Lindsay's story isn't simply that of a spoiled star frittering away her talent, but also of a craven failure of family and friends to guide the young woman along an acceptable path. Essentially, Lindsay is saddled with the worst kind of parents: a mother who uses her daughter as a platform to launch her own delusions of grandeur, afraid to say no or take a stand; and a father so beneath contempt and mentally disturbed that he sits in a jail rotting, writing silly poetry and scribbling cartoons about his daughter.
Why no one has sat Lindsay down and FORCED her to check herself before she wrecks herself is beyond me. It just shows you that people will commit all sorts of acts of depravity and selfishness to get a glimpse of the good life, including selling out their own flesh and blood.
Another strange twist to this story is a (possibly dubious) report that Lindsay received support and the advice she needed from the most unlikely of places: Brandon Davis. For those unfamiliar (what, are you living in Canada or something?), Davis is not only friend of Paris Hilton and heir to oil millions, but the infamous ranter who gave Lindsay the "special" name, Firecrotch.
Davis, no stranger to addiction, has been a patient at the Promises clinic in Malibu (more than once), and he and Lindsay have seemingly forged a tenuous friendship after their famous rift. It is conceivable that he played some part in her steps to recovery. How sad that Lindsay may have found more hope and direction from a once-sworn enemy than from her friends and loved ones. And that, my friends, is how they roll in Hollywood.
So while Lindsay fights her demons, the worse of which is an inner circle of bloodsucking vampires and teeth-baring wolverines (excluding her younger siblings), a question remains: What's the appropriate course of action for those in the media in handling this type of situation?
I sat on this news for over a week, not really sure how I felt about covering it. In many ways I feel very motherly towards Lindsay, as I have my own young adult step-children whom I love. Anytime I have covered Lohan's mishaps, it was in the spirit of concerned warning and disapproval of her actions, rather than my usual sneering cynicism at abject celebrity failings. I like Lindsay fundamentally - at least as much as I am willing to like any celebrity. She deserves a fair chance to grow and screw up like any young person.
Article comments
1 - lori
Why anyone would allow -- never mind encourage or push -- their young child to become a "child star" is beyond me. The entertainment business is great for your checking account, but it's toxic to young people who don't know how to handle the (usually undeserved) fame and insane money. Not all child stars end up having big problems, but enough of them do. People are idiots when it comes to the well-being of their kids, I swear.
And all those Disney-created bubble-gum pop stars and actors -- ack! It's really sickening to see how those kids are nothing more than packaged products.
2 - Dawn
There are plenty of grounded young performers and behind almost every one of them are parents who are doing the job of parenting, not the job of being one more member of their entourage. As much as Lindsay is to blame, her mother and father and every person who has claimed to care about Lindsay is to blame.
No is not a dirty word, and love isn't always easy. I hope her mother is ashamed of herself.
3 - Kaonashi
Sadly, Dina Lohan is no different from Matthew Knowles (Beyonce's dad), Joe Simpson (Jessica and Ashlee's dad), Lynne Spears (Britney's mom), Kit Caulkin (Macaulay's dad), Richard Williams (Venus and Serena's dad), and many other parents of famous children, who have whored their children in the name of fame and money.
The first time I saw Lindsay was when she played twins in a remake of "The Parent Trap". She was only 12 years old, but she was such a good little actress. She was so cute, charming, and adorable. I thought she was also great in the remake of "Freaky Friday", and in "Mean Girls". It's hard to believe that this mess of a person who is on the cover of every tabloid every week is that same girl who had so much potential.
I find it ironic that Rachel McAdams, who played Lohan's bitchy, party girl nemesis in "Mean Girls", is actually the more respected and straightlaced of the two.
As for Perez, I have nothing but contempt for him. Since when was he the moral representative of online gossip rags? How pathetic. This is coming from a man who thinks it's terribly clever to use Microsoft paint to draw semen stains on celebrities' pictures and write "FAG" or "WHORE" above their heads.
4 - Dawn
Kaonashi, you summed it up succinctly, Lindsay had a real light to her, but it sure has dimmed as of lately. I hope she gets it together and maybe she can protect her younger siblings from the toxic relationship that is her parents. Mom is already beginning the whoring out process on young Ali.
It makes me really sad that people can't just let their kids be kids.
As for Perez, he is a disaster in the making. He has just enough brains to get him where he is, but not nearly what he needs to sustain himself. Being a pompous ass is no way to go through life, son.
5 - Mary K. Williams
Why no one has sat Lindsay down and FORCED her to check herself before she wrecks herself is beyond me.
Amen Sister!I've wondered that about many of these kids. Paris and Britney are now older, but still could use some decent role models.
Missed you Dawn! Glad to see you back honey.
6 - Phillip Winn
Such a nice view of Lindsay. :-)
7 - lala
she actually does not have a problem-its a publicity stunt. The first day she got there she said she was relaxing and watching American Idol having a good time. She was seen out and about a few days ago chatting on her cell phone like she always does. Rehab is not that easy people-you should all stop buying into her tortured artist facade. she is just the next Corey Feldman
8 - Matthew T. Sussman
Could Paris ever enter rehab? I think not, for she was never habbed to begin with.
9 - Dawn
lala, no one claims she is taking it seriously, merely that she has entered a facility, but all that aside, I beg to differ, she indeed HAS a problem.
Thanks Mary, nice to be back!!
As for Paris, she seems to like her weed - it fits her laid back, do nothing lifestyle, and I have yet to hear about someone going to rehab for a pot addiction.
10 - DJRadiohead
Sadly, Dawn, people around her FORCING her to rehab wouldn't have been the answer. It is vital the person with the addiction be ready to face the challenge of overcoming it. Many people get forced into rehab through one avenue or another, but because they didn't embrace recovery they found themselves in the same place.
