Back in the day, Amber Valletta was one of my favorite models. I adored her and Shalom Harlow, and I loved their friendship too – they were roommates for a time in NYC. Amber still gets some work, mostly magazine editorials and the occasional ad campaign or acting gig. She’s 40 years old now. And she’s coming clean in a public way about her struggles with addiction. She gave a speech with MindBodyGreen.com which you can see here. This is what she said:
“I suffer from a disease called addiction…I’ve had it for as long as I can remember.”
Amber Valletta, 40, says she started looking for ways to get high since she was 8 years old because she was “uncomfortable being a human being…I sniffed markers, I sniffed glue, fingernail polish, anything that could give me a buzz,” she says.
By the time she was 22 and her modeling career was at its peak, Valletta was abusing cocaine and alcohol.
“I had a multimillion [dollar] deal and I showed up the first day to shoot this campaign high and drunk,” she admits. “I didn’t care and that’s just to show you addiction takes you to the worst places… I was in a business that drugs and alcohol were widely acceptable and they were given to me.” But she takes full responsibility for her actions. “I am not a victim,” she says. “I don’t blame anything that happened to me that was negative.”
Valletta sought help at 25 because she “didn’t want to die…I had to be willing to lift the veil off the shame and say, ‘I’m addict, I can’t do this alone, I don’t want to do this alone, I don’t feel comfortable, can you help me?’ ”
After staying sober for 15 years, the model-turned-actress – whose new show Legends premieres on TNT in August – hopes to inspire others by sharing her story.
“My hope is that someone, somewhere in this room, out of this room will hear something that will help them and perhaps get them out of the shadows and the darkness of addiction and bring them into the light.”
Is it weird that I was a fan so many years ago and I had NO idea that this was happening? I mean, a lot of people were doing coke in the 1990s (they’re still doing a lot of coke now too). But I didn’t realize that she was so self-destructive in her early days and she was clean by the age of 25. That’s amazing. Fifteen years, clean and sober. Good for her!
Photos courtesy of WENN.
she was one of the best!
She is a great example of how you can turn your life and no matter what.
That’s true.
How’s that? She was 25 and had exceptional resources, she wasn’t homeless and penniless without family or friends.
She came after the big Supermodel wave, so she was more under the radar, but still one of the last models to cover US Vogue regularly. Steven Meisel still uses her a lot.
So beautiful
Yes, she’s one of my all time favorites, just stunning. Not sure about the bowl hairdo, though.
I’m so glad she got help. From the age of 8 – how heartbreaking.
Me, too. I thought her “I was uncomfortable being a human being” description was interesting. She seems very self aware, which is probably the key to a successful recovery.
I remember that there was a book that was written at the time that was about the industry and it raised a few eye brows. There was a model character in it that was a huge addict and her name was Amber Shalom, or something of that nature that minced the two names. I’m happy she is speaking out about it, it shows that addiction can happen to anyone.
i think that’s why they grew apart.
the drugs are almost always available at shoots. still. it is how some photographers manage to get a lot of work despite little to zero talent.
i love her…always have and thought she was really cute in the movie Hitch. Congrats to her. She doesn’t look 40 at all and if she’s had work done, I don’t see it.
It was about 15 years ago I treated a good friend to a late-night Christmas Eve dinner at a high-end Tulsa restaurant. Amber Valletta came in (w/ her husband?) and sat nearby. She was friendly and smiled at us.
She looks great–inspiring story.
The majority of models drink and do drugs… that shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone.
With that said… glad she was able to get clean and sober.
So sad to hear she went through this. She always seemed like a class act. Kudos to her for asking for support & getting through it into a healthier life.
i watched the entire video and was struck by her humility and vulnerability.
such a lovely creature who shares her inner torment…something i’m sure many identify with.
how very brave.
i loved her in hitch and would have never imagined someone like her – beautiful, successful – had such struggles.
i commend her for sharing and wish her continued sobriety and happiness.
I was just too young to realize the culture at the time. I was probably 15 and soaking up everything on the pages of Vogue, but wasn’t even aware that lifestyle existed. Now, as an adult, I pretty much take it as a given that everyone in the modeling world (with the possible exception of Cindy Crawford) was on the Cocaine & Booze Express back then. No judgement, it was as crazy and fast a time as the 80’s but with more Chanel (remember Vamp nail polish? <3). Good for her for overcoming and sharing her struggle.
She is just so lovely. I really liked her in Revenge too. I have addiction in my family and good for her for speaking out. The ‘not feeling like a human’ quote resonates. For most addicts there’s a reason why they drink/drug. It’s only when they deal with that–not merely stopping their addiction–that they find peace.
I loved her look back then when she had really short hair. I modeled in the 90’s and the rumor was always heroin between the toes for her and Shalom…
What amazes me is how do some of these people are still successful and look amazing, while others go down really fast? Genetics? Luck? In any case, I’m happy for her!
Has to be genetics. Maybe that and a combination of taking care of themselves in other ways, (skincare, exercise etc).
Oh, but the hair! No one is going to comment on the hair? She is beautiful, but that last pic… Terrible!