Paula Abdul on her 'Coming to America' wedding choreography: 'One of the things Im most proud of', Vibeology: Paula Abdul's favorite choreography moments of her career, Paula Abdul straight-up slays with spectacular Billboard Music Awards performance, Paula Abdul stuns in a tiny tuxedo dress for her red carpet return: 'How does she still look this amazing?'. There is some confusion as to which part of her tour the crash occurred on. And when I came to, all seven of us were holding hands. There is an NTSB report for an eight seater (not seven) plane crashing into a field in Nebraska (not Iowa), a full month before the Under My Spell tour began. Her disclosure. So, I really don't care what people have to say. She explained that during turbulence she hit her head and suffered a head/neck injury. Abdul said she lost all feeling on her right side, and there was a possibility that she would not be recovering, but she attributes her healing to the wonders of neuroscience. This show would have taken place between Abduls June 19, 1992, show in St. Louis, and her June 22, 1992, show outside of Denver, and further convolutes Abduls narrative. Thanks! Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. Wouldn't she still be injured? For years, Abdul has claimed that she was compelled to take a few years off in order to recover from trauma and injuries she supposedly suffered in a plane crash. Medical people thinking somehow what they are prescribing is better than heroin from the street. She also loved to whine about how far her career had fallen and how she was going to make a comeback if she ever got better (?). Cookies collect information about your preferences and your device and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. Abdul claimed the plane crash happened between the St. Louis and Denver stops on her tour. And she credits the cutting-edge laser treatments Evoke (for the face) and Evolve (for the body) by a company called InMode, for which she is an ambassador, for helping her look and feel her best as a woman and trying to age gracefully.. According to Paula, around the time her Under My Spell tour concluded in 1992, she was involved in a plane crash. One of the most controversial parts of Abdul's life is her claim that she survived a plane crash. She said that the crash happened when she was "on tour at the end of '93. In the same year, Paula released her second album, "Spellbound." It sold more than 7 million copies worldwide. Abdul was taking heavy-duty pain killers, though she claims she never shot an Idol episode under the influence. Entertainment). Abdul released more successful albums and videos in the following years, expanding her fanbase outside the United States. Patrick Swayze was in real, honest to goodness accident: I remember hearing a rumor years back that he got drunk and crashed a plane. The LHJ interview had direct quotes from her talking about her struggle with drug addiction. As her new Las Vegas residency took off, Paula Abdul opened up about a crash landing. If this story is true there will be evidence for it. She was shown nodding out, slurring speech, pupils dilated- all symptoms of opiate addiction. It makes sense and would account for some of her injuries that she allegedly has suffered over the years. Translation: These are my excuses for constantly being fucked up on pain pills.. Little known fact: It happened while Brian Willams interviewed her. The injuries from the crash affected her more mentally than physically. Imagine Abdul and her crew just ditching that burned-up plane. It's like, you learn and grow through wisdom and experience of being in this business, especially with the internet," she told the outlet. However, Ive tried searching and cant find this article. Abdul has also cited car accidents and her long history as a dancer (including her famous stint as a Laker Girl) as contributing to her pain. I withstood 15 cervical spinal surgeries and I had to take seven years off," she said of the event, via Distractify. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Before undertaking any course of treatment please consult with your healthcare provider. While she's maintained a more private life in the years since she stopped working on American Idol, she's appeared on shows like The X Factor and So You Think You Can Dance. Odder still is that the National Transportation Safety Boards accidents database lists no record of a plane crash in Iowa at any time between Abduls St. Louis and Denver-area shows in 1992. I mean, I had a spinal cord injury and nerve damage. So I just recently heard from a co-worker that singer/dancer Paula Abdul was once in a plane crash many years ago. I think Paula just gets high on pain pills and makes things up. The Jezebel article cites a St. Louis Post Dispatch article from June 21, 1992, talking about a Paula Abdul concert the previous Friday at the Riverport Ampitheater. Advertisement Paula Abdul made a name as one of the most popular dancers and singers in the 1980s. