Ricki Lake revealed she experienced homelessness after rising to fame with a role in “Hairspray.” Lake was 18 while filming the ’80s classic.
While Ricki Lake had a “positive” experience becoming famous at the age of 18, she still found herself homeless after the massive success “Hairspray” brought the actress.
“It was only when my career stopped when I was about 21, 22, and I didn’t get this big part that I wanted,” Lake said about the negative side of acting during an appearance on “I Choose Me with Jennie Garth.” “I was really devastated.
“I went from like making all this money to making nothing and had to give up my house. And I was homeless for a short time. I had to move, but it was the most humbling experience that I’m so grateful for.” Lake revealed she lost between $200,000 and $300,000 during that time.
“But it taught me so much about the value of a dollar,” she noted. “And thankfully, I didn’t have a family to support at that time.”
At the time, Lake also went on a “crash crazy diet” and lost 100 pounds.
“One of the reasons I wasn’t getting parts anymore – wasn’t getting cast in anything – was because the novelty of being the fat girl had kind of worn off,” Lake explained. “And I felt like, OK, the only thing I can control in my life is my physicality and how I take care of myself.”
Lake’s talk show came her way not long after and lifted the actress “out of [her] poverty.”
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Lake recently experienced another weight-loss transformation after refusing to go on Ozempic.
“The doctor was pushing it for people who were overweight,” Lake recalled in an interview with “Good Morning America.” “And he was saying you weren’t going to be successful without it, is what he said to me, really. And I like a challenge. And I like proving people wrong. And so it p—ed me off. I just was reluctant, and I wanted to give it a go on my own.”
Lake noted this is the “best” she’s felt in her life.
“I have this new marriage, and I’m so blissfully happy with this amazing man,” she said. “My perfect man. And you know if I pinpoint one thing that was not working in our lives is that we were carrying this extra weight.”
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Lake began her weight-loss journey with husband Ross Burningham in the fall of 2023.
Lake married Burningham in 2022. The couple began dating in 2020 after meeting through a mutual friend.
The actress shared that they began intermittent fasting and dived into a keto diet. The couple also began exercising, including Pilates.
“This is a lifestyle change,” Lake explained on “GMA.” “I’ve made this my job, and it’s become my joy. Like, I just… I love it. I think it’s safe to say I’m in the best shape of my life.
