>What Was So Great About Anna Nicole?
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Photo: People.comLast night as I flipped through the dial, I found channel after channel devoted to covering the life and death of Anna Nicole Smith. Friends were interviewed proclaiming their devotion, attorneys spoke about her kindness and sense of humor, and her sister burst into tears on the phone with Larry King as she spoke about how much she’d miss the “very special” Anna Nicole (who actually hadn’t spoken to her sister in ten years, allegedly because she didn’t want her family to lay claim to any part of her dead billionaire husband’s fortune).
Today, the headlines continue to laud the former drug bunny:
Why We Cared About Anna- She perservered when others would’ve given up.
What Made Us Care About Anna Nicole? Combination of dysfunction and beauty made her the perfect pop culture icon.
Was Anna Nicole a Modern Day Marilyn?
And I’m left wondering: Has everybody lost their freaking minds?
I mean, we are talking about the same Anna Nicole, right? The one who made a habit of appearing high and slurring on national television, who flashed her tits so often that it was sort of surprising to see her clothed, who was involved in a big battle over the identity of her babydaddy, who married an 89-year-old billionaire and grossed out the globe by sitting in his lap and making out with him. The one who, at the time of her death had left her five-month-old daughter (the supposed “ray of her life” and “what kept her going”) in the care of some mother-of-a-friend in the Bahamas while she partied at a casino in Florida. What made us care about Anna Nicole? Well, to be honest, nothing.
With that in mind, I loathe how often the word shock in all its forms (shocked, shocker, shocking) has been used in relation to her death. Can you really, honestly say you were shocked to hear that Anna Nicole had collapsed and died? Was she not in the top ten list of celebrities most likely to collapse and die?
And if I’m sad, it’s only for her baby daughter, whose life has now been totally fucked up, thanks to her mom. I’m sad that a woman with so much fame and fortune could throw it all away on sheer dumbassery. I’m sad that now that she’s dead, the white trash is coming out of the woodwork, claiming kinship or friendship or relationship in order to get a turn on TV.
I’m sad that Anna Nicole Smith’s death is getting more media play than the death of Gerald Ford. Or just about anyone, for that matter. And we’re eating it up.
I’m sad about what Anna Nicole’s death and our treatment of it says about us as a culture. Live a decent, selfless life and you’re lucky to get a small write-up in the obituary section of the local paper. Do drugs, model yourself after Marilyn Monroe, and generally embarrass yourself on a near-daily basis and when you die, you just may end up being remembered as a pop-culture icon.
>Amen!I think it’s the “car wreck” phenomenon that makes every body want to read the grisly details of her life. Either that or it’s the Trimspa baby!
>Well, you have to admire that she took her 15 minutes of fame and turned it into, what? 15 YEARS of fame and millions of dollars.And we all like a good train wreck, don’t we?I always felt sorry for her, I mean, she had sex that old guy and HE MARRIED her, they could have thrown a few paltry million to her for making the old guy’s last days happy.
>You do have to pity her. She was so desperate for love and attention. The really sad and remarkable thing is her daughter stands a better chance of being less fucked up without a mother.
>Whenever I read that someone was shocked that she died, the voice I heard saying the word “shocked” was that of Claude Rains.
>I couldn’t agree with you more. Did you know that MSNBC called her a role model? A ROLE MODEL! To who, exactly???They are making her into an angel when two days ago they were all calling her a druggie and putting her down for everything in her life.
>The woman was embroiled in legal battles: TrimSpa, her daughter’s paternity, and her dead husband’s billions… and the media is calling her a role model??? Maybe they are doing it becuase she sold so many tabloids.She was a crazy woman destined for nothing. Her daughter’s life may actually be better without her. And I feel terribly sad for saying that.This is a sad story, but not at all surprising.
