Claudine Longet Went From Beloved Singer to Infamous Killer

Claudine Longet Went From Beloved Singer to Infamous Killer

After Claudine Longet fatally shot her boyfriend, she received a measly fine and a short sentence. But before she even finished serving it, she flew off to Mexico with a new lover. And his identity was the biggest bombshell of all. Claudine Longet had a singing voice that was soft and ethereal. But after hearing her story, it can sound demented. After she lost one romantic partner, she decided she would do whatever it took to keep the next. The mystery surrounding what happened to him sent Longet into a courtroom for one of the most talked about trials of the 20th century. Once the judge made a decision, Longet’s next outrageous act confirmed her place in pop culture infamy forever.

Claudine was born in 1942 in Paris. From an early age, she knew she wanted to entertain people. As a teenager, she would dance for tourists. She had no idea that this little side hustle would lead to something big. Claudine ended up on TV. And once you’re on the airwaves, anything can happen. A nightclub promoter by the name of Lou Walters saw her and wanted her to dance at his nightclub in Las Vegas. Longet threw caution to the wind and was soon dancing at the Tropicana. Being French was an asset as the show was the Folies Bergère. And this was the first time it had hit an American stage.

Claudine was having trouble with her car in Las Vegas when a kind gentleman pulled over to give her a hand. That man was none other than singer Andy Williams. At this point in his career, he’d already had hit records in the United States and Britain. There were much bigger things headed his way, but for now sparks flew between him and Longet. On December 15th, 1961, they walked down the aisle. A year later, Williams’ career really began taking off. He was invited to sing at the Academy Awards in 1962. The song was Moon River for the movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s. His star was rising fast, and he soon had an offer to star in his own TV show.

Claudine spent the first few years of her married life with Williams having children. They had three in total, but being the wife of a singer with his own TV show also had its perks. She appeared as a guest on The Andy Williams Show more than once. She also appeared on TV shows with hosts like Bobby Darin and Tom Jones. But she also wanted to act. In 1963, she appeared in multiple episodes of the sitcom McHale’s Navy playing the love interest of Tim Conway’s goofy Ensign Parker. Once again, she used her French background to her advantage. What followed were numerous guest appearances in TV shows like 12 O’Clock High, The Name of the Game, and Hogan’s Heroes.

Her 1966 appearance on Run for Your Life likely seemed like just one more guest spot, but there was a difference. First of all, her episode was the first season finale of a very popular show, and she was also given a song to sing. The song would ultimately change her career. Something about Longet’s singing on Run for Your Life captivated audiences. One such audience member was Herb Alpert, who just so happened to be a co-founder of A&M Records. When Longet met him at a New Orleans club, her life took a drastic turn. Alpert was so sure about Longet’s success as a singer that he offered her a contract right there and then, beginning her 4-year association with A&M.

With hit songs under her belt and a famous husband on her arm, it was easy for Claudine to make friends with influential people. She and Andy Williams became friends with Senator Robert F. and his wife Ethel. They would spend weekends at Williams’ California homes or Kennedy’s Hickory Hill home in Virginia. On June 4th, 1968, Longet and Williams had plans with the Kennedys to go to the exclusive LA nightclub, The Factory. The Kennedys first had to attend the Democratic Party presidential primary. Longet and Williams were watching the TV in a suite in the Ambassador Hotel, the same place where the primary was taking place. That’s when they heard something that sounded like gunshots.

Claudine and Williams rushed to the Good Samaritan Hospital where doctors announced that Kennedy had succumbed to his injuries. Years later, Longet and Williams named their third son Robert in tribute to their friend. Now that Claudine was a recording star, an exciting film offer arrived. In The Party, she got second billing to Peter Sellers, who’d already made a huge name for himself in The Pink Panther series. One problem some critics had with The Party was that a white man was playing an Indian. A lot of that criticism fell apart when the Prime Minister of India said she was a huge fan of the movie. This news was good for Claudine. She was in a box office smash hit that would later become a cult film.

Instead of capitalizing on her success away from the shadow of her husband, Longet decided to record music with Barnaby Records, a label owned by Andy Williams. Longet’s marriage to Williams was beginning to fall apart and the couple legally separated in 1970. Both parties said the separation was completely amicable. After all, they had three children to raise together. In 1972, Claudine attended a celebrity ski race on the California ski mountain Bear Valley. There she met former US Olympic team member Spider Savage. Many considered Savage to be one of the most desirable men in America. He was rich, handsome, athletic, and single.

Claudine made a big move and brought her three children to live with Savage in Aspen, Colorado. At first, things went well, but then Savage must have wondered what he’d gotten himself into. The most eligible bachelor in America was suddenly living the life of a father of three. Reports say that he was thinking of ending the relationship and going back to the life of a single man. Somehow, Longet must have figured this out. From the outside, the relationship seemed to be going well, but something happened in March of 1976 that suggested otherwise. Savage had plans to go out and he hadn’t invited Longet. He was getting ready to take a shower when she entered the bathroom. That’s when Savage saw what was in her hands, a pistol.

