Drew Pinsky

David Drew Pinsky (born September 4, 1958[2]), commonly known as Dr. Drew, is an American media personality and internist, addiction medicine specialist. He hosted the nationally syndicated radio talk show Loveline from the show's inception in 1984 until its end in 2016. On television, he hosted the talk show Dr. Drew On Call on HLN and the daytime series Lifechangers on The CW. In addition, he served as producer and starred in the VH1 show Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, and its spinoffs Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew, Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House. Pinsky currently hosts several podcasts, including The Dr. Drew Podcast, This Life with Dr. Drew, Dr. Drew After Dark on the Your Mom's House network, and The Adam and Drew Show with his former Loveline co-host Adam Carolla.

"Dr. Drew" redirects here. It is not to be confused with Dr. Dre.

Drew Pinsky
Born
David Drew Pinsky

(1958-09-04) September 4, 1958
Pasadena, California, U.S.
Alma materAmherst College (BS)
University of Southern California (MD)
Spouse(s)
Susan Sailer
​
(m. 1991)​
[1]
Children3
Career
ShowLoveline
Station(s)KROQ-FM
Various (syndicated)
NetworkWestwood One
ShowCelebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew
Sex Rehab with Dr. Drew
Celebrity Rehab Presents Sober House
Dr. Drew On Call
NetworkVH1
MTV
HLN
WebsiteOfficial website

Pinsky is a former staff member at the Department of Chemical Dependency Services at Las Encinas Hospital in Pasadena, California,[3] and Huntington Memorial Hospital. He currently maintains a private internal medicine practice in South Pasadena.[4]

Early life

Pinsky was born to a Jewish family[5] in Pasadena, California.[6] His father, Morton Pinsky (1925–2009), was a physician whose parents emigrated from Ukraine.[7] His mother, Helene Stanton (née Eleanor Mae Stansbury; 1925–2017), was a singer and actress[8] who came from a "highly Victorian upper-middle-class family in Philadelphia".[7][9] Pinsky attended Polytechnic School. He majored in biology at Amherst College, graduating in 1980,[6][10] and earned his M.D. at the University of Southern California School of Medicine in 1984.[11] He served his residency in internal medicine at USC County Hospital and became chief resident at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, and later moved into private practice.[12]

Career

My goal was always to be part of pop culture and relevant to young people, to interact with the people they hold in high esteem.

— Dr. Drew Pinsky, The New York Times, February 2008.[13]

As The New York Times described it in February 2008, Pinsky's dual career in medicine and the mass media has required him to "navigat[e] a precarious balance of professionalism and salaciousness."[13]

Radio work
Main article: Loveline

In 1984, while still a medical student, Pinsky started appearing in "Ask a Surgeon", a segment of a Sunday night KROQ-FM show hosted by Jim "Poorman" Trenton and "Swedish" Egil Aalvik.[14] "Ask the Surgeon" soon combined with "Loveline", another Sunday night segment, into a show of its own, co-hosted by Trenton and Pinsky. Loveline went national in 1995, and the television version launched on MTV the following year, hosted by Pinsky and Adam Carolla. The exposure on both radio and television made Pinsky the "Gen-X answer to Ruth Westheimer, with an AIDS-era, pro-safe-sex message."[13] The MTV show ran for four years, while the radio show continued until April 2016 with cohost Mike Catherwood.

On November 27, 2007, Pinsky began Dr. Drew Live, another nationally syndicated talk radio show where he focused on a wider range of health issues. It originated from KGIL in Los Angeles, originally airing weekdays from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm PT[15] The show was canceled in December 2008.

On January 5, 2015, Pinsky launched a new weekday program, "Dr. Drew Midday Live with Mike Catherwood," on KABC in Los Angeles.[16] Leeann Tweeden became the co-host of the show starting on January 7, 2019.[17]

On April 21, 2016, Pinsky announced Loveline would wrap up on April 28, 2016. Adam Carolla re-joined him as co-host for the final show. [18]

Television
Pinsky in 2009

Pinsky's first television appearance was as a contestant on Wheel of Fortune in 1984, though he did not win.[19] He also served as "health and human relations expert" on the first season of the U.S. TV series Big Brother in 2000.

