Celebrity Report: Amanda Bynes
As a pop culture savant and avid Perez Hilton blog reader, I had a difficult time choosing which celebrity to write my report about; I find so many entertainers fascinating. I knew that I didn’t want to write about a boring/tame celebrity, I was searching for a more intriguing personality. After reading a post on Perez Hilton and checking out twitter, I knew which celebrity fit the bill. My report will focus on the life, career, peculiar behavior, and crazy antics of Amanda Bynes. While Amanda Bynes hasn’t done any acting since 2010, she has managed to make headlines like Lindsay Lohan, due to her peculiar behavior, inappropriate tweets, run-ins with the law, and crazy antics. Before all of this craziness, Amanda was popular, had a steady career and was very successful.
Amanda was born on April 3, 1986.1 She began her career by appearing in a TV advertisement for Buncha Crunch candies when she was seven-years-old.2 In addition to the TV ad, she appeared in a number of musicals. Eventually she became a regular cast member on Nickelodeon’s Figure it Out (1997-
1999) and All That (1996-2000).3 After appearing on All That, she was given her own sketch comedy TV show on Nickelodeon.4 The Amanda Show ran from 1999-2002.5 When I was younger, I watched all three shows every week and have probably seen every episode of The Amanda Show. In 2002, Amanda made her film debut in the Big Fat Lair.6 In 2003, she also starred in What A Girl Wants, which is one of my favorite chick flicks of all time, costarring Colin Firth and Kelly Preston.7 From 2002 to 2006, Amanda costarred in the WB sitcom What I Like About You with Jennie Garth.8 In addition to acting on TV, Bynes also had voice parts in 2003’s Charlotte Web 2: Wilbur’s Great Adventures and the animated movie Robots.9 In 2006, she starred in another one of my favorite chick flicks, She’s the Man, which was based on Shakespeare’s Twelfth
1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 5 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 6 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 7 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 8 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 9 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes
1 Night.10 Also in 2006, she starred in the ABC Family movie Love Wrecked.11 In the 2007 Hairspray remake,
Amanda played the character of Penny Pingleton and the portrayed the title character in the 2007 movie
Sydney White.12 In 2008, Bynes had a minor role in the Lifetime Television movie Living Proof. In 2010 she appeared in her last film, Easy A.13
Amanda usually received positive reviews for her TV and movie appearances. Her acting success built a very strong fan base.
During her career, Bynes won a number of awards. From 2000 to 2003 Amanda won a Blimp award at the Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards for Favorite Television Actress for All That (2000) and The
Amanda Show (2001-2004).14 In 2003 she won the award for Favorite Movie Actress for her role in Big Fat
Liar and won it again in 2004 for What a Girl Wants.15 In 2008, Bynes was part of the Hairspray ensemble win at the Critics’ Choice Awards.16 In addition to these wins, Bynes has been nominated for a number of other awards. Other award shows include the MTV Movie Awards, Teen Choice Awards, Screen Actors
Guild Awards, and Young Artist Awards.17
In June 2010, Amanda tweeted "I don’t love acting anymore, so I’ve stopped doing it.”18 About one month after this tweet, she announced that she was unretired.19 During the 2011 MTV Movie awards she clarified things by stating that she was just taking time off, however, in September of 2012, she announced via Twitter that she was retiring again so she could focus on becoming a fashion designer and begin launching her fashion line. 20
10 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 11 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 12 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 14 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 15 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 16 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 17 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 18http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 19http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 20http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes
2 Amanda has stated in interviews that she loves drawing and is interested in designing clothes.21 22
In 2007, Amanda announced that would be creating her own line for Steve & Barry. Her collection, titled
Dear, hit stores on August 16, 2007.23 24 While her contract was for five years, it ended after the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2008.25
During a 2007 interview, Bynes expressed her disinterest in becoming another crazy Hollywood star stating, "I think I’ll go out as much as I’ve ever gone out... which is not a lot. I like to dance and stuff, but drinking isn’t good for you in any way. It’s not good for your skin; it makes you feel horrible. So, drinking-wise, no."26 In a different interview with Access Hollywood she restated these ideas saying, "I like being with my family and friends, and I don't need to be out at the clubs."27 Despite these earlier feelings, she has recently had a number of legal issues involving alcohol.
On March 7, 2012 Bynes was pulled over by the Los Angeles Police (LAPD) after talking on her cell phone while driving.28 Then on April 6th, she was arrested and charged with Driving Under the
Influence (DUI).29 During the April 6th episode she sideswiped a police car in West Hollywood around 3 a.m.30 After being pulled over she refused to take a breathalyzer or drug test at the scene of the accident and was therefore taken into custody.31 On June 5th, she was charged with a DUI for her April arrest.
After her hearing, she tweeted President Obama and asked for his help: “@BarackObama I don’t drink.
