{"id":95567,"date":"2024-05-07T11:30:56","date_gmt":"2024-05-07T11:30:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2024\/05\/07\/whoopi-goldberg-memoir-details-past-drug-addiction-revelations\/"},"modified":"2024-05-07T11:30:56","modified_gmt":"2024-05-07T11:30:56","slug":"whoopi-goldberg-memoir-details-past-drug-addiction-revelations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2024\/05\/07\/whoopi-goldberg-memoir-details-past-drug-addiction-revelations\/","title":{"rendered":"Whoopi Goldberg Memoir Details Past Drug Addiction: Revelations"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Whoopi Goldberg<\/strong><\/a> detailed the darkest parts of her life in her new book, Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me<\/em>, dedicated to her late mother, Emma Harris<\/strong>, and late brother, Clyde K. Johnson<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow, it\u2019s time for a book about my nucleus family: my brother, Clyde, and especially about my mother, because none of the other stuff would have happened for me without her,\u201d Goldberg, 68, wrote in the memoir, which was released on Tuesday, May 7. (Harris died at age 78 in 2010 after suffering a stroke while Johnson died at age 65 in 2015.)<\/p>\n

Goldberg is no stranger to the publishing industry, having written various books over the years \u2014 including seven children\u2019s books. Prior to the 2024 memoir, the actress\u2019 most recent book<\/a> was released in 2015, titled Whoopi\u2019s Big Book of Relationships<\/em>. Goldberg\u2019s Bits and Pieces<\/em> differs from her other published works as it\u2019s more on the personal side.<\/p>\n

From her mother\u2019s death to her bouts with drug addiction, and even her own musings on motherhood, Goldberg kept things honest. Keep reading for the biggest revelations from Bits and Pieces<\/em>:<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tRelated: <\/span>Who Are Whoopi Goldberg\u2019s Ex-Husbands? See Her Relationship History<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tHollywood royalty! Whoopi Goldberg has quite the reputation, both on and off the screen. As an actress and film producer, she is most well-known for her roles in Sister Act, The Color Purple and Ghost, as well as her longstanding cohosting duties on The View. She is the first African American woman to earn the [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Goldberg\u2019s Childhood<\/h3>\n

The View<\/em><\/a> star wrote that she only \u201cunderstood\u201d her mother\u2019s plight after becoming an adult.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father and mother had separated, so I didn\u2019t grow up with him,\u201d Goldberg wrote. \u201cShe tried to get him to pay some support through the courts, but helping Black women living in the projects wasn\u2019t high on the state court\u2019s priority list, and she couldn\u2019t afford a lawyer who might have gotten something done.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Whoopi<\/div>

\n Whoopi Goldberg<\/span> Nancy R. Schiff\/Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the struggles, her mother \u201crefused to apply for welfare\u201d because Harris \u201cdidn\u2019t like the stigma.\u201d Goldberg added, \u201cI saw her cry once or twice about being unable to pay her taxes. But as a kid, I never grasped that we were always one paycheck away from the worst-case scenario.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her Mom\u2019s Mental Health Struggles<\/h3>\n

Goldberg recalled how her mother disappeared for two years during her childhood. It was later revealed that Harris was hospitalized and underwent electroshock therapy causing her to forget Goldberg and her brother.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t understand until later that my mother had been sent to Bellevue Hospital for having a nervous breakdown<\/a>,\u201d she wrote. \u201cShe had been acting differently for a couple of months, like she wanted to be alone and not have me and Clyde to think about.\u201d<\/p>\n

Goldberg explained that her father and grandfather approved of the \u201cexperimental\u201d treatment.<\/p>\n

Being Dyslexic<\/h3>\n

Goldberg wrote about having dyslexia \u2014 and hiding her struggles in school.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody in the 1960s was talking about dyslexia,\u201d she shared. \u201cI never even knew there was a diagnosis for what my brain did to the alphabet. I only knew I had to make it look like I didn\u2019t have a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tRelated: <\/span>‘The View’ Cohosts Through the Years and Why They Left<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tSince The View premiered in August 1997, more than 20 women have had permanent roles as cohosts on the ABC morning talk show. The series, which was created by Barbara Walters, features a multi-generational panel that conducts interviews and discusses the news of the day, ranging from politics to entertainment. The original lineup was comprised [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Goldberg further explained that she used memorization skills while reading in class. \u201cI locked it in my brain and then acted like I was reading it off the page,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n

How Goldberg Got Her Name<\/h3>\n

Born Caryn Johnson, the actress has her mother to thank for the name Whoopi Goldberg. She got her stage name \u201cWhoopi\u201d after Goldberg \u201cwould sometimes let loose with a fart,\u201d she admitted. \u201cI added \u2018Cushione\u2019 to it \u2014 with a French pronunciation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Once the stage name gained traction, Goldberg fielded a call from her mom \u2014 who offered a suggestion.<\/p>\n

