1 00:00:05,881 --> 00:00:07,942 - Well, hey, sugar. Come in and sit down. 2 00:00:07,966 --> 00:00:08,985 Get yourself something to drink. 3 00:00:09,009 --> 00:00:11,512 I've got all I need right here, I quit drinking. 4 00:00:12,513 --> 00:00:14,282 - [Narrator] Brett Butler introduced millions 5 00:00:14,306 --> 00:00:16,576 to a new kind of Southern charm. 6 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:18,328 - Grew up Southern Baptist with a big picture 7 00:00:18,352 --> 00:00:21,206 of Elvis's last supper in our living room. 8 00:00:21,230 --> 00:00:23,249 - There's no one, I believe, who's Southern, 9 00:00:23,273 --> 00:00:26,461 that speaks to politics and being liberal like Brett Butler. 10 00:00:26,485 --> 00:00:28,296 - Just see that one irate Baptist going, 11 00:00:28,320 --> 00:00:29,923 "You can make fun of Jesus, 12 00:00:29,947 --> 00:00:31,549 but you leave the king out of it." 13 00:00:31,573 --> 00:00:33,968 - She's so scary smart. 14 00:00:33,992 --> 00:00:34,762 - Brett! 15 00:00:34,786 --> 00:00:38,306 {\an8}- She had this conceit as the thinking woman's hillbilly. 16 00:00:38,330 --> 00:00:39,724 {\an8}- So what she brought to the stage 17 00:00:39,748 --> 00:00:43,102 was a perspective that you don't see often 18 00:00:43,126 --> 00:00:45,063 {\an8}- I was married to a simian, knuckle-dragging, 19 00:00:45,087 --> 00:00:47,065 {\an8}cousin... ing, dog-selling, mother-loving, 20 00:00:47,089 --> 00:00:48,483 trailer-dwelling, brainless amoeba 21 00:00:48,507 --> 00:00:50,008 on the booger farm at the bayou. 22 00:00:51,134 --> 00:00:53,404 - [Narrator] Audiences couldn't get enough. 23 00:00:53,428 --> 00:00:54,989 - She went on that stage 24 00:00:55,013 --> 00:00:59,702 and she did her Southern comedy routine and she killed. 25 00:00:59,726 --> 00:01:02,205 - [Narrator] But when she skyrocketed to fame- 26 00:01:02,229 --> 00:01:06,209 - You've got the golden ticket right there in your hands! 27 00:01:06,233 --> 00:01:07,252 - Get back in the car. 28 00:01:07,276 --> 00:01:10,046 - [Narrator] Hollywood and Brett Butler proved a toxic mix. 29 00:01:10,070 --> 00:01:12,173 - Je suis nouveau riche. 30 00:01:12,197 --> 00:01:13,508 (Brett chuckles) 31 00:01:13,532 --> 00:01:15,885 - There's nothing more enabling 32 00:01:15,909 --> 00:01:19,806 than to give an alcoholic a million dollars. 33 00:01:19,830 --> 00:01:21,975 - Hollywood is a chew-you-up, spit-you-out business. 34 00:01:21,999 --> 00:01:23,059 - [Narrator] Following one of the most 35 00:01:23,083 --> 00:01:26,479 spectacular public meltdowns in show business history- 36 00:01:26,503 --> 00:01:28,273 - Well, how'd you blow that kind of money? 37 00:01:28,297 --> 00:01:30,358 - [Narrator] Brett dropped off the map. 38 00:01:30,382 --> 00:01:34,070 {\an8}- I mean, I'll always be that person that threw away a lot. 39 00:01:34,094 --> 00:01:35,196 {\an8}- Your relationship with money 40 00:01:35,220 --> 00:01:37,615 is a reflection of your relationship with yourself. 41 00:01:37,639 --> 00:01:41,828 - She really was fearing that she was gonna be evicted. 42 00:01:41,852 --> 00:01:44,205 - [Narrator] Where did Brett Butler go wrong? 43 00:01:44,229 --> 00:01:46,582 - This is such a tricky business 44 00:01:46,606 --> 00:01:50,044 and a person's journey can be so magnificent 45 00:01:50,068 --> 00:01:54,615 and then can fall so, so heartbreakingly hard. 46 00:01:55,866 --> 00:01:56,866 - I'm Brett Butler. 47 00:01:57,909 --> 00:01:59,869 - [Interviewer] And Brett, what are you known for? 48 00:02:00,537 --> 00:02:03,558 - You mean the good part? You're... ing kidding. 49 00:02:03,582 --> 00:02:05,101 No, I'm sorry. 50 00:02:05,125 --> 00:02:06,352 - [Host] Ladies and gentlemen, 51 00:02:06,376 --> 00:02:08,021 you're about to be entertained. 52 00:02:08,045 --> 00:02:10,064 - [Woman 1] Getting a laugh is the greatest addiction. 53 00:02:10,088 --> 00:02:11,024 - [Woman 2] They want more of it, they want more of it. 54 00:02:11,048 --> 00:02:11,984 - [Man 1] She was getting death threats. 55 00:02:12,008 --> 00:02:13,318 - [Woman 3] It (beep) with your head. 56 00:02:13,342 --> 00:02:14,111 - [Man 2] He's out of his skull. 57 00:02:14,135 --> 00:02:15,278 - [Lorraine] That's what took her down. 58 00:02:15,302 --> 00:02:16,803 - [Man 3] This is a crazy story. 59 00:02:20,182 --> 00:02:21,534 {\an8}- [Announcer] "Roseanne," right after "Ellen" 60 00:02:21,558 --> 00:02:22,869 {\an8}and "Grace Under Fire." 61 00:02:22,893 --> 00:02:26,563 {\an8}- In the mid nineties, women like Brett Butler ruled. 62 00:02:27,522 --> 00:02:28,916 {\an8}They were the shit. 63 00:02:28,940 --> 00:02:30,543 {\an8}- I moved to New York because I thought New York 64 00:02:30,567 --> 00:02:32,795 {\an8}would be devoid of the intolerance and racism 65 00:02:32,819 --> 00:02:35,089 {\an8}that I grew up with in the South. 66 00:02:35,113 --> 00:02:37,467 {\an8}- In America, when you have a southern drawl, 67 00:02:37,491 --> 00:02:39,802 {\an8}there's an instant prejudice that you're stupid. 68 00:02:39,826 --> 00:02:41,262 {\an8}- Two minutes after she's on stage, 69 00:02:41,286 --> 00:02:42,430 {\an8}people would sit up and go, 70 00:02:42,454 --> 00:02:44,599 "This girl can really write a joke 71 00:02:44,623 --> 00:02:46,809 and it's high brow material." 72 00:02:46,833 --> 00:02:50,396 Brett Butler was one of my closest friends in comedy. 73 00:02:50,420 --> 00:02:52,148 Everybody knew Brett was the real deal. 74 00:02:52,172 --> 00:02:54,192 - You take the biggest redneck you ever met to New York 75 00:02:54,216 --> 00:02:56,110 and they'd be like, "Well, shit, this is great. 76 00:02:56,134 --> 00:02:58,029 I can hate everybody." 77 00:02:58,053 --> 00:03:00,573 {\an8}- I loved that we had the same accent 78 00:03:00,597 --> 00:03:02,992 {\an8}and I loved how smart she was. 79 00:03:03,016 --> 00:03:04,869 - But like any southerner who departed, 80 00:03:04,893 --> 00:03:06,269 I want credit for getting out. 81 00:03:07,145 --> 00:03:10,917 {\an8}- She really showed that just 'cause you come from a place 82 00:03:10,941 --> 00:03:13,527 {\an8}that's a stereotype, doesn't mean you have to be one. 83 00:03:16,571 --> 00:03:18,383 - [Narrator] Brett Butler grew up in small towns 84 00:03:18,407 --> 00:03:21,284 across the American South in the 1960s. 85 00:03:22,577 --> 00:03:24,305 - I was born in Alabama and raised in Georgia. 86 00:03:24,329 --> 00:03:27,141 I'm so southern I'm related to myself for Christ's sake. 87 00:03:27,165 --> 00:03:30,812 I'm not saying everybody on our street said racial epithets, 88 00:03:30,836 --> 00:03:33,588 but, yeah, I'm from a little place in Georgia. 89 00:03:34,673 --> 00:03:39,362 Our dad was a violent, bipolar alcoholic who was untreated 90 00:03:39,386 --> 00:03:41,406 and it was bad for us to be around, 91 00:03:41,430 --> 00:03:44,075 and my mom left when I was four. 92 00:03:44,099 --> 00:03:45,225 She just, that was it. 93 00:03:46,685 --> 00:03:49,187 I somehow knew I would never see him again. 94 00:03:50,230 --> 00:03:54,669 Mom was really depressed and had to be hospitalized for it. 95 00:03:54,693 --> 00:03:59,698 You know, she survived and did a hell of a job. 96 00:04:00,073 --> 00:04:04,137 What she taught us at home was a world of stuff 97 00:04:04,161 --> 00:04:06,222 that school never brought us. 98 00:04:06,246 --> 00:04:08,474 Culture, art, equality. 99 00:04:08,498 --> 00:04:11,060 I mean, those are just things that are priceless. 100 00:04:11,084 --> 00:04:13,312 She used to tell me my whole life 101 00:04:13,336 --> 00:04:14,981 that I was gonna do comedy. 102 00:04:15,005 --> 00:04:17,859 We had pageants at our school when I was eight 103 00:04:17,883 --> 00:04:19,986 and I said, "I'm gonna do that comedy 104 00:04:20,010 --> 00:04:21,571 that guy was doing on Ed Sullivan." 105 00:04:21,595 --> 00:04:23,030 He was some guy named George Carlin 106 00:04:23,054 --> 00:04:23,991 you've probably heard of. 107 00:04:24,015 --> 00:04:27,493 - In 1492, Columbus did one of the most 108 00:04:27,517 --> 00:04:29,996 daring things yet known to man, 109 00:04:30,020 --> 00:04:32,165 he borrowed money from a woman. 110 00:04:32,189 --> 00:04:34,709 - And I got up and did George Carlin. 111 00:04:34,733 --> 00:04:36,669 I'm eight years old in Marietta, Georgia, 112 00:04:36,693 --> 00:04:38,838 and my mom is howling in the back 113 00:04:38,862 --> 00:04:41,507 and she was the only person in the room laughing. 114 00:04:41,531 --> 00:04:43,050 Then my friend got up to play piano. 115 00:04:43,074 --> 00:04:45,178 She was playing "Silent Night" on the piano 116 00:04:45,202 --> 00:04:47,597 and a key got stuck. 117 00:04:47,621 --> 00:04:49,182 So I stage whispered from the back, 118 00:04:49,206 --> 00:04:52,143 "Harriet play the one next to it." 119 00:04:52,167 --> 00:04:53,770 Everyone died laughing, 120 00:04:53,794 --> 00:04:56,689 and mom said, "Your face when they all laughed." 121 00:04:56,713 --> 00:04:58,107 I have never been so happy. 122 00:04:58,131 --> 00:05:01,444 That was heroin for me, I guess. 123 00:05:01,468 --> 00:05:03,696 All the trauma and tragedy and stuff like that, 124 00:05:03,720 --> 00:05:05,490 but we really did laugh. 125 00:05:05,514 --> 00:05:10,519 Life was strange and there is comedy in some dark places. 126 00:05:12,187 --> 00:05:15,541 The summer I turned 14, all of a sudden I looked 28, 127 00:05:15,565 --> 00:05:19,253 and my mom was getting ill at that time, really sick, 128 00:05:19,277 --> 00:05:22,048 and she tried to commit suicide 129 00:05:22,072 --> 00:05:24,050 and got really close to doing it. 130 00:05:24,074 --> 00:05:26,385 - [Narrator] As Brett's mother's illness worsened, 131 00:05:26,409 --> 00:05:28,745 she began to experiment with alcohol. 