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. "I woke up in the. I 100% agree with your point about no one coming forward--she has said things along the lines of "ask anyone who was on the plane with me, they'll say the exact same thing happened", but we haven't heard from anyone on the plane with her even though it was people like her makeup artist who I'd think it would be easy to track down. To her credit, she lived up to the expectation, making herself one of the most popular choreographers in the industry. -, Press J to jump to the feed. Yes, the local glider pilots call that area, which is just east of their field, Patrick Swayze International Airport. This plane story was probably concocted partially for doctor shopping for opiate painkillers, even the timing of her "issues" lines up with the explosion of pill mills in the USA and marketing of Oxycontin. Then, 30 to 40 minutes into the flight (the time has varied in her repeated accounts), there was trouble. Pride festival, or other recent comeback concerts. Did you ever see the very brief reality show about her life? While Paula has said that the plane crash served as a turning point in her career, there are people who aren't convinced that the plane accident occurred at all. A subreddit dedicated to the unresolved mysteries of the world. The number varies from interview to interview.) Born in San Fernando, California, in 1962, Abdul's career began as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team when she was 18. The Barista Express grinds, foams milk, and produces the silkiest espresso at the perfect temperature. And I was knocked out again, only to wake up in a hospital where a microsurgeon had told me that I had crushed my entire cervical spine, which led to [inaudible] paralysis on my right side. (--Somewhere between 13 and 15. ._3wvjcIArtO7kKPJabZfZ9S{font-family:Noto Sans,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:12px;font-weight:400;line-height:16px;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:var(--newCommunityTheme-metaText);display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;margin-right:24px;opacity:0;transition:opacity .1s ease-in-out}._3wvjcIArtO7kKPJabZfZ9S._1c98ixuh4QUWO9ERiFID3p{opacity:1}.RtAsN7UrR7u51W5kaOXvp{display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;margin-left:4px;margin-right:0}._1JRtpiobR4jYtbw-xx1tPO{border:1px solid var(--newRedditTheme-body);margin-left:-7px;transform:scaleX(-1)}._1JRtpiobR4jYtbw-xx1tPO:nth-child(2){margin-top:4px} This sets a date of June 19, 1992 for St. Louis. Abduls next era following Spellbound, Head Over Heels, was her worst selling release. The strange part is that as I dug deeper in my internet research, I found that there is actually no record or report of any plane crash that she was ever involved in. Picture of American singer, Paula Abdul during an interview with RuPaul. https://www.iheart.com/content/201992-plane-crash-during-vegas-residency-opener/, "Paula Abdul Keeps Talking About Surviving a Plane Crash for Which No Record Exists", https://jezebel.com/paula-abdul-keeps-talking-about-surviving-a-plane-crash-1835445212, https://www.ntsb.gov/about/employmeev_id=20001212X21252&ntsbno=LAX00FA213&akey=1, https://app.ntsb.gov/pdfgenerator/RtID=20001212X21252&AKey=1&RType=HTML&IType=FA, https://www.yahoo.com/entertainmentwant-to-talk-too-much-about-it-182841961.html, (You must log in or sign up to reply here. While there is a rehab center in Carlsbad called La Costa, the article refers to La Costa Resort and Spa, which is an actual resort and spa. These two are the only records that I have seen that match any part of her story, and neither is a good fit. Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. Further speaking about that time in her life, Abdul said during her Forever Your Girl Vegas show, I lost myself, I lost my passion and that little girl inside me who was once fearless. This compounded her existing spinal injuries and her condition deteriorated for several years until around 1994 her health problems prevented her from working. /*# sourceMappingURL=https://www.redditstatic.com/desktop2x/chunkCSS/UsersCountIndicator.2ab8dda40f822a31d31c_.css.map*/random gossip. If there's something that you know you can actually work on that can improve who you are as a performer or as a professional or as a human being, I resonate with that. The good thing was that she was able to sit out a few years and focus on her health without having to deal with the negativity that often arises on the internet. Paula Abdul knew Jennifer Hudson "didn't need to win" 'American Idol' to realize her dreams. But, she also said that she wasn't alone on the aircraft, and that there are others out there who can corroborate her story. Did Paula Abdul get injured on a plane in 1992? By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Paula Abdul has wowed onlookers with her recent death- and gravity-defying live performances, during which she has swan-dived from "Cold-Hearted"-style scaffolding into the waiting arms of her. Did you know that Paula Abdul allegedly suffered a serious plane crash in the early 1990s and that this plane crash supposedly led to years of dependence on . The same Jezebel article also cites an Entertainment Weekly article from September 25, 1992, which refers to Abdul performing a show at the Fiddlers Green Amphitheatre in a suburb of Denver on June 22. Wouldnt she have some sort of Entourage with her? As Jezebel notes, Paula Abdul has been claiming since at least 2003 that she survived an early 1990s plane crash, and that she took some time off afterward to recover from her injuries. Additionally, Abdul has been quoted several times as saying the plane landed in a cornfield in Iowa. She said that the crash happened when she was on tour at the end of 93. Abdul, who was in her early 30's at the time, revealed she boarded a seven-seater plane after a show and was going from St. Louis to Denver. There is simply too much social incentive in doing so and anyone who tried to say that you are lying will be demonized as an insensitive prick. Fans and tabloids during Abduls run as an American Idol judge often commented on her strange behavior, although she was quick to explain it away. