SL_Spotlight_Andrew_McCarthy_0621_Spotlight 6 / 28 / 21 2 : 41 PM Page 1 Your son , Sam , just finished the s Netflix series Dead to Me , and S P O T L I G H T your daughter , Willow , is a Q & A Broadway actress . You must be proud . What prompted you to write Proud , yes . I just always thought it’s a weird kind of funny ife , l this book ? so it didn’t occur to me that they I think it took me a long time to would ever want to do it because grow up and be able to look at it there’s nothing glamorous about clearly . Those few years with the acting in our household . They Brat Pack that happened in the see it for what it is — a fantastic ’ 80s and those movies had such a job that’s also inconsistent . If profound effect on my life and someone wants to act , you have to completely changed who I would let them do it . I don’t want to be become . I think I ran from it for a that person who 30 or 40 years old long time , and I needed time to looks back and goes , “ I wanted to have enough distance to look do that and my parents made me back on it and kind of go , “ Let me go to law school . ” Let’s face it : look under that rock to see what Acting saved my life when I was a happened there . ” kid . … So , who am I to stop them ? Is there something that you Do your children like your learned about yourself in the movies of the ’ 80s ? process ? What I figured out is the public My kids could care less . Someone imagined the Brat Pack as this suggested to my daughter hat t All super cool , ultimate “ in - crowd , ” she should watch Pretty in Pink . but that She’s 14 and so she watched the was not my experience at trailer and she saw me kissing the time . I saw it as this very pejo - Molly Ringwald and said , “ I am not rative term , that was kind of lim - watching some movie where iting , negative , and boxed us in . Grown you’re kissing some other woman . But looking back now , I had it I don’t need to see that . ” My son wrong all these years . … It’s “ Brat Pack ” member saw Weekend at Bernie’s and become this ironically affectionate Andrew McCarthy called it “ the stupidest movie I’ve term for not only some movies ever seen . ” To my kids , I am just and a period in pop culture , but reflects on his past with their dad , so that’s ancient history for a certain generation’s youth UP an eye to the future . to them , like prehistoric times . and those memories of their youth — a time when they were BY DEBRA WALLACE 20 - odd years old , bursting into the You’re an avid traveler and world . We could stop listening to travel writer . How did the When Andrew McCarthy was a heartthrob in Holly - grownups and our lives were this pandemic affect those aspects wood’s “ Brat Pack , ” he had no idea how those early blank canvas to be painted on , a of your life ? years would impact the rest of his life . Best known for his ng rich moment for all of us . It took Yeah , all of it just stopped . … I can’t roles in hit 1980s movies such as St . Elmo’s Fire , Weekend at Bernie’s , ishi me a long time to realize that wait to get back out on the road . Pretty in Pink , and Mannequin , which was filmed in Philadelphia , his ubl that’s kind of a beautiful thing and I’ve been directing television pretty coming - of - age experiences would later make him question everything . P ral much nonstop while a a great gift as opposed to some - lso won - In his newly released memoir , Brat : An ’ 80s ent thing to run from . dering what the hell just happened Story , McCarthy reckons with conflicted ambition , C d I just reacted so often out of to the world . I’m going up to Alaska innocence , addiction , and masculinity . The book ran fear and insecurity when I was in October . I’m also going to go G includes touching stories about his childhood , of young , and I didn’t realize that to Ireland where my wife is from . his years as a young actor , and his work as a tesy was a motivating factor a lot of I’d love to go back out traveling , director ( Orange is the New Black , Gossip Girl , The our times . When I finished the book I and that depends on the travel - Blacklist ) and a travel writer . Of course , he also c ar just kind of looked back at what writing assignments . … Years ago , covers his membership in the Brat Pack , the ittm would I tell my 20 - year - old self , I walked across Spain on the iconic group of ingenues and heartthrobs that D e and it was , “ You can afford to Camino de Santiago for 200 miles , included Emilio Estevez , Rob Lowe , Demi Moore , Jess believe in yourself a little more . ” which is an ancient pilgrims ’ route . and Molly Ringwald , that came to represent a film genre and a by A lot of decisions and actions I My oldest son and I are going to defined era in pop culture . aph took were because I just didn’t walk across Spain together , and We spoke with McCarthy about his memoir , how fear and togr quite have enough faith in things I’m going to write a father - son insecurity got the best of a younger version of him , and what his Pho or myself . book about our experiences . ? children think of his ’ 80s filmography . 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