Drew Barrymore

Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975 in Culver City, California) is an American film and television actress and producer.

Her family

She is the granddaughter of stage actor John Barrymore, and the great-niece of Lionel Barrymore and Ethel Barrymore. Her father, John Drew Barrymore, and half-brother, John Blyth, are also actors (although they haven't experienced the critical or commercial success the other Barrymores have enjoyed). "Drew" was the maiden name of her great-grandmother, Georgiana; "Blythe" was the original surname of the dynasty founded by her great-grandfather, Maurice. Drew's mother is Hungarian-born actress and model, Ildiko Jaid Mako (b. 1944).

Career

Barrymore's career began at the age of 11 months, when she appeared in a dog food commercial. When she was bitten by her canine co-star, the producers feared litigation, though Barrymore merely laughed the incident off. She shot to fame as a child actor when she co-starred in the 1982 Steven Spielberg film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. At the age of 7, on November 20, 1982, Barrymore became the youngest ever guest host of the weekly TV program Saturday Night Live. She performed in a skit where she revealed that she had killed E.T.

Drew Barrymore on the cover of Playboy, January 1995

Biography

In the wake of this sudden stardom, she endured a notoriously troubled childhood, drinking alcoholic beverages by the time she was 9, smoking marijuana at 10, and snorting cocaine at 12. Barrymore later described this early period of her life in her 1990 autobiography, Little Girl Lost. Though overcoming her substance abuse problems by the time she entered adulthood, Barrymore maintained her "bad girl" image, and in fact leveraged her new found role as a sex symbol to stage a career comeback in the 1990s, playing a teenage seductress in Poison Ivy, and posing nude for the January 1995 issue of U.S. magazine Playboy. Steven Spielberg, Barrymore's godfather, gave her a quilt for her 20th birthday with a note that read "Cover yourself up". Enclosed was a copy of her Playboy appearance, with the pictures altered by his art department so that she appeared fully clothed. At that time she had also appeared nude in her last five movies. During a 1995 appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman, Barrymore shocked the normally unflappable host by climbing onto his desk and flashing her breasts at him (but with her back to the camera), as part of a dance for his birthday. She also modelled in a series of Guess? jeans advertisements during this time.

Drew Barrymore on The Late Show with David Letterman in 1995, immediately after notoriously flashing the host on-air for his birthday.Barrymore has continued to be a highly bankable movie actress. Though her playful sex appeal has undoubtedly helped her remain in the media spotlight, she has also established a substantial career behind the scenes, despite never finishing high school. She has produced several films, including the highly successful Charlie's Angels movie adaptation and its sequel. In addition to the light-hearted romantic comedies that she has typically starred in, she has also recently explored more dramatic roles in movies such as Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and the cult favorite Donnie Darko, of which she was also the executive producer. Barrymore has started to receive more notice both as a serious actress and a savvy Hollywood "player", though without losing her reputation as a sex symbol and (occasional) hellraiser.

Barrymore's career makes for colorful copy. In the words of Yahoo! Movies:

Heir to a Hollywood dynasty, child star, prepubescent drug and alcohol abuser, teenage sexpot, and resurrected vessel of celluloid purity, Drew Barrymore is nothing if not the embodiment of the rise and fall of Hollywood fortunes, self-reinvention, and the healing powers of good PR.
On February 3, 2004, she received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Barrymore was married to Welsh bartender turned bar owner, Jeremy Thomas, from March 20 to April 28, 1994, and to comedian Tom Green from July 7, 2001 to October 15, 2002 (Green filed for divorce in December 2001). She is currently dating drummer Fabrizio Moretti of The Strokes. Barrymore has also publicly declared herself to be bisexual, revealing that she had slept with many women as a teenager and is still very interested in women sexually.

Trivia

Barrymore was delivered by Dr. Paul Fleiss, father of Heidi Fleiss (interview on The Tonight Show, January 22, 2003).
She is the godmother of Frances Bean Cobain, the daughter of musicians Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love.
She has 6 tattoos: a crescent moon on her big toe, a cross with ivy on her lower leg, a butterfly on her stomach, a daisy on her hip, and 2 angels on her lower back (one has a banner with her mother's name, Jaid, and the other has the name James--a tribute to her then-boyfriend Jamie Walters).

Selected filmography by date

Barrymore (right) with Lucy Liu and Cameron Diaz in Charlie's Angels (2000)Altered States (1980)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Firestarter (1984)
Cat's Eye (1985)
Poison Ivy (1992)
Wayne's World 2 (1993) (Cameo)
Bad Girls (1994)
Boys on the Side (1995)
Mad Love (1995)
Batman Forever (1995)
Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
Scream (1996)
Wishful Thinking (1997)
The Wedding Singer (1998)
Ever After (1998)
Home Fries (1998)
Never Been Kissed (1999) (also producer)
Titan A.E. (2000) (voice)
Charlie's Angels (2000) (also producer)
Donnie Darko (2001) (also executive producer)
Freddy Got Fingered (2001) (Cameo)
Riding in Cars with Boys (2001)
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind (2002)
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003) (also producer)
Duplex (2003) (also producer)
50 First Dates (2004)
Fever Pitch (2005) (also producer)
Curious George (2006) (voice) (currently filming)
Lucky You (2006)

Selected filmography alpabetically

50 First Dates -2004
Altered States -1980
Bad Girls -1994
Batman Forever -1995
Boys on the Side -1995
Cat's Eye -1985
Charlie's Angels -2000 (also producer)
Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle -2003 (also producer)
Confessions of a Dangerous Mind -2002
Curious George -2006 (voice)
Donnie Darko -2001 (also executive producer)
Duplex -2003 (also producer)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial -1982
Ever After -1998
Everyone Says I Love You -1996
Fever Pitch -2005 (also producer)
Firestarter -1984
Freddy Got Fingered -2001 (Cameo)
Home Fries -1998
Lucky You -2006
Mad Love -1995
Never Been Kissed -1999 (also producer)
Poison Ivy -1992
Riding in Cars with Boys -2001
Scream -1996
The Wedding Singer -1998
Titan A.E. -2000 (voice)
Wayne's World 2 -1993 (Cameo)
Wishful Thinking -1997