and how it resulted in her needing multiple back surgeries. According to Paula, around the time her Under My Spell tour concluded in 1992, she was involved in a plane crash. 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. The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. It was in 1994 when I spoke with him, and I believe at that time he was VFR. ), Abduls rep did not respond to my request for clarification on this matter. Ill admit to not being knowledgeable about aviation records, but it also seems telling that no one else has been able to find these records either. I havent heard of anyone else having it so far but my own mother. Abdul claims to have performed in St. Louis before the fateful flight, heading to Denver, and to have boarded immediately following this performance. I hadn't heard about the Bratz thing but I will have to look into that, it would add credence to the drug theories. Patrick Swayze was in real, honest to goodness accident: I remember hearing a rumor years back that he got drunk and crashed a plane. And then I re-appeared on American Idol.". Exactly. Idon't,, https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/paula-abdul-opens-up-about-mysterious-1993-plane-crash-i-didnt-want-to-talk-too-much-about-it-182841961.html. She said that the crash happened when she was on tour at the end of 93. "Data-reactid =" 20 "> Last year, when she talked more openly about her injuries and recovery, both in interviews and on stage, there were some gossip sites like Jezebel and DListed, have claimed that Abdul completely invented their mysterious plane crash story. All content, including text, and images contained on. However, while Abduls own website lacks any mention of these dates, there is some evidence she may have flown from St. Louis to Denver between June 19 and June 22, 1992. In 1992 Paula Abdul supposedly survived a devastating plane crash in an emergency crash landing into a cornfield in Iowa. Back then, we didn't have tabloids like we do now," she said. 4h ago. But 2019 was not the first time she told this story. --Well, one thing nobody has done is CALL HER OUT and make her PROVE she was in a plane crash. Afterward, she signed her record deal. Despite her claims of the crash, some internet users believe the singer fabricated the story. The whole plane was in flames, is how she described it to the Hudson Union Society. During the opening night of her show at Flamingo Las Vegas on Thursday, the 57-year-old Straight Up singer referenced an alleged 1992 plane crash she previously spoke to PEOPLE about in 2005. The Equalizer' Queen Latifah Once Publicly Called Her Long-time Speculated Partner Eboni Nichols My Love, Patsy Cline Talked about Her Time to Go Right before the Fatal Crash That Left Her Two Kids without a Mom, Annette Funicello Was Unable to Eat, Drink & Talk during Her Last Years Her Husband Never Gave up Hope, Why Did Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello Break Up? I was shocked that I had never heard of this story before, so after work, I did a google search, and in my findings, I found that she has talked the incident in several interviews over the years. So back then neurosurgery, especially with having spinal cord injury and having surgery, there was a 50/50 chance to get better. Abdul was taking heavy-duty pain killers, though she claims she never shot an Idol episode under the influence. Abduls next era following Spellbound, Head Over Heels, was her worst selling release. Make of this what you will. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. 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 . 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. 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. 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. But at my very core, I did not like existing the way I had been.. I want to bring to everyone's attention a scene from her reality show where is fucked up out of her mind while sampling perfume. ), I was knocked out unconscious, she recalled during the Staten Island stop on her (utterly incredible) 2018 Straight Up Paula Tour, which incorporated the plane-crash story in its narrative of Abduls perseverance. The idea that this happened but was just kept secret through lack of internet is ludicrous. 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. There is also a record of an accident in Englewood, Colorado on June 10, 1992. In the same year, Paula released her second album, "Spellbound." It sold more than 7 million copies worldwide. Following her successful stint with "The Jacksons," Abdul released her dance workout CDs. ", "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. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. 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 dates, circumstances, and other specifics have changed over the years, but the general outline she gives claims that she was flying from St. Louis to Denver when the plane caught fire and was forced to land in an Iowa field. Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. 