HH- Hello Mrs. Leakey. I'm very honored to be speaking with you today.
ML-
Aww, Thank you honey.
HH- No problem. So to begin I would love to know how did the work of Archeology spark such an interest in you?
ML- Well, when I was only 12 I traveled to Les
Eyzies to help my father sell some of his paintings. While I was there Elie
Peyrony, an inexperienced archaeologist, was excavating one of the caves there. It looked like so much fun that I got permission to go through one of Elie
Peyrony's dump. Going through this dump got me interested in prehistory and from there I started my own collection.
HH- Interesting. So did any of your family members also inspire you to become an archaeologist?
ML- Yes. Actually my cousin, Sheppard
Frere, was also an archaeologist. But the person that inspired me to get excited about discovering things was Abbe
Lemonzi. He was the village priest in the small town of
Dordogne, France. We moved there soon after I went to
Peyrony's cave. Abbe
Lemonzi became someone like a mentor for a time. We especially loved to explore
Pech Merle cave to discover prehistoric paintings of bison and horses.
HH- Wow! That must have been exciting! So I bet you knew a lot about this stuff once you started working as an archaeologist.
ML- Well, it was very hard for me to start a career because during my early education I did a lot of immature things and I goofed around a lot. I failed French class even though I was fluent in French and I even got expelled twice. But once I started my career I was very passionate about everything I did.
HH- You got expelled twice! How did that happen?
ML- Once I would not recite a poem and the other time I created an explosion in a laboratory. (laughing)
HH-
Haha. So you must have been against the rules of the people around you.
ML- Yes. The moral or philosophical beliefs at this time were very strict and you had to do well and exceed at everything you did. My mother was very strict about education but obviously I did not pay any attention.
HH- So did you know or have any friends who were famous scientists during the time of your work?
ML- Actually my husband, Louis Leakey, was a great contribute to the understanding of prehistoric times in Africa. My husband was also great friends with female scientists Jane Goodall and Dian
Fossey. When I say good friends I mean that Louis has an affair with these two women. By this time in our marriage I just focused on my work and raising my children.
HH- Wow! That must have been tough on you. So I know that you spent most of your career in Olduvai Gorge in the Serengeti plains of Northern Tanzania. What was the demographics of this area around the time you were working?
ML-
Hmm. Tanzania is a country in Africa and it is a good size country. It has great weather there. It usually never gets below 60 degrees and doesn't get much higher than 95 degrees. Olduvai Gorge is beautiful and there is rarely anybody there besides my digging crew and my family.
HH- Was the fact that you are a female limit you in your work.
ML- No. I did not face a lot of difficulty because of my gender but I did because I made poor grades in school. I knew of women all over Europe who were scientists. Women such as Inge
Lehmann and Margaret
Foutaine.
HH- So what were your limitations then?
ML- Well, as a person I never listened to anyone and I always did my own thing. I had a very care free personality and because of that I did poorly in school. I also broke up a marriage between my husband and his first wife. This is something that came back to bite me when my husband turned on me.
HH- Alright. What do you think were your major accomplishments in life?
ML- I think my biggest accomplishment was giving birth to three great sons, Johnathan, Richard, and Philip. But if you want to know my greatest accomplishments for my career then I would think it would be when my husband and I discovered a total of fifteen new
species and a new genus, which is a fossil organism.
HH-Woah! That must have been a lot of work! Well that concludeds our interview for today. Thank you so much for taking time to talk to me today.
ML- You are welcome.
