The Onassis Family: A Real-Life Greek Tragedy|希腊船王

At first glance, Athina Roussel is like any teenage girl. She has shy smiles and long dark hair. She likes listening to pop music, hanging out1 with school friends, and riding her horse, Arco. Athina is the last living child of Greek tycoon2 Aristotle Onassis. And when she turns 18 in January 2003, she will take control of about $2.4 billion inheritance3. It was left by her mother, Christina Onassis, who died at the age of 37.
　　The richest girl in the world grew up quietly in Switzerland with the family of her French father— Christina's fourth husband —Thierry Roussel. Athina admits she knows little about her family history or her grandfather. “I want to forget the name Onassis,” Athina once told an Italian magazine. “It's the cause of all the problems.”
　　Who can blame her? All the bodyguards and armor plating4 in the world can't protect you from a curse. Misfortunes happened one after another to the shipping tycoon not long after he married Jacqueline Kennedy in 1968: the death in an air crash of his beloved son, Alexander; the suicide of his first wife, Tina; the diagnosis5 of his own incurable illness.
　　In truth, Aristotle Socrates Onassis' life had always been marked by extraordinary highs and lows. He was born on January 20, 1904, near the port of Smyrna in Turkey, where his Greek father was a wealthy businessman. When he was only 8, his mother died from kidney6 disease. Then, on September 9, 1922, Turkish troops attacked Smyrna. Eighteen-year-old Aristotle and his father just escaped with their lives.
　　After living in Athens for a brief period, the ambitious young man set out to make his fortune in Argentina. There he began a tobacco importing business and made his first million. Then he went to New York to pursue his dream of starting a shipping company. Aggressive7, smart, charming, and always willing to take a risk, Ari soon gathered the largest fleet of tankers8 in the world.
　　In 1946, at age 42, he strengthened his position in the shipping industry by marrying beautiful, blond Tina Livanos, the 17-year-old daughter of Stavros Livanos, the founder of Greek shipping. The couple had two children: Alexander, in 1948, who inherited9 his mother's elegant good looks, and Christina, in 1950, who took after her sad-eyed, stout10 father. In traditional Greek fashion, both parents favored their son, especially Tina. As a result, Christina would grow up with weak self-respect.
　　The Onassis family lived a life of extreme luxury11, with homes all over the world. In 1953, in order to avoid paying high taxes on his wealth, Ari obtained a majority share in SBM. It was the company that controlled the nightclubs and hotels of Monte Carlo, and had long been a tax-free refuge for the rich. The following year he bought a Canadian navy ship and changed it into a luxurious yacht12 he named the Christina. It would be the family's main home for the next 21 years.
　　It was on the Christina in the summer of 1959 that Ari began his affair with Maria Callas, when the New York-born diva13 and her husband joined the family for a three-week voyage. Though Ari was short, stout, and certainly not handsome, women surrendered easily to his forceful personality and intense14 dark eyes. The tycoon's legendary charm and generous gift-giving also won their hearts. “If women didn't exist,” he once said, “all the money in the world have no meaning.” In Maria, Ari found a soulmate. Their romance was a burning passion, and continued for years, leading both to divorce. But rather than marry her once he was free, Ari set his sights on a grander prize15.
　　In late 1964, he began to court the most admired woman in the world, the former first lady of the United States, Jacqueline Kennedy. Ari had come to know Jackie well in 1963, when his then-lover Jackie's sister, Lee Radziwill—invited her to join them on the Christina to recover from the death of her newborn son, Patrick.
　　On October 20, 1968, Aristotle Onassis, age 64, married Jacqueline Kennedy, 39. The gossip among their friends was that Jackie had married Ari for his money, and that he had married her for connections and reputation. If that was his plan, however, it failed when Americans reacted to the union with scorn16.
　 “The perfect match—my father loves names and Jackie loves money,” sneered Alexander at the wedding. Neither he nor Christina ever got along with their stepmother17.
