Brutal Facts About Jennette McCurdy, Nickelodeon’s Tragic Child Star
Jennette McCurdy’s memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died has one of the most shocking titles imaginable. Though Jennette seemed to be living every little girl’s dream as a Nickelodeon child star—behind the scenes, her life was a downright horror story.
1. She Grew Up Poor
From the very beginning, Jennette McCurdy was dealt a brutal hand. She grew up in a poor Mormon family with her parents, grandparents, and three siblings. However, it was the dysfunction that raged on behind closed doors that made her upbringing a nightmare—and her narcissistic mother Debra was at the root of it all.
2. She Had A Selfish Mother
When Jennette was two, her mother was diagnosed with stage four cancer—a sad ordeal that Debra later used to her advantage.
After recovering, she unleashed her cancer story on her children every Sunday, making them watch home videos of her being sick. Debra relished in the attention—but her self-centered nature cast a shadow over the rest of Jennette’s childhood.
3. She Lived In A House Of Horrors
As a child, Jennette’s favorite place was the church—but it wasfor a chilling reason. She hated being at home. You see, her mother Debra had a hoarding problem and filled almost every inch of the house with ephemera and garbage. This meant that Jennette and her siblings couldn’t even use their beds, instead sleeping on mats in the living room.
On top of their house of horrors, the McCurdy family barely made rent every month—but that was all about to change.
4. Her Mother Pushed Her Into Acting
Jennette’s mother harbored failed dreams of becoming an actress—and decided to live vicariously through her daughter, pushing Jennette into acting. But this decision would tear the girl’s life apart.
Even after one of her earliest auditions, Jennette already knew that she despised acting: “Mom wants this more than anything, not me”. But when it came to her mother’s selfishness, this was only the tip of the iceberg.
