (not the murder weapon) along on the date out of "security concerns." Blake and Bakley were going to go the distance, he told jurors. "There was a clear understanding that Rosie belonged to me and Bonny," Blake said, per the AP. "She was ours, and we were going to raise her."
Oh, sure, Blake recounted Thursday, there were times when he and his beloved didn't see eye to eye:
- Like the time she proffered her teenage daughter to him, and he declined.
- Or the time he wanted her to get an abortion, and she declined--even after he ponied up $250,000 in incentives.
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