Michelle Kaplan

Brett Butler - Grace Under Pressure

Southern accents are deceptive, radiating warmth, exuding southern charm and hospitality…that southern drawl drips down your ear like mint juleps down your throat on a hot July afternoon, lulling one into a false sense of security. Comedian, Brett Butler has that ability and just when you think you’re safe, she’s gonna kick your butt right out of the house.

Butler starred in TV’s Grace Under Fire from 1993 to 1998. Her quick wit and dead on take of the human existence should serve her well in her next endeavor when she takes on Moochers, adult children who just can’t seem to get themselves off their parent’s couch, find a job, a place to live and take on the huge responsibility of taking care of themselves. Toss in some mooching friends and relatives for a good measure and, of course, once they’re out of the house - redecorate the room.

This new reality show could be called Grace Under Pressure, but Butler’s been there done that, messed that up, got up and dusted myself off and did it again attitude makes her the ideal lady for the job.

“Reality television…there are some truly horrible moments… no one can avoid.”

However, for her, it’s more about helping people than watching the train wreck. She said that she made it very clear before agreeing to host the show.

“I said, promise me I don’t have to be mean to people… I’m not going to humiliate or hurt people…I’ve had to remind them of that…I want it to be more about making decisions about growth and commitment.”

And as the show tries to keep it real, Butler does see how reality TV can be so unreal.

From the making over of the room, which Butler said can be a little much.

“They redecorate it in outlandish ways for television…it looks like a piñata exploded.”

To the people on the show, who can be too much.

“Reality television just screws us up so bad. The people in it, they start acting,” So she calls them on it.

“That’s not how you sound… you’re not being you on TV, is not only showing you not being you, but YOU being stupid.”

The show, essentially a spin off produced by Dr. Phil McGraw, who will make some appearances, and his son, Jay, was a popular segment of The Dr. Phil Show.

And if having your own TV show again isn’t enough to boost self-esteem, Butler has also recently undergone some transformations, some apparent, she’s lost 45 pounds, some not so apparent, she’s found love.

“He’s so great…if you told me I’d meet a guy…he’s the kind of guy, that makes you want to go out and slap every guy who’s not Bob. I don’t’ scare him in the least, my friends like him…I’m such a girl in this…I did think I had to be (the one in control), I didn’t think I’d want to be.”

As a woman, earning more than the man in the relationship, for Butler it wasn’t easy.

“An uneven distribution of money can be a more confusing thing that it has to be.”

She is clear in her present direction, which was a far cry from her past. It is no secret that she’s lived a hard life, surviving an abusive husband and a drug addiction that ultimately led to her loosing her job on Grace Under Fire.

“A few stressful things happened at once. I never had anything unfair happen to me…I was battered wife, I stayed…but something truly unfair happened to me… a falsehood, an injurious one… it absolutely tore me up.”

She started using.

“I just finished the book…I lost almost seven years of sobriety… a year and a half later they fired me …I was literally dying… I should have died… I should be dead… I didn’t do crack or needles… it took six months and now I have eight years of sobriety.”

Today is different for Butler. She is a veracious reader and dabbles in the arts. Drawing and painting, she favors Mandalas, which she describes as sacred circles founded by different religions, circles that are drawn with a meaningful design inside.

“They’re described as vessels for the psyche. I color them draw them, they’re quite compelling… sometimes I draw the inside first, it doest work that way … I have to draw the circle or it doesn’t work.”

After doing her live comedy shows, she uses it as another way to unwind.

“I used to be pumped up and no place to go…after the show I put my hair in a pony tail and go get out all my art.”

She reads mostly metaphysical topics and history. She is also kept busy with her animals, four dogs, three cats, a bird, a mule and two horses.

“I’m 48, I don’t have a problem with it…I have hope…(while traveling in Europe) I saw sexy 80-year-olds.”

She tries to explain to younger woman the advantages of being 40-something. Pointing to her head, she said, “First of all it’s full…you cant imagine what’s going on in here… I’m really happy, I’m 48 and boy I’ve got the stripes to prove it…I had some nice face work done…I’ve just lost 45 pounds… I just feel like I’m Heather Locklear now.” She said she’s asked a lot about how she shed those pounds.

“Well, when you feel the camera on your ass… it’s a hard diet to go on ‘cause someone has to give you a TV show to do it.”

In reality, Butler just kept it simple.

“I just eat less, I don’t eat a lot at night.” With experience under her belt, being an executive producer as well as starring in Grace Under Fire, hindsight is 20-20. This time, coming back to TV, she puts into practice her own practical advice in dealing with the industry.

“I’ve learned to play nice in the sandbox with the other children…it’s amazingly difficult… with a lot of problems,” she said of doing reality TV but, she proudly admitted,”…and not one of them involved me.”

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