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Was this a ploy for attention that ripped off of Gloria Estefans accident? I met her several times - this would be 10 years AFTER the alleged plane crash, etc. In the early '90s, Paula Abdul was in a plane crash that required cervical surgeries. In an interview with Music News, she said, "I was so afraid of being counted out and looked at as damaged goods," pointing out that she actually was because she had to take so many years off. Paula Abdul has wowed onlookers with her recent death- and gravity-defying live performances, during which she has swan-dived from Cold-Hearted-style scaffolding into the waiting arms of her reliable backup dancers. ", "If there's something that you know you can actually work on that can improve who you are as a performer or as a professional or as a human being, I resonate with that," she concluded. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Paula Abdul is interesting. Also, some regional newspaper would for sure write about the crash landing itself no matter if they knew a star was on it or not. and "X-Factor Around The World," where she worked as a judge. Although there has been some skepticism on the internet about her story, Abdul argues that it happened. Abdul spoke about the crash with PEOPLE in 2005, saying the plane, flying from St. Louis to Denver, landed in a cornfield. There are only a handful of aircraft accidents, in fact, in the general vicinity during the timeframe between June 19, 1992, and June 22, 1992in Meade, Kansas, in Rocky Ford, Colorado, in Brighton, Colorado, in Falcon, Colorado. ", "I was so afraid of being counted out and looked at as damaged goods," she continued. She probably did have an opioid dependency but it was prescribed so shes not like one of them. I dont see any way in hell that someone with chronic pain in the 2000s was not prescribed opioids, its literally whats they give people for shit as simple as a wisdom tooth being taken out. The Wikipedia page for the tour uses the same dates as Abduls website. Because of this I am assuming that this is a mistake rather than an actual lie. How she managed to go down in a flaming aircraft and get treated in a hospital without a single word leaking to the press is another mystery, albeit one Abdul has accounted for mysteriously. BestsellerThe Barista Express grinds, foams milk, and produces the silkiest espresso at the perfect temperature. So I figured Id try to piece it together myself. Id bet even people who have no experience with drugs can at least sense theres something off about her during that show. All three of the outlets have reported that there is no public record of a plane crash occurring that included Paula. I started losing all feeling on my right side, and I was starting to really live in excruciating pain. Follow Lyndsey on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Amazon, Spotify. That album flopped, and then she disappeared for about seven years. You know what? Between her Spellbound era and about 1996, Abdul seemed to stay out of the spotlight. The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Her debut album "Forever Your Girl" in 1988 took the industry by surprise, becoming one of the most successful debut albums, with about 7 million copies sold in the U.S. We have a news anchor and multiple presidential candidates who have either made up or altered aviation stories to make them the hero. This means that there is a gap that these other two shows fit into, although it is odd they arent listed as part of the tour despite being part of the tour. 2 Rich Juzwiak at Jezebel dug up records that give us a possible date for the alleged crash. Abdul claimed her cervical spine was crushed, leaving her partially paralyzed. All content, including text, and images contained on news.AmoMama.com, or available through news.AmoMama.com is for general information purposes only. Submissions should outline a mystery and provide a link to a more detailed review of the case such as a Wiki article or news report. I didnt want people to feel sorry for me or to count me out., Back then, we didnt have tabloids like we do now, she reportedly told journalist Allison Kugel in 2018. At any rate several of them must still be alive and some may have been injured just like she was. From her '80s hits, including "Straight Up" and "Forever Your Girl," to her high-profile marriage to Emilio Estevez to her time as a judge in the early seasons of American Idol, Paula Abdul is considered by many to be an icon. Was she covering for a painkiller addiction, and was that part of why she went to rehab in 1994? Then, over a cornfield in Iowa, Abdul in 2019 said the following took place: It all happened when I boarded a seven-seater plane and an hour into the flight one of the engines blew up and the right wing caught fire and everything went blackI woke up in the hospital only to find that I had crushed my cervical spine, leaving me partially paralyzed.. She took a break from the limelight to recover, came back for American Idol, and decided to embellish her story to garner sympathy and distract from the other issues (the relative commercial failure of Head Over Heels, her divorces) that contributed to her break. Famous American singer and dancer Paula Abdul once revealed she survived a traumatizing plane crash in the early '90s, but years after telling the story, some think it's a sham, and here's why. Paula Abdul made a name as one of the most popular dancers and singers in the 1980s. This, in conjunction with her (also