>I want to talk about the upside:- Now her daughter will be given to her real father (whoever that may be)- her daughter won’t grow up with a screwed up mother
>I think the fact that she was so messed up makes her deserve our pity more. I’m not much on celebrities, but I find this sad end to her sad life to be a major let down. I was hoping that perhaps there would be some redemption for her in the future.I agree that the media coverage is sycophantic and blown out of all proportion.The thing that makes this particularly sad is that it is very likely that her horrible birth experience (the OBs who delivered her lied to get her to consent to a c-section and then under anesthetized her) is a factor in her death, whether through PPD issues or long term complications from the surgery. Regardless of whether she was a train wreck of a person, someone to be loathed by those of us who did not have a stake in loving her, a mother/woman who dies as a result of medical abuse is something we should all pay attention to, soemthing that truly deserves our pity.
>Her life was tragic, but her death? Come on. She was no role model. At best, she served as a shinning example of what not to do.
>She did leave a life of sex, drugs and old farts so this ending was not some thing out of the possibility. My first thought when I heard she had died suddenly was that she went the way of Marilyn and it looks like she might have. Who will honestly know for sure? Maybe this might give a clue as to what really was the cause of her son’s death. I do feel for her daughter since she is loosing her mother no matter what kind of mother she might be. That poor child will have to grow up with the stigma for the rest of her life.
>This is the same thing that drove me crazy about Princess Di’s death. I’m not saying she was a drug-addicted “celebrity” who did anything to gain notoriety, but fucking Mother Teresa died around the same time and no one batted an eye. You can’t get any more saintly than her. Even 10 years later, Princess Di is all anyone talks about and no one has said a word about the anniversary of Mother Teresa’s death.
>I’m pretty sure we’ll find that Anna Nicole died of an overdose of drugs not complications from her childbirth experience over 4 months ago. Also, Anna had retracted her statements about being under medicated for her c-section on an ET segment, stating that the epidural was fine, and that what she experienced was the “normal pressure sensations” that anyone would experience during such a procedure.
>I often get so sad with the world that I actually find it hard to move on with my day. One day, I asked The Man, “Why is that only GOOD people get cancer and die?? Why don’t criminals and mean-hearted people ever have bad things happen to them??” The Man said it’s because when something bad like that happens, people forget about the bad things they did…they become “better” in the eyes of these people because all you suddenly see is the suffering. I feel sorry for her baby and I agree there is way too much media over her (ANS). It is bringing undeserved praise and, in return, undeserved criticism. I’m not saying you are wrong, I just think “They are DEAD…let’s lay off.” And that goes for all the media attention. (I even got a little pissed about the things, like, Leno said about Ken Lay…he may have been a BAD person, but he still has grieving family here listening to how glad everyone is he’s dead, you know?)
>As an entertainment reporter said on our local radio this morning… it won’t be long til her name is just the answer to a trivia question.I hope her daughter is placed with a stable family.
>I can’t say that I’m not watching all the coverage, because I am.Still, the whole situation is screwy.And I’m loving all the quotes from her family, who, if I recall seeing on a THS about Anna Nicole, all have Anna’s face tattooed somewhere on their body because Anna TOLD THEM TO GET IT. And they did.I just hope that whoever Dannielynn goes to can give her a normal life. Obviously, her mother and her brother lacked one. That part is sad.
>Holy Shit, you hit that nail on the head. I’m with you, what the hell is the big deal?
>Icon, yes. Role model, no. I feel very sad and sorry for her. I think her life was a mess, and I think people forced her into it. “Here, this’ll make you feel beter” and they got her hooked and kept her high. There comes a point when these celebs don’t know what’s real or not, and she was a tragedy waiting to happen. Shocking that it happened? No. Shocking that it happened at age 39 after she had a baby 5 months ago? Yes. I’d rather listen to news (rehashed every 15 minutes because no one can stand to get scooped and everyone’s ‘opinion’ is suddenly news) about Anna Nicole than the dumbpot astronaut that wore diapers.
>I was thinking the same thing today. I really feel terribly for her little girl! I AM glad she is too young to be aware of how fucked up her mom was and how crazy she’d made her life. I only hope whomever receives custody of this child, gives her a better, more stable life than she would have had living with her mother.
>P.S. to butrfly4404: i can think of 3 wife beaters i know who DID get cancer and met a pretty miserable end…i don’t know if that puts any better spin on it, but i know how you feel!