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. Offers may be subject to change without notice. Wrestling legend Hulk Hogan luckily survived a huge scare during a trip to Saudi Arabia for the Crown Jewel wrestling event. 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. What Exactly Is Happening for the Rest of This Season of American Idol? Abdul released more successful albums and videos in the following years, expanding her fanbase outside the United States. They looked through all recorded plane incidences and couldn't find anything. But instead I wound up with differing accounts from Paula Abdul herself, articles claiming she was lying, and lots of ._1W1pLIfaIb8rYU6YeTdAk6{margin-right:6px}._1H6Meh6ZAemKxOJDOEasfK{border-radius:50%;box-sizing:border-box;height:20px;margin-left:-8px;width:20px}._1H6Meh6ZAemKxOJDOEasfK:first-child{margin-left:0}._30vlMmCcnqKnXP1t-fzm0e{display:inline-block;margin-left:-8px;position:relative} An in depth Jezebel investigation from 2019, 2020 Yahoo interview where Abdul discusses people doubting her and why she did not speak about the crash earlier, Paula Abduls website page for the tour, which mentions the plane crash but does not list the relevant tour dates. Because of this I am assuming that this is a mistake rather than an actual lie. That says something. Little known fact: It happened while Brian Willams interviewed her. She got into a plane accident not a plane crash. But, she also said that she wasn't alone on the aircraft, and that there are others out there who can corroborate her story. Abdul told King there were no fatalities. Use it long enough you are gonna have problems. She said: During the end of my world tour, the Spellbound tour, when I was traveling from one city to the next, in a small seven-seater plane, one of the engines blew up and the right wing caught on fire, and we crash-landed. "I did the whole first season in pain. There is enough room for the basic story to be true. ', Adele Personally Apologizes to Fans Over FaceTime for Rescheduling Las Vegas Residency, Carrie Underwood and Her Stylist Share All the Details Behind Her Las Vegas Residency Wardrobe, Victims of Deadly Multi-Vehicle Las Vegas Crash Included Family of 7: 'There Are No Words', Adele Says Her Las Vegas Residency 'Has to Happen This Year' as She Wants 'More Children', Blake Shelton Joins Gwen Stefani to Perform 'Happy Anywhere' Duet as Her Las Vegas Residency Wraps. Medical people thinking somehow what they are prescribing is better than heroin from the street. He was a VFR pilot when he bought the airplane, I dont know if he ever got his IR. All Rights Reserved. Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories! 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. 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. Wow. At any rate several of them must still be alive and some may have been injured just like she was. It also seems to have taken off in Nebraska with an intended destination elsewhere in Nebraska, rather than going to either St. Louis or Denver, and it crashed shortly after takeoff rather than the claimed forty minutes to an hour into the flight. /*# sourceMappingURL=https://www.redditstatic.com/desktop2x/chunkCSS/UsersCountIndicator.2ab8dda40f822a31d31c_.css.map*/random gossip. Her account of banging her head against the planes ceiling has been consistent. "The problem was that, at the time, I was. The information in this article is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. And that changed my life.. So, I really don't care what people have to say. Everyone was saying prayers. More Ghost Town: https://www.ghosttownpod.com Support the show: https://. The tour she mentions ran from 1991 to 1992, and most articles state 1992. I am convinced that celebrities make up personal tragedies way more than we think, or at least will stretch the truth about a personal tragedy to the point that it is basically a full out lie. 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. 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. 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. Doesnt take Sherlock Holmes to solve this mystery. It's like, you learn and grow through wisdom and experience of being in this business, especially with the internet," she told the outlet. 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. It would definitely explain the pain pill addiction other posters have mentioned. Where the plane landed is another odd matter. Id bet even people who have no experience with drugs can at least sense theres something off about her during that show. 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. Thats something I quietly made go awayno paparazzi or tabloid stuff, she told VH1 in 2008. You learn to live like that. Theory 2: Paula Abdul was not in any aviation accidents in 1992 and she is using this story to cover up painkiller use and/or her extended absence from the limelight before her American Idol job. 