# "Showbiz Moms & Dads" (Bravo, 4/13) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 12, 2004, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682 "2004-04-12T22:53:26Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![annieclaus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5a626/32.png) [@annieclaus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/annieclaus)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/21 "2004-04-14T14:24:10Z")
> [@Greywolf73](#): > > What I thought was frightening (although not as frightening as Mr. Nutter) was **Sullen Teenager’s** mom’s comment about the “sacrifices” she makes for her show biz daughter. Younger sister tells her about a test in school she failed and Mom says that one of the sacrifices she makes is not having time to help the younger daughter with her homework. Gaaah. > That poor kid has years of therapy ahead of her. Younger sister is going to grow up to be an axe murderer. Let’s hope Jordan is her first victim! Mom is going to learn that Hubby in Colorado has married someone else (quickie divorce based on grounds of spousal craziness). And it’s all going to turn out to be a main storyline on “Passions” or some equally inane soap opera. That Jordan needs a good spanking! ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/22 "2004-04-14T15:39:33Z")
It was pageant mom’s “smile” signal and dog show sign language that creeped me out. That and her “you’re not being very good” when the poor girl didn’t want to work on her interview questions. \ Maybe watching themselves on this show will show them what they’re doing to their kids. Sadly, proably not. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/23 "2004-04-14T15:55:05Z")
So now I’m watching TV commercials and wondering about the kids, whether they all have deluded parents who think their kid will be the next Johnny Depp or Cameron Diaz, support them so they don’t have to work themselves. I wonder, does it change when you get work? Is that why the little Moseley-Stephens girl seems normal, because she has a steady job? Pssssst. I didn’t get Eve’s reference, and Bricker’s comment didn’t help. But I liked it anyway. 🙂 Off to google. ---
**Author:** ![Club\_33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@Club\_33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Club_33)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/24 "2004-04-14T16:19:10Z")
This show was like driving by a car accident. I just couldn’t help but look, even though it was disturbing and you knew people were being hurt. I knew a stage mom once. I was a music producer who helped write songs for her son. He was a talented kid, had a great voice and a good look. He was 13 at the time. The problem was, as we were recording the CD to set him on his career path, his voice changed and he couldn’t sing the material anymore. It was very hard on him because he was frustrated at not being able to perform, even though he knew that thousands of dollars were being spent on him. The pressure on him was such that he eventually gave up and rebelled. He is 24 now and no longer sings. The biggest problems that faced though concerned the lack of education and the isolation he faced. He was privately tutored for a while but never really learned the basics of math, reading, and grammer. To this day, he can’t read or write very well. He also hasn’t been able to hold a job because, along with the academic deficiencies, he never learned any social skills. He basicall didn’t have friends growing up. He is going to pay for the rest of his life because his mother didn’t see any importance in any of this stuff. The fact of the matter is that she all out admitted that the reason why she pushed him so hard was: A) She always wanted to sing but couldn’t , and B) She didn’t like working and thought this would support her ability to just lounge around the rest of her life. Her motivation had nothing to do with her child’s enthusiasm or love of his craft. She was just lazy and trying to live through her child. The worst thing that she did though was bring a “manager” into his life that kept the kid with him practically 24/7 and wouldn’t allow him contact with others. This manager, who was later found out to be a former street hustler in Hollywood, eventually molested him. The mother never checked this guys credentials or saw anything weird going on. She was blinded by the dollar signs in her eyes. It was a really sad situation. When I saw the parents on this show, I saw the same traps, the same bad parenting, and the same ego. The only thing I can hope is that this exposure will cause someone to step in and issue a wake-up call to them. Your kids aren’t having fun. They are being neglected and you are responsible. Of course, not all parents are this way, even on the show. Some actually put their child’s best interests first. Unfortunately, they are the exceptions. ---