>I do agree that there is WAY too much media publicity surrounding her death.And I also agree with you that her life choices are not something I would want my daughter looking up to, but….She has just died. Her life, no matter how screwed up by our standards, is now no more. And I think that ANY person, including her, deserves a little human respect.I have never been an Anna Nicole fan. Her history of drug use, nudity and seemingly unitelligent choices don’t rank too high on my list. But she was a mother, a daughter, a friend… and it’s not my place to judge how well she succeeded or failed at those things.
>Lindsay I’ve been reading your blog for some months now and was hooked from the instant I began. I appreciate your wit and honesty and the fact that you are not pretentious and “tell it like it is.” However, I feel compelled to comment on this post. While I agree that Anna Nicole was not without her faults, the fact is , the woman just died and it seems a bit disrespectful and perhaps even tacky to speak ill of her.I understand this is your blog and your opinion but I’ve also read that you appreciate those with differing opinions as long as said opinions are stated peacefully.So I must politely disagree with your choice to post about this woman, this mother whose child will someday be old enough to read all the criticism. Why add to the negativity already in print?
>People like Anna Nicole make me mad. Really mad. Look at her lifestyle- she’s been trying to kill herself for ages. She had beauty, money, and some degree of potential, and beyond that, she had a child who was dependent primarily on her and she wasted all of that. Wasted opportunities that others would have killed for. Wasted a chance to be a good mother that some women who are far more deserving will never get.I realized I’d get some criticism for saying this, but seriously, how can I respect her life when she didn’t respect it herself? When she did everything she could to end it? It sickens me. And as a mother, it angers me.We seem to be giving the most attention to the trainwrecks out there- the Paris Hiltons and Nicole Richies and Lindsay Lohans- not those who are deserving of adulation. It’s so wrong. I read the gossip too, so I’m also disgusted with myself.I’m not saying I’m right in being sickened by the life and death of Anna Nicole Smith and that everyone else should agree with me. I’m saying that if I’m honest with myself, this is how I feel.
>I was surprised to hear that this was being played out as such a big deal. My own mother called and said “Oh my God did you HEAR?” and I could not believe she actually called me at work for that.But, almost instantly, my heart went out to her daughter.Because any child who loses their mother so young is hurt, in some way, by that.And I have to admit, your post made me think “jeez, a person still DIED…” because any life, even those that aren’t respected by the owner’s themselves, is worthy of respect and dignity.Unfortunately, as you pointed out, the media doesn’t seem to “get” that either. Interesting trumps Inspiring any day, apparently.
>Agreed, there are people in her life that will suffer from the loss of Anna Nicole, but I have been scratching my head all day long, trying to remember why she was famous. I mean, I read some article that recalled a time when she was asked what her biggest talent was and she said “I have no idea!”, so if SHE didn’t even know, how could we? My point, I guess, is that I’m not sure why all the news shows this morning interviewed a ton of people, doctors, policeman etc. to talk about the death of someone whose fame is kinda a mystery–at least to me…
>Even if you disagree with the lifestyle one chooses to lead, it is still (in my opinion) incredibly tacky to speak poorly about them only hours after their death.I’ve been reading your blog for awhile now and I was a little surprised when I read this post. Not because you chose to write about Anna Nicole, but the way in which you chose to write about her.I’m not saying we need to glorify her, but is it really necessary to vilify her?
>I wonder what sort of trauma Anna Nicole had in her life. Whenever her mother is interviewed she has nothing but negative things to say. Anna Nicole married really young the first time and had a child right away and she made really bad choices throughout her young life. Yes, 39 years old is still really young. I can’t help but think she suffered from some sort of personality disorder, mental illness or trauma because healthy and sane people don’t behave that way. I still feel sorry for her because of that. Yes, she wasted what she was given, but maybe she never realized that she had anything. Perhaps her parents never helped her realize that her life was a gift and that she was meaningful and loveable.Maybe I’m a fool, but still feel a sort of “there but for the grace of fate” empathy for a woman who was clearly in pain.