　　Though pleasant for the first few years, the marriage soon went sour. It was due partly to Ari's restlessness (only a week after exchanging vows18 with Jackie, he was in Paris attempting to restart his affair with Maria), and partly to his growing anger over Jackie's extravagant19 spending habits.
　　In January 1973, came the catastrophe20 from which Ari never recovered. His beloved Alexander was killed when his private plane crashed upon takeoff. The accident strangely foretold21 the death of Alexander's stepbrother, John F. Kennedy Jr., twenty years later.
　　The loss of Alexander threw the family off balance. The following year, Christina attempted suicide. That October, a depressed Tina succeeded where her daughter had failed. Those close to the family suspected that Tina Onassis had intentionally overdosed22 on sedatives23. Whispers of a “Jackje jinx24” began to spread.
　　They got louder in 1974, when Ari was diagnosed with the incurable disease myasthenia gravis25. The once vital tycoon went downhill26 fast. As the illness affected his facial muscles, he had to use tape to hold his eyelids open. He died on March 15, 1975, from complications27 following gall bladder28 operation. In his will he divided his fortune between Christina and the Alexander Onassis Foundation, created to support the art and culture of Greece. Christina would later pay Jackie a $26 million settlement29 to avoid any contest of the will.
　　If she was angry, Jackie didn't show it. With her trademark grace and poise30, she made the following public statement: “Aristotle Onassis rescued me at a moment when my life was engulfed31 with shadows.... I will be eternally grateful.”
　　The task of running the Onassis empire32 now fell to Christina. She had been preparing for the job ever since Alexander's death just over two years earlier. She proved to be a tough and gifted businesswoman. Unfortunately, her accomplishments in the office were overshadowed33 by numerous unhappy love affairs and four failed marriages.
　　Her first marriage, in 1971, was to a good-natured California millionaire 28 years older than her. With little in common, the couple separated politely the following year. Her second husband was a Greek playboy. Christina soon realized that he had little interest in anything but her money. They also split quickly. In 1978, she married her third husband, a Russian communist. Although she loved him, the couple divorced when she found herself ill-suited34 to life in a one-bedroom, cold-water flat behind the Iron Curtain35.
　　After her third divorce, Christina drew back to a life of luxury. She attracted the attention of her old friend, French playboy Thierry Roussel. The pair married in 1984, settled into a villa36 on Lake Geneva, and Christina gave birth to her only child, Athena, on January 28, 1985.
 Christina doted on37 her baby daughter, but the child's home life was far from happy. Christina argued constantly with Thierry over his wasteful spending and, before long, realized he was seeing other women. Even after she learned that he had started a second family with a Swedish model, Christina fought to keep their marriage together. She even agreed to cover the costs of Thierry's life with his mistress38, but it was no use. The couple divorced in 1987.
　　Depressed over the breakup of yet another marriage, Christina decided to start over in Buenos Aires. After major plastic surgery39, she moved to Argentina and plunged back into her social life. Just three months later, on November 19, 1988, the 37-year old heiress40 was dead. Though the death certificate read simply “pulmonary edema”41, most assumed that the edema was brought about by an overdose of sedatives.

