Claudine Longet, French Pop Star and True-Crime Figure, Dead at 84

"On March 21, 1976, Longet shot Sabich in their Aspen home. She claimed the gun went off when he was trying to teach her how to use it; prosecution contended she shot him intentionally. Longet was charged with reckless manslaughter, and her defense was paid for by ex-husband Williams. He would escort her to and from the courthouse every day. The police mishandled much of the evidence, and Longet was eventually sentenced to 30 days in jail."

"She was allowed to pick the days she would spend in jail, and she served most of her time on weekends. The Rolling Stones wrote a song about her weekends of imprisonment, “Claudine,” which appeared on the Some Girls deluxe reissue. Longet eventually married one of her defense attorneys, Ronald D. Austin. They lived together until her death."

"Longet was born in 1942 in Paris, France. She moved to America and began acting and singing in the '60s. She was a frequent guest on The Andy Williams Show, and she and Williams eventually married. Longet starred in The Party, a Peter Sellers-in-brownface comedy that eventually inspired Mike Myers's The Love Guru."

"After her trial, Longet lived quietly in Aspen. Her cover of the Beach Boys' “God Only Knows” was featured on the Gilmore Girls soundtrack. Her music also appears in Pineapple Express and The Politician."

Claudine Longet, born in 1942 in Paris, moved to America in the 1960s to act and sing. She appeared frequently on The Andy Williams Show and later married Williams. She starred in The Party, and her later music appeared in Pineapple Express and The Politician. Longet is widely known for the 1976 death of Olympic skier Vladimir “Spider” Sabich, whom she shot in their Aspen home on March 21, 1976. She claimed the gun discharged while he was teaching her to use it, while prosecutors argued she shot him intentionally. She was charged with reckless manslaughter, sentenced to 30 days, and served most time on weekends. Her cover of “God Only Knows” appeared on the Gilmore Girls soundtrack.

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