Corey Feldman

Corey Feldman was one of the most successful child stars in the mid-late 1980s. Born on July 16, 1971, Corey acted in successful movies during the 1980s, was a teenage hearthrob, and a regular on the Hollywood party circuit with his best friend at the time, fellow washed-up celebrity Corey Haim.

Early Success

Feldman began his movie career with a minor role in the 1979 movie, Time After Time. Feldman followed up with a small speaking role in the 1981 Disney movie, The Fox & The Hound. Feldman's break-through roles that established him as the top child actor of his time were his in the blockbuster mid-1980s movies Gremlins and The Goonies.

Feldman's star kept rising throughout the 1980s and he had a memorable leading role in the 1986 hit, Stand By Me. Feldman made his first on-screen appearance with pal Corey Haim in the 1987 cult hit, The Lost Boys. Feldman and Haim were popular and widely followed in a variety of pre-teen magazines such as BOP and Tiger Beat. The two friends were practically joined at the hip are were known as "The Two Coreys."

The pair went on to star in a string of successful late-1980s teen films including License to Drive and Dream a Little Dream. By the early 1990s Feldman tired of the "Corey Mania" and he and Haim decided to part ways professionally and to focus on their own personal careers.

Feldman's Personal Problems and Stalled Career

During the height of his career during the late 1980s, Feldman was a hot commodity of the party circuit. Despite being a heavy drinker and drug abuser, Feldman managed to score hot women. In 1989 he married the beautiful Vanessa Marcil in Las Vegas. Unforunately for Feldman, the marriage only lasted two years. Marcil has admitted the marriage in the past, but now that her star has risen, she is apparently so embarrassed about the marriage that she now denies ever having been married to Feldman and even claims that they were only casual acquistances and that she only knew him "for five minutes." However, Nevada marriage records do indicate that she definitely did marry Feldman on August 6, 1989 (Marcil's birth name is Sally Vanessa Ortiz - click on the image below for a larger view).


Feldman's drug addictions also became known to the public during the time he was married to Marcil. He was arrested in 1990 for heroin possession and entered rehab. He emerged from rehab to discover that he was no longer hot in Hollywood and has not had a significant role in any movies since then.

Feldman's parents deserve some of the blame for the way he turned out. Apparently his parents squandered much of the money he earned in his youth. Feldman was so upset about this that he sued to be legally emancipated from them at age 15.

Music Career

Despondent about his lack of movie roles, Feldman decided to re-invent himself as a pop singer. In 1993 he released his debut album, Love Left. Not surprisingly, this album didn't sell very well, although it did feature the moderately successful single Honesty. Feldman "sang" Honesty in front of a live TV audience on the Canadian music TV show, Muchmusic.

Feldman released his sophomore album, Still Searching for Soul, with his band Corey Feldman's Truth Movement in 1999. Not surprisingly, Feldman's second album was a commercial failure. However, despite his lack of singing success, Feldman has continued to make new music albums. In 2002, he released Former Child Star, which was also a critical and commercial failure.

Relationship with Michael Jackson

Feldman was a friend of Michael Jackson during the 1980s and 1990s. Feldman idolized Jackson during the height of Jackson's career and even visited Jackson’s famed Neverland Ranch on numerous occasions. However, the friendship ended when Jackson suspected that Feldman was going to write a tell-all book about him.

Feldman claims that Jackson confronted him backstage at Jackson’s anniversary concert in New York City on September 10, 2001, and accused Feldman of plotting to write the book, which Feldman has denied was ever in the works. The next day, was a day of unprecedented evil, as terrorists attacked New York City, killing nearly 3,000 civilians and injuring many more people. Feldman claims that Jackson refused to help him get out of New York City, and Feldman apparently will never forgive Jackson for this transgression.

Feldman also claimed during an interview on ABC's 20/20 TV show that Jackson had shown him nude photos when he was a child. During the interview, Feldman said the following about Jackson and a book of nude photos Jackson showed him:

"The book was focused on venereal diseases and the genitalia and he sat down with me and he explained it to me, showed me some different pictures and discussed what those meant. I was kind of grossed out by it. I didn't think of it as a big deal and for all these years, I probably never thought twice about it."

Feldman's Fashion Faux-Pas

Feldman was known for his diminutive stature and his long mullet during the 1980s when he was an A-list celebrity. He also occasionally dressed like his former friend, Michael Jackson, as shown below.

Recent Appearances

Feldman's most recent notable appearance was on the first season of The Surreal Life, a reality show in which several washed-up celebrities live together for a short amount of time and participate in various activities. Feldman came across as a whiney prima donna during his appearance and basically complained the entire time he was on the show. Feldman has claimed to be shocked over the bad press he received due to his appearance.

During the last episode of the first season, Feldman was married to his then-fiancée, Susie Sprague in a ceremony presided over by washed-up early 1990s rap artist, MC Hammer.

"The Two Coreys" TV Show

In July 2007 a reality show entitled "The Two Coreys" will premiere on A&E. The show will provide an introspective look at the lives of former child stars Corey Feldman and Corey Haim living together as adults. The show might be interesting, as Feldman and Haim still get along great. In fact, they practically resemble an old married couple in recent interviews.

Conclusion

Corey Feldman has morphed from being the most successful child star of the late 1980s to a washed-up and bitter adult. He is very upset that he no longer gets choice acting roles and believes that he has been singled out for abusing drugs in his youth, whereas other actors have had run-ins with the law and emerged unscathed. For this and the reasons discussed above, Corey Feldman is one washed-up celebrity!