I was just listening to Courteney Cox’s call-in interview with Howard Stern and I was struck by how well Courteney and her ex, David Arquette, are handling their split and co-parenting. My impression may be based on a carefully cultivated image they’re putting out there with help from Stern, but I do believe that they still care about each other and are going about this in a healthy, rational way. I just wrote about Halle Berry’s acrimonious custody battle. It’s like Halle (and her ex, Gabriel Aubry,) can’t let go of the anger and they’re only hurting their daughter. Courteney and David Arquette know what matters and they’re working to make sure they put their child first. Part of that may involve Courteney making sure she’s completely ready before she starts dating adgain. We’ve heard that David has a new girlfriend, and he’s been a little too candid about hooking up with randoms when Courteney first pulled the plug on their marriage. Courteney insists that she’s been celibate since David, though, and that she hasn’t even been on a date. I guess all those rumors about her hooking up with co-stars were false, or she’s good at lying about it. Here’s more:

Courteney Cox and David Arquette have continued to support each other since their separation in October 2010. Last month, the former couple stepped out for a celebratory dinner marking Arquette’s year of sobriety. And when Arquette competed on “Dancing With the Stars” this past fall, Cox and daughter Coco cheered him on from the front row.

When Cox was a guest on Howard Stern’s Sirius XM radio show Wednesday, she revealed that Arquette has been encouraging her to embrace single life: “He says to me, ‘Courteney, it’s time. Get out there.’ He wants me to date now. He wants me to start my life, and he’s comfortable with whoever that would be [with].”

But the 47-year-old “Cougar Town” actress admits she’s not ready to re-enter the dating game, and has been celibate since her marriage ended. “I have not had a man since David … No guy has asked me out,” she claims.

However, she assures Stern that she’ll be seeking romance again soon: “Right now, I’m not quite ready to date. I’m getting closer … as things become more final in my life with David.” – Huffington Post

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Based on this interview with Cox, and prior chats with Arquette, Stern attributes the couple’s breakdown to sex issues, but Cox divulged that it was more than their bedroom problems that caused their breakup.

“The truth of the matter is that we love each other so much. We have such affection for each other, but we are very different,” she asserted. “I’m a homebody. I like to have people over, but I’m a little socially… not… I don’t love it. David, he doesn’t drink anymore, he’s completely sober, but he likes to go out and dance. He really is a very gregarious guy. He’s very outgoing. I’m much more of an introvert.”

While Cox isn’t dating, Arquette has a new girlfriend. The former “Friends” star admitted that it was hard to meet her.

Cox insisted that she and Arquette are getting along and co-parenting daughter Coco very well. – ExtraTV

[From Huffington Post and Extra TV]

I like these two. I really warmed to David after seeing him on Oprah with his sisters and hearing about his horrible childhood. He’s been committed to sobriety and it shows. Courteney could have been more upfront with denials at the time the cheating rumors were out, but I actually believe her. I do think she at least had some kind of “emotional affair” with her co-star, Brian Von Holt, around the time of her split. She confided in a single dude about her marriage when she should have been telling a friend or therapist. That can surely eat away at a marriage and lead to serious trust issues.

It doesn’t seem like we’ve ever been privvy to the details of a Hollywood couples’ split like this, and they two are acting like they have nothing to hide. It’s smart and they’re keeping the tabs at bay. Why speculate when they seem to be laying it all out?

Here’s Courtney at a screening of “Cougar Town” on 2-8-12. David is shown with his girlfriend, ET’s Christina McLarty, on 1-27-12. Credit: WENN.com

David Arquette called in to Howard Stern’s radio show yesterday, and like his previous talks with Stern he didn’t hold back. The 40 year-old Dancing with The Stars contestant revealed that he’s been dating an entertainment reporter based out of New York, Christina McLarty, who also happens to be the ex wife of Joe Francis. We first heard rumors that these two were together over the summer, and things seem to be getting serious for them.

