Robin Byrd Reveals Misunderstanding About Sarah Jessica Parker After Documentary Collaboration
Robin Byrd said she mistakenly believed Sarah Jessica Parker disliked her for three decades until Parker co-produced an HBO documentary about Byrd’s life.
Robin Byrd, a former adult-film actress who later hosted a long-running New York public-access television show, said she spent more than 30 years thinking Sarah Jessica Parker harbored animosity toward her. The belief stemmed from a brief encounter on Fire Island in the early 1990s, when Byrd was hired to escort a group of men in swimwear to a club for a movie promotion. Byrd recalled hearing Parker ask, "What is she doing here with them?" and responding with a retort, which led her to assume Parker disliked her.
Byrd discussed the episode during a bonus interview for the podcast Finding Fire Island. She said she finally raised the incident at the Tribeca Festival premiere of the HBO documentary Bang My Box: The Robin Byrd Story, which Parker executive-produced. After a red-carpet embrace, Byrd whispered to Parker that she had believed the actress hated her for decades.
"No! No! No!" Parker replied, denying the long-held belief.
Byrd noted the irony that Parker praised her work without realizing Byrd’s earlier television program was an early influence on the later series Sex and the City. The documentary debuted on HBO on June 30 and is now available for streaming on HBO Max.
