CNN Article: Why Is Lindsay Lohan In So Much Trouble?
Lindsay Lohan’s career of wrong turns
- Lindsay Lohan sentenced to jail, rehab on Tuesday
- Lohan was once considered promising actress, earned raves in box office hits
- Actress had rough home life; father served jail time, parents fought
- Lohan has had support from co-stars, director of new film standing behind her
(CNN) — There was a time when Lindsay Lohan was considered one of the most promising actresses of her generation.
No, really.
In 2006, The New York Times ran a profile of her at 19, and she was already a veteran of good reviews and good box office for “The Parent Trap” (1998), “Freaky Friday” (2003) and “Mean Girls” (2004).
In her future, the article said, was the Robert Altman film “A Prairie Home Companion,” the drama “Bobby” about Robert Kennedy and “Chapter 27” about John Lennon killer Mark David Chapman. She was taking serious roles and changing her career path after a handful of teen-targeted Disney projects.
Video: ‘Lindsay needs rehab, not jail’
Video: Lindsay Lohan addresses court
Video: Lindsay’s profane manicure
The flip side of Lindsay Lohan, however, was also painfully obvious. The article was headlined, “Lindsay Lohan: Portrait of the Party Girl as a Young Artist.”
The “party girl,” who turned 24 last week, is now at another crossroads. On Tuesday, a judge sentenced her to 90 days in jail and 90 days in a drug and alcohol rehab program. The sentence comes after months of tabloid mockery, poor behavior and romantic struggles — all for public consumption.
“It’s amazing to realize that Lindsay’s only 24 years old. She’s already been to rehab three times, she’s already been to jail before, she’s faced two DUI arrests — it’s amazing the amount of life she’s lived in a short amount of time,” says Us Weekly’s Lindsay Powers, who has covered Lohan and interviewed her parents.
How did Lohan get here?
Part of it’s the story of a sweet, talented kid gone awry, says media expert Howard Bragman of Fifteen Minutes media and public relations agency.
“As a young actor, she was incredibly appealing, and she became more appealing,” he says. “She was gawky and freckly, and she grew up into a beautiful young woman, and we enjoy watching that.”
And part of it is the related story of too much too soon, observes Powers.
“She had a lot of fame, access and notoriety from a very young age. She also does not come from the most stable home environment,” Powers says. “Lindsay has never really had a stable background to fall [back] on.”
She was born July 2, 1986, in New York City. Almost her entire life has been lived in public: She was modeling by the time she was 3, making TV commercials and appearing on the now-defunct soap “Another World” before she turned 10.
At 11, she was plucked from a group of 4,000 hopefuls for the 1998 remake of “The Parent Trap.” Even then, amid the hot air of publicity, it seemed like she had a strong future: “Trap” director Nancy Meyers compared her to a young Diane Keaton in an article in People.
Disney, the “Parent Trap” studio, signed her to a contract, and she appeared in some easily forgotten TV programs: the TV movies “Life-Size” and “Get a Clue,” a series pilot with Bette Midler. Then she was tapped for “Freaky Friday,” a remake of a 1976 Disney movie. The smartly done comedy surprised critics and pleased audiences. Lohan was on her way.
But her family life has been rocky — and equally public — since she became famous.
Her father Michael Lohan, a former securities trader, served several stints in jail: for contempt of court, violating parole, DUI and assault for getting into a fight with his brother-in-law after his son’s first communion. In recent years, he says he has found religion.
Lohan’s mother, Dina, a former singer and dancer, topped a “crazy moms” list conducted by the gossip site HollyScoop.com and parlayed her daughter’s notoriety into a reality series, “Living Lohan,” with Lindsay’s sister Ali. Michael and Dina separated twice and divorced in 2007.
Other adults have taken a guiding interest in her. Co-star Tina Fey praised her during the making of “Mean Girls.” “Prairie Home” co-star Meryl Streep was quick to defend her in a 2006 interview with W magazine.
“She’s very young. It’s a great sort of coin to have, a wonderful time in somebody’s life. I’m aware of the tabloid stuff because my kids tell me — but I don’t read it, and frankly, I couldn’t care less,” she said. “When they say ‘action,’ Lindsay is completely, visibly living in front of the camera, and that’s all anybody really cares about.”
Even her latest director, Matthew Wilder, has stood up for her.
“I am 100 percent behind Lindsay and can say the same for everyone involved in the production of ‘Inferno: A Linda Lovelace Story,’ ” he told MTV News, characterizing Lohan as someone “who is really different from the cartoon portrayed in the tabloid press.”
But it hasn’t been enough, says Powers.
“She definitely has had a lot of opportunities for role models … but the thing is, she tends to be surrounded by people who are enablers, who are also in the limelight, that may not have the best intentions,” she says.