David also said that he’s in “friends” territory with his estranged wife, Courteney Cox Arquette. Courteney has been seen in the audience on Dancing With The Stars along with their seven year-old daughter, Coco. The fact that David is happily dating again, and that he’s been with his new girlfriend for at least a few months, makes me wonder if he’s ever going to officially divorce Courteney. It’s nice that they’re keeping it civil, though. Here’s more:

Stern, of course, started in with questions about Courteney, asking David why she is in the audience every week at Dancing With the Stars and whether David is still pining for her.

“I’m not; we’re in the friend zone now,” he said, adding that Cox knows he’s been seeing someone new since the summer.

Even though Courteney’s in the crowd, Arquette says his new special somebody is the first one to call him every week after the show and that she just can’t be there because she lives in New York.

And who is that?

“It’s Barbara Walters,” David joked.

He didn’t give up his new gal’s name right away though, but eventually caved and admitted her name is Christina McLarty. McLarty is a reporter for Entertertainment Tonight, as well as being Girls Gone Wild Joe Francis’ ex-wife/domestic partner. Arquette says they met on a boat party early this past summer.

“She’s adorable. I’m not one to run around with different girls. I like someone that makes me feel good and that I can make feel good,” said Arquette.

David says the two have been Skyping up a storm and have taken a few road trips together since they hooked up in the summer months.

“We try to see each other as much as possible,” he said.

As for the show, David talked rehearsing and how he should cry on camera to get a sympathy vote from the public.

“I cried in rehearsal one day,” he revealed, joking that any one who was going to vote for him certainly won’t now. “I got overwhelmed with emotion.”

When Stern began talking about how he fast forwards through the “fat people dancing,” David revealed that he loves all different body types and said that he finds Lacey Schwimmer to be “one of the sexiest girls on the show.”

David, still sober, says because of the show and his new gal pal, “everything is good.”

[From E! Online]

David was going through such a hard time getting over Courteney, (and her infidelity which he refused to accept) so that’s nice to hear that he’s moved on. What I want to know is how a woman can go from a sociopathic probably abusive douche like Joe Francis to a sensitive funny good guy like Arquette. I mean Arquette has his problems, but he got booted by Courtney, not the other way around, and doesn’t seem to have cheated on her when they were together. He’s on this journey of sobriety and self discovery. He just seems vulnerable and sweet to me, while Francis is a manipulative jerk who makes titty films. Maybe McLarty realized that she needed to do a complete 180 from her ex if she wanted to be in a decent relationship. At least she got out of her marriage soon enough and divorced Francis within two months.

Also, that was really nice what Arquette said about finding Lacey Schwimmer sexy. When she dances and is dressed by other people, she really is. On her own she’s a hot mess, but that’s due to her fashion, not her size at all. I enjoy seeing Arquette on DWTS and I hope he hangs in there for a while. He was in the bottom two this week though, and narrowly missed being voted off.

This chick bears a very superficial resemblance to Courteney when she was younger.

Look at how dapper Arquette is outside DWTS practice!

photo credit: WENN.com

We’ve heard some interesting “Dancing With The Stars” casting rumors recently, but since I don’t give a whit about that show I haven’t bothered to repeat them until now. Rumored new participants include Kim Richards of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and none other than Chaz Bono, Cher and the late Sonny Bono’s transgender son. Both of them could be interesting, with Kim entertaining us with her red-faced drunkenness and Chaz helping shatter stereotypes. Other potential competitors this season include David Arquette, Snooki (ditto the drunkenness comment for both) and George Clooney’s ex girlfriend, Elisabetta Canalis. Rob Kardashian, Mike Tyson and Christina Milian have also been mentioned. Here’s more on the latest casting rumors:

Chaz Bono’s name surfaced on Thursday, when it was noted that the reality star (nominated for three Emmys for the documentary, Being Chaz) had just begun to follow Mark Ballas and Karina Smirnoff, two of the DWTS professionals. However, the rumor has no other corroboration, and a recheck of Bono’s Twitter page shows that he is no longer following either dancer.

Is this an effort to squelch rumors? Or did the DWTS producers ask Chaz Bono to remove the indicators of his potential involvement? We will find out soon enough.

The next name to pop up from the DWTS rumor mill is Kim Richards of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Celebuzz reports that Richards has begun practicing her dance moves in anticipation of next week’s official cast announcement.

