Digging up Charlize's bloody past

Published Mar 8, 2004

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While South Africa feted golden girl Charlize Theron on her return home, family members plan to challenge her version of the death of her father as she attends a presidential reception in Pretoria.

Theron's story is already the stuff of Hollywood legend: a young girl, terrified by her drunken father, witnesses her long-suffering mother shoot him dead in a desperate last attempt to protect them both.

Putting her troubled past behind her, she goes on to a brilliant movie career, last week delivering a tearful Oscar speech to the mother who made it all possible.

But, like all Hollywood epics, there is more to Charlize Theron's tale than meets the eye.

Now her uncle, Danie Theron, has given his account of that horrific shoot-out 13 years ago, claiming the woman portrayed as the helpless victim acting in self-defence, callously shot her husband in the back as he lay bleeding on the ground.

Danie, who was permanently disfigured when he, too, was shot that night, paints his sister-in-law as a fearsome, ambitious woman who betrayed her husband with an illicit affair. He was the only other witness to the shooting in Benoni.

Charlize kept the details secret for years, only recently revealing how, aged 15, she cowered in her bedroom as her father rampaged through the house threatening to kill her and her mother, Gerda.

But Danie casts doubt on that version. He spent that night with Charlize's father, Charles, who was drinking to forget the pain of his deteriorating marriage. But when they returned to the Therons' home, they found the gate padlocked. Charles took a .22 Browning semi-automatic pistol out of his pocket and shot at the padlock. He kept it for self-defence, Danie said.

"I was shocked and grabbed him, telling him to stop, but he was in a mad, furious rage. As soon as he went inside, I heard shots, so I ran in. I froze as I saw Gerda standing in the bedroom doorway pointing a gun at me. Without any warning, she fired. I didn't say anything or shout. I was in complete shock.

"I had raised my hands to cover my face and the bullet went through two fingers of my left hand. Blood spurted everywhere. I collapsed face-down, filled with fear, my heart beating faster and faster. I dared not move. I could feel hot blood running into my face and down the wall.

"Out of the corner of my eye I saw Gerda standing over me. She was barefoot, wearing a nightdress, holding the gun in both hands. I was sure I was going to die, but she left me there and walked back to her bedroom. As I ran for my life, I heard another shot. It was my brother, already shot three times and now struck in his back."

Danie still has the leather jacket his brother wore that night. It bears three bullet holes in the left sleeve, and a fourth in the back.

"We have not heard a word from Charlize since she left South Africa," said Danie.

"We still feel she is our little girl. And of course, we don't blame her for that night. It would be wonderful to have a phone call, but we have to watch her arrival on TV. That hurts."

Danie admits Charlize had a tough childhood. Charles and Gerda would shout and argue in front of Charlize, he recalls.

"She was aware of her prettiness and talent, but wasn't spoilt. But Gerda was always pushing her to make the most of her looks and pushed her into beauty contests when all she wanted was to ride her ponies.

"There were rumours of Gerda having an affair and I have reason to believe them. She is a strong, attractive woman and the marriage was breaking down.

"Things got very bad and Charles started drinking. He was frantically worried. He adored Charlize, but his wife just wanted her to achieve all the time. Charlize fell ill with exhaustion at the age of 12. She was growing away from her father, and by that night in June 1991, Charles was at his wits' end."

Less than a year after the shooting, Gerda remarried, but it ended in divorce. After a two-year inquiry, police decided she should not face trial, and mother and daughter headed for America, where Charlize could embark on a career that would culminate in her Best Actress Oscar for the film Monster.

In her emotional speech, she told her mother: "You have sacrificed so much for me. There are no words to describe how much I love you."

It seems the sentiment does not extend to other branches of her family, driven away by a painful, bloody rift.

But while the Benoni family is pushing Charlize away, the rest of South Africa can't get enough of the Oscar winner.

Although requests to meet her have been pouring in from across the country, it seems public appearances will be kept to a minimum. Nu Metro publicist Jarred Krombein said Charlize would only be in the country for about a week and would have to cram in a number of commitments.

He remained tight-lipped about her exact itinerary and said "nothing has really been finalised but her presence has been requested at a number of events".

The mayor of Benoni has asked to meet with her, as has the principal of the Johannesburg School of the Performing Arts where she was a student. Both President Thabo Mbeki and former president Nelson Mandela have asked to have lunch with her.

She has also asked for some leisure time during her visit, but on Tuesday she will grant monitored interviews to selected journalists in Johannesburg. On Wednesday she will be guest of honour at a charity banquet at Gallagher Estate, and on Friday she will jet into Cape Town.

Speaking on M-Net's Carte Blanche last night, Charlize said she planned to do more for South Africa - including in the fight against HIV and Aids - and exhorted other South Africans to follow her lead.

She said she was proud to be South African and promised to continue to do her best to promote the country. But also noted that while it was an honour to be considered a national icon, she felt others could do a lot for their country "because you don't need to win an Oscar to do that".

Carte Blanche's Ruda Landman asked if there was any significance to the ring on her finger - following tabloid rumours she was pregnant - prompting the response: "Yes, there is, you sneaky devil. We're (she and actor boyfriend Stuart Townsend) not engaged. We've been together for three years and I'm not with child. I'm a very lucky girl, and this is just a ring of love."

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