Please fire the cop who arrested me. I also don’t hit and run. The end.”32 On August 4th, she rear-ended a driver on Ventura Boulevard in L.A. and caused approximately $800 worth of damage. She reportedly
21 http://www.wwd.com/beauty-industry-news/financial/amanda-bynes-in-deal-with-steve-barry-s-497263 22 http://www.eonline.com/news/348469/amanda-bynes-too-busy-being-fashionable-in-new-york-no-shows-for-suspended- license-hearing 23 http://www.wwd.com/beauty-industry-news/financial/amanda-bynes-in-deal-with-steve-barry-s-497263 24 http://www.eonline.com/news/348469/amanda-bynes-too-busy-being-fashionable-in-new-york-no-shows-for-suspended- license-hearing 25 http://www.wwd.com/beauty-industry-news/financial/amanda-bynes-in-deal-with-steve-barry-s-497263 26 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 27 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 28 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 29 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 30 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 31 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 32 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951
3 fled the scene because she didn’t see any damage on the car.33 On September 4th, Amanda is officially charged with a hit-and-run in connection to the April and August crashes and two days later has her license suspended by the California DMV.34 On September 16th, her black BMW was impounded after she was pulled over and cited for driving with a suspended license.35 On September 27th, she pled not guilty to the two charges of hit-and-run and on December 14th, it was announced that Amanda had reached a settlement with the other parties and the charges were dismissed.36
During 2012, she received a ton of press coverage due to her legal disputes and was compared to
Lindsay Lohan - who is now famous for her legal troubles. In 2013, Amanda continues to be pursued by gossip magazines due to her bizarre public behavior, troubling twitter posts and pictures, and her threats to sue magazines for publishing unflattering photos to defame her. On April 10th, Amanda tweeted,
I'm suing every blog, every magazine, every news source that's saying I'm doing anything wrong "erratic behavior" is not me! I'm suing In Touch, Us Weekly, Perez Hilton for hiring paparazzi who follow me then take the worst photos with the worst angles. I'd like to put up their worst photos on my twitter until they only start putting up my twitter photos when writing a story when there is NO story, just an awful photo posted with instead of a caption, they say I have erratic behavior when I do NOTHING wrong. There's NOTHING with my life, other than you putting up awful candid photo after photo. I'm working out, it's hard getting in shape with an eating disorder. Please follow me on twitter then look forward to be sued if you if say I have erratic behavior or am living my life wrong in anyway. 37
Her bizarre tweets such as the one posted above, her run-ins with the law, and her statements about cutting out her family and hating most people can be considered as erratic behavior. In addition to her bizarre tweets she has also published a number of troubling photos online. In early 2013, she published a photo of her breasts on Instagram.38 In January 2013, TMZ reported that Amanda was almost evicted from her apartment due to her weed habit.39 She has been photographed walking around NYC with her face completely covered by jackets, bags, and bed sheets, which is not considered normal. A variety of
33 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 34 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 35 http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/amanda-bynes-dui-hit-and-run-arrest-374951 36http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amanda_Bynes 37 http://perezhilton.com/category/amanda-bynes#.UXBwhSvwKdA 38 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/02/amanda-bynes-boobs-instagram-new-year_n_2395809.html 39 http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/01/amanda-bynes-weed-eviction-moves_n_2600473.html
4 news outlets such as the Huffington Post, Perez Hilton, US Weekly, E!, and People have published stories about her erratic behavior and tweets.
During her acting career people saw her as a good role model for young girls, levelheaded, seemingly normal, and talented, however now people think of her as the next celebrity train wreck because of her recent crazy antics.40 Due to recent events, Amanda Bynes needs a good publicist that specializes in damage control - she needs to fix her public image and get back on track.
If I were her publicist, I would have a number of recommendations for her. Since she has publicly stated that she has an eating disorder it’s important that she seeks treatment/help for it. Eating disorders are serious issues that affect many women. Other entertainers have successfully overcome their eating disorders and other issues and they were able to educate others suffering the disease and get their careers and lives back on track. While Amanda has stated that she has retired from acting, she announced that she wants to create a clothing line. In order for it to be as successful as possible she needs to be mentally healthy so she can focus and produce her best work. In addition to speaking out about eating disorders and the road to recovery, I would also suggest that she speak out on the dangers of drinking and driving.
While she pleaded not guilty it is still an important issue in society and it would definitely be to her benefit to speak about the dangers of drinking and driving as well as texting and driving because these are two hot celebrity issues and she will be doing something positive. Another huge issue Amanda faces is her bizarre tweets. She constantly posts inappropriate images and tweets, therefore it would be to her benefit to have someone manage her social media accounts or just take a break from them. She’s made sexual references on twitter which aren’t considered appropriate. I think by having someone else manage the account or taking a break from these outlets it will prevent her from getting more negative press and have people stop writing stories about her social media activity. Another thing I would talk to Amanda about is not walking around with jackets over her face. That look is quite bizarre, in-fact it ignites negative coverage and fuels rumors of her being mentally unstable. Threatening to sue media outlets also makes her appear crazy. In
40 http://gossipgirl.alloyentertainment.com/amanda-bynes-vs-lindsay-lohan/
5 order to promote her new clothing line and fashion aspirations, I would recommend that she create a
Pinterest page dedicated to her style, tweet about her upcoming line, and share photos of it on Instagram and twitter. If she uses her social media accounts as promotional outlets for her fashion line, it will distract the press from her past crazy antics and show how serious she is about entering the fashion industry. I truly believe that if Amanda follows at least one of my recommendations she will see positive media coverage.
Overall, Amanda had a strong acting career and was considered a good role model until she went off the deep-end in 2012 with her legal troubles and her erratic behavior. I think fans would love to see her get back into the movie/TV industry and would also like to see her completed clothing line. Despite her recent bad press, I think she would be able to get back on top again with a good publicist. My plan for her would help her achieve her fashion goals and help her appear more normal.
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