Considering the uncertain state of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills following the suicide of Russell Armstrong, it’s not surprising that Richards might have time for a little dancing this fall.

[From Buddy TV]

Buddy TV has a whole list of names that have been floating around, and we’ll know soon enough when the official cast announcement is made tonight at 8 on ABC during that Bachelor Pad show. Does anyone watch that? That’s not just a rhetorical question.

I like the thought of Chaz on DWTS. With grandmothers and kids all watching the show and seeing him as a regular big dude paired with a female partner it could go far to advance the transgender movement. They’ll show footage of him as a girl, and will push his story for all its worth. He might really be able to dance too, having grown up around music.

Chaz and his fiance, Jennifer Elia, are shown in May (casual pic) and July (dressed up). Credit: Fame and WENN.com

How small is the pool of women in Hollywood? We always seem to be hearing about the same hangers-on. After splitting with Courteney Cox late last year, David Arquette hooked up with a waitress named Jasmine Waltz who subsequently blabbed to Life & Style about their very brief relationship. Waltz has dated plenty of other semi high-profile men including Doug Reinhardt, Ryan Seacrest, Jesse McCartney and Chris Pine. (Which of these four does not belong?) Waltz also reportedly tried to shop her own sex tape with some random ex boyfriend. So I think it’s safe to say that Arquette has not shown the best judgment after Cox told him she wanted to see other people.

Now Arquette was spotted out with Joe Francis’ ex wife (of a whole two months), Christina McLarty. At least McLarty has aspirations of marriage and fidelity, even if she has piss poor taste in men. She could do worse than Arquette, and she has.

Has David Arquette moving on from his estranged wife Courteney Cox?

The actor, 39, popped into the Camp Playboy event at Comic-Con last week with Joe Francis’s ex-wife Christina McLarty.

Although approached by wrestler Alicia Fox – who invited him to a party – a chatty Arquette eventually made his way back to McLarty, and the duo “danced the night away together” on Friday, according to an onlooker.

The fun didn’t stop for the pair. On Saturday night, the duo hit up the Entertainment Weekly Comic-Con party.

A rep for Arquette says McLarty was among a group of people with the actor at Comic-Con and that they are not dating.

[From People]

Well I hope Arquette is happy and that he’s staying relatively sober, although recent photos suggest that’s not the case. I found his Oprah interview earlier this year so sad. He seemed very vulnerable and like he was still trying to figure out his place in the world.

You know how they say when you sleep with a new partner you sleep with all their old partners and so on? Arquette has been with two women now whose ex partners have slept with Paris Hilton. He needs to date outside of Hollywood, and to wear a condom.

This past weekend at the box office was a veritable bloodbath not in the literal sense but speaking of the carob syrup variety. Scream 4, which was expected to be at least as successful as its predecessors, fell upon its own knife (and certainly wasn’t helped by David Arquette and Courteney Cox’s boner-related TMI) to draw only $19.3 million from audiences. The newest kid’s film, Rio, easily took first place with $40 million even though Hop (which nabbed third place) is still out there in circulation as well.

Of the remaining holdovers, the inspirational sports drama, Soul Surfer, grabbed fourth place; the Cate Blanchett sci-fi revenge flick, Hanna, took fifth; and Arthur slid way down to sixth place (because nobody likes poor live-action Russell Brand). On a more impressive note, The Conspirator (which Kaiser has already noted was pretty damn good) debuted with $3.9 million to land in ninth place; but don’t be fooled by the low place rank because that movie was only showing on about 700 screens as opposed to the 3800 and 3200 screens upon which Rio and Scream opened, respectively speaking. Of course, the film industry is now aghast at Scream‘s poor turnout, and the analysis of why this happened has commenced with fury:

Before Scream 4 was released this weekend, tracking indicated an opening in the mid- to high $20sM for this 4th film in the Scream franchise which comes 11 years after the 3rd film. But after Friday’s so-so debut and Saturday’s declining grosses, it won’t make even the lower end of predictions. The Miramax/Dimension/Weinstein Co’s 15-year-old Scream franchise kept the formula that made it so popular in the first place — including producer/director Wes Craven, screenwriter Kevin Williamson who bailed mid-production because of Weinstein meddling, and orignal castmembers Courteney Cox, David Arquette, and Neve Campbell — then added Hayden Panettiere and Emma Roberts (Julia’s niece and Eric’s daughter). Maybe the entire concept should have been reworked. The result is that Scream as a franchise has little life left in it even though the Weinsteins kept insisting that it had a lot.

