Sonny Bono 1991: His Side of the Cher Story | Dini Petty

Sonny Bono on Sonny and Cher, the marriage the whole world watched, and the book he wrote to close the door on it. Filmed in 1991 for The Dini Petty Show, with his memoir And the Beat Goes On just out. He called it his swan song. Sitting with Dini Petty, the man behind "I Got You Babe" answers the rumor that he was a Svengali who controlled Cher and "let her out two weeks a year," and gives his own account of who used whom. What he says about the woman he built a career with, and what he believes she knew eleven years before she walked away, is the version you have not heard. Sonny Bono went from pop stardom to Mayor of Palm Springs to the U.S. Congress, and died in a skiing accident in 1998. Cher's own memoir, which calls their marriage loveless, publishes its second half in November 2026. This is his side, in his own words, unseen since it first aired. CHAPTERS 0:00 Sonny Bono and "And the Beat Goes On" 1:02 The Svengali accusation 1:40 Cher's response to the book 2:43 David Geffen and Cher's way out 4:44 His favorite story: an old-money New York dinner 6:17 Sex, drugs and rock and roll, without the drugs 7:16 Sonny and Cher in England, 1965 7:52 Dinner with Salvador Dali 10:13 Congressman, Mayor, President? 11:33 A second chance at fatherhood ABOUT THE DINI PETTY SHOW The Dini Petty Show was a Canadian daytime talk show that aired on CTV from 1989 to 1999. Broadcast from Toronto, the show ran for ten years and featured in-depth conversations with Hollywood legends, music icons, politicians, and cultural figures. Dini Petty's warm yet probing interview style earned the show multiple Gemini Award nominations and a loyal audience across Canada. This channel is the official archive of The Dini Petty Show. Most of these interviews have not been seen since their original broadcast. New conversations from the vault are uploaded weekly. Subscribe to never miss a piece of television history. #SonnyBono #SonnyAndCher #Cher #DiniPetty #VintageInterview