乍看起来，阿蒂娜·鲁塞尔和普通的十几岁女孩没什么两样。她脸上带着羞怯的笑容，有一头乌黑的长发。她喜欢听流行音乐，和学友们一起玩耍，还喜欢骑她那匹名叫阿可的马。阿蒂娜是希腊船王亚里斯多德·奥纳西斯惟一活着的后代。2003年1月满18岁时，她将可以支配约24亿美元的遗产。这是她37岁便去世的母亲克里斯蒂娜·奥纳西斯给她留下的。
　　这个世界上最富有的女孩在瑞士长大，与法籍父亲——克里斯蒂娜的第四任丈夫迪须·鲁塞尔——的家人住在一起。阿蒂娜坦承对家族史或祖父知之甚少。“我想要忘掉奥纳西斯这个名字，”阿蒂娜曾告诉一家意大利杂志，“它是一切问题的根源。”
　　谁能责备她呢？全世界的保镖和防弹装甲都无法保护你免受诅咒之灾。自希腊船王1968年与杰奎琳·肯尼迪结婚后不久，厄运便接连不断：爱子亚历山大死于坠机；第一任妻子蒂娜自杀身亡；他本人被诊断出不治之症。
　　事实上，亚里斯多德·苏格拉底·奥纳西斯的一生始终伴随着不同寻常的坎坷起伏。他于1904年1月20日出生在土耳其的士麦那港附近，其父是当地富甲一方的希腊商人。他才8岁那年，母亲便死于肾病。1922年9月9日，土耳其军队进攻士麦那。十八岁的亚里斯多德和父亲侥幸得以逃命。
　　在雅典生活了一段短暂的时间，这个雄心勃勃的年轻人便启程去阿根廷自谋财路。在那里，他开始做烟草进口生意，赚到了他的第一个一百万。接着他前往纽约去追求开办船运公司的梦想。阿里闯劲十足、聪明过人、魅力非凡，且从来敢作敢为，很快便组建起世界上最大的油船队。
　　1946年，42岁的阿里同希腊船舶业创始人斯塔夫罗斯·理瓦诺斯之女、17岁的金发美女蒂娜·理瓦诺斯联姻，巩固了他在船舶业的地位。他们生有两个孩子：儿子亚历山大1948年出生，继承了母亲的优雅外貌；女儿克里斯蒂娜1950年出生，长相酷似眼神忧郁、身材矮胖的父亲。受希腊传统的影响，父母均偏爱儿子，母亲蒂娜尤甚。因而克里斯蒂娜的自尊心从小就很脆弱。
　　奥纳西斯一家的生活极其奢华，住宅遍布世界各地。1953年，为了免交高额的财产税，阿里买下了SBM的多数股份。这是一家操纵蒙特卡洛市夜总会和酒店的公司，长期以来是富人的免税庇护所。第二年他又买下一艘加拿大军舰，把它改装成一艘豪华游艇，命名“克里斯蒂娜”。它成了这家人此后21年的主要住所。
　　1959年的夏天，正是在“克里斯蒂娜”号游艇上，阿里开始了他与玛丽亚·卡拉斯的风流韵事。当时那位纽约出生的著名女歌唱家携丈夫同阿里家人共度为期三周的海上旅行。阿里身材矮胖，当然谈不上英俊，但女士们轻易就被他强有力的个性和热情深邃的双眸所俘虏。大亨传奇般的魅力和一掷千金的赠礼也博得了她们的芳心。“假如没有女人，”他曾说，“世界上的一切金钱有何意义。”在玛丽亚身上，阿里找到了灵魂伴侣。他们的罗曼史是燃烧的激情，持续了数年，导致双方婚姻解体。可是一旦自由后，阿里并没有娶她，而是把目光投向了一个更显赫的目标。
　　1964年末，他开始追求世界上最受崇拜的女人、美国前第一夫人杰奎琳·肯尼迪。阿里1963年就和杰姬熟识了，当时他的旧情人——杰姬的妹妹李·拉兹维尔——邀请她到“克里斯蒂娜”游艇上做客，帮助她走出新生儿帕特里克夭亡的阴影。
　　1968年10月20日，64岁的亚里斯多德·奥纳西斯与39岁的杰奎琳·肯尼迪结婚。他们的朋友中有传言称杰姬同阿里结婚是图他的钱，而他则图她的社会关系和名声。可是，假如他的计划果真如此，那么当美国人对此婚姻报以轻蔑时，该计划便告失败了。