consistent) story about a cheerleading accident in high school followed by several smaller car accidents over the years, means that Paula Abdul already has a pretty good reason to be using painkillers. I dont mean this disrespectfully, just objectively: Some of that shit messes with your mind. Then, in 2019, she described waking up in the hospital, partially paralyzed. That wasn't happening., Despite losing all feeling on her right side and developing reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome (RSD), a disorder that fires so intensely that sometimes your skin can break out in lesions like shingles, Abdul says she was doing anything and everything I could to stay in the game. In 2005, she told PEOPLE the engine caught fire 40 minutes into the trip and landed in a cornfield in Iowa. 2 According to an edit in the Jezebel story, there was a Kansas City Star article claiming Abdul had performed in Kansas City on June 20, 1992, which would basically rule out a St. Louis to Denver flight. Regardless of whatever the actual story is regarding the plane crash, its pretty clear that Paula Abdul struggles with chronic pain and I do not intend to make light of this at all or to shame her if she has struggled with addiction. Worth noting for this point is the fact that Abdul has consistently been open about her diagnosis with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, an incredibly painful condition. She also said that she was 27 at the time (she would have been 31 at the end of 1993) and that she broke through her seatbelt during the crash. The strongest piece of evidence cited by those who believe Paula Abdul is lying is the lack of evidence. Not too long after that, the actor was glad to resume his flight. Paula Abdul has wowed onlookers with her recent death- and gravity-defying live performances, during which she has swan-dived from "Cold-Hearted"-style scaffolding into the waiting arms of her. In a 2014 Hudson Union Society interview, Abdul said she had just finished onstage when she boarded the flight. The 59-year-old has also worked as a songwriter, actor, and television personality, appearing on popular shows like "So, You Think You Can Dance?" But last Thanksgiving, determined to overcome her habit, she checked into the La Costa Resort and Spa, in Carlsbad, California, to wean herself off her medications in one fell swoop. ), Abduls rep did not respond to my request for clarification on this matter. In fact, according to her, she has never even been drunk. Definitely a blog talking about this. In addition to the frequent changes in the narrative and other aspects of the story that don't add up, there's the fact that there is absolutely no record of this plane crash. An in depth Jezebel investigation from 2019. ", "From a [pain] scale of one to 10, my 'normal' was hovering at seven. I woke up in the hospital only to find that I had crushed my cervical spine, leaving me partially paralyzed.. "[I] didn't want to talk too much about it, because it took me a long time to build the career that I had, and I didn't want to be counted out or fearful of people not understanding and thinking that, 'Well, maybe she's really not doing well,'" she told the outlet. Before undertaking any course of treatment please consult with your healthcare provider. This has been denounced by Abdul herself. Not only that, Paula has also mixed up her timeline of the incident as well. Thats something I quietly made go awayno paparazzi or tabloid stuff, she told VH1 in 2008. Watch Paula Abduls full Yahoo Entertainment interview below, in which she discusses MC Skat, her friendship with Gene Kelly, working with Keanu Reeves, her lost 1978 musical movie Junior High, new music, and the possibility of her working again with original American Idol judges Simon Cowell and Randy Jackson. To me, the most shocking part is that she said that she had to take a break from her music career during that the time frame of the incident in 1992 all the way to her stint as a judge on American Idol, ten years later. Theres certainly no clear-cut evidence proving she was ever an addict, but its also nearly impossible to disprove something. Or I chewed the side of my mouth. The fairy godmother of aspiring pop singers revealed she survived a plane crash while on her "Spellbound" tour in 1992, leaving her with many injuries requiring several surgeries. Page 2 of same interview. If this is the case I will certainly apologize for fueling speculation otherwisebut I would consider this the least likely option. In September, singer Diplo took to Instagram to share a picture of his doorless plane, which he said had an accident mid-air but thankfully, no life was lost. During the opening night of her show at Flamingo Las Vegas on Thursday, the 57-year-old "Straight Up". By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Could she be lying? My personal theory (which is based as much on gut feelings as it is on actual information, since the info is so spotty) is that she was on a plane during the Under My Spell tour, wasnt wearing a seatbelt, and was injured when the plane experienced turbulence mid-flight. Paula Abdul Tells Jennifer Hudson Why She Didn't Need to Win American Idol. So she says there was the plane crash requiring 15 spinal surgeries, a car accident the same year, a "cheerleading accident" at age 17, was a victim of battery in 2006 suffering concussion and spinal injuries and suffers from CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome). Not only that, Paula has also mixed up her timeline of the incident as well. Was Paula Abdul really in a plane