He has also hosted several shorter educational television series, starting with Strictly Sex with Dr. Drew, which ran for 10 episodes on the Discovery Health Channel, followed by Strictly Dr. Drew which addressed everyday health issues. He later hosted the MTV series Sex...with Mom and Dad (2008–2009).

In 2008, Pinsky starred in Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew, a reality television show which involves celebrities in a drug rehabilitation facility. The show was filmed at Pasadena Recovery Center, with Pinsky serving as the resident medical expert. The series premiered January 10, 2008 on VH-1, and has been renewed for multiple seasons. A follow-up show to Celebrity Rehab with many of the same celebrities was Sober House, which began its first season in January 2009, and included celebrities from the first two seasons of Celebrity Rehab continuing their recovery in a sober living facility.[20] In November 2009, Pinsky starred in a spinoff of Celebrity Rehab, Sex Rehab with Dr.Drew, which depicted celebrities being treated for sexual addiction over the course of three weeks at the Pasadena Recovery Center.

Pinsky makes guest appearances on various news programs where he usually gives his observations on the relationship between controlled substances and high-profile individuals. He has frequently given his views on the deaths of people such as Anna Nicole Smith, Heath Ledger and Michael Jackson, arguing that their fates should set examples of the seriousness of misusing drugs.[21][22]

Pinsky has acted in several TV appearances (either portraying himself or a fictional character), Space Ghost Coast to Coast, Dawson's Creek,[23] Family Guy.[24] The Adam Carolla Project, Minoriteam,[25] Robot Chicken,[26] My Gym Partner's a Monkey,[27] Code Monkeys,[28] and The Midnight Gospel.[29] Pinsky also appeared in the films New York Minute and Wild Hogs.

In early 2011, Pinsky began hosting his own show, Dr. Drew On Call on HLN that focuses on news involving health and addiction topics.[30] On August 26, 2016, HLN and Pinsky announced that the show's last episode would be September 22 of that year.[31]

On October 9, 2019, he was revealed to be the Eagle on The Masked Singer.[32]

Views on COVID-19

Between February to March 2020, Pinsky made a series of statements concerning the COVID-19 outbreak where he downplayed the seriousness of the pandemic, stating that it was not as bad as the flu, and suggested that it was a "press-induced panic".[33] A 5-minute compilation of the statements was posted by DroopsDr on YouTube, but was temporarily taken down "due to a copyright claim by Drew Pinsky Inc." The video was later re-instated after several attorneys and many others defended DroopsDr.[34]

Pinsky apologized in April 2020, and he urged people to follow the advice of Anthony Fauci.[33][35]

In December 2020, Pinsky revealed that he had been diagnosed with COVID-19.[36]

Other work

In 1999, Pinsky co-founded an Internet-based community and advice site for teenagers called DrDrew.com with Curtis Giesen. Among their early backers was Garage.com.[37] DrDrew.com soon ran out of funding, and the company was sold to Sherwood Partners Inc., a corporate restructuring firm, which sold the remnants to DrKoop.com in November 2000.[38] Pinsky re-acquired the site circa 2013 and began using it for general information about his books, radio and TV shows, as well as hosting his independent podcast, The Dr. Drew Podcast.[39] In September 2012, Pinsky announced on The Adam Carolla Show that he will be doing a podcast on the Carolla Digital network.[40]

In 2003, Pinsky authored Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again, recounting his experiences as the medical director of the Department of Chemical Dependency Services at the Las Encinas Hospital drug rehabilitation clinic in Pasadena, California. He also contributed to the book When Painkillers Become Dangerous: What Everyone Needs to Know About OxyContin and Other Prescription Drugs, published in 2004.

In addition to his media appearances, Pinsky speaks at college campuses and other public venues.[41][42] When Adam Carolla and Pinsky were teamed as hosts of Loveline, Carolla and Pinsky spoke at colleges.[43][44][45]

Pinsky was the voice of 1-800-GET-THIN, advocating lap band surgery on radio ads and in a recording played for those who called 1-800-GET-THIN.[46][47][48]

He also appeared with his dogs in a PETA ad campaign promoting the spaying and neutering of pets.[49]

Pinsky also narrated for the 2014 documentary "Divorce Corp" and "Teen Species".

