The One About Saved… by chemical dependency

Sure you did… You called it years ago. When everyone was talking about the fall of other child stars like Todd Bridges, Adam Rich, Corey Haim, Dana Plato, you had your designs on another, younger, much more vulnerable young star. You said, “You watch, one day Macaulay Culkin will either O.D. or he’ll be arrested for possesion.” While I’m sure lots of bloggers are talking about how Culkin was a trainwreck waiting to happen, I can say from personal experience that any guesses were little more than wishful thinking.

While at Sundance this past year, the Red Queen and I saw Culkin and the rest of the cast of Saved! out and about, having fun and interacting with fans and journalists. He was gregarious (think high school drama nerd), relaxed and comfortable. Was he medicated? While I can’t say with absolute certainty (unless I have the urine sample I stole after I followed him into the mens room analyzed by Quest that is), I doubt he was. I’m not saying he doesn’t have a prediliction toward dropping a couple of dimes on some quality smack, but I can say that he doesn’t exhibit any of the normal behavior of your typical drug-addled star. Yeah, he sought and received emancipation from his parents while still a minor, and yeah, he married some random girl at 16, but that doesn’t seem anywhere near as weird as say wandering into your neighbor’s bedroom and coping some quality Zs.

Anyway, Culkin was arrested because there was a bag with $4k and 17 ounces of cheeba under his seat and a “controlled dangerous substance” for which he did not have a prescription stuffed down his pants. Keep in mind that among the many prescription drugs that fall under this category are Valium, Codeine, and Zoloft. News reports state that the drug was something that controlled anxiety and seizures so my guess is that the drug is Diazepam better known by the consumer name, Valium. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ve tried Vallium and I can say that when it comes to party drugs, I don’t consider Vallium to be very high on the list.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that this little drug incident is pretty minor in relation to other incidents involving celebrities. Is it the beginning of a much bigger problem? Probably, but until I see video of Macaulay Culkin sporting a runny, cocained-powdered nose, covered in blood, carrying a severed head down the Sunset Strip screaming that he’s just been elected Pope, I think we can safely say that Culkin isn’t quite ready for rehab.