I understand the intent in what you're saying, and you are coming from the right place there. If she had people around her who would have cared enough to force her into rehab some months ago, these same people might have been able to prevail upon her not to fall into the self-destructive trap in the first place.
11 - DJRadiohead
BTW... great to have you back and I look forward to chatting this up for BC Radio podcast.
12 - Dawn
I still believe the central and core issue with Lindsay are wretched, awful, horrible parents who have neither the care nor concern to do what's right for their daughter. It doens't help that Hollywood is full of enablers, liars, cheats and backstabbers.
Oooh, would I so get run out of that town. We will be chatting dude!
13 - lala
havent you all heard, she was fine at the Golden globes party, was rejected by james franco, then suddenly she ends up in rehab?? Great publicity especially because she asnt been making the rounds as much she needs the attention again. Sorry, but I worked as a PR for a couple musicians/actors, and even the nice one use publicity to some use. Yes, Lohan has a problem-she's an attnetion whore. She was just out grocery shopping acting normal about a few days before rehab. I dealt with one musician who entered rehab and it was a different story. He wasnt able to do what she has been doing. Rehab isnt that easy and it shouldnt be so publicized, but seems Lohan got her wish
14 - Dawn
lala, not sure how any of this relates to my story. No one denies that Lindsay is an attention-whore, clearly that is the case. But my central theme is that she has real problems that aren't being properly addressed. Whether her rehab stint is a PR stunt or not, isn't really the point. The point, once again, is she has problems and that sucks.
15 - lala
dawn, pr is a great way to influence people. Unfortunately, when bloggers and tabloid magazine focus on Lindsay's PR stunts, dramatizing her as a troubled "teen queen," her younger fans don't know any better whether to feel sorry for her, dislike her or to follow her suit. When she does these things, it makes it seem like she's implying having problems is cool, and going to rehab is cool. I know a lot of people in the business of PR and they say that Lohan is definitely one who wants o stay atop in the news. It is getting redundant and boring, so her "problems" should stop being talked about. A bunch of other people (celeb wise) are going through the same thing, but who cries the loudest? Lohan. So she really needs to step back and go away. If she's facing so much trauma of "being a star" she wouldn't publicize the fact that she's gone to AA meetings or to make up stories of abuse from others, mistreatment, or in this case, rehab. Now boo hoo that she's getting contradictory treatment from losers like PerezHilton. She has a choice to make as an adult to keep out of the Hollywood scene, but she chooses to pursue it, night after night going to clubs almost everyday. Her REAL problem that is not being addressed is her need for attention-for celebrity. Trust me. People can have problems and stay out of the limelight.
16 - lala
One more reminder-Lindsay's fans are all under the age of 18. In all honesty, her fans don't really go beyond that age. Older people are not interested in her, so technically, stories about Lohan subsequently read by tweens.
17 - Beth
I have loved watching Lindsay since her start with the "Parent Trap", and all the other films she has done since. I think her mother and father both need a wake up call and leave their daughter alone. They did to support her not try to make a name for themselves.
My sister was in a treatment facility for drug addiction when she was 15, now she's 43. She also has been verbally abused by our own mother and continually ridiculed. I stand by my sister and only want the best for her, which means I too have to distance myself from our mother. Our mother is a selfish, money hungry woman and also plays the public as a martyr. I wish Lindsay the best and hope that her family will realize that she needs them from a distance right now.
18 - Dawn
lala,
I appreciate where you are coming from, but don't you see the irony in your own suggestion? Clearly this isn't a girl who has her shit together, she has issues, real and very serious.
Attention whore or not, she needs some major help.
I guess I am not so jaded and neither are most people who are casual observers. You may be some kind of insider and think this kind of weirdness is typical, but for us regular folk it comes across as really very twisted and sick. And the fact that she is influencing america's tween girls is all the more upsetting.
You may be some kind of Hollywood mover and shaker, but I am a mom and I find any young woman this out of her fricken gourd a real concern.
19 - lala
yes- dawn i know what you mean, but if you also agree she is a attention seeker, and dont agree with what harm the media has done to her, dont be a part of it by writing about her. 75% of her fame has come from bloggers and tabloid magazines. It's sad to say but she is not that talented, she has worked to get publicity. I think this weirdness is all in her doing-I am truly concerned for the other individuals I have worked with who really were in trouble. In Lindsay's case it is a cat and mouse game with her and the media. That's what it is and either you believe it and are manipulated by it, or realize that most of her "public breakdowns" are stunts. As long as people dont take it so seriously as if Lindsay's life is their life, that's fine. If people could decipher bs from truth, then that's good too. Be weary of PR though, it really is a good exploitation tool in Hollywood. Thanks guys...
20 - Dawn
lala, I think your thoughts on this matter are very insightful. I also have a very different view on celebrity worship. I am a later 30's mom who writes for an on-line magazine, not a tween wishing to emulate the behavior I witness from young stars in Hollywood. My view is very much from that of a lay-psychologist trying to discern the truth between what these people project and who they really are. It's science to me. And even when they are lying and projecting falsehoods about their persona, they are in fact telling us a lot about who they really are.
My job as I see it is to cut through the crap and present my perceptions to those interested.
While it is clear that Lindsay is an obsessed attention-seeker with a bevy of emotional issues, I do believe that there is talent there - but that doesn't mean I think that makes her special in any way. Lots of people have talent, I just don't know who they are.
21 - jess
theres a saying that no matter how far down you are.... there's always a chance to go back up. lindsay Lohan has had a few set backs but she will come back up, these things just take time
22 - nassim
i love u lindsy lohan
23 - yasmin
i love u lindsy lohan
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24 - nassim
iiiiiiiiiii love you lohan