>I was most certainly not shocked.I was shocked to see her compared to Marilyn Monroe. I mean, just because they were both blonde and bodacious… hello… Marilyn Monroe was just as messed up but she at least got out a few films, and she also represented a historical moment in American history. She was the first true Hollywood ‘babe’ I think.. anyhow Anna Nicole? Not so much. I am sorry that she died so young, leaving an infant alone. I’m sorry she lost her son. I’m sorry she was so messed up. She needed help. But surprised? Hell, her own mother said she wasn’t surprised. “It was the drugs,” said the mother.Duh.
>Shocked?No.A bit sad at the waste? Yes.But shocked? Only that she was compared to Marilyn Monroe. Blonde and booby does not a Marilyn Make.
>Well said Lindsay. I was in the gym yesterday from 5PM tp 6PM. The television in the room was on CNN and there was a full hour of Wolf Blitzer (sp?)doing A.N.Smith … there had to be more important news available
>I never understood her appeal or the fascination with her (other than maybe the car wreck thing) life and I sure as hell don’t understand the fascination with her death.That said, my favorite part of all of it is that her mother went on TV basically saying “I told her so.” How great is a mom who keeps on saying “I told you so…” after the daughter is dead?
>Well, “anonymous,” I think it’s incredibly tacky to criticize me anonymously… particularly when I’m pretty damn polite to people who don’t agree with me.I don’t think that writing down all the things Anna Nicole was famous for is villifying her. Nor is criticizing the media for playing up her sensational death.
>Car wreck, definitely.And y’know, if I were the ghost of Marilyn, I’d be just a tad insulted by the media’s comparison.
>I feel like a stalker when I read your column – I just have to keep coming back to read the comments. More entertaining than a car wreck.
>Just here to share my opinion that I find this post to be in extremely poor taste.Expressing viewpoints is great; I certainly respect your right to freedom of speech.My thoughts on the matter are these:(a) Anna Nicole Smith was obviously a gravely emotionally and/or mentally ill woman with a chemical dependency problem(b) Despite the media circus surrounding Ms. Smith’s death, disparaging a dead woman like this, to me, helps no one. Perhaps the disparager and his/her readers or listeners can “get their rocks off” on the aggression. However, I fail to see how the trash-talking can serve any humanitarian or otherwise useful benefit.I have to ask myself: would I want people speaking so disrespectfully of a recently deceased relative of mine just because he or she lived a less-than-virtuous life in the public eye?Two cents,Tim
>For me…It’s all just so sad, all of it. Her whole life.She was i think a should was very new very young.She had only her looks going for her and even that her messed up.I personal don’t think her had any one but G-d on her side.I hope she rest in peace, really I do.And may that poor daughter of hers be placed far far away from it all.I am not sure she would be safe with anyone near the situation.Not her familyNot either of her “daddies” for sureJMHO
>Very well said. :)Sadly, it was like we all knew it was just a matter of time. The only thing I feel more than pity for her is anger at the media for exploiting a woman who was on the edge, even if she did put herself on that ledge. I also am disgusted that people couldn’t just leave her alone so that she would have had to grow up…and made her a joke, even though she good-naturedly accepted it. Sad, sad, sad 🙁 I hope she’s found peace because I think that, as a person in private, free from feeling the need to put on a show, and even though her priorities were clearly out of order, she may have actually been likeable.And even more than Anna needing to re-prioritize, I think that American culture needs to…and that means choosing role models that elevate themselves through their accomplishments instead of hoisting random beauties up onto a pedastal, from where they are sure to fall…sometimes to their deaths.
>Wow. This is not what I was expecting to read about Anna Nicole,that’s for sure. I agree and disagree with you. NOBODY deserves to die. And NOBODY deserves to lose their mother, no matter how screwed up their mother is. That poor little girl is always going to have a gaping hole in her heart from having lost her brother and Mother and never really knowing them.And to say she was a role model is stretching it a bit to be sure. A role model for whom? Bimbos and pole dancers everywhere? Give me a break.That being said I think we should let Anna Nicole rest in peace and let the people who truly loved her, I am sure that she had people who really did love her, to mourn in private. I feel the same way about Princess Diana. The woman has been dead for 10 years now, it is time to just let her rest in peace.Truly the whole story of Anna Nicole dieing saddens me. What a waste.WOW. I am still shocked by your post! It kind of blows me mind actually.
