by Ian Halperin
In the end, neither pop psychology nor amateur sleuthing can probably answer these pressing questions. I’m especially struck and saddened by what Cissy Houston wrote in her 2013 memoir comparing her daughter’s problems with that of her then-struggling granddaughter:
Some people believed that Nippy was public property, because of her voice and her fame. But Krissi wasn’t then, and she isn’t now. She was a young girl who saw her mother go through some very tough times. All I know is, Nippy loved her daughter fiercely, and whatever Krissi went through at this time is her business to tell, if she ever chooses to do it. So I’ll leave it at that.
EPILOGUE
As Bobbi continued to lay unresponsive, there had been no medical news for weeks from the rehabilitation facility where she had been moved in March. It appeared to outsiders that any prospect for a recovery was increasingly bleak. The family continued to pray for a miracle.
On April 18, it appeared that miracle had come to pass when Bobby Brown stunned the crowd at a Los Angeles festival where he was appearing.
“I can say today that my baby’s awake. She’s watching me,” he announced. His sister Tina Brown followed up on this shocking revelation the following day when she posted on Facebook, “[Bobbi] woke up and is no longer on life support!!!!!:):)God is good!!thanks for your prayers,,still a process,but she is going to be ok:):):):).”
As the public and media stirred at the unexpected turn of events, sources close to the family quickly doused the reports, letting it be known that, despite Bobby’s revelation, Bobbi’s condition remained unchanged.
Indeed, the false hopes finally inspired Cissy Houston to set the record straight on April 20 and provide the first ever-public medical prognosis about Bobbi’s condition. It wasn’t good.
Her granddaughter, she revealed, has “global and irreversible brain damage and remains unresponsive.”
Bobby was quick to clarify his previous misleading comments, explaining that he was in an “emotional state” when he implied that Bobbi had recovered.
The good news, if it can be called that, is that Bobbi is no longer in a medically induced coma or fighting for her life. It is conceivable that she can live in this state for decades.
“Meeting with the doctors and understanding that she can live in this condition for a lifetime truly saddens me,” Cissy stated. “We can only trust in God for a miracle at this time.”
And if the news now extinguishes any remaining possibility that Bobbi will carry on her mother’s legacy, Whitney’s spirit will continue to live on in her music and in my memory of that encounter with her one night in 1988 when the Houston family demons had not yet made their appearance.
Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston pose with baby Bobbi Kristina.
Bobbi Kristina joins mom Whitney onstage during a New York City concert on July 16, 1999. L. Busacca/Larry Busacca/WireImage/Getty Images
Four-year-old Bobbi with grandmother Cissy backstage at Madison Square Garden. Richard Corkery/NY Daily News Archive/Getty Images
A young Bobbi Kristina, Whitney Houston, and Bobby Brown at the Princess Diaries 2 premiere. Lee Celano/WireImage/Getty Images
From left to right: Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Whitney’s rumored lesbian lover Robyn Crawford, and a friend. inf-00/INFphoto.com/CORBIS
From left to right: Bobby Brown, Cissy Houston, Whitney Houston, and Clive Davis attending a pre-Grammy party in 1998, at the Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. Steve Azzara/CORBIS
Whitney and Bobbi take the Good Morning America stage in 2009. Ida Mae Astute/ABC/Getty Images
Cissy and Bobbi at The Houston’s: On Our Own series premiere party. Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images
Bobbi Kristina and Nick Gordon in happier times. Shareif Ziyadat/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Whitney Houston and Bobbi Kristina together on the red carpet during the 2011 Clive Davis Pre-Grammy Party. Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage/Getty Images
Arriving at the funeral home for a private viewing of Whitney’s body. Paul Zimmerman/Getty Images
Bobbi Kristina and Pat Houston emotionally accept the Billboard Millenium Award on behalf of Whitney Houston in May 2012. Ethan Miller/Billboards2012/Getty Images
Pallbearers carrying Whitney’s casket. Noah K. Murray/Star Ledger/CORBIS
Left to right: Nick Gordon’s engagement ring; the Neil Lane engagement ring Nick Gordon bought Bobbi Kristina in 2014. Courtesy of Author’s Collection
Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic/Getty Images
Courtesy of Author’s Collection
The entrance to the Houston’s private gated community. BRANDEN CAMP/epa/CORBIS
Emory University Hospital, where Bobbi Kristina stayed for two months in a medically induced coma. John E. Davidson/Getty Images
Nick Gordon and Bobbi Kristina with Max Lomas (center), one of the people at Bobbi’s house when she was discovered in the bathtub. Splash News/Corbis
Cissy Houston arriving at Emory University Hospital to visit Bobbi. John E. Davidson/Getty Images
Bobby Brown and friends stand outside Emory University Hospital after visiting with Bobbi Kristina. AP Photo/Ron Harris
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you doesn’t begin to adequately express my gratitude to my editor, Jeremie Ruby-Strauss. The same goes for Jennifer Bergstrom, Jennifer Robinson, Nina Cordes, Elisa Rivlin, and my entire family at Simon & Schuster. You are the most incredible, inspiring, thorough and supportive team an author could hope to have.