**Author:** ![JessEnigma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/cdc98d/32.png) [@JessEnigma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JessEnigma)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/25 "2004-04-14T17:46:19Z")
> [@Kepi](#): > > The **Little Black Girl** - The only one where the mom and the kid seem to be somewhat grounded in reality. The mother is an agent, right? It seems like that might help a bit…she’s in the business too and knows what can happen a lot better than some random mother from Idaho or something. I’m also glad that I wasn’t hallucinating the lack of talent on Shane’s part. I kept thinking that he really couldn’t sing very well at all, but his mom kept insisting and actually entered him in that contest, so I thought it might’ve just been bad speakers on my television or something. And the boy can’t dance. But I was watching this and thinking about the people I’ve known who really were talented. I’ve known a handful of good musicians and dancers. Only one of them had a stage parent, but at least she had relevant training in her son’s field and wasn’t trying to push him into any big name orchestras at age 10. On the other hand, I’ve known several stage parents and none of their kids were even remotely talented. I feel really sorry for those kids (and for most of the kids on this show) and I wonder how you could pin all of your hopes on your kid like that. That’s an awfully big burden to carry and I’m glad my parents would never dream of doing that. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/26 "2004-04-14T18:00:51Z")
> [@Eve](#): > > Was the mother found under the dock clutching a penmanship medal, with a heel-mark on her forehead? Laughing my ass off. You are one sick puppy. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/27 "2004-04-14T18:28:50Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Pssssst. I didn’t get Eve’s reference, and Bricker’s comment didn’t help. But I liked it anyway. 🙂 Off to google. [The Bad Seed](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048977/combined). I knew I should’ve recognized that reference, it kept tickling away at the back of my brain… ---
**Author:** ![mrunlucky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7993a0/32.png) [@mrunlucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrunlucky)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/28 "2004-04-14T19:28:18Z")
> [@Kepi](#): > > **Duncan Nutter** - A gay man with seven kids. Wow! During his one-on-one interviews with the camera, was anyone else reminded of Stewart Smalley by the way he spoke and his facial expressions? This is all about him. None of the kids seem to give a rat’s ass about it. > > The **Shane** kid - Lots of enthusiasm. Zero talent. > > The **Jon-Benet** girl - That whole “child pageant” scene is just creepy to begin with. The mom didn’t seem any more creepy than the rest of the pageant freaks. > > The **Sullen Teenager** - Might have some talent, but her attitude sucks. > > The **Little Black Girl** - The only one where the mom and the kid seem to be somewhat grounded in reality. I’m so glad to know I was not alone in having these same thoughts. An entire week’s worth of creepiness in one hour. How convenient! ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/29 "2004-04-14T20:06:36Z")
Otto, thanks. I’ve seen the movie, but it’s been years and years. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/30 "2004-04-14T20:52:15Z")
I don’t know which made me want to drive ice-picks through my ears more: Little Jon-Benet’s sexy rendition of “Back In My Baby’s Arms,” or Talent-Free Shane’s “Hot! Hot! Hot!” ---
**Author:** ![AwSnappity](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a3d4f5/32.png) [@AwSnappity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AwSnappity)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/31 "2004-04-14T21:06:49Z")
> [@Fairblue](#): > > I just wanted to say I heard that the Swann girl from the other show that **Bibliocat** mentioned had a kind of happy ending to her story. Her mother died suddenly, and she went to live with her dad in Alaska, and is totally out of the child pageant stuff now, and so hopefully will recover by the time she grows up. :eek: That makes me happy and sad at the same time. I have that show on VHS and I watch it from time to time. Swan was a sweetheart and the mother didn’t seem _that_ bad. I want to hear more about Bubba, though! ---
**Author:** ![moi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@moi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moi)\ **Post date:** [April 14, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/32 "2004-04-14T21:34:37Z")
I’m with **gonzoron** here: > [@gonzoron](#): > > It was pageant mom’s “smile” signal and dog show sign language that creeped me out. That and her “you’re not being very good” when the poor girl didn’t want to work on her interview questions. I actually felt bad for watching the show at this point; I felt complicit, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2004, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/33 "2004-04-17T03:12:42Z")
