NEW YORK -- Mia Farrow was selective in interviewing her 7-year- old daughter about alleged sexual abuse at the hands of Woody Allen, a former nanny testified Monday at the couple's bitter child custody trial.
Under direct examiniation by Allen's attorney, Elkan Abramowitz, child nurse Monica Thompson said in state Supreme Court she was at Farrow's rural home in Connecticut last August when Farrow began questioning Dylan, asking, 'What did Daddy do?'
'Did Daddy ask you to take off your underwear?' Thompson quoted Farrow as asking.
'Dylan had her head hanging down and did not seem interested in the conversation,' Thompson testified, saying she did not hear the child's answer.
She said she continued to watch the interrogation and notice Farrow turned the video camera off and on as the child's interest in the conversation warranted.
'She'd turn it off when Dylan didn't seem particularly interested,' Thompson testified.
Allen is seeking sole custody of Dylan, their adopted son, Moses Farrow, 15, and his biological son with Farrow, Satchel Allen, 5.
Farrow filed a countersuit for sole custody after discovering last year that Allen, 56, was having a love affair with another of her adopted children, Soon-Yi Previn, 22.
Allen claims Farrow's jealousy over Soon-Yi precipitated the child abuse allegation, which he has vehmently denied. A panel of abuse experts at Yale-New Haven Medical center exonerated him of the charge last month but Connecticut state police are still investigating.
Thompson said she began to work for the actress when Dylan was 2 months old and also was nanny to Satchel. Both she and another witness, Jane Martin, testified that Farrow was not a good or fair mother and showed favoritism between her seven adopted children and her four biological children.
'It was more like a foster home with all those kids,' Thompson said. 'I noticed that the adopted kids did most of the chores -- the cooking and the shopping -- and her biological kids didn't do much.'
Martin, a longtime Allen associate, said Farrow treated one of her adopted daughters, Lark Previn, 19, 'like a pack mule.'
'She was treated unfairly, relegated to pushing the stroller, lugging diaper bags and baby sitting for the children,' Martin said. 'She was like a little scullery maid.'
Thompson said that when Farrow, 47, wanted to adopt another child last year, she put it to a vote by her children and they 'did not agree with her.'
She said Farrow went ahead anyway and adopted Isaiah Farrow, then 8 months old.
Thompson also testified that Farrow struck her children and mentioned an incident with Moses, when Farrow couldn't find her dog's leash when she wanted the pet taken for a walk.
'Miss Farrow thought it was Moses who lost it, and she slapped him across the face,' Thompson testified.
Thompson testified that she was with Soon-Yi at Farrow's apartment the day Farrow found out about the affair by uncovering nude pictures of her daughter in Allen's apartment. She said Farrow phoned Soon-Yi with accusations then came home to confront the girl in her bedroom.
'She took Satchel inside the room with her,' she testified, indicating she disapproved of exposing a small child to such a vituperative situation.
Under cross examination by Farrow's attorney, Eleanor Alter, Thompson admitted that she quit Farrow's employ the day after she received a subpoena to testify on Farrow's behalf. She appeared at the trial before Justice Elliott Wilk as a witness on Allen's behalf.
She said Allen had loaned her $4,000 and was paying for her attorney for the proceeding.
Thompson testified she was interviewed about the abuse allegation last August by Connecticut police and lied when she was asked if Farrow was a good mother.
'I answered 'yes' which I didn't mean,' she said. 'I was afraid of losing my job.'
