You have to wonder what it’s like to grow up the child of a famous celebrity. Jack Quaid, son of Meg Ryan, says he’s never been able to sit through the “fake orgasm” scene in When Harry Met Sally. Liv Tyler didn’t know Steven Tyler was her father until she was a teenager. And Sean Astin at one point thought his grandmother was Lucille Ball. Being the son of Patty Duke and all her mental problems, it’s a wonder Astin didn’t end up like so many other child actors.
I think it was David Spade who joked you know you’re either very rich or very poor as a child when your parents begin a water gun fight with you in the living room in the middle of the night during the middle of the week. I think one of Phil Spector’s children said growing up with the eccentric music mogul and convicted murderer meant they spent most of their days in their bedrooms not allowed to come out unless it was to eat meals.
Carrie Anne Moss said after the third Matrix movie was released, she focused on being a mother. Eddie Murphy took many years off to be a family man. And Phoebe Cates pretty much retired from Hollywood to raise a family. As did Rick Moranis who walked away from the entertainment business after the death of his wife to spend time with his children.
But for many children of celebrities, it can be hard. Imagine how Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee’s children feel knowing that a video of their parents’ intimacy pretty much laid the foundation for online Internet porn. Being the child of George Carlin must’ve been a crazy time to grow up especially during the ever-changing 1960s and 1970s when the comedian saw his career soar and then falter. Incidentally, George said he was upset over a parody Moranis did of his on SCTV which led for him to step away from stand-up and re-examine his act.
Kelly Carlin was the only child born to George and his first wife, Brenda and she recounts her life in her autobiography A Carlin Home Companion. And the first few years were hard lives on the road as they drove around in the Dodge Dart from city to city for gigs. Despite this, Kelly said they built themselves up as the “Three Musketeers.” And as George worked with Jack Burns, they mostly did soft comic material the likes that could pay the bills but it seemed like patronizing work. Carlin, like his friend and colleague Richard Pryor, realized they were only performing to a certain audience and they didn’t like what they had become.
It is crazy as Kelly recounts the rowdy days in the 1970s when George reinvented himself as the counterculture comic as he would perform on stage with police and the authorities ready to arrest him on obscenity charges. Kelly was only 8 when George released FM & AM, the comedy album that would win him a Grammy. And having money, wealth and fame when you’re known for substance abuse can be damaging. Kelly had to deal with George’s drug use and mental trips when he thought the world was ending because the sun would explode. She also had to deal with Brenda’s alcoholism which nearly destroyed her own life.
So, it’s no surprise, Kelly would indulge her vices as she went to school in the L.A. area hanging out with child actors and children of celebrities. But she also found herself in an abusive relationship with a marriage to her husband, Andrew Sutton, from 1985 to 1993. It’s a crazy wild read as Kelly recounts how she had to be the “adult” in the family as Brenda would drink and get upset when George was on the road because she rightfully presume he was also getting wasted and having affairs.
George and Brenda were married from 1961 to her death in 1997. It’s possible George, who was raised Irish Catholic, also believed that marriages took a lot of work. But both Brenda and Kelly would soon realize as do some family members of all celebrities, the best way to spend time with your famous relative is to work with them. Brenda would help George produce his HBO comedy specials after she got sober. At the time in the late 1970s, it was uncommon for the cable premium network to air comedy shows. His first special actually has a disclaimer warning people of the profanity. And a few decades later, Alison Williams is getting her ass eaten out on Girls.
The title of the book is a play on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion, but it’s more like a companion to George’s Last Words he co-wrote with Tony Hendra and was published in 2009, a year after his death. If you’re expecting a story all about George, read that book. George remains a supporting character in this story as Kelly recounts her attempts to make it in the entertainment business. But a simple mistake confusing James Burrows, a famous TV director known for Cheers and The Bob Newhart Show, with James L. Brooks, director of Terms of Endearment and As Good as it Gets, could cause more damage to your career than you could think.
While Kelly does defend some of George’s material from the 1990s to his death, she does fear that she may be turning into the people he criticized. George wasn’t a conservative nor a liberal because he believed both were only in it for themselves and themselves only. That’s why he said during his 1992 special Jammin’ in New York, “The planet is fine; the people are fucked.”
The book is a little lengthy at times and you might find Kelly to be repeating herself or focusing on matters that aren’t too interesting. But there are some juicy parts. A year after Brenda died, George met and married Sally Wade who remained his second wife until he died in 2008. Some might wonder that George didn’t mourn too long and Kelly touches on the thoughts children, even when they’re grown, have when their parents get married again especially after the other parent’s death.
But some of the best moments are after George has died and Kelly and her relatives handle his loss as well as abiding by his wishes what to do with his ashes. It’s never easy to lose a parent, but this is the moment Kelly realizes she’s lost both parents and the news hoopla over the death of George can be overwhelming.
However, if you’re expecting a racy tell-all, you won’t get it. Despite the substance abuse and family drama, George and Brenda ended up raising a good child. And not all families are the same. There are some great times where George comes off as a wonderful father figure as when he tells some punk bothering Kelly he better leave her alone or else. This shows his role as Ben Affleck’s father in Kevin Smith’s Jersey Girl wasn’t too much of a stretch.
What do you think? Please comment.
Zane Says 