Andrew Cunanan gunned down fashion designer
Gianni Versace on July 15, 1997, after a murderous rampage through high society — with "Friends" star
Lisa Kudrow surviving her own encounter with the star-struck psycho!
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Photo credit: Getty Images
Lisa was at the peak
of her "Friends" fame when she found herself at Cunanan's side during a Hollywood dinner party in April 1997. He sat next to her on a couch and talked to her all night about his acting ambitions. A pal said: "Lisa told me, 'This guy really gave me the creeps...He was this intense, strange person who wouldn't leave me alone. He had this wild look in his eyes, and he kept talking and talking-about himself."
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"He told me what a great actor he would be," Lisa reportedly continued, "and he dropped name after name. I was so uncomfortable, I was trying to think of anything to get away from him. And when no one came over to rescue me, I decided to say that I had to go to the bathroom — just so I had a reason to get up and get out of there!'"
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Los Angeles-based writer Todd Haynes remembered being a guest at the dinner party, which was held in a rich divorcee's Spanish-style apartment on Sunset Boulevard. Wearing an expensive Rolex watch, Cunanan arrived at the party with his boyfriend David Madson — who would soon become Cunanan's second murder victim. Madson even took a photo of Lisa and Cunanan that was missing from Madson's apartment when his body was discovered.
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"Lisa was sitting drinking a glass of wine and nibbling on a salad," remembered Haynes. "Cunanan immediately focused on her, sat by her side and wouldn't leave. She kept looking away and he would tug on her shoulder to get her attention again. The more she tried to get away, the more irritated he would become. When she finally walked away, he looked furious."
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Haynes added Cunanan then bragged about how much money he had and said he would fly everyone, including Kudrow, to Mexico for the weekend. "The hostess later said to me, 'You have to understand that Andrew is a little nuts.'" That wasn't lost on the showbiz contingent who were terrified as Cunanan avoided capture— before finally committing suicide in the bedroom of a Miami houseboat on July 23, 1997.
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