132 00:05:29,663 --> 00:05:34,668 - I got drunk at 14 and knew I don't have a relationship 133 00:05:35,252 --> 00:05:37,563 with alcohol the way other people do, 134 00:05:37,587 --> 00:05:41,108 because I totally blacked out when I drank 135 00:05:41,132 --> 00:05:44,052 and I also really wanted to do it again. 136 00:05:45,095 --> 00:05:46,113 - [Narrator] Brett's binge drinking 137 00:05:46,137 --> 00:05:48,950 eventually led her to quit college. 138 00:05:48,974 --> 00:05:51,994 - I had a greater academic aptitude than I lived up to. 139 00:05:52,018 --> 00:05:55,414 I met someone and got married three months 140 00:05:55,438 --> 00:05:58,084 after meeting him, they call it limerence. 141 00:05:58,108 --> 00:06:00,962 It's the invariably temporary feeling that you get 142 00:06:00,986 --> 00:06:02,463 when you're falling in love. 143 00:06:02,487 --> 00:06:04,882 And the first time he hit me, 144 00:06:04,906 --> 00:06:09,911 was the day after we got married, and it 145 00:06:10,870 --> 00:06:12,372 and I stayed for three years. 146 00:06:14,708 --> 00:06:16,102 The last time I saw him, 147 00:06:16,126 --> 00:06:20,857 he fired a rifle and I heard the bullet go by my ear 148 00:06:20,881 --> 00:06:22,984 and that was finally my aha. 149 00:06:23,008 --> 00:06:25,343 Okay, how much closer can the bullet get? 150 00:06:26,303 --> 00:06:27,989 {\an8}- [Narrator] Brett got out of the marriage, 151 00:06:28,013 --> 00:06:30,575 {\an8}but her drinking was still a problem. 152 00:06:30,599 --> 00:06:33,160 {\an8}- So I started going to a wonderful therapist 153 00:06:33,184 --> 00:06:35,955 and I would just be crying and telling my story 154 00:06:35,979 --> 00:06:39,083 and everything, and he said, "Get a tape recorder, 155 00:06:39,107 --> 00:06:43,421 and when you're crying like this, you talk to yourself." 156 00:06:43,445 --> 00:06:46,716 And one weekend, my sister and I were hanging out together 157 00:06:46,740 --> 00:06:48,467 and I got the tape recorder out 158 00:06:48,491 --> 00:06:50,678 and I was doing all these different characters. 159 00:06:50,702 --> 00:06:52,179 My sister would laugh so hard and she used to cry 160 00:06:52,203 --> 00:06:54,724 and her ribs hurt and I didn't know 161 00:06:54,748 --> 00:06:56,875 that I was getting an act together. 162 00:06:58,168 --> 00:06:59,186 - [Narrator] In time, 163 00:06:59,210 --> 00:07:02,231 Brett decides to try her hand at amateur night. 164 00:07:02,255 --> 00:07:05,318 - I was waiting tables and the first time I walked on stage, 165 00:07:05,342 --> 00:07:08,070 I took a tray 'cause I was gonna be the funny waitress. 166 00:07:08,094 --> 00:07:09,071 And the second I got on stage, I go, 167 00:07:09,095 --> 00:07:14,100 "Pfft, no," and I just was born to do it. 168 00:07:15,310 --> 00:07:19,749 I remember the other comics saying, "You're lying, 169 00:07:19,773 --> 00:07:23,294 this can't be your first time on stage," and it was. 170 00:07:23,318 --> 00:07:25,546 - [Narrator] After a knockout first performance, 171 00:07:25,570 --> 00:07:29,175 the creative director offers Brett a regular spot. 172 00:07:29,199 --> 00:07:34,055 - I quit my day job probably too early, but I got hired. 173 00:07:34,079 --> 00:07:37,058 It just made me feel wonderful when people laughed. 174 00:07:37,082 --> 00:07:39,685 Yeah, I had something to live for with comedy. 175 00:07:39,709 --> 00:07:41,729 - [Narrator] Soon, Brett is making stand-up 176 00:07:41,753 --> 00:07:43,105 her full-time gig. 177 00:07:43,129 --> 00:07:45,858 {\an8}- I mean, the comedy clubs back then, they were exploding. 178 00:07:45,882 --> 00:07:49,195 {\an8}My name is Ritch Shydner, I'm known as a stand-up comedian. 179 00:07:49,219 --> 00:07:51,447 I met Brett Butler around 1982 180 00:07:51,471 --> 00:07:54,325 at the Punchline in Columbia, South Carolina. 181 00:07:54,349 --> 00:07:56,202 You'd come off the stage, the bar would be lined 182 00:07:56,226 --> 00:07:58,496 with every drug dealer hipster in town. 183 00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:00,456 We were absolute rock stars. 184 00:08:00,480 --> 00:08:01,791 - [Narrator] But Brett soon realizes 185 00:08:01,815 --> 00:08:04,025 she can't handle the rock and roll lifestyle. 186 00:08:05,110 --> 00:08:06,420 - I remember years ago hearing, 187 00:08:06,444 --> 00:08:09,507 "If you can have one drink a day for 30 days, 188 00:08:09,531 --> 00:08:12,593 no more, no less than that, you don't have a problem." 189 00:08:12,617 --> 00:08:15,137 As soon as I heard it, I knew I couldn't. 190 00:08:15,161 --> 00:08:18,140 - [Narrator] Brett knows if she wants to make it as a comic, 191 00:08:18,164 --> 00:08:20,142 she'll have to quit alcohol. 192 00:08:20,166 --> 00:08:21,143 - We were working together. 193 00:08:21,167 --> 00:08:22,978 They put us in a comedy condo, 194 00:08:23,002 --> 00:08:24,897 as the tradition was back then. 195 00:08:24,921 --> 00:08:26,107 Brett was sober at the time, 196 00:08:26,131 --> 00:08:27,608 so every night I was coming in, 197 00:08:27,632 --> 00:08:29,694 like four or five in the morning after being out drinking 198 00:08:29,718 --> 00:08:30,945 and doing coke all night long 199 00:08:30,969 --> 00:08:33,114 and she'd be up reading a book. 200 00:08:33,138 --> 00:08:34,991 There was not one time ever, 201 00:08:35,015 --> 00:08:36,367 I remember being in a comedy condo, 202 00:08:36,391 --> 00:08:38,202 seeing a book open that wasn't carved out 203 00:08:38,226 --> 00:08:39,537 hiding drugs in it. 204 00:08:39,561 --> 00:08:42,206 She was working from a very sober place. 205 00:08:42,230 --> 00:08:43,833 That had an impact on me 206 00:08:43,857 --> 00:08:45,334 because I could see how she'd progressed 207 00:08:45,358 --> 00:08:47,753 and night after night, she was getting better. 208 00:08:47,777 --> 00:08:50,923 - I used to do this joke, just a little one, about... 209 00:08:50,947 --> 00:08:51,883 Men are looking at me like, 210 00:08:51,907 --> 00:08:53,467 if somebody teach you how to make biscuits, 211 00:08:53,491 --> 00:08:55,869 you wouldn't be up there doing that crap, would you, huh? 212 00:08:56,786 --> 00:08:58,014 And they'd laugh, they'd know. 213 00:08:58,038 --> 00:09:00,474 It was like, yeah, it's kind of pissing me off, 214 00:09:00,498 --> 00:09:02,101 but I like this girl. 215 00:09:02,125 --> 00:09:05,020 So that's where we met, in the middle. 216 00:09:05,044 --> 00:09:05,981 - Brett talked about drinking, 217 00:09:06,005 --> 00:09:07,857 she talked about the abusive marriage. 218 00:09:07,881 --> 00:09:10,151 - I was married to the kind of guy, how can I explain it? 219 00:09:10,175 --> 00:09:13,154 My comedy's been autobiographical 220 00:09:13,178 --> 00:09:15,656 He had a gun in every room of our trailer. 221 00:09:15,680 --> 00:09:17,950 I think when you leave a relationship 222 00:09:17,974 --> 00:09:20,202 in which you've been abused, 223 00:09:20,226 --> 00:09:22,997 you're stuck with the person that allowed that to happen. 224 00:09:23,021 --> 00:09:25,708 Fortunately, in my case, I got out, 225 00:09:25,732 --> 00:09:27,168 and less than a year later, 226 00:09:27,192 --> 00:09:29,128 I was actually making jokes out of it. 227 00:09:29,152 --> 00:09:30,713 It was like, "All right, 228 00:09:30,737 --> 00:09:33,340 now who took the gun out of the bathroom?" 229 00:09:33,364 --> 00:09:34,925 Like, "Precious, you don't need a gun 230 00:09:34,949 --> 00:09:36,427 in the medicine cabinet." 231 00:09:36,451 --> 00:09:39,096 "You know I like to clean it when I'm in here." 232 00:09:39,120 --> 00:09:41,140 And I told the truth. 233 00:09:41,164 --> 00:09:42,558 That's okay, y'all, I'll get pay back. 234 00:09:42,582 --> 00:09:44,018 He'll be in the back of a club one night, 235 00:09:44,042 --> 00:09:46,795 holding a bead on me going, "Yeah, be funny now, bitch." 236 00:09:49,380 --> 00:09:50,983 - [Narrator] Brett's powerful female voice 237 00:09:51,007 --> 00:09:55,488 resonates with audiences, but she wants something more. 238 00:09:55,512 --> 00:09:57,347 - I'd never left the South before. 239 00:10:00,892 --> 00:10:02,077 {\an8}- [Narrator] Brett takes her Southern act 240 00:10:02,101 --> 00:10:05,146 {\an8}all the way to the comedy mecca of New York City. 241 00:10:06,898 --> 00:10:10,169 - A friend of a friend had found me an apartment in Brooklyn 242 00:10:10,193 --> 00:10:13,047 and there were a couple of girls living there, 243 00:10:13,071 --> 00:10:14,757 Jewish girls from the Northeast going, 244 00:10:14,781 --> 00:10:17,033 "Oh, my God, you're gonna die here." 245 00:10:18,284 --> 00:10:20,262 - [Narrator] Despite being a fish out of water, 246 00:10:20,286 --> 00:10:22,431 Brett hits the pavement. 247 00:10:22,455 --> 00:10:24,141 - I didn't know what to make of myself. 248 00:10:24,165 --> 00:10:26,102 I had different jokes. 249 00:10:26,126 --> 00:10:30,272 I didn't really fit into anything but 250 00:10:30,296 --> 00:10:31,233 - [Narrator] Little by little, 251 00:10:31,257 --> 00:10:34,068 Brett chips away at the New York comedy scene. 252 00:10:34,092 --> 00:10:38,280 - I saw her very first time on stage in New York City. 253 00:10:38,304 --> 00:10:40,741 She was nervous as all get out. 254 00:10:40,765 --> 00:10:44,102 {\an8}I can still quote, "I'm so Southern, I'm 255 00:10:45,270 --> 00:10:46,039 - [Narrator] She works her way 256 00:10:46,063 --> 00:10:48,189 into New York's most esteemed club. 257 00:10:50,233 --> 00:10:53,337 - Eventually, I got on at Catch A Rising Star. 258 00:10:53,361 --> 00:10:56,257 - Every night was sold out to the rafters. 259 00:10:56,281 --> 00:10:57,591 {\an8}My name is Larry Amoros 260 00:10:57,615 --> 00:10:59,635 {\an8}and I'm an old friend of Brett Butler's. 261 00:10:59,659 --> 00:11:02,555 We know each other from both of our early comedy days 262 00:11:02,579 --> 00:11:04,098 at Catch A Rising Star. 263 00:11:04,122 --> 00:11:05,850 And we would literally have David Bowie come in, 264 00:11:05,874 --> 00:11:08,018 Ringo Starr would stop by on any given night. 