With the excess of tabloids, blind items, and celebrity gossip sites out there (not to mention social media), it can often feel like we know everything there is to know about high-profile celebrities and their personal lives. And yet, the second a tell-all memoir is released, we devour it immediately — and find out so much more than these other sources ever told us. Memoirs are where the true secrets are revealed, and stars like Jessica Simpson, Demi Moore, and more have all made our jaws drop with their revelations in recent years.
To say that these celeb memoirs have rocked our world would be an understatement. From detailing sexual abuse or childhood abuse to opening up about struggles with addiction, rehab, or volatile relationships, these memoirs have been incredibly revealing. Many were gut-wrenching, but all of them inspired us with their bravery and candor after all these years. To open up about such sensitive topics is tough, especially when you’re a well-known celebrity. But when celebrities speak up about these painful experiences, they can use their platform and audience to help those who are struggling in silence, and let them know they’re not alone.
For that, and so much more, we’re grateful that these stars took the time to put their lives on paper. So, which celebs’ revelations of deep, dark secrets had us hooked? Here are the celebrity tell-all books that we couldn’t put down — we suggest you check them out immediately.
A version of this article was originally published in April 2017.
‘Open Book’ by Jessica Simpson
Jessica Simpson’s moving 2020 memoir details never-before-heard stories of her childhood sexual abuse, addiction struggles, and relationship problems over the years. It’s a whole new side to one of America’s best-known faces, and her message of working through trauma is seriously inspiring.
‘Inside Out’ by Demi Moore
Demi Moore hasn’t had the easiest path, settling into stardom at a young age and dealing with the judgment of being in the spotlight all her life. This new memoir details her addiction struggles, body image struggles, and how she raised a family through it all.
‘A Life on the Edge’ by Carrie Fisher
Sheila Weller’s 2019 biography of Carrie Fisher details the late actress’s lifelong struggle with bipolar disorder and addiction, and how it affected her iconic career. Three years after Fisher’s tragic passing, this biography is the fullest portrait of the star’s life we’ve seen yet.
‘This Is Me: Loving the Person You Are Today’ by Chrissy Metz
This Is Us star Chrissy Metz details her childhood struggles, including a physically abusive parent, and lifelong “humiliation” over her weight — all the way up to the revelation at age 30 that she calls the turning point of her life.
‘There Is No F*cking Secret: Letters From a Badass Bitch’ by Kelly Osbourne
Kelly Osbourne knows how to capture your attention, and her memoir is no exception. Her life as the child of Ozzy Osbourne is predictably wild, but her frankness about her addiction struggles and finding a new place of confidence will inspire you.
‘Through the Storm: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World’ by Lynne Spears
Britney Spears’s mother Lynne Spears walks us through Britney’s eventual breakdown, the makings of a child star, and how it affected their family at a young age. It’s an up-close look at one of pop culture’s most fascinating phenomenons.
‘Coreyography’ by Corey Feldman
If you’re thinking of sending your kid to Hollywood, read this first.
Feldman’s tell-all makes the top of our list. He details not only his own abuse at the hands of his parents but also the sexual abuse suffered by his best friend, Corey Haim, and other child stars and an environment full of hard drugs being pushed on young teens.
‘High on Arrival’ by Mackenzie Phillips
It was common knowledge that this former TV star lost her career because of her drug use. What no one knew — and what shocked both the world and her family — is that she was involved in what she described as a consensual incestuous sexual relationship with her father, John Phillips of the group The Mamas and the Papas, for over a decade.
In the book, she reveals the abuse and that it only ended after she had an abortion, because she didn’t know if her father or her boyfriend had gotten her pregnant.
‘Little Girl Lost’ by Drew Barrymore
Drew Barrymore’s 1990 memoir detailed how she had her first drink at 9, smoked pot at 10 and was snorting cocaine by 12. Some nude photoshoots and rehab stints later, she made it out the other side in one piece.
‘Mommie Dearest’ by Christina Crawford
The ultimate and original Hollywood tell-all, Mommie Dearest left the world reeling with Christina’s remembrances of her highly abusive childhood at the hands of her volatile mother, iconic actress Joan Crawford.
In it, she claims her mother tried to strangle her, withheld food for days and refused to allow her contact with the outside world for minor infractions. And, of course, there’s the infamous wire hanger incident.
