WASTING AWAY: WHITNEY HOUSTON'S FRAIL APPEARANCE STUNS CROWD

Drudge Report ^ | 8 Sep 2001 | Matt Drudge

[ccmay]

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX SAT SEPT 08, 2001 10:21:39 ET XXXXX

WASTING AWAY: WHITNEY HOUSTON'S FRAIL APPEARANCE STUNS CROWD

NEW YORK -- The crowd watched in shock as a frail Whitney Houston hit the stage Friday night during the Michael Jackson concert at Madison Square Garden.

As this photo shows, one of the world's most vital pop stars has become a shell of her former self in the year and half since she last publicly performed.

The 37-year-old velvet-voiced wonder sang for under 5 minutes, but images of Houston completely wasting away into skeletonism -- and appearing to be at stages of illness beyond even Karen Carpenter before she passed -- still haunt.

There to pay tribute to Michael Jackson, Houston managed to belt out a verse from Jackson's "Wanna Be Starting Something".

The concert was recorded for broadcast on CBS-TV in November.

"Hello, New York!" Houston shouted as a close-up of her body beamed on large screens scattered throughout the arena, while audience members gasped in disbelief at her deteriorating condition.

"I don't think we can use the footage," a top production source said during an intermission.

Houston recently signed an extension to her recording contract at ARISTA records valued at more than $100 million.

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Filed By Matt Drudge in New York City

[ccmay]

So what's the verdict, Freepers: Crack, AIDS or anorexia?

-ccm

[CounterCounterCulture]

Crack, AIDS or anorexia?

d) all of the above?

[eddie willers]

d) all of the above?

Mixed with a little too much Bobby Brown.

[don-o]

I can think of nothing which I care less about.

[SamAdams76]

Whitney Houston happens to be my second favorite recording artist.

My favorite recording artist is everybody else.

[GuillermoX]

Is this all that Drudge can some up with nowadays? When was the last time he broke a real story?

[Hugh Akston]

Sub in heroin for crack and you have my guess.

[brewcrew]

Whitney Houston happens to be my second favorite recording artist.

She used to have a really smooth set of pipes in the 80's and early 90's. A true talent wasted.

[Joe 6-pack]

Whitney Heroin...

[Senator Pardek]

10 more (or should I say less) lbs. and the folks on 7th Ave. will be begging her to stroll down the runway.

[Nita Nupress]

Is this all that Drudge can some up with nowadays? When was the last time he broke a real story?

Maybe there's a Condit tie-in somewhere and we're just not seeing it.

[AngrySpud]

She's been watching too much " Ally McBeal ".

[GuillermoX]

Har.

[sockmonkey]

So what's the verdict, Freepers: Crack, AIDS or anorexia?

My little cat Monty looked kinda like that. Tapeworm medicine cleared it right up.

[RckyRaCoCo]

I can think of nothing which I care less about.

I second that

"and iiiiiii, will always love MEEEEEEE...."

Tough cookiecakes

[mseltzer]

Am I the only one, or does her face now resemble that of Maxine Waters?

[rabidralph]

My vote is heroin. This is very sad to see. Of course, if she dies an early death, her entourage and family will wonder what more they could have done to save her. Idiots, all of them.

[Askel5]

"and iiiiiii, will always love MEEEEEEE...."

[Askel5]

No joke ... one of my sisters old roomies came in to play cards one night totally dejected because she'd been turned down flat at an agency that afternoon for being too heavy.

We cornfed chicks were DUMBFOUNDED. She looked like a boy already ... what more did they want?

[vikingchick]

She has a nice voice. I hope she's all right. At least she hasn't shilled for the dems, as far as I know.

[Hildy]

Drug addiction. And it's a shame. Beautiful, talented...she had it all. This is what happens when you hook up with the wrong man. And she sure did.

[concerned about politics]

I vote drugs for sure. I wonder if she knows what she looks like now? I wonder if she cares.

[Thinkin' Gal]

I don't know what is more wasted away, Whitney or that outfit.

[rintense]

OMG, she looks like a crack addict. I kinda feel sorry for her. She married the wrong guy for the wrong reasons. You reap what you sow, but damn, someone help this poor woman. She gave one of the most emotional renditions of the Star Spangled Banner I've ever heard, and I only hope that we get to here THAT Whitney Houston again someday...

[irgbar-man]

That's it - I knew there was some skanky resemblance. The Maxine look!

[Palladin]

Very sad for Ms Houston and for what our culture has become--a morbid culture of death.

[Ken522]

"Wastin' away again in Margaritaville ... "

[meyer]

Woah!!! Scary picture, really. I'm not much on show-biz people but I remember her looking very nice in the past. She is looking rather sickly to say the least.

[Josiah6]

.........Houston managed to belt out a verse from Jackson's "Wanna Be Starting Something".

How about starting to eat some food.

She used to be a looker.

[TheMole]

My vote is cocaine. Heroin, which some have already voted for, is indeed a debilitating drug capable of causing similar damage, but cocaine is faster-acting and is the recorded drug of choice for Whitney and her co-dependent Bobby Brown. Some unrefuted information about their cocaine use can be found here.

As for the possibility of AIDS, this case is really a good illustration that the physical wasting blamed on a virus may in fact be quite completely explainable as the result of cocaine/heroin use.

