Ten Questions with Gabriel Roberts:

When I was first approached to do an interview with Gabriel Roberts, I was a little intimated. Sure, I had met him before. We swapped a few stories, discussed a few songs and the idea of love at first sight, but an interview? He rarely gives them. An interview with him is just about as rare as his elusive signature. If you don’t already know, which I’m sure you do, Gabriel Roberts is considered one of the most bankable movie stars in Hollywood. Even more so, he is considered one of the most beautiful men in the world.

Standing at six feet tall, he speaks with a heavy Irish accent. He has skin as smooth as ivory, expressive and sincere brown eyes, and hair that could possibly be the love child of James Dean and Edward Scissorhands. He’s not your everyday movie star, but then again he is. He is peculiar and hard to understand, and he can be all too reclusive for his passionate fans. But at his request, I agreed to do the interview. His only other request: that it be short and sweet.

We’ve agreed to meet at a pub in Letterkenny, one of the largest towns in County Donegal, Ireland. He is passing through, on his way to meet a friend, he says.

The pub is quiet, except for the mellow sound of James Taylor singing “Something in the Way She Moves.” His eyes alone seem to be brightening the dimness of the bar.

I stir in my seat a bit while I watch him take a drink of his pint of beer. He settles in and smiles at me.

ARW: Hello, Gabriel. It’s nice to see you again.

Gabriel Roberts: (He points a finger at the ceiling) I love this song. (He grins)

ARW: You do?

Gabriel Roberts: One of my favorites.

ARW: One of mine too. They don’t make music like this anymore.

Gabriel Roberts: Agreed. Nice accent you have.

ARW: You too.

Gabriel Roberts: I love the accents from New Orleans. It’s one of my favorite places in the world. It feels like home to me.

He looks down at his beer for a moment, his thick eye lashes fanning his cheeks. He smiles an extremely crooked smile, and I’m not sure I’m going to be able to speak… I clear my throat.

ARW: I just wanted to thank you, Gabriel, for doing this interview today. I’m sure a lot of people will be interested in hearing your answers. As promised, this is going to be short and sweet. I thought I could ask you ten questions—to give your fans an insight into not just the movie star, but also the man behind the makeup. I’ve seen your interview with James Lipton from Inside the Actors Studio. Would it be all right if we go over your answers to the ten questions he asked you?

Gabriel Roberts: All right by me.

ARW: Gabriel, what is your favorite wo—

Gabriel Roberts: Let’s get back to that one.

ARW: All right. What is your least favorite word?

Gabriel Roberts: Separation.

ARW: What turns you on?

Gabriel Roberts: Dreams and passion, and maybe a mighty fine beignet.

ARW: What turns you off?

Gabriel Roberts: Suppression.

ARW: What sound or noise do you love?

Gabriel Roberts: I love the sounds of sweet stillness, not silence, but stillness; a certain someone humming, laughter from children, music and Mirror.

ARW: What sound or noise do you hate?

Gabriel Roberts: I hate the sound of chaos; it rings in my ear like a constant, irritating buzz that refuses to go away.

ARW: What is your favorite curse word?

Gabriel Roberts: Shite, because it just about describes everything that stinks, doesn’t it? I mean, it’s so wrong, but somehow so right. That’s just shite, isn’t it? Oh no, you didn’t…. how shite! Shite, I ripped my pants.

ARW: What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

Gabriel Roberts: I’d love to try my hand at being an astronomer, studying stars and planets and galaxies; the thought appeals to me. Wouldn’t you like to dance on the stars? And I didn’t say “with,” I said “on.” Don’t get that confused in your article business.

ARW: What profession would you not like to do?

Gabriel Roberts: A therapist. The mind is much too complicated to have a go at.

ARW: If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

Gabriel Roberts: (He pauses, real thoughtful) ‘Well done, my boy, well done.’

(We both laugh for a minute. He’s childlike when he laughs.)

ARW: All right, no more avoiding it. What is your favorite word?

Gabriel Roberts: I got it now. Alchemy. Yes, alchemy is my favorite word. Just like with everything in life, perspective is a very personal thing. Two people can both be staring in the same direction, at the same thing, but in their eyes it’s two different places because their perspective of the scene is vastly different. And I believe it’s the same with words. When you hear alchemy, you may think of magic or fusion or what have you. When I think of it, I have always thought of a warm word in my mouth. And to me alchemy is the merging of the (he points to himself) natural with the (he points to the ceiling) supernatural. The merger of what we know to be true and what we must have faith to believe actually exists. Almost like a dream taking place in another time and place, but still knowing when you wake, in reality it’s still true.

ARW: Thank you, Gabriel. As always, your mind is fascinating.

He shrugs and takes another swig of beer before he takes my hand and we shake. He smiles one last time, takes his guitar, Mirror, from the seat beside him, and exits the building. And for an instant, I feel all the light has drained out with him.