Life with Roseanne -- a son's view
By Bruce R. Miller, Journal staff writer | Posted: Friday, August 08, 2003
LOS ANGELES -- Jake Pentland sits in the back of a hotel ballroom marveling at his mother's ability to wow the press.
"She's a real pro," Pentland says of Roseanne Barr, the queen of sitcom controversy. "She's been here a whole day and she hasn't stopped once. Usually we have a lot of trouble getting her not to be tired by 2 or 3. But today, she's incredible."
The two are in selling mode to promote "The Real Roseanne Show," a reality series designed to show how they (and her son-in-law, her new boyfriend, various rabbis and a phalanx of producers) created a food series, "Domestic Goddess" for the ABC Family network. It's a different venture for Barr and a whole new experience for Pentland.
The twentysomething son and his brother-in-law Jeff wanted to get into show business, but didn't realize it'd be such a trial by fire. "We wanted to hang back and learn...but we got our hands dirty," Pentland says. "At times we were segment producers, valet parkers, organizers -- you name it. We were there to make sure her ideas stuck to the format."
The two, however, emerged as an unlikely comedy duo and foil for Barr's humor. By the time she saw them dueling in the office, "that was the end of it," Pentland says. "She didn't listen to us anymore."
Actually, Barr drew strength from the fact that people she trusted were involved in the projects. With "Roseanne," her hit television series, producers came and went with the regularity of a UPS man.
For "Domestic Goddess," however, she created an elaborate audition process that included "face reading," rabbis and gut instincts. The details are included in the reality series which premiered this week on ABC.
Barr, however, isn't the same woman who won Emmys and made executives shudder. "I have a grudge toward probably everyone I've ever met," she says with a smile. "But I've tried to really let go of anger and fear and see it transform my life. And it has."
A nice Roseanne? It's true. Barr has tried to make amends with people she has angered (ex-husband Bill Pentland is now a personal assistant; former Iowan Tom Arnold is on her "make nice" list) and let go of hard feelings. It isn't easy, she admits, but "when I leave the earth, I'd like not to go to hell. So I'm trying to smooth it out. Sometimes I do good and sometimes I don't."
The personalities she says she once possessed aren't as visible anymore -- although Pentland says he's particularly aware of one he calls "The Executive." "She's pretty scary. But other than that, she's always been the same. She's more calm and more mature."
Barr, in fact, has no desire to do another traditional series. "It's too hard," she explains. "I'm too damn old now. I like the freedom of this because if I want to act like a rich Beverly Hills woman or a 12-year-old punk rocker, I can. With the other thing ('Roseanne'), I had to stand on an X and say the same thing over and over. I'm too hyper for that. I want to have fun and less structure."
Thus, the lifestyle show. With that, Barr can investigate areas that interest her...and eat.
Example? "A lot of women in Beverly Hills are actually eating less calories than people in Guatemala that they raise money for," she says. "I'd like to investigate that further."
Dining? "I have a walnut-sized stomach so I can't eat that much," she says. "I found that if I keep up the frequency, I can keep my weight at 160, so I eat maybe 10 times a day and it's really working."
Thinner, hipper and, yes, nicer, Barr is a lot like Madonna. She's very spiritual now and she's looking to simplify her life. Parallels? Yup, she sees 'em. "She does whatever I do two years later and shows her (expletive). And it works. But when I do it, I get like condemnation and in trouble."
Pentland agrees. When he was growing up, mom caught a lot of flack for singing the National Anthem off-key and mooning people. "You know how tough junior high school is. They're going to make fun of your mother anyway. But they had a lot more ammunition on me. The National Anthem was a tough couple of weeks in school, but I'm probably her biggest fan in the whole world."
Pentland admits he's more parental than most Hollywood kids. He worries about his mother and admits, "you won't ever hear stories about me in The Viper Room doing coke or anything like that. We're not like the Osbournes. My mom's in TV and she's kind of the crazy one. But I'm the straight man with her."
In "The Real Roseanne Show," Pentland discovers just how overwhelming the business can be. "I didn't want to see her make an ass out of herself," he says. So he moved in frequently and diffused the situations.
Barr, in turn, calls him smart and funny. She's proud of the strides he and his siblings have made. More output from her production company is likely.
But Pentland vows he never wants to do another reality show. "I hate it. I really do," he says.
Mom, he adds, belongs in films. "She's one of those people who, on the screen, you know who it is right away. You can't buy that, you know what I mean?"
Barr agrees. "I would definitely consider a feature film role. And I would even do a nude scene if it was important to the plot."
So why is she back on television? One, to help the kids. And, two, to remind people who she is.
When she just went by her first name, people would ask her, "Why don't you have a last name?"
"And I thought they'd remember me, but they don't. I was in Paris and they detained me and asked why I only had one name and who I was. And I was screaming, 'I'm a huge star.' So then I saw this American and I go, 'Could you tell these people who I am?' He goes, 'It's Rosie O'Donnell,' so I decided then and there to change my name."
Pentland smiles when he hears his mother elicit big laughs. "I really respect her," he says. "It's hard to face people if the last couple of things you've done haven't worked. Your confidence is down and then you've got to come here and get excited about it. But she did it. She's so great...we're best friends."
