Christie Brinkley Says Billy Joel Was Her 'Soulmate'
The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover star was married to the "Piano Man" singer between 1985 and 1994, with Christie describing him as her "soulmate" in the book. (We love how her memoir is named after one of his most popular songs, which he reportedly wrote about her!)
The pair shared a glamorous, jet-setting life during their nearly decade-long relationship, but ultimately, the "Just The Way You Are" singer's struggle with alcohol became too much for the National Lampoon's Vacation actress to handle.
The supermodel had very kind words to say about her second husband, who she reportedly is the closest with out of her four ex-husbands, and wrote: "I do think that we were probably really soulmates, it was an amazing time of my life."
"I had so much fun. We were such nomads, gypsies – just between his job and mine, we were seeing the world… it was wonderful, really wonderful," she reflected.
Christie Brinkley Recalls Being Concerned For Billy Joel's Safety After Alcohol-Fueled Disappearances
Despite their deep and enviable connection, the ageless supermodel said that she "couldn't live" with an alcoholic anymore, and recalled troubling instances where his disappearances left her feeling anxious and afraid for his safety.
In one particularly heartbreaking instance Brinkley recalled in the book, the "New York State of Mind" singer reportedly vanished during their daughter Alexa Ray's fifth birthday party, and didn't return for two days. Brinkley recalled the panic that consumed her at the time, writing that she had "visions of his car wrapped around a tree," adding that she was overcome with "a panic I couldn't shake."
The former face of Cover Girl also shared incidents where he disappeared during Thanksgiving, and another time when she locked him out of their hotel room after pictures surfaced of him with an Australian actress. When he finally returned, she says he was "visibly and audibly drunk," and allegedly threw a chaise longue through the patio doors, shattering the glass.
The Breaking Point That Caused Christie Brinkley To Ask Billy Joel For A Divorce
Christie went on to say that the breaking point came on a day when the five-time Grammy winner was rehearsing with his band at their East Hamptons home, and drunkenly accused them of eating his pasta, despite him eating it all himself. "He was acting delusional in a way I'd never seen before," she confessed, before stating that she asked him for a divorce the following day.
Despite the chaos, Brinkley emphasized that ending the marriage was not what she wanted, and said that she tried everything to save their relationship. "To be clear, I never wanted to end things with Billy," she confirmed
Brinkley went on: "I read every self-help book I could find… we went to see a string of psychiatrists, psychologists and other medical doctors. But the drinking was bigger than the both of us. Booze was the other woman and it was beginning to seem that he preferred to be with her rather than me."