It’s now official. I am old. I have my 20th college reunion this year and my high school dream BFF Molly Ringwald has also hit the big 4 0. She has returned to TV in a hit show The Secret Life of the American Teenager about a 15-year-old pregnant teen who decided to keep the baby (would there be show if she decided to have an abortion?), and is having twins of her own (which will be written into the storyline).
I haven’t watched the show but am now intrigued since Molly has some really interesting things to say in an interview with The Daily Beast.
What would you do if your own 15-year-old were pregnant?
I think I’m a lot more pro-choice. My character says she’s pro-choice, but she can’t advise her daughter to have an abortion. It’s a personal thing, an emotional thing. In my situation, it wouldn’t be all that different—I would make my daughter make the choice. I don’t see myself being in that situation, but I guess no one does. I’m a big believer in preventative medicine and communication.
I’m actually pregnant now, and I showed my [5-year-old] daughter a birthing video the other day. I was watching the Ricki Lake documentary The Business of Being Born and there’s a beautiful home birth in it. [My daughter] was so horrified. She announced that she’s decided she’s never going to give birth. She said, “I’m going to marry a woman and she’s going to birth a baby.” I thought that was incredible problem solving! But I’m having twins, so no home birth for me.
Do you miss being a teenager?
I can’t say that I miss the eighties at all. I’m all about the here and now and the future. I have a book coming out next spring called Getting the Pretty Back. It’s about turning forty and that phase where you’ve had kids or decided not to, for me it’s a real turning point. It’s kind of I Feel Bad About My Neck pimped out with illustrations. But I do miss hanging out with my friends, drinking coffee, and not having responsibility.
How cool is it that Molly Ringwald is a feminist. This show like most shows and films have a seriously hard time talking about abortion and even choice and it’s great that she comes out as pro-choice. I will totally read her book.
All Grown Up (The Daily Beast)
Love her. Loved the Hughes films. I too am a product of that era.
I was punkity rockity fo’sho’
She felt like one of us.
I have watched the show and the acting is good. the script contains a moral within each sentence. Yes, I said sentence, there are hundreds of little moral reminders or hints (Christian slant) all over the episode. I commend the actors (I worked with the lead child actress- she’s awesome) for being able to act around all that moral force feeding.
Believe it or not I loved 7th heaven. When I didn’t have TV I had people tape it for me. I like corny worlds like that, it was beyond Opi and Andy Griffith, but it was no where near as preachy as this show. What’s bizarre is how they sort of pretend to present the other opinion. It’s actually offensive and could be taken as sexist and racist. The bad girl brunette, ethnically mixed daughter of a single mother who is promiscuous (of course)…..
OK this is turning into a post-
Good post! My little sister (she’s 16) is really into this show and we had to have a big talk after she said she thought it was good that a boy(not the father) offered to marry the pregnant character “to make it right”. I think the show gives her a kind of fantasy concept of teen pregnancy, not to mention the idea of right and wrong. I’m glad Molly Ringwald is doing interviews like this to show you can be pro-choice and still a great loving mom. Thanks for not being another cliche Molly.