I’m just getting to it now. TiVo managed to miss it the first time around; apparently Florida Progress felt that we didn’t really need power to our house that day. So, it re-aired tonight, and I got it then. _ **Wow.** _ This Klingensmith woman (mother of Shane) is an absolute psycho. If her son has won any sort of talent competition, I shudder to imagine his competition – even his speaking voice is awful. Mrs Klingensmith is the sort of person who would make me clear the room upon her entry. Just looking at her makes me uncomfortable. And Shane claims that his mom isn’t really pushy about his “career”. What does he think pushy looks like? The Nutters are perhaps the most aptly-named family I’ve ever heard of. What sort of people put their children’s headshots on the wall? Why can’t closet case Mr Nutter see that not a single one of his 7 (nor his wife) has any interest whatsoever in his bizarre little dream? I don’t even know them, and I can see the resentment in the face of Mrs Nutter. This one is a divorce arbitration waiting to happen. The Tyes are the ones with the creepy Jon-Benet vibe. Her poor four-year-old skin gets a spray tan and makeup – This poor little girl is trying to play on her living room floor, but Mommy Dearest won’t stop badgering her. It’s just a few steps to wire-hanger-ville with this one: “I don’t want to do this again.” “Emily, you’re not being very good, are you?” … “Even if she is on the side of the stage crying, once she gets up there, she smiles.” Next up, the Barrons. The high-schooler who is being kicked off the JV team, because she can’t manage to go to school enough with her acting classes getting in the way. Jordan is such a defiant little pain in the ass. When I look at her, I’m torn – either she is just a nasty little bitch who always gets her way, or she is intentionally sabotaging everything because she hates her mother. Jordan Moseley (_That’s So Raven_) seems the most grounded of them all. This is probably because her mom is an agent, so she knows what stage moms can turn into. She seems to not want to interfere too much with Jordan’s upbringing, which I find admirable. This is just in the first half-hour. I can’t wait for the next episode. ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2004, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/34 "2004-04-18T03:07:12Z")
> [@me](#): > > I can’t wait for the next episode. Just bumping this because I forgot to mention (in case y’all didn’t know) that this series will be airing Tuesdays at 9p with a repeat on Wednesday at 1a (4 hours after the first) for at least the next 2 - 3 weeks. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2004, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/35 "2004-04-18T15:26:06Z")
It’s like a car wreck. I’ll be gawking at the miserable mess the whole time. ---
**Author:** ![Annie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/858c86/32.png) [@Annie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie)\ **Post date:** [April 18, 2004, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/36 "2004-04-18T16:44:54Z")
> [@](#): > > The Tyes are the ones with the creepy Jon-Benet vibe. Her poor four-year-old skin gets a spray tan and makeup – This poor little girl is trying to play on her living room floor, but Mommy Dearest won’t stop badgering her. It’s just a few steps to wire-hanger-ville with this one: Oh look, Mrs. Tye is [displeased](http://www.stpetersburgtimes.com/2004/04/12/Floridian/Missed_congeniality.shtml) with her depiction. > [@](#): > > According to Tye, the only concession the family has won from producers is the elimination of footage showing Emily, clad only in her panties and a shower cap, crying as a friend dries her spray-on tan with a hair dryer. (Debbie Tye was afraid the footage would appeal to pedophiles.) :eek: :rolleyes: Is Sears having a sale on clues this week? Can we buy her one? ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/37 "2004-04-19T00:51:52Z")
> [@Club 33](#): > > I knew a stage mom once. . . > The biggest problems that faced though concerned the lack of education and the isolation he faced. He was privately tutored for a while but never really learned the basics of math, reading, and grammer. To this day, he can’t read or write very well. He also hasn’t been able to hold a job because, along with the academic deficiencies, he never learned any social skills. He basicall didn’t have friends growing up. He is going to pay for the rest of his life because his mother didn’t see any importance in any of this stuff. Sounds like a male Jessica Simpson. Except, somehoe her parents succeeded and now I’m subjected to her bad singing and lack of real-world smarts. Or any kind os smarts, for that matter. I hate her. ---
**Author:** ![easy\_e](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/eb8c5e/32.png) [@easy\_e](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/easy_e)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/38 "2004-04-19T01:00:47Z")
The above is what I get for trying to type one-handed. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Bambi\_Hassenpfeffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bambi_Hassenpfeffer)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/39 "2004-04-19T02:04:55Z")
> [@Annie](#): > > Oh look, Mrs. Tye is [displeased](http://www.stpetersburgtimes.com/2004/04/12/Floridian/Missed_congeniality.shtml) with her depiction. I saw those pictures in the _Times_ (it’s my local newspaper) – they were doubleplus creepy. They’re even creepier there, because in the print edition they were B&W. Half of me wants to go to that woman’s house and ask her WTF she’s thinking. ---
**Author:** ![Eve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Eve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eve)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2004, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682/40 "2004-04-19T13:51:37Z")
Bizarrely, [televisionwithoutpity.com](http://televisionwithoutpity.com) is not covering this show! It seems _made_ for their web site. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/showbiz-moms-dads-bravo-4-13/239682.md?page=1)