that crashed? "When we plummeted, I hit my head on the ceiling of the plane. I withstood 15 cervical spinal surgeries and I had to take seven years off. "I was freezing cold, then sweating hot, then chattering and in so much pain, it was excruciating. "You know what? This goes far more in depth than that post and was heavily requested so hopefully it does not get removed this time. Its a horrible horrible disease. Paula Abdul went on record saying she had never said those things, Link to confirmation of Sandstone Amphitheater concert, 2003 NBC interview, earliest mention of the accident, 2005 People interview, discusses details including plane route. I've heard about this before too. 3 This specific link has a disclaimer that records have only been natively uploaded since 1996. What has always made me question her story is no one else has ever come forward and said they were in a plane crash with her. Abdul started undergoing intense biofeedback. Following her recovery, Abdul spends more time caring for her skin, doing what she loves best, and living her life to the fullest. We may earn a commission from links on this page. And I wasn't getting significantly better., After she traveled around the world unsuccessfully in search of a miracle cure (I felt like I could become an honorary neurosurgeon, because I knew so much about what was happening to my body, she quips), Abdul finally tried neuroscience. Not sure why aviation seems to create those false memories. Instead, its her emotional mid-show monologue about a 1992 plane crash that required 15 cervical surgeries and led to Abdul living in near-constant agony for years. I think Paula just gets high on pain pills and makes things up. 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AmoMama creates engaging, meaningful content for women. Distractify is a registered trademark. A tour manager or roadie or someone? oh i found it https://jezebel.com/paula-abdul-keeps-talking-about-surviving-a-plane-crash-1835445212?rev=1560437388395&utm_medium=socialflow&utm_source=jezebel_twitter&utm_campaign=socialfow_jezebel_twitter. Then it would be classified as an incident, as opposed to an accident., (A search of other NTSB reports in Kansas around the time of the supposed Abdul crash pulled up a seemingly minor-sounding one from April 1993, in which a pilot lost control of the plane during a landing roll, resulting in the collapse of landing gear and the right wing tip digging into the ground. In 1991, Abdul earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Ditto that on a search of Google Books. Abdul is one of the many celebrities lucky to escape a plane crash and tell the story. Not impossible, but certainly implausible at least from a laymans understanding of air travel. In a 2019 interview with RuPaul, she claimed that one of the "engines blew up" an hour into the flight. Exactly. Why did it take eleven years after the alleged accident for there to be a single documented mention of it? The earliest mention of Abdul surviving a plane crash that I could find was the May 20, 2003, episode of Dateline. A mysterious 1992 plane crash leaves more questions than answers. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. I was a big fan of hers when I was young, I vaguely remember the story about the plane crash and I definitely remember hearing about her injuring her back and struggling w/ an eating disorder. None of the descriptions in their accident reports remotely match Abduls story. It was on my birthday, too." (As previously. Afterward, she signed her record deal. It was not fun. Back in the day when the NTSB had a searchable database, you could have gone on their website and pulled all the reports for that timeframe to narrow down whether any of them fits the nebulous description. She began choreographing sequences for several movie productions, like "Reefer Madness" and "American Beauty.". Wow. Thirty-five minutes into the air leaving St. Louis, going to Denver, an engine blew up, right wing caught on fire at the other end, and crash landed in flames in a cornfield, she said on the May 19, 2006, episode of Larry King Live, according to a transcript. There are several remarkable things about this oft-repeated account that generally go unremarked. But I live a fully normal life. Like you, I had no reason to doubt Paula Abdul's claim that she had been in a plane crash. The other, more popular theory, is that she used the plane crash as an excuse to either explain away her loopy behavior during her American Idol years as non-drug related (if you believe 2005 USA Today I have never been addicted to anything Paula Abdul) or to excuse it as being caused by medication prescribed to her for her injuries. She was loopy as hell. I gritted my teeth. I limited my interaction with her as much as possible because it wasnt my job and it was a little intimidating, honestly (obviously she was an important client and I didnt want any complaints). Her album also set a record for the most number-one singles from a debut album. I disappeared for seven years, endured 15 cervical spine surgeries with the top doctors from around the world with the hopes that theyd put me back together again.. They looked through all recorded plane incidences and couldn't find anything. Im very curious what everyone else thinks about this case. It's USA not Congo. The idea that this happened but was just kept secret through lack of internet is ludicrous. A dependency is much easier to recover from than is addiction. If anyone is able to find it Id be happy to edit it in, but Im not including information I cant verify.