“The Act”

Kate Risdon '19

A new show that has recently been added to Hulu called  “The Act” has become extremely popular. This show covers the true story of the murder of a mother, with a confusing twist on who was responsible for it.

Dee Dee Blanchard, mother of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, had Munchausen Syndrome by proxy, which is a psychological disorder marked by attention-seeking behavior by a caregiver, through those who are in their care. People with this disorder seek attention and therefore seek medical attention for their child because of made-up illnesses.

In the show, Dee Dee fed Gypsy’s head with a false reality. According to Dee Dee, Gypsy was born with the mental capacity of a seven year-old and also had multiple disabilities and illnesses, such as muscular dystrophy, leukemia and asthma, a result of her premature birth. None of this was true.

A few episodes into the series, Gypsy starts to realize she can walk and can eat food normally, despite her mom feeding her through a feeding tube and pushing her around in a wheelchair her whole life. This starts a sort of resentment towards her mom and she starts online dating; all in secret. Later on, she starts to rebel against her mom. There are only a few episodes available right now, so we are not very far along in the grand scheme, but this is a true story, and there are many articles and documentaries out about the life of Gypsy Rose.

Image courtesy of The Talon Times Staff.