Mia Farrow in court recalls distraught Polanski

LONDON - Hollywood actress Mia Farrow said Roman Polanski was in "really bad shape" when he was alleged to have tried to seduce a woman in a restaurant while on his way to his slain wife's funeral.

In a libel case that has shone a spotlight on the film director's promiscuity, Farrow described him as distraught during an evening they spent together in 1969 at Elaine's restaurant in New York.

Polanski is suing the publishers of Vanity Fair for a 2002 article which alleged he tried to seduce a "Swedish beauty" at Elaine's, although the magazine now admits the incident took place several weeks after Sharon Tate was buried.

"He was in really bad shape at that time," a soft-spoken Farrow told a packed London courtroom. Farrow starred in Polanski's 1968 film "Rosemary's Baby".

Wearing a black trouser suit and gold blouse, the 60-year-old recalled how she and Polanski left the restaurant and walked around the block.

"He was unable to talk about anything else. When we walked around and around, he kept saying 'Why?' and 'Who could have done this?'"

Under cross examination from Vanity Fair's lawyer, Thomas Shields, Farrow admitted there were parts of the evening that remained hazy in her mind, although she insisited she remembered the "central part".

Shields suggested Farrow may have left Polanski at Elaine's, and that the alleged incident may have taken place then.

When asked what she thought about Polanski's own admission of having casual sex with women shortly after Tate's murder, she replied:

"I feel there's a big distinction, especially for a man, between relationships and having sex. I could never pass judgment if someone in that frame of mind seeks comfort in any way that does not harm anyone."

TEARS, TRUTH

Polanski has appeared in the London courtroom via video link from Paris as he is wanted in the United States after pleading guilty to having sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1977.

He would risk extradition if he came to England to fight his case but cannot be extradited from France, where he was born.

Shields has focused on Polanski's private life and patchy memory of the late 1960s to undermine his objections to the article.

Addressing Polanski, Shields said he had an "inability to tell the truth when it matters", and added: "The line between fantasy and reality has been hopelessly blurred."

The director responded by questioning the memory of those who said the incident took place at Elaine's.

"I am more and more astonished by this phenomenal memory these people have," he said.

Polanski has admitted in court to having sex with a woman within one month of Tate's death, and within four months of the murder seeking solace in sex with "nubile" teenagers from finishing school in Gstaad, Switzerland.

Tate was stabbed to death in 1969 by followers of the Charles Manson clan when she was eight-and-a-half months pregnant.

He burst into tears on Tuesday when questioned about photographs of the murder scene he was shown by police in 1969. Debra Tate, Sharon's sister, also cried in court.

In the witness box, she described Polanski as an "absolute wreck" around the time of Tate's death.

"He was heavily sedated to the point that he couldn't walk without assistance."

- REUTERS