\u201cI explained to her the whole farting thing. \u2018Well, if you\u2019re going to change your name and want people to take you seriously, you need a more substantial name,\u2019 my mother advised me,\u201d Goldberg recalled. \u201cI said, \u2018Oh, really, great namer of the stars? What do you think it should be?\u2019 She said, \u2018Well, you should take one of the names from the family tree. How about Goldberg? That has a nice ring to it.\u2019 That became my name.\u201d<\/p>\n

Her Addiction Struggles<\/h3>\n

Goldberg revealed that she became \u201cdependent\u201d on drugs at 16 years old. But was able to shake the habit after \u201changing out at a youth center\u201d nightly.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring the day, it was offices for drug rehab counselors,\u201d she wrote. \u201cIn the evening, it was a place where young people could come together and keep themselves from falling into bad things. I had already fallen in and out of bad things. But I\u2019d show up and listen to people talking about why they did what they did and how they got free of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the 1980s, Goldberg fell into drugs again after being invited to parties with Quaaludes and \u201clines of cocaine\u201d \u2014 which became her vice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI thought I could handle the cocaine thing. It didn\u2019t seem dangerous. Everybody seemed to have access to it, even on TV and movie sets,\u201d Goldberg wrote, referring to herself as \u201ca very high-functioning addict.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201ccocaine started to kick my ass\u201d and her work was impacted, she explained. \u201cFinally, I had one of those slap-in-the-face moments that make you see pretty f\u2013king clearly that you\u2019ve hit bottom.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Alex<\/div>

\n Alex Martin and Whoopi Goldberg<\/span> Ilya S. Savenok\/Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Becoming a Mother<\/h3>\n

Goldberg welcomed her daughter, Alex Martin<\/strong>, in 1973 with her first husband, Alvin Martin<\/strong>. Goldberg said the pain she experienced during childbirth was enough to make her not want to do it again.<\/p>\n

Further discussing motherhood<\/a>, Goldberg admitted that Alex was going to be \u201creally angry\u201d at her for being \u201caway\u201d all the time. Elsewhere in the book, Goldberg noted that she would \u201cnever\u201d win a motherhood award.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe gets it now. But as a kid, you\u2019re not thinking about financial independence, security, or having some backup in the bank account,\u201d Goldberg wrote. \u201cWhen you\u2019re 8 or 9, you just want your mom around.\u201d<\/p>\n

How Patrick Swayze Pushed For Her Role in \u2018Ghost\u2019<\/h3>\n

After reading the script for the 1990 film Ghost<\/em>, Goldberg knew she wanted to play Oda Mae. \u201cMy agent told me that they weren\u2019t going to consider me for the role,\u201d she said. But that was until the late Patrick Swayze<\/strong> became Goldberg\u2019s \u201cadvocate\u201d for the part, which she eventually got.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt turned out that Patrick and I had a really good connection in the scenes. We had fun together,\u201d Goldberg recalled. \u201cPatrick gave me a gift I never got to repay and never could. Because of him, I got my second Oscar nomination.\u201d<\/p>\n

Goldberg won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress<\/a> for her Ghost role in 1991.<\/p>\n

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\"Patrick<\/div>

\n Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg<\/span> Jean-Paul Aussenard\/WireImage<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A Friendship With Elizabeth Taylor<\/h3>\n

Goldberg met the late<\/a> Elizabeth Taylor<\/strong> \u2014 whom she called \u201can inspiration\u201d \u2014 at a fundraiser, and they began a years-long friendship.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe took many slings and arrows from people about her weight, her marriages, and her illnesses, even her name. She did not like it when people called her Liz. She never let that crap get in the way,\u201d Goldberg wrote. \u201cShe was the best example of what fame could do to help people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Meeting Marlon Brando<\/h3>\n

In one hilarious moment, Goldberg wrote that she and the late<\/a> Marlon Brando<\/strong> became friends after he \u2014 more or less \u2014 broke into her house and played the piano. When Brando died in 2004, he left Goldberg \u201ca parcel of land on his Fiji island,\u201d which the actress said threw her \u201cfor a loop.\u201d<\/p>\n

After a call with Brando\u2019s family, Goldberg eventually gave her share of the island back to his family.<\/p>\n

Her Mother\u2019s Death<\/h3>\n

Harris died in 2010, while Goldberg was \u201cperforming in the stage version of Sister Act<\/em>\u201d in London\u2019s the West End. Dame Maggie Smith<\/strong> was at the show when Goldberg received a call from her brother that their mother had died. (Both Goldberg and Smith starred in the 1992 movie Sister Act<\/em>.)<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\tRelated: <\/span>Whoopi Goldberg Through the Years<\/span><\/a>
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\n\t\t\tA true icon! Whoopi Goldberg went from humble beginnings to making history \u2014 and she doesn\u2019t show any signs of stopping. The multitalented star grew up in New York City before moving across the country to California in the 1970s. Her first major career breakthrough occurred back on her home turf with the success of [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Goldberg wrote that Smith went from being her \u201cbackstage company\u201d to staying with her for the rest of the evening. \u201cA flight was arranged for me to leave early the next morning. For the next five hours, Maggie sat with me and let me talk her ear off, telling stories about my mom, my growing-up years, and my brother. We laughed a lot,\u201d Goldberg wrote.<\/p>\n

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