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Foster angry over brother's tell-all
May 15, 1997
Web posted at: 3:45 a.m. EDT (0745 GMT)From Correspondent Laurin Sydney
HOLLYWOOD (CNN) -- It's a sibling rivalry that's taken to the airwaves.
Jodie Foster's brother is telling the world his family secrets and the two-time Oscar winner is fighting back.
Buddy Foster appears to be genuinely awed by his sister, the award-winning star of "The Accused" and "The Silence of the Lambs."
Jodie, however, is taking issue with her brother's contention that their mother had a romance with another woman and his assumption that his sister is either gay or bisexual.
"This brilliant woman that succeeded to every success, climbed every hill there was possible," Buddy describes his sister in his just-released book, "Foster Child: A Biography of Jodie Foster."
"There's going to be a lot of people who pick it up because of Jodie Foster, but what they're going to find is a psychological and sociological background of this family," Buddy says.
Some of Buddy's version may be shocking.
"I grew up with two gay parents," Buddy says. "I had my Aunt Jo and my mother."
Buddy, who says the sexuality of his sister and his mother is only a small portion of the book, contends his goal was not to "out" his mother.
"I always figured everyone knew. I mean, it was just one of those things," he says. "I don't understand 'outing.' What's the importance? I just grew up with her that way and in this relationship with who we call my Aunt Jo."
'Hazy recollections'
Buddy's interpretation of growing up in the Foster household prompted a strong response from his sister, an unusual act for a particularly private public person.
In a statement released Tuesday, Jodie calls her brother a "distant acquaintance" motivated solely by greed and sour grapes.
"I feel sad for him. Mostly, I feel sad for my 69-year-old mother, who has spent her life struggling to raise four children on her own," she added. "Buddy has done nothing but break her heart his whole life. That's a kind of sadness no mother will ever get over."
Buddy was shocked by his sister's attack.
"I'm a little surprised that she made a statement. She's never made a statement," he says. "People have been asking me all week, 'What's Jodie gonna say about this' and I said, 'I really don't think she's gonna say anything.' Well, everybody in Vegas, I was wrong."
Despite the controversy, Buddy maintains his version of Jodie's story is worth telling.
"This is ... a real family story of how people have made it and how you can turn obstacles into opportunities," he says.
Perhaps Buddy's opportunity will be to turn family stories into bookstore gold.
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