[From Deadline]

It must be noted that the above tracking figures do seriously downplay the situation in favor of the Weinsteins. Box Office Mojo’s derby predictions were for Scream 4 to rake in $40.6, and that obviously didn’t happen by a long shot. Of course, one wonders why the Weinsteins bothered to release a horror movie in April when much of the target audience (teens and young adults) are preoccupied with seasonal activities such as prom and finals. There’s also the complicating fact that Scream actually saw a dropoff between Friday ($8.3 million) and Saturday ($6.7 million), which is actually the direct opposite of what happens with the horror genre (it’s a phenomenon that I’ve previously written about ad nauseum over at Pajiba if you’re interested). The thing about horror movies is that word of mouth matters so much during opening weekend, and a steep dropoff between Friday and Saturday could mean that audiences were disappointed in the movie and told other people not to go see it. Or, in the alternative, maybe very few people wanted to watch Scream 4 in the first place.

Photos via AllMoviePhoto

When I heard this story I thought it was old news, because didn’t David Arquette just tell Howard Stern that he tried to make a pass at Courteney Cox while they were on a family trip to Disneyland but got shot down? He did say that, but it was on Tuesday and as E! reports he was sitting in on Howard’s show all week. Well Courteney paid him a visit yesterday on the show and she confirmed that story that David tried to get in her pants but she turned him down. She also claimed that she hasn’t had sex at all since their split. Now why is she palling around with all those fine men and going on vacation with them? What is the damn point? Whether she was telling the truth or not, David believes her. What’s more is that Courteney said that she and David broke up because he couldn’t just hang out with her without getting a boner and wanting sex. They must have gotten old after 10 freaking years.

In an interview with Howard Stern yesterday, the estranged couple discussed their sex life at length, leaving little to the imagination.

When probed by Stern regarding Arquette’s reported advances on Cox during a trip to Disney World with their daughter Coco, 6, the actress said frankly, “It was early in the morning. This is one of our problems in our relationship. Whenever I would need consoling from David, he could not literally put his arm around me for one second without completely getting a boner.”

Cox told Stern that, despite her husband’s admitted flings following their separation, “I have not had sex,” since the split, denying that she is romantically involved with her ‘Cougar Town’ co-star Josh Hopkins.

While Cox had said just weeks before of her ex, who recently celebrated his 100th day of sobriety, “He looks the best he’s ever looked. He’s doing great. He’s just awesome,” she admitted that she was hesitant to become intimate with him again. “I don’t want to confuse the issue,” she said. “We’re going through a hard time.”

“I’m always ready for [Courteney],” said Arquette. “I know I’m more in touch with what she needs now…She takes one sort of thing and she clumps it [and says] that’s what happens all the time in our relationship. It’s not really true.”

Cox told Stern that in the past, Arquette had supported her through difficult times, including her father’s death in 2001, but she seemed far from ready to get back together. After Arquette accused her of being “over it,” Cox admitted, “The truth of the matter is that we love each other so much. We have such affection for each other but we are very different.”

[From Popeater]

You can hear a clip of that at TMZ. David said that “I’m always ready for you,” but as Popeater noted above he claimed that she was overgeneralizing.

Can we believe Courteney, did she really not bone any of those hot guys from her show? David is buying it, but it’s obviously not helping their relationship much. I get the impression that she just doesn’t want to tell him it’s over for good and is hoping he’ll figure it out and come to terms with it on his own. She may think she’s doing him a favor but it looks to me like she’s just stringing the poor guy along.

