LONDON – Arnold Schwarzenegger's former housekeeper has spoken out about having a child with the ex-governor, saying her son Joseph only learned about a year ago who his father was.
Mildred Baena has kept a low profile since the revelations of her affair with the former California governor sparked a tabloid frenzy.
The scandal exploded into public view after Schwarzenegger and wife Maria Shriver announced in May that they were splitting up after 25 years of marriage. Then came an admission by the former two-term governor a week later that he fathered a child with a member of the household staff. Baena reportedly worked for Schwarzenegger and Shriver for 20 years.
In an interview published Tuesday by Hello! magazine, Baena said that when her now 13-year-old son, Joseph, learned who his father was his response was simply: "Cool!"
The mother and son posed for the magazine in one of the first published pictures of Joseph - both with slight smiles, Baena perched behind her son with her hand on his arm.
Baena said she wasn't initially certain Schwarzenegger was the father but started to see a resemblance in her son as Joseph grew older.
"It became more apparent as time went on," the former housekeeper said. "I knew Arnold was the father, and maybe as Joseph got older and began to look like him, he (Arnold) wondered. But he never said anything to me."
She said Shriver also grew suspicious as whispers circulated in the household over the similarities between Joseph and her boss. Baena said Shriver finally asked "point blank" if the boy was Schwarzenegger's son, and was "so strong" when faced with the truth.
"She cried with me and told me to get off my knees," Baena said. "We held each other and I told her it wasn't Arnie's fault, that it takes two."
Schwarzenegger has put his Hollywood comeback on hold to sort out his personal life in the aftermath of the scandal, and Baena stressed that the former governor is "a good man."
"I know he's suffering too," she said. "He loves Maria. I hope with time they work things out."
Copyright © 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
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