The Hollywood star Tom Selleck of Magnum P.I. fame is opening up about the iconic moment in which he danced with the late Princess Diana during the state dinner that was held at the White House in November of 1985 in both her and her then-husband Prince Charles’ honor.
Selleck’s Magical Night With The Royals
Others attending this dinner included the then-President Ronald Reagan and first lady Nancy Reagan and the Hollywood stars Clint Eastwood and John Travolta.
In his new memoir “You Never Know,” Selleck recalled feeling “anxious” to meet the royals, but he immediately found Diana to be “charming and graceful and beautiful,” adding that Charles had the rare skill “of making you feel like you were important to him in your moment together.”
Fox News reported that at the end of the dinner, everyone in attendance made their way to the East Room for music and dancing. There, President Reagan and Diana danced while Charles danced with Nancy, but after the first song, Travolta and Diana danced together.
Selleck and Eastwood opted to stay off the dance floor, but they were soon approached by a woman who was “speaking very rapidly.”
“Mr. Travolta and the princess are dancing for a second time together,” she told Selleck. “We can’t have that. We don’t want to start rumors, do we? Mr. Selleck, you must step in and replace him.”
“‘I’M NOT CUTTING IN ON JOHN TRAVOLTA!’ was my reply, probably in too loud a voice,” Selleck remembered. “She was not happy. ‘Very well. The next dance, come with me.’”
Watch Selleck talk more about this in the video below.
Related: Tom Selleck Begs CBS To Save ‘Blue Bloods’ From Cancellation – ‘We’re Winning Our Night’
Selleck Dances With Diana
True to his word, Selleck walked over to Diana and began to dance with her. At the time, he was just thankful that “it was a slow number.” He was insecure about his dancing skills after “not having been schooled in ballroom dancing,” joking that he definitely “was not going to dip the Princess of Wales.”
Selleck eventually apologized to Diana for what he felt like was his lack of dancing skills, but she wasn’t having any of it.
“Princess Diana was lovely, and there was a very shy quality about her in spite of her being well schooled in the art of conversation,” he recalled. “I gotta say she seemed to be having the time of her life. I was relieved she talked most of the time. Let’s just say it was not my finest hour as a conversationalist.”
Watch Selleck tell this story to David Letterman in the video below.
Related: Tom Selleck Reveals Devastating Impact ‘Blue Bloods’ Cancellation May Have On His Life
Selleck’s Future Wife
Selleck attended this dinner with his future wife Jillie Mack, who he would go on to marry two years later in 1987. He still remembers Mack dancing with Charles, who allegedly told her afterwards, “I was so happy you rescued me. All of Nancy’s friends kept stepping on my toes.”
“The prince asked Jillie for a second dance. Clint took over for me, and I got to dance with my friend Nancy,” Selleck concluded.
Sadly, Diana would go on to die in a devastating car crash in 1997 at the age of 36. Selleck continues to act to this day on the television show “Blue Bloods,” which is currently airing on CBS.
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