Alex Carson
Brooke Shields is an American actress and model that saw immense success in the entertainment industry. In the decades since her debut as a child actress in the controversial film Pretty Baby. The successful career that results from Brooke’s performance in the film. The controversy surrounding it is emblematic of a darker undercurrent to her success story that haunts the actress until today. Join Facts Verse as we explore how Brooke Shields’ life has been utterly tragic.
Brooke Shields was born with modeling in her genetic makeup. Her mother was a model, and her father was an executive for the Revlon cosmetic company. Brooke Shields starts as an entertainer when she is a year old, appearing in an advertisement for Ivory soap. That same year, Brooke’s parents divorced. Her mother becomes the presiding force over her life throughout her childhood, and even into her early adult years.
When Brooke Shields was just a toddler, she began practicing piano and ballet. She takes horseback riding lessons, all while continuing her career as a young model at the behest of her mother. Although young Brooke’s life may have looked idyllic from the outside, she was rarely happy. Her mother is an imposing and controlling figure, Brooke didn’t like the things that her mother asks her to do. If it is up to Brooke, she’ll live a normal childhood instead of working as a young model and actress. Since becoming a parent, Brooke gives her children the childhood that she wishes for, keeping them out of the spotlight.
And because modeling is all she knows or because she is trying to live vicariously through her daughter. Her mother shoves her daughter into the entertainment industry seemingly against her will. Brooke’s mother’s name was Teri, and she positioned herself as her daughter’s manager, profiting off of her successes.
Brooke Shields career starts as an infant in the ad for Ivory soap, it becomes something a bit more problematic. Other parents may be a bit cautious about what they allow their kids to do. But Teri decides on progressive ideas about what she is willing to see her daughter in the entertainment industry. It starts when Teri allows Brooke to casts in the film Pretty Baby at the age of only 11. In the film, Brooke tasks with playing a child prostitute. She did the film features adult subject matter, also, she features Brooke performing in some problematic scenes that become controversial.
Pretty Baby meets with a great deal of controversy upon its release, but it is also a critical darling. There are many that look past the controversy and appreciate what the film is trying to say. Critics are also keen to point out the talent and maturity that young Brooke displays in her performance. In the years since the film’s release, it has only become more polarizing. However, the fact that it launches Brooke into stardom at the age of only 11, for better and for worse.
The controversy surrounding Pretty Baby is based on the fact that it appears as if 11-year-old Brooke grows up fast. If this relegates to the one instance of Brooke performing in the film, the controversy ends there. Brooke’s performance in Pretty Baby is the first instance of her mother allowing her to do things that aren’t appropriate.
The controversy surrounding Brooke continued into her teen years. For one thing, she saw her publicly with fellow child star Scott Baio. Many speculate that Brooke and Scott involve in an adult relationship which later turns out to be true. Scott is famous for portraying the character of Chachi on Happy Days. Brooke goes on to a successful television career of her own during her adult years. If you’re enjoying this video so far, be sure to hit the like button to show your support! As well, subscribe to the channel if you’d like to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
A career with numerous controversies under her belt by the time that she is a teen. Brooke Shields receives her most massive exposure ever in 1978. That year, she hires personally by Calvin Klein to model for his new line of pants. Brooke was just 16 years old at the time, and the ad campaign was decidedly adult. The ad utilizes Brooke in a way that is problematic to the young star’s age, though it’s incredibly popular.
Multiple television networks banned the Calvin Klein ad campaign featuring Brooke, but it still managed to bring her to more eyes than ever. From there, Brooke carried on her controversial career by appearing in the R-rated romance The Blue Lagoon. The film utilizes body doubles to allow the teenage actress to appear in scenes that can film by adult actresses. Some of the scenes are so explicit that Brooke testifies before congress that body doubles, in fact, it uses during filming.
While Pretty Baby had exploited Brooke for the purposes of drama, The Blue Lagoon made little qualms about the fact that it was exploiting the underage teenage actress for her looks. The film was incredibly popular, largely with teenagers, but was just as controversial as Brooke’s childhood film debut had been. Soon after the release of The Blue Lagoon, Brooke became of age. Many wondered how Brooke was going to live up to her controversial hype now that she was an adult, and she did so by posing in Playboy.
Brooke retained a successful career into her adult years and gradually began to take control of her image back from both her mother and the public. While Brooke rises to fame via controversial and exploitative roles that force her as a child, her adult years have seen her taking on more modest gigs. As well, she eventually ended up firing her mother from her managerial duties, but not before her mother had acted in the position for three decades. Brooke’s mother remains a conflicting and controlling presence in Brooke’s life until her death, although Brooke is sad to see her go.
In the time since her controversial career as a child actress and model, one of Brooke’s most memorable roles has been on the sitcom Suddenly Susan. The show offered Brooke a chance to reinvent herself somewhat in her adult years, becoming a comedic leading lady that didn’t have to do anything too risqué to get the approval of the audience. Brooke has also acted on Broadway in her adult years, having appeared in productions of Grease and Chicago.
Brooke has been involved romantically with numerous figures over the course of her life, but perhaps none of Brooke’s romances have been as interesting as the one she shared with Michael Jackson. Michael was apparently a huge fan of Brooke, and a romance sparked up between the two when Brooke approached him at the Academy Awards.
Brooke apparently never considered Michael a serious mate, though Michael himself was never wise to this. Michael had asked Brooke to marry him numerous times, even suggesting that the two adopt a child together. Many have since come to wonder whether or not Brooke was leading the pop icon on for some nefarious purpose. Brooke ended up breaking contact with Michael, though she was publicly shaken by the idol’s death to the point where many questioned whether or not her public reaction was faked.
Besides Michael Jackson, Brooke has also been romantically linked to Liam Neeson and Michael Bolton. However, the men that she has chosen to settle down with in her life haven’t been major celebrities. Brooke’s first husband was a tennis player by the name of Andre Agassi. Although he was a star in the tennis community, he was no A-list Hollywood actor. The two got married in 1997, though the marriage didn’t last through the decade. Andre was apparently addicted to drugs during the time.
After divorcing from Andre, Brooke went on to meet the man that she is still currently married to. Brooke and film producer Chris Henchy became married after less than a year of dating. Although they may have rushed into their marriage, they seem to have made the right choice!
By the time that Brooke had settled down happily with Chris, it seemed like all of her troubles were behind her. However, she suffered a severe bout of postpartum depression after giving birth to her first daughter. Thankfully, she was able to recover from the depression, and has since had another daughter. Brooke has given both of her daughters a life of innocence, unlike the one that she was afforded.
Brooke’s insistence on keeping her children out of the spotlight has come both from her controversial career as a child actress, as well as the fact that she has been a stalking victim. A man named John Rinaldi stalked Brooke for decades before being convicted in 2016.
Brooke has overcome her past struggles and continues to work to this day, though she has seen a recent setback in the form of a freak injury that left her unable to walk for a period of time. Brooke has been adamantly working on the road to rehabilitation, and has since launched a lifestyle brand that will give her something to do in the meantime.
Once Brooke has fully rehabilitated from her recent injury, we may expect to see her back in front of the camera! Comment down below to share if you think that Brooke’s still got some starring roles left in her, or if you think that she deserves to take it easy and focus on her lifestyle brand after all of the tragedy that she has experienced in her life. As always, like this video to show your support, and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
