Chevy Chase Inspired by Betty Ford to Seek Addiction Help
In a week of remembrances about the life of Gerald Ford, Chevy Chase wrote an essay in the New York Times about how Betty Ford inspired him to seek help in the 1980's for his addiction to painkillers.
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Ironically, Chase impersonated a stumblebum President Ford on Saturday Night Live complete with trips, stumbles and pratfalls. It was due to some of the pratfalls on Saturday Night Live that injured Chase's back and led him into an addiction to painkillers.
In October 1986, Chevy Chase would check into the Betty Ford clinic near Palm Springs, California to seek treatment for his addiction. It was at this point that Chevy Chase and Gerald and Betty Ford would become friends.
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The Betty Ford Center was founded in 1982 and many famous celebrity addicts besides Chase have availed themselves of the services of this drug and alcohol rehab center ever since. Betty Ford completed her own rehab for substance abuse at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Long Beach, California, then went on to co-found her center in Rancho Mirage.
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