Celebrity Teen Moms: Struggling Stars Who Found Fame
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A stunning number of stars became mothers in their teenage years, and often without a ring — but these teen moms went on to glamorous lives that overshadowed their early challenges...
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ROSEANNE BARR: The future sitcom queen struggled through her teen years, with her parents actually committing her to a state hospital for eight months! When she discovered she was pregnant at 18, she wanted to raise the child herself — but realized she couldn’t afford it. Roseanne moved into a Salvation Army Home for unwed mothers in Denver, Colo., and gave birth to a daughter in 1971. She gave her up for adoption, but was reunited with Brandi (at right, with Roseanne and half-brother Jake Pentland) when she was 17. “She’s a really cool kid,” says Roseanne. “I saw a lot of me in her.”
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WHOOPI GOLDBERG: “The View” co-host grew up in a rough New York City housing project and took many wrong turns before finding fame. “I was young, homeless and addicted to heroin. I dropped out of high school and got into drugs. Simple as that,” said Whoopi, who married as a teen and had daughter Alexandrea when she was 18. Alexandrea became a mom herself at 16 — making Whoopi a grandmother at 34! Like her mom, Alexandrea has been bitten by the showbiz bug and works as a producer.
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NAOMI JUDD: She made her name as a country superstar, but Naomi was a teen mom before she shared a stage with daughter Wynonna. She gave birth to Wy when she was 18, after being abandoned by boyfriend Charles Jordan. The ladies began performing as The Judds, eventually becoming country music’s most famous mother-daughter team — scoring 20 Top 10 hits throughout the ’80s and early ’90s. Before their careers took off, Naomi worked as a nurse to support Wynonna and future actress Ashley, raising them as a single mom.
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SOFIA VERGARA: The curvy Colombian actress married high school sweetheart Joe Gonzalez at 18, and had son Manolo shortly afterward. The couple split up the following year, leaving a single mother with dreams of stardom. “I was really young when I divorced his father,” admits the “Modern Family” star. “I raised him trying to set the best example and give him the best that I could. When people compliment me on him — on how well-mannered, how charming, funny and well-behaved he is, it makes all the sacrifices worthwhile.”
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ARETHA FRANKLIN: The future Queen of Soul sang in the church of her father, the legendary Rev. C.L. Franklin. Two months before turning 13, the Queen of Soul gave birth to her son, Clarence, naming the child after her father. Astonishingly, she then bore her second child, Edward, only one year later. She has never revealed who fathered those boys. Aretha’s grandmother and sister helped her raise the boys while she worked on her musical career — having two more sons as an established hit artist.
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LORETTA LYNN: Growing up in crushing poverty — as detailed in the book and movie “Coal Miner’s Daughter” — Loretta Lynn married Oliver “Doolittle” Lynn at the shockingly young age of 15. She began her family well before starting her music career. “I married Doo when I wasn’t but a child,” Loretta once said, “and he was my life from that day on.” Loretta bore the first three of her six children (including Peggy Lynn, left) while still a teenager, and had her first No. 1 hit in 1971 with “One’s on the Way” — a country classic song about the hardships of motherhood.
A stunning number of stars became mothers in their teenage years, and often without a ring — but these teen moms went on to glamorous lives that overshadowed their early challenges...
Photo credit: Getty Images
ROSEANNE BARR: The future sitcom queen struggled through her teen years, with her parents actually committing her to a state hospital for eight months! When she discovered she was pregnant at 18, she wanted to raise the child herself — but realized she couldn’t afford it. Roseanne moved into a Salvation Army Home for unwed mothers in Denver, Colo., and gave birth to a daughter in 1971. She gave her up for adoption, but was reunited with Brandi (at right, with Roseanne and half-brother Jake Pentland) when she was 17. “She’s a really cool kid,” says Roseanne. “I saw a lot of me in her.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: “The View” co-host grew up in a rough New York City housing project and took many wrong turns before finding fame. “I was young, homeless and addicted to heroin. I dropped out of high school and got into drugs. Simple as that,” said Whoopi, who married as a teen and had daughter Alexandrea when she was 18. Alexandrea became a mom herself at 16 — making Whoopi a grandmother at 34! Like her mom, Alexandrea has been bitten by the showbiz bug and works as a producer.
Photo credit: Getty Images
NAOMI JUDD: She made her name as a country superstar, but Naomi was a teen mom before she shared a stage with daughter Wynonna. She gave birth to Wy when she was 18, after being abandoned by boyfriend Charles Jordan. The ladies began performing as The Judds, eventually becoming country music’s most famous mother-daughter team — scoring 20 Top 10 hits throughout the ’80s and early ’90s. Before their careers took off, Naomi worked as a nurse to support Wynonna and future actress Ashley, raising them as a single mom.
Photo credit: Getty Images
SOFIA VERGARA: The curvy Colombian actress married high school sweetheart Joe Gonzalez at 18, and had son Manolo shortly afterward. The couple split up the following year, leaving a single mother with dreams of stardom. “I was really young when I divorced his father,” admits the “Modern Family” star. “I raised him trying to set the best example and give him the best that I could. When people compliment me on him — on how well-mannered, how charming, funny and well-behaved he is, it makes all the sacrifices worthwhile.”
Photo credit: Getty Images
ARETHA FRANKLIN: The future Queen of Soul sang in the church of her father, the legendary Rev. C.L. Franklin. Two months before turning 13, the Queen of Soul gave birth to her son, Clarence, naming the child after her father. Astonishingly, she then bore her second child, Edward, only one year later. She has never revealed who fathered those boys. Aretha’s grandmother and sister helped her raise the boys while she worked on her musical career — having two more sons as an established hit artist.
Photo credit: Getty Images/Files
LORETTA LYNN: Growing up in crushing poverty — as detailed in the book and movie “Coal Miner’s Daughter” — Loretta Lynn married Oliver “Doolittle” Lynn at the shockingly young age of 15. She began her family well before starting her music career. “I married Doo when I wasn’t but a child,” Loretta once said, “and he was my life from that day on.” Loretta bore the first three of her six children (including Peggy Lynn, left) while still a teenager, and had her first No. 1 hit in 1971 with “One’s on the Way” — a country classic song about the hardships of motherhood.
Photo credit: Files