265 00:11:08,042 --> 00:11:09,294 Robin Williams would come in 266 00:11:10,420 --> 00:11:12,356 and whoever has to follow him is really... ed. 267 00:11:12,380 --> 00:11:13,440 - I have some bad news for you. 268 00:11:13,464 --> 00:11:14,483 Why you've been here this evening, 269 00:11:14,507 --> 00:11:16,026 groups of gay men have broken into your apartment 270 00:11:16,050 --> 00:11:17,135 and redecorated it. 271 00:11:18,303 --> 00:11:21,181 - I mean, it was a very hot place to be. 272 00:11:22,265 --> 00:11:25,828 - I was a backup, backup. I never got to go on. 273 00:11:25,852 --> 00:11:27,705 - Oh, my God, the backup, backup. 274 00:11:27,729 --> 00:11:30,124 They would have a backup in case somebody was late 275 00:11:30,148 --> 00:11:31,876 or didn't show up. 276 00:11:31,900 --> 00:11:34,170 And then you started having a backup, backup 277 00:11:34,194 --> 00:11:35,337 in case the backup had to go on 278 00:11:35,361 --> 00:11:37,506 and somebody else didn't show. 279 00:11:37,530 --> 00:11:39,866 - Yeah, so I did that for, I think two years. 280 00:11:40,700 --> 00:11:42,202 Then I started to go on. 281 00:11:44,954 --> 00:11:45,848 - But they didn't know what to make of her. 282 00:11:45,872 --> 00:11:46,766 They figured she was just gonna be, 283 00:11:46,790 --> 00:11:49,059 "Well, I'm... ing my brother and dah, dah, dah." 284 00:11:49,083 --> 00:11:50,519 And that's not who she is. 285 00:11:50,543 --> 00:11:52,479 She's sitting there reading Proust, 286 00:11:52,503 --> 00:11:54,231 then she's gonna go out and shoot dinner. 287 00:11:54,255 --> 00:11:56,108 How do you not like that? 288 00:11:56,132 --> 00:11:57,693 - [Narrator] And then one day, 289 00:11:57,717 --> 00:12:01,071 a breakthrough chance to reach a national audience. 290 00:12:01,095 --> 00:12:03,365 - One night, four years into doing comedy, 291 00:12:03,389 --> 00:12:05,743 the guy from "The Tonight Show" came. 292 00:12:05,767 --> 00:12:08,287 - [Narrator] Brett is about to land every comic's dream, 293 00:12:08,311 --> 00:12:09,830 a spot on Carson. 294 00:12:09,854 --> 00:12:12,082 - Four years to get your first "Tonight Show" 295 00:12:12,106 --> 00:12:15,735 {\an8}is pretty quick, and it probably was too early for me. 296 00:12:18,196 --> 00:12:19,965 - [Narrator] "The Tonight Show" lures Brett 297 00:12:19,989 --> 00:12:22,176 towards the promise of fame. 298 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:25,179 - There's a dark side to fame. 299 00:12:25,203 --> 00:12:27,181 {\an8}You're so high and that come down 300 00:12:27,205 --> 00:12:29,475 {\an8}can be so extreme for people. 301 00:12:29,499 --> 00:12:32,561 Anytime the ego gets involved, there can be a dark side. 302 00:12:32,585 --> 00:12:34,313 - Showbiz is really, it's not real. 303 00:12:34,337 --> 00:12:36,815 It's an illusion, you can get caught up in that illusion. 304 00:12:36,839 --> 00:12:39,568 - [Narrator] And with fame comes the cruel demands 305 00:12:39,592 --> 00:12:40,362 of Hollywood. 306 00:12:40,386 --> 00:12:42,655 - I just think, you know, if you take someone like Brett, 307 00:12:42,679 --> 00:12:46,200 no wonder things made a left turn somewhere along the line, 308 00:12:46,224 --> 00:12:47,224 it was destined to. 309 00:12:52,897 --> 00:12:55,400 (somber music) 310 00:12:57,193 --> 00:12:59,255 - [Narrator] After just four years in New York, 311 00:12:59,279 --> 00:13:02,299 Brett Butler lands a coveted spot on "The Tonight Show." 312 00:13:02,323 --> 00:13:03,323 - Here's Johnny! 313 00:13:05,410 --> 00:13:08,138 {\an8}- I mean, even though I'm petty and small and resentful, 314 00:13:08,162 --> 00:13:10,182 {\an8}I managed to put that aside for five minutes 315 00:13:10,206 --> 00:13:11,934 {\an8}to be happy for someone else. 316 00:13:11,958 --> 00:13:13,811 - There's a lot of lore around the history 317 00:13:13,835 --> 00:13:15,729 {\an8}of modern stand-up. 318 00:13:15,753 --> 00:13:18,273 {\an8}One of the primary examples is that a comedian 319 00:13:18,297 --> 00:13:21,735 {\an8}could do a successful spot on "The Tonight Show," 320 00:13:21,759 --> 00:13:24,137 {\an8}and then, overnight, their whole life changes. 321 00:13:25,013 --> 00:13:26,365 - It's a lot of pressure. 322 00:13:26,389 --> 00:13:27,950 - I used to have this joke, 323 00:13:27,974 --> 00:13:29,493 I look like a lesbian art teacher 324 00:13:29,517 --> 00:13:32,538 from Hartford, Connecticut, and right before the show, 325 00:13:32,562 --> 00:13:33,831 the booker goes, "You can't do that joke." 326 00:13:33,855 --> 00:13:35,874 And I go, "That joke is the only hip thing 327 00:13:35,898 --> 00:13:36,959 I have in my whole show." 328 00:13:36,983 --> 00:13:40,671 He said, "Johnny's audience won't know where Hartford is." 329 00:13:40,695 --> 00:13:43,090 I'm like, "Oh, I can fix that." 330 00:13:43,114 --> 00:13:44,800 - [Johnny] Would you welcome Brett Butler, Brett? 331 00:13:44,824 --> 00:13:45,593 (upbeat music) 332 00:13:45,617 --> 00:13:49,304 {\an8}(audience applauds) 333 00:13:49,328 --> 00:13:51,223 {\an8}- I like this, I'm dressed like a lesbian art teacher 334 00:13:51,247 --> 00:13:52,915 from Santa Cruz, this is great. 335 00:13:53,875 --> 00:13:57,730 - My mom had recorded on the big VHS 336 00:13:57,754 --> 00:13:59,898 Brett on "The Tonight Show." 337 00:13:59,922 --> 00:14:02,860 {\an8}My name is Trish Suhr, I'm a comedian and a TV host. 338 00:14:02,884 --> 00:14:05,904 {\an8}And my mom, being a single southern mother, 339 00:14:05,928 --> 00:14:09,450 was absolutely enamored with Brett Butler. 340 00:14:09,474 --> 00:14:13,037 And I thought, I'm gonna be spicy and watch this. 341 00:14:13,061 --> 00:14:15,605 - I'm not a lesbian, I can't even do improv. 342 00:14:17,065 --> 00:14:18,375 {\an8}- I remember she used to do a bit 343 00:14:18,399 --> 00:14:21,545 {\an8}where she would talk about her accent in New York. 344 00:14:21,569 --> 00:14:22,338 - They hear me talk. 345 00:14:22,362 --> 00:14:24,757 It's like, "Yo, Dominic, over here. 346 00:14:24,781 --> 00:14:27,176 She's from the south, I would never go there. 347 00:14:27,200 --> 00:14:29,660 People sound so stupid when they talk." 348 00:14:30,995 --> 00:14:33,182 Yeah, I remember the first big laugh. 349 00:14:33,206 --> 00:14:34,808 You almost see me just go, 350 00:14:34,832 --> 00:14:37,102 oh, thank God they got that out of the way. 351 00:14:37,126 --> 00:14:38,979 - That's wonderful stuff. Thank you, Brett. 352 00:14:39,003 --> 00:14:41,023 - It's the greatest feeling, it's wonderful. 353 00:14:41,047 --> 00:14:42,524 (Brett chuckles) 354 00:14:42,548 --> 00:14:44,568 - She's a funny young lady, Brett Butler. 355 00:14:44,592 --> 00:14:45,778 - So I just fell in love with her. 356 00:14:45,802 --> 00:14:47,386 I thought she was the bees knees. 357 00:14:48,471 --> 00:14:50,032 - [Narrator] Brett's "Tonight Show" appearance 358 00:14:50,056 --> 00:14:53,118 {\an8}introduces her to a world of new fans. 359 00:14:53,142 --> 00:14:54,620 {\an8}In the years that follow, 360 00:14:54,644 --> 00:14:58,106 {\an8}she becomes a familiar face in living rooms across America. 361 00:14:59,357 --> 00:15:02,336 {\an8}- In that period, she was relatively new. 362 00:15:02,360 --> 00:15:05,506 {\an8}I'm Marc Flanagan, television writer, producer. 363 00:15:05,530 --> 00:15:07,800 Someone who worked for Carsey-Werner, he said, 364 00:15:07,824 --> 00:15:10,219 "We should have this Brett Butler come in 365 00:15:10,243 --> 00:15:12,388 'cause she might be good for Chuck's pilot." 366 00:15:12,412 --> 00:15:15,182 {\an8}- At the time, the mindset was, let's get stand-up comedians 367 00:15:15,206 --> 00:15:17,226 {\an8}'cause they understand how to do jokes. 368 00:15:17,250 --> 00:15:19,853 - Like, you think sitcom and in the dictionary, 369 00:15:19,877 --> 00:15:21,438 there's a picture of Chuck Lorre. 370 00:15:21,462 --> 00:15:23,857 {\an8}I am Ron Moseley. 371 00:15:23,881 --> 00:15:25,234 {\an8}Long, long, long time ago, 372 00:15:25,258 --> 00:15:28,779 {\an8}I worked on a show called "Grace Under Fire." 373 00:15:28,803 --> 00:15:32,825 {\an8}♪ Can you see me walking down the street ♪ 374 00:15:32,849 --> 00:15:34,493 {\an8}- [Ron] We were blessed to work 375 00:15:34,517 --> 00:15:36,120 {\an8}for the Carsey-Werner company, 376 00:15:36,144 --> 00:15:40,290 {\an8}which was like the Facebook, the Instagram of television. 377 00:15:40,314 --> 00:15:43,210 You know, they did "Roseanne" and "The Cosby Show." 378 00:15:43,234 --> 00:15:45,170 - They don't give out sympathy projects 379 00:15:45,194 --> 00:15:49,508 {\an8}to five foot 11 gals from Alabama, she was good. 380 00:15:49,532 --> 00:15:54,221 {\an8}- Grace was a mix of tried and true sitcom chemistry 381 00:15:54,245 --> 00:15:57,015 and hopefully something I brought 382 00:15:57,039 --> 00:15:58,666 {\an8}that wasn't any place else. 383 00:15:59,876 --> 00:16:02,479 {\an8}- Do you think you and dad will ever live together again? 384 00:16:02,503 --> 00:16:04,064 - No, honey, I don't think so. 385 00:16:04,088 --> 00:16:05,732 - Why doesn't he live with us? 386 00:16:05,756 --> 00:16:07,818 - Because he won the coin toss. 387 00:16:07,842 --> 00:16:10,237 - She was a single mom of three kids 388 00:16:10,261 --> 00:16:12,281 and she worked at a refinery. 389 00:16:12,305 --> 00:16:14,450 - You know the only reason you got this job 390 00:16:14,474 --> 00:16:15,410 is 'cause you're a chick. 391 00:16:15,434 --> 00:16:17,286 - Au contraire, Archimedes. 392 00:16:17,310 --> 00:16:19,621 The only reason I got this job is because I promised 393 00:16:19,645 --> 00:16:23,459 to have sex with the smart guys, too bad for you. 394 00:16:23,483 --> 00:16:25,502 - [Ron] She was sort of the every woman. 