The tabloids and gossip blogs have found much to feast on since Lohan became a teenager.
She’s been criticized for her weight, both when she’s alleged to be too heavy or too thin. Her every romance has been scrutinized, from a liaison with teen heartthrob Aaron Carter (who also dated Disney colleague Hilary Duff, leading to an alleged rift between Lohan and Duff), to a very public relationship with DJ Samantha Ronson. And Lindsay used her Twitter account to post a topless photo of herself.
“Her behavior has just been a gift to the blogosphere and the tabloids in the kind of world we live in,” says Bragman, who says that Lohan appears addicted to the attention. “We live in a very, very transparent world … and she seems to be in front of it.”
For all this, though, there’s still hope Lohan can turn her life around, says Powers. She points to Robert Downey Jr., another talented performer who had some horrific times, as an example. “There’s somebody that really hit rock bottom, and now, with age and maturity, was able to bounce back,” she says.
But first, says Bragman, Lohan has to be honest with herself. Jail and rehab may help — or it may not.
“There certainly is a problem of some sort or another, if only her inability to acknowledge that there’s problems,” he says. “Nobody can go to rehab from anything without acknowledging there’s a problem.”
BBC Confirms Caster Semenya Is Intersex! However, Some BBC Readers Are Upset Semenya Is Returning To Female Track & Field.
According to the BBC’s Gordon Farquhar, Caster Semenya is “intersex”. Farquhar says ” I am confident that Semenya has undergone treatment for some kind of
inter-sex condition.” Some BBC readers are outraged that the “intersex” Semenya is now allowed to compete against biologically born women in track and field.
The question remains, why is the IAAF so secretive about the gender test results? Doesn’t the public have a right to know the truth?
Is Caster Semenya really a woman? Did she have surgery to correct her intersex defect? Will the female athletes in the 800 meters competition challenge Semenya?
Only time will tell if the female athletes complain about Semenya again.
Here are some comments about the controversial Caster Semenya:
19. At 07:46am on 07 Jul 2010, James Autar wrote:
kras2001 – I can’t agree with your comment, sorry. First of all I don’t think this person would have been entered in the World C’Ships had she been British, because I’m fairly sure that questions would have been asked well in advance by the British Athletics authorities and checks carried out accordingly. It is a pity that the South Africans seemed more concerned about winning a gold medal, as opposed to the predictable storm which inevitably followed.
I find it amazing that Gordon Farquhar writes that ‘justice has been done’. Surely this ruling is a total ‘injustice’ to all other female athletes that compete in the 800m. Has he considerd this aspect of the case? The whole episode is still shrouded in mystery and I’m srprised that the British athletics correspondent can accept an explanation like this from the IAAF.
27. At 10:03am on 07 Jul 2010, KeepitReal wrote:
In order for Semenya to be able to compete as a woman she would need to not be able to produce above a certain amount of testosterone that is considered legal.
Various tests ‘exposed’ to the public showed that she produced too much testosterone, what I consider this blog is inferring is the aspect which was producing too much testosterone has been ‘negated’
I stand corrected however this may seem the most likely reason for her inclusion in competition again.
33. At 10:41am on 07 Jul 2010, jamie68 wrote:
This issue is far from done and dusted, trust me.
Most people involved in athletics have already made up their minds on this issue and it’s wishful thinking on a grand scale for the IAAF to imagine that she will now be welcome back as a female and everything will be rosy.
34. At 10:53am on 07 Jul 2010, leia27 wrote:
I’m afraid that whilst I’m happy to see Semenya back into competition, the fact that this was thrust upon her, the IAAF, and the ASA in the first place annoys me. The fact that the writer of this blog assumes that she may have had treatment, which if true really bothers me anyway. Caster Semenya, won the race fair and square in Berlin, and no one should have complained.
It is a societal problem that you majority of people are blinkered to see only two genders, male and female. However the fact that around 40 inter gender conditions exist means that over 40 different genders exist, but as society only looks at two everyone is made to conform. Caster Semenya raced in the races she felt she conformed to and the ways she was brought up. It is societies fault that all this fuss has been made. I only hope she carries on winning her races and goes on to win gold at London, which would prove what a good athelete she is and put to bed all this nonsense that has gone on.
36. At 11:30am on 07 Jul 2010, Deep-heat wrote:
This will be a tough pill to swallow for the athletes that she has beaten so convincingly but from the limited knowledge I have about this case, it would seem that justice has been done.
It would appear that she has some kind of condition that enhances her performance – whether through increased testosterone levels or something else I’m not sure. As has been pointed out above, many elite athletes have a natural advantage in their field over the average person. It is probably why they ended up doing what they do.
