NEW YORK (AP) - The former teen whom Roman Polanski was convicted of having sex with _ leading to one of Hollywood’s most notorious scandals and the director’s flight from the U.S. _ is writing a memoir.
Samantha Geimer, now 47, has a deal with Atria Books for “The Girl: Emerging from the Shadow of Roman Polanski.” Atria, a Simon & Schuster imprint, announced Tuesday that the book will come out next fall. According to Atria, Geimer will provide “insight into many dimensions of the story that have never previously been revealed.”
“I am more than `Sex Victim Girl,’ a tag the media pinned on me,” Geimer, who long ago identified herself as Polanski’s victim, said in a statement released through Atria. “My friends in junior high, scolded by their parents to stay away from that girl, also labeled me. I offer my story now without rage, but with purpose _ to share a tale that in its detail will reclaim my identity. I have been dogged by tired thinking and easy tags nearly my entire life. I am not a stick figure. I know what it is like to be a woman and a victim in the realest possible way.”
Financial terms were not disclosed. Geimer’s attorney, Lawrence Silver, will contribute to the book, adding “his insights on the many fascinating and even shocking legal aspects of the story.”
Polanski was accused of plying Geimer with champagne and part of a Quaalude during a 1977 modeling shoot at Jack Nicholson’s house and raping her. He was initially indicted on six felony counts, including rape by use of drugs, child molesting and sodomy, but pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful sexual intercourse.
In exchange, a Los Angeles judge agreed to drop the remaining charges and sentence him to prison for a 90-day psychiatric evaluation. He was released after 42 days by an evaluator who deemed him mentally sound and unlikely to offend again, but the judge threatened further sanctions and Polanski fled the United States.
The 79-year-old Polanski, whose films include “Chinatown” and “Rosemary’s Baby,” is restricted by an Interpol warrant in effect in 188 countries, but he moves freely between Switzerland and France. He was freed from Swiss house arrest in 2010 after the government refused to deport him to the United States.
Geimer sued Polanski in December 1988, alleging sexual assault, intentional infliction of emotional distress and seduction. In 1993, Polanski agreed to pay her $500,000 to settle the lawsuit, although years later it was unclear if he actually paid. She has said that she forgives him and has joined his bid for dismissal.
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