‘Prairie Tale: A Memoir’ by Melissa Gilbert
Little Laura Ingalls had a hell of a ride in Hollywood. Her book details how she suffered a miscarriage after getting pregnant by Rob Lowe, how a very young Shannen Doherty had a one-night stand with her first husband, the night Johnny Depp felt up her lactating breasts, the day then-costar Cicely Tyson slapped a director across the face, and finding her husband having sex with a prostitute in the family kitchen.
‘All That Is Bitter and Sweet’ by Ashley Judd
When Naomi Judd said her family put the “fun” in “dysfunction,” she wasn’t kidding, as her daughter Ashley revealed in her memoir. Naomi’s relationship with an abusive heroin addict and her habit of deserting her kids for days at a time and Ashley’s three sexual assaults, depression that left her so debilitated she contemplated suicide, incest, and living without basics like electricity and running water are all fodder for this revealing look into the actor’s childhood.
‘Elvis and Me’ by Priscilla Presley
The former wife of The King spilled some serious tea in her tell-all about their relationship, including how, when he wooed her as a teen, they may not have had intercourse but he taught her how to please him sexually in every other way.
Priscilla Presley also detailed Elvis’ ever-increasing prescription drug use, his fiery jealousy, his multiple affairs with other women (including actors Ann-Margret and Nancy Sinatra), his preoccupation with the occult, her own affairs and, eventually, the demise of their marriage and his untimely death.
‘Diana: Her True Story’ by Andrew Morton
While this book wasn’t technically written by Princess Diana herself, Andrew Morton revealed after her death that pretty much all the scandalous info it contained came directly from the horse’s mouth, and he had the receipts to prove it.
Diana spun a tale that was extremely unflattering to the royals, including a sordid affair between Charles and Camilla, her struggle with bulimia, her self-injury and reported suicide attempt and her own affairs. The release of the book culminated in the queen insisting that Diana and Charles, who were already separated, finalize their divorce.
‘Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology’ by Leah Remini
Scientology officials were not pleased when Leah Remini released her book detailing the inner workings of the cult-like religion, including some outrageous Tom Cruise stories and how families are forced apart when one member tries to leave.
The book spawned a reality series for the actor that takes a close look at dark Scientology secrets, including the sexual abuse of minors in their ranks.
‘Down the Rabbit Hole’ by Holly Madison
As the late Hugh Hefner’s main girlfriend (and one of his infamous Girls Next Door), Holly Madison had a front-row seat to Hef’s shenanigans and detailed them in her book. Revealed were tidbits like how all the girlfriends were expected to have sex with him and each other but he’d always finish himself off, that he offered the girls quaaludes, that his sons shared a bedroom with one of the girlfriends, that he pitted the women against each other constantly, that he paid for plastic surgery and that he instituted a strict 9 p.m. curfew.
‘Growing Up in the Jackson Family’ by LaToya Jackson
In her all-encompassing memoir, LaToya Jackson accused her father of abusing all the Jackson kids and her mother allowing it to happen. Plus, she claimed her brother Jackie had an affair with Paula Abdul, and when his wife found out, she tied her to a chair to interrogate her, and that Phil Spector basically tried to kidnap her.
But the ish really hit the fan when LaToya alleged that her father, Joe, sexually abused both her and her sister, Rebbie — a charge she later recanted, saying her husband at the time forced her to make the claims to drive book sales.
‘I, Tina’ by Tina Turner
Tina Turner’s explosive autobiography exposed her ex-husband and former musical partner for what he really was: a controlling, obsessive abuser. The book details some of Ike Turner’s worst abuse, like sticking a lit cigarette up her nose and breaking her jaw right before making her perform on stage with blood running down her face. The mental abuse she endured was just as bad, but it was Tina who got the last laugh when she finally broke away and enjoyed a wildly successful solo career.
‘The Most Beautiful: My Life With Prince’ by Mayte Garcia
The revelations in Prince’s first wife’s book weren’t necessarily scandalous (although many were quite emotional). The controversy came from the fact that the book was published in the first place.
Prince was notoriously private, and rumor has it that he blocked the memoir’s release the year before he died. However, Garcia says it’s a love story, not a tell-all, and that she has the full support of Prince’s family.
‘Brave’ by Rose McGowan
In January, Charmed actress Rose McGowan released a memoir, Brave, that not only detailed the emotional abuse she suffered on set but also her alleged sexual assault by Harvey Weinstein. The memoir is raw and honest, and it doesn’t hold back any details.
“My life, as you will read, has taken me from one cult to another,” McGowan writes of the book. “Brave is the story of how I fought my way out of these cults and reclaimed my life. I want to help you do the same.”
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