Image below credit: HowardStern.com Other photo is from 6/1/10. Credit: WENN.com

Last night was the big premiere of Scream 4, and exes David Arquette and Courteney Cox posed together and seemed more than comfortable to be around each other. (A photo of them together is here.) We’re used to seeing acrimonious splits in Hollywood and to hearing vague unconfirmed reports about how people are sniping behind the scenes. David and Courteney have been more than open with the press, though, and have issues gracious statements about each other throughout. So this latest comment from David, about Courteney’s vacation with her co-star Josh Hopkins, isn’t unexpected. He previously told Oprah that he “thought she was having an affair with someone” when the tabloid stories came out about Courteney and her other co-star, Brian Van Holt, but that it was “not true at all. She could relate to members on her cast and she could talk to them in a way she couldn’t talk to me.” I would say he sounds just as in-denial here, but he adds that things are good between him and Courteney, that “we’re still separated” and “there’s no scandal.”

“We’re best friends,” Arquette said of Cox on Ryan Seacrest’s KIIS-FM radio show Monday morning. “We’re not together. We’re still separated.”

“And you know, there [are] horrible articles right now,” he said. “She went away to St. Bart’s with Coco and her best friend and Josh from the show, and I know about all of this. But these tabloids make it like there’s some kind of scandal going on. But there’s no scandal.”

A rep for the actress at the time said her relationship with Hopkins was “strictly platonic.” And Cox and Arquette reunited to take daughter Coco to Walt Disney World in Florida days after her Caribbean trip.

In fact, Arquette, 39, says their relationship is built on strong communication. “We’re really honest and open,” he said. “Our relationship right now is actually better than ever.”

[From People]

Well good for the two of them if they’re able to be at peace with each other and successfully co-parent. I think Courteney met some hot guys at work, had an emotional affair with one of them, asked for time out on her marriage so she could screw the guy, and then David went into a tailspin. Things went south with the first guy, so Courteney moved on to another and made quite a few visits to her plastic surgeon in the meantime to get new boobs and freshen up her face. She’s looking more like Cher now than like herself. I imagine the process was gradual and that she didn’t think it would make her look like a puppet head. She probably even likes the results.

Look at Courtney’s dress – it’s a little black mock turtleneck sleeveless dress with a lace hem. What was she thinking? She also has some kind of sparkly stuff on her legs that makes her knees look like they were dipped in glitter. I’m not loving Neve Campbell’s little pocket frock, but it’s better than what Courteney is wearing.

Photo credit: WENN and Fame

Remember how we saw bikini photos of Courteney Cox on vacation in the Caribbean with her Cougar Town costar, Josh Hopkins? Hopkins was previously linked to Jennifer Aniston, and the last we heard about Courteney’s love life she was dating a different guy from her job, Brian Van Holt, who plays her ex husband on the show. Well Courtney’s rep swore high and low that Courteney and Josh were just “platonic” friends on vacation with a group of people. Only US Weekly is calling Courtney’s bluff and reports in their upcoming issue that these two stayed in the same villa, were seen cuddling on the beach and enjoyed a couple’s massage together, among other implied activities.

Courtney Cox and Jennifer Aniston share everything … even men! Courteney, still married to her husband of 11 years David Arquette, had a romantic rendezvous in St. Barts with her Cougar Town co-star Josh Hopkins. Courteney introduced Josh to Jen less than a year ago — and they reportedly dated for more than three months!

The reason things didn’t heat up between Jen and Josh? Us Weekly reports Jen wanted a relationship with Josh but he turned her down: “He was like ‘no thank you.’”

Courteney, 46, and Josh, 40, appeared to have no problem with the tangled past. They had a great time on their beach getaway, reportedly sharing Courteney’s three-bedroom villa and romantic champagne breakfasts and cocktails by their pool.

Onlookers tell Us Weekly that when Courteney, Josh and her 6-year-old daughter Coco were spotted on the beach they were mistaken for a family!

“If you didn’t know any better you’d assume they were a family,” a source says. “Coco seemed like she absolutely loves Josh, holding his hand, having a lot of fun with him.”

Uh oh! We’re sure David won’t be too thrilled. Remember when he lost it on the Howard Stern Show when he thought Courteney was hooking up with her other co-star Brian Van Holt?

