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Show ci KELSEY GRAMMER/continued otherregional theaters and off-Broadway in Sundayin the Park With George. But it wasn'tuntilhe joined the cast of Cheers in 1984 that he gained nationalattention. “Cheers proved to methatI could really doit.” he said. “It also prepared me to do myownshow. But at the same time, it was a mixedblessing. It exposed meto the extracurricular concerns ofcelebrity—and being in the public eye wasnot comfortableatfirst.” With his newfound fame, the private Kelsey Grammer wasrevealed for the whole world to see. “Thefact is I have demonsand resentmentsandthingsthat aren'tparticularly pretty,” he said, lighting a cigarette. “But once you're on television, that’s part ofthe deal.” Tasked Grammerabouthis publicized bouts with alcohol and cocaine.In 1987. he wasarrested for drunk driving. A year later, he was arrested for cocaine possession; he pleaded “no contest.” In 1990, he served 11 days in jail for probationviolations.“I definitely overmedicated for a while.”he said. “I was obviously in pain, and it was my duty to workit out. Fortunately, I was arrested, and that becamea tumingpoint. It forced me tosay, “Clearly, this has got to stop."” Grammersaid he was helped by the producersand otheractors on Cheers “They were very supportive. And this wasall new to me. I didn’t understand whatit wasto have people on yourside, people whocared for you.” As if on cue, Grammer’s fiancée, Tammi Baliszewski, entered the room. “Hi, honey.”he said, taking her hand as she draped her arms around him. “Why don’t you join us?” He tumed to me. “Wehavenosecrets,” AsBaliszewski sat across the room, Grammer talked about his past marriages. At 27, he wed Doreen Alderman; they were divorced in 1990, following a long separation. They have a daughter, Spencer, 12, whom Grammer sees at least every other weekend. He has another daughter, Greer, 3, by a woman he never married. His second marriage—tothe dancer Leigh-Anne Csuhany in 1992—lasted nine months. ending with herattempted suicide and the loss of their unborn child. “L always found myselfattracted to women who were verydramatic and very needy,” Grammersaid. “Women whoI found impossible to satisfy and who would always tell me I wasn’t doing anything right. What I was doing with them, ofcourse, was going home, where love meant you were never good enough. That's whatI wasusedto. “Butit took this last marriage to shake me up. finally realized that this is not whatmy relationships should be about. Relationships should be about someone who loves me for whoI am, instead of what I do for them. And you know something?”he added, nodding. “As soon as I said ‘no’ to womentelling me I wasn’t good enough, the universe answered me. Literally a dayand half later, there she was,” he said, beaming at Tammi. Baliszewski, a former model, is now a partnerin Lifespan, a company that uses blood tests to detect food allergies. The couple metat a bar in Hermosa Beach, Calif. “I'm shy, andit took me a while to get up the nerveto talk to her,” Grammersaid. “I promised I'd call her in the morning, which I did, and we went outa few times.” “He wasvery honest about everything,”recalled Tammi. “That's what was so appealing about him, He didn’t tryto hide anythingortry to come across as anything other than scared and kind ofsad. I’d never met anybody so open.” But just whenit appeared that Grammerwasfinallygetting his life under control, he found himselffacing a sex scandal. The parents of a 15-year-old girl maintained that Grammerhad seducedtheir daughter. He confronted not only tremendous public embarrassment butalso possible criminal charges. Though Grammerrefused to discuss the specifics, he was accused ofhav- ing sex with the girl at a hotel in Ne Jersey while she was babysitting for Grammer’s daughter Spencer in the summerof 1993. Reports were filed that theyalso had sexata resort in Arizona A NewJersey grandjury investigated the charges of sexual misconduct but did not indict Grammer. The coun ty prosecutorexplained that the young woman’s delay of more than a yearin pressing charges madeit difficult to support her claim. Arizonaauthorities made the same decision. Tammi said the incident has had no impactontheir planned marriage. “We did a lot oftalking, a lot ofsoul searching,”she said. “I’ve now seenthe negative side ofhis being a celebrity. But there’s a balance to everything.I wouldn't | trade him,”she added,grinning. “This has actually broughtuscloser.” Thougheven this relationship is not withoutstrain, Grammerinsisted thatthe two are committed to makingit work “T've cometoo far to go back,” he said. “I’ve finally come to understand that, whatever happens,allthese stumbling blocks,all these problems, have nothing to do with real happiness. Hap pinessis facing yourself and learning to Jove whatyousee,flawsandall. It’s tak ing enjoymentjust from the process of being human.And,for me,it’s become a greatride. I love being here.” ib) “We have ecco (Cees _ to keep you and budget in ie] WAL* ALWAYS LOW PRICES. ALWAYS WAL-MART. SSE bss Alwaye |
