I love all their songs, especially Close to You.
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I love all their songs, especially Close to You.
"Superstar" is my personal favorite. PBS has been using a Carpenters documentary all month to raise money. One of the men they interviewed (who might have been a band member) said when he first heard Karen sing, he told someone, "That chubby little girl can sing," or something like that. This man definitely called her chubby in the interview.
Words can be powerful. Unfortunately too many people don't have the "I don't give a fuck" gene that I seem to have been born with. They're sensitive. Even compliments can be damaging to some people. If someone drops a couple of pounds and receives a compliment on the weight loss, its hard to believe but that could start some people off. I hate that we have to be so sensitive because I think most of you here know me well enough by now to know that sensitive is not a word that would ever be used to describe me. :)
I know this thread is years old, but there are several reasons Karen died that morning. For at least a month she had taken ipecac, which is a poison that thins your heart muscle. Taken once in a blue moon, okay, but 30 to 60 days in a row is suicidal. After a while, your heart shrinks and can no longer function. Her blood sugar at the time she was found was 1,100, which lead to severe dehydration, hence the dry particles in her colon. She apparently was completely filled with fluid in her upper and lower colon to actually distend her abdomen, so something was off there too. One day I will spring the $20 to get the full tox report, but the jogging suit that she was planning to wear had Ativan in its pocket. While staying with the Ramones, she took one sleeping pill and dropped to the floor. At 78lbs (at the time), those will bring you to your knees. It's proven her heart was damaged by the ipecac, her blood sugar was through the roof which caused her to drop from dehydration. I would like to get the tox report to see what else they found. It's possible they analysed the bile and stomach contents due to the distention and the absolute dryness of her stomach.
As for the "Richard molested her" theory, many folks have gone on record stating he is a full blooded male, with an ego the size of Alaska. While his mother favored him and couldn't understand how Karen became the lead of the group, Richard could do no wrong - either to his mother or Karen. Karen repeatedly tried to get his girlfriends to disappear. But when she tried to go it alone, Richard ruled over her and she was too insecure to go without his approval. Her father was the only one who loved her without strings. Richard needed her to be successful (he nosedived careerwise after her death). Her own mother couldn't even bring herself to tell her daughter she meant anything to her. The whole thing stinks of a weak father, a domineering mother and the favorite son.
Those of you who think Tom Burris never spoke after Karen died haven't read the 2 people magazines that came out when she died. I can imagine when one person is draining your money, and the other is hiding laxatives all over the house, that marriage didn't have much of a chance. She married him to have babies and on the day prior to the wedding he said "I had a vastectomy". Karen immediately called her mom to call off the wedding and her mom said "fuck you, it's paid for and you aren't embarassing me". So she got married.
In the end, Karen got screwed at almost every turn except her voice. Had she lived, she likely would have told them all to fuck off and been an enormous solo act.Just my
10 cents.
Also anorexia can weaken the heart as well, the throwing up all the time and starving yourself.
I'm an optician too!!! We do the same thing...lol nice to know I'm not the only one... :)
Looooong time lurker, first time poster. I sat up all night reading this thread about a week ago and have been pondering the whole story. I am a huge fan who is familiar with their entire musical catalog, as well as countless pieces of information. A few things clicked with me when I was reading this thread that didn't before. So I felt compelled to register and get in on the discussion.
It seems to me that the only missing piece of the puzzle in a story that is now 90% told at this point, thanks in part to Randy Schmidt's book Little Girl Blue, is what one event triggered everything that has been discussed to death in the past 33 years. I am convinced that the interviews conducted with family and friends were honestly, for the most part, all they knew about that time and all involved.
Here is my theory, and please keep in mind that this is just a theory and that I claim none of the below speculations as fact:
Karen was most probably sexually (and in other physical and emotional ways) abused by someone close to her in her family. It could have been her father or maybe an uncle. If this is true, then it would make sense of everything else that people have noticed that is either "off" or wrong about the situation, however you prefer to see it. This abuse probably happened in New Haven before they relocated to CA. It seems to be in harmony with why they took off as if they were in a hurry, not even selling their house first. This would also explain why her mother seemed to be the way she was toward her.
Sometimes, when a child is a victim of abuse by a close family member, the victim is blamed for it. If this was true, then Karen would have been seen as someone who threatened the happy family structure and caused the rift by being a target of the depraved behavior. This would also fit with how she was told to dress and act in some cases, and the child-like personality as well, as many have said that this was a result of being sheltered or living in a bubble. It would also establish Richard in the role of "protector" and cause Karen to be close to him and look up to him.
Now if this is all true, then the perception of Richard would be significantly different. Possibly the perception of her father, Harold, as well. Whether he was guilty of either condoning or committing the offense, it would explain the passive behavior and Agnes ruling the roost. If it was indeed a case of Agnes deciding to hold the family together and just move on like everything was cool, then it would explain the underlying negative vibe there as well, all the way around. So perception of Agnes would change as well, and make her seem to be a pretty despicable human being.
Now it all comes back to Richard, who has fought hard to protect an image, not just of the Carpenters as a record selling entity, but also of Karen herself and their parents. This is where I am torn, if my assumptions are correct, because Richard would end up being both a hero for protecting her even after death, but not so much for harboring any abuse he knew about to protect his parents or other family member from justice.
These are just random thoughts right now. I would certainly welcome any comments anyone has, for or against my theories here. This has been a "mystery" I have studied my whole life and thanks to all the lovely death hags here, some new and interesting streams of thought are starting to come up.
Pastxmas, welcome to the forum! Glad you decided to post. You may not be far off. I've had similar thoughts as well.
I just WISH her ex-husband would freakin' talk already. You KNOW he has some good scoop there....
I don't expect him to say anything at this point because of no doubt a pretty tight NDA. Also, if he had really done to her what they said he did, setting her up to fall in love with her, preying on her loneliness, spending all of her money and then bailing, then he is most definitely not going to want to tell his side. He would end up being cornered about how much of a piece of shit he is and that could damage his reputation as a community leader and businessmen in the city he currently resides.
A little more time has to pass but I feel it (hopefully) won't be long. Both the principles in this who are left (Richard and the ex) are in their mid 70's now. It'll be just our luck though that the bastards will live to 100. I have a feeling the "family secret" will be a real bombshell that people will be talking about for years.
such a shame. I always liked her voice. but at the same time, it was always sad to me
https://youtu.be/SJmmaIGiGBg
7th or 8th grade dance song. My first slow dance. Love. She had the saddest voice ever.
This is just a sad situation, what a horrible way to go, starving yourself to death so slowly. If she had only received help she would have still been with us sharing her talent with the world. I wish someone had stepped in and helped her out of such a long, lonely death. What was her brother doing, her parents?? Surely they must have noticed her getting thinner and thinner, gaunt looking. It's just sad the information about anorexia wasn't known well enough back then that they could have stepped in and helped. RIP Karen, sing loud and free.