More important? "She's moved on, even if everyone else hasn't."
"The Real Roseanne Show" airs at 8 p.m. Wednesdays on ABC.
"She's a real pro," Pentland says of Roseanne Barr, the queen of sitcom controversy. "She's been here a whole day and she hasn't stopped once. Usually we have a lot of trouble getting her not to be tired by 2 or 3. But today, she's incredible."
The two are in selling mode to promote "The Real Roseanne Show," a reality series designed to show how they (and her son-in-law, her new boyfriend, various rabbis and a phalanx of producers) created a food series, "Domestic Goddess" for the ABC Family network. It's a different venture for Barr and a whole new experience for Pentland.
The twentysomething son and his brother-in-law Jeff wanted to get into show business, but didn't realize it'd be such a trial by fire. "We wanted to hang back and learn...but we got our hands dirty," Pentland says. "At times we were segment producers, valet parkers, organizers -- you name it. We were there to make sure her ideas stuck to the format."
The two, however, emerged as an unlikely comedy duo and foil for Barr's humor. By the time she saw them dueling in the office, "that was the end of it," Pentland says. "She didn't listen to us anymore."
Actually, Barr drew strength from the fact that people she trusted were involved in the projects. With "Roseanne," her hit television series, producers came and went with the regularity of a UPS man.
For "Domestic Goddess," however, she created an elaborate audition process that included "face reading," rabbis and gut instincts. The details are included in the reality series which premiered this week on ABC.
Barr, however, isn't the same woman who won Emmys and made executives shudder. "I have a grudge toward probably everyone I've ever met," she says with a smile. "But I've tried to really let go of anger and fear and see it transform my life. And it has."
A nice Roseanne? It's true. Barr has tried to make amends with people she has angered (ex-husband Bill Pentland is now a personal assistant; former Iowan Tom Arnold is on her "make nice" list) and let go of hard feelings. It isn't easy, she admits, but "when I leave the earth, I'd like not to go to hell. So I'm trying to smooth it out. Sometimes I do good and sometimes I don't."
The personalities she says she once possessed aren't as visible anymore -- although Pentland says he's particularly aware of one he calls "The Executive." "She's pretty scary. But other than that, she's always been the same. She's more calm and more mature."
Barr, in fact, has no desire to do another traditional series. "It's too hard," she explains. "I'm too damn old now. I like the freedom of this because if I want to act like a rich Beverly Hills woman or a 12-year-old punk rocker, I can. With the other thing ('Roseanne'), I had to stand on an X and say the same thing over and over. I'm too hyper for that. I want to have fun and less structure."
Thus, the lifestyle show. With that, Barr can investigate areas that interest her...and eat.
Example? "A lot of women in Beverly Hills are actually eating less calories than people in Guatemala that they raise money for," she says. "I'd like to investigate that further."
Dining? "I have a walnut-sized stomach so I can't eat that much," she says. "I found that if I keep up the frequency, I can keep my weight at 160, so I eat maybe 10 times a day and it's really working."
Thinner, hipper and, yes, nicer, Barr is a lot like Madonna. She's very spiritual now and she's looking to simplify her life. Parallels? Yup, she sees 'em. "She does whatever I do two years later and shows her (expletive). And it works. But when I do it, I get like condemnation and in trouble."
Pentland agrees. When he was growing up, mom caught a lot of flack for singing the National Anthem off-key and mooning people. "You know how tough junior high school is. They're going to make fun of your mother anyway. But they had a lot more ammunition on me. The National Anthem was a tough couple of weeks in school, but I'm probably her biggest fan in the whole world."
Pentland admits he's more parental than most Hollywood kids. He worries about his mother and admits, "you won't ever hear stories about me in The Viper Room doing coke or anything like that. We're not like the Osbournes. My mom's in TV and she's kind of the crazy one. But I'm the straight man with her."
In "The Real Roseanne Show," Pentland discovers just how overwhelming the business can be. "I didn't want to see her make an ass out of herself," he says. So he moved in frequently and diffused the situations.
Barr, in turn, calls him smart and funny. She's proud of the strides he and his siblings have made. More output from her production company is likely.
But Pentland vows he never wants to do another reality show. "I hate it. I really do," he says.
Mom, he adds, belongs in films. "She's one of those people who, on the screen, you know who it is right away. You can't buy that, you know what I mean?"
Barr agrees. "I would definitely consider a feature film role. And I would even do a nude scene if it was important to the plot."
So why is she back on television? One, to help the kids. And, two, to remind people who she is.
When she just went by her first name, people would ask her, "Why don't you have a last name?"
"And I thought they'd remember me, but they don't. I was in Paris and they detained me and asked why I only had one name and who I was. And I was screaming, 'I'm a huge star.' So then I saw this American and I go, 'Could you tell these people who I am?' He goes, 'It's Rosie O'Donnell,' so I decided then and there to change my name."
Pentland smiles when he hears his mother elicit big laughs. "I really respect her," he says. "It's hard to face people if the last couple of things you've done haven't worked. Your confidence is down and then you've got to come here and get excited about it. But she did it. She's so great...we're best friends."
More important? "She's moved on, even if everyone else hasn't."
"The Real Roseanne Show" airs at 8 p.m. Wednesdays on ABC.
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