In early 2019, Pinsky started an online podcast "Dr Drew after Dark”. The podcast is hosted at Tom Segura's studio "Studio Jeans".

Pinsky was featured in the first episode Netflix series "The Midnight Gospel".

On September 10, 2020 it was announced that Dr. Drew Pinksy joined Aditx Therapeutics as Senior Advisor to AditxtScore™ for Scoring the Immune System.[50]

Honors

Asteroid 4536 Drewpinsky is named in his honor.[51]

Pinsky was honored with the Larry Stewart Leadership and Inspiration Award at the 12th Annual PRISM Awards in 2008.[52]

Personal life

Pinsky married on July 21, 1991, and he and his wife, Susan Sailer, had triplets Douglas, Jordan, and Paulina in November 1992.[53][54][55]

Pinsky lives in Pasadena, California. Interested in fitness since his early teens, he goes running[56] and does weight training regularly.[57] In addition to his hobby of traveling,[14] he also enjoys singing opera, as his mother was a professional singer. Pinsky stated on the June 24, 2009, episode of Loveline that at one point, he was torn between practicing medicine and becoming a professional opera singer.[58] Pinsky stated that he auditioned for a celebrity singing show, but that the show passed on his appearance when he made it clear to producers that he could not sing pop songs but did perform an aria on Turn Ben Stein On.[59][60][61]

Pinsky's father, Morton, died suddenly of a cerebral hemorrhage on October 27, 2009.[62] A title card at the end of the season 3 finale of Celebrity Rehab dedicated the episode to him. Pinsky's mother, Helene, died on June 7, 2017, at age 91.[63]

Pinsky is a nonobservant Jew; he admits to abandoning most Jewish practices but claims to retain a continued desire to learn about the religion. He explains that religious as well as philosophical studies affect his medical practice and his speeches, and that his background places "an indirect coloring on every answer."[64]

In September 2013, Pinsky revealed that he had recovered from prostate cancer surgery performed earlier that June and July, after which Pinsky did not require chemotherapy or radiation.[65]

In a 2011 interview on Kevin and Bean, Pinsky stated he would speak to any media outlet including TMZ and The National Enquirer but would not speak to the Los Angeles Times, explaining "They distort, and they mislead, and they take things out of context. I really am stunned at how shoddy their journalism is, so I stopped talking to them."[66]

Politically, Pinsky has increasingly spoken of the 'tyranny' of governmental overreach and the need for a “Liberty Party”.[67]

Filmography

Notable productions in which Pinsky has appeared include:

Film

Television

Published work

Journal publications
  • Pinsky, Drew; S. Mark Young (October 2006). "Narcissism and celebrity". Journal of Research in Personality. 40 (5): 463–471. doi:10.1016/j.jrp.2006.05.005.
  • Noll AM, Pinsky D (June 1991). "Withdrawal effects of metoclopramide". West. J. Med. 154 (6): 726–8. PMC 1002885. PMID 1877215.

Books
  • Pinsky, Dr. Drew; with Robert Meyers; William White (July 2004). When Painkillers Become Dangerous: What Everyone Needs to Know about OxyContin and Other Prescription Drugs. New York: Hazelden Publishing & Educational Services. ISBN 1-59285-107-X.
  • Pinsky, Dr. Drew (September 2003). Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again. New York: Regan Books. ISBN 0-06-009655-1.
  • Pinsky, Dr. Drew; with Adam Carolla; Marshall Fine (October 13, 1998). The Dr. Drew and Adam Book: A Survival Guide To Life and Love. New York: Dell. ISBN 0-440-50836-3.
  • Pinsky, Drew; Heischober, Bruce S. (2002). "Approaches to Management of Drug Abuse". In Neinstein, Lawrence S. (ed.). Adolescent health care: a practical guide (4th ed.). Hagerstown, MD: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. ISBN 0-7817-2897-5.
  • Pinsky, Dr. Drew; S. Mark Young (March 2009). The Mirror Effect: How Celebrity Narcissism Is Seducing America. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0-06-158233-2.