Chris Casuccio and John Pearce at WCA were invaluable in helping to shape the book in all stages of development.
My longtime friend Max Wallace brought a sharp eye to the book and kept it grounded.
Words can’t express the appreciation and respect I have for the brave friends and family members who spoke on and off the record. At their request, I’ve changed the name of some sources to protect their identity.
Special thanks to:
Rob Dolinski, Taylor Reid, Cassandra Simon, Rhahime Bell, Les Weitzman, Arik Roshanzamir, Ron Deckelbaum, Tony Dixon, Alicia Banton, Rob Polishook, Eric Kirshner, Dr. Eva Ritvo, Seth Zane, Claude Lussier, Martin Rouillard, Rory and Diana Conforti, Hardy Hill, Dr. Christopher La Tourette, John Houston, Dany Houle, Martine Albert, Eric Clark, Marc Andre Lord, Sheldon Neuberger, Carol Lagace, Stephane Fiset, Sebastien Roy, Barbara Sax, Henry Horowitz, “Kid” Desmond, Esmond Choueke, Le Roi Medelgi, Annie Rose, Rob Polishook, Stuart Nulman, Mike Cohen, Minelle Mahtani, Jonathan Ollat, Louise Gardiner, Sherman Young, Fulton County Courthouse, the Atlanta Police Department, the Roswell Police Department, Uber, Richard Peddie, Colleen Peddie, Tracy Davis, Paivi Helmio, Clover Sky, Stan Bernstein, Ken Bell, David Gavrilchuk, Kris Kostov, Michael Peshev, Dimitra and Tom Papadapoulos, Caity and Rodriquez, Zaya Star, Jimmy Bollettieri, Dwayne Williams, Kevin Stevens, Steven Milner, Cathy Montanez, Jan Rucidlo, Paivi Mattila, Vince Cauchon, Severi Pyysalo, Jarno Venho, Jo Piazza, Eric Dulac, Gabriel Auclair, Henry Yang, Malcolm Reinhold, Jeffrey Kennedy, P.I. Sheila McPhilamy, Harvey Baylor, Irwin Zelnicker, Michael Friedlieb, Emily Toney, Carl Mathieu, Katherine Kennedy, Judith Regan, Jarred Weisfeld, Tiki Melvin, Elsa Mays, Rhonda Starr, Trixy, Dr. Charles Small, Dylan Howard, Claire Newman, “Kid Atlanta,” Sirius XM, Olivier O’Mahony, Jesse Tyler, Roxanne West, Ian Hamilton, Eddie Payne, Travis Tefft, Herb Morton, Bruce Richman, Sauli Hietala, Alice Martinez, Ted Hathaway, Corey Jones, Fred Cabrera, Mack Anderson, the Atlanta Board of Education, and a courageous Hollywood A-lister who provided me with key leads.
IAN HALPERIN is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson and Love & Death: The Murder of Kurt Cobain, among many other biographies. He is an internationally acclaimed, award-winning filmmaker, having directed and produced several films, including the highly acclaimed documentaries Gone Too Soon, Chasing Gaga, and The Cobain Case. As a specialist in undercover investigations, Halperin regularly appears on television and radio to share his insider’s perspective on celebrity culture.
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Author photograph by Luru Wei
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
ISBN 978-1-5011-2074-9
ISBN 978-1-5011-2076-3 (ebook)