Sunday, October 13, 2013

Blind Items Revealed

August 22, 2012

There I was last week. I was at one of my favorite hamburger places not named In-n-Out or Five Guys. This one actually has waiters to bring me my burgers. They also have hostesses. At first I thought she looked familiar. But honestly, I get that feeling every second here sometimes. You are always scanning the crowd and seeing if someone looks familiar. Someone you can write about or mention or take their photo. Despite me looking at hundreds of photos everyday I really suck at the game. I had a ten minute conversation with Amanda Seyfried two weeks ago at the grocery store about why avocados have to be mushy before they make proper guacamole and I had no idea who she was until we were about to walk away from each other. At that point, I didn't even bother to try and take a photo or let on that I recognized her or ask her why she is dating that creepy guy from Dexter. The only reason I did recognize her was someone came up to her who wanted an autograph. Anyway, where was I? Oh yeah. So, I am looking at this hostess without appearing to look too much and then finally I think I know who she is, but how does one ask that question? It can go badly. But, I did. I finally asked her and I was right and then comes the next question about how did someone who was on the cover of magazines and on a hit network television show and one of the most famous men in the world as her boyfriend go from all of that to working as a hostess at a burger joint. A good one though, don't get me wrong. She answered with the air of someone who has answered it all before although with her I think she had told her story in meetings rather than to the public. She said it all started with thinking that everything would last forever and that even when the show ended she thought she would get another in a second. It was why she had not bothered to save any of the almost $2M she earned from the show. She had bought a house but ended up refinancing it and losing it during the recession because she could not afford the payments when the interest rate went from the teaser rate. She had done a lot of coke when she had a hit show, but could not afford it when the show ended so she turned to cheaper drugs which took a long time to get off. What was once a drop dead gorgeous face has the hints of years of meth abuse. She still has that beauty under there because she got off it quick enough. For awhile her boyfriend stayed with her, but he got tired of the drugs and partying so she found other guys that did enjoy it and they would take care of her. They liked having sex with someone they watched on television and she kept telling herself it would be for just a little while until she got the next show. Well, her agent and manager dropped her. Her family would not speak to her anymore because she had borrowed and borrowed from them without ever paying anything back. Plus she stole from them too. Not a lot she says, but enough. Sober for a year now, this job is the first job she has had. Prior to that, while she was in recovery she found a guy who was good to her and paid for everything so she could get help and not have to worry about anything. As soon as she got her life straight, he fell off the wagon and is in jail now. So, she got a job. She says she likes it. She has this frantic activity about her which you can still see from the screen. She still has that smile when she wants to give you one. She says she is taking acting classes, but is not in any kind of hurry to get back in the industry. She says that it is one big trigger for her, but that she actually loves acting and just wanted to be in class and read lines and be someone else for a few hours a few nights each week. She says that no one recognizes her in class usually and that very few strangers do either. She knew I had recognized her by the look I gave her. That double take. She says that sometimes happens and that she tries to avoid the situation, but she had no place to go because she is at work. She says that on the street if stopped, she will try and make it as quick as possible and not answer anything. She says that she has paid everyone back now and that she can actually use her residual checks on her now and that she is happy with her quiet life and all the parties and covers and the world at her feet seems so long ago, when in fact it was really only about a decade or so ago that it all ended.

Lisa Nicole Carson

57 comments:

Simon said...

How sad, she really could have had a future as an actress

Just Another HR Lady said...

I had to look her up, I remember her now from Ally MBeal days. I believe she also suffers from schizophrenia. I feel for her.

Just Another HR Lady said...

In 2000, she was arrested for 'interfering with a lawful business establishment' and 'not leaving the premises' after a disorderly conduct incident at a luxury hotel. Shortly after, she was hospitalized in a mental health facility which was reportedly due to a drug-related incident. However, in recent years her family and friends have acknowledged that Carson's aberrant behavior was actually due to her developing schizophrenia.

amused bush said...

Very sad...but glad she is now happy and at piece with her quiet life.

wesley said...

She told you all of this while leading you to a table at a burger joint?

Pip said...

Who the fuck asks a stranger why their life went down the drain?

Unknown said...

A cautionary tale for all supporting cast on a series.

gee-gee said...

One of the few tolerable people on Ally McBeal.

Sherry said...