References
  1. "Drew Pinsky: Biography". TV Guide. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  2. "Drew Pinsky Biography". Yahoo! Movies. Archived from the original on October 14, 2012. Retrieved January 7, 2011.
  3. Lin, Rong-Gong II. "Dr. Drew Pinsky leaves Las Encinas Hospital, which faces renewed scrutiny". Los Angeles Times. March 6, 2010
  4. "Drew Pinsky Medical License Verification". Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  5. Sichel, Jared (April 2, 2015). "By any medium necessary, Dr. Drew, celebrity M.D., treats America's ailments". Jewish Journal.
  6. "Drew Pinsky- Biography" Archived October 14, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  7. Pinsky, Drew; Pinsky Todd Gold. Cracked: Putting Broken Lives Together Again: A Doctor's Story, New York: Regan Books. 2004. pg. 38
  8. Helene Stanton at IMDb
  9. "Helene Stanton - The Private Life and Times of Helene Stanton." Glamour Girls of the Silver Screen. Retrieved April 9, 2012.
  10. "Amherst Reads Feature Book - July 2009" Archived March 25, 2012, at the Wayback Machine. Amherst College. Retrieved June 6, 2012.
  11. "Medical Board of California, License Holder". Retrieved February 6, 2009.
  12. "Relationships and Health with Drew Pinsky, M.D." Retrieved March 8, 2010.
  13. Jesella, Kara (February 3, 2008). "Detox for the Camera. Doctor’s Order!". The New York Times.
  14. About the Show from the Loveline website
  15. "On the radio: Dr. Drew Pinsky adds KGIL to his practice" Archived December 11, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, Orange County Register, November 22, 2007
  16. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on December 19, 2014. Retrieved December 19, 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  17. "KABC/Los Angeles Shuffles Lineup, Puts Ben Shapiro In PM Drive, John Phillips And Jillian Barberie In Mornings". www.allaccess.com. Retrieved July 23, 2019.
  18. "The World Famous KROQ". The World Famous KROQ. Retrieved March 23, 2019.
  19. Ellen DeGeneres Show. "Dr. Drew's appearance on Wheel of Fortune". YouTube. Retrieved April 18, 2020.
  20. Liner, Elaine. "Dr. Drew, Back for Celeb Rehab 2 and Talking Sex, Drugs and the New Media Meanness" Archived December 6, 2008, at the Wayback Machine MediaBizBloggers.com; October 20, 2008
  21. Shanks, Jon. "Dr. Drew: Don't Sweep Heath Ledger Under the Rug" The National Ledger; February 8, 2008
  22. Holson, Laura M. (June 7, 2013). "Dr. Drew Pinsky, Physician and Media Star". The New York Times.
  23. Dawson's Creek, Season 6, Episode 19, "Lovelines"
  24. Family Guy, Season 4, Episode 7, "Brian the Bachelor"
  25. Minoriteam, Season 1, Episode 16, "Tremendous Class"
  26. Robot Chicken, Season 2, Episode 20, "Book of Corrine". Sketches: Robot Chicken Taken Over! Archived July 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine and Jasper, the Douchebag Ghost Archived July 23, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  27. My Gym Partner's a Monkey, Season 3, Episode 39, "Butt of Jake"
  28. "Dr. Drew Pinsky Biography". BuddyTV. Archived from the original on November 20, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2013.
  29. "Review: 'Adventure Time' meets a metaphyiscal podcast in Netflix's extraordinary new 'toon". Retrieved April 20, 2020.
  30. "Dr. Drew Lands Prime-Time Series on HLN". TVGuide.com. Retrieved November 30, 2010.
  31. ""Dr. Drew on Call" to end 5-year run on HLN next month". CBS News. The Associated Press. August 26, 2016.
  32. url=https://ew.com/tv/2019/10/09/the-masked-singer-recap-eagle-celebrity-revealed/
  33. Associated Press (April 7, 2020). "Dr. Drew Pinsky apologizes for coronavirus comments: 'I got it wrong'". USA Today. Associated Press. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
  34. Cox, Kate. "Dr. Drew apologizes for being a COVID-19 denier after copyright silliness". Ars Technica. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  35. Gray, Mark. "Dr. Drew apologizes, was 'wrong' about coronavirus threat". Retrieved April 6, 2020. Dr. Drew said he was correct in urging people to follow the advice of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