Josh’s father, Larry Hopkins, a congressman from Kentucky, even commented on the budding romance revealing, “They are having a great time, a lot of fun … they have fun with each other. She has a great sense of humor.”

After laying on the beach, indulging in couples’ massages, and a private yoga session, it seems things are going great between this two. There’s only one little problem — Courteney is still spending family with David and Coco.

After her romantic trip with Josh, she showed up at Disney World in Orlando with her husband, 39, and daughter.

“Disney World really is the most Magical Place on Earth,” David tweeted under a picture of the three of them.

[From Hollywood Life]

I doubt this guy is going to get between Courteney and Jennifer Aniston, particularly since it’s not like he’s going to stick around with Courteney. Aniston supposedly wanted a relationship where he is rumored to have called her a “sport f*ck” though, so she could get hurt by it.

What I don’t get, is if Courteney wanted to have a fling with this guy and it wasn’t just a bunch of work friends on vacation, why she invited the paps. Did she think people weren’t going to call her on this? And don’t tell me that paparazzi from multiple agencies just happened to be there on the beach in St. Bars at the same time to get these posed bikini pics. No, Courteney thought she looked hot (her body does) and she wanted to show off. So she took a trip with her new lover, invited some other people for cover and then made sure she was photographed in her bikini right when Josh happened to be there. Maybe she even hoped people would whisper that she’s seeing yet another co-star post separation with David Arquette so we’d still be talking about her. It seems to have worked.

Then right after Courteney went on vacation with Josh, she went to Disney World with her ex David Arquette and their daughter. Does anyone else get the impression that the guy is holding out for a reconciliation and she’s stringing him along?

Photos are from 3/31/11. Credit: Fame

Yesterday David Arquette went on Oprah to give his first major interview post rehab. We heard some advance details in which he spoke about his addiction, saying he had his first drink at four, stole pot from his dad at eight and was “seriously drinking” by the age of 12. He also revealed that he went to rehab as the result of an intervention by his estranged wife, Courteney Cox, and his sister, Medium star Patricia Arquette.

Now that the interview has aired we know that David also spoke about his relationship with Courtney and their separation. It was like a very long therapy session with a guy who is a seasoned therapy participant and knew exactly what to say. That’s not to say that David was anything but very sincere, funny, and endearing. He seems committed to his recovering and to healing both himself and his family. I was very impressed with him and what he told Oprah.

We’ve already covered a guest appearance by David’s sisters, in which they discussed how difficult and abusive their childhood was and how that affected their little brother.

Here are some of the highlights of David’s interview. (I’m putting this in a quote box but the commentary is mine):

Says he’s “just a baby” at recovering. “A lot of it is about getting out of my head, being true to myself and figuring out where my path is. I have a critic in my mind that’s very mean and vicious. Sometimes it leads me down the wrong path. Being able to… identify that voice in my head… helps me to go the right direction.”

Jokes that “if you’re gonna go through a breakdown. Have the breakdown on Howard Stern. Come back together on Oprah.”

Of Courtney “she’s been incredibly supportive, and she’s my best friend and I love her a lot.”

“The best thing for me in sobriety is being authentic. Starting to see things as they are, and being able to distance myself and go deeper within who I am… becoming connected to a bigger movement that you started, Oprah.” That was funny!

On when he started to see trouble in the marriage
“We had our 11th year anniversary (last year in June), and Courtney said ‘I don’t want to be your mother anymore.” She gave him a motorcycle as a present and told him she was unhappy. He said he felt “abandoned at the point like she’d broken the deal.”

On Courteney potentially cheating
“There were tabloid stories coming out about her and about someone on her show having an affair… which is not true at all. She could relate to members on her cast and she could talk to them in a way she couldn’t talk to me…”

David said he didn’t feel at the time like he had abandoned Courtney because he “wasn’t connected” to his role in her unhappiness and was “making myself the victim. I didn’t deal with it in a mature or honorable way at all.”

He said that he was angry at everyone, but that he learned in rehab from a yoga instructor that “Anger is like drinking poison and expecting someone to die.”

