Cher Reflects On Suicidal Thoughts During Marriage To Sonny Bono: ‘I Couldn’t Imagine Any Other Option’

In her newly released memoir, Cher reflects on the challenges she faced during her marriage to Sonny Bono, shedding light on the difficulties behind their celebrated public partnership.

The book explores their journey from friends and roommates to an impulsive marriage in an apartment bathroom. It reveals the darker aspects of their relationship, including Bono’s infidelity and controlling behavior.

Cher describes how the strain of their marriage took a significant toll on her mental health, leading to moments of despair. In one instance, she recounts experiencing suicidal thoughts while staying in a Las Vegas hotel suite in October 1972.

“There I was, twenty-six years old and in what had become a loveless marriage,” she writes. “Sonny had given me the vehicle and the confidence to become the somebody my mother always told me I would be, and then he just lost interest.”

She continues: “I stepped barefoot onto the balcony of our suite and stared down. I was dizzy with loneliness. I saw how easy it would be to step over the edge and simply disappear. For a few crazy minutes, I couldn’t imagine any other option. I did this five or six times, and each time I’d think about Chas, my mother, about my sister, about everybody and how things like this could make people who look up to me feel that it’s a viable solution, and I would step back inside.”

These struggles occurred before Cher achieved solo stardom and before her acclaimed performances in films like Moonstruck, Silkwood and The Witches of Eastwick.

The couple separated in 1974, and Cher began a two-year relationship with record producer David Geffen. Their divorce was finalized in 1975, after which Cher married rock musician Gregg Allman just four days later.

Despite their difficulties, Cher and Bono maintained a friendship until his death in 1998. The pair even reunited professionally for The Sonny and Cher Show, which aired from 1976 to 1977.

Throughout her memoir, Cher recalls often seeking Bono’s advice and support after their divorce. She also delivered the eulogy at Bono’s funeral at the request of his fourth wife, Mary.

The revelation is one of many in Cher’s new memoir. Last week, the singer made headlines when a passage from the book revealed that the late record producer Phil Spector pulled a gun on her early in her career.

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