Was Angelina Jolie a magnet for schoolyard bullies?
No way.
"I was actually quite a cool kid," the actress tells Parade magazine. "I was never teased. I never had any trouble from anybody."
But Jolie, despite her oft-mentioned fondness for tattoos, knives and daredevil stunts, clarifies that she wasn't all that hard as a kid. "I was not tough. I was certainly independent and bold… But I was never satisfied. I had trouble sleeping. I didn't really fit. I always feel that I'm searching for something deeper, something more, more."
As the daughter of Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight, Jolie, now 35, grew up around Hollywood types, but never became self-destructive. "Part of the sadness in this business is that there are a lot of people in it looking for approval and love," she says. "I'm lucky because I was raised with so much love that I can take a lot of knocks and not take anything personally."
She nods to stars who weren't so lucky: "There are many people we've seen lost in this business because other people haven't stopped to make sure they're OK, you know? People are aware when others are breaking, but in this town they don't tend to stop and help them. In the end, it costs a life."
Brad Pitt's longtime love also dishes on how she plans to give their kids a spiritual education. "Brad and I are raising our children to respect everyone," she says of Maddox, 8, Pax, 6, Zahara, 5, Shiloh, 4 and twins Vivienne and Knox, who turn 2 this Monday.
"We have a bookshelf in the house that has the Bible, the Torah, the Koran, everything. We will take our children to church, temple, Buddhist ceremonies, Mosques, teaching them about all faiths. Whatever religion they choose, the choice will be theirs."