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. One of these theories revolves around the idea that Paula invented the plane crash in 2003, after regaining the limelight as an American Idol judge, to give herself an excuse for falling out of the public eye and to distract from the downturn in her career and personal life during this period. Its not my time to go. Then we crash-landed in flames in a cornfield. EDIT: Link to confirmation of Sandstone Amphitheater concert, so there is now proof of this and I have edited the post accordingly. And the other stuff isn't my business., Now Abdul is once again opening up about her traumatic accident that she says happened during her Spellbound tour. There seems to be no record of this crash ever having happened. I don't, Abdul asserts. They were pop artists at around the same time, and the accident was around the same time as shes claiming, within two years or so. Not only that, Paula has also mixed up her timeline of the incident as well. Update (June 14, 2019, 8:00 am): A reader named Katie Sowder dug up a Kansas City Star article that reviews a Paula Abdul/Color Me Badd concert that it says took place at the Sandstone Amphitheater (now Providence Medical Center Amphitheater) in Bonner Springs, Kansas, on June 20, 1992. 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. She seems like a bit of an odd duck. Her own website does not list a St. Louis tour date (although there is a date for Greenwood Village, near Denver, on June 10, 1992). What we do know for sure is that Paula Abduls career took a hit shortly after the time she claims the crash took place. I gritted my teeth. Then, 30 to 40 minutes into the flight (the time has varied in her repeated accounts), there was trouble. There is some confusion as to which part of her tour the crash occurred on. The LHJ interview had direct quotes from her talking about her struggle with drug addiction. Now, Abdul is focused on self-esteem and self-care. She probably repeated it so much and refined it in her mind she forgot there are records of such things, or it actually started feeling real to her. However, no record of any such plane crash exists, and her telling of the events surrounding the supposed event has changed over the years. His plane was forced to make an emergency landing shortly after taking off from Palm Springs, California, and he took to his Instagram to share the news with his fans. I think Paula just gets high on pain pills and makes things up. I'm guessing she has a new album out or is promoting something. I dont mean this disrespectfully, just objectively: Some of that shit messes with your mind. Despite Abduls denials, there is still rampant speculation that she is or was addicted to painkillers. It also doesnt care if you are using it for fun, to cope with life or to cope with pain. I worked for a dog walking company in 2002, and one of the clients I occasionally walked for was Paula Abdul. While. 2003 NBC interview, earliest mention of the accident. The Truth About The Plane Crash Paula Abdul Claims She Was In. 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. It was on my birthday, too." (As previously. 9 1 2 2 Sep 9, 2020 #20 LemonLimeSoda Dollar General Brand Joined Aug 15, 2013 Messages 10,174 Reactions 55,318 4,123 684 Alleybux 26,840 ForumsStaySpilling said: I don't. Paula Abdul had a concert in nearby Greenwood Village on the same day, but the description of the plane and accident do not match her story at all. Wouldnt she have some sort of Entourage with her? Very little treatment available. The Barista Express grinds, foams milk, and produces the silkiest espresso at the perfect temperature. Others had scary experiences and shared them with their fans. She could have mistaken Kansas City for St. Louis or misremembered, but her stated flight path doesn't seem to have happened. It's like, you learn and grow through wisdom and experience of being in this business, especially with the internet. 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. Perhaps this supposed plane crash will remain mysterious, but like Abdul told the Hudson Union Society: It doesnt matter what you go through, its how you come out.. I was really injured. 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. This has been used by some theorists as proof that the whole story is fabricated, since it gives the appearance that there wouldnt have been a St. Louis to Denver flight at all. Abduls 2009 Ladies Home Journal interview describes her spending Thanksgiving 2008 weaning herself off of a painkiller addiction: The rumors that her sometimes-bizarre behavior was fueled by drugs just may have been true. 2 Rich Juzwiak at Jezebel dug up records that give us a possible date for the alleged crash. I had a picture of our planes side by side, but I cant find it. Since at least 2003, Abdul has been vocal about suffering a slew of traumatic injuries during a 1992 plane crash. However, no record of any such plane crash exists, and her telling of the events surrounding the supposed event has changed over the years. It's USA not Congo. In a 2014 Hudson Union Society interview, Abdul