Busy Philipps dated Colin Hanks in college. I’m not sure how serious they were but they remained very close friends ever since. Something I didn’t consider is that if Busy dated and remained friends with Colin, then she’s probably good friends with his dad and stepmom, Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, duh. So, when Rita came on Busy Tonight it was really fun because they had so much history together. However, the interview started off on a serious note: the college admissions scandal. Rita had some thoughts about it and wanted to get it off her chest right away:
here are so many things to discuss. First of all, the college thing. That is just so offensive to me. I mean, I don’t want to get serious on your really fun show but it is so unethical and disturbing because there are kids who work really hard that are on financial aid, that are desperate for a spot in any college. And It’s also offensive to the colleges that are not considered elite. As if they ‘re somehow different and you’re getting a different education. It doesn’t matter, it’s all about hard work. Whether it’s hard work at school, or hard work at work.
I agree with everything Rita said, for the record. The scandal is offensive to anyone trying to navigate the college waters in a legitimate way. And there are brilliant young minds out there who qualify for admission, but logistics, money and opportunity may not present themselves so they lose out. This is a slap in their faces. I also agree that anyone can get a good education at any school if they work for it. Plus, since my husband works at a certain University here in Southern California, I can tell you that the parents don’t stop trying to pull this crap after admission. Ask anyone you know who teaches at a private university how many times they’ve heard “I paid for an A” after Junior brought home a C.
Right after Rita finished her rant about the scandal, Busy jumped in to remind us that she’d dated Colin in college, so they know how much hard work it was. Rita added that she knew because she’d visited Busy and saw how hard she was working. And again, that’s all very true, college is hard work. But it’s also funny because neither Busy nor Colin finished school. And the story Rita tells about visiting Busy hard at work is about an acting gig she had at a New York toy store (Busy and Colin went to college here in LA) where she was playing a real-life Barbie. Celebrities in school, they’re just like us.
Photo credit: WENN Photos and YouTube
On a purely superficial note … my gosh, Rita Wilson is lovely. XO I love women who age but do it so well.
Did you see the episode of Frasier where she played Frasier’s girlfriend/doppelganger for his mother? So funny and she was so good.
So lovely!
Even broke af parents will contact me at the community college I work at about their on financial aid offspring. I’ve had parents want me to give their student extra credit and others who have contacted me wanting to discuss essay grades. One contacted me asking if it was okay that her daughter miss four weeks of a six-week course. To go to summer camp. You will not believe how difficult is for me to explain to some people that privacy laws prevent me from discussing grades and performance of a student with anyone other than the student. Unless a student happens to be a minor.
Too many parents just want to control their adult children, and don’t realize that they cannot protect their children from harsh realities forever. It goes beyond money.
I have had that, too. One student, who vanished for a month and then wanted to know why she wasn’t getting an A, told me that if I wasn’t careful, I would have to explain myself to her father. One of my colleagues had a mother turn up for a student’s advising appointment and proceeded to veto all of the courses that she thought her son wouldn’t be any good at. My children are still young, and sometimes I let them fail at things – my eldest just lost her schoolbook and I refused to replace it, so she has to go in and talk to the teacher, and probably get told off. I get it – I hate seeing my kids struggle, but it would be irresponsible not to allow them exposure to setbacks. So many of my students genuinely can’t handle college life and they are going to be in such trouble when they go out into the workforce.
We have a friend who teaches at a University here and he says he spends so much time NOT on teaching but on pastoral care for new students. They can’t cope on their own, as parents have done it all. I even know parents of an 18 year she will go on I have to go pick up so and so? We live in London and public transportation is what most use but she won’t allow him to take the bus.. My son doesn’t want to go to uni he wants and will start an engineering apprenticeship at a Rail company (wish he’d go to get the uni experience) but…. I can’t live his life for him. Plus I will be too old to care in a few years (:
Our new early warning system at my university defines faculty as “case workers” for their advisees. It’s a horrifying reclassification. University should be a transition into adulthood and now we are being asked to supplement snowplough parents?
i once had a prospective intern show up to the interview with his friggin mother in tow…
wilson looks fantastic; i’ve always liked her. and her husband.
@ mycomment
Are you kidding me? Was the mother going to go to work with him everyday too? She probably made his lunch for him too, washed and ironed his clothes and pretty much “babied” him I bet. The mother probably expects he’ll marry a girl who’ll do the same for him…so he basically never has to learn how to do anything for himself. That sh*t makes me so mad.
