The Untold Truth Of Kirstie Alley

Actress Kirstie Alley — famous for her roles on Cheers and Veronica's Closet — is getting majorly trolled online after tweeting praise for Donald Trump on March 23. The 69-year-old actress thanked the president for his handling of the coronavirus

"Dear Mr. President, @realDonaldTrump," Alley began, "I wanted to thank you for ur recent decorum, sincerity, & care towards us. You're taking charge & leading in a manner needed & wanted for this country. I highly commend you for ur boundless energy & willingness to solve problems. Thank you." Trump promptly responded to Alley's tweet by saying, "Thank you Kirstie!" 

Naturally, Twitter is a hot ball of sass about this, with one user tweeting back at Alley, "You missed a spot on his left butt cheek," followed by a kiss emoji. Another person asked Alley, "Are you serious????? What President are you watching?" However, some online are supporting Alley's praise of Trump. One person wrote, "Thank you, Kirstie!! When most celebrities are full of hatred 4 our President, it's nice 2 see some common sense coming from Hollywood." 

Alley isn't finished discussing this subject either. On the same day that she praised Trump, she tweeted, "I compliment people when they do well ... blah blah blah." Amidst the criticism, many on Twitter are also bringing up Alley's religious beliefs, because she's a member of Scientology. Let's dive more into that, shall we?

Kirstie Alley and the Church of Scientology

In an unforgettable interview on The Howard Stern Show from 2013, Kirstie Alley spoke about how she found Scientology. Alley was struggling with cocaine and asked a friend who was a Scientologist for help. The friend sent Alley the book Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard and Alley said she read it while "snorting coke through the whole thing." At the end of the book Alley said she thought, "This is either the world's biggest sham or this is the world's biggest discovery." So Alley moved to California to find out! 

Alley shared that her parents were worried about her budding interest in Scientology and her mother even handed her a dictionary and asked Alley to look up the word "cult." But Alley said the definition was too benign to scare her, and she figured if she could get out of drugs, she could get out of a cult. 

She spoke to Stern about the persecution she experiences in Hollywood for her beliefs. "I think that is the most repulsive thing a person can do, attack another person's faith. Because a faith is what you look to to have hope, and is what you look to help other people, and I just think it's really wrong," Alley said (via HuffPost). 

"When you are generalizing, and when your goal is to malign and to say things about an entire group... when you decide to blanket statement, 'Scientology is evil,' you are my enemy," Alley added. 

A look at Kirstie Alley's career and personal life

One of Kirstie Alley's earliest castings was in 1982 film Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, playing a half-Vulcan officer Saavik, according to Today. She then was cast as Gloria Steinem in the 1985 TV-movie A Bunny's Tale. Alley's breakthrough role was playing Rebecca Howe in the sitcom Cheers from 1987-1993. Alley won an Emmy for her performance on Cheers in 1991. 

After her first marriage to a man named Bob Alley ended, Kirstie Alley married actor Parker Stevenson from 1983 to 1997 and together they adopted two children, according to Today

Alley began making headlines for her affiliations with Scientology after she protested a psychiatric convention, according to Tampa Bay Times. She attended the protest with two other celebrities: Juliette Lewis and singer Lisa Marie Presley. They took a stance against "mind-altering medications" as Alley said, "They're making drug addicts out of our children."

Kirstie Alley's struggles with body image

In addition to defending her religious beliefs, Kirstie Alley has been vocal about her struggles with her body image throughout her life. According to People, she was a spokesperson for Jenny Craig for three years, but gained 83 pounds after her partnership with the company ended in 2007. Alley shared that when she worked on Cheers, she weighed 148 pounds but producers insisted she lose 20 pounds, and it began a fixation with weighing 128 pounds.

In 2009, she told the magazine that she was back to focusing on her health, explaining, "I'm ready to work. I messed up along the way, but I'm not going to concentrate on that. I'm gonna go, 'You know what? Get back on the horse, lose the freakin' weight, and then just move forward!'"

All in all, Alley had an epic TV career while also being vulnerable and honest about her struggles with weight. Clearly the star is certainly not shy to speak her mind politically or otherwise!