>What was so great about her? Simply that she was a human being — albeit apparently a lost, drug and alcohol addicted one — worthy of respect. For a young woman to die five months after giving birth to a baby and losing a son is just tragedy upon tragedy, and I feel sad about that, regardless of the choices she made in her life that I might not agree with. Who knows? She may have been battling PPD and that coupled with the death of her son and all the stress from the court battles was just too much to bear and she ended her life. We just don’t know. But I think she deserves pity, not scorn. And I’ve always been taught not to speak ill of the dead, especially so soon after a death.
>Oh, and I agree that the media coverage of her death is over-the-top crazy. Maybe people just want a mindless distraction from the war and other much more weighty news stories.
>I could not agree with you more!
>This is why the restg of the world hates us. I’m embarrassed to be American at times like this.
>Hear, Hear!! Finally, someone who is talking an ounce of sense on the topic. I cringe every time they compare her to Marilyn or play one of her coked-out interviews over the swelling strains of violins. Kathyb- I agree with you – sadly my first thought was “At least she can’t f*** up her baby girl’s life now” – not that someone else won’t but she didn’t have a hope in hell with AN as a mother.
>I couldn’t agree more with your post…I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around the concept that this woman is already being hailed as a tragic figure of our times…the tragedy is in the excessive coverage in the major news outlets. It’s sad that she’s dead–she’s left an infant without a mother, and on the cusp of an ugly, embarrassing custody dispute (which, as a wife who watched her husband deal with a custody dispute, I can say is ugly in the best of circumstances). Poor child. Oh, and to those who say, “You shouldn’t speak ill of the dead” I say, “BULLSH*T!” Why speak any differently than you would when someone is alive? I’d rather be honest than a hypocrite.
>Oddly, the more random things I read/see about her, the more disgruntled I get.Her mother said, for example, that Anna totally made up the story about coming from a trailer park- She actually grew up in middle class Houston. Her mom asked her why she kept telling the trailer park story and she said, “Mom, no one cares about a middle class girl marrying a billionaire- They want rags to riches and that’s what I’m giving them.”She also told her mom that she simply wanted to be in the media, regardless of whether it was good or bad. “Either way, it makes me money,” she said. That explains a lot of the bizarre behavior.Worst of all was the home video I saw of her with her 89-year-old husband. On Christmas morning, she got him to say on camera that he wanted to leave all of his money and everything he owned to her. Obviously, she figured she’d need that video later in court. Blech.I don’t think she was stupid and I don’t think she was led around by others who had a bad influence on her. I think she knew exactly what she was doing.Of course, I feel pity for someone who was so deluded and sadness at a life wasted. But I also feel anger, which I think is perfectly normal given the circumstances, and most of that anger is at our reaction to all of this.
>She gave the rest of us hope that we too, had a chance of getting our own tv show….
>To Jodi, who posted that nobody deserves to die: When did we have the choice to become immortal? Everybody dies. Fact of life. If you breathe, you will oneday stop. I would comment on her sudden death, but as the autopsy report hasn’t been finalized, I will reserve judgement. But certainly she shortened her life span by ingesting the drugs she seemed so fond of.I just wonder if Elton John is going to write a song for her.
>I kind of have this running list in my head of people whose deaths would not surprise me in the least. The former lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots, for one, and Courtney Love, two. Nicole Richie is another. Anna Nicole is not a surprise. I won’t comment upon her as a human being, but every time I heard any sound bite from her, it was nearly incomprehensible. She just seemed constantly under the influence, big time.
>Well said! I hope it’s ok but I’m linking people to the post from my blog today.
>I love the word “dumbassery”. I think that it sums up a lot of things.I do feel for her daughter though, because I can’t imagine my babies growing up without me.
>Very well said. The sad thing is that not much else is even MAKING the news.