As for the change in him, he said that Howard Stern was a catalyst and that “I could have gone on this way for another 30 years and just lost everything and completely destroyed my life…”

David and Courteney went to couples therapy together for a year before they got married, and he said that “Courteney grounds me, and I’m the live wire…. it’s only in myself that I [can] find grounding.”

On whether he’s getting back with Courtney
“There’s always the possibility. That would be the ideal situation.”

On Courtney’s maybe-affair
“When she said that to me [about getting a separation] there were these rumors and tabloids coming out… I thought she was having an affair with someone. No one would have said something like that if she weren’t. That’s what I thought. That made me angry… my way of doing that was getting really self destructive and virtually suicidal in a way.”

David went on to speak about his fling with a waitress, which happened when he had an agreement with Courtney to see other people and thought [Courtney] was sleeping with another guy, to be honest with you.” Then his publicist called him and told him the tabloids had picked up on the affair, so they decided to make the statement that they’d been separated.

So here’s what I think, Courtney wanted to hook up with her co-star, so she called for a time out in her marriage. She might not have been cheating at that time, but she was having an emotional affair and wanted a pass to sleep with the other guy. David flipped out and started drinking and partying but within a few months he realized that wasn’t helping anything. He went to rehab and took it seriously and now he’s working on repairing himself and his marriage. Courtney is still with that Brian Von Holt guy probably, (according to this weeks Enquirer she’s is at least) and that’s complicating things.

David told Oprah that he’s living alone in a home that he and Courtney own in LA, and he said that he’s going to support groups, doing yoga and meditating and working on some side projects like pitching a game show. (You can watch a segment with him at home on Oprah.com) He’s a guy who feels things deeply and needs to find a constructive way to cope with it. I was really touched by him and by his story.

As part of the Oprah interview with David Arquette fresh out of rehab, they had a taped segment in which David’s sisters, actresses Patricia and Rosanna Arquette, discussed their chaotic and abusive childhood. (You can watch that segment on Oprah.com) They were very matter-of-fact about it but the details they gave were heartwrenching. At points Rosanna closed her eyes just remembering the hell they went through. There were five kids in that household and it sounds like their parents were nutjobs.

They came from a family of actors, with a grandfather who was on Hollywood Squares, a father who was a character actor and a mother who was a poet. When David was born they lived for a while on a commune in Virginia with no electricity, no running water and no bathroom. When David was about four they moved to Chicago and then to Los Angeles. The two of them discussed what they went through with one parent who was an addict and another who was abusive.

Rosanna – There was a lot of drama in our house

Patricia – There was a lot of chairs flying around

Rosanna – a lot of hole punching in walls

Patricia – My dad had a lot of issues, my mom had a lot of issues. She was abusive to use when we were little.

Rosanna – She stabbed me in the arm with a knife. Concussions. Just terrible, terrible physical abuse.

Patricia – She choked me to the point once where I started blacking out.

Rosanna – My father was an addict

Patricia – When he was using substance, which was usually marijuana, he would also drink whiskey

Rosanna – And so when you grow up in that kind of family, it is a family disease. It affects everybody.

Patricia – It’s like a minefield, and you never knew which one you were going to get, which morning, which mom which dad. Nothing you could really depend on.

Rosanna – In his later years, my dad did get help and get sober. And my mother, there was nothing but forgiveness and love at the end of her life.

Patricia – I think David was impacted my feeling like he needed to be the perfect son… You cannot fix it by being the best kid in the world, you just can’t.

[From The Oprah Winfrey show, aired 2-24-11]

After watching that clip, David got choked up and said that “the beautiful story about that sort of sad background is that my parents healed themselves throughout their lives. My father got sober, my mother became a marriage family counselor. We’re all dealing with processing our pain in different ways.”

David explained that he wanted to fix everything in his childhood by fixing things with Courtney, but instead he repressed his feelings and tried to cope with it by drinking. Courteney tried to get him to stop, but it took a long time until it got bad enough for him to take her seriously. We’ll get to more on his relationship with Courtney in a moment. It’s just so sad to hear what the Arquettes went through as children. As least they had a chance to know their parents and make peace with them once they got sober.