Agreed V. She's okay with getting her emotional cookies from classes. Honestly, that's the true measure of a good actor. One who wants to get.lost in a role and be part of the whole with no desire for fame. Somehow we've decided that's success. Some of the.best.actors I worked with were doing community theatre.

The Real Dragon said...

Thank god I didnt read all that. I dont know who this person is

Just Another HR Lady said...

Very true, but of course of society thinks fame and wealth = success. Happy and healthy somehow don't get as much play, not as flashy I guess. ;-)

Freya said...

I remember reading a long time ago she had a mental illness and that was why she left show biz.

Freya said...

Either way, I liked her as an actress. She was also in "Love Jones" with Nia Long and Larenz Tate.

caralw said...

Nobody gives this much info while working as a hostess at a burger joint. Not saying she doesn't, but the details ring false.

Unknown said...

OT-Have there been any updates about Lark Voorhies lately?

Another sad tale.

msgirl said...

This blind sounds like the original Enty.

msgirl said...

This blind sounds like the original Enty.

SeriouslyAwkward said...

If you say so, caralw. You'd be surprised how much some people reveal in short conversations.

I'm glad she has found a balance in her life. Happy is a much nicer place to be than famous.

timebob said...

How do you people still not understand. When people send in Enty tips he just copies and pastes them into the blog with a few tweaks to make it blind worthy.

So of course it isn't his 'voice' all the time unless it is first hand experience.

But there is only one Enty.

Jesus, this 'it ain't enty' bullshit is ponderous already.

That being said, I loved her on Ally McBeal. Hollywood is a harsh mistress. It spits people out everyday. Glad she was able to find herself again and start over. Many just end up in a grave. She is one of the lucky ones.

amused bush said...

I'm with ya Sherry. Just glad to hear she is working and still acting (and enjoying it). Fame and fortune doesn't have to be the end all be all.

PickyNicky said...

@Wesley and Caralw: This is a classy hamburger joint. My guess is she is a server at the Hamburger Hamlet which is a popular upscale Hamburger establishment. Think elevated bar food. There is a very popular Hamlet on Sunset Blvd, that gets very upscale clientele. I believe it.

BTownGirl said...

I remember her from Eve's Bayou! Good for her for getting it together!

hollywood dime said...

@picky hamburger hamlet has been closed for quite some time. I always imagined this as Hamburger Mary's in west hollywood.
She was in a mental institution for many years up until about a year ago. I hope she is finding some peace.

Sugar said...

I had to google her and when I did I saw that she must be googled in person all the time on accounta her huge tittyballs. She has enormous boobies. That is all.

CarolMR said...

Who was the famous man who was her boyfriend?

Not A Ninny said...

One of the things they don't teach you in studio is how to fail well. Which is part of the craft, unfortunately.

There was this guy I knew back in the day. The perfect definition of the utter chameleon of craft. I saw Spacey play Long Day's Journey on Broadway--slayed me--but this guy was better. This guy...close up in studio, he could just turn away and when he turned back so inhabit his character you thought it was a magic trick, that he was literally someone else. He finished his training and basically walked away from the stage. Been working a very mundane job away from acting for years.

I know two of two guys like that. Worked with them. Friends. Insane acting talent...and they just walked away from it cold. I never asked them why, but I assumed. That they feared to be so deep in character. Which is what they don't tell you in studio. They don't tell you that it takes a kind of madness to be that good.

Anonymous said...

She played a judge of Harry's Law last year and does not look like an ex-meth head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0xWdm_aijA

Lily said...

That's a damn shame.

Sherry said...

True HR. If I could act and pay my bills that would be enough. Sadly theatre doesn't offer a lot in the way of sufficient dollars and if you are lucky enough to book national commercials the residuals only last so long if there are any.

Sherry said...

@BProfane: You nailed it especially with your last sentence. Meisner (created the "method")also believed it wasn't good to be extremely smart either. According to what I heard. Not saying that the dumber they are, the better actor they'd be but then of course that was just his opinion. I personally disagree.

Not A Ninny said...

I guess I missed the chapter in An Actor Prepares about getting rich. Whoever said we were gonna get rich tramping downstage? We're poor players, remember? Strutting our hour, full of sound and fury.

