Born: February 22, 1975 - Culver City, California, USA 
Members of the Barrymore family have been delighting
audiences for several generations. However, for the Barrymores, it has
been both a blessing and a curse. This curse even haunted its youngest,
Drew.
Drew Blythe Barrymore was born on February 22,
1975, and from the beginning, Drew's life started with a lesson. Her father,
John Barrymore, Jr. left, and it was up to her mother Jaid to provide
for her. However, it soon was Drew who did the providing.
When Drew was only a baby, Jaid took her to auditions,
and at 11 months, she starred in her first commercial... for Gainesburger
puppy food. An actress was born.
Growing up, Drew was imaginative and bubbly. No
one was immune to her smile and charm. At the age of six, she auditioned
for the Steven Spielberg film Poltergeist. Mr. Spielberg fell in love
with Drew, but felt the role was not for her. Instead, he had another
role in mind... that of Gertie in E.T. The Extraterrestrial.
Audiences loved her. She followed with several
appearances on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, and became the youngest
person to host Saturday Night Live. With all of this exposure, Drew was
thrust into the spotlight. There were parties and premieres... and self-doubts.
The Barrymore Curse had found it's next victim. At the age of nine, Drew
began drinking, and at ten, she started smoking marijuana.
However, amongst all the turmoil, she went on to
star in three more movies: Irreconcilable Differences, Firestarter, and
Cat's Eye. These films added not only to her fame, but also to her problems.
As time went on, she began to rebel, and her drug abuse worsened. By age
12, she had experimented with cocaine, and at 13, she was out of control.
However, when Drew hit bottom, there was only one way to go... up.
The turning point came on June 28, 1988. Drew had
been drinking heavily, and she demanded that her mother leave the house.
Jaid knew something had to be done, so she took her daughter to the ASAP
Family Treatment Center. Drew did so well in treatment, they granted her
time to star in the movie Far From Home. Coming clean was a struggle for
Drew, but she was a fighter. She learned to deal with her problems and
began to make changes in her lifestyle. One of the biggest steps she took
in regaining her life back was to go public with her situation. This led
to the publishing of her autobiography, Little Girl Lost at the age of
14.
This was not enough, however. She wanted her career
back as well, and she worked hard to get it. Drew moved out of the house
and supported herself by working in coffee houses. Eventually, Drew landed
a co-starring role in a CBS afterschool special entitled Fifteen and Getting
Straight. Soon after, she took jobs in several low budget films. Word
got out that she was doing well, which led to her role in the surprise
hit Poison Ivy.
Drew's career was reborn. She went on to star in
Guncrazy, a role for which she literally stalked the director. She made
her TV series debut in 2000 Malibu Road, which did well but was cancelled
due to high production costs. Then came the role of Amy Fisher in the
popular TV movie Beyond Control, followed by the female western Bad Girls.
In Boys on the Side, she starred with such leading women as Whoopi Goldberg
and Mary Louise Parker. She also starred in Mad Love, the somewhat autobiographical
drama with Chris O'Donnell.... whom she worked with again in Batman Forever.
Everyone Says I Love You was a monumental accomplishment for Drew, giving
her the chance to work with famed actor and director Woody Allen. She
had a brief but memorable appearance in Scream, and The Wedding Singer
showed an adorable and witty Drew. In her most recent film Ever After,
Drew showed a maturity in acting not seen in her earlier films.
Outside of films, Drew has also been busy as a
celebrity poster girl for Guess?... not to mention a layout in Playboy
magazine. She has also devoted her time and support to worthy organizations
such as the Wildlife Waystation and the Female Health Foundation.
Drew Barrymore is a very active 23 year old, and
it is hard to believe she has accomplished so much both professionally
and personally. She overcame the odds in such a short time, and revitalized
a career that many thought was over. Drew lives life to its fullest, and
takes the bad with the good. This is one Barrymore that the so-called
"curse" could not destroy.
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