395 00:16:25,526 --> 00:16:29,840 {\an8}- I felt like that was a big deal to show poor white people. 396 00:16:29,864 --> 00:16:31,049 - You see those kids in there, 397 00:16:31,073 --> 00:16:34,094 I'm raising them by myself, no child support, no alimony. 398 00:16:34,118 --> 00:16:36,305 {\an8}It was groundbreaking that the topic was 399 00:16:36,329 --> 00:16:37,806 {\an8}that she was a single mom. 400 00:16:37,830 --> 00:16:39,892 - And you can forget about having a sex life. 401 00:16:39,916 --> 00:16:42,311 I don't even have time to put the shower head on pause. 402 00:16:42,335 --> 00:16:44,897 - But her take on everything was refreshing. 403 00:16:44,921 --> 00:16:45,921 - Works every time. 404 00:16:47,798 --> 00:16:50,068 - [Narrator] Though Grace was not created for Brett, 405 00:16:50,092 --> 00:16:53,030 much of the character became autobiographical. 406 00:16:53,054 --> 00:16:55,908 - Part of her act was that she'd been 407 00:16:55,932 --> 00:16:57,659 {\an8}in an abusive marriage. 408 00:16:57,683 --> 00:16:59,828 - So what happens when I make you mad? You gonna hit me too? 409 00:16:59,852 --> 00:17:02,122 - No, of course not, I'm not like Dad. 410 00:17:02,146 --> 00:17:05,083 - I had an unfortunate first marriage, 411 00:17:05,107 --> 00:17:08,295 and for good or bad, I got known for that. 412 00:17:08,319 --> 00:17:11,131 {\an8}- So I asked her, "Can I use your backstory 413 00:17:11,155 --> 00:17:12,925 {\an8}for the backstory of the character?" 414 00:17:12,949 --> 00:17:13,967 - That was a tough call. 415 00:17:13,991 --> 00:17:16,178 Like, how are you gonna make domestic violence something 416 00:17:16,202 --> 00:17:18,013 in a 22-minute format? 417 00:17:18,037 --> 00:17:21,475 And my bosses sort of just took my spin on it. 418 00:17:21,499 --> 00:17:23,101 - So how long's it been since you got divorced? 419 00:17:23,125 --> 00:17:24,102 - Well, when you're married to a redneck, 420 00:17:24,126 --> 00:17:26,063 it's less of a divorce than an ethnic cleansing. 421 00:17:26,087 --> 00:17:28,982 We're laughing at the fact that we made it out 422 00:17:29,006 --> 00:17:30,859 and people don't have to go through it 423 00:17:30,883 --> 00:17:32,986 to experience your joy about it. 424 00:17:33,010 --> 00:17:35,489 Oh, Nadine, how did I ever stay in that marriage so long? 425 00:17:35,513 --> 00:17:37,491 - You believed that people could change. 426 00:17:37,515 --> 00:17:41,370 Now you know, that's just wrong. 427 00:17:41,394 --> 00:17:43,163 - You can make jokes about the things 428 00:17:43,187 --> 00:17:46,458 that are dark and painful. 429 00:17:46,482 --> 00:17:48,710 - You did a real good job raising those kids, Grace. 430 00:17:48,734 --> 00:17:50,963 - Yeah, I couldn't have done it alone. 431 00:17:50,987 --> 00:17:52,464 Wait a minute. 432 00:17:52,488 --> 00:17:54,216 - We had the same managers in New York 433 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:55,300 {\an8}and I remember them saying, 434 00:17:55,324 --> 00:17:57,159 {\an8}"Her life's never gonna be the same." 435 00:17:58,703 --> 00:18:01,181 - Yeah, I mean it, was crazy successful. 436 00:18:01,205 --> 00:18:03,517 - [Narrator] Brett becomes an instant TV star. 437 00:18:03,541 --> 00:18:06,186 - Please welcome the fabulous Brett Butler. 438 00:18:06,210 --> 00:18:12,049 - Brett Butler. 439 00:18:12,383 --> 00:18:13,819 - Are things different for you now 440 00:18:13,843 --> 00:18:16,238 that you're so wildly successful? 441 00:18:16,262 --> 00:18:17,281 - [Narrator] Yet, behind the scenes, 442 00:18:17,305 --> 00:18:20,367 the picture isn't so rosy as Brett and producers 443 00:18:20,391 --> 00:18:23,120 wrestle for creative control. 444 00:18:23,144 --> 00:18:26,790 - I feel like Grace was my act with children thrown in. 445 00:18:26,814 --> 00:18:28,041 - Ah! 446 00:18:28,065 --> 00:18:32,862 - And other people had artistic credit and power over it. 447 00:18:33,988 --> 00:18:35,882 - You know, because there was Brett's point of view. 448 00:18:35,906 --> 00:18:38,844 {\an8}There was also the point of view of Chuck Lorre, 449 00:18:38,868 --> 00:18:40,762 {\an8}also very opinionated. 450 00:18:40,786 --> 00:18:43,056 {\an8}So it was two nuclear missiles 451 00:18:43,080 --> 00:18:44,975 sort of heading toward each other. 452 00:18:44,999 --> 00:18:46,977 - Everybody talks about a strong woman. 453 00:18:47,001 --> 00:18:48,312 I mean, she was that woman. 454 00:18:48,336 --> 00:18:51,231 She didn't talk the talk, she walked the walk. 455 00:18:51,255 --> 00:18:52,566 - [Narrator] After a single season, 456 00:18:52,590 --> 00:18:56,486 show creator Chuck Lorre is replaced as showrunner. 457 00:18:56,510 --> 00:18:58,822 - Chuck Lorre worked with Charlie Sheen. 458 00:18:58,846 --> 00:19:01,199 I mean, when you get Chuck Lorre to quit, 459 00:19:01,223 --> 00:19:03,076 you gotta be a handful, honey. 460 00:19:03,100 --> 00:19:05,120 You a handful! 461 00:19:05,144 --> 00:19:10,149 {\an8}- The show had been on for a season when they approach me 462 00:19:10,483 --> 00:19:12,836 about being the executive producer. 463 00:19:12,860 --> 00:19:14,963 - I was on my own for 14 years 464 00:19:14,987 --> 00:19:17,174 and now there's 200 people it takes to make this show. 465 00:19:17,198 --> 00:19:18,383 - When you're a stand-up, 466 00:19:18,407 --> 00:19:21,136 nobody tells you what to do, but you. 467 00:19:21,160 --> 00:19:24,097 - She had to work with others as an actress. 468 00:19:24,121 --> 00:19:27,351 You have to say the words that someone else wrote, 469 00:19:27,375 --> 00:19:30,395 and she wasn't skilled in that. 470 00:19:30,419 --> 00:19:32,105 - I wish she were a little more irregular, 471 00:19:32,129 --> 00:19:33,398 I wish she could get depressed, 472 00:19:33,422 --> 00:19:35,067 and sometimes Grace is just bloody 473 00:19:35,091 --> 00:19:36,234 not walking out that door. 474 00:19:36,258 --> 00:19:38,111 You know, you should call back in the daytime 475 00:19:38,135 --> 00:19:39,988 where you can talk to the kids. 476 00:19:40,012 --> 00:19:42,324 I was given a chance to play a character 477 00:19:42,348 --> 00:19:44,159 that was pretty complicated. 478 00:19:44,183 --> 00:19:45,119 And sometimes writers would say, 479 00:19:45,143 --> 00:19:47,120 "Well, people won't like it if Grace does that." 480 00:19:47,144 --> 00:19:50,415 And then I'd say, "But she can do it. 481 00:19:50,439 --> 00:19:52,525 She's not always perfect." 482 00:19:53,734 --> 00:19:55,504 We miss you, Jimmy. 483 00:19:55,528 --> 00:19:58,632 - I did about six or seven episodes of "Grace Under Fire." 484 00:19:58,656 --> 00:20:00,342 It wouldn't kill you to come to the gym with me 485 00:20:00,366 --> 00:20:01,219 once in a while. 486 00:20:01,243 --> 00:20:03,637 And she would rewrite scenes in between takes it. 487 00:20:03,661 --> 00:20:05,472 - It wouldn't kill you to get a library card 488 00:20:05,496 --> 00:20:07,015 and maybe have a date with an old broad 489 00:20:07,039 --> 00:20:08,934 that doesn't live at aerobics class. 490 00:20:08,958 --> 00:20:09,976 - And it would always be funnier 491 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:11,061 than what the writers gave her. 492 00:20:11,085 --> 00:20:12,729 - Give me one good reason. 493 00:20:12,753 --> 00:20:14,439 - That energy we don't spend in aerobics 494 00:20:14,463 --> 00:20:16,817 has to end up somewhere, doesn't it, honey? 495 00:20:16,841 --> 00:20:19,236 - We had a lot of writers on the staff 496 00:20:19,260 --> 00:20:21,947 and they'd become so discouraged 497 00:20:21,971 --> 00:20:24,491 by her throwing scripts out. 498 00:20:24,515 --> 00:20:26,118 And I would have to say to them, 499 00:20:26,142 --> 00:20:27,536 "We're not writing for Brett, 500 00:20:27,560 --> 00:20:30,914 we're writing for this character, whose name is Grace." 501 00:20:30,938 --> 00:20:34,876 When she would be angry, would be all the more menacing. 502 00:20:34,900 --> 00:20:36,378 - She could be intimidating. 503 00:20:36,402 --> 00:20:39,005 - Everybody was afraid of her. 504 00:20:39,029 --> 00:20:42,008 I thought, I signed a contract for two years, 505 00:20:42,032 --> 00:20:44,261 I can't, it's gonna kill me. 506 00:20:44,285 --> 00:20:47,681 {\an8}And so I went to Marcy Carsey and said, 507 00:20:47,705 --> 00:20:49,391 {\an8}"I'm not coming back." 508 00:20:49,415 --> 00:20:51,143 - [Narrator] Beyond the power struggles, 509 00:20:51,167 --> 00:20:52,477 Brett is also grappling 510 00:20:52,501 --> 00:20:55,021 with more insidious Hollywood pressure. 511 00:20:55,045 --> 00:20:58,650 - She was asked to shed some lbs 512 00:20:58,674 --> 00:21:01,069 to be more palatable, let's say. 513 00:21:01,093 --> 00:21:03,196 - When you look back and you watch any clips, 514 00:21:03,220 --> 00:21:04,573 she looked amazing. 515 00:21:04,597 --> 00:21:06,700 - So, uh, how do you feel this morning? 516 00:21:06,724 --> 00:21:09,411 - It breaks my heart that no one was around her to go, 517 00:21:09,435 --> 00:21:12,747 {\an8}"You look fabulous, they can go and jump off a cliff." 518 00:21:12,771 --> 00:21:15,041 {\an8}- When I heard about Brett starting to act out, 519 00:21:15,065 --> 00:21:18,003 {\an8}I wasn't shocked because it seemed to me that happens a lot. 520 00:21:18,027 --> 00:21:20,172 - Hollywood is a business about finding your worth 521 00:21:20,196 --> 00:21:21,339 and getting external validation. 522 00:21:21,363 --> 00:21:23,467 Anybody tells you something otherwise is full of crap. 523 00:21:23,491 --> 00:21:26,094 She started getting really self-deprecating in her comedy. 524 00:21:26,118 --> 00:21:28,954 She was always to a degree, right, which I found fun, 525 00:21:30,748 --> 00:21:32,476 but then it became more about disliking 526 00:21:32,500 --> 00:21:35,061 her physical appearance and needing to augment, 527 00:21:35,085 --> 00:21:36,104 and I was like, you're beautiful. 