Happily Ever After The Drew Barrymore Story

America 's Angel Our first meeting with Drew Barrymore took place when we were still in grade school. Although that was some eighteen years ago, we remember that day as clearly as if it were yesterday. We piled into the backseat of our parents' navy blue Buick Skylark and headed for the movie theater to seeE.T.--The Extra-Terrestrial. Throughout the ride, all we could think about was the upcoming movie. We couldn't wait to get in our seats and see what all the kids in school had been talking about. At the time, we'd never heard the name "Drew Barrymore" before. We didn't know who she was, what she looked like, or where she came from. All we cared about was that lovable alien who'd made such an impression on us during TV commercials for E.T. The two magical hours that we spent in the theater that Sunday afternoon surpassed our wildest expectations. As we stumbled out of our seats, trying to choke back the lumps in our throats and the tears in our eyes, we knew that for as long as we lived, we would never forget either E.T., or the pudgy little blond girl who almost stole the show.Her name, of course, was Drew Barrymore. While she might not have been the stuff of household conversation just yet, her face was permanently embedded in the mind of every man, woman, and child who'd seen Steven Spielberg's highest grossing movie to date, E.T. Pretty soon, Drew was dubbed America's little darling and began popping up all over. When she starred in 1984'sIrreconcilable Differences, we talked about going to see "the new Drew Barrymore movie." She was the first movie star with whom kids of a certain age could identify, the Shirley Temple of the 1980s, the cutest, the most famous, the best-loved kid in the U.S., perhaps the world. President Reagan and the First Lady invited her to the White House. NBC put her front and center on the stage of Saturday Night Live. The Academy Awards and the Golden Globes saw her walking the red carpet year after year. Drew was always in the spotlight. And then, just like that, she was gone. Not a snap-shot, not a movie, not a word. Nothing. In January 1989, she hadn't been out of circulation long enough for anyone to notice a conspicuous absence. That's when the National Enquirer sounded the alarm: E.T. STAR IN COCAINE AND BOOZE CLINIC--AT 13! Parents were horrified. Kids of all ages were dumb-founded. "How could this have happened to our little Drew?" The scion of the Barrymore acting dynasty, Drew was nothing less than a national treasure. For generations,the Barrymores had been making headlines on the stage, on the screen, and on the party circuit. Everyone knew of the illustrious family's personal woes, checkered with alcoholism and drug addiction. But Drew was supposed to be different. She'd spoken out against drug abuse. She'd starred in our favorite films. She'd captured our hearts as we watched her grow up. This wasn't supposed to happen to her. As details of Drew's addiction began to leak out, the controversy wreaked havoc upon her image as a fun-loving but essentially down-to-earth child star. Overnight, Drew became the poster girl for excess and teenage rebellion. She went from everyone's role model to public enemy number one. Indeed, prevailing wisdom suddenly dictated that Drew Barrymore was nothing more than a very bad girl. It was Drew's darkest hour. When she got out of rehab, no one wanted to hire her. Many of her old friends disappeared without a trace. Cast out of the industry, Drew might have easily reverted to her old habits. But just as all signs pointed to what might have been another tragic ending in the Barrymore saga, Drew chose to do the unpredictable--she fought back. At fouFurman, Leah is the author of 'Happily Ever After The Drew Barrymore Story' with ISBN 9780345483256 and ISBN 0345483251.