@me..
nope. for real. and this wasn’t a high school student; this was college. at least she didn’t sit in on interview and stayed in the reception area.
but we were just gobsmacked … and, needless to say, he didn’t get the job.
When I was in University my parents never got involved with anything…never even asked me about my grades. I was always responsible and they knew I could handle things. I find it odd parents of College age kids are THAT involved. Your kid is an adult now, let them learn on their own.
Same, except for the grades. My parents paid my tuition so I had to show them my grades. Other than that I can’t recall them being involved at all. “Sink or Swim, baby bird.” Was basically my dads answer to everything after I turned 18.
Seriously, my mom was thrilled when I went to college. She didn’t have to give a damn anymore about my homework because that was on me. The most she did was provide some transportation and occasionally inform us about scholarships or grants she discovered, but otherwise, that was our task. We were single-parent kids, so we pulled the loans out under our name. That was enough to keep us sensible about it.
This being said, I am of the opinion as a now-thirty something that eighteen is WAY too young to be entering college with the level of expense it presents now. Let your kids take a year or two to figure themselves out, put them in community college if you have to, and then direct them down that road if they want to. For all you know, they may wind up preferring trades.
See, and I’m in the opposite position. My daughter will be starting college in the Fall and she asked me to come with her to her first counseling appointment. Even though I know she’s fully capable, she’s nervous about navigating the disability services (she as ASD). I know it’s not the same as these helicopter parents using and gaming the system, but it’s a fine line to walk in being an aide of sorts and helicoptering. Ultimately I told her I would be there for her but am not involving myself in her school planning. I want to make sure she knows she’s not going to be able to rely on me forever for that stuff. It pisses me off all the more when assholes fake disabilities for their kids to get them into school.
@mrsbanjo there is a huge difference in going to a first appointment so your daughter sees she CAN do it and that you are there to support her if need be and these parents bulldozing the world to shove their kids through it.
Congratulations on your daughter getting into and starting university and good for you letting go without compounding an already stressful situation. I’m sure after the first meeting going fine she will feel more secure going forward.
The rise of arrogant students with pushy parents is one reason why I left a university career for one in industry. That was in the 90s, so I’m not surprised to see it’s worse now.
Ok, but Wilson and Hanks did support Colin’s nepotism acting career so I mean…rich people giving their kids a leg up is not new. Ofcourse the college admissions scam ( and it is a scam, and a crime) is disgusting and shocking – but come on, can these people stop prentending that they haven’t done/benefitted from family wealth and connections?
Using her own sentiment – there are so many actors who work their butts off, work in terrible minimum wage and unpaid jobs to survive, while trying to catch a break…
I agree to an extent. Giving your kid a leg up in the industry doesn’t have quite the same social ramifications of getting a doctor to sign off on fake disabilities for testing purposes. That can create major obstacles for truly disabled or neurological atypical folks down the line.
For instance, I have ADHD and am on drugs for it. Thanks to rampant abuse of drugs like Adderall and Concerta, it’s gotten increasingly hard to get the prescriptions filled effectively. All C-II drugs are barred from refills, and doctors are limited to 1-2 prescriptions at a time sent electronically in my state. As a result, a quick trip to the doctor is now multiple trips in a year, each with their own copay, on top of the cost of the medication. And my case is minor because I can get away with using the drug as needed, unlike some ADHDers with more severe symptoms than I have. But thanks to the opioid epidemic and abuse by those who don’t need it, it’s a pain to get it.
Now, imagine if my problem wasn’t focusing but CHRONIC PAIN, and you’ll have some insight into the horror of what my disabled sister goes through to get what she needs.
@Veronica I agree that it’s not the same thing, ofcourse, but it’s a bit rich for her to be talking about how hard other people have to work in college etc, while apparently ignoring that the same could apply to the industry in which she and her husband helped their son get gigs that others would have hadn’t to work 100 times harder for.
I’m actually not even faulting them for helping their kid – just pointing out the irony/hypocrisy and I guess the lack of self awareness?