528 00:21:36,128 --> 00:21:37,981 - I, actually, with the nerve to have bleached hair 529 00:21:38,005 --> 00:21:40,400 and fake tits and complain about how phony this town is. 530 00:21:40,424 --> 00:21:41,943 Thank you. 531 00:21:41,967 --> 00:21:45,489 - The deep insecurity was on full display. 532 00:21:45,513 --> 00:21:47,949 I think she had been taking pills 533 00:21:47,973 --> 00:21:50,827 to sort of shed the weight. 534 00:21:50,851 --> 00:21:53,955 There was a downward spiral that seemed to happen. 535 00:21:53,979 --> 00:21:58,794 - I was taking narcotic pain killers and I wasn't drinking. 536 00:21:58,818 --> 00:22:01,296 It was just drugs, it was coke and Vicodin, 537 00:22:01,320 --> 00:22:03,465 and I was barely making it. 538 00:22:03,489 --> 00:22:06,051 I was taking dozens of Vicodin every day. 539 00:22:06,075 --> 00:22:08,369 - I knew it wasn't gonna end well unless she got sober. 540 00:22:13,499 --> 00:22:16,085 (ominous music) 541 00:22:18,963 --> 00:22:20,357 - [Narrator] At the height of her fame, 542 00:22:20,381 --> 00:22:23,777 Brett Butler is buckling under the pressures of Hollywood. 543 00:22:23,801 --> 00:22:26,071 - She's now star and executive producer 544 00:22:26,095 --> 00:22:28,990 of her own top-rated sitcom, "Grace Under Fire." 545 00:22:29,014 --> 00:22:31,243 - Gotta keep your ratings and keep the show, 546 00:22:31,267 --> 00:22:35,038 {\an8}and it was all on her 'cause she insisted it was on her. 547 00:22:35,062 --> 00:22:36,665 {\an8}That's a ton of pressure. 548 00:22:36,689 --> 00:22:38,083 - People who become stars, 549 00:22:38,107 --> 00:22:40,210 it's not so much as what they have extra 550 00:22:40,234 --> 00:22:41,503 that drives them into being a star, 551 00:22:41,527 --> 00:22:42,546 it's what they're lacking, 552 00:22:42,570 --> 00:22:45,882 {\an8}and your hoping that fame and fortune and all that 553 00:22:45,906 --> 00:22:47,843 {\an8}will cure whatever's ailing you. 554 00:22:47,867 --> 00:22:50,720 And once you get there and you realize it doesn't cure you, 555 00:22:50,744 --> 00:22:52,931 now you're really screwed because the 556 00:22:52,955 --> 00:22:54,724 that would fix everything didn't, 557 00:22:54,748 --> 00:22:56,059 so what are you gonna do now? 558 00:22:56,083 --> 00:22:57,602 She was not sober, 559 00:22:57,626 --> 00:23:00,272 so the acting out period became even more extreme. 560 00:23:00,296 --> 00:23:01,606 - Then it got really interesting. 561 00:23:01,630 --> 00:23:04,442 I started to see this different side of her. 562 00:23:04,466 --> 00:23:08,655 - When the lead character on a sitcom starts to take drugs 563 00:23:08,679 --> 00:23:12,033 when he or she has committed to sobriety in the past, 564 00:23:12,057 --> 00:23:15,352 it's probably gonna ruin the formula, that puts it mildly. 565 00:23:16,895 --> 00:23:18,415 - Couple of phone calls I had with Brett, 566 00:23:18,439 --> 00:23:19,916 I knew she was high. 567 00:23:19,940 --> 00:23:22,752 Once you start down that path, taking more, 568 00:23:22,776 --> 00:23:24,754 that's what the disease is, is more. 569 00:23:24,778 --> 00:23:26,298 I'll take more and I'll feel better. 570 00:23:26,322 --> 00:23:30,051 She was struggling and trying to get sober and not sober 571 00:23:30,075 --> 00:23:31,803 and, you know, you're talking to somebody, 572 00:23:31,827 --> 00:23:34,097 you're talking to the disease, you're not talking to her. 573 00:23:34,121 --> 00:23:35,348 It's almost a waste of time, 574 00:23:35,372 --> 00:23:37,058 but I wasn't gonna hang up on her. 575 00:23:37,082 --> 00:23:39,936 {\an8}- You're doing a show right outside of a volcano 576 00:23:39,960 --> 00:23:42,188 and at any moment that volcano can erupt 577 00:23:42,212 --> 00:23:44,190 and you might have to pick up all your stuff 578 00:23:44,214 --> 00:23:47,068 and leave before the lava pours over you. 579 00:23:47,092 --> 00:23:49,195 - [Narrator] Brett tries to clean herself up, 580 00:23:49,219 --> 00:23:51,114 shutting down production more than once 581 00:23:51,138 --> 00:23:52,657 while she attempts rehab. 582 00:23:52,681 --> 00:23:56,620 - [Brett] I remember when I could afford the best rehab. 583 00:23:56,644 --> 00:24:00,040 It's really fancy and they have a sous chef. 584 00:24:00,064 --> 00:24:01,166 I would be like, "You guys, 585 00:24:01,190 --> 00:24:03,001 this is not gonna help me get sober." 586 00:24:03,025 --> 00:24:05,962 - [Narrator] Reports of her bad behavior are everywhere. 587 00:24:05,986 --> 00:24:07,881 - [Reporter] Comedian Brett Butler likes to kid 588 00:24:07,905 --> 00:24:08,924 about being a hell razor, 589 00:24:08,948 --> 00:24:11,760 but her former coworkers say it's no joke. 590 00:24:11,784 --> 00:24:13,303 - [Narrator] Brett returns to set, 591 00:24:13,327 --> 00:24:16,765 but as the seasons progress, so does her addiction. 592 00:24:16,789 --> 00:24:19,100 - I've had a rough couple of months, that's why I'm here. 593 00:24:19,124 --> 00:24:20,226 I love you, I love this show, 594 00:24:20,250 --> 00:24:22,503 and Betty Ford has really crappy security. 595 00:24:26,173 --> 00:24:29,235 - You saw the difference between season one- 596 00:24:29,259 --> 00:24:30,320 - Bedtime. 597 00:24:30,344 --> 00:24:31,863 {\an8}- [Ron] And the last season. 598 00:24:31,887 --> 00:24:33,114 - Nobody start with me. 599 00:24:33,138 --> 00:24:35,116 I want the Snickers bar I left in the bottom 600 00:24:35,140 --> 00:24:36,201 of the bag of butter beans. 601 00:24:36,225 --> 00:24:37,369 - Ah! 602 00:24:37,393 --> 00:24:39,454 - And, you know, everybody goes through changes and whatnot. 603 00:24:39,478 --> 00:24:41,081 - Does that mean you got my Snickers bar? 604 00:24:41,105 --> 00:24:43,667 - But these were stark, drastic changes. 605 00:24:43,691 --> 00:24:45,168 - Hi Bev. Will you do me a favor? 606 00:24:45,192 --> 00:24:46,127 I need sugar and chocolate, 607 00:24:46,151 --> 00:24:47,046 would you please buy me a candy bar? 608 00:24:47,070 --> 00:24:48,254 I'll be your best friend or bodyguard. 609 00:24:48,278 --> 00:24:51,091 - I think everybody sort of realized the journey 610 00:24:51,115 --> 00:24:53,176 that she was going on. 611 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:55,428 Toward the end, we would do an audience show, 612 00:24:55,452 --> 00:24:57,889 a very regimented process. 613 00:24:57,913 --> 00:24:59,974 Six o'clock, we start the show. 614 00:24:59,998 --> 00:25:02,644 You know, she keeps saying, "In a minute, in a minute." 615 00:25:02,668 --> 00:25:05,480 Seven o'clock, eight o'clock. 616 00:25:05,504 --> 00:25:07,232 So when she would come out, 617 00:25:07,256 --> 00:25:09,609 she felt bad for the audience for waiting, 618 00:25:09,633 --> 00:25:12,553 so she would hand out money. 619 00:25:14,513 --> 00:25:17,158 Like, you know, throw it out to the audience. 620 00:25:17,182 --> 00:25:18,910 So the audience is like, "Oh, great. 621 00:25:18,934 --> 00:25:20,453 They're giving out money on 'Grace Under Fire.' 622 00:25:20,477 --> 00:25:24,708 You might have to wait, but yeah, they're giving out money." 623 00:25:24,732 --> 00:25:26,626 {\an8}- [Narrator] As Brett's behavior spirals, 624 00:25:26,650 --> 00:25:28,628 {\an8}it becomes a race to the finish line. 625 00:25:28,652 --> 00:25:30,213 {\an8}- You know, I think it was just like, 626 00:25:30,237 --> 00:25:33,008 {\an8}let's get to the syndication deadline. 627 00:25:33,032 --> 00:25:35,510 Let's get to episode 100. 628 00:25:35,534 --> 00:25:39,264 - You know, Carsey-Werner had a lot invested in it, 629 00:25:39,288 --> 00:25:41,975 and if you had a hundred episodes, 630 00:25:41,999 --> 00:25:45,103 {\an8}it was worth exponentially so much more money 631 00:25:45,127 --> 00:25:46,396 {\an8}than if you had 60. 632 00:25:46,420 --> 00:25:48,314 {\an8}And of course, every year 633 00:25:48,338 --> 00:25:50,859 {\an8}there would be a new executive producer. 634 00:25:50,883 --> 00:25:52,694 {\an8}- [Narrator] The last person to sit in the hot seat 635 00:25:52,718 --> 00:25:56,031 {\an8}as executive producer is Tom Straw. 636 00:25:56,055 --> 00:26:01,059 {\an8}- What had happened was she had some difference with Straw 637 00:26:01,560 --> 00:26:04,748 and, you know, things didn't work out the way she wanted. 638 00:26:04,772 --> 00:26:07,000 - And it was show night, 639 00:26:07,024 --> 00:26:10,170 and in front of the studio audience, 640 00:26:10,194 --> 00:26:13,339 she threw a can of soda at his head. 641 00:26:13,363 --> 00:26:15,133 - I do remember him coming to her and saying, 642 00:26:15,157 --> 00:26:18,344 "Listen, pull it together, we've got a show to do." 643 00:26:18,368 --> 00:26:21,055 And then he turned back around and he said, 644 00:26:21,079 --> 00:26:25,143 "Oh, and by the way, you missed." 645 00:26:25,167 --> 00:26:27,562 - They were able to finish shooting the rest of the show, 646 00:26:27,586 --> 00:26:31,566 but that was it, that was the last episode. 647 00:26:31,590 --> 00:26:35,069 {\an8}All they needed was five or six more episodes 648 00:26:35,093 --> 00:26:36,696 {\an8}to get to syndication. 649 00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:39,073 - Look, I didn't have to throw it all away at once, 650 00:26:39,097 --> 00:26:41,951 but I got so... ing sick and tired of Hollywood. 651 00:26:41,975 --> 00:26:44,287 - [Narrator] After five tumultuous seasons, 652 00:26:44,311 --> 00:26:47,457 "Grace Under Fire" comes to an abrupt end. 653 00:26:47,481 --> 00:26:50,084 - Her producers tell TV Guide the "Grace Under Fire" star 654 00:26:50,108 --> 00:26:51,961 had daily fits of temper. 655 00:26:51,985 --> 00:26:53,588 The show was finally shut down when Butler 656 00:26:53,612 --> 00:26:56,049 had one of those tantrums in front of a live audience. 