　    “真是天造地设的一对——我父亲喜欢结交名人，杰姬酷爱金钱，”亚历山大在婚礼上讥讽道。他和克里斯蒂娜从未同他们的继母和睦相处过。
　　虽然头几年令人愉快，但他们的婚姻很快就变了味。这部分是由于阿里的不安分（同杰姬互致婚誓后仅一周，他就到巴黎试图重续和玛丽亚的旧情），部分则因为他对杰姬奢侈的花钱习惯越来越恼怒。
　　1973年1月，发生了令阿里一辈子伤心不已的灾难。他的爱子亚历山大的私人飞机在起飞时不幸机毁人亡。奇怪的是，这次事故预示了二十年后其同母异父兄弟小约翰·肯尼迪之死。
　　亚历山大的早逝使这个家庭失去了平衡。第二年，克里斯蒂娜自杀未遂。同年十月，精神抑郁的蒂娜步女儿后尘，并结束了自己的生命。与这个家庭关系密切的人们怀疑蒂娜·奥纳西斯故意服用了过量的镇静剂。有关“杰姬厄运”的传言不胫而走。
　　这类闲话到1974年变得沸沸扬扬，因为此时阿里被确诊患有不治之症重症肌无力。曾经活力充沛的船王江河日下。当疾病影响到他的面部肌肉时，他只能靠胶带让眼皮张开。1975年3月15日，阿里死于胆囊手术后的并发症。在遗嘱中，他把财产分割成两部分：一部分留给克里斯蒂娜，另一部分留给亚历山大·奥纳西斯基金会，这是一个为扶持希腊文化和艺术而创立的组织。克里斯蒂娜随后要付给杰姬一笔2600万美元的转让金，以避免引起任何遗嘱纠纷。
　　即使杰姬很气恼，她并没有表现出来。她以她特有的优雅和镇静的神态，发表了以下公开声明：“当我的生活被阴霾吞噬的时候，亚里斯多德·奥纳西斯拯救了我……我对此永存感激。”
　　此时，经营奥纳西斯帝国的重任落到了克里斯蒂娜的身上。自亚历山大两年多前去世之后，她就一直在为此做准备。她证明自己是一个坚韧不拔、极具天赋的女实业家。不幸的是，她的出色的管理业绩因多次不愉快的恋爱经历和四次失败的婚姻而黯然失色。
　　她1971年第一次结婚，嫁给一个比自己年长28岁、性情温和的加利福尼亚百万富翁。由于缺少共同语言，两人第二年便友好地分手了。第二任丈夫是一个希腊的花花公子。克里斯蒂娜很快就发现除了她的钱，他别无兴趣。他们很快也分道扬镳。1978年，她和第三任丈夫、一个俄国共产党人结婚。虽然她很爱他，但还是离婚了，因为她发现自己很难适应在冷战的铁幕背后，只有一间卧室和冷水供应的公寓生活。
　　第三次离婚后，克里斯蒂娜再次回到奢华的生活中。她吸引了老朋友、法国花花公子迪须·鲁塞尔的注意。两人于1984年结婚，住进了日内瓦湖边的一座别墅。1985年1月28日，克里斯蒂娜生下她惟一的孩子阿蒂娜。
　　克里斯蒂娜对宝贝女儿宠爱有加，可孩子的家庭生活却远远谈不上幸福。克里斯蒂娜因为迪须的大肆挥霍同他争吵不断，且不久意识到他在和别的女人约会。但即便得知他已和一个瑞典模特另辟新家，克里斯蒂娜还是竭力维持他们的婚姻。她甚至同意负担迪须和情妇的生活费，但仍无济于事。两人于1978年离婚。
　　婚姻的再次破裂令克里斯蒂娜十分沮丧，她决定赴布宜诺斯艾利斯开始新的生活。经过大的整形手术，她移居阿根廷，一头扎入社交生活。三个月以后，1988年11月19日，这位37岁的船王继承人告别了人世。尽管死亡证明书上只写着“肺水肿”，但大多数人猜测那是由过量服用镇静剂所致。