How David Crosby Took In Drew Barrymore When She Was Only 14
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Drew Barrymore had lived several lifetimes by the time she was 14 years old. Born to a long line of actors, Drew starred in her first commercial at 11 months old. She shot to stardom at the age of 7 with her portrayal of the adorable, pigtailed Gertie in Steven Spielberg's smash film "E.T." By the time she was 9 years old, she was partying in various clubs with her mom, Jaid Barrymore. The young star was exposed to drugs and alcohol, and by the time she was 12, she had already completed a stint in rehab.
Drew opened up about her wild child days as an adolescent on "The Drew Barrymore Show." Admitting that she had acted out, she told viewers, "Our life was set up for a crash and burn disaster. I was a child actor, I was going out, I was completely out of control." Drew described how her mother put her in an institution, and she was legally emancipated when she got out. Still, the actor's life was anything but easy and she had to rely on an unusual ally during a hard time in her life.
David Crosby added structure to Drew Barrymore's life
At the age of 13, Drew Barrymore was forced into a mental health facility by her mother, Jaid Barrymore. Drew stayed there for 18 months and credits her time there for saving her life. "I needed that whole insane discipline. My life was not normal. I was not a kid in school with normal circumstances. There was something very abnormal, and I needed some severe shift," she told The Guardian.
After a year and a half, the facility released Drew because her insurance no longer covered her stay. Thankfully, the staff reached out to David Crosby and his wife, Jan Dance, who were friends with the head of the institution. "They said, 'Oh, s***, her insurance is going to run out. We're going to have to kick her out and she's not ready. She needs a safe place to go,'" Crosby recalled to Howard Stern in 2022.
Crosby helped Drew acclimate to a daily, structured lifestyle and set boundaries for her. "We took her to school in the morning and tried to be a good influence. I think we were kind and loving, and it felt good to do. You try to do stuff, and you're not sure how it's going to work out. I think that one worked. I think she became a responsible human being and is a nice person," he stated. Drew lived with Crosby and Dance for two months, but after she left, they continued to be there for her in times of need.
David Crosby and his wife were Drew Barrymore's 'surrogate parents'
Drew Barrymore opened up about her special relationship with David Crosby and Jan Dance in her autobiography, "Little Girl Lost." She recalled, "David and his wife, Jan, both of whom were close friends of my therapist, Betty, acted as an invaluable support team to me, like surrogate parents. They were always there for me." During a particularly hard time, Barrymore called him in the middle of the night on a pay phone to ask him for help. "He pulled up a few minutes later — yes, in his pajamas — and took me back to his house, where we sat in his car and talked for almost two hours," she wrote. She and Crosby talked about her unhealthy relationship with her mother, to which he advised her to let her go "to a certain extent."
Barrymore previously spoke about living with Crosby in a 2016 interview with Howard Stern. She called her stay with him "pretty wild" and revealed that she went on tour with him and his bandmates. Even then, Crosby and Dance enforced rules for the 14-year-old. "I felt bad for them. They, like, had to take in this kid and they weren't parents themselves," she said.
Sadly, Crosby died on January 18 after a "long illness," per CNN. The music legend was an influence in many people's lives, and he undoubtedly played an important role in Barrymore's.