Heartbreaking Facts About Mackenzie Phillips, The Monster’s Daughter
Mackenzie Phillips carried a terrible secret with her for most of her life—and it wasn't until 2009 that she finally confessed it to the world.
1. She Was Born Free
Mackenzie Phillips grew up under the depraved parenting of The Mamas & The Papas member John Phillips, but she may have been better off being raised by wolves. Dad had only one rule: never say no to anything.
Yes, Phillips grew up as a free spirit, but this soon turned into a harrowing ordeal that would take years of rehab and therapy to recover from.
![Actress Mackenzie Phillips poses for a portrait session in June of 1976 in Los Angeles, California](https://wsrv.nl/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.factinate.com%2Fstorage%2Fapp%2Fmedia%2Ffactinate%2F2023%2F11%2F14%2Fgettyimages-91247570-1.jpg&w=800)
2. Her Childhood Wasn’t Normal
Mackenzie Phillips was born on November 10, 1959, in Alexandria Virginia. Right from the start, young Mackenzie must have been aware that her home life wasn’t what most of her friends had. Not only was her house filled with musicians, but it also set the scene for nonstop substance use.
The family was highly dysfunctional and the inevitable divorce was not going to help Mackenzie one little bit.
![Mackenzie Phillips](https://wsrv.nl/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.factinate.com%2Fstorage%2Fapp%2Fmedia%2Ffactinate%2F2023%2F11%2F14%2FGettyImages-1440833986.jpg&w=800)
3. She Was Caught Between Two Worlds
The thing was, as a child, Phillips pinballed between two households. On the one hand, she had her mother who, besides a pesky problem with drinking, was pretty stable. On the other days, Phillips was with her dad in his run-down pleasure palace. Here, there were no rules. Phillips could roller skate in a drained pool and hang out with cool musicians like Mick Jagger.
There were, however, a few bizarre stipulations while living at her father's house.
![Mick Jagger performing](https://wsrv.nl/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.factinate.com%2Fstorage%2Fapp%2Fmedia%2Ffactinate%2F2023%2F11%2F14%2Fmickjagger1976-1.jpg&w=800)
4. She Had A Terrible Father
Sure John Phillips was an unconventional father to Mackenzie, but he still had standards. For example, when she was in his care, she had to sleep under his roof at least once a week. Where she went the other days was apparently not his business.
Another rule was about the way MacKenzie dressed.
If she was coming home in the morning, she had to arrive home in different clothes than the ones she went out in. According to dad: that’s what a lady does. Needless to say, Phillips had no curfew.
But she did have one chore—and it was straight out of bizarro land.
![The Mamas And The Papas Ed Sullivan Show 1968](https://wsrv.nl/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.factinate.com%2Fstorage%2Fapp%2Fmedia%2Ffactinate%2F2023%2F11%2F14%2FThe_Mamas_and_the_Papas_Ed_Sullivan_Show_1968.jpg&w=800)