657 00:26:56,073 --> 00:26:59,135 - I'm amazed that we got through five seasons 658 00:26:59,159 --> 00:27:02,180 because you saw somebody that had so much potential 659 00:27:02,204 --> 00:27:05,850 and, you know, you saw all the things happening 660 00:27:05,874 --> 00:27:09,729 that sucked the creative and the energy out of her. 661 00:27:09,753 --> 00:27:12,047 - It is hard to watch somebody self destruct. 662 00:27:19,763 --> 00:27:22,349 (ominous music) 663 00:27:24,268 --> 00:27:26,996 - [Narrator] After Brett's spectacular onset meltdown, 664 00:27:27,020 --> 00:27:29,666 "Grace Under Fire" is abruptly canceled. 665 00:27:29,690 --> 00:27:32,085 - Do you understand how out of line you have to be 666 00:27:32,109 --> 00:27:34,170 {\an8}to have people that you are making millions 667 00:27:34,194 --> 00:27:35,880 {\an8}and millions of dollars fire you? 668 00:27:35,904 --> 00:27:38,258 You can get away with a lot of shit in Hollywood 669 00:27:38,282 --> 00:27:39,801 {\an8}if you're making them money. 670 00:27:39,825 --> 00:27:40,719 {\an8}- You know, the grapevine, 671 00:27:40,743 --> 00:27:42,971 {\an8}and it was like phone calls immediately 672 00:27:42,995 --> 00:27:46,391 that she had thrown a can of Coke at the head producer 673 00:27:46,415 --> 00:27:47,975 and they shut it down. 674 00:27:47,999 --> 00:27:51,145 So Brett told me that she was high when she did that. 675 00:27:51,169 --> 00:27:51,939 She doesn't remember. 676 00:27:51,963 --> 00:27:52,940 The next day she wakes up, 677 00:27:52,964 --> 00:27:54,482 she thinks she's going to rehearsal. 678 00:27:54,506 --> 00:27:55,942 She drives to the set, 679 00:27:55,966 --> 00:27:58,736 the guard says, "Ms. Butler, you're no longer here." 680 00:27:58,760 --> 00:28:00,530 You know, "You don't have a sitcom." 681 00:28:00,554 --> 00:28:01,656 She goes, "To hell with that." 682 00:28:01,680 --> 00:28:05,076 She goes to her sound stage, it is cleared, it is gone. 683 00:28:05,100 --> 00:28:07,954 All her sets, they had cleared out overnight. 684 00:28:07,978 --> 00:28:10,039 That's how she knew it was over. 685 00:28:10,063 --> 00:28:12,709 - [Narrator] For Brett, the show's cancellation 686 00:28:12,733 --> 00:28:15,044 is a painful public humiliation. 687 00:28:15,068 --> 00:28:18,840 - I felt shame because it was my fault that it stopped. 688 00:28:18,864 --> 00:28:21,759 {\an8}- I know when you're a public figure like that, 689 00:28:21,783 --> 00:28:24,095 when you fall, you drag people with you 690 00:28:24,119 --> 00:28:26,014 and it's a lot of jobs. 691 00:28:26,038 --> 00:28:28,141 That's what she deals with. 692 00:28:28,165 --> 00:28:31,060 - Brett would think of all the people who lost their jobs. 693 00:28:31,084 --> 00:28:32,520 She always had a heart to her. 694 00:28:32,544 --> 00:28:34,105 - I'm proud of Grace more than not 695 00:28:34,129 --> 00:28:38,151 and I'm really sorry for what I did to dismantle it. 696 00:28:38,175 --> 00:28:41,637 {\an8}I was busy dying, but that's not really the point, you know? 697 00:28:42,846 --> 00:28:44,574 {\an8}- Not only would you hear chatter in the clubs, 698 00:28:44,598 --> 00:28:47,100 but it was also all over our news. 699 00:28:48,310 --> 00:28:51,664 {\an8}- Imagine the public shame when there's no social media, 700 00:28:51,688 --> 00:28:55,209 {\an8}to be the biggest effing story out there 701 00:28:55,233 --> 00:28:57,086 and it's just newspapers. 702 00:28:57,110 --> 00:28:59,631 - And it made me sad to the point that I wouldn't look 703 00:28:59,655 --> 00:29:01,424 because I love her so much that I was like, 704 00:29:01,448 --> 00:29:04,552 I don't wanna know this, I want her to be okay. 705 00:29:04,576 --> 00:29:08,556 - I felt like my soul was leaving my body on drugs 706 00:29:08,580 --> 00:29:10,391 and I didn't even wanna leave my house. 707 00:29:10,415 --> 00:29:13,019 I felt like dark things were there. 708 00:29:13,043 --> 00:29:14,729 - [Narrator] Then an event on the news 709 00:29:14,753 --> 00:29:16,314 captures Brett's attention. 710 00:29:16,338 --> 00:29:19,484 - On the television, they said a man in Jasper, Texas, 711 00:29:19,508 --> 00:29:22,528 had been dragged behind a truck until he was decapitated. 712 00:29:22,552 --> 00:29:24,155 - [Reporter] He was apparently chosen at random 713 00:29:24,179 --> 00:29:27,617 off the street simply because he was African-American. 714 00:29:27,641 --> 00:29:29,369 - His name was James Byrd. 715 00:29:29,393 --> 00:29:31,037 I wanted somebody, honestly, 716 00:29:31,061 --> 00:29:33,790 white from the South to show up. 717 00:29:33,814 --> 00:29:36,417 It said something to a part of me that still mattered 718 00:29:36,441 --> 00:29:39,796 in this world when nothing else did. 719 00:29:39,820 --> 00:29:41,839 It wasn't about, like, oh, I'm celebrity, 720 00:29:41,863 --> 00:29:42,633 I'm going to a funeral. 721 00:29:42,657 --> 00:29:44,241 I was infamous at that point. 722 00:29:45,158 --> 00:29:49,430 And we go to the funeral and I ask, "Can I sit in the back?" 723 00:29:49,454 --> 00:29:52,350 I just didn't want any attention to be brought to me. 724 00:29:52,374 --> 00:29:54,668 I wanted just to be there with people. 725 00:29:56,003 --> 00:29:57,897 I didn't take any drugs with me, 726 00:29:57,921 --> 00:30:01,067 but I took these Canadian aspirin with codeine in them 727 00:30:01,091 --> 00:30:03,403 so I wouldn't go into convulsions. 728 00:30:03,427 --> 00:30:05,613 I closed my eyes while I was listening to this preacher 729 00:30:05,637 --> 00:30:08,116 and I saw this wooden cross with nothing on it. 730 00:30:08,140 --> 00:30:10,118 And then, like, I hear this voice go, 731 00:30:10,142 --> 00:30:13,037 "I did it already, you're not even being original." 732 00:30:13,061 --> 00:30:15,123 And this old black woman was sitting next to me, 733 00:30:15,147 --> 00:30:17,625 and it was hot in the church and she was fanning me. 734 00:30:17,649 --> 00:30:19,836 And I looked at this old woman and said, 735 00:30:19,860 --> 00:30:22,046 "I'm self crucifying through addiction." 736 00:30:22,070 --> 00:30:25,299 And she said, "Well, stop that shit!" 737 00:30:25,323 --> 00:30:27,051 And she meant it, too. 738 00:30:27,075 --> 00:30:29,470 - When you come to comedy, 739 00:30:29,494 --> 00:30:32,807 if you haven't resolved some of your issues 740 00:30:32,831 --> 00:30:34,934 within your childhood, 741 00:30:34,958 --> 00:30:37,437 a lot of that just gets amplified 742 00:30:37,461 --> 00:30:39,814 when you get some semblance of success 743 00:30:39,838 --> 00:30:41,983 because it's working against you, 744 00:30:42,007 --> 00:30:45,486 like, ah, you're gonna fail, and so you sabotage yourself. 745 00:30:45,510 --> 00:30:46,904 - I have a friend who used to call it 746 00:30:46,928 --> 00:30:49,032 The Six Degrees of Worthiness. 747 00:30:49,056 --> 00:30:52,994 Every feeling you have that's uncomfortable or bad 748 00:30:53,018 --> 00:30:55,038 comes down to, I'm not worth it. 749 00:30:55,062 --> 00:30:56,080 And with that upbringing, 750 00:30:56,104 --> 00:30:58,041 of course you're gonna feel broken. 751 00:30:58,065 --> 00:31:02,211 - It was really surreal how one person's horrendous death 752 00:31:02,235 --> 00:31:04,988 could have reached through and grabbed me that way. 753 00:31:06,531 --> 00:31:09,010 I don't know how I did it. 754 00:31:09,034 --> 00:31:11,763 I should have died stopping myself. 755 00:31:11,787 --> 00:31:15,641 I stopped without any medical intervention or anything. 756 00:31:15,665 --> 00:31:18,352 And I'm pretty sure, I'm not pretty sure, 757 00:31:18,376 --> 00:31:23,483 I'm absolutely sure I'd be dead if I pick up again. 758 00:31:23,507 --> 00:31:24,942 - [Narrator] In the years that follow, 759 00:31:24,966 --> 00:31:27,695 Brett stays away from the spotlight. 760 00:31:27,719 --> 00:31:28,988 - We were emailing a lot. 761 00:31:29,012 --> 00:31:30,198 You worry, you pray for somebody 762 00:31:30,222 --> 00:31:33,743 and hope that she stays sober and keeps her life going. 763 00:31:33,767 --> 00:31:35,143 - I took jobs. 764 00:31:36,311 --> 00:31:38,664 {\an8}I did gigs that really didn't matter. 765 00:31:38,688 --> 00:31:41,334 {\an8}- [Host] "Grace Under Fire" herself, Brett Butler. 766 00:31:41,358 --> 00:31:43,920 {\an8}- I just wanna be damn careful 767 00:31:43,944 --> 00:31:45,922 about going back into the machine. 768 00:31:45,946 --> 00:31:49,425 - Like Brett Butler, we're all happy she's back, right? 769 00:31:49,449 --> 00:31:50,219 - That's all. 770 00:31:50,243 --> 00:31:51,928 - She's the only person who's had their head 771 00:31:51,952 --> 00:31:53,513 in more toilets than me. 772 00:31:53,537 --> 00:31:56,265 - I had to make sobriety matter more than anything else. 773 00:31:56,289 --> 00:31:58,059 I got too close to the fan blade before, 774 00:31:58,083 --> 00:32:00,168 I just didn't want it to happen again. 775 00:32:01,086 --> 00:32:02,814 - [Narrator] To protect her sobriety, 776 00:32:02,838 --> 00:32:05,358 Brett moves as far away from the Hollywood machine 777 00:32:05,382 --> 00:32:07,151 as she can imagine. 778 00:32:07,175 --> 00:32:09,153 - Brett went to Georgia and I talked to her a few times 779 00:32:09,177 --> 00:32:11,155 down there when she was living there 780 00:32:11,179 --> 00:32:13,074 and she had all the horses and the animals 781 00:32:13,098 --> 00:32:14,951 and she felt very good about that. 782 00:32:14,975 --> 00:32:16,119 - It really was great, 783 00:32:16,143 --> 00:32:20,039 and a big reason I'm here is because of animals. 784 00:32:20,063 --> 00:32:21,999 - [Narrator] Though Brett escapes the cruel spotlight 785 00:32:22,023 --> 00:32:25,920 of Hollywood, she can't run from herself. 