>I couldnt’ agree more! I’ll admit, the day she died I was all over TMZ reading about it, but it got so out of hand so quickly. I also take issue with the word tragedy associated with her death. To your point, the only thing tragic about the story is what it means for her daughter. I don’t think tragedy applies to someone who made the same mistakes over and over again, whored herself out on a regular basis for fame and monetary gain and flaunted her drug use so clearly in public. What happened to her wasn’t tragic, it was the only possibly conclusion to the way she led her life. What’s sad is that she was so messed up for so long and no one around her did anything to help her because the more f-ed up she was the more money she (and they) made.
>A-MEN!
>Any early death is a tragedy.Considering the way her son died and the way she died without obvious cause (e.g. stomach full of pills), I worry that there may have been foul play.
>I agree with what I think you are saying about people getting a lot of attention for doing lousy stuff. I found myself lamenting this very thing this past year. I wished there were more truly admirable people who made headlines for admirable things because I feel as if we only see one end of the range of human behavior, that behavior between bad and worse. And when we are looking for role models, the only people put out there are crappy. But you’re in the media. It seems that the best way to protest this is to find admirable people to write about and to persist in writing about better people, despite waning profits. Stoking the fires of controversy is profitable, as you well know.
>A ‘role model’? now that’s sickening. The woman put the Ass in Class…anyone ever see any of her shows on, geez, I think it was MTV? ick. I pitied her that she lost her son, no mother should endur that…but now all I pity is her innocent baby daughter that hopefully will have some kind of true characters within her life to help protect her…since her mother did her the disservice of surrounding her with money grubbing self serving leaches, much like herself.
>No, actually Anon., she didn’t remove my comments and others who calmly disagreed. And to respond to the idea that saying not to speak ill of the dead is hypocritical, to me it’s not. Condemning a dead person who is not even in the ground yet just feels wrong to my sensibilities. It’s too easy, like shooting fish in a barrel. Criticize the media, the culture, etc. but not the person who is no longer here to defend themselves. But I fully respect others’ rights to disagree with that opinion.Oh, and about the icon thing. I think anyone who dies young and who has a fair amount of celebrity will be considered an “icon” whether they lived an admirable life or not. It’s just inevitable: Jayne Mansfield, James Dean, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Marilyn Monroe, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and the list goes on and on. And goodness knows those folks made some pretty stupid decisions in their young lives. So is ANS going to be considered an “icon?” Maybe. But a role model? I certainly hope not.
>Regarding the deletions, I generally remove people who comment rudely more than once. As you can see, they generally come back over and over again and frankly, it’s weird and trollish.
>I have nothing else to add… you said it all.
>I laughed out loud – great post, you nailed it.I never paid much attention to ANS but I’ve been in a near constant state of amused/appalled at the coverage of her death. Trashy pill-addicted celebrities don’t worry me half as much as the media blithely rewriting history.
>couldn’t agree more!so well put and so funny.
>I and everyone in my social circle couldn’t agree with you more. This entire phenomenon is utter nonsense. It is indicative of our degrading society. And really quite sad.Those who believe that she represented some sort of role model are succumbing to brainless media absorption. Folks, let’s get real here. We’ve all known (or known of) at least a handful of people in our lives that have have had similar lifestyles Did we glamorize them? OF COURSE NOT! So why do people worship her as if sher were a saint?? (mmm, don’t think too hard here just insert $$$)Shock value aside…this woman offered no redeeming value to our society. None. She had the opportunity to capture the nations attention–A luxury that very few ever receive in this world.Don’t misunderstand me. I am not suggesting that she deserves to die nor that I revel in her passing. But she certainly does not deserve to be celebrated as she has been in the US.The worse part about this entire circus is that her daughter has no choice but to carry the burden of her Mother’s trashy legacy that she’s left behind for her. And for that I feel great sympathy.I just can’t believe the comments I read about having pity for Anna.No pity here! I fell pity for her child. Pity is an emotion reserved for those that have suffered unjust misfortune or accident. Not for someone that willfully creates the sort of mess she did. You want to distribute pity?…read what is happening to the central Africa.