Read Online Found by Tatum O'neal - Free Book Online Page B

had had the idea of doing a reality show by myself, but by the time we were done with our entrées, we were all caught up in the notion of Ryan and I doing a reality show in tandem.
    I wanted to be in front of a camera again. Just before my marriage, I’d begun taking acting classes, wanting to reinvent my image and to be taken seriously. But then John came along. During the years of my marriage, the only role I played was that of a supportive wife and mother. Then there was the divorce, and the tough years that followed. With the exception of some indie movies, there had been a twenty-year gap in my career. I was particularly proud of the work I’d done in recent years. I had stayed with Rescue Me for six years. But I never stopped feeling like I had to prove myself extra-hard. Paper Moon had been a free ticket for me, an entrée into a career I was too young to know I wanted. Winning an Academy Award at nine years old had put me in an odd position—and I’d spent a lifetime living up to it. I was totally proud of the Oscar—but it was a little challenging to have begun my career at the pinnacle of success and then to realize that I would have to work my way up the ladder again. But I was willing to pay my dues.
    My arrest gave me the opposite sort of notoriety. It was a badge of dishonor that I wanted to overcome. I did the court-ordered rehab—two eight-hour class sessions about drugs and alcohol—which cleared the charges from my record. But as far as the press was concerned, I had been convicted.
    The notion of a reality show promised not only work but a chance to show who I really was—not the precocious child star, not the out-of-control tabloid headline, but a real, strong, independent woman.
    In the next few days, I talked to my kids about the possibility of doing a TV show—a documentary series that followed my life. I’d been offered a few such shows in the past, and they weren’t opposed to the genre. But when they heard my dad was involved, they didn’t know exactly how to respond. This was a gray area—it was unclear to all of us if it would be good or bad for me. So while they were generally apprehensive, they trusted me and believed in me. They knew I’d make the right choices along the way. They just wanted me to keep them informed. They wanted updates and downloads.
    It was talking to my friend Kyle that got me most excited about the prospect of doing a show with my father. He said, “Yay, Tatey! This will be good for you. It’s brave to take on something so personal and heart-driven as this.” Kyle’s enthusiasm was contagious. But as a die-hard fan of Dancing with the Stars and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Kyle cautioned me, too. He said, “Be careful. I know how sensitive you are. I want you to have a good outcome with your dad, but don’t do anything that might be damaging to your sobriety or yourself.” For the most part, Kyle was just plain enthusiastic, except that it broke his heart that if the show did go forward, it would take place in L.A. We wouldn’t be in the same city, and he wouldn’t be able to color my hair for it!
    Now that my father and I were a family again, would we really have a chance to work together again, too? I didn’t have to wait long to find out. Within days of that dinner with my agent, Ryan and I had meetings with several different production companies. It was on. It happened so fast I couldn’t help wondering if my agent had planned it all in advance and maneuvered things so we would believe it was merely a spontaneous inspiration. No matter. The Hollywood train had left the station and we were on board.

Chapter Seven
The Storm After the Calm
    DURING JUNE AND July, Ryan and I spent a lot of time together at the beach house and had meetings about the show. We were getting reacquainted. Spending so much time together, my father and I didn’t suddenly develop the