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Show Marilyn Quayle—attorney, novelist, mother of three—has definite views about marriage, independence, beingin the public | spotlight and her family’s future: BEING TESTE MADE Dan and Marilyn Quayle, married for 21 years: They have a true partnership, she says. STRONGER T WAS SUCH an incredible experience. Mostof it was very good. The opportunity to be just a small part of historyis incredible. To be able to makea difference in a few people's lives was an extraordinary experience. The worst part, obviously, was not just the loss of privacy but thetotal distortion of the reputation of a very able and dear man.” The speaker is Marilyn Quayle, 44, a corporate attorney for more than a year now with an Indianapolis law firm, a mother of three, a part-time novelist and a wife who feels strongly about any ridicule the “Second Family” was subjected to during her bY 2M COVER PHOTOGRAPHBY GWENDOLENCATES husband’s tenure as Vice President. I went to see her in Indianapolis to try to understand Marilyn Quayle more fully and also to discoverthe direction of her life today—howshesees her marriage, her career and her future. Sitting in her bright cornerlaw office on the 28th floor, she described the imageof her husbandas presented to the American public as “totally unfair.” She added: “Nothing was based in fact. It was a feeding frenzy. | think most members of the media are now embarrassed about what went on. There were personalattacks and allegations that were proved to be untrue.” The hard part, she said, was what she perceived to be “the mean-spintedness andthe intensity of it.” She ob- who would reach high office to be of such differentpolitical leanings—who had different experiences and perceived the late '60s and early ’70s in a totally different way than they did.” Asked to compare the scrutiny of the Clintons with the Quayles’ experiences, Mrs. Quayle said, “Thereis no corollary. What they did to Dan were personal attacks with no basis in fact. What they are pursuing right now are some pretty serious allegations against the President and First Lady. Thatis totally different.” Does she think the inquiries interfere with President Clinton’s ability to function in office? “] think any time you have an Ad- served: “There was an intense hatred what I believe one ofthe thingstheyare looking for is obstruction of justice.. that does cause a problem,” she said behind [the attacks], and part ofthat was because Dan was, and is [at 47], of the generation of most of the media’s stars and journalists. Theydidn’t wantthefirst person oftheir generation EB S&S 6 - ministration thatis under scrutiny for. “They may say it doesn’t, but there have to be hours expended looking intoit.” Mr. Quayle gotoff to a rocky start WwW we mw. On her mariage: “I came to the determination that I probably would never get married. In 1972, to find a person who would admit to being a conservative and who had a strong faith and would accept a wife as an equal—I figuredI wouldn’t find anybody.” es during the Republican National Con- vention in August 1988 in the course of dealing with questions as to whether po- litical influence had helped him avoid military service in Vietnam. How does Mrs. Quayle feel the press handled her husband’s National Guard service as compared to Clinton's deferment? “They tried to compare it, and there is no comparison,” she said. “Dan honorably wore the uniform of his country, and Bill Clinton refused to and lied to get out ofit. Thatis a huge difference.” Marilyn Quayle met her husbanc T PAGE 4 JUNE 5, 1994 - PARADE MAGAZINE |