786 00:32:25,944 --> 00:32:27,964 - She's got these animals around her and all of that, 787 00:32:27,988 --> 00:32:28,799 but you're still thinking about 788 00:32:28,823 --> 00:32:30,699 {\an8}everything that happened back in LA. 789 00:32:34,119 --> 00:32:37,557 - I have struggled with a lot of depression since then. 790 00:32:37,581 --> 00:32:40,726 They say that depression is anger turned inward. 791 00:32:40,750 --> 00:32:42,562 Maybe, I really don't know. 792 00:32:42,586 --> 00:32:44,838 I do believe a lot of it is chemical. 793 00:32:45,755 --> 00:32:49,026 - Brett was down in Georgia by herself, not good. 794 00:32:49,050 --> 00:32:50,444 There's a saying, people like us, 795 00:32:50,468 --> 00:32:53,114 like Brett and myself and other alcoholics. 796 00:32:53,138 --> 00:32:55,074 Never go up into your head alone. 797 00:32:55,098 --> 00:32:57,702 Don't go up there without a shotgun and a flashlight. 798 00:32:57,726 --> 00:32:59,060 It's a dangerous place to be. 799 00:33:01,062 --> 00:33:04,167 - Losing my sobriety wasn't an issue, it hasn't been, 800 00:33:04,191 --> 00:33:06,026 and I'm so grateful for that, 801 00:33:07,235 --> 00:33:10,655 but wondering about whether to live or not 802 00:33:11,656 --> 00:33:13,783 has been one that's been hard. 803 00:33:14,659 --> 00:33:19,664 I try to look at that as temporary, a temporary feeling. 804 00:33:19,998 --> 00:33:22,018 I'm a big believer in the afterlife, 805 00:33:22,042 --> 00:33:23,644 but I don't think that I should make it happen 806 00:33:23,668 --> 00:33:27,130 sooner than it should, and that alone keeps me here. 807 00:33:28,215 --> 00:33:30,234 - [Narrator] Isolated and depressed, 808 00:33:30,258 --> 00:33:32,987 Brett faces a looming new problem. 809 00:33:33,011 --> 00:33:36,199 Without a regular income, eventually she's unable 810 00:33:36,223 --> 00:33:38,910 to keep up with her mortgage payments. 811 00:33:38,934 --> 00:33:42,121 She's confronted with the foreclosure of her farm. 812 00:33:42,145 --> 00:33:44,207 - Look, it was totally my fault. 813 00:33:44,231 --> 00:33:45,875 I'd love to say I was drunk and did it, 814 00:33:45,899 --> 00:33:47,234 but I wasn't drinking. 815 00:33:49,361 --> 00:33:51,964 - [Narrator] During her reign on "Grace Under Fire," 816 00:33:51,988 --> 00:33:55,885 Brett had amassed a $25 million fortune. 817 00:33:55,909 --> 00:33:56,969 Where did it all go? 818 00:33:56,993 --> 00:33:58,554 - How you doing? 819 00:33:58,578 --> 00:34:00,223 It's really hard to talk about. 820 00:34:00,247 --> 00:34:05,210 I know that people assume things and I don't care. 821 00:34:05,627 --> 00:34:06,920 I can't care. 822 00:34:12,968 --> 00:34:15,804 (ominous music) 823 00:34:17,889 --> 00:34:20,576 - [Narrator] Brett Butler made $25 million 824 00:34:20,600 --> 00:34:22,745 working on "Grace Under Fire," 825 00:34:22,769 --> 00:34:26,624 but by 2012, she's blown her fortune. 826 00:34:26,648 --> 00:34:28,000 - Well, you know, everybody will say, 827 00:34:28,024 --> 00:34:28,877 "How do you blow all that money?" 828 00:34:28,901 --> 00:34:30,795 I go, "Are you kidding me? 829 00:34:30,819 --> 00:34:31,588 There are plenty of people 830 00:34:31,612 --> 00:34:33,047 who will help you blow that money." 831 00:34:33,071 --> 00:34:34,048 - No, no, no, s'il vous plait. 832 00:34:34,072 --> 00:34:35,967 Je suis nouveau riche. 833 00:34:35,991 --> 00:34:38,094 (Brett chuckles) 834 00:34:38,118 --> 00:34:39,536 - So I'm not surprised by that. 835 00:34:44,499 --> 00:34:47,103 - She gives more money than she has. 836 00:34:47,127 --> 00:34:50,606 - We have that identity that we constructed for ourselves 837 00:34:50,630 --> 00:34:53,985 and I am talented, I'm funny or whatever, 838 00:34:54,009 --> 00:34:58,072 but I'm only a hundred thousand dollars worth of talent. 839 00:34:58,096 --> 00:35:00,116 And so, when you get over a hundred thousand, 840 00:35:00,140 --> 00:35:02,576 you say to yourself, whoa, wait, 841 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,996 this is not the thermostat I'm used to, 842 00:35:05,020 --> 00:35:06,956 so I gotta get rid of all this excess 843 00:35:06,980 --> 00:35:09,000 to get back down to the standard I'm used to. 844 00:35:09,024 --> 00:35:12,503 {\an8}- I was still punishing myself for everything that I'd done. 845 00:35:12,527 --> 00:35:14,630 {\an8}I was excelling in self-loathing. 846 00:35:14,654 --> 00:35:16,966 - I had a brilliant therapist who used to say, 847 00:35:16,990 --> 00:35:18,718 "Your relationship with money 848 00:35:18,742 --> 00:35:20,845 is a reflection of your relationship with yourself." 849 00:35:20,869 --> 00:35:22,138 And if you don't think you're worth something, 850 00:35:22,162 --> 00:35:25,224 you wanna get rid of it, you wanna dispel and reject. 851 00:35:25,248 --> 00:35:27,018 - [Narrator] After losing her farm, 852 00:35:27,042 --> 00:35:30,271 Brett's saving grace comes from an unlikely source. 853 00:35:30,295 --> 00:35:33,733 - The next time I saw her was on "Anger Management." 854 00:35:33,757 --> 00:35:35,818 - I thought she was back down South, 855 00:35:35,842 --> 00:35:38,571 and I'm half asleep on the couch and I hear the voice 856 00:35:38,595 --> 00:35:41,282 {\an8}and I open my eyes and she's playing like a bartender. 857 00:35:41,306 --> 00:35:43,367 {\an8}- [Narrator] Though Brett is still a Hollywood outcast, 858 00:35:43,391 --> 00:35:46,037 {\an8}Charlie Sheen throws her a lifeline. 859 00:35:46,061 --> 00:35:47,580 - I play a bartender on it, 860 00:35:47,604 --> 00:35:49,332 and for those of you who wonder if Charlie and I 861 00:35:49,356 --> 00:35:51,375 {\an8}get the irony of this, yes. 862 00:35:51,399 --> 00:35:53,544 {\an8}- Charlie was a big advocate for her. 863 00:35:53,568 --> 00:35:56,297 You know, like minds, he saw a kindred spirit. 864 00:35:56,321 --> 00:35:57,965 - We're a lot alike, you and I. 865 00:35:57,989 --> 00:36:00,760 - Not really. Your voice is a lot lower than mine. 866 00:36:00,784 --> 00:36:02,053 - And it worked. 867 00:36:02,077 --> 00:36:04,013 - I absolutely loved her on "Anger Management" 868 00:36:04,037 --> 00:36:06,474 as the bartender and that dynamic, 869 00:36:06,498 --> 00:36:07,808 and I thought, yes. 870 00:36:07,832 --> 00:36:10,061 - There's gonna come a night when you're gonna beg me 871 00:36:10,085 --> 00:36:11,086 to go home with you. 872 00:36:12,087 --> 00:36:13,606 - Okay, okay, but until then, 873 00:36:13,630 --> 00:36:14,815 let's have a few more years of this 874 00:36:14,839 --> 00:36:17,068 will they, won't they sexual tension. 875 00:36:17,092 --> 00:36:19,737 - That's the Brett everyone needs to see. 876 00:36:19,761 --> 00:36:21,822 That's the Brett I almost feel like Brett needed to be. 877 00:36:21,846 --> 00:36:22,657 - Yeah, before I quit, 878 00:36:22,681 --> 00:36:25,868 I used to drink that off-brand nighttime cold syrup. 879 00:36:25,892 --> 00:36:28,537 I called it the wheezing, sneezing, aching, hacking, 880 00:36:28,561 --> 00:36:31,916 {\an1}age-to-leave-your-husbamedicine. Cine. 881 00:36:31,940 --> 00:36:35,211 I am so grateful to Charlie. He saved my ass. 882 00:36:35,235 --> 00:36:36,004 - [Narrator] Taking the job 883 00:36:36,028 --> 00:36:39,965 means facing the Hollywood system that once shunned her. 884 00:36:39,989 --> 00:36:43,469 - It's gotta feel really difficult to go, 885 00:36:43,493 --> 00:36:45,971 wow, from this to this. 886 00:36:45,995 --> 00:36:48,391 She's a tough broad if she's still in the game. 887 00:36:48,415 --> 00:36:49,892 - [Narrator] Brett's standout performance 888 00:36:49,916 --> 00:36:52,978 in "Anger Management" kicks off a slew of acting roles 889 00:36:53,002 --> 00:36:54,480 {\an8}in top tier production. 890 00:36:54,504 --> 00:36:56,965 {\an8}- Yes. What do you think he was doing up there? 891 00:36:57,799 --> 00:37:01,904 {\an8}- She's... ing good as an actress, without training. 892 00:37:01,928 --> 00:37:03,155 How crazy is that? 893 00:37:03,179 --> 00:37:03,990 - If you don't mind, 894 00:37:04,014 --> 00:37:06,700 I'm just gonna sit here and smoke my coping mechanism. 895 00:37:06,724 --> 00:37:10,079 {\an8}- When I saw her pop up on "The Morning Show," 896 00:37:10,103 --> 00:37:11,455 {\an8}I was, "Yes!" 897 00:37:11,479 --> 00:37:13,165 - Hal is an addict and he needs help. 898 00:37:13,189 --> 00:37:15,918 - He's not an addict, he just went through a rough spot. 899 00:37:15,942 --> 00:37:17,086 - Mom, he is an addict! 900 00:37:17,110 --> 00:37:19,338 - You are ruining dinner! 901 00:37:19,362 --> 00:37:21,090 {\an8}- And "Walking Dead." 902 00:37:21,114 --> 00:37:23,634 {\an8}She did some battleax part on "Walking Dead." 903 00:37:23,658 --> 00:37:25,052 {\an8}- My boy is dead. 904 00:37:25,076 --> 00:37:27,346 - And I was just, like, so happy. 905 00:37:27,370 --> 00:37:28,472 Oh, good, good. 906 00:37:28,496 --> 00:37:30,683 - I'm not letting go of this baby. 907 00:37:30,707 --> 00:37:32,059 {\an8}- That little reinvention. 908 00:37:32,083 --> 00:37:34,019 {\an8}- I was signed originally to do one show 909 00:37:34,043 --> 00:37:37,064 {\an8}and I got to do six, so I'm really happy about that. 910 00:37:37,088 --> 00:37:39,817 {\an8}- [Narrator] But with 2020 comes a major blow 911 00:37:39,841 --> 00:37:42,820 {\an8}that brings Brett's world to a crashing halt. 912 00:37:42,844 --> 00:37:43,780 - [Reporter] Coronavirus hitting 913 00:37:43,804 --> 00:37:45,239 the entertainment industry now. 914 00:37:45,263 --> 00:37:47,741 {\an8}- [Reporter] Los Angeles has shattered record numbers 915 00:37:47,765 --> 00:37:50,143 {\an8}of infections and hospitalizations. 916 00:37:53,313 --> 00:37:55,541 - Before COVID, she was getting jobs 917 00:37:55,565 --> 00:37:57,543 and she just loves acting, 918 00:37:57,567 --> 00:38:00,796 {\an8}and then COVID happened and all that dried up. 919 00:38:00,820 --> 00:38:05,050 {\an8}- The decision was made to suspend audiences from our show. 920 00:38:05,074 --> 00:38:05,969 - [Man] Pretty much anything that was 921 00:38:05,993 --> 00:38:09,096 {\an8}gonna go to production has stopped. 