Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: Patty Duke

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip:

Patty Duke

In my own personal big gay church there is a special wing dedicated to The Working Girls. These are ladies whom have had long careers spanning decades. They've appeared on television, stage and film, recorded albums, championed causes, and had their ups and downs. But they kept working.

One such brave ball of fire?

Patty Duke.

Winning an Oscar at the age of sixteen is heady stuff.

Especially when there's a whole headful of ghosts already living in there.

She's Helen Keller. She's Patty and Cathy Lane. She's Neely O'Hara. 

And she was bipolar.

America's sweetheart went through a lot. Oh, the scandals. And Desi Arnaz, Jr.? Well!

If her mid-career seemed a bit disjointed? Well, there's good reason for it.

Behind the scenes? Things were a bit crazy. Manic, more to the point.

For a time, she became the afterschool special / T.V. movie of the week queen - coming into our living rooms week after week educating us regarding the latest quietly hidden social malady - well, when she wasn't busy having the devil's baby or being stalked by Rosemary Murphy.

But she came through it all. She survived and thrived and eventually worked to help others to do the same.

She wrote books and shared her story, for she had to own her past in order to have a future.

Bottom line? Her over-the-top performance in Valley Of The Dolls made her a gay icon. It's a cinematic achievement of such monumental artistic hubris, it spoke to us as a community and we have long held her in our hearts, where she lives on today.

The gospel according to her?

Well, here are three from the hip, dropping from her lips.

The Topic: Being Bipolar

I knew from a very young age that there was something very wrong with me.

I was a very isolated teenager.

I think my real depressions started when I was about 16 and doing The Patty Duke Show. I would go to bed at about 10 o'clock on a Friday night and not get up again until 6:30 Monday morning.

The mania started with insomnia and not eating and being driven; driven to find an apartment, driven to see everybody, driven to do New York, driven to never shut up.

At the age of 19, I removed myself from society for almost four months, setting off years of manic episodes, including outrageous overspending. I bought several Mercedes because I thought I could. I had no money, but I rented a jet.

If stars behave in an erratic fashion, it's called 'colorful,' as opposed to, 'Well, maybe there's a problem there.'

I can't even remember how many times I tried to kill myself.

I believe that all the important people in my life prior to 1982 were victimized by my illness.

I was a truly loving mom, but I didn't have the tools to do the job.

Due to my sometimes erratic behavior, my children tried very hard to avoid me and not do anything to set me off.

It's toughest to forgive ourselves. So it's probably best to start with other people. It's almost like peeling an onion. Layer by layer, forgiving others, you really do get to the point where you can forgive yourself.

I joke around a lot about the manic times because they're funny. We 'manics' do outrageous things and it is part of our colorful nature.

Without a sense of humor, I would have been gone a long time ago.
 

My recovery from manic depression has been an evolution, not a sudden miracle.

I still have highs and lows, just like any other person. What's missing is the lack of control over the super highs, which became destructive, and the super lows, which are immediately destructive.

Bipolar indicates that you're not - you don't just experience depression, but the mood swing goes up, and it can go very up.

It's not a giant thrill to hear someone give you the label 'manic-depressive,' but to me I was so relieved. What I was suffering from had a name and could be treated.

If I have any message for others, it is to go for help early and not to be a resistant patient.

I tell people to monitor their self-pity. Self-pity is very unattractive.

No amount of therapy will take care of a chemical imbalance of the brain.

I've survived. I've beaten my own bad system, and on some days, on most days, that feels like a miracle.

Funny Little Butterflies - Patty Duke

It's Impossible - Patty Duke

From the 1967 motion Picture Valley Of The Dolls

(Not dubbed - her own voice!)

And We Were Strangers - Patty Duke

And one last parting shot...

 

You can have manic-depression without having an ounce of creativity.

I'm not sure I want all my neuroses cleared up.

Human beings have speculated about the relationship between inspiration and insanity for centuries.