  36. Moniuszko, Sara. "Dr. Drew Pinsky tests positive for COVID-19 months after apologizing for downplaying the virus". USA Today. Retrieved December 30, 2020. COVID is no fun, I don't recommend it, but I'm sort of through the viral phase, which is when the virus is reproducing.
  37. Wang, Andy. E-Commerce News: News: "Heavyweight Investors Back Loveline's Doctor Drew"; ecommercetimes.com; October 1, 1999
  38. Boulton, Clint. "Is drkoop.com Out of Sick Bay for Good?". internetnews.com. November 2, 2000
  39. "Dr. Drew | Official Website | Dr. Drew On Call, Loveline & more". Dr. Drew | Official Website. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
  40. "Adam Carolla Show". Archived from the original on November 26, 2012. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
  41. Hoehn, Melanie. "'Loveline' host Dr. Drew Pinsky to speak at Southeast" Southeast Missourian; February 10, 2010
  42. Zerofsky, Elisabeth. "The Loveline Conservative" Archived June 12, 2011, at the Wayback Machine Campus Progress; July 23, 2007
  43. Loveline 1999-02-14
  44. "Loveline: About the Show". Retrieved October 8, 2010. Together, [Carolla and Pinsky] refined the format of the show, and capitalized on their growing popularity with speaking tours
  45. Loveline 2003-03-06: Joshua Jackson
  46. Hensley, Scott (December 13, 2011). "FDA Tells Weight-Loss Surgery Centers To Pull Misleading Ads". NPR. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
  47. "FDA accuses 1-800-GET-THIN of using misleading Lap-Band ads". Los Angeles Times. December 14, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
  48. "Dr. Drew won't talk about 1-800-GET-THIN endorsement". Los Angeles Times. December 15, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2014.
  49. "Dr. Drew's PETA Campaign Advocates To Spay and Neuter Pets". The Huffington Post. 11 August 2012.
  50. "https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2020/09/10/2091756/0/en/Physician-and-Media-Personality-Dr-Drew-Pinsky-Dr-Drew-Joins-Aditx-Therapeutics-as-Senior-Advisor-to-AditxtScore-for-Scoring-the-Immune-System.html" GlobeNewswire 16 September 2020.
  51. "4536 Drewpinsky (1987 DA6)". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. NASA.
  52. Bollinger, Henri (April 24, 2008). "Television’s Dr. Drew Receives Larry Stewart Leadership Award". Entertainment Industries Council, Inc.
  53. Sachs, Mark. "His prescription: lots of time spent with the family", The Los Angeles Times, February 27, 2009
  54. Loveline, 1997-11-10, Pinsky mentions the triplets will turn five at midnight
  55. Tawa, Renee (August 19, 1993). "The Doctor's in the House Radio: On 'Loveline,' scholarly Dr. Drew dispenses advice on sex, drugs and heartache to teen-agers, and tolerates his crass disc jockey pal". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 8, 2010.
  56. Camelio, Stephen (February 2010). "I'm a Runner: Dr. Drew Pinsky". Runner's World. Rodale Inc.
  57. Thorpe, Mark (August 2008). "The muscle doctrine". Muscle & Fitness. Weider Publications.
  58. Loveline broadcast, June 24, 2009. As heard on KROQ-FM radio, Los Angeles.
  59. "Drew Pinsky: Credits". TV Guide. Retrieved January 15, 2013.
  60. Drew Pinsky at Yahoo! TV; Accessed July 14, 2010
  61. "Drew Pinsky filmography". The New York Times. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
  62. Norris, Chris (December 30, 2009). "Hitting Bottom". The New York Times. p. 2 of 6.
  63. "Helene Pinsky, Mother of Dr. Drew Pinsky, Passes Away at 91". Pasadena Now. Retrieved November 27, 2017.
  64. Lazarus, Samantha; Raub, Adena (March 21, 2005). "Jewish love expert helps curious students". Mitzpeh. Archived from the original on February 16, 2009.
  65. Halperin, Shirley (September 24, 2013). "Dr. Drew Reveals Prostate Cancer Battle: 'Without Surgery, I Would Have Died' (Q&A)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  66. Kevin and Bean interview, January 6, 2011
  67. Ostermeier, Eric (October 2, 2014). "Are Dr. Drew and Adam Carolla Libertarians?". Smart Politics.
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