922 00:38:09,120 --> 00:38:10,914 {\an8}- I knew she wasn't doing great. 923 00:38:11,748 --> 00:38:13,267 - [Narrator] After the loss of her farm, 924 00:38:13,291 --> 00:38:16,270 Brett hasn't made a financial recovery. 925 00:38:16,294 --> 00:38:17,938 She's living paycheck to paycheck 926 00:38:17,962 --> 00:38:21,066 and still needs steady work to stay afloat. 927 00:38:21,090 --> 00:38:22,943 - And if you're not getting that work, 928 00:38:22,967 --> 00:38:24,111 how are you gonna make money? 929 00:38:24,135 --> 00:38:26,280 The only way we know how to make money, for years, 930 00:38:26,304 --> 00:38:28,324 was to do stand-up comedy or act. 931 00:38:28,348 --> 00:38:31,827 - Yeah, when COVID hit, it affected everybody. 932 00:38:31,851 --> 00:38:33,787 With Brett and her circumstances, 933 00:38:33,811 --> 00:38:37,750 she really was fearing that she was gonna be evicted. 934 00:38:37,774 --> 00:38:39,585 {\an8}- Oof, what's that like? 935 00:38:39,609 --> 00:38:42,779 {\an8}Climbing the mountain and then, you know, falling back down. 936 00:38:47,700 --> 00:38:50,203 (somber music) 937 00:38:52,121 --> 00:38:54,099 - [Narrator] Having lost her steady income, 938 00:38:54,123 --> 00:38:56,376 Brett is on the brink of homelessness. 939 00:38:57,418 --> 00:39:00,338 {\an8}- I'd say the lowest point was GoFundMe. 940 00:39:01,714 --> 00:39:03,943 {\an8}- I saw the GoFundMe on social media, 941 00:39:03,967 --> 00:39:07,363 {\an8}and when you see something like that, you think it's a scam. 942 00:39:07,387 --> 00:39:10,115 - Proudest moment I ever had, by the way, the GoFundMe. 943 00:39:10,139 --> 00:39:12,660 {\an8}Proudest moment, I'm being sarcastic. 944 00:39:12,684 --> 00:39:14,954 {\an8}- When it became more apparent that, 945 00:39:14,978 --> 00:39:18,666 {\an8}no, this is a real thing, I'm like, okay, well I can't not, 946 00:39:18,690 --> 00:39:21,460 {\an8}so I sent some dollars. 947 00:39:21,484 --> 00:39:24,129 {\an8}- The GoFundMe, as I understand it, 948 00:39:24,153 --> 00:39:26,090 {\an8}was started by a friend 949 00:39:26,114 --> 00:39:30,135 {\an8}and she let him put this GoFundMe out there, 950 00:39:30,159 --> 00:39:32,638 {\an8}very reluctantly, but it did help her 951 00:39:32,662 --> 00:39:36,082 over a really hard bottom she was hitting. 952 00:39:37,542 --> 00:39:39,144 Well, it brings out the haters, you know? 953 00:39:39,168 --> 00:39:42,147 You get your fans who are more than happy to help you 954 00:39:42,171 --> 00:39:45,192 and then, you know, there's another side to it. 955 00:39:45,216 --> 00:39:48,320 I can't even begin to imagine what that's like. 956 00:39:48,344 --> 00:39:50,114 - It's mostly from strangers. 957 00:39:50,138 --> 00:39:51,323 They go like, "Well, if you had this 958 00:39:51,347 --> 00:39:53,534 and you lost it all, screw you." 959 00:39:53,558 --> 00:39:55,869 There's always gonna be judgemental people 960 00:39:55,893 --> 00:39:58,205 and they're mean people. 961 00:39:58,229 --> 00:40:01,375 - I think she needed to process the shame 962 00:40:01,399 --> 00:40:03,168 of asking for that money. 963 00:40:03,192 --> 00:40:05,045 And when people said nasty things, 964 00:40:05,069 --> 00:40:06,672 her feeling was, I get it. 965 00:40:06,696 --> 00:40:08,966 - She has to take responsibility for what happened 966 00:40:08,990 --> 00:40:10,301 and then move forward. 967 00:40:10,325 --> 00:40:13,095 - I've seen people experience hardship, 968 00:40:13,119 --> 00:40:15,973 and unfortunately, the biggest ones in my life 969 00:40:15,997 --> 00:40:17,182 have been self-inflicted. 970 00:40:17,206 --> 00:40:21,395 I know people who've had worse and better lives than I 971 00:40:21,419 --> 00:40:24,148 and it's carved them up. 972 00:40:24,172 --> 00:40:28,569 And it's an excuse to drink, it's an excuse to get mad, 973 00:40:28,593 --> 00:40:31,679 so the only person I've been mad at is me. 974 00:40:33,348 --> 00:40:34,908 {\an8}- You know, every once in a while, 975 00:40:34,932 --> 00:40:37,685 {\an8}we would talk about the show that was 976 00:40:38,519 --> 00:40:40,605 and she acknowledged that she messed up. 977 00:40:41,731 --> 00:40:44,960 - [Narrator] Brett has always found a way to move forward. 978 00:40:44,984 --> 00:40:49,089 - I don't know drunk, out of control, 979 00:40:49,113 --> 00:40:52,926 terrorizing everybody Brett, I never met that person. 980 00:40:52,950 --> 00:40:56,388 I know sober Brett, getting better Brett, 981 00:40:56,412 --> 00:40:58,057 you know, positive Brett. 982 00:40:58,081 --> 00:41:01,185 She is a very dear friend. 983 00:41:01,209 --> 00:41:05,439 - Brett Butler is one of the most resilient humans 984 00:41:05,463 --> 00:41:07,149 on this earth, really and truthfully. 985 00:41:07,173 --> 00:41:09,943 - [Connie] She was fearless about getting on that stage. 986 00:41:09,967 --> 00:41:11,737 - Actually, my family's half Irish and half Swedish. 987 00:41:11,761 --> 00:41:15,074 We're all alcoholic, but we're real quiet about it. 988 00:41:15,098 --> 00:41:20,103 - Well, you know, just as fearless as you 989 00:41:20,728 --> 00:41:23,415 you've gotta draw on that kind of strength 990 00:41:23,439 --> 00:41:27,544 when you hit the bumps and you're on your way down. 991 00:41:27,568 --> 00:41:31,048 {\an8}You know, the empathy and the caring that she can give 992 00:41:31,072 --> 00:41:35,719 {\an8}to other people, I really want to see her 993 00:41:35,743 --> 00:41:39,431 giving as much of that to herself right now. 994 00:41:39,455 --> 00:41:44,228 And she is, she is coming into herself again. 995 00:41:44,252 --> 00:41:47,606 - I'm still here and depression didn't take me out either, 996 00:41:47,630 --> 00:41:50,567 and I think that'll get better, too. 997 00:41:50,591 --> 00:41:54,530 - She's got a voice, and sober, it soars. 998 00:41:54,554 --> 00:41:56,281 - I just want her to know there are people 999 00:41:56,305 --> 00:41:59,743 that would love to see her come back to the stage. 1000 00:41:59,767 --> 00:42:03,038 - Brett is so talented and so smart, 1001 00:42:03,062 --> 00:42:05,165 whatever crap went on at "Grace Under Fire," 1002 00:42:05,189 --> 00:42:07,000 for...'s sake, it's 30 years ago. 1003 00:42:07,024 --> 00:42:09,086 If everybody had to pay for shit they did 30 years ago, 1004 00:42:09,110 --> 00:42:10,129 nobody would be working. 1005 00:42:10,153 --> 00:42:12,131 I'm telling you, grow up and move on a little bit. 1006 00:42:12,155 --> 00:42:13,590 - She was something else. 1007 00:42:13,614 --> 00:42:16,969 Just pure unadulterated, funny from the gut. 1008 00:42:16,993 --> 00:42:20,097 Whatever pain she experienced from that fall, 1009 00:42:20,121 --> 00:42:22,057 {\an8}she'll make it funny on stage. 1010 00:42:22,081 --> 00:42:23,767 {\an8}- I'm not gonna be arrogant enough to say 1011 00:42:23,791 --> 00:42:25,227 {\an8}God saved me for something special, 1012 00:42:25,251 --> 00:42:27,688 {\an8}but I'm curious about what it is, you know? 1013 00:42:27,712 --> 00:42:29,940 - I would love to see her and how she's evolved. 1014 00:42:29,964 --> 00:42:34,153 - I think in an accent, I walk southern, I dream southern. 1015 00:42:34,177 --> 00:42:38,073 My boyfriend says in bed, I say y'all a lot. 1016 00:42:38,097 --> 00:42:40,743 - The honesty that you brought to the table and the humor 1017 00:42:40,767 --> 00:42:45,164 makes audience members go, "Wow, I can achieve and survive," 1018 00:42:45,188 --> 00:42:46,832 and I think there are many stories 1019 00:42:46,856 --> 00:42:49,042 that I'd like to see on stage. 1020 00:42:49,066 --> 00:42:52,588 - Her legacy is that she had a show, 1021 00:42:52,612 --> 00:42:57,617 she shit it away, and she got back up on the horse and rode. 1022 00:42:58,201 --> 00:43:01,013 - My revolution is this big mouth telling jokes, 1023 00:43:01,037 --> 00:43:02,514 and when you're laughing, I can't tell who you vote for 1024 00:43:02,538 --> 00:43:05,142 and it doesn't... ing matter for my job. 1025 00:43:05,166 --> 00:43:06,226 I'm a comedian. 1026 00:43:06,250 --> 00:43:08,020 - I wouldn't count her out. 1027 00:43:08,044 --> 00:43:11,190 The money is not how you judge it, you judge it by the work, 1028 00:43:11,214 --> 00:43:13,734 and she could end up winning an Oscar. 1029 00:43:13,758 --> 00:43:15,778 - She's brilliant and the world needs more of her. 1030 00:43:15,802 --> 00:43:19,072 Hollywood loves nothing better than a comeback, 1031 00:43:19,096 --> 00:43:20,949 so I'm like, come home, sis. 1032 00:43:20,973 --> 00:43:22,826 She's that good that she could. 1033 00:43:22,850 --> 00:43:24,578 It's all for what she wants to. 1034 00:43:24,602 --> 00:43:26,789 - You know, the very funny Brett Butler 1035 00:43:26,813 --> 00:43:28,898 from her smash hit, "Grace Under Fire." 1036 00:43:29,816 --> 00:43:32,961 - God, I hope I get some acting jobs. I like acting. 1037 00:43:32,985 --> 00:43:36,048 As long as I'm wishing, I hope they're good ones. 1038 00:43:36,072 --> 00:43:38,217 I'd rather have a tiny part that's interesting. 1039 00:43:38,241 --> 00:43:43,013 {\an8}Oh, Lord, I kind of wanna get out and do stand-up again. 1040 00:43:43,037 --> 00:43:47,059 {\an8}I've had other comedians come up and tell me 1041 00:43:47,083 --> 00:43:49,812 {\an8}that I gave them permission to talk about 1042 00:43:49,836 --> 00:43:52,397 {\an8}some weird stuff in their own lives. 1043 00:43:52,421 --> 00:43:55,567 {\an8}If I've given comedy anything, I think it's that. 1044 00:43:55,591 --> 00:43:57,319 {\an8}If your wingspan is big enough, 1045 00:43:57,343 --> 00:43:59,822 {\an8}then somebody else says, "I can do that, too." 1046 00:43:59,846 --> 00:44:01,764 {\an8}It's the greatest feeling in the world.