Amanda Bynes – living proof !
Amanda Bynes is living proof that mental illness and addiction can befall those of us who appear to have everything going for them. The beautiful, statuesque comedienne has been tickling funny bones and amassing a loyal fan base ever since her stint on the Nickelodeon variety show All That.
Bynes made an immediate name for herself in show business, parlaying her role on All That into a lucrative film and television career. She received her own well reviewed sitcom on the WB network, entitled What I Like About You and when she was cast as Penny Pingleton in the 2007 Hairspray remake, her star never seemed brighter.
Following the success of Hairspray, she inked a two picture deal with Screen Gems and 2010’s Easy A was a critical and commercial smash hit that firmly established her place on the list of Hollywood up and comers. But this would be her last hurrah, as her behaviour became increasingly erratic.
Hairspray 2 was canceled and her proposed role in the comedy Hall Pass was given to a different actress, after Bynes announced that she no longer loved acting and planned to retire. She retracted this statement later and claimed that she was only planning to take some time off.
In 2012, her personal life slowly began to unravel. She received a cell phone ticket for talking while driving and a month later, she was charged with a DUI after she side swiped a police cruiser. In April and August, she was involved in separate hit and run incidents and avoided serious trouble by coming to financial settlements with the victims.
While this may have been a wake up call for some, Bynes continued down her mystifying path, culminating in two incredibly bizarre incidents in May and June of 2013. In May, she allegedly threw a marijuana bong out of a 36th floor window, although the charges were dismissed.
In June, she was hospitalized for mental evaluation after starting a small fire in front of a stranger’s California home. Her behaviour would only worsen from there, as she was released into her parents’ custody, a scenario that eventually culminated in her accusing her father of molesting her as a child. Bynes would later recant, blaming a microchip that her father had implanted in her head.
Thankfully, Bynes managed to avoid making any headlines for the wrong reasons in 2015. She enrolled in fashion school, taking classes at Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. She made public appearances and was said to look healthy and appear to be in good spirits.
Mental wellness is no laughing matter and while some may have chuckled at her bizarre run ins with the law and mystifying tweets, Bynes appears to be on the path to happiness, with or without the world of acting. She has apologized to those she hurt and looks forward to putting the past behind her.
