Drew Barrymore's Extraordinary Life

CNN's Anderson Cooper Talks To The Actor/Producer/Director About Life's Ups And Downs, New Projects

(CBS)  The story of a child star done in by fame is as old as Hollywood itself. But the story of a child star from one of America's greatest acting families, who nearly destroys herself, then bounces back to become not just a leading lady but a major film producer - that story belongs only to Drew Barrymore.

She was famous by 7, abusing drugs by 11, and at 15 was washed up and on her own. She may have come from acting royalty, but in many ways she was an orphan, a wild child raised by crews on movie sets. She is 34 now, and though she still sometimes talks like a teenager, she has become one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood, succeeding far beyond what anyone could have predicted.

How did she do it? That's what we wanted to find out.

60 Minutes and CNN's Anderson Cooper met up with Barrymore on Broadway in New York. At the height of afternoon rush hour, she stopped traffic.

Photos: Drew Barrymore

It has been a while, but a Barrymore on Broadway was something generations of New Yorkers were once used to.

The Ethel Barrymore Theatre on 47th Street in Manhattan is named for her great-aunt, a legendary stage actress in the early 1900s.

Standing under a photo of her great-aunt, Cooper noticed Drew Barrymore shares the same profile with her ancestor.

"I don't wanna be too self-congratulatory about it, I just love the fact that we have this sort of family stamp," Barrymore said.

That Barrymore stamp graced silver screens from silent movies through the 1940s. Her great-aunt Ethel and her grandfather John Barrymore were considered the greatest actors of their generation.

Barrymore's great-uncle, Lionel, was a famous character actor, who will forever be known as the sinister banker Mr. Potter in "It's A Wonderful Life."

Acting has been the family business for hundreds of years.

"Going back to Georgiana Drew and John Drew, and my great-grandfather Maurice Barrymore, and it was such a sort of circus of odd, interesting people that loved acting," Barrymore told Cooper.

"There are Barrymores that have been acting since George III was in power," he noted.

"Like the 14th century, it dates back to the family tree and I thought, 'Well, I'm not crazy if I feel this magnetic bloodline pull to do this thing," Barrymore said.

She felt the pull as a child, but she'd been pushed into the business long before that: when she was just 11 months old, she starred in a commercial for dog food.

Her big break however came at the age of 6 in the blockbuster hit "E.T."

Her scene-stealing portrayal of Gertie made her an international star; movie audiences loved the precocious little girl, and so did director Steven Spielberg, who Barrymore calls her "Godfather."

"I've always said about Drew that she's tenaciously optimistic," Spielberg said. "And she had really the kind of imagination that not only invited E.T. into a reality within herself, but it invited all of us to believe that what Drew was seeing was true."

On the set between takes, Barrymore used to talk with E.T. She'd tell him her secrets.

"I liked hanging out with him. And I would bring him lunch, and put a little handkerchief around his neck," Barrymore remembered.

She knew he was a fake, but, "that red beating heart just said so much to me. And I just felt like I could talk to him."

[bubbadubba]

I don't care about her personal problems but she does turn me on.

[presjfk]

I like Drew Barrymore, as much as I can like anyone I have never met.

But the point of the story is she was born with a silver spoon in her mouth, and she made it big with her family connections and money. She could have lost it all of course but the odds were with her the whole way.

[anothergypsygirl]

I was so moved by Drew Barrymore's honesty that I came to this site to read the entire interview.

What is wrong with America is clear when you read the critical, mean spirited comments above. People who really have no idea about how painful it is to have no one looking out for you as a child are ready to beat her down for her candor.

I grew up in a very similar circumstance -- minus the Hollywood family. Hollywood's "gypsies" provided her with a support system -- no matter how flawed. Some of us were not so lucky. By no fault of our own we were born into drug and alcohol families and never found that support.

I really hate people who thrive on the demise of another... real or imagined. It's unfortunate that our society feeds that mentality.

[angiehayes222]

I personally can't figure out why they say she's lived an extraordinary
life. Her life experiences don't seem that extra to me, but then I just a fan of hers. This story kinda stinks from my stand point. She needs to walk a mile in someone shoes other than her own to figure out that her life is not that extraordinary.

[Oregon_State_OSU]

I have always Respected Drew Barrymore. I dont care if at one time she was a party girl in Hollywood. She is a Fantastic actress and a great Cover Girl model.

I sure would like to hear some stories from Drew Barrymore about the times she went to Studio 54 and what she saw and did. That whole situation about Studio 54 and what went down and how that place worked and the Money has always made me want to know more.

[sgsgermain]

I do not agree that Barrymore is all grown up. Despite the family jewels to which she admits some debt, she is a typical child of the seventies, choosing to run from family responsibilities and realities so she may create her own gypsy fantasy. She reconciled with an irresponsible father; but she denies a single mother who, despite shortcomings and mistakes, did try to raise her alone in circumstances most likely imagined out of proportion by all concerned.

She may be a star, but she and her friends may one day fall from their narcissistic sky and want the families from whom they derived their wonderful selves. Maybe our struggling generation taught her selfish generation that love and respect need not be a family tradition. I hope she and her like-minded friends find their "own place" and stay there. We could all use a break from their tragic drama.

[librablue-2009]

This interview was as pointless as I thought it would be.

Let's be honest, if Barrymore did not have a famous name she would not even be in the business. She is a mediocre actress at best with a lisp that is more than annoying.

Anderson seemed intrigued by Barrymore's dysfunctional life and even seemed impressed that she was drinking and smoking cigarettes at 9, smoking marijuana at 11, and doing cocaine at 12. The only thing he didn't ask her is when she started having sex, but chances are it was about the same time.

Although Barrymore said that she was not proud of her behavior she did not seem ashamed of it either telling Anderson that it wasn't "tragic," but "extraordinary."

Not only does Barrymore have the same famous family "profile," she also has the same "I am not all there" look in her eyes.

I think it is premature to call her a "survivor," I would not be surprised to see her crash and burn in the future.