LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Singer, actress, and fashionista Cher has been married twice. She was married to Sony Bono from 1964 to 1975 and the pair had a child, Chaz. The chart-topping musician was then married to Greg Allman from 1975 to 1979 and they welcomed a child named Elijah Blue. That said, it is also worth noting that Cher had a slew of love affairs with Warren Beatty, Gene Simmons and Tom Cruise to name a few. However, one particular romance that she holds close to her heart is her time with Val Kilmer. The 'Strong Enough' hitmaker once recalled how their relationship was “too intense and hot” for her to handle.
Cher and Kilmer got together in the '80s. In his memoir, 'I'm Your Huckleberry', Kilmer said he first met Cher in 1981 when he was at a Manhattan restaurant and a "lady friend" told him the songstress was eager to meet him. Kilmer, however, was not too interested in pursuing her. "Her name shocked me to the point that I spit out my spaghetti while exclaiming, 'No!'" he wrote, adding, "I saw Cher as a less-than-fascinating character out of the gossip rags. I was not motivated to meet her, not out of snobbery but simply because I was sure we had nothing in common."
'We constantly laughed at the same things'
On the other hand, Cher recalled her first encounter with Kilmer differently. "I met him at a birthday party my friend was having for me. She said, 'I invited this guy, and I think either you or my friend who's an editor will like him,'" she told People. "We became friends because we constantly laughed at the same things. He would sleep over, and it was just a friendship [at first.] That took a long time. Well, I guess not really a long time," she added.
Having married and divorced twice, Cher felt her relationship with Kilmer came "the closest to working." She described him as “sensitive, artistic” and with a sense of humor. The singer also never forgot how he was "a great kisser," once revealing that locking lips with the 'Top Gun' star was like nothing she had ever experienced and that her head "would shoot right off" when their lips met.
What's more? Kilmer was not only loved by Cher but also by her son Elijah Blue, who told VH1's 'Behind the Music' that Kilmer was his favorite among his mother's boyfriends growing up. "He gave me a human scalp for my birthday, and from then on, I just loved him," he reportedly said.
'We called ourselves Sid and Ethel'
That said, even after the two broke-up, it wasn't the end of their relationship. They remained close friends, and when Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2015, he stayed with his ex-girlfriend in her home.
During a recent fan Q&A, Cher named Kilmer and Meryl Streep as the most inspiring artistes she has ever worked with. "I once did an audition with Val for a playhouse we wanted to be a part of, and while we were doing this scene, I forgot what I was doing and just stopped and watched him," she said. The 'Believe' hitmaker also recounted the special nicknames they had for each other. "We called ourselves Sid and Ethel," she recalled, adding, "Val didn't want to yell 'Cher,' and I didn't want to yell 'Val.' We also called ourselves Valus Maximus and Cherus Reprimandus. It was just kind of who I was in the household. Of course, he was Maximus; come on."
According to Cher, however, they were both alpha males and this caused some tension in their relationship. "We had unbelievable times and then put up with some times when they weren't [that way] because we were both Alpha males. We were both individuals, and neither of us was going to give up on that," she admitted, addimg, "He's an artist. He can be a brat, too, but you forgive him. You forgive him everything. Even when I was angry, it was still a joy. If he called, it wouldn't matter where I was; I would go. I loved him—and I love him."