Cycling fans may remember Miguel Indurain’s dominance of the Tour de France in the mid 90s. Thought it might be interesting to copy a section of his wikipedia page here:
“At the top of his career, Miguel Indurain had a physiology that was not only superior when compared to average people, but also when compared to his fellow athletes. His blood circulation had the ability to circulate 7 litres of oxygen around his body per minute,[1] compared to the average amount of 3-4 litres for an ordinary person and the 5-6 litres for his fellow riders. His cardiac output is 50 litres a minute; a fit amateur cyclist’s is about 25 litres a minute. Also, Indurain’s lung capacity was 8 litres, compared to an average of 6 litres. In addition, Indurain’s resting pulse was as low as 29 BPM, compared to an average human’s 60-72 bpm, which meant his heart would be less strained in the tough mountain stages.[2]”
These are widely known facts about Big Mig (just mention it because I think its wise to mistrust most things on Wikipedia!).
Point being, that his body gave him a massive advantage over his rivals at the time. This may seem unfair to Semenya’s fellow athletes, but it is just the way of the world. Both ASA and the IAAF have disgraced themselves at times during this process, one imagines that this may have caused her great distress at times. I really can’t see any alternatives to the decision reached and wish her all the best for the future.
37. At 11:59am on 07 Jul 2010, alfie wrote:
Cannot agree with leia 27 that a gold medal in London would “put to bed” anything.
Indeed I don’t see this IAAF ruling ending the controversy surrounding the unfortunate Semenya at all.
OK , she is now free to compete. So one of thee things will happen: A: She takes up where she left off , destroying her opponents and continuing to raise doubts about the whole investigation. B : She continues to improve and takes the women’s 800 record to ridiculous levels – I leave you to imagine the reaction…or C: She reverts to being a rather ordinary 800m runner and eventually disappears from the scene, which somewhat settles the matter but leaves a bad taste over her results before “treatment” and the handling of the case by officialdom.
Now I have no personal animosity towards Semenya , but would hope that the third of these is what happens as either of the other two will simply ensure the controversy dogs her to the end of her career. And it will , whatever well-meaning people may hope.
In other words , to put it bluntly , I think it will be best for everyone if she comes back, fails, and retires, keeping her gold medal and leaving women’s middle distance to continue to be seen as a contest among equals.
As I fear any other outcome will bring no closure and no satisfaction for any of the parties.
38. At 12:01pm on 07 Jul 2010, wondercloak wrote:
Come on, have some respect for the woman. I can’t believe how many of you are on here asking for the details of tests and any treatment to be released just so your amateur athletics interests and perverse desire for scandalous gossip can be quenched.
The IAAF will have access to the best medical advice around and will have no doubt made their decisions accordingly. As far as we are all concerned as amateur onlookers….have some respect for Semenya as a young woman caught in the middle of a storm that is by no means her own doing. She has a right for the details not to be made public. Have a heart!
39. At 12:41pm on 07 Jul 2010, leia27 wrote:
@ Alfie #37, I do hope she comes back and wins gold on the basis that I think the treatment that she has recieved from the IAAF, ASA and the world media has been very unfair. If indeed Caster Semenya has a inter gender condition, and nothing has been clarified on this, why should she be discriminated against?
She obviously wouldn’t compete in a male atheletes race, as she’d end up last, so she’s racing with women, and winning. Now that isn’t just down to her condition, it’s down to training and dedication. However, as I said before, due to societies need to having only binary genders, anything inbetween should just shut up, and not be seen by the world?
I do concur with the author that lessons will have been learned by everyone on this topic by now, not least on the handling of the situation, and poor Caster Semenya has been the person to suffer, we should be hoping she comes back and wins to show the world she has talent. It isn’t her fault if she has an inter gender condition it is something happened at birth, and so let’s praise her rather than complain about her.
40. At 1:17pm on 07 Jul 2010, jbeadlesbigrighthand wrote: There’s some genuinely crass comments on here.
“Don’t tell me it’s not her fault because if it isn’t, she should not have been treated in the first place. Can’t have it both ways.” What’s the logic behind that? How would having an inter-sex condition be someone’s fault? And why should they not receive treatment for it?
“You cannot take away the muscular development which went on before her treatment” No, you can’t take it away, but without the testosterone levels she had previously, she won’t be able to maintain it.
“If she’s still gaining an advantage from essentially being a man, then she isn’t the victim here.” But, she wouldn’t be, if she’s been treated for any condition she may have had. And, anyway, why does there have to be a ‘victim’ anyway?
Would be good if people realised that this is a world apart from doping, at least on the part of the athlete herself. This wasn’t a case of someone systematically cheating, but rather someone who was unaware of a medical condition.
Gayblackcanada 