@Veronica oh how I feel you! I’m also an adult ADHD’er and managing meds. Some days I don’t need to take them (when I’m out and about) but the office days…of which there are a lot, cause I’m a (tiny) small business owner, oh, oh, those days my meds are vital if I am to get through things. My doc will give me two month’s worth in a prescription, but then I’m back and it takes a real chunk of one’s day, plus extra costs. I’ve had the same ‘script for decades and manage myself very well, as my history proves…why can’t a call be made to the pharmacy to renew? I’d be okay seeing the doc 2 x yearly, vs 6 times. It would reduce my costs and not take 1/2 day out of my week on a regular basis. I completely appreciate where you are coming from…my best to your sister. May things get easier for you both ~
I get this, and I love Rita Wilson, but I am a little perturbed at all of these celebrities being high and mighty and commenting on this scandal. Although Rob Lowe was my favorite as he wanted to make sure everyone knew his kids got in without cheating. It’s just these uber rich celebrity parents have given everything to their kids too, including careers for some. Granted they didn’t commit a crime which is a big difference, but. it’s still rich privilege. I don’t think Rita’s necessarily wrong, but her station in life makes her the wrong messenger.
Honestly, it’s hard for me to say, but the best response on this scandal from a celebrity was Julia Roberts, because she dealt with another aspect of it. How it must feel for the kids to not think their parents have faith in them to achieve something honestly and by themselves.
I wish I could get e scripts for my kids’ ADHD meds. Instead, I have to go in person to pick them up from their MD and, of course, my kids are not on the same refill schedule so I end up going back and forth twice each month. Now that office just announced they are going to charge $5 for every C-II script that’s not done at an appointment. So, that’s an additional $10/month out of my pocket. It’s a joy.
They are not the same thing at all. One involves using connections, which they never denied doing. The other is straight up, legit cheating. She is still allowed to have an opinion about it, and she is not at all wrong.
Well…. my parents were Doctors so until recently when I moved to serve a community that had a physician shortage I could pick any variety of my parents peers to go work in their practice.
Cheating to get into/through school and your parents being like “look who’s an adult and didn’t turn out horrible.” Are two completely different situations. You can’t start devaluing personal achievements because someone didnt suffer enough to get there.
Lying, cheating and stealing to move up is wrong. Parents facilitating an education and exposing you to their network is not.
I see your point, and there are degrees of this too. I mean connections aren’t bad unless you push it too far and say if you don’t give them a job I will punish you somehow. Are large donations for colleges, jobs etc. bad? (a la Jared Kushner) It’s not illegal. Even within the scandal where it was all illegal you have degrees. Plus with these celebrities some should just not comment. Just as white people aren’t always the best messenger for racial issues, neither are uber wealthy parents.
@noway i am looking at this also from a Black perspective. Very often the black community has to depend on ourselves to lift other people up. We shouldn’t be incentivizing suffering to validate achievement. Instead focus on more evenly distributing those legs up and equality of education regardless of where you are born.
If we start cutting down good messaging because of the mouthpiece we are doing huge damage to what we care about.
The world is hard. If you have the resources you absolutely should be facilitating as much education and networking for your kids as possible and if you have enough you need to uplift others in your community who don’t have as much.
Don’t bulldoze to get your kids ahead, but don’t act like not helping your children pay for an education, get tutors, go to the best schools or making them work 2 jobs in school to survive then making them hack it after graduation is somehow making you a better parent. The currency of suffering to have your achievements be validated is damaging. Why not focus on more advantages for all and less invalidation of achievements based on privilege. Lots of people are working their asses off and shouldn’t be accused of not earning something because of their family’s money or name.
Only rich people cheat their way into school, but not every wealthy person does and yes people need to hold their own communities accountable for bad behavior.
My older daughter is starting to think about high school. Two years ago she had an evaluation for learning disabilities. She doesn’t have enough to merit any accommodations, but I have had several mothers tell me that I should push through and pressure the DoE, because elite high schools have places put aside for kids with special needs. One mother has even offered to walk me through the process because she has done it and got her child to be classified, even though she admits that the child doesn’t really have learning disabilities. It’s all about maximizing one’s chances for a specialized high school. Even putting the ethics of this aside (and I don’t plan to), I wonder what this would a) do to my child psychologically, and b) teach them about how they get ahead in life. This kind of attitude is everywhere.
It’s hard for me to get why anyone would intentionally put their child in a program like that if you didn’t have to. How must the kid feel knowing that the parent doesn’t think that they can’t compete be in a class with like peers?
Because it’s framed as “the system is against ‘us’ so we have to do whatever we can. It’s white fragility at its most insidious.
In our very affluent Silicon Valley community, I think half the boys I knew were getting extra time on their testing in junior/senior year. My advice is to stay away from parents who tell you what you HAVE to do. It’s not doing their kids any favors and I frankly think that college admissions may use it against you in admitting your child. Same goes for over the top volunteer jobs in the summer curing cancer in Africa etc.
I just read that in the overall population around 2% have real diagnosed ADHD issues, in affluent school districts 25% and more of the kids are getting extra time for their supposed problems.
