When child stars act up

From Justin Bieber to Lindsay Lohan, what is it about child stardom that seems to result in controversy?

JUSTIN Bieber was discovered at the age of 14 when an American talent agent stumbled across videos of him singing on YouTube. While his peers were navigating the pitfalls of adolescence, Bieber became the first artist to have seven songs from a debut album chart on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. His rapid ascent to fame has not been seamless, with the tabloids screaming about alleged drug taking.

Bieber’s recent arrest for driving under the influence seemed inevitable.

What is it about child stardom that results in controversy?

In a 1984 interview with People magazine, child-star agent Iris Burton said “I hate to say it, but kids are pieces of meat. I’ve never had anything but filet mignon… My kids are the choice meat.”

From Drew Barrymore, Corey Feldman and River Phoenix, in the ’80s, to the Olsen twins and Kirsten Dunst, in the ’90s, and Hilary Duff in the ’00s, Burton’s influence lasted until her death in 2008.

It’s not only an agent that many of her clients shared. Drew Barrymore, who found fame at six years old with the film, ET, claimed in her autobiography, Little Girl Lost, that she started drinking at 11, turned to marijuana at 12, and was taking cocaine by 13. River Phoenix, who began acting at age nine, died of a heroin and cocaine overdose at the age of 23.

Corey Feldman was just one child star in the 1980s reported to have undergone treatment at the Cirque Lodge rehab in Utah.

“It isn’t an accident,” Hollywood screenwriter, Naomi Foner, says “that … all these kids have struggled with some kind of drug problem. It’s what we do with our kids, when we make them movie stars. Very few of them survive.”

Looking at the history of child stars, it would be difficult to disagree with her. Both Judy Garland, who signed with MGM studios as a teenager, and her co-star, Mickey Rooney, were given amphetamines to keep them awake to work longer hours, and then barbiturates at night to help them sleep.

A lifelong battle with addiction ensued for Garland, who died of an accidental overdose.

Tatum O’Neal, who won an Oscar in 1973 at the age of 10, has had a long battle with drug addictions.

Disney protégés, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Amanda Bynes have all had public mental-health issues. What is it about fame, at an early age, that has such a detrimental effect?

One must consider the parents’ role. Given the high rate of causalities among child stars, one would assume that most parents would be reluctant to allow their child to enter the profession. But that doesn’t always seem to be the case.

“You see these parents wanting to live their life through their children. You see parents who want the spotlight. They start to look more glamorous and drive fancier cars than their kids,” says former child actress, Melissa Joan Hart, 37.

This reversal of roles, where a child suddenly becomes the breadwinner, can irreparably change the family dynamic. Mara Wilson, star of childhood classics such as Matilda and Mrs Doubtfire, has said that many of her co-stars admitted that they were only working “for the money”, as their families depended on that income.

Many child stars become resentful that they are missing out on a ‘normal’ childhood. Tia Mowry, who co-starred on the series, Sister, Sister, with her twin, Tamera, at 16, says, “You miss out on a lot of things.

“I had to miss my prom. You see these kids on Disney and it seems like so much fun. At the same time, it’s an eight-year-old with a JOB. It’s a lot of pressure.”

Michael Jackson, in a 1993 interview with Oprah Winfrey, expressed similar feelings, saying, “I would do my schooling, which was three hours with a tutor, and, right after that, I would go to the recording studio and record, and I’d record for hours and hours, until it’s time to go to sleep.

“And I remember going to the record studio. There was a park across the street and I’d see all the children playing and I would cry, because it would make me sad that I would have to work instead.”

The mismanagement of the child’s income can cause deep rifts in families. After Jackie Coogan, the original child star of the 1930s, discovered his parents had squandered most of his $4m fortune ($48m in today’s money), the ‘Coogan Law’ was put in place, which stipulated 15% of a child actor’s earnings must be put aside until the child reaches 21. This doesn’t protect the remaining 85%, as Shirley Temple found out when her father haemorrhaged all but $89,000 of her fortune.

Even if a child star has supportive parents who aren’t dependent on them for money, there are other obstacles. The biggest of these might be the transition into acting as an adult, with many child stars declared ‘has-beens’ at the age of 14.

Michael Jackson often spoke about the difficulties he faced as he moved from the precocious star of the Jackson Five to his teenage years. “I think every child star suffers through this period, because you’re not the cute and charming child that you were. You start to grow, and they (the public) want to keep you little forever.”

Child psychologist, Nancy Carlsson-Paige, says this can have a huge impact on a child’s development.

“The younger a kid is when he or she gets into the (entertainment) business, the more likelihood it will be damaging…

“They’re getting a false idea of who they are and where they fit into the world. When challenges come, they don’t have the repertoire internally that got built through those healthy experiences other kids had.

“So they might have a drug problem, or act out in some way.”

Of course, not all child stars are destined for misfortune. Gaby Hoffman, star of Uncle Buck and Now and Then, stopped acting as a teenager, and says that is why she didn’t go down the same route as Lindsay Lohan.

“I feel like these kids are under a crazy microscope, they’re basically brands,” she says, “and they eventually implode and act out.

“They need a break, and they’re not getting one.”

Natalie Portman, Jodi Foster Ryan Gosling, Justin Timberlake, Claire Danes, and Emma Watson have all evolved from childhood fame to successful adult careers, thankfully with seemingly little damage.

However, most of them took time off to travel, to get an education, and to broaden their horizons beyond Hollywood and LA, with Portman, Foster, Danes and Watson all attending Ivy League universities in the US.

Hollywood casting director, Randi Hiller, agrees that the key to ensuring a stable personal life is to surround the child star with good influences and to help them make intelligent choices.

Without this, they may very well become the next tragic hero/heroine of an E! True Hollywood Story.