"And I from Mantua, for a gentleman,
Who, in my mood, I stabb'd unto the heart." My only line in my professional debut. IIRC, I spent more on gas just showing up to do that line than I got in hat money.

Not A Ninny said...

Sorry, Sherry, don't take my response the wrong way. Nice Meisner cite. It's a shame that Meisner is not lauded like Strassberg is. I mean, ever have a sense memory exercise go south on you? I did.

What they don't teach you in studio, in re. Method, is how to find your way back out of character. You go full Grotowski, you don't necessarily ever get back. Completely. Which is kind of my point about this performer. And why civilians think that actors are such flakes. They are, but it's because they've chosen to follow an unnatural path.

di butler said...

I had forgotten that! I always liked her. It does seem the mental illness may be the biggest reason for her downfall, rather than anything else. Either way, sad, and a cautionary tale, indeed. That biz will eat you alive, piece by piece.

di butler said...

Oh, and in the 90s, wasn't Nia Long the cutest thing, ever? I had a huge girl crush.

di butler said...

I don't agree. Actors who lack a certain depth, or intellectual curiosity, make the better, long term, actors. Those with depth, raw emotions, like Ledger, Phoenix, etc., seem to be the most fragile. I think early Brad Pitt was so damn purdy he hurt the eyes, but he's about as deep as a pond. Along with a few others, like Clooney, DiCaprio. Good, stable actors, for the long haul, though.

Seven of Eleven said...

Jeez, I thought it was Red Robin. I saw Robin Williams at a Red Robin once.

Seven of Eleven said...

@CarolMR, famous boyfriend was Tupac Shakur.

amused bush said...

@seven, I know she dated Tupac, but the wording of the blind implies she had the boyfriend at the time her career was taking off. Tupac died in '96, the year she began appearing on ER and a year prior to Ally McBeal. Who else did she date?

Seven of Eleven said...

@V, I know, the wording is so weird. Maybe it's implying she hooked up everyone's favorite cheater Denzel Washington?

The reason I doubt this blind, though, is that in the interview she did with BET, talk of her mental illness and personal life were off limits. Why would she open up to a random stranger at a burger palace and admit to drugs, partying, stealing from her family, etc? I'm with tb, this is a cut/paste of gossip tidbits made to sound like a real interaction.

amused bush said...

Oh Denzel...for a brief moment I was thinking George Clooney (ER connection).

Whatever the case, I hope she is now happy. I'm with you though, there are some things about the blind that are "off".

amused bush said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Seven of Eleven said...

@V, Devil in a Blue Dress (NSFW or relatives!). You're hittin' my spot, baby!

amused bush said...

Seven, I can't see the clip...it's blocked for me. Boo! <3 the LSA link, BTW ;)

Kloie said...

Walk away, Renee.

The Real Dragon said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Meth is retarded. Cokes a stupid waste of time too. Drink a redbull,dont ruin your life. I wish her well. She sounds really cool.

LMJ said...

LOL!! Precisely my thoughts!

LMJ said...

LOL!! Precisely my thoughts!

SophiaB said...

WHUT?! Are you taking writing lessons from Envy or are you drunk on the sweet nectar? The double triple negatives make zipzero sense...

Bubbles said...

There was also a Hamburger Hamlet in Brentwood. Maybe she was a hostess there. This is sad and I really hope she get it together and can find a way to have her peace of mind and career. I really miss seeing her on the screen.

Kathy W. - One Brown Mom said...

She was amazing in Devil in a Blue Dress. But that was WAY back in the day!

PiscesTia said...

love jones is my FAVORITE movie. So sad, such a shame. Fame is a hell of a drug. Good to know she has a second chance at life, not everyone gets that.

Seven of Eleven said...

@V, maybe this link? Some browsers don't like the short links.

http://youtu.be/IFtKcV413uk

NaughtyNurse said...

Not a huge shocker. I am sure most of the women on Ally MacBeal were on coke to attain and maintain the ridiculously skeletal look they all eventually had. Portia DeRossi and Courtney Thorne-Smith disappeared on screen if they turned sideways.

Presto said...

This Blind was one that always stayed stuck in the back of my mind. Always wondering who the F it could be.

Finally it's been revealed. Never thought it would.

Scallywag said...

Any drug use was probably the result of trying to deal with her developing schizophrenia.

I hope she has found peace.

Tiredallthetime said...

such a shame

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