said she had just finished onstage when she boarded the flight. However, the supposed landing site would have been out of the way north for the purported flight path between those two cities. In an interview with Yahoo! But by the sound of the story someone wanted to keep it secret back then. Its a horrible horrible disease. Could she be lying? Her career and personal life seemed to have gone downhill after her Under Your Spell tour, and its debated whether this was because of her plane crash, or whether the plane crash was invented to sweep this under the rug. . No other passengers have spoken about a crash. She definitely struck me as somewhat physically disabled, and absolutely addicted to opioids. According to Paula, around the time her Under My Spell tour concluded in 1992, she was involved in a plane crash. Plus, she toured with New Kids on the Block and headlined her own Las Vegas residency until early 2020. We had plenty of tabloid journalism then it was simply in print. Then I disappeared for close to seven years.. 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 (?). I mean, the CRPS at least doesn't necessarily mean as dramatic as it sounds if you look it up. It was crazy. Copyright 2023 Distractify. She hit the big time in the late 1980s with the release of the multiplatinum album "Forever Your Girl," as BuzzFeed News reported, and then spent the next few years dominating the charts. Which makes it all the weirder that she keeps talking about a plane crash that really doesn't seem like it happened. "I went through all of that, mostly, privately," she said, adding that because the tabloids and the internet were different back then, she was able to contain some information, per Music News. This has been denounced by Abdul herself. Abdul does not seem to have refuted that she went to a place called La Costa in Carlsbad, California, but she was adamant that it was just a normal spa and she had been there for only three days. So I just recently heard from a co-worker that singer/dancer Paula Abdul was once in a plane crash many years ago. Picture of American singer, Paula Abdul during an interview with RuPaul. Her album "Head Over Heels" had several hit songs that became club anthems. I couldn't find this as I was writing, but u/bookdrops dug up this Springfield News-Leader article from June 19, 1992 that references the same June 20 date at the Sandstone Ampitheater. 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. They became a huge success, grabbing the world's attention and placing her in demand for many stars. 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. Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. 2009 Ladies Home Journal interview, discusses going to rehab for painkiller addiction. When we plummeted, I hit my head on the ceiling of the plane. 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. When you visit this site, it may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. And when I came to, all seven of us were holding hands. 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. But Abdul shrugs off such accusations. I wasn't able to do what I love, my heart place, which is dancing. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Especially when there is so much circumstantial evidence, such as her strange behavior that the tabloids latched onto. I was really injured. I assume pilots are included in the number? It was on my birthday, too. (As previously mentioned, the Under My Spell tour wrapped in 1992, and Abduls birthday is June 19.) In the process, she told a story shes previously told several times about surviving a plane crash during her Under My Spell Tour, which ran from 1991-92. I mean, I had a spinal cord injury and nerve damage. Without widespread internet it was probably far more popular than it is today, but you still see plenty of it in the grocery store checkout lines. Though there are naysayers about Paul's alleged plane crash, the singer has not wavered from discussing it to the press. But I live a fully normal life. Pride festival, or other recent comeback concerts. ", "I was so afraid of being counted out and looked at as damaged goods," she continued. 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. Admittedly, the story has changed so much that at least some versions will be lies even if one version was the truth. 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. This compounded her existing spinal injuries and her condition deteriorated for several years until around 1994 her health problems prevented her from working. Well, it did get some attention, but I didnt want to make aI worked it out publicity wise. Why did it take eleven years after the alleged accident for there to be a single documented mention of it? 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. Likewise, Im sure Princess Diana would be pleased to know that paparazzi didnt exist then. 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. Paula Abdul is interesting. ._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}