Grew up as a latch key kid, worked my arse off in silicon valley. went to state school, maximized my hand in life. my life is okay.
i have such respect for brilliant minds, my ex bf was MIT grad and was absolutely brilliant middle class kid who deserved to be at MIT and all the doors it opened up for him. we both worked hard with what we were born with, with no extraordinary help from our parents or by gaming the system.
its really sad when people work the system in their favor when the rest of us work with what we were born with and into and make the best of it fairly. rich kids asking for accommodations they dont deserve, paying schools off is so f-ing pathetic – as if they dont get enough “head starts” in life already. they may buy their way into college but everyone can see through them – they are no brilliant beautiful minds, they are not hard workers. everyone can see them for what they are during and after college – spoiled rich kids that would be nothing but average at best without their parents money and privilege.
as we say – it is not a crime to be rich but if you are rich and and asshole, youre just an asshole with money
How did Chet Haze get into Northwestern? The rest of his trajectory does not support the idea that hard, independent work got him there. Rita may not have done something illegal but she nevertheless needs to take a stadium at a D1 school full of seats. Her kids have had their own parents-greased skis to the best of the best.
Rita Wilson is smug. I’m glad she got Ginnifer Goodwined – openly and for years! – since she herself Rita Wilsoned Colin Hanks’s mother.
And honestly…Rita has fought aging tooth and nail. She “looks her age” because she didn’t succeed, much as in her acting career.
Yeah, I’ve wondered that myself. It’s not the easiest school to get into. And Chet Haze doesn’t seem like the type who’d go there.
Chet Haze got into Northwestern ?????? I’ve seen him on the show Empire and thought he was just doing the acting thing like most celebrity spawn.
I didn’t know the name Chet Haze so looked it up..he’s their son! All I did was look at pictures, and he looked smug and self-satisfied and like a privileged asshat full of bull puckey, and I reacted negatively…this is just his pictures and the titles of the pics….I like Colin Hanks and have enjoyed much of his work. This brother…well, not only have I never heard of him up till this moment, I won’t be looking for his work anytime soon. Seems like a horrid person, based on his pics and whom/what he is pictured with…a pic speaks a thousand words, eh?
He’s a moron. He “proudly” used the N word a lot on social media. He then said he was “on a lot of drugs” at the time and that was his excuse. How this f*cker got into Northwestern is beyond me. But the chances of becoming an actor are so slim, yet Both Chet and Colin have done it…hmmmm. Rita wants to talk about things being “unfair”…well celebrity spawn always have an unfair advantage don’t they? If Chet wasn’t Tom’s son, would we even know/see him? Doubt it.
As soon as I saw this I thought of Chet Haze going to Northwestern… lol, x1000000!!!
Funny thing is, I remember years ago a report about an e-mail Rita sent a girl who was pregnant by Chet. Just one report about one e-mail. Guess they shut it down quick.
“Rita Wilson is smug. I’m glad she got Ginnifer Goodwined – openly and for years! – since she herself Rita Wilsoned Colin Hanks’s mother.”
What does this mean?
Ginnifer Goodwined is the rumours Tom Hanks had an affair with Ginnifer.
I’m so glad you brought this up. I was thinking about “Chet Haze” being at Northwestern. He was awful. As a NU (Go Cats) fan, my fear is now about Charlie Hall. Went to private high school, son of actors (yes, NU Alums, but actors), athlete. My fingers are crossed that he got in on his merits and not from cheating.
Well it starts young, because my friend who is a teacher was disgusted and furious when her principal transferred one of my friend’s SECOND GRADE students into another teacher’s class, because the kid said “she wasn’t comfortable” after the teacher told her a project was late! The mom worked in the lunch room, and the principal wanted to placate her, but what a terrible precedent for any other parent whose kid doesn’t like what the teacher says. What about all the kids whose parents go to court to sue for the right to wear offensive T-shirts? At the middle school where I taught, if a kid hadn’t done an assignment or even just wanted to get out of class, he or she literally only had to say they were upset and needed to talk to a counselor and they were given a free pass. (Counseling is great, but not when it’s misused as it was at my school.) Even in grade schools today, parents run the show indulging their kids’ whims, and have absolutely zero respect for any authority and no interest in helping their kid develop any resilience by coping with any challenge.
Imagine these kids 10-15 years from now…having a temper tantrum in their place of work/office. My God. These types of parents are also going to be HORRIBLE in-laws to whomever marries their children. No one will be good enough.