Anorexia? As far as I know, that rarely strikes at the age of 37. Whitney's appetite has been depressed by cocaine. Unlike a down-and-out street addict, she's got lots of money for food. She just doesn't feel like eating.

[Senator Pardek]

We cornfed chicks were DUMBFOUNDED. She looked like a boy already ... what more did they want?

Because the "men" in the fashion industry industry believe the ultimate in beauty is a young male, and the skinnier the better, because it gives a boyish look.

I cannot believe how many women are snookered by those magazines - do you think I would judge my appearance by the images put forth by an industry run by lesbians?

[garbanzo]

I think the guy who owns the carriage that they used for Aaliyah should make sure his schedule is clear...

[FlyVet]

So what's the verdict, Freepers: Crack, AIDS or anorexia?

The verdict is her disgusting, bloodsucking handlers are worried about their next dollar, instead of truly trying to help her. Ten years ago, she had "everything". Now what does she have? She is finding out that this world isn't worth much.

[Askel5]

do you think I would judge my appearance by the images put forth by an industry run by lesbians

You woudn't be allowed to talk, much less hold forth in judgment -- trust me -- if the eco-feminist lesbians were in charge.

If you think Gaia's mean just because she saddled womyn with wombs they had to overcome to be "empowered", you should see how much she hates men.

[dogbyte12]

Is this all that Drudge can some up with nowadays? When was the last time he broke a real story?

That's my point exactly. He has gotten so lazy now, he doesn't even bother to put up his traditional box office results from Friday link up Saturday afternoon like he used to do.

His last major "scoop" was his story about two Supreme Court Justices retiring, and that turned out to be bogus, unless you want to count him revealing the ending of Planet of the Apes as a scoop.

He has broken nothing on Condit. Nothing on Hillary, didn't get the Helms and Gramm retirements before anybody. He used to in the old days actually surf the web to find stories, but my guess is that these days, people send him links to interesting articles, and he just puts those up.

The funny thing is that FreeRepublic beats Drudge by several hours on many political stories. Somebody here has posted, and 100 posts have responded to some political article, then 2 hours later, Drudge links it on his website.

Drudge is a has been. Whitney Houston looks awful, but this is his big week-end scoop? I hope he doesn't attempt to cover this for 2 hours on his show tomorrow night.

[FlyVet]

And she had the greatest rendition of the National Anthem I have ever heard, during the Gulf War, straight from the deepest heart. Then she put on a great free show for the returning vets. Then she married Bobby Brown, Mr. "That's MY Prerogative". No wonder. How times have changed. She could have had anyone she wanted. Instead, she married a jerk. How times have changed.....

[garbanzo]

When was the last time he broke a real story?

Lighten up, not everything in the world is about politics.

[RightOnline]

Maybe she's just another aging pop star trying to compete with the "little girls" like Brittney Spears, et al. Stupid, but that's my guess. Sad. Supremely sad.

[Dallas]

Am I the only one, or does her face now resemble that of Maxine Waters?

That is exactly my first thought....

The tragic part of this, is she started out as a gospel singer.

[InterceptPoint]

As for the possibility of AIDS, this case is really a good illustration that the physical wasting blamed on a virus may in fact be quite completely explainable as the result of cocaine/heroin use.

You are correct on this. Drug use is lowest common denominator in AIDS. The "at risk" groups are drug users and gays. What isn't usually noted is that gays are particularly heavy drug users. AIDS is a life style afflictation. Just wear down your immune system with drugs and you will start to look like a wasting away Whitney. HIV has nothing to do with it.

[Illbay]

Gotta be anorexia.

[Alberta's Child]

She makes Jimi Hendrix appear like a model of good health.

I'm referring to Jimi Hendrix as he would appear TODAY.

[Shooter 2.5]

When I first saw this picture posted from an unrelated thread, I had no idea who the person was.

This is like watching a slow moving train wreak.

[lara]

Almost as sad as paying $2500 to see a child molester, who paid anywhere from $5 to $20 million to settle out of court with the parents of the molested child. And this is the type of person the media glorifies today. I heard Michael Jackson is out of dough, so is having the 2 night concert to raise money. On MSNBC they reported that he asked the performers, including Whitney, to pay $100,000, for the privledge of performing for him. It takes $14 million a year to keep Jackson comfortable and in the kind of lifestyle to which he has become accustomed. So forget donating to Free Republic. Let's think of Michael and his chimp, Bubbles.

[Samizdat]

I can think of nothing which I care less about.

Ditto. Drudge and the rest of them occupy their pea brains with this clap trap while Vince Foster lays murdered by bill and hitlery clinton and nobody utters a peep.

[bannie]

My favorite WH story...

Whitney overheard Dolly Parton singing a song WH had recorded...WH pitched a fit..."What's SHE doing singing one of MY songs? yaddayaddayadda"...WH had to be told that Lil' ol' Dolly had WRITTEN that "WH song".

HA! Arrogance...

PS. My 2 cents is "on" her having a little drug problem. But then, I READ THE NAT'L ENQUIRER! :-)

[Richard Axtell]

She looks like a boy? She looks like a bone.

[lara]

I mean privilege. Sorry about that.