What happened next is still a complete mystery. What we do know is that Savage ended up shot in the abdomen. He didn’t make it to the hospital alive. He died due to blood loss in the ambulance with Longchamps by his side. Now, there was only one person who knew what happened in the bathroom that night. All eyes turned to Claudine. She had some explaining to do. Police almost immediately charged her with manslaughter. Before the trial, Longchamps’ ex-husband, Andy Williams, flew into Aspen to be at her side and pay for her lawyers. Longchamps’ story went like this. Savage was showing her how to use the pistol and it accidentally went off. Which seems strange as the report said that he was preparing to have a shower.

It seems weird that he would stop getting ready to shower and suddenly start giving Longchamps a pistol maintenance class. Authorities took a blood sample from Claudine which showed that she had used cocaine sometime before the incident. This didn’t sound like something a person would do before innocently handling a pistol. During the trial, Longchamps insisted that she and Savage had a good relationship that was moving forward. Officers got a hold of her diary, which actually said the opposite. The relationship was going south. The drugs in her system and the diary ended up becoming huge evidence against Longchamps. But then something came out in the trial that changed everything.

Perhaps the Aspen authorities lacked experience with a case like this one because they handled it poorly. First off, they hadn’t received a warrant for taking Longchamps’ blood sample or for confiscating her diary. Both of these pieces of evidence went out the window. Of course, having the weapon right there should have helped make this an open and shut case. But again, Aspen authorities made a mess of it. One inexperienced officer on the scene wrapped the pistol in a towel, then put it in his glove compartment and left it there for several weeks. With errors like these, it looked like Longjie would leave the courtroom a free woman.

Longjie’s story of Savage teaching her about pistol use and accidentally getting shot didn’t correspond with the autopsy report. According to the report, when the pistol went off, Savage was standing almost 2 m from Longjie. He was also bent over. Even more suspiciously, he had his back to her. This didn’t sound like the position someone would be in when they were demonstrating something. The prosecution couldn’t use a lot of the evidence due to errors made by the Aspen police. The jury would have its job cut out for it. The trial had taken 4 days, but the jury only took 4 hours. Claudine Longjie was guilty. It looked like she’d be away from her kids and behind bars for a long time.

But this guilty verdict wasn’t what you might expect. What the jury actually convicted Longjie of was only a misdemeanor, negligence. What this meant was that she had to pay a fine of just $250. But there would be time behind bars. Again, the judge was lenient. He gave her a 30-day sentence, which she could serve on weekends. Longjie must have been on cloud nine, but not everyone was happy. Savage’s family had lost their beloved son in what seemed like an obvious murder. The perpetrator was getting no more than a slap on the wrist. And then Longjie did something to stoke their anger. Her ex-husband Andy Williams had paid for her legal defense. Her lawyer was Ron Austin.

The crazy thing is that before Longet had even served her paltry sentence, she went off on a holiday to Mexico with Ron Austin. Even worse, Austin left his wife and family to be with Longet. The Savage family was now out for revenge. Longet had gotten away with fatally shooting their son and even found an immediate replacement lover in her lawyer. Savage’s family were angry and they wanted revenge. In May 1977, they filed a civil lawsuit against Longet. The Savage family took Claudine Longet to court and they wanted justice. What they got was an out-of-court settlement. All we know from this is the fact that Longet can never discuss or even write about the settlement or what happened that night in her bathroom in Aspen, Colorado.

Authorities closed the case and Longet prepared to disappear. After the trial, she decided to try to keep out of the spotlight. Of course, it didn’t help when she married the man who had helped her avoid a lengthy prison sentence. In 1985, she tied the knot with Ron Austin. Strangely, they decided to reside in Aspen, where local residents still eyed her with suspicion. In 1978, the Rolling Stones included a picture of Claudine on the cover of their album Some Girls along with a host of other famous or infamous women. Their next album also included a song called Claudine, which had lyrics like, “She shot him once in the head and there’s blood in the chalet.” The band’s lawyers had clearer heads than the Rolling Stones and told them to drop the song from the album.

In 2008, the band reissued Some Girls with Claudine on it. Eventually, Longet decided it was time to leave Aspen. In 2023, Longet and Austin sold their Aspen property for close to $60 million at their advanced ages. The climate of the Rocky Mountains was getting to be too much. The couple moved to their Hawaii home and lived peacefully enjoying the island lifestyle. But while Claudine Longet relaxed on the beach, there were people back in Aspen who can’t quite forget that infamous night. The prosecutor on the case against Longet was Frank Tucker and he was pretty sure that Longet was guilty. He once gave a quick synopsis of what happened at her trial. He said, “When a celebrity walks into court through the front door, justice walks out the back.”

Well, you see Kevin, it’s a natural mistake. It is the way of the French to On May 14th, 2026, Claudine Longet died at the age of 84. Her career achievements and many happy years with Andy Williams were overshadowed by her involvement in her ex’s death and headlined nearly every obituary for the one-time singer and actress. If you enjoyed this Factinate video, give it a thumbs-up and subscribe for more incredible stories. Your support means everything to us. If you want to say in who we cover next, join our membership program through the link in the description for exclusive perks and check out the videos on screen for more amazing Factinate stories.